Polymeric foams have good capacity of absorbing energy in compression,
but are brittle in tension. Linear Elastic fracture Mechanics is
successfully applied to assess the integrity of structures with
polymeric foams. The fracture toughness represents an important
parameter. The different approaches to estimate the fracture toughness
of polymeric foams are reviewed, analytical and numerical
micromechanical models and experimental investigations. Focus is given
on the parameters influencing the fracture toughness of polymeric foams
like specimen type, solid material, density, loading speed, size effect
and temperature. Data on mixed mode loading and dynamic fracture
toughness are also presented. The last part of the paper presents some
results to increase the fractured toughness by reinforcing of polymeric
foams.