Hoowaki Overview October 2010

Microstructured Steel Molds

transforming surfaces

Ralph Hulseman, President David Mammarella, Sales Engineer

Hoowaki, LLC

October 2010

2 Hoowaki Presentation, October 2010 transforming surfaces

Surface Engineering Technology

Hoowaki transforms surface properties independent of bulk material properties

• Tools to form:

•  Metal, polymer, or ceramic surfaces

• Features

•  Micro scale patterns

•  Uniform and multi-scale heights and features

•  No coatings, environmentally friendly

• Macro geometries

•  Flat, curved and complex Water on Rubber Pillars�

Metal Pillars�


What Does Hoowaki Sell? Hoowaki sells microstructured metal tooling • Industrial steel tooling or research samples • Surface engineering and design expertise

Stainless steel mold insert used to mold surfaces with enhanced performances Superhydrophobic molded Santoprene

rubber surface

2 cm


Metal Mold Inserts Our steel tooling can be used for high volume injection molding of plastic parts. We can make smaller and more complex features in steel than anyone else we know of.

We form micro features in parallel, millions at a time. This means our processes are inherently less expensive than serial methods such as laser machining.

5cm square stainless steel microstructured mold insert. Tools like this are used to mold plastic parts like the ones shown to the right.

Polycarbonate molded from steel mold insert with 40 micron diameter square pillars.

ABS molded from steel mold insert with 160 micron diameter circular pillars.

2 cm


Microstructures in Curved Steel Hoowaki Logo in Steel

4 cm

500 µm

50 µm

Hoowaki has the unique ability to form microstructures on curved metal surfaces, allowing for immense design flexibility


Representative Micro Photos

Aluminum 25 µm pillars

Stamped PET Film 50 µm pillars

Copper 30 µm jagged bars

Injection Molded PC 25x50 micron pillars

30 micron

200 micron

Nickel 10 µm holes

Stainless Steel 180 µm holes

Copper 5 µm x 8 µm pillars

Silicone Rubber 2 µm pillars

50 micron 250 micron 10 micron

3 micron 75 micron 75 micron


What Surface Properties Add Value?

Projects underway Under Consideration Current Projects

•  Superhydrophobic

•  Superhydrophilic

•  Friction increase and decrease

•  Heat transfer

•  Adhesion

•  Surface area

•  Drag and flow

•  Nucleation

•  Cavitation

•  Lubrication

•  Anti-blocking

•  Surface volume

•  Touch

•  Color and appearance

•  Weather and corrosion resistance

•  Bloom prevention

•  Tissue adhesion

•  Cell growth control


Microstructure Pattern Design

Design Flexibility and Potential

•  Hoowaki has a large library of existing patterns

•  Custom fabrication available

•  Unique ability to create multi-scale, multi-function surfaces

•  Can vary size (3 microns to hundreds of microns), shape, height, aspect ratio, pitch (spacing), orientation (pillars/holes), and more to fit needs of the application

Multi-scale pattern demonstration. Surfaces can be engineered to provide multiple desired functions. �


Microstructures in Aluminum

Hoowaki is molding microstructures on aluminum foils with both pillars and holes orientation.

SEM photograph of microstructured 6061 aluminum

Water contact angle comparison between unmolded aluminum (left) and Hoowaki microstructured aluminum (right)

Water droplets on unmolded aluminum with random surface finish (left) and on Hoowaki microstructured aluminum (right) showing superhydrophobic behavior


Injection Molding Representative Micro Photos

Styrene block copolymer with 25x50 micron ellip6cal pillars.

Styrene block copolymer with 10 micron diameter circular pillars.

ABS with 5 micron diameter circular pillars.

PP curved surface 50 micron circular pillars.

HDPE with 25x50 micron ellip6cal holes. HDPE with 25x50 micron diameter ellip6cal holes.

250 microns 50 microns 50 microns

500 microns 250 microns 100 microns


Product Development Approach How Hoowaki Works With Customers

1 2 3 4 5

•  Demonstrate scientific feasibility on laboratory samples using existing Hoowaki patterns and equipment •  Provide metal mold

inserts for injection molding

•  Optimization of microstructure pattern based on results from step 2

•  Manufacturing scale up activities to produce production quantities of hard tooling and scale up production of end product

Proof of Concept

Optimization Build and Run Pilot Line

Manufacturing scale up Feasibility

•  Select target application

•  Design and build micro patterns and fabricate prototype product

•  Develop lab scale process and understand key process variables

•  Design, build and run pilot line capable of producing hundreds of end products for evaluation •  Determine

productivity, cost and quality to allow design of production line

We couple our sales process to our customer’s product development process.


Key Hoowaki Staff

•  Ralph Hulseman, President – 25 years with Michelin R&D. Experience in target markets.

•  William King PhD, CTO – Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Technology Inventor.

•  John Warner, CFO – Entrepreneur and Chairman of InnoVenture.

•  March Maguire, VP Engineering – 22 years with Kemet.

•  Scott Denley, VP Manufacturing and Quality – 28 years with Michelin.

•  Andrew Cannon PhD, R&D Manager – His PhD thesis pioneered key Hoowaki technology.

•  David Mammarella, Sales Engineer – over 1 year with Hoowaki as surface and applications engineer.


Contact Information

To learn how your surfaces can be transformed, please contact:

David Mammarella, Sales Engineer [email protected] 864-354-6174

Or Ralph Hulseman, President Hoowaki, LLC [email protected] 864-238-5631

www.hoowaki.com

transforming surfaces

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Hoowaki Overview October 2010

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