Fracture mechanics investigation on the PP/EPDM/ionomer ternary blends using j-integral by locus method

The fracture mechanics investigation of the polypropylene (PP)/ethylene–propylene–diene terpolymer (EPDM)/ionomer ternary blends was performed in terms of the J-integral by measuring fracture energy via the locus method. Blends were prepared in a laboratory internal mixer. The composition of PP and EPDM was fixed at a 50/50 ratio by weight. Two kinds of Poly(ethylene-co-methacrylic acid) (EMA) ionomers were used. The J-integral value at crack initiation, Jc, of the PP/EPDM/EMA ionomer ternary blends were affected by the cation types (Na⁺ or Zn²⁺) and contents (5–20 wt %) of the added EMA ionomers. The ternary blend having 5 wt % of Na-neutralized ionomer showed a higher Jc value than that of any other ternary blends. The results were discussed with regard to the fracture topology by a scanning electron microscope (SEM). © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Preparation and characterization by radiation of hydrogels of PVA and PVP containing Aloe vera

In these studies, hydrogels for wound dressing were made from a mixture of Aloe vera, poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and poly(N‐vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) by freeze‐thaw, gamma‐ray irradiation, or a two‐step process of freeze‐thaw and gamma‐ray irradiation. Physical properties, such as gelation, water absorptivity, gel strength and degree of water evaporation were examined to evaluate the applicability of these hydrogels to wound dressing. The PVA:PVP ratio was 6:4, and the dry weight of Aloe vera was in the range of 0.4‐1.2 wt %. The solid concentration of PVA/PVP/Aloe vera solution was 15 wt %. Mixtures of PVA/PVP/Aloe vera were exposed to gamma irradiation doses of 25, 35 and 50 kGy to evaluate the effect of irradiation dose on the physical properties of the hydrogels. Gel content and gel strength increased as the concentration of Aloe vera in PVA/PVP/Aloe vera decreased and as irradiation dose increased and freeze‐thaw was repeated. Swelling degree was inversely proportional to gel content and gel strength. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 91: 1612–1618, 2004     

Melt spinning and annealing of poly(ethylene terephthalate)/p‐hydroxybenzoate liquid crystalline polymer

Poly(ethylene terephthalate)/p‐hydroxybenzoate (PET/PHB) copolymer materials have relatively low melt viscosity because of the 60 mol % PHB material having a value that is lower by approximately two orders of magnitude than the value for PET homopolymer. The structure development during melt spinning and thermal treatment (annealing) of liquid crystalline copolyesters, with a rigid backbone structure, were analyzed through the density, birefringence, X‐ray diffraction, DSC, dynamic viscoelasticity, and tensile testing. As the take‐up velocity increased, the birefringence of PET/PHB as‐spun fiber increased, which indicated that it directly influenced the initial modulus and specific stress. The lateral packing of PHB molecular chain in a copolymer was shown to be loosened in the course of thermal treatment. The thermal treatment slightly increased the crystal orientation factor, whereas total molecular orientation was decreased by annealing. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 94: 1265–1278, 2004     

Surface and thermal characteristics of rubber‐modified aromatic polyamide

Polyamide/epoxysilane (coupling agent) composites were reacted with poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS), a condensation product of diethoxydimethylsilane (DEDMS), by a sol–gel process. Polyamide–PDMS nanocomposites were obtained. The existence of the condensation product of DEDMS and the reaction between the epoxy group and the polyamide were confirmed with Fourier transform infrared, attenuated total reflection, and wide‐scanning X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Atomic force microscopy and contact‐angle measurements showed that the surface properties of polyamide were greatly improved by the addition of PDMS. The pyrolysis temperature of polyamide with PDMS was approximately 400°C, and the pyrolysis temperature was similar to that of pure polyamide. Also, the char contents increased with the addition of PDMS. The glass‐transition temperature of polyamide with or without PDMS was approximately 140°C according to differential scanning calorimetry. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 94: 1947–1955, 2004     

R-Curve Behavior of Si3N4–BN Composites

R -curve behavior of Si₃N₄–BN composites and monolithic Si₃N₄ for comparison was investigated. Si₃N₄–BN composites showed a slowly rising R -curve behavior in contrast with a steep R -curve of monolithic Si₃N₄. BN platelets in the composites seem to decrease the crack bridging effects of rod-shaped Si₃N₄ grains for small cracks, but enhanced the toughness for long cracks as they increased the crack bridging scale. Therefore, fracture toughness of the composites was relatively low for the small cracks, but it increased significantly to ∼8 MPa·m^1/2 when the crack grew longer than 700 μm, becoming even higher than that of the monolithic Si₃N₄.     

Studies on melt spinning. V. Elongational viscosity and spinnability of two-phase systems

Isothermal melt spinning experiments were carried out to investigate the elongational flow behavior and spinnability of polymer blends and a calcium carbonate-filled polypropylene. Blends chosen for study were mixtures of polystyrene (Dow Chemical, Styron 678) with high-density polyethylene (Union Carbide, DMDJ 4309), and mixtures of polystyrene (Dow Chemical, Styron 686) with high-density polyethylene (Union Carbide, DMDJ 4309). For the study, measurements were taken of the thread diameter by photographic techniques and of the thread tension by means of a Saxl tensiometer. These measurements were later used to determine the elongational viscosity of the material investigated. It was found that, in all the blends and filled systems investigated, the elongational viscosity decreases with elongation rate and that the relationship between the elongational viscosity and blending ratio is very complex. An attempt is made to offer explanations of the observed complicated relationship with the aid of microphotographs of fiber samples, which display the complexity of fiber morphology in two-phase systems. It was also found that there exists some correlation between the elongational viscosity and the maximum stretch ratio which may be considered as representing fiber spinnability.     

Whole Exome Sequencing for a Patient with Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome Reveals de Novo Variants besides an Overt CREBBP Mutation

Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome (RSTS) is a rare condition with a prevalence of 1 in 125,000–720,000 births and characterized by clinical features that include facial, dental, and limb dysmorphology and growth retardation. Most cases of RSTS occur sporadically and are caused by de novo mutations. Cytogenetic or molecular abnormalities are detected in only 55% of RSTS cases. Previous genetic studies have yielded inconsistent results due to the variety of methods used for genetic analysis. The purpose of this study was to use whole exome sequencing (WES) to evaluate the genetic causes of RSTS in a young girl presenting with an Autism phenotype. We used the Autism diagnostic observation schedule (ADOS) and Autism diagnostic interview revised (ADI-R) to confirm her diagnosis of Autism. In addition, various questionnaires were used to evaluate other psychiatric features. We used WES to analyze the DNA sequences of the patient and her parents and to search for de novo variants. The patient showed all the typical features of Autism, WES revealed a de novo frameshift mutation in CREBBP and de novo sequence variants in TNC and IGFALS genes. Mutations in the CREBBP gene have been extensively reported in RSTS patients, while potential missense mutations in TNC and IGFALS genes have not previously been associated with RSTS. The TNC and IGFALS genes are involved in central nervous system development and growth. It is possible for patients with RSTS to have additional de novo variants that could account for previously unexplained phenotypes.     

Enhanced electrochemical performance and thermal stability of La2O3-coated LiCoO2

An enhanced electrochemical performance LiCoO₂ cathode was synthesized by coating with various wt.% of La₂O₃ to the LiCoO₂ particle surfaces by a polymeric method, followed by calcination at 923 K for 4 h in air. The surface-coated materials were characterized by XRD, TGA, SEM, TEM, BET and XPS/ESCA techniques. XRD patterns of La₂O₃-coated LiCoO₂ revealed that the coating did not affect the crystal structure, α-NaFeO₂, of the cathode material compared to pristine LiCoO₂. TEM images showed a compact coating layer on the surface of the core material that had an average thickness of about ∼15 nm. XPS data illustrated that the presence of two different environmental O 1s ions corresponds to the surface-coated La₂O₃ and core material. The electrochemical performance of the coated materials by galvanostatic cycling studies suggest that 2.0 wt.% coated La₂O₃ on LiCoO₂ improved cycle stability (284 cycles) by a factor of ∼7 times over the pristine LiCoO₂ cathode material and also demonstrated excellent cell cycle stability when charged at high voltages (4.4, 4.5 and 4.6 V). Impedance spectroscopy demonstrated that the enhanced performance of the coated materials is attributed to slower impedance growth during the charge-discharge processes. The DSC curve revealed that the exothermic peak corresponding to the release of oxygen at ∼464 K was significantly smaller for the La₂O₃-coated cathode material and recognized its high thermal stability.     

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