Exploitation of static and dynamic methods for the analysis of the mechanical nanoproperties of polymethylmetacrylate by indentation

The development of instrumented nanoindentation consists of non-destructive tests applied to miniature volumes of material (PMMA). The present research focuses on the factors explaining the variation in the trends of the mechanical properties studied. The evolution of Young's modulus (E) and contact hardness (H) with depth (h) and indentation force (P) shows the existence of an inflection point (2.77 nm) at low penetrations which separates two zones with the first increasing trend and the second decreasing. Explained respectively by the surface hardening induced by the preparation of the material surface and the existence of a surface hardness gradient denoted by the indentation size effect (ISE) observed at very low depths. In addition, on detection of a critical penetration depth below which the effect of the surface on the nanohardness dominates, the variation in the penetration charge is of the order of 9.71 nm. The differences in results of E and H between the dynamic and static modes are of the order of 8.46% and 6.44% inducing an overestimation of 35 MPa in value of E and an underestimation of 1.23 MPa in value of H. They tend to affect the expected nanoscale precision of the indentation to determine the nanomechanical properties of PMMA.

Evaluation and Optimization of Adsorption Reduction Strategies on Chemical EOR Economics

This paper is dedicated to the selection of the most effective way of mitigating surfactant adsorption in chemical EOR flooding. Mitigation strategies based on either water treatment or adsorption inhibitors were benchmarked for a sea water injection brine, on both performances and economics aspects. Performances in surfactant adsorption reduction were evaluated by applying salinity and/or hardness gradient strategies through dedicated water softening techniques, such as reverse osmosis or nanofiltration. Adsorption inhibitor addition, which does not require any water treatment, was also assessed and optimized for comparison. For each scenario, a suitable surfactant formulation was designed and evaluated through phase diagrams, static adsorption and diphasic coreflood experiments. Then the real benefit of surfactant adsorption reduction on the overall EOR process economics (including the costs of chemicals and water treatment) was assessed depending on the selected strategy. Sea water was considered as the injection brine for this study as it is widely used in chemical EOR process and often suffers high surfactant adsorption level. It was found that residual oil saturation after chemical flooding (SORc) dropped from 29% to 7% by applying a hardness gradient through nanofiltration process while 4% was reached with reverse osmosis. Regarding costs and footprint however, nanofiltration was found to be more advantageous. Adsorption inhibitors addition met similar performances to nanofiltration-based process (SORc=7%) and could be a valuable option depending on injected volume (pilot or small deployment) or field location (off-shore) as they do not require water treatment plant investment. Overall, this study provides useful practical insights on both performances and economics for selecting the most adapted strategy depending on the considered field case.

Control of Local Hardness Gradient of Metal Surface by Inclined Surface Treatment Using Ultrasonic Nanocrystal Surface Modification

We propose an effective method to control the local hardness and morphology of a metal surface by tilting the incident angle of a horn during ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification (UNSM). In this study, surface treatment using UNSM was performed on an S45C specimen and a parameter study was conducted for optimization. The process parameters were the feeding rate, static load, striking force, and processing angle (Ф). In particular, the Ф was analyzed by tilting the horn by 0°, 10°, 20°, 30°, 40°, and 45° to understand its effect on surface hardness and changes in the morphology. From fundamental experiments, some important phenomena were observed, such as grain-microstructure changes along the processing and thickness directions. Furthermore, to verify the practical usefulness of this study, a flat and a hemispherical specimen of S45C material were treated using UNSM with various values of Ф. A significant change in hardness (an increase from 2–45%) and a gradual hardness gradient on the tested specimens could be easily realized by the proposed method. Therefore, we believe that the method is effective for controlling the mechanical hardness of a metal surface.

Time-dependent Microhardness Gradients of Self-adhesive Resin Cements Under Dual- and Self-curing Modes

Clinical Relevance Acid-functional monomers in self-adhesive resin cements may decrease their self-curing polymerization ability. Light irradiation optimizes polymerization performance. SUMMARY Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate Knoop microhardness of self-adhesive resin cements under dual- and self-curing modes in simulated canals for describing the polymerization behavior. Methods and Materials: Slots in lightproof silicone cylinders with one open end were filled with the following eight materials: a traditional resin cement (Duolink), a core build-up resin material (MultiCore Flow), and six self-adhesive resin cements (RelyX Unicem 2, G-Cem Automix, Maxcem, Biscem, Multilink Speed, and PermaCem 2.0). The resins were exposed to light through the open end and then stored in a lightproof box. The Knoop hardness gradient for each resin was measured after 1 hour and 120 hours. Surface readings were obtained at 1-mm intervals from 1 mm to 10 mm away from the open ends. The data were analyzed by two-way analysis of variance and the Student-Newman-Keuls test (α=0.05). Results: All the resin materials had stable Knoop hardness numbers (KHNs) at a certain depth; their KHNs in the self-curing mode did not change (p>0.05). The region above this certain depth was regarded as having undergone the dual-curing mode, and the KHN decreased gradually with depth (p<0.05). Between 1 and 120 hours postexposure, the ratio of the KHN at a 5-mm depth (self-cured) to that at a 1-mm depth (dual-cured) increased in Duolink and MultiCore Flow. However, the ratios of the six adhesive resin cements varied. Conclusion: Without light, most self-adhesive resin cements differed from traditional dual-cured resin materials in terms of Knoop micro-hardness, and they had a lesser capacity for chemical-induced curing.

Twin-wire welding based additive manufacturing (TWAM): manufacture of functionally gradient objects

Purpose Twin-wire welding-based additive manufacturing (TWAM) is a unique process which uses gas metal arc welding (GMAW)-based twin-wire weld-deposition to create functionally gradient materials (FGMs). Presented study aims to focus on creating metallic objects with a hardness gradient using GMAW of twin-wire weld deposition setup. Design/methodology/approach By using dissimilar filler wires in twin-wire weld-deposition, it is possible to create metallic objects with varying hardness. This is made possible by individually controlling the proportion of each filler wire used. ER70S-6 and ER110S-G are the two filler wires used for the study; the former has lower hardness than the latter. In the current study, methodology and various experiments carried out to identify the suitable process parameters at a given location for a desired variation of hardness have been presented. A predictive model for obtaining the wire speed of the filler wires required for a desired value of hardness was also created. Subsequently, sample parts with gradient in various directions have been fabricated. Findings For dissimilar twin-wire weld-deposition used here, it is observed that the resultant hardness is in the volumetric proportion of the hardness of the individual filler wires. This aids the fabrication of FGMs using arc based weld-deposition with localized control of hardness, achieved through the control of the ratio of wire speeds of the individual filler wires. Four sample parts were fabricated to demonstrate the concept of realizing FGMs through TWAM. The fabricated parts showed good match with the desired hardness variation. Research limitations/implications This paper successfully presents the capability of TWAM for creating gradient metallic objects with varying hardness. Although developed using ER70S-6 and ER110S-G filler wire combination, the methodology can be extended for other filler wire combinations too for creating FGMs Originality/value GMAW-based twin-wire welding for additive manufacturing is a novel process which uses dissimilar filler wires for creating FGMs. This paper describes methodology of the same followed by illustration of parts created with bi-directional hardness gradient.