Roll-to-roll infrared sintering of gravure printed silver patterns in applications of back-injection-molded functional lightweight structures

We report on the manufacturing of functional lightweight structures by the combination of roll-to-roll gravure printing technology and back injection molding technology. The objective is to manufacture conductive grid patterns consisting of thin lines in the lower micrometer range integrated in lightweight components. We already reported on the roll-to-roll manufacture of thin conductive lines by gravure printing of a nano-silver ink which is rapidly sintered by infrared radiation at web velocities up to 1 m/s [1][2]. This approach is employed for the fast manufacturing of conductive grid patterns on a flexible substrate. Afterwards, the printed patterns are integrated in lightweight structures by back injection molding. The final composites shall be applied as smart components for example in cars and rotor blades of wind turbines for electrical applications like power supply, electrical circuits and data communication [3].