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Abstract Feedstock properties play a crucial role in thermal conversion processes, where understanding the influence of these properties on treatment performance is essential for optimizing both feedstock selection and the overall process. In this study, a series of van Krevelen diagrams were generated to illustrate the impact of H/C and O/C ratios of feedstock on the products obtained from six commonly used thermal conversion techniques: torrefaction, hydrothermal carbonization, hydrothermal liquefaction, hydrothermal gasification, pyrolysis, and gasification. Machine learning methods were employed, utilizing data, methods, and results from corresponding studies in this field. Furthermore, the reliability of the constructed van Krevelen diagrams was analyzed to assess their dependability. The van Krevelen diagrams developed in this work systematically provide visual representations of the relationships between feedstock and products in thermal conversion processes, thereby aiding in optimizing the selection of feedstock and the choice of thermal conversion technique.

Anaerobic digestion presents a viable approach for managing biodegradable waste. However, the process generates a significant amount of digestate, which, if not appropriately managed, can contribute to eutrophication and salinization. This research explores the integration of hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) and pyrolysis as a potential solution for digestate management, emphasizing volume reduction and energy recovery. The study specifically focuses on the production of biochar from agricultural waste digestate (AWD) in an energy-efficient manner. Utilizing HTC as a pretreatment was found to enhance the heating value of both the AWD and the subsequent pyrolytic char, and it also improved the carbonization degree of the resulting char. Energy balance analysis revealed that the pyrolysis of AWD shifted from an endothermic to an exothermic reaction upon HTC pretreatment. This transition decreased the reaction's energy absorption from 41.1 to 1557.6 MJ to an energy release of 685.1 to 960.6 MJ per ton of digestate, thereby optimizing energy consumption in digestate management. Additionally, it was noted that using acetone as a solvent in gas chromatography for biooil samples with high ammonia content led to the formation of diacetonamine, an outcome that is deemed undesirable.

In this paper, a previous experimental investigation on physical refining of steel melts by filtration was numerically studied. To be specific, the filtration of non-metallic alumina inclusions, in the size range of 1–100 µm, was stimulated from steel melt using a square-celled monolithic alumina filter. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) studies, including simulations of both fluid flow and particle tracing using the one-way coupling method, were conducted. The CFD predicted results for particles in the size range of ≤5 µm were compared to the published experimental data. The modeled filtration setup could capture 100% of the particles larger than 50 µm. The percentage of the filtered particles decreased from 98% to 0% in the particle size range from 50 µm to 1 µm.

Ceramic foam filters (CFFs) are used to remove inclusions and/or solid particles from molten metal. In general, the molten metal poured on the top of a CFF should reach a certain height to form the pressure (metal head) required to prime the filter. For estimating the required metal head and obtaining the permeability coefficients of the CFFs, permeability experiments are essential. Recently, electromagnetic priming and filtration of molten aluminum with low and high grades of CFF, i.e., 30, 50 and 80 pore per inch (PPI) CFFs, have been introduced. Since then, there has been interest in exploring the possibility of obtaining further inclusion entrapment and aluminum refinement by using electromagnetic force to prime and filter with stacked CFFs. The successful execution of such trials requires a profound understanding concerning the permeability parameters of the stacked filters. Such data were deemed not to exist prior to this study. As a result, this study presents experimental findings of permeability measurements for stacks of three 30, three 50 and three 80 PPI commercial alumina CFFs from different industrial batches and compares the findings to numerically modelled data as well as previous research works. Both experimental and numerical findings showed a good agreement with previous results. The deviation between the experimentally and numerically obtained data lies in the range of 0.4 to 6.3%.

The characteristics of elongated MnS have a critical effect on fatigue anisotropy and all mechanical anisotropies. A comparative investigation of nonmetallic inclusions in both stainless steels and tool steels has been carried out in this study. The inclusion characteristics were investigated using electrolytic extraction (EE) followed by scanning electron microscopy combined with energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). Overall, three types of MnS inclusions (type I (regular), type II (irregular) and type III (Rod)) were found in tool steels in as-cast samples, which had not been heat-treated. Furthermore, three types of MnS inclusions (Rod-like sulfide (RS), Plate-like sulfide (PS) and Oxysulfide (OS)) were found in samples taken after rolling. Based on the breakability of the elongated MnS, three types of inclusions, Type UU, UB and BB, where U represents the undamaged or unbroken edge of an inclusion and B represents the fragment or broken edge of an inclusion, were studied in both stainless steels and tool steels both before and after additional heat treatment. The effect of heat treatment and dissolving the metal layer during the EE process is also discussed. The results show that both processes have a limited effect on the breakability of inclusions in steels with carbon contents

The effect of the immersion depth of a new swirling flow tundish SEN (Submerged Entry Nozzle) on the multiphase flow and heat transfer in a mold was studied using numerical simulation. The RSM (Reynolds Stress Model) and the VOF (Volume of Fluid) model were used to solve the steel and slag flow phenomena. The results show that the SEN immersion depth can significantly influence the steel flow near the meniscus. Specifically, an increase of the SEN immersion depth decreases the interfacial velocity, and this reduces the risk for the slag entrainment. The calculated Weber Number decreases from 0.8 to 0.2 when the SEN immersion depth increases from 15 cm to 25 cm. With a large SEN immersion depth, the steel flow velocity near the solidification front, which is below the mold level of SEN outlet, was increased. The temperature distribution has a similar distribution characteristic for different SEN immersion depths. The high temperature region is located near the solidification front. Temperature near the meniscus was slightly decreased when the SEN immersion depth was increased, due to an increased steel moving distance from the SEN outlet to the meniscus.

The effect of a new cylindrical swirling flow tundish design on the multiphase flow and heat transfer in a mold was studied. The RSM (Reynolds stress model) and the VOF (volume of fluid) model were used to solve the steel and slag flow phenomena. The effect of the swirling flow tundish design on the temperature distribution and inclusion motion was also studied. The results show that the new tundish design significantly changed the flow behavior in the mold, compared to a conventional tundish casting. Specifically, the deep impingement jet from the SEN (Submerged Entry Nozzle) outlet disappeared in the mold, and steel with a high temperature moved towards the solidified shell due to the swirling flow effect. Steel flow velocity in the top of the mold was increased. A large velocity in the vicinity of the solidified shell was obtained. Furthermore, the risk of the slag entrainment in the mold was also estimated. With the swirling flow tundish casting, the temperature distribution became more uniform, and the dissipation of the steel superheat was accelerated. In addition, inclusion trajectories in the mold also changed, which tend to stay at the top of the mold for a time. A future study is still required to further optimize the steel flow in mold.