LOW-TEMPERATURE RESISTANT, ELASTIC ADHESIVES AND SEALANTS FOR GAS TANK INSULATION

The leading European insulating firms in the domain of liquid natural gas (LNG)/liquid petroleum gas (LPG) carriers have developed special s andwich elements for the insulation of liquid gas tanks. The trend to increasing tank volumes and, at the same time, to reducing the number of cargo tanks in modern liquid gas carriers with loading capacities o f up to 135,000 m(3) has in some cases entailed major changes with res pect to tank design (Kaefer-Isoliertechnik, Hansa Schiffahrt-Schiffbau -Hafen, 133rd year, 1996, 2, 20-22). These changes have equally influe nced both the design and the assembly of the panels used for insulatio n, as well as the adhesives and sealants applied for this purpose. Thi s article describes the requirement profile and the possible applicati ons of solvent-free two-component polyurethane adhesives (2-K PU) and recently developed polyurethane hot-melt adhesives (PU-HM) for the man ufacture and/or assembly of panels. Moreover, it deals with the role o f the advanced solvent-free, silane-modified polymers (MS polymers) in the pointing of panels (seam-sealing) exposed to low temperatures, (C ) 1998 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.