Sample records for mobile source control

  1. Final Rule for Control of Hazardous Air Pollutants From Mobile Sources: Early Credit Technology Requirement Revision

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    EPA is taking final action to revise the February 26, 2007 mobile source air toxics rule’s requirements that specify which benzene control technologies a refiner may utilize to qualify to generate early benzene credits.

  2. Proposed Rule for Control of Hazardous Air Pollutants From Mobile Sources - 40 CFR Parts 59, 80, 85, and 86

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    A proposed rule to control gasoline, passenger vehicles, and portable gasoline containers (gas cans) that would significantly reduce emissions of benzene and other hazardous air pollutants (‘‘mobile source air toxics’’).

  3. Long-term trends in California mobile source emissions and ambient concentrations of black carbon and organic aerosol.

    PubMed

    McDonald, Brian C; Goldstein, Allen H; Harley, Robert A

    2015-04-21

    A fuel-based approach is used to assess long-term trends (1970-2010) in mobile source emissions of black carbon (BC) and organic aerosol (OA, including both primary emissions and secondary formation). The main focus of this analysis is the Los Angeles Basin, where a long record of measurements is available to infer trends in ambient concentrations of BC and organic carbon (OC), with OC used here as a proxy for OA. Mobile source emissions and ambient concentrations have decreased similarly, reflecting the importance of on- and off-road engines as sources of BC and OA in urban areas. In 1970, the on-road sector accounted for ∼90% of total mobile source emissions of BC and OA (primary + secondary). Over time, as on-road engine emissions have been controlled, the relative importance of off-road sources has grown. By 2010, off-road engines were estimated to account for 37 ± 20% and 45 ± 16% of total mobile source contributions to BC and OA, respectively, in the Los Angeles area. This study highlights both the success of efforts to control on-road emission sources, and the importance of considering off-road engine and other VOC source contributions when assessing long-term emission and ambient air quality trends.

  4. Biodiesel and Cold Temperature Effects on Speciated Mobile Source Air Toxics from Modern Diesel Trucks

    EPA Science Inventory

    Speciated volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with a particular focus on mobile source air toxics (MSATs) were measured in diesel exhaust from three heavy-duty trucks equipped with modern aftertreatment technologies. Emissions testing was conducted on a temperature controlled chass...

  5. Biodiesel and Cold Temperature Effect on Speciated Mobile Source Air Toxics from Modern Diesel Trucks

    EPA Science Inventory

    Speciated volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with a particular focus on mobile source air toxics (MSATs) were measured in diesel exhaust from three heavy-duty trucks equipped with modern aftertreatment technologies. Emissions testing was conducted on a temperature controlled chass...

  6. 40 CFR 52.2450 - Conditional approval.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... reasonably available control technology (RACT) for the Manufacturing Center located in Richmond, Virginia is...) Revises the 1999-2005 portion of the severe area rate-of-progress plan to provide MOBILE6-based mobile...) Revises Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) rules to include the lower major source...

  7. Mobile sources critical review: 1998 NARSTO assessment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sawyer, R. F.; Harley, R. A.; Cadle, S. H.; Norbeck, J. M.; Slott, R.; Bravo, H. A.

    Mobile sources of air pollutants encompass a range of vehicle, engine, and fuel combinations. They emit both of the photochemical ozone precursors, hydrocarbons and oxides of nitrogen. The most important source of hydrocarbons and oxides of nitrogen are light- and heavy-duty on-road vehicles and heavy-duty off-road vehicles, utilizing spark and compression ignition engines burning gasoline and diesel respectively. Fuel consumption data provide a convenient starting point for assessing current and future emissions. Modern light-duty, gasoline vehicles when new have very low emissions. The in-use fleet, due largely to emissions from a small "high emitter" fraction, has significantly larger emissions. Hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide are higher than reported in current inventories. Other gasoline powered mobile sources (motorcycles, recreational vehicles, lawn, garden, and utility equipment, and light aircraft) have high emissions on a per quantity of fuel consumed basis, but their contribution to total emissions is small. Additional uncertainties in spatial and temporal distribution of emissions exist. Heavy-duty diesel vehicles are becoming the dominant mobile source of oxides of nitrogen. Oxides of nitrogen emissions may be greater than reported in current inventories, but the evidence for this is mixed. Oxides of nitrogen emissions on a fuel-consumed basis are much greater from diesel mobile sources than from gasoline mobile sources. This is largely the result of stringent control of gasoline vehicle emissions and a lesser (heavy-duty trucks) or no control (construction equipment, locomotives, ships) of heavy-duty mobile sources. The use of alternative fuels, natural gas, propane, alcohols, and oxygenates in motor vehicles is increasing but remains small. Vehicles utilizing these fuels can be but are not necessarily cleaner than their gasoline or diesel counterparts. Historical vehicle kilometers traveled growth rates of about 2% annually in both the United States and Canada will slow somewhat to about 1.5%. Mexican growth rates are expected to be greater. Fuel consumption growth in recent years of about 1.4% annually is projected to continue as slowing gains in fuel economy from fleet turnover are more than offset by growth and the increasing number of Sport Utility Vehicles. This growth also will erode the emissions reductions resulting from cleaner new vehicles and fuels. Uncertainties in these projections are high and affected by economic activity, demographics, and the effectiveness of emissions control programs — especially those for reducing in-use emissions.

  8. 40 CFR 52.1072 - Conditional approval.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... to provide MOBILE6-based mobile source emission budgets and adopted measures sufficient to achieve... threshold to 25 tons per year. (9) Revises Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) rules to include...

  9. Near-source mobile methane emission estimates using EPA Method33a and a novel probabilistic approach as a basis for leak quantification in urban areas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Albertson, J. D.

    2015-12-01

    Methane emissions from underground pipeline leaks remain an ongoing issue in the development of accurate methane emission inventories for the natural gas supply chain. Application of mobile methods during routine street surveys would help address this issue, but there are large uncertainties in current approaches. In this paper, we describe results from a series of near-source (< 30 m) controlled methane releases where an instrumented van was used to measure methane concentrations during both fixed location sampling and during mobile traverses immediately downwind of the source. The measurements were used to evaluate the application of EPA Method 33A for estimating methane emissions downwind of a source and also to test the application of a new probabilistic approach for estimating emission rates from mobile traverse data.

  10. 40 CFR 52.473 - Conditional approval.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ...-progress plan to provide MOBILE6-based mobile source emission budgets and adopted measures sufficient to... threshold to 25 tons per year. (9) Revises Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) rules to include...

  11. FIRST ORDER ESTIMATES OF ENERGY REQUIREMENTS FOR POLLUTION CONTROL

    EPA Science Inventory

    This report presents estimates of the energy demand attributable to environmental control of pollution from 'stationary point sources.' This class of pollution source includes powerplants, factories, refineries, municipal waste water treatment plants, etc., but excludes 'mobile s...

  12. Outdoor and indoor sources of residential radiofrequency electromagnetic fields, personal cell phone and cordless phone use, and cognitive function in 5-6 years old children.

    PubMed

    Guxens, Mònica; Vermeulen, Roel; van Eijsden, Manon; Beekhuizen, Johan; Vrijkotte, Tanja G M; van Strien, Rob T; Kromhout, Hans; Huss, Anke

    2016-10-01

    Little is known about the exposure of young children to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) and potentially associated health effects. We assessed the relationship between residential RF-EMF exposure from mobile phone base stations, residential presence of indoor sources, personal cell phone and cordless phone use, and children's cognitive function at 5-6 years of age. Cross-sectional study on children aged 5-6 years from the Amsterdam Born Children and their Development (ABCD) study, the Netherlands (n=2354). Residential RF-EMF exposure from mobile phone base stations was estimated with a 3D geospatial radio wave propagation model. Residential presence of indoor sources (cordless phone base stations and Wi-Fi) and children's cell phone and cordless phone use was reported by the mother. Speed of information processing, inhibitory control, cognitive flexibility, and visuomotor coordination was assessed using the Amsterdam Neuropsychological Tasks. Residential presence of RF-EMF indoor sources was associated with an improved speed of information processing. Higher residential RF-EMF exposure from mobile phone base stations and presence of indoor sources was associated with an improved inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility whereas we observed a reduced inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility with higher personal cordless phone use. Higher residential RF-EMF exposure from mobile phone base stations was associated with a reduced visuomotor coordination whereas we observed an improved visuomotor coordination with residential presence of RF-EMF indoor sources and higher personal cell phone use. We found inconsistent associations between different sources of RF-EMF exposure and cognitive function in children aged 5-6 years. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Residential Mobility and Lung Cancer Risk: Data-Driven Exploration Using Internet Sources

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Yoon, Hong-Jun; Tourassi, Georgia; Xu, Songhua

    2015-01-01

    Frequent relocation has been linked to health decline, particularly with respect to emotional and psychological wellbeing. In this paper we investigate whether there is an association between frequent relocation and lung cancer risk. For the initial investigation we leverage two online data sources to collect cancer and control subjects using web crawling and tailored text mining. The two data sources share different strengths and weaknesses in terms of the amount of detail, population representation, and sample size. One data source includes online obituaries. The second data source includes augmented LinkedIn profiles. For each data source, the subjects spatiotemporal history ismore » reconstructed from the available information provided in the obituaries and from the education and work experience provided in the LinkedIn profiles. The study shows that lung cancer subjects have higher mobility frequency than the control group. This trend is consistent for both data sources.« less

  14. First Order Estimates of Energy Requirements for Pollution Control. Interagency Energy-Environment Research and Development Program Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Barker, James L.; And Others

    This U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report presents estimates of the energy demand attributable to environmental control of pollution from stationary point sources. This class of pollution source includes powerplants, factories, refineries, municipal waste water treatment plants, etc., but excludes mobile sources such as trucks, and…

  15. Premature deaths attributed to source-specific BC emissions in six urban US regions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Turner, Matthew D.; Henze, Daven K.; Capps, Shannon L.; Hakami, Amir; Zhao, Shunliu; Resler, Jaroslav; Carmichael, Gregory R.; Stanier, Charles O.; Baek, Jaemeen; Sandu, Adrian; Russell, Armistead G.; Nenes, Athanasios; Pinder, Rob W.; Napelenok, Sergey L.; Bash, Jesse O.; Percell, Peter B.; Chai, Tianfeng

    2015-11-01

    Recent studies have shown that exposure to particulate black carbon (BC) has significant adverse health effects and may be more detrimental to human health than exposure to PM2.5 as a whole. Mobile source BC emission controls, mostly on diesel-burning vehicles, have successfully decreased mobile source BC emissions to less than half of what they were 30 years ago. Quantification of the benefits of previous emissions controls conveys the value of these regulatory actions and provides a method by which future control alternatives could be evaluated. In this study we use the adjoint of the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model to estimate highly-resolved spatial distributions of benefits related to emission reductions for six urban regions within the continental US. Emissions from outside each of the six chosen regions account for between 7% and 27% of the premature deaths attributed to exposure to BC within the region. While we estimate that nonroad mobile and onroad diesel emissions account for the largest number of premature deaths attributable to exposure to BC, onroad gasoline is shown to have more than double the benefit per unit emission relative to that of nonroad mobile and onroad diesel. Within the region encompassing New York City and Philadelphia, reductions in emissions from large industrial combustion sources that are not classified as EGUs (i.e., non-EGU) are estimated to have up to triple the benefits per unit emission relative to reductions to onroad diesel sectors, and provide similar benefits per unit emission to that of onroad gasoline emissions in the region. While onroad mobile emissions have been decreasing in the past 30 years and a majority of vehicle emission controls that regulate PM focus on diesel emissions, our analysis shows the most efficient target for stricter controls is actually onroad gasoline emissions.

  16. 77 FR 60904 - Air Quality Implementation Plans; Alabama; Attainment Plan for the Alabama Portion of the...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-10-05

    ... available control technology (RACT) and reasonably available control measures (RACM); reasonable further... determination for PM 2.5 and nitrogen oxides (NO X ) for the mobile source contribution to ambient PM 2.5 levels..., an RFP plan, contingency measures, and an insignificance determination for mobile direct PM 2.5 and...

  17. Military Energy Alternatives Conference

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2012-03-08

    Power Generation and Alternative Energy Branch US Army RDECOM CERDEC CP&ID Power Division Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD...Co-generation Applications •Tactical Mobile Power •Vehicle-mounted Auxiliary Power and Environmental Control •Energy Security for Base...Mobile Power (PM MEP / PM CP) Vehicle Power (PM Tactical Vehicle / PM HTV) Portable Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Modules and Mobile Hybrid PV Power Sources

  18. Fusing Open Source Intelligence and Handheld Situational Awareness - Benghazi Case Study

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2014-10-01

    of the Battlespace (IPB) • Link OSINT to mobile SA 5 DM-0001694 Background • Between September 11 and 17, 2012, diplomatic missions in the...explore what might have been possible by integrating social media information ( OSINT ) with traditional intelligence combined with improved mobile...command and control element at the CIA compound that would have been monitoring OSINT and other sources of intelligence before the attack and

  19. 40 CFR 85.1402 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1402 Definitions. The definitions of this... of Mobile Sources—Office of Air and Radiation of the Environmental Protection Agency. Office Director...

  20. Mobile phones and malaria: modeling human and parasite travel

    PubMed Central

    Buckee, Caroline O.; Wesolowski, Amy; Eagle, Nathan; Hansen, Elsa; Snow, Robert W.

    2013-01-01

    Human mobility plays an important role in the dissemination of malaria parasites between regions of variable transmission intensity. Asymptomatic individuals can unknowingly carry parasites to regions where mosquito vectors are available, for example, undermining control programs and contributing to transmission when they travel. Understanding how parasites are imported between regions in this way is therefore an important goal for elimination planning and the control of transmission, and would enable control programs to target the principal sources of malaria. Measuring human mobility has traditionally been difficult to do on a population scale, but the widespread adoption of mobile phones in low-income settings presents a unique opportunity to directly measure human movements that are relevant to the spread of malaria. Here, we discuss the opportunities for measuring human mobility using data from mobile phones, as well as some of the issues associated with combining mobility estimates with malaria infection risk maps to meaningfully estimate routes of parasite importation. PMID:23478045

  1. 40 CFR 49.130 - Rule for limiting sulfur in fuels.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... fuels that are burned at stationary sources within the Indian reservation to control emissions of sulfur..., gaseous fuel, marine vessel, mobile sources, motor vehicle, nonroad engine, nonroad vehicle, owner or...

  2. 40 CFR 49.130 - Rule for limiting sulfur in fuels.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... burned at stationary sources within the Indian reservation to control emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2..., gaseous fuel, marine vessel, mobile sources, motor vehicle, nonroad engine, nonroad vehicle, owner or...

  3. Control system of mobile radiographic complex to study equations of state of substances

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Belov, O. V.; Valekzhanin, R. V.; Kustov, D. V.; Shamro, O. A.; Sharov, T. V.

    2017-05-01

    A source of x-ray radiation is one of the tools to study equations of state of substances in dynamics. The mobile radiographic bench based on BIM-1500 [1] was developed in RFNC-VNIIEF to increase output parameters of the x-ray radiation source. From automated control system side, BIM-1500 is a set of six high-voltage generators based on the capacitive energy storage, technological equipment, and elements of a blocking system. This paper considers automated control system of the mobile radiographic bench MCA BIM 1500. It consists of six high-voltage generator control circuits, synchronization subsystem, and block subsystem. The object of control has some peculiarities: high level of electromagnetic noise, remoteness of the control panel from the object of control. In connection with this, the coupling devices are arranged closer to the object of control and performed in the form of a set of galvanically insulated control units, which are combined into a net. The operator runs MCA BIM using the operator’s screens on PC or by means of manual control on the equipment in the mode of debugging. The control software provides performance of the experiment in automatic regime in accordance with preset settings. The operator can stop the experiment at the stage of charging the capacitive storage.

  4. Application of the remote microphone method to active noise control in a mobile phone.

    PubMed

    Cheer, Jordan; Elliott, Stephen J; Oh, Eunmi; Jeong, Jonghoon

    2018-04-01

    Mobile phones are used in a variety of situations where environmental noise may interfere with the ability of the near-end user to communicate with the far-end user. To overcome this problem, it might be possible to use active noise control technology to reduce the noise experienced by the near-end user. This paper initially demonstrates that when an active noise control system is used in a practical mobile phone configuration to minimise the noise measured by an error microphone mounted on the mobile phone, the attenuation achieved at the user's ear depends strongly on the position of the source generating the acoustic interference. To help overcome this problem, a remote microphone processing strategy is investigated that estimates the pressure at the user's ear from the pressure measured by the microphone on the mobile phone. Through an experimental implementation, it is demonstrated that this arrangement achieves a significant improvement in the attenuation measured at the ear of the user, compared to the standard active control strategy. The robustness of the active control system to changes in both the interfering sound field and the position of the mobile device relative to the ear of the user is also investigated experimentally.

  5. System for inspecting large size structural components

    DOEpatents

    Birks, Albert S.; Skorpik, James R.

    1990-01-01

    The present invention relates to a system for inspecting large scale structural components such as concrete walls or the like. The system includes a mobile gamma radiation source and a mobile gamma radiation detector. The source and detector are constructed and arranged for simultaneous movement along parallel paths in alignment with one another on opposite sides of a structural component being inspected. A control system provides signals which coordinate the movements of the source and detector and receives and records the radiation level data developed by the detector as a function of source and detector positions. The radiation level data is then analyzed to identify areas containing defects corresponding to unexpected variations in the radiation levels detected.

  6. Modeling Study on Air Quality Improvement due to Mobile Source Emission control Plan in Seoul Metropolitan Area

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Y. J.; Sunwoo, Y.; Hwang, I.; Song, S.; Sin, J.; Kim, D.

    2015-12-01

    A very high population and corresponding high number of vehicles in the Seoul Metropolitan Area (SMA) are aggravating the air quality of this region. The Korean government continues to make concerted efforts to improve air quality. One of the major policies that the Ministry of Environment of Korea enforced is "The Special Act for Improvement of Air Quality in SMA" and "The 1st Air Quality Management Plan of SMA". Mobile Source emission controls are an important part of the policy. Thus, it is timely to evaluate the air quality improvement due to the controls. Therefore, we performed a quantitative analysis of the difference in air quality using the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model and December, 2011 was set as the target period to capture the impact of the above control plans. We considered four fuel-type vehicle emission scenarios and compared the air quality improvement differences between them. The scenarios are as follows: no-control, gasoline vehicle control only, diesel vehicle control only, and control of both; utilizing the revised mobile source emissions from the Clean Air Policy Support System (CAPSS), which is the national emission inventory reflecting current policy.In order to improve the accuracy of the modeling data, we developed new temporal allocation coefficients based on traffic volume observation data and spatially reallocated the mobile source emissions using vehicle flow survey data. Furthermore, we calculated the PM10 and PM2.5 emissions of gasoline vehicles which is omitted in CAPSS.The results of the air quality modeling shows that vehicle control plans for both gasoline and diesel lead to a decrease of 0.65ppb~8.75ppb and 0.02㎍/㎥~7.09㎍/㎥ in NO2 and PM10 monthly average concentrations, respectively. The large percentage decreases mainly appear near the center of the metropolis. However, the largest NO2 decrease percentages are found in the northeast region of Gyeonggi-do, which is the province that surrounds the capital of Seoul. Comparing the results between the different scenarios, diesel vehicle control impact dominates relative to the impact of gasoline control. The diesel-only reduction plan shows that NO2 and PM10 improved by 2.93ppb and 3.32㎍/㎥, respectively.

  7. ETV TEST REPORT OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS CONTROL DEVICES: LUBRIZOL ENGINE CONTROL SYSTEMS PURIFILTER SC17L

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Environmental Technology Verification report discusses the technology and performance of the Lubrizol Engine Control Systems Purifilter SC17L manufactured by Lubrizol Engine Control Systems. The technology is a precious and base metal, passively regenerated particulate filter...

  8. Modular Filter and Source-Management Upgrade of RADAC

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lanzi, R. James; Smith, Donna C.

    2007-01-01

    In an upgrade of the Range Data Acquisition Computer (RADAC) software, a modular software object library was developed to implement required functionality for filtering of flight-vehicle-tracking data and management of tracking-data sources. (The RADAC software is used to process flight-vehicle metric data for realtime display in the Wallops Flight Facility Range Control Center and Mobile Control Center.)

  9. Mobile robots for localizing gas emission sources on landfill sites: is bio-inspiration the way to go?

    PubMed

    Hernandez Bennetts, Victor; Lilienthal, Achim J; Neumann, Patrick P; Trincavelli, Marco

    2011-01-01

    Roboticists often take inspiration from animals for designing sensors, actuators, or algorithms that control the behavior of robots. Bio-inspiration is motivated with the uncanny ability of animals to solve complex tasks like recognizing and manipulating objects, walking on uneven terrains, or navigating to the source of an odor plume. In particular the task of tracking an odor plume up to its source has nearly exclusively been addressed using biologically inspired algorithms and robots have been developed, for example, to mimic the behavior of moths, dung beetles, or lobsters. In this paper we argue that biomimetic approaches to gas source localization are of limited use, primarily because animals differ fundamentally in their sensing and actuation capabilities from state-of-the-art gas-sensitive mobile robots. To support our claim, we compare actuation and chemical sensing available to mobile robots to the corresponding capabilities of moths. We further characterize airflow and chemosensor measurements obtained with three different robot platforms (two wheeled robots and one flying micro-drone) in four prototypical environments and show that the assumption of a constant and unidirectional airflow, which is the basis of many gas source localization approaches, is usually far from being valid. This analysis should help to identify how underlying principles, which govern the gas source tracking behavior of animals, can be usefully "translated" into gas source localization approaches that fully take into account the capabilities of mobile robots. We also describe the requirements for a reference application, monitoring of gas emissions at landfill sites with mobile robots, and discuss an engineered gas source localization approach based on statistics as an alternative to biologically inspired algorithms.

  10. Mobile Robots for Localizing Gas Emission Sources on Landfill Sites: Is Bio-Inspiration the Way to Go?

    PubMed Central

    Hernandez Bennetts, Victor; Lilienthal, Achim J.; Neumann, Patrick P.; Trincavelli, Marco

    2011-01-01

    Roboticists often take inspiration from animals for designing sensors, actuators, or algorithms that control the behavior of robots. Bio-inspiration is motivated with the uncanny ability of animals to solve complex tasks like recognizing and manipulating objects, walking on uneven terrains, or navigating to the source of an odor plume. In particular the task of tracking an odor plume up to its source has nearly exclusively been addressed using biologically inspired algorithms and robots have been developed, for example, to mimic the behavior of moths, dung beetles, or lobsters. In this paper we argue that biomimetic approaches to gas source localization are of limited use, primarily because animals differ fundamentally in their sensing and actuation capabilities from state-of-the-art gas-sensitive mobile robots. To support our claim, we compare actuation and chemical sensing available to mobile robots to the corresponding capabilities of moths. We further characterize airflow and chemosensor measurements obtained with three different robot platforms (two wheeled robots and one flying micro-drone) in four prototypical environments and show that the assumption of a constant and unidirectional airflow, which is the basis of many gas source localization approaches, is usually far from being valid. This analysis should help to identify how underlying principles, which govern the gas source tracking behavior of animals, can be usefully “translated” into gas source localization approaches that fully take into account the capabilities of mobile robots. We also describe the requirements for a reference application, monitoring of gas emissions at landfill sites with mobile robots, and discuss an engineered gas source localization approach based on statistics as an alternative to biologically inspired algorithms. PMID:22319493

  11. Overview of the NASA Wallops Flight Facility Mobile Range Control System

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Davis, Rodney A.; Semancik, Susan K.; Smith, Donna C.; Stancil, Robert K.

    1999-01-01

    The NASA GSFC's Wallops Flight Facility (WFF) Mobile Range Control System (MRCS) is based on the functionality of the WFF Range Control Center at Wallops Island, Virginia. The MRCS provides real time instantaneous impact predictions, real time flight performance data, and other critical information needed by mission and range safety personnel in support of range operations at remote launch sites. The MRCS integrates a PC telemetry processing system (TELPro), a PC radar processing system (PCDQS), multiple Silicon Graphics display workstations (IRIS), and communication links within a mobile van for worldwide support of orbital, suborbital, and aircraft missions. This paper describes the MRCS configuration; the TELPro's capability to provide single/dual telemetry tracking and vehicle state data processing; the PCDQS' capability to provide real time positional data and instantaneous impact prediction for up to 8 data sources; and the IRIS' user interface for setup/display options. With portability, PC-based data processing, high resolution graphics, and flexible multiple source support, the MRCS system is proving to be responsive to the ever-changing needs of a variety of increasingly complex missions.

  12. Research on robot mobile obstacle avoidance control based on visual information

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jin, Jiang

    2018-03-01

    Robots to detect obstacles and control robots to avoid obstacles has been a key research topic of robot control. In this paper, a scheme of visual information acquisition is proposed. By judging visual information, the visual information is transformed into the information source of path processing. In accordance with the established route, in the process of encountering obstacles, the algorithm real-time adjustment trajectory to meet the purpose of intelligent control of mobile robots. Simulation results show that, through the integration of visual sensing information, the obstacle information is fully obtained, while the real-time and accuracy of the robot movement control is guaranteed.

  13. Rapid prototyping of an adaptive light-source for mobile manipulators with EasyKit and EasyLab

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wojtczyk, Martin; Barner, Simon; Geisinger, Michael; Knoll, Alois

    2008-08-01

    While still not common in day-to-day business, mobile robot platforms form a growing market in robotics. Mobile platforms equipped with a manipulator for increased flexibility have been used successfully in biotech laboratories for sample management as shown on the well-known ESACT meetings. Navigation and object recognition is carried out by the utilization of a mounted machine vision camera. To cope with the different illumination conditions in a large laboratory, development of an adaptive light source was indispensable. We present our approach of rapid developing a computer controlled, adaptive LED light within one single business day, by utilizing the hardware toolbox EasyKit and our appropriate software counterpart EasyLab.

  14. Effect of Media Usage Selection on Social Mobilization Speed: Facebook vs E-Mail.

    PubMed

    Wang, Jing; Madnick, Stuart; Li, Xitong; Alstott, Jeff; Velu, Chander

    2015-01-01

    Social mobilization is a process that enlists a large number of people to achieve a goal within a limited time, especially through the use of social media. There is increasing interest in understanding the factors that affect the speed of social mobilization. Based on the Langley Knights competition data set, we analyzed the differences in mobilization speed between users of Facebook and e-mail. We include other factors that may influence mobilization speed (gender, age, timing, and homophily of information source) in our model as control variables in order to isolate the effect of such factors. We show that, in this experiment, although more people used e-mail to recruit, the mobilization speed of Facebook users was faster than that of those that used e-mail. We were also able to measure and show that the mobilization speed for Facebook users was on average seven times faster compared to e-mail before controlling for other factors. After controlling for other factors, we show that Facebook users were 1.84 times more likely to register compared to e-mail users in the next period if they have not done so at any point in time. This finding could provide useful insights for future social mobilization efforts.

  15. Effect of Media Usage Selection on Social Mobilization Speed: Facebook vs E-Mail

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Jing; Madnick, Stuart; Li, Xitong; Alstott, Jeff; Velu, Chander

    2015-01-01

    Social mobilization is a process that enlists a large number of people to achieve a goal within a limited time, especially through the use of social media. There is increasing interest in understanding the factors that affect the speed of social mobilization. Based on the Langley Knights competition data set, we analyzed the differences in mobilization speed between users of Facebook and e-mail. We include other factors that may influence mobilization speed (gender, age, timing, and homophily of information source) in our model as control variables in order to isolate the effect of such factors. We show that, in this experiment, although more people used e-mail to recruit, the mobilization speed of Facebook users was faster than that of those that used e-mail. We were also able to measure and show that the mobilization speed for Facebook users was on average seven times faster compared to e-mail before controlling for other factors. After controlling for other factors, we show that Facebook users were 1.84 times more likely to register compared to e-mail users in the next period if they have not done so at any point in time. This finding could provide useful insights for future social mobilization efforts. PMID:26422171

  16. Thunderbolt in biogeochemistry: galvanic effects of lightning as another source for metal remobilization.

    PubMed

    Schaller, Jörg; Weiske, Arndt; Berger, Frank

    2013-11-04

    Iron and manganese are relevant constituents of the earth's crust and both show increasing mobility when reduced by free electrons. This reduction is known to be controlled by microbial dissimilation processes. Alternative sources of free electrons in nature are cloud-to-ground lightning events with thermal and galvanic effects. Where thermal effects of lightning events are well described, less is known about the impact of galvanic lightning effects on metal mobilization. Here we show that a significant mobilization of manganese occurs due to galvanic effects of both positive and negative lightning, where iron seems to be unaffected with manganese being abundant in oxic forms in soils/sediments. A mean of 0.025 mmol manganese (negative lightning) or 0.08 mmol manganese (positive lightning) mobilization may occur. We suggest that lightning possibly influences biogeochemical cycles of redox sensitive elements in continental parts of the tropics/subtropics on a regional/local scale.

  17. Thunderbolt in biogeochemistry: galvanic effects of lightning as another source for metal remobilization

    PubMed Central

    Schaller, Jörg; Weiske, Arndt; Berger, Frank

    2013-01-01

    Iron and manganese are relevant constituents of the earth's crust and both show increasing mobility when reduced by free electrons. This reduction is known to be controlled by microbial dissimilation processes. Alternative sources of free electrons in nature are cloud-to-ground lightning events with thermal and galvanic effects. Where thermal effects of lightning events are well described, less is known about the impact of galvanic lightning effects on metal mobilization. Here we show that a significant mobilization of manganese occurs due to galvanic effects of both positive and negative lightning, where iron seems to be unaffected with manganese being abundant in oxic forms in soils/sediments. A mean of 0.025 mmol manganese (negative lightning) or 0.08 mmol manganese (positive lightning) mobilization may occur. We suggest that lightning possibly influences biogeochemical cycles of redox sensitive elements in continental parts of the tropics/subtropics on a regional/local scale. PMID:24184989

  18. Evolution of Space Station EMU PLSS technology recommendations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wilde, Richard C.

    1990-01-01

    Viewgraphs on extravehicular mobility unit (EMU) portable life support system (PLSS) technology recommendations are presented. Topics covered include: oxygen supply storage; oxygen supply regulators; carbon dioxide control; prime movers; crew comfort; heat rejection; power sources; controls; display devices; and sensor technology.

  19. 40 CFR 85.2111 - Warranty enforcement.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Warranty enforcement. 85.2111 Section 85.2111 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emissions Control System Performance Warranty Regulations and...

  20. 40 CFR 85.2208 - Alternative standards and procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    .... 85.2208 Section 85.2208 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance... Administrator determines that the alternative standards or procedures satisfy the provisions of the Clean Air...

  1. 78 FR 41735 - Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Indiana; Redesignation of the...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-07-11

    ... and Applicable Federal Air Pollution Control Regulations and Other Permanent and Enforceable... Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) and ordered EPA to continue administering the Clean Air... combustion emissions of NO X from power plants, mobile sources and other combustion sources. The first air...

  2. 40 CFR 85.2221 - [Reserved

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false [Reserved] 85.2221 Section 85.2221 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short Tests § 85.2221 [Reserved] ...

  3. 40 CFR 85.2202 - General provisions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false General provisions. 85.2202 Section 85.2202 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short Tests § 85...

  4. 40 CFR 85.2201 - Applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Applicability. 85.2201 Section 85.2201 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short Tests § 85.2201...

  5. Source apportionment of fine particles and its chemical components over the Yangtze River Delta, China during a heavy haze pollution episode

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, L.; An, J. Y.; Zhou, M.; Yan, R. S.; Huang, C.; Lu, Q.; Lin, L.; Wang, Y. J.; Tao, S. K.; Qiao, L. P.; Zhu, S. H.; Chen, C. H.

    2015-12-01

    An extremely high PM2.5 pollution episode occurred over the eastern China in January 2013. In this paper, the particulate matter source apportionment technology (PSAT) method coupled within the Comprehensive air quality model with extensions (CAMx) is applied to study the source contributions to PM2.5 and its major components at six receptors (Urban Shanghai, Chongming, Dianshan Lake, Urban Suzhou, Hangzhou and Zhoushan) in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region. Contributions from 4 source areas (including Shanghai, South Jiangsu, North Zhejiang and Super-region) and 9 emission sectors (including power plants, industrial boilers and kilns, industrial processing, mobile source, residential, volatile emissions, dust, agriculture and biogenic emissions) to PM2.5 and its major components (sulfate, nitrate, ammonia, organic carbon and elemental carbon) at the six receptors in the YRD region are quantified. Results show that accumulation of local pollution was the largest contributor during this air pollution episode in urban Shanghai (55%) and Suzhou (46%), followed by long-range transport (37% contribution to Shanghai and 44% to Suzhou). Super-regional emissions play an important role in PM2.5 formation at Hangzhou (48%) and Zhoushan site (68%). Among the emission sectors contributing to the high pollution episode, the major source categories include industrial processing (with contributions ranging between 12.7 and 38.7% at different receptors), combustion source (21.7-37.3%), mobile source (7.5-17.7%) and fugitive dust (8.4-27.3%). Agricultural contribution is also very significant at Zhoushan site (24.5%). In terms of the PM2.5 major components, it is found that industrial boilers and kilns are the major source contributor to sulfate and nitrate. Volatile emission source and agriculture are the major contributors to ammonia; transport is the largest contributor to elemental carbon. Industrial processing, volatile emissions and mobile source are the most significant contributors to organic carbon. Results show that the Yangtze River Delta region should focus on the joint pollution control of industrial processing, combustion emissions, mobile source emissions, and fugitive dust. Regional transport of air pollution among the cities are prominent, and the implementation of regional joint prevention and control of air pollution will help to alleviate fine particulate matter concentrations under heavy pollution case significantly.

  6. 75 FR 16461 - Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-04-01

    ... ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee AGENCY... Committee Act, Public Law 92- 463, notice is hereby given that the Mobile Sources Technical Review... site: http://www.epa.gov/air/caaac/mobile_sources.html . MSTRS listserver subscribers will receive...

  7. 75 FR 52737 - Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-08-27

    ... ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [FRL-9193-9] Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review... Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92- 463, notice is hereby given that the Mobile Sources... the Subcommittee's Web Site: http://www.epa.gov/air/caaac/mobile_sources.html . MSTRS listserver...

  8. 76 FR 58275 - Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-09-20

    ... ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [FRL-9466-9] Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review... Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92- 463, notice is hereby given that the Mobile Sources... the Subcommittee's Web site: http://www.epa.gov/air/caaac/mobile_sources.html . MSTRS listserver...

  9. 76 FR 19095 - Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-04-06

    ... ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [FRL-9290-8] Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review... Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92- 463, notice is hereby given that the Mobile Sources... Subcommittee's Web site: http://www.epa.gov/air/caaac/mobile_sources.html . MSTRS listserver subscribers will...

  10. TEST REPORT OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS CONTROL DEVICES DONALDSON COMPANY INC.SERIES 6100 DIESEL OXIDATION CATALYST MUFFLER AND SPIRACLE CLOSED CRANKCASE FILTRATION SYSTEM

    EPA Science Inventory

    This report is on an environmental verification of the emissions characteristics of a Donaldson Corp. catalytic muffler and catalyic crankcase emissions control. It was found the systems reduced emissions.

  11. 40 CFR 85.2205-85.2206 - [Reserved

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false [Reserved] 85.2205-85.2206 Section 85.2205-85.2206 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short...

  12. 40 CFR 85.1701 - General applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ...) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exclusion and Exemption of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle... test groups as applicable for manufacturers certifying new light-duty vehicles, light-duty trucks, and...

  13. Source of funding in experimental studies of mobile phone use on health: Update of systematic review

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    van Nierop, Lotte E.; Röösli, Martin; Egger, Matthias; Huss, Anke

    2010-11-01

    A previous review showed that among 59 studies published in 1995-2005, industry-funded studies were least likely to report effects of controlled exposure to mobile phone radiation on health-related outcomes. We updated literature searches in 2005-2009 and extracted data on funding, conflicts of interest and results. Of 75 additional studies 12% were industry-funded, 44% had public and 19% mixed funding; funding was unclear in 25%. Previous findings were confirmed: industry-sponsored studies were least likely to report results suggesting effects. Interestingly, the proportion of studies indicating effects declined in 1995-2009, regardless of funding source. Source of funding and conflicts of interest are important in this field of research.

  14. Fast pulsed operation of a small non-radioactive electron source with continuous emission current control

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cochems, P.; Kirk, A. T.; Bunert, E.

    Non-radioactive electron sources are of great interest in any application requiring the emission of electrons at atmospheric pressure, as they offer better control over emission parameters than radioactive electron sources and are not subject to legal restrictions. Recently, we published a simple electron source consisting only of a vacuum housing, a filament, and a single control grid. In this paper, we present improved control electronics that utilize this control grid in order to focus and defocus the electron beam, thus pulsing the electron emission at atmospheric pressure. This allows short emission pulses and excellent stability of the emitted electron currentmore » due to continuous control, both during pulsed and continuous operations. As an application example, this electron source is coupled to an ion mobility spectrometer. Here, the pulsed electron source allows experiments on gas phase ion chemistry (e.g., ion generation and recombination kinetics) and can even remove the need for a traditional ion shutter.« less

  15. 40 CFR 85.1401 - General applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ...) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1401 General... population of 750,000 or more that have their engines rebuilt or replaced after January 1, 1995. ...

  16. 40 CFR 85.1401 - General applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ...) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1401 General... population of 750,000 or more that have their engines rebuilt or replaced after January 1, 1995. ...

  17. 40 CFR 85.1401 - General applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ...) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1401 General... population of 750,000 or more that have their engines rebuilt or replaced after January 1, 1995. ...

  18. 40 CFR 85.1401 - General applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ...) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1401 General... population of 750,000 or more that have their engines rebuilt or replaced after January 1, 1995. ...

  19. 40 CFR 85.510 - Exemption provisions for new and relatively new vehicles/engines.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... system, engine calibration, and emission control system functionality when operating on the fuel with... relatively new vehicles/engines. 85.510 Section 85.510 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of...

  20. 40 CFR 85.2101 - General applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ...) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emissions Control System Performance Warranty Regulations and... through 85.2111 are applicable to all 1981 and later model year light-duty vehicles and light-duty trucks... apply to durability groups and test groups as applicable for manufacturers certifying new light-duty...

  1. 40 CFR 85.2230 - Steady state test dynamometer-EPA 91.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance... applicability. The requirements of § 85.2229 apply concurrently for tests conducted under Emission Performance... capable of applying a load to the vehicle's driving tire surfaces at the horsepower and speed levels...

  2. 40 CFR 85.2218 - Preconditioned idle test-EPA 91.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Preconditioned idle test-EPA 91. 85.2218 Section 85.2218 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short...

  3. 40 CFR 85.2216 - Loaded test-EPA 81.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Loaded test-EPA 81. 85.2216 Section 85.2216 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short Tests § 85...

  4. 40 CFR 85.2213 - Idle test-EPA 91.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Idle test-EPA 91. 85.2213 Section 85.2213 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short Tests § 85...

  5. 40 CFR 85.2212 - Idle test-EPA 81.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Idle test-EPA 81. 85.2212 Section 85.2212 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short Tests § 85...

  6. Source apportionments of PM2.5 organic carbon during the elevated pollution episodes in the Ordos region, Inner Mongolia, China.

    PubMed

    Khuzestani, Reza Bashiri; Schauer, James J; Shang, Jing; Cai, Tianqi; Fang, Dongqing; Wei, Yongjie; Zhang, Lulu; Zhang, Yuanxun

    2018-05-01

    The Ordos region in the southwestern part of Inner Mongolia experiences frequent PM concentrations in excess of the national PM 2.5 air quality standards. In order to determine the key sources of PM 2.5 contributing to these pollution episodes, the main sources of PM 2.5 OC during elevated PM episodes in the Inner Mongolia were analyzed and compared with non-polluted days. This will provide insight to the main sources of particulate matter pollution during the high-pollution episodes and the effective seasonal strategies to control sources of particulate matter during months and with the highest PM concentrations that need to be controlled. The PMF source contributions to OC demonstrated that the industrial/coal combustion (4762.77 ± 1061.54 versus 2726.49 ± 469.75 ng/m 3 ; p < 0.001) and mobile source factors (4651.14 ± 681.82 versus 2605.55 ± 276.50 ng/m 3 ; p value < 0.001) showed greater contributions to the elevated concentrations during the episode. The spatial analysis of secondary organic carbon (SOC) factors, regional biomass burning, and biogenic sources did not show significant difference in the pollution episodes and the non-polluted months. In addition, the bivariate polar plots and CWT maps of the industrial/coal combustion and mobile illustrated a regional long-range transport patterns from the external sources to the study area, however, adjacent areas were mostly controlling the contributions of these factors during the PM elevated episodes. The SOC sources, regional biomass burning, and biogenic sources illustrated a regional long-range transport with similar locations found during the elevated pollution episodes compared to the normal situations.

  7. Mobile health in China: a review of research and programs in medical care, health education, and public health.

    PubMed

    Corpman, David W

    2013-01-01

    There are nearly 1 billion mobile phone subscribers in China. Health care providers, telecommunications companies, technology firms, and Chinese governmental organizations use existing mobile technology and social networks to improve patient-provider communication, promote health education and awareness, add efficiency to administrative practices, and enhance public health campaigns. This review of mobile health in China summarizes existing clinical research and public health text messaging campaigns while highlighting potential future areas of research and program implementation. Databases and search engines served as the primary means of gathering relevant resources. Included material largely consists of scientific articles and official reports that met predefined inclusion criteria. This review includes 10 reports of controlled studies that assessed the use of mobile technology in health care settings and 17 official reports of public health awareness campaigns that used text messaging. All source material was published between 2006 and 2011. The controlled studies suggested that mobile technology interventions significantly improved an array of health care outcomes. However, additional efforts are needed to refine mobile health research and better understand the applicability of mobile technology in China's health care settings. A vast potential exists for the expansion of mobile health in China, especially as costs decrease and increasingly sophisticated technology becomes more widespread.

  8. A Challenging Issue in the Etiology of Speech Problems: The Effect of Maternal Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields on Speech Problems in the Offspring

    PubMed Central

    Zarei, S.; Mortazavi, S. M. J.; Mehdizadeh, A. R.; Jalalipour, M.; Borzou, S.; Taeb, S.; Haghani, M.; Mortazavi, S. A. R.; Shojaei-fard, M. B.; Nematollahi, S.; Alighanbari, N.; Jarideh, S.

    2015-01-01

    Background Nowadays, mothers are continuously exposed to different sources of electromagnetic fields before and even during pregnancy.  It has recently been shown that exposure to mobile phone radiation during pregnancy may lead to adverse effects on the brain development in offspring and cause hyperactivity. Researchers have shown that behavioral problems in laboratory animals which have a similar appearance to ADHD are caused by intrauterine exposure to mobile phones. Objective The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the maternal exposure to different sources of electromagnetic fields affect on the rate and severity of speech problems in their offspring. Methods In this study, mothers of 35 healthy 3-5 year old children (control group) and 77 children and diagnosed with speech problems who had been referred to a speech treatment center in Shiraz, Iran were interviewed. These mothers were asked whether they had exposure to different sources of electromagnetic fields such as mobile phones, mobile base stations, Wi-Fi, cordless phones, laptops and power lines. Results We found a significant association between either the call time (P=0.002) or history of mobile phone use (months used) and speech problems in the offspring (P=0.003). However, other exposures had no effect on the occurrence of speech problems. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate a possible association between maternal exposure to electromagnetic field and speech problems in the offspring. Although a major limitation in our study is the relatively small sample size, this study indicates that the maternal exposure to common sources of electromagnetic fields such as mobile phones can affect the occurrence of speech problems in the offspring. PMID:26396971

  9. A Challenging Issue in the Etiology of Speech Problems: The Effect of Maternal Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields on Speech Problems in the Offspring.

    PubMed

    Zarei, S; Mortazavi, S M J; Mehdizadeh, A R; Jalalipour, M; Borzou, S; Taeb, S; Haghani, M; Mortazavi, S A R; Shojaei-Fard, M B; Nematollahi, S; Alighanbari, N; Jarideh, S

    2015-09-01

    Nowadays, mothers are continuously exposed to different sources of electromagnetic fields before and even during pregnancy.  It has recently been shown that exposure to mobile phone radiation during pregnancy may lead to adverse effects on the brain development in offspring and cause hyperactivity. Researchers have shown that behavioral problems in laboratory animals which have a similar appearance to ADHD are caused by intrauterine exposure to mobile phones. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the maternal exposure to different sources of electromagnetic fields affect on the rate and severity of speech problems in their offspring. In this study, mothers of 35 healthy 3-5 year old children (control group) and 77 children and diagnosed with speech problems who had been referred to a speech treatment center in Shiraz, Iran were interviewed. These mothers were asked whether they had exposure to different sources of electromagnetic fields such as mobile phones, mobile base stations, Wi-Fi, cordless phones, laptops and power lines. We found a significant association between either the call time (P=0.002) or history of mobile phone use (months used) and speech problems in the offspring (P=0.003). However, other exposures had no effect on the occurrence of speech problems. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate a possible association between maternal exposure to electromagnetic field and speech problems in the offspring. Although a major limitation in our study is the relatively small sample size, this study indicates that the maternal exposure to common sources of electromagnetic fields such as mobile phones can affect the occurrence of speech problems in the offspring.

  10. Mobile phones: Reservoirs for the transmission of nosocomial pathogens.

    PubMed

    Pal, Shekhar; Juyal, Deepak; Adekhandi, Shamanth; Sharma, Munesh; Prakash, Rajat; Sharma, Neelam; Rana, Amit; Parihar, Ashwin

    2015-01-01

    Global burden of hospital-associated infection (HAI) is on the rise and contributes significantly to morbidity and mortality of the patients. Mobile phones are indispensible part of communication among doctors and other health care workers (HCWs) in hospitals. Hands of HCWs play an important role in transmission of HAI and mobile phones which are seldom cleaned and often touched during or after the examination of patients without hand washing can act as a reservoir for transmission of potent pathogens. This study aimed to investigate the rate of bacterial contamination of mobile phones among HCWs in our tertiary care hospital and to compare it with personal mobile phones of non-HCWs (control group). The mobile phones and dominant hands of 386 participants were sampled from four different groups, hospital doctors and staff (132), college faculty and staff (54), medical students (100) and control group (100). Informed consent and questionnaire was duly signed by all the participants. Samples were processed according to standard guidelines. 316 mobile phones (81.8%) and 309 hand swab samples (80%) showed growth of bacterial pathogens. The most predominant isolates were Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus, Staphylococcus aureus, Acinetobacter species, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas species and Enterococcus species. Hundred percent contamination was found in mobile phones and hands of HCWs indicating mobile phones can be the potential source of nosocomial pathogens. Our study results suggest that use of mobile phones in health care setup should be restricted only for emergency calls. Strict adherence to infection control policies such as proper hand hygiene practices should be followed.

  11. Mobile phones: Reservoirs for the transmission of nosocomial pathogens

    PubMed Central

    Pal, Shekhar; Juyal, Deepak; Adekhandi, Shamanth; Sharma, Munesh; Prakash, Rajat; Sharma, Neelam; Rana, Amit; Parihar, Ashwin

    2015-01-01

    Background: Global burden of hospital-associated infection (HAI) is on the rise and contributes significantly to morbidity and mortality of the patients. Mobile phones are indispensible part of communication among doctors and other health care workers (HCWs) in hospitals. Hands of HCWs play an important role in transmission of HAI and mobile phones which are seldom cleaned and often touched during or after the examination of patients without hand washing can act as a reservoir for transmission of potent pathogens. This study aimed to investigate the rate of bacterial contamination of mobile phones among HCWs in our tertiary care hospital and to compare it with personal mobile phones of non-HCWs (control group). Materials and Methods: The mobile phones and dominant hands of 386 participants were sampled from four different groups, hospital doctors and staff (132), college faculty and staff (54), medical students (100) and control group (100). Informed consent and questionnaire was duly signed by all the participants. Samples were processed according to standard guidelines. Results: 316 mobile phones (81.8%) and 309 hand swab samples (80%) showed growth of bacterial pathogens. The most predominant isolates were Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus, Staphylococcus aureus, Acinetobacter species, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas species and Enterococcus species. Conclusion: Hundred percent contamination was found in mobile phones and hands of HCWs indicating mobile phones can be the potential source of nosocomial pathogens. Our study results suggest that use of mobile phones in health care setup should be restricted only for emergency calls. Strict adherence to infection control policies such as proper hand hygiene practices should be followed. PMID:26322292

  12. Shutterless ion mobility spectrometer with fast pulsed electron source

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bunert, E.; Heptner, A.; Reinecke, T.; Kirk, A. T.; Zimmermann, S.

    2017-02-01

    Ion mobility spectrometers (IMS) are devices for fast and very sensitive trace gas analysis. The measuring principle is based on an initial ionization process of the target analyte. Most IMS employ radioactive electron sources, such as 63Ni or 3H. These radioactive materials have the disadvantage of legal restrictions and the electron emission has a predetermined intensity and cannot be controlled or disabled. In this work, we replaced the 3H source of our IMS with 100 mm drift tube length with our nonradioactive electron source, which generates comparable spectra to the 3H source. An advantage of our emission current controlled nonradioactive electron source is that it can operate in a fast pulsed mode with high electron intensities. By optimizing the geometric parameters and developing fast control electronics, we can achieve very short electron emission pulses for ionization with high intensities and an adjustable pulse width of down to a few nanoseconds. This results in small ion packets at simultaneously high ion densities, which are subsequently separated in the drift tube. Normally, the required small ion packet is generated by a complex ion shutter mechanism. By omitting the additional reaction chamber, the ion packet can be generated directly at the beginning of the drift tube by our pulsed nonradioactive electron source with only slight reduction in resolving power. Thus, the complex and costly shutter mechanism and its electronics can also be omitted, which leads to a simple low-cost IMS-system with a pulsed nonradioactive electron source and a resolving power of 90.

  13. 40 CFR Appendix II to Subpart V of... - Arbitration Rules

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emissions Control System Performance Warranty... by either party. It shall contain a statement of the matter in dispute, the amount of money involved... sums of money as it deems necessary to defray the expense of the arbitration, including the arbitrator...

  14. 40 CFR Appendix II to Subpart V of... - Arbitration Rules

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emissions Control System Performance Warranty... by either party. It shall contain a statement of the matter in dispute, the amount of money involved... sums of money as it deems necessary to defray the expense of the arbitration, including the arbitrator...

  15. 40 CFR Appendix II to Subpart V of... - Arbitration Rules

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emissions Control System Performance Warranty... by either party. It shall contain a statement of the matter in dispute, the amount of money involved... sums of money as it deems necessary to defray the expense of the arbitration, including the arbitrator...

  16. 40 CFR Appendix II to Subpart V of... - Arbitration Rules

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emissions Control System Performance Warranty... by either party. It shall contain a statement of the matter in dispute, the amount of money involved... sums of money as it deems necessary to defray the expense of the arbitration, including the arbitrator...

  17. 40 CFR Appendix II to Subpart V of... - Arbitration Rules

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emissions Control System Performance Warranty... by either party. It shall contain a statement of the matter in dispute, the amount of money involved... sums of money as it deems necessary to defray the expense of the arbitration, including the arbitrator...

  18. 40 CFR 85.530 - Vehicle/engine labels and packaging labels.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of Clean Alternative Fuel... from the tampering prohibition: (1) You must make a supplemental emission control information label for..., consistent with the requirements of this subpart. You may do this by identifying the OEM test group/engine...

  19. 40 CFR 85.530 - Vehicle/engine labels and packaging labels.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of Clean Alternative Fuel... from the tampering prohibition: (1) You must make a supplemental emission control information label for..., consistent with the requirements of this subpart. You may do this by identifying the OEM test group/engine...

  20. 40 CFR 85.510 - Exemption provisions for new and relatively new vehicles/engines.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... control system functionality when operating on the fuel with which the vehicle/engine was originally... relatively new vehicles/engines. 85.510 Section 85.510 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of...

  1. 40 CFR Appendix Viii to Part 85 - Vehicle and Engine Parameters and Specifications

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ...) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Pt. 85, App. VIII Appendix VIII.... Air Inlet System. 1. Temperature control system calibration. IV. Fuel System. 1. General. a. Engine idle speed. b. Engine idle mixture. 2. Carburetion. a. Air-fuel flow calibration. b. Transient...

  2. 40 CFR Appendix Viii to Part 85 - Vehicle and Engine Parameters and Specifications

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ...) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Pt. 85, App. VIII Appendix VIII.... Air Inlet System. 1. Temperature control system calibration. IV. Fuel System. 1. General. a. Engine idle speed. b. Engine idle mixture. 2. Carburetion. a. Air-fuel flow calibration. b. Transient...

  3. 40 CFR Appendix Viii to Part 85 - Vehicle and Engine Parameters and Specifications

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ...) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Pt. 85, App. VIII Appendix VIII.... Air Inlet System. 1. Temperature control system calibration. IV. Fuel System. 1. General. a. Engine idle speed. b. Engine idle mixture. 2. Carburetion. a. Air-fuel flow calibration. b. Transient...

  4. 40 CFR 85.2209 - 2500 rpm/idle test-EPA 81.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false 2500 rpm/idle test-EPA 81. 85.2209 Section 85.2209 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short...

  5. 40 CFR 85.2222 - On-board diagnostic test procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    .... 85.2222 Section 85.2222 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance... inspected at the EPA Docket No. A-94-21 at EPA's Air Docket (LE-131), Room 1500 M, 1st Floor, Waterside Mall...

  6. 40 CFR 85.2211 - Engine restart idle test-EPA 81.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Engine restart idle test-EPA 81. 85.2211 Section 85.2211 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short...

  7. Can mobile phones help control neglected tropical diseases? Experiences from Tanzania.

    PubMed

    Madon, Shirin; Amaguru, Jackline Olanya; Malecela, Mwele Ntuli; Michael, Edwin

    2014-02-01

    The increasing proliferation of mobiles offers possibilities for improving health systems in developing countries. A case in point is Tanzania which has piloted a mobile phone-based Management Information System (MIS) for the control of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) where village health workers (VHWs) were given mobile phones with web-based software to test the feasibility of using frontline health workers to capture data at point of source. Based on qualitative case study research carried out in 2011, we found that providing mobile phones to VHWs has helped to increase the efficiency of routine work boosting the motivation and self-esteem of VHWs. However, despite these advantages, the information generated from the mobile phone-based NTD MIS has yet to be used to support decentralised decision-making. Even with improved technology and political will, the biggest hindrance to local usage of information for health planning is the lack of synthesised and analysed health information from the district and national levels to the villages. Without inculcating a culture of providing health information feedback to frontline workers and community organisations, the benefits of the intervention will be limited. If not addressed, this will mean that mobiles have maintained the one-way upward flow of information for NTD control and simply made reporting more hi-tech. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Long-term particulate matter modeling for health effect studies in California - Part 2: Concentrations and sources of ultrafine organic aerosols

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hu, Jianlin; Jathar, Shantanu; Zhang, Hongliang; Ying, Qi; Chen, Shu-Hua; Cappa, Christopher D.; Kleeman, Michael J.

    2017-04-01

    Organic aerosol (OA) is a major constituent of ultrafine particulate matter (PM0. 1). Recent epidemiological studies have identified associations between PM0. 1 OA and premature mortality and low birth weight. In this study, the source-oriented UCD/CIT model was used to simulate the concentrations and sources of primary organic aerosols (POA) and secondary organic aerosols (SOA) in PM0. 1 in California for a 9-year (2000-2008) modeling period with 4 km horizontal resolution to provide more insights about PM0. 1 OA for health effect studies. As a related quality control, predicted monthly average concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2. 5) total organic carbon at six major urban sites had mean fractional bias of -0.31 to 0.19 and mean fractional errors of 0.4 to 0.59. The predicted ratio of PM2. 5 SOA / OA was lower than estimates derived from chemical mass balance (CMB) calculations by a factor of 2-3, which suggests the potential effects of processes such as POA volatility, additional SOA formation mechanism, and missing sources. OA in PM0. 1, the focus size fraction of this study, is dominated by POA. Wood smoke is found to be the single biggest source of PM0. 1 OA in winter in California, while meat cooking, mobile emissions (gasoline and diesel engines), and other anthropogenic sources (mainly solvent usage and waste disposal) are the most important sources in summer. Biogenic emissions are predicted to be the largest PM0. 1 SOA source, followed by mobile sources and other anthropogenic sources, but these rankings are sensitive to the SOA model used in the calculation. Air pollution control programs aiming to reduce the PM0. 1 OA concentrations should consider controlling solvent usage, waste disposal, and mobile emissions in California, but these findings should be revisited after the latest science is incorporated into the SOA exposure calculations. The spatial distributions of SOA associated with different sources are not sensitive to the choice of SOA model, although the absolute amount of SOA can change significantly. Therefore, the spatial distributions of PM0. 1 POA and SOA over the 9-year study period provide useful information for epidemiological studies to further investigate the associations with health outcomes.

  9. Source-dependent and source-independent controls on plutonium oxidation state and colloid associations in groundwater.

    PubMed

    Buesseler, Ken O; Kaplan, Daniel I; Dai, Minhan; Pike, Steven

    2009-03-01

    Plutonium (Pu) was characterized for its isotopic composition, oxidation states, and association with colloids in groundwater samples near disposal basins in F-Area of the Savannah River Site and compared to similar samples collected six years earlier. Two sources of Pu were identified, the disposal basins, which contained a 24Pu/l39Pu isotopic signature consistent with weapons grade Pu, and 244Cm, a cocontaminant that is a progenitor radionuclide of 24Pu. 24Pu that originated primarily from 244Cm tended to be appreciably more oxidized (Pu(V/VI)), less associated with colloids (approximately 1 kDa - 0.2 microm), and more mobile than 239Pu, as suggested by our prior studies at this site. This is not evidence of isotope fractionation but rather "source-dependent" controls on 240Pu speciation which are processes that are not at equilibrium, i.e., processes that appear kinetically hindered. There were also "source-independent" controls on 239Pu speciation, which are those processes that follow thermodynamic equilibrium with their surroundings. For example, a groundwater pH increase in one well from 4.1 in 1998 to 6.1 in 2004 resulted in an order of magnitude decrease in groundwater 239Pu concentrations. Similarly, the fraction of 239Pu in the reduced Pu(III/IV) and colloidal forms increased systematically with decreases in redox condition in 2004 vs 1998. This research demonstrates the importance of source-dependent and source-independent controls on Pu speciation which would impact Pu mobility during changes in hydrological, chemical, or biological conditions on both seasonal and decadal time scales, and over short spatial scales. This implies more dynamic shifts in Pu speciation, colloids association, and transport in groundwater than commonly believed.

  10. Emissions of black carbon and co-pollutants emitted from diesel vehicles in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zavala, Miguel; Molina, Luisa T.; Fortner, Edward; Knighton, Berk; Herndon, Scott; Yacovitch, Tara; Floerchinger, Cody; Roscioli, Joseph; Kolb, Charles; Mejia, Jose Antonio; Sarmiento, Jorge; Paramo, Victor Hugo; Zirath, Sergio; Jazcilevich, Aron

    2014-05-01

    Black carbon emitted from freight, public transport, and heavy duty trucks sources is linked with adverse effects on human health. In addition, the control of emissions of black carbon, an important short-lived climate forcing agent (SLCF), has recently been considered as one of the key strategies for mitigating regional near-term climate change. Despite the availability of new emissions control technologies for reducing emissions from diesel-powered mobile sources, their introduction is still not widespread in many urban areas and there is a need to characterize real-world emission rates of black carbon from this key source. The emissions of black carbon, organic carbon, and other gaseous and particle pollutants from diesel-powered mobile sources in Mexico were characterized by deploying a mobile laboratory equipped with real-time instrumentation in Mexico City as part of the SLCFs-Mexico 2013 project. From February 25-28 of 2013 the emissions from selected diesel-powered vehicles were measured in both controlled experiments and real-world on-road driving conditions. Sampled vehicles had several emissions levels technologies, including: EPA98, EPA03, EPA04, EURO3-5, and Hybrid. All vehicles were sampled using diesel fuel and several vehicles were measured using both diesel and biodiesel fuels. Additional measurements included the use of a remote sensing unit for the co-sampling of all tested vehicles, and the installation and operation of a Portable Emissions Measurements System (PEMS) for the measurement of emissions from a test vehicle. We will present inter-comparisons of the emission factors obtained among the various vehicle technologies that were sampled during the experiment as well as the inter-comparison of results from the various sampling platforms. The results can be used to

  11. Relative Impact of Emissions Controls and Meteorology on Air Pollution Mitigation Associated with the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Conference in Beijing, China

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Y.; Wang, Y.; Schauer, J. J.; de Foy, B.

    2016-12-01

    The Beijing government and its surrounding provinces implemented a series of measures to ensure haze-free skies during the 22nd Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference (November 10th - 11th, 2014). These measures included restrictions on traffic, construction, and industrial activity. Twelve hour measurements of the concentration and composition of ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) were performed for 5 consecutive months near the APEC conference site before (September 11th - November 2nd, 2014), during (November 3rd - 12th, 2014) and after (November 13th, 2014 - January 31st, 2015). The measurements are used in a positive matrix factorization model to determine the contributions from seven sources of PM2.5: secondary aerosols, mobile source, industrial emission, road dust, soil dust, biomass burning and residual oil combustion. The source apportionment results are integrated with backward trajectory analysis using Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) meteorological simulations, which determine the relative influence of new regulation and meteorology upon improved air quality during the APEC conference. Data show that controls are very effective, but meteorology must be taken into account to determine the actual influence of the controls on pollution reduction. The Industry source control is the most effective for reducing concentrations, follows by secondary aerosol and biomass controls, while the least effective control is for the residual oil combustion source. The largest reductions in concentrations occur when air mass transport is from the west-northwest (Ulanqab). Secondary aerosol and mobile source reductions are most significant for air mass transport from the north-northwest (Xilingele League) origin, and least significant for northeast transport (Chifeng via Tangshan conditions). The largest reductions of soil dust, biomass burning, and industrial source are distinctly seen for Ulanqab conditions and least distinct for Xilingele League.

  12. Volume 4 - Mobile Sources

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Mobile source reference material for activity data collection from the Emissions Inventory Improvement Program (EIIP). Provides complete methods for collecting key inputs to onroad mobile and nonroad mobile emissions models.

  13. 10 CFR 35.647 - Additional technical requirements for mobile remote afterloader units.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... on the remote afterloader unit, on the control console, and in the facility; (3) Viewing and intercom... monitors used to indicate room exposures; (6) Source positioning (accuracy); and (7) Radiation monitors...

  14. PM RESEARCH

    EPA Science Inventory

    Activity Area (F03): PM Implementation NRMRL conducts research to improve the techniques used to quantify PM and PM precursor emissions from stationary, mobile, and fugitive sources and investigates the performance and cost of innovative control technology systems. The emission...

  15. Mobile Source Observation Database (MSOD)

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    The Mobile Source Observation Database (MSOD) is a relational database developed by the Assessment and Standards Division (ASD) of the U.S. EPA Office of Transportation and Air Quality (formerly the Office of Mobile Sources).

  16. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Corey Thuen

    The On-Device Dynamic Analysis of Mobile Applications (ODAMA) project was started in an effort to protect mobile devices used in Industrial Control Systems (ICS) from cyber attack. Because mobile devices hide as much of the “computer” as possible, the user’s ability to assess the software running on their system is limited. The research team chose Google’s Android platform for this initial research because it is open source and it would give us freedom in our approach, including the ability to modify the mobile device’s operating system itself. The research team concluded that a Privileged Application was the right approach, andmore » the result was ODAMA. This project is an important piece of the work to secure the expanding use of mobile devices with our nation’s critical infrastructure.« less

  17. Factors influencing mobile source particulate matter emissions-to-exposure relationships in the Boston urban area.

    PubMed

    Greco, Susan L; Wilson, Andrew M; Hanna, Steven R; Levy, Jonathan I

    2007-11-15

    Benefit-cost and regulatory impact analyses often use atmospheric dispersion models with coarse resolution to estimate the benefits of proposed mobile source emission control regulations. This approach may bias health estimates or miss important intra-urban variability for primary air pollutants. In this study, we estimate primary fine particulate matter (PM2.5) intake fractions (iF; the fraction of a pollutant emitted from a source that is inhaled by the population) for each of 23 398 road segments in the Boston Metro Core area to evaluate the potential for intra-urban variability in the emissions-to-exposure relationship. We estimate iFs using the CAL3QHCR line source model combined with residential populations within 5000 m of each road segment. The annual average values for the road segments range from 0.8 to 53 per million, with a mean of 12 per million. On average, 46% of the total exposure is realized within 200 m of the road segment, though this varies from 0 to 93% largely due to variable population patterns. Our findings indicate the likelihood of substantial intra-urban variability in mobile source primary PM2.5 iF that accounting for population movement with time, localized meteorological conditions, and street-canyon configurations would likely increase.

  18. Calibrated vapor generator source

    DOEpatents

    Davies, John P.; Larson, Ronald A.; Goodrich, Lorenzo D.; Hall, Harold J.; Stoddard, Billy D.; Davis, Sean G.; Kaser, Timothy G.; Conrad, Frank J.

    1995-01-01

    A portable vapor generator is disclosed that can provide a controlled source of chemical vapors, such as, narcotic or explosive vapors. This source can be used to test and calibrate various types of vapor detection systems by providing a known amount of vapors to the system. The vapor generator is calibrated using a reference ion mobility spectrometer. A method of providing this vapor is described, as follows: explosive or narcotic is deposited on quartz wool, placed in a chamber that can be heated or cooled (depending on the vapor pressure of the material) to control the concentration of vapors in the reservoir. A controlled flow of air is pulsed over the quartz wool releasing a preset quantity of vapors at the outlet.

  19. 78 FR 59017 - Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-09-25

    ... be posted on the Subcommittee's Web site: http://www.epa.gov/air/caaac/mobile_sources.html . MSTRS.../mobile_sources.html . Individuals or organizations wishing to provide comments to the Subcommittee should...

  20. 78 FR 37717 - Adequacy Status of the Submitted 2009 and 2025 PM2.5

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-06-24

    ... control strategy implementation plan revision or maintenance plan was endorsed by the Governor (or his or...) Before the control strategy implementation plan or maintenance plan was submitted to EPA, consultation... maintenance: Both the 2009 and 2025 budgets are less than the on-road mobile source inventory for 2007 that...

  1. 40 CFR 85.2213 - Idle test-EPA 91.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 19 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Idle test-EPA 91. 85.2213 Section 85...) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Control System Performance Warranty Short Tests § 85.2213 Idle test—EPA 91. (a) General requirements—(1) Exhaust gas sampling algorithm. The analysis of...

  2. Mobile Source Mitigation Opportunities

    EPA Science Inventory

    For Frank Princiotta’s book, Global Climate Change—The Technology Challenge The objective of this chapter is to review this history, focusing initially on the historical growth patterns and the resulting environmental consequences; then on the current control efforts around the ...

  3. 40 CFR 85.1515 - Emission standards and test procedures applicable to imported nonconforming motor vehicles and...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Engines § 85.1515 Emission...

  4. [Study on schistosomiasis control measures in mobile boat fishermen. III. Construction and application of regional joint mechanism for schistosomiasis examination and treatment in boatmen].

    PubMed

    Yang, Gao; Le-Ping, Sun; Yin-Ping, Zuo; Yu-Hui, Xu; Zheng-Qiu, Zhang; Yu-Cai, Ma; Jin-Bin, Gao; Xi-Guang, Zhu; Bo, Zheng; Guo-Jing, Yang; Qing-Biao, Hong; Kun, Yang; You-Sheng, Liang

    2011-10-01

    To construct the regional joint mechanism for schistosomiasis examination and treatment and the examination protocol among mobile boatmen, so as to provide effective measures for control of mobile infectious sources of schistosomiasis in the Yangtze River basin. According to the characteristics of the cargo frequent mobility of ships with fixed anchor points, the health, maritime and transport sections were jointly cooperated to set up sites for schistosomiasis examination and treatment in ship locks, wharfs and harbors. The infection of schistosomiasis was detected by means of rapid immunological screening and stool examination, and the regional joint mechanism was constructed. The sero-positives were traced for further parasitological examinations and treatment by using the regional joint network for schistosomiasis examination and treatment. The schistosome infections in boatmen were analyzed and compared between different examination and treatment sites and among different navigation coverage. A total of 16 sites for examination and treatment of schistosomiasis, including 5 fixed sites and 11 mobile sites, were set up in 12 townships of 6 districts (counties) of Yangzhou City. During a period between June and August, the examination of schistosomiasis was conducted in 40 sites, and of the 1 225 boatmen from 967 boats detected, 19 cases were sero-positive, with a positive rate of 1.55%. Among the 14 sero-positives examined, no stool positive patients were found. Among the 1 225 boatmen detected, 820 were from fixed sites and 405 from mobile sites, and 4 and 15 cases were found, respectively, with positive rates of 0.49% and 3.70%, respectively, and the sero-positive rate was higher in mobile sites and that in fixed sites. A total of 898 boatmen from the Yangtze River basin and 305 from the local inland rivers were examined, and 3 and 16 sero-positive cases were detected, respectively, with positive rates of 0.33% and 5.25%, respectively, and the sero-positive rate was significantly higher in the boatmen from the local inland rivers than that from the Yangtze River basin. Regional joint mechanism is an effective strategy for examination and treatment of schistosomiasis among mobile boatmen, which provides a new approach to control mobile infectious sources of schistosomiasis in the Yangtze River basin.

  5. Exception handling for sensor fusion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chavez, G. T.; Murphy, Robin R.

    1993-08-01

    This paper presents a control scheme for handling sensing failures (sensor malfunctions, significant degradations in performance due to changes in the environment, and errant expectations) in sensor fusion for autonomous mobile robots. The advantages of the exception handling mechanism are that it emphasizes a fast response to sensing failures, is able to use only a partial causal model of sensing failure, and leads to a graceful degradation of sensing if the sensing failure cannot be compensated for. The exception handling mechanism consists of two modules: error classification and error recovery. The error classification module in the exception handler attempts to classify the type and source(s) of the error using a modified generate-and-test procedure. If the source of the error is isolated, the error recovery module examines its cache of recovery schemes, which either repair or replace the current sensing configuration. If the failure is due to an error in expectation or cannot be identified, the planner is alerted. Experiments using actual sensor data collected by the CSM Mobile Robotics/Machine Perception Laboratory's Denning mobile robot demonstrate the operation of the exception handling mechanism.

  6. Ozone changes in response to the heavy-duty diesel truck control in the Pearl River Delta

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yu, Xin; Yuan, Zibing; Fung, J. C. H.; Xue, Jian; Li, Ying; Zheng, Junyu; Lau, A. K. H.

    2014-05-01

    In recent years, restricting heavy-duty diesel trucks from driving within urban areas during the daytime is implemented in major PRD cities (e.g. Guangzhou and Shenzhen). Potential effects of this traffic control policy on spatial and temporal variations of O3 concentrations are examined by CMAQ model system. Temporal profiles of mobile source emissions are modified to reflect the emission characteristics after the control. Our results show that: (1) with the updated mobile emission profile, there is a notable improvement in O3 simulation performance for urban sites, with reductions in both the nighttime O3 overestimation (up to 25 ppb) and the daytime underestimation on O3 peak values (up to 20 ppb); (2) although the control policies are only applied in urban locations, their effects may extend to much larger downwind areas. The results from this study provide basic information that is useful in understanding the effects of mobile control policies on ambient O3 in highly developing regions of China where similar strategies have been widely implemented.

  7. Spatial and temporal source apportionment of PM2.5 in Georgia, 2002 to 2013

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhai, Xinxin; Mulholland, James A.; Russell, Armistead G.; Holmes, Heather A.

    2017-07-01

    The Chemical Mass Balance (CMB) receptor model was applied to estimate PM2.5 source impacts over Georgia from 2002 to 2013 using ambient PM2.5 species concentration data from 13 sites. Measurements of 19 PM2.5 species were used as inputs along with measurement-based source profiles to estimate the impacts of nine sources, including both primary components (from heavy duty diesel vehicle, light duty gasoline vehicle, biomass burning, coal combustion, and suspended dust sources) and secondary pollutants (ammonium sulfate, ammonium bisulfate, ammonium nitrate, and secondary organic carbon). From 2002 to 2013, PM2.5 total mass decreased from 13.8 μg/m3 to 9.2 μg/m3 averaged across all sites, a 33% decrease. Largest decreases were observed for secondary sulfate and nitrate species (58% and 44%, respectively). The amount of neutralization by ammonium did not change substantially over the time period in spite of substantial decreases in sulfate and nitrate concentrations. Total mobile source impacts decreased more at urban sites (39%) than rural sites (23%), whereas biomass burning decreased more at rural sites (34%) than urban sites (27%). The estimated central-site source impacts are found to spatially represent large areas for secondary pollutants, smaller areas for biomass burning and dust, and very local areas for mobile sources and coal combustion. Trends from the National Emissions Inventory were compared with the annual trends of mobile source impacts, coal combustion impacts, and sulfate concentrations, resulting in statistically significant positive trends with Pearson R2 of 0.80, 0.64, and 0.79, respectively. Results presented here suggest that PM2.5 reductions in Georgia and the Southeast have been achieved by control of both stationary and mobile sources, and that PM2.5 is comprised of increasing fractions of biomass burning emissions and suspended dust. The temporal trends of source impacts at each site adds information about source changes beyond the every-three-year emission inventories for evaluation of emission-based model results.

  8. Modeled and observed ozone sensitivity to mobile-source emissions in Mexico City

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zavala, M.; Lei, W.; Molina, M. J.; Molina, L. T.

    2009-01-01

    The emission characteristics of mobile sources in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA) have changed significantly over the past few decades in response to emission control policies, advancements in vehicle technologies and improvements in fuel quality, among others. Along with these changes, concurrent non-linear changes in photochemical levels and criteria pollutants have been observed, providing a unique opportunity to understand the effects of perturbations of mobile emission levels on the photochemistry in the region using observational and modeling approaches. The observed historical trends of ozone (O3), carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) suggest that ozone production in the MCMA has changed from a low to a high VOC-sensitive regime over a period of 20 years. Comparison of the historical emission trends of CO, NOx and hydrocarbons derived from mobile-source emission studies in the MCMA from 1991 to 2006 with the trends of the concentrations of CO, NOx, and the CO/NOx ratio during peak traffic hours also indicates that fuel-based fleet average emission factors have significantly decreased for CO and VOCs during this period whereas NOx emission factors do not show any strong trend, effectively reducing the ambient VOC/NOx ratio. This study presents the results of model analyses on the sensitivity of the observed ozone levels to the estimated historical changes in its precursors. The model sensitivity analyses used a well-validated base case simulation of a high pollution episode in the MCMA with the mathematical Decoupled Direct Method (DDM) and the standard Brute Force Method (BFM) in the 3-D CAMx chemical transport model. The model reproduces adequately the observed historical trends and current photochemical levels. Comparison of the BFM and the DDM sensitivity techniques indicates that the model yields ozone values that increase linearly with NOx emission reductions and decrease linearly with VOC emission reductions only up to 30% from the base case. We further performed emissions perturbations from the gasoline fleet, diesel fleet, all mobile (gasoline plus diesel) and all emission sources (anthropogenic plus biogenic). The results suggest that although large ozone reductions obtained in the past were from changes in emissions from gasoline vehicles, currently significant benefits could be achieved with additional emission control policies directed to regulation of VOC emissions from diesel and area sources that are high emitters of alkenes, aromatics and aldehydes.

  9. Modeled and observed ozone sensitivity to mobile-source emissions in Mexico City

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zavala, M.; Lei, W. F.; Molina, M. J.; Molina, L. T.

    2008-08-01

    The emission characteristics of mobile sources in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA) have changed significantly over the past few decades in response to emission control policies, advancements in vehicle technologies and improvements in fuel quality, among others. Along with these changes, concurrent non-linear changes in photochemical levels and criteria pollutants have been observed, providing a unique opportunity to understand the effects of perturbations of mobile emission levels on the photochemistry in the region using observational and modeling approaches. The observed historical trends of ozone (O3), carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) suggest that ozone production in the MCMA has changed from a low to a high VOC-sensitive regime over a period of 20 years. Comparison of the historical emission trends of CO, NOx and hydrocarbons derived from mobile-source emission studies in the MCMA from 1991 to 2006 with the trends of the concentrations of CO, NOx, and the CO/NOx ratio during peak traffic hours also indicates that fuel-based fleet average emission factors have significantly decreased for CO and VOCs during this period whereas NOx emission factors do not show any strong trend, effectively reducing the ambient VOC/NOx ratio. This study presents the results of model analyses on the sensitivity of the observed ozone levels to the estimated historical changes in its precursors. The model sensitivity analyses used a well-validated base case simulation of a high pollution episode in the MCMA with the mathematical Decoupled Direct Method (DDM) and the standard Brute Force Method (BFM) in the 3-D CAMx chemical transport model. The model reproduces adequately the observed historical trends and current photochemical levels. Comparison of the BFM and the DDM sensitivity techniques indicates that the model yields ozone values that increase linearly with NOx emission reductions and decrease linearly with VOC emission reductions only up to 30% from the base case. We further performed emissions perturbations from the gasoline fleet, diesel fleet, all mobile (gasoline plus diesel) and all emission sources (anthropogenic plus biogenic). The results suggest that although large ozone reductions obtained in the past were from changes in emissions from gasoline vehicles, currently significant benefits could be achieved with additional emission control policies directed to regulation of VOC emissions from diesel and area sources that are high emitters of alkenes, aromatics and aldehydes.

  10. Mobile Source Observation Database (MSOD)

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    The Mobile Source Observation Database (MSOD) is a relational database being developed by the Assessment and Standards Division (ASD) of the US Environmental Protection Agency Office of Transportation and Air Quality (formerly the Office of Mobile Sources). The MSOD contains emission test data from in-use mobile air- pollution sources such as cars, trucks, and engines from trucks and nonroad vehicles. Data in the database was collected from 1982 to the present. The data is intended to be representative of in-use vehicle emissions in the United States.

  11. ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY VERIFICATION--TEST REPORT OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSION CONTROL DEVICES, CUMMINS EMISSION SOLUTIONS AND CUMMINS FILTRATION DIESEL OXIDATION CATALYST AND CLOSED CRANKCASE VENTILATION SYSTEM

    EPA Science Inventory

    The U.S. EPA has created the Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) Program. ETV seeks to provide high-quality, peer-reviewed data on technology performance. The Air Pollution Control Technology (APCT) Verification Center, a center under the ETV Program, is operated by Res...

  12. Mobile phone use and risk of brain tumours: a systematic review of association between study quality, source of funding, and research outcomes.

    PubMed

    Prasad, Manya; Kathuria, Prachi; Nair, Pallavi; Kumar, Amit; Prasad, Kameshwar

    2017-05-01

    Mobile phones emit electromagnetic radiations that are classified as possibly carcinogenic to humans. Evidence for increased risk for brain tumours accumulated in parallel by epidemiologic investigations remains controversial. This paper aims to investigate whether methodological quality of studies and source of funding can explain the variation in results. PubMed and Cochrane CENTRAL searches were conducted from 1966 to December 2016, which was supplemented with relevant articles identified in the references. Twenty-two case control studies were included for systematic review. Meta-analysis of 14 case-control studies showed practically no increase in risk of brain tumour [OR 1.03 (95% CI 0.92-1.14)]. However, for mobile phone use of 10 years or longer (or >1640 h), the overall result of the meta-analysis showed a significant 1.33 times increase in risk. The summary estimate of government funded as well as phone industry funded studies showed 1.07 times increase in odds which was not significant, while mixed funded studies did not show any increase in risk of brain tumour. Metaregression analysis indicated that the association was significantly associated with methodological study quality (p < 0.019, 95% CI 0.009-0.09). Relationship between source of funding and log OR for each study was not statistically significant (p < 0.32, 95% CI 0.036-0.010). We found evidence linking mobile phone use and risk of brain tumours especially in long-term users (≥10 years). Studies with higher quality showed a trend towards high risk of brain tumour, while lower quality showed a trend towards lower risk/protection.

  13. Calibrated vapor generator source

    DOEpatents

    Davies, J.P.; Larson, R.A.; Goodrich, L.D.; Hall, H.J.; Stoddard, B.D.; Davis, S.G.; Kaser, T.G.; Conrad, F.J.

    1995-09-26

    A portable vapor generator is disclosed that can provide a controlled source of chemical vapors, such as, narcotic or explosive vapors. This source can be used to test and calibrate various types of vapor detection systems by providing a known amount of vapors to the system. The vapor generator is calibrated using a reference ion mobility spectrometer. A method of providing this vapor is described, as follows: explosive or narcotic is deposited on quartz wool, placed in a chamber that can be heated or cooled (depending on the vapor pressure of the material) to control the concentration of vapors in the reservoir. A controlled flow of air is pulsed over the quartz wool releasing a preset quantity of vapors at the outlet. 10 figs.

  14. Current Methodologies in Preparing Mobile Source Port-Related Emission Inventories Final Report April 2009

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This report focuses on mobile emission sources at ports, including oceangoing vessels (OGVs), harbor craft, and cargo handling equipment (CHE), as well as other land-side mobile emission sources at ports, such as locomotives and on-highway vehicles.

  15. California State Implementation Plan (SIP); Proposed Mobile Source Regulations

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    EPA is proposing to approve a submittal by the California to revise its SIP establishing standards and other requirements relating to the control of emissions from certain new and in-use on-road and off-road vehicles and engines.

  16. Final Approval of California Air Plan Revision; Mobile Source Regulations

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    EPA is taking final action to approve a submittal by California to revise its SIP regulations establishing standards and requirements relating to the control of emissions from new and in-use ond and off-road vehicles and engines..

  17. 40 CFR 85.1901 - Applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Applicability. 85.1901 Section 85.1901 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements § 85.1901 Applicability. The...

  18. 40 CFR 85.501 - General applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false General applicability. 85.501 Section 85.501 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of Aftermarket Conversions From Tampering...

  19. 40 CFR 85.1413 - Decertification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Decertification. 85.1413 Section 85.1413 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1413 Decertification. (a...

  20. 40 CFR 85.504 - Applicable standards.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Applicable standards. 85.504 Section 85.504 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of Aftermarket Conversions From Tampering...

  1. Combined corona discharge and UV photoionization source for ion mobility spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Bahrami, Hamed; Tabrizchi, Mahmoud

    2012-08-15

    An ion mobility spectrometer is described which is equipped with two non-radioactive ion sources, namely an atmospheric pressure photoionization and a corona discharge ionization source. The two sources cannot only run individually but are additionally capable of operating simultaneously. For photoionization, a UV lamp was mounted parallel to the axis of the ion mobility cell. The corona discharge electrode was mounted perpendicular to the UV radiation. The total ion current from the photoionization source was verified as a function of lamp current, sample flow rate, and drift field. Simultaneous operation of the two ionization sources was investigated by recording ion mobility spectra of selected samples. The design allows one to observe peaks from either the corona discharge or photoionization individually or simultaneously. This makes it possible to accurately compare peaks in the ion mobility spectra from each individual source. Finally, the instrument's capability for discriminating two peaks appearing in approximately identical drift times using each individual ionization source is demonstrated. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. On the Use of Human Mobility Proxies for Modeling Epidemics

    PubMed Central

    Tizzoni, Michele; Bajardi, Paolo; Decuyper, Adeline; Kon Kam King, Guillaume; Schneider, Christian M.; Blondel, Vincent; Smoreda, Zbigniew; González, Marta C.; Colizza, Vittoria

    2014-01-01

    Human mobility is a key component of large-scale spatial-transmission models of infectious diseases. Correctly modeling and quantifying human mobility is critical for improving epidemic control, but may be hindered by data incompleteness or unavailability. Here we explore the opportunity of using proxies for individual mobility to describe commuting flows and predict the diffusion of an influenza-like-illness epidemic. We consider three European countries and the corresponding commuting networks at different resolution scales, obtained from (i) official census surveys, (ii) proxy mobility data extracted from mobile phone call records, and (iii) the radiation model calibrated with census data. Metapopulation models defined on these countries and integrating the different mobility layers are compared in terms of epidemic observables. We show that commuting networks from mobile phone data capture the empirical commuting patterns well, accounting for more than 87% of the total fluxes. The distributions of commuting fluxes per link from mobile phones and census sources are similar and highly correlated, however a systematic overestimation of commuting traffic in the mobile phone data is observed. This leads to epidemics that spread faster than on census commuting networks, once the mobile phone commuting network is considered in the epidemic model, however preserving to a high degree the order of infection of newly affected locations. Proxies' calibration affects the arrival times' agreement across different models, and the observed topological and traffic discrepancies among mobility sources alter the resulting epidemic invasion patterns. Results also suggest that proxies perform differently in approximating commuting patterns for disease spread at different resolution scales, with the radiation model showing higher accuracy than mobile phone data when the seed is central in the network, the opposite being observed for peripheral locations. Proxies should therefore be chosen in light of the desired accuracy for the epidemic situation under study. PMID:25010676

  3. The National Near-Road Mobile Source Air Toxics Study

    EPA Science Inventory

    Recently, much attention has been directed at understanding the impact of mobile sources on near-road air quality, especially PM and its components, NOx and CO, but little information exists for mobile source air toxics (MSATs). MSATs of interest to this project are 1,3-butadiene...

  4. Changes in Soil Minerology Reduce Phosphorus Mobility During Anoxic Soil Conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Giri, S. K.; Geohring, L. D.; Richards, B. K.; Walter, M.; Steenhuis, T. S.

    2008-05-01

    Phosphorus (P) transfer from the landscape to receiving waters is an important environmental concern because these diffuse losses may cause widespread water quality impairments which can accelerate freshwater eutrophication. Phosphorus (P) mobilization from soil to surface and subsurface flow paths is controlled by numerous factors, and thus it can vary greatly with time and landscape scale. To determine whether P mobilization during soil saturation in the landscape was caused or controlled by complexation, iron reduction or ligand exchange, experiments were carried out to better characterize the interrelationships of varying P sources with dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and soil anoxic conditions. The soil incubation experiments consisted of treatments with distilled water, 5 mM acetic acid (HAc), 0.05% humic acid (HA) and glucose (40 mM) at 26 o C under anaerobic conditions to isolate effects of the various P exchange processes. The experimental results suggest that during soil saturation, the loosely bound P, which is primarily associated with iron oxyhydroxides, was mobilized by both reduction and complexation processes. Good correlations were observed between ferrous iron (Fe+2) and DOC, and between total dissolved phosphorus (TDP) and DOC, facilitating P desorption to the soil water. The anaerobic soil conditions with different P sources also indicated that mineralization facilitated P mobility, mainly due to chelation (humics and metabolites) and as a result of the bio-reduction of iron when fresh litter and grass were present. The organic P sources which are rich in carbohydrate and cellulose and that undergo fermentation due to the action of lactate forming organisms also caused a release of P. The easily metabolizable DOC sources lead to intensive bio-reduction of soil with the release of Fe, however this did not necessarily appear to cause more TDP in the soil solution. The varying P additions in soils with water, HAc and glucose (40mm) before and after soil incubation showed higher P sorption than aerobic soil due to reduced iron (Fe+2) - P mineral formation. Some of the readily available P in the soil solution tended to co-precipitate quickly with Fe, Al, Ca, and Mn, but it also resulted in the formation of earthy masses of vivianite [Fe2+3(PO4)2 . 8 H20], thus almost completely immobilizing P. These findings suggest that where conditions in the landscape are saturated, but remain stagnant for extended time periods, P additions may not necessarily enhance leaching once hydrological transport resumes. The temporal nature of P mobilization processes combined with rapid (i.e., preferential flow) hydrological transport appears to have a more important role in controlling P transport through the landscape.

  5. Source apportionment of atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Palm Beach County, Florida.

    PubMed

    Afshar-Mohajer, Nima; Wilson, Christina; Wu, Chang-Yu; Stormer, James E

    2016-04-01

    Due to concerns about adverse health effects associated with inhalation of atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), 30 ambient air samples were obtained at an air quality monitoring station in Palm Beach County, Florida, from March 2013 to March 2014. The ambient PAH concentration measurements and fractional emission rates of known sources were incorporated into a chemical mass balance model, CMB8.2, developed by EPA, to apportion contributions of three major PAH sources including preharvest sugarcane burning, mobile vehicles, and wildland fires. Strong association between the number of benzene rings and source contribution was found, and mobile vehicles were identified to be the prevailing source (contribution≥56%) for the observed PAHs concentration with lower molecular weights (four or fewer benzene rings) throughout the year. Preharvest sugarcane burning was the primary contributing source for PAHs with relatively higher molecular weights (five or more benzene rings) during the sugarcane burning season (from October to May of the next year). Source contribution of wildland fires varied among PAH compounds but was consistently lower than for sugarcane burning during the sugarcane harvest season. Determining the major sources responsible for ground-level PAHs serves as a tool to improving management strategies for PAH emitting sources and a step toward better protection of the health of residents in terms of exposure to PAHs. The results obtain insight into temporal dominance of PAH polluting sources for those residential areas located near sugarcane burning facilities and have implications beyond Palm Beach County, in areas with high concerns of PAHs and their linked sources. Source apportionment of atmospheric polycyclic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Palm Beach County, Florida, meant to estimate contributions of major sources in PAH concentrations measured at Belle Glade City of Palm Beach County. Number of benzene rings was found to be the key parameter in determining the source with the prevailing contribution. Mobile vehicle sources showed a higher contribution for species with four or fewer benzene rings, whereas sugarcane burning contributed more for species with five or more benzene rings. Results from this study encourage more control for sugarcane burns and help to better manage authorization of the sugarcane burning incidents and more restrictive transportation plans to limit PAH emissions from mobile vehicles.

  6. 77 FR 60430 - Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-10-03

    ... ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [FRL-9736-3] Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review... Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92- 463, notice is hereby given that the Mobile Sources Technical Review... Advisory Committee. This is an open meeting. The meeting will include discussion of current topics and...

  7. 77 FR 13318 - Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-03-06

    ... ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [FRL-9643-6] Meeting of the Mobile Sources Technical Review... Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92- 463, notice is hereby given that the Mobile Sources... Air Act Advisory Committee. This is an open meeting. The meeting will include discussion of current...

  8. Study Design to Evaluate Mobile Source Emissions in the Near-Roadway Environment

    EPA Science Inventory

    In 2007, the U.S. Federal Highway Administration and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency entered into a collaborative agreement to study the near-road concentration and dispersion properties of several mobile source air toxics (MSATs) identified by the EP A 2001 Mobile Source Ai...

  9. Analysis of mobile source air toxics (MSATs)–Near-Road VOC and carbonyl concentrations

    EPA Science Inventory

    Exposures to mobile source air toxics (MSATs) have been associated with numerous adverse health effects. While thousands of air toxic compounds are emitted from mobile sources, a subset of compounds are considered high priority due to their significant contribution to cancer and...

  10. Modeling Ozone in the Eastern U.S. using a Fuel-Based Mobile Source Emissions Inventory.

    PubMed

    McDonald, Brian C; McKeen, Stuart A; Cui, Yu Yan; Ahmadov, Ravan; Kim, Si-Wan; Frost, Gregory J; Pollack, Ilana B; Peischl, Jeff; Ryerson, Thomas B; Holloway, John S; Graus, Martin; Warneke, Carsten; Gilman, Jessica B; de Gouw, Joost A; Kaiser, Jennifer; Keutsch, Frank N; Hanisco, Thomas F; Wolfe, Glenn M; Trainer, Michael

    2018-06-22

    Recent studies suggest overestimates in current U.S. emission inventories of nitrogen oxides (NO x = NO + NO 2 ). Here, we expand a previously developed fuel-based inventory of motor-vehicle emissions (FIVE) to the continental U.S. for the year 2013, and evaluate our estimates of mobile source emissions with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's National Emissions Inventory (NEI) interpolated to 2013. We find that mobile source emissions of NO x and carbon monoxide (CO) in the NEI are higher than FIVE by 28% and 90%, respectively. Using a chemical transport model, we model mobile source emissions from FIVE, and find consistent levels of urban NO x and CO as measured during the Southeast Nexus (SENEX) Study in 2013. Lastly, we assess the sensitivity of ozone (O 3 ) over the Eastern U.S. to uncertainties in mobile source NO x emissions and biogenic volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions. The ground-level O 3 is sensitive to reductions in mobile source NO x emissions, most notably in the Southeastern U.S. and during O 3 exceedance events, under the revised standard proposed in 2015 (>70 ppb, 8 h maximum). This suggests that decreasing mobile source NO x emissions could help in meeting more stringent O 3 standards in the future.

  11. Optical Power Transfer System for Powering a Remote Mobility System for Multiple Missions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hogan, Bartholomew P. (Inventor); Stone, William C. (Inventor)

    2016-01-01

    An optical power transfer system for powering a remote mobility system for multiple missions comprising a high power source and a chilling station connected to a laser source. The laser source transmits a high optical energy to a beam switch assembly via an optical fiber. The beam switch assembly is optically connected to actively cooled fiber spoolers. Docking stations are adapted for securing the fiber spoolers until alternatively ready for use by a remote mobility system. The remote mobility system is optically connected to the fiber spoolers and has a receiving port adapted for securing the fiber spoolers thereon. The fiber spooler transmits the optical energy to a power conversion system which converts the optical energy received to another usable form of energy. More than one power source may be used where the remote mobility system transfers from one source to another while maintaining an operational radius to each source.

  12. 40 CFR 85.525 - Applicable standards.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ...) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of Clean Alternative Fuel Conversions From... prohibition, vehicles/engines that have been converted to operate on a different fuel must meet emission... allowable grouping. Fleet average standards do not apply unless clean alternative fuel conversions are...

  13. 40 CFR 85.1401 - General applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false General applicability. 85.1401 Section 85.1401 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1401 General...

  14. 40 CFR 85.1405 - Applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Applicability. 85.1405 Section 85.1405 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1405 Applicability. The provisions of...

  15. 40 CFR 85.1513 - Prohibited acts; penalties.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Prohibited acts; penalties. 85.1513 Section 85.1513 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle...

  16. 40 CFR 85.1903 - Emissions defect information report.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Emissions defect information report. 85.1903 Section 85.1903 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements...

  17. 40 CFR 85.1411 - Labeling requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Labeling requirements. 85.1411 Section 85.1411 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1411 Labeling...

  18. 40 CFR 85.1909 - Treatment of confidential information.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Treatment of confidential information. 85.1909 Section 85.1909 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements...

  19. 40 CFR 85.1511 - Exemptions and exclusions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Exemptions and exclusions. 85.1511 Section 85.1511 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle...

  20. 40 CFR 85.1905 - Alternative report formats.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Alternative report formats. 85.1905 Section 85.1905 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements § 85.1905...

  1. 40 CFR 85.503 - Conditions of exemption.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Conditions of exemption. 85.503 Section 85.503 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of Aftermarket Conversions From Tampering...

  2. 40 CFR 85.1501 - Applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Engines § 85.1501... by certificates of conformity issued under section 206(a) of the Clean Air Act (i.e., which are...

  3. 40 CFR 85.1406 - Certification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Certification. 85.1406 Section 85.1406 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1406 Certification. (a) Certification...

  4. 40 CFR 85.505 - Labeling.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Labeling. 85.505 Section 85.505 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of Aftermarket Conversions From Tampering Prohibition § 85.505...

  5. Drop Height and Volume Control the Mobility of Long-Runout Landslides on the Earth and Mars

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Johnson, Brandon C.; Campbell, Charles S.

    2017-12-01

    Long-runout landslides are landslides with volumes of 105 m3 or more, which move much farther from their source than expected. The observation that Martian landslides are generally less mobile than terrestrial landslides offers important evidence regarding the mechanism responsible for the high mobility of long-runout landslides. Here we simulate landslides as granular flow using a soft-particle discrete element model. We show that while surface gravity plays a negligible role, observed differences in fall height naturally reproduce the observed differences in mobility of Martian and terrestrial landslides. We also demonstrate that landslides on Iapetus may fit this trend. Our simulations do not include any fluid and indicate that a mechanism similar to acoustic fluidization can explain the high mobility of long-runout landslides. This implies that long-runout landslides on Mars should not be considered as evidence for ice, saturated clays, or liquid water.

  6. Environmental Assessment for Clear AFS Grid Tie-in and Heat Plant, Clear Air Force Station, Alaska

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-07-01

    greenhouse gases are presented in this section. 3.3.2.1 Air Quality Standards All stationary and mobile sources of air pollutants within a...These inventories provide estimates of criteria pollutant emissions associated with industrial sources, residential wood burning, mobile sources...larger, more mobile wildlife species are expected to vacate the project area, whereas individuals of less mobile species (i.e., small mammals,) could

  7. Differential mobilization of terrestrial carbon pools in Eurasian Arctic river basins.

    PubMed

    Feng, Xiaojuan; Vonk, Jorien E; van Dongen, Bart E; Gustafsson, Örjan; Semiletov, Igor P; Dudarev, Oleg V; Wang, Zhiheng; Montluçon, Daniel B; Wacker, Lukas; Eglinton, Timothy I

    2013-08-27

    Mobilization of Arctic permafrost carbon is expected to increase with warming-induced thawing. However, this effect is challenging to assess due to the diverse processes controlling the release of various organic carbon (OC) pools from heterogeneous Arctic landscapes. Here, by radiocarbon dating various terrestrial OC components in fluvially and coastally integrated estuarine sediments, we present a unique framework for deconvoluting the contrasting mobilization mechanisms of surface vs. deep (permafrost) carbon pools across the climosequence of the Eurasian Arctic. Vascular plant-derived lignin phenol (14)C contents reveal significant inputs of young carbon from surface sources whose delivery is dominantly controlled by river runoff. In contrast, plant wax lipids predominantly trace ancient (permafrost) OC that is preferentially mobilized from discontinuous permafrost regions, where hydrological conduits penetrate deeper into soils and thermokarst erosion occurs more frequently. Because river runoff has significantly increased across the Eurasian Arctic in recent decades, we estimate from an isotopic mixing model that, in tandem with an increased transfer of young surface carbon, the proportion of mobilized terrestrial OC accounted for by ancient carbon has increased by 3-6% between 1985 and 2004. These findings suggest that although partly masked by surface carbon export, climate change-induced mobilization of old permafrost carbon is well underway in the Arctic.

  8. Receptor model comparisons and wind direction analyses of volatile organic compounds and submicrometer particles in an arid, binational, urban air shed.

    PubMed

    Mukerjee, Shaibal; Norris, Gary A; Smith, Luther A; Noble, Christopher A; Neas, Lucas M; Ozkaynak, A Halûk; Gonzales, Melissa

    2004-04-15

    The relationship between continuous measurements of volatile organic compounds sources and particle number was evaluated at a Photochemical Assessment Monitoring Station Network (PAMS) site located near the U.S.-Mexico Border in central El Paso, TX. Sources of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were investigated using the multivariate receptor model UNMIX and the effective variance least squares receptor model known as Chemical Mass Balance (CMB, Version 8.0). As expected from PAMS measurements, overall findings from data screening as well as both receptor models confirmed that mobile sources were the major source of VOCs. Comparison of hourly source contribution estimates (SCEs) from the two receptor models revealed significant differences in motor vehicle exhaust and evaporative gasoline contributions. However, the motor vehicle exhaust contributions were highly correlated with each other. Motor vehicle exhaust was also correlated with the ultrafine and accumulation mode particle count, which suggests that motor vehicle exhaust is a source of these particles at the measurement site. Wind sector analyses were performed using the SCE and pollutant data to assess source location of VOCs, particle count, and criteria pollutants. Results from this study have application to source apportionment studies and mobile source emission control strategies that are ongoing in this air shed.

  9. Mobile sensing of point-source fugitive methane emissions using Bayesian inference: the determination of the likelihood function

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhou, X.; Albertson, J. D.

    2016-12-01

    Natural gas is considered as a bridge fuel towards clean energy due to its potential lower greenhouse gas emission comparing with other fossil fuels. Despite numerous efforts, an efficient and cost-effective approach to monitor fugitive methane emissions along the natural gas production-supply chain has not been developed yet. Recently, mobile methane measurement has been introduced which applies a Bayesian approach to probabilistically infer methane emission rates and update estimates recursively when new measurements become available. However, the likelihood function, especially the error term which determines the shape of the estimate uncertainty, is not rigorously defined and evaluated with field data. To address this issue, we performed a series of near-source (< 30 m) controlled methane release experiments using a specialized vehicle mounted with fast response methane analyzers and a GPS unit. Methane concentrations were measured at two different heights along mobile traversals downwind of the sources, and concurrent wind and temperature data are recorded by nearby 3-D sonic anemometers. With known methane release rates, the measurements were used to determine the functional form and the parameterization of the likelihood function in the Bayesian inference scheme under different meteorological conditions.

  10. Mobile phone based mini-spectrometer for rapid screening of skin cancer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Das, Anshuman; Swedish, Tristan; Wahi, Akshat; Moufarrej, Mira; Noland, Marie; Gurry, Thomas; Aranda-Michel, Edgar; Aksel, Deniz; Wagh, Sneha; Sadashivaiah, Vijay; Zhang, Xu; Raskar, Ramesh

    2015-06-01

    We demonstrate a highly sensitive mobile phone based spectrometer that has potential to detect cancerous skin lesions in a rapid, non-invasive manner. Earlier reports of low cost spectrometers utilize the camera of the mobile phone to image the field after moving through a diffraction grating. These approaches are inherently limited by the closed nature of mobile phone image sensors and built in optical elements. The system presented uses a novel integrated grating and sensor that is compact, accurate and calibrated. Resolutions of about 10 nm can be achieved. Additionally, UV and visible LED excitation sources are built into the device. Data collection and analysis is simplified using the wireless interfaces and logical control on the smart phone. Furthermore, by utilizing an external sensor, the mobile phone camera can be used in conjunction with spectral measurements. We are exploring ways to use this device to measure endogenous fluorescence of skin in order to distinguish cancerous from non-cancerous lesions with a mobile phone based dermatoscope.

  11. Open source OCR framework using mobile devices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhou, Steven Zhiying; Gilani, Syed Omer; Winkler, Stefan

    2008-02-01

    Mobile phones have evolved from passive one-to-one communication device to powerful handheld computing device. Today most new mobile phones are capable of capturing images, recording video, and browsing internet and do much more. Exciting new social applications are emerging on mobile landscape, like, business card readers, sing detectors and translators. These applications help people quickly gather the information in digital format and interpret them without the need of carrying laptops or tablet PCs. However with all these advancements we find very few open source software available for mobile phones. For instance currently there are many open source OCR engines for desktop platform but, to our knowledge, none are available on mobile platform. Keeping this in perspective we propose a complete text detection and recognition system with speech synthesis ability, using existing desktop technology. In this work we developed a complete OCR framework with subsystems from open source desktop community. This includes a popular open source OCR engine named Tesseract for text detection & recognition and Flite speech synthesis module, for adding text-to-speech ability.

  12. ETV-DRAFT TEST REPORT OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS CONTROL DEVICES DONALDSON COMPANY,INC. SERIES 6100 DIESEL OXIDATION CATALYST MUFFLER

    EPA Science Inventory

    This report reflects verification testing of a catalytic muffler for diesel trucks. Produced by Donaldson Corp., it was tested on low sulfur and ultra low sulfur fuel, and shown to have reduced emissions.

  13. 40 CFR Appendixes I-Vii to Part 85 - [Reserved

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false [Reserved] I Appendixes I-VII to Part 85 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Appendixes I-VII to Part 85 [Reserved] ...

  14. 40 CFR Appendixes I-Vii to Part 85 - [Reserved

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false [Reserved] I Appendixes I-VII to Part 85 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Appendixes I-VII to Part 85 [Reserved] ...

  15. 40 CFR Appendixes I-Vii to Part 85 - [Reserved

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 19 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false [Reserved] I Appendixes I-VII to Part 85 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Appendixes I-VII to Part 85 [Reserved] ...

  16. 40 CFR Appendixes I-Vii to Part 85 - [Reserved

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 19 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false [Reserved] I Appendixes I-VII to Part 85 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Appendixes I-VII to Part 85 [Reserved] ...

  17. 40 CFR Appendixes I-Vii to Part 85 - [Reserved

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 19 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false [Reserved] I Appendixes I-VII to Part 85 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Appendixes I-VII to Part 85 [Reserved] ...

  18. 40 CFR 85.1414 - Alternative test procedures.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Alternative test procedures. 85.1414 Section 85.1414 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1414 Alternative...

  19. 40 CFR 85.1808 - Treatment of confidential information.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Treatment of confidential information. 85.1808 Section 85.1808 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Recall Regulations § 85.1808 Treatment of...

  20. 40 CFR 85.1408 - Objections to certification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Objections to certification. 85.1408 Section 85.1408 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1408 Objections...

  1. 40 CFR 85.1504 - Conditional admission.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Conditional admission. 85.1504 Section 85.1504 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Engines § 85...

  2. 40 CFR 85.502 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of Aftermarket Conversions From Tampering Prohibition § 85.502 Definitions. (a) The Act means the Clean Air Act as amended (42 U.S.C. 7501 et seq.). (b) Administrator means...

  3. 40 CFR 85.1906 - Report filing: Record retention.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Report filing: Record retention. 85.1906 Section 85.1906 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements § 85.1906...

  4. 40 CFR 85.1415 - Treatment of confidential information.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Treatment of confidential information. 85.1415 Section 85.1415 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1415...

  5. 40 CFR 85.1907 - Responsibility under other legal provisions preserved.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Responsibility under other legal provisions preserved. 85.1907 Section 85.1907 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting...

  6. 40 CFR 85.1908 - Disclaimer of production warranty applicability.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Disclaimer of production warranty applicability. 85.1908 Section 85.1908 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements...

  7. 40 CFR 85.1409 - Warranty.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Warranty. 85.1409 Section 85.1409 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1409 Warranty. (a) As a condition of...

  8. 40 CFR 85.1902 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements § 85.1902 Definitions. Link to an...: (a) Act shall mean the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. 1857, as amended. (b) The phrase emission-related...

  9. 40 CFR 85.1514 - Treatment of confidential information.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Treatment of confidential information. 85.1514 Section 85.1514 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor Vehicles and Motor...

  10. 40 CFR 85.1410 - Changes after certification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Changes after certification. 85.1410 Section 85.1410 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1410 Changes...

  11. Crowd-sourcing Meteorological Data for Student Field Projects

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bullard, J. E.

    2016-12-01

    This paper explains how students can rapidly collect large datasets to characterise wind speed and direction under different meteorological conditions. The tools used include a mobile device (tablet or phone), low cost wind speed/direction meters that are plugged in to the mobile device, and an app with online web support for uploading, collating and georeferencing data. Electronic customised data input forms downloaded to the mobile device are used to ensure students collect data using specified protocols which streamlines data management and reduces the likelihood of data entry errors. A key benefit is the rapid collection and quality control of field data that can be promptly disseminated to students for subsequent analysis.

  12. Introduction of performance boosters like Ge as channel material for the future of CMOS

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Samia, Slimani, E-mail: slimani.samia@gmail.com; Laboratoire de Modélisation et Méthodes de calcul LMMC,20002 Saida; Bouaza, Djellouli, E-mail: djelbou@hotmail.fr

    High mobility materials are being considered to replace Si in the channel to achieve higher drive currents and switching speeds. Ge is one of new attractive channel materials that require CMOS scaling For future technology nodes and future high performance P-MOSFETS, we have studied a nanoscale SOI DG MOSFETs using quantum simulation approach on DG MOSFETs within the variation of Ge channel concentration and in the presence of source and drain doping by replacing Silicon in the channel by Ge using various dielectric constant. The use of high mobility channel (like Ge) to maximize the MOSFET IDsat and simultaneously circumventmore » the poor electrostatic control to suppress short-channel effects and enhance source injection velocity. The leakage current (I{sub off}) can be controlled by different gates oxide thickness more ever the required threshold voltage (V{sub TH}) can be achieved by keeping gate work function and altering the doping channel.« less

  13. A 2009 Mobile Source Carbon Dioxide Emissions Inventory for the University of Central Florida.

    PubMed

    Clifford, Johanna M; Cooper, C David

    2012-09-01

    A mobile source carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions inventory for the University of Central Florida (UCF) has been completed. Fora large urban university, more than 50% of the CO2 emissions can come from mobile sources, and the vast majority of mobile source emissions come from on-road sources: personal vehicles and campus shuttles carrying students, faculty, staff and administrators to and from the university as well as on university business trips. In addition to emissions from on-road vehicles, emissions from airplane-based business travel are significant, along with emissions from nonroad equipment such as lawnmowers, leaf blowers, and small maintenance vehicles utilized on campus. UCF has recently become one of the largest universities in the nation (with over 58,000 students enrolled in the fall 2011 semester) and emits a substantial amount of CO2 in the Central Florida area. For this inventory, students, faculty, staff and administrators were first surveyed to determine their commuting distances and frequencies. Information was also gathered on vehicle type and age distribution of the personal vehicles of students, faculty, administrators, and staff as well as their bus, car-pool, and alternate transportation usage. The latest US. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-approved mobile source emissions model, Motor Vehicle Emissions Simulator (MOVES2010a), was used to calculate the emissions from on-road vehicles, and UCF fleet gasoline consumption records were used to calculate the emissions from nonroad equipment and from on-campus UCF fleet vehicles. The results of this UCF mobile source emissions inventory were compared with those for another large U.S. university. With the growing awareness of global climate change, a number of colleges/universities and other organizations are completing greenhouse gas emission inventories. Assumptions often are made in order to calculate mobile source emissions, but without field data or valid reasoning, the accuracy of those assumptions may be questioned. This paper presents a method that involves a survey, the use of the MOVES model, and emission factors to produce a mobile source emissions inventory. The results show that UCF mobile source CO2 emissions are larger than most other universities, and make up about 2% of all the mobile source emissions in Orange County, Florida.

  14. 77 FR 4510 - Air Quality Implementation Plans; Kentucky; Attainment Plan for the Kentucky Portion of the...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-01-30

    ... and population based apportionment of the area and nonroad sectors to support the mobile source... and nitrogen oxides (NO X ) for the mobile source contribution to ambient PM 2.5 levels for the.... Attainment Date B. Insignificance Determination for the Mobile Source Contribution to PM 2.5 and NO X...

  15. 75 FR 6473 - Primary National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Nitrogen Dioxide

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-02-09

    ... review, however, some areas could be classified as non-attainment. Certain States will be required to... sources of NO X emissions are on-road mobile sources, electricity generating units, and non-road mobile... tracking. 2. NO 2 Air Quality and Gradients Around Roadways On-road and non-road mobile sources account for...

  16. The congestion control algorithm based on queue management of each node in mobile ad hoc networks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wei, Yifei; Chang, Lin; Wang, Yali; Wang, Gaoping

    2016-12-01

    This paper proposes an active queue management mechanism, considering the node's own ability and its importance in the network to set the queue threshold. As the network load increases, local congestion of mobile ad hoc network may lead to network performance degradation, hot node's energy consumption increase even failure. If small energy nodes congested because of forwarding data packets, then when it is used as the source node will cause a lot of packet loss. This paper proposes an active queue management mechanism, considering the node's own ability and its importance in the network to set the queue threshold. Controlling nodes buffer queue in different levels of congestion area probability by adjusting the upper limits and lower limits, thus nodes can adjust responsibility of forwarding data packets according to their own situation. The proposed algorithm will slow down the send rate hop by hop along the data package transmission direction from congestion node to source node so that to prevent further congestion from the source node. The simulation results show that, the algorithm can better play the data forwarding ability of strong nodes, protect the weak nodes, can effectively alleviate the network congestion situation.

  17. Role of order and disorder on the electronic performances of oxide semiconductor thin film transistors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Martins, R.; Barquinha, P.; Ferreira, I.; Pereira, L.; Gonçalves, G.; Fortunato, E.

    2007-02-01

    The role of order and disorder on the electronic performances of n-type ionic oxides such as zinc oxide, gallium zinc oxide, and indium zinc oxide used as active (channel) or passive (drain/source) layers in thin film transistors (TFTs) processed at room temperature are discussed, taking as reference the known behavior observed in conventional covalent semiconductors such as silicon. The work performed shows that while in the oxide semiconductors the Fermi level can be pinned up within the conduction band, independent of the state of order, the same does not happen with silicon. Besides, in the oxide semiconductors the carrier mobility is not bandtail limited and so disorder does not affect so strongly the mobility as it happens in covalent semiconductors. The electrical properties of the oxide films (resistivity, carrier concentration, and mobility) are highly dependent on the oxygen vacancies (source of free carriers), which can be controlled by changing the oxygen partial pressure during the deposition process and/or by adding other metal ions to the matrix. In this case, we make the oxide matrix less sensitive to the presence of oxygen, widening the range of oxygen partial pressures that can be used and thus improving the process control of the film resistivity. The results obtained in fully transparent TFT using polycrystalline ZnO or amorphous indium zinc oxide (IZO) as channel layers and highly conductive poly/nanocrystalline ZGO films or amorphous IZO as drain/source layers show that both devices work in the enhancement mode, but the TFT with the highest electronic saturation mobility and on/off ratio 49.9cm2/Vs and 4.3×108, respectively, are the ones in which the active and passive layers are amorphous. The ZnO TFT whose channel is based on polycrystalline ZnO, the mobility and on/off ratio are, respectively, 26cm2/Vs and 3×106. This behavior is attributed to the fact that the electronic transport is governed by the s-like metal cation conduction bands, not significantly affected by any type of angular disorder promoted by the 2p O states related to the valence band, or small amounts of incorporated metal impurities that lead to a better control of vacancies and of the TFT off current.

  18. [Use of ionizing radiation sources in metallurgy: risk assessment].

    PubMed

    Giugni, U

    2012-01-01

    Use of ionizing radiation sources in the metallurgical industry: risk assessment. Radioactive sources and fixed or mobile X-ray equipment are used for both process and quality control. The use of ionizing radiation sources requires careful risk assessment. The text lists the characteristics of the sources and the legal requirements, and contains a description of the documentation required and the methods used for risk assessment. It describes how to estimate the doses to operators and the relevant classification criteria used for the purpose of radiation protection. Training programs must be organized in close collaboration between the radiation protection expert and the occupational physician.

  19. Arsenic mobility controlled by solid calcium arsenates: a case study in Mexico showcasing a potentially widespread environmental problem.

    PubMed

    Martínez-Villegas, Nadia; Briones-Gallardo, Roberto; Ramos-Leal, José A; Avalos-Borja, Miguel; Castañón-Sandoval, Alan D; Razo-Flores, Elías; Villalobos, Mario

    2013-05-01

    An As-contaminated perched aquifer under an urban area affected by mining was studied over a year to determine the contamination source species and the mechanism of As mobilization. Results show that the dissolution of calcium arsenates in residues disposed on an inactive smelter has caused high levels of As pollution in the adjoining downgradient 6-km perched aquifer, reaching up to 158 mg/L of dissolved As, and releasing a total of ca. 7.5 tons of As in a year. Furthermore, free calcium ion availability was found to control As mobility in the aquifer through the diagenetic precipitation of calcium arsenates (Ca5H2(AsO4)4·cH2O) preventing further mobilization of As. Results shown here represent a model for understanding a highly underreported mechanism of retention of arsenate species likely to dominate in calcium-rich environments, such as those in calcareous sediments and soils, where the commonly reported mechanism of adsorption to iron(III) oxyhydroxides is not the dominant process. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Source-sink regulation of cotyledonary reserve mobilization during cashew (Anacardium occidentale) seedling establishment under NaCl salinity.

    PubMed

    Voigt, Eduardo Luiz; Almeida, Tânia Dias; Chagas, Roberta Magalhães; Ponte, Luiz Ferreira Aguiar; Viégas, Ricardo Almeida; Silveira, Joaquim Albenísio Gomes

    2009-01-01

    Seedling establishment is a critical process to crop productivity, especially under saline conditions. This work was carried out to investigate the hypothesis that reserve mobilization is coordinated with salt-induced inhibition of seedling growth due to changes in source-sink relations. To test this hypothesis, cashew nuts (Anacardium occidentale) were sown in vermiculite irrigated daily with distilled water (control) or 50mM NaCl and they were evaluated at discrete developmental stages from the seed germination until the whole seedling establishment. The salt treatment coordinately delayed the seedling growth and the cotyledonary reserve mobilization. However, these effects were more pronounced at late seedling establishment than in earlier stages. The storage protein mobilization was affected by salt stress before the lipid and starch breakdown. The globulin fraction represented the most important storage proteins of cashew cotyledons, and its mobilization was markedly delayed by NaCl along the seedling establishment. Free amino acids were mostly retained in the cotyledons of salt-treated seedlings when the mobilization of storage proteins, lipids and starch was strongly delayed. Proline was not considerably accumulated in the cotyledons of cashew seedlings as a response to NaCl salinity. According to these results it is noteworthy that the salt-induced inhibition of seedling growth is narrowly coordinated with the delay of reserve mobilization and the accumulation of hydrolysis products in cotyledons. Also, it was evidenced that free amino acids, especially those related to nitrogen transport, are potential signals involved in the regulation of storage protein hydrolysis during cashew seedling establishment under NaCl salinity.

  1. 40 CFR 85.1509 - Final admission of modification and test vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Final admission of modification and test vehicles. 85.1509 Section 85.1509 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor...

  2. 40 CFR 85.1804 - Approval of Plan: Implementation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Approval of Plan: Implementation. 85.1804 Section 85.1804 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Recall Regulations § 85.1804 Approval of Plan...

  3. 40 CFR 85.1407 - Notification of intent to certify.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Notification of intent to certify. 85.1407 Section 85.1407 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1407...

  4. Impact of wastewater derived dissolved organic carbon on reduction, mobility, and bioavailability of As(V) and Cr(VI) in contaminated soils.

    PubMed

    Kunhikrishnan, Anitha; Choppala, Girish; Seshadri, Balaji; Wijesekara, Hasintha; Bolan, Nanthi S; Mbene, Kenneth; Kim, Won-Il

    2017-01-15

    In this work, the effects of various wastewater sources (storm water, sewage effluent, piggery effluent, and dairy effluent) on the reduction, and subsequent mobility and bioavailability of arsenate [As(V)] and chromate [Cr(VI)] were compared using both spiked and field contaminated soils. Wastewater addition to soil can increase the supply of carbon, nutrients, and stimulation of microorganisms which are considered to be important factors enhancing the reduction of metal(loid)s including As and Cr. The wastewater-induced mobility and bioavailability of As(V) and Cr(VI) were examined using leaching, earthworm, and soil microbial activity tests. The rate of reduction of As(V) was much less than that of Cr(VI) both in the presence and absence of wastewater addition. Wastewater addition increased the reduction of both As(V) and Cr(VI) compared to the control (Milli-Q water) and the effect was more pronounced in the case of Cr(VI). The leaching experiment indicated that Cr(VI) was more mobile than As(V). Wastewater addition increased the mobility and bioavailability of As(V), but had an opposite effect on Cr(VI). The difference in the mobility and bioavailability of Cr(VI) and As(V) between wastewater sources can be attributed to the difference in their dissolved organic carbon (DOC) content. The DOC provides carbon as an electron donor for the reduction of As(V) and Cr(VI) and also serves as a complexing agent thereby impacting their mobility and bioavailability. The DOC-induced reduction increased both the mobility and bioavailability of As, but it caused an opposite effect in the case of Cr. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Source Detection and Attribution in the San Francisco Bay Area of California Using a Mobile Measurement Platform

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Guha, A.; Bower, J.; Martien, P. T.; Perkins, I.; Randall, S.; Stevenson, E.; Young, A.; Hilken, H.

    2016-12-01

    The Bay Area Air Quality Management District is the greater San Francisco Bay metropolitan area's chief air quality regulatory agency. Aligning itself with the Governor's Executive Order S-3-05, the Air District has set a goal to reduce the region's GHG emissions by 80% below 1990 levels by the year 2050. The Air District's 2016 Clean Air Plan will lay out the agency's vision and actions to put the region on a path forward towards achieving the 2050 goal while also reducing air pollution and related health impacts. The 2016 Plan has three overarching objectives: 1) develop a multi-pollutant emissions control strategy, (2) reduce population exposure to harmful air pollutants, especially in vulnerable communities, and (3) protect climate through a comprehensive Regional Climate Protection Strategy. To accomplish one of 2016 Plan's control measures (SL3 - Greenhouse Gas Monitoring and Measurement Network), the Air District has fabricated a mobile measurement platform i.e. a GHG research van to perform targeted CH4 emissions hotspot detection and source attribution. The van is equipped with analyzers capable of measuring CH4, CO2 and N2O in ambient plumes at fast sampling rates. The coincident measurement of source tracers like isotopic methane (13C - CH4), CO and ethane (C2H6) provide the capability to distinguish between biogenic, combustion-based and fossil-based fugitive methane sources, respectively. The GHG research van is a comprehensive mobile tool to perform tracer-based GHG source identification and apportionment. We report observation-based source-specific tracer-to-tracer emission ratios from a region-wide survey of well-known area sources like landfills, wastewater treatment facilities and dairies, and compare those with similar ratios in the Air District's GHG inventory. We also investigate plumes from potentially under-inventoried sources like anaerobic digesters, composting operations, active and plugged oil and gas wells, and a natural gas storage facility. Data from source-specific measurements will lead to an improved understanding of GHG emissions from well-known and lesser-known CH4 sources in the region, which is key in resolving the differences between top-down regional estimates (Fairley and Fischer, 2015; Jeong et al., in prep) and the regional bottom-up inventory.

  6. Real-World Vehicle Emissions: A Summary of the 18th Coordinating Research Council On-Road Vehicle Emissions Workshop

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cadle, S. H.; Ayala, A.; Black, K. N.

    2009-02-01

    The Coordinating Research Council (CRC) convened its 18th On-Road Vehicle Emissions Workshop March 31-April 2, 2008, with 104 presentations describing the most recent mobile source-related emissions research. In this paper we summarize the presentations from researchers whose efforts are improving our understanding of the contribution of mobile sources to air quality. Participants in the workshop discussed emission models and emissions inventories, results from gas- and particle-phase emissions studies from spark-ignition and diesel-powered vehicles (with an emphasis in this workshop on particle emissions), effects of fuels on emissions, evaluation of in-use emission-control programs, and efforts to improve our capabilities in performingmore » on-board emissions measurements, as well as topics for future research.« less

  7. Quantifying the impact of human mobility on malaria

    PubMed Central

    Wesolowski, Amy; Eagle, Nathan; Tatem, Andrew J.; Smith, David L.; Noor, Abdisalan M.; Snow, Robert W.; Buckee, Caroline O.

    2013-01-01

    Human movements contribute to the transmission of malaria on spatial scales that exceed the limits of mosquito dispersal. Identifying the sources and sinks of imported infections due to human travel and locating high-risk sites of parasite importation could greatly improve malaria control programs. Here we use spatially explicit mobile phone data and malaria prevalence information from Kenya to identify the dynamics of human carriers that drive parasite importation between regions. Our analysis identifies specific importation routes that contribute to malaria epidemiology on regional spatial scales. PMID:23066082

  8. Gas Source Localization via Behaviour Based Mobile Robot and Weighted Arithmetic Mean

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yeon, Ahmad Shakaff Ali; Kamarudin, Kamarulzaman; Visvanathan, Retnam; Mamduh Syed Zakaria, Syed Muhammad; Zakaria, Ammar; Munirah Kamarudin, Latifah

    2018-03-01

    This work is concerned with the localization of gas source in dynamic indoor environment using a single mobile robot system. Algorithms such as Braitenberg, Zig-Zag and the combination of the two were implemented on the mobile robot as gas plume searching and tracing behaviours. To calculate the gas source location, a weighted arithmetic mean strategy was used. All experiments were done on an experimental testbed consisting of a large gas sensor array (LGSA) to monitor real-time gas concentration within the testbed. Ethanol gas was released within the testbed and the source location was marked using a pattern that can be tracked by a pattern tracking system. A pattern template was also mounted on the mobile robot to track the trajectory of the mobile robot. Measurements taken by the mobile robot and the LGSA were then compared to verify the experiments. A combined total of 36.5 hours of real time experimental runs were done and the typical results from such experiments were presented in this paper. From the results, we obtained gas source localization errors between 0.4m to 1.2m from the real source location.

  9. Understanding DOC Mobilization Dynamics Through High Frequency Measurements in a Headwater Catchment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Werner, B.; Musolff, A.; Lechtenfeld, O.; de Rooij, G. H.; Fleckenstein, J. H.

    2017-12-01

    Increasing dissolved organic carbon (DOC) exports from headwater catchments impact the quality of downstream waters and pose challenges to water supply. The importance of riparian zones for DOC export from catchments in humid, temperate climates has generally been acknowledged, but the hydrological controls and biogeochemical factors that govern mobilization of DOC from riparian zones remain elusive. By analyzing high-frequency time series of UV-VIS based water quality we therefore aim at a better understanding on temporal dynamics of DOC mobilization and exports. In a first step a one year high frequency (15 minutes) data set from a headwater catchment in the Harz Mountains (Germany) was systematically analyzed for event-based patterns in DOC concentrations. Here, a simplistic linear model was generated to explain DOC concentration level and variability in the stream. Furthermore, spectral (e.g. slopes and SUVA254) and molecular (FT-ICR-MS) characterization of DOC was used to fingerprint in-stream DOC during events. Continuous DOC concentrations were best predicted (R², NSE = 0.53) by instantaneous discharge (Q) and antecede wetness conditions of the last 30 days (AWC30 = Precip.30/PET30) as well as mean air temperature (Tmean30) and mean discharge (Qmean30) of the preceding 30 days. Analyses of 36 events revealed seasonal trends for the slope, intercept and R² of linear log(DOC)-log(Q) regressions that can be best explained by the mean air temperature of the preceding 15 days. Continuously available optical DOC quality parameters SUVA254 and spectral slope (275 nm - 295 nm) systematically changed with shifts in discharge and in DOC concentration. This is underlined by selected FT-ICR-MS measurements indicating higher DOC aromaticity and oxygen content at high flow conditions. The change of DOC quality parameters during events indicate a shift in the activated source zones: DOC with a different quality was mobilized during high flow conditions when higher groundwater levels connected formerly disconnected DOC source zones to the stream. We conclude that the high concentration variability of DOC can be explained by a few controlling variables only. These variables can be linked to event-based DOC source activation and more seasonal controls of DOC production.

  10. The Scandinavian Fantasy: The Sources of Intergenerational Mobility in Denmark and the US

    PubMed Central

    Landersø, Rasmus; Heckman, James J.

    2017-01-01

    This paper examines the sources of differences in social mobility between the U.S. and Denmark. Measured by income mobility, Denmark is a more mobile society, but not when measured by educational mobility. There are pronounced nonlinearities in income and educational mobility in both countries. Greater Danish income mobility is largely a consequence of redistributional tax, transfer, and wage compression policies. While Danish social policies for children produce more favorable cognitive test scores for disadvantaged children, these do not translate into more favorable educational outcomes, partly because of disincentives to acquire education arising from the redistributional policies that increase income mobility. PMID:28649168

  11. Intrusion Detection for Defense at the MAC and Routing Layers of Wireless Networks

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2007-01-01

    Space DoS Denial of Service DSR Dynamic Source Routing IDS Intrusion Detection System LAR Location-Aided Routing MAC Media Access Control MACA Multiple...different mobility parameters. 10 They simulate interaction between three MAC protocols ( MACA , 802.11 and CSMA) and three routing protocols (AODV, DSR

  12. 40 CFR 85.1806 - Records and reports.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ...) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Recall Regulations § 85.1806 Records and reports. (a) The... adequacy of the recall campaign. The records shall include, for each class or category of vehicle or engine, but need not be limited to, the following: (1) Recall campaign number as designated by the...

  13. ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY VERIFICATION REPORT: MOBILE SOURCE RETROFIT AIR POLLUTION CONTROL DEVICES: CLEAN CLEAR FUEL TECHNOLOGIES, INC.’S, UNIVERSAL FUEL CELL

    EPA Science Inventory

    The U.S. EPA's Office of Research and Development operates the Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) program to facilitate the deployment of innovative technologies through performance verification and information dissemination. Congress funds ETV in response to the belief ...

  14. 40 CFR 85.1703 - Definition of motor vehicle.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 19 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Definition of motor vehicle. 85.1703... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exclusion and Exemption of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Engines § 85.1703 Definition of motor vehicle. (a) For the purpose of determining the...

  15. Cold temperature effects on speciated MSAT emissions from light duty vehicles operating on gasoline and ethanol blends

    EPA Science Inventory

    Emissions of speciated volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including mobile source air toxics (MSATs), were measured in vehicle exhaust from three light-duty gasoline vehicles. Vehicle testing was conducted using a three phase LA92 driving cycle on a temperature controlled chassis...

  16. TEST REPORT OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS CONTROL DEVICES DONALDSON COMPANY INC.SERIES 6000 DISEL OXIDATION CATALYST MUFFLER AND SPIRACLE CLOSED CRANKCASE FILTRATION SYSTEM

    EPA Science Inventory

    This report is on testing of a Donaldson Corp. catalytic muffler and closed crankcase filtration system for diesel trucks. It verified the emissions for these systems using low sufur and ultra low sulfur fuel.

  17. 40 CFR 85.1703 - Definition of motor vehicle.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Definition of motor vehicle. 85.1703... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exclusion and Exemption of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Engines § 85.1703 Definition of motor vehicle. (a) For the purpose of determining the...

  18. 40 CFR 85.1703 - Definition of motor vehicle.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Definition of motor vehicle. 85.1703... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exclusion and Exemption of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Engines § 85.1703 Definition of motor vehicle. (a) For the purpose of determining the...

  19. 40 CFR 85.1706 - Pre-certification exemption.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... identification or engine serial number, indicate the use of the vehicle or engine on exempt status and indicate... identification and model year of vehicle or engine; or person or office to be contacted for further information... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exclusion and Exemption of Motor Vehicles and Motor...

  20. 40 CFR 85.1706 - Pre-certification exemption.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... identification or engine serial number, indicate the use of the vehicle or engine on exempt status and indicate... identification and model year of vehicle or engine; or person or office to be contacted for further information... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exclusion and Exemption of Motor Vehicles and Motor...

  1. 40 CFR 85.1706 - Pre-certification exemption.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... identification or engine serial number, indicate the use of the vehicle or engine on exempt status and indicate... identification and model year of vehicle or engine; or person or office to be contacted for further information... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exclusion and Exemption of Motor Vehicles and Motor...

  2. 40 CFR 85.1706 - Pre-certification exemption.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... identification or engine serial number, indicate the use of the vehicle or engine on exempt status and indicate... identification and model year of vehicle or engine; or person or office to be contacted for further information... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exclusion and Exemption of Motor Vehicles and Motor...

  3. 40 CFR 85.1706 - Pre-certification exemption.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... identification or engine serial number, indicate the use of the vehicle or engine on exempt status and indicate... identification and model year of vehicle or engine; or person or office to be contacted for further information... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exclusion and Exemption of Motor Vehicles and Motor...

  4. ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY VERIFICATION REPORT, TEST REPORT OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSION CONTROL DEVICES: MITSUI ENGINEERING & SHIPBUILDING DIESEL PARTICULATE FILTER

    EPA Science Inventory

    EPA‘s Environmental Technology Verification program is designed to further environmental protection by accelerating the acceptance and use of improved and cost effective technologies. This is done by providing high-quality, peer reviewed data on technology performance to those in...

  5. 40 CFR 85.520 - Exemption provisions for outside useful life vehicles/engines.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of... following provisions: (1) You must notify us as described in this section. (2) Conversion test groups... properly designed and matched for the vehicles/engines in which they will be installed. Good engineering...

  6. 40 CFR 85.520 - Exemption provisions for outside useful life vehicles/engines.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exemption of... following provisions: (1) You must notify us as described in this section. (2) Conversion test groups... properly designed and matched for the vehicles/engines in which they will be installed. Good engineering...

  7. MTBE BIOREMEDIATION WITH BIONETS(TM) CONTAINING ISOLITE, PM1, SOLD OXYGEN SOURCE (SOS) OR AIR

    EPA Science Inventory

    MTBE, a gasoline additive, is a persistent and foul tasting contaminant that is more mobile in groundwater than BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes). It is turning up at many American crossroads. The objective of this well controlled study was to determine if biological...

  8. MTBE BIOREMEDIATION WITH BIONETS CONTAINING ISOLITE®, PM1, SOLID OXYGEN SOURCE (SOS) OR AIR

    EPA Science Inventory

    MTBE, a gasoline additive, is a persistent and foul tasting contaminant that is more mobile in groundwater than BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes). It is turning up at many American crossroads. The objective of this well controlled study was to determine if biological...

  9. 40 CFR 85.1904 - Voluntary emissions recall report; quarterly reports.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 19 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Voluntary emissions recall report; quarterly reports. 85.1904 Section 85.1904 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements § 85.1904 Voluntary emissions...

  10. 40 CFR 85.1904 - Voluntary emissions recall report; quarterly reports.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 19 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Voluntary emissions recall report; quarterly reports. 85.1904 Section 85.1904 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements § 85.1904 Voluntary emissions...

  11. 40 CFR 85.1904 - Voluntary emissions recall report; quarterly reports.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Voluntary emissions recall report; quarterly reports. 85.1904 Section 85.1904 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements § 85.1904 Voluntary emissions...

  12. 40 CFR 85.1904 - Voluntary emissions recall report; quarterly reports.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 19 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Voluntary emissions recall report; quarterly reports. 85.1904 Section 85.1904 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Emission Defect Reporting Requirements § 85.1904 Voluntary emissions...

  13. 40 CFR 85.1505 - Final admission of certified vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    .... 85.1505 Section 85.1505 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor Vehicles and Motor... vehicle or engine from the previous test (e.g., adjusting the RPM, timing, air-to-fuel ratio, etc.) other...

  14. 40 CFR 85.1802 - Notice to manufacturer of nonconformity; submission of Remedial Plan.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Notice to manufacturer of nonconformity; submission of Remedial Plan. 85.1802 Section 85.1802 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Recall...

  15. 40 CFR 85.1508 - “In Use” inspections and recall requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false âIn Useâ inspections and recall requirements. 85.1508 Section 85.1508 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor Vehicles and Motor...

  16. 40 CFR 85.1507 - Maintenance of certificate holder's records.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... records. 85.1507 Section 85.1507 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor Vehicles and Motor... with all relevant requirements of the Clean Air Act, the Energy Tax Act of 1978, and the Energy Policy...

  17. 40 CFR 85.1506 - Inspection and testing of imported motor vehicles and engines.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Inspection and testing of imported motor vehicles and engines. 85.1506 Section 85.1506 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of...

  18. 40 CFR 85.1801 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Recall Regulations § 85.1801 Definitions. For the purposes of this subpart... Air Act, 42 U.S.C. 1857, as amended. (a) Act shall mean the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. 1857, as amended...

  19. Psychosocial work environment, job mobility and gender differences in turnover behaviour: a prospective study among the Swedish general population.

    PubMed

    Söderberg, Mia; Härenstam, Annika; Rosengren, Annika; Schiöler, Linus; Olin, Anna-Carin; Lissner, Lauren; Waern, Margda; Torén, Kjell

    2014-06-14

    Throughout the literature, substantial evidence supports associations between poor psychosocial work characteristics and a variety of ill-health outcomes. Yet, few reports strategies workers carry out to improve detrimental work conditions and consequently their health, such as changing jobs. The aim of this study was to examine if adverse psychosocial work exposure, as measured with the job demand-control and effort-reward imbalance models, could predict job mobility over a 5 years observation period. Participants were working men and women (n = 940; 54.3% women), aged 24-60 years from the population of Gothenburg and surrounding metropolitan area. Job demand-control and effort-reward variables were compared with independent t-tests and chi2-test in persons with and without job mobility. Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyse whether psychosocial factors could predict job mobility. All regression analyses were stratified by gender. Exposure to a combination of high demands-low control or high imbalance between effort and reward was related to increased odds of changing jobs (OR 1.63; CI 1.03-2.59 and OR 1.46; CI 1.13-1.89 respectively). When analysing men and women separately, men had a higher OR of changing jobs when exposed to either high demands-low control (OR 2.72; CI 1.24-5.98) or high effort-reward imbalance (OR 1.74; CI 1.11-2.72) compared to reference values. The only significant associations for women was slightly decreased odds for turnover in high reward jobs (OR 0.96; CI 0.92-0.99). The results indicate that workers will seek to improve poor work environment by changing jobs. There were notable gender differences, where men tended to engage in job mobility when exposed to adverse psychosocial factors, while women did not. The lack of measures for mechanisms driving job mobility was a limitation of this study, thus preventing conclusions regarding psychosocial factors as the primary source for job mobility.

  20. Climbing robot. [caterpillar design

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kerley, James J. (Inventor); May, Edward L. (Inventor); Ecklund, Wayne D. (Inventor)

    1993-01-01

    A mobile robot for traversing any surface consisting of a number of interconnected segments, each interconnected segment having an upper 'U' frame member, a lower 'U' frame member, a compliant joint between the upper 'U' frame member and the lower 'U' frame member, a number of linear actuators between the two frame members acting to provide relative displacement between the frame members, a foot attached to the lower 'U' frame member for adherence of the segment to the surface, an inter-segment attachment attached to the upper 'U' frame member for interconnecting the segments, a power source connected to the linear actuator, and a computer/controller for independently controlling each linear actuator in each interconnected segment such that the mobile robot moves in a caterpillar like fashion.

  1. Mobile colloid generation induced by a cementitious plume: mineral surface-charge controls on mobilization.

    PubMed

    Li, Dien; Kaplan, Daniel I; Roberts, Kimberly A; Seaman, John C

    2012-03-06

    Cementitious materials are increasingly used as engineered barriers and waste forms for radiological waste disposal. Yet their potential effect on mobile colloid generation is not well-known, especially as it may influence colloid-facilitated contaminant transport. Whereas previous papers have studied the introduction of cement colloids into sediments, this study examined the influence of cement leachate chemistry on the mobilization of colloids from a subsurface sediment collected from the Savannah River Site, USA. A sharp mobile colloid plume formed with the introduction of a cement leachate simulant. Colloid concentrations decreased to background concentrations even though the aqueous chemical conditions (pH and ionic strength) remained unchanged. Mobile colloids were mainly goethite and to a lesser extent kaolinite. The released colloids had negative surface charges and the mean particle sizes ranged primarily from 200 to 470 nm. Inherent mineralogical electrostatic forces appeared to be the controlling colloid removal mechanism in this system. In the background pH of ~6.0, goethite had a positive surface charge, whereas quartz (the dominant mineral in the immobile sediment) and kaolinite had negative surface charges. Goethite acted as a cementing agent, holding kaolinite and itself onto the quartz surfaces due to the electrostatic attraction. Once the pH of the system was elevated, as in the cementitious high pH plume front, the goethite reversed to a negative charge, along with quartz and kaolinite, then goethite and kaolinite colloids were mobilized and a sharp spike in turbidity was observed. Simulating conditions away from the cementitious source, essentially no colloids were mobilized at 1:1000 dilution of the cement leachate or when the leachate pH was ≤ 8. Extreme alkaline pH environments of cementitious leachate may change mineral surface charges, temporarily promoting the formation of mobile colloids.

  2. Wireless, Web-Based Interactive Control of Optical Coherence Tomography with Mobile Devices.

    PubMed

    Mehta, Rajvi; Nankivil, Derek; Zielinski, David J; Waterman, Gar; Keller, Brenton; Limkakeng, Alexander T; Kopper, Regis; Izatt, Joseph A; Kuo, Anthony N

    2017-01-01

    Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is widely used in ophthalmology clinics and has potential for more general medical settings and remote diagnostics. In anticipation of remote applications, we developed wireless interactive control of an OCT system using mobile devices. A web-based user interface (WebUI) was developed to interact with a handheld OCT system. The WebUI consisted of key OCT displays and controls ported to a webpage using HTML and JavaScript. Client-server relationships were created between the WebUI and the OCT system computer. The WebUI was accessed on a cellular phone mounted to the handheld OCT probe to wirelessly control the OCT system. Twenty subjects were imaged using the WebUI to assess the system. System latency was measured using different connection types (wireless 802.11n only, wireless to remote virtual private network [VPN], and cellular). Using a cellular phone, the WebUI was successfully used to capture posterior eye OCT images in all subjects. Simultaneous interactivity by a remote user on a laptop was also demonstrated. On average, use of the WebUI added only 58, 95, and 170 ms to the system latency using wireless only, wireless to VPN, and cellular connections, respectively. Qualitatively, operator usage was not affected. Using a WebUI, we demonstrated wireless and remote control of an OCT system with mobile devices. The web and open source software tools used in this project make it possible for any mobile device to potentially control an OCT system through a WebUI. This platform can be a basis for remote, teleophthalmology applications using OCT.

  3. Spatial patterns of mobile source particulate matter emissions-to-exposure relationships across the United States

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Greco, Susan L.; Wilson, Andrew M.; Spengler, John D.; Levy, Jonathan I.

    Assessing the public health benefits from air pollution control measures is assisted by understanding the relationship between mobile source emissions and subsequent fine particulate matter (PM 2.5) exposure. Since this relationship varies by location, we characterized its magnitude and geographic distribution using the intake fraction (iF) concept. We considered emissions of primary PM 2.5 as well as particle precursors SO 2 and NO x from each of 3080 counties in the US. We modeled the relationship between these emissions and total US population exposure to PM 2.5, making use of a source-receptor matrix developed for health risk assessment. For primary PM 2.5, we found a median iF of 1.2 per million, with a range of 0.12-25. Half of the total exposure was reached by a median distance of 150 km from the county where mobile source emissions originated, though this spatial extent varied across counties from within the county borders to 1800 km away. For secondary ammonium sulfate from SO 2 emissions, the median iF was 0.41 per million (range: 0.050-10), versus 0.068 per million for secondary ammonium nitrate from NO x emissions (range: 0.00092-1.3). The median distance to half of the total exposure was greater for secondary PM 2.5 (450 km for sulfate, 390 km for nitrate). Regression analyses using exhaustive population predictors explained much of the variation in primary PM 2.5 iF ( R2=0.83) as well as secondary sulfate and nitrate iF ( R2=0.74 and 0.60), with greater near-source contribution for primary than for secondary PM 2.5. We conclude that long-range dispersion models with coarse geographic resolution are appropriate for risk assessments of secondary PM 2.5 or primary PM 2.5 emitted from mobile sources in rural areas, but that more resolved dispersion models are warranted for primary PM 2.5 in urban areas due to the substantial contribution of near-source populations.

  4. Quantifying the relative contribution of natural gas fugitive emissions to total methane emissions in Colorado, Utah, and Texas using mobile δ13CH4 analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rella, C.; Crosson, E.; Petron, G.; Sweeney, C.; Karion, A.

    2013-12-01

    Fugitive emissions of methane into the atmosphere are a major concern facing the natural gas production industry. Because methane is more energy-rich than coal per kg of CO2 emitted into the atmosphere, it represents an attractive alternative to coal for electricity generation, provided that the fugitive emissions of methane are kept under control. A key step in assessing these emissions in a given region is partitioning the observed methane emissions between natural gas fugitive emissions and other sources of methane, such as from landfills or agricultural activities. One effective method for assessing the contribution of these different sources is stable isotope analysis, using the δ13CH4 signature to distinguish between natural gas and landfills or ruminants. We present measurements of mobile field δ13CH4 using a spectroscopic stable isotope analyzer based on cavity ringdown spectroscopy, in three intense natural gas producing regions of the United States: the Denver-Julesburg basin in Colorado, the Uintah basin in Utah, and the Barnett Shale in Texas. Mobile isotope measurements of individual sources and in the nocturnal boundary layer have been combined to establish the fraction of the observed methane emissions that can be attributed to natural gas activities. The fraction of total methane emissions in the Denver-Julesburg basin attributed to natural gas emissions is 78 +/- 13%. In the Uinta basin, which has no other significant sources of methane, the fraction is 96% +/- 15%. In addition, results from the Barnett shale are presented, which includes a major urban center (Dallas / Ft. Worth). Methane emissions in this region are spatially highly heterogeneous. Spatially-resolved isotope and concentration measurements are interpreted using a simple emissions model to arrive at an overall isotope ratio for the region. (left panel) Distribution of oil and gas well pads (yellow) and landfills (blue) in the Dallas / Ft. Worth area. Mobile nocturnal measurements of methane are shown in red, indicating a strong degree of source heterogeneity. (right panel) Histogram of individual isotopic source signatures, showing distinct signatures for landfills (red) and oil and gas sources (green).

  5. Chapter 7: Impact of Nitrogen and Climate Change Interactions on Ambient Air Pollution and Human Health

    EPA Science Inventory

    Nitrogen oxides (NOX) are important components of ambient and indoor air pollution and are emitted from a range of combustion sources, including on-road mobile sources, electric power generators, and non-road mobile sources. While anthropogenic sources dominate, NOX is also forme...

  6. Primary path reservation using enhanced slot assignment in TDMA for session admission.

    PubMed

    Koneri Chandrasekaran, Suresh; Savarimuthu, Prakash; Andi Elumalai, Priya; Ayyaswamy, Kathirvel

    2015-01-01

    Mobile ad hoc networks (MANET) is a self-organized collection of nodes that communicates without any infrastructure. Providing quality of service (QoS) in such networks is a competitive task due to unreliable wireless link, mobility, lack of centralized coordination, and channel contention. The success of many real time applications is purely based on the QoS, which can be achieved by quality aware routing (QAR) and admission control (AC). Recently proposed QoS mechanisms do focus completely on either reservation or admission control but are not better enough. In MANET, high mobility causes frequent path break due to the fact that every time the source node must find the route. In such cases the QoS session is affected. To admit a QoS session, admission control protocols must ensure the bandwidth of the relaying path before transmission starts; reservation of such bandwidth noticeably improves the admission control performance. Many TDMA based reservation mechanisms are proposed but need some improvement over slot reservation procedures. In order to overcome this specific issue, we propose a framework-PRAC (primary path reservation admission control protocol), which achieves improved QoS by making use of backup route combined with resource reservation. A network topology has been simulated and our approach proves to be a mechanism that admits the session effectively.

  7. New virtual laboratories presenting advanced motion control concepts

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Goubej, Martin; Krejčí, Alois; Reitinger, Jan

    2015-11-01

    The paper deals with development of software framework for rapid generation of remote virtual laboratories. Client-server architecture is chosen in order to employ real-time simulation core which is running on a dedicated server. Ordinary web browser is used as a final renderer to achieve hardware independent solution which can be run on different target platforms including laptops, tablets or mobile phones. The provided toolchain allows automatic generation of the virtual laboratory source code from the configuration file created in the open- source Inkscape graphic editor. Three virtual laboratories presenting advanced motion control algorithms have been developed showing the applicability of the proposed approach.

  8. Biodiesel presence in the source zone hinders aromatic hydrocarbons attenuation in a B20-contaminated groundwater

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ramos, Débora Toledo; Lazzarin, Helen Simone Chiaranda; Alvarez, Pedro J. J.; Vogel, Timothy M.; Fernandes, Marilda; do Rosário, Mário; Corseuil, Henry Xavier

    2016-10-01

    The behavior of biodiesel blend spills have received limited attention in spite of the increasing and widespread introduction of biodiesel to the transportation fuel matrix. In this work, a controlled field release of biodiesel B20 (100 L of 20:80 v/v soybean biodiesel and diesel) was monitored over 6.2 years to assess the behavior and natural attenuation of constituents of major concern (e.g., BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethyl-benzene and xylenes) and PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons)) in a sandy aquifer material. Biodiesel was preferentially biodegraded compared to diesel aromatic compounds with a concomitant increase in acetate, methane (near saturation limit (≈ 22 mg L- 1)) and dissolved BTEX and PAH concentrations in the source zone during the first 1.5 to 2.0 years after the release. Benzene and benzo(a)pyrene concentrations remained above regulatory limits in the source zone until the end of the experiment (6.2 years after the release). Compared to a previous adjacent 100-L release of ethanol-amended gasoline, biodiesel/diesel blend release resulted in a shorter BTEX plume, but with higher residual dissolved hydrocarbon concentrations near the source zone. This was attributed to greater persistence of viscous (and less mobile) biodiesel than the highly-soluble and mobile ethanol in the source zone. This persistence of biodiesel/diesel NAPL at the source zone slowed BTEX and PAH biodegradation (by the establishment of an anaerobic zone) but reduced the plume length by reducing mobility. This is the first field study to assess biodiesel/diesel blend (B20) behavior in groundwater and its effects on the biodegradation and plume length of priority groundwater pollutants.

  9. Biodiesel presence in the source zone hinders aromatic hydrocarbons attenuation in a B20-contaminated groundwater.

    PubMed

    Ramos, Débora Toledo; Lazzarin, Helen Simone Chiaranda; Alvarez, Pedro J J; Vogel, Timothy M; Fernandes, Marilda; do Rosário, Mário; Corseuil, Henry Xavier

    2016-10-01

    The behavior of biodiesel blend spills have received limited attention in spite of the increasing and widespread introduction of biodiesel to the transportation fuel matrix. In this work, a controlled field release of biodiesel B20 (100L of 20:80 v/v soybean biodiesel and diesel) was monitored over 6.2years to assess the behavior and natural attenuation of constituents of major concern (e.g., BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethyl-benzene and xylenes) and PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons)) in a sandy aquifer material. Biodiesel was preferentially biodegraded compared to diesel aromatic compounds with a concomitant increase in acetate, methane (near saturation limit (≈22mgL -1 )) and dissolved BTEX and PAH concentrations in the source zone during the first 1.5 to 2.0years after the release. Benzene and benzo(a)pyrene concentrations remained above regulatory limits in the source zone until the end of the experiment (6.2years after the release). Compared to a previous adjacent 100-L release of ethanol-amended gasoline, biodiesel/diesel blend release resulted in a shorter BTEX plume, but with higher residual dissolved hydrocarbon concentrations near the source zone. This was attributed to greater persistence of viscous (and less mobile) biodiesel than the highly-soluble and mobile ethanol in the source zone. This persistence of biodiesel/diesel NAPL at the source zone slowed BTEX and PAH biodegradation (by the establishment of an anaerobic zone) but reduced the plume length by reducing mobility. This is the first field study to assess biodiesel/diesel blend (B20) behavior in groundwater and its effects on the biodegradation and plume length of priority groundwater pollutants. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Electrophoretic mobilities of erythrocytes in various buffers

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Plank, L. D.; Kunze, M. E.; Todd, P. W.

    1985-01-01

    The calibration of space flight equipment depends on a source of standard test particles, this test particle of choice is the fixed erythrocyte. Erythrocytes from different species have different electrophoretic mobilities. Electrophoretic mobility depends upon zeta potential, which, in turn depends upon ionic strength. Zeta potential decreases with increasing ionic strength, so cells have high electrophoretic mobility in space electrophoresis buffers than in typical physiological buffers. The electrophoretic mobilities of fixed human, rat, and rabbit erythrocytes in 0.145 M salt and buffers of varying ionic strength, temperature, and composition, to assess the effects of some of the unique combinations used in space buffers were characterized. Several effects were assessed: glycerol or DMSO (dimethylsulfoxide) were considered for use as cryoprotectants. The effect of these substances on erythrocyte electrophoretic mobility was examined. The choice of buffer depended upon cell mobility. Primary experiments with kidney cells established the choice of buffer and cryoprotectant. A nonstandard temperature of EPM in the suitable buffer was determined. A loss of ionic strength control occurs in the course of preparing columns for flight, the effects of small increases in ionic strength over the expected low values need to be evaluated.

  11. 40 CFR 85.1510 - Maintenance instructions, warranties, emission labeling and fuel economy requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Maintenance instructions, warranties, emission labeling and fuel economy requirements. 85.1510 Section 85.1510 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor Vehicles and...

  12. ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY VERIFICATION: TEST REPORT OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSION CONTROL DEVICES--PUREM NORTH AMERICA LLC, PMF GREENTEC 1004205.00.0 DIESEL PARTICULATE FILTER

    EPA Science Inventory

    The U.S. EPA has created the Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) program to provide high quality, peer reviewed data on technology performance to those involved in the design, distribution, financing, permitting, purchase, and use of environmental technologies. The Air Po...

  13. ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY VERIFICATION, TEST REPORT OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS CONTROL DEVICES: CLEAN DIESEL TECHNOLOGIES FUEL-BORNE CATALYST WITH MITSUI/PUREARTH CATALYZED WIRE MESH FILTER

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Environmental Technology Verification report discusses the technology and performance of the Fuel-Borne Catalyst with Mitsui/PUREarth Catalyzed Wire Mesh Filter manufactured by Clean Diesel Technologies, Inc. The technology is a platinum/cerium fuel-borne catalyst in commerci...

  14. ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY VERIFICATION--TEST REPORT OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSION CONTROL DEVICES, FLINT HILLS RESOURCES, LP, CCD15010 DIESEL FUEL FORMULATION WITH HITEC4121 ADDITIVE

    EPA Science Inventory

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has created the Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) Program to facilitate the deployment of innovative or improved environmental technologies through performance verification and dissemination of information. ETV seeks to ach...

  15. 40 CFR 85.1407 - Notification of intent to certify.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1407... certifier that use of its certified equipment will not cause a substantial increase to urban bus engine... § 85.1403(b) for all affected urban bus operators as specified in § 85.1401, the notification shall...

  16. 40 CFR 85.1407 - Notification of intent to certify.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1407... certifier that use of its certified equipment will not cause a substantial increase to urban bus engine... § 85.1403(b) for all affected urban bus operators as specified in § 85.1401, the notification shall...

  17. 40 CFR 85.1407 - Notification of intent to certify.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1407... certifier that use of its certified equipment will not cause a substantial increase to urban bus engine... § 85.1403(b) for all affected urban bus operators as specified in § 85.1401, the notification shall...

  18. 40 CFR 85.1407 - Notification of intent to certify.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Urban Bus Rebuild Requirements § 85.1407... certifier that use of its certified equipment will not cause a substantial increase to urban bus engine... § 85.1403(b) for all affected urban bus operators as specified in § 85.1401, the notification shall...

  19. 40 CFR 85.1704 - Who may request an exemption.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Exclusion and Exemption of Motor Vehicles and Motor..., vehicles or engines for export purposes are exempt without application, subject to the provisions of § 85... purposes are exempt without application, subject to the provisions of § 85.1706(a). [45 FR 13733, Mar. 3...

  20. 40 CFR 85.1512 - Admission of catalyst and O2 sensor-equipped vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor..., where applicable, § 85.1510(c); and (iv) Has been driven outside the United States, Canada and Mexico or... purpose of this section, “driven outside the United States, Canada and Mexico” does not include mileage...

  1. 40 CFR 85.1512 - Admission of catalyst and O2 sensor-equipped vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor..., where applicable, § 85.1510(c); and (iv) Has been driven outside the United States, Canada and Mexico or... purpose of this section, “driven outside the United States, Canada and Mexico” does not include mileage...

  2. 40 CFR 85.1512 - Admission of catalyst and O2 sensor-equipped vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor..., where applicable, § 85.1510(c); and (iv) Has been driven outside the United States, Canada and Mexico or... purpose of this section, “driven outside the United States, Canada and Mexico” does not include mileage...

  3. 40 CFR 85.1512 - Admission of catalyst and O2 sensor-equipped vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... (CONTINUED) AIR PROGRAMS (CONTINUED) CONTROL OF AIR POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES Importation of Motor..., where applicable, § 85.1510(c); and (iv) Has been driven outside the United States, Canada and Mexico or... purpose of this section, “driven outside the United States, Canada and Mexico” does not include mileage...

  4. Methods for Characterizing the Distribution of Exhaust Emissions from Light-Duty, Gasoline-Powered Motor Vehicles in the U.S. Fleet

    EPA Science Inventory

    Mobile sources significantly contribute to ambient concentrations of airborne particulate matter. Source apportionment studies for PMlO and PM2.5 indicate that mobile sources can be responsible for over half of the ambient PM measured in an urban area. Recent source apportionment...

  5. Design and control strategy for a hybrid green energy system for mobile telecommunication sites

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Okundamiya, Michael S.; Emagbetere, Joy O.; Ogujor, Emmanuel A.

    2014-07-01

    The rising energy costs and carbon footprint of operating mobile telecommunication sites in the emerging world have increased research interests in green technology. The intermittent nature of most green energy sources creates the problem of designing the optimum configuration for a given location. This study presents the design analysis and control strategy for a cost effective and reliable operation of the hybrid green energy system (HGES) for GSM base transceiver station (BTS) sites in isolated regions. The design constrains the generation and distribution of power to reliably satisfy the energy demand while ensuring safe operation of the system. The overall process control applies the genetic algorithm-based technique for optimal techno-economic sizing of system's components. The process simulation utilized meteorological data for 3 locations (Abuja, Benin City and Sokoto) with varying climatic conditions in Nigeria. Simulation results presented for green GSM BTS sites are discussed and compared with existing approaches.

  6. Investigation of the effects of distance from sources on apoptosis, oxidative stress and cytosolic calcium accumulation via TRPV1 channels induced by mobile phones and Wi-Fi in breast cancer cells.

    PubMed

    Çiğ, Bilal; Nazıroğlu, Mustafa

    2015-10-01

    TRPV1 is a Ca2+ permeable channel and gated by noxious heat, oxidative stress and capsaicin (CAP). Some reports have indicated that non-ionized electromagnetic radiation (EMR)-induces heat and oxidative stress effects. We aimed to investigate the effects of distance from sources on calcium signaling, cytosolic ROS production, cell viability, apoptosis, plus caspase-3 and -9 values induced by mobile phones and Wi-Fi in breast cancer cells MCF-7 human breast cancer cell lines were divided into A, B, C and D groups as control, 900, 1800 and 2450 MHz groups, respectively. Cells in Group A were used as control and were kept in cell culture conditions without EMR exposure. Groups B, C and D were exposed to the EMR frequencies at different distances (0 cm, 1 cm, 5 cm, 10 cm, 20 cm and 25 cm) for 1h before CAP stimulation. The cytosolic ROS production, Ca2+ concentrations, apoptosis, caspase-3 and caspase-9 values were higher in groups B, C and D than in A group at 0 cm, 1 cm and 5 cm distances although cell viability (MTT) values were increased by the distances. There was no statistically significant difference in the values between control, 20 and 25 cm. Wi-Fi and mobile phone EMR placed within 10 cm of the cells induced excessive oxidative responses and apoptosis via TRPV1-induced cytosolic Ca2+ accumulation in the cancer cells. Using cell phones and Wi-Fi sources which are farther away than 10 cm may provide useful protection against oxidative stress, apoptosis and overload of intracellular Ca2+. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Membrane channels and transporters in cancers. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. Comparative study of mobility extraction methods in p-type polycrystalline silicon thin film transistors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Kai; Liu, Yuan; Liu, Yu-Rong; En, Yun-Fei; Li, Bin

    2017-07-01

    Channel mobility in the p-type polycrystalline silicon thin film transistors (poly-Si TFTs) is extracted using Hoffman method, linear region transconductance method and multi-frequency C-V method. Due to the non-negligible errors when neglecting the dependence of gate-source voltage on the effective mobility, the extracted mobility results are overestimated using linear region transconductance method and Hoffman method, especially in the lower gate-source voltage region. By considering of the distribution of localized states in the band-gap, the frequency independent capacitance due to localized charges in the sub-gap states and due to channel free electron charges in the conduction band were extracted using multi-frequency C-V method. Therefore, channel mobility was extracted accurately based on the charge transport theory. In addition, the effect of electrical field dependent mobility degradation was also considered in the higher gate-source voltage region. In the end, the extracted mobility results in the poly-Si TFTs using these three methods are compared and analyzed.

  8. A mobile communication system providing integrated voice/data services over power limited satellite channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bose, Sanjay K.; Gordon, J. J.

    The modeling and analysis of a system providing integrated voice/data services to mobile terminals over a power-limited satellite channel are discussed. The mobiles use slotted Aloha random access to send requests for channel assignments to a central station. For successful requests, the actual transmission of voice/data within a call is done using the channel assigned for this purpose by the central station. The satellite channel is assumed to be power limited. Taking into account the known burstiness of voice sources (which use a voice-activated switch), the central station overassigns channels so that the average total power is below the power limit of the satellite transponder. The performance of this model is analyzed. Certain simple, static control strategies for improving performance are also proposed.

  9. Using Mobile Phone Data to Predict the Spatial Spread of Cholera

    PubMed Central

    Bengtsson, Linus; Gaudart, Jean; Lu, Xin; Moore, Sandra; Wetter, Erik; Sallah, Kankoe; Rebaudet, Stanislas; Piarroux, Renaud

    2015-01-01

    Effective response to infectious disease epidemics requires focused control measures in areas predicted to be at high risk of new outbreaks. We aimed to test whether mobile operator data could predict the early spatial evolution of the 2010 Haiti cholera epidemic. Daily case data were analysed for 78 study areas from October 16 to December 16, 2010. Movements of 2.9 million anonymous mobile phone SIM cards were used to create a national mobility network. Two gravity models of population mobility were implemented for comparison. Both were optimized based on the complete retrospective epidemic data, available only after the end of the epidemic spread. Risk of an area experiencing an outbreak within seven days showed strong dose-response relationship with the mobile phone-based infectious pressure estimates. The mobile phone-based model performed better (AUC 0.79) than the retrospectively optimized gravity models (AUC 0.66 and 0.74, respectively). Infectious pressure at outbreak onset was significantly correlated with reported cholera cases during the first ten days of the epidemic (p < 0.05). Mobile operator data is a highly promising data source for improving preparedness and response efforts during cholera outbreaks. Findings may be particularly important for containment efforts of emerging infectious diseases, including high-mortality influenza strains. PMID:25747871

  10. Using mobile phone data to predict the spatial spread of cholera.

    PubMed

    Bengtsson, Linus; Gaudart, Jean; Lu, Xin; Moore, Sandra; Wetter, Erik; Sallah, Kankoe; Rebaudet, Stanislas; Piarroux, Renaud

    2015-03-09

    Effective response to infectious disease epidemics requires focused control measures in areas predicted to be at high risk of new outbreaks. We aimed to test whether mobile operator data could predict the early spatial evolution of the 2010 Haiti cholera epidemic. Daily case data were analysed for 78 study areas from October 16 to December 16, 2010. Movements of 2.9 million anonymous mobile phone SIM cards were used to create a national mobility network. Two gravity models of population mobility were implemented for comparison. Both were optimized based on the complete retrospective epidemic data, available only after the end of the epidemic spread. Risk of an area experiencing an outbreak within seven days showed strong dose-response relationship with the mobile phone-based infectious pressure estimates. The mobile phone-based model performed better (AUC 0.79) than the retrospectively optimized gravity models (AUC 0.66 and 0.74, respectively). Infectious pressure at outbreak onset was significantly correlated with reported cholera cases during the first ten days of the epidemic (p < 0.05). Mobile operator data is a highly promising data source for improving preparedness and response efforts during cholera outbreaks. Findings may be particularly important for containment efforts of emerging infectious diseases, including high-mortality influenza strains.

  11. The effect of whole body vibration on balance, gait performance and mobility in people with stroke: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

    PubMed

    Yang, Xiaotian; Wang, Pu; Liu, Chuan; He, Chengqi; Reinhardt, Jan D

    2015-07-01

    To examine the effect of whole body vibration on balance, gait performance and mobility among people with stroke. A systematic review was conducted by two independent reviewers who completed the article search and selection. We included randomized controlled trials published in English examining effects of whole body vibration on balance, gait, mobility, muscle strength and muscle tone in adults with a clinical diagnosis of stroke. Articles were excluded if they were research studies on people with other primary diagnosis, abstracts published in the conferences or books. The Cochrane risk of bias tool was used to assess the methodological quality of the selected studies. Sources included Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Pubmed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, PEDro, PsycINFO, Science Citation Index, ClinicalTrials.gov, Current Controlled Trials, Stroke Trials Registry, and reference lists of all relevant articles. Eight randomized controlled trials (nine articles) involving 271 participants were included in this meta-analysis. No significant improvement was found regarding Berg balance scale (SMD=-0.08, 95%CI=-1.35 to 1.19, P=0.91), mobility (SMD=0.45, 95%CI=-0.46 to 1.37, P=0.33), maximal isometric contracion of knee extension strength (SMD=0.23, 95%CI=-0.27 to 0.74, P=0.36), and maximal isometric contracion of knee extension strength (SMD=0.09, 95%CI=-0.38 to 0.56, P=0.71). There was no evidence for effects of whole body vibration on balance in people with stroke. Effects of whole body vibration on mobility and gait performance remain inconclusive. More large and high-quality trials are required. © The Author(s) 2014.

  12. On service differentiation in mobile Ad Hoc networks.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Shun-liang; Ye, Cheng-qing

    2004-09-01

    A network model is proposed to support service differentiation for mobile Ad Hoc networks by combining a fully distributed admission control approach and the DIFS based differentiation mechanism of IEEE802.11. It can provide different kinds of QoS (Quality of Service) for various applications. Admission controllers determine a committed bandwidth based on the reserved bandwidth of flows and the source utilization of networks. Packets are marked when entering into networks by markers according to the committed rate. By the mark in the packet header, intermediate nodes handle the received packets in different manners to provide applications with the QoS corresponding to the pre-negotiated profile. Extensive simulation experiments showed that the proposed mechanism can provide QoS guarantee to assured service traffic and increase the channel utilization of networks.

  13. Understanding the mobilisation of metal pollution associated with historical mining in a carboniferous upland catchment.

    PubMed

    Valencia-Avellan, Magaly; Slack, Rebecca; Stockdale, Anthony; Mortimer, Robert John George

    2017-08-16

    Point and diffuse pollution from metal mining has led to severe environmental damage worldwide. Mine drainage is a significant problem for riverine ecosystems, it is commonly acidic (AMD), but neutral mine drainage (NMD) can also occur. A representative environment for studying metal pollution from NMD is provided by carboniferous catchments characterised by a circumneutral pH and high concentrations of carbonates, supporting the formation of secondary metal-minerals as potential sinks of metals. The present study focuses on understanding the mobility of metal pollution associated with historical mining in a carboniferous upland catchment. In the uplands of the UK, river water, sediments and spoil wastes were collected over a period of fourteen months, samples were chemically analysed to identify the main metal sources and their relationships with geological and hydrological factors. Correlation tests and principal component analysis suggest that the underlying limestone bedrock controls pH and weathering reactions. Significant metal concentrations from mining activities were measured for zinc (4.3 mg l -1 ), and lead (0.3 mg l -1 ), attributed to processes such as oxidation of mined ores (e.g. sphalerite, galena) or dissolution of precipitated secondary metal-minerals (e.g. cerussite, smithsonite). Zinc and lead mobility indicated strong dependence on biogeochemistry and hydrological conditions (e.g. pH and flow) at specific locations in the catchment. Annual loads of zinc and lead (2.9 and 0.2 tonnes per year) demonstrate a significant source of both metals to downstream river reaches. Metal pollution results in a large area of catchment having a depleted chemical status with likely effects on the aquatic ecology. This study provides an improved understanding of geological and hydrological processes controlling water chemistry, which is critical to assessing metal sources and mobilization, especially in neutral mine drainage areas.

  14. Environmental Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields Exposure at Home, Mobile and Cordless Phone Use, and Sleep Problems in 7-Year-Old Children

    PubMed Central

    Huss, Anke; van Eijsden, Manon; Guxens, Monica; Beekhuizen, Johan; van Strien, Rob; Kromhout, Hans; Vrijkotte, Tania; Vermeulen, Roel

    2015-01-01

    Background We evaluated if exposure to RF-EMF was associated with reported quality of sleep in 2,361 children, aged 7 years. Methods This study was embedded in the Amsterdam Born Children and their Development (ABCD) birth cohort study. When children were about five years old, school and residential exposure to RF-EMF from base stations was assessed with a geospatial model (NISMap) and from indoor sources (cordless phone/WiFi) using parental self-reports. Parents also reported their children’s use of mobile or cordless phones. When children were seven years old, we evaluated sleep quality as measured with the Child Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ) filled in by parents. Of eight CSHQ subscales, we evaluated sleep onset delay, sleep duration, night wakenings, parasomnias and daytime sleepiness with logistic or negative binomial regression models, adjusting for child’s age and sex and indicators of socio-economic position of the parents. We evaluated the remaining three subscales (bedtime resistance, sleep anxiety, sleep disordered breathing) as unrelated outcomes (negative control) because these were a priori hypothesised not to be associated with RF-EMF. Results Sleep onset delay, night wakenings, parasomnias and daytime sleepiness were not associated with residential exposure to RF-EMF from base stations. Sleep duration scores were associated with RF-EMF levels from base stations. Higher use mobile phones was associated with less favourable sleep duration, night wakenings and parasomnias, and also with bedtime resistance. Cordless phone use was not related to any of the sleeping scores. Conclusion Given the different results across the evaluated RF-EMF exposure sources and the observed association between mobile phone use and the negative control sleep scale, our study does not support the hypothesis that it is the exposure to RF-EMF that is detrimental to sleep quality in 7-year old children, but potentially other factors that are related to mobile phone usage. PMID:26509676

  15. Wireless, Web-Based Interactive Control of Optical Coherence Tomography with Mobile Devices

    PubMed Central

    Mehta, Rajvi; Nankivil, Derek; Zielinski, David J.; Waterman, Gar; Keller, Brenton; Limkakeng, Alexander T.; Kopper, Regis; Izatt, Joseph A.; Kuo, Anthony N.

    2017-01-01

    Purpose Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is widely used in ophthalmology clinics and has potential for more general medical settings and remote diagnostics. In anticipation of remote applications, we developed wireless interactive control of an OCT system using mobile devices. Methods A web-based user interface (WebUI) was developed to interact with a handheld OCT system. The WebUI consisted of key OCT displays and controls ported to a webpage using HTML and JavaScript. Client–server relationships were created between the WebUI and the OCT system computer. The WebUI was accessed on a cellular phone mounted to the handheld OCT probe to wirelessly control the OCT system. Twenty subjects were imaged using the WebUI to assess the system. System latency was measured using different connection types (wireless 802.11n only, wireless to remote virtual private network [VPN], and cellular). Results Using a cellular phone, the WebUI was successfully used to capture posterior eye OCT images in all subjects. Simultaneous interactivity by a remote user on a laptop was also demonstrated. On average, use of the WebUI added only 58, 95, and 170 ms to the system latency using wireless only, wireless to VPN, and cellular connections, respectively. Qualitatively, operator usage was not affected. Conclusions Using a WebUI, we demonstrated wireless and remote control of an OCT system with mobile devices. Translational Relevance The web and open source software tools used in this project make it possible for any mobile device to potentially control an OCT system through a WebUI. This platform can be a basis for remote, teleophthalmology applications using OCT. PMID:28138415

  16. RESEARCH AREA -- MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS (EMISSIONS CHARACTERIZATION AND PREVENTION BRANCH, APPCD, NRMRL)

    EPA Science Inventory

    The objective of this program is to characterize mobile source emissions which are one of the largest sources of tropospheric ozone precursor emissions (CO, NOx, and volotile organic compounds) in the U.S. The research objective of the Emissions Characterization and Prevention Br...

  17. Methods proposed to achieve air quality standards for mobile sources and technology surveillance.

    PubMed Central

    Piver, W T

    1975-01-01

    The methods proposed to meet the 1975 Standards of the Clean Air Act for mobile sources are alternative antiknocks, exhaust emission control devices, and alternative engine designs. Technology surveillance analysis applied to this situation is an attempt to anticipate potential public and environmental health problems from these methods, before they happen. Components of this analysis are exhaust emission characterization, environmental transport and transformation, levels of public and environmental exposure, and the influence of economics on the selection of alternative methods. The purpose of this presentation is to show trends as a result of the interaction of these different components. In no manner can these trends be interpreted explicitly as to what will really happen. Such an analysis is necessary so that public and environmental health officials have the opportunity to act on potential problems before they become manifest. PMID:50944

  18. 76 FR 23879 - Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Indiana; Removal of Vehicle...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-04-29

    ... conformity budget in the maintenance plan reflects mobile source emissions without I/M in future years, and... Counties for NO 2 . Furthermore, the impact of mobile sources is declining as newer cleaner vehicles... and Floyd Counties had been discontinued. Therefore, the air quality data from this period (and mobile...

  19. Future Regulations – A Catalyst for Technology Development

    EPA Science Inventory

    Summary of current mobile source regulations and EPA mobile source regulatory authority with an emphasis on how EPA regulations are a driver for the development and introduction of automotive technology.

  20. Voluntary Mobile Source Programs: Crediting Innovation and Experimentation Brochure

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This EPA document provides guidance on Voluntary Mobile Source Emission Reduction Programs (VMEPs) that could be implemented and credited with emission reductions for State Implementation Plans (SIPs) related purposes.

  1. [Investigation on source and dissemination way of knowledge on schistosomiasis prevention and control in population in Jingjiang City after transmission-interrupted].

    PubMed

    Wang, Ji-sheng; Chen, Jian-feng; Liu, Ya-hong; Song, Liang-liang

    2016-02-01

    To understand the source of knowledge on schistosomiasis prevention and control and the acceptable degree on different propagation patterns of population in Jingjiang City after schistosomiasis transmission-interrupted, so as to provide the evidence for the production of suitable materials for health education. The permanent residents, floating population as well as the primary school students in Grade 5 and 6 in riverside regions in Jingjiang City were selected as the investigation objects, the information propagation condition and the knowledge source, and the expected propagation patterns were investigated by questionnaires. The popularizing rates on the television, computer and mobile phone of the villagers were 99.81%, 84.16% and 87.78%, respectively. Both the two investigated schools had the independent TV network, broadcast and multimedia, and all the computer classroom could connected to Internet. The main sources on schistosomiasis control of permanent residents and floating population were folders and the exhibition board (62.0% and 40.5% respectively), the substantial material (42.0% and 33.5% respectively) and TV (40.5% and 36.0% respectively), while those of the students were video CD (100%), substantial material (99.5%) and folders and the exhibition boards (84.2%). The propagation ways with high acceptable degrees among the residents and floating population were substantial material, folders and the exhibition boards and short messages by mobile phone, while those among the students were video CD, substantial material, folders and the exhibition boards. The material on health education should be targeted to the demands of the different populations and their condition of information propagation, in addition, the Internet material should be developed and the communicational channels should be broaden.

  2. ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY VERIFICATION, TEST REPORT OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS CONTROL DEVICES/CLEAN DIESEL TECHNOLOGIES FUEL BORNE CATALYST WITH CLEANAIR SYSTEM'S DIESEL OXIDATION CATALYST

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Environmental Technology Verification report discusses the technology and performance of the Fuel-Borne Catalyst with CleanAir System's Diesel Oxidation Catalyst manufactured by Clean Diesel Technologies, Inc. The technology is a fuel-borne catalyst used in ultra low sulfur d...

  3. 78 FR 54177 - Adequacy Status of the Submitted 2009, 2017 and 2025 PM2.5

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-09-03

    ... criteria set forth by 40 CFR 93.118(e)(4), as follows: (i) The submitted control strategy implementation... strategy implementation plan or maintenance plan was submitted to EPA, consultation among federal, State... 2009, 2017 and 2025 budgets are less than the on-road mobile source inventory for 2007 that was shown...

  4. Environmental Technology Verification: Test Report of Mobile Source Emission Control Devices--Johnson Matthey PCRT2 1000, Version 2, Filter + Diesel Oxidation Catalyst

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Johnson Matthey PCRT2 1000, v.2 system is a partial continuously regenerating technology (PCRT) system that consists of a flow-through partial filter combined with a DOC. The system is designed for low temperature exhaust resulting from intermittent loads from medium and heav...

  5. Baumot BA-B Diesel Particulate Filter with Pre-Catalyst (ETV Mobile Source Emissions Control Devices) Verification Report

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Baumot BA-B Diesel Particulate Filter with Pre-Catalyst is a diesel engine retrofit device for light, medium, and heavy heavy-duty diesel on-highway engines for use with commercial ultra-low-sulfur diesel (ULSD) fuel. The BA-B particulate filter is composed of a pre-catalyst ...

  6. 77 FR 3681 - Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Minnesota; Regional Haze

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-01-25

    ... approach in the BART Guidelines in making a BART determination for a fossil fuel-fired EGU with total... ammonia (NH 3 ), and volatile organic compound (VOCs). Fine particle precursors react in the atmosphere to... standards, low sulfur fuel, and non-road mobile source control programs. The fourth step is to determine...

  7. Comparison of reactant and analyte ions for ⁶³Nickel, corona discharge, and secondary electrospray ionization sources with ion mobility-mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Crawford, C L; Hill, H H

    2013-03-30

    (63)Nickel radioactive ionization ((63)Ni) is the most common and widely used ion source for ion mobility spectrometry (IMS). Regulatory, financial, and operational concerns with this source have promoted recent development of non-radioactive sources, such as corona discharge ionization (CD), for stand-alone IMS systems. However, there has been no comparison of the negative ion species produced by all three sources in the literature. This study compares the negative reactant and analyte ions produced by three sources on an ion mobility-mass spectrometer: conventional (63)Ni, CD, and secondary electrospray ionization (SESI). Results showed that (63)Ni and SESI produced the same reactant ion species while CD produced only the nitrate monomer and dimer ions. The analyte ions produced by each ion source were the same except for the CD source which produced a different ion species for the explosive RDX than either the (63)Ni or SESI source. Accurate and reproducible reduced mobility (K0) values, including several values reported here for the first time, were found for each explosive with each ion source. Overall, the SESI source most closely reproduced the reactant ion species and analyte ion species profiles for (63)Ni. This source may serve as a non-radioactive, robust, and flexible alternative for (63)Ni. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Mobile source air toxics mitigation measures.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2013-10-01

    In accordance with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Interim Guidance Update on Mobile Source Air Toxic Analysis in NEPA Documents (September 30, 2009), transportation projects subject to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) mus...

  9. Alternative Fuels Data Center: Houston Energizes Deployment of Plug-In

    Science.gov Websites

    and other pollutant emissions: buildings and structures, mobile sources, and waste (also read more recent reports). Vehicle electrification became a key focus of mobile source emissions-reduction

  10. Distributed Water Pollution Source Localization with Mobile UV-Visible Spectrometer Probes in Wireless Sensor Networks.

    PubMed

    Ma, Junjie; Meng, Fansheng; Zhou, Yuexi; Wang, Yeyao; Shi, Ping

    2018-02-16

    Pollution accidents that occur in surface waters, especially in drinking water source areas, greatly threaten the urban water supply system. During water pollution source localization, there are complicated pollutant spreading conditions and pollutant concentrations vary in a wide range. This paper provides a scalable total solution, investigating a distributed localization method in wireless sensor networks equipped with mobile ultraviolet-visible (UV-visible) spectrometer probes. A wireless sensor network is defined for water quality monitoring, where unmanned surface vehicles and buoys serve as mobile and stationary nodes, respectively. Both types of nodes carry UV-visible spectrometer probes to acquire in-situ multiple water quality parameter measurements, in which a self-adaptive optical path mechanism is designed to flexibly adjust the measurement range. A novel distributed algorithm, called Dual-PSO, is proposed to search for the water pollution source, where one particle swarm optimization (PSO) procedure computes the water quality multi-parameter measurements on each node, utilizing UV-visible absorption spectra, and another one finds the global solution of the pollution source position, regarding mobile nodes as particles. Besides, this algorithm uses entropy to dynamically recognize the most sensitive parameter during searching. Experimental results demonstrate that online multi-parameter monitoring of a drinking water source area with a wide dynamic range is achieved by this wireless sensor network and water pollution sources are localized efficiently with low-cost mobile node paths.

  11. Distributed Water Pollution Source Localization with Mobile UV-Visible Spectrometer Probes in Wireless Sensor Networks

    PubMed Central

    Zhou, Yuexi; Wang, Yeyao; Shi, Ping

    2018-01-01

    Pollution accidents that occur in surface waters, especially in drinking water source areas, greatly threaten the urban water supply system. During water pollution source localization, there are complicated pollutant spreading conditions and pollutant concentrations vary in a wide range. This paper provides a scalable total solution, investigating a distributed localization method in wireless sensor networks equipped with mobile ultraviolet-visible (UV-visible) spectrometer probes. A wireless sensor network is defined for water quality monitoring, where unmanned surface vehicles and buoys serve as mobile and stationary nodes, respectively. Both types of nodes carry UV-visible spectrometer probes to acquire in-situ multiple water quality parameter measurements, in which a self-adaptive optical path mechanism is designed to flexibly adjust the measurement range. A novel distributed algorithm, called Dual-PSO, is proposed to search for the water pollution source, where one particle swarm optimization (PSO) procedure computes the water quality multi-parameter measurements on each node, utilizing UV-visible absorption spectra, and another one finds the global solution of the pollution source position, regarding mobile nodes as particles. Besides, this algorithm uses entropy to dynamically recognize the most sensitive parameter during searching. Experimental results demonstrate that online multi-parameter monitoring of a drinking water source area with a wide dynamic range is achieved by this wireless sensor network and water pollution sources are localized efficiently with low-cost mobile node paths. PMID:29462929

  12. Applications of Ground-based Mobile Atmospheric Monitoring: Real-time Characterization of Source Emissions and Ambient Concentrations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Goetz, J. Douglas

    Gas and particle phase atmospheric pollution are known to impact human and environmental health as well as contribute to climate forcing. While many atmospheric pollutants are regulated or controlled in the developed world uncertainty still remains regarding the impacts from under characterized emission sources, the interaction of anthropogenic and naturally occurring pollution, and the chemical and physical evolution of emissions in the atmosphere, among many other uncertainties. Because of the complexity of atmospheric pollution many types of monitoring have been implemented in the past, but none are capable of perfectly characterizing the atmosphere and each monitoring type has known benefits and disadvantages. Ground-based mobile monitoring with fast-response in-situ instrumentation has been used in the past for a number of applications that fill data gaps not possible with other types of atmospheric monitoring. In this work, ground-based mobile monitoring was implemented to quantify emissions from under characterized emission sources using both moving and portable applications, and used in a novel way for the characterization of ambient concentrations. In the Marcellus Shale region of Pennsylvania two mobile platforms were used to estimate emission rates from infrastructure associated with the production and transmission of natural gas using two unique methods. One campaign investigated emissions of aerosols, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), methane, carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and carbon dioxide (CO 2) from natural gas wells, well development practices, and compressor stations using tracer release ratio methods and a developed fenceline tracer release correction factor. Another campaign investigated emissions of methane from Marcellus Shale gas wells and infrastructure associated with two large national transmission pipelines using the "Point Source Gaussian" method described in the EPA OTM-33a. During both campaigns ambient concentrations of methane, CO and other pollutants were continuously monitored while driving throughout the region. A smoothing technique was developed to remove contributions of direct unmixed emissions to produce a dataset that can be used in comparison with other monitoring techniques (e.g. stationary, aircraft). Finally, a portable mobile lab equipped with fast-response aerosol instrumentation including an Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS) was used to characterize non-refractory aerosol and black carbon emissions from common, but under characterized emission sources in South Asia (i.e. brick kilns, cookstoves, open garbage burning, irrigation pumps). Speciated submicron aerosol emission factors, size distributions, and mass spectral profiles were retrieved for each emission source. This work demonstrates that ground-based mobile laboratory measurements are useful for characterizing emissions and ambient concentrations in authentic conditions outside of the conventional laboratory environment, and in ways not possible with other atmospheric monitoring platforms.

  13. Design Definition Study Report. Full Crew Interaction Simulator-Laboratory Model (FCIS-LM) (Device X17B7). Volume I. Problem Analysis.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1978-06-01

    and Sound Levels. Tank sound characteris- tics can be categorized by four areas of tank operation. These are: engine starting and running, mobility or...the use of the ballistic computer system. The indirect sighting and fire control system consists of the elevation quadrant M13A3, a control light source...in low ambient 2-22 temperatures. No controls or indicators are provided for the engine air intake system. The exhaust system has four engine

  14. Psychosocial work environment, job mobility and gender differences in turnover behaviour: a prospective study among the Swedish general population

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background Throughout the literature, substantial evidence supports associations between poor psychosocial work characteristics and a variety of ill-health outcomes. Yet, few reports strategies workers carry out to improve detrimental work conditions and consequently their health, such as changing jobs. The aim of this study was to examine if adverse psychosocial work exposure, as measured with the job demand-control and effort-reward imbalance models, could predict job mobility over a 5 years observation period. Method Participants were working men and women (n = 940; 54.3% women), aged 24–60 years from the population of Gothenburg and surrounding metropolitan area. Job demand-control and effort-reward variables were compared with independent t-tests and chi2-test in persons with and without job mobility. Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyse whether psychosocial factors could predict job mobility. All regression analyses were stratified by gender. Results Exposure to a combination of high demands-low control or high imbalance between effort and reward was related to increased odds of changing jobs (OR 1.63; CI 1.03-2.59 and OR 1.46; CI 1.13-1.89 respectively). When analysing men and women separately, men had a higher OR of changing jobs when exposed to either high demands-low control (OR 2.72; CI 1.24-5.98) or high effort-reward imbalance (OR 1.74; CI 1.11-2.72) compared to reference values. The only significant associations for women was slightly decreased odds for turnover in high reward jobs (OR 0.96; CI 0.92-0.99). Conclusions The results indicate that workers will seek to improve poor work environment by changing jobs. There were notable gender differences, where men tended to engage in job mobility when exposed to adverse psychosocial factors, while women did not. The lack of measures for mechanisms driving job mobility was a limitation of this study, thus preventing conclusions regarding psychosocial factors as the primary source for job mobility. PMID:24927628

  15. A three-dimensional point process model for the spatial distribution of disease occurrence in relation to an exposure source.

    PubMed

    Grell, Kathrine; Diggle, Peter J; Frederiksen, Kirsten; Schüz, Joachim; Cardis, Elisabeth; Andersen, Per K

    2015-10-15

    We study methods for how to include the spatial distribution of tumours when investigating the relation between brain tumours and the exposure from radio frequency electromagnetic fields caused by mobile phone use. Our suggested point process model is adapted from studies investigating spatial aggregation of a disease around a source of potential hazard in environmental epidemiology, where now the source is the preferred ear of each phone user. In this context, the spatial distribution is a distribution over a sample of patients rather than over multiple disease cases within one geographical area. We show how the distance relation between tumour and phone can be modelled nonparametrically and, with various parametric functions, how covariates can be included in the model and how to test for the effect of distance. To illustrate the models, we apply them to a subset of the data from the Interphone Study, a large multinational case-control study on the association between brain tumours and mobile phone use. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  16. Assessment of Noise and Associated Health Impacts at Selected Secondary Schools in Ibadan, Nigeria

    PubMed Central

    Ana, Godson R. E. E.; Shendell, Derek G.; Brown, G. E.; Sridhar, M. K. C.

    2009-01-01

    Background. Most schools in Ibadan, Nigeria, are located near major roads (mobile line sources). We conducted an initial assessment of noise levels and adverse noise-related health and learning effects. Methods. For this descriptive, cross-sectional study, four schools were selected randomly from eight participating in overall project. We administered 200 questionnaires, 50 per school, assessing health and learning-related outcomes. Noise levels (A-weighted decibels, dBA) were measured with calibrated sound level meters. Traffic density was assessed for school with the highest measured dBA. Observational checklists assessed noise control parameters and building physical attributes. Results. Short-term, cross-sectional school-day noise levels ranged 68.3–84.7 dBA. Over 60% of respondents reported that vehicular traffic was major source of noise, and over 70% complained being disturbed by noise. Three schools reported tiredness, and one school lack of concentration, as the most prevalent noise-related health problems. Conclusion. Secondary school occupants in Ibadan, Nigeria were potentially affected by exposure to noise from mobile line sources. PMID:20041025

  17. Self-control and problematic mobile phone use in Chinese college students: the mediating role of mobile phone use patterns.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Zhaocai; Zhao, Xiuxin

    2016-11-22

    With the popularity of mobile phones, problematic mobile phone use is getting increasing attention in recent years. Although self-control was found to be a critical predictor of problematic mobile phone use, no study has ever explored the association between self-control and mobile phone use patterns as well as the possible pathway how self-control affects problematic mobile phone use. Four hundred sixty-eight college students were randomly selected in this study. Data were collected using the Problematic Mobile Phone Use Scale, the Self-Control Scale, and the Mobile Phone Use Pattern Questionnaire. Statistical tests were conducted to identify the potential role of mobile phone use patterns in the association between self-control and problematic mobile phone use. In this sample, female students displayed significant higher mobile phone dependence than males. Self-control was negatively correlated with interpersonal, transaction and entertainment mobile phone use patterns, but positively correlated with information seeking use pattern. Self-control could predict problematic mobile phone use directly and indirectly via interpersonal and transaction patterns. Our research provided additional evidence for the negative association between self-control and problematic mobile phone use. Moreover, interpersonal and transaction use patterns played a mediating role in this link.

  18. Design and development of a solar powered mobile laboratory

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jiao, L.; Simon, A.; Barrera, H.; Acharya, V.; Repke, W.

    2016-08-01

    This paper describes the design and development of a solar powered mobile laboratory (SPML) system. The SPML provides a mobile platform that schools, universities, and communities can use to give students and staff access to laboratory environments where dedicated laboratories are not available. The lab includes equipment like 3D printers, computers, and soldering stations. The primary power source of the system is solar PV which allows the laboratory to be operated in places where the grid power is not readily available or not sufficient to power all the equipment. The main system components include PV panels, junction box, battery, charge controller, and inverter. Not only is it used to teach students and staff how to use the lab equipment, but it is also a great tool to educate the public about solar PV technologies.

  19. Fine particulate matter emissions inventories: comparisons of emissions estimates with observations from recent field programs.

    PubMed

    Simon, Heather; Allen, David T; Wittig, Ann E

    2008-02-01

    Emissions inventories of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) were compared with estimates of emissions based on data emerging from U.S. Environment Protection Agency Particulate Matter Supersites and other field programs. Six source categories for PM2.5 emissions were reviewed: on-road mobile sources, nonroad mobile sources, cooking, biomass combustion, fugitive dust, and stationary sources. Ammonia emissions from all of the source categories were also examined. Regional emissions inventories of PM in the exhaust from on-road and nonroad sources were generally consistent with ambient observations, though uncertainties in some emission factors were twice as large as the emission factors. In contrast, emissions inventories of road dust were up to an order of magnitude larger than ambient observations, and estimated brake wear and tire dust emissions were half as large as ambient observations in urban areas. Although comprehensive nationwide emissions inventories of PM2.5 from cooking sources and biomass burning are not yet available, observational data in urban areas suggest that cooking sources account for approximately 5-20% of total primary emissions (excluding dust), and biomass burning sources are highly dependent on region. Finally, relatively few observational data were available to assess the accuracy of emission estimates for stationary sources. Overall, the uncertainties in primary emissions for PM2.s are substantial. Similar uncertainties exist for ammonia emissions. Because of these uncertainties, the design of PM2.5 control strategies should be based on inventories that have been refined by a combination of bottom-up and top-down methods.

  20. Contribution of Mobile Group II Introns to Sinorhizobium meliloti Genome Evolution.

    PubMed

    Toro, Nicolás; Martínez-Abarca, Francisco; Molina-Sánchez, María D; García-Rodríguez, Fernando M; Nisa-Martínez, Rafael

    2018-01-01

    Mobile group II introns are ribozymes and retroelements that probably originate from bacteria. Sinorhizobium meliloti , the nitrogen-fixing endosymbiont of legumes of genus Medicago , harbors a large number of these retroelements. One of these elements, RmInt1, has been particularly successful at colonizing this multipartite genome. Many studies have improved our understanding of RmInt1 and phylogenetically related group II introns, their mobility mechanisms, spread and dynamics within S. meliloti and closely related species. Although RmInt1 conserves the ancient retroelement behavior, its evolutionary history suggests that this group II intron has played a role in the short- and long-term evolution of the S. meliloti genome. We will discuss its proposed role in genome evolution by controlling the spread and coexistence of potentially harmful mobile genetic elements, by ectopic transposition to different genetic loci as a source of early genomic variation and by generating sequence variation after a very slow degradation process, through intron remnants that may have continued to evolve, contributing to bacterial speciation.

  1. Contribution of Mobile Group II Introns to Sinorhizobium meliloti Genome Evolution

    PubMed Central

    Toro, Nicolás; Martínez-Abarca, Francisco; Molina-Sánchez, María D.; García-Rodríguez, Fernando M.; Nisa-Martínez, Rafael

    2018-01-01

    Mobile group II introns are ribozymes and retroelements that probably originate from bacteria. Sinorhizobium meliloti, the nitrogen-fixing endosymbiont of legumes of genus Medicago, harbors a large number of these retroelements. One of these elements, RmInt1, has been particularly successful at colonizing this multipartite genome. Many studies have improved our understanding of RmInt1 and phylogenetically related group II introns, their mobility mechanisms, spread and dynamics within S. meliloti and closely related species. Although RmInt1 conserves the ancient retroelement behavior, its evolutionary history suggests that this group II intron has played a role in the short- and long-term evolution of the S. meliloti genome. We will discuss its proposed role in genome evolution by controlling the spread and coexistence of potentially harmful mobile genetic elements, by ectopic transposition to different genetic loci as a source of early genomic variation and by generating sequence variation after a very slow degradation process, through intron remnants that may have continued to evolve, contributing to bacterial speciation. PMID:29670598

  2. What are the current solutions for interfacing supercritical fluid chromatography and mass spectrometry?

    PubMed

    Guillarme, Davy; Desfontaine, Vincent; Heinisch, Sabine; Veuthey, Jean-Luc

    2018-04-15

    Mass spectrometry (MS) is considered today as one of the most popular detection methods, due to its high selectivity and sensitivity. In particular, this detector has become the gold standard for the analysis of complex mixtures such as biological samples. The first successful SFC-MS hyphenation was reported in the 80's, and since then, several ionization sources, mass analyzers and interfacing technologies have been combined. Due to the specific physicochemical properties and compressibility of the SFC mobile phase, directing the column effluent into the ionization source is more challenging than in LC. Therefore, some specific interfaces have to be employed in SFC-MS, to i) avoid (or at least limit) analytes precipitation due to CO 2 decompression, when the SFC mobile phase is not anymore under backpressure control, ii) achieve adequate ionization yield, even with a low proportion of MeOH in the mobile phase and iii) preserve the chromatographic integrity (i.e. maintaining retention, selectivity, and efficiency). The goal of this review is to describe the various SFC-MS interfaces and highlight the most favorable ones in terms of reliability, flexibility, sensitivity and user-friendliness. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Arsenic concentrations, related environmental factors, and the predicted probability of elevated arsenic in groundwater in Pennsylvania

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Gross, Eliza L.; Low, Dennis J.

    2013-01-01

    Logistic regression models were created to predict and map the probability of elevated arsenic concentrations in groundwater statewide in Pennsylvania and in three intrastate regions to further improve predictions for those three regions (glacial aquifer system, Gettysburg Basin, Newark Basin). Although the Pennsylvania and regional predictive models retained some different variables, they have common characteristics that can be grouped by (1) geologic and soils variables describing arsenic sources and mobilizers, (2) geochemical variables describing the geochemical environment of the groundwater, and (3) locally specific variables that are unique to each of the three regions studied and not applicable to statewide analysis. Maps of Pennsylvania and the three intrastate regions were produced that illustrate that areas most at risk are those with geology and soils capable of functioning as an arsenic source or mobilizer and geochemical groundwater conditions able to facilitate redox reactions. The models have limitations because they may not characterize areas that have localized controls on arsenic mobility. The probability maps associated with this report are intended for regional-scale use and may not be accurate for use at the field scale or when considering individual wells.

  4. Source apportionment of indoor air pollution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sexton, Ken; Hayward, Steven B.

    An understanding of the relative contributions from important pollutant sources to human exposures is necessary for the design and implementation of effective control strategies. In the past, societal efforts to control air pollution have focused almost exclusively on the outdoor (ambient) environment. As a result, substantial amounts of time and money have been spent to limit airborne discharges from mobile and stationary sources. Yet it is now recognized that exposures to elevated pollutant concentrations often occur as a result of indoor, rather than outdoor, emissions. While the major indoor sources have been identified, their relative impacts on indoor air quality have not been well defined. Application of existing source apportionment models to nonindustrial indoor environments is only just beginning. It is possible that these models might be used to distinguish between indoor and outdoor emissions, as well as to distinguish among indoor sources themselves. However, before the feasibility and suitability of source-apportionment methods for indoor applications can be assessed adequately, it is necessary to take account of model assumptions and associated data requirements. This paper examines the issue of indoor source apportionment and reviews the need for emission characterization studies to support such source-apportionment efforts.

  5. Developing Oxidized Nitrogen Atmospheric Deposition Source Attribution from CMAQ for Air-Water Trading for Chesapeake Bay

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dennis, R. L.; Napelenok, S. L.; Linker, L. C.; Dudek, M.

    2012-12-01

    Estuaries are adversely impacted by excess reactive nitrogen, Nr, from many point and nonpoint sources, including atmospheric deposition to the watershed and the estuary itself as a nonpoint source. For effective mitigation, trading among sources of Nr is being considered. The Chesapeake Bay Program is working to bring air into its trading scheme, which requires some special air computations. Airsheds are much larger than watersheds; thus, wide-spread or national emissions controls are put in place to achieve major reductions in atmospheric Nr deposition. The tributary nitrogen load reductions allocated to the states to meet the TMDL target for Chesapeake Bay are large and not easy to attain via controls on water point and nonpoint sources. It would help the TMDL process to take advantage of air emissions reductions that would occur with State Implementation Plans that go beyond the national air rules put in place to help meet national ambient air quality standards. There are still incremental benefits from these local or state-level controls on atmospheric emissions. The additional air deposition reductions could then be used to offset water quality controls (air-water trading). What is needed is a source to receptor transfer function that connects air emissions from a state to deposition to a tributary. There is a special source attribution version of the Community Multiscale Air Quality model, CMAQ, (termed DDM-3D) that can estimate the fraction of deposition contributed by labeled emissions (labeled by source or region) to the total deposition across space. We use the CMAQ DDM-3D to estimate simplified state-level delta-emissions to delta-atmospheric-deposition transfer coefficients for each major emission source sector within a state, since local air regulations are promulgated at the state level. The CMAQ 4.7.1 calculations are performed at a 12 km grid size over the airshed domain covering Chesapeake Bay for 2020 CAIR emissions. For results, we first present the fractional contributions of Bay state NOx emissions to the oxidized nitrogen deposition to the Chesapeake Bay watershed and the Bay. We then present example tables of the fractional contributions of Bay state NOx emissions from mobile, off road, power plant and industrial emissions to key tributaries: the Potomac, Susquehanna and James Rivers. Finally, we go through an example for a mobile source NOx reductions in Pennsylvania to show how the tributary load offset would be calculated using the factors generated by CMAQ DDM-3D.

  6. The 2003 urban mobility report

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2003-09-01

    The Annual Report of the Urban Mobility Study provides some information about congestion and mobility issues in ways that everyone can understand. The Annual Urban Mobility Report uses statistics from generally available data sources and provides inf...

  7. Crosstalk between vertical and horizontal gene transfer: plasmid replication control by a conjugative relaxase

    PubMed Central

    Lorenzo-Díaz, Fabián; Fernández-López, Cris; Lurz, Rudi

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Horizontal gene transfer is a key process in the evolution of bacteria and also represents a source of genetic variation in eukaryotes. Among elements participating in gene transfer, thousands of small (<10 kb) mobile bacterial plasmids that replicate by the rolling circle mechanism represent a driving force in the spread of antibiotic resistances. In general, these plasmids are built as genetic modules that encode a replicase, an antibiotic-resistance determinant, and a relaxase that participates in their conjugative mobilization. Further, they control their relatively high copy number (∼30 copies per genome equivalent) by antisense RNAs alone or combined with a repressor protein. We report here that the MobM conjugative relaxase encoded by the promiscuous plasmid pMV158 participates in regulation of the plasmid copy number by transcriptional repression of the antisense RNA, thus increasing the number of plasmid molecules ready to be horizontally transferred (mobilization) and/or vertically inherited (replication). This type of crosstalk between genetic modules involved in vertical and horizontal gene flow has not been reported before. PMID:28525572

  8. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gonder, Jeff; Wood, Eric; Lammert, Michael

    Jeff was invited to brief the EPA Mobile Sources Technical Review Subcommittee on considerations regarding potential energy and environmental considerations for connected and automated vehicles. For more information about the MSTRS see http://www2.epa.gov/caaac/mobile-sources-technical-review-subcommittee-mstrs-caaac.

  9. Measurement error in mobile source air pollution exposure estimates due to residential mobility during pregnancy

    PubMed Central

    Pennington, Audrey Flak; Strickland, Matthew J.; Klein, Mitchel; Zhai, Xinxin; Russell, Armistead G.; Hansen, Craig; Darrow, Lyndsey A.

    2018-01-01

    Prenatal air pollution exposure is frequently estimated using maternal residential location at the time of delivery as a proxy for residence during pregnancy. We describe residential mobility during pregnancy among 19,951 children from the Kaiser Air Pollution and Pediatric Asthma Study, quantify measurement error in spatially-resolved estimates of prenatal exposure to mobile source fine particulate matter (PM2.5) due to ignoring this mobility, and simulate the impact of this error on estimates of epidemiologic associations. Two exposure estimates were compared, one calculated using complete residential histories during pregnancy (weighted average based on time spent at each address) and the second calculated using only residence at birth. Estimates were computed using annual averages of primary PM2.5 from traffic emissions modeled using a research line-source dispersion model (RLINE) at 250 meter resolution. In this cohort, 18.6% of children were born to mothers who moved at least once during pregnancy. Mobile source PM2.5 exposure estimates calculated using complete residential histories during pregnancy and only residence at birth were highly correlated (rS>0.9). Simulations indicated that ignoring residential mobility resulted in modest bias of epidemiologic associations toward the null, but varied by maternal characteristics and prenatal exposure windows of interest (ranging from −2% to −10% bias). PMID:27966666

  10. Measurement error in mobile source air pollution exposure estimates due to residential mobility during pregnancy.

    PubMed

    Pennington, Audrey Flak; Strickland, Matthew J; Klein, Mitchel; Zhai, Xinxin; Russell, Armistead G; Hansen, Craig; Darrow, Lyndsey A

    2017-09-01

    Prenatal air pollution exposure is frequently estimated using maternal residential location at the time of delivery as a proxy for residence during pregnancy. We describe residential mobility during pregnancy among 19,951 children from the Kaiser Air Pollution and Pediatric Asthma Study, quantify measurement error in spatially resolved estimates of prenatal exposure to mobile source fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) due to ignoring this mobility, and simulate the impact of this error on estimates of epidemiologic associations. Two exposure estimates were compared, one calculated using complete residential histories during pregnancy (weighted average based on time spent at each address) and the second calculated using only residence at birth. Estimates were computed using annual averages of primary PM 2.5 from traffic emissions modeled using a Research LINE-source dispersion model for near-surface releases (RLINE) at 250 m resolution. In this cohort, 18.6% of children were born to mothers who moved at least once during pregnancy. Mobile source PM 2.5 exposure estimates calculated using complete residential histories during pregnancy and only residence at birth were highly correlated (r S >0.9). Simulations indicated that ignoring residential mobility resulted in modest bias of epidemiologic associations toward the null, but varied by maternal characteristics and prenatal exposure windows of interest (ranging from -2% to -10% bias).

  11. Influence of organic matter on trace metal flux in coastal sediments. [Sequim Bay

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Schmidt, R.L.; Gibson, C.I.

    1978-05-15

    These studies indicate that organic matter in coastal sediment constitutes a primary sink for trace metals, both at natural and amended levels. Organic substances are also involved in controlling the mobility and flux of trace metals from sediments. Further, organically-bound trace metals in sediments appear to be an important source to deposit-feeding organisms.

  12. An open-source, mobile-friendly search engine for public medical knowledge.

    PubMed

    Samwald, Matthias; Hanbury, Allan

    2014-01-01

    The World Wide Web has become an important source of information for medical practitioners. To complement the capabilities of currently available web search engines we developed FindMeEvidence, an open-source, mobile-friendly medical search engine. In a preliminary evaluation, the quality of results from FindMeEvidence proved to be competitive with those from TRIP Database, an established, closed-source search engine for evidence-based medicine.

  13. Ejectable underwater sound source recovery assembly

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Irick, S. C. (Inventor)

    1974-01-01

    An underwater sound source is described that may be ejectably mounted on any mobile device that travels over water, to facilitate in the location and recovery of the device when submerged. A length of flexible line maintains a connection between the mobile device and the sound source. During recovery, the sound source is located be particularly useful in the recovery of spent rocket motors that bury in the ocean floor upon impact.

  14. Detection of explosives using negative ion mobility spectrometry in air based on dopant-assisted thermal ionization.

    PubMed

    Shahraki, Hassan; Tabrizchi, Mahmoud; Farrokhpor, Hossein

    2018-05-26

    The ionization source is an essential component of most explosive detectors based on negative ion mobility spectrometry. Conventional ion sources suffer from such inherent limitations as special safety regulations on radioactive sources or generating interfering ions (for non-radioactive sources) such as corona discharge operating in the air. In this study, a new negative ion source is introduced for ion mobility spectrometry that is based on thermal ionization and operates in the air, applicable to explosives detection. Our system consists of a heating filament powered by an isolated power supply connected to negative high voltage. The ionization is assisted by doping chlorinated compounds in the gas phase using chlorinated hydrocarbons in contact with the heating element to yield Cl - reactant ions. Several chlorinated hydrocarbons are evaluated as the reagent chemicals for providing Cl- reactant ions, of which CCl 4 is identified as the best ionizing reagent. The ion source is evaluated by recording the ion mobility spectra of common explosives, including TNT, RDX, and PETN in the air. A detection limit of 150 pg is obtained for TNT. Compared to other ionization sources, the new source is found to be low-cost, simple, and long-lived, making it suited to portable explosives detection devices. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. 77 FR 50021 - Revisions to the California State Implementation Plan, San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-08-20

    ..., such as owners of mobile sources that also contribute to ozone formation. EPA also believes that... percent of the ozone precursor emissions, while mobile sources are responsible for approximately 80...

  16. Development of a Mobile Tracer Correlation Method for Assessment of Air Emissions from Landfills and Other Area Sources

    EPA Science Inventory

    Information form the previously approved extended abstract A standardized area source measurement method based on mobile tracer correlation was used for methane emissions assessment in 52 field deployments...

  17. CHEMICAL CHARACTERIZATION & SPECIATION OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS: HUMAN EXPOSURE IMPLICATIONS & IMPLEMENTATION PERSPECTIVES

    EPA Science Inventory

    A significant number of epidemiological studies have identified an increase in occurrence of adverse health effects associated with exposures to mobile source emissions. These adverse effects include asthma, other respiratory diseases, cardiovascular effects, cancer, development...

  18. Source contributions to United States ozone and particulate matter over five decades from 1970 to 2020

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nopmongcol, Uarporn; Alvarez, Yesica; Jung, Jaegun; Grant, John; Kumar, Naresh; Yarwood, Greg

    2017-10-01

    Evaluating long-term air quality trends can demonstrate effectiveness of control strategies and guide future air quality management planning. Observations have shown that ozone (O3) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the US have declined since as early as 1980 in some areas. But observation trends alone cannot separate effects of changes in local and global emissions to US air quality which are important to air quality planners. This study uses a regional model (CAMx) nested within a global model (GEOS-Chem) to characterize regional changes in O3 and PM2.5 due to the intercontinental transport and local/regional emissions representing six modeling years within five decades (1970-2020). We use the CAMx Source Apportionment Technology (OSAT/PSAT) to estimate contributions from 6 source sectors in 7 source regions plus 6 other groups for a total of 48 tagged contributions. On-road mobile sources consistently make the largest U.S. anthropogenic emissions contribution to O3 in all cities examined even though they decline substantially from 1970 to 2005 and also from 2005 to 2020. Off-road mobile source contributions increase from 1970 to 2005 and then decrease after 2005 in all of the cities. The boundary conditions, mostly from intercontinental transport, contribute more than 20 ppb to high maximum daily 8-h average (MDA8) O3 for all six years. We found that lowering NOx emissions raises O3 formation efficiency (OFE) across all emission categories which will limit potential O3 benefits of local NOx strategies in the near future. PM2.5 benefited from adoption of control devices between 1970 and 1980 and has continued to decline through 2005 and expected to decline further by 2020. Area sources such as residential, commercial and fugitive dust emissions stand out as making large contributions to PM2.5 that are not declining. Inter-regional transport is less important in 2020 than 1990 for both pollutants.

  19. Evaluation of Mobile Source Emissions and Trends

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dallmann, Timothy Ryan

    Mobile sources contribute significantly to air pollution problems. Relevant pollutants include numerous gaseous and particle-phase species that can affect human health, ecosystems, and climate. Accurate inventories of emissions from these sources are needed to help understand possible adverse impacts, and to develop effective air quality management strategies. Unfortunately large uncertainties persist in the understanding of mobile source emissions, and how these emissions are changing over time. This dissertation aims to evaluate long-term trends in mobile source emissions in the United States, and to make detailed measurements of emissions from present-day fleets of on-road vehicles operating in California. Long-term trends in mobile source emissions of nitrogen oxides (NO x) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the United States were investigated through development of a fuel-based emission inventory. Annual emissions from on- and off-road gasoline and diesel engines were quantified for the years 1996-2006. Diesel engines were found to be the dominant mobile source of NOx and PM2.5, and on-road diesel vehicles were identified as the single largest anthropogenic source of NOx emissions in the United States as of 2005. The importance of diesel engines as a source of exhaust particulate matter emissions has led to the recent introduction of advanced emission control technologies in the United States, such as diesel particle filters (DPF), which have been required since 2007 for all new on-road heavy-duty (HD) diesel engines. In addition to national requirements for the use of such control devices on new engines, California has mandated accelerated clean-up of statewide emissions from older in-use diesel engines. The plume capture method was further applied to measure emissions from a more diverse population of trucks observed at the Caldecott tunnel in summer 2010. Emissions from hundreds of individual trucks were measured, and emission factor distributions were characterized for nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), formaldehyde, BC, as well as optical properties of the emitted particles. Emission factor distributions for all species were skewed, with a small fraction of trucks contributing disproportionately to total emissions. These findings confirm that the use of catalyzed DPF systems is leading to increased primary NO2 emissions. Absorption and scattering cross-section emission factors were used to calculate the aerosol single scattering albedo (SSA, at 532 nm) for individual truck exhaust plumes, which averaged 0.14 +/- 0.03. This value of aerosol SSA is very low compared to typical values (0.90-0.99) observed in ambient air studies. It is indicative of a strongly light-absorbing aerosol, due to the high BC emissions that are a characteristic feature of diesel exhaust PM emissions. Measurements at the Caldecott tunnel also included efforts to quantify light-duty (LD) gasoline vehicle emission factors, and further investigation of the relative contributions of on-road gasoline and diesel engines to air pollutant emissions. Measurements of CO, NOx, PM2.5, BC, and organic aerosol (OA) were made in a tunnel traffic bore where LD vehicles account for >99% of total traffic. Measured pollutant concentrations were apportioned between LD gasoline vehicles and diesel trucks, and fleet-average emission factors were quantified for LD gasoline vehicles using a carbon balance method. Diesel trucks contributed 18 +/- 3, 22 +/- 5, 44 +/- 8% of measured NOx, OA, and BC concentrations, respectively, despite accounting for <1% of total vehicles. Emission factors and overall fuel consumption for gasoline and diesel engines were used to describe the relative contributions of these sources to overall on-road vehicle emissions. Gasoline engines were found to be the dominant source of CO, an insignificant source of BC, and a relatively minor source of on-road OA emissions at urban, state, and national scales. Measurements at the Caldecott tunnel also featured use of a new high-resolution time-of-flight aerosol mass spectrometer, which was used to characterize the chemical composition of PM emitted by gasoline and diesel vehicles. Measurements of PM in the exhaust of individual HD trucks show a predominance of cyclyoalkane-derived ion signals relative to saturated alkane ion signals in the truck exhaust OA spectra, indicating that lubricating oil, rather than diesel fuel, was the dominant source of OA emitted by diesel trucks. This conclusion is supported by the presence of lubricant-derived trace elements in truck exhaust, emitted relative to total OA at levels that correspond to their weight fractions in bulk oil. Furthermore, comparison of mass spectra for sampling periods with varying levels of diesel influence found a high degree of similarity in the chemical composition of OA emitted by gasoline and diesel engines, suggesting a common lubricating oil rather than fuel-derived source for OA emissions. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).

  20. Sink-oriented Dynamic Location Service Protocol for Mobile Sinks with an Energy Efficient Grid-Based Approach.

    PubMed

    Jeon, Hyeonjae; Park, Kwangjin; Hwang, Dae-Joon; Choo, Hyunseung

    2009-01-01

    Sensor nodes transmit the sensed information to the sink through wireless sensor networks (WSNs). They have limited power, computational capacities and memory. Portable wireless devices are increasing in popularity. Mechanisms that allow information to be efficiently obtained through mobile WSNs are of significant interest. However, a mobile sink introduces many challenges to data dissemination in large WSNs. For example, it is important to efficiently identify the locations of mobile sinks and disseminate information from multi-source nodes to the multi-mobile sinks. In particular, a stationary dissemination path may no longer be effective in mobile sink applications, due to sink mobility. In this paper, we propose a Sink-oriented Dynamic Location Service (SDLS) approach to handle sink mobility. In SDLS, we propose an Eight-Direction Anchor (EDA) system that acts as a location service server. EDA prevents intensive energy consumption at the border sensor nodes and thus provides energy balancing to all the sensor nodes. Then we propose a Location-based Shortest Relay (LSR) that efficiently forwards (or relays) data from a source node to a sink with minimal delay path. Our results demonstrate that SDLS not only provides an efficient and scalable location service, but also reduces the average data communication overhead in scenarios with multiple and moving sinks and sources.

  1. Chemical transport model simulations of organic aerosol in southern California: model evaluation and gasoline and diesel source contributions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jathar, Shantanu H.; Woody, Matthew; Pye, Havala O. T.; Baker, Kirk R.; Robinson, Allen L.

    2017-03-01

    Gasoline- and diesel-fueled engines are ubiquitous sources of air pollution in urban environments. They emit both primary particulate matter and precursor gases that react to form secondary particulate matter in the atmosphere. In this work, we updated the organic aerosol module and organic emissions inventory of a three-dimensional chemical transport model, the Community Multiscale Air Quality Model (CMAQ), using recent, experimentally derived inputs and parameterizations for mobile sources. The updated model included a revised volatile organic compound (VOC) speciation for mobile sources and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation from unspeciated intermediate volatility organic compounds (IVOCs). The updated model was used to simulate air quality in southern California during May and June 2010, when the California Research at the Nexus of Air Quality and Climate Change (CalNex) study was conducted. Compared to the Traditional version of CMAQ, which is commonly used for regulatory applications, the updated model did not significantly alter the predicted organic aerosol (OA) mass concentrations but did substantially improve predictions of OA sources and composition (e.g., POA-SOA split), as well as ambient IVOC concentrations. The updated model, despite substantial differences in emissions and chemistry, performed similar to a recently released research version of CMAQ (Woody et al., 2016) that did not include the updated VOC and IVOC emissions and SOA data. Mobile sources were predicted to contribute 30-40 % of the OA in southern California (half of which was SOA), making mobile sources the single largest source contributor to OA in southern California. The remainder of the OA was attributed to non-mobile anthropogenic sources (e.g., cooking, biomass burning) with biogenic sources contributing to less than 5 % to the total OA. Gasoline sources were predicted to contribute about 13 times more OA than diesel sources; this difference was driven by differences in SOA production. Model predictions highlighted the need to better constrain multi-generational oxidation reactions in chemical transport models.

  2. Perceived Risk of Dengue in Ones' Living Environment as a Determinant of Behavior Change through Social Mobilization and Communication: Evidence from a High Risk Area in Sri Lanka.

    PubMed

    Banneheke, Hasini; Paranavitane, Sarath; Jayasuriya, Vathsala; Banneheka, Sarath

    2016-09-01

    The aim of this study was to assess community knowledge and behavioral impact of the social mobilization and communication strategy applied in a dengue high-risk area in Sri Lanka. A group of adults visiting selected primary care facilities in Colombo district were interviewed to collect socio-demographic data, attributes of knowledge regarding dengue and the responsive behaviors adopted by them following the dengue control program though the media and social marketing campaigns. These attributes were classified as 'good', 'fair,' or 'poor' by developing a composite scale for analysis and interpretation of data. The primary source of information was television in the majority. The overall knowledge of the disease, vector and control methods was poor. The overall level of contribution to dengue control activities was good. Awareness of the disease and its complications had not contributed to favorable behavior changes. While the social mobilization and behavior change campaign in Sri Lanka had low impact on knowledge and behaviors, a better understating of community perceptions of DF and how these perceptions are formulated within the social and cultural context; would be useful to improve uptake. This knowledge would be valuable for program planners to strengthen dengue control activities in SL and other similar settings across the region.

  3. Dynamic mobility applications open source application development portal : Task 4 : system requirements specifications : final report.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2016-10-12

    This document describes the System Requirements Specifications (SyRS) of the Dynamic Mobility Applications (DMA) Open Source Application Development Portal (OSADP) system in details according to IEEE-Std. 1233-1998. The requirement statements discuss...

  4. DEVELOPMENT OF A MONITOR FOR HCN IN MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Three real-time monitors for measurement of HCN concentrations in mobile source emissions have been designed, built, tested, and delivered to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The important design parameters for these identical instruments were determined during the firs...

  5. Incorporating Voluntary Mobile Source Emission Reduction Programs in State Implementation Plans (SIPs)

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This EPA memorandum provides guidance and sets forth policy and interpretation regarding the granting of explicit State Implementation Plan (SIP) credit for Voluntary Mobile Source Emission Reduction Programs (VMEPs) under section 110 of the Clean Air Act.

  6. Comparative studies of Ge and Si p-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect-transistors with HfSiON dielectric and TaN metal gate

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hu, Ai-Bin; Xu, Qiu-Xia

    2010-05-01

    Ge and Si p-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect-transistors (p-MOSFETs) with hafnium silicon oxynitride (HfSiON) gate dielectric and tantalum nitride (TaN) metal gate are fabricated. Self-isolated ring-type transistor structures with two masks are employed. W/TaN metal stacks are used as gate electrode and shadow masks of source/drain implantation separately. Capacitance-voltage curve hysteresis of Ge metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) capacitors may be caused by charge trapping centres in GeO2 (1 < x < 2). Effective hole mobilities of Ge and Si transistors are extracted by using a channel conductance method. The peak hole mobilities of Si and Ge transistors are 33.4 cm2/(V · s) and 81.0 cm2/(V · s), respectively. Ge transistor has a hole mobility 2.4 times higher than that of Si control sample.

  7. The electromagnetic interference of mobile phones on the function of a γ-camera.

    PubMed

    Javadi, Hamid; Azizmohammadi, Zahra; Mahmoud Pashazadeh, Ali; Neshandar Asli, Isa; Moazzeni, Taleb; Baharfar, Nastaran; Shafiei, Babak; Nabipour, Iraj; Assadi, Majid

    2014-03-01

    The aim of the present study is to evaluate whether or not the electromagnetic field generated by mobile phones interferes with the function of a SPECT γ-camera during data acquisition. We tested the effects of 7 models of mobile phones on 1 SPECT γ-camera. The mobile phones were tested when making a call, in ringing mode, and in standby mode. The γ-camera function was assessed during data acquisition from a planar source and a point source of Tc with activities of 10 mCi and 3 mCi, respectively. A significant visual decrease in count number was considered to be electromagnetic interference (EMI). The percentage of induced EMI with the γ-camera per mobile phone was in the range of 0% to 100%. The incidence of EMI was mainly observed in the first seconds of ringing and then mitigated in the following frames. Mobile phones are portable sources of electromagnetic radiation, and there is interference potential with the function of SPECT γ-cameras leading to adverse effects on the quality of the acquired images.

  8. A dragline-forming mobile robot inspired by spiders.

    PubMed

    Wang, Liyu; Culha, Utku; Iida, Fumiya

    2014-03-01

    Mobility of wheeled or legged machines can be significantly increased if they are able to move from a solid surface into a three-dimensional space. Although that may be achieved by addition of flying mechanisms, the payload fraction will be the limiting factor in such hybrid mobile machines for many applications. Inspired by spiders producing draglines to assist locomotion, the paper proposes an alternative mobile technology where a robot achieves locomotion from a solid surface into a free space. The technology resembles the dragline production pathway in spiders to a technically feasible degree and enables robots to move with thermoplastic spinning of draglines. As an implementation, a mobile robot has been prototyped with thermoplastic adhesives as source material of the draglines. Experimental results show that a dragline diameter range of 1.17-5.27 mm was achievable by the 185 g mobile robot in descending locomotion from the solid surface of a hanging structure with a power consumption of 4.8 W and an average speed of 5.13 cm min(-1). With an open-loop controller consisting of sequences of discrete events, the robot has demonstrated repeatable dragline formation with a relative deviation within -4% and a length close to the metre scale.

  9. On - road mobile source pollutant emissions : identifying hotspots and ranking roads.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2010-12-30

    A considerable amount of pollution to the air in the forms of hydrocarbons, carbon : monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter (PM) and air toxics comes : from the on-road mobile sources. Estimation of the emissions of these pollutants...

  10. Connected Vehicle Applications : Mobility

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2017-03-03

    Connected vehicle mobility applications are commonly referred to as dynamic mobility applications (DMAs). DMAs seek to fully leverage frequently collected and rapidly disseminated multi-source data gathered from connected travelers, vehicles, and inf...

  11. Cooperating mobile robots

    DOEpatents

    Harrington, John J.; Eskridge, Steven E.; Hurtado, John E.; Byrne, Raymond H.

    2004-02-03

    A miniature mobile robot provides a relatively inexpensive mobile robot. A mobile robot for searching an area provides a way for multiple mobile robots in cooperating teams. A robotic system with a team of mobile robots communicating information among each other provides a way to locate a source in cooperation. A mobile robot with a sensor, a communication system, and a processor, provides a way to execute a strategy for searching an area.

  12. Tandem robot control system and method for controlling mobile robots in tandem

    DOEpatents

    Hayward, David R.; Buttz, James H.; Shirey, David L.

    2002-01-01

    A control system for controlling mobile robots provides a way to control mobile robots, connected in tandem with coupling devices, to navigate across difficult terrain or in closed spaces. The mobile robots can be controlled cooperatively as a coupled system in linked mode or controlled individually as separate robots.

  13. A compact high-resolution X-ray ion mobility spectrometer

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Reinecke, T.; Kirk, A. T.; Heptner, A.

    For the ionization of gaseous samples, most ion mobility spectrometers employ radioactive ionization sources, e.g., containing {sup 63}Ni or {sup 3}H. Besides legal restrictions, radioactive materials have the disadvantage of a constant radiation with predetermined intensity. In this work, we replaced the {sup 3}H source of our previously described high-resolution ion mobility spectrometer with 75 mm drift tube length with a commercially available X-ray source. It is shown that the current configuration maintains the resolving power of R = 100 which was reported for the original setup containing a {sup 3}H source. The main advantage of an X-ray source ismore » that the intensity of the radiation can be adjusted by varying its operating parameters, i.e., filament current and acceleration voltage. At the expense of reduced resolving power, the sensitivity of the setup can be increased by increasing the activity of the source. Therefore, the performance of the setup can be adjusted to the specific requirements of any application. To investigate the relation between operating parameters of the X-Ray source and the performance of the ion mobility spectrometer, parametric studies of filament current and acceleration voltage are performed and the influence on resolving power, peak height, and noise is analyzed.« less

  14. Contributions of mobile, stationary and biogenic sources to air pollution in the Amazon rainforest: a numerical study with the WRF-Chem model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Abou Rafee, Sameh A.; Martins, Leila D.; Kawashima, Ana B.; Almeida, Daniela S.; Morais, Marcos V. B.; Souza, Rita V. A.; Oliveira, Maria B. L.; Souza, Rodrigo A. F.; Medeiros, Adan S. S.; Urbina, Viviana; Freitas, Edmilson D.; Martin, Scot T.; Martins, Jorge A.

    2017-06-01

    This paper evaluates the contributions of the emissions from mobile, stationary and biogenic sources on air pollution in the Amazon rainforest by using the Weather Research and Forecasting with Chemistry (WRF-Chem) model. The analyzed air pollutants were CO, NOx, SO2, O3, PM2. 5, PM10 and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Five scenarios were defined in order to evaluate the emissions by biogenic, mobile and stationary sources, as well as a future scenario to assess the potential air quality impact of doubled anthropogenic emissions. The stationary sources explain the highest concentrations for all air pollutants evaluated, except for CO, for which the mobile sources are predominant. The anthropogenic sources considered resulted an increasing in the spatial peak-temporal average concentrations of pollutants in 3 to 2780 times in relation to those with only biogenic sources. The future scenario showed an increase in the range of 3 to 62 % in average concentrations and 45 to 109 % in peak concentrations depending on the pollutant. In addition, the spatial distributions of the scenarios has shown that the air pollution plume from the city of Manaus is predominantly transported west and southwest, and it can reach hundreds of kilometers in length.

  15. Mobile phone data highlights the role of mass gatherings in the spreading of cholera outbreaks.

    PubMed

    Finger, Flavio; Genolet, Tina; Mari, Lorenzo; de Magny, Guillaume Constantin; Manga, Noël Magloire; Rinaldo, Andrea; Bertuzzo, Enrico

    2016-06-07

    The spatiotemporal evolution of human mobility and the related fluctuations of population density are known to be key drivers of the dynamics of infectious disease outbreaks. These factors are particularly relevant in the case of mass gatherings, which may act as hotspots of disease transmission and spread. Understanding these dynamics, however, is usually limited by the lack of accurate data, especially in developing countries. Mobile phone call data provide a new, first-order source of information that allows the tracking of the evolution of mobility fluxes with high resolution in space and time. Here, we analyze a dataset of mobile phone records of ∼150,000 users in Senegal to extract human mobility fluxes and directly incorporate them into a spatially explicit, dynamic epidemiological framework. Our model, which also takes into account other drivers of disease transmission such as rainfall, is applied to the 2005 cholera outbreak in Senegal, which totaled more than 30,000 reported cases. Our findings highlight the major influence that a mass gathering, which took place during the initial phase of the outbreak, had on the course of the epidemic. Such an effect could not be explained by classic, static approaches describing human mobility. Model results also show how concentrated efforts toward disease control in a transmission hotspot could have an important effect on the large-scale progression of an outbreak.

  16. Mobile phone data highlights the role of mass gatherings in the spreading of cholera outbreaks

    PubMed Central

    Finger, Flavio; Genolet, Tina; Mari, Lorenzo; de Magny, Guillaume Constantin; Manga, Noël Magloire; Rinaldo, Andrea; Bertuzzo, Enrico

    2016-01-01

    The spatiotemporal evolution of human mobility and the related fluctuations of population density are known to be key drivers of the dynamics of infectious disease outbreaks. These factors are particularly relevant in the case of mass gatherings, which may act as hotspots of disease transmission and spread. Understanding these dynamics, however, is usually limited by the lack of accurate data, especially in developing countries. Mobile phone call data provide a new, first-order source of information that allows the tracking of the evolution of mobility fluxes with high resolution in space and time. Here, we analyze a dataset of mobile phone records of ∼150,000 users in Senegal to extract human mobility fluxes and directly incorporate them into a spatially explicit, dynamic epidemiological framework. Our model, which also takes into account other drivers of disease transmission such as rainfall, is applied to the 2005 cholera outbreak in Senegal, which totaled more than 30,000 reported cases. Our findings highlight the major influence that a mass gathering, which took place during the initial phase of the outbreak, had on the course of the epidemic. Such an effect could not be explained by classic, static approaches describing human mobility. Model results also show how concentrated efforts toward disease control in a transmission hotspot could have an important effect on the large-scale progression of an outbreak. PMID:27217564

  17. Investigating Quantum Modulation States

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-03-01

    Coherent state quantum data encryption is highly interoperable with current classical optical infrastructure in both fiber and free space optical networks...hub’s field of regard has a transmit/receive module that are endpoints of the Lyot filter stage tree within the hub’s backend electro-optics control... mobile airborne and space-borne networking. Just like any laser communication technology, QC links are affected by several sources of distortions

  18. Assessment of alternative power sources for mobile mining machinery

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cairelli, J. E.; Tomazic, W. A.; Evans, D. G.; Klann, J. L.

    1981-01-01

    Alternative mobile power sources for mining applications were assessed. A wide variety of heat engines and energy systems was examined as potential alternatives to presently used power systems. The present mobile power systems are electrical trailing cable, electrical battery, and diesel - with diesel being largely limited in the United States to noncoal mines. Each candidate power source was evaluated for the following requirements: (1) ability to achieve the duty cycle; (2) ability to meet Government regulations; (3) availability (production readiness); (4) market availability; and (5) packaging capability. Screening reduced the list of candidates to the following power sources: diesel, stirling, gas turbine, rankine (steam), advanced electric (batteries), mechanical energy storage (flywheel), and use of hydrogen evolved from metal hydrides. This list of candidates is divided into two classes of alternative power sources for mining applications, heat engines and energy storage systems.

  19. Assessment of alternative power sources for mobile mining machinery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cairelli, J. E.; Tomazic, W. A.; Evans, D. G.; Klann, J. L.

    1981-12-01

    Alternative mobile power sources for mining applications were assessed. A wide variety of heat engines and energy systems was examined as potential alternatives to presently used power systems. The present mobile power systems are electrical trailing cable, electrical battery, and diesel - with diesel being largely limited in the United States to noncoal mines. Each candidate power source was evaluated for the following requirements: (1) ability to achieve the duty cycle; (2) ability to meet Government regulations; (3) availability (production readiness); (4) market availability; and (5) packaging capability. Screening reduced the list of candidates to the following power sources: diesel, stirling, gas turbine, rankine (steam), advanced electric (batteries), mechanical energy storage (flywheel), and use of hydrogen evolved from metal hydrides. This list of candidates is divided into two classes of alternative power sources for mining applications, heat engines and energy storage systems.

  20. Impact of vacancies on electronic properties of black phosphorus probed by STM

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Riffle, J. V.; Flynn, C.; St. Laurent, B.; Ayotte, C. A.; Caputo, C. A.; Hollen, S. M.

    2018-01-01

    Black phosphorus (BP) is receiving significant attention because of its direct 0.4-1.5 eV layer-dependent bandgap and high mobility. Because BP devices rely on exfoliation from bulk crystals, there is a need to understand the native impurities and defects in the source material. In particular, samples are typically p-doped, but the source of the doping is not well understood. Here, we use scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy to compare the atomic defects of BP samples from two commercial sources. Even though the sources produced crystals with an order of magnitude difference in impurity atoms, we observed a similar defect density and level of p-doping. We attribute these defects to phosphorus vacancies and provide evidence that they are the source of p-doping. We also compare these native defects to those induced by air exposure and show that they are distinct and likely more important for the control of electronic structure. These results indicate that impurities in BP play a minor role compared to vacancies, which are prevalent in commercially available materials, and call for better control of vacancy defects.

  1. LARGE-SCALE PREDICTIONS OF MOBILE SOURCE CONTRIBUTIONS TO CONCENTRATIONS OF TOXIC AIR POLLUTANTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    This presentation shows concentrations and deposition of toxic air pollutants predicted by a 3-D air quality model, the Community Multi Scale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system. Contributions from both on-road and non-road mobile sources are analyzed.

  2. A small, lightweight multipollutant sensor system for ground-mobile and aerial emission sampling from open area sources

    EPA Science Inventory

    Characterizing highly dynamic, transient, and vertically lofted emissions from open area sources poses unique measurement challenges. This study developed and applied a multipollutant sensor and integrated sampler system for use on mobile applications including tethered balloons ...

  3. Expression pattern of four storage xyloglucan mobilization-related genes during seedling development of the rain forest tree Hymenaea courbaril L.

    PubMed

    Brandão, A D; Del Bem, L E V; Vincentz, M; Buckeridge, M S

    2009-01-01

    During seedling establishment, cotyledons of the rain forest tree Hymenaea courbaril mobilize storage cell wall xyloglucan to sustain growth. The polysaccharide is degraded and its products are transported to growing sink tissues. Auxin from the shoot controls the level of xyloglucan hydrolytic enzymes. It is not yet known how important the expression of these genes is for the control of storage xyloglucan degradation. In this work, partial cDNAs of the genes xyloglucan transglycosylase hydrolase (HcXTH1) and beta-galactosidase (HcBGAL1), both related to xyloglucan degradation, and two other genes related to sucrose metabolism [alkaline invertase (HcAlkIN1) and sucrose synthase (HcSUS1)], were isolated. The partial sequences were characterized by comparison with sequences available in the literature, and phylogenetic trees were assembled. Gene expression was evaluated at intervals of 6 h during 24 h in cotyledons, hypocotyl, roots, and leaves, using 45-d-old plantlets. HcXTH1 and HcBGAL1 were correlated to xyloglucan degradation and responded to auxin and light, being down-regulated when transport of auxin was prevented by N-1-naphthylphthalamic acid (NPA) and stimulated by constant light. Genes related to sucrose metabolism, HcAlkIN1 and HcSUS1, responded to inhibition of auxin transport in consonance with storage mobilization in the cotyledons. A model is proposed suggesting that auxin and light are involved in the control of the expression of genes related to storage xyloglucan mobilization in seedlings of H. courbaril. It is concluded that gene expression plays a role in the control of the intercommunication system of the source-sink relationship during seeding growth, favouring its establishment in the shaded environment of the rain forest understorey.

  4. The influence of cross-order terms in interface mobilities for structure-borne sound source characterization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bonhoff, H. A.; Petersson, B. A. T.

    2010-08-01

    For the characterization of structure-borne sound sources with multi-point or continuous interfaces, substantial simplifications and physical insight can be obtained by incorporating the concept of interface mobilities. The applicability of interface mobilities, however, relies upon the admissibility of neglecting the so-called cross-order terms. Hence, the objective of the present paper is to clarify the importance and significance of cross-order terms for the characterization of vibrational sources. From previous studies, four conditions have been identified for which the cross-order terms can become more influential. Such are non-circular interface geometries, structures with distinctively differing transfer paths as well as a suppression of the zero-order motion and cases where the contact forces are either in phase or out of phase. In a theoretical study, the former four conditions are investigated regarding the frequency range and magnitude of a possible strengthening of the cross-order terms. For an experimental analysis, two source-receiver installations are selected, suitably designed to obtain strong cross-order terms. The transmitted power and the source descriptors are predicted by the approximations of the interface mobility approach and compared with the complete calculations. Neglecting the cross-order terms can result in large misinterpretations at certain frequencies. On average, however, the cross-order terms are found to be insignificant and can be neglected with good approximation. The general applicability of interface mobilities for structure-borne sound source characterization and the description of the transmission process thereby is confirmed.

  5. PTT Advisor: A CDC-supported initiative to develop a mobile clinical laboratory decision support application for the iOS platform

    PubMed Central

    Savel, Thomas G.; Lee, Brian A.; Ledbetter, Greg; Brown, Sara; LaValley, Dale; Taylor, Julie; Thompson, Pam

    2013-01-01

    Objectives: This manuscript describes the development of PTT (Partial Thromboplastin Time) Advisor, one of the first of a handful of iOS-based mobile applications to be released by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). PTT Advisor has been a collaboration between two groups at CDC (Informatics R&D and Laboratory Science), and one partner team (Clinical Laboratory Integration into Healthcare Collaborative - CLIHC). The application offers clinicians a resource to quickly select the appropriate follow-up tests to evaluate patients with a prolonged PTT and a normal Prothrombin Time (PT) laboratory result. Methods: The application was designed leveraging an agile methodology, and best practices in user experience (UX) design and mobile application development. Results: As it is an open-source project, the code to PTT Advisor was made available to the public under the Apache Software License. On July 6, 2012, the free app was approved by Apple, and was published to their App Store. Conclusions: Regardless of the complexity of the mobile application, the level of effort required in the development process should not be underestimated. There are several issues that make designing the UI for a mobile phone challenging (not just small screen size): the touchscreen, users' mobile mindset (tasks need to be quick and focused), and the fact that mobile UI conventions/expectations are still being defined and refined (due to the maturity level of the field of mobile application development). PMID:23923100

  6. PTT Advisor: A CDC-supported initiative to develop a mobile clinical laboratory decision support application for the iOS platform.

    PubMed

    Savel, Thomas G; Lee, Brian A; Ledbetter, Greg; Brown, Sara; Lavalley, Dale; Taylor, Julie; Thompson, Pam

    2013-01-01

    This manuscript describes the development of PTT (Partial Thromboplastin Time) Advisor, one of the first of a handful of iOS-based mobile applications to be released by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). PTT Advisor has been a collaboration between two groups at CDC (Informatics R&D and Laboratory Science), and one partner team (Clinical Laboratory Integration into Healthcare Collaborative - CLIHC). The application offers clinicians a resource to quickly select the appropriate follow-up tests to evaluate patients with a prolonged PTT and a normal Prothrombin Time (PT) laboratory result. The application was designed leveraging an agile methodology, and best practices in user experience (UX) design and mobile application development. As it is an open-source project, the code to PTT Advisor was made available to the public under the Apache Software License. On July 6, 2012, the free app was approved by Apple, and was published to their App Store. Regardless of the complexity of the mobile application, the level of effort required in the development process should not be underestimated. There are several issues that make designing the UI for a mobile phone challenging (not just small screen size): the touchscreen, users' mobile mindset (tasks need to be quick and focused), and the fact that mobile UI conventions/expectations are still being defined and refined (due to the maturity level of the field of mobile application development).

  7. Development of a solar-powered electric bicycle in bike sharing transportation system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Adhisuwignjo, S.; Siradjuddin, I.; Rifa'i, M.; Putri, R. I.

    2017-06-01

    The increasing mobility has directly led to deteriorating traffic conditions, extra fuel consumption, increasing automobile exhaust emissions, air pollution and lowering quality of life. Apart from being clean, cheap and equitable mode of transport for short-distance journeys, cycling can potentially offer solutions to the problem of urban mobility. Many cities have tried promoting cycling particularly through the implementation of bike-sharing. Apparently the fourth generation bikesharing system has been promoted utilizing electric bicycles which considered as a clean technology implementation. Utilization of solar power is probably the development keys in the fourth generation bikesharing system and will become the standard in bikesharing system in the future. Electric bikes use batteries as a source of energy, thus they require a battery charger system which powered from the solar cells energy. This research aims to design and implement electric bicycle battery charging system with solar energy sources using fuzzy logic algorithm. It is necessary to develop an electric bicycle battery charging system with solar energy sources using fuzzy logic algorithm. The study was conducted by means of experimental method which includes the design, manufacture and testing controller systems. The designed fuzzy algorithm have been planted in EEPROM microcontroller ATmega8535. The charging current was set at 1.2 Amperes and the full charged battery voltage was observed to be 40 Volts. The results showed a fuzzy logic controller was able to maintain the charging current of 1.2 Ampere with an error rate of less than 5% around the set point. The process of charging electric bike lead acid batteries from empty to fully charged was 5 hours. In conclusion, the development of solar-powered electric bicycle controlled using fuzzy logic controller can keep the battery charging current in solar-powered electric bicycle to remain stable. This shows that the fuzzy algorithm can be used as a controller in the process of charging for a solar electric bicycle.

  8. Human Mobility Networks, Travel Restrictions, and the Global Spread of 2009 H1N1 Pandemic

    PubMed Central

    Ramasco, Jose J.; Tizzoni, Michele; Colizza, Vittoria; Vespignani, Alessandro

    2011-01-01

    After the emergence of the H1N1 influenza in 2009, some countries responded with travel-related controls during the early stage of the outbreak in an attempt to contain or slow down its international spread. These controls along with self-imposed travel limitations contributed to a decline of about 40% in international air traffic to/from Mexico following the international alert. However, no containment was achieved by such restrictions and the virus was able to reach pandemic proportions in a short time. When gauging the value and efficacy of mobility and travel restrictions it is crucial to rely on epidemic models that integrate the wide range of features characterizing human mobility and the many options available to public health organizations for responding to a pandemic. Here we present a comprehensive computational and theoretical study of the role of travel restrictions in halting and delaying pandemics by using a model that explicitly integrates air travel and short-range mobility data with high-resolution demographic data across the world and that is validated by the accumulation of data from the 2009 H1N1 pandemic. We explore alternative scenarios for the 2009 H1N1 pandemic by assessing the potential impact of mobility restrictions that vary with respect to their magnitude and their position in the pandemic timeline. We provide a quantitative discussion of the delay obtained by different mobility restrictions and the likelihood of containing outbreaks of infectious diseases at their source, confirming the limited value and feasibility of international travel restrictions. These results are rationalized in the theoretical framework characterizing the invasion dynamics of the epidemics at the metapopulation level. PMID:21304943

  9. Extending FDA guidance to include consumer medication information (CMI) delivery on mobile devices.

    PubMed

    Sage, Adam; Blalock, Susan J; Carpenter, Delesha

    This paper describes the current state of consumer-focused mobile health application use and the current U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidance on the distribution of consumer medication information (CMI), and discusses recommendations and considerations for the FDA to expand CMI guidance to include CMI in mobile applications. Smartphone-based health interventions have been linked to increased medication adherence and improved health outcomes. Trends in smartphone ownership present opportunities to more effectively communicate and disseminate medication information; however, current FDA guidance for CMI does not outline how to effectively communicate CMI on a mobile platform, particularly in regards to user-centered design and information sourcing. As evidence supporting the potential effectiveness of mobile communication in health care continues to increase, CMI developers, regulating entities, and researchers should take note. Although mobile-based CMI offers an innovative mechanism to deliver medication information, caution should be exercised. Specifically, considerations for developing mobile CMI include consumers' digital literacy, user experience (e.g., usability), and the quality and accuracy of new widely used sources of information (e.g., crowd-sourced reviews and ratings). Recommended changes to FDA guidance for CMI include altering the language about scientific accuracy to address more novel methods of information gathering (e.g., anecdotal experiences and Google Consumer Surveys) and including guidance for usability testing of mobile health applications. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. Unravelling metal mobility under complex contaminant signatures.

    PubMed

    de Souza Machado, Anderson Abel; Spencer, Kate L; Zarfl, Christiane; O'Shea, Francis T

    2018-05-01

    Metals are concerning pollutants in estuaries, where contamination can undergo significant remobilisation driven by physico-chemical forcing. Environmental concentrations of metals in estuarine sediments are often higher than natural backgrounds, but show no contiguity to potential sources. Thus, better understanding the metal mobility in estuaries is essential to improve identification of pollution sources and their accountability for environmental effects. This study aims to identify the key biogeochemical drivers of metal mobilisation on contaminated estuarine sediments through (1) evaluation of the potential mobilisation under controlled conditions, and (2) investigation of the relevance of metal mobilisation for in situ pollution levels in an area with multiple contaminant sources. Sediments from a saltmarsh adjacent to a coastal landfill, a marina, and a shipyard on the Thames Estuary (Essex, UK) were exposed in the laboratory (24h, N=96, 20°C) to water under various salinity, pH, and redox potential. Major cations, Fe(II), and trace metal concentrations were analysed in the leachate and sediment. Salinity, pH and redox had a significant effect on metal mobilisation (p<0.001), e.g. under certain conditions Fe(II) leaching was increased ~1000-fold. Measurements in situ of surface and subsurface sediment cores revealed that landfill proximity poorly explained metal spatial distribution. However, physicochemical parameters explained up to 97% of geochemically normalized metal concentrations in sediments. Organic matter and pH were dominant factors for most of the metal concentrations at the sediment surface. At subsurface, major cations (Ca, Na, Mg and K) were determinant predictors of metal concentrations. Applying the empirical model obtained in the laboratory to geochemical conditions of the studied saltmarsh it was possible to demonstrate that Fe mobilisation regulates the fate of this (and other) metal in that area. Thus, present results highlight the importance of metal mobility to control sediment pollution and estuarine fate of metals. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Development of an RF-EMF Exposure Surrogate for Epidemiologic Research.

    PubMed

    Roser, Katharina; Schoeni, Anna; Bürgi, Alfred; Röösli, Martin

    2015-05-22

    Exposure assessment is a crucial part in studying potential effects of RF-EMF. Using data from the HERMES study on adolescents, we developed an integrative exposure surrogate combining near-field and far-field RF-EMF exposure in a single brain and whole-body exposure measure. Contributions from far-field sources were modelled by propagation modelling and multivariable regression modelling using personal measurements. Contributions from near-field sources were assessed from both, questionnaires and mobile phone operator records. Mean cumulative brain and whole-body doses were 1559.7 mJ/kg and 339.9 mJ/kg per day, respectively. 98.4% of the brain dose originated from near-field sources, mainly from GSM mobile phone calls (93.1%) and from DECT phone calls (4.8%). Main contributors to the whole-body dose were GSM mobile phone calls (69.0%), use of computer, laptop and tablet connected to WLAN (12.2%) and data traffic on the mobile phone via WLAN (6.5%). The exposure from mobile phone base stations contributed 1.8% to the whole-body dose, while uplink exposure from other people's mobile phones contributed 3.6%. In conclusion, the proposed approach is considered useful to combine near-field and far-field exposure to an integrative exposure surrogate for exposure assessment in epidemiologic studies. However, substantial uncertainties remain about exposure contributions from various near-field and far-field sources.

  12. Development of an RF-EMF Exposure Surrogate for Epidemiologic Research

    PubMed Central

    Roser, Katharina; Schoeni, Anna; Bürgi, Alfred; Röösli, Martin

    2015-01-01

    Exposure assessment is a crucial part in studying potential effects of RF-EMF. Using data from the HERMES study on adolescents, we developed an integrative exposure surrogate combining near-field and far-field RF-EMF exposure in a single brain and whole-body exposure measure. Contributions from far-field sources were modelled by propagation modelling and multivariable regression modelling using personal measurements. Contributions from near-field sources were assessed from both, questionnaires and mobile phone operator records. Mean cumulative brain and whole-body doses were 1559.7 mJ/kg and 339.9 mJ/kg per day, respectively. 98.4% of the brain dose originated from near-field sources, mainly from GSM mobile phone calls (93.1%) and from DECT phone calls (4.8%). Main contributors to the whole-body dose were GSM mobile phone calls (69.0%), use of computer, laptop and tablet connected to WLAN (12.2%) and data traffic on the mobile phone via WLAN (6.5%). The exposure from mobile phone base stations contributed 1.8% to the whole-body dose, while uplink exposure from other people’s mobile phones contributed 3.6%. In conclusion, the proposed approach is considered useful to combine near-field and far-field exposure to an integrative exposure surrogate for exposure assessment in epidemiologic studies. However, substantial uncertainties remain about exposure contributions from various near-field and far-field sources. PMID:26006132

  13. Rapid screening of 35 new psychoactive substances by ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) and direct analysis in real time (DART) coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (QTOF-MS).

    PubMed

    Gwak, Seongshin; Almirall, Jose R

    2015-10-01

    The recent propagation of new psychoactive substances (NPS) has led to the development of new techniques for the rapid characterization of controlled substances in this category. A commercial bench-top ion mobility spectrometer (IMS) with a (63) Ni ionization source and a direct analysis in real time (DART) coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight (QTOF) were used for the rapid characterization of 35 NPS. The advantages of these techniques are fast response, ease of operation, and minimal sample preparation. The characteristic reduced mobilities of each substance are reported as are the mass spectra of the 35 compounds. The acquired product ion scan mass spectra were also compared to a library database constructed by QTOF with a electrospray ionization (ESI) source and showed a consistent relative abundance for each peak over time. A total of four seized drug samples provided by the local forensic laboratory were analyzed in order to demonstrate the utility of this approach. The results of this study suggest that both IMS and DART-QTOF are promising alternatives for the rapid screening and characterization of these new psychoactive substances. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  14. 40 CFR 52.2350 - Emission inventories.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ...). This inventory addresses emissions from point, area, non-road, on-road mobile, and biogenic sources.... The ozone maintenance plan for Salt Lake and Davis Counties that the Governor submitted on February 19... carbon monoxide emissions from stationary point, area, non-road, and on-road mobile sources. (c) On June...

  15. Using archived ITS data for sensitivity analyses in the estimation of mobile source emissions

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2000-12-01

    The study described in this paper demonstrates the use of archived ITS data from San Antonio's TransGuide traffic management center (TMC) for sensitivity analyses in the estimation of on-road mobile source emissions. Because of the stark comparison b...

  16. Using archived ITS data for sensitivity analysis in the estimation of mobile source emissions

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2000-12-01

    The study described in this paper demonstrates the use of archived ITS data from San Antonio's TransGuide traffic management center (TMC) for sensitivity analyses in the estimation of on-road mobile source emissions. Because of the stark comparison b...

  17. Assessment of Near-Source Air Pollution at a Fine Spatial Scale Utilizing Mobile Monitoring Approach

    EPA Science Inventory

    Mobile monitoring is an emerging strategy to characterize spatially and temporally variable air pollution in areas near sources. EPA’s Geospatial Monitoring of Air Pollution (GMAP) vehicle – an all-electric vehicle measuring real-time concentrations of partic...

  18. The impact of biases in mobile phone ownership on estimates of human mobility

    PubMed Central

    Wesolowski, Amy; Eagle, Nathan; Noor, Abdisalan M.; Snow, Robert W.; Buckee, Caroline O.

    2013-01-01

    Mobile phone data are increasingly being used to quantify the movements of human populations for a wide range of social, scientific and public health research. However, making population-level inferences using these data is complicated by differential ownership of phones among different demographic groups that may exhibit variable mobility. Here, we quantify the effects of ownership bias on mobility estimates by coupling two data sources from the same country during the same time frame. We analyse mobility patterns from one of the largest mobile phone datasets studied, representing the daily movements of nearly 15 million individuals in Kenya over the course of a year. We couple this analysis with the results from a survey of socioeconomic status, mobile phone ownership and usage patterns across the country, providing regional estimates of population distributions of income, reported airtime expenditure and actual airtime expenditure across the country. We match the two data sources and show that mobility estimates are surprisingly robust to the substantial biases in phone ownership across different geographical and socioeconomic groups. PMID:23389897

  19. The impact of biases in mobile phone ownership on estimates of human mobility.

    PubMed

    Wesolowski, Amy; Eagle, Nathan; Noor, Abdisalan M; Snow, Robert W; Buckee, Caroline O

    2013-04-06

    Mobile phone data are increasingly being used to quantify the movements of human populations for a wide range of social, scientific and public health research. However, making population-level inferences using these data is complicated by differential ownership of phones among different demographic groups that may exhibit variable mobility. Here, we quantify the effects of ownership bias on mobility estimates by coupling two data sources from the same country during the same time frame. We analyse mobility patterns from one of the largest mobile phone datasets studied, representing the daily movements of nearly 15 million individuals in Kenya over the course of a year. We couple this analysis with the results from a survey of socioeconomic status, mobile phone ownership and usage patterns across the country, providing regional estimates of population distributions of income, reported airtime expenditure and actual airtime expenditure across the country. We match the two data sources and show that mobility estimates are surprisingly robust to the substantial biases in phone ownership across different geographical and socioeconomic groups.

  20. Integrated light-guide plates that can control the illumination angle for liquid crystal display backlight system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Di; Yang, Xingpeng; Jin, Guofan; Yan, Yingbai; Fan, Shoushan

    2006-01-01

    Liquid crystal displays (LCDs) with edge-lit backlight systems offer several advantages, such as low energy consuming, low weight, and high uniformity of intensity, over traditional cathode-ray tube displays, and make them ideal for many applications including monitors in notebook personal computers, screens for TV, and many portable information terminals, such as mobile phones, personal digital assistants, etc. To satisfy market requirements for mobile and personal display panels, it is more and more necessary to modify the backlight system and make it thinner, lighter, and brighter all at once. In this paper, we have proposed a new integrated LGP based on periodic and aperiodic microprism structures by using polymethyl methacrylate material, which can be designed to control the illumination angle, and to get high uniformity of intensity. So the backlight system will be simplified to use only light sources and one LGP without using other optical sheets, such as reflection sheet, diffusion sheet and prism sheets. By using optimizing program and ray tracing method, the designed LGPs can achieve a uniformity of intensity better than 86%, and get a peak illumination angle from +400 to -200, without requiring other optical sheets. We have designed a backlight system with only one LED light source and one LGP, and other LGP design examples with different sizes (1.8 inches and 14.1 inches) and different light source (LED or CCFL), are performed also.

  1. Quantifying the role of vegetation in controlling the time-variant age of evapotranspiration, soil water and stream flow

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, A.; Tetzlaff, D.; Soulsby, C.

    2017-12-01

    Identifying the sources of water which sustain plant water uptake is an essential prerequisite to understanding the interactions of vegetation and water within the critical zone. Estimating the sources of root-water uptake is complicated by ecohydrological separation, or the notion of "two-water worlds" which distinguishes more mobile and immobile water sources which respectively sustain streamflow and evapotranspiration. Water mobility within the soil determines both the transit time/residence time of water through/in soils and the subsequent age of root-uptake and xylem water. We used time-variant StorAge Selection (SAS) functions to conceptualise the transit/residence times in the critical zone using a dual-storage soil column differentiating gravity (mobile) and tension dependent (immobile) water, calibrated to measured stable isotope signatures of soil water. Storage-discharge relationships [Brutsaert and Nieber, 1977] were used to identify gravity and tension dependent storages. A temporally variable distribution for root water uptake was identified using simulated stable isotopes in xylem and soil water. Composition of δ2H and δ18O was measured in soil water at 4 depths (5, 10, 15, and 20 cm) on 10 occasions, and 5 times for xylem water within the dominant heather (Calluna sp. and Erica sp.) vegetation in a Scottish Highland catchment over a two-year period. Within a 50 cm soil column, we found that more than 53% of the total stored water was water that was present before the start of the simulation. Mean residence times of the mobile water in the upper 20 cm of the soil were 16, 25, 36, and 44 days, respectively. Mean evaporation transit time varied between 9 and 40 days, driven by seasonal changes and precipitation events. Lastly, mean transit times of xylem water ranged between 95-205 days, driven by changes in soil moisture. During low soil moisture (i.e. lower than mean soil moisture), root-uptake was from lower depths, while higher than mean soil moisture showed preferential uptake of near surface water. In our humid, low energy environment, we found that xylem water is comprised of both mobile and immobile water. The division of soil storage into two storages, gravity and tension dependent, has shown potential to identify the sources of plant water and vegetation and soil water interactions.

  2. Effect of sources of calcium salts of fatty acids on production, nutrient digestibility, energy balance, and carryover effects of early lactation grazing dairy cows.

    PubMed

    de Souza, Jonas; Batistel, Fernanda; Santos, Flávio Augusto Portela

    2017-02-01

    The objective of our study was to investigate the effects of sources of calcium salts of fatty acids (FA) on production, nutrient digestibility, energy balance, and carryover effects of early lactation grazing dairy cows. Treatment diets were offered from 3 to 16 wk postpartum (the treatment period), in which all cows grazed elephantgrass (Pennisetum purpureum 'Cameroon') and treatments were added to a concentrate supplement. The treatments were (1) control (concentrate without supplemental fat); (2) concentrate with calcium salts of soybean FA (CSSO); and (3) concentrate with calcium salts of palm FA (CSPO). From 17 to 42 wk postpartum (the carryover period), all cows received a common diet fed as a total mixed ration. During the treatment period, CSPO increased milk yield, milk fat yield, 3.5% fat-corrected milk, energy-corrected milk, and cumulative milk yield compared with control and CSSO. Treatment CSSO increased the yield of milk but did not affect 3.5% fat-corrected milk or energy-corrected compared with control. Also, CSSO decreased milk fat yield, dry matter intake, neutral detergent fiber digestibility, and body weight and body condition loss. Compared with control, both CSSO and CSPO increased feed efficiency (3.5% fat-corrected milk:dry matter intake), and CSPO increased feed efficiency compared with CSSO. When considering energy partitioning (as % energy intake), CSPO increased energy partitioning toward milk and increased energy mobilized from body reserves compared with control and CSSO. Furthermore, CSSO tended to reduce the mobilization of energy from body reserves compared with control. In the carryover period, no differences in milk composition were observed among treatments. A treatment by time interaction was observed during the carryover period for milk yield because cows on CSPO maintained higher production compared with control and CSSO cows until 30 wk postpartum; CSSO had a lower carryover effect sustaining higher milk yield compared with control until 25 wk postpartum. In conclusion, supplementation with CSPO was an effective strategy to increase energy intake and yields of milk and milk solids and it had a greater carryover effect. Supplementation with CSSO resulted in lower mobilization of reserves and less variation in body weight and body condition throughout lactation. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Betatron Application in Mobile and Relocatable Inspection Systems for Freight Transport Control

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chakhlov, S. V.; Kasyanov, S. V.; Kasyanov, V. A.; Osipov, S. P.; Stein, M. M.; Stein, A. M.; Xiaoming, Sun

    2016-01-01

    Accelerators with energy level up to 4 MeV having high level of penetration ability by steel equivalent are the popular to control oversize cargo transported by road, by railway and by river. Betatron's usage as cyclic induction accelerator has some advantages in comparison with linear accelerators and other sources. Tomsk Polytechnic University has developed many types of betatrons, most of them are being produced by separate affiliated company " Foton ". Article is shown the results of application of the betatrons in inspection custom systems.

  4. Source contributions to PM2.5 in Guangdong province, China by numerical modeling: Results and implications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yin, Xiaohong; Huang, Zhijiong; Zheng, Junyu; Yuan, Zibing; Zhu, Wenbo; Huang, Xiaobo; Chen, Duohong

    2017-04-01

    As one of the most populous and developed provinces in China, Guangdong province (GD) has been experiencing regional haze problems. Identification of source contributions to ambient PM2.5 level is essential for developing effective control strategies. In this study, using the most up-to-date emission inventory and validated numerical model, source contributions to ambient PM2.5 from eight emission source sectors (agriculture, biogenic, dust, industry, power plant, residential, mobile and others) in GD in 2012 were quantified. Results showed that mobile sources are the dominant contributors to the ambient PM2.5 (24.0%) in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region, the central and most developed area of GD, while industry sources are the major contributors (21.5% 23.6%) to those in the Northeastern GD (NE-GD) region and the Southwestern GD (SW-GD) region. Although many industries have been encouraged to move from the central GD to peripheral areas such as NE-GD and SW-GD, their emissions still have an important impact on the PM2.5 level in the PRD. In addition, agriculture sources are responsible for 17.5% to ambient PM2.5 in GD, indicating the importance of regulations on agricultural activities, which has been largely ignored in the current air quality management. Super-regional contributions were also quantified and their contributions to the ambient PM2.5 in GD are significant with notable seasonal differences. But they might be overestimated and further studies are needed to better quantify the transport impacts.

  5. Signal enhancement for peptide analysis in liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry with trifluoroacetic acid containing mobile phase by postcolumn electrophoretic mobility control.

    PubMed

    Wang, Nan-Hsuan; Lee, Wan-Li; Her, Guor-Rong

    2011-08-15

    A strategy based on postcolumn electrophoretic mobility control (EMC) was developed to alleviate the adverse effect of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) on the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) analysis of peptides. The device created to achieve this goal consisted of a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS)-based junction reservoir, a short connecting capillary, and an electrospray ionization (ESI) sprayer connected to the outlet of the high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) column. By apply different voltages to the junction reservoir and the ESI emitter, an electric field was created across the connecting capillary. Due to the electric field, positively charged peptides migrated toward the ESI sprayer, whereas TFA anions remained in the junction reservoir and were removed from the ionization process. Because TFA did not enter the ESI source, ion suppression from TFA was alleviated. Operation of the postcolumn device was optimized using a peptide standard mixture. Under optimized conditions, signals for the peptides were enhanced 9-35-fold without a compromise in separation efficiency. The optimized conditions were also applied to the LC-MS analysis of a tryptic digest of bovine serum albumin.

  6. Control of wheeled mobile robot in restricted environment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ali, Mohammed A. H.; En, Chang Yong

    2018-03-01

    This paper presents a simulation and practical control system for wheeled mobile robot in restricted environment. A wheeled mobile robot with 3 wheels is fabricated and controlled by proportional derivative active force control (PD-AFC) to move in a pre-planned restricted environment to maintain the tracking errors at zero level. A control system with two loops, outer by PD controller and inner loop by Active Force Control, are designed to control the wheeled mobile robot. Fuzzy logic controller is implemented in the Active force Control to estimate the inertia matrix that will be used to calculate the actual torque applied on the wheeled mobile robot. The mobile robot is tested in two different trajectories, namely are circular and straight path. The actual path and desired path are compared.

  7. 76 FR 38117 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment Regarding DLA Energy's Mobility Fuel...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-06-29

    ... Prepare an Environmental Assessment Regarding DLA Energy's Mobility Fuel Purchasing Programs AGENCY... Assessment Regarding DLA Energy's Mobility Fuel Purchasing Programs. SUMMARY: The Defense Logistics Agency is... deployment of fuels and other energy sources. DLA Energy's action, to purchase mobility fuels for the...

  8. Analysis of Mobile Source Air Toxics (MSATS)–Near-Road VOC and CarbonylConcentrations

    EPA Science Inventory

    This presentation examines data from a year-long study of measured near-road mobile source air toxic (MSAT) concentrations and compares these data with modeled 2005 National Air Toxic Assessment (NATA) results. Field study measurements were collected during a field campaign in ...

  9. Alternative Fuels Data Center: Federal Legislation Supports and Advances

    Science.gov Websites

    the Act addressed mobile source pollution and set forth limitations intended to reduce emissions. The Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 further regulated mobile sources through the implementation of and alternative fuel infrastructure. For additional information about these and other relevant federal

  10. Assessment of Near-Source Air Pollution at a Fine Spatial Scale Utilizing Mobile Monitoring Approach

    EPA Science Inventory

    Mobile monitoring is an emerging strategy to characterize spatially and temporally variable air pollution in areas near sources. EPA’s Geospatial Monitoring of Air Pollution (GMAP) vehicle – an all-electric vehicle measuring real-time concentrations of particulate and gaseous po...

  11. 40 CFR 63.11175 - What notifications must I submit?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... address where compliance records are maintained, if different. If the source is a motor vehicle or mobile... operations, indicate whether the source is a motor vehicle and mobile equipment surface coating operation or... official's name, title, phone number, e-mail address (if available) and signature, certifying the truth...

  12. Development of Mobile Tracer Correlation Method for Assessment of Air Emissions from Landfills and Other Area Sources

    EPA Science Inventory

    Abstract - A standardized version of a mobile tracer correlation measurement method was developed and used for assessment of methane emissions from 15 landfills in 56 field deployments from 2009 to 2013. This general area source measurement method uses advances in instrumentation...

  13. Assessment of Near-Source Air Pollution at a Fine Spatial Scale Utilizing a Mobile Monitoring Approach

    EPA Science Inventory

    Mobile monitoring is an emerging strategy to characterize spatially and temporally variable air pollution in areas near sources. EPA’s Geospatial Monitoring of Air Pollution (GMAP) vehicle – an all-electric vehicle measuring real-time concentrations of particulate and gaseous po...

  14. Assessment of near-source air pollution at a fine spatial scale utilizing a mobile measurement platform approach

    EPA Science Inventory

    Mobile monitoring is an emerging strategy to characterize spatially and temporally variable air pollution in areas near sources. EPA’s Geospatial Monitoring of Air Pollution (GMAP) vehicle, an all-electric vehicle measuring real-time concentrations of particulate and gaseous poll...

  15. Examining Long-Term Trends in Mobile Source Related Pollutants through Analysis of Emissions, Observations and Model Simulations

    EPA Science Inventory

    Anthropogenic emissions from a variety of sectors including mobile sources have decreased substantially over the past decades despite continued growth in population and economic activity. In this study, we analyze 1990-2010 trends in emission inventories, ambient observations and...

  16. Convergent evidence for widespread rock nitrogen sources in Earth’s surface environment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Houlton, B. Z.; Morford, S. L.; Dahlgren, R. A.

    2018-04-01

    Nitrogen availability is a pivotal control on terrestrial carbon sequestration and global climate change. Historical and contemporary views assume that nitrogen enters Earth’s land-surface ecosystems from the atmosphere. Here we demonstrate that bedrock is a nitrogen source that rivals atmospheric nitrogen inputs across major sectors of the global terrestrial environment. Evidence drawn from the planet’s nitrogen balance, geochemical proxies, and our spatial weathering model reveal that ~19 to 31 teragrams of nitrogen are mobilized from near-surface rocks annually. About 11 to 18 teragrams of this nitrogen are chemically weathered in situ, thereby increasing the unmanaged (preindustrial) terrestrial nitrogen balance from 8 to 26%. These findings provide a global perspective to reconcile Earth’s nitrogen budget, with implications for nutrient-driven controls over the terrestrial carbon sink.

  17. Parasite sources and sinks in a patched Ross-Macdonald malaria model with human and mosquito movement: Implications for control.

    PubMed

    Ruktanonchai, Nick W; Smith, David L; De Leenheer, Patrick

    2016-09-01

    We consider the dynamics of a mosquito-transmitted pathogen in a multi-patch Ross-Macdonald malaria model with mobile human hosts, mobile vectors, and a heterogeneous environment. We show the existence of a globally stable steady state, and a threshold that determines whether a pathogen is either absent from all patches, or endemic and present at some level in all patches. Each patch is characterized by a local basic reproduction number, whose value predicts whether the disease is cleared or not when the patch is isolated: patches are known as "demographic sinks" if they have a local basic reproduction number less than one, and hence would clear the disease if isolated; patches with a basic reproduction number above one would sustain endemic infection in isolation, and become "demographic sources" of parasites when connected to other patches. Sources are also considered focal areas of transmission for the larger landscape, as they export excess parasites to other areas and can sustain parasite populations. We show how to determine the various basic reproduction numbers from steady state estimates in the patched network and knowledge of additional model parameters, hereby identifying parasite sources in the process. This is useful in the context of control of the infection on natural landscapes, because a commonly suggested strategy is to target focal areas, in order to make their corresponding basic reproduction numbers less than one, effectively turning them into sinks. We show that this is indeed a successful control strategy-albeit a conservative and possibly expensive one-in case either the human host, or the vector does not move. However, we also show that when both humans and vectors move, this strategy may fail, depending on the specific movement patterns exhibited by hosts and vectors. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. A flowing atmospheric pressure afterglow as an ion source coupled to a differential mobility analyzer for volatile organic compound detection.

    PubMed

    Bouza, Marcos; Orejas, Jaime; López-Vidal, Silvia; Pisonero, Jorge; Bordel, Nerea; Pereiro, Rosario; Sanz-Medel, Alfredo

    2016-05-23

    Atmospheric pressure glow discharges have been widely used in the last decade as ion sources in ambient mass spectrometry analyses. Here, an in-house flowing atmospheric pressure afterglow (FAPA) has been developed as an alternative ion source for differential mobility analysis (DMA). The discharge source parameters (inter-electrode distance, current and helium flow rate) determining the atmospheric plasma characteristics have been optimized in terms of DMA spectral simplicity with the highest achievable sensitivity while keeping an adequate plasma stability and so the FAPA working conditions finally selected were: 35 mA, 1 L min(-1) of He and an inter-electrode distance of 8 mm. Room temperature in the DMA proved to be adequate for the coupling and chemical analysis with the FAPA source. Positive and negative ions for different volatile organic compounds were tested and analysed by FAPA-DMA using a Faraday cup as a detector and proper operation in both modes was possible (without changes in FAPA operational parameters). The FAPA ionization source showed simpler ion mobility spectra with narrower peaks and a better, or similar, sensitivity than conventional UV-photoionization for DMA analysis in positive mode. Particularly, the negative mode proved to be a promising field of further research for the FAPA ion source coupled to ion mobility, clearly competitive with other more conventional plasmas such as corona discharge.

  19. A Fuel-Based Assessment of On-Road and Off-Road Mobile Source Emission Trends

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dallmann, T. R.; Harley, R. A.

    2009-12-01

    Mobile sources contribute significantly to emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the United States. These emissions lead to a variety of environmental concerns including adverse human health effects and climate change. In the electric power sector, sulfur dioxide (SO2) and NOx emissions from power plants are measured directly using continuous emission monitoring systems. In contrast for mobile sources, statistical models are used to estimate average emissions from a very large and diverse population of engines. Despite much effort aimed at improving them, mobile source emission inventories continue to have large associated uncertainties. Alternate methods are needed to help evaluate estimates of mobile source emissions and quantify and reduce the associated uncertainties. In this study, a fuel-based approach is used to estimate emissions from mobile sources, including on-road and off-road gasoline and diesel engines. In this approach, engine activity is measured by fuel consumed (in contrast EPA mobile source emission models are based on vehicle km of travel and total amount of engine work output for on-road and off-road engines, respectively). Fuel consumption is defined in this study based on highway fuel tax reports for on-road engines, and from surveys of fuel wholesalers who sell tax-exempt diesel fuel for use in various off-road sectors such as agriculture, construction, and mining. Over the decade-long time period (1996-2006) that is the focus of the present study, national sales of taxable gasoline and diesel fuel intended for on-road use increased by 15 and 43%, respectively. Diesel fuel use by off-road equipment increased by about 20% over the same time period. Growth in fuel consumption offset some of the reductions in pollutant emission factors that occurred during this period. This study relies on in-use measurements of mobile source emission factors, for example from roadside and tunnel studies, remote sensing, and plume capture experiments. Extensive in-use emissions data are available for NOx, especially for on-road engines. Measurements of exhaust PM2.5 emission factors are sparse in comparison. For NOx, there have been dramatic (factor of 2) decreases in emission factors for on-road gasoline engines between 1996 and 2006, due to use of improved catalytic converters on most engines. In contrast, diesel NOx emission factors decreased more gradually over the same time period. Exhaust PM2.5 emission factors appear to have decreased for most engine categories, but emission uncertainties are large for this pollutant. Pollutant emissions were estimated by combining fuel sales with emission factors expressed per unit of fuel burned. Diesel engines are the dominant mobile source of both NOx and PM2.5; the diesel contribution to NOx has increased over time as gasoline engine emissions have declined. Comparing fuel-based emission estimates with EPA’s national emission inventory led to the following conclusions: (1) total emissions of both NOx and PM2.5 estimated by two different methods were similar, (2) the distribution of source contributions to these totals differ significantly, with higher relative contributions coming from on-road diesel engines in this study compared to EPA.

  20. Applang - A DSL for specification of mobile applications for android platform based on textX

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kosanović, Milan; Dejanović, Igor; Milosavljević, Gordana

    2016-06-01

    Mobile platforms become a ubiquitous part of our daily lives thus making more pressure to software developers to develop more applications faster and with the support for different mobile operating systems. To foster the faster development of mobile services and applications and to support various mobile operating systems a new software development approaches must be undertaken. Domain-Specific Languages (DSL) are a viable approach that promise to solve a problem of target platform diversity as well as to facilitate rapid application development and shorter time-to-market. This paper presents Applang, a DSL for the specification of mobile applications for the Android platform, based on textX meta-language. The application is described using Applang DSL and the source code for a target platform is automatically generated by the provided code generator. The same application defined using single Applang source can be transformed to various targets with little or no manual modifications.

  1. A world of minerals in your mobile device

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Jenness, Jane E.; Ober, Joyce A.; Wilkins, Aleeza M.; Gambogi, Joseph

    2016-09-15

    Mobile phones and other high-technology communications devices could not exist without mineral commodities. More than one-half of all components in a mobile device—including its electronics, display, battery, speakers, and more—are made from mined and semiprocessed materials (mineral commodities). Some mineral commodities can be recovered as byproducts during the production and processing of other commodities. As an example, bauxite is mined for its aluminum content, but gallium is recovered during the aluminum production process. The images show the ore minerals (sources) of some mineral commodities that are used to make components of a mobile device. On the reverse side, the map and table depict the major source countries producing these mineral commodities along with how these commodities are used in mobile devices. For more information on minerals, visit http://minerals.usgs.gov.

  2. Earth Orientation Effects on Mobile VLBI Baselines

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Allen, S. L.

    1984-01-01

    Improvements in data quality for the mobile VLBI systems have placed higher accuracy requirements on Earth orientation calibrations. Errors in these calibrations may give rise to systematic effects in the nonlength components of the baselines. Various sources of Earth orientation data were investigated for calibration of Mobile VLBI baselines. Significant differences in quality between the several available sources of UT1-UTC were found. It was shown that the JPL Kalman filtered space technology data were at least as good as any other and adequate to the needs of current Mobile VLBI systems and observing plans. For polar motion, the values from all service suffice. The effect of Earth orientation errors on the accuracy of differenced baselines was also investigated. It is shown that the effect is negligible for the current mobile systems and observing plan.

  3. Homophily and the speed of social mobilization: the effect of acquired and ascribed traits.

    PubMed

    Alstott, Jeff; Madnick, Stuart; Velu, Chander

    2014-01-01

    Large-scale mobilization of individuals across social networks is becoming increasingly prevalent in society. However, little is known about what affects the speed of social mobilization. Here we use a framed field experiment to identify and measure properties of individuals and their relationships that predict mobilization speed. We ran a global social mobilization contest and recorded personal traits of the participants and those they recruited. We studied the effects of ascribed traits (gender, age) and acquired traits (geography, and information source) on the speed of mobilization. We found that homophily, a preference for interacting with other individuals with similar traits, had a mixed role in social mobilization. Homophily was present for acquired traits, in which mobilization speed was faster when the recuiter and recruit had the same trait compared to different traits. In contrast, we did not find support for homophily for the ascribed traits. Instead, those traits had other, non-homophily effects: Females mobilized other females faster than males mobilized other males. Younger recruiters mobilized others faster, and older recruits mobilized slower. Recruits also mobilized faster when they first heard about the contest directly from the contest organization, and decreased in speed when hearing from less personal source types (e.g. family vs. media). These findings show that social mobilization includes dynamics that are unlike other, more passive forms of social activity propagation. These findings suggest relevant factors for engineering social mobilization tasks for increased speed.

  4. MIXI: Mobile Intelligent X-Ray Inspection System

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arodzero, Anatoli; Boucher, Salime; Kutsaev, Sergey V.; Ziskin, Vitaliy

    2017-07-01

    A novel, low-dose Mobile Intelligent X-ray Inspection (MIXI) concept is being developed at RadiaBeam Technologies. The MIXI concept relies on a linac-based, adaptive, ramped energy source of short X-ray packets of pulses, a new type of fast X-ray detector, rapid processing of detector signals for intelligent control of the linac, and advanced radiography image processing. The key parameters for this system include: better than 3 mm line pair resolution; penetration greater than 320 mm of steel equivalent; scan speed with 100% image sampling rate of up to 15 km/h; and material discrimination over a range of thicknesses up to 200 mm of steel equivalent. Its minimal radiation dose, size and weight allow MIXI to be placed on a lightweight truck chassis.

  5. An efficient protocol for providing integrated voice/data services to mobiles over power-limited satellite channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bose, Sanjay K.

    1991-02-01

    Various mobile satellite communication systems are being developed for providing integrated voice/data services over a shared satellite transponder which is power-limited in nature. A common strategy is to use slotted ALOHA request channels to request channel assignments for voice/data calls from a network management station. To maximize efficiency in a system with a power-limited satellite transponder, it is proposed that the bursty nature of voice sources be exploited by the NMS to 'over-assign' channels. This may cause problems of inefficiency and potential instability, as well as a degradation in the quality of service. Augmenting this with the introduction of simple state-dependent control procedures provides systems which exhibit more desirable operational features.

  6. Characterisation of structure-borne sound source using reception plate method.

    PubMed

    Putra, A; Saari, N F; Bakri, H; Ramlan, R; Dan, R M

    2013-01-01

    A laboratory-based experiment procedure of reception plate method for structure-borne sound source characterisation is reported in this paper. The method uses the assumption that the input power from the source installed on the plate is equal to the power dissipated by the plate. In this experiment, rectangular plates having high and low mobility relative to that of the source were used as the reception plates and a small electric fan motor was acting as the structure-borne source. The data representing the source characteristics, namely, the free velocity and the source mobility, were obtained and compared with those from direct measurement. Assumptions and constraints employing this method are discussed.

  7. Perception of mobile phone and base station risks.

    PubMed

    Siegrist, Michael; Earle, Timothy C; Gutscher, Heinz; Keller, Carmen

    2005-10-01

    Perceptions of risks associated with mobile phones, base stations, and other sources of electromagnetic fields (EMF) were examined. Data from a telephone survey conducted in the German- and French-speaking parts of Switzerland are presented (N = 1,015). Participants assessed both risks and benefits associated with nine different sources of EMF. Trust in the authorities regulating these hazards was assessed as well. In addition, participants answered a set of questions related to attitudes toward EMF and toward mobile phone base stations. According to respondents' assessments, high-voltage transmission lines are the most risky source of EMF. Mobile phones and mobile phone base stations received lower risk ratings. Results showed that trust in authorities was positively associated with perceived benefits and negatively associated with perceived risks. People who use their mobile phones frequently perceived lower risks and higher benefits than people who use their mobile phones infrequently. People who believed they lived close to a base station did not significantly differ in their level of risks associated with mobile phone base stations from people who did not believe they lived close to a base station. Regarding risk regulation, a majority of participants were in favor of fixing limiting values based on the worst-case scenario. Correlations suggest that belief in paranormal phenomena is related to level of perceived risks associated with EMF. Furthermore, people who believed that most chemical substances cause cancer also worried more about EMF than people who did not believe that chemical substances are that harmful. Practical implications of the results are discussed.

  8. Surgical evaluation of a novel tethered robotic capsule endoscope using micro-patterned treads.

    PubMed

    Sliker, Levin J; Kern, Madalyn D; Schoen, Jonathan A; Rentschler, Mark E

    2012-10-01

    The state-of-the-art technology for gastrointestinal (GI) tract exploration is a capsule endoscope (CE). Capsule endoscopes are pill-sized devices that provide visual feedback of the GI tract as they move passively through the patient. These passive devices could benefit from a mobility system enabling maneuverability and controllability. Potential benefits of a tethered robotic capsule endoscope (tRCE) include faster travel speeds, reaction force generation for biopsy, and decreased capsule retention. In this work, a tethered CE is developed with an active locomotion system for mobility within a collapsed lumen. Micro-patterned polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) treads are implemented onto a custom capsule housing as a mobility method. The tRCE housing contains a direct current (DC) motor and gear train to drive the treads, a video camera for visual feedback, and two light sources (infrared and visible) for illumination. The device was placed within the insufflated abdomen of a live anesthetized pig to evaluate mobility performance on a planar tissue surface, as well as within the cecum to evaluate mobility performance in a collapsed lumen. The tRCE was capable of forward and reverse mobility for both planar and collapsed lumen tissue environments. Also, using an onboard visual system, the tRCE was capable of demonstrating visual feedback within an insufflated, anesthetized porcine abdomen. Proof-of-concept in vivo tRCE mobility using micro-patterned PDMS treads was shown. This suggests that a similar method could be implemented in future smaller, faster, and untethered RCEs.

  9. Development of a Mobile Tracer Correlation Method for Assessment of Air Emissions from Landfills and Other Area Sources (Abstract)

    EPA Science Inventory

    Work toward a standardized version of a mobile tracer correlation measurement method is discussed. The method used for assessment of methane emissions from 15 landfills in 56 field deployments from 2009 to 2013. This general area source measurement method uses advances in instrum...

  10. 78 FR 16785 - Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Ohio; Cleveland-Akron-Lorain and...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-03-19

    ... mobile source emissions for criteria pollutants and/or their precursors to address pollution from cars, trucks and other on-road vehicles. These mobile source SIP budgets are the portions of the total...(c) of the CAA, transportation plans, Transportation Improvement Programs (TIPs), and transportation...

  11. 77 FR 20577 - Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Indiana; Central Indiana...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-04-05

    ... demonstration SIP revisions) and maintenance plans include budgets of on-road mobile source emissions for... 62188). Under section 176(c) of the CAA, transportation plans, Transportation Improvement Programs (TIPs... margin. Table 4.1-A in the submittal demonstrates how mobile source emissions decline from the attainment...

  12. A High-Pressure Hollow Cathode Discharge Source for Ion Mobility Spectrometers for In-Situ Detection of Organic Molecules on Mars

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Beegle, L. W.; Noren, C.; Kanik, I.

    2000-01-01

    We have designed, constructed and begun testing of a new high-pressure (5-10 Torr) hollow cathode discharge source (HCDS) that can be utilized as an ionizer for ion mobility spectrometers as well as in a wide variety of mass analyzers.

  13. A Greedy Scanning Data Collection Strategy for Large-Scale Wireless Sensor Networks with a Mobile Sink.

    PubMed

    Zhu, Chuan; Zhang, Sai; Han, Guangjie; Jiang, Jinfang; Rodrigues, Joel J P C

    2016-09-06

    Mobile sink is widely used for data collection in wireless sensor networks. It can avoid 'hot spot' problems but energy consumption caused by multihop transmission is still inefficient in real-time application scenarios. In this paper, a greedy scanning data collection strategy (GSDCS) is proposed, and we focus on how to reduce routing energy consumption by shortening total length of routing paths. We propose that the mobile sink adjusts its trajectory dynamically according to the changes of network, instead of predetermined trajectory or random walk. Next, the mobile sink determines which area has more source nodes, then it moves toward this area. The benefit of GSDCS is that most source nodes are no longer needed to upload sensory data for long distances. Especially in event-driven application scenarios, when event area changes, the mobile sink could arrive at the new event area where most source nodes are located currently. Hence energy can be saved. Analytical and simulation results show that compared with existing work, our GSDCS has a better performance in specific application scenarios.

  14. A Greedy Scanning Data Collection Strategy for Large-Scale Wireless Sensor Networks with a Mobile Sink

    PubMed Central

    Zhu, Chuan; Zhang, Sai; Han, Guangjie; Jiang, Jinfang; Rodrigues, Joel J. P. C.

    2016-01-01

    Mobile sink is widely used for data collection in wireless sensor networks. It can avoid ‘hot spot’ problems but energy consumption caused by multihop transmission is still inefficient in real-time application scenarios. In this paper, a greedy scanning data collection strategy (GSDCS) is proposed, and we focus on how to reduce routing energy consumption by shortening total length of routing paths. We propose that the mobile sink adjusts its trajectory dynamically according to the changes of network, instead of predetermined trajectory or random walk. Next, the mobile sink determines which area has more source nodes, then it moves toward this area. The benefit of GSDCS is that most source nodes are no longer needed to upload sensory data for long distances. Especially in event-driven application scenarios, when event area changes, the mobile sink could arrive at the new event area where most source nodes are located currently. Hence energy can be saved. Analytical and simulation results show that compared with existing work, our GSDCS has a better performance in specific application scenarios. PMID:27608022

  15. 47 CFR 22.575 - Use of mobile channel for remote control of station functions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Use of mobile channel for remote control of...) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES PUBLIC MOBILE SERVICES Paging and Radiotelephone Service One-Way Or Two-Way Mobile Operation § 22.575 Use of mobile channel for remote control of station functions. Carriers may...

  16. Investigation of Gate-Stacked In-Ga-Zn-O TFTs with Ga-Zn-O Source/Drain Electrodes by Atmospheric Pressure Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition.

    PubMed

    Wu, Chien-Hung; Chang, Kow-Ming; Chen, Yi-Ming; Huang, Bo-Wen; Zhang, Yu-Xin; Wang, Shui-Jinn; Hsu, Jui-Mei

    2018-03-01

    Atmospheric pressure plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (AP-PECVD) was employed for the fabrication of indium gallium zinc oxide thin-film transistors (IGZO TFTs) with high transparent gallium zinc oxide (GZO) source/drain electrodes. The influence of post-deposition annealing (PDA) temperature on GZO source/drain and device performance was studied. Device with a 300 °C annealing demonstrated excellent electrical characteristics with on/off current ratio of 2.13 × 108, saturation mobility of 10 cm2/V-s, and low subthreshold swing of 0.2 V/dec. The gate stacked LaAlO3/ZrO2 of AP-IGZO TFTs with highly transparent and conductive AP-GZO source/drain electrode show excellent gate control ability at a low operating voltage.

  17. Fractionation of heavy metals and assessment of contamination of the sediments of Lake Titicaca.

    PubMed

    Cáceres Choque, Luis Fernando; Ramos Ramos, Oswaldo E; Valdez Castro, Sulema N; Choque Aspiazu, Rigoberto R; Choque Mamani, Rocío G; Fernández Alcazar, Samuel G; Sracek, Ondra; Bhattacharya, Prosun

    2013-12-01

    Chemical weathering is one of the major geochemical processes that control the mobilization of heavy metals. The present study provides the first report on heavy metal fractionation in sediments (8-156 m) of Lake Titicaca (3,820 m a.s.l.), which is shared by the Republic of Peru and the Plurinational State of Bolivia. Both contents of total Cu, Fe, Ni, Co, Mn, Cd, Pb, and Zn and also the fractionation of these heavy metals associated with four different fractions have been determined following the BCR scheme. The principal component analysis suggests that Co, Ni, and Cd can be attributed to natural sources related to the mineralized geological formations. Moreover, the sources of Cu, Fe, and Mn are effluents and wastes generated from mining activities, while Pb and Zn also suggest that their common source is associated to mining activities. According to the Risk Assessment Code, there is a moderate to high risk related to Zn, Pb, Cd, Mn, Co, and Ni mobilization and/or remobilization from the bottom sediment to the water column. Furthermore, the Geoaccumulation Index and the Enrichment Factor reveal that Zn, Pb, and Cd are enriched in the sediments. The results suggest that the effluents from various traditional mining waste sites in both countries are the main source of heavy metal contamination in the sediments of Lake Titicaca.

  18. Delineating sources of groundwater recharge in an arsenic-affected Holocene aquifer in Cambodia using stable isotope-based mixing models

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Richards, Laura A.; Magnone, Daniel; Boyce, Adrian J.; Casanueva-Marenco, Maria J.; van Dongen, Bart E.; Ballentine, Christopher J.; Polya, David A.

    2018-02-01

    Chronic exposure to arsenic (As) through the consumption of contaminated groundwaters is a major threat to public health in South and Southeast Asia. The source of As-affected groundwaters is important to the fundamental understanding of the controls on As mobilization and subsequent transport throughout shallow aquifers. Using the stable isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen, the source of groundwater and the interactions between various water bodies were investigated in Cambodia's Kandal Province, an area which is heavily affected by As and typical of many circum-Himalayan shallow aquifers. Two-point mixing models based on δD and δ18O allowed the relative extent of evaporation of groundwater sources to be estimated and allowed various water bodies to be broadly distinguished within the aquifer system. Model limitations are discussed, including the spatial and temporal variation in end member compositions. The conservative tracer Cl/Br is used to further discriminate between groundwater bodies. The stable isotopic signatures of groundwaters containing high As and/or high dissolved organic carbon plot both near the local meteoric water line and near more evaporative lines. The varying degrees of evaporation of high As groundwater sources are indicative of differing recharge contributions (and thus indirectly inferred associated organic matter contributions). The presence of high As groundwaters with recharge derived from both local precipitation and relatively evaporated surface water sources, such as ponds or flooded wetlands, are consistent with (but do not provide direct evidence for) models of a potential dual role of surface-derived and sedimentary organic matter in As mobilization.

  19. Insect-controlled Robot: A Mobile Robot Platform to Evaluate the Odor-tracking Capability of an Insect.

    PubMed

    Ando, Noriyasu; Emoto, Shuhei; Kanzaki, Ryohei

    2016-12-19

    Robotic odor source localization has been a challenging area and one to which biological knowledge has been expected to contribute, as finding odor sources is an essential task for organism survival. Insects are well-studied organisms with regard to odor tracking, and their behavioral strategies have been applied to mobile robots for evaluation. This "bottom-up" approach is a fundamental way to develop biomimetic robots; however, the biological analyses and the modeling of behavioral mechanisms are still ongoing. Therefore, it is still unknown how such a biological system actually works as the controller of a robotic platform. To answer this question, we have developed an insect-controlled robot in which a male adult silkmoth (Bombyx mori) drives a robot car in response to odor stimuli; this can be regarded as a prototype of a future insect-mimetic robot. In the cockpit of the robot, a tethered silkmoth walked on an air-supported ball and an optical sensor measured the ball rotations. These rotations were translated into the movement of the two-wheeled robot. The advantage of this "hybrid" approach is that experimenters can manipulate any parameter of the robot, which enables the evaluation of the odor-tracking capability of insects and provides useful suggestions for robotic odor-tracking. Furthermore, these manipulations are non-invasive ways to alter the sensory-motor relationship of a pilot insect and will be a useful technique for understanding adaptive behaviors.

  20. Mobile open-source plant-canopy monitoring system

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Many agricultural applications, including improved crop production, precision agriculture, and phenotyping, rely on detailed field and crop information to detect and react to spatial variabilities. Mobile farm vehicles, such as tractors and sprayers, have the potential to operate as mobile sensing ...

  1. Optimal control of 2-wheeled mobile robot at energy performance index

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kaliński, Krzysztof J.; Mazur, Michał

    2016-03-01

    The paper presents the application of the optimal control method at the energy performance index towards motion control of the 2-wheeled mobile robot. With the use of the proposed method of control the 2-wheeled mobile robot can realise effectively the desired trajectory. The problem of motion control of mobile robots is usually neglected and thus performance of the realisation of the high level control tasks is limited.

  2. Sowing the Seeds of a Fruitful Harvest: Hematopoietic Stem Cell Mobilization

    PubMed Central

    Hoggatt, Jonathan; Speth, Jennifer M.; Pelus, Louis M.

    2014-01-01

    Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the only curative option for a number of malignant and non-malignant diseases. As the use of hematopoietic transplant has expanded, so too has the source of stem and progenitor cells. The predominate source of stem and progenitors today, particularly in settings of autologous transplantation, is mobilized peripheral blood. This review will highlight the historical advances which lead to the widespread use of peripheral blood stem cells for transplantation, with a look towards future enhancements to mobilization strategies. PMID:24123398

  3. Use of Vendedores (Mobile Food Vendors), Pulgas (Flea Markets), and Vecinos o Amigos (Neighbors or Friends) as Alternative Sources of Food for Purchase among Mexican-origin Households in Texas Border Colonias

    PubMed Central

    Sharkey, Joseph R.; Dean, Wesley R.; Johnson, Cassandra M.

    2012-01-01

    There is a paucity of studies acknowledging the existence of alternative food sources, and factors associated with food purchasing from three common alternative sources: vendedores (mobile food vendors), pulgas (flea markets), and vecinos/amigos (neighbors/friends). This analysis aims to examine the use of alternative food sources by Mexican-origin women from Texas-border colonias and determine factors associated with their use. The design was cross-sectional. Promotora-researchers (promotoras de salud trained in research methods) recruited 610 Mexican-origin women from 44 colonias and conducted in-person surveys. Surveys included participant characteristics and measures of food environment use and household food security. Statistical analyses included separate logistic regressions, modeled for food purchase from mobile food vendors, pulgas, or neighbors/friends (NFs). Child food insecurity was associated with purchasing food from mobile food vendors, while household food security was associated with using pulgas or NFs. School nutrition program participants were more likely to live in households that depend on alternative food sources. Efforts to increase healthful food consumption such as fruits and vegetables should acknowledge all potential food sources (traditional, convenience, non-traditional, and alternative), especially those preferred by colonia residents. Current findings support the conceptual broadening of the retail food environment, and the importance of linking use with spatial access (proximity) to more accurately depict access to food sources. PMID:22709775

  4. DOD Role in Counterdrug Operations -- Can We Achieve Better Results?

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1999-04-01

    narcotics with high energy X - ray technologies. The DOD and the U.S. Customs Service are procuring X - ray systems with higher energy level, mobile X - ray ...flow of illegal drugs from source countries and a 20 percent reduction in domestic marijuana cultivation and methamphetamine production by the year 2002...cultivation and methamphetamine production by 2007.1 1 White House, The. National Drug Control Strategy: 1998. Washington D.C., U.S. Government Printing

  5. Investigating molecular crowding within nuclear pores using polarization-PALM

    PubMed Central

    Fu, Guo; Tu, Li-Chun; Zilman, Anton

    2017-01-01

    The key component of the nuclear pore complex (NPC) controlling permeability, selectivity, and the speed of nucleocytoplasmic transport is an assembly of natively unfolded polypeptides, which contain phenylalanine-glycine (FG) binding sites for nuclear transport receptors. The architecture and dynamics of the FG-network have been refractory to characterization due to the paucity of experimental methods able to probe the mobility and density of the FG-polypeptides and embedded macromolecules within intact NPCs. Combining fluorescence polarization, super-resolution microscopy, and mathematical analyses, we examined the rotational mobility of fluorescent probes at various locations within the FG-network under different conditions. We demonstrate that polarization PALM (p-PALM) provides a rich source of information about low rotational mobilities that are inaccessible with bulk fluorescence anisotropy approaches, and anticipate that p-PALM is well-suited to explore numerous crowded cellular environments. In total, our findings indicate that the NPC’s internal organization consists of multiple dynamic environments with different local properties. PMID:28949296

  6. Mobility Systems For Robotic Vehicles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chun, Wendell

    1987-02-01

    The majority of existing robotic systems can be decomposed into five distinct subsystems: locomotion, control/man-machine interface (MMI), sensors, power source, and manipulator. When designing robotic vehicles, there are two main requirements: first, to design for the environment and second, for the task. The environment can be correlated with known missions. This can be seen by analyzing existing mobile robots. Ground mobile systems are generally wheeled, tracked, or legged. More recently, underwater vehicles have gained greater attention. For example, Jason Jr. made history by surveying the sunken luxury liner, the Titanic. The next big surge of robotic vehicles will be in space. This will evolve as a result of NASA's commitment to the Space Station. The foreseeable robots will interface with current systems as well as standalone, free-flying systems. A space robotic vehicle is similar to its underwater counterpart with very few differences. Their commonality includes missions and degrees-of-freedom. The issues of stability and communication are inherent in both systems and environment.

  7. Smartphones reveal angler behavior: A case study of a popular mobile fishing application in Alberta, Canada

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Papenfuss, Jason T.; Phelps, Nicholas; Fulton, David C.; Venturelli, Paul A.

    2015-01-01

    Successfully managing fisheries and controlling the spread of invasive species depends on the ability to describe and predict angler behavior. However, finite resources restrict conventional survey approaches and tend to produce retrospective data that are limited in time or space and rely on intentions or attitudes rather than actual behavior. In this study, we used three years of angler data from a popular mobile fishing application in Alberta, Canada, to determine province-wide, seasonal patterns of (1) lake popularity that were consistent with conventional data and (2) anthropogenic lake connectivity that has not been widely described in North America. Our proof-of-concept analyses showed that mobile apps can be an inexpensive source of high-resolution, real-time data for managing fisheries and invasive species. We also identified key challenges that underscore the need for further research and development in this new frontier that combines big data with increased stakeholder interaction and cooperation.

  8. Electrical characterization of vertically stacked p-FET SOI nanowires

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cardoso Paz, Bruna; Cassé, Mikaël; Barraud, Sylvain; Reimbold, Gilles; Vinet, Maud; Faynot, Olivier; Antonio Pavanello, Marcelo

    2018-03-01

    This work presents the performance and transport characteristics of vertically stacked p-type MOSFET SOI nanowires (NWs) with inner spacers and epitaxial growth of SiGe raised source/drain. The conventional procedure to extract the effective oxide thickness (EOT) and Shift and Ratio Method (S&R) have been adapted and validated through tridimensional numerical simulations. Electrical characterization is performed for NWs with [1 1 0]- and [1 0 0]-oriented channels, as a function of both fin width (WFIN) and channel length (L). Results show a good electrostatic control and reduced short channel effects (SCE) down to 15 nm gate length, for both orientations. Effective mobility is found around two times higher for [1 1 0]- in comparison to [1 0 0]-oriented NWs due to higher holes mobility contribution in (1 1 0) plan. Improvements obtained on ION/IOFF by reducing WFIN are mainly due to subthreshold slope decrease, once small and none mobility increase is obtained for [1 1 0]- and [1 0 0]-oriented NWs, respectively.

  9. HUMAN HEALTH DAMAGES FROM MOBILE SOURCE AIR POLLUTION: ADDITIONAL DELPHI DATA ANALYSIS. VOLUME II

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report contains the results of additional analyses of the data generated by a panel of medical experts for a study of Human Health Damages from Mobile Source Air Pollution (hereafter referred to as HHD) conducted by the California Air Resources Board in 1973-75 for the U.S. E...

  10. 78 FR 39654 - Approval, and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Michigan; Redesignation of the...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-07-02

    ... requirement of the Act. Michigan's maintenance plan submission includes a budget for the mobile source... (Section 107(d)(3)(E)(iv)) 5. Motor Vehicle Emissions Budget (MVEBs) for the Mobile Source Contribution to.... 4. Describe any assumptions and provide any technical information and/or data that you used. 5. If...

  11. A Novel Microwave-Induced Plasma Ionization Source for Ion Mobility Spectrometry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dai, Jianxiong; Zhao, Zhongjun; Liang, Gaoling; Duan, Yixiang

    2017-03-01

    This work demonstrates the application of a novel microwave induced plasma ionization (MIPI) source to ion mobility spectrometry (IMS). The MIPI source, called Surfatron, is composed of a copper cavity and a hollow quartz discharge tube. The ion mobility spectrum of synthetics air has a main peak with reduced mobility of 2.14 cm2V-1s-1 for positive ion mode and 2.29 cm2V-1s-1 for negative ion mode. The relative standard deviations (RSD) are 0.7% and 1.2% for positive and negative ion mode, respectively. The total ion current measured was more than 3.5 nA, which is much higher than that of the conventional 63Ni source. This indicates that a better signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) can be acquired from the MIPI source. The SNR was 110 in the analysis of 500 pptv methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), resulting in the limit of detection (SNR = 3) of 14 pptv. The linear range covers close to 2.5 orders of magnitude in the detection of triethylamine with a concentration range from 500 pptv to 80 ppbv. Finally, this new MIPI-IMS was used to detect some volatile organic compounds, which demonstrated that the MIPI-IMS has great potential in monitoring pollutants in air.

  12. On-Line Method and Apparatus for Coordinated Mobility and Manipulation of Mobile Robots

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Seraji, Homayoun (Inventor)

    1996-01-01

    A simple and computationally efficient approach is disclosed for on-line coordinated control of mobile robots consisting of a manipulator arm mounted on a mobile base. The effect of base mobility on the end-effector manipulability index is discussed. The base mobility and arm manipulation degrees-of-freedom are treated equally as the joints of a kinematically redundant composite robot. The redundancy introduced by the mobile base is exploited to satisfy a set of user-defined additional tasks during the end-effector motion. A simple on-line control scheme is proposed which allows the user to assign weighting factors to individual degrees-of-mobility and degrees-of-manipulation, as well as to each task specification. The computational efficiency of the control algorithm makes it particularly suitable for real-time implementations. Four case studies are discussed in detail to demonstrate the application of the coordinated control scheme to various mobile robots.

  13. Responses of Roadside Soil Cation Pools to Vehicular Emission Deposition in Southern California

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rossi, R.; Bain, D. J.; Jenerette, D.; Clarke, L. W.; Wilson, K.

    2013-12-01

    Roadside soils are heavily loaded with NO3- due to vehicular emissions. This deposition likely acidifies these soils, potentially mobilizing cationic species from soil exchange sites. Acidification driven mobilization is well documented in forest soils, but poorly understood in roadside soils. Metal concentrations in park and garden soils collected from Southern California were examined across gradients of soil chemistry, road network density, climate, and geology to examine cation mobilization effects. In our samples, soil pH is not clearly related to distance from the roadside or underlying geology. However, the depletion of several elements (Al, K) is clearly observed in near-road environments. These depletion trends occur despite contrary trends, including increased soil surface areas and soil organic matter in near-road environments. Additionally, inputs from the weathering of road building materials appear to affect soil chemistry. For example, soil Ca patterns remain relatively consistent relative to roads, suggesting Ca bearing weathering products replenish soil Ca pools in near-road areas. Simple mixing models constructed using elemental ratios are consistent with road material Ca source contributions. Observed near-road patterns in soil chemistry likely influence local ecological function, shifting plant communities and soil functions. Clear understanding of these shifts is essential to the effective use of green infrastructure and other strategies utilized to control road-sourced nutrients. This analytical framework can be applied globally as road networks continue to expand and affect larger ecosystems.

  14. New target prediction and visualization tools incorporating open source molecular fingerprints for TB Mobile 2.0

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background We recently developed a freely available mobile app (TB Mobile) for both iOS and Android platforms that displays Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) active molecule structures and their targets with links to associated data. The app was developed to make target information available to as large an audience as possible. Results We now report a major update of the iOS version of the app. This includes enhancements that use an implementation of ECFP_6 fingerprints that we have made open source. Using these fingerprints, the user can propose compounds with possible anti-TB activity, and view the compounds within a cluster landscape. Proposed compounds can also be compared to existing target data, using a näive Bayesian scoring system to rank probable targets. We have curated an additional 60 new compounds and their targets for Mtb and added these to the original set of 745 compounds. We have also curated 20 further compounds (many without targets in TB Mobile) to evaluate this version of the app with 805 compounds and associated targets. Conclusions TB Mobile can now manage a small collection of compounds that can be imported from external sources, or exported by various means such as email or app-to-app inter-process communication. This means that TB Mobile can be used as a node within a growing ecosystem of mobile apps for cheminformatics. It can also cluster compounds and use internal algorithms to help identify potential targets based on molecular similarity. TB Mobile represents a valuable dataset, data-visualization aid and target prediction tool. PMID:25302078

  15. New target prediction and visualization tools incorporating open source molecular fingerprints for TB Mobile 2.0.

    PubMed

    Clark, Alex M; Sarker, Malabika; Ekins, Sean

    2014-01-01

    We recently developed a freely available mobile app (TB Mobile) for both iOS and Android platforms that displays Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) active molecule structures and their targets with links to associated data. The app was developed to make target information available to as large an audience as possible. We now report a major update of the iOS version of the app. This includes enhancements that use an implementation of ECFP_6 fingerprints that we have made open source. Using these fingerprints, the user can propose compounds with possible anti-TB activity, and view the compounds within a cluster landscape. Proposed compounds can also be compared to existing target data, using a näive Bayesian scoring system to rank probable targets. We have curated an additional 60 new compounds and their targets for Mtb and added these to the original set of 745 compounds. We have also curated 20 further compounds (many without targets in TB Mobile) to evaluate this version of the app with 805 compounds and associated targets. TB Mobile can now manage a small collection of compounds that can be imported from external sources, or exported by various means such as email or app-to-app inter-process communication. This means that TB Mobile can be used as a node within a growing ecosystem of mobile apps for cheminformatics. It can also cluster compounds and use internal algorithms to help identify potential targets based on molecular similarity. TB Mobile represents a valuable dataset, data-visualization aid and target prediction tool.

  16. SNAST 2018

    Science.gov Websites

    room) or while being on the mobile (agents in action). While desktop based applications can be used to monitor but also process and analyse surveillance data coming from a variety of sources, mobile-based techniques Digital forensics analysis Visualization techniques for surveillance Mobile-based surveillance

  17. Analysis of Louisiana Vehicular Input Data for MOBILE 6.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2008-06-01

    The purpose of this study was to identify sources of data for MOBILE 6 and set procedures to prepare the data in the : format required for use in MOBILE 6. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has provided a comprehensive set of : documents desc...

  18. Spatiotemporal Patterns of Urban Human Mobility

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hasan, Samiul; Schneider, Christian M.; Ukkusuri, Satish V.; González, Marta C.

    2013-04-01

    The modeling of human mobility is adopting new directions due to the increasing availability of big data sources from human activity. These sources enclose digital information about daily visited locations of a large number of individuals. Examples of these data include: mobile phone calls, credit card transactions, bank notes dispersal, check-ins in internet applications, among several others. In this study, we consider the data obtained from smart subway fare card transactions to characterize and model urban mobility patterns. We present a simple mobility model for predicting peoples' visited locations using the popularity of places in the city as an interaction parameter between different individuals. This ingredient is sufficient to reproduce several characteristics of the observed travel behavior such as: the number of trips between different locations in the city, the exploration of new places and the frequency of individual visits of a particular location. Moreover, we indicate the limitations of the proposed model and discuss open questions in the current state of the art statistical models of human mobility.

  19. Mobility Peak Tailing Reduction in a Differential Mobility Analyzer (DMA) Coupled with a Mass Spectrometer and Several Ionization Sources

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Amo-Gonzalez, Mario; Fernandez de la Mora, Juan

    2017-08-01

    The differential mobility analyzer (DMA) is a narrow-band linear ion mobility filter operating at atmospheric pressure. It combines in series with a quadrupole mass spectrometer (Q-MS) for mobility/mass analysis, greatly reducing chemical noise in selected ion monitoring. However, the large flow rate of drift gas ( 1000 L/min) required by DMAs complicates the achievement of high gas purity. Additionally, the symmetry of the drying counterflow gas at the interface of many commercial MS instruments, is degraded by the lateral motion of the drift gas at the DMA entrance slit. As a result, DMA mobility peaks often exhibit tails due to the attachment of impurity vapors, either (1) to the reagent ion within the separation cell, or (2) to the analyte of interest in the ionization region. In order to greatly increase the noise-suppression capacity of the DMA, we describe various vapor-removal schemes and measure the resulting increase in the tailing ratio, ( TR = signal at the peak maximum over signal two half-widths away from this maximum). Here we develop a low-outgassing DMA circuit connected to a mass spectrometer, and test it with three ionization sources (APCI, Desolvating-nano ESI, and Desolvating low flow SESI). While prior TR values were in the range 100-1000, the three new sources achieve TR 105. The SESI source has been optimized for maximum sensitivity, delivering an unprecedented gain for TNT of 190 counts/fg, equivalent to an ionization efficiency of one out of 140 neutral molecules.

  20. The recent and future health burden of air pollution apportioned across U.S. sectors.

    PubMed

    Fann, Neal; Fulcher, Charles M; Baker, Kirk

    2013-04-16

    Recent risk assessments have characterized the overall burden of recent PM2.5 and ozone levels on public health, but generally not the variability of these impacts over time or by sector. Using photochemical source apportionment modeling and a health impact function, we attribute PM2.5 and ozone air quality levels, population exposure and health burden to 23 industrial point, area, mobile and international emission sectors in the Continental U.S. in 2005 and 2016. Our modeled policy scenarios account for a suite of emission control requirements affecting many of these sectors. Between these two years, the number of PM2.5 and ozone-related deaths attributable to power plants and mobile sources falls from about 68,000 (90% confidence interval from 48,000 to 87,000) to about 36,000 (90% confidence intervals from 26,000 to 47,000). Area source mortality risk grows slightly between 2005 and 2016, due largely to population growth. Uncertainties relating to the timing and magnitude of the emission reductions may affect the size of these estimates. The detailed sector-level estimates of the size and distribution of mortality and morbidity risk suggest that the air pollution mortality burden has fallen over time but that many sectors continue to pose a substantial risk to human health.

  1. [Mobilization of potassium from soil by ectomycorrhizal fungi].

    PubMed

    Zhang, Liang; Wang, Mingxia; Zhang, Wei; Huang, Jianguo; Yuan, Ling

    2014-07-04

    Ectomycorrhizal fungi (ECMF), important components in forest ecosystems, could form symbionts with wooden plant roots and participate in nutrient absorption. Boletnus sp. (Bo 07), Lactarius delicious (Ld 03) and Pisolithus tinctorius (Pt 715) isolated from Southwest China and Cenococcum geophilum (Cg 04) from Daqing Mountain, Inn Mongolia, China, were cultured in liquid Pachlewsk medium at 25 +/- 1 degrees C for 28 days with soil as sole K source. Fungal biomass, K uptake, efflux of protons and organic acids, and changes of soil K pools were measured to study K mobilization from soil by ECMFs. ] The fungal biomass, K concentration and uptake of Bo 07, Ld 03 and Pt 715 were much higher than Cg 04, indicating their strong abilities to absorb K and to adapt low K environment by bio-evolution and selection. K concentrations in culture solution were increased by ECMFs compared to blank control (without ECMF). ECMFs could promote K release from the soil into culture solution. Bo 07, Ld 03 and Pt 715 increased significantly exchangeable K in soils, while structural K in soil was decreased by Bo 07 and Ld 03. They could thus mobilize unavailable K from ECMF isolates could mobilize unavailable K in soils.

  2. Malaria elimination in Lao PDR: the challenges associated with population mobility.

    PubMed

    Kounnavong, Sengchanh; Gopinath, Deyer; Hongvanthong, Bouasy; Khamkong, Chanthalone; Sichanthongthip, Odai

    2017-04-25

    Although the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) is comparatively small landlocked country with patterns of both in- and out-migration, its human migration situation has been poorly studied. This is despite all of the country's 18 provinces sharing both official and unofficial border checkpoints with neighboring countries. Economic reforms in the last decade have seen a gradual increase in the promotion of foreign investment, and main towns and transportation networks have been expanding thus offering new opportunities for livelihoods and economic activities.In the last decade, there has also been a significant reduction of reported malaria cases in Lao PDR and while this is an important prerequisite for eliminating malaria in the country, malaria outbreaks reported in the last four years suggest that population mobility, particularly in the south, is an important factor challenging current control efforts.Bolder investment in social sector spending should be geared towards improving health service provision and utilization, ensuring equitable access to primary health care (including malaria) through efforts to achieve universal health coverage targets. This should be extended to populations that are mobile and migrants. The local government plays a critical role in supporting policy and enforcement issues related to private sector project development in the provinces. Cross-border initiatives with neighboring countries, especially in terms of data sharing, surveillance, and response, is essential. Mechanisms to engage the private sector, especially the informal private sector, needs to be explored within the context of existing regulations and laws. Existing and new interventions for outdoor transmission of malaria, especially in forest settings, for high-risk groups including short- and long-term forest workers and their families, mobile and migrant populations, as well as the military must be combined into integrated packages with innovative delivery mechanisms through social marketing approaches. This should happen at multiple points in the mobility pathway and involve the private sector rather than being fully reliant on the national malaria vertical programThis article based on the review of existing literature from abstracts and full texts, includes published, peer-reviewed English language literature sourced through PubMed and grey literature sources through Google and Google Scholar. The review included also case reports, sector reports, conference proceedings, research reports, epidemiology studies, qualitative studies, and census reports in both Lao and English languages. The authors used the search terms: malaria and mobile populations, malaria control program and elimination, health system performance, malaria outbreak, Lao PDR; and included articles published until June 2015.

  3. REE controls in ultramafic hosted MOR hydrothermal systems: An experimental study at elevated temperature and pressure

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Allen, Douglas E.; Seyfried, W. E.

    2005-02-01

    A hydrothermal experiment involving peridotite and a coexisting aqueous fluid was conducted to assess the role of dissolved Cl - and redox on REE mobility at 400°C, 500 bars. Data show that the onset of reducing conditions enhances the stability of soluble Eu +2 species. Moreover, Eu +2 forms strong aqueous complexes with dissolved Cl - at virtually all redox conditions. Thus, high Cl - concentrations and reducing conditions can combine to reinforce Eu mobility. Except for La, trivalent REE are not greatly affected by fluid speciation under the chemical and physical condition considered, suggesting control by secondary mineral-fluid partitioning. LREE enrichment and positive Eu anomalies observed in fluids from the experiment are remarkably similar to patterns of REE mobility in vent fluids issuing from basalt- and peridotite-hosted hydrothermal systems. This suggests that the chondrite normalized REE patterns are influenced greatly by fluid speciation effects and secondary mineral formation processes. Accordingly, caution must be exercised when using REE in hydrothermal vent fluids to infer REE sources in subseafloor reaction zones from which the fluids are derived. Although vent fluid patterns having LREE enrichment and positive Eu anomalies are typically interpreted to suggest plagioclase recrystallization reactions, this need not always be the case.

  4. Using insects to drive mobile robots - hybrid robots bridge the gap between biological and artificial systems.

    PubMed

    Ando, Noriyasu; Kanzaki, Ryohei

    2017-09-01

    The use of mobile robots is an effective method of validating sensory-motor models of animals in a real environment. The well-identified insect sensory-motor systems have been the major targets for modeling. Furthermore, mobile robots implemented with such insect models attract engineers who aim to avail advantages from organisms. However, directly comparing the robots with real insects is still difficult, even if we successfully model the biological systems, because of the physical differences between them. We developed a hybrid robot to bridge the gap. This hybrid robot is an insect-controlled robot, in which a tethered male silkmoth (Bombyx mori) drives the robot in order to localize an odor source. This robot has the following three advantages: 1) from a biomimetic perspective, the robot enables us to evaluate the potential performance of future insect-mimetic robots; 2) from a biological perspective, the robot enables us to manipulate the closed-loop of an onboard insect for further understanding of its sensory-motor system; and 3) the robot enables comparison with insect models as a reference biological system. In this paper, we review the recent works regarding insect-controlled robots and discuss the significance for both engineering and biology. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Biologically recycled continental iron is a major component in banded iron formations

    PubMed Central

    Li, Weiqiang; Beard, Brian L.; Johnson, Clark M.

    2015-01-01

    Banded iron formations (BIFs) record a time of extensive Fe deposition in the Precambrian oceans, but the sources and pathways for metals in BIFs remain controversial. Here, we present Fe- and Nd-isotope data that indicate two sources of Fe for the large BIF units deposited 2.5 billion y ago. High-εNd and -δ56Fe signatures in some BIF samples record a hydrothermal component, but correlated decreases in εNd- and δ56Fe values reflect contributions from a continental component. The continental Fe source is best explained by Fe mobilization on the continental margin by microbial dissimilatory iron reduction (DIR) and confirms for the first time, to our knowledge, a microbially driven Fe shuttle for the largest BIFs on Earth. Detailed sampling at various scales shows that the proportions of hydrothermal and continental Fe sources were invariant over periods of 100–103 y, indicating that there was no seasonal control, although Fe sources varied on longer timescales of 105–106 y, suggesting a control by marine basin circulation. These results show that Fe sources and pathways for BIFs reflect the interplay between abiologic (hydrothermal) and biologic processes, where the latter reflects DIR that operated on a basin-wide scale in the Archean. PMID:26109570

  6. Biologically recycled continental iron is a major component in banded iron formations.

    PubMed

    Li, Weiqiang; Beard, Brian L; Johnson, Clark M

    2015-07-07

    Banded iron formations (BIFs) record a time of extensive Fe deposition in the Precambrian oceans, but the sources and pathways for metals in BIFs remain controversial. Here, we present Fe- and Nd-isotope data that indicate two sources of Fe for the large BIF units deposited 2.5 billion y ago. High-εNd and -δ(56)Fe signatures in some BIF samples record a hydrothermal component, but correlated decreases in εNd- and δ(56)Fe values reflect contributions from a continental component. The continental Fe source is best explained by Fe mobilization on the continental margin by microbial dissimilatory iron reduction (DIR) and confirms for the first time, to our knowledge, a microbially driven Fe shuttle for the largest BIFs on Earth. Detailed sampling at various scales shows that the proportions of hydrothermal and continental Fe sources were invariant over periods of 10(0)-10(3) y, indicating that there was no seasonal control, although Fe sources varied on longer timescales of 10(5)-10(6) y, suggesting a control by marine basin circulation. These results show that Fe sources and pathways for BIFs reflect the interplay between abiologic (hydrothermal) and biologic processes, where the latter reflects DIR that operated on a basin-wide scale in the Archean.

  7. Dependence of ion beam current on position of mobile plate tuner in multi-frequencies microwaves electron cyclotron resonance ion source

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kurisu, Yosuke; Kiriyama, Ryutaro; Takenaka, Tomoya

    2012-02-15

    We are constructing a tandem-type electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS). The first stage of this can supply 2.45 GHz and 11-13 GHz microwaves to plasma chamber individually and simultaneously. We optimize the beam current I{sub FC} by the mobile plate tuner. The I{sub FC} is affected by the position of the mobile plate tuner in the chamber as like a circular cavity resonator. We aim to clarify the relation between the I{sub FC} and the ion saturation current in the ECRIS against the position of the mobile plate tuner. We obtained the result that the variation of the plasmamore » density contributes largely to the variation of the I{sub FC} when we change the position of the mobile plate tuner.« less

  8. Mobile free-space optical communications: a feasibility study of various battlefield scenarios

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Harris, Alan; Al-Akkoumi, Mouhammad K.; Sluss, James J., Jr.

    2012-06-01

    Free Space Optics (FSO) technology was originally envisioned to be a viable solution for the provision of high bandwidth optical connectivity in the last mile of today's telecommunications infrastructure. Due to atmospheric limitations inherent to FSO technology, FSO is now widely envisioned as a solution for the provision of high bandwidth, temporary mobile communications links. The need for FSO communications links will increase as mobility is introduced to this technology. In this paper, a theoretical solution for adding mobility to FSO communication links is introduced. Three-dimensional power estimation studies are presented to represent mobile FSO transmission under various weather conditions. Three wavelengths, 0.85, 1.55 and 10 um, are tested and compared to illustrate the pros and cons of each source wavelength used for transmission, depending on prevalent weather conditions and atmospheric turbulence conditions. A simulation analysis of the transmission properties of the source wavelengths used in the study is shown.

  9. GIS-MODELED INDICATORS OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS AND ADVERSE HEALTH EFFECTS AMONG CHILDREN IN EL PASO, TEXAS,USA*

    EPA Science Inventory

    The El Paso Children's Health Study has been a major collaborative effort by NHEERL and NERL scientists to examine the role of mobile source emissions in the development of allergies and asthma among 4th and 5th grade children in El Paso, TX. The purpose of this study was to dete...

  10. GIS-MODELED INDICATORS OF MOBILE SOURCE EMISSIONS AND ADVERSE HEALTH EFFECTS AMONG CHILDREN IN EL PASO, TEXAS, USA

    EPA Science Inventory

    The El Paso Children's Health Study has been a major collaborative effort by NHEERL and NERL scientists to examine the role of mobile source emissions in the development of allergies and asthma among 4th and 5th grade children in El Paso, TX. The purpose of this study was to det...

  11. Power flow analysis of two coupled plates with arbitrary characteristics

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cuschieri, J. M.

    1990-01-01

    In the last progress report (Feb. 1988) some results were presented for a parametric analysis on the vibrational power flow between two coupled plate structures using the mobility power flow approach. The results reported then were for changes in the structural parameters of the two plates, but with the two plates identical in their structural characteristics. Herein, limitation is removed. The vibrational power input and output are evaluated for different values of the structural damping loss factor for the source and receiver plates. In performing this parametric analysis, the source plate characteristics are kept constant. The purpose of this parametric analysis is to determine the most critical parameters that influence the flow of vibrational power from the source plate to the receiver plate. In the case of the structural damping parametric analysis, the influence of changes in the source plate damping is also investigated. The results obtained from the mobility power flow approach are compared to results obtained using a statistical energy analysis (SEA) approach. The significance of the power flow results are discussed together with a discussion and a comparison between the SEA results and the mobility power flow results. Furthermore, the benefits derived from using the mobility power flow approach are examined.

  12. 47 CFR 24.5 - Terms and definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... in the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) data base. (Source: National Geodetic Survey, U.S. Department... antenna site. Base Station. A land station in the land mobile service. Broadband PCS. PCS services.... Fixed Station. A station in the fixed service. Land Mobile Service. A mobile service between base...

  13. 47 CFR 24.5 - Terms and definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... in the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) data base. (Source: National Geodetic Survey, U.S. Department... antenna site. Base Station. A land station in the land mobile service. Broadband PCS. PCS services.... Fixed Station. A station in the fixed service. Land Mobile Service. A mobile service between base...

  14. 47 CFR 24.5 - Terms and definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... in the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) data base. (Source: National Geodetic Survey, U.S. Department... antenna site. Base Station. A land station in the land mobile service. Broadband PCS. PCS services.... Fixed Station. A station in the fixed service. Land Mobile Service. A mobile service between base...

  15. 47 CFR 24.5 - Terms and definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... in the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) data base. (Source: National Geodetic Survey, U.S. Department... antenna site. Base Station. A land station in the land mobile service. Broadband PCS. PCS services.... Fixed Station. A station in the fixed service. Land Mobile Service. A mobile service between base...

  16. Accessible Collaborative Learning Using Mobile Devices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wald, Mike; Li, Yunjia; Draffan, E. A.

    2014-01-01

    This paper describes accessible collaborative learning using mobile devices with mobile enhancements to Synote, the freely available, award winning, open source, web based application that makes web hosted recordings easier to access, search, manage, and exploit for all learners, teachers and other users. Notes taken live during lectures using…

  17. "A Strategy of Distinction" Unfolds: Unsettling the Undergraduate Outbound Mobility Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sidhu, Ravinder; Dall'Alba, Gloria

    2017-01-01

    Although short-term mobility programmes are increasingly promoted to university students as sources of competitive advantage, there is little research on academic learnings arising from these initiatives. A "field analysis" of outbound mobility is undertaken to identify convergences and disjunctures between institutional discourses,…

  18. Tuning on-off current ratio and field-effect mobility in a MoS(2)-graphene heterostructure via Schottky barrier modulation.

    PubMed

    Shih, Chih-Jen; Wang, Qing Hua; Son, Youngwoo; Jin, Zhong; Blankschtein, Daniel; Strano, Michael S

    2014-06-24

    Field-effect transistor (FET) devices composed of a MoS2-graphene heterostructure can combine the advantages of high carrier mobility in graphene with the permanent band gap of MoS2 for digital applications. Herein, we investigate the electron transfer, photoluminescence, and gate-controlled carrier transport in such a heterostructure. We show that the junction is a Schottky barrier, whose height can be artificially controlled by gating or doping graphene. When the applied gate voltage (or the doping level) is zero, the photoexcited electron-hole pairs in monolayer MoS2 can be split by the heterojunction, significantly reducing the photoluminescence. By applying negative gate voltage (or p-doping) in graphene, the interlayer impedance formed between MoS2 and graphene exhibits an 100-fold increase. For the first time, we show that the gate-controlled interlayer Schottky impedance can be utilized to modulate carrier transport in graphene, significantly depleting the hole transport, but preserving the electron transport. Accordingly, we demonstrate a new type of FET device, which enables a controllable transition from NMOS digital to bipolar characteristics. In the NMOS digital regime, we report a very high room temperature on/off current ratio (ION/IOFF ∼ 36) in comparison to graphene-based FET devices without sacrificing the field-effect electron mobilities in graphene. By engineering the source/drain contact area, we further estimate that a higher value of ION/IOFF up to 100 can be obtained in the device architecture considered. The device architecture presented here may enable semiconducting behavior in graphene for digital and analogue electronics.

  19. Wireless Control of Miniaturized Mobile Vehicle for Indoor Surveillance

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Taha Saquib, Syed M.; Hameed, Sarmad; Usman Ali, Syed M.; Jafri, Raza; Amin, Imran

    2013-12-01

    This work is based upon electronic automation and Smart Control techniques, which constitute the basis of Control Area Network (CAN) and Personal Area Network (PAN). Bluetooth technology has been interfaced with a programmable controller to provide multi-dimensional vehicle control. A network is proposed which contains a remote, mobile host controller and an android operating system based mobile set (Client). The client communicates with a host controller through a Bluetooth device. The system incorporates duplex communication after successful confirmation between the host and the client; the android based mobile unit controls the vehicle through the Bluetooth module.

  20. Web and Mobile Based HIV Prevention and Intervention Programs Pros and Cons - A Review.

    PubMed

    Niakan, Sharareh; Mehraeen, Esmaeil; Noori, Tayebeh; Gozali, Elahe

    2017-01-01

    With the increasing growth of HIV positive people the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) can play an important role in controlling the spread of the AIDS. Web and Mobile are the new technologies that young people take advantage from them. In this study a review to investigate the web and mobile based HIV prevention and intervention programs was carried out. A scoping review was conducted including PubMed, Science direct, Web of Science and Proquest to find relevant sources that published in 2009 to 2016. To identify published, original research that reported the web and mobile-based HIV prevention and intervention programs, an organized search was conducted with the following search keywords in combination: HIV, AIDS, m-Health, Mobile phone, Cell phone, Smartphone, Mobile health, internet, and web. Using the employed strategies, 173 references retrieved. Searched articles were compared based on their titles and abstracts. To identify duplicated articles, the title and abstracts were considered and 101 duplicated references were excluded. By going through the full text of related papers, 35 articles were found to be more related to the questions of this paper from which 72 final included. The advantages of web and mobile-based interventions include the possibility to provide constancy in the delivery of an intervention, impending low cost, and the ability to spread the intervention to an extensive community. Online programs such as Chat room-based Education program, Web-based therapeutic education system, and Online seek information can use for HIV/AIDS prevention. To use of mobile for HIV/AIDS prevention and intervention, programs including in: Health system focused applications, Population health focused applications, and Health messaging can be used.

  1. Use of vendedores (mobile food vendors), pulgas (flea markets), and vecinos o amigos (neighbors or friends) as alternative sources of food for purchase among Mexican-origin households in Texas border colonias.

    PubMed

    Sharkey, Joseph R; Dean, Wesley R; Johnson, Cassandra M

    2012-05-01

    There is a paucity of studies acknowledging the existence of alternative food sources, and factors associated with food purchasing from three common alternative sources: vendedores (mobile food vendors), pulgas (flea markets), and vecinos/amigos (neighbors/friends). This analysis aims to examine the use of alternative food sources by Mexican-origin women from Texas-border colonias and determine factors associated with their use. The design was cross-sectional. Promotora-researchers (promotoras de salud trained in research methods) recruited 610 Mexican-origin women from 44 colonias and conducted in-person surveys. Surveys included participant characteristics and measures of food environment use and household food security. Statistical analyses included separate logistic regressions, modeled for food purchase from mobile food vendors, pulgas, or neighbors/friends. Child food insecurity was associated with purchasing food from mobile food vendors, while household food security was associated with using pulgas or neighbors/friends. School nutrition program participants were more likely to live in households that depend on alternative food sources. Efforts to increase healthful food consumption such as fruits and vegetables should acknowledge all potential food sources (traditional, convenience, nontraditional, and alternative), especially those preferred by colonia residents. Current findings support the conceptual broadening of the retail food environment, and the importance of linking use with spatial access (proximity) to more accurately depict access to food sources. Copyright © 2012 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Quantifying the relative contribution of natural gas fugitive emissions to total methane emissions in Colorado, Utah, and Texas using mobile isotopic methane analysis based on Cavity Ringdown Spectroscopy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rella, Chris; Winkler, Renato; Sweeney, Colm; Karion, Anna; Petron, Gabrielle; Crosson, Eric

    2014-05-01

    Fugitive emissions of methane into the atmosphere are a major concern facing the natural gas production industry. Because methane is more energy-rich than coal per kg of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere, it represents an attractive alternative to coal for electricity generation, provided that the fugitive emissions of methane are kept under control. A key step in assessing these emissions in a given region is partitioning the observed methane emissions between natural gas fugitive emissions and other sources of methane, such as from landfills or agricultural activities. One effective method for assessing the contribution of these different sources is stable isotope analysis, using the isotopic carbon signature to distinguish between natural gas and landfills or ruminants. We present measurements of methane using a mobile spectroscopic stable isotope analyzer based on cavity ringdown spectroscopy, in three intense natural gas producing regions of the United States: the Denver-Julesburg basin in Colorado, the Uintah basin in Utah, and the Barnett Shale in Texas. Performance of the CRDS isotope analyzer is presented, including precision, calibration, stability, and the potential for measurement bias due to other atmospheric constituents. Mobile isotope measurements of individual sources and in the nocturnal boundary layer have been combined to establish the fraction of the observed methane emissions that can be attributed to natural gas activities. The fraction of total methane emissions in the Denver-Julesburg basin attributed to natural gas emissions is 78 +/- 13%. In the Uinta basin, which has no other significant sources of methane, the fraction is 96% +/- 15%. In addition, results from the Barnett shale are presented, which includes a major urban center (Dallas / Ft. Worth). Methane emissions in this region are spatially highly heterogeneous. Spatially-resolved isotope and concentration measurements are interpreted using a simple emissions model to arrive at an overall isotope ratio for the region.

  3. Personal Area Networks in Tactical Mobile Devices

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2014-08-01

    TECHNICAL DOCUMENT 2047 August 2014 Personal Area Networks in Tactical Mobile Devices Brian Visser...Tactical Mobile Devices Brian Visser Approved for public release. SSC Pacific San Diego, CA 92152-5001 SB...consistent power source, which is normally not available to patrols. In addition to the lack of computer resources, robust network infrastructure

  4. A Virtual Laboratory for Digital Signal Processing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dow, Chyi-Ren; Li, Yi-Hsung; Bai, Jin-Yu

    2006-01-01

    This work designs and implements a virtual digital signal processing laboratory, VDSPL. VDSPL consists of four parts: mobile agent execution environments, mobile agents, DSP development software, and DSP experimental platforms. The network capability of VDSPL is created by using mobile agent and wrapper techniques without modifying the source code…

  5. Multimolecular tracers of terrestrial carbon transfer across the pan-Arctic: 14C characteristics of sedimentary carbon components and their environmental controls

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Xiaojuan; Gustafsson, Örjan; Holmes, R. Max; Vonk, Jorien E.; van Dongen, Bart E.; Semiletov, Igor P.; Dudarev, Oleg V.; Yunker, Mark B.; Macdonald, Robie W.; Wacker, Lukas; Montluçon, Daniel B.; Eglinton, Timothy I.

    2015-11-01

    Distinguishing the sources, ages, and fate of various terrestrial organic carbon (OC) pools mobilized from heterogeneous Arctic landscapes is key to assessing climatic impacts on the fluvial release of carbon from permafrost. Through molecular 14C measurements, including novel analyses of suberin- and/or cutin-derived diacids (DAs) and hydroxy fatty acids (FAs), we compared the radiocarbon characteristics of a comprehensive suite of terrestrial markers (including plant wax lipids, cutin, suberin, lignin, and hydroxy phenols) in the sedimentary particles from nine major arctic and subarctic rivers in order to establish a benchmark assessment of the mobilization patterns of terrestrial OC pools across the pan-Arctic. Terrestrial lipids, including suberin-derived longer-chain DAs (C24,26,28), plant wax FAs (C24,26,28), and n-alkanes (C27,29,31), incorporated significant inputs of aged carbon, presumably from deeper soil horizons. Mobilization and translocation of these "old" terrestrial carbon components was dependent on nonlinear processes associated with permafrost distributions. By contrast, shorter-chain (C16,18) DAs and lignin phenols (as well as hydroxy phenols in rivers outside eastern Eurasian Arctic) were much more enriched in 14C, suggesting incorporation of relatively young carbon supplied by runoff processes from recent vegetation debris and surface layers. Furthermore, the radiocarbon content of terrestrial markers is heavily influenced by specific OC sources and degradation status. Overall, multitracer molecular 14C analysis sheds new light on the mobilization of terrestrial OC from arctic watersheds. Our findings of distinct ages for various terrestrial carbon components may aid in elucidating fate of different terrestrial OC pools in the face of increasing arctic permafrost thaw.

  6. 40 CFR 60.4247 - What parts of the mobile source provisions apply to me if I am a manufacturer of stationary SI...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 6 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What parts of the mobile source provisions apply to me if I am a manufacturer of stationary SI internal combustion engines or a manufacturer of equipment containing such engines? 60.4247 Section 60.4247 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL...

  7. Highly Skilled Labour and International Mobility in South America. OECD Science, Technology and Industry Working Papers, 2004/10

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Barrere, Rodolfo; Luchilo, Lucas; Raffo, Julio

    2004-01-01

    This paper presents the main trends in respect of the supply of human resources in science and technology (HRST) in Latin America and the international mobility of its highly skilled labour. This will be done through the identification of potential data sources, followed by a presentation of indicators drawn from these sources. In addition, a…

  8. A Study on the Sources of Resources and Capacity Building in Resource Mobilization: Case of Private Chartered Universities in Nakuru Town, Kenya

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kipchumba, Simon Kibet; Zhimin, Liu; Chelagat, Robert

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to review and analyze the resources needs and sources of resources and level of training and capacity building in resource mobilization in Kenyan private chartered universities. The study employed a descriptive survey research design. Purposeful sampling technique was used to select 63 respondents (staff) from three…

  9. Differential-Drive Mobile Robot Control Design based-on Linear Feedback Control Law

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nurmaini, Siti; Dewi, Kemala; Tutuko, Bambang

    2017-04-01

    This paper deals with the problem of how to control differential driven mobile robot with simple control law. When mobile robot moves from one position to another to achieve a position destination, it always produce some errors. Therefore, a mobile robot requires a certain control law to drive the robot’s movement to the position destination with a smallest possible error. In this paper, in order to reduce position error, a linear feedback control is proposed with pole placement approach to regulate the polynoms desired. The presented work leads to an improved understanding of differential-drive mobile robot (DDMR)-based kinematics equation, which will assist to design of suitable controllers for DDMR movement. The result show by using the linier feedback control method with pole placement approach the position error is reduced and fast convergence is achieved.

  10. Relating Land Use and Human Intra-City Mobility

    PubMed Central

    Lee, Minjin; Holme, Petter

    2015-01-01

    Understanding human mobility patterns—how people move in their everyday lives—is an interdisciplinary research field. It is a question with roots back to the 19th century that has been dramatically revitalized with the recent increase in data availability. Models of human mobility often take the population distribution as a starting point. Another, sometimes more accurate, data source is land-use maps. In this paper, we discuss how the intra-city movement patterns, and consequently population distribution, can be predicted from such data sources. As a link between land use and mobility, we show that the purposes of people’s trips are strongly correlated with the land use of the trip’s origin and destination. We calibrate, validate and discuss our model using survey data. PMID:26445147

  11. Personal radiofrequency electromagnetic field exposure measurements in Swiss adolescents.

    PubMed

    Roser, Katharina; Schoeni, Anna; Struchen, Benjamin; Zahner, Marco; Eeftens, Marloes; Fröhlich, Jürg; Röösli, Martin

    2017-02-01

    Adolescents belong to the heaviest users of wireless communication devices, but little is known about their personal exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF). The aim of this paper is to describe personal RF-EMF exposure of Swiss adolescents and evaluate exposure relevant factors. Furthermore, personal measurements were used to estimate average contributions of various sources to the total absorbed RF-EMF dose of the brain and the whole body. Personal exposure was measured using a portable RF-EMF measurement device (ExpoM-RF) measuring 13 frequency bands ranging from 470 to 3600MHz. The participants carried the device for three consecutive days and kept a time-activity diary. In total, 90 adolescents aged 13 to 17years participated in the study conducted between May 2013 and April 2014. In addition, personal measurement values were combined with dose calculations for the use of wireless communication devices to quantify the contribution of various RF-EMF sources to the daily RF-EMF dose of adolescents. Main contributors to the total personal RF-EMF measurements of 63.2μW/m 2 (0.15V/m) were exposures from mobile phones (67.2%) and from mobile phone base stations (19.8%). WLAN at school and at home had little impact on the personal measurements (WLAN accounted for 3.5% of total personal measurements). According to the dose calculations, exposure from environmental sources (broadcast transmitters, mobile phone base stations, cordless phone base stations, WLAN access points, and mobile phones in the surroundings) contributed on average 6.0% to the brain dose and 9.0% to the whole-body dose. RF-EMF exposure of adolescents is dominated by their own mobile phone use. Environmental sources such as mobile phone base stations play a minor role. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. ATLAS OF SOURCE EMISSION PARTICLES

    EPA Science Inventory

    An atlas of various source emission particles characterized by electron optical techniques has been compiled for use by air pollution investigators. The particles studied were emitted by mobile, stationary, and natural sources. Sources included automobiles, manufacturing operatio...

  13. Nutrient mass balance and trends, Mobile River Basin, Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Harned, D.A.; Atkins, J.B.; Harvill, J.S.

    2004-01-01

    A nutrient mass balance - accounting for nutrient inputs from atmospheric deposition, fertilizer, crop nitrogen fixation, and point source effluents; and nutrient outputs, including crop harvest and storage - was calculated for 18 subbasins in the Mobile River Basin, and trends (1970 to 1997) were evaluated as part of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program. Agricultural nonpoint nitrogen and phosphorus sources and urban nonpoint nitrogen sources are the most important factors associated with nutrients in this system. More than 30 percent of nitrogen yield in two basins and phosphorus yield in eight basins can be attributed to urban point source nutrient inputs. The total nitrogen yield (1.3 tons per square mile per year) for the Tombigbee River, which drains a greater percentage of agricultural (row crop) land use, was larger than the total nitrogen yield (0.99 tons per square mile per year) for the Alabama River. Decreasing trends of total nitrogen concentrations in the Tombigbee and Alabama Rivers indicate that a reduction occurred from 1975 to 1997 in the nitrogen contributions to Mobile Bay from the Mobile River. Nitrogen concentrations also decreased (1980 to 1995) in the Black Warrior River, one of the major tributaries to the Tombigbee River. Total phosphorus concentrations increased from 1970 to 1996 at three urban influenced sites on the Etowah River in Georgia. Multiple regression analysis indicates a distinct association between water quality in the streams of the Mobile River drainage basin and agricultural activities in the basin.

  14. Air quality assessment in Delhi: before and after CNG as fuel.

    PubMed

    Chelani, Asha B; Devotta, Sukumar

    2007-02-01

    A number of policy measures have been activated in India in order to control the levels of air pollutants such as particulate matter, sulphur dioxide (SO(2)) and nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)). Delhi, which is one of the most polluted cities in the world, is also going through the implementation phase of the control policies. Ambient air quality data monitored during 2000 to 2003, at 10 sites in Delhi, were analyzed to assess the impact of implementation of these measures, specifically fuel change in vehicles. This paper presents the impact of policy measures on ambient air quality levels and also the source apportionment. CO and NO(2) concentration levels in ambient air are found to be associated with the mobile sources. The temporal variation of air quality data shows the significant effect of shift to CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) in vehicles.

  15. Convergent evidence for widespread rock nitrogen sources in Earth's surface environment.

    PubMed

    Houlton, B Z; Morford, S L; Dahlgren, R A

    2018-04-06

    Nitrogen availability is a pivotal control on terrestrial carbon sequestration and global climate change. Historical and contemporary views assume that nitrogen enters Earth's land-surface ecosystems from the atmosphere. Here we demonstrate that bedrock is a nitrogen source that rivals atmospheric nitrogen inputs across major sectors of the global terrestrial environment. Evidence drawn from the planet's nitrogen balance, geochemical proxies, and our spatial weathering model reveal that ~19 to 31 teragrams of nitrogen are mobilized from near-surface rocks annually. About 11 to 18 teragrams of this nitrogen are chemically weathered in situ, thereby increasing the unmanaged (preindustrial) terrestrial nitrogen balance from 8 to 26%. These findings provide a global perspective to reconcile Earth's nitrogen budget, with implications for nutrient-driven controls over the terrestrial carbon sink. Copyright © 2018 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.

  16. Using Mobile Monitoring to Assess Spatial Variability in Urban Air Pollution Levels: Opportunities and Challenges (Invited)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Larson, T.

    2010-12-01

    Measuring air pollution concentrations from a moving platform is not a new idea. Historically, however, most information on the spatial variability of air pollutants have been derived from fixed site networks operating simultaneously over space. While this approach has obvious advantages from a regulatory perspective, with the increasing need to understand ever finer scales of spatial variability in urban pollution levels, the use of mobile monitoring to supplement fixed site networks has received increasing attention. Here we present examples of the use of this approach: 1) to assess existing fixed-site fine particle networks in Seattle, WA, including the establishment of new fixed-site monitoring locations; 2) to assess the effectiveness of a regulatory intervention, a wood stove burning ban, on the reduction of fine particle levels in the greater Puget Sound region; and 3) to assess spatial variability of both wood smoke and mobile source impacts in both Vancouver, B.C. and Tacoma, WA. Deducing spatial information from the inherently spatio-temporal measurements taken from a mobile platform is an area that deserves further attention. We discuss the use of “fuzzy” points to address the fine-scale spatio-temporal variability in the concentration of mobile source pollutants, specifically to deduce the broader distribution and sources of fine particle soot in the summer in Vancouver, B.C. We also discuss the use of principal component analysis to assess the spatial variability in multivariate, source-related features deduced from simultaneous measurements of light scattering, light absorption and particle-bound PAHs in Tacoma, WA. With increasing miniaturization and decreasing power requirements of air monitoring instruments, the number of simultaneous measurements that can easily be made from a mobile platform is rapidly increasing. Hopefully the methods used to design mobile monitoring experiments for differing purposes, and the methods used to interpret those measurements will keep pace.

  17. Speed control for a mobile robot

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kolli, Kaylan C.; Mallikarjun, Sreeram; Kola, Krishnamohan; Hall, Ernest L.

    1997-09-01

    Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) have many potential applications in manufacturing, medicine, space and defense. The purpose of this paper is to describe exploratory research on the design of a speed control for a modular autonomous mobile robot controller. The speed control of the traction motor is essential for safe operation of a mobile robot. The challenges of autonomous operation of a vehicle require safe, runaway and collision free operation. A mobile robot test-bed has been constructed using a golf cart base. The computer controlled speed control has been implemented and works with guidance provided by vision system and obstacle avoidance using ultrasonic sensors systems. A 486 computer through a 3- axis motion controller supervises the speed control. The traction motor is controlled via the computer by an EV-1 speed control. Testing of the system was done both in the lab and on an outside course with positive results. This design is a prototype and suggestions for improvements are also given. The autonomous speed controller is applicable for any computer controlled electric drive mobile vehicle.

  18. Enhanced performance of amorphous In-Ga-Zn-O thin-film transistors using different metals for source/drain electrodes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pyo, Ju-Young; Cho, Won-Ju

    2017-09-01

    In this paper, we propose an amorphous indium gallium zinc oxide (a-IGZO) thin-film transistor (TFT) with off-planed source/drain electrodes. We applied different metals for the source/drain electrodes with Ni and Ti to control the work function as high and low. When we measured the configuration of Ni to drain and source to Ti, the a-IGZO TFT showed increased driving current, decreased leakage current, a high on/off current ratio, low subthreshold swing, and high mobility. In addition, we conducted a reliability test with a gate bias stress test at various temperatures. The results of the reliability test showed the Ni drain and Ti drain had an equivalent effective energy barrier height. Thus, we confirmed that the proposed off-planed structure improved the electrical characteristics of the fabricated devices without any degradation of characteristics. Through the a-IGZO TFT with different source/drain electrode metal engineering, we realized high-performance TFTs for next-generation display devices.

  19. Can Concentration - Discharge Relationships Diagnose Material Source During Extreme Events?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Karwan, D. L.; Godsey, S.; Rose, L.

    2017-12-01

    Floods can carry >90% of the basin material exported in a given year as well as alter flow pathways and material sources. In turn, sediment and solute fluxes can increase flood damages and negatively impact water quality and integrate physical and chemical weathering of landscapes and channels. Concentration-discharge (C-Q) relationships are used to both describe export patterns as well as compute them. Metrics for describing C-Q patterns and inferring their controls are vulnerable to infrequent sampling that affects how C-Q relationships are interpolated and interpreted. C-Q relationships are typically evaluated from multiple samples, but because hydrological extremes are rare, data are often unavailable for extreme events. Because solute and sediment C-Q relationships likely respond to changes in hydrologic extremes in different ways, there is a pressing need to define their behavior under extreme conditions, including how to properly sample to capture these patterns. In the absence of such knowledge, improving load estimates in extreme floods will likely remain difficult. Here we explore the use of C-Q relationships to determine when an event alters a watershed system such that it enters a new material source/transport regime. We focus on watersheds with sediment and discharge time series include low-frequency and/or extreme events. For example, we compare solute and sediment patterns in White Clay Creek in southeastern Pennsylvania across a range of flows inclusive of multiple hurricanes for which we have ample ancillary hydrochemical data. TSS is consistently mobilized during high flow events, even during extreme floods associated with hurricanes, and sediment fingerprinting indicates different sediment sources, including in-channel remobilization and landscape erosion, are active at different times. In other words, TSS mobilization in C-Q space is not sensitive to the source of material being mobilized. Unlike sediments, weathering solutes in this watershed tend to exhibit a relatively chemostatic C-Q pattern, except during the runoff-dominated Hurricane Irene, when they exhibit a diluting C-Q pattern. Finally, we summarize the vulnerability of these observations to shifts in sampling effort to highlight the utility and limitations of C-Q-derived export patterns.

  20. Bubble-facilitated VOC transport: Laboratory experiments and numerical modelling

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mumford, K. G.; Soucy, N. C.

    2017-12-01

    Most conceptual and numerical models of vapor intrusion assume that the transport of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from the source to near the building foundation is a diffusion-limited processes. However, the transport of VOCs by mobilized gas bubbles through the saturated zone could lead to increased rates of transport and advection through the unsaturated zone, thereby increasing mass flux and risks associated with vapor intrusion. This mobilized gas could be biogenic (methanogenic) but could also result from the partitioning of VOC to trapped atmospheric gases in light non-aqueous phase liquid (LNAPL) smear zones. The potential for bubble-facilitated VOC transport to increase mass flux was investigated in a series of 1D and 2D laboratory experiments. Pentane source zones were emplaced in sand using sequential drainage and imbibition steps to mimic a water table fluctuation and trap air alongside LNAPL residual. This source was placed below an uncontaminated, water saturated sand (occlusion zone) and a gravel-sized (glass beads) unsaturated zone. Water was pumped laterally through the source zone and occlusion zone to deliver the dissolved gases (air) that are required for the expansion of trapped gas bubbles. Images from 2D flow cell experiments were used to demonstrate fluid rearrangement in the source zone and gas expansion to the occlusion zone, and 1D column experiments were used to measure gas-phase pentane mass flux. This flux was found to be 1-2 orders of magnitude greater than that measured in diffusion-dominated control columns, and showed intermittent behavior consistent with bubble transport by repeated expansion, mobilization, coalescence and trapping. Numerical simulation results under a variety of conditions using an approach that couples macroscopic invasion percolation with mass transfer (MIP-MT) between the aqueous and gas phases will also be presented. The results of this study demonstrate the potential for bubble-facilitated transport to increase transport rates linked to vapor intrusion, and will serve as a basis for further development of conceptual and numerical models to investigate the conditions under which this mechanism may play an important role.

  1. Mobile Methane Monitoring Surveys of the Pinedale Anticline Development in the Upper Green River Basin of Wyoming

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Field, R. A.; Soltis, J.; Murphy, S. M.; Montague, D. C.

    2013-12-01

    Methane emissions from the oil and gas sector have become part of a wider debate of the magnitude of climate change impacts from different fossil fuels. This debate is contentious, as a wide range of estimates of development area leakage rates have been postulated. Here we present the results of mobile monitoring performed in the Pinedale Anticline, WY (PAPA) development. A 4-hour circuit upwind, downwind and within the development was designed to determine methane distributions relative to background concentrations. The circuit was repeated thirty-two times to assess the influence of meteorology and emission sources upon measured values. Figure 1 is a composite of methane data for the project. This pilot project enabled identification of areas and emission sources for subsequent plume quantification studies planned for 2014. Here we present the finding of the circuits through mapping and site comparisons. Along with the methane measurements, mobile ozone and oxides of nitrogen observations were also performed, thereby facilitating a better understanding of the phenomenon of wintertime ground level ozone. Building upon surveys from 2012, we also carried out canister measurements of VOC at selected sites to demonstrate the importance of relating methane and selected VOC concentrations when identifying variations in the contributions of emission sources to ambient measurements. While methane and C2 to C5 alkanes elevations are widespread and highly correlated, those of higher molecular weight VOC, in particular benzene, toluene and xylene isomers, show the importance of emission sources other than wet gas leakage. We discuss the utility of 3D visualization of methane data for illustrating the distribution of leakage relative to emission sources. The influence of emission sources and meteorology upon the data is explored through a comparative analysis of the circuit data. This assessment sets the foundation for planned plume quantification. Finally we compare the mobile data with 1-minute data from the Wyoming DEQ site at Boulder, WY, to determine how well the site represents conditions in the surrounding area. Effective policy decisions require better coupling of air quality measurements and emission inventories. We outline an approach that links regulatory network site data with mobile monitoring and plume quantification that should reduce uncertainty for determining the magnitude of methane emissions from oil and gas sources. Pinedale Anticline methane concentrations for mobile monitoring circuits 2/12/2013 to 3/8/2013

  2. Open Source Based Sensor Platform for Mobile Environmental Monitoring and Data Acquisition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schima, Robert; Goblirsch, Tobias; Misterek, René; Salbach, Christoph; Schlink, Uwe; Francyk, Bogdan; Dietrich, Peter; Bumberger, Jan

    2016-04-01

    The impact of global change, urbanization and complex interactions between humans and the environment show different effects on different scales. However, the desire to obtain a better understanding of ecosystems and process dynamics in nature accentuates the need for observing these processes in higher temporal and spatial resolutions. Especially with regard to the process dynamics and heterogeneity of urban areas, a comprehensive monitoring of these effects remains to be a challenging issue. Open source based electronics and cost-effective sensors are offering a promising approach to explore new possibilities of mobile data acquisition and innovative strategies and thereby support a comprehensive ad-hoc monitoring and the capturing of environmental processes close to real time. Accordingly, our project aims the development of new strategies for mobile data acquisition and real-time processing of user-specific environmental data, based on a holistic and integrated process. To this end, the concept of our monitoring system covers the data collection, data processing and data integration as well as the data provision within one infrastructure. This ensures a consistent data stream and a rapid data processing. However, the overarching goal is the provision of an integrated service instead of lengthy and arduous data acquisition by hand. Therefore, the system also serves as a data acquisition assistant and gives guidance during the measurements. In technical terms, our monitoring system consists of mobile sensor devices, which can be controlled and managed by a smart phone app (Android). At the moment, the system is able to acquire temperature and humidity in space (GPS) and time (real-time clock) as a built in function. In addition, larger system functionality can be accomplished by adding further sensors for the detection of e.g. fine dust, methane or dissolved organic compounds. From the IT point of view, the system includes a smart phone app and a web service for data processing, data provision and data visualization. The smart phone app allows the configuration of the mobile sensor devices and provides some built-in functions such as simple data visualization or data transmission via e-mail whereas the web service provides the visualization of the data and tools for data processing. In an initial field experiment, a methane monitoring based on our sensor integration platform was performed in the city area of Leipzig (Germany) in late June 2015. The study has shown that an urban monitoring can be conducted based on open source components. Moreover, the system enabled the detection of hot spots and methane emission sources. In September 2015, a larger scaled city monitoring based on the mobile monitoring platform was performed by five independently driving cyclists through the city center of Leipzig (Germany). As a result we were able to instantly show a heat and humidity map of the inner city center as well as an exposure map for each cyclist. This emphasizes the feasibility and high potential of open source based monitoring approaches for future research in the field of urban area monitoring in general, citizen science or the validation of remote sensing data.

  3. 76 FR 5586 - California State Motor Vehicle and Nonroad Engine Pollution Control Standards; Mobile Cargo...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-02-01

    ... Pollution Control Standards; Mobile Cargo Handling Equipment Regulation at Ports and Intermodal Rail Yards... EPA that it has adopted regulations for mobile cargo handling equipment at ports and intermodal rail yards (Mobile Cargo [[Page 5587

  4. Fast neutron counting in a mobile, trailer-based search platform

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hayward, Jason P.; Sparger, John; Fabris, Lorenzo; Newby, Robert J.

    2017-12-01

    Trailer-based search platforms for detection of radiological and nuclear threats are often based upon coded aperture gamma-ray imaging, because this method can be rendered insensitive to local variations in gamma background while still localizing the source well. Since gamma source emissions are rather easily shielded, in this work we consider the addition of fast neutron counting to a mobile platform for detection of sources containing Pu. A proof-of-concept system capable of combined gamma and neutron coded-aperture imaging was built inside of a trailer and used to detect a 252Cf source while driving along a roadway. Neutron detector types employed included EJ-309 in a detector plane and EJ-299-33 in a front mask plane. While the 252Cf gamma emissions were not readily detectable while driving by at 16.9 m standoff, the neutron emissions can be detected while moving. Mobile detection performance for this system and a scaled-up system design are presented, along with implications for threat sensing.

  5. 77 FR 59321 - Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; Revisions to the Nevada State Implementation...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-09-27

    ... includes a rescission of one definition from the existing SIP (the definition of ``special mobile equipment... mobile equipment'' 10/05/10 (repealed) 01/24/11 defined. NAC 445B.187 ``Stationary source'' defined... permit'' defined........ 49 FR 11626; (March 27, 1984). NAQR article 1.182--Special mobile equipment...

  6. LingoBee--Crowd-Sourced Mobile Language Learning in the Cloud

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Petersen, Sobah Abbas; Procter-Legg, Emma; Cacchione, Annamaria

    2013-01-01

    This paper describes three case studies, where language learners were invited to use "LingoBee" as a means of supporting their language learning. LingoBee is a mobile app that provides user-generated language content in a cloud-based shared repository. Assuming that today's students are mobile savvy and "Digital Natives" able…

  7. LingoBee: Engaging Mobile Language Learners through Crowd-Sourcing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Petersen, Sobah Abbas; Procter-Legg, Emma; Cacchione, Annamaria

    2014-01-01

    This paper describes three case studies, where language learners were invited to use "LingoBee" as a means of supporting their language learning. LingoBee is a mobile app that provides user-generated language content in a cloud-based shared repository. Assuming that today's students are mobile savvy and "Digital Natives" able…

  8. Mobilization and Adaptation of a Rural Cradle-to-Career Network

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zuckerman, Sarah J.

    2016-01-01

    This case study explored the development of a rural cradle-to-career network with a dual focus on the initial mobilization of network members and subsequent adaptations made to maintain mobilization, while meeting local needs. Data sources included interviews with network members, observations of meetings, and documentary evidence. Network-based…

  9. How to Keep Your Health Information Private and Secure

    MedlinePlus

    ... permanently. When Using Mobile Devices · Research mobile apps – software programs that perform one or more specific functions – before you download and install any of them. Be sure to use known app websites or trusted sources. · Read the terms of service and the privacy notice of the mobile app ...

  10. Unified Approach To Control Of Motions Of Mobile Robots

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Seraji, Homayoun

    1995-01-01

    Improved computationally efficient scheme developed for on-line coordinated control of both manipulation and mobility of robots that include manipulator arms mounted on mobile bases. Present scheme similar to one described in "Coordinated Control of Mobile Robotic Manipulators" (NPO-19109). Both schemes based on configuration-control formalism. Present one incorporates explicit distinction between holonomic and nonholonomic constraints. Several other prior articles in NASA Tech Briefs discussed aspects of configuration-control formalism. These include "Increasing the Dexterity of Redundant Robots" (NPO-17801), "Redundant Robot Can Avoid Obstacles" (NPO-17852), "Configuration-Control Scheme Copes with Singularities" (NPO-18556), "More Uses for Configuration Control of Robots" (NPO-18607/NPO-18608).

  11. Asynchronous BCI control using high-frequency SSVEP.

    PubMed

    Diez, Pablo F; Mut, Vicente A; Avila Perona, Enrique M; Laciar Leber, Eric

    2011-07-14

    Steady-State Visual Evoked Potential (SSVEP) is a visual cortical response evoked by repetitive stimuli with a light source flickering at frequencies above 4 Hz and could be classified into three ranges: low (up to 12 Hz), medium (12-30) and high frequency (> 30 Hz). SSVEP-based Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCI) are principally focused on the low and medium range of frequencies whereas there are only a few projects in the high-frequency range. However, they only evaluate the performance of different methods to extract SSVEP. This research proposed a high-frequency SSVEP-based asynchronous BCI in order to control the navigation of a mobile object on the screen through a scenario and to reach its final destination. This could help impaired people to navigate a robotic wheelchair. There were three different scenarios with different difficulty levels (easy, medium and difficult). The signal processing method is based on Fourier transform and three EEG measurement channels. The research obtained accuracies ranging in classification from 65% to 100% with Information Transfer Rate varying from 9.4 to 45 bits/min. Our proposed method allows all subjects participating in the study to control the mobile object and to reach a final target without prior training.

  12. Complex Atheromatosis of the Aortic Arch in Cerebral Infarction

    PubMed Central

    Capmany, Ramón Pujadas; Ibañez, Montserrat Oliveras; Pesquer, Xavier Jané

    2010-01-01

    In many stroke patients it is not possible to establish the etiology of stroke. However, in the last two decades, the use of transesophageal echocardiography in patients with stroke of uncertain etiology reveals atherosclerotic plaques in the aortic arch, which often protrude into the lumen and have mobile components in a high percentage of cases. Several autopsy series and retrospective studies of cases and controls have shown an association between aortic arch atheroma and arterial embolism, which was later confirmed by prospectively designed studies. The association with ischemic stroke was particularly strong when atheromas were located proximal to the ostium of the left subclavian artery, when the plaque was ≥ 4 mm thick and particularly when mobile components are present. In these cases, aspirin might not prevent adequately new arterial ischemic events especially stroke. Here we review the evidence of aortic arch atheroma as an independent risk factor for stroke and arterial embolism, including clinical and pathological data on atherosclerosis of the thoracic aorta as an embolic source. In addition, the impact of complex plaques (≥ 4 mm thick, or with mobile components) on increasing the risk of stroke is also reviewed. In non-randomized retrospective studies anticoagulation was superior to antiplatelet therapy in patients with stroke and aortic arch plaques with mobile components. In a retrospective case-control study, statins significantly reduced the relative risk of new vascular events. However, given the limited data available and its retrospective nature, randomized prospective studies are needed to establish the optimal secondary prevention therapeutic regimens in these high risk patients. PMID:21804777

  13. Complex atheromatosis of the aortic arch in cerebral infarction.

    PubMed

    Capmany, Ramón Pujadas; Ibañez, Montserrat Oliveras; Pesquer, Xavier Jané

    2010-08-01

    In many stroke patients it is not possible to establish the etiology of stroke. However, in the last two decades, the use of transesophageal echocardiography in patients with stroke of uncertain etiology reveals atherosclerotic plaques in the aortic arch, which often protrude into the lumen and have mobile components in a high percentage of cases. Several autopsy series and retrospective studies of cases and controls have shown an association between aortic arch atheroma and arterial embolism, which was later confirmed by prospectively designed studies. The association with ischemic stroke was particularly strong when atheromas were located proximal to the ostium of the left subclavian artery, when the plaque was ≥ 4 mm thick and particularly when mobile components are present. In these cases, aspirin might not prevent adequately new arterial ischemic events especially stroke. Here we review the evidence of aortic arch atheroma as an independent risk factor for stroke and arterial embolism, including clinical and pathological data on atherosclerosis of the thoracic aorta as an embolic source. In addition, the impact of complex plaques (≥ 4 mm thick, or with mobile components) on increasing the risk of stroke is also reviewed. In non-randomized retrospective studies anticoagulation was superior to antiplatelet therapy in patients with stroke and aortic arch plaques with mobile components. In a retrospective case-control study, statins significantly reduced the relative risk of new vascular events. However, given the limited data available and its retrospective nature, randomized prospective studies are needed to establish the optimal secondary prevention therapeutic regimens in these high risk patients.

  14. Effects of Neuromuscular Training on Children and Young Adults with Down Syndrome: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

    PubMed

    Sugimoto, Dai; Bowen, Samantha L; Meehan, William P; Stracciolini, Andrea

    2016-08-01

    To synthesize existing research evidence and examine effects of neuromuscular training on general strength, maximal strength, and functional mobility tasks in children and young adults with Down syndrome. PubMed and EBSCO were used as a data source. To attain the aim of this study, literature search was performed under following inclusion criteria: (1) included participants with Down syndrome, (2) implemented a neuromuscular training intervention and measured outcome variables of general strength, maximal strength, and functional mobility tasks, (3) had a group of participants whose mean ages were under 30 years old, (4) employed a prospective controlled design, and (5) used mean and standard deviations to express the outcome variables. Effect size was calculated from each study based on pre- and post-testing value differences in general strength, maximal strength, and functional mobility tasks between control and intervention groups. The effect size was further classified in to one of the following categories: small, moderate, and large effects. Seven studies met inclusion criteria. Analysis indicated large to moderate effects on general strength, moderate to small effects on maximal strength, and small effect on functional mobility tasks by neuromuscular training. Although there were limited studies, the results showed that neuromuscular training could be used as an effective intervention in children and young adults with Down syndrome. Synthesis of seven reviewed studies indicated that neuromuscular training could be beneficial to optimize general and maximal muscular strength development in children and young adults with Down syndrome. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. Inhibition of RNA polymerase II allows controlled mobilisation of retrotransposons for plant breeding.

    PubMed

    Thieme, Michael; Lanciano, Sophie; Balzergue, Sandrine; Daccord, Nicolas; Mirouze, Marie; Bucher, Etienne

    2017-07-07

    Retrotransposons play a central role in plant evolution and could be a powerful endogenous source of genetic and epigenetic variability for crop breeding. To ensure genome integrity several silencing mechanisms have evolved to repress retrotransposon mobility. Even though retrotransposons fully depend on transcriptional activity of the host RNA polymerase II (Pol II) for their mobility, it was so far unclear whether Pol II is directly involved in repressing their activity. Here we show that plants defective in Pol II activity lose DNA methylation at repeat sequences and produce more extrachromosomal retrotransposon DNA upon stress in Arabidopsis and rice. We demonstrate that combined inhibition of both DNA methylation and Pol II activity leads to a strong stress-dependent mobilization of the heat responsive ONSEN retrotransposon in Arabidopsis seedlings. The progenies of these treated plants contain up to 75 new ONSEN insertions in their genome which are stably inherited over three generations of selfing. Repeated application of heat stress in progeny plants containing increased numbers of ONSEN copies does not result in increased activation of this transposon compared to control lines. Progenies with additional ONSEN copies show a broad panel of environment-dependent phenotypic diversity. We demonstrate that Pol II acts at the root of transposon silencing. This is important because it suggests that Pol II can regulate the speed of plant evolution by fine-tuning the amplitude of transposon mobility. Our findings show that it is now possible to study induced transposon bursts in plants and unlock their use to induce epigenetic and genetic diversity for crop breeding.

  16. Hands-free device control using sound picked up in the ear canal

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chhatpar, Siddharth R.; Ngia, Lester; Vlach, Chris; Lin, Dong; Birkhimer, Craig; Juneja, Amit; Pruthi, Tarun; Hoffman, Orin; Lewis, Tristan

    2008-04-01

    Hands-free control of unmanned ground vehicles is essential for soldiers, bomb disposal squads, and first responders. Having their hands free for other equipment and tasks allows them to be safer and more mobile. Currently, the most successful hands-free control devices are speech-command based. However, these devices use external microphones, and in field environments, e.g., war zones and fire sites, their performance suffers because of loud ambient noise: typically above 90dBA. This paper describes the development of technology using the ear as an output source that can provide excellent command recognition accuracy even in noisy environments. Instead of picking up speech radiating from the mouth, this technology detects speech transmitted internally through the ear canal. Discreet tongue movements also create air pressure changes within the ear canal, and can be used for stealth control. A patented earpiece was developed with a microphone pointed into the ear canal that captures these signals generated by tongue movements and speech. The signals are transmitted from the earpiece to an Ultra-Mobile Personal Computer (UMPC) through a wired connection. The UMPC processes the signals and utilizes them for device control. The processing can include command recognition, ambient noise cancellation, acoustic echo cancellation, and speech equalization. Successful control of an iRobot PackBot has been demonstrated with both speech (13 discrete commands) and tongue (5 discrete commands) signals. In preliminary tests, command recognition accuracy was 95% with speech control and 85% with tongue control.

  17. Detection of a Moving Gas Source and Estimation of its Concentration Field with a Sensing Aerial Vehicle Integration of Theoretical Controls and Computational Fluids

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-07-21

    constants. The model (2.42) is popular for simulation of the UAV motion [60], [61], [62] due to the fact that it models the aircraft response to...inputs to the dynamic model (2.42). The concentration sensors onboard the UAV record concentration ( simulated ) data according to its spatial location...vehicle dynamics and guidance, and the onboard sensor modeling . 15. SUBJECT TERMS State estimation; UAVs , mobile sensors; grid adaptationj; plume

  18. Source Localization in a Cognitive Radio Environment Consisting of Frequency and Spatial Mobility

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-12-01

    are designed to track position over time using a wireless RF sensor network, such as Kalman filtering [13]. 74 THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK...Radio,” Proceedings of the IEEE, vol. 97, no. 4, pp. 612–625, Apr. 2009. 80 [12] J. B. Bernthal, T. X. Brown , D. N. Hatfield, D. C. Sicker, P. A... Kalman Filtering in Wireless Sensor Networks,” IEEE Control Systems, vol. 30, no. 2, pp. 66–86, April 2010. [14] J. Nemeroff, L. Garcia, D

  19. Computer Controlled Magnetotransport Setup for the Characterization of Semiconductor Thin Films

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ducoudray, G. O.; Collazo, R.; Martinez, A.

    1997-01-01

    We have considered a computer controlled magnetotransport setup using LabWindows environment. It allows for measurements of resistivity, Hall resistance, carrier concentration and charge mobility in semiconductor thin films using a van der Pauw configuration. The setup features an electromagnet (B = 0.7 Tesla) a 80486-DX 33 computer with a National Instrument AT-MIO 16 AD/DA and a GPIB interface board. A Keithely 224 current source and a Keithley 196 digital voltmeter were also used in the setup. Plans for the addition of capabilities to allow for magnetic field sweeping and the performance of measurements as a function of temperature will be presented.

  20. Laser-stimulated desorption of organic molecules from surfaces, as a method of increasing the efficiency of ion mobility spectrometry analysis.

    PubMed

    Akmalov, Artem E; Chistyakov, Alexander A; Kotkovskii, Gennadii E

    2017-08-01

    Application of laser-induced desorption was investigated as a method of increasing the efficiency of gas phase analyzers on principles of field asymmetric ion mobility spectrometry. Mass spectrometric data of investigations of laser desorption of pentaerythritoltetranitrate molecules and cyclotetramethylenetetranitramine molecules from quartz substrate under vacuum were obtained. Laser sources a Nd 3+ :YAG with nanosecond pulse duration (λ = 532 nm) and a continuous wave diode laser (λ = 440 nm) were used. It was shown that both laser sources have different desorption abilities. This is expressed in various time of appearance of desorbed products that is caused by different heating mechanisms of surface layer. The desorbed quantity under action of both laser sources exceeds the detection threshold for all modern gas phase analyzers. It should be noted that despite the presence of surface dissociation of explosives under laser radiation, the quantity of nondissociated molecules is large enough for detection by ion mobility and field asymmetric ion mobility spectrometers. The optimal parameters of laser radiation for effective removal (evaporation) molecules of low-volatile compounds from surfaces are defined. The conclusion about preferable use of a Nd 3+ :YAG laser for increasing the detection ability of detectors based on ion mobility spectrometry was made.

  1. CONCEPTUAL DESIGN STUDY OF A MOBILE GAMMA IRRADIATOR FOR FRUIT PRODUCE

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    None

    1962-05-31

    Engineering Drawings report available as CAPE-944. A conceptual design study was made of a mobile irradiator for radiopasteurization of strawberries, grapes, peaches, tomatoes, and lemons. Minimum radiation dose specification for the fruit ranged from 100,000 to 200,000 rads with maximum to minimum dose ratio in the range of 1.5 to 3. Minimum allowable production rates were in the range of 500 to 1000 lb of fruit/hr. The irradiator was required to be mobile, preferably on one truck capable of being put in operation one day after arrival at the site. Preliminary studies compared five types of irradiators, consisting of amore » single source slab, two package pass design; a double slab, single pass design; a single slab, four pass design; a line source rotary design; and a movable source, movable package design. It was concluded that a Co/sup 60/ irradiator can be built to meet the general requirements for radiopasteurization of fruit. The irradiator can be made mobile and can be mounted on a single trailer. The combined weight of the mobile unit would be 70 to 85 tons depending on the type of irradiator. This unit would require a special license from the State Highway Department. (C.H.)« less

  2. A Simple Analytical Model for Predicting the Detectable Ion Current in Ion Mobility Spectrometry Using Corona Discharge Ionization Sources

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kirk, Ansgar Thomas; Kobelt, Tim; Spehlbrink, Hauke; Zimmermann, Stefan

    2018-05-01

    Corona discharge ionization sources are often used in ion mobility spectrometers (IMS) when a non-radioactive ion source with high ion currents is required. Typically, the corona discharge is followed by a reaction region where analyte ions are formed from the reactant ions. In this work, we present a simple yet sufficiently accurate model for predicting the ion current available at the end of this reaction region when operating at reduced pressure as in High Kinetic Energy Ion Mobility Spectrometers (HiKE-IMS) or most IMS-MS instruments. It yields excellent qualitative agreement with measurement results and is even able to calculate the ion current within an error of 15%. Additional interesting findings of this model are the ion current at the end of the reaction region being independent from the ion current generated by the corona discharge and the ion current in High Kinetic Energy Ion Mobility Spectrometers (HiKE-IMS) growing quadratically when scaling down the length of the reaction region. [Figure not available: see fulltext.

  3. A Simple Analytical Model for Predicting the Detectable Ion Current in Ion Mobility Spectrometry Using Corona Discharge Ionization Sources.

    PubMed

    Kirk, Ansgar Thomas; Kobelt, Tim; Spehlbrink, Hauke; Zimmermann, Stefan

    2018-05-08

    Corona discharge ionization sources are often used in ion mobility spectrometers (IMS) when a non-radioactive ion source with high ion currents is required. Typically, the corona discharge is followed by a reaction region where analyte ions are formed from the reactant ions. In this work, we present a simple yet sufficiently accurate model for predicting the ion current available at the end of this reaction region when operating at reduced pressure as in High Kinetic Energy Ion Mobility Spectrometers (HiKE-IMS) or most IMS-MS instruments. It yields excellent qualitative agreement with measurement results and is even able to calculate the ion current within an error of 15%. Additional interesting findings of this model are the ion current at the end of the reaction region being independent from the ion current generated by the corona discharge and the ion current in High Kinetic Energy Ion Mobility Spectrometers (HiKE-IMS) growing quadratically when scaling down the length of the reaction region. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  4. Investigations of temporal and spatial distribution of precursors SO2 and NO2 vertical columns in the North China Plain using mobile DOAS

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wu, Fengcheng; Xie, Pinhua; Li, Ang; Mou, Fusheng; Chen, Hao; Zhu, Yi; Zhu, Tong; Liu, Jianguo; Liu, Wenqing

    2018-02-01

    Recently, Chinese cities have suffered severe events of haze air pollution, particularly in the North China Plain (NCP). Investigating the temporal and spatial distribution of pollutants, emissions, and pollution transport is necessary to better understand the effect of various sources on air quality. We report on mobile differential optical absorption spectroscopy (mobile DOAS) observations of precursors SO2 and NO2 vertical columns in the NCP in the summer of 2013 (from 11 June to 7 July) in this study. The different temporal and spatial distributions of SO2 and NO2 vertical column density (VCD) over this area are characterized under various wind fields. The results show that transport from the southern NCP strongly affects air quality in Beijing, and the transport route, particularly SO2 transport on the route of Shijiazhuang-Baoding-Beijing, is identified. In addition, the major contributors to SO2 along the route of Shijiazhuang-Baoding-Beijing are elevated sources compared to low area sources for the route of Dezhou-Cangzhou-Tianjin-Beijing; this is found using the interrelated analysis between in situ and mobile DOAS observations during the measurement periods. Furthermore, the discussions on hot spots near the city of JiNan show that average observed width of polluted air mass is 11.83 and 17.23 km associated with air mass diffusion, which is approximately 60 km away from emission sources based on geometrical estimation. Finally, a reasonable agreement exists between the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) and mobile DOAS observations, with a correlation coefficient (R2) of 0.65 for NO2 VCDs. Both datasets also have a similar spatial pattern. The fitted slope of 0.55 is significantly less than unity, which can reflect the contamination of local sources, and OMI observations are needed to improve the sensitivities to the near-surface emission sources through improvements of the retrieval algorithm or the resolution of satellites.

  5. Mamdani Fuzzy System for Indoor Autonomous Mobile Robot

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Khan, M. K. A. Ahamed; Rashid, Razif; Elamvazuthi, I.

    2011-06-01

    Several control algorithms for autonomous mobile robot navigation have been proposed in the literature. Recently, the employment of non-analytical methods of computing such as fuzzy logic, evolutionary computation, and neural networks has demonstrated the utility and potential of these paradigms for intelligent control of mobile robot navigation. In this paper, Mamdani fuzzy system for an autonomous mobile robot is developed. The paper begins with the discussion on the conventional controller and then followed by the description of fuzzy logic controller in detail.

  6. Trajectory tracking control for a nonholonomic mobile robot under ROS

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lakhdar Besseghieur, Khadir; Trębiński, Radosław; Kaczmarek, Wojciech; Panasiuk, Jarosław

    2018-05-01

    In this paper, the implementation of the trajectory tracking control strategy on a ROS-based mobile robot is considered. Our test-bench is the nonholonomic mobile robot ‘TURTLEBOT’. ROS facilitates considerably setting-up a suitable environment to test the designed controller. Our aim is to develop a framework using ROS concepts so that a trajectory tracking controller can be implemented on any ROS-enabled mobile robot. Practical experiments with ‘TURTLEBOT’ are conducted to assess the framework reliability.

  7. Enhanced direct ambient analysis by differential mobility-filtered desorption electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Galhena, Asiri S; Harris, Glenn A; Kwasnik, Mark; Fernández, Facundo M

    2010-11-15

    Desorption electrospray ionization (DESI) is rapidly becoming established as one of the most powerful ionization techniques allowing direct surface analysis by mass spectrometry (MS) in the ambient environment. DESI provides a significant number of unique analytical capabilities for a broad range of applications, both quantitative and qualitative in nature including biological tissue imaging, pharmaceutical quality control, in vivo analysis, proteomics, metabolomics, forensics, and explosives detection. Despite its growing adoption as a powerful high throughput analysis tool, DESI-MS analysis at trace levels often suffers from background chemical interferences generated during the electrospray ionization processes. In order to improve sensitivity and selectivity, a differential mobility (DM) ion separation cell was successfully interfaced to a custom-built DESI ion source. This new hybrid platform can be operated in two modes: the "DM-off" mode for standard DESI analysis and "DM-on mode" where DESI-generated ions are detected after discrimination by the differential mobility cell. The performance of the DESI-DM-MS platform was tested with several samples typically amenable to DESI analysis, including counterfeit pharmaceuticals and binary mixtures of isobaric chemicals of importance in the pharmaceutical and food industries. In the DM-on mode, DESI-MS signal-to-noise ratios were improved by 70-190% when compared to the DM-off mode. Also, the addition of the DM cell enabled selective in-source ion activation of specific DESI-generated precursor ions, providing tandem MS-like spectra in a single stage mass spectrometer.

  8. Personal digital assistant-based drug information sources: potential to improve medication safety.

    PubMed

    Galt, Kimberly A; Rule, Ann M; Houghton, Bruce; Young, Daniel O; Remington, Gina

    2005-04-01

    This study compared the potential for personal digital assistant (PDA)-based drug information sources to minimize potential medication errors dependent on accurate and complete drug information at the point of care. A quality and safety framework for drug information resources was developed to evaluate 11 PDA-based drug information sources. Three drug information sources met the criteria of the framework: Eprocrates Rx Pro, Lexi-Drugs, and mobileMICROMEDEX. Medication error types related to drug information at the point of care were then determined. Forty-seven questions were developed to test the potential of the sources to prevent these error types. Pharmacists and physician experts from Creighton University created these questions based on the most common types of questions asked by primary care providers. Three physicians evaluated the drug information sources, rating the source for each question: 1=no information available, 2=some information available, or 3 = adequate amount of information available. The mean ratings for the drug information sources were: 2.0 (Eprocrates Rx Pro), 2.5 (Lexi-Drugs), and 2.03 (mobileMICROMEDEX). Lexi-Drugs was significantly better (mobileMICROMEDEX t test; P=0.05; Eprocrates Rx Pro t test; P=0.01). Lexi-Drugs was found to be the most specific and complete PDA resource available to optimize medication safety by reducing potential errors associated with drug information. No resource was sufficient to address the patient safety information needs for all cases.

  9. Urban search mobile platform modeling in hindered access conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Barankova, I. I.; Mikhailova, U. V.; Kalugina, O. B.; Barankov, V. V.

    2018-05-01

    The article explores the control system simulation and the design of the experimental model of the rescue robot mobile platform. The functional interface, a structural functional diagram of the mobile platform control unit, and a functional control scheme for the mobile platform of secure robot were modeled. The task of design a mobile platform for urban searching in hindered access conditions is realized through the use of a mechanical basis with a chassis and crawler drive, a warning device, human heat sensors and a microcontroller based on Arduino platforms.

  10. Integrated Dynamic Transit Operations (IDTO) concept of operations.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2012-05-01

    In support of USDOTs Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Mobility Program, the Dynamic Mobility Applications (DMA) program seeks to create applications that fully leverage frequently collected and rapidly disseminated multi-source data gat...

  11. A Unified Approach to Motion Control of Motion Robots

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Seraji, H.

    1994-01-01

    This paper presents a simple on-line approach for motion control of mobile robots made up of a manipulator arm mounted on a mobile base. The proposed approach is equally applicable to nonholonomic mobile robots, such as rover-mounted manipulators and to holonomic mobile robots such as tracked robots or compound manipulators. The computational efficiency of the proposed control scheme makes it particularly suitable for real-time implementation.

  12. Certainty grids for mobile robots

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Moravec, H. P.

    1987-01-01

    A numerical representation of uncertain and incomplete sensor knowledge called Certainty Grids has been used successfully in several mobile robot control programs, and has proven itself to be a powerful and efficient unifying solution for sensor fusion, motion planning, landmark identification, and many other central problems. Researchers propose to build a software framework running on processors onboard the new Uranus mobile robot that will maintain a probabilistic, geometric map of the robot's surroundings as it moves. The certainty grid representation will allow this map to be incrementally updated in a uniform way from various sources including sonar, stereo vision, proximity and contact sensors. The approach can correctly model the fuzziness of each reading, while at the same time combining multiple measurements to produce sharper map features, and it can deal correctly with uncertainties in the robot's motion. The map will be used by planning programs to choose clear paths, identify locations (by correlating maps), identify well-known and insufficiently sensed terrain, and perhaps identify objects by shape. The certainty grid representation can be extended in the same dimension and used to detect and track moving objects.

  13. Electron mobility of self-assembled and dislocation free InN nanorods grown on GaN nano wall network template

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Tangi, Malleswararao; De, Arpan; Ghatak, Jay

    2016-05-28

    A kinetically controlled two-step growth process for the formation of an array of dislocation free high mobility InN nanorods (NRs) on GaN nanowall network (NWN) by Molecular Beam Epitaxy is demonstrated here. The epitaxial GaN NWN is formed on c-sapphire under nitrogen rich conditions, and then changing the source from Ga to In at appropriate substrate temperature yields the nucleation of a self assembled spontaneous m-plane side faceted-InN NR. By HRTEM, the NRs are shown to be dislocation-free and have a low band gap value of 0.65 eV. Hall measurements are carried out on a single InN NR along with J-Vmore » measurements that yield mobility values as high as ≈4453 cm{sup 2}/V s and the carrier concentration of ≈1.1 × 10{sup 17} cm{sup −3}, which are unprecedented in the literature for comparable InN NR diameters.« less

  14. Addition of ferrocene controls polymorphism and enhances charge mobilities in poly(3-hexylthiophene) thin-film transistors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, Brandon; Clark, Michael; Grieco, Christopher; Larsen, Alec; Asbury, John; Gomez, Enrique

    2015-03-01

    Crystalline organic molecules often exhibit the ability to form multiple crystal structures depending on the processing conditions. Exploiting this polymorphism to optimize molecular orbital overlap between adjacent molecules within the unit lattice of conjugated polymers is an approach to enhance charge transport within the material. We have demonstrated the formation of tighter π- π stacking poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) polymorphs in films spin coated from ferrocene-containing solutions using grazing incident X-ray diffraction. As a result, we found that the addition of ferrocene to casting solutions yields thin-film transistors which exhibit significantly higher source-drain current and charge mobilities than neat polymer devices. Insights gleaned from ferrocene/poly(3-hexylthiophene) mixtures can serve as a template for selection and optimization of next generation small molecule/polymer systems possessing greater baseline charge mobilities. Ultimately, the development of such techniques to enhance the characteristics of organic transistors without imparting high costs or loss of advantageous properties will be a critical factor determining the future of organic components within the electronics market.

  15. Remote quality assurance in cervical cancer screening in low resource settings using a handheld smartphone-based colposcope

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Millien, Christophe; Jean-Baptiste, Meredith C.; Manite, Garçon; Levitz, David

    2015-03-01

    Cervical cancer is a leading cause of cancer death for women all across the developing world, where much of the infrastructure required for effective cervical cancer screening is unavailable because of limited resources. One of the most common method to screen for cervical cancer is by visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA), in which the cervix is imaged with the naked eye. Given inherent challenges in analysis and documentation when characterizing cervical tissue with the naked eye, an optical solution is needed. To address this challenge, a smartphone was modified and transformed into a mobile colposcope (a device used to image the cervix from outside) by adding a custom-fit light source and optics. The mobile smartphone colposcope was designed such that it augments VIA and easily integrates within the standard of care. The mobile smartphone colposcope is controlled by an app, which, stores cervical images captured on the mobile smartphone colposcope on a portal, enabling remote doctors to evaluate images and the treatment chosen by the health worker. Images from patients undergoing cervical cancer screening by a nurse using VIA in the University Hospital of Mirebalais (HUM) GYN outpatient clinic in Haiti were captured on the mobile smartphone colposcope. These images were later analyzed by an experienced OB/GYN at HUM, who determined whether or not the patient should be treated with cryoablation; more complicated cases were also shared with a consulting doctor in the US. The opinions of the experienced OB/GYN doctors at HUM, as well as the experts from the US, were used to educate nurses and midwives performing mobile colposcopy. These results suggest that remote assessment offered by mobile colposcopy can improve training of health workers performing VIA, and ultimately affect the therapy administered to patients.

  16. Development of a mini-mobile digital radiography system by using wireless smart devices.

    PubMed

    Jeong, Chang-Won; Joo, Su-Chong; Ryu, Jong-Hyun; Lee, Jinseok; Kim, Kyong-Woo; Yoon, Kwon-Ha

    2014-08-01

    The current technologies that trend in digital radiology (DR) are toward systems using portable smart mobile as patient-centered care. We aimed to develop a mini-mobile DR system by using smart devices for wireless connection into medical information systems. We developed a mini-mobile DR system consisting of an X-ray source and a Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) sensor based on a flat panel detector for small-field diagnostics in patients. It is used instead of the systems that are difficult to perform with a fixed traditional device. We also designed a method for embedded systems in the development of portable DR systems. The external interface used the fast and stable IEEE 802.11n wireless protocol, and we adapted the device for connections with Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) and smart devices. The smart device could display images on an external monitor other than the monitor in the DR system. The communication modules, main control board, and external interface supporting smart devices were implemented. Further, a smart viewer based on the external interface was developed to display image files on various smart devices. In addition, the advantage of operators is to reduce radiation dose when using remote smart devices. It is integrated with smart devices that can provide X-ray imaging services anywhere. With this technology, it can permit image observation on a smart device from a remote location by connecting to the external interface. We evaluated the response time of the mini-mobile DR system to compare to mobile PACS. The experimental results show that our system outperforms conventional mobile PACS in this regard.

  17. Measuring and modelling seasonal patterns of carbohydrate storage and mobilization in the trunks and root crowns of peach trees.

    PubMed

    Da Silva, David; Qin, Liangchun; DeBuse, Carolyn; DeJong, Theodore M

    2014-09-01

    Developing a conceptual and functional framework for simulating annual long-term carbohydrate storage and mobilization in trees has been a weak point for virtually all tree models. This paper provides a novel approach for solving this problem using empirical field data and details of structural components of simulated trees to estimate the total carbohydrate stored over a dormant season and available for mobilization during spring budbreak. The seasonal patterns of mobilization and storage of non-structural carbohydrates in bark and wood of the scion and rootstock crowns of the trunks of peach (Prunus persica) trees were analysed subsequent to treatments designed to maximize differences in source-sink behaviour during the growing season. Mature peach trees received one of three treatments (defruited and no pruning, severe pruning to 1·0 m, and unthinned with no pruning) in late winter, just prior to budbreak. Selected trees of each treatment were harvested at four times (March, June, August and November) and slices of trunk and root crown tissue above and below the graft union were removed for carbohydrate analysis. Inner bark and xylem tissues from the first to fifth rings were separated and analysed for non-structural carbohydrates. Data from these experiments were then used to estimate the amount of non-structural carbohydrates available for mobilization and to parameterize a carbohydrate storage sub-model in the functional-structural L-PEACH model. The mass fraction of carbohydrates in all sample tissues decreased from March to June, but the decrease was greatest in the severely pruned and unthinned treatments. November carbohydrate mass fractions in all tissues recovered to values similar to those in the previous March, except in the older xylem rings of the severely pruned and unthinned treatment. Carbohydrate storage sink capacity in trunks was empirically estimated from the mean maximum measured trunk non-structural carbohydrate mass fractions. The carbohydrate storage source available for mobilization was estimated from these maximum mass fractions and the early summer minimum mass fractions remaining in these tissues in the severe treatments that maximized mobilization of stored carbohydrates. The L-PEACH sink-source carbohydrate distribution framework was then used along with simulated tree structure to successfully simulate annual carbohydrate storage sink and source behaviour over years. The sink-source concept of carbohydrate distribution within a tree was extended to include winter carbohydrate storage and spring mobilization by considering the storage sink and source as a function of the collective capacity of active xylem and phloem tissue of the tree, and its annual behaviour was effectively simulated using the L-PEACH functional-structural plant model.

  18. Creativity and Mobile Language Learning Using LingoBee

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Petersen, Sobah Abbas; Procter-Legg, Emma; Cacchione, Annamaria

    2013-01-01

    In this paper, the authors explore the ideas of mobility and creativity through the use of LingoBee, a mobile app for situated language learning. LingoBee is based on ideas from crowd-sourcing and social networking to support language learners. Learners are able to create their own content and share it with other learners through a repository. The…

  19. Potential negative consequences of adding phosphorus-based fertilizers to immobilize lead in soil

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kilgour, Douglas W.; Moseley, Rebecca A.; Savage, Kaye S

    2008-09-01

    A study of the potential negative consequences of adding phosphate (P)-based fertilizers as amendments to immobilize lead (Pb) in contaminated soils was conducted. Lead-contaminated firing range soils also contained elevated concentrations of antimony (Sb), a common Pb hardening agent, and some arsenic (As) of unknown (possibly background) origin. After amending the soils with triple superphosphate, a relatively soluble P source, column leaching experiments revealed elevated concentrations of Sb, As, and Pb in the leachate, reflecting an initial spike in soluble Pb and a particularly dramatic increase in Sb and As mobility. Minimal As, Sb, and Pb leaching was observed duringmore » column tests performed on non-amended control soils. In vitro extractions tests were performed to assess changes in Pb, As, and Sb bioaccessibility on P amendment. Lead bioaccessibility was systematically lowered with increasing P dosage, but there was much less of an effect on As and Sb bioaccessibility than on mobility. Our results indicate that although P amendments may aid in lowering the bioaccessibility of soil-bound Pb, it may also produce an initial increase in Pb mobility and a significant release of Sb and As from the soil, dramatically increasing their mobility and to a lesser extent their bioavailability.« less

  20. Ion Mobility Spectrometry (IMS) and Mass Spectrometry

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Shvartsburg, Alexandre A.

    2010-04-20

    In a media of finite viscosity, the Coulomb force of external electric field moves ions with some terminal speed. This dynamics is controlled by “mobility” - a property of the interaction potential between ions and media molecules. This fact has been used to separate and characterize gas-phase ions in various modes of ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) developed since 1970. Commercial IMS devices were introduced in 1980-s for field detection of volatile traces such as explosives and chemical warfare agents. Coupling to soft-ionization sources, mass spectrometry (MS), and chromatographic methods in 1990-s had allowed IMS to handle complex samples, enabling newmore » applications in biological and environmental analyses, nanoscience, and other areas. Since 2003, the introduction of commercial systems by major instrument vendors started bringing the IMS/MS capability to broad user community. The other major development of last decade has been the differential IMS or “field asymmetric waveform IMS” (FAIMS) that employs asymmetric time-dependent electric field to sort ions not by mobility itself, but by the difference between its values in strong and weak electric fields. Coupling of FAIMS to conventional IMS and stacking of conventional IMS stages have enabled two-dimensional separations that dramatically expand the power of ion mobility methods.« less

  1. Residential Mobility, Inhibitory Control, and Academic Achievement in Preschool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schmitt, Sara A.; Finders, Jennifer K.; McClelland, Megan M.

    2015-01-01

    The present study investigated the direct effects of residential mobility on children's inhibitory control and academic achievement during the preschool year. It also explored fall inhibitory control and academic skills as mediators linking residential mobility and spring achievement. Participants included 359 preschool children (49% female)…

  2. Residential Mobility, Inhibitory Control, and Academic Achievement in Preschool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schmitt, Sara A.; Finders, Jennifer K.; McClelland, Megan M.

    2015-01-01

    Research Findings: The present study investigated the direct effects of residential mobility on children's inhibitory control and academic achievement during the preschool year. It also explored fall inhibitory control and academic skills as mediators linking residential mobility and spring achievement. Participants included 359 preschool children…

  3. Use of Mobile Devices to Access Resources Among Health Professions Students: A Systematic Review.

    PubMed

    Mi, Misa; Wu, Wendy; Qiu, Maylene; Zhang, Yingting; Wu, Lin; Li, Jie

    2016-01-01

    This systematic review examines types of mobile devices used by health professions students, kinds of resources and tools accessed via mobile devices, and reasons for using the devices to access the resources and tools. The review included 20 studies selected from articles published in English between January 2010 and April 2015, retrieved from PubMed and other sources. Data extracted included participants, study designs, mobile devices used, mobile resources/apps accessed, outcome measures, and advantages of and barriers to using mobile devices. The review indicates significant variability across the studies in terms of research methods, types of mobile programs implemented, resources accessed, and outcomes. There were beneficial effects of using mobile devices to access resources as well as conspicuous challenges or barriers in using mobile devices.

  4. Multitasking vs. multiplexing: Toward a normative account of limitations in the simultaneous execution of control-demanding behaviors

    PubMed Central

    Feng, S. F.; Schwemmer, M.; Gershman, S. J.; Cohen, J. D.

    2014-01-01

    Why is it that behaviors that rely on control, so striking in their diversity and flexibility, are also subject to such striking limitations? Typically, people cannot engage in more than a few — and usually only a single — control-demanding task at a time. This limitation was a defining element in the earliest conceptualizations of controlled processing, it remains one of the most widely accepted axioms of cognitive psychology, and is even the basis for some laws (e.g., against the use of mobile devices while driving). Remarkably, however, the source of this limitation is still not understood. Here, we examine one potential source of this limitation, in terms of a tradeoff between the flexibility and efficiency of representation (“multiplexing”) and the simultaneous engagement of different processing pathways (“multitasking”). We show that even a modest amount of multiplexing rapidly introduces cross-talk among processing pathways, thereby constraining the number that can be productively engaged at once. We propose that, given the large number of advantages of efficient coding, the human brain has favored this over the capacity for multitasking of control-demanding processes. PMID:24481850

  5. Multitasking versus multiplexing: Toward a normative account of limitations in the simultaneous execution of control-demanding behaviors.

    PubMed

    Feng, S F; Schwemmer, M; Gershman, S J; Cohen, J D

    2014-03-01

    Why is it that behaviors that rely on control, so striking in their diversity and flexibility, are also subject to such striking limitations? Typically, people cannot engage in more than a few-and usually only a single-control-demanding task at a time. This limitation was a defining element in the earliest conceptualizations of controlled processing; it remains one of the most widely accepted axioms of cognitive psychology, and is even the basis for some laws (e.g., against the use of mobile devices while driving). Remarkably, however, the source of this limitation is still not understood. Here, we examine one potential source of this limitation, in terms of a trade-off between the flexibility and efficiency of representation ("multiplexing") and the simultaneous engagement of different processing pathways ("multitasking"). We show that even a modest amount of multiplexing rapidly introduces cross-talk among processing pathways, thereby constraining the number that can be productively engaged at once. We propose that, given the large number of advantages of efficient coding, the human brain has favored this over the capacity for multitasking of control-demanding processes.

  6. Development, Technical, and User Evaluation of a Web Mobile Application for Self-Control of Diabetes.

    PubMed

    Garcia-Zapirain, Begoña; de la Torre Díez, Isabel; Sainz de Abajo, Beatriz; López-Coronado, Miguel

    2016-09-01

    The main objective of this research was to develop and evaluate a Web-based mobile application (app) known as "Diario Diabetes" on both a technical and user level, by means of which individuals with diabetes may monitor their illness easily at any time and in any place using any device that has Internet access. The technologies used to develop the app were HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, and MySQL, all of which are an open source. Once the app was developed, it was evaluated on a technical level (by measuring loading times) and on a user level, through a survey. Different loading times for the application were measured, with it being noted that under no circumstances does this exceed 2 s. Usability was evaluated by 150 users who initially used the application. A majority (71%) of users used a PC to access the app, 83% considered the app's design to be attractive, 67% considered the tasks to be very useful, and 67% found it very easy to use. Although applications exist for controlling diabetes both at mobile virtual shops or on a research level, our app may help to improve the administration of these types of patients and they are the ones who will ultimately opt for one or the other. According to the results obtained, we can state that all users would recommend the app's use to other users.

  7. A Mobile Sensing Approach for Regional Surveillance of ...

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This paper discusses plan-path and automated concepts for inspection to localize individual leaks and to quantify their source rates over regions with active oil and gas well pads and pipelines. This is a peer reviewed journal article submission that advances GMAP OTM 33 mobile measurement and fixed place fence line NGAM topics. This paper is focused on methods development and does not contain new or unpublished source emissions results regarding oil and gas.

  8. Commissioning and field tests of a van-mounted system for the detection of radioactive sources and Special Nuclear Material

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cester, D.; Lunardon, M.; Stevanato, L.

    2015-07-01

    MODES SNM project aimed to carry out technical research in order to develop a prototype for a mobile, modular detection system for radioactive sources and Special Nuclear Materials (SNM). Its main goal was to deliver a tested prototype of a modular mobile system capable of passively detecting weak or shielded radioactive sources with accuracy higher than that of currently available systems. By the end of the project all the objectives have been successfully achieved. Results from the laboratory commissioning and the field tests will be presented. (authors)

  9. Test readiness assessment summary for Integrated Dynamic Transit Operations (IDTO).

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2012-10-01

    In support of USDOTs Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Mobility Program, the Dynamic Mobility Applications (DMA) program seeks to create applications that fully leverage frequently collected and rapidly disseminated multi-source data gat...

  10. A Mobile Sensing Approach for Regional Surveillance of Fugitive Methane Emissions in Oil and Gas Production.

    PubMed

    Albertson, John D; Harvey, Tierney; Foderaro, Greg; Zhu, Pingping; Zhou, Xiaochi; Ferrari, Silvia; Amin, M Shahrooz; Modrak, Mark; Brantley, Halley; Thoma, Eben D

    2016-03-01

    This paper addresses the need for surveillance of fugitive methane emissions over broad geographical regions. Most existing techniques suffer from being either extensive (but qualitative) or quantitative (but intensive with poor scalability). A total of two novel advancements are made here. First, a recursive Bayesian method is presented for probabilistically characterizing fugitive point-sources from mobile sensor data. This approach is made possible by a new cross-plume integrated dispersion formulation that overcomes much of the need for time-averaging concentration data. The method is tested here against a limited data set of controlled methane release and shown to perform well. We then present an information-theoretic approach to plan the paths of the sensor-equipped vehicle, where the path is chosen so as to maximize expected reduction in integrated target source rate uncertainty in the region, subject to given starting and ending positions and prevailing meteorological conditions. The information-driven sensor path planning algorithm is tested and shown to provide robust results across a wide range of conditions. An overall system concept is presented for optionally piggybacking of these techniques onto normal industry maintenance operations using sensor-equipped work trucks.

  11. NASA's Aeronautics Vision

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tenney, Darrel R.

    2004-01-01

    Six long-term technology focus areas are: 1. Environmentally Friendly, Clean Burning Engines. Focus: Develop innovative technologies to enable intelligent turbine engines that significantly reduce harmful emissions while maintaining high performance and increasing reliability. 2. New Aircraft Energy Sources and Management. Focus: Discover new energy sources and intelligent management techniques directed towards zero emissions and enable new vehicle concepts for public mobility and new science missions. 3. Quiet Aircraft for Community Friendly Service. Focus: Develop and integrate noise reduction technology to enable unrestricted air transportation service to all communities. 4. Aerodynamic Performance for Fuel Efficiency. Focus: Improve aerodynamic efficiency,structures and materials technologies, and design tools and methodologies to reduce fuel burn and minimize environmental impact and enable new vehicle concepts and capabilities for public mobility and new science missions. 5. Aircraft Weight Reduction and Community Access. Focus: Develop ultralight smart materials and structures, aerodynamic concepts, and lightweight subsystems to increase vehicle efficiency, leading to high altitude long endurance vehicles, planetary aircraft, advanced vertical and short takeoff and landing vehicles and beyond. 6. Smart Aircraft and Autonomous Control. Focus: Enable aircraft to fly with reduced or no human intervention, to optimize flight over multiple regimes, and to provide maintenance on demand towards the goal of a feeling, seeing, sensing, sentient air vehicle.

  12. Geochemical and mineralogical controls on metal(loid) mobility in the oxide zone of the Prairie Creek Deposit, NWT

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Stavinga, Drew; Jamieson, Heather; Layton-Matthews, Daniel

    2017-02-01

    Prairie Creek is an unmined high grade Zn-Pb-Ag deposit in the southern Mackenzie Mountains of the Northwest Territories, located in a 320 km2 enclave surrounded by the Nahanni National Park reserve. The upper portion of the quartz-carbonate-sulphide vein mineralization has undergone extensive oxidation, forming high grade zones, rich in smithsonite (ZnCO3) and cerussite (PbCO3). This weathered zone represents a significant resource and a potential component of mine waste material. This study is focused on characterizing the geochemical and mineralogical controls on metal(loid) mobility under mine waste conditions, with particular attention to the metal carbonates as a potential source of tracemore » elements to the environment. Analyses were conducted using a combination of microanalytical techniques (electron microprobe, scanning electron microscopy with automated mineralogy, laser-ablation inductively-coupled mass spectrometry, and synchrotron-based element mapping, micro-X-ray diffraction and micro-X-ray absorbance). The elements of interest included Zn, Pb, Ag, As, Cd, Cu, Hg, Sb and Se.« less

  13. A Low Cost Mobile Robot Based on Proportional Integral Derivative (PID) Control System and Odometer for Education

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Haq, R.; Prayitno, H.; Dzulkiflih; Sucahyo, I.; Rahmawati, E.

    2018-03-01

    In this article, the development of a low cost mobile robot based on PID controller and odometer for education is presented. PID controller and odometer is applied for controlling mobile robot position. Two-dimensional position vector in cartesian coordinate system have been inserted to robot controller as an initial and final position. Mobile robot has been made based on differential drive and sensor magnetic rotary encoder which measured robot position from a number of wheel rotation. Odometry methode use data from actuator movements for predicting change of position over time. The mobile robot is examined to get final position with three different heading angle 30°, 45° and 60° by applying various value of KP, KD and KI constant.

  14. Quantifying the impact of selection bias caused by nonparticipation in a case-control study of mobile phone use.

    PubMed

    Vrijheid, Martine; Richardson, Lesley; Armstrong, Bruce K; Auvinen, Anssi; Berg, Gabriele; Carroll, Matthew; Chetrit, Angela; Deltour, Isabelle; Feychting, Maria; Giles, Graham G; Hours, Martine; Iavarone, Ivano; Lagorio, Susanna; Lönn, Stefan; McBride, Mary; Parent, Marie-Elise; Sadetzki, Siegal; Salminen, Tina; Sanchez, Marie; Schlehofer, Birgitte; Schüz, Joachim; Siemiatycki, Jack; Tynes, Tore; Woodward, Alistair; Yamaguchi, Naohito; Cardis, Elisabeth

    2009-01-01

    To quantitatively assess the impact of selection bias caused by nonparticipation in a multinational case-control study of mobile phone use and brain tumor. Non-response questionnaires (NRQ) were completed by a sub-set of nonparticipants. Selection bias factors were calculated based on the prevalence of mobile phone use reported by nonparticipants with NRQ data, and on scenarios of hypothetical exposure prevalence for other nonparticipants. Regular mobile phone use was reported less frequently by controls and cases who completed the NRQ (controls, 56%; cases, 50%) than by those who completed the full interview (controls, 69%; cases, 66%). This relationship was consistent across study centers, sex, and age groups. Lower education and more recent start of mobile phone use were associated with refusal to participate. Bias factors varied between 0.87 and 0.92 in the most plausible scenarios. Refusal to participate in brain tumor case-control studies seems to be related to less prevalent use of mobile phones, and this could result in a downward bias of around 10% in odds ratios for regular mobile phone use. The use of simple selection bias estimation methods in case-control studies can give important insights into the extent of any bias, even when nonparticipant information is incomplete.

  15. Solid state cloaking for electrical charge carrier mobility control

    DOEpatents

    Zebarjadi, Mona; Liao, Bolin; Esfarjani, Keivan; Chen, Gang

    2015-07-07

    An electrical mobility-controlled material includes a solid state host material having a controllable Fermi energy level and electrical charge carriers with a charge carrier mobility. At least one Fermi level energy at which a peak in charge carrier mobility is to occur is prespecified for the host material. A plurality of particles are distributed in the host material, with at least one particle disposed with an effective mass and a radius that minimize scattering of the electrical charge carriers for the at least one prespecified Fermi level energy of peak charge carrier mobility. The minimized scattering of electrical charge carriers produces the peak charge carrier mobility only at the at least one prespecified Fermi level energy, set by the particle effective mass and radius, the charge carrier mobility being less than the peak charge carrier mobility at Fermi level energies other than the at least one prespecified Fermi level energy.

  16. Big five personality and residential mobility: a state-level analysis of the USA.

    PubMed

    McCann, Stewart J H

    2015-01-01

    Relations of the state-aggregated Big Five personality scores of 619,397 residents to four 2005 state-level residential mobility criteria were examined with the 50 states as cases. Multiple regression controlling for five state demographic variables showed (a) higher state neuroticism was strongly associated with lower mobility, lower same-county mobility, and lower between-county mobility; (b) higher state extraversion was associated with lower mobility and lower same-county mobility, but only with neuroticism and/or conscientiousness controlled; and (c) conscientiousness was related to same-residence, same-county, and different-county mobility, but only without demographic variables controlled. Discussion is grounded in the dangers of cross-level speculation and the potential of a basic assumption of geographical psychology that an area's aggregate position on a dispositional variable is associated there with behavioral and psychological tendencies related to that variable.

  17. Spatial variability in ecosystem services: simple rules for predator-mediated pest suppression.

    PubMed

    Bianchi, F J J A; Schellhorn, N A; Buckley, Y M; Possingham, H P

    2010-12-01

    Agricultural pest control often relies on the ecosystem services provided by the predators of pests. Appropriate landscape and habitat management for pest control services requires an understanding of insect dispersal abilities and the spatial arrangement of source habitats for pests and their predators. Here we explore how dispersal and habitat configuration determine the locations where management actions are likely to have the biggest impact on natural pest control. The study focuses on the early colonization phase before predator reproduction takes place and when pest populations in crops are still relatively low. We developed a spatially explicit simulation model in which pest populations grow exponentially in pest patches and predators disperse across the landscape from predator patches. We generated 1000 computer-simulated landscapes in which the performance of four typical but different predator groups as biological control agents was evaluated. Predator groups represented trait combinations of poor and good dispersal ability and density-independent and density-dependent aggregation responses toward pests. Case studies from the literature were used to inform the parameterization of predator groups. Landscapes with a small nearest-neighbor distance between pest and predator patches had the lowest mean pest density at the landscape scale for all predator groups, but there can be high variation in pest density between the patches within these landscapes. Mobile and strongly aggregating predators provide the best pest suppression in the majority of landscape types. Ironically, this result is true except in landscapes with small nearest-neighbor distances between pest and predator patches. The pest control potential of mobile predators can best be explained by the mean distance between a pest patch and all predator patches in the landscape, whereas for poorly dispersing predators the distance between a pest patch and the nearest predator patch is the best explanatory variable. In conclusion, the spatial arrangement of source habitats for natural enemies of agricultural pest species can have profound effects on their potential to colonize crops and suppress pest populations.

  18. Mobile Games Individualise and Motivate Rehabilitation in Different User Groups

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koivisto, Antti; Merilampi, Sari; Sirkka, Andrew

    2015-01-01

    Trials on Mobile Games are presenting a huge potential in cognitive, physical and mental rehabilitation. This paper is to discuss user viewpoints of trials with mobile games combining cognitive stimulation and physical exercise in rehabilitation: Game#1 controlled by tilting the mobile phone embedded in a balance board; Game#2 controlled by…

  19. Multi-Source Cooperative Data Collection with a Mobile Sink for the Wireless Sensor Network.

    PubMed

    Han, Changcai; Yang, Jinsheng

    2017-10-30

    The multi-source cooperation integrating distributed low-density parity-check codes is investigated to jointly collect data from multiple sensor nodes to the mobile sink in the wireless sensor network. The one-round and two-round cooperative data collection schemes are proposed according to the moving trajectories of the sink node. Specifically, two sparse cooperation models are firstly formed based on geographical locations of sensor source nodes, the impairment of inter-node wireless channels and moving trajectories of the mobile sink. Then, distributed low-density parity-check codes are devised to match the directed graphs and cooperation matrices related with the cooperation models. In the proposed schemes, each source node has quite low complexity attributed to the sparse cooperation and the distributed processing. Simulation results reveal that the proposed cooperative data collection schemes obtain significant bit error rate performance and the two-round cooperation exhibits better performance compared with the one-round scheme. The performance can be further improved when more source nodes participate in the sparse cooperation. For the two-round data collection schemes, the performance is evaluated for the wireless sensor networks with different moving trajectories and the variant data sizes.

  20. Multi-Source Cooperative Data Collection with a Mobile Sink for the Wireless Sensor Network

    PubMed Central

    Han, Changcai; Yang, Jinsheng

    2017-01-01

    The multi-source cooperation integrating distributed low-density parity-check codes is investigated to jointly collect data from multiple sensor nodes to the mobile sink in the wireless sensor network. The one-round and two-round cooperative data collection schemes are proposed according to the moving trajectories of the sink node. Specifically, two sparse cooperation models are firstly formed based on geographical locations of sensor source nodes, the impairment of inter-node wireless channels and moving trajectories of the mobile sink. Then, distributed low-density parity-check codes are devised to match the directed graphs and cooperation matrices related with the cooperation models. In the proposed schemes, each source node has quite low complexity attributed to the sparse cooperation and the distributed processing. Simulation results reveal that the proposed cooperative data collection schemes obtain significant bit error rate performance and the two-round cooperation exhibits better performance compared with the one-round scheme. The performance can be further improved when more source nodes participate in the sparse cooperation. For the two-round data collection schemes, the performance is evaluated for the wireless sensor networks with different moving trajectories and the variant data sizes. PMID:29084155

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