Fracture Behavior of Metal Foam Made of Recycled MMC by the Melt Route

Abstract

Metal foam was made from recycled MMC precursor by the melt route. The original starting material was an Al-9Si alloy containing 20 vol% of SiC particles (10 mm), which are used to stabilize the foam during the foaming process. The starting material has been used to make foam parts from which the residue was recycled and refoamed. During the (re)foaming process Fe is present in the melt. During solidification of the foam, -AlSiFe plates are formed with the surplus of Si and Al present in the alloy. These plates run through the entire thickness of the cell wall (40-50 mm) and their length ranges between 50 and 200 mm. During in-situ tensile tests fracture initiates in the -AlFeSi plates and propagates through other -AlFeSi plates leading to brittle fracture of the cell walls.

3D modeling and experimental investigation on the damage behavior of an interpenetrating metal ceramic composite (IMCC) under compression

“…Berek et al [10] used in-situ compression experiments in a Xray computed tomography device to investigate the local deformation and the correlated phase transformation in the metallic phase of their MMC foam. Amsterdam et al [11] investigated the fracture behaviour of a foam, made of recycled MMC material (Al-9Si with 20 vol.-% SiC particles). Fracture was indicated at the Fe-rich plate-like precipitations, which dominated the damage behavior, as they span the entire cell wall thickness.…”