Valorization of Al slag in the production of green ceramic tiles: Effect of experimental conditions on microstructure and crystalline phase composition

This work reports the results of an investigation aimed at the development of sintered glass-ceramic tiles by the sinter-crystallization of mixtures composed of aluminum slag and reclaimed packaging glass. The thermal behaviors of mixtures incorporating 50 and 60 wt% Al slag were established by differential thermal analysis (DTA). Green compacts were sintered in a temperature range of 800°C-1050°C and then soaked for 10-60 minutes. The mineralogical characterizations of the sintered materials were obtained by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The achieved results indicated that the sintering of aluminum slag and packaging glass reclaimed led to a glass-ceramic material composed mainly of needle-like crystals of wollastonite (CaSiO₃). The bloating of samples during firing was evaluated according to a Cougny predictive diagram. After initial observations and according to bending strength characterizations, sintered tiles prepared from aluminum slag and glassy sand are appropriate for floor pavement and wall covering.     

Influence of different reactor types on Nannochloropsis oculata microalgae culture for lipids and fatty acid production

Greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere by burning of fossil fuels cause global warming. One option is obtaining biodiesel. Nannochloropsis oculata was cultured under different light intensities and reactors at 25°C for 21 days with f/2 medium to assess their effects on cell density, lipid, and fatty acids (FAs). N. oculata improved cell density on fed-batch glass tubular reactor (7 L) at 200 μmol E m⁻² s⁻¹, yielding 3.5 × 10⁸ cells ml⁻¹, followed by fed-batch Erlenmeyer flask (1 L) at 650 μmol E m⁻² s⁻¹ with 1.7 × 10⁸ cells ml⁻¹. The highest total lipid contents (% g lipid × g dry biomass⁻¹) were 44.4 ± 0.8% for the reactor (1 L) at 650 μmol E m⁻² s⁻¹ and 35.2 ± 0.2% for the tubular reactor (7 L) at 200 μmol E m⁻² s⁻¹, until twice as high compared with the control culture (Erlenmeyer flask 1 L, 80 μmol E m⁻² s⁻¹) with 21.2 ± 1%. Comparing the total lipid content at 200 μmol E m⁻² s⁻¹, tubular reactor (7 L) and reactor 1 L achieved 35.2 ± 0.2% and 28.3 ± 1%, respectively, indicating the effect of shape reactor. The FAs were affected by high light intensity, decreasing SFAs to 2.5%, and increased monounsaturated fatty acids + polyunsaturated fatty acids to 2.5%. PUFAs (20:5n-3) and (20:4n-3) were affected by reactor shape, decreasing by half in the tubular reactor. In the best culture, fed-batch tubular reactor (7 L) at 200 μmol E m⁻² s⁻¹ contains major FAs (16:0; 38.06 ± 0.16%), (16:1n-7; 30.74 ± 0.58%), and (18:1n-9; 17.15 ± 0.91%).     

Effects of molten aluminum on H13 dies and coatings

The effects of molten aluminum casting alloy A390 on a commercially heat treated H13 die steel and two wear-resistant coatings, Cr₂₃C₆ and TiN, were investigated by an accelerated corrosion test. The H13 steel suffered severe corrosion due to the rapid formation of intermetallic compounds. The formation of multilayer intermetallic compounds and the simultaneous dissociation of the intermetallic compound τ6 (Al₄FeSi) were attributed to the fast dissolution of H13 steels into the melt. This dissolution of the H13 steel was accelerated dramatically by turbulence and an increase in melt temperature. Significant improvement in corrosion resistance was achieved for the H13 steel coated by Cr₂₃C₆ via a pack cementation process.     

A high-temperature oxidation-resistant Fe-Mn-Al-Si alloy

To develop satisfactory alloys without Cr or Ni for high-temperature application up to 1100C, three alloys based on Fe-10%Al-Si with differing fourth (or fifth) element additions were oxidized in air at 1100°Cfor 24 hr. A low carbon, Fe-30Mn-10Al-Si alloy exhibited excellent high-temperature oxidation resistance. The total weight gain for 24 hr oxidation in air at 1100°C was only 1.03 mg/cm ². After air oxidation for 6 days at 1100°C, no nodule formation or breakthrough oxidation occurred. Post-oxidation SEM and EDAX examination showed that a thin, compact, protective alumina scale formed on the alloy.Visiting Scientist (People's Republic of China).     

Codeposited chromium and silicon diffusion coatings for Fe-Base alloys via pack cementation

The simultaneous deposition of Cr and Si into plain carbon, low-alloy, and austenitic steels using a halide-activated pack-cementation process is described. Equilibrium partial pressures of gaseous species have been calculated using the STEPSOL computer program to aid in designing specific processes for codepositing the desired ratios of Cr and Si into a given alloy. The calculations indicate that NaCl-activated packs are chromizing, while NaF-activated packs deposit more Si with less Cr. The use of a dual activator (e.g., NaF+NaCl) allows for the deposition of both Cr and Si in the desired amounts. Single-phase ferritic coatings (150–250 microns thick) with a surface concentration of 20–35 wt.% Cr and 2–4% Si have been grown on AISI 1018, Fe-2.25 Cr-1.0Mo-0.15C, and Fe-0.5 Cr-0.5 Mo-0.2C steels using packs containing a 90 wt.% Cr-10Si binary source alloy, a NaF+NaCl activator, and a silica filler. Two-phase coatings (approximately 75 microns thick) containing 20–25 wt.% Cr and 2.0–2.4% Si have been obtained on 304 stainless steel using packs containing a 90 wt.% Cr-10Si binary source alloy, a NaF activator, and an alumina filler. The same pack chemistry allowed the diffusion of Cr and Si into the austenitic Incoloy 800 alloy without a phase change. A coated Fe-2.25 Cr-1.0 Mo-0.15 C coupon with a surface concentration of Fe-34 wt.% Cr-3Si was cyclically oxidized in air at 700°C for over four months and 47 cycles. The weight gain was very low (<0.2 mg/cm²) with no scale spalling detected. Coated coupons of AISI 1018 steel, and Fe-0.5 Cr-0.5 Mo-0.2C steel have shown excellent oxidation-sulfidation resistance in reducing, sulfur-containing atmospheres at temperatures from 400 to 700°C and in erosion and erosion-oxidation testing in air at 650 and 850°C.     

Oxidation of ternary Co-Cr-W alloys

Oxidation rates in air at 1000–1250°C are reported for a series of Co-Cr-W alloys with 34–40 wt. % Cr and up to 10 wt. % W. Alloys with larger W contents exhibited slower oxidation rates and their parabolic rate constants agreed well with those for binary and ternary, Cr₂O₃ protected, Ni-base and Co-base alloys in the Co-Cr and Ni-Cr-W systems. The resulting scales were characterized by optical and scanning electron metallography, and electron microprobe analysis. The favorable effect of W additions to a Cr₂O₃-forming Co-Cr base alloy was the opposite of that reported for Ni-Cr-W alloys. The resupply of Cr to a Cr-depleted matrix beneath a protective CrO₃ scale is achieved by the dissolution (denuding) of Cr-rich second phases in the Co-Cr-W alloys. Thus, the internal oxidation of Cr beneath the Cr₂O₃ scale is avoided for high W alloys. No catastrophic failure by liquid phase formation was observed for high-W alloys oxidized 20 hr at 1250°C.     

Interactive visualization of medical volume models in mobile devices

Interactive visualization of volume models in standard mobile devices is a challenging present problem with increasing interest from new application fields like telemedicine. The complexity of present volume models in medical applications is continuously increasing, therefore increasing the gap between the available models and the rendering capabilities in low-end mobile clients. New and efficient rendering algorithms and interaction paradigms are required for these small platforms. In this paper, we propose a transfer function-aware compression and interaction scheme, for client-server architectures with visualization on standard mobile devices. The scheme is block-based, supporting adaptive ray-casting in the client. Our two-level ray-casting allows focusing on small details on targeted regions while keeping bounded memory requirements in the GPU of the client. Our approach includes a transfer function-aware compression scheme based on a local wavelet transformation, together with a bricking scheme that supports interactive inspection and levels of detail in the mobile device client. We also use a quantization technique that takes into account a perceptive metrics of the visual error. Our results show that we can have full interaction with high compression rates and with transmitted model sizes that can be of the order of a single photographic image.     

Proteomics identification of differentially expressed proteins in the muscle of dysferlin myopathy patients

The muscular dystrophies are a large and heterogeneous group of neuromuscular disorders that can be classified according to the mode of inheritance, the clinical phenotype and the molecular defect. To better understand the pathological mechanisms of dysferlin myopathy we compared the protein-expression pattern in the muscle biopsies of six patients with this disease with six patients with limb girdle muscular dystrophy 2A, five with facioscapulohumeral dystrophy and six normal control subjects. To investigate differences in the expression levels of skeletal muscle proteins we used 2-DE and MS. Western blot or immunohistochemistry confirmed relevant results. The study showed specific increase expression of proteins involved in fast-to-slow fiber type conversion (ankyrin repeat protein 2), type I predominance (phosphorylated forms of slow troponin T), sarcomere stabilization (actinin-associated LIM protein), protein ubiquitination (TRIM 72) and skeletal muscle differentiation (Rho-GDP-dissociation inhibitor ly-GDI) in dysferlin myopathy. As anticipated, we also found differential expression of proteins common to all the muscular dystrophies studied. This comparative proteomic analysis suggests that in dysferlin myopathy (i) the type I fiber predominance is an active process of fiber type conversion rather than a selective loss of type II fibers and (ii) the dysregulation of proteins involved in muscle differentiation further confirms the role of dysferlin in this process.     

Parallel interval-based reasoning in medical knowledge-based system Clinaid

The paper continues a series of papers and a monograph [33], where we have described the conceptual structures as well as the basic architecture of a knowledge-based systemCunaid.