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Technology Bulletin
By Laurie Ann Peach, Associate Editor -- Design News, October 19, 1998
Tee up with a liquidmetal club
For those living in areas where snow falls, the chill in the air implies golf season is ending. Heavy sigh. On the bright side, by spring, you may have a new club to try. Engineers at Amorphous Technologies International (Laguna Niguel, CA) and Howmet Metal Mold (HMM) employ a material developed at CalTech to develop a "liquidmetal" golf-club head (see Design News, pg. 24). These clubs promise golfers a longer shot and less "sting" upon impact between club-head and ball. The material, a bulk amorphous alloy called VitreloyTM, consists of roughly two thirds zirconium. The remaining third combines copper, titanium, nickel, and beryllium. The result: a molecular structure similar to glass that's extremely strong for its weight, as well as hard. However, the alloy absorbs less energy than conventional club-head materials when ball and club connect. As a result, more energy from the swing transfers to the ball. The damping properties of the metal act to reduce the shock of impact, providing a "soft yet solid" feel when playing a shot. According to Materials World magazine, Vitreloy has many improved properties over traditional metals and alloys because of its high tensile strength, hardness, and fracture toughness. Other potential uses: aircraft airframes and medical and aerospace products. E-mail: Andrew_Mclaughlin@materials.org.uk, FAX: +44 171 839 2289.
Probe identifies plastic, increasing recycle possibility
We've all noticed the number 1, 2, or 3 circle on our plastic bottles. And most of us recycle accordingly. But only a small fraction of all plastics are recycled, primarily because of difficulties in identifying and separating the various resins. A hand-held probe connected to a mobile console may help in this regard. The RP-1 Polymer Identification System, developed by a group of researchers at Purdue University and manufactured by SpectraCode Inc. (West Lafayette, IN), may save billions of pounds of plastics that now are landfilled or incinerated every year, says Edward Grant, Purdue professor of chemistry and chief executive officer of SpectraCode. The probe illuminates a solid object with a laser and collects the light scattered from the sample, much like a bar-code scanner. The device uses the principle of Raman spectroscopy to read the information encoded in the molecular structure of the plastic and identify the chemical composition. The whole process requires less than a second. When used with an automated system designed to trigger the probe as plastics are placed on a conveyor belt, the RP-1 could identify 100 pieces of plastic per second or 500 tons per day, Grant says. Currently, systems operate at two large-scale recycling facilities and in the Detroit Vehicle Recycling Development Center, a joint research center of the Big Three automobile manufacturers. The device was named one of the year's 100 most technologically significant products and processes by R&D magazine. Call: Edward Grant at (765) 494-9006, or e-mail egrant@chem.purdue.edu.
Non-stick coating sticks to almost anything
Researchers at the University of Buffalo were playing around in the kitchen when out popped FluoroGripTM--a non-stick, permanent, protective coating for metallic and other surfaces. Like the non-stick surfaces of kitchen pots and pans, FluoroGrip is a fluoropolymer film. Unlike the everyday frying pan coating, this film will adhere to just about anything. Joseph Gardella, professor of chemistry at the University of Buffalo, and Terrence Vargo, formerly a research fellow at the university, now vice president and chief technical officer of Integument Technologies Inc. (Buffalo, NY), developed a patented technology that modifies the film's surface, and then laminates it with an acrylic- or rubber-based pressure-sensitive adhesive. "Our product does not come off," says Douglas Naab, vice president in charge of FluoroGrip for Integument Technologies Inc. "A strong, permanent, covalent bond develops between the adhesive and the modified film." Other products form mechanical bonds with adhesives, but these break down when exposed to sunlight, moisture, or high temperatures, he continues. FluoroGrip, on the other hand, performs well under extreme conditions. The University of Buffalo process uses a plasma to gently and selectively modify the fluoropolymer, removing just a few fluorines and replacing them with only hydroxyl groups. Potentially, the film could be used to coat metallic pipes and tanks in chemical plants, as well as fume hoods and other surfaces susceptible to chemical corrosion. Biomedical and electronic applications are also possible. FAX (716) 645-3765.
Smaller flexible spindles may lead to smaller, lighter machine tools
A 35-hp prototype spindle, designed in a project sponsored by the National Center for Manufacturing Sciences Inc. and co-funded by the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Advanced Technology Program, offers high torque over a much broader speed range than the current state-of-the-art spindle. NIST says that a lightweight 75-hp spindle accurately bored cylinders and milled flat surfaces on a Ford cast- iron V8 engine block at twice the metal removal rate of the current process. A wide range of torque speeds supports flexible manufacturing, making possible the machining of a range of advanced materials with a single spindle, says NIST. For the project, a team of vehicle and bearing makers, machine tool builders, spindle designers, and lubrication and motor experts built three spindles aimed at meeting the needs of the auto industry. One of the spindles, a four-cluster system, could possibly outperform a benchmark system used in a General Motors power-train plant, says NIST. The system eliminated the expense of ball-bearing replacements and could reduce from two to one the number of machining stations used by the auto industry to cut four cluster holes in the trial part. NIST predicts the new spindle design may save more than $6 million annually in the production of a single part. Call: (734) 995-4919.
System automates parts inspection
An automated, in-line combination x-ray and vision PCB inspection system soon available from CR Technology (Laguna Niguel, CA), will identify correct part orientation and positioning, as well as inspect 100% of BGA, flip-chip, and other hidden solder joints. The RTI-XR system integrates three charged-couple device (CCD) video cameras for optical inspection with an x-ray source and x-ray-sensitive video camera. According to the company, this is the first automated optical inspection system that can check every PCB feature completely. The system self-learns a PCB by extracting part information from the CAD pick-and-place file, automatically stepping through a known board. The information is saved on the local hard drive or network. The RTI-XR will offer speeds up to 800 parts/min and can test boards up to 18 @ 20 inches. FAX (949) 448-0445.
Get ready. Get set. Go SOI!
The race of the silicon-on-insulator (SOI) chip manufacturing technology is on. IBM (East Fishkill, NY) announced that its SOI process protects chip transistors with a blanket of insulation, reducing harmful electrical effects that sap energy and hinder performance. IBM's SOI chips improve performance by as much as 35%, the company claims, producing faster computers and communications gear. For example, a microprocessor designed to operate to 400 MHz could achieve 500 MHz if built using SOI. At the same time, Peregrine Semiconductor (San Diego, CA) announced that it plans on expanding its SOI class RF line to include 1,900-MHz RF chips by the spring of 1999. Peregrine claims it was the first company in the world to manufacture commercial SOI-based technology, shipping a 1,100-MHz chip for the wireless market in June 1997. "The primary difference (between IBM and Peregrine SOI technology) is that Peregrine uses a pure synthetic-sapphire insulator rather than the thin silicon-dioxide layer used by IBM. Sapphire is by nature simply a better insulator, making it ideal for the RF wireless satellite communications and low-power markets, says Jon Siann, director of marketing for Peregrine. Technically, the two companies are not competing. IBM targets the digital logic market, while Peregrine focuses on RF applications. For information on IBM SOI chips, call: (914) 892-5480 or e-mail olearywt@us.ibm.com. For more details on the Peregrine chip, call: (619) 455-0660, e-mail jsiann@peregrine-semi.com.
Jet engine advances using new/old technology
The building of the Joint Strike Fighter may have received almost as much media coverage as Kenneth Starr's investigative report. However, JSF engineers appear to have made faster progress. In fact, the JSF119 engines from Pratt & Whitney (West Palm Beach, FL) recently completed initial sea-level tests with outstanding results. In more than 120 hrs of testing, the Boeing JSF119-614 and Lockheed Martin JSF 119-611 engines demonstrated component efficiencies higher than expected, turbine temperatures lower than predicted, and very low vibration levels. With this success, PW's new engine, the F100-PW-229A, will lift many of the technology advances of the F119, such as integrally bladed rotors. The blades, made from the same piece of metal as the disk they extend from, are said to be more durable and rugged than non-integrally bladed rotors. Bowed stators designed using advanced computational fluid dynamics also will contribute to a fan with "excellent aerodynamic performance and stall margin." PW expects the engine to be airborne in the year 2000. FAX (407) 796-7258.
Website to highlight engineering profession
In recognition of National Engineers Week, February 21-27, 1999, engineers at Eastman Chemical Co. (Kingsport, TN) are developing a web site where middle-school students can learn what engineers do and how they can become one. Scheduled for launch in January 1999, the site will provide information about careers in engineering, accredited engineering schools and college requirements, as well as links to academic institutions, engineering organizations, and corporations. For more information on how to participate and organize a local National Engineers Week program, visit: www.eweek.org.
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