Comparative FEM Analysis of Pressure Absorption and Diffusion in Polyurethane and Memory Foams

The use of multi-layered foam pad as filler for cushions, seats components and furniture, is widely spread in many industries, especially in car-seat manufacturing ones. The mechanical behavior of these materials is directly connected to the perceived comfort and discomfort by users. This work presents a numerical investigation of the mechanical response of two foam materials under localized compression loading: a standard polyurethane foam and a viscoelastic memory foam. The analysis focuses on two key phenomena relevant to comfort applications: pressure absorption, i.e. the material’s ability to attenuate peak stresses, and pressure diffusion, i.e. the spatial redistribution of contact forces across internal layers. Finite Element Method (FEM) simulations were performed on a layered foam block (200 × 200 × 100 mm), indented centrally by a rigid cylindrical indenter (30 mm diameter) up to 50 mm depth. The block was discretized into ten 10-mm-thick layers, enabling pressure analysis throughout the thickness. Results show that memory foam achieves significantly lower peak pressures and smoother vertical gradients compared to standard foam, indicating superior performance in both absorption and diffusion. Conventional foam, while more resilient, exhibits greater pressure concentration at deeper layers. These outcomes support the use of memory foam in applications requiring high comfort and soft tissue protection, such as bedding, seating, and wearable protective equipment. Moreover, the study highlights FEM is effective for predicting pressure behavior in layered, deformable media.