Study of lithium glassy solid electrolyte/electrode interface by impedance analysis

Cells of lithium ion conducting glassy electrolyte Li ₂SO₄-Li₂O-B₂O₃ with different combinations of electrodes (stainless steel blocking electrode, lithium non-blocking electrode and TiS₂ electrode) have been prepared. The a.c. impedance measurements of the cells have been studied at elevated temperature as a function of time. The circuit elements such as bulk resistance, double layer capacitance and charge transfer resistance have been inferred and their time dependence studied. The results show that the electrolyte and the interface are chemically very stable with the different types of electrodes studied here.     

State-of-the-art in analytical characterization of high purity solid samples by different spectroscopic methods

Facilities and some results of several spectroscopic methods which have potential applications in the field of analysis of solid high purity substances and which have been elaborated in Russia, will be discussed in this paper. Laser nondispersive atomic fluorescence method with glow discharge cathode sputtering atomiser, may be used for trace element determination as well as a tool for the investigation of technological processes, viz. deposition of thin films. Investigations on reduction of a background level in the new hollow cathode ion source for mass-spectrometry have been carried out. Laser mass spectrometry with tandem laser mass reflectron is successfully designed and applied for gaseous impurities determination in high pure silicon with limit of detection of 10⁻³–10⁻⁵ ppm wt. Several results of the layer-by-layer and bulk trace analysis of solids by high resolution mass spectrometry with radio frequency powered glow discharge ion source with the limits of detection at 10⁻¹–10⁻³ ppm wt will be presented here. The traditional arc and spark emission technique still finds considerable use. One of the examples considered in the paper is the analysis of metalfullerenes. To overcome the calibration problem the fluorination process inside the electrode crater using zinc fluoride has been investigated.     

Corrosion of steel structures in sea-bed sediment

Seabed sediment (SBS) is a special soil that is covered by seawater. With the developments in marine oil exploitation and engineering, more and more steel structures have been buried in SBS. SBS corrosion has now become a serious problem in marine environment and an important issue in corrosion science. In this paper, approach in the field of SBS corrosion is reviewed. Electrochemical and microbial corrosion factors, corrosion mechanism, measurement of metal corrosion rate, corrosion evaluation and prediction of corrosion are also discussed here.     

Overview literature on matrix assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectroscopy (MALDI MS): Basics and its applications in characterizing polymeric materials

Matrix assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectroscopy (MALDI MS) is a technique which allows the measurement of molecular mass > 200,000 Daltons by ionization and vapourization without degradation. This technique is useful for the mass analysis of synthetic polymers, which have very low volatility. The basic principles of and its applications for polymer characterization have been discussed in this paper. In addition, the possibilities of combining MALDI MS with chromatographic and other analytical techniques have also been discussed.     

On the study of phase formation and critical current density in superconducting MgB2

Superconducting bulk MgB₂ samples have been synthesized by employing sintering technique without using any additional process steps, generally undertaken in view of the substantial loss of magnesium, during heat treatment. Starting with Mg rich powders having different atomic ratios of Mg : B, as against the nominally required Mg : B = 1:2 ratio, we have obtained superconducting MgB₂ samples of different characteristics. The effect of excess Mg in the starting mixture and processing temperature on the phase-formation, transition temperature (T _C) and critical current density (J _C) have been investigated by electrical transport and a.c. susceptibility measurements. The X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic analyses of MgB₂ bulk samples have been carried out to understand the role of excess Mg and the effect of processing temperature. It is established that MgB₂ samples with high critical current density can be synthesized from a Mg rich powder having Mg : B in 2:2 ratio, at temperatures around 790°C. Critical current density has been found to vary systematically with processing temperature.     

Synthesis, characterization and conductivity studies of polypyrrole-fly ash composites

In situ polymerization of pyrrole was carried out in the presence of fly ash (FA) to synthesize polypyrrole-fly ash composites (PPy/FA) by chemical oxidation method. The PPy/FA composites have been synthesized with various compositions (10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 wt%) of fly ash in pyrrole. The surface morphology of these composites was studied with scanning electron micrograph (SEM). The polypyrrole-fly ash composites were also characterized by employing X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and infrared spectroscopy (IR). The a.c. conductivity behaviour has been investigated in the frequency range 10²–10⁶ Hz. The d.c. conductivity was studied in the temperature range from 40–200°C. The dimensions of fly ash in the matrix have a greater influence on the observed conductivity values. The results obtained for these composites are of greater scientific and technological interest.     

Nucleation and growth of a multicomponent metallic glass

The metallic glass samples of Fe ₆₇Co₁₈B₁₄Si₁ (2605CO), prepared by the melt spinning technique were procured from the Allied Corporation. The kinetics of crystallization of this multicomponent glassy alloy is studied using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The crystallization data have been examined in terms of modified Kissinger and Matusita equations for the nonisothermal crystallization. The results show enhanced bulk nucleation in general. At high heating rates added to it is surface induced abnormal grain growth resulting in fractal dimensionality. 5th IUMRS ICA98, October 1998, Bangalore.     

Preparation and characterization of Ag-added Bi1.84Pb0.4Sr2Ca2.2Cu3O10+x bulk tube conductors for cryogen free superconducting magnet

Bulk tube conductors of Bi _1.84 Pb _0.4 Sr ₂ Ca _2.2 Cu ₃ O _10+x with addition of silver varying from 0 to 25 wt% (not reported earlier) were systematically studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electrical transport and a.c. susceptibility techniques. The tube conductors formed by cold isostatic pressing (CIP) of the powders obtained from spray drying method have been made successfully. It was found that Ag addition has not only affected the formation of the desired Bi-2223 phase and the microstructure of these large bulk tube samples thereby influencing on the critical current ( I _c ),it also reduces the contact resistance to minimize the cryogen losses. These variations have been found to be Ag content dependent. An optimized value of 10 wt% Ag has been found to produce the best quality tubes showing reproducible I _c value > 120 Amp at 77 K which is in general a requirement to energies of the cryogen free conventional/HTSC superconducting magnets below 20 K.     

Optical properties of samarium doped zinc-tellurite glasses

Glasses with the composition, (Sm₂ O ₃) _x (ZnO)_(40-x)(TeO ₂)₍₆₀₎, were prepared by conventional melt quenching method. The density, molar volume, and optical energy band gap of these glasses have been measured. The refractive index, molar refraction and polarizability of oxide ion have been calculated by using Lorentz-Lorentz relations. Optical absorption spectra of these glasses were recorded in the range 300–700 nm at room temperature. The oxide ion polarizabilities deduced from two different quantities, viz. refractive index and optical energy band gap, agree well compared with other glasses. The nonlinear variation of the above optical parameters with respect to samarium dopant has been explained.     

Electronic structure and optical properties of thorium monopnictides

We have calculated the electronic density of states (DOS) and dielectric function for the ThX (X = P, As and Sb) using the linear muffin tin orbital method within atomic sphere approximation (LMTO-ASA) including the combined correction terms. The calculated electronic DOS of ThSb has been compared with the available experimental data and we find a good agreement. The calculated optical conductivity for ThP and ThAs is increasing monotonically, while for ThSb a sharp peak has been found at 6–5 eV. Unfortunately there are no experimental data to compare with calculated optical properties, we hope our calculations will motivate some experimentalists.