Monitoring of the Interaction of Aluminum Alloy and Sodium Chloride as the Basis for Ecological Production of Expanded Aluminum
Iva Nová, Karel Fraňa, T. Lipiňki
Abstract
The article deals with the monitoring of the behavior of sodium chloride in interaction with the aluminum alloy melt. Sodium chloride is an excellent substance for the production of expanded aluminum materials. Its melting point is 801°C and an advantageous is that NaCl can be easy applicable from an ecological point of view. The theoretical calculations of melt penetration between sodium chloride grains were performed and the angle of wetting of sodium chloride particles by aluminum melt was determined. Furthermore, it has been confirmed that a vacuum system with an inert gas is essential to produce expanded aluminum materials. Additionally, a method of pressing sodium chloride into an aluminum alloy melt has been developed; the minimum pressure of 150 MPa was important for successful pressing process. Properties of produced materials (particularly relative density, porosity, Young’s modulus of elasticity, thermal conductivity) were studied on the obtained samples of porous aluminum materials.