Method of Making Copper-Nickel Alloy Foams

A method comprising:

• mixing copper oxide powder and nickel oxide powder to obtain a slurry solution;
• freeze casting the slurry solution of copper oxide powder and nickel oxide powder;
• reducing or sintering, or both, the freeze-casted slurry of copper oxide and nickel oxide powder at a temperature of about 800 degrees Celsius to about 1000 degrees Celsius;
• and
• after the reducing or sintering, producing a three dimensionally connected copper-nickel alloy foam of at least one of Cu9Ni1, Cu7Ni3, Cu5Ni5, Cu3Ni7, or Cu1Ni9.

A method comprising:

• mixing copper oxide powder and nickel oxide powder to obtain a slurry solution, wherein and the copper oxide powder comprises an average size of about 40 nanometers to about 80 nanometers;
• freeze casting the slurry solution of copper oxide powder and nickel oxide powder;
• reducing or sintering, or both, the freeze-casted slurry of copper oxide and nickel oxide powder;
• and
• after the reducing or sintering, producing a three dimensionally connected copper-nickel alloy foam of at least one of Cu9Ni1, Cu7Ni3, Cu5Ni5, Cu3Ni7, or Cu1Ni9.

A method comprising:

• mixing copper oxide powder and nickel oxide powder to obtain a slurry solution;
• freeze casting the slurry solution of copper oxide powder and nickel oxide powder;
• reducing or sintering, or both, the freeze-casted slurry of copper oxide and nickel oxide;
• and
• after the reducing or sintering, producing a three dimensionally connected copper-nickel alloy foam of at least one of Cu9Ni1, Cu7Ni3, Cu5Ni5, Cu3Ni7, or Cu1Ni9,
• wherein the copper oxide powder and nickel oxide powder are mixed in water or other liquid solvent with a binder and a dispersant;
• mechanically mixing the copper oxide powder and nickel oxide powder for from about 10 minutes to about 60 minutes to obtain a uniform particle mixing before mixing with water, the binder, and the dispersant;
• stirring the slurry solution from about 10 minutes to about 30 minutes;
• after the stirring, sonicating the slurry solution from about 30 minutes to about 60 minutes;
• freezing the slurry at a temperature from about −50 degrees Celsius to about −10 degrees Celsius to obtain a foam green body of a composition of copper oxide and nickel oxide;
• drying the slurry at a temperature from about −50 degrees Celsius to about −10 degrees Celsius to obtain a foam green body of composition of copper oxide and nickel oxide;
• reducing the foam green body of the composition copper oxide and nickel oxide at a temperature from about 250 degrees Celsius to about 350 degrees Celsius in an about 5 percent argon and hydrogen gas mixture;
• and
• after reducing, sintering the foam green body of the composition of copper oxide and nickel oxide at a temperature from about 700 degrees Celsius to about 1100 degrees Celsius in an about 5 percent argon and hydrogen gas mixture,
• thereby transforming the foam green body of the composition of copper oxide in the copper-nickel alloy foam.