A design of experiments investigation into dry separation using a Knelson Concentrator

Enhanced gravity, or centrifugal, separators have revolutionised gold processing over the past decades, significantly increasing the recovery of fine (−100 μm) free gold. One of the main drawbacks of centrifugal gravity concentrators is the large volume of water required (even if it is all recycled). With water becoming an ever increasingly important “commodity”, reducing this is of importance both from an environmental and a monetary point of view. This work investigated operating a laboratory scale Knelson Concentrator with a dry feed and using air as the fluidising medium. The feed used was a synthetic mixture of tungsten and quartz, used to mimic a gold ore. The response surface method and central composite design techniques were used to design the experiments and to model the results, with the experimental variables being the bowl speed (G-Level), air fluidising pressure and the feed rate. The models corresponded well to the experimental results, indicating that for this experimental setup, the optimal conditions were a bowl G-Level of 40 G, a feed rate of 220 g/min and an air fluidising pressure of 8 psi.     

Indoor heterogeneous photochemistry of furfural drives emissions of nitrous acid

People spend approximately 80% of their time indoor, making the understanding of the indoor chemistry an important task for safety. The high surface-area-to-volume ratio characteristic of indoor environments leads the semi-volatile organic compounds (sVOCs) to deposit on the surfaces. Using a long path absorption photometer (LOPAP), this work investigates the formation of nitrous acid (HONO) through the photochemistry of adsorbed nitrate anions and its enhancement by the presence of furfural. Using a high-resolution proton-transfer-reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometer (PTR-TOF-MS), this work also investigates the surface emissions of VOCs from irradiated films of furfural and a mix of furfural and nitrate anions. Among the emitted VOCs, 2(5H)-furanone/2-Butenedial was observed at high concentrations, leading to maleic anhydride formation after UV irradiation. Moreover, the addition of potassium nitrate to the film formed NO_x and HONO concentrations up to 10 ppb, which scales to ca. 4 ppb for realistic indoor conditions. This work helps to understand the high levels of HONO and NO_x measured indoors.     

A computer aided design method for car form and its application based on shape parameters

In the early design stage, automotive modeling should both meet the requirements of aesthetics and engineering. Therefore, a vehicle CAD (computer aided design) model that can be easily adjusted by feedbacks is necessary. Based on CE-Bézier surface, this paper presents a set of algorithms for parametric segmentation and fairing surface generation in a car model. This model is defined by a simplified automotive template and relevant control points, shape parameters and segmentation parameters, which can be modified to alter the car form efficiently. With this model and the corresponding adjustment method, more than fifty various vehicle models are established in this research according to different parameters. And two methods for calculating similarity index between car models are constructed, which are suitable for brand design trend analysis and modelling design decisionmaking.     

钛合金表面多磁极耦合旋转磁场光整加工特性

面向激光增材制造钛合金表面的光整加工需求，设计出一种多磁极耦合旋转磁场光整加工装置来研究光整加工特性。基于ANSYS Maxwell仿真软件分析了光整加工装置的磁场强度分布。搭建了实验光整平台，分析了主轴转速、C轴转速和加工间隙对表面质量的影响。结果表明，在主轴转速500 r/min、C轴转速160 r/min和加工间隙0.7 mm的加工条件下，表面粗糙度Ra由5.991 μm下降至0793 μm。扫描电子显微镜(SEM)观测表明，光整后的钛合金表面沉积层消失，表面质量得到显著改善。     

Grain mapping to freeform surface for machining using parameter-based incremental tracking method

This paper presents a novel method for mapping a texture for machining onto a freeform surface. When a grain texture designed on a 2D plane is projected onto a freeform surface simply, the texture is distorted along the curvature of the surface in the projection direction. Therefore, a method is required to suppress this distortion. The algorithm proposed in this paper rapidly generates a point cloud that represents a texture with less distortion on a simply connected parametric surface. Specifically, four equations that express local geometry constraints instead of conventional parameterization methods are presented to reduce the distortion between adjacent points on the point cloud. Solving these equations can generate grain textures on freeform surfaces. This paper examines two grain images mapped to two freeform surfaces that were prepared as case studies to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.     

CFD Modeling of Active Volume Creation in a Non‐Newtonian Fluid Agitated by Submerged Recirculating Jets

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models were employed to investigate flow conditions inside a model reactor in which yield stress non‐Newtonian liquid is mobilized using submerged recirculating jets. The simulation results agree well with the experimental results of active volume in the reactor obtained using flow visualization by the authors in a previous study. The models developed are capable of predicting a critical jet velocity (v_c) that determines the extent of active volume obtained due to jet mixing. The v_c values are influenced both by the rheological properties of the liquid and the nozzle orientation. The liquid with higher effective viscosity leads to higher v_c for a downward facing injection nozzle. However, an upward facing injection nozzle along with a downward facing suction nozzle generates enhanced complementary flow fields which overcome the rheological constraints of the liquid and lead to lower v_c.     

咖啡渣活性炭的制备、表征及其对Cr(Ⅵ)的吸附机制研究

以碘吸附值为评价指标，活化时间、活化温度和浸渍比为影响因素，采用响应面法试验设计对磷酸活化法制备咖啡渣活性炭的工艺条件进行优化，并通过静态吸附试验研究了不同吸附时间、溶液pH值和吸附温度条件下，活性炭对水溶液中Cr（Ⅵ）吸附性能的影响，最后利用Langmuir、Freundlich吸附等温方程、准一级动力学方程、准二级动力学方程和颗粒内部扩散方程进行拟合。试验结果表明，制备咖啡渣活性炭的最佳工艺条件为活化时间1 h、活化温度498℃、浸渍比1.72；在此条件下活性炭得率为30.4%，碘吸附值为（799±16）mg/g，比表面积为1 006 m²/g，孔容为0.779 cm³/g、微孔孔容为0.051 cm³/g、平均孔径为3.088 nm。较低pH值和较高温度能够促进活性炭对Cr（Ⅵ）的吸附；Langmuir等温方程能够更好地描述活性炭对Cr（Ⅵ）的吸附效果；活性炭对Cr（Ⅵ）的吸附分3个阶段：快速吸附阶段、慢速吸附阶段和吸附平衡阶段，10 min内可完成吸附总量的79%，360 min内达到吸附平衡，该吸附过程符合准二级吸附动力学方程。分析表明咖啡渣活性炭对Cr（Ⅵ）的吸附主要为单分子层的化学吸附。     

核聚变堆用钨表面超精密抛光的研究现状与趋势

钨作为未来核聚变堆中最有前景的面向等离子体材料,在反应堆工况下将承受高能粒子的辐照冲击。表面质量的好坏会直接影响材料的氢/氦滞留行为和辐照损伤程度,进而影响聚变堆的安全性和可靠性。现阶段,针对钨的抗辐照改性研究主要着眼于材料的成分、结构和组织设计,关于机械加工对材料表面抗辐照改性的研究甚少。文章聚焦前沿科学问题,从机械加工角度分析核材料领域科学问题,结合国内外相关研究成果及核聚变堆用钨(PFM-W)的机械加工现状,阐述了PFM-W表面超精密抛光的必要性。通过对比不同抛光方法,提出了磁流变抛光和力流变抛光是较为适合PFM-W表面超精密加工的观点,并对未来PFM-W表面超精密抛光研究趋势进行了分析,重点在抛光方法的探索以及抛光后材料表面质量对抗辐照性能影响的研究。