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This study investigates the structural phase and dielectric properties of poly(vinylidenefluoride-co-trifluoroethylene) (P[VDF–TrFE]) thin films grown via atmospheric pressure (AP) plasma deposition using a mixed polymer solution comprising P[VDF–TrFE] polymer nano powder and dimethylformamide (DMF) liquid solvent. The length of the glass guide tube of the AP plasma deposition system is an important parameter in producing intense cloud-like plasma from the vaporization of DMF liquid solvent containing polymer nano powder. This intense cloud-like plasma for polymer deposition is observed in a glass guide tube of length 80 mm greater than the conventional case, thus uniformly depositing the P[VDF–TrFE] thin film with a thickness of 3 μm. The P[VDF–TrFE] thin films with excellent β-phase structural properties were coated under the optimum conditions at room temperature for 1 h. However, the P[VDF–TrFE] thin film had a very high DMF solvent component. The post-heating treatment was then performed on a hotplate in air for 3 h at post-heating temperatures of 140 °C, 160 °C, and 180 °C to remove DMF solvent and obtain pure piezoelectric P[VDF–TrFE] thin films. The optimal conditions for removing the DMF solvent while maintaining the β phases were also examined. The post-heated P[VDF–TrFE] thin films at 160 °C had a smooth surface with nanoparticles and crystalline peaks of β phases, as confirmed by the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and XRD analysis. The dielectric constant of the post-heated P[VDF–TrFE] thin film was measured to be 30 using an impedance analyzer at 10 kHz and is expected to be applied to electronic devices such as low-frequency piezoelectric nanogenerators.

This study systematically investigated an atmospheric pressure plasma reactor with a centered single pin electrode inside a dielectric tube for depositing the polyaniline (PANI) thin film based on the experimental case studies relative to variations in pin electrode configurations (cases I, II, and III), bluff-body heights, and argon (Ar) gas flow rates. In these cases, the intensified charge-coupled device and optical emission spectroscopy were analyzed to investigate the factors affecting intensive glow-like plasma generation for deposition with a large area. Compared to case I, the intense glow-like plasma of the cases II and III generated abundant reactive nitrogen species (RNSs) and excited argon radical species for fragmentation and recombination of PANI. In case III, the film thickness and deposition rate of the PANI thin film were about 450 nm and 7.5 nm/min, respectively. This increase may imply that the increase in the excited radical species contributes to the fragmentation and recombination due to the increase in RNSs and excited argon radicals during the atmospheric pressure (AP) plasma polymerization to obtain the PANI thin film. This intense glow-like plasma generated broadly by the AP plasma reactor can uniformly deposit the PANI thin film, which is confirmed by field emission-scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.

The paper presents research on the effect of technological parameters of high-energy processing on the performance properties of powder coatings made of cermet. The use of pulse-plasma treatment is considered as an example of high-energy modification of coatings. As used powder coating materials, various versions of carbide-containing ceramics with the addition of a solid lubricant in an iron-based metal matrix have been selected in the paper. Coatings of carbide-containing ceramics with the addition of a solid lubricant in an iron-based metal matrix on are being developed to replace those of a nickel-based matrix. Such factors as crack resistance, wear resistance, workability, brittleness, as well as economic components often limit the use of powder materials based on carbide ceramics with the addition of solid lubricant in the matrix based on nickel. When only the wear process determines the service life of a part, such powder materials should be replaced with cheaper powder materials based on carbide ceramics with the addition of solid lubricant in an iron-based matrix. The proposed developments increase the wear resistance of the plasma coating due to the introduction of high-chromium steel and molybdenum into the material. Optimum porosity is formed in the initial powder mixture during the synthesis of FeCrMo–MoS 2 –TiC composite materials, there is an improvement in the technological parameters of powder materials, their utilization rate in plasma spraying increases, and the technology of applying wear-resistant plasma coatings becomes cheaper. The addition of the Mo element to the FeCr binder increases the wetting of titanium carbides by the binder melt during self-propagating high-temperature synthesis of the developed composite powder. Subsequent layer-by-layer processing of plasma-sprayed coatings from powders of the developed ceramics using repetitive pulses of plasma flows using different energy levels makes it possible to create strictly defined structures with necessary and controlled porosity, which decreases in a certain sequence from the outer treated layers to the base. Such treatment contributes to a significant increase in the wear resistance of the treated friction surfaces, increases the oil holding capacity, in addition, an increased adhesive and cohesive strength of the formed layers bordering the substrate is formed. Processing distances, the total number of impacts have been varied in accordance with the methodological developments, when changing the applied technological characteristics of pulse-plasma effects. The total number of plasma pulses influences on the created thickness of the plasma coating layers after treatment and contributes to the melting with compaction of the coatings obtained by the plasma treatment and the creation of a structure with hardened characteristics.

Introduction. PECVD enables fabrication of wide range of advanced materials with various structure such as amorphous, polymorphous, nano-crystalline, nanostructured, microcrystalline etc. and with various electronic properties. The latter can be also changed by different dopingl. PECVD silicon materials are commercially employed in multi-layered PV structures (including ones on flexible substrates). Combining these materials with crystalline silicon active substrate resulted in significant improvement of PCE in hetero junction technology PV structures. Existence of new organic semiconductors (OS) together with understanding of physical properties resulted in fast development of OC PV devicesAim. To consider both PECVD and OS materials and to present description of fabrication, structure and electronic properties for device application.Materials and methods. Devices based on non-crystalline materials, devices based on OS, hybrid devices. PECVD and Spin coating technique was used to deposit materials with tunable properties enabling device engineering possibilities.Results. PECVD and OS materials were analyzed. These materials have different levels of characterization (data volume, interpretation of the results etc.) and of understanding of physics determining device performance. Some examples of these materials in PV including structures with crystalline silicon were considered.Conclusion. Important advantage of both PECVD and OS materials is that fabrication methods are compatible and allow fabrication of great variety of hybrid device structures on crystalline semiconductors. Advantages of such devices are difficult to predict because of lack of data in scientific literature. However a new area in material science and related devices for further exploring and exploiting has appeared.

Al-Cu-Fe and Al-Co-Cu thin films were firstly deposited on sodium chloride or glass-ceramic substrates by modernized method of three-electrode ion-plasma sputtering. The nominal compositions of the films were chosen in the regions of quasicrystalline phases formation. The as-sputtered films were typically 85 to 260 nm thick. The films were annealed at temperatures ranging from 873 to 923 K for 10 min…3 h. The structure of films was studied by scanning and transmission electron microscopy and X-ray analysis. Electrical properties were determined by a fourprobe method. The as-deposited Al-Cu-Fe film was found to consist of isolated quasicrystalline nanoparticles of icosahedral i-phase. With substitution of Fe for Co in Al-Co-Cu film, X-ray amorphous phase and only traces of quasicrystalline decagonal D-phase were revealed. After annealing, the films were predominately quasicrystalline due to transformation of metallic phases into quasicrystalline. At the same time, the size of coherent scattering regions for quasicrystals increased by two times from ~ 3 to 6 nm. Measurements of electrical resistivity showed that no phase transformations occurred in Al-Cu-Fe film up to 723 K and in Al-Co-Cu film up to 640 К. With following increase in temperature, electrical resistivity of Al-Cu-Fe film increased by six orders of magnitude (up to 6∙107 Ω/sq). In contrast, electrical resistivity of Al-Co-Cu film decreased by ~ 2 times. After cooling to room temperature, resistivity of Al-Cu-Fe film equaled to ~ 3∙105 Ω/sq and that of Al-Co-Cu film – to 8.7 Ω/sq. We concluded that Al-Cu-Fe thin film is more suitable candidate for application as precise high-ohmic materials.

The properties of nanographite flakes formed by the plasma deposition of methane CH4 on the SiO2 surface and subsequent heat treatment at 650°C were studied using Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy and electrical measurements. From the results of studies, the formation of a carbon nanocrystalline structure with domain sizes of about 1,7 nm and a thickness of up to several nanometers was established.

We report on the aerosol-assisted atmospheric-pressure plasma deposition onto a stainless-steel woven mesh of a thin nanocomposite coating based on TiO2 nanoparticles hosted in a hybrid organic–inorganic matrix, starting from nanoparticles dispersed in a mixture of hexamethyldisiloxane and isopropyl alcohol. The stainless-steel mesh was selected as an effective support for the possible future technological application of the coating for photocatalytically assisted water depollution. The prepared coatings were thoroughly investigated from the chemical and morphological points of view and were demonstrated to be photocatalytically active in the degradation of an organic molecule, used as a pollutant model, in water upon UV light irradiation. In order to optimize the photocatalytic performance, different approaches were investigated for the coating’s realization, namely (i) the control of the deposition time and (ii) the application of a postdeposition O2 plasma treatment on the pristine coatings. Both strategies were found to be able to increase the photocatalytic activity, and, remarkably, their combination resulted in a further enhancement of the photoactivity. Indeed, the proposed combined approach allowed a three-fold increase in the kinetic constant of the degradation reaction of the model dye methylene blue with respect to the pristine coating. Interestingly, the chemical and morphological characterizations of all the prepared coatings were able to account for the enhancement of the photocatalytic performance. Indeed, the presence of the TiO2 nanoparticles on the outmost surface of the film confirmed the accessibility of the photocatalytic sites in the nanocomposite and reasonably explained the enhanced photocatalytic performance. In addition, the sustained photoactivity (>5 cycles of use) of the nanocomposites was demonstrated.

Healthcare associated infections (HAIs) are known as one of the major problems of the modern healthcare system, which result in additional cost and mortality. It has also been shown that pathogenic bacteria are mostly transferred via surfaces in healthcare settings. Therefore, antibacterial surfaces, which include fabrics and textiles, can be used in a healthcare environment to reduce the transfer of pathogenic bacteria, hence reducing HAIs. Silver nanoparticles have been shown to have broad spectrum antibacterial properties, and therefore they have been incorporated into fabrics to provide antibacterial functionality. Liquid flame spray (LFS) nanoparticle synthesis allows nanoparticles to be produced and deposited on surfaces at speeds up to and beyond 300 m/min. Herein, LFS is used to deposit silver nanoparticles onto two fabrics that are commonly used in the hospital environment with the aim of producing antibacterial fabrics. A thin plasma coating on top of the fabrics after silver deposition is used to improve nanoparticle adhesion. Fabrics coated with silver nanoparticles demonstrated antibacterial properties against Escherichia coli. Nanoparticle imaging and surface chemical characterization are performed using scanning electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The highlights of this research are as follows: • high-speed synthesis and deposition of silver nanoparticles on fabrics; • plasma coating onto fabrics with silver nanoparticles; • antibacterial fabrics for potential use in healthcare environments.

Ion-plasma antifriction coatings based onTi-Cuwere deposited by the method of ion-plasma sputtering in vacuum with the aim to gain a coating with a low coefficient of friction. To protect steel part from wear intermetallic, nitride and conglomerate coatings based onTi-Cuwith thickness of the coating h ≈ 2-5 μm obtained at different regimes of deposition. Thickness of the antifriction coatings and proportion of the chemical composition varied by deposition time, voltage and current of the magnetron, current of evaporators, pressure of gas in a vacuum chamber. This paper presents the results of the tribotest carried out on CSM Instruments pin-on-disk type tribometer. Comparing with uncoated samples microhardness and roughness of the coated samples increased two to three times, coefficient of friction of coated samples was twice lower.

The article considers one of the options for protecting the products surface from cavitation wear and hydroabrasive erosion using a modern high-tech method of high-energy plasma surfacing. Metallog...

The motion behavior of nanoparticles in rf plasma deposition process is important to deposition quality and efficiency. Temperature and flow field were calculated by CFD method and motion of particles with different diameter (100 μm, 10 μm, 0.1 μm and 0.01 μm) in rf plasma deposition process were studied. The result shows that the carrier gas flow may influence the temperature of substrate surface and influents the velocity field and movement of particles significantly. Particles with the same diameter can easily go throw the plasma and deposit on the substrate by improving the flow of carrier gas. Increasing of feeding pipe can strengthen movement of particles but decrease the temperature of substrate at the same time. The larger diameter of particles, the easier of it to go throw the plasma and deposit on the substrate because of its mobility following the airflow.

The synthesized silver-substituted tricalcium phosphate powder has been studied by infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. The plasma deposition of coatings based on this powder has been described. The structural–morphological and physicochemical characteristics of the coatings have been examined, and their adhesion strength and degree of hydrophilicity have been determined.

Background Wound healing remains a challenge in diabetic or immune-compromised patients and often requires the use of advanced biologic dressings to treat slow healing ulcers. The emergence of plasma medicine has provided some hope for advancement in wound closure rates for non-healing patients and some positive clinical results have already been observed. However, the potential to combine biologic dressings with plasma medicine has not yet been widely explored and this study outlines one potential way to combine such therapies. Methods A nebulised collagen solution was introduced into a non-thermal plasma discharge and the activated materials were deposited onto a surface to produce a dry, adherent and coagulated biomolecule coating. The plasma device was subsequently used to deliver collagen on to chronic wounds in a compromised animal wound healing model (Alloxan induced diabetes in White New Zealand rabbits) and the healing rate was compared to untreated controls and to wounds that were treated with plasma but without the collagen deposition. Results Surface analysis using XPS, FTIR and contact angle measurements indicated that the deposit largely retained the chemical features of the dissolved protein. The plasma deposited collagen was also shown to effectively promote wound closure when compared to control wounds. Although a simple plasma treatment alone also reduced inflammation and enhanced wound healing, the collagen component produced a statistically significant (p Conclusions Combining a biologic therapy with a plasma treatment showed promising results in the treatment of chronic wounds in an animal model and demonstrated the potential to combine biologic therapies with plasma deposition for targeted local delivery and enhanced healing.

Partial table of contents: History and Fundamentals of Pulsed Laser Deposition (J. Cheung). Diagnostics and Characteristics of Laser--Produced Plasmas (D. Geohegan). Particulates Generated by Pulsed Laser Ablation (L.--C. Chen). Angular Distribution of Ablated Material (K. Saenger). Film Nucleation and Film Growth in Pulsed Laser Deposition of Ceramics (J. Horwitz & J. Sprague). Processes Characteristics and Film Properties in Pulsed Laser Plasma Deposition (S. Metev). Commercial Scale--Up of Pulsed Laser Deposition (J. Greer). Pulsed Laser Deposition: Future Trends (T. Venkatesan). Comparison of Vacuum Deposition Techniques (G. Hubler). Pulsed Laser Deposition of High--Temperature Superconducting Thin Films for Active and Passive Device Applications (R. Muenchausen & X. Wu). Pulsed Laser Deposition of Metals (J. Kools). Appendix. References. Index.

Fabrication of tunable wetting surfaces is sought for the last years given its importance on energy, biomaterials and antimicrobials, water purification, microfluidics, and smart surfaces. Liquid management on surfaces mainly depends on the control at the micro- and nanoscale of both roughness and chemical composition. Herein, the combination of a soft-template method and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition is presented for the synthesis of TiO2 nanofibers on porous substrates such as cellulose and stainless-steel membranes. The protocol, carried out under mild conditions, produces 3D nanomembranes with superhydrophobicity and oleophilicity that are tested as microliter water/oil filters. Photoactivation of TiO2 by UV illumination provides a straightforward approach for wetting tunability that converts the surface into amphiphilic. A final chemical modification of the TiO2 nanofibers by embedding them in an elastomeric polymeric shell and by fluorine-based grafting opens the path toward the formation of superomniphobic and self-cleaning surfaces with long-lasting lifetimes. Thus, a reliable procedure is demonstrated for the fabrication of TiO2 nanofibers, which allows the modification of porous supports and provides an innovative route for the development of 3D nanomembranes with under design wetting. This protocol is extendable to alternative metal oxides, metals, and core@shell nanoarchitectures with potential multifunctionalities.

The objective purpose of applying mathematical planning of the experiment in modeling the porosity of plasma coatings is shown. Regression equations were obtained experimentally that allow controlling the main properties of applied coatings depending on the conditions of the plasma deposition process, and an empirical relationship was established linking the porosity and mechanical strength of alumina coatings.

Neste trabalho, filmes finos de carbono tipo diamante DLC (Diamond-like carbon) foram depositados em substratos de aco ferramenta AISI D6 por meio da tecnica de deposicao a plasma com gaiola catodica de grafite, com o objetivo de avaliar a influencia dos parâmetros de tratamento, tais como a duracao do tratamento e a polarizacao das amostras. As amostras tratadas foram avaliadas em termos de morfologia e estrutura por Difracao de Raios X (DRX), Espectroscopia Raman e Microscopia Eletronica de Varredura (MEV). Os resultados dos difratogramas indicaram a presenca das estruturas de ferrita, grafite e diamante para as amostras tratadas com alumina e a formacao de grafite com estrutura hexagonal para amostras tratadas sem alumina. Os espectros Raman identificaram a banda D e G caracteristicos de materiais grafiticos e os melhores resultados foram obtidos para as amostras que nao utilizaram alumina. As micrografias dos filmes utilizando alumina indicaram estruturas na forma de minusculas particulas, com contornos mais claros e definidos. Ja para as amostras sem alumina, os filmes DLC apresentaram um aspecto mais uniforme e de coalescencia dos graos. As camadas das amostras tratadas com alumina apresentaram as maiores espessuras de camadas, principalmente para a amostra tratada durante 6 horas. Em relacao aos tratamentos sem alumina, as amostras tratadas por 5 e 6 horas apresentaram em media a maior espessura de camada. Assim, foi possivel afirmar que a alumina e, tambem, o tempo de tratamento influenciam de forma significativa nas caracteristicas de microestrutura e espessura final do filme. Palavras-chave: Deposicao por Plasma, Filmes DLC e Gaiola Catodica

These chapters describe how to generate excess heat with cold fusion (that is, heat that exceeds the input energy). Two reactant treatment methods are presented: palladium on nickel plasma deposition, and direct application. Plasma deposition sometimes yields ~ 100% excess (twice as much as the input electric energy), up to ~ 500 W, but the process is complex and time-consuming. Direct application generates excess heat at lower power levels, about 5%–20% above input power, usually at ~ 20 W. The first chapter describes calorimetry, the second plasma deposition, and the third describes direct application.

We report here the preparation and characterization of polyaniline Ni-complex catalytic electrode by one-pot plasma deposition for the electrochemical detection of phosphate via the redox reaction of glucose. We first prepared a precursory solution by combining NiCl2 and 3-aminobenzoic acid in a mixed solution of methanol (MeOH) and water, and adding aniline as a conductive polymeric precursor for increasing the electron transfer potential. We then synthesized the catalytic electrode in a one-step cold plasma process by preparing the precursors on ITO glass. We characterized the obtained Ni-coordinate catalytic electrode via X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), field emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electrochemical methods. Electrochemical characterization produced stable redox properties of Ni3+/Ni2+ couples in a 0.1 M NaOH solution. Cyclic voltametric experiments have drastically increased electrocatalytic oxidation and reduction of glucose by increasing the concentration of phosphate (PO43−) ions using the prepared Ni-modified catalytic electrodes. From these results, the prepared catalytic electrode could be used as the electrochemical sensor for phosphate in actual water.

After booming demand around 1995, semiconductor revenues declined due to overcapacity of product lines and an economic crisis in South-East Asia that lasted into 1998 (cf. Business IV). At the start of this period, ASM International’s operations active in wafer processing equipment strictly focused on three products: vertical furnaces, epitaxy, and single wafer plasma deposition. This focus had enabled the recovery of ASM International after the volatile early 1990s. Consequently, ideas or suggestions for new diversification of activities tensed up management. The remaining products required plenty of resources, for instance in coping with their own demand and preparing for the new wafer 300-millimeter standard. Amidst these circumstances, the innovation of gate stack technology was not self-evident within ASM International.

Implanting a metal stent plays a key role in treating cardiovascular diseases. However, the high corrosion rate of metal-based devices severely limits their practical applications. Therefore, how to control the corrosion rate is vital to take full advantages of metal-based materials in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. This review details various methods to design and construct polymer-coated stents. The techniques are described and discussed including plasma deposition, electrospinning, dip coating, layer-by-layer self-assembly, and direct-write inkjet. Key point is provided to highlight current methods and recent advances in hindering corrosion rate and improving biocompatibility of stents, which greatly drives the rising of some promising techniques involved in the ongoing challenges and potential new trends of polymer-coated stents.

The possibility of production of Ti-, N-, and C-containing superhard coatings on a metal substrate by a plasma-dynamic method in air is studied. The coating is deposited in the time of one short operating cycle of a magnetoplasma accelerator under the impact of a high speed electric discharge Ti-containing plasma jet on the substrate surface. Formation of TiN and TiCN nanostructured layers in the coating structure is ascertained with the help of the SEM and X-ray diffraction methods and it leads to the coating hardness increasing. Formation of a gradient layer of mixed material at the coating/substrate interface is found to occur under the action of a high-enthalpy plasma jet on a metal substrate. The value of hardness is not constant throughout the coating thickness, and ultrahigh nanohardness values >20 GPa were obtained for the subsurface layer and substrate/coating interface region. The mean value of hardness of the coating is 16.2 GPa. The coating produced has good adhesion with the substrate.

The physics and chemistry of plasma–surface interaction is a broad domain relevant to various applications and several natural processes, including plasma etching for microelectronics fabrication, plasma deposition, surface functionalization, nanomaterial synthesis, fusion reactors, and some astrophysical and meteorological phenomena. Due to their complex nature, each of these processes is generally investigated in separate subdomains, which are considered to have their own theoretical, modeling, and experimental challenges. In this review, however, we want to emphasize the overarching nature of plasma–surface interaction physics and chemistry, by focusing on the general strategy for its computational simulation. In the first half of the review, we provide a menu card with standard and less standardized computational methods to be used for the multiscale modeling of the underlying processes. In the second half, we illustrate the benefits and potential of the multiscale modeling strategy with a case study of Si and SiO2 etching by fluorocarbon plasmas and identify the gaps in knowledge still present on this intensely investigated plasma–material combination, both on a qualitative and quantitative level. Remarkably, the dominant etching mechanisms remain the least understood. The resulting new insights are of general relevance, for all plasmas and materials, including their various applications. We therefore hope to motivate computational and experimental scientists and engineers to collaborate more intensely on filling the existing gaps in knowledge. In this way, we expect that research will overcome a bottleneck stage in the development and optimization of multiscale models, and thus the fundamental understanding of plasma–surface interaction.

The paper focuses on the problem of low adhesion of plasma sprayed coatings to the substrate. The subsequent laser treatment modes and their influence on the coating-substrate interface were studied. This allows to decrease the level of metstability of the coating, thus decreasing its hardness down to 11-12 GPa on the surface and to about 9 GPa on depth of 400 µm. The redistribution of alloying elements through solid and liquid diffusion improves mechanical properties and rises the adhesion up to 450 MPa after remelting and up to 90-110 MPa after laser-aided thermal cycling. At he same time, remelting of coating helps to decrease its porosity down to 1%. Obtained complex of properties also allows to improve wear resistance of coatings and to decrease friction factor.

[Ti0.2C0.8/a-C]40 multilayer thin films composed of forty pairs of TiC and pure carbon layers were formed on a selective laser melted (SLM) martensitic stainless steel by means of ion-plasma deposition process. SLM steel was pre-treated by one of the two following schemes: (1) oil quenching from 1040°C followed by heating to 480°C for 4 hours and air cooling (HT), finish milling (FM); (2) HT, FM, ion-plasma nitriding followed by burnishing. Mechanical failure mode and critical load Lc for damaging the coatings were determined using linear scratch tests performed at linearly-increased normal force. Indentation by conical diamond tip were carried out in order to asses an elastic recovery and energy dissipation coefficient defined as the ratio of plastic to total deformation energy. The scratch test results showed that the post-processing of the substrate strongly influenced the failure mode of the coating and increased the critical load from 320 mN to 920 mN. Indentation revealed that nitriding and burnishing before coating deposition increase the elastic recovery of the [Ti0.2C0.8/a-C]40 coating-substrate system from 24% to 68%. The energy dissipation coefficient drops from 79% to 45%.

Molecular dynamics simulations are carried out for studying growth and properties of polymers from pure acetylene plasma. Mixture of H, C2H and C2H2 is the initial composition for running the molecular dynamics simulations. Resulting films are characterized by characterizing bond order, [H]/[C] ratio and simulated infrared spectrum. The latter is qualitatively compared with three different experiments: IR peak identification and positions are recovered.

Zinc-oxide (ZnO), a solid lubricant coating, can increase the wear resistance of steels by working as a self-lubricant. In this study, ZnO film is synthesized using the cathodic cage plasma deposition (CCPD) technique, using galvanized steel cathodic cage (steel cage with zinc coating). The effect of gas composition (H2 is added in Ar-O2) is investigated to optimize the film properties. The surface hardness is increased more than twice in each processing condition. The deposited film shows ZnO phases for samples treated with low hydrogen contents and a combination of ZnO and magnetite phase (Fe3O4) with higher hydrogen contents. The thickness of film reduced from 1.28 μm to 0.5 μm by increasing the hydrogen composition. The wear resistance is expressively increased by film deposition, and the abrasive wear mechanism is changed to an adhesive wear mechanism. A significant decrease in wear rate is observed, specifically by increasing the hydrogen contents. The friction coefficient as a function of sliding distance is smoother and lower than the base material in each condition. This study suggests that the CCPD technique can effectively deposit the solid lubricant coating of ZnO, and it can be used to enhance the tribological properties of steel samples. Moreover, this technique is convenient due to its better deposition efficiency, eco-friendly (no chemicals are involved), simple and relatively low-cost equipment, and low processing temperature. Thus, it can be advantageous for industrial sectors interested in materials with exceptional tribological properties.

The hydrogenation of CO2 to produce CO and H2O, known as reverse-water-gas shift reaction (RWGS) is considered to be an important CO2 valorization pathway. This work is aimed at proposing the thin-film catalysts based on iron and cobalt oxides for this purpose. A series of Fe–Co nanocomposites were prepared by the plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) from organic cobalt and iron precursors on a wire-mesh support. The catalysts were characterized by SEM/EDX, XPS, XRD, and Raman spectroscopy and studied for hydrogenation of CO2 in a tubular reactor operating in the temperature range of 250–400 °C and atmospheric pressure. The Co-based catalyst, containing crystalline CoO phase, exhibited high activity toward CH4, while the Fe-based catalyst, containing crystalline Fe2O3/Fe3O4 phases, was less active and converted CO2 mainly into CO. Regarding the Fe–Co nanocomposites (incl. Fe2O3/Fe3O4 and CoO), even a small fraction of iron dramatically inhibited the production of methane. With increasing the atomic fraction of iron in the Fe–Co systems, the efficiency of the RWGS reaction at 400 °C increased up to 95% selectivity to CO and 30% conversion of CO2, which significantly exceeded the conversion for pure iron–based films (approx. 9%). The superior performance of the Fe–Co nanocomposites compared to “pure” Co and Fe–based films was proposed to be explained by assuming changes in the electronic structure of the catalyst resulting from the formation of p–n junctions between nanoparticles of cobalt and iron oxides.

The development of microorganisms' colonies creates a three-dimensional structure named biofilm, which helps microorganisms attach to the substratum to survive. The microorganisms' survival strategy process is usually responsible for the corrosion of biomaterial and mediating microbial infection to the user. Different biomaterials are used for human use, such as polymeric, ceramic, metallic, and composite biomaterials. The antimicrobial surfaces on biomaterials are developed by making the surface microbial repelling surfaces, microbes killing surfaces, anti-adhesive surfaces, or biocide releasing surfaces., The topography of the surface has to be modified to restrict the growth of the microbes. One may use any of these techniques, such as the vapour deposition process, sol-gel process, electrical discharge coating process, plasma deposition process, lasers mediated process, electrochemical approach, etc. This modified surface of biomaterial demonstrates inhibition of microbes-mediated corrosion. This review provides a complete insight into how biomaterials become resistant to biofouling-mediated corrosion.

Platinum nanoparticles (Pt NPs) with a mean diameter of 2.7 ± 0.8 nm were successfully deposited on C60 fullerene nanowhiskers (C60FNWs) by coaxial arc plasma deposition (CAPD). No correlat...

Thermal depositions are very wide spread in the industry of coating techniques. The materials used as coatings for several applications must have the ability to produce a stable, slow-growing surface coating, in order to provide good service behavior. This paper presents a method to increase the wear resistance of steering pump cam, strongly stressed having premature wear effects. The method that the authors use is atmospheric plasma deposition with Ni-Cr-Fe and Ni-Cr-B-Fe powders on steel substrate. It was investigated the morphology and physico-mechanical properties (scratch and micro-indentation analysis). Results showed a comparison between those two coatings with the metallic substrate. It has been found that the deposited coatings have an adherent, dense and uniform layer with a typically molten morphology. By increasing the coefficient of friction we can obtain higher wear resistance and recommend the optimum solution for further researches.

One of the main critical aspects behind the failure or success of an implant resides in its ability to fast bond with the surrounding bone. To boost osseointegration, the ideal implant material should exhibit composition and structure similar to those of biological apatite. To this aim, the most common approach is to coat the implant surface with a coating of hydroxyapatite (HA), resembling the main component of mineralized tissues. However, bone apatite is a non-stoichiometric, multi-substituted poorly-crystalline apatite, containing significant amounts of foreign ions, with high biological relevance. Ion-substituted HAs can be deposited by so called “wet methods”, which are however poorly reproducible and hardly industrially feasible; at the same time bioactive coatings realized by plasma assisted method, interesting for industrial applications, are generally made of stoichiometric (i.e. un-substituted) HA. In this work, the literature concerning plasma-assisted deposition methods used to deposit ion-substituted HA was reviewed and the last advances in this field discussed. The ions taken into exam are those present in mineralized tissues and possibly having biological relevance. Notably, literature about this topic is scarce, especially relating to in vivo animal and clinical trials; further on, available studies evaluate the performance of substituted coatings from different points of view (mechanical properties, bone growth, coating dissolution, etc.) which hinders a proper evaluation of the real efficacy of ion-doped HA in promoting bone regeneration, compared to stoichiometric HA. Moreover, results obtained for plasma sprayed coatings (which is the only method currently employed for deposition at the industrial scale) were collected and compared to those of novel plasma-assisted techniques, that are expected to overcome its limitations. Data so far available on the topic were discussed to highlight advantages, limitations and possible perspectives of these procedures.