Structure and Size Distribution of Powders Produced from Melt-Spun Fe-Si-B Ribbons

This work studies the production of melt spun Fe78Si9B13 ribbons with amorphous or nanocrystalline structure. The main objective is the preservation of the amorphous structure after obtaining powders by mechanical milling of the ribbons, as well as the study of the influence of the milling conditions on the size distribution and structure of the obtained powders. In order to obtain high quality amorphous ribbons, the wheel rotation speed, crucible-wheel distance, melt homogenization time, ejection pressure and the ejection temperature were optimized in the melt spinning process. Different mills were used for powder production, studying the size distribution, efficiency, and preservation of the amorphous character as a function of the milling time. Ribbons and powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and electron microscopy (SEM and TEM); laser diffraction was used for powder granulometry.

Compaction behaviour of mannitol-cocoa powder mixtures and their resulting tablet strength and disintegration characteristics

Cocoa powder is an important ingredient in the confectionery industry and, mannitol is an alternative sugar alcohol. In this work, mannitol powder was mixed with cocoa powder and compacted into tablet form via the uniaxial die compaction process. The frictional, compaction, tablet mechanical and disintegration properties were studied due to their importance in characterizing the behaviour of the tablets during processing and its final product characteristics at varying mannitol contents. The composition of mannitol in the mannitol-cocoa tablet varied at 95% w/w, 50% w/w and 5% w/w, while pure 100% w/w mannitol and cocoa tablets were set as controls. The compaction pressures used in making the tablets varied at 37.67 MPa, 75.34 MPa, 113.01 MPa, 150.68 MPa and 188.35 MPa. The compaction behaviour of the powder during the compaction process was evaluated using the plastic work and the maximum ejection stress values. The tablet strength was determined using the tensile strength method and tablet disintegration study was also conducted. The results showed that the increase in the compaction pressures increased the plastic work, maximum ejection pressure, tablet strength and also its disintegration time. The tablet formed having 95% w/w mannitol composition exhibited the highest plastic work value of 10.32±0.01 J, highest maximum ejection pressure value of 4.4±0.06 MPa, highest tensile strength value of 1.06±0.04 MPa and shortest disintegration time of 171±51 s amongst the three different mannitol compositions studied. Meanwhile, the effects of mannitol composition in the tablet on these observed responses were also dependent upon the compaction pressures used during tablet formation. In conclusion, the addition of mannitol improved the tablet strength and shorten the disintegration time in the experimental range employed in this study.

PrFeB Based Alloys Obtained by Melt Spinning for the Production of Permanent Magnets

Rare earth permanent magnets are essential components in many fields of technology due to their excellent magnetic properties. There are some techniques used in the manufacture of permanent rare earth magnets: the powder metallurgy to obtain anisotropic HD sintered permanent magnets and the melt spinning and HDDR processes to obtain isotropic and anisotropic bonded permanent magnets. In this work, the influence of the melt spinning parameters on the microstructural and magnetic properties of the Pr14FebalCo16B6 alloy was studied. The alloy was melted and rapidly cooled at 9.9 x 105°C/s. The parameters used in the process were: wheel speed of 15 m/s and 20 m/s and ejection pressure of 25.3 kPa and 50.7 kPa. Ribbons and/or flakes of 30 μm thickness and width until 5 mm were obtained. Results show that the melt spinning alloys are nanocrystalline and that the parameters of the process influence the microstructure and their magnetic properties. Mean crystallite size up to 38.5 nm and intrinsic coercivity (iHc) up to 254 kA/m were obtained.

Fluid expansion improve ventriculo-arterial coupling in preload patients: a prospective observational study

Background Given that the ventricular and arterial systems operate simultaneously, ventricular-arterial (V-A) coupling (i.e the EA/Ees ratio) determines the stroke volume and ejection pressure (i.e. arterial blood pressure). Methods 30 patients admitted to cardio-thoracic ICU in whom the physician decided to perform FC were included. Arterial pressure, cardiac output (CO), EA, and ELV, were measured before and after FC with 500 ml of lactated Ringer's solution. Fluid responders were defined as patients with more than a 15% increase in SV after fluid challenge. V-A coupling was evaluated by the ratio EA/Ees. Results Twenty-three (77%) of the 30 patients included in the study were fluid responders. Before FC, responders had higher mean EA and EA/Ees ratio. FC significantly increased mean arterial pressure, LVEF, SV and CO, and significantly decreased SVRi, EA and consequently the EA/Ees ratio. A pre-challenge EA/Ees ratio greater than 1.4 was predictive of fluid responsiveness (area under the curve [95% confidence interval]: 0.84 [0.66‒1]; p < 0.0001). Conclusions In FC responders, V-A coupling was characterized by a higher pre-challenge EA/Ees ratio (due to a higher EA). FC improve V-A coupling ratio by decreasing EA but not Ees.

Effect of stearic acid on the properties of metronidazole/methocel K4M floating matrices

The properties of metronidazole/Methocel K4M sustained release floating tablets have been studied varying the proportion of the lubricant, stearic acid, on formulations with and without sodium bicarbonate. The variables studied include technological properties of the tablets such as tablet hardness and ejection pressure, the drug release profile, the hydration kinetics and the floating behaviour. The presence of stearic acid and sodium bicarbonate improves the floating behaviour for more than 8 hours. The hydration volume, the tablet hardness and the ejection pressure decrease as the stearic acid content increases and the polymer content decreases. Drug dissolution increases with increasing proportions of stearic acid and decreasing proportions of the polymer in the tablets. The presence of sodium bicarbonate extends the differences in dissolution produced by stearic acid. These results are attributed to decreasing matrices coherence with an increasing quantity of stearic acid and a reducing polymer proportion. The carbon dioxide bubbles produced by sodium bicarbonate expand the matrices facilitating the dissolution, although their presence obstructs also the diffusion path through the hydrated gel layer.