Hydrothermally Grown ZnO Micro/Nanotube Arrays and Their Properties

We reported the optical and wettability properties of aligned zinc oxide micro/nanotube arrays, which were synthesized on zinc foil via a simple hydrothermal method. As-synthesized ZnO micro/nanotubes have uniform growth directions along the [0001] orientations with diameters in the range of 100–700 nm. These micro/nanotubes showed a strong emission peak at 387 nm and two weak emission peaks at 422 and 485 nm, respectively, and have the hydrophobic properties with a contact angle of 121°. Single ZnO micro/nanotube-based field-effect transistor was also fabricated, which shows typical n-type semiconducting behavior

Investigation and Improvement Strategies for Mold Fracture: A Study on the Application of a Pulse Electrodeposition Method for Enhancing Mold Lifespan

An investigation on the fracture of a mold, comparing it with a normal part using specific techniques, such as EDX, SEM, and AES, is presented in this study. The EDX analysis revealed that the composition of the normal part was consistent with that of low-carbon steel, mainly comprising Fe and C. In contrast, the fractured part exhibited cracks due to nonconforming nonmetallic inclusions and reticular carbides, with fractures resulting from microporosity agglomeration and cleavage fracture. The SEM and AES analyses further presented the causes of mold fracture, highlighting the mechanism by which the dimples on the specimen edge contributed to the fracture. The EDX analysis confirmed that the mold experienced thermal brittleness during use. To enhance mold durability and extend its lifespan, a pulse electrodeposition method was employed to create a NiCo alloy coating as a replacement for the Cr layer on the metal surface. The coating exhibited a smooth and scratch-free surface. The prepared NiCo special coating significantly increased the mold yield strength by approximately 313.8%, facilitated a 13% increase in plastic deformation, and reduced the fracture strain by 25%, effectively preventing mold fracture and improving its service life

Convenient solvothermal synthesis of nanoscale 0-2D Bi without surfactants and templates

Bi is a semimetal with unusual and attractive electronic properties. However, synthesis of nanoscale 0-2D Bi single crystal with good dispersity and quality without surfactants and substrates is still a challenge. In this paper, a novel, simple and low-cost solvothermal method for synthesis of 0-2D nanoscale Bi at mild conditions and without a surfactant/substrate is reported. By using Bi(NO3)(3)center dot 5H(2)O or NaBiO3 center dot 2H(2)O as Bi sources and environmental friendly C3H8O3 as solvent, we synthesized nanospheres, nanowires and nanoribbons characterized with monodispersity, high purity and crystallinity. The growth mechanism of the 0-2D nanostructure was discussed. It is found that the Bi source, concentration and solvent significantly influences the morphology and size. Single crystal free-standing nanoribbon has large magnetoresistance up to 540% at 100 K. This novel approach can be applied in synthesis of nanostructured Bi single crystals and the large-scale fabrication of some other nanostructured semimetals. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Ratiometric glucose sensing based on fluorescent oxygen films and glucose oxidase

A new two-layer sensor film was constructed for sensing glucose based on glucose oxidase and oxygen sensing material. The first layer of film containing the oxygen sensor and intra-reference material was polymerized, then the second layer of glucose oxidase and glutaraldehyde was formed on the oxygen sensor layer. The two-layer sensor film has a resolution up to 0.05 mM and a detection range from 0 to 5 mM to glucose. The effects of pH and temperature on the sensing performance were systematically investigated. The selective detection of glucose among other monosaccharides, such as fructose, mannose and galactose indicated that the sensing film has excellent selectivity. The prepared sensor was successfully applied for glucose sample detection of glucose concentration in artificial tears. Keywords: Glucose sensor, Glucose oxidase, Fluorescence, Oxygen film, Diabete

Pickering emulsions prepared using zein-sugarcane leaves polyphenol covalent crosslinking nanoparticles via ultrasonication: Capacities in storage stability, lipid oxidation, in vitro digestion and safety evaluation

This study firstly used sugarcane leaf polyphenols (SGLp) to modify zein to form covalent nanoparticles (SGLpZ) and used SGLpZ as an emulsifier to stabilize pickering emulsions (SZP) via ultrasonic method. The results showed that the addition of SGLp could alter the physicochemical properties of zein, including improving increasing the hydrophilicity of zein and the antioxidant properties of zein (three basic antioxidant activities test in vitro). SGLpZ could be able to form a dense film on the surface of the pickering emulsions which inhibited lipid oxidation as the concentration of SGLp increased at 4 ℃ for 20 days, thus stabilizing pickering emulsions (SZP). Further assessment of storage stability of pickering emulsions stabilized by SGLp was evaluated via measuring the free fatty acids (FFA) release in vitro gastrointestinal digestion. The results showed that the FFA release of SZP decreased from 20.61 ± 0.10% to 16.14 ± 0.69%. In addition, SGLp gave SZP a yellow color, which inspired that SZP could be used in the food industry to make yellow-colored functional foods. Finally, the safety of SZP initially assessed by in-vitro hemocompatibility and cytotoxicity (MTT) assays. In conclusion, our fingdings were beneficial for the further design and development of SGLp in food fields and enabled the development a new type in functional protein-plant polyphenols food pickering emulsions

Fe(Co)SiBPCCu nanocrystalline alloys with high B-s above 1.83 T

Fe84.75-xCoxSi2B9P3C0.5Cu0.75 (x = 0, 2.5 and 10) nanocrystalline alloys with excellent magnetic properties were successfully developed. The fully amorphous alloy ribbons exhibit wide temperature interval of 145-156 degrees C between the two crystallization events. It is found that the excessive substitution of Co for Fe greatly deteriorates the magnetic properties due to the non-uniform microstructure with coarse grains. The alloys with x = 0 and 2.5 exhibit high saturation magnetization (above 1.83 T), low core loss and relatively low coercivity (below 5.4A/m) after annealing. In addition, the Fe84.75Si2B9P3C0.5Cu0.75 nanocrystalline alloy also exhibits good frequency properties and temperature stability. The excellent magnetic properties were explained by the uniform microstructure with small grain size and the wide magnetic domains of the alloy. Low raw material cost, good manufacturability and excellent magnetic properties will make these nanocrystalline alloys prospective candidates for transformer and motor cores. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Fluxing purification and its effect on magnetic properties of high-B-s FeBPSiC amorphous alloy

A high-B-s amorphous alloy with the base composition Fe83B11P3Si2C1 was used to study the effects of fluxing purification on amorphous forming ability and magnetic properties of the alloy prepared with raw materials in industrialization. By using fluxing purification, the surface crystallization was suppressed and fully amorphous Fe83B11P3Si2C1 ribbons with a maximum thickness of 48 mu m were successfully achieved by using an industrial process and materials. The amorphous ribbons made with industrial-purified alloys exhibit excellent magnetic properties, containing high-B-s of 1.65 T, low H-c of 2.0 A/m, and high mu(e) of 9.7 x 10(3) at 1 kHz. Impurities in the melting alloys exist in three forms and have different effluences on magnetic properties. The surface crystallization was triggered by the impurities which exist as high melting point inclusions serving as nuclei. Thus, fluxing purification is a feasible way for industrialization of high-B-s FeBPSiC amorphous alloys. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Grain refinement mechanism of soft-magnetic alloys with nanocrystals embedded in amorphous matrix

To obtain uniform and stable nanostructure with fine a-Fe grains is very important for the wide applications of Fe-based nanocrystalline soft-magnetic alloys. In this study, the nanos-tructure evolution of the Fe84.75Si2B9P3C0.5Cu0.75 (at.%) alloy after annealing under different conditions was characterized in detail. It is found that the alloy exhibits excellent struc-tural stability, which can maintain small a-Fe grains for a prolonged annealing time at low temperature. The increase of annealing temperature and/or annealing time will lead to the precipitation of compound phases in the intergranular amorphous interphase, which affects the a-Fe grains size greatly and determines the structural stability. The elemental mappings of the nanostructured alloys reveal that metalloid elements are enriched in the intergranular amorphous interphase, wrapping around a-Fe grains. The grain refinement and nanostruc-ture stability of these alloys are derived from the shielding and soft-impingement effects of the core-shell like structure. The nanostructure stability is lost with the precipitation of compound phases in the intergranular amorphous interphase, owing to the break-down of the shielding layer, which results in the rapid coarsening of alpha-Fe grains by coalescence. (c) 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)