Self-repairing Al_(2)O_(3)-TiO_(2)coatings fabricated through plasma electrolytic oxidation with various cathodic pulse parameters

The influence of cathodic pulse parameters was evaluated on plasma electrolytic oxidation(PEO)coatings grown on 7075 aluminum alloy in a silicate-based electrolyte containing potassium titanyl oxalate(PTO)using pulsed bipolar waveforms with various cathodic duty cycles and cathodic current densities.The coatings were characterized by SEM,EDS,and XRD.EIS was applied to investigate the electrochemical properties.It was observed that the increase of cathodic duty cycle and cathodic current density from 20%and 6 A/dm^(2) to 40%and 12 A/dm^(2) enhances the growth rate of the inner layer from 0.22 to 0.75μm/min.Adding PTO into the bath showed a fortifying effect on influence of the cathodic pulse and the mentioned change of cathodic pulse parameters,resulting in an increase of the inner layer growth rate from 0.25 to 1.10μm/min.Based on EDS analysis,Si and Ti were incorporated dominantly in the upper parts of the coatings.XRD technique merely detectedγ-Al_(2)O_(3),and there were no detectable peaks related to Ti and Si compounds.However,the EIS results confirmed that the incorporation of Ti^(4+)into alumina changed the electronic properties of the coating.The coatings obtained from the bath containing PTO using the bipolar waveforms with a cathodic duty cycle of 40%and current density values higher than 6 A/dm^(2) showed highly appropriate electrochemical behavior during 240 d of immersion due to an efficient repairing mechanism.Regarding the effects of studied parameters on the coating properties,the roles of cathodic pulse parameters and PTO in the PEO process were highlighted.

Effect of WO3 Nanoparticle Loading on the Microstructural, Mechanical and Corrosion Resistance of Zn Matrix/TiO2-WO3 Nanocomposite Coatings for Marine Application

In this study, for marine application purposes, we evaluated the effect of process parameter and particle loading on the microstructure, mechanical reinforcement and corrosion resistance properties of a Zn-TiO2-WO3 nanocomposite produced via electrodeposition. We characterized the morphological properties of the composite coatings with a Scanning Electron Microscope （SEM） equipped with an Energy Dispersive Spectrometer （EDS）. We carried out mechanical examination using a Dura Scan hardness tester and a CERT UMT-2 multi-functional tribological tester. We evaluated the corrosion properties by linear polarization in 3.5% NaCl. The results show that the coatings exhibited good stability and the quantitative particle loading greatly enhanced the structural and morphological properties, hardness behavior and corrosion resistance of the coatings. We observed the precipitation of this alloy on steel is greatly influenced by the composite characteristics.

Formation mechanism of Al2O3/MoS2 nanocomposite coating by plasma electrolytic oxidation(PEO)

In this study,an Al2O3/MoS2 nanocomposite coating was created on an aluminum 1050 substrate using the plasma electrolytic oxidation method.The zeta potential measurements showed that small MoS2 particles have negative potential and move toward the anode electrode.The nanoparticles of MoS2 were found to have a zeta potential of-25 mV,which prevents suspension in the solution.Thus,to produce an Al2O3/MoS2 nanocomposite,one has to use the microparticles of MoS2.The X-ray diffraction analyses showed that the produced coatings containedα-Al2O3,γ-Al2O3,and MoS2,and that the size of MoS2 particles can be reduced to 30 nm.It was observed that prolonged suspension in the electrolyte results in an enhanced formation of an Al2O3/MoS2 nanocomposite.Using the results,it was hypothesized that the mechanism of the formation of the Al2O3/MoS2 nanocomposite coating on the aluminum 1050 substrate is based on electrical energy discharge.

Influence of pyrolytic carbon coatings on complex permittivity and microwave absorbing properties of Al_2O_3 fiber woven fabrics

The pyrolytic carbon （PyC） coatings were fabricated on A1203 fiber fabrics by the method of chemical vapor deposition （CVD）. The microstructures of A1203 fibers with and without PyC coatings were characterized by SEM and Raman spectroscopy. The influence of deposition time of PyC on the DC conductivity （ad） of A1203 filaments and complex permittivity of fabrics at X band （8.2-12.4 GHz） were investigated. The values of Crd and complex permittivity increase with increasing deposition time of PyC. The electron relaxation polarization and conductance loss were supposed to be contributed to the increase of ε＇ and ε＂, respectively. In addition, the reflection loss （RL） of fabrics was calculated. The results show that the microwave absorbing properties of Al2O3 fiber fabrics can be improved by PyC coatings. The best RL results are for 60 min-deposition sample, of which the minimum value is about -40.4 dB at about 9.5 GHz and the absorbing frequency band （AFB） is about 4 GHz.

Interface characteristics of Al_2O_3－13%TiO_2 ceramic coatings prepared by laser cladding

Al2O3-13%TiO2 （mass fraction） coatings, prepared by laser cladding on nickel-based alloy, were heated using high frequency induction sources. The coating microstructure and the interface between bond coating and ceramic coating were characterized by SEM, XRD and EDS. The results show that two-layer substructure exists in the ceramic coating： one layer evolving from fully melted region where the sintered grains grow fully; another layer resembling the liquid-phase-sintered structure consisting of three-dimensional net where the melted Al2O3 particles are embedded in the TiO2-rich matrix. The mechanism of the two-layer substructure formation is also explained in terms of the melting and flattening behavior of the powders during laser cladding processing. The spinel compounds NiAl2O4 and acicular compounds Cr2O3 are discovered in the interface between bond coating and ceramic coating. It proves that the chemical reactions in the laser cladding process will significantly enhance the coating adhesion.

Impedance spectroscopy study of high-temperature oxidation of Gd_2O_3-Yb_2O_3 codoped zirconia thermal barrier coatings

3Gd2O3-3Yb2O3-4Y2O3 （mole fraction, %） co-doped ZrO2 （GY-YSZ） thermal barrier coatings （TBCs） were produced by electron beam physical vapor deposition （EB-PVD）. The oxidation behavior of GY-YSZ at 1 050 ℃ was investigated using impedance spectroscopy （IS） combined with scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffractometry （XRD）. Various electrical responses observed in the impedance spectra corresponding to GY-YSZ grains and grain boundaries were explained using circuit modeling. The change in the conduction mechanism of GY-YSZ was found to be related to the O^2- vacancy and lattice distortion due to the stabilizer diffusion during the oxidation. The results also suggested that the specific oxidation information about the GY-YSZ grains and grain boundaries should be acquired at a moderate measurement temperature, which was related to the resistance value in the impedance spectra. The resistance values of the GY-YSZ grains and grain boundaries should be measured at 200 ℃ and 300 ℃, respectively.

Tribological behavior and mechanism of NiCrBSi-Y_2O_3 composite coatings

The NiCrBSi-Y2O3 composite coatings were prepared on the surface of 45 carbon steel by plasma spray, the microstructure and tribological properties of the coatings were investigated. The results show that the NiCrBSi-Y2O3 composite coatings are mainly composed of γ-Ni, CrB, Cr7C3 and Y2O3. With addition of Y2O3, hard phases such as CrB, Cr7C3 emerge in composite coating, and the density of the composite coatings also increases. The NiCrBSi-0.5Y2O3 composite coating presents excellent tribological properties. Its friction coefficient is 0.175, which is about 37% of that of the pure NiCrBSi coating. The mass wear loss is 1.2 mg, which is reduced by 43% compared with the pure NiCrBSi coating. When the loads are 6-10 N, the NiCrBSi-0.5Y2O3 composite coating suffers from slight wear and the wear mechanisms are mainly adhesive wear accompany with slight micro-cutting wear and micro-fracture wear. As the load increases to 12 N, the wear mechanisms are adhesive wear and severe micro-cutting wear.

Preparation of Al_2O_3/Au nano-laminated composite coatings and their oxidation resistance on stainless steel

Al2O3/Au nano-laminated composite coatings were prepared by means of magnetron sputtering. The coating was compact and comprised of nano-laminated Al2O3 and Au layers. High temperature cyclic oxidation test was employed to investigate the oxidation resistance of the composite coatings. The results revealed that the applied Al2O3/Au nano-laminated composite coatings improved the oxidation and spallation resistance of the stainless steel substrate significantly. The mechanism accounting for oxidation resistance was related with the suppression of inward oxygen diffusion and selective oxidation of Cr in the substrate. The mechanism accounting for spallation resistance was attributed to the relaxation of thermal stress by the nano-laminated structure.

Solution combustion synthesis of Ni-Y_2O_3 nanocomposite powder

Ni-Y2O3 nanocomposite powder with uniform distribution of fine oxide particles in the metal matrix was successfully fabricated via solution combustion process followed by hydrogen reduction. The combustion behavior was investigated by DTA-TG analysis. The influence of urea to nickel nitrate（U/Ni） ratio on the combustion behavior and morphology evolution of the combusted powder was investigated. The morphological characteristics and phase transformation of the combusted powder and the reduced powder were characterized by FESEM, TEM and XRD. The HRTEM image of Ni-Y2O3 nanocomposite powder indicated that Y2O3 particles with average particle size of about 10 nm dispersed uniformly in the nickel matrix.

INVESTIGATION ON MICROSTRUCTURE AND TRIBOLOGICAL PROPERITIES OF CORED WIRE ARC SPRAYED Al/Al _2 O_3 COATINGS

Cored wires for electric arc spraying of Al/Al 2 O 3 MMC coatings were developed, with Al 2 O 3 powder as the core material and commercial aluminium strip as the retaining sheath. The bond strength, Al 2 O 3 content, microstructure, micro-hardness and wear resistance of coatings produced by arc spraying of the cored wires were experimentally investigated and were compared with those of pure aluminum coating.

Effect of Y_2O_3 Content on Microstructure of Gradient Bioceramic Composite Coating Produced by Wide-Band Laser Cladding

To eliminate thermal stress and cracks in the process of laser cladding, a kind of bioceramic coating with gradient compositional design was prepared on the surface of Ti alloy by using wide-band laser cladding. And effect of Y2O3 content on gradient bioceramic composite coating was studied. The experimental results indicate that adding rare earth can refine grain. Different rare earth contents affect formation of HA and β-TCP in bioceramic coating. When the content of rare earth ranges from 0.4% to 0.6%, the active extent of rare earth in synthesizing HA and β-TCP is the best, which indicates that “monosodium glutamate” effect of rare earth plays a dominant role. However, when rare earth content is up to 0.8%, the amount of synthesizing HA and β-TCP in coating conversely goes down, which demonstrates that rare earth gradually losts its catalysis in manufacturing HA and β-TCP.

Study on Preparation and Properties of La_2O_3/MC Nylon Nanocomposites

A series of La2O3/MC nylon nanocomposites were prepared via in situ polymerization. The effects of content of nano-La2O3 on the mechanical properties of nanocomposites were studied. Dispersion of nano-La2O3 in MC nylon matrix was observed with SEM. The crystal structure of nanocomposites was characterized by means of XRD. SEM analysis shows that La2O3 nanoparticles are uniformly dispersed in MC nylon matrix and little clustering exists when the content of nano- La2O3 is lower than 1%, however, when the content of nano-La2O3 is more than 1%, it begins to cluster. XRD analysis indicats that nano-La2O3 does not change the crystal structure of MC nylon. Mechanical properties tests show that the tensile strength, elongation at break, impact strength, flexural strength, and flexural modulus of nanocomposites first increase then decrease as the content of nano-La2O3 is increased. When the content of nano-La2O3 is 0.5%, the tensile strength and elongation at break of nanocomposites reach maximum, which are 17.9% and 52.1% higher respectively than those of MC nylon. When the content of nano-La2O3 is 1.0%, the impact strength, flexural strength and flexural modulus of nanocomposites reach maximum, which are 36.6 %, 12.7 % and 16.3 % higher respectively than those of MC nylon.

Preparation of Al2O3 nanowires on 7YSZ thermal barrier coatings against CMAS corrosion

The commonly-employed material for thermal barrier coatings(TBCs)is 7 wt.%Y2O3 ZrO2(7YSZ),generally deposited by electron beam-physical vapor deposition(EB-PVD).Due to the increasing demand for higher operating temperature in aero-derivative gas turbines,a lot of effort has been made to prevent the premature failure of columnar 7YSZ TBCs,which is induced by the microstructure degradation,sintering and spallation after the deposition of infiltrated siliceous mineral(consisting of calcium magnesium aluminum silicate(CaO MgO Al2O3 SiO2,i.e.,CMAS)).A new method called Al-modification for columnar 7YSZ TBCs against CMAS corrosion was present.The Al film was magnetron-sputtered on the surface of the columnar 7YSZ TBCs,followed by performing vacuum heat treatment of the Al-deposited TBCs.During the heat treatment,the molten Al reacted with ZrO2 to formα-Al2O3 overlay that effectively hindered CMAS infiltration.Moreover,the Al film could evaporate and re-nucleate,leading to the generation of Al2O3 nanowires,which further restrained the moving of molten CMAS.

Ultrasonic characterization of modified Cr_2O_3 coatings by reflection coefficient spectroscopy

Pores,microcracks and density of plasma sprayed Cr2O3 coatings before and after high-intensity pulsed ion beam(HIPIB) irradiation were investigated using the ultrasonic reflection coefficient spectroscopy(URCS).The URCS was analyzed based on an acoustic transmission model for the multi-layered structure.The longitudinal velocity in the coatings was calculated from the experimental URCS,and the attenuation coefficient expression was deduced by comparing the experimental and numerical fitting amplitude spectral lines.The longitudinal velocity of as-sprayed Cr2O3 coating is 2 002 m/s,and increases to 2 099 and 2 148 m/s after being irradiated by HIPIB with 1 and 5 shots.Correspondingly,the factor A changes from 0.046 to 0.026 and 0.020 and n from 1.702 to 1.658 and 1.649 in the attenuation coefficient expression of α=Af n.It is observed that the surface morphology of Cr2O3 coatings changes from rough and porous to smooth and uniform with the increase of shot number,which accords with the ultrasonic analyses reasonably.The URCS seems to provide a convenient and nondestructive method to characterize surface modification of the plasma sprayed coatings.

Photoluminescence behavior and visible light photocatalytic activity of ZnO,ZnO/ZnS and ZnO/ZnS/α-Fe_2O_3 nanocomposites

In order to achieve effective, economic, and easily achievable photocatalyst for the degradation of dye methyl orange（MeO）, ZnO, ZnO/ZnS and ZnO/ZnS/α-Fe2O3 nanocomposites were prepared by simple chemical synthetic route in the aqueous medium. Phase, crystallinity, surface structure and surface behavior of the synthesized materials were determined by X-ray diffraction（XRD） and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller analysis（BET） techniques. XRD study established formation of good crystalline ZnO, ZnO/ZnS and ZnO/ZnS/α-Fe2O3 nanomaterials. By using intensity of constituent peaks in the XRD pattern, the compositions of nanocomposites were determined. From the BET analysis, the prepared materials show mesoporous behavior, type Ⅳ curves along with H4 hysteresis. The ZnO/ZnS/α-Fe2O3 composite shows the largest surface area among three materials. From the UV-visible spectra, the band gap energy of the materials was determined. Photoluminescence spectra（PL） were used to determine the emission behavior and surface defects in the materials. In PL spectra, the intensity of UV peak of ZnO/ZnS is lowered than that of ZnO while in case of ZnO/ZnS/α-Fe2O3, the intensity further decreased. The visible emission spectra of ZnO/ZnS increased compared with ZnO while in ZnO/ZnS/α-Fe2O3 it is further increased compared with ZnO/ZnS. The as-synthesized materials were used as photocatalysts for the degradation of dye MeO. The photo-degradation data revealed that the ZnO/ZnS/α-Fe2O3 is the best photocatalyst among three specimens for the degradation of dye MeO. The decrease of intensity of UV emission peak and the increase of intensity of visible emission cause the decrease of recombination of electrons and holes which are ultimately responsible for the highest photocatalytic activity of ZnO/ZnS/α-Fe2O3.

Absorption performance of DMSA modified Fe_3O_4@SiO_2 core/shell magnetic nanocomposite for Pb^(2+) removal

The purpose of this study is to explore the adsorption performance of meso-2,3-dimercaptosuccinic acid(DMSA)modified Fe3O4@SiO2 magnetic nanocomposite(Fe3O4@SiO2@DMSA)for Pb2+ions removal from aqueous solutions.The effects of solution pH,initial concentration of Pb2+ions,contact time,and temperature on the amount of Pb2+adsorbed were investigated.Adsorption isotherms,adsorption kinetics,and thermodynamic analysis were also studied.The results showed that the maximum adsorption capacity of the Fe3O4@SiO2@DMSA composite is 50.5 mg/g at 298 K,which is higher than that of Fe3O4 and Fe3O4@SiO2 magnetic nanoparticles.The adsorption process agreed well with Langmuir adsorption isotherm models and pseudo second-order kinetics.The thermodynamic analysis revealed that the adsorption was spontaneous,endothermic and energetically driven in nature.

Morphology and Mechanical Properties of PS/Al_2O_3 Nanocomposites Based on Selective Laser Sintering

Selective laser sintering （SLS） is a new process to prepare the polystyrene （PS）/Al2O3 nanocomposites. In this paper, with different laser power and other processing parameters unchanged, the morphology, density and mechanical properties of the sintered specimens were investigated. It was found that nano-sized inorganic particles are uniformly located in the PS matrix and the maximum density of the sintered specimens with pure PS powder reaches 1.07 g/cm^3, higher than 1.04 g/cm^3 that of the sintered specimens with mixture powder. Due to strengthening and toughness of the nano-sized Al2O3 inorganic particles, the maximum notched impact strength and tensile strength of the sintered part mixed with nano-sized inorganic particles are improved greatly from 7.5 to 12.1 kJ/m^2 and from 6.5 to 31.2 MPa, respectively, under the same sintering condition.

Effect of MoSi_2 content on dielectric and mechanical properties of MoSi_2/Al_2O_3 composite coatings

Molybdenum disilicide （MoSi2） sheath and aluminum oxide （Al2O3） core blended powders were fabricated by spray drying. A derived coating material was produced for the application as microwave absorbers using the as prepared powders by atmospheric plasma spray （APS） technology. The effects of MoSi2/Al2O3 mass ratio on the dielectric and physical mechanical properties of the composite coatings were investigated. When the MoSi2 content of the composites increases from 0 to 45%, the flexure strength and fracture toughness improve from 198 to 324 MPa and 3.05 to 4.82 MPa-m1/2 then decline to 310 MPa and 4.67 MPa-m1/2, respectively. The dielectric loss tangent increases with increasing MoSi2 content, and the real part of permittivity decreases conversely over the frequency range of 8.2-12.4 GHz. These effects are due to the agglomeration of early molten MoSi2 particles and the increase of the electrical conductivity with increasing MoSi2 content.

Preparation and tribological performance of electrodeposited Ni-TiB_2-Dy_2O_3 composite coatings

TiB2 and Dy2O3 were used as codeposited particles in the preparation of Ni-TiB2-Dy2O3 composite coatings to improve its performance. Ni-TiB2-Dy2O3 composite coatings were prepared by electrodeposition method with a nickel cetyltrimethylammonium bromide and hexadecylpyridinium bromide solution containing TiB2 and Dy2O3 particles. The content of codeposited TiB2 and Dy2O3 in the composite coatings was controlled by adding TiB2 and Dy2O3 particles of different concentrations into the solution, respectively. The effects of TiB2 and Dy2O3 content on microhardness, wear mass loss and friction coefficients of composite coatings were investigated. The composite coatings were characterized by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometer （ICP-AES） and scanning electron microscopy （SEM） techniques. Ni-TiBE-Dy2O3 composite coatings showed higher microhardness, lower wear mass loss and friction coefficient compared with those of the pure Ni coating and Ni-TiB2 composite coatings. The wear mass loss of Ni-TiB2-Dy2O3 composite coatings was 9 and 1.57 times lower than that of the pure Ni coating and Ni-TiB2 composite coatings, respectively. The friction coefficient of pure Ni coating, Ni-TiB2 and Ni-TiB2-Dy2O3 composite coatings were 0.723, 0.815 and 0.619, respectively. Ni-TiBE-Dy2O3 composite coatings displayed the least friction coefficient among the three coatings. Dy2O3 particles in composite coatings might serve as a solid lubricant between contact surfaces to decrease the friction coefficient and abate the wear of the composite coatings. The loading-bearing capacity and the wear-reducing effect of the Dy2O3 particles were closely related to the content of Dy2O3 particles in the composite coatings.

Enhanced photoresponse performance in Ga/Ga_2O_3 nanocomposite solar-blind ultraviolet photodetectors

In the present work, we explore the solar-blind ultraviolet（UV） photodetectors（PDs） with enhanced photoresponse,fabricated on Ga/Ga2O3 nanocomposite films. Through pre-burying metal Ga layers and thermally post-annealing the laminated Ga2 O3/Ga/Ga2O3 structures, Ga/Ga2O3 nanocomposite films incorporated with Ga nanospheres are obtained. For the prototype PD, it is found that the photocurrent and photoresponsivity will first increase and then decrease monotonically with the thickness of the pre-buried Ga layer increasing. Each of all PDs shows a spectrum response peak at 260 nm, demonstrating the ability to detect solar-blind UV light. Adjustable photoresponse enhancement factors are achieved by means of the surface plasmon in the nanocomposite films. The PD with a 20 nm thick Ga interlayer exhibits the best solar-blind UV photoresponse characteristics with an extremely low dark current of 8.52 p A at 10-V bias, a very high light-to-dark ratio of ～ 8 × 10~5, a large photoresponsivity of 2.85 A/W at 15-V bias, and a maximum enhancement factor of ～ 220. Our research provides a simple and practical route to high performance solar-blind UV PDs and potential applications in the field of optoelectronics.