A Review on Welding Techniques of Metallic Foams

Abstract

Metallic foams are a new type of material class using in the much-diversified area such as automotive, biomedical, and construction etc. Thanks to its porous structure, it stands out with its energy and impact absorption as well as its lightness. Due to the properties, metal foams have the potential for use in many applications. As the number of uses and potential applications increases, it becomes important to develop adequate joining technologies for metallic foams and to select appropriate methods for their widespread industrial use. However, various problems are encountered in welding metallic foams with a foam or a face sheet. The most important feature that causes differences in the welding process and characteristics of these materials is porosity. While the methods such as MIG/TIG could be preferred in the past, the methods such as laser welding have come to the fore with today's needs. The welding of metallic foams is a subject that is still being studied and developed. In this study, studies in the literature are examined to understand the problems encountered in metallic foams during welding and to develop welding techniques. It is aimed to create a wide source for the welding of metallic foams by referring to the methods used and the advantages and disadvantages of the methods with this review. It has been determined that traditional welding methods have started to be replaced by advanced welding methods in the welding of metallic foams.