Pressure Transmission in the Compaction Process for Nickel Powder using Finite Element Methods

The compression process is one of the more widely used industrial manufacturing methods for fabricating desired shape of specimens with various materials such as metals and ceramics. In the compaction process, the upper punch moves into the powder, and force is transmitted between particles, then achieving densification. In this process, the powder can be considered to be in a particulate state, which means that while the powder consists of solids, it has characteristics quite similar to the fluid. Therefore, particles in the process can be seen as responding to hydrostatic pressure, and it can be assumed that the pressure is constant. However, the forces acted on the inter-particle continue to change during the process. Many parameters affect the force change, including compaction speed and the contact angle between particles. However, it is very difficult to verify these effects through experiments because it is impossible to arrange the inter-particle angle. Therefore, in this study, the force transmission mechanism was simulated in the compaction process using FEM simulation. To examine the contact angle and force transmission between the particles, a green compact was modeled as individual particles rather than as a continuum green compact. Finally, it was confirmed through analysis that the pressure transmission between the particles remained constant during the compression process.11Ysciescopu

Expression of Functional Recombinant Mussel Adhesive Protein Mgfp-5 in Escherichia coli

Mussel adhesive proteins have been suggested as a basis for environmentally friendly adhesives for use in aqueous conditions and in medicine. However, attempts to produce functional and economical recombinant mussel adhesive proteins (mainly foot protein type 1) in several systems have failed. Here, the cDNA coding for Mytilus galloprovincialis foot protein type 5 (Mgfp-5) was isolated for the first time. Using this cDNA, we produced a recombinant Mgfp-5 fused with a hexahistidine affinity ligand, which was expressed in a soluble form in Escherichia coli and was highly purified using affinity chromatography. The adhesive properties of purified recombinant Mgfp-5 were compared with the commercial extracted mussel adhesive Cell-Tak by investigating adhesion force using atomic force microscopy, material surface coating, and quartz crystal microbalance. Even though further macroscale assays are needed, these microscale assays showed that recombinant Mgfp-5 has significant adhesive ability and may be useful as a bioadhesive in medical or underwater environments.X119196sciescopu

Temperature Dependent Current-voltage Characteristics of P-type Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells Fabricated Using Screen-printing Process

We have fabricated p-type crystalline silicon (Si) solar cells using screen-printing process and investigated their electrical properties. Ph screen printing process led to the uniform formation of n+ emitter. As a result of interaction between Ph-dopant paste and Si substrate, a phosphosilicate glass layer was formed on n+ emitter surface. The current-voltage characteristics were carried out in the temperature range of 175 – 450 K in steps of 25 K. The variation in current level at a particular voltage strongly depended on temperature, indicating that the current transport across the junction was a temperature activated process. The reverse leakage current gradually increased with increasing measurement temperature up to 350 K, above which it rapidly increased. Arrhenius plot of the leakage current revealed that reverse leakage current in low and high temperature regions were dominated by the tunneling mechanism, and generation and recombination mechanism, respectively. Keywords: P-type Si solar cell, screen-printing, I-V, tunneling, generation and recombination, reverse leakage curren

From Text to Sign Language: Exploiting the Spatial and Motioning Dimension

PACLIC 19 / Taipei, taiwan / December 1-3, 200

Analysis of Slab and Slab Heater Cover in a Compact Endless Cast and Rolling Mill Process using Finite Element Methods

Compact Endless cast and rolling Mill (CEM) processes were developed and used to fabricate steel products such as steel slabs. However, the coiling furnace in this process was very expensive, so a new layout was suggested. As the coiling furnace was removed, the interval among the slab heaters had to be increased. This led to a temperature drop in the slab. The temperature distribution of the slab impacts quality, so new layout was developed. This paper presents a Finite Element Method (FEM) simulation of thermal behavior in the slab employing slab heater covers. All of the simulation results were verified by comparing them with experimental results. The slab moving distance at which the temperature was saturated during the process was determined to consider the steady-state and analyze the temperature distribution of the slab and slab heater. Those results revealed that the efficiency of heat conservation increased by more than 50% using the slab heater cover. Finally, a sensitivity analysis of the slab heater cover was conducted with respect to the cover design. The effects of insulator thickness, the gap distance between the slab and cover, and material parameters such as density, and specific heat were investigated to optimize the design of the slab heater cover to produce the best quality slab.11Ysciescopuskc

Estimating δ15N and δ13C in Barley and Pea Mixtures Using Near-Infrared Spectroscopy with Genetic Algorithm Based Partial Least Squares Regression

Stable isotope measurements have been increasingly used as a method to obtain information on relationships between plants and their environment (Dawson et al., 2002). Stable isotopes are seen as a powerful tool for advancing our knowledge on stock cycling and, nitrogen and carbon isotopic compositions have provided key insights into biogeochemical interactions between plants, soils and the atmosphere (Robinson, 2001). For the stable isotope measurements, the δ13C isotopic signature has been used successfully to disentangle physiological, ecological and biogeochemical processes and, δ15N studies have significantly improved our knowledge on nitrogen cycling pathways and nitrogen acquisition by plants (Vallano and Sparks, 2008). For the stable isotope measurements, traditional laboratory methods using isotope analysis are accurate and reliable, but usually time-consuming and expensive. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) analysis provides rapid, accurate and less expensive estimation. NIRS have been made to estimate herbage parameters using statistical methods such as multiple linear regression and partial least square regression (PLSR). PLSR uses all available wavebands in multivariate calibration for quantitative analysis of the spectral data. However, previous studies indicated that PLSR with waveband selection might improve their predictive accuracy in multivariate calibration at laboratory (Leardi, 2000) and the selection of appropriate wavelengths can refine the predictive accuracy of the PLS model by optimizing important spectral wavebands both in laboratory NIRS (Jiang et al., 2002). To optimize important spectral wavebands by wavelength selection, genetic algorithms (GA) is widely used, because GA has the ability to simulate the natural evolution of an individual and GA is well suited for solving variable subset selection problems (Ding et al., 1998). Barley and pea mixture is one of the most important forage species for livestock farming in Korea. To investigate nitrogen fixation and transfer in barley and pea mixture, stable isotope measurements was widely used. However, there was no research to estimate stable isotope in barley and pea mixture using NIRS in Korea. The aim of this study was to investigate performance of NIRS with PLSR using genetic algorithms based wavelength selection (GA-PLSR) and compare with PLSR without wavelength selection (FS-PLSR) for the estimation of δ15N and δ13C in barley and pea mixture