Metal Foam Information Links:
Metal Foam Introduction
What is metal foam?
Metal foam, as its name implies, is structured like a normal polyurethane foam. Being mostly comprised of vacancies, metal foam has a high strength to weight ratio and a high specific surface area to volume ratio. There are two types of metal foams, closed cell and open cell. Closed cell foam is made of, "bubbles," of solid metal. Closed cell foam is typically used in applications with an artistic orientation. Open cell foam, as the name implies, has open cell walls. The foam undergoes reticulation, leaving behind solid ligaments. These ligaments are solid metal, and comprise the structure of the foam. Metal foam typically has a density of 3-12%, and is compressible to higher densities.
Duocel Metal Foam
ERG Duocel metal foam is comprised of a wide variety of base materials. Our open-celled foams can be produced in aluminum, copper, nickel, tin, zinc, inconel, silver and gold. Additional material combinations are available as secondary coats, which are explained in detail on the foam properties page.
Why is Duocel unique?
Using our proprietary foaming process, we are able to produce solid ligament, foam, which has the structure of a reticulated foam. Only a handful of metal foam producers in the world can manufacture this type of foam. Solid ligament metal foam excels at conducting heat and current due to the large cross sectional area of the ligaments. This, combined with a high specific surface area makes Duocel ideal for heat exchangers and catalysts.
Metal Foam Applications
Duocel metal foam is typically used for highly efficient custom heat exchangers, baffle structures, and low-pressure drop catalyst systems. In the past Duocel metal foam has seen use as an internal baffle structure for cryogen tanks used in aerospace applications. With over forty years of experience, a dedicated team of engineers and a Ph.D. thermodynamics specialist, ERG specializes in designing custom heat exchangers using our metal foam. See our capabilities page for more information about ERG’s design services.
