Search

Abstract: Lightweight, robust woven graphite-fiber structures were developed for heat exchangers which provide high conductivity paths along the direction of the graphite fibers. These structures were produced and characterized for air permeability/pressure drop and thermal (heat transfer) performance. Results indicate that the materials are suitable for use in ultra-light weight heat exchanger applications such as vehicle radiators or other areas where light weight, compact, conformable heat transfer devices are needed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The fatigue crack growth process involves damage accumulation and crack extension. The two sub-processes that lead to fatigue crack extension were quantified separately in a recent model for small fatigue crack growth applicable to engineering alloys. Here, we report the results of an experimental investigation to assess the assumptions of that model. The fatigue striation formation in an aluminum alloy is modeled, and it is verified that the number of cycles required for striation formation is related to the cyclic crack-tip opening displacement. The striation spacing is related to the value of the monotonic crack-tip displacement. It is concluded that extensive crack-tip geometry changes due to plasticity in the aluminum alloy causes a reduction in the slope of the fatigue crack propagation curves. The implications of these results on the fatigue crack propagation lifetime calculations are identified. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper describes results from the mechanical evaluation of unirradiated SiC fiber–reinforced SiC matrix composite tubes under a controlled high-temperature steam environment. The experiments were aimed at identifying key material degradation behavior under environments relevant to loss-of-coolant accidents of light water reactors. Mechanical tests of the SiC composite tubes at 1000 °C under steam and inert environments were conducted using a unique test capability. The material tested was a duplex tube with a thick monolithic SiC layer on the outer surface. The tubes were subjected to preloading at ∼100 MPa in tension before exposure to high-temperature steam with up to 75 % of the preload at a constant displacement. In the presence of matrix cracks, the steam exposure caused embrittlement of the SiC composite tubes and failure at a stress level below the pretest stress. The material degradation was explained by a fiber oxidation model, which can be applied to various SiC cladding concepts. The embrittlement could be a limiting factor for using SiC cladding subjected to loss-of-coolant accident conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbide/refractory metal cermets possess attractive combinations of thermal and mechanical properties for ultra-high temperature structural applications. Using a high-throughput computational thermodynamic approach, 16 carbide/refractory metal cermet systems were identified, out of 1808 possible combinations, that could be fabricated by the displacive compensation of porosity (DCP) method using molten copper alloys as infiltrators at 1300 °C. Experimental results for ZrC/W and ZrC/Mo, and other proposed systems in the literature provide a level of validation to this approach. We found that copper alloys are more suitable for DCP than aluminum alloys owing to the low melting temperature of copper alloys (e.g., Zr 2 Cu and Ti 2 Cu), and the minimal chemical reaction as well as very limited mutual solid solubility of copper with refractory metals. Our results show that high-throughput thermodynamics calculation is a robust approach for systematically and thoroughly identifying refractory metal cermets that are suitable for DCP. Image 1 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the main factors responsible for the mechanical and physical properties of nanocomposites is the effectiveness of the interfacial region to transfer loads and mechanical vibrations between the nano-reinforcements and the matrix. Surface functionalization has been the preferred approach to engineer the interfaces in polymer nanocomposites in order to maximize their potential in structural and functional applications. In this study, amine-functionalized cellulose nanofibrils (mCNF-G1) were synthesized via silylation of the hydroxyl groups on the CNF surface using 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (APTMS). To further increase the amine density (mCNF-G2), dendritic polyamidoamine (PAMAM) was grafted onto mCNF-G1 by the Michael addition of methacrylate onto mCNF-G1, followed by the transamidation of the ester groups of methacrylate using ethylenediamine. Compared to native CNF-reinforced, poly( l -lactide) (PLLA) nanocomposites, amine-functionalized CNF exhibited significantly improved dispersion and interfacial properties within the PLLA matrix due to the grafting of PLLA chains via aminolysis. It is also a more effective nucleating agent, with 15% mCNF-G1 leading to a crystallinity of 32.5%, compared to 0.1 and 8.7% for neat PLLA and native CNF-reinforced composites. We have demonstrated that APTMS-functionalized CNF (mCNF-G1) significantly improved the tensile strength compared to native CNF, with 10% mCNF-G1 being the most effective (i.e., >100% increase in tensile strength). However, we also found that excessive amines on the CNF surface (i.e., mCNF-G2) resulted in decreased tensile strength and modulus due to PLLA degradation via aminolysis. These results demonstrate the potential of optimized amine-functionalized CNF for future renewable material applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chemical and structural stability of two commercial multicomponent silicate glasses (SCN and G6) in contact with yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) was investigated after exposure times of up to 40,000 h in air at 800 °C. With exposure time, interfacial layers develop at the SCN-YSZ and G6-YSZ interfaces, which were characterized in detail using both quantitative chemical analysis and atomic-resolution imaging. At the SCN-YSZ interface, a Ca-Ba-Si-O reaction phase was found to grow by diffusion control. In G6-YSZ, Raman spectroscopy and electron microscopy revealed a disorganized interfacial reaction later between G6 and YSZ, and the occurrence of cubic to tetragonal to monoclinic phase transformations in YSZ. This microstructural evolution is discussed in terms of devitrification resistance of glass and diffusion processes at interfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Amorphous and crystalline β-eucryptite (LiAlSiO4) specimens were prepared with controlled grain sizes and varying levels of microcracking, and their elastic moduli were determined using resonant ultrasound spectroscopy. It was found that the relationship between Young’s modulus, Poisson’s ratio and degree of microcracking in these materials can be described well with fracture-mechanics-based models. It was also found that if glassy β-eucryptite is considered to be a microcracked medium in which broken Si–O bonds, with respect to the crystalline material, constitute microcracks, then its elastic properties can be described equally well by these models. Such considerations are explained by noting the differences in atomic bond density among the different states of the material and by accounting for differences in strain energy release rate measurements on glass and ceramic specimens. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Creep tests were performed at 875°C and 1050°C on commercially available FeCrAl foils (∼50μm, 2mil thickness) over a wide range of stress and duration. The oxide scales formed on the creep specimens were analyzed and compared to those that formed on unstressed specimens to assess the effect of stress and strain on oxide growth behavior. Below a specific stress threshold, the creep rate becomes moderately dependent on the applied load, the lifetime independent of that load, and rupture occurs due to the onset of breakaway oxidation. A creep rate model based on the strengthening of the FeCrAl foils due to load-bearing by the thermally grown alumina scale was observed to be in good agreement with the experimental results. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Large-scale atomistic models for complex polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon systems help understand the chemical properties and behaviors of complex feedstocks such as coal or petroleum. However, the development and utilization of large-scale models remain limited due to the difficulty in achieving the varied structural characteristics necessary to capture stochastic nature of these feedstocks. We demonstrate a systematic workflow to construct stochastic molecular systems from a broad analytical suite: high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (13C NMR), laser desorption ionization mass spectroscopy (LDI-MS), and elemental analysis. We present a model construction and analysis utility of a new Python-based module. We selected one subbituminous and three high-volatile bituminous coals to construct large-scale models (∼40,000 atoms). The constructed models were utilized to examine the affinity for solvent extraction (naphthalene or tetralin) and the effect of structural properties (e.g., aromatic cluster size, functional groups, and cross-linking) in reactive molecular dynamics simulations. Complex chemical reactions were monitored with bond order transitions, intermediates formation, and mass distributions. Reactive molecular dynamics simulations suggest a plausible chemical extraction process and products for the complex fossil feedstocks. The results indicated that radical formations with bond breaking of bridging oxygens and carbons were required at high temperatures to facilitate hydrogeneration and extraction of gas molecules from radical-free molecules. We observed that aliphatic chains of tetralin were easily decomposed and combined with radicals to form small size of molecules with aryl bonding, mainly increasing molecules in the 500–1000 Da, while naphthalene had little impact on chemical extraction process. [Display omitted] • Groundbreaking advance for the unbiased, autonomous construction of atomistic models for coals and pitches of arbitrary size. • Generated models well align with a diverse set of experimental data allowing chemical studies of coal and pitch materials. • Utilization of constructed models with MD simulations to understand conversion process of coals with solvent extraction step. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extrusion based big area additive manufacturing process is utilized for fabrication of dense anisotropic bonded magnets. High loading fraction (≥70 vol%) of magnequench anisotropic Nd–Fe–B powder in nylon is used for preparing anisotropic bonded magnets. A higher energy product of ~143.2 kJ/m3 is obtained for the post printed magnetic field aligned at 1 Tesla. These findings make an important step towards the fabrication of gap magnets with energy product between ferrite and Nd–Fe–B sintered magnets. Moreover, printed bonded magnets exhibited better thermal stability, mechanical properties and superior magnetic properties compared to commercial injection molded magnets. Development in energy product, BH max of additively manufactured anisotropic bonded NdFeB magnets using BAAM system. Image, graphical abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Use of coals as raw materials for carbon fiber precursors is investigated. • Bituminous coals more efficiently converted to quinoline-soluble liquids. • Coals with similar botanical origins revealed similar maceral structures. • Distribution and classification of inorganic phases are shown in detail. • Datasets are combined to form a first approximation for precursor suitability. This work investigates the use of coals as raw materials for carbon fiber precursor production as a new alternative to coal utilization. Coal being a highly complex and heterogeneous material with different macerals and minerals complicates this task. Extensive microstructural characterization as well as preliminary digestion studies are performed on three bituminous coals (Herrin and Springfield from the Illinois Basin and the Blue Gem from the Central Appalachians) and one subbituminous coal from the Powder River Basin (Monarch), as raw material candidates. The subbituminous coal was richer in oxygen, lower in sulfur, and had a higher volatile matter yield. Microstructural investigations were performed using X-ray diffraction, X-ray/neutron computed tomography, scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy, and petrology. Mild solvent extraction studies were conducted using creosote and decant oil as solvents in microreactors. The extraction yield was sensitive to temperature and time (350 to 450 °C between 30 and 120 mins.) for both creosote and decant oil digestions. While the Blue Gem coal had more desirable microstructural properties with less mineral content and cleaner macerals, it had the lowest coal conversion to quinoline soluble 'liquid' (of the bituminous coals). The lower coal conversion yield was hypothesized to be connected to the lack of FeS 2 which could act as a catalyst when Fe is liberated from the structure under solvent extraction conditions. The Herrin and Springfield coals revealed similar microstructures and coal conversion efficiencies (higher than Blue Gem). These coals were the most promising candidates for further examination from this first approximations study. The subbituminous Monarch coal, however, was deemed less suitable due to poor coal conversion and less desirable microstructures. Additionally, the presented results with combined microstructural data from multiple length scales established a framework necessary for a first approximations study in this new coal utilization approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work demonstrates the feasibility of increasing the values of Seebeck coefficient S and power factor of calcium cobaltite Ca 3 Co 4 O 9 ceramics through competing dopant grain boundary segregation. The nominal chemistry of the polycrystalline material system investigated is Ca 3−x Bi x Ba y Co 4 O 9 with simultaneous stoichiometric substitution of Bi for Ca and non-stoichiometric addition of minute amounts of Ba. There is continuous increase of S due to Bi substitution and Ba addition. The electrical resistivity also changes upon doping. Overall, the power factor of best performing Bi and Ba co-doped sample is about 0.93 mW m −1 K −2 , which is one of the highest power factor values ever reported for Ca 3 Co 4 O 9 , and corresponds to a factor of 3 increase compared to that of the baseline composition Ca 3 Co 4 O 9. Systematic nanostructure and chemistry characterization was performed on the samples with different nominal compositions. When Bi is the only dopant in Ca 3 Co 4 O 9 , it can be found at both the grain interior and the grain boundaries GBs as a result of segregation. When Bi and Ba are added simultaneously as dopants, competing processes lead to the segregation of Ba and depletion of Bi at the GBs, with Bi present only in the grain interior. Bi substitution in the lattice increases the S at both the low and high temperature regimes, while the segregation of Ba at the GBs dramatically increase the S at low temperature regime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermal insulation materials are crucial to improve the energy performance of buildings and industrial applications. We report an approach to create hermetically vacuum-sealed silica-based hollow microspheres that can lower the thermal conductivity of closed-cell insulation materials. The wall structure of these hollow microspheres includes a reticulated network of pores or channels that extend through the thickness of the wall. When a thin layer of glass material is applied to the wall exterior, followed by a vacuum-assisted thermal treatment process, the coated microsphere surfaces display a highly dense conformal coverage and near-complete elimination of surface porosity. The sealing efficiency of these microspheres is verified by trapping argon within their cavities as well as through evacuating their hollow cores. Notably, incorporating the evacuated microspheres into a polymer matrix resulted in ∼27% enhancement in its thermal insulation performance and no notable loss of performance was observed following three months of exposure to ambient conditions. Thus, we believe that the present study offers a commercially viable strategy that opens the door to applications of such inorganic hollow particles in areas ranging from vacuum-based thermal insulation systems to catalysis, separation technologies, and medical fields. • Closed-cell insulation materials based on vacuum-sealed hollow glass microspheres are developed. • Monolithic glass coatings applied onto microspheres by a sonic activated magnetron sputtering. • Sealing efficiency of microspheres verified by trapping argon and evacuating their hollow cores. • Polyurethane loaded with evacuated microspheres demonstrate 27% enhanced thermal insulation. • No loss in thermal insulation performance after 3 months of storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Wind turbine blades are usually fabricated from fiber reinforced polymeric materials, which are subject to complex loading conditions during service. The reliability of the blades thus depends on the mechanical behaviors of these composites under various loading conditions. Specifically, the composite fracture behavior is of great importance to both the scientific research community and the wind industry. In the current study, a new testing technique is proposed based on the spiral notch torsion test to study the fracture behavior of composite structures under Mode I or mixed mode loading conditions, particularly under combined Mode I (flexural or normal tensile stress) and Mode III (torsional shear stress) loading. For this test method, round-rod specimens with spiral V-groove are subjected to pure torsion. Depending on the pitch angle of the spiral lines, pure Mode I, pure Mode III, or mixed Mode I/Mode III loading conditions can be simulated. A three dimensional finite element analysis was used to estimate the fracture toughness. In the current study, both epoxy and fiberglass reinforced epoxy materials are investigated using spiral notch torsion test. This paper will discuss the fracture behaviors of Mode I and mixed loading conditions with and without fatigue pre-crack. In addition, results from fractographic study and finite element analysis will be presented and discussed in detail. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The thermal expansion and vibrational properties of [100] and [001] LaGaO3 single crystals have been studied by thermal mechanical analysis and micro-Raman spectroscopy. A first-order orthorhombic to rhombohedral phase transition has been confirmed by both techniques, as well as by in situ heating using optical microscopy. The appearance of a metastable intermediate phase, tentatively assigned as monoclinic, has been detected both by optical microscopy and Raman spectroscopy upon heating of the [100] and [001] LaGaO3 single crystals. Not only temperature, but the stress-induced orthorhombic to rhombohedral phase transition has also been detected by Raman mapping of the residual impression made by Vickers indentation. The position map of bands belonging to the lower-temperature/pressure orthorhombic and the higher-temperature/pressure rhombohedral phase show that the rhombohedral phase is located inside the impression, where the applied indentation stresses are the highest, whereas no rhombohedral phase is detected outside the impression, where the surface has not been altered by contact stresses. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The thermoelectric material PbTe has been used in a wide variety of power generator applications. However, there is limited mechanical property data available for PbTe for temperatures above room temperature. This paper reports dynamic elastic moduli measured via resonant ultrasound spectroscopy on undoped and PbI2-doped polycrystalline PbTe between room temperature and 773K; in addition, the room temperature carrier concentration was measured by a Hall effect experiment. The Young’s modulus and shear modulus of PbTe decreased linearly with temperature above room temperature, while the Poisson’s ratio exhibited either monotonic increase or decrease with temperature. The Young’s modulus and shear modulus values obtained during heating and cooling agreed to within 1%. The dynamic elastic moduli data obtained in this study compared well in general with literature data. The difference observed between the current study and other literature studies is explained in terms of the carrier concentration effect on elastic moduli. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this work, the thermal and mechanical properties such as coefficient of thermal expansion, strength, Young''s modulus and fracture toughness of LaCoO3 and La0.8Ca0.2CoO3 perovskites have been studied, as well as slow crack growth of La0.8Ca0.2CoO3. The mechanical performance of the two cobaltites have been evaluated in terms of their ferroelastic hysteresis properties such as non-symmetry in bending of both stress and strain distributions, non-linear deformation upon applied load from the arbitrary low stresses, and ferroelastic toughening. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We have previously reported (Boatner et al., J. Alloys Compd. 691 (2017) 666–671) on the discovery, formation, processing, and application of a new decorative ternary steel. alloy and on its use in a wide range of practical applications including: custom and commercial knives, art objects, jewelry, electronics, and furniture. This decorative property results when polished single crystals of the 70 wt%Fe-15 wt%Ni-15 wt% Cr austenitic alloy are cryo-quenched into the martensitic phase resulting in the formation of a three-dimensional raised pattern of mixed austenitic/martensitic laths. These laths propagate across large dimensions of the material due to the absence of grain boundaries in the single crystal. The macroscopic optically reflective 3-D decorative pattern reproduces the structural symmetry inherent in the single-crystal orientation. This pattern results solely from the metallurgical phase properties of the ternary alloy and is completely distinct from the properties of Damascus steels or more modern so-called pattern-welded steels. Here we use X-ray diffraction, nanoindentation, hardness measurements/scratch testing, tribological measurements, and alloy resistivity and magnetization methods to obtain a more fundamental and comprehensive study of the effects of the austenitic/martensitic phase transition on the structural and physical properties of the 70 wt%Fe-15 wt%Ni-15 wt% Cr alloy. These results reveal new insight into irreversible phenomena that are associated with the inhibited phase transition on heating of the two-phase, mixed austenitic/martensitic structure that is formed subsequent to cryo-quenching the alloy crystal to 77 K. • Cryo-quenching single-crystals of the austenitic alloy produces 3D raised pattern of mixed austenitic/martensitic laths. • Irreversible phenomena from inhibited phase transformations during heating subsequent to cry-quenching were observed. • The tribological properties of cryo-quenched crystals are superior to those of the as-cast condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]