Performance evaluation of basalt fiber-reinforced geopolymer composites with various contents of nano CaCO3

High carbon footprint of cement production is the major drawback of plain cement concrete resulting in environmental pollution. Geopolymer composites paste can be effectively used as an alternative to Portland cement in the construction industry for a sustainable environment. The demand for high-performance composites and sustainable construction is increasing day by day. Therefore, the present experimental program has endeavored to investigate the mechanical performance of basalt fiber-reinforced fly ash-based geopolymer pastes with various contents of nano CaCO₃. The content of basalt fibers was fixed at 2% by weight for all specimens while the studied contents of nano CaCO₃ were 0%, 1%, 2%, and 3%, respectively. The compressive strength, compressive stress-strain response, flexural strength, bending stress-strain response, elastic modulus, toughness modulus, toughness indices, fracture toughness, impact strength, hardness, and microstructural analysis of all four geopolymer composite pastes with varying contents of nano CaCO₃ using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were evaluated. The results revealed that the use of 3% nano CaCO₃ in basalt fiber-reinforced geopolymer paste presented the highest values of compressive strength and hardness while the use of 2% nano CaCO₃ showed the highest values of flexural strength, impact strength, and fracture toughness of composite paste. The SEM results indicated that the addition of nano CaCO₃ improved the microstructure and provided a denser geopolymer paste by refining the interfacial zones and accelerating the geopolymerization reaction.     

Designing amorphous formulations of polyphenols with naringin by spray-drying for enhanced solubility and permeability

Naringin (NAR), a major flavanone (FVA) glycoside, is a component of food mainly obtained from grapefruit. We used NAR as a food additive to improve the solubility and permeability of hydrophobic polyphenols used as supplements in the food industry. The spray-dried particles (SDPs) of NAR alone show an amorphous state with a glass transition temperature (T_g) at 93.2 °C. SDPs of hydrophobic polyphenols, such as flavone (FVO), quercetin (QCT), naringenin (NRG), and resveratrol (RVT) were prepared by adding varying amounts of NAR. All SDPs of hydrophobic polyphenols with added NAR were in an amorphous state with a single T_g, but SDPs of hydrophobic polyphenols without added NAR showed diffraction peaks derived from each crystal. The SDPs with NAR could keep an amorphous state after storage at a high humidity condition for one month, except for SDPs of RVT/NAR. SDPs with NAR enhanced the solubility of hydrophobic polyphenols, especially NRG solubility, which was enhanced more than 9 times compared to NRG crystal. The enhanced solubility resulted in the increased membrane permeability of NRG. The antioxidant effect of the hydrophobic NRG was also enhanced by the synergetic effect of NAR. The findings demonstrated that NAR could be used as a food additive to enhance the solubility and membrane permeability of hydrophobic polyphenols.     

Binary Ti–Fe system. Part I: Experimental investigation at high pressure

The present work illustrates the effect of quasi-hydrostatic pressure on the positions and widths of the homogeneity ranges of the intermetallic phases TiFe and TiFe₂ at high temperatures. The experiments were performed with Ti–Fe diffusion couples that were heat treated in a multi-anvil press at 2.5 GPa. The solubility limits of the phases were derived from the concentration profiles that were measured using electron probe microanalysis. It was found that the homogeneity ranges of TiFe and TiFe₂ extend to higher titanium concentrations, if the pressure is applied. The positions of the phase boundaries of the intermetallics on the iron-rich side are not affected by the pressure. The accuracy of the experimental data including the homogeneity ranges and temperatures was verified by comparing the homogeneity ranges of β-Ti(Fe), α/δ-Fe(Ti) and γ-Fe measured in this study with the homogeneity ranges taken from literature. The pressure was calibrated using the pressure-induced phase transitions of bismuth.     

Role of Co in formation of Ni-Ti clusters in maraging stainless steel

The effect of Co addition on the formation of Ni-Ti clusters in maraging stainless steel was studied by three dimensional atom probe (3DAP) and first-principles calculation. The cluster analysis based on the maximum separation approach showed an increase in size but a decrease in density of Ni-Ti clusters with increasing the Co content. The first-principles calculation indicated weaker Co-Ni (Co-Ti) interactions than Co-Ti (Fe-Ti) interactions, which should be the essential reason for the change of distribution characteristics of Ni-Ti clusters in bcc Fe caused by Co addition.     

电站隧洞岩爆岩石的微观破坏力学机制分析

分析总结西南某电站辅助隧洞的岩爆发育特征,然后用扫描电镜技术(SEM)对岩爆岩石断口进行微观断裂形貌研究,并总结其破坏力学机制,最终建立起岩爆岩石的微观断裂方式和破坏力学机制与宏观岩爆特征及其烈度的关系。     

Fracture toughness of PAN-based carbon fibers estimated from strength-mirror size relation

Fracture toughness (K_IC) of representative high-strength type PAN (polyacrylonitrile)-based carbon fibers, Torayca™ T300 and T800H, with or without artificial surface defects, were estimated to be ca. 1 MPam^1/2 from the tensile strength vs. fracture mirror size relation, assuming a constant crack-to-mirror size ratio. The corresponding critical energy release rate (Γ) was ca. 7.4 J m⁻², which was close to the value derived from the reported surface energies for a graphite crystal. Similar K_IC values were obtained for the old-type PAN-based carbon fibers from the reported data by the use of the present estimation procedure.     

High resistivity measurement of SiC wafers using different techniques

To establish fast, nondestructive, and inexpensive methods for resistivity measurements of SiC wafers, different resistivity-measurement techniques were tested for characterization of semi-insulating SiC wafers, namely, the four-point probe method with removable graphite contacts, the van der Pauw method with annealed metal and diffused contacts, the current-voltage (I-V) technique, and the contactless resistivity-measurement method. Comparison of different techniques is presented. The resistivity values of the semi-insulating SiC wafer measured using different techniques agree fairly well. As a result, application of removable graphite contacts is proposed for fast and nondestructive resistivity measurement of SiC wafers using the four-point probe method. High-temperature van der Pauw and room-temperature Hall characterization for the tested semi-insulating SiC wafer was also obtained and reported in this work.     

中小型水利施工企业推行职工持股的启示

通过广西水电南宁地质勘探基础工程处推行职工持股的思路,结合广西水利施工企业目前的具体情况, 就如何推行职工持股进行探讨,并提出建议及看法。     

掺气减蚀保护作用的新概念

利用针式掺气流速仪测量原型和模型掺气浓度场、流速场，气泡尺寸及其概率分布的研究成果表明，原型水流韦伯数高，形成微小气泡的能力比模型强，气泡上浮慢，接近底部的小尺寸气泡概率及掺气浓度比模型大。初步研究认为：0.2mm或0.5mm以下的微小气泡在掺气减蚀中起着主要作用，可能只要很小掺气浓度即可达到掺气减蚀的效果。因此以小尺寸气泡的掺气浓度，作为判断掺气减蚀保护作用的指标将更为准确。