Search results for: detonation properties

Authors: Jain Jyoti, Jain Shorab, Sinha Shishir

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In the current scenario, development of new biodegradable composites with the reinforcement of some plant derived natural fibers are in major research concern. Abundant quantity of these natural plant derived fibers including sisal, ramp, jute, wheat straw, pine, pineapple, bagasse, etc. can be used exclusively or in combination with other natural or synthetic fibers to augment their specific properties like chemical, mechanical or thermal properties. Among all natural fibers, wheat straw, bagasse, kenaf, pineapple leaf, banana, coir, ramie, flax, etc. pineapple leaf fibers have very good mechanical properties. Being hydrophilic in nature, pineapple leaf fibers have very less affinity towards all types of polymer matrixes. Not much work has been carried out in this area. Surface treatments like alkaline treatment in different concentrations were conducted to improve its compatibility towards hydrophobic polymer matrix. Pineapple leaf fiber epoxy composites have been prepared using hand layup method. Effect of variation in fiber loading up to 20% in epoxy composites has been studied for mechanical properties like tensile strength and flexural strength. Analysis of fiber morphology has also been studied using FTIR, XRD. SEM micrographs have also been studied for fracture surface.

Keywords: composite, mechanical, natural fiber, pineapple leaf fiber

Procedia PDF Downloads 239

Authors: Devinder Sharma, Sanjay Sharma, Ajay Goyal, Ashish Kapoor

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The present research paper discussed the durability properties of high strength concrete (HSC) using Foundry Slag(FD) as partial substitute for fine aggregates (FA) and Alccofine (AF) in addition to portland pozzolana (PPC) cement. Specimens of Concrete M100 grade with water/binder ratio 0.239, with Foundry Slag (FD) varying from 0 to 50% and with optimum quantity of AF(15%) were casted and tested for durability properties such as Water absorption, water permeability, resistance to sulphate attack, alkali attack and nitrate attack of HSC at the age of 7, 14, 28, 56 and 90 days. Substitution of fine aggregates (FA) with up to 45% of foundry slag(FD) content and cement with 15% substitution and addition of alccofine showed an excellent resistance against durability properties at all ages but showed a decrease in these properties with 50% of FD contents. Loss of weight in concrete samples due to sulphate attack, alkali attack and nitrate attack of HSC at the age of 365 days was compared with loss in compressive strength. Correlation between loss in weight and loss in compressive strength in all the tests was found to be excellent.

Keywords: alccofine, alkali attack, foundry slag, high strength concrete, nitrate attack, water absorption, water permeability

Procedia PDF Downloads 331

Authors: Michael Tupý, Dagmar Měřínská, Alice Tesaříková-Svobodová, Christian Carrot, Caroline Pillon, Vít Petránek

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The mechanical properties of blends consisting of plasticized poly(vinyl butyral) (PVB) and plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) are studied, in order to evaluate the possibility of using recycled PVB waste derived from windshields. PVC was plasticized with 38% of diisononyl phthalate (DINP), while PVB was plasticized with 28% of triethylene glycol, bis(2-ethylhexanoate) (3GO). The optimal process conditions for the PVB/PVC blend in 1:1 ratio were determined. Entropy was used in order to theoretically predict the blends miscibility. The PVB content of each blend composition used was ranging from zero to 100%. Tensile strength and strain were tested. In addition, a comparison between recycled and original PVB, used as constituents of the blend, was performed.

Keywords: poly(vinyl butyral), poly(vinyl chloride), windshield, polymer waste, mechanical properties

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Authors: Oluwatoyin Joseph Gbadeyan, Sarp Adali, Bright Glen, Bruce Sithole

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Sodium lauryl surfactant concentration optimization, for nanoparticle production, provided the platform for advanced research studies. Different concentrations (0.05 %, 0.1 %, and 0.2 %) of sodium lauryl surfactant was added to snail shells powder during milling processes for producing CaCO3 at smaller particle size. Epoxy nanocomposites prepared at filler content 2 wt.% synthesized with different volumes of sodium lauryl surfactant were fabricated using a conventional resin casting method. Mechanical properties such as tensile strength, stiffness, and hardness of prepared nanocomposites was investigated to determine the effect of sodium lauryl surfactant concentration on nanocomposite properties. It was observed that the loading of the synthesized nano-calcium carbonate improved the mechanical properties of neat epoxy at lower concentrations of sodium lauryl surfactant 0.05 %. Meaningfully, loading of achatina fulica snail shell nanoparticles manufactures, with small concentrations of sodium lauryl surfactant 0.05 %, increased the neat epoxy tensile strength by 26%, stiffness by 55%, and hardness by 38%. Homogeneous dispersion facilitated, by the addition of sodium lauryl surfactant during milling processes, improved mechanical properties. Research evidence suggests that nano-CaCO3, synthesized from achatina fulica snail shell, possesses suitable reinforcement properties that can be used for nanocomposite fabrication. The evidence showed that adding small concentrations of sodium lauryl surfactant 0.05 %, improved dispersion of nanoparticles in polymetrix material that provided mechanical properties improvement.

Keywords: sodium lauryl surfactant, mechanical properties , achatina fulica snail shel, calcium carbonate nanopowder

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Authors: Mostafa Amirjan

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In the present study, the properties of Al-Al2O3 nanocomposite hollow sphere structures were investigated. For this reason, the Al-based nanocomposite hollow spheres with different amounts of nano alumina reinforcement (0-10wt %) and different ratio of thickness to diameter (t/D: 0.06-0.3) were prepared via a powder metallurgy method. Then, the effect of mentioned parameters was studied on physical and quasi static mechanical properties of their related prepared structures (open/closed cell) such as density, hardness, strength and energy absorption. It was found that as the t/D ratio increases the relative density, compressive strength and energy absorption increase. The highest values of strength and energy absorption were obtained from the specimen with 5 wt. % of nanoparticle reinforcement, t/D of 0.3 (t=1 mm, D=400µm) as 22.88 MPa and 13.24 MJ/m3, respectively. The moderate specific strength of prepared composites in the present study showed the good consistency with the properties of others low carbon steel composite with similar structure.

Keywords: hollow sphere structure foam, nanocomposite, thickness and diameter (t/D ), powder metallurgy

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Authors: Kunal Krishna Das, Eddie S. S. Lam

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Preplaced Aggregate Concrete (PAC) is produced by first placing the coarse aggregate into the formwork, followed by injection of grout to fill in the voids in between the coarse aggregates. In this study, tests were carried out to determine the effects of supplementary cementitious materials on the properties of PAC. Cement was partially replaced by ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) and silica fume (SF) at different proportions. Grout properties were determined by the flow cone test and compressive strength test. Grout proportion was optimized statistically. It was applied to form PAC. Hardened properties of PAC, comprising compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, chloride-ion penetration and drying shrinkage, were evaluated. GGBS enhanced the flowability of the grout, whereas SF enhanced the strength of PAC. Both GGBS and SF improved the resistance to chloride-ion penetration with the drawback of increased drying shrinkage. Nevertheless, drying shrinkage was within the range to be classified as low shrinkage concrete.

Keywords: factorial design, ground granulated blast furnace slag, preplaced aggregate concrete, silica fume

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Authors: Chi-Yuan Huang, Mei-Chuan Kuo, Ching-Yi Hsiao

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In this study, acids with various chain lengths (C₆, C₈, C₁₀ and C₁₂) modified by methane sulfonic acid (MSA) and temperature were used to modify tapioca starch (TPS), then the glycerol (GA) were added into modified starch, to prepare new blends. The mechanical properties, thermal properties and physical properties of blends were studied. This investigation was divided into two parts.  First, the biodegradable materials were used such as starch and glycerol with hexanedioic acid (HA), suberic acid (SBA), sebacic acid (SA), decanedicarboxylic acid (DA) manufacturing with different temperatures (90, 110 and 130 °C). And then, the solution was added into modified starch to prepare the blends by using single-screw extruder. The FT-IR patterns indicated that the characteristic peak of C=O in ester was observed at 1730 cm^-1. It is proved that different chain length acids (C₆, C₈, C₁₀ and C₁₂) reacted with glycerol by esterification and these are used to plasticize blends during extrusion. In addition, the blends would improve the hydrolysis and thermal stability. The water contact angle increased from 43.0° to 64.0°.  Second, the HA (110 °C), SBA (110 °C), SA (110 °C), and DA blends (130 °C) were used in study, because they possessed good mechanical properties, water resistances and thermal stability. On the other hand, the various contents (0, 0.005, 0.010, 0.020 g) of MSA were also used to modify the mechanical properties of blends. We observed that the blends were added to MSA, and then the FT-IR patterns indicated that the C=O ester appeared at 1730 cm^-1. For this reason, the hydrophobic blends were produced. The water contact angle of the MSA blends increased from 55.0° to 71.0°. Although break elongation of the MSA blends reduced from the original 220% to 128%, the stress increased from 2.5 MPa to 5.1 MPa. Therefore, the optimal composition of blends was the DA blend (130 °C) with adding of MSA (0.005 g).

Keywords: chain length acids, methane sulfonic acid, Tapioca starch (TPS), tensile stress

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Authors: Stephen J. Mitchual, Kwasi Frimpong-Mensah, Nicholas A. Darkwa

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The fuel potential of six tropical hardwood species namely: Triplochiton scleroxylon, Ceiba pentandra, Aningeria robusta, Terminalia superba, Celtis mildbreadii and Piptadenia africana were studied. Properties studied include the species density, gross calorific value, volatile matter, ash, organic carbon, N, H, S, Cu, Pb, As and Cd content. Fuel properties were determined using standard laboratory methods. The result indicates that the Gross Calorific Value (GCV) of the species ranged from 20.16 to 22.22 MJ/kg and they slightly varied from each other. Additionally, the GCV of the biomass materials were higher than that of other biomass materials like; wheat straw, rice straw, maize straw and sugar cane. The ash and volatile matter content varied from 0.6075 to 5.0407%, and 75.23% to 83.70% respectively. The overall rating of the properties of the six biomass materials suggest that Piptadenia africana has the best fuel property to be used as briquettes and Aningeria robusta the worse. This study therefore suggests that a holistic assessment of a biomass material needs to be done before selecting it for fuel purpose.

Keywords: ash content, briquette, calorific value, elemental composition, species, volatile matter

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Authors: Robert Bušić, Ivana Miličević, Larisa Šargač

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The construction industry generates a large amount of waste, which poses a challenge for disposal and often requires significant areas for landfill. Therefore, recycling construction waste has become imperative. This study focuses on investigating the use of locally available recycled concrete as a substitute for traditional aggregates and analyzing the impact of this change on the mechanical and durability properties of concrete. The research begins with the crushing of locally available waste concrete, followed by sieving and sorting the aggregate into different fractions. Four concrete mix designs were created, with one serving as a reference mixture without recycled aggregate, while the remaining three mixes included recycled aggregate in varying proportions. The experimental part includes testing the key properties of concrete in both fresh and hardened states, including slump and flow tests, compressive strength, static modulus of elasticity, and shrinkage of the concrete, with the aim of assessing the impact of locally available recycled aggregate on concrete properties. By using experimental testing methods, the results were compared with conventional concrete, providing deeper insights into the potential advantages and disadvantages of using locally available recycled concrete in various construction projects.

Keywords: concrete, durability, recycled aggregate, sustainability

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Authors: Mohammad Goli, Akram Sharifi, Mohammad Yousefi Jozdani, Seyed Ali Mortazavi

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An industrial spray dryer was used, and the effects of atomizer speed on the physicochemical properties of milk powder, the textural and sensory characteristics of white cheese made from this milk powder, were evaluated. For this purpose, whole milk was converted into powder by using three different speeds (10,000, 11,000, and 12,000 rpm). Results showed that with increasing atomizer speed in the spray dryer, the average size of casein micelle is significantly decreased (p < 0.05), whereas no significant effect is observed on the chemical properties of milk powder. White cheese characteristics indicated that with increasing atomizer speed, texture parameters, such as hardness, mastication, and gumminess, were significantly reduced (p < 0.05). Sensory evaluation also revealed that cheese samples prepared with dried milk produced at 12,000 rpm were highly accepted by panelists. Overall, the findings suggested that 12,000 rpm is the optimal atomizer speed for milk powder production.

Keywords: spray drying, powder technology, atomizer speed, particle size, white cheese physical properties

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Authors: M. Masłowski, M. Zaborski

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Magnetorheological elastomer composites based on micro- and nano-sized Fe3O4 magnetoactive fillers in silicone rubber are reported and studied. To improve the dispersion of applied fillers in polymer matrix, ionic liquids such as 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium diethylphosphate, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate, 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate,1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate, trihexyltetradecylphosphonium chloride were added during the process of composites preparation. The method of preparation process influenced the specific properties of MREs (isotropy/anisotropy), similarly to ferromagnetic particles content and theirs quantity. Micro and non-sized magnetites were active fillers improving the mechanical properties of elastomers. They also changed magnetic properties and reinforced the magnetorheological effect of composites. Application of ionic liquids as dispersing agents influenced the dispersion of magnetic fillers in the elastomer matrix. Scanning electron microscopy images used to observe magnetorheological elastomer microstructures proved that the dispersion improvement had a significant effect on the composites properties. Moreover, the particles orientation and their arrangement in the elastomer investigated by vibration sample magnetometer showed the correlation between MRE microstructure and their magnetic properties.

Keywords: magnetorheological elastomers, iron oxides, ionic liquids, dispersion

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Authors: Abdullah Kaymakci, Daniel M. Madyira, Ntokozo Nkwanyana

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The effect of metal transfer modes on mechanical properties of welded 3CR12 stainless steel were investigated. This was achieved by butt welding 10 mm thick plates of 3CR12 in different positions while varying the welding positions for different metal transfer modes. The ASME IX: 2010 (Welding and Brazing Qualifications) code was used as a basis for welding variables. The material and the thickness of the base metal were kept constant together with the filler metal, shielding gas and joint types. The effect of the metal transfer modes on the microstructure and the mechanical properties of the 3CR12 steel was then investigated as it was hypothesized that the change in welding positions will affect the transfer modes partly due to the effect of gravity. The microscopic examination revealed that the substrate was characterized by dual phase microstructure, that is, alpha phase and beta phase grain structures. Using the spectroscopic examination results and the ferritic factor calculation had shown that the microstructure was expected to be ferritic-martensitic during air cooling process. The tested tensile strength and Charpy impact energy were measured to be 498 MPa and 102 J which were in line with mechanical properties given in the material certificate. The heat input in the material was observed to be greater than 1 kJ/mm which is the limiting factor for grain growth during the welding process. Grain growths were observed in the heat affected zone of the welded materials. Ferritic-martensitic microstructure was observed in the microstructure during the microscopic examination. The grain growth altered the mechanical properties of the test material. Globular down hand had higher mechanical properties than spray down hand. Globular vertical up had better mechanical properties than globular vertical down.

Keywords: welding, metal transfer modes, stainless steel, microstructure, hardness, tensile strength

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Authors: Kiatnarong Supapanmanee, Ekkarin Phongphinittana, Pongsak Nimdum

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Natural fibers are readily available raw materials that are widely used as composite materials. The most common problem facing many researchers with composites made from this fiber is the adhesion between the natural fiber contact surface and the matrix material. Part of the problem is due to the hydrophilic properties of natural fibers and the hydrophobic properties of the matrix material. Based on the aforementioned problems, this research selected bamboo fiber, which is a strong natural fiber in the research study. The first step was to study the effect of the mechanical properties of the pure bamboo strip by testing the tensile strength of different measurement lengths. The bamboo strip was modified surface with sodium hydroxide (NaOH) at 6wt% concentrations for different soaking periods. After surface modification, the physical and mechanical properties of the pure bamboo strip fibers were studied. The modified and unmodified bamboo strips were molded into a composite material using epoxy as a matrix to compare the mechanical properties and adhesion between the fiber surface and the material with tensile and bending tests. In addition, the results of these tests were compared with the finite element method (FEM). The results showed that the length of the bamboo strip affects the strength of the fibers, with shorter fibers causing higher tensile stress. Effects of surface modification of bamboo strip with NaOH, this chemical eliminates lignin and hemicellulose, resulting in the smaller dimension of the bamboo strip and increased density. From the pretreatment results above, it was found that the treated bamboo strip and composite material had better Ultimate tensile stress and Young's modulus. Moreover, that results in better adhesion between bamboo fiber and matrix material.

Keywords: bamboo fiber, bamboo strip, composite material, bamboo composite, pure bamboo, surface modification, mechanical properties of bamboo, bamboo finite element method

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Authors: Anupam Saxena, Achin Agrawal, Rishabh Shukla, S. Mandal

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It is quite important that the properties of structural elements do not change significantly before and after cracking, and if they do, it adversely affects the structure. Corrosion in rebars causes cracking in concrete which can lead to the change in properties of beam. In the present study, two RC beams with same flexural strength but with different reinforcement arrangements are considered and modelling of cracks of RC beams has been done at different degrees of corrosion in the case of delamination using boundary conditions of Three Point Bending Test. Finite Element Analysis (FEA) has been done at different degree of corrosion to observe the variation of different parameters like modal frequency, Elasticity and Flexural strength in case of delamination. Also, the comparison between two different RC arrangements is made to conclude which one of them is more suitable.

Keywords: delamination, elasticity, FEA, flexural strength, modal frequency, RC beam

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Authors: Huixin Wei, Shibin Wang, Linan Li, Lei Zhou, Xinhao Tu

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Facial skin is a biomedical material with complex mechanical properties of anisotropy, viscoelasticity, and hyperelasticity. The mechanical properties of facial skin are crucial for a number of applications including facial plastic surgery, animation, dermatology, cosmetic industry, and impact biomechanics. Skin is a complex multi-layered material which can be broadly divided into three main layers, the epidermis, the dermis, and the hypodermis. Collagen fibers account for 75% of the dry weight of dermal tissue, and it is these fibers which are responsible for the mechanical properties of skin. Many research on the anisotropic mechanical properties are mainly concentrated on in vitro, but there is a great difference between in vivo and in vitro for mechanical properties of the skin. In this study, we presented a method to measure the mechanical properties of facial skin in vivo. Digital image correlation (DIC) and indentation tests were used to obtain the experiment data, including the deformation of facial surface and indentation force-displacement curve. Then, the experiment was simulated using a finite element (FE) model. Application of Computed Tomography (CT) and reconstruction techniques obtained the real tissue geometry. A three-dimensional FE model of facial skin, including a bi-layer system, was obtained. As the epidermis is relatively thin, the epidermis and dermis were regarded as one layer and below it was hypodermis in this study. The upper layer was modeled as a Gasser-Ogden-Holzapfel (GOH) model to describe hyperelastic and anisotropic behaviors of the dermis. The under layer was modeled as a linear elastic model. In conclusion, the material properties of two-layer were determined by minimizing the error between the FE data and experimental data.

Keywords: facial skin, indentation test, finite element, digital image correlation, computed tomography

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Authors: HebatAllah Tarek, Zeyad El-Sayad, Ali F. Bakr

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Surface coating can permit the bulk materials to remain unchanged, whereas the surface functionality is engineered to afford a more required characteristic. Nano-Ceramic coatings are considered ideal coatings on materials that can significantly improve the surface properties, including anti-fouling, self-cleaning, corrosion resistance, wear resistance, anti-scratch, waterproof, anti-acid rain and anti-asphalt. Furthermore, various techniques have been utilized to fabricate a range of different ceramic coatings with more desirable properties on Nano-ceramics, which make the materials usually used in in-service environments and worth mentioning that the practical part of this study will be applied in one of the most important architectural applications due to the contamination-free conditions provided by it in the manufacturing industry. Without cleanrooms, products will become contaminated and either malfunction or infect people with bacteria. Cleanrooms are used for the manufacture of items used in computers, cars, airplanes, spacecraft, televisions, disc players and many other electronic and mechanical devices, as well as the manufacture of medicines, medical devices, and foods. The aim of this study will be to examine the Nano-ceramics on porcelain and glass panels. The investigation will be included fabrications, methods, surface properties and applications in clean rooms. The unfamiliarity in this study is using Nano-ceramics in clean rooms instead of using them on metallic materials.

Keywords: nano-ceramic coating, clean rooms, porcelain, surface properties

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Authors: Marina Borgert Moraes, Wesley Francisco, Filipe Vargas, Gilmar Patrocínio Thim

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In recent years, carbon nanotubes (CNT) and graphene oxide (GO), especially the functionalized ones, have been added to epoxy resin in order to increase the mechanical, electrical and thermal properties of nanocomposites. However, it's still unknown how the presence of these nanoparticles influences the curing process and the final mechanical properties as well. In this work, kinetic and mechanical properties of the nanocomposites were analyzed, where the kinetic process was followed by DSC and the mechanical properties by DMA. Initially, CNT was annealed at high temperature (1800 °C) under vacuum atmosphere, followed by a chemical treatment using acids and ethylenediamine. GO was synthesized through chemical route, washed clean, dried and ground to #200. The presence of functional groups on CNT and GO surface was confirmed by XPS spectra and FT-IR. Then, epoxy resin, nanoparticles and acetone were mixed by sonication in order to obtain the composites. DSC analyses were performed on samples with different curing cycles (1h 80°C + 2h 120°C; 3h 80°C + 2h 120°C; 5h 80°C) and samples with different times at constant temperature (120°C). Results showed that the kinetic process and the mechanical strength are very dependent on the presence of graphene and functionalized-CNT in the nanocomposites.

Keywords: carbon nanotube, epoxy resin, Graphene oxide, nanocomposite

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Authors: A.G. S. Aldajani, N. Smida, M. G. Althobaiti, B. Zaidi

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In order to exploit the good electrical properties of anthracene and the excellent properties of fluorescein, new hybrid material has been synthesized (An-Fl). Current-voltage measurements were done on a new single-layer ITO/An-FL/Al device of typically 100 nm thickness. Atypical diode behavior is observed with a turn-on voltage of 4.4 V, a dynamic resistance of 74.07 KΩ and a rectification ratio of 2.02 due to unbalanced transport. Results show also that the current-voltage characteristics present three different regimes of the power-law (J~Vᵐ) for which the conduction mechanism is well described with space-charge-limited current conduction mechanism (SCLC) with a charge carrier mobility of 2.38.10⁻⁵cm2V⁻¹S⁻¹. Moreover, the electrical transport properties of this device have been carried out using a dependent frequency study in the range (50 Hz–1.4 MHz) for different applied biases (from 0 to 6 V). At lower frequency, the σdc values increase with bias voltage rising, supporting that the mobile ion can hop successfully to its nearest vacant site. From σac and impedance measurements, the equivalent electrical circuit is evidenced, where the conductivity process is coherent with an exponential trap distribution caused by structural defects and/or chemical impurities.

Keywords: semiconducting polymer, conductivity, SCLC, impedance spectroscopy

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Authors: Ajay Kumar Singh, Arvind Kumar, S. P. Singh

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Cellulose nanofibrils (CNF) have shown potential of their extensive use in various fields, including papermaking, due to their unique characteristics. In this study, CNF’s were prepared by fibrillating the pulp obtained from raw materials e.g. bagasse, hardwood and softwood using enzymatic pretreatment followed by mechanical refining. These nanofibrils, when examined under FE-SEM, show that partial fibrillation on fiber surface has resulted in production of nanofibers. Mixing these nanofibers with the unrefined and normally refined fibers show their reinforcing effect. This effect is manifested in observing the improvement in the physical and mechanical properties e.g. tensile index and burst index of paper. Tear index, however, was observed to decrease on blending with nanofibers. The optical properties of paper sheets made from blended fibers showed no significant change in comparison to those made from only mechanically refined pulp. Mixing of normal pulp fibers with nanofibers show increase in ºSR and consequent decrease in drainage rate. These changes observed in mechanical, optical and other physical properties of the paper sheets made from nanofibrils blended pulp have been tried to explain considering the distribution of the nanofibrils alongside microfibrils in the fibrous network. Since usually, paper/boards with higher strength are observed to have diminished optical properties which is a drawback in their quality, the present work has the potential for developing paper/boards having improved strength alongwith undiminished optical properties utilising the concepts of nanoscience and nanotechnology.

Keywords: enzymatic pretreatment, mechanical refining, nanofibrils, paper properties

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Authors: Manal Bouasria, Mohammed-Hichem Benzaama, Valérie Pralong, Yassine El Mendili

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Reducing the quantity of cement in cementitious composites can help to reduce the environmental effect of construction materials. By-products such as ferronickel slags (FNS), fly ash (FA), and Crepidula fornicata (CR) are promising options for cement replacement. In this work, we investigated the relevance of substituting cement with FNS-CR and FA-CR on the mechanical properties of mortar and on the thermal properties of concrete. Foraging intervals ranging from 2 to 28 days, the mechanical properties are obtained by 3-point bending and compression tests. The chosen mix is used to construct a prototype in order to study the material’s hygrothermal performance. The data collected by the sensors placed on the prototype was utilized to build an artificial neural network.

Keywords: artificial neural network, cement, circular economy, concrete, by products

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Authors: Shekhar U. Kadam, S. K. Pankaj, Brijesh K. Tiwari, P. J. Cullen, Colm P. O’Donnell

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Brown seaweed L. hyperborea is a rich source of phenolic compounds with antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. The aim of this work was to study the effect of incorporation of L. hyperborea extract to bovine gelatin film on the physicochemical and antioxidant properties of film. Films with fraction of 25% by weight of bovine gelatin sample were cast with addition of glycerol as a plasticizer. The total phenolic content and antioxidant activity of the films showed higher levels with addition of seaweed extract. Also film appearance properties such as film thickness, color and light transparency were evaluated. Film appearance was slightly modified whereas microstructure of films showed rough patches at 50% level of extract in the film. Hydrophilicity and glass transition temperature of the films also increased with increased level of seaweed extract. It was found that seaweed extract can be incorporated within gelatin and casein for development of biofunctional films.

Keywords: Laminaria hyperborea, ultrasound, seaweed extract, bovine gelatin film, antioxidant, phenolic compounds

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Authors: Camila Parodi, Viviana Letelier, Giacomo Moriconi

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The cement industry is responsible for around a 5% of the CO2 emissions worldwide and considering that concrete is one of the most used materials in construction its total effect is important. An alternative to reduce the environmental impact of concrete production is to incorporate certain amount of residues in the dosing, limiting the replacement percentages to avoid significant losses in the mechanical properties of the final material. Previous researches demonstrate the feasibility of using brick and rust residues, separately, as a cement replacement. This study analyses the variation in the mechanical properties of mortars by incorporating masonry residue composed of clay bricks and cement mortar. In order to improve the mechanical properties of masonry residue, this was subjected to a heat treatment of 650 ° C for four hours and its effect is analyzed in this study. Masonry residue was obtained from a demolition of masonry perimetral walls. The residues were crushed and sieved and the maximum size of particles used was 75 microns. The percentages of cement replaced by masonry residue were 0%, 10%, 20% and 30%. The effect of masonry residue addition and its heat treatment in the mechanical properties of mortars is evaluated through compressive and flexural strength tests after 7, 14 and 28 curing days. Results show that increasing the amount of masonry residue used increases the losses in compressive strength and flexural strength. However, the use of up to a 20% of masonry residue, when a heat treatment is applied, allows obtaining mortars with similar compressive strength to the control mortar. Masonry residues mortars without a heat treatment show losses in compressive strengths between 15% and 27% with respect to masonry residues with heat treatment, which demonstrates the effectiveness of the heat treatment. From this analysis it can be conclude that it is possible to use up to 20% of masonry residue with heat treatment as cement replacement without significant losses in mortars mechanical properties, reducing considerably the environmental impact of the final material.

Keywords: cement replacement, environmental impact, masonry residue, mechanical properties of recycled mortars

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Authors: A. Kaibi, A. Guittoum, M. Hemmous, D. Martínez-Blanco, P. Gorria, J. A. Blanco, M. Kechouane

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The present work deals with the effect of Si content on the physical properties of nanostructured (Ni75Fe25)100-x Six (x=0, 3.5, 6.5, 9, 12, and 15 at %) powders elaborated by mechanical alloying for a milling time of 96 h. The microstructure, hyperfine, and magnetic properties of the powders were investigated as a function of Si content by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Mössbauer Spectroscopy, and Vibrating Sample magnetometry (VSM). From XRD spectra, the formation of FCC disordered Ni (Fe,Si) solid solution was evidenced after 96 h. As Si content increases, the lattice parameter and the grain size decrease (from ~28 to 15 nm), while the microstrain level decreases from 0.98% to 0.65%. From SEM micrographs, we showed that powder particles become round in shape and decrease in size with increasing Si content. For all Si content, the adjustment of Mössbauer spectra confirmed the formation of a disordered ferromagnetic NiFeSi phase. From hysteresis curves, we have extracted the values of saturation magnetization and coercive field for all powders. The evolution of Ms and Hc as a function of Si content will be discussed.

Keywords: nanostructured powders, (Ni75Fe25)100-xSix alloy, microstructure, magnetic properties

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Authors: P. Ravinder Reddy, Chaitanya Vishal Nalli, B. Tulja Lal, Anusha Kankanala

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The chassis frame of an automobile with different sections have been considered for different loads. The orthotropic materials are selected to get the stability by varying fiber angle, fiber thickness, laminates, fiber properties, matrix properties and elastic ratios. The geometric model of chassis frame is carried out with parametric modelling approach. The analysis of chassis frame is carried out with ANSYS FEA software. The static and dynamic analysis of chassis frame is carried out by varying geometric parameters, orthotropic properties, materials and various sections. The static and dynamic response is discussed in detail in different sections.

Keywords: chassis frame, dynamic response, geometric model, orthotropic materials

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Authors: Indra Bahadur Bhandari, Narayan Panthi, Ishwar Koirala, Devendra Adhikari

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We have used a theoretical model based on the assumption of compound formation in binary alloys to study the thermodynamic, microscopic, and surface properties of Bi-Pb and In-Pb liquid alloys. A review of the phase diagrams for these alloys shows that one of the stable complexes for Bi-Pb liquid alloy is BiPb3; also, that InPb is a stable phase in liquid In-Pb alloys. Using the same interaction parameters that are fitted for the free energy of mixing, we have been able to compute the bulk and thermodynamic properties of the alloys. From our observations, we are able to show that the Bi-Pb liquid alloy exhibits compound formation over the whole concentration range and the In-Pb alloys undergo phase separation. With regards to surface properties, Pb segregates more to the surface in In-Pb alloys than in Bi-Pb alloys. The viscosity isotherms have a positive deviation from ideality for both Bi-Pb and In-Pb alloys.

Keywords: asymmetry, Bi-Pb, deviation, In-Pb, interaction parameters

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Authors: B. Vinod, L. Jsudev

Abstract:

Natural fibers as reinforcement in polymer matrix material is gaining lot of attention in recent years, as they are light in weight, less in cost, and ecologically advanced surrogate material to glass and carbon fibers in composites. Natural fibers like jute, sisal, coir, hemp, banana etc. have attracted substantial importance as a potential structural material because of its attractive features along with its good mechanical properties. Cryogenic applications of natural fiber reinforced polymer composites like cryogenic wind tunnels, cryogenic transport vessels, support structures in space shuttles and rockets are gaining importance. In these unique cryogenic applications, the requirements of polymer composites are extremely severe and complicated. These materials need to possess good mechanical and physical properties at cryogenic temperatures such as liquid helium (4.2 K), liquid hydrogen (20 K), liquid nitrogen (77 K), and liquid oxygen (90 K) temperatures, etc., to meet the high requirements by the cryogenic engineering applications. The objective of this work is to investigate the mechanical behavior of hybrid hemp/jute fibers reinforced epoxy composite material at liquid nitrogen temperature. Hemp and Jute fibers are used as reinforcement material as they have high specific strength, stiffness and good adhering property and has the potential to replace the synthetic fibers. Hybrid hemp/jute fibers reinforced polymer composite is prepared by hand lay-up method and test specimens are cut according to ASTM standards. These test specimens are dipped in liquid nitrogen for different time durations. The tensile properties, flexural properties and impact strength of the specimen are tested immediately after the specimens are removed from liquid nitrogen container. The experimental results indicate that the cryogenic treatment of the polymer composite has a significant effect on the mechanical properties of this material. The tensile properties and flexural properties of the hybrid hemp/jute fibers epoxy composite at liquid nitrogen temperature is higher than at room temperature. The impact strength of the material decreased after subjecting it to liquid nitrogen temperature.

Keywords: liquid nitrogen temperature, polymer composite, tensile properties, flexural properties

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Authors: Zhifeng Kong

Abstract:

Over-parameterized neural networks have attracted a great deal of attention in recent deep learning theory research, as they challenge the classic perspective of over-fitting when the model has excessive parameters and have gained empirical success in various settings. While a number of theoretical works have been presented to demystify properties of such models, the convergence properties of such models are still far from being thoroughly understood. In this work, we study the convergence properties of training two-hidden-layer partially over-parameterized fully connected networks with the Rectified Linear Unit activation via gradient descent. To our knowledge, this is the first theoretical work to understand convergence properties of deep over-parameterized networks without the equally-wide-hidden-layer assumption and other unrealistic assumptions. We provide a probabilistic lower bound of the widths of hidden layers and proved linear convergence rate of gradient descent. We also conducted experiments on synthetic and real-world datasets to validate our theory.

Keywords: over-parameterization, rectified linear units ReLU, convergence, gradient descent, neural networks

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Authors: Dalia Elsawy Abulyazied, Samia Mohamad Mokhtar, Ahmed Magdy Motawie

Abstract:

This article studies the effects of nano-bentonite on the structure and properties of polymer blends nanocomposites, based on polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and styrene co-maleic anhydride (SMA) blend. Modification of Egyptian bentonite (EB) is carried out using organo-modifier namely; octadecylamine (ODA). Octadecylamine bentonite (ODA-B) is characterized using FTIR, XRD and TEM. Nanocomposites of PVC/SMA/ODA-B are prepared by solution intercalation polymerization from 0.50 up to 5 phr. The nanocomposites are characterized by XRD and TEM. Thermal behavior of the nanocomposites is studied. The effect of different content of ODA-B on the nano-mechanical properties is investigated by a nano-indentation test method. Also the swelling and electrical properties of the nanocomposites are measured. The morphology of the nanocomposites shows that ODA-B achieved good dispersion in the PVC/SMA matrix. The thermal stability of the nanocomposites is enhanced due to the presence of the ODA-B. Incorporation of 0.5, 1, 3 and 5 phr. ODA-B into the PVC/SMA blends results in an improvement in nano-hardness of 16%, 76%, 92%, and 68% respectively. The elastic modulus increased by 37% from 4.59 GPa for unreinforced PVC/SMA blend to 6.30 GPa for 3 phr. The cross-link density and the electrical conductivity of the nanocomposites are increased with increasing the content of ODA-B.

Keywords: PVC, SMA, nanocomposites, nano-bentonite, nanoindentation, crosslink density

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Authors: Samen Boota, Arslan Ishaq

Abstract:

More than 4 billion tons of chicken feathers are wasted yearly worldwide which is not environmental friendly. In order to make use of these 4 billion tons of feathers it is necessary to incorporate them to the textile materials. The main objective of this study is to develop the winter wears with improved thermal comfort and mechanical properties. Chick feathers were blended with cotton fibers to spin them into yarn, weave them dye them using reactive dyes. The developed fabric was tested for thermal comfort, tensile and tears strength. The results were also compared with pure cotton fabric of similar GSM. It is observed from the results that chicken feathers and cotton blended fabric was improved thermal comfort and mechanical properties.

Keywords: Alambeta, compatibilizing, permeability, sliver

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Authors: S. Abdullahi, M. Momoh, K. U. Isah

Abstract:

Zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films of 75.5 nm and 130.5 nm were deposited at room temperature onto chemically and ultrasonically cleaned corning glass substrate by radio frequency technique and annealed at 150°C under nitrogen atmosphere for 60 minutes. The optical properties of the films were ascertained by UV-VIS-NIR spectrophotometry. Influence of the thickness of the films on the optical properties was studied keeping other deposition parameters constant. The optical transmittance spectra reveal a maximum transmittance of 81.49% and 84.26% respectively. The band gap of the films is found to be direct allowed transition and decreases with the increase in thickness of the films. The band gap energy (Eg) is in the range of 3.28 eV to 3.31 eV, respectively. These thin films are suitable for solar cell applications.

Keywords: optical constants, RF sputtering, Urbach energy, zinc oxide thin film

Procedia PDF Downloads 457