Corona-induced graft polymerization for surface modification of porous polyethersulfone membranes

Graft polymerization of acrylic acid (AA) onto porous polyethersulfone (PES) membrane surfaces was developed using corona discharge in atmospheric ambience as an activation process followed by polymerization of AA in aqueous solution. The effects of the corona parameters and graft polymerization conditions on grafting yield (GY) of AA were investigated. The grafting of AA on the PES membranes was confirmed by ATR-FTIR and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. Porosimetry measurements indicate the average pore diameters and porosities of the modified membranes decrease with the increase of the GY. The hydrophilicity and surface wetting properties of the original and modified membranes were evaluated by observing the dynamic changes of water contact angles. It is found that the grafting of AA occurs not only on the membrane surfaces, but also on the pore walls of the cells inside the membrane. The permeability experiments of protein solution reveal that the grafting of PAA endows the modified membranes with enhanced fluxes and anti-fouling properties. The optimized GY of AA is in the range of 150-200 μg/cm². In addition, the tensile experiments show the corona discharge treatment with the power lower than 150 W yields little damage to the mechanical strength of the membranes.     

Dissimilar autogenous full penetration welding of superalloy K418 and 42CrMo steel by a high power CW Nd:YAG laser

Experiments of autogenous laser full penetration welding between dissimilar cast Ni-based superalloy K418 and alloy steel 42CrMo flat plates with 3.5 mm thickness were conducted using a 3 kW continuous wave (CW) Nd:YAG laser. The influences of laser welding velocity, flow rate of side-blow shielding gas, defocusing distance were investigated. Microstructure of the welded seam was characterized by optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). Mechanical properties of the welded seam were evaluated by microhardness and tensile strength testing. Results show that high quality full penetration laser-welded joint can be obtained by optimizing the welding velocity, flow rate of shielding gas and defocusing distance. The laser-welded seam have non-equilibrium solidified microstructures consisting of γ-FeCr_0.29Ni_0.16C_0.06 austenite solid solution dendrites as the dominant and very small amount of super-fine dispersed Ni₃Al γ′ phase and Laves particles as well as MC needle-like carbides distributed in the interdendritic regions. Although the microhardness of the laser-welded seam was lower than that of the base metal, the strength of the joint was equal to that of the base metal and the fracture mechanism showed fine ductility.     

Exchange bias dependence on interface spin alignment in a Ni80Fe20/(Ni,Fe)O thin film

A Ni80Fe20/(Ni,Fe)O thin film exhibits a positive exchange bias when cooled in a zero field and a negative exchange bias when field cooled. With transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectrometry, the composition and magnetic structure has been ascertained and a distribution of magnetization easy axes about the interface extrapolated. The results indicate that the positive exchange bias is from antiferromagnetic interface moments perpendicular to their ferromagnetic counterparts. With field cooling the alignment is put into a parallel configuration resulting in a negative exchange bias.     

Photonic bandgap properties of 8-fold symmetric photonic quasicrystals

The bandgap properties of 2D 8-fold symmetric photonic quasicrystals (PQCs) composed of a set of rods are numerically investigated for various fill factors, dielectric constants and propagation angles using the finite difference time domain (FDTD) method. Some interesting properties are found besides the known results: (i) the central frequency of the bandgap shifts to low frequency as r/a increases; (ii) an optimum fill factor to obtain the largest gap width exists, which decreases with increasing dielectric constant; (iii) compared with the behavior for a given fill factor, the variation of bandgap width for the optimum fill factor increases much more significantly with the dielectric constant. Selection guidelines for 8-fold symmetric PQC designs are provided for optimum fill factors and variation of the relative bandgap width at different dielectric constants.     

Implementation of a Two-Atom √swap Gate in Cavity QED

We implement a two-atom √swap Bate via cavity QED. During the preparation, a cavity-assisted collision betweenatoms is required, and this does not need any auxiliary atom. The cavity is only virtually excited, thus our scheme is insensitive to the cavity field states and to the cavity decay. The scheme can be implemented by the present cavity QED techniques.     

用于光学相干层析成像设备点扩散函数测量的模体制作与使用方法研究

点扩散函数一般用于成像光学系统的分辨率评价,而掺杂微球的模体经常被用于获取光学相干层析成像(OCT)系统的点扩散函数。采用一种简单快速的基于表面硅烷化处理的加工工艺,制作出掺杂直径为1μm聚苯乙烯微球的聚二甲基硅氧烷(PDMS)点扩散函数模体,该工艺无需任何打磨与抛光即可得到光洁度优良的模体表面。使用一台谱域OCT系统对该模体进行检测,通过处理OCT图像得到点扩散函数并计算得到OCT系统的轴向与横向分辨率,分别为6.8 mm和14.3 mm,与理论预测值十分接近,证明了点扩散函数模体评价方法的有效性。     

On the Nano/Micro-Mechanics of Metallic Glass

Metallic glass (MG) is amorphous and has some outstanding properties such as ultrahigh strength, superior elasticity, and excellent thermo-plasticity. However, as MG is relatively new to the metal family, the relationship between its physical properties and amorphous structure is still unclear. This article aims to provide an insightful discussion through a comprehensive review about the investigations in the past few decades on the scientific mechanisms of this class of material. The discussion of the paper will include the following key aspects: (1) the formation mechanism of an amorphous structure through glass transition, (2) the structural characterization and models, (3) the micromechanics of plastic event and shear band, and (4) the correlation between the amorphous structure and its mechanical properties.     

Comparison of microbiological loads and physicochemical properties of raw milk treated with single-/multiple-cycle high hydrostatic pressure and ultraviolet-C light

The effects of ultraviolet-C radiation (UV-C, 11.8?W/m²), single-cycle and multiple-cycle high hydrostatic pressure (HHP at 200, 400 or 600?MPa) on microbial load and physicochemical quality of raw milk were evaluated. Reductions of aerobic plate count (APC) and coliform count (CC) by HHP were more than 99.9% and 98.7%, respectively. Inactivation efficiency of microorganisms increased with pressure level. At the same pressure level, two-cycle treatments caused lower APC, but did not show CC differences compared with single-cycle treatments. Reductions of APC and CC by UV-C were somewhere between 200?MPa and 400/600?MPa. Both HHP and UV-C significantly decreased lightness and increased pH, but did not change soluble solids content and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances’ values. Two 2.5?min cycles of HHP at 600?MPa caused minimum APC and CC, and maximum conductivity. Compared with HHP, UV-C markedly increased protein oxidation and reduced darkening.