A foam to protect against bomb blasts and car wrecks

Metcomb Nanostructures is linking up with Jorg Wellnitz at the University of Applied Sciences in Ingolstadt, Germany to come up with ways to use the company's closed-cell aluminum foam in car parts and armor plating. Wellnitz and Metcomb are developing research projects in conjunction with Audi, BMW and the German Ministry of Defense.

Metallic foam is what it sounds like: lightweight foam constructed out of metal that can provide strength without adding significant amounts of weight. Metcomb says it has tackled the challenges in making large, uniform quantities of it.