Numerous Manufacturing Research Articles

Biosynthesis of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles using Euphorbia Milii Leaf Extract- A Green Approach

In the past few decades, nanomaterials have demonstrated superior performance in numerous applications, including medicine, energy, and advanced manufacturing. However, many of the materials and processes currently used are not only dependent on nonrenewable resources but also create hazardous wastes. Green nanotechnology, the combination of nanotechnology and green chemistry, may hold the key to building an environmentally sustainable society in the twenty-first century. Nature provides us with numerous chemical substances that serve as suitable reducing agents for the synthesis of nanoparticles, including plant extracts, biopolymers, vitamins, proteins, peptides (e.g., glutathione), and sugars (e.g., glucose, fructose). Plant extracts are the most studied category to date. Given their abundance, plant extracts are regarded as one of the most promising natural reducing agents. One area of particular success is the synthesis of metal nanoparticles, useful in electronics and medical applications, using plant extracts as reducing agents. Among all metal nanopartilcles, Zinc oxide nanoparticles have received considerable attention due to their unique antibacterial, antifungal, UV filtering properties, high catalytic and photochemical activity. The present study focus on green synthesis of Zinc Oxide nanoparticles by Zinc acetate and utilizing the bio components of leaves extract of Euphorbia milii. Formation of zinc oxide nanoparticles have been characterized by UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) and stability of the nanoparticles were analysed by zeta potential analysis.

Sonvilier Pen Company: An Outsourcing Decision

The COO for Sonvilier Pen, an elite manufacturer of high-quality ballpoint and fountain pens, had gotten a proposal to outsource two pen components to Li Manufacturing, a specialist in the molding and production of intricate metals, located in southeastern China. The proposal was intriguing, but there were a number of factors for the COO to consider before making a decision. Excerpt UVA-C-2406 Rev. Nov. 27, 2018 Sonvilier Pen Company: An Outsourcing Decision Sonvilier Pen Company (Sonvilier Pen) was a manufacturer of high-quality writing pens. The company could trace its origins to the early 1900s, when founder Cedric Mettler and his father began producing various writing implements in their small shop in Sonvilier, Switzerland. The Mettler son later immigrated to the United States and soon thereafter opened his own fountain pen company, taking the name of his hometown in respect for the place where he had honed his craft. By the turn of the next century, Sonvilier Pen had become an elite manufacturer of high-quality ballpoint and fountain pens, producing over three million units annually. Its headquarters and manufacturing facilities were located in northern New England. Peter Harwood was the COO for Sonvilier Pen. On his desk was a proposal to outsource two pen components to Li Manufacturing, a specialist in the molding and production of intricate metals, located in southeastern China. Harwood had not initially courted this opportunity. An intermediary US organization had proposed the partnership to Harwood six months earlier. The intermediary was a go-between agent engaged in matching manufacturing partners, billing itself as a full-service custom-manufacturing facilitator. It specialized in first finding appropriate China-based manufacturers for US-based organizations and then providing a full suite of services related to production: engineering, packaging, customs clearing, and quality control, among others. The proposal was intriguing, and left Harwood with a number of factors to consider before he made a decision regarding the offer. Li Manufacturing's location alone brought with it a unique set of challenges Sonvilier Pen would have to face if it were to outsource production. Li Manufacturing's operations were located in one of China's many economic development zones. Moreover, the company had a stellar reputation for quality workmanship and execution and had partnerships with numerous other US manufacturers. All those companies gave Li Manufacturing stellar recommendations. . . .

Design and Comparative Analysis of Small Modular Reactors for Nuclear Marine Propulsion of a Ship

The fast growth in the size and difficulty of nuclear power plant in the 1970s produced an interest in smaller, modest designs that are intrinsically safe over the usage of design features. With the development of nuclear technology, there is the need for revolution in the Maritime sector, especially the advance marine propulsion. In current years, numerous reactor manufacturers are dynamically improving small modular reactor designs with even superior use of safety features. Several designs integrate the ultimate in greater safety. They totally remove specific accident initiators from the design. Other design features benefit to reduce different types of accident or help to mitigate the accident’s consequences. Although some safety features are mutual to maximum SMR designs, irrespective of the coolant technology, other features are specific to liquid-metal cooled, water, gas, or SMR designs. Results: There have been more reactor concepts investigated in the marine propulsion area by different assemblies and research laboratories than in the power generation field, and much can be learned from their experience for land applications. The extensive use of safety features in SMRs potential to make these power plants extremely vigorous, protecting both the public and the investor. Conclusion: For these two considerations, it is recognized that a nuclear reactor is the ideal engine for naval advanced propulsion. The paper will present the work to analyze the concept design of SMRs and design a modular vessel consisting of a propulsion module.

A new paradigm for organizing networks of computer numerical control manufacturing resources in cloud manufacturing

Cloud manufacturing is quickly emerging as an infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS), analogue for distributed production and supply chains, that integrates manufacturing providers and customers. This paper develops a cloud-based cyberphysical platform as a new service for spawning and organizing cloud manufacturing networks of computer numerical control (CNC) resources, provisioned and managed over the internet. The proposed layered architecture consists of hardware, virtualization, operating system, and network layers. Using modern web development technology, an operating system is created that services and virtualizes manufacturing resources in the network. This operating system offers a new, and much-needed model for physical resources and application software distribution in Cloud Manufacturing. The platform is designed with a micro-service architecture, that is used for manufacturing nodes and software applications or ‘assets’, and implemented in a Mongo, Express, Angular, Node (MEAN) stack.

Assessing the predictive capability of numerical additive manufacturing simulations via in-situ distortion measurements on a LMD component during build-up

Due to rapid, localized heating and cooling, distortions accumulate in additive manufactured laser metal deposition (LMD) components, leading to a loss of dimensional accuracy or even cracking. Numerical welding simulations allow the prediction of these deviations and their optimization before conducting experiments. To assess the viability of the simulation tool for the use in a predictive manner, comprehensive validations with experimental results on the newly-built part need to be conducted.In this contribution, a predictive, mechanical simulation of a thin-walled, curved LMD geometry is shown for a 30-layer sample of 1.4404 stainless steel. The part distortions are determined experimentally via an in-situ digital image correlation measurement using the GOM Aramis system and compared with the simulation results. With this benchmark, the performance of a numerical welding simulation in additive manufacturing is discussed in terms of result accuracy and usability.

Structural Transformation and Spillovers from Industrial Areas

Like many developing countries, India features a variety of land-use restrictions that make it difficult to establish industrial firms on agricultural lands. Such policies have received some of the blame for the slow pace of industrialization, and there is widespread agreement on the need for reform. Traditional agrarian economies, however, have many features that may serve as barriers to industrialization, making it unclear that land-use reform would be sufficient for promoting manufacturing growth in rural areas. To better understand the role played by such regulations, we study the effects of the Industrial Areas (IAs) program in India, which facilitated the establishment of industrial firms in areas that had previously been restricted to agriculture. We find that IAs caused a large increase in the number of firms and employment, and that there were substantial spillovers to neighboring villages. Furthermore, IAs trigger a classic structural transformation of the economy, with a shift of workers from agricultural to non-agricultural employment, and the creation of numerous small manufacturing and agricultural firms.

Cleaner Cuts for Semiconductor Packaging

AbstractThe semiconductor packaging industry faces numerous manufacturing challenges in the production of next generation designs for advanced, miniaturized, microelectronic devices. The singulation of multiple circuits produced on a single substrate into individual devices is a standout example of this. In many instances, the cutting requirements for singulation already surpass the capabilities of mechanical cutting. Specific examples are system‐in‐package (SiP) circuitry used in wrist‐worn devices and the fingerprint sensors found in many phones, tablets or even smart watches. This leaves laser cutting as the only viable method, and both nanosecond and picosecond lasers are currently employed for these processes. This article compares these two approaches, and provides some detail on the characteristics and implementation of USP picosecond lasers for both SiP and fingerprint sensor singulation.

A numerical analysis of the effects of manufacturing processes on material pre-strain in offshore wind monopiles

The majority of offshore wind turbines in Europe are supported by monopile type foundation structures. Monopiles are made of large thickness steel plates which are longitudinally welded to fabricate “cans” and these cans are subsequently welded around the circumference to manufacture a monopile. Monopile structures can have diameters of 4-10m, with wall thicknesses of 40-150mm. To achieve the cylindrical shape in individual cans, large thickness steel plates are typically cold formed via the three-roll bending process. During forming of these plates, the material is subjected to plastic pre-strain, which subsequently influences the fracture and fatigue properties of monopile structures. In this study, a finite element model has been developed to predict the pre-straining levels in monopiles of different dimensions. To determine the influence of numerous manufacturing practices, a sensitivity analysis of different factors has been conducted. These include fabrication dependent variables such as the influence of friction coefficient and bending force, and geometry dependent factors such as plate thickness, length, and distance between rollers. From the numerical results, a range of expected material pre-strain levels have been identified and presented in this paper.

Local fatigue strength assessment of induction hardened components based on numerical manufacturing process simulation

Induction hardening as common heat treatment process for highly-stressed automotive components significantly affects the surface layer properties leading to a compressive residual stress condition and a local hardening of the material. The beneficial effect of the post-treatment is generally well investigated and already implemented in industrial applicable guidelines by considering nominal fatigue strength enhancement factors. However, as the fatigue strength improvement essentially depends on the applied manufacturing process parameters, the resulting local material properties and the local load stress distribution, an elaborated numerical fatigue assessment procedure based on a manufacturing process simulation of a notched round specimen is presented in this paper. Thereby, a two-dimensional axi-symmetric model is set-up, whereby the inductive heating process is performed in COMSOL® and the subsequent quenching process in SYSWELD®. The resulting axial residual stress condition at the notch area of the specimen reveals a sound accordance to X-ray measurements. Finally, a local fatigue strength assessment based on the local strain approach is shown. Herein, manufacturing dependent residual stress states are considered as mean stresses on the basis of the damage parameter by Smith, Watson, and Topper. The estimated fatigue data points agree well to results of four-point bending fatigue tests, which basically prove the applicability of the presented fatigue design methodology.

Dispositifs médicaux et modèles anatomiques produits par impression 3D : quelle diffusion et quelles utilisations dans les établissements de santé français ?

3D printing plays an increasingly important role in the medical sector and particularly in surgery. Nowadays, numerous manufacturers benefit from this technology to produce their medical devices and some hospitals have also purchased 3D printers. In this context, the aim of the present study was to study the distribution and the use of 3D printing in French hospitals in order to its main features in surgery. By conducting a national survey, we targeted hospitals equipped with 3D printers and those using external providers to benefit from this technology. Forty-seven hospitals were identified as using 3D printing including eight equipped with in-house 3D printers. This work gives us a first picture of 3D printing for hospital use in France and it raises questions about hospital pharmacists' involvement in 3D printed medical device production.

Manufacturing methods for medical artificial prostheses– a review

The main objective of this paper is to review the manufacturing methods that can be used for fabricating medical prostheses. The medical prostheses have different functions and applications. Selection of manufacturing method is made based on the material, design, and mechanical properties of the prostheses. The conventional manufacturing methods that had been applied for manufacturing prostheses are machining, incremental sheet forming and investment casting. The combination of computer numerical control and additive manufacturing has been able to improve the process efficiency of these methods. However, direct fabrication by additive manufacturing has been able to replace the conventional method with better process efficiency and product accuracy.

A QRM Discussion of Microbial Contamination of Non-sterile Drug Products, Using FDA and EMA Warning Letters Recorded between 2008 and 2016.

Microbial quality control of non-sterile drug products has been a concern to regulatory agencies and the pharmaceutical industry since the 1960s. Despite being an old challenge to companies, microbial contamination still affects a high number of manufacturers of non-sterile products. Consequences go well beyond the obvious direct costs related to batch rejections or product recalls, as human lives and a company's reputation are significantly impacted if such events occur. To better manage risk and establish effective mitigation strategies, it is necessary to understand the microbial hazards involved in non-sterile drug products manufacturing, be able to evaluate their potential impact on final product quality, and apply mitigation actions. Herein we discuss the most likely root causes involved in microbial contaminations referenced in warning letters issued by US health authorities and non-compliance reports issued by European health authorities over a period of several years. The quality risk management tools proposed were applied to the data gathered from those databases, and a generic risk ranking was provided based on a panel of non-sterile drug product manufacturers that was assembled and given the opportunity to perform the risk assessments. That panel identified gaps and defined potential mitigation actions, based on their own experience of potential risks expected for their processes. Major findings clearly indicate that the manufacturers affected by the warning letters should focus their attention on process improvements and microbial control strategies, especially those related to microbial analysis and raw material quality control. Additionally, the WLs considered frequently referred to failures in quality-related issues, which indicates that the quality commitment should be reinforced at most companies to avoid microbiological contaminations.LAY ABSTRACT: Microbial contamination of drug products affects the quality of non-sterile drug products produced by numerous manufacturers, representing a major risk to patients. It is necessary to understand the microbial hazards involved in the manufacturing process and evaluate their impact on final product quality so that effective prevention strategies can be implemented. A risk-based classification of most likely root causes for microbial contamination found in the warning letters issued by the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency is proposed. To validate the likely root causes extracted from the warning letters, a subject matter expert panel made of several manufacturers was formed and consulted. A quality risk management approach to assess microbiological contamination of non-sterile drug products is proposed for the identification of microbial hazards involved in the manufacturing process. To enable ranking of microbial contamination risks, quality risk management metrics related to criticality and overall risk were applied. The results showed that manufacturers of non-sterile drug products should improve their microbial control strategy, with special attention to quality controls of raw materials, primary containers, and closures. Besides that, they should invest in a more robust quality system and culture. As a start, manufacturers may consider investigating their specific microbiological risks, adressing their sites' own microbial ecology, type of manufacturing processes, and dosage form characteristics, as these may lead to increased contamination risks. Authorities should allow and enforce innovative, more comprehensive, and more effective approaches to in-process contamination monitoring and controls.

Mechanical deburring and edge-finishing processes for aluminum parts—a review

Burr formation is considered as a detrimental phenomenon that not only decreases the machined part surface and assembly quality, but also increases the production cost. To conduct burr removal from machined edges and holes, the costly and non-desirable secondary operation, so-called deburring, is demanded. The complexity and severity of deburring processes depend on several factors, including burr size, location, and the material to be deburred. Due to vast applications of aluminum alloys in numerous manufacturing sectors including automotive and aerospace industries, adequate knowledge of the most widely used deburring processes on aluminum alloys is demanded. However, surprisingly, despite the acute demands by numerous manufacturing sectors, no state of the art was found in the open literature about applicable deburring and edge-finishing methods for aluminum work parts. This lack is intended to be remedied in this work by providing an insight into the most widely used deburring and edge-finishing processes for aluminum work parts. To that end, several deburring classifications were proposed. The main highly used category of deburring techniques is mechanical deburring process which is related to the removal of various kinds of burr shapes and size by means of mechanical abrasion. In fact, mechanical deburring processes are the most widely used techniques due to versatility, flexibility, deburring rate, and acceptable cost. Among mechanical deburring methods, several methods including robotic, CNC, and manual deburring were presented in this work. A brief insight into the application of several other non-classified mechanical deburring processes was also presented. In addition, knowing that an accurate selection of deburring methods is highly dependent to proper understanding of the burr formation, therefore, an overview of burr formation mechanism, morphology, shape, and, in principle, those factors governing burr formation are also presented, followed by experimental, numerical, and analytical models of burr formation morphology and size. Other general concerns, including the use of lubricant and its effects on deburring performance, must be identified. The future demands of precision deburring are challenging, not only for machine tools and deburring tools, but also for high-precision machining researchers. Close collaborations between machine tool builders, CAD/CAM programmers for precision tool path planning, and deburring and edge-finishing R & D community are highly demanded towards the successful movement to the next generation of precision deburring and edge finishing.

A Fatigue Crack Size Evaluation Method Based on Lamb Wave Simulation and Limited Experimental Data.

This paper presents a systematic and general method for Lamb wave-based crack size quantification using finite element simulations and Bayesian updating. The method consists of construction of a baseline quantification model using finite element simulation data and Bayesian updating with limited Lamb wave data from target structure. The baseline model correlates two proposed damage sensitive features, namely the normalized amplitude and phase change, with the crack length through a response surface model. The two damage sensitive features are extracted from the first received S0 mode wave package. The model parameters of the baseline model are estimated using finite element simulation data. To account for uncertainties from numerical modeling, geometry, material and manufacturing between the baseline model and the target model, Bayesian method is employed to update the baseline model with a few measurements acquired from the actual target structure. A rigorous validation is made using in-situ fatigue testing and Lamb wave data from coupon specimens and realistic lap-joint components. The effectiveness and accuracy of the proposed method is demonstrated under different loading and damage conditions.

Numerical flow simulation methods and additive manufacturing methods for the development of a flow optimised design of a novel point-of-care diagnostic device

Abstract For the development of a novel, user-friendly and low cost point-of-care diagnostic device for the detection of disease specific biomarker a flow optimised design of the test system has to be investigated. The resulting test system is characterised by a reduced execution period, a reduction of execution steps and an integrated waste management. Based on previous results, the current study focused on the design implementation of the fluidic requirements, e. g. tightness, inside the test device. With the help of fluid flow simulations (CFD – computational fluid dynamics) the flow behaviour inside the test device was analysed for different designs and arrangements. Prototypes generated from additive manufacturing technologies (PolyJet modeling) are used for validating the simulation results and further experimental tests.

Cistus incanus L. commercial products as a good source of polyphenols in human diet

Recently numerous manufacturers promote herbal infusions and dietary supplements based on the plant Cistus incanus because of its high content of phenolic compounds and strong antioxidant activity. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess the phenolic profile and antioxidant capacity of hydromethanolic and aqueous extracts of commercial C. incanus products. Individual phenolic acids and flavonoids were determined using HPLC, while antioxidant capacities were evaluated by use of scavenging assays of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) and ferric reducing/antioxidant power (FRAP). Total phenolic, flavonoid, phenolic acid and L(+)-ascorbic acid contents were quantified using UV–vis spectrometry, whereas in vitro antimicrobial activities of aqueous extracts of C. incanus were investigated by the broth microdilution technique using 96-well plates. The place of origin was the main factor in differentiating C. incanus samples. The results revealed that aqueous extracts of C. incanus are richer in phenolic compounds and have stronger antioxidant activities than hydromethanolic extracts. Moreover, aqueous extracts revealed antibacterial activities more effective against Gram-positive bacteria, particularly S. aureus (MIC values from 0.5 to 32mg/mL) and S. epidermidis (MIC values from 0.25 to 8mg/mL) than Gram-negative bacteria. They were also weak inhibitors of C. albicans and C. glabrata growth (MIC values over 8mg/mL).

Development of a hybrid system of artificial neural networks and artificial bee colony algorithm for prediction and modeling of customer choice in the market

With the increasing growth of technology and the emergence of various industries, numerous manufacturers have entered this field. In today's world, sellers and manufacturers find themselves among a vast number of competitors. Therefore, they need to adopt a variety of policies and strategies for their own survival and profitability. Companies should identify their customers’ needs and adopt their own policies based on customers’ purchase behaviors. To this end, attempts have been made to identify the customer choice model since the past decades. These models aim at modeling and predicting customer choice among several brands. Traditional models were of interest for many years and these methods were frequently used with the advent of artificial intelligence and machine learning systems. They could demonstrate very good results. In this study, it has been attempted to present a new method for the modeling and prediction of customer choice in the market using the combination of artificial intelligence and data mining. Indeed, the new model is to be applied in helping managers with decision-making. Hence, probabilistic neural networks have been combined with artificial bee colony algorithm. The proposed model was tested in a real market and its efficiency and accuracy were finally compared with those of other models, including neural network trained with back-propagation, probabilistic neural networks, and the neural networks trained with genetic algorithm. The results reveal that the hybrid model shows better performance than the other models.

The role of failure mode and effects analysis in improving the quality performance of dairy laboratories

AbstractFailure modes and effects analysis (FMEA) is a proactive procedure for risk management and quality improvement in laboratories. The FMEA was carried out on pre‐analytical stage of ultra‐high‐temperature milk samples. It was applied at two different stages; in the first phase, the potential failure mode was chosen and the probable risks for failure mode were assessed and analyzed. Risk priority numbers (RPNs) were calculated to evaluate and organize reasons for potential failure and their impacts and identify the risk level. As for the second phase, it encompassed establishing and implementing the proposed action plans and measuring their effects. The uppermost RPN was human errors (504), followed by training (432), incorrect samples handling and transport (336), and insufficient sterilizing of tools (192). Employing the effective improvement action plan significantly decreased the RPN. The FMEA should be utilized as a regular tool to improve processes in laboratories.Practical applicationsThe failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA) method is used mainly to minimize errors, improve the quality of pre analytical stage of milk samples in the laboratory, identify potential failures, and develop and prioritize improvement strategies. Corrective actions significantly lower the risk priority numbers values. Besides, FMEA is a preventive tool and it is helpful in risk assessment of processes in dairy laboratories. The FMEA is a frequently‐used technique for quality assurance in food industry and numerous manufacturing industries addressing purchasers, governmental requirements, quality control, and safety. Nowadays, the FMEA is being applied in healthcare laboratories, and to attain all‐inclusive and fast improvement in safety in non‐healthcare industries.

Partial inerting of dust clouds using a modified standard minimum ignition energy device

Partial inerting is an important but underutilized mitigation technique in which minimum ignition energy (MIE) of a dust cloud is increased through inerting, reducing the risk of an accidental dust explosion or more accurately, a dust deflagration. This technique has wide application potential in numerous chemical and general manufacturing industries. The Kühner MIKE3 is the predominant apparatus for measurement of the minimum ignition energy (MIE) of combustible dusts worldwide. The current version of the MIKE3 device is not specifically designed to measure partial inerting minimum ignition energies. The purpose of this work is to demonstrate that a properly designed add on purge device and technique can accurately produce partial inerting MIE results with an existing MIE device.The purge device ensures complete purging of the Hartman dust dispersion tube with the desired gas concentration before experimentation. The same gas is then pulsed into the dispersion tube producing the dust dispersion for ignition testing. This approach leads to uniform testing conditions in the tube with respect to gas concentration which is essential for producing proper measurements. Additionally, experiments show the turbulence generated by the purging technique did not significantly affect the MIE measurements. Therefore, an important finding of this work is that purging the tube before partial inerting MIE testing results in a proper characterization of the relationship between the MIE and oxygen for the dust. The findings therefore demonstrate the need to amend existing or develop new standards for this type of dust testing. The effect of these modifications and techniques are demonstrated by the experimental determination of the partial inerting curve for Niacin (CaRo15) using the Kühner MIKE3 apparatus.

An Investigation Into How Far Do Residents Adopt Measures to Reduce Microbial Hazards During Food Handling

Foodborne diseases have always been linked to numerous food manufacturing elements and home practices of purchasers and the latter does play a critical role in disease prevention. Consumers have the ultimate responsibility for handling and storing food safely and take adequate safety precautions when preparing and consuming food at home to avoid health related problems associated with microbial hazards. The objectives of this survey were to evaluate current knowledge of consumers pertaining to food hygiene and food safety concepts as well as to assess food handling practices that residents adopt to reduce microbial hazards in the domestic environment. A sample of 300 Mauritian residents were selected to participate in a questionnaire based survey. Questions in the questionnaire were based on hygienic practices with respect to food handling, food safety and personal hygiene. SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) was used to analyze the results and Microsoft excel was used to generate pie charts, and bar charts. The results obtained demonstrated that the level of knowledge pertaining to food safety and food hygiene and how to reduce microbial hazards were above average. Majority of the residents were knowledgeable about major aspects related to proper food handling behaviors but need more education pertaining to the use of thermometers to check for food temperature. The nature of the risk, personal and environmental factors (psychological, demographic and socio-economic factors, cultural and economic) were found to be the factors affecting food safety behaviors among consumers. Consumers can become more motivated to improve their behaviors if they are made aware of the impact of risky practices. Although, most consumers had basic knowledge pertaining to food safety, food hygiene and food handling practices, it is important to continually inform consumers about safe food handling practices through various channels.