Polyurethane (PUR and PU) is a polymer composed of a chain of organic units join

ed by carbamate (urethane) links. While most polyurethanes are thermosetting pol

ymers that do not melt when heated, thermoplastic polyurethanes are also availab
le.
Polyurethane polymers are traditionally and most commonly formed by reacting a d
i- or polyisocyanate with a polyol. Both the isocyanates and polyols used to mak
e polyurethanes contain on average two or more functional groups per molecule.
Some noteworthy recent efforts have been dedicated to minimizing the use of isoc
yanates to synthesize polyurethanes, because the isocyanates raise severe toxici
ty issues. Non-isocyanate based polyurethanes (NIPUs) have recently been develop
ed as a new class of polyurethane polymers to mitigate health and environmental
concerns.[1][2][3][4]
Polyurethane products often are simply called urethanes , but should not be confuse
d with ethyl carbamate, which is also called urethane. Polyurethanes neither con
tain nor are produced from ethyl carbamate.