The Study of Hot Deformation Behavior of Mechanically Milled and Hot Extruded Al–BN Nanocomposite

Hot deformation behavior of mechanically milled and hot extruded Al–BN nanocomposite is investigated by hot compression test in the temperature range of 350–500 °C and strain rate of 0.001–1 s^?1. The plastic flow of the nanocomposite as a function of temperature and strain rate is described using a constitutive equation. Based on dynamic materials model, the processing map is developed at the strain of 0.7 representing stable and instable domains. The stable and instable domains in the processing map are verified by microstructural evaluation using transmission and scanning electron microscopes. The results show that the flow instability domains including micro voids and surface cracks have occurred in the range of: (1) T = 350–380 °C, \(\dot{\varepsilon }\) = 0.001–0.015 s^?1, (2) T = 370–430 °C, \(\dot{\varepsilon }\) = 0.1–1 s^?1, and (3) T = 460–500 °C, \(\dot{\varepsilon }\) = 0.001–0.03 s^?1. The safe and stable domains for hot deformation of nanocomposite have occurred in the range of: (1) T = 350–370 °C, \(\dot{\varepsilon }\) = 0.1–1 s^?1, (2) T = 390–450 °C, \(\dot{\varepsilon }\) = 0.003–0.05 s^?1, and (3) T = 440–500 °C, \(\dot{\varepsilon }\) = 0.1–1 s^?1. Finally, the investigation shows that the best processing parameters for this new nanocomposite are within the temperature range of 390–450 °C and strain rate range of 0.003–0.05 s^?1.     

Influence of Thermo‐Mechanical Processing Parameters and Chemical Composition on Bake Hardening Ability of Hot Rolled Martensitic Steels

In recent years, the increasing demand for advanced high‐strength steels (AHSS) has mainly been driven by the automotive industry and the need to reduce weight and to improve safety. Besides good ductility and high strength, AHSS have a high bake hardening and ageing effect, giving additional contribution to the strength of structural parts, subjected to the paint baking process. This paper investigates their bake hardening behaviour in dependence of hot rolling parameters and chemical composition, however, focussing on martensitic steels. Tosimulate the finishing steps of the hot rolling process with slight changes in reduction and temperature and their influence on the final mechanical properties of hot rolled martensitic steels, different thermo‐mechanical paths were applied. The increase in strength due to bake hardening was determined for different thermo‐mechanical schedules. Additionally, samples of different chemical compositions within the characteristic industrial tolerance range were studied under variation of pre‐load conditions, simulating the thermo‐mechanical hot rolling process. The samples were then subjected to bake hardening to study the varying chemical composition on this effect. Furthermore, the local use of bake hardening and ageing in hot rolled multiphase steels was investigated. It could be shown that characteristic values integrally describing the ageing effect, depend on the deformation path and the degree of pre‐strain, as well as on temperature and duration of the subsequent heat treatment. This partial ageing is stable and has a potential to be used for local strengthening of the steels.     

Characterization of a new shielding rubber for use in neutron–gamma mixed fields

A variety of formulations was investigated for the fabrication of an appropriate shielding rubber to be used in neutron–gamma mixed fields. Having considered the required mechanical properties together with tungsten as the gamma-ray absorbing element, calculations with MCNPX 2.6 code confirmed that the incorporation of 5 weight percentage(wt%) of boron carbide exhibited the best performance as a thermal neutron absorber. A series of both experimental and simulation results are provided for comparison.     

Adaptive control of pure-feedback systems with nonlinear parameterization via time-scale separation

International Journal of Control, Automation and Systems - In this paper an adaptive control approach for completely non-affine pure-feedback systems with nonlinear parameterization is proposed. By...     

Response of Slab Bridges Before, During, and After Repair

Continuous reinforced concrete slab bridges rely on reinforcing steel bars near the top of the deck over the piers to carry negative moment. Transfer of forces in these bars may be jeopardized by deterioration and repair procedures that involve variable depth removal of deteriorated concrete around the bars. Partial or full loss of continuity could overstress the bottom reinforcement. Truckload testing of three bridges with various levels of damage was conducted before, during, and after repair in an attempt to quantify the level of loss of continuity and to examine the effectiveness of repair in terms of increasing the load transfer and enhancing the overall stiffness. Test results show loss of stiffness during repair but increased stiffness after completion of repair. The continuity was found to be lost during repair, and the slab dead load positive moments may be increased by as much as 50%. After repair, the continuity was restored, and the live-load distribution was essentially unaltered. For the test bridges, the redistribution of dead-load moment to the positive-moment zones did not appreciably affect the overall bridge rating factor. The amount of moment redistribution may be controlled through planning of repair steps.     

Modification of rice hull and sawdust sorptive characteristics for remove heavy metals from synthetic solutions and wastewater

In this work two modified agricultural residues, rice hull and sawdust were examined as sorbents to remove heavy metals Pb(II), Cd(II), Zn(II), Cu(II) and Ni(II) from synthetic solutions or wastewater samples. To modify their sorptive characteristics, samples were treated with HCl, NaOH and heat. The sorption of the heavy metals from the synthetic solutions was increased with pH and initial concentration. In pH 5, Pb(II) and Cd(II) showed the highest sorption and Cu(II), Zn(II) and Ni(II) showed the following orders, respectively. Sorption capacity of rice hull was higher than sawdust. The modifications changed the sorption capacity of the natural sorbents in the following order base>heat>natural>acid. The sorption isotherms of sorbents were best described by the Freundlich and Langmuir models. The basic treated rice hull and sawdust followed by the heat treated rice hull sorbed the maximum of heavy metals from the industrial wastewater samples. In the column experiment, the synthetic solutions and the wastewater samples gave almost the same results as the suspensions. The recovery of the columns using water and HCl showed positive results. Commercial sorbents removed Pb(II), Zn(II) and Ni(II) a little more than rice hull.