ELITechGroup Biomedical Systems picks Solvay's Radel PPSU for its slide stainer carousels
ELITechGroup Biomedical Systems, a US manufacturer of in vitro diagnostic equipment and reagents, chose Solvay Specialty Polymers' transparent Radel polyphenylsulfone (PPSU) resin to injection mold two redesigned carousels for its Aerospray slide stainer systems used for hematology and microbiology applications.
Radel PPSU is resistant to methanol, iodine, phenol and other chemical agents that are applied to slides via atomizing spray nozzles inside ELITechGroup's diagnostic systems. The material can also withstand repeated steam sterilization and maintain its toughness and impact resistance.
"Many plastics are simply unable to withstand the challenging demands of new instrument designs. Radel PPSU, however, continues to deliver the design and manufacturing benefits that the medical device sector requires, and it is becoming the material of choice in a fast-growing range of next-generation applications across the global value chain," said Gilbert Galon, Sales Development Manager for Healthcare at Solvay Specialty Polymers.
ELITechGroup's two carousel designs integrate magnets to enable the slide stainer to detect the part's rotational position as well as the number of slide placements it has. Because the carousel and the magnet caps are both injection molded using Radel PPSU, it is a comparatively simple and cost-effective step to firmly bond these parts together using ultrasonic welding.
"Solvay's advanced polymer technology, materials expertise and close collaboration helped us identify Radel PPSU as the clear choice for this application due to its high transparency, chemical resistance, autoclavability and physical toughness vs. competitive thermoplastics," said Jared Martineau, the Designer at ELITechGroup Biomedical Systems who specified and worked with Solvay's material. "Radel PPSU also enabled us to streamline assembly operations by allowing the use of ultrasonic welding to retain the magnets within the carousel."
