Ettringite is a hexacalcium aluminate trisulfate hydrate mineral that forms during Portland cement hydration. Its presence plays an important role in controlling the setting rate of the highly reactive aluminate phases in cement paste and has also been associated with severe cracking in cured hardened cement. To understand how it forms and how its properties influence those of hardened cement a...

PURPOSE Interstitial cystitis is a sterile bladder inflammatory disease characterized by pelvic pain, urinary urgency and frequency. Nanocrystalline silver has anti-inflammatory properties, prompting us to investigate its effect in experimental bladder inflammation. MATERIALS AND METHODS Nanocrystalline silver (0.01%, 0.05%, 0.1%, 0.5% or 1%) or phosphate buffered saline (Invitrogen) (0.5 ml)...

Tris(2-pyridyl)borates are introduced as a new robust and tunable "scorpionate"-type ligand family. A facile synthesis of this hitherto unknown ligand and its complexation to Fe(II) are described; the optical and electrochemical properties of the resulting iron complex are compared to complexes derived from tris(pyrazolyl)borate, tris(2-pyridyl)aluminate, and corresponding charge-neutral ligands.

Grain boundary segregation provides a method for stabilization of nanocrystalline metals – the selection of an alloying element that will segregate to the boundaries can lower the grain boundary energy, attenuating the driving force for grain growth. The segregation strength, relative to mixing enthalpy, of a binary system determines the propensity for segregation stabilization. This relationsh...

Nanoporous electrodes have been fabricated by selectively dissolving the less noble α-Fe crystalline phase from nanocrystalline Fe85.2B14-xPxCu0.8 alloys (x= 0, 2, 4 at.%). The preferential dissolution is triggered by the weaker electrochemical stability of α-Fe nanocrystals than amorphous phase. The final nanoporous structure is mainly composed of amorphous residual phase and minor undissolved...

Strain hardening capability is critical for metallic materials to achieve high ductility during plastic deformation. A majority of nanocrystalline metals, however, have inherently low work hardening capability with few exceptions. Interpretations on work hardening mechanisms in nanocrystalline metals are still controversial due to the lack of in situ experimental evidence. Here we report, by us...

A two phase microstructure, consisting of nanocrystallites surrounded by an amorphous matrix, was produced by a melt spinning processing route. Alloys of this type have extrinsic properties that are dependent on the relative amounts of the amorphous and nanocrystalline phases. One method for examination of the properties of the nanocrystalline and amorphous phases is by Mössbauer spectroscopy. ...

Nanocrystalline metals demonstrate a range of fascinating properties, including high levels of mechanical strength. However, as these materials are exposed to high temperatures, it is critical to determine the grain size evolution, as this process can drastically change the mechanical properties. In this work, nanocrystalline sputtered Cu thin films with 43 +/- 2 nm grain size were produced by ...