Microstructure and properties of Ag–Ti_3SiC_2 contact materials prepared by pressureless sintering

Ti3SiC2-reintbrced Ag-maJxix composites are expected to serve as eleclrical contacts. In this study, the wettability of Ag on a Ti3SiC2 subslxate was measured by the sessile drop melkod. The Ag-Ti3SiC2 composites were prepared from Ag mad Ti3SiC2 powder mix- tures by pressureless sintering. The effects of compacting pressure （100-800 MPa）, sintering temperature （850-950~C）, mad soaking time （0.5-2 h） on the microslxucture mad properties of the Ag-Ti3SiC2 composites were investigated. The experimental results indicated that Ti3SiC2 paxticulates were uniformly distxibuted in flae Ag matrix, wiflaout reactions at the interthces between flae two phases. The prepared Ag-10wt%Ti3SiC2 had a relative density of 95% mad an electrical resistivity of 2.76 x 10 3 m~）＇cm when compacted at 800 MPa mad sintered at 950~C for 1 h. The incorporation of Ti3SiC2 into Ag was found to improve its hardness without substantially compromising its electrical conductivity; INs behavior was attxibuted to the combination of ceramic and metallic properties of the Ti3SiC2 reinforcement, suggesting its potential application in electrical contacts.

Effects of silver powder particle size on the microstructure and properties of Ag-Yb_2O_3 electrical contact materials prepared by spark plasma sintering

mg-Yb203 electrical contact materials were fabricated by spark plasma sintefing （SPS）. The effects of silver powder particle size on the microstructure and properties of the samples were investigated. The surface morphologies of the sintered samples were examined by optical microscope （OM）, and the fracture morphologies were observed by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）. The physical and mechanical properties such as density, electrical resistivity, microhardness, and tensile strength were also tested. The results show that the silver powder particle size has evident effects on the sintered materials. Comparing with coarse silver powder （5 ktm）, homogeneous and fme microstmcture was obtained by fine silver powder （_〈0.5-1am）. At the same time, the electrical conductivity, microhardness, and tensile strength of the sin- tered samples with fine silver powder were higher than those of the samples with coarse silver powder. However, silver powder particle size has little influence on the relative densities, which of all samples （both by free and coarse silver powders） is more than 95%. The fracture characteristics are ductile.

Study of the Material Transfer Characteristics and Surface Morphology Due to Arc Erosion of PtIr Contact Materials

By means of breaking tests on PtIr contact materials via a JF04C contact material testing machine, it was attempted to elucidate the characteristics of the various surface morphology and material transfer after the arc erosion process caused by break arc. The material transfer characteristics appeared in the experiments were concluded and analyzed. Meanwhile, the morphology of the anode and cathode surface were observed and analyzed by SEM.

Exposure Assessment of Sb2O3 in PET Food Contact Materials

This study was conducted to do exposure assessment of the possible migration of antimony trioxide （Sb203） from Polyethylene terephthalate （PET） food contact materials （FCM）. Consumption Factor （CF） and Food-type Distribution Factor （fT） were calculated from survey data with reference to the US FDA method. The most conservative migration conditions were obtained by testing Sb migration from PET FCM based on the Chinese national standard of GB/T 5009.101-2003[1].

Influence of Metal Oxides on the Arc Erosion Behaviour of Silver Metal Oxides Electrical Contact Materials

In the present work investigations have been made to see the role of metal oxides on the performance of the silver metal oxides electrical contact materials. Silver metal oxide materials of three different compositions Ag-10CdO, Ag-7.6SnO2-2.3ln2O3 and Ag-10ZnO were prepared by internal oxidation process under identical processing conditions. These materials were tested for electrical conductivity, hardness, and erosion loss. Performing an accelerated test on the actual contactor assessed the electrical performance, involving erosion loss and temperature rise of the processed materials. The arc-eroded surface was characterized under scanning electron microscope. The study of the eroded surfaces of contacts indicates that the thermal stability of metal oxides depends on nature of silver-metal oxide interface and their mode of erosion. An attempt is made to correlate the surface features of the eroded contacts with the thermal stability of metal oxides.

Research on arc erosion of silver-based alloy contact materials under low voltage,resistive load and small current at 400 Hz and 50 Hz

By using a self-developed IF power and a ASTM contact material experimental system of small-capacity and variable frequency,the value of arcing characteristics and the welding force of the silver-based contact material are acquired under low voltage,resistive load and small current at 400 Hz and 50 Hz. By means of an electricity-ray analytical balance,SEM and EDAX,the weighing values of the contact materials and the changes of AgCdO,AgNi,AgC and AgW contact material surface profile and micro-area constituent are obtained and analyzed. The arc erosion causes of silver-based alloy contact materials at 400 Hz and 50 Hz are also discussed.

CONTACT MATERIALS FOR GaSb AND InSb: A PHASE DIAGRAM APPROACH

The development of well defined and thermally stable ohmic contacts for Ⅲ- Ⅴ semi-conductors like InSb and GaSb is still a challenging problem in semiconductor devicetechnology. As device processing usually includes the exposure to elevated tempera-tures, interface reactions often occur during metallization and further heat treatment.It is thus important to understand the respective phase equilibria of the involved el-ements. From the thermodynamic point of view, binary and ternary compounds inequilibrium with the respective compound semiconductor would be the best choice forcontact materials as these contacts will be stable even after long exposure to elevatedtemperatures. These possible candidates for contact materials may be directly obtainedfrom the phase diagrams.During the last years we investigated several phase diagrams of transition metals withGaSb and InSb. Experimental results in the systems Ga-Ni-Sb, Ga-Pd-Sb, Ga-Pt-Sb,In-Ni-Sb and In-Pd-Sb are summarized and are discussed in the context of contactchemistry.

Development of electron and hole selective contact materials for perovskite solar cells

Nowadays,both n-i-p and p-i-n perovskite solar cells（PSCs） device structures are reported to give high performance with photo conversion efficiencies（PCEs） above 20%.The efficiency of the PSCs is fundementally determined by the charge selective contact materials.Hence,by introducing proper contact materials with good charge selectivity,one could potentially reduce interfacial charge recombination as well as increase device performance.In the past few years,copious charge selective contact materials have been proposed.Significant improvements in the corresponding devices were observed and the reported PCEs were close to that of classic Spiro-OMeTAD.This mini-review summarizes the state-of-the-art progress of typical electron/hole selective contact materials for efficient perovskite solar cells and an outlook to their development is made.

Arc erosion of AgSnO_2 electrical contacts at different stages of a break operation

Arc erosion studies are conducted on AgSnO2 contact materials at different stages in the break operation. A resistive load arrangement is used with up to 42 V DC at 24 A and a constant contact opening velocity. The arc current is terminated at different stages as the arc is drawn between the contacts enabling a study of the arcing phenomena up to that point. Surface profiling of the contacts is conducted to determine the extent of erosion at the different stages as the arc is drawn. Spectral analysis is also conducted on the arc and then related to the extent of erosion. The results show that particular features occur at different stages as the arc is drawn. As the arc is initially established, it goes through an ＂Arc Generation＂ regime where the arc roots are small and immobile on both the anode and the cathode. Material transfer occurs mainly from anode to cathode. The spectral analysis indicates that Sn and O species dominate the arc followed by the Ag species. As the arc is drawn further and enters the ＂Arc Degeneration＂ regime, the anode undergoes significantly larger erosion than the cathode. Also, both contacts indicate that multiple arc roots have formed, which are highly mobile in the later stages of the discharge. The spectral analysis indicates that Ag and N species are in high concentrations compared to other species. The mechanisms of erosion and deposition are discussed in relation to the species within the arc discharge. For the complete break operation, it is found that the anode undergoes major erosion, and it is thought that the gaseous ions species do not dominate the arc under these conditions of short arcs and voltage 〈42 V to cause cathode erosion.

Failure characteristics of Ag-SnO_2 contact material in AC level

The failure characteristics of the contact material Ag-SnO2 were investigated by X-ray diffraction（XRD）,scanning electron microscopy（SEM）,and X-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy（EDS）.Phase analysis showed that there were Ag,SnO2,and Sn on the contact surfaces at the time of failure under the load condition of 30 A and 220 V（AC）,which means that SnO2 decomposed in service.When the contacts were tested under airproof ambient condition,half-spherical bulges came into being on the contact surfaces,which resulted in early failure and dispersive characteristics.But half-spherical bulges were not found when the contacts were tested under open ambient condition.The temperature change of the contacts during the life testing under airproof ambient condition was different from that under open ambient condition.

Preparation and microstructure characterization of a nano-sized Ti^(4+)-doped AgSnO_2 electrical contact material

A Ti^4＋-doped nano-structured AgSnO2 material was prepared using sol-gel method and characterized by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, and scanning electron microscopy （SEM）. The results show that Ti^4＋ cations are successfully doped into the crystal lattice of SnO2, and thus significantly improve the electrical conductivity of the sample. Furthermore, the coating of Ag on Ti^4＋-doped SnO2 nano-sized particles enhances the surface wettability and enables the resulting AgSnO2 material to have better mechanical properties.

A new contact material—Ag/SnO_2-La_2O_3-Bi_2O_3

A super-fine compound powder, Ag/SnO_2+La_2O_3+ Bi_2O_3, has been obtainedusing the chemical coprecipitation method. And a new contact material, Ag/SnO_2+La_2O_3+Bi_2O_3, wasproduced by the powder metallurgy method. Its properties are as follows: the density is 9.75-9.93g/cm^3, the resistivity is 2.31-2.55 μΩ ·cm, the hardness is 880-985 MPa. Its mi-crostructureshows that the fine oxides have a uniform distribution in the silver matrix. The results ofmake-break capacity and temperature rise testing show that the new material has better ability ofanti-arc erosion and lower temperature rise than that of commonly used Ag/CdO.

Application of nanotechnology in a silver/graphite contact material and optimization of its physical and mechanical properties

By applying nanotechnology, a new type of silver/graphite (AgC) electricalcontact was fabricated and characterized. The AgC coating powders were obtained through high-energyball milling and reducer liquid spraying-coating method. The as-prepared powders were examined bytransmission electron microscope (TEM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and X-ray diffraction(XRD). The results show that the thickness of graphite flakes milled for 10 h is about 50-60 nm andthe AgC coating powders exhibit flocculent structure with quite fine and homogeneous internalmicropores. XRD implies that the average crystalline size of silver in coating powders is about 50nm. The mechanical and physical properties of this newly developed AgC contact made from theabove-mentioned nanocrystalline powders by traditional powder metallurgy technique were measured.Compared with its counterparts made from other techniques, the properties of this new AgC contacthave been optimized. High surface energy and high-energy interfaces of the nanocrystalline AgCcoating powders provide powerful driving force for sintering densification. Moreover, the flocculentstructure of the powders is also an important factor to acquire fine density ratio.

A New AgMeO Contact Material

A new silver rare earth oxide contact material, Ag/La2O3(12), was produced by powder metallurgy method. Its performances are as follows: the density is 9.71 similar to 9.96 g.cm(-3); the hardness (HB) is 760 similar to 970 MPa and the resistivity is 2.25 similar to 2.38 mu Omega . cm. The microstructure of Ag/La2O3(12) mas analyzed by SEM and EDS. Rare earth oxide La2O3 shows two shapes, which are uniformly distributed in the form of sphere and abnormality in Ag matrix. La2O3 shows fine spherical shape in the melted area of Ag after laser acting which is used to simulate electric are. The results are contributed to the less splash erosion of Ag. Compared with the main physical and mechanical properties of Ag/SnO2(12) and Ag/CdO(12), the properties of three contact materials are similar, and hence Ag/La2O3(12) may become a potential contact material to be used as the substitute of Ag/CdO(12).

Properties of vacuum cast CuCr25 and CuCr25Te contact material

The CuCr25 and CuCr25Te contact materials were manufactured by vacuum casting process.The microstructures of two alloys were observed by metallographic microscope,the electrical conductivity,density and hardness were measured.The tensile test was done by universal testing machine while the fractography was observed by SEM,the breaking current tests were carried out in Weil Synthetic Circuit with arc-igniting branch in Xi’an Jiaotong University.The results show that the microstructures and physical parameters change after adding Te element.The tensile strength decreases and the toughness turns bad,which is propitious to improve the anti-welding property.But the breaking current capacity of CuCr25Te alloy is inferior to CuCr25 alloy.Thus,adding Te element has both advantages and disadvantages on main properties of CuCr contact material.

CuCr25 W1 Ni2 contact material of vacuum interrupter

CuCr25W1Ni2 alloy was prepared by means of vacuum induction melting (VIM). A series of Cu/Cr alloys with different compositions (mass fraction, 25%～75%) and Cr grain sizes (up to 150 μm) were investigated for their differences in physical properties and breakdown voltage. The influence of alloy elements and microstructure on the performance of CuCr25W1Ni2 alloy was also discussed. Experimental results show that the chromium phase is strengthened and its size is minimized by the addition of tungsten powder. After electrical breakdown, very fine tungsten particles in the melt layer form the external nuclei in the solidification process. The microstructure of surface melt layer of CuCr25W1Ni2 alloy is much flatter. It can notably improve the dielectric strength. On the other hand, the nickel can enhance the mutual solubility of copper and chromium, and the whole alloy is strengthened. [

Experimental investigation of high temperature thermal contact resistance with interface material

Thermal contact resistance plays a very important role in heat transfer efficiency and thermomechanical coupling response between two materials,and a common method to reduce the thermal contact resistance is to fill a soft interface material between these two materials.A testing system of high temperature thermal contact resistance based on INSTRON 8874 is established in the present paper,which can achieve 600 C at the interface.Based on this system,the thermal contact resistance between superalloy GH600 material and three-dimensional braid C/C composite material is experimentally investigated,under different interface pressures,interface roughnesses and temperatures,respectively.At the same time,the mechanism of reducing the thermal contact resistance with carbon fiber sheet as interface material is experimentally investigated.Results show that the present testing system is feasible in the experimental research of high temperature thermal contact resistance.

Non-Thermal Atmospheric Plasma:Can it Be Taken as a Common Solution for the Surface Treatment of Dental Materials?

This study aimed to evaluate the surface roughness and wetting properties of various dental prosthetic materials after different durations of non-thermal atmospheric plasma（NTAP）treatment.One hundred and sixty discs of titanium（Ti）（n：40）,cobalt chromium（Co-Cr）（n：40）,yttrium stabilized tetragonal zirconia polycrystals（Y-TZP）（n：40）and polymethylmethacrylate（PMMA）（n：40）materials were machined and smoothed with silicon carbide papers.The surface roughness was evaluated in a control group and in groups with different plasma exposure times [1-3-5 s].The average surface roughness（Ra）and contact angle（CA）measurements were recorded via an atomic force microscope（AFM）and tensiometer,respectively.Surface changes were examined with a scanning electron microscope（SEM）.Data were analyzed with two-way analysis of variance（ANOVA）and the Tukey HSD test α=0.05）.According to the results,the NTAP surface treatment significantly affected the roughness and wettability properties（P 〈 0.05）.SEM images reveal that more grooves were present in the NTAP groups.With an increase in the NTAP application time,an apparent increment was observed for Ra,except in the PMMA group,and a remarkable reduction in CA was observed in all groups.It is concluded that the NTAP technology could enhance the roughening and wetting performance of various dental materials.

Effects of Rare Earths on Electrical Conductivity, Melting-Welding and Corrosion Resistance by Electric Arc of Copper-Based Alloys

The effects of rare earths on electric conductivity fusion welding-resistance and erosion-resistance by electric arc of copper-based compound material by adding different amount of rare earths to copper base to get copper based compound materials were studied. Rare earths improve active ability among interfaces and optimize organizational structures. The conductivity of samples with rare earths is obviously better than that of materials without them. Moreover, wear ability and oxidization resistance of materials with rare earths can be improved greatly. For copper contact head with rare earths, electric arc corrosion resistance and welding-melting resistance are improved. Such alloys also decrease resistance change with increasing temperature. But the adding quantity of rare earths should be appropriate and formed handicraft should be properly regulated.

Association between Phthalate Exposure and the Use of Plastic Containers in Shanghai Adults

Objective Consuming phthalates may be due to the presence of food contact materials, such as plastic containers. In this study, we investigated the association between plastic container use and phthalate exposure in 2,140 Shanghai adults. Methods Participants completed a questionnaire on the frequency of using plastic containers in different scenarios in the previous year （e.g., daily, weekly） and on the consumption of plastic-packaged foods in the previous three days （yes or no）. Urinary phthalate metabolites were used to assess the association between phthalate exposure and the use of plastic containers. Results The metabolites of di-（2-ethylhexyl） phthalate （DEHP） were the most frequently detected in urine. The results revealed that phthalate exposure was associated with consumption of plastic-packaged breakfast or processed food items in the previous three days. The consumption of these two food items had strong synergistic effects on increasing urinary concentrations of most phthalate metabolites. Conclusion Our results of plastic-packaged breakfast and processed food may be explained by the use of flexible plastic containers, indicating the importance of risk assessment for the application of flexible plastic containers.