In this work, (Cu1-xAgx)2ZnSnSe4 (CAZTSe) alloys with various silver content (x= 0.0, 0.1and 0.2) have been prepared by reacting their high purity elements (Cu, Ag, Zn, Sn and Se) in an evacuated quartz tube under pressure of 10 -3Torr. The composition of the prepared alloys was determined by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS) analysis, the results were close to the theoretical values. CAZTSe thin films with a thickness of 800 nm were deposited by thermal evaporation technique on glass substrates at room temperature (RT) with a deposition rate of 0.53nm/sec. Similarly, CdS thin films were deposited with a thickness of 100 nm on the same substrates at RT with a deposition rate of 0.3nm/sec from ready-made CdS alloy powder. All prepared thin films were annealed at temperatures of 373K and 473K under vacuum (10-3Torr) for 1h. X-ray analysis showed that all CAZTSe alloys and their thin films were polycrystalline and have the tetragonal structure with preferential orientation in the (112) direction, while all thin CdS films were polycrystalline and have the hexagonal structure with preferential orientation in the (002) direction. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) technique was used to study the surface morphology of all prepared CAZTSe films, while the atomic force microscopy (AFM) technique was used to study the surface topography of all prepared CAZTSe and CdS films. SEM results revealed that CAZTSe films had uniform surface features with irregular sized grains, while AFM results showed that the surface roughness and the average grain size of CAZTSe and CdS thin films increased with increasing Ag content for CAZTSe thin films and annealing temperature for CAZTSe and CdS thin films. The absorbance and transmittance spectra for CAZTSe and CdS thin films were recorded in the wavelength ranges of (400-1100) nm and (350- 1100) nm, respectively. Optical measurements showed that all CAZTSe and CdS thin films have a direct energy gap (Eg) that decreased with increasing silver content for CAZTSe thin films and annealing temperature (Ta) for both types of prepared thin films, so it decreased from 1.73 eV to1.5 eV when x content increased from 0.0 to 0.2 and decreased from 1.5 eV to1.46 eV and from 2.47 eV to 2.38 eV when Ta increased from RT to 473K for CAZTSe thin films with x content equal to 0.2 and CdS thin films, respectively. Optical constants such as extinction coefficient, refractive index and dielectric constant were calculated for all prepared thin films. The measurements of the electrical properties for prepared films showed that the D.C electrical conductivity (σd.c) increased with increasing Ag content for CAZTSe thin films and annealing temperature for both types of thin films. So the electrical conductivity changed from 1.1276*10-2 (Ω.cm)-1 to 28.9266*10-2 (Ω.cm)-1 when x changed from 0.0 to 0.2 and changed from 28.9266*10-2 (Ω.cm)-1 to 57.4599*10-2 (Ω.cm)-1 and from 4.0476*10-4 (Ω.cm)-1 to 9.4227*10-4 (Ω.cm)-1 when Ta changed from RT to 473K for CAZTSe thin films with Ag content equal to 0.2 and CdS thin films, respectively. The prepared thin films have two activation energies (Ea1 & Ea2) in the temperature ranges of (318-488)K and (313-443)K for CAZTSe and CdS films, respectively. The results of Hall effect for CAZTSe thin films showed that all films were of acceptor type and the concentration of holes in them decreased with increasing silver content and annealing temperature, while CdS thin films were of donor type and the concentration of electrons in them increased with increasing annealing temperature. In this research, solar cells were fabricated from CdS/CAZTSe/Si structurThe C-V measurements revealed that all prepared heterojunctions were of the abrupt type and the junction capacitance and carrier concentration reduced while the width of depletion region and the built-in potential increased with increasing the silver content and annealing temperature. The current-voltage characteristics under dark condition of CAZTSe heterojunctions showed that both the ideality factor and saturation current decreased with increasing Ag content and annealing temperature. While,The current-voltage characteristics under dark condition of CAZTSe heterojunctions showed that both the ideality factor and saturation current decreased with increasing Ag content and annealing temperature. While, the current-voltage measurements under illumination showed that the performance of heterojunction solar cell improved with increasing Ag content and annealing temperature. The result indicated that the prepared solar cell with 0.2 Ag content and 473K annealing temperature exhibited the highest efficiency (η = 2.827%) compared to other prepared solar cells
Background: Epithelial salivary gland tumours are relatively uncommon and constitute a wide spectrum of variable morphologic and biologic entities. The cell proliferation / death balance is most important in the development of salivary gland tumours. The aim of this study was to examine the expression of PCNA protein immunohistochemically and Bax mRNA gene using in situ hybridization techniques and to correlate between the clinicopathological features of salivary gland tumours with the expressions of PCNA protein and Bax mRNA. Materials and Methods: Forty nine formalin fixed paraffin embedded tissue blocks of epithelial salivary gland tumours were used in this study. Haematoxylin and Eosin stain was used for reassessment of the histopath
... Show MoreIn order to reduce the environmental pollution associated with the conventional energy sources and to achieve the increased global energy demand, alterative and renewable sustainable energy sources need to be developed. Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) represent a bio-electrochemical innovative technology for pollution control and a simultaneous sustainable energy production from biodegradable, reduced compounds. This study mainly considers the performance of continuous up flow dual-chambers MFC
fueled with actual domestic wastewater and bio-catalyzed with anaerobic aged sludge obtained from an aged septic tank. The performance of MFCs was mainly evaluated in terms of COD reductions and electrical power output. Results revealed that the C
In this work, 332 Al alloy was prepared and reinforced with (0.5% and 1%) nano-Al2O3 particles. The prepared unreinforced and reinforced 332 Al alloy with nano-Al2O3 were solution heat treated (T6) at 510 ̊C and aged at 225 ̊C with different times (1, 3, and 5 h). Hardness test was performed on all the prepared alloys. All prepared alloys were dry slided under different applied loads (5, 10, 15, and 20 N) against steel counterface surface using pin on disk apparatus. The results showed that refinement effect was observed after addition of nano-Al2O3 particles and a change in silicon morphology after performing the solution heat treatment. The results also showed that har
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In this study, cadmium oxide (CdO) was deposited on glass bases by thermal chemical spraying technique at three concentrations (0.05, 0.1, 0.15) M and then was irradiated by CO2 laser with 10.6 μm wave length and 1W power. The results of the atomic force microscope AFM test showed that the surfaces of these CdO thin films were homogenous and that the laser irradiated effect resulted in decreasing the roughness of the surface as well as the heights of the granular peaks, indicating a greater uniformity and homogeneity of the surfaces. The optical properties were studied to determine laser effect. The results of optical tests of these thin films showed that the photoluminescence spectra and absorption s
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Samples prepared by using carbon black as a filler material and phenolic resin as a binder. The samples were pressed in a (3) cm diameter cylindrical die to (250)MPa and treated thermally within temperature range of (600-1000)oC for two and three hours. Physical properties tests were performed, like density, porosity, and X-ray tests. Moreover vicker microhardness and electric resistivity tests were done. From the results, it can be concluded that density was increased while porosity was decreased gradually with increasing temperature and treating time. In microhardness test, it found that more temperature and treating time cause more hardness. Finally the resistivity was decreased in steps with temperature and treating time. It can be c
... Show MoreThe structural, optical properties of cupper indium gallium selenite (CuIn1-xGaxSe) have been studied. CuIn1-xGaxSe thin films for x=0.6 have been prepared by thermal evaporation technique, of 2000±20 nm thickness, with rate of deposition 2±0.1 nm/sec, on glass substrate at room temperature. Heat treatment has been carried out in the range (373-773) K for 1 hour. It demonstrated from the XRD method that all the as-deposited and annealed films have polycrystalline structure of multiphase. The optical measurement of the CIGS thin films conformed that they have, direct allowed energy gap equal to 1.7 eV. The values of some important optical parameters of the studied films such as (absorption coefficient, refractive index, extinction coeffici
... Show MoreEffect of the thermal annealing at 400oC for 2 hours and Argon laser radiation for half hour on the optical properties of AgAlS2 thin films, prepared on glass slides by chemical spray pyrolysis at 360oC with (0.18±0.05) μm thickness .The optical characteristics of the prepared thin films have been investigated by UV/Vis spectrophotometer in the wavelength range (300 – 1100)nm .The films have a direct allow electronic transition with optical energy (Eg) values decreased from (2.25) eV for untreated thin films to (2.10) eV for the annealed films and to (2.00) eV for the radiated films. The maximum value of the refractive index (n) for all thin films are given about (2.6). Also the extinction coefficient (K) and the real and imaginary d
... Show MoreIn this study, Laser Shock Peening (LSP) effect on the polymeric composite materials has been investigated experimentally. Polymeric composite materials are widely used because they are easy to fabricate and have many attractive features. Unsaturated polyester resin as a matrix was selected and Aluminum powder with micro particles as a reinforcement material was used with different volume fraction (2.5%, 5% and 7.5%). Hand lay-up process was used for preparation the composites. Fatigue test with constant amplitude with stress ratio (R =-1) was carried out before and after LSP process with two levels of energy (1Joule and 2Joule). The result showed an increase in the endurance strength of 25.448% at 7.5% volume fraction when peened is 1J
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Oil well drilling fluid rheology, lubricity, swelling, and fluid loss control are all critical factors to take into account before beginning the hole's construction. Drilling fluids can be made smoother, more cost-effective, and more efficient by investigating and evaluating the effects of various nanoparticles including aluminum oxide (Al2O3) and iron oxide (Fe2O3) on their performance. A drilling fluid's performance can be assessed by comparing its baseline characteristics to those of nanoparticle (NPs) enhanced fluids. It was found that the drilling mud contained NPs in concentrations of 0,0.25, 0. 5, 0.75 and 1 g. According to the results, when drilling fluid was used without NPs, the coeff
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In the present work, nanocomposite of poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) incorporated with functionalized graphene oxide (FGO) were fabricated using casting method. PVA was dispersed by varying content of FGO (0.3, 0.5, 0.8, 1 wt %). The PVA- FGO nanocomposite was characterized by FT‐IR, FE-SEM and XRD. Frequency dependence of real permittivity (ε’), imaginary (ε’’) and a.c conductivity of PVA/FGO and PVA/GO nanocomposite were studied in the frequency range 100 Hz- 1 MHz. The experimental results showed that the values of real (ε’) and imaginary permittivity (ε’’) increased dramatically by increasing the FGO content in PVA matrix. PVA/ FGO (1 wt %) nanocomposite revealed higher electrical conductivity of 6.4×10-4 Sm-1 compared to
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