Nanocoating makes lightweight metal foams bone-hard and explosion-proof

Phys.org  March 15, 2019
The metal foams currently available are suitably lightweight, but the production process is complicated and expensive, and the structures are still too weak and not resilient enough for many applications. Inspired by bone, researchers in Germany used aluminium or polymer foam as the initial lattice substrate to manufacture highly stable, porous metallic foams. They developed a proprietary procedure for coating the individual struts that make up the open-cell interior lattice. As a result, the exterior of the foam is stronger, more stable, light and the withstands extreme loads. They found polyurethane foams have a low density, a large surface area but a small volume. The materil is used in mobile barriers to provide protection from the shock waves caused by explosions, when exposed to underwater detonations, the foams simply ‘swallow’ the resulting sound and pressure waves…read more.