Phase behavior of mixtures of colloidal platelets and nonadsorbing polymers

The phase behavior of a model system of colloidal platelets and nonadsorbing polymers is studied using computer simulations and perturbation theory. The equation of state for the pure platelet reference system is obtained by Monte Carlo simulations, and the free volume fraction accessible to polymers is measured by a trial insertion method. The free volume fraction is also calculated using scaled particle theory. Subsequently, the phase diagram for platelet-polymer mixtures is calculated. For a platelet aspect ratio L/D=0.1 and a polymer to platelet size ratio d/D>0.2, we observe coexistence between two isotropic phases with different densities. For smaller polymers d/D

Microscopy of heat treated titanium alloy BT16

Metallographic characterisation is combined with statistical analysis to study the microstructure of a BT16 titanium alloy after different heat treatment processes. It was found that the length, width and aspect ratio of α plates in this alloy follow the three-parameter Weibull distribution. Increasing annealing temperature or time causes the probability distribution of the length and the width of α plates to tend toward a normal distribution. The phase transformation temperature of the BT16 titanium alloy was found to be 875±5°C.

Using the surface profiles of modern ice masses to inform palaeo-glacier reconstructions

Morphometric study of modern ice masses is useful because many reconstructions of glaciers traditionally draw on their shape for guidance Here we analyse data derived from the surface profiles of 200 modern ice masses-valley glaciers icefields ice caps and ice sheets with length scales from 10º to 10³ km-from different parts of the world Four profile attributes are investigated relief span and two parameters C* and C that result from using Nye s (1952) theoretical parabola as a profile descriptor C* and C respectively measure each profile s aspect ratio and steepness and are found to decrease in size and variability with span This dependence quantifies the competing influences of unconstrained spreading behaviour of ice flow and bed topography on the profile shape of ice masses which becomes more parabolic as span Increases (with C* and C tending to low values of 2.5-3.3 m ½) The same data reveal coherent minimum bounds in C* and C for modern ice masses that we develop into two new methods of palaeo glacier reconstruction In the first method glacial limits are known from moraines and the bounds are used to constrain the lowest palaeo ice surface consistent with modern profiles We give an example of applying this method over a three-dimensional glacial landscape in Kamchatka In the second method we test the plausibility of existing reconstructions by comparing their C* and C against the modern minimum bounds Of the 86 published palaeo ice masses that we put to this test 88% are found to be plausible The search for other morphometric constraints will help us formalise glacier reconstructions and reduce their uncertainty and subjectiveness

Transient distributions of composition and temperature in a gas-solid packed bed reactor by near-infrared tomography

Near-infrared diffuse tomography was used in order to observe dynamic behaviour of flowing gases by measuring the 3D distributions of composition and temperature in a weakly scattering packed bed reactor, subject to wall effects and non-isothermal conditions. The technique was applied to the vapour phase hydrogen isotopic exchange reaction in a hydrophobic packing of low aspect ratio made of platinum on styrene divinyl benzene sulphonate copolymer resin. The results of tomography revealed uneven temperature and composition maps of water and deuterated water vapours in the core-packed bed and in the vicinity of the wall owing to flow maldistribution. The dynamic lag between the near-wall water vapour and deuterated water vapour compositions were observed suggesting that the convective transfer which was significant near the wall at the start, owing to high porosity, was also effective at large conversions. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

MFM imaging of micron-sized permalloy ellipses

The magnetic domain structure of micron-sized elliptic permalloy elements has been studied by magnetic force microscope (MFM) measurements, and has been compared to results from micromagnetic simulations. The elements all have the same aspect ratio, whereas the inter-elemental distance has been varied. Both the zero-field states and in field domain configurations have been studied. In zero-applied field, two different stable flux-closure states were found in both the MFM measurements and in the simulations. The different stable domain states occur as a result of minute differences in the local magnetic environment occurring during the demagnetization process. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cobalt-doped ZnO nanowires on quartz: Synthesis by simple chemical method and characterization

The synthesis of cobalt-doped ZnO nanowires is achieved using a simple, metal salt decomposition growth technique. A sequence of drop casting on a quartz substrate held at 100 degrees C and annealing results in the growth of nanowires of average (modal) length similar to 200 nm and diameter of 15 +/- 4 nm and consequently an aspect ratio of similar to 13. A variation in the synthesis process, where the solution of mixed salts is deposited on the substrate at 25 degrees C, yields a grainy film structure which constitutes a useful comparator case. X-ray diffraction shows a preferred [0001] growth direction for the nanowires while a small unit cell volume contraction for Co-doped samples and data from Raman spectroscopy indicate incorporation of the Co dopant into the lattice; neither technique shows explicit evidence of cobalt oxides. Also the nanowire samples display excellent optical transmission across the entire visible range, as well as strong photoluminescence (exciton emission) in the near UV, centered at 3.25 eV. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Laser welding of thin foil nickel–titanium shape memory alloy

In this study, two L27 Taguchi experiments were carried out to study the effect of fibre laser welding parameters and their interactions upon the weld bead aspect ratio of nickel–titanium thin foil. The optimum parameters to produce full penetrated weld with the largest aspect ratio and desirable microstructure were successfully obtained by the Taguchi experimental design. The corrosion property of the optimized NiTi weld in Hank’s solution at 37.5 °C was studied and compared with the as-received NiTi. To improve the corrosion properties of the weld, the effect of post-weld-heat-treatments ranging from 573 to 1173 K was investigated. The corrosion properties, surface morphology, microstructure and Ti/Ni ratio of the heat-treated NiTi weld were analysed. It was found that a post-weld heat treatment at 573 K for 1 h provided the best pitting corrosion resistance at the weld zone.

Parameter study on laser welding of nitinol wire by Taguchi method

A L27 Taguchi experiment was done to investigate the effect of laser power, welding time, laser mode (CW and two pulsed modes), focus position, and their possible interactions on the weld-bead aspect ratio of laser-welded NiTi wires by using a 100W fibre laser. The optimized parameter setting to produce the full penetrated weldment with minimum welding defects is successfully determined in the Taguchi experiment. The laser mode is found to be the most important parameter that directly controls the weld-bead aspect ratio. The focus position is the secondly important parameter for the laser welding of NiTi wires. Strong interaction between the power and focus position is found in the Taguchi experiment. The optimized weldment produced by the Taguchi experiment is mainly of columnar dendritic structure in the weld zone (WZ) with the size of 1-3µm, while the HAZ exhibits equiaxed grain structure with the size of 5-10µm. The Vickers micro-hardness test indicted that the WZ and HAZ in the weldment are softened to certain extends after fibre laser welding.

Parameter Optimization on Laser Welding of NiTi Wires by Taguchi Method

In this research, a preliminary study was done to find out the initial parameter window to obtain the full-penetrated NiTi weldment. A L27 Taguchi experiment was then carried out to statistically study the effects of the welding parameters and their possible interactions on the weld bead aspect ratio (or penetration over fuse-zone width ratio), and to determine the optimized parameter settings to produce the full-penetrated weldment with desirable aspect ratio. From the statistical results in the Taguchi experiment, the laser mode was found to be the most important factor that substantially affects the aspect ratio. Strong interaction between the power and focus position was found in the Taguchi experiment. The optimized weldment was mainly of columnar dendritic structure in the weld zone (WZ), while the HAZ exhibited equiaxed grain structure. The XRD and DSC results showed that the WZ remained the B2 austenite structure without any precipitates, but with a significant decrease of phase transformation temperatures. The results in the micro-hardness and tensile tests indicated that the mechanical properties of NiTi were decreased to a certain extent after fibre laser welding.

Atomistic investigation on the structure-property relationship during thermal spray nanoparticle impact

During thermal spraying, hot particles impact on a colder substrate. This interaction of crystalline copper nanoparticles and copper substrate is modelled, using MD simulation. The quantitative results of the impacts at different velocities and temperatures are evaluated using a newly defined flattening aspect ratio. This ratio between the maximum diameter after the impact and the height of the splat increases with increasing Reynolds numbers until a critical value is reached. At higher Reynolds numbers the flattening aspect ratio decreases again, as the kinetic energy of the particle leads to increasing substrate temperature and, therefore, decreases the substrate resistance. Thus, the particle penetrates into the substrate and deforms less.

Spin-wave modes in Ni nanorod arrays studied by Brillouin light scattering

Dynamic magnetic properties of arrays of Ni nanorods with a low aspect ratio have been investigated. It has been shown that the spectra of spin-wave resonances localized on nanorods with a low aspect ratio typically feature the presence of zones with high density of states resulting in a characteristic two-peak pattern of Stokes and anti-Stokes lines of magneto-optical (MO) Brillouin light scattering with pronounced Stokes–anti-Stokes (S-AS) asymmetry. A simple theoretical model based on the analysis of the elliptic character of the polarization of the optical wave interacting with a dipole magnetostatic wave has been proposed. It has been shown that the S-AS asymmetry is due entirely to the asymmetry of the MO interaction efficiency with respect to time reversal of the magnetic precession in a magnon.

The effect of nozzle geometry on the flow characteristics of small water jets

A wide variety of processes make use of plain orifice nozzles. Fuel injectors for internal combustion engines incorporate these nozzles to generate finely atomized sprays. Processes such as jet cutting, jet cleaning, and hydroentanglement, on the other hand, use similar nozzles, but require coherent jets. The spray or jet characteristics depend on the stability of the flow emerging from the orifice. This problem has been extensively researched for nozzles with diameters above 300 μm. Much less is known about the characteristics of jets produced by nozzles with smaller diameters, where viscous effects and small geometric variations due to manufacturing tolerances are likely to play an increasing role. Results are presented of a wide-ranging investigation of geometry effects on the flow parameters and jet characteristics of nozzles with diameters between 120 and 170 μm. Nozzles with circular cross-section and conical, cone-capillary and capillary axial designs were investigated. For conical and cone-capillary nozzles, the effect of cone angle and effects due to interactions between adjacent nozzles in the multi-hole cone-capillary nozzles were studied. For capillary nozzles, the effects of diameter variations and inlet edge roundness for capillary nozzles were considered. Furthermore, the effect of varying the aspect ratio (ratio of major and minor axes) of elliptical nozzles was studied. Flowrate and jet impact force measurements were carried out to determine the discharge coefficient C, velocity coefficient C, and contraction coefficient C of the nozzles for supply pressures between 3 and 12 MPa. Visualizations of the jet flow were carried out in the vicinity of the nozzle exit in order to identify near-nozzle flow regimes and to study jet coherence. The relationship between nozzle geometry, discharge characteristics, and jet coherence is examined. © IMechE 2006.

Brillouin light scattering by spin waves in magnetic metamaterials based on Co nanorods

We report on the investigations of spin wave modes in arrays of densely packed Co nanorods using Brillouin light scattering. We have observed a significant role of spin wave modes along the nanorod axis in contrast to infinite magnetic nanowires. Unusual optical properties featuring an inverted Stokes/anti-Stokes asymmetry of the Brillouin scattering spectra have been observed. The spectrum of spin wave modes in the nanorod array has been calculated and compared with the experiment. Experimental observations are explained in terms of a combined numerical-analytical approach taking into account both the low aspect ratio of individual magnetic nanorods and dipolar magnetic coupling between the nanorods in the array. The optical studies of spin-wave modes in the metamaterials with low aspect ratio nanorods have revealed new magnetic and magneto-optical properties compared to continuous magnetic films or infinite magnetic nanowires. Such magnetic metamaterials are important class of active metamaterials needed for prospective data storage and signal processing applications. (c) 2012 Optical Society of America

Brillouin scattering of light by spin waves in ferromagnetic nanorods

We report the investigations of spin wave modes of arrays of Ni and Co nanorods using Brillouin light scattering. We have revealed the significant influence of spin wave modes along the nanorod axis in contrast to infinite magnetic nanowires. Unusual optical properties featuring an inverted Stokes/anti-Stokes asymmetry of the Brillouin scattering spectra have been observed. The spectrum of spin wave modes in the nanorod array has been calculated and compared with the experiment. Experimental observations are explained in terms of a combined numerical-analytical approach taking into account both the low aspect ratio of individual magnetic nanorods and dipolar magnetic coupling between the nanorods in the array. The optical studies of spin-wave modes in nanorod metamaterials with low aspect ratio nanorods have revealed new magnetic and magneto-optical properties compared to continuous magnetic films or infinite magnetic nanowires. Such magnetic artificial materials are important class of active metamaterials needed for prospective data storage and signal processing applications. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.

Flow Pattern in Compound Channel with Floodplain Double Groyne

The results of an experimental study and velocity analysis of the flow characteristics in the vicinityof a floodplain with two rows of permeable/impermeable groynes in compound channels with oneand two floodplains are presented. A 60% permeable groyne model with three different lengthsrelative to the floodplain width was used. The results showed that double groyne could beconsidered as one groyne (one block) for aspect ratio Sr < 2 (Sr = distance between twosuccessive groynes/groyne length). When Sr > 2, each groyne started to act independently.The velocity reduction was more than 45-52% of the floodplain’s approach velocity compared with30-35% in the case of a single groyne. The significant velocity reduction was located at a distance1.5-2 times the groyne length downstream of the single or the double groynes. Generally, themaximum velocities in the main channel ranged from 1.1 to 1.35 times the original approachingvelocity. The effective groyne relative length and aspect ratio should not to be more than 0.5 and 2,respectively.