J.M. Sánchez-Amaya

Single-Step Process To Prepare CeO2 Nanotubes with Improved Catalytic Activity

CeO(2) nanotubes have been grown electrochemically using a porous alumina membrane as a template. The resulting material has been characterized by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy, high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy tomography, high-resolution electron microscopy (HREM), and electron energy loss spectroscopy. According to SEM, the outer diameter of the nanotubes corresponds to the pore size (200 nm) of the alumina membrane, and their length ranges between 30 and 40 microm. HREM images have revealed that the width of the nanotube walls is about 6 nm. The catalytic activity of these novel materials for the CO oxidation reaction is compared to that of a polycrystalline powder CeO(2) sample prepared by a conventional route. The activity of the CeO(2) nanotubes is shown to be in the order of 400 times higher per gram of oxide at 200 degrees C (77.2 x 10(-2) cm(3) CO(2) (STP)/(gxs) for the nanotube-shaped CeO(2) and 0.16 x 10(-2) cm(3) CO(2) (STP)/(gxs) for the powder CeO(2)).

Inhibitor properties of “green” pigments for paints

Abstract Zinc chromate is one of the anticorrosive pigments most frequently used in the formulation of primers. However, its environmental aggressiveness and toxicity severely restrict its use, and different green alternatives have been proposed in order to replace zinc chromate. In the last decade, the behaviour of zinc phosphate as anticorrosive pigment has been intensively researched. During this time, various modifications have been made to this family of pigments to improve its properties, and a “second generation” of phosphate pigments, incorporating elements such as molybdenum, aluminium, or iron, has been produced. In this paper, the inhibitive properties of zinc phosphate and three second-generation phosphates have been investigated, using zinc chromate pigment as a reference. Pigment extract solutions, at different values of pH, have been used as corrosive media. Carbon steel samples were immersed in such solutions and their corrosion rates were measured using electrochemical techniques. The data obtained suggest that zinc chromate provides the highest percentage of inhibition in neutral and basic solutions, but phosphate-based pigments showed better results in acid solutions. Given this performance advantage, together with their less harmful environmental impact, these phosphate-based pigments can be proposed as realistic alternatives to chromates in the formulation of protective paints for use in acidic conditions.

Use of wavelets to study electrochemical noise transients

Two kinds of time records are found when measuring electrochemical noise: those presenting characteristic transients or spikes, and others in which neither transients nor spikes can be distinguished. Although the former are likely to be more informative than the latter, most of the methods developed for analyzing electrochemical noise are focused on studying the latter. This paper suggests a methodology for automatically studying the appearance of the transient, which could represent a significant advance in the field of corrosion monitoring and laboratory investigation. The proposed methodology is based on a mathematical tool called the wavelet transform, whose principal characteristic is that it enables a simultaneous analysis of signals in both time and scale. Thus a subsequent interscalar analysis of the signals can reveal the existence of transients and even provide a comparative characterization of their size and scale.

Laser welding of AA 5083 samples by high power diode laser

Abstract Laser welding is a very attractive technique to join different alloys at the industrial level, due to its low heat input, high flexibility, high weld quality and high production rate. In this work, the weldability of the aluminium alloy AA 5083 with a high power diode laser has been tested. Concisely, samples were subjected to lineal treatments of laser radiation, with the objective of studying the properties of the bead on plate welds generated. The main objective of the present work has been to study the influence of both the processing rate and the superficial treatment of the AA 5083 samples, on the morphological, microstructural and corrosion properties of the laser weld beads. The sizes of the welds were higher as the processing rate was decreased. The weld beads were seen to have better behaviour against corrosion than the base metal due to the microstructural refinement. It was also verified that a blasting process before processing gave beads with lower size but better corrosion resistance than the application of a black layer, due to the minimisation of the magnesium evaporation in this former superficial treatment.

Identification of key factors in Accelerated Low Water Corrosion through experimental simulation of tidal conditions: influence of stimulated indigenous microbiota.

Biotic and abiotic factors favoring Accelerated Low Water Corrosion (ALWC) on harbor steel structures remain unclear warranting their study under controlled experimental tidal conditions. Initial stimulation of marine microbial consortia by a pulse of organic matter resulted in localized corrosion and the highest corrosion rates (up to 12-times higher than non-stimulated conditions) in the low water zone, persisting after nine months exposure to natural seawater. Correlations between corrosion severity and the abundance and composition of metabolically active sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) indicated the importance and persistence of specific bacterial populations in accelerated corrosion. One phylotype related to the electrogenic SRB Desulfopila corrodens appeared as the major causative agent of the accelerated corrosion. The similarity of bacterial populations related to sulfur and iron cycles, mineral and tuberculation with those identified in ALWC support the relevance of experimental simulation of tidal conditions in the management of steel corrosion exposed to harbor environments.

Influence of Surface Pre-treatments on Laser Welding of Ti6Al4V Alloy

In the present study, Ti6Al4V samples have been welded under conduction regime by means of a high power diode laser. The main objective of the work has been to determine the actual influence of the surface pre-treatments on the laser welding process. Thus, six different pre-treatments were applied to Ti6Al4V samples before performing bead-on-plate and butt welding treatments. The depth, width, microstructure, and microhardness of the different weld zones were deeply analyzed. Grinding, sandblasting, and chemical cleaning pre-treatments lead to welds with the highest depth values, presenting high joint strengths. Treatments based on the application of dark coatings generate welds with lower penetration and worse mechanical properties, specially the graphite-based coating.

Laser texturization to improve absorption and weld penetration of aluminum alloys

In the present work, laser texturization treatments have been performed for the first time on aluminum alloys to increase their absorption and weld penetration. Adjusting the experimental conditions, laser texturization increases the roughness and decreases the diffuse and specular reflectance of surfaces. The textured samples were subsequently subjected to bead-on-plate laser weld treatments with a high power diode laser. Taking the weld beads of sandblasted samples as reference, depth improvements percentages around 20% are reached in some textured samples. Laser texturization has demonstrated to increase the weld penetration ability of aluminum alloys, constituting a potential tool to reduce the energetic requirements of the laser welding process.

Hurst Exponent on the Study of Electrochemical Noise Measurements

Abstract In this study, an analysis has been made of electrochemical noise (EN) signals of potential and current obtained on immersing samples of the Alloy AA5083 (UNS A95083) in solutions of sodium chloride (NaCl). These signals have been processed using the calculation of the Hurst exponent, a tool derived from the theory of chaos that allows one to estimate the influence that events occurring in the past have on the appearance of new events at subsequent times. However, the classic Hurst exponent was seen to have some limitations for the study of complex signals. In addition, a new Hurst exponent has been proposed for a better interpretation of EN data. The results obtained have enabled the values of the Hurst exponent to be correlated with the predominant mechanism of corrosion.

FEM Simulation and Experimental Validation of LBW Under Conduction Regime of Ti6Al4V Alloy

Laser Beam Welding (LBW) is an advanced process to join materials with a laser beam of high energy density. LBW is especially suitable to join titanium alloys, as it allows high localization and low size of the melting pool, reducing considerably the energy of the process, in comparison with other welding technologies. Among the two widely known welding regimes, conduction and keyhole, the former is claimed to be a viable alternative to keyhole, mainly because it is a very stable process, provides high-quality welds free of defects, and involves lower laser cost. In the present work, a Finite Element Method (FEM) has been developed to simulate the LBW of Ti6Al4V alloy under conduction regime. The “Goldak double ellipsoid model” has been taken for the first time to simulate this LBW conduction process. In order to refine and validate the model, experimental conduction welding tests were performed on Ti6Al4V pieces with a high-power diode laser. Microstructural analyses and hardness measurements were also performed on the laser weld beads to identify the generated phases. Distortion and residual stresses were also obtained from the FEM simulations. An excellent agreement between the simulation and experimental results was found regarding the bead morphology and phase transformations.

Laser welding of aeronautical and automobile aluminum alloys

Laser beam welding (LBW) show clear advantages compared with other techniques, as the low heat input, the high localization ability, the high welding speed, the high flexibility, the high weld quality and the high production rate. However, its applicability to aluminum alloys is limited, as they generally have high reflectivity, high thermal conductivity and low viscosity. In the present study, it is analyzed the laser weldability of four aluminum alloys (2024, 5083, 6082 and 7075). High penetration butt welds could be obtained with a high power diode laser under conduction regime. The properties of the weld beads such as the microstructure and microhardness were analyzed. A linear function between the input laser fluence and the volume of melted material was obtained for the four alloys.