Enhancing Reliability of Pharmaceutical and Medical Packaging Using Parylenes

Rakesh Kumar

 Specialty Coating Systems
7645 Woodland Drive, IN 46278, Indianapolis, USA
Tel: +1 317 244 1200 Fax: +1 317 472 1215

Biography

Dr. Rakesh Kumar is currently the Vice President of Technology for Specialty Coating Systems, Inc., where he leads the R&D group and manages Parylene research and development activities worldwide. His prior work experience includes technical and management positions with United Panel, Inc., Lucent Technologies, OptronX, Inc. He has more than 20 years of extensive experience in the development of polymeric materials and their applications in the medical, electronics and semiconductors areas. He is currently involved with the application of Parylene coatings in the field of medical including medical devices, electronics, MEMS, and nanotechnology.  Dr. Kumar earned his undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees in Chemistry from Gorakhpur University in India, and completed his post-doctorate work in polymer chemistry at the University College London, U.K. He is co-author of a book and has authored several published papers and patents.

Company Profile

Specialty Coating Systems (SCS) provides Parylene coating services, equipment and dimer.  SCS leads the industry in providing Parylene solutions to advanced technologies. SCS is the direct descendent of the companies that original developed Parylene, and has more than 35 years of experience and expertise to leverage on every project.

SCS' worldwide resources include highly experienced professionals working in 9 state-of-the-art coating facilities throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia.

Abstract

Plastics’ role has recently increased due to market efforts to move away from glass material or containers. Although plastics such as Cyclic Olefin Copolymers (COC) and polycarbonates etc. have made numerous advances, there remain many challenges to achieving superior barrier performance for long term stability and reliability.  Most electronic medical implants incorporate microelectronic components that are placed inside the body to either sense or to facilitate a physiological response. It is very important that these electronic components are appropriately encapsulated or packaged to assure that they do not create an adverse effect within the body. Among the available polymers, Parylenes play a significant role in the packaging and protection of many medical devices for safety and enhancing overall device reliability within body tissues and fluids.

Recently, there have been advances in the Parylene technology itself, particularly in the types of new materials and their possible applications in medical packaging. This paper presents an overview of Parylene’s impact on medical packaging, and recent developments in new types of Parylenes, particularly a fluorinated Parylene and its potential role in advancing the effectiveness of medical devices and other medical packaging.