Compared with traditional petroleum-based polyurethane foam, corn starch bio-based polyurethane foam mainly has three core advantages, which are reflected in environmental protection, safety, and performance adaptability:

1. More Outstanding Environmental Protection Attributes

• Renewable raw materials: Traditional polyurethane foam relies on non-renewable petroleum as the core raw material (petroleum-based polyols), while the bio-based version uses corn starch (a renewable agricultural product) to extract polyols. This reduces dependence on fossil energy and eases resource depletion pressure.
• Lower carbon emissions: The production process of corn starch bio-based foam avoids the high-carbon extraction and processing links of petroleum. Its carbon footprint is generally 20%-50% lower than that of traditional foam (specific data varies by formula), which is in line with low-carbon development needs.
• Better degradability: Most traditional polyurethane foam is difficult to degrade naturally and may cause long-term environmental pollution (e.g., microplastic residues). Under appropriate conditions (such as specific temperature, humidity, and microbial environment), corn starch bio-based foam can be gradually degraded into non-toxic substances (e.g., water and carbon dioxide), reducing environmental burden.

2. Higher Raw Material Safety

• Natural and non-irritating: The core raw material of bio-based foam is derived from corn, a natural agricultural product. Compared with some petroleum-based raw materials (which may contain trace volatile irritants), it has better skin friendliness. It is more suitable for scenarios involving direct or indirect skin contact, such as insoles, mattress fillers, and children’s toy liners, avoiding potential skin irritation risks.
• Reduced harmful residues: The production process of bio-based foam uses fewer chemically synthesized auxiliaries. When meeting industry safety standards (e.g., medical grade, daily necessities grade), the content of harmful substances (such as formaldehyde and volatile organic compounds) is lower than that of some traditional foams, making it safer for daily use.

3. Performance Compatibility with Traditional Foam (No Compromise on Functionality)

While achieving environmental protection and safety, corn starch bio-based foam does not sacrifice the core performance of polyurethane foam, and even has adjustability advantages:

• Retains core functions: It inherits the light weight, good elasticity, cushioning, shock absorption, thermal insulation, and sound insulation properties of traditional polyurethane foam. For example, as shoe insoles, it can buffer ground impact like traditional foam; as packaging materials, it can protect precision instruments from collision damage.
• Flexible performance adjustment: By optimizing the formula (e.g., adjusting the proportion of bio-based polyols, adding modifiers), its hardness, density, and resilience can be customized to meet the needs of different scenarios—from soft sofa fillers to rigid thermal insulation materials, which is comparable to the application flexibility of traditional foam.