The Elimination of Grains and Grain Boundaries in Grain Growth

The topological changes that occur during coarsening of 2D and 3Dcellular structures, such as polycrystals, areinvestigated. Particular attention is given to the elimination ofgrain boundaries and grains with more than the minimum number oftopological elements. A thermodynamic criterion is introduced tofind out which topological transformations are favoured, based on theevaluation of the Gibbs free energy of the initial and finalconfigurations. In general, elimination of grains is possible only ifthe number of their neighbours is below a critical value, which maybe affected by geometry.     

Grain boundary,triple junction and quadruple point mobility controlled normal grain growth

Reduction in stored free energy provides the thermodynamic driving force for grain and bubble growth in polycrystals and foams. Evolution of polycrystalline networks exhibit the additional complication that grain growth may be controlled by several kinetic mechanisms through which the decrease in network energy occurs. Polyhedral boundaries, triple junctions (TJs), and quadruple points (QPs) are the geometrically distinct elements of three dimensional networks that follow Plateau’s rules, provided that grain growth is limited by diffusion through, and motion of, cell boundaries. Shvindlerman and co-workers have long recognized the kinetic influences on polycrystalline grain growth of network TJs and QPs. Moreover, the emergence of interesting polycrystalline nanomaterials underscored that TJs can indeed influence grain growth kinetics. Currently there exist few detailed studies concerned either with network distributions of grain size, number of faces per grain, or with ‘grain trajectories’, when grain growth is limited by the motion of its TJs or QPs. By contrast there exist abundant studies of classical grain growth limited by boundary mobility. This study is focused on a topological/geometrical representation of polycrystals to obtain statistical predictions of the grain size and face number distributions, as well as growth ‘trajectories’ during steady-state grain growth. Three limits to grain growth are considered, with grain growth kinetics controlled by boundary, TJ, and QP mobilities.     

尺寸均匀的ZnO纳米颗粒的固相生长及性能

用Zn的酮酸肟化盐及该盐在NaCl和Li2CO3中的分解生长了ZnO纳米颗粒,观察了纳米颗粒的形态和尺寸分布,分析了纳米颗粒的结构和光谱特性,讨论了NaCl和Li2CO3的作用及生长温度对ZnO形态和尺寸的影响。在320℃下,纯的Zn酮酸肟化盐单独分解和在NaCl或NaCl和Li2CO3中分解都形成半径约7nm的球形颗粒,但在NaCl或NaCl和Li2CO3中分解形成的颗粒尺寸比较均匀,并且颗粒具有强的紫外光荧光;生长温度降低到300℃无ZnO形成,温度升高到450℃颗粒聚集长大,进一步升高温度,出现大尺寸的棒状结构,ZnO的尺寸和形态主要依赖于分解温度。     

Two‐Dimensional Au Nanocrystals: Shape/Size Controlling Synthesis,Morphologies, and Applications

The fascinating roles of two‐dimensional (2D) nanomaterials in natural super‐strong bio‐composites (i.e. aragonite platelets in nacre and apatite platelets in bone) have aroused great interest in scientific communities to synthesize their artificial counterparts with controllable geometric and physical properties. The quantum 2D confinement of electrons recently revealed in graphene nanosheets further inspires to explore 2D metal nanocrystals with intrinsic anisotropic properties and quantum size effect. Among them, 2D Au nanocrystals stand out not only due to their unique structure‐ and environmental‐dependent properties, but also due to their rapid development in synthesis approaches and emerging applications in electronics, optics, sensing and biomedicines. In this Review the aim is to rationalize numerous newly published studies on 2D Au nanocrystals and to gain insight into their shape/size controlling synthesis, diverse morphologies, properties, and applications, potentially serving a handy guide to achieve on‐demand 2D Au nanocrystals.     

北疆地区不同雪粒径光谱特征观测及反演研究

雪粒径反演是冰冻圈遥感的重要研究内容之一。本研究通过设计不同雪粒径观测方案,在我国北疆地区利用SVC HR-1024野外便携式光谱仪观测了不同雪粒径的光谱特征;同时利用可拍照显微镜测量了雪粒径的大小和形状,并通过DSPP方法计算其等效粒径;最后,基于渐进式积雪辐射传输模型(ART)对反演波段和积雪形状因子进行优化,反演并验证雪粒径。研究表明DSPP方法获取积雪等效粒径是可行的,但由于同层积雪中样本选择存在较大差异,在样本选择方面需要进一步改进;近红外波段还是区分雪粒径的有效波段,在研究区积雪是干雪的条件下,基于ART优化反演波段和积雪形状因子优化方法反演雪粒径是可行的,根据试验获取在该地区雪粒径反演最佳波段为1.20 μm,最佳积雪形状因子b值为3.62。     

激光散射法对尿液中纳米微晶粒径及其分布的研究

泌尿系结石已经成为威胁人类健康的一种常见病、多发病,目前对其形成的机制尚不清楚。文章采用激光散射法测定了正常人尿液和尿石症患者尿液中纳米粒子的粒径和粒径分布,该方法快速准确、经济、容易操作。正常人尿液比尿石症患者尿液的稳定性好,归因于正常人尿液中纳米微晶尺寸分布均匀,不容易聚集,而尿石症患者尿液的纳米微晶尺寸分布不均匀,粒子间容易聚集而沉降。通过分析尿样稀释、离心或者用微孔滤膜过滤后体系的光强-自相关函数曲线,得到了制备稳定的尿样悬浮液的方法：尿样先稀释20%,然后离心或用1.2 μm微孔滤膜过滤,可得到稳定的尿液悬浮液。激光散射法结果与TEM检测结果一致。从尿液中存在的范德华力、尿液粘度、酸碱性、离子强度、尿液中纳米微晶的表面电荷和Zeta电位等方面解释了尿液稳定的原因。     

Diffusion Induced Grain-Boundary Migration and Enhanced Grain Growth in BaTiO3

The effect of diffusion induced grain-boundary migration (DIGM) on grain growth has been studied in a model system of BaTiO₃-PbTiO₃. When sintered BaTiO₃ samples of two different grain sizes were heat-treated in contact with PbTiO₃, DIGM occurred in the coarse-grained samples (200 m in average size) while fast grain growth was observed in the fine-grained samples (4 m). Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis confirmed that the fast growth of BaTiO₃ grains was accompanied by the alloying of Pb and thus related to DIGM. A calculation of coherency strain energy for the BaTiO₃-PbTiO₃ system showed that the coherency strain energy of a coherent (Ba_0.8Pb_0.2)TiO₃ layer on BaTiO₃ was between 2 and 3 MJ/m³ depending on the surface orientation. The calculated coherency strain energy values are much higher than the capillary energy due to the grain boundary curvature of 4 m grains in the fine-grained sample. The observed enhancement of grain growth appears therefore to be a result of DIGM. Such grain growth enhancement by DIGM is thought to occur in materials processing under chemical inhomogeneity or inequilibrium, for example, in the sintering of powder mixtures and in the annealing of chemically inhomogeneous polycrystals.     

Reduced Mobility of Triple Nodes and Lines on Grain Growth in Two and Three Dimensions

Vertex dynamics models in two and three dimensions are applied to study grain growth including a limited mobility of triple points (two dimensions) and triple lines (three dimensions). A recent experiment on a triple node is used to validate the proposed model. The reduced triple node/line mobility in the case of a polycrystalline sample is shown to influence both, the grain growth kinetics and the grain size distribution function.     

Grain Boundary Kinetics in Oxide Ceramics with the Cubic Fluorite Crystal Structure and its Derivatives

Kinetics of grain boundaries in oxides with the cubic fluorite structure and its derivatives has been investigated using fine grain ceramics that are fully dense. Grain growth measurements in these materials have provided information on grain boundary diffusivity over a diffusion distance of the order of the initial grain size. With the addition of solute cations, grain boundary mobility can be varied over many orders of magnitude, often with very different activation energies. This is caused by the variation of defect population and the defect-solute association. Definitive evidence for solute drag has also been observed in some cases, but solute drag can not be confirmed as a general mechanism in solid solutions. Lastly, while grain boundary at low temperature may continue to serve as a fast diffusion path, it may not be able to migrate because of additional pinning mechanisms such as those exerted by grain boundary nodal points or lines. This means that sintering without grain growth is possible, opening up an avenue for obtaining ultrafine ceramics by pressureless sintering.     

Pinning effect of different shape second-phase particles on grain growth in polycrystalline: numerical and analytical investigations

The pinning effect of different shape second-phase particles on the grain growth in polycrystalline structures is numerical simulated by the phase-field method. Simulation results indicate that the average grain size is highly dependent on the shape and distribution of the second-phase particles, and the shape effect of particles on grain growth restraining is enhanced with increasing numbers of particles. In order to discuss the relation between the constraint grain growth and the second-phase particles, pinning forces induced by different shape particles are theoretically calculated via the Zener pinning theory. The calculated pining forces indicate that the maximum pinning force is highly dependent on the contact mode between grains and particles, and the distance between particles has a significantly influence on the pinning forces. Therefore, controlling the shape and distributions of second-phase particles in polycrystalline metals or ceramics might be an efficient way to achieve materials with specified microstructures.     

Determination of Particle Size Distribution by Laser Diffraction of Doped‐CeO2 Powder Suspensions: Effect of Suspension Stability and Sonication

The particle size distributions (PSDs) of metal oxide powders are often determined by analyzing suspensions of powders using laser diffraction (e.g. Malvern MasterSizer 2000). Particle agglomeration can effectively bias the resulting distribution towards “unrealistic” particle sizes. Solutions to avoid this problem must be found if a particle distribution based on the elemental or primary particle sizes is desired. In this work, the particle size distribution of doped‐CeO₂ powders was studied. These powders show a crystalline single phase structure of controlled stoichiometry as determined by X‐ray diffraction and ICP analysis. The apparent size distribution was found to be a strong function of suspension stability. Dispersant agents (PBTCA and phosphonoacetic acid) and suspension pH affected stability as characterized by zeta potential measurements. Sonication of the suspensions further enhanced particle de‐agglomeration. Finally, only the combined effect of a dispersant agent, pH adjustment of the suspension and sonication provided a primary particle size distribution. The results presented in this work can be used in the analysis of similar ceramic powders in which strong particle agglomeration is present.     

The Internalization,Distribution, and Ultrastructure Damage of Silica Nanoparticles in Human Hepatic L‐02 Cells

Nowadays, due to the wide use of amorphous silica nanoparticles (SiNPs), their adverse effects on human beings are attracting more attention. Understanding the interaction between SiNPs and cells is a fundamental step for toxicity assessment. Therefore, the current study is aimed at elaborating the internalization process, subcellular distribution, ultrastructure damage, and cytotoxicity of two different sizes of SiNPs (Nano‐Si64 and Nano‐Si46) in L‐02 cells. The results indicate that the smaller‐sized SiNPs, Nano‐Si46, accumulate in cells more efficiently and produce a stronger cytotoxic effect than Nano‐Si64. Both types of nanoparticles can accumulate in L‐02 cells through the active endocytotic pathway and passive diffusion, and distribute within endocytotic vesicles or freely in cytoplasma and organelles. Microvillus fracture, membrane injury, mitochondria damage, degranulation of the rough endoplasmic reticulum, lamellar‐like structure, lysosome destruction, autophagosomes, and autophagy‐lysosomes are found in L‐02 cells. Oxidative damage and direct interaction between SiNPs and subcellular structure are responsible for the toxicity.     

非晶一次晶化过程微观组织演化和生长动力学的相场法研究

在晶化物理模型中添加扩散系数对晶化过程的影响, 采用相场方法研究初始形核率和初始形核半径对一次晶化过程中微观组织和生长动力学的影响。结果表明: 随着初始形核率的增加, 相同时间内非晶一次晶化的晶粒数量逐渐增加, 晶粒尺寸逐渐减小。晶化分数随着演化时间和初始形核率的增加逐渐增大, 初始形核率越大, 相同演化时间内的晶化分数越高。不同初始形核半径情况下, 非晶一次晶化过程中的晶粒数量和尺寸随着演化时间的增加基本保持不变。晶化分数随着演化时间的增加而增大。不同初始形核率和初始形核半径情况下所对应的生长指数均小于1, 表明初始形核率和初始形核半径对晶化方式无影响, 均为一次晶化。改变初始形核率和初始形核半径可调控一次晶化微观组织结构, 而晶粒尺寸及晶化分数直接关系到合金性能。     

Grain Size Effects in Sensor Response of Nanostructured SnO2- and In2O3-Based Conductometric Thin Film Gas Sensor

Based on the experimental results, obtained by studying both structural and gas-sensing properties of the SnO₂ and In₂O₃ films deposited by the spray pyrolysis method, we analyzed the influence of crystallite size on the parameters of the SnO₂- and In₂O₃-based thin film solid-state gas sensors. For comparison, the behavior of ceramic-type gas sensors was considered as well. In particular, we examined the correlation between the grain size and parameters of conductometric-type gas sensors such as the magnitude of sensor signal, the rate of sensor response, thermal stability, and the sensitivity of sensor signal to air humidity. Findings confirmed that that grain size is one of the most important parameters of metal oxides, controlling almost all operating characteristics of the solid state gas sensors fabricated using both the ceramic and thin film technologies. However, it was shown that there is no single universal requirement for the grain size, because changes in grain size could either improve, or worsen of operating characteristics of gas sensors. Therefore, the choice of optimal grain size should be based on the detailed consideration of all possible consequences of their influence on the parameters of sensors designed.     

Particle Sampling and Real Time Size Distribution Measurement in H2/O2/TEOS Diffusion Flame

Growth characteristics of silica particles have been studied experimentally using in situ particle sampling technique from H₂/O₂/Tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) diffusion flame with carefully devised sampling probe. The particle morphology and the size comparisons are made between the particles sampled by the local thermophoretic method from the inside of the flame and by the electrostatic collector sampling method after the dilution sampling probe. The Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) image processed data of these two sampling techniques are compared with Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer (SMPS) measurement. TEM image analysis of two sampling methods showed a good agreement with SMPS measurement. The effects of flame conditions and TEOS flow rates on silica particle size distributions are also investigated using the new particle dilution sampling probe. It is found that the particle size distribution characteristics and morphology are mostly governed by the coagulation process and sintering process in the flame. As the flame temperature increases, the effect of coalescence or sintering becomes an important particle growth mechanism which reduces the coagulation process. However, if the flame temperature is not high enough to sinter the aggregated particles then the coagulation process is a dominant particle growth mechanism. In a certain flame condition a secondary particle formation is observed which results in a bimodal particle size distribution.     

延性金属层裂强度对温度、晶粒尺寸和加载应变率的依赖特性及其物理建模

层裂强度表征了材料内部最大动态抗拉能力,并与材料本身的力学性质以及损伤早期演化相关.建立层裂强度计算的解析表达式,深入认识层裂强度所包含的微细观物理涵义,有利于更好地优化延性金属材料的层裂强度.目前大量的实验表明:延性金属材料的层裂强度对加载拉伸应变率、温度效应以及材料初始微细观结构具有很强的依赖关系.本文基于对孔洞成核与增长的损伤早期演化特性的分析,以及对温度效应和晶粒尺寸与材料本身力学性质之间关系的分析,给出了简单、实用的层裂强度的解析物理模型,物理模型的计算结果与典型延性金属高纯铝、铜和钽的层裂强度实验结果基本符合,从而验证了我们给出的层裂强度模型具有较好的适用性和预测性.