Nanoscale Removal of Picosecond Laser Ablation for Polymer.

This paper analytically investigates the picosecond laser ablation of polymer. Laser-pulsed ablation is a well-established tool for polymer. However the ablation mechanism of laser processing for polymer has not been thoroughly understood yet. This study utilized a thermal transport model to analyze the relationship between the ablation rate and laser fluences. This model considered the energy balance at the decomposition interface as the ablation mechanisms and is applied to predict the laser-ablated depth of Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene/PolyVinyl Chloride (ABS/PVC). The calculated variation of the ablation rate with the logarithm of the laser fluence agrees with the measured data. The effects of material properties and processing parameters on the ablation depth per pulse are discussed for picosecond laser processing of ABS/PVC.

Analysis for Heat Transfer in a High Current-Passing Carbon Nanosphere Using Nontraditional Thermal Transport Model.

This paper investigates the thermal transport in hollow microscale and nanoscale spheres subject to electrical heat source using nontraditional thermal transport model. Working as supercapacitor electrodes, carbon hollow micrometer- and nanometer-sized spheres needs excellent heat transfer characteristics to maintain high specific capacitance, long cycle life, and high power density. In the nanoscale regime, the prediction of heat transfer from the traditional heat conduction equation based on Fourier's law deviates from the measured data. Consequently, the electrical heat source-induced heat transfer characteristics in hollow micrometer- and nanometer-sized spheres are studied using nontraditional thermal transport model. The effects of parameters on heat transfer in the hollow micrometer- and nanometer-sized spheres are discussed in this study. The results reveal that the heat transferred into the spherical interior, temperature and heat flux in the hollow sphere decrease with the increasing Knudsen number when the radius of sphere is comparable to the mean free path of heat carriers.

Comparative mechanical property characterization of 3 all-ceramic core materials.

PURPOSE: The biaxial flexural strength and fracture toughness for 3 representative types of ceramic core materials were studied to (1) ascertain the ranking of the 3 ceramic types for strength and toughness, and (2) provide clinicians with more information to predict clinical outcomes. The former aim was deemed important in view of the importance of flaw size in the relationship between failure stress and fracture toughness of brittle materials. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The 3 representative ceramic types included a leucite-reinforced glass, a glass-infiltrated sintered alumina, and a high-purity, high-density alumina. The biaxial flexural strength was measured with the piston-on-3-ball method. The plane-strain fracture toughness was measured with the short-bar chevron-notch method. RESULTS: The biaxial flexural strengths of the high-purity, high-density alumina and glass-infiltrated sintered alumina ceramic core types were significantly higher than that of the leucite-reinforced glass ceramic type. The glass-infiltrated sintered alumina was significantly higher in fracture toughness than the high-purity, high-density alumina type, which was significantly higher than the leucite-reinforced glass. CONCLUSION: All materials surpassed the minimum strength requirement outlined by the International Standards Organization, and they also had similar strength variability according to their Weibull moduli. The glass-infiltrated sintered alumina and the high-purity, high-density alumina types were significantly stronger and tougher than currently used core materials. However, while the glass-infiltrated sintered alumina had a higher fracture toughness than the high-purity, high-density alumina, it had a lower flexural strength.

Relationship between copper speciation in sediments and bioaccumulation by marine bivalves of Taiwan.

This paper evaluates the relationships between copper species in sediments and accumulation by the purple clam (Hiatula diphos) and venus clam (Gomphina aeguilatera) collected from the field and culture (aquaculture) ponds in the polluted coastal area of Lukang, Taiwan. Sediment was sampled along with the molluscs, including oysters (Crassostrea gigas), purple clams (Hiatula diphos), rock-shells (Thais clavigera), venus clams (Gomphina aeguilatera), and hard clams (Meretrix lusoria), from two unique environments of Lukang during the period from August 1993 to July 1994. The data indicate that the total copper concentrations in sediments from culture ponds (185 microg g(-1)) was higher than those of the field (44.0 microg g(-1)). Copper species in sediments were analyzed by a sequential leaching technique. Results show that concentrations of various copper species in the sediments are in the range of 1.14 +/- 0.59 to 13.2 +/- 22.4 microg g(-1) and 0.36 +/- 0.24 to 133 +/- 36.7 microg g(-1) for the two environments, respectively. Also the exchangeable copper in sediment from culture ponds was 15 times higher than that from the field. In addition, the sum of exchangeable and copper carbonates had the highest percentages of copper in both the pond sediment (86.6 %) and the field sediment (50.7 %). Maximum copper concentrations (309 +/- 35.1 microg g(-1)) in oysters were much higher than those in the other benthic organisms by about 4-127 times. Similarly, the data also showed that copper concentrations in Thais clavigera were 12-32 times higher than those in other benthic organisms. Copper concentrations in various benthic organisms differed significantly (p < 0.05) from that in Thais clavigera. This capacity makes Thais clavigera a potential candidate for monitoring copper in marine sediments. In terms of copper species, the best correlation was generally obtained between copper carbonates in sediments and copper concentrations in Hiatula diphos (r = 0.886*). A strong multiple regression correlation (p < 0.05, r2 = 0.7894) also indicates that the copper carbonates may dominate as the available form of copper to Hiatula diphos from various environments in the Lukang coastal area under natural physicochemical conditions.