TRIMET® brand of Trimethylolethane (TME)
TRIMET® brand of Trimethylolethane (TME) is a versatile polyol with significant quality features. It is a trihydric alcohol that can be used in all polyol applications. Its compact neopentyl structure provides high hydroxyl content and excellent stability. The TME structure imparts improved heat, light, hydrolysis and oxidation resistance to products. These factors make TME a very desirable component of coating compositions where good weathering characteristics are required.
TME’s favorable properties arise from its neopentyl structure. The three hydroxyls of TME are primary. Therefore, they are highly reactive. In addition, the central carbon atom, which is beta to all three hydroxyls, has no hydrogens. The absence of beta hydrogens blocks elimination processes, a common mode of thermal decomposition in polyols. As a result TME provides high thermal stability. Moreover, the hydrogens alpha to the hydroxyls are adjacent to the highly branched central carbon atom. Therefore, the alpha hydrogens are highly hindered. Since alpha hydrogens are a common site of free radical attack, TME has exceptional resistance to the degradation effects of heat and light.
