Focused ion beams are an essential tool for cross-sectional material analysis at the microscale, preparing TEM samples, and much more. New plasma ion sources allow for higher beam currents and options to use unconventional ion species, resulting in increased versatility over a broader range of substrate materials. In this paper, we present the results of a four-material study from five different ion

This study focuses on the examination of the effect of cutting parameters on surface roughness when drilling medium-density fiberboard (MDF) with a parallel robot. Taguchi technique was applied to find the optimum drilling parameters and, later, the drilling processing. Experimental layout was established using the Taguchi L18 orthogonal array, and experimental data were examined via a statistical

Cyclic cryogenic treatment, a major cycle accompanied by zero or more subsidiary cycles, was conducted on the hardened 42CrMo steel using orthogonal design method to investigate the effect of different parameters (cryogenic temperature, holding time, and cycles number) of cryogenic treatment on wear resistance and impact toughness of the steel. Range analysis was performed to obtain the influencing

Extensive research into alkali-activated slag as a green gel material to substitute for cement has been done because of the advantages of low-carbon dioxide emissions and recycling of industrial solid waste. Alkali-activated slag usually has good mechanical properties, but the too fast setting time restricted its application and promotion. Changing the composition of alkaline activator could optimize

Compared with plain soil, polypropylene (PP) fiber-reinforced soil has markedly improved mechanical properties and can be used in slope protection projects. To investigate the reduction law of the antierosion ability parameters of PP fiber-reinforced loess under dry-wet (D-W) cycles and freeze-thaw (F-T) cycles, we took loess from Yan’an, China, mixed them with PP fiber, and did shear strength tests

Composite laminates have complex failure modes. In order to investigate the evolution of failure in the composite laminates, this paper performed an experimental study on four laminates with different layups using acoustic emission (AE) technique. Two different kinds of defects are imposed on the laminates, including a hole and a crack in the center. Tensile and bending tests are performed on the defective

The nonisothermal multipass deformation behavior of as-cast 42CrMo alloy was studied with declining temperature, constant pass strain, varying strain rate, and interval time. The stresses are used to develop the constitutive model. As the finishing temperature increases from 990°C to 1070°C, the stress decreases gradually and the softening effect increases, which results in a large grain size and inhomogeneous

Asphalt suffers from a series of aging processes in the natural environment. This is a significant factor in asphalt pavement diseases. Research of the properties of the decay processes in the natural weathering of asphalt will be helpful in distinguishing the characteristics of the various types of asphalt and in the selection of pavement materials. Neat asphalt A70, a styrene-butadiene-styrene- (SBS-)

High-strength concrete (HSC) is widely used in engineering due to its high strength and durability. However, because of its low water-to-cement ratio, external curing water hardly enters the dense internal structure of HSC so that high self-desiccation shrinkage often takes place. As a result, superabsorbent polymers (SAP) are added as an internal curing material to effectively reduce the shrinkage

In recent years, fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites have been widely used as a new type of high-performance material in concrete structures. FRP composites have the advantages of high strength, light weight, and corrosion resistance. Based on existing studies in the literature, this paper reviews the development and applications of FRP materials for the strengthening and rehabilitation of bridge

The low masonry structure is the most commonly applied building type in rural China. It is possible to install small-diameter, low cost, and easily constructed laminated rubber bearing (LRB) components. Isolation technology has broad application prospects in rural buildings. We developed a small-diameter LRB in this study wherein the isolation layer is set above the floor for easy installation and

This article studies the efficiency of sand powder as a supplementary cementitious material (SCM) in improving the sulfuric acid resistance of concrete incorporated with high CaO fly ash. Besides, the effects of sand powder on compressive strength development, mitigation of carbon dioxide emission, and cost-effectiveness are addressed. Paste mixtures with W/B ratios of 0.25 and 0.40 were used in this

To explore the initial orientation effect of ballast assembly on the reinforcement performance of the geogrid reinforced ballast, particles with random orientation and five prescribed rotational orientations were developed through particle flow code (PFC3D). The evolution laws of the pullout force and the principal directions of the normal contact force were systematically compared and analyzed. Furthermore

Fault diagnosis is of great significance for ensuring the safety and reliable operation of rolling bearing in industries. Stack autoencoder (SAE) networks have been widely applied in this field. However, the model parameters such as learning rate are always fixed, which have an adverse effect on the convergence speed and accuracy of fault classification. Thus, this paper proposes a dynamic learning

An experimental study on the steel tube confined reinforced concrete (STCRC) column with binding bars under axial compression is conducted. The bearing capacity and failure modes are obtained. It can be known that the axial deformation of concrete occurred under compression. The core concrete is wrapped and constrained by the steel tube wall, and the steel tube wall is constrained by binding bars locally

The mechanical properties of Mg-6Sn-3Al-1Zn alloy were enhanced with bimodal grain size disturbed in the microstructure uniformly; the Mg-6Sn-3Al-1Zn alloys were rolled with 60% thickness reduction at different rolling temperatures. The results have shown that the Mg-6Sn-3Al-1Zn alloys are composed of Mg2Sn phase and α-Mg matrix phase. When the rolling temperature was less than or equal to 400°C, with

The cemented paste backfill (CPB) technology has been successfully used for the recycling of mine tailings all around the world. However, its application in coal mines is limited due to the lack of mine tailings that can work as aggregates. In this work, the feasibility of using silts from the Yellow River silts (YRS) as aggregates in CPB was investigated. Cementitious materials were selected to be

This paper investigates the influence of mineral admixtures fly ash (FA) and ground-granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS), the byproducts of industry, on chloride ions migration and corrosion resistance performance. A novel preparation method of wire beam electrode (WEB) was also introduced to explore the excellent corrosion-resistant capacity of concrete with mineral admixtures. By comparing concrete

Because of the arid climate and fragile ecological environment in Xinjiang, China, land reclamation should be carried out after mining. The core of land reclamation is the water content of the surface covering soil. In this paper, the law of water distribution in reclamation reconstructed soil of nonmetal mines in Xinjiang was studied. In order to obtain the law of water distribution in reconstructed

Goaf sealing wall is set in the roadway close to the stop line of working face in an underground coal mine. However, the sealing wall is prone to crack or fracture under serious mining stress, resulting in water and air leakage from goaf. In this study, the combination of polymethylene polyphenyl polyisocyanate (PAPI) and methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) as component A and polyether polyols, catalysts

We prepared silver nanoparticles (AgNP) embedded in SiO2 using a green polyol approach by conducting the synthesis at ambient temperature and pH. Glycerol solutions of SiO2 and silver nitrate were stirred overnight at room temperature. UV-vis spectra and TEM images of the reaction dispersion and XRD patterns of the centrifuged solid confirmed formation of AgNP (6 ± 2 nm) were embedded in SiO2. AAS

To expand the application range of modified asphalt and mixtures and effectively reduce the aggregation of nanomaterials in asphalt, nanocarbon/styrene butadiene styrene (SBS)/rubber powder composite-modified asphalt is proposed. This paper presents a laboratory study on the performance of nanocarbon/copolymer SBS/rubber powder composite-modified asphalt, and nanocarbon particles modified by titanate

The new method of rock breaking based on the combination of circular sawblade and conical pick was proposed to improve the effectiveness of hard rock breaking. The numerical simulation method was applied to research the conical pick cutting arc rock plate by ANSYS/LS-DYNA. The conical pick cutting arc rock plate numerical simulation model was established to research the influence of arc rock plate

The primary goal of this study is to find an easy and convenient way to estimate the degree of compaction in real time for compaction quality control. In this paper, an artificial neural network classifier is developed to identify the different characteristic patterns of drum vibration and classify them according to the different compaction levels. At first, a field compaction experiment is designed

The high-efficiency paste backfilling mining technology of solid waste in thick coal seam above 6 m is a complex system engineering, which involves mining, backfilling, supporting, subsidence, safety, and other aspects, so it is of great strategic significance to study the technology. In this paper, on the basis of comprehensive research methods such as laboratory experiments, theoretical analysis

To study the influence of blade profiles of the plastic centrifugal pump on pump performance, the impeller blade profiles were designed and drawn by the single arc method, double arc method, logarithmic spiral method, and B-spline curve method, respectively, with the known structural parameters.The shape and size of four profiles were drawn, and two-dimensional models and three-dimensional models of

To analytically describe the internal stress in a fill mass made of granular man-made material (cemented paste backfill, CPB), a new 3D effective stress model is developed. The developed model integrates Bishop effective stress principle, water retention relationship, and arching effect. All model parameters are determined from measurable experimental data. The uncertainties of the model parameters

This study evaluates foaming behavior and pore structure evolution of aluminum foam by cross-sectional image processing, which was prepared by the powder compact melting (PCM) method under the constraint. The results revealed that the heating time and the heating rate are the key factors affecting the foaming behavior and pore structure of aluminum foam. The thermal decomposition of the foaming agent

The liquefaction of tailings is a common failure mode under earthquake actions. The traditional treatment measures of waste rubber have the disadvantages of environmental pollution and occupying soil resources. The combined treatment of waste rubber and tailings is very likely to have important engineering application and theoretical value, and the dynamic characteristics of the rubber-tailings mixture

This study aimed to investigate the potential of Canna indica stem-based activated carbon (CISAC) for the removal of Pb (II) ions from synthetic solution and paint industry wastewater. The effects of pH, initial Pb (II) ion concentration, and adsorbent dose were studied using an aqueous solution prepared using pure lead nitrate (Pb(NO₃)₂) on a batch mode. Dried Canna indica stem (CIS) was carbonized

The function of a resin anchoring agent is to bond the rock of a borehole wall with the body of the anchor so the anchor can play an effective supporting role. The anchoring effect is related to the performance of the resin anchoring agent used and to the stirring rate applied during the anchor installation process. In this report, the stirring rate of the resin anchoring agent is evaluated and discussed

This experimental research investigates the effect of utilizing metakaolin (MK) on the behavior of recycled aggregate concrete (RAC). The RAC incorporates recycled coarse aggregate (RCA) originated from crushing construction and demolition waste. The investigated parameters were RCA and MK contents. Tests of workability and mechanical properties such as compressive strength, splitting tensile strength

Based on the thermodynamic conversion mechanism and energy transition principle, a three-dimensional cellular automata model of grain growth is established from the aspects of grain orientation, grain size distribution, grain growth kinetics, and grain topology. Also, the effect of temperature on the three-dimensional grain growth process of AZ31 magnesium alloy is analyzed. The results show that the

This work focuses on the erodent capability of yttria-stabilized zirconia beads impacting on a limestone target surface. The target surface was used as the cap of a hardened steel vial clamped on a SPEX Mixer/Mill 8000. The vial three-dimensional swing results in repeated bead impacts that cause the material removal from the target surface. The mass loss varies linearly with the number of beads, which

The authors have developed a new binder, KMP, which is made from oxalic acid-activated phosphate rock, monopotassium phosphate (KH2PO4), and reactive magnesia (MgO). This study explores the acid neutralization capacity, strength characteristics, water-soaking durability, resilient modulus, and pore size distribution of KMP stabilized soils with individual Zn, Pb, or coexisting Zn and Pb contaminants

In this paper, the physicochemical and mechanical properties of Raffia vinifera pith (RVP) are discussed. Microscopic observations have shown that the structure of the RVP is similar to that of a composite consisting of natural fibers. The effective area ratio of Raffia vinifera (RV) fibers was evaluated along the raffia stem using ImageJ software, and it decreases from the periphery to the center

Combining a super photoresponsive BiVO4 catalyst to the large band gap TiO2 material seems to be a great interest in order to improve the visible-light-driven photodegradation of hazardous pollutants. BiVO4/TiO2 heterojunction composites have been synthesized via a simple one-pot hydrothermal route. Herein, we carefully highlighted the effect of BiVO4 content on the physicochemical and photocatalytic

The issue of concrete strength often arises in civil engineering practice, either due to quality control of new constructions or due to the assessment of existing structures. To this aim, one of the most widely spread techniques is the rebound hammer (Schmidt hammer) test, for which calibration is still related to the original Schmidt curve dating back to the early 50’s. In spite of the large amount

Polypyrrole (PPy) has been widely used as a sensing material in many studies as PPy gives out noticeable reactions towards varieties of vapours of acids, bases, alcohols, alkanes, and chemical warfare agent (CWA) simulants. However, due to dispersion and mechanical properties limitation, PPy in nanoparticles (PPy NPs) has been introduced. The combinations between PPy NPs and nanosized metal oxide have

Crawler rice combine harvester threshing rack excited by different frequencies of multiple working parts would cause strong vibration response. In this paper, the rack-type rice combine harvester threshing rack was taken as research objective, and then the static analysis of the existing threshing rack was carried out by ANSYS Finite Element software. The topology of the rack structure was optimized

Poly (butylene terephthalate) (PBT) is a popular thermoplastic polyester resin but has low strength and low melting point. To improve its properties, PBT is often mixed with other resins, such as high-density polyethylene (HDPE). In this study, PBT/HDPE samples with 100% PBT, 5%, 10%, 15%, and 100% HDPE are generated and tested. The samples are analyzed by tensile strength, flexural strength, impact

Nanoparticles are used in innovative mortars in order to improve their engineering properties. In this paper, recycled PET (polyethylene terephthalate) nanoparticles were used as a substitute for sand in mortars. PET aggregates were obtained cutting water bottles wastes into many small sized pieces and the plastic fibres were treated through chemical depolymerization process. Mortars with different

As it is very difficult to construct conforming plate elements and the solutions achieved with conforming elements yield inferior accuracy to those achieved with nonconforming elements on many occasions, nonconforming elements, especially Adini’s element (ACM element), are often recommended for practical usage. However, the convergence, good numerical accuracy, and high computing efficiency of ACM

Stress transfer and redistribution always accompany with the evolution of landslides. However, previous literature studies have mainly focused on stages of stress variation, and far too little attention has been paid to detailed transfer and redistribution process analysis on stress variation. In this paper, a large-scale clay model slope with masonry slide bed and prefabricated cambered slip surface

Agrifood by-products are a key element within Europe’s sustainable strategies. Valorization and reuse of zero-waste technologies are becoming more popular, and they are commonly named as “second-generation food waste management.” The present study is directed to the valuable extracts of “green” organic compounds from the by-products of fruit and berry/vegetable crops, which can be revalorized in sustainable

Solid assemblies of carbon quantum dots (CQDs) are important for diverse applications including LEDs, solar cells, and photosensors; their optical and electrical properties have not been explored yet. Herein, we used amphiphilic CQDs synthesized from citric acid and thiourea by a solvothermal method to fabricate CQD solid films. Optical properties of CQDs studied by UV-Vis and photoluminescence spectroscopies

Permeability is one of the most important engineering properties of clayey soil. However, the traditional method for determining the permeability coefficient is time-consuming. To establish a simple and accurate predictive method to obtain the permeability coefficient of artificial clayey soil based on the double cut-off transverse relaxation times (T2 cut-offs) using low-field nuclear magnetic resonance

The properties of pneumatic artificial muscle (PAM) with excellent power-to-weight ratio and natural compliance made it useful for healthcare engineering applications. However, it has undesirable hysteresis effect in controlling a robotic manipulator. This behavior is quasistatic and quasirate dependent which changed with excitation frequency and external force. Apart from this, it also inherits frictional

This paper is based on laser shock peening (LSP) system with a flat-topped beam, using robot simulation software to determine the oblique shock angle of different areas of a certain turbine disk mortise. Three-dimensional finite element analysis was used to study residual stress field of Ni-based alloy GH4169 under flat-topped laser oblique shocking. The effects of different laser energy and different

This paper aimed to explore the performance of concrete with iron tailings sand modified by polypropylene fibers under aggressive environment. Three kinds of concrete (ordinary concrete, concrete with iron tailings sand (ITS), and concrete with ITS modified by polypropylene fibers) were exposed to drying-wetting cycles in 5% Na2SO4 solution for 28, 56, 84, 112, and 140 days. The performance, such as

Steel fiber ultrahigh performance concrete (UHPC) and rubber ultrahigh performance concrete (UHPC) adopt the methods of “rigidity overcomes rigidity” and “softness overcomes rigidity,” respectively, to resist the abrasion and cavitation erosion caused by water flow carrying large solid particles. The above two have been applied in engineering successfully, but there are differences in material properties

The swelling properties of expansive soils can be reduced by the addition of modifiers. Nevertheless, the performance deterioration after modification occurs when weathering for a long term. Therefore, in this study, the effect of drying-wetting cycles on swelling behaviour and compressibility of modified expansive soils with the iron tailing sand and calcium carbide slag has been investigated. The

This paper presents experimental and analytical studies on flexural behavior of slab-rib integrated Sandwich composite decks. The influences of layers of glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) facesheets, foam densities, and the existence of webs and cross beams are discussed herein. The test results showed that the existence of vertical webs remarkably improved the debonding of the facesheets from

The increased use of color dyes in industry imposes a great threat to the environment. As such, developing cost-effective techniques for dye removal from wastewater attracted great attention. Earth materials, particularly those with large specific surface area (SSA) and high cation exchange capacity (CEC), were evaluated for their potential use for wastewater treatment. In this study, palygorskite

In order to study and analyze the vibration response of simply supported box girder bridge-maglev vehicle, a 25 m span simply supported box girder bridge of Changsha Maglev Express was selected as the research object. Field tests were carried out to explore the dynamic response of maglev vehicle running on the bridge. Firstly, the dynamic characteristics of the bridge under the action of medium-low

Ag/Ag1.69Sb2.27O6.25 sesame-hollow-ball-type nanocomposites were prepared via a facile one-step hydrothermal method at 400 K. Power X-ray diffraction analysis shows that all diffraction peaks were well consistent with JCPDS card no: 89-6552 of Ag1.69Sb2.27O6.25. Scanning electron microscopy and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy images of the composites indicate that some smaller metallic

Emulsified asphalt needs to be cured for a certain age after demulsification to produce strength, which seriously affects the traffic opening time. In this work, microwave heating technology was applied for emulsified asphalt repair materials. Steel slag with high microwave activity was adopted to improve the performance of emulsified asphalt repair materials by microwave heating. Effects of steel

As the groundwater environment changes in a goaf, the creep deformation of the backfill underwater pressure is worthy of attention. This paper takes the undercut goaf filling in the Yuzhou section of the middle route of the South-to-North Water Transfer Project as an example. Grading loading creep testing of the backfill under different water pressures was carried out using equipment developed by our

This paper focuses on improving the blasting effect of the drilling and blasting method in the deep rock mass and solves the problems of blasthole collapse and misfire accident in the process of drilling and blasting construction of heading face. FEM software, ABAQUS, is used to simulate the stress distribution around the blasthole by extending a certain depth in the vertical direction of the shaft

Copper-lead-zinc mixed ore in Tibet, China, is a complex and refractory polymetallic ore resource; thus, ascertaining its mineralogical properties is very important for comprehensive recovery of valuable elements. In this work, the mineralogical properties of this copper-lead-zinc mixed ore have been characterized in detail following a multidisciplinary approach, including chemical, phase, x-ray diffraction