LAUSR

The foaming and foam stabilization mechanisms of potassium laurate (PL), potassium oleate (PO), sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), and sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate (SDBS) were investigated in this study. Magnesia porous ceramics were fabricated by a foaming method, and the sample microstructures were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) following heat treatment. Results showed that the foaming ability of the surfactants decreased in the order PO > SDS > SDBS > PL. The addition of calcium stearate (CS), a foam-stabilizing agent, extended the half-lives of SDS, SDBS, and PO foams in the order SDBS > PO > SDS. However, the addition of CS to PL significantly decreased its foam half-life. Pore sizes of the heat-treated samples decreased in the order PL > SDS > SDBS > PO, while the evenness of the pore distribution decreased in the order PO > SDBS > SDS > PL. Porous ceramics prepared with PO and CS had the smallest and most evenly distributed pores in the range of 5–10 μm.