Aluminum Nano-Foam Will Make Vehicles Safer, Lighter

VIENNA, AUSTRIA - Polystyrene foam, the protective agent inside bicycle helmets and automotive components, offers protection through the shock-absorbing ability of its millions of tiny, uniform closed-cell air bubbles. Essentially, when an object imp

Jan. 1, 2020

TECHNOLOGY FOCUSAluminum Nano-Foam Will Make Vehicles Safer, Lighter VIENNA, AUSTRIA - Polystyrene foam, the protective agent inside bicycle helmets and automotive components, offers protection through the shock-absorbing ability of its millions of tiny, uniform closed-cell air bubbles. Essentially, when an object impacts the foam, the energy required to crush the walls of the foam cells slows the object down. But the use of polystyrene as the material of choice is about to be challenged.

Aluminum Foam
(Photo: Metcomb Nanostructures)

Scientists have long known that some metals also can be transformed into foams; these are known as cellular metals. Despite the theoretical potential for cellular metals to more effectively dissipate energy using a much thinner layer, the challenge lies in manufacturing cellular metal foams that have a uniform cell structure. Without uniformity, a measurable and predictable performance remains a barrier to the success of cellular metal foams.

All that has apparently changed, however. Schwarzenau, Austria-based Metcomb Nanostructures, using its patented Integrated Nanostructure Control process, has developed a way to make aluminum foam with evenly sized cells.

"Cellular aluminum has a number of advantages that no other metal has," says Gerald H