Healthier Spray Foam Insulation: The Green Cocoon installer spraying foam insulation to enhance a building's energy efficiency. The Green Cocoon uses a spray foam that substitutes some carbon-producing ingredients with soy-based ones.
New mixtures for spray foam insulation successfully uses healthier ingredients in a construction staple that is already widely accepted as fairly green. Spray foam insulation has been applied in many types of building projects. Chosen primarily for its excellent insulating and sound-dampening qualities, spray foam is a big player in achieving LEED Points by reducing the demands for heating and cooling thus reducing energy consumption. The benefits of this product outweigh the negative points associated with spray foam, most notably the oil that is mixed with a foaming catalyst to produce it. Traditionally, spray foam is made with petrol-based oil, which, of course, is a large contributor of carbon. It is seemingly a necessary evil: not a 100% green option, but the best option available.
Heightening the competition in the green product arena foam producers are using “a soybean based polyol that can replace the conventional petroleum-based polyols [and] help the polyurethane industry become less dependent on imported mineral Crude oil” (http://www.biobasedtechnologies.com/). See my “simple duck” references below for definitions! The percentage of soybean-based substitution currently varies by manufacturer but could be upwards of twenty percent when combined with renewable and recycled materials.
This smart substitution method should act as a model for other companies that produce materials consumed by the construction industry. Investing in research and working towards higher standards of sustainability can only pay off in the end as more building projects demand the healthiest, most eco-friendly products from businesses that strive to uphold responsible practices.
“Simple Duck” terminology (as promised, which I needed in order to write about this):
What is a polyol?
A polyol is a sugar alcohol. Polyol molecules can be chained together using certain chemical procedures to produce polyesters. Soybean-based polyols have been used as a petrol-substitute to manufacture parts of farm vehicles like John Deere tractors. (Deere & Co.)
What does the polyurethane industry produce?
Varnish, skateboard/rollerblade wheels, furniture and car seat foam. Maybe these will be the next products to get a boost of green-esteem from the diverse soybean.
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Watch out for "Greenwashing" as it relates to Spray Foam
I think it's important that your readers understand that the majority of all spray foam insulations have a certain percentage of renewable or recycled content within them. "Soy-based" polyols are only one type of renewable polyol that can be used...sucrose-based oils that come from sugar beets and sugar cane have been used in many staple foam formulations long before it was "cool" to be green. In addition, most foam manufacturers use recycled PET as a polyol source as well. That being said, the remaining 75-80% of all spray foams, regardless of type or brand (or if they have soybeans on their marketing literature or "eco" or bio in their name) are all STILL made with the same core components that use chemicals and petroleum based ingredients. Regardless of this, as part of an energy-efficient home or building, the spray foam insulations are by far the most "green" of all insulation shearly based upon their long-term thermal performance and control over air movement in and out of a building, which alone easily makes up for the "carbon footprint" that is created by it's production.
As someone who was born in
As someone who was born in raised in Iowa, I am a huge supporter of soybean based products. Spray foam installation has been a great way to insulate a home but with the carbon emissions from petroleum based foam certainly isn't the "green" way to go as you mentioned in the article. I love some of the alternative foam products including those being made from spray foam. I work with individuals looking to make their homes more energy efficient by getting an energy efficient mortgage to give them the extra money make these improvements to their homes.
Another Great Product To Help The Bean Farmers
I'm always interested in any products that will help eliminate the dependence on harsh chemicals. Helping the soybean farms is an added benefit.
Thank for the review
Additional Information on Spray Foam Ingredients and Production
George Chittenden of Spray Foam Energy Solutions shared some additional information that I found very useful. This post really hits home with a lot of good points about green hype: http://gacinaz.blogspot.com/
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