Enhancement of glass-ceramic performance by TiO2 doping: In vitro cell viability,proliferation, and differentiation

A new TiO₂-containing bioactive glass and glass-ceramics based on 50SiO₂-(45-X)CaO-(XTiO₂)-5P₂O₅ system was designed using a sol–gel technique (where X = 5, 7.5 and 10 wt %). The roles of the crystallization behavior and physicochemical characteristics of the designed glass and glass-ceramics which were played in the introduction of TiO₂ substitutions were investigated. Moreover, cell proliferation and differentiation were evaluated against human osteosarcoma cells (Saos-2). The TiO₂/CaO replacements led to the formation of a stronger glass structure and thus increased thermal parameters and the chemical stabilization of the designed materials. The FTIR data confirmed the existence of Ti within the glass and glass-ceramics samples, and no remarkable effect on their chemical integrity was observed. The XRD patterns indicated that calcium-containing minerals, including Ca₂SiO₄,Ca₃(PO₄)₂, Ca(Ti,Si)O₅, CaTiSiO₅, and Ca₁₅(PO₄)₂·(SiO₄)₆ phases were developed as a role of structure/texture under the applied heat-treatment. The results of the cytotoxicity test proved that a safe sample dose is 12–50 μg/ml, at which cell viability is ≥ 85%. The cell differentiation determined by ALP test proved the superiority of glass-ceramics compared with their native glasses. Therefore, the obtained materials could be safely used as novel biocompatible materials for the regeneration of bone tissue.     

Estimation of environmental impacts of NORM from some raw materials used in ceramic industry

Common raw materials used in ceramic industry in Egypt have been collected from different ceramic factories. The samples were tested for their natural radioactivity contents by using HPGe high-resolution γ-ray spectrometer. Various radionuclides of the samples have been identified quantitatively based on their characteristic spectral peaks. The natural radioactivity due to the presence of ²³⁸U, ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th, and ⁴⁰K and the radiological parameters for 15 raw materials were measured. The three raw materials with the highest radioactivity were quantitatively analyzed using X-ray fluorescence (XRF). The most abundant oxides measured were generally SiO₂, ZrO₂, ZnO, Fe₂O₃, and CaO. The highest mean values of ²³⁸U, ²²⁶Ra, and ²³²Th activities were 394 ± 6, 428 ± 8, and 61.1 ± 1.5 Bq kg^?1 (in zircon), and the highest ⁴⁰K activity was 283 ± 4 Bq kg^?1 (Aswan clay). The radium equivalent activities and some hazard indices were also calculated to assess the radiation hazards. The maximum mean value of the radium equivalent activity Raeq is 516 ± 10 Bq kg^?1 (in zircon). The highest radioactivity level and dose rate in air were also obtained for zircon. The total absorbed dose rates in air, calculated from the concentrations of the three radionuclides, range from 4.29 ± 0.18 to 461 ± 9 nGy h^?1; the external annual effective dose rates were determined to be between 0.03 ± 0.003 and 4.35 ± 0.23 mSv.     

Towards automation of colour/weave selection in Jacquard designs: model verification through visual assessment

A geometric model combined with a colour model to predict the colour contribution of each pre-coloured yarn in terms of colour attributes of each area of a Jacquard pattern was developed. To validate the predicted calculations (colorimetric data), a visual assessment experiment was conducted to evaluate the difference between predicted and the actual colour appearance of the woven pattern. The results from the psychophysical evaluation of the woven samples and their predicted colour values showed high correlation between the predicted and experimental data. Therefore, the model has potential to eliminate subjective evaluations and reduce prototype sample production by automating the process of weave/colour simulation.     

Towards automation of color/weave selection in Jacquard design: Model verification

Jacquard woven fabrics are made from colored yarns and different weaves for designing complex pictorial and other patterning effects. The final visualized color effect is the result of assigning weave designs to different areas of the pattern to be created. The current practice in creating Jacquard woven fabric designs is to produce many samples in a trial‐and‐error attempt to match artwork colors. An ability to simulate accurately the appearance of a design prior to manufacture is highly desirable to reduce trial‐and‐error sample production. No automated accurate digital color methodology is yet available to assist designers in matching the patterned woven fabric to the desired artwork. To achieve this, we developed a geometrical model to predict the color contribution of each yarn on the face of the fabric. The geometrical model combined with a Kubelka‐Munk based color mixing model allowed the prediction of the reflectance properties of the final color for a given design. We compared the predicted and experimental values of the reflectance properties for a range of fabrics using the same geometric model with three separate color mixing models. The geometrical model combined with a log‐based color mixing model produced reasonable agreement between predicted and measured ΔE_ab, with an average ΔE_ab of approximately five. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 34, 225–232, 2009     

A study on cold cracking susceptibility in high strength steel fillet weld joints

Controlled thermal severity (CTS) test which simulates the conditions in a single-pass fillet welding was carried out to determine the suitable minimum preheating temperature for the cold-crack-free welding of high strength steel ASTM A 516-70. The dependence of this minimum preheating temperature on diffusible hydrogen contents in weld metal was clarified. Then, the effect of climatic conditions on cold cracking susceptibility as a function of diffusible hydrogen contents in weld metal was studied. It is found that the cold cracking susceptibility of high strength steel is primarily related to the microsturcture of the HAZ which, in turn, is related to the preheating temperature. A lower preheating level, which resulted in harder microstructure, led to increased susceptibility. Suitable minimum preheating temperature required to prevent cold cracking increased with the increase in diffusible hydrogen contents of weld metal as a function of climatic conditions.     

The response of polymer optical fiber (POF) to bending and axial tension for the application of a POF sensor for automotive seat occupancy sensing

The automotive industry is a promising area for innovations in the field of polymer optical fiber (POF) sensors as the industry currently uses the POF mostly for data transmissions. Since an optical fiber sensor has a high bandwidth, is small in size, is lightweight, and is immune to electromagnetic interference, it offers higher performance than that of its electrical-based counterparts such as the strain gage, elastomeric bladder, and resistive sensor systems. This enhanced performance makes an optical fiber sensor a suitable material for sensing seat occupancy for improved safety features in automobiles. The overall goal of this research is to develop a textile-based optical fiber sensor for automotive seat occupancy with high accuracy and reproducibility. In this study, the bending and tensile loading responses of POF were investigated, where two perfluorinated (PF) graded index (GI) POFs with two different core/cladding diameters, 62.5/750 and 62.5/490 μm, were used. The bending loss and the light attenuation against the applied axial stress were measured by a photon counting optical time-domain reflectometer. The critical bending diameters were analyzed: Cytop-1 (62.5/750 μm)?≥?38.10 mm, Cytop-2 (62.5/490 μm)?≥?44.45 mm. Furthermore, the elastic sensitive strain regions (x), where the stress-induced loss was recoverable, of the POFs at a 76.2 mm gage length at a strain rate of 4 mm/min were determined: Cytop-1: 3% ≤ x ≤ 3.5%, Cytop-2: 3.1% ≤ x ≤ 3.3%. The Cytop-1 was found to be less sensitive to bending and to have greater elastic sensitive strain range relative to the Cytop-2. In this study, a theoretical approach of the PF GI POF behavior to bending and axial tension was provided. The results demonstrated the feasibility of POFs as optical fiber sensors for automotive seat occupancy sensing.     

A textile- based optical fiber sensor design for automotive seat occupancy sensing

In our previous publications, the response of perfluorinated (PF) graded index (GI) POFs (62.5/750, 62.5/490 μm) to bending, tensile loading, and cyclic loading was investigated. The results showed that Cytop-1 (62.5/750 μm) was more appropriate to be used as an optical fiber sensor for automotive seat occupancy sensing relative to Cytop-2 (62.5/490 μm). In this study, a textile-based optical fiber sensor was designed and the effect of automotive seat covering including face material and foam backing on a sensor’s performance was analyzed. The pressure interval under which the proposed POF sensor design could perform well was found to be between 0.18 and 0.21 N/cm², where PF GI POF (62.5/750 μm) was used as the POF material. The responses of the sensor in this interval were observed to be accurate and reproducible. The face fabric structure and the thickness of foam backing were not found to be significant factors to change the sensor response. Artificial neural network (ANN) was used for data analysis, and Qwiknet (version 2.23) software was used to develop ANNs. According to the results of Qwiknet, the prediction performances for training and testing data-sets were 75 and 83.33%, respectively.     

Promising features for poly(vinyl chloride) enriched with Moringa oleifera: Photostability,rheological, mechanical,thermal and antibacterial properties

Poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) was loaded with various contents of Moringa oleifera (MO) leaves extract. The changes in the structure arising after loading MO into the polymeric matrix were monitored. In addition, their rheological and mechanical properties were investigated. Some thermal analyses techniques were performed to demonstrate any change in the thermal stability of PVC before and after adding MO. PVC/MO exhibited noticeable antibacterial efficiency when evaluated against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. A favorable antibacterial efficiency of PVC/MO boosted with increasing of MO content from 5% to 25% by weight when introduced into PVC. The photostability of PVC enriched with MO was investigated. The change in the rate of dehydrochlorination for PVC was detected. It was indicated with liberating HCl from the polymeric matrix.