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Recent Development of Vegetal Tannins in Corrosion Protection of Iron and Steel, 2008, Vol: 1(3)
Afidah A. Rahim and Jain Kassim

Inhibitors are employed predominantly for corrosion control in closed systems, as a cost-efficiently alternative to the use of high corrosion-resistant materials. Due to the environmental requirements that are currently imposed on the development of cleaner inhibitors, vegetal tannins, a class of natural, non-toxic, biodegradable organic compounds that can be obtained at reduced cost has been proposed. This review relates recent uses of several vegetal tannins in corrosion protection, particularly as corrosion inhibitors of iron and steel in acidic and near neutral media. Several methods of inhibition efficiency evaluations along with their action mechanisms are discussed. The present review presents some important patents in the development of vegetal tannins in corrosion protection of iron and steel.


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Recent Patents on Nano Calcium Phosphates, 2008, Vol: 1(3)
Yurong Cai, Peng Liu and Ruikang Tang

Calcium phosphate is a main component of skeletal minerals and its nano material is suggested as an ideal candidate for bone graft in hard tissue engineering due to the superior biocompatibility and bioactivity. The preparation and application of nano calcium phosphate is an important topic in nowadays materials science and some nanoparticles have been already used clinically for various purposes. The current review will discuss recently reported patents and relevant literatures on fabrication of nano calcium phosphates and the improvements of the materials properties including biocompatibility, bioactivity, biofunctionality and mechanical strength, as well as the applications of nano calcium phosphates in biomedicine.


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Recent Applications of Polyacrylamide as Biomaterials, 2008, Vol: 1(1)
Tsung-Hua Yang

The synthetic polymer, polyacrylamide derived from acrylamide monomer, was originally introduced for use as a support matrix for electrophoresis in 1959. Later, because of its applicability and economy, polyacrylamide has found widespread applications ranging from microanalysis to macro-fractionation for proteins, nucleic acid, and other biomolecules. On the other hand, recent years also witnessed increasing research interests in the potential of polyacrylamide acting as biomaterials. This review article will comprehensively present and discuss recent interesting patents classified according to the following highlights: (1) Enzyme immobilization within polyacrylamide gels; (2) Carriers for delivery of drugs and bioactive compounds; (3) Smart materials able to respond with stimulus; (4) Polyacrylamide-based matrices in extracorporeal toxin removal modalities; (5) Non-absorbable soft tissue fillers used for body contouring in reconstructive surgery or for cosmetic purposes. In summary, current researches and achievements of polyacrylamide have therefore well demonstrated its versatility and usefulness as biomaterials. Further developments of polyacrylamide-associated technologies will undoubtedly enhance the value and broaden the possibilities of applications of polyacrylamide in the field of biomaterials.


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Ferritic Stainless Steels for High Temperature Applications in Oxidizing Environments, 2009, Vol: 2(1)
Daniela Pilone

Ferritic stainless steel containing more than 7 wt. % of Al represents an interesting material for the production of components working at high temperature. To meet industrial needs of increased operating temperatures, many studies have been carried out to design FeCrAl(RE) alloys that are suitable for applications where the components have to work in oxidative environments for extended periods of operation, often at very high temperatures (>1000 °C) under cyclic operating conditions. Although a very good protectiveness against oxidation can be achieved for Al concentrations higher than 7 wt.%, mechanical properties of FeCrAl alloys are known to be poor at high temperature. High temperature strength and creep resistance can be improved by reducing grain boundary areas and by precipitating stable particles in the bulk alloy: this practice prevents grain boundary slip and dislocation movement. This paper reviews the patented progresses in the field of the production of FeCrAl alloys for high temperature applications such as heating elements and substrate of catalytic converters.


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A Review of Recent Patents on Trivalent Chromium Plating, 2009, Vol: 2(1)
Zhixiang Zeng, Aiming Liang and Junyan Zhang

Conventional Cr-matrix coatings electrodeposited from hexavalent Cr baths have been widely used for decoration and anti-wear. Electrodeposition of Cr from hexavalent Cr needs to be replaced by another material system due to the intense toxicity and carcinogenicity of hexavalent Cr. Trivalent Cr plating is considered to be a promising “environmental acceptable” replacement technology for hexavalent Cr plating. This paper gives a review of patents and publications in the field of trivalent Cr plating. We primarily introduce the discharge mechanism of trivalent Cr, development of trivalent Cr electrolytes, anodic materials for the trivalent Cr plating, elimination of hexavalent Cr produced on the anode as a result of trivalent Cr oxidation and the electrodeposition of functional thick Cr coatings and black Cr coatings from trivalent Cr baths.


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Recent Patents on the Optical Resolution of Amino Acid Enantiomers by Crystallization from Solution, 2008, Vol: 1(2)
Adrian E. Flood

Amino acids are a significant class of compounds in a number of different application areas, including pharmaceuticals, nutrition, and nonlinear optical materials. Nearly all amino acids are chiral molecules, and appear in D- and L-forms (enantiomers) which are mirror images of each other and thus share the same chemical properties (if they do not interact with another chiral molecule), apart from their optical rotation. Although the α-amino acids are ubiquitous in natural materials, industrially it is more convenient to produce them with chemical syntheses, which typically are not specific to a desired enantiomer and therefore produce a racemic mixture having equal quantities of the two enantiomers. In most applications of the materials a pure enantiomeric form is required and thus the racemic mixture must be separated into its component enantiomers, a process which is typically known as optical resolution. Optical resolution is often a difficult process because the components separated have identical properties, however a range of ingenious techniques has been developed to perform the resolution. This article reviews the patented techniques to achieve optical resolution of amino acids using methods involving crystallization from solution. These methods represent the most industrially significant resolution methods, in particular preferential crystallization and crystallization of diastereomer salts. A short summary of several types of techniques not using crystallization is also presented.


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Recently Patented Work on Thermally Sprayed Coatings for Protection Against Wear and Corrosion of Engineered Structures, 2008, Vol: 1(1)
Robert B. Heimann and Hans D. Lehmann

Advanced ceramic and metallic coatings for wear and corrosion protection of engineered structures applied by thermal spraying techniques have become a mainstay of surface engineering. Estimated global sales of thermally sprayed coatings are in the US$5 billion range per year, 50% of which are achieved by atmospheric plasma spraying. The development of suitable deposition equipment, sophisticated on-line process control, ease of application to complex surfaces, availability of a broad range of tailored feedstock materials, and sensitive characterization and quality assurance methods make novel surface coatings and their improved deposition techniques increasingly attractive. This review will cover patented progress in the field of wear- and corrosion-resistant coatings achieved during the past few years.


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Patenting the Glass Compositions During the Last Century, 2008, Vol: 1(1)
Alexandar I. Priven and Oleg V. Mazurin

Glass is a material that is widely used in various fields of techniques and engineering (optics, electric devices, ware, medicine, etc.) due to a unique combination of properties, many of them being possible to vary in wide ranges depending on chemical composition. For this reason chemical compositions of glasses of various usage are widely patented. In the paper, the history of patenting the glass compositions since 1907 as well as present-day trends of development of new glasses are analyzed by using the database SciGlass IP containing the data about 100,000+ patents and patent applications published worldwide. Today’s challenges during the development of new glass compositions and possible solutions are characterized.


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Patents of Methods to Prepare Intermetallic Matrix Composites: A Review, 2008, Vol: 1(3)
Xiaowu Nie

This paper reviews research on patents of intermetallic matrix composites synthesized methods, such as casting, powder metallurgy, self-propagating high-temperature synthesis, spark plasma sintering, directional solidification and chemical reacting. The present status and applications in various fields as well as the prospects of intermetallic compounds are presented too. It's indicated that in order to enlarge the applications areas, people should intensify not only the investigation of theories but also the research on preparation methods and processes which influence the structure and performance of materials. At the same time, a further study for optimizing the processing parameters is required to improve the property of materials. Future directions in this field have been suggested.


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Synthesis of Polymer-Embedded Metal, Semimetal, or Sulfide Clusters by Thermolysis of Mercaptide Molecules Dissolved in Polymers, 2008, Vol: 1(1)
Luigi F. Nicolais and Gianfranco Carotenuto

Metal and metal sulfide clusters embedded in polymeric matrices represents a novel nanostructured material class. These materials combine optical transparency to magnetism, luminescence, UV-visible absorption, thermochromism, etc. leaving to unique functional materials that can be conveniently exploited for a number of applications in different technological fields. A really effective synthesis route for these materials is represented by the thermal decomposition of mercaptide molecules dissolved in polymer. Mercaptides can be dissolved/dispersed in polymers and thermally degraded at temperatures compatible with polymer stability (100°-250°C), generating metal atoms or metal sulfide molecules that leave to very small nanoparticles by clustering. Mercaptide synthesis, blending with polymers, and thermal decomposition are quite simple and general operations, consequently this approach can be easily applied for the preparation of a variety of nanocomposite systems. In this review, we present some fundamental aspects related to the chemistry of mercaptides (synthesis), the calorimetric study of their thermolysis process, the main techniques for nanocomposite characterization, and a short description of material applications. This article also includes recent patent coverage.