Synthesis and characterization of elastomeric polyurea foam

Polymeric foams are ubiquitous in impact mitigation for civilian and military applications; the performance in such loading scenarios can be elucidated through quasi-static and dynamic mechanical testing. The present study reports on the complex microstructure of newly synthesized polyurea foams exhibiting a hierarchical structure consisting of large perforated semi-closed spherical cells with a mean diameter of 370 ± 162 μm surrounded by smaller closed, spherical cells with size distribution of 69 ± 18 μm. The stress–strain curves were used to calculate the basic mechanical properties and to predict the dynamic behavior of the foams. Nonlinear regression and finite element analyses were used to calibrate the Ogden hyperfoam model to explicate the hyperelastic behavior. The performance of the polyurea foam was found to outperform a benchmark foam in nearly all the elastic and energy absorbing properties. For example, one variation of the newly synthesized foam stored nearly doubled the energy of the benchmark foam while being 12% lighter. Low-density polyurea foam was found to decelerate an incoming impact mass with a minimum G-level that was nearly one third lower than the higher density polyurea and benchmark foams. In all, the behavior of the foam is dependent on the parameters of the fabrication process. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2020 , 137, 48839.