Stop flow lithography synthesis of non-spherical metal oxide particles--颗粒学报PARTICUOLOGY

Baah, D., Donnell, T., Tigner, J., & Floyd-Smith, T. (2014). Stop flow lithography synthesis of non-spherical metal oxide particles. Particuology, 14, 91–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.partic.2013.09.001

Stop flow lithography synthesis of non-spherical metal oxide particles

David Baah ^a, Tobias Donnell ^b, Julaunica Tigner ^a, Tamara Floyd-Smith^{a b *}

a Materials Science & Engineering Department, Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, AL 36088, USA
b Chemical Engineering Department, Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, AL 36088, USA

10.1016/j.partic.2013.09.001

Volume 14, June 2014, Pages 91-97

Received 23 May 2013, Revised 21 August 2013, Accepted 3 September 2013, Available online 24 October 2013.

E-mail: tfloyd@mytu.tuskegee.edu

Highlights

• Stop flow lithography enabled the synthesis of a library of non-spherical composite particles.

• SiO₂ and Al₂O₃ shape analogues were realized through polymer burn-off and sintering.

• SEM confirmed the particle morphology.

• XRD analyses confirmed the composition and crystal structure of the ceramic particles.

Abstract

Non-spherical micron and nano-sized particles and their composites have become essential in select application areas of optics, wear resistance, personnel protection, chemical mechanical polishing, and biomedicine. In this paper, the synthesis of composite and ceramic non-spherical particles using stop flow lithography is reported. Precursor suspensions of poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate, 2-hydroxy-2-methylpropiophenone and SiO₂ or Al₂O₃ are prepared. The precursor suspension flows through a microfluidic device mounted on an upright microscope and is polymerized in an automated process. A photomask patterned with transparent geometric features, which define the cross-sectional shapes of the particles, masks the UV light to synthesize micron sized particles. Particles with axial dimensions ranging from 35 to 167 μm were synthesized. Control of device channel depth and objective lens magnification enables the manipulation of the particle size. Composite particles in triangular, square, pentagonal, hexagonal, and circular cross sections were synthesized. Subsequently, the transformation of the composite particles into the corresponding metal oxide particles was achieved through polymer burn-off and sintering.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

Microfluidics; Stop flow lithography; Electron microscopy

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