Multi-Part LMJ Nozzle for Meniscus Control and Faster Droplet Ejection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing Liquid Metal Jetting (LMJ) systems face challenges in nozzle fabrication, meniscus control, droplet ejection frequency, and nozzle clogging, limiting their applicability and scalability due to material constraints and chemical incompatibilities.
Innovation Solution
A multi-piece nozzle design comprising a nozzle main body and a wetting plate with distinct wetting characteristics, allowing for decoupled fabrication and improved meniscus control, reducing oscillation, and enhancing droplet ejection frequency while minimizing clogging.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a monobody nozzle design is used, then manufacturing is simplified, but the ability to control meniscus location and reduce oscillation is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The nozzle is divided into separate components: a nozzle body and a replaceable wetting plate with the orifice. This segmentation allows the wetting plate to be optimized for meniscus control while the nozzle body provides structural support, resolving the contradiction between manufacturing simplicity and meniscus control reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The wetting plate is made from materials with specific wetting characteristics that are optimized for the particular liquid metal being jetted. This local optimization of material properties at the orifice location enables precise meniscus location control and reduced oscillation, while the overall nozzle structure remains manufacturable.
2Reliability
If refractory materials with favorable wetting characteristics are used, then droplet ejection is improved, but chemical incompatibility with certain liquid metals occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The wetting characteristics of the orifice are adjusted by selecting different materials for the wetting plate based on the specific liquid metal being jetted. This allows optimization of the wetting parameter for each liquid metal system, enabling reliable droplet ejection across multiple liquid metals without chemical incompatibility issues.
3Productivity
If the meniscus oscillation time is reduced, then droplet ejection frequency increases, but meniscus stability becomes more difficult to control
Solution Approach 1:
The wetting plate material is specifically selected to provide optimal wetting characteristics that dampen meniscus oscillation while maintaining stability. This local optimization at the orifice location enables both high ejection frequency and meniscus stability by controlling the meniscus shape and position during rapid ejection cycles.
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 design enables efficient and reliable droplet ejection with increased frequency, improved nozzle durability, and reduced maintenance, expanding the applicability of LMJ systems to a broader range of liquid metals.
Implementation Method 1
By making the inner surface of the orifice wetting and the outer surface non-wetting the meniscus will naturally reside in the location shown in FIG. 1d. The wetting/non-wetting interface is critical to this effect.
Implementation Method 2
The location of the meniscus just before the initiation of the ejection cycle is critical to the formation of the droplet. This is because the initial stages of each droplet ejection are very sensitive to the shape, location and initial condition of the meniscus.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to a liquid metal jetting ejection nozzle having a nozzle main body and a wetting plate. The nozzle main body has an enlarged opening at a distal end through which a molten metal feedstock material flows during a liquid metal jetting operation, and is formed from a first material having a first wetting characteristic. The wetting plate has an aperture and is secured to the enlarged opening of the nozzle main body. The wetting plate has a second wetting characteristic of a magnitude less than the first wetting characteristic to at least inhibit wetting. This two piece nozzle construction enables optimum materials and construction/fabrication techniques to be used for both components, thus improving performance, durability and reliability of the ejection nozzle.