Manipulating microstructure and mechanical properties of CuO doped 3Y-TZP nano-ceramics using spark-plasma sintering

Nano-powder composites of 3Y-TZP doped with 8 mol% CuO were processed by spark-plasma sintering (SPS). A 96% dense composite ceramic with an average grain size of 70 nm was obtained by applying the SPS process at 1100 °C and 100 MPa for 1 min. In contrast to normal, pressureless, sintering during SPS reactions between CuO and 3Y-TZP were suppressed, the CuO phase was reduced to metallic Cu, while the 3Y-TZP phase remained almost purely tetragonal. Annealing after SPS results in grain growth and tetragonal to monoclinic zirconia phase transformation. The grain size and monoclinic zirconia phase content are strongly dependent on the annealing temperature. By combining the processing techniques studied in this work, including traditional pressureless sintering, properties of the composite ceramic can be tuned via manipulation of microstructure. Tuning the mechanical properties of dense 8 mol% CuO doped 3Y-TZP composite ceramic by utilising different processing techniques is given as an example.     

Health and wellness monitoring through wearable and ambient sensors: exemplars from home-based care of elderly with mild dementia

Monitoring and timely intervention are extremely important in the continuous management of health and wellness among all segments of the population, but particularly among those with mild dementia. In relation to this, we prescribe three design principles for the construction of services and applications. These are ambient intelligence, service continuity, and micro-context. In this paper, we provide three exemplars from our research and development activities that illustrate the use of these design principles in the construction of services and applications. All the applications are drawn from the field of care for mild dementia patients in their living quarters.     

Falling rock hazard index: a case study from the Marun Dam and power plant, south-western Iran

Rock fall phenomena are a major hazard during construction in mountainous regions. At the Marun Dam site, rock falls occur almost every day on the downstream side. The left flank power plant and access roadways as well as the right flank roadways are susceptible to rock falls from the 100?m high cliffs with slopes of 70??0°. The cause is a combination of the orientation of the bedding planes and joint sets and the active tectonic setting of the area. The paper reports the use of RocFall and Dips software to simulate the conditions in order to define the potential risk of rock falls at the Marun Dam site, which could affect workers as well as structures. In the light of the Falling Rock Hazard Index obtained, preventative and remedial measures are suggested.     

The Use of Lewis Acids During Rapid Steam Hydrolysis

Mixed hardwood chips were treated with various concentrations of aluminum chloride hexahydrate, aluminum sulfate hydrate, and ferric chloride and were subjected to rapid steam hydrolysis pretreatment (RASH). The three levels included 0.01, 0.03, and 0.05 moles of catalyst per 1000 grams of wood. Rapid steam hydrolysis (RASH) was done from 180° to 260°C at 20°C intervals for one minute. The Lewis acid catalyst affected the overall recovery yield of solids, the recovery values of the individual components, the enzymatic rates, and the methanol and water solubility. Overall recovery of pretreated solids generally decreased with the increase in levels of the catalyst. The one exception was AlCl₃ ·6H₂O where the minimum recovery levels were reached at 0.03 moles per 1000 grams of wood and increased at the higher level of catalyst. Cellulose degradation occurred in the temperature range of 250° to 260°C for the control and at the two lower concentrations of the catalyst. At the higher levels of catalyst, appreciable amounts of cellulose degradation occurred at lower temperatures. Hemicellulose solubilization and degradation were extremely sensitive to the RASH temperature and to the levels of catalyst. Almost all hemicellulose was lost at high temperatures or at high levels of catalyst. Losses of lignin appeared to be affected mainly by the RASH temperature and not by the changes in the levels of catalyst.

In contrast, both the temperature and the level of catalyst strongly affected the rates of enzymatic hydrolysis. Generally, the intermediate level of catalyst seemed to give the highest rates of enzymatic hydrolysis at the lowest temperature. Methanol and water solubles increased in the presence of the catalyst and reached a maximum at levels of 0.03 moles between 230° to 250°C.     

Analytical Method for Forming Limit Diagram Prediction with Application to a Magnesium ZEK100-O Alloy

A significant barrier to broader implementation of magnesium alloys is their poor room temperature formability, a consequence of the anisotropic response of the Mg hexagonal closed-packed (hcp) crystal structure. Additions of rare earth (RE) elements, such as in the ZEK100 alloys, weaken the texture and improve formability. Room temperature forming limit analyses of RE-containing Mg alloys, particularly Mg ZEK100, have not been explored to any significant extent in the literature. In this paper, strain-based forming limit diagrams (FLDs) are derived for an Mg ZEK100-O alloy (Zn1.34Zr0.23Nd0.182, wt.%) using an analytical method that combines the vertex theory of Storen and Rice (J Mech Phys Solids, 23:421-441, 1979), the anisotropic yield criterion of Barlat and Lian (Int J Plast, 5:51-66, 1989), and a hardening law. The method does not rely on assumptions about pre-existing defects, is broadly applicable to sheet alloys exhibiting in-plane anisotropy requiring a higher-order yield criterion, and requires only minimal experimental inputs. Results from the analytical method are compared with experimentally derived FLDs based upon the well-known Nakajima test and tensile deformation, and with predictions from an existing analytical method for FLDs. Close agreement between the experimentally derived FLDs and the present theoretical method was obtained. Sheet materials where the theoretical method does not apply are also discussed.