Optimizing the Chemical Composition of Brake Shoes According to the Hardness Recommended by the Product Standard.

Optimizing the chemical composition of phosphorus cast iron for the manufacture of brake shoes, which are used in the rolling stock, is based on specific tests, and the results must be within the specified limits of railway standards. This paper presents the processing of data taken from an economic agent producing brake shoes-with chemical composition and hardness values determined through the Brinell method-as well as optimizing these data by obtaining optimal variation intervals. These technological intervals are useful in the case of foundries in order to obtain superior products from a qualitative point of view.

Recovery of Waste with a High Iron Content in the Context of the Circular Economy.

In order to apply the concepts that allow the transition from a linear to a circular economy, waste generators and/or processors must identify those variants that generate products that can be used as secondary raw materials, thus also respecting the actions governing sustainable development. This paper presents such a variant, the briquetting of waste with high iron content, waste generated on current flows in steel enterprises or deposited in industrial sites. The obtained briquettes are analyzed for chemical and mechanical characteristics so that can be used as secondary materials in the steel production. An optimization of the chemical composition using generic algorithms is also proposed in order to obtain the mechanical characteristics necessary for the proper handling of these products.