The influence of the tape-casting process parameters on the geometric characteristics of SiC tapes

The production process of the tape-casting technique applied to the production of porous ceramic membranes, suitable for the separation of different chemical species, has been explored, with emphasis on the influence of the operative parameters on the macrogeometric characteristics of the manufactured ceramic porous tapes. The effects of the slurry casting rate, the doctor blade height and the mean particle diameter have been studied and the results reported. The characterization analyses indicate the degree of reliability of this technique to produce planar SiC components and the importance of the particle size in enhancing the structural homogeneity. A study on the variance analysis (ANOVA) determined that important operative parameters influencing the thickness of the planar components are, in order of importance, the doctor blade height and the slurry casting rate. The squared terms H_r^{poststaggered2}, V_p^{poststaggered2} and the interaction term V_pH_r have very little influence on the value of log(S).