Analysis of Stress Relaxation in Bulk and Porous Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (UHMWPE).

The reported study was devoted to the investigation of viscoelastic behavior for solid and porous ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) under compression. The obtained experimental stress curves were interpreted using a two-term Prony series to represent the superposition of two coexisting activation processes corresponding to long molecular (~160 s) and short structural (~20 s) time scales, respectively, leading to good statistical correlation with the observations. In the case of porous polymer, the internal strain redistribution during relaxation was quantified using digital image correlation (DIC) analysis.

One-step coordination of metal-phenolic networks as antibacterial coatings with sustainable and controllable copper release for urinary catheter applications.

Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) draw great concern due to increased demand for urinary catheters in hospitalization. Encrustation caused by urinary pathogens, especially , results in blocking of the catheter lumen and further infections. In this study, a facile and low-cost surface modification strategy of urinary catheters was developed using one-step coordination of tannic acid (TA) and copper ions.

Tannic acid-reinforced zwitterionic hydrogels with multi-functionalities for diabetic wound treatment.

Diabetic wounds remain one of the most prevalent hard-to-heal wounds in the clinic. The causative factors impeding the wound healing process include not only the elevated oxidative stress and bacterial infections but also the high and repetitive plantar stress (including compressive pressure and shear stress). Conventional hydrogel dressings are mechanically weak and fragile, limiting their applications in the high stress-loading conditions of diabetic foot ulcers.

Elimination of Composition Segregation in 33Al-45Cu-22Fe (at.%) Powder by Two-Stage High-Energy Mechanical Alloying.

In the present work, complex powder alloys containing spinel as a minor phase were produced by mechanical alloying in a high-energy planetary ball mill from a 33Al-45Cu-22Fe (at.%) powder blend. These alloys show characteristics suitable for the synthesis of promising catalysts.

An Experimental Performance Study of a Catalytic Membrane Reactor for Ethanol Steam Reforming over a Metal Honeycomb Catalyst.

The present study deals with the combination of ethanol steam reforming over a monolithic catalyst and hydrogen separation by membrane in a lab-scale catalytic membrane reactor (CMR). The catalyst was comprised of honeycomb thin-walled Fechralloy substrate loaded with Ni + Ru/PrCeZrO active component. The asymmetric supported membrane consisted of a thin Ni-Cu alloy-Nd tungstate nanocomposite dense permselective layer deposited on a hierarchically structured asymmetric support.

Effect of Asymmetric Membrane Structure on Hydrogen Transport Resistance and Performance of a Catalytic Membrane Reactor for Ethanol Steam Reforming.

The performance of catalytic membrane reactors (CMRs) depends on the specific details of interactions at different levels between catalytic and separation parts. A clear understanding of decisive factors affecting their operational parameters can be provided via mathematical simulations. In the present paper, main results of numerical studies of ethanol steam reforming, followed by downstream hydrogen permeation through an asymmetric supported membrane, are reported.