Investigation of high rate mechanical flow followed by ignition for high-energy propellant under dynamic extrusion loading

Investigating the ignition response of nitrate ester plasticized polyether(NEPE) propellant under dynamic extrusion loading is of great significant at least for two cases. Firstly, it helps to understand the mechanism and conditions of unwanted ignition inside charged propellant under accident stimulus.Secondly, evaluates the risk of a shell crevice in a solid rocket motor(SRM) under a falling or overturning scene. In the present study, an innovative visual crevice extrusion experiment is designed using a dropweight apparatus. The dynamic responses of NEPE propellant during extrusion loading, including compaction and compression, rapid shear flow into the crevice, stress concentration, and ignition reaction, have been firstly observed using a high-performance high-speed camera. The ignition reaction is observed in the triangular region of the NEPE propellant sample above the crevice when the drop weight velocity was 1.90 m/s. Based on the user material subroutine interface UMAT provided by finite element software LS-DYNA, a viscoelastic-plastic model and dual ignition criterion related to plastic shear dissipation are developed and applied to the local ignition response analysis under crevice extrusion conditions. The stress concentration occurs in the crevice location of the propellant sample, the shear stress is relatively large, the effective plastic work is relatively large, and the ignition reaction is easy to occur. When the sample thickness decreases from 5 mm to 2.5 mm, the shear stress increases from 22.3 MPa to 28.6 MPa, the critical value of effective plastic work required for ignition is shortened from 1280 μs to 730 μs, and the triangular area is easily triggering an ignition reaction. The propellant sample with a small thickness is more likely to stress concentration, resulting in large shear stress and effective work, triggering an ignition reaction.

Extrusion 3D printing of carbon nanotube-assembled carbon aerogel nanocomposites with high electrical conductivity

Carbon nanotubes(CNTs)with high aspect ratio and excellent electrical conduction offer huge functional improvements for current carbon aerogels.However,there remains a major challenge for achieving the on-demand shaping of carbon aerogels with tailored micro-nano structural textures and geometric features.Herein,a facile extrusion 3D printing strategy has been proposed for fabricating CNT-assembled carbon(CNT/C)aerogel nanocomposites through the extrusion printing of pseudoplastic carbomer-based inks,in which the stable dispersion of CNT nanofibers has been achieved relying on the high viscosity of carbomer microgels.After extrusion printing,the chemical solidification through polymerizing RF sols enables 3D-printed aerogel nanocomposites to display high shape fidelity in macroscopic geometries.Benefiting from the micro-nano scale assembly of CNT nanofiber networks and carbon nanoparticle networks in composite phases,3D-printed CNT/C aerogels exhibit enhanced mechanical strength(fracture strength,0.79 MPa)and typical porous structure characteristics,including low density(0.220 g cm^(-3)),high surface area(298.4 m^(2)g^(-1)),and concentrated pore diameter distribution(~32.8nm).More importantly,CNT nanofibers provide an efficient electron transport pathway,imparting 3D-printed CNT/C aerogel composites with a high electrical conductivity of 1.49 S cm^(-1).Our work would offer feasible guidelines for the design and fabrication of shape-dominated functional materials by additive manufacturing.

Modeling of recrystallization behaviour of AA6xxx aluminum alloy during extrusion process

An innovative approach was introduced for the development of a AA6063 recrystallization model.This method incorporated a regression-based technique for the determination of material constants and introduced novel equations for assessing the grain size evolution.Calibration and validation of this methodology involved a combination of experimentally acquired microstructural data from the extrusion of three different AA6063 profiles and results from the simulation using the Qform Extrusion UK finite element code.The outcomes proved the agreement between experimental findings and numerical prediction of the microstructural evolution.The trend of the grain size variation based on different process parameters was accurately simulated,both after dynamic and static recrystallization,with an error of less than 25% in almost the whole sampling computations.

Method of fabricating artificial rock specimens based on extrusion free forming(EFF)3D printing

Three-dimensional(3D)printing technology has been widely used to create artificial rock samples in rock mechanics.While 3D printing can create complex fractures,the material still lacks sufficient similarity to natural rock.Extrusion free forming(EFF)is a 3D printing technique that uses clay as the printing material and cures the specimens through high-temperature sintering.In this study,we attempted to use the EFF technology to fabricate artificial rock specimens.The results show the physico-mechanical properties of the specimens are significantly affected by the sintering temperature,while the nozzle diameter and layer thickness also have a certain impact.The specimens are primarily composed of SiO_(2),with mineral compositions similar to that of natural rocks.The density,uniaxial compressive strength(UCS),elastic modulus,and tensile strength of the printed specimens fall in the range of 1.65–2.54 g/cm3,16.46–50.49 MPa,2.17–13.35 GPa,and 0.82–17.18 MPa,respectively.It is capable of simulating different types of rocks,especially mudstone,sandstone,limestone,and gneiss.However,the simulation of hard rocks with UCS exceeding 50 MPa still requires validation.

Designing new low alloyed Mg-RE alloys with high strength and ductility via high-speed extrusion

Two new low-alloyed Mg-2RE-0.8Mn-0.6Ca-0.5Zn(wt%,RE=Sm or Y)alloys are developed,which can be produced on an in-dustrial scale via relatively high-speed extrusion.These two alloys are not only comparable to commercial AZ31 alloy in extrudability,but also have superior mechanical properties,especially in terms of yield strength(YS).The excellent extrudability is related to less coarse second-phase particles and high initial melting point of the two as-cast alloys.The high strength-ductility mainly comes from the formation of fine grains,nano-spaced submicron/nano precipitates,and weak texture.Moreover,it is worth noting that the YS of the two alloys can maintain above 160 MPa at elevated temperature of 250°C,significantly higher than that of AZ31 alloy(YS:45 MPa).The Zn/Ca solute segregation at grain boundaries,the improved heat resistance of matrix due to addition of RE,and the high melting points of strengthening particles(Mn,MgZn_(2),and Mg-Zn-RE/Mg-Zn-RE-Ca)are mainly responsible for the excellent high-temperature strength.

Role of extrusion rate on the microstructure and tensile properties evolution of ultrahigh-strength low-alloy Mg-1.0Al-1.0Ca-0.4Mn(wt.%)alloy

Mg-1.0Al-1.0Ca-0.4Mn(AXM1104, wt.%) low alloy was extruded at 200 ℃ with an extrusion ratio of 25 and different ram speeds from 1.0 to 7.0 mm/s. The influence of extrusion rate on microstructure and mechanical properties of the AXM1104 alloy was systematically studied. With the increasing of extrusion rate, the mean dynamically recrystallized(DRXed) grain size of the low alloy and average particles diameter of precipitate second phases were increased, while the degree of grain boundary segregation and the intensity of the basal fiber texture were decreased. With the rising of extrusion rate from 1.0 to 7.0 mm/s, the tensile yield strength(TYS) of the as-extruded AXM1104 alloy was decreased from 445 MPa to 249 MPa, while the elongation to failure(EL) was increased from 5.0% to 17.6%. The TYS, ultimate tensile strength(UTS) and EL of the AXM1104 alloy extruded at the ram speed of 1.5 mm/s was 412 MPa, 419 MPa and 12.0%, respectively,exhibiting comprehensive tensile mechanical properties with ultra-high strength and excellent plasticity. The ultra-high TYS of 412 MPa was mainly due to the strengthening from ultra-fine DRXed grains with segregation of solute atoms at grain boundaries. The strain hardening rate is increase slightly with increasing extrusion speed, which may be ascribed to the increasing mean DRXed grain size with rising extrusion speed. The higher strain hardening rate contributes to the higher EL of these AXM1104 samples extruded at higher ram speed.

Difference in extrusion temperature dependences of microstructure and mechanical properties between extruded AZ61 and AZ91 alloys

The effects of extrusion temperature on the microstructure and tensile properties of extruded AZ61 and AZ91 alloys are investigated by subjecting them to hot extrusion at 300 and 400℃.Although the average grain size of the extruded AZ61 alloy slightly increases from 9.5 to 12.6μm with increasing extrusion temperature,its resultant microstructural variation is insignificant.In contrast,the average grain size of the extruded AZ91 alloy significantly increases from 5.7 to 22.5μm with increasing extrusion temperature,and the type of Mg17Al12 precipitates formed in it changes from fine dynamic precipitates with a spherical shape to coarse static precipitates with a lamellar structure.As the extrusion temperature increases,the tensile yield strength of the extruded AZ61 alloy increases from 183 to 197 MPa while that of the extruded AZ91 alloy decreases from 232 to 224 MPa.The tensile elongations of the extruded AZ61 and AZ91 alloys decrease with increasing extrusion temperature,but the degree of decrease is significant in the latter alloy.These different extrusion temperature dependences of the tensile properties of the extruded AZ61 and AZ91 alloys are discussed in terms of their microstructural characteristics,strengthening mechanisms,and crack initiation sites.

Mechanism of plasticity enhancement of AZ31B magnesium alloy sheet by accumulative alternating back extrusion

Accumulative alternating back extrusion was a potential fine-grain modification method.In this paper,it was an innovative attempt to develop high-performance magnesium alloy sheet by this process.Under the condition of 350 K,commercial AZ31 magnesium alloy was made into billet by accumulative alternating back extrusion,and then extruded into fine-grain magnesium alloy sheet.Through a systematic study of its microstructure and mechanical properties,the results showed that the initial state had an important influence on the evolution of the structure during extrusion.After accumulative alternating back extrusion to produce the billet,the grain size of the sheet obtained by extrusion was significantly refined,which was related to the accumulation of deformation and grain refinement during the alternating loading process.Grain refinement caused the proportion of dynamic recrystallization inside the sheet with 2 cycles of accumulative alternating back extrusion to drop to 27%.With the increase of extrusion cycles from 2 to 4,the high density of dislocations led to an increase in the proportion of dynamic recrystallization and finer grains.The texture changed from strong basal texture to weak bimodal texture.The results of uniaxial tensile test show that due to grain refinement and texture change,the yield strength was significantly reduced,and the plasticity was significantly improved.It was verified that accumulative alternating back extrusion was meaningful for subsequent processing,and it also provided scientific guidance for the development of fine-grained magnesium alloy sheet.

Simple shear extrusion versus equal channel angular pressing:A comparative study on the microstructure and mechanical properties of an Mg alloy

Two severe plastic deformation(SPD)techniques of simple shear extrusion(SSE)and equal channel angular pressing(ECAP)were employed to process an extruded Mg-6Gd-3Y-1.5Ag(wt%)alloy at 553 K for 1,2,4 and 6 passes.The microstructural evolutions were studied by electron back scattered diffraction(EBSD)analysis and transmission electron microscopy(TEM).The initial grain size of 7.5μm in the extruded alloy was reduced to about 1.3μm after 6 SPD passes.Discontinuous dynamic recrystallization was suggested to be operative in both SSE and ECAP,with also a potential contribution of continuous dynamic recrystallization at the early stages of deformation.The difference in the shear strain paths of the two SPD techniques caused different progression rate of dynamic recrystallization(DRX),so that the alloys processed by ECAP exhibited higher fractions of recrystallization and high angle grain boundaries(HAGBs).It was revealed that crystallographic texture was also significantly influenced by the difference in the strain paths of the two SPD methods,where dissimilar basal plane texture components were obtained.The compression tests,performed along extrusion direction(ED),indicated that the compressive yield stress(CYS)and ultimate compressive strength(UCS)of the alloys after both SEE and ECAP augmented continuously by increasing the number of passes.ECAP-processed alloys had lower values of CYS and UCS compared to their counterparts processed by SSE.This difference in the mechanical responses was attributed to the different configurations of basal planes with respect to the loading direction(ED)of each SPD technique.

Bimodal grain structure formation and strengthening mechanisms in Mg-Mn-Al-Ca extrusion alloys

The effects of small additions of calcium (0.1%and 0.5%~1) on the dynamic recrystallization behavior and mechanical properties of asextruded Mg-1Mn-0.5Al alloys were investigated.Calcium microalloying led to the formation of Al_(2)Ca in as-cast Mg-1Mn-0.5Al-0.1Ca alloy and both Mg_(2)Ca and Al_(2)Ca phases in Mg-1Mn-0.5Al-0.5Ca alloy.The formed Al_(2)Ca particles were fractured during extrusion process and distributed at grain boundary along extrusion direction (ED).The Mg_(2)Ca phase was dynamically precipitated during extrusion process,hindering dislocation movement and reducing dislocation accumulation in low angle grain boundaries (LAGBs) and hindering the transformation of high density of LAGBs into high angle grain boundaries (HAGBs).Therefore,a bimodal structure composed of fine dynamically recrystallized (DRXed) grains and coarse un DRXed regions was formed in Ca-microalloyed Mg-1Mn-0.5Al alloys.The bimodal structure resulted in effective hetero-deformation-induced (HDI) strengthening.Additionally,the fine grains in DRXed regions and the coarse grains in un DRXed regions and the dynamically precipitated Mg_(2)Ca phase significantly enhanced the tensile yield strength from 224 MPa in Mg-1Mn-0.5Al to335 MPa and 352 MPa in Mg-1Mn-0.5Al-0.1Ca and Mg-1Mn-0.5Al-0.5Ca,respectively.Finally,a yield point phenomenon was observed in as-extruded Mg-1Mn-0.5Al-x Ca alloys,more profound with 0.5%Ca addition,which was due to the formation of (■) extension twins in un DRXed regions.

Variations in dynamic recrystallization behavior and mechanical properties of AZ31 alloy with extrusion temperature

This study investigates the effects of extrusion temperature on the dynamic recrystallization(DRX)behavior of a Mg-3Al-1Zn-0.3Mn(AZ31,wt%)alloy during hot extrusion and on the microstructural characteristics and mechanical properties of materials extruded at 350 and 450℃.An increase in the extrusion temperature causes a decrease in the amount of strain energy accumulated in the material during extrusion,because of promoted activation of pyramidal<c+a>slip and dynamic recovery.This reduced strain energy weakens the DRX behavior during extrusion,which eventually results in a decrease in the area fraction of recrystallized grains of the extruded material.The material extruded at 450℃has coarser grains and a stronger basal fiber texture than that extruded at 350℃.As the extrusion temperature increases from 350 to 450℃,the tensile yield strength(TYS)of the extruded material increases from 191.8 to 201.5 MPa,whereas its compressive yield strength(CYS)decreases from 122.5 to 111.0 MPa;consequently,its tension-compression yield stress ratio(CYS/TYS)decreases from 0.64 to 0.55.The increase in the TYS is attributed mainly to the stronger texture hardening and strain hardening effects of the extruded material,and the decrease in the CYS is attributed to the reduced twinning stress resulting from grain coarsening and texture intensification.The microstructural and textural evolutions of the materials during extrusion and the deformation and hardening mechanisms of the extruded materials are discussed in detail.

Advanced strategies in the application of gelatin-based bioink for extrusion bioprinting

The significance of bioink suitability for the extrusion bioprinting of tissue-like constructs cannot be overemphasized.Gelatin,derived from the hydrolysis of collagen,not only can mimic the extracellular matrix to immensely support cell function,but also is suitable for extrusion under certain conditions.Thus,gelatin has been recognized as a promising bioink for extrusion bioprinting.However,the development of a gelatin-based bioink with satisfactory printability and bioactivity to fabricate complex tissue-like constructs with the desired physicochemical properties and biofunctions for a specific biomedical application is still in its infancy.Therefore,in this review,we aim to comprehensively summarize the state-of-the-art methods of gelatin-based bioink application for extrusion bioprinting.Wefirstly outline the properties and requirements of gelatin-based bioinks for extrusion bioprinting,highlighting the strategies to overcome their main limitations in terms of printability,structural stability and cell viability.Then,the challenges and prospects are further discussed regarding the development of ideal gelatin-based bioinks for extrusion bioprinting to create complex tissue-like constructs with preferable physicochemical properties and biofunctions.

New Technology of Multidirectional Loading Rotary Extrusion

To satisfy the requirements for the precise formation of large-scale high-performance lightweight components with inner ring reinforcement, a new multidirectional loading rotary extrusion forming technology is developed to match the linear motion with the rotary motion and actively increases the strong shear force. Its principle is that the radial force and rotating torque increase when the blank is axially extruded and loaded. Through the synergistic action of axial, radial, and rotating motions, the orderly fow of metal is controlled, and the cumulative severe plastic deformation (SPD) of an“uplift-trowel” micro-area is generated. Consequently, materials are uniformly strengthened and toughened. Simultaneously, through the continuous deformation of a punch “ellipse-circle,” a high reinforcement component is grown on the cylinder wall to achieve the high-quality formation of cylindrical parts or the inner-ring-reinforcement components. Additionally, the efective strain increases with rotation speed, and the maximum intensity on the basal plane decreases as the number of revolutions increase. The punch structure also afects the axial extrusion loading and equivalent plastic strain. Thus, the proposed technology enriches the plastic forming theory and widens the application feld of plastic forming. Furthermore, the formed large-scale high-performance inner-ring-stifened magnesium components have been successfully verifed in aerospace equipment, thereby solving the problems of integral forming and severe deformation strengthening and toughening. The developed technology has good prospects for mass production and application.

Texture property and weakening mechanism of Mg-3Al-1Zn alloy by interactive alternating forward extrusion

The interactive alternating forward extrusion(AFE) method can realize the change of texture type and the weakening of texture strength.Taking AZ31 magnesium alloy as an example, the texture evolution of interactive AFE was studied. The results show that all kinds of dynamic recrystallization(DRX) behaviors can weaken the texture to vary degrees. The weakening effect of twinning-induced recrystallization(TDRX)behavior was particularly significant. During the interactive AFE process, the c-axis of most grains rotated under the external force, and tended to be 90° angle with the ED direction, forming a stable fiber texture. In addition, with the increase of loading passes, the starting of {0001} <11–20> basal slip system became more and more difficult. The(10–10) texture formed by {10–10} <11–20> prismatic slip system after sixth passes was the main texture type. With the increase of forming temperature, the starting ability of {10–10} <11–20>prismatic slip systems increased, and the(10–10) texture formed by prismatic slip system above 623 K dominated.

Strength-ductility balance of AZ31 magnesium alloy via accumulated extrusion bonding combined with two-stage artificial cooling Author links open overlay panel

AZ31 Mg alloy with heterogeneous bimodal grain structure(smaller grain size of 5-20µm and coarser grain size of 100-200µm)was subjected to accumulated extrusion bonding(AEB)at 250℃combined with two-stage artificial cooling in this work,viz.local water cooling and artificial cooling.The microstructure developed consecutively as a result of discontinuous dynamic recrystallization(DDRX)for the AEBed samples.{10-12}tensile twinning also played an important role for the AEB with local water cooling at the initial extrusion stage in the container.Local water cooling could further reduce the DRXed grain size to~2.1µm comparing that without water cooling.And the grain growth rate was reduced by artificial cooling out of extrusion die.Under the combination of two-stage cooling,the fine DRXed grains at sizing band were almost retained with average grain size of~2.3µm after the sheet out of extrusion die,and the unDRXed grains with high residual dislocation density accumulation were also reserved.The tensile tests results indicated that a good strength-ductility balance with a high ultimate tensile strength(319 MPa vs.412 MPa)and fracture elongation(19.9%vs.30.3%)were obtained.The strength enhancement was mainly owing to the grain refinement and local residual plastic strain reserved by the artificial cooling.The excellent ductility originated from fine DRXed microstructure and ED-tilt double peak texture.

Effect of Initial Microstructure Prior to Extrusion on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Extruded AZ80 Alloy with a Low Temperature and a Low Ratio

Magnesium(Mg)alloys are the lightest metal structural material for engineering applications and therefore have a wide market of applications.However,compared to steel and aluminum alloys,Mg alloys have lower mechanical properties,which greatly limits their application.Extrusion is one of the most important processing methods for Mg and its alloys.However,the effect of such a heterogeneous microstructure achieved at low temperatures on the mechanical properties is lacking investigation.In this work,commercial AZ80 alloys with different initial microstructures(as-cast and as-homogenized)were selected and extruded at a low extrusion temperature of 220℃and a low extrusion ratio of 4.The microstructure and mechanical properties of the two extruded AZ80 alloys were investigated.The results show that homogenized-extruded(HE)sample exhibits higher strength than the cast-extruded(CE)sample,which is mainly attributed to the high number density of fine dynamic precipitates and the high fraction of recrystallized ultrafine grains.Compared to the coarse compounds existing in CE sample,the fine dynamical precipitates of Mg17(Al,Zn)12form in the HE sample can effectively promote the dynamical recrystallization during extrusion,while they exhibit a similar effect on the size and orientation of the recrystallized grains.These results can facilitate the designing of high-strength wrought magnesium alloys by rational microstructure construction.

Microstructure and mechanical properties of curved AZ31 magnesium alloy profiles produced by differential velocity sideways extrusion

Lightweight curved profiles are widely utilised in the transportation industry considering the increasing need for improving aerodynamic efficiency,aesthetics and cutting emissions.In this paper,curved AZ31 Mg alloy profiles were manufactured in one operation by a novel process,differential velocity sideways extrusion(DVSE),in which two opposed rams were used.Effects of extrusion temperature and velocity(strain rate) on curvature,microstructure,and mechanical properties of the formed profiles were examined.Profile curvature was found to be more readily controlled by the velocity ratio of the bottom ram v2to the top ram v1,whereas extrusion temperature(T=250,300,350℃)and extrusion velocity(v_(1)=0.1,1 mm/s) slightly affect curvature for a given velocity ratio.A homogeneous microstructure with equiaxed grains(~4.5 μm) resulted from dynamic recrystallisation(DRX),was observed after DVSE(v_(2)/v_(1)=1/2) at 300 ℃ and v_(1)=0.1 mm/s,where the initial billet had an average grain size of ~25 um.Increasing extrusion temperature leads to grain growth(~5 μm) at 350 ℃ and v_(1)=0.1 mm/s.DRX is incomplete at the relatively low temperature of 250℃(v_(1)=0.1 mm/s),and higher strain rate with v1=1mm/s(T=300℃),resulting in inhomogeneous bi-modal necklace pattern grains ranging in size around 1-25 μm for the former and 2-20μm for the latter.Grain refinement is attributed to DRX during the severe plastic deformation(SPD) arising in DVSE,and initiates at the prior boundaries of coarse grains in a necklace-like manner.Compared with the billet,micro-hardness and ultimate tensile strength of the profiles have been enhanced,which is compatible with grain refinement.Also,an obvious increase in tensile ductility was found.However,yield strength slightly decreases except for the complete DRXed case(300℃,v_(1)=0.1 mm/s),where a slightly higher value was found,indicating strengthening by grain refinement is greater than softening caused by texture modification.The initial billet had a strong basal texture wherein the {0002} basal plane is oriented parallel to the extrusion direction(’hard’ orientation),while DVSE results in the profiles having weak basal textures and the {0002} basal plane oriented ~5-10° to the extrusion direction(i.e.towards the orientation for easier slip).This significantly modified texture contributes to the softening of the profiles in the extrusion direction,in which tensile tests were performed,and the related elongation improvement.

Hot-deformation kinetics analysis and extrusion parameter optimization of a dilute rare-earth free magnesium alloy

The fundamental research on thermo-mechanical conditions provides an experimental basis for high-performance Mg-Al-Ca-Mn alloys.However, there is a lack of systematical investigation for this series alloys on the hot-deformation kinetics and extrusion parameter optimization. Here, the flow behavior, constitutive model, dynamic recrystallization(DRX) kinetic model and processing map of a dilute rare-earth free Mg-1.3Al-0.4Ca-0.4Mn(AXM100, wt.%) alloy were studied under different hot-compressive conditions. In addition, the extrusion parameter optimization of this alloy was performed based on the hot-processing map. The results showed that the conventional Arrhenius-type strain-related constitutive model only worked well for the flow curves at high temperatures and low strain rates. In comparison, using the machine learning assisted model(support vector regression, SVR) could effectively improve the accuracy between the predicted and experimental values. The DRX kinetic model was established, and a typical necklace-shaped structure preferentially occurred at the original grain boundaries and the second phases. The DRX nucleation weakened the texture intensity, and the further growth caused the more scattered basal texture. The hot-processing maps at different strains were also measured and the optimal hot-processing range could be confirmed at the deformation temperatures of 600~723 K and the strain rates of 0.018~0.563 s^(-1). Based on the optimum hot-processing range, a suitable extrusion parameter was considered as 603 K and 0.1 mm/s and the as-extruded alloy in this parameter exhibited a good strength-ductility synergy(yield strength of ~ 232.1 MPa, ultimate strength of ~ 278.2 MPa and elongation-to-failure of ~ 20.1%). Finally, the strengthening-plasticizing mechanisms and the relationships between the DRXed grain size, yield strength and extrusion parameters were analyzed.

Development of a Novel Extrusion Process for Preparing Rice Straw/LLDPE Composites

Straw utilization is a key issue related to agricultural production and air pollution control.In this study,a novel extrusion process was proposed to improve the physical and mechanical properties of the straw-reinforced linear low-density polyethylene(LLDPE)composite.Instead of crushing the straw and mixing it with plastic matrix,the new method mixes straw with plastic matrix in its original form.The intact long rice straws were parallelly spread on the LLDPE film and then rolled up together into a prefabricated roll.The rolls experienced three extrusion processes as follows:(1)twin-screw melting,cooling and crushing,single-screw extruding;(2)twin-screw melting and single-screw extruding;(3)directly single-screw extruding.The testing results showed that the straw/LLDPE composite(with a ratio of 6:4)prepared by Method(2)exhibited optimized properties.Characterization by scanning electron microscopy indicated that the damage to rice straw fibers was relatively minor,the orientation of long fibers was good,and the binding of fibers with the LLDPE matrix was excellent in this case.The results of dynamic mechanical testing(DMA),differential scanning calorimetry(DSC)and thermogravimetric(TG)analysis demonstrated that composites prepared by the new process exhibited significantly improved thermal stability and energy storage modulus,compared with those prepared by conventional processes(e.g.,extruded straw particles/LLDPE composite).The new proposed method yielded significantly enhanced mechanical properties while reducing dust pollution.

Migration of the distal ventriculoperitoneal shunt catheter into the stomach with or without trans-oral extrusion:A systematic literature review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND Intra-gastric migration of the distal ventriculoperitoneal shunt(VPS)catheter clinically presenting with or without trans-oral extrusion is one of the rare complications of VPS catheter insertion.AIM To identify the demographics,clinical presentation,clinical findings,and results of surgical therapy offered for the treatment of intra-gastric migration of the distal VPS catheter,clinically presented with or without trans-oral extrusion.METHODS An online search was performed for the extraction/retrieval of the published/available literature pertaining to the above-mentioned VPS complication.Manuscripts were searched from PubMed,PMC(PubMed Central),ResearchGate,and Google Scholar databases using various terminology relating to the VPS complications.The first case of migration of a VPS catheter into the stomach was reported in the year 1980,and the data were retrieved from 1980 to December 2022.Cases were categorized into two groups;Group A:Cases who had migration of the distal VPS catheter into the stomach and clinically presented with trans-oral extrusion of the same,and Group B:Cases who had migration of the distal VPS catheter into the stomach,but presented without trans-oral extrusion.RESULTS A total of n=46 cases(n=27;58.69%male,and n=19;41.3%females)were recruited for the systematic review.Group A included n=32,and Group B n=14 cases.Congenital hydrocephalus was the indication for the primary VPS insertion for approximately half of the(n=22)cases.Approximately sixty percent(n=27)of them were children≤5 years of age at the time of the diagnosis of the complication mentioned above.In seventy-two percent(n=33)cases,this complication was detected within 24 mo after the VPS insertion/last shunt revision.Clinical diagnosis was evident for the entire group A cases.Various diagnostic modalities were used to confirm the diagnosis for Group B cases.Various surgical procedures were offered for the management of the complication in n=43 cases of both Groups.In two instances,intra-gastric migration of the distal VPS catheter was detected during the autopsy.This review documented four deaths.CONCLUSION Intra-gastric migration of the peritoneal end of a VPS catheter is one of the rare complications of VPS catheter implantation done for the treatment of hydrocephalus across all age groups.It was more frequently reported in children,although also reported in adults and older people.A very high degree of clinical suspicion is required for the diagnosis of a case of an intra-gastric migration of the distal VPS catheter clinically presenting without transoral extrusion.