Dry sliding wear behavior of Al2O3 fiber reinforced aluminum composites

Dry sliding wear behavior of die-cast ADC12 aluminum alloy composites reinforced with short alumina fibers were investigated by using a pin-on-disk wear tester. The Al2O3 fibers were 4 mu m in diameter and were present in volume fractions (T-f)ranging from 0.03 to 0.26, The length of the fiber varied from 40 to 200 mu m. Disks of aluminum-alumina composites were rubbed against a pin of nitrided stainless steel SUS440B with a load of 10 N at a sliding velocity of 0.1 m/s. The unreinforced ADC 12 aluminum alloy and their composites containing low volume fractions of alumina (V-f approximate to 0.05) showed a sliding-distance-dependent transition from severe to mild wear. However, composites containing high volume fractions of alumina ( V-f > 0.05) exhibited only mild wear for all sliding distances. The duration of occurrence of the severe wear regime and the wear rate both decrease with increasing volume fraction. In MMCs the wear rate in the mild wear regime decreases with increase in volume fraction: reaching a minimum value at V-f = 0.09 Beyond V-f = 0.09 the wear rate increasesmarginally. On the other hand, the wear rate of the counterface (steel pin) was found to increase moderately with increase in V-f. From the analysis of wear data and detailed examination of (a) worn surfaces, (b) their cross-sections and (c) wear debris, two modes of wear mechanisms have been identified to be operative, in these materials and these are: (i) adhesive wear in the case of unreinforced matrix material and in MMCs with low Vf and (ii) abrasive wear in the case of MMCs with high V-f. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Voltage delay during constant-current or constant-resistance discharge of Mg-MnO2 dry cells: A comparative study

A theoretical approach has been developed to relate the voltage delay transients of the Mg-MnO2 dry cell observed during discharge by two commonly employed modes, viz., (1) at constant current, and (2) across a constant resistance. The approach has been verified by comparison of experimentally obtained transients with those generated from theory. The method may be used to predict the delay parameters of the Mg-MnO2 dry cell under the two modes of discharge and can, in principle, be extended to lithium batteries.

Determination of free elemental sulphur in some petroleum products

Uncombined elemental sulphur in petroleum products such as kerosene, diesel, furnace and gear oil has been determined by conversion into copper(I) sulphide at 150–170°. The copper(I) sulphide can be weighed, or its sulphur content determined by the iodimetric method.

Changes to near-surface region of PTFE during dry sliding against steel

PTFE specimens were slid against an EN24 disc. The unworn and worn surfaces as well as the wear debris were examined by X-ray diffraction. Sliding was found to introduce (i) shrinkage of the unit cell, (ii) enlargement of crystallites and (iii) residual stresses in the slid PTFE surface. No conformational changes in the 157 helix could be observed due to sliding. The wear debris was found to be 1 mgrm thick warped laminates.

Interrelations between Dry Eye Syndrome and Tear Fluid Phospholipid Transfer Protein

The simplified model of human tear fluid (TF) is a three-layered structure composed of a homogenous gel-like layer of hydrated mucins, an aqueous phase, and a lipid-rich outermost layer found in the tear-air interface. It is assumed that amphiphilic phospholipids are found adjacent to the aqueous-mucin layer and externally to this a layer composed of non-polar lipids face the tear-air interface. The lipid layer prevents evaporation of the TF and protects the eye, but excess accumulation of lipids may lead to drying of the corneal epithelium. Thus the lipid layer must be controlled and maintained by some molecular mechanisms. In the circulation, phospholipid transfer protein (PLTP) and cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) mediate lipid transfers. The aim of this thesis was to investigate the presence and molecular mechanisms of lipid transfer proteins in human TF. The purpose was also to study the role of these proteins in the development of dry eye syndrome (DES). The presence of TF PLTP and CETP was studied by western blotting and mass spectrometry. The concentration of these proteins was determined by ELISA. The activities of the enzymes were determined by specific lipid transfer assays. To study the molecular mechanisms involved in PLTP mediated lipid transfer Langmuir monolayers and asymmetrical flow field-flow fractionation (AsFlFFF) was used. Ocular tissue samples were stained with monoclonal antibodies against PLTP to study the secretion route of PLTP. Heparin-Sepharose affinity chromatography was used for PLTP pull-down experiments and co-eluted proteins were identified with MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry or Western blot analysis. To study whether PLTP plays any functional role in TF PLTP-deficient mice were examined. The activity of PLTP was also studied in dry eye patients. PLTP is a component of normal human TF, whereas CETP is not. TF PLTP concentration was about 2-fold higher than that in human plasma. Inactivation of PLTP by heat treatment or immunoinhibition abolished the phospholipid transfer activity in tear fluid. PLTP was found to be secreted from lacrimal glands. PLTP seems to be surface active and is capable of accepting lipid molecules without the presence of lipid-protein complexes. The active movement of radioactively labeled lipids and high activity form of PLTP to acceptor particles suggested a shuttle model of PLTP-mediated lipid transfer. In this model, PLTP physically transports lipids between the donor and acceptor. Protein-protein interaction assays revealed ocular mucins as PLTP interaction partners in TF. In mice with a full deficiency of functional PLTP enhanced corneal epithelial damage, increased corneal permeability to carboxyfluorescein, and decreased corneal epithelial occludin expression was demonstrated. Increased tear fluid PLTP activity was observed among human DES patients. These results together suggest a scavenger property of TF PLTP: if the corneal epithelium is contaminated by hydrophobic material, PLTP could remove them and transport them to the superficial layer of the TF or, alternatively, transport them through the naso-lacrimal duct. Thus, PLTP might play an integral role in tear lipid trafficking and in the protection of the corneal epithelium. The increased PLTP activity in human DES patients suggests an ocular surface protective role for this lipid transfer protein.

Reactions of bis(isonitrosoethylacetoacetato)palladium(II) with straight chain aliphatic primary amines influence of concentration of the reacting amines on the nature of the products

Reactions of bis(isonitrosoethylacetoacetato)palladium(II), Pd(IEAA)2,with straight chain non-bulky alkylamines, RNH2(R = CH3, C2H5, n-C3H7or n-C4H9) in the mole ratio 1:1 gave bis (B-alkylisonitrosoethylacetoacetateimino)Palladium(II), Pd(R-IEAI)2. In this reaction the coordinated carbonyl groups of Pd(IEAA)2 undergo condensation with amines fo rming Schiff bases (>CNR). On the other hand, the reactions of Pd(IEAA)2 with a large excess of amine yielded N-alkylamido bridgedisonitrosoethylacetoacetatedipalladium(II), μ-(NHR)2[Pd(IEAA)]2 complexes. The complexes are characterized by elemental analyses, magnetic susceptib ility, i.r., p.m.r. and in some cases, nitrogen 1s X-ray photoelectron and mass spectral studies.