Overview The polymer used in a compound recipe is critical to compound processing behavior and final product performance, yet polymer characterization is an under-utilized technique in the rubber industry. Traditionally, the rheological behavior of the raw polymer is characterized using Mooney viscosity, which provides limited information. The Rubber Process Analyzer (RPA) can better characterize…
Overview Rheology is the study of the flow and deformation of matter. In it, we relate stresses and strains for nearly all materials that we encounter in daily life, including biomaterials and biomedical devices. In this talk we will discuss applications of rheology fundamentals to testing biomaterials and biomedical devices. We will discuss the…
Overview Durability testing of Medical Devices is crucial for validation of performance and safety and often becomes an important element of regulatory submissions. As such, devices undergo a range of extensive fatigue characterization to support lifetime predictions for the design, optimization and approval for safe and life-changing device solutions. A variety of common standards-based…
Overview This presentation will introduce a range of biomaterials test applications where mechanical test instruments are assisting researchers and engineers in gaining a better understanding of native and artificial tissues. Tissue characterization often leverages test techniques designed to measure quasi-static and dynamic properties of human or animal model tissues. These measurements can be used to…
Overview During the formulation and manufacturing of polymeric materials for medical devices, the materials go through multiple stages and undergo many transformations. At each of these stages new additives might be added or the material is exposed to physical factors like heat which impacts the chemical nature of the ingredients. Subsequently, during the final product…
Overview Thermogravimetry (TGA) is a classical method determining temperature dependent material properties. Traditional TGA is performed at ambient pressure and with relatively inert reaction gases. To measure application-relevant material properties, however, TGA must be performed under real application conditions: at high pressures, with reactive and/or corrosive gases and in steam atmospheres. The TGA and…
Overview Crude oil is typically extracted as a single organic liquid phase from the reservoir. However during transportation, a drop in the temperature can cause the higher molecular weight paraffins or waxes to separate into the solid phase. The temperature at which the first wax crystals appear during cooling is commonly known as the…
Overview In this presentation we will demonstrate accurate and high-throughput methods to measure the critical heat transfer properties of thermal diffusivity and thermal conductivity. Direct and indirect methods provide suitable measurements for a wide variety of materials – including polymers, ceramics, carbons, graphite, composites, glasses, metals, and alloys – and at temperatures from -150°C…
Overview Differential Scanning Calorimetry is a simple, yet powerful technique to gain a broad understanding of the characteristics of pharmaceutical materials, from the crystalline structure that exists to the compatibility of a specific formulation. Many of the properties that are explored using DSC are critical components of understanding the impact of processing conditions as…
Overview Polymeric materials, both thermoplastics and thermosets, have long been studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Cure properties, crystallization behavior, and glass transition temperatures are just a few of the material characteristics investigated by this versatile thermal technique. In many instances, the comparison of these material properties from samples that have a different production…
Overview Thermosetting materials, such as epoxy, have been widely applied in many areas including automotive, aerospace and electronics industries in the form of surface coating, structural adhesives, advanced composites and packaging materials. These kind of materials pose high mechanical strength, high temperature stability and good solvent resistance. Unlike thermoplastic polymers, the process of thermosets…
Overview The viscoelastic properties of polymers play a critical role in the different stages of polymer processing operations, whether it is melting and extrusion or the performance of the final product. On most polymer data sheets, these properties are presented in the form of a melt flow index. However, this simplistic approach is inherently…