Quartz Ore Beneficiation by Reverse Flotation for Silicon Production

Silicon - In this work the reverse flotation as beneficiation process for high-purity silica valorization from Draissa quartz deposits (Algeria) is studied as a potential raw material for...     

IR transmission prediction,processing, and characterization of dense La2Ce2O7

High-throughput computation, based on density functional theory (HT-DFT), is used to predict the bounds for optical transparency, from the ultraviolet to the infrared, for materials in the pyrochlore family. The HT-DFT approach adopted here uses an initial screening from Materials-Project database, with millions of calculated properties. Band gaps and phonon spectra were calculated from selected pyrochlore crystal structures taken from the Materials Project database. Short and long wavelength bounds for optical transparency were calculated for chemistries with stable, cubic structures. The calculations predict that La₂Ce₂O₇ has one of the broadest range of transparency for the pyrochlore family. Based on these calculations, dense polycrystalline samples of La₂Ce₂O₇ were produced by sintering and hot-isostatic pressing. Transparency was characterized by methods that did not require large samples with high optical quality, obtaining 7.15 and 7.5 µm at 95% and 90% normalized transmittance, respectively. Bandgap calculations suggest a lower bound of UV transparency cut-off of 0.3 µm. The infrared wavelength cut-off is higher than that reported for other pyrochlores, and higher than for yttria, zirconia, or other common infrared transparent ceramics. We discuss our prediction and characterization methods as well as the suitability of pyrochlores for mid- and far-infrared optical applications.     

Experimental evaluation of quinolinium and isoquinolinium derivatives as corrosion inhibitors of mild steel in 0.5 M H<Subscript>2</Subscript>SO<Subscript>4</Subscript> solution

The 1-methylquinolinium iodide (I) Qui⁺, I^– and 2-methylisoquinolinium iodide isoQui⁺, I^– were investigated as a corrosion inhibitors for mild steel in sulfuric acid using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and potentiodynamic polarization techniques. The results indicated that the corrosion inhibition efficiency and extent of surface coverage were increased with increase in inhibitors concentrations. Polarization curves revealed that both inhibitors acted as a mixed-type inhibitor. The thermodynamic parameters were evaluated for corrosion inhibition process. The adsorption of both inhibitors on mild steel surface obeyed Langmuir adsorption isotherm.     

Effect of Inclination on Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow in a Finned Enclosure Filled with a Dielectric Liquid

The problem of two-dimensional natural convection flow of a dielectric fluid in a square inclined enclosure with a fin placed on the hot wall is investigated numerically. The fin thickness and length are 1/10 and 1/2 of the enclosure side, respectively. The Rayleigh number is varied from 10³ to 5 × 10⁵ and the solid to fluid thermal conductivity ratio is fixed at 10³. The enclosure tilt or inclination angle is varied from 0° to 90°. The streamlines and isotherms within the enclosure are produced and the heat transfer is calculated. It is found that for 2.5 × 10⁴ ≤ Ra ≤ 2.5 × 10⁵, the average Nusselt number is maximum when γ = 0° and minimum when γ = 90°. For Ra = 5 × 10⁵, the values of enclosure tilt angle for which the average Nusselt number is maximum or minimum are completely different due to the transition to unsteady state. In this case, the maximum heat transfer is obtained for γ = 60°, while the minimum heat transfer is predicted for γ = 0°. Monomial correlations relating the average Nusselt number with the different values of the Rayleigh number from 10⁴ to 10⁵ are determined for two different angles, γ = 0° and γ = 90°.     

Stability of Swirling Flows with Heat Transfer in a Cylindrical Enclosure with CO/Counter-Rotating End Disks Under an Axial Magnetic Field

In this article, a numerical study of swirling flows with heat transfer generated by two rotating end disks (co- and counter-rotating) inside a cylindrical enclosure having an aspect ratio equal to 2, filled with a liquid metal, and submitted to a vertical temperature gradient and an axial magnetic field is studied. The governing Navier-Stokes, energy, and potential equations along with appropriate boundary conditions are solved by using the finite-volume method. The flow and temperature fields are presented by stream function and isotherms, respectively. This flow is very unstable and reveals a great richness of structures. In an oscillatory regime, results are presented for various values of the Hartmann number, Ha = 5, 10, 20 and 30, and Richardson numbers, Ri = 0, 0.5, 1, 2 and 4, in order to see their effects on the value of the critical Reynolds number, Re_cr. Stability diagrams are established according to the numerical results of this investigation. These diagrams show the dependence of Re_cr with the increase of Ha for various values of Ri. The flow between co-rotating end disks is very different from the flow between counter-rotating end disks. Finally, this study confirms the possibility of stabilization of a liquid metal flow by application of an axial magnetic field.     

Interference analysis for asynchrounous OFDM/FBMC based cognitive radio networks over Rayleigh fading channel

In the future fifth generation networked society, devices will suffer from the asynchronous multi-carrier effect which impacts the user’s quality of experience. This paper investigates the timing misalignment effect on interference level in the context of a cognitive radio (CR) network. Our study considers both multicarrier techniques orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) and filter bank multicarrier (FBMC). The originality of our paper consists in proposing a simple but accurate analytical model to evaluate our system’s performance in terms of interference level, signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio and bit error rate. Specifically, two case studies are considered, a single-user case (one primary user and one secondary user) and a multi-user case with exact theoretical expressions of interference level. We had also made a comparison between OFDM and FBMC techniques. The most striking observation to emerge from our results is that the asynchronous interference is inversely propositional to timing offset even for the multi-user case, and that differences in the normalized interference level between the single/multi-user cases is barely perceived for the FBMC technique, proving its efficiency. Our simulations’ results had further strengthened our confidence in the suggested model. It shows that FBMC is best suited for CR networks since it provides BER improvements compared to OFDM.

     

Tetragonal Tungsten Bronze Niobate, K0.2Sr0.4NbO3: A New Material for Capacitors with Flat Dielectric Curves

A new ceramic for capacitors, which exhibits flat dielectric curves with relative permittivity values (ɛ) as high as 3000 (Y7R or X7R class), has been synthesized. Use of a niobate, K_0.2Sr_0.4NbO₃ (KSN), with a tetragonal tungsten bronze structure (TTB), as a major phase for the fabrication of such ceramics is shown for the first time. Nevertheless, the addition of perovskites as minor agents—PbMg_1/3Nb_2/3O₃ (PMN)—is necessary to obtain stable temperature. Moreover, the use of lithium salts as sintering agents has been shown to be important for the fabrication of these ceramics.     

A multiple objective grouping genetic algorithm for assembly line design

The purpose of this paper is to describe some of the main problems concerning assembly line design. The focus will be on the following steps: (1) the input data preparation, (2) the elaboration of the logical layout of the line, which consists in the distribution of operations among stations along the line and an assignment of resources to the different stations, (3) finally the mapping phase using a simulation package to check the obtained results. This work presents a new method to tackle the hybrid assembly line design, dealing with multiple objectives. The goal is to minimize the total cost of the line by integrating design (station space, cost, etc.) and operation issues (cycle time, precedence constraints, availability, etc.). This paper also presents in detail a very promising approach to solve multiple objective problems. It is a multiple objective grouping genetic algorithm hybridized with the multicriteria decision-aid method PROMETHEE II. An approach to deal with users preferences in design problems is also introduced. The essential concepts adopted by the method are described and its application to an industrial case study is presented.