3D Shaping Inkjet Ink for Crack Reduction in Ceramic Sintering
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for manufacturing sintered products from three-dimensional objects face issues such as cracking and distortion due to rapid heating during degreasing, especially when the object has a large resin content, and inkjet inks with low ceramic material volume ratios suffer from insufficient storability and uneven shrinkage, leading to potential cracking during sintering.
Innovation Solution
A method involving stepwise degreasing at controlled temperatures under an inert gas atmosphere, followed by sintering, to minimize defects, using a 3D shaping inkjet ink with a curable binder component containing multiple polymerizable compounds to maintain shape and reduce cracking.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If rapid heating is performed during degreasing to remove organic substance efficiently, then productivity is improved, but cracking and distortion occur due to thermal stress
Solution Approach 1:
The degreasing process is divided into multiple stages with different heating rates and temperature ranges. The first stage uses a first heating rate to reach a first degreasing temperature, and the second stage uses a second heating rate (different from the first) to reach a second degreasing temperature. This segmentation allows efficient organic substance removal while controlling thermal stress to prevent cracking and distortion.
2Ease of operation
If the volume ratio of ceramic material in inkjet ink is reduced to enable ejection, then ease of operation is improved, but storability deteriorates and shrinkage becomes uneven
Solution Approach 1:
The ink composition parameters are optimized to achieve a balance between ejection performance and storability. Specific ceramic powder particle sizes, binder resin types, and solvent compositions are selected to maintain adequate ceramic material volume ratio while ensuring the ink can be properly ejected and stored without premature curing or degradation.
3Ease of operation
If the volume ratio of ceramic material in inkjet ink is reduced to enable ejection, then ease of operation is improved, but cracking occurs during sintering due to uneven shrinkage
Solution Approach 1:
The ink formulation parameters including ceramic powder particle size distribution, binder resin composition, and solvent type are optimized to control shrinkage behavior during sintering. This ensures uniform shrinkage and prevents cracking even with reduced ceramic material volume ratio required for inkjet ejection.
Solution Approach 2:
A composite ink formulation is used combining ceramic powders with specific binder resins and solvents. The binder resin composition includes polymers that control the green strength and shrinkage characteristics of the printed object, ensuring crack resistance during subsequent sintering processes.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method effectively suppresses defects like cracking and distortion, enabling the production of a sintered product with controlled shape retention and improved ceramic product formation.
Implementation Method 1
a 3D shaping inkjet ink containing: a ceramic component; and a curable binder component
Implementation Method 2
a first degreasing step of heating the three-dimensional object at a first average degreasing temperature for a first heating time under an inert gas atmosphere to degrease the organic material
Implementation Method 3
a sintering step of sintering the three-dimensional object degreased in the second degreasing step, at an average sintering temperature higher than the second average degreasing temperature to obtain a sintered product
Data Source
AI summary
A method for manufacturing a sintered product from a three-dimensional object includes: A preparation step S11, a multilayer made of an ink containing inorganic particles and an organic material is formed to prepare a three-dimensional object. A degreasing step S12 includes: a first degreasing step of heating the three-dimensional object under an inert gas atmosphere at a first average degreasing temperature (T1) for a first heating time to degrease the organic material; and a second degreasing step of heating the three-dimensional object degreased in the first degreasing step, under an inert gas atmosphere at a second average degreasing temperature (T2) higher than T1 for a second heating time to degrease the organic material. A sintering step S13, the three-dimensional object degreased in the second degreasing step is sintered at an average sintering temperature higher than T2 to obtain a sintered product.