Substrate wettability guided oriented self assembly of Janus particles

Self-assembly of Janus particles with spatial inhomogeneous properties is of fundamental importance in diverse areas of sciences and has been extensively observed as a favorably functionalized fluidic interface or in a dilute solution. Interestingly, the unique and non-trivial role of surface wettability on oriented self-assembly of Janus particles has remained largely unexplored. Here, the exclusive role of substrate wettability in directing the orientation of amphiphilic metal-polymer Bifacial spherical Janus particles, obtained by topo-selective metal deposition on colloidal Polymestyere (PS) particles, is explored by drop casting a dilute dispersion of the Janus colloids. While all particles orient with their polymeric (hydrophobic) and metallic (hydrophilic) sides facing upwards on hydrophilic and hydrophobic substrates respectively, they exhibit random orientation on a neutral substrate. The substrate wettability guided orientation of the Janus particles is captured using molecular dynamic simulation, which highlights that the arrangement of water molecules and their local densities near the substrate guide the specific orientation. Finally, it is shown that by spin coating it becomes possible to create a hexagonal close-packed array of the Janus colloids with specific orientation on differential wettability substrates. The results reported here open up new possibilities of substrate-wettability driven functional coatings of Janus particles, which has hitherto remained unexplored.

Nanoscale Interphase Characterization of Porous CNT Buckypaper Composites in Correlation to Interlaminar Mode I Fracture

In this conference paper, nanoscale material property data and ASTM mode I interlaminar fracture results for three-phase buckypaper samples are presented and analyzed. Vacuum filtration and surfactant-free methods were used to manufacture buckypaper membranes. Epoxy infused buckypaper membranes were placed in front of the crack tip in a stitch bonded carbon fiber polymer matrix composite. Peak Force Quantitative Nanomechanical Mapping (PFQNM), using probes with nominal tip radius in the range of 5–8 nm were used. PFQNM characterized the interphase region between a three-phase sample of carbon monofilament, epoxy resin, and multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) buckypaper. This experiment captured reproducible nanoscale morphological, viscoelastic, elastic and energy properties of porous MWCNT buckypaper samples. An enlarged interphase region surrounding the CNT buckypaper was found. The buckypaper and epoxy interphase thickness was found to be 50nm, higher than the 10–40nm reported for epoxy and carbon monofilaments. The observed MWCNT structure provides explanation of the increased surface roughness compared to the smooth carbon monofilaments. The increased surface roughness likely improves mechanical interlocking with the epoxy of adjacent lamina. The nanoscale interphase and subsurface characterization data provide explanation for a change in crack propagation toughness. Buckypaper exhibited inhomogeneous properties at micrometer length scales.

The use of computational contact mechanics approaches to assess the performance of parts bearing stress concentrators

Purpose: The purpose of this work is to build new computational schemes for assessing the strength parameters of parts with inhomogeneous properties of surface layers in the presence of stress concentrators. Design/methodology/approach: Using the developed approaches of mathematical modeling and open software for calculating the structures of the FEM - FEniCS, the required thickness of the hardened zones of parts has been established, which ensures their minimum softening during operation, depending on the characteristics of the stress concentrator. Findings: It is shown that for each size of the surface stress concentrator there is a critical value of the hardening thickness, the excess of which does not affect the operational strength of the parts, but increases the cost of technological operations. Research limitations/implications: In this article proposes a method for calculating the influence of the dimensional characteristics of hardening zones on the contact strength of parts with stress concentrators under conditions of prevailing power loads. Practical implications: The results obtained in this work were used to determine the technological modes of plasma hardening, which ensure an increase in the contact strength of parts with stress concentrators, depending on their dimensional characteristics. Originality/value: Using the approaches of computational mechanics and mathematical and computer modeling, methods for controlling the contact strength of parts with inhomogeneous non-local properties in the presence of a surface stress concentrator are proposed for the first time.

The Electronic Properties of Extended Defects in SrTiO3—A Case Study of a Real Bicrystal Boundary

This study investigates the impact of extended defects such as dislocations on the electronic properties of SrTiO3 by using a 36.8° bicrystal as a model system. In order to evaluate the hypothesis that dislocations can serve as preferential reduction sites, which has been proposed in the literature on the basis of ab initio simulations, as well as on experiments employing local-conductivity atomic force microscopy (LC-AFM), detailed investigations of the bicrystal boundary are conducted. In addition to LC-AFM, fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) is applied herein as a complementary method for mapping the local electronic properties on the microscale. Both techniques confirm that the electronic structure and electronic transport in dislocation-rich regions significantly differ from those of undistorted SrTiO3. Upon thermal reduction, a further confinement of conductivity to the bicrystal boundary region was found, indicating that extended defects can indeed be regarded as the origin of filament formation. This leads to the evolution of inhomogeneous properties of defective SrTiO3 on the nano- and microscales.

ON THE VIBRATIONS OF INHOMOGENEOUS PIEZO DISC

In the framework of the model of coupled electroelasticity of inhomogeneous bodies, the problem of steady-state oscillations of a thin piezodisc with inhomogeneous properties is considered, in particular, in the presence of radial polarization. The necessary simplifications are made within the framework of traditional hypotheses, the formulated boundary-value problem is reduced to a canonical system of first-order differential equations with respect to dimensionless components of radial displacement and radial stress with corresponding boundary conditions. The direct problem of oscillations of an inhomogeneous disk is solved numerically based on the shooting method by numerically analyzing auxiliary Cauchy problems. The analysis of the amplitude-frequency characteristics and resonance frequencies depending on various laws of variation of the inhomogeneous properties of the piezodisc is performed, which in the presented model are characterized by two functions, one of which characterizes the change in the elastic modulus, the second changes in the piezomodule. The inverse problem is formulated in the first statement, in which the laws of variation of the piezodisc heterogeneity (two functions) are restored from the values of the functions characterizing the radial displacement and stress, known in a finite set of points. The results of computational experiments on solving the inverse problem in the first formulation are presented, various aspects of reconstruction are discussed. The second formulation of the inverse problem is formulated to determine the piezoelectric characteristics of the disk, where a function that describes the laws of change in the elastic characteristics of the disk and the amplitude-frequency characteristic is considered known. To solve the inverse problem, in this formulation, the Fredholm integral equation of the first kind with a smooth kernel is formulated. The results of numerical experiments on solving the Fredholm integral equation of the first kind using the Tikhonov regularizing method are presented, various aspects of reconstruction are discussed.

Design and Additive Manufacturing of Lower Limb Prosthetic Socket

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is not only an innovative approach of fabrication but it fosters a new paradigm to design products. The possibility to confer inhomogeneous properties to the product provides an important design key. This paper concerns the design and manufacture of medical devices that require a high level of customization. We focus the attention on lower limb prosthesis and in particular on the prosthetic socket. The proposed method is centered on the virtual modeling of patient’s residual limb and the virtual process is highly integrated and the data flow is as fluid as possible. Three main phases can be identified: design, validation and manufacture of the socket. Firstly, the technician uses the Socket Modeling Assistant (SMA) tool to design the socket shape. Then, a numerical simulation is run to check pressure distribution and validate the socket shape. Finally, a multi-material 3D printer is used to build the socket. Preliminary results are presented and conclusions are drawn concerning the challenge of multi-material 3D printing of the socket.

Evaluating Material Property Variations in Components With Difficult Geometries

All manufacturing methods produce components which have some degree of inhomogeneous properties. Part properties may vary with location in most fabrication methods including additive manufacturing, casting, forging, welding, and surface modifications. Standard tensile test specimens cannot provide a good map of the properties of the material, except for only the largest of components or simplest of geometries. For example, simple curved shapes, such as pipes cannot be reliably evaluated by straight tensile specimens unless the pipe diameter is large enough to have a sufficiently low curvature from which flat specimens can be machined. This paper will look at part property variations in various components made by different fabrication methods, which include selective laser melting, press and sinter powder metallurgy, rolling and casting. Subsize tensile specimens developed at the Missouri University of Science and Technology have been used to map out material properties with location. This method of mapping out properties provides new information which could be valuable to quality control, process control, and design of components.