Effects of carbon fillers on the tribological and mechanical properties of an epoxy-based polymer (SU-8)

Abstract

SU-8, an epoxy-based negative photoresist polymer, is highly suitable for making micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) structures. Despite fabrication advantages, its bulk mechanical and tribological properties are the main limitations for application as MEMS material. Carbon filler materials such as graphene, graphite and multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) are added to SU-8 for tribological and mechanical property enhancements. SU-8/(5 wt%) graphite composite has performed better for the steady-state coefficient of friction at all loads including for the speed effect. SU-8/(5 wt%) MWCNT has shown excellent wear resistance. At 10 wt% graphite content, SU-8/graphite is superior in tribological performance to other composites tested.

Friction and wear durability study of epoxy-based polymer (SU-8) composite coatings with talc and graphite as fillers

“…The fabricated sample composition and its abbreviation symbols are given in Table 1. The tribology (friction and wear) tests on coated samples of SU-8 and its composites were performed on laboratory-fabricated ball-on-disk setup [8]. The disk was made of SU-8 and its composites in the form of thick coatings on glass substrate.…”

“…The literatures on the tribological property improvement of SU-8 and epoxy have been reviewed in our earlier publications [8,9]. Both solid and liquid fillers have been used for enhancing tribological properties of SU-8.…”

Enhancement of Mechanical and Thermal Properties of SU-8 Photoresist with Multilayer Woven Glass Fabric Based on Micromachining Technology

“…As a promising structural material, SU-8 photoresist has been applied in some specific MEMS devices and micro fluids [8][9][10][11][12] owing to its lower production cost [13], acceptable flexibility [14], satisfactory insulation and biocompatibility [15,16], thus, it is perceived as the next generation of structural materials for micro electromechanical systems [17]. Although the SU-8 has a series of advantages, however, its Young's modulus and coefficient of thermal expansion is inferior to that of the traditional structural materials such as silicon, which largely restricts its applications in micro devices [18,19].…”

Thermo-mechanical and tribological properties of SU-8/h-BN composite with SN150/perfluoropolyether filler

“…They also performed a nano-indentation test to measure the elastic modulus and hardness and found a marginal increase in the mechanical properties. To continue this study, Katiyar et al [12][13][14] mixed carbon fillers, talc, graphite, and a combination of talc and graphite, in different weight percentages in SU-8 and fabricated SU-8 composites. Friction and wear tests were performed on the fabricated composites with a ball-on-disk setup using a silicon nitride ball with a 4 mm diameter, and the coefficient of friction was ~4-5 times lower than that of pure SU-8.…”