Researchers at the Institute of Condensation and Nanoscience at the Catholic University of Leuven in Brussels, Belgium, have created a number of 3D printed bottles for ball milling experiments. Low cost bottles are optimized to reduce background absorption for higher angular resolution.
The coupling of mechanochemistry, machining and chemical reactions at the molecular level is an important area of ​​materials science. Unlike traditional "wet" chemistry, mechanochemistry typically involves the coupling of a substance when it is in a solid state. Mechanochemistry completely eliminates test tube tests: Mechanical chemists often need to use ball milling tests to test subjects.
Mechanochemistry is very important for learning mechanical and chemical phenomena, but it does have its drawbacks. In one aspect, the characterization of the reaction mixture is more readily available than in a wet chemical solution. This means that chemists often need to perform in situ observation of mechanochemical reactions using methods such as X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy.
By these methods, the solid state reaction can be directly followed, and the conversion and change between substances can be observed during the synthesis. This synthesis typically occurs in a ball mill jar: a device for grinding. Unfortunately, when X-rays pass through such cans, the diffraction pattern typically exhibits a high level of background properties due to thick wall scattering from the can. Therefore, a group of researchers at the University of Leuven University's Institute of Condensation and Nanoscience decided to solve problems based on ball milling experiments.
In an article published in the Journal of Applied Crystallography, these researchers explained how to create new cans with improved wall thickness using 3D printing, with thin-walled sampling slots and dual-chamber designs. Researchers say that bottles printed on 3D printers can reduce background absorption for higher angle resolution.
3D printing bottles also have other benefits. They are said to be more solvent resistant than standard acrylic cans, while 3D printing allows for low cost, fast production when needed.
Researchers Nikolay Tumanov, Voraksmy Ban, Agnieszka Poulain, and Yaroslav Filinchuk, who participated in the project, believe that their 3D printing cans are useful tools for mechanochemistry. 3D printing has opened a new chapter in the study of mechanochemistry.
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