Effect of amino acids as capping agent on the size and morphology of pure TmVO<Subscript>4</Subscript> nanoparticles and their photocatalyst properties

In this paper, thulium vanadate (TmVO₄) nanoparticles were synthesized via a simple precipitation method based on the reaction between thulium nitrate hexahydrate and ammonium metavanadate in water. Besides, three capping agent such as alanine, valine, and glycine were used to investigate their effects on the morphology and particle size of thulium vanadate nanoparticles. According to the vibrating sample magnetometer, thulium vanadate nanoparticles indicated a paramagnetic behavior at room temperature. In addition, the photocatalyst activity of as-prepared thulium vanadate nanoparticles was evaluated by degradation of methyl orange under ultraviolet light irradiation. The structural, morphological, and optical properties of as-obtained products were characterized by techniques such as XRD, SEM, EDX, and UV–Vis spectroscopy.     

Preparation of nickel ferrite nanoparticles via a new route and study of their photocatalytic properties

Pure nickel ferrite (NiFe₂O₄) were prepared via sol-gel route in presence of different amino acids as a capping agent. The effect of different amino acids such as leucine, asparagine, and cysteine on the size, and morphology of NiFe₂O₄ nanoparticles were investigated. The magnetic properties of the samples were investigated using VSM analyze. We found that the NiFe₂O₄ nanoparticles synthesized at temperature of 800 °C exhibit a ferromagnetic behavior with a saturation magnetization of 34 emu/g and a coercivity of 100 Oe. Furthermore, the photocatalytic properties of as synthesized NiFe₂O₄ were evaluated by degradation of methyl orange as water contaminant. XRD, SEM, EDS, and UV–Vis spectroscopy were employed to characterize structural, morphological, and optical properties of NiFe₂O₄ nanoparticles.     

Production and characterization of polypropylene fiber upon addition of selective peroxide during melt spinning and comparison with conventional polypropylene fibers

In the present work, effect of selective peroxide on reactor grade polypropylene (PP) (known as V30S) during melt spinning process on the physical and thermal properties of as‐spun resultant multifilament yarn was studied. Attempts have also been made to compare this yarn sample with other fiber samples produced from reactor and controlled rheology grades polypropylene. The results show that the multifilament yarn spun from V30S/Peroxide sample shows higher birefringence and tensile strength and also lower modulus, elongation at break, and shrinkage compared with that of spun from pure V30S granule. Density and thermal behavior studies show low variations compared with original sample. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 2007     

Use of D‐optimal design to model and the analysis of the effect of the draw ratio on some physical properties of hot multistage drawn nylon 6 fibers

In this article, we present an experimental design methodology for studying the effect of the draw ratio on the physical properties of nylon 6 fibers on hot multistage drawing. A response surface methodology involving D‐optimal design was used for the modeling and optimization. According to the analysis of variance results, the proposed models could be used to navigate the design space. We found that the responses of the tenacity and initial modulus were very sensitive to the factor of the second‐stage draw ratio, and the shrinkage response was governed by the factor of the third‐stage draw ratio. The results show a good agreement between the experimental and model predictions with high correlation coefficients. The operation conditions for obtaining the drawn yarn with the highest tenacity and initial modulus and low shrinkage are proposed. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 1337‐1344, 2013     

Instability analysis of bi-axial micro-scanner under electromagnetic actuation including small scale and damping effects

Microsystem Technologies - The objective of this work is to create an analytical framework to study the problem of instability and squeezed film damping in bi-axial micro-scanners under...     

Preparation and characterization of low‐density polyethylene/thermoplastic starch composites reinforced by cellulose nanofibers

In the current study, the effect of extracted cellulose nanofibers (CNFs) on rheological and mechanical properties and biodegradability of polyethylene/starch blend was investigated. The CNFs were extracted from wheat straws using a chemo‐mechanical method. Polyethylene/starch blend was reinforced by different amounts of CNF (6–14 wt%) using an internal mixer followed by a single screw extruder. The flow properties of nanocomposites were investigated by determining Melt Flow Index (MFI) and viscosity. Due to the weak interaction of cellulosic nanofibers and polymers, the flow behavior of nanocomposites was undesirable. Tensile tests were performed to evaluate the mechanical performance of nanocomposites. By increasing the CNF content, the tensile strength and elongation at break declined; whereas, the Young's modulus was improved. The biodegradation of cellulose nanocomposites was investigated by water absorption and degradability tests. Both experiments confirmed the progressive effect of cellulose nanofibers on the degradation of the composites. POLYM. COMPOS., 36:2309–2316, 2015. © 2014 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Effect of graphene nanoplatelets presence on the morphology,structure, and thermal properties of polypropylene in fiber melt‐spinning process

Melt spinning of graphene nanoplatelets (GnPs)‐polypropylene (PP) nanocomposite fibers are reported for the first time. PP/GnPs fibers were spun with a pilot‐plant spinning machine with varying concentration of GnPs by mixing PP/GnPs masterbatch with PP. The effect of inclusion of GnPs on the morphology and crystalline structure of PP fibers was investigated. The thermal stability of the fibers was also evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis. The light microscopy images showed that the GnPs are uniformly distributed over the PP matrix. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) results revealed that presence of GnPs affects both the melting and crystallization behaviors. The melting peaks of PP/GnPs nanocomposite fibers were broader than that of neat PP fibers, indicating a broader crystal size distribution in PP/GnPs nanocomposite fibers as compared to the neat PP fibers. Besides, an obvious increment in the crystallization peak temperature was observed in GnPs‐PP nanocomposite fibers. The wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction spectra (WAXD) results showed that the crystal type of nanocomposite fibers did not change and was still the α‐monoclinic crystal form. Moreover, the morphology of spherulites demonstrated that GnPs increased the nucleation sites in the nanocomposite fibers which in turn restricted the crystal growth of PP chains. This finding supported the DSC and WAXD results. Activation energies were calculated by Horowitz and Metzger's method as 77.87 and 105.41 kJ/mol for neat PP and PP/0.2 wt% GnPs fibers, respectively, suggesting an increase in the thermal stability of GnPs‐PP nanocomposite fibers. POLYM. COMPOS., 36:367–375, 2015. © 2014 Society of Plastics Engineers