EMG oscillator model-based energy kernel method for characterizing muscle intrinsic property under isometric contraction

This paper presents a new method for estimating the isometric contraction force and the characterization of muscle’s intrinsic property.The method,called the energy kernel method,starts with converting the electromyography(EMG)signal into planar phase portraits,on which the elliptic distribution of the state points is named as the energy kernel,while that formed by the noise signal is called the noise kernel.Based on such stochastic features of the phase portraits,we approximate the EMG signal within a rectangular window as a harmonic oscillator(EMG oscillator).The study establishes the relationship between the energy of control signal(EMG)and that of output signal(force/power),and a characteristic energy is proposed to estimate the muscle force.On the other hand,the natural frequencies of the noise and the EMG signal can be attained with the energy kernel and noise kernel.In this way,the direct signal–noise recognition and separation can be accomplished.The results show that the representativeness of the characteristic energy toward the force is satisfactory,and the method is very robust since it combines the advantages of both RMS and MPF.Moreover,the natural frequency of the EMG oscillator is not governed by the MU firing rate of a specific muscle,indicating that this frequency correlates with the intrinsic property of muscle.The physical meanings of the model provide new insights into the understanding of EMG.     

Deep cleaning of a metallurgical zinc leaching residue and recovery of valuable metals

Huge quantities of zinc leaching residues (ZLRs) generated from zinc production are dumped continuously around the world and pose a potential environmental threat because of their considerable amounts of entrained heavy metals (mainly lead). Most ZLRs have not been properly treated and the valuable metals in them have not yet been effectively recovered. Herein, the deep cleaning of a ZLR and recovery of valuable metals via a hydrometallurgical route were investigated. The cleaning process consists of two essential stages:acid leaching followed by calcium chloride leaching. The optimum conditions for extracting zinc, copper, and indium by acid leaching were a sulfuric acid concentration of 200 g·L-1, a liquid/solid ratio of 4:1 (mL/g), a leaching time of 2 h, and a temperature of 90℃. For lead and silver extractions, the optimum conditions were a calcium chloride concentration of 400 g·L-1, a pH value of 1.0, a leaching time of 1 h, and a temperature of 30℃. After calcium chloride leaching, silver and lead were extracted out and the lead was finally recovered as electrolytic lead by electrowinning. The anglesite phase, which poses the greatest potential environmental hazard, was removed from the ZLR after deep cleaning, thus reducing the cost of environmental management of ZLRs. The treatment of chlorine and spent electrolyte generated in the process was discussed.     

Density-based clustering method in the moving object database

With the rapid advance of wireless communication, tracking the positions of the moving objects is becoming increasingly feasible and necessary. Because a large number of people use mobile phones, we must handle a large moving object database as well as the following problems. How can we provide the customers with high quality service, that means, how can we deal with so many enquiries within as less time as possible? Because of the large number of data, the gap between CPU speed and the size of main memory has increasing considerably. One way to reduce the time to handle enquiries is to reduce the I/O number between the buffer and the secondary storage. An effective clustering of the objects can minimize the I/O cost between them. In this paper, according to the characteristic of the moving object database, we analyze the objects in buffer, according to their mappiigs in the two-dimension coordiiate, and then develop a density-based clustering method to effectively reorganize the clusters. This new mechanism leads to the less cost of the I/O operation and the more efficient response to enquiries.     

Abrasive wear behavior of cast iron coatings plasma-sprayed at different mild steel substrate temperatures

Three kinds of cast iron coatings were prepared by atmospheric plasma spraying. During the spraying, the mild steel substrate temperature was controlled to be averagely 50, 180, and 240℃, respectively. Abrasive wear tests were conducted on the coatings under a dry friction condition. It is found that the abrasive wear resistance is enhanced with the substrate temperature increasing. SEM observations show that the wear losses of the coatings during the wear tests mainly result from the spalling of the splats. Furthermore, the improved wear resistance of the coatings mainly owes to the formation of oxides and the enhancement in the mechanical properties with the substrate temperature increasing.     

Microstructure and corrosion resistance of Fe/Mo composite amorphous coatings prepared by air plasma spraying

Fe/Mo composite coatings were prepared by air plasma spraying (APS) using Fe-based and Mo-based amorphous and nanocrystalline mixed powders. Microstructural studies show that the composite coatings present a layered structure with low porosity due to adding the self-bonded Mo-based alloy. Corrosion behaviors of the composite coatings, the Fe-based coatings and the Mo-based coatings were investigated by electrochemical measurements and salt spray tests. Electrochemical results show that the composite coatings exhibit a lower polarization current density and higher corrosion potentials than the Fe-based coating when tested in 3.5wt% NaCl solutions, indicating superior corrosion resistance compared with the Fe-based coating. Also with the increase in addition of the Mo-based alloy, a raised corrosion resistance, inferred by an increase in corrosion potential and a decrease in polarization current density, can be found. The results of salt spray tests again show that the corrosion resistance is enhanced by adding the Mo-based alloy, which helps to reduce the porosity of the composite coatings and enhance the stability of the passive films.     

Effect of aluminum oxide on the compressive strength of pellets

Analytical-reagent-grade Al₂O₃ was added to magnetite ore during the process of pelletizing, and the methods of mercury intrusion, scanning electron microscopy, and image processing were used to investigate the effect of Al₂O₃ on the compressive strength of the pellets. The results showed that, as the Al₂O₃ content increased, the compressive strength of the pellets increased slightly and then decreased gradually. When a small amount of Al₂O₃ was added to the pellets, the Al₂O₃ combined with fayalite (2FeO·SiO₂) and the aluminosilicate (2FeO·2Al₂O₃·5SiO₂) was generated, which releases some iron oxide and reduces the inhibition of fayalite to the solid phase of consolidation. When Al₂O₃ increased sequentially, high melting point of Al₂O₃ particles hinder the oxidation of Fe₃O₄ and the recrystallization of Fe2O3, making the internal porosity of the pellets increase, which leads to the decrease in compressive strength of the pellets.     

Effects of heat treatment on structures and properties of high speed steel rolls

The effects of quenching temperature, cooling pattern, temper temperature and temper times on the structure and properties of high speed steel (HSS) rolls have been investigated. The results show that, when the quenching temperature is lower than 1050℃ the hardness of HSS increases with the quenching temperature increasing in oil cooling, but when the quenching temperature exceeds 1100℃ the hardness decreases. In the conditions of salt bath cooling and air cooling, the effect of quenching temperature on the hardness is similar to the above law, but the quenching temperature obtaining the highest hardness is higher than that in oil cooling. When the temper temperature below 350℃ the hardness of HSS has a little change, when above 475℃ the hardness will increase with the temper temperature increasing, and the highest hardness is obtained at 525℃. When the temper temperature continues to increase, the hardness decreases. Twice temper has little effect on the hardness, but three times temper decreases the hardness.HSS in air cooling has lower hardenability, oil cooling can easily produce crackle, and HSS quenching in salt bath has high hardenability and excellent wear resistance.     

Mold-filling ability of semisolid alloy

The mold-filling ability of the semisolid alloy has very important effects on the quality and properties of the work pieces produced by the semisolid forming process. The factorial experiments show that all of the heating factors, such as mold temperature, heating temperature and the keeping time of billets, have some effects on the mold-filling ability of semisolid alloy. According to the analysis of influencing extent on the filling ability, it is found that the most important one of the factors is the mold temperature instead of the billets temperature, the next one is the heating temperature of the billet, and the keeping time rows on the third. It is also found that there is an interrelation between the billet heating temperature and the mold temperature. The effect of the interrelation on the mold-filling abilityis even stronger than the keeping time. The higher the mold temperature, heating temperature or the keeping time is, the better the mold-filling ability of the semisolid alloy is. The parameter to describe themold-filling ability, defined as the maximum filling height along theupright direction or the maximum filling length along the horizontal direction, can be theoretically determined according to the flowing theory of viscous fluid.     

Mechanical Properties of Laser Welded Joint of Copper and Steel Dissimilar Metals

In this research project, copper and stainless steel were connected by two laser welding methods: straight seam welding and swing welding. Then, electronic tensile test machine, X-ray diffractometer, scanning electron microscope and metallographic microscope were used to analyze the tensile properties, macroscopic and microscopic structure morphology and phase of the welded joint. Based on the experimental results, we determined that the strength of the straight seam welded joint was higher. Bec...     

Cutting tool materials for high speed machining

High speed machining (HSM) is one of the emerging cutting processes, which is machining at a speed significantly higher than the speed commonly in use on the shop floor. In the last twenty years, high speed machining has received great attentions as a technological solution for high productivity in manufacturing. This article reviews the developments of tool materials in high speed machining operations, and the properties, applications and prospective developments of tool materials in HSM are also presented.