Materials Science Forum Vol. 805

Abstract: The use of time series as an additional tool in decision making for the oil industry has been established as a mechanism for predicting the behavior of crude oil price. Especially in Brazil, after the discovery in this decade of the pre-salt reservoirs, the estimate of the price of a crude oil barrel through the use of modern techniques can minimize risks in exploration and production of oil. The more appropriate pricing for crude oil aims to minimize the risks to the economic activity for both exporters and importers of oil. This paper presents six different methods for obtaining crude oil future prices i.e. Multiple regression (MR), Holt ́s method (HM), Holt-Winter (HW), Kalman filter (KF), Auto-Regression/Moving-Average (ARIMA) and stochastic simulation based on the use of the Monte Carlo method (SMC). The methods are compared to determine their advantages and disadvantages against each other, seeking to determine which of the generated models has the best potential to determine the future fair price of a barrel of oil. As a result, the most appropriate methodology capable of projecting a more precise future barrel oil fair price was determined, among the six alternatives studied.

Abstract: One of the key challenges in the management of pest control in citrus production is ensuring the infestation samples collected in the field are processed in an efficient, effective manner to produce representative digital models that will support the decision-making process associated with planning and monitoring the application of pest control measures. This paper describes a research project that focuses on applying mining and geological tools for pest control in agriculture. Such tools have been successfully used in a pilot-project application for pest control planning and management of different citrus varieties. The pilot-project has been carried out in partnership with a major citrus producer in Brazil. The results indicated a significant improvement in the pest-control decision-making processes, with a significant reduction in the total areas for pest control application, including more than 68% reduction for the P. oleivora pest and over 92% reduction for the P. latus pest. The evaluation of the pilot-project results indicates that the citrus industry would benefit considerably in terms of reducing both operational costs and the impact of the pest control processes on the environment.

Abstract: Experiment project is an applied methodology in several areas, aiming at the improvement of the productivity and the reduction of the variability, seeking to generate information to guide the decisions during the research and the development of new materials [1,2]. In this work it was studied the optimization of the sintering process of the niobium characterized by the techniques metallography and also for systems of digital processing and images analysis, in agreement with the technical norms [3,4].

Abstract: A discussion about the current scenario of oil shale as a source of oil is carried out here, pointing out some challenges to enable its feasibility aiming to promote the development in the mining industry sector. Considering factors such as production costs, petrol prices, environmental damage, among others, an intractable exploration occurs in most cases. More specifically in Brazil, these resources may play a key role to the nation's interests. With an economy notably in full growth, the country has one of the largest deposits of oil shale in the world. Under this context, although the research analyzes this question in a global way, its focus is to study factors that may enable an economic feasible exploration of oil shale mainly in Brazil.

Abstract: The recent researches main focus in planning and operational mine management is the automation and technology implementation to support the decisions-making. In this context, practical experiences shows that big mining companies invests substantial quantities of resources on the purchase and implementation of software packs to manage their mine operations. These actions itself, generally doesn ́t ensure the expected results. This paper presents a study related to mining operations management with a successful application example at a phosphate mine located at Araxá, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. To this, it was applied a so-called Model PDCA 90-10 of planning and operational mine management. This proposal complements the state-of-the-art in technology and TI for the integration between planning and mine operation. In the end, are presented conclusions and discussions related to the implementation viability of this management model in mining chain of processes.

Abstract: This paper introduces an innovative solution for devising a robust blasting plan that will present consistently good fragmentation performance under highly uncertain environments. The analysis will be carried out using complexity analysis tools, a model-free approach to complex systems which is particularly well suited to the problem of finding non-deterministic dependencies between multiple variables. The study is backed-up by data from over 2,000 blast records from Brazilian mines and identifies what are the critical aspects of the system and how to manage the blasting plan to reduce their impact on its performance.

Abstract: The thermal resistance of natural fibers is a relevant property for technical application associated with relatively high temperature levels. In polymer composites manufacturated with natural fibers the resistance to thermal degradation may become a critical factor not only with respect to processing temperature but also in-service heating operational conditions. In the present work, epoxy composites incorporated with up to 30 vol% of fibers extracted from the petiole of the buriti palm tree were manufactured and evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis, by means of the TG, and its derivative, DTG, curves from room temperature to 700°C. The results showed thermal resistances above 200°C for both the isolated buriti fibers and its manufactured composites.

Abstract: The environmental concern is creating pressure for the substitution of energy intensive synthetic materials for natural and sustainable ones. Compared to synthetic fibers, natural fibers have shown advantages in technical aspects such as flexibility and toughness. So there is today a growing worldwide interest in the use of natural fibers. Buriti fiber extracted from the petiole of buriti palm tree (Mauritia flexuosa), presents some significant characteristic, but until now only few studies on buriti fiber were performed. This work aims to study the tensile strength of polyester composites reinforced with buriti fibers. This study was performed in relatively thinner fibers with diameters between 0.1 and 0.4 mm. Those fibers were incorporated into the polyester matrix with volume fraction from 0 to 30%. The fiber diameters were measured by a profile projector. After fracture the specimens were analyzed by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results showed a sensible improvement in the mechanical properties. The SEM observation revealed the mechanism for this improvement.

Abstract: An electrical insulator is a piece or structure of an insulating material, which aims to rigidly or flexibly support electrical conductors or equipments, insulating them of the ground [1]. The insulators have distinct styles or types, offering a wide choice of components for overhead distribution design. The first and oldest series is the standard line post insulator for upright mounting on crossarms or structures [2]. An outline of the design can be seen in the Figure 1. These components have an integral head manufactured in porcelain for tie top attachment, and a base cemented on the lower end, for stud mounting to a flat surface.

Abstract: The petroleum industry has been investing for many years in the use of smectite as dispersant agent in the composition of oil-based and water-based fluids for drilling oil wells. The State of Paraíba is one of the largest producers of such clays and new deposits have been recently discovered in the regions of Cubati and Pedra Lavrada, causing many expectations for the expansion of the national mineral production. The objective of the present work is the organofilization of smectite clay from Pedra Lavrada, PB, through the addition of nonionic surfactant. After organofilization, the clay was characterized through X-ray diffraction and Foster swelling, so that the most suitable surfactant could be chosen for diesel as organic dispersant media. The results show that the incorporation of the surfactant used with the clay caused a significant increase in the interlamellar distance, and that the dispersions presented rheological properties that meet Petrobras' specifications for the use of organoclays in non aqueous based drilling fluids. Keywords: Smectite, drilling fluids, organofilization.