3D Printing of Micro‐Architected Al/CuO‐Based Nanothermite for Enhanced Combustion Performance

Abstract

The booming development of 3D printing offers unprecedented hope for the construction of functional materials. However, it is still challenging to fabricate nano energetic materials due to the high sensitivity of energetic materials and the difficulty of high loading of materials. Recently, ink‐based direct ink writing (DIW) 3D printing process for the preparation of reactive materials has attracted worldwide attention because of the simplicity in design of micro architecture and the possibility of low‐cost manufacturing. Herein, a novel strategy for printing Al/CuO nanothermite is successfully achieved by DIW 3D printing of nanothermite inks with good rheology shear‐thinning properties using F2311 as a binder. The loading of nanothermite in this ink formula is up to 90 wt.%, and the burning rate can be as high as 352 mm s−1. This approach provides new routes for achieving the applications in micro energetic device by printing high resolution and precise patterns of nanothermite with enhanced combustion performance.

Modeling the self-propagation reaction in heterogeneous and dense media: Application to Al/CuO thermite

“…Using nanomaterials in energetics has increased burn rates from mm/s to m/s and even km/s in some cases [1][2][3]. To obtain a large interfacial contact area between the fuel and oxidizer, different approaches such as ultrasonication [4], electrospraying/electrospinning mechanical milling [5][6][7][8], selfassembly (static electricity-based [9], ligand-based processes [10], sol-gel synthesis [11], DNA-based assembly [12][13][14], and recently 3D printing [15][16][17][18] have been explored for different applications. An alternative approach to create high density, large interface surface area composites in thermites is to fabricate nanolaminate structures through physical vapor deposition (PVD) [19][20][21][22][23].…”

PyroMEMS as Future Technological Building Blocks for Advanced Microenergetic Systems

“…Nanothermites containing nanoscale metallic fuel in contact with a strong oxidizer emerged as promising candidates because their burn rate can be tuned from mm/s to m/s, and even km/s in some particular cases [ 29 , 30 , 31 ]. To obtain a high interfacial contact area between the fuel and the oxidizer, ultrasonication [ 32 ], electrospraying/electrospinning [ 33 ], mechanical milling [ 34 , 35 ], self-assembly (static electricity-based [ 36 ], ligand-based [ 30 , 37 , 38 ], sol-gel [ 39 ] and DNA-based assembly [ 40 , 41 , 42 ] and, recently, 3D printing [ 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 ] approaches have been explored with varying levels of success. An alternative technique for creating high-density, high-interface surface area composites is utilizing nanolaminates, wherein nanosized layers of the oxidizer and the metal are deposited on top of each other using vacuum vapor deposition techniques [ 47 , 48 ].…”

3D Printing of n‐Al/Polytetrafluoroethylene‐Based Energy Composites with Excellent Combustion Stability

“…[20][21][22] In addition, due to the agglomeration of nanoparticles, the general MIC is difficult to customize in an exact shape and size in a tiny structure, which severely hinders the application of thermite in microenergy devices. [23,24] Benefited from the development of 3D printing technology, nano-thermite can be made into energetic inks by adding binder, which can significantly improve the security and plasticity of thermite to facilitate printing. [25][26][27][28] Additive manufacturing (AM), as known as 3D printing, is usually one of the methods of layer-by-layer manufacturing for the corresponding mathematical model with the consistent 3D physical entity model.…”

“…[ 20–22 ] In addition, due to the agglomeration of nanoparticles, the general MIC is difficult to customize in an exact shape and size in a tiny structure, which severely hinders the application of thermite in microenergy devices. [ 23,24 ]…”