Influence of anodization conditions on deposition of hydroxyapatite onα/βTi alloys for osseointegration:Atomic force microscopy analysis

Integrating titanium-based implants with the surrounding bone tissue remains challenging.This study aims to explore the impact of different anodization voltages(20−80 V)on the surface topography of two-phase(α/β)Ti alloys and to produce TiO_(2) films with enhanced bone formation abilities.Scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive spectroscopy(SEM−EDS)and atomic force microscopy(AFM)were applied to investigate the morphological,chemical,and surface topography of the prepared alloys and to confirm the growth of hydroxyapatite(HA)on their surfaces.Results disclosed that the surface roughness of TiO_(2) films formed on Ti−6Al−7Nb alloys was superior to that of Ti−6Al−4V alloys.Ti−6Al−7Nb alloy anodized at 80 V had the highest yields of HA after immersion in simulated body fluid with enhanced HA surface coverage.The developed HA layer had a mean thickness of(128.38±18.13)μm,suggesting its potential use as an orthopedic implantable material due to its promising bone integration and,hence,remarkable stability inside the human body.

Micro-galvanic corrosion behaviour of Mg-(7,9)Al-1Fe-xNd alloys

The localized micro-galvanic corrosion process and the kinetic information of Mg-(7,9)Al-1Fe-x Nd alloys were investigated by in situ observation under electrochemical control and in situ atomic force microscopy(AFM)in an electrolyte environment.The results revealed that the formation of the Nd-rich phase in alloys resulted in a decrease in the Volta potential difference from~400 m V(AlFe3/α-Mg)to~220 mV(Nd-rich/α-Mg),reducing the corrosion products around the cathodic phase and corrosion current density of the microscale area.The addition of Nd significantly improved the corrosion resistance,mainly due to the suppression of the micro-galvanic corrosion between the second phases and substrate.Finally,the corrosion mechanism of Mg-(7,9)Al-1Fe-x Nd alloys was discussed based on in situ observations and electrochemical results.

Analysis of PTCDA/ITO Surface and Interface Using X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy

The electronic states of the surface and interface of 3,4, 9, 10-perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydride （PTCDA）/indium-tin-oxide （ITO） thin film are investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）. A- tomic force microscopy （AFM） is also applied to investigate the pattern of PTCDA/ITO film. XPS results show that there are two main peaks,which are associated with C atoms in the perylene rings and acid anhydride groups, located at 284.6 and 288.7eV, respectively,in the Cls spectrum of the original surface. It can be deduced from the emergence of a small peak at 290.4eV in the Cls spectrum that some C atoms are oxidized by O atoms from ITO. The binding energies of O atoms in C-O bonds and C--O---C bonds are 531.5 and 533.4eV respectively. At the interface,the peak at the high binding energy in the Cls spectrum disappears,and the peak value shifts about 0.2eV to lower binding energy, There is a significant 1.5eV chemical shift to lower binding energy in the Ols spectrum. These observations indicate that perylene rings inside PTCDA molecules are combined with In vacancies in the ITO at the interface. The AFM results show that PTCDA molecules formed an island-like structure a height of about 14nm. The sizes of the crystal grains are about 100--300nm. The island-like pattern comes from the delocalized π bonds of adjacent molecules in PTCDA and the combination of vacancies in ITO with perylene rings at the PTCDA/ITO interface.

Effect of Rapid Thermal Annealing Ambient on Gettering Efficiency and Surface Microstructure in 300mm CZ Silicon Wafers

The effect of rapid thermal annealing （RTA） ambient on denuded zone and oxygen precipitates in Czochralski （CZ） silicon wafers is studied in this paper. N2 and a N2/NH3 mixture are used as RTA ambient. It is demonstrated that a high density of oxygen precipitates and thin denuded zone are obtained in N2/NH3 ambient,while a relatively lower density of oxygen precipitates and thicker denuded zone are observed in N2 ambient. As the RTA duration times increased, the oxygen precipitate density increased and the denuded zone depth decreased. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS） data and atomic force microscope （AFM） results show that there RTA process,which can explain the different effect of RTA was a surface nitriding reaction during the N2/NH3 ambient ambient.

Experimental Research of DLC Film Deposited by Filtered Vacuum Arc Evaporation

Diamond like carbon (DLC) films was grown successfully on silicon, titanium and high speed steel (HSS) substrate at low temperature in a filtered vacuum arc deposition system. Arc discharges were established on a graphite cathode in this home built system with a toridal macroparticles filter. Ion current convected by the plasma beam was measured with a negatively biased probe. It was shown that the magnetic field of the coils located on the plasma duct has a strong influence on ion current. Scanning electron microscope (SEM), atomic force microscope (AFM) and Raman spectrum are used to study the DLC films. Tribological behaviors of the deposited film are also studied.

Optimization of InGaAs Quantum Dots for Optoelectronic Applications

Self-assembled In 0.35Ga 0.65As/GaAs quantum dots with low indium content are grown under different growth temperature and investigated using contact atomic force microscopy(AFM).In order to obtain high density and high uniformity of quantum dots,optimized conditions are concluded for MBE growth.Optimized growth conditions also compared with these of InAs/GaAs quantum dots.This will be very useful for InGaAs/GaAs QDs optoelectronic applications,such as quantum dots lasers and quantum dots infrared photodetectors.

RESEARCH ON MEMBRANE BIOREACTOR TREATING DOMESTIC WASTEWATER AND RELATED MECHANISMS

Experiments on treatment of domestic wastewater by membrane bioreactors were carried out.The results showed that this process could produce good quality effluent with low COD,turbidity and total count of bacteria.With intermittent operation and continuous aeration,the membrane flux was kept steady.The mechanisms of removing COD through membrane,the structure of membrane and filtration resistance were also discussed.

Effects of sealing process on corrosion resistance and roughness of anodic films of titanium alloy Ti-10V-2Fe-3Al

Anodic oxide films of titanium alloy Ti-10V-2Fe-3Al were sealed in calcium acetate solution. The morphology and composition of the sealed films were investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscope (AFM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The results show that the sealing process makes the anodic oxide films more uniform. Elemental calcium is presented through the whole depth of the anodic oxide films. The roughness of the anodic oxide films is reduced after the sealing process. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polarization were used to study the corrosion behavior of the anodic oxide films. It is revealed that the sealing process improves the corrosion resistance of the anodic oxide film of titanium alloy Ti-10V-2Fe-3Al.

Preparation and Characterization of a Novel Polyamide Charged Mosaic Membrane

A novel composite charged mosaic membrane(CCMM) was prepared via interfacial polymerization(IP) of polyamine[poly(epichlorohydrin amine) ]and trimesoyl chloride(TMC) on the polyethersulfone(PES) support. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FT-IR) ,environmental scanning electron microscopy(ESEM) ,atomic force microscopy(AFM) and water contact angle analysis were applied to characterize the resulted CCMM.The FT-IR spectrum indicates that TMC reacts sufficiently with polyamine.ESEM and AFM pictures show that the IP process produces a dense selective layer on the support membrane.The water contact angle of the CCMM is smaller than that of the substrate membrane because of the cross-linked hydrophilic polyamine network.Several factors affecting the IP reaction and the performance of the CCMM,such as monomer concentration,reaction time,pH value of aqueous phase solution and post-treatment,were studied.The pure water flux of the optimized CCMM is 14.73 L·m -2 ·h -1 ·MPa -1 at the operating pressure of 0.4 MPa.The values of separation factorαfor NaCl/PEG1000/water and MgCl2/PEG1000/water are 11.89 and 9.96,respectively.These results demonstrate that CCMM is promising for the separation of low-molecular-weight organics from their salt aqueous solutions.

Synergistic effect of additives on electrodeposition of copper from cyanide-free electrolytes and its structural and morphological characteristics

Electrodeposition of acid copper plating on mild steel substrate is tedious due to the galvanic displacement reaction ofcopper on mild steel.This can be avoided by using a proper complexing agent,because the complexing agent tuned the potential ofnoble direction to less noble direction by complex formation.In this paper,environment friendly electrodeposition of copper fromnon-cyanide electrolyte using sodium gluconate as complexing agent was investigated in alkaline medium.The effects of additivessuch as1,2,3-benzotriazole,sodium lauryl sulphate,PEG8000and saccharin were studied.These additives are found to reduce thegrain size,grain boundaries and improve surface morphology of the copper deposits.Also they improve the throwing power of thedepositing electrolytes and hardness of deposits.The electrodeposited copper coatings were characterized by X-ray diffractiontechnique.XRD results indicate that the electrodeposited copper shows polycrystalline and face centered cubic structure.The crystalsize was calculated by XRD and AFM analysis.Among these additives studied,the mixture of benzotriazole and sodium laurylsulphate acts as the best additive.A uniform pore-free surface observed under SEM and AFM results reveal the grain refining broughtabout by the additives.

An Optimization Study on Electrodeposition of Copper from Acid Bath with Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Fluid

Abstract： An optimization study on electrodeposition of copper film from sulfuric acid bath in presence of supercritical carbon dioxide fluid was explored for electronic application. Factors that influence roughness of copper deposit were also discussed. A material property of copper deposition has been considered as a response variable and statistical experimental methods have been used to optimize the process parameters and the response. Effects of various current density, pressure and temperature were investigated to select the optimal operation factors. Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy were applied to determine average particle sizes and to confirm the characteristic of the metallic film obtained. Box-Behnken design and RSM （response surface methodology） were applied to find the optimal conditions of supercritical electroplating process. Regression model was built by fitting the experimental results with a second-order polynomial and was proved to be statistically significant since the coefficient of determination coefficient （R^2） was 0.9844. The optimal film of deposited can be obtained at current density 0.17 A/dm^2, pressure 186 bar and temperature 31.5 ℃.

Effect of heat treatment on microstructure and dimensional stability of ZL114A aluminum alloy

The effects of heat treatment process on microstrucature, micro-yield strength and dynamic dimensional stability of ZL114A aluminum alloy were investigated by optical microscopy （OM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, tensile testing and thermal cycling on-line measuring method. Fine dispersed eutectic Si phases are observed, and long strip eutectic Si and massive primary Si phases decrease in ZL114A alloy after high-temperature and long-time solution treatment, which result in the increase of micro-plastic deformation resistance. With the increasing of aging temperature, aging precipitation behaviour of ZLll4A alloy transforms from precipitation of GP zone and fl＇ phases simultaneously at lower temperature to precipitation of stable Mg2Si phases at higher temperature. Because coherent strengthening is the main strengthen mechanism for micro-plastic deformation, precipitation of stable Mg2Si phases is unfavorable to the improvement of micro-plastic deformation resistance. Micro-yield strength cannot characterize dimensional stability comprehensively, and dynamic dimensional stability under alternative temperature should also be tested cooperatively for better evaluation of dimensional stability.

Effect of ageing temperature on precipitation of A1-Cu-Li-Mn-Zr alloy

The precipitation behaviors of an A1-Cu-Li-Mn-Zr alloy at different ageing temperatures （120, 160 and 200 ~C） were investigated using Vickers hardness measurements and transmission electron microscopy （TEM） characterization. Age hardening curves show an increase in precipitation kinetics with increasing ageing temperature. The results of TEM show that for the samples peak aged at 120 ~C, the amount of g＇ （A13Li）, GP zones/0＇ （A12Cu） and Z （A15Cu6Li2） phases is obviously higher than that of T1 （A12CuLi） precipitates; while the samples peak aged at 160 and 200 ~C are usually dominated by T1 phase with a minor fraction of GP zones/0＇ and g＇, and the Z phase almost does not form. In addition, quantitative analysis on the T1 platelets demonstrates that the samples peak aged at 200 ~C have larger plate diameter and smaller area fraction of T1, as compared to the samples peak aged at 160 ~C. Correspondingly, the possible reasons for such phenomena are discussed.

Effects of precipitates on fatigue crack growth rate of AA 7055 aluminum alloy

The effects of precipitates on the fatigue crack growth rate of AA 7055 Al alloy subjected to different ageing treatments were investigated using transmission electron microscope and fatigue crack growth testing.The results show that the T77 treated samples exhibit the lowest crack growth rate,while the crack growth rate of over-aged samples is the highest.In terms of the model based on the reversibility of dislocation motion within the plastic zone close to the crack tip,the improved crack growth resistance is attributed to many precipitates that are coherent with Al matrix in the under-aged and T77 treated samples.When the precipitate is coherent with the Al matrix,the larger the precipitate is,the slower the fatigue crack grows.The effects of grain boundary precipitates and precipitate free zone on the fatigue crack growth resistance are less significant than those of precipitates within grains of the alloy.

Ethylene Polymerization Using Improved Polyethylene Catalyst

The study concerns the use of MgCl2-supported high-activity Ziegler-Natta catalysts for the polymerization of ethylene.In particular,two types of catalysts were investigated,which were N-catalyst（BRICI）and improved polyethylene catalyst.The effects of catalyst structure on kinetic behavior were examined.The distribution of active centers in these catalysts was investigated by energy dispersive analysis by X-rays（EDAX）,and morphologies of catalyst particles and polymer products were examined by scanning electron microscope（SEM）.Hydrogen response and copolymerization performance were investigated and compared with the two catalysts.The results were correlated with the kinetic behavior of the two catalysts and appropriate models for polymer particle growth were presented.The improved polyethylene catalyst showed higher activity,better hydrogen response and copolymerization performance.

Super-hydrophobic and super-lipophilic functionalized graphene oxide/polyurethane sponge applied for oil/water separation

Nowadays, oil spills have led to a serious environmental crisis of the world. To deal with this problem, inspired from super-hydrophobic lotus leaf, this study fabricated super-hydrophobic and super-lipophilic functionalized graphene oxide/polyurethane （FGP） sponge by a simple and inexpensive dip coating method. The resulting FGP sponge was characterized by infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and water contact angle. The results expressed that FGP sponge exhibited a similar surface structure to that of a lotus leaf, and possessed the super-hydrophobic characteristic with the water contact angle （WAC） of 152°± 1 °. The absorption capacity and reusability were also investigated. It can be seen that, the FGP sponge can remove a wide range of oils and organic solvents from water with good absorption capacities （up to 35 times of its own mass）. Significantly, after 10 cycles the absorption capacity of the oils and organic solvents was higher than 90°; for the reused FGP sponge, demonstrating the good reusability of the FGP sponge. Therefore, this study probably provided a simole way to remove the pollutions ofoil spills and toxic organism from water.

Microstructure and mechanical properties of A356 thixoformed alloys in comparison with gravity cast ones using new criterion

The effect of thixoforming process on morphologies of silicon particles that affect fracture mode of A356 alloy was investigated.Microstructure and fracture surfaces of thixoformed samples were investigated by image analyzing technique and scanning electron microscopy.A new combination parameter, called silicon density ratio (SDR) index, was introduced.SDR index approximates the collective effects of morphological characteristics of silicon particles on microstructure transparency of alloy in crossing the dislocation.It is suggested that samples with lower SDR index have superior mechanical properties, especially elongation, and consequently intergranular fracture mode.On the contrary, samples with higher SDR index have inferior mechanical properties and fracture path tends to propagate along the cell boundaries leading to transgranular fracture.

Effects of annealing temperature on microstructure and ferroelectric properties of Bi_(0.5)(Na_(0.85)K_(0.15))_(0.5)TiO_3 thin films

Bi0.5(Na0.85K0.15)0.5TiO3(BNKT15) thin films were synthesized by metal-organic decomposition(MOD) at annealing temperatures of 650,680,710 and 740℃,and the effects of annealing temperature on the microstructure,dielectric properties,remnant polarization(2Pr) and leakage current density were studied with X-ray diffractometer,atomic force microscope,precision impedance analyzer,ferroelectric analysis station and semiconductor parameter tester.The results show that the thin film annealed at 710℃ exhibits a typical perovskite structure without predominant orientation and a smooth surface with evenly distributed grains.2Pr value(67.4 μC/cm2 under 830 kV/cm) and the leakage current density(1.6×10-6 A/cm2 at 170 kV/cm) for BNKT15 thin film annealed at 710℃ are better than those for thin films annealed at other temperatures.

Kinetics analysis of Ni-TiO_2 composite system during initial stages of electro-crystallization

The initial stage of Ni-TiO2 composite system electrodeposition on glassy carbon electrode from an acidic solution of nickel sulfate was investigated using cyclic voltammetry （CV）, chronoamperometry （CA） and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy （EIS）. Analysis of current density-time transients was performed using the nonlinear fitting procedure and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was simulated by Z-view software. Besides, the surface morphology of Ni-TiO2 co-deposition at the initial stage was observed by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）. The results show that, in the case of low overpotential （-790 mV vs SCE）, the presence of TiO2 particles in the plating bath makes the nucleation relaxation time tm^x decreased clearly. Meanwhile, the electro-crystallization of Ni-TiO2 system follows a Scharifker-Hills （SH） progressive nucleation/growth mechanism. While in the case of higher overpotential, the presence of the TiO2 particles in solution makes the nucleation relaxation time tmax increased. At -850 mV （vs SCE）, the co-deposition of Ni-TiO2 system meets SH instantaneous nucleation/growth mechanism. The results of impedance spectra show that the appearance of the characteristic inductive loops represents the nucleation/growth of nickel and the presence of TiO2 particles reduces the charge transfer resistance of solution. The SEM observation confirms that TiO2 particles can be considered as favorable sites for nickel nucleating.