A dry starch–oil composite was blended with each of three glycols; ethylene, polyethylene, and propylene, and then reacted with isocyanate to produce polyurethane foams. The liquid glycols permitted the dry composite to blend well with the other ingredients in the foam formulations. Infrared spectra confirmed the presence of urethane structures in the composite–glycol foams. Polyethylene glycol...

Introduction To prevent low back pain and discomfort during prolonged sitting, an inflatable lumbar support cushion has been developed that provides lumbar continuous passive motion (CPM) (J Spinal Disord 1994). This device has a lumbar support inflating and deflating air bladder that provides a cyclical motion to the spine, periodically changing the lumbar lordosis angle. Based on results obta...

As the primary interface with the human body during rear impact, the automotive seat holds great promise for mitigation of Whiplash Associated Disorders (WAD). Recent research has chronicled the potential influence of both seat geometrical and constitutive properties on occupant dynamics and injury potential. Geometrical elements such as reduced head to head restraint, rearward offset, and incr...

Thermal and photo initiated release of tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCPP) from different polyurethane foam materials were studied using a validated GC-MS method with a linear range of 0.34-680 g/ml. The release of TCPP from two foam types was reported and was found to follow first order kinetics with rate constants directly related to the ageing conditions and radiation intensity. Rate c...

OBJECTIVE Enhanced seat belt reminders in automobiles have been shown to increase belt use rates by approximately 3 percentage points. The objective of this study was to estimate the effect of enhanced seat belt reminders on driver fatality risk. METHOD Data included all passenger vehicle driver deaths and vehicle registration counts in the United States for calendar years 2000-2007. Driver f...

In this study, the vibration and noise for the cushion frame that directly contacts the driver of the car are investigated. The friction noise from the seat track generating the largest noise is measured and analyzed. Also, vibration measurement and analysis are performed in parallel to locate the position from where the noise is generated. In the next stage, the RPM of motor and the current ch...

This paper used the Hyper Mesh and LS-DYNA software to establish a dummy-seat finite element simulation model. The head, chest and neck injury of the dummy were analyzed respectively in the frontal impact and rear impact. It was indicated that modification of seat was needed to meet the requirements. The simulation results showed that the original model cannot provide effective protection for t...

INTRODUCTION Down-flow hanging sponge (DHS) reactors employ polyurethane sponge media to retain biomass. Wastewater is trickled from the top of the reactor and purified by microorganisms within and on the surface of the sponge media as influent flows vertically downward through the reactor. Since the sponge media of DHS reactors are exposed to the atmosphere, oxygen dissolves continually into t...

Polyurethane foams have unique properties that make them suitable for a wide range of applications, including cushioning and seat pads. The foam mechanical largely depend on both the parent material cell microstructure. Uniaxial loading experiments, X-ray tomography finite element analysis can be used to investigate relationship between macroscopic microscopic structure. specimens were scanned ...