Prediction of ultrasonic wave velocity in particleboard and fiberboard

Ultrasonic wave velocities were determined at parallel and perpendicular to manufacturing direction and at the interval angles of 15° in clockwise and counterclockwise directions of particleboard and fiberboard. The experimental results were compared with the predicted values using some empirical formulae such as Hankinson and Jacoby equations. The results showed that the ultrasonic wave velocity were the highest in parallel direction in particleboard and fiberboard and decreases with increase of angle and the lowest values occurred in perpendicular direction. The predicted ultrasonic velocity using Hankinson and Jacoby equations are in close agreement with the measured values. Relationship between ultrasonic wave velocities and particles and fibers angle could be successfully presented by cubic and quadratic regression equations as well.     

A hermetic glass-silicon micropackage with high-density on-chipfeedthroughs for sensors and actuators

This paper describes the development of a hermetic micropackage with high-density on-chip feedthroughs for sensor and actuator applications. The packaging technique uses low-temperature (320°C) electrostatic bonding of a custom-made glass capsule (Corning 7740, 2×2×8 mm³) to fine grain polysilicon in order to form a hermetically sealed cavity. High-density on-chip multiple polysilicon feedthroughs (200 per millimeter) are used for connecting external sensors and actuators to the electronic circuitry inside the package. A high degree of planarity over feedthrough areas is obtained by using grid-shaped polysilicon feedthrough lines that are covered with phosphosilicate glass (PSG), which is subsequently reflown at 1100°C in steam for 2 h. Saline and DI water soak tests at elevated temperatures (85 and 95°C) were performed to determine the reliability of the package. Preliminary results have shown a mean time to failure (MTTF) of 284 days and 118 days at 85 and 95°C, respectively, in DI water. An Arrhenius diffusion model for moisture penetration yields an expected lifetime of 116 years at body temperature (37°C) for these packages. In vivo tests in guinea pigs and rats for periods ranging from one to two months have shown no sign of infection, inflammation, or tissue abnormality around the implanted package     

Microstructure and Sliding Wear Behaviour of Ni(Cr)-TiB_2 Coatings Deposited by HVOF Spraying of SHS Powders

THERMAL SPRAYING provides a large range ofcoatings,which increase the wear resistance ofsubstrates[1].One of the major coating families is thecermet,composed of hard ceramic particles with ametallic binder.The most commonly used cermetcoatings in industrial applications are based on eitherthe WC-Co or the Cr3C2-Ni(Cr)systems with WC-17wt%Co and Cr3C2-25wt%Ni(Cr)being typicalcompositions[2,3].Although WC-Co deposits are hardand wear resistant at ambient temperatures their rangeof ap…     

Long‐term water uptake behavior of natural fiber/polypropylene composites

Composites of different natural fibers and polypropylene were prepared and their long‐term water absorption behaviors were studied. Wood flour, rice hulls, newsprint fibers, and kenaf fibers (at 25 and 50% by weight contents) were mixed with polypropylene and 1 and 2% compatibilizer, respectively. Water absorption tests were carried out on injection‐molded specimens at room temperature for 5 weeks. Measurements were made every week and water absorption was calculated. Water diffusion coefficients were also calculated by evaluating the water absorption isotherms. Results indicated a significant difference among different natural fibers, with kenaf fibers and newsprint fibers exhibiting the highest and wood flour and rice hulls the lowest water absorption values, respectively. The difference between 25 and 50% fiber contents for all composite formulations increased at longer immersion times. Water diffusion coefficients of the composites were found to be about 3 orders of magnitude higher than that of pure PP. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2006     

Numerical and Experimental Study of an Under-Ground Water Reservoir,Cistern

This article presents experimental and numerical study of an under-ground water reservoir (cistern) during six months operation in a semi-arid region. The cistern with one dome, four windcatchers and a water reservoir is located in Lar, a hot arid city at south of Iran. Outdoor and indoor air temperature and humidity, water temperature in three depths and dome surface temperature were measured using a data logging system. The results show that the average air humidity inside the cistern was almost constant during the experiments but its slight variation during a day follows inside air temperature changes. The inside air temperature was always lower than the ambient temperature and inside and outside average air temperature difference was about 6 °C. The difference was slightly higher in the hot seasons. The water reservoir was also modeled in 2D, axisymmetric and quasi steady numerical simulation for six months of operation. Highly stratified water temperature distribution was observed in the numerical results as well as the experimental measurements.     

Mechanical properties of composites from sawdust and recycled plastics

Mechanical properties of wood plastic composites (WPCs) manufactured from sawdust and virgin and/or recycled plastics, namely high density polyethylene (HDPE) and polypropylene (PP), were studied. Sawdust was prepared from beech industrial sawdust by screening to the desired particle size and was mixed with different virgin or recycled plastics at 50% by weight fiber loading. The mixed materials were then compression molded into panels. Flexural and tensile properties and impact strength of the manufactured WPCs were determined according to the relevant standard specifications. Although composites containing PP (virgin and recycled) exhibited higher stiffness and strength than those made from HDPE (virgin and recycled), they had lower unnotched impact strengths. Mechanical properties of specimens containing recycled plastics (HDPE and PP) were statistically similar and comparable to those of composites made from virgin plastics. This was considered as a possibility to expand the use of recycled plastics in the manufacture of WPCs. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 100: 3641–3645, 2006     

Low-velocity impact damage response of fiberglass/magnesium fiber-metal laminates under different size and shape impactors

Low-velocity impact tests are performed on fiberglass/AZ31B-H24 magnesium fiber-metal laminates (FMLs) with various configurations in order to gain a better understanding of the effect of an impactor's features on the response of this type of FML. For that, impactors with two different shapes (hemispherical and sharp-edged) and sizes are used to impact the specimens. The impact response data, such as the deformation of the contact location and energy absorption, is obtained directly during the impact tests through the impact equipment, while mechanical sectioning was carried out to establish the extent of delaminated area and post-impact residual deformation. While the sharp-edged impactor caused the development of cracks on the metal constituent, and delamination within the specimens, the hemispherical ones imposed more influence over the residual deformation. Noticeable differences are observed in response of FML specimens made with two and three layers of magnesium, especially with respect to the energy absorption capacity. Moreover, finite-element analysis, as a major part of this study, has been employed to simulate the low-velocity impact response of FML specimens. The behavior of specimens has been simulated using the commercial finite-element code ABAQUS. The results imply that there is a good agreement between the experimental and numerical results.     

An analytical procedure for dynamic response determination of a viscoelastic beam with moderately large deflection using first-order shear deformation theory

In this article, the dynamic response of a viscoelastic beam with moderately large deflection subjected to transverse and axial loads is studied using the first-order shear deformation theory. The von-Karman strain displacement relations and Hooke's law are used for formulation. The solution of the equations, which are a system of nonlinear partial differential equations, are obtained analytically using the perturbation technique in conjunction with the eigenfunction expansion method. The results are compared with the finite elements method. Also, a sensitivity analysis is performed, and the effects of geometrical and material properties are investigated on the response.     

A parameter-tuned genetic algorithm for the resource investment problem with discounted cash flows and generalized precedence relations

A resource investment problem with discounted cash flows (RIPDCF) is a project-scheduling problem in which (a) the availability levels of the resources are considered decision variables and (b) the goal is to find a schedule such that the net present value of the project cash flows optimizes. In this paper, the RIPDCF in which the activities are subject to generalized precedence relations is first modeled. Then, a genetic algorithm (GA) is proposed to solve this model. In addition, design of experiments and response surface methodology are employed to both tune the GA parameters and to evaluate the performance of the proposed method in 240 test problems. The results of the performance analysis show that the efficiency of the proposed GA method is relatively well.