Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene Plate Research Articles

Experimental Study of Flow-Induced Vibration of Lens-Shaped Vertical Lift Gates

AbstractAn experimental study of two model-scale lens-shaped vertical gates consisting of a truss and plate is presented. Experimental results are applied to the design of the new Nakdong River gates in Busan, South Korea, for flood and irrigation control. Experimental models are developed using finite-element (FE) analysis. A 1:31 scale model is constructed for the short gate (47.5 m wide, 8.5 m high at full scale) using acrylic, and a 1:61 scale model is constructed for the long gate (95 m wide, 8.5 m high at full scale) using an acrylic truss and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene plate. Natural frequencies of the model gates are measured and calibrated with FE predictions. Dynamic characteristics of the flow-induced vibration are compared for two gate orientations. Vibrations of the model gates in Orientation 1 (plate convex in the upstream direction) and Orientation 2 (plate convex in the downstream direction) are measured for various flow conditions. A combination of bottom opening heights and upstream...

Surface Modification by Atmospheric Pressure DBDs Plasma: Application to Electroless Ni Plating on ABS Plates

Acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) plastic is a polymer material extensively used in electrical and electronic applications. Nickel (Ni) thin film was deposited on ABS by electroless plating, after its surface was treated and modified with atmospheric plasma generated by means of dielectric barrier discharges (DBDs) in air. The method in this study was developed as a pre-treatment for electroless plating using DBDs, and is a dry process featuring fewer processing steps and more environmentally friendliness than the chemical method. After ABS surfaces were modified, surface morphologies were observed using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) to check for any physical changes of the surfaces. Cross-sectional SEM images were taken to observe the binding characteristics between metallic films and ABS after metal plating. According to the SEM images, the depths of ABS by plasma are shallow compared to those modified by chemically treatment. The static contact angles were measured with deionized (DI) water droplets on the modified surfaces in order to observe for any changes in chemical activities and wettability. The surfaces modified by plasma showed smaller contact angles, and their modified states lasted longer than those modified by chemical etching. Adhesion strengths were measured using 3M tape (3M 810D standard) and by 90° peel-off tests. The peel-off test revealed the stronger adhesion of the Ni films on the plasma-modified surfaces than on the chemically modified surfaces. Thermal shock test was performed by changing the temperature drastically to see if any detachment of Ni film from ABS would occur due to the differences in thermal expansion coefficients between them. Only for the plasma-treated samples showed no separation of the Ni films from the ABS surfaces in tests. The adhesion strengths of metallic films on the ABS processed by the method developed in this study are better than those of the chemically processed films.

Environmentally friendly process for nickel electroplating of ABS

Nickel electroplating of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) plastic has been achieved successfully without any chromium or palladium pretreatment. Once the ABS is coated with polypyrrole (PPy), the sample may be electroplated. The process is fast, economic and involves three stages. Firstly, chemical deposition of PPy on ABS, secondly, copper deposition and finally nickel electroplating. A homogenous and adherent PPy has been synthesized chemically on ABS plate by using pyrrole as monomer and iron (III) chloride as oxidant. Copper and nickel were deposited galvanostatically from industrial plating baths. The metallic coatings were homogeneous and the adherence was estimated at 100%. The thickness of copper and nickel depend on the electrolysis time. As the current density increases, the Cu and Ni thickness raises. This result was confirmed from SEM characterization and RX map. The Ni coating is characterized by a globular structure with globules of different sizes. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analysis shows the presence of Ni with some amount of carbon and oxygen due to the nickel oxides and contaminant from the bath solution.

A self-pumping and self-breathing micro direct methanol fuel cell with polymer bipolar plates

A passive micro direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) for reducing volume and parasitic power is designed and fabricated using several integrated technologies. New bipolar plates with tapered channels at the anode and a pillar array at the cathode are first applied to a passive micro-DMFC. The substrate of the bipolar plates made of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) is hot embossed with two molds, fabricated by UV-LIGA and micro machining. To make the bipolar plates conductive and hydrophilic, a nickel layer is electroplated on the ABS plates, and three PDDA/PSS bi-layers are self-assembled onto the nickel layer. The bipolar plates are produced using hot embossing, a low cost, highly accurate batch process. A single cell is assembled to verify the self-pumping function, and it can generate a peak power density of 7.4 mW cm −2 with a 3 M methanol solution. The fuel cell is verified to work in three different orientations. When the fuel cell is placed horizontally, the self-pumping rate is about 0.1–0.15 mL h −1. And the fuel cell can work through self-pumping for 5 h under this condition.