Rheology and Curability Characterization of Photosensitive Slurries for 3D Printing of Si3N4 Ceramics

Abstract

Among a series of 3D printing techniques, stereolithography provides a new route to produce ceramic architectures with the advantages of high-precision and short cycle time. However, up to now the stereolithography of non-oxide ceramics still face complex and difficult problems. This work focused on the analysis of rheological and curing ability of Si3N4 photocurable slurries. The effects of monomer type, coarse silicon powder, solid loading and ambient temperature on the rheological behavior were intensively studied. The relationships between powder characteristic (involving refractive index, absorbance and the introduce of coarse silicon powder), monomer type and curing ability were discussed in detail. It is expected that this study may benefit the development of Si3N4 or other non-oxide ceramic slurries for stereolithography.