Adhesion of a rigid punch to a confined elastic layer revisited

The adhesion of a punch to a linear elastic, confined layer is investigated. Numerical analysis is performed to determine the equivalent elastic modulus in terms of layer confinement. The size of the layer relative to the punch radius and its Poisson’s ratio are found to affect the layer stiffness. The results reveal that the equivalent modulus of a highly confined layer depends on its Poisson’s ratio, whereas, in contrast, an unconfined layer is only sensitive to the extent of the elastic film. The solutions of the equivalent modulus obtained from the simulations are fitted by an analytical function that, subsequently, is utilized to deduce the energy release rate for detachment of the punch via linear elastic fracture mechanics. The energy release rate strongly varies with layer confinement. Regimes for stable and unstable crack growth can be identified that, in turn, are correlated to interfacial stress distributions to distinguish between different detachment mechanisms.     

沉浸式艺术审美体验的自我发现与再设计

探讨沉浸式艺术这一新概念，研究其审美体验是如何有助于自我发现并运用于艺术创作再设计中的。沉浸式艺术是一种能够启发感知联觉的审美体验方式，可使人们重新思考自己与“世界”(真实和虚拟)之间的关系。“感知”、“关系”和“转换”是三个相互交织并贯穿全文的主要问题，同时也是沉浸式艺术的研究基础。结合海德格尔“在世界上”(être-au-monde) 的观念来看，与其说“存在”，不如说人们沉浸并感知于这个世界中。然而，人们对周围环境的感知通常是无意识的，对于感知的认识也时常是冷漠和忽视的。沉浸式艺术使这些感觉得以被强调，它突出了个人的感知运动能力，同时也引起了人们对身体本身的重视。又如Bergson所提出的“投机性关注是建立在一种感知机制的基础上的，这种感知机制从根本上允许对世界进行一定行动而不是仅仅了解这个世界”。因此，对于一个完善的沉浸式审美体验过程来说，重要的是使观众自然地参与其中。当无意识的行为转换为肉眼可见的视觉效果时，审美体验将会更加深入人心。因此关于沉浸式艺术作品的创作，可以结合西方艺术家Marcel Duchamp的Ready-made的创作理念和中国道家的“无为”思想，研究怎样将被忽视的日常行为自然地转换为可见的，被重视的视觉效果，从而揭发主体与“世界”之间的多种潜在关系。     

A Flexi-PEGDA Upconversion Implant for Wireless Brain Photodynamic Therapy

Near-infrared (NIR) activatable upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) enable wireless-based phototherapies by converting deep-tissue-penetrating NIR to visible light. UCNPs are therefore ideal as wireless transducers for photodynamic therapy (PDT) of deep-sited tumors. However, the retention of unsequestered UCNPs in tissue with minimal options for removal limits their clinical translation. To address this shortcoming, biocompatible UCNPs implants are developed to deliver upconversion photonic properties in a flexible, optical guide design. To enhance its translatability, the UCNPs implant is constructed with an FDA-approved poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) core clad with fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP). The emission spectrum of the UCNPs implant can be tuned to overlap with the absorption spectra of the clinically relevant photosensitizer, 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA). The UCNPs implant can wirelessly transmit upconverted visible light till 8 cm in length and in a bendable manner even when implanted underneath the skin or scalp. With this system, it is demonstrated that NIR-based chronic PDT is achievable in an untethered and noninvasive manner in a mouse xenograft glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) model. It is postulated that such encapsulated UCNPs implants represent a translational shift for wireless deep-tissue phototherapy by enabling sequestration of UCNPs without compromising wireless deep-tissue light delivery.     

Contactless Spin Switch Sensing by Chemo-Electric Gating of Graphene

Direct electrical probing of molecular materials is often impaired by their insulating nature. Here, graphene is interfaced with single crystals of a molecular spin crossover complex, [Fe(bapbpy)(NCS)₂], to electrically detect phase transitions in the molecular crystal through the variation of graphene resistance. Contactless sensing is achieved by separating the crystal from graphene with an insulating polymer spacer. Next to mechanical effects, which influence the conductivity of the graphene sheet but can be minimized by using a thicker spacer, a Dirac point shift in graphene is observed experimentally upon spin crossover. As confirmed by computational modeling, this Dirac point shift is due to the phase-dependent electrostatic potential generated by the crystal inside the graphene sheet. This effect, named as chemo-electric gating, suggests that molecular materials may serve as substrates for designing graphene-based electronic devices. Chemo-electric gating, thus, opens up new possibilities to electrically probe chemical and physical processes in molecular materials in a contactless fashion, from a large distance, which can enhance their use in technological applications, for example, as sensors.     

Low-defect graphene–polyamide-6 composites and modeling the filler–matrix interface

Low-defect graphene (G) was prepared via the thermal reduction of expanded graphite in a carbon monoxide environment. G exfoliated and suspended in p-xylene was compounded in polyamide-6 (PA6) with filler content ranging from 0.1 to 6%·w/w. Interactions between G and PA6 were characterized via Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Elastic modulus (E) had increased with increasing G content, and had exceeded idealized Halpin–Tsai predictions at 0.1–1.0%·w/w G content, indicating good dispersion and filler–matrix interactions. However, further analysis with a modified rule-of-mixtures (RoM) mathematical model indicate that the quality of filler–matrix interface had been suboptimal and had deteriorated drastically with increasing G content. The evaluation of interface quality is in agreement with observed changes in thermal behavior trends. The modified RoM can be applied as a useful tool toward interpreting the mechanical properties of graphene-reinforced composites. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2020 , 137, 48630.     

SLA-aware operational efficiency in AI-enabled service chains: challenges ahead

Information Systems and e-Business Management - Service providers compose services in service chains that require deep integration of core operational information systems across organizations....     

Naming the colors: Color names designation from the colorimetric values. The French GPEM/PV work revisited

This publication describes a work related to the French language, for assigning a color name to an object whose colorimetric characteristics have been measured. This is the subject of a recently published book. The work is the result of an old publication by Afnor, the French standardization organization, work unfortunately obsolete by its colorimetric part. This publication describes the work that has been done to update it and make it convenient to use. The present text, by publishing some of the tables and graphs of the French book, presents the work done in French by a method that differs from that used by Kelly and Judd years ago.