Suppression of a spontaneous dust density wave by modulation of ion streaming

Synchronization of a self-excited dust density wave has been experimentally investigated in a strongly coupled dusty plasma. A dust density wave of frequency ~78 Hz is spontaneously generated from the dust void boundary due to the ion streaming instability. The electric field in the dust void region is measured, and the electric field force and ion drag force on the dust particles at the void boundary are estimated to explain the mechanism of spontaneous dust density wave excitation. Synchronization occurring through the suppression mechanism is observed by modulating the ion streaming by applying an external sinusoidal signal to the dust void. At sufficiently high modulation amplitude, the onset of period-doubling bifurcation is observed. Fast Fourier transform spectral analysis is done using time-series data obtained from high-speed video imaging. The van der Pol equation with a force term is used to correlate the observed suppression phenomena.     

Interactions: Dialogues on Body,Protections and Derivatives

Could kinetic clothing be the next big thing? A collaboration between Dutch fashion designer Iris van Herpen and Italy-based architect and educator Niccolò Casas has produced a series of dresses that blur the boundaries between the body and the space around it. Casas explains how they have fused handcraft with technology, using 3D printing, mass customisation techniques, and morpho-dynamic simulations, among other means, to produce couture pieces that react to bodily movement in extraordinary new ways.     

Material Behaviours in 3D-Printed Fashion Items

New advances in material technologies and 3D printing are giving a whole new definition to the notion of tailoring. Recent projects by Guest-Editor Behnaz Farahi have developed items of apparel that are not only a perfect fi t for the wearer, but also interact with his or her surroundings with dynamic qualities. Here she describes their production and their unique functionalities – from bending or bristling in reaction to the onlooker's gaze or the wearer's brain activity, to producing light patterns in response to the body's movement.     

Dispersive forces of particle–surface interactions: direct AFM measurements and modelling

Fundamentals of particle–particle interaction are of great interest in agglomeration processes. Particle adhesion depends on dispersive forces (van der Waals force), local chemical bindings, Coulomb force and capillary attractions. Additionally, surface properties like roughness, adsorption layers and surface chemistry strongly affect adhesion forces. van der Waals interactions are poorly understood because popular ab initio force calculations for molecules like density functional theory (DFT) often do not lead to proper results. van der Waals forces are difficult to measure directly. We present direct measurements of particle–particle and particle–surface interactions in the gas phase carried out with an atomic force microscope (AFM). Special emphasis is given to a proper statistical treatment of the data. For modelling of particle adhesion, we use computer-assisted empirical potential methods. Parameters like adsorbed water and surface roughness are considered. We extract parameters for weak interactions from the Lifshitz theory and gas adsorption data. Adsorbing molecules can be used as probes to measure dispersive forces. Studying surface and particle properties combined with computer-assisted modelling is a basic requisite to reach the aim of predicting particle–particle interactions in industrial processes.     

The Effect of Adhesion on the Rheological and Frictional Behavior of a Confined Lubricant Film

We investigated the rheological and frictional behavior of a model system of lubricated, atomically-smooth, solid surfaces at zero and negative external normal load. The measurements were performed with a surface forces apparatus modified for oscillatory shear. For low deflection amplitudes, and negative loads up to the point when the surfaces jumped apart, the confined liquid layer (0.7 ± 0.2 nm perfluorinated heptaglyme) showed a highly elastic behavior independent of load. In the sliding regime at large amplitudes, the behavior was mostly dissipative but also independent of normal load. The force necessary to separate the surfaces was not affected by any sliding conditions. However, the friction force showed a very pronounced decrease as a consequence of sliding at large amplitudes. Thus, for our system, friction and adhesion are decoupled. We propose a mechanism of in-plane rearrangements of the molecules and explain the shear-induced reduction of friction by the formation of shear-bands.     

Simple Views on Metal/Oxide Interfaces: Contributions of the Long-Range Interactions to the Adhesion Energy

The image and van der Waals contributions to the metal/oxide work of adhesion are compared through the extent to which they follow the known prevalent trends, i.e. the increase in work of adhesion (a) with narrowing oxide band gap and (b) with increasing conduction electron density of the metal. The van der Waals interaction is shown to follow both trends, while the image term is suggested to be significant only for dense metals in contact with very ionic oxides. The relative contribution of these long-range interactions to the overall metal/oxide work of adhesion is found to be maximized for systems involving metals with low electronic densities and oxides with wide band gaps. At variance, high metallic electronic densities and narrow oxide gaps likely favour short-range interactions arising from charge transfer.     

Effects of bulk and surface properties of materials on adhesion-induced deformations between submicrometer diameter particles and substrates

—Spherical particles of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVF₂), of 0.3 μm diameter, were deposited onto various substrates including polyester, a polyester-polydimethylsiloxane block copolymer (hereafter referred to as PSBC), and polished silicon. The adhesion force-induced deformations between the particles and substrates were then observed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It was found that the particles embedded most deeply into the soft PSBC. No embedding of the particles into the Si wafers was observed, although the particles, themselves, appeared to flatten. The particles were also observed to embed into the polyester, although to a lesser extent than they did into the PSBC. Moreover, when the particles contacted samples of polyester which had been plasma-treated in argon, the embedding decreased. Measured contact area diameters are compared to predictions of various models of adhesion. The effect of the thickness of a conducting (Au/Pd) coating on the appearance of the contact zone is also discussed.     

牛Ⅱ型链球菌van B2蛋白的原核表达及纯化

目的原核表达并纯化牛Ⅱ型链球菌(Streptococcus bovis biotypeⅡ)van B2蛋白。方法采用PCR法从牛Ⅱ型链球菌基因组DNA中扩增van B2基因,克隆至原核表达载体pET-28a(+)中,构建重组表达质粒pET-28a-van B2,转化大肠杆菌Rossata(DE3),IPTG诱导表达。表达的重组蛋白经Ni柱亲和层析纯化后,进行SDS-PAGE及Westernblot分析。结果 PCR扩增获得597 bp的van B2基因片段;重组表达质粒pET-28a-van B2经双酶切及测序证明构建正确;表达的重组van B2蛋白相对分子质量约为29 000,主要以可溶性形式表达;纯化的重组蛋白纯度为70%,可被小鼠抗牛链球菌血清Ⅱ型多克隆抗体特异性识别。结论原核表达并纯化了牛Ⅱ型链球菌van B2蛋白,为van B2基因的耐药性研究奠定了物质基础。     

Gravitational discharge of fine dry powders with asperities from a conical hopper

The effects of particle properties, especially the surface roughness and particle type, on the gravity discharge rate and flow behavior of fine dry powders from a conical hopper are studied in detail. The van der Waals force is considered to dominate the discharge of small particles, while the empty annulus effect dominates the discharge of large particles. To predict the van der Waals force between two rough spherical particles, a model based on Rumpf theory is adopted. The effect of surface roughness can be reflected by Bond number Bo_g which is correlated with discharge rate. By modifying the powder bed porosity and Beverloo constant, the discharge rates of fine dry powders can be well predicted by an empirical correlation. Finally, not only the ratio of hopper outlet size to particle size D₀/d_p but also the Bond number Bo_g is found to be an important indicator to determine the powder flowability. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 64: 427–436, 2018     

A Novel Test for the Appraisal of Solid/Solid Interfacial Interactions

The Johnson, Kendall and Roberts (JKR) technique has been used with considerable success for assessing solid/solid interfacial interactions over the past 25 years or so. Nevertheless, the contact zone between the two spherical solids is often small and the energy of adhesion scales with the cube of the contact radius (at low load), thus potentially magnifying errors in adhesion assessment. The theoretical aspects of a novel technique are presented here, in which a hollow, slightly inflated, spherical membrane replaces a full sphere, and is placed in contact with a flat rigid solid. A judicious choice of experimental conditions should lead to increased contact radius and the energy of adhesion scales with its square (at low load), thus reducing possible errors. An added advantage is that the effective elasticity of the sphere depends on internal gas pressure. Thus surface and bulk effects are decoupled.