Recent developments in the sustainability of the production of polyurethane foams from polyols based on the first- to the fourth-generation of biomass feedstock

The increase in the consumption of polymer materials, including polyurethanes, created not only convenience and comfort but also problems with the equally rapid increase in their waste, as well as the need for raw materials for polymer synthesis, which were and still are mostly obtained from petrochemicals. The development of renewable polyols has been assumed as a way toward more sustainable polyurethane production. This review presents an overview of polyols' synthesis for polyurethane foam production evolving from the first- to the fourth-generation biomass feedstock, mainly from natural oils. In the future, more studies with Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment would be a significant contribution to evaluating the sustainability of the approach to produce polyurethane foams from renewable polyols. At the moment, the big unknown is the fourth generation — genetically modified oils.