Materials & Manufacturing

Materials, Adhesives & Coatings

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Surgical instruments, implants, catheters, endoscopes, and ultrasound probes all require a variety of materials, adhesives, and coatings. Access the technical resources for a range of medical materials and coatings. Design engineers can browse news, technical briefs, and applications for plastics, composites, rubbers, elastomers, and metals.

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Products: Medical
New Products and Services
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Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Smart Textile Senses Light, Pressure, Smell, and Even Taste
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R&D: Robotics, Automation & Control
Sensitive Ceramics for Robotics, Prosthetics
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Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Mass 3D Printing in Space for the First Time

Top Stories

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INSIDER: Medical

UV Cure Silicone Elastomers

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INSIDER: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Smart Sensor Enables Better Wound Healing

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R&D: Manufacturing & Prototyping

3D Printing Shape-Changing Materials

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INSIDER: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Intricon Announces Expansion to Boost Production

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Briefs: Electronics & Computers

Researchers Develop Microchips That Detect and Diagnose Diseases

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INSIDER: Materials

Silicone Pressure-Sensitive Adhesives

Latest Briefs & News

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INSIDER: Materials
Insights into the State of the Plastics Processing Industry
In a time of evolving challenges and uncertainties, understanding the plastics marketplace has never been more critical for company leaders. A clear grasp of the industry’s current...
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INSIDER: Materials
BioInteractions Launches Surface Active Therapeutics
BioInteractions (Booth 1701) is showcasing its newly launched Surface Active Therapeutics, a groundbreaking medical technology poised to revolutionize the safety and efficacy of medical...
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INSIDER: Medical
UV Cure Silicone Elastomers
Momentive Performance Materials (Booth 2427) is demonstrating its silicone elastomers for long-term implants at MD&M West. Momentive's ReliaSil UV product line combines the benefits of the ambient cure found in...
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INSIDER: Materials
Silicone Pressure-Sensitive Adhesives
WACKER Chemical Corporation (Booth 1815) is featuring its portfolio of silicone pressure-sensitive adhesives, gamma radiation sterilization techniques for silicones, and contract manufacturing...
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Briefs: Materials
Materials Help Manage Side Effects of Brain Pacemakers
A team at the Nanostructured and Novel Materials Laboratory at the University of Tabriz has created organic materials for brain and heart pacemakers that rely on uninterrupted signal delivery to be effective. Read on to learn more.
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Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Scalable 3D Printing Technique Produces Stretchable, Flexible Soft Plastics
A team has reported that they used a class of widely available polymers called thermoplastic elastomers to create soft 3D printed structures with tunable stiffness. Engineers can design the print path used by the 3D printer to program the plastic’s physical properties so that a device can stretch and flex repeatedly in one direction while remaining rigid in another. Read on to learn more.
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Briefs: Medical
Prosthetic Material Could Help Reduce Infections from Intravenous Catheters
Published in the journal Scientific Reports, researchers have created realistic, skin-like replicas made of Ecoflex, a type of silicone rubber that can potentially serve as a platform to evaluate risks of bacterial infections from intravenous catheters and test wearable sensors, among other biomedical applications. Read on to learn what the study found.
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Briefs: Materials
Additive Manufacturing for Platinum Alloys
The use of platinum-iridium (PtIr) alloys for pins and electrodes in medical devices is growing substantially in applications such as cardio and neuromodulation devices. This article focuses on PtIr applications. Read on to learn more.
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R&D: Medical
3D Printing Shape-Changing Materials
Researchers have helped create a new 3D printing approach for shape-changing materials that are likened to muscles, opening the door for improved applications in robotics as well as biomedical and energy devices. Read on to learn more.
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Features: Materials
Silicones A Skin-Friendly Gamma-Sterilizable Pressure-Sensitive Adhesive
Traditionally, silicone PSAs, which are the most skin-friendly adhesives for attaching medical devices to the skin, could only be sterilized with EtO. However, a new silicone PSA is capable of enduring sterilizing doses of gamma radiation. This recent advancement enables numerous new applications for silicone PSAs in medical devices that were previously unattainable. Read on to learn more.
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Products: Medical
Product of the Month
See the product of the month: Biointeractions' surface-active therapeutic coating for medical devices, AstutePlus®. It's an advanced antithrombogenic designed specifically to stop fibrin sheath formation as well as thrombus formation in blood-contacting devices. Read on to learn more.
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Briefs: Medical
The Vital Role of TPE Tubing in Scalability and Rapid Deployment
This article explores the critical role that thermoplastic elastomer biopharmaceutical tubing plays in enabling scalability and rapid deployment — a duo of factors that can make all the difference in the industry. Read on to learn more.
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R&D: Medical
Toroidal Micro Robot Swims Autonomously
Researchers have made a significant breakthrough in soft robotics. Their study introduces the first toroidal, light-driven microrobot that can move autonomously in viscous liquids, such as mucus. Read on to learn more.
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Features: Manufacturing & Prototyping
MD&M West Show Preview
Previously known as Informa Markets Engineering (IME) West, hosting five co-located shows — MD&M West, ATX West, D&M West, Plastec West, and WestPack — these related industry sectors are now merging into a single unified show: MD&M West. The focus of the conference and trade show is not changing. Read on to learn more.
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Features: Materials
Adhesive Bonding of Plastics in Medical Devices, Part 2: Material Properties of Plastics
Part 1 of this article, which appeared in the December 2024 issue, focused on the factors and requirements for selecting adhesives for use in medical devices. Part 2 delves more into the material properties of plastics for medical device assembly.
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News: Medical
Fort Wayne Metals Expands Nitinol Melting Capabilities
Fort Wayne Metals, a developer of precision materials for the medical device industry, has expanded its nitinol melting capabilities. The company doubled its melted Nitinol output from...
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Features: Materials
Product Showcase
See the product showcase, which includes Accumold All-Plastic Molded Cannula technology; Arnold Magnetic Technologies' thin metals and flexible composite solutions; the OmniCure® S2000 Elite; Omnetics’ Nano-D connectors; the Lee Company’s Full Isolation Dual Seal Precision Dispense Pump; and much more.
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Briefs: Medical
Solvent-Free 3D Printing Material Could Enable Biodegradable Implants
In a paper published in Angewandte Chemie International Edition, researchers at Duke University have invented a new solvent-free polymer for DLP printing. Besides eliminating the shrinkage problem, the lack of solvent also results in improved mechanical properties of the part while maintaining the ability to degrade in the body. Read on to learn more.
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Features: Medical
Factors and Requirements for Adhesive Selection in Medical Devices, Part 1
Part 1 of this article examines adhesive bonding of plastics in medical devices. The set of desired properties for medical-grade adhesives ultimately depends upon the specifics of the application and the kind of sterilization process that will be used. Read on to learn more.
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On-Demand Webinars: Medical
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Benefits of Streamlining Fluid Connections in Medical Applications
In many medical devices, there are fluid connections that facilitate the transfer of critical media like medications, fluids, and an array of biological materials between...
Tech Talks: Medical
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The Power of the Wear Study in Medical Device Development
A properly designed and executed wear study can be a powerful tool when selecting an adhesive for a medical device — an adhesive that enhances device effectiveness and durability, and...
R&D: Manufacturing & Prototyping
3D Printed Active Fabric
Scientists have developed an innovative wearable fabric that is flexible but can stiffen on demand. Developed through a combination of geometric design, 3D printing, and robotic control, the new technology, RoboFabric, can quickly be made into medical devices or soft robotics. Read on to learn more about it.
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R&D: Medical
Hydrogel Implant Treats Endometriosis
Researchers have now developed the first hydrogel implant designed for use in fallopian tubes. This innovation performs two functions: one is to act as a contraceptive, the other is to prevent the recipient from developing endometriosis in the first place or to halt the spread if they do. Read on to learn more.
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INSIDER: Medical
Making Bandages from Artificial Spider Silk
Researchers have made their own version of fake spider silk, but this one consists of proteins and heals wounds instead of haunting hallways. The artificial silk is strong enough to be woven into...
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Products: Materials
Product of the Month
See the product of the month, Bally Ribbon Mills' product line of medical textiles and fabrics ideal for use in cardiovascular, orthopedic, and dental prosthetic applications. Read on to learn more about it.
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Briefs: Tubing & Extrusion
Streamlining Medical Device Development and Manufacturing Using Silicone Elastomers
This article compares high consistency silicone rubbers, liquid silicone rubbers, and low consistency elastomers, analyzing their characteristics and the implications in selecting each during different phases in the development of silicone medical devices. Read on to learn more.
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R&D: Medical
Material Improves Implantable Technology
Borophene is more conductive, thinner, lighter, stronger, and more flexible than graphene, the 2D version of carbon. Now, researchers have made the material potentially more useful by imparting chirality — or handedness — on it. Read on to learn what this could mean for advanced sensors and implantable medical devices.
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Briefs: RF & Microwave Electronics
Wearable Devices Get Signal Boost from Innovative Material
An international team of researchers developed the material by embedding clusters of highly dielectric ceramic nanoparticles into an elastic polymer. The material was reverse-engineered to not only mimic skin elasticity and motion types, but also to adjust its dielectric properties to counter the disruptive effects of motion on interfacing electronics, minimize energy loss and dissipate heat.
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R&D: Materials
Flexible Film Senses Nearby Movements
A soft, flexible film senses the presence of nearby objects without physically touching them. The study features the new sensor technology to detect eyelash proximity in blink-tracking glasses. Read on to learn more.
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Ask the Expert

Ralph Bright on the Power of Power Cords
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Understanding power system components and how to connect them correctly is critical to meeting regulatory requirements and designing successful electrical products for worldwide markets. Interpower’s Ralph Bright defines these requirements and explains how to know which cord to select for your application.

Webcasts

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Podcasts: IoMT

Interoperability in IoMT: Overcoming the Connectivity Barriers

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Podcasts: Wearables

The Integration of Sensors into Next-Generation Health Devices

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Podcasts: Sensors/Data Acquisition

The Role of MEMS in Next-Gen Medical Devices

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Podcasts: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Implantable Sensors for Internal Health Monitoring

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On-Demand Webinars: Medical

A Guide to Selecting Power Supplies for Medical Equipment

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Podcasts: Sensors/Data Acquisition

The Rise of Advanced Sensor Technologies

Inside Story

Inside Story: Establishing Safe EO Sterilization for Medical Devices
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To find out more about the expertise required to establish a safe and effective EO Sterilization for medical devices, MDB recently spoke with Elizabeth Sydnor, director of microbiology for Eurofins Medical Device Testing (Lancaster, PA).

Videos