Impact of adhesive ingredients on adhesion between rubber and brass-plated steel wire in tire

Proficiency on underlying mechanism of rubber-metal adhesion has been increased significantly in the last few decades. Researchers have investigated the effect of various ingredients, such as hexamethoxymethyl melamine, resorcinol, cobalt stearate, and silica, on rubber-metal interface. The role of each ingredient on rubber-metal interfacial adhesion is still a subject of scrutiny. In this article, a typical belt skim compound of truck radial tire is selected and the effect of each adhesive ingredient on adhesion strength is explored. Out of these ingredients, the effect of cobalt stearate is found noteworthy. It has improved adhesion strength by 12% (without aging) and by 11% (humid-aged), respectively, over control compound. For detailed understanding of the effect of cobalt stearate on adhesion, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy are utilized to ascertain the rubber coverage and distribution of elements. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results helped us to understand the impact of Cu_XS layer depth on rubber-metal adhesion. The depth profile of the Cu_XS layer was found to be one of the dominant factors of rubber-metal adhesion retention. Thus, this study has made an attempt to find the impact of different adhesive ingredients on the formation of Cu_XS layer depth at rubber-metal interface and establish a correlation with adhesion strength simultaneously.     

Lean philosophy: implementation in a forging company

This research addresses the implementation of lean philosophy in a forging company with a focus on radial forging production flow lines. Here, the prime motive is to evolve and test several strategies to eliminate waste on the shop floor. In this research, a systematic approach is suggested for the implementation of lean principles. This paper describes an application of value stream mapping (VSM). Consequently, the present and future states of value stream maps are constructed to improve the production process by identifying waste and its sources. Furthermore, Taguchi’s method of design of experiments is pursued here to minimize the forging defects produced due to imperfect operating conditions. A noticeable reduction in set-up time and work-in-process (WIP) inventory level is substantiated. Finally, we conclude with a discussion of managerial implications and the future scope of research.     

The Design of Discrimination Experiments

Experimentation plays a fundamental role in scientific discovery. Scientists experiment to gather data, investigate phenomena, measure quantities, and test theories. In this article, we address the problem of designing experiments to discriminate between two completing theories. Given an initial situation for which the two theories make the same prediction, the experiment design problem is to determine how to modify the situation such that the two theories make different predictions for the modified situation. The modified situation is called a discrimination experiment. We present a knowledge-intensive method called DEED for designing discrimination experiments. The method analyzes the differences in the two theories' explanations of the prediction for the initial situation. Based on this analysis, it determines modifications to the initial situation that will result in a discrimination experiment. We illustrate the method with the design of experiments to discriminate between several pairs of qualitative theories in the fluids domain.     

Effect of microwave heating on quality and mycoflora of sorghum grain

Sorghum (cv. Maldandi M35-1) was modified to 12, 14 and 16% moisture content (m.c.) and heat-treated with microwave energy at 3 levels, for 30 sec (=4.5, 9 and 18 kJ), and 60 sec (=9, 18 and 36 kJ). The effect of microwave heating on rise and subsequent fall in grain temperature, reduction in m.c. and quality characteristics including germination, seedling dry matter, free fatty acids (FFA) and contaminant fungi was determined. The temperature attained and the moisture loss in the sorghum grain was affected by grain m.c. and the time of exposure. At the lowest and highest microwave treatment level grain temperatures reached 30–40°C and 90–101°C, respectively. However, a 60-sec treatment at the highest energy level was lethal for the grain, particularly at 14 and 16% m.c. The FFA values were unaffected by microwave treatment. Statistical analyses showed that the microwave power level and time individually, and power level × time interactions were significant for most quality characteristics. The fungi present most abundantly on the sorghum grain were Eurotium spp., Aspergillus candidus, A. niger and Penicillium spp. Increasing m.c. and microwave heating resulted in elimination of most fungi after a 30-sec exposure time. With a 60-sec exposure period, practically all fungi were eliminated from the grain.     

Does histology influence outcome in childhood Hodgkin's disease? Results from the United Kingdom Children's Cancer Study Group

PURPOSE: Histology has been identified as an important prognostic factor in Hodgkin's disease (HD) in adults. Information regarding the impact of histology on outcome in childhood HD is scarce. This study determines the effect of histology on the overall survival (OS) or progression-free survival (PFS) in a national series of children treated in a standardized manner. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The results of treatment of 331 assessable patients, treated between January 1, 1982 and June 30, 1992, in the United Kingdom Children's Cancer Study Group (UKCCSG) Hodgkin's study I were reviewed to evaluate OS, PFS, and deaths according to stage and histology. Treatment was either involved-field radiation alone (stage IA) or chlorambucil, vinblastine, procarbazine, and prednisolone (ChlVPP) chemotherapy with or without mediastinal radiation. All were clinically staged at diagnosis. RESULTS: Nodular sclerosing (NS) HD was the most common histologic subtype (155 of 331 patients [47%]) and was uniformly distributed through all stages. Lymphocyte-depletion (LD) HD was extremely uncommon (< 1%). Mixed-cellularity (MC) HD had the highest relapse rate, but this was only significant (P < .05) in stage I patients who received local irradiation alone. There was no other statistically significant difference in OS and PFS between the various histologic subtypes. Multivariate analysis for PFS and OS confirmed that stage was the most important prognostic factor and that histology did not have an effect after stratification by stage. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that with effective multiagent chemotherapy, histologic subtype does not influence outcome. The high relapse rates in stage I MC subtype indicates that MC HD is biologically aggressive and systemic treatment with or without local irradiation may be indicated. The high relapse rate in stage IV patients appeared to be independent of histology.     

Vinyl acetate monomer—a pilot plant study

The kinetics of the reaction of acetic acid and acetylene over zinc acetate-activated carbon catalyst was investigated over a wide range of process variables in a pilot reactor. Although various catalytic reaction mechanisms were postulated, the rate of reaction was most satisfactorily correlated by a mechanism of surface reaction between charged adsorbed acetic acid and acetylene, which assumes that the rate controlling step was the irreversible charged adsorption of acetylene and acetic acid.     

A mathematical framework for algorithm-based fault-tolerant computing over a ring of integers

In this work, we establish a complete mathematical framework for algorithm-based fault-tolerant computing for data vectors defined over a ring of integers. The ring of integers consists of integers {0,1,…,M−1} and all the arithmetic operations are performed modulo the integerM, which is assumed to be composite. The importance of the work lies in the suitability of modulo arithmetic in certain computational environments. Lack of an underlying Galois field,GF(q), presents a unique challenge to this framework. We develop the theory and algorithms for single as well as multiple fault correction and detection. We also analyze the parallel and serial nature of the encoder and decoder configurations. Certain known but rather old results in the theory of numbers dealing with linear congruences and matrix algebra are also described and extended further using mathematical terminology that modern-day researchers are expected to be familiar with.