The most commonly quenching process for carburizing gears is the oil-quenching (OQ) and salt-quenching (SQ), and finite analysis and comparison of OQ and SQ on the carburizing gear ring were performed. Wherein, the accurate simulation of gear carburization was obtained by the alloying element coefficient for diffusion coefficient and experiment validation. The heat transfer coefficients measured by the inverse heat transfer method was used to the temperature simulation, and the gear distortion mechanism was analyzed by the simulated results. By the comparison of OQ, SQ had higher cooling capacity in the high temperature region and slow cooling rate in the temperature range where martensite transformation occurs. The martensite transformation was more sufficient, and the compressive stress of the tooth was greater in the SQ. The tooth showed a drum-shaped and slight saddle-shaped distortion in the OQ and SQ, respectively. The simulated distortion results have good consistency with the measured results, and the SQ distortion was more uniform and stable based on the measured results.

The aim of this study is to compare the corrosion resistance of X37CrMoV5-l tool steel after nanostructurization and after a conventional heat treatment. The nanostructuring treatment consisted of austempering at 300°C, which produced a microstructure composed of nanometric carbide-free bainite separated by nanometric layers of retained austenite. The retained austenite occurred also in form of blocks which partially undergo martensitic transformation during final cooling. For comparison, a series of steel samples were subjected to a standard quenching and high tempering treatment, which produced a microstructure of tempered martensite. The obtained results showed that the corrosion resistance of steel after both variants of heat treatment is similar. The results indicate that the nanocrystalline structure with high density of intercrystalline boundaries do not deteriorate the corrosion resistance of steel, which depends to a greater extent on its phase composition.

Quenching technology requires the use of media with different cooling intensities and various shapes of cooling curves that show different particularities compared to that of conventional media such as water, oil, or emulsions. The use of synthetic quenching media is relatively new and also has multiple advantages such as non-flammability, safety in use and low cost. In this study, the cooling media tested was obtained by mixing 2 wt% carboxymethyl cellulose with 2 wt% NaOH in one litter of water. Moreover, three different temperatures (20°C, 40°C and 60°C) of the quenching media were evaluated. By dissolution in water, a synthetic solution with low viscosity, surfactant and lubricant was obtained. Because carboxymethyl cellulose is a biodegradable organic material, that is obtained as a by-product in the manufacture of paper, a basic substance with a preservative effect was added. According to this study, both the variation diagram of the heat transfer coefficient and the diagram of the cooling rates, during the cooling stages give important indications regarding the use of a liquid cooling medium for quenching.

Ozone depletion at southern latitudes has recently increased the fluence of ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation striking the ground. This phenomenon has sparked much interest in unravelling the effects of this harmful radiation on living systems. UV-B radiation triggers several responses that affect plant physiology, morphology and biochemistry. In this study, the effect of supplemental UV-B radiation on DNA profile and chlorophyll a (CHl a) fluorescence characteristics were analyzed. An increase in the genetic variability of irradiated plants was observed in the Inter Sequence Simple Repeats products. The effect on photosynthesis was studied through fluorescence emissions. The obtained data showed that photochemical quenching (qP) decreased in irradiated plants. This effect may be attributed to a decrease in the number of open reaction centers of photosystem II (PSII) as suggested by the decreased values of minimal and maximal fluorescence. Likewise, non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) increased in both control and irradiated groups, but treated plants presented lower NPQ values than controls. The heat dissipation mechanism was also altered, probably due to a decrease in the yield of Fm´. According to these findings, UV-B radiation affects the CHl a fluorescence mechanisms and modifies DNA profile. Consequently, these changes influence the yield and growth of plants, which is an important consideration given the current climate change situation.

The article presents a new generation of ultra-fast hybrid switching systems (USH) for reliable, ultra-fast protection of various medium and low voltage DC systems (MVDC and LVDC). The DC switch-off takes place in a vacuum chamber (VC) cooperating with a semiconductor module using current commutation of natural or forced type. Against the background of the current state of science and technology, the paper depicts the basic scopes of USH applications and their particular suitability for operation in high magnetic energy DC circuits. In the case of DC system failures, this magnetic energy should be dissipated outside the system as soon as possible. Usually, magnetic blow-out switches (MBOS) with relatively low operating speed are used for this purpose. The article describes the theoretical basis and principles of construction of two types of novel USH systems: a direct current switching system (DCSS) and a direct current ultra-fast hybrid modular switch (DCU-HM). The DCSS family is designed for quench protection of superconducting electromagnets’ coils in all areas of application. The DCU-HM family is designed for the protection of all systems or vehicles of DC electrical traction and for related industrial applications. The conducted comparative analysis of the effectiveness of USH with respect to MBOS shows clear technical advantages of the new generation switching systems over MBOS. List of abbreviations used in the article is provided at the end.