Microstructural and Compressive Deformation Behavior of Aluminum-Foam-Filled Sections

ABSTRACT

The present research was performed to study the compressive deformation behavior and the energy absorption quantity of aluminum-foam-filled sections. Empty and foam-filled sections were compressed at different strain rates to ascertain the effect to energy absorption. Results show that plateau stress and energy absorption were enhanced due to increase in strain rate. In the case of Al-foam-filled square section, energy absorption was increased up to 26%. Similarly, the plateau stress of mild steel empty section was also found to be increased. Moreover, the energy absorption capacity of mild steel section was enhanced by 25% due to being filled with Al foam. It was noted that square section always absorbs (25–30% depending upon the strain rate) more energy compared to the round sample.

KEYWORDS:

• Aluminum foam
• compression test
• energy absorption
• microstructural analysis

Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the CSIR-Advanced Materials & Processes Research Institute and MSME Department Laboratory, Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology (MANIT) Bhopal, India, for providing various characterizations of as-synthesized samples.