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The study demonstrates the feasibility of synthesizing TiB whiskers on titanium (Ti) surfaces by solid-state diffusion to form a hard and wear-resistant coating. The microstructural and mechanical properties of the TiB coating layer have also been investigated. The TiB coating was formed by the solid-state diffusion of boron (B) from a powder mixture containing amorphous boron, Na 2 CO 3 powder, and charcoal (activated) powder. The diffusion process was carried out at various temperatures ranging from 800 ЊC to 1000 ЊC for various periods of time ranging from 1 to 24 hours. The amount of Na 2 CO 3 in the mixture was also varied. It has been found that pristine and extremely fine TiB whiskers form on the surfaces of titanium, with the whiskers growing more or less normal to the surface. A maximum coating thickness of about 218 m was observed for the pack diffusion conditions at 850 ЊC for 24 hours with 15 pct Na 2 CO 3 . The kinetics of TiB formation was found to follow the growth rates in bulk composites. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of the coatings revealed the dominant TiB peaks with a very few TiB 2 peaks, with small intensity at higher temperature and time. The surface hardness of the coated layer increased to a Vickers hardness of about 550 kgf/mm 2 due to the presence of TiB whiskers in the coating. It is shown that pack diffusion of boron in the solid state is a simple and very effective means of generating hard and wear-resistant coatings on titanium.

Gas sensors, capable of detecting and monitoring trace amounts of gas molecules or volatile organic compounds (VOCs), are in great demand for numerous applications including diagnosing diseases through breath analysis, environmental and personal safety, food and agriculture, and other fields. The continuous emergence of new materials is one of the driving forces for the development of gas sensors. Recently, 2D materials have been gaining huge attention for gas sensing applications, owing to their superior electrical, optical, and mechanical characteristics. Especially for 2D MXenes, high specific area and their rich surface functionalities with tunable electronic structure make them compelling for sensing applications. This Review discusses the latest advancements in the 2D MXenes for gas sensing applications. It starts by briefly explaining the family of MXenes, their synthesis methods, and delamination procedures. Subsequently, it outlines the properties of MXenes. Then it describes the theoretical and experimental aspects of the MXenes-based gas sensors. Discussion is also extended to the relation between sensing performance and the structure, electronic properties, and surface chemistry. Moreover, it highlights the promising potential of these materials in the current gas sensing applications and finally it concludes with the limitations, challenges, and future prospects of 2D MXenes in gas sensing applications.

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In this paper, we investigate the magnetization reversal in single-phase RE 2 Fe 14 B and two-phase ␣-Fe/ RE 2 Fe 14 B with varying nanoscale grain structures and intergranular exchange interactions produced via controlled segregation during crystallization. We show that the loss of coercivity arises because domain-wall processes dominate the magnetic reversal as the exchange interactions increase. Micromagnetic modeling corroborates a transition to strongly cooperative magnetic reversal as the exchange interactions increase. The magnetic reversal is controlled by the growth of interaction domains via discrete domain-wall motion, and the coercivity is intrinsically limited by the presence of interaction domains. To alleviate this problem, we have built an additional length scale into the structure that is below the interaction domain size but above the limit for intergranular exchange interactions to be significant. These "single-interaction domain" structures retain nucleation-type magnetic reversal and high coercivity. We show experimentally that nanocomposite Sm-Co/Co with this additional length scale has excellent coercivity and nucleation-controlled reversal.