Metal foams with ceramic inserts for security applications

Protective performance and a low weight of armour plates are the most important objective in security applications. Metallic foams can provide a high level of protection without an extensive mass and were used as a part of various laminated armour systems in the past. Embedding small ceramic parts in metallic foam combines the hardness of ceramics with the flexibility of the lightweight cellular matrix. The material has an extreme cutting resistance against mechanical tools such as angle grinder, drill bits, or other cutting devices. In several testing campaigns, aluminium foams were combined with different internal layouts of stacked or integrated ceramics. The cellular core was foamed directly to steel cover sheets or was bonded to different steel alloy faceplates. In additional tests, blast wave propagation of the metallic foam ceramic composite (MFCC) panels was evaluated. Furthermore, several ballistic tests were performed and compared to state-of-the-art armour materials. It was possible to achieve better performance in this comparison to standard armoured steel at a lower overall weight.