Constitutive model plays an important role in the numerical simulations of metal forming. However, the influence of the models on the calculation is vague. Based on the stress-strain data of Al 7050 and Ti-6Al-4V alloys generated by isothermal compressive tests, the Johnson-Cook (JC) and Arrhenius-type (A-type) hyperbolic sine models were fitted to obtain the constants. Flow stresses directly calculated by the equations were compared with the experiment results, and rigid-plastic finite element analyses (FEA) utilizing these models were employed to simulate the same compression processes. The results show that A-type model has higher accuracy in the direct prediction of flow stress, even outside of the fit domain. The simulation results using A-type model also have higher agreement with the experiment; however, the suitability is affected by the referential parameters employed in the regression process. In terms of the overall deformation and strain distributions, there are slight differences among the simulation results using these two models.

The effects of heat treatment and strontium (Sr) addition on the microstructure and mechanical properties of ADC12 alloys were investigated, and two-stage solution treatment was introduced. The results indicated that the addition of Sr obviously refined the microstructure of ADC12 alloys. When 0.05 wt% Sr was added into the alloy, the eutectic Si phase was fully modified into fine fibrous structure; α-Al and β-Al₅FeSi phases were best refined; and the eutectic Al₂Cu phase was modified into block-like Al₂Cu phase that continuously distributed at the grain boundary. The ultimate tensile strength (UTS) (270.63 MPa) and elongation (3.19%) were increased by 51.2% and 73.4% respectively compared with unmodified alloys. After the two-stage solution treatment (500 °C, 6 h+520 °C, 4 h), for 0.05 wt% Sr modified ADC12 alloys, the Si phases transformed into fine particle structure and Al₂Cu phases were fully dissolved. The peak hardness value of the alloys processed by the two-stage solution treatment was increased by 8.3% and 6.8% respectively compared to solution treatment at 500 °C and 520 °C. After the aging treatment (175 °C, 7 h), the hardness and UTS were increased by 38.73% and 13.96% respectively when compared with the unmodified alloy.

The leaching behaviour of Cu and Zn from contaminated soils at a copper mine was investigated using four extractants: citric acid (CA), oxalic acid (OA), ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA). Six soil samples were characterized for the distribution of four chemical fractions of Cu or Zn (acid-soluble, reducible, oxidizable and residual). For the extraction of Cu, EDTA is more effective than other extractants when the concentration is less than 0.02 mol/L. The leaching efficiency for Cu was at least 15% higher for EDTA than for the other extractants at the same concentrations. Similar leaching behaviour was observed in the extraction of Zn. After extraction by CA, OA, EDTA or NTA, the acid-soluble fractions and the reducible fractions of Cu were the main fractions extracted. The potential environmental risks related to speciation were evaluated, and after extraction these risks were reduced.

The effect of an ultrasonic field on the microstructure and mechanical properties of 7085 aluminum alloy during solidification was investigated by optical microscopy, Vickers hardness test, tensile test, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry, and electron probe micro-analysis (EPMA). The results showed that the grains of aluminum alloy were significantly refined and secondary phases were dispersed and distributed uniformly at the grain boundaries, due to ultrasonic treatment (UST). By EPMA, it was observed that the distribution of the main elements Al, Zn, Mg and Cu was more homogeneous in alloys with UST, than in alloys without UST. The mechanical properties of the aluminum alloy also significantly improved. As demonstrated by the SEM fractography of the fractured faces of several castings, fracture of the unrefined specimens occurred in a brittle manner, whereas the cracks of the refined specimens showed quasi-cleavage fracture.

The hydration film on particle surface plays an important role in bubble-particle adhesion in mineral flotation process. The thicknesses of the hydration films on natural hydrophobic coal and hydrophilic mica surfaces were measured directly by atomic force microscopy (AFM) based on the bending mode of the nominal constant compliance regime in AFM force curve in the present study. Surface and solid-liquid interfacial energies were calculated to explain the forming mechanism of the hydration film and atomic force microscopy data. The results show that there are significant differences in the structure and thickness of hydration films on coal and mica surfaces. Hydration film formed on mica surface with the thickness of 22.5 nm. In contrast, the bend was not detected in the nominal constant compliance regime. The van der Waals and polar interactions between both mica and coal and water molecules are characterized by an attractive effect, while the polar attractive free energy between water and mica (−87.36 mN/m) is significantly larger than that between water and coal (−32.89 mN/m), which leads to a thicker and firmer hydration layer on the mica surface. The interfacial interaction free energy of the coal/water/bubble is greater than that of mica. The polar attractive force is large enough to overcome the repulsive van der Waals force and the low energy barrier of film rupture, achieving coal particle bubble adhesion with a total interfacial free energy of −56.30 mN/m.

Based on the working principles of particle bed comminution, particles produced by high-pressure grinding rolls (HPGR) have surface properties different from particles produced by other grinding patterns, which exert great influence on mineral flotation. Flotation performances of calcite particles under different grinding patterns involving the use of HPGR, a jaw crusher, a dry ball mill, a wet ball mill, and a wet rod mill were studied using single mineral flotation tests. The surface properties of the particles under different grinding patterns were characterized to determine the flotation performance variation in terms of specific surface area, particle size distribution, AFM, XPS, and zeta potential. The results show that particles ground by HPGR exhibited improved flotation performance within the lower range of grinding fineness in both NaOL and dodecyl amine flotation systems compared to the particles prepared using other grinding patterns. Specific surface area, particle size distribution, surface roughness, Fe(III) contamination, binding energy, and zeta potential are greatly influenced by grinding patterns, which is the main cause of the flotation performance variation.

Technology intensified with surface wettability was introduced to leach vanadium and chromium from converter vanadium slag without roasting. Parameters affecting the leaching efficiency of vanadium and chromium were investigated: sulfuric acid concentration, MnO₂-to-slag mass ratio, liquid-to-solid ratio, leaching time, leaching temperature, and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-to-slag mass ratio. The leaching efficiencies of vanadium and chromium were 33.46 % and 20.02 % higher in the presence of MnO₂ and SDS, respectively, compared to the control. The leaching efficiencies of vanadium and chromium were 68.93 % and 30.74 %, respectively, under the optimum conditions: sulfuric acid concentration 40 wt%, MnO₂-to-slag mass ratio 10.0 wt%, liquid-to-solid ratio 5:1 mL/g; 12 h; 90 °C; and SDS-to-slag mass ratio 0.25 wt%. The analysis of the reaction mechanism in the leaching process indicates that MnO₂ combined with protons (H⁺) could oxidize low-valent vanadium and chromium; SDS could change the chemical behavior and decrease the surface tension of the aqueous solution to favor MnO₂ oxidization.

An effective flotation approach is proposed for improving the recovery of molybdenite fines from a finely-disseminated molybdenum ore. To maximize the flotation recovery of molybdenum, process mineralogy of raw ore, contrast tests, optimization of operation conditions and particle size analysis were systematically investigated. Process mineralogy suggests that in the raw ore, 61.63% of molybdenite particles distribute in the <20 μm size fraction, and intergrow with muscovite and pyrite as the contained and disseminated type. Contrast tests indicate that conventional flotation responds to poor collection efficiency for particles less than 25 μm. Oil agglomerate flotation (OAF) process demonstrates an obvious superiority in improving the flotation recovery of molybdenite fines. Furthermore, the flotation results of OAF process reveal that the dosage of transformer oil plays a critical role on the average size of collected mineral particles (d₅₀^p), agglomerates (d₅₀^a) and the molybdenum recovery. In addition, industrial tests illustrate that compared with the Mo-S bulk flotation approach, OAF process not only increases Mo recovery and grade of molybdenum concentrate by 22.75% and 17.47% respectively, but also achieves a sulfur concentrate with a superior grade of 38.92%.

The precipitation behaviors of an Al-Cu-Li-Mn-Zr alloy at different ageing temperatures (120, 160 and 200 °C) were investigated using Vickers hardness measurements and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) characterization. Age hardening curves show an increase in precipitation kinetics with increasing ageing temperature. The results of TEM show that for the samples peak aged at 120 °C, the amount of δ' (Al₃Li), GP zones/θ' (Al₂Cu) and χ (Al₅Cu₆Li₂) phases is obviously higher than that of T₁ (Al₂CuLi) precipitates; while the samples peak aged at 160 and 200 °C are usually dominated by T₁ phase with a minor fraction of GP zones/θ' and δ', and the χ phase almost does not form. In addition, quantitative analysis on the T₁ platelets demonstrates that the samples peak aged at 200 °C have larger plate diameter and smaller area fraction of T₁, as compared to the samples peak aged at 160 °C. Correspondingly, the possible reasons for such phenomena are discussed.

In the present investigation, electroless Ni-Cu-P/n-TiN composite coating was prepared using alkaline citrate-based bath. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy(SEM), energy-dispersive spectroscopy(EDS), electrochemical measurements, weight loss tests and Raman spectrometer were used to character the properties of the coating. As the Cu content increased from 7.3 wt% to 24.8 wt%, the corrosion current density of the Ni-Cu-P/n-TiN coating decreased from 10.80 to 4.34 μA. And the inclusion of Cu in Ni-P alloy resulted in refinement and less porosity in microstructure. The addition of TiN resulted in a slight decline in anti-corrosion property of the coating. As the mass loss test showed, Ni-24.8%Cu-P exhibited perfect corrosion resistance. Studies by Raman spectroscopy on coatings proved that Cu(II)₃(PO₄)(OH)₃, Cu(OH)₂ and CuO were examined while no compound of nickel was found, and Cu exhibited preferred corrosion in saline solution, providing cathodic protection to Ni alloy.

The effects of heat input on the microstructures and mechanical properties of tungsten inert gas (TIG) butt-welded AZ31/MB3 dissimilar Mg alloys joint were investigated by microstructural observations, microhardness testing and tensile testing. The results reveal that with the increase of heat input, the width of welding seam increases obviously and the grains both in the fusion zone and the heat affected zone coarsen during TIG welding process. The tensile strength of butt-welded joint increases with the increase of heat input and the maximum joining strength of 242 MPa is obtained with welding current of 90 A. However, lots of welding pores occur with the further increase of heat input, which results in the decrease of joining strength. It is experimentally demonstrated that robust joint can be obtained by TIG welding process.

Permeability is a vital property of rock mass, which is highly affected by tectonic stress and human engineering activities. A comprehensive monitoring of pore pressure and flow rate distributions inside the rock mass is very important to elucidate the permeability evolution mechanisms, which is difficult to realize in laboratory, but easy to be achieved in numerical simulations. Therefore, the particle flow code (PFC), a discrete element method, is used to simulate permeability behaviors of rock materials in this study. Owe to the limitation of the existed solid-fluid coupling algorithm in PFC, an improved flow-coupling algorithm is presented to better reflect the preferential flow in rock fractures. The comparative analysis is conducted between original and improved algorithm when simulating rock permeability evolution during triaxial compression, showing that the improved algorithm can better describe the experimental phenomenon. Furthermore, the evolution of pore pressure and flow rate distribution during the flow process are analyzed by using the improved algorithm. It is concluded that during the steady flow process in the fractured specimen, the pore pressure and flow rate both prefer transmitting through the fractures rather than rock matrix. Based on the results, fractures are divided into the following three types: I) fractures link to both the inlet and outlet, II) fractures only link to the inlet, and III) fractures only link to the outlet. The type I fracture is always the preferential propagating path for both the pore pressure and flow rate. For type II fractures, the pore pressure increases and then becomes steady. However, the flow rate increases first and begins to decrease after the flow reaches the stop end of the fracture and finally vanishes. There is no obvious pore pressure or flow rate concentration within type III fractures.

This paper presents an integrated investigation of the ground stability of a deep gateroad with a 1 km burial depth based on a field test, case studies, and numerical modelling. In situ stress measurements and mechanical properties tests were first conducted in the test site. Then, the deformation behavior, stress and yield zone distributions, as well as the bolts load of the gateroad, were simulated using FLAC^3D software. The model results demonstrated that the soft rock properties and high in situ stress were the main factors for the deep gateroad instability, and the shear slip failure induced by the high stress was the primary failure model for the deep rock mass. In addition, the unsuitable support patterns, especially the relatively short bolts/cables with low pre-tensions, the lack of high-strengthen secondary supports and the unsupported floor strata, also contributed to the gateroad instability. Subsequently, a new combined supporting strategy, incorporating longer bolts/cables, yielding ring supports, and grouting measures, was proposed for the deep gateroad, and its validity was verified via field monitoring. All these could be a reference for understanding the failure mechanism of the gateroad with 1 km burial depth.

Stochastic modeling techniques have been widely applied to oil-gas reservoir lithofacies. Markov chain simulation, however, is still under development, mainly because of the difficulties in reasonably defining conditional probabilities for multi-dimensional Markov chains and determining transition probabilities for horizontal strike and dip directions. The aim of this work is to solve these problems. Firstly, the calculation formulae of conditional probabilities for multi-dimensional Markov chain models are proposed under the full independence and conditional independence assumptions. It is noted that multi-dimensional Markov models based on the conditional independence assumption are reasonable because these models avoid the small-class underestimation problem. Then, the methods for determining transition probabilities are given. The vertical transition probabilities are obtained by computing the transition frequencies from drilling data, while the horizontal transition probabilities are estimated by using well data and the elongation ratios according to Walther’s law. Finally, these models are used to simulate the reservoir lithofacies distribution of Tahe oilfield in China. The results show that the conditional independence method performs better than the full independence counterpart in maintaining the true percentage composition and reproducing lithofacies spatial features.

Since the suspended sediments have severe influence on acoustic radiated field of transducer, it is significant for sonar system to analyze the influence of suspended sediments on acoustic pressure in the seafloor mining environment. Based on the KZK (Khokhlov-Zabolotkaya-Kuznetsov) equation, the method of sound field analysis in turbid water is proposed. Firstly, based on the analysis of absorption in clean water and viscous absorption of suspended sediments, the sound attenuation coefficient as a function of frequency in the mining environment is calculated. Then, based on the solution of KZK equation in frequency domain, the axial sound pressure of transducer in clear water as well as turbid water is simulated using MATLAB. Simulation results show that the influence of the suspended sediments on the pressure of near field is negligible. With the increase of distance, the axial sound pressures of transducer decay rapidly. Suspended sediments seriously affect the pressure in far-field. To verify the validity of this numerical method, experiment is designed and the axial sound pressure of transducer with a frequency of 200 kHz and a beam width of 7.5° is measured in simulated mining experiment. The results show that the simulation results agree well with the experiments, and the KZK equation can be used to calculate the sound field in turbid water.

A new consistency control method for jet dispensing is proposed. First, the working parameters, namely, viscosity, supply pressure and supply time, are experimentally investigated. Then, the glue viscosity is approximated by a polynomial model using the least square method. Based on this model and temperature control implemented using the Dahlin principle, the viscosity of the glue can be maintained at a constant value. Then, the viscosity model of the glue is applied to deriving the droplet mass as the nominal model of the temperature controller. The robustness of the temperature controller is analyzed by applying the small gain theory. The glue supply pressure controller is designed using the consistency control strategy, and the robustness is analyzed. Finally, simulations and experiments are conducted using a jet dispensing control system. The results show that the proposed control strategy can significantly improve the droplet consistency.

Two novel adaptive distributed target detectors, the range frequency domain-Rao (RFD-Rao) and range frequency domain-Wald (RFD-Wald) tests are proposed in this work. The application methods for these tests consider a partially homogeneous disturbance environment and a target range walking effect in a coherent processing interval (CPI). The asymptotic performance of the detectors is analyzed, and the constant false alarm rate (CFAR) properties with respect to the clutter covariance matrix and power level are shown. The performances of the proposed adaptive detectors are assessed through Monte-Carlo simulations, and the results are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed detection algorithms compared to those of similar existing detectors.

The effects of saturation on post-peak mechanical properties and energy features are main focal points for sandstones. To obtain these important attributes, post-peak cyclic loading and unloading tests were conducted on sandstone rock samples under natural and saturated states using the RMT-150B rock mechanics testing system. After successful processing of these tests, comparisons of stress-strain, strength, deformation, damage, and degradation of mechanical properties, wave velocity, and energy features of sandstone were conducted between natural and saturated states. The results show that saturation has evident weakening effects on uniaxial cyclic loading and unloading strength and elastic modulus of post-peak fracture sandstone. With the increase of post-peak loading and unloading period, the increases in amplitude of peak axial, lateral, and volumetric strains are all enhanced at approximately constant speed under the natural state. The increase in amplitude of axial peak strain is also enhanced at approximately constant speed, while the amplitudes of lateral and volumetric peak strains increase significantly under the saturated state. Compared with the natural state, the increase in amplitude of saturated samples’ peak lateral and volumetric strains, and the post-peak cyclic loading and unloading period all conform to the linearly increasing relationship. Under natural and saturated states, the damage factor (the plastic shear strain) of each rock sample gradually increases with the increase of post-peak cyclic loading and unloading period, and the crack damage stress of each rock sample declines rapidly at first and tends to reach a constant value later with the increase in plastic shear strain. Under natural and saturated states, the wave velocities of rock samples all decrease in the process of post-peak cyclic loading and unloading with the increase in plastic shear strain. The wave velocities of rock samples and plastic shear strain conform to the exponential relationship with a constant. Saturation reduces the total absorption energy, dissipated energy, and elastic strain energy of rock samples.

Exhaust hot water (EHW) is widely used for various industrial processes. However, the excess heat carried by EHW is typically ignored and discharged into the environment, resulting in heat loss and heat pollution. An organic Rankine cycle (ORC) is an attractive technology to recycle heat from low-temperature energy carriers. Herein, ORC was used to recycle the heat carried by EHW. To investigate the energy and exergy recovery effects of EHW, a mathematical model was developed and a parametric study was conducted. The energy efficiency and exergy efficiency of the EHW-driven ORC system were modeled with R245fa, R113 and R123 as the working fluids. The results demonstrate that the EHW and evaporation temperatures have significant effects on the energy and exergy efficiencies of the EHW-driven ORC system. Under given EHW conditions, an optimum evaporation temperature exists corresponding to the highest exergy efficiency. To further use the low-temperature EHW, a configuration retrofitted to the ORC by combining with flash evaporation (FE) was conducted. For an EHW at 120 °C and 0.2 MPa, the maximum exergy efficiency of the FE-ORC system is 45.91% at a flash pressure of 0.088 MPa. The FE-ORC performs better in exergy efficiency than the basic FE and basic EHW-driven ORC.

An integral connection exists among the mine production planning, the mined material destination, and the ultimate pit limit (UPL) in the mining engineering economy. This relation is reinforced by real information and the benefits it engenders in the mining economy. Hence, it is important to create optimizing algorithms to reduce the errors of economic calculations. In this work, a logical mathematical algorithm that considers the important designing parameters and the mining economy is proposed. This algorithm creates an optimizing repetitive process among different designing constituents and directs them into the maximum amount of the mine economical parameters. This process will produce the highest amount of ores and the highest degree of safety. The modeling produces a new relation between the concept of the cutoff grade, mine designing, and mine planning, and it provides the maximum benefit by calculating the destination of the ores. The proposed algorithm is evaluated in a real case study. The results show that the net present value of the mine production is increased by 3% compared to previous methods of production design and UPL.

The Mesozoic granitoids in the Dabie Orogen are of particular geological interest as indicators for Mesozoic lithospheric evolution because of their close association with porphyry Mo mineralization. Here, we present a study using petrogeochemistry data to constrain the petrogenesis of the Xiaofan granites in the Dabie Mo mineralization belt (DMB), Henan Province, China. Field investigations show that the Xiaofan pluton mainly consists of porphyritic granite. The Xiaofan granites have high SiO₂ contents of 74.29 wt%–76.07 wt% (average: 75.18 wt%), Al₂O₃ contents of 11.66 wt%–12.83 wt% (average: 12.13 wt%), and K₂O contents of 5.37 wt%–7.90 wt% (average: 6.86 wt%) and low MgO (0.06 wt%–0.16 wt%), TiO₂ (0.09 wt%–0.10 wt%), and P₂O₅ (0.047 wt%–0.103 wt%) contents. They are enriched in Rb, U, K and Hf but depleted in Ba, Nb, Ta, Sr and Ti. By geochemical and mineralogical features, we propose that the Xiaofan granites belong to A-type type granite and dominantly sourced from the crust. The granites from the Xiaofan Mo deposit may have formed in a post-collision extensional setting.

The zinc casting is a complicated process with high temperature, high dust content and dynamic solidification. To accurately detect the edge and texture of metal image under this condition, a sub-pixel detection based on gradient entropy and adaptive four-order cubic convolution interpolation (GEAF-CCI) algorithm is proposed. This method mainly involves three procedures. Firstly, the gradient image is generated from the grey images by using gradient operator. Then, a dynamic threshold based on the maximum local gradient entropy (DTMLGE) algorithm is applied to distinguishing the edge and texture pixels from gradient images. Finally, the adaptive four-order cubic convolution interpolation (AF-CCI) algorithm is proposed for interpolating calculation of the target edges and textures according to their variation differences in different directions. The experimental result shows that the proposed algorithm can remove the jag and blur of the edges and textures, improve the edge positioning precision and reduce the false or missing detection rate.

Circular aperture antenna recently has been regarded as a nature source to generate high power radio orbital angular momentum (OAM) in millimeter (mm) wave; however, the radiation pattern was not investigated. Theoretical derivation of radiation pattern of circular aperture OAM antenna is conducted to evaluate the performance. Extensive simulations verify the validity of the theoretical result. Furthermore, performance of such antenna excited by orthogonal TE and TM modes is compared, which shows the potential application for TE_g1 mode to create pure OAM g–1 mode in a practical system, providing guidance for generation of twisted radio waves in mm-wave bands.

To ensure compacted backfilling, it is essential to ensure the reliability of the performance of a solid backfill support, key equipment for integrating backfilling and mining. To evaluate the backfilling performance of a backfill support, the concept of backfill and operation properties is proposed in this study. Moreover, it is elaborated in terms of five aspects, namely, structural property, supporting property, tamping property, mechanical response property, and geological adaptation property, which are specifically reflected by 14 indexes including the supporting intensity and vertical roof gap. Seven separate evaluation indexes are selected to build a backfill and operation properties based system for evaluating the design schemes of the backfill support via a multi-index comprehensive evaluation method; then, the evaluation method and process together with measures to control the backfill and operation properties are proposed. By using this system, 11 schemes for optimizing the ZC5200/14.5/3 backfill support at Zhaizhen Coal Mine are evaluated, and scheme #10 is found to show superior vertical roof gap and other backfill and operation properties, thus demonstrating the reasonability of the evaluation system. On this basis, the backfill support research framework of designing initial scheme, optimizing design scheme, selecting the best evaluation indexes, evaluating optimizing scheme, and evaluating operation properties is built; this should serve as an important reference for further studies on the roof controlling performance of a backfill support.