Effect of particle concentration on erosion rate of mild steel bends in a pneumatic conveyor

Particle concentration is known as a main factor that affects erosion rate of pipe bends in pneumatic conveyors. With consideration of different bend radii, the effect of particle concentration on weight loss of mild steel bends has been investigated in an industrial scale test rig. Experimental results show that there was a significant reduction of the specific erosion rate for high particle concentrations. This reduction was considered to be as a result of the shielding effect during the particle impacts. An empirical model is given. Also a theoretical study of scaling on the shielding effect, and comparisons with some existing models, are presented. It is found that the reduction in specific erosion rate (relative to particle concentration) has a stronger relationship in conveying pipelines than has been found in the erosion tester. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

In-situ deposition of sparse vertically aligned carbon nanofibres on catalytically activated stainless steel mesh for field emission applications

We report on an inexpensive, facile and industry viable carbon nanofibre catalyst activation process achieved by exposing stainless steel mesh to an electrolyzed metal etchant. The surface evolution of the catalyst islands combines low-rate electroplating and substrate dissolution. The plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposited carbon nanofibres had aspect-ratios > 150 and demonstrated excellent height and crystallographic uniformity with localised coverage. The nanofibres were well-aligned with spacing consistent with the field emission nearest neighbour electrostatic shielding criteria, without the need of any post-growth processing. Nanofibre inclusion significantly reduced the emission threshold field from 4.5 V/μm (native mesh) to 2.5 V/μm and increased the field enhancement factor to approximately 7000. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Reusing steel and aluminum components at end of product life.

Reusing steel and aluminum components would reduce the need for new production, possibly creating significant savings in carbon emissions. Currently, there is no clearly defined set of strategies or barriers to enable assessment of appropriate component reuse; neither is it possible to predict future levels of reuse. This work presents a global assessment of the potential for reusing steel and aluminum components. A combination of top-down and bottom-up analyses is used to allocate the final destinations of current global steel and aluminum production to product types. A substantial catalogue has been compiled for these products characterizing key features of steel and aluminum components including design specifications, requirements in use, and current reuse patterns. To estimate the fraction of end-of-life metal components that could be reused for each product, the catalogue formed the basis of a set of semistructured interviews with industrial experts. The results suggest that approximately 30% of steel and aluminum used in current products could be reused. Barriers against reuse are examined, prompting recommendations for redesign that would facilitate future reuse.

The flow of steel into the construction sector

Half of the world's annual production of steel is used in constructing buildings and infrastructure. Producing this steel causes significant amounts of carbon dioxide to be released into the atmosphere. Climate change experts recommend this amount be halved by 2050; however steel demand is predicted to have doubled by this date. As process efficiency improvements will not reach the required 75% reduction in emissions per unit steel output, new methods must be examined to deliver service using less steel production. To apply such methods successfully to construction, it must first be known where steel is used currently within the industry. This information is not available so a methodology is proposed to estimate it from known data. Results are presented for steel flows by product for ten construction sectors for both the UK and the world in 2006. An estimate for steel use within a 'typical' building is also published for the first time. Industrial buildings and utility infrastructure are identified as the largest end-uses of steel, while superstructure is confirmed as the main use of steel in a building. The results highlight discrepancies in previous steel estimates and life-cycle assessments, and will inform future research on lowering demand for steel, hence reducing carbon emissions. © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Influence of micro supersonic jets on micro percussion drilling of 316L stainless steel using nanosecond 355NM laser radiation

The interaction phenomena of nanosecond Q-switched diode-pumped solid state (DPSS) laser using 355nm radiation with 0.2mm thick 316L stainless steel foil was investigated at incident laser fluence range of 19 - 82Jcm-2. The characterization study was performed with and without the use of assist gas by utilizing micro supersonic minimum length nozzles (MLN), specifically designed for air at inlet chamber pressure of 8bar. MLN ranged in throat diameters of 200μm, 300μm, and 500μm respectively. Average etch rate per pulse under the influence of three micro supersonic impinging jets, for both oxygen and air showed the average etch rate was reduced when high-speed gas jets were utilized, compared to that without any gas jets, but significant variation was noticed between different jet sizes. Highest etch rate and quality was achieved with the smallest diameter nozzle, suggesting that micro nozzles can produce a viable process route for micro laser cutting.

Short-term in vitro responses of human peripheral blood monocytes to ferritic stainless steel fiber networks.

Beneficial effects on bone-implant bonding may accrue from ferromagnetic fiber networks on implants which can deform in vivo inducing controlled levels of mechanical strain directly in growing bone. This approach requires ferromagnetic fibers that can be implanted in vivo without stimulating undue inflammatory cell responses or cytotoxicity. This study examines the short-term in vitro responses, including attachment, viability, and inflammatory stimulation, of human peripheral blood monocytes to 444 ferritic stainless steel fiber networks. Two types of 444 networks, differing in fiber cross section and thus surface area, were considered alongside austenitic stainless steel fiber networks, made of 316L, a widely established implant material. Similar high percent seeding efficiencies were measured by CyQuant® on all fiber networks after 48 h of cell culture. Extensive cell attachment was confirmed by fluorescence and scanning electron microscopy, which showed round monocytes attached at various depths into the fiber networks. Medium concentrations of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) were determined as indicators of viability and inflammatory responses, respectively. Percent LDH concentrations were similar for both 444 fiber networks at all time points, whereas significantly lower than those of 316L control networks at 24 h. All networks elicited low-level secretions of TNF-α, which were significantly lower than that of the positive control wells containing zymosan. Collectively, the results indicate that 444 networks produce comparable responses to medical implant grade 316L networks and are able to support human peripheral blood monocytes in short-term in vitro cultures without inducing significant inflammatory or cytotoxic effects.

In vitro osteoblast response to ferritic stainless steel fiber networks for magneto-active layers on implants

The use of a porous coating on prosthetic components to encourage bone ingrowth is an important way of improving uncemented implant fixation. Enhanced fixation may be achieved by the use of porous magneto-active layers on the surface of prosthetic implants, which would deform elastically on application of a magnetic field, generating internal stresses within the in-growing bone. This approach requires a ferromagnetic material able to support osteoblast attachment, proliferation, differentiation, and mineralization. In this study, the human osteoblast responses to ferromagnetic 444 stainless steel networks were considered alongside those to nonmagnetic 316L (medical grade) stainless steel networks. While both networks had similar porosities, 444 networks were made from coarser fibers, resulting in larger inter-fiber spaces. The networks were analyzed for cell morphology, distribution, proliferation, and differentiation, extracellular matrix production and the formation of mineralized nodules. Cell culture was performed in both the presence of osteogenic supplements, to encourage cell differentiation, and in their absence. It was found that fiber size affected osteoblast morphology, cytoskeleton organization and proliferation at the early stages of culture. The larger inter-fiber spaces in the 444 networks resulted in better spatial distribution of the extracellular matrix. The addition of osteogenic supplements enhanced cell differentiation and reduced cell proliferation thereby preventing the differences in proliferation observed in the absence of osteogenic supplements. The results demonstrated that 444 networks elicited favorable responses from human osteoblasts, and thus show potential for use as magnetically active porous coatings for advanced bone implant applications. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Graphene-passivated nickel as an oxidation-resistant electrode for spintronics.

We report on graphene-passivated ferromagnetic electrodes (GPFE) for spin devices. GPFE are shown to act as spin-polarized oxidation-resistant electrodes. The direct coating of nickel with few layer graphene through a readily scalable chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process allows the preservation of an unoxidized nickel surface upon air exposure. Fabrication and measurement of complete reference tunneling spin valve structures demonstrate that the GPFE is maintained as a spin polarizer and also that the presence of the graphene coating leads to a specific sign reversal of the magneto-resistance. Hence, this work highlights a novel oxidation-resistant spin source which further unlocks low cost wet chemistry processes for spintronics devices.

Mapping the global flow of steel: from steelmaking to end-use goods.

Our society is addicted to steel. Global demand for steel has risen to 1.4 billion tonnes a year and is set to at least double by 2050, while the steel industry generates nearly a 10th of the world's energy related CO₂ emissions. Meeting our 2050 climate change targets would require a 75% reduction in CO₂ emissions for every tonne of steel produced and finding credible solutions is proving a challenge. The starting point for understanding the environmental impacts of steel production is to accurately map the global steel supply chain and identify the biggest steel flows where actions can be directed to deliver the largest impact. In this paper we present a map of global steel, which for the first time traces steel flows from steelmaking, through casting, forming, and rolling, to the fabrication of final goods. The diagram reveals the relative scale of steel flows and shows where efforts to improve energy and material efficiency should be focused.