Résumé
Recently microporous and mesoporous materials were found to be particularly suitable for a new type of applications in the mechanical field. This paper reports experimental features about the dissipative forced intrusion of water in highly hydrophobic mesoporous materials: this phenomenon can be used to develop a new type of dampers and/or actuators. Silica-based materials behavior was investigated. Among them, MCM-41 exhibit original and interesting properties towards the potential developments of dampers and appear to be of great interest for the comprehension of energy dissipation mechanisms.