To help the U.S. polymers industry retain its technological lead in the international marketplace, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) today announced the formation of a research and development consortium and the signing of its first two corporate members.

Dow Chemical Co. of Midland, Mich., and 3M Co. of St. Paul, Minn., joined the consortium by signing cooperative research and development agreements (CRADAS) with NIST. Since 1988, NIST has signed 210 CRADAS with companies for a wide variety of collaborative projects.

The new consortium aims to improve processing techniques used in the manufacture of advanced polymer materials. Industries benefiting include the aerospace, automotive, electronics, medical and communications sectors where plastics and rubber materials must meet tight controls for quality and reliability.

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Based at NIST headquarters in Gaithersburg, Md., the consortium will develop in-line measurement technology to monitor temperature and flow properties during polymer processing. example, optical fibers will be used to measure material temperatures without being affected by external influences. another case, fluorescent dyes will be employed to study the effect of processing stress on flowing polymers. Measuring this property will enable manufacturers to better understand the process, thereby improving productivity and product quality.

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The consortium, which will accept new members during the next six months, will remain in effect until 1996. For information, contact H. Thomas Yolken, Office of Intelligent Processing of Materials, B344 Materials Building, NIST, Gaithersburg, Md. 20899, (301) 975-5727.

NIST is an agency of the Commerce Department's Technology Administration. Its mission is to strengthen U.S. industry's competitiveness, advance science, and improve public health, safety and the environment.

Efforts to curb violent crime could soon get a boost from scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) who have developed a faster, less expensive way to prove that a suspect fired a weapon.

With support from the National Institute of Justice, NIST scientists are identifying unique patterns or gunpowder "fingerprints" in particles that remain on the hands of people who've fired weapons.

Gunpowder fingerprints are obtained using a technique known as micellar electrokinetic capillary electrophoresis, or MECE, which chemists use to separate organic molecules from a variety of compounds.

About 2 years ago, NIST chemist William MacCrehan and Georgetown graduate student David Northrop, now with the Washington State Patrol's Kennewick Crime Laboratory, began analyzing gunpowder with MECE.

"We set out to investigate a new technique. MECE takes a different approach by analyzing organic chemicals in gunpowder, MacCrehan says. Existing forensic techniques look for inorganic compounds that are present in the firing primer.

MECE uses an electric field to force organic compounds in the gunshot residue to separate as they move through a small diameter capillary. The result is a unique pattern or

fingerprint that could be used to prove whether an individual had fired a handgun.

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To test whether a hand has fired a weapon, a police officer would lift gunshot particles from a suspect's hands with masking tape. Particles from the tape are dissolved in ethanol and injected directly into the MECE instrument. Just a few

microscopic particles are sufficient to identify positively the use of a handgun.

NIST scientists say the MECE technique is practical but add that more work is necessary before it is ready for widespread use in police labs. "Establishing a library of information on all the different types of ammunition is a big issue," MacCrehan says. Scientists also need to study how long gunshot residues remain on a hand and whether the chemicals change hours after a shooting.

"We're at a stage now where we could begin a transfer of technology to the national forensic laboratories," MacCrehan says.

NIST is an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department's Technology Administration. Its mission is to strengthen U.S. industry's competitiveness, advance science, and improve public health, safety and the environment.