Processing
Physicists develop scalable method for making graphene
February 25, 2011 6:08 am | News | CommentsA University of Pennsylvania research team was recently able to create high-quality graphene that is just a single atom thick over 95% of its area, using readily available materials and manufacturing processes that can be scaled up to industrial levels. The researchers demonstrate that single-layer-thick graphene can be reliably produced with CVD techniques at normal pressures if the metal sheets are smooth enough.
New Guill NanoFlow die creates a thousand-plus layers
February 17, 2011 7:19 am | Product Releases | CommentsPrior to the NanoFlow’s development, extrusion die technology was limited to about a dozen layers from a single extruder. Guill says that the NanoFlow creates layer thicknesses in the micrometer to nanometer range, greatly advancing tubular product manufacturing.
China announces shakeup of rare earths industry
February 16, 2011 4:53 am | by Joe McDonald, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsRare earths are a group of 17 minerals that are used in products such as flatscreen TVs and lightweight batteries for mobile phones and hybrid cars. China accounts for almost all production of rare earths, and now plans to tighten control over producers and restrict output in a five-year development strategy.
Right wavelength gives researchers ability to laser weld plastic
February 1, 2011 9:31 am | News | CommentsUntil now, fusing two transparent plastic components together by laser welding has been impossible. Researchers in Germany have cleared this hurdle by choosing the right wavelength: 1700 nm. The process is still limited, but the benefits to lab-on-a-chip technology should be substantial.
Conductive layer breakthrough opens the way to multifunctional transistors
January 17, 2011 12:09 pm | News | CommentsResearchers in France have succeeded in creating a conductive layer on the surface of strontium titanate, a substance that has been heavily researched because of its good conductivity behavior when doped. Until now, however, interfaces between this and other oxides have been difficult to produce.
Polymer shows amazing self-healing properties
January 13, 2011 4:45 am | News | CommentsKrzysztof Matyjaszewski and colleagues at Carnegie Mellon Univ. and Kyushu Univ. in Japan have built a polymer that repairs itself again and again when irradiated with UV light. It’s the first-ever material to feature capped covalent bonds that repeatedly reattach, allowing even fully separated pieces to be fused back together.
Argonne, LG cathode technology will help power the Chevrolet Volt
January 6, 2011 2:05 pm | by Angela Hardin | News | CommentsThe lithium-ion battery cell technology that is powering GM’s Chevrolet Volt, the first mass-produced plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, has reached a licensing agreement between LG Chem and the DOE lab that patented the cathode material. LG Chem contributes SRS separator safety technology with the Argonne-developed cells.
Team develops functionally graded shape memory polymers
January 6, 2011 5:18 am | by Ariel DuChene | News | CommentsA research team at Syracuse Univ. has applied the concept of functionally graded materials to shape memory polymers. The polymers have previously been limited to two-way and three-way shape configurations. In the new process, sections of one shape memory polymer independently react to different temperature stimuli.
World’s first commercial graphene application
January 4, 2011 4:47 am | News | CommentsAn unnamed manufacturer that produces actuator and sensing components for the touch screen market is reportedly the world’s first user of graphene in a commercial product. Angstron Materials, a maker of nano graphene platelets that is supplying the raw material for the new product, made the announcement.
Impregnating plastics with carbon dioxide
January 3, 2011 6:44 am | News | CommentsA new carbon dioxide impregnation process has been pioneered in Germany that is able to carry nanoparticles, like pigments, inside plastics under high pressure. The CO2 dissolves quickly, but the pigment remains. Tests conducted with silica and pharmaceutical agents were also successful, suggesting new cutomization and drug delivery applications.
Secondary gas dilution module blends low concentration mixtures
July 15, 2010 4:30 am | Product Releases | CommentsKIN-TEK’s new FlexStream SD is a gas dilution module designed to work with the FlexStream System. In the SD module, a variable portion of primary gas mixture from one or more FlexStream permeation modules is split off and re-diluted with matrix gas to create lower concentration mixtures.
Factory liquid cooling alternative conserves water
July 15, 2010 4:24 am | Product Releases | CommentsSonic Air Systems, Inc. has announced the availability of the Sonic COOL-AIR In-line Air Cooler, which delivers precisely controlled air temperatures from Sonic’s line of pressure blowers and high velocity air knife systems.
Trace gas analysis aids both semiconductor and biofuel industries
July 12, 2010 7:19 am | Application NotesGuaranteeing the purity of bulk during continuous or specialty operation is difficult and requires accurate and fast detection of impurities and trace gases that may result from component failure or outgassing. Gas analyzers from AMETEK are designed to cover this need in several industries.
The hidden inflexibility of plastic
July 7, 2010 8:58 am | by Paul Livingstone | Blogs | CommentsEvery week, the small plastic bag filled with our collected plastic and metal tidbits—a partial fossil record of the consuming habits two American adults—hits the curb beside the cardboard. It's recycling day. But much of the plastic will never see the light of day again.
Nanomaterial growth platform targets commercial users
July 6, 2010 6:27 am | Product Releases | CommentsThe NanoGrowth-Catalyst benchtop platform from Surrey NanoSystems incorporates nine of the top processes currently used in nanomaterials development. According to the vendor, it is the first platform to maintain vacuum from catalyst delivery to material growth.
Applied Analytics tackles ethylene dichloride
March 25, 2010 9:46 am | Application NotesApplied Analytics recently delivered units to measure chlorine and FeCl 3 in ethylene dichloride (EDC) to the largest manufacturer of PVC in the world. EDC is the first intermediate in the manufacturing of the PVC, but it’s undesirable in the finished product. Read the attached applications note for an explanation of Applied Analytics technology solution.
Beyond Plug-and-Play
January 7, 2010 2:46 am | by Bill Kennedy | Application NotesComputer-based machining systems make basic metalcutting a largely plug-and-play process. In most cases, a 3-D CAD file run through a CAM package and posted to a CNC machine tool will produce a part that resembles the original model.
Non-contact photoelectric level sensors
June 29, 2009 5:25 am | Product Releases | CommentsBaumer has introduced the FFDK 16 Photoelectric Level Sensors, compact sensors designed to be mounted onto transparent or half-transparent standpipes from 3-13 mm in diameter.
Strata Melamine SPE Cartridges Cut Sample Preparation Time in Half
June 9, 2009 9:32 am | Product Releases | CommentsPhenomenex Inc. introduced Strata Melamine, a solid phase extraction (SPE) sorbent specially designed for food testing.
