Carbon Foam

[nbk2000]

Was browsing around when I ran across this interesting new material.

<a href="http://www.industrialheating.com/CDA/ArticleInformation/features/BNP__Features__Item/0,2832,87444,00.htm" target="_blank">http://www.industrialheating.com/CDA/ArticleInformation/features/BNP__Features__Item/0,2832,87444,00.htm</a>

From the website:

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica"> The black foam feels like foam insulation, but is a thousand times stronger; one square inch of the material could support the weight of a full size automobile without crushing. It also is possible to have a flame (from an acetylene torch, for example) impinge directly onto the foam without initiating combustion of the material.</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica"><img src="http://www.industrialheating.com/IH/FILES/IMAGES/75221.jpg" alt=" - " />
Exposing carbon foam to a temperature of 1650 C from an acetylene torch results only in very slight oxidation.

It is basically fireproof carbon.

There's a whole list of material properties better described at the site, but I think there's got to be uses for our "hobby" that this material could be put to use for.

For instance, since it is a hollow cored foam, it could be used to absorb an energetic material in its pores. The foam would provide mechanical strength and thermal shock resistance, while still be insubstantial to explosive propagation.

It might even be useful to provide fuel to an oxygen rich explosive since it IS pure carbon.

Ideas?

[Microtek]

Probably would be useful for absorbing shock from an explosion which could be useful for silencers ( depending on pore size ) or as mufflers in test tanks for blasting test in urban environments.

[Crow]

I think this would be an excelent material to store explosives in NBK. A custom made tank ould hold 50 gallons of explosives without fear of it igniting spontaneously.

This foam could also be pumped into walls for insulation/bullet proofing. The carbon is 1000 times stronger as you said then regular insulation and it wont absorb heat so none is lost into the insulation.

[Arkangel]

Huh? Why 50 gallons? Igniting....?

It doesn't matter how strong it is, if it DID blow, something's going to give. It would just go like a giant firecracker casing.

For non sparking storage (if that's what you meant), read up on explosive storage regulations in your area. The rules for magazine construction are pretty clear in most cases, and will let you store explosives safely without using an EXPENSIVE material like this.

Btw, did anyone read Tom Clancy's "Clear and Present Danger"? In that, they have a fibre bodied 1000kg lgb so it could be used and folks would think it was a car bomb.

[kingspaz]

this stuff could be very useful for the construction of a model plane/flying bomb :)
it's light and strong which makes it ideal.

[nbk2000]

Well there's an idea. An RC glider bomb constructed from carbon foam impregnated with explosive. When it explodes, the entire thing is consumed, leaving only bits of the electronics remaining.

I wonder how "stealthy" carbon foam is? Would it show up on the millimetric radar used in anti-assassination systems to detect incoming bullets?

Perhaps a bullet could be constructed out of carbon foam and fired at hypervelocity via rail/light gas gun?

[Positive Electron]

I got one, filling a casing with this foam, then using its porous properties to absorb liquid oxygen for a small, but powerful, explosive. Cost would be a problem though...

[nbk2000]

You can do that with regular charcoal.

Think of something that uses the foams unique properties to best advantage.

[A-BOMB]

I would use it with epoxy to make gun componets.

[Yak]

Because of its extreamly strong propertys you could like someone said make a bomb casing because when it blows the pressure would build up and its strong so would leave a rather large "dent" in the earth/people around it, bullet proofing things with it could help because its light so it would be portable (but i dont know how light).

Also they say its a "foam" but does that mean like a squirty foam that you squirt and then it sets or would you need somthing industrial because if it was (I doubt it is) but if it was a squirty thing like that would be handy filling in holes and such and easy making of casings.

[kingspaz]

if its any sort of foam wouldn't that fuck absorb a hell of alot of the shockwave from the explosive? each little pocket of air requiring energy to crush. i remember an old thread nbk posted about using pumice to stop sympathetic detonation. the air pockets in the pumice fuck up the transmission of the shockwave.

[nbk2000]

Ah, but this is (or, rather, can be) OPEN celled foam, unlike the CLOSED cells of pumice.

Guns might benefit from it. It's certainly very light, strong, and heat resistant. Though it couldn't withstand the chamber pressures of a conventional slug thrower, it would make an excellent frame for a gyrojet weapon since these produce intense jets of flame from the rockets.

It'd also seem possible to make rocket nozzles out of the material, though the carbon may be eroded by the intense oxidizing flame of the burning propellant.

<small>[ December 27, 2002, 08:16 PM: Message edited by: nbk2000 ]</small>