Influence of Compaction Pressure on the Accelerated Carbonation of Calcium Hydroxide

Mineral carbonation using waste cement is a promising method to solve the problems caused by CO_2 emission and waste cement. Compaction pressure is an important parameter for mineral carbonation of calcium hydroxide, one of the most dominant composite of waste cement that can be carbonated. The carbonation degree, morphology of products and compressive strength of carbonated compacts are influenced by compaction pressure significantly. Results show that the carbonation degree of calcium hydroxide increases at first（0-8 MPa） and then decreases in the higher compaction pressure range（10-14 MPa）. At the meantime, results also indicate that lower compaction pressure accelerates the early carbonation but hinder carbonation in the later stages. For the morphologies of carbonation products, calcium carbonate tends to form typical crystal morphology of calcite（rhombohedral） under lower compaction pressure, while it will become ellipsoidlike when compaction pressure reaches 8 MPa. TGA and water content results show that there is an optimal water content for the carbonation. In addition, lower water content is adverse to the carbonation at later stage and the CO_2 is difficult to penetrate into the inside of compacts when water content is high, which will hinder the carbonation. XRD and TGA results show that the carbonation products are calcite and small amount of amorphous calcium carbonate.

Neutron Diffraction of Large-Volume Samples at High Pressure Using Compact Opposed-Anvil Cells

Neutron diffraction techniques of large-volume samples at high pressure using compact opposed-anvil cells are developed at a reactor neutron source, China＇s Mianyang research reactor. We achieve a high-pressure condition of in situ neutron diffraction by means of a newly designed large-volume opposed-anvil cell. This pressure calibration is based on resistance measurements of bismuth and the neutron diffraction of iron. Pressure calibration experiments are performed at room temperature for a new cell using the tungsten carbide anvils with a tapered angle of 30°, Φ4.5 mm culet diameter and the metal-nonmetal composite gasket with a thickness of 2 mm. Transitions in Bi（Ⅰ–Ⅱ 2.55 GPa, Ⅱ–V 7.7 GPa） are observed at 100 and 300 kN, respectively, by resistance measurements.The pressure measurement results of neutron diffraction are consistent with resistance measurements of bismuth.As a result, pressures up to about 7.7 GPa can routinely and stably be achieved using this apparatus, with the sample volume of 9 mm^3.

Design of process parameters for direct squeeze casting

On the basis of the analysis of solidification interval and temperature distribution of components manufactured by the squeeze casting method, formulas for calculating the solidification interval and compaction pressure were deduced according to the principal request that the compaction pressure should be equal to or greater than the plastic deformation resistance of the forming component when solidification ended. The solidification interval was proven to be associated with many factors, such as weight of the component, specific heat of the alloy, latent heat, pouring temperature, component temperature at the end of solidification and heat-transfer coefficients. The compaction pressure was related to the strain rate, deformation temperature, and dimension of the de- forming component. The solidification interval and compaction pressure calculated by the formulas deduced in this article were adopted in the production of 45 steel bidirectional chapiter valves, and components with excellent oerformance were manufactured.

Polycrystalline diamond compact with enhanced thermal stability

Polycrystalline diamond compacts（PDC）, which are composed of diamond and WC/Co substrate, and synthesized at high pressure and high temperature（HPHT）, are widely applied as the tooth of drilling bit. However, the thermal stability of PDC will be reduced when diamond transforms into graphite due to cobalt in PDC acting as a catalyst during the drilling work. In this study, a new three-layer structured PDC with enhanced thermal stability has been successfully synthesized at pressures of 5.5–7.0 GPa and temperatures of 1650–1750？C. In this structure, the diamond-Si C composite acts as the working layer,and the diamond-Si C-Co composite and WC/Co cements are as the intermediate layer and substrate,respectively. It is found that the initial oxidizing temperature of the three-layered PDC is enhanced up to820？C, which is significantly higher than that（～780？C） of the conventional PDC counterpart.