CONTROLLING WETTING FOR MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC METAL MANUFACTURING
First Claim
1. A nozzle for jetting liquid metal, the nozzle comprising:
- a housing defining at least one portion of a fluid chamber, the fluid chamber having an inlet region and a discharge region, and the discharge region having a throat adjacent to a discharge orifice;
one or more magnets disposed relative to the housing with a magnetic field of the magnet directed through the housing; and
electrodes defining at least one portion of a firing chamber within the fluid chamber between the inlet region and the discharge region, wherein an outer surface of the housing adjacent to the discharge orifice includes a film that is substantially non-wetting with respect to a liquid metal stably supportable in the at least one portion of the firing chamber defined by the electrodes.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Devices, systems, and methods are directed to applying magnetohydrodynamic forces to liquid metal to eject liquid metal along a controlled pattern, such as a controlled three-dimensional pattern as part of additive manufacturing of an object. Nozzles associated with these devices, systems, and methods include one or more non-wetting surfaces in the vicinity of a discharge orifice of the nozzle. Such non-wetting surfaces can reduce the likelihood that wetting of the liquid metal in the vicinity of a discharge orifice of a nozzle will interfere with ejection of liquid metal droplets from the discharge orifice and, thus, can facilitate delivering droplets with accuracy suitable for commercially viable manufacturing using liquid metal to fabricate objects.
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Citations
19 Claims
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1. A nozzle for jetting liquid metal, the nozzle comprising:
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a housing defining at least one portion of a fluid chamber, the fluid chamber having an inlet region and a discharge region, and the discharge region having a throat adjacent to a discharge orifice; one or more magnets disposed relative to the housing with a magnetic field of the magnet directed through the housing; and electrodes defining at least one portion of a firing chamber within the fluid chamber between the inlet region and the discharge region, wherein an outer surface of the housing adjacent to the discharge orifice includes a film that is substantially non-wetting with respect to a liquid metal stably supportable in the at least one portion of the firing chamber defined by the electrodes. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method of additive manufacturing, the method comprising:
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providing a liquid metal in a fluid chamber, the fluid chamber having an inlet orifice and a discharge orifice, and the fluid chamber having a throat adjacent to a discharge orifice, wherein the fluid chamber is at least partially defined by a housing; directing a magnetic field through the housing; and pulsing electric current into the liquid metal in a firing chamber within the fluid chamber, the pulsed electric current intersecting the magnetic field in the firing chamber to eject the liquid metal from the discharge orifice, wherein, during pulsations of electric current into the liquid metal, the throat is wetted by the liquid metal and an outer surface of the housing defining the discharge orifice is substantially non-wetted by the liquid metal. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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Specification