MD_Materials Monthly_: Metering molecules one at a time

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The latest information on engineering materials

November 3, 2009

One molecule at a time?

NIST Engineers Use Microfluidics to Build a Dropper That Meters Out One Molecule at a Time
In-mold Printing Technology
Pressure-Sensitive Adhesives Make Strong Joints at Low Cost
High-temperature polyimides
Bioplastic specialty compounds
Machinable wear-resistant nylon tubes
Advanced elastomeric won’t erode in solar cell etch chambers
Frontier Research Center will pursue materials science for energy efficiency

Articles

NIST Engineers Use Microfluidics to Build a Dropper That Meters Out One Molecule at a Time

Engineers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology have developed a microfluidic “droplet-on-demand” device that spits out droplets about 1 micrometer in diameter (or about half a billionth of a billionth of a liter) that contain a single molecule of a compound of interest. Their goal is to give material scientists and chemical engineers a way to observe chemical reactions between single molecules. Read the rest of the story

FREE FRICTION CD FROM GENERAL MAGNAPLATE

Increase the life of metal components with a FREE CD-ROM from General Magnaplate. The easy-to-use CD assists design engineers in selecting permanent coatings that prevent wear, friction, corrosion, sticking, galling, and chemical attack on ferrous and nonferrous metals. The CD resource compares the static and kinetic coefficient of friction (COF) of numerous metals with 20 Magnaplate-applied 'synergistic' coatings.
General Magnaplate's surface enhancements become an integral part of the metal providing permanent, superior performance.

www.magnaplate.com

In-mold Printing Technology

Tom Furey from Industramark explains the advantages of using in-mold printing of plastic parts. Watch a 7-min video

Pressure-Sensitive Adhesives Make Strong Joints at Low Cost

Pressure-sensitive adhesives minimize vibration, noise, and corrosion, making them a viable and cost-effective alternative to mechanical fasteners. Manufacturers are always looking for faster and better ways to fabricate machines and subcomponents while reducing weight, noise, vibration, and costs. Pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSAs) can help do all of the above. Read the rest of the story

New Products

High-temperature polyimides

Tecasint 1000, a sintering material introduced 20 years ago under the name Sintimid, is a high-temperature polyimide. The line is expanding to include the Tecasint 2000, 5000, and 8000 Series. The Tecasint 2000 Series are rigid and hard materials that exhibit a high Young’s modulus, improved thermal stability and sliding friction characteristics, and reduced moisture absorption. Tecasint 2000 can be machined with precision due to its toughness. Read the rest...

Bioplastic specialty compounds

A comprehensive line of engineered bioplastic compounds use resins derived from renewable resources. The compounds, based on polyamide, polyester, and polylactic acid (PLA), are available in conductive, flame-retardant, structural, and wear-resistant grades. The compounds contain 20 to 80% biocontent by weight and are derived from sustainable resources. Bioplastic polyamide and polyester-based compounds can have glass-fiber reinforcement, antistatic protection, halogen-free flame retardance, and PTFE lubrication. PLA grades, combined with PC, PMMA, or ABS, increase mechanical performance and offer antistatic, flame-retardant, and structural properties. A 32% biocontent PLA/PC alloy with a notched Izod impact strength of 15 ft-lb/in., and a 40% biocontent PLA/PMMA alloy are optically clear. All grades are colorable. Read more...

Machinable wear-resistant nylon tubes

The wear-resistant nylon Nylatron NSM from Quadrantepp, Reading, Pa., comes in a broad range of tubular shapes that can be machined into bearings, bushings, and wear parts. It is said that Nylatron NSM has 5 times more wear life than other “premium” cast nylon materials. Read more...

News from MD

Check Out the New EET Website

Are you looking for more information on energy efficiency? EETweb.com features the latest efficiency updates, information on the basics of energy efficiency and products available for energy efficient designs. Click here to visit the site and learn more!

UPCOMING WEBCASTS

Concurrent Engineering:
How to Excel at Top Down Design
Sponsored by PTC
DATE: November 5th, 2009
TIME: 2:00pm ET/11am PT

How will you improve your organization’s product development process in 2010? With concurrent product development techniques, you can engage people from all areas of the design process earlier and more efficiently. Join us for this webcast and begin compressing and streamlining your entire product development process.

This live webinar will cover:

The overall concept of Concurrent Engineering
Best practices for top down design
Building the best framework for your assembly
Improving teamwork with better information
Decreasing your number of design iterations

Click here to learn more and to register!

Seven Critical Issues in Heater Selection for OEM Applications
Sponsored by Minco
DATE: November 19th, 2009
TIME: 2:00pm ET/11am PT

Product development is a complex process. In addition to cost and time-to-market, engineers have to address a variety of sometimes-conflicting issues that can include size, weight, speed, reliability, flexibility, ease of use, safety, manufacturability, support costs and more. One aspect of product design that may not show up on your list of top priorities is heating.

In fact, the heating technologies you choose, whether off-the-shelf or customized, can have a significant impact on many aspects of your product including performance, cost, and even time-to-market.

This 60-minute webcast will present seven factors that can help you make the most of your heating choices.

how heater choice can increase your design flexibility
how heating uniformity can improve the yield of your systems
how to speed warm-up and heat transfer for increased throughput
how to ensure accuracy and improve your product’s productivity
and much more

Click here to learn more and to register!

ARCHIVED WEBCASTS AVAILABLE FOR FREE VIEWING

Click Here for a list of archived Machine Design webcasts.

Industry Update

Advanced elastomeric won’t erode in solar cell etch chambers

Chemraz XPE is an advanced elastomeric material that provides protection against oxygen-infused plasma, which is key in many etch and deposition chamber environments. Such harsh environments often break-down non-resistant materials, causing harmful particulation and, ultimately, defective chips. Superior resistance to O2 and CF4 plasmas makes the material suitable for use in a wide range of high temperature applications, such as slit valve doors, reaction chamber lid seals, and gate valve seals. Read the rest of the story

Frontier Research Center will pursue materials science for energy efficiency

The U. S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) will be home to a new multi-million-dollar Energy Frontier Research Center (EFRC) established by the DOE Office of Science. NREL’s Center for Inverse Design will pursue advanced scientific research on material discovery for energy. It is one of 46 Centers to study various areas of scientific research that were selected for funding by DOE over a planned initial five year period. NREL will participate in six additional Centers led by other organizations. Read the rest of the story