JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #36 - October 2007 - 14

INNOVATIONS INNOVATIONS New Victrex T-Series compound Victrex has introduced a new Victrex T-Series compound called TF-60C, a proprietary blend of Victrex PEEK polymer, Celazole polybenzimidazole (PBI) and carbon fibre reinforcement. Featuring one of the best overall property profiles of any high-performance material, the new carbon fibre product delivers high strength, high modulus and low creep. It is ideally suited for the most demanding applications in the semiconductor/electronics industries including soldering tools, cassettes, wafer transportation and chamber parts in spin coating, etching and PVD. processing and can be recycled, thus improving moulding yields. Key features of the TF-60C compound include excellent high temperature resistance, compressive strength, and excellent tensile and flexural performance. Other features include excellent tribology and resistance to a range of extreme environments that degrade most plastics. www.victrex.com HSG composites offer an alternative to lead in radiation shielding applications GE Plastics has launched a new line of thermoplastic materials with high specific gravity (HSG) that may replace lead in many healthcare applications that call for radiation shielding. Medical equipment and devices that produce x-rays and gamma rays must be shielded to protect operators, clinicians, patients, and sensitive electronic components from tube leakage and room scatter. GE’s LNP Thermocomp HSG radiation shielding, highdensity compounds enable x-ray shielding solutions without the use of known toxic substances, while providing greater design freedom and higher-volume manufacturing with lower total part cost through the use of injection moulding.Due to increasing restrictions on lead in terms of toxicity and environmental risks, manufacturers are seeking new replacement materials. For example, the European Union’s Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive calls for the near-elimination of lead in most electrical and electronic equipment. In addition, lead has design drawbacks. Lead-encapsulated glass plates for protection against x-rays must be very thick, which limits usage and design options. Further, lead shielding can have “hot spots” – areas where x-rays can penetrate. GE’s LNP Thermocomp x-ray shielding compounds have been shown to shield radiation up to the effectiveness of lead without leakage or hot spots. They are based on tungsten – a non-hazardous HSG material – in nylon 6. LNP Thermocomp HSG x-ray shielding compounds can be made with enhanced stiffness, strength, and impact resistance for demanding injection-moulding applications. www.geplastics.com DuPont and NASA sign agreement to develop foam insulation reinforced with Kevlar DuPont has signed a space act agreement with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to jointly develop urethane foam insulation reinforced with DuPont Kevlar fibre for use in a variety of future spacecraft, including the new launch vehicle being designed to replace the space shuttle. DuPont and scientists at the NASA George C. Marshall Space Flight Centre in Alabama will specifically seek to develop a process to incorporate Kevlar fibre into the cell walls of the foam, thereby enhancing the performance of the thermal protection systems used in the Ares 1 crew launch vehicle. There may be other uses for the material in Currently, Victrex T-Series products are the highest performing melt processable thermoplastics for use in applications requiring physical property retention and wear resistance at elevated temperatures. Offering excellent mechanical performance up to 300°C, they are an ideal replacement option for metals and nonmelt processable high temperature plastics such as polyimides. T-Series products require no secondary future science and exploration applications ranging from vehicle TPS to inflatable structures. Kevlar is perhaps best known for its use in bullet- and stabresistant body armour, but it also has strong ties to the U.S. Space Programme. Along with DuPont Nomex fibre, this high-performance fibre is used today in space suits worn by astronauts as it is five times stronger than steel on an equal weight basis. Additionally, a parachute made of Kevlar fibre was included on the Galileo probe to Jupiter, and a Kevlar fibre blanket was used to wrap the inner walls and provide protection from micrometeorites at the International Space Station. www.dupont.com JEC Composites Magazine / No36 October - November 2007

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JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #36 - October 2007

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #36 - October 2007