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New design for “tin” can
International news conducted in Germany, the UK and Holland (where 130 million steel easy-open end c a n s a r e already in use), has revealed that the public prefers the opening, pouring and drinking capabilities offered by Ecotop. The twin-button end is just one part of British Steel Tinplate's 'Ultimate Can' project. It also involves a lightweighting programme for steel beverage cans by a total of 30% by mid-1994 and by mid1993, a 202 diameter neck was also available. Both of these developments exploit steel's inherent strength and superior development potential. The development of the ultimate can represents a significant investment in the packaging industry by British Steel Tinplate and development work has enhanced steel's environmental profile by using fewer raw materials and saving energy in production and transportation. By incorporating Ecotop, the ultimate can will be an all-steel can making it even easier to recover for recycling. Like all steel packaging, it will be 100% recyclable. Ecotop is a non-detachable steel easy-open end for beverage cans. It is opened by pressing the two buttons in sequence
New design for 'tin' can Beverage cans featuring a detachable steel easy-open end, Ecotop, have been developed by British Steel Tinplate. The
Adhesive silicones in space The space industry uses Dunlop Adhesives high-purity silicones for bonding mirrors to satellite panels. The small mirror tiles, a maximum of 80 mm square in size, are used in the control of the temperature of the spacecraft. They are adhered to the panel surfaces to both reflect the sun's rays and to absorb the large differential thermal movements as the spacecraft travels frequently between orbital days and nights. Derek Williams Wynn, Specialist Adhesives Sales Manager for Dunlop Adhesives, explains: 'Protective silicones come into their own in the aerospace field. They are the only pure joining material capable of withstanding the extreme conditions to which satellites are subjected. For instance, when a satellite passes through an eclipse, it is exposed to a thermal shock, with temperatures climbing from - 100 to + 70°C. Silicones are also very pure, which is vital for applications in the vacuum of space. No
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new end is said to ofler a commercially viable alternative to the traditional ringpull and is opened simply by pressing two buttons in sequence. British Steel Tinplate claims that consumer research
other materials can demonstrate similar controlled volatility properties, and without their protection against atomic oxygen encountered in low orbits will eventually contaminate sensitive instruments.' Silicones are also used in conformal coatings around components to control temperature transmission and to shield them from hostile environments. This prevents thermal conduction and subsequent overheating between electronic components, silicones retaining flexibility over a large temperature range. British Aerospace Space Systems is using both applications on the Polar Platform, an environmental monitoring satellite which, as the European ENVISAT-I mission, will be launched in 1998 to study the Earth's global environment, its atmosphere, including the ozone layer, its oceans and land surface. The spacecraft measures approximately 10 m x 3 m x 2 m, with a solar array measuring 14 m x 5 m. It will be placed in a polar orbit around the Earth at an altitude of 800 km, carrying a 2-
Materials & Design Volume 14 Number 4 1993
For more information, contact: Damian Smith, British Steel Tinplate, PO Box 18, Ebbw Vale, Gwent NP3 6YL, UK. Tel: +44 (0)495 350176.
tonne payload of environmental monitoring instruments. Dunlop Adhesives CV2566 silicone adhesive used for mirror bonding has a tolerance to temperatures ranging from - 1 1 5 to +300°C and a tensile strength of 600 lb/in2. It will be expected to provide 100% performance for the satellite's operating life of at least 4 years. For the Hubble Space Telescope, British Aerospace used silicone coatings to protect its large solar-array 'wings' against atomic oxygen, which causes degradation of spacecraft placed in low Earth orbits. Each array wing is 12 m long and 2.8 m wide, and contains almost 25 000 solar cells. The telescope was designed for an operating life of 15 years, the solar arrays being replaced at regular intervals by astronauts. The next replacement mission is scheduled to take place in December 1993. Further information from Joan Howard, Specialist Adhesives Department, Dunlop Adhesives. Tel: +44 (0)21 373 8101.
New design for 'tin' can Beverage cans featuring a detachable steel easy-open end, Ecotop, have been developed by British Steel Tinplate. The
Adhesive silicones in space The space industry uses Dunlop Adhesives high-purity silicones for bonding mirrors to satellite panels. The small mirror tiles, a maximum of 80 mm square in size, are used in the control of the temperature of the spacecraft. They are adhered to the panel surfaces to both reflect the sun's rays and to absorb the large differential thermal movements as the spacecraft travels frequently between orbital days and nights. Derek Williams Wynn, Specialist Adhesives Sales Manager for Dunlop Adhesives, explains: 'Protective silicones come into their own in the aerospace field. They are the only pure joining material capable of withstanding the extreme conditions to which satellites are subjected. For instance, when a satellite passes through an eclipse, it is exposed to a thermal shock, with temperatures climbing from - 100 to + 70°C. Silicones are also very pure, which is vital for applications in the vacuum of space. No
262
new end is said to ofler a commercially viable alternative to the traditional ringpull and is opened simply by pressing two buttons in sequence. British Steel Tinplate claims that consumer research
other materials can demonstrate similar controlled volatility properties, and without their protection against atomic oxygen encountered in low orbits will eventually contaminate sensitive instruments.' Silicones are also used in conformal coatings around components to control temperature transmission and to shield them from hostile environments. This prevents thermal conduction and subsequent overheating between electronic components, silicones retaining flexibility over a large temperature range. British Aerospace Space Systems is using both applications on the Polar Platform, an environmental monitoring satellite which, as the European ENVISAT-I mission, will be launched in 1998 to study the Earth's global environment, its atmosphere, including the ozone layer, its oceans and land surface. The spacecraft measures approximately 10 m x 3 m x 2 m, with a solar array measuring 14 m x 5 m. It will be placed in a polar orbit around the Earth at an altitude of 800 km, carrying a 2-
Materials & Design Volume 14 Number 4 1993
For more information, contact: Damian Smith, British Steel Tinplate, PO Box 18, Ebbw Vale, Gwent NP3 6YL, UK. Tel: +44 (0)495 350176.
tonne payload of environmental monitoring instruments. Dunlop Adhesives CV2566 silicone adhesive used for mirror bonding has a tolerance to temperatures ranging from - 1 1 5 to +300°C and a tensile strength of 600 lb/in2. It will be expected to provide 100% performance for the satellite's operating life of at least 4 years. For the Hubble Space Telescope, British Aerospace used silicone coatings to protect its large solar-array 'wings' against atomic oxygen, which causes degradation of spacecraft placed in low Earth orbits. Each array wing is 12 m long and 2.8 m wide, and contains almost 25 000 solar cells. The telescope was designed for an operating life of 15 years, the solar arrays being replaced at regular intervals by astronauts. The next replacement mission is scheduled to take place in December 1993. Further information from Joan Howard, Specialist Adhesives Department, Dunlop Adhesives. Tel: +44 (0)21 373 8101.