The fabrication and characterization of a phase change type micro actuator

상 변화방식 마이크로 액츄에이터의 제조 및 성능에 관한 연구

Characteristics of a phase change type micro actuator have been studied. The micro actuator has been designed for a micro-pump in an active direct methanol fuel cell(DMFC), consisting of an actuating chamber, a membrane, an electric heater, and a sensor of resistance temperature detector (RTD). In the present study, researches have been focused on the response of the actuator to control algorithm of the heater. The experiments demonstrated that the displacement of the membrane increase with temperature variation which is a function of applied voltage, duty ratio, and operating frequency of heating. The results also showed that operation of the actuator with high voltage at small duty of heating is more efficient than the same power consumption of heating with low voltage at large duty.