Abstract
This study is aimed to investigate the electrically conductive properties of epoxy nanocomposites exposed to an acidic environment under various mechanical loads. For simultaneous assessment of the acidic environment and mechanical load on the electrical conductivity of the samples, the samples with and without carbon nanotubes were exposed to the acidic environment under three different loading conditions for 20 days. Then, the aged samples' strength and flexural stiffness degradation under crude oil and bending stress were measured using a three-point flexural test. The aged samples in the acidic environment and under 80 percent of their intact ultimate strength revealed a 9% and 26% reduction of their electrical conductivity for samples with and without CNTs, respectively. The presence of nanoparticles declined flexural stiffness by about 16.39%. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of the specimen were used to evaluate the dispersion quality of CNTs. The results of this study can be exploited in constructing conductive composite electrodes to be used in petroleum environments such as crude oil electrostatic tanks.
Address
Seyed Morteza Razavi: Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Science and Culture, Tehran, 14619-68151, Iran
Soroush Azhdari:The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada/ School of Mechanical Engineering, Iran University of Science and Technology, Tehran, 16846-13114, Iran
Fathollah Taheri-Behrooz: School of Mechanical Engineering, Iran University of Science and Technology, Tehran, 16846-13114, Iran
Abstract
In this paper, a powerful photocatalyst based on carbon nanocomposite is developed in order to obtain a new material applicable in water treatment and especially for the discoloration of effluents used in the textile industry. For that, TiO2-graphene nanocomposites have been successfully synthesized by a mixture of Functionalized Graphene Sheet (FGS) and tetrachlorotitanium complexes to form FGS-TiO2 nanocomposite. In the presence of an anionic surfactant, we used a new chemical process to functionalize graphene sheets in order to make them an excellent medium for blocking and preventing the aggregation of TiO2 nanoparticles. The components of these nanocomposites are characterized by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), which confirms the successful formation of the FGS-TiO2 nanocomposite. It was found that the TiO2 nanoparticles were dispersed uniformly on the graphene plane which possesses better charge separation capability than pure TiO2. The FGS-TiO2 nanocomposites exhibited higher photocatalytic activity compared to pure TiO2 for the removal of three dyes: such as Methylene Blue (MB), Bromophenol Blue (BB) and Alizarin Red-S (AR) in water. The removal process was fast and more efficient with FGS-TiO2 nanocomposite in daylight (in the absence of UV irradiation) compared to pure TiO2 nanoparticles without and under UV in all pH range.
Key Words
graphene; nanocomposite; photocatalyst; tetrachlorotitanium; wastewater
Address
R. Aitbelale: University of Chouaïb Doukkali, Faculty of sciences, Laboratory of Catalysis and Corrosion of Materials, El Jadida, Morocco
A. Timesli: Hassan II University of Casablanca, National Higher School of Arts and Crafts (ENSAM CASABLANCA),
AICSE Laboratory, 20670 Casablanca, Morocco
A. Sahibed-dine: University of Chouaïb Doukkali, Faculty of sciences, Laboratory of Catalysis and Corrosion of Materials, El Jadida, Morocco
Abstract
This study is aimed to investigate the electrically conductive properties of epoxy nanocomposites exposed to an acidic environment under various mechanical loads. For simultaneous assessment of the acidic environment and mechanical load on the electrical conductivity of the samples, the samples with and without carbon nanotubes were exposed to the acidic environment under three different loading conditions for 20 days. Then, the aged samples' strength and flexural stiffness degradation under crude oil and bending stress were measured using a three-point flexural test. The aged samples in the acidic environment and under 80 percent of their intact ultimate strength revealed a 9% and 26% reduction of their electrical conductivity for samples with and without CNTs, respectively. The presence of nanoparticles declined flexural stiffness by about 16.39%. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of the specimen were used to evaluate the dispersion quality of CNTs. The results of this study can be exploited in constructing conductive composite electrodes to be used in petroleum environments such as crude oil electrostatic tanks.
Abstract
The main goal of the present study was to assess the effects of eggshell powder (ESP) and halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) on the mechanical properties of abaca fiber (AF)-reinforced natural composites. For this purpose, a limited number of indentation tests were first performed on the AF/polypropylene (PP) composites for different HNT and ESP loadings (0 wt.% ~ 6 wt.%), load amplitudes (150, 200, and 250 N), and two types of indenters (Vickers or conical). The Young's modulus, hardness and plasticity index of each specimen were calculated using the indentation test results and Oliver-Pharr method. The accuracy of the experimental results was confirmed by comparing the values of the Young's modulus obtained from the indentation test with the results of the conventional tensile test. Then, a feed-forward shallow artificial neural network (ANN) with high efficiency was trained based on the obtained experimental data. The trained ANN could properly predict the variations of the mentioned mechanical properties of AF/PP composites incorporated with different HNT and ESP loadings. Furthermore, the trained ANN demonstrated that HNTs increase the elastic modulus and hardness of the composite, while the incorporation of ESP reduces these properties. For instance, the Young's modulus of composites incorporated with 3 wt.% of ESP decreased by 30.7% compared with the pure composite, while increasing the weight fraction of ESP up to 6% decreased the Young's modulus by 34.8%. Moreover, the trained ANN indicated that HNTs have a more significant effect on reducing the plasticity index than ESP.
Address
Saeed Kamarian and Jung-Il Song: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Changwon National University, Changwon, South Korea
Ali Khalvandi, Reza Barbaz-Isfahani and Saeed Saber-Samandari: Composites Research Laboratory (CRLab), Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran/ New Technologies Research Center, Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran
Thanh Mai Nguyen Tran: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Changwon National University, Changwon, South Korea/ Faculty of civil engineering, Nha Trang University, Nha Trang 650000, Vietnam
Abstract
Wearing the right sportswear is one of the essential points in exercising, which is mainly neglected. Sportswear should be suitable for the ambient temperature and not cause more heat or cold in the athlete's body. On the other hand, increased sweating and blood circulation during exercise should not cause fatigue or heatstroke in the athlete. Nanotechnology has grown significantly in the field of producing more efficient equipment in the field of sports. The increase in demand in sports for complete sports equipment has revealed the necessity of using the highest quality materials in this sector. In the world of championship sports, a minor change in equipment can lead to significant changes in causing failure and victory. Since the sole is the most critical part of sports shoes, with the introduction of nanotechnology and nanocomposites, it is possible to help athletes rush and increase their sense of calm and satisfaction. Using nanocomposites in the soles of shoes can improve some of their characteristics, prevent the smell and sweat of shoes, and induce water repellency in these shoes. In this research, titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanocomposite, along with cellulose, has been used to create antibacterial and hydrophobic properties in the soles of sports shoes. The synthesized nanocomposite has been synthesized using the least amount of chemicals, which shows this method's easy and cost-effective synthesis.
Key Words
physical activities; shoe soles; sport; TiO2 nanocomposite
Address
Xufei Li: College of Ministry of sports, Chang'an University, Xi'an 710061, Shaanxi, China
H. Elhosiny Ali: Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, King Khalid University, P.O. Box 9004, Abha, Saudi Arabia
Ibrahim Albaijan: Mechanical Engineering Department, College of Engineering at Al Kharj, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al Kharj 11942, Saudi Arabia
Abstract
This work aims to present a solution for the buckling behavior of perforated nano/microbeams with deformable boundary conditions using nonlocal strain gradient theory (NLSGT). For the first time, a solution that can provide buckling loads based on the non-local and strain gradient effects of perforated nanostructures on an elastic foundation, while taking into account both deformable and rigid boundary conditions. Stokes' transformation and Fourier series are used to realize this aim and determine the buckling loads under various boundary conditions. We employ the NLSGT to account for size-dependent effects and utilize the Winkler model to formulate the elastic foundation. The buckling behavior of the perforated nano/microbeams restrained with lateral springs at both ends is studied for various parameters such as the number of holes, the length and filling ratio of the perforated beam, the internal length, the nonlocal parameter and the dimensionless foundation parameter. Our results indicate that the number of holes and filling ratio significantly affect the buckling response of perforated nano/microbeams. Increasing the filling ratio increases buckling loads, while increasing the number of holes decreases buckling loads. The effects of the non-local and internal length parameters on the buckling behavior of the perforated nano/microbeams are also discussed. These material length parameters have opposite effects on the variation of buckling loads. This study presents an effective eigenvalue solution based on Stokes' transformation and Fourier series of the restrained nano/microbeams under the effects of elastic medium, perforation parameters, deformable boundaries and nonlocal strain gradient elasticity for the first time.
Abstract
Biological corrosion, a crucial aspect of metal degradation, has received limited attention despite its significance. It involves the deterioration of metals due to corrosion processes influenced by living organisms, including bacteria. Soil represents a substantial threat to pipeline corrosion as it contains chemical and microbial factors that cause severe damage to water, oil, and gas transmission projects. To combat fouling and corrosion, corrosion inhibitors are commonly used; however, their production often involves expensive and hazardous chemicals. Consequently, researchers are exploring natural and eco-friendly alternatives, specifically nano-sized products, as potent corrosion inhibitors. This study aims to environmentally synthesize silver nanoparticles using an extract from Lagoecia cuminoides L and evaluate their effectiveness in preventing biological corrosion of buried pipes in soil. The optimal experimental conditions were determined as follows: a volume of 4 ml for the extract, a volume of 4 ml for silver nitrate (AgNO3), pH 9, a duration of 60 minutes, and a temperature of 60 degrees Celsius. Analysis using transmission electron microscopy confirmed the formation of nanoparticles with an average size of approximately 28 nm, while X-ray diffraction patterns exhibited suitable peak intensities. By employing the Scherer equation, the average particle size was estimated to be around 30 nm. Furthermore, antibacterial studies revealed the potent antibacterial activity of the synthesized silver nanoparticles against both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria. This property effectively mitigates the biological corrosion caused by bacteria in steel pipes buried in soil.
Key Words
green synthesis; microbiological corrosion; silver nanoparticles; soil; steel pipe
Address
Zhi Zhang: Shaanxi Geological Construction Land Survey, Planning and Design Institute Co., Ltd, Xi'an 710082, Shaanxi, China
Jingguo Du: Collaborative Innovation Center of Green Development and Ecological Restoration of Mineral Resources,
North China University of Science and Technology, Tangshan 063210, Hebei, China
Tayebeh Mahmoudi: Hoonam Sanat Farnak, Engineering and Technology knowledge-based enterprise Company, Iran
Abstract
Natural frequency behavior of graphene platelets reinforced composite (GPL-RC) joined truncated conical– cylindrical- conical shells resting on Winkler-type elastic foundation is presented in this paper for the first time. The rule of mixture and the modified Halpin-Tsai approach are applied to achieve the mechanical properties of the structure. Four different graphene platelets patterns are considered along the thickness of the structure such as GPLA, GPLO, GPLX, GPLUD. Finite element procedure according to Rayleigh-Ritz formulation has been used to solve 2D-axisymmetric elasticity equations. Application of 2D axisymmetric elasticity theory allows thickness stretching unlike simple shell theories, and this gives more accurate results, especially for thick shells. An efficient parametric investigation is also presented to show the effects of various geometric variables, three different boundary conditions, stiffness of elastic foundation, dispersion pattern and weight fraction of GPLs nanofillers on the natural frequencies of the joined shell. Results show that GPLO and BC3 provide the most rigidity that cause the most natural frequencies among different BCs and GPL patterns. Also, by increasing the weigh fraction of nanofillers, the natural frequencies will increase up to 200%.
Key Words
finite element method; graphene platelets-reinforced composites; joined truncated conical-cylindrical-conical shell; natural frequency analysis; Winkler elastic foundation
Address
Xiangling Wang: Department of Mining Engineering, Lyuliang University, Luliang, China
Xiaofeng Guo: College of information Science and Engineering, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, China
Masoud Babaei:Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Eyvanekey, Eyvanekey, Semnan, Iran
Rasoul Fili: Department of Engineering, Imam Ali University, Tehran, Iran
Hossein Farahani: Department of Civil engineering, Islamic Azad University,Central Tehran Branch, Tehran, Iran