Could this Eastman polymer improve medical device housing durability?

Specialty plastics provider Eastman used the recent MD&M West to tout the ability of its MXF221 copolyester to hold up to repeated application of hospital disinfectants.

Eastman officials think MXF221 could be a new option for medical device manufacturers – especially because a cracked housing could endanger the electronics inside expensive equipment including ultrasound and MRI machines.

Eastman even has a four-step test, developed by applications development associate Yubiao Lin and endorsed by Clorox Healthcare, that demonstrates MXF221’s superiority over other polymers when it comes to long-term resistance to disinfectants. MXF221 retains more than 90% of its original strength after being exposed to stringent disinfectants, much better than competing materials such as polycarbonate blends, according to Eastman.

“The smart part of the equipment is so expensive. The housing is the cheapest part. Then disinfectants get in, and it ruins to the electronics. It’s just really a bad story. … Historically the materials just haven’t been very robust,” Ellen Turner, Eastman’s global market development manager, told Medical Design & Outsourcing last week.

Eastman even has a four-step test, developed by applications development associate Yubiao Lin and endorsed by Clorox Healthcare, that demonstrates MXF221’s superiority over other polymers when it comes to long-term resistance to disinfectants.

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