Synthesis and spark plasma sintering of the α-Si3N4 nanopowder

A two-step process (milling and then heat treatment) was used for the preparation of α-Si₃N₄ nanopowder. The influence of the milling time and heat treatment temperature as processing parameters were investigated on the formation of α-Si₃N₄. Silicon nitride ceramic was produced by spark plasma sintering at 1700 °C for 15 min, using MgSiN₂ additive. The optimum sample was produced in a 30 h milling time, heat treatment at 1300 °C, and a 22 °C/min heating rate conditions. X-ray fluorescence analysis showed that the purity of the final product is above 98%. Nanoindentation hardness and Young’s modulus of the SPS-ed sample were measured as 17±2.0 GPa and 290±11.0 GPa, respectively.     

Microstructure and mechanical properties of in-situ MC-carbide particulates-reinforced refractory high-entropy Mo0.5NbHf0.5ZrTi matrix alloy composite

Refractory high-entropy Mo_0.5NbHf_0.5ZrTi alloy matrix composite with MC-carbide particulates-reinforced was prepared by arc melting. It is found that Mo_0.5NbHf_0.5ZrTiC_0.1 and Mo_0.5NbHf_0.5ZrTiC_0.3 alloys consist of one disordered body-centered cubic (BCC) solid solution phase as the matrix phase and MC carbide phase. MC carbide is enriched with Zr and Hf due to the higher binding strength and without any Mo. Noticeable strengthening from the carbide is not observed for C_0.1 and C_0.3 alloys while the compressive plasticity is improved slightly due to the decrease of solution strengthening for the matrix BCC disordered solid solution phase.     

Cooling rate effects on the microstructure evolution in the βo zones of cast Ti–45Al–8.5Nb–(W,B, Y) alloy

The cooling rate effects on the β_o → ω_o phase transformation in Ti–45Al–8.5Nb–(W, B, Y) (at.%) alloy were investigated by annealing the alloy at 950 °C followed by different cooling methods. The morphology and the distribution of the ω-related phases were analyzed by TEM. The amount and morphology of the ω-related phases are very sensitive to the cooling rate. The ω-related phases could not be resolved in the water-quenched sample whereas it grew into nano-particles in the air-cooled sample. In the furnace-cooled sample, the ω_o phase with B8₂ structure grew into micron-sized particles and occupied the whole β_o area. The nucleation of the ordered ω embryos can be explained by the well accepted displacive mechanism because of the instability of the β_o(B2) structure, accompanied by a short-range diffusion process between neighboring {111}_βo planes. However, the growth of the ω-related phases is controlled by a long-range diffusion process. Due to ready nucleation and growth, the ordered ω formation is bound to occur in as-cast and heat-treated high Nb–TiAl alloys.     

Detection of rust defects on steel bridge coatings via digital image recognition

One of the major expenses for steel structures is the anti-corrosion maintenance tasks. The maintenance of a steel structure depends on regular inspections, and visual inspections are often adopted in Taiwan. Using the naked eye to determine the rusted area percentage greatly depends on the experience of the inspector, resulting in subjective results. As an alternative, an algorithm consisting of three different approaches is proposed to automatically process images. The Hue percentage and coefficient of variation (COV) of the gray levels are used to divide images into three groups in which each group is assessed using a specific recognition technique. The three proposed techniques are the following: the traditional K-means method in the H component, the double-center-double-radius (DCDR) algorithm in the Red-Green-Blue (RGB) color space and DCDR in the Hue-Saturation-Intensity (HSI) color space. Additionally, the Least Square Support Vector Machine (LS-SVM) was adopted to predict the radii in the DCDR approaches. One hundred images, mostly collected outdoors, were used to verify the proposed algorithm. Promising performance was observed, particularly for images with non-uniform illumination.     

1D ZnFe2O4 nanorods coupled with plasmonic Ag,Ag2S nanoparticles and Co-Pi cocatalysts for efficient photoelectrochemical water splitting

Improving the absorption of visible light, accelerating the separation of carries and reducing the recombination of electron-hole pairs are critical to enhance photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of ZnFe₂O₄. Herein, the ZnFe₂O₄/Ag/Ag₂S films are firstly prepared with a photocurrent density of 0.91 mA/cm² at 1.23 V vs. RHE, which is 9.10 times higher than that of pristine ZnFe₂O₄ (0.10 mA/cm² at 1.23 V vs. RHE). On the basis, Co-Pi cocatalyst is deposited on ZnFe₂O₄/Ag/Ag₂S to further optimize PEC performance of ZnFe₂O₄, the photocurrent density of ZnFe₂O₄/Ag/Ag₂S/Co-Pi is 1.18 mA/cm² at 1.23 V vs. RHE. The improved PEC performance of ZnFe₂O₄/Ag/Ag₂S/Co-Pi films could be attributed to: (i) fast transmission of electron-hole pairs owing to 1D ZnFe₂O₄ NRs; (ii) surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect of Ag nanoparticles; (ⅲ) visible light absorption is improved by sensitization of Ag₂S nanoparticles; (ⅳ) Co-Pi cocatalyst decreases the recombination of electron-hole pairs by capturing holes. This work provides new insights for metal plasmas, sensitizers and cocatalysts synergistically modify photoanodes for efficient PEC water splitting.     

High-performance alkaline hydrogen evolution of NiMoP2 nanowire boosted by bimetallic synergic effect

Hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in alkaline conditions usually requires a higher overpotential compared with acidic conditions due to the extra energy barrier originating from the additional water dissociation step. In this work, the theoretical calculation has confirmed that this challenge can be solved by the bimetallic synergic effect on binary transition metal catalysts. We report a simple method to synthesize NiMoP₂ nanowires with (100) plane which can precisely expose Ni and Mo atom. The synthesized NiMoP₂ nanowires exhibit a small overpotential of 87 mV to reach 10 mA cm⁻² with a low Tafel slope of 66 mV dec⁻¹ and long-term stability in alkaline solutions.     

3-Dimensional flower-like clusters of CoNiP nanofoils in-situ grown on randomly-dispersed rGO-Nanosheets with superior electrocatalysis for hydrogen evolution reactions

It has been being an interesting challenge to develop novel electrocatalysts with advantageous nanostructures and thereby-improved catalytic performance for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) over the past years. Herein, we report on the flower-like clusters of CoNiP nanofoils thickly grown on the randomly-interconnected reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanosheets (CoNiP-NF/rGO) of 3-dimensional framework architecture, which has been successfully achieved via an optimized solvothermal process with Ni-doped ZIF-67 (Ni-ZIF-67) dodecahedral particles as the precursor and graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets as the substrate for the in-situ growth of flower-like CoNi-hydroxides nanofoils, as well as a following topotactic transformation in a controlled phosphorization. Benefiting from its distinctly advantageous nanostructures featured with extremely high specific surface area, enriched catalytic active sites and enhanced electronic transportation, the as-prepared CoNiP-NF/rGO exhibits an excellent electrocatalytic performance of HER with an onset overpotential of 33 mV, an overpotential of 82 mV at 10 mA cm⁻², a Tafel slope of 37 mV dec⁻¹ and a high chemical stability in acidic solutions. Such an advantageous nanostructure and its positive influences on the electrocatalytic performance are useful for the preparation of other nonprecious metal electrocatalysts.     

Comparative study of La0.5Nd0.2Ca0.3–xKxMnO3 (x = 0.0 and 0.05) nanoparticles: Effect of A-cation size and calcination temperature

In order to study the effect of sintering temperature and A-site cation radius on the structural, magnetic and transport properties, a systematic investigation of La_0.5Nd_0.2Ca_0.3–xK_xMnO₃ (x = 0.0 and 0.05) nanoparticles has been undertaken. Rietveld analysis of X-ray diffraction data confirmed the presence of orthorhombic symmetry with Pbnm space group for all the samples. A paramagnetic-ferromagnetic transition is shown by all our investigated compounds. The materials exhibit semiconducting behavior and the metal-semiconductor transition temperatures (T_MS) are found to be close to Curie temperatures (T_c), indicating a strong correlation between their electrical and magnetic properties. Both T_c and T_MS of K-doped samples were found to be higher than their undoped counterparts at same calcination temperatures. In the high temperature region, it was observed that the resistivity data was best fitted by SPH model.     

Improved morphology and enhanced stability via solvent engineering for planar heterojunction perovskite solar cells

Solvent engineering technique for planar heterojunction perovskite solar cells is an efficient way to achieve uniformly controlled grain morphology for perovskite films. In this report, diethyl ether solvent engineering technique was used for Methyl ammonium lead triiodide (CH₃NH₃PbI₃) perovskite thin films for planar heterojunction solar cells which exhibited a PCE of 9.20%. Morphological improvements and enhanced grain sizes leads to enhanced absorption of CH₃NH₃PbI₃. Moreover solar cells have showed an excellent environmental stability of more than 100 days. This increase in efficiency is due to improved film morphology of perovskite layer after solvent treatment which has been revealed under UV–Vis spectroscopy, SEM images, X-ray diffraction and impedance spectroscopy.     

Experimental investigation of phase relations in Bi-Te-RE (Yb,La, Ce) ternary systems

Rare earth (RE) elements especially Yb, La and Ce have been frequently doped to Bi-Te alloys to improve thermoelectric performance. Three isothermal sections: Bi-Te-Yb at 573 K, Bi-Te-La and Bi-Te-Ce at 673 K were partly established by means of electron probe micro-analysis (EPMA) and powder X-ray diffractometry (XRD). The determined maximum solubilities of RE elements in Bi-Te alloys are very small and that of Yb reached the maximum about 0.3 at% at 573 K. Both LaTe₂ and CeTe₂ can dissolve a large amount of Bi, about 10 and 13 at% at 673 K, respectively. No ternary compound has been confirmed.