The effect of laser sintering on the microstructure, relative density, and cracking of sol-gel-derived silica thin films.

Combining sol-gel processing and laser sintering is a promising way for fabricating functional ceramic deposition with high dimensional resolution. In this work, crack-free silica tracks on a silica substrate with a thickness from ~360 nm to ~950 nm, have been obtained by direct exposure to a CO laser beam. At a fixed scanning speed, the density and microstructures of the silica deposition can be precisely controlled by varying the laser output power.

Rapid Laser Reactive Sintering for Sustainable and Clean Preparation of Protonic Ceramics.

One of the essential challenges for energy conversion and storage devices based on protonic ceramics is that the high temperature (1600-1700 °C) and long-time firing (>10 h) are inevitably required for the fabrication, which makes the sustainable and clean manufacturing of protonic ceramic devices impractical. This study provided a new rapid laser reactive sintering (RLRS) method for the preparation of nine protonic ceramics [i.e.

A Novel Laser 3D Printing Method for the Advanced Manufacturing of Protonic Ceramics.

Protonic ceramics (PCs) with high proton conductivity at intermediate temperatures (300-600 °C) have attracted many applications in energy conversion and storage devices such as PC fuel/electrolysis cells, PC membrane reactors, hydrogen pump, hydrogen or water-permeable membranes, and gas sensors. One of the essential steps for fulfilling the practical utilization of these intermediate-temperature PC energy devices is the successful development of advanced manufacturing methods for cost-effectively and rapidly fabricating them with high energy density and efficiency in a customized demand. In this work, we developed a new laser 3D printing (L3DP) technique by integrating digital microextrusion-based 3D printing and precise and rapid laser processing (sintering, drying, cutting, and polishing), which showed the capability of manufacturing PCs with desired complex geometries, crystal structures, and microstructures.