Method for forming quartz glass products and forming device for quartz glass products

Abstract

The present application belongs to the technical field of semiconductor device manufacturing, and provides a method for forming quartz glass products, and a forming device for quartz glass products. The method comprises: placing a quartz glass plate on a quartz glass product forming mold, and heating the quartz glass plate to a pre-processing temperature; performing heat soaking processing on the quartz glass plate during a preset heat soaking duration; continuing to heat the quartz glass plate to a softening temperature; when the actual deformation L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a first preset deformation value, evacuating a vacuum chamber of the quartz glass product forming mold; when the actual deformation L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a second preset deformation value, forming the quartz glass plate into a quartz glass product, and stopping the vacuum operation of the vacuum chamber. The quartz glass product forming method provided by the present application can reduce the processing difficulty of quartz glass products, decrease material consumption, and improve the processing accuracy and product yield of quartz glass products.

Description

Method for forming quartz glass product and apparatus for forming quartz glass product TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application belongs to the technical field of semiconductor device manufacturing, and particularly relates to a method for forming a quartz glass product and an apparatus for forming a quartz glass product. BACKGROUND

[0002] Quartz glass products are widely used in the fields of semiconductors, photovoltaic solar energy, etc., and play an important role in processes such as diffusion, oxidation, etching, epitaxy, cleaning, etc. For example, in the processes of semiconductor oxidation and diffusion, a large number of quartz boats, quartz tubes, quartz heat preservation barrels, etc. are used; in the etching process, quartz cover plates, quartz rings, etc. are used; in the epitaxy process, opaque quartz rings, Domes, etc. are used. In the field of photovoltaic solar energy, quartz products are used similarly to the semiconductor field.

[0003] The semiconductor and photovoltaic solar energy fields have very high requirements for the processing precision of quartz glass products, but quartz glass is a hard-to-process brittle material with a high melting point. Whether it is processed by mechanical cold processing or thermal processing, a large amount of resources and energy will be consumed, and it is difficult to achieve the same size precision as metal processing, which cannot meet the requirements of the semiconductor and photovoltaic solar energy fields. In particular, special-shaped semiconductor quartz glass products for harsh use purposes have a low pass rate and extremely high production cost.

[0004] In the prior art, for special-shaped thin-walled quartz glass products, the industry usually uses mechanical processing to carve the required shape from a large quartz base material, and then uses fire processing to weld and polish to achieve the final effect. This method not only wastes a large amount of quartz base material and consumes a large amount of mechanical processing resources, but also cannot guarantee the precision because fire processing is usually performed manually. After mechanical processing, micro-cracks are usually left on the surface. When the crack depth is too large, it cannot be eliminated by subsequent fire polishing, leaving scratches, pits, and pockmarks on the surface, which will affect the light transmittance and the final use effect. SUMMARY

[0005] To solve at least one of the technical problems in the background art, the present application provides a method for forming a quartz glass product, which can reduce the processing difficulty of the quartz glass product, reduce material consumption, and improve the processing precision and product pass rate of the quartz glass product.

[0006] The second aspect of the present application provides a quartz glass product forming mold.

[0007] The technical solution adopted by the present application is as follows:

[0008] The first aspect of the present application provides a method for forming a quartz glass product, comprising:

[0009] placing a quartz glass plate on a quartz glass product forming mold, and heating the quartz glass plate to a pre-treatment temperature;

[0010] maintaining the quartz glass plate at the pre-treatment temperature by performing a holding treatment on the quartz glass plate within a preset holding time;

[0011] continuing to heat the quartz glass plate to a softening temperature to cause the quartz glass plate to produce a softening deformation;

[0012] when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a first preset deformation value, performing a vacuum pumping operation on a vacuum chamber of the quartz glass product forming mold to cause the quartz glass plate to produce a deformation under a vacuum adsorption force;

[0013] when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a second preset deformation value, the quartz glass plate is formed into a quartz glass product, and the vacuum pumping operation on the vacuum chamber is stopped.

[0014] According to the quartz glass product forming method provided by the first aspect of the application, the quartz glass plate is deformed by the forming mode of negative pressure vacuumizing, the product defects caused by traditional machining and fire processing are avoided, and the processing efficiency and product quality are improved. Specifically, first, the quartz glass plate to be formed is placed on the quartz glass product forming mold. The mold is designed according to the shape of the quartz glass product, that is, the quartz glass product is formed to fit the forming wall on the mold, so as to ensure the size accuracy of the final quartz glass product. Then, the quartz glass plate is heated to a pretreatment temperature, and then enters a heat preservation stage. The purpose of heat preservation is to uniformly distribute the internal temperature of the quartz glass plate, reduce thermal stress in the subsequent heating process, and improve the forming quality. After the heat preservation is completed, the quartz glass plate is continuously heated to a softening temperature. At this stage, the quartz glass plate begins to show slight deformation. When the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a first preset deformation value, a vacuum pump is started to vacuumize the vacuum chamber of the quartz glass product forming mold. After vacuumizing, the quartz glass plate can be subjected to vacuum adsorption, so that the quartz glass plate is accurately deformed according to the shape of the quartz glass product forming mold. With continuous heating and vacuumizing, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a second preset deformation value, the vacuumizing is stopped immediately. At this time, the quartz glass plate is completely fitted with the forming wall, that is, the quartz glass plate has been formed into a quartz glass product. In the entire forming process, there is no subtractive process, which avoids waste of raw materials, improves material utilization, effectively reduces cost, and realizes automatic control by accurately controlling temperature, vacuum negative pressure and deformation amount of the quartz glass plate, reduces the processing difficulty of the quartz glass product, ensures the processing size accuracy, avoids human factors, and avoids cracks caused by mechanical hard processing. Therefore, the quartz glass product made by the quartz glass product forming method provided by the application has a smoother surface, improved light transmittance, enhanced product performance, high precision and high quality, improved processing precision of the quartz glass product and product qualification rate.

[0015] According to one embodiment of the application, the step of placing the quartz glass plate on the quartz glass product forming mold and heating the quartz glass plate to a pretreatment temperature comprises:

[0016] The quartz glass product forming mold and the quartz glass plate are placed in a heating furnace for heating, and the temperature rise slope K1 in the heating furnace is controlled to be 5℃ / min-15℃ / min.

[0017] The pretreatment temperature is 1100℃-1200℃, and the quartz glass product forming mold is a quartz glass material mold.

[0018] According to one embodiment of the present application, the step of continuing to heat the quartz glass plate to a softening temperature to cause the quartz glass plate to produce a softening deformation comprises:

[0019] The heating furnace is controlled to continue to heat at a temperature rising slope K2 of 5-8℃ / min to heat the quartz glass plate to at least 1600℃.

[0020] According to one embodiment of the present application, the step of, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a first preset deformation value, evacuating the vacuum chamber of the quartz glass product forming mold to cause the quartz glass plate to produce a deformation under the action of vacuum suction force comprises:

[0021] The second preset deformation value is determined as L, and the first preset deformation value is greater than or equal to 1 / 4L;

[0022] During the vacuum evacuation stage, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate is less than 1 / 2L, the vacuum degree in the vacuum chamber is controlled to be not higher than 0.1 bar.

[0023] According to one embodiment of the present application, the step of placing the quartz glass plate on the quartz glass product forming mold and heating the quartz glass plate to a pretreatment temperature comprises:

[0024] The quartz glass plate is heated to 1150℃ by using a hydrogen-oxygen flame;

[0025] The quartz glass product forming mold is a graphite material mold.

[0026] According to one embodiment of the present application, the step of continuing to heat the quartz glass plate to a softening temperature to cause the quartz glass plate to produce a softening deformation comprises:

[0027] The quartz glass plate is heated to at least 2000℃.

[0028] According to one embodiment of the present application, the step of, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a first preset deformation value, evacuating the vacuum chamber of the quartz glass product forming mold to cause the quartz glass plate to produce a deformation under the action of vacuum suction force comprises:

[0029] The second preset deformation value is determined as L, and the first preset deformation value is greater than or equal to 1 / 2L;

[0030] During the vacuum evacuation stage, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate is less than 4 / 5L, the vacuum degree in the vacuum chamber is controlled to be not higher than 0.3 bar.

[0031] According to one embodiment of the present application, the step of maintaining the quartz glass plate at the pre-treatment temperature for a preset holding time comprises:

[0032] The preset holding time is 30 minutes to 60 minutes, and the pre-treatment temperature is 1100-1200°C.

[0033] According to one embodiment of the present application, the step of stopping the vacuumizing operation of the vacuum chamber when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches the second preset deformation value comprises:

[0034] The quartz glass product is cooled to 1100-1200°C and held for 30 minutes to 60 minutes.

[0035] The second aspect embodiment of the present application provides a quartz glass product forming device for implementing the quartz glass product forming method of any one of the first aspect embodiments described above, comprising:

[0036] The quartz glass product forming mold comprises a forming wall and a vacuum chamber, the wall surface shape of the forming wall is the same as the forming shape of the quartz glass product, the forming wall is formed with a through capillary hole, and the vacuum chamber adsorbs the quartz glass plate through the capillary hole to deform the quartz glass plate.

[0037] The vacuum pump is connected to the vacuum chamber and is adapted to vacuumize the vacuum chamber.

[0038] The distance sensor corresponds to the center position of the quartz glass plate and is adapted to monitor the deformation amount of the quartz glass plate.

[0039] The infrared temperature measuring instrument is adapted to monitor the temperature of the quartz glass plate.

[0040] The vacuum silicon is adapted to monitor the vacuum degree of the vacuum chamber. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0041] The drawings described herein are used to provide further understanding of the present application, and form a part of the present application. The schematic embodiments of the present application and the description thereof are used to explain the present application, and do not constitute an improper limitation on the present application. In the drawings:

[0042] Fig. 1 is a flowchart of a quartz glass product forming method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0043] Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of a quartz glass product forming mold according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0044] Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of the external structure of a quartz glass product forming mold according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0045] 1, a quartz glass product forming mold; 11, a forming wall; 12, a vacuum chamber; 13, a capillary hole; 2, a vacuum pump; 21, an air inlet proportional regulating valve; 3, a distance sensor; 4, an infrared temperature measuring instrument; 5, vacuum silicon; 6, a heating furnace; 7, a quartz glass plate; 8, a control system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0046] In order to more clearly illustrate the overall concept of the present application, the following will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0047] In the following description, many specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present application, however, the present application can be practiced in other ways different from those described herein, and therefore, the scope of protection of the present application is not limited by the specific embodiments disclosed below. It should be noted that the embodiments of the present application and the features in each embodiment can be combined with each other without conflict.

[0048] In addition, in the description of the present application, it should be understood that the terms "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", "axial", "radial", "circumferential" and the like indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, and therefore cannot be understood as indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the present application.

[0049] In the present application, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "mounting", "connection", "connecting", "fixing" and the like should be understood broadly, for example, can be fixedly connected, can be detachably connected, or integrated; can be mechanically connected, can be electrically connected, or can be communicated; can be directly connected, or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium; can be the internal communication of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. For those skilled in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present application can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0050] In this application, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the first feature is "on" or "under" the second feature, which can be direct contact between the first and second features, or indirect contact between the first and second features through an intermediate medium. In the description of the specification, the description of the terms "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "an example", "a specific example", or "some examples" and the like means that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in connection with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present application. In the description of the specification, the illustrative description of the above terms does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described can be combined in any appropriate manner in any one or more embodiments or examples.

[0051] As shown in FIG. 1, the first aspect embodiment of the present application provides a quartz glass product forming method, which comprises:

[0052] Step 100, placing the quartz glass plate 7 on the quartz glass product forming mold 1 and heating the quartz glass plate 7 to a pre-treatment temperature.

[0053] Step 200, performing a heat preservation treatment on the quartz glass plate 7 within a preset heat preservation time period, so that the quartz glass plate 7 is maintained at the pre-treatment temperature.

[0054] Step 300, continuing to heat the quartz glass plate 7 to a softening temperature, so that the quartz glass plate 7 generates a softening deformation.

[0055] Step 400, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 reaches a first preset deformation value, vacuumizing the vacuum chamber 12 of the quartz glass product forming mold 1, so that the quartz glass plate 7 generates a deformation under the action of a vacuum adsorption force.

[0056] Step 500, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 reaches a second preset deformation value, the quartz glass plate 7 is formed into a quartz glass product, and the vacuumizing operation of the vacuum chamber 12 is stopped.

[0057] In step 100, a quartz glass product forming mold 1 matching the shape of the quartz glass product is selected, and the surface of the forming wall 11 of the mold must be highly fitted with the contact part of the quartz glass product to ensure the dimensional accuracy of the final product. The quartz glass product forming mold 1 can be made of quartz, graphite or other high-temperature-resistant materials. The pre-treatment temperature is set to prepare for temperature control and material softening in the subsequent processing process, to ensure that the quartz glass plate 7 can be uniformly heated, and to avoid uneven deformation or crack caused by local overheating.

[0058] In addition, the quartz glass product in the embodiments of the present application can be a spherical product, or a curved surface, a specific angle inclined surface, a special-shaped surface, etc., and the forming wall 11 structure of the quartz glass product forming mold 1 also has multiple corresponding structures.

[0059] In step 200, the main purpose of the heat preservation treatment is to make the temperature of the quartz glass plate 7 reach and remain at a pre-treatment temperature, which is usually 1150 DEG C, which helps to uniformly release the internal stress of the material, and ensures that the quartz glass plate 7 can deform uniformly when heated to the softening temperature in the subsequent process, thereby improving the quality of the final product. The setting of the heat preservation time is usually between 30 minutes to 60 minutes, which is long enough to ensure that the temperature inside and outside the quartz glass plate 7 is balanced, avoiding uneven deformation or cracks caused by temperature gradient.

[0060] In step 300, the softening temperature can reach 1600 DEG C to 2000 DEG C, and when the quartz glass plate 7 reaches the softening temperature, it will slowly deform.

[0061] In step 400, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 reaches the first preset deformation value, the system will start the vacuum pump 2 to vacuumize the vacuum chamber 12 of the quartz glass product forming mold 1. The trigger point of this action is very important, because it is determined based on the real-time monitoring of the deformation amount of the quartz glass plate 7, which ensures that the vacuum assisted forming is introduced at the appropriate time, and the purpose of vacuumizing is to use the vacuum adsorption force to help the quartz glass plate 7 more closely fit the mold shape, and realize more accurate deformation. By controlling the vacuum degree in the mold vacuum chamber 12, the deformation speed and degree of the quartz glass plate 7 can be adjusted to ensure that it is formed according to the predetermined shape.

[0062] The deformation amount here is determined based on the shape of the quartz glass product, for example, when the quartz glass product is a spherical structure, the quartz glass plate 7 is deformed from the original plate structure to a hemispherical structure, and the deformation amount at this time is the vertical depression amount of the center point of the quartz glass plate 7. If the quartz glass plate 7 is a curved surface, a specific angle inclined surface or a special-shaped surface, the depression amounts of multiple depression positions of the quartz glass plate 7 can be determined regionally at this time, and the average depression value of the multiple depression amounts is calculated to determine the deformation amount of the quartz glass plate 7.

[0063] The first preset deformation value is determined based on the total deformation amount of the quartz glass plate 7 after forming, and is the critical information for triggering the system to start vacuumizing.

[0064] In step 500, the second preset deformation value is the total deformation of the quartz glass plate 7 after the quartz glass plate 7 is shaped into a quartz glass product. When the actual deformation L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 is equal to the total deformation, it indicates that the quartz glass plate 7 has been completely deformed according to the expected shape, and at this time the quartz glass plate 7 is shaped into a quartz glass product. In order to prevent excessive deformation or damage to the product, the system will immediately stop the vacuum operation of the vacuum chamber 12.

[0065] Further, after the vacuum is completed, the quartz glass product will undergo steps such as heat preservation and cooling. The heat preservation stage is to maintain at a lower temperature for a period of time to ensure that the internal stress of the product is released and the quality of the finished product is improved. Then, it is naturally cooled to room temperature, and finally the size and appearance are tested to ensure that the finished product meets the specifications.

[0066] The quartz glass product in the embodiment of the application has a wall thickness generally less than 15 mm, preferably less than 8 mm; and a diameter or length generally greater than 200 mm, preferably greater than 300 mm.

[0067] According to the quartz glass product forming method provided by the first aspect of the application, the quartz glass plate 7 is deformed by the forming mode of negative pressure vacuumizing, avoiding product defects caused by traditional machining and fire processing, improving processing efficiency and product quality. Specifically, first, the quartz glass plate 7 to be formed is placed on the quartz glass product forming mold 1. The mold is designed according to the shape of the quartz glass product, that is, the quartz glass product is formed to fit the forming wall 11 on the mold, ensuring the size accuracy of the final quartz glass product. Then, the quartz glass plate 7 is heated to a pre-treatment temperature, and then enters a heat preservation stage. The purpose of heat preservation is to uniformly distribute the internal temperature of the quartz glass plate 7, reduce thermal stress in the subsequent heating process, and improve the forming quality. After the heat preservation is completed, the quartz glass plate 7 is continuously heated to a softening temperature. At this stage, the quartz glass plate 7 begins to show slight deformation. When the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 reaches a first preset deformation value, the vacuum pump 2 is started to vacuumize the vacuum chamber 12 of the quartz glass product forming mold 1. After vacuumizing, vacuum suction can be generated on the quartz glass plate 7, so that the quartz glass plate 7 is accurately deformed according to the shape of the quartz glass product forming mold 1. With continuous heating and vacuumizing, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 reaches a second preset deformation value, the vacuumizing is stopped immediately. At this time, the quartz glass plate 7 is completely fitted with the forming wall 11, that is, the quartz glass plate 7 has been formed into a quartz glass product. In the entire forming process, there is no subtractive process, which avoids waste of raw materials, improves material utilization, effectively reduces cost, and realizes automatic control by accurately controlling temperature, vacuum negative pressure and deformation amount of the quartz glass plate 7, reduces processing difficulty of the quartz glass product, ensures processing size accuracy, avoids human factor interference, and avoids cracks caused by mechanical hard processing. Therefore, the quartz glass product made by the quartz glass product forming method provided by the application has a smoother surface, improved light transmittance, enhanced product performance, high precision and high quality, and improved processing precision and product qualification rate of the quartz glass product.

[0068] In some embodiments of the application, the step of placing the quartz glass plate 7 on the quartz glass product forming mold 1 and heating the quartz glass plate 7 to a pre-treatment temperature includes:

[0069] The quartz glass product forming mold 1 and the quartz glass plate 7 are placed in the heating furnace 6 for heating, and the temperature rise slope K1 in the heating furnace 6 is controlled to be 5℃ / min-15℃ / min.

[0070] The pre-treatment temperature is 1100℃-1200℃, and the quartz glass product forming mold 1 is a quartz glass material mold.

[0071] Specifically, the pre-treatment temperature ranges from 1100°C to 1200°C. For example, the quartz glass product forming mold 1 can be heated to a pre-treatment temperature of 1150°C together with the quartz glass plate 7, and the temperature rise rate is controlled between 5-15°C / min, to ensure that the quartz glass plate 7 and the quartz glass product forming mold 1 are uniformly heated synchronously, avoiding the risk of stress concentration or rupture caused by rapid temperature change. The pre-treatment temperature is set to 1100°C-1200°C, which is based on the physical properties of quartz glass to avoid excessive flow or deterioration of the material due to high temperature. The pre-treatment temperature range of 1100°C-1200°C provides a good starting point for the subsequent softening and deformation process, ensuring the plasticity and processing accuracy of the quartz glass plate 7 in the subsequent steps. Using quartz glass as the mold material has a good thermal expansion coefficient match with the quartz glass plate 7, avoiding thermal stress caused by material differences and improving the accuracy and reliability of the formed product. Precise control of the temperature rise slope of the heating furnace 6 can effectively manage the temperature change of the quartz glass plate 7, avoiding internal stress accumulation caused by rapid heating, and ensuring the structural integrity of the material and the controllability of the processing process.

[0072] Through the above precise heating control, the dimensional accuracy, surface quality and overall strength of the quartz glass product can be significantly improved, reducing the scrap rate caused by improper processing, thereby reducing production costs and improving production efficiency.

[0073] In summary, by heating the quartz glass plate 7 and the quartz glass material mold to a pre-treatment temperature, not only does it ensure material compatibility and temperature control during processing, but it also greatly improves the processing accuracy and finished product quality of the quartz glass product, achieving a dual improvement in cost-effectiveness and production efficiency.

[0074] In some embodiments of the present application, the step of continuing to heat the quartz glass plate 7 to a softening temperature to cause the quartz glass plate 7 to produce softening deformation includes:

[0075] The heating furnace 6 continues to heat at a temperature rise slope K2 of 5°C / min-8°C / min to heat the quartz glass plate 7 to at least 1600°C.

[0076] Specifically, the heating furnace 6 is controlled to have a temperature rising rate of 5-8℃ / min, which balances the heating speed and the generation of internal stress of the material, avoids the internal stress concentration of the quartz glass plate 7 caused by too fast heating, and prevents cracks or uneven deformation. The quartz glass plate 7 is heated to a softening temperature of 1600℃ or above, at which the intermolecular force of the quartz glass is weakened, and the material becomes soft and easy to shape, creating favorable conditions for subsequent forming operations. Further, the temperature and deformation of the quartz glass plate 7 can be monitored in real time during the entire heating process. The temperature is monitored by the infrared thermometer 4 to ensure accurate temperature control, and the deformation is monitored by the distance sensor 3 to provide timely feedback information to the control system 8, so as to adjust the heating power and ensure that the deformation meets the predetermined requirements.

[0077] The precise temperature control and softening deformation process enable the quartz glass product to have better optical performance and mechanical strength, especially in applications requiring high precision and good optical transmittance, such as special components in the semiconductor, photovoltaic solar, etc. industries.

[0078] In some embodiments of the present application, when the actual deformation L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 reaches the first preset deformation value, the vacuum chamber 12 of the quartz glass product forming mold 1 is evacuated, and the step of deforming the quartz glass plate 7 under the vacuum adsorption force includes:

[0079] The second preset deformation value is L, and the first preset deformation value is greater than or equal to 1 / 4L;

[0080] During the vacuumizing stage, when the actual deformation L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 is less than 1 / 2L, the vacuum degree in the vacuum chamber 12 is controlled to be not higher than 0.1 bar.

[0081] Specifically, when the actual deformation L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 reaches 1 / 4 of the total deformation, the vacuumizing program is started. This is done to start the vacuum adsorption process in advance, to ensure that the quartz glass plate 7 can smoothly start to deform, and to avoid cracks or other defects caused by sudden deformation. During the vacuumizing stage, when the actual deformation L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 is less than 1 / 2L, the vacuum degree in the vacuum chamber 12 is controlled to be not higher than 0.1 bar. The purpose of controlling the vacuum degree in this stage is to enable the quartz glass plate 7 to gradually adapt to the vacuum adsorption force, to ensure a smooth deformation process, and to avoid excessive deformation or stress concentration of the quartz glass plate 7 caused by too high vacuum degree. Further, the vacuum degree in the vacuum chamber 12 can be controlled to be less than or equal to 0.1 bar by adjusting the air inlet proportional regulating valve 21. When the actual deformation L0 is greater than or equal to 1 / 2L, the air inlet proportional regulating valve 21 is closed, and the heating and vacuumizing are continued until L0 equals L.

[0082] In the above process, the deformation is carried out under the condition of controlling the vacuum degree, which can avoid cracks caused by stress concentration, and ensure the appearance quality and mechanical properties of the finished product. By accurately controlling the deformation process, the defects in the finished product are reduced, the product qualification rate is improved, and the production efficiency and economic benefits are further improved.

[0083] In addition, this method is also suitable for quartz glass plates 7 of different thicknesses and sizes, as well as various complex-shaped products, increasing the flexibility and applicability of the process.

[0084] Compared with the traditional method, this method simplifies the processing flow, reduces manual intervention, and improves the level of production automation through real-time monitoring and automatic control.

[0085] In the quartz glass product forming method provided in the embodiments of the present application, not only can the heating be achieved by the heating furnace 6 as described above, but also can be heated by gas combustion. Gas heating refers to using fuel gas heating, and the fuel gas includes but is not limited to hydrogen, natural gas, propane, acetylene and other gases commonly used in industry, and the combustion-supporting gas is oxygen.

[0086] In some embodiments of the present application, the step of placing the quartz glass plate 7 on the quartz glass product forming mold 1 and heating the quartz glass plate 7 to the pretreatment temperature includes:

[0087] The hydrogen-oxygen flame is used to heat the quartz glass plate 7 to 1150℃;

[0088] The quartz glass product forming mold 1 is a graphite mold.

[0089] Specifically, the hydrogen-oxygen flame is a high-temperature flame generated by the combustion of hydrogen and oxygen, and the temperature can be as high as 2000℃ or more, which is much higher than the softening point of the quartz glass plate 7. This heating method can quickly heat the quartz glass plate 7 to the required pretreatment temperature, and has high heating efficiency, rapid reaction, and can effectively control the heating speed and temperature.

[0090] Graphite has good high-temperature resistance and thermal conductivity, and can remain stable even in a high-temperature environment without chemical reaction with quartz glass. The graphite mold can withstand the high temperature of the hydrogen-oxygen flame during the heating process, while providing good heat conduction to ensure uniform heating of the quartz glass plate 7, which is beneficial to temperature control and product size accuracy during the forming process.

[0091] By precisely controlling the flow rate of the hydrogen-oxygen flame and the ratio of oxygen to hydrogen, the heating temperature can be precisely regulated, avoiding overheating or insufficient temperature, ensuring the heating quality and forming effect of the quartz glass plate 7. The efficiency of the hydrogen-oxygen flame heating method reduces energy consumption, and because of the fast heating speed, the entire production cycle is shortened, indirectly reducing energy consumption during the production process. The byproduct of hydrogen-oxygen flame combustion is mainly water vapor, which has less impact on the environment and meets the green and low-carbon production concept pursued by modern manufacturing.

[0092] In summary, the quartz glass product forming method using hydrogen-oxygen flame heating and graphite material mold not only improves the heating efficiency and forming precision, but also has the advantages of environmental protection and energy saving, and is an efficient and environmentally friendly processing technology in the field of modern quartz glass product manufacturing.

[0093] In some embodiments of the present application, the step of continuing to heat the quartz glass plate 7 to the softening temperature to cause the quartz glass plate 7 to produce softening deformation includes:

[0094] The quartz glass plate 7 is heated to at least 2000°C.

[0095] Specifically, the softening point of quartz glass is about 1600°C, and when using hydrogen-oxygen flame heating, in order to fully soften the quartz glass plate 7 and facilitate forming, the heating temperature reaches a higher temperature of 2000°C. High temperature can reduce the viscosity of the quartz glass plate 7, making it easier to deform, thereby facilitating subsequent forming operations. In addition, high temperature treatment helps to eliminate small defects in the quartz glass and improve the microstructure of the material, thereby enhancing its mechanical and optical properties. Rapid softening deformation of quartz glass at high temperature can significantly shorten the forming time and improve production efficiency. The use of high-temperature softening technology makes it possible to manufacture complex-shaped quartz glass products, expanding the application field of quartz glass, such as in high-end fields such as semiconductors, photovoltaic solar energy, and precision optical elements. In order to ensure the safety and efficiency of the heating process, an infrared thermometer 4 can be used to monitor the temperature of the quartz glass plate 7 in real time, and a distance sensor 3 can be used to monitor the deformation amount of the quartz glass plate 7, so that the gas flow can be adjusted in a timely manner.

[0096] In some embodiments of the present application, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 reaches the first preset deformation value, the vacuum chamber 12 of the quartz glass product forming mold 1 is evacuated to cause the quartz glass plate 7 to deform under the action of the vacuum adsorption force. The step includes:

[0097] The second preset deformation value is L, and the first preset deformation value is greater than or equal to 1 / 2L;

[0098] During the vacuum stage, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 is less than 4 / 5L, the vacuum degree in the vacuum chamber 12 is controlled to be not higher than 0.3 bar.

[0099] Specifically, in the case of using hydrogen-oxygen flame heating, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 reaches half or more of the total deformation amount, the vacuum suction process is started. The purpose of this step is to ensure that the quartz glass plate 7 starts to be deformed more accurately by the vacuum suction force after reaching a certain deformation degree. Before the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 is less than 4 / 5 of the total deformation amount, the vacuum degree in the vacuum chamber 12 is controlled to be no higher than 0.3 bar, which means that the vacuum degree is kept at a relatively low level before the deformation amount reaches 80% of the total deformation amount, avoiding excessive deformation or stress concentration of the quartz glass plate 7 caused by early or excessive vacuum suction, thereby affecting the product quality. The vacuum degree can be controlled to be less than or equal to 0.3 bar by adjusting the air inlet proportional regulating valve 21, and when L0 is greater than or equal to 4 / 5L, the air inlet proportional regulating valve 21 is closed, and the heating and vacuumizing are continued until L0 is equal to L.

[0100] In some embodiments of the present application, the step of maintaining the quartz glass plate 7 at the pre-treatment temperature for a preset holding time includes:

[0101] The preset holding time is 30-60 minutes, and the pre-treatment temperature is 1100-1200°C.

[0102] Through the precise control of the preset holding time and the pre-treatment temperature, not only the temperature uniformity of the quartz glass plate 7 during processing is ensured, but also the dimensional accuracy, appearance quality and mechanical properties of the finished product are improved, the production cost is reduced, and the processing efficiency and product competitiveness are improved.

[0103] In some embodiments of the present application, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate 7 reaches the second preset deformation value, the quartz glass plate 7 is formed into a quartz glass product, and the step of stopping the vacuumizing operation of the vacuum chamber 12 includes:

[0104] The quartz glass product is cooled to 1100-1200°C and held for 30-60 minutes.

[0105] After stopping the vacuumizing, the quartz glass product needs to be gradually cooled to the range of 1100-1200°C, which can help the quartz glass product to maintain good structural stability and reduce internal stress during cooling.

[0106] After cooling to the preset temperature, the quartz glass product is held at the temperature for 30-60 minutes, which can be called "annealing", and the purpose is to uniformly release the stress inside the product, avoid cracks or deformation caused by rapid cooling, and thus improve the strength and stability of the product.

[0107] As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the second aspect embodiment of the present application provides a quartz glass product forming device for realizing the quartz glass product forming method in any of the above first aspect embodiments, which comprises: a quartz glass product forming mold 1, the quartz glass product forming mold 1 comprising a forming wall 11 and a vacuum chamber 12, the wall surface shape of the forming wall 11 being the same as the forming shape of the quartz glass product, the forming wall 11 being formed with through capillary holes 13, and the vacuum chamber 12 being adapted to adsorb the quartz glass plate 7 through the capillary holes 13 to deform the quartz glass plate 7; a vacuum pump 2 connected to the vacuum chamber 12 and adapted to vacuumize the vacuum chamber 12; a distance sensor 3 corresponding to the center position of the quartz glass plate 7 and adapted to monitor the deformation amount of the quartz glass plate 7; an infrared temperature measuring instrument 4 adapted to monitor the temperature of the quartz glass plate 7; and a vacuum silicon 5 adapted to monitor the vacuum degree of the vacuum chamber 12.

[0108] The quartz glass product forming mold 1 provided by the embodiment of the present application comprises two parts of the forming wall 11 and the vacuum chamber 12, the shape of the forming wall 11 is completely consistent with the shape of the target quartz glass product, and the forming wall 11 is distributed with through capillary holes 13, the forming wall 11 is usually arranged at the upper position of the vacuum chamber 12, and can also be arranged at the left side, the right side, the lower side or the inclined side, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present application. In the process of heating and vacuumizing, the vacuum chamber 12 generates adsorption effect on the quartz glass plate 7 through the capillary holes 13, guides the quartz glass plate 7 to deform according to the shape of the forming wall 11, and ensures the size accuracy of the final product.

[0109] The vacuum pump 2 is connected to the vacuum chamber 12 of the quartz glass product forming mold 1, and its function is to vacuumize, so as to make the quartz glass plate 7 more closely adhere to the forming wall 11 in the softened state, and realize accurate forming effect by reducing the air pressure inside the vacuum chamber 12.

[0110] The distance sensor 3 is located at the center position of the quartz glass plate 7, and monitors the deformation amount of the quartz glass plate 7 in the heating process in real time, so as to ensure that the deformation amount reaches the predetermined value, and the vacuumizing can be started or stopped in time, to avoid excessive deformation or insufficient deformation, and to ensure the size accuracy and appearance quality of the quartz glass product.

[0111] The infrared temperature measuring instrument 4 is used to monitor the temperature of the quartz glass plate 7, so as to ensure that the quartz glass plate 7 reaches and maintains the required softening temperature in the heating process, and to avoid material damage or poor deformation caused by excessively high or low temperature.

[0112] The vacuum silicon 5 is used to monitor the vacuum degree of the vacuum chamber 12, so as to ensure that the pressure in the vacuumizing process is controlled in the ideal range, and to avoid affecting the forming effect of the quartz glass plate 7 due to excessively high or low vacuum degree.

[0113] By monitoring the temperature, deformation and vacuum degree of the quartz glass plate 7 in real time, the equipment can accurately control the forming process of the quartz glass plate 7, and significantly improve the size accuracy and surface quality of the quartz glass product.

[0114] The equipment is not only suitable for spherical products, but also can be used for forming quartz glass products with complex shapes such as curved surface, specific angle inclined surface and special-shaped surface, thereby widening the application range of the quartz glass products.

[0115] In summary, the quartz glass product forming equipment provided by the embodiments of the present application integrates high-precision monitoring and control mechanisms, significantly improves the forming quality of the quartz glass product, reduces the production cost, improves the production efficiency and environmental protection level, and provides strong technical support for the industrialized production of the quartz glass product.

[0116] In addition, the quartz glass plate 7 product forming equipment can further include a heating furnace 6, the heating furnace 6 is sealed and heat-insulated to ensure the constant temperature during the forming process of the quartz glass product, the quartz glass product forming mold 1 is placed in the heating furnace 6, and the distance sensor 3 and the infrared temperature measuring instrument 4 are installed at the upper position of the heating furnace 6.

[0117] Further, a control system 8 can be further included, all signal feedbacks are fed back to the control system 8, the control system 8 controls the heating power or the air quantity according to the temperature and deformation data, controls the vacuum system switch, controls the opening degree of the air inlet proportional regulating valve 21 to control the vacuum degree, and finally obtains the quartz glass product meeting the requirements.

[0118] The places not mentioned in the present application can be realized by using or referring to the existing technology.

[0119] Each of the embodiments in the present specification is described in a progressive manner, and the same or similar parts between the embodiments can be referred to each other, and each of the embodiments mainly describes the differences from other embodiments.

[0120] The above only describes the embodiments of the present application and is not used to limit the present application. The present application can have various changes and modifications for those skilled in the art. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. within the spirit and principle of the present application shall be included in the scope of the claims of the present application.

Claims

1. A method of forming a quartz glass article, characterized by, The method comprises the following steps: placing a quartz glass plate on a quartz glass product forming mold, and heating the quartz glass plate to a pretreatment temperature; performing a holding treatment on the quartz glass plate within a preset holding time, so that the quartz glass plate is maintained at the pretreatment temperature; continuously heating the quartz glass plate to a softening temperature, so that the quartz glass plate generates softening deformation; when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a first preset deformation value, performing vacuum pumping on a vacuum chamber of the quartz glass product forming mold, so that the quartz glass plate generates deformation under the action of vacuum adsorption force; when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a second preset deformation value, the quartz glass plate is formed into a quartz glass product, and the vacuum pumping operation on the vacuum chamber is stopped.

2. The quartz glass article forming method according to claim 1, wherein The step of placing the quartz glass plate on the quartz glass product forming mold and heating the quartz glass plate to the pretreatment temperature comprises: placing the quartz glass product forming mold and the quartz glass plate in a heating furnace for heating, and controlling the temperature rising slope K1 in the heating furnace to be 5 ℃ / min-15 ℃ / min; wherein the pretreatment temperature is 1100 ℃-1200 ℃, and the quartz glass product forming mold is a quartz glass mold.

3. The quartz glass article forming method according to claim 2, wherein The step of continuously heating the quartz glass plate to the softening temperature, so that the quartz glass plate generates softening deformation, comprises: controlling the heating furnace to continue to rise in temperature at a temperature rising slope K2 of 5 ℃ / min-8 ℃ / min, so as to heat the quartz glass plate to at least 1600 ℃.

4. The quartz glass article forming method according to claim 3, wherein The step of, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a first preset deformation value, performing vacuum pumping on a vacuum chamber of the quartz glass product forming mold, so that the quartz glass plate generates deformation under the action of vacuum adsorption force, comprises: determining that the second preset deformation value is L, and the first preset deformation value is greater than or equal to 1 / 4L; in the vacuum pumping stage, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate is less than 1 / 2L, the vacuum degree in the vacuum chamber is controlled to be not higher than 0.1 bar.

5. The quartz glass article forming process of claim 1, wherein, The step of placing the quartz glass plate on the quartz glass product forming mold and heating the quartz glass plate to the pretreatment temperature comprises: heating the quartz glass plate to 1150 ℃ by using oxyhydrogen flame; wherein the quartz glass product forming mold is a graphite mold.

6. The quartz glass article forming method according to claim 5, wherein The step of continuously heating the quartz glass plate to the softening temperature, so that the quartz glass plate generates softening deformation, comprises: heating the quartz glass plate to at least 2000 ℃.

7. The quartz glass article forming method according to claim 6, wherein The step of, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a first preset deformation value, performing vacuum pumping on a vacuum chamber of the quartz glass product forming mold, so that the quartz glass plate generates deformation under the action of vacuum adsorption force, comprises: determining that the second preset deformation value is L, and the first preset deformation value is greater than or equal to 1 / 2L; in the vacuum pumping stage, when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate is less than 4 / 5L, the vacuum degree in the vacuum chamber is controlled to be not higher than 0.3 bar.

8. The quartz glass article forming process of any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein, The step of maintaining the quartz glass plate at the pre-treatment temperature for a preset holding time includes: The preset holding time is 30-60 minutes, and the pre-treatment temperature is 1100-1200°C.

9. The quartz glass article forming process of any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein, The step of stopping the vacuumizing operation of the vacuum chamber when the actual deformation amount L0 of the quartz glass plate reaches a second preset deformation value includes: The quartz glass product is cooled to 1100-1200°C and held for 30-60 minutes.

10. A quartz glass article forming apparatus for implementing the quartz glass article forming method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized by, The quartz glass product forming mold includes a forming wall and a vacuum chamber, the wall surface shape of the forming wall is the same as the forming shape of the quartz glass product, the forming wall is formed with a through capillary hole, and the vacuum chamber adsorbs the quartz glass plate through the capillary hole to deform the quartz glass plate. A vacuum pump connected to the vacuum chamber is adapted to vacuumize the vacuum chamber. A distance sensor corresponding to the center position of the quartz glass plate is adapted to monitor the deformation amount of the quartz glass plate. An infrared temperature measuring instrument is adapted to monitor the temperature of the quartz glass plate. A vacuum silicon is adapted to monitor the vacuum degree of the vacuum chamber. ​

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