The compressive behaviour of eight different metal matrix syntactic foams (MMSFs) are investigated and presented. The results showed that the engineering factors as chemical compositions of the matrix material, the size of the microballoons, the previously applied heat treatment and the temperature of the compression tests have significant effects on the compressive properties. The smaller microballoons with thinner wall ensured higher compressive strength due to their more flawless microstructure and better mechanical stability. According to the heat treatments, the T6 treatments were less effective than expected; the parameters of the treatment should be further optimized. The elevated temperature tests revealed ~30% drop in the compressive strength. However, the strength remained high enough for structural applications; therefore MMSFs are good choices for light structural parts working at elevated or room temperature. The chemical composition -microballoon type -heat treatment combinations give good potential for tailoring the compressive characteristics of MMSFs.
The most promising process for metal matrix syntactic foam (MMSF) production is pressure infiltration. In case if it can be advanced to die casting the cost of the MMSFs will drop significantly. The first step on this road is to characterize the kinetics of the pressure infiltration with respect to infiltration pressure and time. Experimental infiltration equipment was built and many preliminary tests were performed on the AlSi12 + SLG system. The load bearing capacity is also important, therefore the compressive behaviour of MMSFs were investigated. According to the results engineering factors (matrix material, size of the microballoons, applied heat treatment, temperature of the tests) have significant effects on the compressive properties.
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