Solid Oxide Machining via Catalyst-Assisted Water Dissociation
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a lack of practical methods for manufacturing solid oxides used in optical materials without using hydrogen fluoride solutions or polishing agents that contain rare earth elements, which can cause environmental burdens and introduce damaged layers during machining.
Innovation Solution
A method and device utilizing a machining reference surface with a catalyst substance that dissociates water molecules to cut backbonds between oxygen and other elements, allowing for chemical machining of solid oxides in water without producing H2 or O2, thereby eliminating the need for polishing agents and reducing environmental impact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If CMP (Chemical Mechanical Polishing) is used to manufacture solid oxide surfaces, then polishing speed and surface smoothness are improved, but damaged layers are introduced and rare earth element costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical polishing system (abrasive grains, polishing pads, slurry) with a purely chemical system using catalyst-assisted etching. The catalyst surface enables chemical reactions that remove material without mechanical contact, thereby eliminating damaged layers while achieving smooth surfaces. This substitution of mechanical action with chemical action directly resolves the contradiction between surface quality and damage introduction.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If CARE (Catalyst-Referred Etching) is used to manufacture solid oxide surfaces, then damaged layers are eliminated, but air tightness requirements increase and handling difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the chemical parameters of the etching system by using water-based solutions with controlled pH values (acidic or alkaline) instead of requiring strict air tightness. The catalyst surface enables the etching reaction to proceed efficiently in these aqueous environments, changing the operational conditions from requiring sealed systems to allowing open or semi-open processing, thereby improving ease of operation while maintaining the advantage of eliminating damaged layers.
3Productivity
If hydrogen fluoride solution is used for chemical processing, then etching capability is improved, but environmental burden increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the hazardous hydrogen fluoride solution with inexpensive, environmentally benign aqueous solutions (acidic or alkaline water). These water-based solutions can be easily disposed of or treated without special environmental precautions, unlike hydrogen fluoride which requires costly handling and disposal systems. The catalyst surface compensates for the lower etching aggressiveness of water-based solutions, maintaining productivity while eliminating environmental burdens.
4Manufacturing precision
If cerium oxide polishing agent is used for CMP, then polishing performance is improved, but cost increases due to rare earth element scarcity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the need for expensive rare earth element-based polishing agents (cerium oxide) from the manufacturing process. By using catalyst-assisted chemical etching with water-based solutions, the process achieves comparable or superior surface quality without incorporating costly materials into the polishing agent formulation, thereby reducing material costs while maintaining polishing performance.
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
This method enables the manufacturing of solid oxides with reduced surface roughness and environmental burden, as it does not use rare earth elements, and allows for precise control of machining speed and surface quality, making it suitable for industrial applications.
Implementation Method 1
a catalyst substance, which cuts a backbond between an oxygen element and another element, forming the solid oxide, by dissociation of a water molecule
Implementation Method 2
helps production of a decomposition product by hydrolysis
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4
AI summary
Provided is a method for manufacturing a solid oxide and a device therefor, capable of manufacturing a solid oxide used as an optical material without introducing damaged layers caused by machining, which does not use any polishing agent or abrasive grains including rare earth elements, or does not use any solution, such as hydrogen fluoride, for which handling is difficult and which imposes a heavy environmental burden. In the presence of water 1, a solid oxide in which one or more kinds of elements are bonded through oxygen is used as an object to be manufactured; a catalyst substance, which cuts a backbond between an oxygen element and another element, forming the solid oxide, by dissociation of a water molecule, and adsorbs it, and helps production of a decomposition product by hydrolysis, is used as a machining reference surface (3); the object (5) to be manufactured and the machining reference surface are disposed so that they are brought into contact with each other or they are brought very close to each other in the presence of water; a potential of the machining reference surface is adjusted to a range where neither H2 nor O2 is produced; and the object to be manufactured is moved relative to the machining reference surface thereby to remove a decomposition product from the surface of the object to be manufactured.