A new tactics to fabricate flexible nanobelts with enhanced magnetic–luminescent bifunction

Novel magnetic–photoluminescent bifunctional [Fe₃O₄@Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺]/polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) flexible composite nanobelts were successfully prepared by electrospinning via dispersing Fe₃O₄@Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺ core–shell structured nanoparticles (NPs) into the PMMA matrix. The morphology, structure and properties of the flexible composite nanobelts were investigated by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, vibrating sample magnetometry and fluorescence spectroscopy. The width and thickness of [Fe₃O₄@Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺]/PMMA composite nanobelts are 3.58 ± 0.29 and 1.2 μm, respectively. Fluorescence emission peaks of Eu³⁺ in [Fe₃O₄@Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺]/PMMA flexible composite nanobelts are observed and assigned to the energy levels transitions of ⁵D₀ → ⁷F₀ (580 nm), ⁵D₀ → ⁷F₁ (533, 586, 592, 599 nm), ⁵D₀ → ⁷F₂ (612 nm) and ⁵D₀ → ⁷F₃ (629 nm) of Eu³⁺ ions. Compared with Fe₃O₄/Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺/PMMA nanobelts, [Fe₃O₄@Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺]/PMMA flexible composite nanobelts possess much stronger luminescent intensity. The as-prepared flexible composite nanobelts exhibit excellent magnetism and photoluminescent performance. The intensities of magnetism and luminescence of the flexible composite nanobelts can be simultaneously tuned by adjusting the amount of Fe₃O₄@Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺ NPs introduced into the nanobelts. The high performance [Fe₃O₄@Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺]/PMMA flexible composite nanobelts have potential applications in the fields of cell separation, magnetic resonance imaging, drug deliver and future nanodevices.     

Photoluminescence–electricity–magnetism trifunction simultaneously assembled into one flexible nanofiber

In order to develop new-typed multifunctional composite nanofibers, Eu(BA)₃phen/PANI/Fe₃O₄/PVP trifunctional composite nanofibers with photoluminescence, electricity and magnetism have been successfully fabricated via electrospinning technology. Polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) is used as a matrix to construct composite nanofibers containing different amounts of Eu(BA)₃phen, polyaniline (PANI) and magnetite Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles (NPs). X-ray diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, vibrating sample magnetometry, fluorescence spectroscopy and Hall effect measurement system are used to characterize the morphology and properties of the obtained composite nanofibers. The results indicate that the trifunctional composite nanofibers possess excellent luminescent, electrical conductivity and magnetic properties. Fluorescence emission peaks of Eu³⁺ are observed in the Eu(BA)₃phen/PANI/Fe₃O₄/PVP photoluminescent-electrical-magnetism trifunctional composite nanofibers and assigned to the of ⁵D₀ → ⁷F₀ (580 nm), ⁵D₀ → ⁷F₁ (593 nm) of Eu³⁺, and the ⁵D₀ → ⁷F₂ hypersensitive transition at 615 nm is the predominant emission peak. The electrical conductivity reaches up to the order of 10^?3 S/cm. The luminescent intensity, electrical conductivity and saturation magnetization of the composite nanofibers can be tunable by adding various amounts of Eu(BA)₃phen, PANI and Fe₃O₄ NPs. The multifunctional composite nanofibers are expected to possess many potential applications in areas such as electromagnetic interference shielding, microwave absorption, molecular electronics and biomedicine.     

A new nanostructured material based on fluorophosphate incorporated into a zinc–aluminium layered double hydroxide by ion exchange

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs), also called anionic clays, consist of cationic brucite-like layers and exchangeable interlayer anions. These hydrotalcite-like compounds, with Zn and Al in the layers and chloride in the interlayer space, were prepared following the coprecipitation method at constant pH. The effect of pH, aging time and anion concentration on the intercalation of fluorophosphate \((\hbox {PO}_{3}\hbox {F}^{2-}\), FP) in the [Zn–Al] LDH was investigated. The best crystalline material, with high exchange extent, was obtained by carrying out the exchange at 25\({^{\circ }}\hbox {C}\) in a 0.03 M FP solution at pH 7 with at least 42 h of aging time. A mechanism for the FP intercalation was confirmed by X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetry (TG) analyses (TG and DTG curves).     

A new analytical model of normal penetration of projectiles into the light-weight ceramic–metal targets

In this paper based on Zaera and Sanchez-Galvez [4] model, a new analytical model has been presented for penetration of deformable projectiles into ceramic–metal targets. By considering erosion and flattening of projectile tip, the one-dimensional equation of motion has been established. The momentum equation has been employed to describe the fragmented ceramic conoid. Considering work hardening material behavior, energy conservation equation has also been used for modeling the deformation of back-up metallic plate. Semi-angle of ceramic conoid is modified based on Wilson and Hetherington [8] experiments. The ballistic limit and residual velocity of projectile predicted by new analytical model have a good agreement with the experimental results.     

A flexible route to high strength α-alumina and aluminate spheres

The formation of hollow alumina spheres is accomplished by coating polystyrene beads of 3 m and 50–80 m diameter with carboxylic acid functionalized alumina nanoparticles (alumoxanes) from aqueous solution 2–8 wt%. The resulting coated beads were heated to 220°C to calcine the alumoxane to porous amorphous alumina before washing with toluene to remove the polystyrene from inside the ceramic coating. The resulting hollow spheres were sintered at 1000°C to form -alumina. The -alumina spheres have been characterized, by SEM (scanning electron microscopy), BET, and hardness measurements, that show the hardness of the hollow alumina sphere (1900 ± 100 Kg.mm^–2) approaches that of corundum (ca. 2000 Kg.mm^–2). Multilayered bi-phasic spheres may be prepared by subsequent coating the -alumina spheres with a solution of a metal-doped alumoxane. After calcining, the mixed metal oxide phase (CaAl₁₂O₁₉, Er₆Al₁₀O₂₄, MgAl₂O₄, Al₂TiO₅, and Y₃Al₅O₁₂) forms outside of the alumina sphere resulting in a composite like ceramic bi-layer sphere. Pre-formed hollow alumina spheres were incorporated into a resin and ceramic thin film formed from a 1 wt% A-alumoxane aqueous solution. The hardness of the composites is compared to the matrix materials themselves.     

A novel shortened electrospun nanofiber modified with a ‘concentrated’ polymer brush

Abstract

We report the fabrication of shortened electrospun polymer fibers with a well-defined concentrated polymer brush. We first prepared electrospun nanofibers from a random copolymer of styrene and 4-vinylbenzyl 2-bromopropionate, with number-average molecular weight M_n=105 200 and weight-average molecular weight M_w=296 700 (M_w/M_n=2.82). The fibers had a diameter of 593±74 nm and contained initiating sites for surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP). Then, SI-ATRP of hydrophilic styrene sodium sulfonate (SSNa) was carried out in the presence of a free initiator and the hydrophobic fibers. Gel permeation chromatography confirmed that M_n and M_w/M_n values were almost the same for free polymers and graft polymers. M_n agreed well with the theoretical prediction, and M_w/M_n was relatively low (<1.3) in all the examined cases, indicating that this polymerization proceeded in a living manner. Using the values of the graft amount measured by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, the surface area, and M_n, we calculated the graft density σ as 0.22 chains nm^?2. This value was nearly equal to the density obtained on silicon wafers (σ=0.24 chains nm^?2), which is categorized into the concentrated brush regime. Finally, we mechanically cut the fibers with a concentrated poly(SSNa) brush by a homogenizer. With increasing cutting time, the fiber length became shorter and more homogenous (11±17 μm after 3 h). The shortened fibers exhibited excellent water dispersibility owing to the hydrophilic poly(SSNa) brush layer.     

A new discretization method and its application to solve incompressible Navier–Stokes equations

 A new numerical method is presented in this paper. This method directly solves partial differential equations in the Cartesian coordinate system. It can be easily applied to solve irregular domain problems without introducing the coordinate transformation technique. The concept of the present method is different from the conventional discretization methods. Unlike the conventional numerical methods where the discrete form of the differential equation only involves mesh points inside the solution domain, the new discretization method reduces the differential equation into a discrete form which may involve some points outside the solution domain. The functional values at these points are computed by the approximate form of the solution along a vertical or horizontal line. This process is called extrapolation. The form of the solution along a line can be approximated by Lagrange interpolated polynomial using all the points on the line or by low order polynomial using 3 local points. In this paper, the proposed new discretization method is first validated by its application to solve sample linear and nonlinear differential equations. It is demonstrated that the present method can easily treat different solution domains without any additional programming work. Then the method is applied to simulate incompressible flows in a smooth expansion channel by solving Navier–Stokes equations. The numerical results obtained by the new discretization method agree very well with available data in the literature. All the numerical examples showed that the present method is very efficient, which is suitable for solving irregular domain problems. Received 19 July 2000     

A new approach to the design of a low Si-added Al–Si casting alloy for optimising thermal conductivity and fluidity

The effect of Ni on the thermal conductivity and fluidity of a low Si-added Al–Si casting alloy was investigated. The room temperature thermal conductivity of an Al–2 wt%Si alloy instantly dropped when adding 0.5 wt%Ni, whereas further additions of Ni up to 3 wt% had little influence on the thermal conductivity, which was in the range of 180–185 W/mK. The thermal conductivity was also estimated for the alloys cast at various cooling rates by measuring the electrical conductivity using the Wiedemann–Franz law and increased nearly linearly with an increase in the cooling rates. At such a low level of 2 wt%Si, the castability of the Al–Si alloys, which was evaluated by a fluidity spiral test, was enhanced by the Ni additions, exhibiting the maximum fluidity length at 0.5 wt%Ni.     

Crystallization of a Bi–Pb–Fe–Cd–O glass under magnetic annealing

Magnetic annealing with a tunable solenoid magnetic field from 0–240 G, was conducted on a Bi–Pb–Fe–Cd–O glass containing 20% Fe2O3, which was prepared by the melt-quenching process. The crystalline phases of the annealed samples were identified as -Bi2O3 and BiFeO3. Evidence of the formation of the crystalline BiFeO3 which was strongly magnetically enhanced at the surface of the samples, was obtained from X-ray diffraction patterns and EPR spectra. Based on the structure transition of Fe3+ ions, a crystallization mechanism for the BiFeO3 crystals under magnetic annealing has been proposed.     

A new route to prepare macroporous bioactive sol–gel glasses with high mechanical strength

This paper reports a new method to obtain macroporous bioactive glasses by sol–gel and pore former technologies. The in vitro tests showed that the samples had good apatite-forming ability. Noticeably, these bioglasses exhibit high specific surface areas and excellent mechanical performances. The compressive strength is as high as 34.4±5.7 MPa. This method may be a useful approach for preparation of scaffolds for tissue engineering.     

A Zener–Stroh crack at the interface of a thin film bonded to a substrate

A Zener–Stroh crack can nucleate at the interface of a multi-layered structure when a dislocation pileup is stopped by the interface which works as an obstacle. During the entire fracture procedure of a crack, Zener–Stroh crack mechanism controls the initial stage, or the first phase of crack initiation and propagation. In our current research, stress investigation on a Zener–Stroh crack initiated at the interface of a thin film bonded to a half plane substrate has been carried out. With the application of dislocation-based fracture mechanics, the micro crack is simulated by the distributed dislocations along the crack line. To eliminate the contradictory oscillation phenomenon for the stress field near the interfacial crack tip, a contact zone behind the crack tip is introduced. The physical problem is thus formulated into a set of non-linear singular integral equations. Through careful examination of the crack singularities at the crack tips for different configurations, the formulated integral equations are solved with numerical methods developed in our research. The contact zone length, the stress fields near the crack tip and the stress intensity factors of the crack are evaluated accordingly. Numerical examples based on practical engineering structures are provided to discuss the influence of the key parameters, such as the thickness of the film, and the Dundurs constants, on the fracture behaviour of the crack.     

A thin PANI and carrageenan–gold nanoparticle film on a flexible gold electrode as a conductive and low-cost platform for sensing in a physiological environment

In this work, we report the production of a layer-by-layer (LbL) film of gold nanoparticles stabilized with carrageenan (carr-AuNPs) interspersed with a conductive polyaniline (PANI) layer. Conventionally, PANI has poor electroactivity in physiological buffers, limiting its using in electrochemical biosensors. The films were prepared on low cost and easy to manufacture flexible gold electrodes (FEAu). Two adsorption sequences were tested for production of the films—PANI/carr-AuNP and carr-AuNP/PANI. The gold nanoparticle size and colloidal stability were characterized. The films were characterized by cyclic voltammetry, UV–visible spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy. The results showed the synergistic effects of the carr-AuNPs (120 nm) and PANI, which improved both the electrochemical response and the stability of the conductive polymer in physiological medium by three times. The presence of the carr-AuNPs in the film caused a significant increase in roughness of the FEAu-modified electrode compared to that of an unmodified electrode, resulting in an increased active electrode area. Studies of film growth by UV–Vis spectroscopy indicated that the deposition mechanisms of both films involved an auto-regulating adsorption process, with the same amount of material adsorbed in each coating step. The PANI/carr-AUNP film showed considerable improvement in stability and conductivity compared to PANI-only films in the physiological environment, which confers advantages for use as a biosensor.     

A new visco–elasto-plastic model via time–space fractional derivative

To characterize the visco–elasto-plastic behavior of metals and alloys we propose a new constitutive equation based on a time–space fractional derivative. The rheological representative of the model can be analogous to that of the Bingham–Maxwell model, while the dashpot element and sliding friction element are replaced by the corresponding fractional elements. The model is applied to describe the constant strain rate, stress relaxation and creep tests of different metals and alloys. The results suggest that the proposed simple model can describe the main characteristics of the experimental observations. More importantly, the model can also provide more accurate predictions than the classic Bingham–Maxwell model and the Bingham–Norton model.     

Compressive properties of a new metal–polymer hybrid material

Compressive properties of a new hybrid material, fabricated through filling of an aluminum foam with a thermoplastic polymer, are investigated. Static (0.01 s⁻¹) and dynamic (100 s⁻¹) compression testing has been carried out to study the behavior of the hybrid material in comparison with its parent foam and polymer materials. Considering the behavior of metal foams, the point on a compressive stress–strain curve corresponding to the minimum cushion factor is defined as the “densification” point. The analysis of the stress–strain curves provides insight into the load carrying and energy absorption characteristics of the hybrid material. At both strain rates, the hybrid is found to carry higher stresses and absorb more energy at “densification” than the foam or polymer.     

Developing aluminium–zinc-based a new alloy for tribological applications

In order to develop aluminium–zinc-based a new alloy for tribological applications, six binary Al–Zn and seven ternary Al–25Zn–(1–5)Cu were prepared by permanent mould casting. Their microstructure and mechanical properties were investigated. Dry sliding friction and wear properties of the ternary alloys were investigated using a pin-on-disc machine. Surface and subsurface regions of the wear samples were studied with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The highest hardness and tensile strength were obtained with the Al–25Zn alloy among the binary ones. The microstructure of this alloy consisted of aluminium-rich α and eutectoid α + η phases. Addition of copper to this alloy resulted in the formation of θ (CuAl₂) phase. The hardness of the ternary alloys increased with increasing copper content. The highest tensile and compressive strengths and wear resistance and the lowest friction coefficient were obtained from the ternary Al–25Zn–3Cu alloy. The dimensional change measured on ageing (stabilization) of this alloy was found to be much lower than that obtained from the copper containing zinc-based alloys. Microstructural changes were observed below the surface of the wear samples of the Al–25Zn–3Cu alloy. These changes were related to the heavy deformation of the surface material due to normal and frictional forces, and smearing and oxidation of wear material. Adhesion was found to be the main wear mechanism for the alloys tested.     

Developing a product–service system through a productisation strategy: a case from the 3PL industry

A Product–Service System (PSS) is created by combing a tangible product and an intangible service into one integrated offering. Thus, a PSS can be achieved by a production company adding intangible services to a product using a servitisation strategy or by a service company adding a tangible product to a service by means of a productisation strategy. The focus of this paper is on the latter. Our work demonstrates a significant gap in the literature in this area. To address this, we adapt an existing PSS conceptual framework as a means to identify the driving and restraining forces considered by a service company as it explored the possibility of pursuing a PSS productisation strategy. The conceptual framework is applied in an exploratory case study with a 3PL service provider. Application of the framework reveals new driving and restraining forces not previously discussed in the literature. Furthermore, it allows a preliminary quantification of the driving and restraining forces using a force field analysis approach. Our work contributes towards the expansion of the empirical knowledge base in the area of PSS.     

A new view on J-integrals in elastic–plastic materials

It is well known that the application of the conventional $J$ -integral is connected with severe restrictions when it is applied for elastic–plastic materials. The first restriction is that the $J$ -integral can be used only, if the conditions of proportional loading are fulfilled, e.g. no unloading processes should occur in the material. The second restriction is that, even if this condition is fulfilled, the $J$ -integral does not describe the crack driving force, but only the intensity of the crack tip field. Using the configurational force concept, Simha et al. (J Mech Phys Solids 56:2876–2895, 2008), have derived a $J$ -integral, $J^{\mathrm{ep}} $ , which overcomes these restrictions: $J^{\mathrm{ep}} $ is able to quantify the crack driving force in elastic–plastic materials in accordance with incremental theory of plasticity and it can be applied also in cases of non-proportionality, e.g. for a growing crack. The current paper deals with the characteristic properties of this new $J$ -integral, $J^{\mathrm{ep}}$ , and works out the main differences to the conventional $J$ -integral. In order to do this, numerical studies are performed to calculate the distribution of the configurational forces in a cyclically loaded tensile specimen and in fracture mechanics specimens. For the latter case contained, uncontained, and general yielding conditions are considered. The path dependence of $J^{\mathrm{ep}} $ is determined for both a stationary and a growing crack. Much effort is spent in the investigation of the path dependence of $J^{\mathrm{ep}} $ very close to the crack tip. Several numerical parameters are varied in order to separate numerical and physical effects and to deduce the magnitudes of the crack driving force for stationary and growing cracks. Interpretation of the numerical results leads to a new, completed picture of the $J$ -integral in elastic–plastic materials where $J^{\mathrm{ep}} $ and the conventional $J$ -integral complement each other. This new view allows us also to shed new light on a long-term problem, which has been called the “paradox of elastic–plastic fracture mechanics”.     

A modified Johnson–Cook constitutive model for Mg–Gd–Y alloy extended to a wide range of temperatures

In this paper, a new phenomenological and empirically based constitutive model was proposed to change the temperature term in the original Johnson–Cook constitutive model. The new model can be used to describe or predict the stress–strain relation of the metals deformed over a wide range of temperatures even though the current temperatures were lower than the reference temperature. Based on the impact compression data obtained by split Hopkins pressure bar technique, the material constants in the new model can be experimentally determined using isothermal and adiabatic stress–strain curves at different strain rates and temperatures. Good agreement is obtained between the predicted and the experimental stress–strain curves for a hot-extruded Mg–10Gd–2Y–0.5Zr alloy at both quasi-static and dynamic loadings under a wide range of temperatures ever though the current temperatures were lower than the reference temperature.     

Synthesis of cobalt nanoparticles to enhance magnetic permeability of metal–polymer composites

Metallic cobalt nanoparticles were synthesized by hydrogen reduction method. Particles were coated in situ with carbon by adding ethene to reaction flow. Particles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray emission, X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence and BET method. The observed cobalt particle size distributions in different cobalt batches produced with unvarying reaction parameters was reproducible: The mean diameter of primary cobalt particle varied only 5% from the mean value of 76 nm in different batches. Increased carbon precursor concentration decreased mean diameter of cobalt particles to 17 nm. The produced nanoparticles were used as filler material in 0–3 type metal–polymer composites. Composite samples with varying filler loading were fabricated with mixing extrusion and injection moulding techniques. The magnetic properties of the fabricated composites were measured up to 1 GHz. In order to analyse the particle distribution in composite matrix and its effect on magnetic properties the microstructure was studied.