NiTi-based shape memory alloys (SMAs) offer a good combination of high-strength, ductility, corrosion resistance, and biocompatibility that has served them well and attracted the attention of many researchers and industries. The alloys unique thermo-mechanical ability to recover their initial shape after relatively large deformations by heating or upon unloading due to a characteristic reversible phase transformation makes them useful as damping devices, solid state actuators, couplings, etc. However, there is a need to increase the temperature of the characteristic phase transformation above 150 °C, especially in the aerospace industry where high temperatures are often seen. Prior researchers have shown that adding ternary elements (Pt, Pd, Au, Hf and Zr) to NiTi can increase transformation temperatures but most of these additions are extremely expensive, creating a need to produce cost-effective high temperature shape memory alloys (HTSMAs). Thus, the main objective of this research is to examine the relatively unstudied NiTiZr system for the ability to produce a cost effective and formable HTSMA. Transformation temperatures, precipitation paths, processability, and high-temperature oxidation are examined, specifically using high energy X-ray Diffraction (XRD) measurements, in NiTi-20 at.% Zr. This is followed by an in situ XRD study of the phase growth kinetics of the favorable …

Magnesium and its alloys are considered as the potential biomaterials due to their biocompatibility and biodegradable characteristics but suffer from poor corrosion performance. Various surface modification techniques are employed to improve their corrosion resistance. In present case, laser surface melting was carried out on AZ31B Mg alloy with various laser energy densities using a continuous wave ytterbium laser. Effect of laser treatment on phase and microstructure evolution was evaluated by X ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. Multi-physics thermal model predicted time temperature evolution along the depth of the laser treatment zone. Additionally, electrochemical method and bio-immersion test were employed to evaluate the corrosion behavior in simulated body fluid medium. Microstructure revealed grain refinement and even distribution of Mg17Al12 phase along the grain boundary for laser treated samples leading to substantial enhancement in the corrosion resistance of the laser treated samples compared to the untreated alloy. The laser processed samples also possessed a superior wettability in SBF solution than the untreated sample. This was further reflected in enhanced bio-integration behavior of laser processed samples. By changing the parameters of laser processing such as power, scanning speed, and fill spacing, a controllable corrosion resistance and bioactivity/biocompatibility of the implant material was …

In this dissertation, density functional theory calculations are performed to calculate the thermodynamic and electrochemical properties of metal coordinated frameworks for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Gibb's free energy, overpotential, charge transfer and ligands effect are evaluated. The charge transfer analysis shows the positive charges on the metal coordinated frameworks play an essential role in improving the electrochemical properties of the metal coordinated frameworks. Based on the calculations, design principles are introduced to rationally design and predict the electrochemical properties of metal coordinated frameworks as efficient catalysts for ORR and OER. An intrinsic descriptor is discovered for the first time, which can be used as a materials parameter for rational design of the metal coordinated frameworks for energy storage and conversion. The success of the design principles provides a better understanding of the mechanism behind ORR and OER and a screening approach for the best catalyst for energy storage and conversion.

In this study, we used UV-ozone Ar sputtering, X-ray photoelectron and ultra-violet photoelectron spectroscopies and sputtering based depositions of RuO2 and Se nano-layers on indium tin oxides (ITOs). We elucidated the effect of Ar sputtering on the composition and chemistry of Sn rich ITO surface. We demonstrated that while a combination of UV-ozone radiation and Ar sputtering removes most of the hydrocarbons responsible for degrading the work function of ITO, it also removes significant amount of the segregated SN at the ITO surface that's responsible for its reasonable work function of 4.7eV. We also demonstrated for the first time that sputtering cleaning ITO surface leads to the reduction of the charge state of Sn from Sn4+ to Sn2+ that adds to the degradation of the work function. For the nano-layers coverage of ITO studies, we evaluated both RuO2 and Se. For RuO2 coated ITO, XPS showed the formation of a Ru-Sn-O ternary oxide. The RuO2 nano-layer reduced the oxidation state of Sn in the Sn-rich surface of ITO from +4 to +2. The best work function obtained for this system is 4.98eV, raising the effective work function of ITO by more than 0.5 eV. For the Se coated ITO studies, …

The push for electronic devices on smaller and smaller scales has driven research in the direction of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMD) as new ultra-thin semiconducting materials. These ‘two-dimensional' (2D) materials are typically on the order of a few nanometers in thickness with a minimum all the way down to monolayer. These materials have several layer-dependent properties such as a transition to direct band gap at single-layer. In addition, their lack of dangling bonding and remarkable response to electric fields makes them promising candidates for future electronic devices. For the purposes of this work, two 2D TMDs were studied, MoS2 and MoTe2. This dissertation comprises of three sections, which report on exploration of charge lifetimes, investigation environmental stability at elevated temperatures in air, and establishing feasibility of UV laser annealing for large area processing of 2D TMDs, providing a necessary knowledge needed for practical use of these 2D TMDs in optoelectronic and electronic devices. (1) A study investigating the layer-dependence on the lifetime of photo-generated electrons in exfoliated 2D MoTe2 was performed. The photo-generated lifetimes of excited electrons were found to be strongly surface dependent, implying recombination events are dominated by Shockley-Read-Hall effects (SRH). Given this, the measured lifetime was shown …

Silicate glasses are the most common glass types and have impact on almost every aspect in our lives: from window, containers, to glass fibers for telecommunications. Unlike their crystalline counterparts, glass materials lack long-range order in their atomic arrangement but their structures do possess short and medium range characteristics that play critical roles in their physical and chemical properties. Despite active development of characterization techniques that have contributed to the understanding of glass structures, there remain key challenges in obtaining essential structural features of glasses. Atomistic computer simulations have become an increasingly important method in elucidating the atomic structures and in interpretation and/or prediction of composition-structure-property relationships of complex materials. In this dissertation, classical molecular dynamic (MD) simulations were used to investigate the atomic structures, dynamic and other properties of two important glass systems—aluminosilicate glasses and borosilicate glasses, which are the basis of most industrial and technologically important glasses. Firstly, a comprehensive study of peralkaline Na2O-Al2O3-SiO2 glass with varying Al2O3/SiO2, Na2O/Al2O3, Na2O/SiO2 ratios has been performed to obtain better understanding of the composition–structure–property relationships in this glass system. More than 99% of Al were 4-coordinated in these glasses, validating that Na+ tend to charge balance [AlO4]- network forming units first …

Dissimilar metals joining have been used in many industry fields for various applications due to their technique and beneficial advantages, such as aluminum-steel and magnesium-steel joints for reducing automobile weight, aluminum-copper joint for reducing material cost in electrical components, steel-copper joints for usage in nuclear power plant, etc. The challenges in achieving dissimilar joints are as below. (1) Big difference in physical properties such as melting point and coefficient of thermal expansion led to residual stress and defects. (2) The miscibility issues resulted in either brittle intermetallic compound layer at the welded interface for miscible combinations (such as, aluminum-steel, aluminum-copper, aluminum-titanium, etc.) or no metallurgical bonding for immiscible combinations (such as magnesium-copper, steel-copper, etc.). For metallurgical miscible combinations, brittle intermetallic compounds formed at the welded interface created the crack initiation and propagation path during deformational tests. (3) Stress concentration appeared at the welded interface region during tensile testing due to mismatch in elastic properties of dissimilar materials. In this study, different combinations of dissimilar metals were joined with friction stir welding. Lap welding of 6022-T4 aluminum alloy/galvanized mild steel sheets and 6022-T4 aluminum alloy/DP600 steel sheets were achieved via friction stir scribe technology. The interlocking feature determining the fracture mode …

First, the effect of transition metal oxide (e.g., V2O5, Co2O3, etc.) on the physical properties (e.g., density, glass transition temperature (Tg), optical properties and mechanical properties) and chemical durability of a simplified borosilicate nuclear waste glass was investigated. Adding V2O5 in borosilicate nuclear waste glasses decreases the Tg, while increasing the fracture toughness and chemical durability, which benefit the future formulation of nuclear waste glasses. Second, structural study of ZrO2/SiO2 substitution in silicate/borosilicate glasses was systematically conducted by molecular dynamics (MD) simulation and the quantitative structure-property relationships (QSPR) analysis to correlate structural features with measured properties. Third, for bioactive glass formulation, mixed-network former effect of B2O3 and SiO2 on the structure, as well as the physical properties and bioactivity were studied by both experiments and MD simulation. B2O3/SiO2 substitution of 45S5 and 55S5 bioactive glasses increases the glass network connectivity, correlating well with the reduction of bioactivity tested in vitro. Lastly, the effect of optical dopants on the optimum analytical performance on atom probe tomography (APT) analysis of borosilicate glasses was explored. It was found that optical doping could be an effective way to improve data quality for APT analysis with a green laser assisted system, while laser spot size …