Arc Root Motions In An Argon-Hydrogen Direct-Current Plasma Torch At Reduced Pressure

Arc root motions in generating dc argon-hydrogen plasma at reduced pressure are optically observed using a high-speed video camera. The time resolved angular position of the arc root attachment point is measured and analysed. The arc root movement is characterized as a chaotic and jumping motion along the circular direction on the anode surface.

Deformation Twinning In Bulk Nanocrystalline Metals: Experimental Observations

Deformation twins have been observed in nanocrystalline (nc) fcc metals with medium-to-high stacking fault energies such as aluminum, copper, and nickel. These metals in their coarse-grained states rarely deform by twining at room temperature and low strain rates. Several twinning mechanisms have been reported that are unique to nc metals. This paper reviews experimental evidences on deformation twinning and partial dislocation. emissions from grain boundaries, twinning mechanisms, and twins with zero-macro-strain. Factors that affect the twinning propensity and recent analytical models on the critical grain sizes for twinning are also discussed. The current issues on deformation twinning in nanocrystalline metals are listed.

Statistical analysis of synthetic earthquake catalogs generated by models with various levels of fault zone disorder

The stress release model, a stochastic version of the elastic rebound theory, is applied to the large events from four synthetic earthquake catalogs generated by models with various levels of disorder in distribution of fault zone strength (Ben-Zion, 1996) They include models with uniform properties (U), a Parkfield-type asperity (A), fractal brittle properties (F), and multi-size-scale heterogeneities (M). The results show that the degree of regularity or predictability in the assumed fault properties, based on both the Akaike information criterion and simulations, follows the order U, F, A, and M, which is in good agreement with that obtained by pattern recognition techniques applied to the full set of synthetic data. Data simulated from the best fitting stress release models reproduce, both visually and in distributional terms, the main features of the original catalogs. The differences in character and the quality of prediction between the four cases are shown to be dependent on two main aspects: the parameter controlling the sensitivity to departures from the mean stress level and the frequency-magnitude distribution, which differs substantially between the four cases. In particular, it is shown that the predictability of the data is strongly affected by the form of frequency-magnitude distribution, being greatly reduced if a pure Gutenburg-Richter form is assumed to hold out to high magnitudes.

Studies on two-phase co-current air/non-Newtonian shear-thinning fluid flows in inclined smooth pipes

In this work. co-current flow characteristics of air/non-Newtonian liquid systems in inclined smooth pipes are studied experimentally and theoretically using transparent tubes of 20, 40 and 60 turn in diameter. Each tube includes two 10 m lone pipe branches connected by a U-bend that is capable of being inclined to any angle, from a completely horizontal to a fully vertical position. The flow rate of each phase is varied over a wide range. The studied flow phenomena are bubbly, plug flow, slug flow, churn flow and annular flow. These are observed and recorded by a high flow. stratified flow. -speed camera over a wide range of operating conditions. The effects of the liquid phase properties, the inclination angle and the pipe diameter on two-phase flow characteristics are systematically studied. The Heywood-Charles model for horizontal flow was modified to accommodate stratified flow in inclined pipes, taking into account the average void fraction and pressure drop of the mixture flow of a gas/non-Newtonian liquid. The pressure drop gradient model of Taitel and Barnea for a gas/Newtonian liquid slug flow was extended to include liquids possessing shear-thinning flow behaviour in inclined pipes. The comparison of the predicted values with the experimental data shows that the models presented here provide a reasonable estimate of the average void fraction and the corresponding pressure drop for the mixture flow of a gas/ non-Newtonian liquid. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.