SBIR Phase II: Novel Surface Free Energy Sensor

该项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力将是允许更节能的表面处理、更一致的表面处理工艺、降低制造过程中的废品率以及更可靠的粘结和涂层结构。这反过来将减少采用这些固有的高效制造方法的障碍。对拟议的传感器技术表示浓厚兴趣的市场包括汽车OEM、S及其供应商、主要飞机制造商及其供应商，以及通用表面处理设备制造商。其他主要市场包括医疗设备、消费和工业电子产品以及食品包装制造商。通过这项工作获得的理论和实践知识将提高应用这些原理创建坚固的表面自由能传感器的能力。这一认识对于控制许多依赖于润湿现象的过程至关重要，包括印刷、胶粘剂粘合、涂装、快速成型和添加剂制造、农用化学品的应用以及飞机除冰。这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目将满足当前环境要求的从溶剂型胶粘剂和涂料转向水性体系的需求，这使得表面处理的控制变得极其关键。目前，表面处理过程在没有反馈控制的情况下进行。表面处理的质量取决于昂贵的破坏性检测。所提出的传感器是基于对所讨论的表面上的探针液体的微小液滴的平衡形状的超快速确定，该参数与表面的吉布斯自由能直接相关。研究的目的是对小液滴的弹道沉积参数、基片表面的形貌和能量以及平衡液滴几何之间的关系有一个基本的了解，并利用这些知识来设计和建造原型的闭环系统控制表面加工设备。这种理解将主要通过对生长的液滴与各种化学成分和形态的表面相互作用的高速成像来发展。这些知识将被纳入到原型表面处理设备的设计和建造中，其中包括用于精确控制和验证表面自由能的闭环反馈。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will be to allow for more energy efficient surface treatment, more consistency in surface treatment processes, reduced scrap rates in manufacturing and more reliable bonded and coated structures. This in turn will reduce barriers to adoption of these inherently efficient manufacturing methods. Markets that have expressed keen interest in the proposed sensor technology include automotive OEM?s and their suppliers, major airframers and their suppliers, and manufacturers of general purpose surface treatment equipment. Other major markets include manufacturers of medical devices, consumer and industrial electronics, and food packaging. The theoretical and practical knowledge gained through this work will advance the ability to apply these principles to create robust surface free energy sensors. This understanding is critical for controlling many processes that depend on wetting phenomena, including printing, adhesive bonding, painting, rapid prototyping and additive manufacturing, application of agricultural chemicals, and aircraft deicing. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase 2 project will address the needs engendered by the current environmentally mandated shift from solvent-based adhesives and coatings to water-borne systems, which has made the control of surface treatment extremely critical. Currently, surface treatment processes are performed without feedback control. The quality of surface treatment is determined by expensive destructive testing. The proposed sensor is based on ultra rapid determination of the equilibrium shape of a miniscule drop of a probe liquid on the surface in question, a parameter directly related to the Gibbs free energy of the surface. The research objectives are to develop a fundamental understanding of the relationship between ballistic deposition parameters of small liquid drops, the morphology and energetics of a substrate surface, and the equilibrium drop geometry, and utilize this knowledge to design and construct prototype closed loop control surface processing equipment. This understanding will be developed primarily through high-speed imaging of the interaction of growing droplets with surfaces of various chemical composition and morphology. This knowledge will be incorporated into the design and construction of prototype surface processing equipment that includes closed loop feedback for precise control and verification of surface free energy.