Effect of annealing on hydrophobic stability of plasma deposited fluoropolymer coatings

Fluorinated amorphous carbon (a-C:F) films e.g. plasma polymerised perfluorocyclobutane have long attracted much consideration due to their low surface energy, hydrophobicity, low refractive index, good electrical and thermal insulation and good thermal stability. Although a-C:F films have many advantages, hydrophobic stability over time in air and water remains a major concern. In this study, the effects of weathering conditions on the hydrophobicity of fluorocarbon films prepared from perfluorocyclobutane precursors were examined using water contact angle measurements. It was found that the high initial hydrophobicity of as-deposited films degrades rapidly in humid conditions. The stability of hydrophobicity can be significantly improved when a suitable treatment such as annealing is employed. The mechanism of weathering was explained with the help of a number of morphological and chemical characterisation techniques such as Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). In particular, XPS results demonstrated that a reduction in the overall amount of -CF₃ radical, oxygenation of surface fluorides and the formation of an overlayer all influence the degradation of fluorocarbon in aquatic environment.     

Reflection and refraction of attenuated waves at boundary of elastic solid and porous solid saturated with two immiscible viscous fluids

The propagation of elastic waves is studied in a porous solid saturated with two immiscible viscous fluids.The propagation of three longitudinal waves is represented through three scalar potential functions.The lone transverse wave is presented by a vector potential function.The displacements of particles in different phases of the aggregate are defined in terms of these potential functions.It is shown that there exist three longitudinal waves and one transverse wave.The phenomena of reflection and refraction due to longitudinal and transverse waves at a plane interface between an elastic solid half-space and a porous solid half-space saturated with two immiscible viscous fluids are investigated.For the presence of viscosity in pore-fluids,the waves refracted to the porous medium attenuate in the direction normal to the interface.The ratios of the amplitudes of the reflected and refracted waves to that of the incident wave are calculated as a nonsingular system of linear algebraic equations.These amplitude ratios are used to further calculate the shares of different scattered waves in the energy of the incident wave.The modulus of the amplitude and the energy ratios with the angle of incidence are computed for a particular numerical model.The conservation of the energy across the interface is verified.The effects of variations in non-wet saturation of pores and frequencies on the energy partition are depicted graphically and discussed.     

Electro chemical properties of porous PVdF-HFP membranes prepared with different nonsolvents

Porous poly(vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene) (PVdF-HFP) membranes were prepared by solvent–nonsolvent evaporation technique. Morphology and porosity of the membranes were varied with different nonsolvents and had an effect on electrochemical properties. The porous membranes were functionalized with different liquid electrolyte solutions such as p-toluene sulfonic acid/phosphoric acid/sulfuric acid. Maximum electrolyte uptake and minimal electrolyte leakage were tailored by the optimized porosity of the membranes. Thermal behavior obtained in this study ensures the complete evaporation of nonsolvents and ensures its thermal stability. The pTSA-activated PVdF-HFP/THF membrane exhibited high ionic conductivity of about 27.27 mS/cm and a lower methanol permeability in the range of 9.7 × 10⁻⁸ cm²/s. High compatibility between pTSA solution and porous PVdF-HFP polymer electrolyte membrane enhances its electro chemical behavior than that of conventional liquid electrolytes.     

Recent advances in application of the graphene-based membrane for water purification

Graphene is an atomic layer thick carbon-based material with unique two-dimensional architecture and extraordinary physiochemical, optical, electrical, and mechanical properties. Graphene and its derivatives show significant promises for the development of nanoporous ultrathin filtration membranes capable of molecular separation properties. Graphene-based nanofiltration membranes featuring distinct laminar structures can offer various novel mass-transport phenomena for purifying water, energy storage and separation, gas separation, and proton conductors. The latest developments in water purification techniques through graphene-based membranes including engineering, design, and fabrication of diverse graphene, graphene-oxide, and graphene-composite membranes are provided here in relation to their application paradigm for purifying water. The critical views on pollutant removal mechanisms for water purification along with optimization measures are specially highlighted. In addition, the challenges, shortcomings, and future prospects are pointed out. The green and large-scale synthesis technology of graphene coupling with advanced membrane fabrication techniques can promote these state-of-the-art nanofiltration membranes for a wide range of applications.     

Multiple comparisons with a control in direction-mixed families of hypothesis under heteroscedasticity

For general inferential families with a mixture of one- and two-sided inferences two procedures are proposed to compare several treatments with a control under heteroscedasticity. Critical constants required for the proposed procedures are tabulated, and a numerical example is given.