Over the past few decades, polyurethane-polyurea aqueous dispersions (PUDs) have
developed a solid reputation for high performance applications, particularly in the field of
adhesives and coatings. PUDs are mostly environmentally compatible products; they are
totally devoid or contain only low amounts of volatile organic compounds (VOC). This is an
important feature in view of the present environmental policies where governments and
internal agencies are placing emphasis on developing sustainable processes, improving
work conditions and reducing emissions of toxic and polluting substances into the
atmosphere. Moreover, polyurethanes are known as “tailor-made” products with properties
resulting from a wide diversity of raw-materials which can be combined in different ways
during the synthesis.
In recent years, our research group has been involved in the development of polyurethanepolyurea
aqueous dispersions for various applications. With this work we intend to review
this theme and describe the most recent developments. Characterization of industrial
dispersions will be presented and examples of synthesis will be described
