Phonon generation in bulk material for manufacturing

• US 10,065,367 B2
• Filed: 03/20/2015
• Issued: 09/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LP (Chevron Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LP (Chevron Corp.)
• Inventors: Brown, Jr., Alfred E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Malekzadeh, Seyed Masoud
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cummins, IV, Manley L
• Application Number:
  US14/664,378
• Publication Number:
  US 20160271870A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,264 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 10/28 Powder bed fusion, e.g. selective laser melting [SLM] or electron beam melting [EBM]
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 10/30 Process control
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 12/224 for motion along a direction within the plane of a layer
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 12/226 for rotary motion
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 12/33 translatory in the deposition plane
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 12/37 Rotatable
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 12/43 pulsed; frequency modulated
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 12/44 characterised by the configuration of the radiation means
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 2202/01 Use of vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 2999/00 Aspects linked to processes or compositions used in powder metallurgy
• CPC Class Codes: B22F 3/093 using vibrations or friction
• CPC Class Codes: B28B 1/001 Rapid manufacturing of 3D objects by additive depositing, agglomerating or laminating of material selective deposition modelling of metallic powder B22F10/00; rapid manufacturing of 3D objects in general and in particular of plastics B29C64/00
• CPC Class Codes: B28B 1/093 by means directly acting on the material, e.g. by cores wholly or partly immersed in the material or elements acting on the upper surface of the materialB28B1/084 takes precedence; internal vibrators for compacting concrete in situ E04G21/08
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/129 characterised by the energy source therefor, e.g. by global irradiation combined with a mask
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/141 using only solid materials
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/153 using layers of powder being selectively joined, e.g. by selective laser sintering or melting
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/286 Optical filters, e.g. masks
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 64/291 for operating globally, e.g. together with selectively applied activators or inhibitors
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 67/0033 by shock-waves
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2023/06 PE, i.e. polyethylene
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2023/12 : PP, i.e. polypropylene
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2025/06 : PS, i.e. polystyrene
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2055/00 : Use of specific polymers obtained by polymerisation reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds, not provided for in a single one of main groups B29K2023/00 - B29K2049/00, e.g. having a vinyl group, as moulding material
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2065/00 : Use of polyphenylenes or polyxylylenes as moulding material
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2083/00 : Use of polymers having silicon, with or without sulfur, nitrogen, oxygen, or carbon only, in the main chain, as moulding material
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2105/251 : Particles, powder or granules expandable particles B29K2105/046
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2105/253 : Preform
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 10/00 : Processes of additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 30/00 : Apparatus for additive manufacturing; Details thereof or accessories therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 50/02 : for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 2235/66 : Specific sintering techniques, e.g. centrifugal sintering
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 2235/667 : Sintering using wave energy, e.g. microwave sintering
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 35/64 : Burning or sintering processes C04B33/32 takes precedence ; powder metallurgy B22F
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 10/25 : Process efficiency

Abstract

Disclosed embodiments include the formation of an article of manufacture by a process in which vibrations are generated in a bulk material disposed within a build chamber. The vibrations are focused within a section of the base material, and the focusing is controlled to cause the section of the base material to undergo a physical transformation to form at least a portion of the article of manufacture.

Claims

1. A method of manufacturing, comprising:

selectively forming an article of manufacture using focused excitation by a process comprising;

generating vibrations in a base material disposed within a build chamber, wherein generating vibrations in the base material comprises directing an emission through a masking device to mask certain sections of the base material from being subjected to the emission, wherein the masking device comprises one or more screens having a matrix and a movable material, wherein the matrix is transmittive with respect to the emission and the movable material is substantially non-transmittive with respect to the emission;

focusing the vibrations in a section of the base material; and

controlling the focusing of the vibrations to cause the section of the base material to undergo a physical transformation to form at least a portion of the article of manufacture; and

wherein directing the emission through the masking device comprises forming a pattern on the one or more screens corresponding to a portion of the article of manufacture using the movable material and directing the emission through the matrix while blocking the emission with the movable material wherein the emission is coherent light;

wherein the masking device is configured to transduce the coherent light into a waveform;

wherein focusing the vibrations on the section of the base material comprises adjusting the masking device to focus the waveform on a focal region corresponding to the section of the base material to undergo a physical transformation; and

wherein the waveform is selected from the group consisting of infrasonic, sonic, and ultrasonic frequencies.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein generating vibrations in the base material comprises directing the waveform into the base material to cause phonon propagation through a lattice of the section of the base material.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein directing the waveform into the base material comprises directing a first waveform into a phononic or phoxonic crystal using an acoustic source, forming a second waveform from the first waveform in the phononic or phoxonic crystal, and directing the second waveform into the section of the base material.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein forming the second waveform from the first waveform in the phononic or phoxonic crystal comprises directing the first waveform into a focusing region of the phononic or phoxonic crystal having a matrix and inclusions positioned within the matrix, the inclusions having a spatial periodicity corresponding to a desired bandgap in the second waveform.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the process comprises adjusting the pattern after the portion of the article of manufacture is formed, adjusting the section of the base material in which the vibrations are generated, and forming another portion of the article of manufacture using the adjusted pattern.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein generating vibrations in the base material comprises producing a shock wave at a focal region in the base material, the shock wave resulting in heating, pressure, or both, that sinters the base material at the focal region.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein controlling the focus of the vibrations to cause the section of the base material to undergo the physical transformation comprises increasing a frequency of oscillation within the base material to increase the temperature of the base material to a temperature suitable to cause the physical transformation.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the process comprises adjusting the frequency of oscillation within the base material of the article of manufacture to remove sections of the article of manufacture and thereby create patterns in the article of manufacture.

9. A method of manufacturing, comprising:

selectively forming an article of manufacture using focused excitation by a process comprising;

generating vibrations in a base material disposed within a build chamber;

focusing the vibrations in a section of the base material; and

controlling the focusing of the vibrations to cause the section of the base material to undergo a physical transformation to form at least a portion of the article of manufacture; and

wherein generating vibrations in the base material comprises directing coherent light to a lens having one or more materials configured to transduce the coherent light into an ultrasonic wave, and directing the ultrasonic wave toward the base material, and wherein focusing the vibrations on the section of the base material comprises adjusting the lens to focus the ultrasonic wave on a focal region corresponding to the section.