Polyurethanes Thermal, Hydrolytic and Soil Degradation: Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

A search in the Scopus and Web of Science databases covering the period from 2016 to 2021 was carried out and used to update the methodology of polyurethanes hydrolytic, thermal and soil degradation assessment. To that effect, three groups of search words were used: (1) polymer degradation AND “hydrolytic degradation” AND polyurethane; (2) polymer degradation AND “thermal degradation” AND polyurethane; and (3) polymer degradation AND “soil degradation” AND polyurethane. It was observed that the studies on the degradation of polymers are disseminated in different research groups and on a continuous basis during the survey period. The main methodologies found to perform the degradation of polymers were: method of immersion of samples in aqueous solution to evaluate hydrolytic degradation, thermogravimetric analysis, differential exploratory calorimetry and accelerated weathering to evaluate thermal degradation and inoculation of the polymer in soils with different characteristics, such as pH, moisture and organic load to assess soil degradation. Polymers can become a biodegradable solution to the environmental issues generated by plastic waste.