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New 'breathable' rupture disk tech provides overpressure and vacuum relief

To increase equipment safety and reliability, a new rupture disk technology activates at a set burst pressure, but it can also "breathe" to relieve minor pressure fluctuations. The patent-pending, dual-function device from BS&B Safety Systems is ideal for use on low-pressure vessels that are susceptible to ambient temperature changes.
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Engineer's Toolbox: 9 considerations for specifying a slewing ring bearing

In applications that require a bearing to support a structure while it rotates (e.g., cranes, radar, tank turrets), premature bearing failure can put people and equipment at risk. While slewing ring bearings have proven themselves countless times in such applications, designers must consider many factors when specifying them. According to engineers at Kaydon, the bearing's support structure, mounting (including bolt strength, tensioning, and hole patterns), installation, and even storage are all factors in a bearing's success or failure.
Read the full article.

ClampDisk micro fastener is new alternative for automotive and consumer electronics

Designed as a unique alternative in assemblies for the automotive and consumer electronics markets, the ClampDisk Press-on Fastener is a new offering from PennEngineering that delivers a fast, simple way to achieve sheet-to-sheet clamped fastening while replacing the use of standard screws, nuts, and adhesives. The most common challenges that can be eliminated or reduced by using ClampDisk include over installation, cross threading, stripped screw heads, broken screws, and damaged product. This fastener can be removed easily with a sharp-edged tool.
Learn more and see how ClampDisk works.

New nylon constant torque hinge

Southco has expanded its line of E6 Constant Torque Hinges with a compact, nylon version designed for small applications. The newest addition to the company's E6 50 Constant Torque Position Control Hinge series measures 45 mm with a torque range of 4 to 16 in./lb and is 65% lighter compared to the standard E6 50 Hinge. It provides constant resistance throughout the entire range of motion, enabling users to easily position doors, display screens, and other mounted components and hold them securely at any desired angle.
Learn more.

What injection molding material do I use?

How do you decide what type of plastic to use for your next injection molding project? Xometry can help you narrow your choices. Discover the different strengths and applications for materials that could be ideal for your application by learning about the most common plastic injection molding materials in detail.
Read this detailed Xometry article.

What are carbon composite bellows springs?

The Carbon Composite Bellows Spring (CCBS) from MW Components is a system of carbon fiber elements that combine to work as a high-performance, lightweight, and design-flexible compression spring meant to replace coil springs or metallic Belleville disc springs. A functional spring is made from several individual elements paired and joined to make a stack. The stack spring rate is determined by the number of elements, the base rate of each element, and their series or parallel orientation in the stack. Applications include motorsports, aerospace, and high-performance activities.
Learn more.

Conductive Brush Ring overcomes current leakage in EV powertrains

SKF's new Conductive Brush Ring paves the way to greater reliability and longer life in high-performance electric vehicle powertrain systems. Using pure carbon fiber bristles, it provides a reliable electrical connection between an EV eAxle rotor shaft and its housing. When used in combination with SKF Hybrid ceramic ball bearings, it helps to alleviate parasitic current effects that can lead to premature failure in bearings and other components. Available in different configurations for wet (oil-lubricated) motor designs -- and soon for dry (sealed) applications.
Learn more.

hyperMILL 2024 CAD/CAM software suite

OPEN MIND Technologies has introduced its latest hyperMILL 2024 CAD/CAM software suite, which includes a range of powerful enhancements to its core toolpath capabilities, as well as new functionality for increased NC programming efficiency in applications ranging from 2.5D machining to 5-axis milling. New and enhanced capabilities include: Optimized Deep Hole Drilling, a new algorithm for 3- and 5-axis Rest Machining, an enhanced path layout for the 3D Plane Machining cycle, better error detection, and much more.
Learn more.

One-part epoxy changes from red to clear under UV

Master Bond UV15RCL is a low-viscosity, cationic-type UV-curing system with a special color-changing feature. The red material changes to clear once exposed to UV light, indicating that there is UV light access across the adhesive material. Although this change in color from red to clear does not indicate a full cure, it does confirm that the UV light has reached the polymer. This epoxy is an excellent electrical insulator. UV15RCL adheres well to metals, glass, ceramics, and many plastics, including acrylics and polycarbonates.
Learn more.

SPIROL Press-N-Lok™ Pin for plastic housings

The Press-N-Lok™ Pin was designed to permanently retain two plastic components to each other. As the pin is inserted, the plastic backfills into the area around the two opposing barbs, resulting in maximum retention. Assembly time is quicker, and it requires lower assembly equipment costs compared to screws and adhesives -- just Press-N-Lok™!
Learn more about the new Press-N-Lok™ Pin.

Why hybrid bearings are becoming the new industry standard

A combination of steel outer and inner rings with ceramic balls or rollers is giving hybrid bearings unique properties, making them suitable for use in a wide range of modern applications. SKF hybrid bearings make use of silicon nitride (twice as hard as bearing steel) rolling elements and are available as ball bearings, cylindrical roller bearings, and in custom designs. From electric erosion prevention to friction reduction and extended maintenance intervals, learn all about next-gen hybrid bearings.
Read the SKF technical article.

3M and Ansys train engineers on simulating adhesives

Ansys and 3M have created an advanced simulation training program enabling engineers to enhance the design and sustainability of their products when using tapes and adhesives as part of the design. Simulation enables engineers to validate engineering decisions when analyzing advanced polymeric materials -- especially when bonding components made of different materials. Understand the behavior of adhesives under real-world conditions for accurate modeling and design.
Read this informative Ansys blog.

New FATH T-slotted rail components in black from AutomationDirect

Automation-Direct has added a wide assortment of black-colored FATH T-slotted hardware components to match their SureFrame black anodized T-slotted rails, including: cube connectors (2D and 3D) and angle connectors, joining plates of many types, brackets, and pivot joints. Also included are foot consoles, linear bearings in silver and black, cam lever brakes, and L-handle brakes. FATH T-slotted hardware components are easy to install, allow for numerous T-slotted structure configurations, and have a 1-year warranty against defects.
Learn more.

Weird stuff: Moon dust simulant for 3D printing

Crafted from a lunar regolith simulant, Basalt Moon Dust Filamet™ (not a typo) available from The Virtual Foundry closely mirrors the makeup of lunar regolith found in mare regions of the Moon. It enables users with standard fused filament fabrication (FFF) 3D printers to print with unparalleled realism. Try out your ideas before you go for that big space contract, or help your kid get an A on that special science project.
Learn more.

Break the mold with custom injection molding by Rogan

With 90 years of industry experience, Rogan Corporation possesses the expertise to deliver custom injection molding solutions that set businesses apart. As a low-cost, high-volume solution, injection molding is the most widely used plastics manufacturing process. Rogan processes include single-shot, two-shot, overmolding, and assembly. Elevate your parts with secondary operations: drilling and tapping, hot stamping, special finishes, punch press, gluing, painting, and more.
Learn more.

Researchers succeed at 3D printing components for a portable mass spectrometer

By Adam Zewe, MIT

Mass spectrometers, devices that identify chemical substances, are widely used in applications like crime scene analysis, toxicology testing, and geological surveying. However, these machines are bulky, expensive, and easy to damage, which limits where they can be deployed effectively.

Using additive manufacturing, MIT researchers produced a mass filter, which is the core component of a mass spectrometer, that is far lighter and cheaper than the same type of filter made with traditional techniques and materials.

Because additive manufacturing allows the researchers to easily try new designs, they created a number of different quadrupole filters before arriving at the final iteration (h), which is surrounded by a series of triangular lattices to provide durability. [Image credit: Courtesy of the researchers]

 

 

 

 

Their miniaturized filter, known as a quadrupole, can be completely fabricated in a matter of hours for a few dollars. The 3D-printed device is as precise as some commercial-grade mass filters that can cost more than $100,000 and take weeks to manufacture.

Built from durable and heat-resistant glass-ceramic resin, the filter is 3D printed in one step, so no assembly is required. Assembly often introduces defects that can hamper the performance of quadrupoles.

This lightweight, inexpensive, yet precise quadrupole is one important step in Luis Fernando Velasquez-Garcia's 20-year quest to produce a 3D-printed, portable mass spectrometer.

"We are not the first ones to try to do this," he says, "but we are the first ones who succeeded at doing this. There are other miniaturized quadrupole filters, but they are not comparable with professional-grade mass filters. There are a lot of possibilities for this hardware if the size and cost could be smaller without adversely affecting the performance." Velasquez-Garcia is a principal research scientist in MIT's Microsystems Technology Laboratories (MTL) and senior author of a paper detailing the miniaturized quadrupole.

For instance, a scientist could bring a portable mass spectrometer to remote areas of the rainforest, using it to rapidly analyze potential pollutants without shipping samples back to a lab. A lightweight device would also be cheaper and easier to send into space, where it could monitor chemicals in Earth's atmosphere or on those of distant planets.

Velasquez-Garcia is joined on the paper by lead author Colin Eckhoff, an MIT graduate student in electrical engineering and computer science (EECS); Nicholas Lubinsky, a former MIT postdoc; and Luke Metzler and Randall Pedder of Ardara Technologies. The research is published in Advanced Science.

Size matters
At the heart of a mass spectrometer is the mass filter. This component uses electric or magnetic fields to sort charged particles based on their mass-to-charge ratio. In this way, the device can measure the chemical components in a sample to identify an unknown substance.

A quadrupole, a common type of mass filter, is composed of four metallic rods surrounding an axis. Voltages are applied to the rods, which produce an electromagnetic field. Depending on the properties of the electromagnetic field, ions with a specific mass-to-charge ratio will swirl around through the middle of the filter, while other particles escape out the sides. By varying the mix of voltages, one can target ions with different mass-to-charge ratios.

While fairly simple in design, a typical stainless-steel quadrupole might weigh several kilograms. Miniaturizing a quadrupole is no easy task. Making the filter smaller usually introduces errors during the manufacturing process. Plus, smaller filters collect fewer ions, which makes chemical analysis less sensitive.

"You can't make quadrupoles arbitrarily smaller -- there is a tradeoff," Velasquez-Garcia adds.

His team balanced this tradeoff by leveraging additive manufacturing to make miniaturized quadrupoles with the ideal size and shape to maximize precision and sensitivity.

They fabricate the filter from a glass-ceramic resin, which is a relatively new printable material that can withstand temperatures up to 900 C and performs well in a vacuum.

The device is produced using vat photopolymerization, a process where a piston pushes into a vat of liquid resin until it nearly touches an array of LEDs at the bottom. These illuminate, curing the resin that remains in the minuscule gap between the piston and the LEDs. A tiny layer of cured polymer is then stuck to the piston, which rises up and repeats the cycle, building the device one tiny layer at a time.

"This is a relatively new technology for printing ceramics that allows you to make very precise 3D objects. And one key advantage of additive manufacturing is that you can aggressively iterate the designs," Velasquez-Garcia says.

Since the 3D printer can form practically any shape, the researchers designed a quadrupole with hyperbolic rods. This shape is ideal for mass filtering but difficult to make with conventional methods. Many commercial filters employ rounded rods instead, which can reduce performance.

They also printed an intricate network of triangular lattices surrounding the rods, which provides durability while ensuring the rods remain positioned correctly if the device is moved or shaken.

To finish the quadrupole, the researchers used a technique called electroless plating to coat the rods with a thin metal film, which makes them electrically conductive. They cover everything but the rods with a masking chemical and then submerge the quadrupole in a chemical bath heated to a precise temperature and stirring conditions. This deposits a thin metal film on the rods uniformly without damaging the rest of the device or shorting the rods.

"In the end, we made quadrupoles that were the most compact but also the most precise that could be made, given the constraints of our 3D printer," Velasquez-Garcia says.

Maximizing performance
To test their 3D-printed quadrupoles, the team swapped them into a commercial system and found that they could attain higher resolutions than other types of miniature filters. Their quadrupoles, which are about 12 cm in length, are one-quarter the density of comparable stainless-steel filters.

In addition, further experiments suggest that their 3D-printed quadrupoles could achieve precision that is on par with that of largescale commercial filters.

In the future, the researchers plan to boost the quadrupole's performance by making the filters longer. A longer filter can enable more precise measurements, since more ions that are supposed to be filtered out will escape as the chemical travels along its length. They also intend to explore different ceramic materials that could better transfer heat.

"Our vision is to make a mass spectrometer where all the key components can be 3D printed, contributing to a device with much less weight and cost without sacrificing performance. There is still a lot of work to do, but this is a great start," Velasquez-Garcia says.

Published January 2024

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