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Additive manufacturing of polymer-derived silicon oxycarbide ceramics for industrial applications
Young, Jason C.
Young, Jason C.
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2024
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Increasing efficiency of gas turbine engines for aircraft propulsion and land-based power generation are motivated by the need for materials capable of withstanding high operational temperatures and chemical inertness, making ceramics exceptionally well-suited. Consequently, there has been a surge in the development of both conventional and innovative ceramic manufacturing technologies to cater to these distinctive requirements. Concurrently, the increasing popularity of additive manufacturing (AM) has spurred the maturation of 3D printing techniques for ceramics and their precursors, offering a solution to manufacturing obstacles encountered with traditional ceramic production methods. However, 3D printing of polymer-derived ceramics remains challenging mainly because of challenges encountered during the printing and pyrolysis process, including fracture, warping, and low ceramic yield. Here, post-processing is introduced to increase cross-linking and eliminate unreacted monomers and partially reacted oligomers from green bodies to reduce warping and fracture during pyrolysis. After post processing, final ceramic parts were produced with improved pyrolysis survival and ceramic yield. It was demonstrated that utilization of these post-processing methods allowed larger, complex monolithic turbine vanes to be produced reliably and repeatably. This work also introduces a straightforward methodology for establishing optimal printing parameters within the constraints of commercially available software and hardware. Maximizing exposure within printable limitation of DLP processes, produced green bodies with the highest conversion, resulted in improved pyrolysis outcomes, manufacturability, and most importantly ceramic strengths comparable to traditionally manufactured SiOC PDCs. Finally, the influence of functionalized graphene on bulk printed PDC composites is explored. The impact of functionalizing graphene on suspension within the preceramic resin and on printing and pyrolysis outcomes of subsequent ceramics is investigated. Finally, the influence of the addition of these functionalized graphene powders on electrical, thermal and mechanical properties is investigated. Improving the mechanical properties of graphene enriched PDCs via optimization of print parameters is discussed.
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