Highly efficient toughening effect of ultrafine full-vulcanized powdered rubber on poly(lactic acid)(PLA)

A unique ultrafine full-vulcanized powdered ethyl acrylate rubber (EA-UFPR) was used as the toughening modifier for poly (lactic acid) (PLA). Largely improved tensile toughness was successfully achieved with the incorporation of only 1 wt% EA-UFPR, while the tensile strength and modulus of the blends were almost the same as pure PLA. The highly efficient toughening of PLA by UFPR is mainly ascribed to the strong interfacial interaction between PLA and UFPR and good dispersion of UFPR particles in PLA matrix. Our work provides an effective toughening method to largely improve the mechanical properties of PLA without sacrificing its stiffness, which is very important for the wide application of PLA materials.     

Application of wavelet transform in-ray spectra analysis

The frequency distribution of different ingredients in-ray spectra,e.g.,photo-peak,fluctuations of counts and Compton region,is separately analyzed.After wavelet transform of-ray spectra,the wavelet coefficients of a photo-peak increase with transforming scales and these coefficients show direct proportion with intensity of peak at determinate scale.A novel algorithm based on wavelet transform is proposed and studied.The results indicate that most of the photo-peaks in multi-spectra can be determined accurately,the-rays energy and intensity of the peak can also be determined.This method has the prospect of being applied in on-line multi-spectra analysis in such fields as radioprotection and nuclear safety monitoring.     

Grand canonical Monte Carlo simulation for hydrogen uptakes based on nanoporous NaBH4

A new hydrogen storage route of 3D nanoporous sodium borohydride (NPSB) generated by removing special atoms is proposed in this work. Three different size pores of NPSB-1 (7), NPSB-2 (10) and NPSB-3 (14) are presented, and the hydrogen storage capacities of these NPSBs are simulated by employing a grand canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) procedure for a temperature range of 77-298 K and a pressure range of 0.1-100 bar. The effects of pore diameter, temperature and pressure on the hydrogen adsorption have been examined. The results show that the adsorption of hydrogen decreases and increases with increasing temperature and hydrogen pressure, respectively. It also reflects that the hydrogen adsorption capacities at higher pressures are dependent on pore diameter, while independent of pore diameter at lower pressures.     

Temperature independent leakage current in Au/TbMnO3/Y Ba2Cu3O7−x capacitors

Au/TbMnO₃/Y Ba₂Cu₃O_7?x capacitors were fabricated on LaAlO₃ substrates and electrical characteristics were studied in the temperature range from 300 to 25 K. When temperature is higher than 225 K, Ohmic conduction is observed in the capacitors. Non-linear current–voltage characteristics are exhibited at low temperatures. Moreover, temperature-independent leakage currents are found at temperatures lower than 150 K. These electrical characteristics can be explained in terms of conduction transition originated from a thermal activation between 225 and 150 K, and the temperature-independent leakage currents are governed by the Poole–Frenkel emission and minor trap ionization energies.     

High pressure infiltration sintering behavior of WC-Co alloys

In this paper, two average tungsten carbide particle sizes of 2, 0.5?μm are placed respectively, in contact with a WC-16Co substrate, pressed at the pressure of 4.5–5.5?GPa, and heated to temperatures ranging from 1350°C to 1500°C in a large-volume cubic press. During the process Co was forced out of the WC-16Co substrate into the compressed powder. The resulting infiltrated samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), Vickers hardness and cutting performance tests. The results of XRD confirmed that the sintered bulks have WC and Co phases. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis reveals that the WC grains in well-sintered alloys are round in shape and cobalt with lower content is uniformly dispersed in the WC grain boundaries. The sintered sub-micron WC-Co alloy with a cobalt content of 3.8?wt% exhibits a prominent combination of high hardness value of 23.1?GPa and a large fracture toughness value of 8.6?MPa?m^½. The high-speed cutting tests indicating its cutting performance is significantly superior to the commercial YG6X (WC-6?wt%Co with WC grain size of 0.5?μm).     

The characteristics analysis of a new-style four-mirror axisymmetric-fold-combination cavity adapting to cylindrical discharge region

An axisymmetric-fold-combination (ASFC) cavity composed of two planar mirrors and spherical mirrors was designed. It is a stable-unstable resonator cavity. The light field of radial direction is Gaussian distribution. And in angular orientation, the distribution keeps invariant. It could generate annular CO₂ laser beam with excellent spatial coherence. And the spatial coherence is commendably realized with its stable-unstable cavity structure. The output light intensity distribution of this special model was discussed and simulated. With exterior lenses group, the output beams can be adjusted and controlled better to meet the manufactural requirements. Some references were provided for further research of the cavity with cylindrical discharge region.     

Surface modification of multi-walled carbon nanotubes by O2 plasma

The surface modification of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) by O₂ plasma was carried out in this study. In order to achieve a relatively homogeneous treatment of MWCNTs powder, a rotating barrel fixed between the two discharge electrodes was used. The effect of plasma treatment parameters, such as power, time, and positions of samples (inside and outside the barrel), on the morphology and structure of MWCNTs surface was systematically analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results showed that the direct discharge (outside the barrel) could result in not only a quick grafting of polar functional groups but also an easy damage of MWCNTs after longer time, particularly under intensive power. It was found that the surface of MWCNTs powder might be changed in three steps—expansion (loosed structure formed), peel off and oxidization with increasing of treatment time during the irradiation. In this way, a complete purification of MWCNTs powder could be finished within 30 min via plasma treatment. Our work suggested that plasma treatment could be a simple and nonpolluting method for a large scale purification of MWCNTs.     

Electronic structure and site occupation for the intermediate phase of LaNi4.5Al0.5Hy

The crystal structure, electronic structure and hydrogen site occupancy of LaNi_4.5Al_0.5H_y intermediate phase (y=2.0, 3.0, 4.0) have been investigated using the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave (FLAPW) method. For the first time we analyzed the interstitial site occupation of hydrogen atoms. The H atoms were found to prefer the 6m, 3f and 12n sites, while no 4h sites were occupied. A narrowed Ni-d band is found due to the lattice expansion: the total DOS at E_F increases with y, which indicates that the compounds become less stable. The interaction between Al and Ni, with H plays a dominant role in the stability of LaNi_4.5Al_0.5H_y intermediate phase. The smaller the shift of E_F towards the higher energy region, the more stable the compounds will be. Our results are compared with experimental data and discussed in the light of previous works.     

Photocatalytic and optical properties of titanium dioxide thin films prepared by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

Titanium dioxide thin films have been deposited by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) over sodalime glass substrates at substrate temperatures ranging from 250 °C to 450 °C. The effect of deposition temperature on the structure and microstructure of the obtained films has been studied by x-rays diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), respectively. Diffraction patterns show the existence of a pure anatase phase beside a texture change with the increase of deposition temperature. Micrographs show grain fragmentation with the increase in deposition temperature. UV–Vis. spectra have been recorded by spectrophotometery. The optical energy gap has been calculated for the deposited films from the spectrophotometrical data. Photocatalytic experiments have been carried out. The photocatalytic activity has been found to decrease with the increase in deposition temperature.