Understanding the role of inductors in power electronics

Inductors are typically used as energy storage devices in switched-mode power devices to produce DC current. The inductor, which stores energy, supplies energy to the circuit to maintain current flow during “off” switching periods, thus enabling topographies where output voltage exceeds input voltage.
Due to the way they work—by not only altering electric field but the magnetic field around it—many people struggle to understand them.
What is an inductor?
An inductor is arguably the simplest of all electronic components. It’s a passive two-terminal electrical component that stores energy in a magnetic field when electric current flows through it. Typically, an inductor will consist of an insulated wire that’s wound into a coil, much like a resistor. This design was settled on following extensive trial and error methods that considered methods like Hanna curves and area-product.
When the current flowing through the coil changes, the time-varying magnetic field induces voltage in the conductor with a polarity which opposes the change in current that created it. As such, inductors oppose any changes in current that pass through them.
The induced magnetic field also induces an electrical property known as inductance—the ratio of voltage to the rate of change of current. Inductance quantifies how much energy an inductor is capable of storing.
Inductor design and key components
The design of an inductor is governed by electrical, mechanical, and thermal requirements of a given application. In general, it involves:
Selecting the core material
Deciding a core shape and size
Selecting a winding wire
The core material is an enamel-coated magnetic wire typically made of copper which is then coated in layers of insulating polymer material. The winding can form many shapes, including circular, rectangular foil, and square cross-section. A magnetic wire is chosen to confine and guide the magnetic fields, and this is insulated to prevent problems like short circuits and breakdowns.
The different types of inductor
Different applications require different types of inductor. In almost all cases, you’ll find that an inductor in a system is formed around a core material—generally iron or iron compounds—to support the creation of a strong magnetic field.
Iron core inductors
Iron is the classic and most recognizable magnetic material, making it the perfect choice for use in inductors. As above, iron in inductors takes the form of an iron core. They are typically used for low frequency line filtering due to their relatively large inductances. They are also used a lot in audio equipment. Inductors don’t always need to have an iron core, though.
Air core inductors
As the name suggests, air core inductors have no core—the core is open air. Since air has a low permeability, the inductance of air core inductors is very low. This means that the rate of current rise is relatively fast for an applied voltage, making them capable of handling high frequencies found in applications like RF circuits.
Ferrite core inductors
A ferrite is a ceramic material made by mixing and firing iron(III) oxide blended with small amounts of one or more additional metallic elements, such as nickel and zinc. When used in inductors, ferrite powder is mixed with an epoxy resin and molded to form a core around which a magnetic wire can be wound. Ferrite inductors are the most widely used type as it’s possible to finely control their permeability by tuning the ratio of ferrite to epoxy.
power inductors
A coil is a generic name for an electrode in the shape of a spiral. Among the different types of coils, there are coils called “inductors” which are used for electrical applications. Inductors can be further categorized into RF inductors used for signal processing, and power inductors for power supply lines. The power inductors discussed in this section form part of the voltage conversion circuit in a DC-DC converter or other device.
Here we will explain the operation of a power inductor in a DC-DC converter. A power inductor is used in a step-up, step-down, or step-up/step-down circuit to convert a certain voltage to the required voltage. Among those different circuits, it is primarily used in a type of circuit called a “switching regulator.”
Figure 1-1 shows an example of a switching regulator step-down circuit.
It uses an IC, power inductor, and capacitor to convert a DC input voltage to the required output voltage. The power inductor works with the capacitor to play the role of rectifying the rectangular wave output from the IC to a direct current.
If either one of these components is missing, the output cannot be properly rectified.
What is a transformer?
A transformer is a device that transfers electric energy from one alternating-current circuit to one or more other circuits, either increasing (stepping up) or reducing (stepping down) the voltage.
Where are transformers used?
Transformers are employed for widely varying purposes. For example, a transformer is often used to reduce the voltage of conventional power circuits to operate low-voltage devices and to raise the voltage from electric generators so that electric power can be transmitted over long distances.
Why is the iron core of a transformer laminated?
The iron core of a transformer is laminated to reduce eddy currents. Eddy currents are the small currents that result from the changing magnetic field created by the alternating current in the first coil. They need to be minimized so they won’t disturb the flow of electricity from the primary coil to the secondary coil.

transformer, device that transfers electric energy from one alternating-current circuit to one or more other circuits, either increasing (stepping up) or reducing (stepping down) the voltage. Transformers are employed for widely varying purposes; e.g., to reduce the voltage of conventional power circuits to operate low-voltage devices, such as doorbells and toy electric trains, and to raise the voltage from electric generators so that electric power can be transmitted over long distances.
Transformers change voltage through electromagnetic induction; i.e., as the magnetic lines of force (flux lines) build up and collapse with the changes in current passing through the primary coil, current is induced in another coil, called the secondary. The secondary voltage is calculated by multiplying the primary voltage by the ratio of the number of turns in the secondary coil to the number of turns in the primary coil, a quantity called the turns ratio.

Operation
Current transformers are unique because they usually have only one winding. The primary is connected to the line load in series. When the primary has a high current rating, the primary winding may be a straight conductor that runs through the magnetic circuit's center. This straight conductor indicates a one-turn winding. 
When the primary has a low current rating, the primary winding may consist of several turns wrapped around the core. This provides the required flux on low-current applications or to compensate for line drop to a power meter.
The secondary consists of many turns of wire wrapped around a core. The number of turns is determined by the desired turns ratio of the current transformer. The primary current of a current transformer is not controlled by the secondary, as it would be in a two-winding potential transformer. The secondary of a current transformer cannot affect the current in the primary, as the load on the feeder determines the primary current.
When the primary circuit is energized, the secondary of a current transformer must never be left open. When the circuit is operational, the load on the secondary maintains low magnetizing currents and thus low turn-to-turn potentials. When the secondary becomes an open circuit, the magnetizing currents rise, and the current transformer acts as a step-up potential transformer. The voltage can rise to a destructive level and cause a short between the turns as the result of the degradation of the insulation. Therefore, a current transformer should always have its secondary shorted when not connected to an external load.
What is a High Voltage Transformer?
A high voltage transformer is a type of transformer that operates at a high voltage level. High voltage transformers are normally used in high voltage labs for testing purposes. These high voltage transformers are subjected to transient voltages and surges during their normal operation when the insulation under test breaks down.
To withstand these impulse voltages, the insulation of these transformers must be carefully designed. These are usually single-phase core-type transformers.
This type of transformer is generally oil immersed. Bakelite sheets are used for separating high tension and low tension windings. The high voltage transformers used for HV cable testing also need to supply sufficient electric current.
This can generate a lot of heat, and as such the cooling system of these transformers is very carefully designed. Special care also needs to be taken to ensure proper transformer voltage regulation.
For insulator testing purposes, the required current is very less but, while the insulator breaks down during testing, there would flow huge current through the transformer. To limit this current, a high resistance is connected in series with transformer.

The Leather Knife Roll Designed by a Chef
You can tell a lot about a chef from their knife roll. Unfortunately, from what we hear often, finding a high quality knife roll to protect chefs’ knives doesn’t seem like such an easy task. That’s probably why this beautiful leather knife roll has got so many chefs excited.
Called the “perfect storage tool” by Food & Wine, the beautiful piece of kit is part of a collaboration between an award-winning chef, an artisan blacksmith and some outdoor gear craftsmen.
“Durability, balance and comfort” were the three key attributes that chef Chris Hastings (Hot and Hot Fish Club and OvenBird) looked to incorporate in the leather knife roll, and working together with Radcliffe Menge, the founder of Tom Beckbe, Alabama-based outdoor apparel company, they came up with the perfect piece of gear for professional chefs.
It comes in a full-grain vegetable tanned leather that is durable and elegant, and it is functional with space for 18 knives and eight additional pieces of hardware. Adjustable shoulder straps make this high quality roll bag comfortable and ergonomic.
The key feature of the knife roll is that it is balanced – knives are placed on both sides so the blades cross over one another in opposing pockets. A three-part interior flap system and two exterior belts make sure knives are secure.If you want to fill up your new leather knife roll with a set of equally good-looking knives - and have US$2,499 to spare - check out the limited edition chef knives also available on their website. Hastings and Menge teamed up with Will Manning, the blacksmith of Tennessee knife brand Heartwood Forge, who created the set that includes three knives - an elongated paring knife, a traditional chef’s knife and a cleaver-like knife that Menge calls the Butcher’s Haste.
Most slitter blades feature a beveled edge for optimal cutting power. A beveled edge allows a blade to slit material instead of creating standard cuts. When a slitting knife has the primary purpose of making punctures, it will have teeth. These teeth create smaller slits in progression, such as the ones found on tear-off paper products. Our sales engineers can help you determine which blade solution will work best for your application.
At York Saw & Knife, we manufacture all of our slitter blades in-house. As an original equipment manufacturer, you’ll appreciate our competitive prices and fast turnaround times that allow you to maximize your profits. If you get our blades as an end-user, we will listen to your needs to design a personalized solution. We consider your business goals our business goals.
APPLICATIONS FOR OUR SLITTER BLADES
Our slitter blades can slit a wide range of materials, including:
Paper: A slitting blade can create slits and perforations in paper for a variety of purposes. For example, a toothed slitter blade can create a tear-off line for tear-away paper products.
Corrugated products: Corrugated products such as fiberboard and cardboard need high-quality blades for the best cutting results. Our expertly made slitting knives can create slits in these materials while keeping their edge.
Food and meats: Slitting knives can slice and score a variety of food products. We can develop custom blades for applications like meat slicing and processing.
Foil and film: Our precision slitting blades have the sharpness needed to smoothly slit foil. You can also request a custom blade for slitting other delicate materials like film.
Textiles: Fabric requires a sturdy blade that retains its edge throughout regular cutting operations. Our team develops custom slitting blades for textiles that achieve the cuts you need.
Plastics: We can design slitting knives suitable for plastics of various thicknesses and compositions. Their sharpness and durability allow you to work with a wide range of synthetic materials.
And more
This list includes just a few of the possible applications for slitting knives. Thanks to our versatile capabilities, you can specify a slitting blade design for a variety of uses.
Long blade knives
In this article, we will introduce you to knives that have a blade length of at least 20 centimetres. It is obvious that long blades are particularly well-suited to larger ingre-dients, but these knives excel in different areas too, as you will find out:
Super Slicer: the cut-anything knife
There are some ingredients that demand a truly exceptional knife: the tough skin of a pineapple, for example, or the stalk of an artichoke. And the Super Slicer can easily handle both: the convex, outwardly shaped serrations of the blade ensure pow-erful and clean cuts - even with very fibrous, tough foods.
Salmon knife: sharp and flexible
Granted, there isn’t always a suitable knife for every possible situation. But, if you have a whole salmon in front of you, or at least half of one, you'll love this blade. The Salmon knife is very long, sharp and flexible, so you don't tear the fine flesh of the fish and you can cut wafer-thin slices.
Ham knife: also suitable as a carving knife
Of course we have the right speciality knife in our range when it comes to smaller hams. Thanks to its long, narrow blade, the Ham knife is also suitable as a carving knife, as you can use it to carve up roasts, hams or poultry – whether raw or cooked – very efficiently.
How to choose the suitable material for cutting knife blade of industrial shredders
Shredder blade is a kind of cutter that is equipped on industrial shredder or granulator. They are machines for crushing waste materials like rubber, tires, wood, paper, polymers, plastic, textiles and so forth. As we all know, industrial waste shredders are playing a critical role in the recycling industry. For one thing, they can save a lot of storage space. Data indicates a shredder can reduce the total volume of processed industrial waste by 30%-50% on average. For another thing, shredders optimize the value of industrial wastes by forming them into granule reaching a recyclable level.
As space is limited, we only pay attention to the cutter part of a shredder. Many variables to affect shredder cutter’s efficiency, such as cutting angle, numbers of knives, cutting velocity, chip load, etc. Above all, A primary factor is If the cutter material is suitable to deal with the industrial waste. That’s always the first thing on your concern.
Materials of shredder cutter out there vary, so do the materials of industrial waste, too.
Common trash wood includes cardboard, paper, solid wood, and plywood board. For brittle wood, such as branches, twig, cardboard, SK5 is a practical and economical option. The steel is a kind of carbon tool steel with nice resistance to wear, but poor plasticity and hardenability. SK5 is often used to make woodworking knives, and sample-sized dies. Its performance is not super outstanding, which results in its cheaper price, compared with other types of wood-processed steels.
However, for high-strength trash wood, such as stumps, plywood boards, and discarded furniture, SK5 is not competent. We’d turn to use high manganese steel, accordingly. High manganese steel is generally used to make a smashing hammer in mining and architecture industry. Its metal hardened depth can reach 10mm-20mm and remain as hard as HB500-550. When working at a high torque, the manganese steel will not be easily deformed or even broken like SK5. In addition to this, the high manganese steel is more affordable, compared with other alloy carbon steel.
2.For shredding plastic
In the plastic industry collectors and recyclers started their business pretty late compared to areas of scrap wood and paper&cardboard. Trash plastic can be generally a huge blend with at least the same amount of possible additives and fillers. They contain not only lower grade plastic but also high-value ones. Thus we need to recognize which type of plastic is in the input mixture.
The principle of the crusher blade is to use a set of running knives to smash the target (pulverized material). When the target (pulverized material) is broken by the crusher blade, the blade is gradually worn out.
There are many applications at different industries which are using crusher knives . Therefore, Jiuli Knives will base on the client's application to select the right material to produce the crusher blade, and it will influence the wear resistance and toughness of the crusher knife to be optimized, the product life of the blade to be increased, the pulverizing ability to be maximized and the thickness of the pulverized powder is uniform.
The slitter rewinder blades are mainly applied to rewinders for slitting of tissue paper. The quality of rewinder blades directly affect the production quality and efficiency. Seton developed circular tungsten carbide and inlay carbide rewinder blades to improve customers' use effect and blades' service life.
As for the selection of cutting tool materials, we can make recommendation according to customers' cutting materials, so as to ensure that customers can use the appropriate knives during production. The common specifications of blades may be not suitable for your machines, and if needed, please send us the samples or drawings. We will manufacture strictly in accordance with the design precision.

Benefits of CNG

Environmentally Friendly, Reduced maintenance cost, CNG Produces significantly less Pollutants than petrol/diesel, natural gas is cheaper & safer than Petrol/diesel, Green fuel.

Greenfuel:
Commonly referred to as the green fuel because of its lead and sulphur free character, CNG reduces harmful emissions thus reducing the effect of global warming. Being non-corrosive, it enhances the longevity of spark plugs. Due to the absence of any lead or benzene content in CNG, the lead fouling of spark plugs, and lead or benzene pollution are eliminated.

Safety:
CNG is less likely to auto-ignite on hot surfaces, since it has a high auto-ignition temperature (540 degrees centigrade) and a narrow range (5%-15%) of in flammability. It means that if CNG concentration in the air is below 5% or above 15%, it will not burn. This high ignition temperature and limited flammability range makes accidental ignition or combustion very unlikely.

Low operational cost:
The operational cost of vehicles running on CNG, as compared to those running on other fuels, is significantly low. At the prevailing price of fuel in Delhi, Operational cost of CNG vehicles is 66% lower than petrol and 28% lower than diesel.

Increased life of oils:
Another practical advantage observed is the increased life of lubricating oils, as CNG does not contaminate and dilute the crankcase oil.

Mixes evenly in air:
Being a gaseous fuel CNG mixes in the air easily and evenly.

Economical:
a) Easy on the pocket.
b) CNG delivers high performance at low cost, as it gives your vehicle a better mileage.
c)CNG does not contaminate or dilute crank case oil, giving engine an extended life.
Eco friendly:
a) The use of CNG significantly reduces harmful vehicular exhaust gas emissions like carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and other suspended particles.
b) It protects the environment by reducing the effects of global warming.
c) Non –toxic, non-corrosive, non-carcinogenic and hence improves public health.

Safe &Reliable:
a) CNG is lighter than air and hence disperses quickly without any dangerous accumulation.
b) CNG has a narrow flammability range making it much safer than other fuels.
c) CNG has a higher ignition temperature than other fuels, reducing chances of accidental and spontaneous ignition.

It matters how the electricity is made
Broadly speaking, most electric cars sold today tend to produce significantly fewer planet-warming emissions than most cars fueled with gasoline. But a lot depends on how much coal is being burned to charge up those plug-in vehicles. And electric grids still need to get much, much cleaner before electric vehicles are truly emissions free.
One way to compare the climate impacts of different vehicle models is with this interactive online tool by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who tried to incorporate all the relevant factors: the emissions involved in manufacturing the cars and in producing gasoline and diesel fuel, how much gasoline conventional cars burn, and where the electricity to charge electric vehicles comes from.
If you assume electric vehicles are drawing their power from the average grid in the United States, which typically includes a mix of fossil fuel and renewable power plants, then they’re almost always much greener than conventional cars. Even though electric vehicles are more emissions-intensive to make because of their batteries, their electric motors are more efficient than traditional internal combustion engines that burn fossil fuels.
Natural gas vehicles (NGVs) can offer an array of economic and environmental benefits to California residents. These may include the economic benefits of a low-cost, domestic fuel, developing a market for green jobs, improving regional air quality, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, reducing our dependence on petroleum and providing a pathway to a hydrogen economy.
Environmental Benefits
Natural gas vehicles can have an immediate and positive impact on the issues of air quality, U.S. energy security and public health. Here are some key benefits of using natural gas as a transportation fuel.
NGVs are Clean
NGVs are some of the cleanest vehicles in commercial production today, and produce only 5-10 percent of the emissions allowable, even by today's most stringent standards. NGVs produce 20-30 percent less greenhouse gases than gasoline- or diesel-powered vehicles.
Overall, natural gas is one of the cleanest burning alternative fuels available today. NGVs can reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions and reactive hydrocarbons which form ground-level ozone, the principal ingredient of smog, by as much as 95 percent. NGVs can also reduce emissions of carbon dioxide by as much as 30 percent, carbon monoxide (CO) by 85 percent and carcinogenic particulate emissions by 99 percent.
Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The use of compressed natural gas (CNG) in place of gasoline or diesel can help reduce greenhouse gases.
A 2008 "well to wheels" analysis conducted by TIAX, LLC concludes that natural gas offers up to a 30 percent reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for light-duty vehicles, and as much as a 23 percent reduction for medium- to heavy-duty vehicles, when compared with gasoline and diesel. The chart below shows the amount of C02 that has been displaced since 1999 by SoCalGas? customers using vehicles powered by CNG instead of diesel. In 2008 alone, that number was almost 229,000 metric tons of CO2!
Clearly, NGVs present one of the cleanest choices for today and tomorrow.
Concept of LNG
LNG is a natural gas (predominantly methane, CH4) that has been converted to liquid form for ease of storage or transport. After being liquefied, it takes up about 1/600 the volume of natural gas in the gaseous state and about 45% the weight of water in equal volume. As a cleaner energy, natural gas is increasingly favored. LNG is proposed to be the prior choice of alternative fuels in many countries, for example, United States, Canada, Europe, and China. As a result, the ratio of natural gas in energy supply increases rapidly. While compressed natural gas (CNG) is just suitable for light-duty vehicles, LNG can be used in road transport, such as heavy-duty trucks and buses. In China, CNG buses and LNG buses were introduced into the bus fleet in Beijing in 1999 and 2012, respectively. After that, more and more cities in China have swift some diesel buses to LNG buses, for example, Guangzhou, Xiamen, and Shenzhen. Heavy-duty vehicle, whose total mass is 14 tons or more, is the main object of promoting LNG vehicles in Shenzhen road freight. Different from light-duty vehicle using diverse fuel (e.g. gasoline, diesel, CNG, and electric), heavy-duty vehicle uses diesel or LNG because the fuel’s energy density must be high enough to meet its power requirement. There are three main types of LNG heavy-duty vehicles in Shenzhen, namely, container tractors, engineering dump trucks, and engineering mixers.
LNG supply safety
The main sources of LNG supplied to Shenzhen include foreign imports and provincial imports. The former is mainly from Australia, Malaysia, and so on. The latter is the Second West-East Gas Pipeline Project, supplying natural gas of about 40?billion m3/year for Shenzhen. Natural gas is transported through pipeline in gaseous state, so it needs complex liquefaction process involving removal of certain components, for example, dust, acid gases, helium, and water. Besides, a small amount of LNG is transported to Shenzhen by cargo transport containers from Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, and other gas fields. In addition, the contract of Russia’s gas project was signed. A diversity of LNG source markets appear.
Shenzhen has the largest number and the biggest LNG terminals in China. After all of the terminals have become fully operational, the supply capacity of LNG will greatly exceed 11?million tons/year, accounting for around 55% of that in Guangdong province. Along with picking up LNG at adjacent cities, LNG supply is totally guaranteed.
LNG fueling stations
The number of LNG fueling stations is still not enough in Shenzhen. Besides, the layout of LNG fueling stations is unreasonable. China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) Shenzhen Gas Co., Ltd is one of the largest automotive LNG suppliers. By the end of 2015, it had built 17 LNG fueling stations distributed at 6 districts, such as Nanshan, Baoan, Longgang, Yantian, Guangming, and Longhua . At present, nine of them have been put into use. Their clients include buses, coaches, container tractors, dump trucks, and engineering mixers. It just takes 3?min to refill a gas tank of LNG vehicle, which is shorter than refilling diesel to a diesel vehicle due to the high pressure of gas dispenser.
Due to the raising economy development of Shenzhen, environmental problems brought by road transport have become more serious. Promoting liquefied natural gas vehicle in the road freight is a key to reduce emissions, change the direction for road freight development, and build a resource-saving society. This article studies the application of liquefied natural gas vehicle in Shenzhen in-depth through official data sets, field investigation, expert consultation, and so on. Economic benefit analysis shows that liquefied natural gas vehicle has the advantage of saving considerable fuel costs for enterprises. Moreover, the Monte-Carlo method is used to evaluate the economic benefits considering a lot of factors. The economic analysis shows that the liquefied natural gas vehicle is more affordable than the diesel vehicle. Finally, the current issues of liquefied natural gas vehicles on the promotion are discussed and some advices are proposed to improve air quality and reduce emissions.

Good’s buffers as a basis for developing self-buffering and biocompatible ionic liquids
Every day scientists in laboratories across the world sit at their desks and painstakingly design experiments in the hope of making a discovery that will change how we think about a biological process. Because biological processes such as enzymatic activity are dependent on pH, one critical aspect of the experimental design is choosing a buffering system that will help maintain a stable pH without altering the results.

And, often, it is the choice of buffer that makes or breaks the experiment. It is possible that the buffer you are using in your lab might be the reason your experiment is failing. Here, you will find how a buffering system works, a description of the characteristics of a good buffer and a list of possible applications and characteristics of the most commonly used biological buffer series.

A buffer consists of a weak acid (proton donor, HA) and its conjugate base (proton acceptor, A -). In water, HA can dissociate into A- and H+. H+ then reacts with water to form H3O+. In the aqueous buffer solution, H3O+, HA and H+ exist in equilibrium with each other. The buffering mechanism consists of two reversible reactions where the concentration of proton donor and proton acceptor are equal.

Then, when a strong acid or base is introduced into this system by the scientist or by enzymatic activity during the experiment, the new ions from the introduced acid or base (H + or OH-) are absorbed by the buffer and the pH remains stable preventing changes in protein structure and function.

Iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) are frequently used in biomedical applications due to their magnetic properties and putative chemical stability. Nevertheless, their well-known ability to mimic some features of the peroxidase enzyme activity under specific conditions of pH and temperature could lead to the formation of potentially harmful free radical species. In addition to the intrinsic enzyme-like activity of IONPs, the buffer solution is an important external factor that can alter dramatically the IONP activity because the buffer species can interact with the surface of the particles. In our study, IONP activity was evaluated in different buffering solutions under different experimental conditions and predominant free radical species were measured by electron paramagnetic resonance using the spin-trap 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide (DMPO). The formation kinetics of the reactive oxygen species were studied by UV-visible spectroscopy with TMB and DAB peroxidase substrates. We found that the highest catalytic oxidation of peroxidase substrates and free radical generation were achieved in acetate buffer, while phosphate buffer inhibited the peroxidase-like activity of IONPs in a concentration dependent manner. When emulating the physiological conditions, a lower catalytic activity was observed at pH 7.4 when compared to that at pH 5.0. Also, in phosphate buffered saline (PBS), we observed an enhancement in the peroxidase substrate oxidation rate that was not accompanied by an increase in DMPO/adduct formation which could be related to a non-specific oxidation catalyzed by the chloride ion. Similar observations were found after the addition of a bicarbonate to HEPES buffer. TMB oxidation did not occur when the reaction was conducted with free iron ions from metal salts with the same concentration of the IONPs (0.33 Fe2+ and 0.66 Fe3+). However, we observed even higher catalytic activities than those when doubling the IONP concentration when they are combined with the free iron salts. These results indicate that MOPS Buffer solutions need to be carefully considered when evaluating IONP catalytic activity and their potential toxicological effects since under physiological conditions of pH, salinity and buffering species, the peroxidase-like activity of IONPs is dramatically reduced.

This work reports a promising approach to the development of novel self-buffering and biocompatible ionic liquids for biological research in which the anions are derived from CAPS Buffer (Good’s buffers, GB). Five Good’s buffers (Tricine, TES, CHES, HEPES, and MES) were neutralized with four suitable hydroxide bases (1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium, tetramethylammonium, tetraethylammonium, and tetrabutylammonium) producing 20 Good’s buffer ionic liquids (GB-ILs). The presence of the buffering action of the synthesized GB-ILs was ascertained by measuring their pH-profiles in water. Moreover, a series of mixed GB-ILs with wide buffering ranges were formulated as universal buffers. The impact of GB-ILs on bovine serum albumin (BSA), here used as a model protein, is discussed and compared with more conventional ILs using spectroscopic techniques, such as infrared and dynamic light scattering. They appear to display, in general, a greater stabilizing effect on the protein secondary structure than conventional ILs. A molecular docking study was also carried out to investigate on the binding sites of GB-IL ions to BSA. We further used the QSAR-human serum albumin binding model, log K(HSA), to calculate the binding affinity of some conventional ILs/GB-ILs to HSA. The toxicity of the GB and GB-ILs was additionally evaluated revealing that they are non-toxic against Vitro fischeri. Finally, the GB-ILs were also shown to be able to form aqueous biphasic systems when combined with aqueous solutions of inorganic or organic salts, and we tested their extraction capability for BSA. These systems were able to extract BSA with an outstanding extraction efficiency of 100% in a single step for the GB-IL-rich phase, and, as a result, the use of GB-IL-based ABS for the separation and extraction of other added-value biomolecules is highly encouraging and worthy of further investigation.

Room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) have been considered as a new type of non-aqueous solvent for chemical synthesis, biocatalysis, electro-chemical devices, polymerization, engineering fluids, and other purposes. This wide variety of applications is a major result of their unusual and tunable physicochemical properties.1-5 ILs are salts that remain in the liquid state below the boiling point of water (100 °C). They are characterized by a high ionic conductivity, high chemical/thermal stability, non-flammability, and high solubility for a large range of materials. Several studies have shown that some ILs, either pure or in aqueous solution, can increase the stability of biomolecules like proteins, enzymes and DNA, which is expressed in the vast number of manuscripts published in this field.5-9 The cations and anions of biocompatible ILs are usually more complex than common salts, such as NaCl. The IL cations are often nitrogen-based, namely alkylammonium, dialkylimidazolium, alkylpyridinium and alkylpyrrolidinium, or phosphorous-containing compounds, such as the widely employed tetralkylphosphoniums. IL anions can be halides, nitrates, sulfates, alkylsulfates, alkylsulfonates, [BF4]−, [PF6]−, [CH3CO2]−, [CF3CO2]−, [Tf2N]−, and [R2PO4]−, among others.

Proteins remain in their native (folded) state under physiological conditions, whereas their denatured (unfolded) state is induced by thermal or chemical unfolding. The effects of ions on protein folding, enzyme activity, and protein crystallization are typically described by the Hofmeister series.10 Although it has been accepted that salt ions exert their effects indirectly by changing the water structure, recent results have questioned this model and shown that in most cases a direct interaction of the salt ions with the protein is involved.11 A particularly useful aspect of ILs results from the combination between chaotropic cations and kosmotropic anions that were shown previously to stabilize proteins.12 Another important aspect of ILs is that their polarity and hydrophobicity can be tuned by varying the alkyl side-chain length of the cations and by an appropriate selection of the cation core or anion nature. There are several reports showing that the enzyme activity increases with the IL hydrophobicity up to a maximum, and then decreases with a further increase in the IL hydrophobicity.12 In contrast, there are also some conflicting studies reporting a relatively high enzyme stability and activity in hydrophilic ILs.12

Proteins’ stability is strongly affected by the proton activity of the supporting solution and has an optimum pH that can be adjusted by the addition of an appropriate CHAPS Buffer. It is generally accepted that, at appropriate concentrations, hydrophilic ILs tend to, fully or partly, dissociate in aqueous solutions and into ions which form neutral or very weakly basic solutions. Certainly, this pattern is not always true because there are some functionalized ILs that work as Lewis acidic or basic catalysts. Adding a buffer to aqueous IL solutions, when dealing with protein stability, will not provide an adequate pH control since the IL acidity or basicity could swamp the buffer effect. Therefore, it is crucial to look for alternative pH control methods, and in particular in the design of ILs with buffering characteristics. Until now, few studies have reported the synthesis of ILs with buffering action.13-16 Nevertheless, those buffer-like ILs are not recommended for biochemical research because their anions are not inert. A number of criteria are required for a buffer to be used in biological and biochemical studies.17 They must be chemically inert, should not interfere with metal ion-protein binding, must be non-toxic, should not absorb light in the UV-visible region, should be commercially available at a low cost, their pKa values should be between 6.0 and 8.0 and should not vary with temperature, and must present high water solubility and low solubility in organic solvents. Good and his research team have designed MES Buffer (Good’s buffers, GB) that fit these criteria.
To evaluate the potential of these new ionic liquids as buffers in aqueous media their pH profiles have been measured. Fig. 2a shows the pH profiles of the investigated Good’s buffers, namely [N1111][GB]. The remaining profiles for other buffers are shown in Fig. S1 in the ESI.† The GBs display two pKa’s: the first dissociation constant (pKa1) is due to the deprotonation of the carboxylic or sulfonic group, and the second dissociation is due to deprotonation of the protonated amino group (pKa2). The inflection point at high pH of those titration curves is due to the deprotonation/protonation of the amine group of the GB/GB-ILs. The region of moderate slope before the inflection point is the buffer region. In this region, the pH is regulated by the equilibrium between the deprotonated and protonated forms. At the middle of this region, the concentrations of these two species are equal, and thus, according to the Henderson–Hasselbalch equation, the pH will be equal to the pKa2 and the buffering capacity is maximum at this point.

Best tufting machines and what you need to know
An improved carpet tufting machine with a precision drive system for laterally shifting the reciprocating needle bars of the tufting machine across a tufting zone in which tufts of yarn are made in a backing material advanced through the machine beneath the needle bars is disclosed. The precision drive system includes the use of inverse roller screw actuators which may be adapted for driving the several moving components of the tufting machine, to include not only the shifting of the needle bars, but also to reciprocate the needle bars toward and away from the tufting zone, rock the loopers and or knives of the machine, and to laterally shift the backing material in which the tufts of yarn are made with respect to the needles as the backing material advances through the tufting machine.

A plain cut or plain loop tufting machine with an improved pattern yarn feed and distribution device for use in tufting a graphic pattern into the face of a tufted article. An improved pattern yarn feed drive is provided with at least two separate yarn drive control sections which together provide an increased number of controls such that any one control is adapted to drive a predetermined number of tufting yarns selectively passed thereabout for minimizing the length between any one of the tufting yarns and its respective tufting needle. An improved tube bank configuration is used with the pattern yarn drive assembly, and comprises at least two tube bank sections, each of which is also constructed and arranged to minimize the length of the yarns passed therethrough from a respective one of the yarn drive controls to a respective one of the tufting needles. This improved construction minimizes the problems of yarn elasticity and yarn lag when feeding the yarns to the needles of the tufting machine, thus greatly reducing the likelihood of a loss of pattern definition occurring in the graphic pattern being tufted in the face of the tufted article on the tufting machine.

Rug tufting is a unique art in that you can create enormous works with relatively few materials. Once you’ve invested in a good tufting gun, you’ve got nearly everything you need to start tufting!

The problem is, choosing the right tufting gun is difficult. Amazon and other retailers are filled with cheap knock-off tufting guns that break down after your first few rugs.

To help you choose the right tufting gun for you, I put together this comprehensive buyer’s guide. First we’ll cover a few key details you need to know, then we’ll have a look at the best tufting guns, where to buy, and more.

If you’re just looking for a quick recommendation, check out any of the models listed below. They won’t do you wrong!

A tufting gun is a handheld FRS tufting machine used to make rugs. It’s much faster than manual methods like latch hook or punch needle, but a step down from industrial tufting machines for carpet.

Tufting guns have a lot of advantages over other rug making or weaving techniques. As mentioned above, they’re very fast. A medium-sized rug can be knocked out in a few hours.

They’re also relatively affordable. A few hundreds dollars will get you a solid machine, and the only supplies you need are yarn, backing material, and creativity.

Rug tufting has been around for decades, but it’s come back into style recently thanks to social media platforms like TikTok. And I’m all for it!

How does it work?
Tufting guns work very much like a sewing machine. It has a “foot” that rests against the backing material, then a large needle pushes yarn through the material, leaving some on the other side.

Depending on the type of tufting gun you have (or the settings), it will either leave a loop (loop pile) or a strand (cut pile) on the other side. More on that in the section below.

One very important thing to keep in mind is that you can run more than one thread of yarn through the tufting gun at a time. Use creative combinations to make interesting patterns, or just save time by pushing through more threads at once!

Loop pile vs cut pile tufting guns
The biggest decision you need to make before buying a tufting gun is whether or not you want a loop pile or cut pile model. There are some models that can do both (learn more about that below), but they tend to be more expensive and fairly difficult to adjust back and forth.

For beginners though, you should absolutely stick to a simple model.

So how do you know which one to choose? Well, there isn’t really a right answer here.

Both loop pile and cut pile tufting guns are great fun, and both can be used to create incredible pieces. Which one you choose will largely be personal preference.

For me personally, I’d probably lean toward cut pile because I like the feel of the finished rug, but again, that’s just personal preference.

Get inspired with the latest Tiny Workshops tours and interviews!

Best tufting guns
With all that background info out of the way, we can finally get to the main show: which tufting guns to buy and where to buy them!

You’ll find a lot of junk models (especially on Amazon), but I’ve selected four of the best tufting guns that are reliable and easy to use for both beginners and experts alike.

Note that all of the shops linked below sell both the tufting gun separately or a full kit with other tufting supplies. Tuft the World also sells an excellent starter kit, and you can save 15% with the code TINY at checkout!

For beginner tufters, the AK-I is the best tufting gun there is. It’s limited to cut pile tufting, but it remains a popular option because of just how easy it is to use.

This thing is easy to set up and hard to break, both of which are extremely common problems when tufting. Plus, it weighs just 3lbs (1.4kg), whereas other models can weigh five times that. It’s great for long tufting sessions.

The main problem with this model is availability. Most shops take pre-orders, and it can take 3+ months to ship. That’s a long time to wait for a new hobby.

Thankfully, the shop listed below seems to maintain stock. It’s based in New Zealand, but they use express air delivery so you can expect your machine in less than two weeks, no matter where to live.

To make matters better, they offer a variety tufting gun kits, as well. You can get your AK-I cut pile tufting gun with a frame, primary tufting fabric, yarn, or even a second loop-pile tufting machine (the AK-II, listed below).

Another place to buy the AK-I tufting gun is a specialty shop called Tuft the World. They have a variety of tufting supplies on offer, and you can save 15% on your purchase at checkout with the code TINY.

Next up is another single needle table tufting machine from the same manufacturer, but this time it’s aimed at loop-pile tufting.

All of the benefits of the model above still apply here: it’s lightweight, durable, and easy to set up. The only difference between the two is the type of rugs they can create.

However, it also suffers from the same big downside. It can be very difficult to get your hands on, and most shops deliver months after purchase.

Again though, the same New Zealand-based shop mentioned above offers great pricing and shipping times of just over a week. You may be able to find one a bit cheaper, but you won’t find one that’s more convenient! The same kits and bundles are available here, too.

If it’s sold out there, you can also buy this model from Tuft the World. Availability is a bit more limited, but you can still save 15% with the code TINY at checkout.

If you absolutely must have a tufting gun that’s capable of both cut pile and loop pile tufting, the KRD-I is one of the best around.

Featuring an improved design over its predecessor the KD-II, this is an industrial grade artificial turf tufting machine. It supports both 110V and 220V power, with a handy speed control knob to slow it all down when you need to.

However, this isn’t a tufting machine for beginners. Swapping between modes requires some expertise, so it’s best left for intermediate or advanced tufters who know their way around a basic machine.

Like this other models on the list, you can buy this one on Etsy at the link below, or at Tuft the World when it’s in stock. Remember to use the code TINY to save 15%!

Ok, so you’re a relative beginner but you still insist on getting a tufting gun capable of both cut and loop pile tufting?

Well, the AK-III is the model for you.

It has many of the same great design elements of the AK-I and AK-II above, but comes with extra parts and features that make it a combo tufting gun.

Although this model is relatively easy to use, there is one big caveat. This is an industrial-grade pneumatic tufting gun, so to use it you’ll need some kind of compressed air system.

That alone will likely add to your setup costs enormously, and the tufting gun itself is one of the priciest on the market.

Still, it can be a great investment for the truly dedicated tufter with a large budget. Buy it on Etsy at the link below, or from Tuft the World with the discount code TINY.

By last pick for the best tufting guns is the ZQ-II. It’s the older version of the KRD-I listed above, but it’s still a very capable machine.

Again, it’s capable of both cut pile and loop pile work, but it’s considerably heavier and more finicky to set up than the other models on the list.

That said, if you know someone who can show you the ropes, you’ll be tufting away in no time. You also don’t need to invest in an air compression system, which is great for small or residential workspaces.

Learn more at the link below, but be aware that supplies are limited to it may be sold out soon!

It’s a lot less violent than it sounds. Tufting is essentially a type of textile craft — much like embroidery or knitting — that’s traditionally used for making rugs. Hand-tufting has its roots in Persia (or modern-day Iran), where the world’s oldest carpet was found. In ancient Persia, the art of tufting varied between villages, which each developed their own weaving patterns and used different yarn colours and knots for their carpet creations.

Centuries later, the craft would arrive to the US by early settlers who wanted to make warm clothing. The world’s first mechanised tufting machine would be developed in Georgia in the 1930s, making chenille rugs and wall-to-wall carpeting very popular. Hand-tufting would see a revival in the ’50s, before falling into a decline with the prominence of latch-hooking, another way to make rugs, in the’ 70s.

Tufting seemed doomed to remain forgotten in the 21st century, but thanks to artsy (and bored) users on TikTok and Instagram, the craft has made a comeback — at least mechanically. Now everyone wants to pick up a tufting gun and punch yarn through a cloth canvas to create a rug resembling their favourite Marvel / Disney / Studio Ghibli character. It has even stirred a crafting frenzy among couples — what could be more romantic than a session at a rug-making workshop?

Whether you intend to DIY at home or attend that aforementioned workshop for your next date, read on for our guide to tufting in Singapore and discover all you need to know.

To control the yarn vibration in a reasonable range and to improve the quality of tufted carpet, it is very important to understand the vibration characteristics of yarn correctly. The transverse vibration equation of yarn is established using Newton’s second law in different paths, and then the yarn vibration characteristic curves in different regions are obtained. Firstly, the yarn path is divided and the optimal constitutive model of tufted carpet yarn is determined. Secondly, the transverse vibration is built by analyzing the force of yarn means. Then, the partial differential equation of yarn vibration is simplified as an ordinary differential equation by the Galerkin truncation method. The equation is solved numerically by using the Runge–Kutta method, obtaining the yarn amplitude in different regions. The vibration characteristics of the yarns after the jacquard parts are emphatically analyzed, and the effects of the speed, tension and damping coefficient on the vibration characteristics of yarns are also discussed. Finally, the results are verified by experiments.

Blister Machine Features Vacuum System for Reject/Transfer
In the compact TF1pro blister machine, a vacuum arm lifts ‘good’ blisters, precisely lowering them to the transfer actuator. Another key safeguard: an upper seal plate that retracts when web motion stops to prevent unnecessary heat exposure.

Pharmaworks, part of ProMach Pharma Solutions, introduces the TF1pro, the next generation system in its TF1 family of compact ba-600 linear pallet automatic blister card packing machine at PACK EXPO Connects. 

The system is particularly suited to small to moderate batch sizes and clinical trials for pharmaceutical and biotech manufacturers and contract packers that frequently changeover. The fully servo-driven blister machine runs up to 100 indexes (200 blisters) per minute.

While smaller systems don’t always have the bells and whistles of high throughput machines, Pharmaworks added many features to maximize product safety and ease of cleaning, while also achieving fast changeovers, accuracy, and versatility.

Ben Brower, director of sales and marketing at Pharmaworks, said, “Two years ago, a large pharmaceutical company approached us and asked us to develop a compact blister machine with the most advanced cGMP features. With their design input, we developed the TF1pro, the only ba-350 turntable automatic blister card packing machine on the market that offers this high level of product safety and sanitation in a small footprint.”

Applications

The system accommodates tablets, capsules, softgels, vials, syringes, liquids, and more. The intermittent-motion TF1pro supports both thermoforming and cold forming applications and runs a wide range of base materials with a standard roll diameter of 500 millimeters, providing twice the production capacity of the ba-600h automatic hf double blister packing machine. The usable forming area is 120 by 165 mm with a depth of 25 mm. Optional product vision inspection and print vision inspection are available, as well as full serialization if needed. 

Processes and parameters, including temperature, pressure, and the timing of each step are PLC-controlled and programmed as a unique recipe in the TF1pro’s large HMI. The TF1pro offers either Rockwell Automation or Beckoff control systems.

Operation

As the base roll unwinds, an optional feature monitors roll diameter and alerts the operator when it's time to add fresh material at the splicing station. Power-driven rollers form a loop in the material, while a sensor ensures that the material loop is in the correct area. This touchless feature helps prevent excess drag on the material, meaning less stretch, saving on costs by allowing the use of small width base rolls.

Next, a splice detector that notifies the operator when there is a splice in the web, allowing the machine to track the splices and automatically reject that section of material.

The company reports that automated adjustment of heating plates, forming tools, and other change parts translates into a 30% reduction in changeover time versus other TF series machines. It features ergonomic components that slide in and lock, including the guide track on the feeding station. The heat area automatically retracts when not in use for operator safety and convenience during changeovers and maintenance. 

Sloped surfaces throughout the system eliminate the chance of cross-contamination from trapped product or debris, which also speeds changeover by simplifying machine cleaning. 

At the heating station, upper and lower plates apply contact heating to the base material. The heating station opens fully during machine stop to remove heat from the material. There are optional burnout detectors to determine that all heating elements are working correctly—these will stop the machine if an issue is detected.  

The warmed material is then indexed to the form station where upper and lower tools create blisters of predetermined shape, size and depth. These are change parts that permit toolless changeover, depending on the blister dimensions needed. 

Driven by a servo motor, the lower tool moves upward during the forming process and this travel can be changed and stored on the HMI to allow the most efficient motion for a given blister size. The blister cavity can be formed with air only or air-plus plug assist (for cavities up to 25 mm deep). 

The TF1pro is available with a wide variety of options, including selective forming that enables specific pockets to be turned on and off within the same tool. Pinhole detection for the lid material and/or the base material is available for cold forming. Additional options include a lid material splice table, a splitter, servo plug assisted cold forming and both helium and nitrogen gas flushing. 

Feeder options

Finished blister cavities are indexed to the feed area, a separate module on the TF1pro that can be tailored to almost any length needed up to twenty-five hundred millimeters. Open access from the front and rear in combination with feed area length allows automatic feed systems to nimbly dock and undock as needed or allow operators to manually fill blister cavities.

Pharmaworks offers several feed systems for its blister packaging machines. The machine on show used the FA1 feeder (also common are the FF1 and FT320) with servo-driven technology to pick and place product into blister cavities. This next generation FA1 feeder is enhanced for more reliable pick motion and features that speed cleanup and enable toolless installation. 

At the feeding stage, product is conveyed across a vibratory sift tray, where dust and debris are removed product is aligned in the feed track. The product populates each groove in the slanted track, enabling gravity to pull the product down the track. The end point of each groove is pre-engineered to match the blister cavity orientation on the web. (When feeding is done manually, operators can work from either side of the machine.) 

Before the blisters arrive at the seal station, the TF1pro’s advanced vision system inspects the product shape and color, and checks for broken or missing product. The vision system logs this information on good and bad blisters into the blister tracking register (BTR). The position of bad blisters on the web is identified, and these products will be rejected later.  

Lidding may be preprinted or printed online with the required lot and date codes. Several third party printers are compatible with the system while a Scanware print vision system checks and logs print quality. 

To ensure consistent and accurate seal integrity a load cell provides real time information on seal pressure. A secondary high-speed sensing system will detect any foreign object between upper and lower seal plates. If an object is detected, the sealing cycle will instantly stop and reverse plate travel. Another safeguard on the TF1pro is a retracting seal plate—if web motion stops, the upper seal plate retracts to the rear so that the web won't be exposed to unnecessary heat. 

Vacuum arm

The blisters are then perforated and die cut by the inverted die punch. The reject/transfer station uses a vacuum arm to lift the “good” blisters onto the outfeed conveyor while “bad” blisters simply drop down into the reject bin, which ensures consistent and accurate ejection. Positioning the die cutter in this way also provides space at the end of the web for direct coupling of a cartoning machine. Blisters can be manually packed as well. 

PACK EXPO Connects continues to bring the industry together in record numbers this week with over 17,000 attendees as of Wednesday. Even after the PACK EXPO Show closes, informative Jumpstart sessions, Innovation Stage presentations, and exhibitor live demos will be available on-demand until March 2021. Be sure to register today so you don't miss out! 

Blister packaging, or blister packs, are pre-formed packaging materials composed of a thermoformed plastic cavity and a pliable lid. In this type of packaging, the product is placed in deep-drawn pockets or cavities resembling a blister. A backing material or lidding mates to the flat area of the plastic cavity enclosing the product inside. Bonding the two structures is a heat-seal coating adhesive. Blister packaging has various types depending on the application. The most popular use of blister packs is packaging pharmaceutical products such as pills, tablets, capsules, and lozenges. Because of its low cost, cheap raw materials, and high operating speed, they are also used for packaging consumer goods such as foods, electronics, toys, and tools. Enumerated below are the benefits of using blister packaging.

“The conversations between Rohrer and Starview have been going on for quite a while,” said Sarah Carson, Head of Marketing at Rohrer. “But in the past year or two the pressure on consumer packaged goods companies to deliver on ambitious sustainable packaging goals by 2025 was increasing considerably, to the point that customer demand started to really ramp up. That included one significant customer who was so serious about the idea that it gave us a powerful business reason to invest in the R&D that it was going to take. Fortunately, we had already established a great partnership with Starview from the machinery side.”

“We had both intended to actually launch this last year at PACK EXPO in Chicago,” said Robert van Gilse, Director of Sales and Marketing at Starview. As we all know, COVID-19 put the kibosh on that plan. But then when customer interest in the concept grew the way that it did, says van Gilse, “We knew it was time to get really serious.”

On the machinery side, a key goal throughout the development process was to come up with tooling that would make it possible for existing customers already running automated Starview bp-260a/e automatic platen alu-pvc alu-alu blister packing machine to get in on the all-paper blister option by simply adding an auxiliary feeder to any one of Starview’s FAB (Fully Automated Blister) Series of machines. With this tooling in place, a flat paper blister is picked from a magazine feed and, thanks to precision scoring done by Rohrer, is erected and made ready to receive whatever product the customer happens to be packaging. Then it’s just a matter of applying the blister card and heat sealing card to blister.

As for the paperboard components that come from Rohrer, at the PACK EXPO booth demo the blister was a 14-point SBS and the blister card was a 20-point SBS. The virgin board is FSC-certified, notes Carson. She also says that Rohrer, a member of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition, worked with that organization to make it possible for customers to easily get permission to use the SPC’s How2Recycle logo on their blister packages.

Printing, meanwhile, is done on an offset press, and both blister and card get an aqueous heat-seal coating. If customers so choose, a window can be die cut into the blister card to provide product visibility. Keep in mind that customers using this all paper blister are producers of products like kitchen gadgets or tooth brushes or pens as opposed to pharmaceutical or healthcare products where such a window would of course be out of the question.

When asked what the All-Paper Blister will cost compared to comparable alternatives, both Carson and van Gilse said there are so many supply chain variables percolating right now that it’s difficult to say.

Secret Of Marble Formation in Mother Earth
Marble is one of the greatest gifts of nature. Inimitably precious and irresistibly intriguing, marble is perceived as the most precious material that fascinates with its distinctive characteristics, colors, patterns, texture and finesse. The formation of marble involves a series of complex strides and processes. It begins at the deepest quarters and crust of our planet Earth and ends with the execution of remarkable interior designs and décor concepts. From extraction to installation, turning raw marble into a masterpiece requires rigorous contemplation.
Admired and revered for its brilliant aesthetics and supreme grandeur, the marble formation begins with the phenomena within the crust entailing the fusion of various elements, energies and forces.
To enlighten you about the complexities, intricacies and practices from creation to finalization of marble into a stunning masterpiece, we bring to you a short sequential guide illustrating the entire process.
How Marble is Formed?
The formation occurs due to a reaction when limestone is subjected to intensive heat and pressure. The composition of marble consists of various minerals such as clay minerals, quartz, pyrite, micas, iron oxides and graphite, etc. but primarily the calcite. The phenomena of metamorphism involves recrystallization of calcite in the limestone leading to formation of rock that is a result of collective amalgamation of calcite crystals.
Extraction of Marble
Extraction process of marble is executed at the quarries in the rocky mountains. To perform efficient sourcing and carriage operations, professionals with tremendous expertise and highly sophisticated equipment are deployed. The pre-extraction arrangements also includes preparation for safety and preservation.
Extraction of Marble
Extraction process of marble is executed at the quarries in the rocky mountains. To perform efficient sourcing and carriage operations, professionals with tremendous expertise and highly sophisticated equipment are deployed. The pre-extraction arrangements also includes preparation for safety and preservation.
Pre-dispatch Procedures
The vehicles with huge loading capacity are used for transportation of the material in large quantities to specific facilities depending upon the requirement for treatment or transformation into sheets.
The marble turned into slabs or sheets are further examined thoroughly for initiation of other imperative procedures like finishing, polishing and plastering for finalization of the same into an end deliverable. After detailed scrutiny and assessment, China marble is ready to be supplied to the market for selling.
WHITE MARBLE
White Marble represents purity and peace.
Many architects use white marble, either for cladding or flooring, in order to bring spaciousness and luminosity to a room. Another of the qualities of white is that it is timeless and therefore, always in fashion.
When it comes to matching, that is going to be easy. It works well with neutral tones (creams, blacks or greys), while combining it with other more eye-catching colours, such as red or green, makes it possible to soften ambiences.
The shades of White Marble are innumerable. We can find whites with streaks, very clean whites or more greyish. It is nature that provides its exclusive touch to each one of them.
Grey Marble Attributions to Architecture and Design
Grey marble attributions to architecture and design are to be discussed here.
Grey Marble Represents Depth
Pietra Grey Marble due to its ash tone creates depth. As grey comes in shades from near white all the way to dark charcoal, it’s easy to use it to create light and shadows. Subtle variation of the same color can add character and take a plain room to a multi-dimensional one, creating recesses and reliefs where there are none.
Grey Marble Represents Elegance
Pietra Grey Marble has an elegant toner. Grey can make almost any color smokier when blended in. Some examples are grey-blue, grey-green, or even dusky pinks and browns, such as clay-beige. In addition, it also marbles nicely with other neutrals to create complexity and tone down the harshness of a single color on its own.
Grey Marble Represents Formality
Grey is formal. We’ve mentioned that Pietra Grey is sophisticated and elegant. It is also a traditionally formal, conservative color. This may be why we often see grey as a popular choice for uniforms as well as for suits and wedding tuxedos. These suits represent balance, steadfastness, and dependability. While grey can also be whimsical when offset with vivid colors, grey’s cool elegance when coupled with silver and wood is the perfect marriage for your formal rooms.
Why beige marble is preferred in home flooring ?
We have all seen movies that exhibit luxury-defining grandeur in the interiors. There have been specific moments when the want to own a home that whispers our taste of opulence. Be it Baroque, Victorian, Neoclassical or the modern alternative, Minimalist styled interiors, when it comes to show-casing life king size, the shades and hues of beige take the front row. The colour beige brings out the perfect elegance that you desire of your interior and enhances interiors in ways other colours can only gawk in awe at.
The greatest architects and interior designers of our time have long since known the class that beige holds in itself and the rich excellence it generates when used intelligently. You can openly declare your love for beige as does the royal chateau of Palace of Versailles in France or you can use the subtle beige accents like the Belgium suite of Buckingham Palace in United Kingdom.
Wherever your interior inspiration spring from, be it movies, or a Broadway adaptation of a play, or your ambitious imagination while reading a book, or from the glazing leaflets of a designing magazine, beige marble in the interiors is all your ideas and prayers answered. When it comes to floorings, beige marble has proven itself to be the archetype of excellence and perfection.
Interiors So Lit!
Beige coloured floorings look demure. They reflect the light that falls on their gleaming surface with soft scattering-like effect that makes it amazingly easy on the eyes and essentially visually appealing. The aesthetics are an important part of interiors. They make your soul sing with adoration when you gaze upon a beautifully decorated home.
But, Oh! The Contrast!
Imagine magenta against beige, or textures of mahogany… envision pink flowers and violet drapes… visualise velvet green upholstered ottoman in front of a rocking chair in your favourite reading nook…
The point behind this imaginative mental exercise is that beige provides the best contrast there is. The regal front that it fosters is just a natural property of beige. Your furniture look outstanding, decorative objects and showpieces attain the right amount focus, and soft lights create a peaceful overall ambience.
You’ve Got It, You Flaunt It!
For people who love the modern styles of interior decoration, the clean and crisp styles with no over dose of gilded golden glitter scattered around in distracting fashion, like the contemporary and minimalist, beige floorings are perfect too. Flaunt the beauty of your home, you don’t need a rug for covering up floors that sparkle with magnificence.
Interiors So Lit!
Beige coloured floorings look demure. They reflect the light that falls on their gleaming surface with soft scattering-like effect that makes it amazingly easy on the eyes and essentially visually appealing. The aesthetics are an important part of interiors. They make your soul sing with adoration when you gaze upon a beautifully decorated home.
But, Oh! The Contrast!
Imagine magenta against beige, or textures of mahogany… envision pink flowers and violet drapes… visualise velvet green upholstered ottoman in front of a rocking chair in your favourite reading nook…
The point behind this imaginative mental exercise is that beige provides the best contrast there is. The regal front that it fosters is just a natural property of beige. Your furniture look outstanding, decorative objects and showpieces attain the right amount focus, and soft lights create a peaceful overall ambience.
You’ve Got It, You Flaunt It!
For people who love the modern styles of interior decoration, the clean and crisp styles with no over dose of gilded golden glitter scattered around in distracting fashion, like the contemporary and minimalist, beige floorings are perfect too. Flaunt the beauty of your home, you don’t need a rug for covering up floors that sparkle with magnificence.
Granite stone is often used in buildings, bridges, paving, monuments, countertops, tile floors, stair treads and many other design elements.The word granite has been derived from the Latin word ‘granum’ meaning grain. Granite is an intrusive, igneous rock with a granular and phaneritic texture, occupying 70-80% of the Earth’s crust. It is plutonic in origin, implying that it was formed deep underground. This rock is primarily composed of interlocking crystals of alkali feldspar (65% by volume), quartz (20% by volume), mica, amphiboles and other minerals. Depending on the mineral composition, the colour of granite can be red, pink, grey or white with dark mineral grains visible to the unaided eye. Granite is a hard and tough rock with an average density between 2.65 and 2.75 g/cm.
Location
It is found in abundance in all continents as part of the continental crust. This rock is found either in small, stock like masses spread over an area less than 100 km2 or as batholiths which are part of orogenic mountain ranges. Granite usually forms the base underground rock with other continental and sedimentary rocks resting over it. Granite also occurs in lacoliths, dikes and sills. Other rock variations, similar in composition to granite, are alpites and pegmatites. Alpites with finer grain size than granite, occur at the margins of granitic intrusions. Pegmatites with coarser grains than granite often share locations with granite deposits.
Formation
There are several controversial theories regarding the origin of granite. The most widely propagated ones are the magmatic theory and the hypermetamorphic theory. According to the magmatic theory, plutonic rocks like granite, which are often found associated with mountain ranges, originated from magma. It is believed that during the formation of mountains, when one continental edge subdues another one below it, the pressure and frictional forces generated by this phenomenon is sufficient to melt the rocks underneath the subdued continental edge. This melted rock or magma seeps up in the form of large globules or plutons. It takes an extremely long time for the plutons to arrive at the surface of the earth and to be converted into a surface rock, the pluton must be eroded by the weathering forces acting on the ground. This could be one of the processes by which granite formation takes place. The hypermetamorphic theory, however, disregards the magmatic theory and instead propagates that granite is the result of melting and re-crystallization of sedimentary rock instead of magma. However, as of yet, the precise method of granite formation, is still under research till a conclusive proof of formation of this rock is attained.

The Benefits of Free Weights for your Training Routine
When it comes to working out, there are so many tools, machines, and techniques. How do you know which one is best for you? The answer isn’t so simple since each one has their own unique advantages. However, fitness and health expert Emily Schromm shares some benefits of free weight training to help navigate the world of free weights vs machines.
Benefits of Free Weights
Decrease Imbalances- Using weight machines or barbells can lead to strength differences in each side of our body. When using these methods, it’s common for one side of the body to become more dominant and take on more of the work in an exercise. Free weight exercises allow us to load each side of our body equally, which prevents muscle strength imbalances. Often times, we don’t realize that strength imbalances are there until we incorporate free weights.
Strength Gains- Utilizing free weights to decrease imbalances will allow our weaker side to get stronger. Beyond that, free weight exercises require more control and balance. This means that more muscles are recruited to stabilize the weight which ultimately leads to more gains.
Injury Prevention- Free weight exercises are great at strengthening the body’s stabilizing muscles. These muscles play an important role in keeping your joints in place as well as supporting your body, so keeping them strong is a great way to prevent injuries.
Promotes Functional Fitness- The term functional fitness refers to exercises that have applications for everyday life activities. For example, doing exercises where you lift weights off the ground trains your body for similar movements. Performing activities like picking up a laundry basket or child becomes easier because your body is conditioned for it. Free weight exercises tend to have more real-life applications. Outside of the gym, most of the weight we lift is “free”, meaning our body needs to have strong stabilizing muscles to support the activity.
Free Weight Exercises
Free weights are ideal for working slow, controlled movements. Emily Schromm suggests incorporating exercises like dumbbell snatches, Turkish get ups, and windmills to get some of the benefits of free weights. Don’t stop there, free weights can be used to target any muscle group you want to work.
Free Weights vs Machines
Both free weight exercises and machines have their pros and cons. Weight machines can be useful for beginners for teaching proper form. Plus, weight machines can allow for higher weight volumes to be achieved. With any training routine, it’s about balance. You don’t need to go all in with free weights to take advantage of the benefits, just try incorporating some free weight training to your routine!
5 Benefits of Dumbbell Training
Most health clubs and gyms offer rows of cardio equipment, aisles of weight-training machines, stacks of free weights and specific stretch areas to help members pursue their individual goals. When it comes to fitness equipment, there is no one “best” piece of equipment. Different types of equipment are purposefully designed to achieve specific fitness outcomes.
For those with goals related to strength training, there are countless options for increasing lean muscle or adding strength. Choices include the traditional weight machines, barbells or dumbbells, as well as a wide variety of specialized equipment such as kettlebells, medicine balls, sandbags and even oversized tires. Some forms of resistance training equipment, such as barbells, are more effective for developing max strength, while weight-training machines can help increase muscle definition and lighter forms of resistance such as medicine balls and kettlebells can be useful for improving movement-specific power output. Dumbbells are often used for joint-isolation exercises such as biceps curls, chest flyes or shoulder raises. Using dumbbells for full-body, multiplanar movements, however, can provide a variety of different strength outcomes. It also offers many benefits for cardiorespiratory fitness and flexibility. To help you select the best equipment for your needs, here are five benefits of dumbbells:
Dumbbells can provide the two types of overload that lead to muscle growth: mechanic and metabolic. Mechanic overload is the result of damaged caused by muscle contractions, which stimulates the repair process and leads to an increase in muscle size. Metabolic overload occurs when a muscle is worked to fatigue, which leads to the adaptation of muscle cells being able to store more glycogen which can cause muscles to increase in size. Heavy dumbbells can generate mechanical overload, while moderate-weight dumbbells combined with high reps (to fatigue) can produce metabolic overload.
Dumbbell exercises can create both inter- and intramuscular coordination, leading to greater levels of muscle activation. Intermuscular coordination is the ability of a number of different muscles to work together to produce and stabilize joint motion. Intramuscular coordination is the amount of muscle motor units and their attached muscle fibers that are activated within a specific muscle. Using lighter dumbbells for compound, multijoint or multiplanar movement patterns improves coordination between different body segments. Using heavier dumbbells can increase the number of muscle fibers activated within a specific muscle.
Dumbbells can benefit both the contractile element and elastic component of muscle tissue. The contractile element is the specific actin-myosin muscle proteins responsible for sliding across one another to create concentric shortening actions or control eccentric lengthening. The elastic component is the fascia and connective tissue that attaches each individual muscle fiber and groups of fibers to one another. The elastic component stores mechanic energy as it is lengthened, which is then released during a rapid muscle-shortening action. Traditional exercises with heavy dumbbells can increase the force production capacity of the contractile element, while multiplanar movement patterns with light dumbbells can enhance the resiliency and strength of the elastic component.
Dumbbells can be used for a variety of exercises. Machines allow one motion in one specific movement pattern to place load on one muscle or muscle group. Due to their length, standard barbells are best used for compound movements in one specific plane of motion. Due to their size and the fact they can be held in each hand, dumbbells can be used to create a variety of different movement patterns to develop task- or movement-specific strength.
Dumbbells allow the user to focus on one arm or leg at a time, which is one way to initiate strength gains by using a heavy overload. A single dumbbell can be used for exercises such as a one-arm overhead press or a split-leg goblet squat to create overload in one limb at a time.
Weight plates make a great replacement for dumbbells and kettlebells, but using one also comes with a unique benefit: It improves grip strength because of the way you have to hold the plate (on the edges, with all fingers actively engaged) and core stability because of its positioning (typically in front of your chest). Plus, they can double as raised platforms for push-ups.
Case in muscle-building point: the total-body routine below, designed by says Eric Quarshie, a Tier 3 trainer at Equinox Yorkville in Toronto, Canada. “Together, these exercises work all of the body’s basic movement patterns and major muscle groups while also honing in on the stabilizer muscles, especially those of the core that also allow for rotation,” he says. Rotational power is critical to sports performance—whether you’re running, lifting, climbing, or performing martial arts.
The workout contains two four-move circuits. Perform 12 to 15 reps (per side, when applicable) of the first four exercises back to back. Rest for 30 seconds to 1 minute, then repeat for a total of 4 rounds. Follow the same format with the last four exercises. Do this workout at least three times per week for optimal results. Or, whenever the gym’s packed and you don’t have time to wait for the dumbbells and squat rack to free up.
There are a number of terrible reasons to love bumper plates. They are rubbery, bouncy and don’t smell like rust. They take up tons of room on the bar, creating the illusion of lifting lots of weight. You can even slam them down from overhead if you enjoy using a bent barbell. Most importantly, you mysteriously set PRs every time you deadlift with them after training with steel plates. I hate to be the one to burst your bumper plate bubble, but deadlifting with bumpers is significantly easier when compared to iron plates.

This doesn’t mean that your coveted PR no longer stands. It just means that you have introduced another variable to consider when measuring your strength. When you PR your deadlift using bumper plates, you obviously still lifted the weight. But were the conditions the same as the last time you hit a personal best? Did you really get stronger? Or did your equipment simply give you additional mechanical advantage? The real answer is probably some combination of the above. We can solve the mysterious case of the bumper plate PR with a little science and engineering.

Understanding USB Cable Types and Which One to Use
Most computers and electronic devices have some form of USB connection, and many devices also come packaged with a USB cable. What are all these different cables for, and why does it matter which one you use?
It can be somewhat complicated to wrap your head around all this. Here's everything you need to know about the USB standard, including how to identify various USB cable types and what they do.
6 Common USB Cable Types and Their Uses
USB is supposedly universal, but there are so many different types of USB cables and connections. Why is this? As it turns out, they each serve different functions, mainly to preserve compatibility and support new devices.
Here are the six most common types of USB cables and connectors:
Type-A: The standard flat, rectangular interface that you find on one end of nearly every USB cable. Most computers have multiple USB-A ports for connecting peripherals. You'll find them on game consoles, TVs, and other devices too. This cable only inserts in one way.
Type-B: An almost-square connector, mostly used for printers and other powered devices that connect to a computer. They're not very common these days, as most devices have moved onto a smaller connection.
Mini-USB: A smaller connector type that was standard for mobile devices a while back. While not that common today, you'll still see these on some devices, which are mostly from Sony. These include cameras, the PlayStation 3 controller, MP3 players, and similar.
Micro-USB: Another past standard, slowly declining in popularity, for mobile and portable devices. It's even smaller than mini-USB. While you'll still find micro-USB on some smartphones, tablets, USB battery packs, and game controllers, many have moved onto USB-C.
Type-C: This is the newest type of USB cable. It's a reversible connection that packs higher transfer rates and more power than previous USB types. It's also capable of juggling multiple functions. You'll see it on many modern laptops and smartphones, including MacBooks, Pixel phones, and controllers for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S|X. We discuss USB-C more below.
Lightning: This isn't a true USB standard, but is Apple's proprietary connector for the iPhone, AirPods, some iPad models, and more. It's a similar size to USB-C and comes standard on most Apple devices released since September 2012. Older Apple devices use the much larger 30-pin proprietary connector, and newer iPad Pro models use USB-C. We've covered more on cables, adapters, and ports for Apple devices if you're curious.
In most cases, you'll find USB cables have one standard type-A end and one type-B end of some sort. The type-A end powers the device, while the type-B end receives power. This is to prevent potential damage that would be caused by connecting two computers via USB-A, for example.
The Mini and Micro connectors are considered smaller forms of type-B, even though "type-B" is usually not in their name.
In general, the cables you'll use the most, and therefore need to replace, are micro-USB, USB-C, and Lightning.
USB Speed Standards
USB connection types are only half the story, as USB has also gone through multiple standards of varying data transfer speeds. The cable's connector doesn't necessarily mean that it uses a certain standard.
The main iterations of USB's speed are:
USB 1.x was the original standard, and is ancient by modern benchmarks. You're very unlikely to find devices using this standard nowadays.
USB 2.0 introduced many modern USB norms, including support for Mini and Micro cables, USB OTG (see below), and more. It's the slowest speed of USB still used today. You'll find it used on cheap flash drives, devices like mice and keyboards, and similar. Most computers still include a few USB 2.0 ports.
USB 3.x is the current standard for USB speeds. It's much faster than USB 2.0, and thus recommended for devices like external hard drives. You can typically identify a USB 3.x port or connector by its blue coloring. Some USB 3.0 ports also have an SS symbol (which stands for Super Speed). Most new computers have at least one USB 3 port, and high-quality flash drives use this standard.
USB 4.0 is the newest standard, but at the time of writing it's not generally available. It will become the norm over the next several years, just like it took USB 3 a while to catch on.
What are DisplayPort Cables?
DisplayPort cables are used to provide video and audio connectivity between a host device (typically a PC) and a display. They are commonly used yet are relatively simple in design, with all DisplayPort cables featuring the same basic layout.
In the simplest terms, DisplayPort cables are designed to provide both audio and video signals via a single cable.
They are used to connect displays or monitors to a source device such as a PC or laptop and transmit the outputted audio and video data to the display.
DisplayPort connectors feature twenty pins fitted into an L-shaped connector. Many also include a locking mechanism to ensure a secure connection and prevent the connector from loosening or accidental disconnection.
How Does DisplayPort Differ from HDMI?
Both HDMI and DisplayPort are digital systems, originally designed to replace older analogue systems such as VGA. They both have the same purpose – to transmit high-definition digital audio and video to a display from a source device – but this does not mean that they are the same.
There are understandably some key similarities between the two, such as image quality, but their differences should not be overlooked. DisplayPort and HDMI cables are intended for different purposes, feature different connectors, and cannot be used interchangeably.
DisplayPort is primarily used on PCs, laptops, and tablets for video transmission. Unlike HDMI, it is very rarely used on consumer electronics. Another key difference is that DisplayPort is subscription-free for producers, whereas HDMI must be licensed by the manufacturer.
There are also several additional features which make it easier to differentiate between the two. DisplayPort offers the functionality to drive more than one display with a single cable, making it highly useful for professional applications. Conversely, HDMI can only drive a single display per cable. However, HDMI can support an ARC (Audio Return Channel) which allows sound to be sent from the display to the source device. DisplayPort does not offer this capability.
DisplayPort Cable Lengths
DisplayPort cables are available in a variety of lengths to suit different applications and user requirements. There is no specified DisplayPort cable length limit and no maximum length for these cables, meaning that it is possible to get cables up to 50m in length. Additionally, all cables up to two metres in length must support HBR2 speeds (21.6Gbit/s).
An incident where three men allegedly cut an undersea cables raises the question of how vulnerable the world's submarine internet cables are to damage, whether intentional or accidental.
An HDMI cable is just a conduit between your TV and media device, be it a DVD, Blu-ray, or 4K UHD Blu-ray player; media streamer; video game console; or PC. Different types of HDMI cables do exist, but their designations indicate how much data they can carry. (Spoiler: There’s really no such thing as a 4K HDMI cable.)
When pared down to the most basic information, the video resolution guidelines—as set by the HDMI Forum Technical Working Group that defines the specification—are:
Standard HDMI: Up to 720p or 1080i resolution at a 30Hz refresh rate
High Speed HDMI: Up to 4K resolution (including 1080p) at 30Hz
Premium High Speed HDMI: Up to 4K resolution with high dynamic range (HDR) at up to 60Hz
Ultra High Speed HDMI: Up to 10K resolution with HDR at a 120Hz refresh rate (4K video can refresh at up to 240Hz)
The more detailed versions of the guidelines matter if you want more than just a basic TV signal: If you play video games at more than 30 frames per second, for example, or you intend to make full use of an HDR TV, or you want an HDMI cable that can also carry data over ethernet (most people do not, but that bandwidth can be used for other things).
For these types of scenarios, you must take refresh rate (measured in cycles per second, stated as Hertz, and abbreviated as Hz), the level of color precision (aka color depth, measured in bits; e.g., 8-bit, 10-bit, or 12-bit), and color data compression (i.e., chroma subsampling) into consideration. The higher you go with refresh rate and bit depth—and the less color data compression you opt for—the more data that will be pushed to your TV.
Accordingly, you’ll need an HDMI cable that has adequate bandwidth. The chart below details the nuances that divide Standard HDI, High Speed, Premium High Speed, and Ultra High Speed HDMI. A Premium High Speed HDMI cable should cover the highest demands you’d ask of a 4K TV with a 60Hz refresh rate. If you bought a 4K TV with a true 120Hz refresh rate, like for use with a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X, you should move up to an Ultra High Speed HDMI cable.

Optimal Selection of Leveling Agent for Paints and Coatings
Finding the right leveling agent is often a tedious process, considering all the parameters. It is important to check dosage and product variations to figure out the correct chemistry and fine tune the formulation. Make the selection of your leveling agents easy for your coating formulation by getting answers to most of your questions that arise during the selection process. Learn the role of solvents and other important factors in leveling and, thus, come up with the best coating product.
Dyeing auxiliaries are defined as chemicals or formulated chemicals which enables a processing operation in dyeing to be carried out more effectively. Dyeing auxiliary includes dye fixing agents, cationizing agent, dispersing & leveling agents etc. They help in stabilizing the dyeing bath to improve the exhaustion, achieve level dyeing and improve fastness properties.
Need for Leveling Agents
It is admitted for many paints that a perfect appearance means also a perfect leveling. Poor leveling (like orange peel or ghosting) may not influence significantly the paint parameters in time, as it is more aesthetic orientated. But the leveling agent itself may cause some severe issues.
A correct leveling agent helps in reaching the wanted leveling and final film finish. But a wrong choice may lead to surface defects such as craters, pinholes, loss of gloss or even inter-coat adhesion problems. Therefore, to understand the leveling, it is important to understand the influence of the surface tension on the paint and finding a balance is critical:

Too low surface tension may be good for the substrate wetting but may lead also to a wavy surface.
Too high surface tension can cause adhesion and surface wetting issues.

If you are exploring the factors that govern leveling in any formulation, it might be worth to begin with an in-depth understanding of leveling basics (surface tension, contact angle, test method, etc.) at first.
Which leveling agent is suitable for your formulation?
There are several base chemistries to choose from when selecting a leveling agent & lower the surface tension to the point just that you need for a desired application.

The most common types of leveling agents are listed below.

Silicone-based agents (Polydimethylsiloxane modified - PDMS)
Acrylate-based agents (Polyacrylate)
Fluorocarbon-based agents (Modified Fluorocarbons)
Hydrocarbon-based leveling agents: less efficient than previous families

Understand each chemistry in detail and see which one fits best for your formulation & end-application needs.
Silicone oils are important tools in vitreoretinal surgery and their introduction has represented a pivotal moment in the management of ophthalmic surgery as they are equipped with a combination of chemical and physical properties that have propelled their surgical use. Silicone oils are essentially used as intraocular tamponade thanks to their ability to maintain the adhesion between retina and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE).
The safe and effective use of tamponade substances means the knowledge of their physical and chemical properties because it is on the basis of this knowledge that surgeons have to decide what type of tamponade they should use.
What is the function of softener flake softener for textiles
Softener flake is an important finishing process in printing and dyeing. It is also a chemical substance that can change the static and dynamic friction coefficient of the fiber. So what is the effect of softer flake on textiles? Here is a brief introduction.
When the static friction coefficient of the fiber changes, the hand will feel the smoothness of the fiber, reduce the friction between the skin and the fiber, and it is easy to move on the fiber or fabric; when the dynamic friction coefficient of the fiber changes, the microstructure between the fibers It will move and deform, and you can feel that the dynamic and static friction coefficient changes smoothly.
In the textile processing process, after many treatments, the fabric and the machine will directly rub against, easily damage and wipe the fabric and fiber, making the fabric and fiber feel rough, the general synthetic fiber feels worse, especially the microfiber fabric.
In order to make the fabric soft, smooth and comfortable, the fabric needs to be finished. The widely used fabric is treated with softer flake, which can make the fiber itself soft and smooth, meet the processing conditions, and avoid damage during processing. Therefore, it is also an important auxiliary for textiles.
The above is an introduction to the effect of softer flake on textiles. Thank you for your patience to read. If you need it, you can contact us directly.
Acrylic Resins
Acrylic resins feature excellent transparency and durability, and are used in a broad range of applications from consumer items like lenses to industrial products like molding materials, coatings and adhesives.
About Acrylic Resins
Acrylic resins feature excellent transparency and durability, and are used in a broad range of applications from consumer items like lenses to industrial products like molding materials, coatings and adhesives. In addition, acrylic resins are also used in other areas, such as binders for paper/fiber processing, PC screens, display windows for cellular phones and light guide panels for liquid crystal display (LCD) backlights.
Due to their excellent durability and weatherability as coating materials, acrylic resins are used extensively in applications such as automotive, architectural and plastic coatings.
Acrylic resins have the below general characteristics.
? Appearance (gloss, build)
? Weather resistance
? Adhesion
? Transparency
? Hardness
? Heat resistance
? Chemical resistance
? Water resistance
? Workability
WHAT IS A DEGREASER?
A degreaser is a cleaner designed to remove grease, oils, cutting fluids, corrosion inhibitors, handling soils, fingerprints, and other contamination common in assembly, stamping and other metal fabrication in refineries, motor repair shops, airplane hangars, and factories, etc.. Degreasers go by a number of different names including precision cleaner, maintenance cleaner, as well as several specific for automotive repair such as carb cleaner or brake cleaner.
The objective for a degreaser is to remove the offending soil quickly, avoiding as much wiping and scrubbing as possible. Degreasing solvents are commonly packaged as an aerosol for convenience. Aerosols have the added advantage of providing a forceful spray that creates agitation and which penetrate small crevices.
Water-based degreasers are common in a trigger sprayer, or in gallon or drum containers for immersion or batch system cleaning.
Specialized equipment like ultrasonic or vapor degreasers are available for more automated cleaning. These processes are repeatable, so better suited for more critical cleaning applications, like aerospace or medical appliance maintenance.
Techspray offers a large selection of degreasers and maintenance cleaners under the G3?, E-LINE?, PWR-4?, and Precision-V brands, which range from economical heavy-industry cleaners to high precision solvents for sensitive components.

WHY DO I NEED A DEGREASER?
Dust, dirt, grease, and oxidation contamination can cause corrosion, slipping hazards, overheating, increase electrical resistance in contact areas, and many other issues. Degreasing may be required to prep for down-stream processes like painting or plating.
Cleaner Degreasers can clean oil, grease, oxides and handling contamination from equipment and assemblies that include:

• Metal and fiber optic cable splices
  
  
• Motors and transformers
  
  
• Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs)
  
  
• Pneumatic and hydraulic assemblies
  
  
• Electronics and electrical equipment
  
  
• Meters/measurement devices
  

• Clutches, armatures, generators, and compressors
  
  
• Electrical motors and equipment
  
  
• Bearings, chains, cables, pulleys and gear drives
  
  
• Brakes, springs, and flywheels