Nanotechnology Now - Press Release: ApNano' Particles - Ultra-Strong Shock Absorbing Material

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Abstract:
Company’s proprietary nanoparticles are excellent shock absorbing materials and among the most impact resistant substances known in the world today

ApNano' Particles - Ultra-Strong Shock Absorbing Material

New York, NY | September 07, 2005

ApNano Materials, Inc. (www.apnano.com), a provider of nanotechnology-based products, announced today that a study published in the June 2005 issue of the journal Advanced Materials clearly shows that the company’s proprietary nanoparticles are excellent shock absorbing materials and among the most impact resistant substances known in the world today. These revolutionary nanoparticles are nested spheres of special metal compounds termed inorganic fullerene-like nanostructures, or IF for short. Fullerenes are soccer ball-like clusters of atoms, named after R. Buckminster Fuller, architect of the geodesic dome that he designed for the 1967 Montreal World Exhibition.

Shock absorbing materials are commonly used in impact resistant applications such as ballistic protection personal body armor, bullet proof vests, vehicle armor, shields, helmets, and protective enclosures. The IF nanomaterials have up to about twice the strength of the best impact resistant materials currently used in protective armor applications like boron carbide and silicon carbide, and are 4-5 times stronger than steel.

The experiments on the IF nanomaterials were carried out by a research group headed by Prof. Yan Qiu Zhu of the School of Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Engineering, at the University of Nottingham, England. The material was subjected to severe shocks generated by firing shots at it at impact velocities of up to 1.5 km/second. These IF nanospheres withstood the shock pressures generated by the impacts of up to 250 tons per square centimeter. This is approximately equivalent to dropping four diesel locomotives onto an area the size of one’s fingernail. The IF nanospheres are so strong that after the impact the samples remained essentially identical compared to the starting material. In contrast, similarly structured hollow spheres of carbon, fail under much lower pressures of less than one tenth of those that the IF can survive.

The company’s materials are based on breakthrough work in nanotechnology done at the Weizmann Institute of Science by the group headed by Prof. Reshef Tenne, currently the Head of the Institute's Department of Materials and Interfaces. Dr. Menachem Genut, ApNano Materials' CEO was a research fellow in the original research group which discovered the IF nanoparticles at the Weizmann Institute and first to synthesize the new material.

The diameter of the nanoparticles is about 100 nanometer (nanometer = 1 billionth of a meter) or roughly one thousand times smaller than the width of a human hair. This small size and the onion-like structure of these nested spheres provide them with unique properties that are not possible with conventional size materials of the same composition making them attractive for many commercial applications.

“One of the most promising applications for these super-shock absorbing materials is as a solid lubricant for improving the performance of moving parts, particularly under extreme load conditions," said Dr. Niles Fleischer, Vice President of Business Development and Product Development of ApNano Materials. "Thus, we have commercialized the material under the trade name NanoLub and numerous independent tests conducted by major players in the lubricants industry, clearly demonstrate that it reduces friction and wear significantly better than conventional lubricants.” NanoLub is used as an additive to enhance oils and greases, as an anti-friction coating and also for impregnating parts to make self-lubricating components.

“The company is also considering the use of these materials in ultra high strength composites for the personal safety and vehicle armor markets where surviving severe impacts is critical,” said Dr. Menachem Genut, co Founder, CEO and President of ApNano Materials.

The special properties of the IF nanostructures has attracted numerous interest from industry around the world. “To date large quantity production of the IF has been achieved by the company at its facility in the Weizmann Science Park, Nes Ziona, Israel and work is underway for a scaled-up semi-commercial unit to product 100-200 kg/day which will be followed by a full industrial production facility to produce tons of material per day," said Aharon Feuerstein, co Founder, Chairman and CFO of ApNano Materials. He added that the company has already received indicated demand for thousand tons annually.

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About ApNano Materials:
ApNano Materials (www.apnano.com), is a private nanotechnology company founded in 2002 by Dr. Menachem Genut, President and CEO and Mr Aharon Feuerstein, Chairman and CFO. ApNano Materials was incorporated in the US and is headquartered in New York, USA. Its fully-owned Israeli subsidiary - NanoMaterials, Ltd., is located in the high tech science park adjacent to the Weizmann Institute campus in Nes Ziona, Israel. The company was granted an exclusive license by Yeda Research and Development Co. Ltd, the commercial arm of the Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel, to manufacture, commercialize and sell a new class of nanomaterials based on inorganic compounds that were discovered at the Institute. The shareholders of ApNano Materials, besides the founders, are Newton Technology VC Fund, Yeda Research and Development Co. LTD. (the commercial arm of the Weizmann Institute of Science), AYYT Technological Applications and Date Update LTD. (the commercial arm of Holon Academic Institute of Technology, Israel), and private European investors.

NanoLub, a green, environmentally friendly material, is a trademark of ApNano Materials, Inc..

For more information, please visit www.apnano.com

Contact:
David Kanaan
Kanaan Public Relations
+972-3-5408188
david@kanaan.co.il

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