Composite article comprising a structured porous body and a foam and a process the production of a structured porous body and a particle foam

A process for the production of a composite article comprising a structured porous body (PB) and a particle foam (PF), wherein the process comprises the following steps a) to d)

• a) providing the structured porous body (PB),
• b) inserting the structured porous body (PB) provided in step a) into a mould (M),
• c) filling the mould (M) with expanded foam beads (EFB) so that the expanded foam beads (EFB) are in contact with each other, and the structured porous body (PB) is at least partially in contact with the expanded foam beads (EFB), and
• d) thermally welding the expanded foam beads (EFB), wherein the particle foam (PF) is built and the composite article is obtained,
• wherein the expanded foam beads (EFB) and the structured porous body (PB) consist of the same polymer, wherein the polymer comprises a thermoplastic polyurethan, and
• wherein the structured porous body (PB)
• i) comprises a three-dimensional network of node points and a void volume, wherein the node points are joined to another by struts and the void volume is present between the struts, and
• ii) is produced by a three-dimensional (3D) printing process, wherein the 3D printing process is a sintering process, and
• iii) is a lattice or a triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS), and
• iv) fits exactly into the mould (M), or fills only part of the mould (M).