Optimizing the tapping regime on a blast furnace operating at variable speed

The main factors that determine the uniformity with which smelting products are tapped from a blast furnace are the rate of accumulation of the products in the hearth and the tapping rate. The first parameter is in turn determined by the stability of the furnace’s operation and can vary significantly even over the course of 24 h. The second parameter is determined mainly by the condition of the iron notch, the maintenance it receives, any changes that occur in the diameter of the channel of the notch, and the quality of the materials used to form the notch. Recommendations are presented to optimize tapping of the smelting products.     

Volumetric out-of-furnace heat treatment of 3600-M3 decomposers

Specifications require that all the welds in 12-m-diam. decomposers with a capacity of 3600 m³ be subjected to high-temperature tempering before going into service in order to alleviate the stresses from the welding operation. Specialists at the organizations VNIIPTkhimnefteapparatury and VNIImontazhspetsstroi have proposed out-of-furnace volumetric (complete) of the assembled decomposer with the use of special heaters. The use of this heating method has shortened assembly operations while providing the welds with a highquality heat treatment and reducing the stresses overall (including welding stresses, stresses from assembly of the decomposer, etc.) The technology ensures uniform heating of the housing of the decomposer and provides for close control over the process. The experience gained in heat-treating decomposers can also be used in the construction of other containers that come into contact with corrosive media. __________ Translated from Metallurg, No. 3, pp. 61–64, March, 2006.     

PowerNap: an efficient power management scheme for mobile devices

We present PowerNap, an OS power management scheme, which can significantly improve the battery life of mobile devices. The key feature of PowerNap is the skipping of the periodic system timer ticks associated with the operating system. On an idle device, this modification increases the time between successive timer interrupts and enables us to put the processor/system into a more efficient low power state. This saves the energy consumed by workless timer interrupts and the excess energy consumed by the processor in less efficient low power states. PowerNap is tightly integrated with the kernel and is designed for optimal control of the latency and energy associated with transitioning in and out of the low power states. We describe an implementation of PowerNap and its impact on system software. Experiments with IBM's WatchPad verify the ability of PowerNap to extend battery life. An analytical model that quantifies the ability of the scheme to reduce power is also presented. The model is in good agreement with experimental results. We apply the model to small form-factor devices which use processors that have a PowerDown state. In such devices, PowerNap may extend battery life by more than 42 percent for small processor workloads and for background power levels below 10 mW.     

On-line estimation of kinetic parameters in anaerobic digestion using observer-based estimators and multiwavelength fluorometry.

Observer-based estimators (OBE) were used for estimation of state variables and kinetic parameters in an anaerobic digestion (AD) process. A simplified first-order model with time-varying kinetic parameters was used to design an OBE for kinetic parameter estimation. This approach was validated on a laboratory-scale anaerobic reactor equipped with a multiwavelength fluorometer for on-line measurements of COD and VFA concentrations in the reactor effluent. The proposed estimators provide continuous adjustment of kinetic parameters and can be used for predictions of state variables between samples acquisition and during sensor failure.     

Co-digestion of ruminal content and blood from slaughterhouse industries: influence of solid concentration and ammonium generation.

At the present time, organic solid wastes from industries and agricultural activities are considered to be promising substrates for biogas production via anaerobic digestion. Moreover solids stabilisation is required before reutilization or disposal. Slaughterhouses are among the most important industries in Uruguay and produce 150,000 tons of ruminal content (RC) and 30,000 tons of blood per year. In order to determine the influence of the solids and blood contents, the ammonia inhibition and the inoculum adaptation co-digestion batch tests were performed. A set of experiences with TS concentration of 2.5%, 5% and 7.5% and different ratios of RC/blood were carried out using an inoculum from an UASB reactor. In all experiences fast blood hydrolisation was observed. A higher methane production was detected in the experiences with higher TS content. However, the fraction of solids degradation was lower in these experiences. A plateau in the biogas production was found. The free ammonia level, which was above the reported inhibitory levels, could explain this behaviour. After the inhibition period the biogas production restarted probably due to the biomass acclimatisation to the ammonia. In order to determine the inoculum adaptation a new experiment was performed. The inoculum used was the sludge coming from the first set of experiences. Based upon batch tests a 3.5 m3 pilot reactor was designed and started up. Ammonia inhibition was avoided by the start-up strategy and in two weeks the biogas production was 3.5 m3/d. The VS stabilisation with a solid retention time of 20 days was of 43%. The pilot reactor working at steady state had a TS concentration of 3-4% with a ratio of RC/blood of 10:1 at the entrance.     

Convergence and trust in eCommerce

Trust is the key element of commerce, both for traditional models and — more recently — for eCommerce. Unlike its traditional counterpart, eCommerce relies on trust being created and maintained with the help of digital devices and services. Convergence brings significant changes to the way people interact through digital media by offering ubiquitous and seamless communication. This has a significant impact on the way trust is established and maintained, with consequent impact upon eCommerce. This paper identifies a number of the most important challenges to trust in eCommerce as well as trust-related aspects of key enablers of eCommerce. From this perspective, the paper studies an impact of convergence on trust within eCommerce to identify several positive relationships.     

Design of a retention tank: comparison of stormwater quality models with various levels of complexity.

Stormwater quality simulation models are useful tools for the design and management of sewer systems. Modelling results are highly sensitive to experimental data used for calibration. This sensitivity is examined for three modelling approaches of various complexities (site mean concentration approach, event mean concentration approach and build-up, washoff and transport modelling approach) applied to a typical case study (design of a dry detention tank), accounting for the variability of calibration data and their effect on simulation results. Calibrated models with different calibration data sets were used to simulate 3 years of rainfall with different retention tank specific volumes. Annual pollutant load interception efficiencies were determined. Simulations results revealed (i) that there is no advantage in using the EMC model compared to the SMC model and (ii) that the BWT model resulted in higher design ratios than those given by the SMC/hydraulic approach. For both EMC and BWT models, using an increasing number n of events for calibration leads to narrower confidence intervals for the design ratios. It is crucial for design ratios to account for successive storm events in chronological order and to account for the maximum allowable flow to be transferred to the downstream WWTP.     

An inventory analysis of rural pollution loads in China.

Rural pollution has attracted increasing attention over the past decade for its important consequences on surface and groundwater quality. This is particularly so in China due to the wide and effective control of industrial and municipal wastewater discharges over the past decade. Based on the discussion of rural activities in China, this paper develops a new method of inventory analysis through the definition of elementary unit (EU). This inventory analysis approach is then applied to estimate the total rural pollution loads of COD, TN and TP, as well as their spatial distributions in China. Further analysis is also conducted to investigate the correlations between rural pollution loads and agricultural production outputs, as well as population. It is found that China's agriculture is developing largely at the cost of environment quality, and a high population, as well as the increasing demand for agricultural products, is one of the dominant driving forces. The constructed EKC, which describes the relationship between rural pollution loads and agricultural income, also reveals that current agricultural development in China is mostly far from de-locked from the environmental problem.     

Development of a simple microsystems membrane probe card

Presented here are details of the development of a novel membrane integrated circuit (IC) probe card structure based on microsystems technology. The device design allows probing of both solder bumps and pads. A self-limiting sensor was integrated to prolong device lifetime. Comparison with and discussion of the use of modelling is made. Possible enhancements to the probing structure are discussed to improve alignment and measurements. Also shown is data using our microsystems probe card to access a simple IC device. Our device has a contact resistance of less than 0.5 Ω for a force of 0.004 N. A method to implement our probing structure for commercial application and the potential developments which can be made to improve its ease of use are then discussed.