10.29.13
Foster Corporation, a provider of custom polymers for medical devices, has introduced a line of static dissipative polymer blends specifically designed for medical devices and equipment.
According to the Putnam, Conn.-based company, the blends use a non-migratory, polyether block amide (PEBA) polymer additive that retains continuous antistatic properties and cannot be wiped off with medical cleaning agents.
Dissipation of static electricity is critical to avoid damage to electronic circuitry and reduce particle build-up on medical devices and surrounding surfaces. New devices, such as vascular imaging catheters, use highly sensitive electronics for enhanced diagnosis and treatment. Dissipation of static electricity that can build up on surrounding surfaces is critical to avoid damage to sensitive circuitry in such devices. In drug delivery devices, such as dry powder inhalers, static charge can cause accumulation of drug particles on the device surface and lead to variability in dose delivery.
According to the company, the PEBA polymer additive used in its static dissipative blends, disperses throughout the entire base polymer. When melt blended in quantities between 10 and 20 percent by weight into other polymers it provides immediate and permanent antistatic properties of 1010-12 ohm/sq, depending on the loading and the base polymer. The antistatic properties are maintained in the polymer blend even at low humidity levels. The polymer additive can be compounded into other polymers with compatible melting temperatures, including thermoplastic polyurethanes, polyethylene, polypropylene, polymethyl-methacrylate, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene and polyvinyl chloride.
“Traditional antistatic additives, such as ethoxylated amines, migrate to the component surface where they attract atmospheric moisture that helps dissipate static charges. These materials require time to migrate and a minimum level of moisture in the air. They can also easily be wiped off the surface with cleaning agents,’ said Bill Blasius, manager of R&D and Polymer Science for Foster Corp. “The PEBA additive provides a continuous polymer network throughout the host polymer that is intrinsically antistatic and permanent.”
According to the Putnam, Conn.-based company, the blends use a non-migratory, polyether block amide (PEBA) polymer additive that retains continuous antistatic properties and cannot be wiped off with medical cleaning agents.
Dissipation of static electricity is critical to avoid damage to electronic circuitry and reduce particle build-up on medical devices and surrounding surfaces. New devices, such as vascular imaging catheters, use highly sensitive electronics for enhanced diagnosis and treatment. Dissipation of static electricity that can build up on surrounding surfaces is critical to avoid damage to sensitive circuitry in such devices. In drug delivery devices, such as dry powder inhalers, static charge can cause accumulation of drug particles on the device surface and lead to variability in dose delivery.
According to the company, the PEBA polymer additive used in its static dissipative blends, disperses throughout the entire base polymer. When melt blended in quantities between 10 and 20 percent by weight into other polymers it provides immediate and permanent antistatic properties of 1010-12 ohm/sq, depending on the loading and the base polymer. The antistatic properties are maintained in the polymer blend even at low humidity levels. The polymer additive can be compounded into other polymers with compatible melting temperatures, including thermoplastic polyurethanes, polyethylene, polypropylene, polymethyl-methacrylate, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene and polyvinyl chloride.
“Traditional antistatic additives, such as ethoxylated amines, migrate to the component surface where they attract atmospheric moisture that helps dissipate static charges. These materials require time to migrate and a minimum level of moisture in the air. They can also easily be wiped off the surface with cleaning agents,’ said Bill Blasius, manager of R&D and Polymer Science for Foster Corp. “The PEBA additive provides a continuous polymer network throughout the host polymer that is intrinsically antistatic and permanent.”