Assessment of internal quality of billets using ultrasonic three-dimensional layered characterization

To address the challenge of visualizing internal defects within castings, ultrasonic nondestructive testing technology has been introduced for the detection and characterization of internal defects in castings. Ultrasonic testing is widely utilized for detecting and characterizing internal defects in materials, thanks to its strong penetration ability, wide testing area, and fast scanning speed. However, traditional ultrasonic testing primarily relies on one-dimensional waveforms or two-dimensional images to analyze internal defects in billets, which hinders intuitive characterization of defect quantity, size, spatial distribution, and other relevant information. Consequently, a three-dimensional (3D) layered characterization method of billets internal quality based on scanning acoustic microscope (SAM) is proposed. The method starts with a layered focus scanning of the billet using SAM and pre-processing the obtained sequence of ultrasonic images. Next, the ray casting is employed to reconstruct 3D shape of defects in billets, allowing for characterization of their quality by obtaining characteristic information on defect spatial distributions, quantity, and sizes. To validate the effectiveness of the proposed method, specimens of 42CrMo billets are prepared using five different processes, and the method is employed to evaluate their internal quality. Finally, a comparison between the ultrasonic image and the metallographic image reveals a difference in dimensional accuracy of only 2.94%. The results indicate that the new method enables visualization of internal defect information in billets, serving as a valuable complement to the traditional method of characterizing their internal quality.

Study of Clinical Practical Model of Urinary System Injury

Background： In order to improve the clinical treatment level of urinary system injury, it is necessary to build tip an animal model of urinary system wound, which is not only analogous to real clinical practice, but also simple and practical. Methods： We have developed the third generation of firearm fragment wound generator based on the first and the second producer. The best explosive charge of the blank cartridge was selected by gradient powder loading experiments. The firearm fragment injuries were made to the bulbous urethra of 10 New Zealand male rabbits. One week preoperatively and 2, 4 and 8 weeks postoperatively, all the animals underwent urethroscopy and urethrography. At 2, 4 and 8 weeks postoperatively, two animals were randomly selected and killed, and the urethra was cut off for pathological examination. Results： The shooting distance of the third generation of firearm fragment wound generator is 2 cm. The best explosive charge of the blank cartridge is 1 g ofnitrocotton. All rabbits survived the procedures and stayed alive until they were killed, h!juries were limited to bulbous urethra and distal urethra. Round damaged areas, 1-1.5 cm in length, on the ventral wall were observed. Ureteroscopy restdts showed that canal diameter gradually shrank by over 50% in 9 rabbits. The rate of success was 90%. Urethrography result noted that a 11.3 cm stricture was formed at the bulbous urethra. Histology results of injured stricture urethra showed that fibrous connective tissue hyperplasia and hyaline degeneration caused further stricture in the canal. Conclusions： The third generation of firearm fragment wound generator imitates the bullet firing process and is more accurate and repeatable. The corresponding rabbit model of traumatic complex urethral stricture simulates the real complex clinical conditions. This animal model provides a standardized platform for clinical researches on treating traumatic injuries to the urinary system.