In manufacturing industries, spherical micro-particles are commonly used as (e.g., brazing powder, metal filler, and 3D printing powder) which are produced with droplet-based particle fabrication techniques. Such processes create spherical morphology but introduce polydispersity and follow a continuous exponential pattern commonly expressed with Rosin-Rammler expression. Sorting those micro-particles in a narrower size range is an important but difficult, costly, and challenging process. Here we demonstrate the successful separation of the particles from a poly-disperse mixture with a particle volume fraction of 10% by dipping process. Nickel-based micro-particles (avg. dia. 5.69 μm) are added in a binder-based liquid carrier system. To encounter the gravitational force, external kinetic energy in the form of agitation is applied to ensure the uniform dispersion of the particles. The cylindrical substrate is prepared and dipped in the ‘pseudo suspension’ to separate the particles by adhering to it. The substrate is dried, and images are taken to characterize the separated particles using image J software. A clear size distribution can be observed which is also plotted. Additionally, a relationship between the process parameter and sorted particles has been established. The proposed method is quick, controllable, and easy to implement, which can be a useful tool for sorting wide-range poly-disperse particles.
Polymeric particles with complex shapes are required for biomedical therapies, colloidal self‐assembly, and micro‐robotics. It has been challenging to synthesize particles beyond simple shapes (e.g., spheres, cubes) with high structural accuracy using existing methods. Here, a method for fabricating polymeric microparticles of complex 3D shapes is reported using two‐photon lithography, and dispersing the particles in an aqueous solution on a glass substrate. The fabrication of polyhedrons (e.g., tetrahedron, pyramid), polypods (e.g., tetrapod, hexapod), and other shapes of 5–10 µm in size is demonstrated. Confocal microscopy is used to track the motion of the sphere, tetrahedron, tetrapod, and screw‐shaped particles near the substrate, and determine their translational diffusion coefficients. HYDRO++ is used to simulate the motion of the particles far from the substrate. The influence of particle size and substrate effects on diffusion in the spherical particles is determined and finds that the non‐spherical particles have increased hindrance at the substrate compared to the spherical particles.
more » « less- Award ID(s):
- 2052251
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10449427
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Particle & Particle Systems Characterization
- Volume:
- 38
- Issue:
- 8
- ISSN:
- 0934-0866
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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