Formation of cracks in Soederberg electrodes used in aluminum reduction plants

Shrinkage and crack formation during baking of Soederberg anode paste for aluminum furnaces is discussed, and the authors demonstrate how this shrinkage may be reduced by applying suitable raw materials and paste compositions.     

The occurrence of organochlorines in marine avian top predators along a latitudinal gradient

The aim of this study was to determine the role of cold condensation and fractionation on the occurrence of organochlorine contaminants (OCs) in avian marine top predators along a latitudinal gradient. We measured 24 polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners and six pesticide OCs in blood of great black-backed gulls (Larus marinus) from the Norwegian Coast (58 degrees N-70 degrees N) and glaucous gulls (Larus hyperboreus) from Bjornoya in the Norwegian Arctic (74 degrees N). Glaucous gulls had up to 3 times higher sigmaOC concentrations compared to the great black-backed gulls, and a OC pattern dominated largely by persistent and low volatile compounds such as highly chlorinated PCBs and metabolites such as oxychlordane. This was not consistent with cold condensation and fractionation theory, but probably related to diet and elevated biomagnification. Among great black-backed gulls, however, there were indications of both cold condensation and fractionation. Higher and lower chlorinated PCBs had highest absolute concentrations in the south and in the north, respectively, except for one location at an intermediate latitude, where concentrations of most OCs exceeded all other locations. In terms of proportional contribution to sigmaOC (pattern), relatively volatile OCs such as HCB, oxychlordane and tri- to penta- PCB congeners were more important at northern latitudes, while hexa- to nona-PCBs made up a larger proportion of sigmaOC in the south. The results thus showed that differences in global distribution of compounds with different physicochemical properties could be detected in avian top predators such as large gulls, even if biomagnification and biotransformation influence both the absolute concentrations and the patterns of OCs.     

In-flight calibration of mesospheric rocket plasma probes

Many effects and factors can influence the efficiency of a rocket plasma probe. These include payload charging, solar illumination, rocket payload orientation and rotation, and dust impact induced secondary charge production. As a consequence, considerable uncertainties can arise in the determination of the effective cross sections of plasma probes and measured electron and ion densities. We present a new method for calibrating mesospheric rocket plasma probes and obtaining reliable measurements of plasma densities. This method can be used if a payload also carries a probe for measuring the dust charge density. It is based on that a dust probe's effective cross section for measuring the charged component of dust normally is nearly equal to its geometric cross section, and it involves the comparison of variations in the dust charge density measured with the dust detector to the corresponding current variations measured with the electron and/or ion probes. In cases in which the dust charge density is significantly smaller than the electron density, the relation between plasma and dust charge density variations can be simplified and used to infer the effective cross sections of the plasma probes. We illustrate the utility of the method by analysing the data from a specific rocket flight of a payload containing both dust and electron probes.     

Exploiting latent functional capabilities for resilience in design of engineering systems

In this paper, we address latent functional capabilities, capabilities that were neither intended nor recognized in the design process. We propose that latent capabilities can improve the resilience of engineering systems, enabling recovery of performance after disruptive events. Engineering systems are designed to meet their functional requirements, and have a limited ability to avoid critical failures. Normally, redundancies are put in place to reduce the impact of potential disruptions, adding to cost and complexity. An alternative is to uncover latent capabilities that can be used to recover from disruption by altering the function-form mapping. Existing design methods focus on intended, manifest functionality, and do not consider latent capabilities. With basis in design theory, we show that latent capabilities can enhance resilience, and demonstrate this using two illustrative cases. Further, we propose approaches to uncover latent capabilities in systems design, and discuss implications of using latent capabilities to enhance resilience.     

Combining customer needs and the customer’s way of using the product to set customer-focused targets in the House of Quality

An increasing number of products are equipped with software and sensors. This suggests that, in order to deliver more customised performance, future products will be developed to accommodate systems that supply information on how these products are used. Today, information on the customer’s way of using a product is seldom factored into product design, but the opportunities for making use of it are increasing dramatically due to the amount of available data that can be logged. The proposed methodology is to formulate Customer Needs at a detailed level to be able to link customer satisfaction with a clear interface to the Design Requirements. These links are obtained by combining information acquired by means of surveys, among other methodologies, as well as usage data from customer products. The method is based on the planning House of Quality and also takes cost and risk into consideration. Risk is estimated using the Analytical Hierarchy Process, whereby a hierarchy of the most relevant customer information is constructed to make designers aware of how customer-focused the design process is. To validate the proposed methodology an illustrative example is presented. Results show that the method provides valuable information that enables the company to remain customer-focused during the whole process but also when strategic decisions on price and product launch are made.     

Decision modeling and acceptance criteria

This paper is partly tutorial by presenting well known classical decision theory in a slightly untraditional form, but it does also present thinking and results that have not been published in the engineering literature before. The paper introduces the mathematical modeling basis for rational formulation of decision criteria and public acceptance criteria connected to risk analysis of technical operations that may endanger human life and property. Public restrictions on the decisions concerning the design, construction and managing of the technical operation have in the past been imposed on the basis of the frequency and severity of experienced adverse events. No clear rationale to decide how restrictive the public should be in setting a boundary for allowable risk seems to have been applied. To clarify this problem, focus is on the difficulty of simultaneously having two decision makers, the owner that tries to optimize the net gain of the operation, and the public that has somewhat different preferences than the owner, but also strong interests in the success of the owner. The principles of rational decision are needed for appreciation of the problem. Recognizing that there is an insurance compensation value of a human life and a public money equivalent of a human life, where the last value usually is considerably larger than the first value, it is possible from the decision analysis to determine an upper limit that the public should impose on the ratio of the owner's expected loss rate to the expected gain rate. The public money equivalent of a human life is assessed by use of a recently in (Nathwani JS, Lind NC, Pandey MD. Affordable safety by choice: the life quality method. Waterloo, Ontario, Canada: Institute for risk Research, University of Waterloo, 1997) suggested Life Quality Index (LQI) that combines wealth in terms of Gross Domestic Product per person, life expectancy at birth, and yearly work time into a single number. The philosophy behind the published evaluations is that the prevention of a loss of a life is counteracted by a cost such that the LQI remains unchanged (Skjong R, Ronold K. Societal indicators and risk acceptance. In: 17th International Conference on Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering, number OMAE98-1488. ASME; 1998; Rackwitz R. Optimization and risk acceptability based on the Life Quality Index. Structural Safety 2002;24:297–331.).     

3-D Degradation analysis of railroad ballast

Degradation behaviour of aggregate particles of the size of railroad ballast (32–63 mm) is examined using Los Angeles (LA) milling and 3-D scanning techniques. Seven different rock types were tested at four stages of milling. For the analytical geometry and topography characterization, a new method based on Fourier and power spectra was used. The results are compared with those obtained using geometrical methods and traditional manual measurements. Diminishing of surface roughness and dimensions is evident. The change in roughness was 20–35% and for maximum dimensions of less than 10% in the case of hard rock types. The LA value was less than 15. For the weaker particles values of more than 40% and more than 20%, respectively, were obtained. The fractal dimension approached a value of 2 as a function of milling rates. Electronic Publication     

Dual-trap technique for reduction of low-frequency noise in force measuring optical tweezers

High-resolution long-time force measurements by optical tweezers are often limited by low-frequency (1/f) noise. A dual-trap technique is presented that can reduce such noise in the force signal. It incorporates a second trap (a reference trap) that probes the noise in the system and it is based upon the assumption that the low-frequency parts of the noise from the two traps are correlated. A subtraction of the low-frequency signal from the reference trap from the signal from the force measuring trap will therefore yield a net signal that is significantly less influenced by noise. It is shown that this dual-trap technique can reduce the noise in the force signal up to 60% depending on detection bandwidth.     

The effect of phosphate additives on the lubrication of rolling element bearings in a refrigerant environment

Chlorine free replacement refrigerants, HFC (hydrofluorocarbons) and HC (hydrocarbons), have shown less lubricating properties. Phosphate based additives were used to improve the lubricity with refrigerant R-134a, demonstrating positive effects. In the present paper, the ability to form lubricating film and wear of two additives, phosphate ester and acid phosphate, was investigated in a bearing test apparatus.The results show that phosphate additive in polyolester oil, in an R-134a environment, increases the lubricating film and reduce wear. Surface topography during the initial run-in changes to a more favorable profile with lower RMS angle and longer wavelengths that promote load-carrying capacity and film build-up.