Morgan Vague and the Story of Plastic Eating Bacteria

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Bacteria Eating Plastic
Morgan Vague isolated three bacteria eating plastics when she was a senior in biology at Reed College in Oregon. Specifically they ate a plastic called polyethylene terephhatlates or PET for short. The bacteria broke PET down into by-products that are harmless. PET is one of the most commonly used plastics for consumer goods. It is manufactured into plastic bottles, clothing. plastic bags and food packaging, etc.
Plastic Pollution
300 billions tons of all plastics manufactured are dumped into the oceans or landfills each year. … Read more

bacteria eating PET

PEEK Parts: Description and Uses

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PEEK Parts: Description and Uses
PEEK, also known as polyetheretherketone, is a high performance, engineering plastic. It is a semi-crystalline, high temperature resistant thermoplastic. It is one of the most popular materials we manufacture parts from here at Craftech®. PEEK has a strong following in the aerospace and semiconductor industries. In this article, we will describe some of the excellent properties that make this plastic material so popular.
Mechanical Properties
The processing conditions used to mold PEEK can influence its crystallinity and mechanical properties. … Read more

PEEK Parts

Teflon® (PTFE) Screws, Hex Huts, Hex Head Cap Screws, Other Fasteners and Custom Parts

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Teflon® (PTFE) Fasteners
Teflon® (PTFE) is fabricated into fasteners.  These include screws, hex nuts, hex head cap screws, flat washers etc. It is also used to fabricate custom parts.  However, this material can only be turned, or made into parts on a CNC machine. It can also be compression molded. But it cannot be injection molded.  It is not a thermoplastic.
These fasteners and custom parts are used in applications where high heat and chemical resistance are required.  … Read more

Teflon

Top Four Grades of PEEK

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The four top grades of PEEK are: unfilled, 30% glass-filled, 30% carbon-filled, and 20% PTFE and graphite filled. These materials are manufactered into fasteners and components such as bearings, screws, flat washers, hex nuts, gears, and medical components in addition to many custom shapes. The properties of each and the industries they are used in are discussed below.
Unfilled-PEEK
Of the top four grades of PEEK, unfilled-PEEK  (polyetheretherketone) is the most common grade.  It is a semi-crystalline polymer.  … Read more

PEEK Fasteners and Custom Parts

Nylon Fasteners: Hex Nuts, Hex Head Cap Screws, Flat Washers, Spacers, and Standoffs

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Nylon  Fasteners

Nylon is used to make plastic fasteners such as nylon screws, hex nuts, hex head cap screws, flat washers and cable ties. This material is also used for printed circuit board hardware, automotive parts and fabrics. In this blog we will discuss nylon 6/6 fasteners.

Development of Nylon 
Nylon was first developed in the late 1930’s by Wallace Carothers at DuPont. … Read more

Nylon screws and hex nuts