Partially exfoliated poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) / montmorillonite clay nanocomposite was synthesized via the free radical polymerization of MMA in the presence of alkyl ammonium substituted polysilsesquioxane surfactant-modified clay and AIBN initiator in supercritical CO2. MMT clay was initially cation exchanged with the surfactant to enhance its hydrophobicity and to expand the interla...

Clay-based nanocomposites have been studied for several decades, mainly focusing on clay-polymer nanocomposites. Here, we report on a simple wet chemical method to synthesize clay-APTES-Au (CAAu) nanocomposites, where 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) acts as the linkage. The silane terminal of APTES formed bonds with the clay surface, while the other -NH(2) terminal bonds to gold nanopartic...

Previous studies of commercial software enterprises have employed industry-level analyses, or have focused on major players in the industry. There is, therefore, a dearth of in-depth research on small-to-medium software enterprises (SMSE). The need to understand the institutional contexts and firm-specific capabilities of such firms is important, as they account for over 90% of software enterpr...

This paper reports the findings of an investigation of children’s performance and attitude towards a paper based and computer based test. Twenty children, aged between 7 and 8 of mixed gender, participated in this study using a commercial software application. The children’s attitude towards the software was captured through the use of a smarty-o-meter to indicate their level of preference and ...

Bricks whose solid ingredient is 100% fly ash have been manufactured. The manufacturing process uses techniques and equipment similar to those used in clay brick factories. The bricks produced were about 28% lighter than clay bricks. The bricks manufactured from fly ash possessed compressive strength higher than 40 MPa. This exceeds some of the best of load carrying clay bricks available by mor...

The Clay Minerals Society (CMS) Nomenclature Committee was asked by CMS Council to produce a glossary of clay science in 2003. The Committee developed several constraints on the development of the glossary: (1) it was decided to produce a glossary of clay terms, based on clay science. Terms may have other meanings in other disciplines, but the Committee did not want to include how other discipl...

Geophagy of multani mitti (MM) clay is very common in central Pakistan especially amongst women. It was therefore mandatory to establish baseline levels of toxic elements in this clay for its safe dietary consumption by consumers of different genders, age groups and physical states. Instrumental neutron activation analysis and atomic absorption spectrometry techniques were used to determine the...

Early Mars (>3 Ga) underwent aqueous alteration as evidenced by fluvial/lacustrine morphologies and the recent discovery of widespread hydrous clays. Despite compelling evidence for diverse and localized aqueous environments, the possibility for sustained liquid water globally on the martian surface and over geological timescales is still highly debated. Instead, a durably cold and dry Mars sce...

Soft clays are defined as cohesive soil whose water content is higher than its liquid limits. Thus, soil-cement mixing is adopted to improve the ground conditions by enhancing the strength and deformation characteristics of the soft clays. For the above mentioned reasons, a series of laboratory tests were carried out to study some fundamental mechanical properties of cement stabilized soft clay...

Compacted clay liners (CCLs) are the main materials used in waste disposal landfills due to their low permeability. In this study, the effect on the shear resistant of clays with inorganic salt solutions as permeate fluid was experimentally investigated. For this purpose, NaCl inorganic salt solution at concentrations of 2, 5, 10% and deionized water were used. Laboratory direct shear and Vane ...