Influence of Titanium Oxide Coating on Mechanical Properties of Porous Nanocrystalline Silicon Membrane

摘要

Porous nanocrystalline silicon (pnc-Si) membrane is a promising material to be used as the filtration membrane in an artificial kidney for its physical characteristics such as having a very small thickness and pores. However, hemocompatibility issue needs to be addressed to ensure the reliability of the materials used for the filtration membrane. Titanium oxide (TiO) has been demonstrated to be a hemocompatible material. In this paper, the pnc-Si membrane is coated with TiO layer and the change in membrane's mechanical strength is simulated. Simulation result has shown positive outcome in which the Von Mises stress acted upon the membrane has been seen decreasing with the addition of TiO layer on top and underneath the pnc-Si membrane. Besides, the displacement of the membrane has also been observed to be smaller. Thus, it is feasible to fabricate membrane with larger dimensions.