SKC's polyurethane insulation material passed the national flame retardant standard test for the first time

A flame-retardant polyurethane insulation material produced by SK pucore, the polymer materials manufacturing division of SKC, has been approved by Korea's National Certification and Verification Agency. This is the first time that polyurethane based insulation products have passed the national flame retardant performance test in the insulation industry.

Polyurethane is basically a plastic material that is highly flammable. Many buildings use exterior trim materials that are combustible due to their high insulation properties and appearance. A massive fire broke out in residential buildings and multi-purpose buildings in South Korea due to exterior insulation panels made of plastic. As a result, the flammable material was banned in November 2019.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport classifies building materials into three types - flame-retardant, fire-proof and fire-resistant. Fire-retardant materials take a long time to catch fire, while fire-resistant materials such as concrete, clay bricks and bricks do not catch fire. Flame-retardant materials are a complex of chemicals that are extremely difficult to ignite.

SK pucore said in a statement on Dec. 19 that its polyurethane insulation material, developed with Lotte Engineering & Construction Co., Lotte Chemical Co., and two construction material manufacturers (SY Group and Geun Seung Insulationtech), had passed flame retardant tests conducted by the Korea Conformity Laboratory. The results were verified by the state-run Korea Laboratory Accreditation Program (KOLAS).

Insulation is usually used in the form of foam, which is sandwiched between the exterior panels during the manufacturing stage, or sprayed between the walls and the panels. The spray of insulating foam expands to completely fill the gap.

SK pucore's insulation has been able to maintain its flame-retardant properties thanks to the development of polyols, a backbone chemical used in the production of polyurethane foam. The newly developed polyalcohol-based materials have high insulation and flame retardant properties.

SKC的聚合物材料制造部门SK pucore生产的一种阻燃聚氨酯保温材料已获得韩国国家审定和核查机构的批准。这是聚氨酯材料为主的绝缘产品首次在绝缘行业中通过韩国国家阻燃性能测试。

聚氨酯基本上是一种塑料材料，具有高度可燃性。许多建筑物使用的外部装饰材料，由于其高绝缘性能和外观，是可燃的。由于塑料材料外墙保温板，韩国的住宅楼和多功能建筑发生了大规模火灾。鉴于此，这种易燃材料在2019年11月被禁止使用。

国土交通部将建筑材料分为三种类型--阻燃材料、防燃材料和抗燃材料。阻燃材料需要很长时间才能着火，而混凝土、粘土砖和砖等防火材料则不会着火。阻燃材料是一种化学物质的复合体，极难被点燃。

SK pucore在12月19日的一份声明中说，其与乐天工程建设公司、乐天化学公司以及两家建筑材料制造商（SY集团与Geun Seung Insulationtech）共同开发的聚氨酯保温材料已经通过了韩国合格性实验室进行的阻燃性能测试。测试结果由国营的韩国实验室认可计划（KOLAS）进行了验证。

保温材料通常以泡沫的形式使用，在制造阶段被夹在外墙板之间，或者被喷在墙和板之间。喷射的绝缘泡沫会膨胀，完全填充空隙。

SK pucore的绝缘材料能够保持其阻燃性能，这要归功于多元醇的发展，多元醇是用于生产聚氨酯泡沫的一种骨干化学品。新开发的以多元醇为基础的材料具有很高的绝缘和阻燃性能。