Rapid preparation and uniformity control of B4C ceramic double-curvature shells: Aim to advance its applications as ICF capsules

In this work, we report a rapid, simple and controllable approach to prepare B4C ceramic double-curvature shells by dropping the coating slurry on a molybdenum (Mo) substrate. The B4C slurry finally forms a nearly uniform spherical thin shell on the Mo substrates after drainage and curing process. We discovered that the uniformity and the wall thickness of the thin shell structure are controlled by the curing time and the viscosity of the slurry, respectively. This novel fabrication method not only provides an alternative way to prepare B4C ceramic double-curvature shells for the potential application as an ICF capsule, but also sheds light on the uniformity control of other ceramic double-curvature thin shells. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.