Product Summary of Regular Aluminium Foam
Goodfellow is delighted to announce the addition of an exciting new product to our range – regular aluminium foam.
So what is this “regular” foam?
Unlike the foams we have had in our catalogue for several years, which are a permeable structure of cells and continuous ligaments in an approximately consistent density, but random orientation, this new foam is made up of cells defined as regular tetrakaidecahedrons (polygons with 14 faces – 8 hexagonal and 6 square).
Animation showing the regular structure of this foam
Prototyping to industrialisation
Prototyping can be accomplished using standard pieces as stocked by Goodfellow, but for production pieces, the final shape can be moulded, reducing costs and eliminating the need for machining.
Properties
| Characteristics |
Description |
| Characteristics
Material
|
Description
Aluminium 99.5% (aluminium alloys on request)
|
| Characteristics
Standard catalogue size
|
Description
40mm x 100mm x 172mm (other sizes on request)
|
| Characteristics
Standard cladding
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Description
Aluminium, one side
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| Characteristics
Cladding size
|
Description
4mm x 100mm x 172mm
|
| Characteristics
Standard cell size
|
Description
10mm
|
| Characteristics
Other available cell sizes
|
Description
14mm or on request
|
| Characteristics
Foam topology
|
Description
Kelvin Cells, open regular pores
|
| Characteristics
Porosity
|
Description
85%
|
| Characteristics
Nominal Density (unclad foam)
|
Description
0.41 g/cm3
|
| Characteristics
Relative surface area
|
Description
360 m2/m3
|
| Characteristics
Maximum service temperature
|
Description
450°C
|
| Characteristics
Melting point
|
Description
660°C
|
Uses
Impact absorption
For impact absorption, the advantage of this regular, reproducible aluminium foam product is that it can be designed with the end use in mind, making it possible to optimise the exact structure necessary to absorb the energy from an impact based on a specific application.
Single piece cast crumple zone
Heat exchange
It is in heat exchange that this metal foam potentially has the most promise: its high porosity (80-90%) and its very high relative surface area of up to 500 m2/m3 facilitate the movement of fluids and the recovery of heat, even at low speeds.
Please click here for standard catalogue item prices. Alternatively, if you would like to know more about this material, please send us an e-mail or telephone us using the numbers on our contact page.
A pdf technical datasheet is available for download here.
