Stabilization of closed-cell aluminum foam by particles in the presence of oxide film: CFD-DEM simulation on particle behavior for node-Plateau borders system

In order to reduce the particle addition in closed-cell aluminum foam, the effect of particles on foam drainage behavior was investigated numerically. The coupled CFD-DEM method was used to analyze the particle behavior within the node-PBs system. The predicted results agree well with experimental results. The results show that the trajectory of particles in metallic foam is consistent with literatures. Particles grow into clusters and deposit on the oxide film, leading to foam clogging and suppressing the drainage in aluminum foam. The above mechanism explains the phenomenon in literatures that the viscosity obtained from the drainage experiment is much greater than the apparent viscosity of the particle-melt mixture. The effect of particles on suppressing drainage is summarized as the blockage effect of stationary particles and the increasing apparent viscosity of moving particles. There is an optimization possibility of particle size and volume fraction, achieving better performance and lower production costs.