scholarly journals Dependency of hydration and growth conditions on the mechanical properties of oral biofilms

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Pattem ◽  
M. Davrandi ◽  
S. Aguayo ◽  
B. Slak ◽  
R. Maev ◽  
...  

AbstractWithin the oral cavity, dental biofilms experience dynamic environments, in part due to changes in dietary content, frequency of intake and health conditions. This can impact bacterial diversity and morpho-mechanical properties. While phenotypic properties of oral biofilms are closely related to their composition, these can readily change according to dynamic variations in the growth environment and nutrient availability. Understanding the interlink between phenotypic properties, variable growth conditions, and community characterization is an essential requirement to develop structure–property relationships in oral-biofilms. In this study, the impact of two distinct growth media types with increasing richness on the properties of oral biofilms was assessed through a new combination of in-vitro time-lapse biophysical methods with microbiological assays. Oral biofilms grown in the enriched media composition presented a decrease in their pH, an increase in soluble EPS production, and a severe reduction in bacterial diversity. Additionally, enriched media conditions presented an increase in biofilm volumetric changes (upon hydration) as well as a reduction in elastic modulus upon indentation. With hydration time considered a major factor contributing to changes in biofilm mechanical properties, we have shown that it is less associated than media richness. Future investigations can now use this time-lapse approach, with a clearer focus on the extracellular matrix of oral biofilms dictating their morpho-mechanical properties.

2020 ◽  
Vol 66 (4) ◽  
pp. 303-312
Author(s):  
Chin-Yi Chen ◽  
Ly-Huong T. Nguyen ◽  
George C. Paoli ◽  
Peter L. Irwin

Herein we describe a highly structured, filamentous growth phenotype displayed by an isolate of the food spoilage microorganism Brochothrix thermosphacta. The growth morphology of this B. thermosphacta strain (strain BII) was dependent on environmental factors such as the growth media, incubation temperatures, and the inoculum concentration. Inoculation of cultures in highly dilute suspensions resulted in the formation of isolated, tight aggregates resembling fungal growth in liquid media. This same strain also formed stable, mesh-like structures in 6-well tissue culture plates under specific growth conditions. The complex growth phenotype does not appear to be unique to strain BII but was common among B. thermosphacta strains isolated from chicken. Light and electron micrographs showed that the filaments of multiple BII cells can organize into complex, tertiary structures resembling multistranded cables. Time-lapse microscopy was employed to monitor the development of such aggregates over 18 h and revealed growth originating from short filaments into compact ball-like clusters that appeared fuzzy due to protruding filaments or cables. This report is the first to document this complex filamentous growth phenotype in a wild-type bacterial isolate of B. thermosphacta.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 6734-6742
Author(s):  
A. Syamsir ◽  
S. M. Mubin ◽  
N. M. Nor ◽  
V. Anggraini ◽  
S. Nagappan ◽  
...  

This study investigated the combine effect of 0.2 % drink cans and steel fibers with volume fractions of 0%, 0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, 2%, 2.5% and 3% to the mechanical properties and impact resistance of concrete. Hooked-end steel fiber with 30 mm and 0.75 mm length and diameter, respectively was selected for this study.  The drinks cans fiber were twisted manually in order to increase friction between fiber and concrete. The results of the experiment showed that the combination of steel fibers and drink cans fibers improved the strength performance of concrete, especially the compressive strength, flexural strength and indirect tensile strength. The results of the experiment showed that the combination of steel fibers and drink cans fibers improved the compressive strength, flexural strength and indirect tensile strength by 2.3, 7, and 2 times as compare to batch 1, respectively. Moreover, the impact resistance of fiber reinforced concrete has increase by 7 times as compared to non-fiber concretes. Moreover, the impact resistance of fiber reinforced concrete consistently gave better results as compared to non-fiber concretes. The fiber reinforced concrete turned more ductile as the dosage of fibers was increased and ductility started to decrease slightly after optimum fiber dosage was reached. It was found that concrete with combination of 2% steel and 0.2% drink cans fibers showed the highest compressive, split tensile, flexural as well as impact strength.    


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (9) ◽  
pp. 2323
Author(s):  
Yubing Du ◽  
Zhiqing Zhao ◽  
Qiang Xiao ◽  
Feiting Shi ◽  
Jianming Yang ◽  
...  

To explore the basic mechanical properties and size effects of recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) with different substitution ratios of coarse recycled concrete aggregates (CRCAs) to replace natural coarse aggregates (NCA), the failure modes and mechanical parameters of RAC under different loading conditions including compression, splitting tensile resistance and direct shear were compared and analyzed. The conclusions drawn are as follows: the failure mechanisms of concrete with different substitution ratios of CRCAs are similar; with the increase in substitution ratio, the peak compressive stress and peak tensile stress of RAC decrease gradually, the splitting limit displacement decreases, and the splitting tensile modulus slightly increases; with the increase in the concrete cube’s side length, the peak compressive stress of RAC declines gradually, but the integrity after compression is gradually improved; and the increase in the substitution ratio of the recycled aggregate reduces the impact of the size effect on the peak compressive stress of RAC. Furthermore, an influence equation of the coupling effect of the substitution ratio and size effect on the peak compressive stress of RAC was quantitatively established. The research results are of great significance for the engineering application of RAC and the strength selection of RAC structure design.


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (11) ◽  
pp. 3140
Author(s):  
Kamil Dydek ◽  
Anna Boczkowska ◽  
Rafał Kozera ◽  
Paweł Durałek ◽  
Łukasz Sarniak ◽  
...  

The main aim of this work was the investigation of the possibility of replacing the heavy metallic meshes applied onto the composite structure in airplanes for lightning strike protection with a thin film of Tuball single-wall carbon nanotubes in the form of ultra-light, conductive paper. The Tuball paper studied contained 75 wt% or 90 wt% of carbon nanotubes and was applied on the top of carbon fibre reinforced polymer before fabrication of flat panels. First, the electrical conductivity, impact resistance and thermo-mechanical properties of modified laminates were measured and compared with the reference values. Then, flat panels with selected Tuball paper, expanded copper foil and reference panels were fabricated for lightning strike tests. The effectiveness of lightning strike protection was evaluated by using the ultrasonic phased-array technique. It was found that the introduction of Tuball paper on the laminates surface improved both the surface and the volume electrical conductivity by 8800% and 300%, respectively. The impact resistance was tested in two directions, perpendicular and parallel to the carbon fibres, and the values increased by 9.8% and 44%, respectively. The dynamic thermo-mechanical analysis showed higher stiffness and a slight increase in glass transition temperature of the modified laminates. Ultrasonic investigation after lightning strike tests showed that the effectiveness of Tuball paper is comparable to expanded copper foil.


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 1128
Author(s):  
Sylwia Członka ◽  
Anna Strąkowska ◽  
Agnė Kairytė

In this study, coir fibers were successfully modified with henna (derived from the Lawsonia inermis plant) using a high-energy ball-milling process. In the next step, such developed filler was used as a reinforcing filler in the production of rigid polyurethane (PUR) foams. The impact of 1, 2, and 5 wt % of coir-fiber filler on structural and physico-mechanical properties was evaluated. Among all modified series of PUR composites, the greatest improvement in physico-mechanical performances was observed for PUR composites reinforced with 1 wt % of the coir-fiber filler. For example, on the addition of 1 wt % of coir-fiber filler, the compression strength was improved by 23%, while the flexural strength increased by 9%. Similar dependence was observed in the case of dynamic-mechanical properties—on the addition of 1 wt % of the filler, the value of glass transition temperature increased from 149 °C to 178 °C, while the value of storage modulus increased by ~80%. It was found that PUR composites reinforced with coir-fiber filler were characterized by better mechanical performances after the UV-aging.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathilde Tiennot ◽  
Davide Iannuzzi ◽  
Erma Hermens

AbstractIn this investigation on the mechanical behaviour of paint films, we use a new ferrule-top nanoindentation protocol developed for cultural heritage studies to examine the impact of repeated relative humidity variations on the viscoelastic behaviour of paint films and their mechanical properties in different paint stratigraphies through the changes in their storage and loss moduli. We show that the moisture weathering impact on the micromechanics varies for each of these pigment-oil systems. Data from the nanoindentation protocol provide new insights into the evolution of the viscoelastic properties dsue to the impact of moisture weathering on paint films.


Minerals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 779
Author(s):  
Mohamed Gomah ◽  
Guichen Li ◽  
Salah Bader ◽  
Mohamed Elkarmoty ◽  
Mohamed Ismael

The awareness of the impact of high temperatures on rock properties is essential to the design of deep geotechnical applications. The purpose of this research is to assess the influence of heating and cooling treatments on the physical and mechanical properties of Egyptian granodiorite as a degrading factor. The samples were heated to various temperatures (200, 400, 600, and 800 °C) and then cooled at different rates, either slowly cooled in the oven and air or quickly cooled in water. The porosity, water absorption, P-wave velocity, tensile strength, failure mode, and associated microstructural alterations due to thermal effect have been studied. The study revealed that the granodiorite has a slight drop in tensile strength, up to 400 °C, for slow cooling routes and that most of the physical attributes are comparable to natural rock. Despite this, granodiorite thermal deterioration is substantially higher for quick cooling than for slow cooling. Between 400:600 °C is ‘the transitional stage’, where the physical and mechanical characteristics degraded exponentially for all cooling pathways. Independent of the cooling method, the granodiorite showed a ductile failure mode associated with reduced peak tensile strengths. Additionally, the microstructure altered from predominantly intergranular cracking to more trans-granular cracking at 600 °C. The integrity of the granodiorite structure was compromised at 800 °C, the physical parameters deteriorated, and the rock tensile strength was negligible. In this research, the temperatures of 400, 600, and 800 °C were remarked to be typical of three divergent phases of granodiorite mechanical and physical properties evolution. Furthermore, 400 °C could be considered as the threshold limit for Egyptian granodiorite physical and mechanical properties for typical thermal underground applications.


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 846
Author(s):  
Hastia Asadi ◽  
Joerg Uhlemann ◽  
Natalie Stranghoener ◽  
Mathias Ulbricht

Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)-coated glass fiber fabrics are used for long-lasting membrane structures due to their outstanding mechanical properties, chemical stabilities, and satisfying service life. During their operation time, different environmental impacts might influence their performance, especially regarding the mechanical properties. In this contribution, the impact of water on the tensile strength deterioration was assessed experimentally, providing evidence of considerable but partially reversible loss of strength by up to 20% among the various types of investigated industrially established fabrics.


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