Effects of sphere size on the microstructure and mechanical properties of ductile iron–steel hollow sphere syntactic foams

The effects of sphere size on the microstructural and mechanical properties of ductile iron–steel hollow sphere (DI–SHS) syntactic foams were investigated in this study. The SHSs were manufactured by fluidized-bed coating via the Fe-based commercial powder–binder suspension onto expanded polystyrene spheres (EPSs). Afterwards, the DI–SHS syntactic foams were produced via a sand-mold casting process. The microstructures of specimens were investigated by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy- dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The microscopic evaluations of specimens reveal distinct regions composed of the DI matrix, SHS shells, and compatible interface. As a result, the microstructures and graphite morphologies of the DI matrix depend on sphere size. When the sphere size decreases, the area fractions of cementite and graphite phases are observed to increase and decrease, respectively. Compression tests were subsequently conducted at ambient temperature on the DI–SHS syntactic foams. The results reveal that the compression behavior of the syntactic foams is enhanced with increasing sphere size. Furthermore, the compressed specimens demonstrate that microcracks start and grow from the interface region.     

Phase transformation behavior of titanium during carbothermic reduction of titanomagnetite ironsand

The reduction of titanomagnetite (TTM) ironsand, which contains 11.41wt% TiO₂ and 55.63wt% total Fe, by graphite was performed using a thermogravimetric analysis system under an argon gas atmosphere at 1423–1623 K. The behavior and effects of titanium in TTM ironsand during the reduction process were investigated by means of thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. During the reduction procedure, the titanium concentrated in the slag phase, where the phase transformation followed this sequence: FeO + FeTiO₃ → Fe₂TiO₄ → FeTiO₃ → FeTi₂O₅ → TiO₂. The calculated results for the reduction kinetics showed that the carbothermic reduction was controlled by the diffusion of ions through the product layer. Furthermore, the apparent activation energy was 170.35 kJ·mol-1.     

Preparation of ultrafine silica from potash feldspar using sodium carbonate roasting technology

A novel process was developed for the preparation of ultrafine silica from potash feldspar. In the first step, potash feldspar was roasted with Na₂CO₃ and was followed by leaching using NaOH solution to increase the levels of potassium, sodium, and aluminum in the solid residue. The leaching solution was then carbonated to yield ultrafine silica. The optimized reaction conditions in the roasting process were as follows: an Na₂CO₃-to-potash feldspar molar ratio of 1.1, a reaction temperature of 875°C, and a reaction time of 1.5 h. Under these conditions, the extraction rate of SiO₂ was 98.13%. The optimized carbonation conditions included a final solution pH value of 9.0, a temperature of 40°C, a CO₂ flow rate of 6 mL/min, a stirring intensity of 600 r/min, and an ethanol-to-water volume ratio of 1:9. The precipitation rate and granularity of the SiO₂ particles were 99.63% and 200 nm, respectively. We confirmed the quality of the obtained ultrafine silica by comparing the recorded indexes with those specified in Chinese National Standard GB 25576―2010.     

Conductive and corrosion behaviors of silver-doped carbon-coated stainless steel as PEMFC bipolar plates

Ni–Cr enrichment on stainless steel SS316L resulting from chemical activation enabled the deposition of carbon by spraying a stable suspension of carbon nanoparticles; trace Ag was deposited in situ to prepare a thin continuous Ag-doped carbon film on a porous carbon-coated SS316L substrate. The corrosion resistance of this film in 0.5 mol·L-1 H₂SO₄ solution containing 5 ppm F- at 80℃ was investigated using polarization tests. The results showed that the surface treatment of the SS316L strongly affected the adhesion of the carbon coating to the stainless steel. Compared to the bare SS316L, the Ag-doped carbon-coated SS316L bipolar plate was remarkably more stable in both the anode and cathode environments of proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) and the interface contact resistance between the specimen and Toray 060 carbon paper was reduced from 333.0 mΩ·cm2 to 21.6 mΩ·cm2 at a compaction pressure of 1.2 MPa.     

Leaching of vanadium,sodium, and silicon from molten V-Ti-bearing slag obtained from low-grade vanadium-bearing titanomagnetite

The water leaching process of vanadium, sodium, and silicon from molten vanadium-titanium-bearing (V-Ti-bearing) slag obtained from low-grade vanadium-bearing titanomagnetite was investigated systematically. The results show that calcium titanate, sodium aluminosilicate, sodium oxide, silicon dioxide and sodium vanadate are the major components of the molten V-Ti-bearing slag. The experimental results indicate that the liquid-solid (L/S) mass ratio significantly affects the leaching process because of the respective solubilities and diffusion rates of the components. A total of 83.8% of vanadium, 72.8% of sodium, and 16.1% of silicon can be leached out via a triple counter-current leaching process under the optimal conditions of a particle size below 0.074 mm, a temperature of 90°C, a leaching time of 20 min, an L/S mass ratio of 4:1, and a stirring speed of 300 r/min. The kinetics of vanadium leaching is well described by an internal diffusion-controlled model and the apparent activation energy is 11.1 kJ/mol. The leaching mechanism of vanadium was also analyzed.     

Effects of Fe content on the microstructure and properties of CuNi10FeMn1 alloy tubes fabricated by HCCM horizontal continuous casting

Heating-cooling combined mold (HCCM) horizontal continuous casting technology developed by our research group was used to produce high axial columnar-grained CuNi10FeMn1 alloy tubes with different Fe contents. The effects of Fe content (1.08wt%–2.01wt%) on the microstructure, segregation, and flushing corrosion resistance in simulated flowing seawater as well as the mechanical properties of the alloy tubes were investigated. The results show that when the Fe content is increased from 1.08wt% to 2.01wt%, the segregation degree of Ni and Fe elements increases, and the segregation coefficient of Ni and Fe elements falls from 0.92 to 0.70 and from 0.92 to 0.63, respectively. With increasing Fe content, the corrosion rate of the alloy decreases initially and then increases. When the Fe content is 1.83wt%, the corrosion rate approaches the minimum and dense, less-defect corrosion films, which contain rich Ni and Fe elements, form on the surface of the alloy; these films effectively protect the α-matrix and reduce the corrosion rate. When the Fe content is increased from 1.08wt% to 2.01wt%, the tensile strength of the alloy tube increases from 204 MPa to 236 MPa, while the elongation to failure changes slightly about 46%, indicating the excellent workability of the CuNi10FeMn1 alloy tubes.     

Fracture behavior and microstructure analysis of Al2O3–MgO–CaO castables for steel-ladle purging plugs

Three different castables based on the Al₂O₃–MgO–CaO system were prepared as steel-ladle purging plug refractories: corundum- based low-cement castable (C-LCC), corundum-spinel-based low-cement castable (C-S-LCC), and corundum-spinel no-cement castable (C-S-NCC) (hydratable alumina (ρ-Al₂O₃) bonded). The fracture behavior at room temperature was tested by the method of “wedge-splitting” on samples pre-fired at different temperatures; the specific fracture energy G′_f and notched tensile strength σ_NT were obtained from these tests. In addition, the Young’s modulus E was measured by the method of resonance frequency of damping analysis (RFDA). The thermal stress resistance parameter R′′′′ calculated using the values of G′_f, σ_NT, and E was used to evaluate the thermal shock resistance of the materials. According to the microstructure analysis results, the sintering effect and the bonding type of the matrix material were different among these three castables, which explains their different fracture behaviors.     

Thermodynamic simulation of the effect of slag chemistry on the corrosion behavior of alumina–chromia refractory

The corrosion behavior of alumina–chromia refractory against two kinds of industrial slags (coal slag and iron smelting slag) at 1550°C was investigated via thermodynamic simulations. In the proposed simulation model, the initial slag first attacks the matrix and surface aggregates and subsequently attacks the inner aggregates. The simulation results indicate that the slag chemistry strongly affects the phase formation and corrosion behavior of the refractory brick. Greater amounts of alumina were dissolved and spinel solid phases formed when the brick interacted with iron smelting slag. These phenomena, as well as the calculated lower viscosity, may lead to much deeper penetration than that exhibited by coal slag and to more severe corrosion compared to that induced by coal slag. The thermodynamic calculations well match the experimental observations, demonstrating the efficiency of the proposed simulation model for evaluating the corrosion behavior of alumina–chromia refractory.     

Effect of SrCO<Subscript>3</Subscript> addition on the dynamic compressive strength of ZTA

Ceramic parts usually experience dynamic load in armor applications. Therefore, studying the dynamic behaviors of ceramics is important. Limited data are available on the dynamic behaviors of ceramics; thus, it is helpful to predict the dynamic strength of ceramics on the basis of their mechanical properties. In this paper, the addition of SrCO₃ into zirconia-toughened alumina (ZTA) was demonstrated to improve the fracture toughness of ZTA due to the formation of the SrAl₁₂O₁₉ (SA6) phase. The porosity of ZTA was found to be increased by the addition of SrCO₃. These newly formed pores served as the nucleation sites of cracks under dynamic load; these cracks eventually coalesced to form damaged zones in the samples. Although the K IC values of the samples were improved, the dynamic strength was not enhanced because of the increase in porosity; in fact, the dynamic strength of ZTA ceramics decreased with the addition of SrCO₃.     

Large scale production of carbon nanotube arrays on the sphere surface from liquefied petroleum gas at low cost

Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), a cheap industrial material, is used as carbon source to produce carbon nanotube (CNT) arrays on ceramic spherical surface on a large scale in the floating catalyst process. The ceramic spheres provide huge surface area and good mobility, leading to the mass production of CNT arrays continuously. The arrays obtained from the surface are of good alignment, and the purity is as high as 97.5%. With the decrease of the growth temperature, CNTs in the array form with small-diameter of about 13 nm can be obtained. Therefore, with the industrial fuel as carbon source and the ceramic sphere as substrate, CNT arrays can easily be produced on large scale at low cost.