CERN Document Server

Effect of a planar texture quality and its thickness on lasing spectrums and thresholds in dye-doped cholesteric liquid crystal (CLC) of steroid type is explored. Transition from the qualitative planar texture to the poor texture quality is accompanied by change of characteristic mode structures and by shift of barycentre in the long-wave side and the considerable growth of the lasing threshold. It is found that in the CLC texture created by substrates with perpendicular directions of orientation the stable single-mode lasing takes place. The nature of oscillated modes in such texture is caused by phase jump. The gained results show that in steroid CLC, unlike induced one, lasing spectrums is possible to feature with the coupled wave model. Key words: steroidal cholesteric liquid crystal, distributed feedback lasing, oscillation thresholds, phase defect of periodical structure, transmission and lasing ...

Science.gov (United States)

A few studies have found poor semen quality in sons whose mothers have received fertility treatment, but it is unknown whether the poor semen quality is related to the infertility treatment or to infertility per se, for example, whether it is caused by hereditable factors. Using data from a population-based, Danish follow-up study conducted in 2005-2006, the authors of the present study examined whether sons of subfertile couples who had not received fertility treatment had poorer semen quality than sons of fertile couples. Among the 311 participants, an inverse association between parental waiting time to pregnancy and both semen volume and total sperm count was observed (p trend = 0.04 and p trend = 0.046, respectively). Semen volume in sons of subfertile parents (pregnant after > or =1 years) was 19% lower in comparison with that in sons of parents whose waiting time to pregnancy was 0-6 months (p ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

It is expected that the progressive increase of tropospheric trace gases such as CO{sub 2} and O{sub 3} will have a significant impact on agricultural production. The single and combined effects of CO{sub 2} enrichment and tropospheric O{sub 3} on grain quality characteristics in soft red winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) were examined in field studies using 3 m in diam. open-top chambers. Wheat cultivars {open_quotes}Massey{close_quotes} (1991) and {open_quotes}Saluda{close_quotes} (1992) were exposed to two CO{sub 2} concentrations (350 vs. 500 {mu}mol CO{sub 2} mol{sup {minus}1}; 12 h d{sup {minus}1}) in combination with two O{sub 3} regimes (charcoal-filtered air vs. ambient air + 40 {plus_minus} 20 nmol O{sub 3} mol{sup {minus}1}, 7 h d{sup {minus}1}; Monday to Friday) from late March until maturity in June. Grain quality characteristics investigated included: test weight, milling and baking ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

To address the potential threat that suspect/counterfeit parts could pose to DOE workers and the public, the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oversight initiated a number of activities beginning in mid-1995. Oversight placed increased emphasis on the field`s quality assurance-suspect/counterfeit parts programs during safety management evaluations, in keeping with the Office of Environment, Safety and Health (EH) oversight responsibilities, which include oversight of the Department`s quality assurance (QA) programs. In addition, Oversight reviewed relevant policy documents and occurrence reports to determine the nature and magnitude of the problem within the Department. The results of that review, contained in an Office of Oversight report, Independent Oversight Analysis of Suspect/Counterfeit Parts Within the Department of Energy (November 1995), indicate a lack of consistency and comprehensiveness in the Department`s ...

KoreaScience (Korea)

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British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Ozone is the most important regional-scale air pollutant causing risks for vegetation and human health in many parts of the world. Ozone impacts on yield and quality of crops and pastures depend on precursor emissions, atmospheric transport and leaf uptake and on the plant?s biochemical defence capacity, all of which are influenced by changing climatic conditions, increasing atmospheric CO2 and altered emission patterns. In this article, recent findings about ozone effects under current conditions and trends in regional ozone levels and in climatic factors affecting the plant?s sensitivity to ozone are reviewed in order to assess implications of these developments for future regional ozone risks. Based on pessimistic IPCC emission scenarios for many cropland regions elevated mean ozone lev...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Around the world there is a small industry of non-governmental organisations that provide health care in niche areas that cannot be met by national health care provision. One topic is facial deformity that can have a dramatic effect on quality of life. In this study we investigate the morbidity and outcome of a British surgical team working for a 2-week period in Ethiopia. Thirty-five patients who presented with facial deformities had 47 operations during a 2-week period. Data were recorded for a minimum of 3 weeks postoperatively. Operative techniques were classified as simple or complex. Postoperative complications were assessed and classified as major, intermediate, and minor. In addition, the character of each complication was recorded and the cause elucidated. After 3 weeks the clinic...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

When chest radiographs are obtained using an anti-scatter grid in a mobile x-ray unit by Fuji Computed Radiography (FCR), right lung densities may differ from left lung densities owing to misalignment caused by an oblique x-ray beam. Such misalignment is considered to be caused by factors such as the shape of the bed and angle of the x-ray tube. Misalignment is especially frequent when exposure is carried out in the sitting position. Although a low-ratio grid has been reported to offer improvement, the misalignment is not completely eliminated. Therefore, we used a copper plate without a lattice feature instead of grid, and examined the results. The copper plate was found to have the ability of a grid to eliminate radiation scatter, and, furthermore, to offer the physical capabilities of a grid as determined by Carlin's new grid assessment method. Image quality was demonstrated through contrast manipulation to be ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

ObjectivesVaricocele is a common cause of infertility, and varicocele-associated testicular hypotrophy has been described as a potential cause of decreased semen quality. We investigated the relationship between testicular hypotrophy and poor semen quality in infertile men with varicoceles. We hypothesized that bilateral hypotrophy is required before the semen quality is severely impaired.MethodsWe retrospectively identified consecutive patients with palpable varicoceles undergoing an infertility evaluation at a single academic center. Each patient was evaluated by the same clinician with history and physical examination. Testicular hypotrophy was defined as a size discrepancy of greater than 3 mL or an absolute size of less than 14 mL. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Introduction:Although radical prostatectomy (RP) is an effective treatment for prostate cancer, it has potentially deleterious effects on health-related quality of life (HRQoL)....Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The `Procurement Quality Function` is an element of the Body of Knowledge of Quality Engineering, as defined by the American Society for Quality Control (ASQC). This paper describes the Procurement Quality function which has been installed as an integral part of the Quality Engineering group of the Technical and Management Support Services (T&MSS) contractor to the United States Department of Energy (DOE) Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. Each of the elements of the T&MSS Procurement Quality Engineering (PQE) system is discussed along with the measurements obtained. With the installation and development of the PQE system we have attained more meaningful evaluation of supplier capability, reduction of procurement document review reject ratios from 31% to less than 2% per quarter, more effective measurement and control of ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The effects on engine emissions resulting from the intake manifold fumigation of oxygenated fuel and the addition of oxygenates to the fuel have been investigated using a direct-injection diesel engine. The results show that carefully selected oxygenated fuels effectively work to increase the ignition delay because of their low ignition quality and to decrease the combustion temperature due to the low compression gas temperature produced from their large heat of vaporization, thereby reducing levels of Bosch smoke and nitrogen oxides simultaneously. However, supplementary injection of the oxygenates into the intake air causes a drastic increase in the levels of exhaust total hydrocarbons and CO; thus, it can be said that the addition of oxygenates to the fuel is more practical and effective than fumigation if phase separation of the blended fuel may not be occurred. In the case of ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Retinal degenerative diseases, such as retinitis pigmentosa and Leber congenital amaurosis, are a leading cause of untreatable blindness with substantive impact on the quality of life of affected individuals...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Counter-current regeneration of 2-stage sodium zeolite softeners has been employed in reducing hardness leakage level of steamflooding water to less than 1 ppm when raw water contains as much as 5,000 ppm of the total dissolved solids. Hardness leakage is caused by sodium displacement of calcium and magnesium from the bottom of the exchanger bed. This study presents nomographs providing for rapid calculations to be made, for which a convenient operational mode does not already exist. The nomographs relate the hardness leakage as a function of salt quality and influent water quality and present solutions for predicting the leakage level, salt quality requirement or the treatability of raw water required for steamflooding projects.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Requirements and guidance are provided for a quality assurance program for the design of nuclear fuel reprocessing facilities involving structures, systems and components whose satisfactory performance is required to prevent accidents that could cause undue risk to the health and safety of the public, or to mitigate the consequences of such accidents if they were to occur. The standard is to be used in conjunction with ANSI N46.2.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The failure of receivers has been one of the main operating problems at the White Cliffs solar thermal power plant. This Technical Note reports the results of an initial investigation that identifies the cause as having been their thermal fatiguing of the tube walls. The fatigue appears to be caused by unstable heat transfer at vapor qualities below the point where critical heat flux is generally exceeded. Methods for avoiding this problem are tested.

Science.gov (United States)

... Both effects are undoubtedly caused by the ahaping of the spool valve flow characteristics The linear region of response corresponds to ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

OBJECTIVE: The aim was to assess the psychosocial effects on the quality of life (QOL) of adults with head and neck cancer (HNC) and any gender variations with predictive factors that may influence...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundHealth related quality of life (HRQoL) is one of the most important outcomes to measure effectiveness of an intervention, especially for islet transplantation...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Olive tree (Olea european L.) cultivation, the major tree crops in Mediterranean countries is being extended to irrigated lands. However, the limited water availability, the severe climatic conditions and the increased need for good water quality for urban and industrial sector uses are leading to the urgent use of less water qualities (brackish water and recycled wastewater) for olive tree irrigation. The aim of this work was to asses the effects of long term irrigation with treated waste water (TWW) on the soil chemical properties, on olive tree growth and on oil quality characteristics. (Author)

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

A few studies have found poor semen quality in sons whose mothers have received fertility treatment, but it is unknown whether the poor semen quality is related to the infertility treatment or to infertility per se, for example, whether it is caused by hereditable factors. Using data from a population-based, Danish follow-up study conducted in 2005-2006, the authors of the present study examined whether sons of subfertile couples who had not received fertility treatment had poorer semen quality than sons of fertile couples. Among the 311 participants, an inverse association between parental waiting time to pregnancy and both semen volume and total sperm count was observed (p trend = 0.04 and p trend = 0.046, respectively). Semen volume in sons of subfertile parents (pregnant after ?1 ye...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Real-time neutron radiography (NTV) has been used for practical applications at the Kyoto University Reactor (KUR). At present, however, the direct image from the TV system is still poor in resolution and low in contrast. In this paper several image improvements are demonstrated, such as a frame summing technique, which are effective in increasing image quality in neutron radiography. Image integration before the A/D converter has a beneficial effect on image quality and the high quality image reveals details invisible in direct images, such as: small holes by a reversed image, defects in a neutron converter screen through a high quality image, a moving object in a contoured image, a slight difference between two low-contrast images by a subtraction technique, and so on. For the real-time application a contouring operation and an averaging approach can also be ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Power quality problems are caused by activities normal to utility operations such as maintenance outages and capacitor switching or events that are abnormal such as lightning strikes and equipment failures. Disconnection and reconnection of transmission lines and transformers can cause switching surges, and are more severe on extra high voltage transmission lines than high voltage lines. Capacitor switching can cause transients and harmonics that may affect sensitive equipment, and are the source of 3rd, 5th, 7th and 9th harmonics in the hundreds of hertz ranges. Overload, sudden loss of generating capacity and transmission line faults are typical problems affecting system stability. Fault interruptions and reclosings can cause surges in the distribution system, and lightning strikes may cause voltage surges or dips due to arrester sparkover. Blackouts, ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA, Acrigel, a Brazilian polymer, is used in the manufacture of medical supplies sterelizable by ionizing radiation. However, when PMMA is gamma-irradiated it undergoes main chain scissions, which promote molecular degradation causing reduction in its mechanical properties. Therefore, radiolytic of PMMA is important for it to become commercially radiosterizable. In this work some commercial additives, originally used in photo-and thermo-oxidate stabilization of polymers, were tested. Only two additives, type HALS (Hindered Amine Light Stabilizer), denoted Scavenger, showed a good protective quality. The investigation of radiation-induced main scissions was carried out by viscosimetric method. The most effective additive, added to the polymer system at 0.3 w/w%, promotes a great molecular radioprotection of 93%. That means a reduction of G-value (scissions/100 eV) from 0.611 to 0.053. In ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The report was prepared for the IPCC by Working Group II. The remit of Working Group II was to describe the environmental and socioeconomic implications of possible climate changes over the next decades caused by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases. The scenarios used include the following features: an effective doubling of atmospheric CO{sub 2} between now and 2025-2050; a consequent increase of global mean temperature of 1.5-4.5{degree}C; an unequal global distribution of the temperature increase; a sea level rise of 0.3 to 0.5m by 2050. The impacts of possible climate change were assessed for the following: agriculture and forestry; natural terrestrial ecosystems; hydrology and water resources; human settlements including the energy, transport and industrial sectors; human health; air quality and changes in UV-B radiation; oceans and coastal zones; seasonal snow cover; ice and permafrost. Further action is ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Objective: To evaluate the effect of PTBD in treating malignant biliary obstruction caused by hilar cholangiocarcinoma. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the data of 103 patients(M:62,F:41)with malignant obstructive jaundice caused by hilar cholangiocarcinoma. After taking percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography, metallic stent or plastic external catheter or external-internal catheter for drainage was deployed and then followed up was undertaken with clinical and radiographic evaluation and laboratory. examination. Results: All patients went though PTBD successfully (100%). According to Bismuth classification, all 103 cases consisted of I type(N=30), II type (N=30), III type (N=26) and IV type (N=17). Thirty-nine cases were placed with 47 stents and 64 eases with drainage tubes. 4 cases installed two stems for bilateral drainage, 2 cases installed two stents because of long segmental strictures with stent in stent, 1 ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Experience of the Westinghouse Water Reactors Division with indoctrination and training of quality engineers includes training of personnel from Westinghouse divisions in the USA and overseas as well as of customers' personnel. A written plan is prepared for each trainee in order to fit the training to the individual's needs, and to cover the full range of information and activities. The trainee is also given work assignments, working closely with experienced quality engineers. He may prepare inspection plans and audit check lists, assist in the preparation of QA training modules, write procedures, and perform supplier surveillance and data analyses, or make special studies of operating systems. The trainee attends seminars and special courses on work-related technical subjects. Throughout the training period, emphasis is placed on inculcating an attitude of team work in the trainee so that the result of the training is the achievement of both ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Organisms in the genus Mycobacterium cause a variety of human diseases. One member of the genus, M. ulcerans, causes a necrotizing skin disease called Buruli ulcer....Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundOur motor actions normally generate sensory events, but how do we know which events were self generated and which have external causes? Here we use temporal adaptation...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

People assess the quality of the air indoors primarily on the basis of its odors and on their perception of associated health risk. The major current contributors to indoor odorants are human occupant...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The causes and processes of contamination, as well as the possible human health implications for the main contaminants of drinking water are described. The quality of drinking water in Italy is defined through the comparison of the pollutant levels with the World Health Organization guidelines published in 1993 and the USEPA HAs (Health Advisories) of 1994 (annexed to the report).

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The diverse microenvironments of foods, changing with processing and preservation, might provide conditions that would enhance the growth of microorganisms which are the principal cause of spoilage, off-odor and unpleasant flavor in foods. Radiation is a potential process which may provide a product with far superior microbial quality for food preservation, by reduction of microbial population; elimination of food-borne pathogens; extension of shelf-life; and reduction of spoilage. The aim of irradiation at low dose level is to eliminate certain microorganisms, especially spoilage types and those of public health significance. But, the radurization dose allows the outgrowth of radioresistant bacteria. Certain strains of Moraxella-Acinetobacter (M-A) groups have been recognized as radioresistant bacteria (Welch and Maxcy, 1975), which may have gone unnoticed by food microbiologists, since these bacteria have not been associated with problems and ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This standard provides requirements and guidelines for installation, inspection and testing activities that assure the quality of important mechanical parts of a nuclear power plant not covered by the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section III, during construction. These parts include those mechanical systems and components whose satisfactory performance is required: for the plant to operate reliably; to prevent accidents that could cause undue risk to the health and safety of the public; or to mitigate the consequences of such accidents if they were to occur. The requirements of this standard deal with the protection and control necessary to assure that the requisite quality of those important parts of the plant are preserved from the time items are removed from storage or receiving until they are incorporated into the plant up to but not including fuel loading for PWR plants and the completion of cold functional ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

New York State Electric and Gas Co. (NYSEG) has developed a tool called Coal Quality Engineering Analysis (CQEA) to evaluate the cost impacts of coal quality on its power plants. CQEA allows quantification of the effect of coal quality on plant operating costs and has become an important factor in coal purchasing. The article describes the development of the analysis method, including a logic diagram of CQEA relationships. The results of CQEA calculations on the impact of one coal on overall production costs of different units, the impact of different coals on overall production costs of one unit, and production cost vs. coal quality, are presented and discussed. The use of the CQEA system within NYSEG is described.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Objectives:Myocardial infarction (MI) is a leading cause of death in both the industrialized and developing countries globally. The economic evaluation of MI is undertaken...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Obesity is characterized by the abnormal or excessive deposition of fat in the adipose tissue. Its consequences go far beyond adverse metabolic effects on health, causing an increase in oxidative stress,...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundThe National Cancer Institute has concluded that exposure to smoking in movies causes adolescent smoking and there are similar results for young adults.Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Snakebite envenomation is an uncommon condition in the northern hemisphere, but requires high vigilance with regard to both the systemic effects of the venom and the locoregional impact on the soft...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A study of mine-waste contamination effects on Methow River habitat on the eastern slopes of the north Cascade Mountains in Washington state, U.S.A., revealed impacts at ecosystem, community, population, individual, tissue, and cellular levels. Ore deposits in the area were mined for gold, silver, copper and zinc until the early 1950's, but the mines are now inactive. An above-and-below-mine approach was used to compare potentially impacted to control sites. The concentrations of eleven trace elements (i.e., Al, As, B, Ba, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Pb, Se, and Zn) in Methow River sediments downstream from the abandoned mine sites were higher than background levels. Exposed trout and caddisfly larvae in the Methow River showed reduced growth compared to controls. Samples of liver from juvenile trout and small intestine from exposed caddisfly larvae were examined for evidence of metal accumulation, cytopathological change, and chemical toxicity. Morphological changes ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In boron mining and processing operations, large amounts of clay containing tailings have to be discarded. Being rich in boron, the tailings do not only cause economical loss but also pose serious environmental problems. Large areas have to be allocated for waste disposal. In order to alleviate this problem, the possibility of using clayey tailings from a borax concentrator in red brick manufacturing was investigated. Up to 30% by weight tailings addition was found to improve the brick quality.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This paper discusses the new quality assurance regulations of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for packaging and transportation of radioactive materials. These regulations became effective on October 18, 1977. Background information concerning these regulations and packaging and transportation history is included. The quality assurance program is described with indications of how it is composed of general (administrative) provisions which must meet the 18 quality assurance criteria and be approved by the NRC; specific provisions which appear in the DOT and NRC regulations and in the individual package design approval; and other specific procedures which are not required by regulations but which are necessary for the proper control of quality. The quality assurance program is to be developed using a graded approach for the application of pertinent criteria ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In 1990, field studies of water quality and stream macroinvertebrate communities were initiated in Sandia Canyon at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The studies were designed to establish baseline data and to determine the effects of routine discharges of industrial and sanitary waste. Water quality measurements were taken and aquatic macroinvertebrates sampled at three permanent stations within the canyon. Two of the three sample stations are located where the stream regularly receives industrial and sanitary waste effluents. These stations exhibited a low diversity of macroinvertebrates and slightly degraded water quality. The last sample station, located approximately 0.4 km (0.25 mi) downstream from the nearest wastewater outfall, appears to be in a zone of recovery where water quality parameters more closely resemble those found in natural streams in the Los Alamos area. A large ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The effects of gamma irradiation at 0.2#approx#0.4 Mrad and condition for processing of buckwheat noodles on sensory quality and physical properties were investigated. The results were as follows: (1) Sensory evaluation of buckwheat noodles, prepared with the 70 % ratio of buckwheat flour, was decreased according to an increase of irradiation dose of buckwheat flour. Hardness and adhesiveness of buckwheat noodles caused by irradiation should be given large effect to the texture. Elasticity of buckwheat noodles was linearly decreased with increasing of irradiation dose of buckwheat flour, and elasticity of buckwheat noodles was decreased about 15 % by an increase of irradiation dose at 0.3 Mrad. (2) Maximum torque in Farinograph test was linearly decreased with increasing of irradiation dose of buckwheat flour, and maximum torque was decreased about 3 % by increasing of irradiation dose with 0.1 Mrad. ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The present work mainly involves bench scale studies to investigate partitioning of mercury in pulverized fuel co-combustion at 1000 and 1300{sup o}C. High volatile bituminous coal is used as a reference case and chicken manure, olive residue, and B quality (demolition) wood are used as secondary fuels with 10 and 20% thermal shares. The combustion experiments are carried out in an entrained flow reactor with a fuel input of 7-8 kWth. Elemental and total gaseous mercury concentrations in the flue gas of the reactor are measured on-line, and ash is analyzed for particulate mercury along with other elemental and surface properties. Animal waste like chicken manure behaves very differently from plant waste. The higher chlorine contents of chicken manure cause higher ionic mercury concentrations whereas even with high unburnt carbon, particulate mercury reduces with increase in the chicken manure share. This might be a problem due to coarse fuel ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A brief description of the physical process of dose enhancement effects produced by X-ray radiation on materials is given, with emphasis on the influence on electronic devices. The damages caused by X-ray radiation dose enhancement is more serious than that of #gamma#-ray with higher energy.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The effects of Escherichia coli endotoxin on lung mechanics, hemodynamics, gas exchange, and lung fluid and solute exchange were studied in 12 chronically instrumented unanesthetized sheep. A possible...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Air pollution abatement measures are not an end in themselves, and undesirable side effects should be taken into account. The proposed emission index takes into account the total emissions caused by a technical project as well as the effects of the individual pollutants.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The present state of knowledge on the influence of stray radiation on image quality and its physical description and quantification is summarized. Experimental results on the influence of physical parameters on the fraction of scattered radiation and the effect of scatter reduction by air gap technique and secondary radiation grids are committed. Open theoretical and practical problems and the limitations of common methods of scatter reduction are pointed out. (author).

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The paper describes the latest approach to quality engineering in the design process as applied by Ontario Hydro throughout the various phases of the project life cycle for Ontario Hydro generating stations and related facilities. Ontario Hydro has long recognized that the high quality and performance required in nuclear generating stations start in the design process and can best be achieved through an adequate and proper quality engineering programme in design. The current approach has evolved over a period of six years and represents a meaningful and effective series of requirements, functions and activities, which are used to ensure safety, reliability, economy and environmental acceptability of nuclear generating stations. (author).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A brief tutorial on the health effects of ionising radiation is presented. The distinction between somatic and genetic health effects is explained. The two types of somatic health effects, i.e., acute and chronic effects, are discussed, as well as the concepts of ''deterministic'' and ''stochastic'' (also called ''probabilistic'') health effects. The possibility of cancer caused by DNA damage is discussed. The document ends with the definition of some key radiation terms.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

New York City data indicate that seasonal and annual variations in dispersion-normalized air pollutant concentrations appear to accurately reflect changes in source emission patterns. The normalized concentrations make it possible to observe the impact of regulatory changes on ambient air quality without these impacts being obscured by meteorological fluctuations. It is found that numerical modeling techniques and regression analysis can be powerful tools for extracting information from large sets of air quality data. The use of differential, as opposed to absolute, pollutant concentration values will reduce artifact correlations caused by seasonal, weekly, or daily meteorological fluctuations and will permit more accurate estimation of the regression coefficients. This technique was successfully applied to a set of daily pollution measurements whose absolute concentrations were found not to yield a statistically ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

To mitigate damages caused by agricultural runoff, private lake owners' associations are paying for inlake and instream pollution abatement measures and on land-conservation practices. This phenomenon supports the notion that individuals who benefit from improved water quality should be willing to pay part of the abatement costs. The research suggests that on land-conservation measures can substantially reduce sediment delivery at low cost. The Sediment Economics (SEDEC) model was modified and then used to select and to site management systems that achieved stated sediment goals at least cost. Other resource policies such as T value, no-till, and contouring were compared with the least-cost frontier and shown to be more costly. The noncropland areas substantially reduced sediment delivery to water channels and lowered abatement costs. Further research is needed for long-range watershed-planning models such as SEDEC.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Purpose Nonpoint sources (NPS) pollution has been an important cause for water quality impairment worldwide. To take the temporal variations of both NPS pollution and in-stream attenuation into consideration, an inverse modeling approach and the load duration curve (LDC) method were combined for variable nutrient total maximum daily load (TMDL) development. Methods Water quality and hydrological parameters were monitored monthly along the ChangLe River system in 2004?2008. The catchment NPS export load (EL) and TMDL for total nitrogen (TN) were estimated by the inverse format of an existing stream nutrient transport equation. The LDC method was used to describe the variability of EL, TMDL, requiring load (RLR) and percent (the ratio between the RLR and the EL, RPR) reduction, and then to s...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Background Microbial water-quality indicators, in high concentrations in sewage, are used to determine whether water is safe for recreational purposes. Recently, the use of these indicators...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

This study investigated the effect of board type (unmodified vs. MAPE modified) on the surface quality and thickness swelling-water absorption properties of recycled high density polyethylene (HDPE)...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Doxorubicin (DOX) is widely used in combination cocktails for treatment of childhood hematological cancers and solid tumors. A major factor limiting DOX usage is DOX-induced cardiotoxicity. However,...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundLung volume reduction surgery is effective at improving lung function, quality of life, and mortality in carefully selected individuals with advanced emphysema. Recently,...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Inadequate measures of water quality have been used in many studies of the health effects associated with water supplies in developing countries. The present 1-year epidemiological-microbiological study...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Genomic instability can be produced by ionising radiation, so-called radiation-induced genomic instability, and chemical mutagens. Radiation-induced genomic instability occurs in both germinal and somatic cells and also in the offspring of irradiated individuals, and it is characterised by genetic changes including chromosomal rearrangements. The majority of studies of trans-generational, radiation-induced genomic instability have been described in the male germ line, whereas the authors who have chosen the female as a model are scarce. The aim of this work is to find out the radiation-induced effects in the foetal offspring of X-ray-treated female rats and, at the same time, the possible impact of this radiation-induced genomic instability on the action of a chemical mutagen. In order to achieve both goals, the quantity and quality of chromosomal damage were analysed. In order to detect trans-generational genomic instability, a total of 4806 ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Probabilistic assessment methods can be used to identify specific plant vulnerabilities. Application of such methods can also facilitate selection among system design alternatives available for safety enhancements. The quality of assessment results is however strongly dependent on realistic and accurate input data for modelling of system component behaviour and failure modes during conditions to be assessed. Use of conservative input data may not lead to results providing guidance on safety upgrades. Adequate input data for probabilistic assessments seems to be lacking for at least failure modes of some electrical components when exposed to a fire. This report presents an attempt to improve the situation with respect to such input data. In order to take advantage of information in existing documentation of fire incident occurrences some of the lessons learned from the fire at Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant on March 22, 1975 are discussed in this report. Also a ...

Science.gov (United States)

MnO2 in pyrolusite can react with SO2 in flue gas and obtain by-product MnSO4 x H2O. A pilot scale jet bubbling reactor was applied in this work. Different factors affecting both SO2 absorption efficiency and Mn2+ extraction rate have been investigated, these factors include temperature of inlet gas flue, ration of liquid/solid mass flow rate (L/S), pyrolusite grade, and SO2 concentration in the inlet flue gas. In the meantime, the procedure of purification of absorption liquid was also discussed. Experiment results indicated that the increase of temperature from 30 to 70 K caused the increase of SO2 absorption efficiency from 81.4% to 91.2%. And when SO2 concentration in the inlet flue gas increased from 500 to 3000 ppm, SO2 absorption efficiency and Mn2+ extraction rate decreased from 98.1% to 82.2% and from 82.8% to 61.7%, respectively. The content of MnO2 in pyrolusite had a neglectable effect on SO2 absorption efficiency. Low L/S was good ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

There has been growing international consensus on issues related to child labour - evident in various declarations, platforms, conventions, programmes of action etc. Child labour is the economic exploitation of children, or performance of any work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere with the child's health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development. Poverty is the principal cause of child labour. Mostly the children work to support their families and also for their own survival. Paradoxically, however, child labour further aggravates the poverty syndrome as it usually deprives the children of education and opportunity to acquire skills for developing earning potentials. Other causes of child labour include family indebtedness, the lack or poor quality of schooli...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A study was conducted under the auspices of the Coordinating Research Council, Inc. (CRC) to assess the potential effects of gasoline octane quality on vehicle acceleration performance. Twelve participating laboratories, representing both the oil and the automotive industries, tested a total of 182 vehicles as part of the 1989 CRC Octane Number Requirement Survey. The vehicles consisted of 78 with electronic knock control systems and 104 without. All testing was performed using the 1989/1990 CRC FBRU fuel series. The results showed that acceleration performance of vehicles with knock sensors was significantly affected by gasoline octane quality. Octane effects on acceleration performance were most pronounced at maximum-throttle (detent) conditions and at octane levels below the vehicles' octane requirements; however, some knock-sensor vehicles did show improved acceleration performance with ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Modern digital radiographic 'flat panel' detectors can exhibit a progressive form of image degradation arising from non-functioning pixels. The effect of these 'dead pixels' on the quantitative image quality measures of modulation transfer function (MTF), noise power spectrum (NPS) and detective quantum efficiency (DQE) is investigated by a simulated degradation of images obtained from an Hologic EPEX system. The effects on the semi-quantitive measures obtained from contrast threshold test objects and resolution gratings are also investigated. Results suggest that the contrast-detail tests often employed in quality assurance measures are not sufficient to reveal the presence of dead pixels until well beyond the recommended replacement point for the flat panel detector. However, measurements of spatial resolution using a line pairs phantom were found to be more ...

Science.gov (United States)

Because of its high price, the extra virgin olive oil is frequently target for adulteration with lower quality oils. This paper presents an innovative optical technique capable of quantifying the adulteration of extra virgin olive oil caused by lowergrade olive oils. It relies on spectral fingerprinting the test liquid by means of diffuse-light absorption spectroscopy carried out by optical fiber technology in the wide 400-1700 nm spectral range. Then, a smart multivariate processing of spectroscopic data is applied for immediate prediction of adulterant concentration.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Malnutrition?in the form of insufficient energy intakes?affects millions of people worldwide and the negative impact of this kind of hunger is well acknowledged, not least by agronomists trying to increase yields to ensure a sufficient supply of food. This review focuses on another, more particular and ?hidden? form of malnutrition, namely mineral malnutrition. It illustrates the burden of disease that is caused by mineral deficiencies and the social and economic consequences they bring about. Mineral malnutrition has a considerable negative impact on individual well-being, social welfare and economic productivity. Agricultural scientists should keep the nutritional qualities of food in mind and?next to optimizing the agricultural properties of crops that are paramount for their adoption b...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Until the concerns about indoor air quality (IAQ) reached a peak in the last five years, interior zones of office buildings were traditionally served with cooling-only shut-off variable air volume (VAV) boxes. Heat gains from lighting and equipment, in addition to those from occupants themselves, caused supply air quantities of 13 C to 15 C (55 F to 60 F) air to be sustained at rates on the order of 2.5 L/s per square meter (0.5 cfm per square feet), a rate that most designers at the time felt would provide a comfortable and well ventilated environment. More recently, the reduction in lighting loads, the use of cold air systems, and, most importantly, the concern that acceptable indoor air quality may not be maintained at low air flow rates, has led to a different solution in interior zones: the series fan-powered mixing box.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Objective: To explore the feasibility of real-time monitoring exposure dose and image quality by using the data stored in the DICOM image archive of direct digital radiography system. Methods: Model TO. 16 was exposed, the current increased gradually from 0.5 to 125 mAs. The displayed number of model A( diameter 11.1 mm), D (diameter 4.0 mm) and J( diameter 0.7 mm) were recorded, and the detect factors (H_T) was also calculated. Images were sent to workstation before the end of DR examination. An automatic procedure was implemented to extract dose data and exposure parameters from the DICOM header file. Maximum, minimum and 3rd quartile values were preinstalled. Mean values exceeding the threshold trigger alarm signal to guide radiologist to explore the cause. Results: When the current of point A was less than 10 mAs and the current of point D and J were less than 16 mAs, the detect factor (H_T) increased with the rise of current. While point A ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

AbstractThere is an urgent need for innovative therapies against ovarian cancer, one of the leading causes of death from gynecological cancers in the United States. Immunotherapy employing...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Alterations in mass transport patterns of low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and oxygen are known to cause atherosclerosis in larger arteries. We hypothesise that the species transport processes in coronary...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundContrast-induced nephropathy is the leading cause of in-hospital acute renal failure. This side effect of contrast agents leads to increased morbidity, mortality, and health...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

SUMMARYReplication timing is frequently discussed superficially in terms of its relationship to transcriptional activity via chromatin structure. However, so little is known about...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Amphibian populations are declining globally at an alarming rate. Pesticides are among a number of proposed causes for these declines. Although a sizable database examining effects of pesticides on...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is the leading cause of lower urinary tract symptoms among the aging male population. Epidemiological, pathophysiological and clinical studies indicate that...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The thiadiazinon derivative EMD 57033 has been found previously in cardiac muscle to increase isometric force generation without a proportional increase in fiber ATPase, thus causing a reduction in...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundChronic rotator cuff pathology (CRCP) is a common shoulder condition causing pain and disability. Physiotherapy is often the first line of management for CRCP yet there...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The purpose of this study was to determine whether cefonicid, a cephalosporin antibiotic with a modified N-methylthiotetrazole (MTT) side chain, caused testicular toxicity when subcutaneously administered...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Albendazole binds to parasite's tubulin inhibiting its glucose absorption. Its common adverse effects are nausea, vomiting, constipation, thirst, dizziness, headache, hair loss and pruritus. Although...Full Text Available

Science.gov (United States)

The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of central vein stenosis and occlusion following upper extremity placement of peripherally inserted central venous catheters(PICCs) and venous ports. One hundred fifty-four patients who underwent venography of the ipsilateral central veins prior to initial and subsequent venous access device insertion were retrospectively identified. All follow-up venograms were interpreted at the time of catheter placement by one interventional radiologist over a 5-year period and compared to the findings on initial venography. For patients with central vein abnormalities, hospital and home infusion service records and radiology reports were reviewed to determine catheter dwelltime and potential alternative etiologies of central vein stenosis or occlusion. The effect of catheter caliber and dwell time on development of central vein abnormalities was evaluated. Venography performed prior to initial catheter placement showed ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The population masses in many coastal zones in Japan, and human activities are greatly effected. The representative water area is the Tokyo Bay. The population of the Tokyo Bay reaches 26 million at present, and a mass of organic substance and nutrient salt flow into it through rivers and sewage-treatment plants, etc. With the improvement of pollution source countermeasure and sewerage in the area, the inflow load to the Bay gradually decreases, but in the inner bay, red tide is generating in the summertime mainly. And, the anoxic water areas observed in bottom layer in summertime make large effects on the seafood. It is a large theme to clarify formation process of the anoxic water area and to solve this problem for the Tokyo Bay in the twenty-first century. In this paper, changes in water qualities and human activities and fundamental approach of water quality conservation of the Tokyo Bay are ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

This study aimed to explore the impact of perceived service quality and self-concept on consumer attitude and purchase process using channel type (physical and Internet) as a segmentation variable. From the perspective of consumer behaviour, this study attempted to estimate a relational model and perform an empirical validation using female cosmetics and skincare products as an example. It was discovered that the influence of perceived service quality and self-concept on consumer attitude, purchase intention and behaviour, satisfaction, and loyalty varied with channel type. The analysis result revealed that physical stores presented higher levels of agreement with all research perspectives than Internet stores. However, only two relational paths have a higher influencing effect in physical...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In designing automatic water quality monitoring networks for a river basin, determination of measurement locations and items is critical to the effectiveness of the total system. In this paper we studied how to decide these two design factors when a monitoring network is designed for the purpose of water quality surveillance and emergency alarm. For measurement locations, candidate sites are chosen based on the intake amount for water supply and the point sources of contamination. Then, detailed locations are decided according to the contaminant flow distance. As for measurement items, characteristics and the accident history of water pollution in the basin must be taken into account. Considering economic aspects, we proposed a two-stage measurement plan: basic components for all locations and selective ones variable for different locations. Proposed methodology is demonstrated through a case study for Nak-dong River Basin. ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

An account of problems arising in the use of coal ash and red mud as filling or banking materials. The soil engineering properties of these materials are explained. Problems encountered in on-site use include difficulty in controlling moisture content, absorption swelling and strongly alkaline atmospheres. For long-term use, it will be necessary to minimize the variations in engineering characteristics and in quality that result from the method of discharge and from the raw materials themselves. There must also be thorough quality control during shipment. (7 refs.) (In Japanese)

Science.gov (United States)

Efficient and economical utilization of wind power will require the ability to measure and ultimately predict the effects fluctuations in the incident wind will have on a wind turbine. In order to quantitatively assesss these effects, experimental techniques have been developed which allow analysis of full-scale performance of wind turbines with particular emphasis on the effects caused by turbulence in the incident wind. Examples of these techniques are presented using data from the DOE/Sandia Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) program.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Abstract Background- Cyclosporine is used for treatment of transplanted patients and for immune-mediated diseases. Cyclosporine is known to cause a combination of metabolic side effects including hypertension, hyperkalemia, hypercalciuria and hypomagnesemia. These side effects except for hypomagnesemia are the cardinal features of familial hyperkalemia and hypertension (FHHt), also called pseudohypoaldosteronism type II (PHA II). FHHt is caused by mutations in the kinases WNK1 and WNK4 resulting in an increase in renal Na-Cl cotransporter (NCC) apical distribution and function. Therefore, we studied whether cyclosporine-s metabolic side effects are mediated by WNK4 and NCC. Design- Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were treated by cyclosporine 25-mg-kg-1 subcutaneously for 14-days. Blood pressure, ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Recently, under the de-regulation environment, nuclear industry has attempted various approaches to improve the economics of Nuclear Power Plants (NPP). One of these efforts is the Risk Informed/Performance-Based Operation (RIPBO). This approach uses the risk and performance information to manage the resources effectively and efficiently that are used in the operation of NPP. In RIPBO, PSA quality is one of the most important things. The nuclear industry and regulatory body of U.S.A have developed a measure to evaluate the quality of PSA. NEI (Nuclear Energy Institute) has developed a guidance called 'NEI PRA Peer Review Guidance,' and NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Committee) and ASME have developed the 'PRA Standard.' In Korea, several projects are on going now, such as the extension of AOT/STI of RPS/ESFAS, Risk-Informed In-Service Inspection (RI-ISI). However, in Korea, there have been no attempts to evaluate the ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Recently, under the de-regulation environment, nuclear industry has attempted various approaches to improve the economics of Nuclear Power Plants (NPP). One of these efforts is the Risk Informed/Performance-Based operation (RIPBO). This approach uses the risk and performance information to manage the resources effectively and efficiently that are used in the operation of NPP. In RIPBO, PSA quality is one of the most important things. The nuclear industry and regulatory body of U.S.A have developed a measure to evaluate the quality of PSA. NEI (Nuclear Energy Institute) has developed a guidance called 'NEI PRA Peer Review Guidance,' and NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Committee) and ASME have developed the 'PRA Standard.' In Korea, several projects are on going now, such as the extension of AOT/STI of RPS/ESFAS, Risk-Informed In-Service Inspection (RI-ISI). However, in Korea, there have been no attempts to evaluate the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Recently, under the de-regulation environment, nuclear industry has attempted various approaches to improve the economics of Nuclear Power Plants (NPP). One of these efforts is the Risk Informed/Performance-based Operation (RIPBO). This approach uses the risk and performance information to manage the resources effectively and efficiently that are used in the operation of NPP. In RIPBO, PSA quality is one of the most important things. The nuclear industry and regulatory body of U.S.A have developed a measure to evaluate the quality of PSA. NEI (Nuclear Energy Institute) has developed a guidance called 'NEI PRA Peer Review Guidance,' and NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Committee) and ASME have developed the 'PRA Standard.' In Korea, several projects are on going now, such as the extension of AOT/STI of RPS/ESFAS, Risk-informed In-service Inspection (RI-ISI). However, in Korea, there have been no ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The present study was carried out during two successive seasons of 2005 and 2006 seasons on"Montakhab El-Kanater"guavas and"Hachiya"persimmons.two different experiments were studied, the first one for pre harvest and second post harvest. Regarding pre harvest experiment,hand or chemical flower thinning by urea or ethrel and date of fruit picking (maturity) were evaluated on both guavas and persimmons.All flower thinning treatments increased fruit set,total yield,average fruit weight and decreased fruit abscission.However,a great effect on fruit quality and chemical compositions were also found with flower thinning treatments. Chemical flower thinning was more effective than hand thinning in improving yield and quality in "Montakhab El-Kanater"guavas and "Hachiya"persimmons. However,early maturation(120 and 150 days for guava and persimmon respect.) produced poor fruit ...

Science.gov (United States)

We have grown crack-free antiferroelectric (AFE) Pb{sub 0.92}La{sub 0.08}Zr{sub 0.95}Ti{sub 0.05}O{sub 3} (PLZT) films on nickel foils by chemical solution deposition. To eliminate the parasitic effect caused by the formation of a low-permittivity interfacial oxide, we applied a conductive buffer layer of lanthanum nickel oxide (LNO) on the nickel foil by chemical solution deposition prior to the PLZT deposition. Use of the LNO buffer allowed high-quality film-on-foil capacitors to be prepared at high temperatures in air. With the AFE PLZT deposited on LNO-buffered Ni foils, we observed field-induced phase transformations of AFE to ferroelectric (FE). The AFE-to-FE phase transition field, E{sub AF} = 260 kV cm{sup -1}, and the reverse phase transition field, E{sub FA} = 220 kV cm{sup -1}, were measured at room temperature on a {approx}1.15 {micro}m thick PLZT film grown on LNO-buffered Ni foils. The relative permittivities ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A case study is presented where an integrated, ecologically relevant exposure assessment is presented for a polluted lowland river. Using partial least squares regression of latent structures (PLS), an analysis of the impact of two effluents on physico-chemical water quality measures, macroinvertebrate and diatom communities, and in situ bioassay responses with four different test species are combined into an integrative exposure assessment. Bioassays focussed on growth and condition related endpoints, because they are key functional processes of organisms and populations. Integrating these multiple lines of evidence, we were able to discriminate among the impact of both effluents, link changes in physico-chemical water quality with bioassay endpoints and ecological quality of the ecosystem, and address the importance of integrating all information into one exposure assessment framework. The bioassays under field conditions ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The purpose of the study was to optimise the technique employed for AP shoulder and lateral cervical spine examinations following an investigation into image quality, based on clinical assessment, and effective dose, calculated from patient entrance surface dose measurements. A study was therefore conducted in an attempt to determine whether the increased radiation dose to the patient following the introduction of an anti-scatter grid was justified by the level of improvement in image quality. The study, involving 100 patients, was able to demonstrate that the increase in radiation dose to the patient when using an anti-scatter grid for AP shoulder examinations is not justified by the improved image quality. A poor level of inter-rater reliability between the consultants scoring the lateral cervical spine images prevented a firm conclusion from being reached. The fact that all images were of diagnostic ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Based on wind tunnel experiments, theoretical considerations and measurements the dispersion model CAR (Calculation of Air pollution from Road traffic) has been developed for determining air quality in city streets. CAR International is a simple parameterized model using readily available input data and calculating annual percentile values and average concentrations close to streets (at the kerb side) for non-reactive air pollutants and NO{sub 2}. Originally the model was set up for the Dutch situation (traffic, meteorology) with a system of fixed parameters. In order to extend its application to other countries the program has been made more flexible and user friendly. User defined system data can now be changed interactively, such as emission factors of passenger cars and trucks, fraction of directly emitted NO{sub 2}, city and regional background concentration, and average regional wind speed. The accuracy of the model has proved to be good and is within the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The most typical kinds of corrosion of brasses are selective corrosion (dezincification) and stress corrosion. Prevention against these kinds of corrosion lies in application of arsenic alloy addition and appropriate heat treatment removing internal stresses as well as in maintaining the arsenic and phosphorus contents on a proper level. The most typical corrosion of cupronickels is the local corrosion. Selective corrosion occurs less often and corrosion cracking caused by stress corrosion in sea water does not usually occur. Crevice corrosion is found especially in places of an heterogeneous oxidation of the surface under inorganic deposits or under bio-film. Common corrosive phenomena for brasses and cupronickels are the effects caused by sea water flow and most often the impingement attack. Alloy additions improve resistance to the action of intensive sea water flow but situation in this field requires further ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The effects of changes in the cetane number of liquid pilot fuels on the ignition delay period in dual fuel engines were investigated experimentally. Various pilot fuel quantities were employed with methane, propane and low heating value gaseous fuel mixtures over a wide range of engine load.the ignition delay variation with increased gaseous fuel admission showed a strong dependence on both the quantity and the quality of the pilot fuel used. It was found that the use of high cetane number pilot liquid fuels permitted smaller pilot quantities to be used satisfactorily. Engine operation on propane and low heating value gaseous fuels improved in comparison with dual fuel engine operation employing common diesel fuels.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of pork/beef levels and the casings on the quality properties of semi-dried jerky. The pork/beef levels in the four test formulations were as follows: T-1 (pork: beef=100:0), T-2 (95:5), T-3 (90:10), and T-4 (80:20). After tumbling for 30min with curing solution, the cured meats were stuffed into natural sheep casings, collagen casings, or cellulose casings, and then dried. The restructured jerky with cellulose casing had the lowest water content and the highest protein content, with no significant differences between various formulations. There were no significant differences among all formulations with regard to pH and total microbial counts, and jerky with cellulose casing had the lowest value of water activity. The processing yields ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Abstract Background Atopic dermatitis (AD) affects health and quality of life and it has great impact on both health-care costs and costs to the society. Objectives The objective of this study was to develop a model to analyse the cost-effectiveness of a barrier-strengthening moisturizing cream as maintenance therapy compared with no treatment after initial treatment with betamethasone valerate in adult patients with AD in Sweden. A further aim was to apply a similar health-economic analysis for Denmark, Norway and Finland. Methods A Markov simulation model was developed including data from three sources: (i) efficacy data from a randomized controlled trial including patients with moderate AD treated with either a moisturizing cream or no treatment, (ii) resource utilization and quality of...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Viral infections are still common causes of morbidity and mortality in immunosuppressed patients after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Infections caused by virus such as cytomegalovirus, adenovirus and Epstein-Barr virus are well-known. In addition, several other viruses such as polyomavirus and human herpesvirus 6 have been recently reported to be causes of significant complications. As the delay in recovery of virus-specific cellular immune response after transplant is associated with viral reactivation and viral disease, adoptive immunotherapy to restore virus-specific cellular immunity is an attractive option. Recent clinical trials showed the safety and effectiveness of adoptive immunotherapy against viral diseases. In this review, we summarize the current status o...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The examination of the high-temperature properties of the alloy Alloy 800HT has shown that both the creep performance and the microstructure of the material can be purposefully set by the initial heat treatment. At the high temperatures applied, (700-900 C), a rapid softening process sets in induced by carbide precipitation, stabilization, and coarsening. This softening process causes creep velocities strongly accelerating as a function of duration of the heat treatment prior to the creep test. The identified cause of the softening effect is a change in particle size that could be verified by SEM and TEM. It is shown that two different carbide precipitate size classes are responsible for the softening effect. While the precipitates dectable by TEM become effective primarily via interactions with dislocations, the carbide precipitates detectable only by SEM contribute to a hardening ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Self-expanding metallic stent insertion has been widely applied for the palliative treatment of malignant esophageal strictures. Although it is known as an easy, safe, and effective procedure, complications are well known and include things such as stent migration and esophageal stent occlusion caused by tumor in growth. However, metallic stent fractures have been rarely reported in the esophagus, especially for nitinol stents. We report a case of a stent fracture associated with migration in a patient with a malignant esophageal stricture near the gastroesophageal junction. It is highly probable that the stent fracture was due to chemical erosion of the stent caused by gastric juice

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Meteorological and air-quality data, as well as surface tracer concentration values, were collected during 1990 to assess the impact of Navajo Generating Station (NGS) emissions on Grand Canyon National Park (GCNP) air quality. These data have been used in the present investigation to determine between direct and indirect transport routes taken by the NGS plume to produce measured high-tracer concentration events at GCNP. Results show that complex-terrain features affect local wind-flow patterns during winter in the Grand Canyon area. Local channelling, decoupled canyon winds, and slope and valley flows dominate in the region when synoptic systems are weak. Direct NGS plume transport to GCNP occurs with northeasterly plume-height winds, while indirect transport to the park is caused by wind direction shifts associated with passing synoptic systems. Calculated polluted airmass positions along the modeled streak lines match ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The indoor climate of school buildings have been much debated recently. Many problems connected with air quality and thermal comfort are caused by bad maintenance, fitted carpets and no sunshades. Mechanical ventilation in schools has gained a bad reputation and many municipalities are seeking other solutions when building new schools. Natural ventilation according to the ''Swedish model'' does not use air filters or heat recovery from the outgoing air and achieve low energy consumption by reducing the airflow substantially in cold weather. Most of the naturally ventilated schools have supply air culverts of concrete below ground outside the building and in the basement. This is also true of schools using hybrid ventilation, where natural and mechanical ventilation is combined. The naturally ventilated schools often use manual control of the ventilation, which may not always be a good solution for buildings ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The presence of iron and manganese in underground water due to rock leaching may cause problems in drinking water. the oxidation of these metals produces precipitates which alter water quality (by making it cloudy and bad testing) and may even block supply pipes. This article presents a way eliminating this problem which was tried out in the conduits of Cantillana, a municipality in the province of Seville, Spain. Cleaning the pipes with a mixture of H{sub 2}O{sub 2} + water changes the characteristics of the deposits from flocculant and absorbent to sandy following which they are washed away by the pressure of the water. Once the pipes have been cleaned, a minimal amount of maintenance will prevent the formation of new deposits. This article thus a relatively simple and economical solution for recovering water quality as an alternative to the complicated replacement of the whole network. (Author) 7 refs.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The gastrointestinal absorption of lead was markedly increased in human subjects who had fasted before ingesting lead. Food in the gut was found to reduce lead absorption, and the effect of dietary constituents on /sup 203/Pb absorption was investigated. The greatest reduction in absorption was caused by minerals. This dependence of lead absorption on dietary constituents complicates the establishment of safe levels of lead in food and water.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The condition of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) in wet storage at ten Soviet-designed research reactors has been assessed in the light of international experience in order to identify any associated safety issues. These reactors use Al-clad UO2-Al or U-Al alloy dispersion fuels of ?20% enrichment that were fabricated in Russia; the reactors have been in operation since 1955-70. Although originally sent for reprocessing, much of the SNF generated over the last 25-30 years has been stored in fuel storage pools (FSPs) of variable water quality. The external condition of wet-stored SNF assemblies from the reactors surveyed varied from significant failure due to galvanic corrosion that was driven by poor water quality, through gradual pitting caused by slightly impure water, to a stable condition of no observable change in the oxidized Al alloy surface of the irradiated fuel. SNF stability in wet storage seems to depend on three ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

This paper presents a prescriptive account of diagnostic problem solving, or diagnosis, in quality and process control. This paper identifies a general strategy, named branch-and-prune, whose manifestations can be found in disciplines such as medical diagnosis, troubleshooting of devices, and model-based diagnosis in artificial intelligence. The work aims to offer a clear conceptualization of this strategy, based on the notions of structures for the search space, and constraints to the cause's nature.The idea is to treat the search space of candidate explanations as a tree structure, in which general and high-level causal directions are branched into more specific and detailed explanations. Constraints eliminate all but a few branches (pruning), which are explored in more detail. We enumer...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

From 1965 to 1980 ash content in anthracite from the Donbass supplied to power plants increased from 21.9 to 35.5%, moisture content increased from 7.6 to 10.1%, calorific value declined from 23.7 to 18.5 MJ/kg. Combustion of anthracite culm is stabilized by mazout combustion. Heat treatment of anthracite culm by means of plasma generators improves fuel quality. High temperature causes emission of volatile matter from anthracite and partial gasification of coke particles. Combustion of volatile matter from anthracite and coke is a reliable ignition method for anthracite culm. It also stabilizes combustion of pulverized anthracite. Heat treatment of about 20% anthracite by plasma generators reduces nitrogen oxide emission from a furnace by 30-40%. 5 refs.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Asphaltenes precipitated from an Arabian Mix vacuum residue were hydrocracked in a batch autoclave at 435 and 460{degree}C for 5-90 min. Experiments without catalyst, with modified red mud and with an industrial Co Mo/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} catalyst were compared. The products were fractionated into gas, naphtha, oil, asphaltenes and coke. Feed asphaltenes and several product fractions were characterised by elemental analysis, by average molecular mass and by {sup 1}H n.m.r. Due to the hydrogenation activity, both catalysts caused - with similar efficiency - the decrease of coke formation and the increase of quantity and quality of oil. 21 refs., 9 figs., 5 tabs.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

There is currently great interest in combining focused ion beam (FIB) and scanning electron microscopy technologies for advanced studies of polymeric materials and biological microstructures, as well as for sophisticated nanoscale fabrication and prototyping. Irradiation of electrically insulating materials with a positive ion beam in high vacuum can lead to the accumulation of charge, causing deflection of the ion beam. The resultant image drift has significant consequences upon the accuracy and quality of FIB milling, imaging and chemical vapour deposition. A method is described for suppressing ion beam drift using a defocused, low-energy primary electron beam, leading to the derivation of a mathematical expression to correlate the ion and electron beam energies and currents with other parameters required for electrically stabilizing these challenging materials.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This book is mainly a comparison of the cost of pollution with the cost of environmental protection. As to the causes of pollution, a difference is made between pollutants that accumulate and pollutants that do not accumulate. Because of pollutant accumulation it is necessary to carry out both subsequent pollution abatement measures and to take preventive action which helps to avoid pollutant emission. Growth models serve to substantiate why such preventive action is both ecologically and economically useful as a rule. Finally the study makes a comparison between some tools of environmental protection. It stresses in particular that, if a duty on emissions is levied, the polluter has to bear all the cost of the pollution, while at the same time the quality of the environment can be more successfully improved than by emission standards alone.

Science.gov (United States)

As part of its long-term control plan for combined sewer overflow (CSO) abatement, the city of Buffalo, New York, maintained a network of Hydrolab Datasondes (Hydrolab-Hach Company, Loveland, Colorado) to assess receiving water-quality effects by continuously logging dissolved oxygen, pH, temperature, conductivity, and turbidity. Although the effect of individual CSOs could be visualized, turbidity levels entering the Buffalo River from the upper watershed often were greater than from CSO discharges. Turbidity data showed that the Buffalo River was a net-sediment sink. Low dissolved oxygen levels were observed in the summer during dry weather, baseflow, and watershed-wide storms and CSO events. Some CSOs did not produce dissolved oxygen sags in the receiving waters, but others did. This information, together with the sampling done for organic and inorganic contaminants, can aid the decisionmaking process when prioritizing ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The term 'Post-CHF' was generally used in the two-phase flow regime in tube flow occurring downstream of the CHF. It has various other names such as dispersed flow, liquid-deficient flow, mist flow and film boiling because the two-phase regime is characterized by a continuous vapor phase with discrete liquid drops and a non-wetted heated surface. The regime has been adopted in a lot of applications including nuclear power plants, fossil power plants, steam generators, refrigeration systems and spray cooling, In particular, this regime has a considerable importance in the areas of light water reactor(LWR) accident analysis (off-normal operating conditions) and design in heat exchangers operating in the once-through mode where subcooled liquid enters the exchanger and superheated vapor exits. Recently, innovative PWRs adopt very high power density increases and so require increased safety margins. For instance, advanced PWRs would be going to use a new-type of spacer ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Abstract Introduction.- Cannabis (marijuana) is the most widely used illicit drug globally. Given the prevalence of nonprescription illicit drug abuse, there is a growing interest in the study of its potential effects on male sexual health. In this review, we discuss the effects of cannabis on male sexual health. Objective.- In this review, we discuss the effects of cannabis on male sexual health. Methods and Main Outcome Measure.- Critical review of scientific literature examining the impact of cannabis use on male sexual health. Results.- Studies examining the effects of cannabis use on male sexual function have been limited in both quality and quantity. Most results of these studies are conflicting and contradictory. While some did outline the beneficial effects of cannabis in enhancing...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Failure of multiple components due to a common cause represents one of the most important issues in evaluation of system reliability or unavailability. The frequency of such events has relatively low expectancy, when compared to random failures, which affect individual components. However, in many cases the consequence is a direct loss of safety system or mitigative safety function. For this reason, the modeling of a common cause failure (CCF) and its presentation in fault tree structure is of the uttermost importance in probabilistic safety analyses (PSA). Amongst the different techniques available to reduce the impact of common cause failures, the most important operations related technique, is that of staggered testing. In the TAPP 3,4 Level-1 PSA it was found that the contribution of Common Cause Failures to the Core Damage Frequency (CDF) was significant. The Common Cause ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A phantom simulation imaging quality control device is described that effectively simulates one centimeter lesions, using steel ball bearings as gamma ray attenuators. The bearings are mounted in a synthetic resinous sheet in an orthogonal pattern. The phantom can provide uniformity, resolution, linearity, distortion and field size checks, all with a single exposure.

Environmental Research Database

DescriptionThis application is a request for Bridge Link funds to support studies in order to develop a full proposal under the Link Sustainable Livestock Scheme in collaboration with Dr Nigel Scollan of IGER. The hypothesis being examined is that the poor performance of some ruminants is due to poor nutrition at strategic time points during the animal's development. The initial hypothesis will be tested in sheep and the results from this will be used to develop the full proposal. Excessive fat in ruminan [continued...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The effects of fine-particle C, such as diesel soot, on the optical properties of urban haze in the visible wavelength range were explored to determine the dominant effects and to see if simple parameters (such as visual range in green) provide an adequate measure of these effects. It is known that fine-particle C absorbs more strongly in the blue than in the red, so that when it is mixed with a white pigment, the resulting gray can appear somewhat brown. The possibility of a similar effect in urban hazes was investigated, but found not to occur. When the sun is overhead, the near-horizon sky chromaticities caused by mixtures of fine-particle C and non-absorbing aerosol can also be produced by non-absorbing aerosols alone. It is shown that absorbing aerosol will darken the horizon sky, and a simple equation for the radiance of the horizon sky is derived. The ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This report presents information obtained during five different studies of field effects from high voltage transmission lines performed at EPRI's High Voltage Transmission Research Center. The first study is the development of a methodology for the evaluation of the expected frequency of occurrence of specific short-term effects of spark discharges and induced currents caused by overhead high voltage transmission lines. The methodology is divided into the analysis of the expected frequency of occurrence of situations in which induction effects may occur, and the analysis of the expected severity of the effect. The second study is of the electric field in the surface and on the immediate proximity of the strands of stranded conductors used for overhead high voltage lines. In particular, the cases of deformations of stranded conductors, caused by air ...

Science.gov (United States)

Nonparabolicity of the heavy hole band in diamond-like semiconductors, which occurs within the framework of the three band model with the perturbation from the other bands taken into account according to the Loewdin procedure, is studied. A direct dependence of nonparabolicity on the band anisotropy (caused by the different effect of Gamma/sub 15c/ and Gamma/sub 12c/ bands) and the inverse dependence on the magnitude of the spin-orbit splittiing is established. A connection between the effective mass of heavy holes and their energy is obtained, which is valid for the majority of diamond-like semiconductors, except for materials with a very strong nonparabolicity of the band of silicon type

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The yellow Iranian scorpion Odontobuthus doriae can cause fatal envenoming, but its mechanism of action is unclear. One of the reported manifestations of envenoming is moderate to severe involuntary tremor of skeletal muscle. In order to understand better the mechanism of action of this venom on skeletal muscle function, we examined the effects of the venom in vitro on chick biventer cervicis (CBC) and mouse hemidiaphragm (MHD) nerve muscle preparations. O. doriae venom (0.3-10mg/ml) initially increased and then decreased twitch height. The venom also caused contracture in both preparations. In mouse triangularis sterni preparations, used for all intracellular recording techniques, the venom enhanced the release of acetylcholine and induced repetitive firing of nerve action potentials and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Physicians are exercising their responsibility as healers in their efforts to prevent nuclear war. Death for Hiroshima survivors was experienced in four stages: the immediate impact of destruction, the acute impact of radiation, delayed radiation effects, and later identification as an atomic bomb survivor. Each phase had its physical and psychological impacts and negates Hiroshima as a model for rational behavior despite those who claim survival is possible for those who are prepared. The psychic effects of modern nuclear, chemical, and germ warfare need to be challenged with a symbolization of life and immortality. Studies of psychological reactions to the terror children felt during practice air-raid drills indicate that the fears can be surpressed and re-emerge in adult life as a linking of death with collective annihilation. Other themes which emerge are feelings of impermanence, craziness, identification with the bomb, and a double ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The effect of ?/?-carrageenan from red alda Tichocarpus crinitus on the development of a potato virus X (PVX) infection in the leaves of Datura stramonium L. has been studied. The treatment of leaves with carrageenan stimulates a protein synthesis in the cells, causing an increase in the size of nucleoli and in the number of mitochondria and membranes of the rough endoplasmic reticulum. At the same time, such treatment slightly stimulates lytic processes, causing an increase in the number of smooth endoplasmic reticulum cisternae, dictyosomes, and cytoplasmic vacuoles and the formation of cytoplasmic electron-transparent zones. The carrageenan-induced stimulation of lytic processes results in the destruction of viral particles and can be considered as one of the defense mechanisms, prevent...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In this report the effects of harmonics in marine power systems is discussed and a comparison is given between the most typical converter types, including pulse width modulated drives, load commutated inverters and cycloconverters. The effect of harmonic distortion on the power system equipment and loads is first briefly discussed. Special attention is given to the circumstances in the low voltage distribution system, where general load equipment is connected. In addition to the total harmonic distortion the effect of voltage deviation to the supply quality is also considered. The origin of harmonics in the load currents of the three converter types is then considered. The differences between the converters are outlined, and the most typical spectra are presented. The possible means for reducing the harmonic distortion are also studied. The solutions considered are the increasing of the short circuit ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Results are presented applying an enteral nutrition by means of probes with Cosilat in complex therapy of patients with radiotherapeutic late effects of the colon. This nutrition was prescribed with the intention to gave the colon a functional recovery and to guarantee optimal conditions for repair of radiation injuries. Good results were seen in 27 of 28 patients (96.7%), the situation of one patient (3.3%) continued without any change. Cosilat has a high nutritive value, good organoleptic qualities and is well digested without any complications. (author).

Science.gov (United States)

The effects of variable hardness, pH, alkalinity, humics, and suspended clay on the chemical speciation of copper and its toxicity to fathead minnow larvae in Lake Superior water were investigated. Two proposed methods (toxicity factors and chemical speciation) for predicting LC50 values in specific natural waters from laboratory toxicity data and the average site specific values of general water quality parameters were evaluated. The accuracy of the cupric ion-selective electrode in determining CU/sup +2/ activities in ambient and chemically altered Lake Superior water was also determined.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Triacontanol (TRIA) has been realized as a potent plant growth promoting substance for a number of agricultural and horticultural crops. Out of a large number of essential oil bearing plants, mint (Mentha arvensis L.) constitutes the most important source of therapeutic agents used in the alternative systems of medicine. The mint plant has marvelous medicinal properties. In view of enhancing growth, yield and quality of this medicinally important plant, a pot experiment was conducted according to simple randomized block design. The experiment was aimed at studying the effect of four concentrations of TRIA (10?0, 10?7, 10?6 and 10?5?M) on the performance of mint with regard to growth and other physiological attributes, crop yield and quality attributes and the yield and contents of active c...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Summary Despite the great interest of red porgy as a new species for Mediterranean aquaculture, its commercial production is constrained by the high incidence of skeletal deformities occurring in this species under culture conditions. Several studies have been conducted to better understand the origin of these anomalies in this species, using different system intensiveness, rotifers enrichment products or rotifers docosahexaenoic acid content. The first study showed that culture intensification increased the number of fish with an extra vertebrae, what was probably related to the different nutritional quality of live preys employed in each treatment, since water temperature, salinity and genetic background were identical for the different batches of fish studied. Total incidence of skeleta...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

While both sperm number and quality are now recognized to be important in determining the outcome of sperm competition, very few studies have experimentally assessed the influence of these two parameters simultaneously. We studied the effect of sperm quality and number on competitive fertilization success in an internal-fertilizing fish, the guppy (Poecilia reticulata), which is characterized by high levels of sperm competition. We artificially inseminated virgin females with varying proportion of sperm from two competing males, while holding constant the total number of sperm transferred to the female. Sperm morphology and sperm swimming velocity were also determined prior to insemination. The paternity outcome of sperm competition trials was assessed through molecular analyses of the res...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This paper summarizes the current scientific evidence that improved indoor environmental quality can improve work performance and health. The review indicates that work and school work performance is affected by indoor temperature and ventilation rate. Pollutant source removal can sometimes improve work performance. Based on formal statistical analyses of existing research results, quantitative relationships are provided for the linkages of work performance with indoor temperature and outdoor air ventilation rate. The review also indicates that improved health and related financial savings are obtainable from reduced indoor tobacco smoking, prevention and remediation of building dampness, and increased ventilation. Example cost-benefit analyses indicate that many measures to improve indoor temperature control and increase ventilation rates will be highly cost effective, with benefit-cost ratios as high as 80 and annual economic benefits as high ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Full text: A method to measure noise power spectrum of a full field digital mammography system is presented. The effect of X-ray radiation dose, size and configuration of region of interest on normalized noise power spectrum (NNPS) was investigated. Flat field images were acquired using RQA-M2 beam quality technique (Mo/Mo anode-filter, 28 kV, 2 mm Al) with different clinical radiation doses. The images were cropped at about 4 cm from the edge of the breast wall and then divided into different size of non-overlapping or overlapping segments. NNPS was determined through de trending, 2-D fast Fourier transformation and normalization. Our measurement shows that high radiation dose gave lower NNPS at a specific beam quality. (author)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

With the combination of source ventilation and ceiling cooling for air-conditioning of working and recreation rooms, a ventilation system is available which fulfills the highest demands regarding thermal comfort. In order to utilize the advantages of this ventilation system with regard to air quality and thermal comfort to an optimum, the influence of the radiation exchange between cooling ceiling and walls on the flow in the room is investigated experimentally. Energy transfer from the walls to the cooled ceiling may result in an insufficient temperature of the walls compared to ambient air and in an upward flow on the wall surfaces (downward flow of) driven by gravity, which influences the flow pattern in the case of source ventilation. (orig.)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Electric utility plants, for which construction commenced after September 18, 1978, must install and operate continuous emission monitoring (CEM) systems to demonstrate compliance with SO_2 and NO_x emission standards. Furthermore, effective December 4, 1987, each plant must develop and implement a CEM quality assurance (QA) program. This paper reviews the CEM and QA requirements set forth by new source performance standards (NSPS) promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency. The paper summarizes operating characteristics of the 32 power plants currently subject to NSPS and describes the types of CEM systems used by these plants. Also, to the extent available, the paper presents the results of initial (i.e., first quarter 1988) QA activities (e.g., audits and calibration drift assessments) conducted by these plants.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Papers are presented on the modeling, dispersion, formation, transformation, monitoring and biological effects of atmospheric pollution. Specific topics include a prognostic mesoscale model for pollutant transport and diffusion, commuter exposure modeling, a Gaussian plume model for an urban area, carbon monoxide dispersion in an urbanized area, wind-tunnel modeling of flue gas dispersion, the regional-scale transport of fine aerosol components in eastern North America, and a Markov process for the generation of hourly average wind vectors. Attention is also given to photochemical aerosol formation in multicomponent systems, heterogeneous nitrogen oxide-particulate reactions, the generation and measurement of primary soot aerosols of size between 50 and 400 A, inertial particle size classification techniques, the design of air quality monitoring networks, visibilities in polluted and unpolluted areas, and monitoring air ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

This paper describes a comprehensive model of wastewater treatment in secondary facultative ponds, which combines 3D hydrodynamics with a mechanistic water quality model. The hydrodynamics are based on the Navier-Stokes equation for incompressible fluids under shallow water and Boussinesq assumptions capturing the flow dynamics along length, breadth and depth of the pond. The water quality sub model is based on the Activated Sludge Model (ASM) concept, describing COD and nutrient removal as function of bacterial growth following Monod kinetics, except for Escherichia coli removal, which was modelled as first order decay. The model was implemented in the Delft3D software and was used to evaluate the effect of wind and the addition of baffles on the water flow pattern, temperature profiles i...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

One of the main problems facing the mining sector is the production of acid mine drainage (AMD), which is caused by the oxidation of sulphide minerals in the presence of water. AMD can have a detrimental effect on the environment. One solution is to use soil covering over the materials that cause acid to limit the gas flux by diffusion. A capillary barrier effect is generated by using various layers of different types of soil. In the composite system till and clay normally form the basis of the fine material layer. The use of low sulphide tailings to replace the use of fine grained soil was studied to evaluate its effectiveness. Following both in situ and laboratory experiments spread over an eight-year period, the results indicated that an effective method to limit the oxygen flux and generation of AMD is the use of non-acid generating tailings as the moisture ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and a group of expert collaborators are using the U.S. Department of Energy Hanford Site 300 Area uranium plume within the footprint of the 300-FF-5 groundwater operable unit as a site for an Integrated Field-Scale Subsurface Research Challenge (IFRC). The IFRC is entitled Multi-Scale Mass Transfer Processes Controlling Natural Attenuation and Engineered Remediation: An IFRC Focused on the Hanford Site 300 Area Uranium Plume Project. The theme is investigation of multi-scale mass transfer processes. A series of forefront science questions on mass transfer are posed for research that relate to the effect of spatial heterogeneities; the importance of scale; coupled interactions between biogeochemical, hydrologic, and mass transfer processes; and measurements/approaches needed to characterize and model a mass transfer-dominated system. This Quality Assurance Project Plan provides the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This paper presents the results of a study carried out at three sites in Madurai, India in order to assess ambient air quality levels and their impact on public health in urban areas. Indicators of public health were sought through primary and secondary health data and blood lead concentrations of male and female inhabitants and shopkeepers. Lean concentrations in blood samples were examined according to distance from the road, age, smoking status, hours of stay per day in the city, and period of stay in years in Madurai. Ambient air quality level indicators included the level of gaseous and particulate pollution using Central Pollution Control Board standard estimation methods. Observed atmospheric conditions across the three sites are examined according to mean solar insolation, mean temperature, mean relative humidity and mean wind velocity. The study concluded that pollution abatement measures must be implemented to safeguard public health ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This document presents the way which the 8th principle of the quality management system 'Process approach' is applied, the principle that is identified and used by international standard ISO 9000. In order to understand the evolution of the management system requirements, as used today in different activities namely, industry, services, and nuclear activities, the authors present an evolution of the quality concept and its traceability to different standards, applicable in time. There are described the requirements of ISO 9001 standard, that represents the most widely spread model for modern organization management and the IAEA concerns related to integration of the above standard requirements into the most recent safety IAEA standard 'The Management System for facilities and activities'. The IAEA Safety Standard GS-R-3 describes a management model considering both the evolution of the quality requirements into the modern ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The real-time neutron radiography system of the Kyoto University Reactor (KUR) has been practically applied to penetrating the side plates containing boron burnable poison to test MTR type reactor fuels and to investigation of moving objects. Compared with the image obtained by the direct film method, however, the image from the TV system is in low-contrast and poor-resolution. This paper presents some digital processing approaches to improve the image quality and the neutron TV system is successfully applied to neutron computed tomography (NCT). The frame summing technique is effective to increase the quality of the radiographic image. By using the NTV system in NCT, the projection data are able to be acquired in a single measurement as observing the projection image on a CRT monitor. Two weighting functions based on the Fourier-convolution algorithm are employed to obtain the reconstructed image. The image ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The goal of this project is to develop a bench-scale procedure to produce clean, desulfurized, premium-quality chars from the Illinois basin coals. This goal is achieved by utilizing the effective capabilty of smectites in combination with methane to manipulate the char yields. The major objectives are: to determine the optimum water- ground particle size for the maximum reduction of pyrite and minerals by the selective-bitumen agglomeration process; to evaluate the type of smectite and its interlamellar cation which enhances the premium-quality char yields; to find the mode of dispersion of smectites in clean coal which retards the agglomeration of char during mild gasification; to probe the conditions that maximize the desulfurized clean-char yields under a combination of methane+oxygen or helium+oxygen; to characterize and accomplish a material balance of chars, liquids, and gases produced during mild gasification; to ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Colon cancer is one of the leading causes of death and a major public health problem in western countries. We examined the isoflavone content of 70% ethanol extract of soy germ (SG) and its apoptotic effect in HT-29 colon cancer cells. Our results showed that the major isoflavones of the SG extract were daidzein and genistein, and it effectively induced apoptosis in HT-29 cancer cells. In addition, nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kB) expression was reduced in cells treated with the SG extract, which reduced cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression. These combined effects ultimately resulted in apoptosis via caspase-3 activation. In addition, daidzein and genistein, the major isoflavones of SG extract, also exerted the apoptotic effect against HT-29 cancer cells. Thes...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Two sources of ultraviolet (UV) radiation with peak wavelengths in the UV-C or UV-B ranges were compared for their ability to sterilize contact lenses infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Acanthamoeba castellani, Candida albicans, and Aspergillus niger. Also examined was the effect of prolonged UV light exposure on soft and rigid gas permeable (RGP) contact lenses. The UV-C lamp (253.7 nm, 250 mW/cm2 at 1 cm) was germicidal for all organisms within 20 minutes but caused destruction of the soft lens polymers within 6 hours of cumulative exposure. UV-C caused damage to RGP lenses in less than 100 hours. The UV-B lamp (290-310 nm, 500 mW/cm2 at 1 cm) was germicidal for all organisms tested (except Aspergillus) with a 180-minute exposure and caused less severe changes in the soft lens polymers than did the UV-C lamp, although cumulative exposure of 300 hours did substantially ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The purpose of this new industrial chair is to ensure the continuation and development of new research activities in the field of environment protection as it relates to the good management of mine tailings. The mining industry plays a vital role in the economy of a number of regions in both Quebec and Canada and also causes environmental problems due to the generation of liquid, solid, and gaseous wastes. Mine tailings can cause acid mine drainage. This acid mine drainage (AMD) can have detrimental effects on the ecosystems adjoining tailings or waste rock piles. We must remain aware that some of the remedial measures instituted to contain AMD might cause problems due to their possible instability. Despite the fact that instability is a rare occurrence, it can have disastrous effects on the environment as demonstrated in Spain, Guyana, and the Philippines during the last few years. ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

High quality single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) have been synthesized at large scales by the method of direct evaporation of carbon black and metallic catalyst mixtures, using induction thermal plasma technology. The processing system consists mainly of an RF plasma torch, which generates a plasma jet of extremely high temperature (?15 000 K), with a high energy density and abundance of reactive species (ions and neutrals). With the present reactor system, it has been demonstrated that carbon soot product which contains approximately 40 wt% of SWNT can be continuously synthesized at the high production rate of ?100 g h-1. The processing parameters involved have been examined closely in order to evaluate their individual influences on SWNT synthesis. The results have shown that the quality and purity of the SWNT produced are critically affected by the grade of carbon black, the plasma gas composition and the metallic catalyst employed. ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A new two-phase friction multiplier correlation has been developed to predict the pressure profile in two-phase flow with heat addition. The main difference from other pressure drop prediction routines is that in addition to the effect of quality, the effects of system pressure, heat and mass flux on the two-phase multiplier are included. The inception of two-phase flow is defined to occur at the onset of significant void in the subcooled boiling regime instead of the boundary between negative and positive thermodynamic equilibrium quality. Pressure drop data from an experiment with a fully segmented 6-metre long, 37-element fuel string were used to optimize the constants and exponents of this correlation for the friction multiplier. This pressure drop prediction technique was shown to successfully predict the measured pressure profiles. The more than one hundred overall pressure drop data were ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This handbook provides guidance in the application of quality assurance to measurement activities. It is intended to help those persons making measurements in applying quality assurance to their work activities by showing how laboratory practices and quality assurance requirements are integrated to provide control within those activities. The use of the guidance found in this handbook should help provide consistency in the interpretation of quality assurance requirements across all types of measurement laboratories. This handbook also can assist quality assurance personnel in understanding the relationships between laboratory practices and quality assurance requirements. The handbook is composed of three chapters and several appendices. Basic guidance is provided by the three chapters. In Chapter 1, the role of quality assurance in obtaining ...

Science.gov (United States)

This site focuses on the subject of volcanoes, including how volcanoes form, the destruction they can cause, effects of volcanoes on the environment, where active volcanoes are found, volcanoes of other planets, and the different volcano types. Designed as an electronic tour, it guides the user through different web sites and outlines teaching objectives, concepts covered, and new vocabulary. There is a teacher resources section with links for more information, and questions for students to answer along the way.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Equations are derived to calculate the work required for the isentropic compression of a 2-phase fuel-air mixture. Methanol evaporation during compression substantially reduces compression work and improves cycle efficiency and maximum power. Effects of evaporative cooling in the intake manifold are calculated. Energy d. of methanol and gasoline fuel-air charges are compared. The phase equilibrium and evaporation rate are causes of the poor cold-starting performance of methanol.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tachyon paradoxes, including causality paradoxes, have persisted within tachyon theories and left little hope for the existence of observable tachyons. A way is presented to solve the causality paradoxes, along with two other paradoxes, by the introduction of an absolute frame of reference in which a tachyon effect may never precede its cause. Relativity for ordinary matter is unaffected by this, even if the tachyons couple to ordinary particles. Violations of the principle of relativity due to the absolute frame would appear only in the case of free tachyons.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The nuclear power plants with WWER type reactors are characterized by horizontally situated steam generators (SG). During seismic event the horizontal and vertical ground accelerations induce fluid motion in directions of longitudinal and transversal axis. Resulting dynamic forces act on the SG attachment and could cause the failure of screws. In obvious PSA scenarios, these phenomena are classified as a indirect induced LOCA. In this paper the effects of transversal sloshing of fluid are analyzed.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Non-destructive methods for measuring the remaining anticorrosive or antioxidative ability of coatings are investigated. For anticorrosive chromium coatings the increasing ferromagnetism caused by loss of chromium is measured by a permeability probe. Measured values on blades after operation are correlated with the progress of corrosion as determined by metallographic methods. For antioxidative aluminum coatings the diminishing layer thickness is taken as indication for the exhaustion of their protection ability. The layer thickness is measured eddy current probes, especially developed for this application.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This paper describes a simple analysis procedure that transforms a set of beamline orbit data into a set of harmonic orbits of first, second, and third order or higher. Each harmonic orbit can be studied individually to identify errors of the specific order with minimum interference from other orders. Effectively these are orbits caused by kicks, due to harmonic errors, propagated through linear lattice. Examples from accelerator study will be presented. The application and inherent limitations of this analysis procedure are discussed.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The theory of reliability is used to develop statistical field data on malfunctions of units of sucker rod well pumps (UShSN). The indices of reliability of the UShSN are applied for establishment of the cause-effect links between the operating factors. Dependences of operating time on the depth of suspension of the pumps, mode of pumping out, degree of flooding of the oil, and twisting of the shafts are established for conditions of specific fields. The obtained relationships can be used in selecting and optimizing the work of the UShSN.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This critical review with 28 references examines absorption and emission in the v2 band of the carbon dioxide molecule at around the 15micron wavelength. The argument for additional infrared absorption, the enhanced greenhouse effect due to increased carbon dioxide concentrations, and radiation transport and increased emissions are discussed. Experiments studying the transmission spectra of pure carbon dioxide and carbon dioxide in nitrogen, and comparing them with the results of climate modelling using the HITRAN and GEISA databases, are described.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The work scope of 'Biological Research for the Radiation Protection' had contained the research about ornithine decarboxylase and its controlling proteins, thioredoxin, peroxiredoxin, S-adenosymethionine decarboxylase, and glutamate decarboxylase 67KD effect on the cell death triggered ionizing radiation and H_2O_2(toxic agents). In this study, to elucidate the role of these proteins in the ionizing radiation (or H_2O_2)-induced apoptotic cell death, we utilized sensesed (or antisensed) cells, which overexpress (or down-regulate) RNAs associated with these proteins biosynthesis, and investigated the effects of these genes on the cytotoxicity caused by ionizing radiation and H_2O_2(or paraquat). We also investigated whether genisteine(or thiamine) may enhance the cytotoxic efficacy of tumor cells caused by ionizing radiation (may enhance the preventing effect radiation or ...

Science.gov (United States)

>The causes and implications of the impeading shortages of gasoline, heating oil, diesel fuel, jet fuel, and electricity were investigated at the May 3, 1973 hearings. Discussions and related data were presented on short-term fuel shortages and their effects on the electric utilfties and the present situation in the regulated energy industries and its effects on energy R&D. The statement of the national oil lobbers council is presented in an appendix. (MCW)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

To utilize ethanol from agricultural residue as a fuel in diesel engines, a dual-fuel engine was developed. The engine, which was equipped with a system to electrically control diesel and alcohol flow rates, met basic requirements of a tractor engine, including engine speed control and setting of the torque curve. However, engine knock due to alcohol was a significant drawback. A diesel injection pump with a timing and flow rate control system was adapted, and the effect of injection timing on combustion and performance was investigated. It was observed that the timing control was effective in reducing engine knock caused by rapid alcohol combustion. (author)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The objectives of the research in the field of epidemiology , performed at the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN are (1) to study cancer mortality and morbidity in nuclear workers in Belgium; (2) to document the feasibility of retrospective cohort studies in Belgium; (3) to participate in the IARC study. For radiobiology, the main objectives are: (1) to elucidate the mechanisms of the effects of ionizing radiation on the mammalian embryo during the early phase of its development, (2) to assess the genetic risks of maternal exposure to ionizing radiation, (3) to elucidate the mechanisms by which damage to the brain and mental retardation are caused in man after prenatal irradiation. The main achievements in these domains for 1997 are presented.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) are one of most common nutritional deficiencies in the world. The nuclear analytical methods (ENAA, SRXRF and XRF) were employed to study the effect of iodine deficiency on the metal ion changes during the stage of brain development, combined with biochemical methods. The results show that the distributions of iron, copper and zinc varied to different extent in different brain regions and subcellular fractions of the ID rat brains. These distributional changes of trace elements might be associated with the brain damage caused by the iodine deficiency. (author)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The effect of additives on the grafting of a monomer, butylmethacrylate (BA), into simul (a soft wood) has been studied using "6"0Co source at 3 Mrad. The enhancement of polymer loading (grafting) by the addition of minute amounts (1%) of oligomers and of polyfunctional monomers into simul + BA system has been further increased in the presence of acid and urea. The synergistic polymer loading yields by acid addition cause substantial decrease of tensile strength values of wood-plastic composite; but urea increases both polymer loading and tensile strength values synergistically in these systems. (author).

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

In Indian traditional medicine, various plants have been used widely as a remedy for treating snakebites. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of Tamarindus indica seed extract on the pharmacological as well as the enzymatic effects induced by V. russelli venom. Tamarind seed extract inhibited the PLA2, protease, hyaluronidase, L-amino acid oxidase and 5prime-nucleotidase enzyme activities of venom in a dose-dependent manner. These are the major hydrolytic enzymes responsible for the early effects of envenomation, such as local tissue damage, inflammation and hypotension. Furthermore, the extract neutralized the degradation of the Bb chain of human fibrinogen and indirect hemolysis caused by venom. It was also observed that the extract exerted a moderate effect on the clotting ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The marked difference between the intra- and extracellular "3"1P NMR chemical shifts of various phosphoryl compounds when added to a red cell suspension may be largely understood in terms of the effects of hemoglobin on the "3"1P NMR chemical shifts. The presence of [oxy- or (carbonmonoxy)-] hemoglobin inside the red cell causes the bulk magnetic susceptibility of the cell cytoplasm to be significantly less than that of the external solution. This difference is sufficient to account for the difference in the intra- and extracellular chemical shifts of the two phosphate esters trimethyl phosphate and triethyl phosphate. However, in the case of the compounds dimethyl methylphosphonate, diethyl methylphosphonate, and trimethylphosphine oxide as well as the hypophosphite, phenylphosphinate, and diphenylphosphinate ions, hemoglobin exerts an additional, much larger, effect, causing the "3"1P NMR resonances ...

KoreaScience (Korea)

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Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

No abstract prepared.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Several refrigerators for liquid helium and liquid nitrogen systems have been integrated successfully into IGC manufactured whole body Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) magnet systems. The refrigerators have been tested in systems with magnetic fields of 0.6T to 1.5T. Tests were performed to study the effectiveness of the refrigerators, the magnetic field effects on the refrigerators, the effect of the refrigerators on the field uniformity and magnetic resonance image quality. The interface between the refrigerator and the whole body MRI magnet system cryostat was specifically designed to allow retrofit to the existing IGC magnet systems, while ensuring good heat transfer characteristics and good vibration isolation from the cryostat. The interface between the refrigerator and the cryostat and the refrigerator test results are presented.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The national energy research programme LVIS-2000: Future Building Services is concerned with the control of energy use and indoor climate in buildings of the future. The projects were presented at a one day seminar arranged by the Laboratory of Heating and Ventilation of the Technical Research Centre in Finland which is coordinating the programme. The presentations at the seminar were: Impurity emission from materials, Building materials and indoor air quality, analysis of organic compounds in indoor air, effect of the return air, effect of the return air on health and comfort, electric heating as an indoor climate factor, calculations of air flows in ventilated rooms, effect of energy saving measures on hospital hygiene, application of modern aerosol measurement technique on indoor climate research.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The need for safe food products has motivated food scientists and industry to find novel technologies for antimicrobial delivery for improving food safety and quality. Controlled release packaging is a novel technology that uses the package to deliver antimicrobials in a controlled manner and sustain antimicrobial stress on the targeted microorganism over the required shelf life. This work studied the effect of controlled release of nisin to inhibit growth of Micrococcus luteus (a model microorganism) using a computerized syringe pump system to mimic the release of nisin from packaging films which was characterized by an initially fast rate and a slower rate as time progressed. The results show that controlled release of nisin was strikingly more effective than instantly added (?formulated...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The isopod parasite Ceratothoa oestroides becomes hard to eradicate in intensive fish rearing systems and in addition to causing weight loss in adult fish it causes mortalities in larval and juveniles stages of sea bass and sea bream. Faced with the fast emergence of this infection in Adriatic finfish facilities, an effective compound had to be tested for bath treatment. Ivermectin was chosen for this purpose on the basis of extensive practice in northern European countries which used ivermectin administered in food with good results in treatment of Lepeophtheirus sp. and Caligus sp. infections. For determination of toxicity of ivermectin, a short-term toxicity bioassay on 40-day-old sea bream, Sparus aurata, L., was conducted, following FAO and UNEP procedures for methodology in aquatic t...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Increase in power utility loads in industrialized countries, as well as developing countries, demands a higher level of transmission line voltage. Radio interference (RI) problems have been determined to be a limiting factor in selecting the size of transmission line conductors. Transmission line noise is primarily caused by corona discharges in the immediate vicinity of the conductor. It has been observed that discharges occur during both half-cycles of the applied voltage, but positive corona is usually predominant at AM radio frequencies range with practical high-voltage and extra high-voltage transmission lines. The corona radio noise effect is highly dependent upon the presence of particles on the surface of the conductor and the increase of the electrical gradient beyond the breakdown value of the air. Therefore, corona radio noise varies significantly with the weather and atmospheric conditions and generally increases by 10 to 30 dB in ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Increase in power utility loads in industrialized countries, as well as developing countries, demands a higher level of transmission line voltage. Radio interference (RI) problems have been determined to be a limiting factor in selecting the size of transmission line conductors. Transmission line noise is primarily caused by corona discharges in the immediate vicinity of the conductor. It has been observed that discharges occur during both half-cycles of the applied voltage, but positive corona is usually predominant at AM radio frequencies range with practical high-voltage and extra high-voltage transmission lines. The corona radio noise effect is highly dependent upon the presence of particles on the surface of the conductor and the increase of the electrical gradient beyond the breakdown value of the air. Therefore, corona radio noise varies significantly with the weather and atmospheric conditions and generally increases by 10 to 30 dB in ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Apart from presenting the marginal legal conditions the research program contains a brief description of current pollution abatement measures, representative heating systems and individually suitable pollution abatement technologies and an account of the determination of the concentration of major pollutants. The comparative evaluation of heating systems assesses their environmental effects, i.e. air pollution caused by heating systems. The determination of the costs of available heat is followed by an overall evaluation of the results obtained with special regard to the costs involved by pollution abatement measures.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Dysregulation of intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis is associated with various pathological conditions and arrhythmogenesis of the heart. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of an acute increase in intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) on the electrophysiology of ventricular myocytes by mimicking intracellular Ca2+ overload. The [Ca2+]i was clamped to either a controlled (65?100 nmol L?1) or increased (1 ?mol L?1) level. The transmembrane action potentials and ionic currents were recorded using whole-cell patch clamp techniques. We found that the acute increase in [Ca2+]i shortened the action potential duration, reduced the action potential amplitude, maximum depolarization velocity and resting membrane potential, caused delayed after-depolarizations (DADs), and tri...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

There are two types in quench distortion of steel parts: thermal distortion and transformation distortion. Quench distortion is caused mainly by uneven cooling rate of steel parts from Austenitising temperature. The rapid cooled side is lengthened (convex deformation); the slow cooled side is shortened (concave deformation). So, to control the quench distortion, it is necessary to regulate the cooling rate of steel parts during quenching. TWO COMPONENTS produce the quench distortion of steel parts: the thermal stress and transformation stress. Generally, the effect of the thermal stress on the quench distortion is stronger than the transformation stress. The quench distortion is caused by uneven cooling rate of the steel parts, from Austenitising temperature to Ms point and Ms-Mf range. So, to control the quench distortion, it is very important to regulate the cooling rate of the steel parts during quenching. The purpose of ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Mutations or multiplications in a-synuclein gene cause familial forms of Parkinson disease or dementia with Lewy bodies (LB), and the deposition of wild-type a-synuclein as LB occurs as a hallmark lesion of these disorders, collectively referred to as synucleinopathies, implicating a-synuclein in the pathogenesis of synucleinopathy. To identify modifier genes of a-synuclein-induced neurotoxicity, we conducted an RNAi screen in transgenic C. elegans (Tg worms) that overexpress human a-synuclein in a pan-neuronal manner. To enhance the RNAi effect in neurons, we crossed a-synuclein Tg worms with an RNAi-enhanced mutant eri-1 strain. We tested RNAi of 1673 genes related to nervous system or synaptic functions, and identified 10 genes that, upon knockdown, caused severe growth/motor abnormalit...

Science.gov (United States)

Archived Web resource. Information about the impacts of global warming on the environmental quality and recreation, such as ... ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

This paper uses multi-pass iteration particle swarm optimization (MIPSO) to solve short term hydroelectric generation scheduling of a power system with wind turbine generators. MIPSO is a new algorithm for solving nonlinear optimal scheduling problems. A new index called iteration best (IB) is incorporated into particle swarm optimization (PSO) to improve solution quality. The concept of multi-pass dynamic programming is applied to modify PSO further and improve computation efficiency. The feasible operational regions of the hydro units and pumped storage plants over the whole scheduling time range must be determined before applying MIPSO to the problem. Wind turbine power generation then shaves the power system load curves. Next, MIPSO calculates hydroelectric generation scheduling. It begins with a coarse time stage and searching space and refines the time interval between two time stages and the search spacing pass by pass (iteration). With the cooperation of ...