Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 February 2011
Graphitic foams offer exciting potential for mass savings in structures. A hypothetical family of graphitic foams having ligament mechanical properties identical to those of P120 graphite fiber is considered; the mechanical properties of the hypothetical foams are viewed as realistic upper bounds on the performance of this class of materials. Various commercially available materials are compared to the hypothetical foams for application to tension bars, beams in bending and buckling, and plates in bending and buckling.