Fabrication and Characterization of Miniaturized Components Based on Extruded Ceramic-Filled Polymer Blends
type: CreativeWork
description: The objective of this work is to develop an improved manufacturing process for microstructured ceramic components that is based on co-extrusion. Co-extrusion of structured feedrods holds promise for development of multi-layered, functionally graded and/or textured structures. However, it requires a polymer binder that is difficult to remove before structures can be sintered to full density. A two-step debinding is introduced to eliminate debinding defects that are commonly observed in thermal debinding (TD). Cracking is a major issue due to a lack of pore spaces for outgassing of pyrolysis products in traditional TD. In two-step debinding, a soluble binder is removed partially by solvent extraction (SE) which creates a porous network and allows gases to escape in subsequent TD of remaining binder components. The feasibility of solvent extraction (SE) is documented for the extrusion of solid ceramic rods and co-extrusion of tubes, where alumina powder was batched with polyethylene butyl acrylate (PEBA) as backbone polymer and polyethylene glycol (PEG) as water soluble binder. SE for specimens with varying PEBA:PEG ratios were tested in water at three different temperatures for various times. Experiments were also performed with different grades of PEBA and EVA to investigate the effect of thermoplastics on SE. The 1:1 mixture showed a PEG removal up to 80wt.% of the original PEG content after 6h extraction. After subsequent thermal debinding, rods and tubes were sintered successfully without defects, demonstrating the viability of the process. Scanning electron microscopy and optical analysis were performed to characterize the process. In order to illustrate potential applications, microfluidic devices were manufactured using extrusion followed by hot embossing. Ceramic microfabricated components have advantages over silicon, glass or polymer devices in terms of their ability to sustain high temperatures without compromising their functional capabilities. Flat tapes …
abstract: The objective of this work is to develop an improved manufacturing process for microstructured ceramic components that is based on co-extrusion. Co-extrusion of structured feedrods holds promise for development of multi-layered, functionally graded and/or textured structures. However, it requires a polymer binder that is difficult to remove before structures can be sintered to full density. A two-step debinding is introduced to eliminate debinding defects that are commonly observed in thermal debinding (TD). Cracking is a major issue due to a lack of pore spaces for outgassing of pyrolysis products in traditional TD. In two-step debinding, a soluble binder is removed partially by solvent extraction (SE) which creates a porous network and allows gases to escape in subsequent TD of remaining binder components. The feasibility of solvent extraction (SE) is documented for the extrusion of solid ceramic rods and co-extrusion of tubes, where alumina powder was batched with polyethylene butyl acrylate (PEBA) as backbone polymer and polyethylene glycol (PEG) as water soluble binder. SE for specimens with varying PEBA:PEG ratios were tested in water at three different temperatures for various times. Experiments were also performed with different grades of PEBA and EVA to investigate the effect of thermoplastics on SE. The 1:1 mixture showed a PEG removal up to 80wt.% of the original PEG content after 6h extraction. After subsequent thermal debinding, rods and tubes were sintered successfully without defects, demonstrating the viability of the process. Scanning electron microscopy and optical analysis were performed to characterize the process. In order to illustrate potential applications, microfluidic devices were manufactured using extrusion followed by hot embossing. Ceramic microfabricated components have advantages over silicon, glass or polymer devices in terms of their ability to sustain high temperatures without compromising their functional capabilities. Flat tapes …
author: Sharmin, Khurshida
keywords: sintering, thermal debinding, solvent extraction, microfabrication, alumina
date published: 2015-01-01T08:00:00Z
date modified: 2026-07-24T02:58:40Z
provider: Lousiana State University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Mechanical Engineering

PropertyValue
property ID: DOI
value: 10.31390/gradschool_dissertations.919