Design and Fabrication of Highly Porous Replicated Aluminum Foam Using Double-Granular Space Holder

Abstract

Porous materials are widely employed in a wide variety of industrial applications due to their advanced functional performance. Porous aluminum is among the most attractive metallic materials. It can be produced using repeatable methods involving a replicated Al foam that also provides porosity control. In this work, a highly porous replicated Al foam was fabricated. First, the model of multifunctional packing density was used and corrected to select the appropriate space holders. Then, Al foam was produced using a double-granular sodium chloride space holder. The obtained results showed a maximum porosity of 65% that was achieved using a mix of coarse, irregular granules with spherical granules of intermediate size.

Production of Open-Cell Metal Foams by Recycling of Aluminum Alloy Chips

“…Ozer et al [13] described, in their paper, a method of producing open-cell aluminum foams, for which they used as the space holder furan bonded sand and gypsum bonded ceramics, whereas the metal matrix was aluminum alloy A413. Finkelstein et al [14] showed the production methodology of highly porous replicated aluminum foam using a double-granular space holder. Sutygina et al [15] have presented the manufacturing of open-cell copper foam using the sponge replication technique.…”

Rice Husk Ash as Pore Former and Reinforcement on the Porosity, Microstructure, and Tensile Strength of Aluminum MMC Fabricated via the Powder Metallurgy Method

“…Nevertheless, the advantage also serves as a great drawback to the manufacturability of aluminum products, which thus leads to a great hurdle for manufacturing industries to fully cultivate the potential and usage of pure aluminum in manufacturing industries [4]. In recent years, various approaches have been explored in the manufacturing of porous aluminum with different fabrication methods and reinforcement materials which opens many possibilities for the manufacturing, construction, automotive, and building industries [5][6][7]. For instance, open-celled porous aluminum had been depicting great functionality in sound damping elements, heat exchanger elements, filters, and design elements, which are particularly adopted in the building and construction industry [5].…”