Reliability test methods for media-compatible pressure sensors

Two applications of media exposure testing of pressure sensors with barrier coatings are presented. Experimentation was performed on an apparatus that was developed specifically for the exposure of these devices with in situ output voltage measurement in organic or aqueous environments. The first example illustrates the swelling of fluorosilicone gels in fuels and establishes a solubility parameter for one fluorosilicone gel between 6-8 (cal/cm/sup 3/)/sup 1/2/. While exposure to organic solutions has not been observed to cause catastrophic failure of fluorosilicone-gel-filled devices, corrosion is accelerated in subsequent aqueous solution exposure. An additional experiment was used to simulate automotive exhaust gases and water by exposing devices to a fuel mixture followed by an acidic solution. The second experiment was performed to study corrosion under parylene coatings during exposure to an alkaline test solution for white-goods applications. Acceleration factor expressions have been estimated considering parylene coating thickness, solution pH, and applied device supply voltage as acceleration means. These expressions have been used to evaluate parylene-coated pressure sensors against a benchmark lifetime requirement. For a 1% failure rate, parylene-coated pressure sensors survived approximately 500 h, whereas an alternative, fluorosilicone gel over parylene C coating survived over 2000 h. Furthermore, these media exposure experiments provided insight into the failure mechanisms and defined acceleration factors.