Effect of polyethylenimine addition and washing on stability and electrophoretic deposition of Co3O4 nanoparticles

In this work, the parameters of cobalt oxide suspension such as conductivity, zeta potential, particle size, stability, and finally the electrophoretic behavior of particles in the absence and presence of polyethylenimine (PEI) in acetone medium were investigated. Also, the effects of washing on the stability and electrophoretic deposition of Co₃O₄ were studied. Characterization of the obtained layer by optical microscopy revealed that there was no deposition in the suspension without PEI, while a uniform layer was formed in the presence of PEI additive. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results confirmed the uniformity of layer obtained in acetone using PEI additive. Moreover, SEM results demonstrated that more porous microstructures were obtained at longer deposition durations. The difference in the porosity of the layers, as indicated by the SEM micrographs, is attributed to increase in the deposition time.     

High Critical Current YBa2Cu3O7−δ Thick Films on Improved Rolling-Assisted Biaxially Textured Substrates (RABiTS™)

YBa₂Cu₃O_7−δ (YBCO) films with thicknesses ranging from 1.0 to 6.4 μm were deposited by pulsed laser deposition on rolling-assisted biaxially textured substrates (RABiTS). The RABiTS were of the configuration CeO₂/YSZ/Y₂O₃/Ni–3 at.% W. As the YBCO film thickness increased, I _c continued to increase and reached ∼300 A/cm width for a 4.3 μm-thick YBCO film. Commonly observed mechanisms for J _c decrease with increasing YBCO film thickness were not observed. Homogeneous microstructures obtained in even the thickest YBCO films, suggest that the I _c/width can still be enhanced considerably.     

Electrophoretic deposition of TiO2 nanoparticles in viscous alcoholic media

In the present study, highly viscous alcoholic media, pentanol, hexanol and heptanol were used for electrophoretic deposition of ceramic (TiO₂) nanoparticles as a new approach in the EPD process. Optical and scanning electron microscopy of the obtained deposits at 50 V revealed that layers with a fairly uniform microstructure were obtained in pentanol and hexanol while the layer formed in heptanol suffered from lack of uniformity and did not cover the substrate even at higher voltages up to 200 V. It was also revealed by the atomic force microscope (AFM) studies that surface roughness of the deposited layers decreased with increasing suspension viscosity. This behavior was directly attributed to high viscosity of heptanol which strongly hinders particles movement through the media. The low dielectric constant of heptanol was also considered to decrease particle deposition.     

Preparation of Al2O3-SiO2 fine particles by CVD method in tube flow reactor

The aim of this study was the synthesis of mixed or coated multicomponent alumina-silica particles by chemical vapour deposition method in a tube flow reactor. The particles were produced by simultaneous thermal decomposition of aluminum tri-sec-butoxide and tetraethylorthosilicate in one reactor. The particle production was monitored by Differential Mobility Particle Sizer, composition of particles was analysed by energy dispersive X-ray analysis, morphology by scanning/transmission electron microscopy and crystallinity by selected area electron diffraction. In dependence on experimental conditions, the particles produced were either alumina particles with intermixture of silica, or they were coated by silica, or it was a mixture of particles of various compositions. The particles were often agglomerates of the primary nanoparticles and were partially crystalline.     

Crystallographic Orientation of Y2Ba4CuMOx (M=Nb, Zr, Ag) Nanoparticles Embedded in Bulk, Melt-Textured YBCO Studied by EBSD

Crystallographic orientations of Y–Ba–Cu–O (YBCO) and embedded Y₂Ba₄CuMO _x (M=Nb, Zr, Ag) nanoparticles in bulk, melt-textured YBCO samples are studied by electron backscatter diffraction. Y₂BaCuO₅ particles exhibit no preferred orientation but have a strong negative influence on the matrix orientation. In contrast, the nanoparticles do not disturb the texture of the YBCO matrix. Depending on the preparation route, a different particle orientation with respect to the matrix is obtained. Untextured nanoparticles are formed by solid-state reaction during the melt process by adding oxides (Nb₂O₅ or Y₂O₃) to the precursor powder. Preformed Y₂Ba₄CuMO _x particles added to the precursor in the form of prereacted nanopowder exhibit a dominant single orientation related to the surrounding YBCO matrix.     

Cathode plasma electrolytic deposition of Al2O3 coatings doped with SiC particles

Semiconductor particles doped Al₂O₃ coatings were prepared by cathode plasma electrolytic deposition in Al(NO₃)₃ electrolyte dispersed with SiC micro- and nano-particles (average particle sizes of 0.5–1.7?µm and 40?nm respectively). The effects of the concentrations and particle sizes of the SiC on the microstructures and tribological performances of the composite coatings were studied. In comparison with the case of dispersing with SiC microparticles, the dispersion of SiC nanoparticles in the coatings was more uniform. When the concentration of SiC nanoparticles was 5?g/L, the surface roughness of the composite coating was reduced by 63%, compared with that of the unmodified coating. Friction results demonstrated that the addition of 5?g/L SiC nanoparticles reduced the friction coefficient from 0.60 to 0.38 and decreased the wear volume under dry friction. The current density and bath voltage were measured to analyze the effects of SiC particles on the deposition process. The results showed that the SiC particles could alter the electrical behavior of the coatings during the deposition process, weaken the bombardment of the plasma, and improve the structures of the coatings.     

Influence of Solid Fraction on the Optimum Molecular Weight of Polymer Dispersants in Aqueous TiO2 Nanoparticle Suspensions

The effects of solid fraction and molecular weight of a polymer dispersant—sodium polyacrylate—on the apparent viscosity of an aqueous TiO₂ nanoparticle suspension were investigated by varying the particle solid fractions from 15 to 37 vol% and the molecular weight of the dispersant from 1200 to 30 000. When the solid fraction was increased, the molecular weight of the dispersant was decreased to obtain the lowest suspension viscosity. The effect of the molecular weight of the dispersant on the suspension viscosity was discussed based on the surface interaction between TiO₂ particles characterized by a colloid probe atomic force microscope. The polymer dispersant adsorbed on a particle surface enhanced the repulsive force between the TiO₂ particles and reduced adhesion by electrosteric interaction, which reduced the suspension viscosity. The size of the dispersant in the aqueous solution determined by a dynamic light scattering method was compared with the estimated particle surface distance. As the solid fraction increased, the average surface distance and the size of the dispersant attainable to the particle surface reduced; therefore, the optimum molecular weight of the dispersant for a dense suspension is also reduced.     

Particle‐laden liquid jet impingement on a moving substrate

The impingement of high speed jets on a moving surface was studied. The jet fluids were dilute suspensions of neutrally buoyant particles in water–glycerin solutions. At these low particle concentrations, the suspensions have Newtonian fluid viscosity. A variety of jet and surface velocities, solution properties, nozzle diameters, mean particle sizes, and volume fractions were studied. For each case the splash‐deposition threshold was quantified. It was observed that for jets with very small particles, addition of solids to the jet enhances deposition and postpones splash relative to a particle‐free water–glycerin solution with the same viscosity. In contrast, jets with larger particles in suspension were more prone to splash than single phase jets of the same viscosity. It is speculated that the change in character of the splash response for the jets with larger particles in suspension occurs when the particle diameter is comparable to the lamella thickness. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 63: 4673–4684, 2017     

Effect of Ultrasonic Treatment on the Crystallization Kinetic Parameters of BaNaB9O15 Glasses

Transparent glasses of BaNaB₉O₁₅ (BNBO) were fabricated via the conventional melt-quenching technique. X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) carried out on the as-quenched samples confirmed their amorphous and glassy nature, respectively. Nonisothermal crystallization processes in BNBO glasses before and after ultrasonic surface treatment (UST) with suspension of BNBO particles in acetone medium have been investigated using DSC. Kinetic parameters were determined by using modified Johnson–Mehl–Avrami equations. The computed values of kinetic parameters of the samples before and after UST were compared. The values for the onset of crystallization temperature, activation energy and Avrami exponent were found to be lower for ultrasonic-treated samples. The activation energies for the nucleation and crystallization of BNBO glasses were also determined.     

微颗粒实时在线监测仪在固液体系测量中的应用

使用自研的微颗粒实时在线监测仪对微颗粒在液相中的悬浮和沉降过程进行了在线定量测量研究。首先,通过与商用离线仪器Multisizer 4e的对比验证了自研的微颗粒监测仪实时、在线测量的可靠性。然后,选用了标准物质乳胶微球、Al₂O₃和 ZrO₂三种密度不同的百微米量级的微颗粒,对磁力搅拌器中稳定转速下的悬浮特性以及搅拌停止后颗粒的重力沉降过程进行实时在线观测,得到了这两种情形下测量点的颗粒浓度和粒度分布信息。实验结果表明,即使搅拌速度超过临界悬浮转速,搅拌容器中的Al₂O₃颗粒仍存在不同程度的非均匀分布状态,呈现出一定的浓度和粒度分布。在重力沉降的瞬变过程中,固体颗粒的粒径和密度在固液两相分离的过程中有着显著的作用。     

Processing Dependence of Texture, and Critical Properties of YBa2Cu3O7−δ Films on RABiTS Substrates by a Non-Fluorine MOD Method

YBa₂Cu₃O_{7− δ} (YBCO or Y123) films on rolling-assisted biaxially textured substrates (RABiTS) were prepared via a fluorine-free metallorganic deposition (MOD) through spin coating, burnout, and high temperature anneal. The effects of substrate texture and surface energy of the CeO₂ cap layer were investigated. Except for the commonly accepted key factors, such as the textures of substrate and buffer layers, we found some other factors, for example, the deposition temperature of the cap layer, are also critical to the epitaxial growth of Y123 phase. With the CeO₂ cap layer deposited at relative high temperature of 700°C, a critical current density, J _c, over 1 MA/cm² has been demonstrated for the first time on Ni-RABiTS by a fluorine-free MOD method. Whereas for samples with CeO₂ cap layers deposited at a lower temperature of 600°C, even though XRD data showed a better texture on these buffer layers, texture degradations of YBCO grains under the optimized processing conditions were observed and a lower oxygen partial pressure around 40 ppm was necessary for the epitaxial growth of Y123 phase. As a result, J _c fell to 0.45 MA/cm² at 77 K. The observed phenomena points to the change of surface energy and reactivity of the CeO₂ cap layer with respect to the CeO₂ deposition temperature. In this paper, the YBCO phase diagram was also summarized.     

Migration and Deposition of Submicron Particles in Crossflow Microfiltration

Abstract

The migration and deposition of submicron particles in laminar crossflow microfiltration is simulated by integrating the Langevin equation. The effects of operating conditions on the particle trajectories are discussed. It is found that the Brownian motion of particles plays an important role in particle migration under a smaller crossflow velocity of suspension or a smaller filtration rate. Based on the simulated trajectories of particles, the transported flux of particles arriving at the membrane surface can be estimated. The particle flux increases with an increase of filtration rate and with a decrease of particle diameter; however, the effect of crossflow velocity on the particle flux is not obvious. The forces exerted on particles are analyzed to estimate the probability of particle deposition on the membrane surface. The probability of particle deposition increases with an increase of filtration rate, with a decrease of crossflow velocity, with a decrease of particle diameter, or with an increase of zeta potential on the particle surfaces. The simulated results of packing structures of particles on the membrane surface at the initial stage of filtration show that a looser packing can be found under a larger crossflow velocity, a smaller filtration rate, or a smaller diameter of filtered particles. Crossflow micro-filtration experiments are carried out to demonstrate the reliability of the proposed theory. The deviation between the predicted and experimental data of filtration rate at the initial period of filtration is less than 10% when the Reynolds number of the suspension flow ranges from 100 to 500.     

Effect of dispersion states (electrostatic/electrosteric stabilization) on particles arrangement in the yttria-stabilized zirconia sediments

In the present work, particle arrangement and their packing in the sediment layer of zirconia suspension were studied. To evaluate the particle settling, aqueous suspensions of zirconia nanoparticles were prepared in different dispersion states. In one state, Dolapix CE64 was used as a dispersant to provide electrosteric mechanism. In another state, pH of the suspension was adjusted at 4 to provide electrostatic mechanism. The other state was the combination of dispersant and pH adjustment which resulted in the most stable suspension. First of all, the stability of all dispersion states was evaluated by zeta potential, sediment volume (SV) and height, viscosity, and packing density (PD). Then, the sediment layers of all suspensions were characterized. Incorporation of electrostatic mechanism was resulted in a main decrease in viscosity with high surface charges, while electrosteric mechanism caused lower sedimentation of particles. Fall velocities of particles/agglomerates were estimated, and the influences of dispersion states on the particles fall velocities were characterized. The microstructural observation revealed homogeneous packing of particles in the sediment layer of the stable suspension demonstrating the proper dispersion of particles. Dolapix CE64 and pH adjustment resulted in a uniform arrangement of particles without agglomeration and spherical and regular granules with a uniform shape.     

Hydrodechlorination of CCl4 over Pt/Al2O3: effects of platinum particle size on product distribution

The impregnated platinum catalysts showed various platinum particle sizes depending on the nature of the platinum precursors (Pt(NH₃)₂(NO₂)₂ versus H₂PtCl₆) and on the pH of the Al₂O₃ suspension. The average platinum particle size increased with decrease in pH of the suspension in case of Pt(NH₃)₂(NO₂)₂, but this trend was vice versa for H₂PtCl₆. The product distribution in hydrodechlorination (HDC) of CCl₄ varied greatly with the platinum particle size; the larger the platinum particle size was, the higher was the selectivity to CHCl₃. To elucidate the origin of this platinum particle size effect on product distribution, CO chemisorption, NH₃ and CO₂ temperature-programmed desorption (TPD), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), temperature-programmed surface reaction (TPSR), Fourier-transformed-infrared spectra (FT-IR) and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) experiments were carried out. The formation of completely dechlorinated CH₄ was favorable owing to the strong chemisorption of CCl₄ on the small platinum particles characterized by low surface coordination numbers and by an electron-deficient property. The nature of carbonaceous species formed on platinum surface at the beginning of reaction also varied greatly with platinum particle sizes and changes of electronic state of platinum particles affected catalytic activity and products’ distribution.     

Particle size separation by alternating electrophoretic deposition

This paper describes a study of the size distribution of the particles deposited under different frequencies by alternating electrophoretic deposition. A low concentration suspension of SnO₂ particles was prepared in acetone and particles of SnO₂ were deposited on electrodes by the low frequency alternating electrophoretic deposition method. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that increasing the frequency from 0 to 1000 Hz reduces the average size of the SnO₂ particles deposited. Particle size distributions obtained from the SEM images show the sizing capability of the alternating electrophoretic deposition method.     

Vacuum thermal treated electroless NiP-TiO2 composite coatings

Composite NiP-TiO₂ layers were prepared by simultaneous electroless deposition of Ni-P and TiO₂ on steel substrate, from a solution in which TiO₂ particles were kept in suspension by stirring. Deposits were characterized for its structure, morphology and hardness. It was found that the chemical composition of Ni-P matrix has been influenced by the incorporation of TiO₂ particles. TiO₂ particle incorporation increases with increase in their bath concentrations (0.5-2.0 g/l). An improvement (up to 20%) in microhardness was observed in both as plated and vacuum heat-treated composite coatings compared to Ni-P coatings. Electroless deposited composite coatings exhibit an amorphous structure of the nickel matrix in which crystalline titanium oxide is incorporated. Vacuum heat treatment leads to the formation of a crystalline layer in which the Ni and Ni₃P crystallites appear apart from those of the TiO₂ (anatase). Potentiodynamic polarization measurements made on these deposits in 3.5 wt.% sodium chloride solution showed decrease in the corrosion resistance for the as-plated and heat-treated composite coatings.     

Processing and Characterization of Porous TiO2 Coatings

Titania coatings were prepared by spin coating anhydrous titanium ethoxide solutions onto Si substrates. During deposition, Ti ethoxide in the solution layer reacted with atmospheric moisture to form precipitated particles. The resulting microstructures were composed of a network of particles and particle clusters. The induction time for precipitation, the particle diameter, and the size and packing of particle clusters were influenced by the Ti concentration in the sol and the spinning rate used for deposition. Individual particle sizes ranged from ∼150 to 250 nm. Smaller particles and more compact particle clusters were characteristic of coatings prepared from solutions with lower Ti concentrations and those prepared using faster spinning rates. Asdeposited coatings were amorphous and crystallized into the anatase phase at ∼400°C. Transformation to the rutile phase began at ∼850°C, and the transformation rate was influenced by the microstructure.     

Electrophoretic Deposition and Characterization of Micrometer-Scale BaTiO3 Based X7R Dielectric Thick Films

Uniform and relatively dense BaTiO₃ thick films of 1–5 μm were prepared by an electrophoretic deposition process using submicrometer BaTiO₃ powders (mean particle size: ∼0.2 μm). Two different BaTiO₃ powders and solvent media were used to investigate the film quality and thickness control. The surface charge mechanism of BaTiO₃ particles was explained according to the observed results. The microstructures were examined by means of SEM. The experimental results show that the thickness could be controlled independently of suspension concentration by keeping a constant applied voltage and a constant current drop in a given suspension. BaTiO₃ thick films have good insulation resistance and dielectric properties such as a dielectric constant and a dissipation factor that are compatible with the data from conventional tape-cast BaTiO₃ thin layers.     

Deep oxidation of VOC mixtures with platinum supported on Al2O3/Al monoliths

Pt impregnated metallic monoliths prepared from anodised aluminium foils were tested to study their catalytic activity in complete oxidation of volatile organic compound (VOC) mixtures. The VOCs oxidised were 2-propanol, toluene, methyl ethyl ketone (MEK), acetone and their mixtures. Complete oxidation was obtained in all cases except for the case of 2-propanol, where acetone was found as an oxidation intermediate. Even if the adsorption of the VOC on the Al₂O₃ is governed by its polarity, the reactivity is mainly affected by the competition of the oxygen atoms chemisorbed on the Pt particles.     

纤维过滤滤饼孔隙率计算机模拟

基于受限扩散模型,建立纤维介质表面粉尘颗粒沉积形成滤饼的模拟模型。粉尘颗粒在远离过滤介质的控制面上释放,假设对流扩散运动为颗粒输送和沉积的主要机理。定义Pe数为颗粒对流作用与扩散运动的比值,讨论不同Pe数对滤饼孔隙率的影响。对Pe数范围为0.25~1600进行模拟计算结果表明,Pe数对滤饼的孔隙率影响显著。当颗粒的扩散运动强于对流运动,颗粒沉积形成的滤饼为较为松散的结构,当Pe数较大时,颗粒沉积形成的滤饼为较为紧密的堆积结构。此外,考虑到实际过滤过程中粉尘颗粒大多为非等径粒子,也对多分散粒子对滤饼形成及孔隙率的影响作了分析。