The present study was aimed at revealing the influence of the mechanical stress induced by water molecule adsorption on the composition of crystalline phases in the ZrO2 + 3 mol% Y2O3-nanoparticles. ...Three basic methods were used to determine the phase transition: neutron diffraction, Raman microspectroscopic scanning, and X-ray diffraction. The fact of reversible phase-structural β → α transformation and the simultaneous presence of two polymorphic structural modifications (β is the phase of the tetragonal syngony and α of monoclinic syngony in nanosized particles (9 nm)) under normal physical conditions was established by these methods. An assumption was made regarding the connection of the physical mechanism of transformation of the extremely nonequilibrium surface of nanoparticles with electronic exchange of the material of the near-surface layer of nanoparticles with the adsorption layer through donor–acceptor interaction. The principal possibility of creating direct-acting hydroelectric converters based on nanoscale YSZ (Yttria-Stabilized Zirconia) systems due to the reversible character of the considered effect was shown.
Herein, we investigated the influence of two types of nanoparticle fillers, i.e., amorphous SiO2 and crystalline ZrO2, on the structural properties of their nanocomposites with high-density ...polyethylene (HDPE). The composite films were prepared by melt-blending with a filler content that varied from 1% to 20% v/v. The composites were characterized by small- and wide-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS and WAXS), small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), Raman spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). For both fillers, the nanoaggregates were evenly distributed in the polymer matrix and their initial state in the powders determined their surface roughness and fractal character. In the case of the nano-ZrO2 filler, the lamellar thickness and crystallinity degree remain unchanged over a broad range of filler concentrations. SANS and SEM investigation showed poor interfacial adhesion and the presence of voids in the interfacial region. Temperature-programmed SANS investigations showed that at elevated temperatures, these voids become filled due to the flipping motions of polymer chains. The effect was accompanied by a partial aggregation of the filler. For nano-SiO2 filler, the lamellar thickness and the degree of crystallinity increased with increasing the filler loading. SAXS measurements show that the ordering of the lamellae is disrupted even at a filler content of only a few percent. SEM images confirmed good interfacial adhesion and integrity of the SiO2/HDPE composite. This markedly different impact of both fillers on the composite structure is discussed in terms of nanoparticle surface properties and their affinity to the HDPE matrix.
The paper considers the new effects of the nanoscale state of matter, which open up prospects for the development of electronic devices using new physical principles. The contacts of chemically ...homogeneous nanoparticles of yttrium-stabilized zirconium oxide (ZrO2—x mol% Y2O3, x = 0, 3, 4, 8; YSZ) with different sizes of 7.5 nm and 9 nm; 7.5 nm and 11 nm; and 7.5 nm and 14 nm, respectively, was studied on direct current using nanostructured objects in the form of compacts obtained by high-hydrostatic pressure (HP-compacts of 300MPa). A unique size effect of the nonlinear (rectifying-type contact) dependence of the electrical properties (in the region U < 2.5 V, I ≤ 2.7 mA) of the contact of different-sized YSZ nanoparticles of the same chemical composition is revealed, which indicates the possibility of creating semiconductor structures of a new type (homogeneous electronics). The electronic structure of the near-surface regions of nanoparticles of studied oxide materials and the possibility of obtaining specifically rectifying properties of the contacts were studied theoretically. Models of surface states of the Tamm-type are constructed considering the Coulomb long-range action. The discovered energy variance and its dependence on the curvature of the surface of nanoparticles made it possible to study the conditions for the formation of a contact potential difference in cases of nanoparticles of the same radius (synergistic effect), different radii (doped and undoped variants), as well as to discover the possibility of describing a group of powder particles within the Anderson model. The determined effect makes it possible to solve the problem of diffusion instability of semiconductor heterojunctions and opens up prospects for creating electronic devices with a fundamentally new level of properties for use in various fields of the economy and breakthrough critical technologies.
The dimensional effect of electric charge storage with a density of up to 270 μF/g by the hydrated ZrO2-nanoparticles system was determined. It was found that the place of localization of different ...charge carriers is the generalized heterophase boundary-nanoparticles surface. The supposed mechanism of the effect was investigated using the theory of dispersed systems, the band theory, and the theory of contact phenomena in semiconductors, which consists of the formation of localized electronic states in the nanoparticle material due to donor–acceptor interaction with the adsorption ionic atmosphere. The effect is relevant for modern nanoelectronics, microsystem technology, and printed electronics because it allows overcoming the basic physical restrictions on the size, temperature, and operation frequency of the device, caused by leakage currents.
The present study was aimed at revealing the influence of the mechanical stress induced by water molecule adsorption on the composition of crystalline phases in the ZrO
+ 3 mol% Y
O
-nanoparticles. ...Three basic methods were used to determine the phase transition: neutron diffraction, Raman microspectroscopic scanning, and X-ray diffraction. The fact of reversible phase-structural β → α transformation and the simultaneous presence of two polymorphic structural modifications (β is the phase of the tetragonal syngony and α of monoclinic syngony in nanosized particles (9 nm)) under normal physical conditions was established by these methods. An assumption was made regarding the connection of the physical mechanism of transformation of the extremely nonequilibrium surface of nanoparticles with electronic exchange of the material of the near-surface layer of nanoparticles with the adsorption layer through donor-acceptor interaction. The principal possibility of creating direct-acting hydroelectric converters based on nanoscale YSZ (Yttria-Stabilized Zirconia) systems due to the reversible character of the considered effect was shown.
The dimensional effect of electric charge storage with a density of up to 270 μF/g by the hydrated ZrO
-nanoparticles system was determined. It was found that the place of localization of different ...charge carriers is the generalized heterophase boundary-nanoparticles surface. The supposed mechanism of the effect was investigated using the theory of dispersed systems, the band theory, and the theory of contact phenomena in semiconductors, which consists of the formation of localized electronic states in the nanoparticle material due to donor-acceptor interaction with the adsorption ionic atmosphere. The effect is relevant for modern nanoelectronics, microsystem technology, and printed electronics because it allows overcoming the basic physical restrictions on the size, temperature, and operation frequency of the device, caused by leakage currents.
In the presented work, B4C was irradiated with xenon swift heavy ions at the energy of 167 MeV. The irradiation of the substrate was done at room temperature to a fluence of 3.83 × 1014 ion/cm2. The ...samples were then analyzed with the X-ray diffraction technique to study the structural modification, as it can probe the region of penetration of xenon atoms due to the low atomic number of the two elements involved in the material under study. The nano-cluster formation under ion irradiation was observed. Positron lifetime (PLT) calculations of the secondary point defects forming nanoclusters and introduced into the B4C substrate by hydrogen and helium implantation were also carried out with the Multigrid instead of the K-spAce (MIKA) simulation package. The X-ray diffraction results confirmed that the sample was B4C and it had a rhombohedral crystal structure. The X-ray diffraction indicated an increase in the lattice parameter due to the Swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation. In B12-CCC, the difference between τ with the saturation of H or He in the defect is nearly 20 ps. Under the same conditions with B11C-CBC, there is approximately twice the value for the same deviation.
In this paper we have made a comparative study of the photocatalytic properties of SmFe0.7Co0.3O3 and Sm0.7Sr0.3Fe0.7Co0.3O3 thin films for rhodamine B degradation, in the absence and in the presence ...of hydrogen peroxide as co-catalyst, by using low power UV deuterium lamp and materials consumption. The rhodamine B photodegradation was investigated for three concentrations: 2, 3, 4 mg⸱L−1. Orthorhombic films have been studied by X-ray diffraction, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy and Diffuse Reflectance Spectrophotometry. The presence of Sr atoms in SmFe0.7Co0.3O3 matrix induces: (1) the increase of oxygen vacancies number, (2) the reduction of Fe4+ to Fe3+ and Fe2+ with the decrease of Co2+ concentration and (3) the increase of porosity, all having as effects the increased photocatalytic efficiency of the Sr doped film. In the presence of co-catalyst, the degradation efficiency reached 100% after 120 min for the doped film, and 150 min for undoped one, while, in its absence, the highest values were obtained for the doped film (60–80% after 45 h). We determined that, in the absence of the co-catalyst, the dominant mechanisms are likely pseudo-first order in the first 4 h, and pseudo-half order in 4–45 h interval. For the photosystems that contain the co-catalyst, the mechanism is pseudo-first order, the apparent rate constants being higher for the doped sample, for all photoreaction systems. No structural changes are observed after the photocatalytic cycles, and their photocatalytic performance remains practical unchanged, indicating a good stability of the investigated films.
•Permeability by Kozeny-Carman representation is possible to explain the change in the total porosity of fossil coal with increasing coal bed occurrence to greater depths.•Calculation of permeability ...of coal beds with respect to their depth is based on the measurement of coal porosity taking into account their hierarchical structure.•The specific surface area of closed and open pores, measured by the small-angle neutron scattering, provides a reliable determination of the surface fractal dimension.•The reduction of the fractal dimension results in enlarged volume of macropores that provide enhanced permeability and gas content of deep seated coal beds.
The results of calculations of permeability of coal beds by Kozeny-Carman model are reported. The applicability of the model is proven in the case of known total porosity and specific surface of pore volume of fossil coal that are measured by small-angle neutron scattering experiments. By means of the fractal theory, it is shown that when the depth of coal bed increases, the reduction of the fractal dimension results in enlarged volume of macropores that provide enhanced permeability and gas content of deep seated coal beds.
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