Hydrothermal hot pressing for recycling of waste glass

Abstract

Recycling of waste glasses has been conducted by a hydrothermal hot-pressing method to produce high density compacts. Our research was focussed on the intluence of various reaction variables (temperature, time, water content and loading pressure) during compaction of several types of waste glasses. The compaction of all glasses starts around 120°C and proceeds rapidly with increasing temperature. Under hydrothermal hot pressing conditions, the compaction of the waste glass is most strongly controlled by temperature and water content, and affected to a lesser degree by reaction time and loading pressure. A maximum tensile strength of 65 MPa was obtained for ‘blue’ glass at 200°C, 10wt% water content, after applying 60 MPa loading pressure for 2 hours.     

Numerical simulation of the continuous operation of a tribo-aero-electrostatic separator for mixed granular solids

Numerical simulation has proved to be a powerful tool in the research and development of new electrostatic processes. In a previous paper, the authors have introduced a simple mathematical model for simulating the outcome of a novel tribo-aero-electrostatic separation process for binary mixtures of granular materials. The mathematical model assumed that the probability of a granule to be separated can be expressed as a function of the number of impacts with granules belonging to the other class of materials. The process is characterized by the fact that the charging of the granules is produced in a fluidized bed device, in the presence of an electric field. The aim of the present paper is to simulate the continuous operation of such a device at various feed rates. The evolution in time of the mass of granules collected at the electrodes has been computed for various compositions of the granular mixture. The effect of the walls was taken into account. The computed results were in good agreement with the experiments. They demonstrate that open-loop continuous operation of the separator is possible for a range of feed-rates that depends on the composition of the materials to be separated.     

Comparative study of three high-voltage electrode configurations for the electrostatic separation of aluminum,copper and PVC from granular WEEE

Roll-type electrostatic separators are mostly employed for the selective sorting of conductive and non-conductive constituents of granular mixtures. In case of waste electric and electronic equipment, several conductive materials may be simultaneously present in the composition of the granular mixture to be separated. The aim of this paper is to prove the feasibility of processing an Aluminum/Copper/PVC mixture using a roll-type electrostatic separator. Three high-voltage electrode configurations were studied. Experiments prove that the association of a high-voltage S-shaped plate electrode with a corona wire electrode gives the best separation results. The electric forces pin the corona-charged PVC particles to the roll electrode, while the lighter aluminum and heavier copper particles are diverted to the high-voltage electrode. The aluminum contained in the copper product can be removed by a second pass in a separator that makes use only of the S-shaped electrode. In this way, 75% of the aluminum particles and 99.97% of the PVC particles can be removed, to obtain a 98% pure copper product.     

Numerical and experimental studies of collection efficiency of an ion electrostatic collector for a mini-volume electrical PM detector

The experimental efficiency was numerically and experimentally studied for collecting negative and positive ions in a coaxial cylindrical electrostatic collector for a mini-volume electrical PM detector. The commercial computational fluid dynamics software package COMSOL Multiphysics™ was used to predict the behaviors of the flow and electric fields as well as the particle trajectories in the collecting zone of the ion collector. In the experiment, the ions were generated by a corona-needle ionizer with concentrations greater than 10¹³ ions/m³, the positively and negatively applied voltages at the inner electrode ranged from 0 to 45 V and the ion flow rates ranged from 1 to 5 L/min. For these ion flow rates, 1–5 L/min, the ion precipitates due to space charge and diffusion effects ranged from 92 to 97 % for positive ions and 91–97 % for negative ions. The total collection efficiency of the collector increased to 100% at collection voltages larger than 5, 20 and 40 V respectively for the ion flow rates of 1, 3 and 5 L/min for both positive and negative ions. Numerical calculation results of the ion trajectory in the collecting zone of the collector; showed good agreement with the experimental results of the total collection efficiency and can be used to support the bettering of designing in order to refine an ion collector after the charger or ionizer in a mini-volume electrical aerosol detector. Finally, this shows that this ion collector was proven to be particularly useful as an electrostatic collector for positive and negative ions after the charger or ionizer in a mini-volume electrical aerosol detector.     

Physical and microbial collection efficiencies of an electrostatic precipitator for abating airborne particulates in postharvest agricultural processing

We constructed a single-stage, laboratory-scale electrostatic precipitator (ESP) and evaluated its physical and microbial collection efficacies. Ground rice husk was examined as a representative model of airborne particles carrying microorganisms (bacteria, molds and yeasts). Physical and microbial collection efficacies were evaluated at different voltages applied to the negative discharge electrode without ozone generation. The best collection efficiencies were observed at an applied voltage of ?6.0 kV, resulting in collection efficiencies of over 90% for the physical sample and 99.95% for bacteria. No molds or yeasts in the ground rice husk passed through the ESP operating at ?6.0 kV applied voltage.     

基于QMU的高空电磁脉冲下电气电子设备易损性评估方法

高空电磁脉冲（HEMP）可能造成广域基础设施的故障或损毁,考虑到经济原因,需要科学合理地评估其中关键电气电子设备在HEMP辐照下的易损性。将不确定性量化与设备效应评估相结合,总结出基于裕量与不确定性量化（QMU）的电气电子设备易损性评估方法及其工作流程,包括：筛选设备关键参数,通常为耦合通道电流、电压的范数;通过HEMP环境及其与设备耦合的数值仿真及不确定性量化,得到HEMP下设备关键参数的概率分布,作为设备的威胁水平;对工作状态下设备进行HEMP效应试验,通过统计推断得到设备效应阈值概率分布,作为设备在威胁下的强度;计算威胁水平与设备强度间的距离,量化设备关键参数的裕量及其不确定性,评估HEMP下的设备易损性。基于QMU的电气电子设备易损性评估方法还可为后续防护设计提供基础数据和评估方法。     

Ultrasonic technology for enhanced oil recovery from failing oil wells and the equipment for its implemention

A new method for the ultrasonic enhancement of oil recovery from failing wells is described. The technology involves lowering a source of power ultrasound to the bottom of the well either for a short treatment before removal or as a permanent placement for intermittent use. In wells where the permeability is above 20 mD and the porosity is greater than 15% ultrasonic treatment can increase oil production by up to 50% and in some cases even more. For wells of lower permeability and porosity ultrasonic treatment alone is less successful but high production rates can be achieved when ultrasound is applied in conjunction with chemicals. An average productivity increase of nearly 3 fold can be achieved for this type of production well using the combined ultrasound with chemical treatment technology.     

Face and eyes localization algorithm in thermal images for temperature measurement of the inner canthus of the eyes

In this paper, a novel algorithm for the detection and localization of the face and eyes in thermal images is presented, particularly the temperature measurement of the human body by measuring the eye corner (inner canthus) temperature. The algorithm uses a combination of the template-matching, knowledge-based and morphological methods, particularly the modified Randomized Hough Transform (RHT) in the localization process, also growing segmentation to increase accuracy of the localization algorithm. In many solutions, the localization of the face and/or eyes is made by manual selection of the regions of the face and eyes and then the average temperature in the region is measured. The paper also discusses experimental studies and the results, which allowed the evaluation of the effectiveness of the developed algorithm. The standardization of measurement, necessary for proper temperature measurement with the use of infrared thermal imaging, are also presented.     

双近贴式X射线像增强器成像不均匀性的分析与校正

分析了双近贴式X射线像增强器响应不一致性的产生机理,对每个像元建立了光电响应的数学模型.基于该模型,提出了一种改进的多点校正算法.该算法将对数曲线模型转化为线性响应模型,通过基于最小二乘法的两点拟合算法对图像数据进行校正.对比分析了校正前后图像的背景标准差及灰度分布曲线,实验结果验证了该方法的有效性.     

Development of a reader for the routine analysis of CR-39 fast neutron dosemeters: improvement of the dosimetric performance using automatic vision and motion tools

At the personal dosimetry service of the ENEA Radiation Protection Institute, a fast neutron dosemeter based on chemically etched CR-39 (Poly Allyl Diglycol Carbonate) is operating since more than 20 years. Since then the track counting has been performed with a system consisting of a microscope, a video camera and an image analyser. A new automatic analysis system has been developed, based on automatic motion and vision tools and the programming language Labview 6, from National Instruments. The system selects the correct number of reading fields on the basis of a preliminary scan of the dosemeter, therefore operating motion and vision procedures in order to perform the analysis. For each reading field the system collects the track area distribution to which a previously optimised algorithm is applied, in order to correct the energy dependence of the response. For each dosemeter, a record containing the barcode and all data necessary for assessing the personal dose equivalent is stored in a routine file. Taking advantage of automatic vision and motion, a CR-39 reader with innovative features in terms of reproducibility, velocity and accuracy is now available even for the routine purposes of dosimetric services.     

The application of improved block-matching method and block search method for the image motion estimation

Image block matching is one of the motion estimation methods for video inter-frame coding and digital image stabilization. The methods used for matching and searching will greatly affect the accuracy and speed of block matching. The block matching method based on the oblique vectors is suggested in this paper where matching parameters contain both horizontal and vertical vectors in the image blocks at the same time. Improved matching information can be obtained after making correlative calculations in the oblique direction. A novel search method of matching block based on the idea of simulated annealing is presented in this paper to improve the searching speed, accuracy and robustness in the fast operation of the block-matching motion estimation. The simulated annealing algorithm can easily escape from the trap of local minima effectively. With the two methods the block matching can be used for motion estimation at the real-time image processing system and high estimation accuracy can be achieved. An image stabilization system based on DSP (Digital Signal Processing) system is developed to verify this algorithm. Results show that both the matching accuracy and the search speed are improved with the methods presented.     

像素随机映射的快速算法及在LSB隐藏技术中的应用

提出一种像素随机映射的快速方法, 将该方法与像素字节低位隐藏信息的LSB(Least Significant Bit)技术相结合, 讨论了将RGB彩色图像作为载体隐匿真彩色图像、灰度图像、二值图像及全息信息的方法. 研究结果表明, 该方法加密及解密效率高, 载体图像具有较好的抗破译及抗剪切能力. 根据隐藏信息的性质合理使用LSB技术, 能在基本不影响载体图像质量的情况下较好地隐匿多种信息.     

Multiple fluorescence and the electronic relaxation processes of coronene vapor: The fluorescence from the S1, S2, and S3 states

Fluorescence and excitation spectra of coronene vapor have been measured under different conditions. Weak emission which can be regarded as the fluorescence from the third excited singlet state, S₃(¹E_1u), was observed in addition to the S₁(¹B_2u) and S₂(¹B_1u) fluorescence. The observed S₂ and S₃ fluorescence are substantially different from those reported previously for coronene vapor. Addition of oxygen resulted in significant decrease of the S₁ fluorescence intensity, but did not affect the S₂ fluorescence intensity, indicating the faster decay rate of the S₂ state than that of S₁. Excitation energy dependence of the S₁, S₂ and S₃ fluorescence quantum yields (Φ_F(S₁), Φ_F(S₂) and Φ_F(S₃), respectively) revealed that Φ_F(S₁) decreases with increasing excitation energy, while Φ_F(S₂) and Φ_F(S₃) increase significantly. The quantum yield ratios, Φ_F(S₂)/Φ_F(S₁) and Φ_F(S₃)/Φ_F(S₂), obtained as a function of excitation energy are correlated with the ratios of the relative internal conversion rates.     

Ultrasonic and mechanical soil washing processes for the removal of heavy metals from soils

In order to determine the optimal operating conditions of full-scale soil washing processes for the removal of heavy metals, the effect of high-power ultrasound on the conventional mechanical soil washing process was investigated in a large lab-scale 28 kHz sonoreactor. The soil samples were obtained from an abandoned railway station site in Seoul, Korea, which was contaminated with Cu (242.7 ± 40.0 mg/kg), Pb (441.3 ± 49.8 mg/kg), and Zn (358.0 ± 35.7 mg/kg). The treated concentrations of three heavy metal species in each process were compared with the regulation levels. It was found that higher performance, satisfying the regulation levels, was obtained in the ultrasonic/mechanical process due to the combined effects of macroscale mixing and microscale sonophysical effects. Moreover ultrasound played a more important role in less favorable conditions for the mechanical washing process (less acidic or less washing liquid conditions). Considering the application of the ultrasonic/mechanical soil washing process in real contaminated sites, the optimal conditions for the reactor with the bottom area of 15 × 15 cm² and the input ultrasound power of 250 W were determined as follows: (1) the amount of soil per an operation was a 300 g; (2) the ratio of soil and liquid was 1:3; (3) the concentration of acidic washing liquid was 0.5 M HCl.     

Evaluation of Cyanex 923-coated magnetic particles for the extraction and separation of lanthanides and actinides from nuclear waste streams

In the magnetically assisted chemical separation (MACS) process, tiny ferromagnetic particles coated with solvent extractant are used to selectively separate radionuclides and hazardous metals from aqueous waste streams. The contaminant-loaded particles are then recovered from the waste solutions using a magnetic field. The contaminants attached to the magnetic particles are subsequently removed using a small volume of stripping agent. In the present study, Cyanex 923 (trialkylphosphine oxide) coated magnetic particles (cross-linked polyacrylamide and acrylic acid entrapping charcoal and iron oxide, 1:1:1, particle size=1–60 μm) are being evaluated for the possible application in the extraction and separation of lanthanides and actinides from nuclear waste streams. The uptake behaviour of Th(IV), U(VI), Am(III) and Eu(III) from nitric acid solutions was investigated by batch studies. The effects of sorption kinetics, extractant and nitric acid concentrations on the uptake behaviour of metal ions were systematically studied. The influence of fission products (Cs(I), Sr(II)) and interfering ions including Fe(III), Cr(VI), Mg(II), Mn(II), and Al(III) were investigated. The recycling capacity of the extractant-coated magnetic particles was also evaluated.     

Distribution of the delay time and the dwell time for wave reflection from a long random potential

We re-examine and correct an earlier derivation of the distribution of the Wigner phase delay time for wave reflection from a long one-dimensional disordered conductor treated in the continuum limit. We then numerically compare the distributions of the Wigner phase delay time and the dwell time, the latter being obtained by the use of an infinitesimal imaginary potential as a clock, and investigate the effects of strong disorder and a periodic (discrete) lattice background. We find that the two distributions coincide even for strong disorder, but only for energies well away from the band-edges. Received 11 June 2001 and Received in final form 30 July 2001     

Optical properties of radical cation salts derived from the TTF molecule: Evidence for electronic correlations and phase transitions in organic conductors

Following a general presentation of the organic conductors which belong to the series of radical cation salts derived from the tetrathiafulvalene molecule we analyze the characteristic charge transfer absorption bands observed in these mixed valence compounds. Using a Drude-Lorentz model we show that the energy gap present in these materials is basically of the Hubbard type. Nevertheless we observe also in specific cases additional contributions due to either a periodic lattice distortion or a counter-ion electrostatic perturbation. We conclude finally that the electronic correlations are the dominant interactions in these narrow 1d electronic band systems.