Samples

Foam specimens

Seat foam is always tricky exactly for the reason mentioned.  Many times the surface of the foam is slightly higher density and provides different stress-strain response.  The very best thing to do is to get the foam produced in a flat sheet approximately 25mm thick, and we can cut the prisms (25mm diameter x 25mm height).  With this we can capture the skin and core of the foam.  Often it is not possible to make samples in a nice sheet.  Most times we receive the seat cushions and cut specimens from the actual part. When specimens are cut from the part, we try to cut specimens 25mm diameter and 25mm tall. We try to take the samples so the upper side of the cylinder is from the seat surface. In this way we can more closely capture the actual material property.  Many time the seat foam has a complex contour, and it is not possible to get full size specimens; in these cases, smaller sizes must be used (as small as 12.7mm diameter by 12.7mm height).