Nickel foam, nickel fiber felt and woven nickel mesh are all porous or open nickel materials, but they are built differently and are specified with different fields. This note explains the structural difference and how to describe each one in an enquiry.
What each structure is
- Nickel foam: an open-cell, three-dimensional porous nickel structure. Cell size is usually described by PPI.
- Nickel fiber felt: a sintered sheet made of nickel fibers. It is described by porosity and thickness.
- Nickel mesh: a wire-based sheet, woven or otherwise formed. It is described by mesh count, wire diameter and opening.
Spec fields to give
| Structure | Fields to specify |
|---|---|
| Nickel foam | PPI; thickness; sheet size |
| Nickel fiber felt | Porosity; thickness; sheet size |
| Nickel mesh | Mesh count; wire diameter; opening; sheet size |
Values depend on the project and are confirmed at enquiry.
Thickness: free, after rolling, or under compression
State which thickness you mean: free (as supplied), after rolling, or under assembly compression. These can differ, so a drawing or stack-up note helps. See Nickel Foam PPI Guide: Pore Size & Porosity and Nickel Knitted Mesh Thickness: Free vs Loaded.
When not to mix PPI with mesh count
PPI describes cells in foam. Mesh count describes wires per length in a mesh. They measure different structures, so do not convert one to the other or use them as equivalents. If you are comparing structures, give the fields of each separately, or describe the function you need.
Product pages
Enquiry
Partial specifications are enough to start. Send what you have through the quote form or to tzx@nickelfoam.com.