Thermal stability and electrical conductivity of multiferroics BiFeO<Subscript>3</Subscript>/REEs

Ceramic samples of bismuth ferrite and solid solutions of Bi_{1 − x} A _x FeO₃ type (where A = Lu, Yb, Tm, Er, Ho, Dy, Tb, Gb, Eu, Sm, Nd, Pr, La; 0.05 ≤ x ≤ 0.20; Δx = 0.05) were prepared. Spectra of the real part of electrical conductivity were studied within the range 10⁻⁴–10⁻⁶ Hz. The dependence of the samples’ thermal stability and electrical conductivity on the size of the substituting ions was established.     

Reactions of thiols and organic sulfides with hydrogen in the presence of iron powder

Previously unknown reduction of thiols to hydrocarbons and H₂S with hydrogen formed by the interaction of powdered iron with dilute HCl was found. Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 8, pp. 1380–1382, August, 2006.     

Fracture Model for a Thin Layer of a Fibrous Composite

A model for a flat isolated layer of a unidirectional fibrous composite with a regular structure is constructed to investigate the possible variants of its failure development. An integrodifferential equation for determining the forces in fibers is obtained. Primary attention is focused on examining the failure process after the rupture of one fiber. This causes a drastic redistribution of stresses, which can lead to a failure of adjacent fibers owing to the increased load on them, to an interfacial shear fracture, and to the matrix cracking. It is shown that the development of layer failure is determined by the strength of fibers, the crack resistance of the matrix in axial tension and transverse shear, and also by the adhesion strength of the matrix-fiber interface. The sufficient conditions of applicability of the brittle fracture model are formulated.     

Piezodielectric properties of PMN-PZT-PT solid solutions under the action of high temperatures

The piezodielectric and ferroelastic properties of solid solutions of the multi-component system 0.98(xPbTiO_3?y PbZrO_3?z PbNb_2/3Mg_1/3O₃)-0.02PbGeO₃ are studied in the temperature range of 30–400°C. Abnormalities of the above dependences are revealed, and it is suggested that the observed phenomena are of a physical nature.     

Reactions of thiols and organic disulfides with iron and its oxides

The influence of O₂ and H₂O on the formation of iron dithiolates (IDTs) by the reactions of thiols and organic disulfides with the iron powder was studied under the static (without mechanical activation of the reaction) and dynamic (with mechanical activation of the reaction) conditions. Under the static conditions in the absence of O₂ or H₂O, only BnSH and PhSH give IDTs, whereas DdSH (Dd is dodecyl) produces IDTs in the presence of O₂ or H₂O. For the mechanical activation of the reactions of organic disulfides with the iron powder, the formation of IDTs is possible if the reaction mixture contains H₂O. On the interaction with iron oxides excess thiols are oxidized to organic disulfides and also afford IDTs. Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 8, pp. 1383–1386, August, 2006.