Industrial Application of Mechanical Reduction on Continuous Casting of Bearing Steel Bloom

Industrial experiments of mechanical soft reduction in continuous casting were conducted in the present study aiming to improve the internal quality of the bearing steel blooms. Two methods were developed to verify the solidification model for a reliable crater end in the caster, which is provided by SMS CONCAST. The verified solidification model was applied to determine the solidification status of the bloom and provides theoretical reduction region. Several trials were conducted to study the optimization of the reduction rate regarding the V-shaped and centerline segregation of the bloom. The results show an obvious improvement of internal quality in the bearing steel bloom by applying appropriate reduction during casting.

Investigation of the Effects of Coke Reactivity and Iron Ore Reducibility on the Gas Utilization Efficiency of Blast Furnace

The use of coke with high reactivity in the ironmaking blast furnace (BF) has yet to be explored, and a thorough understanding is still required to clarify the effect of coke reactivity on the BF gas utilization efficiency. In this paper, a one-dimensional kinetic model of the BF is presented and the accuracy of the model is verified. The model is then applied to analyze the effect of coke reactivity on the gas utilization efficiency of the BF. The results show that, under the operating conditions considered, the height of indirect reduction region and the starting temperature of coke solution loss reaction decrease with the increase of coke reactivity. Moreover, coke reactivity is first, directly proportional to gas utilization efficiency, and then, inversely proportional to it. In addition, high-reactivity coke may not improve gas utilization efficiency in case of high H2 content. Both, lowly and highly reactive coke need to be combined with highly reducible iron ore to maximize the gas utilization efficiency. Nevertheless, only appropriately reactive coke can combine with lowly reducible iron ore to obtain an optimal gas utilization efficiency. Hence, it is necessary to select coke with appropriate reactivity, in accordance with iron-ore reducibility, instead of blindly pursuing high-reactivity coke in actual operation.

Analysis of the off-corner subsurface cracks of continuous casting blooms under the influence of soft reduction and controllable approaches by a chamfer technology

In the current study, the morphology of the off-corner subsurface cracks located on the cross section of continuous casting bloom under a soft reduction operation was observed. A 3D thermo-mechanical model was adopted to calculate the temperature history, bulging deformation and stress distributions in the reduction region, and then to analyze the formation of the off-corner subsurface cracks under the influence of soft reduction. The results showed that the off-corner subsurface cracks can be formed under the influence of the extensive stress fields which develop in the cracking temperature range, especially located on the loosed side of the bloom corner region. Adjusting the chamfer angle and chamfer length can decrease stress concentration and bulging deformation to minimize the risk of off-corner subsurface cracks during the soft reduction operation.

Active Control of Low Frequency Linear Spectrum by Estimating Receivers Location

An approach to actively control the low frequency linear spectrum in vessel navigation noise is proposed. The approach relies on the introduction of a secondary noise-cancellation source which is fixed aboard and whose signal generation uses the estimated location knowledge of the receiver. Loss of underwater acoustic transmission is modeled and Monte Carlo simulations are conducted to analyze the noise-reduction effects under different location estimation errors. Simulation results show that bearing estimation error is the predominant factor affecting the radius of the effective noise-reduction region, while distance estimation error has considerable effect only when the perpendicular distance from the receiver to vessels course is quite small. Besides, when bearing estimation error is less than 1.2° and distance estimation error is less than 80%, satisfactory noise reduction region can be obtained using the approach.

Net radiative forcing and air quality responses to regional CO emission reductions

Carbon monoxide (CO) emissions influence global and regional air quality and global climate change by affecting atmospheric oxidants and secondary species. We simulate the influence of halving anthropogenic CO emissions globally and individually from 10 regions on surface and tropospheric ozone, methane, and aerosol concentrations using a global chemical transport model (MOZART-4 for the year 2005). Net radiative forcing (RF) is then estimated using the GFDL (Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory) standalone radiative transfer model. We estimate that halving global CO emissions decreases global annual average concentrations of surface ozone by 0.45 ppbv, tropospheric methane by 73 ppbv, and global annual net RF by 36.1 mW m−2, nearly equal to the sum of changes from the 10 regional reductions. Global annual net RF per unit change in emissions and the 100 yr global warming potential (GWP100) are estimated as −0.124 mW m−2 (Tg CO)−1 and 1.34, respectively, for the global CO reduction, and ranging from −0.115 to −0.131 mW m−2 (Tg CO)−1 and 1.26 to 1.44 across 10 regions, with the greatest sensitivities for regions in the tropics. The net RF distributions show widespread cooling corresponding to the O3 and CH4 decreases, and localized positive and negative net RFs due to changes in aerosols. The strongest annual net RF impacts occur within the tropics (28° S–28° N) followed by the northern midlatitudes (28° N–60° N), independent of reduction region, while the greatest changes in surface CO and ozone concentrations occur within the reduction region. Some regional reductions strongly influence the air quality in other regions, such as East Asia, which has an impact on US surface ozone that is 93% of that from North America. Changes in the transport of CO and downwind ozone production clearly exceed the direct export of ozone from each reduction region. The small variation in CO GWPs among world regions suggests that future international climate agreements could adopt a globally uniform metric for CO with little error, or could use different GWPs for each continent. Doing so may increase the incentive to reduce CO through coordinated policies addressing climate and air quality.

Net radiative forcing and air quality responses to regional CO emission reductions

Carbon monoxide (CO) emissions influence global and regional air quality and global climate change by affecting atmospheric oxidants and secondary species. We simulate the influence of halving anthropogenic CO emissions globally and individually from 10 regions on surface and tropospheric ozone, methane, and aerosol concentrations using a global chemical transport model (MOZART-4 for the year 2005). Net radiative forcing (RF) is then estimated using the GFDL standalone radiative transfer model. We estimate that halving global CO emissions decreases global annual average concentrations of surface ozone by 0.45 ppbv, tropospheric methane by 73 ppbv, and global annual net RF by 36.1 mW m−2, nearly equal to the sum of changes from the 10 regional reductions. Global annual net RF per unit change in emissions and the 100-yr global warming potential (GWP100) are estimated as −0.124 mW m−2 (Tg CO yr−1)−1 and 1.34, respectively, for the global CO reduction, and ranging from −0.115 to −0.131 mW m−2 (Tg CO yr−1)−1 and 1.26 to 1.44 across 10 regions, with the greatest sensitivities for regions in the tropics. The net RF distributions show widespread cooling corresponding to the O3 and CH4 decreases, and localized positive and negative net RFs due to changes in aerosols. The strongest annual net RF impacts occur within the tropics (28° S–28° N) followed by the northern mid-latitudes (28° N–60° N), independent of reduction region, while the greatest changes in surface CO and ozone concentrations occur within the reduction region. Some regional reductions strongly influence the air quality in other regions, such as East Asia, which has an impact on US surface ozone that is 93% of that from North America. Changes in the transport of CO and downwind ozone production clearly exceed the direct export of ozone from each reduction region. The small variation in CO GWPs among world regions suggests that future international climate agreements could adopt a globally uniform metric for CO with little error, or could use different GWPs for each continent. Doing so may increase the incentive to reduce CO through coordinated policies addressing climate and air quality.

Establishment of Chemical Preparation Methods and Development of an Automated Reduction System for AMS Sample Preparation at Kigam

Many previous studies on the sample preparation of various kinds of radiocarbon dating samples by accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) have been examined at KIGAM (Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources) and our own procedures have been established. Furthermore, an automated reduction system has been developed. The volume of the reduction region was minimized to improve the reduction yield, and air-actuated pneumatic valves and solenoid arrays were used for computer control of the system. Operation of all the valves and vacuum pumps and signals from the temperature sensors and pressure gauges were interfaced to a personal computer with an A/D board. A computer program was also developed to perform automatic operation of the reduction system. This system consistently shows a higher reduction yield than 90%. The reduction time of the system is currently 140 min.