Cosmonauts seal experiment A pair of cosmonauts in the Mir

space station spent a fìve-and-a-

half-hour space walk to carry out

an experiment on sealing minute

cracks in the hul1 with specially

designed glue.

Cracks appeared when the

station collided with a cargo craft in

June 1997, and have caused

constant air leakage from the cabin,

forcing the crew to use more

precieus energy to maintain normal

pressure inside. Earher, other teams

of cosmonauts tried to locate the

puncture but failed.

The latest attempt was said to be

unsuccessful in stopping the

pressure drop but mission control

said experts believed the

experience could be useful for

further flights.

“Results of the experiment

could come in handy during work

at the International Space

Station,” the spokesman said,

referring to a US$60 billion

project in which Moscow is one of

the main contractors after the

USA. Russia says that Mir wil1 stay

in orbit until at least August even

though the cosmonauts also found

that cables to a solar panel were

blackened, indicating a short-

circuit.

Gasket problems delays launch Meanwhile, at Cape Canaveral,

Florida, USA, the launch of the

first US racket powered by a Russian designed and built

engine was delayed because of a

valve problem on the pad. Lockheed Martin Corp had

hoped to have a fifth shot Sunday

evening at launching its new Atlas

111 racket with a European

communication satellite on board.

However, when it was routinely

draining propellant from the racket

after the failed launch attempt, a

gasket in the liquid oxygen check

valve wore out and delayed the

work. Technicians were replacing

the gasket as wel1 as the rocket’s

batteries.

Ironically, the scheduled launch

attempt had been scuttled by a

fishing tournament that drew more

than 70 boats into the launch-

danger area offshore, and a last-

minute computer error. Earlier

delays were caused by technical

problems and bad weather.

Gaska Tape foam solves auto problems Gaska Tape Inc has published a

white paper describing the

versatility of the company’s new

Polymerie Series Foam Tape for

automotive applications:

Polymerie Series Foam Tape:

Solutions for a Wide Range

of Problematic Automotive

Applications details actual case

studies of how this new material

meets or exceeds some of the

toughest automotive specification

for both exterior and interior

applications. The new white paper

also details how Gaska’s new

generation of Polymerie Series

Foam, patent pending, has cleared

the way to meet or exceed the SAB

J 1756 out-gassing specification.

This makes polymerie the first

material of its kind to exceed this

hurdle without the aid of masking

or coating.

Seals workshop suspended The US Federal Aviation

Administration has suspended

certification for some of Qantas

Airways’ maintenance and

engineering operations on US

aircraft. The suspension applied to Qantas’ bearing and seal

workshop that works on engine

bearings, rotating parts and

seals. Technicalities included the

kind of solvents used and the

surface material of the workshop

floor.

Qantas Airways says that the

FAA issues do not affect the safe

operation of its aircraft and that it

was working on the FAA’s

concerns.

Surgical sealant endorsed A US advisory panel has endorsed a surgical sealant made by Focal Inc for reducing or

eliminating air leaks following

lung surgery. A committee that advises the Food and Drug Administration unanimously

recommended that the agency

approve the sealant, known as FocalSeal-L, for marketing in the

US. The sealant already is

approved for use in Europe and Canada.

The Lexington, MA, USA,

based Focal hopes to sell the

product in the USA market to

prevent air leaks from occurring

after surgery to remove lung

tumours. If the FDA follows its

panels’ advice FocalSeal-L would

be the company’s fìrst product

approved in the US.

“There isn’t anything more

important than this,” Focal

president and chief executive

officer Robert DePasqua said. “It’s

nice to have approval for a product

outside the United States, but our

biggest markets are obviously

here.”

The committee urged the FDA

to require a warning on the

product’s label that the clinical trial

showed higher rates of wound

infections and empyema, a

collection of pus in a body cavity, in

patients treated with the sealant

than in the control group. They

als0 recommended that

the company conduct long-term

studies to determine whether

treatment with the sealant

contributed to tumour growth.

“There needs to be further data

accumulated before this question

can be answered,” said panel

chairman Dr. Thomas Whalen,

head of paediatric surgery at the

Robert Wood Johnson Medical

School in Camden, New Jersey.

Next Month-

Forthcoming News & Articles

News Items and In-Brief on Business,

Markets 81 Products

Features:

Market Report

- World Markets for Fluid

Sealing Products Analysed

By Product Type

Vehicular Applications

for Gaskets 81 Seals

Plus: Patents, Webwatch & Events

@ \, -q ” i ” ,> ;, Sealing Technology No. 79

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