Plastics Engineering articles from August 2005

Plastics Engineering archives from August 2005

Polymers in electronics: plastics applications expand, keeping pace with industry needs.
August 1, 2005... Engineering plastics, high-performance polymers, and nanomaterials are integral to today's electronic components and microelectronic devices. Innovative uses of conducting, semiconducting, and low dielectric-constant (low-k) polymers continue...

Polyurethane molding compound.(MATERIALS)(Arnco)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... ArnCo has introduced a urethane molding compound that it says meets the dimensional stability, weatherability, and aesthetic requirements of exterior decorative applications such as architectural elements, signage, planters, fountains, and...

Translucent, lightweight insulation.(MATERIALS)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Cabot Corp. (Boston) has developed a translucent insulation material that can keep heat in (or out) of a structure when used within glazing systems. Nanogel aerogels are composed of tiny particles containing networks of small pores that prevent...

Clear polyester masking film.(MATERIALS)(Solutia Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Solutia, Inc.'s CPFilms has introduced an optically clear protective masking film called MF5. As its surface has a very high coefficient of friction, MF5 demonstrates light tack, adhering to a variety of materials, including aluminum-metallized...

Performance-enhancing nanotechnology.(MATERIALS)(Foster Corp.)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... A patented nanotechnology from Foster Corp. increases mechanical and flame-retardant properties of polymer composites in the matrix. Now available under the company's NanoMed brand, it incorporates nanoclay fillers with a chemical ingredient,...

Acrylic sheet offers new color options.(MATERIALS)(Atoglas)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... A new Plexiglas EdgeFX acrylic sheet from Atoglas uses color and internal optical effects to create eye-catching retail displays. According to Atoglas, the product has edges that change color from separate yellow and blue layers to a cool green...

Film reduces friction, wear.(MATERIALS)(Dewal Industries Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... A new family of PTFE-based films is available from DeWAL Industries. Dynaglide 600 Series beating and seal compounds are designed to reduce friction and wear in dynamic use, dry or wet. Dynaglide is offered in ten distinct grades, depending...

Nanoscale fumed silica for high-purity glass.(MATERIALS)(Degussa AG)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Degussa AG has expanded its Aerosil portfolio with a high-purity nanoscale fumed silica for the manufacture of specialty glass. As its trace element content is extremely low, use of Aerosil EG50 yields silica glass that meets the purity...

Flame retardant does not degrade color.(MATERIALS)(Techmer PM L.L.C.)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Techmer PM has developed a flame retardant for polyester resin that does not affect color intensity. In addition to preserving color, Techsperse PBM 12635 FR is halogen-free. The colorless masterbatch is designed for processing temperatures up...

Advanced composites soar to new heights in Boeing 787.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Production is scheduled to begin next year on Boeing's 787 Dreamliner, the company's newest passenger aircraft. The 787 is a radical departure in commercial aircraft design in that 50% of it will be manufactured of advanced composites,...

Refurbish, upgrade, or buy? Decisions to refurbish or upgrade plastics machinery--or to invest in used or new equipment--are rarely clear-cut.
August 1, 2005... Processors have many options to consider for improving production efficiency or expanding capacity besides investing in the latest and greatest machinery. Often there's no substitute for the technology in new equipment. But a refurbished...

SPE voices: how to position yourself for the new world of opportunity.(Society of Petroleum Engineers)
August 1, 2005... This is a new series that will appear bimonthly. It includes three perspectives or "voices" of SPE talking on a similar topic. The next installment will appear in the October issue of Plastics Engineering. We hope you find these articles...

Polymers in electronics: plastics applications expand, keeping pace with industry needs.(Cover Story)
August 1, 2005... Engineering thermoplastics and other high-performance polymers play an increasingly vital role in the production of electronic components and microelectronic devices. New resins, additives, and fillers have been developed to meet thin-wall and...

Automatic waste removal increases workplace safety.(MACHINERY & PROCESSING)(Precision Airconvey Corp)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Precision AirConvey reports that serious workplace injuries, such as cuts and lacerations from razor knives, can be prevented by installation of the company's Model 30 Roll Splitter, which automatically removes defective and out-of-spec stretch...

Retrofittable screener.(MACHINERY & PROCESSING)(Witte Company Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... A screener from The Witte Co. features a modular design that permits the addition of the company's vibrating fluid-bed dryer, cooler, and deduster in order to expand system capabilities as production demands increase, even years after the...

Rotary thermoformers for higher volume.(MACHINERY & PROCESSING)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... The Brown Ovation Rotary Series of standard rotary cut-sheet thermoforming machines has been reengineered. Suited for volume productions higher than that of shuttle thermoformers, the series comprises three standard models: * Model R-46:48...

Measuring accuracy enhanced.(MACHINERY & PROCESSING)(Mahr Federal Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... The compact MarForm MMQ44-R Formtester from Mahr Federal is reported to offer significantly improved accuracy in roundness measurements (error specification has been reduced to 0.02 micron), improved straightness measurements (error reduced to...

Humidity sensors.(MACHINERY & PROCESSING)(Honeywell Sensing and Control)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Applications for the HIH-4000 Series of humidity sensors from Honeywell Sensing and Control include environmental test chambers, moisture leak detection instrumentation and test equipment, humidistats/HVAC, and industrial controls. Its chemical...

Extruder for wood/plastic composites.(MACHINERY & PROCESSING)(Cincinnati Milacron Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... The Cincinnati Milacron TC96 conical twin-screw extruder for the production of wood/plastic composites (WPC) is capable of outputs of up to 2600 lb/hr. According to the company, unique compression and low-shear mixing capabilities enable high...

Bag-maker gets upgrade.(MACHINERY & PROCESSING)(Battenfeld Gloucester Engineering Company Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Battenfeld Gloucester Engineering Co. has introduced an additional model to its series of 418 inline bag-making machines. The upgraded Model 4180 shuttle-motion, bottom-seal bag machine is designed to run LLDPE, LDPE, HDPE, and PP film and...

Large-part blow molding.(MACHINERY & PROCESSING)(Davis-Standard Corp)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Davis-Standard reports the expansion of its product line to include a larger press with capabilities in excess of 400 tons of clamping force for the blow molding of large, outdoor, industrial-use parts. The large press--6 x 9 ft (1.8 x 2.7...

2005 "Wonders of Plastics" International Essay Contest winner.
August 1, 2005... Nandini Sarma, who has just completed her freshman year at Shawnee Mission East High School in Prairie Village, Kansas, won the 2005 SPE "Wonders of Plastics" International Essay Contest. Her Chemistry I teacher, Steve Appier, encouraged her to...

Bayer reports start-ups in China.(INDUSTRY NEWS)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... In Caojing, China, Bayer (Leverkusen, Germany) has begun building a new compounding plant for polycarbonate and PC blends, with a planned annual capacity of 40,000 tons. Part of a PC-production facility still under construction, the plant is...

Norstar establishes Asian partnership.(INDUSTRY NEWS)(Norstar International LLC)(Alpha Industry)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Norstar International LLC has partnered with Alpha Industry of Pune, India, to provide cast-aluminum tooling for Asia's growing rotational molding industry. The companies' combined manufacturing experience coupled with Alpha Industries' local...

Independent testing confirms coatings company's results.(INDUSTRY NEWS)(Industrial Nanotech Inc)(Princeton Polymer Laboratories )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Industrial Nanotech, Inc., reports that Princeton Polymer Laboratories has independently confirmed in-house testing demonstrating that the company's Nansulate High Heat industrial coatings provide insulation protection from extreme temperatures...

Army asks NanoDynamics to develop fuel cells.(INDUSTRY NEWS)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Based in Buffalo, N.Y., NanoDynamics announces that in May it was awarded a one-year contract from the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command (CECOM) to develop and demonstrate an integrated solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack and JP-8...

PolyOne opens plant in China.(INDUSTRY NEWS)
August 1, 2005... PolyOne Corp., headquartered in northeastern Ohio, has announced the opening of its new manufacturing facility in Shenzhen, China; production began at the end of May. With an annual capacity of approximately 10,000 tons, the 65,000-[ft.sup.2]...

Lightfast yarn-coating TPUs target textiles in autos.(INDUSTRY NEWS)( thermoplastic polyurethane )(Bayer MaterialScience AG)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... New lightfast grades of the thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) Deslnopan and Texin developed by Bayer MaterialScience for covering textile yarn are opening up design possibilities, especially in the automotive industry. The materials--based on...

Laser scanning helps moldmaker speed time to market.(INDUSTRY NEWS)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... By switching to the use of a 3D laser scanning service bureau for reverse engineering, says Galaxy Tool of Winfield, Kan., it was able to help automotive after-market customers get to market faster. Galaxy specializes in making blowmolds for...

Algor releases multilingual FEA software.(INDUSTRY NEWS)(finite element analysis)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Pittsburgh-based Algor, Inc., has announced the first multilingual, full-featured finite-element analysis (FEA) software that works associatively with most CAD solid modelers. Released in June, the new international version allows engineers to...

Moldflow, Cimatron, IQMS announce software products.(INDUSTRY NEWS)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Three other companies have recently released software with plastics-industry applications: * Moldflow Corp. (www.moldflow.com) of Wayland, Mass., has released Moldflow Plastics Insight (MPI) 5.1, which allows users to interface with Ansys...

SPE conferences.(UPCOMING EVENTS)(Society of Plastics Engineers)(Calendar)
August 1, 2005... Sept. 12-14. SPE's Thermoplastic Elastomers 2005. Site: Akron, Ohio. Sept. 12-14. SPE's Automotive Composites Conference and Exhibition. Site: Troy, Mich. Sept. 18-21. SPE Rotational Molding Conference and ARM International's Rotoplas...

SPE seminars.(UPCOMING EVENTS)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
August 1, 2005... Sept. 19-22. Seminar Series. Multiple seminars various topics. Site: Milwaukee. Contact: SPE's Customer Relations Department, at (203) 740-5403, or email seminars@4spe.org. For further information on seminars or workshops, visit...

SPE meetings.(UPCOMING EVENTS)(Society of Plastics Engineers)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
August 1, 2005... Sept. 7. SPE's Pittsburgh Section Golf Outing. Site: SEven Springs Mountain Resort. Contact: Al Ulrich, Albis Plastics, at (724) 413-9822; fax: (724) 942-9129; email: al.ulrich@albis.com. Sept. 8. Joint meeting, SPE's Baltimore and...

Other upcoming events.(UPCOMING EVENTS)(Plastics industry)(Calendar)
August 1, 2005... Sept. 21-23. FlexPo 2005. Site: San Luis Resort/Convention Center, Galveston/Houston, Texas. Subject: Bridging the Gap Between Polyolefins and Engineering Thermoplastics. Contact: Chemical Market Resources, Inc.; (281) 557-3320, fax: (281)...

Letter to the editor.(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2005... I read the article on the Kyoto Protocol in the May 2005 issue of PE with interest, but must say its basic premise was very disappointing. First, the bald assertion that "virtually all scientists accept that global warming is taking place, and...

2005 Thermoforming Conference Exhibitors.(Directory)
August 1, 2005... 2005 THERMOFORMING Conference Exhibitors Absolute Precision Tooling Inc., Willoughby, OH (440) 918-1593 apttools@aol.com Airtech Vacuum Inc., Crystal Lake, IL (815) 447-5184 jhupp@airtechusa.com...