Polymer quenchants?

[Alex Topfer]

While doing some research I found a reference to polymer quenchants, but I've never heard of these in knife making. Is there any specific reason for this?
Apparently some are faster than fast oils and it sounds like they are easier to handle, but require maintenance that you don't have for oils.

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

The subject comes up every now and then. The consensus is they are industrial products that make sense for large scale industry, but have no advantage for small shops and hobbyists. They require testing and adjustment that we can't do.
Here is a good article on the subject:

An In-Depth Look at Polymer Quenchants | Thermal Processing Magazine

Quenching of various alloys to achieve mechanical properties has been an area of scientific research for many years. Using polymer quenchants has proven to ...

thermalprocessing.com

Most knifemakers worry too much about how fast a quenchant is. In the thickness of most knife blades, the quenchant speed is not really much of an issue. For attaining a hamon, it matters a lot. For hardening the edge, it barely matters at all. This is why canola oil and many other non-commercial quenchants work just fine for hobby makers.