Nanotechnology case derivative

In Chapter 4, Professor Donald W. Brenner and his co-workers Olga A. Shenderova and Denis A. Areshkin explore density functional theory and quantum-based analytic interatomic forces as they pertain to simulations of materials. The study of interfaces, fracture, point defects, and the new area of nanotechnology can be aided by atomistic simulations. Atom-level simulations require the use of an appropriate force field model because quantum mechanical calculations, although useful, are too compute-intensive for handling large systems or long simulation times. For these cases, analytic potential energy functions can be used to provide detailed information. Use of reliable quantum mechanical models to derive the functions is explained in this chapter. 

The protection of most metallic materials in nature ( non-noble metals) is derived from a protective layer which is impermeable to either electronic or ionic conduction. Some of these protective layers are formed by virtue of the fact that a metal reacts with the environment such that this impermeable film can be grown and maintained. In other cases, these films are formed through human intervention. The protective layer is usually of nanometre dimensions - in this regard corrosion prevention is a very early application of nanotechnology. Normally, this impermeable film is continuously produced at the metal surface, while at the other end it is dissolved into the environment, leading to an overall loss of material, often measured as a weight loss or corrosion loss . 

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