Understanding the relationship between the structure of materials and their properties allows for the development of new applications and technologies. Here the relationship between local structure and optical properties in several binary oxide glass systems containing zinc oxide was examined, in particular the relationship between structure, applied stress and induced birefringence in a glass. The empirical model introduced by Zwanziger and co-workers posits a negative correlation between the ratio of the bond length to coordination number in a glass and the induced birefringence; zinc oxide in this model is predicted to be exactly at the threshold between positive and negative birefringence and is thus of particular interest to investigate. XAFS and Raman spectroscopy were used to determine local structure while the Sénarmont compensator method, Abbe refractometry and spectroscopic ellipsometry were used to measure optical properties.

No description available.

This PhD thesis presents structural investigations of amorphous inorganic materials: oxide and oxynitride glasses and mesoporous bioactive glasses (MBGs), by solid-state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR). Lanthanum oxide and oxynitride [La-Si-(Al)-O-(N)] glasses have a large number of potential applications due to their physical properties. In our work we have studied, compared to previous investigations, significantly expanded ranges of glass compositions (for oxynitride glasses, including samples of very high nitrogen content, up to 53 % out of the anions). We have estimated local environments of 29Si and 27Al structural units (their coordination, polymerization degree and number of N incorporated into tetrahedral units) in the materials. We have suggested a random Al/Si distribution along with almost uniform non-bridging oxygen atoms distribution in aluminosilicate glasses. Silicon nitride was used as precursor in the oxynitride glass synthesis. We studied both α- and β-modifications of silicon nitride, 15N-enriched, as well as fully (29Si, 15N)-enriched samples. We have shown that the linewidths of 15N NMR spectra are dominated by J(29Si-15N) coupling in 29Si315N4 sample. Mesoporous bioactive glasses in the CaO-SiO2-P2O5 system show superior bioactivity (the ability to form a hydroxycarbonate apatite layer on the glass surface when exposed to body fluids) compared to conventional bioactive glasses due to their large surface area and uniform pore-size distribution. Previous studies suggested a homogeneous cation distribution over the MBG samples on a 10−20 nm length-scale. From our results, on the other hand, we may conclude that Si and P is not intimately mixed. We propose a structural model, in which the pore walls of MBGs are composed of a silica network, and a phosphate phase is present as nanometer-sized clusters that are dispersed on the pore wall.

A laboratory scale study was carried out on a set of 6 borosilicate waste glasses made from simulated high-level nuclear waste. The test matrix was designed to explore the composition region suitable for the long-term geologic disposal of high-temperature-and high-waste-containing glasses. The glass compositions were selected to achieve maximum waste loading without a sacrifice in glass durability. The relationship between glass composition and chemical durability was examined. The qualitative effect of increasing B2O3 content on the overall waste glass leaching behavior has also been addressed. The glass composition matrix was designed by systematically varying the factors: %waste loading and (SiO2+Frit):B2O3 ratio, with (SiO2:Frit) ratio being held constant. In order to assess the chemical durability, the Product Consistency Test (ASTM C-1285) was performed. Under PCT protocol, crushed glass was allowed to react with ASTM type I water under static conditions. All leachate solutions were analyzed by the technique; Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-AES). A statistical regression technique was utilized to model the normalized release of the major soluble elements, Na, Si, and B, as a function of the individual as well as interactive chemical effects (B2O3, Al2O3, Fe2O3, MnO, SiO2, SrO, Na2O, B2O3*SiO2, B2O3*Al2O3, Fe2O3*Na2O, Al2O3*Na2O, and MnO*SiO2). Geochemical modeling was performed using the computer code EQ3/6 to: (1) determine the saturation states of the possible silicate minerals, a-cristobalite and chalcedony; and (2) predict the most stable mineral phase based on the mineral thermodynamic data. Mineral/water interactions were analyzed by representing the resultant glass data on a Na-Al-Si-O-H stability diagram.

This study reports on the behavior of silica based optical fibers in a hydrogen environment at high temperatures. The hydrogen response in the form of optical loss in the wavelength range of 1000-2500 nm of a germanium doped graded index 50/125 graded index fiber was examined in the temperature range of 20–800 °C. When the fiber was exposed to hydrogen at 800 °C two absorption bands appeared: ~1390 nm assigned to the first overtone of the hydroxyl stretch and ~2200 nm band with complex assignments including the combination mode of the fundamental hydroxyl stretch with SiO4 tetrahedral vibrations and the combination mode of SiOH bend and stretch. The growth rate of the 1390 nm band fits the solution to the diffusion equation in cylindrical coordinates while the 2200 nm band does not. Absorption for both bands persisted as the fiber is cooled to room temperature. Temperature dependent behavior was observed in that as temperature increases from room temperature, the absorption intensity decreases and band shifts slightly to longer wavelengths. Temperature dependence is repeatable and reversible. However, if no hydrogen is present in the environment at temperatures greater than 700 °C, the 1390 nm band will permanently decrease in intensity, while the 2200 nm band does not change. Changes in the structure of the glass appear to be causing this temperature dependent behavior. Other necessary conditions for structural changes to cause this temperature dependent behavior are examined. / Master of Science

This PhD thesis presents a study of structure-composition correlations of bioactive glasses (BGs) by employing solid-state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Silicate-based Na2O−CaO−SiO2−P2O5 BGs are utilized clinically and are extensively investigated for bone regeneration purposes. Once implanted in the human body, they facilitate bone regeneration by partially dissolving in the body fluids, followed by the formation of a biomimetic surface-layer of calcium hydroxy-carbonate apatite (HCA). Eventually, the implanted BG totally integrates with the bone. The bioactivity of melt-prepared BGs depends on their composition and structure, primarily on the phosphorus content and the average silicate-network connectivity (NC). We explored these composition-structure relationships for a set of BGs for which the NC and phosphorus contents were varied independently. The short-range structural features of the glasses were explored using 29Si and 31P magic-angle-spinning (MAS) NMR spectroscopy. 31P MAS NMR revealed that the orthophosphate content is directly proportional to the total P content of the glass, with a linear correlation observed between the orthophosphate content and the silicate network connectivity. The bearings of the results for future BG design are discussed. By using multiple-quantum coherence-based 31P NMR experiments, the spatial distribution of orthophosphate groups was probed in the melt prepared BGs, as well as in two mesoporous bioactive glasses prepared by an evaporation-induced self-assembly technique. The results evidence randomly distributed orthophosphate groups in the melt-prepared BGs, whereas the pore-walls of the mesoporous bioactive glasses constitute nanometer-sized clusters of calcium phosphate. The distribution of Na+ ions among the phosphate/silicate groups were studied by heteronuclear dipolar-based 23Na−31P NMR experiments, verifying that sodium is dispersed nearly randomly in the glasses. The phosphorus and proton environments in biomimetically grown HCA were investigated by using 1H and 31P MAS NMR experiments. Our studies revealed that the biomimetic HCA shared many local structural features with synthetic and well-ordered hydroxy-apatite. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following paper was unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 4: Accepted.</p>

Le but de ce travail de thèse a consisté à étudier les propriétés physico-chimiques des verres chalcogénures des systèmes pour pouvoir les utiliser comme les membranes des capteurs chimiques pour le dosage des ions TI⁺ et NA⁺ . D'abord, on a effectué les mesures des propriétés macroscopiques telles que les densités et les températures caractéristiques (Tg, Tc, Tf) et leur analyse selon les compositions des verres. Après, les propriétés de transport ont été étudiés à l'aide de la spectroscopie d'impédance complexe ou par les mesures de la résistivité. Il a été ainsi montré l'effet de cation mixte pour les trois systèmes vitreux avec les ions TI/Ag et le régime de la percolation dans le système NaCl-Ga₂S₃-GeS₂ . Puis, on a réalisé les mesures de diffusion par traceur ¹⁰⁸mAg et ²⁰⁴TI pour le système (TI₂S)ₓ(Ag₂S)₅₀₋ₓ(GeS)₂₅(GeS₂)₂₅. Les résultats ont permis d'expliquer l'effet de cation mixte. Afin de mieux comprendre les phénomènes de transport des systèmes étudiés, diverses études structurales ont été déployées par spectroscopie Raman, diffusion de neutrons et diffraction de rayons X haute énergie. Enfin, la dernière partie de ce travail est entièrement consacrée à la caractérisation de nouveaux capteurs chimiques pour la détection des ions TI⁺ et NA⁺ en solution. Dans le premier cas, les électrodes sélectives aux ions TI⁺ avec les différentes compositions de membrane ont été testées afin de définir la sensibilité, la limite de détection, les coefficients de sélectivité en présence d'ions interférents, la reproductabilité, l'influence de pH. En plus, il était effectué l'échange des traceurs ²⁰⁴TI entre la solution et les verres à base des matrices GeS₂ et Ge₂S₃ pour comprendre et expliquer les différences significatives dans la sensibilité et la limite de détection présentés par les capteurs dont les membranes ont la composition de verre similaire. Dans le deuxième cas, les études montrent l'existence de la sensibilité aux ions NA⁺ donc le développement des capteurs pour le dosage des ions de sodium est possible. / The aim of this thesis was to study the physicochemical properties of the chalcogenide glasses for possibility to use them as the chemical sensor membranes for the quantitative analysis of TI⁺ and NA⁺ ions. Firstly, the measurements of the macroscopic properties such as the densities and the characteristic temperatures (Tg, Tc, Tf) and their analysis according to the glass compositions were carried out. After that, the transport properties were studied through complex impedance conductivity measurements and from dc conductivity measurements. These experiments have shown the mixed cation effect in three chalcogenide glassy systems with TI/Ag ions and the percolation regime in the NaCl-Ga₂S₃-GeS₂ system. Then the silver ¹⁰⁸mAg and thallium ²⁰⁴TI tracer diffusion measurements were carried out for (TI₂S)ₓ(Ag₂S)₅₀₋ₓ(GeS)₂₅(GeS₂)₂₅ system. The result permit to explain the mixed cation effect. In order to better understand the transport phenomena of the studied systems, the various structural studies have been deployed using Raman spectroscopy, neutron diffraction and high energy X-ray diffraction. Finally, the last part of this work is entirely devoted to the characterization of new chemical sensors for detection of TI⁺ and NA⁺ ions in solution. In the first case, the sensors with different membrane compositions were tested for defining the sensitivity, the detection limit, the selectivity coefficients in the presence of interfering ions, the reproductibility, the pH influence. In addition, the ionic exchange with radioactive isotopes ²⁰⁴TI between the solution and the GeS₂ or Ge₂S₃ based glasses was performed for understanding and explaining the significant differences in the sensitivity and the detection limit presented by the sensors whose membranes have the similar glass compositions. In the second case, the studies shows the existence of sensitivity for NA⁺ ions so the development of sensors for the determination of sodium ions is possible.

Die Herstellung von ultradünnen Germaniumdioxidfilmen auf Metallsubstraten ist erstmals erfolgreich gelungen. Die Filmstruktur konnte mittels oberflächensensitiven Techniken mit atomarer Präzision und chemischer Sensitivität aufgelöst werden. Zur Untersuchung werden STM-Bilder analysiert und durch niederenergetische Elektronenbeugung (LEED), eine dynamischen LEED-Studie und extern ausgeführte Dichtefunktionaltheorieberechnungen (DFT) ergänzt. In dieser Arbeit werden atomar aufgelöste Rastertunnelmikroskopiebilder (STM) von ultradünnen Germaniumdioxid- und Siliziumdioxidfilmen direkt verglichen. Ziel der Analyse ist es, den Einfluss des Metallsubstrats auf die Struktur von Oxidfilmen zu untersuchen. Zu diesem Zweck werden ultradünne Germaniumdioxid-Filme auf Ru(0001), Pt(111) und Au(111) abgeschieden und mit Siliziumdioxid-Filmen auf verschiedenen Substraten verglichen, die in früheren Studien untersucht wurden. Germaniumdioxid und Siliziumdioxid sind eng miteinader verknüpft. Hierbei sind Struktur und chemische Eigenschaften als äquivalent anzusehen. Es wurden drei verschiedene Netzwerkstrukturen aufgeklärt: Monolagen-, Zickzack- und Bilagenfilme. Die einzelnen Bausteine in diesen Filmsystemen bestehen aus verzerrten Tetraedern, in denen ein Germaniumatom von vier Sauerstoffatomen umgeben ist. Benachbarte Tetraeder sind durch Ge-O-Ge-Bindungen miteinander verknüpft und binden im Fall der Monolagenfilme an das darunterliegende Metallsubstrat. In Bilagenfilmen hingegen gibt es keine chemischen Bindungen zum Substrat, wodurch die Filmstruktur flexibler wird. Durch Variation der Herstellungsbedingungen kann man rein kristalline, amorphe oder Phasen mittlerer Ordnung erhalten. Es ist wichtig hervorzuheben, dass der amorphe Germaniumdioxid-Bilagenfilm ein neues amorphes zweidimensionales Material darstellt. / The preparation of metal-supported ultrathin films of germanium dioxide, termed also germania, has been successfully achieved for the first time. The structure of the films is elucidated with atomic precision and chemical sensitivity using surface science techniques. The investigation is performed by analyzing STM images and is complemented by low-energy electron diffraction (LEED) patterns, a dynamical LEED study, and external support from density functional theory (DFT) calculations. In this work, we compare side-by-side atomically-resolved scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) images of ultrathin films of germania and silica. The analysis aims to investigate the impact of the metal support on the structure of oxide films. For that purpose, ultrathin germania films are grown on Ru(0001), Pt(111) and Au(111), and compared with previously reported silica ultrathin films supported on different substrates. Germania has been widely associated with silica since they are considered to be structural and chemical equivalent materials. Three main network structures have been characterized: monolayer, zigzag and bilayer films. In all systems, the building block consists of a distorted tetrahedron with a germanium atom surrounded by four oxygen atoms. Adjacent tetrahedra connect to each other through Ge-O-Ge bonds and, in the case of the monolayer films, they also bind to the metal support. Conversely, in bilayer films there are no chemical bonds to the metal substrate, thus providing more flexibility to the film structure. Through a meticulous control of the preparation conditions one can obtain a purely crystalline phase, an amorphous one, or one with intermediate order. It is important to highlight that the amorphous germania bilayer film represents a new 2-dimensional amorphous material.

No description available.

Submitted by Maria Aparecida (cidazen@gmail.com) on 2017-05-16T15:07:08Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Edson Carvalho Paz.pdf: 1589088 bytes, checksum: 37f9b2d6613e1ce560c6a50e8dbf458f (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-05-16T15:07:08Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Edson Carvalho Paz.pdf: 1589088 bytes, checksum: 37f9b2d6613e1ce560c6a50e8dbf458f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-06-30 / CAPES, CNPQ / In this work glass formation of CaF2-CaO-B2O3-TeO2 system (CBTx), with tellurium oxide concentrations varing from 20 to 50 wt%, was studied. In order to evaluate the glass forming ability of that system, six glass matrix were prepared and characterized to understand the behavior of their physical, thermal, structural, optical and spectroscopic properties. As far we know, this is the first report in the literature about this glass system. The preparation of glasses CBTx system was carried out keeping the Ca/B2O3. The prepared glass samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), volumetric density (ρ), Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential thermal analysis (DTA), specific heat (cp), refractive index (n), electronic polarizability (α), theoretical optical basicity (Λth), optical absorption coefficient (Ae) and band gap optical (Eopt). The results are discussed in terms of tellurium oxide content and structural properties of the glass samples. Density, thermal stability, refractive index, electronic polarizability and theoretical optical basicity values increase with TeO2 content, while transition temperature (Tg), specific heat, optical window and the band gap optical decrease; Raman and FTIR spectroscopy indicated that the network structure of studied glass is formed by BO3, BO4, TeO3, TeO3+1 and TeO4 units. The CBTx system showed a good ability to glass formation, especially the glass matrix of most TeO2 content (CBT50), which proved to be the most suitable for future work doping with rare earth ions and tests as optical amplifier in communication fibers or other photonic devices. / Neste trabalho apresentamos o estudo da formação de vidros no sistema [10CaF2-(30-0,4x)CaO-(60-0,6x)B2O3-xTeO2], em que 20 ≤ x ≥ 50 % em massa, denominado CBTx, com o objetivo de avaliar a habilidade de formação vítrea do referido sistema visando obter matrizes vítreas estáveis. Até onde sabemos, este é o primeiro relato na literatura de pesquisas sobre esse sistema. O preparo dos vidros no sistema CBTx foi realizado mantendo constante a razão Ca/B2O3. Neste trabalho sintetizamos seis amostras vítreas, as quais foram submetidas ao processo de caracterização por meio das seguintes análises: difração de raios-X (DRX), densidade de massa volumétrica (ρ), espectroscopia Raman, espectroscopia no infravermelho com transformada de Fourier (FTIR), análise térmica diferencial (DTA), calor específico (cp), índice de refração (n), polarizabilidade eletrônica (α), basicidade óptica teórica (Λth), coeficiente de absorção óptica (Ae) e band gap óptico (Eopt). Os resultados foram discutidos em função do conteúdo de óxido de telúrio e de suas alterações nas propriedades estruturais, térmicas, ópticas e espectroscópicas das amostras vítreas. Com o aumento da concentração de TeO2 nas amostras, houve aumento dos valores da densidade, da estabilidade térmica, do índice de refração, da polarizabilidade eletrônica e da basicidade óptica teórica; redução da temperatura de transição vítrea (Tg), do calor específico e da janela óptica e deslocamento do band gap óptico para menor energia; as espectroscopias Raman e FTIR indicaram que a estrutura da rede dos vidros sob investigação é formada por unidades BO3, BO4, TeO3, TeO3+1 e TeO4. O sistema CBTx apresentou uma boa habilidade de formação vítrea, com destaque para a matriz vítrea de maior teor estudado de TeO2 (CBT50), que se mostrou a mais indicada para trabalhos futuros de dopagem com íons terras raras e testes como amplificador óptico em fibras de comunicação ou outros dispositivos fotônicos.