Fast Deposition of Surface Structures by Two-Step EPD

Abstract

In this paper, the feasibility of obtaining well-defined compact EPD deposits in a short time was studied. EPD from organic and aqueous suspensions were tested. The formation of bubbles coming from solvent electrolysis damages the deposits. 4 different EPD geometric configurations were developed and tested with different experimental conditions. One of them, consisting of both electrodes tilted 30° helped to avoid bubbles getting trapped in the deposit. Our preliminary results showed that there is a very strong influence of the voltage applied, and the separation distance between the electrodes, over the width and height of the structures deposited. Working with aqueous suspensions is more suitable than with organic solvents from the environmental point of view. More work needs to be done in this direction to improve the quality of the deposits and to fine-tune the experimental conditions.