Spectroscopic features of erbium-doped CaM2O6 (M = Nb, Ta) single crystal fibers grown by the laser-heated pedestal growth technique

Erbium-doped single crystal fibers, with low phonon energy and fairly high absorption and emission cross sections are interesting laser active media, for compact, near-infrared and/or upconversion lasers. In this work, high optical quality Er3+-doped CaNb2O6 and CaTa2O6 single crystal fibers were successfully grown by the versatile laser-heated pedestal growth technique, and characterized from the structural and spectroscopic points of view. The results indicate that these crystal fiber compositions, which had not been explored so far, offer potential applications, not only as laser active media, but also in other optical devices. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Influence of the Substitutional Solute on the Mechanical Properties of Ti-Nb Binary Alloys for Biomedical Use

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Influence of interstitial elements on internal friction measurements in Nb and Nb-Zr alloys

Internal friction and frequency measurements as a function of temperature have been carried out in Nb and Nb-Zr policrystalline samples, using a torsion pendulum in the temperature range between 300K and 700K the heating rate was 1K/min and the pressure was kept better than 5x10(-3) mbar. Metals with bce lattice containing solute atoms dissolved interstitially often show anelastic behaviour due to a process know as stress-induced ordering responsible for the appearance of Snoek peaks. In the Nb sample it has been identified two constituent peaks corresponding to the interstitial-matrix interactions (Nb-O and Nb-N), but for the Nb-Zr samples with interstitial solute concentrations very close to those measured for the unalloyed Nb, it was not observed any mechanical relaxation peaks due to the presence of oxygen and nitrogen in solid solution.

Geologia e mineralogia de pegmatito mineralizado em estanho e metais associados (Nb, Ta, Zn, Cu, Pb), Mina Bom Futuro, Rondônia

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Influence of the substitutional solute on the mechanical properties of Ti-Nb binary alloys for biomedical use

Titanium alloys are widely used in the manufacture of biomedical implants because they possess an excellent combination of physical properties and outstanding biocompatibility. Today, the most widely used alloy is Ti-6Al-4V, but some studies have reported adverse effects with the long-term presence of Al and V in the body, without mentioning that the elasticity modulus value of this alloy is far superior to the bone. Thus, there is a need to develop new Ti-based alloys without Al and V that have a lower modulus, greater biocompatibility, and similar mechanical strength. In this paper, we investigated the effect of Nb as a substitutional solute on the mechanical properties of Ti-Nb alloys, prepared in an arc-melting furnace and characterized by density, X-ray diffraction, optical microscopy, hardness and elasticity modulus measurements. The X-ray and microscopy measurements show a predominance of the α phase. The microhardness values showed a tendency to increase with the concentration of niobium in the alloy. Regarding the elasticity modulus, it was observed a nonlinear behavior with respect to the concentration of niobium. This behavior is associated with the presence of the α phase.

Diffusion of Interstitial Solutes in Nb-46wt% Ti Alloys Measured by Mechanical Spectroscopy

The mechanical properties of metals with a body-centered cubic (bcc) structure, such as Nb, Ta, V, and their alloys, are modified with the introduction of interstitial impurities, such as O, N, C, or H. These metals can dissolve great amounts of O and N, for example, to form solid solutions. The interstitial solute atoms (ISA) in metals with a bcc structure occupy octahedral sites and cause local distortion with tetragonal symmetry. So ISA in these metals forms an elastic dipole that can align along one of the three cubic axis of the crystal. In the present paper, the torsion pendulum technique was employed for the investigation of various interactions among the metallic matrix and different interstitial solutes in the Nb-46wt%Ti alloy. From the relaxation spectra, we obtained the diffusion coefficients, pre-exponential factors, and activation energies for nitrogen in the Nb-46wt%Ti alloy.

Glasslike elastic properties in the omega-beta alloys

We have measured the internal friction and speed of sound in several polycrystalline alloys, using compound torsional oscillators at frequencies between 60 kHz and 100 kHz and temperatures between 50 mK and 100 K. By combining these data with existing elastic and thermal data on similar alloys, we find that those alloys which can undergo diffusionsless phase transitions, such as Ti:Nb, Ti:V, or Zr:Nb in certain ranges of composition have glasslike excitations, since they have elastic properties which agree in magnitude and temperature dependence with those of amorphous solids. By contrast, crystalline continuous solution alloys, such as Nb:Ta, or alloys with diffusive phase transitions, such as high-pressure quenched Al94Si6, have the same elastic properties as are known for crystals.

Microstructural and mechanical behavior study of suction cast Nb-Si binary alloys

The solidification pathways of Nb rich Nb-Si alloys when processed under non-equilibrium conditions require understanding. Continuing with our earlier work on alloying additions in single eutectic composition 1,2], we report a detailed characterization of the microstructures of Nb-Si binary alloys with wide composition range (10-25 at% Si). The alloys are processed using chilled copper mould suction casting. This has allowed us to correlate the evolution of microstructure and phases with different possible solidification pathways. Finally these are correlated with mechanical properties through studies on deformation using mechanical testing under indentation and compressive loads. It is shown that microstructure modification can significantly influence the plasticity of these alloys.

可见光响应光催化剂K4Ce2M10O30（M=Ta, Nb）及其光解水特性的研究

氢能已被广泛认为是最具有潜力解决能源危机和环境问题的理想替代能源之一，其开发备受各个领域科学家的重视，更是从根本上解决环境地球化学工作者的主要目标：对已被破坏的环境和生态进行修复以及对可能破坏环境与生态的人类活动进行干预和指导。在众多的氢能开发手段中，利用太阳能光催化分解水制取氢气是一种兼顾能耗、资源和环境的最为理想和最有前途的氢能开发手段之一。在光催化分解水过程中，最为首要的研究内容就是开发具有适宜能带结构能响应可见光，稳定地、高量子效率地光解水的固相半导体光催化剂。 本论文中，通过高温固相反应合成了呈四方晶系钨青铜结构的半导体光催化剂K4Ce2M10O30(M=Ta, Nb)，吸收边分别达到580 nm (M＝Ta) 和690 nm (M＝Nb)，对应带隙为2.2 eV和1.8 eV。可见光下（λ> 420 nm）光催化分解H2O产生H2和O2的活性表明它们不仅有适宜的带隙响应可见光，并且其价带和导带位置能满足完全分解水的电化学电位需要。在担载Pt、RuO2以及NiO（NiOx）等助催化剂对产氢性能有显著的提高。同时以乙醇钽和草酸铌可溶性前驱体，分别通过溶胶凝胶法（Sol-gel）和聚合物络合法(Polymerizable Complex)制备了K4Ce2Ta10O30和K4Ce2Nb10O30。通过湿法化学合成的光催化剂显示了更高的光催化活性，并且通过PC法制备的K4Ce2Nb10O30更是实现了在大于300 nm 的光辐射下完全分解纯水产生摩尔比为约2:1 的H2和O2。 通过高温固相反应得到Nb取代K4Ce2Ta10O30中部分晶格Ta形成的单相无限固溶体系列K4Ce2Ta10-xNbxO30（x=0~10）是结构一致的同系物，吸收边介于540 nm～710 nm 之间，并且随着x的增加，吸收边依次红移，光催化产氢活性依次降低，但是x=2，5，8时的产氧活性比x=0和10的高，光催化活性的差异主要源于它们光吸收特性和能带结构的差异。基于密度范函理论DFT的第一性原理计算结果表明，光催化剂K4Ce2M10O30(M=Ta, Nb)的能带结构为：导带主要由Ta 5d (Nb 4d)组成，处于高能级的电子未占据态的Ce 4f 与其有很明显的重迭，但由于其高度局域特性，不能很好地参与光生电子在导带的传导，从而其对光催化活性的贡献很小，而价带则由O 2p与Ta 5d (Nb 4d)以及电子占据态的Ce 4f杂化轨道组成。同时通过高温固相反应合成了系列含稀土元素的光催化剂K4Re2M10O30(Re=La, Ce, Nd, Sm, Y; M=Ta, Nb)，通过对它们及其前驱体氧化物的光吸收特性以及电子结构的第一性原理计算研究，合理的解释了只有当Ln＝Ce时才具有可见光响应特性的微观机理。

Effects of alloying elements on the cytotoxic response of titanium alloys

Titanium alloys, alloys, especially beta-type alloys containing beta-stabilizing elements, constitute a highly versatile category of metallic materials that have been under constant development for application in orthopedics and dentistry. This type of alloy generally presents a high mechanical strength-to-weight ratio, excellent corrosion resistance and low elastic modulus. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the cytotoxicity and adhesion of fibroblast cells on titanium alloy substrates containing Nb, Ta, Zr, Cu, Sn and Mo alloying elements. Cells cultured on polystyrene were used as controls. In vitro results with Vero cells demonstrated that the tested materials, except Cu-based alloy, presented high viability in short-term testing. Adhesion of cells cultured on disks showed no differences between the materials and reference except for the Ti-Cu alloy, which showed reduced adhesion attributed to poor metabolic activity. Titanium alloys with the addition of Nb, Ta, Zr, Sn and Mo elements show a promising potential for biomedical applications. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Estudo do calor específico de compostos Heusler paramagnéticos, da série do níquel Ni 2 Tal, onde T=Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb e Ta

Neste trabalho apresentamos os resultados experimentais da medida do calor específico dos compostos Heusler da série Ni2TA1, onde T =Ti, Zr,Hf,V,Nb, Ta. Estas medidas foram feitas utilizando-se um calorímetro adiabático que atua na faixa de 1,84 K a 10,3 K e visaram o estudo da estrutura elêtrônica dos compostos em termos da densidade de estados eletrônicos à nível de Fermi, bem como da dinâmica da rede cristalina, com o uso dos modelos de Debye e de Einstein para o calor específico. Apresentamos, também, uma descrição do calorímetro, seu funcionamento e as alterações ocorridas em função deste trabalho.

Measurement of oxygen atom diffusion in Nb and Ta by anelastic spectroscopy

Impurity interstitial atoms present in metals with BCC structure can diffuse in the metallic matrix by jumps to energetically equivalent crystallographic sites. Anelastic spectroscopy (internal friction) is based on the measurement of mechanical loss or internal friction as a function of temperature. Due to its selective and nondestructive nature, anelastic spectroscopy is well suited for the study of diffusion of interstitial elements in metals. Internal friction measurements were made using the torsion pendulum technique with oscillation frequency of a few Hz, temperature interval from 300 to 700 K, heating rate of about 1 K/min, and vacuum better than 10-5 mbar. The polycrystalline Nb and Ta samples used were supplied by Aldrich Inc. The results obtained showed thermally activated relaxation structures due to stress-induced ordering of oxygen atoms around the Nb (or Ta) atoms of the metallic matrix. The results were interpreted by three methods and led to activation enthalpy values for the diffusion of oxygen in Nb and Ta of 1.15 eV and 1.10 eV, respectively.

Anelastic Relaxation Measurements in Nb-46wt%Ti Alloys with Interstitial Solutes in Solid Solution

Anelastic relaxation measurements were performed in a Nb-46wt%Ti alloy, in the temperature range of 300 to 700 K, using a torsion pendulum operating at an oscillating frequency near 2.0 Hz. The samples were measured in different conditions: cold worked, annealed in ultra-high vacuum and doped with several quantities of nitrogen. The relaxation spectra obtained were resolved into their component peaks, corresponding to the different kinds of interaction of the interstitial solutes with the metallic matrix. The relaxation parameters of each process were calculated using Debye's elementary peaks.

Anelastic relaxation processes due oxygen in Nb-3.1 at.% Ti alloys

In the last 50 years several studies have been made to understand the relaxation mechanisms of the heavy interstitial atoms present in transition metals and their alloys. Internal friction measurements have been carried out in a Nb-Ti alloy containing 3.1 at.% of Ti produced by the Materials Department of Chemical Engineering Faculty of Lorena (Brazil), with several quantities of oxygen in solid solution using a torsion pendulum. These measurements have been performed by a torsion pendulum in the temperature range from 300 to 700 K with an oscillation frequency between 0.5 and 10 Hz. The experimental results show complex internal friction spectra that have been resolved, into a series of Debye peaks corresponding to different interactions. For each relaxation process it was possible to obtain the height and temperature of the peak, the activation energy and the relaxation time of the process. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.