Bi1.68Ca2O4(RS)CoO2(1.69) (BCCO) sample and Ag-BCCO composites (with 10, 20 or 30 wt% Ag) have been prepared by the spray-drying technique and uniaxially/isostatically packed. Scanning electron ...microscopy reveals that the Ag particles are well distributed in the BCCO cobaltite matrix at low Ag contents. The Ag particles have an important effect on densification and grain orientation of the samples, with a direct impact on their electrical conductivity. The electrical conductivity is higher for the uniaxial samples and increases with the Ag content up to 20% in weight, while the Seebeck coefficient is hardly affected. These features induce an improvement of the power factor, reaching a maximum value of 2.2 mu W K-2 cm(-1) at similar to 1050 K for the uniaxial sample with 20 wt% Ag. Our results suggest that the spray-drying technique is a promising method to obtain composites with a well-dispersed secondary phase. (C) 2010 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.
YBa2Cu3O7-δ thick films have been deposited onto Ag substrates by the Electrophoretic Deposition (EPD) technique. Different microstructures and electrical behaviours were observed depending on the ...starting powder. Coatings prepared from commercial powder displayed significant porosity and the superconducting transition width was found to be magnetic-field dependent. Films produced from home-made coprecipitated powder are denser but contain some secondary phases. No dependence of the resistive transition as a function of magnetic field (H ≤ 20 Oe) was observed in that case.
Nanocomposites based on biodegradable poly(e-caprolactone) (PCL) and layered silicates (montmorillonite) modified by various alkylammonium cations were prepared by melt intercalation. Depending on ...whether the ammonium cations contain non-functional alkyl chains or chains terminated by carboxylic acid or hydroxyl functions, microcomposites or nanocomposites were recovered as shown by X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. Mechanical and thermal properties were examined by tensile testing and thermogravimetric analysis. The layered silicate PCL nanocomposites exhibited some improvement of the mechanical properties (higher Young's modulus) and increased thermal stability as well as enhanced flame retardant characteristics as result of a charring effect. This communication aims at reporting that the formation of PCL-based nanocomposites strictly depends on the nature of the ammonium cation and its functionality, but also on the selected synthetic route, i.e. melt intercalation vs. in situ intercalative polymerization. Typically, protonated w-aminododecanoic acid exchanged montmorillonite allowed to intercalate e-caprolactone monomer and yielded nanocomposites upon in situ polymerization, whereas they exclusively formed microcomposites when blended with preformed PCL chains. In other words, it is shown that the formation of polymer layered silicate nanocomposites is not straightforward and cannot be predicted since it strongly depends on parameters such as ammonium cation type and functionality together with the production procedure, i.e., melt intercalation, solvent evaporation or in situ polymerization
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