Condition monitoring of steam turbine-generator through contamination analysis of used lubricating oil

The objective of this paper is to present a systematic analysis of wear particles contained in used lubricant of steam turbine-generator of a thermal power station. The turbogenerator was condition-monitored over a period of two years through wear debris and particulate contamination analysis of the oil. Various sophisticated techniques such as automatic particle counter, ferrography, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICPAES), scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM/EDAX) have been employed to extract the relevant information about the health of the machine. Eventually, a correlation of different techniques of wear debris monitoring on the basis of current investigation ascertains the significance of the collective approach of various techniques to avoid catastrophic breakdowns and expensive component replacements.     

Determination of compressive residual stress in a doubly-clamped microbeam according to its buckled shape

In this work, an analytical relationship is derived for a doubly-clamped microbeam when it buckles after release from the substrate. In terms of the relationship, compressive residual stress in the doubly-clamped microbeam can be determined according to its buckled shape, allowing one to find the compressive residual stress directly without much experimental effort. This relationship has been used to determine compressive residual stresses in four types of doubly-clamped SiO₂ microbeams. In addition, four methods have been applied to find the elongations of these SiO₂ microbeams, and the corresponding results are compared. Finally, the residual stresses in doubly-clamped SiO₂ microbeams predicted according to the derived relationship are compared with those found in SiO₂ microcantilevers, and the results have a good match.     

Three-dimensional laminar flow and heat transfer in a parallel array of microchannels etched on a substrate

Heat transfer and laminar fluid flow in an array of parallel microchannels etched on a silicon substrate with water as the circulating fluid was studied numerically. The fluid region consisted of a microchannel with a hydraulic diameter of 85.6 μm and aspect ratios ranging from 0.10 to 1.0. A constant heat flux of 90 W/cm² was applied to the y = H face of the computational domain, which simulates thermal energy generation from an integrated circuit. Generalized transport equations were discretized and solved in three dimensions for velocities, pressure, and temperature. The SIMPLE algorithm [S.V. Patankar, Numerical Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow, Hemisphere, New York, 1980] was used to link pressure and velocity fields, and a thermally repeated boundary condition was applied in the lateral direction to model the repeating nature of the geometry. The numerical results for apparent friction coefficient and convective thermal resistance at the channel inlet and exit closely matched the experimental data in the literature for the case of 0.32 aspect ratio. Apparent friction coefficients were found to increase linearly with Reynolds number. Inlet and outlet thermal resistance values monotonically decreased with increasing Reynolds number and increased with aspect ratio.     

Synthesis,characterization, thermal,electrical and electrochemical studies of oligo nitrobenzimidazoles and their p–n diode applications

Three novel nitro oligobenzimidazoles, oligo-2-(6-nitro-1H-benzo[d]imidazol-2-yl)phenol (OBINP2), oligo-3-(6-nitro-1H-benzo[d]imidazol-2-yl)phenol (OBINP3) and oligo-4-(6-nitro-1H-benzo[d]imidazol-2-yl)phenol (OBINP4) were synthesized by oxidative polycondensation of benzimidazole monomers with NaOCl in aqueous alkaline medium. The structure of the monomers and oligomers were confirmed by FT-IR, UV–Vis, ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopic techniques. The monomer BINP2 and its oligomer are showing dual emission through excited state intramolecular proton transfer process. The band gap values of monomers and oligomers were calculated from both UV–Vis spectroscopic and cyclic voltammetric data. Theoretical band gap values of monomers obtained from DFT were compared with experimentally calculated band gap values. The electrical conductivity of I₂ doped and undoped oligomers were measured using two point probe technique and are showing good correlation with the charge densities on imidazole nitrogen obtained from Huckel method. The conductivity of oligomers increases with increase in iodine vapour contact time up to 144 h. The variation of dielectric properties of oligomers has been investigated at different frequency and temperature. Among the oligomers, OBINP3 is having greater thermal stability as evidenced by its high carbine residue of around 65% at 600 °C in thermogravimetric analysis.     

Dual role of grass clippings as buffering agent and biomass during anaerobic co-digestion with food waste

Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy - There is a dire need to replace the chemical buffers that regulate the redox environment in single-stage anaerobic digestion of food waste. Hence, the...     

Study on crosslinked gelatin–montmorillonite nanoparticles for controlled drug delivery applications

Gelatin, because of its biodegradability and ecofriendly nature, has been the best choice for controlled release applications. Montmorillonite (MMT) clay shows a very important role in controlling drug delivery. Hence, an attempt was made in this work to prepare gelatin–MMT nanoparticles by desolvation method using acetone as precipitating agent, glutaraldehyde (GA) as crosslinking agent, and water as reaction media for controlled delivery of isoniazid, a drug for tuberculosis. Characterization of the MMT and isoniazid-loaded gelatin–MMT nanoparticles was carried out using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction study, scanning electron microscopy study, and transmission electron microscopy study. The effect of MMT on gelatin nanoparticles was evaluated in terms of water uptake studies, and subsequently to the release of isoniazid drug in buffer solution at pH 1.2 (gastric pH) and pH 7.4 (intestinal pH). Swelling experiment indicated that the gelatin nanoparticles were very sensitive to the pH environment. The release profile of drug was studied by a UV–Visible spectrophotometer. Cytotoxicity study revealed that MMT-containing nanoparticles showed less cytotoxicity than MMT-free nanoparticles.     

Time-averaged in-line digital holographic interferometry for vibration analysis

Time-averaged in-line digital holography is applied for vibration analysis. In particular, by use of a double-exposure approach, simultaneous determination of vibration mode shape and mean static state deformation during a vibration cycle are obtained. The subtraction of two numerically reconstructed digital holograms recorded at the same resonant frequency but with a small difference in amplitude shows the mixing of Bessel-type time-averaged fringes owing to vibration and of the double-exposure fringes owing to differences in the mean deformation of the object. It is shown that separation of these fringe patterns can be readily accomplished numerically. An experimental demonstration of this effect by use of in-line digital holography for relatively small membranes is demonstrated.