Memory Foam Mattress - Lion Mattresses

What is Memory Foam And How Is It Made?

Memory foam is enjoyed by millions daily. Most of us are familiar with the foam, but how much more do we know about it? Memory foam might not sound particularly interesting, but it actually has a fascinating story behind it.

How Did Memory Foam Get Its Name?

Memory Foam goes by various names. These include viscoelastic polyurethane foam and low-resilience polyurethane foam (LRPu). Most of these names are quite the mouthful, so it really is easier to simply refer to this fantastic product as memory foam.

But why that name? Well… it inherited its name because of its remarkable ability to mould to applied pressure when reacting to body heat. This process leaves an indent in the foam for a small period of time. We liken this indent to memories, hence the name.

How Do You Make Memory Foam?

Memory foam begins life as polyurethane plastic. A chemical blend of polyols and monols create a mixture with slow flexibility. Fillers such as calcium carbonate are then included in the mix to create body and reduce tackiness. Once completed, the entire mixture is heated to allow the ingredients to blend together. This now blended mixture is then churned to add air pockets, thus making it foam-like.

At this point, the foam is in a liquid-like state. This is similar to the consistency of soft dough. It is then poured it into a mould at an exact temperature and speed. Whilst within the mould, the hot mixture is manipulated to force any present air out. As a result, this forms an open cell structure. To form the foam, the mixture is then rapidly dried. After this, the foam is cooled, removed, washed, dried and thoroughly inspected to search for inconsistencies.

WHO ORIGINALLY CREATED MEMORY FOAM?

Memory foam was created in 1966. This was because NASA’s Ames Research Center was tasked with improving the safety of space and aircraft cushions. That’s right! This foam was originally created for astronauts to help protect their bodies from pressure through G-Force.

It wasn’t until much later on that this material would be used to make memory foam mattresses. At this point in time, it was referred to as “slow spring back foam” because of its unique properties. The product was later on commercialised for use in medical equipment to reduce patient body tension, as well as in sports equipment such as helmet linings for American football players.

NASA released the foam into the public domain in the early 1980s, almost twenty years after its original development. At this point in time, however, very few companies were willing to work with the product. This was due to the fact that the production methods for creating it then were complex, unreliable and costly. Once the production costs for memory foam began to decline and the process was refined, more and more companies began using it to create new and exciting mattresses. Nowadays, this foam is used for a variety of different applications.

Purchase Memory Foam From GB Foam Direct

As well as mattresses, GB Foam Direct specialise in creating memory foam products for a variety of purposes. We can create bespoke foam products to meet your requirements. For unique memory foam products made to your measurements, visit our foam cut to size page.