Turning ordinary steel into super steel
Researchers at the Idaho National Energy and Environment Laboratories have created an alloy that, when used as a coating on other metals, can dramatically increase the strength of the metal while maintaining ductility. The alloy's properties are created by working with the materials using nanotechnology. By using nanometers, thousands of times thinner than a human hair, to measure the materials used, researchers are able to better manipulate the physical characteristics of the alloy.

The coating uses alloys that solidify into a glass-like structure. The alloys are then crushed into a powder and applied at high temperature to create a dense coating. Due to the small size of the particles in the coating, strong atomic bonds are formed, increasing the strength of the material. Currently, the best commercial steels are 10% of theoretical best strength. Nanocoated steels can reach 40-45% of theoretical best strength. In addition, the nanoscale of the coating particles increases corrosion resistance.

Since the coating allows the steel to maintain flexibility, its applications range from metal-based parts to building materials. Particular benefit would be to increase the useful life of metals in highly corrosive environments, such as chemical processing.

Aluminum can also benefit from nanocoatings. Because of its softness and vulnerability to corrosion, aluminum often gets ruled out even though its strength-to-weight ratio is advantageous. Aluminum with a nanosteel coat will not weigh more and will overcome its current "weaknesses."

This coating just slips on
Advanced Surface Technologies has announced a new low temperature deposition process for the application of a PTFE coating. The process allows control of the thickness of the coating down to the submicron level. Advanced Surface claims that the process produces excellent adhesion and, since it is not a spray application, increased accuracy in application. The low temperature process eliminates the need for a high-temperature cure and any resulting heat damage to materials.

The coating can be applied to most metals, polymers, glass and ceramics. As with other PTFE coatings, applications include release, barrier and low-friction coatings. The materials possess excellent electrical properties and can be used for multiple coating layers. The coatings will be useful for medical equipment due to the proven biocompatibility of PTFE.

New Epoxy Resin Safer for Food Packaging
A new process that treats an emulsion of liquid epoxy resin with select superacid catalysts produces a polymeric polyol that has lower levels of residual bisphenol-A diglycidyl either and bisphenol-A than conventional advanced epoxy resins. Use of this resin in epoxy-based can linings for foods and beverages, reduces the health concerns based on residuals of these compounds.

The polyols prepared by these new processes were cross-linked with melamine-formaldehyde resins in waterborn coating formulations. The resins were free of added cosolvent, as well as solvent-born coating formulations. As a result, the coatings developed good solvent resistance at lower bake temperature than traditional epoxy resins.