MUMBAI, India, Sept. 7 -- Intellectual Property India has published a patent application (202541073631 A) filed by Elifecycle Management Private Limited on August 01, 2025, for Process For The Chemical Recycling Of Rigid Polyurethane Foam Via Indirect Ultrasonic-Assisted Glycolysis And In-Situ Short Path Distillation.
Inventors include Abhishek Sanjiv Agashe; Venkata Kashyap Devulapally; and Mohit Kumar Vanamala.
The application for the patent was published on September 04, 2026, under issue no. 36/2026.
Abstract: ABSTRACT The present invention discloses a process for chemically recycling rigid polyurethane foam using indirect ultrasonic-assisted depolymerisation followed by in situ short-path distillation. Shredded PU foam is reacted with urethane-linkage breaking solvent and a basic catalyst in a closed reactor (101), subjected to ultrasonic cavitation via externally mounted piezoelectric transducers (102). The mixture is heated (103) under an inert nitrogen atmosphere and agitated using a torque- sensing VFD motor (104). Upon reaching a predefined viscosity threshold, the reaction is terminated, and the mixture is vacuum-transferred (105) to a short path distillation chamber (106). Volatile impurities are removed, and high-purity polyols are collected in a nitrogen-blanketed receiver (107). The recovered polyols exhibit hydroxyl values of 200–500?mg KOH/g, viscosities of 300–900?cP, and PDI 1.5, making them suitable for reuse in polyurethane applications. The figure associated with the abstract is Fig. 1.
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
