Processing,properties and morphology of polypropylene-epdm blends

Blends of polypropylene and an elastomer (ethylene propylene diene terpolymer, EPDM) are systematically investigated to determine the effect of the rubber on the polymer properties. Five compositions on the complete range of blend compositions are analyzed. The study reported here is a first of a series which main objective is to analyze in a systematic way the influence of the different factors that determine the effectiveness of EPDM as an impact modifier for PP. In this first part of the study, the processing behavior of the PP-EPDM blends are analyzed and the mechanical properties of the processed blends (tensile, flexural and impact resistance) are examined. Halpin-Tsai and porosity models successfully represent the mechanical behavior of the blends. The model results allow a physical interpretation of the role of the dispersed phase in terms of the aspect ratio and of the stress concentration factors associated to the dispersed particles. Moreover, the mechanical properties are correlated with the morphology of the blends studied by scanning electron microscopy, where two phases are clearly observed in the complete range of compositions. The results show that PP-EPDM blends with at low rubber content present a good processability, without significant deterioration with respect to neat PP and with a considerable improvement of the room and low temperature performance.     

The principle that generates dissimilar patterns inside aggregates of organisms

Pattern formation and self-organization are phenomena that occur across the board, in animate and inanimate systems. In this paper, we rely on the constructal law to explain the generation of patterns (shapes, structures) in aggregates of organisms-pedestrian crowds and stony corals. In pedestrian crowds a variety of patterns are often observed, from ‘chaotic’ appearances to spontaneous organization in lanes of uniform walking direction. Stony corals and other organisms also present intraspecific variability in shape. We show that flow systems develop in time patterns which provide easier access to the nutrients and space, within a set of constraints imposed by each situation. Flow systems have the freedom to morph their shape in search for architectures that allows them to have greater access to the space that they inhabit. We identify the mechanisms allowing pedestrians to evolve in space and time. We also show that stony corals may develop branched or spherical shapes, depending on which shape performs best in response to the environmental conditions. The constructal law allows systems with complex internal flows to be described and understood for a unified view.     

Structural transformation of MoO<Subscript>3</Subscript> nanobelts into MoS<Subscript>2</Subscript> nanotubes

The structural transformation of MoO₃ nanobelts into MoS₂ nanotubes using a simple sulfur source has been reported. This transformation has been extensively investigated using electron microscopic and spectroscopic techniques including scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), electron diffraction (ED), and energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM-EDAX and TEM-EDX). The method described in this report will serve as a generic route for the transformation of other oxide nanostructures into the chalcogenide nanostructures.     

High-Velocity Estimates for the Scattering Operator and Aharonov-Bohm Effect in Three Dimensions

We obtain high-velocity estimates with error bounds for the scattering operator of the Schrödinger equation in three dimensions with electromagnetic potentials in the exterior of bounded obstacles that are handlebodies. A particular case is a finite number of tori. We prove our results with time-dependent methods. We consider high-velocity estimates where the direction of the velocity of the incoming electrons is kept fixed as its absolute value goes to infinity. In the case of one torus our results give a rigorous proof that quantum mechanics predicts the interference patterns observed in the fundamental experiments of Tonomura et al. that gave conclusive evidence of the existence of the Aharonov-Bohm effect using a toroidal magnet. We give a method for the reconstruction of the flux of the magnetic field over a cross-section of the torus modulo 2π. Equivalently, we determine modulo 2π the difference in phase for two electrons that travel to infinity, when one goes inside the hole and the other outside it. For this purpose we only need the high-velocity limit of the scattering operator for one direction of the velocity of the incoming electrons. When there are several tori-or more generally handlebodies-the information that we obtain in the fluxes, and on the difference of phases, depends on the relative position of the tori and on the direction of the velocities when we take the high-velocity limit of the incoming electrons. For some locations of the tori we can determine all the fluxes modulo 2π by taking the high-velocity limit in only one direction. We also give a method for the unique reconstruction of the electric potential and the magnetic field outside the handlebodies from the high-velocity limit of the scattering operator.     

Simulation of Piezoelectric Induced Lamb Waves in Plates

In the paper, piezoelectric induced Lamb wave propagation on homogeneous plates is studied by applying different approaches. Assuming the presence of piezoelectric actuators and sensors the transient wave analysis is made using the classical formulation of the finite element method (FEM) and the novel approach of spectral finite element method (SE). Pure mode excitation and mode conversion are numerically simulated for the fundamental modes S₀ and A₀. (© 2009 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Lamb wave propagation using Wave Finite Element Method

Some of the available techniques for Lamb wave propagation simulation are the Finite Element Method (FEM), the Boundary Element Method and the Finite Difference Method. The FEM is the best method when complex damage, geometry or boundary is involved. However, high Lamb wave frequency requires very small element size thus high computational cost in FEM analysis. By using the existence of periodicity in plates, an attempt to reduce this computational cost is done using Wave FEM. The applicability of this method to model Lamb wave propagation in plate is first assessed in this paper for the 1-D wave propagation and compared with FEM explicit method. (© 2009 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)