Laser pulse heating of steel surface and flexural wave analysis

Laser gas-assisted material processing finds wide application in industry. The modelling of heating, elastic response of the substrate material, and the wave analysis gives insight into the laser workpiece interaction. In the present study, laser gas-assisted heating of steel is considered. The normal component of the thermal stress is taken as the source of load for the flexural wave generation in the material. The flexural wave generated is simulated and the wave characteristics are analyzed at four locations at the workpiece surface. The numerical scheme employing a control volume approach is introduced when solving the governing equations of flow and heat transfer while finite element and spectran element methods are used when solving the stress and wave equations. It is found that the normal component of the stress is tensile. The dispersion effect of the workpiece material, interference of the reflected beam, and partial overlapping of second mode of the travelling wave enable to identify a unique pattern in the travelling wave in the substrate.     

Flow over rectangular porous block in a fixed width channel: influence of porosity and aspect ratio

Flow over a rectangular porous block placed in a fixed width channel is considered and the influence of block aspect ratio on the heat transfer rate from the block is examined. A non-porous solid block is also accommodated to compare the effect of porosity on the flow field and heat transfer characteristics. Aspect ratio and the porosity of the block are varied in the simulations. A numerical scheme employing a control volume approach is considered when predicting the flow and temperature fields. The Reynolds number is selected to yield the mix convection situation in the flow field. It is found that the aspect ratio significantly influences Nu and Gr numbers, in which case increasing the aspect ratio enhances Nu while lowering Gr. Increasing porosity improves the heat transfer rates from the porous block, provided that at high aspect ratios, this situation ceases due to blockage effect of the body in the channel.     

Jet impingement onto a tapered hole: Influence of jet velocity and hole wall velocities on heat transfer and skin friction

Jet impingement onto a hole with elevated wall temperature can be associated with the high‐temperature thermal drilling, where the gas jet is used for shielding the hole wall from the high‐temperature oxidation reactions as observed in the case of laser drilling. In laser processing, the molten flow from the hole wall occurs; and in the model study, the hole wall velocity resembling the molten flow should be accounted for. In the present study, gas jet impingement onto tapered hole with elevated temperature is considered and the heat transfer rates as well as skin friction at the hole wall surface are predicted. The velocity of molten flow from the hole wall determined from the previous study is adopted in the simulations and the effect of hole wall velocity on the heat transfer rates and skin friction is also examined. It is found that the Nusselt number and skin friction at the hole wall in the regions of hole inlet and exit attain high values. The influence of hole wall velocity on the Nusselt number and skin friction is found not to be very significant. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Laser produced melt pool: Influence of laser intensity parameter on flow field in melt pool

The flow field developed in the laser produced melt pool is investigated and the influence of the Marangoni effect on temperature field is examined. The experiment is carried out to trace the solidified melt pool geometry and the heating is simulated in line with the experimental conditions to predict the melt size in the irradiated region. In the simulations, the control volume approach is used incorporating the Marangoni effect. The enthalpy-porosity method is adopted to account for the phase change in the irradiated region. The study is extended to include the influence of the laser intensity parameter (β) on temperature and the flow field in the melt pool. It is found that the melt pool geometry and the flow field in the melt pool is influenced by the laser intensity parameter. In this case, the number of circulation cell formed in the melt pool is doubled for the intensity parameter 0.4≤β≤0.6. The predictions of the melt pool geometry agree well with the experimental data.     

Laser melting of carbide tool surface: Model and experimental studies

Laser controlled melting is one of the methods to achieve structural integrity in the surface region of the carbide tools. In the present study, laser heating of carbide cutting tool and temperature distribution in the irradiated region are examined. The phase change process during the heating is modeled using the enthalpy–porosity method. The influence of laser pulse intensity distribution across the irradiated surface (β) on temperature distribution and melt formation is investigated. An experiment is carried out and the microstructural changes due to laser consecutive pulse heating is examined using the scanning electron microscope (SEM). It is found that melt depth predicted agrees with the experimental results. The maximum depth of the melt layer moves away from the symmetry axis with increasing β.     

Jet impingement onto a cylindrical cavity: consideration of annular nozzle cone angles,and cavity diameter

In the present study, gas jet emerging from an annular nozzle and impinging onto a cylindrical cavity is considered. The geometric configuration of the nozzle is varied in the simulations. Air is used as impinging gas while stainless steel is considered as workpiece material. Reynolds turbulence model is accommodated to account for the turbulence. A numerical scheme employing a control volume approach is used to simulate the flow field. Heat transfer characteristic and shear stress distribution around the cavity are computed. It is found that outer cone angle of the annular nozzle influences the heat transfer rates from the cavity wall. The flow structure around the cavity changes significantly with increasing cavity diameter. Moreover, increasing cavity depth results in stagnation zone moving into the cavity.     

Entropy generation in flow field subjected to a porous block in a vertical channel

Entropy generation in the flow field subjected to a porous block situated in a vertical channel is examined. The effects of channel inlet port height (vertical height between channel inlet port and the block center), porosity, and block aspect ratio on the entropy generation rate due to fluid friction and heat transfer in the fluid are examined. The governing equations of flow, heat transfer, and entropy are solved numerically using a control volume approach. Air is used as the flowing fluid in the channel. A uniform heat flux is considered in the block and natural convection is accommodated in the analysis. It is found that entropy generation rate due to fluid friction increases with increasing inlet port height, while this increase becomes gradual for entropy generation rate due to heat transfer for the inlet port height exceeding 0.03 m. The porosity lowers entropy generation rate due to fluid friction and heat transfer. The effect of block aspect ratio on entropy generation rate is notable; in which case, entropy generation rate increases for the block aspect ratio of 1:2.     

Natural convection in a square cavity with a heat generating body: Entropy consideration

Conjugate heat transfer in a cavity is an important consideration with regard to cooling of micro-electronic equipment. In the present study, a heat transfer analysis of conditions taking place in a square cavity with a heat source, located in it, is carried out. The natural convection accompanying conduction heat transfer in the heat generating solid body is examined. Air or water are considered as the fluid in the cavity while steel substrate is considered as the heat generating solid body. The location of the solid is changed in the cavity to examine the cooling conditions. The entropy analysis of the system is carried out to determine the irreversibility ratio for each location of the solid body in the cavity. It is found that the heat transfer from the solid body surfaces increases where the surfaces facing the inlet and the exit of the cavity. The entropy generated attains the maximum value for air when the solid body is located at the center of the cavity; in which case, the irreversibility ratio reduces to a minimum value. Received on 26 May 1999     

Simulation of elastic displacement of surface during laser short pulse heating of gold

The laser short pulse heating initiates nonequilibrium heating of the substrate material, which in turn results in the thermal stresses developing in the region below the surface. The surface temperature can be measured possibly through the monitoring of the resulting surface displacement. This requires in detail investigation into the surface displacement and surface temperature rises across the heated spot during the laser short pulse heating process. In the present study, the laser short pulse heating of gold surface is considered and the temperature rise at the surface and elastic displacement of the surface are investigated. The spatial and temporal distributions of surface displacement and surface temperature are predicted and the elastic response of the substrate material due to temperature rise is explored. It is found that the temporal and spatial distributions of the surface displacement do not follow the temperature rise at the surface. Consequently, care should be taken when measuring the temperature rise at the surface by means of monitoring the surface displacement during a laser short pulse heating process.     

Friedelin Attenuates Neuronal Dysfunction and Memory Impairment by Inhibition of the Activated JNK/NF-κB Signalling Pathway in Scopolamine-Induced Mice Model of Neurodegeneration

Oxidative stress (OS) and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) are both key indicators implicated in neuro-inflammatory signalling pathways and their respective neurodegenerative diseases. Drugs targeting these factors can be considered as suitable candidates for treatment of neuronal dysfunction and memory impairment. The present study encompasses beneficial effects of a naturally occurring triterpenoid, friedelin, against scopolamine-induced oxidative stress and neurodegenerative pathologies in mice models. The treated animals were subjected to behavioural tests i.e., Y-maze and Morris water maze (MWM) for memory dysfunction. The underlying mechanism was determined via western blotting, antioxidant enzymes and lipid profile analyses. Molecular docking studies were carried out to predict the binding modes of friedelin in the binding pocket of p-JNK protein. The results reveal that scopolamine caused oxidative stress by (1) inhibiting catalase (CAT), peroxidase enzyme (POD), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and reduced glutathione enzyme (GSH); (2) the up-regulation of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) in mice brain; and (3) affecting the neuronal synapse (both pre- and post-synapse) followed by associated memory dysfunction. In contrast, friedelin administration not only abolished scopolamine-induced oxidative stress, glial cell activation, and neuro-inflammation but also inhibited p-JNK and NF-κB and their downstream signaling molecules. Moreover, friedelin administration improved neuronal synapse and reversed scopolamine-induced memory impairment accompanied by the inhibition of β-secretase enzyme (BACE-1) to halt amyloidogenic pathways of amyloid-β production. In summary, all of the results show that friedelin is a potent naturally isolated neuro-therapeutic agent to reverse scopolamine-induced neuropathology, which is characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease.