Neste trabalho foram desenvolvidas amostras de materiais padrão de referência para difratometria de policristais. Materiais de alta pureza foram tratados mecânica e termicamente até atingirem as características necessárias para serem usados como materiais padrão de referência de alta qualidade, comparáveis àqueles produzidos pelo NIST. As medidas foram feitas inicialmente em vários difratômetros convencionais de laboratório de difração de raios X, com geometria de Bragg -Brentano, difratômetros de nêutrons e, posteriormente, em equipamento de alta resolução com fonte síncrotron. Os parâmetros de rede obtidos foram calculados pelo programa Origin e ajustados pelo Método dos Mínimos Quadrados. Esses ajustes foram comparados com os obtidos pelo Método de Rietveld, usando o programa GSAS através da interface gráfica EXPGUI, mostrando-se bastante satisfatórios. Os materiais obtidos foram alumina-α, ítria, silício, céria, hexaboreto de lantânio e fluoreto de lítio, que apresentaram qualidade semelhante e, em alguns casos, superiores aos padrões desenvolvidos e comercializados pelo NIST, a custos bem menores. / In this work, samples of standard reference materials for diffractometry of polycrystals were developed. High-purity materials were submitted to mechanical and thermal treatments in order to present the adequate properties to be used as high-quality standard reference materials for powder diffraction, comparable to the internationally recognized produced by the USA National Institute of Standards and Technology NIST, but at lower costs. The characterization of the standard materials was performed by measurements in conventional X-ray diffraction diffractometers, high resolution neutron diffraction and high-resolution synchrotron diffraction. The lattice parameters were calculated by extrapolation of the values obtained from each X-ray reflection against cos2θ by the Least-Squares Method. The adjustments were compared to the values obtained by the Rietveld Method, using the program GSAS. The materials thus obtained were the α-alumina, yttrium oxide, silicon, cerium oxide, lanthanum hexaboride and lithium fluoride. The standard reference materials produced present quality similar or, in some cases, superior to the standard reference materials produced and commercialized by the NIST.

This experimental work aims to characterize the SiC layer of various Tri-Structural Isotropic (TRISO) coated fuel particles. In the first part of the work, Raman spectroscopy is used to qualitatively characterize the SiC TRISO layer and to identify the presence of silicon from peak positions. Free silicon poses a significant threat to the integrity of the SiC layer because it melts at 1414oC, significantly lower than the maximum operating temperature of 1550oC. Crystalline silicon is characterized with qualitative Raman spectroscopy by a 520 cm-1 peak. Silicon is found to be preferentially concentrated along the SiC layer close to the inner pyrolytic carbon (IPyC) layer. Samples that were only mounted and polished are compared with those that have in addition also been etched. Disordering of the crystals and peak splitting necessitated the use of peak de-convolution. The 3C, 6H and 15R polytypes of SiC were identified. The second part of the Raman spectroscopy work involves the development of calibration curves using peak areas from known binary mixtures (5%, 25%, 50% and 75% Si) to quantify the amount of silicon found relative to SiC. Initially the SiC polytypes used in these mixtures are 3C, 4H and 6H. Reasonably good logarithmic calibration fits were obtained with R2 values of 0.996, 0.966 and 0.988 respectively. However some error accompanied the calibration values and an average of ten analyses yielded a more reliable average. The calibration curve results made it possible to estimate the silicon content throughout the SiC layer for each sample, when combining the results of the qualitative and quantitative Raman spectroscopic study. Samples PO6 and PO8 revealed high peaks of crystalline silicon. When peak areas were quantified and related to the 3C calibration curve, as much as 60% silicon was calculated for both samples. Etching was found to slightly lower the silicon to SiC ratio. The calibration accuracy for the binary mixtures was checked by plotting calculated values against weighed-off values, yielding 3C, 4H and 6H straight-line fits with R2 values of 0.983, 0.941 and 0.981 respectively. These binary mixtures were analyzed with the SEM, which revealed variable particle size and segregation of silicon and SiC. Quantitative Raman spectroscopy is however known to be affected by a significant number of variables that are difficult to control. Attempts were made to decrease the scatter of the results from the calibration curve to yield more precise results. Two pure samples of silicon and SiC were studied separately, in attempts to better understand particle size and distortion effects. Distortion was found to have a greater impact on the scatter of peak area values than particle size. The scatter associated with pure sample peak areas casts doubt on the accuracy of the binary calibration curves. Rietveld analysis using X-ray powder diffraction is used to further support the Raman spectroscopy work by qualitatively and quantitatively characterizing the phases involved in each TRISO particle, to a greater degree of accuracy than the Raman spectroscopy. Refinement components include 2H graphite, quartz, SiC (3C, 6H, 8H and 15R), silicon and tetragonal ZrO2. Oxidized samples were compared with unoxidized samples. The outer pyrolytic carbon (OPyC) layer was oxidized (to improve the accuracy of quantitative measurements). Graphite percentages dominated the refinements with values ranging from 57% to 90% for unoxidized samples and 28% to 83% for oxidized samples. The 3C SiC polytype is the most abundant polytype and constitutes 78% to 83% of the SiC (unoxidized samples) and 82% to 90% (oxidized samples). Trace percentages of silicon were detected for PO6 (0.4%), PO8 (0.6%) and PO10 (0.1%) Quantitative XRD results are known to be accurate to around 1% at the 3ó level. Calibration curves were also subsequently constructed from the same samples as those used for quantitative Raman spectroscopy by comparing the weighed-off values to the measured ones. The 3C, 4H and 6H R2-fits are 0.991, 0.978 and 0.984 respectively. All the milled samples contained significant α-Fe which contaminated the samples from the grinding process. After dissolving the α-Fe in HCl a sample was tested to check the effect of the α-Fe specifically on microabsorption. Microabsorption was found to be an insignificant effect. The second part of the XRD work focused on the high-temperature stability of SiC up to 1400oC. Al2O3 was used as the standard and the instrument was calibrated using its two independent lattice parameter values along the a-axis and c-axis to make temperature corrections. Temperature corrected curves (of SiC and graphite) were constructed, which superimposed the theoretical Al2O3 curve along the a-axis and c-axis. The linear thermal expansion coefficients of SiC and graphite could then be determined from corrected lattice parameter values. The thermal expansion coefficients of G102 SiC had similar values to the literature values up to 800oC. Thereafter the experimental values had significantly higher thermal expansivity when compared to literature values. PO4 and PO9 thermal expansion coefficient values were higher below 500oC, but much closer as temperatures approached 1400oC. There was little correlation between G102, PO4 and PO9 graphite c-axis thermal expansion coefficient curves and literature values. The third section of the work involves the characterization of the SiC layers of three of the samples by transmission electron microscopy using their selected area electron diffraction patterns. This facilitates the unequivocal characterization of the SiC polytypes. The 3C and 6H polytypes were identified. There is substantial disorder in the crystals. Planar defects of differing periodicity are seen along the [111] direction of the 3C polytype. Copyright / Dissertation (MEng)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering / unrestricted

The aim of this research project was to synthesise both the normal and inverse cobalt aluminate spinels by various methods and characterise them mainly by Raman spectroscopy with the support of X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FT-IR), energy disperse spectroscopy (EDS), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Four different synthesis methods (glycine-gel, citrate-gel, polyol and solid-state) were used to synthesise the cobalt aluminate powders with the general formula CoIICoIIIxAl2-xO4 (where x = 0-2). The gel or powder precursors were annealed at various temperatures ranging from 350ºC - 1000ºC. The properties of the intermediate and final products, influenced by the synthesis method, processing temperature, processing time and particle size, were compared. Raman spectra and XRD patterns indicating the presence of both normal and inverse cobalt aluminate spinel were observed. The inverse spinel was identified both as a transitional phase as well as a final phase, depending on the synthesis method and annealing temperature used. The various synthesis methods were also used to gain further insight into the crystal chemistry of cobalt aluminate. The solid-state method is the more traditional synthesis method. Solution techniques (glycine-gel, citrate-gel and polyol) were used in an attempt to synthesise blue cobalt aluminate at relatively low temperatures and processing times in order to obtain homogeneous, nanosized crystals with broad applicability. The polyol method was found to be most favourable for the synthesis of blue cobalt aluminate with regard to processing temperature and processing time. The various characterisation methods used, show that the intensity of the colour of the powders produced are strongly related to the degree of material crystallinity as well as Al/Co ratio. Inverse (Co2AlO4) and Co3O4 spinels are formed at lower temperatures or when the Co/Al ratio is greater than 0.5. The normal spinel (CoAl2O4) is produced at higher temperatures or when the Co/Al ratio is 0.5. The XRD patterns of CoAl2O4, Co2AlO4 and Co3O4, are very similar because they share the same spinel cubic structure (space group Fd3m) differing only slightly in the lattice size. It has been demonstrated that Raman and XRD can be used to distinguish between inverse and normal spinels while FT-IR and EDS are useful for assessing the purity of the powders produced. As predicted by group theory, five Raman and four IR active vibrations were evident in the results. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Chemistry / unrestricted

Large amounts of money are being applied to the construction of the next generation of spallation sources for neutron scattering. Neutron powder diffraction instruments will be an important element of these facilities and the incorporation of detectors into these instruments with a high neutron capture efficiency is desirable. A new detector design named the Flexible Embedded Fiber Detector (FEFD) has been developed and tested for this thesis. This detector is based on wavelength shifting fibers embedded in a zinc-sulfide lithium-fluoride based scintillator. The virtue of this design is that the detecting surface can be curved around the Debye-Scherrer rings. This virtue is lacking in other detector designs, making them more complex and poorer in performance than our FEFD detectors. Monte Carlo calculations were performed to determine the neutron capture efficiencies of our FEFD detectors, which proved to be much higher than those of the proposed powder diffractometer design for the Spallation Neutron Source and about equal with the efficiency for the ISIS powder diffractometer design. Four FEFD detector prototypes were then fabricated and tested at the Intense Pulsed Neutron Source at Argonne National Laboratory. We find that our measured and calculated relative efficiencies are in good agreement.

No / Bulk crystallisation of protein therapeutic molecules towards their controlled drug delivery is of interest to the biopharmaceutical industry. The complexity of biotherapeutic molecules is likely to lead to complex material properties of crystals in the solid state and to complex transitions. This complexity is explored using batch crystallised lysozyme as a model. The effects of drying and milling on the solid-state transformations of lysozyme crystals were monitored using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD), FT-Raman, and enzymatic assay. XRPD was used to characterise crystallinity and these data supported those of crystalline lysozyme which gave a distinctive DSC thermogram. The apparent denaturation temperature (Tm) of the amorphous lysozyme was ∼201 °C, while the Tm of the crystalline form was ∼187 °C. Raman spectra supported a more α-helix rich structure of crystalline lysozyme. This structure is consistent with reduced cooperative unit sizes compared to the amorphous lysozyme and is consistent with a reduction in the Tm of the crystalline form. Evidence was obtained that milling also induced denaturation in the solid-state, with the denatured lysozyme showing no thermal transition. The denaturation of the crystalline lysozyme occurred mainly through its amorphous form. Interestingly, the mechanical denaturation of lysozyme did not affect its biological activity on dissolution. Lysozyme crystals on drying did not become amorphous, while milling-time played a crucial role in the crystalline-amorphous-denatured transformations of lysozyme crystals. DSC is shown to be a key tool to monitor quantitatively these transformations.

<p> The addition compounds of selenium tetrafluoride with sulfur trioxide, boron trifluoride, and arsenic, antimony, bismuth, vanadium, niobium and tantalum pentafluorides have been prepared. These compounds have been studied in the solid state using X-ray powder diffraction, and infra-red and Raman spectroscopy; in the molten state using Raman spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and conductimetric and viscosity measurements; and in solution using Raman spectroscopy, cryoscopy, conductivity and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.</p> <p> The compound SeF4SO3 has a fluorosulfate-bridged polymeric structure. The remaining compounds have fluorine-bridged structures, this interaction being the strongest in SeF4BF3 and SeF4VF5 and decreasing in the order SeF4NbF5 SeF4TaF5 SeF4AsF5 SeF4SbF5 SeF4BiF5.</p> <p> The characteristics of the SeF3+ group are discussed. The properties of fluorine bridging and various methods of detecting such interactions are also considered.</p> / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

No description available.

Ce travail de thèse se situe dans la thématique des oxydes dérivés de la pérovskite ayant des propriétés de conduction mixte tels que les structures de type K2NiF4, les pérovskites doubles et la brownmillérite. Cette aptitude à conduire à la fois l'oxygène et les électrons présente un intérêt pour des dispositifs électrochimiques fonctionnant à haute température et notamment en tant qu'électrode pour les piles à combustible à oxyde solide. Plus précisément, cette thèse concerne la synthèse et l'étude cristallochimique avancée de la réactivité de ces matériaux essentiellement par les grands instruments par le biais de la diffraction de neutrons (NPD) et des rayons X synchrotron. Le travail préliminaire à ces études implique de la synthèse inorganique par voie solide ou par voie sol-gel, l'analyse thermogravimétrique et la titration iodométrique. Des cellules de réactivité originales ont été développées spécialement à l'ISCR pour l'étude in situ du comportement redox sous différents flux gazeux et en fonction de la température à la fois dans le cadre de la diffraction des neutrons et rayons X synchrotron. L'étude in situ par NPD des composés La2-xSrxMnO4±δ où x = 2,0 et x = 0,8 qui dérivent du composé de cathode de référence La1-xSrxMnO3 a permis de suivre l'évolution structurale en fonction du δ en conditions réductrices pour x = 2,0 et en conditions oxydantes pour x = 0,8. L'étude DRX synchrotron de Pr2NiO4,22 a permis de mettre en évidence la symétrie monoclinique à température ambiante alors que les études précédentes annonçaient une symétrie orthorhombique. Les variations structurales notamment la transition vers la phase HTT sont accompagnées d'une modulation incommensurable qui persiste jusqu'à au moins 900 °C. L'étude des pérovskites doubles NdBaCo2−xMnxO5+δ où 0 ≤ x ≤ 2 a permis de montrer que ces matériaux présentent des conductivités électriques totales très prometteuses pour des applications en tant que cathode de SOFC. De plus, la confrontation de la dynamique moléculaire et de la NPD combinée à la MEM pour le composé x = 0 a permis d'élucider le mécanisme de diffusion de l'oxygène dans cette famille de composés. L'étude par NPD de la réduction de LaSrFeCoO6 vers LaSrFeCoO5 de structure brownmillérite a permis de mettre en évidence que la structure réduite persiste à haute température et l'évolution de la mise en ordre des moments magnétiques lors du refroidissement de LaSrFeCoO5. / This thesis is focused on oxides related to perovskite such as K2NiF4 structure-type, double perovskite and brownmillerite with mixed conduction properties. This ability to conduct both oxygen ions and electrons is relevant for electrochemical devices operating at high temperature, particularly as an electrode for solid oxide fuel cell. Specifically, this thesis deals with the synthesis and advanced crystal structure characterization of the reactivity of these materials mainly through large scale facilities by means of neutron powder diffraction (NPD) and X-ray synchrotron. Preliminary work in these studies involves inorganic synthesis by solid-state or by sol-gel route, thermogravimetric analysis and the iodometric titration. Original reactivity cells have been developed at the ISCR to study redox behavior under different gas flow and as a function of temperature for both neutron diffraction and X-ray synchrotron experiment. In situ study by NPD of La2-xSrxMnO4 ± δ compounds where x = 2.0 and x = 0.8 which derived from the compound cathode reference La1-xSrxMnO3 allowed to follow the structural evolution as a function of δ in reducing conditions for x = 2.0 and oxidizing conditions for x = 0.8. The synchrotron study of Pr2NiO4.22 helped to highlight the monoclinic symmetry at room temperature while previous studies announced an orthorhombic symmetry. Besides, structural changes including the transition to the HTT phase are accompanied by an incommensurable modulation that persists at least up to 900 °C. The study of double perovskites NdBaCo2-xMnxO5+δ where 0 ≤ x ≤ 2 showed that these materials exhibit a promising electrical conductivities for SOFC applications as cathode. In addition, the comparison of the molecular dynamics and NDP combined with MEM for x = 0 compound has elucidated the oxygen diffusion mechanism in these compounds. The study by NPD in reducing condition of LaSrFeCoO6 to the brownmillerite LaSrFeCoO5 has showed that the reduced structure persists at high temperatures and allowed to follow the evolution in the ordering of the magnetic moments while cooling LaSrFeCoO5.

In this diploma thesis there was studied a composition of a solid fraction of the atmospheric aerosol of the daily measurements from Pilsen by X-ray powder diffraction by the method of the parallel beam. The phase analysis was accomplished by comparing of the diffraction dates with a database of compounds usually occurring in the solid fraction of the atmospheric aerosol in this area. This database was created from works published earlier. In these samples there were also identified asbestos fibers of actinolite by the scanning electron microscope with EDS module. In this thesis there was also described a transport of several anthropogenic compounds of the atmospheric aerosol in dependence on a meteorological situation. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

The spinel structure (general formula AB2O4) is widely occurring in natural and synthetic materials, and has a marked technological and scientific significance due to its magnetic, electric and multiferroic behaviours. The presence of transition metal cations with multiple oxidation state and the resulting charge, orbital and spin degrees of freedom of the partially occupied d-orbitals lead to uniquely ordered ground states. The coupling of all the three degrees of freedom can result in a structurally distorted ground state where the direct metal-metal interaction forms atomic clusters, or 'orbital molecules'. The Verwey phase of magnetite (Fe3O4), occurring below TV ~ 125 K, is driven by a cooperative bond distortion that forms linear Fe3+-Fe2+-Fe3+ arrangement (trimeron). The effect of non-stoichiometry and chemical modification on this complex structure has been investigated with a variety of samples through microcrystal synchrotron XRD. A mineral sample (Al, Si, Mg and Mn impurities, TV = 119 K) confirms the Verwey phase as the most complex long-range electronic order known to occur naturally; its relevance in space sciences is discussed. Moreover, the structural analysis of two synthetic magnetites (Fe3(1-δ)O4 with 3δ = 0.012 and TV = 102 K, Fe3-xZnxO4 with x = 0.03 and TV = 90 K) univocally confirmed the persistence of the transition, and its first order, at doping level > 1 %, contrary to previous reports. Moreover, the temperature evolution of the trimerons and their persistence above TV was probed through X-ray Pair Distribution Function analysis on pure Fe3O4: the data analysis between 90 K < T < 923 K show that the Verwey phase goes from long-range ordered (T < 125 K) to short-range ordered (T > 850 K). Magnetite can thus only be considered to have a regular cubic spinel structure above the Curie temperature (TC = 858 K). The pyrochlore lattice of B cations in a spinel gives the structure the potential for frustration upon antiferromagnetic ordering. Fe2GeO4 and γ-Fe2SiO4 were synthesised through conventional solid state routes, with the use of high-pressure synthesis for the latter. Magnetometry and heat capacity measurements highlighted two transitions (Tm1 = 8.6 K and Tm2 = 7.2 K, and Tm1 = 11.2 K and Tm2 = 7.5 K respectively). Powder neutron diffraction data between 2 K < T < 25 K showed that both materials stay undistorted below TN. Magnetic Rietveld refinement led to two highly unconventional magnetic structures, with incommensurate propagation vectors and modulation of the moment magnitude. γ-Fe2SiO4 also shows a spin-ice order below Tm2. The results are unique and unusual for transition metal oxides; the models are systematised by proposing a 'frustration wave' model, in which the degree of frustration is a spatial quantity that can be distributed through the structure in order to stabilise the ground state.