Legal case analysis : failures in it outsourcing contracts.

This project seeks to find out the reasons behind the failure of IT outsourcing contracts

A review on multifunctional bioceramic coatings in hip implants for osteointegration enhancement

As demand for orthopedic surgery increases, more modern ceramic materials have been developed progressively. Bioceramic coating has been the center of focus to tackle poor osteointegration and complications resulting from the metallic stem and femoral head. The ability to form a passivation layer, protection against corrosion tendency, and prevention of wear particles leading to osteolysis, are some of the characteristics required within the hip replacement surgery. Promising coatings such as diamond-like carbon and titanium nitride materials have undergone successful clinical trials as well as deposition methods to tailor their chemical and structural properties. The aim of this review paper is to give an insight into hip replacement materials and related properties. The importance of the tribocorrosion effect and its electrochemical fundamentals are also examined to study the viable coating deposition methods. Both careful selections of implant materials and deposition methods are vital to maximize the osteointegration capability, whether application is used in bearing articulation (ball-on-socket) or femoral stem

Impact of al passivation and cosputter on the structural property of beta-FeSi2 for Al-Doped beta-FeSi2/ n -Si(100) based solar cells application

The aluminum (Al) doped polycrystalline p-type β-phase iron disilicide (p-β-FeSi2) is grown by thermal diffusion of Al from Al-passivated n-type Si(100) surface into FeSi2 during crystallization of amorphous FeSi2 to form a p-type β-FeSi 2/n-Si(100) heterostructure solar cell. The structural and photovoltaic properties of p-type β-FeSi2/n-type c-Si structures is then investigated in detail by using X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy analysis, and electrical characterization. The results are compared with Al-doped p-β-FeSi2 prepared by using cosputtering of Al and FeSi2 layers on Al-passivated n-Si(100) substrates. A significant improvement in the maximum open-circuit voltage (Voc) from 120 to 320 mV is achieved upon the introduction of Al doping through cosputtering of Al and amorphous FeSi2 layer. The improvement in Voc is attributed to better structural quality of Al-doped FeSi2 film through Al doping and to the formation of high quality crystalline interface between Al-doped β-FeSi2 and n-type c-Si. The effects of Al-out diffusion on the performance of heterostructure solar cells have been investigated and discussed in detail

Effect of La-Doping on optical bandgap and photoelectrochemical performance of hematite nanostructures

© the Partner Organisations 2014.La-doped hematite nanotubes are fabricated by electrospinning of a sol-gel solution consisting of La(iii) acetylacetonate hydrate/polyvinylpyrrolidone(PVP)/ferric acetylacetonate, and subsequent sintering at 500 °C for 5 h in air. Further grinding of these nanotubes affords La-doped hematite nanoparticles. FESEM EDX indicates that the La content is 3.66 mol% in La-doped hematite. HRTEM and XRD reveal that La3+ cations are doped into the hematite crystal lattice. UV-Vis diffuse reflectance shows increased light absorption for La-doped hematite, with the bandgap reduced from 2.58 eV to 2.46 eV. EIS and four-probe characterization demonstrate that La-doping reduces charge transfer resistance and increases the electrical conductivity, thus leading to improved charge transportation. Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting studies show that under 100 mW cm-2 simulated solar irradiation, La-doped hematite nanoparticles demonstrate a net photocurrent density up to 0.112 and 0.270 mA cm-2 at 1.23 and 1.60 V vs. RHE, which are 187% and 63% higher than pristine hematite nanoparticles, respectively. The effect of La-doping on improving electrical conductivity, light absorption, and PEC performance is mainly attributed to the intensification of crystal orientation along the (110) plane and the lattice expansion caused by the La3+ cations, which have much larger radii and are more electron-rich than Fe3+.Link_to_subscribed_fulltex