MOF–derived porous carbon is a type of promising catalyst to replace expensive Pt–based catalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). The catalytic activity for ORR depends closely on pyrolysis conditions. In this work, a Co–doped ZIF–8 material was chosen as a research object. The effect of pyrolysis conditions (temperature, heating rate, two–step heating) on the ORR performance of ZIF–derived carbon catalysts was systematically studied. The Co–ZIF–8 catalyst carbonized at 900 °C exhibits better ORR catalytic activity than that carbonized at 800 °C and 1000 °C. Moreover, a low heating rate can enhance catalytic activity. Two–step pyrolysis is proven to be an effective way to improve the performance of catalysts. Reducing the heating rate in the low–temperature stage is more beneficial to the ORR performance, compared to the heating rate in the high–temperature stage. The results show that the Co–ZIF–8 catalyst exhibits the best performance when the precursor was heated to 350 °C at 2 °C/min, and then heated to 900 °C at 5 °C/min. The optimum Co–ZIF–8 catalyst shows a half–wave potential of 0.82 V and a current density of 5.2 mA·cm⁻² in 0.1 M KOH solution. It also exhibits high content of defects and good graphitization. TEM mapping shows that Co and N atoms are highly dispersed in the polyhedral carbon skeleton. However, two–step pyrolysis has no significant effect on the stability of the catalyst.

Titanium alloys are widely used in marine engineering and other industries. To broaden their application, a novel (α + β) titanium alloy Ti−6Al−3Mo−2Zr−2Fe was studied in this work. A tube with an outer diameter of 60mm, inner diameter of 38 mm, and length of 500 mm was produced by ingot metallurgy and hot extrusion. The microstructure, mechanical properties, and corrosion resistance of the tube were systematically analyzed. The as−extruded Ti−6Al−3Mo−2Zr−2Fe alloy exhibited a typical duplex microstructure. EBSD observation showed that a strong <$10 \overline{1}0$>//RD fiber texture of an α phase with a close−packed hexagonal structure was formed in the radial direction. The transformation temperature T_β was determined to be 880–890 °C. A duplex microstructure with fine α platelets was obtained when the alloy was solution−treated at 850 °C for 1 h and underwent an aging treatment at 550 °C for 6 h. The room−temperature tensile strength and elongation of the aged alloy reached 1081.5 MPa and 6.5%, respectively. The corrosion resistance was tested by open circuit potential and a potentiodynamic polarization curve. The results show that the corrosion resistance of the Ti−6Al−3Mo−2Zr−2Fe alloy was better than that of the commonly used TC4 alloy in both a 3.5% NaCl solution and an acidic solution.

Novel β-solidifying TiAl alloys have great potential for engineering applications in the aerospace and automotive industries. The introduction of the β₀ phase will inevitably affect crack propagation. However, the related mechanism is unclear. In this study, the crack propagation behavior of different β₀-containing microstructures was systematically investigated by three-point bending tests. The results show that the coarse γ/α₂ lamellar microstructure exhibits better fracture toughness than the fine-grain microstructure because large numbers of γ/α₂ lamellar boundaries can effectively hinder crack propagation. The propagation direction depends largely on the orientation of the γ/α₂ lamellae. When the angle between the crack propagation direction and the γ/α₂ lamellar boundary is small, the crack tends to propagate along γ/α₂ lamellae. When the angle is close to 90°, the crack generally propagates by the trans-lamellar mode. Moreover, the crack tends to traverse across the fine β₀/γ duplex region due to the low resistance of fine grains in the crack propagation. The transgranular and intergranular modes are the main fracture mechanisms in the microstructure of the fine β₀/γ grains. Some shear ligaments can also be identified in the lamellar microstructure and these can consume propagation energy. The enlarged image shows that the crack propagation direction can be changed by the β₀ phase, owing to its high hardness. The crack tends to stop at the β₀ phase region.

Since rare earth oxides and hard ceramic particles improve coating quality, a novel Al₂O₃@Y₂O₃ core–shell structure was prepared. Then, Ni60A coatings with different amounts (2~6 wt.%) of Al₂O₃@Y₂O₃ core–shell structures were prepared using laser cladding technology on an H13 steel surface. To demonstrate the unique effect of the core–shell structure on the performance of the coatings, a set of controlled experiments was also conducted with different proportions of Al₂O₃-Y₂O₃ mechanically mixed powders. The effect of Al₂O₃@Y₂O₃ addition on the phase composition, element distribution, microstructure, wear, and corrosion resistance of the coatings was characterized and tested thoroughly. By comparing the forming quality, hardness, wear, and corrosion resistance of the different coatings, 2 wt.% was confirmed as the optimal concentration of Al₂O₃@Y₂O₃, and its corresponding friction coefficient was about 0.44. The wear rate was approximately 4.15 × 10⁻³ mm³·(N·m)⁻¹, the self-corrosion potential was around −0.3659 V, and the self-corrosion current density was about 1.248 × 10⁻⁶ A·cm⁻².