The design, construction, and development of micro-turbines using 3D printing has been an important advance in the wind energy field to explore the possibility of offering viable alternative for the electric power generation, reducing the pollution caused by fossil fuels. In this work, a five blade vertical axis wind turbine prototype was tested. The components were designed using CAD and the turbine was manufactured by additive technology in a 3D printer. The material employed for 3D printing was commercial polylactic acid. The mechanical properties of the material used were obtained by tensile tests under the ASTM D-638 standard. On the other hand, a static structural simulation was performed by finite element method. Maximum tensile stress safety factor, maximum principal stresses, and fatigue analyses of the main turbine components were computed. The turbine performance as function of rotational velocity and relative wind velocity was analyzed implementing an experimental set-up.

The use of mask and face shield has been established as one of the main preventive measures for the control of COVID 19 spread. In Mexico, as well as in other regions of the world, 3D printing has been employed for the design and production of masks and face shields as personal protective equipment (PPE). These models have been fabricated mainly by the makers, industries, and university communities; therefore, it is necessary to analyze the feasibility of the 3D printed PPE to understand its advantages and limitations. In this work, some characteristics of masks and face shields fabricated by additive manufacturing were studied to explore their viability as protection against flow fluids similar to human sneeze. In the present paper, the PPE was designed, and 3D printed utilizing three types of polylactic acid (PLA) as base material. The morphology and the surface elemental analyses of sectioned samples were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersion x-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Showing spacing between printed layers, porous areas, and dispersed copper particles. On the other hand, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation was carried out, the results demonstrated the importance of using PPE for protection of a possible exposure to a “contaminated” aerosol and human sneeze. Based on the abovementioned results, it is possible to consider the commercial PLA as suitable material for the manufacturing of PPE due to its capability to be disinfected employing isopropanol, ethanol, or commercial disinfectants.

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An exhaustive study of the erosion process of a copper cathode exposed to a hot plasma column of 2kJ of energy (T≈0.5-2.0keV) and high electron density (n≈1019-1022cm3) was made, as well as, the radiation field of charged and neutral particles. The characterization of the cumulative damage generated by the plasma/cathode interaction was made by the use of metallographic techniques, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and by the analysis of mechanical properties. Damage accumulation produced by the impacts of deuterium plasma discharge created in the copper electrode a deep cavity similar to a crater, modifying the morphology of the surface and below it. The microhardness Vickers test was carried out making indentations from the final part of the cavity to cover 1 cm with indentations every 200 μm. Different areas of hardening were observed, the profile suggests a hardening/recovery front and simultaneous recrystallization in the sample, phenomenon associated with the heating/cooling cycles to which the copper cathode is subjected. Images were captured by SEM at different distances from the center of the surface. The region that showed involvement at the macro level corresponds to 2/3 of the radius of the sample from the center to the outside. These phenomena studied are important to understand the nature of the plasma/wall interaction in any fusion device.