Comparative topographic study of surface micro‐relief of primary martensite plates in shape memory alloys with different crystalline structures

The surface micro‐reliefs of primary martensite plates, representative for two shape memory alloys (SMAs) with different crystalline structures were compared from qualitative and quantitative point of view by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy, respectively. Qualitative evaluations revealed larger widths and heights of the primary plates of ε hexagonal close packed (hcp) martensite, in an Fe‐Mn‐Si‐Cr‐Ni SMA than those of β₂′ orthorhombic (9R) martensite, in a Cu‐Zn‐Al SMA. Quantitative evaluations were based on systematic dimensional measurements of the width and height of primary plate profiles. The measurements were performed on one hundred and twenty five profiles, five on each martensite plate belonging to five typical groups of primary plates, with length above 50 micrometers, of both ε hcp and β₂′ 9R martensites. In order to compare the topographies of the two types of plates a statistical evaluation of the dimensional intervals of width and height of measured plates was performed.     

Study of the dimensional instabilities of laminated polypropylene films during heating treatments

Ensuring the geometrical stability of organic coatings is a key challenge for steel/polymer composites produced by the automotive industry to reduce the cars' weight. During the thermal treatment of painting, which exceeds the melting temperature of the organic part of the laminated film, polymer shrinkage may occur. It induces uncovered parts of the steel sheet which would present negative corrosion behavior in use. Two original and innovative experiments were presented. They enable to measure the deformation induced by the shrinkage and then to identify the microstructural mechanisms responsible for its appearance. Main results show strong influences of the macromolecular chains orientation induced by the film extrusion process and of the postheating parameters used to perform the painting curing. Raman spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry are used both to perform analysis of the microstructure evolution during heating treatments in terms of crystals melting, crystalline macromolecular chains disorientation, and volume damage healing. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Investigations of electrically driven liquid metal flows using an ultrasound Doppler flow mapping system

This paper presents a combined experimental and numerical study of the properties of a liquid metal flow inside a cylinder driven by the application of a strong electrical current. The interaction between the electric current running through the melt and the corresponding induced magnetic field produces so-called electro-vortex flows. We consider here a configuration of two parallel pencil electrodes immersed at the free surface. Velocity measurements were performed by means of the Ultrasound Doppler method. A linear array of 25 singular transducers was used to determine the two-dimensional pattern of the vertical flow component. Numerical simulations of the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) problem were conducted to calculate the Lorentz force, the Joule heating and the induced melt flow. Experimental and numerical results reveal a complex three-dimensional flow structure of the liquid metal flow. In particular, two pronounced downward jets are formed below both electrodes. The flow structure appears to be symmetrical with respect to two vertical cross sections being perpendicular to each other and one of the two planes contains the electrodes. The comparison between the experimental data and the numerical results shows a very good agreement.     

Optimal design of measurement network for neutronic activity field reconstruction by data assimilation

An optimal reconstruction of the neutronic activity field can be determined for a nuclear reactor core using a data assimilation framework to merge information from models and measurements. In this paper, we focus on solving the inverse problem of determining an optimal repartition of the measuring instruments within the core, to get the best possible results from the data assimilation reconstruction procedure. The position optimisation is realised using a Simulated Annealing algorithm, based on the Metropolis-Hastings proposition. Moreover, algebraic improvements of data assimilation have been developed, optimising their computational performance, and are presented here.     

Quartz crystal unit modeling at cryogenic temperatures

The aim of this paper was to develop the new quartz crystal electrical model including its temperature properties in the temperature range from 83.15 K (−190 °C) to 303.15 K (+30 °C) through experimental set-up and simulation analysis. Both the methodology of the quartz resonator measurements, the instrument setup, and the measurement methods needed to collect the necessary data as well as polynomial approximation of temperature dependence were described. The electrical model of AT-cut type quartz crystal for cryogenic temperatures was developed, in which its elements were expressed as functions of temperature. Using these polynomials, the behavioral model for PSPICE computer program has been worked out.     

Long-term hygrothermal performance of nuclear reactor concrete containments – Laboratory evaluations of measurement setup,in situ sampling,and moisture flux calculations

A measurement setup for in situ sampling of internal relative humidity and temperature in concrete structures was developed. The setup was used to evaluate the moisture conditions and to determine whether drying of the concrete components within a nuclear reactor containment contributes to the moisture conditions. The measurement setup was tested for accuracy and thereafter installed in Swedish nuclear reactor containments for in situ monitoring. Results from the measurements confirmed that the setup is suitable, especially for long-term measurements at depths of 50 mm or more. Complementary moisture transport calculations showed that the moisture flux from the concrete to the interior of the reactor containment have a noticeable effect on the environmental conditions in the containments. The calculations of the moisture condition in the concrete show that 15–30% of the evaporable water in the concrete has been dried out during the 30 years of operation.     

Corrosion inhibition of mild steel using Novel Bis Schiff’s Bases as corrosion inhibitors: Electrochemical and Surface measurement

Purpose: The aim of the present investigation is to evaluate the corrosion inhibiting properties of four novel synthesize compounds namely N¹,N^1′-(1,4-phenylene)bis(N⁴-(4-nitrobenzylidene)benzene-1,4-diamine) SB-I, N¹,N^1′-(1,4-phenylene)bis(N⁴-benzylidenebenzene-1,4-diamine) SB-II, N¹,N^1′-(1,4-phenylene)bis(N⁴-(4-methylbenzylidene)benzene-1,4-diamine) SB-III, N¹,N^1′-(1,4-phenylene)bis(N⁴-(4-methoxybenzylidene)benzene-1,4-diamine) SB-IV for mild steel in 1 M HCl. Corrosion inhibitors find wide application in industries during pickling of steel, descaling and oil well acidization. Inhibitors have attracted great attention due to cost effectiveness and simplicity of the methods. Method: Different experimental techniques such as weight loss, open circuit potential (OCP), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polarization were used to evaluate the corrosion inhibition performance of SBs for mild steel in acid solution. After the corrosion experiments, the surface morphology of metal surface in the absence and presence of SBs were studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Atomic force microscopy (AFM). Findings: The corrosion inhibition efficiency of SBs for mild steel are 71.42% (SB-I), 89.52 (SB-II), 92.85 (SB-III), 96.19 (SB-IV). Tafel polarization revealed that all the SBs behaved as mixed-type inhibitor but predominantly of cathodic type. The inhibition actions of these Schiff base molecules blocked the electrode surface by means of adsorption of the inhibitor molecule on metal surface, obeying the Langmuir adsorption isotherm. SEM/AFM studies of the metal surfaces confirm the protection of metal surface in presence of inhibitor as compared to the damaged surface in blank acid solution.     

Evaluation of decay photocurrent measurements in dye‐sensitized solar cells: Application to laser beam‐induced current technique

The use of the laser beam‐induced current (LBIC) technique in photovoltaic devices is widespread, but its use in photoelectrochemical cells, such as dye‐sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), is limited due to the configuration of these devices. The main reason is the very slow response time of DSSCs in the decay process, and therefore LBIC scans take too long to perform. We have designed a procedure published in the literature to correct the photocurrent values obtained by the LBIC technique, based on an algorithm that uses a decreasing mono‐exponential model. This work presents a study of the decay measurements in DSSCs using several functions, in order to improve the algorithm designed. It concludes that functions such as a decreasing bi‐exponential or Becquerel function generate better fits to experimental data. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.