PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

New industrial application for revolutionary forensic metal fingerprinting technique

New industrial application for revolutionary forensic metal fingerprinting technique
2010-10-21
(Press-News.org) Groundbreaking research into fingerprint detection developed at the University of Leicester now has an industrial application, thanks to a new invention by the scientist who developed the technique.

Dr John Bond's method of identifying fingerprints on brass bullet-casings, even after they have been wiped clean, was based on the minuscule amounts of corrosion which can be caused by sweat. First announced in 2008, this breakthrough was cited as one of the technologies 'most likely to change the world' by a panel of experts for BBC Focus magazine and was included in Time magazine's list of '50 best inventions of the year'.

Now, working with scientists in the University of Leicester Department of Chemistry, Dr Bond has applied the same technique to industry by developing a simple, handheld device which can measure corrosion on machine parts. Corrosion leads to wear and tear and needs to be carefully monitored so that worn parts are replaced at the appropriate time so this invention should prove a boon to the manufacturing sector.

"This is a new, quick, cheap and easy way of measuring the extent of corrosion on copper and copper based alloys, such as brass," explains Dr Bond, who is an Honorary Research Fellow in the University's Forensic Research Centre and Scientific Support Manager at Northamptonshire Police.

"It works by exploiting the discovery we made during the fingerprint research – that the corrosion on brass forms something called a 'Schottky barrier' – and we use this to see how much the metal has corroded.

"Such measurements can already be made but this is quick, cheap and easy and can be performed 'in the field' as it works off a nine-volt battery."

Dr Bond said: "Measuring corrosion of metal such as brass is important to ensure that machinery does not operate outside its safe limits.

"This could be anything from checking that a water pipe will not burst open to ensuring that the metal on an airplane is not corroded. This could lead, for instance, to the wheels falling off a jet. Having a corrosion measurement means for copper and alloys such as brass that is quick portable and cheap enables metals to be tested in situ with no prior set up of a corrosion measuring device.

"Also, rather than simply saying that the brass is corroding (as a technique such as weighing the brass would) this technique enables the type of corrosion to be determined (i.e. copper oxide or zinc oxide corrosion). As to which one it is gives clues as to how severe the corrosion is.

"This can be done already with something like X-ray photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) but that is lab based and very expensive to use. Our technique works off a 9-volt battery. In that sense, it won't tell you any more than XPS can, it is just quicker, cheaper and easier.

"A common use of brass in industry is heat exchangers as brass is a good conductor of heat. If these are water based, then seeing how the water is corroding the brass is useful. Also, you simply need to be able to touch the brass with a probe, there is no other setting up required. It's as easy as taking your temperature with a thermometer."

There is much research on inhibiting the corrosion of brass because of its use in heat exchangers and industrial pipe work, this technique enables the degree of corrosion to be easily measured.

A description of the prototype device has been published in the journal Review of Scientific Instruments. Dr Bond and his colleagues are now looking for a company which could exploit the invention and place it on the market.



INFORMATION:

Note to Newsdesk

For more information, please contact:

Dr John W Bond
Honorary Fellow
Forensic Research Centre
University of Leicester

Media contacts:
John Bond | Scientific Support Manager
Contact via Northamptonshire Police Press Office:
Tel: (01604) 703197/8/9 or 703238

Or

University of Leicester Press Office
0116 252 2415 pressoffice@le.ac.uk

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
New industrial application for revolutionary forensic metal fingerprinting technique

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

NTU researchers develop world's smallest on-chip low-pass filter

NTU researchers develop worlds smallest on-chip low-pass filter
2010-10-21
A research team from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) has successfully designed the world's smallest on-chip low-pass filter which is 1,000 times smaller than existing off-chip filters. A low-pass filter is a circuit that allows low-frequency signals to pass through while reducing unwanted high-frequency signals from passing through. Compared to existing off-chip filters, which are discrete and bulky components, on-chip filters occupy a small area on integrated circuit chips, which can be found in portable devices such as mobile phones, laptops, vehicle-mounted ...

Measuring sea-level rise in the Falklands

2010-10-21
Sea levels around the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic have risen since the mid nineteenth century and the rate of sea-level rise has accelerated over recent decades, according to newly published research. The findings are as expected under global warming and consistent with observations elsewhere around the globe. "We have been fortunate in being able to compare modern sea-level measurements obtained from tide gauges and from satellite radar altimeters with historical measurements made at Port Louis in the Falkland Islands in 1842," explained researcher Prof. Philip ...

Eating mostly whole grains, few refined grains linked to lower body fat

2010-10-21
BOSTON (October 20, 2010) - People who consume several servings of whole grains per day while limiting daily intake of refined grains appear to have less of a type of fat tissue thought to play a key role in triggering cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes, a new study suggests. Researchers at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Researcher Center on Aging (USDA HNRCA) at Tufts University observed lower volumes of visceral adipose tissue (VAT) in people who chose to eat mostly whole grains instead of refined grains. "VAT volume was approximately 10 % lower in adults ...

Cancer: Discovery of a very promising biological marker

2010-10-21
The follicle stimulating hormone, FSH, targets the human reproductive organs: the ovaries and testicles. In women, it stimulates maturation of ovarian follicles and production of oestrogens (via its action on granulosa cells). In men, it stimulates production of spermatozoa (via its action on the Sertoli cells). FSH receptor, which was the subject of the work carried out by the Inserm researchers, is normally only found in cells stimulated by FSH (granulosa cells in women and Sertoli cells in men). However, it is also present in very small quantities in the blood vessels ...

Small is beautiful in hydroelectric power plant design, and good for the environment

Small is beautiful in hydroelectric power plant design, and good for the environment
2010-10-21
Hydroelectric power is the oldest and the "greenest" source of renewable energy. In Germany, the potential would appear to be completely exploited, while large-scale projects in developing countries are eliciting strong criticism due to their major impact on the environment. Researchers at Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) have developed a small-scale hydroelectric power plant that solves a number of problems at the same time: The construction is so simple, and thereby cost-efficient, that the power generation system is capable of operating profitably in connection ...

New equation could advance research in solar cell materials

2010-10-21
ANN ARBOR, Mich.---A groundbreaking new equation developed in part by researchers at the University of Michigan could do for organic semiconductors what the Shockley ideal diode equation did for inorganic semiconductors: help to enable their wider adoption. Without the Shockley equation, the computers of today would not be possible. Developed in 1949 by William Shockley, the inventor of the transistor, the Shockley equation describes the relationship between electric current and voltage in inorganic semiconductors such as silicon. The new equation describes the ...

Philippines may have more unique bird species: CCNY biologist

2010-10-21
Recent work by Dr. David Lohman, assistant professor of biology at The City College of New York, suggests the Philippines, considered by biologists to be a "biodiversity hotspot," could have more unique species of birds than previously thought. If that proves to be the case, it could have important ramifications for conservation practices there. Many of the animal species found in the Philippines are endemic to this nation, which is made up of more than 7,100 islands. For example, 64 percent of its land mammal species and 77 percent of its amphibians are not found anywhere ...

Dopamine model could play role in treating schizophrenia and drug addiction

2010-10-21
In the brain, dopamine is involved in a number of processes that control the way we behave. If an action results in the substance being released, we are more likely to repeat the action. This applies to actions such as eating, sexual intercourse or winning a competition. However, the same also holds true when individuals take harmful narcotics. Scientists believe that mental illnesses such as schizophrenia can be linked to dopamine imbalances. Learning signal If an action leads to a better response than expected, the brain will temporarily release more dopamine. If ...

Psychologists at the forefront of weight management

2010-10-21
Over the last few decades, the dramatic rise in pediatric obesity rates has emerged as a public health threat requiring urgent attention. The responsibility of identifying and treating eating and weight-related problems early in children and adolescents falls to health care providers and other professionals who work with the child, according to Professor Denise Wilfley and colleagues from the Department of Psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine in the US. Furthermore, the key to successful treatment is a team effort involving providers and parents. Wilfley's ...

Hormone therapy increases invasive breast cancer and mortality, WHI 11-year follow up finds

2010-10-21
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Results of a new Women's Health Initiative (WHI) report show that hormone therapy is associated with an increased the risk of death from breast cancer, as well as an increased risk of developing invasive breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Jean Wactawski-Wende, PhD, professor of social and preventive medicine at the University at Buffalo and one of the primary authors on the paper, published today in JAMA, says the breast cancers found in these women also tended to have more lymph node involvement, indicating a poorer prognosis. "This report, which ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

It takes a village: Chimpanzee babies do better when their moms have social connections

From lab to market: how renewable polymers could transform medicine

Striking increase in obesity observed among youth between 2011 and 2023

No evidence that medications trigger microscopic colitis in older adults

NYUAD researchers find link between brain growth and mental health disorders

Aging-related inflammation is not universal across human populations, new study finds

University of Oregon to create national children’s mental health center with $11 million federal grant

Rare achievement: UTA undergrad publishes research

Fact or fiction? The ADHD info dilemma

Genetic ancestry linked to risk of severe dengue

Genomes reveal the Norwegian lemming as one of the youngest mammal species

Early birds get the burn: Monash study finds early bedtimes associated with more physical activity

Groundbreaking analysis provides day-by-day insight into prehistoric plankton’s capacity for change

Southern Ocean saltier, hotter and losing ice fast as decades-long trend unexpectedly reverses

Human fishing reshaped Caribbean reef food webs, 7000-year old exposed fossilized reefs reveal

Killer whales, kind gestures: Orcas offer food to humans in the wild

Hurricane ecology research reveals critical vulnerabilities of coastal ecosystems

Montana State geologist’s Antarctic research focuses on accumulations of rare earth elements

Groundbreaking cancer therapy clinical trial with US Department of Energy’s accelerator-produced actinium-225 set to begin this summer

Tens of thousands of heart attacks and strokes could be avoided each year if cholesterol-lowering drugs were used according to guidelines

Leading cancer and metabolic disease expert Michael Karin joins Sanford Burnham Prebys

Low-intensity brain stimulation may restore neuron health in Alzheimer's disease

Four-day school week may not be best for students, review finds

Using music to explore the dynamics of emotions

How the brain supports social processing as people age

Túngara frog tadpoles that grew up in the city developed faster but ended up being smaller

Where there’s fire, there’s smoke

UCLA researchers uncover key mechanism of brain repair in vascular dementia, revealing promising therapeutic target

Why Human empathy still matters in the age of AI

COVID-19 and cognitive change in a community-based cohort

[Press-News.org] New industrial application for revolutionary forensic metal fingerprinting technique