Composite foams

Conference · Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1988

OSTI ID:6871608

Nyitray, A M; Williams, J M

Composite foams have been prepared which incorporate the best attributes of two materials. Polystyrene emulsion foams have the advantages that they can be prepared easily over a wide range of densities (.015 g/cc to 0.20 g/cc) and are easy to handle and machine; however, the small cell sizes needed for good wicking of the DT liquid fuel are difficult to achieve. On the other hand, Si aerogel and resole foams have the desired small cell size (<0.1 ..mu..m), but the materials are mechanically weak making them difficult to handle and machine. Using a backfilling process, we have been able to make binary composite foams in which the cells of the polystyrene emulsion foam have been filled with aerogel or resole foam. These materials have the small cell sizes needed for good wicking of the liquid DT fuel and are rugged and easy to machine. 3 refs., 8 figs.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-36
• OSTI ID: 6871608
• Report Number(s): LA-UR-88-3019; CONF-880789-2; ON: DE89000368
• Resource Relation: Conference: Advanced materials workshop, Livermore, CA, USA, 26 Jul 1988; Other Information: Portions of this document are illegible in microfiche products
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
FOAMS
MICROSTRUCTURE
POLYSTYRENE
CHEMICAL PREPARATION
COMPOSITE MATERIALS
COMPRESSION STRENGTH
EMULSIONS
FORMALDEHYDE
SILICON
ALDEHYDES
COLLOIDS
CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
DISPERSIONS
ELEMENTS
MATERIALS
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC POLYMERS
PETROCHEMICALS
PETROLEUM PRODUCTS
PLASTICS
POLYMERS
POLYOLEFINS
POLYVINYLS
SEMIMETALS
SYNTHESIS
SYNTHETIC MATERIALS
360601* - Other Materials- Preparation &amp; Manufacture
360602 - Other Materials- Structure &amp; Phase Studies
360603 - Materials- Properties