R&D 100 winner of the day: Low GWP Froth-Pak Spray Foam

DuPont’s Froth-Pak Spray Foam products are used to air seal and insulate various spaces within the building envelope. These products historically use hydrofluorocarbons as blowing agents which are being phased out of use in spray foam products because of their high global warming potential (GWP). Hydrofluoroolefin (HFO) blowing agents have been proposed as acceptable alternatives. However, critical compatibility challenges remain between desired catalyst systems and some HFOs, specifically 1,3,3,3-tetrafluoropropene. This results in loss of catalytic activity over time and degradation of product properties. DuPont seized this noteworthy challenge to invent a solution that delivers a significant reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions while maintaining product performance, based on a novel approach utilizing carbon dioxide in addition to the liquid 1-chloro-3,3,3-trifluoropropene (HFO-1233zd) as the blowing agent package. The innovation team solved challenges in formulating, manufacturing, and application technology. The resulting sealant and insulation products are shelf stable, maintain all performance attributes, and boast a blowing agent package GWP reduction of over 99%. The annual environmental and GHG benefit from this blowing agent change is estimated.