Explore the vast range of titles available.

Despite bamboo slivers having long been used to manufacture bamboo weaving products, the flexibility is still well below satisfactory, especially for those split from inner layer of bamboo culm. Here, a facile approach was reported to obtain strong and flexible bamboo slivers, in which the slivers from the outer and inner layer of bamboo culm were processed with 5 wt% alkali treatment at various temperatures (23, 40, 60, and 80 °C), respectively. Compared with untreated bamboo slivers, the treated ones were investigated in terms of the microstructure, chemical composition, morphology, tensile and bending performances. The results showed that tensile and bending properties of all treated bamboo slivers were significantly improved, especially for those from inner layer of bamboo culm. The tensile strength of outer bamboo sliver treated at 60 °C and the inner ones treated at 40 °C increased up to the maximum, respectively, increasing by 86.6% and 132.0% compared with the untreated ones. The highest flexibility of the outer- and inner bamboo sliver can be achieved at 80 °C and 60 °C alkali treatment, respectively. The slivers can be completely wound around a nylon rod with a diameter of 10 mm without fracture. The excellent tensile and bending performance of bamboo slivers alkali-treated at proper temperature was largely attributed to tightly cellulose molecule aggregating induced by substantially increasing hydrogen bonding after the partial removal of lignin and hemicellulose. A denser and interlocking cellular structure due to the collapse of parenchyma cells after alkali treatment at proper temperature also partly contributed to the increased tensile and bending strength. The results suggest that strong and flexible bamboo slivers can be prepared by one-spot alkali treatment at a proper temperature, which may widen the application scope of bamboo slivers.

The aim of this study was to investigate the dimensional stability and mold resistance of slivers from the outer and inner layers of bamboo treated with alkali solutions at various concentrations. The microstructure of the bamboo slivers considerably changed as the parenchyma cells collapsed after alkali treatment followed by a drying process. The water absorption of the treated bamboo slivers increased, while the dimensional stability decreased, especially for the slivers from the inner layer of bamboo. The alkali treatment removed starch from the parenchyma cells in the bamboo slivers treated with a 2% to 15% alkali solution, resulting in a considerable improvement in the mold resistance. The mold resistance performance of inner bamboo slivers was greatly improved when treated at a low concentration (2%). No mold on the bamboo slivers was found even in a high humidity environment for a long period of time, i.e. 87 days. As the concentration increased up to 25%, alkali only removed starch from parenchyma cells that were near the surface of the bamboo slivers and caused partial damage to the parenchyma cells in the outer bamboo slivers. The wettability of the alkali-treated bamboo slivers was higher than that of the untreated samples due to the removal of lignin and a rougher surface. Based on the test results, alkali treatment is a simple yet highly effective method for improving mold resistance but would cause a reduction in the dimensional stability of the bamboo slivers.

The changes in the magnetization properties of high-strength steel and ultra-high-strength steel sheets are investigated, and then the sheared edges and the scattering behavior of slivers in shearing of the ultra-high-strength steel sheets are observed. The maximum magnetic flux density of the magnetized sheet is increased with the increasing tensile strength of the sheet. The maximum magnetic flux density in the magnetized blanks decreases, whereas the density in the demagnetized blanks increases. In the sheared edges, the ratio of the fracture surface becomes larger with the increasing tensile strength of the steel sheet. In shearing, the shearing slivers are observed at the time of crack penetration and at the time of punch rise. The mass of the slivers generated from the blank in shearing increases with the increasing tensile strength of the steel sheet. Two-thirds of the generated shearing slivers stick to the blank in the magnetized blank, whereas two-thirds of the slivers in the blank without magnetization scatter to the outside of the die.

Geologic processing of Earth’s surface has removed most of the evidence concerning the nature of Earth’s first crust. One region of ancient crust is the Hudson Bay terrane of northeastern Canada, which is mainly composed of Neoarchean felsic crust and forms the nucleus of the Northeastern Superior Province. New data show these ~2.7-billion-year-old rocks to be the youngest to yield variability in neodymium-142 (142Nd), the decay product of short-lived samarium-146 (146Sm). Combined 146-147Sm-142-143Nd data reveal that this large block of Archean crust formed by reworking of much older (>4.2 billion-year-old) mafic crust over a 1.5-billion-year interval of early Earth history. Thus, unlike on modern Earth, mafic crust apparently could survive for more than 1 billion years to form an important source rock for Archean crustal genesis.

The dynamics of continental subduction is largely controlled by the rheological properties of rocks involved along the subduction channel. Serpentinites have low viscosity at geological strain rates. However, compelling geophysical evidence of a serpentinite channel during continental subduction is still lacking. Here we show that anomalously low shear-wave seismic velocities are found beneath the Western Alps, along the plate interface between the European slab and the overlying Adriatic mantle. We propose that these seismic velocities indicate the stacked remnants of a weak fossilised serpentinite channel, which includes both slivers of abyssal serpentinite formed at the ocean floor and mantle-wedge serpentinite formed by fluid release from the subducting slab. Our results suggest that this serpentinized plate interface may have favoured the subduction of continental crust into the upper mantle and the formation/exhumation of ultra-high pressure metamorphic rocks, providing new constraints to develop the conceptual and quantitative understanding of continental-subduction dynamics. The dynamics of continental subduction is largely controlled by the rheological properties of rocks involved along the subduction channel. Here, the authors reveal a prominent, yet previously undetected, low-velocity body beneath the Western Alps, along the plate interface between the European slab and the overlying Adriatic mantle, which they interpret as a serpentinite layer.

Alternative reconstructions of the Jurassic northern extent of Greater India differ by up to several thousand kilometers. We present a new model that is constrained by revised seafloor spreading anomalies, fracture zones and crustal ages based on drillsites/dredges from all the abyssal plains along the West Australian margin and the Wharton Basin, where an unexpected sliver of Jurassic seafloor (153 Ma) has been found embedded in Cretaceous (95 My old) seafloor. Based on fracture zone trajectories, this NeoTethyan sliver must have originally formed along a western extension of the spreading center that formed the Argo Abyssal Plain, separating a western extension of West Argoland/West Burma from Greater India as a ribbon terrane. The NeoTethyan sliver, Zenith and Wallaby plateaus moved as part of Greater India until westward ridge jumps isolated them. Following another spreading reorganization, the Jurassic crust resumed migrating with Greater India until it was re‐attached to the Australian plate ∼95 Ma. The new Wharton Basin data and kinematic model place strong constraints on the disputed northern Jurassic extent of Greater India. Late Jurassic seafloor spreading must have reached south to the Cuvier Abyssal Plain on the West Australian margin, connected to a spreading ridge wrapping around northern Greater India, but this Jurassic crust is no longer preserved there, having been entirely transferred to the conjugate plate by ridge propagations. This discovery constrains the major portion of Greater India to have been located south of the large‐offset Wallaby‐Zenith Fracture Zone, excluding much larger previously proposed shapes of Greater India. Key Points To constrain the extent of Greater India using evidence offshore West Australia To develop a model that incorporates the new Jurassic data off NW Australia To link the Jurassic and Cretaceous spreading corridors of NW Australia

In this review article, research papers related to recent developments in Ni-superalloy technologies have been reviewed in order to provide an insight into recent achievements and the potential for further study, research, and development in this field. In this paper, studies on various aspects of Ni-based superalloys are reviewed, such as production methods, which include widely used casting methods, as well as unconventional alternative procedures, novel techniques, or simulation and prediction of certain alloy casting properties. Reviewing was done by categorising the papers into 4 major categories: manufacturing of Ni-based superalloys, effects of alloying elements, physical and mechanical properties of Ni-based superalloys, and defects in Ni-based superalloys. The process used to make Ni-superalloy parts can have a huge impact on the production process efficiency, the final product’s quality and properties, and the defects formed in it. Investment casting is one of the most common methods for making Ni-superalloy parts. Manufacturing covers studies on various casting methods used to make Ni-based superalloy components, novel techniques and methods developed to improve casting procedures to produce better products, and alternative manufacturing methods like AM and HIP processing. Similar to production process, the role of alloying elements is also very important. Even minor changes in their compositions can cause significant changes in the final product. Simultaneously, these alloying elements appear to be more efficient in the development of new methods to control product quality, suppress defect formation, and improve material properties such as the creep and fatigue. As a result, the effects of various alloying elements used in castings of Ni-based superalloys are thoroughly examined. A material’s properties are its most important components. They assist the industrialist in selecting or developing a material based on the needs of the application/use. With this in mind, many researchers have conducted extensive research on physical and mechanical properties, as well as how to improve them. Fatigue life, stress rupture, creep properties, impact ductility, strain response, stress relaxation behaviour, and so on are some of the most important physical and mechanical properties of Ni-superalloys. This article thoroughly reviews various studies on these properties, how and by what factors they are affected, and how they can be improved. Another important factor to consider when making Ni-superalloy castings is defect formation, which can affect the properties of the final product. Freckle defects, hot tears, porosities, and slivers are some of the major defects that occur in Ni-superalloys during the casting process. This article also reviews in detail about these defects, how they form, and how they affect the final product. These defects were found to have a significant influence on a variety of properties, such as creep, fatigue behaviour, and fracture mechanism. Topics and areas such as reinforcement of Ni-superalloys with the help of CNCs and 3D printing of Ni-superalloys that can provide scope for potential future research are highlighted based on the above-reviewed papers.

As one of the most renewable and sustainable resources on Earth, bamboo with its high flexibility has been used in the fabrication of a wide variety of composite structures due to its properties. A bamboo-based winding composite (BWC) is an innovative bamboo product which has revolutionized pipe structures and their applications throughout China as well as improving their impact on the environment. However, as a natural functionally graded composite, the flexibility mechanism of bamboo has not yet been fully understood. Here, the bending stiffness method based on the cantilever beam principle was used to investigate the gradient and directional bending flexibility of bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis) slivers under different loading Types during elastic stages. Results showed that the graded distribution and gradient variation of cell size of the fibers embedded in the parenchyma cells along the thickness of the bamboo culm was mainly responsible for the exhibited gradient bending flexibility of bamboo slivers, whereas the shape and size difference of the vascular bundles from inner to outer layers played a critical role in directional bending flexibility. A validated rule of mixture was used to fit the bending stiffness under different loading Types as a function of fiber volume fraction. This work provides insights to the bionic preparation and optimization of high-performance BWC pipes.

In the winter of 2016, ecologist Laure Schneider-Maunoury went truffle hunting in France. But she wasn't looking to add the fungus to a culinary delicacy. Schneider-Maunoury, a graduate student at the National Museum of Natural History in Paris, was on the hunt for the truffle's missing father, the form that contributes genes to generate the aromatic, edible fruiting body. Researchers still don't know where these paternal truffles live or how the maternal and paternal partners find each other. It's a mystery with major implications for farmers, chefs, and foodies enamored with the pungent, expensive black truffle (Tuber melanosporum). Slivers of the fungus, which can run hundreds of dollars per pound, grace dishes from risottos to pizzas. Although farmers can raise truffles in orchards of oak or hazelnut, where the fungus joins with the tree roots, the crop remains what some call protodomesticated because growers can't control its reproduction. Complicating matters, yields from truffle grounds have plummeted in the past century, likely a result of dwindling habitat.

The causes of tiny spot defects on the surface of hot-dip galvanized automotive steel sheets were studied using scanning electron microscopy ( SEM ) and energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), and effective control measures were introduced. The results show that rubbing against the top roller after galvanizing is easy due to the local thickness of tiny spot defect location coating; therefore, the surface morphology is different from the normal part. Three kinds of defects, namely zinc slag, small slivers, and pitting, are likely to cause local thickening of the coating after galvanizing, leading to the formation of tiny spots. Therefore, resolving the three types of defects can effectively control the generation of tiny spot defects. Among them, due to the hereditary nature of the small sliver defect, focusing on its control and supervision is necessary.