Compressive property and energy absorption characteristic of open-cell ZA22 foams

Abstract ZA22 foams with open-cell structure were fabricated by replication process using NaCl preform. These foams have the equivalent cell size to salt particle (840–3900 μm in size). The compressive property and energy absorption characteristic of ZA22 foams were investigated. ZA22 foams show the deformation characteristics of plastic foams. The relation between the relative plastic collapse stress and relative density can be described with Gibson and Ashby’s model. The energy absorption capacity of the foams gradually increases for given relative density from 0.279 to 0.396, whereas, the energy absorption efficiency is independent of the relative density.