Electrowetting element and liquid

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10018829-B1
Application number	US-201615288903-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Oct 7, 2016
Priority date	Sep 29, 2014
Publication date	Jul 10, 2018
Grant date	Jul 10, 2018

Abstract

A liquid for an electrowetting element includes a plurality of solid particles dispersed in a liquid vehicle. Each of the plurality of solid particles comprises, respectively, a solid core with a coating comprising silicon dioxide.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electrowetting element comprising:
a support plate comprising:
an electrode; and
a surface;

a first liquid in contact with the surface, the first liquid comprising one or more of: pigment particles, or a dye; and
a second liquid immiscible with the first liquid, the second liquid comprising:
a liquid vehicle; and
a plurality of solid particles dispersed in the liquid vehicle, each of the plurality of solid particles comprising, respectively, a solid core with a coating comprising silicon dioxide,
wherein the second liquid is without a surfactant.

2. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein with a substantially zero magnitude voltage applied between the electrode and the second liquid, the second liquid substantially does not contact the surface.

3. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein with a non-zero magnitude voltage applied between the electrode and the second liquid, the first liquid contacts a first part of the surface and the second liquid contacts a second part of the surface.

4. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein the first liquid contacts the second liquid.

5. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein the support plate comprises a hydrophobic layer comprising the surface.

6. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein the support plate is a first support plate, and the electrowetting element comprises a second support plate, a space between the first support plate and the second support plate substantially filled with the first liquid and the second liquid.

7. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein the solid core comprises one or more of: a colorant, a pigment, or a dye.

8. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein the solid core comprises a material reflective for a greater portion of light than a portion of light which the material is one or more of absorbing or transmissive for.

9. The electrowetting element of claim 8 , wherein the material is reflective for more than 50% of wavelengths of light in the visible light spectrum.

10. The electrowetting element of claim 8 , wherein the second liquid comprises a concentration of the plurality of solid particles dispersed in the liquid vehicle to reflect a majority of light in the visible spectrum incident on the second liquid.

11. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein the solid core comprises one or more of: titanium dioxide, barium titanate, antimony white, barium sulphate, basic lead carbonate, or zinc oxide.

12. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein the coating is substantially transmissive to light in the visible light spectrum.

13. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , the coating having a hydroxylated exterior surface, wherein an interaction between the liquid vehicle and the hydroxylated exterior surface substantially maintains the plurality of solid particles dispersed in the liquid vehicle.

14. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of solid particles each respectively have at least one of:
a maximum dimension of the solid core of approximately 50 to 300 nanometers,
an average maximum dimension of the solid core of approximately 50 to 300 nanometers,
a maximum dimension of the solid core of approximately 100 to 200 nanometers,
an average maximum dimension of the solid core of approximately 100 to 200 nanometers, a thickness of the coating of approximately 5 to 20% of the maximum dimension of the solid core, or
a thickness of the coating of approximately 5 to 20% of the average maximum dimension solid core.

15. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein the liquid vehicle comprises at least one of: water, a polyether; a peroxide; a polyol, a diol, a triol, a tetraol; an ether; dioxalane; dimethoxymethane; an amide; a polyamide; a carboxylic acid; formic acid; acetic acid; propanoic acid; glycolic acid; a heteroatom substituted carboxylic acid; a halogenated carboxylic acid; chloroacetic acid; trifluoroacetic acid; a dicarboxylic acid; oxalic acid; malonic acid; succinic acid; glutaric acid; a tricarboxylic acid; citric acid; aconitic acid; an ester; methyl acetate; ethyl lactate; a sulphone; dimethyl sulphate; dimethyl sulphite; methylsulphonylmethane; an aldehyde; acetaldehyde; glyoxal; methylglyoxal; a peroxide; methyl ethyl ketone peroxide; oxamic acid; organosulphoxide; ethylene carbonate; propylene carbonate; diethylene glycol; ethylene glycol; polyethylene glycol; propylene glycol; erythritol; glycerol; butanetriol; derivatives thereof; or combinations thereof.

16. The electrowetting element of claim 1 , wherein approximately 5 to 40 wt % of the second liquid consists of the plurality of solid particles.

17. A liquid comprising:
a liquid vehicle, and
a plurality of solid particles dispersed in the liquid vehicle, each of the plurality of solid particles comprising, respectively, a solid core with a coating comprising silicon dioxide,
wherein the liquid is without a surfactant, and
wherein the liquid is usable as a second liquid of an electrowetting element comprising:
a support plate comprising:
an electrode; and
a surface;

a first liquid in contact with the surface, the first liquid immiscible with the second liquid, and the first liquid comprising one or more of: pigment particles, or a dye.

18. The liquid of claim 17 , wherein the solid core comprises one or more of: a colorant, a pigment, a dye, titanium dioxide, barium titanate, antimony white, barium sulphate, basic lead carbonate, or zinc oxide.

19. The liquid of claim 17 , the coating having a hydroxylated exterior surface, wherein an interaction between the liquid vehicle and the hydroxylated exterior surface substantially maintains the plurality of solid particles dispersed in the liquid vehicle.

20. The liquid of claim 17 , wherein the plurality of solid particles each respectively have at least one of:
a maximum dimension of the solid core of approximately 50 to 300 nanometers,
an average maximum dimension of the solid core of approximately 50 to 300 nanometers,
a maximum dimension of the solid core of approximately 100 to 200 nanometers,
an average maximum dimension of the solid core of approximately 100 to 200 nanometers, a thickness of the coating of approximately 5 to 20% of the maximum dimension of the solid core, or
a thickness of the coating of approximately 5 to 20% of the average maximum dimension solid core.

21. The liquid of claim 17 , wherein the liquid vehicle comprises at least one of: water, a polyether; a peroxide; a polyol, a diol, a triol, a tetraol; an ether; dioxalane; dimethoxymethane; an amide; a polyamide; a carboxylic acid; formic acid; acetic acid; propanoic acid; glycolic acid; a heteroatom substituted carboxylic acid; a halogenated carboxylic acid; chloroacetic acid; trifluoroacetic acid; a dicarboxylic acid; oxalic acid; malonic acid; succinic acid; glutaric acid; a tricarboxylic acid; citric acid; aconitic acid; an ester; methyl acetate; ethyl lactate; a sulphone; dimethyl sulphate; dimethyl sulphite; methylsulphonylmethane; an aldehyde; acetaldehyde; glyoxal; methylglyoxal; a peroxide; methyl ethyl ketone peroxide; oxamic acid; organosulphoxide; ethylene carbonate; propylene carbonate; diethylene glycol; ethylene glycol; polyethylene glycol; propylene glycol; erythritol; glycerol; butanetriol; derivatives thereof; or combinations thereof.

22. An apparatus comprising:
an electrowetting element comprising:
a support plate comprising:
an electrode; and
a

Assignees

• Amazon Tech Inc

Inventors

• Massard Romaric Mathieu

Classifications

• B01F17/0085

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B01F17/0007

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• G02B26/005 Primary

  based on electrowetting · CPC title

• C09K23/002

  Inorganic compounds · CPC title

• C09K23/017

  Mixtures of compounds · CPC title