Thermal and mechanical properties of epoxy composites reinforced by a natural hydrophobic sand

If a low weight percentage of crude fine fillers can improve properties of polymer materials directly without complicated chemical treatment process involved, it will be significant for many industrial applications. Our previous study indicated that a kind of Cancun natural sand could be an effective filler material for polymer composites. In this current work, the epoxy composites reinforced by this kind of natural sand particles were prepared and thermal and mechanical properties of the composites containing up to 5 wt % of the sand particles were characterized. Results showed that the highest flexural strength appears in the epoxy composite containing 1 wt % sand particles. A damage model was used to interpret the flexural properties, which showed an acceptable agreement with the experimental results. The glass transition temperature, high temperature storage modulus, and dimensional stability of the sand/epoxy composites monotonically increased with the addition of the sand particles. The sand particle/epoxy composites also displayed a noticeable enhancement in thermal conductivity. Theoretical analysis showed that in addition to conduction, other heat transport mechanisms played roles in the improved heat transmission through the composites. As a natural porous micron-scale material, Cancun sand has the potential for applications in cost-effective composites with enhanced mechanical and thermal properties. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

Studies on the electrical conductivity and galvanomagnetic characteristics of short carbon fibre filled thermoplastic elastomers

The electrical resistivity of short carbon fibre filled thermoplastic elastomers based on natural rubber-high density polyethylene (NR-HDPE) blend and styrene-isoprene-styrene (S-I-S) block copolymer has been studied by varying the concentration of fibre from the 0 to 40 phr level. A sharp drop in resistivity is observed in both cases after a critical concentration of fibre is reached, with the S-I-S system showing lower values of critical concentration. At higher concentrations, experimental values of the electrical conductivity agreed reasonably well with the calculated values from a theory based on the probability of formation of a conductive network. The effect of temperature on the resistivity of the composites has also been investigated in a temperature range of 27–120 °C and 27–90 °C for the NR-HDPE system and S-I-S system, respectively. The type of carrier in both the composites is found to be n-type, i.e. electrons, and the activation energy of hopping of the electrons for both the systems has been calculated. A Hall effect study has also been carried out to determine the carrier concentration and drift mobility of both the composites.     

Silicon oxide thin films prepared by a photo-chemical vapour deposition technique

Wide band gap a-SiO_x:H films have been prepared by the photochemical decomposition of a SiH₄, CO₂ and H₂ gas mixture. Deposition parameters namely the CO₂ to SiH₄ gas flow ratio, H₂ dilution and chamber pressure were optimized in order to achieve highly photoconducting (1 × 10^-6 S cm^-1) films with an optical gap of 1.99 eV. The optical gap was found to increase with an increase in the CO₂ to SiH₄ flow ratio. A decrease in the photoconductivity, refractive index, spin g-value and a simultaneous increase in the spin density are attributed to an incorporation of oxygen into the films. Upon hydrogen dilution the photoconductivity of a-SiO_x:H films was observed to improve along with an increase of the optical gap. The spin density of a-SiO_x:H films was of the order of 10¹⁷ cm^-9. The optoelectronic properties of the films have been correlated with the bonding configurations in the film, deposition parameters and the growth kinetics. This revised version was published online in November 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Perceived effectiveness of filial therapy for a Jamaican mother: A qualitative case study.

Although filial therapy has traditionally been viewed as suitable for children of diverse cultures, there is limited research to support this perspective. This qualitative case study examined the perceived effectiveness of filial therapy for a Jamaican mother and the perceived effect on the mother-child relationship. Findings indicate that some aspects of filial therapy are congruent with the parenting practices and values of this Jamaican mother. The mother reported an increase in empathy, a heightened awareness of her child's needs, and a stronger relationship with her child. She expressed some difficulty with limit setting and tracking skills taught as part of the model. Future research directions include further examination of the compatibility of filial therapy with other Jamaican parents and the effectiveness of group filial therapy with Jamaican parents or other parents of Caribbean descent. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Groundwater-surface water interactions and agricultural nutrient transport in a Great Lakes clay plain system

Nutrient export from agricultural land to surface waters is a significant environmental concern within the Great Lakes Basin (GLB). A field-based watershed-scale study was completed to investigate spatial and temporal variations of phosphorus and nitrate to assess nutrient transport pathways and groundwater-surface water interactions in an agriculturally dominated clay plain system. This was conducted in the 127 km² Upper Parkhill Watershed, near Lake Huron in southwestern Ontario, Canada. Data collection occurred from June 2018 to May 2019 via continuous sensor deployment and discrete sampling of stream water, groundwater, hyporheic zone, and tile drainage water. Samples were analyzed for various nutrient species (total, total dissolved, soluble reactive, and particulate phosphorus, and nitrate-N) to examine the hydrological dynamics of principal transport pathways of agriculturally-derived nutrients. Total phosphorus and nitrate concentrations in stream water ranged from 0.007 to 0.324 mg/L and 0.32 to 13.13 mg NO₃^?-N/L, respectively. Tile drainage water total phosphorous concentrations varied from 0.006 to 0.066 mg/L. Groundwater total dissolved phosphorus concentrations ranged from <0.003 to 0.085 mg/L. Transport of phosphorus through tile drainage was observed to be greater than through groundwater over the study period. No distinct relationship was observed between nutrient concentrations in the hyporheic zone and the vertical hydraulic gradient within this zone in the studied stream reach. Preliminary correlations were discerned between water quality observations and recognized land management practices. Given the elevated stream nutrient concentrations, these results are consequential for the continual improvement of strategies and programs devised to conserve water resources within the GLB.     

Approximation schemes for load balanced clustering in wireless sensor networks

Clustering sensor nodes is an efficient technique to improve scalability and life time of a wireless sensor network (WSN). However, in a cluster based WSN, the leaders (cluster heads) consume more energy due to some extra load for various activities such as data collection, data aggregation, and communication of the aggregated data to the base station. Therefore, balancing the load of the cluster heads is a crucial issue for the long run operation of the WSNs. In this paper, we first present a load balanced clustering scheme for wireless sensor networks. We show that the algorithm runs in O(nlogn) time for n sensor nodes. We prove that the algorithm is optimal for the case in which the sensor nodes have equal load. We also show that it is a polynomial time 2-approximation algorithm for the general case, i.e., when the sensor nodes have variable load. We finally improve this algorithm and propose a 1.5-approximation algorithm for the general case. The experimental results show the efficiency of the proposed algorithm in terms of the load balancing of the cluster heads, execution time, and the network life.     

Structure Development of NiO–YSZ Oxide Mixtures in Simulated Citrate–Nitrate Combustion Synthesis

Yttria-stabilized zirconia (NiO/YSZ) composites were prepared by the modified citrate–nitrate combustion synthesis. The citrate–nitrate combustion proceeded through several consecutive steps. Evolution of structure in the system and its changes were followed up by thermogravimetry-differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray powder diffraction, extended X-ray absorption fine structure, and high resolution transmission electron microscopy analyses of intermediate products prepared at distinct temperatures that correspond to different stages of the combustion process. It was shown that the crystalline structure developed gradually, first with crystallization of nano-sized NiO particles (400°–700°C), which was followed by crystallization of YSZ (800°–900°C). The final composite material after heat treatment at 1100°C comprised of nano-crystals with an average size of 6.5±2 nm.     

Natural fiber composites of high‐temperature thermoplastic polymers: Effects of coupling agents

Our earlier paper (Jana, S.C.; Prieto, A. J Appl Polym Sci 2002, 86, 2159) on the development of natural fiber composites of high‐performance thermoplastic polymers described a new methodology for the manufacturing of composite materials of a high‐temperature thermoplastic polymer, poly(phenylene ether) (PPE) and wood flour, a cellulosic natural filler. A thermosetting epoxy, used as a reactive solvent, reduced the processing temperature of PPE/epoxy blends to well below the decomposition temperature of natural fillers. In addition, the epoxy component, upon polymerization, formed coating layers around the filler particles to provide resistance against moisture diffusion and attacks by acids and alkali. This article describes the results of an investigation on two outstanding issues: (1) the influence of cellulosic wood particles and coupling agents on the speed of epoxy curing and reaction‐induced phase separation and (2) the effects of coupling agents on the morphology of crosslinked epoxy at the surfaces of natural fillers and mechanical properties of the composites. It was found that wood particles expedited epoxy curing in the composites; the extent of epoxy curing, however, was reduced in the presence of coupling agents. Also, the coupling agents promoted complete coverage of wood flour particles by polymerized epoxy, although the mechanical properties deteriorated over systems without coupling agents. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 86: 2168–2173, 2002     

Polychlorinated phenols in total diet

A method has been developed for the isolation, separation and determination of chlorinated phenols in total diet. The isolation takes place following acid hydrolysis of the conjugates and is performed by simultaneous extraction and distillation with water vapour and toluene. The isolated chlorophenols are removed by clean-up on a Florisil column using a mixture of 15% dichloromethane in toluene for elution. The separation and determination is carried out by capillary gas chromatography with electron capture detection. The recovery of the method ranged between 70.1±5 and 96.8±4.9% for the individual chlorophenols. The determination limits were 0.5 to 1.0 g·kg^–1. The method was applied in a study aimed at estimating the chlorophenol burden in two population groups (children up to the age of 6 years and students up to the age of 18 years). In two succesive years, 80 total diet samples were analysed. Average contents of the individual chlorophenols were from 0.7 to 33.5 g·kg^–1 and were higher for the dichlorophenol isomers. The calculated average daily intake ranged from 0.04 to 1.69 g·kg^–1 body weight for the individual phenols.

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Polychlorierte Phenole im Gesamtverzehr

Zusammenfassung Das hier beschriebene Verfahren dient zur Isolierung, Trennung und Bestimmung von chlorierten Phenolen im Gesamtverzehr. Dieser wurde sauer hydrolysiert, die Phenole wurden durch eine simultane Wasserdampfdestillation und ein Extraktionsverfahren mit Toluol isoliert. Beim anschließenden Derivatisierungsverfahren mit Pentafluorobenzylbromid entstanden auch Störungssubstanzen, sie wurden mittels Säulenchromatographie an Florisil abgetrennt. Die chromatographische Trennung und Bestimmung erfolgte unter Anwendung der Kapillargaschromatographie mit ECD. Die Wiederfindungsrate variierte zwischen 70.1±5 und 96.8±4.9% bei Nachweisgrenzen von 0.5 bis 1.0 g·kg^–1. Das Verfahren wurde zur Ermittlung der Exposition bei Kindern bis zu 6 Jahren und Jungen bis zu 18 Jahren verwendet. Im Laufe von 2 Jahren wurden 80 Proben des Gesamtverzehrs aus Kindereinrichtungen analysiert. Der Durchschnittsinhalt schwankte von 0.7 bis 33.5 g·kg^–1 mit Überwiegen von Dichlorophenolen. Die aus den bekannten Inhalten ermittelte Tagesaufnahme variiert zwischen 0.04 und 1.69 g·kg^–1 Körpermasse und Tag.