Material Feed Rate Research Articles

A review on the encapsulation of bioactive components using spray‐drying and freeze‐drying techniques

AbstractBioactive compounds are a type of chemical substance found in plant sources. Lycopene, carotenoids, phytochemicals, phenolic compounds, and anthocyanin are a few bioactive compounds. These compounds are rich in antimicrobial, antioxidant, and free radical‐scavenging properties. But these compounds are easily degraded. In order to enhance the chemical stability and the retention properties of functional ingredients, encapsulation is indispensable. This paper reviews the two important methods of encapsulation of bioactive components and the novelties in these techniques. Spray‐drying and freeze‐drying techniques are commonly used for encapsulation in the food and pharmaceutical industries. The former is a quick and high‐temperature process, while the latter is a time‐consuming and low‐temperature procedure. The inlet temperature during spray drying is maintained between 120 and 190°C, whereas during freeze drying, a temperature of −80°C to −20°C is maintained. For effective encapsulation, the optimization of the process conditions such as the temperature, pressure, feed rate, airflow rates, and selection of wall materials are essential. In this paper, the influence of these parameters on encapsulation efficiency and product stability is also discussed.Practical ApplicationsThe spray‐drying and freeze‐drying techniques find their application in the food and chemical industries for the purpose of encapsulation and drying. The former technique helps transform liquid foods to powder and thereby extending their shelf life. The encapsulation of some biologically active components helps better retention and delivery of the components. Spray drying is a technique in which liquid foods are converted to powdered form. These techniques have been used for a very long time in the dairy industry. But in recent times, they have been used in the pharmaceutical industries as well. Their main application in the pharmaceutical industry is drug delivery. Freeze drying is a low‐temperature encapsulation process which is mainly used for the encapsulation of functional foods. The most commonly spray‐dried active materials include oleoresins, natural food colors, natural antioxidants, lipids, flavors, and functional foods. Probiotic sources such as bacterial cultures are the main freeze‐dried products. In this review, the practical applications of the techniques are elaborated.

Process-Product Interdependencies in Lamination of Electrodes and Separators for Lithium-Ion Batteries

In today’s cell production, the focus lies on maximizing productivity while maintaining product quality. To achieve this, the lamination of electrode and separator is one key process technology, as it bonds the electrode and separator to form mechanically resilient intermediate products. These mechanically resilient intermediates are necessary to enable high throughput processes. Although the lamination process has significant effects on the electrochemical performance of battery cells, it has not been sufficiently researched with regard to its process-product interdependencies. Therefore, this paper addresses the investigation of these interdependencies and proposes three characterization methods (grey scale analysis, high potential tests, electrochemical cycling and C-rate tests). The results of the three methods show that the lamination process with its process parameters (lamination temperature, lamination pressure and material feed rate) has an influence on both the properties of the intermediate product and the cell properties. In conclusion, the knowledge of the process-product interdependencies is essential in order to utilize the advantages of lamination integrated into the process chain and consequently achieve quality-assured cell production.

Electrowinning of Neodymium Metal Using FLiNdBa Molten Salt

Neodymium is the most used of rare earth elements. Its demand is rapidly increasing as the raw material for Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets. In the present study, the preparation of neodymium metal by molten salt electrowinning was investigated, using the support salt of LiF:NdF3:BaF2 = 7.5:67.4:25.1 (in wt%, FLiNdBa). It focused particularly on the effects of the electrowinning temperature, the cathodic current density, and the feeding rate of the raw material (Nd2O3) on the current efficiency. The current efficiency decreased almost linearly with the electrowinning temperature regardless of the cathodic current density in the temperature range (1030~1130 oC). Considering current efficiency and workability, the most suitable electrowinning temperature was 1040~1050 oC. The current efficiency increased linearly with the cathodic current density in the range of 1~4 A/cm2 irrespective of the electrowinning temperature. The effect of the feeding rate of the raw material (Nd2O3) on the current efficiency showed the same tendency as that of the cathodic current density on the current efficiency. The current efficiency of 73.6% and the metal purity of 99.8% were achieved in this study when the cathodic current density was 3.6 A/cm2 and the electrowinning temperature was 1045 oC.

Simulation and analysis of the pneumatic recovery for side-cutting loss of combine harvesters with CFD-DEM coupling approach

A novel pneumatic recovery method was proposed to curb the problem of high losses caused by side-cutting in a rapeseed combine harvester header. The influence of recovery method and material status changes on the recovery effect was studied via the CFD-DEM (computational fluid dynamic- discrete element method) coupling simulation. The effect of airflow action on the recovery effect was compared and analyzed, and the composite pneumatic recovery method was determined. In addition, the influence of material status changes and material feeding rate on the recovery effect was explored, and the critical condition of material blockage in the recovery device was configured. As such, the relationship model between air velocity and recovery rate was constructed and the air distribution ratio of the flow field in the device under this condition was optimized, had verified the rationality of this pneumatic recovery method was verified by a series of field tests. The average rapeseed recovery rate of 92.95% was achieved with the application of the recovery device, and the total loss rate of the header reduced by 52.26%, which is of great significance in reducing the total loss rate of the combine harvesters and improving the operation performance of machinery. The research results can provide a reference for the design of the header structure of a rape combine harvester. Keywords: rapeseed, combine harvester, side-cutting loss, coupled simulation, pneumatic recovery DOI: 10.25165/j.ijabe.20221502.6267 Citation: Jiang T, Zhang M, Guan Z H, Mu S L, Wu C Y, Wang G, et al. Simulation and analysis of the pneumatic recovery for side-cutting loss of combine harvesters with CFD-DEM coupling approach. Int J Agric & Biol Eng, 2022; 15(2): 117–126.

Mechanical Properties of Polylactic Acid Resin Composite Filament Reinforced by SUS304 Wire

The purpose of this study is to investigate the mechanical properties of composite filament which made from polylactic acid resin and SUS304 wire for Fused Deposition Modeling. Both of PLA resin and SUS304 wire were supplied to heated extruder for covering the SUS304 wire with melted PLA. The feed rate of both materials was individually controlled by controlling the number of revolutions of stepper motors. In this study, three types of SUS304 wires were used to investigate the effect of surface roughness of wire on the tensile characteristics of composite filament. The surface of SUS304 wire was modified by chemical etching or mechanical grinding to control the surface roughness. For comparing, two modified wires and as received SUS304 wire were used for following experiments. The tensile characteristics of composite filament was investigated by using universal testing machine. Tensile test results showed that the tensile modulus and strength of composite filament was improved compared that of original PLA filament. The pull-out test of composite filament was also revealed that the apparent interfacial shear strength between PLA and SUS304 wire was improved when the surface roughness of SUS304 wire was high. Moreover, when the surface roughness of SUS304 wire was high, the fracture morphology of composite filament was changed.

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.

Development of a linguistic model of a reforming unit of a catalytic reforming plant

The influence of the main parameters of the reforming process on the quantity and quality of the produced product-catalyst-has been investigated. On the basis of the proposed linguistic modelling algorithm, a linguistic model has been built that describes: the effect of the temperature of the reforming reactor on the yield of catalyst and the stability of the catalyst. The possibility of constructing a linguistic model that estimates the influence of the feed rate of raw materials on the quantity and quality (octane number) of catalyst, a component of motor fuel, has been shown.

Cutting Tests of the Outer Layer of Material Using Onion as an Example.

This paper describes experimental research on cutting the outer layer of onions in the machine peeling process. The authors’ own globally innovative modular machine construction was used for this purpose. The onion peeling machine was constructed on a real scale. The effectiveness of the machine’s functioning was defined as the ratio of the mass of material correctly removed by the scale blower to the mass of all material leaving the machine on the test bench . In order to carry out the experimental research, a test stand was constructed, a research plan and programme were adopted, and the research methodology was developed. The results obtained during the experimental research and the data obtained from the regression function equations for the developed design of the onion peeling machine were used to build systems of independent variables, for which the dependent variable reached extreme values. The effectiveness of the machine’s operation of modular construction increased with the increase in the depth of the external incisions of the shells , the number of scale-blowing nozzles, and the pressure of the air supply to the scale-blowing unit . Increasing the material feed rate and the distance of the air nozzles from the material to be processed reduced the machine’s efficiency . The tests carried out showed a high level of efficiency on the level of , which is not found in mass-produced machines.

Analysis of contact area in a continuous application-and-peel test method for prepreg tack

The relationship between prepreg tack and the degree of intimate contact (DoIC) between prepreg and a rigid substrate was explored in the context of a continuous application-and-peel test method. Tack for a unidirectional prepreg tape was characterised for different surface combinations and varying test parameters (material feed rate, temperature) at a constant compaction pressure. Application of the prepreg to a transparent rigid substrate (glass), was carried out at matching test conditions to the prepreg tack measurements. Optical microscopy was utilised to acquire images of the contact area at the prepreg-glass interface. Image analysis of the micrographs enabled quantification of the contact area. The time- and temperature-dependent viscoelastic behaviour of the resin was explored directly on the prepreg using oscillatory parallel plate rheometry, and time-temperature superposition was applied to construct both tack and DoIC master curves. The shifted DoIC data showed that true contact area increases with decreasing shifted feed rates, until maximum contact area is achieved. Similarly, tack increases with decreasing shifted feed rates. However, at a critical feed rate, the bond failure mechanism switches from adhesive to cohesive failure. In cohesive failure, tack decreases with decreasing feed rate despite the high levels of DoIC.

Analysis of the Vibration Characteristic of an Experimental Turning Lathe Using Artificial Neural Networks

Due to the complexity of the tool and cutting geometry in machining, many undesirable effects occur during the cutting. Vibrations affecting the poor surface quality of the workpiece and the tool life are one of the most important undesirable effects. These vibrations causing loss of production should be detected and the most appropriate working conditions in which the machine tools will work more stable should be determined. In this work, an artificial neural network estimator has been designed in order to analyze the oscillating effects on computer numerical control (CNC) lathes. Firstly, experimental studies have been carried out, and then vibration analysis has been performed by using two types of artificial neural networks. The experimental part of this manuscript analyses has been carried out for the different material types, spindle speeds and feed rates which are affecting the vibration. After the experimental part, two different artificial neural network structures have been proposed in order to analyze the vibration data measured from the CNC lathe under the relevant working conditions. As a result of these experimental and simulation-based approaches, it was seen that the proposed RBNN structure has a good performance even in real-time parameters in capturing the vibrations occurring in the CNC lathe.

Plasma metal deposition of stainless steel 316L over mild steel surface

Plasma metal deposition (PMD) is an additive manufacturing process capable of layer by layer construction, repair, and reconstruction of metallic parts. One of the important characteristics of cladding with PMD is the ability to control the wire feed, plasma arc energy, thus allowing the melt pool to be controlled. In this paper stainless steel 316L was deposited in the form of wire on a block of mild steel. Experiments were focused to infer the influence of plasma power, travel speed and wire feed rate on the quality of track. Different parameters were varied to observe the various geometrical parameters and their relationship with the energy source and material feed rate was established. The results show that plasma power and wire feed rate have a significant impact on height and width of the deposited track. Aspect ratios ranging from 0.85 to 4.6 were obtained. Higher values of aspect ratio at lower wire feed rates and at optimum plasma power was further used for deposition of defect free surface. An overlapping distance of 1.73 mm was used for surface cladding. This method can also be used for remanufacturing of surface of moulds and die.

A sustainable reduction roasting technology to upgrade the ferruginous manganese ores

Reduction roasting of manganese ores is a known process; however, it is not yet commercialized mainly due to various techno-economic issues. The current research work presents results of a large-scale plant trial performed at a commercial Direct Reduced Iron making plant to upgrade low-grade ferruginous manganese ores (Mn: 25–32%, Mn/Fe: ∼1). Trials were carried out using a lot of 2000 of tons low grades ferruginous manganese ores of three different types. Experiments were designed to test 3 levels of two different variables for each type of ore. Raw material feed rate (3, 4.5, and 6tph) and feed coal proportion (25, 29,33% of ore) were the prime process variables. Process settings were identified and fixed to limit the occurrence of undesired chemical reactions to restrict the formation of complex MnxFe3-xO4 phases and dilution of reducing atmosphere. Ores were crushed into 0–15 mm size, reduce-roasted at 950 °C in a rotary kiln, crushed into <3 mm size, and passed through a magnetic separator. The technology can enhance the Mn content of the ores by > 15 units (Mn: 30%→46%) and can bring down the Fe content by > 15 units (Fe: 27%→12%) in the produced ore concentrate. The developed process could achieve product yield ∼50% and Mn Recovery>70%. The Mn-rich concentrate was successfully converted into extrusion briquettes and consumed in a submerged arc furnace for ferroalloy making. The iron-rich by-product was successfully used as a sinter mix for steelmaking process. Techno-economic evaluation and sensitivity analysis have also been carried out. Studies indicated that roasting of ferruginous manganese ores at a commercial Direct Reduced Iron plant is an adaptable and sustainable solution to upgrade the low-grade Mn resources in the dynamic global Mn ore market.

Ultrafine particle emission during high-speed milling of hardened AISI 1045 steel

In this study, the effects of cutting speed, feed rate, and hardness of workpiece material on the particle number concentration ultrafine of particles in the face milling were experimentally investigated. AISI 1045 steel was hardened to 17, 38, and 48 HRC, machining using ceramic insert (honed, T-land edge preparation). Three factors (cutting speed, feed rate, and workpiece hardness) and three levels fractional experiment designs completed (L27) with statistical analysis of variance (ANOVA) were performed. The analysis of the results shows that workpiece hardness has the greatest influence on ultrafine particle (UFP) emission for both tools and that the feed rate and the cutting speed should be selected wisely for each tool edge preparation. Overall, it is shown that the use of honed edge at moderate speed and higher feed rate reduces UFP emission during milling.

A Stochastically Generated Geometrical Finite Element Model for Predicting the Residual Stresses of Thermally Sprayed Coatings Under Different Process Parameters

In this work, a 3D stochastic model coupled with a finite element (FE) code is used to investigate the development of residual stresses in thermally sprayed coatings. The residual stresses of a thermally sprayed yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) coating applied to stainless steel substrates are used for this work. The formation of the coating layers was simulated with a 3D stochastic model, SimCoat. Three YSZ coating models with a similar average thickness, but different layers (one-, two-, and three-layer coatings) were obtained by changing three process parameters: the material feed rate, the gun velocity, and the total number of passes. Two 2D slices of each 3D model were taken and converted into FE models using an in-house Python code. An FE simulation was then used to study the combined effect of these process parameters on the development of residual stresses. The variation of in-plane stresses through the thickness for each model was obtained, and a comparison between the developed stresses was conducted. The developed methodology was effective for understanding the effect of the coating process parameters on the development of residual stresses and can be used to optimize the coating process parameters to obtain the desired residual stresses.

Laser bidezko prozesu gehigarrietarako hauts-elikagailuen azterketa eta kalibrazioa

Ikerlan honetan gaur egun fabrikazio gehigarri zuzenerako, ingelesez LMD deitua, erabiltzen diren hauts-elikagailuen alderaketa aurkeztu da. Bakoitzaren ezaugarriak aztertu ostean, LMD prozesurako egokienak zeintzuk diren ondorioztatu da: Grabitatean oinarritutako disko birakariko elikagailuak eta jariakortasunean oinarritutako elikagailuak. Gainera, gaur egun hedatuen dagoen elikatze-sistemaren, grabitatean oinarritutako disko birakariko hauts-elikagailua, material desberdinentzako kalibrazio-kurbak eskuratzeko metodologia proposatu da eta lorturiko emaitzak esperimentalki balioztatu dira. Kalibrazio-kurbak Inconel 718, AISI 316L eta Stellite 6 materialentzat kalkulatu dira, eta, lortutako emaitzetan oinarrituz, sistemaren portaera lineala dela ondorioztatu da. Bestalde, material desberdinen kalibrazio-kurbak definitzen dituen ekuazio bakarra zehaztu da; trinkotze-koefiziente deituriko parametroa erabili da horretarako.

Working Distance-Based Feedforward Control of the Weld Bead Height in Directed Energy Deposition

Due to large temperature gradients and high thermal conductivities, additive manufacturing processes for metals have challenging dynamics. A high process reliability and repeatability hinges upon the base layer control of the melt pool and the resulting weld bead geometry. The material feed rate has proven to be an appropriate manipulated variable for weld bead height control, but it can only be varied slowly and is subject to deadtimes. We propose to use the distance of the process head to the build surface (the working distance) as an alternative manipulated variable. We derive a simple nonlinear dynamic model that captures the effect of the working distance on the weld bead height. We show scanning velocity fluctuations, which can be treated as known disturbances, can be compensated with working distance feedforward control. We apply the proposed controller to a real DED process and demonstrate working distance control is an alternative to material feed rate control.

Preliminary study on the online reprocessing and refueling scheme for SD-TMS reactor

The Single-fluid Double-zone Thorium Molten Salt reactor (SD-TMSR) has a promising future. Inherent safety, liquid fuel, and possibility of online reprocessing and refueling are unique potentials of the SD-TMSR. In the present study, the Monte Carlo code Serpent2 has been chosen to model the full core of the SD-TMSR. In addition, online reprocessing and refueling has been modeled based on subroutine provided by Serpent2. During the burnup time (10 years), the total mass of the fuel inside the core has been checked and found to be almost constant. Furthermore, we controlled the reactivity by adjusting the feed rate of fissile and/or fertile materials. The change of Keff, breeding ratio, Th and U-233 refill rates with burn-up time have been investigated. Additionally, the build-up of U-233 during 10 years has been calculated.

Simulation of Arc Plasma Gasification Based on Experimental Conditions

An EPJ process simulation model was set up and verified to simulate the plasma gasification process of the medical wastes. The influence of ER value and SAMR value was simulated based on experimental conditions including material feeding rate, furnace temperature and medical waste properties. Results shows that ER=0.3 is a turning point for medical waste plasma gasification. The required input plasma power and volume flow of combustible constituents in syngas reach the maximum at ER=0.3. The balance of syngas composition and required input plasma power should be overall considered. Results shows that the SAMR value mainly influences the amount of H element and N element in the system at a fixed ER value, thus influencing the proportions of H2 and N2 in monotonous ways. Input plasma power needed and combustible syngas flow increase with the increasing SAMR.

3D Finite Element Modeling and Simulation of Friction Drilling Process

Friction drilling is an advanced drilling process in which that can be utilize the heat produced between the workpiece and rotating drilling tool bit to soften the work material and producing a hole on it. In this investigation our interest is to choose work material is Al 7075-T351 to analyze the stress, strain, temperature and work material deformation in friction drilling. Al 7075-T351 square-tube materials were drilled on a computer numerical control (CNC) machine centre by friction drilling has analyzed at different rotational speed and feed rate through controlled operation tests. The temperatures in work piece and tool were more in Friction drilling. Simulation has required perceiving the material flow, stresses, temperatures, and strains. Those are tough to quantify experimentally through friction drilling. In this study, CATIA is used to design the tool model and the software which is used to simulate the performance of friction drilling is DEFORM-3D and effect of tool material speed and feed rate on shape of bushing formed is observed. Taguchi’s technique L9 Orthogonal Array was used to analyze the optimum values. Signal to noise ratios also administered for optimization of parameters.

Theoretical modeling and finite element simulation of dilution in micro-plasma transferred arc additive manufacturing of metallic materials

Dilution in any additive layer manufacturing signifies fusion of a deposition layer with the substrate as well as between the successive deposited layers. It assumes importance because it affects metallurgical bonding and properties of the deposited layers. Evaluation of dilution of a deposition by optical microscopy is more accurate but it is destructive due to requirement of the sample preparation. Monitoring and control of the dilution is also very difficult. Dilution can be predicted either by a theoretical model or finite element simulation (FES). This paper presents development of a generic theoretical model and FES to predict dilution of depositions by micro-plasma transferred arc additive manufacturing (MPTAAM) process. The model and FES predicted values were validated by comparing them with the experimental results of single-layer single-track deposition of Ti-6Al-4V powder on the substrate of the same material for the various parametric combinations of MPTAAM process. Results have shown very good agreement between model and FES predicted values of dilution with the corresponding experimental values. The developed theoretical model is also generic because it depends only on the MPTAAM process parameters and thermal properties of the deposition and substrate materials thus making it applicable for any combination of deposition and substrate materials and for any form of the deposition material. The results showed that dilution increases with increase in micro-plasma power and relative speed between the worktable and deposition head whereas decreases with increase in volumetric feed rate of the deposition material.