title: Formwork

text: The main purpose of concrete-form oil is to reduce the adhesion between the foundation structure and the concrete mixture poured into it. It also reduces the possibility of cracks and chips occurring due to drying out or concrete overstressing. Without concrete-form oil, which reduces the adhesion between surfaces, it becomes virtually impossible to remove the structure without damaging the foundation, wall or bulkhead. The risk also increases with the size of the tier.


title: Formwork

text: There is an increasing focus on sustainability in design, backed up by carbon dioxide emissions reduction targets. The low embodied energy of concrete by volume is offset by its rate of consumption which make the manufacture of cement accountable for some 5% of global emissions.


title: Formwork

text: Concrete is a fluid that offers the opportunity to economically create structures of almost any geometry - concrete can be poured into a mould of almost any shape. The result, however, is high material use structures with large carbon footprints.


title: Formwork

text: By replacing conventional moulds with a flexible system composed primarily of low cost fabric sheets, flexible formwork takes advantage of the fluidity of concrete to create highly optimised, architecturally interesting building forms. Significant material savings can be achieved. The optimised section provides ultimate limit state capacity while reducing embodied carbon, thus improving the life cycle performance of the entire structure.


title: Formwork

text: Control of the flexibly formed beam cross section is key to achieving low-material use design. The basic assumption is that a sheet of flexible permeable fabric is held in a system of falsework before reinforcement and concrete are added. By varying the geometry of the fabric mould with distance along the beam, the optimised shape is created. Flexible formwork therefore has the potential to facilitate the change in design and construction philosophy that will be required for a move towards a less material intensive, more sustainable, construction industry.


title: Formwork

text: Fabric formwork is a small niche in concrete technology. It uses soft, flexible materials as formwork against the fresh concrete, normally with some sort of strong tension textile or plastic material. The International Society of Fabric Forming conducts research on fabric formwork.


title: Formwork

text: A design from Russian NPO-22 factory (trademarked as "Proster", with model "21" designed to serve as formwork) uses iron "sheets" (with perforations) which, if necessary, can be bent to form a curve. The sheet-based formwork with V-shaped rails keeps shape in one direction (vertically) but, before being reinforced with steel beams, can be bent. Multiple sheets can be fixed together in same manner fences made of iron "sheets" can be.


title: Formwork

text: For removable forms, once the concrete has been poured into formwork and has set (or "cured"), the formwork is "struck" or "stripped" to expose the finished concrete. The time between pouring and stripping depends on the job specifications, which include the cure required, and whether the form is supporting any weight; it is usually at least 24 hours after the pour is completed. For example, the California Department of Transportation requires the forms to be in place for 1–7 days after pouring, while the Washington State Department of Transportation requires the forms to stay in place for 3 days with a damp blanket on the outside.


title: Formwork

text: Spectacular accidents have occurred when the forms were either removed too soon or had been under-designed to carry the load imposed by the weight of the uncured concrete. "Form blowouts" also occur when under-designed formwork bends or breaks during the concrete pour (especially if filled with a high-pressure concrete pump). Consequences can vary from minor leaks, easily patched during the pour, to catastrophic form failure, even death.


title: Formwork

text: Concrete exerts less pressure against the forms as it hardens. The hardening is an asymptotic process, meaning that most of the final strength will be achieved after a short time, with further hardening over time reflecting the cement type, admixtures, and pour conditions such as temperature and ambient moisture.


title: Formwork

text: Wet concrete also applies hydrostatic pressure to formwork. The pressure at the bottom of the form is therefore greater than at the top, causing most blowouts to occur low in the formwork. In the illustration of the column formwork above, the 'column clamps' are closer together at the bottom. Note that the column is braced with steel adjustable 'formwork props' and uses 20 mm 'through bolts' to further support the long side of the column.


title: Lakshmi Priya

text: Lakshmi Priya (born Sabeena Abdul Latheef; 11 March 1985) is an Indian actress who appears in Malayalam films. She participated in Bigg Boss Malayalam Season 4.


title: Lakshmi Priya

text: She was born on 11 March 1985 to Kabir, who was from Haripad, and Ramlath, in a Muslim family. She has two sisters. Her parents divorced when she was two-and-a-half years old. Since then, she was raised by her paternal uncle Latheef, who was her guardian. Born in Kayamkulam, she was brought up in Nooranad, where she lived with her grandmother, paternal uncle and aunt in her father's ancestral home. Lakshmi Priya was estranged by her parents. She first met her father at age five, until age 14, she believed that her mother died while she was still alive. Lakshmi Priya had her school education from St.Mary's LPS in Charummoodu, CBMHS Nooranad, and PUM Vocational Higher Secondary School in Pallickal. She did not complete her higher secondary education. At age 16, she began acting in professional plays. She is a dancer and has won the "Kalathilakam" title.


title: Lakshmi Priya

text: She is married to P. Jayesh, son of musician Pattanakkad Purushothaman, on 20 April 2005. Since then, she is a practicing Hindu. They have a daughter named Mathangi Jai. They reside in Kakkanad. In 2019, she wrote a book titled "Kadhayum Kadhapathrangalum Sangalpikamalla" (), which can be called as an autobiography or a memoir.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Shaun Richard Maloney (born 24 January 1983) is a Scottish football coach and former player. Maloney played for Celtic, Aston Villa, Wigan Athletic, Chicago Fire, Hull City and the Scotland national team as an attacking midfielder or winger.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney started his career at Celtic, playing 215 matches across all competitions and winning honours including five Scottish Premier League titles. He was the first player to claim both the SPFA Players' Player of the Year and the SPFA Young Player of the Year awards in the same season, doing so in 2005/06. He had a spell in the Premier League with Aston Villa, before returning for a second spell at Celtic. Maloney returned to English football in 2011 with Wigan Athletic, helping them win the 2013 FA Cup Final. Maloney then briefly played in Major League Soccer for Chicago Fire. He last played for Hull City for two seasons, before retiring due to injury in 2017. Maloney made his senior international debut for Scotland in 2005 and he went on to earn 47 caps, scoring seven goals.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: After retiring as a player, Maloney worked for Celtic and the Belgium national team as a coach. He was then appointed Hibernian manager in December 2021, but was sacked after four months.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney was born to an English father and Scottish mother in Miri, a coastal city in north-eastern Sarawak, Malaysia, on 24 January 1983. He spent his infancy in Malaysia while his father, a helicopter pilot and armed forces veteran, worked there as a flying instructor. The family returned to Britain when Maloney was five years old, after his father accepted a job in Aberdeen, Scotland. In a 2014 interview, Maloney said: "Although I am Scottish and play for Scotland, Malaysia will always be a special part of me."


title: Shaun Maloney

text: At age of 10, he had joined his first football club, Kincorth Boys' Club. At 12, he moved to Culter Boys' Club then at 14, to Albion Boys' Club.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: It was revealed in 2013, that as a youngster Maloney had played tennis regularly against future World Number 1, Andy Murray.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: After joining Celtic as a trainee in 1999, Maloney made his first team debut on 29 April 2001 against Rangers at Ibrox Stadium, in a 3–0 win for Celtic. He spent the next few years trying to break into the first team, spending most of his time as a substitute. Despite not playing regularly, Maloney acquired a reputation for being a free kick specialist. Maloney did appear several times for Celtic during their run to the UEFA Cup Final in 2003, and scored in a 3–1 win over VfB Stuttgart at Parkhead in the Round of 16.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: In February 2004, Maloney picked up a cruciate ligament injury. He returned from the injury late in season 2004–05, starting only one game in that season.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney hit top form for Celtic in the 2005–06 season, after being moved from a striking position to the left of midfield by manager Gordon Strachan. His displays received praise from players, fans and the media throughout the year, and in recognition of his excellent season he was awarded both the SPFA Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year awards, the first time a player has won both plaudits in the same season. He also won Celtic Fans' Player of the Year, and Players Player of the Year in a season which saw him score 16 goals and contribute 28 assists from midfield.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: With his contract expiring at the end of the 2006–07 season, Celtic moved to offer Maloney a new deal. However, contract negotiations continued for months, constantly breaking down due to differences between the two parties. Chief Executive Peter Lawwell asserted that Celtic "cannot keep players at any cost" while Maloney warned that "In situations like this one, both parties have to be completely happy with the outcome." He also promised that the prolonged contract talks would not affect his football and that he hoped he would not have to consider leaving the club in the future.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney would have been able to leave Celtic for free in the summer of 2007, by signing a pre-contract agreement with another club. No new contract was agreed with Celtic, and they subsequently agreed a £1 million transfer to Aston Villa. In his first tenure, Maloney made a total of 139 appearances for the Hoops in all competitions, scoring 37 times.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Just before the transfer window closed on 31 January 2007, Maloney signed a pre-contract agreement with Aston Villa. Villa manager Martin O'Neill, who managed him at Celtic, was keen to bring Maloney to Villa for the second half of the season however and moments before the deadline he signed for the Midlands club for a reported fee of £1 million. He made his debut in the 2–0 defeat at Reading on 10 February 2007 On 28 April 2007, Maloney scored his first Villa goal in a victory against Man City at the City of Manchester Stadium from a free kick which was curled around the wall into the bottom right of the goal.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney had trouble settling into the club but after a somewhat lacklustre start to his Villa career, he began to show his best form. Maloney has acknowledged that his football had been suffering but remained optimistic about his future at the club: "Homesickness has affected my form. I haven't played well enough to play in the team and I think that has shown, so hopefully now things can change." Both O'Neill and teammate Stiliyan Petrov, who were both at Celtic during Maloney's time there, had expressed their desire for Maloney to stay at the club despite reports linking him with a move back to Scotland.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney scored a brace for Aston Villa in a 4–4 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day 2007. However, after that Maloney did not play a lot of matches as half of his last season appearances were substitutions, and he also said that he would like to one day go back and play in Scotland.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: On 22 August 2008, Celtic announced the signing of Maloney on a four-year deal for a fee of £3 million. Maloney marked his return with a Man of the Match performance and two assists in his first match, after coming off the bench for Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink in a 3–0 victory over Falkirk at Celtic Park. Maloney scored his first goal after his return to Celtic in a 4–2 away win over Motherwell and managed his second the following week in a 3–1 away win at Kilmarnock. He finished the season with five goals, taking his total Celtic goals tally to 42.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Under new manager Tony Mowbray, Maloney played in 17 of Celtic's first 18 fixtures of season 2009–10. However he began having trouble with his Achilles tendon after the 2–1 defeat against Rangers on 4 October 2009. Maloney played a further four matches after that, but was substituted at half-time in Celtic's League Cup defeat against Hearts. It was revealed he was suffering from Achilles tendinitis, and he did not play another game that season.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney started the 2010–11 season in good form with goals against St Mirren, Hearts and a brace against Hamilton. After this run of form, Maloney was given the short-term captaincy of Celtic in the absence of Scott Brown through injury. However, fitness problems flared up again for Maloney in November 2010 when he injured his ankle during a league match against Inverness CT. He required to undergo ankle surgery in December, and didn't return to the first team until April 2011. Maloney featured in eight of Celtic's remaining matches; scoring against Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup semi-final and then against Motherwell in the last league fixture of the season.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney joined Wigan Athletic in the Premier League on 31 August 2011 for a fee of £850,000, signing a three-year deal. He made his debut on 13 September 2011 in a 2–1 defeat against Crystal Palace in the League Cup. He struggled to break into the first team, appearing three times as a substitute during the first half of the 2011–12 season. Maloney admitted his fitness "was lacking a little bit" when he joined the club, and manager Roberto Martínez felt that Maloney needed more time to settle-in. On 11 March 2012, he made his first Premier League appearance in almost five months, coming on as a substitute against Norwich City. His performance was described as "outstanding", and he was rewarded with his first league start for the club in the following game against West Bromwich Albion. On 24 March 2012, he scored a penalty against Liverpool at Anfield in a 1–2 win for Wigan – his first goal for the club. Maloney topped this effort with a wonderful curling goal against Manchester United on 11 April, lifting his side out of the relegation zone for the first time since October with a 1–0 win. Then, on 28 April 2012, Maloney scored Wigan's third goal in an emphatic 4–0 home win over fourth placed Newcastle.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: On 17 January 2013, it was announced that Maloney signed a new contract with Wigan Athletic, keeping him at the club until 2015.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: On 7 April 2013, Maloney scored a 94th minute free kick goal, seconds from the end of the QPR match at Loftus Road which earned Wigan Athletic a valuable point in their race to once again escape from Premier League relegation. Six days later, on 13 April 2013, Maloney scored Wigan Athletic's first goal in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley against Millwall, with a volley on the 25th minute and was voted man of the match, guiding Wigan Athletic to their first ever FA Cup Final. On 11 May 2013 Maloney won the FA Cup with Wigan, playing the whole game and assisting the only goal of the match in a 1–0 upset win against Manchester City. However, only three days later, Wigan were relegated from the Premier League following a 4–1 defeat against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: On 25 January 2015, Maloney signed for Major League Soccer side Chicago Fire for an undisclosed fee. He was signed as one of the team's Designated Players. On 4 April 2015, Maloney scored his first goal for Fire in a 3–2 win over Toronto at Toyota Park, and went on to win MLS player of the week honours.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: After only eight months in Chicago, Maloney signed a two-year contract with Hull City on 27 August 2015. Maloney was transferred for an undisclosed fee.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: He made his debut on 29 August 2015 in the home match against Preston North End which City won 2–0. Maloney came off the bench to score his first goal, on 21 November 2015, in a 1–1 draw away to Bristol City.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: His contract with Hull expired after the 2016–17 season. Maloney discussed terms with Aberdeen, but a hernia injury prevented him from signing. He then indicated to Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes that he may retire and become a coach.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney made his full international debut as a half-time substitute in Scotland's 1–0 defeat to Belarus at Hampden Park on 8 October 2005. He scored his first international goal, a free-kick in the Svangaskard Stadium in a 2–0 victory over the Faroe Islands in June 2007.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney scored five goals in UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Group D, including the winner in Scotland's home tie against the Republic of Ireland.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Celtic appointed Maloney to a coaching role with their under-20 development squad in August 2017. Maloney was added to the coaching staff of the Belgium national team in September 2018. Later that month, he left Celtic to take the position with Belgium on a full-time basis. Maloney worked for Belgium during the delayed UEFA Euro 2020 tournament, in which they lost to, eventual winners, Italy in the quarter-finals.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: Maloney was appointed manager of Scottish club Hibernian in December 2021. They won his first two matches as manager, but a run of one win in 13 league games meant that they dropped into the bottom half of the 2021–22 Scottish Premiership when it split after 33 games. Maloney was sacked by Hibs on 19 April 2022, a few days after they had been beaten 2–1 in a Scottish Cup semi-final by Edinburgh derby rivals Hearts.


title: Shaun Maloney

text: During May 2022 Dundee entered discussions with Maloney with a view to him becoming their manager, but they failed to reach an agreement.


title: MasterChef Australia (series 1)

text: The first series of the Australian reality television series "MasterChef Australia" began on 27 April 2009 and aired on Network Ten, concluding on 19 July 2009 when Julie Goodwin was crowned the winner. The series was hosted by Sarah Wilson.


title: MasterChef Australia (series 1)

text: Many of the guest chefs returned for the announcement of the winner, while Moran also presented a dish for the Pressure Test during the finale.


title: MasterChef Australia (series 1)

text: In Week 1, nobody from the top 20 was eliminated. During this week the judges selected the twenty finalists from the top 50.


title: MasterChef Australia (series 1)

text: Large numbers of viewers have raised allegations that the voting on the series one finale of "MasterChef" was fraudulent after Julie Goodwin won the crown. After the show talkback radio had been inundated with calls, both for and against the verdict, and the finale also became a top trending topic on social networking site Twitter, where many users said they felt "deflated" and "ripped off" by the final episode of the hit show. Similar allegations were raised when contestants were eliminated throughout the series.


title: MasterChef Australia (series 1)

text: Judge Matt Preston has denied that eliminations were rigged or the result of a popularity contest, and asserted that Julie had won the title because she was the better cook on the night. Goodwin herself has also asserted that her victory was not the result of rigging, insisting that the professional integrity of the three judges would be damaged if it was.


title: Antipater

text: Antipater (; ; c. 400 BC319 BC) was a Macedonian general and statesman under the subsequent kingships of Philip II of Macedon and his son, Alexander the Great. In the wake of the collapse of the Argead house, his son Cassander would eventually come to rule Macedonia as a king in his own right.


title: Antipater

text: In 320 BC, Antipater was elected regent of all of Alexander the Great's Empire but died the following year. In a perplexing turn of events, he chose an infantry officer named Polyperchon as his successor instead of his son Cassander, and a two-year-long power struggle (the Second War of the Diadochi) ensued.


title: Antipater

text: Nothing is known of his early career until 342 BC, when he was appointed by Philip to govern Macedon as his regent while the former left for three years of hard and successful campaigning against Thracian and Scythian tribes, which extended Macedonian rule as far as the Hellespont. In 342 BC, when the Athenians tried to assume control of the Euboean towns and expel the pro-Macedonian rulers, he sent Macedonian troops to stop them. In the autumn of the same year, Antipater went to Delphi, as Philip's representative in the Amphictyonic League, a religious organization to which Macedon had been admitted in 346 BC.


title: Antipater

text: After the triumphal Macedonian victory at the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC, Antipater was sent as ambassador to Athens (337–336 BC) to negotiate a peace treaty and return the bones of the Athenians who had fallen in the battle.


title: Antipater

text: He started as a great friend to both the young Alexander and the boy's mother, Olympias, and aided Alexander in the struggle to secure his succession after Philip's death, in 336 BC.


title: Antipater

text: He joined Parmenion in advising Alexander the Great not to set out on his Asiatic expedition until he had provided by marriage for the succession to the throne. On the king's departure in 334 BC, he was left regent in Macedonia and made "general ("strategos") of Europe", positions he held until 323 BC. The European front was to prove initially quite agitated, and Antipater also had to send reinforcements to the king, as he did while the king was at Gordium in the winter of 334–333 BC.


title: Antipater

text: The Persian fleet under Memnon of Rhodes and Pharnabazus was apparently a considerable danger for Antipater, bringing war in the Aegean sea and threatening war in Europe. Luckily for the regent, Memnon died during the siege of Mytilene on the isle of Lesbos and the remaining fleet dispersed in 333 BC, after Alexander's victory at the Battle of Issus.


title: Antipater

text: More dangerous enemies were nearer home; tribes in Thrace rebelled in 332 BC, led by Memnon of Thrace, the Macedonian governor of the region, followed shortly by the revolt of Agis III, king of Sparta.


title: Antipater

text: The Spartans, who were not members of the League of Corinth and had not participated in Alexander's expedition, saw in the Asian campaign the long-awaited chance to take back control over the Peloponnese after the disastrous defeats at the Battle of Leuctra and Battle of Mantinea. The Persians generously funded Sparta's ambitions, making possible the formation of an army 20,000 strong. After assuming virtual control of Crete, Agis tried to build an anti-Macedonian front. While Athens remained neutral, the Achaeans, Arcadians and Elis became his allies, with the important exception of Megalopolis, the staunchly anti-Spartan capital of Arcadia. In 331 BC Agis started to besiege the city with his entire army, forcing Antipater to act.


title: Antipater

text: So to not have two enemies simultaneously, Antipater pardoned Memnon and even let him keep his office in Thrace, while great sums of money were sent to him by Alexander. This helped to create, with Thessalian help and many mercenaries, a force double that of Agis, which Antipater in person led south in 330 BC to confront the Spartans. In the spring of that year, the two armies clashed near Megalopolis. Agis fell with many of his best soldiers, but not without inflicting heavy losses on the Macedonians.


title: Antipater

text: Utterly defeated, the Spartans sued for peace; the latter's answer was to negotiate directly with the League of Corinth, but the Spartan emissaries preferred to treat directly with Alexander, who imposed on Sparta's allies a penalty of 120 talents and the entrance of Sparta in the league.


title: Antipater

text: Alexander appears to have been quite jealous of Antipater's victory; according to Plutarch, the king wrote in a letter to his viceroy: "It seems, my friends that while we have been conquering Darius here, there has been a battle of mice in Arcadia".


title: Antipater

text: Antipater was disliked for supporting oligarchs and tyrants in Greece, but he also worked with the League of Corinth, built by Philip. In addition, his previously close relationship with the ambitious Olympias greatly deteriorated. Whether from jealousy or from the necessity of guarding against the evil consequences of the dissension between Olympias and Antipater, in 324 BC, Alexander ordered the latter to lead fresh troops into Asia, while Craterus, in charge of discharged veterans returning home, was appointed to take over the regency in Macedon. When Alexander suddenly died in Babylon in 323 BC however, Antipater was able to forestall the transfer of power.


title: Antipater

text: Some later historians, such as Justin in his Historia Philippicae et Totius Mundi Origines et Terrae Situs blamed Antipater for the death of Alexander, accusing him of murdering him through poison. However, this view is disputed by most historians and Alexander is believed to have died of natural causes.


title: Antipater

text: The new regent, Perdiccas, left Antipater in control of Greece. Antipater faced wars with Athens, Aetolia, and Thessaly that made up the Lamian War, in which southern Greeks attempted to re-assert their political autonomy.


title: Antipater

text: At the onset of this struggle, the Greeks held an apparently decisive numerical advantage, fielding an army of some 25000 troops. Antipater's levies numbered a meager 13000; drawn from a manpower pool that had been severely diminished by the campaigns of Alexander the Great. Furthermore, the Greek coalition was led by a talented general and one-time mercenary named Leosthenes, who had fought under Alexander and had seen first-hand the functions of the Macedonian war machine.


title: Antipater

text: An initial engagement with this coalition around the historic pass of Thermopylae saw Antipater's Thessalian cavalry defect to the opposing side. Already outnumbered and now without a cavalry contingent, Antipater fought a token battle but was ultimately defeated and forced to retreat north to the Thessalian city of Lamia. Behind its stout defenses he endured a siege. By some unknown means he began desperately passing correspondence to would-be allies through the Athenian siege lines. In 322BC he was relieved when Leonnatus, the satrap of Hellespontine Phrygia, responded to his call for aid and arrived in southern Thessaly with a force to break the investment.


title: Antipater

text: Although Leonnatus fell in the ensuing battle, the Athenian coalition had been forced to use the entirety of its dwindling army (many of the Aetolian and Thessalian contingents having left the siege to tend to the harvest) to face him. Leonnatus' infantry retreated into rough country where the Aetolian and Thessalian cavalry could not pursue them, and survived the debacle largely unscathed.


title: Antipater

text: This turn of events allowed Antipater to slip out of the walls of Lamia before striking north for Macedonia, where he awaited the arrival of further reinforcements from Asia. Along the way he assumed control of Leonnatus' infantry corps, absorbing them into the remnants of his initial army.


title: Antipater

text: Craterus, another decorated general, had also received Antipater's call for aid and arrived at Pella with a force of 16000 discharged veterans who had marched and fought under Alexander. The two generals made common cause, and to cement this new alliance Antipater married his daughter Phila to Craterus.


title: Antipater

text: The two then led a massive, combined force south to fight a final, decisive battle against the Greeks. Antipater defeated them at the Battle of Crannon in 322 BC, with Craterus' help, and broke up the coalition. At a peace treaty in the ruined city of Thebes, Antipater negotiated with an Athenian delegation led by Phocion and Demades. Here he imposed a rule of oligarchy upon Athens and demanded the surrender of Demosthenes and Hypereides (the foremost instigators of the revolt), the former committing suicide to escape capture, while the later was imprisoned before having his tongue ripped from his mouth in a brutal execution. Later in the same year Antipater and Craterus were engaged in a mopping-up campaign against recalcitrant pockets of Aetolian resurgence when they received the news from Antigonus in Asia Minor that Perdiccas contemplated making himself outright ruler of the empire. Antipater and Craterus accordingly concluded peace with the Aetolians (much to the chagrin of future of Macedonian rulers) and went to war against Perdiccas, allying themselves with Ptolemy, the satrap of Egypt. Antipater married another of his daughters (Eurydike) to Ptolemy to strengthen this new alliance. Together with Craterus and his son Cassander, he then crossed over into Asia at the head of a considerable force in 321 BC. While in Phrygia, this army was divided in two; one under Craterus marching east into Cappadocia to face Eumenes, while the later under Antipater struck south to fight Perdiccas. While still in Syria, Antipater received two letters that drastically changed the power dynamic of the successor struggle at that point; firstly that Perdiccas had been murdered by his own soldiers in Egypt, and secondly that in one of the greatest upsets of the Hellenistic age, Craterus had fallen in battle against Eumenes (Diodorus xviii. 25–39).


title: Antipater

text: In the treaty of Triparadisus (321 BC), Antipater participated in a new division of Alexander's great kingdom. He appointed himself supreme regent of all Alexander's empire and was left in Greece as guardian of Alexander's son Alexander IV and his disabled brother Philip III.


title: Antipater

text: Having quelled a mutiny of his troops and commissioned Antigonus to continue the war against Eumenes and the other partisans of Perdiccas, Antipater returned to Macedonia, arriving there in 320 BC (Justin xiii. 6). Soon after, he was seized by an illness which terminated his active career.


title: Antipater

text: Controversially, Antipater did not appoint Cassander to succeed him as regent, citing as the reason for his decision Cassander's relative youth (at the time of Antipater's passing, Cassander was 36). Over Cassander, Antipater chose the aged officer Polyperchon as regent.


title: Antipater

text: Cassander became indignant at this, believing that he'd earned the right to become regent by virtue of his loyalty and experience. Thus he appealed to general Antigonus to assist him in battling Polyperchon for the position.


title: Antipater

text: In 317 BC, after two years of war with Polyperchon, Cassander emerged victorious. Cassander would go on to rule Macedonia for nineteen years, first as regent and later as king, ultimately founding the Antipatrid dynasty.


title: Antipater

text: Antipater was one of the sons of a Macedonian nobleman called Iollas or Iolaus and his family were distant collateral relatives to the Argead dynasty. Antipater was originally from the Macedonian city of Paliura; had a brother called Cassander; was the paternal uncle of Cassander's child Antigone and was the maternal great uncle of Berenice I of Egypt.


title: Antipater

text: Antipater was a student of Aristotle. Aristotle named him as executor-in-charge of his will, when he died in 322 BC.


title: Antipater

text: According to Suidas, Antipater left a compilation of letters in 2 books and a history, called "The Illyrian Deeds of Perdikkas" (Περδίκκου πράξεις Ιλλυριακαί).


title: Poppet valve

text: A poppet valve (also called mushroom valve) is a valve typically used to control the timing and quantity of gas or vapor flow into an engine.


title: Poppet valve

text: It consists of a hole or open-ended chamber, usually round or oval in cross-section, and a plug, usually a disk shape on the end of a shaft known as a valve stem. The working end of this plug, the valve face, is typically ground at a 45° bevel to seal against a corresponding valve seat ground into the rim of the chamber being sealed. The shaft travels through a valve guide to maintain its alignment.


title: Poppet valve

text: A pressure differential on either side of the valve can assist or impair its performance. In exhaust applications higher pressure against the valve helps to seal it, and in intake applications lower pressure helps open it.


title: Poppet valve

text: The poppet valve was invented in 1833 by American E.A.G. Young of the Newcastle and Frenchtown Railroad. Young had patented his idea, but the Patent Office fire of 1836 destroyed all records of it.


title: Poppet valve

text: The word poppet shares etymology with "puppet": it is from the Middle English "popet" ("youth" or "doll"), from Middle French "poupette", which is a diminutive of "poupée". The use of the word "poppet" to describe a valve comes from the same word applied to marionettes, which, like the poppet valve, move bodily in response to remote motion transmitted linearly. In the past, "puppet valve" was a synonym for "poppet valve"; however, this usage of "puppet" is now obsolete.


title: Poppet valve

text: The poppet valve is fundamentally different from slide and oscillating valves; instead of sliding or rocking over a seat to uncover a port, the poppet valve lifts from the seat with a movement perpendicular to the plane of the port. The main advantage of the poppet valve is that it has no movement on the seat, thus requiring no lubrication.


title: Poppet valve

text: In most cases it is beneficial to have a "balanced poppet" in a direct-acting valve. Less force is needed to move the poppet because all forces on the poppet are nullified by equal and opposite forces. The solenoid coil has to counteract only the spring force.


title: Poppet valve

text: Poppet valves are best known for their use in internal combustion and steam engines, but are used in many industrial processes, from controlling the flow of milk to isolating sterile air in the semiconductor industry.


title: Poppet valve

text: Presta and Schrader valves used on pneumatic tyres are examples of poppet valves. The Presta valve has no spring and relies on a pressure differential for opening and closing while being inflated.


title: Poppet valve

text: Poppet valves are employed extensively in the launching of torpedoes from submarines. Many systems use compressed air to expel the torpedo from the tube, and the poppet valve recovers a large quantity of this air (along with a significant amount of seawater) in order to reduce the tell-tale cloud of bubbles that might otherwise betray the boat's submerged position.


title: Poppet valve

text: Poppet valves are used in most piston engines to control the flow of intake and exhaust gasses through the cylinder head and into the combustion chamber. The side of the poppet valve which sits inside the combustion chamber is a flat disk, while the other side tapers from the disk shape to a thin cylindrical rod called a "valve stem".


title: Poppet valve

text: In a typical modern mass-production engines, the valves are solid and made from steel alloys. However some engines use hollow valves filled with sodium, to improve heat transfer.


title: Poppet valve

text: Many modern engines use an aluminium cylinder head. Although this provides better heat transfer, it requires steel valve seat inserts to be used; in older cast iron cylinder heads, the valve seats are often part of the cylinder head. A gap of is present around the valve stem, therefore a "valve stem seal" is used to prevent combustion gasses escaping through this gap or oil being drawn into the combustion chamber. Typically, a rubber lip-type seal is used. A common symptom of worn valve guides and/or defective oil seals is a puff of blue smoke from the exhaust pipe at times of increased intake manifold vacuum, such as when the throttle is abruptly closed.


title: Poppet valve

text: Historically, there were two major issues with valves, both of which have been solved by improvements in modern metallurgy. The first was that in early internal combustion engines, high wear rates of valves meant that a valve job to regrind the valves was required at regular intervals. Secondly, lead additives had been used in petrol (gasoline) since the 1920s, to prevent engine knocking and provide lubrication for the valves. Modern materials for the valves (such as stainless steel) and valve seats (such as stellite) allowed for leaded petrol to be phased out in many industrialised countries by the mid-1990s.


title: Poppet valve

text: Early engines in the 1890s and 1900s used an "automatic" intake valve, which was opened by the vacuum in the combustion chamber and closed by a light spring. The exhaust valve had to be mechanically driven to open it against the pressure in the cylinder. Use of automatic valves simplified the mechanism, but valve float limited the speed at which the engine could run, and by about 1905 mechanically operated inlet valves were increasingly adopted for vehicle engines.


title: Poppet valve

text: Mechanical operation is usually by pressing on the end of the valve stem, with a spring generally being used to return the valve to the closed position. At high engine speeds (RPM), the weight of the valvetrain means the valve spring cannot close the valve as quickly enough, leading to valve float or "valve bounce". Desmodromic valves use a second rocker arm to mechanically close the valves (instead of using valve springs) and are sometimes used to avoid valve float in engines that operate at high RPM.


title: Poppet valve

text: In most mass-produced engines, the camshaft(s) control the opening of the valves, via several intermediate mechanisms (such as pushrods, roller rockers and valve lifters). The shape of the cams on the camshaft influence the valve lift and determine the timing of when the valves open.


title: Poppet valve

text: Early flathead engines (also called "L-head engines") saw the valves located beside to the cylinder(s), in an "upside down" orientation parallel to the cylinder. Although this design made for simplified and cheap construction, the twisting path of the intake and exhaust gasses had major drawbacks for the airflow, which limited engine RPM and could cause the engine block to overheat under sustained heavy load. The flathead design evolved into intake over exhaust (IOE) engine, used in many early motorcycles and several cars. In an IOE engine, the intake valves were located directly above the cylinder (like the later "overhead valve engines"), however the exhaust valve remains beside the cylinder in an upside down orientation.


title: Poppet valve

text: These designs were largely replaced by the overhead valve (OHV) engine between 1904 until late-1960s/early-to-mid 1970s, whereby the intake and exhaust valves are both located directly above the cylinder (with the camshaft located at the bottom of the engine). In turn, OHV engines were largely replaced by the overhead camshaft (OHC) engines between 1950s until 1980s. The location of the valves is broadly the same between OHV and OHC engines, however OHC engines saw the camshaft located to the top of the engine with the valves and OHC engines often have more valves per cylinder. Most OHC engines have an extra intake and an extra exhaust valve per cylinder (four-valve cylinder head), compared with the design of two valves per cylinder used by most OHV engines. However some OHC engines have used three or five valves per cylinder.


title: Poppet valve

text: James Watt was using poppet valves to control the flow of steam into the cylinders of his beam engines in the 1770s. A sectional illustration of Watt's beam engine of 1774 using the device is found in Thurston 1878:98, and Lardner (1840) provides an illustrated description of Watt's use of the poppet valve.


title: Poppet valve

text: When used in high-pressure applications, for example, as admission valves on steam engines, the same pressure that helps seal poppet valves also contributes significantly to the force required to open them. This has led to the development of the balanced poppet or double beat valve, in which two valve plugs ride on a common stem, with the pressure on one plug largely balancing the pressure on the other. In these valves, the force needed to open the valve is determined by the pressure and the difference between the areas of the two valve openings. Sickels patented a valve gear for double-beat poppet valves in 1842. Criticism was reported in the journal Science in 1889 of equilibrium poppet valves (called by the article the "double or balanced or American puppet valve") in use for paddle steamer engines, that by its nature it must leak 15 percent.


title: Poppet valve

text: Poppet valves have been used on steam locomotives, often in conjunction with Lentz or Caprotti valve gear. British examples include:


title: Poppet valve

text: Sentinel Waggon Works used poppet valves in their steam wagons and steam locomotives. Reversing was achieved by a simple sliding camshaft system.


title: Poppet valve

text: Many locomotives in France, particularly those rebuilt to the designs of Andre Chapelon, such as the SNCF 240P, used Lentz oscillating-cam poppet valves, which were operated by the Walschaert valve gear the locomotives were already equipped with.


title: Poppet valve

text: The poppet valve was also used on the American Pennsylvania Railroad's T1 duplex locomotives, although the valves commonly failed because the locomotives were commonly operated in excess of , and the valves were not meant for the stresses of such speeds. The poppet valves also gave the locomotive a distinctive "chuffing" sound.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Japanese swordsmithing is the labour-intensive bladesmithing process developed in Japan for forging traditionally made bladed weapons ("nihonto") including "katana", "wakizashi", "tantō", "yari", "naginata", "nagamaki", "tachi", "nodachi", "ōdachi", "kodachi", and "ya" (arrow).


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Japanese sword blades were often forged with different profiles, different blade thicknesses, and varying amounts of grind. "Wakizashi" and "tantō" were not simply scaled-down "katana" but were often forged without a ridge ("hira-zukuri") or other such forms which were very rare on "katana".


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: The steel used in sword production is known as , or "jewel steel" ("tama" – ball or jewel, "hagane" – steel). "Tamahagane" is produced from iron sand, a source of iron ore, and mainly used to make samurai swords, such as the "katana", and some tools.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: The smelting process used is different from the modern mass production of steel. A clay vessel about tall, long, and wide is constructed. This is known as a "tatara". After the clay tub has set, it is fired until dry. A charcoal fire is started from soft pine charcoal. Then the smelter will wait for the fire to reach the correct temperature. At that point he will direct the addition of iron sand known as "satetsu". This will be layered in with more charcoal and more iron sand over the next 72 hours. Four or five people are needed to constantly work on this process. It takes about a week to build the "tatara" and complete the iron conversion to steel. Because the charcoal cannot exceed the melting point of iron, the steel is not able to become fully molten, and this allows both high and low carbon material to be created and separated once cooled. When complete, the "tatara" is broken to remove the steel bloom, known as a "kera". At the end of the process the "tatara" will have consumed about of "satetsu" and of charcoal leaving about of "kera", from which less than a ton of "tamahagane" can be produced. A single "kera" can typically be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, making it many times more expensive than modern steels.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Japanese "tatara" steelmaking process using ironsand started in Kibi Province in the sixth century and spread throughout Japan, using a unique Japanese low box-shaped furnace different from the Chinese and Korean styles. From the Middle Ages, as the size of furnaces became larger and the underground structure became more complicated, it became possible to produce a large amount of steel of higher quality, and in the Edo period, the underground structure, the blowing method, and the building were further improved to complete "tatara" steelmaking process using the same method as modern "tatara" steelmaking. With the introduction of Western steelmaking technology in the Meiji period, "tatara" steelmaking declined and stopped for a while in the Taisho period, but in 1977 The Society for Preservation of Japanese Art Swords restored "tatara" steelmaking in the Shōwa era and new "tamahagane" refined by "tatara" steelmaking became available for making Japanese swords.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Currently, "tamahagane" is only made three or four times a year by The Society for Preservation of Japanese Art Swords and Hitachi Metals during winter in a wood building and is only sold to master swordsmiths.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: The forging of a Japanese blade typically took many days or weeks and was considered a sacred art, traditionally accompanied by a large panoply of Shinto religious rituals. As with many complex endeavors, several artists were involved. There was a smith to forge the rough shape, often a second smith (apprentice) to fold the metal, a specialist polisher, and even a specialist for the edge. Often, there were sheath, hilt, and handguard specialists as well.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: The steel bloom, or "kera", that is produced in the "tatara" contains steel that varies greatly in carbon content, ranging from wrought iron to pig iron. Three types of steel are chosen for the blade; a very low carbon steel called "hocho-tetsu" is used for the core of the blade ("shingane"). The high carbon steel ("tamahagane"), and the remelted pig iron (cast iron or "nabe-gane"), are combined to form the outer skin of the blade ("kawagane"). Only about 1/3 of the "kera" produces steel that is suitable for sword production.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: The best known part of the manufacturing process is the folding of the steel, where the swords are made by repeatedly heating, hammering and folding the metal. The process of folding metal to improve strength and remove impurities is frequently attributed to specific Japanese smiths in legends. The folding removes impurities and helps even out the carbon content, while the alternating layers combine hardness with ductility to greatly enhance the toughness.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: In traditional Japanese sword making, the low-carbon iron is folded several times by itself, to purify it. This produces the soft metal to be used for the core of the blade. The high-carbon steel and the higher-carbon cast-iron are then forged in alternating layers. The cast-iron is heated, quenched in water, and then broken into small pieces to help free it from slag. The steel is then forged into a single plate, and the pieces of cast-iron are piled on top, and the whole thing is forge welded into a single billet, which is called the "age-kitae" process. The billet is then elongated, cut, folded, and forge welded again. The steel can be folded transversely (from front to back), or longitudinally (from side to side). Often both folding directions are used to produce the desired grain pattern. This process, called the "shita-kitae", is repeated from 8 to as many as 16 times. After 20 foldings (2, or 1,048,576 individual layers), there is too much diffusion in the carbon content. The steel becomes almost homogeneous in this respect, and the act of folding no longer gives any benefit to the steel. Depending on the amount of carbon introduced, this process forms either the very hard steel for the edge ("hagane") or the slightly less hardenable spring steel ("kawagane") which is often used for the sides and the back.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: During the last few foldings, the steel may be forged into several thin plates, stacked, and forge welded into a brick. The grain of the steel is carefully positioned between adjacent layers, with the configuration dependent on the part of the blade for which the steel will be used.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Between each heating and folding, the steel is coated in a mixture of clay, water and straw-ash to protect it from oxidation and carburization. This clay provides a highly reducing environment. At around , the heat and water from the clay promote the formation of a wustite layer, which is a type of iron oxide formed in the absence of oxygen. In this reducing environment, the silicon in the clay reacts with wustite to form fayalite and, at around , the fayalite becomes a liquid. This liquid acts as a flux, attracting impurities, and pulls out the impurities as it is squeezed from between the layers. This leaves a very pure surface which, in turn, helps facilitate the forge-welding process. Through the loss of impurities, slag, and iron in the form of sparks during the hammering, by the end of forging the steel may be reduced to as little as 1/10 of its initial weight. This practice became popular because of the use of highly impure metals, stemming from the low temperature yielded in the smelting process. The folding did several things:


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Generally, swords were created with the grain of the blade ("hada") running down the blade like the grain on a plank of wood. Straight grains were called "masame-hada", wood-like grain "itame," wood-burl grain "mokume," and concentric wavy grain (an uncommon feature seen almost exclusively in the Gassan school) "ayasugi-hada". The difference between the first three grains is that of cutting a tree along the grain, at an angle, and perpendicular to its direction of growth (mokume-gane) respectively, the angle causing the "stretched" pattern.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: In addition to folding the steel, high quality Japanese swords are also composed of various distinct sections of different types of steel. This manufacturing technique uses different types of steel in different parts of the sword to accentuate the desired characteristics in various parts of the sword beyond the level offered by differential heat treatment.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: The vast majority of modern "katana" and "wakizashi" are the "maru" type (sometimes also called "muku") which is the most basic, with the entire sword being composed of a single steel. However, with the use of modern steels, this does not cause the sword to be fragile, as in former days. The type is made using two steels, which are called "hagane" (edge steel) and "shingane" (core steel). "Honsanmai" and "shihozume" types add the third steel, called "kawagane" (skin steel). The many different ways in which a sword can be assembled varies from smith to smith. Sometimes the edge-steel is "drawn out" (hammered into a bar), bent into a 'U' shaped trough, and the very soft core steel is inserted into the harder piece. Then they are forge welded together and hammered into the basic shape of the sword. By the end of the process, the two pieces of steel are fused together but retain their differences in hardness. The more complex types of construction are typically only found in antique weapons, with the vast majority of modern weapons being composed of a single section, or at most two or three sections.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Another way is to assemble the different pieces into a block, forge weld it together, and then draw out the steel into a sword so that the correct steel ends up in the desired place. This method is often used for the complex models, which allow for parrying without fear of damaging the side of the blade. To make "honsanmai" or "shihozume" types, pieces of hard steel are added to the outside of the blade in a similar fashion. The "shihozume" and "soshu" types are quite rare but added a rear support.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: The mainstream of the swords from the Kofun period to the Nara period was the straight single-edged sword called "chokutō", and the swords of Japanese original style and Chinese style were mixed. The cross-sectional shape of the Japanese sword was an isosceles triangular "hira-zukuri", and a sword with a cross-sectional shape called "kiriha-zukuri", with only the cutting edge side of a planar blade sharpened at an acute angle, gradually appeared. The swords until this period are called "jōkotō", and are often called separately from Japanese swords.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: The predecessor of the Japanese sword has been called "Warabitetō ()". In the middle of the Heian period (794–1185), samurai improved on the Warabitetō to develop "Kenukigata-tachi ()" -early Japanese sword-. "Kenukigata-tachi", which was developed in the first half of the 10th century, has a three-dimensional cross-sectional shape of an elongated pentagonal or hexagonal blade called "shinogi-zukuri" and a gently curved single-edged blade, which are typical features of Japanese swords. When a "shinogi-zukuri" sword is viewed from the side, there is a ridge line of the thickest part of the blade called "shinogi" between the cutting edge side and the back side. This "shinogi" contributes to lightening and toughening of the blade and high cutting ability. There is no wooden hilt attached to "kenukigata-tachi", and the tang ("nakago") which is integrated with the blade is directly gripped and used. The term "kenukigata" is derived from the fact that the central part of tang is hollowed out in the shape of a tool to pluck hair ("kenuki").


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: In the "tachi" developed after "kenukigata-tachi", a structure in which the hilt is fixed to the tang ("nakago") with a pin called "mekugi" was adopted. As a result, a sword with three basic external elements of Japanese swords, the cross-sectional shape of "shinogi-zukuri", a gently curved single-edged blade, and the structure of "nakago", was completed.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: In the Muromachi period, battles were mostly fought on foot, and the samurai equipped with swords changed from the "tachi" to the light "katana" because many mobilized peasants were armed with spears and matchlock guns. In general, "katana" has a cross-sectional shape of shinogizukuri, similar to "tachi", but it is shorter than "tachi" and its blade curve is gentle.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: "Wakizashi" and "tantō" are shorter swords than "tachi" and "katana", and these swords are often forged in the cross-sectional shape of "hira-zukuri" or "kiriha-zukuri".


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Having a single edge provides certain advantages; one being that the rest of the sword can be used to reinforce and support the edge. The Japanese style of sword-making takes full advantage of this. When forging is complete, the steel is not quenched in the conventional European fashion (i.e.: uniformly throughout the blade). Steel's exact flex and strength vary dramatically with heat treating. If steel cools quickly it becomes martensite, which is very hard but brittle. Slower and it becomes pearlite, which bends easily and does not hold an edge. To maximize both the cutting edge and the resilience of the sword spine, a technique of differential heat-treatment is used. In this specific process, referred to as differential hardening or differential quenching, the sword is painted with layers of clay before heating, providing a thin layer or none at all on the edge of the sword, ensuring quick cooling to maximize the hardening for the edge. A thicker layer of clay is applied to the rest of the blade, causing slower cooling. This creates softer, more resilient steel, allowing the blade to absorb shock without breaking. This process is sometimes erroneously called differential tempering but this is actually an entirely different form of heat treatment.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: To produce a difference in hardness, the steel is cooled at different rates by controlling the thickness of the insulating layer. By carefully controlling the heating and cooling speeds of different parts of the blade, Japanese swordsmiths were able to produce a blade that had a softer body and a hard edge.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: This process also has two side effects that have come to characterize Japanese swords: 1.) It causes the blade to curve and 2.) It produces a visible boundary between the hard and soft steel. When quenched, the uninsulated edge contracts, causing the sword to first bend towards the edge. However, the edge cannot contract fully before the martensite forms, because the rest of the sword remains hot and in a thermally expanded state. Because of the insulation, the sword spine remains hot and pliable for several seconds but then contracts much more than the edge, causing the sword to bend away from the edge, which aids the smith in establishing the curvature of the blade. Also, the differentiated hardness and the methods of polishing the steel can result in the "hamon" 刃紋 (frequently translated as "tempering line" but better translated as "hardening pattern"). The "hamon" is the visible outline of the "yakiba" (hardened portion) and is used as a factor to judge both the quality and beauty of the finished blade. The various hamon patterns result from the manner in which the clay is applied. They can also act as an indicator of the style of sword-making and sometimes as a signature for the individual smith. The differences in the hardenability of steels may be enhanced near the hamon, revealing layers or even different parts of the blade, such as the intersection between an edge made from edge-steel and sides made from skin-steel.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: When quenching in water, carbon is rapidly removed from the surface of the steel, lowering its hardenability. To ensure the proper hardness of the cutting edge, help prevent cracking, and achieve the proper depth of the martensite, the sword is quenched prior to creating the bevel for the edge. If the thickness of the coating on the edge is balanced just right with the temperature of the water, the proper hardness can be produced without the need for tempering. However, in most cases, the edge will end up being too hard, so tempering the entire blade evenly for a short time is usually required to bring the hardness down to a more suitable point. The ideal hardness is usually between HRc58–60 on the Rockwell hardness scale. Tempering is performed by heating the entire blade evenly to around , reducing the hardness in the martensite and turning it into a form of tempered martensite. The pearlite, on the other hand, does not respond to tempering and does not change in hardness. After the blade is heat treated, the smith would traditionally use a drawknife ("sen") to bevel the edge and give the sword a rough shape before sending the blade to a specialist for sharpening and polishing. The polisher, in turn, determines the final geometry and curvature of the blade and makes any necessary adjustments.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: "Tamahagane", as a raw material, is a highly impure metal. Formed in a bloomery process, the bloom of sponge iron begins as an inhomogeneous mixture of wrought iron, steels, and pig iron. The pig iron contains more than 2% carbon. The high-carbon steel has about 1 to 1.5% carbon while the low-carbon iron contains about 0.2%. Steel that has a carbon content between the high and low carbon steel is called "bu-kera", which is often re-smelted with the pig iron to make "saga-hagane", containing roughly 0.7% carbon. Most of the intermediate-carbon steel, wrought iron and resmelted steel will be sold for making other items, like tools and knives, and only the best pieces of high-carbon steel, low-carbon iron, and pig iron are used for swordsmithing.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: The various metals are also filled with slag, phosphorus and other impurities. Separation of the various metals from the bloom was traditionally performed by breaking it apart with small hammers dropped from a certain height, and then examining the fractures, in a process similar to the modern Charpy impact test. The nature of the fractures are different for different types of steel. The high-carbon steel, in particular, contains pearlite, which produces a characteristic pearlescent-sheen on the crystals.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: During the folding process, most of the impurities are removed from the steel, continuously refining the steel while forging. By the end of forging, the steel produced was among the purest steel alloys of the ancient world. Continuous heating causes the steel to decarburize, so a good quantity of carbon is either extracted from the steel as carbon dioxide or redistributed more evenly through diffusion, leaving a nearly eutectoid composition (containing 0.77 to 0.8% carbon). The edge steel will generally end up with a composition that ranges from eutectoid to slightly hypoeutectoid (containing a carbon content under the eutectoid composition), giving enough hardenability without sacrificing ductility. The skin steel generally has slightly less carbon, often in the range of 0.5%. The core steel, however, remains nearly pure iron, responding very little to heat treatment. Cyril Stanley Smith, a professor of metallurgical history from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, performed an analysis of four different swords, each from a different century, determining the composition of the surface of the blades:


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: In 1993, Jerzy Piaskowski performed an analysis of a "katana" of the type by cutting the sword in half and taking a cross section. The analysis revealed a carbon content ranging from 0.6 to 0.8% carbon at the surface and 0.2% at the core.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: The steel in even the ancient swords may have sometimes come from whatever steel was available at the time. Because of its rarity in the ancient world, steel was usually recycled, so broken tools, nails and cookware often provided a supply of steel. Even steel looted from enemies in combat was valued for its use in swordsmithing.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: However, when the patterns occur from a difference in carbon content, there will be distinct indications of this near the "hamon", because the steel with higher hardenability will become martensite beyond the "hamon" while the adjacent layers will turn into pearlite. This leaves a distinct pattern of bright "nioi", which appear as bright streaks or lines that follow the layers a short distance away from the "hamon" and into the "hira", giving the "hamon" a wispy or misty appearance. The patterns were most likely revealed during the polishing operation by using a method similar to lapping, without bringing the steel to a full polish, although sometimes chemical reactions with the polishing compounds may have also been used to provide a level of etching. The differences in hardness primarily appear as a difference in the microscopic scratches left on the surface. The harder metal produces shallower scratches, so it diffuses the reflected light, while the softer metal has deeper, longer scratches, appearing either shiny or dark depending on the viewing angle.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Metallurgy did not arise as a science until the early 20th century. Before this, metallography was the primary method used for studying metals. Metallography is the study of the patterns in metals, the nature of fractures, and the microscopic crystal formations. However, neither metallography as a science nor the crystal theory of metals emerged until nearly a century after the invention of the microscope. The ancient swordsmiths had no knowledge of metallurgy, nor did they understand the relationship between carbon and iron. Everything was typically learned by a process of trial-and-error, apprenticeship, and, as sword-making technology was often a closely guarded secret, some espionage. Prior to the 14th century, very little attention was paid to the patterns in the blade as an aesthetic quality. However, the Japanese smiths often prided themselves on their understanding of the internal macro-structure of metals, including the layering, the wood grain-like structure, and use of different steel in different parts of the blade.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: In Japan, steel-making technology was imported from China, most likely through Korea. The crucible steel used in the Chinese swords, called "chi-kang" (combined steel), was similar to pattern welding, and edges of it were often forge welded to a back of soft iron, or . In trying to copy the Chinese method, the ancient smiths paid much attention to the various properties of steel and worked to combine them to produce a composite steel with an internal macro-structure that would provide a similar combination of hardness and toughness. Like all trial-and-error, each swordsmith often attempted to produce an internal structure that was superior to swords of their predecessors, or even ones that were better than their own previous designs. The harder metals provided strength, like "bones" within the steel, whereas the softer metal provided ductility, allowing the swords to bend before breaking. In ancient times, the Japanese smiths would often display these inhomogeneities in the steel, especially on fittings like the guard or pommel, creating rough, natural surfaces by letting the steel rust or by pickling it in acid, making the internal structure part of the entire aesthetic of the weapon.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: In later times, this effect was often imitated by partially mixing various metals like copper together with the steel, forming "mokume" (wood-eye) patterns, although this was unsuitable for the blade. After the 14th century, the Japanese technology had reached a pinnacle, and little more could be done to improve the mechanical properties even by modern standards, thus more attention began to be paid to the patterns in the blade as an aesthetic quality. From then on advancements progressed along an artistic path and swords became regarded for their beauty as much as their suitability as a weapon. Intentionally decorative forging techniques were often employed, such as hammering dents in certain locations or drawing out the steel with fullers, which served to create a "mokume" pattern when the sword was filed and polished into shape, or by intentionally forging in layers of high slag content. By the 17th century, decorative hardening methods were often being used to increase the beauty of the blade, by shaping the clay. Hamons with trees, flowers, pill boxes, or other shapes became common during this era. By the 19th century, the decorative hamons were often being combined with decorative folding techniques to create entire landscapes, often portraying specific islands or scenery, crashing waves in the ocean, and misty mountain peaks.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Almost all blades are decorated, although not all blades are decorated on the visible part of the blade. Once the blade is cool and the mud is scraped off, the blade has designs and grooves cut into it. One of the most important markings on the sword is performed here: the file markings. These are cut into the tang ("nakago"), or the hilt section of the blade, during shaping, where they will be covered by a "tsuka" or hilt later. The tang is never supposed to be cleaned: doing this can cut the value of the sword in half or more. The purpose is to show how well the blade steel ages. Different types of file markings are used, including horizontal, slanted, and checked, known as "ichi-monji", "ko-sujikai", "sujikai," "ō-sujikai", "katte-agari", "shinogi-kiri-sujikai", "taka-no-ha", and "gyaku-taka-no-ha". A grid of marks, from raking the file diagonally both ways across the tang, is called "higaki", whereas specialized "full dress" file marks are called "kesho-yasuri". Lastly, if the blade is very old, it may have been shaved instead of filed. This is called . While ornamental, these file marks also serve the purpose of providing an uneven surface which bites well into the hilt which fits over it. It is this pressure fit for the most part that holds the hilt in place, while the "mekugi" pin serves as a secondary method and a safety.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Some other marks on the blade are aesthetic: signatures and dedications written in "kanji" and engravings depicting gods, dragons, or other acceptable beings, called "horimono". Some are more practical. The so-called "blood groove" or fuller does not in actuality allow blood to flow more freely from cuts made with the sword but is to reduce the weight of the sword while keeping structural integrity and strength. Grooves come in wide ("bo-hi"), twin narrow ("futasuji-hi"), twin wide and narrow ("bo-hi ni tsure-hi"), short ("koshi-hi"), twin short ("gomabushi"), twin long with joined tips ("shobu-hi"), twin long with irregular breaks ("kuichigai-hi"), and halberd-style ("naginata-hi").


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: When the rough blade is completed, the swordsmith turns the blade over to a polisher () whose job is to refine the shape of a blade and improve its aesthetic value. The entire process takes considerable time, in some cases easily up to several weeks. Early polishers used three types of stone, whereas a modern polisher generally uses seven. The modern high level of polish was not normally done before around 1600, since greater emphasis was placed on function over form. The polishing process almost always takes longer than even crafting, and a good polish can greatly improve the beauty of a blade, while a bad one can ruin the best of blades. More importantly, inexperienced polishers can permanently ruin a blade by badly disrupting its geometry or wearing down too much steel, both of which effectively destroy the sword's monetary, historic, artistic, and functional value.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: In Japanese, the scabbard for a "katana" is referred to as a "saya", and the handguard piece, often intricately designed as an individual work of art—especially in later years of the Edo period—was called the "tsuba". Other aspects of the mountings ("koshirae"), such as the "menuki" (decorative grip swells), "habaki" (blade collar and scabbard wedge), "fuchi" and "kashira" (handle collar and cap), "kozuka" (small utility knife handle), "kogai" (decorative skewer-like implement), "saya" lacquer, and "tsuka-ito" (professional handle wrap, also named "emaki"), received similar levels of artistry.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: After the blade is finished it is passed on to a mountings maker, or "sayashi" (literally "sheath maker" but referring to those who make fittings in general). Sword mountings vary in their exact nature depending on the era but consist of the same general idea, with the variation being in the components used and in the wrapping style. The obvious part of the hilt consists of a metal or wooden grip called a "tsuka", which can also be used to refer to the entire hilt. The hand guard, or "tsuba", on Japanese swords (except for certain 20th century sabers which emulate Western navies') is small and round, made of metal, and often very ornate. (See "koshirae.")


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: There is a pommel at the base known as a "kashira", and there is often a decoration under the braided wrappings called a "menuki". A bamboo peg called a "mekugi" is slipped through the "tsuka" and through the tang of the blade, using the hole called a "mekugi-ana" ("peg hole") drilled in it. This anchors the blade securely into the hilt. To anchor the blade securely into the sheath it will soon have, the blade acquires a collar, or "habaki", which extends an inch or so past the hand guard and keeps the blade from rattling.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: There are two types of sheaths, both of which require exacting work to create. One is the "shirasaya", which is generally made of wood and considered the "resting" sheath, used as a storage sheath. The other sheath is the more decorative or battle-worthy sheath which is usually called either a "jindachi-zukuri", if suspended from the "obi" (belt) by straps ("tachi"-style), or a "buke-zukuri" sheath if thrust through the "obi" (katana-style). Other types of mounting include the "kyū-guntō", "shin-guntō", and "kai-guntō" types for the twentieth-century military.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Traditional swords are still made in Japan and occasionally elsewhere; they are termed "shinsakuto" or "shinken" (true sword), and can be very expensive. These are not considered reproductions as they are made by traditional techniques and from traditional materials. Swordsmiths in Japan are licensed; acquiring this license requires a long apprenticeship. Outside Japan there are a couple of smiths working by traditional or mostly traditional techniques, and occasional short courses taught in Japanese swordsmithing.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: A very large number of low-quality reproduction "katana" and "wakizashi" are available; their prices usually range between $10 to about $200. These cheap blades are Japanese in shape only—they are usually machine made and machine sharpened and minimally hardened or heat-treated. The hamon pattern (if any) on the blade is applied by scuffing, etching, or otherwise marking the surface, without any difference in hardness or temper of the edge. The metal used to make low-quality blades is mostly cheap stainless steel, and typically is much harder and more brittle than true katana. Finally, cheap reproduction Japanese swords usually have fancy designs on them since they are just for show. Better-quality reproduction katana typically range from $200 to about $1000 (though some can go easily above two thousand for quality production blades, folded and often traditionally constructed and with a proper polish), and high-quality or custom-made reproductions can go up to $15,000–$50,000. These blades are made to be used for cutting and are usually heat-treated. High-quality reproductions made from carbon steel will often have a differential hardness or temper similar to traditionally made swords, and will show a hamon; they will not show a hada (grain), since they are generally not made from folded steel.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: A wide range of steels are used in reproductions, ranging from carbon steels such as 1020, 1040, 1060, 1070, 1095, and 5160, stainless steels such as 400, 420, 440, to high-end specialty steels such as L6 and S7. Most cheap reproductions are made from inexpensive stainless steels such as 440A (often just termed "440"). With a normal Rockwell hardness of 56 and up to 60, stainless steel is much harder than the back of a differentially hardened katana (HR50), and is therefore much more prone to breaking, especially when used to make long blades. Stainless steel is also much softer at the edge (a traditional katana is usually more than HR60 at the edge). Furthermore, cheap swords designed as wall-hanging or sword rack decorations often also have a "rat-tail" tang, which is a thin, usually threaded bolt of metal welded onto the blade at the hilt area. These are a major weak point and often break at the weld, resulting in a dangerous and unreliable sword.


title: Japanese swordsmithing

text: Some modern swordsmiths have made high quality reproduction swords using the traditional method, including one Japanese swordsmith who began manufacturing swords in Thailand using traditional methods, and various American and Chinese manufacturers. These however will always be different from Japanese swords made in Japan, as it is illegal to export the "tamahagane" jewel steel as such without it having been made into value-added products first. Nevertheless, some manufacturers have made differentially tempered swords folded in the traditional method available for relatively little money (often one to three thousand dollars), and differentially tempered, non-folded steel swords for several hundred. Some practicing martial artists prefer modern swords, whether of this type or made in Japan by Japanese craftsmen, because many of them cater to martial arts demonstrations by designing "extra light" swords which can be maneuvered relatively faster for longer periods of time, or swords specifically designed to perform well at cutting practice targets, with thinner blades and either razor-like flat-ground or hollow ground edges.


title: Sweden men's national ice hockey team

text: The Sweden men's national ice hockey team () is governed by the Swedish Ice Hockey Association. It is one of the most successful national ice hockey teams in the world and a member of the so-called "Big Six", the unofficial group of the six strongest men's ice hockey nations, along with Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Russia and the United States.


title: Sweden men's national ice hockey team

text: The team's nickname Tre Kronor, meaning "Three Crowns", refers to the emblem on the team jersey, which is found in the lesser national coat of arms of the Kingdom of Sweden. The first time this emblem was used on the national team's jersey was on 12 February 1938, during the World Championships in Prague.


title: Sweden men's national ice hockey team

text: The team has won numerous medals at both the World Championships and the Winter Olympics. In 2006, they became the first team to win both tournaments in the same calendar year, by winning the 2006 Winter Olympics in a thrilling final against Finland by 3–2, and the 2006 World Championships by beating Czech Republic in the final, 4–0. In 2013 the team was the first team to win the World Championships at home since the Soviet Union in 1986. In 2018, the Swedish team won its 11th title at the World Championships. In 2021 Sweden failed to reach the playoffs for the first time after the tournament implemented the playoff system, placing 9th, tying their 1937 team for their worst placement in tournament history.


title: Sweden men's national ice hockey team

text: The following table shows Sweden's all-time international record in official matches (WC, OG, EC), correct as of 21 May 2015.


title: Robert Gant

text: Robert Gant (born Robert John Gonzalez; July 13, 1968) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Ben Bruckner on the Showtime series "Queer as Folk".


title: Robert Gant

text: At age ten, Gant began acting in television commercials in Florida and became a member of the Screen Actors Guild at the age of eleven.


title: Robert Gant

text: Gant studied tap and jazz dance with the American Musical Theatre Company in Tampa, Florida. He performed a soft-shoe routine at MacDill Air Force Base with comedian Bob Hope as part of Hope's USO tour. He attended George D. Chamberlain High School and graduated in 1986.


title: Robert Gant

text: While attending the University of Pennsylvania, Gant majored in English literature with both Shakespeare and poetry concentrations. He attended the Georgetown University Law Center, where he obtained his Juris Doctor in 1993. Gant was also a member of the Georgetown Gilbert & Sullivan Society, performing in a number of its productions. Gant started a six-man a cappella group, The MetroGnomes, which performed in venues around Washington, D.C.


title: Robert Gant

text: Gant accepted a position with the Los Angeles office of Chicago-headquartered international law firm Baker McKenzie. When the firm closed its Los Angeles office shortly thereafter, Gant decided to pursue acting and performing.


title: Robert Gant

text: From 2002 to 2005, Gant portrayed Professor Ben Bruckner in Showtime's television series "Queer as Folk". His character was married in the first legal gay marriage portrayed on American television.


title: Robert Gant

text: In 2004, Gant starred in the short film "Billy's Dad is a Fudgepacker", an homage to 1950s educational films, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. In 2005, Gant was a series regular in the BBC 3-produced drama "Personal Affairs", set in London's financial sector and filmed on location in both London and Scotland. Gant was the sole American in an otherwise all-British cast.


title: Robert Gant

text: Gant was a producing partner in the production company Mythgarden. Its 2007 feature film "Save Me", a drama set against the backdrop of an ex-gay ministry, stars Gant along with Judith Light and Chad Allen and premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. He also co-produced, co-wrote, and starred in the Netflix-distributed period drama "Milada", the true story of Czech politician Milada Horáková, who was executed by the Communist government in 1950.


title: Robert Gant

text: Gant portrayed television's first gay spy in the film, "Kiss Me Deadly", which was shot on location in New Zealand. Gant has portrayed Melissa Benoist's Kryptonian father Zor-El on "Supergirl", Todd Crimsen on the Netflix series "13 Reasons Why", and Jim Hunter on "The Fosters" and its spin-off series "Good Trouble". Prior to "Queer as Folk", Gant recurred as Principal Calvin Krupps in Ryan Murphy's first television series, "Popular", and a recurring role as Caroline's boyfriend Trevor in "Caroline in the City".


title: Robert Gant

text: Gant has had guest roles on the television show "Friends", where he played one of two men Phoebe was dating simultaneously. The other man Phoebe dates was played by recurring Queer as Folk actor, Matt Battaglia. Gant guest starred in "Melrose Place", "Becker", several ""-related shows, "Caroline in the City", and "Criminal Minds". In 2013, he portrayed Captain Robert Norton in "Dead Space 3", the third installment in the Dead Space video game series released by Electronic Arts.


title: Robert Gant

text: Gant supports such organizations as Services & Advocacy for LGBT Elders (SAGE) and Gay & Lesbian Elder Housing (GLEH).


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: Yogendra Yadav (born 5 September 1963) is an Indian activist, psephologist and politician whose primary interests are in the political and social sciences. He was a Senior Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), Delhi from 2004 to 2016. He is a former member of University Grants Commission (UGC) and National Advisory Council on Right to Education Act (NAC-RTE) constituted by Ministry of Human Resources and Development, Govt of India, in 2010. He was a member of the National Executive of the Aam Aadmi Party until 2015.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: Yadav is a founding member of Swaraj Abhiyan and Jai Kisan Andolan. He was the founding National President of Swaraj India, a registered political party.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: Yogendra Yadav's father was a retired professor of economics and his paternal grandfather was a teacher. His wife, Madhulika Banerjee, is a professor at the University of Delhi. His childhood name was Salim, which is commonly associated with people of the Muslim faith. It was changed to Yogendra when he was aged five because he was being mocked by children at school. Yadav says that his original name, and its continued usage among family members and friends, reflects a familial response to the murder of his grandfather in a communal riot in 1936.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: Before joining CSDS, he was an assistant professor of Political Science at Panjab University, Chandigarh (1985-1993). Between 1995–2002, Yadav was the founder-convenor of the Lokniti network. He was also founder-director of the CSDS Lokniti research programme on comparative democracy between 1997 and 2003. Since 1996, he has been a psephologist and political commentator on a number of television channels in India including Doordarshan, NDTV and CNN-IBN.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: Yadav was appointed as a member of the National Advisory Council for the implementation of the Right to Education Act in 2010. He was appointed a Senior Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies in 2004.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: In 2011, Yadav supported the general aims of, and spoke publicly at events, during the nationwide anti-corruption protests and later joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), formed by anti-corruption activists. Yadav served as a member of the National Executive of the party. His involvement with the AAP was perceived as creating a conflict of interest with his July 2011 appointment as a member of the University Grants Commission, resulting in the Ministry of Human Resource Development ejecting him from the latter role in September 2013. Yadav had argued that there was no conflict.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: Yadav contested the 2014 Indian general elections from Gurgaon constituency as an AAP candidate. He came fourth and lost his deposit.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: On 4 March 2015, Yadav was voted out of AAP's Political Affairs Committee (PAC). Subsequently, on 28 March, he was expelled from the party's National Executive for alleged "anti-party activities". In April, he was expelled from the party. Yadav denied being involved in anti-party activities and stated that he was victimised for challenging "dictatorial ways" of the party's chief Arvind Kejriwal.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: Together with Prashant Bhushan, Anand Kumar (sociologist) and Ajit Jha, Yadav has formed a new political organisation called Swaraj Abhiyan. Yogendra Yadav urged Delhi voters to choose NOTA in 2019 Indian general election as no political parties in Delhi have fulfilled their promises. He termed NOTA as “No Till an Alternative”.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: Yadav is a member of Samyukt Kisan Morcha coordination committee, which spearheaded the 2020–2021 Indian farmers' protest. In 2022, Yogendra Yadav joined Rahul Gandhi - led Bharat Jodo Yatra and described the Yatra as a Dakshinayana movement of India, where the influences of the South are carried to the North.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: He supports removing English language as a medium of teaching from higher education while opposing replacing it with Hindi. He stated "Bringing Hindi as a substitute for English is as barbaric to me as the dominance of English today." He supports higher education to be done through mother tongues.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: In 2008, Yadav received Malcolm Adiseshiah Award for Development Studies. In 2009, he received the Global South Solidarity Award by the International Political Science Association.


title: Yogendra Yadav

text: Yadav has published many articles and books. He was an editor and advisor for various publications, such as the "European Journal of Political Research", "Samayik Varta" and the Hindi-language social science anthologies titled "Lokchhintan" and "Lokchintak Granthamala".


title: Heating oil

text: Heating oil is any petroleum product or other oil used for heating; a fuel oil. Most commonly, it refers to low viscosity grades of fuel oil used for furnaces or boilers use for home heating and in other buildings. Home heating oil is often abbreviated as HHO.


title: Heating oil

text: Most heating oil products are chemically very similar to diesel fuel used as motor fuel; motor fuel is typically subject to higher fuel taxes. Many countries add fuel dyes to heating oil, allowing law enforcement to check if a driver is evading fuel taxes. Since 2002, Solvent Yellow 124 has been added as a "Euromarker" in the European Union; untaxed diesel is known as "red diesel" in the United Kingdom.


title: Heating oil

text: Heating oil is commonly delivered by tank truck to residential, commercial and municipal buildings and stored in above-ground storage tanks ("ASTs") located in the basements, garages, or outside adjacent to the building. It is sometimes stored in underground storage tanks (or "USTs") but less often than ASTs. ASTs are used for smaller installations due to the lower cost factor. Heating oil is less commonly used as an industrial fuel or for power generation.


title: Heating oil

text: Leaks from tanks and piping are an environmental concern. Various federal and state regulations are in place regarding the proper transportation, storage and burning of heating oil, which is classified as a hazardous material (HazMat) by federal regulators.


title: Heating oil

text: Heating oil consists of a mixture of petroleum-derived hydrocarbons in the 14- to 20-carbon atom range that condense between during oil refining. Heating oil condenses at a lower temperature than petroleum jelly, bitumen, candle wax, and lubricating oil, but at a higher temperature than kerosene, which condenses between . The heavy (C20+) hydrocarbons condense between .


title: Heating oil

text: Heating oil produces to and weighs 8.2 pounds per US gallon (0.95 kg/L). Number 2 fuel oil has a flash point of .


title: Heating oil

text: Historically, the legal difference between diesel and heating oil in the United States has been sulfur allowance. Diesel for machinery and equipment must be below 15 ppm sulfur content while heating oil needed only stay below 500 ppm sulfur. However, most heating oil in the United States is now "ultra-low sulfur heating oil" (ULSHO) and meets the same 15 ppm standard.


title: Heating oil

text: Heating oil is known in the United States as No. 2 heating oil. In the U.S., it must conform to ASTM standard D396. Diesel and kerosene, while often confused as being similar or identical, must conform to their own respective ASTM standards. Heating oil is widely used in both the United States and Canada, with U.S. residential use most common in the northeastern states of New York and Pennsylvania and in New England, collectively accounting for 85% of total U.S. residential heating oil use. In the United States, biodiesel blends of B5 (5% biodiesel) and B20 (20% biodiesel) are available in most markets as a lower and cleaner burning heating fuel.


title: Heating oil

text: The heating oil futures contract trades in units of with a minimum fluctuation of $0.0001 per gallon and (for the USA) is based on delivery in New York Harbor.


title: Heating oil

text: The Department of Energy tracks the prices homeowners pay for home heating fuel (oil and propane). There are also a number of websites that allow home owners to compare the price per gallon they are paying with the Department of Energy data as well as other consumers in their area. Likewise the US Energy Information Administration collects heating oil price statistics and maintains historical price data for all major US markets during each heating season. The US Department of Energy also supports research and development for heating oil technology through the National Oilheat Research Alliance. Additional information about biodiesel heating oil use can also be found at the National Biodiesel Board's site.


title: Heating oil

text: Heating oil is mostly used in the northeastern and northwestern urban United States and a strong market presence in rural areas as well. Most of the northeast's heating oil comes from Irving Oil's refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick, the largest oil refinery in Canada. Unlike other petroleum products, heating oil is primarily distributed to consumers through family-owned small businesses, rather than the large oil companies. Although United States distributors provide the Department of Energy the average price per gallon for their users, they typically do not list their prices on comparison websites, instead preferring to provide quotes which best match the property.


title: Heating oil

text: Heating oil is the most common fuel for home heating in Northern Ireland due to the late development of a natural gas network. Common suppliers of heating oil in Ireland are Maxol, Patterson Oil and Emo Oil.


title: Heating oil

text: In England, Scotland and Wales, there are two types of heating oil: commercial heating oil - referring to gas oil, i.e. red diesel - and domestic heating oil - meaning kerosene, specifically BS 2869 Class C2 kerosene. Heating oil is used for home heating in England, Scotland and Wales, typically in premises away from mains gas. There are around 1.5 million people in Great Britain using oil for home heating.


title: Heating oil

text: Great Britain has many suppliers of heating oil ranging from large companies such as Conquest Oil Company and Crown Oil to local and independent heating oil suppliers such as J. R. Rix & Sons. Many villages may use buying groups to order heating oil at the same time, thereby accessing lower costs. Many heating oil suppliers will choose to list their prices on independent heating oil price comparison websites. These sites draw in home heating oil users and compare various local supplier prices in order to provide the lowest price available. In the UK it is possible to search for prices by town name, county and postcode prefix.


title: Heating oil

text: The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) have referred the UK oil market to the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) for review. The OFT has resolved to look at the structure of the market, with a view of the fairness for consumers and alternative energy options for off-grid consumers such as heat pumps.


title: Heating oil

text: Heating oil storage in the United Kingdom is governed by regulations that ensure the safe installation and usage of oil storage tanks. It is a criminal offence to keep a tank that violates these regulations, and the owners are liable for fines, penalties and any costs incurred as a result of cleaning up oil spills.


title: Heating oil

text: The regulations are designed to minimise the risk of damaging pollution and reduce the likelihood of oil being stored in hazardous environments, such as a building without proper fire safety measures. The regulations that govern oil storage tanks are The Control of Pollution (Oil Storage) England Regulations (2001), The Pollution Prevention Guidelines (PPG 2) and The Building Regulations (Approved Document J).


title: Heating oil

text: The Oil Storage Regulations (2001) apply to oil tanks used for commercial and industrial purposes, or domestic tanks over 3500 litres in capacity. They state that the storage tank should be of "sufficient strength and structural integrity to ensure that it is unlikely to burst or leak in its ordinary use". The tank, along with any filters, gauges, valves or ancillary equipment, must be contained within a secondary unit or bund that has at least 110% of the capacity of the inner tank. If the tank has a fill pipe that is not contained within the secondary unit, a drip tray must be installed. They also require the use of an automatic overfill prevention if it is not "reasonably practical" to monitor the oil levels within the tank.


title: Heating oil

text: The Building Regulations Approved Document J covers the legal requirements for the installation of the tanks within the premises of a building. The regulations state that any new tank larger than 2,500 litres must be stored within a bunded tank or secondary containment that is a minimum of 110% of the tank's capacity. If a tank is single skinned and smaller than 2,500 litres, it must be given an individual site pollution risk assessment. This highlights any pollution or hazard risks such as the possibility of the oil escaping and reaching a river or stream, or the risk of a collision if the storage tank is located near a road.


title: Heating oil

text: They further state that all tanks must be installed on a surface strong enough to support a full storage tank. The surface must be flat, even and fire-resistant, and should extend at least 300mm beyond the boundaries of the tank. A paving stone surface must be at least 42mm thick, and a concrete surface must be at least 100mm thick. The document also states that the tank should be situated at least 1800mm away from any potential hazards, such as doors, windows, appliance flue terminals, non-fire rated buildings such as garden fences, and at least 760mm from non-fire rated smaller structures such as wooden fences.


title: Heating oil

text: A safe, secure tank that complies with all regulations will look similar to the diagram above. It details the different parts of the tank that need to be checked in order to ensure the tank is legal, including where the ancillary equipment should be located and the presence of an automatic overfill prevention.


title: Heating oil

text: The degree day system is based on the amount of fuel a customer has consumed between two or more deliveries and the high and low outdoor temperatures during the same period. A degree day is defined as one degree of temperature below 65 °F in the average temperature of one day. In other words, to arrive at the number of degree days in one day, the official high and low temperatures for that day must be obtained. The two figures are then averaged, and the number of units this average is below 65 °F is the number of degree days for that day. For example, if for Tuesday, 3 November, the high temperature is 70 °F and the low is 54 °F, the average is found by adding 70 and 54, which equals 124, and then dividing by 2. The resultant figure is 62, and by subtracting 62 from 65, it is determined that there were three Fahrenheit degree days that day.


title: Heating oil

text: The "K" factor is the number of degree days in any given period divided by the number of gallons of fuel oil used in a given period. Multiplying "K" degree-days per gallon by the number of gallons of usable fuel remaining in a tank gives the number of degree-days before a delivery is needed.