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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.

World's first current-carrying fastening technology

PEM^® eConnect™ current-carrying pins from Penn-Engineering provide superior electrical connections in applications that demand high performance from internal components, such as automotive electronics. This first-to-market tech provides repeatable, consistent electrical joints and superior installation unmatched by traditional fastening methods. Features include quick and secure automated installation, no hot spots or poor conductivity, and captivation options that include self-clinching and broaching styles.
Learn more about eConnect pins.

New interactive digital catalog from EXAIR

EXAIR's latest catalog offers readers an incredible source of innovative solutions for common industrial problems like conveying, cooling, cleaning, blowoff, drying, coating, and static buildup. This fully digital and interactive version of Catalog 35 is designed for easy browsing and added accessibility. Customers can view, download, print, and save either the full catalog or specific pages and sections. EXAIR products are designed to conserve compressed air and increase personnel safety in the process. Loaded with useful information.
Check out EXAIR's online catalog.

5 cost-saving design tips for CNC machining

Make sure your parts meet expectations the first time around. Xometry's director of application engineering, Greg Paulsen, presents five expert tips for cutting costs when designing custom CNC machined parts. This video covers corners and radii, designing for deep pockets, thread depths, thin walls, and more. Always excellent info from Paulsen at Xometry.
View the video.

What can you secure with a retaining ring? 20 examples

From the watch dial on your wrist to a wind turbine, no application is too small or too big for a Smalley retaining ring to secure. Light to heavy-duty loads? Carbon steel to exotic materials? No problem. See how retaining rings are used in slip clutches, bike locks, hip replacements, and even the Louvre Pyramid.
See the Smalley design applications.

Load fasteners with integrated RFID

A crane, rope, or chain may be required when something needs lifting -- plus anchoring points on the load. JW Winco offers a wide range of solutions to fasten the load securely, including: lifting eye bolts and rings (with or without rotation), eye rings with ball bearings, threaded lifting pins, shackles, lifting points for welding, and more. Some, such as the GN 581 Safety Swivel Lifting Eye Bolts, even have integrated RFID tags to clearly identify specific lifting points during wear and safety inspections and manage them digitally and without system interruption.
Learn more.

Couplings solve misalignments more precisely with targeted center designs

ALS Couplings from Miki Pulley feature a simplistic, three-piece construction and are available in three different types for more precisely handling parallel, angular, or axial misalignment applications. The key feature of this coupling design is its center element. Each of the three models has a center member that has a unique and durable material and shape. Also called a "spider," the center is designed to address and resolve the type of misalignment targeted. Ideal for unidirectional continuous movement or rapid bidirectional motion.
Learn more.

What is 3D-MID? Molded parts with integrated electronics from HARTING

3D-MID (three-dimensional mechatronic integrated devices) technology combines electronic and mechanical functionalities into a single, 3D component. It replaces the traditional printed circuit board and opens up many new opportunities. It takes injection-molded parts and uses laser-direct structuring to etch areas of conductor structures, which are filled with a copper plating process to create very precise electronic circuits. HARTING, the technology's developer, says it's "Like a PCB, but 3D." Tons of possibilities.
View the video.

Surprising discovery could change the way industry uses nickel

"This finding takes decades of assumptions on metal corrosion and flips them on their head," says Texas A&M's Dr. Michael J. Demkowicz. SEM image of corroded nickel at the surface. [Image: Mengying Liu]

 

 

 

 

By Hannah Conrad, Texas A&M University Engineering

Nickel is one of the most abundant elements on earth. It is hard, yet malleable, magnetic at room temperature, and a relatively good conductor of electricity and heat. Most notably, nickel is highly corrosion resistant, which provides for a variety of uses by industry.

However, a surprising discovery by a team of researchers at Texas A&M University has found that nickel not only corrodes, but does so in a way that scientists least expected.

The team was led by Dr. Michael Demkowicz, associate professor and graduate director in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, and director of the Center for Research Excellence on Dynamically Deformed Solids at Texas A&M University.

Their work was published in the American Physical Society's Physical Review Materials journal in an article titled, "Preferential Corrosion of Coherent Twin Boundaries in Pure Nickel Under Cathodic Charging."

A surprising observation
Like a finished jigsaw puzzle, materials are made of interlocking pieces. Microscopically, nickel is made of aggregates of small, tightly packed crystals (or grains).

Corrosion preferentially attacks the joints, or "boundaries," between these grains. This phenomenon, known as intergranular corrosion, is a localized type of decay that occurs at the microscopic level, targeting the breakdown of materials at the edges of each of these boundaries, rather than at the outer surface of the material. As such, it weakens the material from the inside out.

Until now, scientists thought that one special type of boundary, known as a coherent twin boundary, was resistant to corrosion. Surprisingly, the team discovered that nearly all the corrosion in their experiments occurred precisely on these boundaries.

VIDEO: Coherent twin boundaries are areas in which the material's internal structure pattern forms a mirror image of itself along a shared border. [Credit: Dharmesh Patel]

Coherent twin boundaries are areas in which the material's internal structure pattern forms a mirror image of itself along a shared border. They occur when crystal formations on either side of an atom-wide border line up without disorder or disarray. These types of boundaries naturally occur during crystallization, but can also be the result of mechanical or thermal influence.

"Pure nickel is mostly corrosion resistant. But when we charged it at the cathodic (passive and lowest energy) side, which is even less likely to corrode, we did, surprisingly, see visible corrosion trenches on coherent twin boundaries," said Mengying Liu, graduate student at the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Texas A&M and first author on the paper. "This finding will help engineers predict where corrosion is most likely to begin. It may even lead to the production of metals that corrode less."

A better understanding
The team's research not only provides engineers with vital insight into materials often utilized in situations that require corrosion resistance, but also offers a new perspective regarding intergranular corrosion along coherent twin boundaries.

For years, researchers have operated on the assumption that coherent twin boundaries resist corrosion. They have even worked to create metals that have more of these boundaries in an effort to reduce corrosion.

"This finding takes decades of assumptions on metal corrosion and flips them on their head," said Demkowicz. "In an effort to reduce corrosion, people have been making metals that contain as many coherent twin boundaries as possible. Now that entire strategy will have to be reconsidered."

Demkowicz believes the scientific insight provided by this study may be even more important than its technological applications. "It turns out the reasoning that previously led us to believe coherent twin boundaries are corrosion resistant is flawed," he said. "This work provides clues on how to improve our fundamental understanding of metal corrosion."

This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration; U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences; and the National Science Foundation.

Published August 2019

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