Effect of some additions on the sinterability and magnetic properties of barium hexaferrite

The effect of additions on the densification of previously prepared stoichiometric barium hexaferrite, during the initial and intermediate stages of sintering, as well as on the coercivity and remanence were studied. The effect of non-stoichiometry, SiO₂, Al₂O₃, Cr₂O₃, TiO₂, SnO₂, MnO₂, MgO, NiO and Bi₂O₃ is included.While SiO₂ and Bi₂O₃ form liquid phases that increase the density, Al₂O₃, Cr₂O₃ and MnO₂ form a limited solid solution and are generally beneficial when added in the proper amounts. At 1300 SiO₂ up to 0.55% and Al₂O₃ up to 1% gave better magnetic properties. On the other hand addition of TiO₂, MgO, NiO or SnO₂ has a deleterious effect.     

UV-protection properties of electrospun polyacrylonitrile nanofibrous mats embedded with MgO and Al<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> nanoparticles

This article describes the ultraviolet (UV) protection of MgO and Al₂O₃ nanoparticles embedded electrospun polyacrylonitrile (PAN) nanofibrous mats. UV radiation is a harmful part of sunlight and prolonged exposure to it can cause serious skin damages. In this research, nanofibrous mats consisting of nanofibers with different diameters containing different amounts of MgO, Al₂O₃, MgO Plus, and Al₂O₃ Plus nanoparticles were produced, and their UV-protection was measured. The specific surface area of MgO, MgO Plus, Al₂O₃, and Al₂O₃ Plus nanoparticles was 230, 600, 275, and 550 m²/g, respectively. The mean diameter of electrospun PAN nanofibers embedded with metal oxide nanoparticles was in the range of 665–337 nm. The results showed that the UV-protection (shielding) capability of the mats strongly depends on fiber diameter; in fact a thin mat of nanofibers has a much stronger UV-protection in comparison to a thicker mat composed of regular fibers. UV transmission is reduced as a result of embedding MgO and Al₂O₃ nanoparticles in the electrospun PAN nanofibrous mats. MgO Plus and Al₂O₃ Plus show higher UV-protection than MgO and Al₂O₃.     

On the homogeneity range of β″-alumina in the Na2OMgOAl2O3 system

The Al₂O₃ rich region of the Na₂O:MgOAl₂O₃ system has been investigated by means of X-ray phase analytical methods. The main features of the isothermal sections at 1870 K and 1950 K have been determined. The two sections exhibit the same phase equilibria except in the Na₂Al₂O₄-β″ region where a liquids phase appears at 1950 K. The magnesium stabilized β″-alumina phase with the nominal formula Na_1xxAl₁₁−xO₁₇ exhibits an extended homogeneity range with the magnesium content ranging over x=0.59-0.72. The homogeneity ranges are accompanied by variations in the unit cell dimentions. The composition of β″-alumina appears to correspond to a far lower relative sodium cntent than that indicated by the ideal formula at large magnesium + aluminium contents.     

Mechanism of grain-boundary magnetoresistance in Fe O films

The magnetotransport properties of magnetite films with different microstructures were investigated in order to identify prerequisites for the attainment of a large tunnelling magnetoresistance in polycrystalline samples. Epitaxial films on MgAl₂O₄, polycrystalline films on Al₂O₃ and rough MgAl₂O₄ substrates and a polycrystalline La_0.7Ca_0.3MnO₃ film on MgO were compared. Although grain boundaries induce a large high-field magnetoresistance in magnetite films, the low-field magnetoresistance characteristic for spin-polarized tunnelling was virtually absent in these samples. Two factors might be responsible for this behaviour: (1) grain boundaries in magnetite are conducting and do not form tunnelling barriers and (2) the spin-polarization near grain boundaries is suppressed due to non-stoichiometry. Received 15 April 2002 Published online 13 August 2002     

Preparation and properties of composite ceramic coating containing Al2O3–ZrO2–Y2O3 on AZ91D magnesium alloy by plasma electrolytic oxidation

A composite ceramic coating containing Al₂O₃–ZrO₂–Y₂O₃ was successfully prepared on AZ91D magnesium alloy by plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) technique in an alkaline aluminate electrolyte. The morphology, elemental and phase composition, corrosion behavior and thermal stability of the uncoated and coated samples were studied by environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS), X-ray diffractometer (XRD), electrochemical corrosion test, high temperature oxidation test and thermal shock test. The results showed that the composite ceramic coating was composed of Al₂O₃, c-ZrO₂, t-ZrO₂, Y₂O₃ and some magnesium compounds, such as MgO, MgF₂ and MgAl₂O₄. After PEO treatment, the corrosion potential of AZ91D alloy was increased and the corrosion current density was significantly reduced. Besides, the coated magnesium alloys also showed excellent high temperature oxidation resistance and thermal shock resistance at 500 °C environment.     

用光刺激放电法研究纳米粉末掺杂低密度聚乙烯中陷阱能级

通过光刺激放电(PSD)技术研究了纳米粉末掺杂低密度聚乙烯(LDPE)中的陷阱能级.利用连续扫描法得到了不同掺杂比例的Al₂O₃,MgO纳米粉末掺杂试样以及相同掺杂比例的多种纳米粉末掺杂试样的PSD电流谱,定性地得出了试样陷阱能级的深浅变化.分步扫描法定量地描述了LDPE试样在Al₂O₃纳米掺杂前后陷阱能量分布的变化.结果表明,掺杂比例大于0.2%的Al₂O₃纳米粉末掺杂、大于0.5%的MgO纳米粉末掺杂能够显著地使得LDPE陷阱能级变深.结合纳米掺杂对LDPE空间电荷注入影响的相关报道,可推测纳米掺杂对空间电荷注入的抑制与试样中陷阱能级变深存在密切的关联.     

Plasma electrolytic oxidation coating on AZ91 magnesium alloy modified by neodymium and its corrosion resistance

Ceramic coatings on the surfaces of Mg-9Al-1Zn (AZ91) magnesium alloy and Mg-9Al-1Zn-1Nd magnesium alloy (AZ91 magnesium alloy modified by neodymium, named as AZ91Nd in this paper) are synthesized in aluminate electrolyte by plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) process, respectively. X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses show the PEO coating on the Mg-9Al-1Zn-1Nd alloy comprises not only MgO and Al₂O₃, which are found in the coating on the AZ91 alloy, but also a trace amount of Nd₂O₃. Microstructure observations indicate the addition of Nd can decrease the sizes of β phases and form Al₂Nd intermetallics in the AZ91 alloy. The fine β phases can effectively restrain the formation of unclosed-holes and greatly decrease the sizes of pores in the coating during the PEO process. In addition, the Al₂Nd intermetallics can be completely covered due to the lateral growth of the PEO coatings formed on the α and β phases. As a result, the coating on the AZ91Nd alloy possesses a dense microstructure compared with that on the AZ91 alloy. The following corrosion tests indicate the corrosion resistance of the PEO coating on the AZ91Nd alloy is evidently higher than that of the PEO coating on the AZ91 alloy.     

Evolution of MgAl<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript> crystals in Al-Mg-SiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> composites

The present study analyzes the morphological transformations of reaction products i.e., MgO, MgAl₂O₄ occurring during the reaction between SiO₂ and Al-Mg alloy in Al-Mg-SiO₂ composite processed by the liquid metallurgy technique. Different phases of platelet and hexagonal morphologies are detected and their composition analysis by EDS has confirmed them as being transition phases existing between MgO, MgAl₂O₄ and Al₂O₃. This study has also revealed the gradual transformation of (i) MgO needles to octahedral MgAl₂O₄ through Mg-Al-Si-O and Mg-Al-O transition phases having platelet morphologies and (ii) MgAl₂O₄ to Al₂O₃ through hexagonal transition phases on holding of Al-5Mg-SiO₂ and Al-1Mg-SiO₂ composites respectively at 1023K. Fully developed α-Al₂O₃ crystals are not observed under the present experimental conditions, wherein the Mg content is well above the equilibrium Mg content required for the formation of stable Al₂O₃ (<0.05 wt. %). PACS 05.70.Np     

The structure of a propagating MgAl2O4/MgO interface: linked atomic- and μm-scale mechanisms of interface motion

To understand how a new phase forms between two reactant layers, MgAl₂O₄ (spinel) has been grown between MgO (periclase) and Al₂O₃ (corundum) single crystals under defined temperature and load. Electron backscatter diffraction data show a topotaxial relationship between the MgO reactant and the MgAl₂O₄ reaction product. These MgAl₂O₄ grains are misoriented from perfect alignment with the MgO substrate by ~2–4°, with misorientation axes concentrated in the interface plane. Further study using atomic resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy shows that in 2D the MgAl₂O₄/MgO interface has a periodic configuration consisting of curved segments (convex towards MgO) joined by regularly spaced misfit dislocations occurring every ~4.5 nm (~23 atomic planes). This configuration is observed along the two equivalent [1 0 0] directions parallel to the MgAl₂O₄/MgO interface, indicating that the 3D geometry of the interface is a grid of convex protrusions of MgAl₂O₄ into MgO. At each minimum between the protrusions is a misfit dislocation. This geometry results from the coupling between long-range diffusion, which supplies Al³⁺ to and removes Mg²⁺ from the reaction interface, and interface reaction, in which climb of the misfit dislocations is the rate-limiting process. The extra oxygen atoms required for dislocation climb were likely derived from the reactant MgO, leaving behind oxygen vacancies that eventually form pores at the interface. The pores are dragged along by the propagating reaction interface, providing additional resistance to interface motion. The pinning effect of the pores leads to doming of the interface on the scale of individual grains.     

XPS study of the surface chemistry on AZ31 and AZ91 magnesium alloys in dilute NaCl solution

The surface chemistry on AZ31 and AZ91 magnesium alloys was characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) in the corrosion and the passivation zones. In the corrosion zone, the presence of Mg(OH)₂ and MgCO₃ species was found in the outer surface, whereas, in the inner layer, the co-existence of Mg(OH)₂, MgO and MgCO₃ species was observed for both alloys. The presence of Al³⁺ in the surface electrolyte to form Al₂O₃/Al(OH)₃ and the formation of carbonate product provide a better passivation on the surfaces and retard the chloride-induced corrosion on the materials in the passivation zone.     

Radiation-induced electrical and optical processes in materials based on Al2O3

The irradiation of dielectrics induces electric charging of microscopic regions in the bulk, which is associated with concentration inhomogeneities in the system of traps and the differences in characteristic diffusion lengths of free electrons and holes that are produced in ion tracks and collision cascades. Experimental data on radiation-induced luminescence (RIL) give evidence of the existence of three states of oxygen vacancies in Al₂O₃: an optically inactive (electrically neutral) vacancy, its excited state (known as F ⁺ center), and a negatively charged vacancy (F center). The formation of negatively charged regions under irradiation increases the intensity of the 415-nm band of F centers of RIL of Al₂O₃ single crystals. In Al₂O₃:Cr³⁺ ceramics, a radiation-induced negative charging of grain boundaries with respect to the bulk of grains takes place, which manifests itself as an increase in the intensity of the 690-nm band of RIL of Cr³⁺ ions, whereas the intensity of this band in Al₂O₃:Cr³⁺ single crystals remains unchanged. Using data on RIL, the local-charge density in grains of Al₂O₃:Cr³⁺ ceramics and the field produced by this charge are estimated.     

Novel fluorescent nuclear track detector technology for mixed neutron-gamma fields

The latest achievements in fluorescent nuclear track detector (FNTD) technology are described. FNTDs are aluminum oxide crystals containing aggregate oxygen vacancy defects and doped with carbon and magnesium (Al₂O₃:C,Mg). Unlike most nuclear track detectors, Al₂O₃:C,Mg is sensitive to low linear energy transfer (LET) radiation including secondary electrons resulting from interactions of photons with the crystal. A new image processing method is investigated as a technique to discriminate and measure the doses of gamma and fast neutrons in mixed field conditions. Dose dependencies for both gamma and neutron irradiated FNTDs are shown. The new image processing method increased the dynamic range of detectable neutron doses from 4 orders of magnitude for track counting method to at least 6 orders of magnitude by combining track counting with the new image processing method. The new image processing method is combined with a detector configuration utilizing three converters: Teflon^®, polyethylene, and lithium fluoride.     

Farinfrared absorption in Al2O3 and MgO

Far-infrared absorption measurements performed in Al₂O₃ and MgO between 300 and 1 500 K with a Fourier scanning interferometer are reported. A temperature analysis of results based on a phonon self-energy model allows to assign the absorption in this region to 2- and 3-phonon difference processes. The contributions of these processes are separated and discussed. In Al₂O₃, the frequency dependence of the absorption is also analyzed. A good overall agreement between theory and experiment is evidenced.     

Intriguingly high convective heat transfer enhancement of nanofluid coolants in laminar flows

We reported on investigation of the convective heat transfer enhancement of nanofluids as coolants in laminar flows inside a circular copper tube with constant wall temperature. Nanofluids containing Al₂O₃, ZnO, TiO₂, and MgO nanoparticles were prepared with a mixture of 55 vol.% distilled water and 45 vol.% ethylene glycol as base fluid. It was found that the heat transfer behaviors of the nanofluids were highly depended on the volume fraction, average size, species of the suspended nanoparticles and the flow conditions. MgO, Al₂O₃, and ZnO nanofluids exhibited superior enhancements of heat transfer coefficient, with the highest enhancement up to 252% at a Reynolds number of 1000 for MgO nanofluid. Our results demonstrated that these oxide nanofluids might be promising alternatives for conventional coolants.     

Electrical properties of Na<Subscript>2</Subscript>SO<Subscript>4</Subscript>-based composite systems

Composite electrolytes are well-known multiphase systems and exhibit maxima in the conductivity at certain second-phase concentration. An attempt has been made to investigate a number of sodium sulfate (Na₂SO₄)-based composite systems. The dispersoids that have been used are MgO, Al₂O₃, and SiO₂. The samples have been characterized using impedance spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and differential scanning calorimetry. The maximum conductivity has been observed for MgO dispersed system, and the percolation threshold has been observed at 30-mol% dispersoid, MgO concentration. Interestingly, two maxima have been observed in case of the Na₂SO₄–SiO₂ and Na₂SO₄–Al₂O₃ composite systems. In the Na₂SO₄–SiO₂ system, the first maximum occurs at lower concentration, i.e., in the range between 10 and 20 mol%, whereas the second occurs at the 40-mol% dispersoid concentration. For the Na₂SO₄–Al₂O₃ system, although slightly indistinguishable, two peaks in the conductivity vs composition plot have been observed around 12- and 30-mol% Al₂O₃ concentrations.     

Adsorption of SO2 on Li atoms deposited on MgO (1 0 0) surface: DFT calculations

The adsorption of sulfur dioxide molecule (SO₂) on Li atom deposited on the surfaces of metal oxide MgO (1 0 0) on both anionic and defect (F_s-center) sites located on various geometrical defects (terrace, edge and corner) has been studied using density functional theory (DFT) in combination with embedded cluster model. The adsorption energy (E_ads) of SO₂ molecule (S-atom down as well as O-atom down) in different positions on both of O⁻² and F_s sites is considered. The spin density (SD) distribution due to the presence of Li atom is discussed. The geometrical optimizations have been done for the additive materials and MgO substrate surfaces (terrace, edge and corner). The oxygen vacancy formation energies have been evaluated for MgO substrate surfaces. The ionization potential (IP) for defect free and defect containing of the MgO surfaces has been calculated. The adsorption properties of SO₂ are analyzed in terms of the E_ads, the electron donation (basicity), the elongation of S-O bond length and the atomic charges on adsorbed materials. The presence of the Li atom increases the catalytic effect of the anionic O⁻² site of MgO substrate surfaces (converted from physisorption to chemisorption). On the other hand, the presence of the Li atom decreases the catalytic effect of the F_s-site of MgO substrate surfaces. Generally, the SO₂ molecule is strongly adsorbed (chemisorption) on the MgO substrate surfaces containing F_s-center.     

Disorder and the shape of the R-lines in Cr3+-doped garnets

This paper describes measurements of the R-line emission from Cr³⁺ ions in Y₃Ga₅O₁₂, Gd₃Sc₂Ga₃O₁₂, and Gd₃Sc₂Al₃O₁₂. Discrete splittings of the lines are interpreted as due to disorder on the cation sublattices. Assuming statistical distributions of the cations on the different cation sublattices enables estimates to be made of the degree of non-stoichiometry in the crystals.     

Al2O3单晶三明治结构的高温热激发电流

以Al₂O₃单晶和具有三明治结构的Al₂O₃单晶-Bi₂O₃-Al₂O₃单晶试样为研究对象,测量了在室温到750℃之间升温过程和降温过程中这两种试样的热激发电流,仅在三明治结构试样中检测到了热激发电流.随测量过程中升温速率的增大,降温过程中的热激发电流逐渐减小.认为热激发电流是由缺陷离子的扩散所引起,通过扩散活化能的计算发现有两种缺 关键词： 热激发电流 缺陷 扩散     

Electronic structure of an oxygen vacancy in Al<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> from the results of Ab Initio quantum-chemical calculations and photoluminescence experiments

The electronic structure of an oxygen vacancy in α-Al₂O₃ and γ-Al₂O₃ is calculated. The calculation predicts an absorption peak at an energy of 6.4 and 6.3 eV in α-Al₂O₃ and γ-Al₂O₃, respectively. The luminescence and luminescence excitation spectra of amorphous Al₂O₃ are measured using synchrotron radiation. The presence of a luminescence band at 2.9 eV and a peak at 6.2 eV in the luminescence excitation spectrum indicates the presence of oxygen vacancies in amorphous Al₂O₃.     

Periodic antiphase boundary spinel-based structures in aluminates,gallates, aluminium oxynitrides and transition aluminas

The crystallographic structures of several transition aluminas possessing a face-centred cubic packing of oxygen anions can be considered as deriving from that of a non-stoichiometric spinel. However, they are not yet known in detail owing to the poor crystallinity of most of the samples studied by X-ray or electron diffraction. Conversely, relatively large crystals have been produced in the case of non-stoichiometric spinels in the alumina-rich (or Ga₂O₃-rich) parts of the Al₂O₃–AlN, Al₂O₃–MgO, Al₂O₃–NiO, Al₂O₃–Li₂O and Ga₂O₃–MgO systems. Detailed studies of their diffraction patterns have shown that all these phases possess periodic antiphase boundary (PAPB) structures based on the spinel structure. In the case of the so-called δ-transition aluminas, various structural models have been previously proposed and in this paper we are focusing on the striking similarities between their diffraction patterns and those of several metastable PAPB aluminate structures. This makes it possible to show that at least three distinct PAPB structures must be taken into account in the case of δ-transition aluminas. APB planes are either {100} or {110} whereas APB vectors are either 1/2??001? or 1/4??110? when referring to the spinel structure. Neighbouring octahedral and tetrahedral incompatible sites are observed in the vicinity of each APB and cation vacancies are shown to occupy these octahedral sites.