Porosity is a big issue in the creation of many acrylic-based products that are manufactured using a powder liquid system. Incorrect powder: liquid ratios and gases, such as air or vaporised excess monomer trapped during polymerisation stages, produces voids or bubbles in the finished product. This ...

In 1987, Per Bak, along with colleagues Tang and Weisenfeld, published a landmark paper in Physics Review Letters (PRL). The paper, Self-organized criticality: An explanation of the 1/f noise, represented a giant leap in the understanding and modelling of dynamical systems. In this article...

Acrylic is a popular choice for many casting and modelling applications, particularly in the production of dental prostheses and cosmetic nails. End users have the relatively simple job of mixing a monomer liquid and a polymer powder to make a dough, which once moulded and cured, forms the desired p...

Peroxides are highly effective polymerisation initiators and the driving force behind the production of poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) beads. But peroxides are not without their challenges. Peroxide storage and its use must be tightly regulated, both for safety reasons and to ensure polymer ...

Polymerisation inhibitors are crucial for the safe storage of the volatile and easily catalysed methyl methacrylate (MMA). To drive polymerisation during the production of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), these inhibitors need to be consumed but they leave a chemical footprint. These chemical resid...

Poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) is a versatile acrylic plastic. Tough, rigid and transparent, it combines chemical stability with low toxicity for a wide range of industrial and consumer applications. PMMA microbeads are at the heart of many important products, from dental protheses to...

Quality control is the backbone of all manufacturing businesses, driving consistency, compliance and high standards. But this key function is a balancing act, relying on teams to set accurate benchmarks and employ reliable testing procedures. When working with polymers, this involves a detailed know...

Dental prosthetics is a thriving industry, providing innovative solutions to a growing global population, thanks to a range of new materials and techniques. When a successful Australian dental prosthetics manufacturer approached us with a new product, it came with complex chemistry problems. In...

Every industry, and indeed every application, places unique requirements on plastics. Over time, our knowledge of chemistry has grown, presenting brand new opportunities to improve the mechanical and chemical performance of materials. With these properties, manufacturers can significantly improve th...

Sophisticated applications require high performance materials. Acrylic bead polymers are very often chosen due to their unique size and shape. However, the optimum composition of an acrylic bead polymer will vary drastically, depending on the application and the required characteristics.

There are a ...

Suspension polymerisation is a chain growth free-radical polymerisation technique, used for the synthesis of spherical bead polymers. The process creates high performance polymer beads, used in various specialised applications. At Makevale, we’ve refined the suspension polymerisation process to crea...

Poly(methyl methacrylate), commonly abbreviated as PMMA, is one of the most important polymers on the planet. Polymerised using the Methyl methacrylate monomer, PMMA is used in hundreds of applications, each requiring a unique set of characteristics to offer optimum performance.

PMMA is used in every...

Rheology modifiers are used to change the way in which matter flows and how materials react under pressure. Crucial to many industries and processes, they alter viscosity and add or change the functional characteristics of products. Rheology modifiers are also important in manufacturing processes, c...

Makevale Group is headquartered near London, UK. We have two manufacturing sites in the UK, one in Asia and distribution centres in the USA and China. Our global reach allows us to export to more than 100 countries all over the world. Our distribution centres also source and supply a range of specia...