Applying CO2 and ytterbium fiber lasers to high-performance production of refractory oxide nanopowders

The main features of obtaining refractory oxide nanopowders using a repetitively-pulsed CO2-laser (10,6 µm) with an average radiation power of 500 W or a CW ytterbium fiber laser (1,07 µm) with a radiation power of up to 700 W are considered. In particular, the influence of pressure, buffer gas composition and average radiation power on the size of nanoparticles and the productivity of their obtaining were studied. Depending on the thermophysical properties of the material, in atmospheric pressure air the productivity of nanopowder synthesis varies from 15 – 23 g/h (YSZ) to 350 g/h (WO3). The mass yield of nanopowder obtained upon evaporation of one target is usually is 30 wt. % of the weight of the initial target. The obtained nanopowders contain weakly agglomerated nanoparticles of spherical shape. The average size of nanoparticles 11 – 20 nm weakly depends on their material. The most important features of using a CW ytterbium laser to obtain nanopowders of refractory oxides are their high transparency for radiation of 1,07 μm, as well as the spraying of many melt droplets. These features led to a reduction in the productivity of nanopowder production and its mass yield. On the other hand, the scattering of laser radiation in porous of the initial target and its concentration in some regions makes it possible to efficiently evaporate oxide targets from materials with a refractive index of more than 1.7 – 1.75. The transition to a repetitively-pulsed mode of radiation (pulse duration 120 μs, square waveform, and peak power 600 W), an increase in the spot diameter and the speed of beam movement over the target surface made it possible to significantly reduce droplet spattering and increase the yield of Nd: Y2O3 nanopowder from 9,7 to 30 wt.% of the weight of the initial target. However, a twofold decrease in the average radiation power led to the fact that the productivity of obtaining the nanopowder was only 15 g/h. Thus, to obtain nanopowders of refractory oxides, it is desirable to use a quasi-CW fiber ytterbium laser, which is specially designed for operation in a repetitively pulsed mode. The obtained nanopowders YSZ, Nd: Y2O3, Al2O3, etc. are used for the manufacture of ceramic solid electrolytes of the YSZ type and highly transparent laser ceramics.