[BNC-all] Development of a Platform Polymer Nanotechnology for Medical and Industrial Applications - Seminar

[Anthrop, Heather L]

Professor Darren Martin, Group Leader

Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology and

School of Chemical Engineering
The University of Queensland

TODAY, Wednesday, June 13, 2012
ARMS 1109 at 3:30 pm

ABSTRACT


TenasiTech is a developer and manufacturer of (nano)composite polymers for medical and industrial use.  Current polyurethanes (PU) are at the limit of their performance, and competing options cannot achieve the desired performances without losing one or more of: flexibility, dimensional stability at ambient or elevated temperatures, clarity, biocompatibility or service longevity.  Customers are demanding higher performance to grow market share for their PU products.  TenasiTech1 is marketing Adaptive PolyolsTM to deliver novel nanotechnology for use with a broad range of PU types (eg thermoplastics, castables, foams and solvent based systems).  With this pioneering development TenasiTech has enabled a "drop-in" nanotech solution for customers who make PU, without the need for any additional CapEx or OpEx investment.  TenasiTech delivers: - super strength and toughness - excellent thermo-stability & dimensional-stability gains - increased resistance to oils/ethanol - enhanced film barrier properties.  TenasiTech is currently developing products with "lighthouse" customers in a number of fields.  TenasiTech is at industrial-scale production (tonnage) and now supplying to molders or formulators of polyurethane.  In this presentation Darren will present his team's work on developing this nanotechnology platform from very basic and exploratory beginnings to where it is today, with special emphasis on the following three important themes:


1.   The materials science and engineering2-5

2.   Ensuring scalability1
3.   Parallel investigations into nano safety and occupational hygiene6,7

SHORT BIO

Professor Darren Martin's primary research themes are the processing and structure-property performance of novel polymeric biomaterials; renewable-based polymers and nanocomposites; and the toxicology of engineered nanoparticles. These interests overlap significantly, with mature initiatives now well underway, investigating the physical and biological performance of polyurethane nanocomposites for biomedical and industrial applications.  There is also parallel research which links a better understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms associated with nanoparticle toxicology with measurements of industrial exposure and bio-distribution. One of Professor Martin's key research aims is to shift the strong underlying science and engineering taking place in these projects towards consumer products, or medical device component applications. For example, his research group is working on new flexible nanocomposite materials for Cochlear implants and various high-performance engineering applications. Professor Martin is the Chief Scientific Officer of start-up company TenasiTech, which is commercialising the polyurethane nanocomposite technology (www.tenasitech.com).

The Martin research group has projects in:

 1.  Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU) Nanocomposites, through TenasiTech Pty Ltd, Cochlear Ltd and Aortech Pty Ltd;
 2.  The Toxicology of Engineered Nanoparticles, through ARC and NHMRC funded projects; and
 3.  Renewable polymers and composites based on resin from spinifex native grasses - an ARC funded project.

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