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Big business in a small world
A RESEARCH company is developing materials that have the potential to bring changes to almost all facets of life, including medicine, manufacturing, communications and travel.
United Kingdom company QinetiQ Nanomaterials (QNL) aims to be the primary source of commercial nanometric powders - the lifeblood of the new technology — to the fast-developing nanotechnology market.
Nanotechnology is a term used to describe the manipulation of extremely small particles. To give some idea of perspective, a nanometre is one billionth of a metre, or the same size as a single water molecule.
It is widely predicted that the market for nanotechnology will be vast. QNL quotes figures from the Business Communications Company which predicts that the market, which it valued at $490 million in 2000, will be worth $900 million in 2005.
The performance of many materials can be improved by introducing nanoparticles into them. Composite materials can be created that are lighter, or stronger or thinner, for example, and nanoparticles can be used in medicines to determine the chemical reactivity rate, the location and the timing of drugs.
For the space industry, for example, nanomaterials can be used to create materials for coatings and high-performance rocket motors. Nanomaterials can also be harnessed to create enhanced materials for
structural use, and improve the physical properties of certain materials, for example, fire retardancy.
A key issue is the availability of materials and, in particular, the bulk supply of nanometric material. It is in this area that QNL has been able make significant progress by making a substantial investment in the development of a process which will make it possible to manufacture tonnes of nanomaterials annually.
Nanometric materials are already available from QNL and a production facility was commissioned in August 2002 at QNL’s site in southern England.
QNL has also committed significant resources to the development of new applications using these materials and it is keen to find partners to develop new ideas and applications. Dr Paul Reip, QNL’s managing director, says that the applications of these materials are unlimited and include textiles, oils and explosives, household products, antimicrobial coatings, improving the quality of polymers, and wear resistance.
According to Dr Reip, QNL has found that once customers understand the capabilities of the technology, the range of potential applications has become “really exciting and unexpected”.
More than 150 scientists and engineers in the QinetiQ organisation work in nanotechnology and nanomaterials. QNL was formed as a wholly owned subsidiary of QinetiQ, to build on the specialist knowledge and expertise available to it and work with partner companies to produce nanomaterials.
Scientists and engineers within QinetiQ can examine and apply nanopowder technology in diverse areas, and offer expertise and experience in research and development and prototyping and production. For example, QNL has developed a technique for producing metal oxide powders, using its access to the large pool of expertise in inorganic materials which is available within QinetiQ.
QNL has combined this resource with nanoparticle processing technology which it has licensed exclusively from the Tectronics company. The materials produced range from alumina to zirconia, including, for example, yttria, zinc oxide and titanium oxide.
The technique used by QNL to produce oxide powders can be used to make a range of other compounds including nitrides and carbides. It has enormous expertise in advanced metal powders. Nanometric aluminium powder is already available from QNL.
Particle size, distribution and composition can all be controlled, to a consistent quality, by varying the processing conditions, and the ultra-fine powders processed in such a way in order to make them easier to handle and incorporate in the final product.
QinetiQ is the UK’s largest science and technology organization. It is a wholly government-owned company which was created in July 2001 when the work of the Defence, Evaluation and Research Agency was split into two separate organisations.
According to Dr Reip, QNL is researching fuel cells, automotive applications, energetic materials and rocket motors, enhanced polymers, drug-delivery carrier materials, catalysts and fibres. This work is funded and owned by QNL and is taking place within QinetiQ. — Dawn/LPS Feature
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