Advanced materials (or adv. materials) have some peculiar characteristics, making them useful for certain applications where standard materials fail. Advanced materials come in different types such as advanced metals, advanced composite materials, advanced silicon materials, advanced plastic materials, polymer advanced materials, advanced functional materials and nano-materials.

You can either research and develop the advanced materials in-house or ask the custom manufacturers to produce them as per your requirements. You can also ask advanced materials service providers to develop a material as per your requirements. You can also directly buy advanced materials from reputable material manufacturers who research and manufacture advanced materials using modern techniques.

Some important parameters you must consider before buying adv. materials are:

1. Application of the advanced materials
2. Chemical composition and properties
3. Physical properties of the advanced materials, including hardness, yield strength, resilience and machinability
4. Technology for manufacturing the advanced materials
5. Required quantity and production rate

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Buy advanced metals and plastics from advanced material suppliers

Various reputable alloys manufacturers and plastic suppliers produce advanced materials for critical applications. Advanced industrial materials have unique composition and are mostly custom manufactured.

I recommend: Ultramet, an advanced materials supplier, provides platinum group metals and ceramics for applications in the aerospace, defense and biomedical industries. Neo Material Technologies develops and manufactures rare earth and zirconium based engineering materials. For polymer advanced materials requirements, check out materials available at Solvay Advanced Polymers.

Buy nano-materials from advanced material suppliers

Nanotechnology is the latest trend in advanced materials technology. Nano-materials are useful in various industries such as pharmaceuticals, medical, defense and aerospace.

I recommend: Hyperion Catalysis International, a leading nano-tube developer, supplies products useful for flat-panel displays, advanced batteries and fuel cells. You can buy carbon nano-tubes at CarboLex. Unidym is another carbon nano-tube supplier that serves various industries including the electronics, automotive and utilities industries. Powdermet offers nano-composite metals and cermets.

Find companies that provide advanced materials services

Many reputable research companies provide advanced materials services as per customers' requirements. These companies develop and manufacture advanced materials to suit the application needs.

I recommend: Material Solutions Consulting is a reputable service provider that offers consultancy, research and process control services for advanced material manufacturing. Materials and Electrochemical Research provides research services for manufacturing advanced composites and nano-tubes. Advanced Materials is a reputable company in the field of research and development of high energy permanent magnets and hydrogen storage materials.

Keep yourself informed about the updates in advanced materials engineering

For optimum and economical use of advanced materials, keep a track of updates in the field of advanced materials. You can register yourself with reputable associations of the suppliers or subscribe to the periodicals that provide information about the advanced materials.

I recommend: AZoM.com, along with the International Foundation for the Advancement of Technology, provides online journals for information on materials and technological developments. IOP Publishing offers a periodical journal with the name of ‘Science and Technology of Advanced Materials’ with the help of Institute of Physics.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Perform a cost-value analysis of the advanced materials, as industrial advanced materials are generally expensive.
• •  Be careful while handling advanced materials, as some industrial advanced materials are hazardous.