The core component of PU foam is polyurethane. Therefore, in different scenarios and industries, other names are often derived from the core term "polyurethane", mainly including the following:
Polyurethane foam
This is the most direct corresponding name in Chinese, which exactly matches the literal translation of its English equivalent "Polyurethane Foam". It is the most commonly used standard name in the industry and is frequently seen in industrial manuals and material specifications.
Foamed polyurethane
It is named from the perspective of the production process. Since PU foam is made through a chemical foaming reaction, it emphasizes the key process of "foaming". It is commonly used in material procurement expressions in fields such as building insulation and furniture manufacturing (e.g., "foamed polyurethane insulation board").
PU sponge (for soft PU foam only)
When PU foam is a soft type with an open-cell structure (such as daily cleaning sponges and sofa filling sponges), it is often referred to as "PU sponge" for short. It should be noted that this name only applies to soft, porous and water-absorbent PU foam. Hard PU foam (such as refrigerator insulation layers) is generally not called a "sponge".
Polyurethane foamed material
It focuses more on the description of material properties, emphasizing its dual characteristics of being a "polyurethane material" and being "formed by foaming". It is mostly used in industrial material classification scenarios (for example, to distinguish it from other polyurethane products such as "polyurethane sheets" and "polyurethane coatings").