Plastic deformation and fracture in coarse-grained aluminum

Plastic deformation and fracture in aluminum polycrystalline aggregate were investigated experimentally. A series of tensile specimens with a single edge crack were made of coarse-grained aluminum plates. The in-plane moiré technique was used to quantitatively obtain the deformation field around the crack tip. The strain field ahead of the crack tip prior to crack growth, as well as grain rotations during the course of plastic deformation, were evaluated from the corresponding moiré fringe patterns. The results of this study show that for small plastic deformation, grain rotation starts to take place at the very beginning of the plastic deformation and increases proportionally with plastic strain. The plastic strain ahead of the crack tip prior to crack growth drops significantly with decreasing average grain size of the specimen. Grain boundary sliding was also observed at some of the grain boundaries where the resolved shear stress had reached a critical value. The results also show that the crack propagated with maximum velocity at the center of a grain and assumed much slower velocity near grain boundaries or grain boundary junctions. The influence of the deformation rate is also discussed in terms of the stress relaxation.     

Gaseous hydrogen embrittlement of PH 13-8 Mo steel

In this study, notched tensile and fatigue crack growth tests in gaseous hydrogen were performed on PH 13-8 Mo stainless steel specimens at room temperature. These specimens were susceptible to hydrogen embrittlement (HE), but at different degrees, depending on the aging conditions or the microstructures of the alloys. In hydrogen, the accelerated fatigue crack growth rate (FCGR) usually accompanied a reduced notched tensile strength (NTS) of the specimens, i.e., the faster the FCGR the lower the NTS. It was proposed that the same fracture mechanism could be applied to these two different types of specimens, regardless of the loading conditions. Rapid fatigue crack growth and high NTS loss were found in the H800 (426 °C under-aged) and H900 (482 °C peak-aged) specimens. The HE susceptibility of the steel was reduced by increasing the aging temperature above 593 °C, which was attributed to the increased amount of austenite in the structure. Extensive quasi-cleavage fracture was observed for the specimens that were deteriorated severely by HE.     

Exploring the Mechanism of Surface and Ground Water through Data-Driven Techniques with Sensitivity Analysis for Water Resources Management

The over extraction of groundwater in central-western and southwestern Taiwan has resulted in serious land subsidence for decades. For making countermeasures in response to land subsidence, this study collects long-term hydrological data to explore the relationships between surface water and groundwater in various monitoring stations, and then constructs one-month-ahead forecast models by using data-driven techniques for the water resources management of the Zhuoshui River basin in Taiwan. The results demonstrate that the constructed models can accurately forecast monthly groundwater levels. The sensitivity analysis is next conducted on the input variables of the constructed models by using the partial derivative method. The analysis results reveal that streamflow is a predominant factor for groundwater level variation, and therefore streamflow management made by the upstream weir of the river would influence groundwater level variations. This study further implements several scenario analyses based on the interactive mechanism between groundwater and surface water in response to future climatic conditions and weir discharge management, respectively. The results of scenario analyses indicate that the groundwater recharge zone spreads along the Zhuoshui River while lateral and vertical recharge sources would cause different quantities and distribution patterns of groundwater recharge. Besides, an increase in weir discharge would improve groundwater recharge quantities with groundwater level variations at 0.12 m and 0.06 m in wet and dry seasons, respectively. As a consequence, the operation of weir discharge would play an import role in sustainable development of water resources management in the study area.     

Physicochemical properties and osteogenic activity of radiopaque calcium silicate–gelatin cements

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the physicochemical properties and in vitro osteogenic activity of radiopaque calcium silicate–gelatin cements. The radiopacity, setting time, working time, flow, diametral tensile strength, pH value, washout resistance and morphology of the cements with gelatin (0, 5 and 10 % by weight) were measured, which compared to a popular endodontic material, ProRoot white-colored mineral trioxide aggregate (WMTA). The cell morphology, cell attachment and proliferation, alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin levels on the cements were measured by culturing the specimens with dental pulp cells. The results indicated that the presence of gelatin significantly (P < 0.05) reduced radiopacity and diametral tensile strength and prolonged setting time. Nevertheless, the 5 wt% gelatin cement had a radiopacity (5.1 mm of Al thickness) higher than ISO 6876:2001 standards (3 mm of Al thickness). The setting time (33 min), working time (9 min) and flow value (17.4 mm) of the 5 wt% gelatin cement were significantly (P < 0.05) better than those of WMTA (corresponding 165, 6 min and 14.2 mm). The fresh WMTA completely degraded after soaking in a physiological solution for 1 h, while the gelatin cements resisted washout, showing no noticeable breakdown even after 1 day of soaking. The gelatin cement enhanced the higher expression of cell attachment, proliferation and differentiation as compared to WMTA. It was concluded that the 5 wt% gelatin–calcium silicate hybrid cement appears to be promising as a radiopaque biomaterial for medical applications such as endodontics and vertebroplasty.     

From industry targeting to technology targeting: A policy paradigm shift in the 1980s

The 1980s represent an era in which the governments of many industrialized countries changed their policies regarding international competition. This paper investigates the initiation of important technological programs and the adjustments made to the missions of government organizations and agencies in Japan, the United States, and nine countries in Western Europe. It is suggested that, over the past decade or so, there has been a pervasive shift towards the technological dimension in government policy in the industrialized world. On the one hand, overt industry targeting seems to have waned or not to have increased significantly; on the other hand, technology targeting has become more explicit and market-oriented. This trend implies a convergence of, and a head-on competition between, national innovation policies.     

Effects on Undercooling and Interfacial Reactions with Cu Substrates of Adding Bi and In to Sn-3Ag Solder

This study investigated the effects of adding Bi and In to Sn-3Ag Pb-free solder on undercooling, interfacial reactions with Cu substrates, and the growth kinetics of intermetallic compounds (IMCs). The amount of Sn dominates the undercooling, regardless of the amount or species of further additives. The interfacial IMC that formed in Sn-Ag-Bi-In and Sn-In-Bi solders is Cu₆Sn₅, while that in Sn-Ag-In solders is Cu₆(Sn,In)₅, since Bi enhances the solubility of In in Sn matrices. The activation energy for the growth of IMCs in Sn-Ag-Bi-In is nearly double that in Sn-Ag-In solders, because Bi in the solder promotes Cu dissolution. The bright particles that form inside the Sn-Ag-In bulk solders are the ζ-phase.     

Unprecedented Homoleptic Bis‐Tridentate Iridium(III) Phosphors: Facile,Scaled‐Up Production,and Superior Chemical Stability

Bis‐tridentate Ir(III) metal complexes are expected to show great potential in organic light‐emitting diode (OLED) applications due to the anticipated, superb chemical and photochemical stability. Unfortunately, their exploitation has long been hampered by lack of adequate methodology and with inferior synthetic yields. This hurdle can be overcome by design of the first homoleptic, bis‐tridentate Ir(III) complex [Ir(pzpyph)(pz^Hpyph)] ( 1 ), for which the abbreviation (pzpyph)H (or pz^Hpyph) stands for the parent 2‐pyrazolyl‐6‐phenyl pyridine chelate. After that, methylation and double methylation of 1 afford the charge‐neutral Ir(III) complex [Ir(pzpyph)(pz^Mepyph)] ( 2 ) and cationic complex [Ir(pz^Mepyph)₂][PF₆] ( 3 ), while deprotonation of 1 gives formation of anionic [Ir(pzpyph)₂][NBu₄] ( 4 ), all in high yields. These bis‐tridentate Ir(III) complexes 2 – 4 are highly emitted in solution and solid states, while the charge‐neutral 2 and corresponding t ‐butyl substituted derivative [Ir(pzpy^Buph)(pz^Mepy^Buph)] ( 5 ) exhibit superior photostability versus the tris‐bidentate references [Ir(ppy)₂(acac)] and [Ir(ppy)₃] in toluene under argon, making them ideal OLED emitters. For the track record, phosphor 5 gives very small efficiency roll‐off and excellent overall efficiencies of 20.7%, 66.8 cd A^?1, and 52.8 lm W^?1 at high brightness of 1000 cd m^?2. These results are expected to inspire further studies on the bis‐tridentate Ir(III) complexes, which are judged to be more stable than their tris‐bidentate counterparts from the entropic point of view.     

Transparent Soft Robots for Effective Camouflage

Transparency is a surprisingly effective method to achieve camouflage and has been widely adapted by natural animals. However, it is challenging to replicate in synthetic systems. Herein, a transparent soft robot is developed, which can achieve effective camouflage. Specifically, this robot is driven by transparent dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs). Transparent and stretchable conductive polymers, based on blends of poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) and water‐borne polyurethane (WPU), are employed as compliant solid‐state electrodes in the DEAs. The electrode exhibits large stretchability, low stiffness, excellent conductivity at large strain, and high transmittance. Consequently, the DEA can achieve a large voltage‐induced area strain of 200% and a high transmittance of 85.5%. Driven by these soft actuators, the robot can realize translations using its asymmetric vibration mode, which can be explained by dynamics analysis and is consistent with finite element modeling. This soft robot can achieve effective camouflage, due to its high transparency as well as thin structure. Furthermore, the robot can become completely flat for even better camouflage by converting its 3D structure to 2D. The transparent soft robot is potentially useful in many applications such as robots for battlefield, reconnaissance, and security surveillance, where effective camouflage is required in dynamic and/or unstructured environments.     

Conversion of hydrogen/carbon dioxide into formic acid and methanol over Cu/CuCr2O4 catalyst

Cu/CuCr₂O₄ catalysts were prepared by impregnation method at various calcination temperatures (300, 400, and 500 °C) and then reduced in H₂ stream. The aggregated particles and decreasing surface area/pore volumes of the deactivated catalysts during HCOOH and CH₃OH formations were also observed. Particularly, the EXAFS data showed that first shells of Cu atoms transforms from Cu–O to Cu–Cu after catalytic reactions, their bond distances and coordination numbers are quite different, respectively. It revealed that metallic Cu atoms are one of the important active species over catalyst surface at different reaction temperatures having many unoccupied binding sites for HCOOH and CH₃OH formations. Additionally, the optimal calcination temperature for Cu/CuCr₂O₄ catalysts was demonstrated at 400 °C that attributed to its strongest acidity and basicity. The catalytic reactions in the duration of HCOOH and CH₃OH preparation were proposed that were composed of HCOOH formation, CH₃OH formation, and CH₃OH decomposition happening at CuCr₂O₄, Cu, and CuO active sites, respectively. The highest CO₂ conversion (14.6%), HCOOH selectivity/yield (87.8/12.8%), and TON/TOF values (4.19/0.84) were obtained at 140 °C and 30 bar in 5 h, respectively. Optimal rate constant (2.57 × 10^?2 min^?1) and activation energy (16.24 kJ mol^?1) of HCOOH formation were evaluated by pseudo first-order model and Arrhenius equation, respectively.