Motor unit recruitment and firing rate in medial gastrocnemius muscles during external perturbations in standing in humans.

PubMed

Pollock, C L; Ivanova, T D; Hunt, M A; Garland, S J

2014-10-01

There is limited investigation of the interaction between motor unit recruitment and rate coding for modulating force during standing or responding to external perturbations. Fifty-seven motor units were recorded from the medial gastrocnemius muscle with intramuscular electrodes in response to external perturbations in standing. Anteriorly directed perturbations were generated by applying loads in 0.45-kg increments at the pelvis every 25-40 s until 2.25 kg was maintained. Motor unit firing rate was calculated for the initial recruitment load and all subsequent loads during two epochs: 1) dynamic response to perturbation directly following each load drop and 2) maintenance of steady state between perturbations. Joint kinematics and surface electromyography (EMG) from lower extremities and force platform measurements were assessed. Application of the external loads resulted in a significant forward progression of the anterior-posterior center of pressure (AP COP) that was accompanied by modest changes in joint angles (<3°). Surface EMG increased more in medial gastrocnemius than in the other recorded muscles. At initial recruitment, motor unit firing rate immediately after the load drop was significantly lower than during subsequent load drops or during the steady state at the same load. There was a modest increase in motor unit firing rate immediately after the load drop on subsequent load drops associated with regaining balance. There was no effect of maintaining balance with increased load and forward progression of the AP COP on steady-state motor unit firing rate. The medial gastrocnemius utilized primarily motor unit recruitment to achieve the increased levels of activation necessary to maintain standing in the presence of external loads. Copyright © 2014 the American Physiological Society.

Performance characteristics of anaerobic downflow stationary fixed film reactors

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

van den Berg, L.; Kennedy, K.J.

1982-01-01

Stationary fixed film reactors operated to ensure a net downflow of substrate have several characteristics different from other retained biomass reactors. The active biomass attaches itself to stationary surface and hence is difficult to wash out. Performance is related to the surface-to-volume of the film support as well as to the composition of the support. Methane production rates of up to 8 cym day at loading rates of up to 30 kg COD/m cym day, are possible. Severe hydraulic and organic overloadings can be tolerated with operation back to normal 24 hours following cessation of mistreatment. Reactors can operate withmore » dilute and concentrated wastes (4000-130,000 mg COD/L) and can change readily over from one waste to another. Intermittent loading at high loading rates are possible. Methane production rates and loading rates decreased linearly with temperature (35) to 10); at 10 C they were about 20% of those at 35 C.« less

Crack-closure and crack-growth measurements in surface-flawed titanium alloy Ti6Al-4V

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Elber, W.

1975-01-01

The crack-closure and crack-growth characteristics of the titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V were determined experimentally on surface-flawed plate specimens. Under cyclic loading from zero to tension, cracks deeper than 1 mm opened at approximately 50 percent of the maximum load. Cracks shallower than 1 mm opened at higher loads. The correlation between crack-growth rate and the total stress-intensity range showed a lower threshold behavior. This behavior was attributed to the high crack-opening loads at short cracks because the lower threshold was much less evident in correlations between the crack-growth rates and the effective stress-intensity range.

The effect of Tricresyl-Phosphate (TCP) as an additive on wear of Iron (Fe)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ghose, Hiren M.; Ferrante, John; Honecy, Frank C.

1987-01-01

The effect of tricresyl phosphate (TCP) as an antiwear additive in lubricant trimethyol propane triheptanoate (TMPTH) was investigated. The objective was to examine step loading wear by use of surface analysis, wetting, and chemical bonding changes in the lubricant. The investigation consisted of steploading wear studies by a pin or disk tribometer, the effects on wear related to wetting by contact angle and surface tension measurements of various liquid systems, the chemical bonding changes between lubricant and TCP chromatographic analysis, and by determining the reaction between the TCP and metal surfaces through wear scar analysis by Auger emission spectroscopy (AES). The steploading curve for the base fluid alone shows rapid increase of wear rate with load. The steploading curve for the base fluid in presence of 4.25 percent by volume TCP under dry air purge has shown a great reduction of wear rate with all loads studied. It has also been found that the addition of 4.25 percent by volume TCP plus 0.33 percent by volume water to the base lubricant under N2 purge also greatly reduces the wear rate with all loads studied. AES surface analysis reveals a phosphate type wear resistant film, which greatly increases load-bearing capacity, formed on the iron disk. Preliminary chromatographic studies suggest that this film forms either because of ester oxidation or TCP degradation. Wetting studies show direct correlation between the spreading coefficient and the wear rate.

The influence of supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) processing conditions on drug loading and physicochemical properties.

PubMed

Ahern, Robert J; Crean, Abina M; Ryan, Katie B

2012-12-15

Poor water solubility of drugs can complicate their commercialisation because of reduced drug oral bioavailability. Formulation strategies such as increasing the drug surface area are frequently employed in an attempt to increase dissolution rate and hence, improve oral bioavailability. Maximising the drug surface area exposed to the dissolution medium can be achieved by loading drug onto a high surface area carrier like mesoporous silica (SBA-15). The aim of this work was to investigate the impact of altering supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO(2)) processing conditions, in an attempt to enhance drug loading onto SBA-15 and increase the drug's dissolution rate. Other formulation variables such as the mass ratio of drug to SBA-15 and the procedure for combining the drug and SBA-15 were also investigated. A model drug with poor water solubility, fenofibrate, was selected for this study. High drug loading efficiencies were obtained using SC-CO(2), which were influenced by the processing conditions employed. Fenofibrate release rate was enhanced greatly after loading onto mesoporous silica. The results highlighted the potential of this SC-CO(2) drug loading approach to improve the oral bioavailability of poorly water soluble drugs. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Field Testing and Load Rating Report, Bridge S-4360, Camp Hovey, South Korea

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-07-01

different section properties than the original six beam-lines. Shear stud connectors were specified on the design plans, indicating the deck was to be...the roadway wearing surface, the railings, and the conduits suspended from the bridge. Since the shear capacities were dependent only on the steel...load and live-load at Section G_Standard MCap 808.7 kN-m Superimposed dead-load applied to composite model— wearing surface and railing DW 75.69 kN

Grinding efficiency of abutment tooth with both dentin and core composite resin on axial plane.

PubMed

Miho, Otoaki; Sato, Toru; Matsukubo, Takashi

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate grinding efficiency in abutment teeth comprising both dentin and core composite resin in the axial plane. Grinding was performed over 5 runs at two loads (0.5 or 0.25 N) and two feed rates (1 or 2 mm/sec). The grinding surface was observed with a 3-D laser microscope. Tomographic images of the grinding surfaces captured perpendicular to the feed direction were also analyzed. Using a non-ground surface as a reference, areas comprising only dentin, both dentin and core composite resin, or only core composite resin were analyzed to determine the angle of the grinding surface. Composite resins were subjected to the Vickers hardness test and scanning electron microscopy. Data were statistically analyzed using a one-way analysis of variance and multiple comparison tests. Multiple regression analysis was performed for load, feed rate, and Vickers hardness of the build-up material depending on number of runs. When grinding was performed at a constant load and feed rate, a greater grinding angle was observed in areas comprising both dentin and composite resin or only composite resin than in areas consisting of dentin alone. A correlation was found between machinability and load or feed rate in areas comprising both dentin and composite resin or composite resin alone, with a particularly high correlation being observed between machinability and load. These results suggest that great caution should be exercised in a clinical setting when the boundary between the dentin and composite resin is to be ground, as the angle of the grinding surface changes when the rotating diamond point begins grinding the composite resin.

Predicting fractional bed load transport rates: Application of the Wilcock‐Crowe equations to a regulated gravel bed river

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gaeuman, David; Andrews, E.D.; Krause, Andreas; Smith, Wes

2009-01-01

Bed load samples from four locations in the Trinity River of northern California are analyzed to evaluate the performance of the Wilcock‐Crowe bed load transport equations for predicting fractional bed load transport rates. Bed surface particles become smaller and the fraction of sand on the bed increases with distance downstream from Lewiston Dam. The dimensionless reference shear stress for the mean bed particle size (τ*rm) is largest near the dam, but varies relatively little between the more downstream locations. The relation between τ*rm and the reference shear stresses for other size fractions is constant across all locations. Total bed load transport rates predicted with the Wilcock‐Crowe equations are within a factor of 2 of sampled transport rates for 68% of all samples. The Wilcock‐Crowe equations nonetheless consistently under‐predict the transport of particles larger than 128 mm, frequently by more than an order of magnitude. Accurate prediction of the transport rates of the largest particles is important for models in which the evolution of the surface grain size distribution determines subsequent bed load transport rates. Values of τ*rm estimated from bed load samples are up to 50% larger than those predicted with the Wilcock‐Crowe equations, and sampled bed load transport approximates equal mobility across a wider range of grain sizes than is implied by the equations. Modifications to the Wilcock‐Crowe equation for determining τ*rm and the hiding function used to scale τ*rm to other grain size fractions are proposed to achieve the best fit to observed bed load transport in the Trinity River.

Thermally determining flow and/or heat load distribution in parallel paths

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

Chainer, Timothy J.; Iyengar, Madhusudan K.; Parida, Pritish R.

A method including obtaining calibration data for at least one sub-component in a heat transfer assembly, wherein the calibration data comprises at least one indication of coolant flow rate through the sub-component for a given surface temperature delta of the sub-component and a given heat load into said sub-component, determining a measured heat load into the sub-component, determining a measured surface temperature delta of the sub-component, and determining a coolant flow distribution in a first flow path comprising the sub-component from the calibration data according to the measured heat load and the measured surface temperature delta of the sub-component.

Thermally determining flow and/or heat load distribution in parallel paths

DOEpatents

Chainer, Timothy J.; Iyengar, Madhusudan K.; Parida, Pritish R.

2016-12-13

A method including obtaining calibration data for at least one sub-component in a heat transfer assembly, wherein the calibration data comprises at least one indication of coolant flow rate through the sub-component for a given surface temperature delta of the sub-component and a given heat load into said sub-component, determining a measured heat load into the sub-component, determining a measured surface temperature delta of the sub-component, and determining a coolant flow distribution in a first flow path comprising the sub-component from the calibration data according to the measured heat load and the measured surface temperature delta of the sub-component.

Wear of human enamel: a quantitative in vitro assessment.

PubMed

Kaidonis, J A; Richards, L C; Townsend, G C; Tansley, G D

1998-12-01

Many factors influence the extent and rate at which enamel wears. Clinical studies in humans are limited by difficulties in the accurate quantification of intra-oral wear and by a lack of control over the oral environment. The purpose of this study was to determine the wear characteristics of human dental enamel under controlled experimental conditions. An electro-mechanical tooth wear machine, in which opposing enamel surfaces of sectioned, extracted teeth were worn under various conditions, was used to simulate tooth grinding or bruxism. Enamel surface wear was quantified by weight to an accuracy of 0.1 mg, with water uptake and loss controlled. The variables considered included the structure and hardness of enamel, facet area, duration of tooth contact, relative speed of opposing surfaces, temperature, load, pH, and the nature of the lubricant. Enamel wear under non-lubricated conditions increased with increasing load over the range of 1.7 to 16.2 kg. The addition of a liquid lubricant (pH = 7) reduced enamel wear up to 6.7 kg, but when the load increased above this threshold, the rate of wear increased dramatically. With the viscosity of the lubricant constant and pH = 3, the rate of wear was further reduced to less than 10% of the non-lubricated rate at 9.95 kg, after which the rate again increased substantially. Under more extreme conditions (pH = 1.2, simulating gastric acids), the wear was excessive under all experimental loads. When saliva was used as a lubricant, the amount of wear was relatively low at 9.95 kg, but rapid wear occurred at 14.2 kg and above. These results indicate that under non-lubricated conditions, enamel wear remains low at high loads due to the dry-lubricating capabilities of fine enamel powder. Under lubricated conditions, low loads with an acidic lubricant lead to little enamel wear, whereas very low pH results in a high rate of wear under all loads.

Thin film modeling of crystal dissolution and growth in confinement.

PubMed

Gagliardi, Luca; Pierre-Louis, Olivier

2018-01-01

We present a continuum model describing dissolution and growth of a crystal contact confined against a substrate. Diffusion and hydrodynamics in the liquid film separating the crystal and the substrate are modeled within the lubrication approximation. The model also accounts for the disjoining pressure and surface tension. Within this framework, we obtain evolution equations which govern the nonequilibrium dynamics of the crystal interface. Based on this model, we explore the problem of dissolution under an external load, known as pressure solution. We find that in steady state, diverging (power-law) crystal-surface repulsions lead to flat contacts with a monotonic increase of the dissolution rate as a function of the load. Forces induced by viscous dissipation then surpass those due to disjoining pressure at large enough loads. In contrast, finite repulsions (exponential) lead to sharp pointy contacts with a dissolution rate independent of the load and the liquid viscosity. Ultimately, in steady state, the crystal never touches the substrate when pressed against it. This result is independent from the nature of the crystal-surface interaction due to the combined effects of viscosity and surface tension.

Thin film modeling of crystal dissolution and growth in confinement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gagliardi, Luca; Pierre-Louis, Olivier

2018-01-01

We present a continuum model describing dissolution and growth of a crystal contact confined against a substrate. Diffusion and hydrodynamics in the liquid film separating the crystal and the substrate are modeled within the lubrication approximation. The model also accounts for the disjoining pressure and surface tension. Within this framework, we obtain evolution equations which govern the nonequilibrium dynamics of the crystal interface. Based on this model, we explore the problem of dissolution under an external load, known as pressure solution. We find that in steady state, diverging (power-law) crystal-surface repulsions lead to flat contacts with a monotonic increase of the dissolution rate as a function of the load. Forces induced by viscous dissipation then surpass those due to disjoining pressure at large enough loads. In contrast, finite repulsions (exponential) lead to sharp pointy contacts with a dissolution rate independent of the load and the liquid viscosity. Ultimately, in steady state, the crystal never touches the substrate when pressed against it. This result is independent from the nature of the crystal-surface interaction due to the combined effects of viscosity and surface tension.

Capturing microbial sources distributed in a mixed-use watershed within an integrated environmental modeling workflow

EPA Science Inventory

Many watershed models simulate overland and instream microbial fate and transport, but few provide loading rates on land surfaces and point sources to the waterbody network. This paper describes the underlying equations for microbial loading rates associated with 1) land-applied ...

Capturing microbial sources distributed in a mixed-use watershed within an integrated environmental modeling workflow

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Many watershed models simulate overland and instream microbial fate and transport, but few provide loading rates on land surfaces and point sources to the waterbody network. This paper describes the underlying equations for microbial loading rates associated with 1) land-applied manure on undevelope...

Field Testing and Load Rating Report, Bridge FSBR-514, Fort Shafter, Hawaii

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-05-01

composite model – wearing surface and railing DW 5.95 kip-in./in. Live load effect (HS-20) LL 8.55 kip-in./in. Resistance factor for steel in...and live load at Interior Beam. MCap 51.1 Kip-in/in Superimposed dead load applied to composite model – wearing surface and railing DW 5.88...with concrete studs . If the above steps are followed, it should be possible to mount each trans- ducer in approximately 5 to 10 min. The Figures C1

Traits of surface water pollution under climate and land use changes: A remote sensing and hydrological modeling approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jordan, Yuyan C.; Ghulam, Abduwasit; Hartling, Sean

2014-01-01

In this paper, spatial and temporal trajectories of land cover/land use change (LCLUC) derived from Landsat data record are combined with hydrological modeling to explore the implication of vegetation dynamics on soil erosion and total suspended sediment (TSS) loading to surface rivers. The inter-annual coefficient of variation (CoV) of normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) is used to screen the LCLUC and climate change. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) is employed to identify the monthly TSS for two times interval (1991 to 2001 and 2001 to 2011) at subbasin levels. SWAT model is calibrated from 1991 to 2001 and validated from 2002 to 2011 at three USGS gauging sites located in the study area. The Spearman's rank correlation of annual mean TSS is used to assess the temporal trends of TSS dynamics in the subbasins in the two study periods. The spatial correlation among NDVI, LCLUC, climate change and TSS loading rate changes is quantified by using linear regression model and negative/positive trend analysis. Our results showed that higher rainfall yields contribute to higher TSS loading into surface waters. A higher inter-annual accumulated vegetation index and lower inter-annual CoV distributed over the uplands resulted in a lower TSS loading rate, while a relatively low vegetation index with larger CoV observed over lowlands resulted in a higher TSS loading rate. The TSS loading rate at the basin outlet increased with the decrease of annual NDVI due to expanding urban areas in the watershed. The results also suggested nonlinearity between the trends of TSS loading with any of a specific land cover change because of the fact that the contribution of a factor can be influenced by the effects of other factors. However, dominant factors that shape the relationship between the trend of TSS loading and specific land cover changes were detected. The change of forest showed a negative relationship while agriculture and pasture demonstrated positive relationships with TSS loading change. Our results do not show any significant causal relationship between urbanization and the TSS loading change suggesting that further investigation needs to be carried out to understand the mechanism of the impact of urban sprawl on surface water quality.

Effect of Compressive Mode I on the Mixed Mode I/II Fatigue Crack Growth Rate of 42CrMo4

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heirani, Hasan; Farhangdoost, Khalil

2018-01-01

Subsurface cracks in mechanical contact loading components are subjected to mixed mode I/II, so it is necessary to evaluate the fatigue behavior of materials under mixed mode loading. For this purpose, fatigue crack propagation tests are performed with compact tension shear specimens for several stress intensity factor (SIF) ratios of mode I and mode II. The effect of compressive mode I loading on mixed mode I/II crack growth rate and fracture surface is investigated. Tests are carried out for the pure mode I, pure mode II, and two different mixed mode loading angles. On the basis of the experimental results, mixed mode crack growth rate parameters are proposed according to Tanaka and Richard with Paris' law. Results show neither Richard's nor Tanaka's equivalent SIFs are very useful because these SIFs depend strongly on the loading angle, but Richard's equivalent SIF formula is more suitable than Tanaka's formula. The compressive mode I causes the crack closure, and the friction force between the crack surfaces resists against the crack growth. In compressive loading with 45° angle, d a/d N increases as K eq decreases.

Modeling Aircraft Wing Loads from Flight Data Using Neural Networks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Allen, Michael J.; Dibley, Ryan P.

2003-01-01

Neural networks were used to model wing bending-moment loads, torsion loads, and control surface hinge-moments of the Active Aeroelastic Wing (AAW) aircraft. Accurate loads models are required for the development of control laws designed to increase roll performance through wing twist while not exceeding load limits. Inputs to the model include aircraft rates, accelerations, and control surface positions. Neural networks were chosen to model aircraft loads because they can account for uncharacterized nonlinear effects while retaining the capability to generalize. The accuracy of the neural network models was improved by first developing linear loads models to use as starting points for network training. Neural networks were then trained with flight data for rolls, loaded reversals, wind-up-turns, and individual control surface doublets for load excitation. Generalization was improved by using gain weighting and early stopping. Results are presented for neural network loads models of four wing loads and four control surface hinge moments at Mach 0.90 and an altitude of 15,000 ft. An average model prediction error reduction of 18.6 percent was calculated for the neural network models when compared to the linear models. This paper documents the input data conditioning, input parameter selection, structure, training, and validation of the neural network models.

Patterning of alloy precipitation through external pressure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Franklin, Jack A.

Due to the nature of their microstructure, alloyed components have the benefit of meeting specific design goals across a wide range of electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties. In general by selecting the correct alloy system and applying a proper heat treatment it is possible to create a metallic sample whose properties achieve a unique set of design requirements. This dissertation presents an innovative processing technique intended to control both the location of formation and the growth rates of precipitates within metallic alloys in order to create multiple patterned areas of unique microstructure within a single sample. Specific experimental results for the Al-Cu alloy system will be shown. The control over precipitation is achieved by altering the conventional heat treatment process with an external surface load applied to selected locations during the quench and anneal. It is shown that the applied pressures affect both the rate and directionality of the atomic diffusion in regions close to the loaded surfaces. The control over growth rates is achieved by altering the enthalpic energy required for successful diffusion between lattice sites. Changes in the local chemical free energy required to direct the diffusion of atoms are established by introducing a non-uniform elastic strain energy field within the samples created by the patterned surface pressures. Either diffusion rates or atomic mobility can be selected as the dominating control process by varying the quench rate; with slower quenches having greater control over the mobility of the alloying elements. Results have shown control of Al2Cu precipitation over 100 microns on mechanically polished surfaces. Further experimental considerations presented will address consistency across sample ensembles. This includes repeatable pressure loading conditions and the chemical interaction between any furnace environments and both the alloy sample and metallic pressure loading devices.

Possible correlation between annual gravity change and shallow background seismicity rate at subduction zone by surface load

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mitsui, Yuta; Yamada, Kyohei

2017-12-01

The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) has monitored global gravity changes since 2002. Gravity changes are considered to represent hydrological water mass movements around the surface of the globe, although fault slip of a large earthquake also causes perturbation of gravity. Since surface water movements are expected to affect earthquake occurrences via elastic surface load or pore-fluid pressure increase, correlation between gravity changes and occurrences of small (not large) earthquakes may reflect the effects of surface water movements. In the present study, we focus on earthquakes smaller than magnitude 7.5 and examine the relation between annual gravity changes and earthquake occurrences at worldwide subduction zones. First, we extract amplitudes of annual gravity changes from GRACE data for land. Next, we estimate background seismicity rates in the epidemic-type aftershock sequence model from shallow seismicity data having magnitudes of over 4.5. Then, we perform correlation analysis of the amplitudes of the annual gravity changes and the shallow background seismicity rates, excluding source areas of large earthquakes, and find moderate positive correlation. It implies that annual water movements can activate shallow earthquakes, although the surface load elastostatic stress changes are on the order of or below 1 kPa, as small as a regional case in a previous study. We speculate that periodic stress perturbation is amplified through nonlinear responses of frictional faults.[Figure not available: see fulltext.

A constitutive model for AS4/PEEK thermoplastic composites under cyclic loading

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rui, Yuting; Sun, C. T.

1990-01-01

Based on the basic and essential features of the elastic-plastic response of the AS4/PEEK thermoplastic composite subjected to off-axis cyclic loadings, a simple rate-independent constitutive model is proposed to describe the orthotropic material behavior for cyclic loadings. A one-parameter memory surface is introduced to distinguish the virgin deformation and the subsequent deformation process and to characterize the loading range effect. Cyclic softening is characterized by the change of generalized plastic modulus. By the vanishing yield surface assumption, a yield criterion is not needed and it is not necessary to consider loading and unloading separately. The model is compared with experimental results and good agreement is obtained.

Immediate occlusal loading of double acid-etched surface titanium implants in 41 consecutive full-arch cases in the mandible and maxilla: 6- to 74-month results.

PubMed

Ibañez, Juan C; Tahhan, Marcelo J; Zamar, Juan A; Menendez, Alicia B; Juaneda, Agustina M; Zamar, Nicolas J; Monqaut, Jose L

2005-11-01

The high success rate of dental implants has changed the quality of life for many patients. Immediate loading finds its application in some clinical cases and certainly adds another modality of treatment for the implant patient. Starting with a few implants immediately loaded with a bar overdenture in the mandible, the concept of immediate loading evolved to loading multiple implants in both the maxilla and mandible. In this investigation, 41 consecutive patients who needed full-arch restorations were treated with 343 double acid-etched surface implants between May 1998 and March 2004. The sample included smokers and bruxers. Twenty-three mandibular and 26 maxillary cases were treated, loading the implants within 48 hours, by using resin provisional prostheses, metal-reinforced provisional prostheses, or definitive prostheses (metal-acrylic or metal-ceramic). All implants were followed for 12 to 74 months. Follow-up consisted of clinical as well as radiographic examination. Furthermore, resonance frequency analysis was done in most of the implants during the last 2 years. The success rate obtained was 99.42% (only two mandibular implants that are still surviving were considered failures). The bone level was measured every year. The average radiographic bone level change was 0.56 mm at 12, 0.76 mm at 24, 0.84 mm at 36, 0.82 mm at 48, 0.83 mm at 60, and 0.94 mm at 72 months. A high success rate can be achieved when double acid-etched surface implants are immediately loaded with fixed full-arch restorations in the maxilla and mandible.

Short-crack growth behaviour in an aluminum alloy: An AGARD cooperative test program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Newman, J. C., Jr.; Edwards, P. R.

1988-01-01

An AGARD Cooperative Test Program on the growth of short fatigue cracks was conducted to define the significance of the short-crack effect, to compare test results from various laboratories, and to evaluate an existing analytical crack-growth prediction model. The initiation and growth of short fatigue cracks (5 micrometer to 2 mm) from the surface of a semi-circular notch in 2024-T3 aluminum alloy sheet material were monitored under various load histories. The cracks initiated from inclusion particle clusters or voids on the notch surface and generally grew as surface cracks. Tests were conducted under several constant-amplitude (stress ratios of -2, -1, 0, and 0.5) and spectrum (FALSTAFF and Gaussian) loading conditions at 3 stress levels each. Short crack growth was recorded using a plastic-replica technique. Over 250 edge-notched specimens were fatigue tested and nearly 950 cracks monitored by 12 participants from 9 countries. Long crack-growth rate data for cracks greater than 2 mm in length were obtained over a wide range in rates (10 to the -8 to 10 to the -1 mm/cycle) for all constant-amplitude loading conditions. Long crack-growth rate data for the FALSTAFF and Gaussian load sequences were also obtained.

Effect of soil parameters on the kinetics of the displacement of Fe from FeEDDHA chelates by Cu.

PubMed

Schenkeveld, Walter D C; Reichwein, Arjen M; Temminghoff, Erwin J M; van Riemsdijk, Willem H

2012-06-28

In soil application, o,o-FeEDDHA (iron (3+) ethylene diamine-N,N'-bis(2-hydroxy phenyl acetic acid) complex) is the active ingredient of FeEDDHA chelate-based Fe fertilizers. The effectiveness of o,o-FeEDDHA is potentially compromised by the displacement of Fe from FeEDDHA by Cu. The actual impact of Cu competition is codetermined by the kinetics of the displacement reaction. In this study, the influence of soil parameters on the displacement kinetics has been examined in goethite suspensions. The displacement reaction predominantly takes place on the reactive surface rather than in solution. The rate at which the o,o-FeEDDHA concentration declined depended on the available reactive surface area, the Cu loading, and the FeEDDHA loading. Soil factors reducing FeEDDHA adsorption (high ionic strength, humic acid adsorption onto the goethite surface, and monovalent instead of divalent cations in the electrolyte) decreased the displacement rate. For meso o,o-FeEDDHA, the displacement rate equation was derived, which is first order in FeEDDHA loading and half order in Cu loading. For soil conditions, the equation can be simplified to an exponential decay function in meso o,o-FeEDDHA solution concentration.

A Framework for Optimal Control Allocation with Structural Load Constraints

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Frost, Susan A.; Taylor, Brian R.; Jutte, Christine V.; Burken, John J.; Trinh, Khanh V.; Bodson, Marc

2010-01-01

Conventional aircraft generally employ mixing algorithms or lookup tables to determine control surface deflections needed to achieve moments commanded by the flight control system. Control allocation is the problem of converting desired moments into control effector commands. Next generation aircraft may have many multipurpose, redundant control surfaces, adding considerable complexity to the control allocation problem. These issues can be addressed with optimal control allocation. Most optimal control allocation algorithms have control surface position and rate constraints. However, these constraints are insufficient to ensure that the aircraft's structural load limits will not be exceeded by commanded surface deflections. In this paper, a framework is proposed to enable a flight control system with optimal control allocation to incorporate real-time structural load feedback and structural load constraints. A proof of concept simulation that demonstrates the framework in a simulation of a generic transport aircraft is presented.

Laboratory constraints on models of earthquake recurrence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beeler, N. M.; Tullis, Terry; Junger, Jenni; Kilgore, Brian; Goldsby, David

2014-12-01

In this study, rock friction "stick-slip" experiments are used to develop constraints on models of earthquake recurrence. Constant rate loading of bare rock surfaces in high-quality experiments produces stick-slip recurrence that is periodic at least to second order. When the loading rate is varied, recurrence is approximately inversely proportional to loading rate. These laboratory events initiate due to a slip-rate-dependent process that also determines the size of the stress drop and, as a consequence, stress drop varies weakly but systematically with loading rate. This is especially evident in experiments where the loading rate is changed by orders of magnitude, as is thought to be the loading condition of naturally occurring, small repeating earthquakes driven by afterslip, or low-frequency earthquakes loaded by episodic slip. The experimentally observed stress drops are well described by a logarithmic dependence on recurrence interval that can be cast as a nonlinear slip predictable model. The fault's rate dependence of strength is the key physical parameter. Additionally, even at constant loading rate the most reproducible laboratory recurrence is not exactly periodic, unlike existing friction recurrence models. We present example laboratory catalogs that document the variance and show that in large catalogs, even at constant loading rate, stress drop and recurrence covary systematically. The origin of this covariance is largely consistent with variability of the dependence of fault strength on slip rate. Laboratory catalogs show aspects of both slip and time predictability, and successive stress drops are strongly correlated indicating a "memory" of prior slip history that extends over at least one recurrence cycle.

Effects of Surface Treatment and Interfacial Strength on the Damage Propagation in Layered Transparent Armor under Impact

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-03-20

tive humidity of 34%. Dynamic experiments on the Kolsky bar were conducted at a loading rate of approximately 5x106 MPa/s. Fractography was conducted...pulse loading technique was adopted to ensure that the glass specimen was loaded only once and therefore in the fractography point of view, the

Load-bearing capacity and biological allowable limit of biodegradable metal based on degradation rate in vivo.

PubMed

Cho, Sung Youn; Chae, Soo-Won; Choi, Kui Won; Seok, Hyun Kwang; Han, Hyung Seop; Yang, Seok Jo; Kim, Young Yul; Kim, Jong Tac; Jung, Jae Young; Assad, Michel

2012-08-01

In this study, a newly developed Mg-Ca-Zn alloy for low degradation rate and surface erosion properties was evaluated. The compressive, tensile, and fatigue strength were measured before implantation. The degradation behavior was evaluated by analyzing the microstructure and local hardness of the explanted specimen. Mean and maximum degradation rates were measured using micro CT equipment from 4-, 8-, and 16- week explants, and the alloy was shown to display surface erosion properties. Based on these characteristics, the average and minimum load bearing capacities in tension, compression, and bending modes were calculated. According to the degradation rate and references of recommended dietary intakes (RDI), the Mg-Ca-Zn alloy appears to be safe for human use. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Dynamic fracture of the surface of an aluminum alloy under conditions of high-speed erosion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petrov, Yu. V.; Atroshenko, S. A.; Kazarinov, N. A.; Evstifeev, A. D.; Solov'ev, V. Yu.

2017-04-01

The kinetics of fracture and deformation of the standard aluminum alloy AD1 and a similar alloy subjected to severe plastic deformation by high-pressure torsion under conditions of high-speed erosion has been investigated. It has been shown that, with an increase in the loading rate, the fraction of the brittle component on the fracture surface of the standard material, as well as the thickness of the damaged layer, increases more significantly than that for the material after the severe plastic deformation by high-pressure torsion. A relationship of the surface roughness of the material after the erosion with the loading rate and the thickness of the erosion-damaged layer has been established.

Treatment of Landfill Leachate at Army Facilities.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-08-01

place in a sin- gle unit. 51 The criteria for sizing settling basins are overflow rate ( surface set- tling rate ), tank depth at the side walls, and...detention time. For municipal treatment systems, depths average 10 to 12 ft; detention time usually averages 1 to 3 hours; and surface loading rates ...August 1983 13. NUMBER OF PAGES ___________________________________________ 131 14. MONITORING AGENCY NAME & ADDRESS(If different fromi Controlling

Impacts, recovery rates, and treatment options for spilled oil in marshes.

PubMed

Michel, Jacqueline; Rutherford, Nicolle

2014-05-15

In a review of the literature on impacts of spilled oil on marshes, 32 oil spills and field experiments were identified with sufficient data to generate recovery curves and identify influencing factors controlling the rate of recovery. For many spills, recovery occurred within 1-2 growing seasons, even in the absence of any treatment. Recovery was longest for spills with the following conditions: Cold climate; sheltered settings; thick oil on the marsh surface; light refined products with heavy loading; oils that formed persistent thick residues; and intensive treatment. Recovery was shortest for spills with the following conditions: Warm climate; light to heavy oiling of the vegetation only; medium crude oils; and less-intensive treatment. Recommendations are made for treatment based on the following oiling conditions: Free-floating oil on the water in the marsh; thicker oil (>0.5 cm) on marsh surface; thinner oil (<0.5 cm) on marsh surface; heavy oil loading on vegetation; and light to moderate oil loading on vegetation. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Graphene nanosheets and polyacrylic acid grafted silicon composite anode for lithium ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Assresahegn, Birhanu Desalegn; Ossonon, Benjamin Diby; Bélanger, Daniel

2018-07-01

A silicon/graphene composite anode for lithium-ion batteries was fabricated with a high loading of Si by combining surface-modified silicon with graphene. The Si nanopowder was modified by a binder-like organic moeity (1-(bromoethyl) benzene and polyacrylic acid) grafted on the surface of hydrogenated silicon by diazonium chemistry and surface initiated atom transfer radical polymerization. The graphene was produced by electrochemical exfoliation of natural graphite. The optimum composite electrode prepared without a binder, with silicon loading as high as 85 wt% and a mass loading of 1.1 ± 0.1 mg cm-2 yielded a discharge capacity of 1020 mAh per gram of electrode mass (or 1200 mAh per gram of Si) after 586 charge/discharge cycles at a rate of 3.4 A g-1. It showed first cycle Coulombic efficiency of more than 90% in the absence of electrolyte additives at a current rate of 0.05 A g-1.

Yield surface evolution for columnar ice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Zhiwei; Ma, Wei; Zhang, Shujuan; Mu, Yanhu; Zhao, Shunpin; Li, Guoyu

A series of triaxial compression tests, which has capable of measuring the volumetric strain of the sample, were conducted on columnar ice. A new testing approach of probing the experimental yield surface was performed from a single sample in order to investigate yield and hardening behaviors of the columnar ice under complex stress states. Based on the characteristic of the volumetric strain, a new method of defined the multiaxial yield strengths of the columnar ice is proposed. The experimental yield surface remains elliptical shape in the stress space of effective stress versus mean stress. The effect of temperature, loading rate and loading path in the initial yield surface and deformation properties of the columnar ice were also studied. Subsequent yield surfaces of the columnar ice have been explored by using uniaxial and hydrostatic paths. The evolution of the subsequent yield surface exhibits significant path-dependent characteristics. The multiaxial hardening law of the columnar ice was established experimentally. A phenomenological yield criterion was presented for multiaxial yield and hardening behaviors of the columnar ice. The comparisons between the theoretical and measured results indicate that this current model is capable of giving a reasonable prediction for the multiaxial yield and post-yield properties of the columnar ice subjected to different temperature, loading rate and path conditions.

Investigation of maximum local specific absorption rate in 7 T magnetic resonance with respect to load size by use of electromagnetic simulations.

PubMed

Tiberi, Gianluigi; Fontana, Nunzia; Costagli, Mauro; Stara, Riccardo; Biagi, Laura; Symms, Mark Roger; Monorchio, Agostino; Retico, Alessandra; Cosottini, Mirco; Tosetti, Michela

2015-07-01

Local specific absorption rate (SAR) evaluation in ultra high field (UHF) magnetic resonance (MR) systems is a major concern. In fact, at UHF, radiofrequency (RF) field inhomogeneity generates hot-spots that could cause localized tissue heating. Unfortunately, local SAR measurements are not available in present MR systems; thus, electromagnetic simulations must be performed for RF fields and SAR analysis. In this study, we used three-dimensional full-wave numerical electromagnetic simulations to investigate the dependence of local SAR at 7.0 T with respect to subject size in two different scenarios: surface coil loaded by adult and child calves and quadrature volume coil loaded by adult and child heads. In the surface coil scenario, maximum local SAR decreased with decreasing load size, provided that the RF magnetic fields for the different load sizes were scaled to achieve the same slice average value. On the contrary, in the volume coil scenario, maximum local SAR was up to 15% higher in children than in adults. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Laboratory constraints on models of earthquake recurrence

USGS Publications Warehouse

Beeler, Nicholas M.; Tullis, Terry; Junger, Jenni; Kilgore, Brian D.; Goldsby, David L.

2014-01-01

In this study, rock friction ‘stick-slip’ experiments are used to develop constraints on models of earthquake recurrence. Constant-rate loading of bare rock surfaces in high quality experiments produces stick-slip recurrence that is periodic at least to second order. When the loading rate is varied, recurrence is approximately inversely proportional to loading rate. These laboratory events initiate due to a slip rate-dependent process that also determines the size of the stress drop [Dieterich, 1979; Ruina, 1983] and as a consequence, stress drop varies weakly but systematically with loading rate [e.g., Gu and Wong, 1991; Karner and Marone, 2000; McLaskey et al., 2012]. This is especially evident in experiments where the loading rate is changed by orders of magnitude, as is thought to be the loading condition of naturally occurring, small repeating earthquakes driven by afterslip, or low-frequency earthquakes loaded by episodic slip. As follows from the previous studies referred to above, experimentally observed stress drops are well described by a logarithmic dependence on recurrence interval that can be cast as a non-linear slip-predictable model. The fault’s rate dependence of strength is the key physical parameter. Additionally, even at constant loading rate the most reproducible laboratory recurrence is not exactly periodic, unlike existing friction recurrence models. We present example laboratory catalogs that document the variance and show that in large catalogs, even at constant loading rate, stress drop and recurrence co-vary systematically. The origin of this covariance is largely consistent with variability of the dependence of fault strength on slip rate. Laboratory catalogs show aspects of both slip and time predictability and successive stress drops are strongly correlated indicating a ‘memory’ of prior slip history that extends over at least one recurrence cycle.

Stress loading from viscous flow in the lower crust and triggering of aftershocks following the 1994 Northridge, California, earthquake

USGS Publications Warehouse

Deng, J.; Hudnut, K.; Gurnis, M.; Hauksson, E.

1999-01-01

Following the M(w) 6.7 Northridge earthquake, significant postseismic displacements were resolved with GPS. Using a three-dimensional viscoelastic model, we suggest that this deformation is mainly driven by viscous flow in the lower crust. Such flow can transfer stress to the upper crust and load the rupture zone of the main shock at a decaying rate. Most aftershocks within the rupture zone, especially those that occurred after the first several weeks of the main shock, may have been triggered by continuous stress loading from viscous flow. The long-term decay time of aftershocks (about 2 years) approximately matches the decay of viscoelastic loading, and thus is controlled by the viscosity of the lower crust. Our model provides a physical interpretation of the observed correlation between aftershock decay rate and surface heat flow.Following the Mw 6.7 Northridge earthquake, significant postseismic displacements were resolved with GPS. Using a three-dimensional viscoelastic model, we suggest that this deformation is mainly driven by viscous flow in the lower crust. Such flow can transfer stress to the upper crust and load the rupture zone of the main shock at a decaying rate. Most aftershocks within the rupture zone, especially those that occurred after the first several weeks of the main shock, may have been triggered by continuous stress loading from viscous flow. The long-term decay time of aftershocks (about 2 years) approximately matches the decay of viscoelastic loading, and thus is controlled by the viscosity of the lower crust. Our model provides a physical interpretation of the observed correlation between aftershock decay rate and surface heat flow.

The von Mises stress distribution on the surface of UHMWPE with texture-shaped variation in the presence of normal load and dry sliding contact

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lestari, W. D.; Jamari, J.; Bayuseno, A. P.

2017-04-01

The texture shapes play a key role in the tribological performance of the surface material. This paper presents a study on the use of the 3D finite element method for surface stress analysis on the different texture shape under load and dry sliding contact. The five texture-shaped model was investigated in this work, namely square, circle, ellipse, triangle, and chevron. The result shown that the square shape has the highest value of von Mises resultant stress under static load. In contrast, the dry sliding contact on the triangle shape provided the highest von Mises stress distribution. The lowest value of von Mises stress can be found in the texture pattern of circle, square, and chevron under influence of load for 17 N, 30 N, and 50 N, respectively. Those texture patterns applied to surface of Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (UHMWPE) may have a strong effect on the reduction of wear rate and enhance tribological performance.

Low-damage direct patterning of silicon oxide mask by mechanical processing

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

To realize the nanofabrication of silicon surfaces using atomic force microscopy (AFM), we investigated the etching of mechanically processed oxide masks using potassium hydroxide (KOH) solution. The dependence of the KOH solution etching rate on the load and scanning density of the mechanical pre-processing was evaluated. Particular load ranges were found to increase the etching rate, and the silicon etching rate also increased with removal of the natural oxide layer by diamond tip sliding. In contrast, the local oxide pattern formed (due to mechanochemical reaction of the silicon) by tip sliding at higher load was found to have higher etching resistance than that of unprocessed areas. The profile changes caused by the etching of the mechanically pre-processed areas with the KOH solution were also investigated. First, protuberances were processed by diamond tip sliding at lower and higher stresses than that of the shearing strength. Mechanical processing at low load and scanning density to remove the natural oxide layer was then performed. The KOH solution selectively etched the low load and scanning density processed area first and then etched the unprocessed silicon area. In contrast, the protuberances pre-processed at higher load were hardly etched. The etching resistance of plastic deformed layers was decreased, and their etching rate was increased because of surface damage induced by the pre-processing. These results show that etching depth can be controlled by controlling the etching time through natural oxide layer removal and mechanochemical oxide layer formation. These oxide layer removal and formation processes can be exploited to realize low-damage mask patterns. PMID:24948891

Effects of proof loads and combined mode loadings on fracture and flaw growth characteristics of aerospace alloys

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shah, R. C.

1974-01-01

This experimental program was undertaken to determine the effects of (1) combined tensile and bending loadings, (2) combined tensile and shear loadings, and (3) proof overloads on fracture and flaw growth characteristics of aerospace alloys. Tests were performed on four alloys: 2219-T87 aluminum, 5Al-2.5Sn (ELl) titanium, 6Al-4V beta STA titanium and high strength 4340 steel. Tests were conducted in room air, gaseous nitrogen at -200F (144K), liquid nitrogen and liquid hydrogen. Flat center cracked and surface flawed specimens, cracked tube specimens, circumferentially notched round bar and surface flawed cylindrical specimens were tested. The three-dimensional photoelastic technique of stress freezing and slicing was used to determine stress intensity factors for surface flawed cylindrical specimens subjected to tension or torsion. Results showed that proof load/temperature histories used in the tests have a small beneficial effect or no effect on subsequent fracture strength and flaw growth rates.

Influence of substrate surface loading on the kinetic behaviour of aerobic granules.

PubMed

Liu, Yu; Liu, Yong-Qiang; Wang, Zhi-Wu; Yang, Shu-Fang; Tay, Joo-Hwa

2005-06-01

In the aerobic granular sludge reactor, the substrate loading is related to the size of the aerobic granules cultivated. This study investigated the influence of substrate surface loading on the growth and substrate-utilization kinetics of aerobic granules. Results showed that microbial surface growth rate and surface biodegradation rate are fairly related to the substrate surface loading by the Monod-type equation. In this study, both the theoretical maximum growth yield and the Pirt maintenance coefficient were determined. It was found that the estimated theoretical maximum growth yield of aerobic granules was as low as 0.2 g biomass g(-1) chemical oxygen demand (COD) and 10-40% of input substrate-COD was consumed through the maintenance metabolism, while experimental results further showed that the unit oxygen uptake by aerobic granules was 0.68 g oxygen g(-1) COD, which was much higher than that reported in activated sludge processes. Based on the growth yield and unit oxygen uptake determined, an oxidative assimilation equation of acetate-fed aerobic granules was derived; and this was confirmed by respirometric tests. In aerobic granular culture, about 74% of the input substrate-carbon was converted to carbon dioxide. The growth yield of aerobic granules was three times lower than that of activated sludge. It is likely that high carbon dioxide production is the main cause of the low growth yield of aerobic granules, indicating a possible energy uncoupling in aerobic granular culture.

Experimental studies the evolution of stress-strain state in structured rock specimens under uniaxial loading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oparin, Viktor; Tsoy, Pavel; Usoltseva, Olga; Semenov, Vladimir

2014-05-01

The aim of this study was to analyze distribution and development of stress-stress state in structured rock specimens subject to uniaxial loading to failure. Specific attention was paid to possible oscillating motion of structural elements of the rock specimens under constraints (pre-set stresses at the boundaries of the specimens) and the kinetic energy fractals. The detailed studies into the micro-level stress-strain state distribution and propagation over acting faces of rock specimens subject to uniaxial loading until failure, using automated digital speckle photography analyzer ALMEC-tv, have shown that: • under uniaxial stiff loading of prismatic sandstone, marble and sylvinite specimens on the Instron-8802 servohydraulic testing machine at the mobile grip displacement rate 0.02-0.2 mm/min, at a certain level of stressing, low-frequency micro-deformation processes originate in the specimens due to slow (quasi-static) force; • the amplitude of that deformation-wave processes greatly depends on the micro-loading stage: — at the elastic deformation stage, under the specimen stress lower than half ultimate strength of the specimen, there are no oscillations of microstrains; —at the nonlinearly elastic deformation stage, under stress varied from 0.5 to 1 ultimate strength of the specimens, the amplitudes of microstrains grow, including the descending stage 3; the oscillation frequency f=0.5-4 Hz; —at the residual strength stage, the amplitudes of the microstrains drop abruptly (3-5 times) as against stages 2 and 3; • in the elements of the scanned specimen surface in the region with the incipient crack, the microstrain rate amplitudes are a few times higher than in the undamged surface region of the same specimen. Sometimes, deformation rate greatly grows with increase in the load. The authors have used the energy scanning function of the deformation-wave processes in processing experimental speckle-photography data on the surface of the test specimen subject to loading until failure.

Reliability aspects of a composite bolted scarf joint. [in wing skin splice

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reed, D. L.; Eisenmann, J. R.

1975-01-01

The design, fabrication, static test, and fatigue test of both tension and compression graphite-epoxy candidates for a wing splice representative of a next-generation transport aircraft was the objective of the reported research program. A single-scarf bolted joint was selected as the design concept. Test specimens were designed and fabricated to represent an upper-surface and a lower-surface panel containing the splice. The load spectrum was a flight-by-flight random-load history including ground-air-ground loads. The results of the fatigue testing indicate that, for this type of joint, the inherent fatigue resistance of the laminate is reflected in the joint behavior and, consequently, the rate of damage accumulation is very slow under realistic fatigue loadings.

Screen test for cadmium and nickel plates as developed and used within the Aerospace Corporation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Phan, A. H.; Zimmerman, A. H.

1994-01-01

A new procedure described here was recently developed to quantify loading uniformity of nickel and cadmium plates and to screen finished electrodes prior to cell assembly. The technique utilizes the initial solubility rates of the active material in a standard chemical deloading solution at fixed conditions. The method can provide a reproducible indication of plate loading uniformity in situations where high surface loading limits the free flow of deloading solution into the internal porosity of the sinter plate. A preliminary study indicates that 'good' cell performance is associated with higher deloading rates.

Modeling urban storm rainfall runoff from diverse underlying surfaces and application for control design in Beijing.

PubMed

Ouyang, Wei; Guo, Bobo; Hao, Fanghua; Huang, Haobo; Li, Junqi; Gong, Yongwei

2012-12-30

Managing storm rainfall runoff is paramount in semi-arid regions with urban development. In Beijing, pollution prevention in urban storm runoff and storm water utilization has been identified as the primary strategy for urban water management. In this paper, we sampled runoff during storm rainfall events and analyzed the concentration of chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS) and total phosphorus (TP) in the runoff. Furthermore, the first flush effect of storm rainfall from diverse underlying surfaces was also analyzed. With the Storm Water Management Model (SWMM), the different impervious rates of underlying surfaces during the storm runoff process were expressed. The removal rates of three typical pollutants and their interactions with precipitation and underlying surfaces were identified. From these rates, the scenarios regarding the urban storm runoff pollution loading from different designs of underlying previous rates were assessed with the SWMM. First flush effect analysis showed that the first 20% of the storm runoff should be discarded, which can help in utilizing the storm water resource. The results of this study suggest that the SWMM can express in detail the storm water pollution patterns from diverse underlying surfaces in Beijing, which significantly affected water quality. The scenario analysis demonstrated that impervious rate adjustment has the potential to reduce runoff peak and decrease pollution loading. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Establishment and application of mechanical strain loading system of multi-channel cells].

PubMed

Li, Yongming; Wang, Hua; Zhang, Xiaodong; Tang, Lin

2012-02-01

Based on single-chip microcomputer, we have established a mechanical strain loading system with multi-channel to study the biological behavior of cultured cells in vitro under mechanical strain. We developed a multi-channel cell strain loading device controlled by single-chip microcomputer. We controlled the vacuum pump with vacuum chamber to make negative pressure changing periodically in the vacuum chamber. The tested cells were seeded on the surface of an elastic membrane mounted on the vacuum chamber, and could be strained or relaxed by cyclic pressure. Since the cells are attached to the surface of the membrane, they presumably experience the same deformation as that was applied to the membrane. The system was easy to carry and to operate, with deformation rate (1%-21%) and frequency (0-0. 5Hz) which could be adjusted correctly according to experimental requirement, and could compare different deformation rate of three channels at the same time. The system ran stably and completely achieved design aims, and provided a method to study the biological behavior of cultured cells attached to the surface of the elastic membrane under mechanical strain in vitro.

Study of Abrasive Wear Volume Map for PTFE and PTFE Composites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Unal, H.; Sen, U.; Mimaroglu, A.

2007-11-01

The potential of this work is based on consideration of wear volume map for the evaluation of abrasive wear performance of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and PTFE composites. The fillers used in the composite are 25% bronze, 35% graphite and 17% glass fibre glass (GFR). The influence of filler materials, abrasion surface roughness and applied load values on abrasive wear performance of PTFE and PTFE composites were studied and evaluated. Experimental abrasive wear tests were carried out at atmospheric condition on pin-on-disc wear tribometer. Tests were performed under 4, 6, 8 and 10 N load values, travelling speed of 1 m/sec and abrasion surface roughness values of 5, 20 and 45 µm. Wear volume maps were obtained and the results showed that the lowest wear volume rate for PTFE is reached using GFR filler. Furthermore, the results also showed that the higher is the applied load and the roughness of the abrasion surface, the higher is the wear rate. Finally it is also concluded that abrasive wear process mechanism include ploughing and cutting mechanisms.

Effects of crystallinity and surface modification of calcium phosphate nanoparticles on the loading and release of tetracycline hydro-chloride

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Huaizhi; Yan, Dong; Menike Korale Gedara, Sriyani; Dingiri Marakkalage, Sajith Sudeepa Fernando; Gamage Kasun Methlal, Jothirathna; Han, YingChao; Dai, HongLian

2017-03-01

The influences of crystallinity and surface modification of calcium phosphate nanoparticles (nCaP) on their drug loading capacity and drug release profile were studied in the present investigation. The CaP nanoparticles with different crystallinity were prepared by precipitation method under different temperatures. CaP nanoparticles with lower crystallinity exhibited higher drug loading capacity. The samples were characterized by XRD, FT-IR, SEM, TEM and BET surface area analyzer respectively. The drug loading capacity of nCaP was evaluated to tetracycline hydro-chloride (TCH). The internalization of TCH loaded nCaP in cancer cell was observed by florescence microscope. nCaP could be stabilized and dispersed in aqueous solution by poly(acrylic acid) surface modification agent, leading to enhanced drug loading capacity. The drug release was conducted in different pH environment and the experimental data proved that nCaP were pH sensitive drug carrier, suggesting that nCaP could achieve the controlled drug release in intracellular acidic environment. Furthermore, nCaP with higher crystallinity showed lower drug release rate than that of lower crystallinity, indicating that the drug release profile could be adjusted by crystallinity of nCaP. nCaP with adjustable drug loading and release properties are promising candidate as drug carrier for disease treatment.

Wear characteristics of an unconstrained lumbar total disc replacement under a range of in vitro test conditions

PubMed Central

Fisher, John; Hall, Richard M.

2015-01-01

Abstract The effect of kinematics, loading and centre of rotation on the wear of an unconstrained total disc replacement have been investigated using the ISO 18192‐1 standard test as a baseline. Mean volumetric wear rate and surface morphological effects were reported. Changing the phasing of the flexions to create a low (but finite) amount of crossing path motion at the bearing surfaces resulted in a significant fall in wear volume. However, the rate of wear was still much larger than previously reported values under zero cross shear conditions. Reducing the load did not result in a significant change in wear rate. Moving the centre of rotation of the disc inferiorly did significantly increase wear rate. A phenomenon of debris re‐attachment on the UHMWPE surface was observed and hypothesised to be due to a relatively harsh tribological operating regime in which lubricant replenishment and particle migration out of the bearing contact zone were limited. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 105B: 46–52, 2017. PMID:26411540

A noninterventional study documenting use and success of implants with a new chemically modified titanium surface in daily dental practice.

PubMed

Luongo, Giuseppe; Oteri, Giacomo

2010-01-01

A new chemically modified titanium surface, SLActive, has recently been developed. The results obtained in controlled clinical trials indicate that this implant can be safely used and that it offers predictable results. The goal of this noninterventional study was to verify that the success rates of implants used in daily dental practice are comparable to those reported in controlled clinical trials. This study was a prospective, noninterventional study using implants with a chemically modified surface according to the daily dental practice procedures applied by private practitioners. The choice of the implantation procedure and the loading protocol were the responsibility of the investigator and were chosen according to the patient's needs. Thirty clinical centers actively participated in this study, and 226 patients were treated, of which, 8 patients were lost to follow-up. Because of the noninterventional design of the study, the patients were not selected according to strictly defined inclusion/exclusion criteria. Thus, the study included individuals with risk factors such as smoking (24%), untreated gingivitis or periodontitis (9%), and bruxism (6%). The implants were equally distributed between mandible (46%) and maxilla (54%). A bone augmentation procedure was done in 31% of the cases. Early loading (functional loading between 48 hours and 3 months after implant insertion) was applied most frequently (48%), followed by the conventional loading protocol (3 to 6 months after implant placement, 34%). Immediate restoration and immediate loading were rare (7% and 2%, respectively). Of 276 implants inserted and documented, 5 implants failures were reported, all of which were associated with a sinus floor augmentation procedure. The survival rate was 98.2% at the 1-year follow-up visit. The results showed that implants with a chemically modified surface can be successfully restored with success rates similar to those reported in formal clinical trials under more controlled conditions.

Silicon microfluidic flow focusing devices for the production of size-controlled PLGA based drug loaded microparticles.

PubMed

Keohane, Kieran; Brennan, Des; Galvin, Paul; Griffin, Brendan T

2014-06-05

The increasing realisation of the impact of size and surface properties on the bio-distribution of drug loaded colloidal particles has driven the application of micro fabrication technologies for the precise engineering of drug loaded microparticles. This paper demonstrates an alternative approach for producing size controlled drug loaded PLGA based microparticles using silicon Microfluidic Flow Focusing Devices (MFFDs). Based on the precise geometry and dimensions of the flow focusing channel, microparticle size was successfully optimised by modifying the polymer type, disperse phase (Qd) flow rate, and continuous phase (Qc) flow rate. The microparticles produced ranged in sizes from 5 to 50 μm and were highly monodisperse (coefficient of variation <5%). A comparison of Ciclosporin (CsA) loaded PLGA microparticles produced by MFFDs vs conventional production techniques was also performed. MFFDs produced microparticles with a narrower size distribution profile, relative to the conventional approaches. In-vitro release kinetics of CsA was found to be influenced by the production technique, with the MFFD approach demonstrating the slowest rate of release over 7 days (4.99 ± 0.26%). Finally, MFFDs were utilised to produce pegylated microparticles using the block co-polymer, PEG-PLGA. In contrast to the smooth microparticles produced using PLGA, PEG-PLGA microparticles displayed a highly porous surface morphology and rapid CsA release, with 85 ± 6.68% CsA released after 24h. The findings from this study demonstrate the utility of silicon MFFDs for the precise control of size and surface morphology of PLGA based microparticles with potential drug delivery applications. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Influence of sludge properties and hydraulic loading on the performance of secondary settling tanks--full-scale operational results.

PubMed

Vestner, R J; Günthert, F Wolfgang

2004-01-01

Full-scale investigations at a WWTP with a two-stage secondary settling tank process revealed relationships between significant operating parameters and performance in terms of effluent suspended solids concentration. Besides common parameters (e.g. surface overflow rate and sludge volume loading rate) feed SS concentration and flocculation time must be considered. Concentration of the return activated sludge may help to estimate the performance of existing secondary settling tanks.

Walking economy is predictably determined by speed, grade, and gravitational load.

PubMed

Ludlow, Lindsay W; Weyand, Peter G

2017-11-01

The metabolic energy that human walking requires can vary by more than 10-fold, depending on the speed, surface gradient, and load carried. Although the mechanical factors determining economy are generally considered to be numerous and complex, we tested a minimum mechanics hypothesis that only three variables are needed for broad, accurate prediction: speed, surface grade, and total gravitational load. We first measured steady-state rates of oxygen uptake in 20 healthy adult subjects during unloaded treadmill trials from 0.4 to 1.6 m/s on six gradients: -6, -3, 0, 3, 6, and 9°. Next, we tested a second set of 20 subjects under three torso-loading conditions (no-load, +18, and +31% body weight) at speeds from 0.6 to 1.4 m/s on the same six gradients. Metabolic rates spanned a 14-fold range from supine rest to the greatest single-trial walking mean (3.1 ± 0.1 to 43.3 ± 0.5 ml O 2 ·kg -body -1 ·min -1 , respectively). As theorized, the walking portion (V̇o 2-walk  =  V̇o 2-gross - V̇o 2-supine-rest ) of the body's gross metabolic rate increased in direct proportion to load and largely in accordance with support force requirements across both speed and grade. Consequently, a single minimum-mechanics equation was derived from the data of 10 unloaded-condition subjects to predict the pooled mass-specific economy (V̇o 2-gross , ml O 2 ·kg -body + load -1 ·min -1 ) of all the remaining loaded and unloaded trials combined ( n = 1,412 trials from 90 speed/grade/load conditions). The accuracy of prediction achieved ( r 2  = 0.99, SEE = 1.06 ml O 2 ·kg -1 ·min -1 ) leads us to conclude that human walking economy is predictably determined by the minimum mechanical requirements present across a broad range of conditions. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Introduced is a "minimum mechanics" model that predicts human walking economy across a broad range of conditions from only three variables: speed, surface grade, and body-plus-load mass. The derivation/validation data set includes steady-state loaded and unloaded walking trials ( n = 3,414) that span a fourfold range of walking speeds on each of six different surface gradients (-6 to +9°). The accuracy of our minimum mechanics model ( r 2  = 0.99; SEE = 1.06 ml O 2 ·kg -1 ·min -1 ) appreciably exceeds that of currently used standards. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

The influence of sediment transport rate on the development of structure in gravel bed rivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ockelford, Annie; Rice, Steve; Powell, Mark; Reid, Ian; Nguyen, Thao; Tate, Nick; Wood, Jo

2013-04-01

Although adjustments of surface grain size are known to be strongly influenced by sediment transport rate little work has systematically explored how different transport rates can affect the development of surface structure in gravel bed rivers. Specifically, it has been well established that the transport of mixed sized sediments leads to the development of a coarser surface or armour layer which occurs over larger areas of the gravel bed. Armour layer development is known to moderate overall sediment transport rate as well as being extremely sensitive to changes in applied shear stress. However, during this armouring process a bed is created where, smaller gain scale changes, to the bed surface are also apparent such as the development of pebble clusters and imbricate structures. Although these smaller scale changes affect the overall surface grain size distribution very little their presence has the ability to significantly increase the surface stability and hence alter overall sediment transport rates. Consequently, the interplay between the moderation of transport rate as a function of surface coarsening at a larger scale and moderation of transport rate as a function of the development of structure on the bed surface at the smaller scale is complicated and warrants further investigation. During experiments a unimodal grain size distribution (σg = 1.30, D50 = 8.8mm) was exposed to 3 different levels of constant discharge that produced sediment transport conditions ranging from marginal transport to conditions approaching full mobility of all size fractions. Sediment was re-circulated during the experiments surface grain size distribution bed load and fractional transport rates were measured at a high temporal resolution such that the time evolution of the beds could be fully described. Discussion concentrates on analysing the effects of the evolving bed condition sediment transport rate (capacity) and transported grain size (competence). The outcome of this research is pertinent to developing new methods of linking the development of bed surface organisation with near bed flow characteristics and bed load transport in gravel bed rivers. Keywords: Graded, Sediment, Structure

Effect of Microstructural Evolution and Hardening in Subsurface on Wear Behavior of Mg-3Al-1Zn Alloy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liang, C.; Li, C.; An, J.; Yu, M.; Hu, Y. C.; Lin, W. H.; Liu, F.; Ding, Y. H.

2013-12-01

Dry sliding tests were performed on as-cast AZ31 alloy using a pin-on-disc configuration. Coefficient of friction and wear rate were measured within a load range of 5-360 N at a sliding velocity of 0.785 m/s. Worn surface morphologies were examined using scanning electron microscopy. Five wear mechanisms, namely abrasion, oxidation, delamination, thermal softening, and melting, have been observed. Surface hardness, subsurface plastic strain, worn surface temperature, and cross-sectional optical microscopy were used to characterize hardness change, plastic deformation, and the microstructure evolution in subsurface. The results illustrate the correlation between the wear behavior and evolution of microstructure and hardness in subsurface, and reveal that in the load range of 5-120 N, surface oxidation and hardening originating from large plastic deformation play an important role in maintaining the mild wear, and softening originating from dynamic recrystallization in subsurface and surface melting are responsible for the severe wear in the load range of 120-360 N.

Investigation on heat transfer analysis and its effect on a multi-mode, beam-wave interaction for a 140 GHz, MW-class gyrotron

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Qiao; Liu, Yinghui; Chen, Zhaowei; Niu, Xinjian; Li, Hongfu; Xu, Jianhua

2018-04-01

The interaction cavity of a 140 GHz, 1 MW continuous wave gyrotron developed in UESTC will be loaded with a very large heat load in the inner surface during operation. In order to reduce the heat, the axial wedge grooves of the outside surface of the cavity are considered and employed as the heat radiation structure. Thermoanalysis and structural analysis were discussed in detail to obtain the effects of heat on the cavity. In thermoanalysis, the external coolant-flow rates ranging from 20 L/min to 50 L/min were considered, and the distribution of wall loading was loaded as the heat flux source. In structural analysis, the cavity's deformation caused by the loads of heat and pressure was calculated. Compared with a non-deformed cavity, the effects of deformation on the performance of a cavity were discussed. For a cold-cavity, the results show that the quality factor would be reduced by 72, 89, 99 and 171 at the flow rates of 50 L/min, 40 L/min, 30 L/min and 20 L/min, respectively. Correspondingly, the cold-cavity frequencies would be decreased by 0.13 GHz, 0.15 GHz, 0.19 GHz and 0.38 GHz, respectively. For a hot-cavity, the results demonstrate that the output port frequencies would be dropped down, but the offset would be gradually decreased with increasing coolant-flow rate. Meanwhile, the output powers would be reduced dramatically with decreasing coolant-flow rate. In addition, when the coolant-flow rate reaches 40 L/min, the output power and the frequency are just reduced by 30 kW and 0.151 GHz, respectively.

Effect of amine functionalization of spherical MCM-41 and SBA-15 on controlled drug release

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

Szegedi, A., E-mail: szegedi@chemres.h; Popova, M.; Goshev, I.

2011-05-15

MCM-41 and SBA-15 silica materials with spherical morphology and different particle sizes were synthesized and modified by post-synthesis method with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES). A comparative study of the adsorption and release of a model drug, ibuprofen, were carried out. The modified and drug loaded mesoporous materials were characterized by XRD, TEM, N{sub 2} physisorption, thermal analysis, elemental analysis and FT-IR spectroscopy. Surface modification with amino groups resulted in high degree of ibuprofen loading and slow rate of release for MCM-41, whereas it was the opposite for SBA-15. The adsorbed drug content and the delivery rate can be predetermined by the choicemore » of mesoporous material with the appropriate structural characteristics and surface functionality. -- Graphical Abstract: Ibuprofen delivery from the parent and amino-modified spherical MCM-41 materials with 100 nm (small) and 500 nm (large) particle sizes. Display Omitted Highlights: {yields} Spherical type MCM-41 and SBA-15 with different particle sizes were modified by APTES. {yields} Adsorption and release rate of ibuprofen were compared. {yields} High degree of ibuprofen loading, slow release rate for MCM-41, the opposite for SBA-15. {yields} MCM-41 with 100 nm particles was more stable and showed slower release rate« less

Effects of temperature, loading rate and nanowire length on torsional deformation and mechanical properties of aluminium nanowires investigated using molecular dynamics simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sung, Po-Hsien; Wu, Cheng-Da; Fang, Te-Hua

2012-05-01

Single-crystal aluminium nanowires under torsion are studied using molecular dynamics simulations based on the many-body tight-binding potential. The effects of temperature, loading rate and nanowire length are evaluated in terms of atomic trajectories, potential energy, von Mises stress, a centrosymmetry parameter, torque, shear modulus and radial distribution function. Simulation results clearly show that torsional deformation begins at the surface, extends close to the two ends and finally diffuses to the middle part. The critical torsional angle which represents the beginning of plastic deformation varies with different conditions. Before the critical torsional angle is reached, the potential energy and the torque required for the deformation of a nanowire significantly increase with the torsional angle. The critical torsional angle increases with increasing nanowire length and loading rate and decreasing temperature. The torque required for the deformation decreases and the shear modulus increases with increasing nanowire length. For higher temperatures and higher loading rates, torsional buckling more easily occurs at the two ends of a nanowire, whereas it occurs towards the middle part at or below room temperature with lower loading rates. Geometry instability occurs before material instability (buckling) for a long nanowire.

Wind Tunnel Testing of Microtabs and Microjets for Active Load Control of Wind Turbine Blades

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cooperman, Aubryn Murray

Increases in wind turbine size have made controlling loads on the blades an important consideration for future turbine designs. One approach that could reduce extreme loads and minimize load variation is to incorporate active control devices into the blades that are able to change the aerodynamic forces acting on the turbine. A wind tunnel model has been constructed to allow testing of different active aerodynamic load control devices. Two such devices have been tested in the UC Davis Aeronautical Wind Tunnel: microtabs and microjets. Microtabs are small surfaces oriented perpendicular to an airfoil surface that can be deployed and retracted to alter the lift coefficient of the airfoil. Microjets produce similar effects using air blown perpendicular to the airfoil surface. Results are presented here for both static and dynamic performance of the two devices. Microtabs, located at 95% chord on the lower surface and 90% chord on the upper surface, with a height of 1% chord, produce a change in the lift coefficient of 0.18, increasing lift when deployed on the lower surface and decreasing lift when deployed on the upper surface. Microjets with a momentum coefficient of 0.006 at the same locations produce a change in the lift coefficient of 0.19. The activation time for both devices is less than 0.3 s, which is rapid compared to typical gust rise times. The potential of active device to mitigate changes in loads was tested using simulated gusts. The gusts were produced in the wind tunnel by accelerating the test section air speed at rates of up to 7 ft/s 2. Open-loop control of microtabs was tested in two modes: simultaneous and sequential tab deployment. Activating all tabs along the model span simultaneously was found to produce a change in the loads that occurred more rapidly than a gust. Sequential tab deployment more closely matched the rates of change due to gusts and tab deployment. A closed-loop control system was developed for the microtabs using a simple feedback control based on lift measurements from a six-component balance. An alternative input to the control system that would be easier to implement on a turbine was also investigated: the lift force was estimated using the difference in surface pressure at 15% chord. Both control system approaches were found to decrease lift deviations by around 50% during rapid changes in the free stream air speed.

Experimental analysis of quasi-static and dynamic fracture initiation toughness of gy4 armor steel material

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ren, Peng; Guo, Zitao

Quasi-static and dynamic fracture initiation toughness of gy4 armour steel material are investigated using three point bend specimen. The modified split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) apparatus with digital image correlation (DIC) system is applied to dynamic loading experiments. Full-field deformation measurements are obtained by using DIC to elucidate on the strain fields associated with the mechanical response. A series of experiments are conducted at different strain rate ranging from 10-3 s-1 to 103 s-1, and the loading rate on the fracture initiation toughness is investigated. Specially, the scanning electron microscope imaging technique is used to investigate the fracture failure micromechanism of fracture surfaces. The gy4 armour steel material fracture toughness is found to be sensitive to strain rate and higher for dynamic loading as compared to quasi-static loading. This work is supported by National Nature Science Foundation under Grant 51509115.

High and low torque handpieces: cutting dynamics, enamel cracking and tooth temperature.

PubMed

Watson, T F; Flanagan, D; Stone, D G

2000-06-24

The aim of these experiments was to compare the cutting dynamics of high-speed high-torque (speed-increasing) and high-speed low-torque (air-turbine) handpieces and evaluate the effect of handpiece torque and bur type on sub-surface enamel cracking. Temperature changes were also recorded in teeth during cavity preparation with high and low torque handpieces with diamond and tungsten carbide (TC) burs. The null hypothesis of this study was that high torque handpieces cause more damage to tooth structure during cutting and lead to a rise in temperature within the pulp-chamber. Images of the dynamic interactions between burs and enamel were recorded at video rate using a confocal microscope. Central incisors were mounted on a specially made servomotor driven stage for cutting with a type 57 TC bur. The two handpiece types were used with simultaneous recording of cutting load and rate. Sub-surface enamel cracking caused by the use of diamond and TC burs with high and low torque was also examined. Lower third molars were sectioned horizontally to remove the cusp tips and then the two remaining crowns cemented together with cyanoacrylate adhesive, by their flat surfaces. Axial surfaces of the crowns were then prepared with the burs and handpieces. The teeth were then separated and the original sectioned surface examined for any cracks using a confocal microscope. Heat generation was measured using thermocouples placed into the pulp chambers of extracted premolars, with diamond and TC burs/high-low torque handpiece variables, when cutting occlusal and cervical cavities. When lightly loaded the two handpiece types performed similarly. However, marked differences in cutting mechanisms were noted when increased forces were applied to the handpieces with, generally, an increase in cutting rate. The air turbine could not cope with steady heavy loads, tending to stall. 'Rippling' was seen in the interface as this stall developed, coinciding with the bur 'clearing' itself. No differences were noted between different handpieces and burs, in terms of sub-surface enamel cracking. Similarly, no differences were recorded for temperature rise during cavity preparation. Differences in cutting mechanisms were seen between handpieces with high and low torque, especially when the loads and cutting rates were increased. The speed increasing handpiece was better able to cope with increased loading. Nevertheless, there was no evidence of increased tooth cracking or heating with this type handpiece, indicating that these do not have any deleterious effects on the tooth.

THE IMPACT OF HUMANS ON CONTINENTAL EROSION AND SEDIMENTATION (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilkinson, B.; McElroy, B.

2009-12-01

Tectonic uplift and erosional denudation of orogenic belts have long been the most important geologic processes that serve to shape continental surfaces, but the rate of geomorphic change resulting from these natural phenomena has now been outstripped by human activities associated with agriculture, construction, and mining. Although humans are now the most important geomorphic agent on the planet’s surface, natural and anthropogenic processes serve to modify quite different parts of the Earth landscape. In order to better understand the impact of humans on continental erosion, we have examined both long-term and short-term data on rates of sediment transfer in response to glacio-fluvial and anthropogenic processes. Phanerozoic rates of subaerial denudation inferred from preserved volumes of sedimentary rock require a mean continental erosion rate on the order of 16 meters per million years (m/My), resulting in the accumulation of about 5 giga-tons of sediment per year (Gt/y). Erosion irregularly increased over the ~542 million year span of Phanerozoic time to a Pliocene value of 81 m/My (~19 Gt/y). Current estimates of large river sediment loads are similar to this late Neogene value, and require net denudation of ice-free land surfaces at a rate of about 74 m/My (~25 Gt/y). Consideration of variation in large river sediment loads and the geomorphology of respective river basin catchments suggests that natural erosion is primarily confined to drainage headwaters; ~83% of the global river sediment flux is derived from the highest 10% of the Earth’s surface. Subaerial erosion as a result of human activity, primarily through agricultural practices, has resulted in a sharp increase in net rates of continental denudation; although less well constrained than estimates based on surviving rock volumes or current river loads, available data suggest that present farmland denudation is proceeding at a rate of about 600 m/My (~74 Gt/y), and is largely confined to lower elevations of the Earth’s land surface, primarily along passive continental margins; ~83% of cropland erosion occurs over the lower 65% of the Earth’s surface. The conspicuous disparity between natural sediment fluxes suggested by data on rock volumes and river loads (~25 Gt/y) and anthropogenic fluxes inferred from measured and modeled cropland soil losses (74 Gt/y) is readily resolved by data on thicknesses and ages of alluvial sediment that has been deposited immediately down slope from eroding croplands over the history of human agriculture. Accumulation of post-settlement alluvium on higher order tributary channels and floodplains (mean rate ~12,600 m/My) is the most important geomorphic process in terms of the erosion and deposition of sediment that is currently shaping the landscape of the Earth. It far exceeds even the impact of Pleistocene continental glaciers or the current impact of alpine erosion by glacial and/or fluvial processes. Human beings are therefore the dominant agent of topographic change operating on the surface of the planet today.

Linear Quadratic Tracking Design for a Generic Transport Aircraft with Structural Load Constraints

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burken, John J.; Frost, Susan A.; Taylor, Brian R.

2011-01-01

When designing control laws for systems with constraints added to the tracking performance, control allocation methods can be utilized. Control allocations methods are used when there are more command inputs than controlled variables. Constraints that require allocators are such task as; surface saturation limits, structural load limits, drag reduction constraints or actuator failures. Most transport aircraft have many actuated surfaces compared to the three controlled variables (such as angle of attack, roll rate & angle of side slip). To distribute the control effort among the redundant set of actuators a fixed mixer approach can be utilized or online control allocation techniques. The benefit of an online allocator is that constraints can be considered in the design whereas the fixed mixer cannot. However, an online control allocator mixer has a disadvantage of not guaranteeing a surface schedule, which can then produce ill defined loads on the aircraft. The load uncertainty and complexity has prevented some controller designs from using advanced allocation techniques. This paper considers actuator redundancy management for a class of over actuated systems with real-time structural load limits using linear quadratic tracking applied to the generic transport model. A roll maneuver example of an artificial load limit constraint is shown and compared to the same no load limitation maneuver.

Reduction of Trapped-Ion Anomalous Heating by in situ Surface Plasma Cleaning

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-04-29

the trap chip temperature. To load ions, we initially cool 88Sr atoms into a remotely-located magneto - optical trap (MOT), then use a resonant push beam... trap heating rates [10]. Furthermore, some previous experiments have shown an improvement in the heating rates of surface-electrode ion traps after...rate when the trap chip is held at 4 K is not significantly improved by the plasma cleaning. While the observed frequency scaling is not the same in

Friction and wear behaviour of plasma sprayed Cr2O3-TiO2 coating

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bagde, Pranay; Sapate, S. G.; Khatirkar, R. K.; Vashishtha, Nitesh; Tailor, Satish

2018-02-01

Cr2O3-25TiO2 coating was deposited by atmospheric plasma spray (APS) coating technique. Effect of load (5-30 N) and sliding velocity (0.25, 0.75 m s-1) on friction coefficient and abrasive wear behaviour of the Cr2O3-25TiO2 coating was studied. Mechanical and microstructural characterization of the Cr2O3-25TiO2 coating was carried out. With an increase in sliding velocity, abrasive wear rate and friction coefficient (COF) decreased while wear rate and friction coefficient showed an increasing trend with the load. The worn out surfaces were analyzed by SEM, EDS and XRD. At lower sliding velocity, XRD analysis revealed peaks of Ti2O3, Ti3O5, CrO2 and CrO3. In addition, peak of Ti4O7 was also detected at higher sliding velocity and at 30 N load. At higher sliding velocity medium to severe tribo oxidation was observed. XPS analysis of worn surfaces at both the sliding velocities, showed surface film of oxides of titanium and chromium along with Cr(OH)3. Magneli phase titanium oxides with sub stoichiometric composition, along with surface films of chromium oxides and hydroxides altered the friction and wear behaviour of the coating. The decrease in friction coefficient with an increase in sliding velocity was attributed to tribo oxides and tribochemical reaction films having lower shear strength with good lubricating properties. The mechanism of material removal involved plastic deformation at lower load whereas inter-granular and trans-granular fracture, delamination cracking and splat fracture was observed with an increase load from 10 N to 30 N.

Estimation of the dust production rate from the tungsten armour after repetitive ELM-like heat loads

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pestchanyi, S.; Garkusha, I.; Makhlaj, V.; Landman, I.

2011-12-01

Experimental simulations for the erosion rate of tungsten targets under ITER edge-localized mode (ELM)-like surface heat loads of 0.75 MJ m-2 causing surface melting and of 0.45 MJ m-2 without melting have been performed in the QSPA-Kh50 plasma accelerator. Analytical considerations allow us to conclude that for both energy deposition values the erosion mechanism is solid dust ejection during surface cracking under the action of thermo-stress. Tungsten influx into the ITER containment of NW~5×1018 W per medium size ELM of 0.75 MJ m-2 and 0.25 ms time duration has been estimated. The radiation cooling power of Prad=150-300 MW due to such influx of tungsten is intolerable: it should cool the ITER core to 1 keV within a few seconds.

Further study on the wheel-rail impact response induced by a single wheel flat: the coupling effect of strain rate and thermal stress

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jing, Lin; Han, Liangliang

2017-12-01

A comprehensive dynamic finite-element simulation method was proposed to study the wheel-rail impact response induced by a single wheel flat based on a 3-D rolling contact model, where the influences of the structural inertia, strain rate effect of wheel-rail materials and thermal stress due to the wheel-rail sliding friction were considered. Four different initial conditions (i.e. pure mechanical loading plus rate-independent, pure mechanical loading plus rate-dependent, thermo-mechanical loading plus rate-independent, and thermo-mechanical loading plus rate-dependent) were involved into explore the corresponding impact responses in term of the vertical impact force, von-Mises equivalent stress, equivalent plastic strain and shear stress. Influences of train speed, flat length and axle load on the flat-induced wheel-rail impact response were discussed, respectively. The results indicate that the maximum thermal stresses are occurred on the tread of the wheel and on the top surface of the middle rail; the strain rate hardening effect contributes to elevate the von-Mises equivalent stress and restrain the plastic deformation; and the initial thermal stress due to the sliding friction will aggravate the plastic deformation of wheel and rail. Besides, the wheel-rail impact responses (i.e. impact force, von-Mises equivalent stress, equivalent plastic strain, and XY shear stress) induced by a flat are sensitive to the train speed, flat length and axle load.

Improving the controlled release of water-insoluble emodin from amino-functionalized mesoporous silica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Yunqiang; Wang, Chunfeng; Zhou, Guowei; Wu, Yue; Chen, Jing

2012-06-01

Several types of amino-functionalized mesoporous silica, including F5-SBA-15, F10-SBA-15, and F15-SBA-15 were prepared through co-condensation of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES) in varying molar ratios (5 mol%, 10 mol%, and 15 mol%) via a hydrothermal process. The materials obtained were characterized by means of small-angle X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, N2 adsorption-desorption, Fourier transformed infrared spectra, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Increasing APTES molar ratios decreased the degree of orderliness of the functionalized mesoporous silica. Pure and amino-functionalized SBA-15 samples were employed as supports for the controlled release of water-insoluble drug emodin. Loading experiments showed that drug loading capacities mainly depended on the surface areas and pore diameters of the carriers. Controlled release profiles of emodin-loaded samples were studied in phosphate buffered saline (PBS, pH 7.4), and results indicated that the emodin release rate could be controlled by surface amino-functionalized carriers. Emodin loaded on functionalized mesoporous supports exhibited a lower release rate than that of loaded on pure SBA-15, emodin loaded on F10-SBA-15 showed the smallest release amount (71.74 wt%) after stirring in PBS for 60 h. Findings suggest that functionalized mesoporous SBA-15 is a promising carrier for achieving prolonged release time periods.

A novel shell-structure cell microcarrier (SSCM) for cell transplantation and bone regeneration medicine.

PubMed

Su, Kai; Gong, Yihong; Wang, Chunming; Wang, Dong-An

2011-06-01

The present study aims to develop a novel open and hollow shell-structure cell microcarrier (SSCM) to improve the anchorage-dependent cell (ADC) loading efficiency, increase the space for cell proliferation and tissue regeneration, and better propel its therapeutic effects. Gelatin particles were prepared with oil/water/oil (o/w/o) technique and modified by an adjustable surface crosslinking technique and subsequent release of uncrosslinked material. Optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were utilized to observe the morphologies of the microcarriers. Cell loading tests were performed to evaluate the biocompatibilities and effect on osteogenesis of SSCM. SSCMs were successfully fabricated via the surface technique. The shell-structure could allow the cell to attach and grow on both outer and inner surface of sphere and provide adequate space for cell proliferation and extracellular matrix (ECM) secretion. The cell loading rate, proliferation rate and osteogenesis-related gene expressions on the SSCMs were higher than those on the spherical gelatin microcarriers. The outstanding performance of injectable SSCMs endowed with favorable micro-structure, desirable cytocompatibility and enhanced cell affinity makes them as a good choice as cell delivery vehicle for transplanting therapeutic cells towards the scope of tissue regeneration.

Functional characterization of normal and degraded bovine meniscus: Rate-dependent indentation and friction studies

PubMed Central

Baro, Vincent J.; Bonnevie, Edward D.; Lai, Xiaohan; Price, Christopher; Burris, David L.; Wang, Liyun

2013-01-01

The menisci are known to play important roles in normal joint function and the development of diseases such as osteoarthritis. However, our understanding of meniscus’ load bearing and lubrication properties at the tissue level remains limited. The objective of this investigation was to characterize the site- and rate-dependency of the compressive and frictional responses of the meniscus under a spherical contact load. Using a custom testing device, indentation tests with rates of 1, 10, 25, 50, and 100 μm/s were performed on bovine medial meniscus explants, which were harvested from five locations including the femoral apposing surface at the anterior, central, and posterior locations and the central portion at the deep layer and at the tibial apposing surface (n=5 per location). Sliding tests with rates of 0.05, 0.25, 1, and 5 mm/s were performed on the central femoral aspect and central tibial aspect superficial samples (n=6 per location). A separate set of superficial samples were subjected to papain digestion and tested prior to and post treatment. Our findings are: i) the Hertz contact model can be used to fit the force responses of meniscus under the conditions tested; ii) the anterior region is significantly stiffer than the posterior region and tissue modulus does not vary with tissue depth at the central region; iii) the friction coefficient of the meniscus is on the order of 0.02 under migratory contacts and the femoral apposing surface tends to show lower friction than the tibial apposing surface; iv) the meniscus exhibits increased modulus and lubrication with increased indentation and sliding rates; v) matrix degradation impedes the functional load support and lubrication properties of the tissue. The site- and rate-dependent properties of the meniscus may be attributed to spatial variations of the tissue’s biphasic structure. These properties substantiate the role of the meniscus as one of the important bearing surfaces of the knee. These data contribute to an improved understanding of meniscus function, and its role in degenerative joint diseases. In addition, the results provide functional metrics for developing engineered tissue replacements. PMID:22449445

[New methods for determining the relative load due to physical effort of the human body].

PubMed

Szubert, Józef; Szubert, Sławomir; Koszada-Włodarczyk, Wiesława; Bortkiewicz, Alicja

2014-01-01

The relative physical load (% VO2max) is the quotient of oxygen uptake (Vo2) during physical effort and maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max) by the human body. For this purpose the stress test must be performed. The relative load shows a high correlation with minute ventilation, cardiac output, heart rate, stroke volume, increased concentrations of catecholamines in the blood, inner temperature, weight, height and human body surface area. The relative load is a criterion for the maximum workloads admissible for healthy and sick workers. Besides, the classification of effort can be more precise when based on the relative load than on the energy output. Based on our own and international empirical evidence and the laws of heat transfer and fluid mechanics, a model of temperature control system has been developed, involving the elements of human cardiovascular and respiratory systems. Using this model, we have been able to develop our own methods of determining the relative load, applying only the body core temperature (Tw) or heart rate within one minute (HR), body mass (m), height (H), and body surface area (AD) instead of VO,max. The values of the relative physical load (% VO2max) obtained by using our own methods do not differ significantly from those obtained by other methods and by other researchers. The developed methods for determining the relative physical load (% VO2max) do not require the exercise test to be performed, therefore, they may be considered (after verification in an experimental study) a feasible alternative to current methods.

Subcritical crack growth in soda-lime glass in combined mode I and mode II loading

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Singh, Dileep; Shetty, Dinesh K.

1990-01-01

Subcritical crack growth under mixed-mode loading was studied in soda-lime glass. Pure mode I, combined mode I and mode II, and pure mode II loadings were achieved in precracked disk specimens by loading in diametral compression at selected angles with respect to the symmetric radial crack. Crack growth was monitored by measuring the resistance changes in a microcircuit grid consisting of parallel, electrically conducting grid lines deposited on the surface of the disk specimens by photolithography. Subcritical crack growth rates in pure mode I, pure mode II, and combined mode I and mode II loading could be described by an exponential relationship between crack growth rate and an effective crack driving force derived from a mode I-mode II fracture toughness envelope. The effective crack driving force was based on an empirical representation of the noncoplanar strain energy release rate. Stress intensities for kinked cracks were assessed using the method of caustics and an initial decrease and a subsequent increase in the subcritical crack growth rates of kinked cracks were shown to correlate with the variations of the mode I and the mode II stress intensities.

Loading rate and test temperature effects on fracture of In Situ niobium silicide-niobium composites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rigney, Joseph D.; Lewandowski, John J.

1996-10-01

Arc cast, extruded, and heat-treated in situ composites of niobium suicide (Nb5Si3) intermetallic with niobium phases (primary—Nbp and secondary—Nbs) exhibited high fracture resistance in comparison to monolithic Nb5Si3. In toughness tests conducted at 298 K and slow applied loading rates, the fracture process proceeded by the microcracking of the Nb5Si3 and plastic deformation of the Nbp and Nbs phases, producing resistance-curve behavior and toughnesses of 28 MPa√m with damage zone lengths less than 500 μm. The effects of changes in the Nbp yield strength and fracture behavior on the measured toughnesses were investigated by varying the loading rates during fracture tests at both 77 and 298 K. Quantitative fractography was utilized to completely characterize each fracture surface created at 298 K in order to determine the type of fracture mode ( i.e., dimpled, cleavage) exhibited by the Nbp. Specimens tested at either higher loading rates or lower test temperatures consistently exhibited a greater amount of cleavage fracture in the Nbp, while the Nbs, always remained ductile. However, the fracture toughness values determined from experiments spanning six orders of magnitude in loading rate at 298 and 77 K exhibited little variation, even under conditions when the majority of Nbp phases failed by cleavage at 77 K. The changes in fracture mode with increasing loading rate and/or decreasing test temperature and their effects on fracture toughness are rationalized by comparison to existing theoretical models.

Influence of wetting effect at the outer surface of the pipe on increase in leak rate - experimental results and discussion

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

Isozaki, Toshikuni; Shibata, Katsuyuki

1997-04-01

Experimental and computed results applicable to Leak Before Break analysis are presented. The specific area of investigation is the effect of the temperature distribution changes due to wetting of the test pipe near the crack on the increase in the crack opening area and leak rate. Two 12-inch straight pipes subjected to both internal pressure and thermal load, but not to bending load, are modelled. The leak rate was found to be very susceptible to the metal temperature of the piping. In leak rate tests, therefore, it is recommended that temperature distribution be measured precisely for a wide area.

A first generation dynamic ingress, redistribution and transport model of soil track-in: DIRT.

PubMed

Johnson, D L

2008-12-01

This work introduces a spatially resolved quantitative model, based on conservation of mass and first order transfer kinetics, for following the transport and redistribution of outdoor soil to, and within, the indoor environment by track-in on footwear. Implementations of the DIRT model examined the influence of room size, rug area and location, shoe size, and mass transfer coefficients for smooth and carpeted floor surfaces using the ratio of mass loading on carpeted to smooth floor surfaces as a performance metric. Results showed that in the limit for large numbers of random steps the dual aspects of deposition to and track-off from the carpets govern this ratio. Using recently obtained experimental measurements, historic transport and distribution parameters, cleaning efficiencies for the different floor surfaces, and indoor dust deposition rates to provide model boundary conditions, DIRT predicts realistic floor surface loadings. The spatio-temporal variability in model predictions agrees with field observations and suggests that floor surface dust loadings are constantly in flux; steady state distributions are hardly, if ever, achieved.

Near surface mechanical properties of optical single crystals and surface response to deterministic microgrinding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Randi, Joseph A., III

2005-12-01

This thesis makes use of microindentation, nanoindentation and nanoscratching methods to better understand the mechanical properties of single crystalline silicon, calcium fluoride, and magnesium fluoride. These properties are measured and are used to predict the material's response to material removal, specifically by grinding and polishing, which is a combination of elastic, plastic and fracture processes. The hardness anisotropy during Knoop microindentation, hardness from nanoindentation, and scratch morphology from nanoscratching are reported. This information is related to the surface microroughness from grinding. We show that mechanical property relationships that predict the surface roughness from lapping and deterministic microgrinding of optical glasses are applicable to single crystals. We show the range of hardness from some of the more common crystallographic faces. Magnesium fluoride, having a tetragonal structure, has 2-fold hardness anisotropy. Nanoindentation, as expected provides higher hardness than microindentation, but anisotropy is not observed. Nanoscratching provides the scratch profile during loading, after the load has been removed, and the coefficient of friction during the loading. Ductile and brittle mode scratching is present with brittle mode cracking being orientation specific. Subsurface damage (SSD) measurements are made using a novel process known as the MRF technique. Magnetorheological finishing is used to polish spots into the ground surface where SSD can be viewed. SSD is measured using an optical microscope and knowledge of the spot profile. This technique is calibrated with a previous technique and implemented to accurately measure SSD in single crystals. The data collected are compared to the surface microroughness of the ground surface, resulting in an upper bound relationship. The results indicate that SSD is always less than 1.4 times the peak-to-valley surface microroughness for single crystals regardless of the grinding conditions or mechanical properties. Single crystals have greater strain rate effects associated than optical glasses. Hence, the strain rate is investigated during grinding by applying more aggressive process parameters and measuring the resulting surface finish. It is observed that while there are weak materials and crystallographic orientation effects from process parameters, the changes in strain rate do not affect the surface finish of these materials.

Marginal bed load transport in a gravel bed stream, Sagehen Creek, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Andrews, E.D.

1994-01-01

Marginal bed load transport describes the condition when relatively few bed particles are moving at any time. Bed particles resting in the shallowest bed pockets will move when the dimensionless shear stress т* exceeds a value of about 0.020. As т* increases, the number of bed particles moving increases. Significant motion of bed particles, i.e., when a substantial fraction of the bed particles are moving, occurs when т* exceeds a value of about 0.060. Thus marginal bed load transport occurs over the domain 0.020 < т* < 0.060. Marginal bed load transport rates and associated hydraulic characteristics of Sagehen Creek, a small mountain gravel bed stream, were measured on 55 days at discharges ranging from slightly less than one half of the bank-full discharge to more than 4 times the bank-full discharge. Dimensionless shear stress varied from 0.032 to 0.042, and bed particles as large as the 80th percentile of the bed surface were transported. The relation between reference dimensionless shear stress and relative particle protrusion for Sagehen Creek was determined by varying т*ri to obtain the best fit of the Parker bed load function to the measured transport rates. During the period of record (water years 1954–1991), the mean annual quantity of bed load transported past the Sagehen Creek gage was 24.7 tons. Forty-seven percent of all bed load transported during the 38 years of record occurred in just 6 years. During 10 of the 38 years of record, essentially no bed load was transported. The median diameter of bed load was 26 mm, compared to 58 mm in the surface bed material.

Floodplain restoration enhances denitrification and reach-scale nitrogen removal in an agricultural stream.

PubMed

Roley, Sarah S; Tank, Jennifer L; Stephen, Mia L; Johnson, Laura T; Beaulieu, Jake J; Witter, Jonathan D

2012-01-01

Streams of the agricultural Midwest, USA, export large quantities of nitrogen, which impairs downstream water quality, most notably in the Gulf of Mexico. The two-stage ditch is a novel restoration practice, in which floodplains are constructed alongside channelized ditches. During high flows, water flows across the floodplains, increasing benthic surface area and stream water residence time, as well as the potential for nitrogen removal via denitrification. To determine two-stage ditch nitrogen removal efficacy, we measured denitrification rates in the channel and on the floodplains of a two-stage ditch in north-central Indiana for one year before and two years after restoration. We found that instream rates were similar before and after the restoration, and they were influenced by surface water NO3- concentration and sediment organic matter content. Denitrification rates were lower on the constructed floodplains and were predicted by soil exchangeable NO3- concentration. Using storm flow simulations, we found that two-stage ditch restoration contributed significantly to NO3- removal during storm events, but because of the high NO3- loads at our study site, < 10% of the NO3- load was removed under all storm flow scenarios. The highest percentage of NO3- removal occurred at the lowest loads; therefore, the two-stage ditch's effectiveness at reducing downstream N loading will be maximized when the practice is coupled with efforts to reduce N inputs from adjacent fields.

Effects of Load and Speed on Wear Rate of Abrasive Wear for 2014 Al Alloy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Odabas, D.

2018-01-01

In this paper, the effects of the normal load and sliding speed on wear rate of two-body abrasive wear for 2014 Al Alloy were investigated in detail. In order to understand the variation in wear behaviour with load and speed, wear tests were carried out at a sliding distance of 11 m, a speed of 0.36 m/s, a duration of 30 s and loads in the range 3-11 N using 220 grit abrasive paper, and at a speed range 0.09-0.90 m/s, a load of 5 N and an average sliding distance of 11 m using abrasive papers of 150 grit size under dry friction conditions. Before the wear tests, solution treatment of the 2014 Al alloy was carried out at temperatures of 505 and 520 °C for 1 h in a muffle furnace and then quenched in cold water at 15 °C. Later, the ageing treatment was carried out at 185 °C for 8 h in the furnace. Generally, wear rate due to time increased linearly and linear wear resistance decreased with increasing loads. However, the wear rate was directly proportional to the load up to a critical load of 7 N. After this load, the slope of the curves decreased because the excessive deformation of the worn surface and the instability of the abrasive grains began to increase. When the load on an abrasive grain reaches a critical value, the groove width is about 0.17 of the abrasive grain diameter, and the abrasive grains begin to fail. The wear rate due to time increased slightly as the sliding speed increased in the range 0.09-0.90 m/s. The reason for this is that changes arising from strain rate and friction heating are expected with increasing sliding speeds.

Porous polystyrene beads as carriers for self-emulsifying system containing loratadine.

PubMed

Patil, Pradeep; Paradkar, Anant

2006-03-01

The aim of this study was to formulate a self-emulsifying system (SES) containing a lipophilic drug, loratadine, and to explore the potential of preformed porous polystyrene beads (PPB) to act as carriers for such SES. Isotropic SES was formulated, which comprised Captex 200 (63% wt/wt), Cremophore EL (16% wt/wt), Capmul MCM (16% wt/wt), and loratadine (5% wt/wt). SES was evaluated for droplet size, drug content, and in vitro drug release. SES was loaded into preformed and characterized PPB using solvent evaporation method. SES-loaded PPB were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for density, specific surface area (S BET ), loading efficiency, drug content, and in vitro drug release. After SES loading, specific surface area reduced drastically, indicating filling of PPB micropores with SES. Loading efficiency was least for small size (SS) and comparable for medium size (MS) and large size (LS) PPB fractions. In vitro drug release was rapid in case of SS beads due to the presence of SES near to surface. LS fraction showed inadequate drug release owing to presence of deeper micropores that resisted outward diffusion of entrapped SES. Leaching of SES from micropores was the rate-limiting step for drug release. Geometrical features such as bead size and pore architecture of PPB were found to govern the loading efficiency and in vitro drug release from SES-loaded PPB.

Porous polystyrene beads as carriers for self-emulsifying system containing loratadine.

PubMed

Patil, Pradeep; Paradkar, Anant

2006-03-24

The aim of this study was to formulate a self-emulsifying system (SES) containing a lipophilic drug, loratadine, and to explore the potential of preformed porous polystyrene beads (PPB) to act as carriers for such SES. Isotropic SES was formulated, which comprised Captex 200 (63% wt/wt), Cremophore EL (16% wt/wt), Capmul MCM (16% wt/wt), and loratadine (5% wt/wt). SES was evaluated for droplet size, drug content, and in vitro drug release. SES was loaded into preformed and characterized PPB using solvent evaporation method. SES-loaded PPB were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for density, specific surface area (S(BET)), loading efficiency, drug content, and in vitro drug release. After SES loading, specific surface area reduced drastically, indicating filling of PPB micropores with SES. Loading efficiency was least for small size (SS) and comparable for medium size (MS) and large size (LS) PPB fractions. In vitro drug release was rapid in case of SS beads due to the presence of SES near to surface. LS fraction showed inadequate drug release owing to presence of deeper micropores that resisted outward diffusion of entrapped SES. Leaching of SES from micropores was the rate-limiting step for drug release. Geometrical features such as bead size and pore architecture of PPB were found to govern the loading efficiency and in vitro drug release from SES-loaded PPB.

Influence of Fault Surface Heterogeneity on Apparent Frictional Strength, Slip Mode and Rupture Mode: Insights from Meter-Scale Rock Friction Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, S.; Fukuyama, E.; Yamashita, F.; Mizoguchi, K.; Takizawa, S.; Kawakata, H.

2016-12-01

Influence of fault zone heterogeneity on the behavior of fault motion has been studied in many aspects, such as strain partitioning, heat generation, slip mode, rupture mode, and effective friction law. However, a multi-scale investigation of fault behavior due to heterogeneity was difficult in nature, because of the limited access to natural fault zones at the seismogenic depth and the lack of in situ high-resolution observations. To overcome these difficulties, we study the behavior of a meter-scale synthetic fault made of Indian metagabbro during laboratory direct shear experiments, utilizing high-density arrays of strain gauges mounted close to the fault. We focus on two target experiments that are loaded under the same normal stress of 6.7 MPa and loading rate of 0.01 mm/s, but with different initial surface conditions. To change the surface condition, we applied a fast loading experiment under a rate of 1 mm/s between the two target experiments. It turned out the fast loading activated many foreshocks before the mainshock and caused a roaming of the mainshock nucleation site. These features were closely related to the re-distribution of the real contact area and surface wear, which together reflected a more heterogeneous state of the surface condition. During the first target experiment before the fast loading, the synthetic fault moved in a classic stick-slip fashion and the typical rupture mode was subshear within the range of the fault length. However, during the second target experiment, the synthetic fault inherited the heterogeneous features generated from the previous fast loading, showing a macroscopic creep-like behavior that actually consisted of many small stick-slip events. The apparent frictional strength increased while the recurrence interval and the stress drop decreased, compared to the levels seen in the first target experiment. The rupture mode became more complicated; supershear phases sometimes emerged but may only exist transiently. Their occurrence or termination showed a strong correlation with the local stress field characterized by short-range coherence. These observations highlight the role of surface heterogeneity in influencing fault motion, both macroscopically and locally, and have important implications for understanding the behavior of natural faults.

Dry sliding wear behavior of Al 2219/SiCp-Gr hybrid metal matrix composites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Basavarajappa, S.; Chandramohan, G.; Mukund, K.; Ashwin, M.; Prabu, M.

2006-12-01

The dry sliding wear behavior of Al 2219 alloy and Al 2219/SiCp/Gr hybrid composites are investigated under similar conditions. The composites are fabricated using the liquid metallurgy technique. The dry sliding wear test is carried out for sliding speeds up to 6 m/s and for normal loads up to 60 N using a pin on disc apparatus. It is found that the addition of SiCp and graphite reinforcements increases the wear resistance of the composites. The wear rate decreases with the increase in SiCp reinforcement content. As speed increases, the wear rate decreases initially and then increases. The wear rate increases with the increase in load. Scanning electron microscopy micrographs of the worn surface are used to predict the nature of the wear mechanism. Abrasion is the principle wear mechanism for the composites at low sliding speeds and loads. At higher loads, the wear mechanism changes to delamination.

Aquatic macrophytes can be used for wastewater polishing but not for purification in constructed wetlands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, Yingying; Harpenslager, Sarah F.; van Kempen, Monique M. L.; Verbaarschot, Evi J. H.; Loeffen, Laury M. J. M.; Roelofs, Jan G. M.; Smolders, Alfons J. P.; Lamers, Leon P. M.

2017-02-01

The sequestration of nutrients from surface waters by aquatic macrophytes and sediments provides an important service to both natural and constructed wetlands. While emergent species take up nutrients from the sediment, submerged and floating macrophytes filter nutrients directly from the surface water, which may be more efficient in constructed wetlands. It remains unclear, however, whether their efficiency is sufficient for wastewater purification and how plant species and nutrient loading affects nutrient distribution over plants, water and sediment. We therefore determined nutrient removal efficiencies of different vegetation (Azolla filiculoides, Ceratophyllum demersum and Myriophyllum spicatum) and sediment types (clay, peaty clay and peat) at three nutrient input rates, in a full factorial, outdoor mesocosm experiment. At low loading (0.43 mg P m-2 d-1), plant uptake was the main pathway (100 %) for phosphorus (P) removal, while sediments showed a net P release. A. filiculoides and M. spicatum showed the highest biomass production and could be harvested regularly for nutrient recycling, whereas C. demersum was outcompeted by spontaneously developing macrophytes and algae. Higher nutrient loading only stimulated A. filiculoides growth. At higher rates ( ≥ 21.4 mg P m-2 d-1), 50-90 % of added P ended up in sediments, with peat sediments becoming more easily saturated. For nitrogen (N), 45-90 % was either taken up by the sediment or lost to the atmosphere at loadings ≥ 62 mg N m-2 d-1. This shows that aquatic macrophytes can indeed function as an efficient nutrient filter but only for low loading rates (polishing) and not for high rates (purification). The outcome of this controlled study not only contributes to our understanding of nutrient dynamics in constructed wetlands but also shows the differential effects of wetland sediment types and plant species. Furthermore, the acquired knowledge may benefit the application of macrophyte harvesting to remove and recycle nutrients from both constructed wetlands and nutrient-loaded natural wetlands.

A generalized force-modified potential energy surface (G-FMPES) for mechanochemical simulations

DOE PAGES

Subramanian, Gopinath; Mathew, Nithin; Leiding, Jeffery A.

2015-10-05

We describe the modifications that a spatially varying external load produces on a Born-Oppenheimer potential energy surface (PES) by calculating static quantities of interest. The effects of the external loads are exemplified using electronic structure calculations (at the HF/6-31G** level) of two different molecules: ethane and hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-s-triazine (RDX). The calculated transition states and The Hessian matrices of stationary points show that spatially varying external loads shift the stationary points and modify the curvature of the PES, thereby affecting the harmonic transition rates by altering both the energy barrier as well as the prefactor. The harmonic spectra of both molecules aremore » blue-shifted with increasing compressive “pressure.” Some stationary points on the RDX-PES disappear under application of the external load, indicating the merging of an energy minimum with a saddle point.« less

Dynamic Response and Failure Mechanism of Brittle Rocks Under Combined Compression-Shear Loading Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Yuan; Dai, Feng

2018-03-01

A novel method is developed for characterizing the mechanical response and failure mechanism of brittle rocks under dynamic compression-shear loading: an inclined cylinder specimen using a modified split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) system. With the specimen axis inclining to the loading direction of SHPB, a shear component can be introduced into the specimen. Both static and dynamic experiments are conducted on sandstone specimens. Given carefully pulse shaping, the dynamic equilibrium of the inclined specimens can be satisfied, and thus the quasi-static data reduction is employed. The normal and shear stress-strain relationships of specimens are subsequently established. The progressive failure process of the specimen illustrated via high-speed photographs manifests a mixed failure mode accommodating both the shear-dominated failure and the localized tensile damage. The elastic and shear moduli exhibit certain loading-path dependence under quasi-static loading but loading-path insensitivity under high loading rates. Loading rate dependence is evidently demonstrated through the failure characteristics involving fragmentation, compression and shear strength and failure surfaces based on Drucker-Prager criterion. Our proposed method is convenient and reliable to study the dynamic response and failure mechanism of rocks under combined compression-shear loading.

Assessment of physiological performance and perception of pushing different wheelchairs on indoor modular units simulating a surface roughness often encountered in under-resourced settings.

PubMed

Sasaki, Kotaro; Rispin, Karen

2017-01-01

In under-resourced settings where motorized wheelchairs are rarely available, manual wheelchair users with limited upper-body strength and functionalities need to rely on assisting pushers for their mobility. Because traveling surfaces in under-resourced settings are often unpaved and rough, wheelchair pushers could experience high physiological loading. In order to evaluate pushers' physiological loading and to improve wheelchair designs, we built indoor modular units that simulate rough surface conditions, and tested a hypothesis that pushing different wheelchairs would result in different physiological performances and pushers' perception of difficulty on the simulated rough surface. Eighteen healthy subjects pushed two different types of pediatric wheelchairs (Moti-Go manufactured by Motivation, and KidChair by Hope Haven) fitted with a 50-kg dummy on the rough and smooth surfaces at self-selected speeds. Oxygen uptake, traveling distance for 6 minutes, and the rating of difficulty were obtained. The results supported our hypothesis, showing that pushing Moti-Go on the rough surface was physiologically less loading than KidChair, but on the smooth surface, the two wheelchairs did not differ significantly. These results indicate wheelchair designs to improve pushers' performance in under-resourced settings should be evaluated on rough surfaces.

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

Smith, O.L.

A first-principles model of a nominal 20-MW atmospheric-pressure fluidized-bed coal combustion (AFBC) power plant was developed to provide insight into fundamental dynamic behavior of fluidized-bed systems. The control system included major loops for firing rate, steam pressure and temperature, forced and induced draft air flow, SO/sub 2/ emission, drum water level, evaporator recirculation, and bed level. The model was used to investigate system sensitivity to design features such as the distribution of heat transfer surface among the bed boiler and superheater and the out-of-bed superheater. Also calculated were the sensitivities of temperatures, pressures, and flow rates to changes in throttle,more » attemperator, and feedwater valve settings and forced and induced draft damper settings. The large bed mass, accounting for approx.40% of the active heat capacity, may vary under load change and could impact controller tuning. Model analysis indicated, however, that for the design studied, the change in bed mass does not appear to significantly affect controller tuning even if the bed mass varies appreciably under load-following conditions. Several bed designs are being considered for AFBC plants, some with partitions between bed sections and some without, and these differences may significantly affect the load-following capability of the plant. The results indicated that the slumping mode of operation can cause distortion of the heat source/sink distribution in the bed such that the load-following capability (rate of load change) of the plant may be reduced by as much as a factor of 5 compared with the mode in which tube surface is exposed. 9 refs., 13 figs., 6 tabs.« less

D, L-Sulforaphane Loaded Fe3O4@ Gold Core Shell Nanoparticles: A Potential Sulforaphane Delivery System.

PubMed

Kheiri Manjili, Hamidreza; Ma'mani, Leila; Tavaddod, Sharareh; Mashhadikhan, Maedeh; Shafiee, Abbas; Naderi-Manesh, Hossein

2016-01-01

A novel design of gold-coated iron oxide nanoparticles was fabricated as a potential delivery system to improve the efficiency and stability of d, l-sulforaphane as an anticancer drug. To this purpose, the surface of gold-coated iron oxide nanoparticles was modified for sulforaphane delivery via furnishing its surface with thiolated polyethylene glycol-folic acid and thiolated polyethylene glycol-FITC. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by different techniques such as FTIR, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, UV-visible spectroscopy, scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The average diameters of the synthesized nanoparticles before and after sulforaphane loading were obtained ∼ 33 nm and ∼ 38 nm, respectively, when ∼ 2.8 mmol/g of sulforaphane was loaded. The result of cell viability assay which was confirmed by apoptosis assay on the human breast cancer cells (MCF-7 line) as a model of in vitro-cancerous cells, proved that the bare nanoparticles showed little inherent cytotoxicity, whereas the sulforaphane-loaded nanoparticles were cytotoxic. The expression rate of the anti-apoptotic genes (bcl-2 and bcl-xL), and the pro-apoptotic genes (bax and bak) were quantified, and it was found that the expression rate of bcl-2 and bcl-xL genes significantly were decreased when MCF-7 cells were incubated by sulforaphane-loaded nanoparticles. The sulforaphane-loaded into the designed gold-coated iron oxide nanoparticles, acceptably induced apoptosis in MCF-7 cells.

Effects of friction layer characteristics on the tribological properties of Ni3Al solid-lubricating composites at different load conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Guanchen; Shi, Xiaoliang; Huang, Yuchun; Liu, Xiyao; Yang, Meijun

2018-05-01

This paper investigates the effects of friction layer characteristics of Ni3Al matrix self-lubricating composites (NMCs) on the tribological properties sliding against ceramic ball Si3N4 at dry friction process at the different load conditions. The characteristics of friction layer are performed in terms of hardness of wear scars, thickness and elemental distributions of friction layer. The results show that the microhardness of wear scars of NMCs increases with the increase of the sliding time and applied load, which results in friction coefficient reduced and wear rate decreased, indicating that the tribological performance of NMCs is obviously affected by microhardness of wear scar. However, under excessive applied load, the performance of friction layer of NMCs is deteriorated for the spalling of wear debris and deformation of contact surface. Therefore, selecting appropriate load conditions during the sliding contact, at the transition to the optimal properties of friction layer maybe occur. NMCs exhibits excellent tribological properties at 15N, which leads to the lowest friction coefficient (0.386) and wear rate (2.48 × 10‑5 mm3 N‑1 m‑1), as well as the smoothest surface of wear track compared with the other load conditions. Meanwhile, the elemental distributions analysis of cross-section of friction layer of NMCs shows that the frictional structures can be divided into three main layers. The thickness of the friction-affected layer varies with the changing of applied load. These results could provide a reference for preparing the solid-lubrication materials with better tribological properties.

Glacier Ice Mass Fluctuations and Fault Instability in Tectonically Active Southern Alaska

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

SauberRosenberg, Jeanne M.; Molnia, Bruce F.

2003-01-01

Across southern Alaska the northwest directed subduction of the Pacific plate is accompanied by accretion of the Yakutat terrane to continental Alaska. This has led to high tectonic strain rates and dramatic topographic relief of more than 5000 meters within 15 km of the Gulf of Alaska coast. The glaciers of this area are extensive and include large glaciers undergoing wastage (glacier retreat and thinning) and surges. The large glacier ice mass changes perturb the tectonic rate of deformation at a variety of temporal and spatial scales. We estimated surface displacements and stresses associated with ice mass fluctuations and tectonic loading by examining GPS geodetic observations and numerical model predictions. Although the glacial fluctuations perturb the tectonic stress field, especially at shallow depths, the largest contribution to ongoing crustal deformation is horizontal tectonic strain due to plate convergence. Tectonic forces are thus the primary force responsible for major earthquakes. However, for geodetic sites located < 10-20 km from major ice mass fluctuations, the changes of the solid Earth due to ice loading and unloading are an important aspect of interpreting geodetic results. The ice changes associated with Bering Glacier s most recent surge cycle are large enough to cause discernible surface displacements. Additionally, ice mass fluctuations associated with the surge cycle can modify the short-term seismicity rates in a local region. For the thrust faulting environment of the study region a large decrease in ice load may cause an increase in seismic rate in a region close to failure whereas ice loading may inhibit thrust faulting.

Mapping Critical Loads of Atmospheric Nitrogen Deposition in the Rocky Mountains, USA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nanus, L.; Clow, D. W.; Stephens, V. C.; Saros, J. E.

2010-12-01

Atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition can adversely affect sensitive aquatic ecosystems at high-elevations in the western United States. Critical loads are the amount of deposition of a given pollutant that an ecosystem can receive below which ecological effects are thought not to occur. GIS-based landscape models were used to create maps for high-elevation areas across the Rocky Mountain region showing current atmospheric deposition rates of nitrogen (N), critical loads of N, and exceedances of critical loads of N. Atmospheric N deposition maps for the region were developed at 400 meter resolution using gridded precipitation data and spatially interpolated chemical concentrations in rain and snow. Critical loads maps were developed based on chemical thresholds corresponding to observed ecological effects, and estimated ecosystem sensitivities calculated from basin characteristics. Diatom species assemblages were used as an indicator of ecosystem health to establish critical loads of N. Chemical thresholds (concentrations) were identified for surface waters by using a combination of in-situ growth experiments and observed spatial patterns in surface-water chemistry and diatom species assemblages across an N deposition gradient. Ecosystem sensitivity was estimated using a multiple-linear regression approach in which observed surface water nitrate concentrations at 530 sites were regressed against estimates of inorganic N deposition and basin characteristics (topography, soil type and amount, bedrock geology, vegetation type) to develop predictive models of surface water chemistry. Modeling results indicated that the significant explanatory variables included percent slope, soil permeability, and vegetation type (including barren land, shrub, and grassland) and were used to predict high-elevation surface water nitrate concentrations across the Rocky Mountains. Chemical threshold concentrations were substituted into an inverted form of the model equations and applied to estimate critical loads for each stream reach within a basin, from which critical loads maps were created. Atmospheric N deposition maps were overlaid on the critical loads maps to identify areas in the Rocky Mountain region where critical loads are being exceeded, or where they may do so in the future. This approach may be transferable to other high-elevation areas of the United States and the world.

Thermal treatment of galactose-branched polyelectrolyte microcapsules to improve drug delivery with reserved targetability.

PubMed

Zhang, Fu; Wu, Qi; Liu, Li-Jun; Chen, Zhi-Chun; Lin, Xian-Fu

2008-06-05

A novel multilayered drug delivery system by LbL assembly of galactosylated polyelectrolyte, which is possible to have the potential in hepatic targeting by the presence of galactose residues at the microcapsule's surface, is designed. Thermal treatment was performed on the capsules and a dramatic thermal shrinkage up to 60% decrease of capsule diameter above 50 degrees C was observed. This thermal behavior was then used to manipulate drug loading capacity and release rate. Heating after drug loading could seal the capsule shell, enhancing the loading capacity and reducing the release rate significantly. Excellent affinity between galactose-binding lectin and heated galactose-containing microcapsules were observed, indicating a stable targeting potential even after high temperature elevating up to 90 degrees C.

Proof Test Diagrams for a Lithia-Alumina-Silica Glass-Ceramic

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tucker, Dennis S.

2003-01-01

The glass-ceramic (Zerodur, Schott Glaswerke, Mainz, Germany) contains 70% to 78% by weight crystalline phase of high-quartz structure with a mean crystal size of 50-55 nm. The vitreous phase has a positive thermal expansion coefficient which is practically balanced by the negative coefficient of the crystalline phase. This results in a material which can maintain longitudinal stability during thermal cycling. This was one of the reasons for its choice as the material for the grazing incidence mirrors for the Chandra X-Ray Facility. Brittle materials such as glass and glass-ceramics which exhibit slow crack growth and subsequent fast fracture to failure exhibit a time dependence in strength. The decrease in strength for a constant applied load is known as static fatigue. In many cases, environment plays a major role in the material lifetime. It has been shown for silicate glasses that crack velocity will increase as the amount of water vapor in the environment surface finish and rate of loading. A rough surface finish leads to a lower tensile strength than for an optically polished surface. The strength of glass is observed in general to increase with increasing load rate. This phenomena is known as dynamic fatigue. This was observed for Zerodur by Tucker and Gent and Tucker in previous dynamic fatigue studies, in which lifetimes were obtained. All of the above named factors need to be considered when glass is to be used in load bearing applications.

Size distribution of Parkfield’s microearthquakes reflects changes in surface creep rate

USGS Publications Warehouse

Tormann, Theresa; Wiemer, Stefan; Metzger, Sabrina; Michael, Andrew J.; Hardebeck, Jeanne L.

2013-01-01

The nucleation area of the series of M6 events in Parkfield has been shown to be characterized by low b-values throughout the seismic cycle. Since low b-values represent high differential stresses, the asperity structure seems to be always stably stressed and even unaffected by the latest main shock in 2004. However, because fault loading rates and applied shear stress vary with time, some degree of temporal variability of the b-value within stable blocks is to be expected. We discuss in this study adequate techniques and uncertainty treatment for a detailed analysis of the temporal evolution of b-values. We show that the derived signal for the Parkfield asperity correlates with changes in surface creep, suggesting a sensitive time resolution of the b-value stress meter, and confirming near-critical loading conditions within the Parkfield asperity.

Influence of filler loading on the two-body wear of a dental composite.

PubMed

Hu, X; Marquis, P M; Shortall, A C

2003-07-01

The purpose of the study was to explore the fundamental wear behaviour of a dental composite with different filler loadings under two-body wear conditions. The parent resin and filler components were mixed according to different weight ratios to produce experimental composites with filler loadings ranging from 20 to 87.5% by weight. A two-body wear test was conducted on the experimental composites using a wear-testing machine. The machine was designed to simulate the impact of the direct cyclic masticatory loading that occurs in the occlusal contact area in vivo. The results showed that there was little increase in the rate of wear with filler loadings below 60 wt%, but a sharp increase between 80 and 87.5 wt% in filler loading. Wide striations and bulk loss of material were apparent on the wear surfaces at higher filler loadings. Coefficients of friction increased with filler loading and followed the increase in rate of wear loss closely. It was concluded that, under two-body wear conditions, addition of high levels of filler particles into the resin matrix could reduce the wear resistance of dental composites. This finding may help when designing future dental composites for use in particular clinical settings.

The effect of cyclodextrin on both the agglomeration and the in vitro characteristics of drug loaded and targeted silica nanoparticles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khattabi, Areen M.; Alqdeimat, Diala A.

2018-02-01

One of the problems in the use of nanoparticles (NPs) as carriers in drug delivery systems is their agglomeration which mainly appears due to their high surface energy. This results in formation of NPs with different sizes leading to differences in their distribution and bioavailability. The surface coating of NPs with certain compounds can be used to prevent or minimize this problem. In this study, the effect of cyclodextrin (CD) on the agglomeration state and hence on the in vitro characteristics of drug loaded and targeted silica NPs was investigated. A sample of NPs was loaded with anticancer agents, then modified with a long polymer, carboxymethyl-β-cyclodextrin (CM-β-CD) and folic acid (FA), respectively. Another sample was modified similarly but without CD. The surface modification was characterized using fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The polydispersity (PD) was measured using dynamic light scattering (DLS) and was found to be smaller for CD modified NPs. The results of the in vitro drug release showed that the release rate from both samples exhibited similar pattern for the first 5 hours, however the rate was faster from CD modified NPs after 24 hours. The in vitro cell viability assay confirmed that CD modified NPs were about 30% more toxic to HeLa cells. These findings suggest that CD has a clear effect in minimizing the agglomeration of such modified silica NPs, accelerating their drug release rate and enhancing their targeting effect.

Surface Fractal Analysis for Estimating the Fracture Energy Absorption of Nanoparticle Reinforced Composites

PubMed Central

Pramanik, Brahmananda; Tadepalli, Tezeswi; Mantena, P. Raju

2012-01-01

In this study, the fractal dimensions of failure surfaces of vinyl ester based nanocomposites are estimated using two classical methods, Vertical Section Method (VSM) and Slit Island Method (SIM), based on the processing of 3D digital microscopic images. Self-affine fractal geometry has been observed in the experimentally obtained failure surfaces of graphite platelet reinforced nanocomposites subjected to quasi-static uniaxial tensile and low velocity punch-shear loading. Fracture energy and fracture toughness are estimated analytically from the surface fractal dimensionality. Sensitivity studies show an exponential dependency of fracture energy and fracture toughness on the fractal dimensionality. Contribution of fracture energy to the total energy absorption of these nanoparticle reinforced composites is demonstrated. For the graphite platelet reinforced nanocomposites investigated, surface fractal analysis has depicted the probable ductile or brittle fracture propagation mechanism, depending upon the rate of loading. PMID:28817017

An experimental model of COD abatement in MBBR based on biofilm growth dynamic and on substrates' removal kinetics.

PubMed

Siciliano, Alessio; De Rosa, Salvatore

2016-08-01

In this study, the performance of a lab-scale Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) under different operating conditions was analysed. Moreover, the dependence of the reaction rates both from the concentration and biodegradability of substrates and from the biofilm surface density, by means of several batch kinetic tests, was investigated. The reactor controls exhibited an increasing COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand) removal, reaching maximum yields (close to 90%) for influent loadings of up to12.5 gCOD/m(2)d. From this value, the pilot plant performance decreased to yields of only about 55% for influent loadings greater than 16 gCOD/m(2)d. In response to the influent loading increase, the biofilm surface density exhibited a logistic growing trend until reaching a maximum amount of total attached solids of about 9.5 g/m(2). The kinetic test results indicated that the COD removal rates for rapidly biodegradable, rapidly hydrolysable and slowly biodegradable substrates were not affected by the organic matter concentrations. Instead, first-order kinetics were detected with respect to biofilm surface density. The experimental results permitted the formulation of a mathematical model to predict the MBBR organic matter removal efficiency. The validity of the model was successfully tested in the lab-scale plant.

Biological treatment of toxic petroleum spent caustic in fluidized bed bioreactor using immobilized cells of Thiobacillus RAI01.

PubMed

Potumarthi, Ravichandra; Mugeraya, Gopal; Jetty, Annapurna

2008-12-01

In the present studies, newly isolated Thiobacillus sp was used for the treatment of synthetic spent sulfide caustic in a laboratory-scale fluidized bed bioreactor. The sulfide oxidation was tested using Ca-alginate immobilized Thiobacillus sp. Initially, response surface methodology was applied for the optimization of four parameters to check the sulfide oxidation efficiency in batch mode. Further, reactor was operated in continuous mode for 51 days at different sulfide loading rates and retention times to test the sulfide oxidation and sulfate and thiosulfate formation. Sulfide conversions in the range of 90-98% were obtained at almost all sulfide loading rates and hydraulic retention times. However, increased loading rates resulted in lower sulfide oxidation capacity. All the experiments were conducted at constant pH of around 6 and temperature of 30 +/- 5 degrees C.

A method for continuous monitoring of the Ground Reaction Force during daily activity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Whalen, Robert; Quintana, Jason; Emery, Jeff

1993-01-01

Theoretical models and experimental studies of bone remodeling have identified peak cyclic force levels (or cyclic tissue strain energy density), number of daily loading cycles, and load (strain) rate as possible contributors to bone modeling and remodeling stimulus. To test our theoretical model and further investigate the influence of mechanical forces on bone density, we have focused on the calcaneus as a model site loaded by calcaneal surface tractions which are predominantly determined by the magnitude of the external ground reaction force (GRF).

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

Lu, Wei-Yang

Foam materials are used to protect sensitive components from impact loading. In order to predict and simulate the foam performance under various loading conditions, a validated foam model is needed and the mechanical properties of foams need to be characterized. Uniaxial compression and tension tests were conducted for different densities of foams under various temperatures and loading rates. Crush stress, tensile strength, and elastic modulus were obtained. A newly developed confined compression experiment provided data for investigating the foam flow direction. A biaxial tension experiment was also developed to explore the damage surface of a rigid polyurethane foam.

29 CFR 1910.254 - Arc welding and cutting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... rated load with rated temperature rises where the temperature of the cooling air does not exceed 40 °C... work; magnetic work clamps shall be freed from adherent metal particles of spatter on contact surfaces... given to safety ground connections of portable machines. (4) Leaks. There shall be no leaks of cooling...

29 CFR 1910.254 - Arc welding and cutting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... rated load with rated temperature rises where the temperature of the cooling air does not exceed 40 °C... work; magnetic work clamps shall be freed from adherent metal particles of spatter on contact surfaces... given to safety ground connections of portable machines. (4) Leaks. There shall be no leaks of cooling...

29 CFR 1910.254 - Arc welding and cutting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... rated load with rated temperature rises where the temperature of the cooling air does not exceed 40 °C... work; magnetic work clamps shall be freed from adherent metal particles of spatter on contact surfaces... given to safety ground connections of portable machines. (4) Leaks. There shall be no leaks of cooling...

Program documentation. Program description and user information for the hydraulics/auxiliary power unit (HYDRA) computer program. [for the space shuttle orbiter

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Redwine, W. J.

1979-01-01

A timeline containing altitude, control surface deflection rates and angles, hinge moment loads, thrust vector control gimbal rates, and main throttle settings is used to derive the model. The timeline is constructed from the output of one or more trajectory simulation programs.

Long-term Sediment Accumulation in Mid-channel Bars of the Upper Reach of the Lower Mississippi River.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, B.; Xu, Y. J.

2016-02-01

A recent study reported that about 44% of the total Mississippi River suspended load reaching the Old River Control Structure (ORCS) was trapped upstream of the Gulf of Mexico by overbank storage and channel bed aggradation. Considering an average annual sediment load of 120 million metric tons passing ORCS to the Mississippi River main channel, the trapped sediment load would be equivalent to annually rebuilding 44-km2 coastal land of 1 meter in depth, assuming a sedimentation bulk density of 1.2 tons m-3. No study has yet demonstrated such a high sediment accumulation rate within the confined river channel or on a floodplain area that surrounds the only unleeved stretch ( 30-km long) of the Lower Mississippi River downstream of ORCS. In this study, we utilized satellite images taken from 1983 to 2013 and analyzed changes in surface area of nine major mid-channel and point bars over a 130-km river reach from ORCS to Baton Rouge. Using river stage records and the estimated surface areas, we developed a stage - surface area rating curve for each of the bars and estimated changes in bar volume over time. We found that more than half of the bars have grown, while the others have shrunken in the past three decades. As a whole, there was a substantial net gain of surface area and volume accretion. Sediment trapping was most prevalent during the spring floods, especially during the period from 2007 to 2011 when two large floods occurred. This paper presents the channel morphological change and sediment accumulation rates under different flow conditions, and discusses their implications for the current understanding and practices of the Mississippi River sediment diversion.

Investigation of the factors that influence lead accumulation onto polyethylene: Implication for potable water plumbing pipes.

PubMed

Salehi, Maryam; Jafvert, Chad T; Howarter, John A; Whelton, Andrew J

2018-04-05

The influence of polymer aging, water pH, and aqueous Pb concentration on Pb deposition onto low density polyethylene (LDPE) was investigated. LDPE pellets were aged by ozonation at 85 °C. ATR-FTIR and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis of aged LDPE surfaces showed that a variety of polar functional groups (>CO<, >CO, >COO) were formed during aging. These functional groups likely provided better nucleation sites for Pb(OH) 2 deposition compared to new LDPE, which did not have these oxygen-containing functional groups. The type and amount of Pb species present on these surfaces were evaluated through XPS. The influence of exposure duration on Pb deposition onto LDPE was modeled using the pseudo-first-order equation. Distribution ratios of 251.5 for aged LDPE and 69.3 for new LDPE showed that Pb precipitates had greater affinity for the surface of aged LDPE compared to new LDPE. Aged LDPE had less Pb surface loading at pH 11 compared to loading at pH 7.8. Pb surface loading for aged LDPE changed linearly with aging duration (from 0.5-7.5 h). Pb surface loading on both new and aged LDPE increased linearly with increasing Pb initial concentration. Greater Pb precipitation rates were found for aged LDPE compared to new LDPE at both tested pH values. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Rheological properties of styrene-butadiene rubber filled with electron beam modified surface treated dual phase fillers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shanmugharaj, A. M.; Bhowmick, Anil K.

2004-01-01

The rheological properties of styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) loaded with dual phase filler were measured using Monsanto Processability Tester (MPT) at three different temperatures (100°C, 110°C and 130°C) and four different shear rates (61.3, 306.3, 613, and 1004.5 s -1). The effect of electron beam modification of dual phase filler in absence and presence of trimethylol propane triacrylate (TMPTA) or triethoxysilylpropyltetrasulphide (Si-69) on melt flow properties of SBR was also studied. The viscosity of all the systems decreases with shear rate indicating their pseudoplastic or shear thinning nature. The higher shear viscosity for the SBR loaded with the electron beam modified filler is explained in terms of variation in structure of the filler upon electron beam irradiation. Die swell of the modified filler loaded SBR is slightly higher than that of the unmodified filler loaded rubber, which is explained by calculating normal stress difference for the systems. Activation energy of the modified filler loaded SBR systems is also slightly higher than that of the control filler loaded SBR system.

Effects of friction and high torque on fatigue crack propagation in Mode III

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nayeb-Hashemi, H.; McClintock, F. A.; Ritchie, R. O.

1982-12-01

Turbo-generator and automotive shafts are often subjected to complex histories of high torques. To provide a basis for fatigue life estimation in such components, a study of fatigue crack propagation in Mode III (anti-plane shear) for a mill-annealed AISI 4140 steel (RB88, 590 MN/m2 tensile strength) has been undertaken, using torsionally-loaded, circumferentially-notched cylindrical specimens. As demonstrated previously for higher strength AISI 4340 steel, Mode III cyclic crack growth rates (dc/dN) IIIcan be related to the alternating stress intensity factor ΔKIII for conditions of small-scale yielding. However, to describe crack propagation behavior over an extended range of crack growth rates (˜10-6 to 10-2 mm per cycle), where crack growth proceeds under elastic-plastic and full plastic conditions, no correlation between (dc/dN) III and ΔKIII is possible. Accordingly, a new parameter for torsional crack growth, termed the plastic strain intensity Γ III, is introduced and is shown to provide a unique description of Mode III crack growth behavior for a wide range of testing conditions, provided a mean load reduces friction, abrasion, and interlocking between mating fracture surfaces. The latter effect is found to be dependent upon the mode of applied loading (i.e., the presence of superimposed axial loads) and the crack length and torque level. Mechanistically, high-torque surfaces were transverse, macroscopically flat, and smeared. Lower torques showed additional axial cracks (longitudinal shear cracking) perpendicular to the main transverse surface. A micro-mechanical model for the main radi l Mode III growth, based on the premise that crack advance results from Mode II coalescence of microcracks initiated at inclusions ahead of the main crack front, is extended to high nominal stress levels, and predicts that Mode III fatigue crack propagation rates should be proportional to the range of plastic strain intensity (ΔΓIII if local Mode II growth rates are proportional to the displacements. Such predictions are shown to be in agreement with measured growth rates in AISI {dy4140} steel from 10-6 to 10-2 mm per cycle.

Influence of environmental factors on pesticide adsorption by black carbon: pH and model dissolved organic matter.

PubMed

Qiu, Yuping; Xiao, Xiaoyu; Cheng, Haiyan; Zhou, Zunlong; Sheng, G Daniel

2009-07-01

Loading two organic acids of known molecular structures onto a black carbon was conducted to study the influence of pH and dissolved organic matter on the adsorption of pesticides. Tannic acid at the loading rates of 100 and 300 micromol/g reduced the surface area of black carbon by 18 and 63%, respectively. This was due principally to the blockage of micropores, as verified by measured pore volumes and pore-size distributions. With a comparatively much smaller molecular structure, gallic acid did not apparently influence these properties. The intrinsic acidities of the two acids increased the surface acidity from 1.88 mmol/g of black carbon to 1.93-2.02 mmol/g after DOM loading, resulting in a reduction in isoelectric point pH from 1.93 to 1.66-1.82. The adsorption of propanil, 2,4-D and prometon by black carbon free and loaded of DOM was dependent on pH because major adsorptive forces were the interactions between neutral pesticide molecules and uncharged carbon surfaces. The adsorption was diminished considerably by the deprotonation of 2,4-D and protonation of prometon, as well as the surface charge change of black carbon. Tannic acid of 100 and 300 micromol/g on black carbon reduced the pesticide adsorption at the equilibrium concentration of 10 mg/L by an average of 46 and 81%, respectively, consistent with the reductions of 42 and 81% in micropore volume. At the equilibrium concentration of 30 mg/L, the mesopore surface became the additional adsorptive domain for propanil. Loading tannic acid made the mesopore surface less accessible, due presumably to the enhanced obstruction by tannic acid.

Dielectric loaded surface plasmon waveguides for datacom applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weeber, J.-C.; Hassan, K.; Nielsen, M. G.; Pitilakis, A.; Tsilipakos, O.; Kriezis, E. E.; Fatome, J.; Finot, C.; Markey, L.; Albrektsen, O.; Bozhevolnyi, S. I.; Dereux, A.

2012-04-01

We rst report on design, fabrication and characterizations of thermally-controlled plasmonic routers relying on the interference of a plasmonic and a photonic mode supported by wide enough dielectric loaded waveguides. We show that, by owing a current through the gold lm on which the dielectric waveguides are deposited, the length of the beating created by the interference of the two modes can be controlled accurately. By operating such a plasmonic dual-mode interferometer switch, symmetric extinction ratio of 7dB are obtained at the output ports of a 2x2 router. Next, we demonstrate ber-to-ber characterizations of stand-alone dielectric loaded surface plasmon waveguide (DLSPPW) devices by using grating couplers. The couplers are comprised of dielectric loaded gratings with carefully chosen periods and duty-cycles close to 0.5. We show that insertion loss below 10dB per coupler can be achieved with optimized gratings. This coupling scheme is used to operate Bit-Error-Rate (BER) measurements for the transmission of a 10Gbits/s signal along a stand-alone straight DLSPPW. We show in particular that these waveguides introduce a rather small BER power penalty (below 1dB) demonstrating the suitability of this plasmonic waveguiding platform for high-bit rate transmission.

Simulation of upwind maneuvering of a sailing yacht

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harris, Daniel Hartrick

A time domain maneuvering simulation of an IACC class yacht suitable for the analysis of unsteady upwind sailing including tacking is presented. The simulation considers motions in six degrees of freedom. The hydrodynamic and aerodynamic loads are calculated primarily with unsteady potential theory supplemented by empirical viscous models. The hydrodynamic model includes the effects of incident waves. Control of the rudder is provided by a simple rate feedback autopilot which is augmented with open loop additions to mimic human steering. The hydrodynamic models are based on the superposition of force components. These components fall into two groups, those which the yacht will experience in calm water, and those due to incident waves. The calm water loads are further divided into zero Froude number, or "double body" maneuvering loads, hydrostatic loads, gravitational loads, free surface radiation loads, and viscous/residual loads. The maneuvering loads are calculated with an unsteady panel code which treats the instantaneous geometry of the yacht below the undisturbed free surface. The free surface radiation loads are calculated via convolution of impulse response functions derived from seakeeping strip theory. The viscous/residual loads are based upon empirical estimates. The aerodynamic model consists primarily of a database of steady state sail coefficients. These coefficients treat the individual contributions to the total sail force of a number of chordwise strips on both the main and jib. Dynamic effects are modeled by using the instantaneous incident wind velocity and direction as the independent variables for the sail load contribution of each strip. The sail coefficient database was calculated numerically with potential methods and simple empirical viscous corrections. Additional aerodynamic load calculations are made to determine the parasitic contributions of the rig and hull. Validation studies compare the steady sailing hydro and aerodynamic loads, seaway induced motions, added resistance in waves, and tacking performance with trials data and other sources. Reasonable agreement is found in all cases.

Microbial Source Module (MSM): Documenting the Science ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

The Microbial Source Module (MSM) estimates microbial loading rates to land surfaces from non-point sources, and to streams from point sources for each subwatershed within a watershed. A subwatershed, the smallest modeling unit, represents the common basis for information consumed and produced by the MSM which is based on the HSPF (Bicknell et al., 1997) Bacterial Indicator Tool (EPA, 2013b, 2013c). Non-point sources include numbers, locations, and shedding rates of domestic agricultural animals (dairy and beef cows, swine, poultry, etc.) and wildlife (deer, duck, raccoon, etc.). Monthly maximum microbial storage and accumulation rates on the land surface, adjusted for die-off, are computed over an entire season for four land-use types (cropland, pasture, forest, and urbanized/mixed-use) for each subwatershed. Monthly point source microbial loadings to instream locations (i.e., stream segments that drain individual sub-watersheds) are combined and determined for septic systems, direct instream shedding by cattle, and POTWs/WWTPs (Publicly Owned Treatment Works/Wastewater Treatment Plants). The MSM functions within a larger modeling system that characterizes human-health risk resulting from ingestion of water contaminated with pathogens. The loading estimates produced by the MSM are input to the HSPF model that simulates flow and microbial fate/transport within a watershed. Microbial counts within recreational waters are then input to the MRA-IT model (Soller et

Holocene deceleration of the San Andreas fault zone in San Bernardino and implications for the eastern California shear zone rate debate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bennett, R. A.; Lavier, L.; Anderson, M. L.; Matti, J.; Powell, R. E.

2005-05-01

New geodetic inferences for the rate of strain accumulation on the San Andreas fault associated with tectonic loading are ~20 mm/yr slower than observed Holocene surface displacement rates in the San Bernardino area, south of the fault's intersection with the San Jacinto fault zone, and north of its intersection with the eastern California shear zone (ECSZ). This displacement rate "anomaly" is significantly larger than can be easily explained by locking depth errors or earthquake cycle effects not accounted for in geodesy-constrained models for elastic loading rate. Using available time-averaged fault displacement-rates for the San Andreas and San Jacinto fault zones, we estimate instantaneous time-variable displacement rates on the San Andreas-San Jacinto-ECSZ fault zones, assuming that these fault zones form a closed system in the latitude band along which the fault zones overlap with one another and share in the accommodation of steady Pacific-North America relative plate motion. We find that the Holocene decrease in San Andreas loading rate can be compensated by a rapid increase in loading/displacement rate within the ECSZ over the past ~5 kyrs, independent of, but consistent with geodetic and geologic constraints derived from the ECSZ itself. Based on this model, we suggest that reported differences between fast contemporary strain rates observed on faults of the ECSZ using geodesy and slow rates inferred from Quaternary geology and Holocene paleoseismology (i.e., the ECSZ rate debate) may be explained by rapid changes in the pattern and rates of strain accumulation associated with fault loading largely unrelated to postseismic stress relaxation. If so, displacement rate data sets from Holocene geology and present-day geodesy could potentially provide important new constraints on the rheology of the lower crust and upper mantle representing lithospheric behavior on time-scales of thousands of years. Moreover, the results underscore that disagreement between geodetic and geologic fault displacement rates may reflect changes in strain accumulation rates associated with far-field elastic loading and thus earthquake potential, and not just transients.

Factors Affecting the Plasticity of Sodium Chloride, Lithium Fluoride, and Magnesium Oxide Single Crystals. 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stearns, Carl A.; Pack, Ann E.; Lad, Robert A.

1959-01-01

A study was made of the relative magnitude of the effects of various factors on the ductility of single crystals of sodium chloride (NaCl), lithium fluoride (LiF), and magnesium oxide (MgO). Specimen treatments included water-polishing, varying cleavage rate, annealing, quenching, X-irradiation, surface coating, aging, and combinations of some of these treatments. The mechanical behavior of the crystals was studied in flexure and in compression, the latter study being performed at both constant strain rate and constant load. Etch-pit studies were carried out to provide some pertinent information on the results of pretreatment on the dislocation concentration and distribution in the vicinity of the surface. The load deformation curves for these ionic single crystals show an initial region of very low slope which proved to be due to anelastic deformation. The extent of initial anelastic deformation is modified by specimen pretreatment in a way that suggests that this deformation is the result of expansion of cleaved-in dislocation loops, which can contract on the removal of the stress. The effects of the various pretreatments on the load and deflection at fracture are in accord with the prediction one might make with regard to their effect on the nucleation of fatal surface cracks. For NaCl, increases in ductility are always accompanied by increases in strength. The creep constants for NaCl are a function of treatments which affect the bulk structure but are not a function of treatments which only affect the surface.

CFD and Thermo Mechanical Analysis on Effect of Curved vs Step Surface in IC Engine Cylinder Head

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balaji, S.; Ganesh, N.; Kumarasamy, A.

2017-05-01

Current research in IC engines mainly focus on various methods to achieve higher efficiency and high specific power. As a single design parameter, combustion chamber peak spring pressure has increased more than before. Apart from the structural aspects of withstanding these loads, designer faces challenges of resolving thermal aspects of cylinder head. Methods to enhance the heat transfer without compromising load withstanding capability are being constantly explored. Conventional cylinder heads have got sat inner surface. In this paper we have suggested a modification in inner surface to enhance the heat transfer capability. To increase the heat transfer rate, inner same deck surface is configured as a curved and stepped surface instead of sat. We have reported the effectiveness of extend of curvature in the inner same deck surface in a different technical paper. Here, we are making a direct comparison between stepped and curved surface only. From this analysis it has been observed that curved surface reduces the ame deck temperature considerably without compromising the structural strength factors compared to step and sat surface.

An in vitro assessment of the effect of load and pH on wear between opposing enamel and dentine surfaces.

PubMed

Ranjitkar, Sarbin; Kaidonis, John A; Townsend, Grant C; Vu, Anh M; Richards, Lindsay C

2008-11-01

Previous in vitro studies have described the wear characteristics of specimens in which enamel has been opposed to enamel and dentine opposed to dentine. The aim of this study was to assess the characteristics of wear between specimens in which enamel was opposed to dentine at loads simulating attrition and at pH values simulating different erosive environments. It was hypothesized that enamel would wear more slowly than dentine under all conditions. Opposing enamel and dentine specimens from 57 human third molar teeth were worn in electromechanical machines with various loads (32, 62 and 100 N) and lubricants (pH 1.2, 3.0 and 6.1). Tooth wear was quantified by measuring reduction in dentine volume over time using a 3D profilometer. Qualitative assessment was also carried out using scanning electron microscopy. Dentine wear increased with increasing load, and dentine wear was faster at pH 1.2 than at pH 3.0 or 6.1 for all loads tested. Interestingly, enamel wore more rapidly than dentine at pH 1.2 under all loads. At pH values of 3.0 and 6.1, enamel wear rates were not measurably different from zero and they were less than wear rates for opposing dentine specimens at all loads. Micrographic assessment showed extensive surface destruction of dentine wear facets due to erosion at pH 1.2. Dentine wear facets were smoother at pH 3.0 that at pH 6.1. When enamel wears against dentine in an acidic environment enamel will wear more rapidly at very low pH, while under less acid conditions dentine will wear faster than enamel.

Global seasonal strain and stress models derived from GRACE loading, and their impact on seismicity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chanard, K.; Fleitout, L.; Calais, E.; Craig, T. J.; Rebischung, P.; Avouac, J. P.

2017-12-01

Loading by continental water, atmosphere and oceans deforms the Earth at various spatio-temporal scales, inducing crustal and mantelic stress perturbations that may play a role in earthquake triggering.Deformation of the Earth by this surface loading is observed in GNSS position time series. While various models predict well vertical observations, explaining horizontal displacements remains challenging. We model the elastic deformation induced by loading derived from GRACE for coefficients 2 and higher. We estimate the degree-1 deformation field by comparison between predictions of our model and IGS-repro2 solutions at a globally distributed network of 700 GNSS sites, separating the horizontal and vertical components to avoid biases between components. The misfit between model and data is reduced compared to previous studies, particularly on the horizontal component. The associated geocenter motion time series are consistent with results derived from other datasets. We also discuss the impact on our results of systematic errors in GNSS geodetic products, in particular of the draconitic error.We then compute stress tensors time series induced by GRACE loads and discuss the potential link between large scale seasonal mass redistributions and seismicity. Within the crust, we estimate hydrologically induced stresses in the intraplate New Madrid Seismic Zone, where secular stressing rates are unmeasurably low. We show that a significant variation in the rate of micro-earthquakes at annual and multi-annual timescales coincides with stresses induced by hydrological loading in the upper Mississippi embayment, with no significant phase-lag, directly modulating regional seismicity. We also investigate pressure variations in the mantle transition zone and discuss potential correlations between the statistically significant observed seasonality of deep-focus earthquakes, most likely due to mineralogical transformations, and surface hydrological loading.

Relationship between the loading rate of inorganic mercury to aquatic ecosystems and dissolved gaseous mercury production and evasion.

PubMed

Poulain, Alexandre J; Orihel, Diane M; Amyot, Marc; Paterson, Michael J; Hintelmann, Holger; Southworth, George R

2006-12-01

The purpose of our study was to test the hypothesis that dissolved gaseous mercury (DGM) production and evasion is directly proportional to the loading rate of inorganic mercury [Hg(II)] to aquatic ecosystems. We simulated different rates of atmospheric mercury deposition in 10-m diameter mesocosms in a boreal lake by adding multiple additions of Hg(II) enriched with a stable mercury isotope ((202)Hg). We measured DGM concentrations in surface waters and estimated evasion rates using the thin-film gas exchange model and mass transfer coefficients derived from sulfur hexafluoride (SF(6)) additions. The additions of Hg(II) stimulated DGM production, indicating that newly added Hg(II) was highly reactive. Concentrations of DGM derived from the experimental Hg(II) additions ("spike DGM") were directly proportional to the rate of Hg(II) loading to the mesocosms. Spike DGM concentrations averaged 0.15, 0.48 and 0.94 ng l(-1) in mesocosms loaded at 7.1, 14.2, and 35.5 microg Hg m(-2) yr(-1), respectively. The evasion rates of spike DGM from these mesocosms averaged 4.2, 17.2, and 22.3 ng m(-2)h(-1), respectively. The percentage of Hg(II) added to the mesocosms that was lost to the atmosphere was substantial (33-59% over 8 weeks) and was unrelated to the rate of Hg(II) loading. We conclude that changes in atmospheric mercury deposition to aquatic ecosystems will not change the relative proportion of mercury recycled to the atmosphere.

Application of Fracture Mechanics to Specify the Proof Load Factor for Clamp Band Systems of Launch Vehicles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singaravelu, J.; Sundaresan, S.; Nageswara Rao, B.

2013-04-01

This article presents a methodology for evaluation of the proof load factor (PLF) for clamp band system (CBS) made of M250 Maraging steel following fracture mechanics principles.CBS is most widely used as a structural element and as a separation system. Using Taguchi's design of experiments and the response surface method (RSM) the compact tension specimens were tested to establish an empirical relation for the failure load ( P max) in terms of the ultimate strength, width, thickness, and initial crack length. The test results of P max closely matched with the developed RSM empirical relation. Crack growth rates of the maraging steel in different environments were examined. Fracture strength (σf) of center surface cracks and through-crack tension specimens are evaluated utilizing the fracture toughness ( K IC). Stress induced in merman band at flight loading conditions is evaluated to estimate the higher load factor and PLF. Statistical safety factor and reliability assessments were made for the specified flaw sizes useful in the development of fracture control plan for CBS of launch vehicles.

Regulation of adult cardiocyte growth: effects of active and passive mechanical loading

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Decker, M. L.; Janes, D. M.; Barclay, M. M.; Harger, L.; Decker, R. S.

1997-01-01

Fluctuations in hemodynamic load have been documented to modulate contractile protein turnover and myofibrillar structure in the heart; however, the relative importance of active and passive loading in regulating adult cardiocyte growth remains unresolved. To address this issue at the cellular level, adult feline cardiocytes were cultured either on Silastic membranes or plastic surfaces. Cardiocyte-laden membranes were stretched 10% of their rest length to enhance passive loading, whereas heart cells cultured on plastic or Silastic were field stimulated at 1 Hz to mimic active loading. Turnover of contractile proteins and structural integrity of the contractile-cytoskeletal apparatus were monitored for periods ranging from 4 to 72 h. Active and passive loading elevated contractile protein synthesis nearly equally (approximately 50%) and promoted the attachment of remodeled myofibrils to vinculin-positive focal contacts and/or costameres during the first 24 h of loading. Thereafter, rates of contractile protein synthesis returned to control values in passively stretched heart cells but remained elevated in field-stimulated cultures. The fractional rate of growth was increased significantly (approximately 8%/day) in electrically paced cells, whereas in passively stretched cardiocytes the growth rate rose only modestly (approximately 2%/day). Changes in the rate of myocyte growth appeared more closely correlated with the development of focal contacts and myofibril remodeling than with changes in myofibrillar protein turnover per se. 2,3-Butanedione monoxime, nifedipine, and, to a lesser extent, ryanodine blocked field-stimulated contractile protein synthesis and myofibrillar remodeling but had no impact on protein turnover or myofibril reassembly in passively loaded cardiocytes. The results of these experiments imply that both active and passive loading stimulate contractile protein turnover and myofibril remodeling, but the generation of active tension accelerates cardiocyte growth to a greater extent than passive loading. Furthermore, pharmacological interventions suggest that unique pathways may mediate these cellular events in actively and passively loaded adult cardiocytes.

Regulation of adult cardiocyte growth: effects of active and passive mechanical loading.

PubMed

Decker, M L; Janes, D M; Barclay, M M; Harger, L; Decker, R S

1997-06-01

Fluctuations in hemodynamic load have been documented to modulate contractile protein turnover and myofibrillar structure in the heart; however, the relative importance of active and passive loading in regulating adult cardiocyte growth remains unresolved. To address this issue at the cellular level, adult feline cardiocytes were cultured either on Silastic membranes or plastic surfaces. Cardiocyte-laden membranes were stretched 10% of their rest length to enhance passive loading, whereas heart cells cultured on plastic or Silastic were field stimulated at 1 Hz to mimic active loading. Turnover of contractile proteins and structural integrity of the contractile-cytoskeletal apparatus were monitored for periods ranging from 4 to 72 h. Active and passive loading elevated contractile protein synthesis nearly equally (approximately 50%) and promoted the attachment of remodeled myofibrils to vinculin-positive focal contacts and/or costameres during the first 24 h of loading. Thereafter, rates of contractile protein synthesis returned to control values in passively stretched heart cells but remained elevated in field-stimulated cultures. The fractional rate of growth was increased significantly (approximately 8%/day) in electrically paced cells, whereas in passively stretched cardiocytes the growth rate rose only modestly (approximately 2%/day). Changes in the rate of myocyte growth appeared more closely correlated with the development of focal contacts and myofibril remodeling than with changes in myofibrillar protein turnover per se. 2,3-Butanedione monoxime, nifedipine, and, to a lesser extent, ryanodine blocked field-stimulated contractile protein synthesis and myofibrillar remodeling but had no impact on protein turnover or myofibril reassembly in passively loaded cardiocytes. The results of these experiments imply that both active and passive loading stimulate contractile protein turnover and myofibril remodeling, but the generation of active tension accelerates cardiocyte growth to a greater extent than passive loading. Furthermore, pharmacological interventions suggest that unique pathways may mediate these cellular events in actively and passively loaded adult cardiocytes.

Is Borg's perceived exertion scale a useful indicator of muscular and cardiovascular load in blue-collar workers with lifting tasks? A cross-sectional workplace study.

PubMed

Jakobsen, Markus Due; Sundstrup, Emil; Persson, Roger; Andersen, Christoffer H; Andersen, Lars L

2014-02-01

To investigate associations between perceived exertion and objectively assessed muscular and cardiovascular load during a full working day among workers with manual lifting tasks. A total of 159 men and 41 women from 14 workplaces with manual lifting tasks participated. Participants reported perceived exertion (BORG-CR10) at midday and after work. Surface electromyography of the thigh, lower back and neck muscles were normalized to isometric voluntary contractions (MVC) to express relative muscle load during the day. Cardiovascular load was measured with electrocardiography and calculated as the average percentage of the heart rate reserve capacity (((heart rate during work - resting heart rate) / (maximum heart rate - resting heart rate)) * 100) during the day. Using linear regression, significant but weak associations (β < 0.23) were observed between perceived exertion and (1) high muscle activity (>60% of MVC) of the neck muscles and (2) inactivity (<1% of MVC) of the thigh muscles and (3) cardiovascular load, respectively. Using logistic regression, perceived exertion ≥4 (high exertion), referencing <4 (low-to-moderate exertion), was related to high activity of the trapezius muscle [OR 18 (95% CI 2-143)], i.e., the odds for experiencing high exertion during work increased 18-fold for each percentage increase in time above 60% MVC. During a full working day among blue-collar workers with lifting tasks, high neck muscle activity increases the odds for experiencing high perceived physical exertion. Perceived exertion of at least 4 on the BORG CR10 scale appears to be a good indicator that high muscular loading occurs.

Critique of Macro Flow/Damage Surface Representations for Metal Matrix Composites Using Micromechanics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lissenden, Cliff J.; Arnold, Steven M.

1996-01-01

Guidance for the formulation of robust, multiaxial, constitutive models for advanced materials is provided by addressing theoretical and experimental issues using micromechanics. The multiaxial response of metal matrix composites, depicted in terms of macro flow/damage surfaces, is predicted at room and elevated temperatures using an analytical micromechanical model that includes viscoplastic matrix response as well as fiber-matrix debonding. Macro flow/damage surfaces (i.e., debonding envelopes, matrix threshold surfaces, macro 'yield' surfaces, surfaces of constant inelastic strain rate, and surfaces of constant dissipation rate) are determined for silicon carbide/titanium in three stress spaces. Residual stresses are shown to offset the centers of the flow/damage surfaces from the origin and their shape is significantly altered by debonding. The results indicate which type of flow/damage surfaces should be characterized and what loadings applied to provide the most meaningful experimental data for guiding theoretical model development and verification.

Incomplete Loading of Sodium Lauryl Sulfate and Fasted State Simulated Intestinal Fluid Micelles Within the Diffusion Layers of Dispersed Drug Particles During Dissolution.

PubMed

Galipeau, Kendra; Socki, Michael; Socia, Adam; Harmon, Paul A

2018-01-01

Poorly water soluble drug candidates have been common in developmental pipelines over the last several decades. This has fueled considerable research around understanding how bile salt and model micelles can improve drug particle dissolution rates and human drug exposure levels. However, in the pharmaceutical context only a single mechanism of how micelles load solute has been assumed, that being the direct loading mechanism put forth by Cussler and coworkers (Am Inst Chem Eng J. 1976;22(6):1006-1012) 40 years ago. In this model, micelles load at the particle surface and will be loaded to their equilibrium loading values. More recently, Kumar and Gandhi and coworkers (Langmuir. 2003;19:4014-4026) developed a comprehensive theory of micelle solubilization which also features an indirect loading mechanism which they argue should operate in ionic surfactant systems. In this mechanism, micelles cannot directly load at the solute particle surface and thus may not reach equilibrium loading values within the particle diffusion layer. In this work, we endeavor to understand if the indirect micelle loading mechanism represents a plausible description in the pharmaceutical context. The overall data in SLS and FaSSIF systems obtained here, as well as several other previously published datasets, can be described by the indirect micelle loading mechanism. Implications for pharmaceutical development of poorly soluble compounds are discussed. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Seasonal patterns of seismicity and deformation at the Alutu geothermal reservoir, Ethiopia, induced by hydrological loading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Birhanu, Yelebe; Wilks, Matthew; Biggs, Juliet; Kendall, J.-Michael; Ayele, Atalay; Lewi, Elias

2018-05-01

Seasonal variations in the seismicity of volcanic and geothermal reservoirs are usually attributed to the hydrological cycle. Here, we focus on the Aluto-Langano geothermal system, Ethiopia, where the climate is monsoonal and there is abundant shallow seismicity. We deployed temporary networks of seismometers and GPS receivers to understand the drivers of unrest. First, we show that a statistically significant peak in seismicity occurred 2-3 months after the main rainy season, with a second, smaller peak of variable timing. Seasonal seismicity is commonly attributed to variations in either surface loading or reservoir pore pressure. As loading will cause subsidence and overpressure will cause uplift, comparing seismicity rates with continuous GPS, enables us to distinguish between mechanisms. At Aluto, the major peak in seismicity is coincident with the high stand of nearby lakes and maximum subsidence, indicating that it is driven by surface loading. The magnitude of loading is insufficient to trigger widespread crustal seismicity but the geothermal reservoir at Aluto is likely sensitive to small perturbations in the stress field. Thus we demonstrate that monsoonal loading can produce seismicity in geothermal reservoirs, and the likelihood of both triggered and induced seismicity varies seasonally.

Refining the maintenance techniques for Interlocking Concrete Paver GIs

EPA Science Inventory

Surface clogging adversely affects the performance of Interlocking Concrete Pavements (ICP) by reducing their ability to infiltrate stormwater runoff. The clogging rate is a function of pavement type, traffic loading, surrounding physical environment and maintenance treatments. ...

Tribological Behavior and the Mild–Severe Wear Transition of Mg97Zn1Y2 Alloy with a LPSO Structure Phase

PubMed Central

Sun, Wei; Xuan, Xihua; Li, Liang; An, Jian

2018-01-01

Dry friction and wear tests were performed on as-cast Mg97Zn1Y2 alloy using a pin-on-disc configuration. Coefficients of friction and wear rates were measured as a function of applied load at sliding speeds of 0.2, 0.8 and 3.0 m/s. The wear mechanisms were identified in the mild and severe wear regimes by means of morphological observation and composition analysis of worn surfaces using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS). Analyses of microstructure and hardness changes in subsurfaces verified the microstructure transformation from the deformed to the dynamically recrystallized, and properties changed from the strain hardening to dynamic crystallization (DRX) softening before and after the mild–severe wear transition. The mild–severe wear transition can be determined by a proposed contact surface DRX temperature criterion, from which the critical DRX temperatures at different sliding speeds are calculated using DRX dynamics; hence transition loads can also be calculated using a transition load model. The calculated transition loads are in good agreement with the measured ones, demonstrating the validity and applicability of the contact surface DRX temperature criterion. PMID:29584692

Synthesis and Characterization of Quantum Dot-Loaded Poly(lactic-co-glycolic) Acid Nanocomposite Fibers by an Electrospinning Process.

PubMed

Ankireddy, Seshadri Reddy; Kim, Jongsung

2017-04-01

Poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) is one of the most successfully developed biodegradable polymers. PLGA is a copolymer of polylactic and glycolic acid. In this work, quantum dot (QD)-loaded PLGA nanofibers were fabricated via a simple one-step electrospinning process. The surface morphology of the fibers was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It was shown that the PLGA nanofibers had both smooth and rough surfaces with an average fiber diameter of 150 ± 25 nm and 350 ± 60 nm for the PLGA and QD-loaded PLGA nanofibers, respectively. The needle size, applied voltage, and solvent flow rate in the syringe were maintained at 23 G, 20 kV, and 1.5 mL/h, respectively. The SEM analysis showed that nanofibers with a very thin and uniform size were formed and the InP/ZnS QDs were homogeneously loaded into the PLGA nanofiber matrix. The thermal properties of the PLGA-QD nanofibers were explored by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The surface chemical structure and functionalities were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD).

Recovery Efficiency and Limit of Detection of Aerosolized Bacillus anthracis Sterne from Environmental Surface Samples ▿

PubMed Central

Estill, Cheryl Fairfield; Baron, Paul A.; Beard, Jeremy K.; Hein, Misty J.; Larsen, Lloyd D.; Rose, Laura; Schaefer, Frank W.; Noble-Wang, Judith; Hodges, Lisa; Lindquist, H. D. Alan; Deye, Gregory J.; Arduino, Matthew J.

2009-01-01

After the 2001 anthrax incidents, surface sampling techniques for biological agents were found to be inadequately validated, especially at low surface loadings. We aerosolized Bacillus anthracis Sterne spores within a chamber to achieve very low surface loading (ca. 3, 30, and 200 CFU per 100 cm2). Steel and carpet coupons seeded in the chamber were sampled with swab (103 cm2) or wipe or vacuum (929 cm2) surface sampling methods and analyzed at three laboratories. Agar settle plates (60 cm2) were the reference for determining recovery efficiency (RE). The minimum estimated surface concentrations to achieve a 95% response rate based on probit regression were 190, 15, and 44 CFU/100 cm2 for sampling steel surfaces and 40, 9.2, and 28 CFU/100 cm2 for sampling carpet surfaces with swab, wipe, and vacuum methods, respectively; however, these results should be cautiously interpreted because of high observed variability. Mean REs at the highest surface loading were 5.0%, 18%, and 3.7% on steel and 12%, 23%, and 4.7% on carpet for the swab, wipe, and vacuum methods, respectively. Precision (coefficient of variation) was poor at the lower surface concentrations but improved with increasing surface concentration. The best precision was obtained with wipe samples on carpet, achieving 38% at the highest surface concentration. The wipe sampling method detected B. anthracis at lower estimated surface concentrations and had higher RE and better precision than the other methods. These results may guide investigators to more meaningfully conduct environmental sampling, quantify contamination levels, and conduct risk assessment for humans. PMID:19429546

Recovery efficiency and limit of detection of aerosolized Bacillus anthracis Sterne from environmental surface samples.

PubMed

Estill, Cheryl Fairfield; Baron, Paul A; Beard, Jeremy K; Hein, Misty J; Larsen, Lloyd D; Rose, Laura; Schaefer, Frank W; Noble-Wang, Judith; Hodges, Lisa; Lindquist, H D Alan; Deye, Gregory J; Arduino, Matthew J

2009-07-01

After the 2001 anthrax incidents, surface sampling techniques for biological agents were found to be inadequately validated, especially at low surface loadings. We aerosolized Bacillus anthracis Sterne spores within a chamber to achieve very low surface loading (ca. 3, 30, and 200 CFU per 100 cm(2)). Steel and carpet coupons seeded in the chamber were sampled with swab (103 cm(2)) or wipe or vacuum (929 cm(2)) surface sampling methods and analyzed at three laboratories. Agar settle plates (60 cm(2)) were the reference for determining recovery efficiency (RE). The minimum estimated surface concentrations to achieve a 95% response rate based on probit regression were 190, 15, and 44 CFU/100 cm(2) for sampling steel surfaces and 40, 9.2, and 28 CFU/100 cm(2) for sampling carpet surfaces with swab, wipe, and vacuum methods, respectively; however, these results should be cautiously interpreted because of high observed variability. Mean REs at the highest surface loading were 5.0%, 18%, and 3.7% on steel and 12%, 23%, and 4.7% on carpet for the swab, wipe, and vacuum methods, respectively. Precision (coefficient of variation) was poor at the lower surface concentrations but improved with increasing surface concentration. The best precision was obtained with wipe samples on carpet, achieving 38% at the highest surface concentration. The wipe sampling method detected B. anthracis at lower estimated surface concentrations and had higher RE and better precision than the other methods. These results may guide investigators to more meaningfully conduct environmental sampling, quantify contamination levels, and conduct risk assessment for humans.

Nonlinear Dynamics of Electroelastic Dielectric Elastomers

DTIC Science & Technology

2018-01-30

research will significantly advance the basic science and fundamental understanding of how rate- dependent material response couples to large, nonlinear...experimental studies of constrained dielectric elastomer films, a transition in the surface instability mechanism depending on the elastocapillary number...fundamental understanding of how rate- dependent material response couples to large, nonlinear material deformation under applied electrostatic loading to

The development of alum rates to enhance the remediation of phosphorus in fluvial systems following manure spills

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Following the remediation of animal manure spills that reach surface waters, contaminated streambed sediments are often left in place and become a source for internal P loading within the stream in subsequent flow. The objective of this study was to develop treatment rates and combinations of alum a...

Mechanical Properties of Transgenic Silkworm Silk Under High Strain Rate Tensile Loading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chu, J.-M.; Claus, B.; Chen, W.

2017-12-01

Studies have shown that transgenic silkworm silk may be capable of having similar properties of spider silk while being mass-producible. In this research, the tensile stress-strain response of transgenic silkworm silk fiber is systematically characterized using a quasi-static load frame and a tension Kolsky bar over a range of strain-rates between 10^{-3} and 700/s. The results show that transgenic silkworm silk tends to have higher overall ultimate stress and failure strain at high strain rate (700/s) compared to quasi-static strain rates, indicating rate sensitivity of the material. The failure strain at the high strain rate is higher than that of spider silk. However, the stress levels are significantly below that of spider silk, and far below that of high-performance fiber. Failure surfaces are examined via scanning electron microscopy and reveal that the failure modes are similar to those of spider silk.

Viscous free-surface flows on rotating elliptical cylinders

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Weihua; Carvalho, Marcio S.; Kumar, Satish

2017-09-01

The flow of liquid films on rotating discrete objects having complicated cross sections is encountered in coating processes for a broad variety of products. To advance fundamental understanding of this problem, we study viscous free-surface flows on rotating elliptical cylinders by solving the governing equations in a rotating reference frame using the Galerkin finite-element method. Results of our simulations agree well with Hunt's maximum-load condition [Hunt, Numer. Methods Partial Differ. Eqs. 24, 1094 (2008), 10.1002/num.20307], which was obtained in the absence of surface tension and inertia. The simulations are also used to track the transient behavior of the free surface. For O (1 ) cylinder aspect ratios, cylinder rotation results in a droplike liquid bulge hanging on the upward-moving side of the cylinder. This bulge shrinks in size due to surface tension provided that the liquid load is smaller than a critical value, leaving a relatively smooth coating on the cylinder. A decrease in cylinder aspect ratio leads to larger gradients in film thickness, but enhances the rate of bulge shrinkage and thus shortens the time required to obtain a smooth coating. Moreover, with a suitably chosen time-dependent rotation rate, more liquid can be supported by the cylinder relative to the constant-rotation-rate case. For cylinders with even smaller aspect ratios, film rupture and liquid shedding may occur over the cylinder tips, so simultaneous drying and rotation along with the introduction of Marangoni stresses will likely be especially important for obtaining a smooth coating.

Wear Behaviour of Al-6061/SiC Metal Matrix Composites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mishra, Ashok Kumar; Srivastava, Rajesh Kumar

2017-04-01

Aluminium Al-6061 base composites, reinforced with SiC particles having mesh size of 150 and 600, which is fabricated by stir casting method and their wear resistance and coefficient of friction has been investigated in the present study as a function of applied load and weight fraction of SiC varying from 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40 %. The dry sliding wear properties of composites were investigated by using Pin-on-disk testing machine at sliding velocity of 2 m/s and sliding distance of 2000 m over a various loads of 10, 20 and 30 N. The result shows that the reinforcement of the metal matrix with SiC particulates up to weight percentage of 35 % reduces the wear rate. The result also show that the wear of the test specimens increases with the increasing load and sliding distance. The coefficient of friction slightly decreases with increasing weight percentage of reinforcements. The wear surfaces are examined by optical microscopy which shows that the large grooved regions and cavities with ceramic particles are found on the worn surface of the composite alloy. This indicates an abrasive wear mechanism, which is essentially a result of hard ceramic particles exposed on the worn surfaces. Further, it was found from the experimentation that the wear rate decreases linearly with increasing weight fraction of SiC and average coefficient of friction decreases linearly with increasing applied load, weight fraction of SiC and mesh size of SiC. The best result has been obtained at 35 % weight fraction and 600 mesh size of SiC.

Seasonal variations in shallow Alaska seismicity and stress modulation from GRACE derived hydrological loading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, C. W.; Fu, Y.; Burgmann, R.

2017-12-01

Shallow (≤50 km), low magnitude (M≥2.0) seismicity in southern Alaska is examined for seasonal variations during the annual hydrological cycle. The seismicity is declustered with a spatio-temporal epidemic type aftershock sequence (ETAS) model. The removal of aftershock sequences allows detailed investigation of seismicity rate changes, as water and ice loads modulate crustal stresses throughout the year. The GRACE surface loads are obtained from the JPL mass concentration blocks (mascons) global land and ocean solutions. The data product is smoothed with a 9˚ Gaussian filter and interpolated on a 25 km grid. To inform the surface loading model, the global solutions are limited to the region from -160˚ to -120˚ and 50˚ to 70˚. The stress changes are calculated using a 1D spherical layered earth model at depth intervals of 10 km from 10 - 50 km in the study region. To evaluate the induced seasonal stresses, we use >30 years of earthquake focal mechanisms to constrain the background stress field orientation and assess the stress change with respect to the principal stress orientation. The background stress field is assumed to control the preferred orientation of faulting, and stress field perturbations are expected to increase or decrease seismicity. The number of excess earthquakes is calculated with respect to the background seismicity rates. Here, we present preliminary results for the shallow seismicity variations and quantify the seasonal stresses associated with changes in hydrological loading.

Carrier characteristics influence the kinetics of passive drug loading into lipid nanoemulsions.

PubMed

Göke, Katrin; Bunjes, Heike

2018-05-01

Passive loading as a novel screening approach is a material-saving tool for the efficient selection of a suitable colloidal lipid carrier system for poorly water soluble drug candidates. This method comprises incubation of preformed carrier systems with drug powder and subsequent determination of the resulting drug load of the carrier particles after removal of excess drug. For reliable routine use and to obtain meaningful loading results, information on the kinetics of the process is required. Passive loading proceeds via a dissolution-diffusion-based mechanism, where drug surface area and drug water solubility are key parameters for fast passive loading. While the influence of the drug characteristics is mostly understood, the influence of the carrier characteristics remains unknown. The aim of this study was to examine how the lipid nanocarriers' characteristics, i.e. the type of lipid, the lipid content and the particle size, influence the kinetics of passive loading. Fenofibrate was used as model drug and the loading progress was analyzed by UV spectroscopy. The saturation solubility in the nanocarrier particles, i.e. the lipid type, did not influence the passive loading rate constant. Low lipid content in the nanocarrier and a small nanocarrier particle size both increased passive loading speed. Both variations increase the diffusivity of the nanocarrier particles, which is the primary cause for fast loading at these conditions: The quicker the carrier particles diffuse, the higher is the speed of passive loading. The influence of the diffusivity of the lipid nanocarriers and the effect of drug dissolution rate were included in an overall mechanistic model developed for similar processes (A. Balakrishnan, B.D. Rege, G.L. Amidon, J.E. Polli, Surfactant-mediated dissolution: contributions of solubility enhancement and relatively low micelle diffusivity, J. Pharm. Sci. 93 (2004) 2064-2075). The resulting mechanistic model gave a good estimate of the speed of passive loading in nanoemulsions. Whilst the drug's characteristics - apart from drug surface area - are basically fixed, the lipid nanocarriers can be customized to improve passive loading speed, e.g. by using small nanocarrier particles. The knowledge of the loading mechanism now allows the use of passive loading for the straightforward, material-saving selection of suitable lipid drug nanocarriers. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The global signature of post-1900 land ice wastage on vertical land motion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riva, Riccardo; Frederikse, Thomas; King, Matt; Marzeion, Ben; van den Broeke, Michiel

2017-04-01

The amount of ice stored on land has strongly declined during the 20th century, and melt rates showed a significant acceleration over the last two decades. Land ice wastage is well known to be one of the main drivers of global mean sea-level rise, as widely discussed in the literature and reflected in the last assessment report of the IPCC. A less obvious effect of melting land ice is the response of the solid earth to mass redistribution on its surface, which, in the first approximation, results in land uplift where the load reduces (e.g., close to the meltwater sources) and land subsidence where the load increases (e.g., under the rising oceans). This effect is nowadays well known within the cryospheric and sea level communities. However, what is often not realized is that the solid earth response is a truly global effect: a localized mass change does cause a large deformation signal in its proximity, but also causes a change of the position of every other point on the Earth's surface. The theory of the Earth's elastic response to changing surface loads forms the basis of the 'sea-level equation', which allows sea-level fingerprints of continental mass change to be computed. In this paper, we provide the first dedicated analysis of global vertical land motion driven by land ice wastage. By means of established techniques to compute the solid earth elastic response to surface load changes and the most recent datasets of glacier and ice sheet mass change, we show that land ice loss currently leads to vertical deformation rates of several tenths of mm per year at mid-latitudes, especially over the Northern Hemisphere where most sources are located. In combination with the improved accuracy of space geodetic techniques (e.g., Global Navigation Satellite Systems), this means that the effect of ice melt is non-negligible over a large part of the continents. In particular, we show how deformation rates have been strongly varying through the last century, which implies that they should be properly modelled before interpreting and extrapolating recent observations of vertical land motion and sea level change.

The Interaction of Surface Hydration and Vocal Loading on Voice Measures.

PubMed

Fujiki, Robert Brinton; Chapleau, Abigail; Sundarrajan, Anusha; McKenna, Victoria; Sivasankar, M Preeti

2017-03-01

Vocal loading tasks provide insight regarding the mechanisms underlying healthy laryngeal function. Determining the manner in which the larynx can most efficiently be loaded is a complex task. The goal of this study was to determine if vocal loading could be achieved in 30 minutes by altering phonatory mode. Owing to the fact that surface hydration facilitates efficient vocal fold oscillation, the effects of environmental humidity on vocal loading were also examined. This study also investigated whether the detrimental effects of vocal loading could be attenuated by increasing environmental humidity. Sixteen vocally healthy adults (8 men, 8 women) completed a 30-minute vocal loading task in low and moderate humidity. The order of humidities was counterbalanced across subjects. The vocal loading task consisted of reading with elevated pitch and pressed vocal quality and low pitch and pressed and/or raspy vocal quality in the presence of 65 dB ambient, multi-talker babble noise. Significant effects were observed for (1) cepstral peak prominence on soft sustained phonation at 10th and 80th pitches, (2) perceived phonatory effort, and (3) perceived tiredness ratings. No loading effects were observed for cepstral peak prominence on the rainbow passage, although fundamental frequency on the rainbow passage increased post loading. No main effect was observed for humidity. Following a 30-minute vocal loading task involving altering laryngeal vibratory mode in combination with increased volume. Also, moderate environmental humidity did not significantly attenuate the negative effects of loading. Copyright © 2017 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Ibuprofen-loaded poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) films for controlled drug release.

PubMed

Pang, Jianmei; Luan, Yuxia; Li, Feifei; Cai, Xiaoqing; Du, Jimin; Li, Zhonghao

2011-01-01

Ibuprofen- (IBU) loaded biocompatible poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) films were prepared by spreading polymer/ibuprofen solution on the nonsolvent surface. By controlling the weight ratio of drug and polymer, different drug loading polymer films can be obtained. The synthesized ibuprofen-loaded PLGA films were characterized with scanning electron microscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, and differential scanning calorimetry. The drug release behavior of the as-prepared IBU-loaded PLGA films was studied to reveal their potential application in drug delivery systems. The results show the feasibility of the as-obtained films for controlling drug release. Furthermore, the drug release rate of the film could be controlled by the drug loading content and the release medium. The development of a biodegradable ibuprofen system, based on films, should be of great interest in drug delivery systems.

Effect of load on the tribological properties of hypereutectic Al-Si alloy under boundary lubrication conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumar, Parveen; Wani, M. F.

2017-11-01

Researchers reported that the IC engine components (piston, cylinder liner etc) fail due to the friction losses (~45%) and wear losses (~25-40%). So the demand of light weight, low friction and wear resistance alloys increases day by day, which reduces the emission and increases the efficiency of the IC engine. In this connection, tribological tests on hypereutectic Al-25Si alloy were performed using a ball-on-disk configuration under dry and lubricated sliding conditions. Hypereutectic Al-25Si alloy was prepared by rapid solidification process with T6 condition. T6 condition improves the friction, wear and mechanical properties of the alloy. Friction coefficient and wear rate of the alloy was measured under high loads ranging from 100 to 300 N. It was found that the friction coefficient (COF) and wear rate of hypereutectic Al-25Si alloy/steel tribo pair increased with increase in load. Significant reduction in COF and wear rate was accomplished with SAE20W50 engine oil and Si particles act as solid lubricant. Optical microscope, 3D surface profilometer and scanning electron microscope (SEM) coupled with an energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) were used for characterization the worn surface morphologies. The morphology, size and distribution of high Si particles due to its fabrication process caused the improvements in COF and wear rate under lubricated conditions. Adhesive wear, abrasive wear and plastic deformation acted as the dominant wear mechanism for hypereutectic Al-25Si alloy.

Testing and Life Prediction for Composite Rotor Hub Flexbeams

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Murri, Gretchen B.

2004-01-01

A summary of several studies of delamination in tapered composite laminates with internal ply-drops is presented. Initial studies used 2D FE models to calculate interlaminar stresses at the ply-ending locations in linear tapered laminates under tension loading. Strain energy release rates for delamination in these laminates indicated that delamination would likely start at the juncture of the tapered and thin regions and grow unstably in both directions. Tests of glass/epoxy and graphite/epoxy linear tapered laminates under axial tension delaminated as predicted. Nonlinear tapered specimens were cut from a full-size helicopter rotor hub and were tested under combined constant axial tension and cyclic transverse bending loading to simulate the loading experienced by a rotorhub flexbeam in flight. For all the tested specimens, delamination began at the tip of the outermost dropped ply group and grew first toward the tapered region. A 2D FE model was created that duplicated the test flexbeam layup, geometry, and loading. Surface strains calculated by the model agreed very closely with the measured surface strains in the specimens. The delamination patterns observed in the tests were simulated in the model by releasing pairs of MPCs along those interfaces. Strain energy release rates associated with the delamination growth were calculated for several configurations and using two different FE analysis codes. Calculations from the codes agreed very closely. The strain energy release rate results were used with material characterization data to predict fatigue delamination onset lives for nonlinear tapered flexbeams with two different ply-dropping schemes. The predicted curves agreed well with the test data for each case studied.

Spall damage of a Ta particle-reinforced metallic glass matrix composite under high strain rate loading

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

Tang, X. C.; Jian, W. R.; Huang, J. Y.

We investigate deformation and damage of a Zr-based bulk metallic glass (BMG) and its Ta particle-reinforced composite (MGMC) under impact loading, as well as quasi-static tension for comparison. Yield strength, spall strength, and damage accumulation rate are obtained from free-surface velocity histories, and MGMC appears to be more damage-resistant. Scanning electron microscopy, electron back scattering diffraction and x-ray computed tomography, are utilized for characterizing microstructures, which show features consistent with macroscopic measurements. Different damage and fracture modes are observed for BMG and MGMC. Multiple well-defined spall planes are observed in BMG, while isolated and scattered cracking around reinforced particles dominatesmore » fracture of MGMC. Particle–matrix interface serves as the source and barrier to crack nucleation and propagation under both quasi-static and impact loading. Finally, deformation twinning and grain refinement play a key role in plastic deformation during shock loading but not in quasi-static loading. In addition, 3D cup-cone structures are resolved in BMG, but not in MGMC due to its heterogeneous stress field.« less

Spall damage of a Ta particle-reinforced metallic glass matrix composite under high strain rate loading

DOE PAGES

Tang, X. C.; Jian, W. R.; Huang, J. Y.; ...

2017-11-11

We investigate deformation and damage of a Zr-based bulk metallic glass (BMG) and its Ta particle-reinforced composite (MGMC) under impact loading, as well as quasi-static tension for comparison. Yield strength, spall strength, and damage accumulation rate are obtained from free-surface velocity histories, and MGMC appears to be more damage-resistant. Scanning electron microscopy, electron back scattering diffraction and x-ray computed tomography, are utilized for characterizing microstructures, which show features consistent with macroscopic measurements. Different damage and fracture modes are observed for BMG and MGMC. Multiple well-defined spall planes are observed in BMG, while isolated and scattered cracking around reinforced particles dominatesmore » fracture of MGMC. Particle–matrix interface serves as the source and barrier to crack nucleation and propagation under both quasi-static and impact loading. Finally, deformation twinning and grain refinement play a key role in plastic deformation during shock loading but not in quasi-static loading. In addition, 3D cup-cone structures are resolved in BMG, but not in MGMC due to its heterogeneous stress field.« less

What causes the trends in Geocenter motion estimates?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rietbroek, Roelof; Schrama, Ernst

2015-04-01

Over time, the geometrical center of figure of the Earth (CF) and the center of mass of the Earth system (CM) exhibit small changes. This phenomena, generally referred to as 'geocenter motion', is mainly caused by present-day and past surface loading and (visco)-elastic deformation processes occurring near the surface of the Earth. It is now well known that the computation of surface loading variations from the GRACE product requires the application of geocenter corrections, and not doing so introduce significant errors in estimates of, for example, melt-rates of the cryosphere. But, to understand observed geocenter motion more closely, one can also ask how much the different surface loading phenomena contribute to it. In this study, we compare different estimates of the geocenter motion, and discuss the underlying causes, with a special focus on trends. Using a 'fingerprint' inversion approach, where predefined patterns are fitted to GRACE and altimetry data, we can now consistently break down the geocenter estimates into different contributions. We find that the present day melting in Antarctica and Greenland shift the CM-CF offset with 0.1 mm/yr and -0.3 mm/yr in the Z-direction respectively, while GIA additionally contributes with roughly -0.3 mm/yr.

Friction and oxidative wear of 440C ball bearing steels under high load and extreme bulk temperatures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chaudhuri, Dilip K.; Slifka, Andrew J.; Siegwarth, James D.

1993-01-01

Unlubricated sliding friction and wear of 440C steels in an oxygen environment have been studied under a variety of load, speed, and temperature ranging from approximately -185 to 675 deg C. A specially designed test apparatus with a ball-on-flat geometry has been used for this purpose. The observed dependencies of the initial coefficient of friction, the average dynamic coefficient of friction, and the wear rate on load, speed, and test temperatures have been examined from the standpoint of existing theories of friction and wear. High contact temperatures are generated during the sliding friction, causing rapid oxidation and localized surface melting. A combination of fatigue, delamination, and loss of hardness due to tempering of the martensitic structure is responsible for the high wear rate observed and the coefficient of friction.

Active colloids as mobile microelectrodes for unified label-free selective cargo transport.

PubMed

Boymelgreen, Alicia M; Balli, Tov; Miloh, Touvia; Yossifon, Gilad

2018-02-22

Utilization of active colloids to transport both biological and inorganic cargo has been widely examined in the context of applications ranging from targeted drug delivery to sample analysis. In general, carriers are customized to load one specific target via a mechanism distinct from that driving the transport. Here we unify these tasks and extend loading capabilities to include on-demand selection of multiple nano/micro-sized targets without the need for pre-labelling or surface functionalization. An externally applied electric field is singularly used to drive the active cargo carrier and transform it into a mobile floating electrode that can attract (trap) or repel specific targets from its surface by dielectrophoresis, enabling dynamic control of target selection, loading and rate of transport via the electric field parameters. In the future, dynamic selectivity could be combined with directed motion to develop building blocks for bottom-up fabrication in applications such as additive manufacturing and soft robotics.

Estimating biozone hydraulic conductivity in wastewater soil-infiltration systems using inverse numerical modeling.

PubMed

Bumgarner, Johnathan R; McCray, John E

2007-06-01

During operation of an onsite wastewater treatment system, a low-permeability biozone develops at the infiltrative surface (IS) during application of wastewater to soil. Inverse numerical-model simulations were used to estimate the biozone saturated hydraulic conductivity (K(biozone)) under variably saturated conditions for 29 wastewater infiltration test cells installed in a sandy loam field soil. Test cells employed two loading rates (4 and 8cm/day) and 3 IS designs: open chamber, gravel, and synthetic bundles. The ratio of K(biozone) to the saturated hydraulic conductivity of the natural soil (K(s)) was used to quantify the reductions in the IS hydraulic conductivity. A smaller value of K(biozone)/K(s,) reflects a greater reduction in hydraulic conductivity. The IS hydraulic conductivity was reduced by 1-3 orders of magnitude. The reduction in IS hydraulic conductivity was primarily influenced by wastewater loading rate and IS type and not by the K(s) of the native soil. The higher loading rate yielded greater reductions in IS hydraulic conductivity than the lower loading rate for bundle and gravel cells, but the difference was not statistically significant for chamber cells. Bundle and gravel cells exhibited a greater reduction in IS hydraulic conductivity than chamber cells at the higher loading rates, while the difference between gravel and bundle systems was not statistically significant. At the lower rate, bundle cells exhibited generally lower K(biozone)/K(s) values, but not at a statistically significant level, while gravel and chamber cells were statistically similar. Gravel cells exhibited the greatest variability in measured values, which may complicate design efforts based on K(biozone) evaluations for these systems. These results suggest that chamber systems may provide for a more robust design, particularly for high or variable wastewater infiltration rates.

Addressing Uncertainty in Fecal Indicator Bacteria Dark Inactivation Rates

EPA Science Inventory

Fecal contamination is a leading cause of surface water quality degradation. Roughly 20% of all total maximum daily load assessments approved by the United States Environmental Protection Agency since 1995, for example, address water bodies with unacceptably high fecal indicator...

Implementation of a best management practice (BMP) system for a clay mining facility in Taiwan.

PubMed

Lin, Jen-Yang; Chen, Yen-Chang; Chen, Walter; Lee, Tsu-Chuan; Yu, Shaw L

2006-01-01

The present paper describes the planning and implementation of a best management practice (BMP) system for a clay mining facility in Northern Taiwan. It is a challenge to plan and design BMPs for mitigating the impact of clay mining operations due to the fact that clay mining drainage typically contains very high concentrations of suspended solids (SS), Fe-ions, and [H+] concentrations. In the present study, a field monitoring effort was conducted to collect data for runoff quality and quantity from a clay mining area in Northern Taiwan. A BMP system including holding ponds connected in series was designed and implemented and its pollutant removal performance was assessed. The assessment was based on mass balance computations and an analysis of the relationship between BMP design parameters such as pond depth, detention time, surface loading rate, etc. and the pollutant removal efficiency. Field sampling results showed that the surface-loading rate is exponential related to the removing rate. The results provide the basis for a more comprehensive and efficient BMP implementation plan for clay mining operations.

Delamination growth analysis in quasi-isotropic laminates under loads simulating low-velocity impact

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shivakumar, K. N.; Elber, W.

1984-01-01

A geometrically nonlinear finite-element analysis has been developed to calculate the strain energy released by delaminating plates during impact loading. Only the first mode of deformation, which is equivalent to static deflection, was treated. Both the impact loading and delamination in the plate were assumed to be axisymmetric. The strain energy release rate in peeling, GI, and shear sliding, GII, modes were calculated using the fracture mechanics crack closure technique. Energy release rates for various delamination sizes and locations and for various plate configurations and materials were compared. The analysis indicated that shear sliding was the primary mode of delamination growth. The analysis also indicated that the midplane (maximum transverse shear stress plane) delamination was more critical and would grow first before any other delamination of the same size near the midplane region. The delamination growth rate was higher (neutrally stable) for a low toughness (brittle) matrix and slower (stable) for high toughness matrix. The energy release rate in the peeling mode, GI, for a near-surface delamination can be as high as 0.5GII, and can contribute significantly to the delamination growth.

A novel solution for hydroxylated PAHs removal by oxidative coupling reaction using Mn oxide.

PubMed

Kang, Ki-Hoon; Lim, Dong-Min; Shin, Hyun-Sang

2008-01-01

In this study, removals of 1-naphthol by oxidative-coupling reaction using birnessite, one of the natural Mn oxides present in soil, was investigated in various experimental conditions (reaction time, Mn oxide loadings, pH). The removal efficiency of 1-naphthol by birnessite was high in all the experimental conditions, and UV-visible and mass spectrometric analyses on the supernatant after reaction confirmed that the reaction products were oligomers formed by oxidative-coupling reaction. Pseudo-first order rate constants, k, for the oxidative transformation of 1-naphthol by birnessite was derived from the kinetic experiments under various amounts of birnessite loadings, and using the observed pseudo-first order rate constants with respect to birnessite loadings, the surface area normalised specific rate constant, k(surf), was also determined to be 9.3 x 10(-4) (L/m(2).min) for 1-naphthol. In addition, the oxidative transformation of 1-naphthol was found to be dependent on solution pH, and the pseudo-first order rate constants were increased from 0.129 at pH 10 to 0.187 at pH 4. (c) IWA Publishing 2008.

A pulse-shaping technique to investigate the behaviour of brittle materials subjected to plate-impact tests.

PubMed

Forquin, Pascal; Zinszner, Jean-Luc

2017-01-28

Owing to their significant hardness and compressive strengths, ceramic materials are widely employed for use with protective systems subjected to high-velocity impact loadings. Therefore, their mechanical behaviour along with damage mechanisms need to be significantly investigated as a function of loading rates. However, the classical plate-impact testing procedures produce shock loadings in the brittle sample material which cause unrealistic levels of loading rates. Additionally, high-pulsed power techniques and/or functionally graded materials used as flyer plates to smooth the loading pulse remain costly, and are generally difficult to implement. In this study, a shockless plate-impact technique based on the use of either a wavy-machined flyer plate or buffer plate that can be produced by chip-forming is proposed. A series of numerical simulations using an explicit transient dynamic finite-element code have been performed to design and validate the experimental testing configuration. The calculations, conducted in two-dimensional (2D) plane-strain or in 2D axisymmetric modes, prove that the 'wavy' contact surface will produce a pulse-shaping effect, whereas the buffer plate will produce a homogenizing effect of the stress field along the transverse direction of the sample. In addition, 'wavy-shape' geometries of different sizes provide an easy way to change the level of loading rate and rise time in an experimentally tested ceramic specimen. Finally, when a shockless compression loading method is applied to the sample, a Lagrangian analysis of data is made possible by considering an assemblage of ceramic plates of different thicknesses in the target, so the axial stress-strain response of the brittle sample material can be provided.This article is part of the themed issue 'Experimental testing and modelling of brittle materials at high strain rates'. © 2016 The Author(s).

A pulse-shaping technique to investigate the behaviour of brittle materials subjected to plate-impact tests

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Forquin, Pascal; Zinszner, Jean-Luc

2017-01-01

Owing to their significant hardness and compressive strengths, ceramic materials are widely employed for use with protective systems subjected to high-velocity impact loadings. Therefore, their mechanical behaviour along with damage mechanisms need to be significantly investigated as a function of loading rates. However, the classical plate-impact testing procedures produce shock loadings in the brittle sample material which cause unrealistic levels of loading rates. Additionally, high-pulsed power techniques and/or functionally graded materials used as flyer plates to smooth the loading pulse remain costly, and are generally difficult to implement. In this study, a shockless plate-impact technique based on the use of either a wavy-machined flyer plate or buffer plate that can be produced by chip-forming is proposed. A series of numerical simulations using an explicit transient dynamic finite-element code have been performed to design and validate the experimental testing configuration. The calculations, conducted in two-dimensional (2D) plane-strain or in 2D axisymmetric modes, prove that the `wavy' contact surface will produce a pulse-shaping effect, whereas the buffer plate will produce a homogenizing effect of the stress field along the transverse direction of the sample. In addition, `wavy-shape' geometries of different sizes provide an easy way to change the level of loading rate and rise time in an experimentally tested ceramic specimen. Finally, when a shockless compression loading method is applied to the sample, a Lagrangian analysis of data is made possible by considering an assemblage of ceramic plates of different thicknesses in the target, so the axial stress-strain response of the brittle sample material can be provided. This article is part of the themed issue 'Experimental testing and modelling of brittle materials at high strain rates'.

Polyethylenimine-impregnated mesoporous silica: effect of amine loading and surface alkyl chains on CO2 adsorption.

PubMed

Heydari-Gorji, Aliakbar; Belmabkhout, Youssef; Sayari, Abdelhamid

2011-10-18

Poly(ethyleneimine) (PEI) supported on pore-expanded MCM-41 whose surface is covered with a layer of long-alkyl chains was found to be a more efficient CO(2) adsorbent than PEI supported on the corresponding calcined silica and all PEI-impregnated materials reported in the literature. The layer of surface alkyl chains plays an important role in enhancing the dispersion of PEI, thus decreasing the diffusion resistance. It was also found that at low temperature, adsorbents with relatively low PEI contents are more efficient than their highly loaded counterparts because of the increased adsorption rate. Extensive CO(2) adsorption-desorption cycling showed that the use of humidified feed and purge gases affords materials with enhanced stability, despite limited loss due to amine evaporation. © 2011 American Chemical Society

Flight Test of the F/A-18 Active Aeroelastic Wing Airplane

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clarke, Robert; Allen, Michael J.; Dibley, Ryan P.; Gera, Joseph; Hodgkinson, John

2005-01-01

Successful flight-testing of the Active Aeroelastic Wing airplane was completed in March 2005. This program, which started in 1996, was a joint activity sponsored by NASA, Air Force Research Laboratory, and industry contractors. The test program contained two flight test phases conducted in early 2003 and early 2005. During the first phase of flight test, aerodynamic models and load models of the wing control surfaces and wing structure were developed. Design teams built new research control laws for the Active Aeroelastic Wing airplane using these flight-validated models; and throughout the final phase of flight test, these new control laws were demonstrated. The control laws were designed to optimize strategies for moving the wing control surfaces to maximize roll rates in the transonic and supersonic flight regimes. Control surface hinge moments and wing loads were constrained to remain within hydraulic and load limits. This paper describes briefly the flight control system architecture as well as the design approach used by Active Aeroelastic Wing project engineers to develop flight control system gains. Additionally, this paper presents flight test techniques and comparison between flight test results and predictions.

Heterogeneous catalytic ozonation of dibutyl phthalate in aqueous solution in the presence of iron-loaded activated carbon.

PubMed

Huang, Yuanxing; Cui, Chenchen; Zhang, Daofang; Li, Liang; Pan, Ding

2015-01-01

Iron-loaded activated carbon was prepared and used as catalyst in heterogeneous catalytic ozonation of dibutyl phthalate (DBP). The catalytic activity of iron-loaded activated carbon was investigated under various conditions and the mechanisms of DBP removal were deduced. Characterization of catalyst indicated that the iron loaded on activated carbon was mainly in the form of goethite, which reduced its surface area, pore volume and pore diameter. The presence of metals on activated carbon positively contributed to its catalytic activity in ozonation of DBP. Iron loading content of 15% and initial water pH of 8 achieved highest DBP removal among all the tried conditions. Catalyst dosage of 10 mg L(-1) led to approximately 25% of increase in DBP (initial concentration 2 mg L(-1)) removal in 60 min as compared with ozone alone, and when catalyst dosage increased to 100 mg L(-1), the DBP removal was further improved by 46%. Based on a comparison of reaction rates for direct and indirect transformation of DBP, the increased removal of DBP in this study likely occurred via transformation of ozone into hydroxyl radicals on the catalyst surface. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fracture Behavior of Zr-BASED Bulk Metallic Glass Under Impact Loading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shin, Hyung-Seop; Kim, Ki-Hyun; Oh, Sang-Yeob

The fracture behavior of a Zr-based bulk amorphous metal under impact loading using subsize V-shaped Charpy specimens was investigated. Influences of loading rate on the fracture behavior of amorphous Zr-Al-Ni-Cu alloy were examined. As a result, the maximum load and absorbed fracture energy under impact loading were lower than those under quasi-static loading. A large part of the absorbed fracture energy in the Zr-based BMG was consumed in the process for crack initiation and not for crack propagation. In addition, fractographic characteristics of BMGs, especially the initiation and development of shear bands at the notch tip were investigated. Fractured surfaces under impact loading are smoother than those under quasi-static loading. The absorbed fracture energy appeared differently depending on the appearance of the shear bands developed. It can be found that the fracture energy and fracture toughness of Zr-based BMG are closely related with the extent of shear bands developed during fracture.

The effect of fatigue and environment on the adhesion and delamination of thin polymer films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Snodgrass, Jeffrey Matthew

Polymers are increasingly used in the interconnect and packaging levels of microelectronic devices. Thus, adhesion of polymer films to their adjacent inorganic layers is critical to the manufacturability and reliability of microelectronic components. Weak interfacial adhesion can result in delamination, causing a loss of package hermeticity or the failure of electrical contacts. Recently, interface fracture mechanics techniques have been applied to the problem of thin film delamination and are now used to measure interface adhesion. These techniques allow for characterization of interface adhesion in terms of the critical strain energy release rate, GC, in units of J/m2. In this dissertation, studies are described that quantify the effects of fundamental parameters on the critical adhesion and resistance to subcritical (time-dependent) delamination of benzocyclobutene (BCB)/silica and epoxy underfill/polyimide interfaces. Results are presented detailing the action of small-molecule adhesion promoters on the critical interface adhesion energy of BCB/silica. Silane coupling agents with different functional end groups were used to increase chemical bonding at this interface in order to achieve optimized adhesion. Testing was performed at different mode mixities to evaluate the effect of loading mode on the polymer interface fracture. Subcritical debonding data were measured under two different loading conditions and results are presented in terms of the debond growth rate as a function of applied strain energy release rate. Monotonic loading was used to examine environment-assisted delamination processes, while fatigue loading was used to understand the effects of thermomechanical cycling. Debond growth rates over the range of 10-3 to 10-9 m/s were characterized under mode I and mixed-mode loading. Atomic force microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were used to characterize the fracture surfaces of these interfaces and to generate detailed information about the debond fracture path and mechanisms. The AFM and XPS results suggest that the failure mode of BCB/silica interfaces is cohesive in the BCB layer, in a region very close to the interface. Mechanical fatigue was found to considerably accelerate subcritical debond growth rates and decrease debond growth thresholds to as low as 25% of the critical adhesion energy. Fatigue loading produced fatigue striations on the BCB surface with a striation height of ˜1--2 nm and a spacing that was correlated with the debond growth rate. Finally, a model is presented for the mechanism of striation formation.

Transverse analysis and field measurements for segmental box girders wings : final report, December 2008.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-12-01

Parapets placed on bridge deck surfaces, commonly known as barriers are purposes omitted from the structural analysis model for design or load rating. Barriers should not be considered primary structural members because they are designed to withstand...

The effect of insulated combustion chamber surfaces on direct-injected diesel engine performance, emissions, and combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dickey, Daniel W.; Vinyard, Shannon; Keribar, Rifat

1988-01-01

The combustion chamber of a single-cylinder, direct-injected diesel engine was insulated with ceramic coatings to determine the effect of low heat rejection (LHR) operation on engine performance, emissions, and combustion. In comparison to the baseline cooled engine, the LHR engine had lower thermal efficiency, with higher smoke, particulate, and full load carbon monoxide emissions. The unburned hydrocarbon emissions were reduced across the load range. The nitrous oxide emissions increased at some part-load conditions and were reduced slightly at full loads. The poor LHR engine performance was attributed to degraded combustion characterized by less premixed burning, lower heat release rates, and longer combustion duration compared to the baseline cooled engine.

Vanadium oxide-carbon nanotube composite electrodes for energy storage by supercritical fluid deposition: experiment design and device performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Do, Quyet H.; Fielitz, Thomas R.; Zeng, Changchun; Arda Vanli, O.; Zhang, Chuck; Zheng, Jim P.

2013-08-01

Vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) deposited on porous multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) buckypaper using supercritical fluid CO2(scCO2) deposition shows excellent performance for electrochemical capacitors. However, the low weight loading of V2O5 is one of the main problems. In this paper, design of experiments and response surface methods were employed to explore strategies for improving the active material loading by increasing the organo-vanadium precursor adsorption. A second-order response surface model was fitted to the designed experiments to predict the loading of the vanadium precursors onto carbon nanotube buckypaper as a function of time, temperature and pressure of CO2, buckypaper functionalization, precursor type, initial precursor mass and stir speed. Operation conditions were identified by employing a model that led to a precursor loading of 19.33%, an increase of 72.28% over the initial screening design. CNTs-V2O5 composite electrodes fabricated from deposited samples using the optimized conditions demonstrated outstanding electrochemical performance (947.1 F g-1 of V2O5 at a high scan rate 100 mV s-1). The model also predicted operation conditions under which light precursor aggregation took place. The V2O5 from aggregated precursor still possessed considerable specific capacitance (311 F g-1 of V2O5 at a scan rate 100 mV s-1), and the significantly higher V2O5 loading (˜81%) contributed to an increase in overall electrode capacitance.

Using multiple bed load measurements: Toward the identification of bed dilation and contraction in gravel-bed rivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marquis, G. A.; Roy, A. G.

2012-02-01

This study examines bed load transport processes in a small gravel-bed river (Béard Creek, Québec) using three complementary methods: bed elevation changes between successive floods, bed activity surveys using tags inserted into the bed, and bed load transport rates from bed load traps. The analysis of 20 flood events capable of mobilizing bed material led to the identification of divergent results among the methods. In particular, bed elevation changes were not consistent with the bed activity surveys. In many cases, bed elevation changes were significant (1 to 2 times the D50) even if the bed surface had not been activated during the flood, leading to the identification of processes of bed dilation and contraction that occurred over 10% to 40% of the bed surface. These dynamics of the river bed prevent accurate derivation of bed load transport rates from topographic changes, especially for low magnitude floods. This paper discusses the mechanisms that could explain the dilation and contraction of particles within the bed and their implications in fluvial dynamics. Bed contraction seems to be the result of the winnowing of the fine sediments under very low gravel transport. Bed dilation seems to occur on patches of the bed at the threshold of motion where various processes such as fine sediment infiltration lead to the maintenance of a larger sediment framework volume. Both processes are also influenced by flood history and the initial local bed state and in turn may have a significant impact on sediment transport and morphological changes in gravel-bed rivers.

Visible-light-induced Ag/BiVO4 semiconductor with enhanced photocatalytic and antibacterial performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Regmi, Chhabilal; Dhakal, Dipesh; Wohn Lee, Soo

2018-02-01

An Ag-loaded BiVO4 visible-light-driven photocatalyst was synthesized by the microwave hydrothermal method followed by photodeposition. The photocatalytic performance of the synthesized samples was evaluated on a mixed dye (methylene blue and rhodamine B), as well as bisphenol A in aqueous solution. Similarly, the disinfection activities of synthesized samples towards the Gram-negative Escherichia coli (E. coli) in a model cell were investigated under irradiation with visible light (λ ≥ 420 nm). The synthesized samples have monoclinic scheelite structure. Photocatalytic results showed that all Ag-loaded BiVO4 samples exhibited greater degradation and a higher mineralization rate than the pure BiVO4, probably due to the presence of surface plasmon absorption that arises due to the loading of Ag on the BiVO4 surface. The optimum Ag loading of 5 wt% has the highest photocatalytic performance and greatest stability with pseudo-first-order rate constants of 0.031 min-1 and 0.023 min-1 for the degradation of methylene blue and rhodamine B respectively in a mixture with an equal volume and concentration of each dye. The photocatalytic degradation of bisphenol A reaches 76.2% with 5 wt% Ag-doped BiVO4 within 180 min irradiation time. Similarly, the Ag-loaded BiVO4 could completely inactivate E. coli cells within 30 min under visible light irradiation. The disruption of the cell membrane as well as degradation of protein and DNA exhibited constituted evidence for antibacterial activity towards E. coli. Moreover, the bactericidal mechanisms involved in the photocatalytic disinfection process were systematically investigated.

Concepts of skin protection: considerations for the evaluation and terminology of the performance of skin protective equipment.

PubMed

Brouwer, Derk H; Aitken, Robert J; Oppl, Reinhard; Cherrie, John W

2005-09-01

This article proposes a common language for better understanding processes involved in dermal exposure and skin protection. A conceptual model has been developed that systematically describes the transport of agent mass from sources, eventually resulting in "loading" of the skin surface or the skin contaminant layer. In view of a harmonized glossary of exposure terminology this is considered the exposure surface. Loading is defined as agent mass present in this layer divided by the exposure surface area. Skin protective equipment (SPE) is meant to reduce uptake, that is, an agent crosses the absorption barrier of the skin, by intervening in the processes of loading the exposure surface; however, the design of the equipment may fail to cover skin surface entirely. In addition, part of the mass intercepted by the SPE may reach the skin surface either by permeation, penetration, or by transfer when touching the contaminated exterior of the SPE. Evaluation of SPE performance has earlier focused on chemical resistance performance testing for permeation, penetration, or degradation of SPE-materials. In use-scenario practice, however, all processes will occur concurrently. Thus, SPE field performance evaluation including user-SPE interaction complementary to material testing is warranted. Results of laboratory testing for SPE-materials are reported as substance-specific breakthrough times and permeation rates. SPE field performance should be evaluated for reduction of either uptake or parameters that reflect the outcome of dermal exposure. Ideally, this should be based on the results of intervention-type workplace studies, for (e.g., assessment of exposure loading). The level of reduction can be expressed as a protection factor (ratio without/with SPE) for different parameters of dermal exposure or uptake. It is concluded that for evaluation of SPE-type performance, generic protection factors can be derived for substance-independent processes (e.g., reduction of exposure loading) but not for substance-specific reduction of uptake.

Nondimensional parameter for conformal grinding: combining machine and process parameters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Funkenbusch, Paul D.; Takahashi, Toshio; Gracewski, Sheryl M.; Ruckman, Jeffrey L.

1999-11-01

Conformal grinding of optical materials with CNC (Computer Numerical Control) machining equipment can be used to achieve precise control over complex part configurations. However complications can arise due to the need to fabricate complex geometrical shapes at reasonable production rates. For example high machine stiffness is essential, but the need to grind 'inside' small or highly concave surfaces may require use of tooling with less than ideal stiffness characteristics. If grinding generates loads sufficient for significant tool deflection, the programmed removal depth will not be achieved. Moreover since grinding load is a function of the volumetric removal rate the amount of load deflection can vary with location on the part, potentially producing complex figure errors. In addition to machine/tool stiffness and removal rate, load generation is a function of the process parameters. For example by reducing the feed rate of the tool into the part, both the load and resultant deflection/removal error can be decreased. However this must be balanced against the need for part through put. In this paper a simple model which permits combination of machine stiffness and process parameters into a single non-dimensional parameter is adapted for a conformal grinding geometry. Errors in removal can be minimized by maintaining this parameter above a critical value. Moreover, since the value of this parameter depends on the local part geometry, it can be used to optimize process settings during grinding. For example it may be used to guide adjustment of the feed rate as a function of location on the part to eliminate figure errors while minimizing the total grinding time required.

Methotrexate loaded alginate microparticles and effect of Ca2+ post-crosslinking: An in vitro physicochemical and biological evaluation.

PubMed

Dhanka, Mukesh; Shetty, Chaitra; Srivastava, Rohit

2018-04-15

Methotrexate (MTX) loaded alginate microparticles were produced by simple water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion solvent diffusion method with homogenization and then subsequently cross-linked by Ca 2+ . The mean sizes of developed microparticles (bare non-crosslinked, crosslinked, drug-loaded non-crosslinked, and drug-loaded cross-linked) were found to be <11μm. The morphology of bare non-crosslinked and crosslinked microparticles were observed to be spherical with smooth surface morphology. However, MTX loaded non-crosslinked and crosslinked microparticles were found to have an irregular shape with rough surface morphology. The encapsulation efficiency (% EE) and loading capacity (% LC) of MTX loaded non-crosslinked microparticles were estimated to be 92.19±1.85 and 9.35±0.22, respectively. However, in case of cross-linked microparticles, the % EE and % LC values slightly decreased, i.e., 83.26±1.69% and 8.44±0.21%, respectively. Crosslinked microparticles were found to release MTX at a slower rate as compared to non-crosslinked microparticles. The physicochemical characterizations of microparticles by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy and High-Resolution X-Ray Diffraction have shown that drug encapsulated in the microparticles without chemical interactions has lost its crystalline nature. The biocompatibility and hemocompatibility studies of the microparticles have demonstrated that microparticles are biocompatible and were non-hemolytic at low concentrations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Study of the two-phase dummy load shut-down strategy for proton exchange membrane fuel cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Q.; Lin, R.; Cui, X.; Xia, S. X.; Yang, Z.; Chang, Y. T.

2017-02-01

This paper presents a new system strategy designed to alleviate the performance decay caused by start-up/shut-down (SU/SD) conditions in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). The innovative method was tested using a two-phase dummy load composed of a linearly declined main load and a fixed small auxiliary load. The initial value of the main load must be controlled within a proper range, and a closed-ended air exhaust is necessary. According to the analysis of in-situ current density distribution during SD processes, the two-phase dummy load can continuously fit the process of oxygen reduction in the cathode, whereas the conventional dummy load leads to local air starvation. Polarization curves and cyclic voltammetry (CV) were employed to evaluate the performance decay during SU/SD repetition. After tests of 900 cycles, the highest voltage degradation rate of the PEMFC was 3.33 μV cycle-1 (800 mA cm-2), and the electrochemical surface area (ECSA) loss was 0.0046 m2 g-1 cycle-1 with the two-phase dummy load strategy. After comparing results with similar work on a single PEMFC, the authors confirmed the preeminent effectiveness of this strategy. This strategy will also improve fuel cell stack performance due to controllable SD duration and comparatively low performance decay rates.

Influence of track surface on the equine superficial digital flexor tendon loading in two horses at high speed trot.

PubMed

Crevier-Denoix, N; Pourcelot, P; Ravary, B; Robin, D; Falala, S; Uzel, S; Grison, A C; Valette, J P; Denoix, J M; Chateau, H

2009-03-01

Although track surfaces are a risk factor of tendon injuries, their effects on tendon loading at high speed are unknown. Using a noninvasive ultrasonic technique, it is now possible to evaluate the forces in the superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT) in exercise conditions. To compare the effects of an all-weather waxed track (W) vs. a crushed sand track (S), on the SDFT loading in the trotter horse at high speed. Two trotter horses were equipped with the ultrasonic device (1 MHz ultrasonic probe, fixed on the palmar metacarpal area of the right forelimb). For each trial, data acquisition was made at 400 Hz and 10 consecutive strides were analysed. In each session, the 2 track surfaces were tested in a straight line. The speed was imposed at 10 m/s and recorded. The right forelimb was also equipped with a dynamometric horseshoe and skin markers. The horse was filmed with a high-speed camera (600 Hz); all recordings were synchronised. Statistical differences were tested using the GLM procedure (SAS; P < 0.05). Maximal tendon force was significantly lower on W compared with S. In addition to maximal force peaks around mid-stance, earlier peaks were observed, more pronounced on S than on W, at about 13% (horse 2) and 30% (both horses) of the stance phase. Comparison with kinematic data revealed that these early peaks were accompanied by plateaux in the fetlock angle-time chart. For high tendon forces, the tendon maximal loading rate was significantly lower on W than on S. CONCLUSIONS AND POTENTIAL CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The all-weather waxed track appears to induce a lesser and more gradual SDFT loading than crushed sand. The SDFT loading pattern at high speed trot suggests proximal interphalangeal joint movements during limb loading.

Effects of strain rate and surface cracks on the mechanical behaviour of Balmoral Red granite.

PubMed

Mardoukhi, Ahmad; Mardoukhi, Yousof; Hokka, Mikko; Kuokkala, Veli-Tapani

2017-01-28

This work presents a systematic study on the effects of strain rate and surface cracks on the mechanical properties and behaviour of Balmoral Red granite. The tensile behaviour of the rock was studied at low and high strain rates using Brazilian disc samples. Heat shocks were used to produce samples with different amounts of surface cracks. The surface crack patterns were analysed using optical microscopy, and the complexity of the patterns was quantified by calculating the fractal dimensions of the patterns. The strength of the rock clearly drops as a function of increasing fractal dimensions in the studied strain rate range. However, the dynamic strength of the rock drops significantly faster than the quasi-static strength, and, because of this, also the strain rate sensitivity of the rock decreases with increasing fractal dimensions. This can be explained by the fracture behaviour and fragmentation during the dynamic loading, which is more strongly affected by the heat shock than the fragmentation at low strain rates.This article is part of the themed issue 'Experimental testing and modelling of brittle materials at high strain rates'. © 2016 The Author(s).

Study on influence of Surface roughness of Ni-Al2O3 nano composite coating and evaluation of wear characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raghavendra, C. R.; Basavarajappa, S.; Sogalad, Irappa

2018-02-01

Electrodeposition is one of the most technologically feasible and economically superior techniques for producing metallic coating. The advancement in the application of nano particles has grabbed the attention in all fields of engineering. In this present study an attempt has been made on the Ni-Al2O3nano particle composite coating on aluminium substrate by electrodeposition process. The aluminium surface requires a specific pre-treatment for better adherence of coating. In light of this a thin zinc layer is coated on the aluminium substrate by electroless process. In addition to this surface roughness is an important parameter for any coating method and material. In this work Ni-Al2O3 composite coating were successfully coated by varying the process parameters such as bath temperature, current density and particle loading. The experimentation was performed using central composite design based 20 trials of experiments. The effect of process parameters and surface roughness before and after coating is analyzed on wear rate and coating thickness. The results shown a better wear resistance of Ni-Al2O3 composite electrodeposited coating compared to Ni coating. The particle loading and interaction effect of current density with temperature has greater significant effect on wear rate. The surface roughness is significantly affected the wear behaviour and thickness of coating.

Scratch and wear behaviour of plasma sprayed nano ceramics bilayer Al2O3-13 wt%TiO2/hydroxyapatite coated on medical grade titanium substrates in SBF environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palanivelu, R.; Ruban Kumar, A.

2014-10-01

Among the various coating techniques, plasma spray coating is an efficient technique to protect the metal surface from the various surface problems like wear and corrosion. The aim of this present work is to design and produce a bilayer coating on the non- toxic commercially pure titanium (denoted as CP-Ti) implant substrate in order to improve the biocompatibility and surface properties. To achieve that, Al2O3-13 wt%TiO2 (AT13) and hydroxyapatite (HAP) were coated on CP-Ti implant substrate using plasma spray coating technique. Further, the coated substrates were subjected to various characterization techniques. The crystallite size of coated HAP and its morphological studies were carried out using X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) respectively. The wear test on the bilayer (AT13/HAP) coated CP-Ti implant surface was conducted using ball-on-disc tester under SBF environment at 37 °C, in order to determine the wear rate and the coefficient of friction. The adhesion strength of the bilayer coated surface was evaluated by micro scratch tester under the ramp load conditions with load range of 14-20 N. The above said studies were repeated on the single layer coated HAP and AT13 implant surfaces. The results reveal that the bilayer (AT13/HAP) coated CP-Ti surface has the improved wear rate, coefficient of friction in compared to single layer coated HAP and AT13 surfaces.

Subcritical crack growth of selected aerospace pressure vessel materials

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, L. R.; Bixler, W. D.

1972-01-01

This experimental program was undertaken to determine the effects of combined cyclic/sustained loads, stress level, and crack shape on the fatigue crack growth rate behavior of cracks subjected to plane strain conditions. Material/environment combinations tested included: 2219-T87 aluminum plate in gaseous helium, room air, and 3.5% NaCl solution at room temperature, liquid nitrogen, and liquid hydrogen; 5Al-2.5 Sn (ELI) titanium plate in liquid nitrogen and liquid hydrogen and 6AL-4V (ELI) STA titanium plate in gaseous helium and methanol at room temperature. Most testing was accomplished using surface flawed specimens instrumented with a clip gage to continuously monitor crack opening displacements at the specimen surface. Tapered double cantilever beam specimens were also tested. Static fracture and ten hour sustained load tests were conducted to determine fracture toughness and apparent threshold stress intensity values. Cyclic tests were performed using sinusoidal loading profiles at 333 MHz (20 cpm) and trapezoidal loading profiles at both 8.3 MHz (0.5 cpm) and 3.3 MHz (0.2 cpm). Data were evaluated using modified linear elastic fracture mechanics parameters.

Justification of process of loading coal onto face conveyors by auger heads of shearer-loader machines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nguyen, K. L.; Gabov, V. V.; Zadkov, D. A.; Le, T. B.

2018-03-01

This paper analyzes the processes of removing coal from the area of its dislodging and loading the disintegrated mass onto face conveyors by auger heads of shearer-loader machines. The loading process is assumed to consist of four subprocesses: dislodging coal, removal of the disintegrated mass by auger blades from the crushing area, passive transportation of the disintegrated mass, and forming the load flow on the bearing surface of a face conveyor. Each of the considered subprocesses is different in its physical nature, the number of factors influencing it, and can be complex or multifactor. Possibilities of improving the efficiency of loading coal onto a face conveyor are addressed. The selected criteria of loading efficiency are load rate, specific energy consumption, and coal size reduction. Efficiency is improved by reducing the resistance to movement of the disintegrated mass during loading by increasing the area of the loading window section and the volume of the loading area on the conveyor, as well as by coordination of intensity of flows related to the considered processes in local areas.

Mechanical loading increases detection of estrogen receptor-alpha in osteocytes and osteoblasts despite chronic energy restriction.

PubMed

Swift, Sibyl N; Swift, Joshua M; Bloomfield, Susan A

2014-12-01

Estrogen receptor-α (ER-α) is an important mediator of the bone response to mechanical loading. We sought to determine whether restricting dietary energy intake by 40% limits the bone formation rate (BFR) response to mechanical loading (LOAD) by downregulating ER-α-expressing osteocytes, or osteoblasts, or both. Female rats (n = 48, 7 mo old) were randomized to ADLIB-SHAM and ADLIB-LOAD groups fed AIN-93M purified diet ad libitum or to ER40-SHAM and ER40-LOAD groups fed modified AIN-93M with 40% less energy (100% of all other nutrients). After 12 wk, LOAD rats were subjected to a muscle contraction protocol three times every third day. ER40 produced lower proximal tibia bone volume (-22%), trabecular thickness (-14%), and higher trabecular separation (+127%) in SHAM but not LOAD rats. ER40 rats exhibited reductions in mineral apposition rate, but not percent mineralizing surface or BFR. LOAD induced similar relative increases in these kinetic measures of osteoblast activity/recruitment in both diet groups., but absolute values for ER40 LOAD rats were lower vs. ADLIB-LOAD. There were fourfold and eightfold increases in proportion of estrogen receptor-α protein-positive osteoblast and osteocytes, respectively, in LOAD vs. SHAM rats, with no effect of ER40. These data suggest that a brief period of mechanical loading significantly affects estrogen receptor-α in cancellous bone osteoblasts and osteocytes. Chronic energy restriction does result in lower absolute values in indices of osteoblast activity after mechanical loading, but not by a smaller increment relative to unloaded bones; this change is not explained by an associated downregulation of ER-α in osteoblasts or osteocytes.

Optimization of tetracycline hydrochloride adsorption on amino modified SBA-15 using response surface methodology.

PubMed

Hashemikia, Samaneh; Hemmatinejad, Nahid; Ahmadi, Ebrahim; Montazer, Majid

2015-04-01

Several researchers are focused on preparation of mesoporous silica as drug carriers with high loading efficiency to control or sustain the drug release. Carriers with highly loaded drug are utilized to minimize the time of drug intake. In this study, amino modified SBA-15 was synthesized through grafting with amino propyl triethoxy silane and then loaded with tetracycline hydrochloride. The drug loading was optimized by using the response surface method considering various factors including drug to silica ratio, operation time, and temperature. The drug to silica ratio indicated as the most influential factor on the drug loading yield. Further, a quadratic polynomial equation was developed to predict the loading percentage. The experimental results indicated reasonable agreement with the predicted values. The modified and drug loaded mesoporous particles were characterized by FT-IR, SEM, TEM, X-ray diffraction (XRD), elemental analysis and N2 adsorption-desorption. The release profiles of tetracycline-loaded particles were studied in different pH. Also, Higuchi equation was used to analyze the release profile of the drug and to evaluate the kinetic of drug release. The drug release rate followed the conventional Higuchi model that could be controlled by amino-functionalized SBA-15. Further, the drug delivery system based on amino modified SBA-15 exhibits novel features with an appropriate usage as an anti-bacterial drug delivery system with effective management of drug adsorption and release. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effect of water and alkali modifications on ETS-10 for the cycloaddition of CO2 to propylene oxide.

PubMed

Doskocil, Eric J

2005-02-17

Sodium oxide (NaOx) impregnated Engelhard Titanosilicate-10 (ETS-10) molecular sieve catalysts were prepared to enhance the basicity associated with ETS-10 and subsequently investigated for the cycloaddition of carbon dioxide to propylene oxide to produce propylene carbonate. For dry NaOx-modified ETS-10 catalysts that contained no adsorbed water, a maximum yield of propylene carbonate was achieved at a loading of 2.0 excess NaOx species per unit cell. However, the greatest enhancements in the rate of reaction were observed when small amounts of water were adsorbed onto the unmodified ETS-10 catalyst immediately prior to reaction. Surface-bound water appears to enhance the surface Bronsted acidity of the unmodified ETS-10 catalyst via the formation of surface -OH groups at lower water loadings, producing a surface of better-tuned acid-base bifunctional characteristics for the cycloaddition reaction. At levels of hydration greater than 12.5% by mass, the yield of propylene carbonate was further enhanced, but at a smaller rate than that observed at lower rehydration levels, which is more indicative of an enhanced transport effect. Adsorption microcalorimetry of carbon dioxide indicated that, at loadings less than 2.0 NaOx per unit cell, the total uptake of the CO2 adsorption sites required for the reaction were less than in the parent ETS-10 material. However, at higher levels of NaOx occlusion, where the total uptake and strength of the adsorption sites exceeded those observed for the as-received ETS-10 material, the cycloaddition activity of this catalyst suffered due to the reduced pore volume and surface area. It appears that precise tuning of both the surface acidity and basicity is crucial in creating an effective acid-base bifunctional ETS-10 catalyst for the cycloaddition reaction investigated.

Removal of hexavalent chromium in soil and groundwater by supported nano zero-valent iron on silica fume.

PubMed

Li, Yongchao; Jin, Zhaohui; Li, Tielong; Li, Shujing

2011-01-01

Silica fume supported-Fe(0) nanoparticles (SF-Fe(0)) were prepared using commercial silica fume as a support. The feasibility of using this SF-Fe(0) for reductive immobilization of Cr(VI) was investigated through batch tests. Compared with unsupported Fe(0), SF-Fe(0) was significantly more active in Cr(VI) removal especially in 84 wt% silica fume loading. Silica fume had also been found to inhibit the formation of Fe(III)/Cr(III) precipitation on Fe nanoparticles' surface, which was increasing the deactivation resistance of iron. Cr(VI) was removed through physical adsorption of Cr(VI) onto the SF-Fe(0) surface and subsequent reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III). The rate of reduction of Cr(VI) could be expressed by pseudo first-order reaction kinetics. The rate constant increased with the increase in iron loading but decreased with the increase in initial Cr(VI) concentration. Furthermore, column tests showed that the SF-Fe(0) could be readily transported in model soil.

Tailoring MCM-41 mesoporous silica particles through modified sol-gel process for gas separation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sang, Wong Yean; Ching, Oh Pei

2017-10-01

Mobil Composition of Matter-41 (MCM-41) is recognized as a potential filler to enhance permeability of mixed matrix membrane (MMM). However, the required loading for available micron-sized MCM-41 was considerably high in order to achieve desired separation performance. In this work, reduced-size MCM-41 was synthesized to minimize filler loading, improve surface modification and enhance polymer-filler compatibility during membrane fabrication. The effect of reaction condition, stirring rate and type of post-synthesis washing solution used on particle diameter of resultant MCM-41 were investigated. It was found that MCM-41 produced at room temperature condition yield particles with smaller diameter, higher specific surface area and enhanced mesopore structure. Increase of stirring rate up to 500 rpm during synthesis also reduced the particle diameter. In addition, replacing water with methanol as the post-synthesis washing solution to remove bromide ions from the precipitate was able to further reduce the particle size by inhibiting polycondensation reaction.

Crystallization, mechanical properties, and controlled enzymatic degradation of biodegradable poly(epsilon-caprolactone)/multi-walled carbon nanotubes nanocomposites.

PubMed

Qiu, Zhaobin; Wang, Huishan; Xu, Changling

2011-09-01

Biodegradable poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL)/multi-walled carbon nanotubes containing carboxylic groups (f-MWNTs) nanocomposites were prepared via simple melt compounding at low f-MWNTs loading in this work. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy observations indicate a homogeneous and fine distribution of f-MWNTs throughout the PCL matrix. The effect of low f-MWNTs loading on the crystallization, mechanical properties, and controlled enzymatic degradation of PCL in the nanocomposites were studied in detail with various techniques. The experimental results indicate that the incorporation of f-MWNTs enhances both the nonisothermal crystallization peak temperature and the overall isothermal crystallization rate of PCL in the PCL/f-MWNTs nanocomposites relative to neat PCL; moreover, the incorporation of a small quantity of f-MWNTs has improved apparently the mechanical properties of the PCL/MWNTs nanocomposites compared to neat PCL. The enzymatic degradation of neat PCL and the PCL/f-MWNTs nanocomposites at low f-MWNTs loading was studied in detail. The variation of weight loss with enzymatic degradation time, the surface morphology change, the reduced film thickness, the appearance of f-MWNTs on the surface of the films, and the almost unchanged molecular weight after enzymatic degradation suggest that the enzymatic degradation of neat PCL and the PCL/f-MWNTs nanocomposites may proceed via surface erosion mechanism. The presence of f-MWNTs reduces the enzymatic degradation rate of the PCL matrix in the nanocomposites compared with that of the pure PCL film.

Microjetting from grooved surfaces in metallic samples subjected to laser driven shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Rességuier, T.; Lescoute, E.; Sollier, A.; Prudhomme, G.; Mercier, P.

2014-01-01

When a shock wave propagating in a solid sample reflects from a free surface, geometrical effects predominantly governed by the roughness and defects of that surface may lead to the ejection of tiny jets that may breakup into high velocity, approximately micrometer-size fragments. This process referred to as microjetting is a major safety issue for engineering applications such as pyrotechnics or armour design. Thus, it has been widely studied both experimentally, under explosive and impact loading, and theoretically. In this paper, microjetting is investigated in the specific loading conditions associated to laser shocks: very short duration of pressure application, very high strain rates, small spatial scales. Material ejection from triangular grooves in the free surface of various metallic samples is studied by combining transverse optical shadowgraphy and time-resolved velocity measurements. The influences of the main parameters (groove angle, shock pressure, nature of the metal) on jet formation and ejection velocity are quantified, and the results are compared to theoretical estimates.

The post-pinatubo evolution of stratospheric aerosol surface area density as inferred from SAGE 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poole, L. R.; Thomason, L. W.

1994-01-01

Following the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in June of 1991, the aerosol mass loading of the stratosphere increased from -1 Mt to approximately 30 Mt. This change in aerosol loading was responsible for numerous radiative and chemical changes observed within the stratosphere. As a result, the ability to quantify aerosol properties on a global basis during this period is important. Aerosol surface area density is a critical parameter in governing the rates of heterogeneous reactions, such as ClONO2 plus H2O yields HNO3 plus HOCl, which influence the stratospheric abundance of ozone. Following the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, measurements by the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment (SAGE 2) indicated that the stratospheric aerosol surface area density increased by as much as a factor of 100. Using SAGE 2 multi-wavelength aerosol extinction data, aerosol surface area density as well as mass are derived for the period following the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo through the present.

Microjetting from grooved surfaces in metallic samples subjected to laser driven shocks

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

Rességuier, T. de, E-mail: resseguier@ensma.fr; Lescoute, E.; Sollier, A.

2014-01-28

When a shock wave propagating in a solid sample reflects from a free surface, geometrical effects predominantly governed by the roughness and defects of that surface may lead to the ejection of tiny jets that may breakup into high velocity, approximately micrometer-size fragments. This process referred to as microjetting is a major safety issue for engineering applications such as pyrotechnics or armour design. Thus, it has been widely studied both experimentally, under explosive and impact loading, and theoretically. In this paper, microjetting is investigated in the specific loading conditions associated to laser shocks: very short duration of pressure application, verymore » high strain rates, small spatial scales. Material ejection from triangular grooves in the free surface of various metallic samples is studied by combining transverse optical shadowgraphy and time-resolved velocity measurements. The influences of the main parameters (groove angle, shock pressure, nature of the metal) on jet formation and ejection velocity are quantified, and the results are compared to theoretical estimates.« less

Intelligent detection of cracks in metallic surfaces using a waveguide sensor loaded with metamaterial elements.

PubMed

Ali, Abdulbaset; Hu, Bing; Ramahi, Omar

2015-05-15

This work presents a real life experiment of implementing an artificial intelligence model for detecting sub-millimeter cracks in metallic surfaces on a dataset obtained from a waveguide sensor loaded with metamaterial elements. Crack detection using microwave sensors is typically based on human observation of change in the sensor's signal (pattern) depicted on a high-resolution screen of the test equipment. However, as demonstrated in this work, implementing artificial intelligence to classify cracked from non-cracked surfaces has appreciable impact in terms of sensing sensitivity, cost, and automation. Furthermore, applying artificial intelligence for post-processing data collected from microwave sensors is a cornerstone for handheld test equipment that can outperform rack equipment with large screens and sophisticated plotting features. The proposed method was tested on a metallic plate with different cracks and the obtained experimental results showed good crack classification accuracy rates.

ZIP3D: An elastic and elastic-plastic finite-element analysis program for cracked bodies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shivakumar, K. N.; Newman, J. C., Jr.

1990-01-01

ZIP3D is an elastic and an elastic-plastic finite element program to analyze cracks in three dimensional solids. The program may also be used to analyze uncracked bodies or multi-body problems involving contacting surfaces. For crack problems, the program has several unique features including the calculation of mixed-mode strain energy release rates using the three dimensional virtual crack closure technique, the calculation of the J integral using the equivalent domain integral method, the capability to extend the crack front under monotonic or cyclic loading, and the capability to close or open the crack surfaces during cyclic loading. The theories behind the various aspects of the program are explained briefly. Line-by-line data preparation is presented. Input data and results for an elastic analysis of a surface crack in a plate and for an elastic-plastic analysis of a single-edge-crack-tension specimen are also presented.

Intelligent Detection of Cracks in Metallic Surfaces Using a Waveguide Sensor Loaded with Metamaterial Elements

PubMed Central

Ali, Abdulbaset; Hu, Bing; Ramahi, Omar M.

2015-01-01

This work presents a real-life experiment implementing an artificial intelligence model for detecting sub-millimeter cracks in metallic surfaces on a dataset obtained from a waveguide sensor loaded with metamaterial elements. Crack detection using microwave sensors is typically based on human observation of change in the sensor's signal (pattern) depicted on a high-resolution screen of the test equipment. However, as demonstrated in this work, implementing artificial intelligence to classify cracked from non-cracked surfaces has appreciable impacts in terms of sensing sensitivity, cost, and automation. Furthermore, applying artificial intelligence for post-processing the data collected from microwave sensors is a cornerstone for handheld test equipment that can outperform rack equipment with large screens and sophisticated plotting features. The proposed method was tested on a metallic plate with different cracks, and the experimental results showed good crack classification accuracy rates. PMID:25988871

[Ambient air pollution of territories of children preschool institutions by emissions of vehicle components and health of children population].

PubMed

Makarov, O A; Zimina, A N; Nenakhova, E V

The aim of this study was the assessment of levels of pollution of territories of preschool educational institutions (PEI) by components of vehicle emissions, in dependence on their locations relatively to highways with different traffic load and, in this regard, the assessment of children health according to the incidence on the seeking medical advice. To achieve this goal there were solved following tasks: to assess air pollution levels of PEI territories by components of vehicle emissions; to evaluate levels and the structure of morbidity rate according to seeking medical advice by children attending observed PEI. In the article there is presented the evaluation of air pollution levels of the components of vehicle emissions territories 4 PEI of the city of Irkutsk located near to highways with different intensity the road transport load. The research results were obtained with the use of «Methodics for the determination vehicle emissions for summary calculations of ambient air pollution in cities», which allows to determine the maximum emissions of a moving vehicle per time unit (g/s) for the main combustion components and with following use of software «Superhighway -city» to calculate surface concentrations of considered pollutants in the surface ambient air layer (1 m) in MPC proportions. The highest levels of contamination on the content of nitric oxide and benzo- (a)-pyrene (4 and 6,5 MPC respectively) are registered in the territories adjacent to the PEI motorways with high load tracking. To assess the morbidity rate according to seeking medical advice by children attending PEI with different road transport load there were used records from outpatient medical cards «Medical card of the child» (f.112/y). Morbidity rate according to seeking medical advice was evaluated in dynamics throughout five years and calculated per 1000 cases. The total sample size accounted for 670 children. The highest morbidity incidence rate levels according both to seeking medical advice and the class of respiratory diseases were recorded in PEI located in close proximity to the highway with a high load of vehicle transport.

Comparative evaluation of urban storm water quality models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vaze, J.; Chiew, Francis H. S.

2003-10-01

The estimation of urban storm water pollutant loads is required for the development of mitigation and management strategies to minimize impacts to receiving environments. Event pollutant loads are typically estimated using either regression equations or "process-based" water quality models. The relative merit of using regression models compared to process-based models is not clear. A modeling study is carried out here to evaluate the comparative ability of the regression equations and process-based water quality models to estimate event diffuse pollutant loads from impervious surfaces. The results indicate that, once calibrated, both the regression equations and the process-based model can estimate event pollutant loads satisfactorily. In fact, the loads estimated using the regression equation as a function of rainfall intensity and runoff rate are better than the loads estimated using the process-based model. Therefore, if only estimates of event loads are required, regression models should be used because they are simpler and require less data compared to process-based models.

Anti-sessile bacterial and cytocompatibility properties of CHX-loaded nanohydroxyapatite.

PubMed

Barros, J; Grenho, L; Fernandes, M H; Manuel, C M; Melo, L F; Nunes, O C; Monteiro, F J; Ferraz, M P

2015-06-01

Nanohydroxyapatite possesses exceptional biocompatibility and bioactivity regarding bone cells and tissues, justifying its use as a coating material or as a bone substitute. Unfortunately, this feature may also encourage bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation. Surface functionalization with antimicrobials is a promising strategy to reduce the likelihood of bacterial infestation and colonization on medical devices. Chlorhexidine digluconate is a common and effective antimicrobial agent used for a wide range of medical applications. The purpose of this work was the development of a nanoHA biomaterial loaded with CHX to prevent surface bacterial accumulation and, simultaneously, with good cytocompatibility, for application in the medical field. CHX (5-1500 mg/L) was loaded onto nanoHA discs and the materials were evaluated for CHX adsorption and release profile, physic-chemical features, antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis, and cytocompatibility toward L929 fibroblasts. Results showed that the adsorption of CHX on nanoHA surface occurred by electrostatic interactions between the cationic group of CHX and the phosphate group of nanoHA. The release of CHX from CHX-loaded nanoHA showed a fast initial rate followed by a slower kinetics release, due to constraints caused by dilution and diffusion-limiting processes. NanoHA.50 to nanoHA.1500 showed strong anti-sessile activity, inhibiting bacterial adhesion and the biofilm formation. CHX-nanoHA caused a dose- and time-dependent inhibitory effect on the proliferation of fibroblasts for nanoHA.100 to nanoHA.1500. Cellular behavior on nanoHA.5 and nanoHA.50 was similar to control. Therefore, CHX-loaded nanoHA surfaces appear as a promising alternative to prevention of devices-related infections. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Eradication of high viable loads of Listeria monocytogenes contaminating food-contact surfaces

PubMed Central

de Candia, Silvia; Morea, Maria; Baruzzi, Federico

2015-01-01

This study demonstrates the efficacy of cold gaseous ozone treatments at low concentrations in the eradication of high Listeria monocytogenes viable cell loads from glass, polypropylene, stainless steel, and expanded polystyrene food-contact surfaces. Using a step by step approach, involving the selection of the most resistant strain-surface combinations, 11 Listeria sp. strains resulted inactivated by a continuous ozone flow at 1.07 mg m-3 after 24 or 48 h of cold incubation, depending on both strain and surface evaluated. Increasing the inoculum level to 9 log CFU coupon-1, the best inactivation rate was obtained after 48 h of treatment at 3.21 mg m-3 ozone concentration when cells were deposited onto stainless steel and expanded polystyrene coupons, resulted the most resistant food-contact surfaces in the previous assays. The addition of naturally contaminated meat extract to a high load of L. monocytogenes LMG 23775 cells, the most resistant strain out of the 11 assayed Listeria sp. strains, led to its complete inactivation after 4 days of treatment. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report describing the survival of L. monocytogenes and the effect of ozone treatment under cold storage conditions on expanded polystyrene, a commonly used material in food packaging. The results of this study could be useful for reducing pathogen cross-contamination phenomena during cold food storage. PMID:26236306

Energy absorption behavior of polyurea coatings under laser-induced dynamic tensile and mixed-mode loading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jajam, Kailash; Lee, Jaejun; Sottos, Nancy

2015-06-01

Energy absorbing, lightweight, thin transparent layers/coatings are desirable in many civilian and military applications such as hurricane resistant windows, personnel face-shields, helmet liners, aircraft canopies, laser shields, blast-tolerant sandwich structures, sound and vibration damping materials to name a few. Polyurea, a class of segmented block copolymer, has attracted recent attention for its energy absorbing properties. However, most of the dynamic property characterization of polyurea is limited to tensile and split-Hopkinson-pressure-bar compression loading experiments with strain rates on the order of 102 and 104 s-1, respectively. In the present work, we report the energy absorption behavior of polyurea thin films (1 to 2 μm) subjected to laser-induced dynamic tensile and mixed-mode loading. The laser-generated high amplitude stress wave propagates through the film in short time frames (15 to 20 ns) leading to very high strain rates (107 to 108 s-1) . The substrate stress, surface velocity and fluence histories are inferred from the displacement fringe data. On comparing input and output fluences, test results indicate significant energy absorption by the polyurea films under both tensile and mixed-mode loading conditions. Microscopic examination reveals distinct changes in failure mechanisms under mixed-mode loading from that observed under pure tensile loading. Office of Naval Research MURI.

Loading and release mechanisms of a biocide in polystyrene-block-poly(acrylic acid) block copolymer micelles.

PubMed

Vyhnalkova, Renata; Eisenberg, Adi; van de Ven, Theo G M

2008-07-24

The kinetics of loading of polystyrene197-block-poly(acrylic acid)47 (PS197-b-PAA47) micelles, suspended in water, with thiocyanomethylthiobenzothiazole biocide and its subsequent release were investigated. Loading of the micelles was found to be a two-step process. First, the surface of the PS core of the micelles is saturated with biocide, with a rate determined by the transfer of solid biocide to micelles during transient micelle-biocide contacts. Next, the biocide penetrates as a front into the micelles, lowering the Tg in the process (non-Fickian case II diffusion). The slow rate of release is governed by the height of the energy barrier that a biocide molecule must overcome to pass from PS into water, resulting in a uniform biocide concentration within the micelle, until Tg is increased to the point that diffusion inside the micelles becomes very slow. Maximum loading of biocide into micelles is approximately 30% (w/w) and is achieved in 1 h. From partition experiments, it can be concluded that the biocide has a similar preference for polystyrene as for ethylbenzene over water, implying that the maximum loading is governed by thermodynamics.

Effects of strain rate and surface cracks on the mechanical behaviour of Balmoral Red granite

PubMed Central

Kuokkala, Veli-Tapani

2017-01-01

This work presents a systematic study on the effects of strain rate and surface cracks on the mechanical properties and behaviour of Balmoral Red granite. The tensile behaviour of the rock was studied at low and high strain rates using Brazilian disc samples. Heat shocks were used to produce samples with different amounts of surface cracks. The surface crack patterns were analysed using optical microscopy, and the complexity of the patterns was quantified by calculating the fractal dimensions of the patterns. The strength of the rock clearly drops as a function of increasing fractal dimensions in the studied strain rate range. However, the dynamic strength of the rock drops significantly faster than the quasi-static strength, and, because of this, also the strain rate sensitivity of the rock decreases with increasing fractal dimensions. This can be explained by the fracture behaviour and fragmentation during the dynamic loading, which is more strongly affected by the heat shock than the fragmentation at low strain rates. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Experimental testing and modelling of brittle materials at high strain rates’. PMID:27956513

3D-CFD analysis of diffusion and emission of VOCs in a FLEC cavity.

PubMed

Zhu, Q; Kato, S; Murakami, S; Ito, K

2007-06-01

This study is performed as a part of research that examines the emission and diffusion characteristics of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from indoor building materials. In this paper, the flow field and the emission field of VOCs from the surface of building materials in a Field and Laboratory Emission Cell (FLEC) cavity are examined by 3D Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis. The flow field within the FLEC cavity is laminar. With a total flow of 250 ml/min, the air velocity near the test material surface ranges from 0.1 to 4.5 cm/s. Three types of emission from building materials are studied here: (i) emission phenomena controlled by internal diffusion, (ii) emission phenomena controlled by external diffusion, and (iii) emission phenomena controlled by mixed diffusion (internal + external diffusion). In the case of internal diffusion material, with respect to the concentration distribution in the cavity, the local VOC emission rate becomes uniform and the FLEC works well. However, in the case of evaporation type (external diffusion) material, or mixed type materials (internal + external diffusion) when the resistance to transporting VOCs in the material is small, the FLEC is not suitable for emission testing because of the thin FLEC cavity. In this case, the mean emission rate is restricted to a small value, since the VOC concentration in the cavity rises to the same value as the surface concentration through molecular diffusion within the thin cavity, and the concentration gradient normal to the surface becomes small. The diffusion field and emission rate depend on the cavity concentration and on the Loading Factor. That is, when the testing material surface in the cavity is partially sealed to decrease the Loading Factor, the emission rate become higher with the decrease in the exposed area of the testing material. The flow field and diffusion field within the FLEC cavity are investigated by CFD method. After presenting a summary of the velocity distributed over the surface of test material and the emission properties of different type materials in FLEC, the paper pointed out that there is a bias in the airflow inside the FLEC cavity but do not influence the result of test emission rate, and the FLEC method is unsuitable for evaporation type materials in which the mass transfer of the surface controls the emission rate.

Biomechanical responses to changes in friction on a clay court surface.

PubMed

Starbuck, Chelsea; Stiles, Victoria; Urà, Daniel; Carré, Matt; Dixon, Sharon

2017-05-01

To examine the influence of clay court frictional properties on tennis players' biomechanical response. Repeated measures. Lower limb kinematic and force data were collected on sixteen university tennis players during 10×180° turns (running approach speed 3.9±0.20ms -1 ) on a synthetic clay surface of varying friction levels. To adjust friction levels the volume of sand infill above the force plate was altered (kg per m 2 surface area; 12, 16 and 20kgm -2 ). Repeated measures ANOVA and Bonferroni's corrected alpha post-hoc analyses were conducted to identify significant differences in lower limb biomechanics between friction levels. Greater sliding distances (η p 2 =0.355, p=0.008) were observed for the lowest friction condition (20kgm -2 ) compared to the 12 and 16kgm -2 conditions. No differences in ankle joint kinematics and knee flexion angles were observed. Later peak knee flexion occurred on the 20kgm -2 condition compared to the 12kgm -2 (η p 2 =0.270, p=0.023). Lower vertical (η p 2 =0.345, p=0.027) and shear (η p 2 =0.396, p=0.016) loading rates occurred for the 20kgm 2 condition compared to the 16kgm 2 . Lower loading rates and greater sliding distances when clay surface friction was reduced suggests load was more evenly distributed over time reducing players' injury risks. The greater sliding distances reported were accompanied with later occurrence of peak knee flexion, suggesting longer time spent braking and a greater requirement for muscular control increasing the likelihood of fatigue. Copyright © 2016 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Identification of a constitutive law for trabecular bone samples under remodeling in the framework of irreversible thermodynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Louna, Zineeddine; Goda, Ibrahim; Ganghoffer, Jean-François

2018-01-01

We construct in the present paper constitutive models for bone remodeling based on micromechanical analyses at the scale of a representative unit cell (RUC) including a porous trabecular microstructure. The time evolution of the microstructure is simulated as a surface remodeling process by relating the surface growth remodeling velocity to a surface driving force incorporating a (surface) Eshelby tensor. Adopting the framework of irreversible thermodynamics, a 2D constitutive model based on the setting up of the free energy density and a dissipation potential is identified from FE simulations performed over a unit cell representative of the trabecular architecture obtained from real bone microstructures. The static and evolutive effective properties of bone at the scale of the RUC are obtained by combining a methodology for the evaluation of the average kinematic and static variables over a prototype unit cell and numerical simulations with controlled imposed first gradient rates. The formulated effective growth constitutive law at the scale of the homogenized set of trabeculae within the RUC is of viscoplastic type and relates the average growth strain rate to the homogenized stress tensor. The postulated model includes a power law function of an effective stress chosen to depend on the first and second stress invariants. The model coefficients are calibrated from a set of virtual testing performed over the RUC subjected to a sequence of loadings. Numerical simulations show that overall bone growth does not show any growth kinematic hardening. The obtained results quantify the strength and importance of different types of external loads (uniaxial tension, simple shear, and biaxial loading) on the overall remodeling process and the development of elastic deformations within the RUC.

Microbial Source Module (MSM): Documenting the Science and Software for Discovery, Evaluation, and Integration

EPA Science Inventory

The Microbial Source Module (MSM) estimates microbial loading rates to land surfaces from non-point sources, and to streams from point sources for each subwatershed within a watershed. A subwatershed, the smallest modeling unit, represents the common basis for information consume...

The use of simulated rainfall to study the discharge process and the influence factors of urban surface runoff pollution loads.

PubMed

Qinqin, Li; Qiao, Chen; Jiancai, Deng; Weiping, Hu

2015-01-01

An understanding of the characteristics of pollutants on impervious surfaces is essential to estimate pollution loads and to design methods to minimize the impacts of pollutants on the environment. In this study, simulated rainfall equipment was constructed to investigate the pollutant discharge process and the influence factors of urban surface runoff (USR). The results indicated that concentrations of total suspended solids (TSS), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) appeared to be higher in the early period and then decreased gradually with rainfall duration until finally stabilized. The capacity and particle size of surface dust, rainfall intensity and urban surface slopes affected runoff pollution loads to a variable extent. The loads of TP, TN and COD showed a positive relationship with the surface dust capacity, whereas the maximum TSS load appeared when the surface dust was 0.0317 g·cm⁻². Smaller particle sizes (<0.125 mm) of surface dust generated high TN, TP and COD loads. Increases in rainfall intensity and surface slope enhanced the pollution carrying capacity of runoff, leading to higher pollution loads. Knowledge of the influence factors could assist in the management of USR pollution loads.

Reactive thin polymer films as platforms for the immobilization of biomolecules.

PubMed

Feng, Chuan Liang; Zhang, Zhihong; Förch, Renate; Knoll, Wolfgang; Vancso, G Julius; Schönherr, Holger

2005-01-01

Spin-coated thin films of poly(N-hydroxysuccinimidyl methacrylate) (PNHSMA) on oxidized silicon and gold surfaces were investigated as reactive layers for obtaining platforms for biomolecule immobilization with high molecular loading. The surface reactivity of PNHSMA films in coupling reactions with various primary amines, including amine-terminated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG-NH2) and fluoresceinamine, was determined by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), fluorescence microscopy, and ellipsometry measurements, respectively. The rate constants of PEG-NH2 attachment on the PNHSMA films were found to be significantly increased compared to the coupling on self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of 11,11'-dithiobis(N-hydroxysuccinimidylundecanoate) (NHS-C10) on gold under the same conditions. More significantly, the PEG loading observed was about 3 times higher for the polymer thin films. These data indicate that the coupling reactions are not limited to the very surface of the polymer films, but proceed into the near-surface regions of the films. PNHSMA films were shown to be stable in contact with aqueous buffer; the swelling analysis, as performed by atomic force microscopy (AFM), indicated a film thickness independent swelling of approximately 2 nm. An increased loading was also observed by surface plasmon resonance for the covalent immobilization of amino-functionalized probe DNA. Hybridization of fluorescently labeled target DNA was successfully detected by fluorescence microscopy and surface plasmon resonance enhanced fluorescence spectroscopy (SPFS), thereby demonstrating that thin films of PNHSMA comprise an attractive and simple platform for the immobilization of biomolecules with high densities.

Temporal–Spatial Surface Seasonal Mass Changes and Vertical Crustal Deformation in South China Block from GPS and GRACE Measurements

PubMed Central

He, Meilin; Shen, Wenbin; Chen, Ruizhi; Ding, Hao; Guo, Guangyi

2017-01-01

The solid Earth deforms elastically in response to variations of surface atmosphere, hydrology, and ice/glacier mass loads. Continuous geodetic observations by Global Positioning System (CGPS) stations and Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) record such deformations to estimate seasonal and secular mass changes. In this paper, we present the seasonal variation of the surface mass changes and the crustal vertical deformation in the South China Block (SCB) identified by GPS and GRACE observations with records spanning from 1999 to 2016. We used 33 CGPS stations to construct a time series of coordinate changes, which are decomposed by empirical orthogonal functions (EOFs) in SCB. The average weighted root-mean-square (WRMS) reduction is 38% when we subtract GRACE-modeled vertical displacements from GPS time series. The first common mode shows clear seasonal changes, indicating seasonal surface mass re-distribution in and around the South China Block. The correlation between GRACE and GPS time series is analyzed which provides a reference for further improvement of the seasonal variation of CGPS time series. The results of the GRACE observations inversion are the surface deformations caused by the surface mass change load at a rate of about −0.4 to −0.8 mm/year, which is used to improve the long-term trend of non-tectonic loads of the GPS vertical velocity field to further explain the crustal tectonic movement in the SCB and surroundings. PMID:29301236

Cyclic delamination behavior of plasma-sprayed hydroxyapatite coating on Ti-6Al-4V substrates in simulated body fluid.

PubMed

Otsuka, Yuichi; Kawaguchi, Hayato; Mutoh, Yoshiharu

2016-10-01

This study aimed to clarify the effect of a simulated body fluid (SBF) on the cyclic delamination behavior of a plasma-sprayed hydroxapatite (HAp) coating. A HAp coating is deposited on the surfaces of surgical metallic materials in order to enhance the bond between human bone and such surfaces. However, the HAp coating is susceptible to delamination by cyclic loading from the patient's gait. Although hip joints are subjected to both positive and negative moments, only the effects of tensile bending stresses on vertical crack propagation behavior have been investigated. Thus, the cyclic delamination behavior of a HAp coating was observed at the stress ratio R=-1 in order to determine the effects of tensile/compressive loading on the delamination behavior. The delamination growth rate increased with SBF immersion, which decreased the delamination life. Raman spectroscopy analysis revealed that the selective phase dissolution in the HAp coating was promoted at interfaces. Finite element analysis revealed that the energy release rate Gmax showed a positive value even in cases with compressive loading, which is a driving force for the delamination of a HAp coating. A prediction model for the delamination growth life was developed that combines a fracture mechanics parameter with the assumed stress-dependent dissolution rate. The predicted delamination life matched the experimental data well in cases of lower stress amplitudes with SBF. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Dynamic mechanical characterization of aluminum: analysis of strain-rate-dependent behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahmat, Meysam

2018-05-01

A significant number of materials show different mechanical behavior under dynamic loads compared to quasi-static (Salvado et al. in Prog. Mater. Sci. 88:186-231, 2017). Therefore, a comprehensive study of material dynamic behavior is essential for applications in which dynamic loads are dominant (Li et al. in J. Mater. Process. Technol. 255:373-386, 2018). In this work, aluminum 6061-T6, as an example of ductile alloys with numerous applications including in the aerospace industry, has been studied under quasi-static and dynamic tensile tests with strain rates of up to 156 s^{-1}. Dogbone specimens were designed, instrumented and tested with a high speed servo-hydraulic load frame, and the results were validated with the literature. It was observed that at a strain rate of 156 s^{-1} the yield and ultimate strength increased by 31% and 33% from their quasi-static values, respectively. Moreover, the failure elongation and fracture energy per unit volume also increased by 18% and 52%, respectively. A Johnson-Cook model was used to capture the behavior of the material at different strain rates, and a modified version of this model was presented to enhance the capabilities of the original model, especially in predicting material properties close to the failure point. Finally, the fracture surfaces of specimens tested under quasi-static and dynamic loads were compared and conclusions about the differences were drawn.

Antibody-Unfolding and Metastable-State Binding in Force Spectroscopy and Recognition Imaging

PubMed Central

Kaur, Parminder; Qiang-Fu; Fuhrmann, Alexander; Ros, Robert; Kutner, Linda Obenauer; Schneeweis, Lumelle A.; Navoa, Ryman; Steger, Kirby; Xie, Lei; Yonan, Christopher; Abraham, Ralph; Grace, Michael J.; Lindsay, Stuart

2011-01-01

Force spectroscopy and recognition imaging are important techniques for characterizing and mapping molecular interactions. In both cases, an antibody is pulled away from its target in times that are much less than the normal residence time of the antibody on its target. The distribution of pulling lengths in force spectroscopy shows the development of additional peaks at high loading rates, indicating that part of the antibody frequently unfolds. This propensity to unfold is reversible, indicating that exposure to high loading rates induces a structural transition to a metastable state. Weakened interactions of the antibody in this metastable state could account for reduced specificity in recognition imaging where the loading rates are always high. The much weaker interaction between the partially unfolded antibody and target, while still specific (as shown by control experiments), results in unbinding on millisecond timescales, giving rise to rapid switching noise in the recognition images. At the lower loading rates used in force spectroscopy, we still find discrepancies between the binding kinetics determined by force spectroscopy and those determined by surface plasmon resonance—possibly a consequence of the short tethers used in recognition imaging. Recognition imaging is nonetheless a powerful tool for interpreting complex atomic force microscopy images, so long as specificity is calibrated in situ, and not inferred from equilibrium binding kinetics. PMID:21190677

Evaluation of Granulated Lactose as a Carrier for Dry Powder Inhaler Formulations 2: Effect of Drugs and Drug Loading.

PubMed

Du, Ping; Du, Ju; Smyth, Hugh D C

2017-01-01

Previously, granulated lactose carriers were shown to improve uniformity and aerosolization of a low-dose model drug. In the present study, the blending uniformity and aerosol dispersion performance were assessed for 2 model drugs salbutamol sulfate (SS) and rifampicin (RIF), blended at high loadings (10% or 30% drug) with granulated lactose carriers. The model drug powders differed in particle size distribution, morphology, density, and surface energies. Content uniformity of RIF blends was better than that of SS. Aerosolization studies showed that all blend formulations had acceptable emitted fractions (>70%). The SS blends showed low induction-port deposition (6%-10%) compared to RIF (5%-30%). This difference was greater at high flow rates. At 90 L/min, the low induction port deposition of SS blends allowed high fine particle fraction (FPF) of 73%-81%, whereas the FPF of the RIF blends was around 43%-45% with higher induction port deposition. However, SS blends exhibited strong flow rate-dependent performance. Increasing the flow rate from 30 L/min to 90 L/min increased SS FPF from approximately 20% to 80%. Conversely, RIF blends were flow rate and drug loading independent. It was concluded that the aerosolization of high drug-loaded dry powder inhaler formulations using granulated lactose, particularly flow rate dependency, varies with active pharmaceutical ingredient properties. Copyright © 2016 American Pharmacists Association®. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Delamination growth analysis in quasi-isotropic laminates under loads simulating low-velocity impact

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shivakumar, K. N.; Elber, W.

1984-01-01

A geometrically nonlinear finite-element analysis was developed to calculate the strain energy released by delamination plates during impact loading. Only the first mode of deformation, which is equivalent to static deflection, was treated. Both the impact loading and delamination in the plate were assumed to be axisymmetric. The strain energy release rate in peeling, G sub I, and shear sliding, G sub II, modes were calculated using the fracture mechanics crack closure technique. Energy release rates for various delamination sizes and locations and for various plate configurations and materials were compared. The analysis indicated that shear sliding (G sub II) was the primary mode of delamination growth. The analysis also indicated that the midplane (maximum transverse shear stress plane) delamination was more critical and would grow before any other delamination of the same size near the midplane region. The delamination growth rate was higher (neutrally stable) for a low toughness (brittle) matrix and slower (stable) for high toughness matrix. The energy release rate in the peeling mode, G sub I, for a near-surface delamination can be as high as 0.5G sub II and can contribute significantly to the delamination growth.

Short-term response of the solid Earth to cryosphere fluctuations and the earthquake cycle in south-central Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sauber, J. M.; Freymueller, J. T.; Han, S. C.; Davis, J. L.; Ruppert, N. A.

2016-12-01

In southern Alaska surface deformation and gravimetric change are associated with the seismic cycle as well as a strong seasonal cycle of snow accumulation and melt and a variable rate of glacier mass wastage. Numerical modeling of the solid Earth response to cryosphere change on a variety of temporal and spatial scales plays a critical role in supporting the interpretation of time-variable gravity and other geodetic data. In this study we calculate the surface displacements and stresses associated with variable spatial and temporal cryospheric loading and unloading in south-central coastal Alaska. A challenging aspect of estimating the response of the solid Earth to short-term (months to 102 years) regional cryospheric fluctuations is choosing the rock mechanics constitutive laws appropriate to this region. Here we report calculated differences in the predicted surface displacements and stresses during the GRACE time period (2002 to present). Broad-scale, GRACE-derived estimates of cryospheric mass change, along with independent snow melt onset/refreeze timing, snow depth and annual glacier wastage estimates from a variety of methods, were used to approximate the magnitude and timing of cryospheric load changes. We used the CIG finite element code PyLith to enable input of spatially complex surface loads. An as example of our evaluation of the influence of variable short-term surface loads, we calculated and contrasted the predicted surface displacements and stresses for a cooler than average and higher precipitation water year (WY12) versus a warmer than average year (WY05). Our calculation of these comparative stresses is motivated by our earlier empirical evaluation of the influence of short-term cryospheric fluctuations on the background seismic rate between 1988-2006 (Sauber and Ruppert, 2008). During the warmer than average years between 2002-2006 we found a stronger seasonal dependency in the frequency of small tectonic events in the Icy Bay region relative to cooler years. To date, we have focused our 3-D modeling on changes in the thickness of the primarily elastic layer and we also varied the Maxwell viscoelastic relaxation times for the lower crust and upper mantle. We anticipate exploring the influence of transient rheologies and testing alternate 3-D rheological structures.

Role of Free Space in Translocation in Sugar Beet 1

PubMed Central

Geiger, Donald R.; Sovonick, Susan A.; Shock, Terri L.; Fellows, Robert J.

1974-01-01

The involvement of the free space in phloem loading of sucrose was studied in sugar beet source leaves (Beta vulgaris, L.). Sucrose, supplied exogenously to the abraded upper surface of leaves at a concentration of 20 mm, was available for translocation at rates similar to those obtained with photosynthesis. The exogenous sucrose substituted as a source of translocate for assimilate derived from photosynthesis when the latter process was disrupted by plasmolysis of the leaf with 0.8 M mannitol. The mesophyll symplast was not completely disrupted by this treatment, however. Data from the sugar uptake experiments indicate that phloem loading can occur from the free space. Isotope trapping of labeled sugars derived from 14CO2 was used to intercept and identify sugars passing through the free space prior to phloem loading. Increased translocation rates induced by 4 mm ATP or increased light intensity were accompanied by increased trapping of sucrose but not of glucose. The data support the view that sucrose passes into the free space prior to phloem loading. Images PMID:16658995

Grassed swales for stormwater pollution control during rain and snowmelt.

PubMed

Bäckström, M

2003-01-01

The retention of suspended solids, particles and heavy metals in different grassed swales during rain events and snowmelt is discussed. The experimental results derived from investigations performed in existing grassed swales in the Luleå region, Northern Sweden. During high pollutant loading rates, grassed swales retain significant amounts of pollutants, mainly due to sedimentation of particulate matter. Low to moderate removal efficiencies could be expected for heavy metals, especially metals in solution (i.e. the dissolved phase). When grassed swales receive urban runoff with low pollutant concentrations, they may release rather than retain pollutants. Swales are important snow deposit areas in the city and particle bound pollutants do to a large extent remain in the swale after snowmelt. However, dissolved pollutants (i.e. dissolved heavy metals) are likely to escape the swale with the melt water. Grassed swales may be regarded as facilities that even out the peaks in pollutant loads without being capable of producing consistent high removal rates. This suggests that swales should be considered as primary treatment devices. Possible design parameters for grassed swales are mean hydraulic detention time, surface loading rate or specific swale area.

The effect of an overload on the rate of fatigue crack propagation under plane stress conditions

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

Bao, H.; McEvily, A.J.

1995-07-01

It has been shown that the retardation in the rate of fatigue crack growth following an overload is largely the result of surface-related, plane-stress deformation. In the present article, in order to isolate the plane-stress behavior, the effect of an overload on the subsequent rate of fatigue crack growth of 0.3-mm-thick specimens of 9Cr-1Mo steel has been investigated and compared to results obtained using 6.35-mm-thick specimens. It was found that for the 0.3-mm thickness, as with thicker specimens, two opening load levels were associated with the overload process. The upper opening load is associated with plane-stress deformation in the overloadmore » plastic zone, and this opening process is more clearly observed with thin as compared to thicker specimens. Based upon the determined level of the upper opening load, a semiempirical analysis is developed for calculating the number of delay cycles due to an overload as a function of thickness.« less

A Uranium Bioremediation Reactive Transport Benchmark

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

Yabusaki, Steven B.; Sengor, Sevinc; Fang, Yilin

A reactive transport benchmark problem set has been developed based on in situ uranium bio-immobilization experiments that have been performed at a former uranium mill tailings site in Rifle, Colorado, USA. Acetate-amended groundwater stimulates indigenous microorganisms to catalyze the reduction of U(VI) to a sparingly soluble U(IV) mineral. The interplay between the flow, acetate loading periods and rates, microbially-mediated and geochemical reactions leads to dynamic behavior in metal- and sulfate-reducing bacteria, pH, alkalinity, and reactive mineral surfaces. The benchmark is based on an 8.5 m long one-dimensional model domain with constant saturated flow and uniform porosity. The 159-day simulation introducesmore » acetate and bromide through the upgradient boundary in 14-day and 85-day pulses separated by a 10 day interruption. Acetate loading is tripled during the second pulse, which is followed by a 50 day recovery period. Terminal electron accepting processes for goethite, phyllosilicate Fe(III), U(VI), and sulfate are modeled using Monod-type rate laws. Major ion geochemistry modeled includes mineral reactions, as well as aqueous and surface complexation reactions for UO2++, Fe++, and H+. In addition to the dynamics imparted by the transport of the acetate pulses, U(VI) behavior involves the interplay between bioreduction, which is dependent on acetate availability, and speciation-controlled surface complexation, which is dependent on pH, alkalinity and available surface complexation sites. The general difficulty of this benchmark is the large number of reactions (74), multiple rate law formulations, a multisite uranium surface complexation model, and the strong interdependency and sensitivity of the reaction processes. Results are presented for three simulators: HYDROGEOCHEM, PHT3D, and PHREEQC.« less

Oxidative dissolution of pyrite surfaces by hexavalent chromium: Surface site saturation and surface renewal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Graham, Andrew M.; Bouwer, Edward J.

2012-04-01

In-situ reduction of toxic Cr(VI) to nontoxic Cr(III) represents an important natural attenuation process for Cr(VI)-impacted environments. This study investigates the stoichiometry and kinetics of Cr(VI) reduction by pyrite, a reduced iron-sulfur mineral ubiquitous in recent estuarine and marine sediments. Pyrite suspensions at surface loadings of 0.28-2.10 m2/L (typical of estuarine or marine sediments) were capable of completely reducing 7-120 μM Cr(VI) on the timescale of minutes to days, with the time to reaction completion decreasing with increasing pyrite loading, decreasing initial Cr(VI) concentration, and decreasing suspension pH. Analysis of metal species (Cr and Fe) and sulfur species in solution and at the mineral surface indicated that Cr(VI) oxidatively dissolved the pyrite surface, releasing ferrous iron and sulfate into solution as the reaction progressed. Surface disulfide groups were postulated as the Cr(VI)-reactive surface entity. Net production or consumption of aqueous Fe(II) was shown to depend upon the relative rates of proton-promoted Fe(II) release, Fe(II) release due to oxidative dissolution of pyrite in the presence of Cr(VI), and Fe(II) consumption due to homogeneous reaction with Cr(VI). Kinetics of Cr(VI) reduction by pyrite displayed a biphasic pattern, and the time to reaction completion increased dramatically with increasing initial Cr(VI) concentration. Rapid Cr(VI) removal occurred early in the reaction progress, attributable to Cr(VI) loss under an adsorption-limited regime. Slow, approximately zero-order, Cr(VI) removal occurred over the bulk of the time courses, and corresponded to Cr(VI) removal under surface site saturation conditions. Stoichiometric Cr(VI) reduction was able to proceed under surface site limited conditions owing to regeneration of reactive surface sites following desorption/dissolution of oxidized surface products, as demonstrated in repeat Cr(VI)-spiking experiments. The role of surface passivation was evaluated by comparing rates of Cr(VI) reduction in the presence and absence of the Cr(III)-complexing agent citrate. While citrate addition significantly enhanced Cr(III) solubility, rates of Cr(VI) reduction were only marginally accelerated, suggesting that Cr(OH)3(s) coatings did not completely block access of Cr(VI) to reactive surface sites on pyrite. Given the rapid rates of Cr(VI) reduction with pyrite under pH and surface coverage conditions typical of natural environments, we propose that Cr(VI) reduction by pyrite be considered in fate and transport models for Cr in contaminated sediments.

In vitro and In vivo characterization of quercetin loaded multiphase hydrogel for wound healing application.

PubMed

Jangde, Rajendra; Srivastava, Shikha; Singh, Manju R; Singh, Deependra

2018-05-03

The present work aim to prepare and evaluate multiphase hydrogel system incorporated with quercetin loaded liposomes (QLH), for wound healing. The quercetin loaded liposomal hydrogel were prepared by taking 15% carbopol and varying gelatin ratio. The clear and transparent hydrogel was obtained by taking ratio of gelatin to carbapol (6/4) compared to other ratios. The best prepared hydrogel were characterized for surface morphology, water vapor transmission rate (WVTR), swelling ratio, hemocompatibility, stability, in-vitro release and in-vivo studies. The evaluated results of (QLH) for surface morphology, WVTR, swelling ratio, hemocompatibility and in-vitro release were found to be significant compared to other prepared formulations. Consequently, on basis of optimized hydrogel was selected to study wound healing activity in albino rats. The results demonstrated accelerated wound-healing with significant decrease in wound closure time compared to conventional dosage form. The results of in-vitro and in-vivo promises reliable mode of treatment for connective tissue disorder as wound healing. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Influence of fatigue crack wake length and state of stress on crack closure

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Telesman, J.; Fisher, D. M.

1986-01-01

The location of crack closure with respect to crack wake and specimen thickness under different loading conditions was determined. The rate of increase of K sub CL in the crack wake was found to be significantly higher for plasticity induced closure in comparison to roughness induced closure. Roughness induced closure was uniform throughout the thickness of the specimen while plasticity induced closure levels were 50 percent higher in the near surface region than in the midthickness. The influence of state of stress on low-high load interaction effects was also examined. Load interaction effects differed depending upon the state of stress and were explained in terms of delta K sub eff.

Influence of fatigue crack wake length and state of stress on crack closure

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Telesman, Jack; Fisher, Douglas M.

1988-01-01

The location of crack closure with respect to crack wake and specimen thickness under different loading conditions was determined. The rate of increase of K sub CL in the crack wake was found to be significantly higher for plasticity induced closure in comparison to roughness induced closure. Roughness induced closure was uniform throughout the thickness of the specimen while plasticity induced closure levels were 50 percent higher in the near surface region than in the midthickness. The influence of state of stress on low-high load interaction effects was also examined. Load interaction effects differed depending upon the state of stress and were explained in terms of delta K sub eff.

40 CFR 60.676 - Reporting and recordkeeping.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... elevator, bagging operation, or enclosed truck or railcar loading station: (i) The rated capacity in... following such change. At the time of such change, this screening operation, bucket elevator, or belt... hour of the replacement equipment. (2) For a screening operation: (i) The total surface area of the top...

40 CFR 60.676 - Reporting and recordkeeping.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... elevator, bagging operation, or enclosed truck or railcar loading station: (i) The rated capacity in... following such change. At the time of such change, this screening operation, bucket elevator, or belt... hour of the replacement equipment. (2) For a screening operation: (i) The total surface area of the top...

40 CFR 60.676 - Reporting and recordkeeping.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... elevator, bagging operation, or enclosed truck or railcar loading station: (i) The rated capacity in... following such change. At the time of such change, this screening operation, bucket elevator, or belt... hour of the replacement equipment. (2) For a screening operation: (i) The total surface area of the top...

40 CFR 60.676 - Reporting and recordkeeping.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... elevator, bagging operation, or enclosed truck or railcar loading station: (i) The rated capacity in... following such change. At the time of such change, this screening operation, bucket elevator, or belt... hour of the replacement equipment. (2) For a screening operation: (i) The total surface area of the top...

Effect of plasma treatment on the performance of two drug-loaded hydrogel formulations for therapeutic contact lenses.

PubMed

Paradiso, Patrizia; Chu, Virginia; Santos, Luís; Serro, Ana Paula; Colaço, Rogério; Saramago, Benilde

2015-07-01

Although the plasma technology has long been applied to treat contact lenses, the effect of this treatment on the performance of drug-loaded contact lenses is still unclear. The objective of this work is to study the effect of nitrogen plasma treatment on two drug-loaded polymeric formulations which previously demonstrated to be suitable for therapeutic contact lenses: a poly-hydroxyethylmethacrylate (pHEMA) based hydrogel loaded with levofloxacin and a silicone-based hydrogel loaded with chlorhexidine. Modifications of the surface and the optical properties, and alterations in the drug release profiles and possible losses of the antimicrobial activities of the drugs induced by the plasma treatment were assessed. The results showed that, depending on the system and on the processing conditions, the plasma treatment may be beneficial for increasing wettability and refractive index, without degrading the lens surface. From the point of view of drug delivery, plasma irradiation at moderate power (200 W) decreased the initial release rate and the amount of released drug, maintaining the drug activity. For lower (100 W) and higher powers (300 W), almost no effect was detected because the treatment was, respectively, too soft and too aggressive for the lens materials. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Clinical outcomes of immediate/early loading of dental implants. A literature review of recent controlled prospective clinical studies.

PubMed

Sennerby, L; Gottlow, J

2008-06-01

Two previous reviews have evaluated the clinical outcomes of immediate/early loading of dental implants based on studies published until 2005.(1,2) The aim of the present paper was to review controlled clinical studies on the subject published since 2005 including at least 10 patients in each group followed for at least one year in function. Six comparative studies were found and none of these showed any differences in survival rates or marginal bone loss after one to five years. Most authors used specified inclusion criteria to avoid known risk factors such as soft bone, short implants and bruxism. Data from one randomized study in the edentulous maxilla showed no differences between early and delayed loading in consecutive clinical routine cases including short implants and soft bone. Three additional studies comparing different surfaces or implant designs under immediate loading were reviewed. No differences between implants with a moderately rough or smooth surface topography were observed. The data add to the previous bulk of evidence that various designs of implants can be loaded shortly after their placement in both the mandible and the maxilla. However, one study reported on marginal bone loss around a novel one-piece implant design leading to implant failure which was not seen for control two-piece implants.(3).

Recrystallization and grain growth induced by ELMs-like transient heat loads in deformed tungsten samples

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suslova, A.; El-Atwani, O.; Sagapuram, D.; Harilal, S. S.; Hassanein, A.

2014-11-01

Tungsten has been chosen as the main candidate for plasma facing components (PFCs) due to its superior properties under extreme operating conditions in future nuclear fusion reactors such as ITER. One of the serious issues for PFCs is the high heat load during transient events such as ELMs and disruption in the reactor. Recrystallization and grain size growth in PFC materials caused by transients are undesirable changes in the material, since the isotropic microstructure developed after recrystallization exhibits a higher ductile-to-brittle transition temperature which increases with the grain size, a lower thermal shock fatigue resistance, a lower mechanical strength, and an increased surface roughening. The current work was focused on careful determination of the threshold parameters for surface recrystallization, grain growth rate, and thermal shock fatigue resistance under ELM-like transient heat events. Transient heat loads were simulated using long pulse laser beams for two different grades of ultrafine-grained tungsten. It was observed that cold rolled tungsten demonstrated better power handling capabilities and higher thermal stress fatigue resistance compared to severely deformed tungsten. Higher recrystallization threshold, slower grain growth, and lower degree of surface roughening were observed in the cold rolled tungsten.

Recrystallization and grain growth induced by ELMs-like transient heat loads in deformed tungsten samples

PubMed Central

Suslova, A.; El-Atwani, O.; Sagapuram, D.; Harilal, S. S.; Hassanein, A.

2014-01-01

Tungsten has been chosen as the main candidate for plasma facing components (PFCs) due to its superior properties under extreme operating conditions in future nuclear fusion reactors such as ITER. One of the serious issues for PFCs is the high heat load during transient events such as ELMs and disruption in the reactor. Recrystallization and grain size growth in PFC materials caused by transients are undesirable changes in the material, since the isotropic microstructure developed after recrystallization exhibits a higher ductile-to-brittle transition temperature which increases with the grain size, a lower thermal shock fatigue resistance, a lower mechanical strength, and an increased surface roughening. The current work was focused on careful determination of the threshold parameters for surface recrystallization, grain growth rate, and thermal shock fatigue resistance under ELM-like transient heat events. Transient heat loads were simulated using long pulse laser beams for two different grades of ultrafine-grained tungsten. It was observed that cold rolled tungsten demonstrated better power handling capabilities and higher thermal stress fatigue resistance compared to severely deformed tungsten. Higher recrystallization threshold, slower grain growth, and lower degree of surface roughening were observed in the cold rolled tungsten. PMID:25366885

Recrystallization and grain growth induced by ELMs-like transient heat loads in deformed tungsten samples.

PubMed

Suslova, A; El-Atwani, O; Sagapuram, D; Harilal, S S; Hassanein, A

2014-11-04

Tungsten has been chosen as the main candidate for plasma facing components (PFCs) due to its superior properties under extreme operating conditions in future nuclear fusion reactors such as ITER. One of the serious issues for PFCs is the high heat load during transient events such as ELMs and disruption in the reactor. Recrystallization and grain size growth in PFC materials caused by transients are undesirable changes in the material, since the isotropic microstructure developed after recrystallization exhibits a higher ductile-to-brittle transition temperature which increases with the grain size, a lower thermal shock fatigue resistance, a lower mechanical strength, and an increased surface roughening. The current work was focused on careful determination of the threshold parameters for surface recrystallization, grain growth rate, and thermal shock fatigue resistance under ELM-like transient heat events. Transient heat loads were simulated using long pulse laser beams for two different grades of ultrafine-grained tungsten. It was observed that cold rolled tungsten demonstrated better power handling capabilities and higher thermal stress fatigue resistance compared to severely deformed tungsten. Higher recrystallization threshold, slower grain growth, and lower degree of surface roughening were observed in the cold rolled tungsten.

Calculation of Stress Intensity Factors for Interfacial Cracks in Fiber Metal Laminates

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, John T.

2009-01-01

Stress intensity factors for interfacial cracks in Fiber Metal Laminates (FML) are computed by using the displacement ratio method recently developed by Sun and Qian (1997, Int. J. Solids. Struct. 34, 2595-2609). Various FML configurations with single and multiple delaminations subjected to different loading conditions are investigated. The displacement ratio method requires the total energy release rate, bimaterial parameters, and relative crack surface displacements as input. Details of generating the energy release rates, defining bimaterial parameters with anisotropic elasticity, and selecting proper crack surface locations for obtaining relative crack surface displacements are discussed in the paper. Even though the individual energy release rates are nonconvergent, mesh-size-independent stress intensity factors can be obtained. This study also finds that the selection of reference length can affect the magnitudes and the mode mixity angles of the stress intensity factors; thus, it is important to report the reference length used with the calculated stress intensity factors.

Potential Impacts from Using Photoactive Roads as AN Air Quality Mitigation Strategy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toro, C.; Jobson, B. T.; Shen, S.; Chung, S. H.; Haselbach, L.

2013-12-01

Mobile sources are major contributors to photochemical air pollution in urban areas. It has been proposed that the use of TiO2 coated roadways ('photoactive roads') could be an effective approach to reduce mobile source emissions by oxidizing NOx and VOC emissions at the roadway surface. However, studies have shown that formation of HONO and aldehydes can occur from some TiO2 treated surfaces during the photocatalytic oxidation of NOx and VOC, respectively. By changing the NOx-to-VOC ratio and generating photolabile HOx radical precursors, photoactive roads may enhance ozone formation rates in urban areas. In this work we present results that quantify NOx and VOC loss rates onto TiO2 treated asphalt and concrete samples, as well as HONO and aldehydes yields that result from the photocatalytic process. The treatment used a commercially available product. These objectives are relevant considering that the quantification of pollutant loss rates and yields of byproducts have not been determined for asphalt and that in the US more than 90% of the roadway surface is made of this material. Surface reaction probabilities (γ) and byproduct yields were determined using a CSTR photochemical chamber under varying conditions of water vapor and UV-A light intensity. Our results indicate that asphalt surfaces have a significantly higher molar yield of HONO compared to concrete surfaces with similar TiO2 loading. Concrete surfaces have reaction probabilities with NO one order of magnitude higher than asphalt samples. Fresh asphalt samples showed negligible photocatalytic activity, presumably due to absorption of TiO2 into the bitumen substrate. Laboratory-prepared asphalt samples with a higher degree of exposed aggregates showed increased HONO molar yields when compared to real-road asphalt samples, whose HONO molar yield was ~1%. Preliminary results for aldehydes formation showed similar molar yields between aged asphalt and concrete, even though aged asphalt samples had twice the TiO2 loading than concrete samples.

Static versus dynamic loads as an influence on bone remodelling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lanyon, L. E.; Rubin, C. T.

1983-01-01

Bone remodelling activity in the avian ulna was assessed under conditions of disuse alone, disuse with a superimposed continuous compressive load, and disuse interrupted by a short daily period of intermittent loading. The ulna preparation is made by two submetaphyseal osteotomies, the cut ends of the bone being covered with stainless steel caps which, together with the bone they enclosed, are pierced by pins emerging transcutaneously on the dorsal and ventral surfaces of the wing. The 110 mm long undisturbed section of the bone shaft can be protected from functional loading, loaded continuously in compression by joining the pins with springs, or loaded intermittently in compression by engaging the pins in an Instron machine. Similar loads (525 n) were used in both static and dynamic cases engendering similar peak strains at the bone's midshaft (-2000 x 10-6). The intermitent load was applied at a frequency of 1 Hz during a single 100 second period per day as a ramped square wave, with a rate of change of strain during the ramp of 0.01 per second.

Gravity and the geoid in the Nepal Himalaya

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bilham, Roger

1992-01-01

Materials within the Himalaya are rising due to convergence between India and Asia. If the rate of erosion is comparable to the rate of uplift the mean surface elevation will remain constant. Any slight imbalance in these two processes will lead to growth or attrition of the Himalaya. The process of uplift of materials within the Himalaya coupled with surface erosion is similar to the advance of a glacier into a region of melting. If the melting rate exceeds the rate of downhill motion of the glacier then the terminus of the glacier will receed up-valley despite the downhill motion of the bulk of the glacier. Thus although buried rocks, minerals and surface control points in the Himalaya are undoubtably rising, the growth or collapse of the Himalaya depends on the erosion rate which is invisible to geodetic measurements. Erosion rates are currently estimated from suspended sediment loads in rivers in the Himalaya. These typically underestimate the real erosion rate since bed-load is not measured during times of heavy flood, and it is difficult to integrate widely varying suspended load measurements over many years. An alternative way to measure erosion rate is to measure the rate of change of gravity in a region of uplift. If a control point moves vertically it should be accompanied by a reduction in gravity as the point moves away from the Earth's center of mass. There is a difference in the change of gravity between uplift with and without erosion corresponding to the difference between the free-air gradient and the gradient in the acceleration due to gravity caused by a corresponding thickness of rock. Essentially gravity should change precisely in accord with a change in elevation of the point in a free-air gradient if erosion equals uplift rate. We were funded by NASA to undertake a measurement of absolute gravity simultaneously with measurements of GPS height within the Himalaya. Since both absolute gravity and time are known in an absolute sense to 1 part in 10(exp 10) it is possible to estimate gravity with a precision of 0.1 mu gal. Known systematic errors reduce the measurement to an absolute uncertainty of 6 mu gal. The free air gradient at the point of measurement is typically about 3 mu gals/cm. At Simikot where our experiment was conducted we determined a vertical gravity gradient of 4.4 mu gals/cm.

Comparison of Contaminant Transport in Agricultural Drainage Water and Urban Stormwater Runoff

PubMed Central

Ranaivoson, Andry Z.; Feyereisen, Gary W.; Rosen, Carl J.; Moncrief, John F.

2016-01-01

Transport of nitrogen and phosphorus from agricultural and urban landscapes to surface water bodies can cause adverse environmental impacts. The main objective of this long-term study was to quantify and compare contaminant transport in agricultural drainage water and urban stormwater runoff. We measured flow rate and contaminant concentration in stormwater runoff from Willmar, Minnesota, USA, and in drainage water from subsurface-drained fields with surface inlets, namely, Unfertilized and Fertilized Fields. Commercial fertilizer and turkey litter manure were applied to the Fertilized Field based on agronomic requirements. Results showed that the City Stormwater transported significantly higher loads per unit area of ammonium, total suspended solids (TSS), and total phosphorus (TP) than the Fertilized Field, but nitrate load was significantly lower. Nitrate load transport in drainage water from the Unfertilized Field was 58% of that from the Fertilized Field. Linear regression analysis indicated that a 1% increase in flow depth resulted in a 1.05% increase of TSS load from the City Stormwater, a 1.07% increase in nitrate load from the Fertilized Field, and a 1.11% increase in TP load from the Fertilized Field. This indicates an increase in concentration with a rise in flow depth, revealing that concentration variation was a significant factor influencing the dynamics of load transport. Further regression analysis showed the importance of targeting high flows to reduce contaminant transport. In conclusion, for watersheds similar to this one, management practices should be directed to load reduction of ammonium and TSS from urban areas, and nitrate from cropland while TP should be a target for both. PMID:27930684

Comparison of Contaminant Transport in Agricultural Drainage Water and Urban Stormwater Runoff.

PubMed

Ghane, Ehsan; Ranaivoson, Andry Z; Feyereisen, Gary W; Rosen, Carl J; Moncrief, John F

2016-01-01

Transport of nitrogen and phosphorus from agricultural and urban landscapes to surface water bodies can cause adverse environmental impacts. The main objective of this long-term study was to quantify and compare contaminant transport in agricultural drainage water and urban stormwater runoff. We measured flow rate and contaminant concentration in stormwater runoff from Willmar, Minnesota, USA, and in drainage water from subsurface-drained fields with surface inlets, namely, Unfertilized and Fertilized Fields. Commercial fertilizer and turkey litter manure were applied to the Fertilized Field based on agronomic requirements. Results showed that the City Stormwater transported significantly higher loads per unit area of ammonium, total suspended solids (TSS), and total phosphorus (TP) than the Fertilized Field, but nitrate load was significantly lower. Nitrate load transport in drainage water from the Unfertilized Field was 58% of that from the Fertilized Field. Linear regression analysis indicated that a 1% increase in flow depth resulted in a 1.05% increase of TSS load from the City Stormwater, a 1.07% increase in nitrate load from the Fertilized Field, and a 1.11% increase in TP load from the Fertilized Field. This indicates an increase in concentration with a rise in flow depth, revealing that concentration variation was a significant factor influencing the dynamics of load transport. Further regression analysis showed the importance of targeting high flows to reduce contaminant transport. In conclusion, for watersheds similar to this one, management practices should be directed to load reduction of ammonium and TSS from urban areas, and nitrate from cropland while TP should be a target for both.

Effect of organic loading rates and proton exchange membrane surface area on the performance of an up-flow cylindrical microbial fuel cell.

PubMed

Jana, Partha S; Behera, Manaswini; Ghangrekar, M M

2012-01-01

The effect of organic loading rates (OLRs) and proton exchange membrane (PEM) surface area on the performance of microbial fuel cells (MFCs) was evaluated. Three MFCs (MFC-1, MFC-2 and MFC-3) having PEM surface area of 10 cm2, 20 cm2 and 40 cm2, respectively, were used in the study. The MFCs were operated at influent chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 500 mg L(-1) and hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 20 h, 17 h, 13 h and 6 h in experimental Run-1 to Run-4. MFC-3, with highest PEM surface area showed highest power generation throughout the study. The optimum performancewas obtained at HRT of 13 h. In Run-5 and Run-6, the influent COD was increased to 1000 mg L(-1) and 1500 mg L(-1), respectively, maintaining the HRT at 13 h. Maximum volumetric powers of 4.26 W m(-3), 9.41 W m(-3) and 17.24 W m(-3) were obtained in MFC-1, MFC-2 and MFC-3, respectively, in Run-5 under the OLR of 1.84 kg COD m(-3) d(-1). These power values are among the higher values reported in literature; MFCs with higher PEM surface area showed better electricity generation, which clearly demonstrates that proton mass transfer is the main constraint in the MFCs which limits the power output. Combined effect of influent COD and HRT was found on electricity generation.

Radiographic and clinical outcomes of implants placed in ridge preserved sites: a 12-month post-loading follow-up.

PubMed

Patel, K; Mardas, N; Donos, N

2013-06-01

The aim of this clinical study was to evaluate the interproximal radiographic bone levels and the survival/success rate of dental implants placed in alveolar ridges previously preserved with a synthetic bone substitute or a bovine xenograft. Alveolar ridge preservation was performed in 27 patients who were randomly assigned in two groups. In the test group (n = 14), the extraction socket was treated with a synthetic bone graft Straumann Bone Ceramic; SBC and a collagen barrier, whereas in the control group (n = 13) a deproteinized bovine bone mineral (DBBM) and the same collagen barrier were used. After 8 months of healing, titanium dental implants with a hydrophilic surface were placed in the preserved ridges. During surgery, 9/13 implants in the SBC group and 8/12 implants in the DBBM group presented with either dehiscence or fenestration defects and required additional bone augmentation. The implants were loaded at 4 months following placement and were followed up for 1 year post-loading. Interproximal radiographic bone levels were evaluated in standardized periapical radiographs at loading and 1 year post-loading. Probing pocket depth, gingival recession and bleeding upon probing were recorded at implants and neighbouring teeth. The success rate of the implants was evaluated according to criteria set by Albrektsson et al. (1986). The survival rate of the implants in both groups was 100% at 1-year post-loading. No statistically significant differences in any of the clinical and radiographic measurements were detected between the two groups (P < 0.05). The success rate of the implants was 84.6% (11/13) in the SBC group and 83.3% (10/12) in the DBBM group. Equivalent success and survival rates (as well as similar radiographic changes) of dental implants placed in alveolar ridges previously preserved with SBC or DBBM should be anticipated. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

Effect of loading types on performance characteristics of a trickle-bed bioreactor and biofilter during styrene/acetone vapor biofiltration.

PubMed

Halecky, Martin; Paca, Jan; Kozliak, Evguenii; Jones, Kim

2016-07-02

A 2:1 (w/w) mixture of styrene (STY) and acetone (AC) was subjected to lab-scale biofiltration under varied loading in both a trickle bed reactor (TBR) and biofilter (BF) to investigate substrate interactions and determine the limits of biofiltration efficiency of typical binary air pollutant mixtures containing both hydrophobic and polar components. A comparison of the STY/AC mixture degradation in the TBR and BF revealed higher pollutant removal efficiencies and degradation rates in the TBR, with the pollutant concentrations increasing up to the overloading limit. The maximum styrene degradation rates were 12 and 8 gc m(-3) h(-1) for the TBR and BF, respectively. However, the order of performance switched in favor of the BF when the loading was conducted by increasing air flow rate while keeping the inlet styrene concentration (Cin) constant in contrast to loading by increasing Cin. This switch may be due to a drastic difference in the effective surface area between these two reactors, so the biofilter becomes the reactor of choice when the rate-limiting step switches from biochemical processes to mass transfer by changing the loading mode. The presence of acetone in the mixture decreased the efficiency of styrene degradation and its degradation rate at high loadings. When the overloading was lifted by lowering the pollutant inlet concentrations, short-term back-stripping of both substrates in both reactors into the outlet air was observed, with a subsequent gradual recovery taking several hours and days in the BF and TBR, respectively. Removal of excess biomass from the TBR significantly improved the reactor performance. Identification of the cultivable strains, which was performed on Day 763 of continuous operation, showed the presence of 7 G(-) bacteria, 2 G(+) bacteria and 4 fungi. Flies and larvae of Lycoriella nigripes survived half a year of the biofilter operation by feeding on the biofilm resulting in the maintenance of a nearly constant pressure drop.

Roughness evolution of metallic implant surfaces under contact loading and nanometer-scale chemical etching.

PubMed

Ryu, J J; Letchuman, S; Shrotriya, P

2012-10-01

Surface damage of metallic implant surface at taper lock and clamped interfaces may take place through synergistic interactions between repeated contact loading and corrosion. In the present research, we investigated the influence of surface roughness and contact loading on the mechanical and chemical damage phenomena. Cobalt-chromium (CoCrMo) specimens with two different roughness configurations created by milling and grinding process were subjected to normal and inclined contact loading. During repeated contact loading, amplitude of surface roughness reached a steady value after decreasing during the first few cycles. During the second phase, the alternating experiment of rough surface contact and micro-etching was conducted to characterize surface evolution behavior. As a result, surface roughness amplitude continuously evolved-decreasing during contact loading due to plastic deformation of contacting asperities and increasing on exposure to corrosive environment by the preferential corrosion attack on stressed area. Two different instabilities could be identified in the surface roughness evolution during etching of contact loaded surfaces: increase in the amplitude of dominant wavenumber and increase in amplitude of a small group of roughness modes. A damage mechanism that incorporates contact-induced residual stress development and stress-assisted dissolution is proposed to elucidate the measured instabilities in surface roughness evolution. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Investigation of the ElectroPuls E3000 Test Machine for Fatigue Testing of Structural Materials

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-12-01

sharpening of the crack tip and deformation of a portion of the newly formed surface (the surface created during loading portion of the cycle) during...cracking process is that the size of the final plastic zone formed by pre-cracking can affect the crack growth rate in subsequent testing. To...similar. In other structural materials, such as aluminium , striations are often well-defined. Typically, fatigue striations on an aluminium fracture

Bed material transport in the Virgin River, Utah

USGS Publications Warehouse

Andrews, E.D.

2000-01-01

Detailed information concerning the rate and particle size distribution of bed material transport by streamflows can be very difficult and expensive to obtain, especially where peak streamflows are brief and bed material is poorly sorted, including some very large boulders. Such streams, however, are common in steep, arid watersheds. Any computational approach must consider that (1) only the smaller particle sizes present on the streambed move even during large floods and (2) the largest bed particles exert a significant form drag on the flow. Conventional methods that rely on a single particle size to estimate the skin friction shear stress acting on the mobile fraction of the bed material perform poorly. Instead, for this study, the skin friction shear stress was calculated for the observed range of streamflows by calculating the form drag exerted on the reach‐averaged flow field by all particle sizes. Suspended and bed load transported rates computed from reach‐averaged skin friction shear stress are in excellent agreement with measured transport rates. The computed mean annual bed material load, including both bed load and suspended load, of the East Fork Virgin River for the water years 1992‐1996 was approximately 1.3×10 5 t. A large portion of the bed material load consists of sand‐sized particles, 0.062–1.0 mm in diameter, that are transported in suspension. Such particles, however, constituted only 10% of the surface bed material and less than 25% of the subsurface bed material. The mean annual quantity of bed load transported was 1060 t/yr with a median size of 15 mm.

Modelling the Effect of Fruit Growth on Surface Conductance to Water Vapour Diffusion

PubMed Central

GIBERT, CAROLINE; LESCOURRET, FRANÇOISE; GÉNARD, MICHEL; VERCAMBRE, GILLES; PÉREZ PASTOR, ALEJANDRO

2005-01-01

• Background and Aims A model of fruit surface conductance to water vapour diffusion driven by fruit growth is proposed. It computes the total fruit conductance by integrating each of its components: stomata, cuticle and cracks. • Methods The stomatal conductance is computed from the stomatal density per fruit and the specific stomatal conductance. The cuticular component is equal to the proportion of cuticle per fruit multiplied by its specific conductance. Cracks are assumed to be generated when pulp expansion rate exceeds cuticle expansion rate. A constant percentage of cracks is assumed to heal each day. The proportion of cracks to total fruit surface area multiplied by the specific crack conductance accounts for the crack component. The model was applied to peach fruit (Prunus persica) and its parameters were estimated from field experiments with various crop load and irrigation regimes. • Key Results The predictions were in good agreement with the experimental measurements and for the different conditions (irrigation and crop load). Total fruit surface conductance decreased during early growth as stomatal density, and hence the contribution of the stomatal conductance, decreased from 80 to 20 % with fruit expansion. Cracks were generated for fruits exhibiting high growth rates during late growth and the crack component could account for up to 60 % of the total conductance during the rapid fruit growth. The cuticular contribution was slightly variable (around 20 %). Sensitivity analysis revealed that simulated conductance was highly affected by stomatal parameters during the early period of growth and by both crack and stomatal parameters during the late period. Large fruit growth rate leads to earlier and greater increase of conductance due to higher crack occurrence. Conversely, low fruit growth rate accounts for a delayed and lower increase of conductance. • Conclusions By predicting crack occurrence during fruit growth, this model could be helpful in managing cropping practices for integrated plant protection. PMID:15655107

Observation of the initiation and progression of damage in compressively loaded composite plates containing a cutout

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Waas, A.; Babcock, C., Jr.

1986-01-01

A series of experiments was carried out to determine the mechanism of failure in compressively loaded laminated plates with a circular cutout. Real time holographic interferometry and photomicrography are used to observe the progression of failure. These observations together with post experiment plate sectioning and deplying for interior damage observation provide useful information for modelling the failure process. It is revealed that the failure is initiated as a localised instability in the zero layers, at the hole surface. With increasing load extensive delamination cracking is observed. The progression of failure is by growth of these delaminations induced by delamination buckling. Upon reaching a critical state, catastrophic failure of the plate is observed. The levels of applied load and the rate at which these events occur depend on the plate stacking sequence.

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

Li, Dongdong, E-mail: lidongchem@sina.cn; Zhu, Yuntao; Liang, Zhiqiang

Highlights: ► The synthesized mesoporous hydroxyapatite has nanostructure and bioactivity. ► The materials have high surface area and amino group. ► The materials show higher drug loading and slower release rate than pure HAP. - Abstract: Mesoporous nanosized hydroxyapatite (HAP) functionalized by alendronate (ALN) was synthesized using cationic surfactant CTAB as template. The structural, morphological and textural properties were fully characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and N{sub 2} adsorption/desorption. Then the obtained materials were performed as drug delivery carriers using ibuprofen (IBU) as a model drug to investigate their drug storage/releasemore » properties in simulated body fluid (SBF). The materials showed relatively slower release rate compared with HAP due to the ionic interaction between -NH{sub 3}{sup +} on the matrix and -COO{sup −}belongs to IBU. The system provides a new concept for improving the drug loading or slowing down the release rate.« less

Premonitory slip and tidal triggering of earthquakes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lockner, D.A.; Beeler, N.M.

1999-01-01

We have conducted a series of laboratory simulations of earthquakes using granite cylinders containing precut bare fault surfaces at 50 MPa confining pressure. Axial shortening rates between 10-4 and 10-6 mm/s were imposed to simulate tectonic loading. Average loading rate was then modulated by the addition of a small-amplitude sine wave to simulate periodic loading due to Earth tides or other sources. The period of the modulating signal ranged from 10 to 10,000 s. For each combination of amplitude and period of the modulating signal, multiple stick-slip events were recorded to determine the degree of correlation between the timing of simulated earthquakes and the imposed periodic loading function. Over the range of parameters studied, the degree of correlation of earthquakes was most sensitive to the amplitude of the periodic loading, with weaker dependence on the period of oscillations and the average loading rate. Accelerating premonitory slip was observed in these experiments and is a controlling factor in determining the conditions under which correlated events occur. In fact, some form of delayed failure is necessary to produce the observed correlations between simulated earthquake timing and characteristics of the periodic loading function. The transition from strongly correlated to weakly correlated model earthquake populations occurred when the amplitude of the periodic loading was approximately 0.05 to 0.1 MPa shear stress (0.03 to 0.06 MPa Coulomb failure function). Lower-amplitude oscillations produced progressively lower correlation levels. Correlations between static stress increases and earthquake aftershocks are found to degrade at similar stress levels. Typical stress variations due to Earth tides are only 0.001 to 0.004 MPa, so that the lack of correlation between Earth tides and earthquakes is also consistent with our findings. A simple extrapolation of our results suggests that approximately 1% of midcrustal earthquakes should be correlated with Earth tides. Triggered seismicity has been reported resulting from the passage of surface waves excited by the Landers earthquake. These transient waves had measured amplitudes in excess of 0.1 MPa at frequencies of 0.05 to 0.2 Hz in regions of notable seismicity increase. Similar stress oscillations in our laboratory experiments produced strongly correlated stick-slip events. We suggest that seemingly inconsistent natural observations of triggered seismicity and absence of tidal triggering indicate that failure is amplitude and frequency dependent. This is the expected result if, as in our laboratory experiments, the rheology of the Earth's crust permits delayed failure.

Comparison of three methods of calculating strain in the mouse ulna in exogenous loading studies.

PubMed

Norman, Stephanie C; Wagner, David W; Beaupre, Gary S; Castillo, Alesha B

2015-01-02

Axial compression of mouse limbs is commonly used to induce bone formation in a controlled, non-invasive manner. Determination of peak strains caused by loading is central to interpreting results. Load-strain calibration is typically performed using uniaxial strain gauges attached to the diaphyseal, periosteal surface of a small number of sacrificed animals. Strain is measured as the limb is loaded to a range of physiological loads known to be anabolic to bone. The load-strain relationship determined by this subgroup is then extrapolated to a larger group of experimental mice. This method of strain calculation requires the challenging process of strain gauging very small bones which is subject to variability in placement of the strain gauge. We previously developed a method to estimate animal-specific periosteal strain during axial ulnar loading using an image-based computational approach that does not require strain gauges. The purpose of this study was to compare the relationship between load-induced bone formation rates and periosteal strain at ulnar midshaft using three different methods to estimate strain: (A) Nominal strain values based solely on load-strain calibration; (B) Strains calculated from load-strain calibration, but scaled for differences in mid-shaft cross-sectional geometry among animals; and (C) An alternative image-based computational method for calculating strains based on beam theory and animal-specific bone geometry. Our results show that the alternative method (C) provides comparable correlation between strain and bone formation rates in the mouse ulna relative to the strain gauge-dependent methods (A and B), while avoiding the need to use strain gauges. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Effect of irradiation-induced plastic flow localization on ductile crack resistance behavior of a 9%Cr tempered martensitic steel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chaouadi, R.

2008-01-01

This paper examines the effect of irradiation-induced plastic flow localization on the crack resistance behavior. Tensile and crack resistance measurements were performed on Eurofer-97 that was irradiated at 300 °C to neutron doses ranging between 0.3 and 2.1 dpa. A severe degradation of crack resistance behavior is experimentally established at quasi-static loading, in contradiction with the Charpy impact data and the dynamic crack resistance measurements. This degradation is attributed to the dislocation channel deformation phenomenon. At quasi-static loading rate, scanning electron microscopy observations of the fracture surfaces revealed a significant change of fracture topography, mainly from equiaxed dimples (mode I) to shear dimples (mode I + II). With increasing loading rate, the high peak stresses that develop inside the process zone activate much more dislocation sources resulting in a higher density of cross cutting dislocation channels and therefore an almost unaffected crack resistance. These explanations provide a rational to all experimental observations.

Phosphorus runoff from incorporated and surface-applied liquid swine manure and phosphorus fertilizer.

PubMed

Daverede, I C; Kravchenko, A N; Hoeft, R G; Nafziger, E D; Bullock, D G; Warren, J J; Gonzini, L C

2004-01-01

Excessive fertilization with organic and/or inorganic P amendments to cropland increases the potential risk of P loss to surface waters. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of soil test P level, source, and application method of P amendments on P in runoff following soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.]. The treatments consisted of two rates of swine (Sus scrofa domestica) liquid manure surface-applied and injected, 54 kg P ha(-1) triple superphosphate (TSP) surface-applied and incorporated, and a control with and without chisel-plowing. Rainfall simulations were conducted one month (1MO) and six months (6MO) after P amendment application for 2 yr. Soil injection of swine manure compared with surface application resulted in runoff P concentration decreases of 93, 82, and 94%, and P load decreases of 99, 94, and 99% for dissolved reactive phosphorus (DRP), total phosphorus (TP), and algal-available phosphorus (AAP), respectively. Incorporation of TSP also reduced P concentration in runoff significantly. Runoff P concentration and load from incorporated amendments did not differ from the control. Factors most strongly related to P in runoff from the incorporated treatments included Bray P1 soil extraction value for DRP concentration, and Bray P1 and sediment content in runoff for AAP and TP concentration and load. Injecting manure and chisel-plowing inorganic fertilizer reduced runoff P losses, decreased runoff volumes, and increased the time to runoff, thus minimizing the potential risk of surface water contamination. After incorporating the P amendments, controlling erosion is the main target to minimize TP losses from agricultural soils.

Effect of load ratio on fatigue crack propagation behavior of solid-solution-strengthened Ni-based superalloys at elevated temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Longzhou; Roy, Shawoon K.

2013-04-01

The fatigue crack propagation (FCP) behavior of two solid-solution-strengthened Ni-based superalloys, INCONEL 617 and HAYNES 230, were studied simultaneously in laboratory air using a constant stress intensity factor (K)-controlled mode with different load ratios (R-ratio) at 700 °C. The FCP tests were performed in both cycle and time-dependent FCP domains to examine the effect of R-ratio on the FCP rate, da/dn. For cycle-dependent FCP test, a 1-s sinusoidal fatigue was applied for a compact tension (CT) specimen of INCONEL 617 and HAYNES 230 to measure their FCP rates. For time-dependent FCP test, a 3-s sinusoidal fatigue with a hold time of 300 s at maximum load was applied. Both cycle/time-dependent FCP behaviors were characterized and analyzed. The results showed that increasing R-ratio would introduce the fatigue incubation and decrease the FCP rates at cycle-dependent FCP tests. On the contrary, fatigue incubation was not observed at time-dependent FCP tests for both INCONEL 617 and HAYNES 230 at each tested R-ratio, suggesting that association of maximum load (Kmax) with crack tip open displacement (CTOD) and environmental factor governed the FCP process. Also, for time-dependent FCP, HAYNES 230 showed lower FCP rates than INCONEL 617 regardless of R-ratio. However, for cycle-dependent FCP, HAYNES 230 showed the lower FCP rates only at high R-ratios. Fracture surface of specimens were examined using SEM to investigate the cracking mechanism under cycle/time-dependent FCP condition with various R-ratios.

Silage storage runoff characterization: Annual nutrient loading rate and first flush analysis of bunder silos

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Silage runoff produced during the preservation and storage of dairy forage in horizontal bunkers is a source of nutrient loss from the farmstead and a threat to surface water quality. This research evaluated the runoff characteristics from six dairy bunker facilities to determine runoff water qualit...

Assembling of carbon nanotubes film responding to significant reduction wear and friction on steel surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Bin; Xue, Yong; Qiang, Li; Gao, Kaixong; Liu, Qiao; Yang, Baoping; Liang, Aiming; Zhang, Junyan

2017-11-01

Friction properties of carbon nanotubes have been widely studied and reported, however, the friction properties of carbon nanotubes related on state of itself. It is showing superlubricity under nanoscale, but indicates high shear adhesion as aligned carbon nanotube film. However, friction properties under high load (which is commonly in industry) of carbon nanotube films are seldom reported. In this paper, carbon nanotube films, via mechanical rubbing method, were obtained and its tribology properties were investigated at high load of 5 to 15 N. Though different couple pairs were employed, the friction coefficients of carbon nanotube films are nearly the same. Compared with bare stainless steel, friction coefficients and wear rates under carbon nanotube films lubrication reduced to, at least, 1/5 and 1/(4.3-14.5), respectively. Friction test as well as structure study were carried out to reveal the mechanism of the significant reduction wear and friction on steel surface. One can conclude that sliding and densifying of carbon nanotubes at sliding interface contribute to the sufficient decrease of friction coefficients and wear rates.

Deletion of Nrf2 reduces skeletal mechanical properties and decreases load-driven bone formation.

PubMed

Sun, Yong-Xin; Li, Lei; Corry, Kylie A; Zhang, Pei; Yang, Yang; Himes, Evan; Mihuti, Cristina Layla; Nelson, Cecilia; Dai, Guoli; Li, Jiliang

2015-05-01

Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) is a transcription factor expressed in many cell types, including osteoblasts, osteocytes, and osteoclasts. Nrf2 has been considered a master regulator of cytoprotective genes against oxidative and chemical insults. The lack of Nrf2 can induce pathologies in multiple organs. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of Nrf2 in load-driven bone metabolism using Nrf2 knockout (KO) mice. Compared to age-matched littermate wild-type controls, Nrf2 KO mice have significantly lowered femoral bone mineral density (-7%, p<0.05), bone formation rate (-40%, p<0.05), as well as ultimate force (-11%, p<0.01). The ulna loading experiment showed that Nrf2 KO mice were less responsive than littermate controls, as indicated by reduction in relative mineralizing surface (rMS/BS, -69%, p<0.01) and relative bone formation rate (rBFR/BS, -84%, p<0.01). Furthermore, deletion of Nrf2 suppressed the load-driven gene expression of antioxidant enzymes and Wnt5a in cultured primary osteoblasts. Taken together, the results suggest that the loss-of-function mutation of Nrf2 in bone impairs bone metabolism and diminishes load-driven bone formation. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Force Generation in Single Conventional Actomyosin Complexes under High Dynamic Load

PubMed Central

Takagi, Yasuharu; Homsher, Earl E.; Goldman, Yale E.; Shuman, Henry

2006-01-01

The mechanical load borne by a molecular motor affects its force, sliding distance, and its rate of energy transduction. The control of ATPase activity by the mechanical load on a muscle tunes its efficiency to the immediate task, increasing ATP hydrolysis as the power output increases at forces less than isometric (the Fenn effect) and suppressing ATP hydrolysis when the force is greater than isometric. In this work, we used a novel ‘isometric’ optical clamp to study the mechanics of myosin II molecules to detect the reaction steps that depend on the dynamic properties of the load. An actin filament suspended between two beads and held in separate optical traps is brought close to a surface that is sparsely coated with motor proteins on pedestals of silica beads. A feedback system increases the effective stiffness of the actin by clamping the force on one of the beads and moving the other bead electrooptically. Forces measured during actomyosin interactions are increased at higher effective stiffness. The results indicate that single myosin molecules transduce energy nearly as efficiently as whole muscle and that the mechanical control of the ATP hydrolysis rate is in part exerted by reversal of the force-generating actomyosin transition under high load without net utilization of ATP. PMID:16326899

Effect of liquid swine manure rate, incorporation, and timing of rainfall on phosphorus loss with surface runoff.

PubMed

Allen, Brett L; Mallarino, Antonio P

2008-01-01

Excessive manure phosphorus (P) application increases risk of P loss from fields. This study assessed total runoff P (TPR), bioavailable P (BAP), and dissolved reactive P (DRP) concentrations and loads in surface runoff after liquid swine (Sus scrofa domesticus) manure application with or without incorporation into soil and different timing of rainfall. Four replicated manure P treatments were applied in 2002 and in 2003 to two Iowa soils testing low in P managed with corn (Zea mays L.)-soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] rotations. Total P applied each time was 0 to 80 kg P ha(-1) at one site and 0 to 108 kg P ha(-1) at the other. Simulated rainfall was applied within 24 h of P application or after 10 to 16 d and 5 to 6 mo. Nonincorporated manure P increased DRP, BAP, and TPR concentrations and loads linearly or exponentially for 24-h and 10- to 16-d runoff events. On average for the 24-h events, DRP, BAP, and TPR concentrations were 5.4, 4.7, and 2.2 times higher, respectively, for nonincorporated manure than for incorporated manure; P loads were 3.8, 7.7, and 3.6 times higher; and DRP and BAP concentrations were 54% of TPR for nonincorporated manure and 22 to 25% for incorporated manure. A 10- to 16-d rainfall delay resulted in DRP, BAP, and TPR concentrations that were 3.1, 2.7, and 1.1 times lower, respectively, than for 24-h events across all nonincorporated P rates, sites, and years, whereas runoff P loads were 3.8, 3.6, and 1.6 times lower, respectively. A 5- to 6-mo simulated rainfall delay reduced runoff P to levels similar to control plots. Incorporating swine manure when the probability of immediate rainfall is high reduces the risk of P loss in surface runoff; however, this benefit sharply decreases with time.

Efficient Bioconjugation of Protein Capture Agents to Biosensor Surfaces Using Aniline-Catalyzed Hydrazone Ligation

PubMed Central

Byeon, Ji-Yeon; Limpoco, F. T.; Bailey, Ryan C.

2010-01-01

Aniline-catalyzed hydrazone ligation between surface immobilized hydrazines and aldehyde-modified antibodies is shown to be an efficient method for attaching protein capture agents to model oxide-coated biosensor substrates. Silicon photonic microring resonators are used to directly evaluate the efficiency of this surface bioconjugate reaction at various pHs and in the presence or absence of aniline as a nucleophilic catalyst. It is found that aniline significantly increases the net antibody loading for surfaces functionalized over a pH range from 4.5 to 7.4, allowing derivatization of substrates with reduced incubation time and sample consumption. This increase in antibody loading directly results in more sensitive antigen detection when functionalized microrings are employed in a label-free immunoassay. Furthermore, these experiments also reveal an interesting pH dependent non-covalent binding trend that plays an important role in dictating the amount of antibody attached onto the substrate, highlighting the competing contributions of the bioconjugate reaction rate and the dynamic interactions that control opportunities for a solution-phase biomolecule to react with a substrate-bound reagent. PMID:20809595

Single-row modified mason-allen versus double-row arthroscopic rotator cuff repair: a biomechanical and surface area comparison.

PubMed

Nelson, Cory O; Sileo, Michael J; Grossman, Mark G; Serra-Hsu, Frederick

2008-08-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the time-zero biomechanical strength and the surface area of repair between a single-row modified Mason-Allen rotator cuff repair and a double-row arthroscopic repair. Six matched pairs of sheep infraspinatus tendons were repaired by both techniques. Pressure-sensitive film was used to measure the surface area of repair for each configuration. Specimens were biomechanically tested with cyclic loading from 20 N to 30 N for 20 cycles and were loaded to failure at a rate of 1 mm/s. Failure was defined at 5 mm of gap formation. Double-row suture anchor fixation restored a mean surface area of 258.23 +/- 69.7 mm(2) versus 148.08 +/- 75.5 mm(2) for single-row fixation, a 74% increase (P = .025). Both repairs had statistically similar time-zero biomechanics. There was no statistical difference in peak-to-peak displacement or elongation during cyclic loading. Single-row fixation showed a higher mean load to failure (110.26 +/- 26.4 N) than double-row fixation (108.93 +/- 21.8 N). This was not statistically significant (P = .932). All specimens failed at the suture-tendon interface. Double-row suture anchor fixation restores a greater percentage of the anatomic footprint when compared with a single-row Mason-Allen technique. The time-zero biomechanical strength was not significantly different between the 2 study groups. This study suggests that the 2 factors are independent of each other. Surface area and biomechanical strength of fixation are 2 independent factors in the outcome of rotator cuff repair. Maximizing both factors may increase the likelihood of complete tendon-bone healing and ultimately improve clinical outcomes. For smaller tears, a single-row modified Mason-Allen suture technique may provide sufficient strength, but for large amenable tears, a double row can provide both strength and increased surface area for healing.

Analytical volcano deformation source models

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lisowski, Michael; Dzurisin, Daniel

2007-01-01

Primary volcanic landforms are created by the ascent and eruption of magma. The ascending magma displaces and interacts with surrounding rock and fluids as it creates new pathways, flows through cracks or conduits, vesiculates, and accumulates in underground reservoirs. The formation of new pathways and pressure changes within existing conduits and reservoirs stress and deform the surrounding rock. Eruption products load the crust. The pattern and rate of surface deformation around volcanoes reflect the tectonic and volcanic processes transmitted to the surface through the mechanical properties of the crust.

Use of loading rates to establish dioxin criteria for land application of sludge

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

Thiel, D.A.; Martin, S.G.; Goodman, B.B.

1995-08-01

A methodology derived from empirical field and laboratory data on wildlife toxicology, chemical concentrations, and loading rates is developed for defining criteria for protecting wildlife exposed to landspread materials containing 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) and TCDD-like compounds. The method controls mass loading, giving it clear advantages over soil-concentration-based criteria in situations where material is spread in a relatively thin layer on the surface and not incorporated into the soil. It also controls dioxin toxic equivalents in the target organism rather than in the landspread material. It achieves a high level of protection for bird embryos by applying a safety factor to amore » no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) derived from egg toxicity data and combining this adjusted NOAEL with bioaccumulation data from the most efficient avian accumulator of TCDD on a landspread site. Assuming that bird embryos are among the most sensitive organisms to TCDD in the terrestrial environment, dioxin restrictions adequate to safeguard eggs will protect other wildlife inhabiting landspread sites. Using this methodology, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has derived the following wildlife dioxin criterion for surface spreading (i.e., no incorporation) a paper industry sludge: The sum of the mass of TCDD plus 0.0013 times the mass of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran (TCDF) shall not exceed 1.3 mg per hectare.« less

The characterization of secondary lithium-ion battery degradation when operating complex, ultra-high power pulsed loads

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wong, Derek N.

The US Navy is actively developing all electric fleets, raising serious questions about what is required of onboard power supplies in order to properly power the ship's electrical systems. This is especially relevant when choosing a viable power source to drive high power propulsion and electric weapon systems in addition to the conventional loads deployed aboard these types of vessels. Especially when high pulsed power loads are supplied, the issue of maintaining power quality becomes important and increasingly complex. Conventionally, a vessel's electrical power is generated using gas turbine or diesel driven motor-generator sets that are very inefficient when they are used outside of their most efficient load condition. What this means is that if the generator is not being utilized continuously at its most efficient load capacity, the quality of the output power may also be effected and fall outside of the acceptable power quality limits imposed through military standards. As a solution to this potential problem, the Navy has proposed using electrochemical storage devices since they are able to buffer conventional generators when the load is operating below the generator's most efficient power level or able to efficiently augment a generator when the load is operating in excess of the generator's most efficient power rating. Specifically, the US Navy is interested in using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) lithium-ion batteries within an intelligently controlled energy storage module that could act as either a prime power supply for on-board pulsed power systems or as a backup generator to other shipboard power systems. Due to the unique load profile of high-rate pulsed power systems, the implementation of lithium-ion batteries within these complex systems requires them to be operated at very high rates and the effects these things have on cell degradation has been an area of focus. There is very little published research into the effects that high power transient or pulsed loading has on the degradation mechanisms of secondary lithium-ion cells. Prior to performing this work, it was unclear if the implementation of lithium-ion batteries in highly transient load conditions at high rate would accelerate cell degradation mechanisms that have been previously considered as minor issues. This work has focused on answering these previously unanswered questions. In early experiments performed here, COTS lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) cells were studied under high-rate, transient load conditions and it was found that their capacity fade deviated from the traditional linear behavior and exponentially declined until no charge could be accepted when recharge was attempted at high rate. These findings indicated that subjecting LFP chemistries to transient, high rate charge/discharge profiles induced rapid changes in the electrode/electrolyte interface that rendered the cells useless when high rate recharge was required. These findings suggested there was more phenomena to learn about how these cells degraded under high rate pulsed conditions before they are fielded in Naval applications. Therefore, the research presented here has been focused on understanding the degradation mechanisms that are unique to LFP cells when they are cycled under pulsed load profiles at high charge and discharge rates. In particular, the work has been focused on identifying major degradation reactions that occur by studying the surface chemistry of cycled electrode materials. Efforts have been performed to map the impedance evolution of both cathode and anode half cells, respectively, using a novel three electrode technique that was developed for this research. Using this technique, the progression of degradation has been mapped using analysis of differential capacitance spectrums. In both the three electrode EIS mapping and differential capacitance analysis that has been performed, electrical component models have been developed. The results presented will show that there are unique degradation mechanisms induced through high rate pulsed loading conditions that are not normally seen in low rate continuous cycling of LFP cells.

Dry sliding behavior of aluminum alloy 8011 with 12% fly ash composites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Magibalan, S.; Senthilkumar, P.; Palanivelu, R.; Senthilkumar, C.; Shivasankaran, N.; Prabu, M.

2018-05-01

This research focused on the fabrication of aluminum alloy 8011 with 12% fly ash (FA) composite (AA8011%–12% FA) using the stir casting method. A three-level central composite design experiment was developed using response surface methodology with various parameters such as load, time, and sliding velocity varied in the range of 5 to 15 N, 5 to 15 min, and 1.5 to 4.5 m.s‑1, respectively. Dry sliding wear tests were performed as per the experimental design using a pin on disc at room temperature. The obtained regression result indicated that the developed model performed well in relating the wear process parameters and predicted the wear behavior of the composite. The surface plot showed that the wear rate increases with increase in load, time, and sliding velocity. Hardness was evaluated by Vickers hardness testing machine. Moreover, the surface morphology of the worn-out composite was examined using a scanning electron microscope.

Surface recrystallization theory of the wear of copper in liquid methane

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bill, R. C.; Wisander, D. W.

1974-01-01

Copper was subjected to sliding against 440C in liquid methane. The normal load range was from 1/4 to 2 kilograms, and the sliding velocity range was from 3.1 to 25 meters per second. Over this range of experimental parameters, the wear rate of the copper rider was found to be proportional to the sliding velocity squared and to the normal load. Transmission electron microscopy was used to study the dislocation structure in the copper very near the wear scar surface. It was found that near the wear scar surface, the microstructure was characterized by a fine-cell recrystallized zone in which individual dislocations could be distinguished in the cell walls. The interiors of the cells, about 0.5 micrometer in diameter, were nearly dislocation free. Below the recrystallized layer was a zone that was intensely cold worked by the friction process. With increasing depth, this intensely cold worked zone gradually became indistinguishable from the partially cold worked bulk of the copper, representative of the initial condition of the material.

Chemically grafted carbon-coated LiFePO4 using diazonium chemistry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Delaporte, Nicolas; Perea, Alexis; Amin, Ruhul; Zaghib, Karim; Bélanger, Daniel

2015-04-01

The effect of surface functionalization of aminophenyl and bromophenyl groups on carbon-coated LiFePO4 and the electrochemical properties of composite electrode containing these materials are reported. The functionalization was performed by spontaneous reduction of the corresponding in situ generated diazonium ions. The resulting chemically grafted LiFePO4/C materials were characterized by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) to confirm the presence of the surface organic species. XRD analyses indicated the cathode material was partially oxidized. Thermogravimetric and elemental analyses revealed the loading of grafted molecules was between 0.2 and 1.1 wt.% depending on the reaction conditions. Interestingly, the electrochemical performances of the modified LiFePO4/C are not adversely affected by the presence of either aminophenyl and bromophenyl groups at the carbon surface, and in fact the grafted LiFePO4/C displayed slightly superior discharge capacity at the highest C rate investigated for a low loading of organic molecules.

GGFC Special Bureau for Loading: current status and plans

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Dam, T.; Plag, H.-P.; Francis, O.; Gegout, P.

The Earth's surface is perpetually being displaced due to temporally varying atmospheric, oceanic and continental water mass surface loads. These non-geodynamic signals are of substantial magnitude that they contribute significantly to the scatter in geodetic observations of crustal motion. In February, 2002, the International Earth Rotation Service (IERS) established a Special Bureau of Loading (SBL) whose primary charge is to provide consistent and valid estimates of surface mass loading effects to the IERS community for the purpose of correcting geodetic time series. Here we outline the primary principles involved in modelling the surface displacements and gravity changes induced by surface mass loading including the basic theory, the Earth model and the surface load data. We then identify a list of operational issues, including product validation, that need to be addressed by the SBL before products can be provided to the community. Finally, we outline areas for future research to further improve the loading estimates. We conclude by formulating a recommendation on the best procedure for including loading corrections into geodetic data. Success of the SBL will depend on our ability to efficiently provide consistent and reliable estimates of surface mass loading effects. It is imperative that we work closely with the existing Global Geophysical Fluids Center (GGFC) Special Bureaus and with the community to as much as possible to verify the products.

ATOMIC-SCALE DESIGN OF IRON FISCHER-TROPSCH CATALYSTS: A COMBINED COMPUTATIONAL CHEMISTRY, EXPERIMENTAL, AND MICROKINETIC MODELING APPROACH

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

Manos Mavrikakis; James A. Dumesic; Amit A. Gokhale

2005-03-22

Efforts during this first year focused on four areas: (1) searching/summarizing published FTS mechanistic and kinetic studies of FTS reactions on iron catalysts; (2) construction of mass spectrometer-TPD and Berty CSTR reactor systems; (3) preparation and characterization of unsupported iron and alumina-supported iron catalysts at various iron loadings (4) Determination of thermochemical parameters such as binding energies of reactive intermediates, heat of FTS elementary reaction steps, and kinetic parameters such as activation energies, and frequency factors of FTS elementary reaction steps on a number of model surfaces. Literature describing mechanistic and kinetic studies of Fischer-Tropsch synthesis on iron catalysts wasmore » compiled in a draft review. Construction of the mass spectrometer-TPD system is 90% complete and of a Berty CSTR reactor system 98% complete. Three unsupported iron catalysts and three alumina-supported iron catalysts were prepared by nonaqueous-evaporative deposition (NED) or aqueous impregnation (AI) and characterized by chemisorption, BET, extent-of-reduction, XRD, and TEM methods. These catalysts, covering a wide range of dispersions and metal loadings, are well-reduced and relatively thermally stable up to 500-600 C in H{sub 2}, thus ideal for kinetic and mechanistic studies. The alumina-supported iron catalysts will be used for kinetic and mechanistic studies. In the coming year, adsorption/desorption properties, rates of elementary steps, and global reaction rates will be measured for these catalysts, with and without promoters, providing a database for understanding effects of dispersion, metal loading, and support on elementary kinetic parameters and for validation of computational models that incorporate effects of surface structure and promoters. Furthermore, using state-of-the-art self-consistent Density Functional Theory (DFT) methods, we have extensively studied the thermochemistry and kinetics of various elementary steps on three different model surfaces: (1) Fe(110), (2) Fe(110) modified by subsurface C, and (3) Fe surface modified with Pt adatoms. These studies have yielded valuable insights into the reactivity of Fe surfaces for FTS, and provided accurate estimates for the effect of Fe modifiers such as subsurface C and surface Pt.« less

Thermo-elastic-plastic analysis for elastic component under high temperature fatigue crack growth rate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ali, Mohammed Ali Nasser

The research project presents a fundamental understanding of the fatigue crack growth mechanisms of AISI 420 martensitic stainless steel, based on the comparison analysis between the theoretical and numerical modelling, incorporating research findings under isothermal fatigue loading for solid cylindrical specimen and the theoretical modelling with the numerical simulation for tubular specimen when subjected to cyclic mechanical loading superimposed by cyclic thermal shock.The experimental part of this research programme studied the fatigue stress-life data for three types of surface conditions specimen and the isothermal stress-controlled fatigue testing at 300 °C - 600 °C temperature range. It is observed that the highest strength is obtained for the polished specimen, while the machined specimen shows lower strength, and the lowest strength is the notched specimen due to the high effect of the stress concentration. The material behaviour at room and high temperatures shows an initial hardening, followed by slow extension until fully plastic saturation then followed by crack initiation and growth eventually reaching the failure of the specimen, resulting from the dynamic strain ageing occurred from the transformation of austenitic microstructure to martensite and also, the nucleation of precipitation at grain boundaries and the incremental temperature increase the fatigue crack growth rate with stress intensity factor however, the crack growth rate at 600 °C test temperature is less than 500 °C because of the creep-fatigue taking place.The theoretical modelling presents the crack growth analysis and stress and strain intensity factor approaches analysed in two case studies based on the addition of thermo-elastic-plastic stresses to the experimental fatigue applied loading. Case study one estimates the thermal stresses superimposed sinusoidal cyclic mechanical stress results in solid cylinder under isothermal fatigue simulation. Case study two estimates the transient thermal stresses superimposed on cyclic mechanical loading results in hollow cylinder under thermal shock in heating case and down shock cooling case. The combination of stress and strain intensity factor theoretical calculations with the experimental output recorded data shows a similar behaviour with increasing temperature, and there is a fair correlation between the profiles at the beginning and then divergence with increasing the crack length. The transient influence of high temperature in case two, giving a very high thermal shock stress as a heating or cooling effects, shifting up the combined stress, when applied a cyclic mechanical load in fraction of seconds, and the reputations of these shocks, causing a fast failure under high thermal shock stress superimposed with mechanical loading.Finally, the numerical modelling analyses three cases studied were solved due to the types of loading and types of specimen geometry by using finite element models constructed through the ANSYS Workbench version 13.0. The first case is a low cyclic fatigue case for a solid cylinder specimen simulated by applying a cyclic mechanical loading. The second is an isothermal fatigue case for solid cylinder specimen simulated by supplying different constant temperatures on the outer surface with cyclic mechanical loading, where the two cases are similar to the experimental tests and the third case, is a thermo-mechanical fatigue for a hollow cylinder model by simulating a thermal up-shock generated due to transient heating on the outer surface of the model or down shock cooling on the inner surface with the cyclic mechanical loading. The results show a good agreement with the experimental data in terms of alternative stress and life in the first case. In case two results show the strain intensity factor is increases with increasing temperature similar to the theoretical solution due to the influence of the modulus of elasticity and the difference in life estimation with the experimental output record is related to the input data made of theoretical physical properties and the experimental stress-life data.

Characterizing rapid capacity fade and impedance evolution in high rate pulsed discharged lithium iron phosphate cells for complex, high power loads

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wong, Derek N.; Wetz, David A.; Heinzel, John M.; Mansour, Azzam N.

2016-10-01

Three 26650 LiFePO4 (LFP) cells are cycled using a 40 A pulsed charge/discharge profile to study their performance in high rate pulsed applications. This profile is used to simulate naval pulsed power loads planned for deployment aboard future vessels. The LFP cells studied experienced an exponential drop in their usable high-rate recharge capacity within sixty cycles due to a rapid rise in their internal resistance. Differential capacitance shows that the voltage window for charge storage is pushed outside of the recommended voltage cutoff limits. Investigation into the state of health of the electrodes shows minimal loss of active material from the cathode to side reactions. Post-mortem examination of the anodic surface films reveals a large increase in the concentration of reduced salt compounds indicating that the pulsed profile creates highly favorable conditions for LiPF6 salt to break down into LiF. This film slows the ionic movement at the interface, affecting transfer kinetics, resulting in charge buildup in the bulk anode without successful energy storage. The results indicate that the use of these cells as a power supply for high pulsed power loads is hindered because of ionically resistant film development and not by an increasing rate of active material loss.

Local deformation behavior of surface porous polyether-ether-ketone.

PubMed

Evans, Nathan T; Torstrick, F Brennan; Safranski, David L; Guldberg, Robert E; Gall, Ken

2017-01-01

Surface porous polyether-ether-ketone has the ability to maintain the tensile monotonic and cyclic strength necessary for many load bearing orthopedic applications while providing a surface that facilitates bone ingrowth; however, the relevant deformation behavior of the pore architecture in response to various loading conditions is not yet fully characterized or understood. The focus of this study was to examine the compressive and wear behavior of the surface porous architecture using micro Computed Tomography (micro CT). Pore architectures of various depths (~0.5-2.5mm) and pore sizes (212-508µm) were manufactured using a melt extrusion and porogen leaching process. Compression testing revealed that the pore architecture deforms in the typical three staged linear elastic, plastic, and densification stages characteristic of porous materials. The experimental moduli and yield strengths decreased as the porosity increased but there was no difference in properties between pore sizes. The porous architecture maintained a high degree of porosity available for bone-ingrowth at all strains. Surface porous samples showed no increase in wear rate compared to injection molded samples, with slight pore densification accompanying wear. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Respiration and heart rate at the surface between dives in northern elephant seals.

PubMed

Le Boeuf, B J; Crocker, D E; Grayson, J; Gedamke, J; Webb, P M; Blackwell, S B; Costa, D P

2000-11-01

All underwater activities of diving mammals are constrained by the need for surface gas exchange. Our aim was to measure respiratory rate (fb) and heart rate (fh) at the surface between dives in free-ranging northern elephant seals Mirounga angustirostris. We recorded fb and fh acoustically in six translocated juveniles, 1.8-2. 4 years old, and three migrating adult males from the rookery at Año Nuevo, California, USA. To each seal, we attached a diving instrument to record the diving pattern, a satellite tag to track movements and location, a digital audio tape recorder or acoustic datalogger with an external hydrophone to record the sounds of respiration and fh at the surface, and a VHF transmitter to facilitate recovery. During surface intervals averaging 2.2+/-0.4 min, adult males breathed a mean of 32.7+/-5.4 times at a rate of 15. 3+/-1.8 breaths min(-)(1) (means +/- s.d., N=57). Mean fh at the surface was 84+/-3 beats min(-)(1). The fb of juveniles was 26 % faster than that of adult males, averaging 19.2+/-2.2 breaths min(-)(1) for a mean total of 41.2+/-5.0 breaths during surface intervals lasting 2.6+/-0.31 min. Mean fh at the surface was 106+/-3 beats min(-)(1). fb and fh did not change significantly over the course of surface intervals. Surface fb and fh were not clearly associated with levels of exertion, such as rapid horizontal transit or apparent foraging, or with measures of immediately previous or subsequent diving performance, such as diving duration, diving depth or swimming speed. Together, surface respiration rate and the duration of the preceding dive were significant predictors of surface interval duration. This implies that elephant seals minimize surface time spent loading oxygen depending on rates of oxygen uptake and previous depletion of stores.

Large sized non-uniform sediment transport at high capacity on steep slopes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fu, X.; Zhang, L.; Duan, J. G.

2015-12-01

Transport of large-sized particles such as cobbles in steep streams still remains poorly understood in spite of its importance in mountain stream morphdynamics. Here we explored the law of cobble transport and the effect of cobble existence on gravel bed material transport, using flume experiments with a steep slope (4.9%) and water and sediment constantly supplying. The experiments were conducted in an 8 m long and 0.6 m wide circulating flume with the maximal size up to 90 mm and cobble concentrations in the sediment bed ranging from 22 percent to 6 percent. The sediment transport rate is on the order of 1000 g/m/s, which could be taken as high rate transport compared with existing researches. Bed load transport rate and flow variables were measured after the flume reached an equilibrium state. Bed surface topography was also measured by applying Kinect range camera before and after each run in order to analyze the fractal characteristics of the bed surface under different flow conditions. Critical shear stress of each size friction was estimated from the reference transport method (RTM) and a new hiding function was recommended. Preliminary results show that the bed was nearly in an equal mobility transport regime. We then plot dimensionless fractional transport rate versus dimensionless shear stress and assess the existing bed load transport formulas of non-uniform sediments for their applicability at high sediment transport capacity. This study contributes to the comprehension of high rate sediment transport on steep slopes.

Injectable, in situ forming poly(propylene fumarate)-based ocular drug delivery systems.

PubMed

Ueda, H; Hacker, M C; Haesslein, A; Jo, S; Ammon, D M; Borazjani, R N; Kunzler, J F; Salamone, J C; Mikos, A G

2007-12-01

This study sought to develop an injectable formulation for long-term ocular delivery of fluocinolone acetonide (FA) by dissolving the anti-inflammatory drug and the biodegradable polymer poly(propylene fumarate) (PPF) in the biocompatible, water-miscible, organic solvent N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP). Upon injection of the solution into an aqueous environment, a FA-loaded PPF matrix is precipitated in situ through the diffusion/extraction of NMP into surrounding aqueous fluids. Fabrication of the matrices and in vitro release studies were performed in phosphate buffered saline at 37 degrees C. Drug loadings up to 5% were achieved. High performance liquid chromatography was employed to determine the released amount of FA. The effects of drug loading, PPF content of the injectable formulation, and additional photo-crosslinking of the matrix surface were investigated. Overall, FA release was sustained in vitro over up to 400 days. After an initial burst release of 22 to 68% of initial FA loading, controlled drug release driven by diffusion and bulk erosion was observed. Drug release rates in a therapeutic range were demonstrated. Release kinetics were found to be dependent on drug loading, formulation PPF content, and extent of surface crosslinking. The results suggest that injectable, in situ formed PPF matrices are promising candidates for the formulation of long-term, controlled delivery devices for intraocular drug delivery. Copyright 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Modeling of rock friction 2. Simulation of preseismic slip

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dieterich, J.H.

1979-01-01

The constitutive relations developed in the companion paper are used to model detailed observations of preseismic slip and the onset of unstable slip in biaxial laboratory experiments. The simulations employ a deterministic plane strain finite element model to represent the interactions both within the sliding blocks and between the blocks and the loading apparatus. Both experiments and simulations show that preseismic slip is controlled by initial inhomogeneity of shear stress along the sliding surface relative to the frictional strength. As a consequence of the inhomogeneity, stable slip begins at a point on the surface and the area of slip slowly expands as the external loading increases. A previously proposed correlation between accelerating rates of stable slip and growth of the area of slip is supported by the simulations. In the simulations and in the experiments, unstable slip occurs shortly after a propagating slip event traverses the sliding surface and breaks out at the ends of the sample. In the model the breakout of stable slip causes a sudden acceleration of slip rates. Because of velocity dependency of the constitutive relationship for friction, the rapid acceleration of slip causes a decrease in frictional strength. Instability occurs when the frictional strength decreases with displacement at a rate that exceeds the intrinsic unloading characteristics of the sample and test machine. A simple slider-spring model that does not consider preseismic slip appears to approximate the transition adequately from stable sliding to unstable slip as a function of normal stress, machine stiffness, and surface roughness for small samples. However, for large samples and for natural faults the simulations suggest that the simple model may be inaccurate because it does not take into account potentially large preseismic displacements that will alter the friction parameters prior to instability. Copyright ?? 1979 by the American Geophysical Union.

Effect of Experimental Variables of Abrasive Wear on 3D Surface Roughness and Wear Rate of Al-4.5 % Cu Alloy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghosh, Debashis; Mallik, Manab; Mandal, Nilrudra; Dutta, Samik; Roy, Himadri; Lohar, Aditya Kumar

2017-04-01

This investigation was primarily carried out to examine the abrasive wear behavior of as cast Al-4.5 % Cu alloy. Wear tests have been carried out using an abrasive wear machine with emery paper embedded with SiC particles acting as abrasive medium. The experiments were planned using central composite design, with, load, cycle and grit size as input variables, whereas wear rate and 3D roughness were considered as output variable. Analysis of variance was applied to check the adequacy of the mathematical model and their respective parameters. Microstructural investigations of the worn surfaces have been carried out to explain the observed results and to understand the wear micro-mechanisms as per the planned experiments. Desirability function optimization technique was finally employed to optimize the controlling factors. The observed results revealed that, grit size plays a significant role in the variation of wear rate and 3D roughness as compared to load and cycles. Based on the significance of interactions, the regression equations were derived and verified further with a number of confirmation runs to assess the adequacy of the model. A close agreement (±10 %) between the predicted and experimentally measured results was obtained from this investigation.

Damage mechanisms in bithermal and thermomechanical fatigue of Haynes 188

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kalluri, Sreeramesh; Halford, Gary R.

1992-01-01

Post failure fractographic and metallographic studies were conducted on Haynes 188 specimens fatigued under bithermal and thermomechanical loading conditions between 316 and 760 C. Bithermal fatigue specimens examined included those tested under high strain rate in-phase and out-phase, tensile creep in-phase, and compressive creep out-of-phase loading conditions. Specimens tested under in-phase and out-of-phase thermomechanical fatigue were also examined. The nature of failure mode (transgrandular versus intergranular), the topography of the fracture surface, and the roles of oxidation and metallurgical changes were studied for each type of bithermal and thermomechanical test.

Impact of physicochemical properties of porous silica materials conjugated with dexamethasone via pH-responsive hydrazone bond on drug loading and release behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Numpilai, Thanapha; Witoon, Thongthai; Chareonpanich, Metta; Limtrakul, Jumras

2017-02-01

The conjugation of dexamethasone (DEX) onto modified-porous silica materials via a pH-responsive hydrazone bond has been reported to be highly efficient method to specifically deliver the DEX to diseased sites. However, the influence of physicochemical properties of porous silica materials has not yet been fully understood. In this paper, the impact of pore sizes, particle sizes and silanol contents on surface functionalization, drug loading and release behavior of porous silica materials conjugated with dexamethasone via pH-responsive hydrazone bond was investigated. The grafting density was found to relate to the number of silanol groups on the surface of porous silica materials. The particle size and macropores of the porous silica materials played an vital role on the drug loading and release behavior. Although the porous silica materials with larger particle sizes possessed a lower grafting density, a larger amount of drug loading could be achieved. Moreover, the porous silica materials with larger particle sizes showed a slower release rate of DEX due to a longer distance for cleaved DEX diffusion out of pores. DEX release rate exhibited pH-dependent, sustained release. At pH 4.5, the amount of DEX release within 10 days could be controlled in the range of 12.74-36.41%, depending on the host material. Meanwhile, less than 1.5% of DEX was released from each of type of the porous silica materials at pH 7.4. The results of silica dissolution suggested that the degradation of silica matrix did not significantly affect the release rate of DEX. In addition, the kinetic modeling studies revealed that the DEX releases followed Korsmeyer-Peppas model with a release exponent (n) ranged from 0.3 to 0.47, indicating a diffusion-controlled release mechanism.

Fretting of titanium at temperatures to 650 C in air

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bill, R. C.

1975-01-01

Fretting wear experiments were conducted on high-purity titanium at temperatures up to 650 C. Results indicate that up to about 500 C, the fretting wear increases with temperature. A further increase in the temperature up to 650 C results in decreasing fretting wear. This change in trend of fretting wear with temperature is shown to be associated with a change in oxidation rate. Additional experiments at 650 C showed a transmission from a low rate of fretting wear to a higher rate occurred after exposure to a number of fretting cycles; the number of cycles required to cause this transition was dependent on the normal load. Scanning electron microscopy studies revealed that this transition was marked by cracking and disruption of the surface oxide film. A model was proposed that coupled the oxidation rate kinetics of titanium at 650 C with the occurrence of wear at the surface of the oxide film.

Cyclic debonding of unidirectional composite bonded to aluminum sheet for constant-amplitude loading

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roderick, G. L.; Everett, R. A., Jr.; Crews, J. H., Jr.

1976-01-01

Cyclic debonding rates were measured during constant-amplitude loading of specimens made of graphite/epoxy bonded to aluminum and S-glass/epoxy bonded to aluminum. Both room-temperature and elevated-temperature curing adhesives were used. Debonding was monitored with a photoelastic coating technique. The debonding rates were compared with three expressions for strain-energy release rate calculated in terms of the maximum stress, stress range, or a combination of the two. The debonding rates were influenced by both adherent thickness and the cyclic stress ratio. For a given value of maximum stress, lower stress ratios and thicker specimens produced faster debonding. Microscopic examination of the debonded surfaces showed different failure mechanisms both for identical adherends bonded with different adhesive and, indeed, even for different adherends bonded with identical adhesives. The expressions for strain-energy release rate correlated the data for different specimen thicknesses and stress ratios quite well for each material system, but the form of the best correlating expression varied among material systems. Empirical correlating expressions applicable to one material system may not be appropriate for another system.

A High-Rate, Single-Crystal Model including Phase Transformations, Plastic Slip, and Twinning

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

Addessio, Francis L.; Bronkhorst, Curt Allan; Bolme, Cynthia Anne

2016-08-09

An anisotropic, rate-­dependent, single-­crystal approach for modeling materials under the conditions of high strain rates and pressures is provided. The model includes the effects of large deformations, nonlinear elasticity, phase transformations, and plastic slip and twinning. It is envisioned that the model may be used to examine these coupled effects on the local deformation of materials that are subjected to ballistic impact or explosive loading. The model is formulated using a multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient. A plate impact experiment on a multi-­crystal sample of titanium was conducted. The particle velocities at the back surface of three crystal orientationsmore » relative to the direction of impact were measured. Molecular dynamics simulations were conducted to investigate the details of the high-­rate deformation and pursue issues related to the phase transformation for titanium. Simulations using the single crystal model were conducted and compared to the high-­rate experimental data for the impact loaded single crystals. The model was found to capture the features of the experiments.« less

Carrier effects on tertiary nitrifying moving bed biofilm reactor: An examination of performance, biofilm and biologically produced solids.

PubMed

Forrest, Daina; Delatolla, Robert; Kennedy, Kevin

2016-01-01

Increasingly stricter ammonia and nitrogen release regulations with respect to wastewater effluents are creating a need for tertiary treatment systems. The moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) is being considered as an upgrade option for an increasing number of wastewater treatment facilities due to its small footprint and ease of operation. Despite the MBBRs creation as a system to remove nitrogen, recent research on MBBR systems showing that the system's performance is directly related to carrier surface area and is irrespective of carrier shape and type has been performed exclusively on chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal systems. Furthermore, the influence of carrier type on the solids produced by MBBR systems has also been exclusively studied for COD removal systems. This work investigates the effects of three specific carrier types on ammonia removal rates, biofilm morphology, along with solids production and settleability of tertiary nitrifying MBBR systems. The study concludes that carrier type has no significant effect on tertiary nitrifying MBBR system performance under steady, moderate loading conditions. The research does however highlight the propensity of greater surface area to volume carriers to become clogged under high loading conditions and that the high surface area carriers investigated in this study required longer adjustment periods to changes in loading after becoming clogged.

Synergistically enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution performance of ZnCdS by co-loading graphene quantum dots and PdS dual cocatalysts under visible light

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Fang; Su, Yanhong; Min, Shixiong; Li, Yanan; Lei, Yonggang; Hou, Jianhua

2018-04-01

Here, we report that the co-loading of graphene quantum dots (GQDs) and PdS dual cocatalysts on ZnCdS surface achieves a high efficiency photocatalytic H2 evolution under visible light (≥420 nm). The GQDs/ZnCdS/PdS photocatalyst was prepared by a facile two steps: hydrothermal coupling of GQDs on ZnCdS surface followed by an in-situ chemical deposition of PdS. The resulted GQDs/ZnCdS/PdS exhibits a H2 evolution rate of 517 μmol h-1, which is 15, 7, and 1.7 times higher than that of pure ZnCdS, GQDs/ZnCdS, and ZnCdS/PdS, respectively, demonstrating the synergistic effects of GQDs and PdS dual cocatalysts. A high apparent quantum efficiency (AQE) up to 22.4% can be achieved over GQDs/ZnCdS/PdS at 420 nm. GQDs/ZnCdS/PdS also has a relatively good stability. Such a considerable enhancement of photocatalytic activity was attributable to the co-loading of the GQDs and PdS as respective reduction and oxidation cocatalysts, leading to an efficient charge separation and surface reactions.

Laser surface modification of AZ31B Mg alloy for bio-wettability.

PubMed

Ho, Yee-Hsien; Vora, Hitesh D; Dahotre, Narendra B

2015-02-01

Magnesium alloys are the potential degradable materials for load-bearing implant application due to their comparable mechanical properties to human bone, excellent bioactivity, and in vivo non-toxicity. However, for a successful load-bearing implant, the surface of bio-implant must allow protein absorption and layer formation under physiological environment that can assist the cell/osteoblast growth. In this regard, surface wettability of bio-implant plays a key role to dictate the quantity of protein absorption. In light of this, the main objective of the present study was to produce favorable bio-wettability condition of AZ31B Mg alloy bio-implant surface via laser surface modification technique under various laser processing conditions. In the present efforts, the influence of laser surface modification on AZ31B Mg alloy surface on resultant bio-wettability was investigated via contact-angle measurements and the co-relationships among microstructure (grain size), surface roughness, surface energy, and surface chemical composition were established. In addition, the laser surface modification technique was simulated by computational (thermal) model to facilitate the prediction of temperature and its resultant cooling/solidification rates under various laser processing conditions for correlating with their corresponding composition and phase evolution. These predicted thermal properties were later used to correlate with the corresponding microstructure, chemical composition, and phase evolution via experimental analyses (X-ray diffractometer, scanning electron microscope, energy-dispersive spectroscopy). © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Tribological Behavior of Mg97Zn1Y2 Alloy at Elevated Temperatures of 50-200 °C

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

An, J.; Feng, J. H.; Yan, X. H.; Li, R. G.

2017-10-01

The tribological behavior of Mg97Zn1Y2 alloy was investigated using a pin-on-disk wear machine at wear temperatures of 50-200 °C. Morphologies and chemical compositions of worn surfaces were analyzed using scanning electron microscope and energy-dispersive x-ray spectrometer. The microstructural evolution and hardness change in subsurfaces were examined by optical microscopy and hardness tester. The results showed that the wear temperature had significant influence on the coefficient of friction and wear rate. At wear temperatures of 50-200 °C, with increasing applied load, the coefficient of friction went down rapidly then turned to decrease slowly in the mild wear regime, and continuously decreased modestly until the largest applied load in the severe wear regime. Increasing wear temperature from 50 to 200 °C decreased the mild to severe wear transition load linearly from 120 to 60 N. In the mild wear regime, the main wear mechanisms were identified as abrasion + oxidation and delamination + surface oxidation at 50-150 °C, and delamination at 200 °C, while in the severe wear regime, the main wear mechanisms were identified as severe plastic deformation + spallation of oxide layer and surface melting at 50-150 °C, and severe plastic deformation and surface melting at 200 °C. The microstructural transformation from the deformed to the dynamically recrystallized (DRX), and hardness change from the strain hardening to softening were found in the subsurfaces before and after mild to severe transition. The DRX softening mechanism was determined for mild to severe wear transition at 50-200 °C. A wear transition map was constructed for Mg97Zn1Y2 alloy on applied load versus wear temperature.

Nutrient load estimates for Manila Bay, Philippines using population data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sotto, Lara Patricia A.; Beusen, Arthur H. W.; Villanoy, Cesar L.; Bouwman, Lex F.; Jacinto, Gil S.

2015-06-01

A major source of nutrient load to periodically hypoxic Manila Bay is the urban nutrient waste water flow from humans and industries to surface water. In Manila alone, the population density is as high as 19,137 people/km2. A model based on a global point source model by Morée et al. (2013) was used to estimate the contribution of the population to nitrogen and phosphorus emissions which was then used in a water transport model to estimate the nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) loads to Manila Bay. Seven scenarios for 2050 were tested, with varying degrees and amounts for extent of sewage treatment, and population growth rates were also included. In scenario 1, the sewage connection and treatment remains the same as 2010; in scenario 2, sewage connection is improved but the treatment is the same; in scenario 3, the sewage connection as well as treatment is improved (70% tertiary); and in scenario 4, a more realistic situation of 70% primary treatment achieved with 100% connection to pipes is tested. Scenarios 5, 6, and 7 have the same parameters as 1, 2, and 3 respectively, but with the population growth rate per province reduced to half of what was used in 1, 2, and 3. In all scenarios, a significant increase in N and P loads was observed (varying from 27% to 469% relative to 2010 values). This was found even in scenario 3 where 70% of the waste water undergoes tertiary treatment which removes 80% N and 90% P. However, the lowest increase in N and P load into the bay was achieved in scenarios 5 to 7 where population growth rate is reduced to half of 2010 values. The results suggest that aside from improving sewage treatment, the continued increase of the human population in Manila at current growth rates will be an important determinant of N and P load into Manila Bay.

Influence of surgical and prosthetic techniques on marginal bone loss around titanium implants. Part I: immediate loading in fresh extraction sockets.

PubMed

Berberi, Antoine N; Tehini, Georges E; Noujeim, Ziad F; Khairallah, Alexandre A; Abousehlib, Moustafa N; Salameh, Ziad A

2014-10-01

Delayed placement of implant abutments has been associated with peri-implant marginal bone loss; however, long-term results obtained by modifying surgical and prosthetic techniques after implant placement are still lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the marginal bone loss around titanium implants placed in fresh extraction sockets using two loading protocols after a 5-year follow-up period. A total of 36 patients received 40 titanium implants (Astra Tech) intended for single-tooth replacement. Implants were immediately placed into fresh extraction sockets using either a one-stage (immediate loading by placing an interim prosthesis into functional occlusion) or a two-stage prosthetic loading protocol (insertion of abutments after 8 weeks of healing time). Marginal bone levels relative to the implant reference point were evaluated at four time intervals using intraoral radiographs: at time of implant placement, and 1, 3, and 5 years after implant placement. Measurements were obtained from mesial and distal surfaces of each implant (α = 0.05). One-stage immediate implant placement into fresh extraction sockets resulted in a significant reduction in marginal bone loss (p < 0.002) compared to the traditional two-stage technique. Whereas mesial surfaces remained stable for the 5-year observation period, significant marginal bone loss was observed on distal surfaces of implants after cementation of interim prostheses (p < 0.007) and after 12 months (p < 0.034). Within the limitations of this study, immediate loading of implants placed into fresh extraction sockets reduced marginal bone loss and did not compromise the success rate of the restorations. © 2014 by the American College of Prosthodontists.

Axial displacement of external and internal implant-abutment connection evaluated by linear mixed model analysis.

PubMed

Seol, Hyon-Woo; Heo, Seong-Joo; Koak, Jai-Young; Kim, Seong-Kyun; Kim, Shin-Koo

2015-01-01

To analyze the axial displacement of external and internal implant-abutment connection after cyclic loading. Three groups of external abutments (Ext group), an internal tapered one-piece-type abutment (Int-1 group), and an internal tapered two-piece-type abutment (Int-2 group) were prepared. Cyclic loading was applied to implant-abutment assemblies at 150 N with a frequency of 3 Hz. The amount of axial displacement, the Periotest values (PTVs), and the removal torque values(RTVs) were measured. Both a repeated measures analysis of variance and pattern analysis based on the linear mixed model were used for statistical analysis. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to evaluate the surface of the implant-abutment connection. The mean axial displacements after 1,000,000 cycles were 0.6 μm in the Ext group, 3.7 μm in the Int-1 group, and 9.0 μm in the Int-2 group. Pattern analysis revealed a breakpoint at 171 cycles. The Ext group showed no declining pattern, and the Int-1 group showed no declining pattern after the breakpoint (171 cycles). However, the Int-2 group experienced continuous axial displacement. After cyclic loading, the PTV decreased in the Int-2 group, and the RTV decreased in all groups. SEM imaging revealed surface wear in all groups. Axial displacement and surface wear occurred in all groups. The PTVs remained stable, but the RTVs decreased after cyclic loading. Based on linear mixed model analysis, the Ext and Int-1 groups' axial displacements plateaued after little cyclic loading. The Int-2 group's rate of axial displacement slowed after 100,000 cycles.

Characterising urban zinc generation to identify surface pollutant hotspots in a low intensity rainfall climate.

PubMed

Charters, F J; Cochrane, T A; O'Sullivan, A D

2017-09-01

Characterising stormwater runoff quality provides useful insights into the dynamics of pollutant generation and wash off rates. These can be used to prioritise stormwater management strategies. This study examined the effects of a low intensity rainfall climate on zinc contributions from different impermeable urban surface types. First flush (FF) and steady state samples were collected from seven different surfaces for characterisation, and the data were also used to calibrate an event-based pollutant load model to predict individual 'hotspot' surfaces across the catchment. Unpainted galvanised roofs generated very high concentrations of zinc, primarily in the more biologically available dissolved form. An older, unpainted galvanised roof had FF concentrations averaging 32,338 μg/L, while the new unpainted roof averaged 4,782 μg/L. Roads and carparks also had elevated zinc, but FF concentrations averaged only 822-1,584 μg/L. Modelling and mapping expected zinc loads from individual impermeable surfaces across the catchment identified specific commercial roof surfaces to be targeted for zinc management. The results validate a policy strategy to replace old galvanised roof materials and avoid unpainted galvanised roofing in future urban development for better urban water quality outcomes. In the interim, readily-implemented treatment options are required to help mitigate chronic zinc impacts on receiving waterways.

Prestressing Shock Resistant Mechanical Components and Mechanisms Made from Hard, Superelastic Materials

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DellaCorte, Christopher (Inventor)

2014-01-01

A method and an apparatus confer full superelastic properties to the active surface of a mechanical component constructed of a superelastic material prior to service. A compressive load is applied to the active surface of the mechanical component followed by removing the compressive load from the active surface whereby substantially all load strain is recoverable after applying and removing of subsequent compressive loads.

Fixed Full Arches Supported by Tapered Implants with Knife-Edge Thread Design and Nanostructured, Calcium-Incorporated Surface: A Short-Term Prospective Clinical Study

PubMed Central

Bechara, Soheil; Lukosiunas, Algirdas; Kubilius, Ricardas

2017-01-01

Purpose. To evaluate implant survival, peri-implant bone loss, and complications affecting fixed full-arch (FFA) restorations supported by implants with a knife-edge thread design and nanostructured, calcium-incorporated surface. Methods. Between January 2013 and December 2015, all patients referred for implant-supported FFA restorations were considered for enrollment in this study. All patients received implants with a knife-edge thread design and nanostructured calcium-incorporated surface (Anyridge®, Megagen, South Korea) were restored with FFA restorations and enrolled in a recall program. The final outcomes were implant survival, peri-implant bone loss, biologic/prosthetic complications, and “complication-free” survival of restorations. Results. Twenty-four patients were selected. Overall, 215 implants were inserted (130 maxilla, 85 mandible), 144 in extraction sockets and 71 in healed ridges. Thirty-six FFAs were delivered (21 maxilla, 15 mandible): 27 were immediately loaded and 9 were conventionally loaded. The follow-up ranged from 1 to 3 years. Two fixtures failed, yielding an implant survival rate of 95.9% (patient-based). A few complications were registered, for a “complication-free” survival of restorations of 88.9%. Conclusions. FFA restorations supported by implants with a knife-edge thread design and nanostructured, calcium-incorporated surface are successful in the short term, with high survival and low complication rates; long-term studies are needed to confirm these outcomes. PMID:28246595

Storm flow dynamics and loads of fecal bacteria associated with ponds in southern piedmont and coastal plain watersheds with animal agriculture

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Storm events that increase hydrologic flow rates can disturb sediments and produce overland runoff in watersheds with animal agriculture, and, thus, can increase surface water concentrations of fecal bacteria and risk to public health. We tested the hypothesis that strategically placed ponds in wate...

The roles of xylan and lignin in oxalic acid pretreated corncob during separate enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol fermentation

Treesearch

Jae-Won Lee; Rita C.L.B. Rodrigues; Hyun Joo Kim; In-Gyu Choi; Thomas W. Jeffries

2010-01-01

High yields of hemicellulosic and cellulosic sugars are critical in obtaining economical conversion of agricultural residues to ethanol. To optimize pretreatment conditions, we evaluated oxalic acid loading rates, treatment temperatures and times in a 23 full factorial design. Response-surface analysis revealed an optimal oxalic acid pretreatment...

Assessment of mercury erosion by surface water in Wanshan mercury mining area.

PubMed

Dai, ZhiHui; Feng, Xinbin; Zhang, Chao; Shang, Lihai; Qiu, Guangle

2013-08-01

Soil erosion is a main cause of land degradation, and in its accelerated form is also one of the most serious ecological environmental problems. Moreover, there are few studies on migration of mercury (Hg) induced by soil erosion in seriously Hg-polluted districts. This paper selected Wanshan Hg mining area, SW China as the study area. Revised universal soil loss equation (RUSLE) and Geographic information system (GIS) methods were applied to calculate soil and Hg erosion and to classify soil erosion intensity. Our results show that the soil erosion rate can reach up to 600,884tkm(-2)yr(-1). Surfaces associated with very slight and extremely severe erosion include 76.6% of the entire land in Wanshan. Furthermore, the cumulative erosion rates in the area impacted by extremely severe erosion make up 90.5% of the total. On an annual basis, Hg surface erosion load was predicted to be 505kgyr(-1) and the corresponding mean migration flux of Hg was estimated to be 3.02kgkm(-2)yr(-1). The erosion loads of Hg resulting from farmland and meadow soil were 175 and 319kgyr(-1) respectively, which were enhanced compared to other landscape types due to the fact that they are generally located in the steep zones associated with significant reclamation. Contributing to establish a mass balance of Hg in Wanshan Hg mining area, this study supplies a dependable scientific basis for controlling soil and water erosion in the local ecosystems. Land use change is the most effective way for reducing Hg erosion load in Wanshan mining area. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Improving understanding of the underlying physical process of sediment wash-off from urban road surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muthusamy, Manoranjan; Tait, Simon; Schellart, Alma; Beg, Md Nazmul Azim; Carvalho, Rita F.; de Lima, João L. M. P.

2018-02-01

Among the urban aquatic pollutants, the most common is sediment which also acts as a transport medium for many contaminants. Hence there is an increasing interest in being able to better predict the sediment wash-off from urban surfaces. The exponential wash-off model is the most widely used method to predict the sediment wash-off. Although a number of studies proposed various modifications to the original exponential wash-off equation, these studies mostly looked into one parameter in isolation thereby ignoring the interactions between the parameters corresponding to rainfall, catchment and sediment characteristics. Hence in this study we aim (a) to investigate the effect of rainfall intensity, surface slope and initial load on wash-off load in an integrated and systematic way and (b) to subsequently improve the exponential wash-off equation focusing on the effect of the aforementioned three parameters. A series of laboratory experiments were carried out in a full-scale setup, comprising of a rainfall simulator, a 1 m2 bituminous road surface, and a continuous wash-off measuring system. Five rainfall intensities ranging from 33 to 155 mm/h, four slopes ranging from 2 to 16% and three initial loads ranging from 50 to 200 g/m2 were selected based on values obtained from the literature. Fine sediment with a size range of 300-600 μm was used for all of the tests. Each test was carried out for one hour with at least 9 wash-off samples per test collected. Mass balance checks were carried out for all the tests as a quality control measure to make sure that there is no significant loss of sand during the tests. Results show that the washed off sediment load at any given time is proportional to initial load for a given combination of rainfall intensity and surface slope. This indicates the importance of dedicated modelling of build-up so as to subsequently predict wash-off load. It was also observed that the maximum fraction that is washed off from the surface increases with both rainfall intensity and the surface slope. This observation leads to the second part of the study where the existing wash-off model is modified by introducing a capacity factor which defines this maximum fraction. This capacity factor is derived as a function of wash-off coefficient, making use of the correlation between the maximum fraction and the wash-off rate. Values of the modified wash-off coefficient are presented for all combinations of rainfall intensities and surface slopes, which can be transferred to other urban catchments with similar conditions.

Dynamic energy release rate in couple-stress elasticity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morini, L.; Piccolroaz, A.; Mishuris, G.

2013-07-01

This paper is concerned with energy release rate for dynamic steady state crack problems in elastic materials with microstructures. A Mode III semi-infinite crack subject to loading applied on the crack surfaces is considered. The micropolar behaviour of the material is described by the theory of couple-stress elasticity developed by Koiter. A general expression for the dynamic J-integral including both traslational and micro-rotational inertial contributions is derived, and the conservation of this integral on a path surrounding the crack tip is demonstrated.

Flaw Growth of 6Al-4V Titanium in a Freon TF Environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tiffany, C. F.; Masters, J. N.; Bixler, W. D.

1969-01-01

The plane strain threshold stress intensity and sustained stress flaw growth rates were experimentally determined for 6AI-4V S.T.A. titanium forging and weldments in environments of Freon TF at room temperature. Sustained load tests of surface flawed specimens were conducted with the experimental approach based on linear elastic fracture mechanics. It was concluded that sustained stress flaw growth rates, in conjunction with threshold stress intensities, can be used in assessing the service life of pressure vessels.

Growth of surface and corner cracks in beta-processed and mill-annealed Ti-6Al-4V

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bell, P. D.

1975-01-01

Empirical stress-intensity expressions were developed to relate the growth of cracks from corner flaws to the growth of cracks from surface flaws. An experimental program using beta-processed Ti-6Al-4V verified these expressions for stress ratios, R greater than or equal to 0. An empirical crack growth-rate expression which included stress-ratio and stress-level effects was also developed. Cracks grew approximately 10 percent faster in transverse-grain material than in longitudinal-grain material and at approximately the same rate in longitudinal-grain mill-annealed Ti-6Al-4V. Specimens having surface and corner cracks and made of longitudinal-grain, beta-processed material were tested with block loads, and increasing the stresses in a block did not significantly change the crack growth rates. Truncation of the basic ascending stress sequence within a block caused more rapid crack growth, whereas both the descending and low-to-high stress sequences slowed crack growth.

Method for Estimating Operational Loads on Aerospace Structures Using Span-Wisely Distributed Surface Strains

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ko, William L.; Fleischer, Van Tran

2013-01-01

This report presents a new method for estimating operational loads (bending moments, shear loads, and torques) acting on slender aerospace structures using distributed surface strains (unidirectional strains). The surface strain-sensing stations are to be evenly distributed along each span-wise strain-sensing line. A depth-wise cross section of the structure along each strain-sensing line can then be considered as an imaginary embedded beam. The embedded beam was first evenly divided into multiple small domains with domain junctures matching the strain-sensing stations. The new method is comprised of two steps. The first step is to determine the structure stiffness (bending or torsion) using surface strains obtained from a simple bending (or torsion) loading case, for which the applied bending moment (or torque) is known. The second step is to use the strain-determined structural stiffness (bending or torsion), and a new set of surface strains induced by any other loading case to calculate the associated operational loads (bending moments, shear loads, or torques). Performance of the new method for estimating operational loads was studied in light of finite-element analyses of several example structures subjected to different loading conditions. The new method for estimating operational loads was found to be fairly accurate, and is very promising for applications to the flight load monitoring of flying vehicles with slender wings.

Direct Loading and Tunable Release of Antibiotics from Polyelectrolyte Multilayers To Reduce Bacterial Adhesion and Biofilm Formation.

PubMed

Wang, Bailiang; Jin, Tingwei; Xu, Qingwen; Liu, Huihua; Ye, Zi; Chen, Hao

2016-05-18

Bacteria adhesion on the surface of biomaterials and following biofilm formation are important problems in biomedical applications. The charged antibiotics with small molar mass can hardly deposit alternately with polymers into multilayered films to load the drug. Herein, the (poly(acrylic acid)-gentamicin/poly(ethylenimine))n ((PAA-GS/PEI)n) multilayer film was designed and constructed via a layer-by-layer self-assembly method. Low molar mass GS cations were first combined with polyanion PAA and self-assembled with PEI to form multilayer films showing exponential growth behavior. The GS dosage could be adjusted by changing the layer number of films. Furthermore, the thermal cross-linking method was used to control the release rate of GS in PBS buffer. Owing to the diffusion of GS, a zone of inhibition of about 7.0 mm showed the efficient disinfection activity of the multilayer film. It could also be seen from the biofilm inhibition assay that the multilayer film effectively inhibited bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation. As the drug loading dosage was 160 μg/cm(2), the multilayer films showed very low cytotoxicity against human lens epithelial cells. The present work provides an easy way to load GS into multilayer films which can be applied to surface modification of implants and biomedical devices.

Effects of Loading Frequency on Fatigue Behavior, Residual Stress, and Microstructure of Deep-Rolled Stainless Steel AISI 304 at Elevated Temperatures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nikitin, I.; Juijerm, P.

2018-02-01

The effects of loading frequency on the fatigue behavior of non-deep-rolled (NDR) and deep-rolled (DR) austenitic stainless steel AISI 304 were systematically clarified at elevated temperatures, especially at temperatures exhibiting the dynamic strain aging (DSA) phenomena. Tension-compression fatigue tests were performed isothermally at temperatures of 573 K and 773 K (300 °C and 500 °C) with different loading frequencies of 5, 0.5, 0.05, and 0.005 Hz. For the DR condition, the residual stresses and work-hardening states will be presented. It was found that DSA would be detected at appropriate temperatures and deformation rates. The cyclic deformation curves and the fatigue lives of the investigated austenitic stainless steel AISI 304 are considerably affected by the DSA, especially on the DR condition having high dislocation densities at the surface and in near-surface regions. In the temperature range of the DSA, residual stresses and work-hardening states of the DR condition seem to be stabilized. The microstructural alterations were investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). At an appropriate temperature with low loading frequency, the plastic deformation mechanism shifted from a wavy slip manner to a planar slip manner in the DSA regimes, whereas the dislocation movements were obstructed.

Preparation, characterization and in vitro release study of carvacrol-loaded chitosan nanoparticles.

PubMed

Keawchaoon, Lalita; Yoksan, Rangrong

2011-05-01

The fabrication of carvacrol-loaded chitosan nanoparticles was achieved by a two-step method, i.e., oil-in-water emulsion and ionic gelation of chitosan with pentasodium tripolyphosphate. The obtained particles possessed encapsulation efficiency (EE) and loading capacity (LC) in the ranges of 14-31% and 3-21%, respectively, when the initial carvacrol content was 0.25-1.25 g/g of chitosan. The individual particles exhibited a spherical shape with an average diameter of 40-80 nm, and a positively charged surface with a zeta potential value of 25-29 mV. The increment of initial carvacrol content caused a reduction of surface charge. Carvacrol-loaded chitosan nanoparticles showed antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus and Escherichia coli with an MIC of 0.257 mg/mL. The release of carvacrol from chitosan nanoparticles reached plateau level on day 30, with release amounts of 53% in acetate buffer solution with pH of 3, and 23% and 33% in phosphate buffer solutions with pH of 7 and 11, respectively. The release mechanism followed a Fickian behavior. The release rate was superior in an acidic medium to either alkaline or neutral media, respectively. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Universal characteristics of particle shape evolution by bed-load chipping

PubMed Central

Sipos, András Árpád; Shaw, Sam; Sarti, Giovanni; Domokos, Gábor

2018-01-01

River currents, wind, and waves drive bed-load transport, in which sediment particles collide with each other and Earth’s surface. A generic consequence is impact attrition and rounding of particles as a result of chipping, often referred to in geological literature as abrasion. Recent studies have shown that the rounding of river pebbles can be modeled as diffusion of surface curvature, indicating that geometric aspects of impact attrition are insensitive to details of collisions and material properties. We present data from fluvial, aeolian, and coastal environments and laboratory experiments that suggest a common relation between circularity and mass attrition for particles transported as bed load. Theory and simulations demonstrate that universal characteristics of shape evolution arise because of three constraints: (i) Initial particles are mildly elongated fragments, (ii) particles collide with similarly-sized particles or the bed, and (iii) collision energy is small enough that chipping dominates over fragmentation but large enough that sliding friction is negligible. We show that bed-load transport selects these constraints, providing the foundation to estimate a particle’s attrition rate from its shape alone in most sedimentary environments. These findings may be used to determine the contribution of attrition to downstream fining in rivers and deserts and to infer transport conditions using only images of sediment grains. PMID:29670937

Universal characteristics of particle shape evolution by bed-load chipping.

PubMed

Novák-Szabó, Tímea; Sipos, András Árpád; Shaw, Sam; Bertoni, Duccio; Pozzebon, Alessandro; Grottoli, Edoardo; Sarti, Giovanni; Ciavola, Paolo; Domokos, Gábor; Jerolmack, Douglas J

2018-03-01

River currents, wind, and waves drive bed-load transport, in which sediment particles collide with each other and Earth's surface. A generic consequence is impact attrition and rounding of particles as a result of chipping, often referred to in geological literature as abrasion. Recent studies have shown that the rounding of river pebbles can be modeled as diffusion of surface curvature, indicating that geometric aspects of impact attrition are insensitive to details of collisions and material properties. We present data from fluvial, aeolian, and coastal environments and laboratory experiments that suggest a common relation between circularity and mass attrition for particles transported as bed load. Theory and simulations demonstrate that universal characteristics of shape evolution arise because of three constraints: (i) Initial particles are mildly elongated fragments, (ii) particles collide with similarly-sized particles or the bed, and (iii) collision energy is small enough that chipping dominates over fragmentation but large enough that sliding friction is negligible. We show that bed-load transport selects these constraints, providing the foundation to estimate a particle's attrition rate from its shape alone in most sedimentary environments. These findings may be used to determine the contribution of attrition to downstream fining in rivers and deserts and to infer transport conditions using only images of sediment grains.

Universal shape evolution of particles by bed-load

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jerolmack, D. J.; Domokos, G.; Shaw, S.; Sipos, A.; Szabo, T.

2016-12-01

River currents, wind and waves drive bed-load transport, in which sediment particles collide with each other and the Earth's surface. A generic consequence is erosion and rounding of particles as a result of chipping, often referred to in geological literature as abrasion. Recent studies have shown that the erosion of river pebbles can be modeled as diffusion of surface curvature, indicating that geometric aspects of chipping erosion are insensitive to details of collisions and material properties. Here we present data from fluvial, aeolian and coastal environments that suggest a universal relation between particle circularity and mass lost due to bed-load chipping. Simulations and experiments support the diffusion model and demonstrate that three constraints are required to produce this universal curve: (i) initial particles are fragments; (ii) erosion is dominated by collisions among like-sized particles; and (iii) collision energy is small enough that chipping dominates over fragmentation. We show that the mechanics of bedrock weathering and bed-load transport select these constraints, providing the foundation to estimate a particle's erosion rate from its shape alone in most sedimentary environments. These findings may be used to determine the contribution of chipping to downstream fining in rivers and deserts, and to infer transport conditions using only images of sediment grains.

Synthesis, characterization, and in vitro evaluation of curcumin-loaded albumin nanoparticles surface-functionalized with glycyrrhetinic acid

PubMed Central

Li, Jingjing; Chen, Tong; Deng, Feng; Wan, Jingyuan; Tang, Yalan; Yuan, Pei; Zhang, Liangke

2015-01-01

We have designed and developed curcumin (Ccn)-loaded albumin nanoparticles (BNPs) surface-functionalized with glycyrrhetinic acid (Ccn-BNP-GA) for GA receptor-mediated targeting. Ccn-BNP-GA was prepared by conjugating GA as a hepatoma cell-specific binding molecule onto the surface of BNPs. Ccn-BNP-GA showed a narrow distribution with an average size of 258.8±6.4 nm, a regularly spherical shape, an entrapment efficiency of 88.55%±5.54%, and drug loading of 25.30%±1.58%. The density of GA as the ligand conjugated to BNPs was 140.48±2.784 μg/g bovine serum albumin. Cytotoxicity assay results indicated that Ccn-BNP-GA was significantly more cytotoxic to HepG2 cells and in a concentration-dependent manner. Ccn-BNP-GA also appeared to be taken up to a greater extent by HepG2 cells than undecorated groups, which might be due to the high affinity of GA for GA receptors on the HepG2 cell surface. These cytotoxicity assay results were corroborated by analysis of cell apoptosis and the cell cycle. Further, Ccn-BNP-GA showed an approximately twofold higher rate of cell apoptosis than the other groups. Moreover, proliferation of HepG2 cells was arrested in G2/M phase based on cell cycle analysis. These results, which were supported by the GA receptor-mediated endocytosis mechanism, indicate that BNPs surface-functionalized with GA could be used in targeted cancer treatment with high efficacy, sufficient targeting, and reduced toxicity. PMID:26346750

Nitrogen Source Inventory and Loading Tool: An integrated approach toward restoration of water-quality impaired karst springs.

PubMed

Eller, Kirstin T; Katz, Brian G

2017-07-01

Nitrogen (N) from anthropogenic sources has contaminated groundwater used as drinking water in addition to impairing water quality and ecosystem health of karst springs. The Nitrogen Source Inventory and Loading Tool (NSILT) was developed as an ArcGIS and spreadsheet-based approach that provides spatial estimates of current nitrogen (N) inputs to the land surface and loads to groundwater from nonpoint and point sources within the groundwater contributing area. The NSILT involves a three-step approach where local and regional land use practices and N sources are evaluated to: (1) estimate N input to the land surface, (2) quantify subsurface environmental attenuation, and (3) assess regional recharge to the aquifer. NSILT was used to assess nitrogen loading to groundwater in two karst spring areas in west-central Florida: Rainbow Springs (RS) and Kings Bay (KB). The karstic Upper Floridan aquifer (UFA) is the source of water discharging to the springs in both areas. In the KB study area (predominantly urban land use), septic systems and urban fertilizers contribute 48% and 22%, respectively, of the estimated total annual N load to groundwater 294,400 kg-N/yr. In contrast for the RS study area (predominantly agricultural land use), livestock operations and crop fertilizers contribute 50% and 13%, respectively, of the estimated N load to groundwater. Using overall groundwater N loading rates for the KB and RS study areas, 4.4 and 3.3 kg N/ha, respectively, and spatial recharge rates, the calculated groundwater nitrate-N concentration (2.1 mg/L) agreed closely with the median nitrate-N concentration (1.7 mg/L) from groundwater samples in agricultural land use areas in the RS study area for the period 2010-2014. NSILT results provide critical information for prioritizing and designing restoration efforts for water-quality impaired springs and spring runs affected by multiple sources of nitrogen loading to groundwater. The calculated groundwater N concentration for the KB study area (1.45 mg/L) was approximately three times higher than the median N concentration (0.45 mg/L) for wells located in urban land use areas. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of Sediment Loading in Northern Europe During the Last Glacial

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van der Wal, W.; IJpelaar, M.

2014-12-01

Over the years the framework of GIA modelling has been subject to continuous improvements, e.g. the addition of time dependent coastal margins and rotational feedback. The latest addition to this framework is the incorporation of sediment as a time-varying surface load while accounting for sea-level variations associated with the sediment transport (Dalca et al., GJI 2013). The effects of sediment loading during a glacial cycle have not been extensively investigated even though it is known that large sediment transport took place, for example in the Barents Sea region and Fennoscandia. This study investigates the effect of sediment transport on relative sea level change and present-day rates of gravity and vertical deformation in those regions. While the ice sheet history during the last glacial period has been modelled extensively there are no full-scale models of paleo-erosion and -deposition rates for regions such as Fennoscandia. Here we create end-member paleo-sedimentary models by combining geological observations of continuous erosion and deposition and large scale failure events. These models, in combination with the ICE-5G ice sheet history, serve as an input for a GIA model for a spherically symmetric incompressible Earth with the full sea-level equation. The results from this model, i.e. (rates of) relative sea level change and crustal deformation, are obtained for different viscosity models fitting best with the local rheology of Fennoscandia. By comparing GPS measurements, GRACE observations and relative sea level records with these modelled predictions the effects of sedimentary isostasy in the Fennoscandian region are studied. The sediment load does not significantly affect the modelled relative sea level curves, nor vertical deformation rates at the location of GPS measurements. However, gravity rates over the Barents Sea region are influenced significantly

Apparent Dependence of Rate- and State-Dependent Friction Parameters on Loading Velocity and Cumulative Displacement Inferred from Large-Scale Biaxial Friction Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Urata, Yumi; Yamashita, Futoshi; Fukuyama, Eiichi; Noda, Hiroyuki; Mizoguchi, Kazuo

2017-06-01

We investigated the constitutive parameters in the rate- and state-dependent friction (RSF) law by conducting numerical simulations, using the friction data from large-scale biaxial rock friction experiments for Indian metagabbro. The sliding surface area was 1.5 m long and 0.5 m wide, slid for 400 s under a normal stress of 1.33 MPa at a loading velocity of either 0.1 or 1.0 mm/s. During the experiments, many stick-slips were observed and those features were as follows. (1) The friction drop and recurrence time of the stick-slip events increased with cumulative slip displacement in an experiment before which the gouges on the surface were removed, but they became almost constant throughout an experiment conducted after several experiments without gouge removal. (2) The friction drop was larger and the recurrence time was shorter in the experiments with faster loading velocity. We applied a one-degree-of-freedom spring-slider model with mass to estimate the RSF parameters by fitting the stick-slip intervals and slip-weakening curves measured based on spring force and acceleration of the specimens. We developed an efficient algorithm for the numerical time integration, and we conducted forward modeling for evolution parameters ( b) and the state-evolution distances (L_{{c}}), keeping the direct effect parameter ( a) constant. We then identified the confident range of b and L_{{c}} values. Comparison between the results of the experiments and our simulations suggests that both b and L_{{c}} increase as the cumulative slip displacement increases, and b increases and L_{{c}} decreases as the loading velocity increases. Conventional RSF laws could not explain the large-scale friction data, and more complex state evolution laws are needed.

Experimental Studies of Adhesion of a Highly Swollen Gel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cole, Phillip; Emerson, John

2003-03-01

A fracture mechanics methodology based on the Johnson-Kendall-Roberts (JKR) theory is used to quantify the self-adhesion of a highly swollen gel. The solid phase of the gel is a cross-linked polybutadiene and the liquid phase is dibutylphthlate (maximum 60% by weight). In these experiments two nearly identical gel lenses are brought into contact. Bonding and separation of contact is analyzed in terms of the modified JKR theory of Shull [1]. Simultaneous measurements of the applied load, the load point displacement and the contact radius between the lenses allow us to determine the elastic modulus of the gel and the energy release rate. It also allows us to determine whether the observed hysteresis is primarily due to surface dissipation or due to bulk viscoelasticity. The energy release rate is found to be approximately constant during the bonding phase of the experiment. During the debonding phase, the energy release rate increases with the crack velocity or the receding rate of contact radius. Self-adhesion is quantified in the debonding phase through the relationship between the energy release rate and the crack growth rate. The energy release rate during the bonding phase is compared to the surface tension of the liquid and the solid. We also study the effect of liquid phase on the self-adhesion by varying the amount of liquid from zero percent to the maximum of sixty percent. [1] Shull, K. R. Materials Science and Engineering R-Reports, 36 (2002) 1-45. This work was performed at Sandia National Laboratories, supported by the United States Department of Energy under contract number DE-AC04-94AL85000.

Infrared emission spectra from operating elastohydrodynamic sliding contacts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lauer, J. L.

1976-01-01

Infrared emission spectra from an operating EHD sliding contact were obtained through a diamond window for an aromatic polymer solute present in equal concentration in four different fluids. Three different temperature ranges, three different loads, and three different speeds for every load were examined. Very sensitive Fourier spectrophotometric (Interferometric) techniques were employed. Band Intensities and band intensity ratios found to depend both on the operating parameters and on the fluid. Fluid film and metal surface temperatures were calculated from the spectra and their dependence on the mechanical parameters plotted. The difference between these temperatures could be plotted against shear rate on one curve for all fluids. However, at the same shear rate the difference between bulk fluid temperature and diamond window temperature was much higher for one of the fluids, a traction fluid, than for the others.

Continuous 'Passive' Registration of Non-Point Contaminant Loads Via Agricultural Subsurface Drain Tubes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rozemeijer, J.; Jansen, S.; de Jonge, H.; Lindblad Vendelboe, A.

2014-12-01

Considering their crucial role in water and solute transport, enhanced monitoring and modeling of agricultural subsurface tube drain systems is important for adequate water quality management. For example, previous work in lowland agricultural catchments has shown that subsurface tube drain effluent contributed up to 80% of the annual discharge and 90-92% of the annual NO3 loads from agricultural fields towards the surface water. However, existing monitoring techniques for flow and contaminant loads from tube drains are expensive and labor-intensive. Therefore, despite the unambiguous relevance of this transport route, tube drain monitoring data are scarce. The presented study aimed developing a cheap, simple, and robust method to monitor loads from tube drains. We are now ready to introduce the Flowcap that can be attached to the outlet of tube drains and is capable of registering total flow, contaminant loads, and flow-averaged concentrations. The Flowcap builds on the existing SorbiCells, a modern passive sampling technique that measures average concentrations over longer periods of time (days to months) for various substances. By mounting SorbiCells in our Flowcap, a flow-proportional part of the drain effluent is sampled from the main stream. Laboratory testing yielded good linear relations (R-squared of 0.98) between drainage flow rates and sampling rates. The Flowcap was tested in practice for measuring NO3 loads from two agricultural fields and one glasshouse in the Netherlands. The Flowcap registers contaminant loads from tube drains without any need for housing, electricity, or maintenance. This enables large-scale monitoring of non-point contaminant loads via tube drains, which would facilitate the improvement of contaminant transport models and would yield valuable information for the selection and evaluation of mitigation options to improve water quality.

Nanomechanical properties of dental resin-composites.

PubMed

El-Safty, S; Akhtar, R; Silikas, N; Watts, D C

2012-12-01

To determine by nanoindentation the hardness and elastic modulus of resin-composites, including a series with systematically varied filler loading, plus other representative materials that fall into the categories of flowable, bulk-fill and conventional nano-hybrid types. Ten dental resin-composites: three flowable, three bulk-fill and four conventional were investigated using nanoindentation. Disc specimens (15mm×2mm) were prepared from each material using a metallic mold. Specimens were irradiated in the mold at top and bottom surfaces in multiple overlapping points (40s each) with light curing unit at 650mW/cm(2). Specimens were then mounted in 3cm diameter phenolic ring forms and embedded in a self-curing polystyrene resin. After grinding and polishing, specimens were stored in distilled water at 37°C for 7 days. Specimens were investigated using an Agilent Technologies XP nanoindenter equipped with a Berkovich diamond tip (100nm radius). Each specimen was loaded at one loading rate and three different unloading rates (at room temperature) with thirty indentations, per unloading rate. The maximum load applied by the nanoindenter to examine the specimens was 10mN. Dependent on the type of the resin-composite material, the mean values ranged from 0.73GPa to 1.60GPa for nanohardness and from 14.44GPa to 24.07GPa for elastic modulus. There was a significant positive non-linear correlation between elastic modulus and nanohardness (r(2)=0.88). Nonlinear regression revealed a significant positive correlation (r(2)=0.62) between elastic moduli and filler loading and a non-significant correlation (r(2)=0.50) between nanohardness and filler loading of the studied materials. Varying the unloading rates showed no consistent effect on the elastic modulus and nanohardness of the studied materials. For a specific resin matrix, both elastic moduli and nanohardness correlated positively with filler loading. For the resin-composites investigated, the group-average elastic moduli and nanohardnesses for bulk-fill and flowable materials were lower than those for conventional nano-hybrid composites. Copyright © 2012 Academy of Dental Materials. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Performance testing and analyses of the VSC-17 ventilated concrete cask. Final report

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

McKinnon, M.A.; Dodge, R.E.; Schmitt, R.C.

1992-05-01

This document details performance test which was conducted on a Pacific Sierra Nuclear VSC-17 ventilated concrete storage cask configured for pressurized-water reactor (PWR) spent fuel. The performance test consisted of loading the VSC-17 cask with 17 canisters of consolidated PWR spent fuel from Virginia Power`s Surry and Florida Power & Light Turkey Point reactors. Cask surface, concrete, air channel surfaces, and fuel canister guide tube temperatures were measured, as were cask surface gamma and neutron dose rates. Testing was performed with vacuum, nitrogen, and helium backfill environments in a vertical cask orientation. Data on spent fuel integrity were also obtained.

Effects of Processing Variables on Tantalum Nitride by Reactive-Ion-Assisted Magnetron Sputtering Deposition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wei, Chao‑Tsang; Shieh, Han‑Ping D.

2006-08-01

The binary compound tantalum nitride (TaN) and ternary compounds tantalum tungsten nitrides (Ta1-xWxNy) exhibit interesting properties such as high melting point, high hardness, and chemical inertness. Such nitrides were deposited on a tungsten carbide (WC) die and silicon wafers by ion-beam-sputter evaporation of the respective metal under nitrogen ion-assisted deposition (IAD). The effects of N2/Ar flux ratio, post annealing, ion-assisted deposition, deposition rate, and W doping in coating processing variables on hardness, load critical scratching, oxidation resistance, stress and surface roughness were investigated. The optimum N2/Ar flux ratios in view of the hardness and critical load of TaN and Ta1-xWxNy films were ranged from 0.9 to 1.0. Doping W into TaN to form Ta1-xWxNy films led significant increases in hardness, critical load, oxidation resistance, and reduced surface roughness. The optimum doping ratio was [W/(W+Ta)]=0.85. From the deposition rate and IAD experiments, the stress in the films is mainly contributed by sputtering atoms. The lower deposition rate at a high N2/Ar flux ratio resulted in a higher compressive stress. A high compressive residual stress accounts for a high hardness. The relatively high compressive stress was attributed primarily to peening by atoms, ions and electrons during film growth, the Ta1-xWxNy films showed excellent hardness and strength against a high temperature, and sticking phenomena can essentially be avoided through their use. Ta1-xWxNy films showed better performance than the TaN film in terms of mechanical properties and oxidation resistance.

Effects of potential surface coal mining on dissolved solids in Otter Creek and in the Otter Creek alluvial aquifer, southeastern Montana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cannon, M.R.

1985-01-01

Otter Creek drains an area of 709 square miles in the coal-rich Powder River structural basin of southeastern Montana. The Knobloch coal beds in the Tongue River Member of the Paleocene Fort Union Formation is a shallow aquifer and a target for future surface mining in the downstream part of the Otter Creek basin. A mass-balance model was used to estimate the effects of potential mining on the dissolved solids concentration in Otter Creek and in the alluvial aquifer in the Otter Creek valley. With extensive mining of the Knobloch coal beds, the annual load of dissolved solids to Otter Creek at Ashland at median streamflow could increase by 2,873 tons, or a 32-percent increase compared to the annual pre-mining load. Increased monthly loads of Otter Creek, at the median streamflow, could range from 15 percent in February to 208 percent in August. The post-mining dissolved solids load to the subirrigated part of the alluvial valley could increase by 71 percent. The median dissolved solids concentration in the subirrigated part of the valley could be 4,430 milligrams per liter, compared to the pre-mining median concentration of 2,590 milligrams per liter. Post-mining loads from the potentially mined landscape were calculated using saturated-paste-extract data from 506 overburdened samples collected from 26 wells and test holes. Post-mining loads to the Otter Creek valley likely would continue at increased rates for hundreds of years after mining. If the actual area of Knobloch coal disturbed by mining were less than that used in the model, post-mining loads to the Otter Creek valley would be proportionally smaller. (USGS)

Dorzolamide Loaded Niosomal Vesicles: Comparison of Passive and Remote Loading Methods.

PubMed

Hashemi Dehaghi, Mohadeseh; Haeri, Azadeh; Keshvari, Hamid; Abbasian, Zahra; Dadashzadeh, Simin

2017-01-01

Glaucoma is a common progressive eye disorder and the treatment strategies will benefit from nanoparticulate delivery systems with high drug loading and sustained delivery of intraocular pressure lowering agents. Niosomes have been reported as a novel approach to improve drug low corneal penetration and bioavailability characteristics. Along with this, poor entrapment efficiency of hydrophilic drug in niosomal formulation remains as a major formulation challenge. Taking this perspective into consideration, dorzolamide niosomes were prepared employing two different loading methodologies (passive and remote loading methods) and the effects of various formulation variables (lipid to drug ratio, cholesterol percentage, drug concentration, freeze/thaw cycles, TPGS content, and external and internal buffer molarity and pH) on encapsulation efficiency were assessed. Encapsulation of dorzolamide within niosomes increased remarkably by the incorporation of higher cholesterol percentage as well as increasing the total lipid concentration. Remote loading method showed higher efficacy for drug entrapment compared to passive loading technique. Incorporation of TPGS in bilayer led to decrease in EE; however, retarded drug release rate. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies confirmed homogeneous particle distribution, and spherical shape with smooth surface. In conclusion, the highest encapsulation can be obtained using phosphate gradient method and 50% cholesterol in Span 60 niosomal formulation.

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

Moritz, MichaL; Laniecki, Marek, E-mail: laniecki@amu.edu.pl

A series of modified SBA-15 materials were applied in drug delivery systems. The internal surface of siliceous hexagonal structure of SBA-15 was modified with different amount of (3-mercaptopropyl)trimethoxysilane (MPTMS) and oxidized in the presence of hydrogen peroxide. The sulfonated material was loaded with metoprolol tartrate or papaverine hydrochloride. Both drugs indicated strong chemical interaction with modified mesoporous surface. The characteristic of the obtained materials was performed with XRD and DRUV-vis spectrometry, themogravimetry and nitrogen adsorption (BET) measurements. The obtained results show that modification of the mesoporous materials leads towards significant decrease of the drug delivery rate. - Graphical abstract: XRDmore » and DSC of the -SO{sub 3}H modified SBA-15 loaded with metoprolol. Highlights: > Modification of SBA-15 internal channels with SO{sub 3}H groups. > Adsorption of metoprolol and papaverine on modified SBA-15. > Uniform and homogeneous distribution of the drugs inside the mesoporous structure of SBA-15. > Release of the supported drugs.« less

Tribological Behavior of IN718 Superalloy Coating Fabricated by Laser Additive Manufacturing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yaocheng; Pan, Qiyong; Yang, Li; Li, Ruifeng; Dai, Jun

2017-12-01

The tribological behavior of laser manufactured IN718 superalloy coating are investigated with different applied loads, sliding speeds and lubricating mediums. The wear resistance of laser manufactured IN718 coating is increased by heat treatment due to higher microhardness and homogeneous brittle phase distribution. The principal factors for the wear rate are applied load and lubricating medium. The worn surface of laser manufactured IN718 coating consists of the grooves, crack, wear debris and material delamination generated by the fatigue wear associated with adhesive wear and abrasive wear. The friction coefficients are influenced by the tribological noise decrescence by the tribo-oxidant and the liquid lubricant. The real contact temperature between coating sample and frictional counterpart is higher than the solid-solution temperature of IN718 superalloy, and the effect of surface contact temperature on the orientational microstructure and wear resistance for dry friction and wet friction process is indistinct.

An analytical investigation of the performance of solar collectors as nighttime heat radiators in airconditioning cycles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, C. B.; Smetana, F. O.

1979-01-01

It was found that if the upper and lower ends of a collector were opened, large free convention currents may be set up between the collector surface and the cover glass(es) which can result in appreciable heat rejection. If the collector is so designed that both plates surfaces are exposed to convection currents when the upper and lower ends of the collector enclosure are opened, the heat rejection rate is 300 watts sq m when the plate is 13 C above ambient. This is sufficient to permit a collector array designed to provide 100 percent of the heating needs of a home to reject the accumulated daily air conditioning load during the course of a summer night. This also permits the overall energy requirements for cooling to be reduced by at least 15 percent and shift the load on the utility entirely to the nighttime hours.

Hydrologic connectivity to streams increases nitrogen and phosphorus inputs and cycling in soils of created and natural floodplain wetlands

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wolf, Kristin L.; Noe, Gregory B.; Ahn, Changwoo

2013-01-01

Greater connectivity to stream surface water may result in greater inputs of allochthonous nutrients that could stimulate internal nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) cycling in natural, restored, and created riparian wetlands. This study investigated the effects of hydrologic connectivity to stream water on soil nutrient fluxes in plots (n = 20) located among four created and two natural freshwater wetlands of varying hydrology in the Piedmont physiographic province of Virginia. Surface water was slightly deeper; hydrologic inputs of sediment, sediment-N, and ammonium were greater; and soil net ammonification, N mineralization, and N turnover were greater in plots with stream water classified as their primary water source compared with plots with precipitation or groundwater as their primary water source. Soil water-filled pore space, inputs of nitrate, and soil net nitrification, P mineralization, and denitrification enzyme activity (DEA) were similar among plots. Soil ammonification, N mineralization, and N turnover rates increased with the loading rate of ammonium to the soil surface. Phosphorus mineralization and ammonification also increased with sedimentation and sediment-N loading rate. Nitrification flux and DEA were positively associated in these wetlands. In conclusion, hydrologic connectivity to stream water increased allochthonous inputs that stimulated soil N and P cycling and that likely led to greater retention of sediment and nutrients in created and natural wetlands. Our findings suggest that wetland creation and restoration projects should be designed to allow connectivity with stream water if the goal is to optimize the function of water quality improvement in a watershed.

Earthquake Prediction in Large-scale Faulting Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Junger, J.; Kilgore, B.; Beeler, N.; Dieterich, J.

2004-12-01

We study repeated earthquake slip of a 2 m long laboratory granite fault surface with approximately homogenous frictional properties. In this apparatus earthquakes follow a period of controlled, constant rate shear stress increase, analogous to tectonic loading. Slip initiates and accumulates within a limited area of the fault surface while the surrounding fault remains locked. Dynamic rupture propagation and slip of the entire fault surface is induced when slip in the nucleating zone becomes sufficiently large. We report on the event to event reproducibility of loading time (recurrence interval), failure stress, stress drop, and precursory activity. We tentatively interpret these variations as indications of the intrinsic variability of small earthquake occurrence and source physics in this controlled setting. We use the results to produce measures of earthquake predictability based on the probability density of repeating occurrence and the reproducibility of near-field precursory strain. At 4 MPa normal stress and a loading rate of 0.0001 MPa/s, the loading time is ˜25 min, with a coefficient of variation of around 10%. Static stress drop has a similar variability which results almost entirely from variability of the final (rather than initial) stress. Thus, the initial stress has low variability and event times are slip-predictable. The variability of loading time to failure is comparable to the lowest variability of recurrence time of small repeating earthquakes at Parkfield (Nadeau et al., 1998) and our result may be a good estimate of the intrinsic variability of recurrence. Distributions of loading time can be adequately represented by a log-normal or Weibel distribution but long term prediction of the next event time based on probabilistic representation of previous occurrence is not dramatically better than for field-observed small- or large-magnitude earthquake datasets. The gradually accelerating precursory aseismic slip observed in the region of nucleation in these experiments is consistent with observations and theory of Dieterich and Kilgore (1996). Precursory strains can be detected typically after 50% of the total loading time. The Dieterich and Kilgore approach implies an alternative method of earthquake prediction based on comparing real-time strain monitoring with previous precursory strain records or with physically-based models of accelerating slip. Near failure, time to failure t is approximately inversely proportional to precursory slip rate V. Based on a least squares fit to accelerating slip velocity from ten or more events, the standard deviation of the residual between predicted and observed log t is typically 0.14. Scaling these results to natural recurrence suggests that a year prior to an earthquake, failure time can be predicted from measured fault slip rate with a typical error of 140 days, and a day prior to the earthquake with a typical error of 9 hours. However, such predictions require detecting aseismic nucleating strains, which have not yet been found in the field, and on distinguishing earthquake precursors from other strain transients. There is some field evidence of precursory seismic strain for large earthquakes (Bufe and Varnes, 1993) which may be related to our observations. In instances where precursory activity is spatially variable during the interseismic period, as in our experiments, distinguishing precursory activity might be best accomplished with deep arrays of near fault instruments and pattern recognition algorithms such as principle component analysis (Rundle et al., 2000).

An assessment of the retention behaviour of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on reversed phase stationary phases: selectivity and retention on C18 and phenyl-type surfaces.

PubMed

Kayillo, Sindy; Dennis, Gary R; Shalliker, R Andrew

2006-09-08

In this manuscript the retention and selectivity of a set of linear and non-linear PAHs were evaluated on five different reversed-phase columns. These phases included C18 and C18 Aqua stationary phases, as well as three phenyl phases: Propyl-phenyl, Synergi polar-RP and Cosmosil 5PBB phase. Overall, the results revealed that the phenyl-type columns offered better separation performance for the linear PAHs, while the separation of the structural isomer PAHs was enhanced on the C18 columns. The Propyl-phenyl column was found to have the highest molecular-stationary phase interactions, as evidenced by the greatest rate of change in 'S' (0.71) as a function of the molecular weight in the PAH homologous series, despite having the lowest surface coverage (3% carbon load) (where S is the slope of a plot of logk versus the solvent composition). In contrast, the C18 Aqua column, having the highest surface coverage (15% carbon load) was found to have the second lowest molecular-stationary phase interactions (rate of change in S=0.61). Interestingly, the Synergi polar-RP column, which also is a phenyl stationary phase behaved more 'C18-like' than 'phenyl-like' in many of the tests undertaken. This is probably not unexpected since all five phases were reversed phase.

Sludge settling processes in SBR-related sewage treatment plants according to the Biocos method.

PubMed

Meusel, S; Englert, R

2004-01-01

This paper describes the investigations in a sedimentation and circulation reactor (SU-reactor) of a three-phase Biocos plant. The aim of these investigations was the determination of the temporal and depth-dependent distribution of suspended solid contents, as well as describing the sludge sedimentation curves. The calculated results reveal peculiarities of the Biocos method with regard to sedimentation processes. In the hydraulically uninterrupted (pre-)settling phase, a sludge level depth was observed, which remained constant over the reactor surface and increased linearly according to the sludge volume. The settling and the thickening processes of this phase corresponded to a large extent to the well-known settling test in a one-litre measuring cylinder. During the discharge phase, the investigated settling rate was overlaid by the surface loading rate and the sludge level changed depending on the difference between those two parameters. The solid distribution of the A-phase indicated a formation of functional zones, which were influenced by the surface loading. The formation was comparable to the formation of layers in secondary settling tanks with vertical flow. The concentration equalisation between the biological reactor and the SU-reactor proved to be problematic during the circulation phase, because a type of internal sludge circulation occurred in the SU-reactor. A permanent sludge recirculation seems to be highly recommendable.

14 CFR 23.443 - Gust loads.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... STANDARDS: NORMAL, UTILITY, ACROBATIC, AND COMMUTER CATEGORY AIRPLANES Structure Vertical Surfaces § 23.443 Gust loads. (a) Vertical surfaces must be designed to withstand, in unaccelerated flight at speed V C... computed as follows: ER09FE96.000 Where— Lvt=Vertical surface loads (lbs.); ER09FE96.001 ER09FE96.002 Ude...

14 CFR 23.443 - Gust loads.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... STANDARDS: NORMAL, UTILITY, ACROBATIC, AND COMMUTER CATEGORY AIRPLANES Structure Vertical Surfaces § 23.443 Gust loads. (a) Vertical surfaces must be designed to withstand, in unaccelerated flight at speed V C... computed as follows: ER09FE96.000 Where— Lvt=Vertical surface loads (lbs.); ER09FE96.001 ER09FE96.002 Ude...

14 CFR 23.443 - Gust loads.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... STANDARDS: NORMAL, UTILITY, ACROBATIC, AND COMMUTER CATEGORY AIRPLANES Structure Vertical Surfaces § 23.443 Gust loads. (a) Vertical surfaces must be designed to withstand, in unaccelerated flight at speed V C... computed as follows: ER09FE96.000 Where— Lvt=Vertical surface loads (lbs.); ER09FE96.001 ER09FE96.002 Ude...

14 CFR 23.443 - Gust loads.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... STANDARDS: NORMAL, UTILITY, ACROBATIC, AND COMMUTER CATEGORY AIRPLANES Structure Vertical Surfaces § 23.443 Gust loads. (a) Vertical surfaces must be designed to withstand, in unaccelerated flight at speed V C... computed as follows: ER09FE96.000 Where— Lvt=Vertical surface loads (lbs.); ER09FE96.001 ER09FE96.002 Ude...

14 CFR 23.443 - Gust loads.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... STANDARDS: NORMAL, UTILITY, ACROBATIC, AND COMMUTER CATEGORY AIRPLANES Structure Vertical Surfaces § 23.443 Gust loads. (a) Vertical surfaces must be designed to withstand, in unaccelerated flight at speed V C... computed as follows: ER09FE96.000 Where— Lvt=Vertical surface loads (lbs.); ER09FE96.001 ER09FE96.002 Ude...

Crash simulation of hybrid structures considering the stress and strain rate dependent material behavior of thermoplastic materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hopmann, Ch.; Schöngart, M.; Weber, M.; Klein, J.

2015-05-01

Thermoplastic materials are more and more used as a light weight replacement for metal, especially in the automotive industry. Since these materials do not provide the mechanical properties, which are required to manufacture supporting elements like an auto body or a cross bearer, plastics are combined with metals in so called hybrid structures. Normally, the plastics components are joined to the metal structures using different technologies like welding or screwing. Very often, the hybrid structures are made of flat metal parts, which are stiffened by a reinforcement structure made of thermoplastic materials. The loads on these structures are very often impulsive, for example in the crash situation of an automobile. Due to the large stiffness variation of metal and thermoplastic materials, complex states of stress and very high local strain rates occur in the contact zone under impact conditions. Since the mechanical behavior of thermoplastic materials is highly dependent on these types of load, the crash failure of metal plastic hybrid parts is very complex. The problem is that the normally used strain rate dependent elastic/plastic material models are not capable to simulate the mechanical behavior of thermoplastic materials depended on the state of stress. As part of a research project, a method to simulate the mechanical behavior of hybrid structures under impact conditions is developed at the IKV. For this purpose, a specimen for the measurement of mechanical properties dependet on the state of stress and a method for the strain rate depended characterization of thermoplastic materials were developed. In the second step impact testing is performed. A hybrid structure made from a metal sheet and a reinforcement structure of a Polybutylenterephthalat Polycarbonate blend is tested under impact conditions. The measured stress and strain rate depended material data are used to simulate the mechanical behavior of the hybrid structure under highly dynamic load with impact velocities up to 5 m/s. The mechanical behavior of the plastics structure is simulated using a quadratic yield surface, which takes the state of stress and the strain rate into account. The FE model is made from mid surface elements to reduce the computing time.

Surface deterioration of dental materials after simulated toothbrushing in relation to brushing time and load.

PubMed

Heintze, S D; Forjanic, M; Ohmiti, K; Rousson, V

2010-04-01

(1) To evaluate the changes in surface roughness and gloss after simulated toothbrushing of 9 composite materials and 2 ceramic materials in relation to brushing time and load in vitro; (2) to assess the relationship between surface gloss and surface roughness. Eight flat specimens of composite materials (microfilled: Adoro, Filtek Supreme, Heliomolar; microhybrid: Four Seasons, Tetric EvoCeram; hybrid: Compoglass F, Targis, Tetric Ceram; macrohybrid: Grandio), two ceramic materials (IPS d.SIGN and IPS Empress polished) were fabricated according to the manufacturer's instructions and optimally polished with up to 4000 grit SiC. The specimens were subjected to a toothbrushing (TB) simulation device (Willytec) with rotating movements, toothpaste slurry and at three different loads (100g/250g/350g). At hourly intervals from 1h to 10h TB, mean surface roughness Ra was measured with an optical sensor and the surface gloss (Gl) with a glossmeter. Statistical analysis was performed for log-transformed Ra data applying two-way ANOVA to evaluate the interaction between load and material and load and brushing time. There was a significant interaction between material and load as well as between load and brushing time (p<0.0001). The microhybrid and hybrid materials demonstrated more surface deterioration with higher loads, whereas with the microfilled resins Heliomolar and Adoro it was vice versa. For ceramic materials, no or little deterioration was observed over time and independent of the load. The ceramic materials and 3 of the composite materials (roughness) showed no further deterioration after 5h of toothbrushing. Mean surface gloss was the parameter which discriminated best between the materials, followed by mean surface roughness Ra. There was a strong correlation between surface gloss and surface roughness for all the materials except the ceramics. The evaluation of the deterioration curves of individual specimens revealed a more or less synchronous course suspecting hinting specific external conditions and not showing the true variability in relation to the tested material. The surface roughness and gloss of dental materials changes with brushing time and load and thus results in different material rankings. Apart from Grandio, the hybrid composite resins were more prone to surface changes than microfilled composites. The deterioration potential of a composite material can be quickly assessed by measuring surface gloss. For this purpose, a brushing time of 10h (=72,000 strokes) is needed. In further comparative studies, specimens of different materials should be tested in one series to estimate the true variability. Copyright (c) 2009 Academy of Dental Materials. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

High energy density supercapacitors from lignin derived submicron activated carbon fibers in aqueous electrolytes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Sixiao; Zhang, Sanliang; Pan, Ning; Hsieh, You-Lo

2014-12-01

Highly porous submicron activated carbon fibers (ACFs) were robustly generated from low sulfonated alkali lignin and fabricated into supercapacitors for capacitive energy storage. The hydrophilic and high specific surface ACFs exhibited large-size nanographites and good electrical conductivity to demonstrate outstanding electrochemical performance. ACFs from KOH activation, in particular, showed very high 344 F g-1 specific capacitance at low 1.8 mg cm-2 mass loading and 10 mV s-1 scan rate in aqueous electrolytes. Even at relatively high scan rate of 50 mV s-1 and mass loading of 10 mg cm-2, a decent specific capacitance of 196 F g-1 and a remarkable areal capacitance of 0.55 F cm-2 was obtained, leading to high energy density of 8.1 Wh kg-1 based on averaged electrodes mass. Furthermore, over 96% capacitance retention rates were achieved after 5000 charge/discharge cycles. Such excellent performance demonstrated great potential of lignin derived carbons for electrical energy storage.

Do biodegradable magnesium alloy intramedullary interlocking nails prematurely lose fixation stability in the treatment of tibial fracture? A numerical simulation.

PubMed

Wang, Haosen; Hao, Zhixiu; Wen, Shizhu

2017-01-01

Intramedullary interlocking nailing is an effective technique used to treat long bone fractures. Recently, biodegradable metals have drawn increased attention as an intramedullary interlocking nailing material. In this study, numerical simulations were implemented to determine whether the degradation rate of magnesium alloy makes it a suitable material for manufacturing biodegradable intramedullary interlocking nails. Mechano-regulatory and bone-remodeling models were used to simulate the fracture healing process, and a surface corrosion model was used to simulate intramedullary rod degradation. The results showed that magnesium alloy intramedullary rods exhibited a satisfactory degradation rate; the fracture healed and callus enhancement was observed before complete dissolution of the intramedullary rod. Delayed magnesium degradation (using surface coating techniques) did not confer a significant advantage over the non-delayed degradation process; immediate degradation also achieved satisfactory healing outcomes. However, delayed degradation had no negative effect on callus enhancement, as it did not cause signs of stress shielding. To avoid risks of individual differences such as delayed union, delayed degradation is recommended. Although the magnesium intramedullary rod did not demonstrate rapid degradation, its ability to provide high fixation stiffness to achieve earlier load bearing was inferior to that of the conventional titanium alloy and stainless steel rods. Therefore, light physiological loads should be ensured during the early stages of healing to achieve bony healing; otherwise, with increased loading and degraded intramedullary rods, the fracture may ultimately fail to heal. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Microstructural studies of wear mechanisms in cast aluminum alloys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elmadagli, Mustafa

2005-07-01

The microstructural basis of wear and surface degradation mechanisms in Al-Si alloys has been investigated in order to improve the current understanding of the requirements for wear resistant aluminum alloy design. The wear behaviour of three commercial alloys namely: a sand cast A390 (Al-18.4%Si), a spray formed Al-25%Si, and a die cast 383 (Al-9.5%Si) have been investigated. Dry sliding wear tests were performed using a block on ring type tribometer under controlled environments. The experiments were performed in a load range between 0.2 N and 300 N at a constant speed of 1 m/s. The testing environments were a dry air (5% RH), a humid air (95% RH), and an argon atmosphere. In dry air (5% RH), two main wear regimes namely, mild wear (MW), and severe wear (SW) were identified. The (MW) regime consisted of two sub-regimes: first and second regimes of mild wear, (MW-1) and (MW-2). The mild wear was controlled by the formation and destruction (spallation) of hardened tribolayers composed of Fe, Al, Si, and O which gave rise to steady state wear rates in both sub-regimes. The transition to second sub-regime was attributed to the destabilization and partial removal of the tribolayers on the contact surfaces. Severe wear occurred at loads exceeding 150 N irrespective of the alloy when the contact surface temperature reached a critical value (210-240°C). The wear rates (W) in each sub-regime of the MW obeyed the relation, W=CLn, where C and n were the wear coefficient and the wear exponent, respectively. The wear exponents, n, were similar in each of the sub-regimes for all three alloys, indicating that the same mechanisms controlled the wear rates. However, the wear coefficients, C, and the transition loads to the second sub-regime were considerably different for each alloy. A method of analyzing the wear coefficients and the transition loads of the alloys, based on pair-wise comparison between them, was developed. This method demonstrated that small equiaxed silicon particles, high alloy hardness, and high silicon content promoted a better wear resistance in the Al-Si alloys by delaying MW-1 to MW-2 transition, and reducing the wear coefficients. Wear tests performed on A390 in air with 95% RH and in argon atmospheres resulted in a 10-fold reduction of wear rates and formation of an ultra mild wear (UMW) regime at loads less than 10 N. UMW in an argon atmosphere was due to the formation of highly deformed Al-(Si) tribolayers, which were less brittle and were not removed as easily as Fe-Al-Si-O tribolayers formed in dry air (5% RH). UMW of A390 samples could be also achieved in dry air (5% RH) when the tests were performed against a diamond-like carbon (DLC) coated counterface at loads less than 10 N. The analysis showed that DLC reduced the wear and friction significantly through preventing the formation of Fe rich oxidized tribolayers and Al transfer to the counterface.

Bone and hormonal changes induced by skeletal unloading in the mature male rat

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dehority, W.; Halloran, B. P.; Bikle, D. D.; Curren, T.; Kostenuik, P. J.; Wronski, T. J.; Shen, Y.; Rabkin, B.; Bouraoui, A.; Morey-Holton, E.

1999-01-01

To determine whether the rat hindlimb elevation model can be used to study the effects of spaceflight and loss of gravitational loading on bone in the adult animal, and to examine the effects of age on bone responsiveness to mechanical loading, we studied 6-mo-old rats subjected to hindlimb elevation for up to 5 wk. Loss of weight bearing in the adult induced a mild hypercalcemia, diminished serum 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, decreased vertebral bone mass, and blunted the otherwise normal increase in femoral mass associated with bone maturation. Unloading decreased osteoblast numbers and reduced periosteal and cancellous bone formation but had no effect on bone resorption. Mineralizing surface, mineral apposition rate, and bone formation rate decreased during unloading. Our results demonstrate the utility of the adult rat hindlimb elevation model as a means of simulating the loss of gravitational loading on the skeleton, and they show that the effects of nonweight bearing are prolonged and have a greater relative effect on bone formation in the adult than in the young growing animal.

A Workflow to Model Microbial Loadings in Watersheds ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Many watershed models simulate overland and instream microbial fate and transport, but few actually provide loading rates on land surfaces and point sources to the water body network. This paper describes the underlying general equations for microbial loading rates associated with 1) land-applied manure on undeveloped areas from domestic animals; 2) direct shedding on undeveloped lands by domestic animals and wildlife; 3) urban or engineered areas; and 4) point sources that directly discharge to streams from septic systems and shedding by domestic animals. A microbial source module, which houses these formulations, is linked within a workflow containing eight models and a set of databases that form a loosely configured modeling infrastructure which supports watershed-scale microbial source-to-receptor modeling by focusing on animal-impacted catchments. A hypothetical example application – accessing, retrieving, and using real-world data – demonstrates the ability of the infrastructure to automate many of the manual steps associated with a standard watershed assessment, culminating with calibrated flow and microbial densities at the pour point of a watershed. Presented at 2016 Biennial Conference, International Environmental Modelling & Software Society.

Photo-catalysis water splitting by platinum-loaded zeolite A

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Jing; Gao, Changda; Jing, Ming; Lu, Jian; Lin, Hui; Han, Zhaoxia; Ni, Zhengji; Zhang, Dawei

2018-05-01

Under the λ≥420 nm visible light illumination, the Pt4+ ions exchanged LTA zeolite powders without further heat-treatment presented H2 evolution at a rate of 5 μl/(15 mg·h) via photocatalysis water splitting. It was shown that the efficiency of H2 generation by the Pt4+ exchanged LTA zeolite powders without further heat-treatment was higher than the counterpart of the samples with heat treatment. In addition, the samples with lower Pt loading concentration showed higher H2 evolution rate than those of higher Pt loading did. The higher H2 evolution efficiency can be attributed to the effective isolation of water molecules and Pt at the atomic or the few atom ‘cluster’ scale by LTA zeolite’s periodical porous structure, which ensures a more efficient electron transfer efficiency for H2 evolution. However, after extra heat treatment, the Pt atoms reduced from Pt4+ in LTA zeolite’s cavities may tend to migrate to the surface and then form nano-particles, which led to the lower H2 evolution efficiency.

Surface loading of a viscoelastic earth-I. General theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tromp, Jeroen; Mitrovica, Jerry X.

1999-06-01

We present a new normal-mode formalism for computing the response of an aspherical, self-gravitating, linear viscoelastic earth model to an arbitrary surface load. The formalism makes use of recent advances in the theory of the Earth's free oscillations, and is based upon an eigenfunction expansion methodology, rather than the tradi-tional Love-number approach to surface-loading problems. We introduce a surface-load representation theorem analogous to Betti's reciprocity relation in seismology. Taking advantage of this theorem and the biorthogonality of the viscoelastic modes, we determine the complete response to a surface load in the form of a Green's function. We also demonstrate that each viscoelastic mode has its own unique energy partitioning, which can be used to characterize it. In subsequent papers, we apply the theory to spherically symmetric and aspherical earth models.

Evaluation of the Effect of the Volume Throughput and Maximum Flux of Low-Surface-Tension Fluids on Bacterial Penetration of 0.2 Micron-Rated Filters during Process-Specific Filter Validation Testing.

PubMed

Folmsbee, Martha

2015-01-01

Approximately 97% of filter validation tests result in the demonstration of absolute retention of the test bacteria, and thus sterile filter validation failure is rare. However, while Brevundimonas diminuta (B. diminuta) penetration of sterilizing-grade filters is rarely detected, the observation that some fluids (such as vaccines and liposomal fluids) may lead to an increased incidence of bacterial penetration of sterilizing-grade filters by B. diminuta has been reported. The goal of the following analysis was to identify important drivers of filter validation failure in these rare cases. The identification of these drivers will hopefully serve the purpose of assisting in the design of commercial sterile filtration processes with a low risk of filter validation failure for vaccine, liposomal, and related fluids. Filter validation data for low-surface-tension fluids was collected and evaluated with regard to the effect of bacterial load (CFU/cm(2)), bacterial load rate (CFU/min/cm(2)), volume throughput (mL/cm(2)), and maximum filter flux (mL/min/cm(2)) on bacterial penetration. The data set (∼1162 individual filtrations) included all instances of process-specific filter validation failures performed at Pall Corporation, including those using other filter media, but did not include all successful retentive filter validation bacterial challenges. It was neither practical nor necessary to include all filter validation successes worldwide (Pall Corporation) to achieve the goals of this analysis. The percentage of failed filtration events for the selected total master data set was 27% (310/1162). Because it is heavily weighted with penetration events, this percentage is considerably higher than the actual rate of failed filter validations, but, as such, facilitated a close examination of the conditions that lead to filter validation failure. In agreement with our previous reports, two of the significant drivers of bacterial penetration identified were the total bacterial load and the bacterial load rate. In addition to these parameters, another three possible drivers of failure were also identified: volume throughput, maximum filter flux, and pressure. Of the data for which volume throughput information was available, 24% (249/1038) of the filtrations resulted in penetration. However, for the volume throughput range of 680-2260 mL/cm(2), only 9 out of 205 bacterial challenges (∼4%) resulted in penetration. Of the data for which flux information was available, 22% (212/946) resulted in bacterial penetration. However, in the maximum filter flux range from 7 to 18 mL/min/cm(2), only one out of 121 filtrations (0.6%) resulted in penetration. A slight increase in filter failure was observed in filter bacterial challenges with a differential pressure greater than 30 psid. When designing a commercial process for the sterile filtration of a low-surface-tension fluid (or any other potentially high-risk fluid), targeting the volume throughput range of 680-2260 mL/cm(2) or flux range of 7-18 mL/min/cm(2), and maintaining the differential pressure below 30 psid, could significantly decrease the risk of validation filter failure. However, it is important to keep in mind that these are general trends described in this study and some test fluids may not conform to the general trends described here. Ultimately, it is important to evaluate both filterability and bacterial retention of the test fluid under proposed process conditions prior to finalizing the manufacturing process to ensure successful process-specific filter validation of low-surface-tension fluids. An overwhelming majority of process-specific filter validation (qualification) tests result in the demonstration of absolute retention of test bacteria by sterilizing-grade membrane filters. As such, process-specific filter validation failure is rare. However, while bacterial penetration of sterilizing-grade filters during process-specific filter validation is rarely detected, some fluids (such as vaccines and liposomal fluids) have been associated with an increased incidence of bacterial penetration. The goal of the following analysis was to identify important drivers of process-specific filter validation failure. The identification of these drivers will possibly serve to assist in the design of commercial sterile filtration processes with a low risk of filter validation failure. Filter validation data for low-surface-tension fluids was collected and evaluated with regard to bacterial concentration and rates, as well as filtered fluid volume and rate (Pall Corporation). The master data set (∼1160 individual filtrations) included all recorded instances of process-specific filter validation failures but did not include all successful filter validation bacterial challenge tests. This allowed for a close examination of the conditions that lead to process-specific filter validation failure. As previously reported, two significant drivers of bacterial penetration were identified: the total bacterial load (the total number of bacteria per filter) and the bacterial load rate (the rate at which bacteria were applied to the filter). In addition to these parameters, another three possible drivers of failure were also identified: volumetric throughput, filter flux, and pressure. When designing a commercial process for the sterile filtration of a low-surface-tension fluid (or any other penetrative-risk fluid), targeting the identified bacterial challenge loads, volume throughput, and corresponding flux rates could decrease, and possibly eliminate, the risk of validation filter failure. However, it is important to keep in mind that these are general trends described in this study and some test fluids may not conform to the general trends described here. Ultimately, it is important to evaluate both filterability and bacterial retention of the test fluid under proposed process conditions prior to finalizing the manufacturing process to ensure successful filter validation of low-surface-tension fluids. © PDA, Inc. 2015.

Second NATO Workshop on Passive Infrared Optical Materials and Coatings

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-12-01

sponsor, NATO AC/243 ( Panel III tion is sprayed through a furnace at RSG 2). This is an abridged version of about 1000*C. A 7-hour operation yields the...strength, generate high-quality optical surfaces Cl, of the monocrystalline material is 4 162 MPa at a load increase rate of 18 MPa due to removal of water

Irrigation Water and Nitrate Loss Characterization in South Florida Nurseries: Cumulative Volumes, Runoff Rates, NO3-N Concentrations and Loadings, and Implications for Management

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Enrichment of surface water with nitrate-nitrogen is a significant problem throughout the world. In support of developing a method for removing nitrate from water using denitrification, this project characterized runoff events at two nurseries in South Florida to provide information needed for desi...

Photoimages and the release characteristics of lipophilic matrix tablets containing highly water-soluble potassium citrate with high drug loadings.

PubMed

Cao, Qing-Ri; Kim, Tae-Wan; Lee, Beom-Jin

2007-07-18

Two types of the carnauba wax-based lipophilic matrix tablet using spray-dried granules (SDT) or directly compressible powdered mixtures (DCT) were prepared for sustained release. The model drug was a highly water-soluble potassium citrate and loaded about 74% of the total tablet weight. The SDT slowly eroded and disintegrated during the release study without showing sustained release when the hydrophilic excipients were added. In contrast, the DCT was more efficient for sustained release. The release rate decreased with increasing carnauba wax concentration. In particular, the sustained release rate was markedly pronounced when the lipophilic stearyl alcohol and stearic acid were combined with the carnauba wax. The surface of the intact DCT appeared to be smooth and rusty. The DCT rose to the surface from the bottom of the vessel during the release test, and numerous pores and cracks with no signs of disintegration were also observed after the release test. The release profile was dependent on the formulation composition and preparation method of the matrix tablet. Diffusion-controlled leaching through the channels of the pores and cracks of the lipophilic matrix tablet (DCT) is a key to the sustained release.

Tribological Behaviors of Graphene and Graphene Oxide as Water-Based Lubricant Additives for Magnesium Alloy/Steel Contacts.

PubMed

Xie, Hongmei; Jiang, Bin; Dai, Jiahong; Peng, Cheng; Li, Chunxia; Li, Quan; Pan, Fusheng

2018-01-29

The tribological behaviors of graphene and graphene oxide (GO) as water-based lubricant additives were evaluated by use of a reciprocating ball-on-plate tribometer for magnesium alloy-steel contacts. Three sets of test conditions were examined to investigate the effect of concentration, the capacity of carrying load and the endurance of the lubrication film, respectively. The results showed that the tribological behaviors of water can be improved by adding the appropriate graphene or GO. Compared with pure deionized water, 0.5 wt.% graphene nanofluids can offer reduction of friction coefficient by 21.9% and reduction of wear rate by 13.5%. Meanwhile, 0.5 wt.% GO nanofluids were found to reduce the friction coefficient and wear rate up to 77.5% and 90%, respectively. Besides this, the positive effect of the GO nanofluids was also more pronounced in terms of the load-carrying capacity and the lubrication film endurance. The wear mechanisms have been tentatively proposed according to the observation of the worn surfaces by field emission scanning electron microscope-energy dispersive spectrometer (FESEM-EDS) and Raman spectrum as well as the wettability of the nanofluids on the magnesium alloy surface by goniometer.

Tribological Behaviors of Graphene and Graphene Oxide as Water-Based Lubricant Additives for Magnesium Alloy/Steel Contacts

PubMed Central

Xie, Hongmei; Jiang, Bin; Dai, Jiahong; Peng, Cheng; Li, Chunxia; Li, Quan; Pan, Fusheng

2018-01-01

The tribological behaviors of graphene and graphene oxide (GO) as water-based lubricant additives were evaluated by use of a reciprocating ball-on-plate tribometer for magnesium alloy-steel contacts. Three sets of test conditions were examined to investigate the effect of concentration, the capacity of carrying load and the endurance of the lubrication film, respectively. The results showed that the tribological behaviors of water can be improved by adding the appropriate graphene or GO. Compared with pure deionized water, 0.5 wt.% graphene nanofluids can offer reduction of friction coefficient by 21.9% and reduction of wear rate by 13.5%. Meanwhile, 0.5 wt.% GO nanofluids were found to reduce the friction coefficient and wear rate up to 77.5% and 90%, respectively. Besides this, the positive effect of the GO nanofluids was also more pronounced in terms of the load-carrying capacity and the lubrication film endurance. The wear mechanisms have been tentatively proposed according to the observation of the worn surfaces by field emission scanning electron microscope-energy dispersive spectrometer (FESEM-EDS) and Raman spectrum as well as the wettability of the nanofluids on the magnesium alloy surface by goniometer. PMID:29382160

IDM release behavior and surface characteristics of the novel Cu/IDM/LDPE nanocomposite for intrauterine device.

PubMed

Yang, Zhihong; Xie, Changsheng; Xiang, Hua; Feng, Jinqing; Xia, Xianping; Cai, Shuizhou

2009-03-01

Copper/indomethacin/low-density polyethylene (Cu/IDM/LDPE) nanocomposite was prepared as a novel material for intra-uterine device (IUD). IDM release profile of the nanocomposite was investigated by using spectrophotometer. The results show that IDM release rate of Cu/IDM/LDPE nanocomposite is higher in simulated uterine solution than that in methanol, confirming that the release process of IDM is dominated mainly by pore diffusion. The decrease in copper particle size and the increase in copper mass content all accelerate IDM release, indicating that IDM release rate can be adjusted by changing copper loading or copper particle size. The surface of the incubated nanocomposite was characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis. A few deposits composed of P, Cl, Ca, Cu and O were observed on the nanocomposite surface, which may be related to the presence of IDM particles with large particle size.

Gastroesophageal Reflux is Not Associated with Dental Erosion in Children

PubMed Central

Wild, Yvette K.; Heyman, Melvin B.; Vittinghoff, Eric; Dalal, Deepal H.; Wojcicki, Janet M.; Clark, Ann L.; Rechmann, Beate; Rechmann, Peter

2011-01-01

Background & Aims Dental erosion is a complication of gastroesophageal reflux (GER) in adults; in children, it is not clear if GER has a role in dental pathologic conditions. Dietary intake, oral hygiene, high bacterial load, and decreased salivary flow might contribute independently to GER development or dental erosion, but their potential involvement in dental erosion from GER is not understood. We investigated the prevalence of dental erosion among children with and without GER symptoms, and whether salivary flow rate or bacterial load contribute to location-specific dental erosion. Methods We performed a cross-sectional study of 59 children (ages 9–17 y) with symptoms of GER and 20 asymptomatic children (controls); all completed a questionnaire on dietary exposure. Permanent teeth were examined for erosion into dentin, erosion locations, and affected surfaces. The dentist was not aware of GER status, nor was the gastroenterologist aware of dental status. Stimulated salivary flow was measured and salivary bacterial load was calculated for total bacteria, Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacilli. Results Controlling for age, dietary intake, and oral hygiene, there was no association between GER symptoms and dental erosion, by tooth location or affected surface. Salivary flow did not correlate with GER symptoms or erosion. Erosion location and surface were independent of total bacteria and levels of Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacilli. Conclusions Location-specific dental erosion is not associated with GER, salivary flow, or bacterial load. Prospective studies are required to determine the pathogenesis of GER-associated dental erosion and the relationship between dental caries to GER and dental erosion. PMID:21820389

Gastroesophageal reflux is not associated with dental erosion in children.

PubMed

Wild, Yvette K; Heyman, Melvin B; Vittinghoff, Eric; Dalal, Deepal H; Wojcicki, Janet M; Clark, Ann L; Rechmann, Beate; Rechmann, Peter

2011-11-01

Dental erosion is a complication of gastroesophageal reflux (GER) in adults; in children, it is not clear if GER has a role in dental pathologic conditions. Dietary intake, oral hygiene, high bacterial load, and decreased salivary flow might contribute independently to GER development or dental erosion, but their potential involvement in dental erosion from GER is not understood. We investigated the prevalence of dental erosion among children with and without GER symptoms, and whether salivary flow rate or bacterial load contribute to location-specific dental erosion. We performed a cross-sectional study of 59 children (ages, 9-17 y) with symptoms of GER and 20 asymptomatic children (controls); all completed a questionnaire on dietary exposure. Permanent teeth were examined for erosion into dentin, erosion locations, and affected surfaces. The dentist was not aware of GER status, and the gastroenterologist was not aware of dental status. Stimulated salivary flow was measured and salivary bacterial load was calculated for total bacteria, Streptococcus mutans, and Lactobacilli. Controlling for age, dietary intake, and oral hygiene, there was no association between GER symptoms and dental erosion by tooth location or affected surface. Salivary flow did not correlate with GER symptoms or erosion. Erosion location and surface were independent of total bacteria and levels of Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacilli. Location-specific dental erosion is not associated with GER, salivary flow, or bacterial load. Prospective studies are required to determine the pathogenesis of GER-associated dental erosion and the relationship between dental caries to GER and dental erosion. Copyright © 2011 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Enclosure fire hazard analysis using relative energy release criteria. [burning rate and combustion control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Coulbert, C. D.

1978-01-01

A method for predicting the probable course of fire development in an enclosure is presented. This fire modeling approach uses a graphic plot of five fire development constraints, the relative energy release criteria (RERC), to bound the heat release rates in an enclosure as a function of time. The five RERC are flame spread rate, fuel surface area, ventilation, enclosure volume, and total fuel load. They may be calculated versus time based on the specified or empirical conditions describing the specific enclosure, the fuel type and load, and the ventilation. The calculation of these five criteria, using the common basis of energy release rates versus time, provides a unifying framework for the utilization of available experimental data from all phases of fire development. The plot of these criteria reveals the probable fire development envelope and indicates which fire constraint will be controlling during a criteria time period. Examples of RERC application to fire characterization and control and to hazard analysis are presented along with recommendations for the further development of the concept.

Contribution of a submerged membrane bioreactor in the treatment of synthetic effluent contaminated by Bisphenol-A: mechanism of BPA removal and membrane fouling.

PubMed

Seyhi, Brahima; Drogui, Patrick; Buelna, Gerardo; Azaïs, Antonin; Heran, Marc

2013-09-01

A submerged membrane bioreactor has been operated at the laboratory scale for the treatment of a synthetic effluent containing Bisphenol-A (BPA). COD, NH4-N, PO4-P and BPA were eliminated respectively, at 99%, 99%, 61% and 99%. The increase of volumetric loading rate from 0 to 21.6 g/m(3)/d did not affect the performance of the MBR system. However, the removal rate decreased rapidly when the BPA loading rate increased above 21.6 g/m(3)/d. The adsorption process of BPA on the biomass was very well described by Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms. Subsequently, biodegradation of BPA occurred and followed the first order kinetic reaction, with a constant rate of 1.13 ± 0.22 h(-1). During treatment, membrane fouling was reversible in the first 84 h of filtration, and then became irreversible. The membrane fouling was mainly due to the accumulation of suspended solid and development of biofilm on the membrane surface. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Atmospheric pressure loading parameters from very long baseline interferometry observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Macmillan, D. S.; Gipson, John M.

1994-01-01

Atmospheric mass loading produces a primarily vertical displacement of the Earth's crust. This displacement is correlated with surface pressure and is large enough to be detected by very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) measurements. Using the measured surface pressure at VLBI stations, we have estimated the atmospheric loading term for each station location directly from VLBI data acquired from 1979 to 1992. Our estimates of the vertical sensitivity to change in pressure range from 0 to -0.6 mm/mbar depending on the station. These estimates agree with inverted barometer model calculations (Manabe et al., 1991; vanDam and Herring, 1994) of the vertical displacement sensitivity computed by convolving actual pressure distributions with loading Green's functions. The pressure sensitivity tends to be smaller for stations near the coast, which is consistent with the inverted barometer hypothesis. Applying this estimated pressure loading correction in standard VLBI geodetic analysis improves the repeatability of estimated lengths of 25 out of 37 baselines that were measured at least 50 times. In a root-sum-square (rss) sense, the improvement generally increases with baseline length at a rate of about 0.3 to 0.6 ppb depending on whether the baseline stations are close to the coast. For the 5998-km baseline from Westford, Massachusetts, to Wettzell, Germany, the rss improvement is about 3.6 mm out of 11.0 mm. The average rss reduction of the vertical scatter for inland stations ranges from 2.7 to 5.4 mm.

Unitized Regenerative Fuel Cell System Gas Storage/Radiator Development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jakupca, Ian; Burke, Kenneth A.

2003-01-01

The ancillary components for Unitized Regenerative Fuel Cell (URFC) Energy Storage System are being developed at the NASA Glenn Research Center. This URFC system is unique in that it uses the surface area of the hydrogen and oxygen storage tanks as radiating heat surfaces for overall thermal control of the system. The waste heat generated by the URFC stack during charging and discharging is transferred from the cell stack to the surface of each tank by loop heat pipes. The heat pipes are coiled around each tank and covered with a thin layer of thermally conductive layer of carbon composite. The thin layer of carbon composite acts as a fin structure that spreads the heat away from the heat pipe and across the entire tank surface. Two different sized commercial grade composite tanks were constructed with integral heat pipes and tested in a thermal vacuum chamber to examine the feasibility of using the storage tanks as system radiators. The storage radiators were subjected to different steady-state heat loads and varying heat load profiles. The surface emissivity and specific heat capacity of each tank were calculated. The results were incorporated into a model that simulates the performance of similar radiators using lightweight, space rated carbon composite tanks.

Dynamics of folding: Impact of fault bend folds on earthquake cycles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sathiakumar, S.; Barbot, S.; Hubbard, J.

2017-12-01

Earthquakes in subduction zones and subaerial convergent margins are some of the largest in the world. So far, forecasts of future earthquakes have primarily relied on assessing past earthquakes to look for seismic gaps and slip deficits. However, the roles of fault geometry and off-fault plasticity are typically overlooked. We use structural geology (fault-bend folding theory) to inform fault modeling in order to better understand how deformation is accommodated on the geological time scale and through the earthquake cycle. Fault bends in megathrusts, like those proposed for the Nepal Himalaya, will induce folding of the upper plate. This introduces changes in the slip rate on different fault segments, and therefore on the loading rate at the plate interface, profoundly affecting the pattern of earthquake cycles. We develop numerical simulations of slip evolution under rate-and-state friction and show that this effect introduces segmentation of the earthquake cycle. In crustal dynamics, it is challenging to describe the dynamics of fault-bend folds, because the deformation is accommodated by small amounts of slip parallel to bedding planes ("flexural slip"), localized on axial surface, i.e. folding axes pinned to fault bends. We use dislocation theory to describe the dynamics of folding along these axial surfaces, using analytic solutions that provide displacement and stress kernels to simulate the temporal evolution of folding and assess the effects of folding on earthquake cycles. Studies of the 2015 Gorkha earthquake, Nepal, have shown that fault geometry can affect earthquake segmentation. Here, we show that in addition to the fault geometry, the actual geology of the rocks in the hanging wall of the fault also affect critical parameters, including the loading rate on parts of the fault, based on fault-bend folding theory. Because loading velocity controls the recurrence time of earthquakes, these two effects together are likely to have a strong impact on the earthquake cycle.

Characterization and prediction of rate-dependent flexibility in lumbar spine biomechanics at room and body temperature.

PubMed

Stolworthy, Dean K; Zirbel, Shannon A; Howell, Larry L; Samuels, Marina; Bowden, Anton E

2014-05-01

The soft tissues of the spine exhibit sensitivity to strain-rate and temperature, yet current knowledge of spine biomechanics is derived from cadaveric testing conducted at room temperature at very slow, quasi-static rates. The primary objective of this study was to characterize the change in segmental flexibility of cadaveric lumbar spine segments with respect to multiple loading rates within the range of physiologic motion by using specimens at body or room temperature. The secondary objective was to develop a predictive model of spine flexibility across the voluntary range of loading rates. This in vitro study examines rate- and temperature-dependent viscoelasticity of the human lumbar cadaveric spine. Repeated flexibility tests were performed on 21 lumbar function spinal units (FSUs) in flexion-extension with the use of 11 distinct voluntary loading rates at body or room temperature. Furthermore, six lumbar FSUs were loaded in axial rotation, flexion-extension, and lateral bending at both body and room temperature via a stepwise, quasi-static loading protocol. All FSUs were also loaded using a control loading test with a continuous-speed loading-rate of 1-deg/sec. The viscoelastic torque-rotation response for each spinal segment was recorded. A predictive model was developed to accurately estimate spine segment flexibility at any voluntary loading rate based on measured flexibility at a single loading rate. Stepwise loading exhibited the greatest segmental range of motion (ROM) in all loading directions. As loading rate increased, segmental ROM decreased, whereas segmental stiffness and hysteresis both increased; however, the neutral zone remained constant. Continuous-speed tests showed that segmental stiffness and hysteresis are dependent variables to ROM at voluntary loading rates in flexion-extension. To predict the torque-rotation response at different loading rates, the model requires knowledge of the segmental flexibility at a single rate and specified temperature, and a scaling parameter. A Bland-Altman analysis showed high coefficients of determination for the predictive model. The present work demonstrates significant changes in spine segment flexibility as a result of loading rate and testing temperature. Loading rate effects can be accounted for using the predictive model, which accurately estimated ROM, neutral zone, stiffness, and hysteresis within the range of voluntary motion. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Lung burden and deposition distribution of inhaled atmospheric urban ultrafine particles as the first step in their health risk assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salma, Imre; Füri, Péter; Németh, Zoltán; Balásházy, Imre; Hofmann, Werner; Farkas, Árpád

2015-03-01

Realistic median particle number size distributions were derived by a differential mobility particle sizer in a diameter range of 6-1000 nm for near-city background, city centre, street canyon and road tunnel environments in Budapest. Deposition of inhaled particles within airway generations of an adult woman was determined by a stochastic lung deposition model for sleeping, sitting, light and heavy exercise breathing conditions. Deposition fractions in the respiratory tract were considerable and constant for all physical activities with a mean of 56%. Mean deposition fraction in the extra-thoracic region averaged for the urban environments was decreasing monotonically from 26% for sleeping to 9.4% for heavy exercise. The mean deposition fractions in the tracheobronchial region were constant for the physical activities and urban environments with an overall mean of 12.5%, while the mean deposition fraction in the acinar region averaged for the urban locations increased monotonically with physical activity from 14.7% for sleeping to 34% for heavy exercise. The largest contribution of the acinar deposition to the lung deposition was 75%. The deposition rates in the lung were larger than in the extra-thoracic region, and the deposition rate in the lung was increasingly realised in the AC region by physical activity. It was the extra-thoracic region that received the largest surface density deposition rates; its loading was higher by 3 orders of magnitude than for the lung. Deposition fractions in the airway generations exhibited a distinct peak in the acinar region. The maximum of the curves was shifted to peripheral airway generations with physical activity. The shapes of the surface density deposition rate curves were completely different from those for the deposition rates, indicating that the first few airway generations received the highest surface loading in the lung.

Tracking spatial variation in river load from Andean highlands to inter-Andean valleys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tenorio, Gustavo E.; Vanacker, Veerle; Campforts, Benjamin; Álvarez, Lenín; Zhiminaicela, Santiago; Vercruysse, Kim; Molina, Armando; Govers, Gerard

2018-05-01

Mountains play an important role in the denudation of continents and transfer erosion and weathering products to lowlands and oceans. The rates at which erosion and weathering processes take place in mountain regions have a substantial impact on the morphology and biogeochemistry of downstream reaches and lowlands. The controlling factors of physical erosion and chemical weathering and the coupling between the two processes are not yet fully understood. In this study, we report physical erosion and chemical weathering rates for five Andean catchments located in the southern Ecuadorian Andes and investigate their mutual interaction. During a 4-year monitoring period, we sampled river water at biweekly intervals, and we analyzed water samples for major ions and suspended solids. We derived the total annual dissolved, suspended sediment, and ionic loads from the flow frequency curves and adjusted rating curves and used the dissolved and suspended sediment yields as proxies for chemical weathering and erosion rates. In the 4-year period of monitoring, chemical weathering exceeds physical erosion in the high Andean catchments. Whereas physical erosion rates do not exceed 30 t km-2 y-1 in the relict glaciated morphology, chemical weathering rates range between 22 and 59 t km-2 y-1. The variation in chemical weathering is primarily controlled by intrinsic differences in bedrock lithology. Land use has no discernible impact on the weathering rate but leads to a small increase in base cation concentrations because of fertilizer leaching in surface water. When extending our analysis with published data on dissolved and suspended sediment yields from the northern and central Andes, we observe that the river load composition strongly changes in the downstream direction, indicating large heterogeneity of weathering processes and rates within large Andean basins.

Streambanks: A net source of sediment and phosphorus to streams and rivers.

PubMed

Fox, Garey A; Purvis, Rebecca A; Penn, Chad J

2016-10-01

Sediment and phosphorus (P) are two primary pollutants of surface waters. Many studies have investigated loadings from upland sources or even streambed sediment, but in many cases, limited to no data exist to determine sediment and P loading from streambanks on a watershed scale. The objectives of this paper are to review the current knowledge base on streambank erosion and failure mechanisms, streambank P concentrations, and streambanks as P loading sources and then also to identify future research needs on this topic. In many watersheds, long-term loading of soil and associated P to stream systems has created a source of eroded soil and P that may interact with streambank sediment and be deposited in floodplains downstream. In many cases streambanks were formed from previously eroded and deposited alluvial material and so the resulting soils possess unique physical and chemical properties from adjacent upland soils. Streambank sediment and P loading rates depend explicitly on the rate of streambank migration and the concentration of P stored within bank materials. From the survey of literature, previous studies report streambank total P concentrations that consistently exceeded 250 mg kg(-1) soil. Only a few studies also reported water soluble or extractable P concentrations. More research should be devoted to understanding the dynamic processes between different P pools (total P versus bioavailable P), and sorption or desorption processes under varying hydraulic and stream chemistry conditions. Furthermore, the literature reported that streambank erosion and failure and gully erosion were reported to account for 7-92% of the suspended sediment load within a channel and 6-93% of total P. However, significant uncertainty can occur in such estimates due to reach-scale variability in streambank migration rates and future estimates should consider the use of uncertainty analysis approaches. Research is also needed on the transport rates of dissolved and sediment-bound P through the entire stream system of a watershed to identify critical upland and/or near-stream conservation practices. Extensive monitoring of the impact of restoration/rehabilitation efforts on reducing sediment and P loading are limited. From an application standpoint, streambank P contributions to streams should be more explicitly accounted for in developing total maximum daily loads in watersheds. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Shear Behaviour and Acoustic Emission Characteristics of Bolted Rock Joints with Different Roughnesses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Gang; Zhang, Yongzheng; Jiang, Yujing; Liu, Peixun; Guo, Yanshuang; Liu, Jiankang; Ma, Ming; Wang, Ke; Wang, Shugang

2018-06-01

To study shear failure, acoustic emission counts and characteristics of bolted jointed rock-like specimens are evaluated under compressive shear loading. Model joint surfaces with different roughnesses are made of rock-like material (i.e. cement). The jointed rock masses are anchored with bolts with different elongation rates. The characteristics of the shear mechanical properties, the failure mechanism, and the acoustic emission parameters of the anchored joints are studied under different surface roughnesses and anchorage conditions. The shear strength and residual strength increase with the roughness of the anchored joint surface. With an increase in bolt elongation, the shear strength of the anchored joint surface gradually decreases. When the anchored structural plane is sheared, the ideal cumulative impact curve can be divided into four stages: initial emission, critical instability, cumulative energy, and failure. With an increase in the roughness of the anchored joint surface, the peak energy rate and the cumulative number of events will also increase during macro-scale shear failure. With an increase in the bolt elongation, the energy rate and the event number increase during the shearing process. Furthermore, the peak energy rate, peak number of events and cumulative energy will all increase with the bolt elongation. The results of this study can provide guidance for the use of the acoustic emission technique in monitoring and predicting the static shear failure of anchored rock masses.

Loading Configurations and Ground Reaction Forces During Treadmill Running in Weightlessness

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DeWitt, John; Schaffner, Grant; Blazine, Kristi; Bentley, Jason; Laughlin, Mitzi; Loehr, James; Hagan, Donald

2003-01-01

Studies have shown losses in bone mineral density of 1-2% per month in critical weight bearing areas such as the proximal femur during long-term space flight (Grigoriev, 1998). The astronauts currently onboard the International Space Station (ISS) use a treadmill as an exercise countermeasure to bone loss that occurs as a result of prolonged exposure to weightlessness. A crewmember exercising on the treadmill is attached by a harness and loading device. Ground reaction forces are obtained through the loading device that pulls the crewn1ember towards the treadmill surface during locomotion. McCrory et al. (2002) found that the magnitude of the peak ground reaction force (pGRF) during horizontal suspension running, or simulated weightlessness, was directly related to the load applied to the subject. It is thought that strain magnitude and strain rate affects osteogenesis, and is a function of the magnitude and rate of change of the ground reaction force. While it is not known if a minimum stimulus exists for osteogenesis, it has been hypothesized that in order to replicate the bone formation occurring in normal gravity (1 G), the exercise in weightlessness should mimic the forces that occur on earth. Specifically, the pGRF obtained in weightlessness should be comparable to that achieved in 1 G.

Methods of Collection of Biological Information for Fatigue Evaluation during Visual Display Terminals (VDT) Operation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hachiya, Yuriko; Ogai, Harutoshi; Okazaki, Hiroko; Fujisaki, Takeshi; Uchida, Kazuhiko; Oda, Susumu; Wada, Futoshi; Mori, Koji

A method for the analysis of fatigue parameters has been rarely researched in VDT operation. Up to now, fatigue was evaluated by changing of biological information. If signals regarding fatigue are detected, fatigue can be measured. The purpose of this study proposed experiment and analysis method to extract parameters related to fatigue from the biological information during VDT operation using the Independent Component Analysis (ICA). An experiment had 11 subjects. As for the experiment were light loaded VDT operation and heavy loaded VDT operation. A measurement item were amount of work, a mistake number, subjective symptom, surface skin temperature (forehead and apex nasi), heart rate, skin blood flow of forearm and respiratory rate. In the heavy loaded operation group, mistake number and subjective symptom score were increased to compare with the other. And Two-factor ANOVA was used for analysis. The result of mistake number was confirmed that heavy loaded. After the moving averages of waveshape were calculated, it was made to extract independent components by using the ICA. The results of the ICA suggest that the independent components increase according to accumulation of fatigue. Thus, the independent components would be a possible parameter of fatigue. However, further experiments should continue in order to obtain the conclusive finding of our research.

Earth's surface loading study using InSAR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amelung, F.; Zhao, W.; Doin, M. P.

2014-12-01

Earth's surface loading/unloading such as glacier retreat, lake water level change, ocean tide, cause measurable (centimeter to millimeter) surface deformation from Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometry (InSAR). Such seasonal or decadal deformation signals are useful for the estimation of the amount of load and the parameterization of crust and upper mantle - typically under an elastic or a visco-elastic mechanism. Since 2010, we established a study of surface loading using small baseline InSAR time-series analysis. Four sites are included in this study, which are Vatnajokull ice cap, Lake Yamzho Yumco, Petermann glacier, and Barnes ice cap using different satellites such as ERS1/2, Envisat, Radarsat-2, TerraSAR-X. We present results that mainly answer three questions: 1) Is InSAR time-series capable for the detection of millimeter level deformation due to surface loading; 2) When the Earth's rheology is known, how much load change occured; 3) When the surface loading is known, what are the Earth's parameters such as Young's modulus, viscosity. For glacier retreat problem, we introduce a new model for the ice mass loss estimation considering the spatial distribution of ice loss. For lake unloading problem, modeled elastic parameters are useful for the comparison to other 1-D models, e.g. the model based on seismic data.

Emission of di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate from PVC flooring into air and uptake in dust: emission and sorption experiments in FLEC and CLIMPAQ.

PubMed

Clausen, Per Axel; Hansen, Vivi; Gunnarsen, Lars; Afshari, Alireza; Wolkoff, Peder

2004-05-01

The emission of di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) from a PVC flooring was studied for up to 472 days in both the FLEC (Field and Laboratory Emission Cell) and the CLIMPAQ (Chamberfor Laboratory Investigations of Materials, Pollution, and Air Quality). The loading of the CLIMPAQs was varied but was constant in the FLECs. The sorption properties of FLEC and CLIMPAQ were investigated using different methods. In addition, the uptake of DEHP by office floor dust on the PVC flooring was studied in CLIMPAQ experiments. The concentration versus time curves in both FLECs and CLIMPAQs increased slowly over about 150 days and reached a quasi-static equilibrium at 1 microg m(-3). The main conclusions were that (i) the emission rate of DEHP was limited by gas-phase mass transport and (ii) the dust layer increased the emission rate by increasing the external concentration gradient above the surface of the PVC. These conclusions were based on the facts that the specific emission rate was inversely proportional to the loading and that the dust had sorbed about four times as much DEHP over a 68-day period as emitted in the gas-phase experiments. About one-half of the emitted DEHP was deposited on the internal surfaces of both the FLEC and the CLIMPAQ.

Investigations on humic acid removal from water using surfactant-modified zeolite as adsorbent in a fixed-bed reactor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elsheikh, Awad F.; Ahmad, Umi Kalthom; Ramli, Zainab

2017-10-01

Natural organic matter (NOM) is ubiquitous in aquatic environments and has recently become an issue of worldwide concern in drinking water treatment. The major component of NOM is humic acids (HA). In this study, a natural zeolite (mordenite) was modified employing hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (HDTMA) to enhance greater efficient sites for sorption of HA. The natural zeolite and surfactant-modified zeolite (SMZ) were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectrometer (FT-IR), N2 Adsorption-desorption isotherms and BET-specific surface area, thermographic analysis, derivative thermographic analysis (TGA-DTA) and Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). A fixed-bed reactor was used for the removal of HA and the effects of different experimental parameters such as HDTMA loading levels, HA solution flow rate, solution pH and eluent concentration were investigated. The results indicated that the SMZ bed with HDTMA loading of 75% of external cation exchange capacity (ECEC) at a flow rate of 2 BV/h and pH of 10 showed the greatest enhanced removal efficiency of HA while ethanol solutions (25%v/v) with feed flow rate of 2 BV/h were sufficient for complete regeneration of SMZ and desorption of HA. Measurements of surface area of SMZ indicated that a monolayer formation of the surfactant at those conditions allowed the optimum removal of HA.

Overview: Precipitation characteristics and sensitivities to environmental conditions during GoAmazon2014/5 and ACRIDICON-CHUVA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Machado, Luiz A. T.; Calheiros, Alan J. P.; Biscaro, Thiago; Giangrande, Scott; Silva Dias, Maria A. F.; Cecchini, Micael A.; Albrecht, Rachel; Andreae, Meinrat O.; Araujo, Wagner F.; Artaxo, Paulo; Borrmann, Stephan; Braga, Ramon; Burleyson, Casey; Eichholz, Cristiano W.; Fan, Jiwen; Feng, Zhe; Fisch, Gilberto F.; Jensen, Michael P.; Martin, Scot T.; Pöschl, Ulrich; Pöhlker, Christopher; Pöhlker, Mira L.; Ribaud, Jean-François; Rosenfeld, Daniel; Saraiva, Jaci M. B.; Schumacher, Courtney; Thalman, Ryan; Walter, David; Wendisch, Manfred

2018-05-01

This study provides an overview of precipitation processes and their sensitivities to environmental conditions in the Central Amazon Basin near Manaus during the GoAmazon2014/5 and ACRIDICON-CHUVA experiments. This study takes advantage of the numerous measurement platforms and instrument systems operating during both campaigns to sample cloud structure and environmental conditions during 2014 and 2015; the rainfall variability among seasons, aerosol loading, land surface type, and topography has been carefully characterized using these data. Differences between the wet and dry seasons were examined from a variety of perspectives. The rainfall rates distribution, total amount of rainfall, and raindrop size distribution (the mass-weighted mean diameter) were quantified over both seasons. The dry season generally exhibited higher rainfall rates than the wet season and included more intense rainfall periods. However, the cumulative rainfall during the wet season was 4 times greater than that during the total dry season rainfall, as shown in the total rainfall accumulation data. The typical size and life cycle of Amazon cloud clusters (observed by satellite) and rain cells (observed by radar) were examined, as were differences in these systems between the seasons. Moreover, monthly mean thermodynamic and dynamic variables were analysed using radiosondes to elucidate the differences in rainfall characteristics during the wet and dry seasons. The sensitivity of rainfall to atmospheric aerosol loading was discussed with regard to mass-weighted mean diameter and rain rate. This topic was evaluated only during the wet season due to the insignificant statistics of rainfall events for different aerosol loading ranges and the low frequency of precipitation events during the dry season. The impacts of aerosols on cloud droplet diameter varied based on droplet size. For the wet season, we observed no dependence between land surface type and rain rate. However, during the dry season, urban areas exhibited the largest rainfall rate tail distribution, and deforested regions exhibited the lowest mean rainfall rate. Airplane measurements were taken to characterize and contrast cloud microphysical properties and processes over forested and deforested regions. Vertical motion was not correlated with cloud droplet sizes, but cloud droplet concentration correlated linearly with vertical motion. Clouds over forested areas contained larger droplets than clouds over pastures at all altitudes. Finally, the connections between topography and rain rate were evaluated, with higher rainfall rates identified at higher elevations during the dry season.

14 CFR 23.341 - Gust loads factors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... loads factors. (a) Each airplane must be designed to withstand loads on each lifting surface resulting...=airplane mass ratio; U de=Derived gust velocities referred to in § 23.333(c) (f.p.s.); ρ=Density of air... C NA per radian if the gust loads are applied to the wings and horizontal tail surfaces...

14 CFR 23.341 - Gust loads factors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... loads factors. (a) Each airplane must be designed to withstand loads on each lifting surface resulting...=airplane mass ratio; U de=Derived gust velocities referred to in § 23.333(c) (f.p.s.); ρ=Density of air... C NA per radian if the gust loads are applied to the wings and horizontal tail surfaces...

14 CFR 23.341 - Gust loads factors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... loads factors. (a) Each airplane must be designed to withstand loads on each lifting surface resulting...=airplane mass ratio; U de=Derived gust velocities referred to in § 23.333(c) (f.p.s.); ρ=Density of air... C NA per radian if the gust loads are applied to the wings and horizontal tail surfaces...

14 CFR 23.341 - Gust loads factors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... loads factors. (a) Each airplane must be designed to withstand loads on each lifting surface resulting...=airplane mass ratio; U de=Derived gust velocities referred to in § 23.333(c) (f.p.s.); ρ=Density of air... C NA per radian if the gust loads are applied to the wings and horizontal tail surfaces...

Lubricant evaluation of the alpha and beta joints, phase 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kannel, J. W.; Stockwell, R. D.

1992-01-01

A research study was conducted to evaluate dry film lubrication of long life space components such as the alpha and beta joints of the Space Station. The problem addressed in the report pertains to the longevity of sputtered MoS2 or ion plated lead films in a rolling contact environment. A special technique was devised for the experiments, which incorporated a coated ball cyclically loaded against a flat plate. At fixed intervals the surface of the coating was photographed at 100X magnification. By computer scanning the photographs, the rate of coating loss was determined. Experimental variables include load and surface finish of the plate. A theory was developed to analyze the state of stress between ball and flat. The stress condition in the ball apparatus was related to the state of stress under rolling contact conditions. Based on the experiments life appeared to decrease with increasing load and increasing surface roughness. An ion plated lead film gave better life than a sputtered MoS2 film. However, by keeping the interfacial shear stress at a low level, adequate coating life was achieved for either coating. For the lead film, the critical stress was about 0.19 GPa (28 ksi). The study dealt only with mechanical wear. Before a coating is selected for a critical space application, other factors such as reaction with atomic oxygen must also be considered.

Clinical and Radiographic Assessment of Three-Implant-Supported Fixed-Prosthesis Rehabilitation of the Edentulous Mandible: Immediate Versus Delayed Loading.

PubMed

Primo, Bruno Tochetto; Mezzari, Leonardo Marcos; da Fontoura Frasca, Luís Carlos; Linderman, Raquel; Rivaldo, Elken Gomes

To evaluate and compare the clinical and radiographic outcomes of mandibular rehabilitation with fixed prostheses on three implants with immediate versus delayed loading. The sample comprised 21 patients who underwent treatment with immediate loading and 23 who received delayed loading. All had worn their prostheses for at least 18 months. Radiographic evaluation of bone loss was carried out in Adobe Photoshop CS5 by a single calibrated examiner using digitized panoramic radiographs. Clinical examination of the technical conditions of the prosthetic device assessed the condition of the acrylic resin base, dental occlusion, metal framework, presence of cover screws, screw fixation of the prosthesis and abutments, length of cantilever (effort) and resistance arms, presence of plaque on prosthetic abutments, and hygiene of the prosthesis. One implant failed in each group, resulting in a 95.23% treatment success rate with immediate loading and 95.65% with delayed loading (no statistically significant between-group difference). In the immediate-loading group, the mean bone loss was 1.96 ± 0.73 mm around central implants and 1.64 ± 0.84 mm at distal implants. In the delayed-loading group, the mean bone loss was 1.85 ± 0.67 mm around central implants and 1.70 ± 0.77 mm at distal implants. According to Student t test, there was no significant within-group difference in bone loss and no difference between the immediate-loading and delayed-loading groups. The only prosthesis-related complications that differed significantly between groups were "condition of the acrylic base," "occlusion," and "presence of right cover screw." There was no statistically significant association of lever arm ratio with peri-implant bone loss or bone loss on the mesial surfaces compared to the distal surfaces of the distal implants. The three-implant-supported fixed prosthesis protocol tested in this study proved to be a viable therapeutic strategy for mandibular edentulous patients with maxillary complete dentures, regardless of whether loading was immediate or delayed, with no difference in peri-implant bone loss.

Surface modification and fatigue behavior of nitinol for load bearing implants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bernard, Sheldon A.

Musculoskeletal disorders are recognized amongst the most significant human health problems that exist today. Even though considerable research and development has gone towards understanding musculoskeletal disorders, there is still lack of bone replacement materials that are appropriate for restoring lost structures and functions, particularly for load-bearing applications. Many materials on the market today, such as titanium and stainless steel, suffer from significantly higher modulus than natural bone and low bioactivity leading to stress shielding and implant loosening over longer time use. Nitinol (NiTi) is an equiatomic intermetallic compound of nickel and titanium whose unique biomechanical and biological properties contributed to its increasing use as a biomaterial. An innovative method for creating dense and porous net shape NiTi alloy parts has been developed to improve biological properties while maintaining comparable or better mechanical properties than commercial materials that are currently in use. Laser engineered net shaping (LENS(TM)) and surface electrochemistry modification was used to create dense/porous samples and micro textured surfaces on NiTi parts, respectively. Porous implants are known to promote cell adhesion and have a low elastic modulus, a combination that can significantly increase the life of an implant. However, porosity can significantly reduce the fatigue life of an implant, and very little work has been reported on the fatigue behavior of bulk porous metals, specifically on porous nitinol alloy. High-cycle rotating bending and compression-compression fatigue behavior of porous NiTi fabricated using LENS(TM) were studied. In cyclic compression loading, plastic strain increased with increasing porosity and it was evident that maximum strain was achieved during the first 50000 cycles and remained constant throughout the remaining loading. No failures were observed due to loading up to 150% of the yield strength. When subjected to rotary bending fatigue, samples demonstrated a high tolerance to failure, up to 50% of the yield stress. Using anodization, improvements to the surface wettability were made by lowering the contact angle from 32° to less than 5°, which prove to enhance the bioactivity of the nitinol surface in the cell study. The surface free energy was also calculated to show comparable properties to that of cpTi. Ni ion release was studied over a 8 week duration and found that anodization not only reduces the amount of metal ion release but also decreases the rate of release as well. This work was aimed at understanding the effects of porosity characteristics, microstructure, surface morphology and fatigue behavior of nitinol on its mechanical and biological properties.

Two-body wear rate of PEEK, CAD/CAM resin composite and PMMA: Effect of specimen geometries, antagonist materials and test set-up configuration.

PubMed

Wimmer, Timea; Huffmann, Anne Mildred Sophie; Eichberger, Marlis; Schmidlin, Patrick R; Stawarczyk, Bogna

2016-06-01

To test and compare the two-body wear rate of three CAD/CAM polymer materials and the influence of specimen geometry, antagonist material and test set-up configuration. Three CAD/CAM polymeric materials were assessed: a thermoplastic polyetheretherketone (PEEK), an experimental nanohybrid composite (COMP) and a PMMA-based material (PMMA). Crown-shaped and flat specimens were prepared from each material. The specimens underwent thermo-mechanical loading (50N, 5/55°C; 600,000 chewing cycles) opposed to human enamel and stainless steel antagonists. Half of the specimens of each group were loaded with a sliding movement of 0.7mm, the remaining half without. Thereby, 24 different test set-ups were investigated (n=12). Wear of the materials and antagonists was evaluated with a match-3D procedure. The topography of all surfaces was examined with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Data were statistically evaluated with four-/one-way ANOVA followed by Scheffé post hoc test and unpaired t-test (p<0.05). All PEEK specimens showed significantly less material loss than COMP and PMMA specimens when loaded laterally. Within the axial loaded groups this was only true for the flat specimens tested with enamel antagonists. Crown specimens of these groups exhibited lower loss values than flat ones. Lateral force application led mostly to significantly higher material loss than the axial load application. On the antagonist side, no impact of CAD/CAM polymer material, antagonist material, force application and specimen geometry was found. Wear of PEEK was lower than that of the resin-based materials when lateral forces were applied, but showed comparable antagonist wear rates at the same time. Copyright © 2016 Academy of Dental Materials. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cavitation erosion prediction based on analysis of flow dynamics and impact load spectra

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

Mihatsch, Michael S., E-mail: michael.mihatsch@aer.mw.tum.de; Schmidt, Steffen J.; Adams, Nikolaus A.

2015-10-15

Cavitation erosion is the consequence of repeated collapse-induced high pressure-loads on a material surface. The present paper assesses the prediction of impact load spectra of cavitating flows, i.e., the rate and intensity distribution of collapse events based on a detailed analysis of flow dynamics. Data are obtained from a numerical simulation which employs a density-based finite volume method, taking into account the compressibility of both phases, and resolves collapse-induced pressure waves. To determine the spectrum of collapse events in the fluid domain, we detect and quantify the collapse of isolated vapor structures. As reference configuration we consider the expansion ofmore » a liquid into a radially divergent gap which exhibits unsteady sheet and cloud cavitation. Analysis of simulation data shows that global cavitation dynamics and dominant flow events are well resolved, even though the spatial resolution is too coarse to resolve individual vapor bubbles. The inviscid flow model recovers increasingly fine-scale vapor structures and collapses with increasing resolution. We demonstrate that frequency and intensity of these collapse events scale with grid resolution. Scaling laws based on two reference lengths are introduced for this purpose. We show that upon applying these laws impact load spectra recorded on experimental and numerical pressure sensors agree with each other. Furthermore, correlation between experimental pitting rates and collapse-event rates is found. Locations of high maximum wall pressures and high densities of collapse events near walls obtained numerically agree well with areas of erosion damage in the experiment. The investigation shows that impact load spectra of cavitating flows can be inferred from flow data that captures the main vapor structures and wave dynamics without the need for resolving all flow scales.« less

Occurrence and fate of carbamazepine, clofibric acid, diclofenac, ibuprofen, ketoprofen, and naproxen in surface waters.

PubMed

Tixier, Céline; Singer, Heinz P; Oellers, Sjef; Müller, Stephan R

2003-03-15

Although various single-concentration measurements of pharmaceuticals are available in the literature, detailed information on the variation over time of the concentration and the load in wastewater effluents and rivers and on the fate of these compounds in the aquatic environment are lacking. We measured the concentrations of six pharmaceuticals, carbamazepine, clofibric acid, diclofenac, ibuprofen, ketoprofen, and naproxen, in the effluents of three wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), in two rivers and in the water column of Lake Greifensee (Switzerland) over a time period of three months. In WWTP effluents, the concentrations reached 0.95 microg/L for carbamazepine, 0.06 microg/L for clofibric acid, 0.99 microg/L for diclofenac, 1.3 microg/L for ibuprofen, 0.18 microg/L for ketoprofen, and 2.6 microg/L for naproxen. The relative importance in terms of loads was carbamazepine, followed by diclofenac, naproxen, ibuprofen, clofibric acid, and ketoprofen. An overall removal rate of all these pharmaceuticals was estimated in surface waters, under real-world conditions (in a lake), using field measurements and modeling. Carbamazepine and clofibric acid were fairly persistent. Phototransformation was identified as the main elimination process of diclofenac in the lake water during the study period. With a relatively high sorption coefficient to particles, ibuprofen might be eliminated by sedimentation. For ketoprofen and naproxen, biodegradation and phototransformation might be elimination processes. For the first time, quantitative data regarding removal rates were determined in surface waters under real-world conditions. All these findings are important data for a risk assessment of these compounds in surface waters.

Virus and host-specific differences in oral human herpesvirus shedding kinetics among Ugandan women and children.

PubMed

Matrajt, Laura; Gantt, Soren; Mayer, Bryan T; Krantz, Elizabeth M; Orem, Jackson; Wald, Anna; Corey, Lawrence; Schiffer, Joshua T; Casper, Corey

2017-10-12

Human herpesviruses (HHV) establish lifelong latent infection and are transmitted primarily via shedding at mucosal surfaces. Each HHV causes a unique spectrum of disease depending on the infected individual's age and immunity. We collected weekly oral swabs from young children and mothers in 32 Ugandan households for a median of one year. We characterized kinetics of oral shedding during primary and chronic infection for each virus. Cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), and HHV-6 were shed at high rates following primary infection. The rate of oral herpes simplex virus (HSV) shedding was lower overall, and children and mothers with chronic HSV infection had lower shedding rates than children with primary infection. CMV shedding rate and viral load were higher in children with primary infection compared to children with chronic infection, and even lower in mothers with chronic infection. HHV-6 shedding rate and viral load were similar between children with primary or chronic infection, but lower in mothers. EBV shedding rate and quantity decreased less dramatically in mothers versus children, with HIV-positive mothers shedding at a higher rate than HIV-negative mothers. Each HHV has a distinct pattern of oral shedding which depends partially on the age and immune status of the host.

Dissolution Rate Enhancement of Repaglinide Using Dietary Fiber as a Promising Carrier.

PubMed

Chatap, Vivekanand K; Patil, Savita D

2016-01-01

In present investigation, an innovative attempt has been made to enhance the solubility and dissolution rate of Repaglinide (RPGD) using hydrothermally treated water insoluble dietary bamboo fibers (HVBF) as potential nutraceutical used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus. RPGD was selected as a model drug due to its low aqueous solubility and dissolution rate. Characterization of HVBF demonstrated the outstanding features like high surface area, maximum drug loading and increase dissolution rate and making HVBF as an excellent drug carrier. RHVBF (Repaglinide loaded HVBF) tablets were prepared using direct compression method. Pre and post-compression parameters for blend and tablets were studied and found within acceptable limits. RHVBF and tablet showed significantly improved dissolution rate, when compared with pure crystalline RPGD, physical mixture, RVBF and commercial marketed tablet. This fact was further supported by FT-IR, DSC, XRPD and FESEM studies followed by in-vitro drug release profile. Stability studies showed no changes after exposing to accelerated conditions for a period of 3 months with respect to physical characteristics and in-vitro drug release studies. In a nut shell, it can be concluded that HVBF is a novel, smart and promising carrier for poorly water soluble drugs, when administered orally.

Dynamic Fracture Properties of Rocks Subjected to Static Pre-load Using Notched Semi-circular Bend Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Rong; Li, Kang; Xia, Kaiwen; Lin, Yuliang; Yao, Wei; Lu, Fangyun

2016-10-01

A dynamic load superposed on a static pre-load is a key problem in deep underground rock engineering projects. Based on a modified split Hopkinson pressure bar test system, the notched semi-circular bend (NSCB) method is selected to investigate the fracture initiation toughness of rocks subjected to pre-load. In this study, a two-dimensional ANSYS finite element simulation model is developed to calculate the dimensionless stress intensity factor. Three groups of NSCB specimen are tested under a pre-load of 0, 37 and 74 % of the maximum static load and with the loading rate ranging from 0 to 60 GPa m1/2 s-1. The results show that under a given pre-load, the fracture initiation toughness of rock increases with the loading rate, resembling the typical rate dependence of materials. Furthermore, the dynamic rock fracture toughness decreases with the static pre-load at a given loading rate. The total fracture toughness, defined as the sum of the dynamic fracture toughness and initial stress intensity factor calculated from the pre-load, increases with the pre-load at a given loading rate. An empirical equation is used to represent the effect of loading rate and pre-load force, and the results show that this equation can depict the trend of the experimental data.

Thin Film Delamination Using a High Power Pulsed Laser Materials Interaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sherman, Bradley

Thin films attached to substrates are only effective while the film is adhered to the substrate. When the film begins to spall the whole system can fail, thus knowing the working strength of the film substrate system is important when designing structures. Surface acoustic waves (SAWs) are suitable for characterization of thin film mechanical properties due to the confinement of their energy within a shallow depth from a material surface. In this project, we study the feasibility of inducing dynamic interfacial failure in thin films using surface waves generated by a high power pulsed laser. Surface acoustic waves are modeled using a finite element numerical code, where the ablative interaction between the pulsed laser and the incident film is modeled using equivalent surface mechanical stresses. The numerical results are validated using experimental results from a laser ultrasonic setup. Once validated the normal film-substrate interfacial stress can be extracted from the numerical code and tends to be in the mega-Pascal range. This study uses pulsed laser generation to produce SAW in various metallic thin film/substrate systems. Each system varies in its response based on its dispersive relationship and as such requires individualized numerical modeling to match the experimental data. In addition to pulsed SAW excitation using an ablative source, a constrained thermo-mechanical load produced by the ablation of a metal film under a polymer layer is explored to generate larger dynamic mechanical stresses. These stresses are sufficient to delaminate the thin film in a manner similar to a peel test. However, since the loading is produced by a pulsed laser source, it occurs at a much faster rate, limiting the influence of slower damage modes that are present in quasi-static loading. This approach is explored to predict the interfacial fracture toughness of weak thin film interfaces.

Prediction of wax buildup in 24 inch cold, deep sea oil loading line

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

Asperger, R.G.; Sattler, R.E.; Tolonen, W.J.

1981-10-01

When designing pipelines for cold environments, it is important to know how to predict potential problems due to wax deposition on the pipeline's inner surface. The goal of this work was to determine the rate of wax buildup and the maximum, equlibrium wax thickness for a North Sea field loading line. The experimental techniques and results used to evaluate the waxing potential of the crude oil (B) are described. Also, the theoretic model which was used for predicting the maximum wax deposit thickness in the crude oil (B) loading pipeline at controlled temperatures of 40 F (4.4 C) and 100more » F (38 C), is illustrated. Included is a recommendation of a procedure for using hot oil at the end of a tanker loading period in order to dewax the crude oil (B) line. This technique would give maximum heating of the pipeline and should be followed by shutting the hot oil into the pipeline at the end of the loading cycle which will provide a hot oil soaking to help soften existing wax. 14 references.« less

Biomechanical investigation of a novel ratcheting arthrodesis nail.

PubMed

McCormick, Jeremy J; Li, Xinning; Weiss, Douglas R; Billiar, Kristen L; Wixted, John J

2010-10-14

Knee or tibiotalocalcaneal arthrodesis is a salvage procedure, often with unacceptable rates of nonunion. Basic science of fracture healing suggests that compression across a fusion site may decrease nonunion. A novel ratcheting arthrodesis nail designed to improve dynamic compression is mechanically tested in comparison to existing nails. A novel ratcheting nail was designed and mechanically tested in comparison to a solid nail and a threaded nail using sawbones models (Pacific Research Laboratories, Inc.). Intramedullary nails (IM) were implanted with a load cell (Futek LTH 500) between fusion surfaces. Constructs were then placed into a servo-hydraulic test frame (Model 858 Mini-bionix, MTS Systems) for application of 3 mm and 6 mm dynamic axial displacement (n = 3/group). Load to failure was also measured. Mean percent of initial load after 3-mm and 6-mm displacement was 190.4% and 186.0% for the solid nail, 80.7% and 63.0% for the threaded nail, and 286.4% and 829.0% for the ratcheting nail, respectively. Stress-shielding (as percentage of maximum load per test) after 3-mm and 6-mm displacement averaged 34.8% and 28.7% (solid nail), 40.3% and 40.9% (threaded nail), and 18.5% and 11.5% (ratcheting nail), respectively. In the 6-mm trials, statistically significant increase in initial load and decrease in stress-shielding for the ratcheting vs. solid nail (p = 0.029, p = 0.001) and vs. threaded nail (p = 0.012, p = 0.002) was observed. Load to failure for the ratcheting nail; 599.0 lbs, threaded nail; 508.8 lbs, and solid nail; 688.1 lbs. With significantly increase of compressive load while decreasing stress-shielding at 6-mm of dynamic displacement, the ratcheting mechanism in IM nails may clinically improve rates of fusion.

Biomechanical investigation of a novel ratcheting arthrodesis nail

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Knee or tibiotalocalcaneal arthrodesis is a salvage procedure, often with unacceptable rates of nonunion. Basic science of fracture healing suggests that compression across a fusion site may decrease nonunion. A novel ratcheting arthrodesis nail designed to improve dynamic compression is mechanically tested in comparison to existing nails. Methods A novel ratcheting nail was designed and mechanically tested in comparison to a solid nail and a threaded nail using sawbones models (Pacific Research Laboratories, Inc.). Intramedullary nails (IM) were implanted with a load cell (Futek LTH 500) between fusion surfaces. Constructs were then placed into a servo-hydraulic test frame (Model 858 Mini-bionix, MTS Systems) for application of 3 mm and 6 mm dynamic axial displacement (n = 3/group). Load to failure was also measured. Results Mean percent of initial load after 3-mm and 6-mm displacement was 190.4% and 186.0% for the solid nail, 80.7% and 63.0% for the threaded nail, and 286.4% and 829.0% for the ratcheting nail, respectively. Stress-shielding (as percentage of maximum load per test) after 3-mm and 6-mm displacement averaged 34.8% and 28.7% (solid nail), 40.3% and 40.9% (threaded nail), and 18.5% and 11.5% (ratcheting nail), respectively. In the 6-mm trials, statistically significant increase in initial load and decrease in stress-shielding for the ratcheting vs. solid nail (p = 0.029, p = 0.001) and vs. threaded nail (p = 0.012, p = 0.002) was observed. Load to failure for the ratcheting nail; 599.0 lbs, threaded nail; 508.8 lbs, and solid nail; 688.1 lbs. Conclusion With significantly increase of compressive load while decreasing stress-shielding at 6-mm of dynamic displacement, the ratcheting mechanism in IM nails may clinically improve rates of fusion. PMID:20942976

FASTRAN II - FATIGUE CRACK GROWTH STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS (UNIX VERSION)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Newman, J. C.

1994-01-01

Predictions of fatigue crack growth behavior can be made with the Fatigue Crack Growth Structural Analysis (FASTRAN II) computer program. As cyclic loads are applied to a selected crack configuration with an initial crack size, FASTRAN II predicts crack growth as a function of cyclic load history until either a desired crack size is reached or failure occurs. FASTRAN II is based on plasticity-induced crack-closure behavior of cracks in metallic materials and accounts for load-interaction effects, such as retardation and acceleration, under variable-amplitude loading. The closure model is based on the Dugdale model with modifications to allow plastically deformed material to be left along the crack surfaces as the crack grows. Plane stress and plane strain conditions, as well as conditions between these two, can be simulated in FASTRAN II by using a constraint factor on tensile yielding at the crack front to approximately account for three-dimensional stress states. FASTRAN II contains seventeen predefined crack configurations (standard laboratory fatigue crack growth rate specimens and many common crack configurations found in structures); and the user can define one additional crack configuration. The baseline crack growth rate properties (effective stress-intensity factor against crack growth rate) may be given in either equation or tabular form. For three-dimensional crack configurations, such as surface cracks or corner cracks at holes or notches, the fatigue crack growth rate properties may be different in the crack depth and crack length directions. Final failure of the cracked structure can be modelled with fracture toughness properties using either linear-elastic fracture mechanics (brittle materials), a two-parameter fracture criterion (brittle to ductile materials), or plastic collapse (extremely ductile materials). The crack configurations in FASTRAN II can be subjected to either constant-amplitude, variable-amplitude or spectrum loading. The applied loads may be either tensile or compressive. Several standardized aircraft flight-load histories, such as TWIST, Mini-TWIST, FALSTAFF, Inverted FALSTAFF, Felix and Gaussian, are included as options. FASTRAN II also includes two other methods that will help the user input spectrum load histories. The two methods are: (1) a list of stress points, and (2) a flight-by-flight history of stress points. Examples are provided in the user manual. Developed as a research program, FASTRAN II has successfully predicted crack growth in many metallic materials under various aircraft spectrum loading. A computer program DKEFF which is a part of the FASTRAN II package was also developed to analyze crack growth rate data from laboratory specimens to obtain the effective stress-intensity factor against crack growth rate relations used in FASTRAN II. FASTRAN II is written in standard FORTRAN 77. It has been successfully compiled and implemented on Sun4 series computers running SunOS and on IBM PC compatibles running MS-DOS using the Lahey F77L FORTRAN compiler. Sample input and output data are included with the FASTRAN II package. The UNIX version requires 660K of RAM for execution. The standard distribution medium for the UNIX version (LAR-14865) is a .25 inch streaming magnetic tape cartridge in UNIX tar format. It is also available on a 3.5 inch diskette in UNIX tar format. The standard distribution medium for the MS-DOS version (LAR-14944) is a 5.25 inch 360K MS-DOS format diskette. The contents of the diskette are compressed using the PKWARE archiving tools. The utility to unarchive the files, PKUNZIP.EXE, is included. The program was developed in 1984 and revised in 1992. Sun4 and SunOS are trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. IBM PC is a trademark of International Business Machines Corp. MS-DOS is a trademark of Microsoft, Inc. F77L is a trademark of the Lahey Computer Systems, Inc. UNIX is a registered trademark of AT&T Bell Laboratories. PKWARE and PKUNZIP are trademarks of PKWare, Inc.

FASTRAN II - FATIGUE CRACK GROWTH STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS (IBM PC VERSION)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Newman, J. C.

1994-01-01

Predictions of fatigue crack growth behavior can be made with the Fatigue Crack Growth Structural Analysis (FASTRAN II) computer program. As cyclic loads are applied to a selected crack configuration with an initial crack size, FASTRAN II predicts crack growth as a function of cyclic load history until either a desired crack size is reached or failure occurs. FASTRAN II is based on plasticity-induced crack-closure behavior of cracks in metallic materials and accounts for load-interaction effects, such as retardation and acceleration, under variable-amplitude loading. The closure model is based on the Dugdale model with modifications to allow plastically deformed material to be left along the crack surfaces as the crack grows. Plane stress and plane strain conditions, as well as conditions between these two, can be simulated in FASTRAN II by using a constraint factor on tensile yielding at the crack front to approximately account for three-dimensional stress states. FASTRAN II contains seventeen predefined crack configurations (standard laboratory fatigue crack growth rate specimens and many common crack configurations found in structures); and the user can define one additional crack configuration. The baseline crack growth rate properties (effective stress-intensity factor against crack growth rate) may be given in either equation or tabular form. For three-dimensional crack configurations, such as surface cracks or corner cracks at holes or notches, the fatigue crack growth rate properties may be different in the crack depth and crack length directions. Final failure of the cracked structure can be modelled with fracture toughness properties using either linear-elastic fracture mechanics (brittle materials), a two-parameter fracture criterion (brittle to ductile materials), or plastic collapse (extremely ductile materials). The crack configurations in FASTRAN II can be subjected to either constant-amplitude, variable-amplitude or spectrum loading. The applied loads may be either tensile or compressive. Several standardized aircraft flight-load histories, such as TWIST, Mini-TWIST, FALSTAFF, Inverted FALSTAFF, Felix and Gaussian, are included as options. FASTRAN II also includes two other methods that will help the user input spectrum load histories. The two methods are: (1) a list of stress points, and (2) a flight-by-flight history of stress points. Examples are provided in the user manual. Developed as a research program, FASTRAN II has successfully predicted crack growth in many metallic materials under various aircraft spectrum loading. A computer program DKEFF which is a part of the FASTRAN II package was also developed to analyze crack growth rate data from laboratory specimens to obtain the effective stress-intensity factor against crack growth rate relations used in FASTRAN II. FASTRAN II is written in standard FORTRAN 77. It has been successfully compiled and implemented on Sun4 series computers running SunOS and on IBM PC compatibles running MS-DOS using the Lahey F77L FORTRAN compiler. Sample input and output data are included with the FASTRAN II package. The UNIX version requires 660K of RAM for execution. The standard distribution medium for the UNIX version (LAR-14865) is a .25 inch streaming magnetic tape cartridge in UNIX tar format. It is also available on a 3.5 inch diskette in UNIX tar format. The standard distribution medium for the MS-DOS version (LAR-14944) is a 5.25 inch 360K MS-DOS format diskette. The contents of the diskette are compressed using the PKWARE archiving tools. The utility to unarchive the files, PKUNZIP.EXE, is included. The program was developed in 1984 and revised in 1992. Sun4 and SunOS are trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. IBM PC is a trademark of International Business Machines Corp. MS-DOS is a trademark of Microsoft, Inc. F77L is a trademark of the Lahey Computer Systems, Inc. UNIX is a registered trademark of AT&T Bell Laboratories. PKWARE and PKUNZIP are trademarks of PKWare, Inc.

Verification of Experimental Techniques for Flow Surface Determination

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lissenden, Cliff J.; Lerch, Bradley A.; Ellis, John R.; Robinson, David N.

1996-01-01

The concept of a yield surface is central to the mathematical formulation of a classical plasticity theory. However, at elevated temperatures, material response can be highly time-dependent, which is beyond the realm of classical plasticity. Viscoplastic theories have been developed for just such conditions. In viscoplastic theories, the flow law is given in terms of inelastic strain rate rather than the inelastic strain increment used in time-independent plasticity. Thus, surfaces of constant inelastic strain rate or flow surfaces are to viscoplastic theories what yield surfaces are to classical plasticity. The purpose of the work reported herein was to validate experimental procedures for determining flow surfaces at elevated temperatures. Since experimental procedures for determining yield surfaces in axial/torsional stress space are well established, they were employed -- except inelastic strain rates were used rather than total inelastic strains. In yield-surface determinations, the use of small-offset definitions of yield minimizes the change of material state and allows multiple loadings to be applied to a single specimen. The key to the experiments reported here was precise, decoupled measurement of axial and torsional strain. With this requirement in mind, the performance of a high-temperature multi-axial extensometer was evaluated by comparing its results with strain gauge results at room temperature. Both the extensometer and strain gauges gave nearly identical yield surfaces (both initial and subsequent) for type 316 stainless steel (316 SS). The extensometer also successfully determined flow surfaces for 316 SS at 650 C. Furthermore, to judge the applicability of the technique for composite materials, yield surfaces were determined for unidirectional tungsten/Kanthal (Fe-Cr-Al).

The tensile effect on crack formation in single crystal silicon irradiated by intense pulsed ion beam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liang, Guoying; Shen, Jie; Zhang, Jie; Zhong, Haowen; Cui, Xiaojun; Yan, Sha; Zhang, Xiaofu; Yu, Xiao; Le, Xiaoyun

2017-10-01

Improving antifatigue performance of silicon substrate is very important for the development of semiconductor industry. The cracking behavior of silicon under intense pulsed ion beam irradiation was studied by numerical simulation in order to understand the mechanism of induced surface peeling observed by experimental means. Using molecular dynamics simulation based on Stillinger Weber potential, tensile effect on crack growth and propagation in single crystal silicon was investigated. Simulation results reveal that stress-strain curves of single crystal silicon at a constant strain rate can be divided into three stages, which are not similar to metal stress-strain curves; different tensile load velocities induce difference of single silicon crack formation speed; the layered stress results in crack formation in single crystal silicon. It is concluded that the crack growth and propagation is more sensitive to strain rate, tensile load velocity, stress distribution in single crystal silicon.

Influence of the heater material on the critical heat load at boiling of liquids on surfaces with different sizes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anokhina, E. V.

2010-05-01

Data on critical heat loads q cr for the saturated and unsaturated pool boiling of water and ethanol under atmospheric pressure are reported. It is found experimentally that the critical heat load does not necessarily coincide with the heat load causing burnout of the heater, which should be taken into account. The absolute values of q cr for the boiling of water and ethanol on copper surfaces 65, 80, 100, 120, and 200 μm in diameter; tungsten surface 100 μm in diameter; and nichrome surface 100 μm in diameter are obtained experimentally.

Absorption Study of Genistein Using Solid Lipid Microparticles and Nanoparticles: Control of Oral Bioavailability by Particle Sizes.

PubMed

Kim, Jeong Tae; Barua, Sonia; Kim, Hyeongmin; Hong, Seong-Chul; Yoo, Seung-Yup; Jeon, Hyojin; Cho, Yeongjin; Gil, Sangwon; Oh, Kyungsoo; Lee, Jaehwi

2017-07-01

In this study, the effect of particle size of genistein-loaded solid lipid particulate systems on drug dissolution behavior and oral bioavailability was investigated. Genistein-loaded solid lipid microparticles and nanoparticles were prepared with glyceryl palmitostearate. Except for the particle size, other properties of genistein-loaded solid lipid microparticles and nanoparticles such as particle composition and drug loading efficiency and amount were similarly controlled to mainly evaluate the effect of different particle sizes of the solid lipid particulate systems on drug dissolution behavior and oral bioavailability. The results showed that genistein-loaded solid lipid microparticles and nanoparticles exhibited a considerably increased drug dissolution rate compared to that of genistein bulk powder and suspension. The microparticles gradually released genistein as a function of time while the nanoparticles exhibited a biphasic drug release pattern, showing an initial burst drug release, followed by a sustained release. The oral bioavailability of genistein loaded in solid lipid microparticles and nanoparticles in rats was also significantly enhanced compared to that in bulk powders and the suspension. However, the bioavailability from the microparticles increased more than that from the nanoparticles mainly because the rapid drug dissolution rate and rapid absorption of genistein because of the large surface area of the genistein-solid lipid nanoparticles cleared the drug to a greater extent than the genistein-solid lipid microparticles did. Therefore, the findings of this study suggest that controlling the particle size of solid-lipid particulate systems at a micro-scale would be a promising strategy to increase the oral bioavailability of genistein.

The effective elastic thickness of the lithosphere in the collision zone between Arabia and Eurasia in Iran

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zamani, Ahmad; Samiee, Jafar; Kirby, Jon F.

2014-11-01

The effective elastic thickness, Te, has been calculated in the collision zone between Arabia and Eurasia in Iran from the wavelet coherence. The wavelet coherence is calculated from Bouguer anomalies and topography data using the isotropic fan wavelet method, and gives Te values between 14.2 and 62.2 km. The lower value is found in the Central Iranian Blocks and the East Iranian Belt which are bounded by several large strike-slip faults with lithospheric origin. The higher value occurs in the east of the South Caspian Sea Basin. The resulting Te map shows positive and negative correlation with shear wave velocity and surface heat flow, respectively. A comparison between the seismogenic thickness (Ts) and Te in Iran suggests that Te > Ts. Results of the load ratio in Iran indicate that in most of the study area surface loads are much more prevalent than subsurface loads, except in the Central Iranian Blocks and NW of Iran. Intermediate to low Te values in Iran were inherited from multiple rifting and orogenic activities from Late Precambrian (∼650 Ma) to present day which are not only reflected in thin and warm lithosphere but also an increasing seismicity rate.

Titanium Surface Priming with Phase-Transited Lysozyme to Establish a Silver Nanoparticle-Loaded Chitosan/Hyaluronic Acid Antibacterial Multilayer via Layer-by-Layer Self-Assembly.

PubMed

Zhong, Xue; Song, Yunjia; Yang, Peng; Wang, Yao; Jiang, Shaoyun; Zhang, Xu; Li, Changyi

2016-01-01

The formation of biofilm around implants, which is induced by immediate bacterial colonization after installation, is the primary cause of post-operation infection. Initial surface modification is usually required to incorporate antibacterial agents on titanium (Ti) surfaces to inhibit biofilm formation. However, simple and effective priming methods are still lacking for the development of an initial functional layer as a base for subsequent coatings on titanium surfaces. The purpose of our work was to establish a novel initial layer on Ti surfaces using phase-transited lysozyme (PTL), on which multilayer coatings can incorporate silver nanoparticles (AgNP) using chitosan (CS) and hyaluronic acid (HA) via a layer-by-layer (LbL) self-assembly technique. In this study, the surfaces of Ti substrates were primed by dipping into a mixture of lysozyme and tris(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine (TCEP) to obtain PTL-functionalized Ti substrates. The subsequent alternating coatings of HA and chitosan loaded with AgNP onto the precursor layer of PTL were carried out via LbL self-assembly to construct multilayer coatings on Ti substrates. The results of SEM and XPS indicated that the necklace-like PTL and self-assembled multilayer were successfully immobilized on the Ti substrates. The multilayer coatings loaded with AgNP can kill planktonic and adherent bacteria to 100% during the first 4 days. The antibacterial efficacy of the samples against planktonic and adherent bacteria achieved 65%-90% after 14 days. The sustained release of Ag over 14 days can prevent bacterial invasion until mucosa healing. Although the AgNP-containing structure showed some cytotoxicity, the toxicity can be reduced by controlling the Ag release rate and concentration. The PTL priming method provides a promising strategy for fabricating long-term antibacterial multilayer coatings on titanium surfaces via the LbL self-assembly technique, which is effective in preventing implant-associated infections in the early stage.

The simulated effects of wastewater-management actions on the hydrologic system and nitrogen-loading rates to wells and ecological receptors, Popponesset Bay Watershed, Cape Cod, Massachusetts

USGS Publications Warehouse

Walter, Donald A.

2013-01-01

The discharge of excess nitrogen into Popponesset Bay, an estuarine system on western Cape Cod, has resulted in eutrophication and the loss of eel grass habitat within the estuaries. Septic-system return flow in residential areas within the watershed is the primary source of nitrogen. Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for nitrogen have been assigned to the six estuaries that compose the system, and local communities are in the process of implementing the TMDLs by the partial sewering, treatment, and disposal of treated wastewater at wastewater-treatment facilities (WTFs). Loads of waste-derived nitrogen from both current (1997–2001) and future sources can be estimated implicitly from parcel-scale water-use data and recharge areas delineated by a groundwater-flow model. These loads are referred to as “instantaneous” loads because it is assumed that the nitrogen from surface sources is delivered to receptors instantaneously and that there is no traveltime through the aquifer. The use of a solute-transport model to explicitly simulate the transport of mass through the aquifer from sources to receptors can improve implementation of TMDLs by (1) accounting for traveltime through the aquifer, (2) avoiding limitations associated with the estimation of loads from static recharge areas, (3) accounting more accurately for the effect of surface waters on nitrogen loads, and (4) determining the response of waste-derived nitrogen loads to potential wastewater-management actions. The load of nitrogen to Popponesset Bay on western Cape Cod, which was estimated by using current sources as input to a solute-transport model based on a steady-state flow model, is about 50 percent of the instantaneous load after about 7 years of transport (loads to estuary are equal to loads discharged from sources); this estimate is consistent with simulated advective traveltimes in the aquifer, which have a median of 5 years. Model-calculated loads originating from recharge areas reach 80 percent of the instantaneous load within 30 years; this result indicates that loads estimated from recharge areas likely are reasonable for estimating current instantaneous loads. However, recharge areas are assumed to remain static as stresses and hydrologic conditions change in response to wastewater-management actions. Sewering of the Popponesset Bay watershed would not change hydraulic gradients and recharge areas to receptors substantially; however, disposal of wastewater from treatment facilities can change hydraulic gradients and recharge areas to nearby receptors, particularly if the facilities are near the boundary of the recharge area. In these cases, nitrogen loads implicitly estimated by using current recharge areas that do not accurately represent future hydraulic stresses can differ significantly from loads estimated with recharge areas that do represent those stresses. Nitrogen loads to two estuaries in the Popponesset Bay system estimated by using recharge areas delineated for future hydrologic conditions and nitrogen sources were about 3 and 9 times higher than loads estimated by using current recharge areas; for this reason, reliance on static recharge areas can present limitations for effective TMDL implementation by means of a hypothetical, but realistic, wastewater-management action. A solute-transport model explicitly represents nitrogen transport from surface sources and does not rely on the use of recharge areas; because changes in gradients resulting from wastewater-management actions are accounted for in transport simulations, they provide more reliable predictions of future nitrogen loads. Explicitly representing the mass transport of nitrogen can better account for the mechanisms by which nitrogen enters the estuary and improve estimates of the attenuation of nitrogen concentrations in fresh surface waters. Water and associated nitrogen can enter an estuary as either direct groundwater discharge or as surface-water inflow. Two estuaries in the Popponesset Bay watershed receive surface-water inflows: Shoestring Bay receives water from the Santuit River, and the tidal reach of the Mashpee River receives water (and associated nitrogen) from the nontidal reach of the Mashpee River. Much of the water discharging into these streams passes through ponds prior to discharge. The additional attenuation of nitrogen in groundwater that has passed through a pond and discharged into a stream prior to entering an estuary is about 3 kilograms per day. Advective-transport times in the aquifer generally are small—median traveltimes are about 4.5 years—and nitrogen loads at receptors respond quickly to wastewater-management actions. The simulated decreases in nitrogen loads were 50 and 80 percent of the total decreases within 5 and 15 years, respectively, after full sewering of the watershed and within 3 and 10 years, for sequential phases of partial sewering and disposal at WTFs. The results show that solute-transport models can be used to assess the responses of nitrogen loads to wastewater-management actions, and that loads at ecological receptors (receiving waters—ponds, streams or coastal waters—that support ecosystems) will respond within a few years to those actions. The responses vary for individual receptors as functions of hydrologic setting, traveltimes in the aquifer, and the unique set of nitrogen sources representing current and future wastewater-disposal actions within recharge areas. Changes in nitrogen loads from groundwater discharge to individual estuaries range from a decrease of 90 percent to an increase of 80 percent following sequential phases of hypothetical but realistic wastewater-management actions. The ability to explicitly represent the transport of mass through the aquifer allows for the evaluation of complex responses that include the effects of surface waters, traveltimes, and complex changes in sources. Most of the simulated decreases in nitrogen loads to Shoestring Bay and the tidal portion of the Mashpee River, 79 and 69 percent, respectively, were caused by decreases in the nitrogen loads from surface-water inflow.

Wear Behavior of an Ultra-High-Strength Eutectoid Steel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mishra, Alok; Maity, Joydeep

2018-02-01

Wear behavior of an ultra-high-strength AISI 1080 steel developed through incomplete austenitization-based combined cyclic heat treatment is investigated in comparison with annealed and conventional hardened and tempered conditions against an alumina disk (sliding speed = 1 m s-1) using a pin-on-disk tribometer at a load range of 7.35-14.7 N. On a gross scale, the mechanism of surface damage involves adhesive wear coupled with abrasive wear (microcutting effects in particular) at lower loads. At higher loads, mainly the abrasive wear (both microcutting and microploughing mechanisms) and evolution of adherent oxide are observed. Besides, microhardness of matrix increases with load indicating substantial strain hardening during wear test. The rate of overall wear is found to increase with load. As-received annealed steel with the lowest initial hardness suffers from severe abrasive wear, thereby exhibiting the highest wear loss. Such a severe wear loss is not observed in conventional hardened and tempered and combined cyclic heat treatment conditions. Combined cyclic heat-treated steel exhibits the greatest wear resistance (lowest wear loss) due to its initial high hardness and evolution of hard abrasion-resistant tribolayer during wear test at higher load.

Influence of Solvent on the Drug-Loading Process of Amphiphilic Nanogel Star Polymers.

PubMed

Carr, Amber C; Piunova, Victoria A; Maarof, Hasmerya; Rice, Julia E; Swope, William C

2018-05-31

We present an all-atom molecular dynamics study of the effect of a range of organic solvents (dichloromethane, diethyl ether, toluene, methanol, dimethyl sulfoxide, and tetrahydrofuran) on the conformations of a nanogel star polymeric nanoparticle with solvophobic and solvophilic structural elements. These nanoparticles are of particular interest for drug delivery applications. As drug loading generally takes place in an organic solvent, this work serves to provide insight into the factors controlling the early steps of that process. Our work suggests that nanoparticle conformational structure is highly sensitive to the choice of solvent, providing avenues for further study as well as predictions for both computational and experimental explorations of the drug-loading process. Our findings suggest that when used in the drug-loading process, dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, and toluene allow for a more extensive and increased drug-loading into the interior of nanogel star polymers of the composition studied here. In contrast, methanol is more likely to support shallow or surface loading and, consequently, faster drug release rates. Finally, diethyl ether should not work in a formulation process since none of the regions of the nanogel star polymer appear to be sufficiently solvated by it.

Short-term transport of glyphosate with erosion in Chinese loess soil--a flume experiment.

PubMed

Yang, Xiaomei; Wang, Fei; Bento, Célia P M; Xue, Sha; Gai, Lingtong; van Dam, Ruud; Mol, Hans; Ritsema, Coen J; Geissen, Violette

2015-04-15

Repeated applications of glyphosate may contaminate the soil and water and threaten their quality both within the environmental system and beyond it through water erosion related processes and leaching. In this study, we focused on the transport of glyphosate and its metabolite aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) related to soil erosion at two slope gradients (10 and 20°), two rates of pesticide with a formulation of glyphosate (Roundup®) application (360 and 720 mg m(-2)), and a rain intensity of 1.0 mm min(-1) for 1 h on bare soil in hydraulic flumes. Runoff and erosion rate were significantly different within slope gradients (p<0.05) while suspended load concentration was relatively constant after 15 min of rainfall. The glyphosate and AMPA concentration in the runoff and suspended load gradually decreased. Significant power and exponent function relationship were observed between rainfall duration and the concentration of glyphosate and AMPA (p<0.01) in runoff and suspended load, respectively. Meanwhile, glyphosate and AMPA content in the eroded material depended more on the initial rate of application than on the slope gradients. The transport rate of glyphosate by runoff and suspended load was approximately 14% of the applied amount, and the chemicals were mainly transported in the suspended load. The glyphosate and AMPA content in the flume soil at the end of the experiment decreased significantly with depth (p<0.05), and approximately 72, 2, and 3% of the applied glyphosate (including AMPA) remained in the 0-2, 2-5, and 5-10 cm soil layers, respectively. The risk of contamination in deep soil and the groundwater was thus low, but 5% of the initial application did reach the 2-10 cm soil layer. The risk of contamination of surface water through runoff and sedimentation, however, can be considerable, especially in regions where rain-induced soil erosion is common. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An experimental overview of the seismic cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spagnuolo, E.; Violay, M.; Passelegue, F. X.; Nielsen, S. B.; Di Toro, G.

2017-12-01

Earthquake nucleation is the last stage of the inter-seismic cycle where the fault surface evolves through the interplay of friction, healing, stress perturbations and strain events. Slip stability under rate-and state friction has been extensively discussed in terms of loading point velocity and equivalent fault stiffness, but fault evolution towards seismic runaway under complex loading histories (e.g. slow variations of tectonic stress, stress transfer from impulsive nearby seismic events) is not yet fully investigated. Nevertheless, the short term earthquake forecasting is based precisely on a relation between seismic productivity and loading history which remains up to date still largely unresolved. To this end we propose a novel experimental approach which avails of a closed loop control of the shear stress, a nominally infinite equivalent slip and transducers for continuous monitoring of acoustic emissions. This experimental simulation allows us to study the stress dependency and temporal evolution of spontaneous slip events occurring on a pre-existing fault subjected to different loading histories. The experimental fault has an initial roughness which mimic a population of randomly distributed asperities, which here are used as a proxy for patches which are either far or close to failure on an extended fault. Our observations suggest that the increase of shear stress may trigger either spontaneous slow slip (creep) or short-lived stick-slip bursts, eventually leading to a fast slip instability (seismic runaway) when slip rates are larger than a few cm/s. The event type and the slip rate are regulated at first order by the background shear stress whereas the ultimate strength of the entire fault is dominated by the number of asperities close to failure under a stress step. The extrapolation of these results to natural conditions might explain the plethora of events that often characterize seismic sequences. Nonetheless this experimental approach helps the definition of a scaling relation between the loading rate and cumulated slip which is relevant to the definition of a recurrence model for the seismic cycle.

Strain Gage Loads Calibration Testing of the Active Aeroelastic Wing F/A-18 Aircraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lokos, William A.; Olney, Candida D.; Chen, Tony; Crawford, Natalie D.; Stauf, Rick; Reichenbach, Eric Y.; Bessette, Denis (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

This report describes strain-gage calibration loading through the application of known loads of the Active Aeroelastic Wing F/A-18 airplane. The primary goal of this test is to produce a database suitable for deriving load equations for left and right wing root and fold shear; bending moment; torque; and all eight wing control-surface hinge moments. A secondary goal is to produce a database of wing deflections measured by string potentiometers and the onboard flight deflection measurement system. Another goal is to produce strain-gage data through both the laboratory data acquisition system and the onboard aircraft data system as a check of the aircraft system. Thirty-two hydraulic jacks have applied loads through whiffletrees to 104 tension-compression load pads bonded to the lower wing surfaces. The load pads covered approximately 60 percent of the lower wing surface. A series of 72 load cases has been performed, including single-point, double-point, and distributed load cases. Applied loads have reached 70 percent of the flight limit load. Maximum wingtip deflection has reached nearly 16 in.

Determination of mean camber surfaces for wings having uniform chordwise loading and arbitrary spanwise loading in subsonic flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Katzoff, S; Faison, M Frances; Dubose, Hugh C

1954-01-01

The field of a uniformly loaded wing in subsonic flow is discussed in terms of the acceleration potential. It is shown that, for the design of such wings, the slope of the mean camber surface at any point can be determined by a line integration around the wing boundary. By an additional line integration around the wing boundary, this method is extended to include the case where the local section lift coefficient varies with spanwise location (the chordwise loading at every section still remaining uniform). For the uniformly loaded wing of polygonal plan form, the integrations necessary to determine the local slope of the surface and the further integration of the slopes to determine the ordinate can be done analytically. An outline of these integrations and the resulting formulas are included. Calculated results are given for a sweptback wing with uniform chordwise loading and a highly tapered spanwise loading, a uniformly loaded delta wing, a uniformly loaded sweptback wing, and the same sweptback wing with uniform chordwise loading but elliptical span load distribution.

Water-quality assessment of stormwater runoff from a heavily used urban highway bridge in Miami, Florida

USGS Publications Warehouse

McKenzie, Donald J.; Irwin, G.A.

1983-01-01

Runoff from a heavily-traveled, 1.43-acre bridge section of Interstate-95 in Miami, Florida, was comprehensively monitored for both quality and quantity during five selected storms between November 1979 and May 1981. For most water-quality parameters, 6 to 11 samples were collected during each of the 5 runoff events. Concentrations of most parameters in the runoff were quite variable both during individual storm events and among the five storm events; however, the ranges in parameter concentration were about the same magnitude report for numerous other highway and urban drainages. Data were normalized to estimate the average, discharge-weighted parameter loads per storm per acre of bridge surface and results suggested that the most significant factor influencing stormwater loads was parameter concentration. Rainfall intensity and runoff volume, however, influenced rates of loading. The total number of antecedent dry days and traffic volume did not appear to be conspicously related to either runoff concentrations or loads. (USGS)

Fatigue Life Methodology for Tapered Hybrid Composite Flexbeams

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

urri, Gretchen B.; Schaff, Jeffery R.

2006-01-01

Nonlinear-tapered flexbeam specimens from a full-size composite helicopter rotor hub flexbeam were tested under combined constant axial tension and cyclic bending loads. Two different graphite/glass hybrid configurations tested under cyclic loading failed by delamination in the tapered region. A 2-D finite element model was developed which closely approximated the flexbeam geometry, boundary conditions, and loading. The analysis results from two geometrically nonlinear finite element codes, ANSYS and ABAQUS, are presented and compared. Strain energy release rates (G) associated with simulated delamination growth in the flexbeams are presented from both codes. These results compare well with each other and suggest that the initial delamination growth from the tip of the ply-drop toward the thick region of the flexbeam is strongly mode II. The peak calculated G values were used with material characterization data to calculate fatigue life curves for comparison with test data. A curve relating maximum surface strain to number of loading cycles at delamination onset compared well with the test results.

Using chloride and other ions to trace sewage and road salt in the Illinois Waterway

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kelly, W.R.; Panno, S.V.; Hackley, Keith C.; Hwang, H.-H.; Martinsek, A.T.; Markus, M.

2010-01-01

Chloride concentrations in waterways of northern USA are increasing at alarming rates and road salt is commonly assumed to be the cause. However, there are additional sources of Cl- in metropolitan areas, such as treated wastewater (TWW) and water conditioning salts, which may be contributing to Cl- loads entering surface waters. In this study, the potential sources of Cl- and Cl- loads in the Illinois River Basin from the Chicago area to the Illinois River's confluence with the Mississippi River were investigated using halide data in stream samples and published Cl- and river discharge data. The investigation showed that road salt runoff and TWW from the Chicago region dominate Cl- loads in the Illinois Waterway, defined as the navigable sections of the Illinois River and two major tributaries in the Chicago region. Treated wastewater discharges at a relatively constant rate throughout the year and is the primary source of Cl- and other elements such as F- and B. Chloride loads are highest in the winter and early spring as a result of road salt runoff which can increase Cl- concentrations by up to several hundred mg/L. Chloride concentrations decrease downstream in the Illinois Waterway due to dilution, but are always elevated relative to tributaries downriver from Chicago. The TWW component is especially noticeable downstream under low discharge conditions during summer and early autumn when surface drainage is at a minimum and agricultural drain tiles are not flowing. Increases in population, urban and residential areas, and roadways in the Chicago area have caused an increase in the flux of Cl- from both road salt and TWW. Chloride concentrations have been increasing in the Illinois Waterway since around 1960 at a rate of about 1 mg/L/a. The increase is largest in the winter months due to road salt runoff. Shallow groundwater Cl- concentrations are also increasing, potentially producing higher base flow concentrations. Projected increases in population and urbanization over the next several decades suggest that the trend of increasing Cl- concentrations and loads will continue. Given the susceptibility of aquatic ecosystems to increasing Cl- concentrations, especially short-term spikes following snow melts, deleterious effects on riverine ecosystems would be expected. ?? 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Method of energy load management using PCM for heating and cooling of buildings

DOEpatents

Stovall, T.K.; Tomlinson, J.J.

1996-03-26

A method is described for energy load management for the heating and cooling of a building. The method involves utilizing a wallboard as a portion of the building, the wallboard containing about 5 to about 30 wt.% phase change material such that melting of the phase change material occurs during a rise in temperature within the building to remove heat from the air, and a solidification of the phase change material occurs during a lowering of the temperature to dispense heat into the air. At the beginning of either of these cooling or heating cycles, the phase change material is preferably ``fully charged``. In preferred installations one type of wallboard is used on the interior surfaces of exterior walls, and another type as the surface on interior walls. The particular PCM is chosen for the desired wall and room temperature of these locations. In addition, load management is achieved by using PCM-containing wallboards that form cavities of the building such that the cavities can be used for the air handling duct and plenum system of the building. Enhanced load management is achieved by using a thermostat with reduced dead band of about the upper half of a normal dead band of over three degrees. In some applications, air circulation at a rate greater than normal convection provides additional comfort. 7 figs.

Method of energy load management using PCM for heating and cooling of buildings

DOEpatents

Stovall, Therese K.; Tomlinson, John J.

1996-01-01

A method of energy load management for the heating and cooling of a building. The method involves utilizing a wallboard as a portion of the building, the wallboard containing about 5 to about 30 wt. % a phase change material such that melting of the phase change material occurs during a rise in temperature within the building to remove heat from the air, and a solidification of the phase change material occurs during a lowering of the temperature to dispense heat into the air. At the beginning of either of these cooling or heating cycles, the phase change material is preferably "fully charged". In preferred installations one type of wallboard is used on the interior surfaces of exterior walls, and another type as the surface on interior walls. The particular PCM is chosen for the desired wall and room temperature of these locations. In addition, load management is achieved by using PCM-containing wallboard that form cavities of the building such that the cavities can be used for the air handling duct and plenum system of the building. Enhanced load management is achieved by using a thermostat with reduced dead band of about the upper half of a normal dead band of over three degree. In some applications, air circulation at a rate greater than normal convection provides additional comfort.

Method of energy load management using PCM for heating and cooling of buildings

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

Stovall, T.K.; Tomlinson, J.J.

1996-03-26

A method is described for energy load management for the heating and cooling of a building. The method involves utilizing a wallboard as a portion of the building, the wallboard containing about 5 to about 30 wt.% phase change material such that melting of the phase change material occurs during a rise in temperature within the building to remove heat from the air, and a solidification of the phase change material occurs during a lowering of the temperature to dispense heat into the air. At the beginning of either of these cooling or heating cycles, the phase change material ismore » preferably ``fully charged``. In preferred installations one type of wallboard is used on the interior surfaces of exterior walls, and another type as the surface on interior walls. The particular PCM is chosen for the desired wall and room temperature of these locations. In addition, load management is achieved by using PCM-containing wallboards that form cavities of the building such that the cavities can be used for the air handling duct and plenum system of the building. Enhanced load management is achieved by using a thermostat with reduced dead band of about the upper half of a normal dead band of over three degrees. In some applications, air circulation at a rate greater than normal convection provides additional comfort. 7 figs.« less

Effect of loading rate on the monotonic tensile behavior of a continuous-fiber-reinforced glass-ceramic matrix composite

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

Soerensen, B.F.; Holmes, J.W.

The stress-strain behavior of a continuous-fiber-reinforced ceramic matrix composite has been measured over a wide range of loading rates (0.01 to 500 MPa/s). It was found that the loading rate has a strong effect on almost every feature of the stress-strain curve: the proportionality stress, the composite strength and failure strain increase with increasing loading rate. The microstructural damage varies also with the loading rate; with increasing loading rate, the average matrix crack spacing increases and the average fiber pullout length decreases. Using simple models, it is suggested that these phenomena are caused partly by time-dependent matrix cracking (due tomore » stress corrosion) and partly by an increasing interfacial shear stress with loading rate.« less

Sediment dynamics and their potential influence on insular-slope mesophotic coral ecosystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sherman, C.; Schmidt, W.; Appeldoorn, R.; Hutchinson, Y.; Ruiz, H.; Nemeth, M.; Bejarano, I.; Motta, J. J. Cruz; Xu, H.

2016-10-01

Although sediment dynamics exert a fundamental control on the character and distribution of reefs, data on sediment dynamics in mesophotic systems are scarce. In this study, sediment traps and benthic photo-transects were used to document spatial and temporal patterns of suspended-sediment and bed-load dynamics at two geomorphically distinct mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) on the upper insular slope of southwest Puerto Rico. Trap accumulation rates of suspended sediment were relatively low and spatiotemporally uniform, averaging <1 mg cm-2 d-1 and never exceeding 3 mg cm-2 d-1 over the sampled period. In contrast, trap accumulation rates of downslope bed-load movement were orders of magnitude higher than suspended-sediment accumulation rates and highly variable, by orders of magnitude, both spatially and temporally. Percent sand cover within photo-transects varied over time from 10% to more than 40% providing further evidence of downslope sediment movement. In general, the more exposed, lower gradient site had higher rates of downslope sediment movement, higher sand cover and lower coral cover than the more sheltered and steep site that exhibited lower rates of downslope sediment movement, lower sand cover and higher coral cover. In most cases, trap accumulation rates of suspended sediment and bed load varied together and peaks in trap accumulation rates correspond to peaks in SWAN-modeled wave-orbital velocities, suggesting that surface waves may influence sediment dynamics even in mesophotic settings. Though variable, off-shelf transport of sediment is a continuous process occurring even during non-storm conditions. Continuous downslope sediment movement in conjunction with degree of exposure to prevailing seas and slope geomorphology are proposed to exert an important influence on the character and distribution of insular-slope MCEs.

Interfacial Stacks of Polymeric Nanofilms on Soft Biological Surfaces that Release Multiple Agents.

PubMed

Herron, Maggie; Schurr, Michael J; Murphy, Christopher J; McAnulty, Jonathan F; Czuprynski, Charles J; Abbott, Nicholas L

2016-10-03

We report a general and facile method that permits the transfer (stacking) of multiple independently fabricated and nanoscopically thin polymeric films, each containing a distinct bioactive agent, onto soft biomedically relevant surfaces (e.g., collagen-based wound dressings). By using polyelectrolyte multilayer films (PEMs) formed from poly(allyl amine hydrochloride) and poly(acrylic acid) as representative polymeric nanofilms and micrometer-thick water-soluble poly(vinyl alcohol) sacrificial films to stack the PEMs, we demonstrate that it is possible to create stacked polymeric constructs containing multiple bioactive agents (e.g., antimicrobial and antibiofilm agents) on soft and chemically complex surfaces onto which PEMs cannot be routinely transferred by stamping. We illustrate the characteristics and merits of the approach by fabricating stacks of Ga 3+ (antibiofilm agent)- and Ag + (antimicrobial agent)-loaded PEMs as prototypical examples of agent-containing PEMs and demonstrate that the stacked PEMs incorporate precise loadings of the agents and provide flexibility in terms of tuning release rates. Specifically, we show that simultaneous release of Ga 3+ and Ag + from the stacked PEMs on collagen-based wound dressings can lead to synergistic effects on bacteria, killing and dispersing biofilms formed by Pseudomonas aeruginosa (two strains: ATCC 27853 and MPAO1) at sufficiently low loadings of agents such that cytotoxic effects on mammalian cells are avoided. The approach is general (a wide range of bioactive agents other than Ga 3+ and Ag + can be incorporated into PEMs), and the modular nature of the approach potentially allows end-user functionalization of soft biological surfaces for programmed release of multiple bioactive agents.

Comparison of point-source pollutant loadings to soil and groundwater for 72 chemical substances.

PubMed

Yu, Soonyoung; Hwang, Sang-Il; Yun, Seong-Taek; Chae, Gitak; Lee, Dongsu; Kim, Ki-Eun

2017-11-01

Fate and transport of 72 chemicals in soil and groundwater were assessed by using a multiphase compositional model (CompFlow Bio) because some of the chemicals are non-aqueous phase liquids or solids in the original form. One metric ton of chemicals were assumed to leak in a stylized facility. Scenarios of both surface spills and subsurface leaks were considered. Simulation results showed that the fate and transport of chemicals above the water table affected the fate and transport of chemicals below the water table, and vice versa. Surface spill scenarios caused much less concentrations than subsurface leak scenarios because leaching amounts into the subsurface environment were small (at most 6% of the 1 t spill for methylamine). Then, simulation results were applied to assess point-source pollutant loadings to soil and groundwater above and below the water table, respectively, by multiplying concentrations, impact areas, and durations. These three components correspond to the intensity of contamination, mobility, and persistency in the assessment of pollutant loading, respectively. Assessment results showed that the pollutant loadings in soil and groundwater were linearly related (r 2  = 0.64). The pollutant loadings were negatively related with zero-order and first-order decay rates in both soil (r = - 0.5 and - 0.6, respectively) and groundwater (- 1.0 and - 0.8, respectively). In addition, this study scientifically defended that the soil partitioning coefficient (K d ) significantly affected the pollutant loadings in soil (r = 0.6) and the maximum masses in groundwater (r = - 0.9). However, K d was not a representative factor for chemical transportability unlike the expectation in chemical ranking systems of soil and groundwater pollutants. The pollutant loadings estimated using a physics-based hydrogeological model provided a more rational ranking for exposure assessment, compared to the summation of persistency and transportability scores in the chemical ranking systems. In the surface spill scenario, the pollutant loadings were zeros for all chemicals, except methylamine to soil whose pollutant loading was smaller than that in the subsurface leak scenario by 4 orders of magnitude. The maximum mass and the average mass multiplied by duration in soil greatly depended on leaching fluxes (r = 1.0 and 0.9, respectively), while the effect of leaching fluxes diminished below the water table. The contribution of this work is that a physics-based numerical model was used to quantitatively compare the subsurface pollutant loading in a chemical accident for 72 chemical substances, which can scientifically defend a simpler and more qualitative assessment of pollutant loadings. Besides, this study assessed pollutant loadings to soil (unsaturated zone) and groundwater (saturated zone) all together and discussed their interactions.

Cyclic plasticity models and application in fatigue analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kalev, I.

1981-01-01

An analytical procedure for prediction of the cyclic plasticity effects on both the structural fatigue life to crack initiation and the rate of crack growth is presented. The crack initiation criterion is based on the Coffin-Manson formulae extended for multiaxial stress state and for inclusion of the mean stress effect. This criterion is also applied for the accumulated damage ahead of the existing crack tip which is assumed to be related to the crack growth rate. Three cyclic plasticity models, based on the concept of combination of several yield surfaces, are employed for computing the crack growth rate of a crack plane stress panel under several cyclic loading conditions.

Oxidized Porous Silicon Particles Covalently Grafted with Daunorubicin as a Sustained Intraocular Drug Delivery System

PubMed Central

Chhablani, Jay; Nieto, Alejandra; Hou, Huiyuan; Wu, Elizabeth C.; Freeman, William R.; Sailor, Michael J.; Cheng, Lingyun

2013-01-01

Purpose. To test the feasibility of covalent loading of daunorubicin into oxidized porous silicon (OPS) and to evaluate the ocular properties of sustained delivery of daunorubicin in this system. Methods. Porous silicon was heat oxidized and chemically functionalized so that the functional linker on the surface was covalently bonded with daunorubicin. The drug loading rate was determined by thermogravimetric analysis. Release of daunorubicin was confirmed in PBS and excised rabbit vitreous by mass spectrometry. Daunorubicin-loaded OPS particles (3 mg) were intravitreally injected into six rabbits, and ocular properties were evaluated through ophthalmic examinations and histology during a 3-month study. The same OPS was loaded with daunorubicin using physical adsorption and was evaluated similarly as a control for the covalent loading. Results. In the case of covalent loading, 67 ± 10 μg daunorubicin was loaded into each milligram of the particles while 27 ± 10 μg/mg particles were loaded by physical adsorption. Rapid release of daunorubicin was observed in both PBS and excised vitreous (∼75% and ∼18%) from the physical adsorption loading, while less than 1% was released from the covalently loaded particles. Following intravitreal injection, the covalently loaded particles demonstrated a sustained degradation of OPS with drug release for 3 months without evidence of toxicity; physical adsorption loading revealed a complete release within 2 weeks and localized retinal toxicity due to high daunorubicin concentration. Conclusions. OPS with covalently loaded daunorubicin demonstrated sustained intravitreal drug release without ocular toxicity, which may be useful to inhibit unwanted intraocular proliferation. PMID:23322571

Groundwater withdrawal in the Central Valley, California: implications for San Andreas Fault stressing and lithosphere rheology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lundgren, P.; Liu, Z.; Ali, S. T.; Farr, T.; Faunt, C. C.

2016-12-01

Anthropogenic perturbations to crustal loading due to groundwater pumping are increasingly recognized as causing changes in nearby fault stresses. We present preliminary analysis of crustal unloading in the Central Valley (CV), California, for the period 2006-2010 to infer Coulomb stress changes on the central San Andreas Fault (CSAF), lithospheric rheology, and system memory due to more than a century of groundwater withdrawal in the southern CV. We use data-driven unloading estimates to drive three-dimensional (3-D) finite element method models and compare model vertical surface deformation rates with observed GPS uplift rates outside the CV. Groundwater level changes are observed through well water elevation changes and through the resultant surface deformation (subsidence) by interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) and through broader scale changes in gravity from the GRACE satellite time variable gravity data [Famiglietti et al., 2011] that constrain the overall water volume changes. Combining InSAR with well-water data we are able to estimate the aquifer skeletal elastic and inelastic response and through a linear inversion derive the water volume (load) changes across the Central Valley and compare them with GRACE-inferred groundwater changes. Preliminary 3-D finite element method modeling that considers elastic and viscosity structure in the lithosphere gives three interesting results: 1) elastic models poorly fit the uplift rates near the SAF; 2) viscoelastic models that simulate different unloading histories show the past history of groundwater unloading has significant residual uplift rates and fault stress changes; 3) Coulomb stress change varies from inhibited on the locked (Carrizo) section to promoted on the creeping section of the SAF north of Parkfield. Thus, 3D models that account for lithosphere rheology, loading history viscous relaxation, have significant implications for longer-term time-dependent deformation, stress perturbation, and earthquake hazard on the nearby faults. Reference: Famiglietti, J. S., M. Lo, S. L. Ho, J. Bethune, K. J. Anderson, T. H. Syed, S. C. Swenson, C. R. de Linage, and M. Rodell, 2011, Satellites measure recent rates of groundwater depletion in California's Central Valley, Geophys. Res. Lett., 38, L03403, doi:10.1029/2010GL046442.

Statistical description of flume experiments on mixed-size bed-load transport and bed armoring processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, D.; Zhang, Y.

2008-12-01

The objective of this paper is to describe the statistical properties of experiments on non-uniform bed-load transport as well as the mechanism of bed armoring processes. Despite substantial effort made over the last two decades, the ability to compute the bed-load flux in a turbulent system remains poor. The major obstacles include the poor understanding of the formation of armor lays on bed surfaces. Such a layer is much flow-resistible than the underlying material and therefore significantly inhibits sediment transport from the reach. To study the problem, we conducted a flume study for mixed sand/gravel sediments. We observed that aggregated sediment blocks were the most common characters in armor layers - the largest sizes resist hydraulic forces, while the smaller sizes add interlocking support and prevent loss of fine material through gaps between the larger particles. Fractional transport rates with the existing of armor layers were measured with time by sediment trapping method at the end of flume. To address the intermittent and time-varying behavior of bed-load transport during bed armoring processes, we investigated the probability distribution of the fractional bed-load transport rates, and the underlying dynamic model derived from the continuous time random walk framework. Results indicate that it is critical to consider the impact of armor layers when a flow is sufficient to move some of the finer particles and yet insufficient to move all the larger particles on a channel bed.

Methodology and significance of studies of atmospheric deposition in highway runoff

USGS Publications Warehouse

Colman, John A.; Rice, Karen C.; Willoughby, Timothy C.

2001-01-01

Atmospheric deposition and the processes that are involved in causing and altering atmospheric deposition in relation to highway surfaces and runoff were evaluated nationwide. Wet deposition is more easily monitored than dry deposition, and data on wet deposition are available for major elements and water properties (constituents affecting acid deposition) from the inter-agency National Atmospheric Deposition Program/ National Trends Network (NADP/NTN). Many trace constituents (metals and organic compounds) of interest in highway runoff loads, however, are not included in the NADP/NTN. Dry deposition, which constitutes a large part of total atmospheric deposition for many constituents in highway runoff loads, is difficult to monitor accurately. Dry-deposition rates are not widely available.Many of the highway-runoff investigations that have addressed atmospheric-deposition sources have had flawed investigative designs or problems with methodology. Some results may be incorrect because of reliance on time-aggregated data collected during a period of changing atmospheric emissions. None of the investigations used methods that could accurately quantify the part of highway runoff load that can be attributed to ambient atmospheric deposition. Lack of information about accurate ambient deposition rates and runoff loads was part of the problem. Samples collected to compute the rates and loads were collected without clean-sampling methods or sampler protocols, and without quality-assurance procedures that could validate the data. Massbudget calculations comparing deposition and runoff did not consider loss of deposited material during on-highway processing. Loss of deposited particles from highway travel lanes could be large, as has been determined in labeled particle studies, because of resuspension caused by turbulence from passing traffic. Although a cause of resuspension of large particles, traffic turbulence may increase the rate of deposition for small particles and gases by impaction, especially during precipitation periods.Ultimately, traffic and road maintenance may be determined to be the source of many constituents measured in highway runoff previously attributed to ambient atmospheric deposition. An investigative design using tracers of ambient deposition that are not present in highway traffic sources could determine conclusively what fraction of highway runoff load is contributed by ambient atmospheric deposition.

Artificial Intelligence vs. Statistical Modeling and Optimization of Continuous Bead Milling Process for Bacterial Cell Lysis.

PubMed

Haque, Shafiul; Khan, Saif; Wahid, Mohd; Dar, Sajad A; Soni, Nipunjot; Mandal, Raju K; Singh, Vineeta; Tiwari, Dileep; Lohani, Mohtashim; Areeshi, Mohammed Y; Govender, Thavendran; Kruger, Hendrik G; Jawed, Arshad

2016-01-01

For a commercially viable recombinant intracellular protein production process, efficient cell lysis and protein release is a major bottleneck. The recovery of recombinant protein, cholesterol oxidase (COD) was studied in a continuous bead milling process. A full factorial response surface methodology (RSM) design was employed and compared to artificial neural networks coupled with genetic algorithm (ANN-GA). Significant process variables, cell slurry feed rate (A), bead load (B), cell load (C), and run time (D), were investigated and optimized for maximizing COD recovery. RSM predicted an optimum of feed rate of 310.73 mL/h, bead loading of 79.9% (v/v), cell loading OD 600 nm of 74, and run time of 29.9 min with a recovery of ~3.2 g/L. ANN-GA predicted a maximum COD recovery of ~3.5 g/L at an optimum feed rate (mL/h): 258.08, bead loading (%, v/v): 80%, cell loading (OD 600 nm ): 73.99, and run time of 32 min. An overall 3.7-fold increase in productivity is obtained when compared to a batch process. Optimization and comparison of statistical vs. artificial intelligence techniques in continuous bead milling process has been attempted for the very first time in our study. We were able to successfully represent the complex non-linear multivariable dependence of enzyme recovery on bead milling parameters. The quadratic second order response functions are not flexible enough to represent such complex non-linear dependence. ANN being a summation function of multiple layers are capable to represent complex non-linear dependence of variables in this case; enzyme recovery as a function of bead milling parameters. Since GA can even optimize discontinuous functions present study cites a perfect example of using machine learning (ANN) in combination with evolutionary optimization (GA) for representing undefined biological functions which is the case for common industrial processes involving biological moieties.

Artificial Intelligence vs. Statistical Modeling and Optimization of Continuous Bead Milling Process for Bacterial Cell Lysis

PubMed Central

Haque, Shafiul; Khan, Saif; Wahid, Mohd; Dar, Sajad A.; Soni, Nipunjot; Mandal, Raju K.; Singh, Vineeta; Tiwari, Dileep; Lohani, Mohtashim; Areeshi, Mohammed Y.; Govender, Thavendran; Kruger, Hendrik G.; Jawed, Arshad

2016-01-01

For a commercially viable recombinant intracellular protein production process, efficient cell lysis and protein release is a major bottleneck. The recovery of recombinant protein, cholesterol oxidase (COD) was studied in a continuous bead milling process. A full factorial response surface methodology (RSM) design was employed and compared to artificial neural networks coupled with genetic algorithm (ANN-GA). Significant process variables, cell slurry feed rate (A), bead load (B), cell load (C), and run time (D), were investigated and optimized for maximizing COD recovery. RSM predicted an optimum of feed rate of 310.73 mL/h, bead loading of 79.9% (v/v), cell loading OD600 nm of 74, and run time of 29.9 min with a recovery of ~3.2 g/L. ANN-GA predicted a maximum COD recovery of ~3.5 g/L at an optimum feed rate (mL/h): 258.08, bead loading (%, v/v): 80%, cell loading (OD600 nm): 73.99, and run time of 32 min. An overall 3.7-fold increase in productivity is obtained when compared to a batch process. Optimization and comparison of statistical vs. artificial intelligence techniques in continuous bead milling process has been attempted for the very first time in our study. We were able to successfully represent the complex non-linear multivariable dependence of enzyme recovery on bead milling parameters. The quadratic second order response functions are not flexible enough to represent such complex non-linear dependence. ANN being a summation function of multiple layers are capable to represent complex non-linear dependence of variables in this case; enzyme recovery as a function of bead milling parameters. Since GA can even optimize discontinuous functions present study cites a perfect example of using machine learning (ANN) in combination with evolutionary optimization (GA) for representing undefined biological functions which is the case for common industrial processes involving biological moieties. PMID:27920762

Analysis of Contraction Joint Width Influence on Load Stress of Pavement Panels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Wei; Cui, Wei; Sun, Wei

2018-05-01

The width of transverse contraction joint of the cement road varies with temperatures, which leads to changes in load transmission among plates of the road surface and affects load stress of the road plates. Three-dimensional element analysis software EverFE is used to address the relation between the contraction joint width and road surface load stress, revealing the impact of reducing contraction joint width. The results could be of critical value in maintaining road functions and extending the service life of cement road surfaces.

Tests of Lead-bronze Bearings in the DVL Bearing-testing Machine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fischer, G

1940-01-01

The lead-bronze bearings tested in the DVL machine have proven themselves very sensitive to load changes as in comparison with bearings of light metal. In order to prevent surface injuries and consequently running interruptions, the increase of the load has to be made in small steps with sufficient run-in time between steps. The absence of lead in the running surface, impurities in the alloy (especially iron) and surface irregularities (pores) decreases the load-carrying capacity of the bearing to two or three times that of the static load.

Dorzolamide Loaded Niosomal Vesicles: Comparison of Passive and Remote Loading Methods

PubMed Central

Hashemi Dehaghi, Mohadeseh; Haeri, Azadeh; Keshvari, Hamid; Abbasian, Zahra; Dadashzadeh, Simin

2017-01-01

Glaucoma is a common progressive eye disorder and the treatment strategies will benefit from nanoparticulate delivery systems with high drug loading and sustained delivery of intraocular pressure lowering agents. Niosomes have been reported as a novel approach to improve drug low corneal penetration and bioavailability characteristics. Along with this, poor entrapment efficiency of hydrophilic drug in niosomal formulation remains as a major formulation challenge. Taking this perspective into consideration, dorzolamide niosomes were prepared employing two different loading methodologies (passive and remote loading methods) and the effects of various formulation variables (lipid to drug ratio, cholesterol percentage, drug concentration, freeze/thaw cycles, TPGS content, and external and internal buffer molarity and pH) on encapsulation efficiency were assessed. Encapsulation of dorzolamide within niosomes increased remarkably by the incorporation of higher cholesterol percentage as well as increasing the total lipid concentration. Remote loading method showed higher efficacy for drug entrapment compared to passive loading technique. Incorporation of TPGS in bilayer led to decrease in EE; however, retarded drug release rate. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies confirmed homogeneous particle distribution, and spherical shape with smooth surface. In conclusion, the highest encapsulation can be obtained using phosphate gradient method and 50% cholesterol in Span 60 niosomal formulation. PMID:28979296

Particle loading rates for HVAC filters, heat exchangers, and ducts.

PubMed

Waring, M S; Siegel, J A

2008-06-01

The rate at which airborne particulate matter deposits onto heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) components is important from both indoor air quality (IAQ) and energy perspectives. This modeling study predicts size-resolved particle mass loading rates for residential and commercial filters, heat exchangers (i.e. coils), and supply and return ducts. A parametric analysis evaluated the impact of different outdoor particle distributions, indoor emission sources, HVAC airflows, filtration efficiencies, coils, and duct system complexities. The median predicted residential and commercial loading rates were 2.97 and 130 g/m(2) month for the filter loading rates, 0.756 and 4.35 g/m(2) month for the coil loading rates, 0.0051 and 1.00 g/month for the supply duct loading rates, and 0.262 g/month for the commercial return duct loading rates. Loading rates are more dependent on outdoor particle distributions, indoor sources, HVAC operation strategy, and filtration than other considered parameters. The results presented herein, once validated, can be used to estimate filter changing and coil cleaning schedules, energy implications of filter and coil loading, and IAQ impacts associated with deposited particles. The results in this paper suggest important factors that lead to particle deposition on HVAC components in residential and commercial buildings. This knowledge informs the development and comparison of control strategies to limit particle deposition. The predicted mass loading rates allow for the assessment of pressure drop and indoor air quality consequences that result from particle mass loading onto HVAC system components.

Improving the detection of tectonic transients in Japan by accounting for Earth's deformation response to surface mass loading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martens, H. R.; Simons, M.; Moore, A. W.; Owen, S. E.; Rivera, L. A.

2016-12-01

We explore the contributions of oceanic, atmospheric, and hydrologic mass loading to Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)-inferred observations of surface displacements in Japan. Surface mass loading (SML) generates mm- to cm-level deformation of the solid Earth on time scales of hours to years, which exceeds the measurement uncertainties of most GNSS position estimates. By improving the efficiency and accuracy of the prediction and empirical estimation of SML response, we aim to reduce the variance of GNSS time series and therefore enhance the ability to resolve subtle tectonic signals, such as aseismic transients associated with subduction zone processes. Using the GIPSY software in precise point positioning mode, we estimate time series of sub-daily receiver positions for the GNSS Earth Observation Network System (GEONET) in Japan. We also model the Earth's elastic deformation response to a variety of surface mass loads, including loads of atmospheric (e.g., ECMWF) and oceanic (e.g., TPXO8-Atlas, ECCO2) origin. We extract periodic signals, such as the ocean tides and seasonal variations in hydrological loading, using harmonic analysis. Deformation caused by non-periodic loads, such as non-tidal oceanic and atmospheric loads, can be predicted and removed to further reduce the variance. We seek to streamline the workflow for estimating SML-induced surface displacements from a variety of sources in order to account for loading signals in routine GNSS data processing, thereby improving the ability to assess the mechanics of plate boundaries.

Thrust-isolating mounting. [characteristics of support for loads mounted in spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wetzler, D. G. (Inventor)

1974-01-01

A supporting frame for a load, such as one or more telescopes, is isolated from all multi-gravitational forces, which will be developed within that load as that load is propelled into space, by using a shroud to fully and solidly hold that load until that load has been propelled into space. Thereafter, that shroud will be jettisoned; and then supports which are on, and which are movable with, that load will have surfaces thereon moved into supporting engagement with complementary surfaces on that supporting frame to enable that supporting frame and those supports to fully and solidly hold that load.

Effect of Loading Rates and Surface Conditions on the Flexural Strength of Borosilicate Glass

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-01

strength of etched soda - lime glass rods.32 According to this model, an idealized surface crack is uniformly attacked by acid at every point so that this...R. Lin, ‘‘Effect of Polymer Coatings on the Strength and Fatigue Behavior of Indented Soda - Lime Glass ,’’ Glass Technol., 32 [2] 51–4 (1991). 10J. J...Scott Glaesemann, K. Jakus, and J. E. Ritter Jr., ‘‘Strength Variability of Indented Soda - Lime Glass ,’’ J. Am. Ceram. Soc., 70 [6] 441–4 (1987). 12C

Damping behavior of nano-fibrous composites with viscous interface in anti-plane shear

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xu

2017-06-01

By using the composite cylinder assemblage model, we derive an explicit expression of the specific damping capacity of nano-fibrous composite with viscous interface when subjected to time-harmonic anti-plane shear loads. The fiber and the matrix are first endowed with separate and distinct Gurtin-Murdoch surface elasticities, and rate-dependent sliding occurs on the fiber-matrix interface. Our analysis indicates that the effective damping of the composite depends on five dimensionless parameters: the fiber volume fraction, the stiffness ratio, two parameters arising from surface elasticity and one parameter due to interface sliding.

Load rating of complex bridges.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-07-01

The National Bridge Inspection Standards require highway departments to inspect, evaluate, and determine load ratings for : structures defined as bridges located on all public roads. Load rating of bridges is performed to determine the live load that...

High temperature lubricating process

DOEpatents

Taylor, R.W.; Shell, T.E.

1979-10-04

It has been difficult to provide adequate lubrication for load bearing, engine components when such engines are operating in excess of about 475/sup 0/C. The present invention is a process for providing a solid lubricant on a load bearing, solid surface, such as in an engine being operated at temperatures in excess of about 475/sup 0/C. The process comprises contacting and maintaining the following steps: a gas phase is provided which includes at least one component reactable in a temperature dependent reaction to form a solid lubricant; the gas phase is contacted with the load bearing surface; the load bearing surface is maintained at a temperature which causes reaction of the gas phase component and the formation of the solid lubricant; and the solid lubricant is formed directly on the load bearing surface. The method is particularly suitable for use with ceramic engines.

High temperature lubricating process

DOEpatents

Taylor, Robert W.; Shell, Thomas E.

1982-01-01

It has been difficult to provide adaquate lubrication for load bearing, engine components when such engines are operating in excess of about 475.degree. C. The present invention is a process for providing a solid lubricant on a load bearing, solid surface (14), such as in an engine (10) being operated at temperatures in excess of about 475.degree. C. The process comprises contacting and maintaining steps. A gas phase (42) is provided which includes at least one component reactable in a temperature dependent reaction to form a solid lubricant. The gas phase is contacted with the load bearing surface. The load bearing surface is maintained at a temperature which causes reaction of the gas phase component and the formation of the solid lubricant. The solid lubricant is formed directly on the load bearing surface. The method is particularly suitable for use with ceramic engines.

Analysis of Load Stress for Asphalt Pavement of Lean Concrete Base

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lijun, Suo; Xinwu, Wang

The study revealed that whether it is early distresses in asphalt pavement or not depends largely on working performance of base. In the field of asphalt pavement, it is widely accepted that lean concrete base, compared with the general semi-rigid base, has better working performance, such as high strength and good eroding resistance. Problem of early distresses in asphalt pavement, which caused by more traffic loadings, can be settled effectively when lean concrete is used in asphalt pavement. Traffic loading is important parameter used in the analysis of the new pavement design. However, few studies have done extensive and intensive research on the load stress for asphalt pavement of lean concrete base. Because of that, it is necessary to study the load stress for the asphalt pavement. In the paper, first of all, three-dimension finite element model of the asphalt pavement is created for the aim of doing mechanical analysis for the asphalt pavement. And then, the two main objectives of this study are investigated. One is analysis for load stress of lean concrete base, and the other is analysis for load stress of asphalt surface. The results show that load stress of lean concrete base decreases, decrease and increase with increase of base's thickness, surface's thickness and ratio of base's modulus to foundation's modulus respectively. So far as the asphalt surface is concerned, maximum shearing stress, which is caused by load, is evident in asphalt surface which is located in transverse contraction joint of lean concrete base of asphalt pavement. Maximum shearing stress decrease, decrease, decrease and increase respectively with increase of the surface's modulus, the surface's thickness, base's thickness and ratio of base's modulus to foundation's modulus.

A investigation on unixial and quasi-biaxial tensile mechanical properties of aging HTPB propellant under dynamic loading at low temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duan, Leiguang; Wang, Guang; Zhang, Guoxing; Sun, Xinya; Shang, Hehao

2018-06-01

In order to study the uniaxial and quasi-biaxial mechanical properties of aging solid propellants under low temperature and high strain rate, stress-strain curves and tensile fracture surfaces of HTPB propellant were obtained in a wide range of temperature (-30,25 °C) and strain rates (0.4,4.0 and 14.29 s-1), respectively, by means of uniaxial and biaxial tensile tests and electron microscopy scanning on the fracture cross section. The results indicate that the quasi-biaxial tensile mechanical properties of aging HTPB propellant is same as the uniaxial tensile mechanical properties influenced distinctly by temperature and strain rate. With decreasing temperature and increasing strain rate, the mechanical properties gradually strengthen. The damage for HTPB propellant changes from "dehumidification" to grain fracture. The initial elastic modulus E and maximum tensile stress σ of the uniaxial and biaxial tensile increase gradually with decreasing temperature and increasing strain rate, and well present linear-log function relation with strain rate. The ratio of quasi-biaxial and uniaxial stretching under different loading conditions was obtained so that the researchers could predict the quasi-biaxial tensile mechanical properties of the propellant based on the uniaxial test data.

SCC of 2304 Duplex Stainless Steel—Microstructure, Residual Stress and Surface Grinding Effects

PubMed Central

Zhou, Nian; Peng, Ru Lin; Schönning, Mikael; Pettersson, Rachel

2017-01-01

The influence of surface grinding and microstructure on chloride induced stress corrosion cracking (SCC) behavior of 2304 duplex stainless steel has been investigated. Grinding operations were performed both parallel and perpendicular to the rolling direction of the material. SCC tests were conducted in boiling magnesium chloride according to ASTM G36; specimens were exposed both without external loading and with varied levels of four-point bend loading. Residual stresses were measured on selected specimens before and after exposure using the X-ray diffraction technique. In addition, in-situ surface stress measurements subjected to four-point bend loading were performed to evaluate the deviation between the actual applied loading and the calculated values according to ASTM G39. Micro-cracks, initiated by grinding induced surface tensile residual stresses, were observed for all the ground specimens but not on the as-delivered surfaces. Loading transverse to the rolling direction of the material increased the susceptibility to chloride induced SCC. Grinding induced tensile residual stresses and micro-notches in the as-ground surface topography were also detrimental. PMID:28772582

SCC of 2304 Duplex Stainless Steel-Microstructure, Residual Stress and Surface Grinding Effects.

PubMed

Zhou, Nian; Peng, Ru Lin; Schönning, Mikael; Pettersson, Rachel

2017-02-23

The influence of surface grinding and microstructure on chloride induced stress corrosion cracking (SCC) behavior of 2304 duplex stainless steel has been investigated. Grinding operations were performed both parallel and perpendicular to the rolling direction of the material. SCC tests were conducted in boiling magnesium chloride according to ASTM G36; specimens were exposed both without external loading and with varied levels of four-point bend loading. Residual stresses were measured on selected specimens before and after exposure using the X-ray diffraction technique. In addition, in-situ surface stress measurements subjected to four-point bend loading were performed to evaluate the deviation between the actual applied loading and the calculated values according to ASTM G39. Micro-cracks, initiated by grinding induced surface tensile residual stresses, were observed for all the ground specimens but not on the as-delivered surfaces. Loading transverse to the rolling direction of the material increased the susceptibility to chloride induced SCC. Grinding induced tensile residual stresses and micro-notches in the as-ground surface topography were also detrimental.

Developing a Small-scale De-fluoridation Filter for use in Rural Northern Ghana with Activated Alumina as the Sorbent

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Craig, L.; Stillings, L. L.; Decker, D.; Thomas, J.

2013-12-01

In northern Ghana, groundwater is the main source of household water and is generally considered a safe and economical source of drinking water. However in some areas it contains fluoride (F-) concentrations above the 1.5 ppm limit recommended by the World Health Organization, putting the users at risk of fluorosis. The study area in the Upper East Region of northern Ghana has pockets of groundwater F- up to 4.6 ppm and, as a result, also has a high percentage of residents with dental fluorosis. They have no alternative water source and, because of the poverty and limited access to technology, the affected community lacks the capacity to set up advanced treatment systems. One proposed solution is to attach F- adsorption filters to the wells, since adsorption is considered a simple and cost effective approach for treating high F- drinking water. This study evaluates activated alumina as a sorbent for use in de-fluoridation filters in the study area. We evaluated the long-term adsorption capacity of activated alumina, as well as potential changes in F- adsorption rate and capacity with grain size. We measured differences in positive surface charge (as C m-2) via slow acid titration, as well as F- loading with varied prior hydration time. Experimental results from this research show no notable change in F- adsorption or positive surface charge when the activated alumina surface was pre-equilibrated in distilled water from 24 hours up to 30 weeks before the experiment. The results of F- loading show a maximum of ~3.4 mg F- sorbed per gm activated alumina (at initial pH ~6.9, initial F- 1 to 60 ppm, and 20 hr reaction time). The pH dependent surface charge shows a maximum of ~0.14 C m-2 at pH of ~4.4 and zero surface charge at pH ~8.5. F- loading experiments were conducted with grain size ranges 0.125 to 0.250 mm and 0.5 to 1.0 mm to evaluate changes in F- adsorption rate (initial pH ~6.9, initial F- 10 ppm) and F- loading (initial pH ~6.9, initial F- 1 to 60 ppm, 20 hr reaction time). The F- loading onto activated alumina did not change with grain size. However time to equilibrium increased dramatically with a decrease in grain size - after one hour of reaction time, the larger grain size adsorbed only 59% of F-, while at the finer grain size 90% was adsorbed. Future work will determine the volume of high F- water that can be treated before activated alumina needs to be regenerated or changed. These data will be incorporated into the design of a small-scale F-1 adsorption filter in the study area, and will predict the longevity of activated alumina as the sorbent.

Biogeochemistry of the coupled manganese-iron-sulfur cycles of intertidal surface sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bosselmann, K.; Boettcher, M. E.; Billerbeck, M.; Walpersdorf, E.; Debeer, D.; Brumsack, H.-J.; Huettel, M.; Joergensen, B. B.

2003-04-01

The biogeochemistry of the coupled iron-manganese-sulfur-carbon cycles was studied in temperate intertidal surface sediments of the German Wadden Sea (North Sea). Coastal sampling sites include sand, mixed and mud flats with different organic matter and metal contents and permeability reflecting different hydrodynamic regimes. The field study focusses on the influence of temperature, organic matter load, and sediment types on the dynamics of biogeochemical reactions on different time scales (season, day-night, tidal cycles). One of the main interests was related to the cycling of metals (Mn, Fe) in relation to the activity of sulfate-reducing bacteria. Pore water profiles were investigated by sediment sectioning and high resolution gel sampling techniques. Microbial sulfate reduction rates were measured using radiolabeled sulfate with the whole core incubation technique and the spatial distribution of bacterial activity was visualised by using "2D-photoemulsion-monitoring technique". The biogeochemical sulfur cycle was additionally characterised by the stable isotope ratios (S,O) of different sulfur species (e.g., SO_4, AVS, pyrite). Element transfers (metals, nutrients) across the sediment-water interface were additionally quantified by the application of benthic flux chambers. Microbial sulfate reduction was generally highest in the suboxic zone of the surface sediments indicating its potential importance for the mobilization of iron and manganese. In organic matter poor permeable sediments tidal effects additionally influence the spatial and temporal distribution of dissolved redox-sensitive metals. In organic matter-rich silty and muddy sediments, temperature controlled the microbial sulfate reduction rates. Depth-integrated sulfate reduction rates in sandy sediments were much lower and controlled by both temperature and organic matter. Formation of anoxic sediment surfaces due to local enhanced organic matter load (so-called "black spots") may create windows of an increase flux of metals, nutrients and hydrogen sulfide. Acknowledgements: The study was supported by German Science Foundation within the DFG-research group "BioGeoChemistry of the Waddensea" and Max Planck Society.

Role of ZrO 2 in Promoting the Activity and Selectivity of Co-Based Fischer–Tropsch Synthesis Catalysts

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

Johnson, Gregory R.; Bell, Alexis T.

2015-11-17

The effects of Zr promotion on the structure and performance of Co-based Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) catalysts were investigated. Inclusion of Zr in the catalysts was found to increase the FTS turnover frequency and the selectivity to C 5+ hydrocarbons and to decrease the selectivity to methane under most operating conditions. These improvements to the catalytic performance are a function of Zr loading up to an atomic ratio of Zr/Co = 1.0, above which the product selectivity is insensitive to higher concentrations of the promoter. Characterization of the Co nanoparticles by different methods demonstrated that the optimal Zr loading corresponds tomore » half monolayer coverage of the Co surface by the promoter. Measurements of the rate of FTS at different pressures and temperatures established that the kinetics data for both the Zr-promoted and unpromoted catalysts are described by a two-parameter Langmuir-Hinshelwood expression. The parameters used to fit this rate law to the experimental data indicate that the apparent rate coefficient and the CO adsorption constant for the Zr-promoted catalysts are higher than those for the unpromoted catalyst. Elemental mapping by means of STEM-EDS provided evidence that Zr is highly dispersed over the catalyst surface and has limited preference for association with the Co nanoparticles. In situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy confirmed the absence of mixing between the Zr and Co in the nanoparticles. Here, these results suggest that Zr exists as a partial layer of ZrO 2 on the surface of the Co metal nanoparticles. Accordingly, it is proposed that Zr promotion effects originate from sites of enhanced activity at the interface between Co and ZrO 2. The possibility that ZrO 2 acts as a Lewis acid to assist in CO dissociation as well as to increase the ratio of CO to H adsorbed on the catalyst surface is discussed.« less

Study on the surface constitute properties of high-speed end milling aluminum alloy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Xiaoming; Li, Hongwei; Yumeng, Ma

2017-09-01

The physical and mechanical properties of the metal surface will change after the metal cutting processing. The comprehensive study of the influence of machining parameters on surface constitute properties are necessary. A high-speed milling experiment by means of orthogonal method with four factors was conducted for aluminum alloy7050-T7451. The surface constitutive properties of the Al-Alloy surface were measured using SSM-B4000TM stress-strain microprobe system. Based on all the load-depth curves obtained, the characteristics parameters such as strain hardening exponent n and yield strength σy of the milling surface are calculated. The effect of cutting speed, feed rate, and width and depth of cut on n and σy was investigated using the ANOVA techniques. The affecting degree of milling parameters on n and σy was v>fz> ap < ae. The influence of milling parameters on n and σ y was described and discussed.

Three-body wear of a hand-consolidated silver alternative to amalgam.

PubMed

Xu, H H; Eichmiller, F C; Giuseppetti, A A; Ives, L K; Parry, E E; Schumacher, G E

1999-09-01

Recent studies have investigated a mercury-free silver alternative to amalgam, but the silver powders required a relatively high compaction pressure to consolidate. The aim of the present study was to consolidate a precipitated silver powder into a cohesive solid using an air-driven pneumatic condenser fitted with an amalgam plugger at a clinically realistic load, and to study the mechanisms and rates of three-body wear of the consolidated silver in comparison with that of an amalgam. The silver powder was annealed, rinsed with a dilute acid, and consolidated either in a prepared tooth cavity or in a specimen mold at a load of 15 N. A four-station wear machine was used where each specimen was immersed in a slurry containing polymethyl methacrylate beads, then a steel pin was loaded and rotated against the specimen at a maximum load of 76 N. The flexural strength in MPa (mean +/- SD; n = 10) was 86 +/- 20 for amalgam, 181 +/- 45 for silver with a polished surface, and 202 +/- 21 for silver with a burnished surface. After 4 x 10(5) wear cycles, the wear scar depth in microm was 134 +/- 54 for amalgam, 143 +/- 8 for polished silver, and 131 +/- 9 for burnished silver, which were not significantly different (Tukey's multiple comparison test; family confidence coefficient = 0.95). SEM examination revealed cracks and fracture pits in the worn surface of amalgam, in contrast to a smooth surface in silver. Wear and material removal in amalgam occurred by microfracture and dislodgement of cracked segments, while wear in the silver occurred by ductile deformation and flow of materials. To conclude, the consolidated silver possesses a three-body wear resistance similar to that of amalgam, and a higher resistance to wear-induced damage and cracking than amalgam. The mechanism of wear in amalgam is microfracture and material dislodgement, while that in consolidated silver is ductile deformation and flow of material.

The effect of fiber treatment on abrasive wear properties of palm fiber reinforced epoxy composite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Razak, Muhammad Firdaus Abdul; Bakar, Mimi Azlina Abu; Kasolang, Salmiah; Ahmad, Mohamad Ali

2017-12-01

Oil palm industries generate at least 30 million tons of lignocellulosic biomass annually in the form of oil palm trunks (OPT), empty fruit bunches (EFB), oil palm fronds (OPF) and palm pressed fibres (PPF). The palm fiber is one of the natural fibers used as reinforcement in composite materials in order to decrease environmental issues and promotes utilization of renewable resources. This paper presents a study on the effect of alkaline treatment on wear properties of palm fiber reinforced epoxy resin composite. Abrasive wear testing was deployed to investigate the wear profile of the composite surfaces. Testing was carried out which focused on the effect of alkaline treatment to the palm fiber under different amounts of fiber loading i.e. 1 wt%, 3 wt%, 5 wt% and 7 wt%. The palm fibers were soaked into 6 % of alkaline solution or natrium hydroxide (NaOH) for 12 hours. The fiber was treated in order to remove amorphous materials such as hemicelluloses, lignins and pectins of the fiber. The wear test samples were fabricated using hand lay-up technique and cured at room temperature for 24 hours. Surface roughness of the composite material was also measured using the surface measuring instrument. Dry sliding wear test was performed at room temperature at a constant velocity of 1.4 m/s with a constant load of 10 N by using the Abrasion Test Machine. Result shows that 5 wt% and 7 wt% treated palm fiber loadings have better specific wear rate compared to lower fiber loadings. The finding of this study contributes towards material development and utilization in promoting `waste into wealth' which is in line with national aspiration.

Assessing the applicability of the 1D flux theory to full-scale secondary settling tank design with a 2D hydrodynamic model.

PubMed

Ekama, G A; Marais, P

2004-02-01

The applicability of the one-dimensional idealized flux theory (1DFT) for the design of secondary settling tanks (SSTs) is evaluated by comparing its predicted maximum surface overflow (SOR) and solids loading (SLR) rates with that calculated with the two-dimensional computational fluid dynamics model SettlerCAD using as a basis 35 full-scale SST stress tests conducted on different SSTs with diameters from 30 to 45m and 2.25-4.1m side water depth (SWD), with and without Stamford baffles. From the simulations, a relatively consistent pattern appeared, i.e. that the 1DFT can be used for design but its predicted maximum SLR needs to be reduced by an appropriate flux rating, the magnitude of which depends mainly on SST depth and hydraulic loading rate (HLR). Simulations of the Watts et al. (Water Res. 30(9)(1996)2112) SST, with doubled SWDs and the Darvill new (4.1m) and old (2.5m) SSTs with interchanged depths, were run to confirm the sensitivity of the flux rating to depth and HLR. Simulations with and without a Stamford baffle were also performed. While the design of the internal features of the SST, such as baffling, has a marked influence on the effluent SS concentration while the SST is underloaded, these features appeared to have only a small influence on the flux rating, i.e. capacity, of the SST. Until more information is obtained, it would appear from the simulations that the flux rating of 0.80 of the 1DFT maximum SLR recommended by Ekama and Marais (Water Pollut. Control 85(1)(1986)101) remains a reasonable value to apply in the design of full-scale SSTs-for deep SSTs (4m SWD) the flux rating could be increased to 0.85 and for shallow SSTs (2.5m SWD) decreased to 0.75. It is recommended that (i) while the apparent interrelationship between SST flux rating and depth suggests some optimization of the volume of the SST, this be avoided and (ii) the depth of the SST be designed independently of the surface area as is usually the practice and once selected, the appropriate flux rating applied to the 1DFT estimate of the surface area.

Comparison of the 1D flux theory with a 2D hydrodynamic secondary settling tank model.

PubMed

Ekama, G A; Marais, P

2004-01-01

The applicability of the 1D idealized flux theory (1DFT) for design of secondary settling tanks (SSTs) is evaluated by comparing its predicted maximum surface overflow (SOR) and solids loading (SLR) rates with that calculated from the 2D hydrodynamic model SettlerCAD using as a basis 35 full scale SST stress tests conducted on different SSTs with diameters from 30 to 45m and 2.25 to 4.1 m side water depth, with and without Stamford baffles. From the simulations, a relatively consistent pattern appeared, i.e. that the 1DFT can be used for design but its predicted maximum SLR needs to be reduced by an appropriate flux rating, the magnitude of which depends mainly on SST depth and hydraulic loading rate (HLR). Simulations of the sloping bottom shallow (1.5-2.5 m SWD) Dutch SSTs tested by STOWa and the Watts et al. SST, all with doubled SWDs, and the Darvill new (4.1 m) and old (2.5 m) SSTs with interchanged depths, were run to confirm the sensitivity of the flux rating to depth and HLR. Simulations with and without a Stamford baffle were also done. While the design of the internal features of the SST, such as baffling, have a marked influence on the effluent SS concentration for underloaded SSTs, these features appeared to have only a small influence on the flux rating, i.e. capacity, of the SST, In the meantime until more information is obtained, it would appear that from the simulations so far that the flux rating of 0.80 of the 1DFT maximum SLR recommended by Ekama and Marais remains a reasonable value to apply in the design of full scale SSTs--for deep SSTs (4 m SWD) the flux rating could be increased to 0.85 and for shallow SSTs (2.5 m SWD) decreased to 0.75. It is recommended that (i) while the apparent interrelationship between SST flux rating and depth suggests some optimization of the volume of the SST, that this be avoided and that (ii) the depth of the SST be designed independently of the surface area as is usually the practice and once selected, the appropriate flux rating is applied to the 1DFT estimate of the surface area.

Effect of natural ageing on surface of silver loaded TPE and its influence in antimicrobial efficacy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tomacheski, Daiane; Pittol, Michele; Simões, Douglas Naue; Ribeiro, Vanda Ferreira; Santana, Ruth Marlene Campomanes

2017-05-01

The aim of this study is to characterize the modifications in silver loaded TPE surfaces exposed to weathering and their relation to susceptibility to microbial attack. Silver loaded TPE materials were exposed to natural ageing for nine months and modifications in antimicrobial properties and surface characteristics were evaluated. Chemical changes were investigated by using the infrared spectra. The average surface roughness and topography were determined by atomic force microscopy. Contact angle was measured to verify wettability conditions and surface free energy (SFE). After nine months of exposure, a decrease in the antimicrobial properties of loaded TPE compounds was observed. A reduction in surface roughness and improvement in wettability and high values of polar component of SFE were verified. The best antibacterial action was noticed in the sample with high Lewis acid force, lower roughness and lower carbonyl index.

Variable Emissivity Through MEMS Technology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Darrin, Ann Garrison; Osiander, Robert; Champion, John; Swanson, Ted; Douglas, Donya; Grob, Lisa M.; Powers, Edward I. (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

This paper discusses a new technology for variable emissivity (vari-e) radiator surfaces, which has significant advantages over traditional radiators and promises an alternative design technique for future spacecraft thermal control systems. All spacecraft rely on radiative surfaces to dissipate waste heat. These radiators have special coatings, typically with a low solar absorptivity and a high infrared-red emissivity, that are intended to optimize performance under the expected heat load and thermal sink environment. The dynamics of the heat loads and thermal environment make it a challenge to properly size the radiator and often require some means of regulating the heat rejection rate of the radiators in order to achieve proper thermal balance. Specialized thermal control coatings, which can passively or actively adjust their emissivity offer an attractive solution to these design challenges. Such systems would allow intelligent control of the rate of heat loss from a radiator in response to heat load and thermal environmental variations. Intelligent thermal control through variable emissivity systems is well suited for nano and pico spacecraft applications where large thermal fluctuations are expected due to the small thermal mass and limited electric resources. Presently there are three different types of vari-e technologies under development: Micro ElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS) louvers, Electrochromic devices, and Electrophoretic devices. This paper will describe several prototypes of micromachined (MEMS) louvers and experimental results for the emissivity variations measured on theses prototypes. It will further discuss possible actuation mechanisms and space reliability aspects for different designs. Finally, for comparison parametric evaluations of the thermal performances of the new vari-e technology and standard thermal control systems are presented in this paper.

Preparation of H3PW12O40/MCM-48 and its photocatalytic degradation of pesticides.

PubMed

Liu, Xia; Li, Yan-zhou; Gan, Qiang; Feng, Chang-gen

2014-08-01

A composite catalyst H3PW12O40/MCM-48 was prepared by loading photocatalyst phosphotungstic acid H3PW12O40 (HPW) to molecular sieve MCM-48 by impregnation method, and its structure was characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectra, small angle X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns, nitrogen adsorption analysis and High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) analysis. Photocatalytic degradation activities of HPW/MCM-48 against pesticides imidacloprid and paraquat were evaluated under UV radiation (365 nm). The results show that HPW/MCM-48 maintains the mesoprous molecular sieve structure of MCM-48 and the Keggin structure of HPW, while the BET surface area is 793.35 m2 x g(-1), pore volume is 1.46 cm3 x g(-1), average pore diameter is 2.76 nm, suggesting loading HPW on MCM-48 is a considerable way to improve its surface area. After 14 h UV irradiation (365 nm), 57.38% imidacloprid and 63.79% paraquat were degraded by 20 mg HPW/MCM-48 catalyst, while HPW and blank group degraded the two pesticides at the degradation rate of about 25% and 5%, respectively. Implying loading on MCM-48 could greaterly improve the degradation activity of HPW. The reslut of degradation kinetics show that, the degradation process of HPW/MCM-48 fits first order kinetics equation. The rate constant Ka of HPW/MCM-48 toward imidacloprid and paraquat are 0.089 h and 0.117 h, with the half-life t(1/2) of 7.8 h and 5.9 h, respectively.

Seasonal water storage, stress modulation and California seismicity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, C. W.; Burgmann, R.; Fu, Y.

2017-12-01

Establishing what controls the timing of earthquakes is fundamental to understanding the nature of the earthquake cycle and critical to determining time-dependent earthquake hazard. Seasonal loading provides a natural laboratory to explore the crustal response to a quantifiable transient force. In California, the accumulation of winter snowpack in the Sierra Nevada, surface water in lakes and reservoirs, and groundwater in sedimentary basins follow the annual cycle of wet winters and dry summers. The surface loads resulting from the seasonal changes in water storage produce elastic deformation of the Earth's crust. We used 9 years of global positioning system (GPS) vertical deformation time series to constrain models of monthly hydrospheric loading and the resulting stress changes on fault planes of small earthquakes. Previous studies posit that temperature, atmospheric pressure, or hydrologic changes may strain the lithosphere and promote additional earthquakes above background levels. Depending on fault geometry, the addition or removal of water increases the Coulomb failure stress. The largest stress amplitudes are occurring on dipping reverse faults in the Coast Ranges and along the eastern Sierra Nevada range front. We analyze 9 years of M≥2.0 earthquakes with known focal mechanisms in northern and central California to resolve fault-normal and fault-shear stresses for the focal geometry. Our results reveal 10% more earthquakes occurring during slip-encouraging fault-shear stress conditions and suggest that earthquake populations are modulated at periods of natural loading cycles, which promote failure by stress changes on the order of 1-5 kPa. We infer that California seismicity rates are modestly modulated by natural hydrological loading cycles.

Distribution of Inclusion-Initiated Fatigue Cracking in Powder Metallurgy Udimet 720 Characterized

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bonacuse, Peter J.; Kantzos, Pete T.; Barrie, Robert; Telesman, Jack; Ghosn, Louis J.; Gabb, Timothy P.

2004-01-01

In the absence of extrinsic surface damage, the fatigue life of metals is often dictated by the distribution of intrinsic defects. In powder metallurgy (PM) alloys, relatively large defects occur rarely enough that a typical characterization with a limited number of small volume fatigue test specimens will not adequately sample inclusion-initiated damage. Counterintuitively, inclusion-initiated failure has a greater impact on the distribution in PM alloy fatigue lives because they tend to have fewer defects than their cast and wrought counterparts. Although the relative paucity of defects in PM alloys leads to higher mean fatigue lives, the distribution in observed lives tends to be broader. In order to study this important failure initiation mechanism without expending an inordinate number of specimens, a study was undertaken at the NASA Glenn Research Center where known populations of artificial inclusions (seeds) were introduced to production powder. Fatigue specimens were machined from forgings produced from the seeded powder. Considerable effort has been expended in characterizing the crack growth rate from inclusion-initiated cracks in seeded PM alloys. A rotating and translating positioning system, with associated software, was devised to map the surface inclusions in low-cycle fatigue (LCF) test bars and to monitor the crack growth from these inclusions. The preceding graph illustrates the measured extension in fatigue cracks from inclusions on a seeded LCF test bar subjected to cyclic loading at a strain range of 0.8 percent and a strain ratio (max/min) of zero. Notice that the observed inclusions fall into three categories: some do not propagate at all (arrest), some propagate with a decreasing crack growth rate, and a few propagate at increasing rates that can be modeled by fracture mechanics. The following graph shows the measured inclusion-initiated crack growth rates from 10 interrupted LCF tests plotted against stress intensities calculated for semi-elliptical cracks with the observed surface lengths. The expected scatter in the crack growth rates for stress intensity ranges near threshold is observed. These data will be used to help determine the distribution in growth rates of cracks emanating from inclusions as well as the proportion of cracks that arrest under various loading conditions.

Isolating active orogenic wedge deformation in the southern Subandes of Bolivia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weiss, Jonathan R.; Brooks, Benjamin A.; Foster, James H.; Bevis, Michael; Echalar, Arturo; Caccamise, Dana; Heck, Jacob; Kendrick, Eric; Ahlgren, Kevin; Raleigh, David; Smalley, Robert; Vergani, Gustavo

2016-08-01

A new GPS-derived surface velocity field for the central Andean backarc permits an assessment of orogenic wedge deformation across the southern Subandes of Bolivia, where recent studies suggest that great earthquakes (>Mw 8) are possible. We find that the backarc is not isolated from the main plate boundary seismic cycle. Rather, signals from subduction zone earthquakes contaminate the velocity field at distances greater than 800 km from the Chile trench. Two new wedge-crossing velocity profiles, corrected for seasonal and earthquake affects, reveal distinct regions that reflect (1) locking of the main plate boundary across the high Andes, (2) the location of and loading rate at the back of orogenic wedge, and (3) an east flank velocity gradient indicative of décollement locking beneath the Subandes. Modeling of the Subandean portions of the profiles indicates along-strike variations in the décollement locked width (WL) and wedge loading rate; the northern wedge décollement has a WL of ~100 km while accumulating slip at a rate of ~14 mm/yr, whereas the southern wedge has a WL of ~61 km and a slip rate of ~7 mm/yr. When compared to Quaternary estimates of geologic shortening and evidence for Holocene internal wedge deformation, the new GPS-derived wedge loading rates may indicate that the southern wedge is experiencing a phase of thickening via reactivation of preexisting internal structures. In contrast, we suspect that the northern wedge is undergoing an accretion or widening phase primarily via slip on relatively young thrust-front faults.

A computer solution for the dynamic load, lubricant film thickness, and surface temperatures in spiral-bevel gears

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chao, H. C.; Baxter, M.; Cheng, H. S.

1983-01-01

A computer method for determining the dynamic load between spiral bevel pinion and gear teeth contact along the path of contact is described. The dynamic load analysis governs both the surface temperature and film thickness. Computer methods for determining the surface temperature, and film thickness are presented along with results obtained for a pair of typical spiral bevel gears.

Characteristics of sludge developed under different loading conditions during UASB reactor start-up and granulation.

PubMed

Ghangrekar, M M; Asolekar, S R; Joshi, S G

2005-03-01

Sludge characteristics available inside the reactor are of vital importance to maximize advantages of UASB reactor. The organic loading rate and sludge loading rate applied during start-up are among the important parameters to govern the sludge characteristics. Effects of these loading rates on the characteristics of the sludge developed are evaluated in six laboratory scale UASB reactors. The sludge characteristics considered are VSS/SS ratio of the sludge, sludge volume index, specific gravity, settling velocity and metal contents of the sludge developed under different loading rates. The experimental results indicate that, for developing good characteristics sludge, during primary start-up from flocculent inoculum sludge, organic loading rate and sludge loading rate should be in the range of 2.0-4.5 kg COD/m3 d and 0.1-0.25 kg COD/kg VSS d, respectively (chemical oxygen demand, COD). Proper sludge granulation and higher COD removal efficiency will be achieved by these loading rates.

Developing a Small-Scale De-Fluoridation Filter for Use in Rural Northern Ghana with Activated Alumina As the Sorbent

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Craig, L.; Stillings, L. L.

2014-12-01

In northern Ghana, groundwater is the main source of household water and is generally considered safe to drink. However in some areas it contains fluoride (F-) concentrations above the 1.5 ppm limit recommended by the World Health Organization, putting the users at risk of fluorosis. The study area in the Upper East Region of Ghana has pockets of groundwater F- up to 4.6 ppm and, as a result, also has a high percentage of residents with dental fluorosis. They have no alternative water source and, because of poverty and limited access to technology, lack the capacity to set up advanced treatment systems. One proposed solution is to attach F- adsorption filters to the wells, since adsorption is considered a simple and cost effective approach for treating high F-drinking water. This study evaluates activated alumina as a sorbent for use in de-fluoridation filters in the study area. We evaluated the long-term adsorption capacity of activated alumina, and changes in F- adsorption rate and capacity with grain size. We measured differences in positive surface charge (C m-2) via slow acid titration, as well as F- loading with varied prior hydration time. Results from this research show no notable change in F- adsorption or positive surface charge when the activated alumina surface was pre-equilibrated in distilled water from 24 hours to 30 weeks. The results of F- loading show a maximum of ~3.4 mg F- sorbed per gm activated alumina (initial pH ~6.9, initial F- 1 to 60 ppm, 20 hr reaction time). The pH dependent surface charge is ~0.14 C m-2 at pH of ~4.4 and is zero at pH ~8.6. F- loading experiments were conducted with grain size 0.125 to 0.250 mm and 0.5 to 1.0 mm to evaluate changes in F- adsorption rate (initial pH ~6.9, initial F- 10 ppm) and F- loading (initial pH ~6.9, initial F- 1 to 60 ppm, 20 hr reaction time). The F- loading did not change with grain size. However time to equilibrium increased dramatically with a decrease in grain size - after one hour of reaction time, the larger grain size adsorbed only 59% of F-, while at the finer grain size 90% was adsorbed. Future work will determine the volume of high F- water that can be treated before activated alumina needs to be regenerated or changed. These data will aid in the design of a small-scale F- adsorption filter in the study area, and will predict the longevity of activated alumina as the sorbent.

Characterization of Chlorhexidine-Loaded Calcium-Hydroxide Microparticles as a Potential Dental Pulp-Capping Material.

PubMed

Priyadarshini, Balasankar M; Selvan, Subramanian T; Narayanan, Karthikeyan; Fawzy, Amr S

2017-06-22

This study explores the delivery of novel calcium hydroxide [Ca(OH)₂] microparticles loaded with chlorhexidine (CHX) for potential dental therapeutic and preventive applications. Herein, we introduce a new approach for drug-delivery to deep dentin-surfaces in the form of drug-loaded microparticles. Unloaded Ca(OH)₂ [Ca(OH)₂/Blank] and CHX-loaded/Ca(OH)₂ microparticles were fabricated by aqueous chemical-precipitation technique. The synthesized-microparticles were characterized in vitro for determination of surface-morphology, crystalline-features and thermal-properties examined by energy-dispersive X-ray scanning and transmission electron-microscopy (EDX-SEM/TEM), Fourier-transform infrared-spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning-calorimetry (DSC). Time-related pH changes, initial antibacterial/biofilm-abilities and cytotoxicity of CHX-loaded/Ca(OH)₂ microparticles were evaluated. Microparticles were delivered to dentin-surfaces with subsequent SEM examination of treated dentin-substrates. The in vitro and ex vivo CHX-release profiles were characterized. Ca(OH)₂/Blank were hexagonal-shaped with highest z -average diameter whereas CHX-inclusion evidenced micro-metric spheres with distinguishable surface "rounded deposits" and a negative-shift in diameter. CHX:Ca(OH)₂/50 mg exhibited maximum encapsulation-efficiency with good antibacterial and cytocompatible properties. SEM examination revealed an intact layer of microparticles on exposed dentin-surfaces with retention of spherical shape and smooth texture. Microparticles loaded on dentin-surfaces showed prolonged release of CHX indicating substantial retention on dentin-substrates. This study validated the inherent-applicability of this novel drug-delivery approach to dentin-surfaces using micro-metric CHX-loaded/Ca(OH)₂ microparticles.

Effect of surface chemistry on the rate of osseointegration of sintered porous-surfaced Ti-6Al-4V implants.

PubMed

Taché, Alex; Gan, Lu; Deporter, Douglas; Pilliar, Robert M

2004-01-01

The effect of adding a thin sol-gel-formed calcium phosphate (CaP) coating to sintered porous-surfaced titanium alloy (Ti-6Al-4V) implants on rates of initial bone ingrowth was investigated. Control implants (as manufactured) and similar implants with sol-gel CaP coatings were randomly placed in distal femoral rabbit condyles (1 implant/leg). After healing for 6, 9, 12, and 16 days, 8 of 10 rabbits in each time group were assessed for maximum implant pullout force (N) and interface stiffness (N/mm). Selected extracted implants also were examined by secondary electron imaging to characterize affected surfaces. The implants of the remaining 2 rabbits in each group were examined by backscattered scanning electron microscopy (BSEM). Significantly greater pullout forces and interface stiffness were found for CaP-coated implants at 6 and 9 days. At 6 days, BSEM revealed bone ingrowth on CaP-coated implants but not on control implants. Secondary electron imaging and BSEM observations also suggested greater bone ingrowth with CaP-coated porous implants at 9, 12, and 16 days. Sol-gel-formed CaP surface films significantly enhance rates of bone ingrowth into sintered porous-surfaced implants. This surface treatment may have a number of clinical benefits, including shortening the period prior to functional loading of such implants and improving treatment outcomes in situations of poor bone quality and/or quantity. (More than 50 references).

Dynamic Behavior of AA2519-T8 Aluminum Alloy Under High Strain Rate Loading in Compression

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olasumboye, A. T.; Owolabi, G. M.; Odeshi, A. G.; Yilmaz, N.; Zeytinci, A.

2018-06-01

In this study, the effects of strain rate on the dynamic behavior, microstructure evolution and hence, failure of the AA2519-T8 aluminum alloy were investigated under compression at strain rates ranging from 1000 to 3500 s-1. Cylindrical specimens of dimensions 3.3 mm × 3.3 mm (L/D = 1) were tested using the split-Hopkinson pressure bar integrated with a digital image correlation system. The microstructure of the alloy was assessed using optical and scanning electron microscopes. Results showed that the dynamic yield strength of the alloy is strain rate dependent, with the maximum yield strength attained by the material being 500 MPa. The peak flow stress of 562 MPa was attained by the material at 3500 s-1. The alloy also showed a significant rate of strain hardening that is typical of other Al-Cu alloys; the rate of strain hardening, however, decreased with increase in strain rate. It was determined that the strain rate sensitivity coefficient of the alloy within the range of high strain rates used in this study is approximately 0.05 at 0.12 plastic strain; a more significant value than what was reported in literature under quasi-static loading. Micrographs obtained showed potential sites for the evolution of adiabatic shear band at 3500 s-1, with a characteristic circular-shaped surface profile comprising partially dissolved second phase particles in the continuous phase across the incident plane of the deformed specimen. The regions surrounding the site showed little or no change in the size of particles. However, the constituent coarse particles were observed as agglomerations of fractured pieces, thus having a shape factor different from those contained in the as-received alloy. Since the investigated alloy is a choice material for military application where it can be exposed to massive deformation at high strain rates, this study provides information on its microstructural and mechanical responses to such extreme loading condition.

Dynamic Behavior of AA2519-T8 Aluminum Alloy Under High Strain Rate Loading in Compression

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olasumboye, A. T.; Owolabi, G. M.; Odeshi, A. G.; Yilmaz, N.; Zeytinci, A.

2018-02-01

In this study, the effects of strain rate on the dynamic behavior, microstructure evolution and hence, failure of the AA2519-T8 aluminum alloy were investigated under compression at strain rates ranging from 1000 to 3500 s-1. Cylindrical specimens of dimensions 3.3 mm × 3.3 mm (L/D = 1) were tested using the split-Hopkinson pressure bar integrated with a digital image correlation system. The microstructure of the alloy was assessed using optical and scanning electron microscopes. Results showed that the dynamic yield strength of the alloy is strain rate dependent, with the maximum yield strength attained by the material being 500 MPa. The peak flow stress of 562 MPa was attained by the material at 3500 s-1. The alloy also showed a significant rate of strain hardening that is typical of other Al-Cu alloys; the rate of strain hardening, however, decreased with increase in strain rate. It was determined that the strain rate sensitivity coefficient of the alloy within the range of high strain rates used in this study is approximately 0.05 at 0.12 plastic strain; a more significant value than what was reported in literature under quasi-static loading. Micrographs obtained showed potential sites for the evolution of adiabatic shear band at 3500 s-1, with a characteristic circular-shaped surface profile comprising partially dissolved second phase particles in the continuous phase across the incident plane of the deformed specimen. The regions surrounding the site showed little or no change in the size of particles. However, the constituent coarse particles were observed as agglomerations of fractured pieces, thus having a shape factor different from those contained in the as-received alloy. Since the investigated alloy is a choice material for military application where it can be exposed to massive deformation at high strain rates, this study provides information on its microstructural and mechanical responses to such extreme loading condition.

Estimation of nonpoint-source loads of total nitrogen, total phosphorous, and total suspended solids in the Black, Belle, and Pine River basins, Michigan, by use of the PLOAD model

USGS Publications Warehouse

Syed, Atiq U.; Jodoin, Richard S.

2006-01-01

The Lake St. Clair Regional Monitoring Project partners planned a 3-year assessment study of the surface water in the Lake St. Clair drainage basins in Michigan. This study included water-quality monitoring and analysis, collection of discrete (grab) and automatic water-quality samples, monitoring of bacteria, and the creation of a database to store all relevant data collected from past and future field-data-collection programs. In cooperation with the Lake St. Clair Monitoring Project, the U.S. Geological Survey assessed nonpoint-source loads of nutrients and total suspended solids in the Black, Belle, and Pine River basins. The principal tool for the assessment study was the USEPA’s PLOAD model, a simplified GIS-based numerical program that generates gross estimates of pollutant loads. In this study, annual loads were computed for each watershed using the USEPA’s Simple Method, which is based on scientific studies showing a correlation between different land-use types and loading rates. The two land-use data sets used in the study (representing 1992 and 2001) show a maximum of 0.02-percent change in any of the 15 land use categories between the two timeframes. This small change in land use is reflected in the PLOAD results of the study area between the two time periods. PLOAD model results for the 2001 land-use data include total-nitrogen loads from the Black, Belle, and Pine River basins of approximately 495,599 lb/yr, 156,561 lb/yr, and 121,212 lb/yr, respectively; total-phosphorus loads of 80,777 lb/yr, 25,493 lb/yr, and 19,655 lb/yr, respectively; and total-suspended-solids loads of 5,613,282 lb/yr, 1,831,045 lb/yr, and 1,480,352 lb/yr, respectively. The subbasins in the Black, Belle, and Pine River basin with comparatively high loads are characterized by comparatively high percentages of industrial, commercial, transportation, or residential land use. The results from the PLOAD model provide useful information about the approximate average annual loading rates from the three study basins. In particular, the results identify subbasins with comparatively high loading rates per square mile. This could aid water-resources managers and planners in evaluation of the effectiveness of public expenditures for water-quality improvements, assessment of progress towards achieving established water-quality goals, and planning of preventive actions.

Consumption rate of some proteinic diets affecting hypopharyngeal glands development in honeybee workers

PubMed Central

Al-Ghamdi, Ahmad AlKazim; Al-Khaibari, Abeer M.; Omar, Mohamed O.

2010-01-01

The experiment was carried out under laboratory condition to study the consumption of some proteinic diets and their effect on hypopharyngeal glands (HPG) development during nursing period. The results showed that the bee bread and the pollen loads mixture with sugar (1:1) were more consumed by honeybee workers followed by Nectapol® and Yeast-Gluten mixture. The lowest consumption amount was recorded with traditional substitute. Clear differences were found in HPG development under feeding with different diets. The maximum development degree was observed when fed with bee bread followed by pollen loads and mixture from Yeast, Gluten and sugar (1:1:2). The acinal surface of HPG showed clear difference under feeding with difference diets. The largest area was recorded when honeybee workers fed on bee bread followed by Yeast-Gluten-sugar mixture (diet,4) and pollen loads(diet,2). PMID:23961106

A Study Of High Speed Friction Behavior Under Elastic Loading Conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crawford, P. J.; Hammerberg, J. E.

2005-03-01

The role of interfacial dynamics under high strain-rate conditions is an important constitutive relationship in modern modeling and simulation studies of dynamic events (<100 μs in length). The frictional behavior occurring at the interface between two metal surfaces under high elastic loading and sliding speed conditions is studied using the Rotating Barrel Gas Gun (RBGG) facility. The RBGG utilizes a low-pressure gas gun to propel a rotating annular projectile towards an annular target rod. Upon striking the target, the projectile imparts both an axial and a torsional impulse into the target. Resulting elastic waves are measured using strain gauges attached to the target rod. The kinetic coefficient of friction is obtained through an analysis of the resulting strain wave data. Experiments performed using Cu/Cu, Cu/Stainless steel and Cu/Al interfaces provide some insight into the kinetic coefficient of friction behavior at varying sliding speeds and impact loads.

Protection of SK-N-MC cells against β-amyloid peptide-induced degeneration using neuron growth factor-loaded liposomes with surface lactoferrin.

PubMed

Kuo, Yung-Chih; Wang, Cheng-Ting

2014-07-01

A liposomal system with surface lactoferrin (Lf) was developed for delivering neuron growth factor (NGF) across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and improving the viability of neuron-like SK-N-MC cells with deposited β-amyloid peptide (Aβ). The Lf-grafted liposomes carrying NGF (Lf/NGF-liposomes) were applied to a monolayer of human brain-microvascular endothelial cells (HBMECs) regulated by human astrocytes (HAs) and to fibrillar Aβ1-42-insulted SK-N-MC cells. An increase in cholesterol mole percentage enhanced the particle size, absolute value of zeta potential, and physical stability, however, reduced the entrapment efficiency and release rate of NGF. In addition, an increase in Lf concentration increased the particle size, surface nitrogen percentage, NGF permeability across the BBB, and viability of HBMECs, HAs, and SK-N-MC cells, however, decreased the absolute value of zeta potential, surface phosphorus percentage, and loading efficiency of Lf. After treating with Lf/NGF-liposomes, a higher Aβ concentration yielded a lower survival of SK-N-MC cells. The current Lf/NGF-liposomes are efficacious drug carriers to target the BBB and inhibit the Aβ-induced neurotoxicity as potential pharmacotherapy for Alzheimer's disease. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

FLOQSwab™: Optimisation of Procedures for the Recovery of Microbiological Samples from Surfaces

PubMed Central

Finazzi, Guido; Losio, Marina Nadia; Varisco, Giorgio

2016-01-01

The FLOQSwab™ is a specimen collection device worldwide recognised for its superior performance in the clinical diagnostics. The aim of this work was to evaluate FLOQSwab™ for the recovery of microbiological samples from surfaces compared to the traditional swab (rayon tipped swab) as per ISO 18593:2004 standard. The FLOQSwab™, thanks to its innovative manufacturing technology, allows improving the efficiency of recovery and release of analyte. The study has been divided into two experiments. In the first experiment the two swabs were evaluated for their capacity to recover and release the analyte (three different bacterial loads of Escherichia coli). In the second experiment, the two swabs were evaluated for their capacity to recover three different bacterial loads of E. coli from two different surface materials (stainless steel and polypropylene). In all experiments the flocked swab demonstrated a higher recovery rate compared to the traditional rayon tipped swab. The data obtained from this preliminary study demonstrated that the FLOQSwab™ could be a good food surfaces collection device, which improves the recovery of the analyte and thus produces accurate results. Based on the outcomes of the study, a larger field study is in progress using the FLOQSwab™ for samples collection to improve both environmental monitoring and the efficacy of the hygiene controls for food safety. PMID:27853708

Modification of the acid/base properties of γ-Al2O3 by oxide additives: An ethanol TPD investigation

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

Kwak, Ja Hun; Lee, Jaekyoung; Szanyi, Janos

2016-02-26

The electronic properties of oxide-modified γ Al2O3 surfaces were investigated by using ethanol TPD. Ethanol TPD showed remarkable sensitivity toward the surface structures and electronic properties of the aluminas modified by various transition metal oxides. Maximum desorption rates for the primary product of ethanol adsorption, ethylene, were observed at 225 °C on non-modified γ-Al2O3. Desorption temperature of ethanol over a γ Al2O3 samples with different amounts of BaO linearly increased with increasing loading. On the contrary, ethanol desorption temperature on Pt modified γ-Al2O3 after calcined at 500 oC linearly decreased with increasing Pt loading. These results clearly suggested that themore » acid/base properties of the γ-Al2O3 surface can be strongly affected by ad-atoms. For confirming these arguments, we performed ethanol TPD experiments on various oxide modified γ-Al2O3 and normalized the maximum desorption temperatures based on the same number of oxide dopants. These normalized ethanol desorption temperatures linearly correlate with the electronegativity of the metal atom in the oxide. This linear relationship clearly demonstrates that the acidic properties of alumina surfaces can be systematically changed by ad-atoms.« less

Infrared study of CO{sub 2} sorption over 'molecular basket' sorbent consisting of polyethylenimine-modified mesoporous molecular sieve

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

Wang, X.X.; Schwartz, V.; Clark, J.C.

2009-04-15

An infrared study has been conducted on CO{sub 2} sorption into nanoporous CO{sub 2} 'molecular basket' sorbents prepared by loading polyethylenimine (PEI) into mesoporous molecular sieve SBA-15. IR results from DRIFTS showed that a part of loaded PEI is anchored on the surface of SBA-15 through the interaction between amine groups and isolated surface silanol groups. Raising the temperature from 25 to 75{sup o}C increased the molecular flexibility of PEI loaded in the mesopore channels, which may partly contribute to the increase of CO{sub 2} sorption capacity at higher temperatures. CO{sub 2} sorption/desorption behavior studied by in situ transmission FTIRmore » showed that CO{sub 2} is sorbed on amine sites through the formation of alkylammonium carbamates and absorbed into the multiple layers of PEI located in mesopores of SBA-15. A new observation by in situ IR is that two broad IR bands emerged at 2450 and 2160 cm{sup -1} with CO{sub 2} flowing over PEI(50)/SBA-15, which could be attributed to chemically sorbed CO{sub 2} species on PEI molecules inside the mesopores of SBA-15. The intensities of these two bands also increased with increasing CO{sub 2} exposure time and with raising CO{sub 2} sorption temperature. By comparison of the CO{sub 2} sorption rate at 25 and 75{sup o}C in terms of differential IR intensities, it was found that CO{sub 2} sorption over molecular basket sorbent includes two rate regimes which suggest two distinct steps: rapid sorption on exposed outer surface layers of PEI (controlled by sorption affinity or thermodynamics) and the diffusion and sorption inside the bulk of multiple layers of PEI (controlled by diffusion). The sorption of CO{sub 2} is reversible at 75{sup o}C.« less

Survival Predictions of Ceramic Crowns Using Statistical Fracture Mechanics

PubMed Central

Nasrin, S.; Katsube, N.; Seghi, R.R.; Rokhlin, S.I.

2017-01-01

This work establishes a survival probability methodology for interface-initiated fatigue failures of monolithic ceramic crowns under simulated masticatory loading. A complete 3-dimensional (3D) finite element analysis model of a minimally reduced molar crown was developed using commercially available hardware and software. Estimates of material surface flaw distributions and fatigue parameters for 3 reinforced glass-ceramics (fluormica [FM], leucite [LR], and lithium disilicate [LD]) and a dense sintered yttrium-stabilized zirconia (YZ) were obtained from the literature and incorporated into the model. Utilizing the proposed fracture mechanics–based model, crown survival probability as a function of loading cycles was obtained from simulations performed on the 4 ceramic materials utilizing identical crown geometries and loading conditions. The weaker ceramic materials (FM and LR) resulted in lower survival rates than the more recently developed higher-strength ceramic materials (LD and YZ). The simulated 10-y survival rate of crowns fabricated from YZ was only slightly better than those fabricated from LD. In addition, 2 of the model crown systems (FM and LD) were expanded to determine regional-dependent failure probabilities. This analysis predicted that the LD-based crowns were more likely to fail from fractures initiating from margin areas, whereas the FM-based crowns showed a slightly higher probability of failure from fractures initiating from the occlusal table below the contact areas. These 2 predicted fracture initiation locations have some agreement with reported fractographic analyses of failed crowns. In this model, we considered the maximum tensile stress tangential to the interfacial surface, as opposed to the more universally reported maximum principal stress, because it more directly impacts crack propagation. While the accuracy of these predictions needs to be experimentally verified, the model can provide a fundamental understanding of the importance that pre-existing flaws at the intaglio surface have on fatigue failures. PMID:28107637

Flash NanoPrecipitation (FNP) for bioengineering nanoparticles to enhance the bioavailability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Feng, Jie; Zhang, Yingyue; McManus, Simone; Prud'Homme, Robert

2017-11-01

Nanoparticles for the delivery of therapeutics have been one of the successful areas in biomedical nanotechnology. Nanoparticles improve bioavailability by 1) the higher surface-to-volume ratios, enhancing dissolution rates, and 2) trapping drug molecules in higher energy, amorphous states for a higher solubility. However, conventional direct precipitation to prepare nanoparticles has the issues of low loading and encapsulation efficiency. Here we demonstrate a kinetically controlled and rapid-precipitation process called Flash NanoPrecipitation (FNP), to offer a multi-phase mixing platform for bioengineering nanoparticles. With the designed geometry in the micro-mixer, we can generate nanoparticles with a narrow size distribution, while maintaining high loading and encapsulation efficiency. By controlling the time scales in FNP, we can tune the nanoparticle size and the robustness of the process. Remarkably, the dissolution rates of the nanoparticles are significantly improved compared with crystalline drug powders. Furthermore, we investigate how to recover the drug-loaded nanoparticles from the aqueous dispersions. Regarding the maintenance of the bioavailability, we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each drying process. These results suggest that FNP offers a versatile and scalable nano-fabrication platform for biomedical engineering.

Energy absorption characterization of human enamel using nanoindentation.

PubMed

He, Li Hong; Swain, Michael V

2007-05-01

Enamel is a natural composite, which has much higher toughness than its major component, crystalline hydroxyapatite. In this study, the energy absorption behavior of human sound enamel was investigated with nanoindentation techniques. A UMIS nanoindenter system as well as a Berkovich and two spherical indenters with nominal tip radii of 5 and 20 microm were used to indent enamel at different loading forces in the direction parallel to enamel prisms. Inelastic energy dissipation versus depth of indenter penetration (U%-h(p) curve) as well as a function of indentation strain (U%-epsilon curve) of enamel was determined. Enamel showed much higher energy absorption capacity than a ceramic material with equivalent modulus (fused silica). Even at the lowest forces (1 mN) for the 20 microm indenter, inelastic response was found. Additional tests done at different force loading rates illustrated that load rate has little influence on P-h response of enamel. The top surface of enamel has the plastic work of indentation of approximately 5.2 nJ/microm(3). The energy absorbing ability is influenced by the very small protein rich component that exists between the hydroxyapatite nanocrystals as well as within the sheath structure surrounding the enamel rods. Copyright 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Bathymetric Contour Maps of Lakes Surveyed in Iowa in 2005

USGS Publications Warehouse

Linhart, S.M.; Lund, K.D.

2008-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, conducted bathymetric surveys on seven lakes in Iowa during 2005 (Arrowhead Pond, Central Park Lake, Lake Keomah, Manteno Park Pond, Lake Miami, Springbrook Lake, and Yellow Smoke Lake). The surveys were conducted to provide the Iowa Department of Natural Resources with information for the development of total maximum daily load limits, particularly for estimating sediment load and deposition rates. The bathymetric surveys provide a baseline for future work on sediment loads and deposition rates for these lakes. All of the lakes surveyed in 2005 are man-made lakes with fixed spillways. Bathymetric data were collected using boat-mounted, differential global positioning system, echo depth-sounding equipment, and computer software. Data were processed with commercial hydrographic software and exported into a geographic information system for mapping and calculating area and volume. Lake volume estimates ranged from 47,784,000 cubic feet (1,100 acre-feet) at Lake Miami to 2,595,000 cubic feet (60 acre-feet) at Manteno Park Pond. Surface area estimates ranged from 5,454,000 square feet (125 acres) at Lake Miami to 558,000 square feet (13 acres) at Springbrook Lake.

A Workflow to Model Microbial Loadings in Watersheds ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Many watershed models simulate overland and instream microbial fate and transport, but few actually provide loading rates on land surfaces and point sources to the water body network. This paper describes the underlying general equations for microbial loading rates associated with 1) land-applied manure on undeveloped areas from domestic animals; 2) direct shedding on undeveloped lands by domestic animals and wildlife; 3) urban or engineered areas; and 4) point sources that directly discharge to streams from septic systems and shedding by domestic animals. A microbial source module, which houses these formulations, is linked within a workflow containing eight models and a set of databases that form a loosely configured modeling infrastructure which supports watershed-scale microbial source-to-receptor modeling by focusing on animal-impacted catchments. A hypothetical example application – accessing, retrieving, and using real-world data – demonstrates the ability of the infrastructure to automate many of the manual steps associated with a standard watershed assessment, culminating with calibrated flow and microbial densities at the pour point of a watershed. In the Proceedings of the International Environmental Modelling and Software Society (iEMSs), 8th International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software, Toulouse, France

Initiation and propagation of mixed mode fractures in granite and sandstone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rück, Marc; Rahner, Roman; Sone, Hiroki; Dresen, Georg

2017-10-01

We investigate mixed mode fracture initiation and propagation in experimentally deformed granite and sandstone. We performed a series of asymmetric loading tests to induce fractures in cylindrical specimens at confining pressures up to 20 MPa. Loading was controlled using acoustic emission (AE) feedback control, which allows studying quasi-static fracture propagation for several hours. Location of acoustic emissions reveals distinct differences in spatial-temporal fracture evolution between granite and sandstone samples. Before reaching peak stress in experiments performed on granite, axial fractures initiate first at the edge of the indenter and then propagate through the entire sample. Secondary inclined fractures develop during softening of the sample. In sandstone, inclined shear fractures nucleate at peak stress and propagate through the specimen. AE source type analysis shows complex fracturing in both materials with pore collapse contributing significantly to fracture growth in sandstone samples. We compare the experimental results with numerical models to analyze stress distribution and energy release rate per unit crack surface area in the samples at different stages during fracture growth. We thereby show that for both rock types the energy release rate increases approximately linearly during fracture propagation. The study illuminates how different material properties modify fracture initiation direction under similar loading conditions.

Optical Sensing of the Fatigue Damage State of CFRP under Realistic Aeronautical Load Sequences

PubMed Central

Zuluaga-Ramírez, Pablo; Arconada, Álvaro; Frövel, Malte; Belenguer, Tomás; Salazar, Félix

2015-01-01

We present an optical sensing methodology to estimate the fatigue damage state of structures made of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP), by measuring variations on the surface roughness. Variable amplitude loads (VAL), which represent realistic loads during aeronautical missions of fighter aircraft (FALSTAFF) have been applied to coupons until failure. Stiffness degradation and surface roughness variations have been measured during the life of the coupons obtaining a Pearson correlation of 0.75 between both variables. The data were compared with a previous study for Constant Amplitude Load (CAL) obtaining similar results. Conclusions suggest that the surface roughness measured in strategic zones is a useful technique for structural health monitoring of CFRP structures, and that it is independent of the type of load applied. Surface roughness can be measured in the field by optical techniques such as speckle, confocal perfilometers and interferometry, among others. PMID:25760056

Groundwater Flow Through a Constructed Treatment Wetland

DTIC Science & Technology

2002-03-01

sediments or has the water found preferential flow paths? (2) Does the behavior of groundwater flow change with varying loading rates or environmental...surface of the wetland. Water flows through a subsurface flow wetland in a similar fashion as groundwater flows through an aquifer. The concept is...circuiting of the wetland media. Groundwater Flow Various physical properties influence the flow of water through soil. In wetlands, the type of soil

CrossWater - Modelling micropollutant loads from different sources in the Rhine basin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moser, Andreas; Bader, Hans-Peter; Fenicia, Fabrizio; Scheidegger, Ruth; Stamm, Christian

2015-04-01

The contamination of fresh surface waters with micropollutants originating from various sources is a growing environmental issue. The challenges for an effective political regulation are numerous, particularly for international water basins. One prerequisite for effective management is the knowledge of water quality across different parts of a basin. In this study within the Rhine basin, the spatial patterns of micropollutant loads and concentrations from different use classes are investigated with a mass flow analysis and compared to the established territorial jurisdictions on micropollutants and water quality. The source area of micropollutants depends on the specific use of a compound. The focus of this study is on i) herbicides from agricultural landuse, ii) biocides from material protection on buildings and iii) human pharmaceuticals from households. The total mass of micropollutants available for release to the stream network is estimated based on statistical application and consumption data. Based on GIS data of agricultural landuse, vector data of buildings, wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) locations, respectively, the available mass of micropollutants is spatially distributed to the catchment areas. The actual release of micropollutants to the stream network is calculated with empirical loss rates related to river discharge for agricultural herbicides and to precipitation for biocides. For the pharmaceuticals the release is coupled to the metabolism rates and elimination rates in WWTP. For a first approximation national sales are downscaled to the catchment level to specify the available mass for selected model compounds (agricultural herbicides: Isoproturon, biocides: Carbendazim, human pharmaceuticals: Carbamazepine and Diclofenac). The available mass of herbicides and biocides is multiplied with empirical loss rates independent from discharge or precipitation to calculate the loads. The release of the pharmaceuticals was calculated by multiplying average consumption numbers with the person equivalent of the WWTP and the elimination rates. The comparison of pollutant loads to 7-day composite samples of all compounds at 15 locations along the Rhine yield plausible results.

Research notes : customized live-load factors for bridge load rating.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2007-03-01

The state-of-the-art approach to load rating bridges is the Load and Resistance Factor Rating (LRFR) method, supported by the Federal Highway Administration and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. This approach ens...

Development of polyether urethane intravaginal rings for the sustained delivery of hydroxychloroquine

PubMed Central

Chen, Yufei; Traore, Yannick Leandre; Li, Amanda; Fowke, Keith R; Ho, Emmanuel A

2014-01-01

Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) has been shown to demonstrate anti-inflammatory properties and direct anti-HIV activity. In this study, we describe for the first time the fabrication and in vitro evaluation of two types of intravaginal ring (IVR) devices (a surfaced-modified matrix IVR and a reservoir segmental IVR) for achieving sustained delivery (>14 days) of HCQ as a strategy for preventing male-to-female transmission of HIV. Both IVRs were fabricated by hot-melt injection molding. Surface-modified matrix IVRs with polyvinylpyrrolidone or poly(vinyl alcohol) coatings exhibited significantly reduced burst release on the first day (6.45% and 15.72% reduction, respectively). Reservoir IVR segments designed to release lower amounts of HCQ displayed near-zero-order release kinetics with an average release rate of 28.38 μg/mL per day for IVRs loaded with aqueous HCQ and 32.23 μg/mL per day for IVRs loaded with HCQ mixed with a rate-controlling excipient. Stability studies demonstrated that HCQ was stable in coated or noncoated IVRs for 30 days. The IVR segments had no significant effect on cell viability, pro-inflammatory cytokine production, or colony formation of vaginal and ectocervical epithelial cells. Both IVR systems may be suitable for the prevention of HIV transmission and other sexually transmitted infections. PMID:25336923

Enhanced photo-degradation of paracetamol on n-platinum-loaded TiO2: The effect of ultrasound and OH/hole scavengers.

PubMed

Ziylan-Yavaş, Asu; Ince, Nilsun H

2016-11-01

Elimination/mineralization of paracetamol (PCT) was investigated by catalytic oxidation under ultrasound, UV and both. The catalyst was synthesized by immobilization of nPt on TiO2 to benefit from the ability of Pt to facilitate charge transfer processes and to separate e(-)/h(+) pairs. It was found that increasing the Pt-loading enhanced the rate of sonochemical reactions, but retarded that of photolytic reactions, due to reduced UV absorption on the surface. Simultaneous application of sonolysis and photolysis was synergistic due to disaggregation of the particles and homogenization of the active species over the catalyst surface. The decay of PCT was highly dependent on the availability of OH, as the reactions were nearly terminated in the presence of a strong OH scavenger-2-propanol. However, a remarkable rate enhancement was observed in the presence of a suitable dose of I(-), which scavenges both OH and hvb(+). The result was explained by the production of excess radicals upon sonolysis of iodide solutions, and the reactivity of PCT with them. Finally, carbon mineralization was significantly hindered in the presence of both scavengers due to increased competition for OH and inefficient formation of hydroquinone arising from reduced availability of hvb(+). Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Photocatalytic hydrogen production from biomass-derived compounds: a case study of citric acid.

PubMed

Alkaim, Ayad F; Kandiel, Tarek A; Dillert, Ralf; Bahnemann, Detlef W

2016-11-01

Highly crystalline anatase TiO2 nanoparticles with high BET surface area have been synthesized by thermal hydrolysis of titanium(IV) bis(ammoniumlactato) dihydroxide aqueous solutions. The photocatalytic H2 production from aqueous citric acid (CA) solutions over Pt-loaded TiO2 has been investigated under different experimental conditions, that is, different CA concentration, temperature, light intensity, and pH of Pt/TiO2 suspension. For comparison, the photocatalytic dehydrogenation of triethanolamine (TEA) has also been investigated. The highest H2 production rates were obtained at pH 3 and 9 for CA and TEA, respectively. This behavior is readily explained by the adsorption characteristic of the employed reagent on the surface of the charged TiO2. The effect of the photocatalyst loading and the light intensity on the H2 production rate showed the same behavior in the case of CA and TEA evincing that these parameters are catalyst dependent. The apparent activation energies have been determined to be 13.5 ± 1.8 and 14.7 ± 1.6 kJ mol(-1) for CA and TEA, respectively, indicating the existence of an activation energy barrier in a photocatalytic process which can be attributed to the desorption of adsorbed products.

Investigation of the Process Conditions for Hydrogen Production by Steam Reforming of Glycerol over Ni/Al₂O₃ Catalyst Using Response Surface Methodology (RSM).

PubMed

Ebshish, Ali; Yaakob, Zahira; Taufiq-Yap, Yun Hin; Bshish, Ahmed

2014-03-19

In this work; a response surface methodology (RSM) was implemented to investigate the process variables in a hydrogen production system. The effects of five independent variables; namely the temperature (X₁); the flow rate (X₂); the catalyst weight (X₃); the catalyst loading (X₄) and the glycerol-water molar ratio (X₅) on the H₂ yield (Y₁) and the conversion of glycerol to gaseous products (Y₂) were explored. Using multiple regression analysis; the experimental results of the H₂ yield and the glycerol conversion to gases were fit to quadratic polynomial models. The proposed mathematical models have correlated the dependent factors well within the limits that were being examined. The best values of the process variables were a temperature of approximately 600 °C; a feed flow rate of 0.05 mL/min; a catalyst weight of 0.2 g; a catalyst loading of 20% and a glycerol-water molar ratio of approximately 12; where the H₂ yield was predicted to be 57.6% and the conversion of glycerol was predicted to be 75%. To validate the proposed models; statistical analysis using a two-sample t -test was performed; and the results showed that the models could predict the responses satisfactorily within the limits of the variables that were studied.

Vapor/Mist Used to Lubricate Gears After Loss of Primary Lubrication System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Handschuh, Robert F.; Morales, Wilfredo

2001-01-01

Loss of lubrication in rotorcraft drive systems is a demanding requirement placed on drive system manufacturers. The drive system must operate for at least 30 minutes once the primary lubrication system has failed. This test is a military requirement that must be passed prior to certification of the aircraft. As new aircraft engines, operating at higher speeds, are fielded, the requirements for the drive system become increasingly more difficult. Also, the drive system must be lightweight, which minimizes the opportunity to use the gear bodies to absorb the tremendous amount of heating that takes place. In many cases, the amount of heat generated because of the high speed and load requires an emergency lubrication system that negatively impacts the aircraft's weight, complexity, and cost. A single mesh spur gear test rig is being used at the NASA Glenn Research Center to investigate possible emergency lubrication system improvements that will minimize the impact of having these systems onboard rotorcraft. A technique currently being investigated uses a vapor/mist system to lubricate the contacting surfaces after the primary lubrication system has been shut down. A number of tests were conducted in which the vapor/mist used the same lubricant as the primary system, but at a greatly reduced flow rate. Each test was initiated with the primary lubrication system operational and at steady-state conditions for a given speed and load. Then the primary lubrication system was shut down, and the vapor/mist lubrication system was initiated. An example of the tests conducted is shown in the figures. These preliminary tests have uncovered a mechanism that provides a lubricious, carbonaceous solid on the surface that actually reduces the surface temperature of the meshing gear teeth during operation. Surface analysis of the carbonaceous solid revealed it was graphitic. This mechanism is the synthetic lubricant "coking" on the active profile of the gears, which reduces the friction between the contacting gear surfaces. The level of load affects the onset of this mechanism: the higher the load, the sooner coking takes place. Future work will investigate several other factors that could improve the already promising results that have been attained.

Further Investigations of Control Surface Seals for the X-38 Re-Entry Vehicle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dunlap, Patrick H., Jr.; Steinetz, Bruce M.; Curry, Donald M.; Newquist, Charles W.; Verzemnieks, Juris

2001-01-01

NASA is currently developing the X-38 vehicle that will be used to demonstrate the technologies required for a potential crew return vehicle (CRV) for the International Space Station. This vehicle would serve both as an ambulance for medical emergencies and as an evacuation vehicle for the Space Station. Control surfaces on the X-38 (body flaps and rudder/fin assemblies) require high temperature seals to limit hot gas ingestion and transfer of heat to underlying low-temperature structures to prevent over-temperature of these structures and possible loss of the vehicle. NASAs Johnson Space Center (JSC) and Glenn Research Center (GRC) are working together to develop and evaluate seals for these control surfaces. This paper presents results for compression. flow, scrub, and arc jet tests conducted on the baseline X-38 rudder/fin seal design. Room temperature seal compression tests were performed at low compression levels to determine load versus linear compression, preload. contact area, stiffness. and resiliency characteristics under low load conditions. For all compression levels that were tested, unit loads and contact pressures for the seals were below the 5 lb/in. and 10 psi limits required to limit the loads on the adjoining Shuttle thermal tiles that the seals will contact. Flow rates through an unloaded (i.e. 0% compression) double arrangement were twice those of a double seal compressed to the 20% design compression level. The seals survived an ambient temperature 1000 cycle scrub test over relatively rough Shuttle tile surfaces. The seals were able to disengage and re-engage the edges of the rub surface tiles while being scrubbed over them. Arc jet tests were performed to experimentally determine anticipated seal temperatures for representative flow boundary conditions (pressures and temperatures) under simulated vehicle re-entry conditions. Installation of a single seat in the gap of the test fixture caused a large temperature drop (1710 F) across the seal location as compared to an open gap condition (140 F) confirming the need for seals in the rudder/fin gap location. The seal acted as an effective thermal barrier limiting heat convection through the seal gap and minimizing temperature increases downstream of the seal during maximum heating conditions.

Compression failure of fibrous laminated composites in the presence of stress gradients : experiment and analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waas, Anthony M.

A series of experiments were performed to determine the mechanism of failure in compressively loaded laminated plates in the presence of stress gradients generated by a circular cutout. Real time holographic interferometry and in-situ photomicrography of the hole surface, were used to observe the progression of failure.The test specimens are multi-layered composite flat plates, which are loaded in compression. The plates are made of two material systems, T300/BP907 and IM7/8551-7. Two different lay-ups of T300/BP907 and four different lay-ups of IM7/8551-7 are investigated.The load on the specimen is slowly increased and a series of interferograms are produced during the load cycle. These interferograms are video-recorded. The results obtained from the interferograms and photo-micrographs are substantiated by sectioning studies and ultrasonic C-scanning of some specimens which are unloaded prior to catastrophic failure, but beyond failure initiation. This is made possible by the servo-controlled loading mechanism that regulates the load application and offers the flexibility of unloading a specimen at any given instance in the loadtime history.An underlying objective of the present investigation is the identification of the physics of the failure initiation process. This required testing specimens with different stacking sequences, for a fixed hole diameter, so that consistent trends in the failure process could be identified.It is revealed that the failure is initiated as a localized instability in the 0? plies at the hole surface, approximately at right angles to the loading direction. This instability emanating at the hole edge and propagating into the interior of the specimen within the 0? plies is found to be fiber microbuckling. The microbuckling is found to occur at a local strain level of [...]8600 [mu]strain at the hole edge for the IM material system. This initial failure renders a narrow zone of fibers within the 0? plies to loose structural integrity. Subsequent to the 0?-ply failure, extensive delamination cracking is observed with increasing load. The through thickness location of these delaminations is found to depend on the position of the 0? plies.The delaminated portions spread to the undamaged areas of the laminate by a combination of delamination buckling and growth, the buckling further enhancing the growth. When the delaminated area reaches a critical size, about 75-100% of the hole radius in extent, an accelerated growth rate of the delaminated portions is observed. The culmination of this last event is the complete loss of flexural stiffness of each of the delaminated portions leading to catastrophic failure of the plate. The levels of applied load and the rate at which these events occur depend on the plate stacking sequence.A simple mechanical model is presented for the microbuckling problem. This model addresses the buckling instability of a semi-infinte layered half-plane alternatingly stacked with fibers and matrix, loaded parallel to the surface of the half-plane. The fibers are modelled using Bernoulli-Navier beam theory, and the matrix is assumed to be a linearly elastic foundation. The predicted buckling strains are found to overestimate the experimental result. However, the dependence of the buckling strain on parameters such as the fiber volume fraction, ratio of Youngs moduli of the constituents and Poisson's ratio of the matrix are obtained from the analysis. It is seen that a high fiber volume fraction, increased matrix stiffness, and perfect bonding between fiber and matrix are desirable properties for increasing the compressive strength.

Estimation of selenium loads entering the south arm of Great Salt Lake, Utah, from May 2006 through March 2008

USGS Publications Warehouse

Naftz, David L.; Johnson, William P.; Freeman, Michael L.; Beisner, Kimberly; Diaz, Ximena; Cross, VeeAnn A.

2009-01-01

Discharge and water-quality data collected from six streamflow-gaging stations were used in combination with the LOADEST software to provide an estimate of total (dissolved + particulate) selenium (Se) load to the south arm of Great Salt Lake (GSL) from May 2006 through March 2008. Total estimated Se load to GSL during this time period was 2,370 kilograms (kg). The 12-month estimated Se load to GSL for May 1, 2006, to April 30, 2007, was 1,560 kg. During the 23-month monitoring period, inflows from the Kennecott Utah Copper Corporation (KUCC) Drain and Bear River outflow contributed equally to the largest proportion of total Se load to GSL, accounting for 49 percent of the total Se load. Five instantaneous discharge measurements at three sites along the railroad causeway indicate a consistent net loss of Se mass from the south arm to the north arm of GSL (mean = 2.4 kg/day, n = 5). Application of the average daily loss rate equates to annual Se loss rate to the north arm of 880 kg (56 percent of the annual Se input to the south arm). The majority of Se in water entering GSL is in the dissolved (less than 0.45 micron) state and ranges in concentration from 0.06 to 35.7 micrograms per liter (ug/L). Particulate Se concentration ranged from less than 0.05 to 2.5 ug/L. Except for the KUCC Drain streamflow-gaging station, dissolved (less than 0.45 um) inflow samples contain an average of 21 percent selenite (SeO32-) during two sampling events (May 2006 and 2007). Selenium concentration in water samples collected from four monitoring sites within GSL during May 2006 through August 2007 were used to understand how the cumulative Se load was being processed by various biogeochemical processes within the lake. On the basis of the Mann-Kendall test results, changes in dissolved Se concentration at the four monitoring sites indicate a statistically significant (90-percent confidence interval) upward trend in Se concentration over the 16-month monitoring period. Furthermore, the upward trend at three of the four GSL sites also was significant at the 95-percent confidence interval. Given the large amount of Se removal from GSL of greater than 1,900 kg/year by gaseous flux and permanent sedimentation, the observed increase in both dissolved (less than 0.45 micron) and total (dissolved + particulate) Se in the open-water monitoring sites indicates additional, unquantified source(s) of Se are contributing substantial masses of Se load to the south arm of GSL. Potential source(s) of this unmeasured Se load could include (1) Se loads entering GSL from unmeasured surface inflows; (2) ground-water discharge to GSL; (3) wind-blown dust that is deposited directly on the lake surface; (4) wet and dry atmospheric deposition falling directly on the lake surface; and (5) lake sediment pore-water diffusion into the overlying water column. Electrical resistivity surveys in the south part of GSL indicate areas of potential ground-water discharge to the open water of GSL and elevated (exceeding 10,000 ug/L) Se concentrations have been previously measured in ground water within 1.6 kilometers of the south shore of GSL.

Microencapsulation of essential oil for insect repellent in food packaging system.

PubMed

Chung, Seong Kyun; Seo, Ji Yeon; Lim, Jung Hoon; Park, Hyung Hwan; Yea, Myeong Jai; Park, Hyun Jin

2013-05-01

Microcapsules containing thyme oil were prepared by in situ polymerization, using melamine-formaldehyde prepolymer as a wall material and 3 different emulsifiers (pluronic F-127, tween 80, and sodium lauryl sulfate [SLS]). The general characteristics and release behavior of microcapsules, and their repellent effect against insects were investigated. The morphology of microcapsules using SLS was spherical shape with smooth surface. Microcapsules began to degrade at 150 °C. The particle size ranged from 1 to 10 μm and the loading efficiency of thyme oil was clearly affected by the emulsifier type. The highest loading efficiency appeared in microcapsules using SLS, which have good thermal resistance and smooth surface. The release rate of thyme oil from microcapsules was not only dependent on the storage temperature but also emulsifier type and microcapsules showed the sustained release properties for a long time. Diets, which were mixed with encapsulated thyme oil, expressed high insect repellent efficacy over 90% for 4 wk. © 2013 Institute of Food Technologists®

Wear of liquid nitrogen-cooled 440C bearing steels in an oxygen environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chaudhuri, Dilip K.; Verma, Ravi

1988-01-01

This paper presents up-to-date findings of the research being conducted to understand the mechanism of sliding wear in unlubricated 440C bearing steels under oxidative conditions. A sliding wear test rig has been designed and built with a cylinder-on-flat geometry. The equipment is capable of testing specimens under high axial loads and sliding speeds in a simulated LOX environment. Samples of 440C steel, quenched and tempered to a hardness of Rc 56, were tested under a load of 890 N and a sliding speed of 2.05 m/sec for total sliding distances of up to 5.54 km. Flash temperatures during these tests were measured with an IR camera and a fast digital recorder. Microstructural and microanalytical data from the worn surfaces and the debris particles are analyzed extensively, along with wear rates, flash temperatures, surface profiles, hardnesses, and residual stresses, in the context of oxidation and wear theories.

[Optimization of calcium alginate floating microspheres loading aspirin by artificial neural networks and response surface methodology].

PubMed

Zhang, An-yang; Fan, Tian-yuan

2010-04-18

To investigate the preparation and optimization of calcium alginate floating microspheres loading aspirin. A model was used to predict the in vitro release of aspirin and optimize the formulation by artificial neural networks (ANNs) and response surface methodology (RSM). The amounts of the material in the formulation were used as inputs, while the release and floating rate of the microspheres were used as outputs. The performances of ANNs and RSM were compared. ANNs were more accurate in prediction. There was no significant difference between ANNs and RSM in optimization. Approximately 90% of the optimized microspheres could float on the artificial gastric juice over 4 hours. 42.12% of aspirin was released in 60 min, 60.97% in 120 min and 78.56% in 240 min. The release of the drug from the microspheres complied with Higuchi equation. The aspirin floating microspheres with satisfying in vitro release were prepared successfully by the methods of ANNs and RSM.

The Contribution of Experimental in vivo Models to Understanding the Mechanisms of Adaptation to Mechanical Loading in Bone

PubMed Central

Meakin, Lee B.; Price, Joanna S.; Lanyon, Lance E.

2014-01-01

Changing loading regimens by natural means such as exercise, with or without interference such as osteotomy, has provided useful information on the structure:function relationship in bone tissue. However, the greatest precision in defining those aspects of the overall strain environment that influence modeling and remodeling behavior has been achieved by relating quantified changes in bone architecture to quantified changes in bones’ strain environment produced by direct, controlled artificial bone loading. Jiri Hert introduced the technique of artificial loading of bones in vivo with external devices in the 1960s using an electromechanical device to load rabbit tibiae through transfixing stainless steel pins. Quantifying natural bone strains during locomotion by attaching electrical resistance strain gages to bone surfaces was introduced by Lanyon, also in the 1960s. These studies in a variety of bones in a number of species demonstrated remarkable uniformity in the peak strains and maximum strain rates experienced. Experiments combining strain gage instrumentation with artificial loading in sheep, pigs, roosters, turkeys, rats, and mice has yielded significant insight into the control of strain-related adaptive (re)modeling. This diversity of approach has been largely superseded by non-invasive transcutaneous loading in rats and mice, which is now the model of choice for many studies. Together such studies have demonstrated that over the physiological strain range, bone’s mechanically adaptive processes are responsive to dynamic but not static strains; the size and nature of the adaptive response controlling bone mass is linearly related to the peak loads encountered; the strain-related response is preferentially sensitive to high strain rates and unresponsive to static ones; is most responsive to unusual strain distributions; is maximized by remarkably few strain cycles, and that these are most effective when interrupted by short periods of rest between them. PMID:25324829

Tribological behaviour predictions of r-GO reinforced Mg composite using ANN coupled Taguchi approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kavimani, V.; Prakash, K. Soorya

2017-11-01

This paper deals with the fabrication of reduced graphene oxide (r-GO) reinforced Magnesium Metal Matrix Composite (MMC) through a novel solvent based powder metallurgy route. Investigations over basic and functional properties of developed MMC reveals that addition of r-GO improvises the microhardness upto 64 HV but however decrement in specific wear rate is also notified. Visualization of worn out surfaces through SEM images clearly explains for the occurrence of plastic deformation and the presence of wear debris because of ploughing out action. Taguchi coupled Artificial Neural Network (ANN) technique is adopted to arrive at optimal values of the input parameters such as load, reinforcement weight percentage, sliding distance and sliding velocity and thereby achieve minimal target output value viz. specific wear rate. Influence of any of the input parameter over specific wear rate studied through ANOVA reveals that load acting on pin has a major influence with 38.85% followed by r-GO wt. % of 25.82%. ANN model developed to predict specific wear rate value based on the variation of input parameter facilitates better predictability with R-value of 98.4% when compared with the outcomes of regression model.

Excitation of plane Lamb wave in plate-like structures under applied surface loading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Kai; Xu, Xinsheng; Zhao, Zhen; Yang, Zhengyan; Zhou, Zhenhuan; Wu, Zhanjun

2018-02-01

Lamb waves play an important role in structure health monitoring (SHM) systems. The excitation of Lamb waves has been discussed for a long time with absorbing results. However, little effort has been made towards the precise characterization of Lamb wave excitation by various transducer models with mathematical foundation. In this paper, the excitation of plane Lamb waves with plane strain assumption in isotropic plate structures under applied surface loading is solved with the Hamiltonian system. The response of the Lamb modes excited by applied loading is expressed analytically. The effect of applied loading is divided into the product of two parts as the effect of direction and the effect of distribution, which can be changed by selecting different types of transducer and the corresponding transducer configurations. The direction of loading determines the corresponding displacement of each mode. The effect of applied loading on the in-plane and normal directions depends on the in-plane and normal displacements at the surface respectively. The effect of the surface loading distribution on the Lamb mode amplitudes is mainly reflected by amplitude versus frequency or wavenumber. The frequencies at which the maxima and minima of the S0 or A0 mode response occur depend on the distribution of surface loading. The numerical results of simulations conducted on an infinite aluminum plate verify the theoretical prediction of not only the direction but also the distribution of applied loading. A pure S0 or A0 mode can be excited by selecting the appropriate direction and distribution at the corresponding frequency.

Development of a Spring-Loaded Impact Device to Deliver Injurious Mechanical Impacts to the Articular Cartilage Surface

PubMed Central

Alexander, Peter G.; Song, Yingjie; Taboas, Juan M.; Chen, Faye H.; Melvin, Gary M.; Manner, Paul A.

2013-01-01

Objective: Traumatic impacts on the articular joint surface in vitro are known to lead to degeneration of the cartilage. The main objective of this study was to develop a spring-loaded impact device that can be used to deliver traumatic impacts of consistent magnitude and rate and to find whether impacts cause catabolic activities in articular cartilage consistent with other previously reported impact models and correlated with the development of osteoarthritic lesions. In developing the spring-loaded impactor, the operating hypothesis is that a single supraphysiologic impact to articular cartilage in vitro can affect cartilage integrity, cell viability, sulfated glycosaminoglycan and inflammatory mediator release in a dose-dependent manner. Design: Impacts of increasing force are delivered to adult bovine articular cartilage explants in confined compression. Impact parameters are correlated with tissue damage, cell viability, matrix and inflammatory mediator release, and gene expression 24 hours postimpact. Results: Nitric oxide release is first detected after 7.7 MPa impacts, whereas cell death, glycosaminoglycan release, and prostaglandin E2 release are first detected at 17 MPa. Catabolic markers increase linearly to maximal levels after ≥36 MPa impacts. Conclusions: A single supraphysiologic impact negatively affects cartilage integrity, cell viability, and GAG release in a dose-dependent manner. Our findings showed that 7 to 17 MPa impacts can induce cell death and catabolism without compromising the articular surface, whereas a 17 MPa impact is sufficient to induce increases in most common catabolic markers of osteoarthritic degeneration. PMID:26069650

Fabrication and textural characterization of nanoporous carbon electrodes embedded with CuO nanoparticles for supercapacitors.

PubMed

Prasad, Kumaresa P S; Dhawale, Dattatray S; Sivakumar, Thiripuranthagan; Aldeyab, Salem S; Zaidi, Javaid S M; Ariga, Katsuhiko; Vinu, Ajayan

2011-08-01

We introduce a novel strategy of fabricating nanoporous carbons loaded with different amounts of CuO nanoparticles via a hard templating approach, using copper-containing mesoporous silica as the template and sucrose as the carbon source. The nature and dispersion of the CuO nanoparticles on the surface of the nanoporous carbons were investigated by x-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HRSEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). XRD results reveal that nanoporous carbons with embedded CuO nanoparticles exhibit a well-ordered mesoporous structure, whereas the nitrogen adsorption measurements indicate the presence of excellent textural characteristics such as high surface area, large pore volume and uniform pore size distribution. The amount of CuO nanoparticles in the nanochannels of the nanoporous carbon could be controlled by simply varying the Si/Cu molar ratio of the mesoporous silica template. Morphological characterization by SEM and TEM reveals that high-quality CuO nanoparticles are distributed homogeneously within the nanoporous carbon framework. The supercapacitance behavior of the CuO-loaded nanoporous carbons was investigated. The material with a small amount of CuO in the mesochannels and high surface area affords a maximum specific capacitance of 300 F g -1 at a 20 mV s -1 scan rate in an aqueous electrolyte solution. A supercapacitor containing the CuO-loaded nanoporous carbon is highly stable and exhibits a long cycle life with 91% specific capacitance retained after 1000 cycles.

Fabrication and textural characterization of nanoporous carbon electrodes embedded with CuO nanoparticles for supercapacitors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prasad, Kumaresa P. S.; Dhawale, Dattatray S.; Sivakumar, Thiripuranthagan; Aldeyab, Salem S.; Zaidi, Javaid S. M.; Ariga, Katsuhiko; Vinu, Ajayan

2011-08-01

We introduce a novel strategy of fabricating nanoporous carbons loaded with different amounts of CuO nanoparticles via a hard templating approach, using copper-containing mesoporous silica as the template and sucrose as the carbon source. The nature and dispersion of the CuO nanoparticles on the surface of the nanoporous carbons were investigated by x-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HRSEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). XRD results reveal that nanoporous carbons with embedded CuO nanoparticles exhibit a well-ordered mesoporous structure, whereas the nitrogen adsorption measurements indicate the presence of excellent textural characteristics such as high surface area, large pore volume and uniform pore size distribution. The amount of CuO nanoparticles in the nanochannels of the nanoporous carbon could be controlled by simply varying the Si/Cu molar ratio of the mesoporous silica template. Morphological characterization by SEM and TEM reveals that high-quality CuO nanoparticles are distributed homogeneously within the nanoporous carbon framework. The supercapacitance behavior of the CuO-loaded nanoporous carbons was investigated. The material with a small amount of CuO in the mesochannels and high surface area affords a maximum specific capacitance of 300 F g-1 at a 20 mV s-1 scan rate in an aqueous electrolyte solution. A supercapacitor containing the CuO-loaded nanoporous carbon is highly stable and exhibits a long cycle life with 91% specific capacitance retained after 1000 cycles.

Polyethylenimine-coated iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles for high efficient gene delivery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nguyen, Anh H.; Abdelrasoul, Gaser N.; Lin, Donghai; Maadi, Hamid; Tong, Junfeng; Chen, Grace; Wang, Richard; Anwar, Afreen; Shoute, Lian; Fang, Qiang; Wang, Zhixiang; Chen, Jie

2018-04-01

Properties of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) are of notable interest in many fields of biomedical engineering, especially for gene therapy. In this paper, we report a method for synthesis and delivery of MNPs loaded with DNAs, which overcomes the drawbacks of high cost and cytotoxicity associated with current delivery techniques (chemical- and liposome-based designs). 24-nm MNPs (Fe3O4) were synthesized, functionalized and characterized by analytical techniques to understand the surface properties for DNA binding and cellular uptake. The simple surface functionalization with polyethylenimine (PEI) through glutaraldehyde linker activation gave the complex of PEI-coated MNPs, resulting in high stability with a positive surface charge of about + 31 mV. Under the guidance of an external magnetic field, the functionalized MNPs with a loaded isothiocyanate (FITC) or green fluorescent protein (GFP) will enter the cells, which can be visualized by the fluorescence of FITC or GFP. We also examined the cytotoxicity of our synthesized MNPs by MTT assay. We showed that the IC50s of these MNPs for COS-7 and CHO cells were low and at 0.2 and 0.26 mg/mL, respectively. Moreover, our synthesized MNPs that were loaded with plasmids encoding GFP showed high transfection rate, 38.3% for COS-7cells and 27.6% for CHO cells. In conclusion, we established a promising method with low cost, low toxicity, and high transfection efficiency for siRNA and gene delivery.

Fabrication and textural characterization of nanoporous carbon electrodes embedded with CuO nanoparticles for supercapacitors

PubMed Central

Prasad, Kumaresa P S; Dhawale, Dattatray S; Sivakumar, Thiripuranthagan; Aldeyab, Salem S; Zaidi, Javaid S M; Ariga, Katsuhiko; Vinu, Ajayan

2011-01-01

We introduce a novel strategy of fabricating nanoporous carbons loaded with different amounts of CuO nanoparticles via a hard templating approach, using copper-containing mesoporous silica as the template and sucrose as the carbon source. The nature and dispersion of the CuO nanoparticles on the surface of the nanoporous carbons were investigated by x-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HRSEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). XRD results reveal that nanoporous carbons with embedded CuO nanoparticles exhibit a well-ordered mesoporous structure, whereas the nitrogen adsorption measurements indicate the presence of excellent textural characteristics such as high surface area, large pore volume and uniform pore size distribution. The amount of CuO nanoparticles in the nanochannels of the nanoporous carbon could be controlled by simply varying the Si/Cu molar ratio of the mesoporous silica template. Morphological characterization by SEM and TEM reveals that high-quality CuO nanoparticles are distributed homogeneously within the nanoporous carbon framework. The supercapacitance behavior of the CuO-loaded nanoporous carbons was investigated. The material with a small amount of CuO in the mesochannels and high surface area affords a maximum specific capacitance of 300 F g-1 at a 20 mV s-1 scan rate in an aqueous electrolyte solution. A supercapacitor containing the CuO-loaded nanoporous carbon is highly stable and exhibits a long cycle life with 91% specific capacitance retained after 1000 cycles. PMID:27877410

Three-dimensional multi-physics coupled simulation of ignition transient in a dual pulse solid rocket motor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Yingkun; Chen, Xiong; Xu, Jinsheng; Zhou, Changsheng; Musa, Omer

2018-05-01

In this paper, numerical investigation of ignition transient in a dual pulse solid rocket motor has been conducted. An in-house code has been developed in order to solve multi-physics governing equations, including unsteady compressible flow, heat conduction and structural dynamic. The simplified numerical models for solid propellant ignition and combustion have been added. The conventional serial staggered algorithm is adopted to simulate the fluid structure interaction problems in a loosely-coupled manner. The accuracy of the coupling procedure is validated by the behavior of a cantilever panel subjected to a shock wave. Then, the detailed flow field development, flame propagation characteristics, pressure evolution in the combustion chamber, and the structural response of metal diaphragm are analyzed carefully. The burst-time and burst-pressure of the metal diaphragm are also obtained. The individual effects of the igniter's mass flow rate, metal diaphragm thickness and diameter on the ignition transient have been systemically compared. The numerical results show that the evolution of the flow field in the combustion chamber, the temperature distribution on the propellant surface and the pressure loading on the metal diaphragm surface present a strong three-dimensional behavior during the initial ignition stage. The rupture of metal diaphragm is not only related to the magnitude of pressure loading on the diaphragm surface, but also to the history of pressure loading. The metal diaphragm thickness and diameter have a significant effect on the burst-time and burst-pressure of metal diaphragm.

Investigation of factors influencing microscopic interactions between the diamond indenter and material surfaces in nano-indentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wei, Qilong; Li, Xiaoyuan; Yang, Qiang; Gao, Wei

2015-11-01

Nano-indentation method was brought forward to replace atomic force microscopy (AFM) in simulating microscopic interactions between abrasive particles and material surfaces during polishing process. And main influencing factors including measuring parameters and material's properties were investigated thoroughly. It was found that contact force between the diamond indenter and a fused silica was about 200 μN, while it was about 470 μN between the indenter and an austenitic steel, and in both cases it did not vary with the maximal indentation force (Fmax) and the corresponding loading rate. While adhesion force between the indenter and surfaces of the two materials did not change with Fmax when the latter was less than its critical value, while it decreased monotonously with increased Fmax when the latter was higher than its critical value, with slope -1.8615 for the fused silica and -1.5403 for the austenitic steel, and the critical Fmax was about 20 mN for the fused silica and about 50 mN for the austenitic steel. According to analysis on elastic and plastic deformation during loading process and elastic recovery during unloading process, it was deduced that there would produce marked elastic recovery force when the unloading rate determined by Fmax was higher, which counteracted the measured adhesion force to some extent and made it less than its corresponding intrinsic value. And material's elasticity had an additional impact. Then it is better to adopt maximal indentation forces less than critical values of materials, to obtain accurate adhesion forces between the indenter and material surfaces, and to simulate accurately microscopic interactions during polishing process.

Understanding Mississippi Delta Subsidence through Stratigraphic and Geotechnical Analysis of a Continuous Holocene Core at a Subsidence Superstation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bridgeman, J.; Tornqvist, T. E.; Jafari, N.; Allison, M. A.

2017-12-01

Land-surface subsidence can be a major contributor to the relative sea-level rise that is threatening coastal communities. Loosely constrained subsidence rate estimates across the Mississippi Delta make it difficult to differentiate between subsidence mechanisms and complicate modeling efforts. New data from a nearly 40 m long, 12 cm diameter core taken during the installation of a subsidence monitoring superstation near the Mississippi River, SW of New Orleans, provides insight into the stratigraphic and geotechnical properties of the Holocene succession. Stratigraphically, the core can be grouped into three sections. The top 12 m is dominated by clastic overbank sediment with interspersed organic-rich layers. The middle section, 12-35 m consists predominately of mud, and the bottom section, 35-38.7 m, is marked by a transition into a Holocene-aged basal peat (11,350-11,190 cal BP) which overlies densely packed Pleistocene sediment. Radiocarbon and OSL ages show up to 6 m of vertical displacement since 3,000 cal BP. We infer that most of this was due to compaction of the thick underlying mud package. The top ­­­­­ 70 cm of the core is a peat that represents the modern marsh surface and is inducing minimal surface loading. This is consistent with the negligible shallow subsidence rate as seen at a nearby rod-surface elevation table - marker horizon station and the initial strainmeter data. Future compaction scenarios for the superstation can be modeled from the stratigraphic and geotechnical properties of the core, including the loading from the planned Mid-Barataria sediment diversion which is expected to dramatically change the coastal landscape in this region.

Rapid control of mold temperature during injection molding process

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

Liparoti, Sara; Titomanlio, Giuseppe; Hunag, Tsang Min

2015-05-22

The control of mold surface temperature is an important factor that determines surface morphology and its dimension in thickness direction. It can also affect the frozen molecular orientation and the mold surface replicability in injection molded products. In this work, thin thermally active films were used to quickly control the mold surface temperature. In particular, an active high electrical conductivity carbon black loaded polyimide composites sandwiched between two insulating thin polymeric layers was used to condition the mold surface. By controlling the heating time, it was possible to control precisely the temporal variation of the mold temperature surface during themore » entire cycle. The surface heating rate was about 40°C/s and upon contact with the polymer the surface temperature decreased back to 40°C within about 5 s; the overall cycle time increased only slightly. The effect on cross section sample morphology of samples of iPP were analyzed and discussed on the basis of the recorded temperature evolution.« less