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Improving the Manufacture by Flexographic Printing of RFID Aerials for Intelligent Packaging / CAITLIN MCCALL

Swansea University Author: CAITLIN MCCALL

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DOI (Published version): 10.23889/SUthesis.62703

Abstract

Flexography is a well-established high-volume roll-to-roll industrial printing process that has shown promise for the manufacture of printed electronics for smart and intelligent packaging, particularly on to flexible substrates. Understanding is required of the relationship between print process pa...

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Published: Swansea 2023
Institution: Swansea University
Degree level: Doctoral
Degree name: EngD
Supervisor: Claypole, Timothy ; Phillips, Chris
URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa62703
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first_indexed 2023-02-21T11:11:44Z
last_indexed 2023-02-22T04:16:21Z
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spelling 2023-02-21T11:36:29.3656294 v2 62703 2023-02-21 Improving the Manufacture by Flexographic Printing of RFID Aerials for Intelligent Packaging b6d3548624302fd763859b93e9403753 CAITLIN MCCALL CAITLIN MCCALL true false 2023-02-21 Flexography is a well-established high-volume roll-to-roll industrial printing process that has shown promise for the manufacture of printed electronics for smart and intelligent packaging, particularly on to flexible substrates. Understanding is required of the relationship between print process parameters, including ink rheology, and performance of printed electronic circuits, sensors and in particular RFID antenna. The complexity of this printing process with its shear and extensional flows of complex inks and flexible substrates can lead to undesirable surface morphology to the detriment of electronic performance of the print. This thesis reports work that progresses the understanding of the complex relationships amongst relevant factors, particularly focusing on the printability of features that have an impact on printed RFID antenna where increases in resistance increase the antennas resonant frequency. Flexography was successfully used to print RFID antenna. However, the large variation in print outcomes when using commercial inks and the limits on resistivity reduction even at the optimal print parameters necessitated the systematic development of an alternative silver flake ink. Increases in silver loading and TPU polymer viscosity grade (molecular weight) increased the viscosity. The ink maintained its geometry from the anilox cell between rollers, on to the substrate and print surface roughness increased. This, however, did not increase resistance of the track due to the high silver loading. Better understanding of the relationship between print parameters, print outcomes, ink rheology and performance of an RFID antenna has been achieved. Increases in silver loading up to 60wt.% improved conductivity. However, further increasing the silver loading produced negligible additional benefit. An adaption of Krieger-Dougherty suspension model equation has been proposed for silver at concentrations over 60wt.% after assessing existing suspension models. Such a model has proven to better predict relative viscosities of inks than Einstein-Batchelor, Krieger-Dougherty and Maron-Pierce equations. Increasing TPU viscosity grade was found to be a promising ink adjustment in the absence of changing print parameters, to produce a more consistent print. Better prediction of ink behaviour will allow for improved control of ink deposition, which for RFID applications can improve ink conductivity, essential for good response to signal. Further developments such as addition of non-flake particles and formulation refinement are required to enable the model ink to match the resistivity of the commercial ink. E-Thesis Swansea Engineering, Printing, Rheology 16 2 2023 2023-02-16 10.23889/SUthesis.62703 COLLEGE NANME COLLEGE CODE Swansea University Claypole, Timothy ; Phillips, Chris Doctoral EngD EPSRC doctoral training grant 2023-02-21T11:36:29.3656294 2023-02-21T11:06:27.2231976 Faculty of Science and Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Materials Science and Engineering CAITLIN MCCALL 1 62703__26643__bd21411b2e44474f9029c424846a019d.pdf McCall_Caitlin_EngD_Thesis_Final_Cronfa.pdf 2023-02-21T11:14:39.8176037 Output 7579181 application/pdf E-Thesis – open access true Copyright: The author, Caitlin Ann McCall, 2023. true eng
title Improving the Manufacture by Flexographic Printing of RFID Aerials for Intelligent Packaging
spellingShingle Improving the Manufacture by Flexographic Printing of RFID Aerials for Intelligent Packaging
CAITLIN MCCALL
title_short Improving the Manufacture by Flexographic Printing of RFID Aerials for Intelligent Packaging
title_full Improving the Manufacture by Flexographic Printing of RFID Aerials for Intelligent Packaging
title_fullStr Improving the Manufacture by Flexographic Printing of RFID Aerials for Intelligent Packaging
title_full_unstemmed Improving the Manufacture by Flexographic Printing of RFID Aerials for Intelligent Packaging
title_sort Improving the Manufacture by Flexographic Printing of RFID Aerials for Intelligent Packaging
author_id_str_mv b6d3548624302fd763859b93e9403753
author_id_fullname_str_mv b6d3548624302fd763859b93e9403753_***_CAITLIN MCCALL
author CAITLIN MCCALL
author2 CAITLIN MCCALL
format E-Thesis
publishDate 2023
institution Swansea University
doi_str_mv 10.23889/SUthesis.62703
college_str Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchytype
hierarchy_top_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
department_str School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Materials Science and Engineering{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Science and Engineering{{{_:::_}}}School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Materials Science and Engineering
document_store_str 1
active_str 0
description Flexography is a well-established high-volume roll-to-roll industrial printing process that has shown promise for the manufacture of printed electronics for smart and intelligent packaging, particularly on to flexible substrates. Understanding is required of the relationship between print process parameters, including ink rheology, and performance of printed electronic circuits, sensors and in particular RFID antenna. The complexity of this printing process with its shear and extensional flows of complex inks and flexible substrates can lead to undesirable surface morphology to the detriment of electronic performance of the print. This thesis reports work that progresses the understanding of the complex relationships amongst relevant factors, particularly focusing on the printability of features that have an impact on printed RFID antenna where increases in resistance increase the antennas resonant frequency. Flexography was successfully used to print RFID antenna. However, the large variation in print outcomes when using commercial inks and the limits on resistivity reduction even at the optimal print parameters necessitated the systematic development of an alternative silver flake ink. Increases in silver loading and TPU polymer viscosity grade (molecular weight) increased the viscosity. The ink maintained its geometry from the anilox cell between rollers, on to the substrate and print surface roughness increased. This, however, did not increase resistance of the track due to the high silver loading. Better understanding of the relationship between print parameters, print outcomes, ink rheology and performance of an RFID antenna has been achieved. Increases in silver loading up to 60wt.% improved conductivity. However, further increasing the silver loading produced negligible additional benefit. An adaption of Krieger-Dougherty suspension model equation has been proposed for silver at concentrations over 60wt.% after assessing existing suspension models. Such a model has proven to better predict relative viscosities of inks than Einstein-Batchelor, Krieger-Dougherty and Maron-Pierce equations. Increasing TPU viscosity grade was found to be a promising ink adjustment in the absence of changing print parameters, to produce a more consistent print. Better prediction of ink behaviour will allow for improved control of ink deposition, which for RFID applications can improve ink conductivity, essential for good response to signal. Further developments such as addition of non-flake particles and formulation refinement are required to enable the model ink to match the resistivity of the commercial ink.
published_date 2023-02-16T04:23:01Z
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score 11.013148

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