High Tech Ceramics News articles from June 2002

High Tech Ceramics News archives from June 2002

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS: Manufacturers Report Abrasives Production.
June 1, 2002... The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collects quarterly data on the production of manufactured abrasives and is published through its Mineral Industry Surveys. The latest survey shows the production for the first quarter of 2002. Ceramic abrasives...

Fused Aluminum Oxide.
June 1, 2002... During the first quarter, one fused aluminum oxide production plant was on strike the entire quarter. This left only one company with one plant operating in Canada producing fused aluminum oxide. The total production during the first quarter of...

Silicon Carbide.
June 1, 2002... Abrasive-grade silicon carbide is produced by one company in the U.S. The total production during the first quarter of 2002 was 10,000 tons of abrasive-grade silicon carbide with an estimated value of $5.7 million. This total production figure...

PROCESSING AND TECHNOLOGIES EPSI Offers CIP Production Units.
June 1, 2002... Engineered Pressure Systems, Inc. (EPSI), a supplier of custom- engineered high-pressure solutions, has introduced its Cold Isostatic Press Production Unit (CIP). Designed for high productivity and low maintenance, EPSI's CIP is ideal for the...

Zircar Introduces Refractory Sheet.
June 1, 2002... Zircar Refractory Composites, Inc. (Florida, NY), has introduced a Refractory Sheet Board ZIRCAL-18. The material is a high- temperature calcium silicate block insulation with excellent mechanical properties and stability up to 1100C (2000F)....

New Precision Lapping Machine.
June 1, 2002... Logitech has introduced a new precision lapping system, which provides higher processing yields and faster throughput. The system is known as NGS (Next Generation System) precision lapping machines. NGS is an essential addition to the...

METROLOGY AND ANALYSIS ASTM Announces Test Revisions.
June 1, 2002... ASTM has announced revisions to ceramic test methods. ASTM committee C28 on advanced ceramics has approved 26 revisions to ASTM C 1161, Standard Test Method of Advanced Ceramics. Currently available, the revision will assist those who prepare...

First Stage of Neutron Source Completed.
June 1, 2002... Given that all journeys begin with the first step, a big first step has been taken on the road to opening the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS)-what will be the world's premier facility for neutron scattering science. Researchers at the Lawrence...

POWDERS AND NANO CERAMICS Sasol Develops Nano Boehmite Alumina.
June 1, 2002... Sasol has developed a new nanosized boehmite alumina with a size range of 40 mm to 200 nm. The morphology of these nanoparticles is either platelets or needles with moderate aspect ratios between 5 and 10. While producing these particles is...

Patent Awarded for TiO2 Pigment Process.
June 1, 2002... Altair International, Inc., d/b/a/ Altair Nanotechnologies (Nasdaq: ALTI) has received its first patent "Processing Titaniferous Ore to Titanium Dioxide Pigment'' by the U.S. Patent Office. Patent number 6,375,923, issued on April 23, 2002, was...

Process Produces Metal-oxides.
June 1, 2002... Nisshin Engineering Co. (Tokyo; Japan) has developed a process for making nanometer-size, metal-oxide-composite particles by radio- frequency (RF) induction plasma. Initially, the method has been used to produce nickel particles with a median...

AP Materials Wins SBIR Contract.
June 1, 2002... AP Materials, Inc., St. Louis, has been awarded three Phase I Small Business Innovation Research contracts from the U.S. Missile Defense Agency. The contracts were for the development of nanoscale tantalum powders for use in advanced electronic...

COATINGS: Predicting Stresses in Barrier Coatings.
June 1, 2002... A methodology for predicting stresses and the resultant cracking in plasma-sprayed thermal-barrier coatings (TBCs) has been developed by researchers at the John H. Glenn Research Center, Cleveland, Ohio. The methodology is built around a...

FIBERS AND COMPOSITES: SIBORAMIC Fibers for Composites.
June 1, 2002... Next-generation combustion systems in power generation, aeronautics, and automotive applications are putting heavy demands on materials and components as the need for greater fuel efficiency and reduced emissions pushes combustion temperatures...

Robotic System Makes Composite.
June 1, 2002... A team of researchers is developing a robotic system to reduce the production cost of a lightweight, heat-resistant composite material, offering promise for future widespread applications. The "carbon-carbon composites" are currently too...

Zircar Introduces Laminates.
June 1, 2002... ZIRCAR Refractory Composites has introduced Zircar Refractory Sheet Type RS-201 and RS-202, These are fiber reinforced ceramic laminate with useful properties to 2,300F (1,260C). These high- temperature products offer high strength, moderate...

Thermal Ceramics Insulating Blanket.
June 1, 2002... Thermal Ceramics has recently announced the development of a new product for applications requiring excellent sound absorption capabilities. Cerablanket(R) AC2 ceramic fiber blanket combines the advantages of high-temperature capability and...

FUEL CELLS: NexTech Develops SOFC Processes.
June 1, 2002... At the 104th Annual ACerS meeting in April, NexTech Materials presented the results of an ongoing project on Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC). NexTech has developed processing routes for both anode and cathode supported planar SOFCs. A major...

Solid Electrolyte Films for Thin Li-Ion Cells.
June 1, 2002... NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Pasadena, CA) researchers have been investigating thin films of Li2CO3 for use as passivating layers between electrodes and solid electrolytes in advanced thin- film lithium-ion electrochemical cells. By...

CARBON NANTUBES: Nanotube Plant Planned for Japan.
June 1, 2002... In yet another development involving carbon nanotechnology, Mitsui & Co. (Tokyo, Japan) will build what it claims will be the world's largest plant for the production of carbon nanotubes. According to Mitsui, the tubes will be priced at "a...

DIAMOND PRODUCTS MAC Intros DLC Coating.
June 1, 2002... Morgan Advanced Ceramics (MAC) has introduced its Diamonex(R) diamond-like coating (DLC). Diamonex DLC, which is available in either electrically insulating or charge dissipating forms. It is a high-performance surface coating that provides...

Fluorinated Diamond-like Carbon Coatings.
June 1, 2002... SI Diamond Technology researchers, Mark S. Hammond and A. Wesley Moorehead, under a project from Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (Houston, TX), have been conducting some experiments directed toward the development of improved hard, lubricious...

Turner Tools Offers Grinding Wheels.
June 1, 2002... A new line of superior performance diamond grinding wheels is available from Turner Tooling Co., Inc. A new bond development greatly reduces grinding forces and increases stock removal rates. The new bond also offers very free cutting,...

ELECTRONIC CERAMICS: Capacitors with BaTiO Dielectric.
June 1, 2002... Capacitors in which the main dielectric layers are made from sintered nanocrystalline BaTiO3 have been fabricated and tested in an initially successful and continuing effort to increase energy densities, breakdown potentials, and insulation...

Ramtron Exhibits 72 Mb Esram Products.
June 1, 2002... Ramtron International Corporation (Nasdaq: RMTR) subsidiary Enhanced Memory Systems, Inc. (Enhanced), has exhibited its new 72Mb No Bus Latency (NoBL) and Double Data Rate (DDR) ESRAM products at the Embedded Processor Forum held last month in...

SUPERCONDUCTORS AMSC Begins Test Run.
June 1, 2002... American Superconductor Corp. announced that it has released the first high-temperature superconductor (HTS) wires for initial production at its new manufacturing facility in Devens, Massachusetts. The HTS wires will be fully processed under...

Secretary Abraham Releases NTGS Report.
June 1, 2002... Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham announced the release of the National Transmission Grid Study on 8 May. Including 51 specific recommendations on improving reliability and reducing electricity costs to consumers, the study was conducted in...

INDUSTRY NEWS: Superior MicroPowders Signs MOU.
June 1, 2002... Superior MicroPowders, LLC (SMP), has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Meadow River Enterprises, Inc. (MRE), related to ElectroCeramescent, ultra-low-power, solid-state lighting and signage. The MOU documents the companies'...

Conductus Gains In First Quarter.
June 1, 2002... Conductus, Inc. (Nasdaq: CDTS), has reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2002. Revenues for the first quarter of 2002 were $1,967,000, which represents an increase of 55% from $1,272,000 reported in the comparable...

ISCO Reports Revenue Gain.
June 1, 2002... ISCO International, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: ISCO), a leading global supplier of interference-control solutions for the wireless telecommunications industry, has reported record financial results for the first quarter 2002. ISCO reported...

NSF to Support Euro Collaboration.
June 1, 2002... NSF will accept proposals from U.S. institutions to support innovative collaborative research with scientists from European countries. Projects to be supported by NSF through this competition must have clear relevance to materials phenomena,...

MEETINGS: Ceramics & Electronics for the New Horizon.
June 1, 2002... The American Ceramic Society has announced its 27th Annual Cocoa Beach Conference and Exposition, an International Conference on Advanced Ceramics and Composites. It will be held, January 26-31, 2003, at the DoubleTree & Hilton Oceanfront...

CALENDAR.
June 1, 2002... July 1-5, 2002, Fuel Cell 2002 Featuring The Fuel Cell World and Fifth European SOFC Forum, Lucerne, Switzerland. Contact: European Fuel Cell Forum, Morgenacherstrasse 2F, CH - 5452 Oberrohrdorf, Schweiz, Switzerland; Tel: +41-56-496-7292, Fax:...