Optimizing strength of directly recycled aluminum chip-based parts through a hybrid RSM-GA-ANN approach in sustainable hot forging

Direct recycling of aluminum waste is crucial in sustainable manufacturing to mitigate environmental impact and conserve resources. This work was carried out to study the application of hot press forging (HPF) in recycling AA6061 aluminum chip waste, aiming to optimize operating factors using Response Surface Methodology (RSM), Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and Genetic algorithm (GA) strategy to maximize the strength of recycled parts. The experimental runs were designed using Full factorial and RSM via Minitab 21 software. RSM-ANN models were employed to examine the effect of factors and their interactions on response and to predict output, while GA-RSM and GA-ANN were used for optimization. The chips of different morphology were cold compressed into billet form and then hot forged. The effect of varying forging temperature (Tp, 450-550°C), holding time (HT, 60-120 minutes), and chip surface area to volume ratio (AS:V, 15.4-52.6 mm2/mm3) on ultimate tensile strength (UTS) was examined. Maximum UTS (237.4 MPa) was achieved at 550°C, 120 minutes and 15.4 mm2/mm3 of chip's AS: V. The Tp had the largest contributing effect ratio on the UTS, followed by HT and AS:V according to ANOVA analysis. The proposed optimization process suggested 550°C, 60 minutes, and 15.4 mm2 as the optimal condition yielding the maximum UTS. The developed models' evaluation results showed that ANN (with MSE = 1.48%) outperformed RSM model. Overall, the study promotes sustainable production by demonstrating the potential of integrating RSM and ML to optimize complex manufacturing processes and improve product quality.

C-shaped antenna based artificial magnetic conductor structure for wearable IoT healthcare devices

A wearable C-shaped antenna based on a fabric material operating at 2.4 GHz frequency is proposed for use in flexible/wearable IoT medical systems. The wearable IoT device plays a key role in medical applications, and the antenna is a key part of it. Loading the presented antenna on the body models showed a frequency detuned with the gain and efficiency reduced from 1. 28 to −9 dB and 90% to 10%. In addition, the SAR did not meet the safety health requirement defined by the FCC or ICNIRP standards. Therefore, an “Artificial Magnetic Conductor” structure (AMC) is added to the C-shaped antenna to overcome these problems. The AMC acts as shielding material between the human skin and the presented antenna because of its 0° reflection phase, which mimics the action of the Perfect Magnetic Conductor (PMC). The overall size of the proposed design was 54 × 54 × 3.9 mm³. Numerical and experimental findings indicated that integrating the AMC structures with a C-shaped antenna was robust for body deformation and load. The C-shaped antenna worked equally well with the AMC, whether positioned in free space or on the chest or the arm of the human body. The integrated antenna with AMC structures has excellent performances. The gain and efficiency without loading on the chest were 6.49 dB and 84%, respectively. While for loaded on the chest were 6.21 dB and 81%, respectively. It also decreased the back radiation and raised the Front to Back Ration (FBR) by 13.8 dB. SAR levels have been reduced by more than 90% between the FCC and ICNIRP standards compared to the C-shaped antenna alone, which does not comply with the standards. As a result, the C-shaped integration with AMC structures is highly suitable for assembly in any wearable system.