Search results for " material"

Synergistic effect of W incorporation and pulsed current mode on wear and tribocorrosion resistance of coatings grown by plasma electrolytic oxidatio…

2019

Ceramic coatings were grown by plasma electrolytic oxidation on 7075 Al alloy using unipolar and bipolar pulsed current waveforms with 20 and 40% cathodic duty cycles, from a silicate-based bath without and with the addition of Na2WO4. Pancake-like morphology was dominant on the coatings grown by unipolar waveform, while the bipolar waveforms promoted volcano-like morphology, increased the roughness of the coating surface and the formation of more compact layers. The coatings produced using the bipolar waveforms provided higher resistances toward both tribocorrosion and dry sliding conditions, while further improvement was achieved by the presence of tungsten. The coatings produced in tungs…

Effect of Boron Doping on the Wear Behavior of the Growth and Nucleation Surfaces of Micro- and Nanocrystalline Diamond Films

2016

B-doped diamond has become the ultimate material for applications in the field of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), which require both highly wear resistant and electrically conductive diamond films and microstructures. Despite the extensive research of the tribological properties of undoped diamond, to date there is very limited knowledge of the wear properties of highly B-doped diamond. Therefore, in this work a comprehensive investigation of the wear behavior of highly B-doped diamond is presented. Reciprocating sliding tests are performed on micro- and nanocrystalline diamond (MCD, NCD) films with varying B-doping levels and thicknesses. We demonstrate a linear dependency of the we…

Sbateyl.org: A Virtual Space for Effective Language Training

2016

AbstractThe paper presents an ongoing European cross-institutional project on teaching young language learners whose aim is to develop a web-based in-service teacher education programme with a school-based follow-up component. The main focus of the project is to bring researchers and teachers together to establish an innovative professional procedure blending theory and practice. Based on the strategic partnership between one local university and one primary school from each participant country, the project aims to foster the professional advancement and teaching practices of primary school teachers. The article initially outlines the main theoretical and methodological issues in the field …

IEEE Access Special Section Editorial: Exploiting the Benefits of Interference in Wireless Networks: Energy Harvesting and Security

2018

Interference used to be viewed as a harmful factor in wireless networks, which can reduce the quality of information transmission. To combat against interference, many interference management techniques have emerged. Due to the latest research advances, interference (or noise) can also be exploited to offer some benefits to wireless networks. The first aspect is that interference in multi-user networks can be collected as a green power supply for the transceivers, known as wireless energy harvesting. Another application is that one can generate artificial noise to disrupt the adversarial eavesdropping, and guarantee the security of wireless networks. Therefore, conventional interference man…

Underwater Multirobot Cooperative Intervention MAC Protocol

2020

This work introduces a Medium Access Control (MAC) protocol designed to allow a group of underwater robots that share a wireless communication channel to effectively communicate with each other. The goal of the Underwater Multirobot Cooperative Intervention MAC (UMCI-MAC) protocol presented in this work is to minimize the end to end delay and the jitter. The access to the medium in UMCI-MAC follows a Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) strategy which is arbitrated by a master, which also has the capability to prioritize the transmission of some nodes over the rest of the network. Two experiments have been carried out with a team of four Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) in order to comp…

Service-Oriented Wireless Virtualized Networks: An Intelligent Resource Management Approach

2022

Characterization of three-dimensional microstructure of composite materials by X-ray tomography

2016

Analysis methods for X-ray microtomographic images of short fibre composite materials were developed. The methods enable estimation of microstructural properties of the material, e.g., aspect ratio and orientation of fibres. Being based on X-ray microtomography and image analysis, the methods are nondestructive and do not require user intervention. In particular, a method for determination of the aspect ratio of fibres was first developed. The method contains an assumption about similarity of the shape of the fibres. The assumption was relaxed in an improved method that can estimate cross-sectional properties of fibres, too, e.g., cross-sectional area. Additionally, the effect of finite ima…

Biodeterioration of the Wooden Roof of the Phnom Penh National Museum

2017

Within the framework of a training program in Cambodia, during a visit to the National Museum in Phnom Penh, the most important in the Kingdom of Cambodia, the authors noted the presence of some signs of a termite attack in the secondary elements of the roof of an inner garden. Following this observation, a further investigation was performed in order to evaluate the phytosanitary condition of the wooden bearing element of the roof. The inspection highlighted the presence of severe decay, constituting a real danger for the integrity of the roof; consequently, an intervention of restoration, conservation and safeguard was considered to be necessary and urgent. This paper presents the results…

Photocatalytic nano-composite architectural lime mortar for degradation of urban pollutants under solar and visible (interior) light

2017

Abstract Recent advances in nano-technology and nano-additives can give enhanced properties to natural hydraulic lime (NHL), creating a multifunctional material. We have prepared a novel nanocomposite, made of a commercial mortar with 1 wt% and 5 wt% added titania nanoparticles (NPs). These TiO 2 NPs are themselves doped with 1 mol% silver, to give the material enhanced photocatalytic and antimicrobial properties. The Ag-doped TiO 2 NPs were made from a simple, costs effective, aqueous green nanosynthesis process, and the end material only contains 0.01–0.05% Ag. As this mortar is intended to both combat atmospheric pollution, and create more durable/lower maintenance building facades (plas…

The Large Observatory For x-ray Timing

2014

The Large Observatory For x-ray Timing (LOFT) was studied within ESA M3 Cosmic Vision framework and participated in the final down-selection for a launch slot in 2022-2024. Thanks to the unprecedented combination of effective area and spectral resolution of its main instrument, LOFT will study the behaviour of matter under extreme conditions, such as the strong gravitational field in the innermost regions of accretion flows close to black holes and neutron stars, and the supra-nuclear densities in the interior of neutron stars. The science payload is based on a Large Area Detector (LAD, 10 m 2 effective area, 2-30 keV, 240 eV spectral resolution, 1 deg collimated field of view) and a WideFi…