Ceria (CeO2), chromia (Cr2O3), yttria-stabilized zirconia (Y2O3-ZrO2), and sodium cerium oxide (Na2CeO3) were used as barrier coatings on Ufala, an alumina-based ceramic refractory, to determine if they were effective at increasing the life of the refractory in a high-temperature black liquor gasification environment. The ceria, chromia, and yttria-stabilized zirconia coatings were applied at atmospheric pressure using a coating applicator at the Institute of Paper Science and Technology at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The sodium cerium oxide coatings in addition to the three other coating types were applied under atmospheric pressure at C3 International Technologies in Alpharetta, GA. The coated refractory, as well as a set of uncoated refractory used for baseline analysis, were tested using molten synthetic smelt at 1000C for 36 hours. Uncoated refractory samples were also tested for 12, 72, 120, and 168 hours in order to make a kinetic reaction rate determination. The refractory were analyzed using gravimetric and dimensional analysis, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy to determine the severity of the physical changes that occurred after exposure to molten smelt. The data gathered from these experiments were not able to conclude that barrier coatings are sufficient to impede corrosion of the Ufala refractory material in molten smelt.

Recently, refractory materials have been proposed as a strong alternative to poly-silicon and aluminum alloys as metallization systems for Very Large Scale Integrated (VLSI) circuits because of their improved performance at smaller Integrated Circuit (IC) feature size and higher interconnect current densities. However, processing and reliability problems associated with the use of refractory materials have limited their widespread acceptance. The hot-wall low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) of Molybdenum and Tungsten from their respective hexacarbonyl sources has been studied as a potential remedy to such problems, in addition to providing the potential for higher throughput and better step coverage. Using deposition chemistries based on carbonyl sources, Mo and W deposits have been characterized with respect to their electrical, mechanical, structural, and chemical properties as well as their compatibility with conventional IC processing. Excellent film step coverage and uniformity were obtained by low temperature (300-350 C) deposition at pressures of 400-600 mTorr. As-deposited films were observed to be amorphous, with a resistivity of 250 and 350 microohm-cm for Mo and W respectively. On annealing at high temperatures in a reducing or inert atmosphere, the films crystallize with attendant reduction in resistivity to 9.3 and 12 microohm-cm for Mo and W, respectively. The average grain size also increases as a function of time and temperature to a maximum of 2500-3000 A. The metals and their silicides that are deposited, using silane as silicon source, are integratable to form desired metal-silicide gate contact structures. Thus, use of the low resistivity of the elemental metal coupled with the oxidation resistance of its silicide manifests the quality and economy of the process. MOS capacitors with Mo and W as the gate material have been fabricated on n-type (100) silicon. A work function of 4.7 +/- 0.1 eV was measured by means of MOS capacitance-voltage techniques. The experimental results further indicate that the characteristics of W-gate MOS devices related to the charges in SiO₂ are comparable to those of poly-silicon; while, the resistivity is about two orders of magnitude lower than poly-silicon. It is therefore concluded that hot-wall low pressure chemical vapor deposition of Mo and W from their respective carbonyl sources is a viable technique for the deposition of reliable, high performance refractory metal/silicide contact and interconnect structures on very large scale integrated circuits.

A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Engineering Johannesburg, 11 October 2016 / Refractory lining failure of damaged magnesia bricks and used alumina bricks was investigated by XRF, XRD, SEM-EDS analysis and computational thermochemistry (phase diagrams). In addition, the effect of oxygen partial pressure towards the refractory lining and alkali sulphate ratio were also determined. The presence of low melting phases of KCl, (Na, K) Cl, K2SO4 and CaSO4 compromised the refractoriness of the magnesia bricks because they are liquid at temperatures below clinkerisation temperature (1450 °C). Sodium oxide and potassium oxide in the kiln feed and chlorine and sulphur in the kiln gas atmosphere migrated into the magnesia brick and react to form KCl, (Na, K) Cl and K2SO4. Components of the magnesia brick, CaO reacted with the excess sulphur in the kiln gas atmosphere forming CaSO4. The presence of these impurity phases indicated that the magnesia bricks suffered chemical attack. Potassium and part of components of high-alumina brick reacted to form K2 (MgSi5O12) impurity phase. Phase diagram predictions indicated that the presence of sodium at any given concentration automatically results in liquid formation in the high alumina brick. This confirms that the chemical attack is also the cause of the failure of the high alumina brick. The analysis of the microstructures of both unused and damaged magnesia bricks revealed that the fracture was predominantly intergranular whereas, in high alumina brick, the fracture was transgranular. The absence of evidence of micro-cracks in both magnesia and alumina bricks rules out thermal shock as a failure mechanism. The absence of clinker species and phases in the examined magnesia and alumina bricks indicated that corrosion by clinker diffusion was absent. The partial pressure of oxygen is low (1.333×10−4 atm), it indicates the stability of Fe3O4 and Mn3O4 and therefore does not favour the oxidation of Fe3O4 to formation of Fe2O3 and Mn3O4 to formation of Mn2O3. The values of alkali sulphate ratio indicated that the kiln operating conditions were favourable for chemical attack to occur. / MT2017

Red mud is a waste product of alumina production and has an adverse effect on environment. About 90 million tonnes of red mud are produced annually throughout the world and little is recycled for useful applications. The world nickel reserves consist of approximately 30% sulphide ores and 70% oxide ores. Despite the relative abundance of oxide ores, 55% of nickel and nickel alloys produced today are derived from sulphide ores. However, with the production of nickel and its alloys from low-grade oxide ores becoming increasingly important, a major concern is high sulphur level in the resultant alloy. For this reason, desulphurization of the ferronickel becomes an important consideration. In the present study, experiments were conducted to determine if red mud could be used as a major ingredient of custom designed fluxes for the desulphurization of ferronickel alloy. Factors investigated included desulphurization rates, contact angle measurements and flux-refractory interactions.

Red mud is a waste product of alumina production and has an adverse effect on environment. About 90 million tonnes of red mud are produced annually throughout the world and little is recycled for useful applications. The world nickel reserves consist of approximately 30% sulphide ores and 70% oxide ores. Despite the relative abundance of oxide ores, 55% of nickel and nickel alloys produced today are derived from sulphide ores. However, with the production of nickel and its alloys from low-grade oxide ores becoming increasingly important, a major concern is high sulphur level in the resultant alloy. For this reason, desulphurization of the ferronickel becomes an important consideration. In the present study, experiments were conducted to determine if red mud could be used as a major ingredient of custom designed fluxes for the desulphurization of ferronickel alloy. Factors investigated included desulphurization rates, contact angle measurements and flux-refractory interactions.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2004. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xiv, 78 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 64-66).

No description available.

M.S.

An experimental test system was designed to simulate the operating conditions found in nonslagging coal gasifiers. The reaction products that form when refractory linings in coal gasifiers are exposed to alkali impurities (sodium or potassium) were experimentally determined. Analysis of selected physical and chemical properties of the reaction products, which typically form between the alkali and the refractory will lead to a better understanding of the mechanisms behind refractory failures associated with alkali attack. The reaction products sodium aluminate (Na₂O·Al₂O₃), N₂C₃A₅ (2Na₂O·3CaO·5A1₂O₃), nepheline (Na₂0·Al₂0₃·2SiO₂), potassium aluminate, (K₂Oâ·Al₂0₃), and kaliophilite (K₂O·Al₂0₃·2Si0₂) were synthesized and their solubility in water and coefficients of linear thermal expansion were: measured. Of the compounds tested, the formation of potassium aluminate would be the most detrimental to the gasifier lining. The linear thermal expansion of potassium aluminate was 2.05% from room temperature to 800°C, which was twice as large as the other compounds. Potassium aluminate also possessed the highest solubility in water which was 8.893/L at 90°C. / Master of Science

The effects of stainless steel fiber additions on the resistance of castables to CO and steam were investigated. A series of high and intermediate alumina calcium-aluminate bonded castables was prepared containing several commercial stainless steel fibers. Compressive strength and abrasion resistance of the castables were measured after exposure to high pressure carbon monoxide and steam at 500ºC. Strength and abrasion resistance values were comparable to those of samples without stainless steel fibers. The addition of stainless steel fibers to refractory castables was found to not decrease resistance to carbon monoxide only if the castables were not fired in air prior to CO exposure. Firing in air was found to create oxide layers on the fibers which catalyze CO decomposition, ultimately causing disintegration of the castable. / Master of Science