Showing papers by "Hamid Garmestani published in 2021"

Opposite Sensing Response of Heterojunction Gas Sensors Based on SnO2–Cr2O3 Nanocomposites to H2 against CO and Its Selectivity Mechanism

Abstract: Metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) gas sensors show poor selectivity when exposed to mixed gases. This is a challenge in gas sensors and limits their wide applications. There is no efficient way to detect a specific gas when two homogeneous gases are concurrently exposed to sensing materials. The p-n nanojunction of xSnO2-yCr2O3 nanocomposites (NCs) are prepared and used as sensing materials (x/y shows the Sn/Cr molar ratio in the SnO2-Cr2O3 composite and is marked as SnxCry for simplicity). The gas sensing properties, crystal structure, morphology, and chemical states are characterized by employing an electrochemical workstation, an X-ray diffractometer, a transmission electron microscope, and an X-ray photoelectron spectrometer, respectively. The gas sensing results indicate that SnxCry NCs with x/y greater than 0.07 demonstrate a p-type behavior to both CO and H2, whereas the SnxCry NCs with x/y < 0.07 illustrate an n-type behavior to the aforementioned reduced gases. Interestingly, the SnxCry NCs with x/y = 0.07 show an n-type behavior to H2 but a p-type to CO. The effect of the operating temperature on the opposite sensing response of the fabricated sensors has been investigated. Most importantly, the mechanism of selectivity opposite sensing response is proposed using the aforementioned characterization techniques. This paper proposes a promising strategy to overcome the drawback of low selectivity of this type of sensor.

Study on Wear Model and Adhesive Wear Mechanism of Brass under Boundary Lubrication

Abstract: The tribological tests of brass and steel are carried out on an in-situ tribometer. The Stribeck curve illustrates that the roughness and the wear rate as a whole reflect the lubrication regimes. Under boundary lubrication, a mathematical model based on positive pressure and roughness is established. A good agreement between the measurement and the prediction is found. According to the analysis of worn surface morphology, the main wear mechanism of brass is adhesive wear under boundary lubrication, which results in relatively high values of tribological parameters. The oxides strengthening layer is hardly generated under boundary lubrication until the experiment enters the mixed lubrication (ML) and the hydrodynamic lubrication (HL) regimes.

Microstructure affected residual stress prediction based on mechanical threshold stress in direct metal deposition of Ti-6Al-4 V

Abstract: Although the material microstructure attributes play an important role in the mechanical properties of the additively manufactured (AM) part, their impact is largely ignored in the mechanics modeling of AM processes. A physics-based mechanical threshold stress (MTS) model is proposed to consider the material internal attributes, such as grain size and dislocation to dislocation barrier during simulation of the material flow stress and deformation. This model is based on the dislocation dynamics and thermal activation theory with a combination of three main components of athermal stress, thermal stress, and threshold stress. The MTS flow stress model is embedded into a fully coupled thermo-mechanical incremental plasticity model to predict the residual stress during AM processes from the prediction of temperature field and associated thermal stresses. The experimental measurements of residual stress are conducted on additively manufactured Ti-6Al-4 V samples for the model validation. The proposed model provides insight into the impact of microstructure on residual stress prediction in the additive manufacturing process modeling.

Investigation of Effects of Copper, Zinc, and Strontium Doping on Electrochemical Properties of Titania Nanotube Arrays for Neural Interface Applications

Abstract: Direct interaction with the neuronal cells is a prerequisite to deciphering useful information in understanding the underlying causes of diseases and functional abnormalities in the brain. Precisely fabricated nanoelectrodes provide the capability to interact with the brain in its natural habitat without compromising its functional integrity. Yet, challenges exist in terms of the high cost and complexity of fabrication as well as poor control over the chemical composition and geometries at the nanoscale, all imposed by inherent limitations of current micro/nanofabrication techniques. In this work, we report on electrochemical fabrication and optimization of vertically oriented TiO2 nanotube arrays as nanoelectrodes for neural interface application. The effects of zinc, strontium, and copper doping on the structural, electrochemical, and biocompatibility properties of electrochemically anodized TiO2 nanotube arrays were investigated. It was found that doping can alter the geometric features, i.e., the length, diameter, and wall thickness, of the nanotubes. Among pure and doped samples, the 0.02 M copper-doped TiO2 nanotubes exhibited superior electrochemical properties, with the highest specific storage capacitance of 130 F g−1 and the lowest impedance of 0.295 KΩ. In addition, regeneration of Vero cells and neurons was highly promoted on (0.02 M) Cu-doped TiO2 nanotube arrays, with relatively small tube diameters and more hydrophilicity, compared with the other two types of dopants. Our results suggest that in situ doping is a promising method for the optimization of various structural and compositional properties of electrochemically anodized nanotube arrays and improvement of their functionality as a potential nanoelectrode platform for neural interfacing.