Surface Technology (表面技术)•2026•DOI: 10.16490/j.cnki.issn.1001-3660.2026.11.005
The tribological behavior of NM500 wear-resistant steel was systematically evaluated across a wide temperature range from −50 to 600 °C to elucidate the influence of temperature on wear resistance and to provide a theoretical basis for service life extension. Friction and wear tests were conducted using a high-temperature tribometer under a normal load of 150 N, rotational speed of 354 r/min, wear track diameter of 15 mm, and test duration of 60 minutes. The microstructure was characterized by SEM and EBSD, while worn surfaces were analyzed using XRD, SEM, and 3D laser confocal microscopy. NM500 steel exhibits a fine lath martensitic structure with a grain size of 7.08 μm, conferring high hardness and superior wear resistance. At cryogenic temperatures (−50, −25, 0 °C), the wear mechanism is predominantly abrasive wear, with a wear rate of only 1.29×10−6 mm3/(N·m). As temperature increases, oxide formation on the worn surface intensifies, friction coefficient decreases to a minimum of 0.3 (50% lower than at low temperature), and wear rate increases significantly: 18×10−6, 22.7×10−6, 46.7×10−6, and 128×10−6 mm3/(N·m) at 100, 200, 300, and 600 °C, respectively. The dominant wear mechanism transitions from abrasive wear at low temperatures to oxidative wear with adhesive wear at elevated temperatures. At 600 °C, thermal softening, reduced texture strength, and oxide film delamination exacerbate material loss, shifting the mechanism to oxidative wear as the primary mode with adhesive wear as secondary.
Journal of Central South University•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s11771-026-6260-z
The mechanism of SiC preparation via chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of the CH3SiCl3(MTS)-H2 system remains unclear. This article integrates thermodynamic calculations, fluid dynamics simulations, and experimental validations to enable a synergistic analysis from thermodynamic equilibrium predictions to fluid dynamics-based dynamic modeling. The results systematically reveal the effects of process parameters on the SiC deposition procedure. It was found that the silicon-rich phenomenon observed at low temperatures is related to the low reactivity of CH4 and the preferential adsorption of chlorosilanes. With increasing deposition temperature, the concentration of silicon-containing molecular species such as SiCl2 rises, while unsaturated hydrocarbons like C2H2 become the dominant carbon sources at high temperature, ultimately producing nearly stoichiometric SiC coatings at 1400 ℃. Notably, thermodynamic calculation results alone exhibited deviations from experimental results, whereas coupling with fluid dynamics simulations, consistency was improved significantly. This research method not only compensates limitations inherent in thermodynamic calculations but also provides reliable theoretical basis and technical support for precise control of CVD parameters and optimization of SiC chemical composition.
Int. Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials (矿物冶金与材料学报)•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s12613-025-3153-3
Mg–Zn–Mn alloys have the advantages of low cost, excellent mechanical properties, and high corrosion resistance. To clarify the phase equilibria of Mg–Zn–Mn alloy in the Mg-rich corners, the present work experimentally investigated the phase equilibria in the Mg-rich corner at 300–400°C with equilibrated alloy method using electron probe micro analyzer (EPMA), X-ray diffractometer (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). Mn atoms were found to dissolve into MgZn2 to form a ternary solid-solution type compound, in which Mn content can be up to 15.1at% at 400°C. Three-phase equilibrium of α-Mg + MgZn2 + α-Mn and liquid + α-Mg + MgZn2 were confirmed at 400°C. Subsequently, thermodynamic modeling of the Mg–Zn–Mn system was carried out using the CALPHAD method based on the experimental data of this work and literature data. The calculated invariant reaction Liquid + α-Mn → α-Mg + MgZn2 at 430°C shows good agreement with the DSC results. In addition, the results of solidification path calculations explain the microstructure in the as-cast and annealed alloys well. The agreement between the calculated results and experimental data proves the self-consistency of the thermodynamic database, which can provide guidance for the compositional design of Mg–Zn–Mn alloys.
Nano-Micro Letters•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s40820-025-01803-3
As a green sustainable alternative technology, synthesizing nitrate by electrocatalytic nitrogen oxidation reaction (NOR) can replace the traditional energy-intensive Ostwald process. But low nitrogen fixation yields and poor selectivity due to the high bond energy of the N≡N bond and competition from the oxygen evolution reaction in the electrolyte restrict its application. On the other hand, two-dimensional (2D) PdS2 as a member in the family of group-10 novel transition metal dichalcogenides (NTMDs) presents the interesting optical and electronic properties due to its novel folded pentagonal structure, but few researches involve to its fabrication and application. Herein, unique imitating growth feature for PdS2 on different 2D substrates has been firstly discovered for constructing 2D/2D heterostructures by interface engineering. Due to the different exposed chemical groups on the substrates, PdS2 grows as the imitation to the morphologies of the substrates and presents different thickness, size, shape and the degree of oxidation, resulting in the significant difference in the NOR activity and stability of the obtained composite catalysts. Especially, the thin and small PdS2 nanoplates with more defects can be obtained by decorating poly(1-vinyl-3-ethylimidazolium bromide) on the 2D substrate, easily oxidized during the preparation process, resulting in the in situ generation of SO4^2−, which plays a crucial role in reducing the activation energy of the NOR process, leading to improved efficiency for nitrate production, verified by theoretical calculation. This research provides valuable insights for the development of novel electrocatalysts based on NTMDs for NOR and highlights the importance of interface engineering in enhancing catalytic performance.
Nano-Micro Letters•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s40820-025-01683-7
High-nickel ternary cathodes hold a great application prospect in solid-state lithium metal batteries to achieve high-energy density, but they still suffer from structural instability and detrimental side reactions with the solid-state electrolytes. To circumvent these issues, a continuous uniform layer polyacrylonitrile (PAN) was introduced on the surface of LiNi0.8Mn0.1Co0.1O2 via in situ polymerization of acrylonitrile (AN). Furthermore, the partial-cyclized treatment of PAN (cPAN) coating layer presents high ionic and electron conductivity, which can accelerate interfacial Li+ and electron diffusion simultaneously. And the thermodynamically stabilized cPAN coating layer cannot only effectively inhibit detrimental side reactions between cathode and solid-state electrolytes but also provide a homogeneous stress to simultaneously address the problems of bulk structural degradation, which contributes to the exceptional mechanical and electrochemical stabilities of the modified electrode. Besides, the coordination bond interaction between the cPAN and NCM811 can suppress the migration of Ni to elevate the stability of the crystal structure. Benefited from these, the In-cPAN-260@NCM811 shows excellent cycling performance with a retention of 86.8% after 300 cycles and superior rate capability. And endow the solid-state battery with thermal safety stability even at high-temperature extreme environment. This facile and scalable surface engineering represents significant progress in developing high-performance solid-state lithium metal batteries.
New Carbon Materials (新型炭材料)•2025•DOI: 10.1016/S1872-5805(NCM2025-4-4)
The development of sustainable electrode materials for energy storage systems has become very important and porous carbons derived from biomass have become an important candidate because of their tunable pore structure, environmental friendliness, and cost-effectiveness. Recent advances in controlling the pore structure of these carbons and its relationship between to is energy storage performance are discussed, emphasizing the critical role of a balanced distribution of micropores, mesopores and macropores in determining electrochemical behavior. Particular attention is given to how the intrinsic components of biomass precursors (lignin, cellulose, and hemicellulose) influence pore formation during carbonization. Carbonization and activation strategies to precisely control the pore structure are introduced. Finally, key challenges in the industrial production of these carbons are outlined, and future research directions are proposed. These include the establishment of a database of biomass intrinsic structures and machine learning-assisted pore structure engineering, aimed at providing guidance for the design of high-performance carbon materials for next-generation energy storage devices.
New Carbon Materials (新型炭材料)•2025•DOI: 10.1016/S1872-5805(NCM2024-39-04-09)
A study of the interfacial behavior and internal thermal stress distribution in fiber-reinforced composites is essential to assess their performance and reliability. CNT/carbon fiber (CF) hybrid fibers were constructed using electrophoretic deposition. The interfacial properties of CF/epoxy and CNT/CF/epoxy composites were statistically investigated and compared using in-situ thermal Raman mapping by dispersing CNTs as a Raman sensing medium (CNTR) in a resin. The associated local thermal stress changes can be simulated by capturing the G' band position distribution of CNTR in the epoxy at different temperatures. It was found that the G' band shifted to lower positions with increasing temperature, reaching a maximum difference of 2.43 cm−1 at 100 °C. The interfacial bonding between CNT/CF and the matrix and the stress distribution and changes during heat treatment (20–100 °C) were investigated in detail. This work is important for studying thermal stress in fiber-reinforced composites by in-situ thermal Raman mapping technology.
New Carbon Materials (新型炭材料)•2025•DOI: 10.1016/S1872-5805(NCM2024-39-02-06)
Graphene and its derivatives are often preferentially oriented horizontally during processing because of their two-dimensional (2D) layer structure. As a result, thermal interface materials (TIMs) composed of a polymer matrix and graphene-derived fillers often have a high in-plane (IP) thermal conductivity (K), however, the low through-plane (TP) K makes them unsuitable for practical use. We report the development of high-quality polyimide/graphite nanosheets (PG) perpendicular to the plane using a directional freezing technique that increase the TP K of polymer-based composites. Graphene-derived nanosheets (GNs) were obtained by the crushing of scraps of highly thermally conductive graphene films. A water-soluble polyamic acid salt solution was used to disperse the hydrophobic GNs filler to achieve directional freezing. The polyimide, which facilitated the directional alignment of the GNs, was then graphitized. The introduction of the GNs increases the order and density of the PG, thus improving the strength and heat transfer performance of its polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) composite. The obtained PG/PDMS composite (21.1% PG, mass fraction) has an impressive TP K of 14.56 W·m−1·K−1, 81 times that of pure PDMS. This simple polyimide-assisted 2D hydrophobic fillers alignment method provides ideas for the widespread fabrication of anisotropic TIMs and enables the reuse of scraps of graphene films.
New Carbon Materials (新型炭材料)•2025•DOI: 10.1016/S1872-5805(NCM2024-39-02-02)
Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries are among the most promising next-generation electrochemical energy-storage systems due to their exceptional theoretical specific capacity, inexpensive production cost and environmental friendliness. However, the poor conductivity of S and Li2S, severe lithium polysulfide (LiPS) shuttling and the sluggish redox kinetics of the phase transformation greatly hinder their commercialization. Carbonaceous materials could be potentially useful in Li-S batteries to tackle these problems with their high specific surface area to host LiPSs and sulfur and excellent electrical conductivity to increase electron transfer rate. However, non-polar carbon materials are unable to interact closely with the highly polar polysulfides, resulting in a low sulfur utilization and a serious shuttle effect. Because of their advantages of strong polarity and a large number of adsorption sites, integrating transition metal oxides (TMOs) with carbon-based materials (CMs) increases the chemical adsorption of LiPSs and electrochemical reaction activity for LiPSs. The working principles and main challenges of Li-S batteries are discussed followed by a review of recent research on the ex-situ and in-situ synthesis of TMO/CM composites. The formation of TMO/CMs with the dimensionalities of CMs from 1D to 3D are then reviewed together with ways of changing their structure, including heterostructure design, vacancy engineering and facet manipulation. Finally, the outlook for using TMO/CMs in Li-S batteries is considered.
Int. Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials (矿物冶金与材料学报)•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s12613-025-3179-6
The comprehensive status of blast furnaces was one of the most important factors affecting their economy, quality, and longevity. The blast furnace comprehensive status had the nature of “black box,” and it was “unpredictable.” In this study, a blast furnace comprehensive status score and prediction method based on a cascade system and a combined model were proposed to address this issue. A dual cascade evaluation system was developed by integrating subjective and objective weighting methods. The analytic hierarchy process, coefficient of variation, entropy weight method, and impart combinatorial games were jointly employed to determine the optimal weight distribution across indicators. Categorized statuses (raw material, gas flow, furnace body, furnace cylinder, and iron–slag) were evaluated. Based on the five categories of the status data, the second cascade was applied to upgrade the quantitative evaluation of the comprehensive status. The weights of the different categories were 0.22, 0.15, 0.22, 0.21, and 0.20, respectively. According to the data analysis, the results of the comprehensive status score closely matched the on-site production logs. Based on the blast furnace smelting period, the maximal information coefficient method was applied to the 100 parameters that were most relevant to the comprehensive status. A combined prediction model for a comprehensive status score was designed using bidirectional long short-term memory (BiLSTM) and categorical boosting (CatBoost). The test results indicated that the combined model reduced the mean absolute error by an average of 0.275 and increased the hit rate by an average of 5.65 percentage points compared to BiLSTM or CatBoost alone. When the error range was ±2.5, the combined model predicted a hit rate of 91.66% for the next hour’s comprehensive status score, and its high accuracy was deemed satisfactory for the field. SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) and regression fitting were applied to analyze the linear quantitative relationship between the key variables and the comprehensive status score. When the furnace bottom center temperature was increased by 10°C, the comprehensive status score increased by 0.44. This method contributes to a more precise management and control of the comprehensive status of the blast furnace on-site.
Int. Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials (矿物冶金与材料学报)•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s12613-025-3091-0
Red phosphorus (RP) has been recognized as a promising anode candidate for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) due to its high theoretical capacity and natural abundance. However, the electrochemical performance of RP is restricted by the critical issues of the large volume variation upon cycling and the low intrinsic electronic conductivity. Herein, a nanocomposite with the structure of well-dispersed RP nanoparticles intimately attached to the surface of two-dimensional Ti3C2 nanosheets (NRP/Ti3C2) is prepared by a facile chemical precipitation method. The introduction of Ti3C2 nanosheets can effectively prevent the RP nano-grains/clusters from agglomeration and growth in the synthesis process. Besides, the flexible Ti3C2 sheets can not only function as the mechanical support for accommodating the volume change of RP upon Na+ uptake/release process, but also provide an efficient conductive network for electron transportation. Moreover, the shortened ions diffusion distance enabled by the nano feature of RP further favors the electrode reaction kinetics. When employed as anode for SIBs, the synthesized NRP/Ti3C2 composite exhibits a reversible capacity of ~862 and 576 mAh·g−1 at 0.1 and 0.5 A·g−1, respectively, as well as a maintained capacity of 525.2 mAh·g−1 after 100 cycles at 0.1 A·g−1. In addition, the fabricated free-standing NRP/Ti3C2 electrode with a capacity of ~2.21 mAh·cm−2 and stable electrochemical cycling provides a valid guide toward high-performance RP-based anodes for realizing SIBs with high energy density.
Int. Journal of Minerals, Metallurgy and Materials (矿物冶金与材料学报)•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s12613-024-3034-1
Fe–Cr–Ni austenitic alloys are extensively utilized in the hot-end components of nuclear light water reactors, turbine disks, and gas compressors. However, their low strength at elevated temperatures limits their engineering applications. In this study, a novel precipitation-strengthened alloy system is developed by incorporating Al and Si elements into a FeCrNi equiatomic alloy. The results indicate that the FeCrNiAlxSix (at%, x = 0.1, 0.2) alloys possess heterogeneous precipitation structures that feature a micron-scale σ phase at the grain boundaries and a nanoscale ordered body-centered cube (B2) phase within the grains. An exceptional strength–ductility synergy across a wide temperature range is achieved in FeCrNiAl0.1Si0.1 alloys due to grain refinement and precipitation strengthening. Notably, a yield strength of 693.83 MPa, an ultimate tensile strength of 817.55 MPa, and a uniform elongation of 18.27% are attained at 873 K. The dislocation shearing mechanism for B2 phases and the Orowan bypass mechanism for σ phase, coupled with a high density of nano-twins and stacking faults in the matrix, contribute to the excellent mechanical properties at cryogenic and ambient temperatures. Moreover, the emergence of serrated σ phase and micro-twins in the matrix plays a crucial role in the strengthening and toughening mechanisms at intermediate temperatures. This study offers a novel perspective and strategy for the development of precipitation-hardened Fe–Cr–Ni austenitic alloys with exceptional strength–ductility synergy over a broad temperature range.