Seeded Growth of Type-II Na24Si136 Clathrate Single Crystals

Type-II Na24Si136 clathrate octahedral single crystals surrounded by {111} facets were grown by evaporating Na from a molten mixture of Na4Si4 and Na9Sn4 at 823 K for 12 h. One of the obtained single crystals was used as a seed for the following single crystal growth of the type-II clathrate using the same method. The single crystal grown on the seed maintained the octahedral shape. The weight of the crystal grown with the seed was increased from 0.6 to 30.4 mg by repeating the seeded growth and was proportional to the surface area of the seed crystal.

Effects of Metal Oxides on Carbonation and Coking of High-Salinity Organic Wastewater

Slag is difficult to treat quantitatively due to the formation of a molten mixture in the carbonization process of high-salinity organic wastewater. Thus, aiming at solving this difficulty, the effects of metal oxide additives, additive ratio, furnace burden ratio, and carbonization temperature on the carbonization and coking of high-salinity organic wastewater are systematically analyzed. The analysis is performed using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and Vickers hardness tests. The results show that all five metal oxide additives can reduce the hardness of carbonized products. The relative effect of reducing the coked hardness is as follows: MgO > CaO > kaolin > F e 2 O 3 > A l 2 O 3 . Thus, the effect of MgO on reducing the coking hardness is stronger than that of the other four metal oxides, reducing the hardness of carbonized products by approximately 81%. Furthermore, the adding charge can reduce the hardness index by at least 60%. When the carbonization temperature is higher than 800°C, the hardness index of the carbonized product decreases by approximately 5% each 50°C of increase in temperature. This study shows that the addition of metal oxides can effectively reduce the hardness of coking during the treatment of high-salt organic wastewater by carbonization and oxidation and provide theoretical support for the subsequent treatment of high-salt organic wastewater by carbonization and oxidation.

Fabrication and Characterization of Sn-Based Babbitt Alloy Nanocomposite Reinforced with Al2O3 Nanoparticles/Carbon Steel Bimetallic Material

Sn-based Babbitt alloy was reinforced with alumina nanoparticles to prepare a novel class of nanocomposites. The route of liquid metallurgy in combination with stirring mechanism was chosen to prepare nanocomposites with three different loadings of alumina nanoparticles, i.e., 0.25 wt%, 0.50 wt% and 1.0 wt%. The molten mixture of metallic matrix and nanoparticles was poured over carbon steel substrate for solidification to manufacture a bimetallic material for bearing applications. The underlying aim was to understand the effect of nanoparticle addition on microstructural variation of Sn-based Babbitt alloy as well as bimetallic microstructural interface. The addition of 0.25 wt% and 0.50 wt% alumina nanoparticles significantly affected both the morphology and distribution of Cu6Sn5 hard phase in solid solution, which changed from needle and asterisk shape to spherical morphology. Nanocomposites containing up to 0.50 wt% nanoparticles showed more improvement in tensile strength than the one containing 1.0 wt% nanoparticles, due to nanoparticle-agglomeration and micro-cracks at the interface. The addition of 0.5 wt% nanoparticles significantly improved the wear resistance of Sn-based Babbitt alloy.

Production of the Al–B master alloy by KBF4and B 2O3aluminothermic reduction in molten salt flux medium

The study covers the process of obtaining the Al–B master alloy by the KBF4and B2O3aluminothermic reduction using KF–AlF3and KF–NaF–AlF3fluoride fluxes at 983 and 1123 К, respectively, and KCl–NaCl–KF chloride-fluoride fluxes at Т= 1173÷1223 К. All experiments were carried out under the same conditions: molten mixture stirring rate was 400 rpm, synthesis duration was 30min. The maximum amount of boron (1,5 %) in the Al–B alloy was obtained when using KBF4(3 % per B) as a boron-containing raw material in the KF–AlF3medium with a molar (cryolite) ratio (CR) of KF/AlF3equal to 1,3, atТ= 983 К, while boron recovery ratio did not exceed 75 %. Comparable results were obtained in experiments with KF–NaF–AlF3f lux (CR = 1,5) at Т= 1123 К. However, with the increased concentration of fed boron its recovery ratio decreased substantially. It is connected with the higher decomposition temperature of not only KBF4, but also less thermally stable NaBF4 formed as a result of exchange reaction in the melt. Therefore it is not recommended to use sodium salts as a f lux component. The Al–B master alloys obtained by KBF4reduction in fluoride fluxes were solid solutions of B in Al containing the AlB2intermetallic compound. The lowest amount of boron in aluminum with the minimum degree of extraction was obtained in experiments with the B2O3in molten KF–AlF3with CR = 1,5. Nevertheless, the results of scanning electron microscopy indicate a uniform distribution of B over the Al matrix and the absence of intermetallic compounds, while a large amount of Al2O3was found, which is the product of B2O3reactions with both liquid Al and KF–AlF3flux.