452 research outputs found
Decreasing Electrical Energy Consumption through SiC Additions
This paper summarizes results of industrial experiments investigating the introduction of supplemental chemical energy in Electric Arc Furnaces (EAF). Specifically, this research evaluates the effects of adding 0.4-0.6% of the scrap charge weight as SiC (10 lbs per scrap ton charged) in the EAF. SiC additions increase the available exothermic reactions during oxygen boiling in an attempt to reduce the electrical energy requirements. Results from 180 trial heats at two different steel foundries are highlighted and statistically evaluated. In both cases, the SiC additions had a measurable effect on decreasing the electrical energy consumption
Improving Melting Efficiency through the Application of New Refractory Materials
Ladle design and ladle practices have a significant effect on a foundry operation and product quality. Large steel temperature losses or instabilities in the pouring temperature are frequently compensated by tapping at higher temperatures dramatically increasing furnace and ladle lining wear, oxidation of the steel, alloying element losses, and energy consumption in steel melting. Ladle lining materials need to satisfy a complex array of often conflicting requirements. For example, ceramic materials for linings must possess a high strength at liquid steel temperatures to prevent erosion and crack formation. However, linings need to also have a low thermal conductivity which typically increases as the strength improves. Temperature problems became more severe with decreasing ladle size. This paper summarizes test work of new lining materials in a 100 lb liquid metal capacity ladle in the UMR foundry designed with a temperature measurement system installed in the lining. Several different working linings materials were tested under similar conditions. Results from these foundry experiments were compared with thermal conductivity measurements in the laboratory and computation fluid dynamic modeling results. From this work, UMR\u27s newly developed porous alumina linings were shown to have properties that could result in significantly lowering energy requirements in steel foundries
Scholarship in Review 89(1)
Scholarship in Review was a magazine highlighting research and scholarly activities at Central Washington University, published by the Office of Graduate Studies and Research.https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/scholarship_in_review/1005/thumbnail.jp
Scholarship in Review 88(1)
Scholarship in Review was a magazine highlighting research and scholarly activities at Central Washington University, published by the Office of Graduate Studies and Research.https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/scholarship_in_review/1004/thumbnail.jp
Scholarship in Review 86(1)
Scholarship in Review was a magazine highlighting research and scholarly activities at Central Washington University, published by the Office of Graduate Studies and Research.https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/scholarship_in_review/1002/thumbnail.jp
Identification of A-colored Stars and Structure in the Halo of the Milky Way from SDSS Commissioning Data
A sample of 4208 objects with magnitude 15 < g* < 22 and colors of main
sequence A stars has been selected from 370 square degrees of Sloan Digital Sky
Survey (SDSS) commissioning observations. The data is from two long, narrow
stripes, each with an opening angle of greater than 60 deg, at Galactic
latitudes 36 < abs(b) < 63 on the celestial equator. An examination of the
sample's distribution shows that these stars trace considerable substructure in
the halo. Large overdensities of A-colored stars in the North at (l,b,R) =
(350, 50, 46 kpc) and in the South at (157, -58, 33 kpc) and extending over
tens of degrees are present in the halo of the Milky Way. Using photometry to
separate the stars by surface gravity, both structures are shown to contain a
sequence of low surface gravity stars consistent with identification as a blue
horizontal branch (BHB). Both structures also contain a population of high
surface gravity stars two magnitudes fainter than the BHB stars, consistent
with their identification as blue stragglers (BSs). From the numbers of
detected BHB stars, lower limits to the implied mass of the structures are
6x10^6 M_sun and 2x10^6 M_sun. The fact that two such large clumps have been
detected in a survey of only 1% of the sky indicates that such structures are
not uncommon in the halo. Simple spheroidal parameters are fit to a complete
sample of the remaining unclumped BHB stars and yield (at r < 40 kpc) a fit to
a halo distribution with flattening (c/a = 0.65+/-0.2) and a density falloff
exponent of alpha = -3.2+/-0.3.Comment: AASTeX v5_0, 26 pages, 1 table, 20 figures, ApJ accepte
A Gravitationally Lensed Quasar with Quadruple Images Separated by 14.62 Arcseconds
Gravitational lensing is a powerful tool for the study of the distribution of
dark matter in the Universe. The cold-dark-matter model of the formation of
large-scale structures predicts the existence of quasars gravitationally lensed
by concentrations of dark matter so massive that the quasar images would be
split by over 7 arcsec. Numerous searches for large-separation lensed quasars
have, however, been unsuccessful. All of the roughly 70 lensed quasars known,
including the first lensed quasar discovered, have smaller separations that can
be explained in terms of galaxy-scale concentrations of baryonic matter.
Although gravitationally lensed galaxies with large separations are known,
quasars are more useful cosmological probes because of the simplicity of the
resulting lens systems. Here we report the discovery of a lensed quasar, SDSS
J1004+4112, which has a maximum separation between the components of 14.62
arcsec. Such a large separation means that the lensing object must be dominated
by dark matter. Our results are fully consistent with theoretical expectations
based on the cold-dark-matter model.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, to appear in the 18th&25th Dec issue of Nature
(Letters to Nature
Spectroscopic Target Selection in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey: The Quasar Sample
We describe the algorithm for selecting quasar candidates for optical
spectroscopy in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Quasar candidates are selected
via their non-stellar colors in "ugriz" broad-band photometry, and by matching
unresolved sources to the FIRST radio catalogs. The automated algorithm is
sensitive to quasars at all redshifts lower than z=5.8. Extended sources are
also targeted as low-redshift quasar candidates in order to investigate the
evolution of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) at the faint end of the luminosity
function. Nearly 95% of previously known quasars are recovered (based on 1540
quasars in 446 square degrees). The overall completeness, estimated from
simulated quasars, is expected to be over 90%, whereas the overall efficiency
(quasars:quasar candidates) is better than 65%. The selection algorithm targets
ultraviolet excess quasars to i^*=19.1 and higher-redshift (z>3) quasars to
i^*=20.2, yielding approximately 18 candidates per square degree. In addition
to selecting ``normal'' quasars, the design of the algorithm makes it sensitive
to atypical AGN such as Broad Absorption Line quasars and heavily reddened
quasars.Comment: 62 pages, 15 figures (8 color), 8 tables. Accepted by AJ. For a
version with higher quality color figures, see
http://archive.stsci.edu/sdss/quasartarget/RichardsGT_qsotarget.preprint.p
Microlensing variability in the gravitationally lensed quasar Q2237+0305 = the Einstein Cross, I. Spectrophotometric monitoring with the VLT
We present the results of the first long-term (2.2 years) spectroscopic
monitoring of a gravitationally lensed quasar, namely the Einstein Cross
Q2237+0305. The goal of this paper is to present the observational facts to be
compared in follow-up papers with theoretical models to constrain the inner
structure of the source quasar. We spatially deconvolve deep VLT/FORS1 spectra
to accurately separate the spectrum of the lensing galaxy from the spectra of
the quasar images. Accurate cross-calibration of the 58 observations at
31-epoch from October 2004 to December 2006 is carried out with non-variable
foreground stars observed simultaneously with the quasar. The quasar spectra
are further decomposed into a continuum component and several broad emission
lines to infer the variations of these spectral components. We find prominent
microlensing events in the quasar images A and B, while images C and D are
almost quiescent on a timescale of a few months. The strongest variations are
observed in the continuum of image A. Their amplitude is larger in the blue
(0.7 mag) than in the red (0.5 mag), consistent with microlensing of an
accretion disk. Variations in the intensity and profile of the broad emission
lines are also reported, most prominently in the wings of the CIII] and center
of the CIV emission lines. During a strong microlensing episode observed in
June 2006 in quasar image A, the broad component of the CIII] is more highly
magnified than the narrow component. In addition, the emission lines with
higher ionization potentials are more magnified than the lines with lower
ionization potentials, consistent with the results obtained with reverberation
mapping. Finally, we find that the V-band differential extinction by the lens,
between the quasar images, is in the range 0.1-0.3 mag.Comment: 16 pages, 16 figures, A&A accepted, corrected Fig. 1
Consistent Pulmonary and Systemic Responses from Inhalation of Fine Concentrated Ambient Particles: Roles of Rat Strains Used and Physicochemical Properties
Several studies have reported health effects of concentrated ambient particles (CAP) in rodents and humans; however, toxicity end points in rodents have provided inconsistent results. In 2000 we conducted six 1-day exposure studies where spontaneously hypertensive (SH) rats were exposed to filtered air or CAPs (≤ 2.5 μm, 1,138–1,765 μg/m(3)) for 4 hr (analyzed 1–3 hr afterward). In seven 2-day exposure studies in 2001, SH and Wistar Kyoto (WKY) rats were exposed to filtered air or CAP (≤ 2.5 μm, 144–2,758 μg/m(3)) for 4 hr/day × 2 days (analyzed 1 day afterward). Despite consistent and high CAP concentrations in the 1-day exposure studies, no biologic effects were noted. The exposure concentrations varied among the seven 2-day exposure studies. Except in the first study when CAP concentration was highest, lavageable total cells and macrophages decreased and neutrophils increased in WKY rats. SH rats demonstrated a consistent increase of lavage fluid γ -glutamyltransferase activity and plasma fibrinogen. Inspiratory and expiratory times increased in SH but not in WKY rats. Significant correlations were found between CAP mass (microgram per cubic meter) and sulfate, organic carbon, or zinc. No biologic effects correlated with CAP mass. Despite low chamber mass in the last six of seven 2-day exposure studies, the levels of zinc, copper, and aluminum were enriched severalfold, and organic carbon was increased to some extent when expressed per milligram of CAP. Biologic effects were evident in those six studies. These studies demonstrate a pattern of rat strain–specific pulmonary and systemic effects that are not linked to high mass but appear to be dependent on CAP chemical composition
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