Tetramethyliminodipropylamine TMBPA: The driving force for the green development of the polyurethane industry

March 13, 2025by admin0

Tetramethyliminodipropylamine (TMBPA): Green driving force of the polyurethane industry

In the vast starry sky of the chemical industry, Tetramethylbisamine (TMBPA) is like a shining star, and is injecting strong green development momentum into the polyurethane industry with its unique performance and environmental protection advantages. As the global emphasis on sustainable development deepens, the chemical industry is also facing unprecedented challenges and opportunities. How to reduce the impact on the environment while ensuring product quality has become a question that every practitioner must think about. As an efficient and environmentally friendly catalyst, TMBPA is playing an increasingly important role in this field.

Development background and challenges of the polyurethane industry

Polyurethane (PU) is a widely used functional polymer material. Its excellent mechanical properties, chemical resistance and processing diversity make it occupy an important position in many fields such as construction, automobiles, home appliances, and textiles. However, catalysts used in traditional polyurethane production often contain heavy metals or volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which not only cause pollution to the environment, but also potentially harm human health. Therefore, developing more environmentally friendly catalysts has become an important topic in promoting the sustainable development of the polyurethane industry.

In recent years, governments have successively issued a series of regulations to restrict or prohibit the use of certain traditional catalysts. For example, EU REACH regulations and relevant regulations of the US EPA have put higher requirements on the environmental performance of chemicals. At the same time, consumers’ demand for green products is also increasing, which further promotes enterprises to transform towards low-carbon and environmental protection. Against this background, TMBPA quickly stood out with its excellent catalytic performance and good environmental protection characteristics and became the focus of industry attention.

The basic properties and structural characteristics of TMBPA

Chemical Structure and Naming

The chemical name of TMBPA is N,N,N’,N’-tetramethyl-N,N’-bis(3-aminopropyl)ethylenediamine, which is an organic amine compound with a complex spatial structure. Its molecular formula is C12H30N4 and its molecular weight is 234.4 g/mol. Structurally, TMBPA consists of two terminal amino groups and a central bridge, forming a special “dumbbell-shaped” molecular configuration. This structure gives it extremely strong coordination and reactivity, allowing it to play an efficient catalytic role in the synthesis of polyurethane.

parameter name	Value/Description
pointsSub-form	C12H30N4
Molecular Weight	234.4 g/mol
Appearance	Colorless to light yellow transparent liquid
Density (20℃)	About 0.85 g/cm³
Boiling point	>200℃
Flashpoint	>90℃

Physical and chemical properties

TMBPA is a colorless to light yellow transparent liquid with low viscosity and good fluidity. Its density is about 0.85 g/cm³, the boiling point is higher than 200℃, and the flash point is more than 90℃, showing high thermal stability and safety. In addition, TMBPA also shows strong alkalinity, which can effectively promote the reaction between isocyanate and polyol, thereby accelerating the formation process of polyurethane.

It is worth mentioning that TMBPA is relatively low in volatile, which means it does not release a large amount of harmful gases during use like some traditional catalysts, thereby reducing the impact on the operator and the environment. At the same time, it has good solubility and is compatible with most organic solvents and polyurethane raw materials, making it easy to mix and mix in practical applications.

Environmental Advantages

Compared with traditional tin-based or lead-based catalysts, the big advantage of TMBPA is that it does not contain heavy metal components at all, which is in line with the pursuit of “green chemistry” by the modern chemical industry. In addition, due to its low volatility and high stability, TMBPA produces less waste during production and use, making it easy to deal with and recycle, further reducing the burden on the environment.

Application of TMBPA in the polyurethane industry

Catalytic Mechanism

The reason why TMBPA can shine in the polyurethane industry is closely related to its unique catalytic mechanism. As an organic amine catalyst, TMBPA mainly participates in the reaction in two ways:

Proton Transfer Mechanism: TMBPA can accept protons on isocyanate groups (-NCO) to generate intermediate cations, thereby reducing reaction activation energy and accelerating the formation of polyurethane.
Hydrogen bonding: The amino groups in TMBPA molecules can form hydrogen bonds with hydroxyl groups (-OH), enhancing the interaction between the two and improving reaction efficiency.

ThisThe dual action mechanism allows TMBPA to not only significantly shorten the reaction time, but also effectively control the physical properties of the product, such as hardness, elasticity, etc., to meet the needs of different application scenarios.

Application Fields

1. Foam products

In the field of soft foam, TMBPA is widely used in the manufacturing of furniture mattresses, mattresses, carpet backings and other products. By adjusting the amount of catalyst, the density and resilience of the foam can be precisely controlled, resulting in higher comfort and durability. In terms of rigid foam, TMBPA is often used in thermal insulation boards, refrigerator inner liners, etc., to help improve the insulation performance and dimensional stability of the product.

Application Scenario	Main Functions	TMBPA functions and characteristics
Furniture mat	Provides soft support	Control foaming rate and improve feel
Refrigerator Inner Liner	Achieve efficient heat insulation	Enhance the crosslink density and optimize the mechanical properties
Insulation board	Reduce heat loss	Improve the foam closed cell rate and reduce the thermal conductivity

2. Coatings and Adhesives

The application of TMBPA in the fields of coatings and adhesives should not be underestimated. It can help adjust the curing speed and ensure that the coating has good adhesion and wear resistance; it can also improve the initial adhesion and final strength of the adhesive, and is suitable for the bonding of various substrates such as wood, metal, plastic, etc.

3. Elastomer

For occasions where high strength and elasticity are required, such as sports soles, seals, etc., TMBPA can improve the mechanical properties of the material by promoting crosslinking reactions. This improvement not only extends the service life of the product, but also improves the user experience.

TMBPA’s technical advantages and market prospects

Technical Advantages

High efficiency: TMBPA can achieve the same catalytic effect at lower doses compared to traditional catalysts, thereby reducing costs and simplifying process flow.
Selectivity: TMBPA has high selectivity for specific types of responses and can better meet customized needs.
Environmentality: As a green and environmentally friendly catalyst, TMBPA is in line with the current mainstream trends in the international market and helps enterprises gain competitive advantages.

Market prospect

As the global focus on sustainable development continues to increase, TMBPA’s market share in the polyurethane industry is expected to continue to expand in the next few years. According to forecasts by multiple research institutions, the global polyurethane catalyst market size will reach billions of dollars by 2030, of which organic amine catalysts will grow rapidly, and TMBPA will occupy an important position.

In addition, with the advancement of technology and the decline in costs, the application scope of TMBPA is expected to further expand to other related fields, such as epoxy resin curing agents, pesticide intermediates, etc., showing broad development potential.

Conclusion

To sum up, tetramethyliminodipropylamine (TMBPA) is gradually becoming a key force in promoting the green development of the polyurethane industry with its excellent catalytic performance and environmental protection advantages. Whether from the technical level or the market level, TMBPA has unparalleled competitiveness and huge development potential. We have reason to believe that in the near future, this magical compound will continue to write its glorious chapters and create a better life for mankind!