SBIR Phase I: Development of a Dynamic, High-Resolution Volumetric Dilatometer

该第一阶段小企业创新研究项目旨在开发一种仪器，以准确表征材料比容（VSP）的热（T）和/或时间（t）响应。目前，还没有市售的装置用于表征环境压力下的VSP（T，t）。提议者参与第一阶段原型装置的设计、开发和验证，这是查明现有技术差距的原因。通过实施由提议者开发的光纤位移传感器系统，使下一代仪器的拟议开发成为可能。这部分是由于新的工程材料不断涌入市场（即热塑性塑料、热固性塑料、金属合金、现有材料的多晶型物等）。以及新的和令人兴奋的领域（即微电子、复合材料制造等）的出现和/或增长。最终，这种需要是由这样一个事实驱动的，即有各种各样的物理现象导致维度的变化（即结晶、固化、熔化、玻璃形成、二次转变和物理老化）。充分开发和商业化的仪器的具体应用包括大气压高分辨率体积测量;和非接触式纳米位移计量;以及线性位移计量、非接触、微位移计量和薄膜计量。

This Phase I Small Business Innovation Research project aims to develop an instrument to accurately characterize the thermal (T) and/or temporal (t) response of a material's specific volume (Vsp). Presently, no commercially available device exists for the characterization of Vsp (T, t) at ambient pressures. The proposer's involvement in the design, development and validation of a stage I prototype device is what has led to the identification of gaps within the existing technology. The proposed development of this next generation instrumentation was made possible through the implementation of a fiber-optic displacement sensor system developed by the proposer. This is due in part, to a constant influx of new engineering materials to the market place (i.e. thermoplastics, thermosets, metal alloys, polymorphs of existing materials, etc.) and the emergence and/or growth of new and exciting fields (i.e. microelectronics, composite manufacturing, etc.). Ultimately, this need is driven by the fact that there are a variety of physical phenomena which result in dimensional change (i.e. crystallization, curing, melting, glass formation, secondary transitions and physical aging).Specific applications for the fully developed and commercialized instrumentation include atmospheric pressure high-resolution volumetric dilatometry; and non-contact, nano-displacement metrology; as well as, linear dilatometry, non-contact, micro-displacement metrology and thin-film metrology.