The paper presents the results of studies of hybrid composite layers Ni/Al2O3/Cgraphite produced by the electrodeposition method. Three variants of hybrid composite layers were prepared in electrolyte solutions with the same amounts of each dispersion phases which were equal to 0.25; 0.50 and 0.75 g/dm3. The structure of Ni/Al2O3/Cgraphite layers as well as the Al2O3 and graphite powders, which were used as dispersion phases was investigated. The results of morphology and surface topography of produced layers are presented. The modulus of elasticity and microhardness of the material of produced layers were determined by DSI method. Tribological and corrosion resistance tests of produced layers were carried out. Realized studies have shown that the material of the produced layers is characterized by a nanocrystalline structure. Incorporation of dispersion phases into the nickiel matrix increases the degree of surface development of layers. Ni/Al2O3/Cgraphite layers are characterized by high hardness and abrasion resistance by friction, furthermore, they provide good corrosion protection for the substrate material.

The purpose of the paper is to outline a systematic and unified non-local treatment of mode conversion effects associated with an interface superlattice being a 2D pseudo-array composed of altered phase inclusions (exemplified by impurity clusters) and located at a solid-solid plane interface. It will be illustrated, in some detail, for the instructive case of a Stoneley type acoustic wave (SW), incident on a periodically nonhomogeneous portion of an interface and partly transformed into bulk modes propagating in one of the component solid. An analytical model scheme is constructed, using a variational method combined with the T matrix approach, appropriate for the 2D periodic array treated, and decaying into the depth of this solid for the structure in a way determined by the array geometry and element 3D profiles as well as the boundary conditions at the interface. An apodization (weighting) to reduce the side-lobes level is incorporated into the structure by appropriately varying lateral dimensions and the depth of particular scatterers.

Before disassemble and demolition of five granulation towers the authors planned and carried out measurements of the intensity of vibrations induced during the fall of the dismantled components of towers on the ground. The main aim of the study was to determine the maximum permissible weight of falling elements of the towers during the demolition, in terms of ensuring the protection of buildings and equipment located in the vicinity of the works. It was unacceptable to increase the vibration amplitude displacement in each section of measurement on each of the three perpendicular axes by more than 2 μm peak-to-peak value and the absolute velocity of RMS of vibration amplitude couldn’t be increased by more than 1 mm/sec value than the background vibration during the demolition of the towers. Preliminary experimental studies were conducted on a test stand and the measurements were made on the real object. The amplitudes of vibration waves displacement and velocity were recorded on the measurement section in the direction of the protected building. The results of measurements were used to identify the propagation of the shock wave and the effectiveness of the proposed insulation layers.

The paper presents the results of numerical simulation of processes aimed at production of nanostructures with the use of oil emulsions in water. The appropriate molecular models of water and oil, as well as the model of the substance which would sediment at the water – oil interface, are looked for. Such substance, after suitable solidification, would become the main component of the produced material. For the described simulations, the Molecular Dynamics method has been used throughout this paper.

There is a considerable increase in the use of noise barriers in recent years. Noise barriers as a control noise solution can increase the insertion loss to protect receivers. This paper presents the results of an investigation about the acoustic efficiency of primitive root sequence diffuser (PRD) on an environmental single T-shape barrier design. A 2D boundary element method (BEM) is used to predict the insertion loss of the tested barriers. The results of rigid and with a different sequence diffuser coverage are also predicted for comparison. Employing PRD on the top surface of T-shape barrier has been found to improve the performance of barriers in comparison with the use of rigid and QRD coverage at the examined receiver locations. It has been found that decreasing the design frequency of PRD shifts the frequency effects towards lower frequencies, and therefore the overall A-weighted insertion loss is improved. It was also found that using wire mesh with reasonably efficient resistivity on the top surface of PRD improves the efficiency of the reactive barriers; however utilizing wire meshes with flow resistivity higher than the specific acoustic impedance of air on the PRD top of a diffuser barrier significantly reduces the performance of the barrier within the frequency bandwidth of the diffuser. The performance of a PRD covered T-shape barrier at 200 Hz was found to be higher than that of its equivalent QRD barriers in both the far field and in areas close to the ground. The amount of improvement compared made by PRD barrier compared with its equivalent rigid barrier at far field is about 2 to 3 dB, while this improvement relative to the barrier model "QR4" can reach up to 4-6 dB.

Modified Bohm’s formalism was applied to solve the problem of abstruse layer depth profiles measured by the Auger electron spectroscopy technique in real physical systems. The desorbed carbon/passive layer on an NiTi substrate and the adsorbed oxygen/ surface of an NiTi alloy were studied. It was shown that the abstruse layer profiles can be converted to real layer structures using the modified Bohm’s theory, where the quantum potential is due to the Auger electron effect. It is also pointed out that the stationary probability density predicts the multilayer structures of the abstruse depth profiles that are caused by the carbon desorption and oxygen adsorption processes. The criterion for a kind of break or “cut” between the physical and unphysical multilayer systems was found. We conclude with the statement that the physics can also be characterised by the abstruse measurement and modified Bohm’s formalism.

Al- and Al/Zn-enriched layers containing intermetallic phases were deposited on the Mg substrate by heating the Mg specimens in contact with the powdered materials in a vacuum furnace. The Al-enriched surface layers were produced using Al powder, whereas the Al/Znenriched layers were obtained from an 80 wt.% Al + 20 wt.% Zn powder mixture. The microstructure and composition of the layers were analyzed by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The results showed that the Al-enriched layer comprised an Mg17Al12 intermetallic phase and a solid solution of Al in Mg. The layer obtained from the Al+Zn powder mixture was composed of Mg-Al-Zn intermetalic phases and a solid solution of Al and Zn in Mg. Adding 20% of Zn into the Al powder resulted in the formation of a considerably thicker layer. Moreover, the hardness of the surface layers was much higher than that of the Mg substrate.

In this study, we investigate the mechanical behavior of each skin layer, in terms of the nominal stress-strain curve by uniaxial tensile tests using specimens of porcine skin in two forms: dermis containing epidermis, and all three layers. All tests were performed under cyclic loading at the constant strain rate of 10–3 s–1 at ambient temperature. To measure the precise initial cross-sectional areas of each layer, the thickness of each skin layer was quantified by counting the number of pixels on the photo-image using image-processing software. In the tensile test, force-strain curves of the total skin and dermis with epidermis were obtained. Subsequently, a rule of mixtures was applied to determine the nonlinear mechanical properties of the hypodermis layer. In conclusion, we could define the uniaxial tensile behavior of the hypodermis, and additionally predict the weight effect of the dermis and hypodermis layers in the tensile test.

Uniaxial tensile tests were performed on porcine skin to investigate the tensile stress-strain constitutive characteristic at quasistatic deformations using uniaxial tensile tests. Experimental results were then used to determine the parameters of the various constitutive model types for rubber, including the Mooney-Rivlin, Yeoh, Ogden, and others. The Prony series viscoelastic model was also calibrated based on the stress relaxation test. To investigate the calibrated constitutive equations (visco-hyperelastic), the falling impact test was conducted. From the viewpoint of the maximum impact load, the error was approximately 15.87%. Overall, the Ogden model predicted the experimental measurements most reasonably. The calibrated constitutive model is expected to be of practical use in describing the mechanical properties of porcine skin.

The work presents a computer simulation realized with the ADINA program concerning nanoindendation test. A shape of nanoindenter was proposed to be similar to the real surgical tools. The theoretical model was used to predict phenomena which would appear in practice. The contribution of the TiN coating thickness to the implant rigid properties was simulated. Three types of extortion conditions could be considered, i.e., short contact with surgery tool (i); long continuous contact with natural tissue (ii); long cyclic contact with natural tissue (iii). In the first part of the work, the authors focused on the first type of extortion (i). The second part of the work is dedicated to the calculations of temperature impact to layer behaviour. Two layer thicknesses are considered i.e., 250 nm and 50 nm. The examined coatings find serious practical applications as a blood-contacting material in medicine. The coatings were subjected to transmission electron microscopy investigations. Columnar mechanism of film growth controlled by kinetic process is stated to operate for the considered range of layer thickness. Plasma temperature is observed to influence the substrate behaviour. Examinations of thinner layers, i.e. under 100nm, revealed higher degree of smoothness and uniformity, which could be related to the operation of the surface diffusion mechanism at the early stage of deposition. The physical explanation of TEM images was based on the finite element calculations of the temperature distribution using the ADINA program .

One major problem in the design of ultrasonic transducers results from a huge impedance mismatch between piezoelectric ceramics and the loading medium (e.g. gaseous, liquid, and biological media). Solving this problem requires the use of a matching layer (or layers). Optimal selection of materials functioning as matching layers for piezoelectric transducers used in transmitting and receiving ultrasound waves strictly depends on the type of the medium receiving the ultrasound energy. Several methods allow optimal selection of materials used as matching layers. When using a single matching layer, its impedance can be calculated on the basis of the Chebyshev, DeSilets or Souquet criteria. In the general case, the typically applied methods use an analogy to a transmission line in order to calculate the transmission coefficient T. This paper presents an extension of transmission coefficient calculations with additional regard to the attenuation coefficients of particular layers. The transmission coefficient T is optimised on the basis of a genetic algorithm method. The obtained results indicate a significant divergence between the classical calculation methods and the genetic algorithm method.

Electrochemical Cr coatings doped with diamond nanoparticles were deposited on sintered steels with different carbon contents (0.2-0.8 wt.-%). The mechanical properties of surfaces as hardness and wear resistance increase as compared to the steel substrate. Microcutting and microgridding mechanisms were observed after tribological tests, but also adhesive wear in some areas was observed. X-ray examination indicated that the layer was textured, with the exception of the sample with the highest concentration of diamond nanoparticles in the electrolyte (42 g/l). The intensity ratio ICr110/ICr200 was calculated and compared with the indices for a standard sample. The greatest differences in the intensity ratio occurred for the samples with low carbon content (0.2%C). On the other hand, more the material is textured the greater the difference.

The article presents the technology of layered casting with the use of 3D printing to make a frame insert. The insert was made of powdered titanium and then filled with liquid cast iron. The paper presents the results of research, including structure observation and hardness measurements, as well as abrasion resistance tests. The results indicate the possibility of creating a local reinforcement using a frame insert. The resulting casting is characterized by a local increase in hardness and, in addition, an increase in abrasion resistance of the entire surface layer. The quality of the obtained connection depends strongly on the casting parameters.

On the basis of the results of direct measurements, the conduction properties of the yearly behaviour of the halt flux conducted in the tundra soil (S) are determined. In general, the cooling period of the soil profile lasted from August to January, with highest intensity in October (S = —4.8 Wm-2). A rapid intensification of the heat exchange in the soil occurred in July (S = 7.4 Wm-2 ) . The 24-hour values of S were found to vary greatly (from 19 Wm-2 to 32 Wm-2). For chosen days, relationships were determined among the particular elements of the heat balance of the active layer.

This paper considers a Brushless Direct Current (BLDC) machine prototype with six poles and 36 stator slots including a three phase double-layered distributed winding. Presented modifications of rotor construction are identified in order to achieve the best possible compromise of eddy-current losses and cogging torque characteristics. The permanent magnet (PM) eddy-current loss is relatively low compared with the iron loss; it may cause significant heating of the PMs due to the relatively poor heat dissipation from the rotor and it results in partial irreversible demagnetization. A reduction in both losses is achieved by magnet segmentation mounted on the rotor. Various numbers of magnet segmentation is analysed. The presented work concerns the computation of the no-load iron loss in the stator, rotor yoke and eddy-current loss in the magnets. It is shown that the construction of the rotor with segmented magnets can significantly reduce the PM loss (eddy-current loss). The eddy-current loss in PMs is caused by several machine features; the winding structure and large stator slot openings cause flux den sity variations that induce eddy-currents in the PMs. The effect of these changes on the BLDC motor design is examined in order to improve the machine performance. 3-D finite-element analysis (FEA) is used to investigate the electromagnetic behaviour of the BLDC motor.