What’s melamine foam?

melamine foam is a new type of sound absorption, heat insulation and heat preservation material successfully developed in the 1990s. Due to its lightweight, high temperature resistant, open cell foam manufactured from melamine resin. It combines excellent thermal properties with superior sound absorption capabilities to create a versatile fiber free product which can be applied in situations which may prohibit the use of urethane foams or fiberglass insulations.

The unique chemical structure and three-dimensional network structure of FoamTech foam make it have unique chemical and physical stability. It will not age or decompose under weak acid and weak alkali environment, and there is no residual free formaldehyde. Its sanitation can reach the requirements of food sanitation level.

Chemistry composition

The environmentally friendly melamine material is foamed from melamine resin through a unique process. It has the comprehensive characteristics of heat insulation, sound absorption, flame retardancy, fiber-free and lightweight. Has a unique three-dimensional network structure.

Appearance

The density of FoamTech melamine foam is only 7-9kg/m3, and the common colors are white, gray, blue, and pink. It is one of the lightest materials in the foam plastics on the current market. Compared with the existing traditional materials (glass wool, felt, polyester fiber and other materials), it has a lower density.

Physical description, chart or data explanations

Melamine foam is a thermosetting foam with a highly networked cross-linked structure system. Compared with traditional polyethylene, polypropylene and polyurethane foam with low cross-linking degree, it has higher heat stability and cold resistance. Stability, can work stably in the temperature range between -180℃ and +240℃ for a long time, can withstand the highest temperature of +240℃ and the lowest temperature of -180℃.

How melamine foam is made?

Manufacturing Process

Melamine foam is made from melamine resin, which is a thermosetting polymer. Cross-linking reaction occurs during processing. The melamine resin is colorless, transparent and stable in boiling water. The resin itself has self-extinguishing, arc resistance and good mechanical properties.
Melamine foam is obtained by foaming the melamine resin compostition with blowing agents and other substances. With the feactures of melamine resin, the foam shows excellant flame retardant and heat resistance, which is useful as thermal insulating materials in constructions, rails, vehicles and pipes.

Foam Tech Production

The entire melamine foam foaming process requires stable industrial microwave lines and consistant foaming environment. FoamTech China installs a temperature and humidity consistant foaming factory to ensure the uniformity of the foaming process.

Fabrication Techniques

Same as other common foam products. Melamine foam can be further processed into a variety of different finished products to meet the application needs of different industries.
Available processing methods include: conventional cutting, diecut, composite with third-party materials, high-frequency compression, etc.
In addition to being a rare source foam factory, Foam Tech also has a complete set of melamine foam processing methods.

Features

Sound absorption

FoamTech melamine foam is open-cell surface guarantees that sound waves are not
reflected but penetrate the cell structure unhindered. The sound energy
is reduced in the cell structure, giving FoamTech melamine foam an excellent sound
absorption capacity. At low frequencies, improved sound absorption
can be achieved, for example by adding layers of a heavier material.

Fire resistance

FoamTech melamine foam meets the most important international fire safety standards.
FoamTech melamine foam is long-term resistance to high temperatures and excellent
fire characteristics are based on the melamine resin used. The high
nitrogen content of the resin is responsible for the flame-resistant
property of the foam without the need to use flame retardants. FoamTech melamine foam
is a thermoset, and thus, in the event of a fire, the material does not
melt or produce burning droplets when it comes into contact with
flames. The foam simply chars and produces a small amount of smoke,
and there is no afterglow, making FoamTech melamine foam particularly suitable for
applications with high fire safety requirements. In tests on the fire
characteristics required to meet national and international standards,
FoamTech melamine foam achieves the highest classification possible for organic
materials.

Thermal insulation

FoamTech melamine foam offers good thermal insultation that is reliable even at high
temperatures over a prolonged period. It provides low thermal conduc-
tivity of less than 0.035 W/(m · K), so energy losses can be reduced in,
for example, hot water tanks and solar water heaters. Another advan-
tage over conventional insulation materials is FoamTech melamine foam is excellent
resistance to temperatures of up to 240 °C and its flame retardance
(in Germany: B1 according to DIN 4102).

Constant physical properties over a wide temperature range

FoamTech melamine foam retains it properties over a wide temperature range. It keeps
its flexibility even at -200 °C and is also suitable for application tem-
peratures up to 240 °C. This enables a broad variety of applications,
such as insulation of liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanks or soundproofing
of engine compartments.

Resistance to chemicals

Thanks to FoamTech melamine foam is highly cross-linked structure, it is resistant to
many organic solvents. When it comes to acids and alkalis, the resis-
tance has to be checked in actual application conditions since the
temperature, the exposure time and the concentration all have a great
deal of influence on the stability of the foam.

Abrasiveness

Unlike other foams, FoamTech foam is as hard as glass, but the fine cell
structure provides the product is flexibility. Due to its abrasive proper-
ties, FoamTech melamine foam works like very soft sandpaper. When moistened with
water, it slides easily and rubs the dirt off the surface.

Applications

FoamTech melamine foam is a new type of sound-absorbing, heat-insulating, heat-preserving and fire-resistant nanometre materials. In addition to excellent sound absorption and heat insulation, compared with similar products such as glass wool and polyurethane foam, its advantages are high flame retardancy, hygiene and safety. FoamTech melamine foam has no residual free formaldehyde and has stable chemical properties, which can meet food-grade hygiene requirements (the raw materials can be used to make tableware). And without adding any flame retardant, the flame retardant performance can reach the B1 level specified by DIN 4102 in Germany and the UL94-V0 level in the United States. It is unmatched by general foam plastics, such as polyolefin, polystyrene, polyurethane, etc. When the melamine foam meets an open flame, the surface layer burns slightly and forms coking, which will self-extinguish from the fire. When the surface layer is slightly burned, nitrogen and carbon dioxide are released, which has extinguishing properties, does not produce toxic smoke, and does not drip, thus greatly reducing the incidence of fire accidents.

At present, the application of FoamTech melamine foam is very wide, the main areas cover from high-tech fields such as aviation, aerospace, military, electronics, to vehicles, trains, ships and other vehicles, from terminal buildings, theaters, educational venues, recording studios, and cities. Express roads and high-noise working environment to ordinary home decoration, household appliances, daily cleaning products and other civil fields. It is a new type of material with great development prospects in the 21st century.

Conclusion:

Melamine foam is a good material for multiple applications and good alternative to other traditional materials.