Thermal and mechanical properties of a new generation of polyurethane elastomers reinforced with three-dimensional filler

This paper deals with the thermal and mechanical properties of a new generation of polyurethane (PUR) elastomers that are reinforced with three-dimensional filler. The composites are based on commercial solid PUR elastomer as the matrix and flexible open-pore PUR foams as the filler. The density of the filler is approximately 1/40th that of the matrix. The thermal conductivities, k, of PUR reinforced elastomer as well as the elastomer without filler have been measured over the temperature range 14 to 34 degreesC. A relationship between the density of the materials and the thermal conductivity has been established. The mechanical property tests demonstrated a very unusual behavior of the developed composites. Compared with unfilled elastomer, they exhibited increased tensile modulus and more rigidity, and kept almost the same density (or less) as pure elastomer matrix.