The investigation of metastable ζ-hcp phase in the Ag-rich f c c region of Ag-In alloys rapidly quenched from the melt

Stacking faults, which were detected in the Ag-In system, have been examined by transmission electron microscopy and electron diffraction. An enhanced concentration of stacking faults in splat cooled specimens as well as the formation of a metastable hexagonal phase in the f c c region of the alloy was observed. As far as we know this is the first case of the terminal solid solubility being reduced by rapid quenching. Terminal solid solubility is reduced because of the high concentration of structural defects introduced by quenching, e.g. dislocations and stacking faults, which serve as the nuclei for the transformation from the f c c to the h c p structure. Our measurements and calculations show that the stacking fault energy minimum is shifted to lower electron concentrations with respect to the stacking fault energy minimum corresponding to the equilibrium phase boundary for the f c c-h c p transformation. The new metastable phase boundary for this transformation was confirmed by X-ray examinations. We explain this earlier h c p phase appearance in rapid quenched specimens as the consequence of enhanced interaction of the Fermi surface and contracted Brillouin zone. The Brillouin zone contraction we attributed to quenched-in vacancies.     

Tracking of moving interfaces in sedimentation processes using electrical impedance tomography

Sedimentation monitoring is widely used to control and optimize industrial processes. In this paper we propose a novel computational method for sedimentation monitoring using electrical impedance tomography (EIT). EIT measurements consist of electric current and voltage measurements that are made on the surface of the sedimentation tank and therefore they do not interfere with the sedimentation process. The proposed computational method is based on shape estimation and state estimation formulation of the EIT problem. The sedimentation is parameterized by the locations of the phase interfaces and conductivities of the phase layers. Three different evolution models for the state parameters are considered and the state estimates are computed using the extended Kalman filter algorithm. The performance of the method and the models are evaluated using simulated data from a six electrode EIT measurement configuration. From the results a promising performance of the method can be seen.     

Oxidation of formic acid at a high surface area supported platinum modified by foreign metal adatoms

The anodic oxidation of formic acid was studied on platinum distributed in the form of small particles in a porous substrate modified by metal adatoms deposited at underpotentials. The rate of the reaction was greatly enhanced on the commercial catalyst Powercat 3000 (PC 3000). The hydrogen adsorption and the underpotential deposition of several metals at PC 3000 were shown to be dissimilar to that at smooth polycrystalline Pt. Steady-state and long-term experiments were performed to determine the stability of this electrode.     

Mechanical and fracture behavior of powder metalurgy processed Ti3Al-based alloys

This work considers structural and compression mechanical properties of three Ti₃Al-based alloys processed by powder metallurgy. Mechanically alloyed powders were compacted by hot-pressing to non-porous homogenous compacts. Prior to compression tests, all compacts were homogenized by a solution treatment at 1050°C (α + β region) for 1h, followed by water quenching. The compression tests were performed from room temperature to 500°C in vacuum at a strain rate of 2.4 × 10⁻³ s⁻¹. Detailed microstructural characterization has been evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), followed by electron dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction analysis. Fracture topography was examined by SEM. The Ti₃Al-Nb alloy exhibits the highest ductility in the whole temperature range, whereas addition of Mo to Ti₃Al-Nb alloy yields the highest ultimate compression strength. A correlation between ductility and the fracture mode exists for all materials.     

Maximizing Reward in a Non-Stationary Mobile Robot Environment

The ability of a robot to improve its performance on a task can be critical, especially in poorly known and non-stationary environments where the best action or strategy is dependent upon the current state of the environment. In such systems, a good estimate of the current state of the environment is key to establishing high performance, however quantified. In this paper, we present an approach to state estimation in poorly known and non-stationary mobile robot environments, focusing on its application to a mine collection scenario, where performance is quantified using reward maximization. The approach is based on the use of augmented Markov models (AMMs), a sub-class of semi-Markov processes. We have developed an algorithm for incrementally constructing arbitrary-order AMMs on-line. It is used to capture the interaction dynamics between a robot and its environment in terms of behavior sequences executed during the performance of a task. For the purposes of reward maximization in a non-stationary environment, multiple AMMs monitor events at different timescales and provide statistics used to select the AMM likely to have a good estimate of the environmental state. AMMs with redundant or outdated information are discarded, while attempting to maintain sufficient data to reduce conformation to noise. This approach has been successfully implemented on a mobile robot performing a mine collection task. In the context of this task, we first present experimental results validating our reward maximization performance criterion. We then incorporate our algorithm for state estimation using multiple AMMs, allowing the robot to select appropriate actions based on the estimated state of the environment. The approach is tested first with a physical robot, in a non-stationary environment with an abrupt change, then with a simulation, in a gradually shifting environment.     

Use of the Roughness Parameters Ssk and Sku to Control Friction—A Method for Designing Surface Texturing

The aim of this work was to show that with the use of the surface roughness parameters S_sk and S_ku we can predict tribological behavior of contact surfaces and use these parameters to plan surface texturing. This article presents a continuation of our research on virtual texturing and experimental work on surface textures in the form of channels. For this investigation, steel samples were laser surface textured in the shape of dimples with different spacings between the dimples and different dimple depths. The experimental results confirmed that the parameters S_sk and S_ku can be used to design the surface texturing, where a higher value of S_ku and more negative S_sk lead to lower friction.     

Nelson Goodman’s Arguments Against Perspective: A Geometrical Analysis

Nelson Goodman’s highly influential book Languages of Art argued that that all visual experience is merely a cultural construct. In presenting his thesis Goodman relied on a series of geometrical arguments intended to show that the geometrical construction of perspective does not rely on the geometry of light rays. In this article I analyze the geometrical validity of Goodman’s arguments.