Influence of workpiece materials on aerosol emission from die sinking electrical discharge machining process

Simultaneous investigation of environmental emissions and machining aspects of electrical discharge machining process is essential for achieving hygienic and efficient machining. The main objective of the present work is to experimentally investigate and analyze the aerosol emission rate and the material removal rate from a die sinking electrical discharge machining process for three commonly used work piece materials viz., tool steel, mild steel and aluminum using Taguchi methodology of Experimental Design in order to suggest suitable process conditions for green manufacturing. The aerosol emission profile of all workpiece materials was found to be closely related to the material removal profile. A significant variation in emission and material removal rate was observed for workpiece materials which may be accorded to the variation in melting and vaporization temperatures. It was also observed that majority of aerosol constituents evolved from workpiece materials and that the constituents with low melting points were having high relative concentration in the aerosol emitted. The study introduced a parameter, the relative emission rate for comparing the emission for various process parameters and workpiece–tool material combinations. The favorable machining parameters for each material were then identified by employing signal to noise ratio analysis of the relative emission rate.     

Is mining a high-tech industry?: Investigations into innovation and productivity advance

The fundamental nature of the mining industry with respect to innovation is often questioned. Is it the conservative, stodgy industry commonly depicted by its critics or is it instead a sophisticated, high-tech industry as championed by many of proponents? Using productivity statistics, it can be shown that the innovation rate of metal mining companies directly compares with the rates associated with general manufacturing. This relationship has held true for the last 50 years. A significant difference lies in the high-tech manufacturing sector, which for the last approximately dozen years has held productivity increases of 9.5% per year, in contrast to general manufacturing and metal mining rates of 2.5% and 2.3% per year, respectively.     

融雪剂对园林植物种子萌发的影响

使用融雪剂是高纬度城市冬季除雪的主要措施之一,但融雪剂中含有的盐类物质可以对园林植物造成伤害。在此研究了融雪剂对刺（Robinia pseudoacacia）、万寿菊（Tagetes erecta）、矮紫薇（Lagerstroemia indiea’Petite pinkie＇）、草地早熟禾（Poa pratensis）、侧柏（Platycladus orientalis）种子发芽率和相对受害率的影响。试验结果表明：5种植物种子的发芽率随融雪剂浓度的升高而降低．相对受害率则随融雪剂浓度升高而增大。其中草地早熟禾种子时融雪剂最敏感,可以用草地早熟禾种子萌发为指示,间接检验融雪剂对植物的伤害程度。     

Environmental policy and misallocation: The productivity effect of intensity standards

Firm-level idiosyncratic policy distortions misallocate resources between firms, lowering aggregate productivity. Many environmental policies create such distortions; in particular, output-based intensity standards (which limit firms energy use or emissions per unit of output) are easier for high-productivity firms to achieve. We investigate the productivity effect of intensity standards using a tractable general-equilibrium model featuring multiple sectors and firm-level heterogeneity. Qualitatively, we demonstrate that intensity standards are always inferior to uniform taxes, as they misallocate both dirty and clean inputs across firms and sectors, which lowers productivity. Quantitatively, we calibrate the model to US data and show that these productivity losses can be large.     

Abatement of mixed volatile organic compounds in a catalytic hybrid surface/packed-bed discharge plasma reactor

In this study, post plasma-catalysis degradation of mixed volatile organic compounds (benzene, toluene, and xylene) has been performed in a hybrid surface/packed-bed discharge plasma reactor with Ag-Ce/g-Al₂O₃ catalyst at room temperature. The effect of relative air humidity on mixed VOCs degradation has also been investigated in both plasma-only and PPC systems. In comparison to the plasma-only system, a significant improvement can be observed in the degradation performance of mixed VOCs in PPC system with Ag-Ce/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst. In PPC system, 68% benzene, 89% toluene, and 94% xylene were degraded at 800 J·L^–1, respectively, which were 25%, 11%, and 9% higher than those in plasma-only system. This result can be attributed to the high catalytic activity of Ag-Ce/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst to effectively decompose O₃ and lead to generating more reactive species which are capable of destructing the VOCs molecules completely. Moreover, the presence of Ag-Ce/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst in plasma significantly decreased the emission of discharge byproducts (NO_x and O₃) and promoted the mineralization of mixed VOCs towards CO₂. Adding a small amount of water vapor into PPC system enhanced the degradation efficiencies of mixed VOCs, however, further increasing water vapor had a negative impact on the degradation efficiencies, which was primarily attributed to the quenching of energetic electrons by water vapor in plasma and the competitive adsorption of water vapor on the catalyst surface. Meanwhile, the catalysts before and after discharge were characterized by the Brunauer-Emment-Teller and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.

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关于环境监测成本核算的探讨

本文针对目前科技体制改革与市场经济发展的现状，主要探讨了环境科研监测部门在全企业做好服务的基础上，如何加强成本管理，怎样进行成本核算，认真按照收费标准合理收费，从而实现环境监测与市场收费的协调发展。