PFI:AIR - TT: Textured Piezoelectric Ceramics

这个PFI：空气技术翻译项目专注于翻译压电陶瓷科学知识，以满足对高性能传感器、致动器和换能器的需求。压电效应是某些材料在施加机械应力时产生电荷的能力。压电陶瓷很重要，因为它们在汽车、飞机、医疗器械、食品加工和家用电子产品等日常使用设备中发挥着关键作用。该项目将扩大一种特殊类型的压电陶瓷的制造工艺：织构压电陶瓷。与随机取向的多晶陶瓷相比，织构陶瓷具有以下独特的特性：转换系数提高三到五倍，高温下的热稳定性和机械稳定性。这些特性提供了以下优势：更高的效率、分辨率、成本节约、小型化和功率密度。织构陶瓷可以使用与随机陶瓷相同的工艺合成，因此不需要任何新的工具或设备。该项目解决了以下技术差距，将其从研究发现转化为商业应用。将对实现织构陶瓷的烧结阶段进行分析，以确定与扩大制造工艺以确保生产一致性相关的挑战。这包括建立大量合成具有足够形态和尺寸的种子的工艺，以及定制粘结剂烧毁和烧结轮廓。对获得大颗粒砖墙状显微组织起决定性作用的工艺变量的影响进行评估。微结构中的基质/种子模板界面将使用高分辨率显微镜进行研究，以了解在外加电场下磁化壁运动的本质。这反过来将提供对控制机械和电气老化行为的过程的评估。与时间-温度相关的烧结研究相结合，场应力相关的电畴迁移研究将使我们对织构陶瓷的机电行为有一个全面的了解。此外，参与该项目的人员，包括本科生和研究生，将通过弗吉尼亚理工大学的催化剂计划、KnowledgeWorks创业活动、参加Nexus大会和参与iScholars计划获得创新和创业经验。该项目与哈里斯公司、Prime Photonics和弗吉尼亚理工大学知识产权局合作，以增强团队的研究能力，提供进入工业测试和制造环境的途径，并指导这项技术转化工作中的商业化方面从研究发现到商业现实。

This PFI: AIR Technology Translation project focuses on translating piezoelectric ceramic science to fill the need for high performance sensors, actuators and transducers. The piezoelectric effect is the ability of certain materials to generate an electric charge in response to an applied mechanical stress. Piezoelectric ceramics are important because they play critical role in daily use devices including automobiles, aircrafts, medical instruments, food processing, and house-hold electronics. This project will result in scale-up of the manufacturing process of a particular type of piezoelectric ceramic: textured piezoelectric ceramics. Textured ceramics have the following unique features: three-to-five times higher transduction coefficients, thermal stability over high temperatures, and mechanical robustness as compared to randomly oriented polycrystalline ceramics. These features provide the following advantages: higher efficiency, resolution, cost savings, miniaturization, and power density. Textured ceramics can be synthesized using the same process as that established for random ceramics and thus do not require any new tooling or equipment.This project addresses the following technology gaps as it translates from research discovery toward commercial application. The sintering stages in achieving textured ceramics will be analyzed to identify the challenges associated with scaling the manufacturing process to ensure consistent production. This includes establishing the process for synthesizing the seeds in large quantities with adequate morphology and dimension, and tailoring the binder-burnout and sintering profiles. The effect of processing variables that play a deterministic role in achieving the large grain brick-wall like microstructure will be evaluated. Matrix/seed template interfaces in the microstructure will be investigated using high resolution microscopy to understand the nature of domain wall motion with applied electric field. This, in turn, will provide assessment of the processes controlling the mechanical and electrical aging behavior. In conjunction with the time-temperature dependent sintering studies, the field-stress dependent domain migration studies will provide a full understanding of the electromechanical behavior of the textured ceramics. In addition, personnel involved in this project, undergraduate and graduate students, will receive innovation and entrepreneurship experiences through Virginia Tech's Catalyst program, KnowledgeWorks entrepreneurship events, participation in the Nexus Conference, and participation in the iScholars program.The project engages Harris Corporation, Prime Photonics, and the Virginia Tech Intellectual Property Office to augment the team's research capability, provide access to industrial testing and manufacturing environment, and guide commercialization aspects in this technology translation effort from research discovery toward commercial reality.