Influence of Martensite Content and Morphology on Tensile and Impact Properties of High-Martensite Dual-Phase Steels

A series of dual-phase (DP) steels containing finely dispersed martensite with different volume fractions of martensite (V-m) were produced by intermediate quenching of a boron- and vanadium-containing microalloyed steel. The volume fraction of martensite was varied from 0.3 to 0.8 by changing the intercritical annealing temperature. The tensile and impact properties of these steels were studied and compared to those of step-quenched steels, which showed banded microstructures. The experimental results show that DP steels with finely dispersed microstructures have excellent mechanical properties, including high impact toughness values, with an optimum in properties obtained at similar to 0.55 V-m. A further increase in V-m was found to decrease the yield and tensile strengths as well as the impact properties. It was shown that models developed on the basis of a rule of mixtures are inadequate in capturing the tensile properties of DP steels with V-m > 0.55. Jaoul-Crussard analyses of the work-hardening behavior of the high-martensite volume fraction DP steels show three distinct stages of plastic deformation.

Structure and Rheology of Cationic Molecular Hydrogels of Quinuclidine Grafted Bile Salts. Influence of the Ionic Strength and Counter-Ion type

Quinuclidine grafted cationic bile salts are forming salted hydrogels. An extensive investigation of the effect of the electrolyte and counterions on the gelation has been envisaged. The special interest of the quinuclidine grafted bile salt is due to its broader experimental range of gelation to study the effect of electrolyte. Rheological features of the hydrogels are typical of enthalpic networks exhibiting a scaling law of the elastic shear modulus with the concentration (scaling exponent 2.2) modeling cellular solids in which the bending modulus is the dominant parameter. The addition of monovalent salt (NaCl) favors the formation of gels in a first range (0.00117 g cm-3 (0.02 M) < TNaCl < 0.04675 g cm-3 (0.8 M)). At larger salt concentrations, the gels become more heterogeneous with nodal zones in the micron scale. Small-angle neutron scattering experiments have been used to characterize the rigid fibers ( ≈ 68 Å) and the nodal zones. Stress sweep and creeprecovery measurements are used to relate the lack of linear viscoelastic domain to a mechanism of disentanglement of the fibers from their associations into fagots. The electrostatic interactions can be screened by addition of salt to induce a progressive evolution toward flocculation. SEM, UV absorbance, and SAXS study of the Bragg peak at large Q-values complete the investigation.

How does calcification influence plaque vulnerability? Insights from fatigue analysis

Background Calcification is commonly believed to be associated with cardiovascular disease burden. But whether or not the calcifications have a negative effect on plaque vulnerability is still under debate. Methods and Results Fatigue rupture analysis and the fatigue life were used to evaluate the rupture risk. An idealized baseline model containing no calcification was first built. Based on the baseline model, we investigated the influence of calcification on rupture path and fatigue life by adding a circular calcification and changing its location within the fibrous cap area. Results show that 84.0% of calcified cases increase the fatigue life up to 11.4%. For rupture paths 10D far from the calcification, the life change is negligible. Calcifications close to lumen increase more fatigue life than those close to the lipid pool. Also, calcifications in the middle area of fibrous cap increase more fatigue life than those in the shoulder area. Conclusion Calcifications may play a positive role in the plaque stability. The influence of the calcification only exists in a local area. Calcifications close to lumen may be influenced more than those close to lipid pool. And calcifications in the middle area of fibrous cap are seemly influenced more than those in the shoulder area.

Influence of surface stress on elastic constants of nanohoneycombs

Surface effect on the four independent elastic constants of nanohoneycombs is investigated in this paper. The axial deformation of the horizontal cell wall is included, comparing to the Gibson's method, and the contributions of the two components of surface stress (i.e. surface residual stress and surface elasticity) are discussed. The result shows that the regular hexagonal honeycomb is not isotropic but orthotropic. An increase in the cell-wall thickness t leads to an increase in the discrepancy of the Young's moduli in both directions. Furthermore, the surface residual stress dominates the surface effect on the elastic constants when t < 15 nm (or the relative density <0.17), which is in contrast to that the surface elasticity does when t > 15 nm (or the relative density > 0.17) for metal Al. The present structure and theory may be useful in the design of future nanodevices.

Influence of non-stoichiometric defects on nonlinear absorption and refraction in Nd:Zn co-doped lithium niobate

Nonlinear absorption and refraction phenomena in stoichiometric lithium niobate (SLN) pure and co-doped with Zn and Nd, and congruent lithium niobate (CLN) were investigated using Z-scan technique. Femtosecond laser pulses from Ti:Sapphire laser (800 nm, 110 fs pulse width and 1 kHz repetition rate) were utilized for the experiment. The process responsible for nonlinear behavior of the samples was identified to be three photon absorption (3PA). This is in agreement with the band gap energies of the samples obtained from the linear absorption cut off and the slope of the plot of Ln(1 − TOA) vs. Ln(I0) using Sutherland’s theory (s = 2.1, for 3PA). The nonlinear refractive index (n2) of Zn doped samples was found to be lower than that of pure samples. Our experiments show that there exists a correlation between the nonlinear properties and the stoichiometry of the samples. The values of n2 fall into the same range as those obtained for the materials of similar band gap.

Influence of time step in the simulation modelling of evapotranspiration

Three simulations of evapotranspiration were done with two values of time step,viz 10 min and one day. Inputs to the model were weather data, including directly measured upward and downward radiation, and soil characteristics. Three soils were used for each simulation. Analysis of the results shows that the time step has a direct influence on the prediction of potential evapotranspiration, but a complex interaction of this effect with the soil moisture characteristic, rate of increase of ground cover and bare soil evaporation determines the actual transpiration predicted. The results indicate that as small a time step as possible should be used in the simulation.

Influence of Elastic-Constants on Mode-I Stress-Intensity Factors in 3-Dimensional Crack Problems

Plates with V-through edge notches subjected to pure bending and specimens with rectangular edge-through-notches subjected to combined bending and axial pull were investigated (under live-load and stress-frozen conditions) in a completely nondestructive manner using scattered-light photoelasticity. Stress-intensity factors (SIFs) were evaluated by analysing the singular stress distributions near crack-tips. Improved methods are suggested for the evaluation of SIFs. The thickness-wise variation of SIFs is also obtained in the investigation. The results obtained are compared with the available theoretical solutions.

Influence of Filler Loading on Dielectric Properties of Epoxy-ZnO Nanocomposites

Experimental investigations into the dielectric properties of epoxy-ZnO nanocomposites at different filler loadings reveal few unique behaviors (at certain filler loadings) and also advantageous characteristics in contrast to the properties obtained for the corresponding microcomposites. Results demonstrate that in nanocomposites, it is possible to achieve lower values of permittivity and tan delta with respect to unfilled epoxy over a wide frequency range. Analysis of the results attributes this interesting observation to the interaction dynamics between the epoxy chains and the ZnO nanoparticles at the interfacial area. The dc volume resistivities and ac dielectric strengths of nanocomposites were also experimentally determined in the present study and the obtained characteristics are found to be different as compared to the results obtained for microcomposites. The volume fraction and nature of the interfaces in the bulk of the composites seem to influence this difference in the examined dielectric properties of the nanocomposites.

Influence of clofibrate administration on the rate of synthesis of macromolecules in regenerating rat liver

Administration of the antihypercholesterolaemic drug clofibrate stimulates the rates of synthesis of nucleic acids and proteins in rat liver. The biosynthesis of mitochondrial proteins also is enhanced by the drug. In drug-fed animals, the rates of incorporation in vivo of radioactive precursors into DNA, RNA and proteins are stimulated even when the liver undergoes regeneration following partial hepatectomy. The rate of synthesis of mitochondrial proteins in the regenerative phase is higher in clofibrate-fed animals. These effects are consistent with the hepatomegalic and mitochondria-proliferating property of the drug.

Influence of Vitamin E on the Utilization of Carotene from Oils

IN a previous communication1, it was indicated that the variations in growth response of vitamin A-deficient rats to carotene dissolved in different oils may be due to the difference in vitamin E contents of the oils. The effect of equalizing the level of tocopherol in the supplements has since been studied and the results found to support the explanation.

Influence of heat treatment on the strength and fracture behaviour of Fe-12Cr-6Al ferritic stainless steel

The changes in the tensile properties and fracture mode brought about by heat treatment of Fe-12Cr-6Al ferritic stainless steel have been studied. A favourable combination of high strength and good ductility is obtained by heating the material at 1370 K for 2 h followed by a water quench. The high-temperature treatment results in carbide dissolution as well as an increase in the grain size. The mechanism of strengthening has been evaluated from the apparent activation energy (28 kJ mol–1) and is identified to be the unpinning of dislocations from the atmosphere of carbon atoms. As the heat-treatment temperature is increased, the fracture behaviour changes from ductile to brittle mode and this is related to the changes in grain size and friction stress.

Influence of environmental and instrumental variables on the non-invasive prediction of Brix in pineapple using near infrared spectroscopy

The Brix content of pineapple fruit can be non-invasively predicted from the second derivative of near infrared reflectance spectra. Correlations obtained using a NIRSystems 6500 spectrophotometer through multiple linear regression and modified partial least squares analyses using a post-dispersive configuration were comparable with that from a pre-dispersive configuration in terms of accuracy (e.g. coefficient of determination, R2, 0.73; standard error of cross validation, SECV, 1.01°Brix). The effective depth of sample assessed was slightly greater using the post-dispersive technique (about 20 mm for pineapple fruit), as expected in relation to the higher incident light intensity, relative to the pre-dispersive configuration. The effect of such environmental variables as temperature, humidity and external light, and instrumental variables such as the number of scans averaged to form a spectrum, were considered with respect to the accuracy and precision of the measurement of absorbance at 876 nm, as a key term in the calibration for Brix, and predicted Brix. The application of post-dispersive near infrared technology to in-line assessment of intact fruit in a packing shed environment is discussed.

Regional Differences in the Influence of Irrigation on Climate

A global climate model experiment is performed to evaluate the effect of irrigation on temperatures in several major irrigated regions of the world. The Community Atmosphere Model, version 3.3, was modified to represent irrigation for the fraction of each grid cell equipped for irrigation according to datasets from the Food and Agriculture Organization. Results indicate substantial regional differences in the magnitude of irrigation-induced cooling, which are attributed to three primary factors: differences in extent of the irrigated area, differences in the simulated soil moisture for the control simulation (without irrigation), and the nature of cloud response to irrigation. The last factor appeared especially important for the dry season in India, although further analysis with other models and observations are needed to verify this feedback. Comparison with observed temperatures revealed substantially lower biases in several regions for the simulation with irrigation than for the control, suggesting that the lack of irrigation may be an important component of temperature bias in this model or that irrigation compensates for other biases. The results of this study should help to translate the results from past regional efforts, which have largely focused on the United States, to regions in the developing world that in many cases continue to experience significant expansion of irrigated land.