Flash Sintering Technology
Sintering is an essential step in the production of ceramics, traditionally requiring long times and high temperatures to rigidify or densify porous ceramic bodies.
Flash Sintering (FS), also known as Field-Enhanced Sintering (FES), is an advanced sintering technology that involves the application of a direct electrical field via customized electrodes to a material body during the sintering process. Flash Sintering accomplishes its remarkable heating rate by dissipating heat directly inside the ceramic. This reduces the processing time and furnace temperatures from those required by conventional sintering, increasing throughput and productivity. When implemented properly, Flash Sintering also enables a high degree of microstructural control, which can positively influence the performance of ceramic components.
Manufacturing cost reduction and energy efficiency are key priorities for many industries and we can improve your competitive advantage and profitability by implementing this technology.
Our capabilities
Lucideon is the only facility in the world to have the capability for flash sintering technology development and demonstration at the pilot line scale. At the core of our flash sintering advancements lies a variety of electrode interfaces, and proprietary, real-time software which, using 18 different field variables, opens up a broad range of control parameters including:
- frequencies ranging from DC to GHz
- rates of change of current, voltage or power
- pulsed energy discharge
With flash sintering of ceramics, introducing these controls has enabled our team to produce fully dense ceramics repeatably and homogeneously for a wide range of ceramic material types and geometries.
Applications of Flash Sintering
- Environmental barrier coatings (EBCs)
- Sintering of nuclear fuels and fuel immobilization - TRISO / advanced reactor fuel / D-MOX (mixed oxide for disposal))
- Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) and solid-state electrolytes
- Armor
- Joining dissimilar materials
- Biomaterials
Flash Sintering facilities at Lucideon
We have a huge variety of specially constructed kilns for research and development of flash sintering in its journey to manufacturing, including:
Contactless Flash Sintering
Contactless flash sintering is an advanced sintering technique where an electric field is applied to a material through a plasma without direct physical contact with sample. This approach facilitates rapid heating and uniform sintering, reducing thermal gradients and enhancing microstructural control. It is particularly beneficial for delicate materials because it minimizes the risk of contamination, enabling the production of high-quality ceramics and composite materials.
Contact Flash Sintering
Contact flash sintering involves the direct application of an electric field through physical contact between electrodes and a material. This method enables rapid densification by activating regions of high temperature and electric current, reducing sintering times and energy consumption. It is commonly used for functional ceramics and electronic components, where precise control over grain growth and material properties is essential.
Flash Bonding
Flash bonding is a high-speed joining process that uses localized electric fields to heat and bond ceramic or metallic materials at their interfaces. This technique eliminates the need for prolonged heating cycles, making it ideal for applications requiring strong, defect-free joints in materials with differing thermal expansion coefficients. Flash bonding is especially valuable in the aerospace and electronics industries.
Hybrid Sintering (Cold/Flash)
Hybrid sintering combines cold sintering and flash sintering processes to achieve densification at significantly lower temperatures and with shorter processing times. In this technique pressure is applied, followed by flash sintering to complete the densification. This approach enhances energy efficiency and reduces thermal stress, broadening its application in advanced ceramics and composites.
Functionality includes atmosphere control, vacuum, dilatometry, and "in air" for a variety of customized electrode designs.
Memorandum of understanding with UK National Nuclear Lab (NNL)
A novel flash sintering technology has been successfully demonstrated for the sintering of large diameter uranium dioxide (UO2) pellets to high density and with homogeneous microstructures. This study, performed as a collaboration between NNL, Lucideon, University of Manchester, and Orano, has shown the potential to increase production throughputs by over 70% for the NDA's disposal MOX concept. The industrial scale-up of this technology with reduced / low energy consumption and shorter sintering cycles has been envisioned.
Flash Sintering Helps to Clean up Green Energy