Journals
2026 EN
Chavan Rupali · Deshpande Shruti · Chavan Vijay
+8 more
ABSTRACT This study demonstrates the vital role of glucose concentration as a capping agent in engineering zinc ferrite nanoparticles with tunable properties for environmental and energy applications. Zinc ferrite was synthesized at varying glucose concentrations (0.0–0.2 M), revealing concentration‐dependent control over structural, morphological, optical, and catalytic properties. XRD analysis showed that precise glucose concentration control enables phase engineering from mixed ZnO‐ZnFe₂O₄ to pure ZnFe₂O₄ phases. The morphological evolution observed via FESEM directly correlated with glucose concentration, transitioning from large, rough aggregates at low concentrations (0.025–0.05 M) to well‐defined hexagonal nanoparticles at 0.1 M, and finally to smaller, dispersed nanoparticles at higher concentrations (0.15–0.2 M). Bandgap energies were systematically tunable between 1.86 and 2.13 eV, with optimal values achieved at moderate glucose concentrations. Most notably, the specific surface area exhibited dramatic concentration–dependent variance (15.04–1064.34 m 2 /g), directly influencing catalytic performance. The ZF‐3 sample (0.1 M glucose) demonstrated superior photocatalytic activity for crystal violet degradation (94%) and exceptional bifunctional electrocatalytic performance for both oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions (OER: 306 mV@10 mA/cm 2 ; HER: 226 mV@10 mA/cm 2 ) with outstanding stability over 50 h. The catalyst maintained robust performance across five reuse cycles (> 80% efficiency) with minimal interference from common coexisting ions. These findings establish glucose concentration as a powerful parameter for precisely tailoring zinc ferrite's functional properties, offering a simple yet effective strategy for developing multifunctional nanomaterials with concentration‐dependent tunable characteristics.
Journals
2026 EN
Bai Xiaodong · Shang Qingguo · Chen Yu
+2 more
ABSTRACT In order to reduce the huge economic loss caused by clay hydration and swelling during drilling, it is very important to select shale inhibitors reasonably and efficiently. In recent years, ionic liquids have been active in various industries as a new material, among which 1‐vinyl‐3‐ethylimidazole bromide salt has high temperature tolerance and certain inhibition ability. Therefore, in this paper, 1‐vinyl‐3‐ethylimidazole bromide salt was used as a water‐based drilling fluid inhibitor monomer, and the ionic polymer inhibitor (PIAA) were prepared by solution polymerization. The optimal synthesis conditions were determined by designing orthogonal experiments, and the properties of the materials were tested and evaluated. The experimental results show that PIAA is able to withstand temperatures up to 270°C. Compared with deionized water, the size of the mud ball after soaking in PIAA solution is smaller, and the linear expansion rate of bentonite in PIAA solution for 24 h is 29%. The shale recovery rate at 160°C was 86.5%, which was higher than that of deionized water (36.6%). When the base slurry is added, the zeta potential changes from negative to positive. XRD tests show that PIAA effectively compresses the bentonite bi‐layer. After the addition of PIAA to the base pulp, the particle size of bentonite particles increased and the distribution was more concentrated. It also has good performance in the contact angle test and scanning electron microscope test, and at the same time will not damage the rheological properties of the base pulp and has a certain performance of reducing filtration loss.
Journals
2026 EN
Peng Junjie · Wang Shengqiang · Zhang Yong
ABSTRACT The green crosslinking strategy for ethylene‐vinyl acetate‐glycidyl methacrylate terpolymer elastomer (EVM‐GMA) composites is helpful for the rubber development in the future. However, waste EVM‐GMA products continue to present challenges related to environmental pollution and resource waste. To address this issue, rubber powders were made from crosslinked EVM‐GMA sheets through physical pulverization methods and used as filler for silicone rubber to realize the green recycling and reuse of crosslinked EVM‐GMA. Compared with the EVM‐GMA powders prepared by using the low‐temperature physical pulverization method, EVM‐GMA powders prepared by using a mechano‐chemical pulverization method have smaller particle sizes and higher reactivity. Scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy observations reveal the EVM‐GMA powders are uniformly dispersed in silicone rubber, and there are transition layers between the two phases. EVM‐GMA powders/silicone rubber (45/100) composite has a tensile strength of 7.4 MPa, and an elongation at break of 232%. Dynamic mechanical properties results show that the maximum loss factor of the EVM‐GMA powders/silicone rubber composites increases significantly with increasing EVM‐GMA powders content. Notably, the composite retains excellent mechanical properties even at −30°C. This simple recycling approach to obtaining silicone rubber composites with good mechanical and damping properties also provides a new method for the high‐value recycling of waste EVM‐GMA products.
Journals
2026 EN
Takazawa Ayaka · Igarashi Kazuma · Yokochi Yuka
+3 more
ABSTRACT In this study, the drawing conditions of melt‐spun high‐density polyethylene (HDPE)/ultrahigh‐molecular‐weight polyethylene (UHMW‐PE) fibers were investigated to improve their mechanical properties and fiber diameter. An as‐spun HDPE/UHMW‐PE blended fiber containing 30 wt% UHMW‐PE was prepared by melt spinning. The PE fiber with a high tensile strength of approximately 2.0 GPa was produced by drawing the as‐spun fiber at 120°C. This strength was significantly higher than that of previous PE fibers produced by melt spinning. Additionally, a two‐step drawing process was also developed to reduce the fiber diameter and increase the strength simultaneously. First, pre‐drawing was performed in the molten state at 145°C and a low strain rate. Then, the obtained pre‐drawn fiber was drawn at 130°C and a high strain rate. The total draw ratio was higher in the two‐step drawing process, resulting in the improved degree of thinning. Lowering the draw ratio during pre‐drawing increased the draw ratio during the second drawing, resulting in improved tensile strength. Consequently, the PE fiber with both a smaller diameter (approximately 20 μm) and a higher strength (approximately 1.6 GPa) was produced by the two‐step drawing process.
Journals
2026 EN
Liu Xueping · Song Ying · Duan Yihang
+1 more
ABSTRACT Polypropylene (PP) has shown considerable promise as a recyclable alternative to crosslinked polyethylene (XLPE) in high‐voltage cable insulation applications. However, its widespread adoption has been hindered by inadequate breakdown strength and mechanical toughness. This study investigates the influence of thermal history‐controlled crystalline morphology on the dielectric and mechanical properties of isotactic polypropylene (iPP). By tailoring cooling rates and annealing temperatures, we demonstrate that iPP with nodular crystalline structures, obtained via rapid quenching and annealing, possesses a superior breakdown strength of up to 580.0 kV/mm and enhanced toughness compared to conventional spherulitic iPP. Multi‐scale characterization reveals that, despite its lower crystallinity and smaller crystallite sizes, the nodular morphology suppresses spherulitic boundary defects and enhances charge trapping at nanoscale interfaces. Conversely, the dielectric strength of melt‐crystallized iPP, though also influenced by lamellar thickness, is consistently limited by spherulite‐related defects and fails to surpass that of the nodular morphology. These findings establish a clear correlation between the insulating properties of iPP and its microstructure, particularly crystalline morphology, and may provide theoretical guidance for developing iPP‐based capacitor films or cable insulation layers.
Journals
2026 EN
Zhong Jiachun · Zheng Pan · Yu Dayang
+1 more
ABSTRACT This study investigates the preparation and microwave‐absorbing properties of Polyphenylene Sulfide (PPS)/Carbon Black (CB)/Fe 3 O 4 /Hollow Glass Beads (HGB) composites. The composites were prepared by in situ polymerization and subsequent mixing with hollow glass microspheres (HGB) and Fe 3 O 4 filler of different particle sizes. The results show that the incorporation of Fe 3 O 4 filler does not significantly affect the crystalline structure of PPS but enhances the thermal stability of the composites. The dielectric and magnetic properties of the composites are significantly influenced by the particle size of Fe 3 O 4 . The composites containing 20 nm Fe 3 O 4 particles exhibit the highest dielectric loss factor and magnetic loss factor, indicating stronger capabilities for dielectric and magnetic energy loss. The impedance matching performance is also optimized with smaller Fe 3 O 4 particles. The absorption performance of the composites is evaluated in the X‐band and Ku‐band. The PPS/CB/Fe 3 O 4 (20)/HGB composite achieves the best absorption performance with a minimum reflection loss of −42.31 dB at 9.74 GHz and an effective absorption bandwidth of 2 GHz in the X‐band, and a maximum reflection loss of −27.8 dB at 15.21 GHz with a broad effective absorption bandwidth of 4 GHz in the Ku‐band. The enhanced absorption is attributed to the synergistic effects of impedance matching, dielectric loss, and magnetic loss. The study demonstrates that controlling the particle size of Fe 3 O 4 is crucial for tailoring the microwave‐absorbing properties of the composites, with smaller particle sizes (20 nm) offering superior absorption bandwidth and efficiency.
Journals
2026 EN
He Yang · Wang Xin · Wang BingBing
ABSTRACT Surface icing poses significant operational and economic risks in aerospace and power transmission. Superhydrophobic perfluoroalkoxy (PFA) coatings fabricated via electrodeposition offer promising anti‐icing properties; however, their performance depends critically on electrolyte composition. This study employed response surface methodology to optimize key electrolyte variables: PFA concentration, MgCl 2 concentration, and ethanol‐to‐water volume ratio. The ethanol‐to‐water ratio emerged as the dominant factor to control the coating micro/nanostructure and multi‐factor delay icing coefficient by governing hydrogen generation, PFA electrophoretic mobility, solution polarity and ion dissociation. An optimized formulation (PFA: 5.96 g/L, MgCl 2 : 0.128 g/L, ethanol‐water: 49.4:0.6) yielded a coating with minimized solid–liquid contact area. At −10°C, this coating extended droplet freezing time by 52.84 times, enhanced droplet rolling by 49%, increased bounce residence time by 10 ms, and achieved static/dynamic anti‐icing rates of 80.9%/90.7% after 200 min. These improvements stem from smaller, more uniform pores reducing moisture penetration and ice adhesion.
Journals
2026 EN
Kozlowski Szymon · Lipinska Magdalena · Jerczynski Krzysztof
+7 more
ABSTRACT Herein, poly(styrene‐ co ‐acrylonitrile)/poly(methyl methacrylate) (SAN/PMMA, 70/30 wt%) blends with the PMMA matrix of various molecular weights were prepared, and their miscibility was investigated at 180°C and 210°C. The rheological analysis of Cole–Cole and van Gurp‐Palmen plots confirmed that in the case of the blends obtained with smaller molecular weights of PMMA (10 kDa, 50 kDa), phase separation occurred only at 210°C. The small difference between the viscosity of PMMA with a higher molecular weight (130 kDa) and SAN was responsible for the stable viscoelastic behavior of that blend at both temperatures. To overcome the observed immiscibility, hybrid particles of graphene oxide (GO) with well‐defined bimodal PMMA chains tethered on their surface, GO‐ g ‐PMMA(10 kDa/190 kDa), were prepared using surface‐initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI‐ATRP) and tested as a compatibilization agent. Addition of GO‐ g ‐PMMA (1 wt%) to the polymer matrix resulted in a better dispersion of particles and chain entanglements between the chains tethered on the particles and the matrix. It was determined that the best compatibilizing effect, leading to the miscible SAN/PMMA blends at both 180°C and 210°C, was observed for blends with the smallest molecular weight of the PMMA matrix, SAN/PMMA(10 kDa) containing bimodal hybrid particles.
Journals
2026 EN
Rahimi Mamaghani Kaveh · Parvin Nader · Rajabzadeh Mostafa
ABSTRACT Cold sintering process (CSP) has recently emerged as a transformative low‐temperature route for densifying ceramics and hybrid materials. While hydrogels are central to biofunctional systems due to their water‐rich and dynamic polymer networks, their integration with CSP has not yet been systematically explored. Rather than surveying an established body of literature, this Perspective outlines the conceptual framework, opportunities, and challenges at the intersection of CSP and hydrogels. We first highlight fundamental compatibilities, such as plasticization, pressure‐assisted reorganization, and ionic crosslinking, that suggest CSP could enable mechanically robust yet biofunctional hydrogel composites. We then discuss anticipated advantages, including enhanced structural integrity, hybridization with ceramics, and expanded applications in biosensing, drug delivery, and tissue engineering. Finally, we identify critical gaps, including the lack of systematic studies, potential risks of misrepresentation of hydrogel behavior under CSP conditions, and the need for cross‐disciplinary validation. By framing CSP‐hydrogel integration as a nascent but promising research frontier, this article aims to provide a roadmap for future experimental studies and to encourage dialog across materials science, chemistry, and bioengineering communities.
Journals
2026 EN
Horikawa Kogen · Hamazaki Yoshihiro · Hiejima Yusuke
ABSTRACT We have investigated the mechanical strength of sideweld sealing for biaxially oriented polypropylene bags. The tensile strength of the seal of the biaxially oriented polypropylene films showed a smaller deviation with increasing crystallinity in the sealed zone. Because the distribution of the crystallinity indicated sufficient homogeneity within the sealed zone at the microscopic level, the smaller deviation of the sealing strength with increasing crystallinity is ascribed to the formation of macroscopic defects under stretching. The defects around the sealed zone were visualized by photoelasticity observation under tensile stretching. We observed fluctuation of the strain near the sealed zone, accompanied by wavy patterns owing to the troughs induced by the shrinkage stress perpendicular to the stretching direction. Cross‐sectional observation of the sealed zone in the sideweld sealed specimen after the tensile test suggested that the fracture was initiated by ductile fracture. The subsequent fracture process became more brittle for specimens with lower strength, presumably because of the higher crystallinity. We also confirmed that the crystallinity can be controlled by the cooling rate in a rapid‐cooling experiment mimicking the air cooling in the bag forming process, where the crystallinity was significantly reduced by about 15%.