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INDUSTRY NEWS

A 3M analyst applies dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) to a sample to determine the material’s modulus and its thermal transitions. The DMA system can take a sample through a thermal cycle and a frequency regime.

Global technology giant 3M has launched 3M Analytical Services at its laboratories in Bracknell, Berks, UK. The services, which are available to all companies and not just to 3M customers, apply the firm’s substantial R&D resources to health and safety, design, assembly, and manufacturing-related issues. Product or process problems, noncompliance, and material matters are among the areas of expertise.

Aiming for simplicity, application engineers typically ask customers a series of questions to pinpoint the problem and recommend a practical test or series of tests. “A company may ask for help in identifying the source of a particular odour, or it may want to find out why a product is not performing as expected,” says technical specialist Mark Nursall. “Or, indeed, it may ask us to benchmark two products. We just need customers to tell us what the problem is—we do not expect them to have the technical knowledge necessary to specify the tests they want us to carry out,” Nursall explains. “They can leave that to us.”

The facility is equipped with sophisticated analytical devices such as an extractive FT-IR that performs gas analysis in real time, an x-ray photoelectron spectrometer for surface analysis, and a system for analyzing air samples and odours.

For more information, contact 3M Centre, Cain Rd., Bracknell, Berks, RG12 8HT, UK; phone: +44 8705 360036; Internet: www.3m.com/uk.