Pressure-induced magnetic phase and structural transition in SmSb_(2)

Motivated by the recent discovery of unconventional superconductivity around a magnetic quantum critical point in pressurized CeSb_(2),here we present a high-pressure study of an isostructural antiferromagnetic(AFM) SmSb_(2) through electrical transport and synchrotron x-ray diffraction measurements.At P_(C)~2.5 GPa,we found a pressure-induced magnetic phase transition accompanied by a Cmca→P4/nmm structural phase transition.In the pristine AFM phase below P_(C),the AFM transition temperature of SmSb_(2) is insensitive to pressure;in the emergent magnetic phase above P_(C),however,the magnetic critical temperature increases rapidly with increasing pressure.In addition,at ambient pressure,the magnetoresistivity(MR) of SmSb_(2) increases suddenly upon cooling below the AFM transition temperature and presents linear nonsaturating behavior under high field at 2 K.With increasing pressure above P_(C),the MR behavior remains similar to that observed at ambient pressure,both in terms of temperature-and field-dependent MR.This leads us to argue an AFM-like state for SmSb_(2) above P_(C).Within the investigated pressure of up to 45.3 GPa and the temperature of down to 1.8 K,we found no signature of superconductivity in SmSb_(2).

Advancing the pressure sensing performance of conductive CNT/PDMS composite film by constructing a hierarchical-structured surface

Flexible pressure sensors have attracted wide attention due to their applications to electronic skin,health monitoring,and human-machine interaction.However,the tradeoff between their high sensitivity and wide response range remains a challenge.Inspired by human skin,we select commercial silicon carbide sandpaper as a template to fabricate carbon nanotube(CNT)/polydimethylsiloxane(PDMS)composite film with a hierarchical structured surface(h-CNT/PDMS)through solution blending and blade coating and then assemble the h-CNT/PDMS composite film with interdigitated electrodes and polyurethane(PU)scotch tape to obtain an h-CNT/PDMS-based flexible pressure sensor.Based on in-situ optical images and finite element analysis,the significant compressive contact effect between the hierarchical structured surface of h-CNT/PDMS and the interdigitated electrode leads to enhanced pressure sensitivity and a wider response range(0.1661 kPa^(-1),0.4574 kPa^(-1)and 0.0989 kPa^(-1)in the pressure range of 0–18 kPa,18–133 kPa and 133–300 kPa)compared with planar CNT/PDMS composite film(0.0066 kPa^(-1)in the pressure range of 0–240 kPa).The prepared pressure sensor displays rapid response/recovery time,excellent stability,durability,and stable response to different loading modes(bending and torsion).In addition,our pressure sensor can be utilized to accurately monitor and discriminate various stimuli ranging from human motions to pressure magnitude and spatial distribution.This study supplies important guidance for the fabrication of flexible pressure sensors with superior sensing performance in next-generation wearable electronic devices.

Prediction of atomization characteristics of pressure swirl nozzle with different structures

The structure of the pressure swirl nozzle is an important factor affecting its spray performance.This work aims to study pressure swirl nozzles with different structures by experiment and simulation.In the experiment,10 nozzles with different structures are designed to comprehensively cover various geometric factors.In terms of simulation,steady-state simulation with less computational complexity is used to study the flow inside the nozzle.The results show that the diameter of the inlet and outlet,the direction of the inlet,the diameter of the swirl chamber,and the height of the swirl chamber all affect the atomization performance,and the diameter of the inlet and outlet has a greater impact.It is found that under the same flow rate and pressure,the geometric differences do have a significant impact on the atomization characteristics,such as spray angle and SMD(Sauter mean diameter).Specific nozzle structures can be customized according to the actual needs.Data analysis shows that the spray angle is related to the swirl number,and the SMD is related to turbulent kinetic energy.Through data fitting,the equations for predicting the spray angle and the SMD are obtained.The error range of the fitting equation for the prediction of spray angle and SMD is within 15% and 10% respectively.The prediction is expected to be used in engineering to estimate the spray performance at the beginning of a real project.

Pressure drop of structured packing in pilot column and comparison to common correlations

Packed columns are widely used in the chemical industry such as absorption,stripping,distillation,and extraction in the production of e.g.organic chemicals,and pharmaceuticals.Pressure loss and pressure drop correlations are of special interest when it comes to the hydrodynamic properties of a column.The pressure loss across the column is of interest in the design phase when the size of the blower to drive the gas stream through the column has to be decided.The loading point and flooding point are also influenced by the pressure loss and the area of operation is determined from these points.This work examines four different correlations on pressure drop.The correlations are(i)Ergun’s equation(1952),(ii)an improved version of Ergun’s equation by Stichlmair,Bravo,and Fair(1989),(iii)an equation developed by Billet and Schultes(1999),and(iv)an equation by Rocha,Bravo,and Fair(1993).The complexity of the correlations is increasing in the mentioned order,Ergun’s equation being the simplest one.This study investigates if the more complicated correlations give better predictions to pressure drop in packed columns.This is determined by comparing the correlations to experimental data for pressure drop in a packed column with 8.2 m of structured packing using water as the liquid and atmospheric air as the gas.Seven experiments were carried out for determining the pressure drop in the column with liquid flows varying from 0 to 500 kg·h^(-1).At constant liquid flow,the gas flow was varied from approximately 10 to 70 kg·h^(-1).The pressure drop across the non-wetted column was best described by the correlation by Rocha et al.while the pressure drop for liquid flows from 100 to 500 kg·h^(-1)was,in general,best described by Stichlmair’s equation.For an irrigated column,the highest deviation was a predicted pressure drop 69.6%lower than measured.The best prediction was 0.1%higher than the measured.This study shows,surprisingly,that for a system of water and atmospheric air,complicated correlations on pressure drop determination do not provide better estimates than simple equations.

Characterization of reservoir properties and pore structure based on micro-resistivity imaging logging: Porosity spectrum, permeability spectrum, and equivalent capillary pressure curve

According to the capillary theory,an equivalent capillary model of micro-resistivity imaging logging was built.On this basis,the theoretical models of porosity spectrum(Ф_(i)),permeability spectrum(K_(i))and equivalent capillary pressure curve(pe)were established to reflect the reservoir heterogeneity.To promote the application of the theoretical models,the Archie's equation was introduced to establish a general model for quantitatively characterizing bi,K,and pei.Compared with the existing models,it is shown that:(1)the existing porosity spectrum model is the same as the general equation of gi;(2)the Ki model can display the permeability spectrum as compared with Purcell's permeability model;(3)the per model is constructed on a theoretical basis and avoids the limitations of existing models that are built only based on the component of porosity spectrum,as compared with the empirical model of capillary pressure curve.The application in the Permian Maokou Formation of Well TsX in the Central Sichuan paleo-uplift shows that the Ф_(i),K_(i),and p_(ci) models can be effectively applied to the identification of reservoir types,calculation of reservoir properties and pore structure parameters,and evaluation of reservoir heterogeneity.

Ultra-broadband microwave absorber and high-performance pressure sensor based on aramid nanofiber,polypyrrole and nickel porous aerogel

Electronic devices have become ubiquitous in our daily lives,leading to a surge in the use of microwave absorbers and wearable sensor devices across various sectors.A prime example of this trend is the aramid nanofibers/polypyrrole/nickel(APN)aerogels,which serve dual roles as both microwave absorbers and pressure sensors.In this work,we focused on the preparation of aramid nanofibers/polypyrrole(AP15)aerogels,where the mass ratio of aramid nanofibers to pyrrole was 1:5.We employed the oxidative polymerization method for the preparation process.Following this,nickel was thermally evaporated onto the surface of the AP15 aerogels,resulting in the creation of an ultralight(9.35 mg·cm^(-3)).This aerogel exhibited a porous structure.The introduction of nickel into the aerogel aimed to enhance magnetic loss and adjust impedance matching,thereby improving electromagnetic wave absorption performance.The minimum reflection loss value achieved was-48.7 dB,and the maximum effective absorption bandwidth spanned 8.42 GHz with a thickness of 2.9 mm.These impressive metrics can be attributed to the three-dimensional network porous structure of the aerogel and perfect impedance matching.Moreover,the use of aramid nanofibers and a three-dimensional hole structure endowed the APN aerogels with good insulation,flame-retardant properties,and compression resilience.Even under a compression strain of 50%,the aerogel maintained its resilience over 500 cycles.The incorporation of polypyrrole and nickel particles further enhanced the conductivity of the aerogel.Consequently,the final APN aerogel sensor demonstrated high sensitivity(10.78 kPa-1)and thermal stability.In conclusion,the APN aerogels hold significant promise as ultra-broadband microwave absorbers and pressure sensors.

Anisotropic swelling pressures of compacted GMZ bentonite infiltrated with salt solutions

In the high-level radioactive waste(HLW)deep geological repository,bentonite is compacted uniaxially,and then arranged vertically in engineered barriers.The assembly scheme induces the initial anisotropy,and with hydration,it develops more evidently under chemical conditions.To investigate the anisotropic swelling of compacted Gaomiaozi(GMZ)bentonite and the further response to saline effects,a series of constant-volume swelling pressure tests were performed.Results showed that dry density enhanced the bentonite swelling and raised the final anisotropy,whereas saline inhibited the bentonite swelling but still promoted the final anisotropy.The final anisotropy coefficient(ratio of radial to axial pressure)obeyed the Boltzmann sigmoid attenuation function,decreasing with concentration and dry density,converging to a minimum value of 0.76.The staged evolution of anisotropy coefficient was discovered,that saline inhibited the rise of the anisotropy coefficient(Dd)in the isotropic process greater than the valley(d1)in the anisotropic process,leading to the final anisotropy increasing.The isotropic stage amplified the impact of soil structure rearrangement on the macro-swelling pressure values.Thus,a new method for predicting swelling pressures of compacted bentonite was proposed,by expanding the equations of Gouy-Chapman theory with a dissipative wedge term.An evolutionary function was constructed,revealing the correlation between the occurrence time and the pressure value due to the structure rearrangement and the former crystalline swelling.Accordingly,a design reference for dry density was given,based on the chemical conditions around the pre-site in Beishan,China.The anisotropy promoted by saline would cause a greater drop of radial pressure,making the previous threshold on axial swelling fail.

Pressure-induced structural transition and low-temperature recovery of sodium pentazolate

Pentazolate compounds have attracted extensive attention as high energy density materials.The synthesis and recovery of pentazolate compounds is of great importance for their potential applications.Here,we report the synthesis of Pmn2_(1)-NaN_(5)and Pm-Na_(2)N_(5)through compressing and laser heating pure NaN_(3)at~60 GPa.Upon decompression,the pressureinduced structural transition from Pmn2_(1)-NaN_(5)into Cm-NaN_(5)is observed in the pressure range of 14-23 GPa for the first time.The cyclo-N_(5)^(-)can be traced down to 4.7 GPa at room temperature and recovered to ambient pressure under low temperature condition(up to 160 K).The Pm-Na_(2)N_(5)is suggested to decompose into the P4/mmm-NaN_(2)at 23 GPa,and be stable at ambient conditions.This work provides insight into the high-pressure behaviors of pentazolate compounds and an alternative way to stabilize energetic polynitrogen compounds.

The Influence of Atmospheric Pressure on Air Content and Pore Structure of Air-entrained Concrete

To study the effect of atmospheric pressure on the properties of fresh and hardened airentrained concrete, three kinds of air entraining agents were used for preparing air-entrained concrete in the plateaus(Lhasa, 61 kPa) and the plains(Beijing, 101 kPa). Air content, slump, compressive strength and pore structure of the three air-entrained concretes were tested in these two places. It is found that the air content of concrete under low atmospheric pressure(LAP) is 4%-36% lower than that of concrete under normal atmospheric pressure(NAP), which explaines the decrease of slump for air-entrained concrete under LAP. Pore number of hardened concrete under LAP is reduced by 48%-69%. While, the proportion of big pores(pore diameter >1 200 μm) and air void spacing factor are increased by 1.5%-7.3% and 51%-92%, respectively. The deterioration of pore structure results in a 3%-9% reduction in the compressive strength of concrete. From the results we have obtained, it can be concluded that the increase of critical nucleation energy of air bubbles and the decrease of volumetric compressibility coefficient of air in the concrete are responsible for the variation of air content and pore structure of concrete under LAP.

Forest structure and anthropogenic pressures in the Pachmarhi biosphere reserve of India

A critical first step in establishing biosphere reserves--under the Man and Biosphere Programme of UNESCO--is to generate baseline information for future courses of action. The present study aims to assess the structure and composition of forests--along with anthro- pogenic pressures mounting on these forests in the buffer zone of one such biosphere reserves--the Pachmarhi bio- sphere reserve of India. The quadrat method was employed for sampling vegetation, and information on anthropogenic pressures was collected by conducting interviews with local people and forest officials and collecting it from secondary sources. A total of 39 tree species were sampled in 82 quadrats; of these 26 tree species were in standing stage, 25 in sapling, and 35 in seedling. Chloroxylon swi- etenia emerged as the most dominant tree species having highest importance value index, followed by Tectona grandis, Terminalia tomentosa, and Hardwickia binata. Nine tree species and their saplings, including Sterculia urens and Terminalia arjuna, were exploited so badly that they were only found in the seedlings stage. The unavail- ability of standing trees of 12 important tree species including Aegle marmelos and Phyllanthus emblicaindicates the intensity and gravity of anthropogenic pres- sures on these important tree species. If the present anthropogenic pressure continues, which has inhibited the regeneration of several tree species, then substantial neg- ative ecological and societal consequences can be expected.

The impact of high hydrostatic pressure treatment time on the structure,gelatinization and thermal properties and in vitro digestibility of oat starch

As a non-thermal processing technology,high hydrostatic pressure(HHP)can be used for starch modification without affecting the quality and flavour constituents.The effect of HHP on starch is closely related to the treatment time of HHP.In this paper,we investigated the impacts of HHP treatment time(0,5,10,15,20,25,30 min)on the microstructure,gelatinization and thermal properties as well as in vitro digestibility of oat starch by scanning electron microscopy,X-ray diffraction,Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy,13C NMR and differential scanning calorimeter.Results showed that 5-min HHP treatment led to deformation and decreases in short-range ordered and doublehelix structures of oat starch granules,and further extending the treatment time to 15 min or above caused the formation of a gelatinous connection zone,increase of particle size,disintegration of short-range ordered and double-helix structures,and crystal structure change from A type to V type,indicating gelatinization occurred.Longer treatment time also resulted in the reduction in both the viscosity and the stability of oat starch.These indicated that HHP treatment time greatly influenced the microstructure of oat starch,and the oat starch experienced crystalline destruction(5 min),crystalline disintegration(15 min)and gelatinization(>15 min)during HHP treatment.Results of in vitro digestibility showed that the rapidly digestible starch(RDS)content declined first after treatment for 5 to 10 min then rose with the time extending from 15 to 30 min,indicating that longer pressure treatment time was unfavourable to the health benefits of oat starch for humans with diabetes and cardiovascular disease.Therefore,the 500-MPa treatment time for oat starch is recommended not more than 15 min.This study provides theoretical guidance for the application of HHP technology in starch modification and development of health foods.

Trends in the band-gap pressure coefficients and bulk moduli in different structures of ZnGa_2S_4,ZnGa-2Se_4 and ZnGa-2Te_4

We have performed a first-principles investigation for the family of compounds ZnGa2X4 （X = S, Se, Te）. The properties of two possible structures, defect chalcopyrite and defect famatinite are both calculated. We reveal that ZnGa2S4 and ZnGa2Se4 have direct band gaps, while ZnGa2Te4 has an indirect band gap. The local density approximation band gaps are found to be very different in two structures, while the lattice parameters and bulk moduli are similar. We extend Cohen＇s empirical formula for zinc-blende compounds to this family of compounds. The pressure coefficients are calculated and metallization pressures are discussed. We find that agi remains fairly constant when thegroup-V/element X is varied in ZnGa2X4（Ⅱ-Ⅲ2-Ⅵ4）.

Evaluation of Dynamic Soil-Structure Interaction and Dynamic Seismic Soil Pressures Acting on It Subjected to Strong Earthquake Motions

In order to clarify the damage mechanism of the subway structure, the dynamic soil-structure interaction and the dynamic forces acting on the structure, a series of shaking table tests and simulation analyses were performed. The seismic response of the structure and the dynamic forces acting on the structure due to sinusoidal and random waves were investigated with special attention to the dynamic soil-structure interaction. The result shows that the compression seismic soil pressures and extension seismic soil pressures simultaneously act on the sidewalls, and big shear stress also acts on the ceiling slab due to horizontal excitation. The seismic soil pressure could be approximated to hyperbola curve, and reached a peak value with increase of the shear strain of the model ground. In addition, a slide and exfoliation phenomenon between the structure and the surrounding ground was simulated, using the nonlinear analyses. The foundation is provided for amending the calculation method of seismic soil pressure and improving the anti-earthquake designing level of underground structure.

Special nanostructures in Al-Mg alloys subjected to high pressure torsion

Deformation twins and stacking faults were observed in nanostructure A1-Mg alloys subjected to high pressure torsion. These observations are surprising because deformation twinnings have never been observed in their coarse-grained counterparts under normal conditions. Experimental evidences are introduced on non-equilibrium grain boundaries, deformation twinnings and partial dislocation emissions from grain boundaries. Some of these features can be explained by the results reported from molecular-dynamics simulations of pure FCC metals. Special emphasis is laid on the recent observations of high density hexagonal and rhombic shaped nanostructures with an average size of 3 nm in the A1-Mg alloys processed by high pressure torsion. A possible formation process of these nanostructures is proposed based on molecular-dynamics simulations.

The structure and elasticity of phase B silicates under high pressure by first principles simulation

The structures and elasticities of phase B silicates with different water and iron（Fe） content are obtained by firstprinciples simulation to understand the effects of water and Fe on their properties under high pressure.The lattice constants a and b decrease with increasing water content.On the contrary,c increases with increasing water content.On the other hand,the b and c decrease with increasing Fe content while a increases with increasing Fe content.The decrease of M（metal）–O octahedral volume is greater than the decrease of SiO polyhedral volume over the same pressure range.The density,bulk modulus and shear modulus of phase B increase with increasing Fe content and decrease with increasing water content.The compressional wave velocity（Vp） and shear wave velocity（Vs） of phase B decrease with increasing water and Fe content.The comparisons of density and wave velocity between phase B silicate and the Earth typical structure provide the evidence for understanding the formation of the X-discontinuity zone of the mantle.

Distinct influence of trimethylamine N-oxide and high hydrostatic pressure on community structure and culturable deep-sea bacteria

Trimethylamine N-oxide(TMAO)is one of the most important nutrients for bacteria in the deep-sea environment and is capable of improving pressure tolerance of certain bacterial strains.To assess the impact of TMAO on marine microorganisms,especially those dwelling in the deep-sea environment,we analyzed the bacterial community structure of deep-sea sediments after incubated under different conditions.Enrichments at 50 MPa and 0.1 MPa revealed that TMAO imposed a greater influence on bacterial diversity and community composition at atmospheric pressure condition than that under high hydrostatic pressure(HHP).We found that pressure was the primary factor that determines the bacterial community.Meanwhile,in total,238 bacterial strains were isolated from the enrichments,including 112 strains a ffiliated to 16 genera of 4 phyla from the Yap Trench and 126 strains a ffiliated to 11 genera of 2 phyla from the Mariana Trench.Treatment of HHP reduced both abundance and diversity of isolates,while the presence of TMAO mainly af fected the diversity of isolates obtained.In addition,certain genera were isolated only when TMAO was supplemented.Taken together,we demonstrated that pressure primarily defines the bacterial community and culturable bacterial isolates.Furthermore,we showed for the first time that TMAO had distinct influences on bacterial community depending on the pressure condition.The results enriched the understanding of the significance of TMAO in bacterial adaptation to the deep-sea environment.

The Influence of Various Structure Surface Boundary Conditions on Pressure Characteristics of Underwater Explosion

The shock wave of the underwater explosion can cause severe damage to the ship structure.The propagation characteristics of shock waves near the structure surface are complex,involving lots of complex phenomena such as reflection,transmission,diffraction,and cavitation.However,different structure surface boundaries have a significant effect on the propagation characteristics of pressure.This paper focuses on investigating the behavior of shock wave propagation and cavitation from underwater explosions near various structure surfaces.A coupled Runge–Kutta discontinuous Galerkin(RKDG)and finite elementmethod(FEM)is utilized to solve the problem of the complex waves of fluids and structure dynamic response,considering the fluid compressibility.The level set(LS)method and the ghost fluid(GF)method are combined to capture the moving interface and deal with the stability of the coupling between the shock wave and structure surface.Besides,a cut-off cavitation model is introduced to the RKDG method.The validation of the numerical calculation model is discussed by comparing it with the known solution to verify the numerical solutions.Then,crucial kinds of structure surface boundary conditions include shallow-water single layer elasticity plate,double-layer crevasse elasticity plate,single layer curved elasticity plate,and double-layer curved elasticity plates are analyzed and discussed.The results and analysis can provide references for underwater explosion pressure characteristics,the impacting response of different boundary structures,and designing structures.

First principles study on electronic structure and optical properties of novel Na-hP4 high pressure phase

The electronic structure and optical properties of novel Na-hP4 high pressure phase at different pressures(260,320,400 and 600 GPa)were investigated by the density functional theory(DFT)with the generalized gradient approximation(GGA)for the exchange and correlation energy.The band structure along the higher symmetry axes in the Brillouin zone,the density of states(DOS) and the partial density of states(PDOS)were presented.The band gap increases and the energy band expands to some extent with the pressure increasing.The dielectric function,reflectivity,energy-loss function,optical absorption coefficient,optical conductivity, refractive index and extinction coefficient were calculated for discussing the optical properties of Na-hP4 high pressure phase at different pressures.

Dynamic Wave Pressures on Deeply Embedded Large Cylindrical Structures due to Random Waves

The response of dynamic wave pressures on structures would be more complicated and bring about new phenomena under the dynamic interaction between soil and structure. In order to better understand the response characteristics on deeply embedded large cylindrical structures under random waves, and accordingly to offer valuable findings for engineering, the authors designed wave flume experiments to investigate comparatively dynamic wave pressures on a single and on continuous cylinders with two different embedment depths in response to two wave spectra.The time histories of the water surface elevation and the corresponding dynamic wave pressures exerted on the cylinder were analyzed in the frequency domain. By calculating the transfer function and spectral density for dynamic wave pressures along the height and around the circumference of the cylinder, experimental results of the single cylinder were compared with the theoretical results based on the linear diffraction theory, and detailed comparisons were also carried out between the single and continuous cylinders. Some new findings and the corresponding analysis are reported in present paper. The investigation on continuous cylinders will be used in particular for reference in engineering applications because information is scarce on studying such kind of problem both analytically and experimentally.