Influence of the Manufacturing Parameters on the Compressive Properties of Closed Cell Aluminum Foams

Abstract

The important properties of metallic foams such as good energy absorption, recyclability, noise absorption, etc. have put them at the forefront of technological development over recent years, especially for fields where the weight is a major concern. The production however, is a highly stochastic process which leads to their inhomogeneous nature. In this paper closed-cell aluminum foam specimens have been produced by direct foaming technique and investigated mechanically, following the principles of Taguchi Design of Experiments (DOE). The important compressive properties of the produced specimens such as the structural stiffness, yield strength, plateau stress and energy absorption have been measured through uniaxial compression tests and the effect of the manufacturing parameters (the temperature, the mixing speed and the amount of foaming agent added) on the energy absorption capacity of the foam is analyzed. From experiments, it was observed that the temperature is the most dominant control factor for the energy absorption capability of the foam followed by the foaming content and the mixing speed. ANOVA statistical analysis was also performed to determine the statistical significance of these parameters on the response.