Cymat Technologies

Cymat Technologies is a materials technology company based out of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, and involved in the production of stabilized aluminum foam.

WWW cymat.com

Business

Cymat Technologies has the worldwide rights, through patents and licenses, to manufacture Stabilized Aluminum Foam. Cymat is focused on producing SAF for architecture, blast mitigation and automotive industries. The company markets architectural SAF under the Alusion trademark and automotive and blast mitigation SAF under the SmartMetal trademark.
Cymat Technologies operates out of its manufacturing plant in Toronto, Canada. The plant can manufacture approximately $50 million in stabilized aluminum foam annually.

Process

As described in the patent originally created by Alcan with parallel patents created by Norsk Hydro, "Stabilized Aluminum Foam" is generated in a continuous casting process via direct shop air injection into a Metal Matrix Composite melt. The MMC comprises an Al-Si cast alloy with a volume of particle in suspension. The purpose of the particle is to provide melt stability and must adhere to the following criteria;

Consist of Alumina, Titanium diboride, Zirconia, Silicon Carbide, Silicon nitride or any solid stabilizer materials
Must compose of less than 25 vol% of the MMC
Particulate sizes must range from 0.5 μm to 25 μm, preferably in the range of 1 μm to 20 μm

Though it is a controversial topic, it is widely accepted that the presence of the solid particles aid in the "stabilization" of bubbles. It is thought that particulate aids in foam stability via the following mechanisms:Increase bulk liquid viscosityCreates a mechanical disjoining pressureReduction in Drainage
The process for the creation of Stabilized Aluminum Foam and can be broken down into these 4 rudimentary steps:

Melting
Air Injection
Casting
Solidification

Once the raw MMC is melted, it is then transferred to the foaming apparatus where gas is injected into the melt and dispersed using either rotating impellers or vibrating nozzles. The bubbles rise to the surface and the resultant metal foam mixture cast will rise out of the foaming apparatus due to its density relative to that of the molten MMC. As the metallic foam is being cast, it is simultaneously drawn off the surface by, for example, a conveyor belt. While it is drawn off, it is then cooled and forms a porous metallic structure.