An attempt was made to evaluate creep reliability of two commercial Ni-based superalloys by using ultrasonic wave. The materials include fine-grained PM alloy fabricated by mechanical alloying and subsequent hot isostatic pressing, and IN738LC cast alloy with a grain size of a few cm. Microstructural parameters (fraction of creep cavity and size of precipitates) and ultrasonic parameters (velocity, attenuation) were measured to try to find relationships between them. Ultrasonic velocity decreased with creep cavity formation in PM alloy. On the other hand, no distinct changing trend of ultrasonic velocity was observed for IN738LC alloy. Ultrasonic attenuation was found to have a linear correlation with the size of precipitates and was suggested as a potential parameter for monitoring creep reliability of IN738LC alloy.

The present study was conducted to investigate serotype distribution and biofilm formation of Actinobacillus (A.) pleuropneumoniae isolated from pneumonic lungs of pigs. A total of 37 A. pleuropneumoniae were isolated between January 2009 and June 2010. Serotypes of A. pleuropneumoniae isolates were determined using two different PCRs. The majority of isolates belonged to serotype 5 (n=31, 83.8%), and the others belonged to serotype 1 (n=4, 10.8%), and 2 (n=2, 5.4%), respectively. The ability of biofilm formation of the isolates was also determined by quantitative microtiter plate assay. Biofilm formation was observed in both 23 (62.2%) of the 37 field isolates and seven (43.8%) of the 16 reference strains. On the other hand, biofilm formation was various according to the serotypes: 20 (64.5%) of serotype 5, and three (75.0%) of serotype 1. However, two isolates of serotype 2 did not produce the biofilm in this study. Consequently, A. pleuropneumoniae serotype 5 was the most frequently detected (83.8% of the isolates), and 23 (62.2%) of 37 isolates exhibited biofilm positive phenotype in this study.

We have studied methods to save Si source during the fabrication process of crystalline Si solar cells. One way is to use a thin silicon wafer substrate. As the thickness of the wafers is reduced, mechanical fractures of the substrate increase with the mechanical handling of the thin wafers. It is expected that the mechanical fractures lead to a dropping of yield in the solar cell process. In this study, the mechanical properties of 220-micrometer-solar grade Cz p-type monocrystalline Si wafers were investigated by varying saw-damage etching conditions in order to improve the flexural strength of ultra-thin monocrystalline Si solar cells. Potassium hydroxide (KOH) solution and tetramethyl ammonium hydroxide (TMAH) solution were used as etching solutions. Etching processes were operated with a varying of the ratio of KOH and TMAH solutions in different temperature conditions. After saw-damage etching, wafers were cleaned with a modified RCA cleaning method for ten minutes. Each sample was divided into 42 pieces using an automatic dicing saw machine. The surface morphologies were investigated by scanning electron microscopy and 3D optical microscopy. The thickness distribution was measured by micrometer. The strength distribution was measured with a 4-point-bending tester. As a result, TMAH solution at 90˚C showed the best performance for flexural strength.

Toxocara (T.) canis, round worm of dogs and cats, is probably the most common gastrointestinal helminthes of domestic canid and is ascarid nematodes in the order Ascaridida, family Toxocaridae. The prevalence of patent toxocariasis is highest in the young dogs and much less common in adult dogs. There are few reports on the status of T. canis prevalence of dogs in Korea. Few cases of human visceral larva migrans also reported in Korea. However, as far as we know, there is no report on the canine toxocariasis case determined by pathological findings in Korea until now. In this research, we diagnosed canine toxocariasis by fecal egg test and pathologic findings in 2-month old two Pointer dogs. Typical T. canis eggs were detected in the fecal test. Numerous adult ascarids in the lumen of small intestine and stomach in one dog and multifocal white necrotic lesions in lung, liver, and kidney in another dog were observed grossly. Histologically, multifocal necrosis, eosinophilic inflammation and intralesional ascarid larva were prominent findings in the lung, liver and kidney.