Cleaning system cleans micro tooling

In the manufacture of micro-tooling for non-silicon micro components, a cleaning system has been developed, which is capable of removing very fine particles without damaging surface finish.

One of the flagship research projects currently being undertaken by the Manufacturing Engineering Centre (MEC) at Cardiff University is the development of micro-tooling for non-silicon micro components.

Atanas Ivanov, Manager of the micro-tooling project, explained: "Micro-moulding techniques are critical to the development of new consumer products in many sectors including medical, bio-medical and automotive.

Up to now, virtually all micro-moulding has been carried out with silicon components, mainly for the semiconductor industry.

Because silicon has been used for many years it is a very well understood material - but we are now looking at developing new techniques so we can manufacture other, less well understood materials which have the potential to yield major functional benefits.

The importance of this project for UK manufacturing is underlined by the fact that it is being funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the UK Government's leading funding agency for research and training in this area.

The project is also attracting support from commercial organisations, one of which is Engis UK, part of Engis Corporation.

The techniques which the project team is using to create the micro-moulds include micro-laser, micro-EDM and micro-milling on very high purity mono-crystalline amorphous metal compounds.

Ivanov states that using these methods the team has already broken the '10 micron barrier' and is currently working on 5 micron inserts and channels.

However, all these machining techniques can leave debris on the mould surfaces and within the ultra-fine mould cavities, resulting in potentially significant problems with de-moulding - and even the need to scrap the mould if the moulding cannot be ejected.

An effective mould cleaning solution that can be used in extremely fine channels without causing any loss of surface finish is therefore clearly a necessary part of the micro-mouldmaking process.

Engis UK offered the project just such a solution in the form of its Megasonic nozzle.

This nozzle provides a unique liquid delivery method, invented by Professor Suzuki Kiyoshi of the Nippon Institute of Technology, which uses a vibration transducer of megahertz order located within the nozzle, resulting in high vibration acceleration, and thus the ability to remove very fine particles.

The Megasonic nozzle, used in conjunction with Engis' diamond-based nano-particle liquid is proving very effective at cleaning the micro moulds.

Ivanov concludes; "Our research is strongly focused on providing real-world solutions.

To achieve our objectives we need and want to work closely with industry.

In Engis UK we have found a partner who is keen to participate and whose expertise in the field is proving invaluable.

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