High Tech Ceramics News articles from October 2003

High Tech Ceramics News archives from October 2003

INDUSTRY ANALYSIS: Bright Future for Specialty Glasses.
October 1, 2003... Advanced and specialty glasses are being used for high technology and specialty applications. Compared to traditional glasses, many advanced and specialty glasses may contain specific additions or may be of entirely different compositions....

PROCESSING AND TECHNOLOGIES Penn State Develops New Silica Structure.
October 1, 2003... A tailored, cage-like silica structure developed by Penn State researchers is easier and less expensive to make than previous materials. "Previous attempts at synthesizing materials like PSU-1 involved specially designed templates, making the...

METROLOGY AND ANALYSIS: Tool Measures Pressure Variations.
October 1, 2003... Sensor Products Inc. has introduced Pressurex Pressure PointsR, tactile force indicating films. Pressure Points represent a new cost effectiveand convenient method of utilizing Pressurex sensor film. Pressurex is a useful metrology tool in...

POWDERS AND NANO CERAMICS: Commercial Quantities of Nano Copper Oxide.
October 1, 2003... Nanophase Technologies Corp. announced commercial availability of copper oxide nanomaterials. The new copper oxide is produced using NanoArc Synthesis technology, the company's most advanced nanomaterials manufacturing process, and is...

COATINGS: Reducing Downtime in Power Plants.
October 1, 2003... Better ceramic coatings can potentially reduce costly down time for coal-fired power plants, increase the efficiency of the process and decrease emissions. Developing those coatings is the goal of a Department of Energy-funded project headed by...

NEI Commercializes Multimodal WC/Co.
October 1, 2003... NEI Corp.'s multimodal tungsten carbide cobalt thermal spray powder is now in commercial use in an application that requires protection against excessive erosive and abrasive wear. The unique structure of NEI's thermal spray powder, available...

Sciperio Introduces Nanocomposite Coatings.
October 1, 2003... Sciperio has recently announced the availability of a new, high performance ceramic nanocomposite wear coating for tribological applications. This new coating is based on a composite between titanium nitride (TiN) and molybdenum disulfide...

FIBERS AND COMPOSITES: Silica Matrix Composite Sheets.
October 1, 2003... Zircar Refractory Composites has introduced Refractory Sheet Type RSLE-57, a low expansion, high strength reinforced silica matrix composite product. Designed for use as a high strength insulator in induction hot press applications, Zircar says...

DIAMOND PRODUCTS: Copper Composites for Cooler Chips.
October 1, 2003... Researchers at Advanced Diamond Solutions have successfully created a low-cost diamond-copper composite material called Heathru, with immediate thermal management applications for semiconductor devices with high power densities. With thermal...

ADVANCED GLASSES: Replacing Expensive Crystals in Lasers.
October 1, 2003... Researchers have developed a new family of glasses that will bring higher power to smaller packages in lasers and optical devices and provide a less-expensive alternative to many other optical glasses and crystals, like sapphire. Called...

Corning Upgrades Optical Fiber.
October 1, 2003... Corning Inc. recently announced the global conversion of its standard single-mode fiber product portfolio to Corning(R) SMF- 28e(R) optical fiber, the industry's most widely demanded low water peak optical fiber. The company also announced...

CATALYSTS AND CATALYST SUPPORTS: Intumescent Catalytic Support Mat.
October 1, 2003... Unifrax Corp., a global leader in the development and manufacture of high temperature ceramic fiber and soluble fiber products, has introduced IsoMatAV intumescent catalytic converter support mat. IsoMat AV support mat, developed to meet...

BIOCERAMICS: Nano ZrO2 Available for Dental Applications.
October 1, 2003... Altair Nanotechnologies Inc. announced the commercial availability of nano-sized zirconium oxide for dental applications including fillings and prosthetic devices. Altair's president, Rudi E. Moerck, said, ``Nano-sized zirconium oxide is...

FUEL CELLS: H.C. Starck, Webast Develop SOFC Stacks.
October 1, 2003... H.C. Starck GmbH and Webasto Thermosysteme GmbH have signed an agreement to jointly develop solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stacks, focusing on the development of high-temperature SOFCs for automotive applications. The partners plan to establish a...

ELECTRONIC CERAMICS: Kemet, Lamina Form Partnership.
October 1, 2003... Kemet Corp, announced that it has purchased an equity position in Lamina Ceramics, Inc., and has entered into a business agreement with Lamina Ceramics to develop and commercialize high- performance, low- temperature co-fired ceramic-on-metal...

Lead-Free 'Green' Packaging.
October 1, 2003... U.S. semiconductor maker Ramtron International Corp. announced that all 8-pin SOIC FRAM (ferroelectric random access memory) products are now available in environmentally friendly "green" packaging. Responding to the industry's drive toward...

Vishay Releases Product Adds.
October 1, 2003... Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. released new Schottky rectifiers, a new white LED, and new multilayer varistors. The new Vishay Semiconductors MBR series of 150-V high-barrier-height Schottky rectifiers provide industry-leading specifications for...

Dow Corning Forms New Business.
October 1, 2003... Dow Corning Corp. announced the formation of a new business serving the wide-band gap semiconductor industry. The business is founded on an expertise developed from years of in-house and academic research investments. The new business will...

NTT Development in KTN crystals.
October 1, 2003... Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (NTT) announced that it has successfully prepared a KTN crystal (KTa1-xNbxO3) that the company claims to have among the highest electro-optic effect reported. In addition, NTT has developed film growth...

SUPERCONDUCTORS: Carolina West Deploys SuperLink.
October 1, 2003... Superconductor Technologies Inc. announced a scheduled deployment of its overlay solution by a return customer, Carolina West Wireless in western North Carolina. Carolina West will begin installing SuperLink(TM) Rx cryogenic receiver front-ends...

Exploring the Mysteries of Matter.
October 1, 2003... American Superconductor Corp. has been selected by CERN, the world's largest particle physics research organization, to provide 14,000 meters of high temperature superconductor (HTS) wire for current lead devices that will be used in CERN's...

SSCI Wins DOE Contract.
October 1, 2003... Superconductive Components, Inc. (SCCI), has been awarded a contract for approximately $518,000 from the U.S. Department of Energy for a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research ("SBIR") program. This is in addition to an interim Phase II...

IMGC Wins Funding to Protect Utility Grids.
October 1, 2003... Intermagnetics General Corp. announced that the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will contribute half of a projected $12 million cost to develop a new high-temperature superconducting (HTS) fault current limiter that would protect utility grids...

INDUSTRY NEWS: Nanomix, DuPont In Licensing Pact.
October 1, 2003... DuPont Electronic Technologies, a supplier of materials for PDP TV receivers, has been granted an exclusive license from nanotechnology company, Nanomix Inc., to make and sell field- emitting thick-film materials containing carbon nanotubes for...

Ceradyne Gets Army Contract.
October 1, 2003... Ceradyne Inc. received a four-year indefinite-quantity contract from the Defense Department to supply small arms protective inserts for the U.S. Army. The contract involves a base award for 2004 of about $29 million, whih options for the...

Unifrax Acquision Is Completed.
October 1, 2003... American Securities Capital Partners, L.P. completed its acquisition of Unifrax Holding Co., a leading global manufacturer of ceramic fiber insulation products used in many high-temperature industrial applications. Terms of the transaction were...

Nanophase Chicago's Fastest Growing Firms.
October 1, 2003... Nanophase Technologies Corp. has been named to Deloitte & Touche's prestigious Technology Fast 50 Program for Chicagoland, a ranking of the 50 fastest growing technology companies in the area by Deloitte and Touche LLP. Rankings are based on...

Japan's AIST, NIMS Launch Materials Firm.
October 1, 2003... National Institute of Materials Science (NIMS) and National Institute of Advance Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) have jointly established a new company that will supply advanced materials technology to manufacturers. The company is...

EDO Awarded $7.7 Million Contract.
October 1, 2003... EDO Corp.'s Electro-Ceramic Products is being awarded a $7.7 million contract for production of wide band multi-mode and radius of curvature sensors with spares for specific use on submarines. The company will design, fabricate, assemble, test,...

EPSI Receives Excellence Award.
October 1, 2003... Engineered Pressure Systems, Inc. received an Engineering Excellence Award from NDK Crystal, Inc., a manufacturer of quartz crystal electronic components, in appreciation for the design and installation of eight hydrothermal crystal growing...

Some Indications of The Last Quarter.
October 1, 2003... Quarerly reports are coming in. Here are a few early indications: * Ceradyne Inc., a maker of ceramic military body armor and other products said that its third-quarter sales and earnings exceeded Wall Street expectations. Sales for the...

CALENDAR.
October 1, 2003... October 26 - 29, 2003. Nano Particle 2003, Hyatt Regency Hotel, Cambridge, MA. Contact: Business Communicaitons Co., 25 Van Zant St., Norwalk, CT 06855, Tel: 203-853-4266, extn. 304, Fax: 203/853-0348, E-mail: conference@bccresearch.com ...