A two‐station embossing process for rapid fabrication of surface microstructures on thermoplastic polymers

An embossing strategy involving a hot station and a cold station for sequentially heating and cooling the embossing tool was investigated to reduce cycle times in hot embossing polymer microstructures. Experimental studies showed that aluminum stamps with a thickness of 1.4 mm can be rapidly heated from room temperature to 200°C in 3 s using contact heating against a hot station at 250°C. Microchannels and microlenses were successfully embossed onto high‐density polyethylene and acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene substrates using a heating time less than 3 s and a total cycle time around 10 s. The two‐station embossing process for the microlens was also numerically studied. The simulated filling behavior agreed with the experimental observation and the predicted thermal and deformation history of the polymer offered a good explanation on the experimentally observed process characteristics. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 47:530–539, 2007. © 2007 Society of Plastics Engineers.     

Factors influencing the photofading of commercial anthraquinone dyes in solution

The photofading of two anthraquinone dyes has been studied in aqueous solution using ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy and flash photolysis. The influence of alcohol concentration, pH, atmosphere, photosensitisers and stabilisers have been examined and these lead to some important conclusions on the mechanism of dye fading. Essentially, the results indicate the photoexcited triplet state of the dye undergoes a process of either electron or hydrogen-atom abstraction depending on the nature of the environment. Other factors such as aggregation and singlet oxygen also appear to play an important role in solution photofading. The relevance of these results to photofading in a polymeric phase is discussed.     

Surface mass transfer processes using peat as an adsorbent for dyestuffs

The factors affecting the initial rate of Telon Blue (Acid) dye adsorption onto peat have been investigated. The surface mass transfer coefficients for the rate of dye removal from solution have been determined and correlated as the dimensionless mass transfer term Sh/Sc^0.33. The function Sh/Sc^0.33 has been correlated with respect to four variables, namely, agitation, initial dye concentration, peat particle size range and the temperature of the dye solution. The mass transfer term varies with T^5.5, d_p^0.13, c_o^?1.1 and R.P.M.^0.26; consequently temperature has the most pronounced effect on the mass transfer coefficient.     

From surface science to catalysis: Surface “explosions” observed on Rh crystals and supported catalysts

Phenomena called surface explosions have been reported for decomposition reactions on single crystals, and have been identified by the use of desorption methods. In particular, in TPD, they are manifested by extremely narrow peaks (as little as 3 K in width) and a desorption rate which increases with time in isothermal experiments. In this paper we report such observations for acetate species on Rh single crystals, but extend this to show for the first time that such effects are not restricted to single crystal/UHV experiments, but can also be found on a Rh/Al₂O₃ catalyst under ambient pressure conditions. These reactions can be classified as second order autocatalytic surface processes, where free surface Rh sites are an essential component of the reaction. It is shown that coadsorbed adatoms are also essential for such explosions to be seen and their role is proposed to be that of a template layer acting to order the acetate in self-poisoning configurations.     

Effect of processing on the composition of sesame seed and meal

Except for a variation in the freeepsilon-amino lysine content of the protein, the Mexican screw-pressed meals were quite similar in their composition. The lysine values for sesame protein obtained for the solvent-extracted meals were much higher than those obtained for the screw-pressed meals. Screening of the endosperm and spermoderm from the solvent-extracted meals was effective in reducing the oxalate content of the resulting flour although some epiderm fragments passed through a 60-mesh screen. The decortication process completely removed the portion containing the oxalate from the seed and also reduced the calcium, sugar, and silica contents. Presented at the annual meeting, American Oil Chemists' Society, Dallas, Tex., April 4–6, 1960. One of the laboratories of the Southern Utilization Research and Development Division, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture.     

玩具车轮胎气动推出注射模

气动推出注射模是注射模中的一种典型结构，它是利用压缩空气推出塑件；玩具车中的轮胎是结构独特而常用的一种塑件。用注射成型，脱模方法就是气动脱模。轮胎气动推出模的常用结构是由高压空气推开锥形阀门进入型腔，将塑件强行推出。阀门由弹簧复位。本文介绍另一种简单实用的气阀结构，经实践检验，非常稳定可靠。     

The Causes and Prevention of Smut on Etched AISI 300 Stainless Steels

During the fabrication of stainless steel parts by photochemical machining (PCM), a seemingly random occurrence of a partially-adherent, brown/black deposit, known as smut, can occur. This quality problem has plagued the PCM industry for over 30 years. In the past, the problem has been attributed to “poor etch-quality” stainless steel. However, an extensive investigation by the authors, comprising some 7 person-years of effort, has established that while the metallurgy of the stainless steel has some influence on the formation of smut, by far the most important factor is the condition of the ferric chloride etchant used for etching the parts. The influences of etchant concentration, free hydrochloric acid content, temperature, atmosphere and hydrodynamic flow have now been assessed quantitatively for the first time. The investigation has led to the development of a theory outlining the causes of smut formation, thus providing solutions for its prevention.     

Bright-field scanning confocal electron microscopy using a double aberration-corrected transmission electron microscope

Scanning confocal electron microscopy (SCEM) offers a mechanism for three-dimensional imaging of materials, which makes use of the reduced depth of field in an aberration-corrected transmission electron microscope. The simplest configuration of SCEM is the bright-field mode. In this paper we present experimental data and simulations showing the form of bright-field SCEM images. We show that the depth dependence of the three-dimensional image can be explained in terms of two-dimensional images formed in the detector plane. For a crystalline sample, this so-called probe image is shown to be similar to a conventional diffraction pattern. Experimental results and simulations show how the diffracted probes in this image are elongated in thicker crystals and the use of this elongation to estimate sample thickness is explored.