Influences of reinforcement size and artificial aging on the compression features of hybrid ceramic filled aluminum syntactic foams

Abstract

Over the past years, the number of scientific efforts on aluminum matrix syntactic foams (AMSFs) has increased in a noteworthy manner, and different investigation teams have tried to figure out the physical, microstructural, and mechanical properties of AMSFs. In this paper, different from the previous valuable efforts, an industrial-focused cold chamber die casting machine was utilized during the fabrication instead of commonly used lab-scale techniques. Also, the effects of the reinforcement diameter on the compressive features were analyzed for pumice and expanded glass-added hybrid AMSFs. To ascertain the mechanical properties, quasi-static compression tests were conducted and stress–strain curves were obtained. During the compression tests, the deformation styles of the hybrid foams were followed to comprehend their damage mechanisms. Moreover, half of the samples were subjected to artificial aging treatment and the results were checked up with as-cast samples. According to experimental outcomes, it was obvious that the artificial aging treatment caused superior mechanical properties and triggered brittle-style deformation.