1,721,040 research outputs found
Early failure of a locked titanium plate in a proximal humeral fracture: Case report and metallurgic analysis
No full textAngular stability locking plates are commonly used in proximal humeral fractures, especially in old patients with osteoporotic bones. These implants show good results in short and midterm follow-up, but complications are not uncommon. Here we present a case report to describe a case of early failure of a proximal angular stability plate implanted in a 72 years old female with a highly unstable two part proximal humeral fracture. An optical and metallurgic analysis was also conducted to study the modalities of failure. We concluded that anatomic reduction and restoration of the medial cortical support are crucial in order to minimize the mechanical load on the bone–metal interface and to prevent mechanical failure, in particular when the fracture rim drop in the weak point of the plate that was found in the proximal two symmetric holes (Holes E). © 2018 The Author
Tuning hard and soft magnetic FePt nanocomposites
No full textNanocomposites formed by hard and soft magnetic phases are very promising for magnetic energy storage and biomedical applications. Highly challenging is the development of simple synthesis methods able to tune the phase composition and a thorough structural, morphologic and magnetic characterization in order to understand and optimize the interactions between hard and soft magnetic phases. Mainly depending on Fe:Pt atomic ratio, multi-phase or single phase FePt nanocomposites have been prepared by thermal treatment of core-shell FePt(Ag)@Fe3O4 nanoparticles at 750 °C for 1 h under flow of a Ar + 5% H2 gas mixture (H2 is necessary to reduce Fe2+ and Fe3+ ions of Fe3O4 to Fe0 atoms and the thermal treatment to form the crystalline soft and hard magnetic FePt phases). Performing Rietveld refinement of the XRD data as well as HR-TEM and electron diffraction analyses, the different phases have been singled out. Besides single phase hard L10 FePt and soft magnetic L12 Fe3Pt nanoparticles, two phase soft α-FePt and γ-FePt and hard and soft magnetic L10 FePt and L12 FePt3 nanocomposites have been formed and the structure and morphology correlated to their magnetic behavior. Moreover, for possible applications, it is important to form stable nanoparticle layers; as-prepared FePt(Ag)@Fe3O4 nanoparticles have been chemically attached on a Si substrate, thermally annealed and the morphology, structure and magnetic properties of the layered nanoparticle sample investigated. © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved
Nanocluster superstructures or nanoparticles? the self-consuming scaffold decides
No full textWe show that using the same reaction procedure, by hindering or allowing the formation of a reaction intermediate, the Ag+dodecanethiolate polymeric complex, it is possible to selectively obtain Ag dodecanethiolate nanoparticles or Ag dodecanethiolate nanoclusters in the size range 4-2 nm. Moreover, the Ag dodecanethiolate nanoclusters display a lamellar superstructure templated from the precursor Ag+dodecanethiolate polymeric complex. A plausible formation mechanism is illustrated where, starting from the precursor and scaffold lamellar Ag+ thiolate polymeric complex, first the nanocluster Agn 0 core is formed by reduction of isoplanar Ag+ ions, followed by Ag+ thiolate units that build protection, the nanocluster shell, around the core. The nanoclusters are characterized by elemental analyses, XRD, ATR-FTIR, XPS, XAS, MALDI, ESI, UV-Vis and fluorescence measurements. The luminescent Ag15(dodecanethiolate)11·2H2O nanocluster is achieved in good yield after 4 hours of reaction whereas after 2 hours, the luminescent Ag35(dodecanethiolate)16 is isolated. Both Ag nanoclusters present emission bands in the range 330-450 nm, the shifting depending on the excitation wavelength. This phenomenon is attributed to a possible dipolar state causing distribution in energies due to variability of dipole-dipole interactions. Moreover, both nanoclusters further present a NIR emission at about 700 nm independent from the excitation wavelength. Thanks to their optical and structural properties, the synthesized nanoclusters, perfect molecular/nanoparticle hybrids, have great potentiality for new applications in nanotechnologies. © 2018 The Royal Society of Chemistry
Effect of thermo-mechanical parameters on the mechanical properties of Eurofer97 steel for nuclear applications
No full textEurofer97 steel has been recognised in Europe as the reference steel for nuclear application under high radiation density. Following to this a detailed knowledge of microstructure evolution is required for such steel after thermo-mechanical processing. In this paper the effect of thermo-mechanical parameters on the mechanical behavior of Eurofer97 was investigated by hot rolling and heat treatment on pilot scale. Results show a strong effect was found of reheating temperature before rolling on the material hardness, due to an increase of hardenability following the austenite grain growth. A minor effect was found of the hot reduction and the tempering temperature in the total investigated deformation range. A loss of impact energy was found coupled with the hardness increase. © 2018 Andrea Di Schino et al., published by De Gruyter
Microstructure and wear behavior of plasma-sprayed nanostructured WC-Co coatings
No full textAtmospheric plasma spraying of WC-Co particles with standard gas mixtures (Ar-H2) typically results in largely decarburized coatings with relatively low wear resistance. To fabricate cermet coatings with enhanced tribological properties, nanostructured WC-Co coatings were plasma sprayed using two different process gas mixtures. Phase composition and microstructure were investigated by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. Microhardness increased by increasing the amount of retained WC grains in coating microstructure. Friction and wear properties, measured under dry sliding conditions, strongly depended on the degree of decarburization. They were comparable to those of conventional coatings produced using identical conditions. © 2012 The American Ceramic Society
Grain size reduction strategies on Eurofer
No full textOne of the options currently taken into account for the realization of the first DEMO reactor is the “water-cooled blanket”. This option implies a minimum irradiation temperature for the blanket material in the range of 280–350 °C. In addition to the DBTT (Ductile to Brittle Transition Temperature) shift due to the DPA (displacement per atom) damage under irradiation, also the issue of the increased embrittlement due to He production must be taken into account. This issue appears even more detrimental and less manageable because the DBBT shift due to the Helium production does not saturate with the dose, as it results from previous works reported in literature. The experimental results and the difference in behaviour between ODS (Oxide Dispersion Strengthened Steels) RAFM (Reduced Activation Ferritic Martensitic) and other FM (Ferritic Martensitic) alloys (EM10, P91) showed that it is possible to improve the resistance to He embrittlement by both intra-granular precipitation of Y-Ti oxides and by decreasing the grain size at the same time. Nevertheless, anyway, the multiplication of the grain boundaries increases the dilution of He on grain surface, delaying the formation of He bubbles on grain boundaries and, therefore, the susceptibility to the He embrittlement. Several grain size reduction strategies have then been investigated on EUROFER both at the austenitization stage, on the PAGS (Prior Austenite Grain Size), and at the tempering stage, on the tempered martensite. The microstructural observations have been carried out by means of SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy). Also the effect of grain size reduction on the toughness of the material will be taken into account; The DBTTs resulting from impact tests on KLST specimens will be shown. The outcomes of the microstructural observations, as well as the preliminary mechanical characterization (impact tests) will be discussed in this paper. © 201
Development of innovative steels and thermo-mechanical treatments for DEMO high operating temperature blanket options
No full textAmong the options currently taken into account for the realization of the first DEMO reactor there are the “helium-cooled” and the “dual coolant” breeding blanket. Therefore the high temperature (650 °C) behavior of the proposed innovative martensitic alloys should be improved, namely the frame of the hereby reported activities is the development of martensitic alloys more resistant to creep, suitable to tolerate such a high operating temperature. In order to improve the high temperature mechanical properties, concerning the alloy design strategies, two alternative routes are proposed; the effect of Nitrogen and Tungsten increase are taken into account as well as the addition of carbo-nitride forming elements, like Vanadium, combined with the “ausforming” thermo-mechanical treatments. Two alloys have been designed and a special thermo-mechanical treatment on Eurofer 97-2 is proposed. The “ausforming” treatment, consisting in a sort of hot-working at a lower temperature with respect to the austenitization one after the austenitization stage, is aimed at the achievement of a beneficial dislocation “pinning” at high temperature due to carbide precipitation. Generally the improvement of tensile properties is associated to the hardening of the steel due to dislocation network and precipitation effects. This hardening is accompanied by a DBTT increase to markedly higher values with respect to Standard Eurofer. The proposed materials should be, in any case, at least room temperature ductile in order to undergo safe manufacturing and assembling processes. Therefore the issue of the DBTT increase has been taken into account by tuning the tempering temperature adequately. The two variations from chemical composition of Eurofer 97 have been casted and the thermo-mechanical treatments have been selected by means of SEM and hardness measurements to tune grain size and precipitation of carbides. The outcomes of the preliminary mechanical characterization (tensile, creep and impact tests) will be discussed in this paper. © 201
Structural and mechanical properties of welded joints of reduced activation martensitic steels
No full textGas tungsten arc welding and electron beam welding methods were used to realise welding pools on plates of reduced activation martensitic steels. Structural and mechanical features of these simulated joints have been investigated in as-welded and post-welding heat-treated conditions. The research allowed to assess how each welding technique affects the original mechanical properties of materials and to find suitable post-welding heat treatments. This paper reports results from experimental activities on BATMAN II and F82H mod. steels carried out in the frame of the European Blanket Project - Structural Materials Program. © 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved
Mechanical properties of several newly produced RAFM steels with Tungsten content in the range of 2 wt%
Full text linkThe contribution of ENEA together with Rina-CSM to the Eurofusion programme “WPMAT-Advanced Seels” deals with the development of innovative RAFM steels able to withstand the critical temperatures typical of the different operational environments foreseen for the blanket of the first DEMO reactor. The optimization of the chemical composition and the Thermo Mechanical Treatment for these materials should be done according to the blanket operating temperatures that are related to two possible working conditions: the WCLL-BB (Water Cooled Lead Lithium Breeding Blanket) or the H(D)CLL-BB (Helium (Dual) Cooled Lead Lithium Breeding Blanket). On the one hand the “water-cooling” option implies a minimum irradiation temperature for the blanket material in the range of 280–350 °C. On the other hand, the “helium-cooled” and the “dual-coolant” solutions imply an operating temperature for the blanket material in the range of 650 °C. Therefore in the first case the target is the improvement of the toughness of the martensitic alloys; whilst concerning the second scenario the target is the development of more creep resistant martensitic steels, suitable to tolerate such a high operating temperature. In both the cases the Tungsten content plays a key role, both in terms of solid solution hardening and influence on the DBTT. Two alloys aimed at fulfilling the specifications for the two DEMO operating conditions, both with increased Tungsten content respect to Eurofer, have been produced and characterized. The mechanical properties of these two alloys are hereby reported and discussed
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