Preparation of high-purity SiC ceramics with good plasma corrosion resistance by hot-pressing sintering

High-purity SiC ceramic devices are applied in semiconductor industry owing to their outstanding properties. Nevertheless, it is difficult to densify SiC ceramics without any sintering additive even by HP sintering. In this work, high-purity and dense SiC ceramics were fabricated by HP sintering with very low amounts of sintering aids. Residual B content was only 556 ppm and relative density was more than 99.5%. Furthermore, thermal conductivity of as-prepared SiC ceramics was improved from 155 W m^?1 K^?1 to 167 W m^?1 K^?1 by increasing holding time and their plasma corrosion resistance was promoted in the meantime. The as-prepared high-purity SiC ceramics have broad application prospects in the field of semiconductor industry.     

Lipidomic Analysis of Plasma from Healthy Men and Women Shows Phospholipid Class and Molecular Species Differences between Sexes

The phospholipid composition of lipoproteins is determined by the specificity of hepatic phospholipid biosynthesis. Plasma phospholipid 20:4n-6 and 22:6n-3 concentrations are higher in women than in men. We used this sex difference in a lipidomics analysis of the impact of endocrine factors on the phospholipid class and molecular species composition of fasting plasma from young men and women. Diester species predominated in all lipid classes measured. 20/54 Phosphatidylcholine (PtdCho) species were alkyl ester, 15/48 phosphatidylethanolamine (PtdEtn) species were alkyl ester, and 12/48 PtdEtn species were alkenyl ester. There were no significant differences between sexes in the proportions of alkyl PtdCho species. The proportion of alkyl ester PtdEtn species was greater in women than men, while the proportion of alkenyl ester PtdEtn species was greater in men than women. None of the phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns) or phosphatidylserine (PtdSer) molecular species contained ether-linked fatty acids. The proportion of PtdCho16:0_22:6, and the proportions of PtdEtn O-16:0_20:4 and PtdEtn O-18:2_20:4 were greater in women than men. There were no sex differences in PtdIns and PtdSer molecular species compositions. These findings show that plasma phospholipids can be modified by sex. Such differences in lipoprotein phospholipid composition could contribute to sexual dimorphism in patterns of health and disease.     

Designing independent water transport channels to improve water flooding in ultra-thin nanoporous film cathodes for PEMFCs

Utilization of 3D nanostructured Pt cathodes could obviously improve performances of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) owing to the reduced tortuosity and the bi-continuous nanoporous structure. However, these cathodes usually suffer from the flooding problem ascribed to the ionomer-free and nanoscale pores which are more susceptible to water condensation. In this paper, ultra-thin nanoporous metal films (100 nm) were utilized to construct PEMFC cathodes and independent transport channels were designed separately for water and gas aiming at the flooding problem. Nanoporous gold (NPG) film was used as the model support for loading Pt nanoparticles owing to its controllable and stable structure. After optimizing the polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) content and carbon loading in the gas diffusion layer (GDL), plasma treatment under O₂ atmosphere was used to pattern the GDL with independent water transport channels. The obtained liquid permeation coefficients and oxygen gains demonstrated the obviously improved water and O₂ transport. By using a home-made optimized GDL and a nanoporous film cathode with pore size ～60 nm, the flooding problem could be facilely solved. With a Pt loading of ～16 μg cm^?2, this 3D nanostructured cathode exhibits a PEMFC performance of ～957 mW cm^?2 at 80 °C. The Pt power efficiency is about 4 times higher than that of the commercial Pt/C cathode (50 μg cm^?2, 756 mW cm^?2). Obviously, this study provides a simple but effective methodology to solve the water flooding problem in the ultra-thin nanoporous film cathodes which is applicable for other types of 3D nanostructured PEMFC cathodes.     

Hydroxyapatite/bioactive glass functionally graded materials (FGM) for bone tissue engineering

In this work, HA/bioactive glass Functionally Graded Materials (FGMs) are obtained for the first time by means of Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS). Two series of highly dense 5 layered products, namely FGMS1 and FGMS2, are prepared under optimized SPS conditions, i.e. 1000 °C/2 min/16 MPa and 800 °C/2 min/50 MPa, respectively, using a die with varying cross section.Results arising from XRD, SEM, mechanical and biological characterization in SBF, evidence that lower temperature and higher-pressure levels used for FGMS2 samples provide better materials in terms of microstructure, compactness, hardness, elastic modulus and in vitro bioactivity. Indeed, a fully sintered and crack-free microstructure with no crystallisation at the top layer (100% bioactive glass) is correspondingly produced.The obtainment of such FGMs is quite promising, since it permits to vary the relative volume fractions of the two constituents and, consequently, tailor the biological response for specific clinical applications.     

Systematic optimization of corrosion,bioactivity, and biocompatibility behaviors of calcium-phosphate plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) coatings on titanium substrates

To optimize the corrosion, bioactivity, and biocompatibility behaviors of plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) coatings on titanium substrates, the effects of five process variables including frequency, current density, duty cycle, treatment time, and electrolyte Ca/P ratio were evaluated. In our systematic study, a Taguchi design of experimental based on an L16 orthogonal array was used. For this, the coatings characteristics such as the surface roughness, wettability, rutile to anatase and Ca/P ratios, and corrosion polarization resistance were investigated. After determining the optimum process variables for each response, the apatite forming ability in SBF (bioactivity behavior) and MG63 cell attachment and flattening (biocompatibility behavior) for two groups of coatings were examined. The first group was optimized based on the maximum corrosion polarization resistance and the variables were set as the frequency of 2000 Hz, the current density of 5 A/dm², the duty cycle of 30%, the treatment time of 5 min, and the Ca/P ratio of 0.65 at. % in the electrolyte. For the second group, the maximum surface roughness, greatest Ca/P ratio, and highest wettability as well as the minimum rutile to anatase ratio in coatings, could be obtained when the variables were set as the frequency of 10 Hz, the current density of 12.5 A/dm², the duty cycle of 50%, the treatment time of 12.5 min, and the Ca/P ratio of 1.70 at. % in the electrolyte. The results showed that while both groups of coatings indicated a significant apatite forming ability and can serve as bioactive coatings, a proper attachment and flattening of cells and consequently, the favorable biocompatibility properties were seen only in the first group.     

两种3D打印用雾化Ti-6Al-4V粉末的对比研究

本研究分别利用水冷铜坩埚真空感应熔炼气雾化(VIGA-CC)和等离子旋转电极(PREP)两种技术制备出球形Ti-6Al-4V合金粉末,作者利用SEM、同步辐射CT扫描-三维重建和氩气含量测试等分析手段对不同粒径的Ti-6Al-4V合金粉末的孔洞缺陷和氩气含量、硬度值进行了表征。实验结果表明, VIGA-CC粉末粒度分布宽,细粉收得率较多,粉末粒度分布在40~180 μm之间, PREP粉末的粒度分布较窄,主要集中在110~180 μm之间；金属粉末内部的孔隙率、气体含量和孔尺寸随着粉末粒度的增大而增大,且同一粒径范围内VIGA-CC粉末的气孔概率多于PREP粉末；随着粉末粒径减小,粉末截面组织逐渐细化,其硬度值逐渐升高,整体上VIGA-CC粉末硬度值高于PREP粉末。     

Phase transition and interface evolution of Al2O3/ZrO2 particles in plasma-sprayed coatings

Alumina and zirconia ceramic particles exhibit high hardness and excellent wear resistance at high temperature, and hence are used as ceramic reinforcement phases in some plasma sprayed coatings. In this study, the interface evolution of a zirconia/alumina eutectic ceramic and the phase transition of zirconia in a plasma-sprayed coating were investigated. Scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy combined with focused-ion beam and energy dispersive X-ray were used to analyze the microstructure and composition of the ceramic interface. The results showed that the eutectic ceramic particles consisted of alumina (outer) and columnar zirconia (inner) before and after the plasma spraying process. The inner zirconia part showed the martensitic transformation of t-type zirconia to stripe-like m-type zirconia. After the plasma spraying, the interface between alumina and zirconia changed significantly, which formed a new oxide layer. The phase transition mechanism in the ceramic particle and oxide layer formation mechanism at the alumina/zirconia interface were investigated.     

Ni-Fe layered double hydroxide derived catalysts for non-plasma and DBD plasma-assisted CO2 methanation

A series of bi-metallic layered double hydroxide derived materials, containing a fixed amount of Ni promoted with various amounts of Fe were obtained by co-precipitation. The synthesized materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), temperature-programmed reduction (H₂-TPR), temperature-programmed desorption of CO₂ (CO₂-TPD), elemental analysis and low temperature N₂ sorption and tested as catalysts in CO₂ methanation at atmospheric pressure. The obtained results confirmed the formation of mixed nano-oxides after thermal decomposition of the precursor and suggest successful introduction of both nickel and iron into the layers of Layered Double Hydroxides (LDHs). The introduction of Fe into the layered double hydroxides changed the interaction between Ni and supports matrix as proven by temperature programmed reduction (H₂-TPR). The introduction of low amount of iron influenced positively the catalytic activity in CO₂ methanation at 250 °C, with CO₂ conversion increasing from 21% to 72% with CH₄ selectivity ranging from 97 to 99% at 250 °C. No other products, except CH₄ and CO were registered during the experiments. In order to enhance the catalytic activity a non-thermal plasma created by dielectric barrier discharge was applied. The obtained results prove that plasma could replace the need of heating the reactor in a dynamic system working temporarily when excess energy is available.     

HA/β-TCP plasma sprayed coatings on Ti substrate for biomedical applications

The present work focuses on the fabrication of βTCP (β-tricalcium phosphate) and HA/βTCP (hydroxyapatite/β-tricalcium phosphate) composite coatings by plasma spraying. The starting powders were produced via solid-state method using 2 wt% MgO to stabilize βTCP phase. The synthesized powders were preliminarily granulated to be used by the plasma spray process. Coatings obtained on titanium substrates are uniform and well adherent but due to the high temperature and cooling rate typical for plasma spraying process, βTCP phase is almost totally transformed into the α allotrope. Thermal treatment at 800 °C allows the reconversion of the phase αTCP→ βTCP. It is therefore possible to produce coatings with tuneable dissolution properties by selecting the proper initial powder mixture and the specific thermal treatment.     

Highly textured and strongly anisotropic TiB2 ceramics prepared using magnetic field alignment (9T)

Highly textured TiB₂ ceramics were prepared by slip casting an aqueous suspension in a magnetic field of 9 T, followed by sintering using Field Assisted Sintering Technology (FAST). Particle size refinement by ball milling improved both the degree of texturing and densification of the material (RD > 98 %). The sintered material exhibited a Lotgering orientation factor of 0.90, with the c-axis of TiB₂ oriented parallel to the magnetic field and FAST pressing direction. The texturing effect induced by the uniaxial pressing was negligible. The textured TiB₂ material exhibited a significant anisotropy in mechanical properties; the values of hardness and indentation elastic modulus measured along directions transverse to the c-axis of TiB₂ were 37 % and 13 % higher than the ones measured along the c-axis direction. Moreover, the specific wear rate of a surface of textured TiB₂ parallel to the field was one order of magnitude lower than a surface perpendicular to the field.