Do metal grain silos benefit women in Kenya,Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe?

Metal silos can reduce maize losses during storage in smallholder farm systems, contributing towards international goals of reducing food waste and moving towards Sustainable Development Goal 2, Zero Hunger. However, technologies are introduced into farming systems with complex sets of relationships. These may differentially affect the ability of women and men to secure the expected benefits of metal silos. This, in turn, may affect adoption rates and expected outcomes. To better understand these relationships, a mixed methods study was conducted in Kenya, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Zambia where metal silos were introduced through the Effective Grain Storage Project (EGSP). EGSP distributed 1717 metal silos across the four countries.Quantitative surveys using random sampling were conducted in Kenya (124 respondents) and Malawi (100 respondents) with metal silo owners. Qualitative surveys, using purposive sampling, were conducted in all four countries covering 14 ethnic groups using focus group discussions (360 respondents), key informant interviews (62 respondents), and household case studies (62 respondents). The aim was to understand gendered post-harvest management and storage strategies in traditional systems and to map changes when metal silos were introduced.The findings suggest roles and responsibilities regarding the ownership and management of storage structures are strongly gendered with some differences between ethnic groups and countries. Men benefit more than women from the introduction of metal silos. Ownership of the grain storage facility, and the benefits attached to ownership, can switch from women to men with women having less scope for bargaining over their rights to use the stored grain for their own needs and the benefit of all household members. Women and men fail to fully follow guidelines for effective use of metal silos. They differ in their preferred attributes for their ideal storage system. Whilst some attributes are shared, women’s preferences were sharply differentiated from men in others.     

Surface structure and quenching effects in BiFeO3-BaTiO3 ceramics

The structure and properties of Mn-doped 0.67BiFeO₃-0.33BaTiO₃ ceramics are systematically investigated with respect to the effects of annealing prior to rapid cooling by quenching in air. Air-quenching induces a change in crystal structure from pseudo-cubic to rhombohedral, with higher quenching temperatures leading to an increased rhombohedral distortion. These structural changes are correlated with the appearance of more well-defined ferroelectric domain configurations. It is shown that the surface preparation procedures for XRD measurements can induce significant changes in the peak profiles, indicating differences in crystal structure between the surface and bulk regions. Frequency dispersion in the temperature-dependent relative permittivity for the as-sintered sample is significantly reduced after quenching, accompanied by enhancement of the Curie point and improved temperature-stability of piezoelectric properties. It is proposed that the formation of defect clusters by A-site cation diffusion during cooling is circumvented by quenching, leading to the observed modification of structural distortion and ferroelectric properties.     

Evolution of core–rim structures and phase transformations in infra-red transmitting Y-α-SiAlON ceramics

Core–rim structures were observed as common features in Y-α-SiAlON ceramics hot-pressed between 1550?1950 °C. We found most dopants were taken into α’-rims, and a transition layer grown first on α-cores from liquid-phase over-saturated with metal solutes. Elongated β’-grain were formed as minor phase with α’- or AlN-cores thus only after the α’ matrix had consumed up all Y solutes, revealing that the α’ → β’ transformation is controlled by the transient liquid-phase and similar defects and dangling bonds could be detected in both SiAlON phases by cathodoluminescence. Quantitative assessment of Y_m/3Si_12?(m+n)Al_m+nO_nN_16?n demonstrates the multiphase evolution, initiated by over-saturation of Y solutes at low temperatures thus retaining α-phase as cores to lower the infra-red transmittance, dictated by homogenization of Al solutes at higher temperature. The elimination of those phase boundaries leads to better dopant and sintering design for achieving transparent and high-performance SiAlON ceramics.     

Features of crystal structures and thermo-mechanical properties of weberites RE3NbO7 (RE=La,Nd, Sm,Eu, Gd) ceramics

The features of crystal structures, thermo-mechanical properties and their dominant mechanisms of weberites RE₃NbO₇ were studied as high-temperature oxides. We concentrated on connections between structures and thermo-mechanical properties, the influences of bond lengths, lattice distortion degrees and microstructures on these properties were estimated. The shortening of bond length and increment of bonding strength would lead to the increase of mechanical properties. The Vickers hardness (4.5-7.8 GPa) and toughness (0.5-1.6 MPa·m^1/2) of weberites RE₃NbO₇ are enhanced by grain refinement and increment of bond strength, while crystal structures, bond lengths, and lattice distortion degrees influenced their Young's modulus (100-170 GPa). Nano-indentation was applied to test the influence of microstructures on modulus and hardness. The dominant mechanisms for mechanical properties and thermal conductivity were proposed, which was conducive to properties tailoring and engineering applications of weberites RE₃NbO₇ oxides.     

Anisotropic effects of oxygen vacancy defects on the electrical properties of highly oriented bismuth titanate ferroelectric ceramics

Bismuth titanate (Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂, BIT) exhibits a high Curie temperature and anisotropic electrical performance owing to its layered perovskite structure, and hence, it is an important ferroelectric material for high-temperature piezoelectric applications. It is crucial to understand the effects of the anisotropy in BIT-based ferroelectrics for developing novel high-temperature piezoelectric materials. In this study, a highly textured BIT ceramic was fabricated using the tape-casting technique from highly grain-oriented BIT platelets prepared by the molten salt method. The textured BIT ceramic showed a dense microstructure and high grain orientation along the (00l) plane with a texturing degree F_00l = 0.86. It exhibited significant anisotropy in the electrical properties along the directions parallel and perpendicular to the axis of the tape-casting plane. Double ferroelectric hysteresis P–E loops and normal ferroelectric P–E loops were observed in the parallel and perpendicular samples, respectively. In addition to the layered crystal structure and domains, the anisotropy in the arrangement of the oxygen vacancy defects and their transport in the structure led to a significant anisotropy in the ferroelectric properties of the textured BIT ceramics. This work demonstrates the anisotropic arrangement of the oxygen vacancy defects and its effect on the electrical properties of high-temperature bismuth layer-structured ferroelectrics.     

混凝土结构的压电声波检测分析

本文介绍了混凝土结构的压电体波和表面波检测的主要进展,对两种压电声波检测的优缺点进行了总结。体波检测设备一般埋入混凝土内部,需要选择合理的检测部位,检测结果较为精确;声表面波检测无需选择特定的部位,但是检测深度有限。在实际检测工作过程中,可以联合两种方法相互验证。     

High-temperature atomically laminated materials: The toughening components of ceramic matrix composites

The atomically laminated materials with high temperature resistance, including graphite, hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) and MAX phases, have special mechanical performance compared to isotropic materials. The intrinsic mechanical responses of these layered structures can play an important role in strengthening and toughening ceramic matrix composites. In this review, the synthesis processes and applications of pyrolytic carbon (PyC) interphase, graphite nanoplates (GNPs), h-BN interphase, and h-BN nanoplates (BNNPs) and MAX phases are summarized. Besides, this review also analyzes the differences between the graphite-like structure and the MAX phase structure, in terms of modulus, toughness, anisotropy, and toughening mechanisms. These differences are based on their crystal structures. Finally, we look forward to the future development direction of high-temperature atomically laminated materials for toughening applications.