Surface modification and functionalization of electroactive polymer films via grafting of polyelectrolyte,polyampholyte and polymeric acids

Films of electroactive polymers, such as polyaniline (PAN) in its emeraldine base form, and poly(3-alkylthiophene), poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P6TH), poly(3-octylthiophene) (P8TH), and poly(3-dodecylthiophene) (P12TH) can be readily functionalized via thermal or near ultraviolet-light-induced surface graft copolymerization with monomers of polyelectrolyte, polyampholyte and polymeric acids. The monomers used in the present work include dimethyl sulphate quaternized dimethylamino-ethylmethacrylate (DMAEM·C₂H₆SO₄), 3-dimethyl(methacryloyloxyethyl)ammonium propane sulphonate (DMAPS), acrylic acid (AAc) and a sodium salt of styrene sulphonic acid (NaSS). The surface structures and compositions of the electroactive polymer films after functionalization via graft copolymerization were characterized by angle-resolved X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Graft copolymerization of poly(3-alkylthiophene) films, but not PAN films, with the hydrophilic monomers readily results in a stratified surface microstructure arising from the migration of the hydrophilic graft chains beneath a thin surface layer which is much richer in the substrate chains. On the other hand, graft copolymerization of PAN films with AAc and NaSS readily gives rise to a self-protonated (and thus conductive) surface structure.     

Undercooling and supersaturation of alloying elements in rapidly solidified Al-8.5% Fe-1.2% V-1.7% Si alloy

Dispersion-strengthened Al-8.5% Fe-1.2% V-1.7% Si alloy was produced by inert gas atomization and atomized melt deposition processes. Differential scanning calorimetry was used to estimate the extent of undercooling in the alloy powders as a function of powder size and in the atomized melt-deposited alloy as a function of process parameters. The estimated undercooling was found to be a strong function of powder size and processing conditions and varied from 380–200 °C. Alloy powders of diameter greater than 180 jam did not experience any undercooling during solidification. X-ray diffraction analysis was performed to study the dependence of supersaturation of alloying elements and metastable phase formation on the extent of undercooling. When the undercooled alloy was heated to about 400 dgC, formation of Al₁₂(Fe, V)₃Si phase with b c c crystal structure from the supersaturated matrix was observed.     

Effect of chromium content on remarkably rapid nitriding in austenitic Fe-Ni-Cr alloys

Remarkably rapid nitriding which is independent of diffusion theory based on the thermal activation process, was observed during nitriding of austenitic Fe-Ni-Cr steels containing 16 and 19 mass% chromium. Increase of the chromium content in the alloys yielded increasing thickness of the nitrided layer, i.e. the internal nitriding theory did not hold in the nitriding. No rapid nitriding was observed in steels containing less than 13 mass% chromium. Hence the limiting concentration of chromium for the rapid nitriding will lie between 13 and 16 mass% chromium. A solution to the problem of abnormalities arising during nitriding of practical austenitic stainless steels which have been investigated since 1972, has been presented experimentally by nitriding various chromium-containing steels. Based on the experimental results, the origin of the rapid nitriding is discussed in connection with the free-energy function of Cr₂N and CrN to temperature. In particular, a plateau of nitrogen concentration measured in the nitrided layers leads to the conclusion that a forced nitrogen diffusion in the layer resulted in the rapid nitriding.     

The material properties of sulphonated phenolic resin reinforced cement mortars

The material properties of new sulphonated phenolic resin (SP) reinforced cement mortars have been investigated. SP was found to promote the dispersion of cement particles and to interact with Ca(OH)₂. As a result, the resulting mortars exhibit better workability, more compact structure and higher compressive strength than plain mortars. The mortar with 1 wt% SP present after 28 days curing exhibits a compressive strength of 66MPa, which is about 18% higher than that of plain mortar.     

Transition metal joints for steam generators—An overview

The transition metal joint (TMJ) between an austenitic stainless steel and a chromium-molybdenum (Cr-Mo) ferritic steel used widely in steam generators of power plants has for a long time presented problems relating to premature failures in service. The direct (bimetallic) TMJ presently in use is designed for a service life of about 200,000 h; but such TMJs with iron-base weld metals have been failing in service within about one-third of their design lifetime, while their counterparts with nickel-base weld metals fail within about one-half of their design lifetime. The causes for such premature service failures of these TMJs are discussed in detail, leading to the development of improved TMJs. One of the improved TMJs with a trimetallic configuration of austenitic stainless steel/Alloy 800/Cr-Mo ferritic steel is discussed in detail, covering its development, characterisation and evaluation. Accelerated performance tests in the laboratory have indicated a four-fold improvement in the service life of the TMJ with this trimetallic configuration compared to the bimetallic configuration. The metallurgical details of these studies are also discussed in this paper.     

Reaction of phosphorus with iron,cobalt, nickel,and manganese on heating

X-ray phase, differential thermal, and metallographic analyses are used to study the reaction of phosphorus with Fe, Co, Ni, and Mn on heating in an inert atmosphere. It is found that low-temperature endo- and exothermic effects are related to formation of Fe₃P, Co₂P, Ni₃P, and Mn₃P. The effect of eutectic contact melting on the metal-phosphide interface is observed in all specimens.     

Effects of magnesium sulfate and lidocaine in the treatment of ventricular arrhythmias in experimental amitriptyline poisoning in the rat

OBJECTIVES: Amitriptyline poisoning is associated with ventricular arrhythmias. Standard treatment is sodium bicarbonate but further intervention may be necessary. The present study compared the actions of lidocaine and magnesium sulfate on ventricular tachycardia induced by amitriptyline. DESIGN: Nonrandomized, controlled, intervention trial. SETTING: University laboratory. SUBJECTS: Thirty male Wistar rats anesthetized with pentobarbital and mechanically ventilated. INTERVENTIONS: After pretreatment with norepinephrine, the animals were subjected to a continuous infusion of amitriptyline. After the appearance of ventricular tachycardia, they were treated with magnesium sulfate (45 mg/kg + 15 mg/kg/min) or lidocaine (1 mg/kg + 0.5 mg/kg/min) or glucose infusion as a control. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: In the group treated with magnesium sulfate, electrocardiogram tracings demonstrated that nine of ten animals converted from ventricular tachycardia to sinus rhythm compared with one of ten in both the lidocaine- and glucose-treated groups (p < .001). The animals treated with magnesium sulfate also had a significantly longer total time in sinus rhythm (10.0 +/- 1.6 mins) than those rats treated with lidocaine (1.7 +/- 1.5 mins) or glucose (1.5 +/- 1.5 mins). Magnesium sulfate significantly decreased blood pressure and heart rate, but no severe hemodynamic side effects were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Magnesium sulfate is effective in converting ventricular tachycardia in hyperadrenergic amitriptyline poisoning. In contrast, lidocaine had no effect on arrhythmias.     

A hybrid wafer-dicing process for GaAs MMIC production

A dicing process for GaAs MMIC (monolithic microwave integrated circuit) wafers using spin-on wax for wafer mounting and a hybrid process of wet chemical etching/mechanical sawing for chip dicing is described. This process minimizes ragged chip edges and reduces generation of microcracks in addition to the elimination of the plated gold burrs on the backside of the diced MMIC chips. This process gives a uniformity of -3 μm across a 2-in wafer following the completion of the whole backside process. This GaAs chip dicing technique is amenable to production because it exhibits both a very high chip yield (>90%) and nearly flawless edges     

Dynamic arrays for fast, efficient, data manipulation during image analysis: a new software tool for exploratory data analysis.

Memory reallocation is used to construct a run-time data structure for fast/efficient storage of information during collection and analysis. The data structure presented uses dynamic memory but does not require the use of pointers to link nodes of information together. It allows for simple and efficient access to data via array indexing rather than through the use of lists or tree structures and it provides flexibility for competing storage requirements that are determined dynamically. The data structure is developed in the C programming language and a suite of ANSI standard C subroutines that make up a run-time data structure management system is provided.