Passive mode-locking in erbium-doped fibre laser based on BN-GO saturable absorber

A C-band mode-locked fibre laser incorporating a boron nitride-doped graphene oxide (BN-GO)-based saturable absorber (SA) is proposed and demonstrated. The SA is fabricated by depositing multiple layers of synthesized BN-GO nanoparticles onto the polished surface of a side-polished fibre, which is then inserted into an erbium-doped fibre laser cavity to generate the desired pulsed output. The strong nonlinear optical response and light absorption of the BN-GO nanoparticles induces the generation of a highly stable mode-locked pulse at 1567.32?nm with visible Kelly’s sidebands. The pulses have a measured repetition rate of 13.56?MHz and a pulse width of 1.18?ps at the maximum pump power of 280.5?mW. The pulses have a frequency signal-to-noise ratio of ～53?dB, indicating a highly stable output. The proposed laser would find significant telecommunications applications, particularly for dense wavelength division multiplexing systems.     

Green approach to corrosion inhibition of mild steel in two acidic solutions by the extract of Punica granatum peel and main constituents

The effect of the extract of Punica granatum (PG) and their main constituents involve ellagic acid (EA) and tannic acid (TA), as mild steel corrosion inhibitor in 2 M HCl and 1 M H₂SO₄ solutions was investigated by weight loss measurements. The results obtained from the weight loss measurements show that the inhibition efficiency of TA even in high concentration is very low. Thus, potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) investigations were used for different concentrations of PG and EA and best concentration of TA. Potentiodynamic polarization curves indicated that PG and EA behave as mixed-type inhibitors. EIS measurements show an increase of the transfer resistance with increasing inhibitor concentration. The temperature effect on the corrosion behavior of steel without and with the PG extract was studied. The inhibition action of the extract was discussed in view of Langmuir adsorption isotherm.     

Numerical study to predict the particle deposition under the influence of operating forces on a tilted surface in the turbulent flow

This study uses a v2-f turbulence model with a two-phase Eulerian approach. The v2-f model can accurately calculate the near wall fluctuations in y-direction, which mainly represent the anisotropic nature of turbulent flow. The model performance is examined by comparing the rate of particle deposition on a vertical surface with the experimental and numerical data in a turbulent channel flow available in the literature. The effects of lift, turbophoretic, electrostatic and Brownian forces together with turbulent diffusion are examined on the particle deposition rate. The influence of the tilt angle and surface roughness on the particle deposition rate were investigated. The results show that, using the v2-f model predicts the rate of deposition with reasonable accuracy. It is observed that in high relaxation time the effect of lift force on the particle deposition is very important. It is also indicated that decreasing the tilt angle from 90° to 0° enhances the deposition rate especially for large size particles. Furthermore, the results show that increasing the Reynolds number at a specific tilt angle decreases the rate of particle deposition and the tilt angle has insignificant impact on the particle deposition rate in high shear velocity or high Reynolds number.     

The Effect of Ti on Mechanical Properties of Extruded In-Situ Al-15 pct Mg2Si Composite

This work was carried out to investigate the effect of different Ti concentrations as a modifying agent on the microstructure and tensile properties of an in-situ Al-15 pctMg₂Si composite. Cast, modified, and homogenized small ingots were extruded at 753 K (480 °C) at the extrusion ratio of 18:1 and ram speed of 1 mm/s. Various techniques including metallography, tensile testing, and scanning electron microscopy were used to characterize the mechanical behavior, microstructural observations, and fracture mechanisms of this composite. The results showed that 0.5 pctTi addition and homogenizing treatment were highly effective in modifying Mg₂Si particles. The results also exhibited that the addition of Ti up to 0.5 pct increases both ultimate tensile strength (UTS) and tensile elongation values. The highest UTS and elongation values were found to be 245 MPa and 9.5 pct for homogenized and extruded Al-15 pctMg₂Si-0.5 pctTi composite, respectively. Fracture surface examinations revealed a transition from brittle fracture mode in the as-cast composite to ductile fracture in homogenized and extruded specimens. This can be attributed to the changes in size and morphology of Mg₂Si intermetallic and porosity content.     

Implicit solid,flow and flow–solid finite element approaches in blade forging simulation

A comparative theoretical and numerical study of the flow (rigid‐plastic) and solid (elasto‐plastic, in rate form) simulation approaches applied to the isothermal blade forging process for closing and opening of the dies is presented. In the rigid‐plastic approach the solution is followed by an elasto‐plastic solution in unloading (opening of the dies). The deformation of the billet, effective plastic strains and stresses were compared between the two solutions in the closing of the dies and when the dies were opened. Furthermore, the flow–solid approach was used in simulating the process and then the results, including the time–load and time–volume curves, were compared with previous results. The cost was lower and the efficiency was superior in the suggested flow–solid approach. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Regionalization of Rainfall Intensity-Duration-Frequency using a Simple Scaling Model

Design storm is one of the most important tools to design hydraulic structures, hydrologic system and watershed management, mostly extracted by intensity- duration - frequency (IDF) curves for a given specific duration and return period. As for conventional methods to calculate IDF curves, the precipitation should be recorded for different durations so that foregoing curves can be extracted. Such data can be collected from rain gauge stations. In many areas, just daily precipitation data are available by which IDF curves cannot be extracted as per conventional methods. The aim of this research is to make IDF curves for short-term durations according to time scaling model as well as daily rainfalls. The relationships of this method are characterized with three variables including mean (μ ₂₄) and standard deviation (σ ₂₄) of daily rainfall intensity, and scaling exponent (H) by which all IDF curves might be drawn. The method used in present paper entails for less computational steps than conventional methods and by far has low parameters considerably than others in turn increases reliability. Scaling method is used to extract the IDF curves in rain-gauge stations in Khuzestan province located in southwest Iran and results proved the efficiency and robustness of the scaling method. Also ability of scaling concept method was examined in constructing of regional IDF.     

A stabilized foam formulation using FTP-SDS surfactants for wettability alteration and flow diversion in carbonate fractured oil reservoirs

Foam injection contributes to improved oil recovery through flow diversion, reduction of interfacial tension (IFT), and wettability alteration of the rock while its stability is an issue. In this article, nitrogen-foam was optimally formulated using fluorocarbon tubiguard protect (FTP) surfactant stabilized with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) co-surfactant that was later experimentally considered for oil recovery in a fractured carbonate rock taken from an oil field in the Middle East. The results showed that the 5:1 volume ratio of fluorocarbon surfactant and SDS (FS51) generates a stable foaming agent with ability of changing the wettability of the carbonate rock surfaces to an intermediate gas-wet state. A series of core-flood experiments at HPHT conditions were also carried out and designed to properly represent matrix-fracture media using both a horizontally and vertically oriented setup. The oil saturated cores were flooded with nitrogen gas first followed by foam injection. It was concluded that foam can divert the gas to flow from fractures to the matrix blocks and result in a significant oil recovery. The contact angle tests that performed after core-flood experiments revealed the wettability changes of fracture surfaces from an oil-wet to a gas-wet state. This allows gas to be imbibed into the matrix blocks by capillary force and results in enhancement of ultimate oil recovery. This study revealed that trapped oil in matrixes blocks that had not been drained during the gas injection process could be produced by designing a stable foam that sustainably diverts injected fluid from fractures to matrix zone.     

The effect of two oleo-gum resin exudate from Ferula assa-foetida and Dorema ammoniacum on mild steel corrosion in acidic media

A comparative study of two oleo-gum resins exudate from Ferula assa-foetida (F. assa-foetida) and Dorema ammoniacum (D. ammoniacum), as inhibitors for mild steel corrosion in 2 M HCl solution was investigated by weight loss measurements, potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) methods. Potentiodynamic polarization curves indicated that both oleo-gums behave as mixed type inhibitors. The effect of temperature on the inhibition efficiency was studied. At all temperatures, the experimental data fit Langmuir isotherm for both oleo-gum resin exudates. Quantum chemical calculations were performed to illustrate the adsorption process of some specific components of two oleo-gum resin exudates.