ENGINEERED MICROSTRUCTURES OF BINARY THERMITES BY ADDITIVE MICRO- MANUFACTURING METHODS: FABRICATION, CHARACTERIZATION AND PERFORMANCE

摘要

Here we report the use of two additive micro-manufacturing techniques: 1) Electrophoretic deposition (EPD) and 2) Direct ink writing (DIW) as a means to prepare thin films and three-dimensional structures of well-mixed copper (Ⅱ) oxide/ aluminum (CuO/Al) binary paniculate composites, respectively. Films were deposited onto patterned electrodes, with very fine feature sizes, which were used for mechanistic investigations of the ignition and combustion. The EPD films were examined using electron microscopy, and their combustion characteristics were analyzed with high-speed videos. The results show that films prepared by EPD show a large enhancement in the combustion speed with total film thickness. These films are also particularly useful for developing thermites for micro-energetic applications. In further studies, the DIW method was successfully used in combination with EPD as a means to synthesize various architectures of energetic materials. Patterns of electrodes are written onto an arbitrary substrate, and EPD is then used to deposit thermite materials directly onto the patterns. Alternatively, one of the two components in an energetic thermite can directly be written onto a surface, followed by the addition of the second component using EPD.