GOALI: Industry Presence in Academe: Reclaiming Waste Green Sand in Foundries with Novel Ultrasonic-Cavitation Cleaning of Sand

我们预计，当铸造厂采用一种新型超声空化工艺回收绿砂和袋装房屋粉尘时，对砂、粘土和煤的需求可以减少40-75%。在PSU，他将对回收的绿沙和袋式房屋灰尘样本进行纳米级分析，这些样本是他在Neenah成功的试点试验中收集的。目的是：(1)提高超声空化工艺对废绿砂和废袋房尘组分的清洗和分离能力，使砂、粘土和煤在铸铁厂中得到再利用；(2)增进对这一过程的基本了解，以便进一步改进。纳米级分析将包括电子显微镜、x射线光谱、孔隙结构、表面电荷、水吸附和热重质谱。根据这些分析，我们将设计出更好的超声空化处理模式，供Neenah铸造厂和其他工厂使用。作为智力优势，我们的团队将对这些材料的纳米级特性如何影响绿砂系统的性能相关特性有一个基本的了解。作为更广泛的影响，这项研究将进一步加强宾夕法尼亚州立大学，Neenah（和其他）铸造厂和福尼斯-纽伯格之间八年合作伙伴关系的基础设施。这种超声空化工艺每年可为美国铸造厂节省5- 40亿美元。

We anticipate that the demands for sand, clay, and coal could be diminished by 40-75% when foundries employ a novel ultrasonic-cavitation process to reclaim green sand and bag house dust. At PSU will conduct nano-scale analyses of reclaimed green sand and bag house dust samples that he collected during successful pilot trials of this process at Neenah. The objectives are to: (1) advance the capabilities of this ultrasonic-cavitation process for cleaning and separating the components of waste green sand and waste bag house dust, so that the sand, clay, and coal can be reused in the iron foundry; (2) advance the fundamental understand of this process so that it can be yet further improved. Nanoscale analyses will include electron microscopy, x-ray spectroscopy, pore structure, surface charge, water sorption, and TGA-mass spectroscopy. From these analyses, we will devise yet better modes of ultrasonics-cavitation processing, for use at Neenah Foundry and others. As intellectual merits, our team will develop a fundamental understanding of how the nano-scale characteristics of these materials impact performance-related properties of green sand systems. As broader Impacts, this research will yet further enhance the infrastructure of an eight-year partnership among Penn State, Neenah (and other) foundries, and Furness-Newburge. This ultrasonic-cavitation process could annually save US foundries $0.5-4 billion.