Importance of Durability on Acoustical Performance for Carpet Underlay

ICI has reviewed the acoustical performance of cast polyurethane foam and shoddy pad when used for Automotive Carpet Underlay applications.

Data will be presented on a range of all MDI-based acoustic foam systems as well as traditional automotive carpet underlay material. Particular attention will be paid to the influence of compression set durability on acoustical performance. Using a newly developed test method to simulate long-term in-vehicle usage, it will be shown that extended compression gives an acoustic improvement when using polyurethane foam compared to conventional shoddy pad.

Additionally, it has been shown that recent advances in polyurethane foam density reduction have not adversely affected acoustic performance in automotive carpet underlay applications.