Characterization of close-celled cellular aluminum alloys

The deformation behaviour of two different types of aluminium alloy foam are studied under tension, compression, shear and hydrostatic pressure. Foams having closed cells are processed via batch casting, whereas foams with semi-open cells are processed by negative pressure infiltration. The influence of relative foam density, cell structure and cell orientation on the stiffness and strength of foams is studied; the deformation mechanisms are analysed by using video imaging and SEM (scanning electronic microscope). The measured dependence of stiffness and strength upon relative foam density are compared with analytical predictions. The measured stress versus strain curves along different loading paths are compared with predictions from a phenomenological constitutive model. It is found that the deformations of both types of foams are dominated by cell wall bending, attributed to various process induced imperfections in the cellualr structure. The closed cell foam is found to be isotropic, whereas the semi-open cell foam shows strong anisotropy. (C) 2001 Kluwer Academic Publishers.