Effect of Ti/N Ratio on Impact Strength of High Strength Pipe Steel Welded Joint Heat-Affected Zone

Metallurgist - Kinetics of austenite grain growth within a heat-affected zone is studied for low carbon low-alloy steels of different alloying composition. The effect of Ti/N ratio on the metal...     

Sex and Depot Differences in Palmitoleic Acid Content of Human Blood and Fat

Palmitoleic acid has been classified as an insulin-sensitizing lipokine, but evidence for this from human studies has been inconsistent. We hypothesized that this is related to either the types of samples or conditions under which samples are collected. We measured plasma palmitoleic acid and total free fatty acids (FFA) using ultra-performance liquid chromatography in blood samples collected from 34 adults under a variety of conditions. We collected duplicate samples of adipose (n = 10), FFA (n = 9), and very low density lipoprotein triacylglycerol (VLDL-TAG) (n = 7) to measure the palmitoleic acid as a percentage of total fatty acids. We tested whether the percentage of palmitoleic acid was correlated with insulin resistance, as measured by homeostatic model of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). Adipose stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase 1 (SCD-1) protein was measured by capillary Western blotting. FFA-palmitoleic acid percentage increased as a function of total FFA and was greater (p < 0.005) in females than males. Adipose palmitoleic acid percentage was greater in females than males (p < 0.001), as was adipose SCD-1. Palmitoleic acid was greater in femoral fat than in abdominal fat in both females and males (p < 0.001), and correlated positively with HOMA-IR only in females. The test–retest reliability values for percentage palmitoleic acid were 7 ± 10% for adipose, 24 ± 26% for VLDL, and 53 ± 31% for FFA. Because FFA-palmitoleic acid percentage varies as a function of total FFA, investigators should re-evaluate how palmitoleic acid data is presented. The positive relationship between adipose palmitoleic acid and HOMA-IR in females suggests that it is not a potent insulin-sensitizing lipokine in humans.     

Migration of Point Defects in the Field of a Temperature Gradient

The influence of the temperature gradient over the thickness of the cladding of a fuel element of a fast-neutron reactor on the migration of point defects formed in the cladding material due to neutron irradiation has been studied. It has been shown that, under the action of the temperature gradient, the flux of vacancies onto the inner surface of the cladding is higher than the flux of interstitial atoms, which leads to the formation of a specific concentration profile in the cladding with a vacancy-depleted zone near the inner surface. The experimental results on the spatial distribution of pores over the cladding thickness have been presented with which the data on the concentration profiles and vacancy fluxes have been compared.     

A Giant Frequency Shift in the Raman Spectrum of Water Adsorbed on a Metallic Silver Surface

The Raman spectrum of water adsorbed on a metallic silver surface reveals an anomalously large shift of the vibrational frequency as compared to that in the bulk. The results are compared to data reported by other researchers, and possible interpretations of the observed phenomenon are discussed.     

Strain Concentration Effect in Cu–Al–Ni Single Crystals under a Longitudinal Bending Force

The behavior of a superelastic Cu?14.2% Al?4%Ni single crystal in the case of high reversible strains under a longitudinal bending force was investigated. The effect of strain confinement along the crystal length was revealed and studied. The highest reversible strains (up to 10%) were shown to be confined within the central part of the bent crystal.     

Technical and economic analysis of solvent-based lithium-ion electrode drying with water and NMP

Processing lithium-ion battery (LIB) electrode dispersions with water as the solvent during primary drying offers many advantages over N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP). An in-depth analysis of the comparative drying costs of LIB electrodes is discussed for both NMP- and water-based dispersion processing in terms of battery pack $/kWh. Electrode coating manufacturing and capital equipment cost savings are compared for water vs. conventional NMP organic solvent processing. A major finding of this work is that the total electrode manufacturing costs, whether water- or NMP-based, contribute about 8–9% of the total pack cost. However, it was found that up to a 2?×?reduction in electrode processing (drying and solvent recovery) cost can be expected along with a $3–6?M savings in associated plant capital equipment (for a plant producing 100,000 10-kWh Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) batteries) using water as the electrode solvent. This paper shows a different perspective in that the most important benefits of aqueous electrode processing actually revolve around capital equipment savings and environmental stewardship and not processing cost savings.