Microstructural study of transient liquid phase bonded cast INCONEL 738LC superalloy

The microstructure of the transient liquid phase (TLP) bonded joint of a cast INCONEL 738LC superalloy, made with a commercial Ni-Cr-B filler alloy, Nicrobraz 150, was examined by analytical scanning and transmission electron microscopic techniques. Due to incomplete isothermal solidification at the bonding temperature, the residual liquid interlayer transformed to nonequilibrium eutectic microconstituents consisting of chromium-rich M₅B₃, nickel-rich M₂₃B₆, and nickel-based γ solid solution phases. Also, a significant volume fraction of complex fcc Cr-Mo-W rich carboborides was observed in the joint/base alloy interface region. This is contrary to the predictions of the currently available TLP models that predict a precipitate-free joint/base alloy interface. It is suggested that solid-state diffusion of boron prior to completion of equilibration process induced the formation of carbo-boride phase, which needs to be adequately considered to develop an optimum postbraze heattreatment process to produce a joint with optimum properties.     

Electrochemical Performance of Anthocleista djalonensis on Steel-Reinforcement Corrosion in Concrete Immersed in Saline/Marine Simulating-Environment

In this paper, electrochemical techniques were employed to study performance of different concentrations of Anthocleista djalonensis leaf-extract admixtures on the corrosion of steel-reinforcement in concrete immersed in 3.5 % NaCl, for simulating saline/marine environment. Analysed test-results showed that the corrosion rate correlated directly with admixture concentration and inversely with cube of the ratio of standard deviations of corrosion potential and corrosion current. The 0.4167 % A. djalonensis (per weight of cement) exhibited optimal inhibition efficiency, η = 97.43 ± 1.20 %, from analysed experimental data, or 94.80 ± 3.39 %, from predicted correlation model, on steel-reinforcement corrosion in the medium. The other admixture concentrations also exhibited high efficiencies at inhibiting steel-reinforcement corrosion in the chloride contaminated environment. Isotherm fittings of the experimental and predicted performance suggest that they both obeyed the Langmuir adsorption model. Evaluated parameters from the isotherm model indicated favourable adsorption and predominant chemisorption mechanism by this environmentally-friendly inhibitor of steel-reinforcement corrosion in the saline/marine simulating-environment.     

Prospects for the utilization of the endogenous enzymes in sorghum malt in the hydrolysis of starch: Case study with utilization of breadfruit starch for ethanol production

Hydrolysis of breadfruit flour by acid and enzymes of sorghum malt were investigated. Mash (malt to breadfruit flour) ratios of 2: 3 and 1: 1 were used. The optimum mashing profile of 20 minutes at 64°C followed by 30 minutes at 72°C was established. The addition of an exogenous enzyme improved the wort properties. Kinetic study of the enzymatic hydrolysis revealed non‐adherence with either the simple Michaelis‐Menten Kinetics or one with product inhibition. Anaerobic fermentation of the hydrolysate by Sacchammyces cerevisiae at pH 4.7 and temperature of 30°C, was carried out with and without mineral and nitrogen sources supplementation of the wort. The results showed that the enzymes in sorghum malt could be used, with some external enzyme supplementation, to hydrolyse breadfruit starch to yield appreciable amounts of sugar which may be used as food sweetener, substrate for single cell protein production, and in the production of beverages. This is particularly relevant to operations in developing countries.     

Friction Pressure Prediction for Annular Flow of Power Law Fluids

This article examines the concentric and eccentric annular flow of non-Newtonian fluids. A new effective diameter definition that accounts for flow geometry and fluid rheology is presented for pressure loss prediction. Satisfactory agreements were obtained between this new effective diameter definition in combination with laminar Fanning friction factor correlations and extensive flow data in the literature. In addition, an explicit friction factor correlation as a function of the generalized Reynolds number, diameter ratio, and relative roughness is presented for a fully eccentric annular drag-reducing turbulent flow. A good agreement was obtained between this correlation and the gathered flow data. The correlations reported provide an effective means of determining friction pressures of non-Newtonian fluids in eccentric annuli.     

Prediction of wind speed for the estimation of wind turbine power output from site climatological data using artificial neural network

In this paper, the wind speeds of Noupoort in the Western Cape region of South Africa are forecasted from the site climatological data using feed forward artificial neural network (ANN) with the back propagation training method. Different architectural designs are tested with different combinations of climatological data to obtain the most suitable ANN for predicting the wind speed of the site. The predicted wind speeds are compared with the actual measured wind speeds and the results are evaluated using mean absolute error (MAE), mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), root mean square error (RMSE) and correlation coefficient (R). Some of the key results show that combination of temperature, wind direction and time of the day (TEM?+?WD?+?T) could effectively predict wind speed of Noupoort. The forecasted wind speed shows a strong agreement with the measured wind speed with R, RMSE, MAPE and MAE of 0.96, 0.56, 6.64% and 0.44, respectively.     

Enterprise-University Co-operation and the Role of Public Research Institutions in Regional Innovation Systems

The paper analyses the co-operative relationships that public research institutions in Germany have developed with manufacturing firms and with each other. We find that collaboration with firms is highly concentrated on regional partners. Research institutions contribute significantly to innovation processes in the respective regions by absorbing knowledge from beyond the region and making it available to local companies. In respect of co-operation between public research institutions themselves, we find that spatial proximity still matters, but to a lesser degree.     

Worldwide wind energy status and the characteristics of wind energy in Iran,case study: the province of Sistan and Baluchestan

In this paper, the recent trend of the worldwide wind energy utilisation is reviewed and the recent activities in using renewable energy sources in Iran are explained. As a case study, the wind characteristics of the province of Sistan and Baluchestan are statistically analysed. The wind characteristics such as the monthly mean wind speed and the wind power density of each station are presented. The monthly variation of the wind direction is presented and also the dominant wind direction is shown in a wind rose diagram. The values of turbulence intensity at different heights are calculated. The results show that the stations of Khash and Nosratabad are more suitable for limited off-grid utility applications. Lootak with the average annual wind power density of 388?W?m^?2 at the height of 40?m and constant wind direction is recommended for large-scale grid-connected wind turbines.     

Synthesis and mutagenesis of an IgG-binding protein based upon protein A of Staphylococcus aureus

A novel protein able to bind with high affinity to the Fc fragmentof IgG from a variety of animals has been produced by a genesynthesis approach. The IgG binding is accomplished by the presenceof a single or two consecutive domains based upon domain B fromprotein A of Staphylo-coccus aureus. The IgG-binding moietyis fused to a peptide containing 21, 53 or 81 amino acids derivedfrom the N-terminus of bovine DNase I. The latter is presentto guide the expression of the protein in Escherichia coli intoan inclusion body. This facilitates the high expression andrecovery of the IgG-binding domains. The binding activity ofthis fusion protein is very close to that of the native proteinA. Site-directed mutagenesis of the fusion protein and subsequentidentification of changed binding interactions is reported.     

Comparison of High-Temperature Crack Growth in SiC-Whisker-Reinforced Mullite and Si3N4

Crack growth behavior under creep conditions was studied in SiC-whisker-reinforced mullite and silicon nitride. Tests of four-point bend specimens with indentation cracks were periodically interrupted to observe the creep behavior. At each interruption the bulk creep strain of the specimen, the growth of the indentation cracks, and the nucleation and growth of creep-induced cracks were measured. A strong linear correlation was observed in both materials between the crack growth rate and the creep strain rate. For a given strain rate, cracks in the silicon nitride composite propagated at velocities about an order of magnitude greater than those in the mullite composite. On the other hand, for similar nominal stresses, creep rates in the silicon nitride composites were about an order of magnitude less than with the mullite composite.