Efficient Engineering and Production Concepts for Products in Regulated Environments – Dream or Nightmare?

Manufacturing of chemical‐pharmaceutical products is moving increasingly fast on a global scale. Therefore, developing and starting up production facilities fast, with high quality, and at reasonable costs has become extremely challenging. Engineering concepts like modularization, standardization and simultaneous/parallel engineering are discussed as methods for speeding up process design and filing for regulatory approval. Transfer from batch to continuous operation mode of production is pointed out as the key‐issue in such strategies.     

Effect of Constant‐Rate Reduction on the Performance of a Ternary Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 Catalyst in Methanol Synthesis

A multi‐functional flow set‐up was developed for the rate‐ and temperature‐controlled reduction of copper catalysts, their application in high‐pressure methanol synthesis and the determination of the copper surface area by N₂O frontal chromatography. The influence of constant‐rate reduction on the catalytic properties of a ternary Cu/ZnO/Al₂O₃ catalyst was investigated. The temperature during the constant‐rate reduction was found to decrease, indicating autocatalytic kinetics, but no significant catalytic effect of the milder reduction conditions was observed compared with a slow linear heating ramp.     

Schädigungsentwicklung der Legierung IN 738 LC bei Hochtemperatur-LCF-Beanspruchung

Damage evolution of the alloy IN 738 LC at high temperature low cycle fatigue Herrn Professor K.-T. Rie zum 60. Geburtstag Interrupted Low-Cycle-Fatigue tests have been carried out with IN 738 LC at 850°C. The specimens were extensively examined by SEM to quantify the evolution of fatigue damage. Surface crack nucleation at oxidized grain boundaries occured during the whole experiments. The coalescence of cracks was the dominant mechanism which lead to macro crack evolution and the final fracture.     

过程链管理--用于制定和管理转型组织的工具

在当今企业环境日益复杂而活跃的背景条件下，企业需要不断进行重组和迅速转型。这要求企业要具备更强的适应性和更高的灵活性。为了确保实现这些动态的要求，企业必须制定和实施新型的组织形式。本文介绍过程链管理——一种面向过程进行转型的工具。本文首先简要说明了过程链管理应用的工具、过程链管理的任务和构造。它的出发点是由行动、结构、资源、和指挥所组成的过程链管理。在第二步骤中，重点阐述了客户取向这个过程链管理中最重要的取向量。总体来说，整个价值创造链及与此相关的内部交换关系都具有重要意义。在对过程链管理的方法进行了说明以后，提出了一个应用实例，该实例不仅描述了垂直重构，也对水平重构进行了描述。     

The attitudes of French and Spanish winegrowers towards the use of cover crops in vineyards

Vineyards are an intensive cultivation system and expose the soil to long-lasting stress. Many vineyard areas already show high degrees of soil degradation. To prevent further soil erosion, cover crops, which have various positive effects on the environment, are highly recommended. But, depending on the climatic conditions, cover crops can reduce grape yields and are sometimes more work intensive than bare soil management. In some areas cover crops are already widespread while in others bare soil is dominant. In this qualitative study, we explore the attitudes of European winegrowers towards cover crops and determine the background for differences in the adoption of greened vineyards. Thus, we conducted focus groups with winegrowers in two different regions, namely Coteaux du Layon in France and Montilla-Moriles in Spain. In this setting, the transregional differences are mainly based on the climatic conditions but also on different business structures and knowledge levels. Direct sellers seem to be more attentive to the environment and use cover crops more often than farmers which sell their grapes to cooperatives.     

Ferroelectric Poling of Methylammonium Lead Iodide Thin Films

Seemingly contradictory reports on polar domains and their origin have surrounded the controversial discussion about the ferroelectricity of the methyl ammonium lead iodide (MAPbI₃) thin films that are commonly employed in perovskite solar cells. In this work, microscopic modulations of the polar domain patterns upon application of an electric poling field are correlated with macroscopic changes to the currents through the MAPbI₃ layer. Piezoresponse force microscopy is used to monitor the widening, narrowing, generation or extinction of polar domains, as well as shifts of the domain walls at room temperature under an in‐plane electric poling field that is applied between two laterally organized electrodes. This poling leads to a net polarization of individual grains and the thin film itself. Macroscopically, this net polarization results in a persistent shift of the diode characteristics that is measured across the channel between the electrodes. Both the modulation of the polar domains upon electric poling and the concurrent persistent shift of the electric currents through the device are the unambiguous hallmarks of ferroelectricity, which demonstrate that MAPbI₃ is a ferroelectric semiconductor.     

Thermodynamic and Experimental Investigations of High-Temperature Refractory Corrosion by Molten Slags

Corrosion mechanisms between MgO refractory substrates and FeNi slags were investigated. The FeNi slags taken into consideration represent a simple synthetically mixed slag with specific oxides and a real slag from a ferroalloy producer. The MgO refractory substrates with the specimens of FeNi slag were heated in a hot-stage microscope at 10 K/min from room temperature to three different temperatures 1573 K, 1723 K, and 1923 K (1300 °C, 1450 °C, and 1650 °C). The experiments were carried out under a controlled gas atmosphere that simulates the relevant process conditions. The corrosion mechanisms of each system were followed by scanning electron microscope analyses. The results obtained showed that slag corrosion dominates, with a pronounced partial dissolution of refractory fines forming Mg-silicates of type forsterite. It was also observed that iron oxide present in the slag diffused into the coarse refractory grains forming magnesiowustite. Finally, the results obtained were compared with those predicted by FACTSAGE software to understand the corrosion mechanisms and draw implications for improving the refractory performance and lifetime.     

Archaeological Arsenical Bronzes and Equilibrium in the As-Cu System

Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B - Understanding the effects of impurities, segregation, undercooling, and solidification velocity is necessary to reconstruct prehistoric As-Cu alloy...