Mechanical properties of the flexible‐type epoxy/clay nanocomposites prepared by slurry method

The bisphenol‐F type flexible epoxy resin, having a good flexibility, was combined with an organo‐ and slurry‐clay. The clay dispersions in the obtained epoxy/clay systems are significantly different depending on the type of clay. Particularly, the epoxy/slurry‐clay system showed a high clay dispersibility into the epoxy matrix and was transparent in spite of the addition of 10 wt % clay. This result means that the swelling of the clay with formamide is effective for the expansion of the basal spacing of the clay. The slurry‐clay nanocomposite (clay content: 5 wt %) showed a 4 times higher fracture energy than the neat epoxy system in the tensile test, though the organo‐clay system (clay content: 5 wt %) was 1.5 times higher. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

Electronic Structure and Thermoelectric Properties of Al-Mn-Fe-Si Alloys

In order to develop practical thermoelectric materials consisting solely of environmentally friendly elements, we investigated the thermoelectric properties of the Al₁₀Mn₃-type (P6₃/mmc, hp26) Al_77−x Mn₂₃Si _x alloys and the Al₁₀₂Mn₂₄Si₁₂-type (Pm-3, cP138) Al_82−x Mn_5.5Fe_12.5Si _x alloys, both of which possess a pseudogap at the Fermi level. The formation range in which the single phase is obtained was determined for these two phases. The electrical resistivity, Seebeck coefficient, and thermal conductivity of the samples involving no secondary phase were measured over the temperature range of 2 K to 300 K. It is found that the thermoelectric properties of these phases are qualitatively accounted for in terms of the pseudogap at the Fermi level in the electronic density of states and the disordering in local atomic arrangements.     

Diffusion-weighted imaging in prostate cancer

Magnetic Resonance Materials in Physics, Biology and Medicine - Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI), a key component in multiparametric MRI (mpMRI), is useful for tumor detection and localization in...     

A mobile satellite news gathering system using a flat antenna

We propose a mobile SNG (satellite news gathering) RF terminal that transmits TV programs from a ship or a vehicle to a broadcasting center in real time via a communications satellite. The terminal consists of a transmitter using beam steering flat antenna with 16 subarrays and of a turntable and pitch-roll stabilizer for mechanical tracking. The antenna beam is steered according to a received beacon signal, and rapid tracking with an accuracy of 0.05° cart be achieved even if slant angles in the pitch and roll of the ship in which the terminal is set, are ±10° and ±15°. We demonstrated the good performance of the terminal by transmitting a TV program from a ship in Tokyo Bay     

Stages of Design in Technology for Global Development

Information and communication technology projects designed to cost-effectively impact the world's poorest communities require more than technical solutions. A Microsoft research group shares its experiences and lessons learned implementing various ICT4D initiatives in India.     

Functionals in the variational method applied to equivalentimpedance matrix of metallic posts unsymmetrically positioned in arectangular waveguide

Functionals are proposed, which allow the cross-sectional shape of the metallic post to be arbitrary and the post to be placed at an arbitrary position in a rectangular waveguide. The functionals are also applicable to a group of metallic posts placed unsymmetrically on the z=constant plane     

Solar stills made from waste materials

Technology for solar desalination has been studied for a long time as a process friendly to the environment and also energy saving. We found a new aspect by diverting attention from industrial mass production systems to the consumer's life-style and resource recycling problems. Thus, desalting solar stills made from waste materials were studied. A type made from a polypropylene tray and polyethylene wrapping sheets was subjected to laboratory tests at steady and unsteady states for heat and mass transfer analysis. The beam strength was substituted by referring to the data the of Meteorological Agency on August 6, 2000 [total solar radiation 26.27MJ/(m²·d)]. The maximum water productivity was delayed 2 h from that of the beam strength. Total productivity of water per day and 1 m² was measured as 3.54 kg and calculated as 2.35 kg. The result indicated the need to improve the performance and the direction of development of the solar still. This concept could be especially worthwhile for producing water without any harm to the environment by utilizing renewable solar energy.