• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.34 no.9
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• pp.422-431
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• 2024

Hydrothermal and ultrasonic processes were used in this study to synthesize a single-atom Cu anchored on t-BaTiO₃. The resulting material effectively employs vibration energy for the piezoelectric (PE) catalytic degradation of pollutants. The phase and microstructure of the sample were analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and it was found that the sample had a tetragonal perovskite structure with uniform grain size. The nanomaterial achieved a considerable increase in tetracycline degradation rate (approximately 95 % within 7 h) when subjected to mechanical vibration. In contrast, pure BaTiO₃ demonstrated a degradation rate of 56.7 %. A significant number of piezo-induced negative charge carriers, electrons, can leak out to the Cu-doped BaTiO₃ interface due to Cu's exceptional conductivity. As a result, a single-atom Cu catalyst can facilitate the separation of these electrons, resulting in synergistic catalysis. By demonstrating a viable approach for improving ultrasonic and PE materials this research highlights the benefits of combining ultrasonic technology and the PE effect.

• Archives of Metallurgy and Materials
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• v.64 no.3
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• pp.953-957
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• 2019

U-10wt.%Zr metallic fuel slugs containing rare-earth (RE: a rare-earth alloy comprising 53% Nd, 25% Ce, 16% Pr and 6% La) elements for a sodium-cooled fast reactor were fabricated by modified injection casting as an alternative method. The distribution, size and composition of the RE inclusions in the metallic fuel slugs were investigated according to the content of the RE inclusions. There were no observed casting defects, such as shrunk pipes, micro-shrinkage or hot tears formed during solidification, in the metallic fuel slugs fabricated by modified injection casting. Scanning electron micrographs and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) showed that the Zr and RE inclusions were uniformly distributed in the matrix and the composition of the RE inclusions was similar to that of a charged RE element. The content and the size of the RE inclusions increased slightly according to the charge content of the RE elements. RE inclusions in U-Zr alloys will have a positive effect on fuel performance due to their micro-size and high degree of distribution.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.315-321
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• 2024

Although achieving a high fracture toughness is essential for designing reliable aircraft components using aluminum alloys, only a limited number of studies have discussed the relationship between microstructure and fracture toughness. Therefore, in this study, the effects of dynamic recrystallization on the fracture toughness of Al7050 extruded alloy were investigated. Because of the temperature deviation in the extruded large component, incomplete dynamic recrystallization (DRX) occurred that results into the higher Kernel average misorientation (KAM) and sub-grain structure fraction compare with the complete DRX region. Although incomplete DRX changes KAM and sub-grain fraction, the strength and ductility difference between complete and incomplete DRX regions are not in big difference. The accumulated KAM reduces the plastic zone size, and both cleavage and a lower micro-void fraction are observed in the incomplete DRX region. Based on the different fracture behavior from different DRX behavior, the fracture toughness of the incomplete DRX is lower than that of the complete DRX region. This result implies how a different DRX behavior from temperature variation affects to the fracture toughness of high-strength aluminum alloys.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.335-352
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• 2024

Low carbon energy demand in South Korea is increasing, hence leading to an increasing usage of wood pellets and the amount of its combustion by-product called wood pellet fly ash (WA). In an effort to develop recycling technology, this research investigates the use of WA as a new sustainable binder for backfill soil materials. The influence of WA on weathered granite soils (WS) is investigated by mixing 5%, 15%, and 25% of WA dosage, compacted at optimum moisture content, then cured for 3, 7, 14, and 28 days. After curing, the compacted specimens were investigated through unconfined compressive tests, pH tests, total suction tests, and microstructural analysis. The findings suggest that the higher the dosage rate, the higher strength and modulus. Additionally, the alkali ions of WA aid in the cementation of WS particles, and newly cementitious minerals are confirmed after 28 curing days. The refinement of pore microstructures led to a denser WS matrix and stiffness improvements. The results validate the binding potential of wood pellet fly ash on weathered granite soils in terms of strength, modulus, and microstructures.

• Archives of Metallurgy and Materials
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• v.65 no.4
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• pp.1249-1254
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• 2020

The effect of TiC content on the microstructure and mechanical properties of a nanocrystalline Fe-Mn alloy was investigated by XRD analysis, TEM observation, and mechanical tests. A sintered Fe-Mn alloy sample with nano-sized crystallites was obtained using spark plasma sintering. Crystallite size, which is used as a hardening mechanism, was measured by X-ray diffraction peak analysis. It was observed that the addition of TiC influenced the average size of crystallites, resulting in a change in austenite stability. Thus, the volume fraction of austenite at room temperature after the sintering process was also modified by the TiC addition. The martensite transformation during cooling was suppressed by adding TiC, which lowered the martensite start temperature. The plastic behavior and the strain-induced martensite kinetics formed during plastic deformation are discussed with compressive stress-strain curves and numerical analysis for the transformation kinetics.

• Archives of Metallurgy and Materials
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• v.66 no.3
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• pp.759-763
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• 2021

The effects of the sintering holding time and cooling rate on the microstructure and mechanical properties of nanocrystalline Fe-Cr-C alloy were investigated. Nanocrystalline Fe-1.5Cr-1C (wt.%) alloy was fabricated by mechanical alloying and spark plasma sintering. Different process conditions were applied to fabricate the sintered samples. The phase fraction and grain size were measured using X-ray powder diffraction and confirmed by electron backscatter diffraction. The stability and volume fraction of the austenite phase, which could affect the mechanical properties of the Fe-based alloy, were calculated using an empirical equation. The sample names consist of a number and a letter, which correspond to the holding time and cooling method, respectively. For the 0A, 0W, 10A, and 10W samples, the volume fraction was measured at 5.56, 44.95, 6.15, and 61.44 vol.%. To evaluate the mechanical properties, the hardness of 0A, 0W, 10A, and 10W samples were measured as 44.6, 63.1, 42.5, and 53.8 HRC. These results show that there is a difference in carbon diffusion and solubility depending on the sintering holding time and cooling rate.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.125-142
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• 2011

In the present paper, a numerical simulation method based on mesoscopic composite structure of concrete, the truss network model, is developed to evaluate the diffusivity of concrete in order to account for the microstructure of concrete, the binding effect of chloride ions and the chloride concentration dependence. In the model, concrete is described as a three-phase composite, consisting of mortar, coarse aggregates and the interfacial transition zones (ITZs) between them. The advantage of the current model is that it can easily represent the movement of mass (e.g. water or chloride ions) through ITZs or the potential cracks within concrete. An analytical method to estimate the chloride diffusivity of mortar and ITZ, which are both treated as homogenious materials in the model, is introduced in terms of water-to-cement ratio (w/c) and sand volume fraction. Using the newly developed approaches, the effect of cracking of concrete on chloride diffusion is reflected by means of the similar process as that in the test. The results of calculation give close match with experimental observations. Furthermore, with consideration of the binding capacity of chloride ions to cement paste and the concentration dependence for diffusivity, the one-dimensional nonlinear diffusion equation is established, as well as its finite difference form in terms of the truss network model. A series of numerical analysises performed on the model find that the chloride diffusion is substantially influenced by the binding capacity and concentration dependence, which is same as that revealed in some experimental investigations. This indicates the necessity to take into account the binding capacity and chloride concentration dependence in the durability analysis and service life prediction of concrete structures.

• Journal of Korea Foundry Society
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.81-87
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• 2016

In this study, the effect of scrap ratio on the mechanical properties of Zr alloys was studied. Oxygen content in the ingot cake increased rapidly with increasing fraction of scrap, which can be attributed to the surface oxide of scrap including small pieces of turning, chips, etc. Iron content did not increase much with the increasing addition of scrap, suggesting scrap materials was well reserved in the iron-free container. As-cast structure of Zr alloy with the scrap:sponge ratio displayed plate/or needle ${\alpha}$ phase and no appreciable change of the cast structure was observed with change of scrap fraction. The strength increases with increasing fraction of scrap, which can be attributed to the increase of oxygen content. The ductility decreased slightly with increase of scrap fraction. Dislocation-oxygen interaction is known to increase the strength at the expense of ductility. Ingot cake with intentionally added $Fe_2O_3$ exhibited the drastic decrease of the formability, even exhibited the brittle fracture behavior during rolling. The oxidation resistance, however, increased with the increase of scrap fraction because of high oxygen content, which may prevent more penetration and diffusion of oxygen into matrix.

• Journal of Welding and Joining
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.98-105
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• 2012

The focus of this investigation is to evaluate the effect of joining parameter on the microstructure and mechanical properties of welds produced by friction stir lap welding. The dissimilar Al alloys, KS5J32 and AA6K31, were joined by friction stir lap welding technique under several welding conditions, and KS5J32 alloy was placed on the top of AA6K31 alloy. The tool rotation speeds were 1000, 1250, and 1500rpm, and the welding speeds were 100, 300, 500, 700mm/min, respectively. The results showed that two shapes of nugget, such as onion ring and irregular vortex type, were observed with various revolutionary pitch. In all welding conditions, fracture occurred at the soften region of bottom sheet(AA6K31) and the strengths were 64~78% of those of base metal. Fractured positions were classified into three types : HAZ, triple point, void depending on the revolutionary pitch. The actual thickness of specimen at the fractured location was decreased with decreasing heat input. A linear relationship exists between the effective thickness of fractured position and peak load.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.56 no.6
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• pp.549-557
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• 2019

More than two decades of world-wide research efforts have resulted in several classes of potentially important materials. Among them are incipient piezoelectrics, which are especially useful for actuator applications. However, relatively large electric fields are required for activating the large incipient electromechanical strains. So far, many attempts have been made to reduce the required electric field by intentionally inhomogenizing the electric field distribution in the microstructure through core-shell and composite approaches. Here, we show that electric field concentration can be realized simply by adjusting electrode patterns. We have investigated the effect of electrode patterning on the incipient electromechanical strain properties of an exemplarily chosen lead-free relaxor system, revealing that electrode patterning does have a significant role on the strain properties of the given lead-free relaxor system. We believe that this approach would make a new strategy for ones to consider bringing the functional properties of electroceramics beyond their conventional limit.