Use of Artificial Intelligence to Develop Polyurethane Prepolymer

03.12.2019

So far, chemists have largely had to rely on their specialist expertise and years of experience when researching new formulations with defined product characteristics such as hardness, tensile strength, and viscosity. Artificial intelligence is expected to become an important tool to help them broaden their knowledge and significantly reduce the number of tests required. LANXESS is broadening its use of artificial intelligence in product development. The specialty chemicals company LANXESS has launched a new project aimed at expanding its range of prepolymers. The goal is to offer customers tailor-made polyurethane systems with even shorter lead times, including for entirely new applications with different requirements. LANXESS’s Urethane Systems business unit is using the potential of artificial intelligence and has started to work with one of the specialist artificial intelligence company as a project partner. In an initial project phase, LANXESS enlarged its database of prepolymer-based formulations.

LANXESS data specialists and process experts used a platform for artificial intelligence to add further data points to the company’s formulation database.

This involved linking existing empirical measurement data with the knowledge of the process experts and a chemistryaware algorithm to calculate additional measurement values. This meant that only a few real-life measurements were required to verify the figures determined with artificial intelligence.

In the next step, data and process specialists at LANXESS will check how reliably the optimal formulations can be predicted with the help of artificial intelligence to meet customer-specific requirements for product features. If the tests are successful, customer demands will be fulfilled more quickly and effectively. LANXESS’s current formulation knowledge will be enhanced with artificial intelligence-supported formulation design. Whether products that are not yet in the product portfolio can be produced with the help of artificial intelligence and how they can be produced will be instantly determined. LANXESS already has some experience in using artificial intelligence. In a pilot project, the specialty chemicals company LANXESS is using artificial intelligence to optimize glass fibers as a way of further enhancing the properties of high-performance plastics. It is anticipated that artificial intelligence will cut development times for the necessary formulations by more than half. Customers will receive even better, tailor-made products within shorter time frames. Serkan İltan - Cast PU Satış Yöneticisi - Cast PU Sales Manager - Kimsel Kimyevi End. Hmd. A.Ş.