Effects of La2O3 on Microstructure and Wear Properties of Laser Clad gamma/Cr7C3/TiC Composite Coatings on TiAl Intermatallic Alloy

The effects of La2O3 addition on the microstructure and wear properties of laser clad gamma/C(r)7C(3)/TiC composite coatings on gamma-TiAl intermetallic alloy substrates with NiCr-Cr3C2 precursor mixed powders have been investigated by optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy-dispersive spectrometer (EDS) and block-on-ring wear tests. The responding wear mechanisms are discussed in detail. The results are compared with that for composite coating without La2O3. The comparison indicates that no evident new crystallographic phases are formed except a rapidly solidified microstructure consisting of the primary hard Cr7C3 and TiC carbides and the gamma/Cr7C3 eutectics distributed in the tough gamma nickel solid solution matrix. Good finishing coatings can be achieved under a proper amount of La2O3-addition and a suitable laser processing parameters. The additions of rare-earth oxide La,03 can refine and purify the microstructure of coatings, relatively decrease the volume fraction of primary blocky Cr7C3 to Cr7C3/gamma eutectics, reduce the dilution of clad material from base alloy and increase the microhardness of the coatings. When the addition of La2O3 is approximately 4 wt.%, the laser clad composite coating possesses the highest hardness and toughness. The composite coating with 4 wt.%La2O3 addition can result the best enhancement of wear resistance of about 30%. However, too less or excessive addition amount of La2O3 have no better influence on wear resistance of the composite coating.

Microstructure and Tribological Properties of Laser Clad gamma/Cr7C3/Tic Composite Coatings on gamma-TiA1 Intermetallic Alloy

In order to improve the wear resistance of the gamma-TiAl intermetallic alloy, microstructure, room- and high-temperature (600 degrees C) wear behaviors of laser clad gamma/Cr7C3/TiC composite coatings with different constitution of NiCr-Cr3C2 precursor-mixed powders have been investigated by optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy-dispersive spectrometer (EDS), block-on-ring (room-temperature) and pin-on-disk (high-temperature) wear tests. The responding wear mechanisms are discussed in detail. Results show that microstructures of the laser clad composite coatings have non-equilibrium solidified microstructures consisting of primary hard Cr7C3 and TiC carbides and the inter-primary gamma/Cr7C3 eutectic matrix, about three to five times higher average microhardness compared with the TiAl alloy substrate. Higher wear resistance than the original TiAl alloy is achieved in the clad composite coatings under dry sliding wear conditions, which is closely related to the formation of non-equilibrium solidified reinforced Cr7C3 and TiC carbides and the positive contribution of the relatively ductile and tough gamma/Cr7C3 eutectics matrix and their stability under high-temperature exposure.

The preparation, characterization and tribological properties of TA-C : H deposited using an electron cyclotron wave resonance plasma beam source

A compact electron cyclotron wave resonance (ECWR) source has been developed for the high rate deposition of hydrogenated tetrahedral amorphous carbon (ta-C:H). The ECWR provides growth rates of up to 900 Å/min over a 4″ diameter and an independent control of the deposition rate and ion energy. The ta-C:H was deposited using acetylene as the source gas and was characterized in terms of its sp3 content, mass density, intrinsic stress, hydrogen content, C-H bonding, Raman spectra, optical gap, surface roughness and friction coefficient. The results obtained indicated that the film properties were maximized at an ion energy of approximately 167 eV, corresponding to an energy per daughter carbon ion of 76 eV. The relationship between the incident ion energy and film densification was also explained in terms of the subsurface implantation of carbon ions into the growing film.

Tailoring the electrical properties of carbon nanotube-polymer composites

Advances in functionality and reliability of nanocomposite materials require careful formulation of processing methods to ultimately realize the desired properties. An extensive study of how the variation in fabrication process would affect the mechanism of conductivity and thus the final electrical properties of the carbon nanotube-polymer composite is presented. Some of the most widely implemented procedures are addressed, such as ultrasonication, melt shear mixing, and addition of surfactants. It is hoped that this study could provide a systematic guide to selecting and designing the downstream processing of carbon nanocomposites. Finally, this guide is used to demonstrate the fabrication and performance of a stretchable (pliable) conductor that can reversibly undergo uniaxial strain of over 100%, and other key applications are discussed. © 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Band structure and transport properties of simple cubic tellurium-base alloys

The electrical transport properties and lattice spacings of simple cubic Te-Au, Te-Au-Fe, and Te-Au-Mn alloys, prepared by rapid quenching from the liquid state, hove been measured and correlated with a proposed bond structure. The variations of superconducting transition temperature, absolute thermoelectric power, and lattice spacing with Te concentration all showed related anomalies in the binary Te-Au alloys. The unusual behavior of these properties has been interpreted by using nearly free electron theory to predict the effect of the second Brillouin zone boundary on the area of the Fermi surface, and the electronic density of states. The behavior of the superconducting transition temperature and the lattice parameter as Fe and Mn ore added further supports the proposed interpretation as well as providing information on the existence of localized magnetic states in the ternary alloys. In addition, it was found that a very distinct bond structure effect on the transition temperatures of the Te-Au-Fe alloys could be identified.

Influence of composition on the structure, electric and magnetic properties of Pd-Mn-P and Pd-Co-P amorphous alloys

The influence of composition on the structure and on the electric and magnetic properties of amorphous Pd-Mn-P and Pd-Co-P prepared by rapid quenching techniques were investigated in terms of (1) the 3d band filling of the first transition metal group, (2) the phosphorus concentration effect which acts as an electron donor and (3) the transition metal concentration.

The structure is essentially characterized by a set of polyhedra subunits essentially inverse to the packing of hard spheres in real space. Examination of computer generated distribution functions using Monte Carlo random statistical distribution of these polyhedra entities demonstrated tile reproducibility of the experimentally calculated atomic distribution function. As a result, several possible "structural parameters" are proposed such as: the number of nearest neighbors, the metal-to-metal distance, the degree of short-range order and the affinity between metal-metal and metal-metalloid. It is shown that the degree of disorder increases from Ni to Mn. Similar behavior is observed with increase in the phosphorus concentration.

The magnetic properties of Pd-Co-P alloys show that they are ferromagnetic with a Curie temperature between 272 and 399°K as the cobalt concentration increases from 15 to 50 at.%. Below 20 at.% Co the short-range exchange interactions which produce the ferromagnetism are unable to establish a long-range magnetic order and a peak in the magnetization shows up at the lowest temperature range . The electric resistivity measurements were performed from liquid helium temperatures up to the vicinity of the melting point (900°K). The thermomagnetic analysis was carried out under an applied field of 6.0 kOe. The electrical resistivity of Pd-Co-P shows the coexistence of a Kondo-like minimum with ferromagnetism. The minimum becomes less important as the transition metal concentration increases and the coefficients of ℓn T and T^2 become smaller and strongly temperature dependent. The negative magnetoresistivity is a strong indication of the existence of localized moment.

The temperature coefficient of resistivity which is positive for Pd- Fe-P, Pd-Ni-P, and Pd-Co-P becomes negative for Pd-Mn-P. It is possible to account for the negative temperature dependence by the localized spin fluctuation model and the high density of states at the Fermi energy which becomes maximum between Mn and Cr. The magnetization curves for Pd-Mn-P are typical of those resulting from the interplay of different exchange forces. The established relationship between susceptibility and resistivity confirms the localized spin fluctuation model. The magnetoresistivity of Pd-Mn-P could be interpreted in tenns of a short-range magnetic ordering that could arise from the Rudennan-Kittel type interactions.

Study of polymer thermal and mechanical properties using a fiber Bragg grating thermal sensor

A simple and practical method for the study of polymer thermal and mechanical properties using a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor is presented for the first time, in which the FBG is embedded in a typical epoxy polymer. By measuring the sensitivity change of the FBG sensor, changes of the thermal-mechanical properties of the polymer with temperature and pressure can be measured. The experimental results show that this technique is capable of providing continuous in-line monitoring such properties with high sensitivity during transformation between the glassy state and the rubbery state of a polymer within the temperature and pressure range of 20 to 180 C and 0 to 15 MPa. (c) 2007 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers.

Study of polymer thermal and mechanical properties using a fiber Bragg grating thermal sensor

A simple and practical method for the study of polymer thermal and mechanical properties using a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor is presented for the first time, in which the FBG is embedded in a typical epoxy polymer. By measuring the sensitivity change of the FBG sensor, changes of the thermal-mechanical properties of the polymer with temperature and pressure can be measured. The experimental results show that this technique is capable of providing continuous in-line monitoring such properties with high sensitivity during transformation between the glassy state and the rubbery state of a polymer within the temperature and pressure range of 20 to 180 C and 0 to 15 MPa. (c) 2007 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers.

Electromagnetic fields and transmission properties in tapered hollow metallic waveguides

We analyze the electromagnetic spatital distributions and address an important issue of the transmission properties of spherical transverse-electric (TE) and transverse-magnetic (TM) eigenmodes within a tapered hollow metallic waveguide in detail. Explicit analytical expressions for the spatital distributions of electromagnetic field components, attenuation constant, phase constant and wave impedance are derived. Accurate eigenvalues obtained numerically are used to study the dependences of the transmission properties on the taper angle, the mode as well as the length of the waveguide. It is shown that all modes run continuously from a propagating through a transition to an evanescent region and the value of the attenuation increases as the distance from the cone vertex and the cone angle decrease. A strict distinction between pure propagating and pure evanescent modes cannot be achieved. One mode after the other reaches cutoff in the tapered hollow metallic waveguide as the distance from the cone vertex desreases. (C) 2008 Optical Society of America

Synthesis of nickel(II) complexes of alpha-isoxazolylazo-beta-diketones and their absorption of spin-coating films and thermal properties for HD-DVD-R

Three kinds of new nickel(II) complexes of alpha-isoxazolylazo-beta-diketones with blue-violet light absorption were synthesized. Their structures were postulated based on elemental analysis, MS and FT-IR spectra. Smooth films on K9 glass substrates were prepared using the spin-coating method. The absorption properties and thermal stability of these complexes were discussed. The static optical recording test for high density digital versatile disc-recordable (HD-DVD-R) system was also studied. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Thermal stability and spectroscopic properties of Er3+-doped niobium tellurite glasses for broadband amplifiers

Three Er3+-doped tellurite glasses with compositions of 70TeO(2)-30ZnO, 70TeO(2)-20ZnO-10Nb(2)O(5) and 70TeO(2)-20ZnO-5BaO-5Nb(2)O(5) have been investigated for developing fiber and planar broadband amplifiers and lasers. The optical spectroscopic properties and thermal stability of Er3+-doped tellurite glasses have been discussed. The results show that the incorporation of Nb2O5 increases the thermal stability of Er3+-doped tellurite glasses significantly, Er3+-doped niobium tellurite glasses 70TeO(2)-20ZnO-10Nb(2)O(5) and 70TeO(2)-20ZnO-5BaO-5Nb(2)O(5) exhibit the good thermal stability (DeltaT > 150degreesC), the large emission cross-section (>10 x 10(-21) cm(2)) and broad full width at half maximum (similar to65 nm), will be preferable for broadband Er3+-doped fiber amplifiers. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Novel erbium-doped TeO2-based oxysulfide glasses: thermal and spectroscopic properties

Er3+-doped TeO2-based oxysulfide glasses have been prepared in argon atmosphere in carbon crucibles. The thermal analysis and spectroscopic properties of Er (3+) have been considered in terms of sulfide influence. As a function of composition, we have principally measured optical absorption, spontaneous emission and lifetime measurements. Judd-Ofelt theory was introduced to calculate bandwidth and emission cross-section. The results show the product FVMM x sigma(c) increase from 476.8 8 to 635.04 10(-21) cm(2) nm evidently with the addition of 10 mol% PbS into tellurite glass, which indicates a perfect effect on spectra property of Er3+ ions. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of chloride ions' introduction on structural, thermal stability, and spectroscopic properties in Yb3+Er3+-codoped germanate-bismuth-lead glasses

Yb3+Er3+-codoped chloride-modified germanate-bismuth-lead glasses have been synthesized by the conventional melting and quenching method. Structural and thermal stability properties have been obtained on the basis of the Raman spectra and differential thermal analysis, which indicate that the PbCl2 addition has an important influence on the phonon density of states, maximum phonon energy, and thermal stability of host glasses. The Judd-Ofelt intensity parameters and quantum efficiencies were calculated on the basis of the Judd-Ofelt theory and lifetime measurements. For the 1.53 mu m emission band, the full widths at the half-maximum increase and peak wavelengths are blueshifted with increasing PbCl2 content. Moreover, the effect of the PbCl2 addition on the phonon density of states, OH- content, and upconversion luminescence has been discussed and evaluated. Our results reveal that, with increasing PbCl2 content, the decrease of phonon density and OH- content contributes more to the enhanced upconversion emissions than that of maximum phonon energy. (c) 2005 Optical Society of America