Industrial Applications of Renewable Plastics

5.15. Thermosetting Furan Resins

Furfural, a precursor for furan resins, can be produced from processing of polysaccharide hemicellulose constituents by digestion and dehydration. The preferred biomass is bagasse, a residue from sugar cane.

The main applications of furan resins concern the foundry industry and special chemical resistant parts. To expand uses, the Biocomp project studies two types of furan resins, Biorez^® and Furalite^® furan resins, for some applications as standard resins. Parts of one to some meters have been produced as demonstrators. Compression molding of mats with the resin sprayed up leads to an automotive door panel prototype.

Example of producer without claiming to be exhaustive: TransFurans Chemicals (TFC—www.transfurans.be/ ...