Resumo Procurando manter a identidade de uma sociedade, a busca pela conservação do patrimônio cultural é fundamental. As edificações históricas são partes integrantes deste patrimônio, pois guardam evidências sobre a história construtiva da edificação, bem como métodos e materiais, o que é de suma importância para atender aos princípios de preservação desses bens. Nesse contexto, este trabalho tem como objetivo caracterizar as argamassas de revestimento da Usina Ilha Bela, RN. Para tal, foi realizada visita in loco para observação visual e registro fotográfico da edificação, e coleta de amostras de argamassas do prédio administrativo, balança e fábrica da Usina para posterior caracterização físico-química e mineralógica por meio de análise visual e técnicas analíticas em laboratório. A partir das análises constatou-se que as argamassas estudadas são ricas em cal, com aglomerante de natureza calcítica e areia de origem silicosa, como agregado, com a presença de argila. Verificou-se a existência de diferentes traços para as argamassas, cujas relações aglomerante/agregado são: 1:4 até 1:9, dependendo do prédio e do local de extração das amostras. Desse modo, a partir das informações sobre as argamassas existentes é possível projetar uma argamassa de reconstituição compatível para realização da conservação desses monumentos históricos, ressaltando seus valores.

Abstract In order to preserve a society’s identity, it is fundamental to seek the conservation of its cultural heritage. Historic buildings are an integral part of this heritage, as they contain evidence about the building's constructive history, as well as methods and materials, which are of utmost importance in order to preserve these assets. This study aims to characterise the coating mortars of the Ilha Bela, RN Plant. In order to do that, the researchers undertook on-site visits for visual observation and photographic registration of the building, and also collected mortar samples from the administrative building, scale and factory of the Plant for subsequent physical-chemical and mineralogical characterisation through visual analysis and analytical techniques in the laboratory. The analyses revealed that the mortars studied are rich in lime, with calcitic binders and siliceous sand as aggregate, with the presence of clay. The study showed the existence of different traces in the mortars, whose binder/aggregate ratios are: 1:4 to 1:9, depending on the building and sample extraction site. Hence, from the information about the existing mortars, it is possible to design a mortar of compatible constitution for the accomplishment of the conservation of these historic monuments, emphasising their values.

There is a growing concern on the relationship between anthropogenic carbon dioxide and climate changes. A promising approach is the adsorption technology using mesoporous MCM-41 materials that can be easily synthesized to depict structures adequate to the flow of gas. The aim of this study was to improve the synthesis of MCM-41 using cationic surfactant mixtures and apply the resulting materials to CO2 adsorption. To that end, the simplex-centroid design was applied to optimize CO2 adsorption from seven mesoporous MCM-41 materials synthesized by the hydrothermal method using surfactants from hydrophobic chains of different sizes. The cationic surfactants used were tetradecyltrimetylammonium bromide, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, trimethyloctadecylammonium bromide and their mixture at ratios of 1:1 and 1:1:1. The CO2 adsorption was investigated using thegravimetric method at 298 K and pressures up to 40 bar. The resulting materials, labelled C17, C19, C21, C17C19, C19C21, C17C21 and C17C19C21, were characterized by XRD, FTIR, TG and SEM and showed significant differences in structure as well as in the mass of CO2 adsorption. The response models showed that the best combination of the surfactants resulted from C17C19 sample, which presented synergistic interactions reaching the highest value of CO2 adsorption (0.62 g CO2/g adsorbent), compared to other samples.

The present work is focused on ferrous powder metallurgy and presents some results of a development of a suitable masteralloy for use as an additive to iron powder for the production of sintered steels. The masteralloy was produced by melting a powder mixture containing approximately Fe + 20% Ni + 20% Mn + 20% Si + 1% C (wt%), in order to obtain a cast billet that was converted into fine powder by crushing and milling. It was observed presence of SiC in the masteralloy after melting that is undesirable in the alloy. Si element should be introduced by using ferrosilicon. Sintered alloys with distinct contents of alloying elements were prepared by mixing the masteralloy powder to plain iron powder. Samples were produced by die compaction of the powder mixtures and sintering at 1200 °C in a differential dilatometer in order to record their linear dimensional behaviour during heating up and isothermal sintering, aiming at studying the sinterability of the compacts. Microstructure development during sintering was studied by SEM, XRD and microprobe analyses.

Since the 1980s, different devices based on superelastic alloys have been developed to fulfill orthodontic applications. Particularly in the last decades several researches have been carried out to evaluate the mechanical behavior of Ni-Ti alloys, including their tensile, torsion and fatigue properties. However, studies regarding the dependence of elastic properties on residence time of Ni-Ti wires in the oral cavity are scarce. Such approach is essential since metallic alloys are submitted to mechanical stresses during orthodontic treatment as well as pH and temperature fluctuations. The goal of the present contribution is to provide elastic stress-strain results to guide the orthodontic choice between martensitic thermal activated and austenitic superelastic Ni-Ti alloys. From the point of view of an orthodontist, the selection of appropriate materials and the correct maintenance of the orthodontic apparatus are essential needs during clinical treatment. The present work evaluated the elastic behavior of Ni-Ti alloy wires with diameters varying from 0.014 to 0.020 inches, submitted to hysteresis tensile tests with 8% strain. Tensile tests were performed after periods of use of 1, 2 and 3 months in the oral cavity of patients submitted to orthodontic treatment. The results from the hysteresis tests allowed to exam the strain range covered by isostress lines upon loading and unloading, as well as the residual strain after unloading for both superelastic and thermal activated Ni-Ti wires. Superelastic Ni-Ti wires exhibited higher load isostress values compared to thermal activated wires. It was found that such differences in the load isostress values can increase with increasing residence time.

Polycrystalline strontium-doped lanthanum manganite (LSM) powders with 0.15, 0.22, and 0.30 mol % Sr were synthesized by the polymeric precursor route using a molar ratio of 3:1 citric acid and metal cations. The powders were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermal analysis, high-temperature X-ray diffraction to determine the crystalline perovskite phase and crystallite sizes, scanning electron microscopy for the morphological analysis, nitrogen adsorption to determine the specific surface area, and laser scattering to evaluate the particle size distribution. The LSM perovskite-type oxides containing intermediate 0.22 mol % Sr were found to exhibit a tendency to decrease in crystallite size and increase in specific surface area and, when calcined at 700-900 ºC exhibited a pure phase of perovskite, had a crystallite size of about 17-20 nm and a specific surface area for 900 ºC of 34.3 m².g-1.

As Manganitas de Lantânio são óxidos cerâmicos semicondutores intrínsecos do tipo p com estrutura perovsquita. A dopagem adequada nos sítios A, nesse material, aumenta a condutividade elétrica tornando-o apropriado para ser utilizado na produção de células a combustível de óxido sólido (solid oxide fuel cell - SOFC), operando em temperaturas próximas de 1000 °C. Em geral, a propriedades dos materiais variam com a composição e com o método de síntese. Nesse trabalho, foi sintetizado o composto La1-xSrxMnO3 (x = 0,20-0,22) via método citrato, visando investigar o efeito do teor de dopante na formação da fase perovsquita. O método citrato foi utilizado, uma vez que permite a obtenção de pós homogêneos e fases cristalinas a temperaturas mais baixas que os métodos tradicionais de síntese. Os pós-sintetizados foram caracterizados por difração de raios X (DRX), análise termogravimétrica (TG), microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV) e análise de área superficial específica pelo método BET. Os pós sintetizados com substituição de 22% de lantânio apresentaram melhores resultados em relação a obtenção da fase perovsquita.

Lanthanum manganite is a type p intrinsic semiconductor ceramic oxide with perovskite structure. The partial substitution in A-site of that material increases it’s electrical conductivity, becoming appropriate to be used in production of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) component for working at temperatures around at 1000 °C. In general, the properties of materials change with composition and synthesis method. In the present work, the synthesis of La1-xSrxMnO3 (x = 0,20-0,22) has been carried out by citrate method, aiming at to investigate the percentage effect of the dopante in the formation of the perovskite phase. This method allows to obtain homogenous powders and crystalline phase in lower temperatures than traditional methods of synthesis. The sample was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermal gravimetric analyses (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and analysis by specific surface area by BET method. The powders synthesized with 22% partial substitution of strontium showed better results relative to obtain perovskite phase.

Spinel-type solid solutions were synthesized by the Pechini method and calcined between 500 and 900 °C for 4 hours and at 900 °C for 8 hours to produce ceramic pigments. The resulting powders were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), particle size analysis and BET surface area measurements. The formation of spinel took place upon calcination at 700 °C. IR spectroscopy revealed the presence of n1 and n2 bands, typical of spinel structures, broadened by the presence of more than one cationic species in the structure. The specific area of the resulting powder decreased from 24.7 to 1.4 m² g-1 as the calcination temperature increased from 700 to 900 °C. Microstructural analyses revealed the presence of crystalline spinel as the only phase present in powders calcined at 900 °C. Colorimetric analyses using L*a*b* coordinates and UV-visible spectroscopy revealed that the pigment was predominantly black.

The electrocatalytic properties of steel-FeNbC composites were evaluated after potentiostatic ageing with the purpose of establishing the potential use of such materials as electrodes for the industrial production of oxygen. The effect of processing parameters, involved in the production of the composites by powder metallurgy, such as milling conditions and compaction pressure, on the performance of the electrodes was also studied. The electrodes were characterized according to their electrical resistance in NaOH 1M solution, considering that the purpose of the application requires this value to be ~ 0.5 omega.cm². This parameter was evaluated from repetitive electrochemical measurements carried out from 0.7 V to 1.5 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) by electrode anodization. Changes in the electrochemical behavior of the electrodes, especially concerning the O2 evolution in alkaline medium, were studied as a function of the applied potential. The results revealed that the electrocatalytic activity of the electrodes increased upon ageing, probably as a consequence of the growth of oxide layers and/or increase in the conductivity of the material, resulting in current gain and corresponding decrease in the polarization resistance to 0.75 omega cm².