| Open cell metallic foams are relatively new materials with increasingly applications due to their attractive combinations of physical, chemical, mechanical and optical properties. Since plastic deformation in the struts involves dislocation motion, dislocation slip bands are used to track the initiation/propagation and locations of plastic deformation in individual struts. We find that the onset of plastic deformation in struts is far beyond the observable strut/cell shape changes, and both plastic bending and buckling are strut deformation modes.; To measure the strut mechanical properties, an existing micro-scale tensile tester was updated to test the individual struts extracted from foams using electro-discharged machining. The micro-tensile testing results show that the foam struts are typically more ductile and one time stronger than the corresponding fully dense alloy.; To integrate the measured strut and foam properties, a four-strut structure unit is identified as a structural representative of the open cell foam structure. Based on the observed strut deformation modes, mechanics analysis is performed on the structure unit to predict the foam stiffness and strength. The predictions are in good agreement with the measured data, suggesting the significance of the studies on the foam strut properties and deformation. This model also predicts the bounds of the foam strengths.; Under cyclic compression, foams fail due to damage accumulation in individual struts, in which surface cracks initiate and grow. At low stress levels, surface cracks are formed in multiple struts that are distributed across the foam block. This results in an abrupt strain jump due to the crush of foam block, upon foam failure.; To meet applications requirements, open cell aluminum foams are usually annealed or strengthened. The studies are carried out in the foams in the as-fabricated (F), annealed (O) and T6-strengthed (T6) conditions. We find that annealing and T6 strengthening significantly affect the strut microstructure, the stress-strain behavior, the foam strength, and the macro-scale deformation of the foams under monotonic compression. The macro-scale deformation is studied using a combination of in situ imaging and surface strain mapping technique. This reveals the importance of localization in the propagation across the foam structure. |
