This book covers the topic of vibration energy harvesting using piezoelectric materials. Piezoelectric materials are analyzed in the context of their electromechanical coupling, heterogeneity, microgeometry and interrelations between electromechanical properties. Piezoelectric ceramics and composites based on ferroelectrics are advanced materials that are suitable for harvesting mechanical energy from vibrations using inertial energy harvesting which relies on the resistance of a mass to acceleration and kinematic energy harvesting which couples the energy harvester to the relative movement of different parts of a source. In addition to piezoelectric materials, research efforts to develop optimization methods for complex piezoelectric energy harvesters are also reviewed. The book is important for specialists in the field of modern advanced materials and will stimulate new effective piezotechnical applications.

This book provides an overview of the application of IR spectroscopy in mineralogical investigations, as well as modern trends in the IR spectroscopy of minerals. It includes the most important methodological aspects; characteristic IR bands of different chemical groups and coordination polyhedra; application of IR spectroscopy to the investigation of the crystal chemistry of amphiboles, phyllosilicates, tourmalines etc.; neutral molecules entrapped by microporous minerals; and analysis of hydrogen in nominally anhydrous minerals. About 1600 IR spectra (illustrations as well as a list of wavenumbers) of minerals and some related compounds are accompanied by detailed descriptions of the standard samples used. Each spectrum provides information about the occurrence, appearance, associated minerals, its empirical formula, and unit-cell parameters. The book also provides insights into sample preparation and/or spectrum registration methods. It includes IR spectra of 1020 minerals that were not covered in the book "Infrared spectra of mineral species: Extended library" published in 2014 and written by one of the authors. On average, each page provides information on two minerals/compounds. Subsections correspond to different classes of compounds (silicates, phosphates, arsenates, oxides etc.). About 290 new spectra have been obtained, and the remaining 1310 spectra are taken from most reliable literature sources (published over the last 60 years) and are redrawn in a unified style.

This book discusses the latest developments in narrow fabrics from research institutions, machinery building companies and producers of such products, presented during the International Week of Narrow Fabrics in March 2016 in Moenchengladbach, Germany. It also demonstrates different applications of braided and woven fabrics. Braided and woven narrow products are produced using completely different techniques, but have a lot of similarities in their applications - they are used as belts, ropes and tubes in areas ranging from medical textiles, cables, technical and home applications to large-scale transport belts and long tubes for transporting oil from the bottom of the ocean.

This thesis focuses on chalcogenide compound quantum dots with special crystal structures and behaviors in an effort to achieve the synergistic optimization of electrical and thermal transport for high-efficiency thermoelectric materials. The controllability and large-scale synthesis of chalcogenide quantum dots are realized through simple colloid synthesis, and the synergistic optimization of the materials' electrical and thermal transport properties is successfully achieved. Furthermore, the book explores the mechanism involved in the integration of high thermoelectric performance and reversible p-n semiconducting switching in bimetal chalcogenide semiconductors. As such, the thesis will be of interest to university researchers and graduate students in the materials science, chemistry and physics.

This book presents research advances in the field of Continuous Media with Microstructure and considers the three complementary pillars of mechanical sciences: theory, research and computational simulation. It focuses on the following problems: thermodynamic and mathematical modeling of materials with extensions of classical constitutive laws, single and multicomponent media including modern multifunctional materials, wave propagation, multiscale and multiphysics processes, phase transformations, and porous, granular and composite materials. The book presents the proceedings of the 2nd Conference on Continuous Media with Microstructure, which was held in 2015 in Lagow, Poland, in memory of Prof. Krzysztof Wilmanski.

This book presents the main outcomes of the first European research project on the seismic behavior of adjustable steel storage pallet racking systems. In particular, it describes a comprehensive and unique set of full-scale tests designed to assess such behavior. The tests performed include cyclic tests of full-scale rack components, namely beam-to-upright connections and column base connections; static and dynamic tests to assess the friction factor between pallets and rack beams; full-scale pushover and pseudodynamic tests of storage racks in down-aisle and cross-aisle directions; and full-scale dynamic tests on two-bay, three-level rack models. The implications of the findings of this extensive testing regime on the seismic behavior of racking systems are discussed in detail, highlighting e.g. the confirmation that under severe dynamic conditions "sliding" is the main factor influencing rack response. This work was conceived during the development of the SEISRACKS project. Its outcomes will contribute significantly to increasing our knowledge of the structural behavior of racks under earthquake conditions and should inform future rack design.

This book addresses and analyzes the mechanisms responsible for functionality of two technologically relevant materials, giving emphasis on the relationship between structural transitions and electromechanical properties. The author investigates the atomic crystal structure and microstructure by means of thermal analysis, as well as diffraction and microscopy techniques. Electric field-, temperature- and frequency-dependent electromechanical properties are also described. Apart from this correlation between structure and properties, characterization was also performed to bridge between basic research and optimization of application-oriented parameters required for technological implementation. The author proposes guidelines to the reader in order to engineer functional properties in other piezoelectric systems, as well as in other similar functional materials with the perovskite structure.

This monograph addresses the foundations of mechanothermodynamics and analyzes two of its key principles-damage of everything that exists has no conceivable limits, and effective energy (entropy) flows caused by loads of a different nature do not have a cumulative property; they interact dialectically. The authors examine a generalized model of energy and entropy states of a mechanothermodynamical medium, which generally is a continuum (liquid, gaseous) containing distributed solid deformable, and, therefore, damageable bodies, as a problem of information states of movable and damageable systems and express a solution in the first approximation. The book goes on to analyze some directions of further research in its conclusion. It is ideal for scientists, engineers, post graduate and master students of mechanics, mathematics and physics.

This Brief is concerned with the material chemistry of food packaging materials. It introduces the properties and peculiarities of typical packaging materials, such as plastics, cellulose components, ceramics and metals. Their overall performance as food packaging material is determined by the chemical and physical properties. The Brief describes how the final properties of a food packaging material can be influenced through chemical modifications in the structure and composition of the used components. The authors also cover potential chemical reactions of food packaging materials that may affect their performance. Potential hazards that may arise, such as influences on the product quality, or effects on their recycling or disposal, are discussed. Different influences, like metal corrosion, chemical resistance and degradability of the main packaging materials, or properties like hydrophobicity, surface energy and migration have to be taken into account. This Brief gives an introduction to all these different aspects of food packaging.

The book presents a series of concise papers by researchers specialized in various fields of continuum and computational mechanics and of material science. The focus is on principles and strategies for multiscale modeling and simulation of complex heterogeneous materials, with periodic or random microstructure, subjected to various types of mechanical, thermal, chemical loadings and environmental effects. A wide overview of complex behavior of materials (plasticity, damage, fracture, growth, etc.) is provided. Among various approaches, attention is given to advanced non-classical continua modeling which, provided by constitutive characterization for the internal and external actions (in particular boundary conditions), is a very powerful frame for the gross mechanical description of complex material behaviors, able to circumvent the restrictions of classical coarse-graining multiscale approaches.

This book presents, in a self-contained fashion, a series of studies on flow and heat transfer in porous media, in which distinct energy balances are considered for the porous matrix and for the permeating fluid. Detailed mathematical modeling is presented considering both volume and time averaging operators simultaneously applied to the governing equations. System involving combustion in the gaseous phase, moving bed and double-diffusion mechanism are analyzed. Numerical results are presented for each case. In the end, this book contains the description of a tool that might benefit engineers in developing and designing more efficient thermal equipment.

This monograph is devoted to problems of propagation and stability of linear and nonlinear waves in continuous media with complex structure. It considers the different media, such as solid with cavities, preliminary deformed disperse medium, solid with porosity filled by the electrically conductive and non-conductive liquid, magnetoelastic, piezo-semiconductors, crystals with dislocations, composites with inclusions, an electrically conductive asymmetrical liquid, a mixture of gas with a drop liquid. The book also considers the propagation of a laser beam through a two-level medium. The presented results are based on methods of evolution and modulation equations that were developed by the authors. The book is intended for scientific and technical researchers, students and post-graduate students specializing in mechanics of continuous media, physical acoustics, and physics of the solid state.

This book presents an extensive review of literature on the properties of carbon nanofibers (CNF) reinforced polymer composites in conjunction with advances in the production and properties of CNFs. It further provides readers a view into the development of lightweight composites whose properties are tailored and enhanced with micro- and nano-reinforcement, along with results from data comparisons from several published investigations.

This book deals with the properties and behavior of carbon at high temperatures. It presents new methods and new ways to obtain the liquid phase of carbon. Melting of graphite and the properties of liquid carbon are presented under stationary heat and pulse methods. Metal like properties of molten graphite at high initial density are indicated. A new possible transition of liquid carbon from metal to nonmetal behavior much above the melting point is mentioned. Methodical questions of pulse heating, in particular the role of pinch-pressure in receiving a liquid state of carbon, are discussed. The reader finds evidence about the necessity of applying high pressure (higher than 100 bar) to melt graphite (melting temperature 4800+/-100 K). The reader can verify the advantage of volume pulse electrical heating before surface laser heating to study the physical properties of carbon, including enthalpy, heat capacity, electrical resistivity and temperature. The advantages of fast heating of graphite by pulsed electric current during a few microseconds are shown. The data obtained for the heat capacity of liquid carbon under constant pressure and constant volume were used to estimate the behavior at temperatures much higher 5000 K.

This book investigates the stability and vibrations of conductive, perfectly conductive and superconductive thin bodies in electromagnetic fields. It introduces the main principles and derives basic equations and relations describing interconnected mechanical and electromagnetic processes in deformable electro conductive bodies placed in an external inhomogeneous magnetic field and under the influence of various types of force interactions. Basic equations and relations are addressed in the nonlinear formulation and special emphasis is placed on the mechanical interactions of superconducting thin-body plates with magnetic fields.

The book presents the latest findings in experimental plasticity, crystal plasticity, phase transitions, advanced mathematical modeling of finite plasticity and multi-scale modeling. The associated algorithmic treatment is mainly based on finite element formulations for standard (local approach) as well as for non-standard (non-local approach) continua and for pure macroscopic as well as for directly coupled two-scale boundary value problems. Applications in the area of material design/processing are covered, ranging from grain boundary effects in polycrystals and phase transitions to deep-drawing of multiphase steels by directly taking into account random microstructures.

This book is intended for researchers who are interested in investigating the nanomechanical properties of materials using advanced instrumentation techniques. The chapters of the book are written in an easy-to-follow format, just like solved examples. The book comprehensively covers a broad range of materials such as polymers, ceramics, hybrids, biomaterials, metal oxides, nanoparticles, minerals, carbon nanotubes and welded joints. Each chapter describes the application of techniques on the selected material and also mentions the methodology adopted for the extraction of information from the raw data. This is a unique book in which both equipment manufacturers and equipment users have contributed chapters. Novices will learn the techniques directly from the inventors and senior researchers will gain in-depth information on the new technologies that are suitable for advanced analysis. On the one hand, fundamental concepts that are needed to understand the nanomechanical behavior of materials is included in the introductory part of the book. On the other hand, dedicated chapters describe the utilization of advanced numerical modeling in understanding the properties of complex materials. This book is useful for students and researchers from diverse backgrounds including chemistry, physics, materials science & engineering, biotechnology and biomedical engineering. It is well suited as a textbook for students and as a reference book for researchers.

Proceedings of the 4th Joint International Conference on Hyperfine Interactions and International Symposium on Nuclear Quadrupole Interactions, HFI/NQI 2012 held in Beijing, China, September 10-14, 2012. The hyperfine interaction between the atomic nucleus and the surrounding charge distribution and the magnetic fields at the site of the nucleus remains a topic of high scientific interest. To this we have to add the field of nuclear quantum optics where the hyperfine interaction takes place between the atomic nucleus and synchrotron radiation. The study of this hyperfine interaction allows to shift the existing borders of scientific insight both in the properties of the atomic nucleus as in the properties of the solids and liquids in which it is imbedded. The 47 scientific contributions in this book describe studies presented at the HFI/NQI2012 conference. These studies are devoted to topics such as nuclear moments, nuclear polarization, fundamental interactions, magnetism and magnetic materials, semiconductors, metals, insulators, practical applications, developments in methodology and new directions in the field of hyperfine interactions.

This book provides an excellent overview on the most recent results on the industrial applications of Mossbauer spectroscopy attained on the fields of nanotechnology, metallurgy, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry, applied mineralogy, energy production industry (coal, oil, nuclear, solar, etc.), computer industry, space technology, electronic and magnetic devices technology, ion implantation technology, including topics like characterization of novel construction materials, electronic components and magnetic materials, composite materials, colloids, amorphous and nanophase materials, small particles, coatings, interfaces, thin films and multilayers, catalysis, corrosion, tribology, surface modification, hydrogen storage, ball milling, radiation effects, electrochemistry, batteries, etc. From the various reports a broad overview emerges illustrating that the method can successfully be applied in a wide variety of topics.
Previously published in the journal Hyperfine Interactions.

The field of Atomic and Molecular Physics (AMP) has reached significant advances in high-precision experimental measurement techniques. The area covers a wide spectrum ranging from conventional to new emerging multi-disciplinary areas like physics of highly charged ions (HCI), molecular physics, optical science, ultrafast laser technology etc. This book includes the important topics of atomic structure, physics of atomic collision, photoexcitation, photoionization processes, Laser cooling and trapping, Bose Einstein condensation and advanced technology applications of AMP in the fields of astronomy, astrophysics, fusion, biology and nanotechnology. This book is useful for researchers, professors, graduate, postgraduate and PhD students dealing with atomic and molecular physics. The book has a wide scope with applications in neighboring fields like plasma physics, astrophysics, cold collisions, nanotechnology and future fusion energy sources like ITER (international Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) Tokomak plasma machine, which need accurate AMP data.

Polycrystalline SiGe has emerged as a promising MEMS (Microelectromechanical Systems) structural material since it provides the desired mechanical properties at lower temperatures compared to poly-Si, allowing the direct post-processing on top of CMOS. This CMOS-MEMS monolithic integration can lead to more compact MEMS with improved performance. The potential of poly-SiGe for MEMS above-aluminum-backend CMOS integration has already been demonstrated. However, aggressive interconnect scaling has led to the replacement of the traditional aluminum metallization by copper (Cu) metallization, due to its lower resistivity and improved reliability. Poly-SiGe for MEMS-above-CMOS sensors demonstrates the compatibility of poly-SiGe with post-processing above the advanced CMOS technology nodes through the successful fabrication of an integrated poly-SiGe piezoresistive pressure sensor, directly fabricated above 0.13 m Cu-backend CMOS. Furthermore, this book presents the first detailed investigation on the influence of deposition conditions, germanium content and doping concentration on the electrical and piezoresistive properties of boron-doped poly-SiGe. The development of a CMOS-compatible process flow, with special attention to the sealing method, is also described. Piezoresistive pressure sensors with different areas and piezoresistor designs were fabricated and tested. Together with the piezoresistive pressure sensors, also functional capacitive pressure sensors were successfully fabricated on the same wafer, proving the versatility of poly-SiGe for MEMS sensor applications. Finally, a detailed analysis of the MEMS processing impact on the underlying CMOS circuit is also presented.

The 6th International Conference on Laser Probing (LAP2012) had been held in Paris at the Institut Henri Poincare. It highlighted the state of the art in Laser Probing and reinforced the common ground and synergies among the different actors in the field. The Institut de Physique Nucleaire d'Orsay and the Grand Accelerateur National d'Ions Lourds in Caen had been in charge of the organization of this event, co-sponsored by the Institut National de Physique Nucleaire et de Physique des Particules (IN2P3) and the Laboratory Physique des 2 Infinis et des Origines (P2IO). Previously published as special issue of Hyperfine Interactions, vol. 216, 1-3.

This volume contains the proceedings of the 5th International Symposium on Symmetries in Subatomic Physics (SSP2012), that was held in Groningen, The Netherlands from 18 till 22 June 2012. This sequence of symposia is now firmly connected with one of the main branches in fundamental nuclear and particle physics, i.e. in searches for physics beyond the Standard Model, focused on the (violation of) the discrete symmetries of Parity, Charge conjugation and Time reversal invariance. This field comes in various disguises: With large experimental facilities and large collaborations, as in LHC physics or in neutrino experiments, but also as table top experiments by small groups in the field of nuclear, atomic and molecular physics, such as in searches for a permanent electric dipole moments and atomic parity violation.

Bringing the practitioners of these divergent fields together gives a coherent overview and see the complementarities of the various approaches to the same question: why is the Standard Model what it is and what lies beyond it.

This volume will define the direction of eddy-current technology in nondestructive evaluation (NDE) in the twenty-first century. It describes the natural marriage of the computer to eddy-current NDE, and its publication was encouraged by favorable responses from workers in the nuclear-power and aerospace industries. It will be used by advanced students and practitioners in the fields of computational electromagnetics, electromagnetic inverse-scattering theory, nondestructive evaluation, materials evaluation and biomedical imaging, among others, and will be based on our experience in applying the subject of computational electromagnetics to these areas, as manifested by our recent research and publications. Finally, it will be a reference to future monographs on advanced NDE that are being contemplated by our colleagues and others. Its importance lies in the fact that it will be the first book to show that advanced computational methods can be used to solve practical, but difficult, problems in eddy-current NDE. In fact, in many cases these methods are the only things available for solving the problems. The book will cover the topic of computational electromagnetics in eddy-current nondestructive evaluation (NDE) by emphasizing three distinct topics: (a) fundamental mathematical principles of volume-integral equations as a subset of computational electromagnetics, (b) mathematical algorithms applied to signal-processing and inverse scattering problems, and (c) applications of these two topics to problems in which real and model data are used. This will make the book more than an academic exercise; we expect it to be valuable to users of eddy-current NDE technology in industries as varied as nuclear power, aerospace, materials characterization and biomedical imaging. We know of no other book on the market that covers this material in the manner in which we will present it, nor are there any books, to our knowledge, that apply this material to actual test situations that are of importance to the industries cited. It will be the first book to actually define the modern technology of eddy-current NDE, by showing how mathematics and the computer will solve problems more effectively than current analog practice.

This thesis presents an in-depth study on the effect of colloidal particle shape and formation mechanism on self-organization and the final crystal symmetries that can be achieved. It demonstrates how state-of-the-art X-ray diffraction techniques can be used to produce detailed characterizations of colloidal crystal structures prepared using different self-assembly techniques, and how smart systems can be used to investigate defect formation and diffusion in-situ. One of the most remarkable phenomena exhibited by concentrated suspensions of colloidal particles is the spontaneous self-organization into structures with long-range spatial and/or orientational orders. The study also reveals the subtle structural variations that arise by changing the particle shape from spherical to that of a rounded cube. In particular, the roundness of the cube corners, when combined with the self-organization pathway, convective assembly or sedimentation, was shown to influence the final crystal symmetries.