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A High-Efficiency Environmentally Friendly Polishing Slurry for K9 Glass Utilizing Cerium-Based Compounds

  • 0School of Resources and Safety Engineering, Wuhan Institute of Technology, 693 Xiongchu Avenue, Wuhan 430073, China.
Molecules (basel, Switzerland) +

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December 11, 2025

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December 11, 2025

View abstract on PubMed

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

A new environmentally friendly polishing slurry significantly improves K9 glass chemical mechanical polishing (CMP). The optimized slurry, containing cerium oxide, aluminum oxide, guanidine carbonate, and a surfactant, achieved a 7x higher material removal rate and superior surface finish.

Area Of Science

  • Materials Science
  • Chemical Engineering
  • Optical Engineering

Background

  • K9 glass is crucial for high-precision optics but challenging to polish due to its hardness and brittleness.
  • Existing chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) methods struggle to meet stringent surface finish and subsurface damage requirements for K9 glass.

Purpose Of The Study

  • To develop a novel, high-performance, and environmentally friendly CMP slurry for K9 glass.
  • To investigate the synergistic effects of cerium oxide, aluminum oxide, guanidine carbonate, and a surfactant on K9 glass polishing.

Main Methods

  • Formulation of a novel polishing slurry with cerium oxide (CeO2), aluminum oxide (Al2O3), guanidine carbonate (GC), and sodium laureth-6 carboxylate (SL-6C).
  • Optimization of slurry composition (1 wt% CeO2, 0.05 wt% Al2O3, 0.2 wt% GC, 0.2 wt% SL-6C).
  • Evaluation of polishing performance through material removal rate (MRR) and surface roughness measurements.

Main Results

  • The optimized slurry achieved a K9 glass surface roughness as low as 0.11 nm.
  • The material removal rate (MRR) reached 521.71 nm/min, a seven-fold increase compared to CeO2-only slurries.
  • Aluminum oxide enhanced mechanical friction, guanidine carbonate promoted hydration, and the surfactant improved dispersion and lubrication.

Conclusions

  • The synergistic interactions within the novel slurry formulation significantly enhance CMP efficiency and surface quality for K9 glass.
  • This research provides valuable insights for developing advanced CMP slurries for demanding optical applications.
  • The developed slurry offers a high-performance, eco-friendly solution for precision optical component fabrication.

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