General Overview

Metallic foam is mass-produced as a multi-functional auxiliary material for heat dissipation, heat equalization, ventilation & noise reduction, electromagnetic shielding, and vapor chamber capillary wicks across four major hardware categories: consumer graphics cards, AI supercomputing servers, full liquid cooling computing platforms, switches and data center cabinets.

Main Material Selections

● Copper foam: For heat dissipation & liquid cooling capillary wicks

● Open-cell nickel alloy foam: For cabinet ventilation & sound absorption, EMI shielding & energy storage vibration buffering

Five Core Application Scenarios & Material Selection Parameters

Scenario 1: Capillary Wicks in GPU Graphics Cards & Vapor Chambers (VC) – Copper Foam (Core Heat Dissipation Material)

Applicable hardware: Computing accelerator cards, 3D vacuum vapor chambers (3DVC)

① Internal capillary wick for vapor chambers (largest consumption volume)

② Air-cooled radiator duct filler (high-end custom gaming graphics cards)

③ Internal filler for liquid cooling cold plates (ultra-high power GPUs)

Scenario 2: Cabinet Ventilation & Silent Noise Reduction – Open-Cell Copper Foam / Nickel Alloy Foam

Applicable equipment: Full liquid cooling racks, standard computing power cabinets

① Cabinet air inlet & outlet ventilation panels (mass production standard configuration)

② Sound absorption lining for cabinet inner walls (fanless full liquid cooling platforms)

③ Vibration buffering for power supplies and reactors

Scenario 3: EMC Electromagnetic Compatibility for Switches & GPU Shielding Compartments – Nickel Alloy Foam

Applicable parts: Multi-card interconnection backplanes, server covers, shielding cavities for high-speed optical modules

● PPI: 80~100 PPI; Thickness: 1.5 / 2 / 3 mm; Porosity ≥ 95%

● Shielding effectiveness: 70~90 dB; Temperature resistance: -40~200 ℃

● Application method: Fills door panel gaps and cable cutouts to block leakage of high-frequency high-speed electromagnetic waves and resolve signal interference in computing data centers

● Derivative product: Nickel foam sealing strips wrapped with conductive fabric, integrating waterproof, dustproof and shielding functions in one piece

Scenario 4: Energy Storage Modules in AI Cabinets & Rack Buffer Power Supplies – Nickel Foam Heat Equalization Layer

Rack-mounted cabinet-level energy storage capacitor modules for computing equipment

● PPI: 40 / 60 PPI; Thickness: 1.0 / 2.5 mm; Areal density: 350~450 g/㎡

● Function: Equalize temperature of energy storage capacitors, suppress heat accumulation during charging and discharging, prevent thermal propagation, and improve smoothness of instantaneous rack power output

Scenario 5: Defoaming & Energy Absorption for Liquid Cooling Systems – Composite Copper / Nickel Foam

① Defoaming & filtering for coolant loops: 40 PPI copper foam to filter impurities and eliminate pipeline air bubbles

② Buffering lining for cabinet liquid cooling pipelines: 20 mm open-cell alloy foam to prevent pipeline abrasion caused by vibration

Material Selection Comparison Table

Practical Engineering Application Cases (Directly Applicable for Bidding & Technical Renovation)

Case 1: Hot Spot Suppression for Full Liquid Cooling Servers (Copper Foam Vapor Chamber Solution)

① Project BackgroundSingle card power consumption reaches 1200 W; stacked thermal flux of video memory and GPU core exceeds 200 W/cm². Conventional heat pipe cold plates produce local hot spots over 85 ℃, triggering long-term full-load frequency throttling and 12% computing power loss.

② Renovation Matching Scheme100 PPI, 2 mm high-purity copper foam wick filled inside vapor chambers; 10 mm gradient-pore copper foam laminated into GPU cold plate interlayers.

③ Actual Operation PerformanceMaximum chip junction temperature reduced by 16 ℃; hot spot temperature difference controlled ≤ 3 ℃; no frequency throttling under full load; stable 14% improvement in overall AI training computing power.

Case 2: Integrated Cabinet Ventilation & Noise Reduction (Open-Cell Nickel Alloy Foam)

① Project BackgroundFirst-generation plastic ventilation mesh suffered poor dust resistance and failed flame retardant standards; stacked cabinets in the machine room generated 68 dB operating noise, creating harsh operation & maintenance environment.

② Solution ParametersFront ventilation panels: 1.6 mm pore, 18 mm thick open-cell alloy foam; 20 mm alloy foam sound absorption lining on cabinet inner walls.

③ EffectVentilation resistance only increased by 8% with no impact on heat dissipation; overall equipment noise dropped to 34 dB. The metal material is flame-retardant with no debris shedding, fully complying with data center fire protection codes.

Case 3: Rectification of Excessive Rack Electromagnetic Radiation (Nickel Foam Shielding Gaskets)

① Problem DescriptionExcessive high-speed signal radiation caused fluctuating data on surrounding monitoring and storage sensors, failing data center electromagnetic compatibility acceptance tests.

② Solution2 mm, 90 PPI conductive nickel foam gaskets laid along all cabinet seams and optical module cutouts, installed under 35% compression ratio.

③ OutcomeShielding effectiveness reaches 85 dB, fully meeting Class A industrial standards and completely eliminating electromagnetic interference.

Mandatory Acceptance Standards for Procurement

① Copper foam: No blocked pores, no oxidative black discoloration, no copper powder shedding; thermal conductive adhesive tape temperature resistance ≥ 180 ℃

② Alloy foam: Only full open-cell material is acceptable; closed-cell / semi-open-cell products shall be rejected directly; anodized surface with no powder peeling

③ Nickel foam: Continuous conductive network without breaks, no pulverization under long-term high-temperature exposure

④ All materials comply with RoHS and UL94-V0 flame retardancy standards; third-party material test reports available upon request

⑤ Custom die-cutting, adhesive lamination supported; standard sheet supply in full size 500 × (500–1000 mm)

Summary of Industry Trends

① Consumer graphics cards: Copper foam VC vapor chambers have become standard configuration for high-end reference designs

② New-generation computing power platforms: Microchannel copper foam is mandatory filler for liquid cooling heat dissipation

③ Complete machine cabinets: Open-cell alloy foam universally replaces plastic ventilation mesh, balancing appearance, heat dissipation and noise reduction

④ High-density multi-card systems: Nickel foam shielding serves as the optimal low-cost solution to resolve high-speed electromagnetic interference

If you would like to order custom metal foam or porous metal, please call Huayan Intelligent Technology at +8613661985902，Email: 13661985902@163.com