What safety standards do PORON foam used in cars need to meet?
PORON foam used in automobiles needs to meet various safety standards, mainly involving flame retardancy, environmental protection, mechanical properties, etc. The following is a detailed introduction:
Flame retardant standard
FMVSS 302: In the United States, automobile interior materials should meet the federal motor vehicle safety standard FMVSS 302, requiring that the horizontal burning speed of materials should not exceed 102mm/min, so as to ensure that in case of vehicle fire, the fire spread can be delayed to a certain extent, and the escape time can be gained for people in the vehicle.
ISO 3795: The ISO 3795 standard of the International Organization for Standardization stipulates the test methods and requirements of interior materials combustion characteristics of automobiles. According to different parts and functions, there are different levels of regulations on the combustion performance of materials, such as combustion rate, flame spread time and other indicators are strictly limited.
GB 8410: GB 8410, the national standard of China, stipulates that the burning speed of automobile interior materials should not be greater than 70mm/min. If the material goes out automatically within 100mm, the burning speed is recorded as 0mm/min, so as to ensure the safety of automobile interior in case of fire.
Environmental protection standard
VOC emission standard: The content of volatile organic compounds (VOC) in the car must be strictly controlled. For example, GB/T 27630 "Guide to Air Quality Evaluation in Passenger Cars" in China clearly limits the content of various VOC substances such as benzene, toluene and xylene, so as to prevent the air quality in the car from declining due to harmful gases volatilized from foam and affect the health of drivers and passengers.
REACH regulations: In the EU, automobile interior materials should comply with REACH regulations, which require that substances of very high concern (SVHC) possibly contained in foam should be detected and controlled, and the use of harmful substances such as lead, mercury and cadmium should be restricted to ensure the minimum impact of materials on the environment and human health during the whole life cycle.
ELV Directive: Also in the European Union, ELV Directive requires that automobile materials should have good recyclability and disassembly. PORON foam should minimize the use of materials that are difficult to recycle or harmful to the environment, so as to facilitate the recycling of scrapped automobiles and reduce the pressure on the environment.
Mechanical performance standard
Compression set: PORON foam for automobile should be able to maintain stable shape and performance during long-term use. Generally, under certain compression stress and temperature conditions, the compression permanent deformation rate should not exceed a certain value after a specified time. For example, after compression at 70℃ for 22 hours, the compression permanent deformation rate should not exceed 20%, so as to ensure that the cushioning and sealing functions of foam are not affected.
Tensile strength and tear strength: In order to ensure that the foam will not be damaged or torn in the process of automobile assembly and use, PORON foam needs to have sufficient tensile strength and tear strength. For example, the tensile strength should be not less than 100kPa, and the tear strength should be not less than 2N/mm, so as to withstand various external forces that may be generated during the operation of the automobile.
Hardness: The hardness of foam needs to be selected and controlled according to its specific application position in automobiles. Such as foam used for seat cushioning, the hardness is usually between 20-40 Shore A to provide a comfortable riding experience; The foam used for sealing may have a hardness of 40-60 Shore A to ensure a good sealing effect.
Other standards
Aging resistance standard: PORON foam for automobile should be able to withstand the test of long-term ultraviolet radiation, temperature change and humidity and other environmental factors. For example, after passing the xenon lamp aging test, the appearance, physical properties and chemical properties of foam should be changed within the allowable range under certain light intensity, temperature and humidity conditions, so as to ensure its performance stability within the service life of the automobile.
Smell standard: The smell of interior materials will directly affect the driving experience, so there are strict requirements on the smell grade of PORON foam. Generally, through the odor evaluation test, the odor grade is required to be no more than grade 3, that is, there is almost no odor, so as to avoid discomfort to drivers and passengers.
