Materials Science and Engineering Commons^™

Densification, Microstructure, And Mechanical Properties Of Zirconium Diboride Based Ultra-High Temperature Ceramics, Sumin Zhu

Doctoral Dissertations

"The first part of this dissertation was aimed at studying the densification of ZrB₂ ceramics by pressureless sintering techniques. Various processes have been applied to coat ZrB₂ powders with polymer precursors, which were used to produce C after charring. After sintering at 1900⁰C, relative density increased of ~70% for uncoated ZrB₂ to >99% for ZrB₂ coated with at least 1.0 wt% C. Thermodynamic analysis suggested that C reacted with and removed oxide impurities (ZrO₂ and B₂O₃) that were present on the ZrB₂ particle surfaces, which promoted densification by minimizing grain coarsening"--Abstract, page iv.

Rational Design And Investigation Of Polypeptide Multilayer Films And Capsules, Ling Zhang

Doctoral Dissertations

Three major concerns in the science of materials today are control over structure and function at the molecular level, biodegradability, and scalability of production. Polymeric materials, notably polyelectrolyte multilayer films, have shown considerable promise in all these areas, and for rational development of multifunctionality. Polypeptides constitute an especially interesting class of polyelectrolyte, given their inherent biodegradability, means of control over structure, methods of large-scale synthesis, and ability to encode biological information. Relatively little is known, however, about polypeptide multilayer films, despite recent advances in the general area.

In this dissertation, ten heteropolypeptides were designed and synthesized by Fmoc chemistry. These …

A Finite Difference Method For Studying Thermal Deformation In Two-Dimensional Micro Scale Metal Thin Films Exposed To Ultrashort Pulsed Lasers, Haojie Wang

Doctoral Dissertations

Ultrashort-pulsed lasers have been attracting worldwide interest in science and engineering because the lasers with pulse durations on the order of sub-picoseconds to femtoseconds possess capabilities in limiting the undesirable spread of the thermal process zone in a heated sample during material processing at the microscale. Prevention of thermal damage is an important factor for success of ultrashort-pulsed lasers in real applications. The thermal damage induced by ultrashort pulses is intrinsically different from that induced by long-pulse or continuous lasers. It occurs after the heating pulse is over and involves the shattering of thin metal layers (without a clear signature …

Growth And Behavior Of Chondrocytes On Nano Engineered Surfaces And Construction Of Micropatterned Co-Culture Platforms Using Layer-By-Layer Platforms Using Layer -By -Layer Assembly Lift-Off Method, Jameel Shaik

Doctoral Dissertations

Several approaches such as self-assembled monolayers and layer-by-layer assembled multilayer films are being used as tools to study the interactions of cells with biomaterials in vitro. In this study, the layer-by-layer assembly approach was used to create monolayer, bilayer, trilayer, five, ten and twenty-bilayer beds of eleven different biomaterials. The various biomaterials used were poly(styrene-sulfonate), fibronectin, poly-L-lysine, poly-D-lysine, laminin, bovine serum albumin, chondroitin sulfate, poly(ethyleneimine), polyethylene glycol amine, collagen and poly(dimethyldiallyl-ammonium chloride) with unmodified tissue-culture polystyrene as standard control. Three different cell lines—primary bovine articular chondrocytes, and two secondary cell lines, human chondrosarcoma cells and canine chondrocytes were used in …

Designing And Modeling Of A New Continuous Steelmaking Process, Jörg Peter

Doctoral Dissertations

"Continuous steel production has the potential to lower the cost of steelmaking as compared to current batch operations. However, experiences from past attempts to develop and commercialize continuous steelmaking processes show that there are several engineering hurdles to overcome. The objective of this research was the development of a fully continuous steelmaking process that would incorporate the lessons from past experiences, address the foreseen challenges, and meet the requirements to justify the possible replacement of the current EAF-LMF steelmaking route.

The design of the new process consists of five interconnected vessels. Preheated scrap would be continuously charged, melted, and superheated …

Nanodot-Based Organic Memory Devices, Zhengchun Liu

Doctoral Dissertations

In this study, resistor-type, diode-type, and transistor-type organic memory devices were investigated, aiming at the low-cost plastic integrated circuit applications. A series of solution-processing techniques including spin-coating, inkjet printing, and self-assembly were employed to fabricate these devices.

The organic resistive memory device is based on a novel molecular complex film composed of tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ) and a soluble methanofullerene derivative [6,6]-phenyl C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM). It has an Al/molecules/Al sandwich structure. The molecular layer was formed by spin-coating technique instead of expensive vacuum deposition method. The current-voltage characteristics show that the device switches from the initial 'low' conduction state to …

Integration Of Micro Nano And Bio Technologies With Layer -By -Layer Self -Assembly, Dinesh Shankar Kommireddy

Doctoral Dissertations

In the past decade, layer-by-layer (LbL) nanoassembly has been used as a tool for immobilization and surface modification of materials with applications in biology and physical sciences. Often, in such applications, LbL assembly is integrated with various techniques to form functional surface coatings and immobilized matrices. In this work, integration of LbL with microfabrication and microfluidics, and tissue engineering are explored. In an effort to integrate microfabrication with LbL nanoassembly, microchannels were fabricated using soft-lithography and the surface of these channels was used for the immobilization of materials using LbL and laminar flow patterning. Synthesis of poly(dimethyldiallyl ammonium chloride)/poly(styrene sulfonate) …

A Fe-Fd Hybrid Scheme For Solving Parabolic Two-Step Micro Heat Transport Equations In Irregularly Shaped Three Dimensional Double -Layered Thin Films Exposed To Ultrashort -Pulse Lasers, Brian R. Barron

Doctoral Dissertations

Multi-layer thin films are important components in many micro-electronic devices. These films are often used when a single film layer is insufficient to meet devices specifications. The continued reduction in component size has the side effect of increasing the thermal stress on these films and consequently the devices they comprise. Understanding the transfer of heat-energy at the micro-scale is important for thermal processing using a pulse-laser. Often, micro-voids may be found in processed devices. This is due to thermal expansion. Such defects may cause an amplification of neighboring defects resulting in severe damage and consequently the failure of the device. …

Development Of Palladium Nanowires, Chuanding Cheng

Doctoral Dissertations

Inherent limitations of traditional lithography have prompted the search for means of achieving self-assembly of nano-scale structures and networks for the next generation of electronic and photonic devices. The nanowire, the basic building block of a nanocircuit, has recently become the focus of intense research. Reports on nanowire synthesis and assembly have appeared in the scientific literature, which include Vapor-Liquid-Solid mechanism, template-based electrochemical fabrication, solvothermal or wet chemistry, and assembly by fluid alignment or microchannel networks. An ideal approach for practical application of nanowires would circumvent technical and economic constraints of templating. Here we report on the self-assembly of highly-ordered …

Layer-By-Layer Self -Assembly For Enzyme And Dna Encapsulation And Delivery, Amish Patel

Doctoral Dissertations

Thin wall microcapsules were formed via Layer-by-Layer Self-Assembly of alternate adsorption of oppositely charged polyelectrolyte on microcores. After the core dissolution, empty polymeric shells with 20–25 nm thick walls were obtained. These microcapsules were loaded with Myoglobin, Hemoglobin and Glucose Oxidase by opening capsule pores at low pH and closing them at higher pH. The native structure of the enzyme was not affected due to different treatments. Biocompatible nanoshells were also prepared for encasing DNA. Using the same Layer-by-Layer Self-Assembly approach nanoparticle were constructed containing DNA as one of the layers. The nanoparticles of different architecture were used to deliver …

Computational Approaches To The Design And Analysis Of Stability Of Polypeptide Multilayer Thin Films, Bin Zheng

Doctoral Dissertations

The focus of this research is the development of computational approaches to understanding the physical basis of layer-by-layer assembly (LBL), a key methodology of nanomanufacturing. The results provided detailed information on structure which cannot be obtained directly by experiments.

The model systems chosen for study are polypeptide chains. Reasons for this are that polypeptides are no less polyelectrolytes than the more usual polyions, and one can control the primary structure of a polypeptide on a residue-by-residue basis using modern synthetic methods. Moreover, as peptides constitute one of the four major classes of biological macromolecules, research in this direction is expected …

Fabrication, Characterization, And Modeling Of Organic Capacitors, Schottky Diodes, And Field Effect Transistors, Mo Zhu

Doctoral Dissertations

The objectives of this project are to fabricate, characterize, and model organic microelectronic devices by traditional lithography techniques and Technology Computer Aided Design (TCAD).

Organic microelectronics is becoming a promising field due to its number of advantages in low-cost fabrication for large area substrates. There have been growing studies in organic electronics and optoelectronics. In this project, several organic microelectronic devices are studied with the aid of experimentation and numerical modeling.

Organic metal-insulator-metal (MIM) and metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) capacitors consisting of insulating polymer poly(4-vinylphenol) (PVP) have been fabricated by spin-coating, photo lithography, and reactive ion etching techniques. Based on the fabricated …

Effects Of Diabetes And Aging On Posture And Acceleration Thresholds During Lateral Translations, Samantha Jean Richerson

Doctoral Dissertations

Research objectives. One source of falls in the elderly may be an inability to sufficiently adjust to transient postural perturbations or slips. Identifying useful predictors of fall potential, as well as factors that affect the ability of an individual to detect a movement of the standing support surface may provide insight into postural stability and methods to increase stability in elders. To do this, acceleration thresholds to short, precise, lateral platform translations and the resultant psychophysical responses of adults with early Type 2 diabetes to age-matched controls and young adults were measured.

Methods. Using an innovative SLIP-FALLS platform, …

Mathematical Modeling For Fabricating A Microstructure With A Pre-Specified Geometry Using Laser -Induced Chemical Vapor Deposition, Chaoyang Zhang

Doctoral Dissertations

Laser-induced chemical vapor deposition (LCVD) is an emerging new technique with many practical applications. To optimize the system for fabricating a microstructure with a pre-specified geometry in pyrolytic LCVD, a three-dimensional mathematical model is developed for predicting temperature distributions and laser dwell times across the substrate scanned by the laser beam. A microstructure is fabricated layer by layer, and for each layer the laser beam moves from one pixel to the next. The complicated correlations among temperature distribution, deposit growth rate, and laser dwell time are investigated. A purely heterogeneous reaction is assumed and any gas-phase transport is ignored.

A …

Kinetics Of Laser Chemical Vapor Deposition Of Carbon And Refractory Metals, Feng Gao

Doctoral Dissertations

Three-dimensional laser chemical vapor deposition (3D-LCVD) has been used to grow rods of carbon, tungsten, titanium, and hafnium from a variety of hydrocarbons and metal halide-based precursors. A novel computerized 3D-LCVD system was designed and successfully used in the experiments. A focused Nd:Yag laser beam (λ = 1.06 μm) was utilized to locally heat up a substrate to deposition temperature. The rods, which grew along the axis of the laser beam, had a typical diameter of 30–80 μm and a length of about 1 mm. The precursors for carbon deposition were the alkynes: propyne, butyne, pentyne, hexyne, and octyne. Propyne …

Cracking In Cycloaliphatic Epoxy/Aluminum Composite Electrical Bushings, Keith Alan Parker

Doctoral Dissertations

The problem of cracking in electrical apparatus bushings as a result of thermal stresses was investigated. The bushings were composed of cycloaliphatic epoxy insulators with embedded aluminum conductors. The problem is due to the difference in coefficients of thermal expansion of the two materials. A solution to the problem had been to coat the conductors before they were formed together with the epoxy insulators. The coating was assumed to prevent cracking by allowing movement between the two materials as their dimensions changed during thermal expansion and contraction. The contribution of the coating was to be established.

The hypothesis was that …

Immobilization Of Radioactive Materials In Iron Phosphate Glass, Melissa G. Mesko

Doctoral Dissertations

"The current study investigates the feasibility of using iron phosphate glass for the immobilization of radioactive wastes considered incompatible with borosilicate glass. Wastes may be incompatible with borosilicate glass due to high phosphorus content (Hanford tank sludges), the presence of halides (CsCl and SrF₂ capsules), or large amounts of uranium (SNF).

Between 20 and 60 wt% Hanford tank sludge was vitrified with an iron phosphate glass at ≤ 1200°C in 1 hour. The chemical durability of iron phosphate glassy wasteforms was as good as, or better than a reference borosilicate glass (10^-9 g/cm²/min) in distilled water …

Galvanic Stripping Of Fe⁺³ And Pb⁺² Ions And Dissolution Of Metallic Fe, Zn, Pb And Cd Using Di(2-Ethylhexyl)Phosphoric Acid, Luis Miguel Chia Aquije

Doctoral Dissertations

"Two systems were evaluated using the principles of the galvanic stripping process. One of them, the removal of Pb⁺² ions from di-2(ethylhexyl) phosphoric acid (D2EHPA) was performed using metallic zinc. The other, the removal of Fe⁺³ ions from D2EHPA used metallic iron as reductant and was performed simultaneously with the organic phase using a slightly acidic aqueous solution of hydrochloric acid. In addition, the dissolution of metallic zinc, iron, lead, and cadmium in D2EHPA was studied in order to better understand the anodic step in the mechanism of the galvanic stripping process.

Increased temperature was found to dramatically …

Toughening Mechanisms In Weak Matrix Ceramic Composites, Jowoong Ha

Doctoral Dissertations

"Tough behavior of ceramic matrix composites is closely related to the weak interface between fiber and matrix. The weak interfaces in composites have been provided by reducing the chemical bonding and the residual thermal stresses between constituents. A new way to introduce the weak interface by induced porosity or damaged zones, so called porosity toughening or damage toughening respectively, was proposed in this study to provide the rationale for guiding development of oxide/oxide composites. The existence of porosity toughening was examined by qualitative theoretical consideration and experiments. Porous oxide/oxide composites were fabricated using alumino-silicate fibers (Nextel 440) and magnesium alumino-silicate …

Bubble Formation, Movement And Distortion In Viscous Glass, Simon Cheng-Ping Wang

Doctoral Dissertations

"A study of bubble formation, movement and distortion in viscous glass is described. A glass rod containing an irregularly shaped hole is heated to a temperature at where the glass viscosity is low enough to let the hole form a spherical bubble. Spheration occurs as the bubble moves upward in the glass rod. At the proper time, the rising bubble is decelerated and brought to a stop by increasing the glass viscosity by slowly reducing the temperature. The entrapped bubble is then cut from the glass rod and heated again, if necessary, to a lower temperature, to reduce distortion of …

Studies Of Defect Structure And Oxidation-Reduction Behavior Of Undoped Lamno₃, Sr-Doped Lamno₃ And Mg-Doped Lamno₃, Jen-Ho Kuo

Doctoral Dissertations

"Undoped LaMnO₃, Sr-doped LaMnO₃ and Mg-doped LaMnO₃ showed reversible oxidation-reduction behavior. These perovskites can be excess, stoichiometric or deficient in oxygen content depending on the specific conditions. Under very reducing conditions these oxides will decompose into new phases. Phase stabilities for these oxides were determined. The results showed that both Sr and Mg doping caused the LaMnO₃ to dissociate at higher oxygen activities than for undoped LaMnO₃.

Defect models were proposed to interpret the TG results, in which metal vacancies are assumed for the oxygen excess condition and oxygen vacancies are assumed for the oxygen deficient condition. Thermodynamic properties were …

Fundamental Study Of The Role Of Cathode Structure On Zinc Electrowinning, Horacio M. Aros

Doctoral Dissertations

"The influence of cathode macromorphology on the current efficiency of zinc electrowinning was determined.

The studies have shown that surface roughness affects current efficiency during zinc electrowinning, particularly when the electrolyte contains impurities such as nickel and antimony. Current efficiency does not change with surface roughness as long as the electrolyte is sufficiently pure.

Zinc deposited on smooth zinc cathodes tends to retain a more favorable structure and macromorphology, which is less sensitive to the effects caused by antimony and nickel. Glue helps to counteract the effect of the impurities; however, its presence in the electrolyte at certain combinations with …

Oxidation Kinetics Of Polycrystalline Srtio₃ And Lacro₃, Chi-Kung Jerry Yu

Doctoral Dissertations

"The oxidation kinetics of polycrystalline SrTiO₃ and LaCrO₃ were determined by measuring the time and temperature dependence of the weight and conductivity change of reduced samples. A region of fast diffusion followed by a reduced diffusion tail was observed in the TGA measurements. This observation can be interpreted as the initial diffusion along the boundaries and then spreading out into the lattice. The absence of the tail in the conductivity measurements is due to the high electron and hole mobility at the boundaries. The electrical conductivity and TGA results on Nb-doped LaCrO₃ show that at low oxygen …

An Analysis Of Mill Sound Levels To Aid In The Control And Understanding Of The Grinding Process, Scott Douglas Morrison

Doctoral Dissertations

“An experimental study has been made to evaluate the relationships between grinding parameters and the directional sound levels emitted from the collision of the grinding media with the mill wall for a laboratory batch ball mill.

Discrete frequency and single frequency band sound pressure level measurements were performed to investigate the changes in sound levels with grind time. It was demonstrated that the reduction in sound levels with grind time observed for a narrow sized feed can be used to indicate optimum breakage rates, overall time-based particle size distribution, and ore character.

The relationships established with the discrete frequency and …

Dissolution Of Multi-Component Systems, Robin Ashley Murphy

Doctoral Dissertations

"The validity of ideal barrier layer diffusion kinetics was examined in the NaCl/KCl - glycerol and Al₂O₃-CaO-Al₂O₃-SiO₂/slag corrosion systems. Single crystals and dense polycrystalline plates of pure NaCl or KCl exhibit steady-state corrosion rates within 10%, of calculated theoretical values, while dense mixtures of the two salts corrode at rates higher than either pure material. The results are compared to the grooving phenomena of NaCl/KCl bicrystals.

Polycrystalline Al₂O₃ is shown to corrode at the same rate as single crystal sapphire at 1400°C in CaO-SiO₂-Al_{2 …}

Electrochemical Evaluation Of Zinc Electrolyte, Rajesh Kumar Singh

Doctoral Dissertations

"The polarization characteristics of acidified zinc sulfate electrolyte with varying solution chemistries were examined by cyclic voltammetry. An attempt was made to correlate the polarization results with the morphological and current efficiency data in order to develop a better understanding of the more fundamental aspects of impurity and additive behavior during the zinc electrodeposition process.

A statistical screening design program was conducted to determine the effects of certain operating parameters on the nucleation potential of zinc from sulfate electrolyte. The variables studied included: solution temperature, H₂SO₄ and Zn concentration, and scan rate. The solution temperature was found to be the …

Mass Transport Considerations In Electrometallurgical Reactions, Jose Rolando Sami Cuzmar

Doctoral Dissertations

"The research program described is divided into three segments. In the first part, the morphology and kinetic studies of Cd²⁺ removal from ZnSO₄ solutions using Zn dust as a reducing agent are presented. In the absence of impurities, the morphology of the Cd deposit shows the formation of two-dimensional or leaf-like dendrites capable of interlocking and forming agglomerates or balls. The size and strength of the agglomerates depend on the initial Cd²⁺ concentration to Zn metal surface area ratio, the rate of Cd ²⁺ removal, and the reactor geometry. The presence of additives, like Cu²⁺ and …

Thermogravimetric And Electrical Conductivity Studies Of Mg-Doped Lacro₃ And La-Doped Srtio₃, Brian Keith Flandermeyer

Doctoral Dissertations

"Mg-doped LaCrO₃ and La-doped SrTiO₃ are perovskite compounds that display electrical conductivity which is a function of partial pressure of oxygen (po2). It has been proposed that acceptor-doped LaCrO₃ becomes highly resistive at low po2's due to ionic compensation of the acceptor-dopant present by oxygen vacancies. SrTiO₃ has been thought to absorb O₂ into a crystallographic shear structure and exsolve strontium vacancies which can then ionically compensate the La present and give a high resistance at high po2's.

Given these models, relationships between weight loss and conductivity vs. po₂ are developed for both these …

The Influence Of Additives And Their Interactions On Copper Electrorefining, Chwan-Tsann Wang

Doctoral Dissertations

"Protein colloid (glue), thiourea, Avitone and chloride ion are the most common additives used electrorefining copper. The polarization behavior of these additives, single and combined, was studied by cyclic voltammetry techniques in conjunction with stationary and rotating disc electrodes. In the stationary electrode work, different protein colloids give substantially different results in polarization or interaction with other additives. The role played by Avitone is not clear, but it does somewhat modify other additives in the electrolyte. Thiourea can cause a depolarized peak and a polarized plateau depending on the concentration, the other additives present and the potential selected. Chloride ion …

Chemical Corrosion Of Ag Films On Glass, Hyun Soo Park

Doctoral Dissertations

"The chemical corrosion of chemically, vacuum and sputter deposited Ag films on an aluminoborosilicate and a soda lime glass was investigated in wet HCl and saturated water vapor as a function of concentration, temperature and time. The higher corrosion resistance of chemically deposited Ag films in comparison to evaporated or sputtered Ag films is attributed to their lower microvoid density and higher adhesion strength. Ag films on the more chemically durable aluminoborosilicate glass had a higher corrosion resistance. Furthermore, films which received a moderate thermal annealing (80 to 140° C) or were deposited on a glass surface washed with HN0 …