2,239 research outputs found
Structural analysis and corrosion studies on an ISO 5832-9 biomedical alloy with TiO2 sol–gel layers
The aim of this study was to demonstrate the
relationship between the structural and corrosion properties
of an ISO 5832-9 biomedical alloy modified with titanium
dioxide (TiO2) layers. These layers were obtained via the
sol–gel method by acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of titanium
isopropoxide in isopropanol solution. To obtain TiO2 layers
with different structural properties, the coated samples
were annealed at temperatures of 200, 300, 400, 450, 500,
600 and 800 C for 2 h. For all the prepared samples,
accelerated corrosion measurements were performed in
Tyrode’s physiological solution using electrochemical
methods. The most important corrosion parameters were
determined: corrosion potential, polarization resistance,
corrosion rate, breakdown and repassivation potentials.
Corrosion damage was analyzed using scanning electron
microscopy. Structural analysis was carried out for selected
TiO2 coatings annealed at 200, 400, 600 and 800 C. In
addition, the morphology, chemical composition, crystallinity,
thickness and density of the deposited TiO2 layers
were determined using suitable electron and X-ray measurement
methods. It was shown that the structure and
character of interactions between substrate and deposited
TiO2 layers depended on annealing temperature. All the
obtained TiO2 coatings exhibit anticorrosion properties, but
these properties are related to the crystalline structure and
character of substrate–layer interaction. From the point of
view of corrosion, the best TiO2 sol–gel coatings for stainless steel intended for biomedical applications seem to
be those obtained at 400 C.This study was supported by Grant No. N N507
501339 of the National Science Centre. The authors wish to express
their thanks to J. Borowski (MEDGAL, Poland) for the Rex 734 alloy
Extraordinary strain hardening by gradient structure
Gradient structures have evolved over millions of years through natural selection and optimization in many biological systems such as bones and plant stems, where the structures change gradually from the surface to interior. The advantage of gradient structures is their maximization of physical and mechanical performance while minimizing material cost. Here we report that the gradient structure in engineering materials such as metals renders a unique extra strain hardening, which leads to high ductility. The grain-size gradient under uniaxial tension induces a macroscopic strain gradient and converts the applied uniaxial stress to multiaxial stresses due to the evolution of incompatible deformation along the gradient depth. Thereby the accumulation and interaction of dislocations are promoted, resulting in an extra strain hardening and an obvious strain hardening rate up-turn. Such extraordinary strain hardening, which is inherent to gradient structures and does not exist in homogeneous materials, provides a hitherto unknown strategy to develop strong and ductile materials by architecting heterogeneous nanostructures.</p
Formation of sp³ bonding in nanoindented carbon nanotubes and graphite
Author name used in this publication: C. H. Woo2004-2005 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journalVersion of RecordPublishe
A biophysical model of cell adhesion mediated by immunoadhesin drugs and antibodies
A promising direction in drug development is to exploit the ability of
natural killer cells to kill antibody-labeled target cells. Monoclonal
antibodies and drugs designed to elicit this effect typically bind cell-surface
epitopes that are overexpressed on target cells but also present on other
cells. Thus it is important to understand adhesion of cells by antibodies and
similar molecules. We present an equilibrium model of such adhesion,
incorporating heterogeneity in target cell epitope density and epitope
immobility. We compare with experiments on the adhesion of Jurkat T cells to
bilayers containing the relevant natural killer cell receptor, with adhesion
mediated by the drug alefacept. We show that a model in which all target cell
epitopes are mobile and available is inconsistent with the data, suggesting
that more complex mechanisms are at work. We hypothesize that the immobile
epitope fraction may change with cell adhesion, and we find that such a model
is more consistent with the data. We also quantitatively describe the parameter
space in which binding occurs. Our results point toward mechanisms relating
epitope immobility to cell adhesion and offer insight into the activity of an
important class of drugs.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figure
Atomic segregation at twin boundaries in a Mg-Ag alloy
Segregation of solute atoms at twin boundaries (TBs) plays a critical role in mechanical properties and thermal stability of magnesium alloys. Here, segregation structures at {10 (1) over bar1}, {10 (1) over bar2} and {10 (1) over bar3} TBs are characterized in a Mg-Ag alloy by means of the atomic resolution high-angle annular dark-field technique based on scanning transmission electron microscopy. Of particular finding is the unique complex segregation at {10 (1) over bar3} TBs, where Ag atoms occupy both substitutional and interstitial sites. By contrast, Ag atoms only substitutionally segregate at {10 (1) over bar1} and {10 (1) over bar2} TBs. Calculation simulation of segregation energy and three-dimensional structure of TBs helps understanding of hybrid segregation. (C) 2019 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
Barley plasma membrane intrinsic proteins (PIP aquaporins) as water and CO2 transporters
We identified barley aquaporins and demonstrated that one, HvPIP2;1, transports water and CO2. Regarding water homeostasis in plants, regulations of aquaporin expression were observed in many plants under several environmental stresses. Under salt stress, a number of plasma membrane-type aquaporins were down-regulated, which can prevent continuous dehydration resulting in cell death. The leaves of transgenic rice plants that expressed the largest amount of HvPIP2;1 showed a 40% increase in internal CO2 conductance compared with leaves of wild-type rice plants. The rate of CO2 assimilation also increased in the transgenic plants. The goal of our plant aquaporin research is to determine the key aquaporin species responsible for water and CO2 transport, and to improve plant water relations, stress tolerance, CO2 uptake or assimilation, and plant productivity via molecular breeding of aquaporins.</p
Influence of severe plastic deformation on the precipitation hardening of a FeSiTi steel
The combined strengthening effects of grain refinement and high precipitated
volume fraction (~6at.%) on the mechanical properties of FeSiTi alloy subjected
to SPD processing prior to aging treatment were investigated by atom probe
tomography and scanning transmission electron microscopy. It was shown that the
refinement of the microstructure affects the precipitation kinetics and the
spatial distribution of the secondary hardening intermetallic phase, which was
observed to nucleate heterogeneously on dislocations and sub-grain boundaries.
It was revealed that alloys successively subjected to these two strengthening
mechanisms exhibit a lower increase in mechanical strength than a simple
estimation based on the summation of the two individual strengthening
mechanisms
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