Researcher Laima Vēvere Defends Doctoral Thesis on Sustainable Polyurethane Foam Development

Laima Vēvere, a researcher at the Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry (LSIWC), has successfully defended her doctoral thesis entitled “Sustainable Rigid Polyurethane Foams from Tall Oil Fatty Acids for High-Performance Cryogenic Insulation”, earning a doctoral degree (Ph.D.) in Natural Sciences.

The research explored the development of sustainable, high-performance thermal insulation materials using renewable raw materials in polyurethane foam production. In the study, conventional fossil-based raw materials were replaced with tall oil fatty acids – a by-product of wood pulp production – thereby expanding the potential of this industrial by-product for the development of new materials.

Particular attention was paid to the suitability of the developed materials for cryogenic insulation. Under such conditions, materials must retain their properties even at extremely low temperatures, such as –196 °C. One of the key aspects of the research was investigating how the materials behave under rapid temperature changes and developing solutions to minimise potential material damage while maintaining good thermal insulation properties.

The research demonstrates the potential of wood-processing by-products in developing new, higher-value materials and contributes to the advancement of more sustainable polyurethane materials.

Laima Vēvere’s doctoral thesis was supervised by Professor Arturs Vīksna, Dr. chem. (University of Latvia), and Uģis Cābulis, Dr. sc. ing., Leading Researcher at the Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry.

The Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry congratulates Laima Vēvere on this significant academic achievement and wishes her continued success in her scientific career!