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Category: Innovation Bonds

Lighting the Way

Polyurethane provides lighter option for power transmission

Power transmission towers are a part of our landscape and a critical part of our country’s infrastructure. As new towers need to be constructed or old ones replaced, engineers are looking for ways to do so effectively. From production to installation to the long-term maintenance, these structures must be both cost effective and durable.

Dow’s VORAFORCETM polyurethane manufacturing system enables efficient production of strong, tough and durable composites for these transmission structures. With the filament winding fabrication technique afforded by this system, composites can be more easily used to construct this critical piece of our infrastructure.

Composites offer significant advantages over the conventionally used materials. Due to their light weight, transportation is more efficient and installation becomes fast and easy. In case of severe weather events, composites offer improved reliability and maintenance thanks to their toughness. Product design, cost-effectiveness and durability are additional advantages of using composites in infrastructure applications.

In this production process, polyurethane systems help improve elongation, toughness, and crack resistance as compared to conventional materials and other type of resins. Thanks to its fast reaction profile as well as excellent performance in secondary operations like cutting and drilling, polyurethane solutions may also offer more cost-effective production. Further, Dow has also developed a UV resistant finishing polyurethane system, which can be wound in a one step production process to create the final protection layer for the pole.