Structural, Surface, Thermal and Catalytic Properties of Chitosan Supported Cu(II) Mixed Ligand Complex Materials

Schiff base modified chitosan (SC: salicylidenechitosan) has been synthesized by the condensation reaction of chitosan and salicylaldehyde. From this ligand, three Cu(II) mixed ligand complexes [Cu (SC) (SA)] (1), [Cu (SC) (ST)] (2) and [Cu (SC) (VA)] (3) (SA: salicyledeneaniline;ST: salicylidenethiourea;VA: o-vanillideneaniline) have been synthesized successfully. The structure and properties of the complexes have been characterized by spectral and analytical techniques. Their thermal and morphological properties have been also discussed in detail. The crystallinity of the compounds has explored with X-ray diffraction spectroscopy. The catalytic ability of the complexes has been investigated in the oxidation reaction of cyclohexane into cyclohexanol and cyclohexanone using hydrogen peroxide as oxidant and their catalytic activity is in the order of complex 1 > 2 < 3.

Mechanism of Building-Up Deposited Layer during Electro-Spark Deposition

This paper studies the mechanism of formation of the deposit layer by (ESD) electro-spark deposition process. Inconel 738 substrates are coated with a deposited layer of NI6625 (Inconel 625). Selections of these two alloys have been done because they had wide applications and importance in the industry especially in gas turban blades in inland stations and in aircraft engines. ESD is suggested because it has a low input heat process which eliminates the effect of HAZ in these Ni-superfluous due to their sustainability to micro-cracks. The coating contains many deposited sub-layers coming from evaporated and melted micro-regions as a result of locally high heat generated by discharging a series of capacitors charged and discharged in a controlled manner between electrode and substrate material. The maximum deposition rates at the beginning of the process and decreases until been in a steady state condition due to the nature of the resultant morphology of the created surface.

Development of Coatings Marine Antifouling Based on Perfluorinated Surfactants Synthesis and Physicochemical Study

The fight against dirt settling on the hulls of ships and more generally on all underwater structures is more than 2000 years. The need for effective antifouling paints, which prevents the establishment and growth of marine organisms on submerged structures, is universally recognized. In this work, we synthesize two perfluorinated surfactants from simple monomers. After describing the reactions, we discuss the different analyzes of the proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR), the fluorine nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR I9F), gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and the light scattering (LS) at a fixed angle 90. The glass transition temperature of the two surfactants diethylallylphosphonate and allylamine are obtained by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). Antifouling paint properties were followed by exposure of the plates to the marine environment by visual observation.

Adding Sn on the Performance of Amorphous Brazing Fillers Applied to Brazing TA2 and Q235

Amorphous filler Ti-Zr-Cu-Ni with better performance and higher melting point than the α → β phase transition temperature 882.5&degC of TA2, is appropriate for joining TC and TB titanium alloys but not for TA titanium alloys, with which the ductility of the joined base metal TA2 gets down. In this paper, Sn is added into Ti-Zr-Cu-Ni filler to reduce its melting temperature then to satisfy the joining temperature requirement, and the effects of the content of Sn on the microstructure of the alloy and brazing performance are investigated. The results show that, the Ti-Zr-Cu-Ni-Sn brazing foils still possess amorphous structure;the melting point of fillers is reducing with the increase of the Sn content;the joint gap that formed during brazing TA2 and Q235 using Ti-Zr-Cu-Ni-Sn foils is fully filled with continuous compact surface and smooth uniform fillet;the shear strength of the joint is raising with the increase of Sn content in brazing fillers and the strength reaches to 112 MPa when Sn content is 3%;adding more Sn, more brittle intermetallic compounds TiFe and TiFe2 are gathering to form cluster and the shear strength of the joint is reducing;the shear fracture always occurs in the center of the seam.

Dependence of Nanotextured Titanium Orthopedic Surfaces on Electrolyte Condition

Electrochemical etching of titanium alloy in a fluoride-containing electrolyte results in ordered nanotextured surfaces. The reproducibility of nanotextured surfaces depends on several process parameters, most notably the fluoride ion concentration in the electrolyte. In the present work, electrochemical etching of Ti6Al4V alloy foils in ethylene glycol containing 0.66 wt% NH4F and 2% deionized water was carried out at 60 V for 45 minutes. This paper describes the depletion of fluoride ion concentration and contamination of electrolyte upon reuse. Inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy was used to measure the dissolution of metal oxides in the electrolyte during etching. We found increasing concentration of the alloy elements Ti, Al, V contaminated the electrolyte due to repeated reuse of the electrolyte. The results show an appreciable log-linear depletion of fluoride ion concentration resulting in a changed surface morphology, chemical composition and etched volume. This paper provides an important insight to changes in surface morphology and surface chemistry with extended reuse of the etching electrolyte, useful for regulatory approvals.

Influence of Wettability and Mechanical Properties on Tribological Performance of DLC Coatings under Water Lubrication

DLC coatings are currently used in a wide variety of industrial fields because of their outstanding properties such as high hardness, high wear resistance, low friction and so on under oil lubrication as well as no lubrication. In order to evaluate the tribological performance of DLC coatings under water lubrication, eight types of DLC coatings were evaluated by water-lubricated sliding tests at sliding velocities of 0.02 m/s and 0.1 m/s. The different DLC coating types comprised both hydrogenated and hydrogen-free DLC films that were deposited using different techniques: amorphous hydrogenated DLC (a-C:H), that doped with tungsten (a-C:H:W), that doped with silicon (a-C:H:Si) and hydrogen-free DLC (ta-C). DLC coatings showed low friction coefficient and excellent wear resistance. Friction coefficient and wear rate decreased with increasing sliding velocity. The effect of surface wettability and mechanical properties on tribological characteristics was investigated. Friction coefficient decreased as the contact angle increased. Hydrogen-free DLC coating with the highest hardness showed the highest friction and a larger wear rate. Furthermore, DLC coatings deposited with interlayer showed longer lifetimes.

Tribological Behavior of Diamond Coatings against Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastics under Dry Conditions

The frictional resistance and machining quality when cutting carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) laminates are associated with tribological behavior of tool materials. In the present study, the tribological properties of three types of monolayer microcrystalline diamond (MCD) coatings, nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) coatings and dual-layer MCD/NCD coatings sliding against CFRP are investigated under dry lubricated conditions using the rotational friction tester. The coefficients of friction (COF), wear rate and worn surfaces of the contacted surfaces are analyzed for the MCD-CFRP, NCD-CFRP and MCD/NCD-CFRP contacting pairs. The results show that compared with the monolayer MCD and NCD, the bilayer of MCD/NCD coating displays the lowest COF with the value of ~0.13, it is 42% and 55% of the values for MCD and NCD coatings. Due to the rough surfaces of MCD, the wear debris of CFRP on MCD samples exhibits the plowing effect. While for the NCD and MCD/NCD samples, the wear fragments display the planar shapes. The wear rate of CFRP against MCD is more than twice that of CFRP against NCD, due to the excellent loading capacity. While the wear rate of CFRP against MCD/NCD is about twice than that of CFRP-NCD pairs. The bilayer of MCD/NCD combines the excellent advantages of high hardness of MCD and the smooth surface of NCD. It shows the broad application potential for the bilayer coatings.

Cracking of S235JR Cold-Deformed Steel during Galvanizing—Developing a Test to Evaluate and Predict the Effect of the Zinc Alloy Composition

This paper presents a study on the cracking of steel pieces during their galvanization in alloyed liquid zinc. An experimental design was developed to show the effect of the amount of the various alloying elements (Sn, Bi, Pb) on this phenomenon. The characterization of the effect was obtained by 1) deformation by three-point bending of a piece of steel with different levels of deflection;2) galvanizing and 3) observation and measurement of the cracks. A model of the critical deflection (deflection for crack starting) with the amounts of Sn, Pb, and Bi is presented and the predictions are described.

Elaboration and Magnetic Properties of Cobalt-Palladium Magnetic Nanowires Encapsulated in Carbon Nanotubes

Bimetallic one-dimensional (1-D) cobalt-palladium magnetic nanowires encapsuled by carbon nanotubes were synthesized on silicon substrate using plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique. After the deposition of the catalyst, the growth of nanotubes takes place in two stages. The first is a thermal pretreatment to transform continuous nanometer bimetallic thick film into isolated and uniformly distributed nanoparticles over the entire surface of the substrate. The second step results in the growth of nanotubes perpendicular to the substrate by the addition of carbon atoms on the insulated metal nanoparticles. While growing the nanotubes at given thermochemical conditions, a Co-Pd eutectic is thought to diffuse inside the cavity of the nanotube along a length of few hundreds of nanometers as determined by high resolution, spatially resolved Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy (EELS), and energy filtered elemental mapping. The magnetic anisotropy along the nanotube directions is observed. Ferromagnetic or superparamagnetic-like behavior of the filled nanotubes was measured through local magneto-optical Kerr effect or global superconducting quantum interference device measurements, respectively. Information on the magnetism of filled nanotubes at different scales is pointed out and discussed.

Estimate of the Crystallization Kinetics in Stoichiometry Compositions Films of Ge:Sb:Te

The aim of this work is to compare the isothermal crystallization kinetic in the films along GeTe-Sb2Te3 line with composition Ge2Sb2Te5, Ge1Sb2Te4 Ge1Sb4Te7 and Ge4Sb1Te5 using mainly Johnson–Mehl–Avrami-Kolmogorov (JMAK) model. Results obtained have shown different crystallization mechanism in the investigated films. In Ge2Sb2Te5 and Ge1Sb2Te4 films the analysis of the kinetic results (Avrani coefficient) showed that at the beginning of crystallization a metastable phase appeared with the Ge1Sb4Te7 composition, this is followed by the nucleation and growth of the stable fcc phase up to full crystallization. In contrast Ge4Sb1Te5 and Ge1Sb4Te7 films show diffusion control growing from small dimension grains with decreasing nucleation rate.

Elucidation and Identification of Double-Tip Effects in Atomic Force Microscopy Studies of Biological Structures

While atomic force microscopy (AFM) has been increasingly applied to life science, artifactual measurements or images can occur during nanoscale analyses of cell components and biomolecules. Tip-sample convolution effect is the most common mechanism responsible for causing artifacts. Some deconvolution-based methods or algorithms have been developed to reconstruct the specimen surface or the tip geometry. Double-tip or double-probe effect can also induce artifactual images by a different mechanism from that of convolution effect. However, an objective method for identifying the double-tip/probe-induced artifactual images is still absent. To fill this important gap, we made use of our expertise of AFM to analyze artifactual double-tip images of cell structures and biomolecules, such as linear DNA, during AFM scanning and imaging. Mathematical models were then generated to elucidate the artifactual double-tip effects and images develop during AFM imaging of cell structures and biomolecules. Based on these models, computational formulas were created to measure and identify potential double-tip AFM images. Such formulas proved to be useful for identification of double-tip images of cell structures and DNA molecules. The present studies provide a useful methodology to evaluate double-tip effects and images. Our results can serve as a foundation to design computer-based automatic detection of double-tip AFM images during nanoscale measuring and imaging of biomolecules and even non-biological materials or structures, and then personal experience is not needed any longer to evaluate artifactual images induced by the double-tip/probe effect.

Characterization of Surface Oxide Layers on Black-Colored Titanium

Black-colored titanium was obtained by anodic oxidation of a commercially pure grade-1 titanium sheet in a 0.06 M NH4NO3 solution, followed by heat treatment at 773 K for 1 h in a vacuum furnace. The resulting oxide layer on the titanium substrate was examined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, glow discharge spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. It was found that the oxide layer on the black-colored titanium sheet was several micrometers thick and mainly consisted of rutile TiO2 exhibiting a sponge like nanoporous structure. It is considered that the black-colored appearance of the titanium sheet is due to the sponge like nanoporous structure of the oxide layer absorbing the incident light. The photocatalytic activity of the black-colored titanium sheet was examined by observing the decomposition of a methylene blue (MB, C16H18N3SCl) solution under ultraviolet irradiation due to the existence of rutile TiO2. The sheet also exhibited photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation. It is believed that the photocatalytic response upon irradiation with white light is due to carbon doping of the titanium oxide layer on the titanium substrate.

Geochemical Characterization and Mineralogy of Babouri-Figuil Oil Shale,North-Cameroon

Organic geochemistry methods such as high temperature combustion, Rock-Eval pyrolysis and gas analysis were used to analyze oil shale from Babouri-Figuil Basin. Results show that the average content of organic matter is 36.25 %wt, while that of mineral matter is 63.75 %wt. The total organic carbon (TOC) is between 15.93 %wt and 26.82 %wt. The HI vs. Tmax diagram indicates an immature Type I kerogen. The average value of the oil potential (S2b) is 149.95 mg HC/g rock. The gases obtained by retort process are H2, CO2, CO and CnH2n, CnH2n+2. Finally, it emerges that, the organic matter of Babouri-Figuil shales was immature or has just reached the beginning of the oil window. The mineralogical study of Babouri-Figuil oil shale has been carried out by means of XRD (X-Ray Diffractometry) and XRF (X-Ray Fluorescence spectrometry). The results show that mineral matrix contains silica, carbonates, sulphates, oxides and clay minerals. Besides, compounds contain metals and metalloids like Fe, In, Ca. The main oxides are SiO2 (majority), CaO, Fe2O3, Al2O3, SO3, and K2O.

Effect of Filler Content and Alkalization on Mechanical and Erosion Wear Behavior of CBPD Filled Bamboo Fiber Composites

In this study the mechanical and erosion wear behavior of bamboo fiber reinforce epoxy composites filled with Cement By-Pass Dust (CBPD) were studied. The effect of CBPD content and alkalization on the various properties of these composites was also investigated. Taguchi’s orthogonal arrays are used for analysis of experiential results. It identifies significant control factors influencing the erosion wear and also outlines significant interaction effects. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) test has also been performed on the measured data to find the most significant factors affecting erosion rate. Finally, eroded surfaces of both untreated and alkali treated bamboo fiber reinforced composites were characterized using SEM.

Influence of Equal Channel Angular Pressing on Tribological Properties of Low Carbon Steel (Fe-0,09C-0,64Si-,26Mn)

This paper presents the results of equal channel angular pressing (ECAP) and subsequent heat treatment (HT) as a method to improve the wear resistance of metallic materials in friction sliding. The effect of ECAP and HT on the microstructure and mechanical properties of low carbon steel is investigated in this work. The mechanisms of wear resistance of steel with ultrafine and nanostructures produced by equal-channel angular pressing is analyzed. The results show that ECAP at room temperature and annealing at 350&degC and 450&degC can be used as a technology of reducing wear in friction sliding.

Role of Substrate Temperatures on Structural, Optical, Wetting and Electrical Transport Properties of CdS Thin Films

Cadmium sulphide thin films were deposited on the glass substrate via simple spray pyrolysis technique. The substrate temperatures (Ts) have been varied from 250℃ to 350℃ and concentration of precursor’s solution of cadmium chloride and thiourea was optimized. The X-ray patterns and morphological studies of CdS thin films indicated that films are crystalline in nature with hexagonal crystal structure. The grain size calculated and found to be 250.12 to 349.61 nm. The optical spectra exhibited high transmittance and band gap varied from 2.41 eV to 2.39 eV. The angle of contact measured and found to be hydrophilicity behaviour. The electrical conductivity and thermoelectric power have been measured with two probe method. It was found that CdS thin films were semiconducting in nature with n-type.

Joint Operation of Atomic Force Microscope and Advanced Laser Confocal Microscope for Observing Surface Processes in a Protein Crystal

We demonstrated the insitu observation of a moving atomic force microscope (AFM) cantilever using a laser confocal microscope combined with a differential interference microscope (LCM-DIM). The AFM cantilever scanned or indented the {110} surface of a hen egg-white lysozyme crystal in a supersaturated solution. Using a soft cantilever, we could observe the step growth with high time resolution by LCM-DIM and perform quantitative measurements of the step height by AFM simultaneously. In addition, a hard cantilever was used with LCM-DIM to observe the dynamics of crystal surface scratching and indentation. In the supersaturated solution, the small steps generated from the scratched line aggregated to macro steps, and subsequently flattened the surface.

Plasma Treatment for Preparing Durable Water Repellent and Anti-Stain Synthetic Fabrics for Automotive Applications

This paper describes the development of a plasma process to produce a durable water repellent and anti-stain thin film on synthetic textile, utilized for the upholstery in the automotive field. The coatings were deposited in non equilibrium low pressure plasmas fed with 1H, 1H, 2H-perfluo-ro- 1-decene employing, as substrates, polyethylene terephthalate and polyethylene terephthalate thermo-coupled to polyurethane foam. It was found that the XPS F/C ratio of the deposit was higher than 1.4 and that the treated textile was always very hydrophobic (WCA > 140?) and oil resistant (motor oil CA > 110?), even after wear.

A First Principles Simulation Framework for the Interactions between a Si(001) Surface and a Scanning Probe

By means of total energy calculations within the framework of the local density approximation (LDA), the interactions between a silicon Si(001) surface and a scanning probe are investigated. The tip of the probe, comprising 4 Si atoms scans along the dimer lines above an asymmetric p(2 × 1) surface, at a distance where the chemical interaction between tip-surface is dominant and responsible for image resolution. At that distance, the tip causes the dimer to toggle when it scans above the lower atom of a dimer. The toggled dimers create an alternating pattern, where the immediately adjacent neighbours of a toggled dimer remain unchanged. After the tip has fully scanned across the p(2 × 1) surface, causes the dimers to arrange in a p(2 × 2) reconstruction, reproducing the images obtained in scanning probe experiments. Our modelling methodology includes simulations that reveal the energy input required to overcome the barrier to the onset of dimer toggling. The results show that the energy input to overcome this barrier is lower for the p(2 × 1) surface than that for the p(2 × 2) or c(4 × 2) surfaces.

Influence of Coolant in Machinability of Titanium Alloy (Ti-6Al-4V)

Application of titanium alloy has increased many fields since the past 50 years. The major drawback encountered during machining was difficult to cut and the formation of BUE (Built up Edge). This paper presents the tool wear study of TTI 15 ceramic insert (80% Aluminum oxide and 20 % Titanium carbide) on machining Ti-6Al-4V at moderate speed with and without the application of water soluble servo cut S coolant. Titanium alloy is highly refractory metal and machining titanium is challenging to the manufacturers. Experiments were carried out on medium duty lathe. Application of coolant tends to reduce toolwear and minimize adhesion of the work material on the cutting tool during machining and also improves the surface finish. Result provides some useful information.