Wear and friction behavior of metal impregnated microporous carbon composites

Metal-matrix composites have been prepared by pressure-infiltration casting of copper-base alloy melts into microporous carbon preforms. The carbon preforms contained varying proportions of amorphous carbon and graphite. Load dependence of the wear and friction behavior of the composite pins has been examined under ambient conditions against cast-iron plates, using a pin-on-plate reciprocating wear tester. The wear resistance of the composite is significantly improved, as compared with the base alloy. Contrary to the normally expected behavior, the addition of graphite to the amorphous carbon does not reduce the friction coefficient, especially at high loads. The wear and friction behavior of the composites is very sensitive to the size and distribution of the microstructural constituents.     

Software‐only TDOA/RTT positioning for 3G WCDMA wireless network

A hybrid location finding technique based on time difference of arrival (TDOA) with round‐trip time (RTT) measurements is proposed for a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) network. In this technique, a mobile station measures timing from at least three base stations using user equipment receive—transmit (UE Rx—Tx) time difference and at least three base stations measure timing from the mobile station using RTT. The timing measurements of mobile and base stations are then combined to solve for both the location of the mobile and the synchronization offset between base stations. A software‐only geolocation system based on the above mobile/base stations timing measurements is implemented in Matlab platform and the performance of the system is investigated using large‐scale propagation models. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The synthesis of covalent bonded single‐walled carbon nanotube/polyvinylimidazole composites by in situ polymerization and their physical characterization

Single‐walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) polyvinylimidazole (PVI) composites have been prepared by in situ emulsion polymerization. Dispersion of raw SWCNTs in the PVI matrix was improved by surface modification of the SWCNTs using nitric acid treatment and air oxidation. The carbonyl‐terminated SWCNTs were covalently bonded to PVI by in situ polymerization and the SWCNT/PVI composite was thus obtained. The morphological and structural characterizations of the surface‐functionalized SWCNTs and SWCNT/PVI composites were carried out by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X‐ray diffraction, conductivity measurements, scanning, and transmission electron microscopy. Thermograms of the materials were determined by the differential scanning calorimetry technique. The characterization results indicate that PVI was covalently bonded to SWCNTs and a new material was then obtained. The functionalized SWCNTs showed homogenous dispersion in the composites, whereas purified SWCNT resulted in poor dispersion and nanotube agglomeration. SWCNT/PVI composites exhibited chemical stability enhancement in many common solvents. I–V curves of the samples exhibit an ohmic character. Conductivity values for pure SWCNTs, pure PVI and SWCNT/PVI composite were measured to be 3.47, 2.11 × 10⁻⁹, and 2.3 × 10⁻³ S/m, respectively. Because of resonance, a large dielectric constant is obtained for SWCNT/PVI composite, which is not observed for ordinary materials. POLYM. COMPOS., 2012. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers     

The effect of aggregation on the nonlinear optical absorption performance of indium and gallium phthalocyanines in a solution and co-polymer host

The nonlinear optical properties (NLO) of Pcs can be modified by substituting different metal atoms into the ring or altering peripheral and axial functionalities. In this study, nonlinear optical absorption properties of tetra-substituted gallium and indium phthalocyanine complexes both in solution and polymeric film have been investigated by open aperture Z-scan measurements with nanosecond pulses at 532 nm. All investigated compounds exhibited reverse saturable absorption for both solution and film experiments. The investigated compounds in the solution showed better nonlinear optical absorption properties than polymeric films. The observed nonlinear optical absorption differences depending on the aggregation are discussed using the ultrafast dynamics and decay processes of excited states found from femtosecond pump-probe spectroscopy with white light continuum experiments.     

The structural,morphological, optical and gas-sensing properties of Mn3O4 thin films grown by successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction technique

Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics - In this study, Mn3O4 thin films were grown by Successive Ionic Layer Adsorption and Reaction Technique (SILAR) with 20 and 50...     

Densities and Excess,Apparent, and Partial Molar Volumes of Binary Mixtures of BMIMBF<Subscript>4</Subscript> + Ethanol as a Function of Temperature,Pressure, and Concentration

The densities of five BMIMBF₄ (1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate) + ethanol binary mixtures with compositions of (0.0701, 0.3147, 0.5384, 0.7452, and 0.9152) mole fraction BMIMBF₄ and of pure BMIMBF₄ have been measured with a vibrating-tube densimeter. Measurements were performed at temperatures from 298 K to 398 K and at pressures up to 40 MPa. The total uncertainty of density, temperature, pressure, and concentration measurements were estimated to be less than 0.1 kg · m⁻³, 15 mK, 5 kPa, and 10⁻⁴, respectively. The uncertainties reported in this article are expanded uncertainties at the 95% confidence level with a coverage factor of k = 2. The measured densities were used to study derived volumetric properties such as excess, apparent, and partial molar volumes. It is shown that the values of excess molar volume for BMIMBF₄ + ethanol mixtures are negative at all measured temperatures and pressures over the whole concentration range. The effect of water content on the measured values of density is discussed. The volumetric (excess, apparent, and partial molar volumes) and structural (direct and total correlation integrals, cluster size) properties of dilute BMIMBF₄ + ethanol mixtures were studied in terms of the Krichevskii parameter. The measured densities were used to develop a Tait-type equation of state.