Blowing agent composition and polymeric foam containing a normally-liquid hydrofluorocarbon and carbon dioxide

A blowing agent composition comprising:

• (a) carbon dioxide;
• and
• (b) at least one hydrofluorocarbon having a boiling point of 14° C. or higher and lower than about 120° C.;
• wherein greater than 50 weight-percent of the composition is carbon dioxide and wherein a sufficient amount of (b) is present to produce a polymeric foam having an improved skin quality, lower open cell content (according to ASTM method D-6226), larger average cell size, or any combination thereof relative to the same foam prepared using only carbon dioxide as a blowing agent.

A polymeric foam comprising:

• (a) a polymer having cells defined therein;
• (b) carbon dioxide;
• and
• (c) at least one hydrofluorocarbon having a boiling point of 30° C. or higher and lower than about 120° C.;
• wherein at least a portion of (b) and (c) resides in said cells and said polymeric foam is essentially free of any low-boiling ethers or low-boiling hydrocarbons other than the one hydrofluorocarbon.

A polymeric foam comprising:

• (a) a polymer having cells defined therein;
• (b) carbon dioxide;
• (c) at least one hydrofluorocarbon having a boiling point of 14° C. or higher and lower than about 120° C.;
• (d) at least one hydrofluorocarbon having a boiling point lower than 14° C.;
• (e) at least one additional blowing agent selected from water, alcohols, ketones, and aldehydes;
• said alcohols, ketones and aldehydes having a boiling point lower than about 120° C.;
• and
• (f) an infrared blocker selected from a group consisting of carbon black, graphite, gold, aluminum, and titanium dioxide;
• wherein at least a portion of (b), (c), (d) and (e) reside in said cells and (f) is dispersed in said polymer.