Dynamic compression of an ultra-low density aluminium foam

Abstract

The dynamic compressive behavior of an ultra-low density, open-celled SG91A aluminium foam fabricated by casting technique was investigated at a dynamic strain rate of 1.4 x 10 3 s -1 . It was found that the plateau stress of the SG91A foam exhibited strain rate dependence, in a manner similar to other metallic foams such as AZ91 foam and ALPORAS. In the present study, efforts were made to correlate the plateau stress with the density of different foams, and it was further compared with existing models. It is of interest to note that the absorption energy normalized by the relative density at the dynamic strain rate is ∼ 60% higher than that at quasi-static strain rates (∼ 1 x 10 3 s -1 ).