Abstract: A method for charging a lithium ion secondary battery of the present invention includes a first step and a second step. In the first step, A, B, and C satisfy the relationship A>B and B<C, where A represents an average charging current value in the range where a charge rate of the lithium ion secondary battery is 0% or more and less than 40%, B represents an average charging current value in the range where the charge rate is 40% or more and 60% or less, and C represents an average charging current value in the range where the charge rate is more than 60%. In the first step, the ratio of CMAX to CMIN (CMAX/CMIN) is 1.01 to 3.00, where CMAX represents the maximum value of the charging current value and CMIN represents the minimum value of the charging current value.

Abstract: A method for charging a lithium ion secondary battery of the present invention includes a first step and a second step. In the first step, A, B, and C satisfy the relationship A>B and B<C, where A represents an average charging current value in the range where a charge rate of the lithium ion secondary battery is 0% or more and less than 40%, B represents an average charging current value in the range where the charge rate is 40% or more and 60% or less, and C represents an average charging current value in the range where the charge rate is more than 60%. In the first step, the ratio of CMAX to CMIN (CMAX/CMIN) is 1.01 to 3.00, where CMAX represents the maximum value of the charging current value and CMIN represents the minimum value of the charging current value.

Abstract: The electrochemical device of the present invention comprises a positive electrode (2), a negative electrode (1), a nonaqueous electrolyte and a separator (3). The separator (3) includes a porous layer (I) composed of a microporous film composed predominantly of a thermoplastic resin and a porous layer (II) containing a filler having a heat-resistant temperature of 150° C. or higher as the main component. The negative electrode (1) contains graphite having an R value of 0.1 to 0.5 and d002 of 0.338 nm or less as a negative electrode active material, where the R value is a ratio of a peak intensity at 1360 cm?1 to a peak intensity at 1580 cm?1 in an argon ion laser Raman spectrum and the d002 is a lattice spacing between 002 planes. The ratio of the graphite to the negative electrode active material is 30 mass % or more, and the nonaqueous electrolyte contains vinyl ethylene carbonate or a derivative thereof, or a dinitrile compound or acid anhydride.

Abstract: The electrochemical device of the present invention comprises a positive electrode (2), a negative electrode (1), a nonaqueous electrolyte and a separator (3). The separator (3) includes a porous layer (I) composed of a microporous film composed predominantly of a thermoplastic resin and a porous layer (II) containing a filler having a heat-resistant temperature of 150° C. or higher as the main component. The negative electrode (1) contains graphite having an R value of 0.1 to 0.5 and d002 of 0.338 nm or less as a negative electrode active material, where the R value is a ratio of a peak intensity at 1360 cm?1 to a peak intensity at 1580 cm?1 in an argon ion laser Raman spectrum and the d002 is a lattice spacing between 002 planes. The ratio of the graphite to the negative electrode active material is 30 mass % or more, and the nonaqueous electrolyte contains vinyl ethylene carbonate or a derivative thereof, or a dinitrile compound or acid anhydride.

Abstract: A non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery comprises a positive electrode, a negative electrode, two kinds of separators and an non-aqueous electrolytic solution, wherein the positive electrode, the negative electrode and the separators are laminated and wound to form a wound electrode body. The secondary battery is characterized in that the first separator having a gas permeability of 400 sec/100 cm3 or less is provided on the outer surface of the negative electrode, and the second separator having a coefficient of thermal shrinkage of 30% or less in a transverse direction is provided on the inner surface of the negative electrode.

Abstract: An orbital vibration generator means comprising, in addition to a clamp 4, 5 for holding a pair of thermo plastic pipes coaxially and a pressurizing means 2, 3, 14 for bringing into contact under a pressure junction end faces of a pair of thermo plastic pipes 10, 11 held by these clamps, a crank shaft 8 having a shaft portion 8a and a crank portion 8b in which the axes of these shaft portion 8a and crank portion 8b are eccentric, a motor 6 for giving rotation to the crank shaft 8, a bearing 9 attached to the crank portion 8b of said crank shaft 8, and a orbital vibration clamp 13 holding pipe an end portion of a thermo plastic pipe, formed integrally with the outer ring of the bearing 9 to move integrally with said bearing.

Abstract: An orbital vibration generator means comprising, in addition to a clamp 4, 5 for holding a pair of thermo plastic pipes coaxially and a pressurizing means 2, 3, 14 for bringing into contact under a pressure junction end faces of a pair of thermo plastic pipes 10, 11 held by these clamps, a crank shaft 8 having a shaft portion 8a and a crank portion 8b in which the axes of these shaft portion 8a and crank portion 8b are eccentric, a motor 6 for giving rotation to the crank shaft 8, a bearing 9 attached to the crank portion 8b of said crank shaft 8, and a orbital vibration clamp 13 holding pipe an end portion of a thermo plastic pipe, formed integrally with the outer ring of the bearing 9 to move integrally with said bearing.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method of efficiently and stably manufacturing a high-purity metal powder of a desired particle size, which is used for powder metallurgy or the like, by generating arc 18 between electrodes 12 and 13 to melt the distal end portions of the electrodes, causing droplets 19 of the molten metal to drop onto rotating disk 14, scattering the dropped droplets by a centrifugal force, thereby cooling the droplets, and an apparatus for the same.

Abstract: A gas shield chamber for enclosing a welding joint of a pair of rails during the arc welding of the welding joint. A pair of side backing plates are each held in contact with the groove at one side of the rails within the chamber and the side backing plates are respectively movable independently of each other by a pair of drives having manual-powered operation change-over means. The ratio of respective flow rates of each shielding gas from respective injectors into the chamber is varied in accordance with the movement of the side backing plates. A pair of ground terminals of a welding power source are arranged on the sides of the rails.

Abstract: A gas-shielded arc welding apparatus automatically welds materials to be welded, such as rails or shape steel. The apparatus includes a gas-shielded chamber and a pair of side backing plates arranged within the chamber whereby the whole weld zone of the materials is gas shielded and a welding nozzle and shielding gas outlets are separated from each other. The apparatus also includes a welding apparatus proper and a control unit thereby performing the welding in a fully automatic manner.

Abstract: The resin-impregnated composite prepreg based on a fabric material of an aromatic polyamide fiber is prepared by exposing the fabric material to low temperature plasma generated in an atmosphere of an inorganic gas, which is preferably oxygen or an oxygen-containing gaseous mixture, under a pressure of 0.5 to 5 Torr to such an extent that ruggedness of 0.01 to 0.5 .mu.m is formed on the surface and then impregnating the fabric material with an organic resinous binder. The adhesive bonding strength between the binder and the fiber surface can further be increased when the plasma-treated fabric material is brought into contact with an unsaturated compound polymerizable by free radical polymerization without contacting with air so as to form a graft-polymerized layer on the fiber surface.

Abstract: The invention provides a very efficient method for the improvement of the antistatic performance, e.g. decrease in the accumulation of static electricity on the surface and decrease in the surface resistivity, of a synthetic resin shaped article with outstanding durability of the effect. The method comprises two steps in principle, first of which is the formation of a crosslinked layer in the surface portion of the shaped article by a variety of known methods effective for the formation of crosslinks in polymeric materials and the second of which is the exposure of the thus crosslinked surface of the article to low temperature plasma produced in an atmosphere containing a gaseous silicon-containing compound which may be a silane compound or a low-molecular weight vaporizable siloxane compound to form a plasma-polymerized surface film of the silicon compound on the crosslinked layer.

Abstract: A method is proposed for the preparation of a laminate with improved mechanical strength such as the cloth-to-cloth adhesive bonding strength using a prepreg based on a fabric sheet of aromatic polyamide fibers and an adhesive preferably selected from polyimide-based and epoxy resin-based adhesives, in which the fabric sheet is pretreated by exposure to low-temperature plasma of preferably a gas mixture composed of oxygen and nitrogen under a reduced pressure of 0.5 to 20 Torr. The improvement is derived presumably from the increase in the wettability and affinity of the fibers to the adhesive as is suggested by the remarkable increase of adhesive pick-up.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for increasing the color density of a dyed fabric material of, especially, a synthetic fiber as well as the fastness of the color to rubbing and washing. The inventive method comprising (a) pretreating the dyed fabric material with an organopolysiloxane which is an amino-modified organopolysiloxane or a dimethylpolysiloxane, and then (b) exposing the thus pretreated dyed fabric material to low temperature plasma of an inorganic gas under a reduced pressure. The inorganic gas is preferably oxygen or a gaseous mixture containing at least 10% by volume of oxygen. The color-deepening effect is particularly remarkable when the color of the dyed fabric material is black to impart increased graveness and vividness of the color.

Abstract: A welding control method in which a deviation of a groove line or variation of a groove width is detected by utilizing the characteristics of a welding arc itself without using a separate sensor and a welding torch is caused to accurately follow the groove line. The oscillation width of the welding torch is detected and the proper welding speed for providing a weld bead of a predetermined height is calculated in accordance with the detected oscillation width thereby automatically controlling the welding speed in accordance with the calculated welding speed value for every cycle of the oscillation or every integral multiple thereof.

Abstract: The inventive shaped body for gas separation is prepared on the base of a film shaped of a poly(silyl acetylene) such as poly(1-methyl-2-trimethylsilyl acetylene) by subjecting the base film to a treatment of exposure to an atmosphere of low temperature plasma of an inorganic gas, e.g. nitrogen, hydrogen, argon, etc. Contrary to expectation, the base film is stable against the plasma treatment without decrease in the mechanical strengths and imparted with high performance for gas separation, especially, for the enrichment of oxygen in air with a separation factor between oxygen and nitrogen of 2.5 to 3.5.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for the preparation of a shaped article of a flexible or semi-rigid polyvinyl chloride resin having a metallized surface, of which the adhesive bonding of the metallizing layer to the substrate surface is greatly improved. In the inventive method, the surface of the shaped article is first exposed to low temperature plasma generated in an atmosphere containing a vapor of a specified organosilicon compound before the metallizing treatment in a dry process such as vacuum vapor deposition, ion plating and the like.

Abstract: Hydrophilicity of a poorly hydrophilic fabric material of synthetic fibers can be remarkably and durably increased by the synergistic effect of the treatments first with a specific hydrophilic agent, e.g. water-absorbent agent and antistatic agent, and then by exposure to low temperature plasma generated in an atmosphere of oxygen or oxygen-containing gaseous mixture so that the capacity of the fabric material for water absorption is greatly increased and the antistatic performance thereof is greatly improved with decreased surface resistivity and charge voltage induced by rubbing.

Abstract: In the multi-layer welding of a joint of two pieces of metal to be welded by arc welding, the proper number of passes and the desired tracing positions of a welding torch for each layer are automatically established during the welding of the preceding layer. The welding torch is subjected to a Y-axis control so as to maintain constant the arc voltage or current during the welding and simultaneously the torch is caused to weave in the direction of an X-axis within the groove. The tracing of the groove by the torch is accomplished by controlling the weaving turning positions of the torch in accordance with the X-axis and Y-axis direction displacement data of the torch and the torch displacements in the X-axis direction are compared with a predetermined value thereby determining the proper number of passes to be made in the welding of the next layer.

Abstract: An apparatus for quenching a butt-welded portion of a rail, includes an inverse U-shaped cooling box for covering from above and throughout a butt-welded portion of a rail, and for quenching the butt-welded portion by cooling air. The cooling box is divided into a head cooling chamber, a web left cooling chamber, and a web right cooling chamber each having a plurality of cooling air nozzles directed toward the butt-welded portion. A cooling air supply mechanism supplies cooling air to the cooling box, the cooling air supply mechanism including a cooling air source, a solenoid valve operatively arranged in a cooling air supply pipe, a head cooling air regulating valve, a web cooling air regulating valve, and a valve opening controlling mechanism which opens each of the head cooling air regulating valve and the web cooling air regulating valve according to a predetermined program.