The usage of building energy accounts for 30-40% of total energy consumption in developed countries, exceeding the amount for industry or transportation. Around 50% energy for building services is contributed by heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems. More importantly, both building and HVAC energy consumptions are predicted to increase in the next two decades. Windows are considered as the least energy-efficient components of buildings. Therefore, smart windows are becoming increasingly important as they are capable of reducing HVAC energy usage by tuning the transmitted sunlight in a smart and favoured way: blocking solar irradiation on hot days, while letting it pass through on cold days. Compared with other type of smart windows, thermochromic windows have the unique advantages of cost-effectiveness, rational stimulus, and passive response. This book covers fabrication of vanadium dioxide-based smart windows, discusses various strategies to enhance their performance, and shares perspectives from the top scientists in this particular field.

The market for durable products using modified wood has increased substantially during the last few years. This is partly because of the restriction on the use of toxic preservatives due to environmental concerns, and to lower maintenance cost and time. Furthermore, as sustainability becomes a greater concern, the environmental impact of construction and interior materials is factored in planning by considering the whole life cycle and embodied energy of the materials used. Wood is modified to improve its intrinsic properties, enhance the range of applications of timber, and to acquire the form and functionality desired by engineers without calling the environmental friendliness into question. Wood modification processes are at various stages of development, and the challenges faced in scaling up to industrial applications differ. The aim of this book is to put together the key elements of the changes of wood constituents and the related changes in wood properties of modified wood. Further, a selection of the principal technologies implemented in wood modification are presented. This work is intended for researchers, professionals of timber construction, as well as students studying the science of materials, civil engineering and architecture. This work is not exhaustive, but intends to deliver an outline of the scientific disciplines necessary to apprehend the technologies of wood modification and its behavior during treatment, as well as during its use.

The Handbook on Stimuli-Responsive Materials is providing the scientific community with the comprehensive developments of scientific findings and advanced technologies - all necessary factors to propel the development of polymeric, ceramic, metallic, composite, bio and the combination of thereof, materials to the position of controllable responses under defined, predictable, yet complex internal and external conditions. The primary focus of the proposed Handbook is on designing, formulating, and processing of materials that lead to the understanding of scientific principles of their response-driven functions and processes leading to response-driven behaviors. The volume gathers leading scientists from the inter-disciplinary areas of polymers, biopolymers, biochemistry, and biophysics, biomaterials, bioengineering, materials engineering and biotechnology, chemistry and physics, ceramic and metals, and materials science.

This book brings together contributions from leading scientists, academics, and experts from the oil and gas industry to discuss microbial-related problems faced by the industry and how bioinformatics and an interdisciplinary scientific approach can address these challenges. Microbial Bioinformatics in the Oil and Gas Industry: Applications to Reservoirs and Processes presents the major industrial problems caused by microbes (e.g., souring, biocorrosion) as well as the beneficial activities (e.g., biofuels, bioremediation). FEATURES Offers a detailed description of how bioinformatics has advanced our understanding of numerous issues in the oil and gas industry Covers cases from geographically diverse oil fields, laboratories, and research groups Contains fundamentals and applied information of relevance to the oil and gas sector Presents contributions from a team of international experts across industry and academia With its cross-disciplinary approach, this comprehensive book provides microbial ecologists, molecular biologists, operators, engineers, chemists, and academics involved in the sector with an improved understanding of the significance of microbial bioinformatics applications in the oil and gas industry.

This book comprises of chapters based on design of various advanced nano-catalysts and offers a development of novel solutions for a better sustainable energy future. The book includes all aspects of physical chemistry, chemical engineering and material science. The advances in nanoscience and nanotechnology help to find cost-effective and environmentally sound methods of converting naturally inspired resources into fuels, chemicals and energy. The book leads the scientific community to the most significant development in the focus research area. It provides a broad and in-depth coverage of design and development advanced nano-catalyst for various energy applications.

LCs are self-organized anisotropic fluids that are thermodynamically located between the isotropic liquid and the crystalline phase, exhibiting the fluidity of liquids as well as the long-range lattice order that can only be found in crystalline solids. The addition of nanomaterials to a LC material produces a composite or colloidal dispersion and results into a revolutionary change in their applications. This book will discuss the remarkable performances of nano-particle aided liquid crystals in metamaterials, photonics, functionalized polymer fibres, sensing, and medical diagnostics.

Nanotechnology is one of the most rapidly developing areas of science, with great potential to solve the developmental challenges in a wide range of industries such as aerospace, agriculture, bioengineering, cosmetics, chemicals, electronics, energy, renewables, surface coatings, textiles, medicine, materials manufacturing, military equipment, etc. To compile this book, distinguished scientists, engineers, and industrial professionals from different parts of the world have been invited. An array of 17 high-quality science-based chapters covering recent advancements, challenges, and future trends in industrial applications of nanotechnology is presented. The book is aimed at industrial professionals and graduate-level students and researchers.

This volume elaborates on mechatronics as the synergistic integration of mechanical engineering with electronics and intelligent computer control in the design and manufacturing of industrial products and processes. It considers the integration of mechanical systems (mechanical elements, components, machines), electronic systems (microelectronics, sensor and actuator technology), and information technology. The book's chapters present the principles of mechatronic systems design and solid materials in small elementary steps, provide an abundance of examples, and feature problems that are as practical as possible without becoming too involved with many extraneous details.

Renewable Materials and Green Technology Products: Environmental and Safety Aspects looks at the design, manufacture, and use of efficient, effective, safe, and more environmentally benign chemical products and processes. It includes a broad range of application-based solutions to the development of renewable materials and green technology. The latest trends in the green synthesis and properties of CNs are presented in the first chapter of this book for generating social awareness about sustainable developments. The book goes on to highlight the naissance and progressive trail of microwave-assisted synthesis of metal oxide nanoparticles, for a clean and green technology tool. Chapters discuss green technological alternatives for the global abatement of air pollution, effective use and treatment of water and wastewater, renewable power generation from solar PV cells, carbon-based nanomaterials synthesized using green protocol for sustainable development, green technologies that help to achieve economic development without harming the environment, technical solutions to cut down the quantum of N losses, conventional processing techniques in developing the bionanocomposites as the biocatalyst, and more.

If observed from an objective, epistemological standpoint, medicine is not a science, at least not in its own right. The most important, key feature missing is repeatability, which makes the doctor's job extremely difficult. Doctors are not scientists but are called upon to use the results of scientific research every day. Therefore, they must keep themselves updated, distinguish what is worth extricating from a huge amount of literature and use the data exclusively in the patients' interest. To be effective, medicine must start from a correct, full understanding of problems, but particulate pollution leads to too many wrong diagnoses. This book, written by the discoverers of nanopathology, is the most advanced in the field. It focuses on how natural, occasionally generated, engineered particles interfere with living organisms, food, drugs and the environment. It represents a bridge between environmental pollution and its impact on human/animal/plant health. Also unique is its new bioengineering-interdisciplinary approach to medicine and solving pathologies of unknown aetiology. It is a valuable aid for medical doctors in their diagnoses of pathologies triggered by nanoparticles internalized in the human/animal/plant body. They will find solutions to some hardly understandable symptoms which some patients report.

This book is for graduate students and researchers who wish to understand theoretical mechanisms lying behind macroscopic properties of magnetic thin films. It provides a detailed description of basic theoretical methods and techniques of simulation to help readers in their research projects. The first part of the book contains 6 chapters. Chapters 1 to 5 focus on the fundamental theory of bulk magnetic materials. Chapter 6 is devoted to the presentation of the Monte Carlo simulation methods. Exercises and problems are provided at the end of each of these chapters for self-training. The second part contains 11 chapters devoted to the main topic of the book, namely "physics of magnetic thin films: theory and simulation." Written as a research paper, each chapter focuses on a subject and also presents the state-of-the-art literature on the subject and the motivation of the chapter. A detailed description of the techniques and the presentation of the results are then shown with discussion.

This book covers all aspects and elements of rolling technology in one volume with even the most technical jargon being communicated in an easy to understand language. The book is exhaustive as topics ranging from rolls, rolls cooling, roll turning, roll reclamation, investigation of roll breakage, roll management and roll bearing all have been dealt in detail as these constitute the most important element of production cost. A separate chapter has been dedicated to operational management of a rolling mill, which includes safety and inventory. Packaging of the finished products and modern operating mill practices and technologies are also discussed in detail. This book will be a useful tool for shop floor personnel and for all senior management operating in the rolling mill industry; it is also a must read for all polytechnic / engineering students of metallurgical / mechanical / process engineering. This book may also be useful as reference book for students/professionals of rolling technology. Note: T&F does not sell or distribute the Hardback in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Wood has played a major role throughout human history. Strong and versatile, the earliest humans used wood to make shelters, cook food, construct tools, build boats, and make weapons. Recently, scientists, politicians, and economists have renewed their interest in wood because of its unique properties, aesthetics, availability, abundance, and perhaps most important of all, its renewability. However, wood will not reach its highest use potential until we fully describe it, understand the mechanisms that control its performance properties, and, finally, are able to manipulate those properties to give us the desired performance we seek. The Handbook of Wood Chemistry and Wood Composites analyzes the chemical composition and physical properties of wood cellulose and its response to natural processes of degradation. It describes safe and effective chemical modifications to strengthen wood against biological, chemical, and mechanical degradation without using toxic, leachable, or corrosive chemicals. Expert researchers provide insightful analyses of the types of chemical modifications applied to polymer cell walls in wood. They emphasize the mechanisms of reaction involved and resulting changes in performance properties including modifications that increase water repellency, fire retardancy, and resistance to ultraviolet light, heat, moisture, mold, and other biological organisms. The text also explores modifications that increase mechanical strength, such as lumen fill, monomer polymer penetration, and plasticization. The Handbook of Wood Chemistry and Wood Composites concludes with the latest applications, such as adhesives, geotextiles, and sorbents, and future trends in the use of wood-based composites in terms of sustainable agriculture, biodegradability and recycling, and economics. Incorporating decades of teaching experience, the editor of this handbook is well-attuned to educational demands as well as industry standards and research trends.

Materials scientists, silicon technologists and TCAD researchers come together in this book to share experimental results and physical models, discuss achievements and challenges, and identify key issues for future research in this field. The volume focuses on many aspects related to doping of semiconductors (Si, SiGe and Ge) for device fabrication, and explores areas for single-gate as well as multi-gate devices with planar and vertical architectures. Surface properties, coverage, bonding saturation and passivation, and annealing ambient are also discussed.

Reviews various types of MLD processes including vapor-phase MLD, liquid-phase MLD, and selective MLD. Introduces organic multiple quantum dots (Organic MQDs) that are typical tailored organic thin-film materials produced by MLD. Designs light modulators/optical switches, predicts their performance, and discusses impacts of the organic MQDs on them. Discusses impacts of the organic MQDs on optical interconnects within computers and on optical switching systems. Presents proposals of MLD applications to energy conversion systems, molecular targeted drug delivery, photodynamic therapy, and laser surgery for cancer therapy.

This practical and unique textbook explains the core areas of molecular spectroscopy as a classical teacher would. The author carefully explores and explains each concept, walking side by side with the student through carefully constructed text, pedagogy, and derivations to ensure comprehension of the basics before approaching higher level topics. The author incorporates both electric resonance and magnetic resonance in the textbook. Uses boxes to explain more difficult topics and provides derivations to demonstrate "how and why". Includes coverage of electronic and NMR spectroscopy, both in sufficient detail. Discusses the density matrix method and its use in electronic spectroscopy before addressing it in NMR. Includes a chapter on Vibrational and Rotational Coherence Spectroscopy. Each chapter ends with problems with varying level of difficulty.

Fabrication of Graphene from Camphor: Emerging Energy Applications provides a short review of recent discoveries in the field of graphene. Its specific focus is on the synthesis of graphene sheets by naturally available sources of carbon as solid precursors. It delves into three major issues in the field: * The low-cost fabrication process for the development of large-scale graphene using natural camphor as a solid source of carbon. * The fabrication of graphene-silicon and graphene-silicon nanowire arrays (SiNWAs) Schottky junction near-infrared photodetectors (NIRPDs). * The applications of graphene thin film for lithium-ion batteries.

The book provides an extensive coverage of conjugated polymer based nano-composite coatings with advanced anti-corrosive properties. The book gives detailed explanation of corrosion testing methods and techniques to evaluate the corrosion resistance of the coatings. It includes elaborate discussion on classification of corrosion, electrochemistry of corrosion process, theories explaining the mechanism of corrosion and various corrosion testing standards. Electrochemical studies like open circuit potential (OCP) variation with time, potentiodynamic polarization, Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) and accelerated corrosion testing are highlighted as important tools to extract information about the behavior of coatings under corrosive conditions. The book discusses epoxy-conjugated polymer based novel composite coating formulations, including aniline and o-toluidine, o-anisidine, phenetidine and pentafluoroaniline with appropriate fillers like SiO2, flyash, ZrO2 nanoparticles, and chitosan for the protection of metallic substrates. A general discussion on the self healing mechanism of epoxy-polypyrrole based biopolymer hybrid composite coatings is included in this book. This book provides a critical review on the conjugated polymer based composite coatings with superior corrosion resistance, good mechanical integrity, better adhesion properties and self healing ability under highly aggressive conditions which can be commercially used for the protection of metal substrates from corrosion.

Nanomaterials are becoming ubiquitous; microbes similarly are everywhere. This book focuses on various ways the diverse nanomaterials interact with microbial communities and implications of such interactions. Both toxicity and beneficial effects of nanomaterial-microbe interactions have been covered. This includes areas such as fate and bioavailability of nanomaterials in environments, microbial synthesis of nanomaterials and antimicrobial action of nanomaterials. Fairly comprehensive but with narrow focus, the book provides useful insights into these interactions which need to be factored in while designing nanoscience based new technologies.

Heterophase polymerization is a century-old technology with a wide range of relevant industrial applications, including coatings, adhesives, rubbers, and many other specialized biomedical and high-performance materials. However, due to its multiscale complexity, it still remains a challenging research topic. It is a broad field covering all heterogeneous polymerization processes that result in polymer dispersions. Its technical realizations comprise emulsion polymerization, dispersion polymerization, suspension polymerization, miniemulsion polymerization, microemulsion polymerization, and others. This book is devoted to the science and technology of heterophase polymerization, considering it a generic term as well as an umbrella expression for all of its technical realizations. It presents, from a modern perspective, the basic concepts and principles required to understand the kinetics and thermodynamics of heterophase polymerization at the atomistic, molecular, macromolecular, supramolecular, colloidal, microscopic, mesoscopic, and macroscopic scales. It critically discusses the important physicochemical mechanisms involved in heterophase polymerization, such as nucleation, particle aggregation, mass transfer, swelling, spontaneous emulsification, and polymerization kinetics, along with the experimental evidences at hand.

Flame Retardant Polymeric Materials provides a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of the field, from basic properties and mechanisms of action for flame retardants to emerging methods, materials, and industrial applications. With over 120 black and white images, Hu and Wang cover the latest in the development of novel polymer nanocomposites such as graphene, CNTs, LDHs, POSS, and techniques such as layer-by-layer assembly. These expert authors also include discussions on the important flame-retardant systems based on phosphorus, silicon, and boron. In doing so, they highlight the use of flame-retardants in varying industries, for example, construction, textiles, and aviation. This comprehensive handbook is an essential read for students and academics of physics with a particular interest in flame-retardant materials. It would also be recommended for professionals within the materials science and engineering fields.

The first volume of this book covered Section I: Introduction to Nanocomposites Fabrication and Section II: CNT and Graphene Nanocomposites. The present second volume covers Section III: Recent Applications of Nanocomposites. The second volume aims to provide a guide for different applications of modern nanocomposites especially those fabricated by carbon nanotubes and graphene. The book makes a comparative study of fiber-reinforced composites which have been embedded into the matrix with nanocomposites containing nanotubes in place of fibers. The main topics of this volume are: Electrochemical Properties of Nanoporous Based Materials, Fabrication and Application of Graphene Oxide-based Metal and Metal Oxide Nanocomposites, Electrochemical Sensors/Biosensors Based on Carbon Aerogels/Xerogels, Advances in Nanobiocatalysis: Strategies for Lipase Immobilization and Stabilization, Metal Oxide Based Heterojunction Nanoscale Materials for Chemiresistive Gas Sensors, Recent Advances in Polymer Nanocomposite Coatings for Corrosion Protection, Recent Advances in the Design of Nanocomposite Materials via Laser Techniques for Biomedical Applications, Carbonaceous Nanostructured Composites for Electrochemical Power Sources: Fuel Cells, Supercapacitors and Batteries, Bismuth Vanadate Based Nanostructured and Nanocomposite Photocatalyst Materials for Water Splitting Application.

Heterostructured nanoparticles have the capability for a broad range of novel and enhanced properties, which leads to appealing biomedical and environmental applications. This timely new book addresses the design and preparation of multiphase nanomaterials with desired size, shape, phase composition, and crystallinity, as well as their current applications. It emphasizes key examples to motivate deeper studies, including nanomaterial-based hyperthermia treatment of cancer, nanohybrids for water purification, nanostructures used in the removal or detection of bioagents from waste water, and so on. Features Presents state of the art research on heterostructured nanomaterials, from their synthesis and physiochemical properties to current environmental and biological applications. Includes details on toxicity and risk assessment of multifunctional nanomaterials. Discusses recent developments and utilization in healthcare by leading experts. Introduces the main features of functionalization of nanomaterials in terms of desired size, shape, phase composition, surface functionalization/coating, toxicity, and geometry. Emphasizes practical applications in the environmental and biomedical sectors.

This book gives a detailed and up-to-date overview of the linearized augmented cylindrical wave (LACW) technique for nanotubes and nanowires. The author presents the mathematical foundations together with numerous applications. Method for calculating the electronic structure of point impurities, which is based on a combination of the LACW and Green's functions techniques, is presented. The book clearly demonstrates how the relativistic effects can be incorporated into LACW approach and how the spin-orbit coupling effects change the tubules band structure. Extensive illustrations of application to the inorganic nanotubes and nanowires make the book essential reading in this field above all.

The use of new engineering materials in the aerospace and space industry is usually governed by the need for enhancing the bearing capacity of structural elements and systems, improving the performance of specific applications, reducing structural weight and improving its cost-effectiveness. Crystalline composites and nanomaterials are used to design lightweight structural elements because such materials provide stiffness, strength and low density/weight. This book reviews the effect of high temperature creep on structural system response, and provides new phenomenological creep models (deterministic and probabilistic approach) of composites and nanomaterials. Certain criteria have been used in selecting the creep functions in order to describe a wide range of different behavior of materials. The experimental testing and evaluation of time variant creep in composite and nanomaterials is quite complex, expensive and, at times, time consuming. Therefore, the analytical analysis of creep properties and behavior of structural elements made of composite and nanocomposite materials subjected to severe thermal loadings conditions is of great practical importance. Composite elements and heterogeneous materials, from which they are made, make essential changes to the classical scheme for constructing the phenomenological creep model of composite elements, because it reflects the specificity of the composite material and manifests itself in the choice of two basic functions of the creep constitutive equation, namely memory and instantaneous modulus of elasticity functions. As such, the concepts and analytical techniques presented here are important. But the principal objective of this book is to demonstrate how nonlinear viscoelastic engineering creep theory can be incorporated into the general theory of mechanics of materials so that composite components can be designed and analyzed. The results are supported by step-by-step practical structural design examples and will be useful for structural engineers, code developers as well as material science researchers and university faculty. The phenomenological creep models presented in this book provide a usable engineering approximation for many applications in composite engineering.