A preliminary study on adhesion on steel cylinder filled with aluminum foam

In the last decades, metallic foams found commercial and industrial interests, thanks to their physical properties combined with good mechanical characteristics. Metal foam structures are very light and they can be used to reduce the weight of machinery without compromise the mechanical behavior. In this work, a study of the direct junction of metal foam with metal massive components was carried out because in literature there are few references to the formation of an intermetallic phase between aluminum foams and massive metal shells. Aluminium foams were manufactured starting from commercial foamable precursors: first of all, attention was paid to the repeatability of foaming process. Then, a direct connection between the foamed samples and the steel shell elements was pursued. The materials that seemed to facilitate the formation of an intermetallic layer were studied and the geometry of the steel mould and the most useful way to place the precursor in the steel mould and then in the furnace were considered. To evaluate the produced aluminum foam, morphological and mechanical characterizations were done. Results showed that, keeping constant the contour conditions, it was possible to control the process and a first result, in term of interaction between foam and mould, was obtained using an X210Cr12 steel as mould material. The SEM observation revealed the presence of an intermetallic phase between the two different materials.