Preparation With Aluminum Foam Of Sandwich Beams And Sandwich Tubes And The Study Of Mechanical Property

In the paper, foamed aluminum, which is Al-Mg alloy, is prepared by melt foaming technique (MFT). By relative theory analysis and controlling the content of alloy, foaming temperature, stirring time and holding time, then the sample with high quality has been found. The result shows that the porosity is partly adjustable; the distribution of cells can be more equable by strictly controlling the process parameters such as foaming temperature, stirring time and speed. MFT is easily controlled with simple instrument, so this method would have bright foreground.The bending property of the sandwich beams was studied, which was fabricated by the thin aluminum panel as its shell and Al-Mg alloy foam as its core. The results indicate that the load-deflection curve of the sandwich beams under the three-point bending is similar with that of foam aluminum. The load-deflection curve of sandwich beams was higher markedly than the sum of foam aluminum (alone) and its shell (alone) and showed a favorable effect. The loading capacity of sandwich beams and foam aluminum was decreased with the increasing porosity of foam. The peak loading of sandwich beams appeared at larger deflection comparing with that of aluminum foam. The thick panel and core structure influence the load-deflection curve of sandwich beams, 70% and 80% respectively.Compression deforming activity and energy absorption ability of aluminum foam cylinder sandwich under pressing was studied. The sample was fabricated by stainless steel tube as its shell and foam aluminum as its core. The results indicate that the deforming mode of the cylinder sandwich is changed from "diamond mode" to "concertina mode"; its load is 1.5 times higher than the sum of foam (alone) and tube (alone). The plateau region of the load-displacement curve exhibits a marked serration which is clearly related to the formation of the cylinder folds; the sample height, diameter, melt mode has influence on the folding. The energy absorption ability of aluminum foam cylinder sandwich are generally found to be 1.5-2 times higher than the sum of foam (alone) and tube (alone), and the energy absorption ability of the cylinder sandwich increases more quickly as the increasing with the displacement.