Handheld hydrogen sensor

HY-OPTIMA handheld model 500 and the HY-ALERTA in-line model 700 are two modles of hydrogen sensors from H2SCAN.

These next generation sensors are the first to provide accurate real time measures in extreme conditions, including condensed water environments, the presence of CO and sulfur, and in process streams up to 125 degrees Celcius. "The ability to perform in these harsh environments meets industry’s need for accurate monitoring of fuel cell, petrochemical, hydrogen production, transformer oil and nuclear waste operations," explained Dennis Reid, president and CEO of H2scan.

The new products are based on H2scan’s proprietary "chip on a flex" technology. Solid state and originally developed by Sandia National Laboratories, the sensing element of both models 500 (handheld) and 700 (in-line) is state of the art. It utilizes a palladium nickel capacitor for lower threshold measurements to 15PPM and a palladium nickel resistor for measurements from 5000PPM to 100 percent. A nickel temperature sensor allows the in-line model to operate in process streams up to 125 degrees Celcius.

The new product line also has a membrane and coating over the sensor die that allows hydrogen to penetrate, but keeps all moisture, CO, Sulfur and other gases from penetrating to the sensor die.Like the models it replace – H2scan’s Portable Hand Held and 11320019 In-line Real-Time Process Monitor – the HY-OPTIMA 500 AND HY-ALERTA 700 accurately monitor H2 levels against virtually any background gases without the need for expensive support equipment, and can operate in the absence of oxygen and in a wide-range of ambient temperatures.H2scan fully expects the new products to become the industry standard.

H2Scan sensor systems provide critical real-time functions in both friendly and harsh environments with standard or custom-designed attributes for numerous, multi-billion dollar hydrogen-sensitive applications. This includes process control systems, safety monitoring and alarm systems and includes portable, hand-held configurations for leak detection and monitoring.

source : www.h2scan.com.

Medical implant !!!! the nanotech shows the way

There is a huge demand for medical implants for almost every body part you can think of. As we have reported here before, the market for medical implant devices in the U.S. alone is estimated to be $23 billion per year and it is expected to grow by about 10% annually for the next few years. Implantable cardioverter defibrillators, cardiac resynchronization therapy devices, pacemakers, tissue and spinal orthopedic implants, hip replacements, phakic intraocular lenses and cosmetic implants will be among the top sellers.

Current medical implants, such as orthopedic implants and heart valves, are made of titanium and stainless steel alloys, primarily because they are biocompatible. Unfortunately, in many cases these metal alloys with a life span of 10-15 years may wear out within the lifetime of the patient. With recent advances in industrial synthesis of diamond and diamond-like carbon film bringing prices down significantly, researchers are increasingly experimenting with diamond coatings for medical implants. On the upside, the wear resistance of diamond is dramatically superior to titanium and stainless steel. On the downside, because it attracts coagulating proteins, its blood clotting response is slightly worse than these materials and the possibility has been raised that nanostructured surface features of diamond might abrade tissue. That's not something you necessarily want to have in your artificial knee or hip joints (although some of the currently used implant materials cause problems as well).

The older nano !!!!

Pictured is an example of the strange, often spiral shaped objects found in the eastern Urals (dated to 100,000 years old). Often microscopically small they are made principally of tungsten, molybdenum, and copper. They were discovered during the course of official explorations that had been mounted with a view to exploiting the precious metals in the region. These objects are extraterrestrial in origin. Rather we think their origin is very terrestrial

The death……….is that predetermined !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Minimum telomere length defined for healthy cells

Mechanism for chromosome corruption also revealed.

What is a telimopre : Its the length between the regions of repeating DNA that protect the ends of chromosomes.

Now, Duncan Baird of the University of Cardiff, UK, and his colleagues have found the shortest length telomeres can reach before they cause fusion.

A cell's lifespan depends on the length of its telomeres — the regions of repeating DNA that protect the ends of chromosomes. Every time a cell divides, its telomeres get shorter until they become unstable and cause chromosomes to fuse together. These fusions can make the chromosomes break when cells divide, leading to cell death or triggering genomic rearrangements associated with the early stages of cancer.

Bio compatible ---a chalenge

Development of experimental processes for the synthesis of biocompatible surfaces that would induce and support mineral growth is important not only from a fundamental point of view but also in biomedical applications such as bone implants/grafting in bone surgery and manufacture of artificial tissues. Calcium phosphate and carbonate minerals are classified as bioactive ceramics and have been widely used for the reconstruction of bone defects.


In bone implant applications, inorganic composites, mainly made of hydroxyapatite ceramics, have attracted a geat deal of attention due to their excellent biocompatibility and bioaffinity
However, there are critical limitations in applying the hydroxyapatites to real systems because of its poor mechanical properties, such as strength and fracture toughness. Consequently, the
use of porous hydroxyapatite has been restricted to the powders, granules, and non-load-bearing small parts.


Membranes of gold nanoparticles in a polymeric background for mineral growth :

The first is that polymeric membranes would be simple to handle and sculpt to the desired shape and size. The second is that the chemistry pertaining to surface modification of gold nanoparticles is very well understood.

Chem. Mater., 16 (6), 988 -993, 2004.