Zhejiang Huachuang Supercritical CO₂-Assisted Polyurethane Spraying Technology

Thread Content

On July 8, 2025, Nanjing Forestry University shared with the world the supercritical CO₂-assisted polyurethane spraying technology developed jointly by Zhejiang Huachuang Carbon One Intelligent Manufacturing Co., Ltd. and Nanjing Forestry University, which received significant attention and unanimous praise. Rigid polyurethane foam, as an efficient insulating material, is widely used in areas such as home appliances, building energy conservation, cold chain transportation, and industrial pipelines. Especially in the spraying industry, there are various technical challenges, including the pressure to phase out traditional hydrochlorofluorocarbon foam agents due to their role as ozone-depleting substances (ODS); the high global warming potential (GWP) and high cost of hydrofluorocarbons; safety risks associated with pentane foam agents; and performance defects in fully water-based foam products. The supercritical CO₂-assisted water-based polyurethane foam technology, developed over a decade of research by Zhejiang Huachuang and Nanjing Forestry University, takes advantage of the unique physical properties of CO₂ in its critical state to create the world’s only alternative technology with fully independent intellectual property rights, featuring zero ODP and an extremely low GWP. Currently, this innovative technology for polyurethane spray foaming agents has been incorporated into **plans, serving as a practical model for the green transformation of the global polyurethane spraying industry. This technology introduces a spraying device for polyurethane foam using supercritical CO₂ to assist with water foaming, thereby significantly overcoming the limitations imposed by low temperatures in conventional foam spraying processes ； Developed the corresponding polyether components and their optimized formulation systems ； Foamed products have superior comprehensive performance compared to fully water-based foamed products, and they significantly reduce material loss. As assessed by the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation through a technical achievement evaluation, this technology has reached an internationally advanced level, and it holds over 40 intellectual property rights, including 9 Chinese invention patents and 1 U.S. patent. To date, this technology has been successfully applied in various domestic projects related to insulation in cold chain systems, building exteriors, and fishing boats. A total of 150,000 cubic meters of rigid foam have been sprayed using this technology; as a result, 520 tons of the HCFC-141b foaming agent have been replaced or reduced, leading to a reduction of 57.2 tons in ODP equivalents, as well as a reduction of 377,000 tons in CO₂ equivalents. This has yielded significant economic and social benefits. This technology shows good application prospects and high cost-effectiveness, providing important technical support for the phasing out of HCFC-141b in the polyurethane foam industry.