Grafting poly(t‐butyl acrylate) to poly(allylamine) by inverse microemulsion radical polymerization: From comb‐polymer to amphiphilic shell crosslinked polymer nanocapsule

An interfacial grafting radical polymerization method for amphiphilic comb copolymer and shell crosslinked polymer nanocapsules was reported. Macropolyradicals on a water soluble long chain polyamine were generated with hydrogen peroxide in the water phase and subsequent grafting radical polymerization of a vinylic monomer at the water/oil interface proceeded at 65°C. In the presence of a crosslinker, the resulting graft copolymer formed a defined core‐shell structure with hydrophilic aqueous core functionalized by the polyamine and a hydrophobic crosslinked polymer shell. The structure of the core‐shell material was characterized by NMR, FTIR, DSC, TGA, SEM, TEM, and the mechanism of the graft polymerization is proposed. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 104: 1905–1911, 2007     

Water Penetration—Its Effect on the Strength and Toughness of Silica Glass

When a crack forms in silica glass, the surrounding environment flows into the crack opening, and water from the environment reacts with the glass to promote crack growth. A chemical reaction between water and the strained crack-tip bonds is commonly regarded as the cause of subcritical crack growth in glass. In silica glass, water can also have a secondary effect on crack growth. By penetrating into the glass, water generates a zone of swelling and, hence, creates a compression zone around the crack tip and on the newly formed fracture surfaces. This zone of compression acts as a fracture mechanics shield to the stresses at the crack tip, modifying both the strength and subcritical crack growth resistance of the glass. Water penetration is especially apparent in silica glass because of its low density and the fact that it contains no modifier ions. Using diffusion data from the literature, we show that the diffusion of water into silica glass can explain several significant experimental observations that have been reported on silica glass, including (1) the strengthening of silica glass by soaking the glass in water at elevated temperatures, (2) the observation of permanent crack face displacements near the crack tip of a silica specimen that had been soaked in water under load, and (3) the observation of high concentrations of water close to the fracture surfaces that had been formed in water. These effects are consistent with a model suggesting that crack growth in silica glass is modified by a physical swelling of the glass around the crack tip. An implication of water-induced swelling during fracture is that silica glass is more resistant to crack growth than it would be if swelling did not occur.     

Design of a cancelable biometric template protection scheme for fingerprints based on cryptographic hash functions

Multimedia Tools and Applications - Enforcing security and privacy guarantees for biometric users via protecting their unique and personalized attributes is an important area of research. There are...     

Fe-Zn Alloy Coating on Galvannealed (GA) Steel Sheet to Improve Product Qualities

Galvannealed steel sheets (GA) have become the mainstream steel sheet for automobile applications because of their superior corrosion resistance, paintability, and weldability. To impart specific properties, different coatings on GA steel sheet were reported to improve properties further. In this context, we have developed an electroplating process (flash coating) for bright and adherent Fe-Zn alloy coating on GA steel sheet to enhance performances such as weldability, frictional behavior, phosphatability, and defect coverage. A comparative study with bare GA steel sheet was carried out for better elastration. The electroplating time was reduced below 10 s for practical applicability in an industrial coating line by modulating the bath composition. Electroplating was performed at current density of 200-500 A/m² which yielded with higher cathode current efficiency of 85-95%. The performance results show that Fe-10 wt.% Zn-coated GA steel sheet (coating time 7 s) has better spot weldability, lower dynamic coefficient of friction (0.06-0.07 in lubrication), and better corrosion resistance compared to bare GA steel sheet. Uniform phosphate coating with globular crystal size of 2-5 µm was obtained on Fe-Zn flash-coated GA steel sheet. Hopeite was the main phosphate compound (77.9 wt.%) identified along with spencerite (13.6 wt.%) and phosphophyllite (8.5 wt.%).     

Counterfeit Integrated Circuits: Detection,Avoidance, and the Challenges Ahead

The counterfeiting of electronic components has become a major challenge in the 21st century. The electronic component supply chain has been greatly affected by widespread counterfeit incidents. A specialized service of testing, detection, and avoidance must be created to tackle the worldwide outbreak of counterfeit integrated circuits (ICs). So far, there are standards and programs in place for outlining the testing, documenting, and reporting procedures. However, there is not yet enough research addressing the detection and avoidance of such counterfeit parts. In this paper we will present, in detail, all types of counterfeits, the defects present in them, and their detection methods. We will then describe the challenges to implementing these test methods and to their effectiveness. We will present several anti-counterfeit measures to prevent this widespread counterfeiting, and we also consider the effectiveness and limitations of these anti-counterfeiting techniques.     

Surfaces formed by subcritical crack growth in silicate glasses

The topography of surfaces formed in glass by subcritical crack growth was investigated by a method of mapping using atomic force microscopy. The objective of the study was to determine how well “upper” and “lower” surfaces matched after having been formed by a crack moving at slow velocity. The question arose, were features left in the fracture surfaces of silicate glasses that would indicate the formation of cavities during the fracture process? Studies were performed on silica glass and soda-lime-silicate glass. Fracture surfaces were formed either in water or in moist environments at velocities that ranged from 10^?2 m/s down to 10^?10 m/s. This procedure covered almost the entire range of velocities used for subcritical crack growth experiments in glass. Opposing fracture surfaces formed during our studies were found to “match” over the entire range of velocities and for all environments studied. For silica glass, the surfaces were found to match to an accuracy of better than 0.3 nm normal to the fracture surface and 5 nm within the fracture surface. For soda-lime-silicate glass, surfaces were found to match to an accuracy of 0.5 nm to 0.8 nm normal to the fracture surface and 5 nm within the fracture surface. Within these limits, no evidence for cavitation was found in either glass.     

ABSORPTION OF ASPHALT INTO POROUS AGGREGATES: TEST OF A SIMPLE PHYSICOCHEMICAL MODEL

Absorption is the process in which asphalt flows into a porous aggregate, under the driving force of capillary pressure. Asphalt absorption is of interest because it represents an economic loss of effective binder, and because it may change the properties of the resulting asphalt film and lead to premature pavement distress. Incorrect air voids estimation may also result from failure to properly account for asphalt absorption in pavement design. The objective of this research was to determine the temporal dependence of absorption upon asphalt and aggregate properties and to test a rational model for this dependence.

Absorption data were obtained for several model liquids and asphalts with synthetic alumina aggregates and a natural limestone aggregate. The data were used to test a simple absorption model incorporating the effects of asphalt and aggregate properties into a single dimensionless time variable.

While quantitative agreement was not obtained in all aspects of the model, certain predictions of the model were verified. The general shape of the absorption data followed the model prediction for synthetic alumina spheres. The effect of viscosity and surface tension was correlated fairly well by the surface tension/virosity factor in the dimensionless time variable

The use of the dimensionless time variable was able to reduce the time span for absorption from ca. four order of magnitude to only ca. one order of magnitude; although, there remained a significant variation in some of the absorption data, probably caused by differences in the contact angles for the various Liquids.

The absorption behavior with a natural Iowa limestone did not follow the shape of the theoretical curve predicted by the model. This deviation is thought to be c a d by the presence of air in the pores coupled with the large and polydisperse pore size of this aggregate     

Exceptional Flame Resistance and Gas Barrier with Thick Multilayer Nanobrick Wall Thin Films

Layer‐by‐layer (LbL) assembly is a powerful and versatile technique to deposit functional thin films, but often requires a large number of deposition steps to achieve a film thick enough to provide a desired property. By incorporating amine salts into the cationic polyelectrolyte and its associated rinse, LbL clay‐containing nanocomposite films can achieve much greater thickness (>1 μm) with relatively few deposition cycles (≤6 bilayers). Amine salts interact with nanoclays, causing nanoplatelets to deposit in stacks rather than as individual platelets. This technique appears to be universal, exhibiting thick growth with multiple types of nanoclay, including montmorillonite and vermiculite (VMT), and a variety of amine salts (e.g., hexylamine and diethanolamine). The characteristic order found in LbL‐assembled films is maintained despite the incredible thickness. Films assembled in this manner achieve oxygen transmission rates below 0.009 cc m⁻² d⁻¹ atm⁻¹ with just 6 bilayers (BLs) of chitosan/VMT deposited. These thick clay‐based thin films also impart exceptional flame resistance. A 2‐BL film renders a 3.2 mm polystyrene plate self‐extinguishing, while an 8‐BL film (3.9 μm thick) prevents ignition entirely. This ability to generate much thicker clay‐based multilayers with amine salts opens up tremendous potential for these nanocoatings in real world applications.