Search results for: crystal morphology

Authors: G. Çelik Gül, F. Kurtuluş

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Rare earths containing complex metal oxides have drawn much attention due to physical, chemical and optical properties which make them feasible in so many areas such as non-linear optical materials and ion exchanger. We have researched a systematic study to obtain rare earth containing zirconium molybdate compound, characterization, investigation of crystal system and calculation of unit cell parameters.  After a successful synthesis of Nd₂Zr₃(MoO₄)₉ which is a member of rare earth metal containing complex oxides family, X-ray diffraction (XRD), High Score Plus/Rietveld refinement analysis, and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) were completed to determine the crystal structure. Morphological properties and elemental composition were determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis. Thermal properties were observed via Thermogravimetric-differential thermal analysis (TG/DTA).

Keywords: Nd2Zr3(MoO4)9, solid state synthesis, powder x-ray diffraction, zirconium molybdates.

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Authors: Joon Ho Kim, Jae Ho Choi, Tae Kwon Ha

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Single crystals of Magnesium alloys such as pure Mg, Mg-1Zn-0.5Y, Mg-0.1Y, and Mg-0.1Ce alloys were successfully fabricated in this study by employing the modified Bridgman method. To determine the exact orientation of crystals, pole figure measurement using X-ray diffraction were carried out on each single crystal. Hardness and compression tests were conducted followed by subsequent recrysatllization annealing. Recrystallization kinetics of Mg alloy single crystals has been investigated. Fabricated single crystals were cut into rectangular shaped specimen and solution treated at 400oC for 24 hrs, and then deformed in compression mode by 30% reduction. Annealing treatment for recrystallization has been conducted on these cold-rolled plates at temperatures of 300oC for various times from 1 to 20 mins. The microstructure observation and hardness measurement conducted on the recrystallized specimens revealed that static recrystallization of ternary alloy single crystal was very slow, while recrystallization behavior of binary alloy single crystals appeared to be very fast.

Keywords: Magnesium, Mg-rare earth alloys, compression test, static recrystallization, hardness.

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Authors: Carmen E. Pérez-Donado, Fernando Pérez-Muñoz, Rosa N. Chávez-Jáuregui

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Plantain contains starch as the main component and represents a relevant source of this carbohydrate. Starches from different cultivars of plantain and bananas have been studied for industrialization purposes due to their morphological and thermal characteristics and their influence in food products. This study aimed to characterize the physical, chemical, and thermal properties of starch from three different plantain cultivated in Puerto Rico: Maricongo, Maiden and FHIA 20. Amylose and amylopectin content, color, granular size, morphology, and thermal properties were determined. According to the amylose content in starches, FHIA 20 presented lowest content of the three cultivars studied. In terms of color, Maiden and FHIA 20 starches exhibited significantly higher whiteness indexes compared to Maricongo starch. Starches of the three cultivars had an elongated-ovoid morphology, with a smooth surface and a non-porous appearance. Regardless of similarities in their morphology, FHIA 20 exhibited a lower aspect ratio since its granules tended to be more elongated. Comparison of the thermal properties of starches showed that initial starch gelatinization temperature was similar among cultivars. However, FHIA 20 starch presented a noticeably higher final gelatinization temperature (87.95°C) and transition enthalpy than Maricongo (79.69°C) and Maiden (77.40°C). Despite similarities, starches from plantain cultivars showed differences in their composition and thermal behavior. This represents an opportunity to diversify plantain starch use in food-related applications.

Keywords: aspect ratio, morphology, Musa spp., starch, thermal properties, amylose content

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Authors: L. S. Chuah, Z. Hassan, C. W. Chin, H. Abu Hassan

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This article reports on the studies of porous GaN prepared by ultra-violet (UV) assisted electrochemical etching in a solution of 4:1:1 HF: CH3OH:H2O2 under illumination of an UV lamp with 500 W power for 10, 25 and 35 minutes. The optical properties of porous GaN sample were compared to the corresponding as grown GaN. Porosity induced photoluminescence (PL) intensity enhancement was found in these samples. The resulting porous GaN displays blue shifted PL spectra compared to the as-grown GaN. Appearance of the blue shifted emission is correlated with the development of highly anisotropic structures in the morphology. An estimate of the size of the GaN nanostructure can be obtained with the help of a quantized state effective mass theory.

Keywords: Photoluminescence, porous GaN, electrochemical etching, Si, RF-MBE.

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Authors: Milton Montejano Castillo, Tarsicio Pastrana Salcedo

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Based on the hypothesis that disaster risk is constructed socially and historically, this article shows the importance of keeping alive the historical memory of disaster by means of architectural and urban heritage conservation. This is illustrated with three examples of Latin American World Heritage cities, where disasters like floods and earthquakes have shaped urban form. Therefore, the study of urban form or "Urban Morphology" is proposed as a tool to understand and analyze urban transformations with the documentation of the occurrence of disasters. Lessons learned from such cities may be useful to reduce disasters risk in contemporary built environments.

Keywords: Conservation, disaster risk reduction, urban morphology, world heritage.

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Authors: Zhazgul Kelgenbaeva, Emil Omurzak, Saadat Sulaimankulova, Tsutomu Mashimo

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Spherical shaped magnetite (Fe3O4) and Au@Fe3O4 nanoparticles were successfully synthesized from Fe electrodes immersed in water with CTAB surfactant and HAuCl4 solution using simple method-pulsed plasma in liquid, without the use of dopants or special conditions for stabilization. Vibrating sample magnetometer indicated ferromagnetic behavior of particles at room temperature with coercivity and saturation magnetization of (Hc=105 Oe, Ms=6.83 emu/g) for Fe3O4 and (Hc=175, Ms=3.56emu/g) for Au@Fe3O4 nanoparticles. Structure and morphology of nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray Diffraction analysis and HR-TEM measurements. The cytotoxicity of nanoparticles was indicated using a XTT assay to be very low (cell viability: 98-89% with Fe3O4 and 99-91% for Au@Fe3O4 NPs).

Keywords: Magnetite, Gold coated magnetite, Nanoparticles, Pulsed Plasma in Liquid, Cytotoxicity.

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Authors: Ibrahim Garba

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This research involved the use of word distributions and morphological knowledge by speakers of Arabic learning English connected different allomorphs in order to realize how the morphology and syntax of English gives meaning through using interactive crossword puzzles (ICP). Fifteen chapters covered with a class of nine learners over an academic year of an intensive English program were reviewed using the ICP. Learners were questioned about how the use of this gaming element enhanced and motivated their learning of English. The findings were positive indicating a successful implementation of ICP both at creational and user levels. This indicated a positive role technology had when learning and teaching English through adopting an interactive gaming element for learning English.

Keywords: Distribution, gaming, interactive-crossword-puzzle, morphology.

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Authors: Dragos Nicolae VIZIREANU

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One of the main image representations in Mathematical Morphology is the 3D Shape Decomposition Representation, useful for Image Compression and Representation,and Pattern Recognition. The 3D Morphological Shape Decomposition representation can be generalized a number of times,to extend the scope of its algebraic characteristics as much as possible. With these generalizations, the Morphological Shape Decomposition 's role to serve as an efficient image decomposition tool is extended to grayscale images.This work follows the above line, and further develops it. Anew evolutionary branch is added to the 3D Morphological Shape Decomposition's development, by the introduction of a 3D Multi Structuring Element Morphological Shape Decomposition, which permits 3D Morphological Shape Decomposition of 3D binary images (grayscale images) into "multiparameter" families of elements. At the beginning, 3D Morphological Shape Decomposition representations are based only on "1 parameter" families of elements for image decomposition.This paper addresses the gray scale inter frame interpolation by means of mathematical morphology. The new interframe interpolation method is based on generalized morphological 3D Shape Decomposition. This article will present the theoretical background of the morphological interframe interpolation, deduce the new representation and show some application examples.Computer simulations could illustrate results.

Keywords: 3D shape decomposition representation, mathematical morphology, gray scale interframe interpolation

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Authors: D.N Awang Sh'ri, E. Hamzah

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The deposition of diamond films on a Si3N4 substrate is an attractive technique for industrial applications because of the excellent properties of diamond. Pretreatment of substrate is very important prior to diamond deposition to promote nucleation and adhesion between coating and substrate. Deposition of nanocrystalline diamonds films on silicon nitride substrate have been carried out by HF-CVD technique using mixture of methane and hydrogen gases. Different pretreatment of substrate including chemical etching consists of hot acid etching and basic etching and mechanical etching were used to study the quality of diamond formed on the substrate. The structure and morphology of diamond coating have been studied using X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) while diamond film quality has been characterized using Raman spectroscopy. AFM was used to investigate the effect of chemical etching and mechanical pretreatment on the surface roughness of the substrates and the resultant morphology of nanocrystalline diamond. It was found that diamond film deposited on as-received, basic etched and grinded substrate shows the morphology of cauliflower while blasted and acidic etched substrates produce smooth, continuous diamond film. However, the Raman investigation did not show any deviation in quality of diamond film for any pretreatment.

Keywords: Nanocrystalline diamond, Chemical VaporDeposition, Pretreatment, Silicon Nitride

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Authors: Woei-Shyan Lee, Shuo-Ling Chang

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The nanoindentation behaviour and phase transformation of annealed single-crystal silicon wafers are examined. The silicon specimens are annealed at temperatures of 250, 350 and 450ºC, respectively, for 15 minutes and are then indented to maximum loads of 30, 50 and 70 mN. The phase changes induced in the indented specimens are observed using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and micro-Raman scattering spectroscopy (RSS). For all annealing temperatures, an elbow feature is observed in the unloading curve following indentation to a maximum load of 30 mN. Under higher loads of 50 mN and 70 mN, respectively, the elbow feature is replaced by a pop-out event. The elbow feature reveals a complete amorphous phase transformation within the indented zone, whereas the pop-out event indicates the formation of Si XII and Si III phases. The experimental results show that the formation of these crystalline silicon phases increases with an increasing annealing temperature and indentation load. The hardness and Young’s modulus both decrease as the annealing temperature and indentation load are increased.

Keywords: Nanoindentation, silicon, phase transformation, amorphous, annealing.

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Authors: Manat Srivanit, Hokao Kazunori

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Facing the concern of the population to its environment and to climatic change, city planners are now considering the urban climate in their choices of planning. The urban climate, representing different urban morphologies across central Bangkok metropolitan area (BMA), are used to investigates the effects of both the composition and configuration of variables of urban morphology indicators on the summer diurnal range of urban climate, using correlation analyses and multiple linear regressions. Results show first indicate that approximately 92.6% of the variation in the average maximum daytime near-surface air temperature (Ta) was explained jointly by the two composition variables of urban morphology indicators including open space ratio (OSR) and floor area ratio (FAR). It has been possible to determine the membership of sample areas to the local climate zones (LCZs) using these urban morphology descriptors automatically computed with GIS and remote sensed data. Finally result found the temperature differences among zones of large separation, such as the city center could be respectively from 35.48±1.04ºC (Mean±S.D.) warmer than the outskirt of Bangkok on average for maximum daytime near surface temperature to 28.27±0.21ºC for extreme event and, can exceed as 8ºC. A spatially disaggregation of urban thermal responsiveness map would be helpful for several reasons. First, it would localize urban areas concerned by different climate behavior over summer daytime and be a good indicator of urban climate variability. Second, when overlaid with a land cover map, this map may contribute to identify possible urban management strategies to reduce heat wave effects in BMA.

Keywords: Urban climate, Urban morphology, Local climate zone, Urban planning, GIS and remote sensing

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Authors: Keiji Komatsu, Tetsuo Sekiya, Ayumu Toyama, Atsushi Nakamura, Ikumi Toda, Shigeo Ohshio, Hiroyuki Muramatsu, Hidetoshi Saitoh, Atsushi Nakamura, Ariyuki Kato

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Yttrium oxide (Y2O3) films have been successfully deposited with yttrium-ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA·Y·H) complexes prepared by various milling techniques. The effects of the properties of the EDTA·Y·H complex on the properties of the deposited Y2O3 films have been analyzed. Seven different types of the raw EDTA·Y·H complexes were prepared by various commercial milling techniques such as ball milling, hammer milling, commercial milling, and mortar milling. The milled EDTA·Y·H complexes exhibited various particle sizes and distributions, depending on the milling method. Furthermore, we analyzed the crystal structure, morphology and elemental distribution profile of the metal oxide films deposited on stainless steel substrate with the milled EDTA·Y·H complexes. Depending on the milling technique, the flow properties of the raw powders differed. The X-ray diffraction pattern of all the samples revealed the formation of Y2O3 crystalline phase, irrespective of the milling technique. Of all the different milling techniques, the hammer milling technique is considered suitable for fabricating dense Y2O3 films.

Keywords: Powder sizes and distributions, Flame spray coating techniques, Yttrium oxide.

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Authors: Yayun Hsu, Henry Horng-Shing Lu

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This paper proposes a data-driven, biology-inspired neural segmentation method of 3D drosophila Brainbow images. We use Bayesian Sequential Partitioning algorithm for probabilistic modeling, which can be used to detect somas and to eliminate crosstalk effects. This work attempts to develop an automatic methodology for neuron image segmentation, which nowadays still lacks a complete solution due to the complexity of the image. The proposed method does not need any predetermined, risk-prone thresholds, since biological information is inherently included inside the image processing procedure. Therefore, it is less sensitive to variations in neuron morphology; meanwhile, its flexibility would be beneficial for tracing the intertwining structure of neurons.

Keywords: Brainbow, 3D imaging, image segmentation, neuron morphology, biological data mining, non-parametric learning.

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Authors: S. Sadegzadeh, A. Mousavi

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Temperature-dependent tunable photonic crystals have attracted widespread interest in recent years. In this research, transmission characteristics of a one-dimensional photonic crystal structure with a single defect have been studied. Here, we assume two different defect layers: InSb as a semiconducting layer and HgBa₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀ as a high-temperature superconducting layer. Both the defect layers have temperature-dependent refractive indexes. Two different types of dielectric materials (Si as a high-refractive index dielectric and MgF₂ as a low-refractive index dielectric) are used to construct the asymmetric structures (Si/MgF₂)^NInSb(Si/MgF₂)^N named S.I, and (Si/MgF₂)^NHgBa₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀(Si/MgF₂)^N named S.II. It is found that in response to the temperature changes, transmission peaks within the photonic band gap of the S.II structure, in contrast to S.I, show a small wavelength shift. Furthermore, the results show that under the same conditions, S.I structure generates an extra defect mode in the transmission spectra. Besides high efficiency transmission property of S.II structure, it can be concluded that the semiconductor-dielectric photonic crystals are more sensitive to temperature variation than superconductor types.

Keywords: Defect modes, photonic crystals, semiconductor, superconductor, transmission.

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Authors: Vijay Janyani, Trevor M. Benson, Ana Vukovic

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A time-domain numerical model within the framework of transmission line modeling (TLM) is developed to simulate electromagnetic pulse propagation inside multiple microcavities forming photonic crystal (PhC) structures. The model developed is quite general and is capable of simulating complex electromagnetic problems accurately. The field quantities can be mapped onto a passive electrical circuit equivalent what ensures that TLM is provably stable and conservative at a local level. Furthermore, the circuit representation allows a high level of hybridization of TLM with other techniques and lumped circuit models of components and devices. A photonic crystal structure formed by rods (or blocks) of high-permittivity dieletric material embedded in a low-dielectric background medium is simulated as an example. The model developed gives vital spatio-temporal information about the signal, and also gives spectral information over a wide frequency range in a single run. The model has wide applications in microwave communication systems, optical waveguides and electromagnetic materials simulations.

Keywords: Computational Electromagnetics, Numerical Simulation, Transmission Line Modeling.

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Authors: Z. Nougrara

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In this paper we propose a novel methodology for extracting a road network and its nodes from satellite images of Algeria country. This developed technique is a progress of our previous research works. It is founded on the information theory and the mathematical morphology; the information theory and the mathematical morphology are combined together to extract and link the road segments to form a road network and its nodes. We therefore have to define objects as sets of pixels and to study the shape of these objects and the relations that exist between them. In this approach, geometric and radiometric features of roads are integrated by a cost function and a set of selected points of a crossing road. Its performances were tested on satellite images of Algeria country.

Keywords: Satellite image, road network, nodes.

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Authors: M.Z. Norashikin, M.Z. Ibrahim

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This report shows the performance of composite biodegradable film from chitosan, starch and sawdust fiber. The main objectives of this research are to fabricate and characterize composite biodegradable film in terms of morphology and physical properties. The film was prepared by casting method. Sawdust fiber was used as reinforcing agent and starch as polymer matrix in the casting solution. The morphology of the film was characterized using atomic force microscope (AFM). The result showed that the film has smooth structure. Chemical composition of the film was investigated using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) where the result revealed present of starch in the film. The thermal properties were characterized using thermal gravimetric analyzer (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) where the results showed that the film has small difference in melting and degradation temperature.

Keywords: Sawdust, composite, film, biodegradable.

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Authors: Andrey V. Osipov, Sergey A. Kukushkin, Andrey V. Luk’yanov

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A method is developed for the solid-phase synthesis of epitaxial layers when the substrate itself is involved into a topochemical reaction and the reaction product grows in the interior of substrate layer. It opens up new possibilities for the relaxation of the elastic energy due to the attraction of point defects formed during the topochemical reaction in anisotropic media. The presented method of silicon carbide (SiC) formation employs a topochemical reaction between the single-crystalline silicon (Si) substrate and gaseous carbon monoxide (CO). The corresponding theory of interaction of point dilatation centers in anisotropic crystals is developed. It is eliminated that the most advantageous location of the point defects is the direction (111) in crystals with cubic symmetry. The single-crystal SiC films with the thickness up to 200 nm have been grown on Si (111) substrates owing to the topochemical reaction with CO. Grown high-quality single-crystal SiC films do not contain misfit dislocations despite the huge lattice mismatch value of ~20%. Also the possibility of growing of thick wide-gap semiconductor films on these templates SiC/Si(111) and, accordingly, its integration into Si electronics, is demonstrated. Finally, the ab initio theory of SiC formation due to the topochemical reaction has been developed.

Keywords: Epitaxy, silicon carbide, topochemical reaction, wide-bandgap semiconductors.

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Authors: H. K. G. K. D. K. Hapuhinna, R. D. Gunaratne, H. M. J. C. Pitawala

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Hydroxyapatite is a bioceramic which can be used for applications in orthopedics and dentistry due to its structural similarity with the mineral phase of mammalian bones and teeth. In this study, it was synthesized, chemically changing natural Eppawala chloroapatite mineral as a value-added product. Sol-gel approach and solid state sintering were used to synthesize products using diluted nitric acid, ethanol and calcium hydroxide under different conditions. Synthesized Eppawala hydroxyapatite powder was characterized using X-ray Fluorescence (XRF), X-ray Powder Diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) in order to find out its composition, crystallinity, presence of functional groups, bonding type, surface morphology, microstructural features, and thermal dependence and stability, respectively. The XRD results reflected the formation of a hexagonal crystal structure of hydroxyapatite. Elementary composition and microstructural features of products were discussed based on the XRF and SEM results of the synthesized hydroxyapatite powder. TGA and DSC results of synthesized products showed high thermal stability and good material stability in nature. Also, FTIR spectroscopy results confirmed the formation of hydroxyapatite from apatite via the presence of hydroxyl groups. Those results coincided with the FTIR results of mammalian bones including human bones. The study concludes that there is a possibility of producing hydroxyapatite using commercially available Eppawala chloroapatite in Sri Lanka.

Keywords: Dentistry, eppawala chloroapatite, hydroxyapatite, orthopedics.

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Authors: I. Siti Rabiatull Aisha, A. Ourdjini, O. Saliza Azlina

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The aim of this paper is to study the effectiveness of bismuth addition in the solder alloy to retard the intermetallic compound formation and growth. In this study, three categories of solders such as Sn-4Ag-xCu (x = 0.5, 0.7, 1.0) and Sn-4Ag-0.5Cu-xBi (x = 0.1, 0.2, 0.4) were used. Ni/Au surface finish substrates were dipped into the molten solder at a temperature of 180-190 ^oC and allowed to cool at room temperature. The intermetallic compound (IMCs) were subjected to the characterization in terms of composition and morphology. The IMC phases were identified by energy dispersive x-ray (EDX), whereas the optical microscope and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to observe microstructure evolution of the solder joint. The results clearly showed that copper concentration dependency was high during the reflow stage. Besides, only Ni₃Sn₄ and Ni₃Sn₂ were detected for all copper concentrations. The addition of Bi was found to have no significant effect on the type of IMCs formed, but yet the grain became further refined.

Keywords: Bismuth addition, intermetallic compound, composition, morphology.

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Authors: Zone-Ching Lin, Meng-Hua Lin, Ying-Chih Hsu

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This paper uses quasi-steady molecular statics model and diamond tool to carry out simulation temperature rise of nanoscale orthogonal cutting single-crystal silicon. It further qualitatively analyzes temperature field of silicon workpiece without considering heat transfer and considering heat transfer. This paper supposes that the temperature rise of workpiece is mainly caused by two heat sources: plastic deformation heat and friction heat. Then, this paper develops a theoretical model about production of the plastic deformation heat and friction heat during nanoscale orthogonal cutting. After the increased temperature produced by these two heat sources are added up, the acquired total temperature rise at each atom of the workpiece is substituted in heat transfer finite difference equation to carry out heat transfer and calculates the temperature field in each step and makes related analysis.

Keywords: Quasi-steady molecular statics, Nanoscale orthogonal cutting, Finite difference, Temperature.

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Authors: Mounira Rouaïnia, Mohamed Salah Medjram, Noureddine Doghmane

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In Multiple Sclerosis, pathological changes in the brain results in deviations in signal intensity on Magnetic Resonance Images (MRI). Quantitative analysis of these changes and their correlation with clinical finding provides important information for diagnosis. This constitutes the objective of our work. A new approach is developed. After the enhancement of images contrast and the brain extraction by mathematical morphology algorithm, we proceed to the brain segmentation. Our approach is based on building statistical model from data itself, for normal brain MRI and including clustering tissue type. Then we detect signal abnormalities (MS lesions) as a rejection class containing voxels that are not explained by the built model. We validate the method on MR images of Multiple Sclerosis patients by comparing its results with those of human expert segmentation.

Keywords: EM algorithm, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Mathematical morphology, Markov random model.

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Authors: Fitria Rahmawati, Nuryani, Liviana Wijayanti

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This research study the application of the immobilized TiO2 layer and Cu-TiO2 layer on graphite substrate as a negative electrode or anode for Li-ion battery. The titania layer was produced through chemical bath deposition method, meanwhile Cu particles were deposited electrochemically. A material can be used as an electrode as it has capability to intercalates Li ions into its crystal structure. The Li intercalation into TiO2/Graphite and Cu- TiO2/Graphite were analyzed from the changes of its XRD pattern after it was used as electrode during discharging process. The XRD patterns were refined by Le Bail method in order to determine the crystal structure of the prepared materials. A specific capacity and the cycle ability measurement were carried out to study the performance of the prepared materials as negative electrode of the Li-ion battery. The specific capacity was measured during discharging process from fully charged until the cut off voltage. A 300 was used as a load. The result shows that the specific capacity of Li-ion battery with TiO2/Graphite as negative electrode is 230.87 ± 1.70mAh.g-1 which is higher than the specific capacity of Li-ion battery with pure graphite as negative electrode, i.e 140.75 ±0.46mAh.g-1. Meanwhile deposition of Cu onto TiO2 layer does not increase the specific capacity, and the value even lower than the battery with TiO2/Graphite as electrode. The cycle ability of the prepared battery is only two cycles, due to the Li ribbon which was used as cathode became fragile and easily broken.

Keywords: Cu-TiO2, electrode, graphite substrate, Li-ion battery, TiO2 layer.

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Authors: Xindong An, Kai Gu

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Urban intensification is regarded as the prevalent strategy in many cities of the world to ease the pressures of urban sprawl and deliver sustainable development through increasing the density of built form and activities. However, within the context of intensive development, planning and design control measures that help to maintain and promote the character of existing residential environments have been slow to develop. This causes the possible loss of the character of an area that makes a place unique and distinctive. The purpose of this paper is to explore the way of identifying the character of an urban area for the planning of urban landscape in the implementation of intensification. By employing the theory of urban morphology, the concept of morphological region is used for the analysis and characterisation of the spatial structure of the urban landscape in terms of ground plans, building types, and building and land utilisation. The morphological mapping of the character of urban landscape is suggested, which lays a foundation for more sensitive planning of urban landscape changes.

Keywords: Character areas, urban intensification, urban morphology, urban landscape.

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Authors: J. Costa, M. Ortigueira, A. Batista, T. Paiva

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Sleep spindles are the most interesting hallmark of stage 2 sleep EEG. Their accurate identification in a polysomnographic signal is essential for sleep professionals to help them mark Stage 2 sleep. Sleep Spindles are also promising objective indicators for neurodegenerative disorders. Visual spindle scoring however is a tedious workload. In this paper three different approaches are used for the automatic detection of sleep spindles: Short Time Fourier Transform, Wavelet Transform and Wave Morphology for Spindle Detection. In order to improve the results, a combination of the three detectors is presented and comparison with human expert scorers is performed. The best performance is obtained with a combination of the three algorithms which resulted in a sensitivity and specificity of 94% when compared to human expert scorers.

Keywords: EEG, Short Time Fourier Transform, Sleep Spindles, Wave Morphology for Spindle Detection, Wavelet Transform.

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Authors: Mahendran Samykano, Ram Mohan, Shyam Aravamudhan

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The objective of this work is to study the effect of two key factors - external magnetic field and applied current density during template-based electrodeposition of nickel nanowires using an electrode distance of 20 mm. Morphology, length, crystallite size and crystallographic characterization of the grown nickel nanowires at an electrode distance of 20mm are presented. For this electrode distance of 20 mm, these two key electrodeposition factors when coupled was found to reduce crystallite size with a higher growth length and preferred orientation of Ni crystals. These observed changes can be inferred to be due to coupled interaction forces induced by the intensity of applied electric field (current density) and external magnetic field known as magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) effect during the electrodeposition process.

Keywords: Anodic alumina oxide, electrodeposition, nanowires, nickel.

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Authors: J. Subbalakshmi, G. Dhruvasamhith, S. M. Hussain

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Polyaniline (PANI) is one of the most extensively studied material among the conducting polymers due to its simple synthesis by chemical and electrochemical routes. PANIs have advantages of chemical stability and high conductivity making their commercial applications quite attractive. However, to our knowledge, very little work has been reported on the tensile strength properties of templated PANIs processed with polyvinyl alcohol and also, detailed study has not been carried out. We have investigated the effect of small molecule and polymers as templates on PANI. Stable aqueous colloidal suspensions of trisodium citrate (TSC), poly(ethylenedioxythiophene)-polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT-PSS), and polyethylene glycol (PEG) templated PANIs were prepared through chemical synthesis, processed with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and were fabricated into films by solution casting. Absorption and infra-red spectra were studied to gain insight into the possible molecular interactions. Surface morphology was studied through scanning electron microscope and optical microscope. Interestingly, tensile testing studies revealed least strain for pure PVA when compared to the blends of templated PANI. Furthermore, among the blends, TSC templated PANI possessed maximum elasticity. The ultimate tensile strength for PVA processed, PEG-templated PANI was found to be five times more than other blends considered in this study. We establish structure–property correlation with morphology, spectral characterization and tensile testing studies.

Keywords: Processed films, polyvinyl alcohol, spectroscopy, surface morphology, templated polyanilines, tensile test.

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Authors: A.H.Javadi, Sh.Mirdamadi, M.A.Faghisani, S.Shakhesi

Abstract:

Nanostructured materials have attracted many researchers due to their outstanding mechanical and physical properties. For example, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) or carbon nanofibres (CNFs) are considered to be attractive reinforcement materials for light weight and high strength metal matrix composites. These composites are being projected for use in structural applications for their high specific strength as well as functional materials for their exciting thermal and electrical characteristics. The critical issues of CNT-reinforced MMCs include processing techniques, nanotube dispersion, interface, strengthening mechanisms and mechanical properties. One of the major obstacles to the effective use of carbon nanotubes as reinforcements in metal matrix composites is their agglomeration and poor distribution/dispersion within the metallic matrix. In order to tap into the advantages of the properties of CNTs (or CNFs) in composites, the high dispersion of CNTs (or CNFs) and strong interfacial bonding are the key issues which are still challenging. Processing techniques used for synthesis of the composites have been studied with an objective to achieve homogeneous distribution of carbon nanotubes in the matrix. Modified mechanical alloying (ball milling) techniques have emerged as promising routes for the fabrication of carbon nanotube (CNT) reinforced metal matrix composites. In order to obtain a homogeneous product, good control of the milling process, in particular control of the ball movement, is essential. The control of the ball motion during the milling leads to a reduction in grinding energy and a more homogeneous product. Also, the critical inner diameter of the milling container at a particular rotational speed can be calculated. In the present work, we use conventional and modified mechanical alloying to generate a homogenous distribution of 2 wt. % CNT within Al powders. 99% purity Aluminium powder (Acros, 200mesh) was used along with two different types of multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNTs) having different aspect ratios to produce Al-CNT composites. The composite powders were processed into bulk material by compaction, and sintering using a cylindrical compaction and tube furnace. Field Emission Scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-Ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy and Vickers macro hardness tester were used to evaluate CNT dispersion, powder morphology, CNT damage, phase analysis, mechanical properties and crystal size determination. Despite the success of ball milling in dispersing CNTs in Al powder, it is often accompanied with considerable strain hardening of the Al powder, which may have implications on the final properties of the composite. The results show that particle size and morphology vary with milling time. Also, by using the mixing process and sonication before mechanical alloying and modified ball mill, dispersion of the CNTs in Al matrix improves.

Keywords: multiwall carbon nanotube, Aluminum matrixcomposite, dispersion, mechanical alloying, sintering

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Authors: M. Kheirandish, S. Borhani

Abstract:

In this experiment Polystyrene/Zinc-oxide (PS/ZnO) nanocomposite fibers were produced by electrospinning technique using limonene as a green solvent. First, the morphology of electrospun pure polystyrene (PS) and PS/ZnO nanocomposite fibers investigated by SEM. Results showed the PS fiber diameter decreased by increasing concentration of Zinc Oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs). Thermo Gravimetric Analysis (TGA) results showed thermal stability of nanocomposites increased by increasing ZnO NPs in PS electrospun fibers. Considering Differential Scanning Calorimeter (DSC) thermograms for electrospun PS fibers indicated that introduction of ZnO NPs into fibers affects the glass transition temperature (Tg) by reducing it. Also, UV protection properties of nanocomposite fibers were increased by increasing ZnO concentration. Evaluating the effect of metal oxide NPs amount on mechanical properties of electrospun layer showed that tensile strength and elasticity modulus of the electrospun layer of PS increased by addition of ZnO NPs. X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern of nanopcomposite fibers confirmed the presence of NPs in the samples.

Keywords: Electrospininng, nanoparticle, polystyrene, ZnO.

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Authors: Fatma N. Talkhan, H. H. Abo-Assy, K. A. Soliman, Marwa M. Azzam, A. Z. E. Abdelsalam, A. S. Abdel-Razek

Abstract:

The Egyptian Bacillus thuringiensis isolate (M5) produce crystal proteins that is toxic against insects was irradiated with UV light to induce mutants. Upon testing 10 of the resulting mutants for their toxicity against cotton leafworm larvae, the three mutants 62, 64 and 85 proved to be the most toxic ones. Upon testing these mutants along with their parental isolate by SDS-PAGE analysis of spores-crystals proteins as well as vegetative cells proteins, new induced bands appeared in the three mutants by UV radiation and also they showed disappearance of some other bands as compared with the wild type isolate. Multiplex PCR technique, with five sets of specific primers, was used to detect the three types of cryI genes cryIAa, cryIAb and cryIAc. Results showed that these three genes exist, as distinctive bands, in the wild type isolate (M5) as well as in mutants 62 and 85, while the mutant 64 had two distinctive bands of cryIAb and cryIAc genes, and a faint band of cryI Aa gene. Finally, these results revealed that mutant 62 is considered as the promising mutant since it is UV resistant, highly toxic against Spodoptera littoralis and active against a wide range of Lepidopteran insects.

Keywords: Bacillus thuringiensis, biological control, cry1 genes, multiplex PC, SDS- PAGE analysis.

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