Magnesium Metal Foam Production Using Polypropylene Fibers as an Active Hydrogen Source

There is a wide range of processes to fabricate porous materials made of ceramics, polymers, and metals with an extensive range of applications. The Gasar method is one of the molten state methods of producing porous structures. Compared to other common commercial methods, the Gasar method allows effective control of the porosity, size, and orientation of the pores. One of the disadvantages of making gaseous foam is the creation of unwanted compounds in the structure of the produced foam limiting its application. Here, the fabrication of magnesium Gasar foam is studied using the thermal decomposition of polypropylene fibers (PPFs) as an additive foaming agent to produce hydrogen gas at atmospheric pressure. In this method, pores are formed due to the dissolution of hydrogen resulting from the thermal decomposition of PPFs in molten magnesium. The optimum amounts of fibers, working conditions of PPFs, preparation of the foaming agent, and the soaking method into the molten are explored and the parameters are optimized. TG, DTA, SEM, FTIR, EDS, and XRD are performed to analysis the foam structure. Also, the porosity amount and its diameter are calculated by CLEMEX software. The results show that by changing the amount of foaming agent from 0.4 to 10.2 wt%, the porosity rate changed from 0 to 23%. The highest porosity of 23% is attributed to 10.2 wt% of the foaming agent. Also, the average pore diameter at different levels of produced foams is investigated as a function of %PPFs. It is proposed that PPFs may be used to fabricate magnesium foams for load-bearing, weight-saving, and impact-absorbing applications.