The invention relates to a method for functionalising a surface of a solid substrate with at least one acrylic acid polymer layer, said method including the steps of: i) placing the surface in contact with a solution having of at least one acrylic acid homopolymer, a solvent and, optionally, metal salts; ii) removing the solvent from the solution in contact with the surface; and iii) binding the polymer to the surface by thermal treatment.

A method of making a composite material includes disposing a carbon-based particulate material, such as graphene or carbon nanotubes, in an activation solution and activating surfaces of the carbon-based particulate material using the activation solution. Once the surfaces of the carbon-based particulate material have been activated, a metallic coating is applied to the activated surfaces to form a composite material. The composite material is then recovered as a particulate material formed having carbon-based particulate material with a metallic coating that is suitable for fusing together for forming electrical conductors, such as with an additive manufacturing technique.

A one-pot process for the electroless-plating of silver onto graphite powder is disclosed. No powder pretreatment steps for the graphite, which typically require filtration, washing or rinsing, are required. The inventive process comprises mixing together three reactant compositions in water: an aqueous graphite activation composition comprising graphite powder and a functional silane, a silver-plating composition comprising a silver salt and a silver complexing agent, and a reducing agent composition.

The invention relates to nickel-coated hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet composite powder, its preparation and high-performance composite ceramic cutting tool material. The composite powder has a core-shell structure with BNNS as the core and Ni as the shell. The self-lubricating ceramic cutting tool material is prepared by wet ball milling mixing and vacuum hot-pressing sintering with a phase alumina as the matrix, tungsten-titanium carbide as the reinforcing phase, nickel-coated hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet composite powder as the solid lubricant and magnesium oxide and yttrium oxide as the sintering aids. The invention also provides preparation methods of the nickel-coated hexagonal boron nitride nanosheet composite powder and the self-lubricating ceramic cutting tool material.

A surface-treated ceramic powder includes a plurality of ceramic particles and a surface-treating material. Each of the ceramic particles is at least partially coated by the surface-treating material, wherein the ceramic particles have an average particle diameter ranging from 10 micrometer (m) to 100 m, and the surface-treating material is made of metal, metal oxide or the combination thereof.

A method of making a composite material includes disposing a carbon-based particulate material, such as graphene or carbon nanotubes, in an activation solution and activating surfaces of the carbon-based particulate material using the activation solution. Once the surfaces of the carbon-based particulate material have been activated a metallic coating is applied to the activated surfaces to form a composite material. The composite material is then recovered as a particulate material formed having carbon-based particulate material with a metallic coating that is suitable for fusing together for forming electrical conductors, such as with an additive manufacturing technique.

Electrically conductive proppant and methods for energizing and detecting the electrically conductive proppant in a single wellbore are disclosed. The methods can include performing numerical simulations solving Maxwell's equations of electromagnetism for electric and/or magnetic fields to determine temporal characteristics of an optimum input wave form and a recording sensor location to be used in a wellbore that extends into a subterranean formation having a fracture that is at least partially filled with proppant and an electrically conductive material, wherein the numerical simulations are based upon an earth model determined from geophysical logs and/or geological information. The method can also include electrically energizing a casing of the wellbore, measuring three dimensional (x, y, and z) components of electric and/or magnetic field responses in the wellbore, and determining a location of the electrically conductive proppant through comparison of the electric and/or magnetic field responses to the numerical simulations.

A method of producing an electroconductive substrate including a base material, and an electroconductive pattern disposed on one main surface side of the base material includes: a step of forming a trench including a bottom surface to which a foundation layer is exposed, and a lateral surface which includes a surface of a trench formation layer, according to an imprint method; and a step of forming an electroconductive pattern layer by growing metal plating from the foundation layer which is exposed to the bottom surface of the trench.

A metal-plated carbon material includes: a carbon material; and a metal layer covering a surface of the carbon material, in which, in the metal layer, crystal grains forming the metal layer have an average crystal grain size of 110 nm or less. A method of manufacturing a metal-plated carbon material, includes: a metal complex fixation step of immersing a carbon material in a supercritical fluid or subcritical fluid containing an organometallic complex of a first metal; and a first energization deposition step of energizing the metal-complex-fixed carbon material in an electroless plating solution containing a second metal.

A method of producing an electroconductive substrate including a base material, and an electroconductive pattern disposed on one main surface side of the base material includes: a step of forming a trench including a bottom surface to which a foundation layer is exposed, and a lateral surface which includes a surface of a trench formation layer, according to an imprint method; and a step of forming an electroconductive pattern layer by growing metal plating from the foundation layer which is exposed to the bottom surface of the trench.