Development of ceramic floor tile compositions based on quartzite and granite sludges

In the present work, industrial sludges derived from cutting and polishing natural stones (granite and quartzite) were characterised in terms of particles size distribution, chemical and mineralogical composition, and thermal behaviour and their potential to be incorporated as main components in red-clay-based stoneware tiles was evaluated. High levels (60–70 wt.%) of incorporation were attempted aiming at designing new formulations intended to be less expensive and possess better final properties (lower water absorption and higher flexural strength) in comparison to an industrial reference body used in the production of rustic tiles by extrusion, characterised 8–9% water absorption and a flexural strength of 17–18 MPa. Extruded rods of different formulations were produced and fired at 1100 °C, 1125 °C, 1150 °C and 1200 °C. The experimental results showed that all the new formulations performed better with the most significant improvements being obtained with incorporation of granite sludge. Flexural strength values more than triplicate and water absorption decreased by more than one order of magnitude in comparison to the reference paste. The new products fulfil the requirements of the ISO 13006 standard, group BIa (porcelain tiles).     

Erosion of sintered TiB2-cathodes during cathodic aluminium deposition from LiCl/AlCl3 melts

Using an aluminium dissolution/deposition electrolysis cell, TiB₂, TiB₂/TiC and TiC sintered specimens of different porosity were tested for erosion resistance on exposure to liquid electrodeposited aluminium at 700°C to determine whether cathodes coated with such materials can be applied in aluminium chloride electrolysis cells. Although not wetted by liquid aluminium, the TiC and the TiB₂/TiC composites were extensively eroded. The densest TiB₂ specimens showed the highest resistance against liquid aluminium. The erosion rate of TiB₂ specimens of different density after exposure to the test environment for over 200 h was almost identical and reached a value of 0.16 cm y^–1. The observed wear rates exceed the values predicted on the basis of published solubility data by a factor of approximately 10.     

The creep of kevlar-29 fibers

Single Kevlar-29 fibers have been subjected to creep loading over a temperature range of 23 to 400°C for which the applied load was 50 percent that of tensile strength at each temperature considered and also subjected to a range of loads at 23°C. It has been shown that strain expressed as a logarithmic function of time describes the experimental results obtained. Up to 70 percent of breaking load, a primary creep mechanism dominates and at higher loads a secondary creep process becomes increasingly important.     

Tensile strength of polyurethane exposed to nitrogen dioxide

Polyurethane prepared from tetramethylene glycol and diisocyanate was exposed in the form of films to small pressures of NO₂ and to NO₂ plus air. Tensile strength was measured as a function of exposure time and temperature with an apparatus especially constructed for the purpose of measuring mechanical properties in different environmental “atmospheres.”     

Preparation of Titanium Nitride/Alumina Laminate Composites

A preparation route for TiN/Al₂O₃ laminate composites has been described. A water-based process using Al₂O₃ and TiN slurries with solids contents of 40 and 35 vol%, respectively, was used to make TiN and Al₂O₃ tapes. The removal of the binder was monitored by weight-loss measurements in a thermogravimetry unit. Bodies composed of Al₂O₃ and TiN tapes were densified at temperatures of 1400° and 1500°C using the Spark Plasma Sintering^® (SPS) technique. Densities of >98% of the theoretical densities were approached. Crack-free and almost fully densified TiN/Al₂O₃ compacts were prepared by heating the burned-out green bodies to the final sintering temperature (1500°C) at a rate of 100°C/min, and with a holding time of 5–10 min, under a pressure of 75 MPa. The microstructures of the obtained compacts were studied using scanning electron microscopy. Grain sizes in the sintered Al₂O₃ and TiN compacts were similar to those of the precursor powders. Hardness and indentation fracture toughness were measured at room temperature, and the monolithic compacts as well as the laminate composites exhibited anisotropic mechanical behavior; i.e., the cracks propagated much more easily in a direction parallel to the laminas than perpendicular to them.     

Hydrothermal products of the C3MS2-C12A7-MgO system

The autoclave products of reduced steel-slag of an electronic furnace mainly containing C₃MS₂ phase were detected. The hydrothermal products of this slag included calcio-chondrodite, brucite, and hydrogarnet phases. When suitable (CaO + MgO)/SiO₂ molar ratios were chosen, C₃MS₂ can react with SiO₂ to produce calcium silicate hydrates tobermorite, xonotlite, gyrolite, and truscottite phases with different saturated water vapor pressures. The phase brucite was present along with tobermorite, whereas phases Mg-xonotlite, Mg-gyrolite, and Mg-truscottite can rarely coexist with brucite. Hydrogarnet phase disappeared when Mg-truscottite was formed.     

A new batch solvent-extraction pilot plant

Summary and Conclusions A new improved batch solvent extraction plant and its versatility of design have been described. Data have been given on the cost and initial test operations. The performance of the plant has been tested, and its value as a research tool has been demonstrated by the production of free gossypol and meals low in gossypol for use in research. Simplicity of operation is borne out by the fact that only one operator is needed. A limited number of detail drawings of the plant are available on written request from the Southern Regional Research Laboratory. Presented at the fall meeting, American Oil Chemists’ Society, Nov. 2–4, 1953, in Chicago, Ill. One of the laboratories of the Southern Utilization Research Branch, Agricultural Research Service, U. S. Department of Agriculture.     

Irradiation of poly(vinyl chloride) with H2 plasma. II

Poly(vinyl chloride) films blended with plasticizers, stabilizers, and fillers are irradiated with a beam of H₂ plasma. The polymer partially loses its solubility in cyclohexanone. The viscosity of the soluble part decreases in the initial stages and then increases on further irradiation. Crosslinking was followed by dehydrochlorination and discoloration of the polymer. The electrical conductivity was measured as a function of the irradiation dose and time. The plasticizers enhanced the action of plasma while the stabilizers and fillers reduced it.     

Tensile behavior of glass fiber-reinforced acetal polymer

The tensile stress-strain behavior of glass fiber-reinforced polyacetal resin was investigated for various fiber concentrations, fiber length distributions, and finishing agents. The polyacetal fiber blends change considerably in strength and elongation at break when treated with ammonium chloride, but otherwise similar specimens still follow a common stress-strain curve to a point shortly before failure. As the mean fiber length decreases, the modulus and tensile strength fall, but the elongation at break remains almost unchanged. The observed tensile behavior is discussed in terms of a simplified model, which assigns the fibers to two categories: a fraction α parallel to the applied load, and the remainder distributed in a plane perpendicular to the load axis. By fitting this model to the stress-strain curves, two other constants of each system are derived: a length-dependent efficiency factor β for parallel fibers, whose magnitude agrees with the predictions of Rosen and his co-workers, and a factor γ which expresses the constraint of the matrix resin by the “transverse” fibers. The behavior of γ is consistent with Tsai's theory of the transverse modulus of laminates, if a reasonable amount of fiber–fiber contact is assumed. In terms of this model, possible interpretations of the behavior under repeated loading and the mechanism of tensile failure are presented.