Exchange-coupling interaction, effective anisotropy and magnetic property of nano-magnetic materials

The theories and models of exchange-coupling interaction between grains in nanocrystalline magnetic materials are introduced here. Their insufficiencies and distinctions from the experimental results are pointed out, and some revisions are made. The effects of the phase component ratio, the grain size and microstructure on the effective anisotropy and magnetic properties in the nanocomposite permanent materials and the improved models are discussed in detail.     

Exchange-coupling interaction, effective anisotropy and magnetic property of nano-magnetic materials

The theories and models of exchange-coupling interaction between grains in nanocrystalline magnetic materials are introduced here. Their insufficiencies and distinctions from the experimental results are pointed out, and some revisions are made. The effects of the phase component ratio, the grain size and microstructure on the effective anisotropy and magnetic properties in the nanocomposite permanent materials and the improved models are discussed in detail.     

交叉轧制对TA1钛箔材组织和性能的影响

采用光学显微镜和室温拉伸试验研究了交叉轧制对TA1钛箔材组织和性能的影响。结果表明：交叉轧制后,晶粒尺寸减小,组织更加均匀。拉伸测试表明：采用交叉轧制后,塑性升高,强度、各向异性和横向屈强比均显著降低。屈服强度与晶粒尺寸的关系遵循Hall—Petch公式。交叉轧制后,σ₀值显著降低,K值为正值。普通轧制后,σ₀值较高,K值都为负值。     

纳米硬磁相耦合永磁体的有效各向异性与矫顽力

通过建立球状晶粒模型，研究了纳米硬磁相晶粒之间的交换耦合相互作用对晶粒有效各向异性和矫顽力的影响，结果表明随着晶粒直径的减小，晶粒之间的交换耦合相互作用将随之增强，而材料的有效各向异性和矫顽力将逐渐下降。为了保证材料具有较高的各向异性和矫顽力，晶粒的直径应该大于20nm。同时，通过与实验数据的拟合，得到了矫顽力的最佳计算公式(H_c=0.32×2K_eff/J_s)。     

三维晶粒尺寸及分布对纳米永磁材料磁性能的影响

本文建立厚度为d的晶粒间界相均匀包围边长为D的三维立方体模型.假定晶粒间界相削弱了晶粒间的交换耦合相互作用.研究了晶粒尺寸及分布对纳米永磁材料有效各向异性及矫顽力的影响.结果表明：单个晶粒的平均各向异性随晶粒尺寸D的增大而增大.且材料的有效各向异性Keff和矫顽力Hc均随平均晶粒尺寸的增大而上升,而上升速率逐渐减慢.Keff和Hc随分布系数的增加而下降,且下降速率逐渐减慢.当Pc=0.7,=1.5,K1（0）=0.2Kh,d=2nm时,我们计算的矫顽力与实验数值符合地很好（Pc是无量纲因子,在0到1之间取值.Kh是晶粒内部正常的磁晶各向异性常数,K1（0）和d分别为晶粒间界相的各向异性常数和厚度）.     

Microstructural study and numerical simulation of phase decomposition of heat treated Co–Cu alloys

The influence of heat treatment on the phase decomposition and the grain size of Co–10 at% Cu alloy were studied. Few samples were aged in a furnace for either 3 or 5 h and then quenched in iced water. The materials and phase compositions were investigated using energy dispersive spectrometry and X-ray diffraction techniques. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the samples contained Co, Cu, Cu O, Co Cu2O3, Co Cu O2 phases in different proportions depending on the heat treatment regimes. The formation of dendrite Co phase rendered the spinodal decomposition while the oxidations prevent the initiation of the spinodal decomposition even for a deep long aging inside the miscibility gap.Since the Bragg reflections from different phases of Co–Cu alloy significantly overlap, the crystal structural parameters were refined with FULLPROF program. The shifts in the refined lattice constants(a, b and c), the space group and the grain size were found to be phase- and heat treatment-dependant. Two-dimensional computer simulations were conducted to study the phase decomposition of Co–Cu binary alloy systems.The excess free energy as well as the strain energy, without a priori knowledge of the shape or the position of the new phase, was precisely evaluated. The results indicate that the morphology and the shape of the microstructure agree with SEM observation.     

Ameliorating mechanical properties and reducing anisotropy of as-extruded Mg-1.0Sn-0.5Ca alloy via Al addition

Effects of Al addition to a Mg–Sn–Ca ternary alloy on its microstructure and tensile properties after extrusion were studied via extrusion of Mg-1.0Sn-0.5Ca-xAl (x ​= ​0, 0.8, 2.4 ​wt%) sheets and analysis of the extruded materials. The results showed that Al addition not only refined the grain size (from 9.8 ​± ​0.7 ​μm to 8.3 ​± ​0.4 ​μm and 7.6 ​± ​0.5 ​μm) but also accelerated the generation of more second phase (from 0.98 to 1.72 and 4.32%). Except for the CaMgSn and Mg₂Ca in Mg-1.0Sn-0.5Ca alloy, new phase (Mg, Al)₂Ca appeared after Al addition. The addition of Al into Mg–Sn–Ca alloy induced the textural variation from an initially ED-split double-peaked texture to a weakened texture, i.e., divergent elliptical texture, due to the effect of particle stimulated nucleation. This eventually contributed to the improvement of mechanical anisotropy as well as the higher Hc value and n-value. For the strain hardening behavior when tension along the TD, the prolonged stage Ⅱ of Al-modified alloys was closely connected with the additional TD textural components, accelerating the activation of more basal slip. The decreased θⅢ0 in stage Ⅲ of Al-modified alloys is beneficial to the grain refinement and the emergence of more second phase.     

低熔点元素及合金改性HDDR钕铁硼磁粉的研究进展

氢化-歧化-脱氢-再复合(HDDR)工艺是制备各向异性钕铁硼(NdFeB)磁粉的主要方法.但HDDR磁粉实际矫顽力(H_C)较低,重稀土元素Dy的引入可以显著提高其H_C,经研究发现引入的Dy主要分布于磁体晶界,起调控晶界相的作用:增加晶界厚度,提高磁粉的各向异性场(H_A).但重稀土元素Dy自然资源匮乏且价格昂贵,限制了HDDR磁粉的发展.为减少磁粉中重稀土元素用量、降低成本,研究人员通过晶界扩散低熔点元素及合金来替代重稀土元素Dy,因低熔点物质在扩散过程中呈液相,提高了扩散介质与晶界相的接触面积及扩散系数,有利于其沿晶界扩散并调控晶界相,使磁粉H_C提高.对近些年晶界扩散低熔点元素及合金提高HDDR-NdFeB磁粉H_C的部分研究成果进行了归纳.     

Combustion synthesis and magnetic investigation of nanosized CoFe2O4

Nanosized Co spinel ferrite was prepared by a combustion method. The grain size of resultant ferrite can be controlled by the reaction conditions. Magnetic investigation revealed that the products with an average grain size of 4 nm behave as superparamagnetic materials and have zero coercive force; whereas the samples with an average grain size of 85 nm (near the size of critical single domain) have the maximal coercive force. There were the negative magnetic intergrain interactions which became stronger when the grain size neared that of the single domain.     

Magnetic properties of highroad-side pine tree leaves in Beijing and their environmental significance

This is a report on magnetic properties of highroad-side tree (Pinus pumila Regel) leaves collected along an expressway linking Beijing City and the Capital International Airport and further focus on their environmental contributions. A series of rock magnetic experiments show that the primary mag-netic mineral of leaf samples was identified to be magnetite,in the pseudo-single domain (PSD) grain size range 0.2―5.0 μm. On the other hand,magnet-ite concentration and grain size in leaves are ascer-tained to decrease with increasing of sampling dis-tance to highroad asphalt surface,suggesting that high magnetic response to traffic pollution is localized within a distance of some two meters away from highroad asphalt surface. Although magnetic suscep-tibility is ordinarily regarded as a simple,rapid and low-cost method for monitoring traffic pollution,saturation isothermal remanent magnetization (SIRM) can be treated as a valid proxy for monitoring air par-ticulate matter (PM) when samples are magnetically weak. It is believed that a synthetic rock magnetic study is an effective method for determining concen-tration and grain size of ferromagnets in the atmos-pheric PM,and then it should be a rapid and feasible technique for monitoring atmospheric pollution.     

Roles of titanium-rich precipitates as inoculants during solidification in low carbon steel

The effect of titanium on the as-cast structure and the growth form of titanium precipitates, and the effect of cooling rate on the size and distribution of titanium precipitates were studied. It is shown that Ti-rich precipitates acting as heterogeneous nucleation sites play an important role in refining the grain size and increasing the equiaxed grain ratio. Cooling rate has a great effect on the size and distribution of precipitates. The number of precipitates increases and the size decreases with the increase of cooling rate. Ti-rich particles acting as heterogeneous nucleation sites at the onset of solidification are observed in the experiment. This result suggests that TiN nucleated on Ti₂O₃ is an effective inoculant for δ-ferrite during solidification in low carbon steel.     

Phase formation,texture evolutions,and mechanical behaviors of Al0.5CoCr0.8FeNi2.5V0.2 high-entropy alloys upon cold rolling

The cold rolling (CR) reduction dependence of microstructure evolutions and mechanical properties for Al_0.5CoCr_0.8FeNi_2.5V_0.2 high-entropy alloy (HEA) were investigated. The HEA remains FCC structures consisting of nanoscale ordered L1₂ phase, confirming the phase formation prediction. With increasing CR reduction, the textures transform from random ones to FCC rolling ones accompanied by dense slip bands and deformation twins. Under a 50% CR reduction, the deformation textures started to become evident and were governed by typical {111}<112>F, {110}<100>Goss and {112}<111>Cu texture components. When the CR reduction approached 90%, the deformation textures mainly contained the {110}<111>A, {114}<110>X, and {112}<111>Cu texture components. As a result, both Vickers hardness and ultimate strength increased, but the ductility decreased roughly. The enhanced strength should be attributed to the anisotropy and work hardening behavior from textures. The plastic deformation for the samples under low CR reductions was dominated by deformation twins and slip bands. However, under high CR reductions, the textures severely impeded the further propagation of pre-existing slip bands, leading to the rapid decrease of ductility. Therefore, the CR reduction should be carefully designed before optimal heat treatments to enhance the strength and ductility synergy.     

Dependence of magnetic properties of HDDR Nd-Fe-B bonded magnet on intergranular phase

Using proposed different anisotropy expressions K1^Ⅰ（r） and K1^Ⅱ（r） at the grain boundary, we investigate the effect of intergranular phase （IP） on the average anisotropy 〈K1〉 of grain boundary and the coercivity Hc of HDDR （hydrogenation, disproportionation, desorption and recombination） Nd-Fe-B bonded magnet. The results indicate that when the IP＇s thickness d is zero, 〈K1〉 and Hc based on K1^Ⅰ（r） are equal to the corresponding ones based on K1^Ⅱ（r）. While dtakes nonzero values, 〈K1〉 and Ho based on K1^Ⅱ（r） falls and rises more rapidly, respectively, with increasing d. When d is 1 nm and the structure defect thickness r0 is close to the thickness of domain wall （-4 nm）, the calculated coercivity is consistent well with the avaiable experimental data.     

Influence of different rolling processes on microstructure and strength of the Al–Cu–Li alloy AA2195

The influence of different rolling processes on precipitation behaviour, crystallography texture, grain morphology, and their consequent effects on tensile properties for Al–Cu–Li alloy AA2195 was investigated in the present work. The H-T8 samples (hot rolled ?+ ?T8) presented better tensile strength and ductility (with serious strength anisotropy) than the HC-T8 samples (hot rolled ?+ ?cold rolled ?+ ?T8), due to their different microstructures and textures. The higher dislocation density was found in the H-T8 samples, which promoted the nucleation of main strengthening phase T₁ in the matrix and suppressed the grain boundary precipitation, resulted in better strength and ductility. The increase of the dynamic recovery (DRV) during hot rolling enhanced the generation of Brass texture, and brought serious strength anisotropy. The cold rolling was performed after the hot-rolling process for the HC-T8 samples which increased deformation energy and resulted in full recrystallization of the deformed microstructure during the following solution treatment. The formation of recrystallized microstructure reduced the dislocation density and the heterogeneous precipitate nucleation positions which limited the strengthening phase precipitation in matrix and accelerated the precipitation along grain boundaries, resulted in fewer T₁ precipitates, coarse grain-boundary precipitates (GBPs), and wider precipitate-free zones (PFZs). The localized strain may be concentrated on the grain boundary to induce the dislocation pile-up, breaking of the GBPs, and intergranular fracture during stretching.     

低温热处理制备立方相纳米(ZrO2)0.9-(CaO)0.1粉末

以ZrOCl₂,Ca(NO₃)₂和NH₃·H₂O为原料,用液相化学共沉淀法制备（ZrO₂ ）_0.9-（CaO）_0.1粉末,经过600 ℃热处理,用TEM观察形貌,BET测定粒子尺寸,XRD和Raman光谱分析相结构.结果表明：粉末样品的粒径为8.9　nm,晶粒表现为0.5　nm的立方相结构.     

Modeling of static coarsening of two-phase titanium alloy in the α+β two-phase region at different temperature by a cellular automata method

A cellular automata (CA) method was employed to model static coarsening controlled by diffusion along grain boundaries at 1173K and through the bulk at 1213 and 1243K for a two-phase titanium alloy. In the CA model, the coarsening rate was inversely proportional to the 3rd power of the average grain radius for coarsening controlled by diffusion along grain boundaries, and inversely proportional to the 2nd power of the average grain radius for coarsening controlled by diffusion through the bulk. The CA model was used to predict the morphological evolution, average grain size, topological characteristics, and the coarsening kinetics of the Ti-6Al-2Zr-1Mo-1V (TA15) alloy during static coarsening. The predicted results were found to be in good agreement with the corresponding experimental results. In addition, the effects of the volume fraction of the phase (Vf ) and the initial grain size on the coarsening were discussed. It was found that the predicted coarsening kinetic constant increased with Vf and that a larger initial grain size led to slower coarsening.     

Effect of the synthesis route on the structural and dielectric properties of SrBi<Subscript>1.8</Subscript>Y<Subscript>0.2</Subscript>Nb<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>9</Subscript> ceramics

This work is devoted to the synthesis and characterization of yttrium-doped SrBi₂Nb₂O₉ ceramics prepared by three methods: solid state reaction, co-precipitation, and hydrothermal. Multiple characterizations, specifically scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), were used to validate the structural feature. The crystallite size was estimated by Scherrer’s formula and the Williamson–Hall plot. The effect of the process on the band intensities of the FTIR spectra was investigated. The crystallite size and microstructure of ceramics prepared from different synthesis processes were strongly influenced by the sinterability. SEM images revealed nanograin ceramics for materials prepared by co-precipitation and hydrothermal methods and micrograin ceramics prepared by the solid state method. The synthesized compounds underwent phase transitions at 480–465°C. The dielectric and electrical properties of these Y-doped SrBi₂Nb₂O₉ ceramics appear to be dependent on the grain size.     

Critical electronic structures controlling phase transitions induced by lithium ion intercalation in molybdenum disulphide

We report on first-principles studies of lithium-intercalation-induced structural phase transitions in molybdenum disulphide (MoS2 ), a promising material for energy storage in lithium ion batteries. It is demonstrated that the inversion-symmetry-related Mo-S p-d covalence interaction and the anisotropy of d-band hybridization are the critical factors influencing the structural phase transitions upon Li ion intercalation. Li ion intercalation in 2H-MoS2 leads to two competing effects, i.e. the 2H-to-1T transition due to the weakening of Mo-S p-d interaction and the D 6h crystal field, and the charge-density-wave transition due to the Peierls instability in Li-intercalated 2H phase. The stabilization of charge density wave in Li-intercalated MoS2 originates from the enhanced electron correlation due to nearest-neighbor Mo-Mo d-d covalence interaction, conforming to the extended Hubbard model. The magnitude of charge density wave is affected by Mo-S p-d covalence interaction and the anisotropy of d-band hybridization. In 1T phase of Li-intercalated MoS2 , the strong anisotropy of d-band hybridization contributes to the strong Fermi surface nesting while the d-band nonbonding with S-p facilities effective electron injection.     

Mineral sulphide-lime reactions and effect of CaO/C mole ratio during carbothermic reduction of complex mineral sulphides

Mineral sulphide (MS)-lime (CaO) ion exchange reactions (MS + CaO = MO + CaS) and the effect of CaO/C mole ratio during carbothermic reduction (MS + CaO + C = M + CaS + CO(g)) were investigated for complex froth flotation mineral sulphide concentrates. Phases in the partially and fully reacted samples were characterised by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The primary phases during mineral sulphide-lime ion exchange reactions are Fe₃O₄, CaSO₄ Cu₂S, and CaS. A complex liquid phase of Ca₂CuFeO₃S forms during mineral sulphide-lime exchange reactions above 1173 K. The formation mechanisms of Ca₂CuFeO₃S liquid phase are determined by characterising the partially reacted samples. The reduction rate and extent of mineral sulphides in the presence of CaO and C increase with the increase in CaO/C ratio. The metallic phases are surrounded by the CaS rich phase at CaO/C > 1, but the metallic phases and CaS are found as separate phases at CaO/C < 1. Experimental results show that the stoichiometric ratio of carbon should be slightly higher than that of CaO. The reactions between CaO and gangue minerals (SiO₂ and Al₂O₃) are only observed at CaO/C > 1 and the reacted samples are excessively sintered.     

Effects of composition and microstructure on intergrain interactions of nanocomposite Pr2 Fe14B/α-Fe material

The effects of contents of Fe and B and microstructure on the intergrain interactions in the nanocomposite Pr2Fe14 B/a-Fe permanent magnetic materials are investigated by measuring the δM-H curves. The intergrain interactions become stronger with the increase in the content of Fe. The larger δM value of the ribbon samples corresponds to the smaller grain size and uniform grain size distribution, which are favorable factors strengthening the intergrain interactions and exchange-coupling. The non-ferromagnetic phase Pr1.1Fe4B4 is found in grain boundaries when the content of B is larger, which weakens the intergrain interactions.