Effect of polyurea coating on the ductility of aluminum foam

Abstract

The closed-cell metal foams are utilized in various industrial applications due to their impact and energy absorption capacity, noise cancelation, and lightweight properties. Additionally, the manufacturing methods of stochastic foams with blowing agents or inert gas injection are well known. However, the poor mechanical strength and high brittleness are restricting the application of these materials. A method of increasing the ductility, plastic deformation, and fracture toughness of these materials is the integration of elastomer coating. Polyurea is widely used in applications where water-proofing and high ductility are aimed. In this study, two types of polyurea coatings as MS950 and MS955 are sprayed over the aluminum foam with three densities as 0.508, 0.557, and 0.624 g/cm(3) to evaluate the effect of coating on the ductility and fracture toughness of samples considering the tensile behavior and 4 densities as 0.508, 0.538, 0.557, and 0.624 g/cm(3) for the flexural bending test. The MS955 polyurea coating elevated the ultimate tensile strength and elasticity modulus of all specimens with a maximum of 239% and a minimum of 70%. However, the MS950 coating did not result in a significant rise in tensile strength. The main advantage of the MS950 coating is in the amount of strain increment with 374% in maximum and 181% in minimum resulting in higher ductility and fracture toughness. Additionally, the bending characteristics of MS950 coating demonstrate a drastic increase in both load and strain which recommend the usage of this coating in bending and impact applications. Finally, an analytical evaluation of the coated and uncoated specimens in the elastic region and the elastoplastic region is provided using linear and power-law interpolation. In tensile tests, the MS955 coating resulted in higher elasticity modulus and fracture toughness. However, in bending applications, the MS950 coating demonstrated higher load strength with elevated ductility.