Resilient polymeric materials such as silicone elastomers are currently used for maxillofacial prostheses construction but the strength of these materials and their clinical performance need to be optimized with the addition of reinforcing fillers. This study investigates the effect of zirconia nanopowder addition on tear strength, tensile strength, elongation at break, Shore A hardness, surface roughness and cytotoxicity of VST-50 maxillofacial silicone. Silicone base was mixed with different amounts (1%, 2% and 3%) of zirconia nanopowder using a vacuum mixer. Silicone without filler was used as control for comparison. Scanning Electron Microscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy were utilized to assess the efficiency of high-shear vacuum mixing as filler dispersion method and the surface topography, respectively. Both SEM and AFM images showed that the zirconia nanopowder were distributed fairly well within the polymer. Statistically, highly significant increase in tear strength, tensile strength and hardness with non-significant decrease in elongation at break and non-significant increase in surface roughness were seen with 1% and 2% groups. Whereas with 3% group, there was significant improvement in tear strength, tensile strength and hardness but there was significant undesirable decrease in elongation and increase in roughness. Cytotoxicity test revealed that the addition of zirconia nanopowder was nontoxic to Rat Embryonic Fibroblast (REF) cells and there was non-significant change in the cell viability of all study groups after 24- and 72-hours incubation periods. In conclusion, the addition of 2% by weight nano zirconia to VST-50 maxillofacial silicone could be beneficial in enhancing its performance.
A successful synthesis of mesoporous Santa Barbara amorphous (SBA-15) with nanoparticle size was attempted using prepared sodium silicate from Iraqi high silica sand. EO20PO70EO20 copolymer was used as a template at highly acidic conditions (pH < 2). The effect of crystallization temperature of (100, 110, 120, and 130 0C), and crystallization time of (24, 48, 72, and 120 h) on surface properties was studied. The experiments were characterized using XRD, FTIR, AFM, BET, and FESEM. The XRD and FTIR tests represent amorphous SBA-15 without any impurities. Decreasing average particle size distribution increased the surface area, and decreased the porosity (pore volume, and pore size) in all experiments. The texture properties were su
... Show MoreExploding wire Technique is a way for production metal and its compound nanoparticle that is capable of production of bulk amount at low cost semiconductor. In this work a copper iodine nanoparticles were fabricate by exploding copper wires with different currents in iodine solution. The produced samples were examined by XRD, FTIR, SEM and TEM to characterize their properties. The XRD proved the Nano-size for producer. The crystalline size increases with increasing current. FTIR measurements show a peaks located at 638.92 for Cu-I stretch bond indicate on formation of copper iodide compound and the peaks intensities increase with increasing current. The SEM and TEM measurements show that the thin films have nanostructures.
In this research, the effects of both current and argon gas pressure on the bending properties of welded joints were studied. Using the possible ranges of welding gas pressures and currents, Tungsten inert gas welding (TIG) of stainless steel (304) sheet was used to obtain their influence on the maximum bending force of the (TIG) welded joints. Design of experiment (DOE) ‘version 10' was used to determine the design matrix of experiments depending on the used levels of the input factors. Response surface methodology (RSM) technique was used to obtain an empirical mathematical model for the maximum bending force as a function of welding parameters (Current and Argon gas pressure). Also, the analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to verif
... Show MoreThin films of ZnSxSe1-x with different sulfide content(x)
(0, 0.02, 0.04, 0.06, 0.8, and 0.1), thickness (t) (0.3, 0.5, and 0.7 μm) and annealing temperature (Ta) (R.T 373 and 423K) were fabricated by thermal evaporating under vacuum of 10-5 Toor on glass substrate. The results show that the increasing of sulfide content (x)and annealing temperature lead to decrease the d.c conductivity σDC of and concentration of charge carriers (nH) but increases the activation energy (Ea1,Ea2), while the increasing of t increases σDC and nH but decrease (Ea1,Ea2). The results were explained in different terms
In this paper synthesis and extensive investigation of the microstructural and optoelectronic properties of polyaniline (PANI), Multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNTs) and MWCNTs reinforced PANI composites is presented. MWCNTs- PANI composites have been deposited by spin coating on silicon wafer substrate. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy shows no difference between PANI and its composites. However a change in peaks shape and absorption intensity has been observed. A strong effect of the MWCNTs weight percentage on the PANI/MWCNTs composites has been demonstrated. It was find that the thermal stability improved with increasing MWCNTs content. The optical band gap of the PANI thin
A new light-weight nanocarbon prepared by spray-drying method to obtain particle size is 21.7 nm based of polylactic acid biodegradable film in antistatic packaging .Bio carbon (biochar) is obtained from plants and soils to naturally absorb and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere . Therefor it has been used to support biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA) with to obtain 100% recyclable material.
Using plasticizer thymol of polylactic acid and biochar (bio carbon) as composites were prepared by a solution casting method with (0.5-10)wt% biochar. The composites characterized by FTIR, electrical conductivity, mechanical properties , contact angle and Colar and Brightness . Results show th
... Show MoreIn this study, geopolymer mortar was designed in various experimental combinations employing 1% micro steel fibers and was subjected to different temperatures, according to the prior works of other researchers. The geopolymer mortar was developed using a variety of sustainable material proportions (fly ash and slag) to examine the influence of fibers on its strength. The fly ash weight percentage was 50%, 60%, and 70% by slag weight to study its effect on the geopolymer mortar's properties. The optimal ratio produced the most significant results when mixed at a 50:50 ratio of fly ash and slag with 1% micro steel fibers at curing temperature 240oC for 4 hours through two days. The compressive strength of the geopolymer mortar increas
... Show MoreRecords of two regionalized variables were processed for each of porosity and permeability of reservoir rocks in Zubair Formation (Zb-109) south Iraq as an indication of the most important reservoir property which is the homogeneity , considering their important results in criterion most needed for primary and enhanced oil reservoir .Z and F tests that were calculated for the two above mentioned properties of pair units of Zubair Formation have shown the difference in depositional energy and different diagenesis between units IL and AB , DJ and AB , and the similarity in grains size , sorting degree , depositional environment and pressure gradients between IL and AB units , LS and IL units ; also the difference in the properties above betw
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