type produced for example by polymerization of epoxides such as ethylene oxide propylene oxide butylene oxide tetrahydrofuran styrene oxide or epichlorohydrin with themselves for example in the presence of friedel crafts catalysts such as boron trifluoride they may also be produced by addition of these alkoxides preferably of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide in a ratio of from 5 95 to 95 5 in a mixture or successively to starting components containing reactive hydrogen atoms such as water ammonia alcohols or amines specific examples of these starting components include propylene glycol ethylene glycol propylene glycol 1 3 or 1 2 trimethylol propane glycerin sorbitol 4 4 39 dihydroxydiphenyl propane aniline ethanolamine ethylene diamine or the like sucrose polyethers as well as formitol or formose initiated polyethers are also suitable polyethers containing predominantly up to 90 by weight based on all oh groups present in the polyether primary oh groups are preferred in many cases polybutadienes containing oh groups are also suitable suitable polyesters containing hydroxyl groups include for example reaction products of polyhydric preferably dihydric and optionally also trihydric alcohols with polybasic preferably dibasic carboxylic acids the polycarboxylic acids may be aliphatic cycloaliphatic aromatic and or heterocyclic and may optionally be substituted for example by halogen atoms and or they may be unsaturated examples of such carboxylic acids and derivatives thereof include adipic acid sebacic acid isophthalic acid trimellitic acid phthalic acid anhydride hexahydrophthalic acid anhydride tetrachlorophthalic acid anhydride endomethylene tetrahydrophthalic acid anhydride fumaric acid dimerized or trimerized unsaturated fatty acids optionally mixed with monomeric unsaturated fatty acids terephthalic acid dimethyl ester and terephthalic acid bis glycol ester suitable polyhydric alcohols include for example ethylene glycol propylene.