Effect of functionally graded structure design on durability and thermal insulation capacity of plasma-sprayed thick thermal barrier coating

This paper aimed to design and optimize the structure of a thick thermal barrier coating by adding graded layers to achieve a balance between high thermal insulation capacity and durability. To this end, conventional TBC, conventional TTBC, and functionally graded TTBCs were deposited on the superalloy substrate by air plasma spraying. To determine the quality of the bond strength of the coatings, the bonding strength was measured. The durability of coatings was evaluated by isothermal oxidation and thermal shock tests. Then, at a temperature of 1000 °C, the thermal insulation capacity of the coatings was carried out. The microstructure of the coatings was characterized by a scanning electron microscope. The results showed that the thickness of the TGO layer formed on the bond coat in the conventional TBC and TTBC under the oxidation test at 1000 °C after 150 h was 2.79 and 2.11 μm, respectively, whereas, in the functionally graded TTBC samples, no continuous TGO layer was observed as a result of internal oxidation. The functionally graded TTBC presented higher durability than conventional TTBC due to improved bonding strength, thermal shock resistance, and the lack of a TGO layer at the bond/top coat interface. Also, the thermal insulation capacity of the functionally graded TTBC (with 1000 μm thickness of YSZ coating) was better than TTBC.     

The Marine Polysaccharide Ulvan Confers Potent Osteoinductive Capacity to PCL-Based Scaffolds for Bone Tissue Engineering Applications

Hybrid composites of synthetic and natural polymers represent materials of choice for bone tissue engineering. Ulvan, a biologically active marine sulfated polysaccharide, is attracting great interest in the development of novel biomedical scaffolds due to recent reports on its osteoinductive properties. Herein, a series of hybrid polycaprolactone scaffolds containing ulvan either alone or in blends with κ-carrageenan and chondroitin sulfate was prepared and characterized. The impact of the preparation methodology and the polysaccharide composition on their morphology, as well as on their mechanical, thermal, water uptake and porosity properties was determined, while their osteoinductive potential was investigated through the evaluation of cell adhesion, viability, and osteogenic differentiation of seeded human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells. The results verified the osteoinductive ability of ulvan, showing that its incorporation into the polycaprolactone matrix efficiently promoted cell attachment and viability, thus confirming its potential in the development of biomedical scaffolds for bone tissue regeneration applications.     

Environmental effects on the strength and impact damage resistance of alumina based oxide/oxide ceramic matrix composites

In this study the effects of high temperature and moisture on the impact damage resistance and mechanical strength of Nextel 610/alumina silicate ceramic matrix composites were experimentally evaluated. Composite laminates were exposed to either a 1050°C isothermal furnace-based environment for 30 consecutive days at 6 h a day, or 95% relative humidity environment for 13 consecutive days at 67°C. Low velocity impact, tensile and short beam strength tests were performed on both ambient and environmentally conditioned laminates and damage was characterized using a combination of non-destructive and destructive techniques. High temperature and humidity environmental exposure adversely affected the impact resistance of the composite laminates. For all the environments, planar internal damage area was greater than the back side dent area, which in turn was greater than the impactor side dent area. Evidence of environmental embrittlement through a stiffer tensile response was noted for the high temperature exposed laminates while the short beam strength tests showed greater propensity for interlaminar shear failure in the moisture exposed laminates. Destructive evaluations exposed larger, more pronounced delaminations in the environmentally conditioned laminates in comparison to the ambient ones. External damage metrics of the impactor side dent depth and area directly influenced the post-impact tensile strength of the laminates while no such trend between internal damage area and residual strength could be ascertained.     

Investigations on hydrogen storage performances and mechanisms of as-cast TiFe0.8-mNi0.2Com (m=0, 0.03, 0.05 and 0.1) alloys

In order to improve the hydrogen storage performances of TiFe-based alloys, a new type of TiFe_0.8-mNi_0.2Co_m (m = 0, 0.03, 0.05 and 0.1) alloys were prepared through vacuum medium-frequency induction melting. XPS results showed that the composition of surface oxide film contains TiO₂, FeO and NiO for the cobalt-free alloy, and it also includes CoO and Co₃O₄ besides the above oxides for the cobalt-containing alloys. The activation temperature is 523, 403, 383 and 373 K for the TiFe_0.8-mNi_0.2Co_m (m = 0, 0.03, 0.05 and 0.1) alloys, respectively. The changes of the composition and microstructure of the surface oxide film are the root causes of the reduction of the activation temperature. XRD and SEM analyses showed that all the alloys are composed of the majority phase of TiFe phase and non-hydrogenated phase of Ti₂Fe phase. Adding appropriate amount of cobalt is beneficial to inhibiting the generation of Ti₂Fe phase and increasing the cell volume of TiFe phase. The hydrogenation capacity is proportional to the content of TiFe phase, which is 1.11, 1.48, 1.54 and 1.29 wt% for the TiFe_0.8-mNi_0.2Co_m (m = 0, 0.03, 0.05 and 0.1) alloys at 313 K, respectively. The hydrogenation plateau performance also is improved correspondingly.     

Nutritional and functional characterisation of hydrolysates from quinoa flour (Chenopodium quinoa) using two proteases

The objective was to study the nutritional and functional properties of hydrolysates from quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa) obtained by enzymatic hydrolysis of defatted quinoa flour (DQF). The commercial enzymes alcalase and flavourzyme were used to obtain the hydrolysates defatted quinoa flour hydrolysate with alcalase (DQFA) and defatted quinoa flour hydrolysate with flavourzyme (DQFF), respectively, after 3 h of digestion at 50°C and pH 8. The degree of hydrolysis (47.32%), yield (31.05%) and protein recovery (88.80%) values were higher in DQFA; however, its protein content (48.34%) was lower compared to that of DQFF (55.06%). Also, DQFA had a solubility greater than 57% over a wide pH range (2–10) and good foam stability (70–90%). On the other hand, DQFF presented adequate emulsifying activity (61.30 m²/g), emulsifying stability (158.62 min) and foaming capacity (131%). Due to the high content of macro- and micronutrients and adequate emulsifying and foaming properties, DQFA and DQFF could be used as ingredients in various processed food products and protein supplements.     

钢筋UHPC梁正截面抗弯承载力计算方法

超高性能混凝土(ultra-high-performance concrete，UHPC)是一种高强、高韧性和高耐久性的新型水泥基复合材料，具有广阔的应用前景。由于UHPC内的钢纤维能有效控制裂缝开展并提高UHPC的抗拉强度，因此，UHPC构件抗弯承载力分析时，一般计入截面受拉区UHPC的抗拉作用，但对于如何考虑受拉区UHPC的抗弯贡献，国内外相关研究结果间存在较大分歧，因此值得进一步研究。首先，编制钢筋UHPC梁正截面抗弯承载力分析程序，分析不同设计参数对截面受拉区UHPC抗弯贡献的影响。结果表明：配筋率、梁高、钢纤维长度、截面形状和预应力水平是影响受拉区UHPC抗弯贡献的主要参数。基于参数分析结果的回归分析，提出截面受拉区UHPC的均匀分布应力折减系数k的计算公式；通过引入受拉翼缘面积折减系数kf，考虑不同截面形状的影响。在此基础上，提出不同弯曲破坏模式下钢筋UHPC梁抗弯承载力的简化计算方法，并以国内外115根钢筋UHPC梁抗弯承载力试验结果验证所提方法的适用性。     

Evaluation of antibacterial protein with antioxidant activity from Rahnella aquatilis L103 and its effect on beef during refrigerated storage

A strain, Rahnella aquatilis L103, which was isolated from the soil around the roots of mushrooms, produced antibacterial protein though fermentation. This protein has broad antibacterial spectrum towards gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. The protein has a significant antioxidant capacity on scavenging ABTS^+· (82.5%, 120 μg mL⁻¹), DPPH^· (64.1%, 600 μg mL⁻¹) and OH^· (60.1%, 750 μg mL⁻¹) as well. The protein was considered to be safe within concentration of 150 μg mL⁻¹ as shown by MTT results and was applied to beef refrigerated preservation. The treatment group presented lower total viable counts (TVC), total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N), 2-thiobarbituric acid (TBA), meanwhile, higher sensory score and longer shelf life (2 days) compared with the control group (P < 0.05). The results indicated that the protein under safe concentration was beneficial to beef preservation.     

Evaluation of different modelling conditions in the cohesive zone analysis of single-lap bonded joints

Cohesive Zone Models (CZM) are widely used for the strength prediction of adhesive joints. Different simulation conditions, such as damage initiation and growth criteria, are available for use in CZM analyses to provide the mixed-mode behaviour. Thus, it is highly relevant to understand in detail their influence on the simulations’ outcome. This work studies the influence of different conditions used in CZM simulations to model a thin adhesive layer in single-lap joints (SLJ) under a tensile loading, for an estimation of their influence on the strength prediction under diverse geometrical and material conditions. Validation with experimental data is considered. Adhesives ranging from brittle to highly ductile and overlap lengths (L_O) between 12.5 and 50 mm were considered. Different studies were considered: Variation of the elastic stiffness of the cohesive laws, different mesh refinements, study of the element type, and evaluation of several damage initiation and growth criteria. The analysis carried out in this work confirmed the known suitability of CZM for static strength prediction of bonded joints and pointed out the best set of numerical conditions for this purpose. Inaccurate results can be obtained if the choice of the modelling conditions is not the most suitable for the problem.