ELASTIC RESPONSE OF FLEXIBLE POLYURETHANE FOAMS IN UNIAXIAL TENSION

Flexible polymeric foams are used in many industrial applications, inc luding cushioning, shock absorption, and noise suppression. There have not been many systematic studies on the characterization of their ela stic response that can be used in developing their constitutive behavi or. This paper presents the uniaxial tensile data of two different fle xible polyurethane forms and determines the relationships between thei r elastic properties and the major stretch ratio. These relationships will be useful in formulating constitutive models for flexible compres sible materials.