We have investigated the growth and reactivity of chromium layers deposited onto a thin alumina film at room temperature and at 570 K. The interaction between Cr and the Al2O3/NiAl(1 1 0) surface leads to partial oxidation to Cr2þ and Cr3þ species. Complete oxidation to Cr3þ was achieved using moderate O2 doses at room temperature in vacuum. Cr has also been deposited in an O2 background pressu...

The results of atmospheric pressure plasma treatments using diffuse coplanar surface barrier discharge (type of surface dielectric barrier discharge) on chromium surfaces are reported. A significant increase of surface wettability was observed after short plasma exposition. A quantitative value of surface wettability, i.e. the surface free energy, changed from 29 mJ/m to over 80 mJ/m. In time, ...

Multiple colors visible to the naked eye across internal surfaces of stainless-steel 304 tubes polished with a magnetic abrasive finishing (MAF) process were investigated at varying levels magnification. The found result from microscopic colored features four different hues — green, blue, red, and yellow having irregular sizes shapes. Spectral analysis their dispersion indicates that these appe...

Oxide conversion reactions are an alternative approach for high capacity lithium ion batteries but are known to suffer from structural irreversibility associated with the phase separation and reconstitution of reduced metal species and Li2O. In particular, the morphology of the reduced metal species is thought to play a critical role in the electrochemical properties of a conversion material. H...

Samples of 53 materials that are used or potentially can be used or in the fabrication of microelectromechanical systems and integrated circuits were prepared: single-crystal silicon with two doping levels, polycrystalline silicon with two doping levels, polycrystalline germanium, polycrystalline SiGe, graphite, fused quartz, Pyrex 7740, nine other preparations of silicon dioxide, four preparat...

Using linear support vector machines, we investigated the feature selection problem for the application of all-against-all classification of a set of 20 chemicals using two types of sensors, classical doped tin oxide and zeolite-coated chromium titanium oxide sensors. We defined a simple set of possible features, namely the identity of the sensors and the sampling times and tested all possible ...

Magnetotransport properties of granular CrO2 /Cr2O3 films made of CrO2 crystals covered by 12 nm native insulating Cr2O3 are presented. Electrical properties of a limited number of grains measured in series and parallel (10 to 15 grains) reveal intergrain tunneling characteristics. At lowest temperatures, a well pronounced zero bias anomaly indicates that impurities in the junctions block the e...

BACKGROUND Five metal turners employed by an aerospace manufacturer presented to the Birmingham Chest Clinic occupational lung disease unit. Four cases of occupational asthma (OA) due to chromium salt (3) and cobalt (1) were diagnosed by serial peak-expiratory flow measurements and specific inhalation challenge testing. AIMS To measure the extent of the outbreak and to provide epidemiological...

Food availability may affect metal toxicity for aquatic organisms. In the present study, the influence of high, medium and low densities of the algae Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata (10(6), 10(5) and 10(4) cells.mL(-1), respectively) on the chronic toxicity of chromium to the cladoceran Ceriodaphnia dubia was investigated. C. dubia was exposed to a range of chromium concentration from 2.71 to 3...