Static and dynamic energy absorption of Al foams produced by the sintering and dissolution process

This article investigates the effects of the processing conditions of the novel sintering and dissolution process (SDP), including sintering temperature, sintering time, Mg addition, and cell size, on the capacities of the as-processed Al foams for static and dynamic energy absorption. While higher temperatures generally promote better bonding between the Al particles during sintering and, therefore, improved energy-absorption capacities, there exist optimum sintering times and cell-size ranges for producing Al foams with the best energy-absorption characteristics. The optimum sintering time increases when the sintering temperature or the relative density is decreased. The addition of a small amount of Mg powder to the Al/NaCl compact can enhance the sintering markedly and increase the energy-absorbing capacity of the foam by up to 50 pct. For any Al foam, the energy absorbed in the static condition is much greater than that in the dynamic condition. The mechanisms of these effects are also discussed.