Cut Size Research Articles

Vegetative propagation of hops (Humulus lupulus L.): Historical approach and perspectives

Hop (Humulus lupulus L.) female inflorescences are important raw materials used to produce beers, cosmetics, and medicines. Vegetative propagation is the preferred way of obtaining seedlings for commercial cultivations as female plants produce more lupulin than male plants, a component of commercial interest. It can be carried out by macropropagation (stem cuttings or rhizomes) or micropropagation. This review aimed to systematize different techniques of hop vegetative propagation, with no time frame, from searches in the main academic research bases: Capes Journal Portal, Scielo, Scopus, Web of Science, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and ResearchGate. Most studies are related to micropropagation, mainly addressing different plant regulators and concentrations, as well as types of explants and culture media, strategies to produce virus-free plants, artificial lighting, and cryopreservation. Experiments with stem cuttings are more common regarding macropropagation, but factors such as size and origin of cuttings, rooting period, and the response of different cultivars need to be better evaluated. Cultivation by cuttings allows the production of clones of female plants and micropropagation the production of virus-free clones in a short time and less physical space. Currently, micropropagation has been widely applied to cryopreservation.

Development of Prediction Models for Pressure Loss and Classification Efficiency in Classifiers

This paper presents the development of prediction models for pressure loss and classification efficiency in classifiers. Classifiers belong to one of the most important classification devices in gas particle processing and a fast and accurate determination of pressure loss and cut size is of great interest. The first model developed in this work allows the calculation of pressure loss as a function of geometric and operational parameters. It is based on a number of measured values that are obtained from previous numerical simulations (CFD). The maximum deviation of the model is less than 20% and the model operates in real time. However, the model requires calibration for each type of classifier. The second model for classification efficiency is based on a simplified two-dimensional approach in which the flow profile and particle trajectories are determined exclusively for the area between two classifier blades. The model is applicable for all geometrical and operational parameters and calculates the desired parameters within a few minutes, with a maximum error rate of 25%. In combination, the two models allow for the process optimization of classifiers in complete systems.

Application of a 3D printed miniaturized hydrocyclone in biopharmaceutical industry-numerical and experimental studies of yeast separation from fermentation culture media

Various industries ranging from water purification to pharmaceutical production have experienced multi separation steps that impose more process time and contamination possibility by batch operation. We propose a developed microfluidic particle sorter (miniaturized hydrocyclone) that adopts centrifugal force as it has ability to decline the number of separation steps and the risk of extrinsic contamination in continuous process. While biological industries have not relied on mini hydrocyclones considerably because of low efficiency and microfabrication difficulties, current work has been planned to conquer these obstacles. In this research, biomass separation from fermentation broth by 3 mm hydrocyclones was investigated. The effect of apex size, feed flow rate, hydrocyclone geometry were analyzed numerically in four mini-hydrocyclones. The most efficient mini-hydrocyclone was chosen to be made by elegant additive manufacturing technology and studied experimentally. The separation efficiency was achieved up to 90% while the concentration ratio of heavy stream (apex) to dilute stream (vortex finder) was reached more than twofold. The mini hydrocyclone performance in view of energy target was studied by Euler-Reynolds-Efficiency plots. The 4 μm cut size was achieved that is promising high throughput separation for biological particles.

Pembuatan Alat Potong Tulang Sapi untuk Peningkatan Kinerja Panitia Qurban di Masjid Miftahul Jannah Kelurahaan Berua Kota Makassar

Every 10th of Dhul-Hijjah Muslims around the world celebrate eid al-Adha or known as the feast of Qurban. Almost every mosque, especially urban areas, organizes slaughter of qurban animals, as well as in the Miftahul Jannah Mosque. Based on information obtained from partners that almost every year the number of cows is more than goats for slaughter. In addition to meat, beef bones are also a part that is distributed by partners to those who are entitled to receive especially the shohibul qurban. In the resent years the bones that are distributed are large pieces so that it is a concern for partners because the recipient expects the size of the bone received to be ready to be cooked because not all residents who have equipment to cut bones. Based on this condition, it is necessary to make a bone cutting machine that can cut bones quickly with a ready-to-cook size of 10-15 cm. Utilization of bone cutting tools was carried out on eid al-Adha 10 Dhul-Hijjah 1442 H, coinciding on July 20, 2021. The number of cows that are cut is 6. The results of the implementation of the machine show that the equipment is functioning in accordance with the expectations of the partner. Based on the results of four mitra members showed that the machine can be operated easily, can cut quickly with a cut size of 10 - 15 cm, and is safe to use. After cutting 6 cow bones the machine still works well. Some input from partners is to expand the size of the table and improve the appearance of the machine so that it can be sold.

Influence of nozzle angle and classifier height on the performance of a spiral air jet mill

We study the effect of varying air jet mill design parameters, the nozzle angle and the classifier tube height, on the performance of the mill, operated in the semi-batch mode, using quartz and limestone particles as feed. Particle size distributions of the product and the material in the mill are measured along with the mass in the mill. The product size distribution and the specific mass flux are found to be constant with time. The breakage rate is found to increase with nozzle angle. The efficiency of classification, characterized by the fraction of coarse particles larger than the cut size, increases with nozzle angle and classifier tube height. The energy for grinding per unit mass of the product decreases with nozzle angle and increases with classifier tube height and optimal values of the parameters, at which the specific energy is minimized, are obtained.

The importance of particle size on organic matter and crude protein in vitro digestibility of maize and soybean meal

Particle size plays an important role in the digestibility of nutrients by animals. Methodologies developed to simulate the digestive system to determine digestibility values require the grinding of samples to pass a specific sieve size (e.g. 1 mm) before in vitro digestion. The objective of this study was to evaluate if particle size affects in vitro (ileal) digestibility values of organic matter (OM) and crude protein (CP) in maize and soybean meal (SBM). Both ingredients were ground in a laboratory mill over four screens (1.50, 1.00, 0.75 and 0.50 mm) with trapezoidal holes in a sequential manner from large to fine. Particle size distribution, nutrient content and in vitro digestibility were determined of the various samples. With decreasing screen size, geometric mean diameter of particles significantly decreased from 351.4 to 203.2 µm for maize, and from 239.1 to 99.1 µm for SBM. Ash, CP and starch content were not affected whereas the neutral detergent fibre in maize and dry matter content in SBM differed after grinding with various sized screens (P < 0.05). The in vitro digestibility of OM and CP of maize and CP of SBM ground over the four different screens did not differ (P > 0.185). The OM in vitro digestibility differed (P < 0.05) with values for SBM ground over the 1.50 mm screen being lower (P < 0.05) than the smaller screen sizes: 0.814 (1.50 mm) vs 0.833 (1.00 mm), 0.829 (0.75 mm) and 0.834 (0.50 mm), respectively. Based on the current work and literature data, particles ≥ 595 µm of comminuted maize and SBM affect OM and CP in vitro digestibility. Analysis of three feeds and 10 feed ingredients ground over a 1.0 mm sieve showed that the fraction ≥ 595 µm can make up to 32.1% of the mass. It is recommended that before in vitro digestibility determination, particle size distribution is assessed, especially the mass fraction of particles ≥ 595 µm and further grinding is conducted to ensure that particles are < 595 µm for maize and SBM. The cut off size where particles size affects OM and CP in vitro (ileal) digestibility of other feeds or feed ingredients than maize and SBM should be determined.

Automated drill cuttings size estimation

Estimation of drill cuttings particle sizes provides near real-time information that can be utilized in drilling operations. The analysis and interpretations of these rock samples is largely manual. Results are qualitative and can be inconsistent. We propose a practical automated method for estimating drill cuttings particle sizes using digital images. The proposed method is robust and combines several well-known and time-tested techniques like: K-means clustering, numerically stable ellipse fitting, and standard morphological operations. Images are first preprocessed and clustered based on color values. The resultant grain mask is enhanced using binary morphological operations. Measurements are then extracted from the mask based on the major and minor axis fitted to the particles. The developed method is tested on drill cuttings digital images from four wells with varying lithologies and particle sizes. Sensitivity analysis on imperfect images shows the robustness of the methodology. The automated results validated against manual measurements show a difference of less than ten percent. Performance of the algorithm is in the order of seconds, which allows for its use in near real-time applications.

Research on selection of abrasive grain size and cutting parameters when grinding of interrupted surface using aluminum oxide grinding wheel with ceramic binder

In this article, a study on intermittent surface grinding using aluminum oxide grinding wheel with ceramic binder is presented. The testing material is 20XH3A steel (GOST standard – Russian Federation). The testing sample has been sawn 6 grooves, with the width of each groove of 10 mm, the grooves are evenly distributed on the circumference of sample. The testing sample resembles a splined shaft. An experimental matrix of nine experiments has been built by Taguchi method, in which abrasive grain size, workpiece speed, feed rate and depth of cut were selected as input variables. At each experiment, surface roughness (Ra) and roundness error (RE) have been measured. Experimental results show that the aluminum oxide and ceramic binder grinding wheels are perfectly suitable for grinding intermittent surface of 20XH3A steel. Data Envelopment Analysis based Ranking (DEAR) method has been used to solve the multi-objective optimization problem. The results also showed that in order to simultaneously ensure minimum surface roughness and RE, abrasive grain size is 80 mesh, workpiece speed is 910 rpm, feed rate is 0.05 mm/rev and depth of cut is 0.01 mm. If evaluating the grinding process through two criteria including surface roughness and RE, depth of cut is the parameter having the greatest effect on the grinding process, followed by the influence of feed rate, workpiece speed, and abrasive grain is the parameter having the least effect on the grinding process. In addition, the effect of each input parameter on each output parameter has also been analyzed, and orientations for further works have also been recommended in this article

Geometrical configuration of hydrocyclone for improving the separation performance

The inherent defect of particle misplacement in traditional hydrocyclones is the main reason for the deterioration of separation accuracy and has obtained wide attentions. This paper presents three novel hydrocyclones based on the traditional cylindrical-conical type and cylindrical type. The effect of the hydrocyclone structure on the flow field characteristics and separation performance is investigated by a validated two fluid model. The numerical results show that a higher turbulence intensity deteriorates the separation performance of CCB type (cylindrical-conical-flat bottom type) and C type (cylindrical type), while a greater tangential velocity and velocity gradient improve the separation accuracy of MS type (multi-stage cylindrical type). Hydrocyclones with a flat-bottom structure reduces the misplaced fine particles due to the effect of the internal swirling flow and the axial circulation flow in the spigot. The MS type has the lowest imperfection value and the cut size of 76.5 μm implying a sharpness separation sharpness and an appropriate separation result. CC type has the minimum cut size of 62.21 μm, while the maximum cut size of 120.68 μm for C type.

Experimental and numerical study of cuttings transport in inclined drilling operations

Directional drilling has become popular in recent decades in both onshore and offshore operations due to reduced drilling costs and improved recovery. In a directional well drilling operation, drill cuttings tend to settle down at the lower side of the inclined annular section. If the generated cuttings are not removed from the hole section properly, it causes a cuttings bed formation in the annular section. Different drilling related problem such as poor rate of penetration, excessive torque and drag, increase differential sticking often associated with a poor hole cleaning which eventually lead to increase in non-productive time (NPT). Therefore, the success of inclined well drilling operation largely depends on effective cleaning of drill cuttings from the annular section. A variety of parameters, including the fluid rheology, mud velocity, cuttings size, drill pipe rotation and drill pipe inclination generally influence the cuttings transport performance. Optimization of these drilling parameters is crucial to ensure proper hole cleaning. In this study, a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model for the inclined well section is used to investigate the cuttings transport efficiency (CTE). An Eulerian-Eulerian multiphase flow model is proposed and validated with lab scale experimental data. The experiments were performed in a 6.16-m-long annular test section having an outer pipe diameter of 4.5-inch and an inner pipe diameter of 2.5-inch. The setup is equipped with Electrical Resistance Tomography (ERT) system to measure the instantaneous solid volume fraction and a visualization section. A non-Newtonian Heschel-Bulkley (HB) fluid was used as drilling mud and solid glass beads of 2.50 mm–3.00 mm were used as cuttings in the experiment. This study shows a good agreement in visualization of mechanistic three-layer model of cuttings transport in terms of ERT data from experiment and CFD simulation. The validated CFD model is used to perform 5- Factors factorial design and analysis of variance (ANOVA) study. ANOVA shows that the interaction effects of mud velocity-cuttings size, mud velocity-inclination are statistically significant. Finally, this study proposed a statistical model to estimate the CTE of an inclined well considering the two factor and three factor interactions among the variables. Also, the model shows that drill pipe rotation has negligible effect in improving cuttings transport efficiency in the inclined well. The proposed model also reveals that cuttings size and fluid velocity account for 78% contribution in the transport efficiency for an inclined well. Furthermore, an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) method is used to verify the contribution of lower order interaction in the statistical model. Though empirical model shows few lower order two factor interactions (fluid rheology -cuttings size, fluid rheology-inclination), and three factor interactions (velocity-cuttings size-inclination, fluid rheology-cuttings size-inclination); ANN model shows that lower order interaction are significant in model prediction and should not be ignored. The findings of this study can help in better understanding the interaction behaviour among drilling parameters and optimized cuttings transport efficiency in the inclined drilling operation for a wide variety drilling parameters.

Thermohydraulic Performance of Dphe Affected by Triangular and Semi-Circular Cut Size on Insert: Iot-Based Experimentation

Thermohydraulic Performance of Dphe Affected by Triangular and Semi-Circular Cut Size on Insert: Iot-Based Experimentation

Comprehensive Knowledge-Driven AI System for Air Classification Process

Air classifier devices have a distinct advantage over other systems used to separate materials. They maximize the mill’s capacity and therefore constitute efficient methods of reducing the energy consumption of crushing and grinding operations. Since improvement in their performance is challenging, the development of an efficient modeling system is of great practical significance. The paper introduces a novel, knowledge-based classification (FLClass) system of bulk materials. A wide range of operating parameters are considered in the study: the mean mass and the Sauter mean diameter of the fed material, classifier rotor speed, working air pressure, and test conducting time. The output variables are the Sauter mean diameter and the cut size of the classification product, as well as the performance of the process. The model was successfully validated against experimental data. The maximum relative error between the measured and predicted data is lower than 9%. The presented fuzzy-logic-based approach allows an optimization study of the process to be conducted. For the considered range of input parameters, the highest performance of the classification process is equal to almost 362 g/min. To the best of our knowledge, this paper is the first one available in open literature dealing with the fuzzy logic approach in modeling the air classification process of bulk materials.

How Particles with Sizes Close to Cut Size Affect the Multiphase Flows and Performance of Hydrocyclones

How Particles with Sizes Close to Cut Size Affect the Multiphase Flows and Performance of Hydrocyclones

Microgrinding of lithium metasilicate/disilicate glass-ceramics

Lithium metasilicate and disilicate glass-ceramics (LMGC and LDGC) are attractive dental materials but poor surface quality produced in current milling/grinding is a technical bottleneck. This paper reports on the microgrinding characteristics and mechanisms of LMGC and LDGC using micro-pencil diamond tools at different conditions. Surface quality was assessed using 3D laser confocal microscopy in terms of comprehensive roughness parameters. A combination of brittle and localized ductile removal mixture and brittle fracture was featured on the microground LMCG and LDGC surfaces identified through microscopic examination. The generation of brittle and localized ductile areas significantly depended on the diamond grit size and the depth of cut, resulting in different surface asperities. Better surface quality was achieved with reduced diamond grit size and depth of cut. The nanoscale maximum grit cutting depth in microginding achieved the best average and maximum roughness values of 0.241 ± 0.009 μm and 4.380 ± 0.861 μm for LMGC with approximately 80% and 60% reductions in comparison with dental CAD/CAM milling, respectively. Microgrinding of LDGC also achieved the best average and maximum roughness values of 0.168 ± 0.013 μm and 3.693 ± 0.467 μm with more than 90% improvement compared with simulated conventional grinding, simplifying the manufacturing procedure for LDGC restorations. Microgrinding also produced the kurtosis and skewness for both materials comparable to human teeth. More diamond tool wear occurred in microgrinding of high-strength LDGC than low-strength LMGC. Although microgrinding of multiphase LMCG and LDGC in ductile regime can be challenging due to microstructural diversity, the technique can advance current CAD/CAM milling/grinding for high-quality shaping of high-strength ceramic restorations.

РЕГЕНЕРАЦИЯ МИКРОЧЕРЕНКОВ В ЗАВИСИМОСТИ ОТ ИХ РАЗМЕРОВ И ОРИЕНТАЦИИ В ПРОСТРАНСТВЕ

The article is devoted to the optimization of one of the factors influencing the success of micropropagation – the choice of the optimal size of the explant and the method of its expo-sure in a test tube. Many studies have con-firmed that the size of the micro cuttings and its orientation during planting can affect the speed of growth processes and the survival rate of plants. The experiment was set on the Fio-letoviy Ranniy grape variety. The best size of the micro cuttings and the method of its orien-tation in the test tube are established.

Optimizing the separation characteristics of the waterinjection hydrocyclone using mathematical modelling

Purpose. Although the hydrocyclone separator has many advantages, it still has some limitations which decrease its separation efficiency in many mineral processing applications because of fine particles which are miss separated to the coarse product in the underflow. Water injection in the conical part of the cyclone was recently implemented to solve this problem. The water injection mechanism and the way in which the injected water affects the separation are still not clear and need to be more investigated. Methods. New design of water injection hydrocyclone was tried using a modified conical part with a water injection range consist of five equal distance injection openings open directly on the periphery of the cone part. Findings. This study presents a mechanical mathematical model that simulates the water injection to give a clear indication of the injection mechanism impact on the classification process. It could also predict the dependence of the basic characteristics of the classification on the amount of the injected water and the influence of different operating and design parameters of the hydrocyclone. Originality. The model accounts for the fluid flow, the particle motion, the turbulent particle diffusion, and particle settling. Particle interactions and fine particle entrainment by settling coarse particles are also included in the model. The model was found to predict well the injection effect and agrees with the experimental results. Practical implications. The results showed also that the increase in water injection velocity leads to an increase in both the cut size and the minimal value of the separation curve. It was found also that the hydrocyclone length has an important effect on the injection process, and the separation sharpness is directly proportional to it at higher values of water injection velocity.

Numerical Study on the Impact of Spiral Tortuous Hole on Cuttings Removal in Horizontal Wells

SummaryHorizontal wells are designed to have smooth (straight), curved, and lateral sections. However, the actual drilled path usually suffers from unwanted undulations from the planned well trajectory known as wellbore tortuosity. Wellbore tortuosity can slow the drilling penetration rate, aggravate drillstring vibration and buckling, complicate the casing and cement job, and lead to inaccurate wellbore position. This paper presents a validated computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model to investigate the impact of wellbore tortuosity on hole cleaning. The Eulerian-Eulerian approach is used to simulate solid-liquid laminar flow in annular geometry using polyhedral mesh. Then, the impact of wellbore tortuosity on cuttings accumulation, annular pressure loss, and fluid velocity was investigated and compared with the flow behavior in a straight horizontal well. A parametric analysis of spiral period length, spiral amplitude, drillstring rotation, flow rate, annular eccentricity, drilling rate of penetration (ROP), and cuttings size was conducted to assess their influence on cuttings transport in spiral tortuous holes and their relative magnitude to other design or operating factors.Simulation results show that polyhedral mesh is an optimum meshing technique for spiral profile geometry. Wellbore tortuosity aggravates hole cleaning in lateral sections based on the length of the spiral period and/or the spiral amplitude. Reduction in cuttings velocity was observed in the top part of the spiral geometry (crest), causing large deposition of cuttings in this area compared to the spiral lower part (trough). Drillstring rotation from 0 to 200 rev/min is the critical range for efficient hole cleaning in spiral geometry. Cuttings size can improve cuttings accumulation if the particle size is larger than the viscous layer located near the bed velocity profile. The drilling ROP and annular eccentricity aggravate cuttings accumulation and bed deposition in a spiral hole, similar to what is normally observed in straight horizontal wells.

Performance investigation of indigenously designed multideck Screen (MDS)

Multideck screen (MDS) has found wide applications in mineral processing industry and their performance can be evaluated on the basis of various parameters. The screen was indigenously designed with three decks of various changeable screens. The efficiency of MDS was evaluated at different parameters through efficiency equation and partition/Tromp curves. The imperfection factor and cut size was also determined. Material feed rate of 1 kg/min, 2 kg/min and 3 kg/min; screen angle of 7°, 10° and 13°; aperture size of 2 mm, 1mm and 0.3 mm in the three decks were taken into account. The results showed that the efficiency of MDS improves with increasing screen angle and aperture size whereas it reduces with increasing feed rate. The cut size value improves with increasing screen angle and aperture size whereas it reduces with increasing feed rate. The imperfect factor value reaches zero with increasing screen angle and aperture size while value of imperfect factor increases with increasing feed rate. The maximum efficiency was found approx. 95% at screen angle of 13°, feed rate of 1 kg/min and aperture size of 2 mm.

Sheep meat production in the Brazilian semi-arid region: crossing between indigenous breeds.

Investigations in the Brazilian semi-arid region evaluating the performance and carcass traits of sheep of indigenous breeds and their crossings have been performed; however, these studies use exotic breeds which produce precocious lambs with heavier carcasses, but not adapted to climatic conditions and the extensive production system, jeopardizing the sustainability of the sheep production system. We crossed between three indigenous breeds: Morada Nova (MN - maternal breed); Rabo Largo (RL - paternal breed), and Santa Inês (SI - paternal breed) with the objective of evaluating the effect of genotype and sex on the performance and carcass traits of purebred and crossbred animals. A total of 30 lambs, males and females, reared in a semi-intensive system were evaluated. Birth and weaning weights were 2.26 ± 0.53 and 7.31 ± 1.85, respectively. All lambs were slaughtered at 10months of age. A completely randomized design in a 3 × 2 factorial scheme (three genotypes and two sexes) was used. Multivariate techniques were also performed to reduce group and discriminate variables. Birth and weaning weight were similar (P > 0.05) among genetic groups and sexes. The weight gain, carcass and morphometric trait characteristics, and the main commercial cuts were higher in crossbred lambs (P < 0.05). All indicators have discriminatory power between genotypes and sexes, but the carcass traits have a higher discriminatory power (P < 0.001). All genotypes, regardless of sex, have particular characteristics, i.e. MN × SI was characterized by greater forelimb and ham perimeters (P < 0.001), and the MN × RL by higher hot carcass weight and finish (P = 0.001). The cluster analysis and the heatmap plot revealed associations between SI and the size of cuts and RL with the cut commercial yield and the reduction in weight loss due to cooling. Our findings confirm the hypothesis that crossing between indigenous breeds represents an adequate alternative in sheep meat production systems in semi-arid regions. Finally, we encourage the use of indigenous breeds for sheep meat production with breed identity in order to favor the conservation of genetic resources and the sustainability of the production system.

H-extra r-component connectivity of interconnection networks with application to hypercubes

The connectivity and its generalizations have been well studied due to their impact on the fault tolerance and diagnosability of the interconnection networks. In this paper, we introduce a novel generalized connectivity, which combines the h-extra connectivity and r-component connectivity. Given a connected graph G=(V,E), for any h≥0 and r≥2, an h-extra r-component cut of G is a subset S⊆V such that there are at least r components in G∖S and each component has at least h+1 vertices; h-extra r-component connectivity of G, denoted as cκrh(G), is the minimum size of any h-extra r-component cut of G. We determine the h-extra r-component connectivity of n-dimensional hypercube Qn, cκr1(Qn)=2(r−1)(n−r+1) for r∈{2,3,4}.