Multi-Walled Carbon-Nanotube-Reinforced PMMA Nanocomposites: An Experimental Study of Their Friction and Wear Properties.

This manuscript presents an experimental investigation of the friction and wear properties of poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) nanocomposites reinforced with functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The aim of this study is to evaluate the potential of MWCNTs as a reinforcement material for enhancing the tribological performance of PMMA. Three types of multi-walled carbon nanotubes, i.e., pristine, hydroxyl functionalized, and carboxyl functionalized, were utilized in this study. The nanocomposite samples were prepared by dispersing varying concentrations of MWCNTs (0.1 wt.%, 0.5 wt.%, and 1 wt.%) within the PMMA matrix via a 3D mixing approach, followed by injection molding/compression molding. The resulting nanocomposite films were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to observe the dispersion of MWCNTs within the PMMA matrix. The friction and wear tests were conducted using a pin-on-disk tribometer under dry sliding conditions. The effects of functionalization and MWCNT content on the tribological behaviors of the nanocomposites were analyzed. The nanocomposites exhibited lower friction coefficients and reduced wear rates compared to pure PMMA. The lowest friction coefficient and wear rate were achieved at an optimum MWCNT loading of 0.5 wt.%. It was further revealed that the amount of MWCNT reinforcement, average load, and track diameter significantly affect the coefficient of friction (COF) and rate of wear. The COF and wear rate are best at a filler loading of 0.5 wt.%, a 20 Kg load, and 90 mm. The improved tribological performance of the MWCNT-reinforced PMMA nanocomposites can be attributed to the effective transfer of load between the MWCNTs and the PMMA matrix, as well as the reinforcement effect of the MWCNTs. The MWCNTs acted as reinforcing agents, enhancing the mechanical properties and wear resistance of the nanocomposites.

Mechanical Properties of Fly Ash-Based Geopolymer Concrete Incorporation Nylon66 Fiber.

This study was carried out to investigate the effect of the diamond-shaped Interlocking Chain Plastic Bead (ICPB) on fiber-reinforced fly ash-based geopolymer concrete. In this study, geopolymer concrete was produced using fly ash, NaOH, silicate, aggregate, and nylon66 fibers. Characterization of fly ash-based geopolymers (FGP) and fly ash-based geopolymer concrete (FRGPC) included chemical composition via XRF, functional group analysis via FTIR, compressive strength determination, flexural strength, density, slump test, and water absorption. The percentage of fiber volume added to FRGPC and FGP varied from 0% to 0.5%, and 1.5% to 2.0%. From the results obtained, it was found that ICBP fiber led to a negative result for FGP at 28 days but showed a better performance in FRGPC reinforced fiber at 28 and 90 days compared to plain geopolymer concrete. Meanwhile, NFRPGC showed that the optimum result was obtained with 0.5% of fiber addition due to the compressive strength performance at 28 days and 90 days, which were 67.7 MPa and 970.13 MPa, respectively. Similar results were observed for flexural strength, where 0.5% fiber addition resulted in the highest strength at 28 and 90 days (4.43 MPa and 4.99 MPa, respectively), and the strength performance began to decline after 0.5% fiber addition. According to the results of the slump test, an increase in fiber addition decreases the workability of geopolymer concrete. Density and water absorption, however, increase proportionally with the amount of fiber added. Therefore, diamond-shaped ICPB fiber in geopolymer concrete exhibits superior compressive and flexural strength.

Rotating Hybrid Nanofluid Flow with Chemical Reaction and Thermal Radiation between Parallel Plates.

This research investigates the two different hybrid nanofluid flows between two parallel plates placed at two different heights, y0 and yh, respectively. Water-based hybrid nanofluids are obtained by using Al2O3, TiO2 and Cu as nanoparticles, respectively. The upper-level plate is fixed, while the lower-level plate is stretchable. The fluid rotates along the y-axis. The governing equations of momentum, energy and concentration are transformed into partial differential equations by using similarity transformations. These transformed equations are grasped numerically at MATLAB by using the boundary value problem technique. The influence of different parameters are presented through graphs. The numerical outcomes for rotation, Nusselt, Prandtl, and Schmidt numbers are obtained in the form of tables. The heat transfer rate increases by augmentation in the thermophoresis parameter, while it decays by increasing the Reynolds number. Oxide nanoparticles hybrid nanofluid proved more efficient as compared to mixed nanoparticles hybrid nanofluid. This research suggests using oxide nanoparticles for good heat transfer.

Multi Response Optimization of ECDM Process for Generating Micro Holes in CFRP Composite Using TOPSIS Methodology.

The applications of carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites (CFRPCs) in aerospace, automotive, electronics and lab-on-chip devices require precise machining processes. Over the past decade, there have been numerous attempts to machine CFRPCs using both traditional and unconventional machining techniques. However, because of their limitations, these methods have not gained widespread acceptance. In the present research investigation, Electrochemical Discharge Machining (ECDM) process has been employed to produce micro-holes on CFRPC. The experimental strategy was scheduled using L9 orthogonal array keeping applied voltage, electrolyte concentration and inter-electrode gap as input parameters. The material removal rate (MRR) and overcut were selected as output parameters. The technique for order preference by similarity to the ideal solution (TOPSIS) methodology was executed for multi-response optimization. The overcut and MRR of machined samples improved from 150 µm to 48 µm and 2.232 mg/min to 2.1267 mg/min correspondingly while using the optimum parametric settings of the TOPSIS approach. The shape of drilled micro-holes produced by the TOPSIS process is indicative of a machined surface of superior quality, with a reduction in the number of micro-cracks and a diameter that is uniform.

Convective Heat Transfer in Magneto-Hydrodynamic Carreau Fluid with Temperature Dependent Viscosity and Thermal Conductivity.

This study is aimed to explore the magneto-hydrodynamic Carreau fluid flow over a stretching/shrinking surface with a convectively heated boundary. Temperature-dependent variable thermophysical properties are utilized to formulate the problem. The flow governing equations are obtained with boundary layer approximation and constitutive relation of the Carreau fluid. The shooting method is utilized to obtain graphical and numeric outcomes. Additionally, initial guesses are generated with the help of Newton's method. The effect of Weissenberg number, Magnetization, stretching ratio, Prandtl number, suction/blowing parameter, and Lewis number is obtained on velocity, temperature and species continuity profile and analyzed. Shear stress rates and Nusselt number outcomes under body forces influences are present in tabulated data and discussed. It is observed that in absence of magnetization force, B = 0 and strong mass suction 5≤S≤7.5 effect high rates of Nusselt number is obtained. It is concluded that under the influence of power law index and non-linearity parameter maximum heat transfer and reduced shear stress rates are obtained.

Employing Energy and Statistical Features for Automatic Diagnosis of Voice Disorders.

The presence of laryngeal disease affects vocal fold(s) dynamics and thus causes changes in pitch, loudness, and other characteristics of the human voice. Many frameworks based on the acoustic analysis of speech signals have been created in recent years; however, they are evaluated on just one or two corpora and are not independent to voice illnesses and human bias. In this article, a unified wavelet-based paradigm for evaluating voice diseases is presented. This approach is independent of voice diseases, human bias, or dialect. The vocal folds' dynamics are impacted by the voice disorder, and this further modifies the sound source. Therefore, inverse filtering is used to capture the modified voice source. Furthermore, the fundamental frequency independent statistical and energy metrics are derived from each spectral sub-band to characterize the retrieved voice source. Speech recordings of the sustained vowel /a/ were collected from four different datasets in German, Spanish, English, and Arabic to run the several intra and inter-dataset experiments. The classifiers' achieved performance indicators show that energy and statistical features uncover vital information on a variety of clinical voices, and therefore the suggested approach can be used as a complementary means for the automatic medical assessment of voice diseases.

Influence of Replacing Cement with Waste Glass on Mechanical Properties of Concrete.

In this study, the effect of waste glass on the mechanical properties of concrete was examined by conducting a series of compressive strength, splitting tensile strength and flexural strength tests. According to this aim, waste glass powder (WGP) was first used as a partial replacement for cement and six different ratios of WGP were utilized in concrete production: 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, and 50%. To examine the combined effect of different ratios of WGP on concrete performance, mixed samples (10%, 20%, 30%) were then prepared by replacing cement, and fine and coarse aggregates with both WGP and crashed glass particles. Workability and slump values of concrete produced with different amounts of waste glass were determined on the fresh state of concrete, and these properties were compared with those of plain concrete. For the hardened concrete, 150 mm × 150 mm × 150 mm cubic specimens and cylindrical specimens with a diameter of 100 mm and a height of 200 mm were tested to identify the compressive strength and splitting tensile strength of the concrete produced with waste glass. Next, a three-point bending test was carried out on samples with dimensions of 100 × 100 × 400 mm, and a span length of 300 mm to obtain the flexure behavior of different mixtures. According to the results obtained, a 20% substitution of WGP as cement can be considered the optimum dose. On the other hand, for concrete produced with combined WGP and crashed glass particles, mechanical properties increased up to a certain limit and then decreased owing to poor workability. Thus, 10% can be considered the optimum replacement level, as combined waste glass shows considerably higher strength and better workability properties. Furthermore, scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis was performed to investigate the microstructure of the composition. Good adhesion was observed between the waste glass and cementitious concrete. Lastly, practical empirical equations have been developed to determine the compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, and flexure strength of concrete with different amounts of waste glass. Instead of conducting an experiment, these strength values of the concrete produced with glass powder can be easily estimated at the design stage with the help of proposed expressions.

Audio-Visual Stress Classification Using Cascaded RNN-LSTM Networks.

The purpose of this research is to emphasize the importance of mental health and contribute to the overall well-being of humankind by detecting stress. Stress is a state of strain, whether it be mental or physical. It can result from anything that frustrates, incenses, or unnerves you in an event or thinking. Your body's response to a demand or challenge is stress. Stress affects people on a daily basis. Stress can be regarded as a hidden pandemic. Long-term (chronic) stress results in ongoing activation of the stress response, which wears down the body over time. Symptoms manifest as behavioral, emotional, and physical effects. The most common method involves administering brief self-report questionnaires such as the Perceived Stress Scale. However, self-report questionnaires frequently lack item specificity and validity, and interview-based measures can be time- and money-consuming. In this research, a novel method used to detect human mental stress by processing audio-visual data is proposed. In this paper, the focus is on understanding the use of audio-visual stress identification. Using the cascaded RNN-LSTM strategy, we achieved 91% accuracy on the RAVDESS dataset, classifying eight emotions and eventually stressed and unstressed states.

The Joining of Copper to Stainless Steel by Solid-State Welding Processes: A Review.

Joining immiscible materials such as copper and stainless steel together is a significant concern due to distinct mechanical and metallurgical properties across the joint line, such as melting points, the coefficient of linear thermal expansion, and thermal conductivity. The joint properties of copper to stainless steel welds are in great demand for various mechanical components of the international thermonuclear experimental reactor, ultra-high vacuum system, plan wave linear-accelerator or linac structure, and heat exchanger. These dissimilar-metals joints offer excellent flexibility in design and production, leading to a robust structure for many cutting-edge applications. Hence, the present article reviews the copper to stainless steel joining mechanism under different solid-state processing conditions. The present understanding says that defect-free strong joints between the dissimilar metals are systematically possible. Apart from this understanding, the authors have identified and highlighted the gaps in the research exploration to date. Moreover, a sustainable methodology to achieve a desirable weld of copper to stainless steel depends on favorable processing conditions.

Immersion Behavior of Carbon Steel, Phosphate Carbon Steel and Phosphate and Painted Carbon Steel in Saltwater.

The carbon steel is used in many areas due to its good mechanical properties; however, its low corrosion resistance presents a very important problem, for example, when carbon steel carabiners are used in the petroleum industry or navy, the possibility of an accident is higher due to carabiner failure. This phenomenon could occur as a consequence of the corrosion process which negatively affects mechanical properties. This paper study the possibility to improve its corrosion resistance by depositing on its surface a phosphate layer and a paint layer, and also aims to analyze the immersion behavior in saltwater of carbon steel, phosphate carbon steel, and phosphate and painted carbon steel. According to this study, by coating the carbon steel with a phosphate or paint layer, a higher polarization resistance is obtained in saltwater. Moreover, by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), it was observed that the corrosion rate decreases with the increase of the immersion time. Meanwhile scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) revealed that the main compounds which formed on the sample's surface were iron oxides or hydroxy-oxides, after immersion for a longer period. The overall results show that all types of deposited layers increase the corrosion resistance of C45 steel.

XRD and TG-DTA Study of New Phosphate-Based Geopolymers with Coal Ash or Metakaolin as Aluminosilicate Source and Mine Tailings Addition.

Coal ash-based geopolymers with mine tailings addition activated with phosphate acid were synthesized for the first time at room temperature. In addition, three types of aluminosilicate sources were used as single raw materials or in a 1/1 wt. ratio to obtain five types of geopolymers activated with H3PO4. The thermal behaviour of the obtained geopolymers was studied between room temperature and 600 °C by Thermogravimetry-Differential Thermal Analysis (TG-DTA) and the phase composition after 28 days of curing at room temperature was analysed by X-ray diffraction (XRD). During heating, the acid-activated geopolymers exhibited similar behaviour to alkali-activated geopolymers. All of the samples showed endothermic peaks up to 300 °C due to water evaporation, while the samples with mine tailings showed two significant exothermic peaks above 400 °C due to oxidation reactions. The phase analysis confirmed the dissolution of the aluminosilicate sources in the presence of H3PO4 by significant changes in the XRD patterns of the raw materials and by the broadening of the peaks because of typically amorphous silicophosphate (Si-P), aluminophosphate (Al-P) or silico-alumino-phosphate (Si-Al-P) formation. The phases resulted from geopolymerisation are berlinite (AlPO4), brushite (CaHPO4∙2H2O), anhydrite (CaSO4) or ettringite as AFt and AFm phases.

Phosphate Surface Treatment for Improving the Corrosion Resistance of the C45 Carbon Steel Used in Carabiners Manufacturing.

This study approaches the issues which appear during carabiner use and analyses the possibility to eliminate them. Therefore, to improve the corrosion resistance of carbon steel, used in carabiners manufacturing, three different insoluble phosphate layers were deposited on the samples' surface. The layers were obtained by immersion in zinc-based phosphate solution, zinc/iron-based phosphate solution and manganese-based phosphate solution, Afterwards, to protect against mechanical shocks, a layer of elastomer-based paint was deposited. Furthermore, to reduce rope wear by decreasing the value of the coefficient of friction, the samples were impregnated in molybdenum disulfide-based lubricant. This study aims to analyse the corrosion behaviour of the layers deposited on the carbon steel surface in three of the most common corrosive environments (rainwater, seawater and fire extinguishing solution) by linear and cyclic polarisation. The overall results show that all types of deposited layers increase the corrosion resistance of C45 steel. The experimental results revealed that the samples coated with a phosphate layer obtained by immersion in the zinc-based phosphate solution possess the highest corrosion resistance among the phosphate samples.