A new type of polymer membrane could replace expensive platinum in alkaline batteries and fuel cells. “We have tried to break this paradigm of tradeoffs in materials (by improving) both the stability and the conductivity of this membrane at the same time, and that is what we were able to do with this unique polymeric materials design,” says Michael Hickner, associate professor of materials science and engineering at Penn State University, University Park.
Tata Steel Europe, France, has built a new $16.5 million heat-treatment facility in Lorraine for the production of new harder-wearing 108-meter rail. An induction furnace heats the rails to 950°C, and compressed air then cools them quickly. The facility will allow the company to manufacture longer lengths of “super-hardened” rail for the first time.
Materion Brush Beryllium & Composites, a Materion Corporation business, Mayfield Heights, Ohio, announces investment cast AlBeCast aluminum beryllium products for the aerospace, defense, and precision industrial equipment markets. AlBeCastR 910 is a ternary Be-Al-Ni alloy with a high specific modulus, good ductility, and reasonably good strength. AlBeCastR 920 is an aluminum beryllium alloy containing Ag, Co, and Ge.
The Metal Treating Institute, Jacksonville Beach, Fla., reports that June 2013 year-to-date sales for the metal treating industry were $459.1 million, a decrease of 6.6% from 2012, when sales for January-June equaled $491.6 million. Sales for June 2013 totaled $75.2 million, a decrease from 2012 when sales for June equaled $80.6 million. One out of the nine MTI districts reported higher sales in June 2013 compared to the previous year.
EV Group (EVG), Austria; and Dynaloy LLC, Indianapolis, Ind., a wholly owned subsidiary of Eastman Chemical Co., introduces CoatsClean, a single-wafer photoresist and residue removal technology. It is designed to address thick films and difficult-to-remove material layers for the 3D-ICs/through-silicon vias advanced packaging, microelectromechanical systems, and compound semiconductor markets.
