The preparation method of silica fibre plug
Technical field
The present invention relates to the preparation of fibre-optical mandrel, the big plug made from low-temperature plasma chemical vapor deposition method (being the PCVD method) of single-mode fiber especially can draw single-mode fiber more than 800 kilometers altogether with the prefabricated rods of single this plug manufacturing.
Technical background
Be used for manufacturers and be mainly chemical vapor deposition method with the processing method of silica fibre plug; Wherein, the typical manufacturing process method is just like the OVD that introduces among the United States Patent (USP) U.S.Pat.3932162 (outsidevapor---phase deposition) technology and VAD (vapor---phase axialdeposition) technology, the PCVD that is narrated in the Chinese patent 98813827.1 (plasma activechemical vapor-phase deposition) technology and methods such as MCVD (modified chemical vapor-phase deposition) technology as introducing among the United States Patent (USP) U.S.Pat.4217027.Along with improving constantly of the manufacture level of technology level and equipment, be which kind of processing method is all in the manufacturing cost that constantly reduces optical fiber.In order to effectively reduce the manufacturing cost of optical fiber, improve the service efficiency and the manufacturing capacity of equipment, each fiber manufacturers is all at the length of string that increases the pairing optical fiber of simple optical fiber plug to greatest extent.Because the core technology of optical fiber manufacturing is the manufacturing technology of fibre-optical mandrel, and the manufacturing cost of the quality of optical fiber and optical fiber depends on the quality and the manufacturing cost of fibre-optical mandrel to a great extent.Therefore the manufacturing cost that how to reduce fibre-optical mandrel is the heat subject that everybody studies always.For the outer method of pipe, the bigger silica fibre plug of method desire manufacturing is much more difficult in the pipe, how to make big fibre-optical mandrel and seems and be even more important managing interior method.Manage the interior big plug of manufactured, not only can reduce the manufacturing cost of its optical fiber, and the size of the plug of the interior manufactured of pipe is being represented the height of the plug manufacture level of this processing method.
The manufacturing of silica fibre normally is made up of following steps: the manufacturing of fibre-optical mandrel, the manufacturing of preform, wire drawing and coating, screening, test and packing.According to the manufacturing processed of optical fiber and the guide properties of optical fiber, the section of the bare fibre of making based on the plug of managing interior manufactured roughly consists of the following components: the sandwich layer a with optical fiber of high index, and the inner cladding b with optical fiber that will be low than the sandwich layer specific refractory power, the bushing pipe layer c of optical fiber and the surrounding layer d that reaches optical fiber.Shown in Fig. 2 a and Fig. 2 b.
By the optical field distribution of optical fiber as can be known, light almost concentrates among the inner cladding b of the sandwich layer a of optical fiber and optical fiber.Thereby very high to the purity requirement of the inner cladding b of the sandwich layer a of optical fiber and optical fiber, its technique manufacturing method that adopts is also different with rest part.To this part, we will adopt the manufacturing process of plug to finish usually.C is the interface of the outside surface and the surrounding layer of plug, and is very easily contaminated because of the outside surface of plug usually.So its foreign matter content height, very near the sandwich layer and the inner cladding of optical fiber, in the process of heating, impurity enters inner cladding and sandwich layer easily by thermodiffusion, thereby influences the purity of sandwich layer and inner cladding and can cause the decay increase of optical fiber; Usually require b/a>2, c/a>3.Pipe external sediment technology is more easily produced big plug, and because of it need not adopt bushing pipe, and method technology is more easy to control in the comparable size pipe of external diameter, so b/a and c/a can control greatlyyer.It generally all adopts pipe external sediment technology directly to deposit surrounding layer on plug, and the prefabricated rods that direct production is big can improve raw-material utilization ratio and efficiency of equipment like this; Then big prefabricated rods is drawn into the prefabricated rods in normal rod footpath.For intraductal deposition process, usually because the restriction of intraductal deposition process and equipment, in the single-mode fiber plug by the sedimentary part b value of intraductal deposition process all less than 15mm, as the big plug that the MCVD technology introduced among the United States Patent (USP) U.S.Pat.6105396 is made, its b is all less than 15mm.And by the length of the optical fiber that prefabricated rods drew of single this plug manufacturing all less than 500km.Constantly perfect along with manufacturing process and equipment, as the present invention introduce the same, be that method also can be made in the pipe of representative with PCVD technology, the length of the optical fiber that prefabricated rods drew of single plug manufacturing reaches the big plug more than the 800km.For big like this prefabricated rods, because the rod footpath of prefabricated rods is big, the rod footpath is usually greater than 120mm, if will directly carry out wire drawing, its difficulty is very big.From technological angle,, generally be infeasible owing to when wanting it directly to carry out wire drawing, have the problem of optical fiber ovality and hydrogen loss susceptibility.Introduced among the U.S.Pat.5837334 big prefabricated component, stretched, made it to become less prefabricated component, this prefabricated component rod footpath belong to normal range, can be used for direct wire drawing.But the disposable input of this method is very big, is unfavorable for small manufacturer.
The rod footpath of the big plug of being made by intraductal deposition process is little, rod footpath by the back plug that forms that stretches is less, prefabricated rods with this plug manufacturing, when directly carrying out wire drawing, then the bushing pipe layer because of optical fiber is too thin, and its outside surface has exposed in atmosphere for a long time, contacts etc. very easily contaminated with foreign object.So the foreign matter content height, in the stringy process, by thermodiffusion, can influence the purity of sandwich layer and inner cladding and can cause the decay of optical fiber big, so before stretching, rod directly must obtain increase.It has introduced plug rod footpath increase method United States Patent (USP) U.S.Pat 4846867; Have than the more low-melting quartz socket tube of mixing fluorine of silica glass but it requires to adopt, and its objective is in order to make the preform of production pure silica core.United States Patent (USP) U.S.Pat 5850497 its introduced to conventional plug carry out the tensile apparatus and method for be flame passes because it adopts, only be suitable for and the less prefabricated rods in rod footpath; Adopt this equipment in addition, the decay increase that the big plug that the rod footpath is not increased stretches and can cause optical fiber.
Summary of the invention
The objective of the invention is in order to overcome in the pipe that exists in the prior art method and to produce fibre-optical mandrel, the throughput of unit equipment is low, the length of the high optical fiber that prefabricated rods drew with single plug manufacturing that produce of production cost is less than the shortcoming of 500km, provide a kind of in the quality that does not influence fibre-optical mandrel with do not increase under the situation of input of equipment, the length of the optical fiber that prefabricated rods drew of single plug manufacturing that can improve the plug throughput of unit equipment and manufacturing again is greater than 800km, reduces the preparation method of silica fibre plug of the production cost of fibre-optical mandrel simultaneously.
Technical scheme of the present invention: the manufacturing of plug involved in the present invention mainly comprises following step, as shown in Figure 3: the deposition process of big plug, the one-tenth rod motion of big plug, the rod footpath increase process of big plug and the drawing process of big plug, (1) deposition process of big plug, as shown in Figure 1, to contain oxygen, silicon tetrachloride, germanium tetrachloride, the reactor feed gas of fluorine Lyons and/or chlorine or vapour, the inlet 105 that merges together by deposition bed enters in the reaction bushing pipe 102, at reaction zone, deposition reaction takes place under the effect of High-Power Microwave 101, thereby forming with the silicon oxide on the internal surface of reaction bushing pipe is the reaction product of main component, High-Power Microwave 101 can be along axially evenly the moving repeatedly back and forth of deposition bed body 103 under the drive of drive unit 104, just constantly to generate equably with the silicon oxide be the reaction product of main component to reaction raw materials on the internal surface of reaction bushing pipe like this, whole deposition reaction all is to carry out in the hot environment of 1380K ± 15K, and whole deposited tube also is in this hot environment all the time; (2) the one-tenth rod motion of big plug, with the deposited tube 201 after the deposition process end, place on the molten machine tool 203 that contracts, in pipe, feed high-purity oxygen, chlorine and/or fluorine Lyons, high temperature heat source 204, move back and forth along the molten axial direction due that contracts bed 203, little by little with the molten solid bar 202 that shortens into of deposited tube, after becoming rod motion to finish, in this solid mandrel, be a part and b diameter partly by the part of PCVD process deposits, external diameter circle of b part is between 16mm-40mm, optimum value circle is between 18mm-28mm, and the common boundary of the external diameter of plug is between the 24mm-32mm by the external diameter optimum value between 22mm-50mm; (3) the rod footpath increase process of big plug, promptly increase the process of the cross-sectional area CSA of plug, this process comprises two steps, be the scrubbing process on mandrel outer surface and the increase process of CSA, the scrubbing process on mandrel outer surface: plug is placed the environment that silica glass is had corrosive nature, the mandrel outer surface is corroded, remove the impurity on ear of maize surface, in the corrosive process and after the corrosion process end, the surface to plug does not produce new pollution, after corrosion process finishes, adopt in type quartz socket tube or starting material to be processed, starting material to be processed can select silicon tetrachloride or silicon oxide powder, the outside surface of plug is molten contract on or directly deposition and the high-purity CSA of sintering last layer are the silica glass of 400-4500mm2; (4) drawing process of big plug with big solid mandrel, is placed on the special stretching device and stretches, and tensile stress is 2-12 newton.
In the scrubbing process on mandrel outer surface, solid mandrel is inserted in the high-purity quartz socket tube, in plug and telescopic gap, feed high-purity oxygen, helium and fluorine Lyons or sulfur hexafluoride gas, high temperature heat source or High-Power Microwave generating unit can axially moving back and forth along quartz socket tube and solid mandrel, under high temperature heat source or High-Power Microwave effect, outside surface and telescopic internal surface to solid mandrel carry out gaseous corrosion, to eliminate the impurity on surface.
In the scrubbing process on mandrel outer surface, solid mandrel is inserted in the hydrofluoric acid solution of high density, behind the surface corrosion 0.5-2mm, be placed on below the High jet burner, polish, to eliminate the impurity on surface.
In the silicon oxide glass layers that is increased on mandrel outer surface, hydroxyl by weight content less than 1ppm.
With the rod footpath of plug be the big external diameter plug 501 of 40-80mm, be placed on the special stretching device shown in Fig. 5 A or Fig. 5 B to stretch, and under the effect of high temperature heat source 504, the speed V of the drive unit 504 by controlling thermal source
1Speed V with the anchor clamps 505 of spillikin footpath plug 503
2Size, big plug is stretched to the little plug in needed rod footpath.
Shown in Fig. 5 A or Fig. 5 B, V wherein
1, V
2With rod footpath D
1, D
2Between the pass be: V
1/ V
2=(D
2/ D
1)
2, V wherein
1Be the speed of the drive unit of thermal source, V
2Be the speed of the anchor clamps of spillikin footpath plug, D
1Be big plug rod footpath, D
2Be little plug rod footpath.
Whole drawing process because the external diameter of plug all is more uniform in useful length, so do not need to monitor drawing process little plug rod directly.Only need control the velocity ratio V of whole process
1/ V
2With keep certain tensile stress.
Plug with present method manufacturing adds that the optical fiber properties parameter that sleeve pipe drew that matches is just the same with the optical fiber parameter of prior art manufacturing.With the silica fibre plug of present method preparation, neither influence the quality of fibre-optical mandrel, do not increase the input of equipment yet, can improve the plug throughput of unit equipment again, also reduce the production cost of fibre-optical mandrel simultaneously.
Description of drawings
The work synoptic diagram of method process deposits process in Fig. 1 pipe.
Fig. 2 becomes the synoptic diagram of the technological process of rod motion.
The diagrammatic cross-section of Fig. 2 a optical fiber or prefabricated rods.
The schematic perspective view of Fig. 2 b optical fiber or prefabricated rods.
Fig. 3 process flow sheet.Wherein E is the deposition process of big plug, and F is the one-tenth rod motion of big plug, and G is the rod footpath increase process of big plug, and H is the drawing process of big plug.
The rod footpath of the big plug of Fig. 3 a increases process flow sheet.L is the big plug in spillikin footpath, and M is the gaseous corrosion process, and N is that sleeve pipe melts compression process, and P is the surrounding layer deposition process, and Q is a sintering process, and R is the big plug after the rod footpath is strengthened.
The horizontal device work synoptic diagram of Fig. 4 a sleeve pipe process.
The vertical means work synoptic diagram of Fig. 4 b sleeve pipe process.
The process flow diagram of the horizontal stretch process of the big plug of Fig. 5 a.
The process flow diagram of the stretched vertically process of the big plug of Fig. 5 b.
Fig. 6 optical fiber attenuation spectrum.
Embodiment
Embodiment 1
According to the proportioning raw materials and the processing parameter of table 1 and table 2, make fibre-optical mandrel with the device of meaning illustrated in figures 1 and 2.Reactor feed gas or vapour in the raw material cabinet, merge together, the inlet end 105 of the machine tool by deposition reaction enters in the reaction bushing pipe 102, at reaction zone, deposition reaction takes place under the effect of High-Power Microwave or high temperature heat source 101, reaction raw materials just forms very thin one deck on the internal surface of reaction bushing pipe be the reaction product of main component with silicon-dioxide, drive unit 104 can be on deposition bed body 103 back and forth motion, be the just thickening gradually on the internal surface of reaction bushing pipe of reaction product of main component like this with the silicon oxide, when reaching desired thickness, the reactive deposition process just finishes.
Table 1, the unstripped gas in the reaction process or the proportioning of vapour
| Step | ????1 | ????2 | ????3 |
| Reaction oxygen (%) | ????68 | ????67 | ????64.5 |
| The steam of silicon tetrachloride (%) | ????32 | ????26 | ????23 |
| The steam of germanium tetrachloride (%) | ????0 | ????≤1 | ????1.5 |
| Fluorine Lyons (%) | ????0 | ????≤1 | ????1 |
| Chlorine (%) | ????0 | ????5 | ????10 |
| The pressure of reaction zone (mBar) | ????15 | ????15 | ????15 |
After deposition reaction finishes, on the molten bed that contracts, this deposited tube is carried out to rod motion; With the deposited tube 201 after the deposition process end, place on the molten machine tool 203 that contracts, the gas mixing ratio that provides according to table 2, in pipe, feed high-purity oxygen, chlorine and/or fluorine Lyons, high temperature heat source 204 is along melting the axial of the bed 203 that contracts, direction shown in 205 moves back and forth, little by little with the molten solid bar 202 that shortens into of deposited tube.After becoming rod motion to finish, a value of this plug is 11.2mm, and the b value is 22.4mm, and external diameter is 28mm, and useful length reaches 1m.
Table 2, the unstripped gas in the one-tenth rod motion or the proportioning of vapour
| Step | ????1 | ????2 | ????3 |
| High purity oxygen gas (%) | ????80 | ????60 | ????0 |
| Fluorine Lyons (%) | ????0 | ????40 | ????0 |
| Chlorine (%) | ????20 | ????20 | ????0 |
| The temperature of heating zone (K) | ????2200 | ????2200 | ????2200 |
| The pressure of heating zone (mBar) | ????1100 | ????1050 | ????600 |
| The translational speed of thermal source (mm/min) | ????100 | ????50 | ????20 |
It is 1000mm that the prefabricated rods 401 that this is solid is inserted in a high-purity CSA
2Quartz socket tube in 403, plug and telescopic gap 402 in,, under the effect of high temperature heat source or High-Power Microwave, the outside surface and the telescopic internal surface of plug carried out gaseous corrosion, to eliminate surperficial impurity according to the proportioning of table 3 feeding etchant gas.After corrosion process is finished, under the effect of thermal source, melt and contract finishing the plug of gaseous corrosion and sleeve pipe, make them become one.The rod footpath of plug can reach 44mm like this, and useful length reaches 1m.
Table 3, the unstripped gas in the sleeve pipe process or the proportioning of vapour
| Step | ????1 | ????2 | ????3 |
| High purity oxygen gas (%) | ????20 | ????100 | ????0 |
| Fluorine Lyons (%) | ????50 | ????0 | ????0 |
| Helium (%) | ????30 | ????0 | ????0 |
| The temperature of reaction zone (K) | ????2000 | ????2000 | ????2200 |
| The pressure of reaction zone (mBar) | ????1050 | ????1050 | ????600 |
| The translational speed of microwave or thermal source (mm/min) | ????60 | ????50 | ????20 |
This plug is placed on the special stretching device shown in Fig. 5 A or Fig. 5 B stretches.Under the effect of high-temperature heater 504, when furnace temperature reaches 2100K, the speed V of the drive unit 504 of control thermal source
1Speed V for the anchor clamps 505 of 200mm/min. and spillikin footpath plug 503
2Be the 800mm/min size, tensile stress is 5 newton, and it is long big plug can be drawn into 4m, and the rod footpath is the little plug of 22mm.The core diameter a of this plug is 5.56mm, and inner cladding b is 11.2mm.Adding top external diameter with these plugs is that the CSA of 80mm is 4700mm
2The high purity quartz sleeve pipe, carry out wire drawing then.The optical fiber total length that draws reaches 1610km.Fig. 6 has provided the average attenuation spectrum of this optical fiber.
Embodiment 2
With the PCVD plug that condition identical among the embodiment 1 is made, be placed on weight ratio and be in 40% the hydrofluoric acid solution, 1.5mm is fallen in the surface corrosion of ear of maize after, put with on the OVD depositing device, with the oxyhydrogen flame blowtorch its surface is polished; Press proportioning raw materials shown in the table 4 and processing condition, on the OVD depositing device, on this PCVD mandrel surface, deposit the silicon oxide dust that weight is 2.4Kg.After deposition is finished this dust rod is placed in the sintering oven in 1700K 97%He and 3%Cl
2Carry out sintering in the atmosphere.After sintering was finished, the external diameter of rod reached 49mm, and useful length reaches 800mm.
This plug is placed on the special stretching device shown in Fig. 5 A or Fig. 5 B stretches.Under the effect of high-temperature heater 504, when furnace temperature reaches 2100K, the speed V of the drive unit 504 of control thermal source
1Speed V for the anchor clamps 505 of 200mm/min. and spillikin footpath plug 503
2Be the 800mm/min size, tensile stress is 5 newton, and it is long big plug can be drawn into 4m, and the rod footpath is the little plug of 22mm.The core diameter a of this plug is about 5.56mm, and inner cladding b is about 11.2mm.Adding top external diameter with these plugs is that the CSA of 80mm is 4700mm
2The high purity quartz sleeve pipe, carry out wire drawing then.The optical fiber total length that draws reaches 1600km.Fig. 6 has provided the average attenuation spectrum of this optical fiber.
Table 4, the unstripped gas in the sleeve pipe process or the proportioning of vapour
| Step | ????1 | ????2 | ????3 |
| High purity oxygen gas (%) | ????40 | ????42 | ????44 |
| Hydrogen (%) | ????40 | ????42 | ????44 |
| The steam of silicon tetrachloride (%) | ????20 | ????16 | ????12 |
| The translational speed of blowtorch (mm/min) | ????2000 | ????1000 | ????1000 |
The comparative example
The PCVD plug made from condition identical among the embodiment 1 is placed on this plug on the special stretching device shown in Fig. 5 A or Fig. 5 B and stretches.Under the effect of high-temperature heater 504, when furnace temperature reaches 2100K, the speed V of the drive unit 504 of control thermal source
1Speed V for the anchor clamps 505 of 200mm/min. and spillikin footpath plug 503
2Be the 800mm/min size, tensile stress is 5 newton, and it is long big plug can be drawn into 4m, and the rod footpath is the little plug of 14mm.The core diameter a month of this plug is about 5.56mm, and inner cladding b is about 11.2mm.Adding top external diameter with these plugs is that the CSA of 80mm is about 4700mm
2The high purity quartz sleeve pipe, carry out wire drawing then.The optical fiber total length that draws can reach about 1600km.Fig. 6 has provided the average attenuation spectrum of this optical fiber.
As can be seen from Figure 6, directly the decay of the optical fiber of increase is not big for the rod of plug.