Filled Skutterudite Antimonides: A New Class of Thermoelectric Materials

A class of thermoelectric materials has been synthesized with a thermoelectric figure of merit ZT (where T is temperature and Z is a function of thermopower, electrical resistivity, and thermal conductivity) near 1 at 800 kelvin. Although these materials have not been optimized, this value is comparable to the best ZT values obtained for any previously studied thermoelectric material. Calculations indicate that the optimized material should have ZT values of 1.4. These ternary semiconductors have the general formula RM4X12 (where R is lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium, neodymium, or europium; M is iron, ruthenium, or osmium; and X is phosphorus, arsenic, or antimony) and represent a new approach to creating improved thermoelectric materials. Several alloys in the composition range CeFe4-xCoxSb12 or LaFe4-xCoxSb12 (0 < x < 4) have large values of ZT.     

Cubic AgPb(m)SbTe(2+m): bulk thermoelectric materials with high figure of merit

The conversion of heat to electricity by thermoelectric devices may play a key role in the future for energy production and utilization. However, in order to meet that role, more efficient thermoelectric materials are needed that are suitable for high-temperature applications. We show that the material system AgPb(m)SbTe(2+m) may be suitable for this purpose. With m = 10 and 18 and doped appropriately, n-type semiconductors can be produced that exhibit a high thermoelectric figure of merit material ZTmax of approximately 2.2 at 800 kelvin. In the temperature range 600 to 900 kelvin, the AgPb(m)SbTe(2+m) material is expected to outperform all reported bulk thermoelectrics, thereby earmarking it as a material system for potential use in efficient thermoelectric power generation from heat sources.     

Near-perfect elastoplasticity in pure nanocrystalline copper

Ductile metals and alloys undergo plastic yielding at room temperature, during which they exhibit work-hardening and the generation of surface instabilities that lead to necking and failure. We show that pure nanocrystalline copper behaves differently, displaying near-perfect elastoplastic behavior characterized by Newtonian flow and the absence of both work-hardening and neck formation. We observed this behavior in tensile tests on fully dense large-scale bulk nanocrystalline samples. The experimental results further our understanding of the unique mechanical properties of nanocrystalline materials and also provide a basis for commercial technologies for the plastic (and superplastic) formation of such materials.     

CsBi(4)Te(6): A high-performance thermoelectric material for low-temperature applications

Thermoelectric (Peltier) heat pumps are capable of refrigerating solid or fluid objects, and unlike conventional vapor compressor systems, they can be miniaturized without loss of efficiency. More efficient thermoelectric materials need to be identified, especially for low-temperature applications in electronics and devices. The material CsBi(4)Te(6) has been synthesized and its properties have been studied. When doped appropriately, it exhibits a high thermoelectric figure of merit below room temperature (ZT(max) approximately 0.8 at 225 kelvin). At cryogenic temperatures, the thermoelectric properties of CsBi(4)Te(6) appear to match or exceed those of Bi(2-x)Sb(x)Te(3-y)Se(y) alloys.     

植物内源激素对小麦多小穗的调控探讨

以导入黑麦异源基因创制的小麦多小穗品系１０－Ａ及其改良系为供试材料,在幼穗分化的伸长期、单棱期、二棱期、小花分化期、雌雄蕊分化期分别测定了赤霉素（ＧＡ３）、生长素（ＩＡＡ）、玉米素（ＺＴ）和脱落酸（ＡＢＡ）等四种内源激素。对不同时期内源激素与小穗数目间的相关程度进行了分析,结果表明：在小穗形成过程中,ＧＡ和ＩＡＡ的绝对含量与小麦小穗数目有关,而ＺＴ和ＡＢＡ绝对含量与小穗数目之间的相关不显著;但在顶小穗形成之前,ＺＴ／ＩＡＡ与小穗数目之间具有极显著的正相关。据此认为,ＧＡ、ＩＡＡ、ＺＴ和ＡＢＡ均参与了对小穗数目的调控,其中ＺＴ／ＩＡＡ值对小穗数目的调控作用尤为重要。     

沼液配施钾肥对果园土壤理化特性和微生物及果实品质影响

【目的】研究沼液和钾肥配合施用对苹果园土壤理化特性和微生物数量及果实品质的影响,为沼液在陕西渭北旱塬合理使用提供理论依据。【方法】以10年生礼泉短枝富士为试材,研究施用沼液和沼液与钾肥配施对苹果园土壤理化特性、微生物数量、果实品质的影响,筛选单施沼液和沼液配施钾肥的施用剂量。【结果】追施沼液可使土壤容重降低、孔隙度增加、碱解氮和速效钾的含量升高。其中沼液100kg/株处理的土壤容重比对照降低了10.6%,土壤孔隙度增加了7.6%;沼液50kg/株+钾肥1kg/株配施处理的土壤速效钾含量比对照增加了20.5%。沼液配施钾肥均可增加土壤细菌、真菌、放线菌的数量,其中沼液100kg/株处理的细菌、真菌、放线菌数量分别比对照增加了132.7%、38.3%和58.2%。各施肥处理均能不同程度改善果实品质,沼液配施钾肥可使果实着色率、单果重、硬度、可溶性固形物以及花青苷含量均有不同程度的提高。其中50kg/株+钾肥0.5kg/株处理的花青苷比对照提高了48%;着色面积比对照提高了29.9%。【结论】沼液100kg/株和沼液50kg/株+钾肥0.5kg/株在果园应用效果较好,可在生产上推广。     

澳洲坚果花芽分化期间内源激素的变化

[目的]研究澳洲坚果内源激素对其花芽分化的影响。[方法]以5年生澳洲坚果品种Own Choice(O.C.)和Beaumont(695)为试材,调查2个品种的花芽分化物候期,并测定其花芽分化期间细根、枝条、叶片中的内源激素含量。[结果]O.C.的花芽出现时间、花序伸长时间及盛花期均比695早;在10月中旬,O.C.叶和枝中的GA3含量较低(213.78、250.00 ng/g),而695含量较高;O.C.叶和枝中的ABA、ZT含量在10月中旬达到高峰(132、48、178、111 ng/g),而695叶中的ABA和枝中的ZT含量在9月到10月下旬较低;O.C.各器官中ABA/GA3、ABA/IAA、ZT/GA3、ZT/IAA的值在10月中旬均高于695。[结论]在澳洲坚果的细根、叶片及枝条中,低水平的GA3、高水平的ABA、ZT、ABA/GA3、ABA/IAA、ZT/GA3和ZT/IAA有利于其花芽分化。     

The Postspinel Phases in the Mg2SiO4-Fe2SiO4 System

Samples of olivine (Fo(0)Fa(100), Fo(60)Fa(40), Fo(80)Fa(20), and Fo(100)Fa(0)) and of spinel (Fo(50)Fa(50), Fo(2)Fa(100), where Fo is forsterite and Fa is fayalite) were subjected to pressures up to 250 kilobars in a diamond anvil press and were heated in situ up to ~ 1700 degrees C by an infrared beam from a continuous-wave YAG (yttrium-aluminum-garnet) laser. The brightness temperature was determined from the intensity of incandescence of the sample by means of an optical pyrometer. X-ray diffraction patterns of the samples, obtained after quenching and unloading, show conclusively that these compositions disproportionate to (Mg, Fe)O and SiO(s) (stishovite) under these conditions.     

A maximum in the strength of nanocrystalline copper

We used molecular dynamics simulations with system sizes up to 100 million atoms to simulate plastic deformation of nanocrystalline copper. By varying the grain size between 5 and 50 nanometers, we show that the flow stress and thus the strength exhibit a maximum at a grain size of 10 to 15 nanometers. This maximum is because of a shift in the microscopic deformation mechanism from dislocation-mediated plasticity in the coarse-grained material to grain boundary sliding in the nanocrystalline region. The simulations allow us to observe the mechanisms behind the grain-size dependence of the strength of polycrystalline metals.     

压力对稀土元素Sm填充方钴矿化合物热电性能的影响

通过高温高压方法合成出稀土元素Sm填充n型方钴矿化合物SmxCo4Sb12（0〈x〈1）,并考察了在室温下Sm填充率对热电性能的影响规律.结果表明：SmxCo4Sb12化合物表现为n型传导;电阻率和Seebeck系数随着合成压力的增加逐渐增加;晶格热导率随着Sm填充分数的增加而降低,在Sm填充量为0.5时达到最小值.室温下Sm0.5Co4Sb12化合物显示最大热电性能指数,其最大无量纲热电性能指数ZTmax值达到0.16.     

Hot and dry deep crustal xenoliths from tibet

Anhydrous metasedimentary and mafic xenoliths entrained in 3-million-year-old shoshonitic lavas of the central Tibetan Plateau record a thermal gradient reaching about 800 degrees to 1000 degrees C at a depth of 30 to 50 kilometers; just before extraction, these same xenoliths were heated as much as 200 degrees C. Although these rocks show that the central Tibetan crust is hot enough to cause even dehydration melting of mica, the absence of hydrous minerals, and the match of our calculated P-wave speeds and Poisson's ratios with seismological observations, argue against the presence of widespread crustal melting.     

Superplastic extensibility of nanocrystalline copper at room temperature

A bulk nanocrystalline (nc) pure copper with high purity and high density was synthesized by electrodeposition. An extreme extensibility (elongation exceeds 5000%) without a strain hardening effect was observed when the nc copper specimen was rolled at room temperature. Microstructure analysis suggests that the superplastic extensibility of the nc copper originates from a deformation mechanism dominated by grain boundary activities rather than lattice dislocation, which is also supported by tensile creep studies at room temperature. This behavior demonstrates new possibilities for scientific and technological advancements with nc materials.     

乙烯利和多效唑对鸡嘴荔内源激素和花芽分化的影响

以6年生鸡嘴荔为试材,用不同浓度的乙烯利和多效唑进行处理,研究其对鸡嘴荔内源激素和花芽分化的影响,寻找解决鸡嘴荔成花率低和坐果率低的方法.结果表明,多效唑和乙烯利处理均能提高鸡嘴荔的成花率,其中,对鸡嘴荔成花率提高作用最明显的是处理A(乙烯利800mg/L),末次梢成花率达到91.88%,比对照提高了18.59%;其次为处理D(多效唑600 mg/L),处理C(乙烯利400mg/L)和处理B(多效唑1000mg/L),成花率分别为91.81%,80.44%和76.37%,分别比对照提高18.52%,7.15%和3.08%.在花芽分化前期,各处理能明显降低植株体内IAA和GA3的含量,提高ABA和ZT的含量,其中,处理A和处理D的效果优于处理B和处理C.在花芽形态分化前期,IAA,GA3,ABA和ZT含量都有一个上升高峰.在中后期,除GA3有波动之外,IAA,ABA和ZT则持续下降.此外,各处理的ZT与GA3的比值前期均大于1.     

Plastic deformation recovery in freestanding nanocrystalline aluminum and gold thin films

In nanocrystalline metals, lack of intragranular dislocation sources leads to plastic deformation mechanisms that substantially differ from those in coarse-grained metals. However, irrespective of grain size, plastic deformation is considered irrecoverable. We show experimentally that plastically deformed nanocrystalline aluminum and gold films with grain sizes of 65 nanometers and 50 nanometers, respectively, recovered a substantial fraction (50 to 100%) of plastic strain after unloading. This recovery was time dependent and was expedited at higher temperatures. Furthermore, the stress-strain characteristics during the next loading remained almost unchanged when strain recovery was complete. These observations in two dissimilar face-centered cubic metals suggest that strain recovery might be characteristic of other metals with similar grain sizes and crystalline packing.     

Serpentine stability to mantle depths and subduction-related magmatism

Results of high-pressure experiments on samples of hydrated mantle rocks show that the serpentine mineral antigorite is stable to approximately 720 degrees C at 2 gigapascals, to approximately 690 degrees C at 3 gigapascals, and to approximately 620 degrees C at 5 gigapascals. The breakdown of antigorite to forsterite plus enstatite under these conditions produces 13 percent H(2)O by weight to depths of 150 to 200 kilometers in subduction zones. This H(2)O is in an ideal position for ascent into the hotter, overlying mantle where it can cause partial melting in the source region for calc-alkaline magmas at a depth of 100 to 130 kilometers and a temperature of approximately 1300 degrees C. The breakdown of antigorite in hydrated mantle produces an order of magnitude more H(2)O than does the dehydration of altered oceanic crust.     

Deformation twinning in nanocrystalline aluminum

We report transmission electron microscope observations that provide evidence of deformation twinning in plastically deformed nanocrystalline aluminum. The presence of these twins is directly related to the nanocrystalline structure, because they are not observed in coarse-grained pure aluminum. We propose a dislocation-based model to explain the preference for deformation twins and stacking faults in nanocrystalline materials. These results underscore a transition from deformation mechanisms controlled by normal slip to those controlled by partial dislocation activity when grain size decreases to tens of nanometers, and they have implications for interpreting the unusual mechanical behavior of nanocrystalline materials.     

Quantum dot superlattice thermoelectric materials and devices

PbSeTe-based quantum dot superlattice structures grown by molecular beam epitaxy have been investigated for applications in thermoelectrics. We demonstrate improved cooling values relative to the conventional bulk (Bi,Sb)2(Se,Te)3 thermoelectric materials using a n-type film in a one-leg thermoelectric device test setup, which cooled the cold junction 43.7 K below the room temperature hot junction temperature of 299.7 K. The typical device consists of a substrate-free, bulk-like (typically 0.1 millimeter in thickness, 10 millimeters in width, and 5 millimeters in length) slab of nanostructured PbSeTe/PbTe as the n-type leg and a metal wire as the p-type leg.     

CPPU对苦瓜果实生长和内源激素含量的影响

以开化长白苦瓜为材料作外源CPPU处理,以研究CPPU对苦瓜果实生长和内源激素含量的影响,结果表明,10～50 mg/L CPPU在开花当天处理子房可以促进苦瓜果实的生长,使果长、横径和果重均比对照增加,其中又以20 mg/L处理效果最为明显,而100 mg/L则抑制果实的生长.HPLC分析表明,20 mg/L和100 mg/L CPPU处理均使果实内源ZT含量下降,ABA含量上升;20 mg/L处理使果实内源IAA和GA3含量明显上升,并在花后6 d达到峰值.     

不同覆土厚度对裸岩石砾地土壤理化性状和冬小麦产量的影响

[目的]为了揭示在裸岩石砾地通过不同覆土厚度作物耕作层土壤理化性状及冬小麦产量的变化。[方法]2011～2012年在陕西富平基地设置了在裸岩石砾地,通过30 cm(C30)、40 cm(C40)、50 cm(C50)、60 cm(C60)、80 cm(C80)和100 cm(C1000)等6种不同覆土厚度,分析不同覆土厚度下土壤容重、土壤养分和冬小麦产量的差异。[结果]不同覆土厚度对耕作层土壤容重和土壤孔隙度的影响差异显著(P0.05),且以C50处理效果最佳;与C30、C40、C60、C80和C100处理相比,C50处理0～40 cm土层平均土壤容重降幅达到1.01%～2.64%;平均土壤孔隙度最大,为33.19%。不同覆土厚度对土壤0～50 cm土层的土壤碱解氮、速效磷和速效钾含量具有明显的影响;碱解氮、速效磷和速效钾含量都随着土层深度的增加而减小。在0～50 cm土层中,C50处理土壤平均碱解氮含量分别比C60、C80和C100处理高12.18%、11.93%和17.49%;在10～30 cm土层C40处理土壤的速效磷含量明显高于其他处理;C50处理能有效提高0～10 cm土层的土壤速效钾含量,C40处理能有效提高10～30 cm土层土壤速效钾含量,即C50处理较其他处理具有保肥作用。不同处理对冬小麦产量、产量构成因素的影响显著,以C50处理平均籽粒产量最高,为6 474.02 kg/hm2,与其他处理之间差异显著(P0.05)。[结论]C50处理具有保肥作用且增产效果最佳。     

勒杜鹃花芽分化过程中内源激素含量和碳氮营养的变化研究

以勒杜鹃（Bougaivillea glabra）为材料,研究成花过程中叶片内源激素含量和碳氮营养的变化,为勒杜鹃花期调控提供理论依据。结果表明：勒杜鹃花芽分化前期L姐和GA3含量降低,ABA、ZT含量的升高;花芽分化中期GA3、ABA含量继续上升,ZT略有下降;花芽分化末期,ZT／IAA、ABA／IAA、ZT／GA3、ABA／GA3比值均呈现不同程度的上升,在初花期时ZT/IAA、ZT／GA3呈现下降趋势。勒杜鹃花芽分化过程中可溶性糖含量先升后降,总氮含量持续下降。