OSU Spinoff to Commercialize Advanced Foam Manufacturing Technology

The Ohio State University has teamed up with a biodiesel producer from Ohio on research based in glycerin technology that converts crude glycerin into polyurethane foam that can be used in a wide range of products including automotive seats and bumpers, appliance applications such as thermal insulation systems from refrigerators, insulation boards, packaging materials, or the construction industry.

The process, created by Yebo Li, a biosystems engineer for OSU’s Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center in Wooster, converts crude glycerin created via biodiesel production into biopolyol, which is then used as the main component for the foam.  Li’s work has received innovation capital funding from the Ohio Soybean Council and TechColumbus. 

Poly-Green Technologies, LLC, a Mansfield-based startup, will lead commercialization efforts for the advanced material foam. The company plans to start production and enter the market this summer.
For more details, see the story in Biodiesel Magazine.