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Thermoelectric power plants that use mineral coal show high wear in heat exchanger due to the action of several damage mechanisms associated with the impact of hard particles from the residue of burnt coal, the ashes. The employment of coatings should be given into consideration particularly for critical components, which are subject to severe erosive conditions is one of the solutions. However, the choice of material will depend on several factors, including the properties of aggressive ashes. This paper aims to characterize ashes generated by a Brazilian coal-based power plant and a FeCrNbNi-based metallic coating obtained by the electric arc spraying process. No trace of sulfur content was found in fly ashes and it was defined that wear is mainly related to the impact and energy of hard particles are the leading causes of degradation in coal-fired boiler equipment. According to the assessment, applied coating showed (5 ± 2)% by volume of pores and cracks, with 1.6% of oxides after the spraying process and hardness 35% greater than ash particles. Preliminary results in field operation suggest that the material showed relatively low wear compared to the original substrate and showed great applicability in controlling material deterioration for this purpose.

The aim of this research was to characterize titanium surfaces blasted with aluminum oxide (Al2O3) particles using the KS 400 digital image processing program. Samples of grade II titanium plates were submitted to blasting processes using particles of Al2O3, and treated with a hydrofluoric acid-based solution. Three digital images from each sample surface were obtained using Scanning Electron Microscopy, and half-quantitative chemical analyses were subsequently performed using Electron Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS). In addition, parameters related to the alumina phase, such as the concentration level, the area and perimeter of the particles and their circular form factor were measured using KS 400. The mechanical/chemical treatment caused depressions up to 10 µm on homogeneous surfaces. Although the chemical attack significantly removed the alumina phase, residual particles could still be identified by the EDS. The average area occupied by the alumina phase on the samples surfaces was 469.32 (± 284.98) µm², the particle average perimeter was 81.61 (± 27.68) µm, and the mean circular form factor was 0.60 (± 0.05). Characterizing the titanium surface is essential in the evaluation of the material manufacturing process because the presence of residual aluminum particles may have deleterious effects on the formation of the osseous/implant tissue.O objetivo deste trabalho foi caracterizar parâmetros relativos a superfícies de titânio submetidas a jateamento com partículas de óxido de alumínio (alumina - Al2O3) por meio de análise e processamento digital de imagem no programa KS 400 (Carl Zeiss, Oberkochen, Alemanha). Amostras de titânio grau 2 foram jateadas com Al2O3 e submetidas a tratamento químico com soluções à base de ácido fluorídrico. Três imagens digitais das superfícies de amostras distintas foram obtidas em microscópio eletrônico de varredura. Análises químicas foram realizadas por espectroscopia por dispersão de energia (EDS). As imagens foram analisadas e processadas no KS 400 para a obtenção de parâmetros digitais e quantificação da fase residual da alumina, tais como área, perímetro das partículas e fator de forma circular. O tratamento mecânico/químico promoveu crateras de até 10 µm em uma superfície homogênea em relação ao controle (tratamento somente mecânico). O ataque químico removeu de maneira significativa a alumina, porém partículas residuais foram identificadas pela EDS. A área total ocupada pela alumina nas amostras experimentais foi de 469,32 (± 284,98) µm². O perímetro médio das partículas foi de 81,61 (± 27,68) µm e a média do fator de forma circular foi 0,60 (± 0,05). A quantificação e caracterização da superfície do titânio são fundamentais para a avaliação da fabricação dos implantes, pois a presença de alumínio residual pode provocar efeitos deletérios na formação tecidual osso/implante.

Abstract This research characterized the morphological and chemical characteristics, as well as the biocidal effectiveness of polylactic acid (PLA) plate surfaces, created through additive manufacturing, both with and without an additional sealing coating of a polymer infused with silver nitrate crystals. In acknowledgement of the well-accepted principle of silver-based materials as antibacterial agents, this study delves deeper into the underlying mechanism responsible for the bactericidal effect of the sealant, offering a thorough characterization of the system and its behavior. To assess the bactericidal effect of the system, a suite of techniques including visual examination, optical microscopy (OM), digital image processing (DIP), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), semi-quantitative chemical analyses using energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), average roughness (Ra) computations, and in vitro tests were employed. The goal was to assess the impact of the presence or absence of the sealant on the proliferation of Escherichia coli American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) 11229 and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923 bacteria. Results showed that the sealant had a significant antimicrobial effect, reducing the number of bacteria on the coated surfaces by at least 64 times within 30 minutes, in comparison with uncoated surfaces. This study also revealed the presence of micropores in the cross-section of the sealant layer. The microporous structure likely served as a conduit for silver ions from the encapsulated silver nitrate to exert their bactericidal effect on bacterial colonies. Whilst reinforcing the well-known bactericidal efficacy of silver, this investigation underscores the potential applicability of the proposed sealant in various fields requiring antimicrobial protection.

Esforços constantes de pesquisa têm sido conduzidos na seleção de materiais com o intuito de combinar e aprimorar as propriedades de interesse, o tempo de vida útil e o custo de produção. Nesse contexto, o carbeto de boro (B4C) se destaca por possuir um elevado desempenho mecânico, sendo o material que possui a quarta maior dureza (>29,1GPa) entre os materiais cerâmicos. Entretanto, a porosidade é vista como fator limitador do alto desempenho desse grupo de materiais, ao qual o B4C se encontra. O controle da porosidade é usualmente realizado por meio de técnicas imprecisas, de medidas indiretas ou de alto custo para a sua quantificação. Este trabalho objetivou quantificar a porosidade de compósitos de carbeto de boro-nióbio (B4C-Nb) obtidos por processo de sinterização em alta pressão – alta temperatura (HPHT- high pressure high temperature) através de análise e processamento digital de imagens (PDI) obtidas por microscopia ótica (MO) após preparação da superfície com parâmetros controlados e automatizados. Os resultados obtidos por PDI foram comparados com valores de densidade relativa obtidos por método de porosimetria por intrusão de mercúrio. Os compósitos foram observados por microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV) e submetidos a análise química semi-quantitativa por Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) que confirmou os poros observados por MO.

The superduplex stainless steels (SDSS) are widely used in chemical, oil and gas industries, to pipelines and storage material facilities. In welding process or working in temperature elevated, secondary phases may appear in the form of precipitates, as the sigma phase (σ) which is an intermetallic compound. This compound is harmful to the properties of steel, deteriorating its mechanical properties, such as decreasing corrosion resistance and toughness. In this paper it is analyzed the formation, kinetics and microstructural evolution of sigma phase in SDSS UNS S32750 after isothermal aging at 700ºC, 750ºC and 800ºC. In this work sigma phase kinetics is studied by JMAK theory and by two microstructural path descriptors, SV, interfacial area per unit of volume between sigma phase and austenite, and , mean chord length of sigma, both in function of the VV, volumetric fraction of sigma, known in the literature as microstructural partial path (MP). The MP formulation is common in recrystallization studies, but so far has not been used in the sigma phase precipitation studies, being applied here for the first time. The results indicated that the sigma phase nucleates by site saturation with anisotropic linear impingement. This means that sigma phase nucleates on edges.