3 Automotive Uses for Polyurethanes DONALD G. LEIS
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Silicones and Urethane Intermediates Division—Section Κ1487, Union Carbide Corporation, Old Ridgebury Road, Danbury, CT 06817
The automobile has become an integral part of the American economy and way of l i f e . This dependence on the automobile has been reinforced by the decline of the core of many American cit ies which has resulted in a dispersal of traditional city func tions to the suburbs. Surburban residential communities, offi ces, plants and shopping centers could not exist without the automobile. As a result, for the majority of American people, there is no viable short term alternative for personal transportation without incurring very major population shifts and economic dis locations. During the past 25 years, while this move to suburbia was taking place, the number of licensed cars in the United States has been increasing at an average annual rate of 4.3%, while domestic car production had been increasing at an average an nual rate of 1.6%. (Table I) The extent of the dependence of the American people upon the automobile is gained from the following statistics. The U.S. Department of Transportation has estimated that by 1978 (Table 2), there were an estimated 154 million licensed vehicles and 142 million licensed drivers with an average of 1.09 vehicles per driver. Of the total vehicles, 76% or 117 million were automobiles and 71% of the licensed drivers owned cars. In 1978 (Table 3), motor vehicles travelled 1.54 t r i l l i o n miles with an average of nearly 10,000 miles per vehicle and consumed an estimated 277 billion gallons of fuel which repre sented nearly 40% of the total domestic petroleum usage. During the 1970fs, with the formation of the OPEC cartel, a major change occurred in the price structure of crude petro leum and as a result the price of gasoline. The extent of this change is shown in Figure I. The i n i t i a l price increase was followed by four years of relative price stability. However, this was followed by a rap id escalation of price which started in 1979. With the removal 0097-6156/81/0172-0033$05.00/0 © 1981 American Chemical Society Edwards et al.; Urethane Chemistry and Applications ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1981.
URETHANE CHEMISTRY AND APPLICATIONS
TABLE 1 LICENSED VEHICLES AND CAR PRODUCTION GROWTH RATE -
1953 - 1978
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ANNUAL GROWTH RATE, % LICENSED CARS
4.3
CAR PRODUCTION
1.6
TABLE 2 MOTOR VEHICLE STATISTICS 1978 TOTAL LICENSED VEHICLES
154 MILLION
TOTAL LICENSED DRIVERS
142 MILLION
TOTAL PASSENGER CARS
117 MILLION
SOURCE;
DOT
TABLE 3 MOTOR VEHICLE STATISTICS 1978
TOTAL VEHICLE, MILES
1.54 TRILLION
TOTAL FUEL USAGE, GALLONS
277 BILLION
PETROLEUM USAGE
^
SOURCE:
40%
DOT
Edwards et al.; Urethane Chemistry and Applications ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1981.
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3. LEIS
Automotive Uses for Polymrethanes
35
Figure 1. Petroleum and gasoline 1972-1980 price index (1972 = 100).
Edwards et al.; Urethane Chemistry and Applications ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1981.
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36
URETHANE CHEMISTRY AND APPLICATIONS
of p r i c e c o n t r o l s on domestic petroleum, the p r i c e should reach that of the i n t e r n a t i o n a l market. The extent o f the p r i c e e s c a l a t i o n i n 1979 i s shown i n the f a c t that i n the 15 month p e r i o d January 1979 t o March 1980, the weighted average i n t e r n a t i o n a l p r i c e f o r petroleum increased from $13.77 per b a r r e l to $29.65 per b a r r e l . In the past e i g h t y e a r s , w h i l e the i n t e r n a t i o n a l p r i c e o f petroleum has i n c r e a s e d 957%, the domestic composite p r i c e has increased 540% and the p r i c e o f g a s o l i n e increased 300%. Because the h i g h e s t r a t e o f i n c r e a s e occurred i n the past year, the e f f e c t has been a sharp market trend from l a r g e t o s m a l l cars and i n the American Buyer's requirement f o r a new c a r . As a r e s u l t o f t h i s changed market environment, there now e x i s t s i n the U n i t e d States a l a r g e f l e e t o f over 100 m i l l i o n c a r s , many o f which were b u i l t i n an e r a of r e l a t i v e l y cheap and a v a i l a b l e g a s o l i n e , which a r e now r a p i d l y being o b s o l e t e d i n terms o f f u e l e f f i c i e n c y . This need can be met o n l y by a new g e n e r a t i o n of c a r s , designed and engineered f o r a market environment s i m i l a r to that which e x i s t s i n Japan and Western Europe, where g a s o l i n e has always been r e l a t i v e l y expensive. The s i t u a t i o n i s s i m i l a r to that which occurred when the l a r g e , heavy, powerful c a r s o f the 1920 s were replaced by the s m a l l , simple c a r s o f the 1930 s t o meet the needs of a populat i o n emerging from the great d e p r e s s i o n . 1
1
The Present Market During the past two decades the use o f a l l p l a s t i c s has i n creased s i g n i f i c a n t l y i n the American automobile i n d u s t r y . U r ethanes of a l l types have played an important r o l e i n t h i s growth. Thus, as shown i n F i g u r e 2, the average use o f p l a s t i c s has grown from an estimated 20 pounds per c a r i n 1960 t o a l e v e l of 204 pounds per c a r i n 1979. During t h i s p e r i o d the a v e r age use of urethanes increased from four pounds per c a r to 43 pounds per c a r . The f i r s t s i g n i f i c a n t use o f a urethane i n the automotive i n d u s t r y was the 1957 model year w i t h the use of c u t urethane f l e x i b l e foam topper pads f o r automotive s e a t i n g i n s e v e r a l c a r s . These topper pads r e p l a c e d non-woven c o t t o n padding. The use of urethane foams and elastomers has grown r a p i d l y (Figure 3 ) , w i t h urethane foam growing from an average of 4 pounds per c a r i n 1960 to an average o f 35 pounds per c a r i n 1979 and w i t h urethane elastomers growing from 0.5 pound per car i n 1969 to 8 pounds per c a r i n 1979. I n 1977 (Figure 4 ) , urethane was the major p l a s t i c used i n the American c a r by one major manufacturer. The growth o f urethane foam was a c c e l e r a t e d i n 1972 w i t h the development of h i g h r e s i l i e n c e f l e x i b l e urethane foam f o r automotive deep foam s e a t i n g . One of the f i r s t s i g n i f i c a n t uses
Edwards et al.; Urethane Chemistry and Applications ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1981.
Automotive Uses for Polyurethanes
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LEis
TOTAL PLASTICS
200
150 h LU
