Competing crystallite size and zinc concentration in silica coated cobalt ferrite nanoparticles

Silica coated(30 wt%) cobalt zinc ferrite(Co1 xZnxFe2O4, x?0, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5 and 1) nanoparticles were synthesized by using sol–gel method. Silica acts as a spacer among the nanoparticles to avoid the agglomeration. X-ray diffraction(XRD) reveals the cubic spinel ferrite structure of nanoparticles with crystallite size in the range 37–45 nm. Fourier transform infrared(FTIR) spectroscopy confirmed the formation of spinel ferrite and SiO2. Scanning electron microscopy(SEM) images show that the nanoparticles are nearly spherical and non-agglomerated due to presence of non-magnetic SiO2 surface coating. All these measurements signify that the structural and magnetic properties of Co1 xZnxFe2O4 ferrite nanoparticles strongly depend on Zn concentration and nanoparticle average crystallite size in different Zn concentration regimes.& 2014 Chinese Materials Research Society. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.     

Synthesis of spherical Li1.167Ni0.2Co0.1Mn0.533O2 as cathode material for lithium-ion battery via co-precipitation

xLi2MnO3·(1-x)LiNi0.4Co0.2Mn0.4O2(x=0.5) powders were synthesized from co-precipitated spherical metal carbonate,Ni0.2Co0.1Mn0.533(CO3)x.It has been found that the preparation of metal carbonate was si...     

Effect of Co addition on crystallization and magnetic properties of FeSiBPCu alloy

The effects of Co addition on the microstructure,crystallization processes and soft magnetic properties of(Fe1 xCox)83Si4B8P4Cu1(x?0.35,0.5,0.65)alloys were investigated.The experimental results demonstrated that the addition of Co decreased the thermal stability against crystallization of the amorphous phase,and thus improved the heat treatment temperature of this alloy.Fe Co Si BPCu nanocrystalline alloys with a dispersedα0-Fe Co phase were obtained by appropriately annealing the as-quenched ribbons at 763 K for 10 min.Theα0-Fe Co with grains size ranging from 9 to 28 nm was identified in primary crystallization.The coercivity(Hc)markedly increased with increasing x and exhibited a minimum value at x0.35,while the saturation magnetic flux density(Bs)shows a slight decrease.The(Fe0.65Co0.35)83Si4B8P4Cu1nanocrystalline alloy exhibited a high saturation magnetic flux density Bsof 1.68 T,a low coercivity,Hcof 5.4 A/m and a high effective permeability meof 29,000 at 1 k Hz.     

Improved electrochemica l properties by lithium insertion into Co3O4 in aqueous LiOH solution

Co₃O₄ microspheres were synthesized by a simple hydrothermal treatment.The first-cycle charge-discharge tests were carried out between-0.6 and 0.6 V vs.SCE.The pristine,discharged and recharged specimens were characterized by X-ray power diffraction and scanning electron microscopy.Cyclic voltammetry（CV） curves of Co₃O₄ at various concentrations in LiOH solution were investigated.The appearance of the two pairs of redox peaks indicated that two sets of faradaic reactions were involved in the redox reactions of Co₃O₄ to LiCoO₂ and LiHCoO₂.     

A Ti–Zr–Cu–Ni–Co–Fe–Al–Sn amorphous filler metal for improving the strength of Ti–6Al–4V alloy brazing joint

Ti_(50)Zr_(27)Cu_8Ni_4Co_3Fe_2Al_3Sn_3(at%) amorphous filler metal with low Cu and Ni contents in a melt-spun ribbon form was developed for improving mechanical properties of Ti–6Al–4V alloy brazing joint through decreasing brittle intermetallics in the braze zone. Investigation on the crystallization behavior of the multicomponent Ti–Zr–Cu–Ni–Co–Fe–Al–Sn amorphous alloy indicates the high stability of the supercooled liquid against crystallization that favors the formation of amorphous structure. The Ti–6Al–4V joint brazed with this Ti-based amorphous filler metal with low total content of Cu and Ni at 1203K for 900s mainly consists of α-Ti, β-Ti,minor Ti–Zr-rich phase and only a small amount of Ti_3Cu intermetallics, leading to the high shear strength of the joint of about 460 MPa. Multicomponent composition design of amorphous alloys is an effective way of tailoring filler metals for improving the joint strength.     

Synthesis of dental resins using diatomite and nano-sized SiO2 and TiO2

The mechanical properties of dental composites were improved by porous diatomite and nano-sized silica (OX-50) used as co-fillers.The resin composites,filled with silanized OX-50 and silanized diatomit...     

Electroch emical properties and interfacial reactions of LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4-δ nanorods

LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4-δ which possesses a high voltage of 4.7 V vs.Li+/Li and stable structure has been considered as a promising cathode material for high energy Li-ion batteries.In this study,well-crystalli...     

Induced modi fi cations in the properties of Sr doped BiFeO3 multiferr oics

Multiferroics exhibit unique combination of ferroic properties,simultaneously.For instance,in BiFeO3,magnetic and electric properties co-exist.In this work,BiFeO3 and Sr-doped BiFeO3 samples with general formula,Bi1-x Srx FeO3(x=0.00,0.05,0.10,0.20,and 0.30) were synthesized by sol-gel auto-combustion technique,in order to investigate these ferroic properties.The samples were confrmed to have perovskite type rhombohedral structure,characteristic of BiFeO3.A dilute phase of Bi2Fe4O9was also found in all the Sr-doped samples.The micrographs of the palletized samples revealed that minutely doped Sr might not have any effect on the morphology of the samples.Frequency dependent dielectric measurements were carried out at room temperature for all the samples from 100 Hz to 1 MHz.The dielectric constant of un-doped sample at low frequency was 52 which decreased with increasing Sr doping.An enhancement of magnetic properties was observed with increasing the Sr contents.Pure BiFeO3 material was observed to have the least value of remanent magnetization.As the Sr2+ tions were doped in BiFeO3,its magnetization and remanence were increased to 0.867 emu/g and 0.175 emu/g,respectively,at x=0.30.     

Composition design of superhigh strength maraging stainless steels using a cluster model

The composition characteristics of maraging stainless steels were studied in the present work investigation using a cluster-plus-glue-atom model. The least solubility limit of high-temperature austenite to form martensite in basic Fe–Ni–Cr corresponds to the cluster formula [NiFe12]Cr3,where NiFe12is a cuboctahedron centered by Ni and surrounded by 12 Fe atoms in FCC structure and Cr serves as glue atoms. A cluster formula [NiFe12](Cr2Ni) with surplus Ni was then determined to ensure the second phase(Ni3M) precipitation,based on which new multicomponent alloys [(Ni,Cu)16Fe192](Cr32(Ni,Mo,Ti,Nb,Al,V)16) were designed. These alloys were prepared by copper mould suction casting method,then solid-solution treated at 1273 K for 1 h followed by water-quenching,and finally aged at 783 K for 3 h. The experimental results showed that the multi-element alloying results in Ni3M precipitation on the martensite,which enhances the strengths of alloys sharply after ageing treatment. Among them,the aged [(Cu4Ni12)Fe192](Cr32(Ni8.5Mo2Ti2Nb0.5Al1V1)) alloy(Fe74.91Ni8.82Cr11.62Mo1.34Ti0.67Nb0.32Al0.19V0.36Cu1.78wt%) has higher tensile strengths with YS?1456 MPa and UTS?1494 MPa. It also exhibits good corrosion-resistance in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution.     

Preparation and catalytic effect of porous Co3O4 on the hydrogen storage properties of a Li-B-N-H system

A porous Co_3O_4 with a particle size of 1–3 μm was successfully prepared by heating Co-based metal organic frameworks MOF-74(Co) up to 500 °C in air atmospheric conditions. The as-prepared porous Co_3O_4 significantly reduced the dehydrogenation temperatures of the LiBH_4-2LiNH_2 system and improved the purity of the released hydrogen. The LiBH_4-2LiNH_2-0.05/3Co_3O_4 sample started to release hydrogen at 140 °C and released hydrogen levels of approximately 9.7 wt% at 225 °C. The end temperature for hydrogen release was lowered by 125 °C relative to that of the pristine sample. Structural analyses revealed that the as-prepared porous Co_3O_4 is in-situ reduced to metallic Co, which functions as an active catalyst, reducing the kinetic barriers and lowering the dehydrogenation temperatures of the LiBH_4-2LiNH_2 system. More importantly, the porous Co_3O_4-containing sample exhibited partially improved reversibility for hydrogen storage in the LiBH_4-2LiNH_2 system.     

La2O3–Al2O3 –SiO2 glass-infiltrated 3Y-TZP all-ceramic composite for the dental restora tive application

The 3 mol% yttria stabilized tetragonal zirconia polycrystals (3Y-TZP) powder had three particle size distributions, while the fine one was lower than 100 nm. The 3Y-TZP compact was prepared by dry-pressing under pressures ranged from 10 to 30 MPa and then presintered at 1250°C for 2 h. The matrix dry-pressed under the pressure of 20 MPa had a porosity of 16.7% and could be easily processed by computer aided design and computer aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM), and which had been infiltrated by the La2O3–Al2O3–SiO2 glass at 1200°C for 4 h. The flexural strength and fracture toughness of the composite were 710.7 MPa and 6.51 MPa m^1/2, respectively. The low shrinkage (0.3%) of the composite can satisfy the net-shape fabrication standard. XRD results illustrated that zirconia in the La2O3–Al2O3–SiO2 glass-infiltrated 3Y-TZP all-ceramic composite was mainly in the tetragonal phase. SEM and EDS results indicated that the pores of the matrix were almost filled by the La2O3–Al2O3 –SiO2 glass     

Thermal stability and magnetic properties of Fe–Co–M–Zr–Nb–Ge–B(M=Mo,Cr) bulk metallic glasses

Fe62Co8 xMxZr6Nb4Ge1B19(M=Mo, Cr) bulk metallic glasses were synthesized in the diameter range up to 2 mm by copper mold casting,which exhibit high thermal stability and large glass-forming ability. The super-cooled liquid region diminishes by the dissolution of Mo. The addition of 2 at% Cr leads to the broading of the liquid region remarkably, resulting in the improvement of thermal stability. The crystallization takes place through a single exothermic reaction, accompanying the precipitation of more than three kinds of crystallized phases such as α-Fe,Fe2Zr and ZrB2. The Fe-based alloys show soft ferromagnetic properties. The saturation magnetization(ss) decreases with increasing Mo or Cr content while the saturated magnetostriction increases with raising Mo or Cr content. There is no evident change in the ssand coercive force(Hc)with annealing temperature below the crystallization temperature, which suggests a more relaxed atomic configuration the glasses have. The crystallization causes a substantial enhancement in both ssand Hc. Each soft magnetic property of the glasses containing Cr with higher thermal stability is superior to that of the alloys containing Mo.     

Structure evolution of Y2O3 nanoparticle/Fe composite during mechanical milling and annealing

Fe-25 wt% Y2O3composite powders have been fabricated by mechanical milling(MM) Fe powders of 100 μm in diameter and Y2O3nanoparticles in an argon atmosphere for the milling periods of4,8,12,24,36,and 48 h,respectively.The features of these powders were characterized by using X-ray diffraction(XRD),scanning electron microscopy(SEM),electron probe micro analyzer(EPMA) and transmission electron microscopy(TEM).The experimental results showed that the mean particle size and crystalline size of MM powders decreased with the milling time increasing.All the elements distributed homogenously inside the powders after 48 h of MM.The lattice constant of the matrix α-Fe kept constant with the milling time,and no solid solution took place during MM process.After 8 h of MM,the α-Fe in each powder became nanocrystalline.After 48 h of MM,Y2O3changes from nanostructure into amorphous structure,and the crystalline size of α-Fe further decreased to 10 nm.The Y2O3in the powders mechanically milled for 48 h kept the amorphous structure after being annealed at 400 1C,and starts to crystallize when the powders are annealed at 600 1C.The amorphous Y2O3contains a small amount of Fe,and crystalline FeYO3appears at 800 1C.     

Effect of La0.8Sr0.2Co0.2Fe0.8O3-δ morphology on the performance of composite cathodes

In the present work,one dimensional La0.8Sr0.2Co0.2Fe0.8O3 δ(LSCF) nanofibers with the mean diameter of about 100 nm prepared by electrospinning were deposited on Gd0.2Ce0.8O1.9(GDC) electrolyte followed by sintering to form one dimensional LSCF nanofiber cathode. And LSCF/GDC composite cathodes were formed by introducing GDC phases into LSCF nanofiber scaffold using infiltration method. The polarization resistances for the composite cathode with an optimal LSCF/GDC mass ratio of 1/0.56 are 0.27,0.14 and 0.07 Ω cm2at 650,700 and750 1C,respectively,which are obviously smaller than 2.26,0.78 and 0.29 Ω cm2of pure LSCF nanofiber cathode. And the activation energy is1.194 eV,which is much lower than that of pure LSCF nanofiber cathode(1.684 eV). These results demonstrate that the infiltration of GDC into LSCF nanofiber scaffold is an effective approach to achieve high performance cathode for solid oxide fuel cells(SOFCs). In addition,the performance of composite cathode in this work was also compared with that of our previous nanorod structured LSCF/GDC composite cathode.     

Effect of CuO addition on the sintering temperature and microwave dielectric properties of CaSiO3– Al2O3 ceramics

CuO-doped CaSiO3–1 wt% Al2O3 ceramics were synthesized via a traditional solid-state reaction method, and their sintering behavior,microstructure and microwave dielectric properties were investigated. The results showed that appropriate CuO addition could accelerate the sintering process and assist the densification of CaSiO3–1 wt% Al2O3 ceramics, which could effectively lower the densification temperature from1250 1C to 1050 1C. However, the addition of CuO undermined the microwave dielectric properties. The optimal amount of CuO addition was found to be 0.8 wt%, and the derived CaSiO3–Al2O3ceramic sintered at 1100 1C presented good microwave dielectric properties of εr?7.27,Q f?16,850 GHz and τf? 39.53 ppm/1C, which is much better than those of pure CaSiO3 ceramic sintered at 1340oC(Q f?13,109 GHz).The chemical compatibility of the above ceramic with 30 Pd/70 Ag during the cofiring process has also been investigated, and the result showed that there was no chemical reaction between palladium–silver alloys and ceramics.& 2014 Chinese Materials Research Society. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.     

Structural,elemental, optical and magnetic study of Fe doped ZnO and impurity phase formation

We have prepared a series of(ZnO)1-x(Fe2O3)x≤0.10bulk samples with various concentrations of Fe dopant by ball milling and investigated their structural, compositional, optical and magnetic properties by means of X-ray diffraction(XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS),Raman spectrometer and vibrating sample magnetometer(VSM), respectively. Information about different impurity phases was obtained through Rietveld refinements of XRD data analysis. XPS results showed different valence states(Fe2+ tand Fe3+) supported by shaking satellite peaks in samples. With increasing Fe doping percentage, the crystal quality deteriorated and a shift of E2 low band(characteristic of ZnO) has been observed in Raman spectra. Energy band gap estimated from reflectance UV–vis spectroscopy showed shift for all bulk samples. The magnetic behavior was examined using a vibrating sample magnetometer(VSM), indicating ferromagnetic behavior at room temperature(300 K). The effective magnetic moment per Fe atom decreases with increase in doping percentage which indicates that ferromagnetic behavior arises from the substitution of Fe ions in the ZnO lattice.     

Addition of IrO2 to RuO2+TiO2 coated anodes and its effect on electrochemical performance of anodes in acid media

Ternary mixed metal oxide coatings with the nominal composition IrxRu(0.6-x)Ti0.4O2(x=0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3) on the titanium substrate were prepared by thermal decomposition of a chloride precursor mixture. Surface morphology and microstructure of the coatings were investigated by Scanning electron microscopy(SEM), Field emission scanning electron microscopy(FE-SEM) and X-ray diffraction(XRD) analysis. Systematic study of electrochemical properties of these coatings was performed by cyclic voltammetry(CV) and polarization measurements. The corrosion behavior of the coatings was evaluated under accelerated conditions(j=2 A cm-2) in acidic electrolyte. The role of iridium oxide admixture in the change of electrocatalytic activity and stability of Ru0.6Ti0.4O2coating was discussed. Small addition of IrO2can improve the stability of the RuO2+TiO2mixed oxide, while the electrocatalytic activity for oxygen evolution reaction(OER) is decreased. The shift of redox potentials for Ru0.6Ti0.4O2electrode that is slightly activated with IrO2and improvement in the stability can be attributed to the synergetic effect of mixed oxide formation.     

Structural and dielectric study of nano-crystalline single phase Sn1−xNixS (xNi=0–10%) showing room temperature ferromagnetism

SnS is a promising Ⅳ-Ⅵ semiconductor,which is very less explored for diluted magnetic semiconducting and dielectric applications.In this study,the Ni doping(x_(Ni)=0-10mol%) effects on SnS host lattice were investigated.A simple and low cost co-precipitation technique was employed to grow Ni doped SnS powders.The X-ray diffraction confirmed single phase orthorhombic structure with a nano-crystalline nature that was further verified through the surface structure observed by scanning electron microscopy.Near edge x-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy revealed a shift in the Ni absorption edge towards higher energy,depicting the formation of Ni~(+3) oxidation state.The impedance measurements,in the frequency range 1 kHz to 20 MHz,depict that owing to the excellent sensitivity to the electromagnetic radiations at the low energy,the Ni doped SnS finds potential applications in various energy related devices.Vibrating sample magnetometer measurements have elucidated room temperature ferromagnetism,which depicts potential memory device applications.     

Effect of B2O3 on the aqueous tape casting and microwave properties of Li2O–Nb2O5–TiO2 ceramics

The effect of B2O3 addition on the aqueous tape casting, sintering, microstructure and microwave dielectric properties of Li2O-Nb2O5-TiO2 ceramics has been investigated. The tape casting slurries exhibit a typical shear-thinning behavior without thixotropy, but the addition of B2O3 increases the viscosity of the slurries significantly. It was found that doping of B2O3 can decrease the tensile strength, strain to failure and density of the green tapes. The sintering temperature could be lowed down to 900℃ with the addition of 2 wt% B2O3 due to the liquid phase effect. No secondary phase is observed. The addition of B2O3 does not induce much degradation on the microwave dielectric properties. Optimum microwave dielectric properties of εr 67, Q×f 6560 GHz are obtained for Li2O-Nb2O5-TiO2 ceramics containing 2 wt% B2O3 sintered at 900 1C. It represents that the ceramics could be promising for multilayer low-temperature co-fired ceramics (LTCC) application.     

Mn0.8Zn0.2Fe2O4 nanoparticulates spinel ferrites:An approach to enhance the antenna field strength for improved magnitude versus offset（MVO）

Electromagnetic signals in deep reservoir are very weak so that it is difficult to predict about the presence of hydrocarbon in seabed logging(SBL) environment.In the present work,Mn0.8Zn0.2Fe2O4 nanoferrites were prepared by a sol–gel technique at different sintering temperatures of450 °C,650 °C and 850 °C to increase the strength of electromagnetic(EM) antenna.XRD,FESEM,Raman spectroscopy and HRTEM were used to analyze the phase,surface morphology and size of the nanoferrites.Magnetic properties of the nanoferrites were also measured using an impedance network analyzer.However,nanoferrites sintered at 850 °C with initial permeability of 200 and Q factor of 50 were used as magnetic feeders with the EM antenna.Lab scale experiments were performed to investigate the effect of magnetic field strength in scale tank.SPSS and MATLAB softwares were also used to confirm the oil presence in scale tank.It was observed that the magnitude of the EM waves for the antenna was increased up to 233%.Finally,the correlation values also show 208% increase in the magnetic field strength with the presence of the oil.Therefore,antenna with Mn0.8Zn0.2Fe2O4 nanoferrites based magnetic feeders can be used for deep water and deep target hydrocarbon exploration.