This work examined the influence of dual incorporation of MoO2 and SiO2 on the corrosion behavior of pure titanium treated via plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO). To achieve this purpose, pure titanium substrate was treated via PEO in an alkaline-molybdate electrolyte without and with SiO2 nanoparticles. The microstructural observation revealed that the addition of SiO2 nanoparticles into the electrolyte during PEO helped to seal the structural defects in the PEO coating so that a rougher, thicker, and denser coating rich in SiO2 was successfully obtained. From the electrochemical measurements in a 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution, the TiO2-MoO2-SiO2 hybrid coating exhibited a higher corrosion resistance than the TiO2-MoO2 coating which was attributed to the sealing effect by stable SiO2 nanoparticles.

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The effects of benzalkonium chloride (BKC) contents on the structure, properties, and ultrafiltration performance of chitosan-based nanocomposite membranes containing poly(ethylene glycol) and multi-walled carbon nanotube (chitosan/BKC/PEG/CNT) were examined. The membranes were prepared by a mixing solution method and phase inversion before being characterized with microscopic techniques, tensile tests, thermogravimetric analysis, water contact angle, and porosity measurements. The performance of the nanocomposite membranes in regard to permeability (flux) and permselectivity (rejection) was examined. The results show that the incorporation of BKC produced nanocomposite membranes with smaller pore structures and improved physico-chemical properties, such as an increase in porosity and surface roughness (Ra = 45.15 to 145.35 nm and Rq = 53.69 to 167.44 nm), an enhancement in the elongation at break from 45 to 109%, and an enhancement in the mechanical strength from 31.2 to 45.8 MPa. In contrast, a decrease in the membrane hydrophilicity (water contact angle increased from 56.3 to 82.8°) and a decrease in the average substructure pore size from 32.64 to 10.08 nm were observed. The membrane rejection performances toward Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) increased with the BKC composition in both dead-end and cross-flow filtration processes. The chitosan/BKC/PEG/CNT nanocomposite membranes have great potential in wastewater treatments for minimizing biofouling without reducing the water purification performance.

The electrorheological (ER) behavior of chitosan dicarboxylate suspensions in silicone oil was investigated by varying the electric fields, volume fractions of particles, and shear rates, respectively. The chitosan dicarboxylate susepnsions showed a typical ER response caused by the polarizability of an amide polar group and shear yield stress due to the formation of multiple chains upon application of an electric field. Of these, chitosan malonicate suspension represented slightly higher rheological performance than any other suspensions due to dependent upon the carbon chain length. The shear stress for the suspension exhibited a linear dependence on an electric field power of 1.88. On the basis of the results, the newly synthesized chitosan dicarboxylate suspensions were found to be an anhydrous ER fluid.

Steel sheets containing 0.18 wt % C were deformed by differential speed rolling (DSR) up to four passes and compared to the steel sheets processed by equal speed rolling (ESR). Not only microstructure, but also mechanical properties and rolling load, were studied, which enlightens the relationship between microstructure, mechanical properties, and rolling load. Moreover, microstructure and properties resulting from ESR were systematically compared. During the rolling deformation, coarse grains were elongated first parallel to the rolling direction, and ultrafine grains were subsequently formed via continuous dynamic recrystallization. Microstructural analysis revealed that DSR was more effective than ESR in terms of achieving grain refinement and microstructure homogeneity. High-angle grain boundaries surrounding the ultrafine grains contributed to grain boundary strengthening, resulting in a dramatic increase in both hardness and strength after DSR. Although the steel was strengthened by rolling, the rolling load firstly increased and subsequently decreased as the number of passes increased, and lower force was required during DSR than during ESR. These can be explained by considering deformation volume and sticking friction.