Sharif Digital Repository

Induced Polarization (IP) is a non-intrusive geophysical method to monitor Dense Non-Aqueous Phase Liquid (DNAPL) contamination and remediation processes underground. In this study, an advanced numerical code simulating DNAPL flow and complex electrical resistivity is presented. The model was validated against existing IP results and image measurements that were carried out previously in a series of 2D tank experiment. Multiphase flow modeling in porous media is coupled with electrical current modeling to simulate the process of DNAPL migration and the associated IP response. This brings a broader view of the contamination in space and time compared to surface and borehole measurements,... 

Metal-oxide gas sensors are widely used for detection of detrimental H2S gas. Among them, SnO2-CuO system has been proved to be an excellent candidate. The previous theoretical 2D thin bilayer model was able to explain some aspects of H2S sensing performance of this promising system. However, experimental researches have indicated that response values for this system are very diverse and various SnO2-CuO multicomponent heterostructures such as rods, wires and particles have much higher response than their thin bilayer counterparts. Understanding the reason behind this differences would help fabrication of optimized sensor element. However, the previous model cannot address this issue mainly... 

Organ-on-chip devices have provided the pharmaceutical and tissue engineering worlds much hope since they arrived and began to grow in sophistication. However, limitations for their applicability were soon realized as they lacked real-time monitoring and sensing capabilities. The users of these devices relied solely on endpoint analysis for the results of their tests, which created a chasm in the understanding of life between the lab the natural world. However, this gap is being bridged with sensors that are integrated into organ-on-chip devices. This review goes in-depth on different sensing methods, giving examples for various research on mechanical, electrical resistance, and bead-based... 

Hematite is recognized as a promising photoanode for photoelectrochemical water oxidation to produce solar hydrogen due to its favorable properties. However, the high charge carrier recombination rate due to low electrical conductivity and sluggish oxygen reduction kinetics of pure hematite hinder its photocatalytic activity. This work proposed a new hematite-based heterostructure of Ti-Fe2O3/Fe2TiO5/FeOOH, synthesized through a hydrothermal method. The photoanode morphology was branched nanorods that expanded their surface area and improved charge transfer at the photoanode/electrolyte interface. In a novel and complement modification approach, a thin pseudobrookite interlayer was applied... 

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a non-invasive method that helps to analyze brain function based on BOLD signal fluctuations. Functional Connectivity (FC) catches the transient relationship between various brain regions usually measured by correlation analysis. The elements of the correlation matrix are between -1 to 1. Some of them are very small values usually related to weak and spurious correlations due to noises and artifacts. They can not be concluded as real strong correlations between brain regions and their existence could make a misconception and leads to fake results. It is crucial to make a conclusion based on reliable and informative correlations. In order to... 

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a non-invasive method that helps to analyze brain function based on BOLD signal fluctuations. Functional Connectivity (FC) catches the transient relationship between various brain regions usually measured by correlation analysis. The elements of the correlation matrix are between -1 to 1. Some of them are very small values usually related to weak and spurious correlations due to noises and artifacts. They can not be concluded as real strong correlations between brain regions and their existence could make a misconception and leads to fake results. It is crucial to make a conclusion based on reliable and informative correlations. In order to... 

Development of simple yet precise sensing platforms for rapid determination of biological species and drugs is of paramount importance, not only for analysis of pharmaceutical formulations during the production stage, but also in clinical practices and medical diagnosis. In the present research, we report on the electrochemical determination of atorvastatin (ATOR) by using silver nanowires/gold-modified glassy carbon electrode (Ag NWs/Au/GCE). The modified electrode was constructed through a two-step procedure in which narrow silver nanowires synthesized via a polyol method are drop casted on a pre-modified GCE with electrodeposited gold particles. The results of XRD analysis indicated the... 

The present research sheds new light on the development of a triple-cation quasi-two-dimensional (2D) perovskite family with the general formula of (S1−xS′x)2[Cs0.05(FA1−xMAx)0.95]3Pb4(I1−xBrx)13, in which two spacers, namely 5-ammonium valeric acid iodide (S) and tetra-n-octylammonium bromide (S′) were simultaneously incorporated. Morphology, crystal structure, optical properties, photovoltaic performance, and internal resistances of such compound were systemically studied in comparison with an analogous single-cation 2D counterpart (i.e. (S)2(FA)3Pb4I13) as a reference. X-ray diffraction set forth that the films deposited based upon these compounds had a 2D perovskite crystal structure... 

So-called negative capacitance seems to remain an obscure feature in the analysis of the frequency-dependent impedance of perovskite solar cells. It belongs to one of the puzzling peculiarities arising from the mixed ionic-electronic conductivity of this class of semiconductor. Here we show that apparently high capacitances in general (positive and negative) are not related to any capacitive feature in the sense of a corresponding charge accumulation. Instead, they are a natural consequence of slow transients mainly in forward current of the diode upon ion displacement when changing voltage. The transient current leads to a positive or negative ‘capacitance’ dependent on the sign of its... 

The structural, electrical, magnetic and high frequency properties of Ni-substituted Zn2W-type hexagonal ferrites were investigated for microwave applications. Ferrite powders with chemical compositions Ba0 · 5Sr0.5NixZn2-xFe16O27 (where Ni-substitution was varied from 0.0 to 1.5 with a step size of 0.5) were prepared using sol-gel auto-combustion at 1300 °C. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis confirmed the single-phase hexagonal ferrite structure. The lengths of both the axis i.e. minor and major (a, c) obtained from hkl values of XRD peaks were decreased with Ni-substitution due to the difference in ionic radius of the substituted metal ions. DC electrical resistivity obtained by two-point... 

In this paper, the optimum alkali activator solution properties in alkali-activated pastes based on ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) and micro-silica (MS) were investigated. For this purpose, sodium hydroxide (NH) solutions with molarities of 8 M, 12 M, and 16 M were prepared and mixed with sodium silicate (NS) solutions at NS:NH ratios of 1.0, 2.5, and 4.0 to produce the final activator solution. Two sets of pastes were manufactured: (1) pastes based on GGBFS, and (2) pastes in which 10% by weight of GGBFS was replaced with MS. The fresh density increased with increasing NH molarity and NS:NH ratio; whereas, the final setting time reduced with an increase in the aforementioned... 

In a nutshell, this study outlines the efficacy of mixed dimensional (2D/3D) hybrid perovskites by developing a new class of triple-cation quasi-2D perovskites having (S0.97S′0.03)2[Cs0.05(FA0.97MA0.03)0.95]n-1Pbn(I0.07Br0.03)3n+1 general composition, in which a mixture of ý5-ammonium valeric acid ýiodideý (S) and tetra-n-octylammonium ýbromide (S′) was employed ýas a spacer.ý The effect of the 2D and 3D structures molar ratios (i.e., C=2D/2D+3D) in the range of 0-100 % on photovoltaic performance of the deposited photoanodes was systemically studied. Drawing a comparison between such compounds and an analogous triple-cation 3D counterpart (i.e., Cs0.05(FA0.83MA0.17)0.95Pb(I0.83Br0.17)3) as... 

A high performance asymmetric supercapacitor (ASC)has been fabricated by using nickel oxide-cobalt oxide nanosheets (NiO–CoO NSs), which were directly grown on carbon nanotubes (CNTs)and hydrothermal carbon spheres (HTCs)as positive and negative electrodes, respectively. Both electrode materials are binder-free prepared by using a catalytic chemical vapour deposition (CVD)approach followed by a facile hydrothermal method for cathode and a one-step environmental-friendly route called hydrothermal carbonization for anode. Using NiO–CoO NSs@CNTs and HTCs, which were directly grown on Ni foam, not only leads to a very small equivalent series resistance, but also provides an impressive capacitive... 

Scaled model test in towing tank is a common method to predict the ship resistance in calm water. The scale effects are dominant in these tests because the Reynolds and Froude numbers of the model and full-scale ship cannot be equal. There is a sufficient amount of knowledge about the displacement hulls which have limited speed ranges in most cases. However, scarcity of published data on high-speed crafts is noticed. The influence of the model length on ship resistance varies in different speeds, so it should be studied in more detail. The extrapolation method of model ship resistance to full scale is studied in this paper for high-speed monohulls. Resistance model tests of semi-displacement... 

It has long been an aspirational goal to create artificial structures that allow fast permeation of water but reject even the smallest hydrated ions, replicating the feat achieved by nature in protein channels (e.g., aquaporins). Despite recent progress in creating nanoscale pores and capillaries, these structures still remain distinctly larger than protein channels. We report capillaries made by effectively extracting one atomic plane from bulk crystals, which leaves a two-dimensional slit of a few angstroms in height. Water moves through these capillaries with little resistance, whereas no permeation could be detected even for such small ions as Na + and Cl − . Only protons (H + ) can... 

In this paper, acoustic energy harvesting using a tunable Helmholtz Resonator (HR) is investigated. The frequency of resonator can be changed by varying the radial force in a membrane which is used in one of its face. Applying acoustic pressure, vibrates the air inside HR neck and therefore changes pressure in HR chamber which results in membrane vibration. Attached magnet to the membrane will vibrate and its relative motion to a fixed coil generates voltage on the basis of Faraday's law of induction. Modeling approach is developed considering equivalent nonlinear membrane stiffness and coupling of electrical circuit and mechanical device. At the end, system behavior is studied numerically... 

Effects of graphene, tool rotational speed and pass number were studied on the reliability and electrical resistance of the aluminum to copper friction stir welds. Addition of graphene was an effective solution to overcome the increase in the electrical resistance of the aluminum/copper joints. Indeed, presence of graphene decreased the electrical resistance of the joints to the values comparable with that of the copper base metal. However, joint tensile strength was not affected significantly by graphene. Decrease in the tool rotational speed improved the dispersion of the graphene particles and tensile strength, while reduced the electrical resistance. Tensile strength of the joint reached... 

Nonlinear transmission lines (NLTLs) are passive networks with the capability of modulating baseband pulses. These networks are used for generating RF pulses at high-power levels. NLTLs have a unique performance in high-power RF pulse generation among all the generators based on the solid-state technology. A high-power rectangular pulse is injected to the line, gradually evolved into an oscillatory pulse while propagating through the network, and finally, in the form of a high-power RF pulse, is delivered to the load. Properly terminating an NLTL, in order to transfer the maximum available RF power to the load, is an important problem. In this paper, an accurate analysis is presented, which... 

In this brief, a design technique for tapered distributed low-noise amplifiers (LNAs) is presented. A circuit model is developed for gain and noise analysis of a nonuniform distributed amplifier (DA). It is shown that by optimal tapering of gate and drain transmission lines and transistors, the tapered distributed LNA can provide lower broadband average noise figure (NF) compared to a uniform DA. A proof-of-concept integrated circuit is implemented using a 0.1-μm GaAs pHEMT process. The amplifier provides average gain of 15.2 dB and 3-dB bandwidth of 43.3 GHz. The average NF of 2.3 dB and minimum NF of 2.0 dB are achieved over 2-40 GHz. The chip consumes 55 mA current from a 2-V supply. ©... 

Upset resistance dissimilar welding of aluminium and copper narrow rods was performed. Effect of the interface characteristics was studied on the joint mechanical and electrical properties. Upset resistance welding (URW) was successful for production of joints with high strength and electrical conductivity between aluminium and copper rods. Reaction layer at the joint interface was composed of the Al2Cu cellular phase and lamellar eutectic structure of α-Al and Al2Cu. Enhancement of the welding current and decrease in the upset force increased the reaction layer thickness and strength of the joint. URW had no significant detrimental effect on the electrical conductivity of the weld zone....