Effect of nanorelief structure formed in situ on tribological properties of ceramics in dry sliding

Nanorelief structure formed on the surface of B₄C–SiC ceramics by an in-situ method is reported. The nanorelief structure formed by the in-situ method, which differs from the relief structure produced by laser treatment, results from preferential wearing of SiC particles, which have lower hardness, by free diamond particles and mixed wear particles of B₄C and SiC during polishing and sliding, respectively. The effect of the nanorelief structure formed by the in-situ method on the sliding dry friction against a SiC ball is examined using a pin-on-disk tribometer. A comparison of dry sliding of the B₄C–SiC composite ceramics with nanorelief structure to that of SiC ceramics without nanorelief structure reveals that B₄C–SiC composite ceramics have a lower coefficient of friction and a significantly lower specific wear rate than the SiC ceramics. Worn surface analysis indicates that the nanorelief structure does not disappear after a dry sliding test. The depth of the nanorelief structure formed by the in-situ method ranges from 10 to 40 nm. The friction and wear results are associated with the nanorelief structure formed by the in-situ method.     

Mechanical properties and microstructure evolution of pressureless-sintered B4C–SiC ceramic composite with CeO2 additive

Boron carbide ceramic composites (B₄C)-silicon carbide (SiC) with the cerium oxide (CeO₂) additive, which was varied from 0 wt% to 9 wt%, were prepared by pressureless sintering at 2150 °C for 60 min. The effect of CeO₂ additive content on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the B₄C–SiC ceramic composites was investigated in detail. In-situ synthesised cerium hexaboride (CeB₆) was identified in the B₄C–SiC ceramic composites. B-rich transition zones (such as B_38.22C₆, B_51.02C_1.82) were formed between the B₄C and CeB₆ grains, which introduced local lattice distortion to increase the sintering driving force. The thermal conductivity coefficient of CeB₆ was higher than that of B₄C, which benefited the delivery of heat quantity and helped achieve a highly dense and uniform sintered body. When the CeO₂ additive was excessively increased (more than 5 wt%), the CeB₆ grains had a large grain size and exhibited an increase in the amount of generated carbon monoxide (CO) gas, which led to an increase in the porosity of the B₄C–SiC ceramic composites and decrease in the mechanical properties. The optimum values of the relative density, Vickers hardness, flexural strength, and fracture toughness of the B₄C–SiC ceramic composite with 5 wt% CeO₂ additive were 96.42%, 32.21 GPa, 380 MPa, and 4.32 MPa m^1/2, respectively.     

Gas-assisted exfoliation of boron nitride nanosheets enhancing adsorption performance

A gas exfoliation strategy for controllable preparation of boron nitride (BN) nanosheets with few-layered structure were reported. The green exfoliation process provides the BN nanosheets remarkable increment of adsorption capacities to organic contaminants, which is ascribed to better exposure of active sites originating from the larger surface area and thinner layer. Moreover, the prepared BN also exhibits outstanding recyclability.     

Influence of boron substitution on the crystallisation behaviour of tetracalcium phosphate phase in the 4.5SiO2-3Al2O3-1.5P2O5-5CaO glass system

This study focuses on the effect of boron substitution on the crystallisation behaviour of an important bioceramic phase, tetracalcium phosphate (TTCP, Ca₄P₂O₉), in the 4.5SiO₂-3Al₂O₃-1.5P₂O₅-5CaO glass system. The influence of phase separation on the crystallisation activation energy as well as the microstructure is systematically analysed. The results indicate that increasing the extent of substitution of B for Al tends to lead to a decrease of the glass-transition temperature (T_g) and crystallisation temperature (T_p). When the substitution amount of B reaches 15 mol%, phase separation is observed. Weak phase separations during glass making can promote the nucleation of crystals due to heterogeneous nucleation with reduced nucleation activation energy. When 50 mol% B is substituted, serious phase separation is observed, with spherical-shaped TTCP phases appearing in the glass. The growth of striped-shaped TTCP crystals is largely suppressed even when a long holding time (1 h) at 900 °C is applied.     

Boron removal from water and its recovery using iron (Fe) oxide/hydroxide-based nanoparticles (NanoFe) and NanoFe-impregnated granular activated carbon as adsorbent

This study presents information obtained by the synthesis of Fe(3) oxide/hydroxide nanoparticles sol (NanoFe) and NanoFe-impregnated granular activated carbon as adsorbents for boron removal from solutions. The research describes an adsorption method for cleaning a solution containing boron contaminants followed by recovery of the adsorbent and the adsorbed material for safe removal or further reuse. The technology provides an efficient method of boron removal from water. A marked effect of NanoFe and NanoFe-impregnated GAC adsorbents concentration and pH level on boron removal efficiency was demonstrated. At least 95–98% boron recovery efficiency is possible using NanoFe sol and Fe-impregnated GAC that in fact also recover the adsorbent for reuse. Boron adsorption onto the NanoFe-impregnated GAC adsorbent may be described by pseudo-second-order reaction kinetics and the Langmuir isotherm model. The boron adsorption capacity on iron (3) oxide nanoparticles and Fe-impregnated GAC at an equilibrium concentration of 0.3 mg/dm³ as B in the solution is much higher than these values for similar adsorbents reported in the literature.     

Densification mechanisms and microstructural evolution during spark plasma sintering of boron carbide powders

Micron-sized boron carbide (B₄C) powders were subjected to spark plasma sintering (SPS) under temperature ranging from 1700 °C to 2100 °C for a soaking time of 5, 10 and 20 min and their densification kinetics was determined using a creep deformation model. The densification mechanism was interpreted on the basis of the stress exponent n and the apparent activation energy Q_d from Harrenius plots. Results showed that within the temperature range 1700–2000 °C, creep deformation which was controlled by grain-boundary sliding or by interface reaction contributed to the densification mechanism at low effective stress regime (n = 2,Q_d = 459.36 kJ/mol). While at temperature higher than 2000 °C or at high stress regime, the dominant mechanism appears to be the dislocation climb (n = 6.11).     

炭纤维硼改性对其力学性能的影响

采用溶液浸渍对炭纤维（ＣＦ）进行了硼改性处理,并在２５００℃下进行石墨化热处理。研究了硼化物溶液浓度及活化剂对炭纤维力学性能的影响,通过扫描电镜观察炭纤维断面的微观结构形态。实验结果表明,ＣＦ硼处理后可以明显提高纤维的模量,适当控制硼化物溶液浓度,可以同时提高强度。     

矩分析在硼同位素分离色谱中的应用研究

以D301-G树脂为固定相,水为流动相,通过矩分析研究2种硼同位素在给定条件下的色谱特征,基于平衡-扩散模型、线性驱动力模型估算了硼酸在固定相上的动力学参数。研究结果表明,同位素10B在树脂相上的色谱保留时间大于11B;硼酸在D301-G树脂相中的轴向扩散系数和集总传质系数均随温度的升高而增大,室温下轴向扩散系数为1.08 cm2/min,集总传质系数为0.65 min-1。     

不同硼效率棉花品种根系参数和伤流液组分的差异

溶液培养条件下研究硼对不同硼效率棉花品种根系参数、伤流量及伤流液组分的影响。结果表明,缺硼抑制棉花根系生长,根重、根体积、根长、活跃吸收面积、总吸收面积、活跃吸收面积占总吸收面积的比例以及伤流量均显著降低,高效品种降低幅度比低效品种小;缺硼还使高效品种根系比表面积升高,而低效品种无显著变化。缺硼显著影响不同棉花品种伤流液各组分含量,与低效品种相比,高效品种伤流液中有较多的NO3-、K 、无机磷、可溶性糖和游离氨基酸。说明缺硼条件下高效品种根系比低效品种具有更强的吸收、代谢活力,可能是其硼效率较高的主要原因之一。