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Plasticity and damage in aluminum syntactic foams deformed under dynamic and quasi-static conditions

2004; Elsevier BV; Volume: 391; Issue: 1-2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.msea.2004.09.012

1873-4936

Dorian K. Balch, John G. O’Dwyer, Graham Davis, Carl Cady, George T. Gray, David C. Dunand,

Fluid Dynamics Simulations and Interactions

Syntactic foams were fabricated by liquid metal infiltration of commercially pure and 7075 aluminum into preforms of hollow ceramic microspheres. The foams exhibited peak strengths during quasi-static compression ranging from −100 to −230 MPa, while dynamic compression loading showed a 10–30% increase in peak strength magnitude, with strain rate sensitivities similar to those of aluminum–matrix composite materials. X-ray tomographic investigation of the post-compression loaded foam microstructures revealed sharp differences in deformation modes, with the unalloyed-Al foam failing initially by matrix deformation, while the alloy–matrix foams failed more abruptly through the formation of sharp crush bands oriented at about 45° to the compression axis. These foams displayed pronounced energy-absorbing capabilities, suggesting their potential use in packaging applications or for impact protection; proper tailoring of matrix and microsphere strengths would result in optimized syntactic foam properties.