Description and modeling of polyurethane hydrolysis used as thermal insulation in oil offshore conditions

This paper is dedicated to polyurethane (polyether based) degradation in sea water at high temperature. Ageing has been performed in natural sea water under hydrostatic pressure at temperatures ranging from 70 to 120 °C on 2 mm thick samples. Water diffusion in the material and hydrolysis have been characterized using mass evolution and tensile tests. Based on these results, a model for the urethane hydrolysis reaction is proposed.