Pneumatic drop-on-demand generation for production of metal oxide microspheres by internal gelation

Drop-on-demand generation is an alternative approach to the traditional vibrating nozzle used for the production of nuclear fuel microspheres via the internal gelation method. We integrated a low-cost pneumatic setup and demonstrated that the drop-on-demand approach has some advantages, such as low inventory of feed solution (attractive for laboratory-scale research), improved drop diameter control, reproducibility, scale-up to desired throughput by simple multiplication of the number of dispensing units, and simple remote operation. However, limitations on reproducibility and drop diameter control still exist due to the intrinsic variation of physical properties, viscosity, and dispensing-tip wettability during the internal gelation process. These adverse effects can be mitigated, to a certain extent, by carefully controlling the temperature of the feed as uniformly as possible. We validated the drop-on-demand generation method by producing solid kernels of yttrium-stabilized zirconia and soft gel microspheres of iron hydroxide. In addition, we have measured the diameter change at each principal process stage. Based on the observed gas entrainment/absorption in the gel spheres, we conjectured that aging and washing are likely the critical stages determining the final precision to which microspheres can be made. Finally, we comment on potential improvements that add robustness to the method for handling other metal precursors in aqueous solutions.