DEVELOPMENT OF MULTIFUNCTIONAL MAGNESIUM SYNTACTIC FOAMS

Abstract

Metal matrix syntactic foams (MMSFs) are lightweight closed-cell composite foams produced by reinforcing hollow particles in the metal matrix. The main aim of the present research is to understand the fundamentals of structure-property correlations for syntactic foams that aid in developing multi-functionality in these composites. In this work, magnesium-based syntactic foams are synthesized by introducing silica glass microballoons (GMBs) at micro and nano-scale and are investigated for thermal, mechanical, damping, corrosion, tribological and biocompatibility properties. Experimental results obtained are helpful in identifying the diversity in interfacial reaction and microstructure caused by reinforcing hollow particles at micro and nano-scale and their effects on the evaluated properties. The ability to simultaneously tailor these syntactic foams for multiple properties, such as density, thermal, elastic modulus, damping capacity, cell attachment and strength would make them ideal for many applications in-ground vehicle transportation, aerospace, defense, electronics packaging, biomedical and marine applications.