Stainless Steel Woven Research Articles

Characterization, LCA and FEA for an efficient ecodesign of novel stainless steel woven wire mesh reinforced recycled aluminum alloy matrix composite

The production of metal matrix composites generally requires higher energy and raw materials consumption, while generating more waste than conventional material processing. The possibility of reusing recycled aluminum as an alternative in the production of metal matrix composites has led to the interest in this research as it can contribute to aluminum waste and raw reduction as well as to environmental impact mitigation. This paper provides an in-depth investigation of a brand-new metal matrix composite that is produced by gravity casting. In turn, the process is based on recycled aluminum EN AW 6082 for the matrix that is reinforced with stainless steel AISI 304 woven wire mesh that is intended for industrial and commercial use. A detailed description of the production procedure is reviewed, as are the vales of toughness, yield and tensile strengths that were determined by standardized tensile and Charpy tests. Life Cycle Assessment and Finite Element Analysis were used to determine, respectively, the environmental impact and the residual stresses generated during the production of the specimens for the above mentioned tests. Five different opening and wire diameter configurations for the AISI 304 woven wires were studied in this work. In a comparison to recycled aluminum alloy EN AW 6082 without reinforcement, the best results were provided by the 2.177 mm × 0.6 mm configuration. These results were the following: (1) Yield, tensile strength and toughness showed an increase of 245.5%, 13.62% and 175.0% respectively. (2) Life Cycle Assessment increased 8.31% for the highest environmental impact obtained (Human Toxicity). (3) The Finite Element Analysis showed that the residual stresses increased in their compressive values in −10.83 MPa, −9.925 MPa and −3.84 MPa, respectively, for the stainless steel wires, aluminum matrix and wire/matrix interfaces. From the mechanical properties, the environmental impacts and the residual stresses that were obtained, one can conclude that this study has demonstrated a technically feasible practical approach to the use of the recycled aluminum alloy EN AW 6082 using AISI 304 stainless steel woven wires as materials in the metal matrix composites production. This could lead to a substantial reduction in the volume of aluminum used and, consequently, provide environmental and economic benefits.

Photocatalytic Investigation of Aerosol-Assisted Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Deposited Hybrid TiO2 Containing Nanocomposite Coatings.

We report on the aerosol-assisted atmospheric-pressure plasma deposition onto a stainless-steel woven mesh of a thin nanocomposite coating based on TiO2 nanoparticles hosted in a hybrid organic−inorganic matrix, starting from nanoparticles dispersed in a mixture of hexamethyldisiloxane and isopropyl alcohol. The stainless-steel mesh was selected as an effective support for the possible future technological application of the coating for photocatalytically assisted water depollution. The prepared coatings were thoroughly investigated from the chemical and morphological points of view and were demonstrated to be photocatalytically active in the degradation of an organic molecule, used as a pollutant model, in water upon UV light irradiation. In order to optimize the photocatalytic performance, different approaches were investigated for the coating’s realization, namely (i) the control of the deposition time and (ii) the application of a postdeposition O2 plasma treatment on the pristine coatings. Both strategies were found to be able to increase the photocatalytic activity, and, remarkably, their combination resulted in a further enhancement of the photoactivity. Indeed, the proposed combined approach allowed a three-fold increase in the kinetic constant of the degradation reaction of the model dye methylene blue with respect to the pristine coating. Interestingly, the chemical and morphological characterizations of all the prepared coatings were able to account for the enhancement of the photocatalytic performance. Indeed, the presence of the TiO2 nanoparticles on the outmost surface of the film confirmed the accessibility of the photocatalytic sites in the nanocomposite and reasonably explained the enhanced photocatalytic performance. In addition, the sustained photoactivity (>5 cycles of use) of the nanocomposites was demonstrated.

Grid ionization chamber based on stainless steel woven wire mesh

The grid electrode of the grid ionization chamber (GIC) is devoted to eliminating the dependence of the anode pulse amplitude on the initial position and orientation of the ionization. The traditional methods of grid production require cumbersome processes and advanced instruments. In this paper, a bonded stainless steel woven wire mesh (SSWWM) grid electrode manufacturing method is proposed. Compared with the traditional grid electrode, the SSWWM grid features the advantages of simple fabrication, low cost, and high mechanical strength. The energy resolutions of the 40-mesh, 60-mesh and 80-mesh SSWWM grids and orthogonal mesh grid realized by the traditional wire winding method were tested using an 241Am source (around 5.486 MeV). The results show that the optimum energy resolution of the SSWWM and orthogonal mesh grids is approximately 47 keV full width at half-maximum (FWHM). The optimal energy resolutions of the 40-mesh and 60-mesh SSWWM grids are comparable, but the initial operating voltages corresponding to the energy resolution plateau are different, mainly because of the effect of the different geometric parameters of the SSWWM grid on the electron transmittance. A simulation program was used to study the electron transmittance of the SSWWM grid. The simulation results are in agreement with the experimental results, indicating that the simulation program can be used as a reference for the selection of the geometric parameters of the SSWWM grid.

Large-Scale MOCVD Deposition of Nanostructured TiO2 on Stainless Steel Woven: A Systematic Investigation of Photoactivity as a Function of Film Thickness.

Heterogeneous photocatalysis is considered as one of the most appealing options for the treatment of organic pollutants in water. However, its definitive translation into industrial practice is still very limited because of both the complexity of large-scale production of catalysts and the problems involved in handling the powder-based photocatalysts in the industrial plants. Here, we demonstrate that the MOCVD approach can be successfully used to prepare large-scale supported catalysts with a good photocatalytic activity towards dye degradation. The photocatalyst consisted of nanostructured TiO2 thin film deposited on a stainless steel mesh substrate. The film thickness, the morphological features, and the crystallographic properties of the different portions of the sample were correlated to the position in the reactor chamber and the reaction conditions. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated according to the international standard test ISO 10678:2010 based on methylene blue degradation. The photocatalytic activity is essentially constant (PMB over 40 µmol·m−2·h−1) throughout the film, except for the portion of sample placed at the very end of the reactor chamber, where the TiO2 film is too thin to react properly. It was assessed that a minimum film thickness of 250–300 nm is necessary to reach the maximum photocatalytic performance.

Prototyping a spinning adsorber submerged filter for continuous removal of wastewater contaminants

Adsorption process is widely used for the removal of wastewater contaminants. Classic adsorption units are fixed beds and membrane filtration systems. In this work a novel configuration of a bench scale spinning adsorber submerged filter is proposed. Different prototypes of cylindric, truncated cone or prismatic spinning adsorbers were studied using activated carbon of different particle sizes GAC (1.5 mm, Granulated), μGAC (0.475 mm, microGranulated), and cPAC (0.237 mm, coarse Powder) as adsorbent, and azorubine as model adsorbate. High maximum azorubine adsorptions per unit mass of adsorbent of 214, 225 and 275 mg/g for GAC, μGAC and cPAC, respectively, were obtained using the Langmuir isotherm adsorption model. Batch adsorption followed pseudo-second order kinetics, and adsorbate uptake rate increased with decreasing adsorbent particle size. Best adsorption unit was a tank equipped with a spinning rectangular prism adsorber prototype all made of stainless-steel woven wire filter of 180 mesh size. Running at 600 rpm and filled with a high cPAC concentration (25 g/L), adsorber can remove azorubine at similar rates that the use of free moving cPAC. Adsorber unit can run in continuous mode and works even better as a novel spinning submerged filter where filtered flow exits from a central pipe axis. This integrated adsorption-submerged filtration operation mode offer the possibility of adding a high initial dose or a continuous dosing of adsorbent in the tank, increasing the adsorbent concentration of the unit. This system can also offer novel opportunities for wastewater contaminants removal using different adsorbent materials located separately.

Comparative study of various flexible facing materials for soil nailed slopes

As the natural slopes along the roadsides and embankments are not stable due to sliding or collapse, a technique termed “soil nailing” is used to stabilize the natural or man-made slopes. A small scale physical model of soil nailed slope in well-graded sandy soil and inclined at 60° to the horizontal using four number of soil nails is prepared in the laboratory using different flexible materials as flexible facing namely Uniaxial Geogrid, Geotextile fabric, Coir mat, Fine Stainless steel woven wire mesh. The results of these soil nailed slopes with flexible facing materials and the soil nailed slopes with no additional facing are compared. The behavior of these soil nailed slopes is analyzed by applying extra surcharge with the help of a hydraulic jack for load application on the physical model. The strain produced in the inserted soil nails on stress application is determined using a multimeter with the help of the sensors bonded to the each soil nail. Also, the deflection of the soil mass in horizontal and vertical deflection is measured as it is clearly visible from the perplex sheet provided on the outline of the physical model. The stress, horizontal displacement and vertical displacement induced in all the materials is measured and compared. The fine stainless steel wire mesh took the maximum stress of 1.23 N/mm2 with minimum displacements and minimum strength of 0.492 N/mm2 was possessed by the slope without any facing material. Also, the other flexible materials like uniaxial Geogrid and coir mat possessed good strength and hence can be an effective alternate to strengthen existing or new slopes and provision of flexible facing materials in soil nailing technique further aids in slope stabilization.

Impact of different conductive path design and fabrication on temperature variation of thermal stainless steel woven fabric

Currently, carbon fiber and silver-coated yarn are the most common materials to produce thermal fabric, while stainless steel yarn is still rare to use. Limited research can be found about thermal fabric applied in stainless steel yarn (SSY). In this study, two kinds of conductive path are designed and fabricated to evaluate the heating effect. PVA water soluble yarn is also adopted into the fabrication to reduce the damage during weaving. Results show that conductive path in wider width has better thermal performance. Fabric length reduction can raise the temperature more effectively compared to fabric width reduction.

Study of Part Restoration Modes Using Electrocontact Welding with Gauze Filler Materials

This article proves the advantage of gauze compared to the wire, tape, and powder materials as a filler material for electro contact welding. The gauze as a tape material consisting of wires has the advantages of wire (high adhesive strength and high fatigue life) and the tape advantages (high producibility, ease of use). The paper presents the coating study methods and results using gauze welding and the effect of this coating on the adhesive strength depending on electro contact welding modes, material and gauze parameters, residual stresses in coatings, and coating wear-resistance. During electro contact welding in rational modes, the woven gauze adhesive strength is 41% higher than the steel tape. When analyzing residual stress as a relation of the effective stress to the material yield strength of the sample or coating, it was found that residual stresses have a smaller effect in the woven gauze coating compared to the tape made of steel 45. A stainless steel woven gauze coating and a steel tape coating made from steel 45 are equal in wear resistance. Thus, a metal gauze can be used as filler material during electro contact welding on the surface of worn parts instead of steel tape made from a similar grade of steel applied to the worn parts' surface.

Design and optimisation of a low-cost titanium dioxide-coated stainless steel mesh photocatalytic water treatment reactor

Photocatalysis has been extensively studied in recent years for environmental wastewater treatment applications. Although promising, it has yet to be globally adopted, as it faces many challenges; namely cost, complexity and efficiency. This present work focuses on the optimisation of a bespoke photocatalytic water treatment reactor. Contrary to other studies, the reactor was exclusively built from inexpensive and readily available consumer market parts, to facilitate a widespread adoption of this water treatment method. Photocatalytic TiO2 was synthesised and immobilised on stainless steel woven mesh in a one-step process, via reactive pulsed DC magnetron sputtering. A two-levels augmented screening design template was used to optimise the performance of the bespoke photocatalytic reactor, consisting of 20 experimental runs. Five independent variables were studied, UV light intensity, number of TiO2-coated mesh layers, coating thickness, water flowrate and initial dye concentration. Methylene blue dye solution was used as a model pollutant and the removal percentage after 5 h was used as a response. A linear regression model was built from the experimental results and revealed that all first-order terms, with the exception of flowrate, were significant contributors to the model pollutant removal. Increasing the coating thickness and the number of TiO2-coated mesh layers did improve the removal rate of methylene blue. These benefits cancelled each other when both variables were at their highest levels, due to a decreased light permeability through the mesh. ANOVA, lack-of-fit, and R2 analysis confirmed the significance of the linear regression model. Optimised conditions were identified, leading to the removal of more than 90% of the model pollutant after 5 h of UV-A illumination. The calculated pseudo-first-order constant was as high as 14.5 × 10−5 s−1, while the quantum yield was estimated to be 4.22 × 10−6 molecules/photons and the figure of merit was calculated at 1.14. This substrate/catalyst combination proved to be effective at degrading methylene blue, with no evident performance degradation after 10 repeated cycles, equivalent to 360 h of consecutive use. This present work demonstrates that it is possible to build an efficient photocatalytic reactor from inexpensive computer enthusiast parts, combined with a highly scalable and industry friendly photocatalyst production technique.

Energy Efficient Ultrahigh Flux Separation of Oily Pollutants from Water with Superhydrophilic Nanoscale Metal–Organic Framework Architectures

AbstractThe rising demand for clean water for a growing and increasingly urban global population is one of the most urgent issues of our time. Here, we introduce the synthesis of a unique nanoscale architecture of pillar‐like Co‐CAT‐1 metal–organic framework (MOF) crystallites on gold‐coated woven stainless steel meshes with large, 50 μm apertures. These nanostructured mesh surfaces feature superhydrophilic and underwater superoleophobic wetting properties, allowing for gravity‐driven, highly efficient oil–water separation featuring water fluxes of up to nearly one million L m−2 h−1. Water physisorption experiments reveal the hydrophilic nature of Co‐CAT‐1 with a total water vapor uptake at room temperature of 470 cm3 g−1. Semiempirical molecular orbital calculations shed light on water affinity of the inner and outer pore surfaces. The MOF‐based membranes enable high separation efficiencies for a number of liquids tested, including the notorious water pollutant, crude oil, affording chemical oxygen demand (COD) concentrations below 25 mg L−1 of the effluent. Our results demonstrate the great impact of suitable nanoscale surface architectures as a means of encoding on‐surface extreme wetting properties, yielding energy‐efficient water‐selective large‐aperture membranes.

Energy Efficient Ultrahigh Flux Separation of Oily Pollutants from Water with Superhydrophilic Nanoscale Metal-Organic Framework Architectures.

The rising demand for clean water for a growing and increasingly urban global population is one of the most urgent issues of our time. Here, we introduce the synthesis of a unique nanoscale architecture of pillar‐like Co‐CAT‐1 metal–organic framework (MOF) crystallites on gold‐coated woven stainless steel meshes with large, 50 μm apertures. These nanostructured mesh surfaces feature superhydrophilic and underwater superoleophobic wetting properties, allowing for gravity‐driven, highly efficient oil–water separation featuring water fluxes of up to nearly one million L m−2 h−1. Water physisorption experiments reveal the hydrophilic nature of Co‐CAT‐1 with a total water vapor uptake at room temperature of 470 cm3 g−1. Semiempirical molecular orbital calculations shed light on water affinity of the inner and outer pore surfaces. The MOF‐based membranes enable high separation efficiencies for a number of liquids tested, including the notorious water pollutant, crude oil, affording chemical oxygen demand (COD) concentrations below 25 mg L−1 of the effluent. Our results demonstrate the great impact of suitable nanoscale surface architectures as a means of encoding on‐surface extreme wetting properties, yielding energy‐efficient water‐selective large‐aperture membranes.

Study on electrochemical water softening mechanism of high-efficient multi-layer mesh coupled cathode

High cathode area requirement limits industrial applications of electrochemical water softening technology. Based on previous works, the electrochemical water softening mechanism of high-efficient multi-layer mesh coupled cathode which consists of multilayers of stainless steel woven nets with different mesh sizes was studied systematically in this paper. Results reveal that the external and internal layers synergically enhance the performance of the coupled cathode. Calcium carbonate deposition reaction preferentially occurs on the external layers of the coupled cathode, due to the shielding effect caused large differences in current density and potential among the layers of the coupled cathode. Meanwhile, hydrogen bubbles can not only serve as soft templates, allowing nucleation sites to be transferred from the substrate surface to the formed calcium carbonate crystals, but also easily bring scale films with low coverage and adhesion force away from the substrate surface by mechanical stripping, prolonging the cathode deactivation time and making the cathode self-cleaning. Besides, the internal layers provide an alkaline environment through the stable hydrogen evolution process, further accelerating the deposition of hardness ions and reducing the cathode area required for water softening.

Quantitative evaluation of effects of different cathode materials on performance in Cd(II)-reduced microbial electrolysis cells

Three materials including stainless steel woven mesh (SSM), nickel foam (NF) and carbon cloth (CC) were conducted as cathode in Cd(II)-reduced microbial electrolysis cells (MECs), respectively. By using electrode potential slope (EPS) method, the experimental open circuit potentials of three cathodes were similar, while the SSM cathode showed the smallest resistance (6 ± 1 mΩ m2), following by NF cathode (18 ± 2 mΩ m2) and CC cathode (32 ± 5 mΩ m2). These values were analyzed to predicte higher current density and more positive cathode potential in the MEC with SSM cathode under subsequent operating conditions. Electrochemical performance was more likely to be limited by current density than cathode potential. Accordingly, the MEC with SSM cathode obtained better system performance than that with other cathodes. This study further expands the application of EPS method that quantitatively evaluating and effectively selecting cathode materials for better system performance in Cd(II)-reduced MECs.

Immobilization of AgCl@TiO2 on the woven wire mesh: Sunlight-responsive environmental photocatalyst with high durability

The immobilized AgCl@TiO2 photocatalytic thin films were fabricated via electrophoretic deposition method. Affordability, scalability, and high chemical stability are some valuable characteristics making woven stainless steel wire mesh a suitable substrate for fabrication of photocatalyst film. The photocatalytic degradation efficiency of the thin film was investigated by removing hard-degradable methamphetamine under natural solar light. The AgCl@TiO2 photocatalyst with AgCl content of about 5% showed the most photocatalytic degradation efficiency. Using Mott-Schottky plots, the flat band potential of prepared photocatalysts was estimated. The flat band potential showed that the conduction band of AgCl@TiO2 is a better candidate for production of superoxide radicals than TiO2. A film thickness of 1629 nm yields optimal photodegradation efficiency. A series of ten sequential cycles for photodegradation of methamphetamine was conducted using thin film which caused neither significant destruction on photocatalytic substrate nor any considerable reduction in efficiency whatsoever. The AgCl@TiO2 thin film-induced mineralization of methamphetamine was reported to be approximately around 91 percent. The photoelectrochemical performance of TiO2 and AgCl@TiO2 thin film was evaluated by LSV technique under solar light and results show thatafter incorporation of AgCl, the photocurrent density corresponding to the oxygen evolution reaction significantly increased to 1.8 mA cm−2 at 1.23 V vs RHE.

Experimental Investigation of Heat Transfer Correlation for Direct Contact Membrane Distillation

Abstract This paper presents an experimental investigation of heat transfer in direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) flow channels with and without the spacer. In this experiment, the usual hydrophobic membrane of DCMD is replaced by a copper plate to eliminate mass transfer. The study shows the most appropriate heat transfer correlations for empty channel cases with different channel heights and flow rates. For the case with the spacer in the flow channels, two spacer materials are investigated: nonwoven plastic and woven stainless steel. The paper presents the most appropriate heat transfer correlation for both these spacer materials. Further, the paper presents finding with two more spacer materials, woven fiberglass and aluminum spacer. It is found that the most appropriate heat transfer correlation for these materials is in the turbulent flow regime although the experimentally estimated Reynolds number suggests laminar flow is presented.

Study on textile comfort properties of polypropylene blended stainless steel woven fabric for the application of electromagnetic shielding effectiveness

In this study, the different proportion of conductive component blended with polypropylene yarn were taken for making conductive textile samples for analysis of electromagnetic shielding effectiveness, fabric bending moment and air permeability. The ASTM D4935 coaxial transmission line method was used to study the electromagnetic shielding. Electromagnetic shielding effectiveness of textile structures containing different percentage of metal content ranges from 1 to 50 dB at high frequency range. Breathability of structures, more precisely air permeability was considered as one of important parameters for designing of electromagnetic radiation protective fabrics for certain applications. The bending moment of samples is decreases with increasing metal component percent.

Mesh-based phase contrast Fourier transform imaging

Traditional x-ray radiography is limited by low attenuation contrast in materials of low electron density. Phase contrast imaging offers the potential to improve the contrast between such materials, but due to the requirements on the spatial coherence of the x-ray beam, practical implementation of such systems with tabletop (i.e. non-synchrotron) sources has been limited. One phase imaging technique employs multiple fine-pitched gratings. However, the strict manufacturing tolerances and precise alignment requirements have limited the widespread adoption of grating-based techniques. In this work, we have investigated a recently developed technique that utilizes a single grid of much coarser pitch. Our system consisted of a low power 100µm spot Mo source, a CCD with 22µm pixel pitch, and either a focused mammography linear grid or a stainless steel woven mesh. Phase is extracted from a single image by windowing and comparing data localized about harmonics of the mesh in the Fourier domain. The effects on the diffraction phase contrast and scattering amplitude images of varying grid types and periods, and of varying the width of the window function used to separate the harmonics were investigated. Using the wire mesh, derivatives of the phase along two orthogonal directions were obtained and combined to form improved phase contrast images.

Electricity generation and bivalent copper reduction as a function of operation time and cathode electrode material in microbial fuel cells

The performance of carbon rod (CR), titanium sheet (TS), stainless steel woven mesh (SSM) and copper sheet (CS) cathode materials are investigated in microbial fuel cells (MFCs) for simultaneous electricity generation and Cu(II) reduction, in multiple batch cycle operations. After 12 cycles, the MFC with CR exhibits 55% reduction in the maximum power density and 76% increase in Cu(II) removal. In contrast, the TS and SSM cathodes at cycle 12 show maximum power densities of 1.7 (TS) and 3.4 (SSM) times, and Cu(II) removal of 1.2 (TS) and 1.3 (SSM) times higher than those observed during the first cycle. Diffusional resistance in the TS and SSM cathodes is found to appreciably decrease over time due to the copper deposition. In contrast to CR, TS and SSM, the cathode made with CS is heavily corroded in the first cycle, exhibiting significant reduction in both the maximum power density and Cu(II) removal at cycle 2, after which the performance stabilizes. These results demonstrate that the initial deposition of copper on the cathodes of MFCs is crucial for efficient and continuous Cu(II) reduction and electricity generation over prolonged time. This effect is closely associated with the nature of the cathode material. Among the materials examined, the SSM is the most effective and inexpensive cathode for practical use in MFCs.

Vacuum chucking assist sheet for fixing flexible sheets during the printing process

A vacuum chuck is often used to fix substrates in the field of electronic device fabrication including printing of the device electrodes. A conventional vacuum chuck plate locally sucks only where suction holes exist. However, when we employ a film as the substrate to be printed, suction from the holes causes the film distortion, which results in misprinting. Thus, we have newly developed a chucking assist sheet to fix a film substrate on a vacuum chuck stage for high-quality electrode printing. When printing is performed, the sheet is located between the film substrate and the vacuum chuck stage. The developed sheet is composed of lower and upper layers of woven stainless steel mesh and non-woven fabric, respectively, and such a structure can significantly decrease misprinting resulting from the film distortion caused by suction. In the present paper, we present the design concept of this chucking assist sheet and details of its features.

Assessment of five different cathode materials for Co(II) reduction with simultaneous hydrogen evolution in microbial electrolysis cells

Cobalt recovery from aqueous Co(II) is one critical step for recovery of cobalt and recycle of spent lithium ion batteries, but suffers from consumption of large amount of energy and chemicals. Previous tests have primarily examined the performance of graphite felt cathode for Co(II) reduction and hydrogen production in microbial electrolysis cells (MECs). The materials of nickel foam (NF), stainless steel woven mesh (SSM), titanium sheet (TS), carbon cloth (CC), and nickel foam + graphene (NF + G) were compared here as cathodes for Co(II) reduction and hydrogen evolution in MECs. Co(II) reduction on the cathodes of TS, SSM, CC and NF + G was not significantly different from each other and increased with the increase of applied voltage from 31.8 ± 6.0% at 0.2 V to 72.2 ± 4.6% at 0.5 V, which was always higher than 16.5 ± 1.8%‒53.4 ± 2.2% on the NF cathodes at the same range of applied voltage. While a low dissolved oxygen (DO) of 1.0 mg/L benefited to both Co(II) reduction and hydrogen evolution for all the materials cathodes with generally appreciable differences from each other, cobalt produced in previous fed-batch operations improved hydrogen evolution in the subsequent batch cycles. These results provide the first assessment of these materials for Co(II) reduction with simultaneous hydrogen evolution, and SSM as the most promising inexpensive alternative to the others.