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Full-Text Articles in Materials Science and Engineering

'Fabrication And Characterization Of Polymer Blends And Composites Derived From Biopolymers', Suraj Sharma Dec 2008

'Fabrication And Characterization Of Polymer Blends And Composites Derived From Biopolymers', Suraj Sharma

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This research focuses on fabricating blends and composites from natural polymers especially from proteins and natural epoxy, and describing the properties of plastics made from them. Specifically, plastic samples from partially denatured feathermeal and bloodmeal proteins, derived from the animal co-products (rendering) industry, were successfully produced through a compression molding process. The modulus (stiffness) of the material obtained was found to be comparable with that of commercial synthetic materials, such as polystyrene, but was found to have lower toughness characteristics, which is a common phenomenon among plastics produced from animal and plant proteins. Therefore, this study explored blending methods for …

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Inferring Mechanical Resonances In Micro - And Nanocantilevers Using The Harmonic Detection Of Resonance (Hdr) Method To Develop A Novel Sensing Platform, Gayatri Keskar Aug 2008

Inferring Mechanical Resonances In Micro - And Nanocantilevers Using The Harmonic Detection Of Resonance (Hdr) Method To Develop A Novel Sensing Platform, Gayatri Keskar

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During the past two decades, advances in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) have spurred efforts worldwide to develop sensing platforms based on smart microcantilevers. A microcantilever beam is one of the simplest MEMS structures which forms the basis for portable, fast and highly sensitive schemes that are capable of measuring small deflections in static or dynamic response due to changes in external parameters such as mass, pressure, charge, etc.
In this dissertation, I mainly focus on MEMS sensors with transducers in the form of microcantilevers. Variations in the microcantilever's response such as resonant frequency, amplitude, phase and quality factor when exposed to …

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High Temperature Wetting And Multilayer Adsorption In Oxide Systems, Haijun Qian Aug 2008

High Temperature Wetting And Multilayer Adsorption In Oxide Systems, Haijun Qian

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The primary objective of this thesis research is to greatly advance the knowledge of the formation mechanism and thermodynamic stability of a unique class of surficial amorphous films (SAFs) and analogous intergranular films (IGFs) via critical experiments and modeling. These quasi-liquid IGFs and SAFs films exhibit the following distinct characteristics: 1) self-regulating (equilibrium) thicknesses on the order of 1 nm, 2) structures and compositions that are neither found nor stable as bulk phases, and 3) thermodynamic stability below the bulk solidus lines.
The first part of this study examines anisotropic wetting of ZnO single crystals by Bi2O3-rich liquid with and …

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Some Problems In Statistical Mechanics With Applications To Materials Science, Ethan Ballard Aug 2008

Some Problems In Statistical Mechanics With Applications To Materials Science, Ethan Ballard

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In this work, some problems in statistical mechanics related to condensed matter physics and of general interst in materials science, physics, chemistry and polymer science are considered. In chapters 1-4, the work by E.M. Lifshitz on the group-theoretical refinements of the Landau theory of phase transitions is brought to completion. Based on mathematical results obtained by Yamabe, Osgood, Phillips, Sarnak, and Kholodenko analytical results for determinants were developed which allows for prediction of the symmetry of the phase after a phase transition provided that the symmetry prior to the phase transition is known. Numerical results are presented which are in …

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Renewable Resource Lactide Derived Materials: Scaled-Up Synthesis, Characterization And Applications, Akhilesh Singh May 2008

Renewable Resource Lactide Derived Materials: Scaled-Up Synthesis, Characterization And Applications, Akhilesh Singh

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Renewable resource monomer, lactide, derived copolymers and terpolymers were synthesized on a few hundred gram scale with specialty/commodity co-monomers such as perfluoropolyether and bisphenol A derivatives. The modifications resulted in improved properties such as surface energy, crystallization, and glass transition temperature of the polylactide.
Ring-opening polymerizations of L-lactide were performed using different block length perfluoropolyethers as macro-initiators and tin octoate as the catalyst. The resultant polylactide-perfluoropolyether-polylactide block copolymers were characterized by various analytical and microscopic techniques such as differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, dynamic mechanical analysis, wide-angle x-ray diffraction spectroscopy, polarized optical microscopy, etc.
The incorporation …

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Incorporation Of Polydiacetylene Sensors Into Commercial Polymers, Jennifer Kauffman May 2008

Incorporation Of Polydiacetylene Sensors Into Commercial Polymers, Jennifer Kauffman

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Polydiacetylenes (PDAs) exhibit a chromatic response to solvents, temperature, strain and other environmental perturbations. When formed in a solid-state polymerization, the backbone of the polymer is planar and continuous π-overlap is observed. However, when the PDA backbone is distorted by an outside force the extended conjugation is interrupted and an optical shift from blue to red occurs. By exploiting the PDAs properties within polymer systems, smart fibers and films have been created that enhance the original intention of the host. Under this umbrella, a strain sensitive polydiacetylene-polyurethane blend was created using 3 and 4-butoxycarbonylmethylurethane PDA and a medical grade polyurethane, …

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Ultrahydrophobic Surface Modification Of Polymeric Fibers And Inorganic Substrates, Karthik Ramaratnam Dec 2007

Ultrahydrophobic Surface Modification Of Polymeric Fibers And Inorganic Substrates, Karthik Ramaratnam

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The wettability of a solid surface is a very important property, and is governed by both the chemical composition and the geometrical microstructure of the surface. Wettability and repellency are important properties of solid surfaces from both fundamental and practical aspects. The wettability of the solid surface is a characteristic property of materials and strongly depends on both the surface energy and the surface roughness. These properties may be approached by mimicking hydrophobic structures created by nature on lotus leaf surface. The lotus effect is based on surface roughness caused by different microstructures together with the hydrophobic properties of the …

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Investigation Of Structure And Properties Of Novel Multi-Layer Clay Nanocomposite Films Produced Controllably By Continuous Chaotic Advection Blending, Chaitra Mahesha Dec 2007

Investigation Of Structure And Properties Of Novel Multi-Layer Clay Nanocomposite Films Produced Controllably By Continuous Chaotic Advection Blending, Chaitra Mahesha

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Polymer nanoclay composites have been studied extensively in the past decade due to the excellent combination of properties they can offer at low loadings of clay. Despite robust research, the potential enhancements that nanoclays are theoretically predicted to offer have not been achieved. Such potential improvements in mechanical and gas barrier properties are realized only when the internal structure of the nanocomposite is optimized in terms of arrangement and orientation of nanoclay within the matrix. The mixing-based approach and the accompanying complex flow fields of conventional processing techniques widely used to produce nanoclay composites are unable to control the internal …

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Development And In Vitro Examination Of Materials For Osseointegration, Sahil Jalota May 2007

Development And In Vitro Examination Of Materials For Osseointegration, Sahil Jalota

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Bone is a connective tissue with nanosized particles of carbonated apatitic calcium phosphate dispersed in a hydrated collagen matrix. With the ageing of the baby boomer population, an increasing number of people sustain bone fractures and defects. Hence, efforts are underway to develop materials to hasten the healing and repairing of such defects. These materials are termed as artificial bone substitutes.
This study represents innovative techniques for development of bone implant materials and improving the existing substitute materials. Emphasis was on three different kinds of materials: Metals (titanium and alloys), Ceramics (calcium phosphates), and Polymers (collagen). The bioactivity of titanium …

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Theoretical And Empirical Investigation Into Polymer Blend Morphology In Fiber Spinning, Ajay D. Padsalgikar Aug 1996

Theoretical And Empirical Investigation Into Polymer Blend Morphology In Fiber Spinning, Ajay D. Padsalgikar

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A promising way of developing new fiber forming materials is by utilization of polymer blends. The morphology of polymer blends has a significant effect on the properties of the resultant fiber. Morphological studies have shown that immiscible additives remain dispersed in the matrix as suspended droplets and that the droplets are elongated into fibrils under the action of shear or extensional forces during processing. The deformability of the dispersed phase is a controlling factor in deciding the resultant morphology and thereby the fiber properties. We report the results of a study of droplet deformation in uniaxial elongational flow under non …

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