Recycling and Sustainability of Polyurethanes Explored in Depth at UTECH Europe 2018 Conference

MAASTRICHT, NETHERLANDS – March 1, 2018 – Recycling, sustainability, and the use of renewable resources in the manufacture of polyurethanes will be a key focus of the UTECH Europe 2018 conference taking place May 29-31, 2018 at the MECC, Maastricht, The Netherlands. No less than 15 of the conference’s 80-plus detailed technical papers are devoted to environmental issues in a dedicated session taking place on the event’s second day.

Recycling and Sustainability of Polyurethane Explored in 15 papers at #utecheurope 2018 Conference May 29-31.

Among papers focusing on the recycling of polyurethane materials, Mila Skokova, Sales Manager of H & S Anlagentechnik will present “Recycling of End-of-Life PU Mattresses into Polyol for Rigid PU Foam Applications.” Ronny Hanich, Research Associate, Fraunhofer ICT and Ana Crespo Soler, Senior Researcher Composites, AIMPLAS will explore “The Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development in Recycling Foam from Post-Consumer waste.” Grazyna Mitchener, Director and Principal Consultant at Polychemtech will deliver a paper on “Recycling of Rigid Polyurethane and Polyisocyanurate Foam Waste.”

Papers exploring the greater use of renewable resources include: “The BASF Biomass Balance Approach – A Ground-breaking Way of Deriving Products from Renewable Raw Materials,” delivered by Christian Krueger and Volker Schmidt of BASF Polyurethanes.

Richard French, Business Development Director at Econic Technologies will introduce “Econic Catalyst Systems for Tunable, Low-Pressure iIncorporation of CO2 into Polyols.” A team from Covestro’s Catalysis & Technology Incubation unit Christoph Gürtler, Jochen Norwig and Annika Stute will speak on “Broadening the Raw Material Base of Polyurethanes: New Developments with CO2 & pFA.”

Zsanett Boros, Development Engineer at Wanhua-BordsodChem will explore “A Transition from Synthetic to Biodegradable Polyurethanes.” Virginie Chabrol, Technical Manager Specialities at Total Cray Valley will introduce “Krasol F 3000 Novel Bio-based Diol for Polyurethanes.”

Papers looking more broadly at the sustainability and the circular economy agenda for the polyurethanes industry include Marcel Moeller, Marketing Director EMEAI, Dow Polyurethanes on “Addressing the Challenges and Opportunities of the Circular Economy.” Covestro’s Senior Vice President Commercial Operations EMEA, Polyurethanes Business Unit Hermann-Josef Doerholt will present his paper on “Innovation for Sustainable Growth.”

Michel Baumgartner, Secretary General, EUROPUR and Arnaud Duvielguerbigny, Managing Director, PU Europe will together guide conference delegates with their session “The End-of Life of Flexible and Rigid Polyurethane Foam: EU Regulatory Update and Way Forward for the Industry.”

The full three-day program includes sessions covering all areas of the polyurethanes industry including flexible foams, rigid and spray foams, blowing agents, CASE (Coatings Adhesives, Sealants and Elastomers), additives, polyureas, composites and automotive applications. ISOPA will also be holding a dedicated session on the second day of the conference.

For more information on the full conference program and to book a place at the UTECH Europe 2018 conference visit: www.utecheuropeconference.com. Early conference bookings receive a generous discount on the cost whether attending for one, two or all three days. The early bird rate for conference bookings ends on 14 March 2018.

Set to be the biggest ever staged, the UTECH Europe 2018 exhibition and conference offers materials specialists the perfect opportunity to see global advancements in polyurethane technology including all the latest products, formulations and machines. Expected to attract over 8,000 attendees from more than 80 different countries worldwide, the exhibition features all the industry’s major players with a total of over 130 exhibitors including machinery suppliers, systems houses, technical consultancies, and test laboratories.