Effect of pressure and substrate temperature on the deposition of nano-structured silicon-carbon-nitride superhard coatings by magnetron sputtering

A systematic investigation on the deposition of silicon-carbon-nitride (Si-C-N) films under varying deposition conditions such as pressure, substrate temperature and nitrogen content was carried out by radio frequency and direct current magnetron sputtering techniques. Significant role of the different deposition parameters on hardness and structure in the film was observed. It was observed that there was a certain range of nitrogen to argon partial pressure ratio (90:10 to 98:2) for which the particle size was reduced and the films were smooth with fine particle growth, beyond this limit the films had larger particle growth and roughness. The hardness of the deposited film varied between 4400 Hv and 473 Hv depending on deposition condition. Si-C-N film with hardness above 4400 Hv by reactive RF magnetron sputtering from SiC-C composite target in nitrogen-argon was obtained. X-ray diffraction studies revealed the amorphous nature of the deposited films, whereas nano-crystallinity of the particles was noticed during atomic forced microscopy observations. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis showed the presence of C-N and Si-N bonds in the harder films. It was found that the presence of β-C₃N₄, Si₃N₄ and graphite phases and the particle growth in the deposited films control the hardness of the film.     

Calcium and Vitamin D in the Regulation of Energy Balance: Where Do We Stand?

There is a pandemic of obesity and associated chronic diseases. Dietary calcium and vitamin D have many extra-skeletal roles in human health. In this review we have summarized the current understanding of their influence on human energy balance by examining the epidemiological, clinical, animal, cellular and molecular evidence. We opine that while calcium and vitamin D are functional nutrients in the battle against obesity, there is a need for prospective human trials to tilt the balance of evidence in favour of these nutrients.     

Structural damage in ZnO bombarded by heavy ions

The effect of implantation parameters on damage build-up in ZnO bombarded with Bi and Er ions is studied by Rutherford backscattering/channelling spectrometry. The results show that the damage accumulation behaviour in ZnO is different dramatically from that in other semiconductors. In particular, a variation of implantation parameters, such as collision cascade density, sample temperature and ion flux, has only a minor influence on the damage accumulation in the crystal bulk for the case of such heavy ions. Moreover, an intermediate damage peak, between the surface and bulk defect peaks, is observed for all the irradiation conditions studied. The cascade density affects the behaviour of this intermediate peak with increasing ion dose.     

A Multi-Functional Single-Stage Power Electronic Interface for Plug-In Electric Vehicles Application

This paper proposes a Zeta-derived non-isolated single-stage power electronic interface for on-board application of plug-in electric vehicles, which provides all modes (plug-in charging, propulsion, and regenerative braking) of vehicle operation. In addition, the proposed converter can charge the battery through universal input voltage range, i.e., 90–260 V due to buck/boost operations in plug-in charging mode. In propulsion and regenerative braking modes, the proposed converter operates as conventional boost and buck DC/DC converter, respectively. Compared to existing single-stage converters, the proposed converter has least components to those converters which have buck/boost operation in plug-in charging mode. A voltage/current stresses and loss analysis of the converter have been investigated for each mode of converter operation. Detailed simulation and experimental results are given to show the effectiveness of the proposed converter.     

Study on rheology and thermal stability of mixed (nonionic–anionic) surfactant based fracturing fluids

Mixed surfactant systems have gained significant importance in the development of fracturing fluid due to polymorphism of self‐assembly structures that have combined properties of the surfactants in the mixture. In this article, a comparative study on the phase behavior and viscoelastic properties of mixed surfactant based fluids, prepared from Tween 80+NaOA/2‐ethyl hexanol/clove oil/water and Tween 20+NaOA/2‐ethyl hexanol/clove oil/water quaternary system is investigated in details. The viscoelastic surfactant (VES) based fluids prepared from the former system offered superior rheological properties than the latter system. The addition of 0.1% NaOH and 500 ppm ZnO nano‐particles in the VES fluids presented enhanced viscoelastic properties as concluded by static and dynamic rheological tests. Miscibility test indicated the miscibility of the VES fluids with water, unlike in the presence of diesel oil and satisfactory proppant suspension capabilities were exhibited by the developed fluids. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 62: 2177–2187, 2016     

Microstructural evolution and fracture toughness of plasma sprayed CNT reinforced Yttria-stabilized Hafnia coating

Yttria (8 wt%)-stabilized hafnia (YSH) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) (1 wt%) reinforced yttria-stabilized hafnia (YSHC) coatings were fabricated on alumina substrate using atmospheric plasma spray technique. Raman spectra confirmed the survival of CNTs in plasma sprayed YSHC coating and indicated about graphitization of CNTs. Whereas, the FE-SEM micrograph infers the presence of few 2-D graphene platelet-like structure in plasma sprayed YSHC coating. Addition of 1 wt% CNTs has significantly increased the densification of YSH coating from 86% to 92%, whereas average hardness and elastic modulus increased by ~57% and ~16%, respectively. A phenomenal increase of ~125% in relative fracture toughness was observed in YSHC coating, which is attributed to three major factors viz. (a) Enhanced densification (b) High fraction of fully melted regions and (c) Various toughening mechanisms, like CNTs pull out, CNTs braiding, graphene splat wrapping, CNTs anchoring.     

[Zn(<Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">l</Emphasis>-proline)<Subscript>2</Subscript>] Catalyzed One-Pot Synthesis of Propargylamines Under Solvent-Free Conditions

A simple, one-pot, three-component, green synthesis of a wide range of propargylamines is reported by A³-coupling (aldehyde, alkyne and amine) via C–H activation of alkynes using [Zn(l-proline)₂] as an efficient and reusable heterogeneous catalyst. High catalytic activity was achieved in comparatively low temperature under solvent-free conditions. All reactions were carried out in an open atmosphere without the use of any co-catalyst/additive.

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Degradation of BPSCCO superconductors during processing

Evaporation losses of Bi, Sr, Cu and Pb during processing of Bi-Pb-Sr-Ca-Cu-oxide (BPSCCO) superconductors were observed, which affected the superconducting properties. Incongruent loss of Bi, Sr, Cu and Pb was reduced by covering the pellets by excess BPSCCO powder during sintering and formation of the 2223 phase was observed to be enhanced. Formation of low temperature eutectic by silver addition was observed to accelerate the rate of evaporation. Lower temperature processing was required for fabrication of high quality Ag sheathed BPSCCO tapes.