Structure and ferroelectric property of Nb-doped SrBi4Ti4O15 ceramics

Nb-doped SrBi₄Ti₄O₁₅ (SBT) was produced by conventional method. Structural and ferroelectric properties of SBT were examined as a function of niobium composition. Analyzing the structure futures of SBT by XRD, XPS and Raman spectrum, Nb⁵⁺ substituted Ti⁴⁺ to form NbO₆ octahedron and did not change the structure of SBT. The XRD patterns indicated the formation of the single phase of SBT for x = 0.01and 0.03 and secondary phase of Sr₃Ti₂O₇ appeared when x > 0.1. To compare the effect of Nb doping, the ferroelectric properties (hysteresis loop, piezoelectric coefficient) of Nb-doped SBT were measured. The SBT doped with x = 0.15 was found to exhibit higher remanent polarization with d ₃₃ = 17 pC/N.     

A novel continuous arterial spin labeling approach for CBF measurement in rats with reduced labeling time and optimized signal-to-noise ratio efficiency

Objective  To develop a continuous arterial spin labeling (CASL) perfusion imaging method for cerebral blood flow (CBF) measurement in rats with reduced spin-labeling length and optimized signal-to-noise ratio (SNR _f ) per unit time. Materials and methods  In the proposed method, the longitudinal magnetization of brain tissue water in the imaging slice is prepared into a proper state before spin-labeling, and a post-tagging delay is employed after spin-labeling. The method was implemented on a 4.7 T small animal scanner. Numerical simulations and in vivo experiments were used to evaluate the performance of the method proposed. Results  With the proposed method, absolute CBF could be measured accurately from normal rat with a spin-labeling pulse as short as 400 ms, and yet employing the same formula as that used in the conventional CASL perfusion imaging method for calculation. The method also showed improved SNR _f per unit time over the conventional CASL perfusion imaging method and the pulsed arterial spin labeling perfusion imaging method FAIR. Conclusion  Compared to the conventional CASL perfusion imaging method, the proposed method would be advantageous for CBF measurement in small animals having short vascular transit time in terms of SNR _f per unit time and other benefits brought by shortened spin-labeling pulse.     

350 MW燃气锅炉混烧控制策略

宝钢电厂4号350MW发电机组燃气锅炉是从德国引进的世界首台大容量多燃料混烧锅炉,燃料种类繁多,控制策略复杂。从调试实际出发,详细介绍了其燃烧系统的控制策略和特点,为国内同类型机组的设计和调试提供参考。     

Alginate hydrogels crosslinked with different strontium-calcium ratios as injectable scaffolds for bone tissue engineering

The easy loss of crosslinking ions in alginate can result in a structural collapse of the physiological environment, thereby losing its characteristics as a bone scaffold. Meanwhile, alginate lacks osteoconductive properties, which are necessary for ideal bone scaffolds. In this study, strontium (Sr) in combination with calcium (Ca) at different ratios were used as a crosslinking agent for the alginate to investigate the effect of Ca–Sr ratio on the physicochemical properties and biological preformation of alginate hydrogel. Here, Ca and Sr in different weight ratios (4:0, 3:1, 2:2, 1:3, and 0:4) were employed as crosslinking agents. The physicochemical properties of hydrogels, including pore size, elastic modulus, degradation rate and swelling ratio, could be effectively tuned by controlling the amount of Sr. The ion release experiment revealed a burst release of Sr²⁺ in the first day after crosslinking. However, after 3 days, the amount of Sr²⁺ release had significantly declined and was proportional to the total strontium initially introduced into the alginate. Meanwhile, the live/dead results exhibited higher cell viability for alginate with 2:2 Ca–Sr weight ratio. The alginate with 2:2 Ca–Sr ratio not only improved osteoblastic attachment, but also up-regulated the alkaline phosphatase activity, the expression of osteogenic marker genes, and relative growth factors. These findings indicate that alginate with 2:2 Ca–Sr ratio might be a promising scaffold for bone tissue engineering.

Graphical abstract

     

Dehydration of water‐plasticized poly(vinyl alcohol) systems: particular behavior of isothermal mass transfer

BACKGROUND: Water‐plasticized poly(vinyl alcohol) has been obtained by thermal processing. Dehydration is the key process for controlling the structure and performance of the water‐soluble polymer, and mass transfer is an important part of dehydration. RESULTS: A simple new model of a hyperbolic‐type function was developed to understand the mass transfer process of water‐plasticized poly(vinyl alcohol) systems during isothermal dehydration. The model was verified by statistical tests. The physical parameters in the model were defined as the maximum weight loss fraction and characteristic time. The dehydration rate, the key physical parameter in mass transfer, was obtained from the differential equation of the model. By use of the model, the characteristics of dehydration of poly(vinyl alcohol) were determined: the complete mass transfer process can be divided into a fast mass transfer before a characteristic time (τ) and a slow mass transfer after τ, and dehydration temperatures can also be divided into two intervals by different activation energies. In addition, the dehydration rate is inversely proportional to the degree of crystallinity. CONCLUSION: The results of the new model agree reasonably well with experimental results obtained by thermogravimetry and weighing. Poly(vinyl alcohol), as a water‐soluble semicrystalline polymer, exhibits a particular mass transfer behavior during dehydration. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

两步固相法合成具有优良性能的钛酸锂

采用两步固相法,在交替气氛煅烧(空气预烧,氮气煅烧)下合成了尖晶石钛酸锂粉末,并且研究了煅烧气氛(空气和氮气)对不同合成阶段(预烧和煅烧)的影响。电化学测试结果表明,经空气预烧,氮气煅烧得到的样品在5 C的电流密度下,首次充电比容量高达128 m Ah/g,100次循环后容量保持率达94.5%,其电化学性能明显优于单一气氛煅烧下所得样品。分析其原因为碳酸锂的分解反应在空气气氛下较氮气气氛下更容易进行,且氮气气氛下合成LTO有氧空位的存在。