[A peak recognition algorithm designed for chromatographic peaks of transformer oil].

Science.gov (United States)

Ou, Linjun; Cao, Jian

2014-09-01

In the field of the chromatographic peak identification of the transformer oil, the traditional first-order derivative requires slope threshold to achieve peak identification. In terms of its shortcomings of low automation and easy distortion, the first-order derivative method was improved by applying the moving average iterative method and the normalized analysis techniques to identify the peaks. Accurate identification of the chromatographic peaks was realized through using multiple iterations of the moving average of signal curves and square wave curves to determine the optimal value of the normalized peak identification parameters, combined with the absolute peak retention times and peak window. The experimental results show that this algorithm can accurately identify the peaks and is not sensitive to the noise, the chromatographic peak width or the peak shape changes. It has strong adaptability to meet the on-site requirements of online monitoring devices of dissolved gases in transformer oil.

Multiplexing of ChIP-Seq Samples in an Optimized Experimental Condition Has Minimal Impact on Peak Detection.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thadeous J Kacmarczyk

Full Text Available Multiplexing samples in sequencing experiments is a common approach to maximize information yield while minimizing cost. In most cases the number of samples that are multiplexed is determined by financial consideration or experimental convenience, with limited understanding on the effects on the experimental results. Here we set to examine the impact of multiplexing ChIP-seq experiments on the ability to identify a specific epigenetic modification. We performed peak detection analyses to determine the effects of multiplexing. These include false discovery rates, size, position and statistical significance of peak detection, and changes in gene annotation. We found that, for histone marker H3K4me3, one can multiplex up to 8 samples (7 IP + 1 input at ~21 million single-end reads each and still detect over 90% of all peaks found when using a full lane for sample (~181 million reads. Furthermore, there are no variations introduced by indexing or lane batch effects and importantly there is no significant reduction in the number of genes with neighboring H3K4me3 peaks. We conclude that, for a well characterized antibody and, therefore, model IP condition, multiplexing 8 samples per lane is sufficient to capture most of the biological signal.

Multiplexing of ChIP-Seq Samples in an Optimized Experimental Condition Has Minimal Impact on Peak Detection

Science.gov (United States)

Kacmarczyk, Thadeous J.; Bourque, Caitlin; Zhang, Xihui; Jiang, Yanwen; Houvras, Yariv; Alonso, Alicia; Betel, Doron

2015-01-01

Multiplexing samples in sequencing experiments is a common approach to maximize information yield while minimizing cost. In most cases the number of samples that are multiplexed is determined by financial consideration or experimental convenience, with limited understanding on the effects on the experimental results. Here we set to examine the impact of multiplexing ChIP-seq experiments on the ability to identify a specific epigenetic modification. We performed peak detection analyses to determine the effects of multiplexing. These include false discovery rates, size, position and statistical significance of peak detection, and changes in gene annotation. We found that, for histone marker H3K4me3, one can multiplex up to 8 samples (7 IP + 1 input) at ~21 million single-end reads each and still detect over 90% of all peaks found when using a full lane for sample (~181 million reads). Furthermore, there are no variations introduced by indexing or lane batch effects and importantly there is no significant reduction in the number of genes with neighboring H3K4me3 peaks. We conclude that, for a well characterized antibody and, therefore, model IP condition, multiplexing 8 samples per lane is sufficient to capture most of the biological signal. PMID:26066343

Multiplexing of ChIP-Seq Samples in an Optimized Experimental Condition Has Minimal Impact on Peak Detection.

Science.gov (United States)

Kacmarczyk, Thadeous J; Bourque, Caitlin; Zhang, Xihui; Jiang, Yanwen; Houvras, Yariv; Alonso, Alicia; Betel, Doron

2015-01-01

Multiplexing samples in sequencing experiments is a common approach to maximize information yield while minimizing cost. In most cases the number of samples that are multiplexed is determined by financial consideration or experimental convenience, with limited understanding on the effects on the experimental results. Here we set to examine the impact of multiplexing ChIP-seq experiments on the ability to identify a specific epigenetic modification. We performed peak detection analyses to determine the effects of multiplexing. These include false discovery rates, size, position and statistical significance of peak detection, and changes in gene annotation. We found that, for histone marker H3K4me3, one can multiplex up to 8 samples (7 IP + 1 input) at ~21 million single-end reads each and still detect over 90% of all peaks found when using a full lane for sample (~181 million reads). Furthermore, there are no variations introduced by indexing or lane batch effects and importantly there is no significant reduction in the number of genes with neighboring H3K4me3 peaks. We conclude that, for a well characterized antibody and, therefore, model IP condition, multiplexing 8 samples per lane is sufficient to capture most of the biological signal.

Modeling the probability distribution of peak discharge for infiltrating hillslopes

Science.gov (United States)

Baiamonte, Giorgio; Singh, Vijay P.

2017-07-01

Hillslope response plays a fundamental role in the prediction of peak discharge at the basin outlet. The peak discharge for the critical duration of rainfall and its probability distribution are needed for designing urban infrastructure facilities. This study derives the probability distribution, denoted as GABS model, by coupling three models: (1) the Green-Ampt model for computing infiltration, (2) the kinematic wave model for computing discharge hydrograph from the hillslope, and (3) the intensity-duration-frequency (IDF) model for computing design rainfall intensity. The Hortonian mechanism for runoff generation is employed for computing the surface runoff hydrograph. Since the antecedent soil moisture condition (ASMC) significantly affects the rate of infiltration, its effect on the probability distribution of peak discharge is investigated. Application to a watershed in Sicily, Italy, shows that with the increase of probability, the expected effect of ASMC to increase the maximum discharge diminishes. Only for low values of probability, the critical duration of rainfall is influenced by ASMC, whereas its effect on the peak discharge seems to be less for any probability. For a set of parameters, the derived probability distribution of peak discharge seems to be fitted by the gamma distribution well. Finally, an application to a small watershed, with the aim to test the possibility to arrange in advance the rational runoff coefficient tables to be used for the rational method, and a comparison between peak discharges obtained by the GABS model with those measured in an experimental flume for a loamy-sand soil were carried out.

Experimental Study on Critical Power in a Hemispherical Narrow Gap

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Rae-Joon; Ha, Kwang-Soon; Kim, Sang-Baik; Kim, Hee-Dong; Jeong, Ji-Hwan

2002-01-01

An experimental study of critical heat flux in gap (CHFG) has been performed to investigate the inherent cooling mechanism in a hemispherical narrow gap. The objectives of the CHFG test are to measure critical power from a critical heat removal rate through the hemispherical narrow gap using distilled water with experimental parameters of system pressure and gap width. The CHFG test results have shown that a countercurrent flow limitation (CCFL) brings about local dryout at the small edge region of the upper part and finally global dryout in a hemispherical narrow gap. Increases in the gap width and pressure lead to an increase in critical power. The measured values of critical power are lower than the predictions made by other empirical CHF correlations applicable to flat plate, annuli, and small spherical gaps. The measured data on critical power in the hemispherical narrow gaps have been correlated using nondimensional parameters with a range of approximately ±20%. The developed correlation has been expanded to apply the spherical geometry using the Siemens/KWU correlation

Comparative Analysis of Mass Spectral Similarity Measures on Peak Alignment for Comprehensive Two-Dimensional Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-01

Peak alignment is a critical procedure in mass spectrometry-based biomarker discovery in metabolomics. One of peak alignment approaches to comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC×GC-MS) data is peak matching-based alignment. A key to the peak matching-based alignment is the calculation of mass spectral similarity scores. Various mass spectral similarity measures have been developed mainly for compound identification, but the effect of these spectral similarity measures on the performance of peak matching-based alignment still remains unknown. Therefore, we selected five mass spectral similarity measures, cosine correlation, Pearson's correlation, Spearman's correlation, partial correlation, and part correlation, and examined their effects on peak alignment using two sets of experimental GC×GC-MS data. The results show that the spectral similarity measure does not affect the alignment accuracy significantly in analysis of data from less complex samples, while the partial correlation performs much better than other spectral similarity measures when analyzing experimental data acquired from complex biological samples. PMID:24151524

Existing experimental criticality data applicable to nuclear-fuel-transportation systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bierman, S.R.

1983-02-01

Analytical techniques are generally relied upon in making criticality evaluations involving nuclear material outside reactors. For these evaluations to be accepted the calculations must be validated by comparison with experimental data for a known set of conditions having physical and neutronic characteristics similar to those conditions being evaluated analytically. The purpose of this report is to identify those existing experimental data that are suitable for use in verifying criticality calculations on nuclear fuel transportation systems. In addition, near term needs for additional data in this area are identified. Of the considerable amount of criticality data currently existing, that are applicable to non-reactor systems, those particularly suitable for use in support of nuclear material transportation systems have been identified and catalogued into the following groups: (1) critical assemblies of fuel rods in water; (2) critical assemblies of fuel rods in water containing soluble neutron absorbers; (3) critical assemblies containing solid neutron absorber; (4) critical assemblies of fuel rods in water with heavy metal reflectors; and (5) critical assemblies of fuel rods in water with irregular features. A listing of the current near term needs for additional data in each of the groups has been developed for future use in planning criticality research in support of nuclear fuel transportation systems. The criticality experiments needed to provide these data are briefly described and identified according to priority and relative cost of performing the experiments

Methods for the analysis of overlapped peaks in analytical gamma-ray spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sterlinski, S.; Wasek, M.

1989-01-01

A review of critical evaluation of simple methods for the analysis of overlapped peaks from the point of view of their applicability in activation analysis are described. These methods are adopted from other spectroscopic techniques and gas chromatography. The experimental verification has been carried out for gamma-ray spectra in the energy range 120 KeV - 3 MeV. 28 refs., 8 figs., 3 tabs. (author)

Economic incentives for additional critical experimentation applicable to fuel dissolution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mincey, J.F.; Primm, R.T. III; Waltz, W.R.

1981-01-01

Fuel dissolution operations involving soluble absorbers for criticality control are among the most difficult to establish economical subcritical limits. The paucity of applicable experimental data can significantly hinder a precise determination of a bias in the method chosen for calculation of the required soluble absorber concentration. Resorting to overly conservative bias estimates can result in excessive concentrations of soluble absorbers. Such conservatism can be costly, especially if soluble absorbers are used in a throw-away fashion. An economic scoping study is presented which demonstrates that additional critical experimentation will likely lead to reductions in the soluble absorber (i.e., gadolinium) purchase costs for dissolution operations. The results indicate that anticipated savings maybe more than enough to pay for the experimental costs

Participation through Automation: Fully Automated Critical PeakPricing in Commercial Buildings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Piette, Mary Ann; Watson, David S.; Motegi, Naoya; Kiliccote,Sila; Linkugel, Eric

2006-06-20

California electric utilities have been exploring the use of dynamic critical peak prices (CPP) and other demand response programs to help reduce peaks in customer electric loads. CPP is a tariff design to promote demand response. Levels of automation in DR can be defined as follows: Manual Demand Response involves a potentially labor-intensive approach such as manually turning off or changing comfort set points at each equipment switch or controller. Semi-Automated Demand Response involves a pre-programmed demand response strategy initiated by a person via centralized control system. Fully Automated Demand Response does not involve human intervention, but is initiated at a home, building, or facility through receipt of an external communications signal. The receipt of the external signal initiates pre-programmed demand response strategies. They refer to this as Auto-DR. This paper describes the development, testing, and results from automated CPP (Auto-CPP) as part of a utility project in California. The paper presents the project description and test methodology. This is followed by a discussion of Auto-DR strategies used in the field test buildings. They present a sample Auto-CPP load shape case study, and a selection of the Auto-CPP response data from September 29, 2005. If all twelve sites reached their maximum saving simultaneously, a total of approximately 2 MW of DR is available from these twelve sites that represent about two million ft{sup 2}. The average DR was about half that value, at about 1 MW. These savings translate to about 0.5 to 1.0 W/ft{sup 2} of demand reduction. They are continuing field demonstrations and economic evaluations to pursue increasing penetrations of automated DR that has demonstrated ability to provide a valuable DR resource for California.

Limitation of peak fitting and peak shape methods for determination of activation energy of thermoluminescence glow peaks

CERN Document Server

Sunta, C M; Piters, T M; Watanabe, S

1999-01-01

This paper shows the limitation of general order peak fitting and peak shape methods for determining the activation energy of the thermoluminescence glow peaks in the cases in which retrapping probability is much higher than the recombination probability and the traps are filled up to near saturation level. Right values can be obtained when the trap occupancy is reduced by using small doses or by post-irradiation partial bleaching. This limitation in the application of these methods has not been indicated earlier. In view of the unknown nature of kinetics in the experimental samples, it is recommended that these methods of activation energy determination should be applied only at doses well below the saturation dose.

Automated Critical PeakPricing Field Tests: 2006 Pilot ProgramDescription and Results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Piette, Mary Ann; Watson, David; Motegi, Naoya; Kiliccote, Sila

2007-06-19

During 2006 Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and the Demand Response Research Center (DRRC) performed a technology evaluation for the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) Emerging Technologies Programs. This report summarizes the design, deployment, and results from the 2006 Automated Critical Peak Pricing Program (Auto-CPP). The program was designed to evaluate the feasibility of deploying automation systems that allow customers to participate in critical peak pricing (CPP) with a fully-automated response. The 2006 program was in operation during the entire six-month CPP period from May through October. The methodology for this field study included site recruitment, control strategy development, automation system deployment, and evaluation of sites' participation in actual CPP events through the summer of 2006. LBNL recruited sites in PG&E's territory in northern California through contacts from PG&E account managers, conferences, and industry meetings. Each site contact signed a memorandum of understanding with LBNL that outlined the activities needed to participate in the Auto-CPP program. Each facility worked with LBNL to select and implement control strategies for demand response and developed automation system designs based on existing Internet connectivity and building control systems. Once the automation systems were installed, LBNL conducted communications tests to ensure that the Demand Response Automation Server (DRAS) correctly provided and logged the continuous communications of the CPP signals with the energy management and control system (EMCS) for each site. LBNL also observed and evaluated Demand Response (DR) shed strategies to ensure proper commissioning of controls. The communication system allowed sites to receive day-ahead as well as day-of signals for pre-cooling, a DR strategy used at a few sites. Measurement of demand response was conducted using two different baseline models for estimating peak load savings. One

Evaluated experimental database on critical heat flux in WWER FA models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Artamonov, S.; Sergeev, V.; Volkov, S.

2015-01-01

The paper presents the description of the evaluated experimental database on critical heat flux in WWER FA models of new designs. This database was developed on the basis of the experimental data obtained in the years of 2009-2012. In the course of its development, the database was reviewed in terms of completeness of the information about the experiments and its compliance with the requirements of Rostekhnadzor regulatory documents. The description of the experimental FA model characteristics and experimental conditions was specified. Besides, the experimental data were statistically processed with the aim to reject incorrect ones and the sets of experimental data on critical heat fluxes (CHF) were compared for different FA models. As a result, for the fi rst time, the evaluated database on CHF in FA models of new designs was developed, that was complemented with analysis functions, and its main purpose is to be used in the process of development, verification and upgrading of calculation techniques. The developed database incorporates the data of 4183 experimental conditions obtained in 53 WWER FA models of various designs. Keywords: WWER reactor, fuel assembly, CHF, evaluated experimental data, database, statistical analysis. (author)

An experimental study on critical heat flux in a hemispherical narrow gap

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, R.J.; Lee, S.J.; Kang, K.H.; Kim, J.H.; Kim, S.B.; Kim, H.D.; Jeong, J.H.

2000-01-01

An experimental study of CHFG (Critical Heat Flux in Gap) has been performed to investigate the inherent cooling mechanism using distilled water and Freon R-113 in hemispherical narrow gaps. As a separate effect test of the CHFG test, a CCFL (Counter Current Flow Limit) test has been also performed to confirm the mechanism of the CHF in narrow annular gaps with large diameter. The CHFG test results have shown that an increase in the gap thickness leads to an increase in critical power. The pressure effect on the critical power was found to be much milder than predictions by CHF correlations of other studies. In the CCFL experiment, the occurrence of CCFL was correlated with the Wallis parameter, which was assumed to correspond to the critical power in the CHFG experiment. The measured values of critical power in the CHFG tests are much lower than CCFL experimental data and the predictions made by empirical CHF correlations. (author)

Experimental comparison of the critical ionization velocity in atomic and molecular gases

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Axnaes, I.

1978-08-01

The critical ionization velocity usub(c) of Ne, Kr, Xe, Cl 2 , O 2 , CO, CO 2 , NH 3 and H 2 O is investigated experimentally in a coaxial plasma gun. Together with experimental data obtained in earlier experiments the present results make it possible to make a systematic comparison between the critical ionization velocity for atomic and molecular gases. It is found that atomic and molecular gases tend to have values of critical ionization velocity which are respectively smaller and larger than the theoretical values. The current dependence of usub(c) is found to be different for atomic and molecular gases. A number of atomic and molecular processes relevant to the experiment are discussed

The geomorphic structure of the runoff peak

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Rigon

2011-06-01

Full Text Available This paper develops a theoretical framework to investigate the core dependence of peak flows on the geomorphic properties of river basins. Based on the theory of transport by travel times, and simple hydrodynamic characterization of floods, this new framework invokes the linearity and invariance of the hydrologic response to provide analytical and semi-analytical expressions for peak flow, time to peak, and area contributing to the peak runoff. These results are obtained for the case of constant-intensity hyetograph using the Intensity-Duration-Frequency (IDF curves to estimate extreme flow values as a function of the rainfall return period. Results show that, with constant-intensity hyetographs, the time-to-peak is greater than rainfall duration and usually shorter than the basin concentration time. Moreover, the critical storm duration is shown to be independent of rainfall return period as well as the area contributing to the flow peak. The same results are found when the effects of hydrodynamic dispersion are accounted for. Further, it is shown that, when the effects of hydrodynamic dispersion are negligible, the basin area contributing to the peak discharge does not depend on the channel velocity, but is a geomorphic propriety of the basin. As an example this framework is applied to three watersheds. In particular, the runoff peak, the critical rainfall durations and the time to peak are calculated for all links within a network to assess how they increase with basin area.

Peaks and Valleys : Experimental Asset Markets With Non-Monotonic Fundamentals

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Noussair, C.N.; Powell, O.R.

2008-01-01

We report the results of an experiment designed to measure how well asset market prices track fundamentals when the latter experience peaks and troughs. We observe greater price efficiency in markets in which fundamentals rise to a peak and then decline, than in markets in which fundamentals decline

Methodological and Epistemological Criticism on Experimental Accounting Research Published in Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paulo Frederico Homero Junior

2016-06-01

Full Text Available In this article, I analyze 17 experimental studies published in Brazilian accounting journals between 2006 and 2015, in order to develop both critical and methodological criticism on these articles. First, we discuss the methodological characteristics of the experiments and the main validity threats they face, analyzing how the selected articles deal with these threats. Overall, this analysis shows a lack of consideration of the validity of the constructs used, difficulty to develop internally valid experiments and inability to express confidence in the applicability of the results to contexts other than the experimental. Then, I compare the positivist theoretical perspective these articles have in common with constructionist conceptions of the social sciences and criticize them, based on these notions. I maintain that these articles are characterized by a behaviorist approach, a reified notion of subjectivity, disregard of the cultural and historical specificities and axiological commitment to submission, instead of the emancipation of the people in relation to management control. The paper contributes to the Brazilian accounting literature in two ways: raising awareness on the challenges faced in conducting appropriate experimental designs and showing how the experimental accounting research can be problematic from an epistemological point of view, aiming to promote an interparadigmatic debate to arouse greater awareness on the subject and more robust consideration of such issues by future researchers.

Multispecies density peaking in gyrokinetic turbulence simulations of low collisionality Alcator C-Mod plasmas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mikkelsen, D. R., E-mail: dmikkelsen@pppl.gov; Bitter, M.; Delgado-Aparicio, L.; Hill, K. W. [Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, P.O. Box 451, Princeton, New Jersey 08543 (United States); Greenwald, M.; Howard, N. T.; Hughes, J. W.; Rice, J. E. [MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center, 175 Albany St., Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 (United States); Reinke, M. L. [MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center, 175 Albany St., Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 (United States); York Plasma Institute, Department of Physics, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD (United Kingdom); Podpaly, Y. [MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center, 175 Albany St., Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 (United States); AAAS S and T Fellow placed in the Directorate for Engineering, NSF, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, Virginia 22230 (United States); Ma, Y. [MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center, 175 Albany St., Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 (United States); ITER Organization, Route de Vinon-sur-Verdon, CS 90 046, 13067 St Paul Lez Durance Cedex (France); Candy, J.; Waltz, R. E. [General Atomics, P.O. Box 85608, San Diego, California 92186-5608 (United States)

2015-06-15

Peaked density profiles in low-collisionality AUG and JET H-mode plasmas are probably caused by a turbulently driven particle pinch, and Alcator C-Mod experiments confirmed that collisionality is a critical parameter. Density peaking in reactors could produce a number of important effects, some beneficial, such as enhanced fusion power and transport of fuel ions from the edge to the core, while others are undesirable, such as lower beta limits, reduced radiation from the plasma edge, and consequently higher divertor heat loads. Fundamental understanding of the pinch will enable planning to optimize these impacts. We show that density peaking is predicted by nonlinear gyrokinetic turbulence simulations based on measured profile data from low collisionality H-mode plasma in Alcator C-Mod. Multiple ion species are included to determine whether hydrogenic density peaking has an isotope dependence or is influenced by typical levels of low-Z impurities, and whether impurity density peaking depends on the species. We find that the deuterium density profile is slightly more peaked than that of hydrogen, and that experimentally relevant levels of boron have no appreciable effect on hydrogenic density peaking. The ratio of density at r/a = 0.44 to that at r/a = 0.74 is 1.2 for the majority D and minority H ions (and for electrons), and increases with impurity Z: 1.1 for helium, 1.15 for boron, 1.3 for neon, 1.4 for argon, and 1.5 for molybdenum. The ion temperature profile is varied to match better the predicted heat flux with the experimental transport analysis, but the resulting factor of two change in heat transport has only a weak effect on the predicted density peaking.

The study on a new superconductor (oxide Ba-Y-Cu) with high critical temperature Tc by positron annihilation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Caigu; Yu Zhuxing; Wang Zhu; Huang Zhe; Zhou Jun

1987-01-01

The study on a new superconductor oxide Ba-Y-Cu with high critical temperature Tc is described. The experimental results show that positron lifetime reducing reflects variable curve of resistance with temperature. A peak of positron lifetime is appeared at critical temperature

Critical issues and experimental examination on sawtooth and disruption physics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Itoh, K.; Itoh, S.; Fukuyama, A.; Tsuji, S.

1992-06-01

The catastrophic phenomena which are associated with the major disruption and sawtooth contain three key processes: (1) Sudden acceleration of the growth of the helical deformation, (2) Central electron temperature crash, and (3) Rearrangement of the plasma current. Based on the theoretical model that the magnetic stochasticity plays a key role in these processes, the critical issues and possible experimental tests are proposed. Present experimental observations would be sufficient to study the detailed sequences and causes. Though models may not be complete the comparison with experiments improves understandings. (author)

The peak in anomalous magnetic viscosity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Collocott, S.J.; Watterson, P.A.; Tan, X.H.; Xu, H.

2014-01-01

Anomalous magnetic viscosity, where the magnetization as a function of time exhibits non-monotonic behaviour, being seen to increase, reach a peak, and then decrease, is observed on recoil lines in bulk amorphous ferromagnets, for certain magnetic prehistories. A simple geometrical approach based on the motion of the state line on the Preisach plane gives a theoretical framework for interpreting non-monotonic behaviour and explains the origin of the peak. This approach gives an expression for the time taken to reach the peak as a function of the applied (or holding) field. The theory is applied to experimental data for bulk amorphous ferromagnet alloys of composition Nd 60−x Fe 30 Al 10 Dy x , x = 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4, and it gives a reasonable description of the observed behaviour. The role played by other key magnetic parameters, such as the intrinsic coercivity and fluctuation field, is also discussed. When the non-monotonic behaviour of the magnetization of a number of alloys is viewed in the context of the model, features of universal behaviour emerge, that are independent of alloy composition. - Highlights: • Development of a simple geometrical model based on the Preisach model which gives a complete explanation of the peak in the magnetic viscosity. • Geometrical approach is extended by considering equations that govern the motion of the state line. • The model is used to deduce the relationship between the holding field and the time it takes to reach the peak. • The model is tested with experimental results for a range of Nd–Fe–Al–Dy bulk amorphous ferromagnets. • There is good agreement between the model and the experimental data

Experimental study and technique for calculation of critical heat fluxes in helium boiling in tubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arkhipov, V.V.; Kvasnyuk, S.V.; Deev, V.I.; Andreev, V.K.

1979-01-01

Studied is the effect of regime parameters on critical heat loads in helium boiling in a vertical tube in the range of mass rates of 80 2 xc) and pressures of 100<=p<=200 kPa for the vapor content range corresponding to the heat exchange crisis of the first kind. The method for calculating critical heat fluxes describing experimental data with the error less than +-15% is proposed. The critical heat loads in helium boiling in tubes reduce with the growth of pressure and vapor content in the regime parameter ranges under investigation. Both positive and negative effects of the mass rate on the critical heat flux are observed. The calculation method proposed satisfactorily describes the experimental data

Improved experimental determination of critical-point data for tungsten

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fucke, W.; Seydel, U.

1980-01-01

It is shown that under certain conditions in resistive pulse-heating experiments, refractory liquid metals can be heated up to the limit of thermodynamic stability (spinodal) of the superheated liquid. Here, an explosion-like decomposition takes place which is directly monitored by measurements of expansion, surface radiation, and electric resistivity, thus allowing the determination of the temperature-pressure dependence of the spinodal transition. A comparison of the spinodal equation obtained this way with theoretical models yields the critical temperature Tsub(c), pressure psub(c), and volume vsub(c). A completely experimentally-determined set of the critical parameters for tungsten is presented: Tsub(c) = (13400 +- 1400) K, psub(c) = (3370 +- 850) bar, vsub(c) = (43 +- 4) cm 3 mol -1 . (author)

Peak effect in twinned superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larkin, A.I.; Marchetti, M.C.; Vinokur, V.M.

1995-01-01

A sharp maximum in the critical current J c as a function of temperature just below the melting point of the Abrikosov flux lattice has recently been observed in both low- and high-temperature superconductors. This peak effect is strongest in twinned crystals for fields aligned with the twin planes. We propose that this peak signals the breakdown of the collective pinning regime and the crossover to strong pinning of single vortices on the twin boundaries. This crossover is very sharp and can account for the steep drop of the differential resistivity observed in experiments. copyright 1995 The American Physical Society

Evaluation of peaking factors uncertainty for CASMO-3

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Kang Suk; Song, Jae Seung; Kim, Yong Rae; Ji, Seong Kyun [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of)

1996-02-01

This document evaluates the pin-to-box factor uncertainty based on using the CASMO-3 with 40-group J-library. Five CE criticals performed by Westinghouse, two by B and W and four RPI criticals were analyzed, using cross sections by CASMO-3. DOT was used for the core calculation. THis is one hof series of efforts to verify ADONIS procedure which is a new core design package under development by KAERI. The expected outcome of this analysis is CASMO-3 pin peak uncertainty applicable to CE type fuel assembly design. The evaluated uncertainty of peaking factors for CASMO-3 was 1.863%. 21 tabs., 23 figs., 12 refs. (Author) .new.

Experimental and Numerical Analysis of S-CO2 Critical Flow for SFR Recovery System Design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Min Seok; Jung, Hwa-Young; Ahn, Yoonhan; Lee, Jekyoung; Lee, Jeong Ik

2016-01-01

This paper presents both numerical and experimental studies of the critical flow of S-CO 2 while special attention is given to the turbo-machinery seal design. A computational critical flow model is described first. The experiments were conducted to validate the critical flow model. Various conditions have been tested to study the flow characteristic and provide validation data for the model. The comparison of numerical and experimental results of S-CO 2 critical flow will be presented. In order to eliminate SWR, a concept of coupling the Supercritical CO 2 (S-CO 2 ) cycle with SFR has been proposed. It is known that for a closed system controlling the inventory is important for stable operation and achieving high efficiency. Since the S-CO 2 power cycle is a highly pressurized system, certain amount of leakage flow is inevitable in the rotating turbo-machinery via seals. To simulate the CO 2 leak flow in a turbo-machinery with higher accuracy in the future, the real gas effect and friction factor will be considered for the CO 2 critical flow model. Moreover, experimentally obtained temperature data were somewhat different from the numerically obtained temperature due to the insufficient insulation and large thermal inertia of the CO 2 critical flow facility. Insulation in connecting pipes and the low-pressure tank will be added and additional tests will be conducted

Experimental studies of the critical scattering of neutrons for large scattering vectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ciszewski, R.

1972-01-01

The most recent results concerned with the critical scattering of neutrons are reviewed. The emphasis is on the so-called thermal shift, that is the shift of the main maximum in the intensity of critically scattered neutrons with temperature changes. Four theories of this phenomenon are described and their shortcomings are shown. It has been concluded that the situation is involved at present and needs further theoretical and experimental study. (S.B.)

Critical considerations when planning experimental in vivo studies in dental traumatology.

Science.gov (United States)

Andreasen, Jens O; Andersson, Lars

2011-08-01

In vivo studies are sometimes needed to understand healing processes after trauma. For several reasons, not the least ethical, such studies have to be carefully planned and important considerations have to be taken into account about suitability of the experimental model, sample size and optimizing the accuracy of the analysis. Several manuscripts of in vivo studies are submitted for publication to Dental Traumatology and rejected because of inadequate design, methodology or insufficient documentation of the results. The authors have substantial experience in experimental in vivo studies of tissue healing in dental traumatology and share their knowledge regarding critical considerations when planning experimental in vivo studies. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

Can You Hear That Peak? Utilization of Auditory and Visual Feedback at Peak Limb Velocity

Science.gov (United States)

Loria, Tristan; de Grosbois, John; Tremblay, Luc

2016-01-01

Purpose: At rest, the central nervous system combines and integrates multisensory cues to yield an optimal percept. When engaging in action, the relative weighing of sensory modalities has been shown to be altered. Because the timing of peak velocity is the critical moment in some goal-directed movements (e.g., overarm throwing), the current study…

The peak in neutron powder diffraction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laar, B. van; Yelon, W.B.

1984-01-01

For the application of Rietveld profile analysis to neutron powder diffraction data a precise knowledge of the peak profile, in both shape and position, is required. The method now in use employs a Gaussian shaped profile with a semi-empirical asymmetry correction for low-angle peaks. The integrated intensity is taken to be proportional to the classical Lorentz factor calculated for the X-ray case. In this paper an exact expression is given for the peak profile based upon the geometrical dimensions of the diffractometer. It is shown that the asymmetry of observed peaks is well reproduced by this expression. The angular displacement of the experimental profile with respect to the nominal Bragg angle value is larger than expected. Values for the correction to the classical Lorentz factor for the integrated intensity are given. The exact peak profile expression has been incorporated into a Rietveld profile analysis refinement program. (Auth.)

Development and experimental qualification of the new safety-criticality CRISTAL package

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mattera, Ch.

1998-11-01

This thesis is concerned with Criticality-Safety studies related to the French Nuclear Fuel Cycle. We first describe the steps in the nuclear fuel cycle and the specific characteristics of these studies compared with those performed in Reactor Physics. In order to respond to the future requirements of the French Nuclear Program, we have developed a new package CRISTAL based on a recent cross sections library (CEA 93) and the newest accurate codes (APOLLO 2, MORET 4, TRIPOLI 4). The CRISTAL system includes two calculations routes: a design route which will be used by French Industry (COGEMA/SGN) and a reference route. To transfer this package to the French industry, we have elaborated calculation schemes for fissile solutions, dissolver media, transport casks and storage pools. Afterwards, these schemes have been used for the CRISTAL experimental validation. We have also contributed to the CRISTAL experimental database by reevaluating a French storage pool experiment: the CRISTO II experiment. This revaluation has been submitted to the OECD working group in order that this experiment can be used by international criticality safety engineers to validate calculations methods. This work represents a large contribution to the recommendation of accurate calculation schemes and to the experimental validation of the CRISTAL package. These studies came up to the French Industry expectations. (author)

Development and experimental testing of the new safety-criticality Cristal package

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mattera, Ch.

1998-01-01

This thesis is concerned with Criticality-Safety studies related to the French Nuclear Fuel Cycle. We first describe the steps in the nuclear fuel cycle and the specific characteristics of these studies compared with those performed in Reactor Physics. In order to respond to the future requirements of the French Nuclear Program, we have developed a new package CRISTAL based on a recent cross sections library (CEA93) and the newest accurate codes (APOLLO2, MORET4, TRIPOLI4). The cristal system includes two calculations routes: a design route which will be used by French Industry (COGEMA/SGN) and a reference route.) To transfer this package to the French industry, we have elaborated calculation schemes for fissile solutions, dissolver media, transport casks and storage pools. Afterwards, these schemes have been used for the CRISTAL experimental validation. We have also contributed to the CRISTAL experimental database by reevaluating a French storage pool experiment: the CRISTO II experiment. This revaluation has been submitted to the OCDE working group in order that this experiment can be used by international criticality safety engineers to validate calculations methods. This work represents a large contribution to the recommendation of accurate calculation schemes and to the experimental validation of the CRISTAL package. These studies came up to the French Industry expectations. (author)

Role of experimental resolution in measurements of critical layer thickness for strained-layer epitaxy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fritz, I.J.

1987-01-01

Experimental measurements of critical layer thicknesses (CLT's) in strained-layer epitaxy are considered. Finite experimental resolution can have a major effect on measured CLT's and can easily lead to spurious results. The theoretical approach to critical layer thicknesses of J. W. Matthews [J. Vac. Sci. Technol. 12, 126 (1975)] has been modified in a straightforward way to predict the apparent critical thickness for an experiment with finite resolution in lattice parameter. The theory has also been modified to account for the general empirical result that fewer misfit dislocations are generated than predicted by equilibrium calculation. The resulting expression is fit to recent x-ray diffraction data on InGaAs/GaAs and SiGe/Si. The results suggest that CLT's in these systems may not be significantly larger than predicted by equilibrium theory, in agreement with high-resolution measurements

Efficient Power Scheduling in Smart Homes Using Hybrid Grey Wolf Differential Evolution Optimization Technique with Real Time and Critical Peak Pricing Schemes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muqaddas Naz

2018-02-01

Full Text Available With the emergence of automated environments, energy demand by consumers is increasing rapidly. More than 80% of total electricity is being consumed in the residential sector. This brings a challenging task of maintaining the balance between demand and generation of electric power. In order to meet such challenges, a traditional grid is renovated by integrating two-way communication between the consumer and generation unit. To reduce electricity cost and peak load demand, demand side management (DSM is modeled as an optimization problem, and the solution is obtained by applying meta-heuristic techniques with different pricing schemes. In this paper, an optimization technique, the hybrid gray wolf differential evolution (HGWDE, is proposed by merging enhanced differential evolution (EDE and gray wolf optimization (GWO scheme using real-time pricing (RTP and critical peak pricing (CPP. Load shifting is performed from on-peak hours to off-peak hours depending on the electricity cost defined by the utility. However, there is a trade-off between user comfort and cost. To validate the performance of the proposed algorithm, simulations have been carried out in MATLAB. Results illustrate that using RTP, the peak to average ratio (PAR is reduced to 53.02%, 29.02% and 26.55%, while the electricity bill is reduced to 12.81%, 12.012% and 12.95%, respectively, for the 15-, 30- and 60-min operational time interval (OTI. On the other hand, the PAR and electricity bill are reduced to 47.27%, 22.91%, 22% and 13.04%, 12%, 11.11% using the CPP tariff.

Experimental discrimination of ion stopping models near the Bragg peak in highly ionized matter

Science.gov (United States)

Cayzac, W.; Frank, A.; Ortner, A.; Bagnoud, V.; Basko, M. M.; Bedacht, S.; Bläser, C.; Blažević, A.; Busold, S.; Deppert, O.; Ding, J.; Ehret, M.; Fiala, P.; Frydrych, S.; Gericke, D. O.; Hallo, L.; Helfrich, J.; Jahn, D.; Kjartansson, E.; Knetsch, A.; Kraus, D.; Malka, G.; Neumann, N. W.; Pépitone, K.; Pepler, D.; Sander, S.; Schaumann, G.; Schlegel, T.; Schroeter, N.; Schumacher, D.; Seibert, M.; Tauschwitz, An.; Vorberger, J.; Wagner, F.; Weih, S.; Zobus, Y.; Roth, M.

2017-01-01

The energy deposition of ions in dense plasmas is a key process in inertial confinement fusion that determines the α-particle heating expected to trigger a burn wave in the hydrogen pellet and resulting in high thermonuclear gain. However, measurements of ion stopping in plasmas are scarce and mostly restricted to high ion velocities where theory agrees with the data. Here, we report experimental data at low projectile velocities near the Bragg peak, where the stopping force reaches its maximum. This parameter range features the largest theoretical uncertainties and conclusive data are missing until today. The precision of our measurements, combined with a reliable knowledge of the plasma parameters, allows to disprove several standard models for the stopping power for beam velocities typically encountered in inertial fusion. On the other hand, our data support theories that include a detailed treatment of strong ion-electron collisions. PMID:28569766

An experimental study of symmetric and asymmetric peak-fitting parameters for alpha-particle spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martin Sanchez, A.; Vera Tome, F.; Caceres Marzal, D.; Bland, C.J.

1994-01-01

A pulse-height spectrum of alpha-particle emissions at discrete energies can be fitted by the peak-shape functions generated by combining asymmetric truncated exponential functions with a symmetric Gaussian distribution. These functions have been applied successfully by several workers. A correlation was previously found between the variance of the symmetric Gaussian portion of the fitting function, and the parameter characterising the principal exponential tailing function. The results of a more detailed experimental study are reported, which involve varying the angle and the distance between the source and the detector. This analysis shows that the parameters of the symmetric and asymmetric parts of the fitted functions seem to depend on either the detector or the source. These parameters are influenced by the energy loss suffered by the alpha-particles as well as by the efficiency of charge collection in the solid-state detector. (orig.)

Theoretical and experimental studies on critical heat flux in subcooled boiling and vertical flow geometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Staron, E.

1996-01-01

Critical Heat Flux is a very important subject of interest due to design, operation and safety analysis of nuclear power plants. Every new design of the core must be thoroughly checked. Experimental studies have been performed using freon as a working fluid. The possibility of transferring of results into water equivalents has been proved. The experimental study covers vertical flow, annular geometry over a wide range of pressure, mass flow and temperature at inlet of test section. Theoretical models of Critical Heat Flux have been presented but only those which cover DNB. Computer programs allowing for numerical calculations using theoretical models have been developed. A validation of the theoretical models has been performed in accordance with experimental results. (author). 83 refs, 32 figs, 4 tabs

Critical currents in columnar vanadium films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cherkasova, V.G.; Kolin'ko, A.E.; Slatin, A.E.; Fogel, N.Y.

1982-01-01

The angular dependence of the critical current I/sub c/ is studied in columnar vanadium films. In measurements in constant magnetic fields an anomalous maximum I/sub c/ is found on the I/sub c/(theta) curves at arbitrary values of the external magnetic field and temperature, when the magnetic field is perpendicular to the plane of the specimen. The angular dependence of I/sub c/ measured in constant reduced magnetic fields h = H/H/sub c/2(T,theta) shows no singularities in the vicinity of the angle at which the I/sub c/ peak is found in the case H = const, i.e., the critical current is isotropic. This implies that a change in the relative orientation of the vortices and column boundaries produces no change in critical current. The experimental data obtained permit the conclusion that the anisotropy of I/sub c/ observed in a constant magnetic field H is merely a consequence of the anisotropy of the critical magnetic field H/sub c/: the critical current ''tracking'' the magnitude and angular dependence of H/sub c/

Characteristic of 120 degree C thermoluminescence peak of iceland spar

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu Xinwei; Han Jia

2006-01-01

The basic characteristic of 120 degree C thermoluminescence peak of iceland spar was studied. The experimental result indicates the longevity of 120 degree C thermoluminescence peak of iceland spar is about 2 h under 30 degree C. The thermoluminescence peak moves to the high temperature when the heating speed increasing. The intensity of 120 degree C thermoluminescence peak of iceland spar is directly proportional to radiation dose under 15 Gy. (authors)

Day Ahead Real Time Pricing and Critical Peak Pricing Based Power Scheduling for Smart Homes with Different Duty Cycles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nadeem Javaid

2018-06-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we propose a demand side management (DSM scheme in the residential area for electricity cost and peak to average ratio (PAR alleviation with maximum users’ satisfaction. For this purpose, we implement state-of-the-art algorithms: enhanced differential evolution (EDE and teacher learning-based optimization (TLBO. Furthermore, we propose a hybrid technique (HT having the best features of both aforementioned algorithms. We consider a system model for single smart home as well as for a community (multiple homes and each home consists of multiple appliances with different priorities. The priority is assigned (to each appliance by electricity consumers and then the proposed scheme finds an optimal solution according to the assigned priorities. Day-ahead real time pricing (DA-RTP and critical peak pricing (CPP are used for electricity cost calculation. To validate our proposed scheme, simulations are carried out and results show that our proposed scheme efficiently achieves the aforementioned objectives. However, when we perform a comparison with existing schemes, HT outperforms other state-of-the-art schemes (TLBO and EDE in terms of electricity cost and PAR reduction while minimizing the average waiting time.

Comparison of public peak detection algorithms for MALDI mass spectrometry data analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Chao; He, Zengyou; Yu, Weichuan

2009-01-06

In mass spectrometry (MS) based proteomic data analysis, peak detection is an essential step for subsequent analysis. Recently, there has been significant progress in the development of various peak detection algorithms. However, neither a comprehensive survey nor an experimental comparison of these algorithms is yet available. The main objective of this paper is to provide such a survey and to compare the performance of single spectrum based peak detection methods. In general, we can decompose a peak detection procedure into three consequent parts: smoothing, baseline correction and peak finding. We first categorize existing peak detection algorithms according to the techniques used in different phases. Such a categorization reveals the differences and similarities among existing peak detection algorithms. Then, we choose five typical peak detection algorithms to conduct a comprehensive experimental study using both simulation data and real MALDI MS data. The results of comparison show that the continuous wavelet-based algorithm provides the best average performance.

Experimental and Numerical Analysis of S-CO{sub 2} Critical Flow for SFR Recovery System Design

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Min Seok; Jung, Hwa-Young; Ahn, Yoonhan; Lee, Jekyoung; Lee, Jeong Ik [Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-15

This paper presents both numerical and experimental studies of the critical flow of S-CO{sub 2} while special attention is given to the turbo-machinery seal design. A computational critical flow model is described first. The experiments were conducted to validate the critical flow model. Various conditions have been tested to study the flow characteristic and provide validation data for the model. The comparison of numerical and experimental results of S-CO{sub 2} critical flow will be presented. In order to eliminate SWR, a concept of coupling the Supercritical CO{sub 2} (S-CO{sub 2}) cycle with SFR has been proposed. It is known that for a closed system controlling the inventory is important for stable operation and achieving high efficiency. Since the S-CO{sub 2} power cycle is a highly pressurized system, certain amount of leakage flow is inevitable in the rotating turbo-machinery via seals. To simulate the CO{sub 2} leak flow in a turbo-machinery with higher accuracy in the future, the real gas effect and friction factor will be considered for the CO{sub 2} critical flow model. Moreover, experimentally obtained temperature data were somewhat different from the numerically obtained temperature due to the insufficient insulation and large thermal inertia of the CO{sub 2} critical flow facility. Insulation in connecting pipes and the low-pressure tank will be added and additional tests will be conducted.

Peak effect in surface resistance at microwave frequencies in Dy ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

In the measurements at both frequencies the induced microwave current was always less than the critical current of the films. The reason for observation of this peak effect in these films has been explained in our earlier publication [5]. Comparing figures 1 and 2, it is observed that the peaks in sample S1 are broader and.

Similarities in the dynamical behavior across the classical peak effect and the second magnetization peak in single crystals of 2H-NbSe2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thakur, A.D.; Ramakrishnan, S.; Grover, A.K.; Chandrasekhar Rao, T.V.; Uji, S.; Terashima, T.; Higgins, M.J.

2005-01-01

The classical peak effect (CPE) and the second magnetization peak (SMP) are two distinct anomalies in critical current of superconductors. A nascent pinned single crystal sample of 2HNbSe 2 (T c (0) ∼7.2 K) shows only the sharp CPE. In a moderately pinned sample (T c (0) ∼6 K), the sharp CPE broadens with the addition of characteristic structure (stepwise amorphization) between the onset and the peak positions of the CPE. Also, there emerges another anomalous peak akin to SMP prior to the CPE. We have looked at samples of 2H-NbSe 2 with intermediate levels of quenched random pinning (T c (0) ∼ 7.1 K) and successfully explored the two peaks down to 50 mK. (author)

Development of the modified sum-peak method and its application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ogata, Y.; Miyahara, H.; Ishihara, M.; Ishigure, N.; Yamamoto, S.; Kojima, S.

2016-01-01

As the sum-peak method requires the total count rate as well as the peak count rates and the sum peak count rate, this meets difficulties when a sample contains other radionuclides than the one to be measured. To solve the problem, a new method using solely the peak and the sum peak count rates was developed. The method was theoretically and experimentally confirmed using "6"0Co, "2"2Na and "1"3"4Cs. We demonstrate that the modified sum-peak method is quite simple and practical and is useful to measure multiple nuclides. - Highlights: • A modified sum-peak method for simple radioactivity measurement was developed. • The method solely requires the peak count rates and the sum peak count rate. • The method is applicable to multiple radionuclides.

Peak-locking reduction for particle image velocimetry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Michaelis, Dirk; Wieneke, Bernhard; Neal, Douglas R

2016-01-01

A parametric study of the factors contributing to peak-locking, a known bias error source in particle image velocimetry (PIV), is conducted using synthetic data that are processed with a state-of-the-art PIV algorithm. The investigated parameters include: particle image diameter, image interpolation techniques, the effect of asymmetric versus symmetric window deformation, number of passes and the interrogation window size. Some of these parameters are found to have a profound effect on the magnitude of the peak-locking error. The effects for specific PIV cameras are also studied experimentally using a precision turntable to generate a known rotating velocity field. Image time series recorded using this experiment show a linear range of pixel and sub-pixel shifts ranging from 0 to  ±4 pixels. Deviations in the constant vorticity field (ω z ) reveal how peak-locking can be affected systematically both by varying parameters of the detection system such as the focal distance and f -number, and also by varying the settings of the PIV analysis. A new a priori technique for reducing the bias errors associated with peak-locking in PIV is introduced using an optical diffuser to avoid undersampled particle images during the recording of the raw images. This technique is evaluated against other a priori approaches using experimental data and is shown to perform favorably. Finally, a new a posteriori anti peak-locking filter (APLF) is developed and investigated, which shows promising results for both synthetic data and real measurements for very small particle image sizes. (paper)

Primary peak and chronic malaria infection levels are correlated in experimentally infected great reed warblers.

Science.gov (United States)

Asghar, Muhammad; Westerdahl, Helena; Zehtindjiev, Pavel; Ilieva, Mihaela; Hasselquist, Dennis; Bensch, Staffan

2012-09-01

Malaria parasites often manage to maintain an infection for several months or years in their vertebrate hosts. In humans, rodents and birds, most of the fitness costs associated with malaria infections are in the short initial primary (high parasitaemia) phase of the infection, whereas the chronic phase (low parasitaemia) is more benign to the host. In wild birds, malaria parasites have mainly been studied during the chronic phase of the infection. This is because the initial primary phase of infection is short in duration and infected birds with severe disease symptoms tend to hide in sheltered places and are thus rarely caught and sampled. We therefore wanted to investigate the relationship between the parasitaemia during the primary and chronic phases of the infection using an experimental infection approach. We found a significant positive correlation between parasitaemia in the primary peak and the subsequent chronic phase of infection when we experimentally infected great reed warblers (Acrocephalus arundinaceus) with Plasmodium ashfordi. The reason for this association remains to be understood, but might arise from individual variation in exoerythrocytic parasite reservoirs in hosts, parasite antigenic diversity and/or host genetics. Our results suggest that the chronic phase parasitaemia can be used to qualitatively infer the parasitaemia of the preceding and more severe primary phase, which is a very important finding for studies of avian malaria in wild populations.

Prediction of peak overlap in NMR spectra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hefke, Frederik; Schmucki, Roland; Güntert, Peter

2013-01-01

Peak overlap is one of the major factors complicating the analysis of biomolecular NMR spectra. We present a general method for predicting the extent of peak overlap in multidimensional NMR spectra and its validation using both, experimental data sets and Monte Carlo simulation. The method is based on knowledge of the magnetization transfer pathways of the NMR experiments and chemical shift statistics from the Biological Magnetic Resonance Data Bank. Assuming a normal distribution with characteristic mean value and standard deviation for the chemical shift of each observable atom, an analytic expression was derived for the expected overlap probability of the cross peaks. The analytical approach was verified to agree with the average peak overlap in a large number of individual peak lists simulated using the same chemical shift statistics. The method was applied to eight proteins, including an intrinsically disordered one, for which the prediction results could be compared with the actual overlap based on the experimentally measured chemical shifts. The extent of overlap predicted using only statistical chemical shift information was in good agreement with the overlap that was observed when the measured shifts were used in the virtual spectrum, except for the intrinsically disordered protein. Since the spectral complexity of a protein NMR spectrum is a crucial factor for protein structure determination, analytical overlap prediction can be used to identify potentially difficult proteins before conducting NMR experiments. Overlap predictions can be tailored to particular classes of proteins by preparing statistics from corresponding protein databases. The method is also suitable for optimizing recording parameters and labeling schemes for NMR experiments and improving the reliability of automated spectra analysis and protein structure determination.

Numerical simulation and experimental validation of internal heat exchanger influence on CO{sub 2} trans-critical cycle performance

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rigola, Joaquim; Ablanque, Nicolas; Perez-Segarra, Carlos D.; Oliva, Assensi [Centre Tecnologic de Transferencia de Calor (CTTC), Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya (UPC), ETSEIAT, C. Colom 11, 08222 Terrassa (Barcelona) (Spain)

2010-06-15

The present paper is a numerical and experimental comparative study of the whole vapour compression refrigerating cycle in general, and reciprocating compressors in particular, with the aim of showing the possibilities that CO{sub 2} offers for commercial refrigeration, considering a single-stage trans-critical cycle using semi-hermetic reciprocating compressors under small cooling capacity systems. The present work is focussed on the influence of using an internal heat exchanger (IHX) in order to improve the cycle performance under real working conditions. In order to validate the numerical results, an experimental unit specially designed and built to analyze trans-critical refrigerating equipments considering IHX has been built. Both numerical results and experimental data show reasonable good agreement, while the comparative global values conclude the improvement of cooling capacity and COP when IHX is considered in the CO{sub 2} trans-critical cycle. (author)

Gamma-Ray Peak Integration: Accuracy and Precision

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Richard M. Lindstrom

2000-01-01

The accuracy of singlet gamma-ray peak areas obtained by a peak analysis program is immaterial. If the same algorithm is used for sample measurement as for calibration and if the peak shapes are similar, then biases in the integration method cancel. Reproducibility is the only important issue. Even the uncertainty of the areas computed by the program is trivial because the true standard uncertainty can be experimentally assessed by repeated measurements of the same source. Reproducible peak integration was important in a recent standard reference material certification task. The primary tool used for spectrum analysis was SUM, a National Institute of Standards and Technology interactive program to sum peaks and subtract a linear background, using the same channels to integrate all 20 spectra. For comparison, this work examines other peak integration programs. Unlike some published comparisons of peak performance in which synthetic spectra were used, this experiment used spectra collected for a real (though exacting) analytical project, analyzed by conventional software used in routine ways. Because both components of the 559- to 564-keV doublet are from 76 As, they were integrated together with SUM. The other programs, however, deconvoluted the peaks. A sensitive test of the fitting algorithm is the ratio of reported peak areas. In almost all the cases, this ratio was much more variable than expected from the reported uncertainties reported by the program. Other comparisons to be reported indicate that peak integration is still an imperfect tool in the analysis of gamma-ray spectra

High-temperature peaks of thermostimulated luminescence in the ammonium halogens

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, L.M.; Musenova, Eh.K.; Mukhamedrakhimov, K.U.

2003-01-01

The ammonium halogen crystals (AHC) are the close analogs of the alkali halogen crystals by the type of chemical bonds and crystal lattice structure. The ammonium halogen after irradiation by X-rays within 80-300 K range have two peaks of thermo-stimulation luminescence. Its maximums in dependence of anions type are in the 110-120 K and 170-180 K ranges. The first range is related with activation of auto-localized holes migration, and the second one - with the NH 3 + defects decay. Experimentally is established, that the pure ammonium halogens have memory about the previous irradiation at heating up to 300 K. After repeat irradiation the recombination luminescence high-temperature peak's shoulder is appearing. The second luminescence peak's shoulder revealing does not depend on the impurity center nature. It is known, that in the AHC there is the next thermo-stimulation luminescence peak within 340-360 K. The thermal annealing of this peak leads to the memory effect disappearance. So, the observing phenomenon is related with own defect of the matrix in the cation sublattice. Experimentally is established, that at a room temperature the AHC memorizing about previous irradiation during 20 h

Price, environment and security: Exploring multi-modal motivation in voluntary residential peak demand response

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gyamfi, Samuel; Krumdieck, Susan

2011-01-01

Peak demand on electricity grids is a growing problem that increases costs and risks to supply security. Residential sector loads often contribute significantly to seasonal and daily peak demand. Demand response projects aim to manage peak demand by applying price signals and automated load shedding technologies. This research investigates voluntary load shedding in response to information about the security of supply, the emission profile and the cost of meeting critical peak demand in the customers' network. Customer willingness to change behaviour in response to this information was explored through mail-back survey. The diversified demand modelling method was used along with energy audit data to estimate the potential peak load reduction resulting from the voluntary demand response. A case study was conducted in a suburb of Christchurch, New Zealand, where electricity is the main source for water and space heating. On this network, all water heating cylinders have ripple-control technology and about 50% of the households subscribe to differential day/night pricing plan. The survey results show that the sensitivity to supply security is on par with price, with the emission sensitivity being slightly weaker. The modelling results show potential 10% reduction in critical peak load for aggregate voluntary demand response. - Highlights: → Multiple-factor behaviour intervention is necessarily for effective residential demand response. → Security signals can achieve result comparable to price. → The modelling results show potential 10% reduction in critical peak load for aggregate voluntary demand response. → New Zealand's energy policy should include innovation and development of VDR programmes and technologies.

An Experimental investigation of critical flow rates of subcooled water through short pipes with small diameters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Choon Kyung

1997-02-01

The primary objective of this study is to improve our understanding on critical flow phenomena in a small size leak and to develop a model which can be used to estimate the critical mass flow rates through reactor vessel or primary coolant pipe wall. For this purpose, critical two-phase flow phenomena of subcooled water through short pipes (100 ≤ L ≤ 400 mm) with small diameters (3.4 ≤ D ≤ 7.15 mm) have been experimentally investigated for wide ranges of subcooling (0∼199 .deg. C) and pressure (0.5∼2.0MPa). To examine the effects of various parameters (i.e., the location of flashing inception, the degree of subcooling, the stagnation temperature and pressure, and the pipe size) on the critical two-phase flow rates of subcooled water, a total of 135 runs were made for various combinations of test parameters using four different L/D test sections. Experimental results that show effects of various parameters on subcooled critical two-phase flow rates are presented. The measured static pressure profiles along the discharge pipe show that the critical flow rate can be strongly influenced by the flashing location. The locations of saturation pressure for different values of the stagnation subcooling have been consistently determined from the pressure profiles. Based upon the test results, two important parameters have been identified. These are cold state discharge coefficient and dimensionless subcooling, which are found to efficiently take into account the test section geometry and the stagnation conditions, respectively. A semi-empirical model has been developed to predict subcooled two-phase flow rates through small size openings. This model provides a simple and direct calculation of the critical mass flow rates with information on the initial condition and on the test section geometry. Comparisons between the mass fluxes calculated by present model and a total of 755 selected experimental data from 9 different investigators show that the agreement is

Robust Peak Recognition in Intracranial Pressure Signals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bergsneider Marvin

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The waveform morphology of intracranial pressure pulses (ICP is an essential indicator for monitoring, and forecasting critical intracranial and cerebrovascular pathophysiological variations. While current ICP pulse analysis frameworks offer satisfying results on most of the pulses, we observed that the performance of several of them deteriorates significantly on abnormal, or simply more challenging pulses. Methods This paper provides two contributions to this problem. First, it introduces MOCAIP++, a generic ICP pulse processing framework that generalizes MOCAIP (Morphological Clustering and Analysis of ICP Pulse. Its strength is to integrate several peak recognition methods to describe ICP morphology, and to exploit different ICP features to improve peak recognition. Second, it investigates the effect of incorporating, automatically identified, challenging pulses into the training set of peak recognition models. Results Experiments on a large dataset of ICP signals, as well as on a representative collection of sampled challenging ICP pulses, demonstrate that both contributions are complementary and significantly improve peak recognition performance in clinical conditions. Conclusion The proposed framework allows to extract more reliable statistics about the ICP waveform morphology on challenging pulses to investigate the predictive power of these pulses on the condition of the patient.

Experimental investigation of defect criticality in FRP laminate composites

Science.gov (United States)

Joyce, Peter James

1999-11-01

This work examines the defect criticality of fiber reinforced polymer Composites. The objective is to determine the sensitivity of the finished composite to various process-induced defects. This work focuses on two different classes of process-induced defects; (1) fiber waviness in high performance carbon-fiber reinforced unidirectional composites and (2) void volume in low cost glass-fabric reinforced composites. The role of fiber waviness in the compressive response of unidirectional composites has been studied by a number of other investigators. Because of difficulties associated with producing real composites with varying levels of fiber waviness, most experimental studies of fiber waviness have evaluated composites with artificially induced fiber waviness. Furthermore, most experimental studies have been concentrated on the effects of out-of-plane fiber waviness. The objective of this work is to evaluate the effects of in-plane fiber waviness naturally occurring in autoclave consolidated thermoplastic laminates. The first phase of this project involved the development of a simple technique for measuring the resulting fiber waviness levels. An experimental investigation of the compression strength reduction in composites with in-plane fiber waviness followed. The experimental program included carbon-fiber reinforced thermoplastic composites manufactured from prepreg tape by hand layup, and carbon-fiber and glass-fiber reinforced composites manufactured from an experimental powder towpreg by filament winding and autoclave consolidation. The compression specimens exhibited kink band failure in the prepreg composite and varying amounts of longitudinal splitting and kink banding in the towpreg composites. The compression test results demonstrated the same trend as predicted by microbudding theory but the overall quantitative correlation was poor. The second thrust of this research evaluated void effects in resin transfer molded composites. Much of the existing

Influence of dispersion stretching of ultrashort UV laser pulse on the critical power for self-focusing

Science.gov (United States)

Ionin, A. A.; Mokrousova, D. V.; Piterimov, D. A.; Seleznev, L. V.; Sinitsyn, D. V.; Sunchugasheva, E. S.

2018-04-01

The critical power for self-focusing in air for ultrashort ultraviolet laser pulses, stretched due to dispersion from 90 to 730 fs, was experimentally measured. It was shown that the pulse duration enhancement due to its propagation in condensed media leads to an almost linear decrease in the critical power for self-focusing. It was also observed that when the pulse peak power exceeds the critical one, the maximum of linear plasma distribution along the ultraviolet laser filament does not shift in the direction opposite to the laser pulse propagation, as observed for infrared laser filaments, but remains at the geometrical focus.

Variability of electricity load patterns and its effect on demand response: A critical peak pricing experiment on Korean commercial and industrial customers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jang, Dongsik; Eom, Jiyong; Jae Park, Min; Jeung Rho, Jae

2016-01-01

To the extent that demand response represents an intentional electricity usage adjustment to price changes or incentive payments, consumers who exhibit more-variable load patterns on normal days may be capable of altering their loads more significantly in response to dynamic pricing plans. This study investigates the variation in the pre-enrollment load patterns of Korean commercial and industrial electricity customers and their impact on event-day loads during a critical peak pricing experiment in the winter of 2013. Contrary to conventional approaches to profiling electricity loads, this study proposes a new clustering technique based on variability indices that collectively represent the potential demand–response resource that these customers would supply. Our analysis reveals that variability in pre-enrollment load patterns does indeed have great predictive power for estimating their impact on demand–response loads. Customers in relatively low-variability clusters provided limited or no response, whereas customers in relatively high-variability clusters consistently presented large load impacts, accounting for most of the program-level peak reductions. This study suggests that dynamic pricing programs themselves may not offer adequate motivation for meaningful adjustments in load patterns, particularly for customers in low-variability clusters. - Highlights: • A method of clustering customers by variability indices is developed. • Customers in high-variability clusters provide substantial peak reductions. • Low-variability clusters exhibit limited reductions. • For low-variability customers, alternative policy instruments is well advised. • A model of discerning customer's demand response potential is suggested.

Effect of dc field on ac-loss peak in a commercial Bi:2223/Ag tape

Science.gov (United States)

Öztürk, Ali; Düzgün, İbrahim; Çelebi, Selahattin

2017-12-01

Measurements of the ac susceptibility in a commercial Bi:2223/Ag tape for some different ac magnetic field amplitudes, Hac, in the presence of bias magnetic field Hdc directed along Hac are reported. It is found that the peak values of the imaginary component of ac susceptibility χ″max versus Hac trace a valley for the orientation where applied field Ha perpendicular to wide face of the tape total. We note that the observation of the valley depends on various parameters such as field dependence parameter n in the critical current density, in the simple power law expression jc = α(T)/Bn, choice of the bias field Hdc together with selected ac field amplitudes Hac, and dimension and geometry of sample studied. Our calculations based on critical state model with jc = α(1 - T/Tcm)p/Bn using the fitting parameters of n = 0.25, p = 2.2, Tcm = 108 K gives quite good results to compare the experimental and calculated curves.

Experimental and numerical investigations of resonant acoustic waves in near-critical carbon dioxide.

Science.gov (United States)

Hasan, Nusair; Farouk, Bakhtier

2015-10-01

Flow and transport induced by resonant acoustic waves in a near-critical fluid filled cylindrical enclosure is investigated both experimentally and numerically. Supercritical carbon dioxide (near the critical or the pseudo-critical states) in a confined resonator is subjected to acoustic field created by an electro-mechanical acoustic transducer and the induced pressure waves are measured by a fast response pressure field microphone. The frequency of the acoustic transducer is chosen such that the lowest acoustic mode propagates along the enclosure. For numerical simulations, a real-fluid computational fluid dynamics model representing the thermo-physical and transport properties of the supercritical fluid is considered. The simulated acoustic field in the resonator is compared with measurements. The formation of acoustic streaming structures in the highly compressible medium is revealed by time-averaging the numerical solutions over a given period. Due to diverging thermo-physical properties of supercritical fluid near the critical point, large scale oscillations are generated even for small sound field intensity. The strength of the acoustic wave field is found to be in direct relation with the thermodynamic state of the fluid. The effects of near-critical property variations and the operating pressure on the formation process of the streaming structures are also investigated. Irregular streaming patterns with significantly higher streaming velocities are observed for near-pseudo-critical states at operating pressures close to the critical pressure. However, these structures quickly re-orient to the typical Rayleigh streaming patterns with the increase operating pressure.

Investigation of magnetic fluids exhibiting field-induced increasing loss peaks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fannin, P.C.; Marin, C.N.; Couper, C.

2010-01-01

A theoretical analysis to explain an increase of the Brownian loss peak with increasing polarizing field, H, in a magnetic fluid, is presented. The model is based on the competition between the Brownian and Neel relaxation processes. It is demonstrated that in magnetic fluids with particles having small anisotropy constant, small average magnetic diameter and narrow particle size distribution an increase of the Brownian loss peak with the polarizing field can be observed. The theoretical results are compared with the experimental results of an Isopar M-based magnetic fluid with magnetite particles stabilized with oleic acid and the model explains qualitatively the main characteristics of the experimental results.

Experimental study and calculations of the near critical behavior of a synthetic fluid in nitrogen injection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coronado Parra, Carlos Alberto; Escobar Remolina, Juan Carlos M

2005-01-01

In recent years, the use of nitrogen has increased as gas injection to recover oil fluids near the critical point. The behavior of hydrocarbon mixture phases in the critical region shows very interesting complex phenomena when facing a recovery project with nitrogen. Therefore, it is important to have experimental information of the PVTx thermodynamic variable, often scarce, for this type of critical phenomena. This paper reports the experimental measures of the volumetric behavior and phases of synthetic fluid in a nitrogen injection process. The experiment was performed at laboratory scale, and it obtained variations on the saturation pressure, gas oil ratio, density and composition of the hydrocarbon phase when nitrogen was injected at molars of 10,20,30 and 40% on different volumetric portions of the mother sample. In addition, the data obtained experimentally was used to demonstrate the capacity of tune to compositional models. The data provided represents a valuable contribution to the understanding of phenomena associated with retrograde and near critical regions, as well as their use in tuning and developing more elaborate models such as Cubic Equations of State (EOS). It is worth highlighting the importance of this data in the potential processes of nitrogen, CO 2 , and lean gas injection, which require knowledge of the gas-oil ratio, saturation pressures, density and composition of the fluid in current production. The identification of the phenomena shown, represent a potential application to the modeling of displacements and maintaining the pressure in the improved recovery when scaling up the laboratory data to the field / reservoir conditions

Decomposing the Bragg glass and the peak effect in a Type-II superconductor

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Toft-Petersen, Rasmus; Abrahamsen, Asger Bech; Balog, Sandor

2018-01-01

. In Type-II superconductors, disorder generally works to pin vortices, giving zero resistivity below a critical current j(c). However, peaks have been observed in the temperature and field dependences of j(c). This peak effect is difficult to explain in terms of an ordered Abrikosov vortex lattice. Here we...

An overview of criticality safety research at the All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kuvshinov, M.I.; Voinov, A.M.; Yuferev, V.I. [All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics, Arzamas (Russian Federation)] [and others

1997-06-01

This paper presents a summary of experimental and calculational activities conducted at VNIIEF from the late 1940s to now to study the critical conditions of systems as part of a nuclear safety program. 9 refs., 1 tab.

An overview of criticality safety research at the All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuvshinov, M.I.; Voinov, A.M.; Yuferev, V.I.

1997-01-01

This paper presents a summary of experimental and calculational activities conducted at VNIIEF from the late 1940s to now to study the critical conditions of systems as part of a nuclear safety program. 9 refs., 1 tab

Experimental determination of critical data of multi-component mixtures containing potential gasoline additives 2-butanol by a flow-type apparatus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

He, Maogang; Xin, Nan; Wang, Chengjie; Liu, Yang; Zhang, Ying; Liu, Xiangyang

2016-01-01

Graphical abstract: Experimental critical pressures of 2-butanol + hexane + heptane system. - Highlights: • Critical properties of six binary systems and two ternary systems were measured. • Six binary systems containing 2-butanol show non-ideal behavior in their T c –x 1 curves. • Non-ideal behavior of mixtures with 2-butanol relies on azeotropy. • Experimental data for binary systems were fitted well with Redlich–Kister equation. • Critical surfaces of ternary systems were plotted using the Cibulka’s expressions. - Abstract: In this work, we used a flow method for measurement of critical properties of six binary mixtures (2-butanol + cyclohexane, 2-butanol + hexane, 2-butanol + heptane, 2-butanol + octane, 2-butanol + nonane and 2-butanol + decane) and two ternary mixtures (2-butanol + hexane + heptane and 2-butanol + octane + decane). The critical properties were determined by observing the disappearance and reappearance of the gas–liquid phase meniscus in a quartz glass tube. The standard uncertainties of temperatures and pressures for both binary and ternary mixtures were estimated to be less than 0.2 K and 5.2 kPa, respectively. These critical data provide the boundaries of the two-phase regions of the related mixture systems. Six binary systems show non-ideal behaviors in the loci of critical temperatures. We used the Redlich–Kister equations to correlate the critical temperatures and pressures of these systems and listed the binary interaction parameters. The maximum average absolute deviation (AAD) of each binary system between experimental data and calculated results from Redlich–Kister equations is 0.038% for critical temperatures, and 0.244% for critical pressures. Moreover, the two ternary systems were newly reported and correlated by Cibulka’s and Singh’s expressions. The maximum AAD of critical temperatures and critical pressures are 0.103% and 0.433%, respectively.

Experimental and computational correlation of fracture parameters KIc, JIc, and GIc for unimodular and bimodular graphite components

Science.gov (United States)

Bhushan, Awani; Panda, S. K.

2018-05-01

The influence of bimodularity (different stress ∼ strain behaviour in tension and compression) on fracture behaviour of graphite specimens has been studied with fracture toughness (KIc), critical J-integral (JIc) and critical strain energy release rate (GIc) as the characterizing parameter. Bimodularity index (ratio of tensile Young's modulus to compression Young's modulus) of graphite specimens has been obtained from the normalized test data of tensile and compression experimentation. Single edge notch bend (SENB) testing of pre-cracked specimens from the same lot have been carried out as per ASTM standard D7779-11 to determine the peak load and critical fracture parameters KIc, GIc and JIc using digital image correlation technology of crack opening displacements. Weibull weakest link theory has been used to evaluate the mean peak load, Weibull modulus and goodness of fit employing two parameter least square method (LIN2), biased (MLE2-B) and unbiased (MLE2-U) maximum likelihood estimator. The stress dependent elasticity problem of three-dimensional crack progression behaviour for the bimodular graphite components has been solved as an iterative finite element procedure. The crack characterizing parameters critical stress intensity factor and critical strain energy release rate have been estimated with the help of Weibull distribution plot between peak loads versus cumulative probability of failure. Experimental and Computational fracture parameters have been compared qualitatively to describe the significance of bimodularity. The bimodular influence on fracture behaviour of SENB graphite has been reflected on the experimental evaluation of GIc values only, which has been found to be different from the calculated JIc values. Numerical evaluation of bimodular 3D J-integral value is found to be close to the GIc value whereas the unimodular 3D J-value is nearer to the JIc value. The significant difference between the unimodular JIc and bimodular GIc indicates that

Dispersion-convolution model for simulating peaks in a flow injection system.

Science.gov (United States)

Pai, Su-Cheng; Lai, Yee-Hwong; Chiao, Ling-Yun; Yu, Tiing

2007-01-12

A dispersion-convolution model is proposed for simulating peak shapes in a single-line flow injection system. It is based on the assumption that an injected sample plug is expanded due to a "bulk" dispersion mechanism along the length coordinate, and that after traveling over a distance or a period of time, the sample zone will develop into a Gaussian-like distribution. This spatial pattern is further transformed to a temporal coordinate by a convolution process, and finally a temporal peak image is generated. The feasibility of the proposed model has been examined by experiments with various coil lengths, sample sizes and pumping rates. An empirical dispersion coefficient (D*) can be estimated by using the observed peak position, height and area (tp*, h* and At*) from a recorder. An empirical temporal shift (Phi*) can be further approximated by Phi*=D*/u2, which becomes an important parameter in the restoration of experimental peaks. Also, the dispersion coefficient can be expressed as a second-order polynomial function of the pumping rate Q, for which D*(Q)=delta0+delta1Q+delta2Q2. The optimal dispersion occurs at a pumping rate of Qopt=sqrt[delta0/delta2]. This explains the interesting "Nike-swoosh" relationship between the peak height and pumping rate. The excellent coherence of theoretical and experimental peak shapes confirms that the temporal distortion effect is the dominating reason to explain the peak asymmetry in flow injection analysis.

Generation of narrow peaks in spectroscopy of charged particles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dubbers, Dirk, E-mail: dubbers@physi.uni-heidelberg.de; Schmidt, Ulrich, E-mail: ulrich.schmidt@physi.uni-heidelberg.de

2016-11-21

In spectroscopy of charged particles, narrow peaks may appear in continuous spectra if magnetic transport of the particles is involved. These artefacts, which so far have escaped the attention of investigators, can develop whenever geometric detection efficiency is less than 100%. As such peaks may be misinterpreted as new physics, their generation is investigated, both analytically and experimentally, for various detector configurations, including those used in searches for the spontaneous decay of the vacuum in heavy-ion collisions.

A critical experimental study of integral physics parameters in simulated LMFBR meltdown cores

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhattacharyya, S.K.; Wade, D.C.; Bucher, R.G.; Smith, D.M.; McKnight, R.D.; Lesage, L.G.

1978-01-01

Integral physics parameters of several representative, idealized meltdown LMFBR configurations were measured in mockup critical assemblies on the ZPR-9 reactor at Argonne National Laboratory. The experiments were designed to provide data for the validation of analytical methods used in the neutronics part of LMFBR accident analysis. Large core distortions were introduced in these experiments (involving 18.5% core volume) and the reactivity worths of configuration changes were determined. The neutronics parameters measured in the various configurations showed large changes upon core distortion. Both diffusion theory and transport theory methods were shown to mispredict the experimental configuration eigenvalues. In addition, diffusion theory methods were shown to result in a non-conservative misprediction of the experimental configuration change worths. (author)

Rheological-dynamical continuum damage model for concrete under uniaxial compression and its experimental verification

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Milašinović Dragan D.

2015-01-01

Full Text Available A new analytical model for the prediction of concrete response under uniaxial compression and its experimental verification is presented in this paper. The proposed approach, referred to as the rheological-dynamical continuum damage model, combines rheological-dynamical analogy and damage mechanics. Within the framework of this approach the key continuum parameters such as the creep coefficient, Poisson’s ratio and damage variable are functionally related. The critical values of the creep coefficient and damage variable under peak stress are used to describe the failure mode of the concrete cylinder. The ultimate strain is determined in the post-peak regime only, using the secant stress-strain relation from damage mechanics. The post-peak branch is used for the energy analysis. Experimental data for five concrete compositions were obtained during the examination presented herein. The principal difference between compressive failure and tensile fracture is that there is a residual stress in the specimens, which is a consequence of uniformly accelerated motion of load during the examination of compressive strength. The critical interpenetration displacements and crushing energy are obtained theoretically based on the concept of global failure analysis. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. ON 174027: Computational Mechanics in Structural Engineering i br. TR 36017: Utilization of by-products and recycled waste materials in concrete composites for sustainable construction development in Serbia: Investigation and environmental assessment of possible applications

Peak Fields of Nb$_{3}$Sn Superconducting Undulators and a Scaling Law

CERN Document Server

Kim, S H

2005-01-01

The peak fields on the beam axis and the maximum fields in the conductor of Nb$_{3}$Sn superconducting undulators (SCUs) were calculated for an undulator period length of 16 mm. Using a simple scaling law for SCUs [1], the peak fields, as well as the conductor maximum fields and the current densities, were calculated for a period range of 8 to 32 mm. The critical current densities of commercially available Nb$_{3}$Sn superconducting strands were used for the calculations. The achievable peak fields are limited mainly by the flux-jump instabilities at low fields. The possible or feasible peak field will also be compared with that achieved in prototype development of SCUs.

Experimental study of the critical density of heat flux in open channels cooled with helium - II

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pron'ko, V.G.; Gorokhov, V.V.; Saverin, V.N.

1981-01-01

Experimental values of the critical density of a heat flux qsub(cr) in uniformly heated open channels cooled with helium-2 are reported for the first time. The experimental test bench and experimental element are described. Experimental data are obtained in cylindrical channels of 12Kh18N1OT steel with inner diameter d=0.8, 1.8; 2.8 mm and ratio l/d=20.8, 44, 85. The channel orientation has varied from vertical to horizontal position, the immersion depth - from 100, to 600 mm. It has been found that the heat transfer crisis propagation over the whole length of the channel with He-2 occurs practically instantaneously. The qsub(cr) value depends essentially on the bath liquid temperature, angle of inclivnation and relative length (l/d) of the channel with qsub(cr) approximately (l/d)sup(-1.5) being independent of the depth of channel immersion. The obtained values of critical density of a heat flux in channels are papproximately by an order less than those found for a great bulk of He-2. The results presented may be used for designing various types of devices cooled with He-2 and development of heat exchange theory in it [ru

Approaching total absorption at near infrared in a large area monolayer graphene by critical coupling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, Yonghao; Chadha, Arvinder; Zhao, Deyin; Shuai, Yichen; Menon, Laxmy; Yang, Hongjun; Zhou, Weidong, E-mail: wzhou@uta.edu [Nanophotonics Lab, Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, Texas 76019 (United States); Piper, Jessica R.; Fan, Shanhui [Ginzton Laboratory, Department of Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305 (United States); Jia, Yichen; Xia, Fengnian [Department of Electrical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520 (United States); Ma, Zhenqiang [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706 (United States)

2014-11-03

We demonstrate experimentally close to total absorption in monolayer graphene based on critical coupling with guided resonances in transfer printed photonic crystal Fano resonance filters at near infrared. Measured peak absorptions of 35% and 85% were obtained from cavity coupled monolayer graphene for the structures without and with back reflectors, respectively. These measured values agree very well with the theoretical values predicted with the coupled mode theory based critical coupling design. Such strong light-matter interactions can lead to extremely compact and high performance photonic devices based on large area monolayer graphene and other two–dimensional materials.

Experimental investigation on flow patterns of RP-3 kerosene under sub-critical and supercritical pressures

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ning; Zhou, Jin; Pan, Yu; Wang, Hui

2014-02-01

Active cooling with endothermic hydrocarbon fuel is proved to be one of the most promising approaches to solve the thermal problem for hypersonic aircraft such as scramjet. The flow patterns of two-phase flow inside the cooling channels have a great influence on the heat transfer characteristics. In this study, phase transition processes of RP-3 kerosene flowing inside a square quartz-glass tube were experimentally investigated. Three distinct phase transition phenomena (liquid-gas two phase flow under sub-critical pressures, critical opalescence under critical pressure, and corrugation under supercritical pressures) were identified. The conventional flow patterns of liquid-gas two phase flow, namely bubble flow, slug flow, churn flow and annular flow are observed under sub-critical pressures. Dense bubble flow and dispersed flow are recognized when pressure is increased towards the critical pressure whilst slug flow, churn flow and annular flow disappear. Under critical pressure, the opalescence phenomenon is observed. Under supercritical pressures, no conventional phase transition characteristics, such as bubbles are observed. But some kind of corrugation appears when RP-3 transfers from liquid to supercritical. The refraction index variation caused by sharp density gradient near the critical temperature is thought to be responsible for this corrugation.

Focused ultrasound transducer spatial peak intensity estimation: a comparison of methods

Science.gov (United States)

Civale, John; Rivens, Ian; Shaw, Adam; ter Haar, Gail

2018-03-01

Characterisation of the spatial peak intensity at the focus of high intensity focused ultrasound transducers is difficult because of the risk of damage to hydrophone sensors at the high focal pressures generated. Hill et al (1994 Ultrasound Med. Biol. 20 259-69) provided a simple equation for estimating spatial-peak intensity for solid spherical bowl transducers using measured acoustic power and focal beamwidth. This paper demonstrates theoretically and experimentally that this expression is only strictly valid for spherical bowl transducers without a central (imaging) aperture. A hole in the centre of the transducer results in over-estimation of the peak intensity. Improved strategies for determining focal peak intensity from a measurement of total acoustic power are proposed. Four methods are compared: (i) a solid spherical bowl approximation (after Hill et al 1994 Ultrasound Med. Biol. 20 259-69), (ii) a numerical method derived from theory, (iii) a method using measured sidelobe to focal peak pressure ratio, and (iv) a method for measuring the focal power fraction (FPF) experimentally. Spatial-peak intensities were estimated for 8 transducers at three drive powers levels: low (approximately 1 W), moderate (~10 W) and high (20-70 W). The calculated intensities were compared with those derived from focal peak pressure measurements made using a calibrated hydrophone. The FPF measurement method was found to provide focal peak intensity estimates that agreed most closely (within 15%) with the hydrophone measurements, followed by the pressure ratio method (within 20%). The numerical method was found to consistently over-estimate focal peak intensity (+40% on average), however, for transducers with a central hole it was more accurate than using the solid bowl assumption (+70% over-estimation). In conclusion, the ability to make use of an automated beam plotting system, and a hydrophone with good spatial resolution, greatly facilitates characterisation of the FPF, and

Experimental evaluation of IGBT junction temperature measurement via peak gate current

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Baker, Nick; Munk-Nielsen, Stig; Iannuzzo, Francesco

2015-01-01

Temperature sensitive electrical parameters allow junction temperature measurements on power semiconductors without modification to module packaging. The peak gate current has recently been proposed for IGBT junction temperature measurement and relies on the temperature dependent resistance...... of the gate pad. Consequently, a consideration of chip geometry and location of the gate pad is required before interpreting temperature data from this method. Results are also compared with a traditional electrical temperature measurement method: the voltage drop under low current....

Views on peak oil and its relation to climate change policy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Verbruggen, Aviel; Al Marchohi, Mohamed

2010-01-01

Definitions of fossil fuel reserves and resources and assessed stock data are reviewed and clarified. Semantics explain a large stake of conflict between advocate and critical voices on peak oil. From a holistic sources-sinks perspective, limited carrying capacity of atmospheric sinks, not absolute scarcity in oil resources, will impose tight constraints on oil use. Eventually observed peaks in oil production in nearby years will result from politically imposed limits on carbon emissions, and not be caused by physical lack of oil resources. Peak-oil belief induces passive climate policy attitudes when suggesting carbon dioxide emissions will peak naturally linked to dwindling oil supplies. Active policies for reducing emissions and use of fossil fuels will also encompass higher energy end-use prices. Revenues obtained from higher levies on oil use can support financing energy efficiency and renewable energy options. But when oil producers charge the higher prices they can pump new oil for many decades, postponing peak oil to occur while extending carbon lock-in.

Electron-electron Thomas peak in fast transfer ionization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tolmanov, S. G.; McGuire, J. H.

2000-01-01

''Thomas process'' is a name used for a family of singular two-step processes that can lead to electron transfer. The Thomas process of the ''second kind,'' occurring in reactions with both transfer and ionization, utilizes the e-e scattering in the second step, so this Thomas process requires the dynamics of the electron-electron interaction. We calculate numerically the second order element of an S matrix and corresponding cross sections for the transfer ionization process. We find that the position and shape of the Thomas peak depend on both electron-electron and the electron-nucleus interaction. Also the direct and exchange amplitudes are equal at the peak position. We test the peaking approximation used for transfer ionization. Our results can be compared to experimental results for p + +He→H+He 2+ +e - . (c) 2000 The American Physical Society

Critical experiments carried out with a homogeneous plutonium solution. Experimental results. Theoretical interpretations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bouly, J.C.; Caizergues, R.; Deilgat, E.; Houelle, M.; Lecorche, P.

1967-01-01

This report groups together a series of experimental and theoretical studies on cylinders and plates of solution tried out at the Valduc Centre. a) Comparison of the theoretical and experimental results obtained on critical heights of solutions. b) Study of the effect of nitrogen, introduced in the form of the ion NO 3- , on the reactivity of fissile media. c) Study of the effect of 240 94 Pu on the reactivity of these media. d) Study of the influence of the dimensions of the inner cavity of annular cylinders, as well as of the influence of the moderator which may be introduced. Simple results were obtained which were easy to apply. An extrapolation to other geometries is made. (authors) [fr

[An automatic peak detection method for LIBS spectrum based on continuous wavelet transform].

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Peng-Fei; Tian, Di; Qiao, Shu-Jun; Yang, Guang

2014-07-01

Spectrum peak detection in the laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an essential step, but the presence of background and noise seriously disturb the accuracy of peak position. The present paper proposed a method applied to automatic peak detection for LIBS spectrum in order to enhance the ability of overlapping peaks searching and adaptivity. We introduced the ridge peak detection method based on continuous wavelet transform to LIBS, and discussed the choice of the mother wavelet and optimized the scale factor and the shift factor. This method also improved the ridge peak detection method with a correcting ridge method. The experimental results show that compared with other peak detection methods (the direct comparison method, derivative method and ridge peak search method), our method had a significant advantage on the ability to distinguish overlapping peaks and the precision of peak detection, and could be be applied to data processing in LIBS.

Tidal and near-inertial peak variations around the diurnal critical latitude

Science.gov (United States)

van Haren, Hans

2005-12-01

Spectra from historic long-term open-ocean moored current meter data between latitudes 0° shift of the peak frequency to 0.97 +/- 0.01f, or a poleward spreading of enhanced energy. This contrasts with more common blue-shift. The enhancement may be the result of sub-harmonic instability, as supported by sparse significant bicoherence at half-D2, although i) systematic enhancement of diurnal tidal frequencies, notably M1, was not observed, ii) the latitudes of low D2-energy and high f-energy do not coincide. This may be due to a mix of coupled and independent waves, whilst the poleward trapping of sub-f energy suggests non-traditional effects.

Experimental investigation of the discharge valve dynamics in a reciprocating compressor for trans-critical CO2 refrigeration cycle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ma Yuan; He Zhilong; Peng Xueyuan; Xing Ziwen

2012-01-01

The self-acting valve has a significant influence on the efficiency and reliability of the reciprocating compressor. In the trans-critical CO 2 cycle, the large density and high pressure difference across the valve cause serious bending and impact stresses in the valve, offering great challenges for successful valve design. Experimental investigation of the valve dynamics is required in order to design a self-acting valve with a high efficiency and long life span for the trans-critical CO 2 compressor. A semi-hermetic reciprocating compressor was developed for application in CO 2 refrigeration, and a test system was incorporated into the compressor performance test rig, with a focus on investigating the dynamics of the discharge valves. With the experimental results, the movement of the valve was discussed in detail for the trans-critical CO 2 compressor, allowing for the study of the thermodynamic performance of the compressor. While varying design parameters such as pressure ratio, valve lift, spring stiffness and compressor speed, the movement of the discharge valve in the reciprocating CO 2 compressor was measured in order to investigate the major factors that influence the valve dynamics. The average valve speed increased from 0.71 m/s to 0.81 m/s as the discharge pressure changed from 7.8 MPa to 12 MPa. The experimental methods and results discussed in this paper could provide useful information for both valve testing and the optimization of their reliability in trans-critical CO 2 compressors.

Gas Bearing Control for Safe Operation in Critical Speed Regions - Experimental Verification

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Theisen, Lukas R. S.; Niemann, Hans H.; Galeazzi, Roberto

2015-01-01

supported by gas bearings to extend their operating range. Using H∞-design methods, active lubrication techniques are proposed to enhance the damping, which in turn reduces the vibrations to a desired safe level. The control design is validated experimentally on a laboratory test rig, and shown to allow...... and deceleration patterns and avoidance of operation near the critical speeds, which is a limiting factor during operation, specially during run-downs. An approach for reducing the vibrations is by feedback controlled lubrication. This paper addresses the challenge of reducing vibrations in rotating machines...

Explanation of the surface peak in charge integrated LEIS spectra

CERN Document Server

Draxler, M; Taglauer, E; Schmid, K; Gruber, R; Ermolov, S N; Bauer, P

2003-01-01

Low energy ion scattering is very surface sensitive if scattered ions are analyzed. By time-of-flight (TOF) techniques, also neutral and charge integrated spectra (ions plus neutrals) can be obtained, which yield information about deeper layers. In the literature, the observation of a more or less pronounced surface peak was reported for charge integrated spectra, the intensity of the surface peak being higher at low energies and for heavy projectiles. Aiming at a more profound physical understanding of this surface peak, we performed TOF-experiments and computer simulations for He projectiles and a copper target. Experiments were done in the range 1-9 keV for a scattering angle of 129 deg. . The simulation was performed using the MARLOWE code for the given experimental parameters and a polycrystalline target. At low energies, a pronounced surface peak was observed, which fades away at higher energies. This peak is quantitatively reproduced by the simulation, and corresponds to scattering from approx 2 atomic...

[A new peak detection algorithm of Raman spectra].

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Cheng-Zhi; Sun, Qiang; Liu, Ying; Liang, Jing-Qiu; An, Yan; Liu, Bing

2014-01-01

The authors proposed a new Raman peak recognition method named bi-scale correlation algorithm. The algorithm uses the combination of the correlation coefficient and the local signal-to-noise ratio under two scales to achieve Raman peak identification. We compared the performance of the proposed algorithm with that of the traditional continuous wavelet transform method through MATLAB, and then tested the algorithm with real Raman spectra. The results show that the average time for identifying a Raman spectrum is 0.51 s with the algorithm, while it is 0.71 s with the continuous wavelet transform. When the signal-to-noise ratio of Raman peak is greater than or equal to 6 (modern Raman spectrometers feature an excellent signal-to-noise ratio), the recognition accuracy with the algorithm is higher than 99%, while it is less than 84% with the continuous wavelet transform method. The mean and the standard deviations of the peak position identification error of the algorithm are both less than that of the continuous wavelet transform method. Simulation analysis and experimental verification prove that the new algorithm possesses the following advantages: no needs of human intervention, no needs of de-noising and background removal operation, higher recognition speed and higher recognition accuracy. The proposed algorithm is operable in Raman peak identification.

PeakSeeker: a program for interpreting genotypes of mononucleotide repeats

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Salipante Stephen J

2009-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Mononucleotide repeat microsatellites are abundant, highly polymorphic DNA sequences, having the potential to serve as valuable genetic markers. Use of mononucleotide microsatellites has been limited by their tendency to produce "stutter", confounding signals from insertions and deletions within the mononucleotide tract that occur during PCR, which complicates interpretation of genotypes by masking the true position of alleles. Consequently, microsatellites with larger repeating subunits (dinucleotide and trinucleotide motifs are used, which produce less stutter but are less genetically heterogeneous and less informative. A method to interpret the genotypes of mononucleotide repeats would permit the widespread use of those highly informative microsatellites in genetic research. Findings We have developed an approach to interpret genotypes of mononucleotide repeats using a software program, named PeakSeeker. PeakSeeker interprets experimental electropherograms as the most likely product of signals from individual alleles. Because mononucleotide tracts demonstrate locus-specific patterns of stutter peaks, this approach requires that the genotype pattern from a single allele is defined for each marker, which can be approximated by genotyping single DNA molecules or homozygotes. We have evaluated the program's ability to discriminate various types of homozygous and heterozygous mononucleotide loci using simulated and experimental data. Conclusion Mononucleotide tracts offer significant advantages over di- and tri-nucleotide microsatellite markers traditionally employed in genetic research. The PeakSeeker algorithm provides a high-throughput means to type mononucleotide tracts using conventional and widely implemented fragment length polymorphism genotyping. Furthermore, the PeakSeeker algorithm could potentially be adapted to improve, and perhaps to standardize, the analysis of conventional microsatellite genotypes.

Between Two Worlds: Twin Peaks and the Film/Television Divide

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Siobhan Lyons

2017-04-01

Full Text Available In 1992, the year David Lynch’s cult television series 'Twin Peaks' was pulled off air, Lynch released the film 'Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me', a prequel to the television series which filled in some of the gaps left from the series finale cliff-hanger. The film was received with unanimously negative reviews from critics and fans alike, condemning both its subtle and obvious deviations from the series and its inclusion of the character Laura Palmer, whose absence was a crucial narrative device at the centre of 'Twin Peaks'. In film form, the 'Twin Peaks' narrative suffers from thematic inconsistencies and aesthetic deviations. The scope of 'Twin Peaks' seems much more capable in the setting of television and its gradual, episodic set-up. In recent years, however, with the announcement of a revival of the series, retrospective analysis of 'Fire Walk with Me' has become more positive, and the film has also become an integral part of the overall 'Twin Peaks' canon. Nevertheless, the transition from television to film in the case of 'Twin Peaks' has remained a point of fan and scholarly controversy, with issues of continuity, narrative and aesthetics between the two different mediums continually being addressed and compared. In light of the news that the new season of 'Twin Peaks' is set to be released in 2017, this article examines the significance of 'Fire Walk with Me' as a cinematic counterpart and prequel to the original series, and how this has helped shape – whether positively or not – the overall narrative of 'Twin Peaks'.

Energy Saving by Chopping off Peak Demand Using Day Light

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ashok Kumar Maitra

2011-08-01

Full Text Available An artificial intelligent technique has been implemented in this research using real time datas to calculate how much energy can be chopped from peak load demand. The results are based on real time data that are taken from power delivering centers. These datas do reflect the present condition of power and a solution to those critical conditions during the peak period. These are done in such a way such that helps in judicious scheduling of load. The time based load scheduling has been done so as to understand the basic criteria for solving power crisis during morning peak and early evening peak. The sunray availability and percentage of load that will use day light saving (DLS technique has been taken into account in this work. The results shows that about 0.5% to 1% of load can be shedded off from the peak load period which otherwise is reduction of power. Thus it otherwise also means that an equivalent amount of energy is saved which amounts to a large saving of national money. This result is obtained on monthly and even daily basis. Thus this paper justifies DLS gives a new renewable technique to save energy.

Peaking of world oil production: Impacts, mitigation, & risk management

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hirsch, R.L. (SAIC); Bezdek, Roger (MISI); Wendling, Robert (MISI)

2005-02-01

The peaking of world oil production presents the U.S. and the world with an unprecedented risk management problem. As peaking is approached, liquid fuel prices and price volatility will increase dramatically, and, without timely mitigation, the economic, social, and political costs will be unprecedented. Viable mitigation options exist on both the supply and demand sides, but to have substantial impact, they must be initiated more than a decade in advance of peaking.... The purpose of this analysis was to identify the critical issues surrounding the occurrence and mitigation of world oil production peaking. We simplified many of the complexities in an effort to provide a transparent analysis. Nevertheless, our study is neither simple nor brief. We recognize that when oil prices escalate dramatically, there will be demand and economic impacts that will alter our simplified assumptions. Consideration of those feedbacks will be a daunting task but one that should be undertaken. Our aim in this study is to-- • Summarize the difficulties of oil production forecasting; • Identify the fundamentals that show why world oil production peaking is such a unique challenge; • Show why mitigation will take a decade or more of intense effort; • Examine the potential economic effects of oil peaking; • Describe what might be accomplished under three example mitigation scenarios. • Stimulate serious discussion of the problem, suggest more definitive studies, and engender interest in timely action to mitigate its impacts.

On dealing with multiple correlation peaks in PIV

Science.gov (United States)

Masullo, A.; Theunissen, R.

2018-05-01

A novel algorithm to analyse PIV images in the presence of strong in-plane displacement gradients and reduce sub-grid filtering is proposed in this paper. Interrogation windows subjected to strong in-plane displacement gradients often produce correlation maps presenting multiple peaks. Standard multi-grid procedures discard such ambiguous correlation windows using a signal to noise (SNR) filter. The proposed algorithm improves the standard multi-grid algorithm allowing the detection of splintered peaks in a correlation map through an automatic threshold, producing multiple displacement vectors for each correlation area. Vector locations are chosen by translating images according to the peak displacements and by selecting the areas with the strongest match. The method is assessed on synthetic images of a boundary layer of varying intensity and a sinusoidal displacement field of changing wavelength. An experimental case of a flow exhibiting strong velocity gradients is also provided to show the improvements brought by this technique.

Experimental validation of TASS/SMR-S critical flow model for the integral reactor SMART

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seo, Si Won; Ra, In Sik; Kim, Kun Yeup [ACT Co., Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Chung, Young Jong [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2011-05-15

An advanced integral PWR, SMART (System- Integrated Modular Advanced ReacTor) is being developed in KAERI. It has a compact size and a relatively small power rating (330MWt) compared to a conventional reactor. Because new concepts are applied to SMART, an experimental and analytical validation is necessary for the safety evaluation of SMART. The analytical safety validation is being accomplished by a safety analysis code for an integral reactor, TASS/SMR-S developed by KAERI. TASS/SMR-S uses a lumped parameter one dimensional node and path modeling for the thermal hydraulic calculation and it uses point kinetics for the reactor power calculation. It has models for a general usage such as a core heat transfer model, a wall heat structure model, a critical flow model, component models, and it also has many SMART specific models such as an once through helical coiled steam generator model, and a condensate heat transfer model. To ensure that the TASS/SMR-S code has the calculation capability for the safety evaluation of SMART, the code should be validated for the specific models with the separate effect test experimental results. In this study, TASS/SMR-S critical flow model is evaluated as compared with SMD (Super Moby Dick) experiment

Changes in Critical Thinking Skills Following a Course on Science and Pseudoscience: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Science.gov (United States)

McLean, Carmen P.; Miller, Nathan A.

2010-01-01

We assessed changes in paranormal beliefs and general critical thinking skills among students (n = 23) enrolled in an experimental course designed to teach distinguishing science from pseudoscience and a comparison group of students (n = 30) in an advanced research methods course. On average, both courses were successful in reducing paranormal…

Enhanced upper critical fields in binary Nb-Ti alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hariharan, Y.; Sastry, V.S.; Janawadkar, M.P.; Radhakrishnan, T.S.

1986-01-01

The authors report the enhancement of H/sub c2/ in quenched and suitably heat treated binary Nb-65 at % Ti alloys. The inherent metastability of the bcc β phase and its instability towards athermal ω are used to realise high values of normal state resistivity ε/sub n/. The consequences of this on the upper critical field have been experimentally determined by the measurement of dH/sub c2//dT at T/sub c/ and of T/sub c/. These together with our similar measurements on Nb-83 at % Ti alloy to which at 1 at % N was added (to retain it in the β phase) are analysed in terms of the existing theories for upper critical fields. It is shown that a peak in H/sub c2/(o) occurs at 17 - 18 T when ε/sub n/ has a value of approximately 100 μΩcm

Developing Critical Thinking Skills for Effective Communication : Citizenship Education and an Experimental English Lesson

OpenAIRE

KATO, Yuko

2009-01-01

Promoting critical thinking skills is one of several important learning skills necessary for effective communication in English. These abilities are crucial in developing the students' wider views of the world, working with others, and finding out better ideas and solutions. This study describes some key characteristics of these skills and how they are introduced in Citizenship Education in England and in Scandinavian countries. In addition, an experimental English lesson aiming at developing...

Peak-interviewet

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Raalskov, Jesper; Warming-Rasmussen, Bent

Peak-interviewet er en særlig effektiv metode til at gøre ubevidste menneskelige ressourcer bevidste. Fokuspersonen (den interviewede) interviewes om en selvvalgt, personlig succesoplevelse. Terapeuten/coachen (intervieweren) spørger ind til processen, som ledte hen til denne succes. Herved afdæk...... fokuspersonen ønsker at tage op (nye mål eller nye processer). Nærværende workingpaper beskriver, hvad der menes med et peak-interview, peakinterviwets teoretiske fundament samt metodikken til at foretage et tillidsfuldt og effektiv peak-interview....

'Peak oil' or 'peak demand'?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chevallier, Bruno; Moncomble, Jean-Eudes; Sigonney, Pierre; Vially, Rolland; Bosseboeuf, Didier; Chateau, Bertrand

2012-01-01

This article reports a workshop which addressed several energy issues like the objectives and constraints of energy mix scenarios, the differences between the approaches in different countries, the cost of new technologies implemented for this purposes, how these technologies will be developed and marketed, which will be the environmental and societal acceptability of these technical choices. Different aspects and issues have been more precisely presented and discussed: the peak oil, development of shale gases and their cost (will non conventional hydrocarbons modify the peak oil and be socially accepted?), energy efficiency (its benefits, its reality in France and other countries, its position in front of the challenge of energy transition), and strategies in the transport sector (challenges for mobility, evolution towards a model of sustainable mobility)

A method for development of efficient 3D models for neutronic calculations of ASTRA critical facility using experimental information

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Balanin, A. L.; Boyarinov, V. F.; Glushkov, E. S.; Zimin, A. A.; Kompaniets, G. V.; Nevinitsa, V. A., E-mail: Neviniza-VA@nrcki.ru; Moroz, N. P.; Fomichenko, P. A.; Timoshinov, A. V. [National Research Center Kurchatov Institute (Russian Federation); Volkov, Yu. N. [National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Russian Federation)

2016-12-15

The application of experimental information on measured axial distributions of fission reaction rates for development of 3D numerical models of the ASTRA critical facility taking into account azimuthal asymmetry of the assembly simulating a HTGR with annular core is substantiated. Owing to the presence of the bottom reflector and the absence of the top reflector, the application of 2D models based on experimentally determined buckling is impossible for calculation of critical assemblies of the ASTRA facility; therefore, an alternative approach based on the application of the extrapolated assembly height is proposed. This approach is exemplified by the numerical analysis of experiments on measurement of efficiency of control rods mockups and protection system (CPS).

A method for development of efficient 3D models for neutronic calculations of ASTRA critical facility using experimental information

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Balanin, A. L.; Boyarinov, V. F.; Glushkov, E. S.; Zimin, A. A.; Kompaniets, G. V.; Nevinitsa, V. A.; Moroz, N. P.; Fomichenko, P. A.; Timoshinov, A. V.; Volkov, Yu. N.

2016-01-01

The application of experimental information on measured axial distributions of fission reaction rates for development of 3D numerical models of the ASTRA critical facility taking into account azimuthal asymmetry of the assembly simulating a HTGR with annular core is substantiated. Owing to the presence of the bottom reflector and the absence of the top reflector, the application of 2D models based on experimentally determined buckling is impossible for calculation of critical assemblies of the ASTRA facility; therefore, an alternative approach based on the application of the extrapolated assembly height is proposed. This approach is exemplified by the numerical analysis of experiments on measurement of efficiency of control rods mockups and protection system (CPS).

French safety and criticality testing programmes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barbry, F.; Leclerc, J.; Manaranche, J.C.; Maubert, L.

1982-01-01

This article underlines the need to include experimental safety-criticality programmes in the French nuclear effort. The means and methods used at the Section of Experimental Nuclear Safety and Criticality Research, attached to the CEA Valduc Centre, are described. Three experimental programmes are presented: safety-criticality of the PWR fuel cycle, neutron poisoning of plutonium solutions by gadolinium and safety-criticality of slightly enriched and slightly moderated uranium oxide. Criticality accidents studies in solution are then described [fr

Automated Peak Picking and Peak Integration in Macromolecular NMR Spectra Using AUTOPSY

Science.gov (United States)

Koradi, Reto; Billeter, Martin; Engeli, Max; Güntert, Peter; Wüthrich, Kurt

1998-12-01

A new approach for automated peak picking of multidimensional protein NMR spectra with strong overlap is introduced, which makes use of the program AUTOPSY (automatedpeak picking for NMRspectroscopy). The main elements of this program are a novel function for local noise level calculation, the use of symmetry considerations, and the use of lineshapes extracted from well-separated peaks for resolving groups of strongly overlapping peaks. The algorithm generates peak lists with precise chemical shift and integral intensities, and a reliability measure for the recognition of each peak. The results of automated peak picking of NOESY spectra with AUTOPSY were tested in combination with the combined automated NOESY cross peak assignment and structure calculation routine NOAH implemented in the program DYANA. The quality of the resulting structures was found to be comparable with those from corresponding data obtained with manual peak picking.

Dynamics of supercooled liquids: excess wings, β peaks, and rotation-translation coupling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cummins, H Z

2005-01-01

Dielectric susceptibility spectra of liquids cooled towards the liquid-glass transition often exhibit secondary structure in the frequency region between the α peak and the susceptibility minimum, in the form of either an 'excess wing' or a secondary peak-the Johari-Goldstein β peak. Recently, Goetze and Sperl (2004 Phys. Rev. Lett. 92 105701) showed that a simple schematic mode coupling theory model, which incorporates rotation-translation (RT) coupling, successfully describes the nearly logarithmic decay observed in optical Kerr effect data. This model also exhibits both excess wing and β peak features, qualitatively resembling experimental dielectric data. It also predicts that the excess wing slope decreases with decreasing temperature and gradually evolves into a β peak with increasing RT coupling. We therefore suggest that these features and their observed evolution with temperature may be consequences of RT coupling

A method for interpolating asymmetric peak shapes in multiplet γ-ray spectra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Siguang; Mao Yajun; Zhu Bo; Liang Yutie; Tang Peijia

2009-01-01

The peak shapes of γ-rays at various energies must be known before unfolding the multiplet spectra obtained by using semiconductor or scintillation detectors. Traditional methods describe isolated peaks with multi-parameter fitting functions, and assume that most of these parameters do not vary with energy because it is rare to find a spectrum with enough isolated peaks to constrain their dependence. We present an algorithm for interpolating the γ-ray profile at any intermediate energy given a pair of isolated γ-ray peaks from the spectrum under consideration. The algorithm is tested on experimental data and leads to a good agreement between the interpolated profile and the fitting function. This method is more accurate than the traditional approach, since all aspects of the peak shape are allowed to vary with energy. New definitions of Left-Half Width at Half Maximum, and Right-Half Width at Half Maximum for peak shape description are introduced in this paper. (authors)

Experimental Investigation of the Peak Shear Strength Criterion Based on Three-Dimensional Surface Description

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Quansheng; Tian, Yongchao; Ji, Peiqi; Ma, Hao

2018-04-01

The three-dimensional (3D) morphology of joints is enormously important for the shear mechanical properties of rock. In this study, three-dimensional morphology scanning tests and direct shear tests are conducted to establish a new peak shear strength criterion. The test results show that (1) surface morphology and normal stress exert significant effects on peak shear strength and distribution of the damage area. (2) The damage area is located at the steepest zone facing the shear direction; as the normal stress increases, it extends from the steepest zone toward a less steep zone. Via mechanical analysis, a new formula for the apparent dip angle is developed. The influence of the apparent dip angle and the average joint height on the potential contact area is discussed, respectively. A new peak shear strength criterion, mainly applicable to specimens under compression, is established by using new roughness parameters and taking the effects of normal stress and the rock mechanical properties into account. A comparison of this newly established model with the JRC-JCS model and the Grasselli's model shows that the new one could apparently improve the fitting effect. Compared with earlier models, the new model is simpler and more precise. All the parameters in the new model have clear physical meanings and can be directly determined from the scanned data. In addition, the indexes used in the new model are more rational.

Experimental study of multilayer solid epitaxy: two-dimensional critical behavior of a quantum solid/superfluid interface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ramesh, S.

1985-01-01

This thesis constitutes the first precise, quantitative experimental study of layering transitions, two-dimensional critical temperatures, and their relation to surface roughening. The experiments used superfluid fourth sound to probe the liquid solid 4 He interface, by coupling with surface waves unique to this interface. An annular resonator with electric transducers was used to measure the fourth sound velocity c 4 in an exfoliated graphite (Grafoil) superleak. Measurements of the pressure dependence of the fourth sound resonance frequencies (and attenuation) from ∼6 bar to ∼26 bar were made along eight isotherms from 1.0 K to 1.7 K. Plots of fourth sound resonance frequency versus coverage clearly indicate layer-by-layer solid nucleation and epitaxal growth of hcp solid 4 He on the basal plane of graphite. Further analysis yielded solid adsorption isotherms and a kinetic growth coefficient for the 4 He crystal surface and also indicated the existence of a critical temperature region and also indicated the existence of a critical temperature region around 1.0-1.2 K (the region of a bulk roughening transition). The acoustical theory for the experimental system was worked out using a parallel waveguide model; Landau's thermohydrodynamic equations were reformulated by including the mass- and heat-exchange effects occurring in the system; the equations were solved to obtain expressions for the velocity of sound propagation and attenuation

Analysis of DCA experimental data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Min, B. J.; Kim, S. Y.; Ryu, S. J.; Seok, H. C.

2000-01-01

The lattice characteristics of DCA are calculated with WIMS-ATR code to validate WIMS-AECL code for the lattice analysis of CANDU core by using experimental data of DCA at JNC. Analytical studies of some critical experiments had been performed to analyze the effects of fuel composition. Different items of reactor physics such as local power peaking factor (LPF), effective multiplication factor (Keff) and coolant void reactivity were calculated for two coolant void fractions (0% and 100%). LPFs calculated by WIMS-ATR code are in close agreement with the experimental results. LPFs calculated by WIMS-AECL code with WINFRITH and ENDF/B-V libraries have similar values for both libraries but the differences between experimental data and calculated results by WIMS-AECL code are larger than those of WIMS-ATR code. The maximum difference between the values calculated by WIMS-ATR and experimental values of LPFs are within 1.3%. The coupled code systems WIMS-ATR and CITATION used in this analysis predict Keff within 1% ΔK and coolant void reactivity within 4 % ΔK/K in all cases. The coolant void reactivity of uranium fuel is found to be positive. To validate WIMS-AECL code, the core characteristics of DCA shall be calculated by WIMS-AECL and CITATION codes in the future

Experimental determination of critical data of liquid molybdenum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seydel, U.; Fucke, W.

1978-01-01

The submicrosecond resistive pulse heating of wire-shaped metallic samples in a highly incompressible medium leads to a thermodynamic state very close to the critical point of the liquid metal. The additional application of a static pressure may result in a critical or supercritical transition. First results on the critical data of molybdenum are reported: Tsub(c) = (11 150 +- 550) K, psub(c) = (5460 +- 1160) bar, vsub(c) = (36.5 +- 3.5) cm 3 mol -1 . (author)

METing SUSY on the Z peak

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barenboim, G.; Bernabeu, J.; Vives, O. [Universitat de Valencia, Departament de Fisica Teorica, Burjassot (Spain); Universitat de Valencia-CSIC, Parc Cientific U.V., IFIC, Paterna (Spain); Mitsou, V.A.; Romero, E. [Universitat de Valencia-CSIC, Parc Cientific U.V., IFIC, Paterna (Spain)

2016-02-15

Recently the ATLAS experiment announced a 3 σ excess at the Z-peak consisting of 29 pairs of leptons together with two or more jets, E{sub T}{sup miss} > 225 GeV and HT > 600 GeV, to be compared with 10.6 ± 3.2 expected lepton pairs in the Standard Model. No excess outside the Z-peak was observed. By trying to explain this signal with SUSY we find that only relatively light gluinos, m{sub g} or similar 400 GeV decaying predominantly to Z-boson plus a light gravitino, such that nearly every gluino produces at least one Z-boson in its decay chain, could reproduce the excess. We construct an explicit general gauge mediation model able to reproduce the observed signal overcoming all the experimental limits. Needless to say, more sophisticated models could also reproduce the signal, however, any model would have to exhibit the following features: light gluinos, or heavy particles with a strong production cross section, producing at least one Z-boson in its decay chain. The implications of our findings for the Run II at LHC with the scaling on the Z peak, as well as for the direct search of gluinos and other SUSY particles, are pointed out. (orig.)

METing SUSY on the Z peak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barenboim, G.; Bernabeu, J.; Vives, O.; Mitsou, V.A.; Romero, E.

2016-01-01

Recently the ATLAS experiment announced a 3 σ excess at the Z-peak consisting of 29 pairs of leptons together with two or more jets, E T miss > 225 GeV and HT > 600 GeV, to be compared with 10.6 ± 3.2 expected lepton pairs in the Standard Model. No excess outside the Z-peak was observed. By trying to explain this signal with SUSY we find that only relatively light gluinos, m g or similar 400 GeV decaying predominantly to Z-boson plus a light gravitino, such that nearly every gluino produces at least one Z-boson in its decay chain, could reproduce the excess. We construct an explicit general gauge mediation model able to reproduce the observed signal overcoming all the experimental limits. Needless to say, more sophisticated models could also reproduce the signal, however, any model would have to exhibit the following features: light gluinos, or heavy particles with a strong production cross section, producing at least one Z-boson in its decay chain. The implications of our findings for the Run II at LHC with the scaling on the Z peak, as well as for the direct search of gluinos and other SUSY particles, are pointed out. (orig.)

A Framework for Understanding and Generating Integrated Solutions for Residential Peak Energy Demand

Science.gov (United States)

Buys, Laurie; Vine, Desley; Ledwich, Gerard; Bell, John; Mengersen, Kerrie; Morris, Peter; Lewis, Jim

2015-01-01

Supplying peak energy demand in a cost effective, reliable manner is a critical focus for utilities internationally. Successfully addressing peak energy concerns requires understanding of all the factors that affect electricity demand especially at peak times. This paper is based on past attempts of proposing models designed to aid our understanding of the influences on residential peak energy demand in a systematic and comprehensive way. Our model has been developed through a group model building process as a systems framework of the problem situation to model the complexity within and between systems and indicate how changes in one element might flow on to others. It is comprised of themes (social, technical and change management options) networked together in a way that captures their influence and association with each other and also their influence, association and impact on appliance usage and residential peak energy demand. The real value of the model is in creating awareness, understanding and insight into the complexity of residential peak energy demand and in working with this complexity to identify and integrate the social, technical and change management option themes and their impact on appliance usage and residential energy demand at peak times. PMID:25807384

Gamma-ray escape peak characteristics of radiation-damaged reverse-electrode germanium coaxial detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pehl, R.H.; Hull, E.L.; Madden, N.W.; Xing Jingshu; Friesel, D.L.

1996-01-01

A comparison of the characteristics of full-energy gamma-ray peaks and their corresponding escape peaks when high energy photons interact in radiation damaged reverse-electrode (n-type) germanium coaxial detectors is presented. Coaxial detector geometry is the dominant factor, causing charge collection to be dramatically better for interactions occurring near the outer periphery of the detector as well as increasing of the probability of escape events occurring in this region. It follows that the resolution of escape peaks is better than that of ordinary gamma-ray peaks. This is experimentally verified. A nearly identical but undamaged detector exhibited significant Doppler broadening of single escape peaks. Because double escape events preferentially occur at outer radii, energy shifts of double escape reflect extremely small amounts of charge trapping in undamaged detectors. (orig.)

Peak reduction for commercial buildings using energy storage

Science.gov (United States)

Chua, K. H.; Lim, Y. S.; Morris, S.

2017-11-01

Battery-based energy storage has emerged as a cost-effective solution for peak reduction due to the decrement of battery’s price. In this study, a battery-based energy storage system is developed and implemented to achieve an optimal peak reduction for commercial customers with the limited energy capacity of the energy storage. The energy storage system is formed by three bi-directional power converter rated at 5 kVA and a battery bank with capacity of 64 kWh. Three control algorithms, namely fixed-threshold, adaptive-threshold, and fuzzy-based control algorithms have been developed and implemented into the energy storage system in a campus building. The control algorithms are evaluated and compared under different load conditions. The overall experimental results show that the fuzzy-based controller is the most effective algorithm among the three controllers in peak reduction. The fuzzy-based control algorithm is capable of incorporating a priori qualitative knowledge and expertise about the load characteristic of the buildings as well as the useable energy without over-discharging the batteries.

The critical role of the routing scheme in simulating peak river discharge in global hydrological models

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, F.; Veldkamp, T.; Frieler, K.; Schewe, J.; Ostberg, S.; Willner, S. N.; Schauberger, B.; Gosling, S.; Mueller Schmied, H.; Portmann, F. T.; Leng, G.; Huang, M.; Liu, X.; Tang, Q.; Hanasaki, N.; Biemans, H.; Gerten, D.; Satoh, Y.; Pokhrel, Y. N.; Stacke, T.; Ciais, P.; Chang, J.; Ducharne, A.; Guimberteau, M.; Wada, Y.; Kim, H.; Yamazaki, D.

2017-12-01

Global hydrological models (GHMs) have been applied to assess global flood hazards, but their capacity to capture the timing and amplitude of peak river discharge—which is crucial in flood simulations—has traditionally not been the focus of examination. Here we evaluate to what degree the choice of river routing scheme affects simulations of peak discharge and may help to provide better agreement with observations. To this end we use runoff and discharge simulations of nine GHMs forced by observational climate data (1971-2010) within the ISIMIP2a project. The runoff simulations were used as input for the global river routing model CaMa-Flood. The simulated daily discharge was compared to the discharge generated by each GHM using its native river routing scheme. For each GHM both versions of simulated discharge were compared to monthly and daily discharge observations from 1701 GRDC stations as a benchmark. CaMa-Flood routing shows a general reduction of peak river discharge and a delay of about two to three weeks in its occurrence, likely induced by the buffering capacity of floodplain reservoirs. For a majority of river basins, discharge produced by CaMa-Flood resulted in a better agreement with observations. In particular, maximum daily discharge was adjusted, with a multi-model averaged reduction in bias over about 2/3 of the analysed basin area. The increase in agreement was obtained in both managed and near-natural basins. Overall, this study demonstrates the importance of routing scheme choice in peak discharge simulation, where CaMa-Flood routing accounts for floodplain storage and backwater effects that are not represented in most GHMs. Our study provides important hints that an explicit parameterisation of these processes may be essential in future impact studies.

Construction of fast experimental reactor 'Joyo' from start of construction to criticality

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sakata, Hajime

1977-01-01

The fast experimental reactor ''Joyo'' is a sodium-cooled, fast neutron reactor using mixed oxide of uranium and plutonium, the first in Japan. The purposes of its construction are to experience and solve the various technical problems expected in the constructions of the prototype reactor ''Monju'' and future practical reactors, and to use as the irradiation facility for developing the fuel and material for fast breeder reactors in Japan after the completion. The construction finished by the end of 1974, and the synthetic functional test was carried out for about two years thereafter. The whole installation was handed over to PNC on March 8, 1977. The reactor attained the criticality on April 24, 1977. The outline of the construction works is described. ''Guidance to the structural design of sodium machinery for Joyo'' was compiled, and the analysis was made according to it. Moreover, various inspection standards regarding welding, electrical machinery, fuel and others were made. The revision of the design for improving the safety and performance was made during the construction at all times. The synthetic functional test was carried out for about two years on 266 items, and subsequently, the criticality test was completed satisfactorily. (Kako, I.)

Ultrasonic Transducer Peak-to-Peak Optical Measurement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pavel Skarvada

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Possible optical setups for measurement of the peak-to-peak value of an ultrasonic transducer are described in this work. The Michelson interferometer with the calibrated nanopositioner in reference path and laser Doppler vibrometer were used for the basic measurement of vibration displacement. Langevin type of ultrasonic transducer is used for the purposes of Electro-Ultrasonic Nonlinear Spectroscopy (EUNS. Parameters of produced mechanical vibration have to been well known for EUNS. Moreover, a monitoring of mechanical vibration frequency shift with a mass load and sample-transducer coupling is important for EUNS measurement.

Measurements of Ion Stopping around the Bragg Peak in High-Energy-Density Plasmas

Science.gov (United States)

Frenje, Johan

2015-11-01

Over the last few decades, ion stopping in weakly- to strongly-coupled High-Energy-Density (HED) plasmas has been subject to extensive analytical and numerical studies, but only a limited set of experimental data exists to check the validity of these theories. Most of these experiments also did not probe the detailed characteristics of the Bragg peak (peak ion stopping) where the ion velocity is similar to the average thermal electron velocity. To the best of our knowledge, only one exploratory attempt to do this was conducted by Hicks et al., who were able to describe qualitatively the behavior of the Bragg peak for one plasma condition. The work described in this presentation makes significant advances over previous experimental efforts by quantitatively assessing the characteristics of the ion stopping, ranging from low-velocity stopping, through the Bragg peak, to high-velocity stopping for different HED plasma conditions. This was achieved by measuring the energy loss of DD-tritons, D3He-alphas, DD-protons and D3He-protons, with distinctly different velocities, and the results indicate that the stopping power varies strongly with Te and ne. This effort represents the first experimental test of state-of-art plasma-stopping-power theories around the Bragg peak, which is an important first step in our efforts of getting a fundamental understanding of DT-alpha stopping in HED plasmas, a prerequisite for understanding ignition margins in various implosion designs with varying hot spot areal density at the National Ignition Facility. The work described here was performed in part at the LLE National Laser User's Facility (NLUF), and was supported in part by US DOE (Grant No. DE-FG03- 03SF22691), LLNL (subcontract Grant No. B504974) and LLE (subcontract Grant No. 412160-001G).

Experimental study on the critical heat flux in a varying acceleration field, (1)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kusunoki, Tsuyoshi; Yokomura, Takeyoshi; Otsuji, Tomoo; Ikawa, Masahiro; Kurosawa, Akira.

1988-12-01

It is very important for the thermohydraulic design and for the safety assesement of marine reactors, to understand the effect of varying acceleration induced by ship motion on critical heart flux. The purpose of this joint study is to examine quantitatively the influence of varying acceleration on the behavior of bubbles. In the experiment, FREON-113 was used as working fluid. This report describes some experimental results; measurements of void fraction and bubble velocity near the heat transfer surface, measurement of bubble size under stationary acceleration field and observation of bubble behavior under varying acceleration field. (author)

Genetic Spot Optimization for Peak Power Estimation in Large VLSI Circuits

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael S. Hsiao

2002-01-01

Full Text Available Estimating peak power involves optimization of the circuit's switching function. The switching of a given gate is not only dependent on the output capacitance of the node, but also heavily dependent on the gate delays in the circuit, since multiple switching events can result from uneven circuit delay paths in the circuit. Genetic spot expansion and optimization are proposed in this paper to estimate tight peak power bounds for large sequential circuits. The optimization spot shifts and expands dynamically based on the maximum power potential (MPP of the nodes under optimization. Four genetic spot optimization heuristics are studied for sequential circuits. Experimental results showed an average of 70.7% tighter peak power bounds for large sequential benchmark circuits was achieved in short execution times.

Hydrocarbon isotope detection by elastic peak electron spectroscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kostanovskiy, I.A., E-mail: kostanovskiyia@gmail.com [National Research University MPEI, Krasnokazarmennaya 14, 111250 Moscow (Russian Federation); Afanas’ev, V.P. [National Research University MPEI, Krasnokazarmennaya 14, 111250 Moscow (Russian Federation); Naujoks, D. [Max-Planck-Institut für Plasmaphysik, Teilinstitut Greifswald, Wendelsteinstraße 1, D-17491 Greifswald (Germany); Mayer, M. [Max-Planck-Institut für Plasmaphysik, D-85748 Garching (Germany)

2015-07-15

Highlights: • PCVD hydrocarbon coatings containing protium or deuterium are analyzed via NRA, ERD, XPS and EPES. • EPES analysis with modern electron energy analyzer SPECS Phoibos 225 shows a clear signal from the hydrogen isotopes. • Different primary energies and scattering angles help to quantify isotope content from EPES spectra. - Abstract: Experimental results on the hydrocarbon isotope analysis by elastic peak electron spectroscopy are presented. Amorphous hydrocarbon samples (a-C:H, a-C:D) are prepared by PCVD and analyzed by nuclear reaction analysis (NRA), elastic recoil detection analysis (ERD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and elastic peak electron spectroscopy (EPES). Electron energy spectra show a clear signal from the hydrogen isotopes deuterium and protium. Different incident energies and scattering geometries help to resolve plasmon and elastic energy losses.

Hydrocarbon isotope detection by elastic peak electron spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kostanovskiy, I.A.; Afanas’ev, V.P.; Naujoks, D.; Mayer, M.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • PCVD hydrocarbon coatings containing protium or deuterium are analyzed via NRA, ERD, XPS and EPES. • EPES analysis with modern electron energy analyzer SPECS Phoibos 225 shows a clear signal from the hydrogen isotopes. • Different primary energies and scattering angles help to quantify isotope content from EPES spectra. - Abstract: Experimental results on the hydrocarbon isotope analysis by elastic peak electron spectroscopy are presented. Amorphous hydrocarbon samples (a-C:H, a-C:D) are prepared by PCVD and analyzed by nuclear reaction analysis (NRA), elastic recoil detection analysis (ERD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and elastic peak electron spectroscopy (EPES). Electron energy spectra show a clear signal from the hydrogen isotopes deuterium and protium. Different incident energies and scattering geometries help to resolve plasmon and elastic energy losses

Hysteresis of critical currents of superconducting bridges in low perpendicular magnetic fields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aomine, T.; Tanaka, E.; Yamasaki, S.; Tani, K.; Yonekura, A.

1989-01-01

Hysteresis of critical currents I c of superconducting bridges with In, Nb, and NbN has been studied in low perpendicular magnetic fields. Influences of bridge geometry, small field sweep, trapped flux, and bombardment of argon ions on the hysteresis were made clear. The experimental results suggest that the edge pinning and trapped flux in the bank of bridges are associated with the hysteresis. The peak value of I c of NbN bridges, as well as granular Al and In bridges reported before, in decreasing fields agrees with the calculated pair-breaking current. The origin of the hysteresis is discussed

Inhibition of Myeloperoxidase at the Peak of Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis Restores Blood-Brain-Barrier Integrity and Ameliorates Disease Severity.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Hao; Ray, Avijit; Miller, Nichole M; Hartwig, Danielle; Pritchard, Kirkwood A; Dittel, Bonnie N

2015-11-12

Oxidative stress is thought to contribute to disease pathogenesis in the central nervous system (CNS) disease multiple sclerosis (MS). Myeloperoxidase (MPO), a potent peroxidase that generates toxic radicals and oxidants, is increased in the CNS during MS. However, the exact mechanism whereby MPO drives MS pathology is not known. We addressed this question by inhibiting MPO in mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) using our non-toxic MPO inhibitor KYC. We found that therapeutic administration of KYC for five days starting at the peak of disease significantly attenuated EAE disease severity, reduced myeloid cell numbers and permeability of the blood-brain-barrier (BBB). These data indicate that inhibition of MPO by KYC restores BBB integrity thereby limiting migration of myeloid cells into the CNS that drive EAE pathogenesis. In addition, these observations indicate that KYC may be an effective therapeutic agent for the treatment of MS. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Theoretical basis to measure the impact of short-lasting control of an infectious disease on the epidemic peak

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Omori Ryosuke

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background While many pandemic preparedness plans have promoted disease control effort to lower and delay an epidemic peak, analytical methods for determining the required control effort and making statistical inferences have yet to be sought. As a first step to address this issue, we present a theoretical basis on which to assess the impact of an early intervention on the epidemic peak, employing a simple epidemic model. Methods We focus on estimating the impact of an early control effort (e.g. unsuccessful containment, assuming that the transmission rate abruptly increases when control is discontinued. We provide analytical expressions for magnitude and time of the epidemic peak, employing approximate logistic and logarithmic-form solutions for the latter. Empirical influenza data (H1N1-2009 in Japan are analyzed to estimate the effect of the summer holiday period in lowering and delaying the peak in 2009. Results Our model estimates that the epidemic peak of the 2009 pandemic was delayed for 21 days due to summer holiday. Decline in peak appears to be a nonlinear function of control-associated reduction in the reproduction number. Peak delay is shown to critically depend on the fraction of initially immune individuals. Conclusions The proposed modeling approaches offer methodological avenues to assess empirical data and to objectively estimate required control effort to lower and delay an epidemic peak. Analytical findings support a critical need to conduct population-wide serological survey as a prior requirement for estimating the time of peak.

The peak efficiency calibration of volume source using 152Eu point source in computer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shen Tingyun; Qian Jianfu; Nan Qinliang; Zhou Yanguo

1997-01-01

The author describes the method of the peak efficiency calibration of volume source by means of 152 Eu point source for HPGe γ spectrometer. The peak efficiency can be computed by Monte Carlo simulation, after inputting parameter of detector. The computation results are in agreement with the experimental results with an error of +-3.8%, with an exception one is about +-7.4%

Simulation of the peak efficiency for a stacked NaI(Tl) spectrometer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yoshida, H; Murohka, H; Anami, K; Nohtomi, A; Uozumi, Y; Sakae, T; Matoba, M [Kyushu Univ., Fukuoka (Japan). Faculty of Engineering; Koori, N; Maki, T

1996-07-01

A stacked NaI(Tl) spectrometer has been developed to measure proton spectra in wide energy range. In the measurement of charged particles with intermediate energy, the detecting efficiency of the spectrometer decreases considerably due to nuclear reactions or out-scattering in the detector material. A Monte Carlo simulation code has been developed to estimate the peak efficiency (peak-to-total ratio) of the spectrometer. The calculated efficiency for intermediate energy is in good agreement with the experimental one. (author)

Reduction of chemical formulas from the isotopic peak distributions of high-resolution mass spectra.

Science.gov (United States)

Roussis, Stilianos G; Proulx, Richard

2003-03-15

A method has been developed for the reduction of the chemical formulas of compounds in complex mixtures from the isotopic peak distributions of high-resolution mass spectra. The method is based on the principle that the observed isotopic peak distribution of a mixture of compounds is a linear combination of the isotopic peak distributions of the individual compounds in the mixture. All possible chemical formulas that meet specific criteria (e.g., type and number of atoms in structure, limits of unsaturation, etc.) are enumerated, and theoretical isotopic peak distributions are generated for each formula. The relative amount of each formula is obtained from the accurately measured isotopic peak distribution and the calculated isotopic peak distributions of all candidate formulas. The formulas of compounds in simple spectra, where peak components are fully resolved, are rapidly determined by direct comparison of the calculated and experimental isotopic peak distributions. The singular value decomposition linear algebra method is used to determine the contributions of compounds in complex spectra containing unresolved peak components. The principles of the approach and typical application examples are presented. The method is most useful for the characterization of complex spectra containing partially resolved peaks and structures with multiisotopic elements.

Digital Storytelling for Enhancing Student Academic Achievement, Critical Thinking, and Learning Motivation: A Year-Long Experimental Study

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Ya-Ting C.; Wu, Wan-Chi I.

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of Digital storytelling (DST) on the academic achievement, critical thinking, and learning motivation of senior high school students learning English as a foreign language. The one-year study adopted a pretest and posttest quasi-experimental design involving 110 10th grade students in two English…

In-depth analysis of accidental criticality in a reprocessing plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomas, W.; Gmal, B.

1989-01-01

An in-depth-analysis including probabilistic considerations has been performed for a potential criticality excursion in two large vessels in a planned reprocessing plant. Criticality safety of these components is based on limitation of uranium and plutonium concentration. The main intention of this study was to investigate the potential and probable magnitude of a criticality in greater detail and to detect possible weaknesses of criticality safety provisions. The results of the analysis show, that the calculated probability of less than 5 · 10 -4 /a a for a criticality excursion in the most relevant rework tank may be further reduced. The peak power rework tank may be further reduced by design modifications. The peak power and total fissions of the critical excursion as assessed in a preceding analysis for licensing are conservative by factors of 10 and 4, respectively

Experimental data and calculation studies of critical heat fluxes at local disturbances of geometry of WWER fuel assemblies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kobzar, L.L.; Oleksyuk, D.A.

2001-01-01

The results of experiments executed in RRC 'Kurchatov Institute on the thermal-physical critical facility SVD are presented herein. The experiments modeled the drawing of two fuel rods to each other till touching WWER-1000 reactor in FA. The experimental model is a 7-rod bundle with the heated length of 1 m. The primary goal of experiments was to acquire the quantitative factors of the reduction in the critical heat fluxes as contrasted to the basic model (without disturbances of FA geometry) at the expense of local disturbance of a rod bundle geometry. As it follows from the experiment, the effect of decrease of the critical heat rate depends on combination of regime parameters and it makes 15% in the most unfavorable case (Authors)

Peak effect in untwinned YBa 2Cu 3O 7-δ single crystals

Science.gov (United States)

D'Anna, G.; André, M.-O.; Indenbom, M. V.; Benoit, W.

1994-12-01

We report on the observation of a weak effect of the critical current density in untwinned YBa 2Cu 3O 7-δ single crystals of different purity, using a low frequency torsion pendulum. We construct the peak effect line and the irreversibility line.

Technical Basis for Peak Reactivity Burnup Credit for BWR Spent Nuclear Fuel in Storage and Transportation Systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Marshall, William BJ J [ORNL; Ade, Brian J [ORNL; Bowman, Stephen M [ORNL; Gauld, Ian C [ORNL; Ilas, Germina [ORNL; Mertyurek, Ugur [ORNL; Radulescu, Georgeta [ORNL

2015-01-01

Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission have initiated a multiyear project to investigate application of burnup credit for boiling-water reactor (BWR) fuel in storage and transportation casks. This project includes two phases. The first phase (1) investigates applicability of peak reactivity methods currently used in spent fuel pools (SFPs) to storage and transportation systems and (2) evaluates validation of both reactivity (k_eff) calculations and burnup credit nuclide concentrations within these methods. The second phase will focus on extending burnup credit beyond peak reactivity. This paper documents the first phase, including an analysis of lattice design parameters and depletion effects, as well as both validation components. Initial efforts related to extended burnup credit are discussed in a companion paper. Peak reactivity analyses have been used in criticality analyses for licensing of BWR fuel in SFPs over the last 20 years. These analyses typically combine credit for the gadolinium burnable absorber present in the fuel with a modest amount of burnup credit. Gadolinium burnable absorbers are used in BWR assemblies to control core reactivity. The burnable absorber significantly reduces assembly reactivity at beginning of life, potentially leading to significant increases in assembly reactivity for burnups less than 15–20 GWd/MTU. The reactivity of each fuel lattice is dependent on gadolinium loading. The number of gadolinium-bearing fuel pins lowers initial lattice reactivity, but it has a small impact on the burnup and reactivity of the peak. The gadolinium concentration in each pin has a small impact on initial lattice reactivity but a significant effect on the reactivity of the peak and the burnup at which the peak occurs. The importance of the lattice parameters and depletion conditions are primarily determined by their impact on the gadolinium depletion. Criticality code validation for BWR burnup

Electricity Portfolio Management: Optimal Peak / Off-Peak Allocations

OpenAIRE

Huisman, Ronald; Mahieu, Ronald; Schlichter, Felix

2007-01-01

textabstractElectricity purchasers manage a portfolio of contracts in order to purchase the expected future electricity consumption profile of a company or a pool of clients. This paper proposes a mean-variance framework to address the concept of structuring the portfolio and focuses on how to allocate optimal positions in peak and off-peak forward contracts. It is shown that the optimal allocations are based on the difference in risk premiums per unit of day-ahead risk as a measure of relati...

Submaximal physical strain and peak performance in handcycling versus handrim wheelchair propulsion

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dallmeijer, A.J.; Zentgraaff, I.D.; Zijp, N.I.; van der Woude, L.H.V.

2004-01-01

Study design: Experimental study in subjects with paraplegia and nondisabled subjects. Objective: To compare submaximal physical strain and peak performance in handcycling and handrim wheelchair propulsion in wheelchair-dependent and nondisabled control subjects Setting: Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

A channel-by-channel method of reducing the errors associated with peak area integration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luedeke, T.P.; Tripard, G.E.

1996-01-01

A new method of reducing the errors associated with peak area integration has been developed. This method utilizes the signal content of each channel as an estimate of the overall peak area. These individual estimates can then be weighted according to the precision with which each estimate is known, producing an overall area estimate. Experimental measurements were performed on a small peak sitting on a large background, and the results compared to those obtained from a commercial software program. Results showed a marked decrease in the spread of results around the true value (obtained by counting for a long period of time), and a reduction in the statistical uncertainty associated with the peak area. (orig.)

Peak regulation right

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gao, Z. |; Ren, Z.; Li, Z.; Zhu, R.

2005-01-01

A peak regulation right concept and corresponding transaction mechanism for an electricity market was presented. The market was based on a power pool and independent system operator (ISO) model. Peak regulation right (PRR) was defined as a downward regulation capacity purchase option which allowed PRR owners to buy certain quantities of peak regulation capacity (PRC) at a specific price during a specified period from suppliers. The PRR owner also had the right to decide whether or not they would buy PRC from suppliers. It was the power pool's responsibility to provide competitive and fair peak regulation trading markets to participants. The introduction of PRR allowed for unit capacity regulation. The PRR and PRC were rated by the supplier, and transactions proceeded through a bidding process. PRR suppliers obtained profits by selling PRR and PRC, and obtained downward regulation fees regardless of whether purchases are made. It was concluded that the peak regulation mechanism reduced the total cost of the generating system and increased the social surplus. 6 refs., 1 tab., 3 figs

PeakAnalyzer: Genome-wide annotation of chromatin binding and modification loci

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tammoja Kairi

2010-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Functional genomic studies involving high-throughput sequencing and tiling array applications, such as ChIP-seq and ChIP-chip, generate large numbers of experimentally-derived signal peaks across the genome under study. In analyzing these loci to determine their potential regulatory functions, areas of signal enrichment must be considered relative to proximal genes and regulatory elements annotated throughout the target genome Regions of chromatin association by transcriptional regulators should be distinguished as individual binding sites in order to enhance downstream analyses, such as the identification of known and novel consensus motifs. Results PeakAnalyzer is a set of high-performance utilities for the automated processing of experimentally-derived peak regions and annotation of genomic loci. The programs can accurately subdivide multimodal regions of signal enrichment into distinct subpeaks corresponding to binding sites or chromatin modifications, retrieve genomic sequences encompassing the computed subpeak summits, and identify positional features of interest such as intersection with exon/intron gene components, proximity to up- or downstream transcriptional start sites and cis-regulatory elements. The software can be configured to run either as a pipeline component for high-throughput analyses, or as a cross-platform desktop application with an intuitive user interface. Conclusions PeakAnalyzer comprises a number of utilities essential for ChIP-seq and ChIP-chip data analysis. High-performance implementations are provided for Unix pipeline integration along with a GUI version for interactive use. Source code in C++ and Java is provided, as are native binaries for Linux, Mac OS X and Windows systems.

Improvement of nursing students' critical thinking skills through problem-based learning in the People's Republic of China: a quasi-experimental study.

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Haobin; Kunaviktikul, Wipada; Klunklin, Areewan; Williams, Beverly A

2008-03-01

A quasi-experimental, two-group pretest-post-test design was conducted to examine the effect of problem-based learning on the critical thinking skills of 46 Year 2 undergraduate nursing students in the People's Republic of China. The California Critical Thinking Skills Test Form A, Chinese-Taiwanese version was used as both a pretest and as a post-test for a semester-long nursing course. There was no significant difference in critical thinking skills at pretest, whereas, significant differences in critical thinking skills existed between the problem-based learning and lecture groups at post-test. The problem-based learning students had a significantly greater improvement on the overall California Critical Thinking Skills Test, analysis, and induction subscale scores compared with the lecture students. Problem-based learning fostered nursing students' critical thinking skills.

Experimental investigation of two-dimensional critical surface structure, stimulated Raman scattering, and two-plasmon decay instability. Annual report, January 1, 1981-April 30, 1982

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wong, A.Y.; Eggleston, D.L.; Tanikawa, T.; Qian, S.J.

1982-11-01

Experimental observations of the space and time evolution of resonantly enhanced electrostatic electric fields and plasma density in cylindrical geometry demonstrate the development of two-dimensional caviton structure when an initial density perturbation is imposed on the plasma in the direction perpendicular to the driver field. This two-dimensional structure is observed after the development of profile modification and grows on the ion time scale. The existence of a large azimuthal electric field component is an observational signature of two-dimensional structure. Enhanced electric field maxima are found to be azimuthally correlated with the density minima. Both the density cavities and electric field peaks exhibit increased azimuthal location with the growth of two-dimensional structure. The two-dimensional development exhibits a strong dependence on both perturbation wavenumber and driver power. The related theoretical literature is reviewed and numerical, analytical, and qualitative hybrid models for a driven, two-dimensional, inhomogeneous plasma are presented. Preliminary work is presented in the following additional areas: weak magnetic field effects on critical surface physics, optical measurements of fast electron production, two-dimensional effects in microwave-plasma interactions, Langmuir wave trapping, stimulated Raman scattering and two-plasmon decay instability

Experimental and numerical study of influence of ferromagnetic cover on critical current of BiSCCO-2223/Ag tape superconductor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vojenciak, M; Souc, J; Goemoery, F

2009-01-01

Samples of commercially available BiSCCO-2223/Ag tape have been partially covered by the ferromagnetic material. Improvement of the self-field critical current up to 15 % has been achieved by this procedure. A critical current of such tape strongly depends on geometric and magnetic properties of both, the superconducting tape as well as the ferromagnetic cover. Numerical simulations, based on the critical state model using commercial finite element method (FEM) code, have been performed. Properties of superconductor are characterized by anisotropic dependence of the critical current density on magnetic field as well as detail geometry of filaments. The ferromagnetic material is characterized by nonlinear magnetization curve. Nonlinear dependences of the critical current on selected parameters are shown in this work. Optimization of the cover parameters using these curves has been made. Samples with various parameters have been manufactured for the confirmation of numerical simulations results. Experimental results are in good qualitative agreement with results obtained by numerical simulations.

An Adaptive and Time-Efficient ECG R-Peak Detection Algorithm.

Science.gov (United States)

Qin, Qin; Li, Jianqing; Yue, Yinggao; Liu, Chengyu

2017-01-01

R-peak detection is crucial in electrocardiogram (ECG) signal analysis. This study proposed an adaptive and time-efficient R-peak detection algorithm for ECG processing. First, wavelet multiresolution analysis was applied to enhance the ECG signal representation. Then, ECG was mirrored to convert large negative R-peaks to positive ones. After that, local maximums were calculated by the first-order forward differential approach and were truncated by the amplitude and time interval thresholds to locate the R-peaks. The algorithm performances, including detection accuracy and time consumption, were tested on the MIT-BIH arrhythmia database and the QT database. Experimental results showed that the proposed algorithm achieved mean sensitivity of 99.39%, positive predictivity of 99.49%, and accuracy of 98.89% on the MIT-BIH arrhythmia database and 99.83%, 99.90%, and 99.73%, respectively, on the QT database. By processing one ECG record, the mean time consumptions were 0.872 s and 0.763 s for the MIT-BIH arrhythmia database and QT database, respectively, yielding 30.6% and 32.9% of time reduction compared to the traditional Pan-Tompkins method.

Modeling of Lightning Strokes Using Two-Peaked Channel-Base Currents

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. Javor

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Lightning electromagnetic field is obtained by using “engineering” models of lightning return strokes and new channel-base current functions and the results are presented in this paper. Experimentally measured channel-base currents are approximated not only with functions having two-peaked waveshapes but also with the one-peaked function so as usually used in the literature. These functions are simple to be applied in any “engineering” or electromagnetic model as well. For the three “engineering” models: transmission line model (without the peak current decay, transmission line model with linear decay, and transmission line model with exponential decay with height, the comparison of electric and magnetic field components at different distances from the lightning channel-base is presented in the case of a perfectly conducting ground. Different heights of lightning channels are also considered. These results enable analysis of advantages/shortages of the used return stroke models according to the electromagnetic field features to be achieved, as obtained by measurements.

Linear relationship between peak and season-long abundances in insects.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ksenia S Onufrieva

Full Text Available An accurate quantitative relationship between key characteristics of an insect population, such as season-long and peak abundances, can be very useful in pest management programs. To the best of our knowledge, no such relationship has yet been established. Here we establish a predictive linear relationship between insect catch Mpw during the week of peak abundance, the length of seasonal flight period, F (number of weeks and season-long cumulative catch (abundance A = 0.41MpwF. The derivation of the equation is based on several general assumptions and does not involve fitting to experimental data, which implies generality of the result. A quantitative criterion for the validity of the model is presented. The equation was tested using extensive data collected on captures of male gypsy moths Lymantria dispar (L. (Lepidoptera: Erebidae in pheromone-baited traps during 15 years. The model was also tested using trap catch data for two species of mosquitoes, Culex pipiens (L. (Diptera: Culicidae and Aedes albopictus (Skuse (Diptera: Culicidae, in Gravid and BG-sentinel mosquito traps, respectively. The simple, parameter-free equation approximates experimental data points with relative error of 13% and R2 = 0.997, across all of the species tested. For gypsy moth, we also related season-long and weekly trap catches to the daily trap catches during peak flight. We describe several usage scenarios, in which the derived relationships are employed to help link results of small-scale field studies to the operational pest management programs.

Multi-resonance peaks fiber Bragg gratings based on largely-chirped structure

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Chao; Zhang, Xuan-Yu; Wei, Wei-Hua; Chen, Yong-Yi; Qin, Li; Ning, Yong-Qiang; Yu, Yong-Sen

2018-04-01

A composite fiber Bragg grating (FBG) with multi-resonance peaks (MRPs) has been realized by using femtosecond (fs) laser point-by-point inscription in single-mode fiber. This device contains a segment of largely-chirped gratings with the ultrahigh chirp coefficients and a segment of uniform high-order gratings. The observed MRPs are distributed in an ultra-broadband wavelength range from 1200 nm to 1700 nm in the form of quasi-period or multi-peak-group. For the 8th-order MRPs-FBG, we studied the axial strain and high-temperature sensing characteristics of different resonance peaks experimentally. Moreover, we have demonstrated a multi-wavelength fiber lasers with three-wavelength stable output by using a 9th-order MRPs-FBG as the wavelength selector. This work is significant for the fabrication and functionalization of FBGs with complicated spectra characteristics.

Make peak flow a habit

Science.gov (United States)

Asthma - make peak flow a habit; Reactive airway disease - peak flow; Bronchial asthma - peak flow ... 2014:chap 55. National Asthma Education and Prevention Program website. How to use a peak flow meter. ...

Experimental investigation of pool boiling heat transfer and critical heat flux on a downward facing surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gocmanac, M.; Luxat, J.C.

2012-01-01

A separate effects experimental study of heat transfer and Critical Heat Flux (CHF) on a downward facing plate in subcooled water pool boiling is described. Two geometries of downwards facing surfaces are studied. The first is termed the 'confined' study in which bubble motion is restricted to the heated surface. The second is termed the 'unconfined' study where individual bubbles are free to move along the heated surface and vent in any direction. The method used in the confined study is novel and involves the placement of a lip surrounding the heated surface. The CHF as a function of angle of inclination of the surface is presented and is in good agreement with other experimental data from somewhat different test geometries. (author)

Critical comparison of experimental data and theoretical predictions for N-d scattering below the breakup threshold

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kievsky, A. [Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Pisa (Italy); Rosati, S. [Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Pisa (Italy)]|[Pisa Univ. (Italy). Dipt. di Fisica; Tornow, W. [Duke Univ., Durham, NC (United States). Dept. of Physics; Viviani, M. [Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Pisa (Italy)

1996-09-30

The theoretical approaches for studying N-d processes using realistic, semi-phenomenological NN potentials have matured considerably during the last few years. Accurate calculations of scattering observables are now feasible. Recently, high-quality measurements of N-d scattering at energies below the deuteron breakup threshold became available. Therefore, a detailed comparison between theory and experimental data can now be performed. In this paper the various sets of experimental data for the N-d differential cross section, and the vector and tensor analyzing powers are examined in a critical way in the incident nucleon energy range from 1 to 3 MeV. In order to identify possible inadequacies of the interaction models adopted, phase-shift analyses were performed and compared to the theoretical parameters. (orig.).

Peak tree: a new tool for multiscale hierarchical representation and peak detection of mass spectrometry data.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Peng; Li, Houqiang; Wang, Honghui; Wong, Stephen T C; Zhou, Xiaobo

2011-01-01

Peak detection is one of the most important steps in mass spectrometry (MS) analysis. However, the detection result is greatly affected by severe spectrum variations. Unfortunately, most current peak detection methods are neither flexible enough to revise false detection results nor robust enough to resist spectrum variations. To improve flexibility, we introduce peak tree to represent the peak information in MS spectra. Each tree node is a peak judgment on a range of scales, and each tree decomposition, as a set of nodes, is a candidate peak detection result. To improve robustness, we combine peak detection and common peak alignment into a closed-loop framework, which finds the optimal decomposition via both peak intensity and common peak information. The common peak information is derived and loopily refined from the density clustering of the latest peak detection result. Finally, we present an improved ant colony optimization biomarker selection method to build a whole MS analysis system. Experiment shows that our peak detection method can better resist spectrum variations and provide higher sensitivity and lower false detection rates than conventional methods. The benefits from our peak-tree-based system for MS disease analysis are also proved on real SELDI data.

Fluctuations of the peak current of tunnel diodes in multi-junction solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jandieri, K; Baranovskii, S D; Stolz, W; Gebhard, F; Guter, W; Hermle, M; Bett, A W

2009-01-01

Interband tunnel diodes are widely used to electrically interconnect the individual subcells in multi-junction solar cells. Tunnel diodes have to operate at high current densities and low voltages, especially when used in concentrator solar cells. They represent one of the most critical elements of multi-junction solar cells and the fluctuations of the peak current in the diodes have an essential impact on the performance and reliability of the devices. Recently we have found that GaAs tunnel diodes exhibit extremely high peak currents that can be explained by resonant tunnelling through defects homogeneously distributed in the junction. Experiments evidence rather large fluctuations of the peak current in the diodes fabricated from the same wafer. It is a challenging task to clarify the reason for such large fluctuations in order to improve the performance of the multi-junction solar cells. In this work we show that the large fluctuations of the peak current in tunnel diodes can be caused by relatively small fluctuations of the dopant concentration. We also show that the fluctuations of the peak current become smaller for deeper energy levels of the defects responsible for the resonant tunnelling.

THE EFFECTS OF AREA CONTRACTION ON SHOCK WAVE STRENGTH AND PEAK PRESSURE IN SHOCK TUBE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. M. Mohsen

2012-06-01

Full Text Available This paper presents an experimental investigation into the effects of area contraction on shock wave strength and peak pressure in a shock tube. The shock tube is an important component of the short duration, high speed fluid flow test facility, available at the Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN, Malaysia. The area contraction was facilitated by positioning a bush adjacent to the primary diaphragm section, which separates the driver and driven sections. Experimental measurements were performed with and without the presence of the bush, at various diaphragm pressure ratios, which is the ratio of air pressure between the driver (high pressure and driven (low pressure sections. The instantaneous static pressure variations were measured at two locations close to the driven tube end wall, using high sensitivity pressure sensors, which allow the shock wave strength, shock wave speed and peak pressure to be analysed. The results reveal that the area contraction significantly reduces the shock wave strength, shock wave speed and peak pressure. At a diaphragm pressure ratio of 10, the shock wave strength decreases by 18%, the peak pressure decreases by 30% and the shock wave speed decreases by 8%.

Experimental investigation of critical velocity in a parallel plate research reactor fuel assembly

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Castro, Alfredo J.A.; Scuro, Nikolas L.; Andrade, Delvonei A., E-mail: ajcastro@ipen.br [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNE-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)

2017-07-01

The fuel elements of a MTR (Material Testing Reactor) type nuclear reactor are mostly composed of aluminum coated fuel plates containing the core of uranium silica (U{sub 3}Si{sub 2}) dispersed in an aluminum matrix. These plates have a thickness of the order of millimeters and are much longer in relation to their thickness. They are arranged in parallel in the assembly of the fuel element to form channels between them a few millimeters in thickness, through which there is a flow of the coolant. This configuration, combined with the need for a flow at high flow rates to ensure the cooling of the fuel element in operation, may create problems of mechanical failure of fuel plate due to the vibration induced by the flow in the channels. In the case of critical velocity excessive permanent deflections of the plates can cause blockage of the flow channel in the reactor core and lead to overheating in the plates. For this study an experimental bench capable of high volume flows and a test section that simulates a plate-like fuel element with three cooling channels were developed. The dimensions of the test section were based on the dimensions of the Fuel Element of the Brazilian Multipurpose Reactor (RMB), whose project is being coordinated by the National Commission of Nuclear Energy (CNEN). The experiments performed attained the objective of reaching Miller's critical velocity condition. The critical velocity was reached with 14.5 m/s leading to the consequent plastic deformation of the flow channel plates. (author)

Investigation of intermittency in simulated and experimental turbulence data by wavelet analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mahdizadeh, N.; Ramisch, M.; Stroth, U.; Lechte, C.; Scott, B.D.

2004-01-01

Turbulent transport in magnetized plasmas has an intermittent nature. Peaked probability density functions and a 1/frequency decay of the power spectra have been interpreted as signs of self-organized criticality generated, similar to a sand pile, by the critical gradients of ion- (ITG) or electron-temperature-gradient (ETG) driven instabilities. In order to investigate the degree of intermittency in toroidally confined plasmas in the absence of critical pressure or temperature gradients, data from the drift-Alfven-wave turbulence code DALF3 [B. Scott, Plasma Phys. Controlled Fusion 39, 1635 (1997)], running with a fixed background pressure gradient, and from a weakly driven low-temperature plasma are analyzed. The intermittency is studied on different temporal scales, which are separated by a wavelet transform. Simulated and experimental data reproduce the results on intermittent transport found in fusion plasmas. It can therefore be expected that in fusion plasmas, too, a substantial fraction of the bursty nature of turbulent transport is not related to avalanches caused by a critical gradient as generated by ITG or ETG turbulence

Peak Experience Project

Science.gov (United States)

Scott, Daniel G.; Evans, Jessica

2010-01-01

This paper emerges from the continued analysis of data collected in a series of international studies concerning Childhood Peak Experiences (CPEs) based on developments in understanding peak experiences in Maslow's hierarchy of needs initiated by Dr Edward Hoffman. Bridging from the series of studies, Canadian researchers explore collected…

Nuclear criticality predictability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Briggs, J.B.

1999-01-01

As a result of lots of efforts, a large portion of the tedious and redundant research and processing of critical experiment data has been eliminated. The necessary step in criticality safety analyses of validating computer codes with benchmark critical data is greatly streamlined, and valuable criticality safety experimental data is preserved. Criticality safety personnel in 31 different countries are now using the 'International Handbook of Evaluated Criticality Safety Benchmark Experiments'. Much has been accomplished by the work of the ICSBEP. However, evaluation and documentation represents only one element of a successful Nuclear Criticality Safety Predictability Program and this element only exists as a separate entity, because this work was not completed in conjunction with the experimentation process. I believe; however, that the work of the ICSBEP has also served to unify the other elements of nuclear criticality predictability. All elements are interrelated, but for a time it seemed that communications between these elements was not adequate. The ICSBEP has highlighted gaps in data, has retrieved lost data, has helped to identify errors in cross section processing codes, and has helped bring the international criticality safety community together in a common cause as true friends and colleagues. It has been a privilege to associate with those who work so diligently to make the project a success. (J.P.N.)

Specifications, Pre-Experimental Predictions, and Test Plate Characterization Information for the Prometheus Critical Experiments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

ML Zerkle; ME Meyers; SM Tarves; JJ Powers

2006-01-01

This report provides specifications, pre-experimental predictions, and test plate characterization information for a series of molybdenum (Mo), niobium (Nb), rhenium (Re), tantalum (Ta), and baseline critical experiments that were developed by the Naval Reactors Prime Contractor Team (NRPCT) for the Prometheus space reactor development project. In March 2004, the Naval Reactors program was assigned the responsibility to develop, design, deliver, and operationally support civilian space nuclear reactors for NASA's Project Prometheus. The NRPCT was formed to perform this work and consisted of engineers and scientists from the Naval Reactors (NR) Program prime contractors: Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory, Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory (KAPL), and Bechtel Plant Machinery Inc (BPMI). The NRPCT developed a series of clean benchmark critical experiments to address fundamental uncertainties in the neutron cross section data for Mo, Nb, Re, and Ta in fast, intermediate, and mixed neutron energy spectra. These experiments were to be performed by Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) using the Planet vertical lift critical assembly machine and were designed with a simple, geometrically clean, cylindrical configuration consisting of alternating layers of test, moderator/reflector, and fuel materials. Based on reprioritization of missions and funding within NASA, Naval Reactors and NASA discontinued their collaboration on Project Prometheus in September 2005. One critical experiment and eighteen subcritical handstacking experiments were completed prior to the termination of work in September 2005. Information on the Prometheus critical experiments and the test plates produced for these experiments are expected to be of value to future space reactor development programs and to integral experiments designed to address the fundamental neutron cross section uncertainties for these refractory metals. This information is being provided as an orderly closeout of NRPCT work on Project

Gas-cooled fast reactors. Motivation and presentation of the ENIGMA program in the MASURCA experimental critical facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tommasi, Jean; Jacqmin, Robert; Mellier, Frederic

2005-01-01

This paper describes a new experimental physics program in support of gas cooled fast reactor (GCFR) design studies, called ENIGMA, to be performed in the MASURCA critical facility at CEA-Cadarache, France. The prospective GCFR design studies at CEA are presented, as well as the specific neutronics features needing an extension of the validation of calculation tools and nuclear data. The relevant existing experiments are briefly reviewed and the need for new experimental data is pointed out. The first phase of the proposed new experiments includes a reference core with a representative spectrum, and a series of central core substitutions involving spectrum shifts, streaming studies, low-grade Pu substitutions, innovative material (Si, Zr) substitutions. Reflector substitution zones will include elements foreseen for the reflectors (Si, Zr, C). Subsequent phases will involve larger amounts of low-grade Pu or innovative materials, and configurations representative of experimental and demonstration GCFRs. (author)

Critical experiments facility and criticality safety programs at JAERI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kobayashi, Iwao; Tachimori, Shoichi; Takeshita, Isao; Suzaki, Takenori; Miyoshi, Yoshinori; Nomura, Yasushi

1985-10-01

The nuclear criticality safety is becoming a key point in Japan in the safety considerations for nuclear installations outside reactors such as spent fuel reprocessing facilities, plutonium fuel fabrication facilities, large scale hot alboratories, and so on. Especially a large scale spent fuel reprocessing facility is being designed and would be constructed in near future, therefore extensive experimental studies are needed for compilation of our own technical standards and also for verification of safety in a potential criticality accident to obtain public acceptance. Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute is proceeding a construction program of a new criticality safety experimental facility where criticality data can be obtained for such solution fuels as mainly handled in a reprocessing facility and also chemical process experiments can be performed to investigate abnormal phenomena, e.g. plutonium behavior in solvent extraction process by using pulsed colums. In FY 1985 detail design of the facility will be completed and licensing review by the government would start in FY 1986. Experiments would start in FY 1990. Research subjects and main specifications of the facility are described. (author)

Find - a computer program for peak search in gamma-ray spectra measured with Ge (Li) detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Venturini, L.

1988-01-01

The program FIND is a FORTRAN IV computer code for peak search in spectra measured with Ge(Li) detectors. The program gives the position and estimates energy and relative significance for every peak found in the spectrum. The search in done by calculating a negative smoothed second difference of the experimental spectrum, as suggested by Phillips and Marlow (1). (author) [pt

An experimental and analytical study of fluid flow and critical heat flux in PWR fuel elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bowditch, F.H.; Mogford, D.J.

1987-02-01

This report describes experiments that have been carried out at the Winfrith Establishment of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority to determine the critical heat flux characteristics of pressurized water reactor fuel elements over an unusually wide range of coolant flow conditions that are relevant to both normal and fault conditions of reactor operation. The experiments were carried out in the TITAN loop using an electrically heated bundle of 25 rods of 9.5 mm diameter on a 12.7 mm pitch fitted with plain grids in order to provide a generic base for code validation. The fully tabulated experimental data for critical heat flux, pressure drop and sub-channel mixing are encompassed by ranges of pressure between 20 and 160 Bar, coolant flow between 150 and 3600 Kg/m 2 s, and coolant inlet temperature between 150 and 320 0 C. The results of the experiments are compared with predicted data based upon several established critical heat flux correlations. It is concluded that the extrapolation of some correlations to conditions beyond their intended range of application can lead to dangerous over estimates of critical heat flux, but the Winfrith WSC-2 and the EPRI NP-2609 correlations perform well over the whole data range and correlate all data with RMS errors of 9% and 6% respectively. (author)

Experimental Study of Thermal Field Evolution in the Short-Impending Stage Before Earthquakes

Science.gov (United States)

Ren, Yaqiong; Ma, Jin; Liu, Peixun; Chen, Shunyun

2017-08-01

Phenomena at critical points are vital for identifying the short-impending stage prior to earthquakes. The peak stress is a critical point when stress is converted from predominantly accumulation to predominantly release. We call the duration between the peak stress and instability "the meta-instability stage", which refers to the short-impending stage of earthquakes. The meta-instability stage consists of a steady releasing quasi-static stage and an accelerated releasing quasi-dynamic stage. The turning point of the above two stages is the remaining critical point. To identify the two critical points in the field, it is necessary to study the characteristic phenomena of various physical fields in the meta-instability stage in the laboratory, and the strain and displacement variations were studied. Considering that stress and relative displacement can be detected by thermal variations and peculiarities in the full-field observations, we employed a cooled thermal infrared imaging system to record thermal variations in the meta-instability stage of stick slip events generated along a simulated, precut planer strike slip fault in a granodiorite block on a horizontally bilateral servo-controlled press machine. The experimental results demonstrate the following: (1) a large area of decreasing temperatures in wall rocks and increasing temperatures in sporadic sections of the fault indicate entrance into the meta-instability stage. (2) The rapid expansion of regions of increasing temperatures on the fault and the enhancement of temperature increase amplitude correspond to the turning point from the quasi-static stage to the quasi-dynamic stage. Our results reveal thermal indicators for the critical points prior to earthquakes that provide clues for identifying the short-impending stage of earthquakes.

Peak Oil and other threatening peaks-Chimeras without substance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Radetzki, Marian

2010-01-01

The Peak Oil movement has widely spread its message about an impending peak in global oil production, caused by an inadequate resource base. On closer scrutiny, the underlying analysis is inconsistent, void of a theoretical foundation and without support in empirical observations. Global oil resources are huge and expanding, and pose no threat to continuing output growth within an extended time horizon. In contrast, temporary or prolonged supply crunches are indeed plausible, even likely, on account of growing resource nationalism denying access to efficient exploitation of the existing resource wealth.

Critical Zone Experimental Design to Assess Soil Processes and Function

Science.gov (United States)

Banwart, Steve

2010-05-01

experimental design studies soil processes across the temporal evolution of the soil profile, from its formation on bare bedrock, through managed use as productive land to its degradation under longstanding pressures from intensive land use. To understand this conceptual life cycle of soil, we have selected 4 European field sites as Critical Zone Observatories. These are to provide data sets of soil parameters, processes and functions which will be incorporated into the mathematical models. The field sites are 1) the BigLink field station which is located in the chronosequence of the Damma Glacier forefield in alpine Switzerland and is established to study the initial stages of soil development on bedrock; 2) the Lysina Catchment in the Czech Republic which is representative of productive soils managed for intensive forestry, 3) the Fuchsenbigl Field Station in Austria which is an agricultural research site that is representative of productive soils managed as arable land and 4) the Koiliaris Catchment in Crete, Greece which represents degraded Mediterranean region soils, heavily impacted by centuries of intensive grazing and farming, under severe risk of desertification.

Morphology, surface roughness, electron inelastic and quasi-elastic scattering in elastic peak electron spectroscopy of polymers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lesiak, B.; Kosinski, A.; Nowakowski, R.; Koever, L.; Toth, J.; Varga, D.; Cserny, I.; Sulyok, A.; Gergely, G.

2006-01-01

Complete text of publication follows. Elastic peak electron spectroscopy (EPES) deals with the interaction of electrons with atoms of a solid surface, studying the distribution of electrons backscattered elastically. The nearest vicinity of the elastic peak, (low kinetic energy region) reflects both, electron inelastic and quasi-elastic processes. The incident electrons produce surface excitations, inducing surface plasmons with the corresponding loss peaks separated by 1 - 20 eV energy from the elastic peak. Quasi-elastic losses result from the recoil of scattering atoms of different atomic number, Z. The respective energy shift and Doppler broadening of the elastic peak depend on Z, the primary electron energy, E, and the measurement geometry. Quantitative surface analytical application of EPES, such as determination of parameters describing electron transport, requires a comparison of experimental data with corresponding data derived from Monte Carlo (MC) simulation. Several problems occur in EPES studies of polymers. The intensity of elastic peak, considered in quantitative surface analysis, is influenced by both, the inelastic and quasi-elastic scattering processes (especially for hydrogen scattering atoms and primary electron energy above 1000 eV). An additional factor affecting the elastic peak intensity is the surface morphology and roughness. The present work compares the effect of these factors on the elastic peak intensity for selected polymers (polyethylene, polyaniline and polythiophenes). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and helium pycnometry are applied for deriving the surface atomic composition and the bulk density, while scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) for determining surface morphology and roughness. According to presented results, the influence of surface morphology and roughness is larger than those of surface excitations or recoil of hydrogen atoms. The component due to recoil of hydrogen atoms can be

Cloud-based solution to identify statistically significant MS peaks differentiating sample categories.

Science.gov (United States)

Ji, Jun; Ling, Jeffrey; Jiang, Helen; Wen, Qiaojun; Whitin, John C; Tian, Lu; Cohen, Harvey J; Ling, Xuefeng B

2013-03-23

Mass spectrometry (MS) has evolved to become the primary high throughput tool for proteomics based biomarker discovery. Until now, multiple challenges in protein MS data analysis remain: large-scale and complex data set management; MS peak identification, indexing; and high dimensional peak differential analysis with the concurrent statistical tests based false discovery rate (FDR). "Turnkey" solutions are needed for biomarker investigations to rapidly process MS data sets to identify statistically significant peaks for subsequent validation. Here we present an efficient and effective solution, which provides experimental biologists easy access to "cloud" computing capabilities to analyze MS data. The web portal can be accessed at http://transmed.stanford.edu/ssa/. Presented web application supplies large scale MS data online uploading and analysis with a simple user interface. This bioinformatic tool will facilitate the discovery of the potential protein biomarkers using MS.

Deciphering lead and cadmium stripping peaks for porous antimony deposited electrodes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Taimoor Aqeel Ahmad

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Cadmium and lead are generally taken as model heavy metal ions in water to scale the detection limit of various electrode sensors, using electrochemical sensing techniques. These ions interact with the electrochemically deposited antimony electrodes depending on the diffusion limitations. The phenomenon acts differently for the in-situ and ex-situ deposition as well as for porous and non-porous electrodes. A method has been adopted in this study to discourage the stripping and deposition of the working ions (antimony to understand the principle of heavy metal ion detection. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS technique was used to establish the interaction between the working and dissolved ions. In addition to the distinct peaks for each analyte, researchers also observed a shoulder peak. A possible reason for the presence of this peak was provided. Different electrochemical tests were performed to ascertain the theory on the basis of the experimental observations.

Measurement of disintegration rates of 60Co volume sources by the sum-peak method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kawano, Takao; Ebihara, Hiroshi

1991-01-01

The sum-peak method has been applied to the determination of the disintegration rates of 60 Co volume sources (1.05 x 10 4 Bq, 1.05 x 10 3 Bq and 1.05 x 10 2 Bq, in 100-ml polyethylene bottles) by using a NaI(Tl) detector of a diameter of 50 mm and a height of 50 mm. The experimental results showed that decreasing the disintegration rates resulted in enlarged underestimation in comparison with the true disintegration rates. It was presumed that the underestimations of the disintegration rates determined by the sum-peak method resulted from the overestimations of the areas under the sum peaks caused by the overlap of the area under the Compton scattering of the γ-ray (2614 keV) emitted from a naturally occurring radionuclide 208 Tl under the sum peaks. (author)

Measurement of critical temperatures and critical pressures for binary mixtures of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) + alcohol and MTBE + alkane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han, Kewei; Xia, Shuqian; Ma, Peisheng; Yan, Fangyou; Liu, Tao

2013-01-01

Highlights: • The critical properties of seven binary mixtures related to gasoline were measured. • The critical properties of the five systems containing MTBE were reported for the first time. • Binary interaction parameters were fitted by experimental data using PR EOS with Wong–Sandler mixing rule. • Redlich–Kister equation was used to correlate the experimental data. -- Abstract: A set of high-pressure view apparatus was designed for determining the critical properties of chemicals. In order to check the reliability of the apparatus, the critical temperatures (T c ) and critical pressures (P c ) of pure n-heptane, cyclohexane, methanol, ethanol, 1-propanol, methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), and binary mixture n-hexane + ethanol were measured. The experimental data were in good agreement with the literature data, which proves the reliability of the apparatus used in the work. The critical temperatures and critical pressures of five binary mixtures containing gasoline additive (MTBE + n-heptane, MTBE + cyclohexane, MTBE + methanol, MTBE + ethanol, MTBE + 1-propanol) were measured using the high-pressure view cell with visual observation. The critical temperatures and critical pressures for the five binary mixtures were all reported for the first time. In addition, the critical temperatures and critical pressures of the binary mixture n-heptane + cyclohexane (two of main components in gasoline) were also measured. All the critical lines for the mixtures studied are continuous which connect the critical points of the two pure components, indicating their phase diagrams belong to type I proposed by Scott and van Konynenburg. The critical points of these systems were calculated by the Peng–Robinson equation of state with the Wong–Sandler mixing rule. This model could calculate the critical properties of the mixtures well with the binary interaction parameter k ij obtained by fitting the experimental critical data. And the experimental data were all

Modelling of peak temperature during friction stir processing of magnesium alloy AZ91

Science.gov (United States)

Vaira Vignesh, R.; Padmanaban, R.

2018-02-01

Friction stir processing (FSP) is a solid state processing technique with potential to modify the properties of the material through microstructural modification. The study of heat transfer in FSP aids in the identification of defects like flash, inadequate heat input, poor material flow and mixing etc. In this paper, transient temperature distribution during FSP of magnesium alloy AZ91 was simulated using finite element modelling. The numerical model results were validated using the experimental results from the published literature. The model was used to predict the peak temperature obtained during FSP for various process parameter combinations. The simulated peak temperature results were used to develop a statistical model. The effect of process parameters namely tool rotation speed, tool traverse speed and shoulder diameter of the tool on the peak temperature was investigated using the developed statistical model. It was found that peak temperature was directly proportional to tool rotation speed and shoulder diameter and inversely proportional to tool traverse speed.

An empirical method for peak-to-total ratio computation of a gamma-ray detector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cesana, A.; Terrani, M.

1989-01-01

A simple expression for peak-to-total ratio evaluation of gamma-ray detectors in the energy range 0.3-10 MeV is proposed. The quantities one needs to know for the computation are: Detector dimensions and chemical composition, photon corss sections and an empirical energy dependent function which is valid for all the detector materials considered. This procedure seems able to produce peak-to-total values with an accuracy comparable with the most sophisticated Monte Carlo calculations. It has been tested using experimental peak-to-total values of Ge, NaI, CsI and BGO detectors but it is reasonable to suppose that it is valid for any detector material. (orig.)

Peak power ratio generator

Science.gov (United States)

Moyer, R.D.

A peak power ratio generator is described for measuring, in combination with a conventional power meter, the peak power level of extremely narrow pulses in the gigahertz radio frequency bands. The present invention in a preferred embodiment utilizes a tunnel diode and a back diode combination in a detector circuit as the only high speed elements. The high speed tunnel diode provides a bistable signal and serves as a memory device of the input pulses for the remaining, slower components. A hybrid digital and analog loop maintains the peak power level of a reference channel at a known amount. Thus, by measuring the average power levels of the reference signal and the source signal, the peak power level of the source signal can be determined.

Program of nuclear criticality safety experiment at JAERI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kobayashi, Iwao; Tachimori, Shoichi; Takeshita, Isao; Suzaki, Takenori; Ohnishi, Nobuaki

1983-11-01

JAERI is promoting the nuclear criticality safety research program, in which a new facility for criticality safety experiments (Criticality Safety Experimental Facility : CSEF) is to be built for the experiments with solution fuel. One of the experimental researches is to measure, collect and evaluate the experimental data needed for evaluation of criticality safety of the nuclear fuel cycle facilities. Another research area is a study of the phenomena themselves which are incidental to postulated critical accidents. Investigation of the scale and characteristics of the influences caused by the accident is also included in this research. The result of the conceptual design of CSEF is summarized in this report. (author)

WaVPeak: Picking NMR peaks through wavelet-based smoothing and volume-based filtering

KAUST Repository

Liu, Zhi

2012-02-10

Motivation: Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has been widely used as a powerful tool to determine the 3D structures of proteins in vivo. However, the post-spectra processing stage of NMR structure determination usually involves a tremendous amount of time and expert knowledge, which includes peak picking, chemical shift assignment and structure calculation steps. Detecting accurate peaks from the NMR spectra is a prerequisite for all following steps, and thus remains a key problem in automatic NMR structure determination. Results: We introduce WaVPeak, a fully automatic peak detection method. WaVPeak first smoothes the given NMR spectrum by wavelets. The peaks are then identified as the local maxima. The false positive peaks are filtered out efficiently by considering the volume of the peaks. WaVPeak has two major advantages over the state-of-the-art peak-picking methods. First, through wavelet-based smoothing, WaVPeak does not eliminate any data point in the spectra. Therefore, WaVPeak is able to detect weak peaks that are embedded in the noise level. NMR spectroscopists need the most help isolating these weak peaks. Second, WaVPeak estimates the volume of the peaks to filter the false positives. This is more reliable than intensity-based filters that are widely used in existing methods. We evaluate the performance of WaVPeak on the benchmark set proposed by PICKY (Alipanahi et al., 2009), one of the most accurate methods in the literature. The dataset comprises 32 2D and 3D spectra from eight different proteins. Experimental results demonstrate that WaVPeak achieves an average of 96%, 91%, 88%, 76% and 85% recall on 15N-HSQC, HNCO, HNCA, HNCACB and CBCA(CO)NH, respectively. When the same number of peaks are considered, WaVPeak significantly outperforms PICKY. The Author(s) 2012. Published by Oxford University Press.

Interpretation of the peak areas in gamma-ray spectra that have a large relative uncertainty

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Korun, M.; Maver Modec, P.; Vodenik, B.

2012-01-01

Empirical evidence is provided that the areas of peaks having a relative uncertainty in excess of 30% are overestimated. This systematic influence is of a statistical nature and originates in way the peak-analyzing routine recognizes the small peaks. It is not easy to detect this influence since it is smaller than the peak-area uncertainty. However, the systematic influence can be revealed in repeated measurements under the same experimental conditions, e.g., in background measurements. To evaluate the systematic influence, background measurements were analyzed with the peak-analyzing procedure described by Korun et al. (2008). The magnitude of the influence depends on the relative uncertainty of the peak area and may amount, in the conditions used in the peak analysis, to a factor of 5 at relative uncertainties exceeding 60%. From the measurements, the probability for type-II errors, as a function of the relative uncertainty of the peak area, was extracted. This probability is near zero below an uncertainty of 30% and rises to 90% at uncertainties exceeding 50%. - Highlights: ► A systematic influence affecting small peak areas in gamma-ray spectra is described. ► The influence originates in the peak locating procedure, using a pre-determined sensitivity. ► The predetermined sensitivity makes peak areas with large uncertainties to be overestimated. ► The influence depends on the relative uncertainty of the number of counts in the peak. ► Corrections exceeding a factor of 3 are attained at peak area uncertainties exceeding 60%.

ANAEROBIC CAPACITY MAY NOT BE DETERMINED BY CRITICAL POWER MODEL IN ELITE TABLE TENNIS PLAYERS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alessandro M. Zagatto

2008-03-01

Full Text Available The aim of the present study was to verify the applicability of anaerobic work capacity (AWC determined from the critical power model in elite table tennis players. Eight male international level table tennis players participated in the study. The tests undertaken were: 1 A critical frequency test used to determinate the anaerobic work capacity; 2 Wingate tests were performed using leg and arm ergometers. AWC corresponded to 99.5 ± 29.1 table tennis balls. AWC was not related to peak (r = -0.25, mean (r = -0.02, relative peak (r = -0.49 or relative mean power (r = 0.01, nor fatigue index (r = -0.52 (Wingate leg ergometer. Similar correlations for peak (r = -0.34, mean (r = -0.04, relative peak (r = -0.49, relative mean power (r = -0.14 and peak blood lactate concentration (r = -0.08 were determined in the Wingate arm ergometer test. Based on these results the AWC determined by a modified critical power test was not a good index for measurement of anaerobic capacity in table tennis players

Impact of a critical care postgraduate certificate course on nurses' self-reported competence and confidence: A quasi-experimental study.

Science.gov (United States)

Baxter, Rebecca; Edvardsson, David

2018-06-01

Postgraduate education is said to support the development of nurses' professional competence and confidence, essential to the delivery of safe and effective care. However, there is a shortness of empirical evidence to demonstrate an increase to nurses' self-reported confidence and competence on completion of critical care postgraduate certificate-level education. To explore the impact of a critical care postgraduate certificate course on nurses' self-reported competence and confidence. To explore the psychometric properties and performance of the Critical Care Competence and Confidence Questionnaire. A quasi-experimental pre/post-test design. A total population sample of nurses completing a critical care postgraduate certificate course at an Australian University. The Critical Care Competence and Confidence Questionnaire was developed for this study to measure nurses' self-reported competence and confidence at baseline and follow up. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to explore sample characteristics and changes between baseline and follow-up. Reliability of the questionnaire was explored using Cronbach's Alpha and item-total correlations. There was a statistically significant increase in competence and confidence between baseline and follow-up across all questionnaire domains. Satisfactory reliability estimates were found for the questionnaire. Completion of a critical care postgraduate certificate course significantly increased nurses' perceived competence and confidence. The Critical Care Competence and Confidence Questionnaire was found to be psychometrically sound for measuring nurses' self-reported competence and confidence. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Numerical and Experimental Investigation on the Structural Behaviour of a Horizontal Stabilizer under Critical Aerodynamic Loading Conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Sepe

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of the proposed research activity is to investigate the mechanical behaviour of a part of aerospace horizontal stabilizer, made of composite materials and undergoing static loads. The prototype design and manufacturing phases have been carried out in the framework of this research activity. The structural components of such stabilizer are made of composite sandwich panels (HTA 5131/RTM 6 with honeycomb core (HRH-10-1/8-4.0; the sandwich skins have been made by means of Resin Transfer Moulding (RTM process. In order to assess the mechanical strength of this stabilizer, experimental tests have been performed. In particular, the most critical inflight recorded aerodynamic load has been experimentally reproduced and applied on the stabilizer. A numerical model, based on the Finite Element Method (FEM and aimed at reducing the experimental effort, has been preliminarily developed to calibrate amplitude, direction, and distribution of an equivalent and simpler load vector to be used in the experimental test. The FEM analysis, performed by using NASTRAN code, has allowed modelling the skins of the composite sandwich plates by definition of material properties and stack orientation of each lamina, while the honeycomb core has been modelled by using an equivalent orthotropic plate. Numerical and experimental results have been compared and a good agreement has been achieved.

PolyaPeak: Detecting Transcription Factor Binding Sites from ChIP-seq Using Peak Shape Information

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Hao; Ji, Hongkai

2014-01-01

ChIP-seq is a powerful technology for detecting genomic regions where a protein of interest interacts with DNA. ChIP-seq data for mapping transcription factor binding sites (TFBSs) have a characteristic pattern: around each binding site, sequence reads aligned to the forward and reverse strands of the reference genome form two separate peaks shifted away from each other, and the true binding site is located in between these two peaks. While it has been shown previously that the accuracy and resolution of binding site detection can be improved by modeling the pattern, efficient methods are unavailable to fully utilize that information in TFBS detection procedure. We present PolyaPeak, a new method to improve TFBS detection by incorporating the peak shape information. PolyaPeak describes peak shapes using a flexible Pólya model. The shapes are automatically learnt from the data using Minorization-Maximization (MM) algorithm, then integrated with the read count information via a hierarchical model to distinguish true binding sites from background noises. Extensive real data analyses show that PolyaPeak is capable of robustly improving TFBS detection compared with existing methods. An R package is freely available. PMID:24608116

Operational and structural measures to reduce hydro-peaking impact on fish larvae

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kopecki, Ianina; Schneider, Matthias

2016-01-01

Eco-hydraulic investigations studying the effects of hydro-peaking on river biota are gaining in importance. Negative effects of rapid flow fluctuations due to hydro power production are well documented by many studies, with the larvae and juvenile fish identified among the mostly affected life stages. Therefore, elaboration of efficient hydro-peaking mitigation strategies is an important issue for energy companies as well as for water body administrations responsible for the fulfilment of WFD requirements. The present case study strives for practical solutions allowing to minimize or compensate the negative effects of hydro-peaking on the fish fauna of the 7 km long river reach on the river Lech (southern Germany). Model based investigations allow to access the impact from currently authorized discharge regime, suggest operational and structural measures within the reach in terms of reducing the risk of stranding for fish larvae and select the measures most easy to implement and with the largest ecological benefit. The paper describes the approach for accessing the effects of hydro-peaking based on 2D hydrodynamic modelling, fuzzy logic based habitat modelling and information on cutting-edge biological investigations on fish larvae from Lunz experimental facility (Austria). (authors)

Numerical Simulation of the Kinetic Critical Nucleus

OpenAIRE

Sanada, Masaaki; Nishioka, Kazumi; Okada, Masahumi; Maksimov, Igor, L.

1997-01-01

Our main interest is to see whether the number density indicates a peak at the kinetically stable critical nucleus due to its kinetical stability. We have numerically calculated the time evolution of the number densities of clusters in the case of water vapor nucleation. We employ the condition in which the difference between the size of the thermodynamic crtitical nucleus and that of the kinetic one is appreciable. The results show that the peak does not appear in the number densities of clu...

Degradation of the Bragg peak due to inhomogeneities.

Science.gov (United States)

Urie, M; Goitein, M; Holley, W R; Chen, G T

1986-01-01

The rapid fall-off of dose at the end of range of heavy charged particle beams has the potential in therapeutic applications of sparing critical structures just distal to the target volume. Here we explored the effects of highly inhomogeneous regions on this desirable depth-dose characteristic. The proton depth-dose distribution behind a lucite-air interface parallel to the beam was bimodal, indicating the presence of two groups of protons with different residual ranges, creating a step-like depth-dose distribution at the end of range. The residual ranges became more spread out as the interface was angled at 3 degrees, and still more at 6 degrees, to the direction of the beam. A second experiment showed little significant effect on the distal depth-dose of protons having passed through a mosaic of teflon and lucite. Anatomic studies demonstrated significant effects of complex fine inhomogeneities on the end of range characteristics. Monoenergetic protons passing through the petrous ridges and mastoid air cells in the base of skull showed a dramatic degradation of the distal Bragg peak. In beams with spread out Bragg peaks passing through regions of the base of skull, the distal fall-off from 90 to 20% dose was increased from its nominal 6 to well over 32 mm. Heavy ions showed a corresponding degradation in their ends of range. In the worst case in the base of skull region, a monoenergetic neon beam showed a broadening of the full width at half maximum of the Bragg peak to over 15 mm (compared with 4 mm in a homogeneous unit density medium). A similar effect was found with carbon ions in the abdomen, where the full width at half maximum of the Bragg peak (nominally 5.5 mm) was found to be greater than 25 mm behind gas-soft-tissue interfaces. We address the implications of these data for dose computation with heavy charged particles.

A NEW METHOD OF PEAK DETECTION FOR ANALYSIS OF COMPREHENSIVE TWO-DIMENSIONAL GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY MASS SPECTROMETRY DATA.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Seongho; Ouyang, Ming; Jeong, Jaesik; Shen, Changyu; Zhang, Xiang

2014-06-01

We develop a novel peak detection algorithm for the analysis of comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC×GC-TOF MS) data using normal-exponential-Bernoulli (NEB) and mixture probability models. The algorithm first performs baseline correction and denoising simultaneously using the NEB model, which also defines peak regions. Peaks are then picked using a mixture of probability distribution to deal with the co-eluting peaks. Peak merging is further carried out based on the mass spectral similarities among the peaks within the same peak group. The algorithm is evaluated using experimental data to study the effect of different cut-offs of the conditional Bayes factors and the effect of different mixture models including Poisson, truncated Gaussian, Gaussian, Gamma, and exponentially modified Gaussian (EMG) distributions, and the optimal version is introduced using a trial-and-error approach. We then compare the new algorithm with two existing algorithms in terms of compound identification. Data analysis shows that the developed algorithm can detect the peaks with lower false discovery rates than the existing algorithms, and a less complicated peak picking model is a promising alternative to the more complicated and widely used EMG mixture models.

A NEW METHOD OF PEAK DETECTION FOR ANALYSIS OF COMPREHENSIVE TWO-DIMENSIONAL GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY MASS SPECTROMETRY DATA*

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Seongho; Ouyang, Ming; Jeong, Jaesik; Shen, Changyu; Zhang, Xiang

2014-01-01

We develop a novel peak detection algorithm for the analysis of comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC×GC-TOF MS) data using normal-exponential-Bernoulli (NEB) and mixture probability models. The algorithm first performs baseline correction and denoising simultaneously using the NEB model, which also defines peak regions. Peaks are then picked using a mixture of probability distribution to deal with the co-eluting peaks. Peak merging is further carried out based on the mass spectral similarities among the peaks within the same peak group. The algorithm is evaluated using experimental data to study the effect of different cut-offs of the conditional Bayes factors and the effect of different mixture models including Poisson, truncated Gaussian, Gaussian, Gamma, and exponentially modified Gaussian (EMG) distributions, and the optimal version is introduced using a trial-and-error approach. We then compare the new algorithm with two existing algorithms in terms of compound identification. Data analysis shows that the developed algorithm can detect the peaks with lower false discovery rates than the existing algorithms, and a less complicated peak picking model is a promising alternative to the more complicated and widely used EMG mixture models. PMID:25264474

Improved Peak Detection and Deconvolution of Native Electrospray Mass Spectra from Large Protein Complexes.

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Jonathan; Trnka, Michael J; Roh, Soung-Hun; Robinson, Philip J J; Shiau, Carrie; Fujimori, Danica Galonic; Chiu, Wah; Burlingame, Alma L; Guan, Shenheng

2015-12-01

Native electrospray-ionization mass spectrometry (native MS) measures biomolecules under conditions that preserve most aspects of protein tertiary and quaternary structure, enabling direct characterization of large intact protein assemblies. However, native spectra derived from these assemblies are often partially obscured by low signal-to-noise as well as broad peak shapes because of residual solvation and adduction after the electrospray process. The wide peak widths together with the fact that sequential charge state series from highly charged ions are closely spaced means that native spectra containing multiple species often suffer from high degrees of peak overlap or else contain highly interleaved charge envelopes. This situation presents a challenge for peak detection, correct charge state and charge envelope assignment, and ultimately extraction of the relevant underlying mass values of the noncovalent assemblages being investigated. In this report, we describe a comprehensive algorithm developed for addressing peak detection, peak overlap, and charge state assignment in native mass spectra, called PeakSeeker. Overlapped peaks are detected by examination of the second derivative of the raw mass spectrum. Charge state distributions of the molecular species are determined by fitting linear combinations of charge envelopes to the overall experimental mass spectrum. This software is capable of deconvoluting heterogeneous, complex, and noisy native mass spectra of large protein assemblies as demonstrated by analysis of (1) synthetic mononucleosomes containing severely overlapping peaks, (2) an RNA polymerase II/α-amanitin complex with many closely interleaved ion signals, and (3) human TriC complex containing high levels of background noise. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

Peak capacity and peak capacity per unit time in capillary and microchip zone electrophoresis.

Science.gov (United States)

Foley, Joe P; Blackney, Donna M; Ennis, Erin J

2017-11-10

The origins of the peak capacity concept are described and the important contributions to the development of that concept in chromatography and electrophoresis are reviewed. Whereas numerous quantitative expressions have been reported for one- and two-dimensional separations, most are focused on chromatographic separations and few, if any, quantitative unbiased expressions have been developed for capillary or microchip zone electrophoresis. Making the common assumption that longitudinal diffusion is the predominant source of zone broadening in capillary electrophoresis, analytical expressions for the peak capacity are derived, first in terms of migration time, diffusion coefficient, migration distance, and desired resolution, and then in terms of the remaining underlying fundamental parameters (electric field, electroosmotic and electrophoretic mobilities) that determine the migration time. The latter expressions clearly illustrate the direct square root dependence of peak capacity on electric field and migration distance and the inverse square root dependence on solute diffusion coefficient. Conditions that result in a high peak capacity will result in a low peak capacity per unit time and vice-versa. For a given symmetrical range of relative electrophoretic mobilities for co- and counter-electroosmotic species (cations and anions), the peak capacity increases with the square root of the electric field even as the temporal window narrows considerably, resulting in a significant reduction in analysis time. Over a broad relative electrophoretic mobility interval [-0.9, 0.9], an approximately two-fold greater amount of peak capacity can be generated for counter-electroosmotic species although it takes about five-fold longer to do so, consistent with the well-known bias in migration time and resolving power for co- and counter-electroosmotic species. The optimum lower bound of the relative electrophoretic mobility interval [μ r,Z , μ r,A ] that provides the maximum

Memory effects and peak effect in type II superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pasquini, G.; Luna, D.; Eismann, B.; Bettachini, V.; Bekeris, V.

2007-01-01

A large amount of experimental and theoretical work has been devoted to understand memory effects (ME) in the solid vortex lattice (VL) but has remained, however, controversial until now. In the vicinity of the anomaly known as the peak effect (PE) both the VL mobility and the measured critical current density are found to be dependent of the dynamical history of the sample, in both low T c (LTS) and high T c (HTS) superconductors. Experiments in YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7 (YBCO) crystals have shown that the mobility of the VL increases after assisting the system with a symmetric AC field (or current) of moderated amplitude. On the other hand, after an asymmetric AC field assists vortices, the VL becomes less mobile. These features indicate that ME in these samples cannot be ascribed to an equilibration process, but probably are related to the organization of the lattice after nearest neighbor re-accommodation or induced plastic VL deformation. Recently, we have shown evidence that in YBCO the PE is a dynamic anomaly observed in the non-linear response, and is absent in the Labusch constant derived from the linear Campbell regime. However, this behavior seems not to be extensive to other systems as the traditional LTS NbSe 2 . In this work, the AC response in the PE region of NbSe 2 and YBCO samples are presented and compared. Very salient differences both in the linear and non-linear response as well as in the ME characteristics indicate that a different physics governs the PE phenomena in each case

Experimental determination of heat transfer critical conditions in water forced convection at low pressure in a circular channel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fernandes, M.P.

1973-02-01

An experimental determination was made of heat transfer critical conditions in a circular channel, uniformly heated, and internally cooled by water in ascending forced convection, under a pressure slightly above atmospheric pressure. Measurements were made of water flow, pressure, electric power temperature and heating, and a systematic analysis was made of the system's parameters. The values obtained for the heat critical flux are circa 50% lower than those predicted by Becker and Biasi and this is accounted to flowing instabilities of thermo-hydrodynamic nature. It is suggested that the flowing channels of circuits aiming at the study of the boiling crisis phenomenon be expanded in its upper extremity, and that the coolant circulation be kept through a pump with a pressure X flow characteristic as vertical as possible

Binomial probability distribution model-based protein identification algorithm for tandem mass spectrometry utilizing peak intensity information.

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Chuan-Le; Chen, Xiao-Zhou; Du, Yang-Li; Sun, Xuesong; Zhang, Gong; He, Qing-Yu

2013-01-04

Mass spectrometry has become one of the most important technologies in proteomic analysis. Tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) is a major tool for the analysis of peptide mixtures from protein samples. The key step of MS data processing is the identification of peptides from experimental spectra by searching public sequence databases. Although a number of algorithms to identify peptides from MS/MS data have been already proposed, e.g. Sequest, OMSSA, X!Tandem, Mascot, etc., they are mainly based on statistical models considering only peak-matches between experimental and theoretical spectra, but not peak intensity information. Moreover, different algorithms gave different results from the same MS data, implying their probable incompleteness and questionable reproducibility. We developed a novel peptide identification algorithm, ProVerB, based on a binomial probability distribution model of protein tandem mass spectrometry combined with a new scoring function, making full use of peak intensity information and, thus, enhancing the ability of identification. Compared with Mascot, Sequest, and SQID, ProVerB identified significantly more peptides from LC-MS/MS data sets than the current algorithms at 1% False Discovery Rate (FDR) and provided more confident peptide identifications. ProVerB is also compatible with various platforms and experimental data sets, showing its robustness and versatility. The open-source program ProVerB is available at http://bioinformatics.jnu.edu.cn/software/proverb/ .

Acetaminophen overdose associated with double serum concentration peaks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cristian Papazoglu

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Acetaminophen is the most commonly used analgesic–antipyretic medication in the United States. Acetaminophen overdose, a frequent cause of drug toxicity, has been recognized as the leading cause of fatal and non-fatal hepatic necrosis. N-Acetylcysteine is the recommended antidote for acetaminophen poisoning. Despite evidence on the efficacy of N-acetylcysteine for prevention of hepatic injury, controversy persists about the optimal duration of the therapy. Here, we describe the case of a 65-year-old male with acetaminophen overdose and opioid co-ingestion who developed a second peak in acetaminophen serum levels after completing the recommended 21-hour intravenous N-acetylcysteine protocol and when the standard criteria for monitoring drug levels was achieved. Prolongation of N-acetylcysteine infusion beyond the standard protocol, despite a significant gap in treatment, was critical for successful avoidance of hepatotoxicity. Delay in acetaminophen absorption may be associated with a second peak in serum concentration following an initial declining trend, especially in cases of concomitant ingestion of opioids. In patients with acetaminophen toxicity who co-ingest other medications that may potentially delay gastric emptying or in those with risk factors for delayed absorption of acetaminophen, we recommend close monitoring of aminotransferase enzyme levels, as well as trending acetaminophen concentrations until undetectable before discontinuing the antidote therapy.

Power peak in vicinity of WWER-440 control assembly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mikus, J.

2002-01-01

This paper presents information concerning the WWER-440 local power peaking problem induced by a control assembly and corresponding investigation possibilities on the light-water zero-power reactor LR-O at the Nuclear Research Institute Rez plc. Brief description of the disposable CA model, experimental arrangement and conditions on the LR-O reactor, preparation of the relevant measurements in the WWER-440 type cores with CA model, as well as some preliminary results of the fission density distribution obtained in a core without boron and with fuel assemblies having profiled enrichment are mentioned too (Author)

Peak-by-peak correction of Ge(Li) gamma-ray spectra for photopeaks from background

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cutshall, N H; Larsen, I L [Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (USA)

1980-12-01

Background photopeaks can interfere with accurate measurement of low levels of radionuclides by gamma-ray spectrometry. A flowchart for peak-by-peak correction of sample spectra to produce accurate results is presented.

The critical current of granular superconductor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ignat'ev, V.K.

1998-01-01

A mechanism of hyper vortex pinning in granular superconductors is proposed to describe the field dependence of the critical current density and pinning potential. The results are in a good agreement with the experiment. The model represents the peak effect and the percolation mechanism of conductivity in ceramic superconductors

Hurricane Mitch: Peak Discharge for Selected River Reachesin Honduras

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Mark E.; Phillips, Jeffrey V.; Spahr, Norman E.

2002-01-01

peak discharge are based on post-flood surveys of the river channel (observed high-water marks, cross sections, and hydraulic properties) and model computation of peak discharge. Determination of the flood peaks associated with Hurricane Mitch will help scientists understand the magnitude of this devastating hurricane. Peak-discharge information also is critical for the proper design of hydraulic structures (such as bridges and levees), delineation of theoretical flood boundaries, and development of stage-discharge relations at streamflow-monitoring sites.

Peaking-factor of PWR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morioka, Noboru; Kato, Yasuji; Yokoi, M.

1975-01-01

Output peaking factor often plays an important role in the safety and operation of nuclear reactors. The meaning of the peaking factor of PWRs is categorized into two features or the peaking factor in core (FQ-core) and the peaking factor on the basis of accident analysis (or FQ-limit). FQ-core is the actual peaking factor realized in nuclear core at the time of normal operation, and FQ-limit should be evaluated from loss of coolant accident and other abnormal conditions. If FQ-core is lower than FQ-limit, the reactor may be operated at full load, but if FQ-core is larger than FQ-limit, reactor output should be controlled lower than FQ-limit. FQ-core has two kinds of values, or the one on the basis of nuclear design, and the other actually measured in reactor operation. The first FQ-core should be named as FQ-core-design and the latter as FQ-core-measured. The numerical evaluation of FQ-core-design is as follows; FQ-core-design of three-dimensions is synthesized with FQ-core horizontal value (X-Y) and FQ-core vertical value, the former one is calculated with ASSY-CORE code, and the latter one with one dimensional diffusion code. For the evaluation of FQ-core-measured, on-site data observation from nuclear reactor instrumentation or off-site data observation is used. (Iwase, T.)

Theoretical modeling of the spectroscopic absorption properties of luciferin and oxyluciferin: A critical comparison with recent experimental studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anselmi, Massimiliano, E-mail: m.anselmi@caspur.it [Department of Chemistry, University of Rome ' La Sapienza' , P.le Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome (Italy); Marocchi, Simone [Department of Chemistry, University of Rome ' La Sapienza' , P.le Aldo Moro 5, 00185 Rome (Italy); Aschi, Massimiliano [Department of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials, University of L' Aquila, Via Vetoio (Coppito 1), 67100 Coppito, L' Aquila (Italy); Amadei, Andrea [Department of Chemistry, University of Rome ' Tor Vergata' , Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome (Italy)

2012-01-02

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The calculated absorption spectra were compared with experimental data. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Shapes and absorption maxima were reproduced for luciferin and oxyluciferin spectra. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The effect of the solvent largely changes the electronic transition probabilities. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Higher excitations provide an important contribution to the main absorption peak. - Abstract: Firefly luciferin and its oxidated form, oxyluciferin, are two heterocyclic compounds involved in the enzymatic reaction, catalyzed by redox proteins called luciferases, which provides the bioluminescence in a wide group of arthropods. Whereas the electronic absorption spectra of D-luciferin in water at different pHs are known since 1960s, only recently reliable experimental electronic spectra of oxyluciferin have become available. In addition oxyluciferin is involved in a triple chemical equilibria (deprotonation of the two hydroxyl groups and keto-enol tautomerism of the 4-hydroxythiazole ring), that obligates to select during an experiment a predominant species, tuning pH or solvent polarity besides introducing chemical modifications. In this study we report the absorption spectra of luciferin and oxyluciferin in each principal chemical form, calculated by means of perturbed matrix method (PMM), which allowed us to successfully introduce the effect of the solvent on the spectroscopic absorption properties, and compare the result with available experimental data.

Peak-by-peak correction of Ge(Li) gamma-ray spectra for photopeaks from background

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cutshall, N.H.; Larsen, I.L.

1980-01-01

Background photopeaks can interfere with accurate measurement of low levels of radionuclides by gamma-ray spectrometry. A flowchart for peak-by-peak correction of sample spectra to produce accurate results is presented. (orig.)

Evaluation of different time domain peak models using extreme learning machine-based peak detection for EEG signal.

Science.gov (United States)

Adam, Asrul; Ibrahim, Zuwairie; Mokhtar, Norrima; Shapiai, Mohd Ibrahim; Cumming, Paul; Mubin, Marizan

2016-01-01

Various peak models have been introduced to detect and analyze peaks in the time domain analysis of electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. In general, peak model in the time domain analysis consists of a set of signal parameters, such as amplitude, width, and slope. Models including those proposed by Dumpala, Acir, Liu, and Dingle are routinely used to detect peaks in EEG signals acquired in clinical studies of epilepsy or eye blink. The optimal peak model is the most reliable peak detection performance in a particular application. A fair measure of performance of different models requires a common and unbiased platform. In this study, we evaluate the performance of the four different peak models using the extreme learning machine (ELM)-based peak detection algorithm. We found that the Dingle model gave the best performance, with 72 % accuracy in the analysis of real EEG data. Statistical analysis conferred that the Dingle model afforded significantly better mean testing accuracy than did the Acir and Liu models, which were in the range 37-52 %. Meanwhile, the Dingle model has no significant difference compared to Dumpala model.

Experimental Investigation of Creep Behavior of Reactor Vessel Lower Head

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chu, T.Y.; Pilch, M.; Bentz, J.H.; Behbahani, A.

1999-01-01

The authors report a study which aimed at experimentally and numerically investigating and characterizing the failure of a reactor pressure vessel (RPV) lower head due to thermal and pressure loads generated by a severe accident. They present the experimental apparatus which is based on a scaled version of the lower part of a TMI-like reactor pressure vessel without vessel skirt. They report and comment the results obtained during the first five experiments: uniform heating and non penetrations, centre-peaked heat flux and no penetrations, edge-peaked heat flux and no penetrations, uniform heating with penetrations, edge-peaked heat flux with penetrations. They compare the third and fifth experience (those with edge-peaked heat flux)

Use of sum-peak and coincidence counting methods for activity standardization of {sup 22}Na

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oliveira, E.M. de, E-mail: estela@ird.gov.br [Laboratorio Nacional de Metrologia das Radiacoes Ionizantes (LNMRI/IRD/CNEN), Av. Salvador Allende, s/n, Recreio, CEP 22780-160 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Iwahara, A.; Poledna, R. [Laboratorio Nacional de Metrologia das Radiacoes Ionizantes (LNMRI/IRD/CNEN), Av. Salvador Allende, s/n, Recreio, CEP 22780-160 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Silva, M.A.L. da [Coordenacao Geral de Instalacoes Nucleares/Comissao Nacional de Energia Nuclear, R. Gal. Severiano, 90 - Botafogo, CEP 22290-901 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Tauhata, L. [Fundacao Carlos Chagas Filho de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ), Av. Erasmo Braga, 118-6 Degree-Sign andar, CEP 20020-000 Centro, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Delgado, J.U. [Laboratorio Nacional de Metrologia das Radiacoes Ionizantes (LNMRI/IRD/CNEN), Av. Salvador Allende, s/n, Recreio, CEP 22780-160 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Lopes, R.T. [Laboratorio de Instrumentacao Nuclear (LIN/PEN/COPPE/UFRJ), Caixa Postal 68509, CEP 21945-970 Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

2012-09-21

A solution containing the positron emitter {sup 22}Na has been absolutely standardized using the 4{pi}{beta}-{gamma} coincidence counting method and the sum-peak spectrometry counting method. In the 4{pi}{beta}-{gamma} coincidence method two ways for the activity concentration measurements were used: gating on the 1275 keV photopeak and on the 1786 keV sum-peak where the knowledge of the {beta}{sup +}-branching ratio is required. In the sum-peak method the measurements were carried out using three experimental arrangements: the first composed by a well type 5 in. Multiplication-Sign 5 in. NaI(Tl) scintillation crystal, the second by a 3 in. Multiplication-Sign 3 in. NaI(Tl) scintillation crystal placed on the top of the first, resulting in a 4{pi} counting geometry and the third arrangement is a high purity coaxial germanium detector. The results that are obtained by these two methods are compatible within the standard uncertainty values with a coverage factor of k=2 ({approx}95% of the confidence level). This means that the sum-peak counting with its more simple experimental setup than the complex coincidence 4{pi}{beta}-{gamma} counting system gives consistent results for the activity standardization of {sup 22}Na with smaller uncertainties. Besides, the time period involved to attain the result of the standardization was quite shorter than the coincidence measurements used in this work.

Multiscale peak detection in wavelet space.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Zhi-Min; Tong, Xia; Peng, Ying; Ma, Pan; Zhang, Ming-Jin; Lu, Hong-Mei; Chen, Xiao-Qing; Liang, Yi-Zeng

2015-12-07

Accurate peak detection is essential for analyzing high-throughput datasets generated by analytical instruments. Derivatives with noise reduction and matched filtration are frequently used, but they are sensitive to baseline variations, random noise and deviations in the peak shape. A continuous wavelet transform (CWT)-based method is more practical and popular in this situation, which can increase the accuracy and reliability by identifying peaks across scales in wavelet space and implicitly removing noise as well as the baseline. However, its computational load is relatively high and the estimated features of peaks may not be accurate in the case of peaks that are overlapping, dense or weak. In this study, we present multi-scale peak detection (MSPD) by taking full advantage of additional information in wavelet space including ridges, valleys, and zero-crossings. It can achieve a high accuracy by thresholding each detected peak with the maximum of its ridge. It has been comprehensively evaluated with MALDI-TOF spectra in proteomics, the CAMDA 2006 SELDI dataset as well as the Romanian database of Raman spectra, which is particularly suitable for detecting peaks in high-throughput analytical signals. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves show that MSPD can detect more true peaks while keeping the false discovery rate lower than MassSpecWavelet and MALDIquant methods. Superior results in Raman spectra suggest that MSPD seems to be a more universal method for peak detection. MSPD has been designed and implemented efficiently in Python and Cython. It is available as an open source package at .

Automated asteroseismic peak detections

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

de Montellano, Andres Garcia Saravia Ortiz; Hekker, S.; Themessl, N.

2018-01-01

Space observatories such as Kepler have provided data that can potentially revolutionize our understanding of stars. Through detailed asteroseismic analyses we are capable of determining fundamental stellar parameters and reveal the stellar internal structure with unprecedented accuracy. However......, such detailed analyses, known as peak bagging, have so far been obtained for only a small percentage of the observed stars while most of the scientific potential of the available data remains unexplored. One of the major challenges in peak bagging is identifying how many solar-like oscillation modes are visible...... of detected oscillation modes. The algorithm presented here opens the possibility for detailed and automated peak bagging of the thousands of solar-like oscillators observed by Kepler....

Forecast of criticality experiments and experimental programs needed to support nuclear operations in the United States of America: 1994-1999

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rutherford, D.

1995-01-01

This Forecast is generated by the Chair of the Experiment Needs Identification Workgroup (ENIWG), with input from Department of Energy and the nuclear community. One of the current concerns addressed by ENIWG was the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board's Recommendation 93-2. This Recommendation delineated the need for a critical experimental capability, which includes (1) a program of general-purpose experiments, (2) improving the information base, and (3) ongoing departmental programs. The nuclear community also recognizes the importance of criticality theory, which, as a stepping stone to computational analysis and safety code development, needs to be benchmarked against well-characterized critical experiments. A summary projection of the Department's needs with respect to criticality information includes (1) hands-on training, (2) criticality and nuclear data, (3) detector systems, (4) uranium- and plutonium-based reactors, and (5) accident analysis. The Workgroup has evaluated, prioritized, and categorized each proposed experiment and program. Transportation/Applications is a new category intended to cover the areas of storage, training, emergency response, and standards. This category has the highest number of priority-1 experiments (nine). Facilities capable of performing experiments include the Los Alamos Critical Experiment Facility (LACEF) along with Area V at Sandia National Laboratory. The LACEF continues to house the most significant collection of critical assemblies in the Western Hemisphere. The staff of this facility and Area V are trained and certified, and documentation is current. ENIWG will continue to work with the nuclear community to identify and prioritize experiments because there is an overwhelming need for critical experiments to be performed for basic research and code validation

Forecast of criticality experiments and experimental programs needed to support nuclear operations in the United States of America: 1994--1999

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rutherford, D.

1994-03-01

This Forecast is generated by the Chair of the Experiment Needs Identification Workgroup (ENIWG), with input from Department of Energy and the nuclear community. One of the current concerns addressed by ENIWG was the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board's Recommendation 93-2. This Recommendation delineated the need for a critical experimental capability, which includes (1) a program of general-purpose experiments, (2) improving the information base, and (3) ongoing departmental programs. The nuclear community also recognizes the importance of criticality theory, which, as a stepping stone to computational analysis and safety code development, needs to be benchmarked against well-characterized critical experiments. A summary project of the Department's needs with respect to criticality information includes (1) hands-on training, (2) criticality and nuclear data, (3) detector systems, (4) uranium- and plutonium-based reactors, and (5) accident analysis. The Workgroup has evaluated, prioritized, and categorized each proposed experiment and program. Transportation/Applications is a new category intended to cover the areas of storage, training, emergency response, and standards. This category has the highest number of priority-1 experiments (nine). Facilities capable of performing experiments include the Los Alamos Critical Experiment Facility (LACEF) along with Area V at Sandia National Laboratory. The LACEF continues to house the most significant collection of critical assemblies in the Western Hemisphere. The staff of this facility and Area V are trained and certified, and documentation is current. ENIWG will continue to work with the nuclear community to identify and prioritize experiments because there is an overwhelming need for critical experiments to be performed for basic research and code validation

Environmental impacts of public transport. Why peak-period travellers cause a greater environmental burden than off-peak travellers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rietveld, P.

2002-01-01

Given the difference between peak and off-peak occupancy rates in public transport, emissions per traveller kilometre are lower in the peak than in the off-peak period, whereas the opposite pattern is observed for cars. It is argued that it is much more fruitful to analyse environmental effects in marginal terms. This calls for a careful analysis of capacity management policies of public transport suppliers that are facing increased demand during both peak and off-peak periods. A detailed analysis of capacity management by the Netherlands Railways (NS) revealed that off-peak capacity supply is mainly dictated by the demand levels during the peak period. The analysis included the effects of increased frequency and increased vehicle size on environmental impacts, while environmental economies of vehicle size were also taken into account. The main conclusion is that the marginal environmental burden during the peak hours is much higher than is usually thought, whereas it is almost zero during the off-peak period. This implies a pattern that is the precise opposite of the average environmental burden. Thus, an analysis of environmental effects of public transport based on average performance would yield misleading conclusions [nl

The end of Peak Oil? Why this topic is still relevant despite recent denials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chapman, Ian

2014-01-01

Up until recently Peak Oil was a major discussion point crossing from academic research into mainstream journalism, yet it now attracts far less interest. This paper evaluates the reasons for this and on-going relevance of Peak Oil, considering variations in predictive dates for the phenomenon supported by technological, economic and political issues. Using data from agencies, the validity of each position is assessed looking at reserves, industrial developments and alternative fuels. The complicating issue of demand is also considered. The conclusions are that, supported by commercial interests, an unsubstantiated belief in market and technical solutions, and a narrow paradigmatic focus, critics of Peak Oil theory have used unreliable reserve data, optimistic assumptions about utilisation of unconventional supplies and unrealistic predictions for alternative energy production to discredit the evidence that the resource-limited peak in the world's production of conventional oil has arrived, diverting discussion from what should be a serious topic for energy policy: how we respond to decreasing supplies of one of our most important energy sources. - Highlights: • Key advocates/opponents of Peak Oil reveal their biases. • Reserve calculation methods are considered, showing flaws. • Non-conventional oils’ viability is critiqued and found wanting. • Alternative fuels are found to be unsuitable substitutes for oil. • Demand increases add to the potential for fuel shortages

Critical superheats upon boiling of dissociating liquids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kolykhan, L.I.; Solov'ev, V.N.

1985-01-01

The experimental data on critical superheats of dissociating liquids, i.e. nitrogen tetroxide and nitrine are presented (nitrine is the solution of nitrogen oxide in nitrogen tetroxide). The experiments with boiling N 2 O 4 have been carried out in the pressure range 0.1-3.0 MPa and with boiling nitrine within the pressure range 0.2-9.0 MPa. The experiments have revealed an anomalous dependence of critical superheats on pressure P, thus at P>=2.5 MPa the critical superheat values exceed the limiting ones, and at P=4.5 MPa this excess amounts to more than 16 K, essentially exceeding the errors of the experiments. The results for N 2 O 4 critical superheats agree with experimental data of other authors. Complex phenomena observed upon boiling of dissociating liquids require further theoretical and experimental studies

Drivers of peak sales for pharmaceutical brands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Fischer, Marc; Leeflang, Peter S. H.; Verhoef, Peter C.

2010-01-01

Peak sales are an important metric in the pharmaceutical industry. Specifically, managers are focused on the height-of-peak-sales and the time required achieving peak sales. We analyze how order of entry and quality affect the level of peak sales and the time-to-peak-sales of pharmaceutical brands.

Improved radiative corrections for (e,e'p) experiments: Beyond the peaking approximation and implications of the soft-photon approximation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weissbach, F.; Hencken, K.; Rohe, D.; Sick, I.; Trautmann, D.

2006-01-01

Analyzing (e,e ' p) experimental data involves corrections for radiative effects which change the interaction kinematics and which have to be carefully considered in order to obtain the desired accuracy. Missing momentum and energy due to bremsstrahlung have so far often been incorporated into the simulations and the experimental analyses using the peaking approximation. It assumes that all bremsstrahlung is emitted in the direction of the radiating particle. In this article we introduce a full angular Monte Carlo simulation method which overcomes this approximation. As a test, the angular distribution of the bremsstrahlung photons is reconstructed from H(e,e ' p) data. Its width is found to be underestimated by the peaking approximation and described much better by the approach developed in this work. The impact of the soft-photon approximation on the photon angular distribution is found to be minor as compared to the impact of the peaking approximation. (orig.)

Numerical Calculation of the Peaking Factor of a Water-Cooled W/Cu Monoblock for a Divertor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han Le; Chang Haiping; Zhang Jingyang; Xu Tiejun

2015-01-01

In order to accurately predict the incident critical heat flux (ICHF, the heat flux at the heated surface when CHF occurs) of a water-cooled W/Cu monoblock for a divertor, the exact knowledge of its peaking factors (f p ) under one-sided heating conditions with different design parameters is a key issue. In this paper, the heat conduction in the solid domain of a water-cooled W/Cu monoblock is calculated numerically by assuming the local heat transfer coefficients (HTC) of the cooling wall to be functions of the local wall temperature, so as to obtain f p . The reliability of the calculation method is validated by an experimental example result, with the maximum error of 2.1% only. The effects of geometric and flow parameters on the f p of a water-cooled W/Cu monoblock are investigated. Within the scope of this study, it is shown that the f p increases with increasing dimensionless W/Cu monoblock width and armour thickness (the shortest distance between the heated surface and Cu layer), and the maximum increases are 43.8% and 22.4% respectively. The dimensionless W/Cu monoblock height and Cu thickness have little effect on f p . The increase of Reynolds number and Jakob number causes the increase of f p , and the maximum increases are 6.8% and 9.6% respectively. Based on the calculated results, an empirical correlation on peaking factor is obtained via regression. These results provide a valuable reference for the thermal-hydraulic design of water-cooled divertors. (paper)

Emissions Scenarios and Fossil-fuel Peaking

Science.gov (United States)

Brecha, R.

2008-12-01

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) emissions scenarios are based on detailed energy system models in which demographics, technology and economics are used to generate projections of future world energy consumption, and therefore, of greenhouse gas emissions. Built into the assumptions for these scenarios are estimates for ultimately recoverable resources of various fossil fuels. There is a growing chorus of critics who believe that the true extent of recoverable fossil resources is much smaller than the amounts taken as a baseline for the IPCC scenarios. In a climate optimist camp are those who contend that "peak oil" will lead to a switch to renewable energy sources, while others point out that high prices for oil caused by supply limitations could very well lead to a transition to liquid fuels that actually increase total carbon emissions. We examine a third scenario in which high energy prices, which are correlated with increasing infrastructure, exploration and development costs, conspire to limit the potential for making a switch to coal or natural gas for liquid fuels. In addition, the same increasing costs limit the potential for expansion of tar sand and shale oil recovery. In our qualitative model of the energy system, backed by data from short- and medium-term trends, we have a useful way to gain a sense of potential carbon emission bounds. A bound for 21st century emissions is investigated based on two assumptions: first, that extractable fossil-fuel resources follow the trends assumed by "peak oil" adherents, and second, that little is done in the way of climate mitigation policies. If resources, and perhaps more importantly, extraction rates, of fossil fuels are limited compared to assumptions in the emissions scenarios, a situation can arise in which emissions are supply-driven. However, we show that even in this "peak fossil-fuel" limit, carbon emissions are high enough to surpass 550 ppm or 2°C climate protection guardrails. Some

Analysis of Peak-to-Peak Current Ripple Amplitude in Seven-Phase PWM Voltage Source Inverters

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriele Grandi

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Multiphase systems are nowadays considered for various industrial applications. Numerous pulse width modulation (PWM schemes for multiphase voltage source inverters with sinusoidal outputs have been developed, but no detailed analysis of the impact of these modulation schemes on the output peak-to-peak current ripple amplitude has been reported. Determination of current ripple in multiphase PWM voltage source inverters is important for both design and control purposes. This paper gives the complete analysis of the peak-to-peak current ripple distribution over a fundamental period for multiphase inverters, with particular reference to seven-phase VSIs. In particular, peak-to-peak current ripple amplitude is analytically determined as a function of the modulation index, and a simplified expression to get its maximum value is carried out. Although reference is made to the centered symmetrical PWM, being the most simple and effective solution to maximize the DC bus utilization, leading to a nearly-optimal modulation to minimize the RMS of the current ripple, the analysis can be readily extended to either discontinuous or asymmetrical modulations, both carrier-based and space vector PWM. A similar approach can be usefully applied to any phase number. The analytical developments for all different sub-cases are verified by numerical simulations.

Analysis of neutron diffraction peak broadening caused by internal stresses in composite materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Todd, R.I.; Borsa, C.; Derby, B.

1994-01-01

Neutron diffraction is an essential tool in the study of internal stresses in composite materials. In most work only the peak shifts caused by the related elastic strains are considered, but other valuable information exists in the form of peak shape changes. The conditions under which the pure diffraction profile of the composite (i.e. the profile when all sources of broadening not caused by the residual stresses are removed) represents the probability distribution of the peak shifts corresponding to the strains are examined. It is shown that in these conditions, the pure diffraction profile has no attributes of particle size broadening (and vice versa), thereby providing a test for the validity of results interpreted in this way. The experimental derivation of measured strain distributions in Al 2 O 3 /SiCp composites using neutron diffraction is described. No apparent particle size broadening was detected, demonstrating the validity of the results, which also satisfied other tests for consistency

Review of studies on criticality safety evaluation and criticality experiment methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naito, Yoshitaka; Yamamoto, Toshihiro; Misawa, Tsuyoshi; Yamane, Yuichi

2013-01-01

Since the early 1960s, many studies on criticality safety evaluation have been conducted in Japan. Computer code systems were developed initially by employing finite difference methods, and more recently by using Monte Carlo methods. Criticality experiments have also been carried out in many laboratories in Japan as well as overseas. By effectively using these study results, the Japanese Criticality Safety Handbook was published in 1988, almost the intermediate point of the last 50 years. An increased interest has been shown in criticality safety studies, and a Working Party on Nuclear Criticality Safety (WPNCS) was set up by the Nuclear Science Committee of Organisation Economic Co-operation and Development in 1997. WPNCS has several task forces in charge of each of the International Criticality Safety Benchmark Evaluation Program (ICSBEP), Subcritical Measurement, Experimental Needs, Burn-up Credit Studies and Minimum Critical Values. Criticality safety studies in Japan have been carried out in cooperation with WPNCS. This paper describes criticality safety study activities in Japan along with the contents of the Japanese Criticality Safety Handbook and the tasks of WPNCS. (author)

How to use your peak flow meter

Science.gov (United States)

... meter - how to use; Asthma - peak flow meter; Reactive airway disease - peak flow meter; Bronchial asthma - peak ... 2014:chap 55. National Asthma Education and Prevention Program website. How to use a peak flow meter. ...

Approaches to characterise chromatographic column performance based on global parameters accounting for peak broadening and skewness.

Science.gov (United States)

Baeza-Baeza, J J; Pous-Torres, S; Torres-Lapasió, J R; García-Alvarez-Coque, M C

2010-04-02

Peak broadening and skewness are fundamental parameters in chromatography, since they affect the resolution capability of a chromatographic column. A common practice to characterise chromatographic columns is to estimate the efficiency and asymmetry factor for the peaks of one or more solutes eluted at selected experimental conditions. This has the drawback that the extra-column contributions to the peak variance and skewness make the peak shape parameters depend on the retention time. We propose and discuss here the use of several approaches that allow the estimation of global parameters (non-dependent on the retention time) to describe the column performance. The global parameters arise from different linear relationships that can be established between the peak variance, standard deviation, or half-widths with the retention time. Some of them describe exclusively the column contribution to the peak broadening, whereas others consider the extra-column effects also. The estimation of peak skewness was also possible for the approaches based on the half-widths. The proposed approaches were applied to the characterisation of different columns (Spherisorb, Zorbax SB, Zorbax Eclipse, Kromasil, Chromolith, X-Terra and Inertsil), using the chromatographic data obtained for several diuretics and basic drugs (beta-blockers). Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Forecasting monthly peak demand of electricity in India—A critique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rallapalli, Srinivasa Rao; Ghosh, Sajal

2012-01-01

The nature of electricity differs from that of other commodities since electricity is a non-storable good and there have been significant seasonal and diurnal variations of demand. Under such condition, precise forecasting of demand for electricity should be an integral part of the planning process as this enables the policy makers to provide directions on cost-effective investment and on scheduling the operation of the existing and new power plants so that the supply of electricity can be made adequate enough to meet the future demand and its variations. Official load forecasting in India done by Central Electricity Authority (CEA) is often criticized for being overestimated due to inferior techniques used for forecasting. This paper tries to evaluate monthly peak demand forecasting performance predicted by CEA using trend method and compare it with those predicted by Multiplicative Seasonal Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (MSARIMA) model. It has been found that MSARIMA model outperforms CEA forecasts both in-sample static and out-of-sample dynamic forecast horizons in all five regional grids in India. For better load management and grid discipline, this study suggests employing sophisticated techniques like MSARIMA for peak load forecasting in India. - Highlights: ► This paper evaluates monthly peak demand forecasting performance by CEA. ► Compares CEA forecasts it with those predicted by MSARIMA model. ► MSARIMA model outperforms CEA forecasts in all five regional grids in India. ► Opportunity exists to improve the performance of CEA forecasts.

Educational Reform: Critiquing the Critics.

Science.gov (United States)

Reid, Charles R.

1990-01-01

Reviews Walter Feinberg's criticisms of educational critics Allan Bloom and E. D. Hirsch. Supports Feinberg's argument that experimentation is the only course still open in education, but argues that his views are informed by the traditional obscurantism of the educational establishment. (FMW)

Forecast of criticality experiments and experimental programs needed to support nuclear operations in the United States of America: 1994--1999

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rutherford, D.

1994-03-01

This Forecast is generated by the Chair of the Experiment Needs Identification Workgroup (ENIWG), with input from Department of Energy and the nuclear community. One of the current concerns addressed by ENIWG was the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board`s Recommendation 93-2. This Recommendation delineated the need for a critical experimental capability, which includes (1) a program of general-purpose experiments, (2) improving the information base, and (3) ongoing departmental programs. The nuclear community also recognizes the importance of criticality theory, which, as a stepping stone to computational analysis and safety code development, needs to be benchmarked against well-characterized critical experiments. A summary project of the Department`s needs with respect to criticality information includes (1) hands-on training, (2) criticality and nuclear data, (3) detector systems, (4) uranium- and plutonium-based reactors, and (5) accident analysis. The Workgroup has evaluated, prioritized, and categorized each proposed experiment and program. Transportation/Applications is a new category intended to cover the areas of storage, training, emergency response, and standards. This category has the highest number of priority-1 experiments (nine). Facilities capable of performing experiments include the Los Alamos Critical Experiment Facility (LACEF) along with Area V at Sandia National Laboratory. The LACEF continues to house the most significant collection of critical assemblies in the Western Hemisphere. The staff of this facility and Area V are trained and certified, and documentation is current. ENIWG will continue to work with the nuclear community to identify and prioritize experiments because there is an overwhelming need for critical experiments to be performed for basic research and code validation.

An Empirical Study on Raman Peak Fitting and Its Application to Raman Quantitative Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Xueyin; Mayanovic, Robert A

2017-10-01

Fitting experimentally measured Raman bands with theoretical model profiles is the basic operation for numerical determination of Raman peak parameters. In order to investigate the effects of peak modeling using various algorithms on peak fitting results, the representative Raman bands of mineral crystals, glass, fluids as well as the emission lines from a fluorescent lamp, some of which were measured under ambient light whereas others under elevated pressure and temperature conditions, were fitted using Gaussian, Lorentzian, Gaussian-Lorentzian, Voigtian, Pearson type IV, and beta profiles. From the fitting results of the Raman bands investigated in this study, the fitted peak position, intensity, area and full width at half-maximum (FWHM) values of the measured Raman bands can vary significantly depending upon which peak profile function is used in the fitting, and the most appropriate fitting profile should be selected depending upon the nature of the Raman bands. Specifically, the symmetric Raman bands of mineral crystals and non-aqueous fluids are best fit using Gaussian-Lorentzian or Voigtian profiles, whereas the asymmetric Raman bands are best fit using Pearson type IV profiles. The asymmetric O-H stretching vibrations of H 2 O and the Raman bands of soda-lime glass are best fit using several Gaussian profiles, whereas the emission lines from a florescent light are best fit using beta profiles. Multiple peaks that are not clearly separated can be fit simultaneously, provided the residuals in the fitting of one peak will not affect the fitting of the remaining peaks to a significant degree. Once the resolution of the Raman spectrometer has been properly accounted for, our findings show that the precision in peak position and intensity can be improved significantly by fitting the measured Raman peaks with appropriate profiles. Nevertheless, significant errors in peak position and intensity were still observed in the results from fitting of weak and wide Raman

Study of source term evaluation from fuel solution under simulated nuclear criticality accident in TRACY

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abe, Hitoshi; Tashiro, Shinsuke; Nagai, Hitoshi; Koike, Tadao; Okagawa, Seigo; Murata, Mikio

1999-01-01

In a accident at the dissolver in a reprocessing plant, various fission products and radiolysis gases will be produced in the fuel solution and volatile radioactive nuclides and radiolysis gases and nitrogen oxide will be released into vent-gas spontaneously. Moreover other on-volatile nuclide will be releases as radioactive aerosol (mist) with bursting bubbles at surface of the solution. Therefore quantitative estimation of release and transport behavior of the radioactive material from solution as source term is very important. TRACY is a transient criticality experimental facility for studying the transient criticality characteristics of low enriched uranium. In this paper, experiment methods and results about the release behavior of the hydrogen, radioactive aerosol and iodine species from the fuel solutions are reported. As the results of the experiments, release patterns of H 2 , 140 Ba and 131 I could be grasped. Concentrations of H 2 in the vent-gas and 140 Ba in the gas phase in the core tank attained to the peak just after the transient criticality and decreased exponentially with time. On the other hand, concentrations of 131 I in the gas phase of the tank began to increase with a time lag of several minutes from the transient criticality and attained approximately constant values. (J.P.N.)

Critical Need for Family-Based, Quasi-Experimental Designs in Integrating Genetic and Social Science Research

Science.gov (United States)

Lahey, Benjamin B.; Turkheimer, Eric; Lichtenstein, Paul

2013-01-01

Researchers have identified environmental risks that predict subsequent psychological and medical problems. Based on these correlational findings, researchers have developed and tested complex developmental models and have examined biological moderating factors (e.g., gene–environment interactions). In this context, we stress the critical need for researchers to use family-based, quasi-experimental designs when trying to integrate genetic and social science research involving environmental variables because these designs rigorously examine causal inferences by testing competing hypotheses. We argue that sibling comparison, offspring of twins or siblings, in vitro fertilization designs, and other genetically informed approaches play a unique role in bridging gaps between basic biological and social science research. We use studies on maternal smoking during pregnancy to exemplify these principles. PMID:23927516

Development and experimental qualification of the new safety-criticality CRISTAL package; Developpement et qualification experimentale du nouveau formulaire de surete-criticite Cristal

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mattera, Ch

1998-11-01

This thesis is concerned with Criticality-Safety studies related to the French Nuclear Fuel Cycle. We first describe the steps in the nuclear fuel cycle and the specific characteristics of these studies compared with those performed in Reactor Physics. In order to respond to the future requirements of the French Nuclear Program, we have developed a new package CRISTAL based on a recent cross sections library (CEA 93) and the newest accurate codes (APOLLO 2, MORET 4, TRIPOLI 4). The CRISTAL system includes two calculations routes: a design route which will be used by French Industry (COGEMA/SGN) and a reference route. To transfer this package to the French industry, we have elaborated calculation schemes for fissile solutions, dissolver media, transport casks and storage pools. Afterwards, these schemes have been used for the CRISTAL experimental validation. We have also contributed to the CRISTAL experimental database by reevaluating a French storage pool experiment: the CRISTO II experiment. This revaluation has been submitted to the OECD working group in order that this experiment can be used by international criticality safety engineers to validate calculations methods. This work represents a large contribution to the recommendation of accurate calculation schemes and to the experimental validation of the CRISTAL package. These studies came up to the French Industry expectations. (author)

Resolving overlapping peaks in ARXPS data: The effect of noise and fitting method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muñoz-Flores, Jaime; Herrera-Gomez, Alberto

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Noise is an important factor affecting the fitting of overlapping peaks in XPS data. ► The combined information in ARXPS data can be used to improve fitting reliability. ► The error on the estimation of the peak parameters depends on the peak-fitting method. ► Simultaneous fitting method is much more robust against noise than sequential fitting. ► The estimation of the error range is better done with ARXPS data than with XPS data. - Abstract: Peak-fitting of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) data can be very sensitive to noise when the difference on the binding energy among the peaks is smaller than the width of the peaks. This sensitivity depends on the fitting algorithm. Angle-resolved XPS (ARXPS) analysis offers the opportunity of employing the combined information contained in the data at the various angles to reduce the sensitivity to noise. The assumption of shared peak parameters (center and width) among the spectra for the different angles, and how it is introduced into the analysis, plays a basic role. Sequential fitting is the usual practice in ARXPS data peak-fitting. It consist on first estimating the center and width of the peaks from the data acquired at one of the angles, and then using those parameters as a starting approximation for fitting the data for each of the rest of the angles. An improvement of this method consists of averaging the centers and widths of the peaks obtained at the different angles, and then employing these values to assess the areas of the peaks for each angle. Another strategy for using the combined information is by assessing the peak parameters from the sum of the experimental data. The complete use of the combined information contained in the data-set is optimized by the simultaneous fitting method. It consists of the assessment of the center and width of the peaks by fitting the data at all the angles simultaneously. Computer-generated data was employed to compare the sensitivity with respect

Presentation and comparison of experimental critical heat flux data at conditions prototypical of light water small modular reactors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Greenwood, M.S., E-mail: 1greenwoodms@ornl.gov; Duarte, J.P.; Corradini, M.

2017-06-15

Highlights: • Low mass flux and moderate to high pressure CHF experimental results are presented. • Facility uses chopped-cosine heater profile in a 2 × 2 square bundle geometry. • The EPRI, CISE-GE, and W-3 CHF correlations provide reasonable average CHF prediction. • Neural network analysis predicts experimental data and demonstrates utility of method. - Abstract: The critical heat flux (CHF) is a two-phase flow phenomenon which rapidly decreases the efficiency of the heat transfer performance at a heated surface. This phenomenon is one of the limiting criteria in the design and operation of light water reactors. Deviations of operating parameters greatly alters the CHF condition and must be experimentally determined for any new parameters such as those proposed in small modular reactors (SMR) (e.g. moderate to high pressure and low mass fluxes). Current open literature provides too little data for functional use at the proposed conditions of prototypical SMRs. This paper presents a brief summary of CHF data acquired from an experimental facility at the University of Wisconsin-Madison designed and built to study CHF at high pressure and low mass flux ranges in a 2 × 2 chopped cosine rod bundle prototypical of conceptual SMR designs. The experimental CHF test inlet conditions range from pressures of 8–16 MPa, mass fluxes of 500–1600 kg/m2 s, and inlet water subcooling from 250 to 650 kJ/kg. The experimental data is also compared against several accepted prediction methods whose application ranges are most similar to the test conditions.

Statistical Short-Range Guidance for Peak Wind Speed Forecasts on Kennedy Space Center/Cape Canaveral Air Force Station: Phase I Results

Science.gov (United States)

Lambert, Winifred C.; Merceret, Francis J. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

This report describes the results of the ANU's (Applied Meteorology Unit) Short-Range Statistical Forecasting task for peak winds. The peak wind speeds are an important forecast element for the Space Shuttle and Expendable Launch Vehicle programs. The Keith Weather Squadron and the Spaceflight Meteorology Group indicate that peak winds are challenging to forecast. The Applied Meteorology Unit was tasked to develop tools that aid in short-range forecasts of peak winds at tower sites of operational interest. A 7 year record of wind tower data was used in the analysis. Hourly and directional climatologies by tower and month were developed to determine the seasonal behavior of the average and peak winds. In all climatologies, the average and peak wind speeds were highly variable in time. This indicated that the development of a peak wind forecasting tool would be difficult. Probability density functions (PDF) of peak wind speed were calculated to determine the distribution of peak speed with average speed. These provide forecasters with a means of determining the probability of meeting or exceeding a certain peak wind given an observed or forecast average speed. The climatologies and PDFs provide tools with which to make peak wind forecasts that are critical to safe operations.

Peak MSC—Are We There Yet?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Timothy R. Olsen

2018-06-01

Full Text Available Human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs are a critical raw material for many regenerative medicine products, including cell-based therapies, engineered tissues, or combination products, and are on the brink of radically changing how the world of medicine operates. Their unique characteristics, potential to treat many indications, and established safety profile in more than 800 clinical trials have contributed to their current consumption and will only fuel future demand. Given the large target patient populations with typical dose sizes of 10's to 100's of millions of cells per patient, and engineered tissues being constructed with 100's of millions to billions of cells, an unprecedented demand has been created for hMSCs. The fulfillment of this demand faces an uphill challenge in the limited availability of large quantities of pharmaceutical grade hMSCs for the industry—fueling the need for parallel rapid advancements in the biomanufacturing of this living critical raw material. Simply put, hMSCs are no different than technologies like transistors, as they are a highly technical and modular product that requires stringent control over manufacturing that can allow for high quality and consistent performance. As hMSC manufacturing processes are optimized, it predicts a future time of abundance for hMSCs, where scientists and researchers around the world will have access to a consistent and readily available supply of high quality, standardized, and economical pharmaceutical grade product to buy off the shelf for their applications and drive product development—this is “Peak MSC.”

Critical currents in multilayered superconducting films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raffy, Helene

1977-01-01

The superconducting critical currents Isub(c) were measured as a function of magnetic field H and temperature T, on multilayered films. These films consist of alternating layers of two different superconductors S 1 and S 2 being a weaker superconductor acting as a flux pinning barrier region. A strong anisotropy was observed between the two situations where the magnetic field H is applied parallel or perpendicular to the layers. In the case discussed, there is a peak effect in the curves Isub(c)H well defined at the highest temperatures, and disappearing at low temperatures. The anisotropy of the critical current at constant field presents a maximum at a temperature T* close to the critical temperature Tsub(c 2 ) of S 2 [fr

Automated asteroseismic peak detections

Science.gov (United States)

García Saravia Ortiz de Montellano, Andrés; Hekker, S.; Themeßl, N.

2018-05-01

Space observatories such as Kepler have provided data that can potentially revolutionize our understanding of stars. Through detailed asteroseismic analyses we are capable of determining fundamental stellar parameters and reveal the stellar internal structure with unprecedented accuracy. However, such detailed analyses, known as peak bagging, have so far been obtained for only a small percentage of the observed stars while most of the scientific potential of the available data remains unexplored. One of the major challenges in peak bagging is identifying how many solar-like oscillation modes are visible in a power density spectrum. Identification of oscillation modes is usually done by visual inspection that is time-consuming and has a degree of subjectivity. Here, we present a peak-detection algorithm especially suited for the detection of solar-like oscillations. It reliably characterizes the solar-like oscillations in a power density spectrum and estimates their parameters without human intervention. Furthermore, we provide a metric to characterize the false positive and false negative rates to provide further information about the reliability of a detected oscillation mode or the significance of a lack of detected oscillation modes. The algorithm presented here opens the possibility for detailed and automated peak bagging of the thousands of solar-like oscillators observed by Kepler.

Optimum Peak Current Hysteresis Control for Energy Recovering Converter in CDI Desalination

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alberto M. Pernía

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Capacitive De-Ionization (CDI is becoming a suitable alternative for desalination. The low cost of the materials required and its reduced energy consumption can be critical factors for developing this technique. CDI technology does not require a high-pressure system and the energy storage capability of CDI cells allows it to be reused in other CDI cells, thus minimizing consumption. The goal of the power stage responsible of the energy recovery is transferring the stored energy from one cell to another with the maximum possible efficiency, thus allowing the desalination process to continue. Assuming hysteresis current control is implemented at the DC/DC (direct current converter, this paper aims to determine the optimum peak current through the inductor in each switching period with a view to maximizing overall efficiency. The geometrical parameters of the desalination cell and the NaCl concentration modify the cell electrical properties. The peak current control of the power stage should be adapted to the cell characteristics so that the efficiency behavior of the whole CDI system can be improved. The mathematical model defined in this paper allows the CDI plant automation using the peak inductor current as control variable, adapting its value to the salt concentration during the desalination process.

Peak effect and vortex dynamics in superconducting MgB2 single crystals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Hyun-Sook; Jang, Dong-Jin; Kim, Heon-Jung; Kang, Byeongwon; Lee, Sung-Ik

2007-01-01

The dynamic nature of the vortex state of MgB 2 single crystals near the peak effect (PE) region, which is very different either from that of conventional low-temperature superconductors or from that of high-temperature cuprate superconductors, is introduced in this article. Relaxation from a disordered, metastable field-cooled (FC) state to an ordered, stable zero-field-cooled (ZFC) state of the MgB 2 single crystals under an applied magnetic field and current is investigated. From an analysis of the noise properties in the ZFC state, a dynamic vortex phase diagram of the MgB 2 is obtained near the PE region. Between the onset and the peak region in the critical current vs. magnetic field diagram, crossovers from a high-noise state to a noise-free state are observed with increasing current. Above the peak, however, an opposite phenomenon, crossovers from a noise-free to a high-noise state, is observed which has not been observed in any other superconductors. The hysteresis in the I-V curves and the two-level random telegraph noise in the time evolution of the voltage response under an constant applied current at the ZFC state are also studied in detail

Systolic peak detection in acceleration photoplethysmograms measured from emergency responders in tropical conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Elgendi, Mohamed; Norton, Ian; Brearley, Matt; Abbott, Derek; Schuurmans, Dale

2013-01-01

Photoplethysmogram (PPG) monitoring is not only essential for critically ill patients in hospitals or at home, but also for those undergoing exercise testing. However, processing PPG signals measured after exercise is challenging, especially if the environment is hot and humid. In this paper, we propose a novel algorithm that can detect systolic peaks under challenging conditions, as in the case of emergency responders in tropical conditions. Accurate systolic-peak detection is an important first step for the analysis of heart rate variability. Algorithms based on local maxima-minima, first-derivative, and slope sum are evaluated, and a new algorithm is introduced to improve the detection rate. With 40 healthy subjects, the new algorithm demonstrates the highest overall detection accuracy (99.84% sensitivity, 99.89% positive predictivity). Existing algorithms, such as Billauer's, Li's and Zong's, have comparable although lower accuracy. However, the proposed algorithm presents an advantage for real-time applications by avoiding human intervention in threshold determination. For best performance, we show that a combination of two event-related moving averages with an offset threshold has an advantage in detecting systolic peaks, even in heat-stressed PPG signals.

Climate-related variation in plant peak biomass and growth phenology across Pacific Northwest tidal marshes

Science.gov (United States)

Buffington, Kevin J.; Dugger, Bruce D.; Thorne, Karen M.

2018-03-01

The interannual variability of tidal marsh plant phenology is largely unknown and may have important ecological consequences. Marsh plants are critical to the biogeomorphic feedback processes that build estuarine soils, maintain marsh elevation relative to sea level, and sequester carbon. We calculated Tasseled Cap Greenness, a metric of plant biomass, using remotely sensed data available in the Landsat archive to assess how recent climate variation has affected biomass production and plant phenology across three maritime tidal marshes in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. First, we used clipped vegetation plots at one of our sites to confirm that tasseled cap greenness provided a useful measure of aboveground biomass (r2 = 0.72). We then used multiple measures of biomass each growing season over 20-25 years per study site and developed models to test how peak biomass and the date of peak biomass varied with 94 climate and sea-level metrics using generalized linear models and Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) model selection. Peak biomass was positively related to total annual precipitation, while the best predictor for date of peak biomass was average growing season temperature, with the peak 7.2 days earlier per degree C. Our study provides insight into how plants in maritime tidal marshes respond to interannual climate variation and demonstrates the utility of time-series remote sensing data to assess ecological responses to climate stressors.

Determination of the dead layer and full-energy peak efficiency of an HPGe detector using the MCNP code and experimental results

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M Moeinifar

2017-02-01

Full Text Available One important factor in using an High Purity Germanium (HPGe detector is its efficiency that highly depends on the geometry and absorption factors, so that when the configuration of source-detector geometry is changed, the detector efficiency must be re-measured. The best way of determining the efficiency of a detector is measuring the efficiency of standard sources. But considering the fact that standard sources are hardly available and it is time consuming to find them, determinig the efficiency by simulation which gives enough efficiency in less time, is important. In this study, the dead layer thickness and the full-energy peak efficiency of an HPGe detector was obtained by Monte Carlo simulation, using MCNPX code. For this, we first measured gamma–ray spectra for different sources placed at various distances from the detector and stored the measured spectra obtained. Then the obtained spectra were simulated under similar conditions in vitro.At first, the whole volume of germanium was regarded as active, and the obtaind spectra from calculation were compared with the corresponding experimental spectra. Comparison of the calculated spectra with the measured spectra showed considerable differences. By making small variations in the dead layer thickness of the detector (about a few hundredths of a millimeter in the simulation program, we tried to remove these differences and in this way a dead layer of 0.57 mm was obtained for the detector. By incorporating this value for the dead layer in the simulating program, the full-energy peak efficiency of the detector was then obtained both by experiment and by simulation, for various sources at various distances from the detector, and both methods showed good agreements. Then, using MCNP code and considering the exact measurement system, one can conclude that the efficiency of an HPGe detector for various source-detector geometries can be calculated with rather good accuracy by simulation method

Quantum criticality among entangled spin chains

Science.gov (United States)

Blanc, N.; Trinh, J.; Dong, L.; Bai, X.; Aczel, A. A.; Mourigal, M.; Balents, L.; Siegrist, T.; Ramirez, A. P.

2018-03-01

An important challenge in magnetism is the unambiguous identification of a quantum spin liquid1,2, of potential importance for quantum computing. In such a material, the magnetic spins should be fluctuating in the quantum regime, instead of frozen in a classical long-range-ordered state. While this requirement dictates systems3,4 wherein classical order is suppressed by a frustrating lattice5, an ideal system would allow tuning of quantum fluctuations by an external parameter. Conventional three-dimensional antiferromagnets can be tuned through a quantum critical point—a region of highly fluctuating spins—by an applied magnetic field. Such systems suffer from a weak specific-heat peak at the quantum critical point, with little entropy available for quantum fluctuations6. Here we study a different type of antiferromagnet, comprised of weakly coupled antiferromagnetic spin-1/2 chains as realized in the molecular salt K2PbCu(NO2)6. Across the temperature-magnetic field boundary between three-dimensional order and the paramagnetic phase, the specific heat exhibits a large peak whose magnitude approaches a value suggestive of the spinon Sommerfeld coefficient of isolated quantum spin chains. These results demonstrate an alternative approach for producing quantum matter via a magnetic-field-induced shift of entropy from one-dimensional short-range order to a three-dimensional quantum critical point.

The U.S. Geological Survey Peak-Flow File Data Verification Project, 2008–16

Science.gov (United States)

Ryberg, Karen R.; Goree, Burl B.; Williams-Sether, Tara; Mason, Robert R.

2017-11-21

Annual peak streamflow (peak flow) at a streamgage is defined as the maximum instantaneous flow in a water year. A water year begins on October 1 and continues through September 30 of the following year; for example, water year 2015 extends from October 1, 2014, through September 30, 2015. The accuracy, characterization, and completeness of the peak streamflow data are critical in determining flood-frequency estimates that are used daily to design water and transportation infrastructure, delineate flood-plain boundaries, and regulate development and utilization of lands throughout the United States and are essential to understanding the implications of climate and land-use change on flooding and high-flow conditions.As of November 14, 2016, peak-flow data existed for 27,240 unique streamgages in the United States and its territories. The data, collectively referred to as the “peak-flow file,” are available as part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) public web interface, the National Water Information System, at https://nwis.waterdata.usgs.gov/usa/nwis/peak. Although the data have been routinely subjected to periodic review by the USGS Office of Surface Water and screening at the USGS Water Science Center level, these data were not reviewed in a national, systematic manner until 2008 when automated scripts were developed and applied to detect potential errors in peak-flow values and their associated dates, gage heights, and peak-flow qualification codes, as well as qualification codes associated with the gage heights. USGS scientists and hydrographers studied the resulting output, accessed basic records and field notes, and corrected observed errors or, more commonly, confirmed existing data as correct.This report summarizes the changes in peak-flow file data at a national level, illustrates their nature and causation, and identifies the streamgages affected by these changes. Specifically, the peak-flow data were compared for streamgages with peak flow

From a single encapsulated detector to the spectrometer for INTEGRAL satellite: predicting the peak-to-total ratio at high γ-energies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kshetri, R

2012-01-01

In two recent papers (R. Kshetri, JINST 2012 7 P04008; ibid., P07006), a probabilistic formalism was introduced to predict the response of encapsulated type composite germanium detectors like the SPI (spectrometer for INTEGRAL satellite). Predictions for the peak-to-total and peak-to-background ratios are given at 1.3 MeV for the addback mode of operation. The application of the formalism to clover germanium detector is discussed in two separate papers (R. Kshetri, JINST 2012 7 P07008; ibid., P08015). Using the basic approach developed in those papers, for the first time we present a procedure for calculating the peak-to-total ratio of the cluster detector for γ-energies up to 8 MeV. Results are shown for both bare and suppressed detectors as well as for the single crystal and addback modes of operation. We have considered the experimental data of (i) peak-to-total ratio at 1.3 MeV, and (ii) single detector efficiency and addback factor for other energies up to 8 MeV. Using this data, an approximate method of calculating the peak-to-total ratio of other composite detectors, is shown. Experimental validation of our approach (for energies up to 8 MeV) has been confirmed considering the data of the SPI spectrometer. We have discussed about comparisons between various modes of operation and suppression cases. The present paper is the fifth in the series of papers on composite germanium detectors and for the first time discusses about the change in fold distribution and peak-to-total ratio for sophisticated detectors consisting of several modules of miniball, cluster and SPI detectors. Our work could provide a guidance in designing new composite detectors and in performing experimental studies with the existing detectors for high energy gamma-rays.

From a single encapsulated detector to the spectrometer for INTEGRAL satellite: predicting the peak-to-total ratio at high γ-energies

Science.gov (United States)

Kshetri, R.

2012-12-01

In two recent papers (R. Kshetri, JINST 2012 7 P04008; ibid., P07006), a probabilistic formalism was introduced to predict the response of encapsulated type composite germanium detectors like the SPI (spectrometer for INTEGRAL satellite). Predictions for the peak-to-total and peak-to-background ratios are given at 1.3 MeV for the addback mode of operation. The application of the formalism to clover germanium detector is discussed in two separate papers (R. Kshetri, JINST 2012 7 P07008; ibid., P08015). Using the basic approach developed in those papers, for the first time we present a procedure for calculating the peak-to-total ratio of the cluster detector for γ-energies up to 8 MeV. Results are shown for both bare and suppressed detectors as well as for the single crystal and addback modes of operation. We have considered the experimental data of (i) peak-to-total ratio at 1.3 MeV, and (ii) single detector efficiency and addback factor for other energies up to 8 MeV. Using this data, an approximate method of calculating the peak-to-total ratio of other composite detectors, is shown. Experimental validation of our approach (for energies up to 8 MeV) has been confirmed considering the data of the SPI spectrometer. We have discussed about comparisons between various modes of operation and suppression cases. The present paper is the fifth in the series of papers on composite germanium detectors and for the first time discusses about the change in fold distribution and peak-to-total ratio for sophisticated detectors consisting of several modules of miniball, cluster and SPI detectors. Our work could provide a guidance in designing new composite detectors and in performing experimental studies with the existing detectors for high energy gamma-rays.

Transverse expansion and dileptons from the rho-peak in ultrarelativistic nuclear collisions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fai, G.; Neumann, J.J.; Seibert, D.

1995-01-01

The authors calculate the transverse-mass distribution of lepton pairs in the ρ - ω peak. An equation of state with a strong first order phase transition is assumed. They focus on the baryon-free central rapidity region, and couple a boost-invariant longitudinal expansion to a cylindrically symmetric transverse expansion to model the dynamics of central collisions. In the absence of transverse expansion, the fit temperature of the resulting dilepton spectra provided a good thermometer for the critical temperature. Assuming thermal equilibrium throughout the collision, they study the effect of transverse expansion on the spectra. They allow deviations from chemical equilibrium in the high-temperature phase by appropriately parametrizing the equation of state. The freeze-out dependence is also studied. They calculate dilepton production vs. transverse-mass as a function of the critical temperature for these different scenarios

Ionoacoustic characterization of the proton Bragg peak with submillimeter accuracy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Assmann, W., E-mail: walter.assmann@lmu.de; Reinhardt, S.; Lehrack, S.; Edlich, A.; Thirolf, P. G.; Parodi, K. [Department for Medical Physics, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Am Coulombwall 1, Garching 85748 (Germany); Kellnberger, S.; Omar, M.; Ntziachristos, V. [Institute for Biological and Medical Imaging, Technische Universität München and Helmholtz Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstrasse 1, Neuherberg 85764 (Germany); Moser, M.; Dollinger, G. [Institute for Applied Physics and Measurement Technology, Universität der Bundeswehr, Werner-Heisenberg-Weg 39, Neubiberg 85577 (Germany)

2015-02-15

Purpose: Range verification in ion beam therapy relies to date on nuclear imaging techniques which require complex and costly detector systems. A different approach is the detection of thermoacoustic signals that are generated due to localized energy loss of ion beams in tissue (ionoacoustics). Aim of this work was to study experimentally the achievable position resolution of ionoacoustics under idealized conditions using high frequency ultrasonic transducers and a specifically selected probing beam. Methods: A water phantom was irradiated by a pulsed 20 MeV proton beam with varying pulse intensity and length. The acoustic signal of single proton pulses was measured by different PZT-based ultrasound detectors (3.5 and 10 MHz central frequencies). The proton dose distribution in water was calculated by Geant4 and used as input for simulation of the generated acoustic wave by the matlab toolbox k-WAVE. Results: In measurements from this study, a clear signal of the Bragg peak was observed for an energy deposition as low as 10{sup 12} eV. The signal amplitude showed a linear increase with particle number per pulse and thus, dose. Bragg peak position measurements were reproducible within ±30 μm and agreed with Geant4 simulations to better than 100 μm. The ionoacoustic signal pattern allowed for a detailed analysis of the Bragg peak and could be well reproduced by k-WAVE simulations. Conclusions: The authors have studied the ionoacoustic signal of the Bragg peak in experiments using a 20 MeV proton beam with its correspondingly localized energy deposition, demonstrating submillimeter position resolution and providing a deep insight in the correlation between the acoustic signal and Bragg peak shape. These results, together with earlier experiments and new simulations (including the results in this study) at higher energies, suggest ionoacoustics as a technique for range verification in particle therapy at locations, where the tumor can be localized by ultrasound

Simultaneous collection method of on-peak window image and off-peak window image in Tl-201 imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murakami, Tomonori; Noguchi, Yasushi; Kojima, Akihiro; Takagi, Akihiro; Matsumoto, Masanori

2007-01-01

Tl-201 imaging detects the photopeak (71 keV, in on-peak window) of characteristic X-rays of Hg-201 formed from Tl-201 decay. The peak is derived from 4 rays of different energy and emission intensity and does not follow in Gaussian distribution. In the present study, authors made an idea for the method in the title to attain the more effective single imaging, which was examined for its accuracy and reliability with phantoms and applied clinically to Tl-201 scintigraphy in a patient. The authors applied the triple energy window method for data acquisition: the energy window setting was made on Hg-201 X-rays photopeak in three of the lower (3%, L), main (72 keV, M) and upper (14%, U) windows with the gamma camera with 2-gated detector (Toshiba E. CAM/ICON). L, M and U images obtained simultaneously were then constructed to images of on-peak (L+M, Mock on-peak) and off-peak (M+U) window settings for evaluation. Phantoms for line source with Tl-201-containing swab and for multi-defect with acrylic plate containing Tl-201 solution were imaged in water. The female patient with thyroid cancer was subjected to preoperative scintigraphy under the defined conditions. Mock on-, off-peak images were found to be equivalent to the true (ordinary, clinical) on-, off-peak ones, and the present method was thought usable for evaluation of usefulness of off-peak window data. (R.T.)

A new peak detection algorithm for MALDI mass spectrometry data based on a modified Asymmetric Pseudo-Voigt model.

Science.gov (United States)

Wijetunge, Chalini D; Saeed, Isaam; Boughton, Berin A; Roessner, Ute; Halgamuge, Saman K

2015-01-01

Mass Spectrometry (MS) is a ubiquitous analytical tool in biological research and is used to measure the mass-to-charge ratio of bio-molecules. Peak detection is the essential first step in MS data analysis. Precise estimation of peak parameters such as peak summit location and peak area are critical to identify underlying bio-molecules and to estimate their abundances accurately. We propose a new method to detect and quantify peaks in mass spectra. It uses dual-tree complex wavelet transformation along with Stein's unbiased risk estimator for spectra smoothing. Then, a new method, based on the modified Asymmetric Pseudo-Voigt (mAPV) model and hierarchical particle swarm optimization, is used for peak parameter estimation. Using simulated data, we demonstrated the benefit of using the mAPV model over Gaussian, Lorentz and Bi-Gaussian functions for MS peak modelling. The proposed mAPV model achieved the best fitting accuracy for asymmetric peaks, with lower percentage errors in peak summit location estimation, which were 0.17% to 4.46% less than that of the other models. It also outperformed the other models in peak area estimation, delivering lower percentage errors, which were about 0.7% less than its closest competitor - the Bi-Gaussian model. In addition, using data generated from a MALDI-TOF computer model, we showed that the proposed overall algorithm outperformed the existing methods mainly in terms of sensitivity. It achieved a sensitivity of 85%, compared to 77% and 71% of the two benchmark algorithms, continuous wavelet transformation based method and Cromwell respectively. The proposed algorithm is particularly useful for peak detection and parameter estimation in MS data with overlapping peak distributions and asymmetric peaks. The algorithm is implemented using MATLAB and the source code is freely available at http://mapv.sourceforge.net.

The nuclear criticality information system's project to archive unpublished critical experiment data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koponen, B.L.; Doherty, A.L.; Clayton, E.D.

1991-01-01

Critical experiment facilities produced a large amount of important data during the past forty-five years. However, much useful data remains unpublished. The unpublished material exists in the form of experimenters' logbooks, notes, photographs, material descriptions, etc. These data could be important for computer code validation, understanding the physics of criticality, facility design, or for setting process limits. In the past, criticality specialists have been able to obtain unpublished details by direct contact with the experimenters. The closure of facilities and the loss of personnel is likely to lead to the loss of the facility records unless an effort is made to ensure that the records are preserved. It has been recognized for some time that the unpublished records of critical experiment facilities comprise a valuable resource, thus the Nuclear Criticality Information System (NCIS) is working to ensure that the records are preserved and made available via NCIS. As a first step in the archiving project, we identified criteria to help judge which series of experiments should be considered for archiving. Data that are used for validating calculations or the basis for subcritical limits in standards, handbooks, and guides are of particular importance. In this paper we will discuss the criteria for archiving, the priority list of experiments for archiving, and progress in developing an NCIS image database using current CD-ROM technology. (Author)

Feature selection using angle modulated simulated Kalman filter for peak classification of EEG signals.

Science.gov (United States)

Adam, Asrul; Ibrahim, Zuwairie; Mokhtar, Norrima; Shapiai, Mohd Ibrahim; Mubin, Marizan; Saad, Ismail

2016-01-01

In the existing electroencephalogram (EEG) signals peak classification research, the existing models, such as Dumpala, Acir, Liu, and Dingle peak models, employ different set of features. However, all these models may not be able to offer good performance for various applications and it is found to be problem dependent. Therefore, the objective of this study is to combine all the associated features from the existing models before selecting the best combination of features. A new optimization algorithm, namely as angle modulated simulated Kalman filter (AMSKF) will be employed as feature selector. Also, the neural network random weight method is utilized in the proposed AMSKF technique as a classifier. In the conducted experiment, 11,781 samples of peak candidate are employed in this study for the validation purpose. The samples are collected from three different peak event-related EEG signals of 30 healthy subjects; (1) single eye blink, (2) double eye blink, and (3) eye movement signals. The experimental results have shown that the proposed AMSKF feature selector is able to find the best combination of features and performs at par with the existing related studies of epileptic EEG events classification.

Experimental demonstration of superconducting critical temperature increase in electromagnetic metamaterials.

Science.gov (United States)

Smolyaninova, Vera N; Yost, Bradley; Zander, Kathryn; Osofsky, M S; Kim, Heungsoo; Saha, Shanta; Greene, R L; Smolyaninov, Igor I

2014-12-04

A recent proposal that the metamaterial approach to dielectric response engineering may increase the critical temperature of a composite superconductor-dielectric metamaterial has been tested in experiments with compressed mixtures of tin and barium titanate nanoparticles of varying composition. An increase of the critical temperature of the order of ΔT ~ 0.15 K compared to bulk tin has been observed for 40% volume fraction of barium titanate nanoparticles. Similar results were also obtained with compressed mixtures of tin and strontium titanate nanoparticles.

Experimental demonstration of superconducting critical temperature increase in electromagnetic metamaterials

Science.gov (United States)

Smolyaninova, Vera N.; Yost, Bradley; Zander, Kathryn; Osofsky, M. S.; Kim, Heungsoo; Saha, Shanta; Greene, R. L.; Smolyaninov, Igor I.

2014-12-01

A recent proposal that the metamaterial approach to dielectric response engineering may increase the critical temperature of a composite superconductor-dielectric metamaterial has been tested in experiments with compressed mixtures of tin and barium titanate nanoparticles of varying composition. An increase of the critical temperature of the order of ΔT ~ 0.15 K compared to bulk tin has been observed for 40% volume fraction of barium titanate nanoparticles. Similar results were also obtained with compressed mixtures of tin and strontium titanate nanoparticles.

Simultaneous determination of exponential background and Gaussian peak functions in gamma ray scintillation spectrometers by maximum likelihood technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eisler, P.; Youl, S.; Lwin, T.; Nelson, G.

1983-01-01

Simultaneous fitting of peaks and background functions from gamma-ray spectrometry using multichannel pulse height analysis is considered. The specific case of Gaussian peak and exponential background is treated in detail with respect to simultaneous estimation of both functions by using a technique which incorporates maximum likelihood method as well as a graphical method. Theoretical expressions for the standard errors of the estimates are also obtained. The technique is demonstrated for two experimental data sets. (orig.)

Criticality experiments with fast flux test facility fuel pins

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bierman, S.R.

1990-11-01

A United States Department of Energy program was initiated during the early seventies at the Hanford Critical Mass Laboratory to obtain experimental criticality data in support of the Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactor Program. The criticality experiments program was to provide basic physics data for clean well defined conditions expected to be encountered in the handling of plutonium-uranium fuel mixtures outside reactors. One task of this criticality experiments program was concerned with obtaining data on PuO 2 -UO 2 fuel rods containing 20--30 wt % plutonium. To obtain this data a series of experiments were performed over a period of about twelve years. The experimental data obtained during this time are summarized and the associated experimental assemblies are described. 8 refs., 7 figs

Peaking for optimal performance: Research limitations and future directions.

Science.gov (United States)

Pyne, David B; Mujika, Iñigo; Reilly, Thomas

2009-02-01

A key element of the physical preparation of athletes is the taper period in the weeks immediately preceding competition. Existing research has defined the taper, identified various forms used in contemporary sport, and examined the prescription of training volume, load, intensity, duration, and type (progressive or step). Current limitations include: the lack of studies on team, combative, racquet, and precision (target) sports; the relatively small number of randomized controlled trials; the narrow focus on a single competition (single peak) compared with multiple peaking for weekly, multi-day or multiple events; and limited understanding of the physiological, neuromuscular, and biomechanical basis of the taper. Future research should address these limitations, together with the influence of prior training on optimal tapering strategies, and the interactions between the taper and long-haul travel, heat, and altitude. Practitioners seek information on how to prescribe tapers from season to season during an athlete's career, or a team's progression through a domestic league season, or multi-year Olympic or World Cup cycle. Practical guidelines for planning effective tapers for the Vancouver 2010 and London 2012 Olympics will evolve from both experimental investigations and modelling of successful tapers currently employed in a wide range of sports.

Thermal design studies in superconducting rf cavities: Phonon peak and Kapitza conductance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Aizaz

2010-09-01

Full Text Available Thermal design studies of superconducting radio frequency (SRF cavities involve two thermal parameters, namely the temperature dependent thermal conductivity of Nb at low temperatures and the heat transfer coefficient at the Nb-He II interface, commonly known as the Kapitza conductance. During the fabrication process of the SRF cavities, Nb sheet is plastically deformed through a deep drawing process to obtain the desired shape. The effect of plastic deformation on low temperature thermal conductivity as well as Kapitza conductance has been studied experimentally. Strain induced during the plastic deformation process reduces the thermal conductivity in its phonon transmission regime (disappearance of phonon peak by 80%, which may explain the performance limitations of the defect-free SRF cavities during their high field operations. Low temperature annealing of the deformed Nb sample could not recover the phonon peak. However, moderate temperature annealing during the titanification process recovered the phonon peak in the thermal conductivity curve. Kapitza conductance measurements for the Nb-He II interface for various surface topologies have also been carried out before and after the annealing. These measurements reveal consistently increased Kapitza conductance after the annealing process was carried out in the two temperature regimes.

The effect of utility time-varying pricing and load control strategies on residential summer peak electricity use. A review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Newsham, Guy R.; Bowker, Brent G.

2010-01-01

Peak demand for electricity in North America is expected to grow, challenging electrical utilities to supply this demand in a cost-effective, reliable manner. Therefore, there is growing interest in strategies to reduce peak demand by eliminating electricity use, or shifting it to non-peak times. This strategy is commonly called 'demand response'. In households, common strategies are time-varying pricing, which charge more for energy use on peak, or direct load control, which allows utilities to curtail certain loads during high demand periods. We reviewed recent North American studies of these strategies. The data suggest that the most effective strategy is a critical peak price (CPP) program with enabling technology to automatically curtail loads on event days. There is little evidence that this causes substantial hardship for occupants, particularly if they have input into which loads are controlled and how, and have an override option. In such cases, a peak load reduction of at least 30% is a reasonable expectation. It might be possible to attain such load reductions without enabling technology by focusing on household types more likely to respond, and providing them with excellent support. A simple time-of-use (TOU) program can only expect to realise on-peak reductions of 5%. (author)

Development and experimental testing of the new safety-criticality Cristal package; Developpement et qualification experimentale du nouveau formulaire de surete-criticite Cristal

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mattera, Ch

1998-11-10

This thesis is concerned with Criticality-Safety studies related to the French Nuclear Fuel Cycle. We first describe the steps in the nuclear fuel cycle and the specific characteristics of these studies compared with those performed in Reactor Physics. In order to respond to the future requirements of the French Nuclear Program, we have developed a new package CRISTAL based on a recent cross sections library (CEA93) and the newest accurate codes (APOLLO2, MORET4, TRIPOLI4). The cristal system includes two calculations routes: a design route which will be used by French Industry (COGEMA/SGN) and a reference route.) To transfer this package to the French industry, we have elaborated calculation schemes for fissile solutions, dissolver media, transport casks and storage pools. Afterwards, these schemes have been used for the CRISTAL experimental validation. We have also contributed to the CRISTAL experimental database by reevaluating a French storage pool experiment: the CRISTO II experiment. This revaluation has been submitted to the OCDE working group in order that this experiment can be used by international criticality safety engineers to validate calculations methods. This work represents a large contribution to the recommendation of accurate calculation schemes and to the experimental validation of the CRISTAL package. These studies came up to the French Industry expectations. (author) 70 refs.

A 800 kV compact peaking capacitor for nanosecond generator.

Science.gov (United States)

Jia, Wei; Chen, Zhiqiang; Tang, Junping; Chen, Weiqing; Guo, Fan; Sun, Fengrong; Li, Junna; Qiu, Aici

2014-09-01

An extremely compact high voltage peaking capacitor is developed. The capacitor has a pancake structure with a diameter of 315 mm, a thickness of 59 mm, and a mass of 6.1 kg. The novel structural design endows the capacitor with a better mechanical stability and reliability under hundreds of kilovolts pulse voltage and an inner gas pressure of more than 1.5 MPa. The theoretical value of the capacitor self-inductance is near to 17 nH. Proved by series of electrical experiments, the capacitor can endure a high-voltage pulse with a rise time of about 20 ns, a half-width duration of around 25 ns, and an amplitude of up to 800 kV in a single shot model. When the capacitor was used in an electromagnetic pulse simulator as a peaking capacitor, the rise time of the voltage pulse can be reduced from 20 ns to less than 3 ns. The practical value of the capacitor's inductance deduced from the experimental date is no more than 25 nH.

Method and apparatus for current-output peak detection

Science.gov (United States)

De Geronimo, Gianluigi

2017-01-24

A method and apparatus for a current-output peak detector. A current-output peak detector circuit is disclosed and works in two phases. The peak detector circuit includes switches to switch the peak detector circuit from the first phase to the second phase upon detection of the peak voltage of an input voltage signal. The peak detector generates a current output with a high degree of accuracy in the second phase.

Metabolic Desynchronization in Critical Conditions: Experimental Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. V. Livanov

2006-01-01

Full Text Available Objective. To conduct an experimental study of the impact of the time of administration of succinic acid preparations on central nervous system (CNS function and gas exchange while simulating metabolic therapy for severe poisoning by ethyl alcohol. The study was performed on 74 male albino rats weighing 140—180 g. Acute severe and very severe intoxication was simulated, by intraabdominally administering 30% ethanol to the rats. Cytoflavin was used to simulate experimental therapy. The rate of gas exchange was estimated by the oxygen uptake determined by the closed chamber method in a Regnault apparatus (Germany. Spontaneous bioelectrical activity was recorded in the frontooccipital lead by the routine procedure. External pain stimulation and rhythmical photostimulation were employed to evaluate cerebral responsiveness. Heterodirectional EEG changes in the «early» and «late» administration of succinate were not followed by the similar alterations of gas exchange: oxygen consumption in both the «early» and «late» administration of succinate remained significantly lower than in the control animals. With the late administration of succinate to the animals with mixed (toxic and hypoxic coma, the so-called discrepancy between the noticeably increased energy production and brutally diminished metabolism occurred. It may be just the pathological mechanism that was the basis for higher mortality in the late succinate administration group. The findings and their analysis make it possible to advance a hypothesis that succinate may cause metabolic desynchronization if activation of metabolic processes takes place under severe tissue respiratory tissue depression. In these cases, there is a severe damage to tissue and chiefly the brain. This manifests itself as EEG epileptiform activity splashes preceding the animals’ death. Therefore, resuscitation aimed at restoring the transport of oxygen and its involvement in tissue energy processes should

Use of an iterative convolution approach for qualitative and quantitative peak analysis in low resolution gamma-ray spectra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gardner, Robin P.; Ai Xianyun; Peeples, Cody R.; Wang, Jiaxin; Lee, Kyoung; Peeples, Johanna L.; Calderon, Adan

2011-01-01

In many applications, low resolution gamma-ray spectrometers, such as sodium iodide scintillation detectors, are widely used primarily due to their relatively low cost and high detection efficiency. There is widespread interest in improved methods for analyzing spectral data acquired with such devices, using inverse analysis. Peak means and peak areas in gamma- and X-ray spectra are needed for both qualitative and quantitative analysis. This paper introduces the PEAKSI code package that was developed at the Center for Engineering Applications of Radioisotopes (CEAR). The basic approach described here is to use accurate forward models and iterative convolution instead of direct deconvolution. Rather than smoothing and differentiation a combination of linear regression and non-linear searching is used to minimize the reduced chi-square, since this approach retains the capability of establishing uncertainties in the estimated peak parameters. The PEAKSI package uses a Levenberg-Marquardt (LM) non-linear search method combined with multiple linear regression (MLR) to minimize the reduced chi-square value for fitting single or multiple overlapping peaks to determine peak parameters, including peak means, peak standard deviations or full width at half maximum (FWHM), net peak counts, and background counts of peaks in experimental gamma-ray spectra. This approach maintains the natural error structure so that parameter uncertainties can be estimated. The plan is to release this code to the public in the near future.

Frustration and quantum criticality

Science.gov (United States)

Vojta, Matthias

2018-06-01

This review article is devoted to the interplay between frustrated magnetism and quantum critical phenomena, covering both theoretical concepts and ideas as well as recent experimental developments in correlated-electron materials. The first part deals with local-moment magnetism in Mott insulators and the second part with frustration in metallic systems. In both cases, frustration can either induce exotic phases accompanied by exotic quantum critical points or lead to conventional ordering with unconventional crossover phenomena. In addition, the competition of multiple phases inherent to frustrated systems can lead to multi-criticality.

Effect of Co-60 single escape peak on detection of Cs-137 in analysis of radionuclide from research reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, M. S.; Park, S. J.

2006-01-01

The effect of the single escape peak of 1173 keV gamma-rays from Co-60 on the detection of Cs-137 activity is analyzed. The single escape peak of 1173 keV gamma-rays from Co-60 is located at the 662 keV, which is very close to the energy of gamma-rays from Cs-137. This single escape peak may be mistaken for the gamma-ray peak from Cs-137 activity in the case of large area of 1173 keV peak. The detection of Cs-137 is very important to the judgment of the contamination or the leakage of the material containing the fission product like reactor pool water and in the several experiments for reactor physics such as burn-up estimation. In this work, the areas of the single escape peak of the 1173 keV gamma-rays from Co-60 are measured with several full energy peak areas by using the HPGe detector. The critical limit by which we can decide whether the net count of 662 keV peak due to Co-60 would be significant or not is deduced. For this detection system, when the area of full energy peak is larger than 4.5 million, the single escape peak of 1173 keV gamma-rays from Co-60 can be regarded as the single significant peak. Therefore, it is confirmed that the detection of the Cs-137 activity is affected by the Co-60 in this case. Conservatively, for this detection system, it is recommended that the area of 1173 keV peak of Co-60 would be less than 2 million for neglecting the effect of Co-60. (authors)

Zero-bias peaks in the tunneling conductance of spin-orbit-coupled superconducting wires with and without Majorana end-states.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jie; Potter, Andrew C; Law, K T; Lee, Patrick A

2012-12-28

One of the simplest proposed experimental probes of a Majorana bound state is a quantized (2e(2)/h) value of zero-bias tunneling conductance. When temperature is somewhat larger than the intrinsic width of the Majorana peak, conductance is no longer quantized, but a zero-bias peak can remain. Such a nonquantized zero-bias peak has been recently reported for semiconducting nanowires with proximity induced superconductivity. In this Letter we analyze the relation of the zero-bias peak to the presence of Majorana end states, by simulating the tunneling conductance for multiband wires with realistic amounts of disorder. We show that this system generically exhibits a (nonquantized) zero-bias peak even when the wire is topologically trivial and does not possess Majorana end states. We make comparisons to recent experiments, and discuss the necessary requirements for confirming the existence of a Majorana state.

Identification of a PEAK1/ZEB1 signaling axis during TGFβ/fibronectin-induced EMT in breast cancer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Agajanian, Megan; Runa, Farhana; Kelber, Jonathan A., E-mail: jonathan.kelber@csun.edu

2015-09-25

Transforming Growth Factor beta (TGFβ) is the archetypal member of the TGFβ superfamily of ligands and has pleiotropic functions during normal development, adult tissue homeostasis and pathophysiological processes such as cancer. In epithelial cancers TGFβ signaling can either suppress tumor growth or promote metastasis via the induction of a well-characterized epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) program. We recently reported that PEAK1 kinase mediates signaling cross talk between TGFβ receptors and integrin/Src/MAPK pathways and functions as a critical molecular regulator of TGFβ-induced breast cancer cell proliferation, migration, EMT and metastasis. Here, we examined the breast cancer cell contexts in which TGFβ induces both EMT and PEAK1, and discovered this event to be unique to oncogene-transformed mammary epithelial cells and triple-negative breast cancer cells. Using the Cancer BioPortal database, we identified PEAK1 co-expressors across multiple malignancies that are also common to the TGFβ response gene signature (TBRS). We then used the ScanSite database to identify predicted protein–protein binding partners of PEAK1 and the PEAK1-TBRS co-expressors. Analysis of the Cytoscape interactome and Babelomics-derived gene ontologies for a novel gene set including PEAK1, CRK, ZEB1, IL11 and COL4A1 enabled us to hypothesize that PEAK1 may be regulating TGFβ-induced EMT via its interaction with or regulation of these other genes. In this regard, we have demonstrated that PEAK1 is necessary for TGFβ to induce ZEB1-mediated EMT in the context of fibronectin/ITGB3 activation. These studies and future mechanistic studies will pave the way toward identifying the context in which TGFβ blockade may significantly improve breast cancer patient outcomes. - Highlights: • PEAK1 is upregulated in mammary epithelial cells during TGFβ-induced EMT. • TGFβ-induced EMT upregulates PEAK1 in triple negative breast cancer. • PEAK1 is necessary for TGF�

Evidence for a liquid-liquid critical point in supercooled water within the E3B3 model and a possible interpretation of the kink in the homogeneous nucleation line

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ni, Yicun; Skinner, J. L. [Theoretical Chemistry Institute and Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53706 (United States)

2016-06-07

Supercooled water exhibits many thermodynamic anomalies, and several scenarios have been proposed to interpret them, among which the liquid-liquid critical point (LLCP) hypothesis is the most commonly discussed. We investigated Widom lines and the LLCP of deeply supercooled water, by using molecular dynamics simulation with a newly reparameterized water model that explicitly includes three-body interactions. Seven isobars are studied from ambient pressure to 2.5 kbar, and Widom lines are identified by calculating maxima in the coefficient of thermal expansion and the isothermal compressibility (both with respect to temperature). From these data we estimate that the LLCP of the new water model is at 180 K and 2.1 kbar. The oxygen radial distribution function is calculated along the 2 kbar isobar. It shows a steep change in the height of its second peak between 180 and 185 K, which indicates a transition between the high-density liquid and low-density liquid phases and which is consistent with the ascribed location of the critical point. The good agreement of the height of the second peak of the radial distribution function between simulation and experiment at 1 bar, as a function of temperature, supports the validity of the model. The location of the LLCP within the model is close to the kink in the experimental homogeneous nucleation line. We use existing experimental data to argue that the experimental LLCP is at 168 K and 1.95 kbar and speculate how this LLCP and its Widom line might be responsible for the kink in the homogeneous nucleation line.

Climate-related variation in plant peak biomass and growth phenology across Pacific Northwest tidal marshes

Science.gov (United States)

Buffington, Kevin J.; Dugger, Bruce D.; Thorne, Karen M.

2018-01-01

The interannual variability of tidal marsh plant phenology is largely unknown and may have important ecological consequences. Marsh plants are critical to the biogeomorphic feedback processes that build estuarine soils, maintain marsh elevation relative to sea level, and sequester carbon. We calculated Tasseled Cap Greenness, a metric of plant biomass, using remotely sensed data available in the Landsat archive to assess how recent climate variation has affected biomass production and plant phenology across three maritime tidal marshes in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. First, we used clipped vegetation plots at one of our sites to confirm that tasseled cap greenness provided a useful measure of aboveground biomass (r2 = 0.72). We then used multiple measures of biomass each growing season over 20–25 years per study site and developed models to test how peak biomass and the date of peak biomass varied with 94 climate and sea-level metrics using generalized linear models and Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) model selection. Peak biomass was positively related to total annual precipitation, while the best predictor for date of peak biomass was average growing season temperature, with the peak 7.2 days earlier per degree C. Our study provides insight into how plants in maritime tidal marshes respond to interannual climate variation and demonstrates the utility of time-series remote sensing data to assess ecological responses to climate stressors.

Relationships between electroencephalographic spectral peaks across frequency bands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sacha Jennifer Van Albada

2013-03-01

Full Text Available The degree to which electroenencephalographic (EEG spectral peaks are independent, and the relationships between their frequencies have been debated. A novel fitting method was used to determine peak parameters in the range 2–35 Hz from a large sample of eyes-closed spectra, and their interrelationships were investigated. Findings were compared with a mean-field model of thalamocortical activity, which predicts near-harmonic relationships between peaks. The subject set consisted of 1424 healthy subjects from the Brain Resource International Database. Peaks in the theta range occurred on average near half the alpha peak frequency, while peaks in the beta range tended to occur near twice and three times the alpha peak frequency on an individual-subject basis. Moreover, for the majority of subjects, alpha peak frequencies were significantly positively correlated with frequencies of peaks in the theta and low and high beta ranges. Such a harmonic progression agrees semiquantitatively with theoretical predictions from the mean-field model. These findings indicate a common or analogous source for different rhythms, and help to define appropriate individual frequency bands for peak identification.

Relationships between Electroencephalographic Spectral Peaks Across Frequency Bands

Science.gov (United States)

van Albada, S. J.; Robinson, P. A.

2013-01-01

The degree to which electroencephalographic spectral peaks are independent, and the relationships between their frequencies have been debated. A novel fitting method was used to determine peak parameters in the range 2–35 Hz from a large sample of eyes-closed spectra, and their interrelationships were investigated. Findings were compared with a mean-field model of thalamocortical activity, which predicts near-harmonic relationships between peaks. The subject set consisted of 1424 healthy subjects from the Brain Resource International Database. Peaks in the theta range occurred on average near half the alpha peak frequency, while peaks in the beta range tended to occur near twice and three times the alpha peak frequency on an individual-subject basis. Moreover, for the majority of subjects, alpha peak frequencies were significantly positively correlated with frequencies of peaks in the theta and low and high beta ranges. Such a harmonic progression agrees semiquantitatively with theoretical predictions from the mean-field model. These findings indicate a common or analogous source for different rhythms, and help to define appropriate individual frequency bands for peak identification. PMID:23483663

Hubbert's Peak -- A Physicist's View

Science.gov (United States)

McDonald, Richard

2011-04-01

Oil, as used in agriculture and transportation, is the lifeblood of modern society. It is finite in quantity and will someday be exhausted. In 1956, Hubbert proposed a theory of resource production and applied it successfully to predict peak U.S. oil production in 1970. Bartlett extended this work in publications and lectures on the finite nature of oil and its production peak and depletion. Both Hubbert and Bartlett place peak world oil production at a similar time, essentially now. Central to these analyses are estimates of total ``oil in place'' obtained from engineering studies of oil reservoirs as this quantity determines the area under the Hubbert's Peak. Knowing the production history and the total oil in place allows us to make estimates of reserves, and therefore future oil availability. We will then examine reserves data for various countries, in particular OPEC countries, and see if these data tell us anything about the future availability of oil. Finally, we will comment on synthetic oil and the possibility of carbon-neutral synthetic oil for a sustainable future.

Physical performance and peak aerobic power at different body temperatures.

Science.gov (United States)

Bergh, U; Ekblom, B

1979-05-01

In eight male subjects we studied the effect of different core (esophageal, (Tes 34.9--38.4 degrees C) and muscle (Tm 35.1--39.3 degrees C) temperature on 1) physical performance (time to exhaustion at a standard maximal rate of work, WT), 2) aerobic power (VO2), 3) heart rate (HR), and 4) blood lactate (LA) concentration during exhaustive combined arm and leg exercise. In three subjects the effects at different mean skin temperatures (Tsk 27 and 31 degrees C, respectively) were also studied. Peak VO2 was positively correlated to both Tes (r = 0.88) and Tm (r = 0.91). None of the subjects attained control VO2max at Tes and Tm lower than 37.5 and 38.0 degrees C, respectively. HR was correlated to both Tes (r = 0.97) and Tm (r = 0.95). Different Tsk did not affect peak VO2 and HR at subnormal body temperatures. Pulmonary ventilation was independent of Tes and Tm in all experimental situations. LA was significantly higher at Tes 37.5 degrees C compared to both Tes 34.9 and 38.5 degrees C, respectively. At Tes less than 37.5 degrees C and Tm less than 38.0 degrees C, there was a linear reduction in WT (20%.degrees C-1), peak VO2 (5--6%.degrees C-1), and HR (8 beats.min-1.degrees C-1) with lowered Tes and Tm.

Probing QCD critical fluctuations from light nuclei production in relativistic heavy-ion collisions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kai-Jia Sun

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Based on the coalescence model for light nuclei production, we show that the yield ratio Op-d-t=NH3Np/Nd2 of p, d, and 3H in heavy-ion collisions is sensitive to the neutron relative density fluctuation Δn=〈(δn2〉/〈n〉2 at kinetic freeze-out. From recent experimental data in central Pb+Pb collisions at sNN=6.3 GeV, 7.6 GeV, 8.8 GeV, 12.3 GeV and 17.3 GeV measured by the NA49 Collaboration at the CERN Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS, we find a possible non-monotonic behavior of Δn as a function of the collision energy with a peak at sNN=8.8 GeV, indicating that the density fluctuations become the largest in collisions at this energy. With the known chemical freeze-out conditions determined from the statistical model fit to experimental data, we obtain a chemical freeze-out temperature of ∼144 MeV and baryon chemical potential of ∼385 MeV at this collision energy, which are close to the critical endpoint in the QCD phase diagram predicted by various theoretical studies. Our results thus suggest the potential usefulness of the yield ratio of light nuclei in relativistic heavy-ion collisions as a direct probe of the large density fluctuations associated with the QCD critical phenomena.

Inlet effect induced ''upstream'' critical heat flux in smooth tubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kitto, J.B. Jr.

1986-01-01

An unusual form of ''upstream'' critical heat flux (CHF) has been observed and directly linked to the inlet flow pattern during an experimental study of high pressure (17 - 20 MPa) water flowing through a vertical 38.1 mm ID smooth bore tube with uniform axial and nonuniform circumferential heating. These upstream CHF data were characterized by temperature excursions which initially occurred at a relatively fixed axial location in the middle of the test section while the outlet and inlet heated lengths experienced no change. A rifled tube inlet flow conditioner could be substituted for a smooth tube section to generate the desired swirling inlet flow pattern. The upstream CHF data were found to match data from a uniformly heated smooth bore tube when the comparison was made using the peak local heat flux. The mechanism proposed to account for the upstream CHF observations involves the destructive interference between the decaying swirl flow and the secondary circumferential liquid flow field resulting from the one-sided heating

Phase distribution phenomena in upward cocurrent bubbly flows. A critical review of the experimental and theoretical works

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grossetete, C.

1992-09-01

The most important and challenging problems in two-phase bubbly flow today are related to the physical understanding and the modeling of multidimensional phenomena such as the distribution of phases in space. We present here a critical review of the available experimental and theoretical studies in gas-liquid adiabatic and non-reactive upward bubbly flows which have been carried out to define and improve the physical models needed to close the three-dimensional two-fluid model equations. It appears that: so far, the axial development of two-phase upward bubbly flows has not been handled thoroughly. Little is known about the way the pressure gradient as well as the gas-liquid mixing conditions affect the distribution of phases, the problems related to the closing of the two-fluid model equations are far from being solved. The physical models proposed seem often to be too much complex considering how little we know about the mechanisms involved, there are still very few multidimensional numerical models whose results have been compared with experimental data on bubbly flows. The boundary conditions introduced in the codes as well as the sensitivity of the results to the parameters of the codes are never precisely stated. To bridge some of those gaps, we propose to perform an experimental and numerical study of the axial development of two-phase air-water upward bubbly flows in vertical pipes

Theoretical and experimental studies on critical heat flux in subcooled boiling and vertical flow geometry; Badania teoretyczne i eksperymentalne kryzysu wrzenia w warunkach wrzenia przechlodzonego w przeplywie w kanale pionowym

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Staron, E. [Institute of Atomic Energy, Otwock-Swierk (Poland)

1996-12-31

Critical Heat Flux is a very important subject of interest due to design, operation and safety analysis of nuclear power plants. Every new design of the core must be thoroughly checked. Experimental studies have been performed using freon as a working fluid. The possibility of transferring of results into water equivalents has been proved. The experimental study covers vertical flow, annular geometry over a wide range of pressure, mass flow and temperature at inlet of test section. Theoretical models of Critical Heat Flux have been presented but only those which cover DNB. Computer programs allowing for numerical calculations using theoretical models have been developed. A validation of the theoretical models has been performed in accordance with experimental results. (author). 83 refs, 32 figs, 4 tabs.

Theoretical and experimental studies on critical heat flux in subcooled boiling and vertical flow geometry; Badania teoretyczne i eksperymentalne kryzysu wrzenia w warunkach wrzenia przechlodzonego w przeplywie w kanale pionowym

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Staron, E [Institute of Atomic Energy, Otwock-Swierk (Poland)

1997-12-31

Critical Heat Flux is a very important subject of interest due to design, operation and safety analysis of nuclear power plants. Every new design of the core must be thoroughly checked. Experimental studies have been performed using freon as a working fluid. The possibility of transferring of results into water equivalents has been proved. The experimental study covers vertical flow, annular geometry over a wide range of pressure, mass flow and temperature at inlet of test section. Theoretical models of Critical Heat Flux have been presented but only those which cover DNB. Computer programs allowing for numerical calculations using theoretical models have been developed. A validation of the theoretical models has been performed in accordance with experimental results. (author). 83 refs, 32 figs, 4 tabs.

Critical thinking of registered nurses in a fellowship program.

Science.gov (United States)

Zori, Susan; Kohn, Nina; Gallo, Kathleen; Friedman, M Isabel

2013-08-01

Critical thinking is essential to nursing practice. This study examined differences in the critical thinking dispositions of registered nurses (RNs) in a nursing fellowship program. Control and experimental groups were used to compare differences in scores on the California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory (CCTDI) of RNs at three points during a fellowship program: baseline, week 7, and month 5. The control group consisted of RNs who received no education in critical thinking. The experimental group received education in critical thinking using simulated scenarios and reflective journaling. CCTDI scores examined with analysis of variance showed no significant difference within groups over time or between groups. The baseline scores of the experimental group were slightly higher than those of the control group. Chi-square analysis of demographic variables between the two groups showed no significant differences. Critical thinking dispositions are a combination of attitudes, values, and beliefs that make up one's personality based on life experience. Lack of statistical significance using a quantitative approach did not capture the development of the critical thinking dispositions of participants. A secondary qualitative analysis of journal entries is being conducted. Copyright 2013, SLACK Incorporated.

Status of criticality safety research at NUCEF

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nakajima, Ken [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan). Tokai Research Establishment

1998-03-01

Two critical facilities, named STACY (Static Experiment Critical Facility) and TRACY (Transient Experiment Critical Facility), at the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Safety Engineering Research Facility (NUCEF) started their hot operations in 1995. Since then, basic experimental data for criticality safety research have been accumulated using STACY, and supercritical experiments for the study of criticality accident in a reprocessing plant have been performed using TRACY. In this paper, the outline of those critical facilities and the main results of TRACY experiments are presented. (author)

Analog CMOS peak detect and hold circuits. Part 2. The two-phase offset-free and derandomizing configuration

CERN Document Server

De Geronimo, G; Kandasamy, A

2002-01-01

An analog CMOS peak detect and hold (PDH) circuit, which combines high speed and accuracy, rail-to-rail sensing and driving, low power, and buffering is presented. It is based on a configuration that cancels the major error sources of the classical CMOS PDH, including offset and common mode gain, by re-using the same amplifier for tracking, peak sensing, and output buffering. By virtue of its high absolute accuracy, two or more PDHs can be used in parallel to serve as a data-driven analog memory for derandomization. The first experimental results on the new peak detector and derandomizer (PDD) circuit, fabricated in 0.35 mu m CMOS technology, include a 0.2% absolute accuracy for pulses with 500 ns peaking time, 2.7 V linear input range, 3.3 mW power dissipation, 250 mV/s droop rate, and negligible dead time. The use of such a high performance analog PDD can greatly relax the requirements on the digitization in multi-channel systems.

Hyperglycemia and acute kidney injury in critically ill children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gordillo R

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Roberto Gordillo,1 Tania Ahluwalia,2 Robert Woroniecki3 1Department of Pediatrics, Division of Nephrology, 2Department of Pediatrics, University of Illinois College of Medicine, Peoria, IL, USA; 3Division of Pediatric Nephrology and Hypertension, Stony Brook Children’s Hospital, Stony Brook, NY, USA Background: Hyperglycemia and acute kidney injury (AKI are common in critically ill children and have been associated with higher morbidity and mortality. The incidence of AKI in children is difficult to estimate because of the lack of a standard definition for AKI. The pediatric RIFLE (Risk, Injury, Failure, Loss of kidney function, and End-stage kidney disease criteria can be used to define AKI in children. Various biomarkers in urine and blood have been studied to detect AKI in critically ill children. However, it is not clear whether hyperglycemia is associated with AKI. Our objective was to evaluate the effect of hyperglycemia on kidney function and its effect on neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL in children. Methods: We studied retrospective and prospective cohorts of pediatric critically ill subjects admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU. We analyzed data from admission that included estimated glomerular filtration rate, plasma and urine NGAL, serum glucose and peak glycemia (highest glycemia during PICU admission, and length of hospital and PICU stay from two different institutions. Results: We found that the prevalence of hyperglycemia was 89% in the retrospective cohort and 86% in the prospective cohort, P=0.99. AKI was associated with peak glycemia, P=0.03. There was a statistically significant correlation between peak glycemia and hospital and PICU stays, P=<0.001 and P<0.001, respectively. Urine NGAL and plasma NGAL were not statistically different in subjects with and without hyperglycemia, P=0.99 and P=0.85, respectively. Subjects on vasopressors had lower estimated glomerular filtration rate and higher

Critical safety function guidelines for experimental fusion facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cadwallader, L.C.

1989-01-01

As fusion experiments proceed toward deuterium-tritium operation, more attention is being given to public safety. This paper presents the four classes of functions that fusion experiments must provide to assure safe, stable shutdown and retention of radionuclides. These functions are referred to as critical safety functions (CSFs). Selecting CSFs is an important step in probabilistic risk assessment (PRA). An example of CSF selection and usage for the Compact Ignition Tokamak (CIT) is also presented

Criticality handbook. Pt. 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heinicke, W.; Krug, H.; Thomas, W.; Weber, W.; Gmal, B.

1985-12-01

The GRS Criticality Handbook is intended as a source of information on criticality problems for the persons concerned in industry, authorities, or research laboratories. It is to serve as a guide allowing quick and appropriate evaluation of criticality problems during design or erection of nuclear installations. This present issue replaces the one published in 1979, presenting revised and new data in a modified construction, but within the framework of the proven basic structure of the Handbook. Some fundamental knowledge is required of criticality problems and the relevant terms and definitions of nuclear safety, in order to fully deploy the information given. Part 1 of the Handbook therefore first introduces terminology and definitions, followed by experimental methods and calculation models for criticality calculations. The next chapters deal with the function and efficiency of neutron reflectors and neutron absorbers, measuring methods for criticality monitoring, organisational safety measures, and criticality accidents and their subsequent analysis. (orig./HP) [de

Critical interfaces in geosynthetic multilayer liner system of a landfill

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qian Xuede

2008-12-01

Full Text Available This study is to identify the critical interface in a geosynthetic multilayer liner system by examining the effects of the interface shear strength of liner components, leachate level, leachate buildup cases, and peak and residual interface strengths. According to current landfill design procedures, conducting stability analysis along the same interface at both the back slope and base may result in a non-conservative result. The critical interfaces with the minimum factor of safety are generally found at different locations along the back slope and base. The critical interface for a multilayer liner system cannot simply be assumed during stability analysis. It can shift from one interface to another with changes in the leachate level and with different leachate buildup cases. The factor of safety for an interface with a high friction angle and low apparent cohesion generally drops much more quickly than it does under inverse conditions when the leachate level increases. The failure interface in a liner system under residual conditions is usually different from the failure interface under peak conditions.

Parachors in terms of critical temperature, critical pressure and acentric factor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Broseta, D.; Ragil, K.

1995-12-31

The method of parachors is widely used in conventional thermodynamic codes and reservoir simulators to calculate oil/gas interfacial tensions of complex hydrocarbon mixtures. In the low-to-moderate interfacial tension regime, a value p{approx}11/3 has previously been shown to be the {open_quotes}best{close_quotes} parachor exponent. This exponent is a critical exponent and its value is consistent with the values of critical exponents characterizing the liquid/vapor critical behavior. Therefore parachors may be viewed as critical amplitudes. By using critical scaling theory, parachors are related to other critical amplitudes and critical parameters that describe the bulk thermodynamic behavior of fluids. A simple expression relating the parachor of a pure compound to its critical temperature T{sub c}, critical pressure P{sub c}, and acentric factor {omega} is proposed: P= (0.85-0.19{omega})T{sub c}{sup 12/11}/P{sub c}{sup 9/11} where the parachor P is in units of (dyn/cm){sup 3/11}cm{sup 3}/mol, T{sub c} in K and P{sub c} in MPa. This equation matches (within experimental error) the known parachor values of normal fluids (e.g. alkanes, aromatics, CO{sub 2}, N{sub 2}, H{sub 2}S, etc...).

CFD simulation of estimating critical shear stress for cleaning flat ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Sumit Kawale

2017-11-22

Nov 22, 2017 ... Jet impingement; wall shear stress; cleaning of flat plate; turbulence model; critical shear stress; ... On comparing the theoretical predictions with wall shear ... distance and Reynolds number on peak value of local shear stress ...

Detecting and accounting for multiple sources of positional variance in peak list registration analysis and spin system grouping.

Science.gov (United States)

Smelter, Andrey; Rouchka, Eric C; Moseley, Hunter N B

2017-08-01

Peak lists derived from nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra are commonly used as input data for a variety of computer assisted and automated analyses. These include automated protein resonance assignment and protein structure calculation software tools. Prior to these analyses, peak lists must be aligned to each other and sets of related peaks must be grouped based on common chemical shift dimensions. Even when programs can perform peak grouping, they require the user to provide uniform match tolerances or use default values. However, peak grouping is further complicated by multiple sources of variance in peak position limiting the effectiveness of grouping methods that utilize uniform match tolerances. In addition, no method currently exists for deriving peak positional variances from single peak lists for grouping peaks into spin systems, i.e. spin system grouping within a single peak list. Therefore, we developed a complementary pair of peak list registration analysis and spin system grouping algorithms designed to overcome these limitations. We have implemented these algorithms into an approach that can identify multiple dimension-specific positional variances that exist in a single peak list and group peaks from a single peak list into spin systems. The resulting software tools generate a variety of useful statistics on both a single peak list and pairwise peak list alignment, especially for quality assessment of peak list datasets. We used a range of low and high quality experimental solution NMR and solid-state NMR peak lists to assess performance of our registration analysis and grouping algorithms. Analyses show that an algorithm using a single iteration and uniform match tolerances approach is only able to recover from 50 to 80% of the spin systems due to the presence of multiple sources of variance. Our algorithm recovers additional spin systems by reevaluating match tolerances in multiple iterations. To facilitate evaluation of the

Passive radio frequency peak power multiplier

Science.gov (United States)

Farkas, Zoltan D.; Wilson, Perry B.

1977-01-01

Peak power multiplication of a radio frequency source by simultaneous charging of two high-Q resonant microwave cavities by applying the source output through a directional coupler to the cavities and then reversing the phase of the source power to the coupler, thereby permitting the power in the cavities to simultaneously discharge through the coupler to the load in combination with power from the source to apply a peak power to the load that is a multiplication of the source peak power.

Peak load arrangements : Assessment of Nordel guidelines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2009-07-01

Two Nordic countries, Sweden and Finland, have legislation that empowers the TSO to acquire designated peak load resources to mitigate the risk for shortage situations during the winter. In Denmark, the system operator procures resources to maintain a satisfactory level of security of supply. In Norway the TSO has set up a Regulation Power Option Market (RKOM) to secure a satisfactory level of operational reserves at all times, also in winter with high load demand. Only the arrangements in Finland and Sweden fall under the heading of Peak Load Arrangements defined in Nordel Guidelines. NordREG has been invited by the Electricity Market Group (EMG) to evaluate Nordel's proposal for 'Guidelines for transitional Peak Load Arrangements'. The EMG has also financed a study made by EC Group to support NordREG in the evaluation of the proposal. The study has been taken into account in NordREG's evaluation. In parallel to the EMG task, the Swedish regulator, the Energy Markets Inspectorate, has been given the task by the Swedish government to investigate a long term solution of the peak load issue. The Swedish and Finnish TSOs have together with Nord Pool Spot worked on finding a harmonized solution for activation of the peak load reserves in the market. An agreement accepted by the relevant authorities was reached in early January 2009, and the arrangement has been implemented since 19th January 2009. NordREG views that the proposed Nordel guidelines have served as a starting point for the presently agreed procedure. However, NordREG does not see any need to further develop the Nordel guidelines for peak load arrangements. NordREG agrees with Nordel that the market should be designed to solve peak load problems through proper incentives to market players. NordREG presumes that the relevant authorities in each country will take decisions on the need for any peak load arrangement to ensure security of supply. NordREG proposes that such decisions should be

Frustration and quantum criticality.

Science.gov (United States)

Vojta, Matthias

2018-03-15

This review article is devoted to the interplay between frustrated magnetism and quantum critical phenomena, covering both theoretical concepts and ideas as well as recent experimental developments in correlated-electron materials. The first part deals with local-moment magnetism in Mott insulators and the second part with frustration in metallic systems. In both cases, frustration can either induce exotic phases accompanied by exotic quantum critical points or lead to conventional ordering with unconventional crossover phenomena. In addition, the competition of multiple phases inherent to frustrated systems can lead to multi-criticality. © 2018 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Critical safety function guidelines for experimental fusion facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cadwallader, L.C.

1989-01-01

As fusion experiments proceed toward deuterium-tritium operation, more attention is being given to public safety. This paper presents the four classes of functions that fusion experiments must provide to assure safe, stable shutdown and retention of radionuclides. These functions are referred to as critical safety functions (CSFs). Selecting CSFs is an important step in probabilistic risk assessment (PRA). An example of CSF selection and usage for the Compact Ignition Tokamak (CIT) is also presented. 10 refs., 6 figs

Peak capacity, peak-capacity production rate, and boiling point resolution for temperature-programmed GC with very high programming rates

Science.gov (United States)

Grall; Leonard; Sacks

2000-02-01

Recent advances in column heating technology have made possible very fast linear temperature programming for high-speed gas chromatography. A fused-silica capillary column is contained in a tubular metal jacket, which is resistively heated by a precision power supply. With very rapid column heating, the rate of peak-capacity production is significantly enhanced, but the total peak capacity and the boiling-point resolution (minimum boiling-point difference required for the separation of two nonpolar compounds on a nonpolar column) are reduced relative to more conventional heating rates used with convection-oven instruments. As temperature-programming rates increase, elution temperatures also increase with the result that retention may become insignificant prior to elution. This results in inefficient utilization of the down-stream end of the column and causes a loss in the rate of peak-capacity production. The rate of peak-capacity production is increased by the use of shorter columns and higher carrier gas velocities. With high programming rates (100-600 degrees C/min), column lengths of 6-12 m and average linear carrier gas velocities in the 100-150 cm/s range are satisfactory. In this study, the rate of peak-capacity production, the total peak capacity, and the boiling point resolution are determined for C10-C28 n-alkanes using 6-18 m long columns, 50-200 cm/s average carrier gas velocities, and 60-600 degrees C/min programming rates. It was found that with a 6-meter-long, 0.25-mm i.d. column programmed at a rate of 600 degrees C/min, a maximum peak-capacity production rate of 6.1 peaks/s was obtained. A total peak capacity of about 75 peaks was produced in a 37-s long separation spanning a boiling-point range from n-C10 (174 degrees C) to n-C28 (432 degrees C).

Experimental critical parameters of plutonium metal cylinders flooded with water

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1996-07-01

Forty-nine critical configurations are reported for experiments involving arrays of 3 kg plutonium metal cylinders moderated and reflected by water. Thirty-four of these describe systems assembled in the laboratory, while 15 others are derived critical parameters inferred from 46 subcritical cases. The arrays included 2x2xN, N = 2, 3, 4, and 5, in one program and 3x3x3 configurations in a later study. All were three-dimensional, nearly square arrays with equal horizontal lattice spacings but a different vertical lattice spacing. Horizontal spacings ranged from units in contact to 180 mm center-to-center; and vertical spacings ranged from about 80 mm to almost 400 mm center-to-center. Several nearly-equilateral 3x3x3 arrays exhibit an extremely sensitive dependence upon horizontal separation for identical vertical spacings. A line array of unreflected and essentially unmoderated canned plutonium metal units appeared to be well subcritical based on measurements made to assure safety during the manual assembly operations. All experiments were performed at two widely separated times in the mid-1970s and early 1980s under two programs at the Rocky Flats Plant`s Critical Mass Laboratory.

Experimental critical parameters of plutonium metal cylinders flooded with water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-07-01

Forty-nine critical configurations are reported for experiments involving arrays of 3 kg plutonium metal cylinders moderated and reflected by water. Thirty-four of these describe systems assembled in the laboratory, while 15 others are derived critical parameters inferred from 46 subcritical cases. The arrays included 2x2xN, N = 2, 3, 4, and 5, in one program and 3x3x3 configurations in a later study. All were three-dimensional, nearly square arrays with equal horizontal lattice spacings but a different vertical lattice spacing. Horizontal spacings ranged from units in contact to 180 mm center-to-center; and vertical spacings ranged from about 80 mm to almost 400 mm center-to-center. Several nearly-equilateral 3x3x3 arrays exhibit an extremely sensitive dependence upon horizontal separation for identical vertical spacings. A line array of unreflected and essentially unmoderated canned plutonium metal units appeared to be well subcritical based on measurements made to assure safety during the manual assembly operations. All experiments were performed at two widely separated times in the mid-1970s and early 1980s under two programs at the Rocky Flats Plant's Critical Mass Laboratory

MCNP and OMEGA criticality calculations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seifert, E.

1998-04-01

The reliability of OMEGA criticality calculations is shown by a comparison with calculations by the validated and widely used Monte Carlo code MCNP. The criticality of 16 assemblies with uranium as fissionable is calculated with the codes MCNP (Version 4A, ENDF/B-V cross sections), MCNP (Version 4B, ENDF/B-VI cross sections), and OMEGA. Identical calculation models are used for the three codes. The results are compared mutually and with the experimental criticality of the assemblies. (orig.)

Adjustment model of thermoluminescence experimental data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moreno y Moreno, A.; Moreno B, A.

2002-01-01

This model adjusts the experimental results for thermoluminescence according to the equation: I (T) = I (a i * exp (-1/b i * (T-C i )) where: a i , b i , c i are the i-Th peak adjusted to a gaussian curve. The adjustments of the curve can be operated manual or analytically using the macro function and the solver.xla complement installed previously in the computational system. In this work it is shown: 1. The information of experimental data from a LiF curve obtained from the Physics Institute of UNAM which the data adjustment model is operated in the macro type. 2. A LiF curve of four peaks obtained from Harshaw information simulated in Microsoft Excel, discussed in previous works, as a reference not in macro. (Author)

WWER-440 control assembly local power peaking investigation on LR-0 reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mikus, J.

2002-01-01

This paper presents information concerning the local power peaking problem induced by the WWER-440 control assembly and the investigation possibilities on the light water, zero power reactor LR-0 at the Nuclear Research Institute (NRI) Rez plc. A brief description is given about the disposable control assembly model, experimental arrangement and conditions on the LR-0 reactor with regard to the earlier performed investigations as well as to the relevant measurements to be realized in the near future.(abstract)

Utilization of the BARC critical facility for ADS related experiments

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The paper discusses the basic design of the critical facility, whose main pur- ... systems. In addition, it will have a flux mapping system based on 25 fission ... neutron source leads to peaked flux distribution exciting other higher harmonic.

Criticality experiments of the years 1981 and 1982

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heinicke, W.; Tischer, A.

1983-01-01

This report presents a collection of published criticality experiments made in 1981 and 1982 and thus continues the collection of experimental data of this type commenced with the GRS report A-644 of November 1981, which covers criticality experiments of the years 1975 to 1980. The report gives the main data of about 30 publications which, just a those cited in the GRS report, can be retrieved from the improved KRITEXP data base using 14 index terms, and printed out at random sequence. The collection of experimental data is of particular value with regard to the licensing of all installations forming part of the nuclear fuel cycle, which is subject to the atomic energy law and requires the verification of computed criticality analyses by experimental data. (orig.) [de

Degree of conversion of resin-based materials cured with dual-peak or single-peak LED light-curing units.

Science.gov (United States)

Lucey, Siobhan M; Santini, Ario; Roebuck, Elizabeth M

2015-03-01

There is a lack of data on polymerization of resin-based materials (RBMs) used in paediatric dentistry, using dual-peak light-emitting diode (LED) light-curing units (LCUs). To evaluate the degree of conversion (DC) of RBMs cured with dual-peak or single-peak LED LCUs. Samples of Vit-l-escence (Ultradent) and Herculite XRV Ultra (Kerr) and fissure sealants Delton Clear and Delton Opaque (Dentsply) were prepared (n = 3 per group) and cured with either one of two dual-peak LCUs (bluephase(®) G2; Ivoclar Vivadent or Valo; Ultradent) or a single-peak (bluephase(®) ; Ivoclar Vivadent). High-performance liquid chromatography and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy were used to confirm the presence or absence of initiators other than camphorquinone. The DC was determined using micro-Raman spectroscopy. Data were analysed using general linear model anova; α = 0.05. With Herculite XRV Ultra, the single-peak LCU gave higher DC values than either of the two dual-peak LCUs (P < 0.05). Both fissure sealants showed higher DC compared with the two RBMs (P < 0.05); the DC at the bottom of the clear sealant was greater than the opaque sealant, (P < 0.05). 2,4,6-trimethylbenzoyldiphenylphosphine oxide (Lucirin(®) TPO) was found only in Vit-l-escence. Dual-peak LED LCUs may not be best suited for curing non-Lucirin(®) TPO-containing materials. A clear sealant showed a better cure throughout the material and may be more appropriate than opaque versions in deep fissures. © 2014 BSPD, IAPD and John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Designing a range modulator wheel to spread-out the Bragg peak for a passive proton therapy facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jia, S. Bijan; Romano, F.; Cirrone, Giuseppe A.P.; Cuttone, G.; Hadizadeh, M.H.; Mowlavi, A.A.; Raffaele, L.

2016-01-01

In proton beam therapy, a Spread-Out Bragg peak (SOBP) is used to establish a uniform dose distribution in the target volume. In order to create a SOBP, several Bragg peaks of different ranges, corresponding to different entrance energies, with certain intensities (weights) should be combined each other. In a passive beam scattering system, the beam is usually extracted from a cyclotron at a constant energy throughout a treatment. Therefore, a SOBP is produced by a range modulator wheel, which is basically a rotating wheel with steps of variable thicknesses, or by using the ridge filters. In this study, we used the Geant4 toolkit to simulate a typical passive scattering beam line. In particular, the CATANA transport beam line of INFN Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS) in Catania has been reproduced in this work. Some initial properties of the entrance beam have been checked by benchmarking simulations with experimental data. A class dedicated to the simulation of the wheel modulators has been implemented. It has been designed in order to be easily modified for simulating any desired modulator wheel and, hence, any suitable beam modulation. By using some auxiliary range-shifters, a set of pristine Bragg peaks was obtained from the simulations. A mathematical algorithm was developed, using the simulated pristine dose profiles as its input, to calculate the weight of each pristine peak, reproduce the SOBP, and finally generate a flat dose distribution. Therefore, once the designed modulator has been realized, it has been tested at CATANA facility, comparing the experimental data with the simulation results.

Designing a range modulator wheel to spread-out the Bragg peak for a passive proton therapy facility

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jia, S. Bijan [Physics Department, University of Bojnord, Bojnord (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Romano, F. [INFN, Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, Catania (Italy); Cirrone, Giuseppe A.P. [INFN, Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, Catania (Italy); Institute of Physics of the ASCR, ELI-Beamlines Project, Prague (Czech Republic); Cuttone, G. [INFN, Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, Catania (Italy); Hadizadeh, M.H. [Physics Department, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Mowlavi, A.A. [Physics Department, Hakim Sabzevari University, Sabzevar (Iran, Islamic Republic of); ICTP, Associate Federation Scheme, Medical Physics Field, Trieste (Italy); Raffaele, L. [Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria “Policlinico – Vittorio Emanuele”, Catania (Italy)

2016-01-11

In proton beam therapy, a Spread-Out Bragg peak (SOBP) is used to establish a uniform dose distribution in the target volume. In order to create a SOBP, several Bragg peaks of different ranges, corresponding to different entrance energies, with certain intensities (weights) should be combined each other. In a passive beam scattering system, the beam is usually extracted from a cyclotron at a constant energy throughout a treatment. Therefore, a SOBP is produced by a range modulator wheel, which is basically a rotating wheel with steps of variable thicknesses, or by using the ridge filters. In this study, we used the Geant4 toolkit to simulate a typical passive scattering beam line. In particular, the CATANA transport beam line of INFN Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS) in Catania has been reproduced in this work. Some initial properties of the entrance beam have been checked by benchmarking simulations with experimental data. A class dedicated to the simulation of the wheel modulators has been implemented. It has been designed in order to be easily modified for simulating any desired modulator wheel and, hence, any suitable beam modulation. By using some auxiliary range-shifters, a set of pristine Bragg peaks was obtained from the simulations. A mathematical algorithm was developed, using the simulated pristine dose profiles as its input, to calculate the weight of each pristine peak, reproduce the SOBP, and finally generate a flat dose distribution. Therefore, once the designed modulator has been realized, it has been tested at CATANA facility, comparing the experimental data with the simulation results.

Compact high voltage, high peak power, high frequency transformer for converter type modulator applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Reghu, T; Mandloi, V; Shrivastava, Purushottam

2016-04-01

The design and development of a compact high voltage, high peak power, high frequency transformer for a converter type modulator of klystron amplifiers is presented. The transformer has been designed to operate at a frequency of 20 kHz and at a flux swing of ±0.6 T. Iron (Fe) based nanocrystalline material has been selected as a core for the construction of the transformer. The transformer employs a specially designed solid Teflon bobbin having 120 kV insulation for winding the high voltage secondary windings. The flux swing of the core has been experimentally found by plotting the hysteresis loop at actual operating conditions. Based on the design, a prototype transformer has been built which is per se a unique combination of high voltage, high frequency, and peak power specifications. The transformer was able to provide 58 kV (pk-pk) at the secondary with a peak power handling capability of 700 kVA. The transformation ratio was 1:17. The performance of the transformer is also presented and discussed.

Damage Evaluation of Critical Components of Tilted Support Spring Nonlinear System under a Rectangular Pulse

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ningning Duan

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Dimensionless nonlinear dynamical equations of a tilted support spring nonlinear packaging system with critical components were obtained under a rectangular pulse. To evaluate the damage characteristics of shocks to packaged products with critical components, a concept of the damage boundary surface was presented and applied to a titled support spring system, with the dimensionless critical acceleration of the system, the dimensionless critical velocity, and the frequency parameter ratio of the system taken as the three basic parameters. Based on the numerical results, the effects of the frequency parameter ratio, the mass ratio, the dimensionless peak pulse acceleration, the angle of the system, and the damping ratio on the damage boundary surface of critical components were discussed. It was demonstrated that with the increase of the frequency parameter ratio, the decrease of the angle, and/or the increase of the mass ratio, the safety zone of critical components can be broadened, and increasing the dimensionless peak pulse acceleration or the damping ratio may lead to a decrease of the damage zone for critical components. The results may lead to a thorough understanding of the design principles for the tilted support spring nonlinear system.

Peak experiences of psilocybin users and non-users.

Science.gov (United States)

Cummins, Christina; Lyke, Jennifer

2013-01-01

Maslow (1970) defined peak experiences as the most wonderful experiences of a person's life, which may include a sense of awe, well-being, or transcendence. Furthermore, recent research has suggested that psilocybin can produce experiences subjectively rated as uniquely meaningful and significant (Griffiths et al. 2006). It is therefore possible that psilocybin may facilitate or change the nature of peak experiences in users compared to non-users. This study was designed to compare the peak experiences of psilocybin users and non-users, to evaluate the frequency of peak experiences while under the influence of psilocybin, and to assess the perceived degree of alteration of consciousness during these experiences. Participants were recruited through convenience and snowball sampling from undergraduate classes and at a musical event. Participants were divided into three groups, those who reported a peak experience while under the influence of psilocybin (psilocybin peak experience: PPE), participants who had used psilocybin but reported their peak experiences did not occur while they were under the influence of psilocybin (non-psilocybin peak experience: NPPE), and participants who had never used psilocybin (non-user: NU). A total of 101 participants were asked to think about their peak experiences and complete a measure evaluating the degree of alteration of consciousness during that experience. Results indicated that 47% of psilocybin users reported their peak experience occurred while using psilocybin. In addition, there were significant differences among the three groups on all dimensions of alteration of consciousness. Future research is necessary to identify factors that influence the peak experiences of psilocybin users in naturalistic settings and contribute to the different characteristics of peak experiences of psilocybin users and non-users.

Extragalactic Peaked-spectrum Radio Sources at Low Frequencies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Callingham, J. R.; Gaensler, B. M.; Sadler, E. M.; Lenc, E. [Sydney Institute for Astronomy (SIfA), School of Physics, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006 (Australia); Ekers, R. D.; Bell, M. E. [CSIRO Astronomy and Space Science (CASS), Marsfield, NSW 2122 (Australia); Line, J. L. B.; Hancock, P. J.; Kapińska, A. D.; McKinley, B.; Procopio, P. [ARC Centre of Excellence for All-Sky Astrophysics (CAASTRO) (Australia); Hurley-Walker, N.; Tingay, S. J.; Franzen, T. M. O.; Morgan, J. [International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR), Curtin University, Bentley, WA 6102 (Australia); Dwarakanath, K. S. [Raman Research Institute (RRI), Bangalore 560080 (India); For, B.-Q. [International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR), The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009 (Australia); Hindson, L.; Johnston-Hollitt, M. [School of Chemical and Physical Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6140 (New Zealand); Offringa, A. R., E-mail: joseph.callingham@sydney.edu.au [Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON), Dwingeloo (Netherlands); and others

2017-02-20

We present a sample of 1483 sources that display spectral peaks between 72 MHz and 1.4 GHz, selected from the GaLactic and Extragalactic All-sky Murchison Widefield Array (GLEAM) survey. The GLEAM survey is the widest fractional bandwidth all-sky survey to date, ideal for identifying peaked-spectrum sources at low radio frequencies. Our peaked-spectrum sources are the low-frequency analogs of gigahertz-peaked spectrum (GPS) and compact-steep spectrum (CSS) sources, which have been hypothesized to be the precursors to massive radio galaxies. Our sample more than doubles the number of known peaked-spectrum candidates, and 95% of our sample have a newly characterized spectral peak. We highlight that some GPS sources peaking above 5 GHz have had multiple epochs of nuclear activity, and we demonstrate the possibility of identifying high-redshift ( z > 2) galaxies via steep optically thin spectral indices and low observed peak frequencies. The distribution of the optically thick spectral indices of our sample is consistent with past GPS/CSS samples but with a large dispersion, suggesting that the spectral peak is a product of an inhomogeneous environment that is individualistic. We find no dependence of observed peak frequency with redshift, consistent with the peaked-spectrum sample comprising both local CSS sources and high-redshift GPS sources. The 5 GHz luminosity distribution lacks the brightest GPS and CSS sources of previous samples, implying that a convolution of source evolution and redshift influences the type of peaked-spectrum sources identified below 1 GHz. Finally, we discuss sources with optically thick spectral indices that exceed the synchrotron self-absorption limit.

The dislocation-internal friction peak γ in tantalum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baur, J.; Benoit, W.; Schultz, H.

1989-01-01

Torsion-pendulum measurements were carried out on high-purity single crystal specimens of tantalum, having extremely low oxygen contents ( 2 peak, which appears close to γ is small traces of oxygen are presents. The γ 2 peak was formerly explained as a ''dislocation-enhanced Snoek peak''. The γ peak recovers at the peak temperature, whereas the γ 2 peak is more stable. On the basis of their results, and making use of earlier investigations of Rodrian and Schultz, the authors suggest that γ 2 is modified γ relaxation, related to screw-dislocation segments, stabilized by oxygen-decorated kinks. The stability of the γ 2 peak allows an accurate determination of the activation energy, found to be 1.00 +- 0.03 eV. This value is distinctly lower than the activation energy of the oxygen Snoek effect (1.10 eV) and is related here to the mechanism of ''kink-pair formation'' in screw dislocations, as the original γ peak. The numerical value is compatible with recent values derived from flow-stress measurements. The peak γ 2 shows increasing stability with increasing oxygen content. This is explained by single- and multi-decorated kinks

Individual vision and peak distribution in collective actions

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Peng

2017-06-01

People make decisions on whether they should participate as participants or not as free riders in collective actions with heterogeneous visions. Besides of the utility heterogeneity and cost heterogeneity, this work includes and investigates the effect of vision heterogeneity by constructing a decision model, i.e. the revised peak model of participants. In this model, potential participants make decisions under the joint influence of utility, cost, and vision heterogeneities. The outcomes of simulations indicate that vision heterogeneity reduces the values of peaks, and the relative variance of peaks is stable. Under normal distributions of vision heterogeneity and other factors, the peaks of participants are normally distributed as well. Therefore, it is necessary to predict distribution traits of peaks based on distribution traits of related factors such as vision heterogeneity and so on. We predict the distribution of peaks with parameters of both mean and standard deviation, which provides the confident intervals and robust predictions of peaks. Besides, we validate the peak model of via the Yuyuan Incident, a real case in China (2014), and the model works well in explaining the dynamics and predicting the peak of real case.

Heat transfer critical conditions in two-plase flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Assis, M.C.V. de.

1980-02-01

The critical heat flux for forced-convection flow of water inside an uniformly heated circular channel is analysed, taking into account several flow patterns usually met in this type of investigation. Comments about nomenclature, experimental methods and influence of operational parameters used in the description of this phenomenon are made. The experimental results from 187 tests of critical heat flux at low pressure are presented. One empirical correlation between the critical heat flux and the independent parameters, was developed. Some correlations developed in other laboratories in the same range of parameters are mentioned and compared with present one. (Author) [pt

Isotope resolution of the iron peak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Henke, R.P.; Benton, E.V.

1977-01-01

A stack of Lexan detectors from the Apollo 17 mission has been analyzed to obtain Z measurements of sufficient accuracy to resolve the iron peak into its isotopic components. Within this distribution several peaks are present. With the centrally located, most populated peak assumed to be 56 Fe, the measurements imply that the abundances of 54 Fe and 58 Fe are appreciable fractions of the 56 Fe abundance. This result is in agreement with those of Webber et al. and Siegman et al. but in disagreement with the predictions of Tsao et al. (Auth.)

Numerical Calculation of the Peaking Factor of a Water-Cooled W/Cu Monoblock for a Divertor

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Le; Chang, Haiping; Zhang, Jingyang; Xu, Tiejun

2015-09-01

In order to accurately predict the incident critical heat flux (ICHF, the heat flux at the heated surface when CHF occurs) of a water-cooled W/Cu monoblock for a divertor, the exact knowledge of its peaking factors (fp) under one-sided heating conditions with different design parameters is a key issue. In this paper, the heat conduction in the solid domain of a water-cooled W/Cu monoblock is calculated numerically by assuming the local heat transfer coefficients (HTC) of the cooling wall to be functions of the local wall temperature, so as to obtain fp. The reliability of the calculation method is validated by an experimental example result, with the maximum error of 2.1% only. The effects of geometric and flow parameters on the fp of a water-cooled W/Cu monoblock are investigated. Within the scope of this study, it is shown that the fp increases with increasing dimensionless W/Cu monoblock width and armour thickness (the shortest distance between the heated surface and Cu layer), and the maximum increases are 43.8% and 22.4% respectively. The dimensionless W/Cu monoblock height and Cu thickness have little effect on fp. The increase of Reynolds number and Jakob number causes the increase of fp, and the maximum increases are 6.8% and 9.6% respectively. Based on the calculated results, an empirical correlation on peaking factor is obtained via regression. These results provide a valuable reference for the thermal-hydraulic design of water-cooled divertors. supported by National Magnetic Confinement Fusion Science Program of China (No. 2010GB104005) and Funding of Jiangsu Innovation Program for Graduate Education, China (CXLX12_0170), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities of China

Protonation of caffeine: A theoretical and experimental study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bahrami, Hamed [Department of Chemistry, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Tabrizchi, Mahmoud, E-mail: m-tabriz@cc.iut.ac.ir [Department of Chemistry, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Farrokhpour, Hossein [Department of Chemistry, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2013-03-29

Highlights: ► Protonation of caffeine was examined by ion mobility spectrometry equipped with two ionization sources. ► Experimental and theoretical evidence was collected to assign the observed peaks to caffeine related ionic species. ► A new concept of “internal proton affinity”, the protonation tendency for each atom in a molecule, was defined. - Abstract: Protonation of caffeine was examined by ion mobility spectrometry equipped with two ionization sources, corona discharge (CD) and UV photoionization. Three peaks were observed in ion mobility spectrum by simultaneously running the two ionization sources. Experimental and theoretical evidence was collected to link the observed peaks to caffeine related ionic species. One peak was attributed to the M{sup +} ion while the other two were assigned to different protonated isomers of caffeine. In the case of CD ionization source, it was observed that different sites of caffeine compete for protonation and their relative intensities, depends on the sample concentration as well as the nature of the reactant ions. The new concept of “internal proton affinity” (IPA) was defined to express the tendency of holding the added proton for each atom in a molecule.

Protonation of caffeine: A theoretical and experimental study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bahrami, Hamed; Tabrizchi, Mahmoud; Farrokhpour, Hossein

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► Protonation of caffeine was examined by ion mobility spectrometry equipped with two ionization sources. ► Experimental and theoretical evidence was collected to assign the observed peaks to caffeine related ionic species. ► A new concept of “internal proton affinity”, the protonation tendency for each atom in a molecule, was defined. - Abstract: Protonation of caffeine was examined by ion mobility spectrometry equipped with two ionization sources, corona discharge (CD) and UV photoionization. Three peaks were observed in ion mobility spectrum by simultaneously running the two ionization sources. Experimental and theoretical evidence was collected to link the observed peaks to caffeine related ionic species. One peak was attributed to the M + ion while the other two were assigned to different protonated isomers of caffeine. In the case of CD ionization source, it was observed that different sites of caffeine compete for protonation and their relative intensities, depends on the sample concentration as well as the nature of the reactant ions. The new concept of “internal proton affinity” (IPA) was defined to express the tendency of holding the added proton for each atom in a molecule

Instream flow needs below peaking hydroelectric projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Milhous, R.T.

1991-01-01

This paper reports on a method developed to assist in the determination of instream flow needs below hydroelectric projects operated in a peaking mode. Peaking hydroelectric projects significantly change streamflow over a short period of time; consequently, any instream flow methodology must consider the dual flows associated with peaking projects. The dual flows are the lowest flow and the maximum generation flow of a peaking cycle. The methodology is based on elements of the Physical Habitat Simulation System of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and uses habitat, rather than fish numbers or biomas, as at basic response variable. All aquatic animals are subject to the rapid changes in streamflow which cause rapid swings in habitat quality. Some aquatic organisms are relatively fixed in location in the stream while others can move when flows change. The habitat available from a project operated in peaking mode is considered to be the minimum habitat occurring during a cycle of habitat change. The methodology takes in to consideration that some aquatic animals can move and others cannot move during a peaking cycle

Automation of peak-tracking analysis of stepwise perturbed NMR spectra

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Banelli, Tommaso; Vuano, Marco [Università di Udine, Dipartimento di Area Medica (Italy); Fogolari, Federico [INBB (Italy); Fusiello, Andrea [Università di Udine, Dipartimento Politecnico di Ingegneria e Architettura (Italy); Esposito, Gennaro [INBB (Italy); Corazza, Alessandra, E-mail: alessandra.corazza@uniud.it [Università di Udine, Dipartimento di Area Medica (Italy)

2017-02-15

We describe a new algorithmic approach able to automatically pick and track the NMR resonances of a large number of 2D NMR spectra acquired during a stepwise variation of a physical parameter. The method has been named Trace in Track (TinT), referring to the idea that a gaussian decomposition traces peaks within the tracks recognised through 3D mathematical morphology. It is capable of determining the evolution of the chemical shifts, intensity and linewidths of each tracked peak.The performances obtained in term of track reconstruction and correct assignment on realistic synthetic spectra were high above 90% when a noise level similar to that of experimental data were considered. TinT was applied successfully to several protein systems during a temperature ramp in isotope exchange experiments. A comparison with a state-of-the-art algorithm showed promising results for great numbers of spectra and low signal to noise ratios, when the graduality of the perturbation is appropriate. TinT can be applied to different kinds of high throughput chemical shift mapping experiments, with quasi-continuous variations, in which a quantitative automated recognition is crucial.

Devolatilization kinetics of woody biomass at short residence times and high heating rates and peak temperatures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Johansen, Joakim M.; Gadsbøll, Rasmus; Thomsen, Jesper

2016-01-01

This work combines experimental and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) results to derive global kinetics for biomass (pine wood) devolatilization during heating rates on the order of 105Ks-1, bulk flow peak temperatures between 1405 and 1667K, and particle residence times below 0.1s. Experiments......Jmol-1. The accuracy of the derived global kinetics was supported by comparing predictions to experimental results from a 15kW furnace. The work emphasizes the importance of characterizing the temperature history of the biomass particles when deriving pyrolysis kinetics. The present results indicate...

Critical fields in high temperature superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finnemore, D.K.

1991-01-01

An analysis of various methods to obtain the critical fields of the high temperature superconductors from experimental data is undertaken in order to find definitions of these variables that are consistent with the models used to define them. Characteristic critical fields of H c1 , H c2 and H c that occur in the Ginsburg-Landau theory are difficult to determine experimentally in the high temperature superconductors because there are additional physical phenomena that obscure the results. The lower critical field is difficult to measure because there are flux pinning and surface barrier effects to flux entry; the upper critical field is difficult because fluctuation effects are large at this phase boundary; the thermodynamic critical field is difficult because fluctuations make it difficult to know the field where the magnetization integral should be terminated. In addition to these critical fields there are at least two other cross-over fields. There is the so called irreversibility line where the vortices transform from a rigid flux line lattice to a fluid lattice and there is a second cross-over field associated with the transition from the fluctuation to the Abrikosov vortex regime. The presence of these new physical effects may require new vocabulary

Comparisons of peak-search and photopeak-integration methods in the computer analysis of gamma-ray spectra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baedecker, P.A.

1980-01-01

Myriad methods have been devised for extracting quantitative information from gamma-ray spectra by means of a computer, and a critical evaluation of the relative merits of the various programs that have been written would represent a Herculean, if not an impossible, task. The results from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) intercomparison, which may represent the most straightforward approach to making such an evaluation, showed a wide range in the quality of the results - even among laboratories where similar methods were used. The most clear-cut way of differentiating between programs is by the method used to evaluate peak areas: by the iterative fitting of the spectral features to an often complex model, or by a simple summation procedure. Previous comparisons have shown that relatively simple algorithms can compete favorably with fitting procedures, although fitting holds the greatest promise for the detection and measurement of complex peaks. However, fitting algorithms, which are generally complex and time consuming, are often ruled out by practical limitations based on the type of computing equipment available, cost limitations, the number of spectra to be processed in a given time period, and the ultimate goal of the analysis. Comparisons of methods can be useful, however, in helping to illustrate the limitations of the various algorithms that have been devised. This paper presents a limited review of some of the more common peak-search and peak-integration methods, along with Peak-search procedures

flowPeaks: a fast unsupervised clustering for flow cytometry data via K-means and density peak finding.

Science.gov (United States)

Ge, Yongchao; Sealfon, Stuart C

2012-08-01

For flow cytometry data, there are two common approaches to the unsupervised clustering problem: one is based on the finite mixture model and the other on spatial exploration of the histograms. The former is computationally slow and has difficulty to identify clusters of irregular shapes. The latter approach cannot be applied directly to high-dimensional data as the computational time and memory become unmanageable and the estimated histogram is unreliable. An algorithm without these two problems would be very useful. In this article, we combine ideas from the finite mixture model and histogram spatial exploration. This new algorithm, which we call flowPeaks, can be applied directly to high-dimensional data and identify irregular shape clusters. The algorithm first uses K-means algorithm with a large K to partition the cell population into many small clusters. These partitioned data allow the generation of a smoothed density function using the finite mixture model. All local peaks are exhaustively searched by exploring the density function and the cells are clustered by the associated local peak. The algorithm flowPeaks is automatic, fast and reliable and robust to cluster shape and outliers. This algorithm has been applied to flow cytometry data and it has been compared with state of the art algorithms, including Misty Mountain, FLOCK, flowMeans, flowMerge and FLAME. The R package flowPeaks is available at https://github.com/yongchao/flowPeaks. yongchao.ge@mssm.edu Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

Soil processes and functions in critical zone observatories: hypotheses and experimental design

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Banwart, S.; Bernasconi, S.M.; Bloem, J.; Blum, W.; Ruiter, de P.C.; Gaans, van P.; Riemsdijk, van W.H.

2011-01-01

European Union policy on soil threats and soil protection has prioritized new research to address global soil threats. This research draws on the methodology of Critical Zone Observatories (CZOs) to focus a critical mass of international, multidisciplinary expertise at specific field sites. These

Critical experiments on enriched uranium graphite moderated cores

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaneko, Yoshihiko; Akino, Fujiyoshi; Kitadate, Kenji; Kurokawa, Ryosuke

1978-07-01

A variety of 20 % enriched uranium loaded and graphite-moderated cores consisting of the different lattice cells in a wide range of the carbon to uranium atomic ratio have been built at Semi-Homogeneous Critical Experimental Assembly (SHE) to perform the critical experiments systematically. In the present report, the experimental results for homogeneously or heterogeneously fuel loaded cores and for simulation core of the experimental reactor for a multi-purpose high temperature reactor are filed so as to be utilized for evaluating the accuracy of core design calculation for the experimental reactor. The filed experimental data are composed of critical masses of uranium, kinetic parameters, reactivity worths of the experimental control rods and power distributions in the cores with those rods. Theoretical analyses are made for the experimental data by adopting a simple ''homogenized cylindrical core model'' using the nuclear data of ENDF/B-III, which treats the neutron behaviour after smearing the lattice cell structure. It is made clear from a comparison between the measurement and the calculation that the group constants and fundamental methods of calculations, based on this theoretical model, are valid for the homogeneously fuel loaded cores, but not for both of the heterogeneously fuel loaded cores and the core for simulation of the experimental reactor. Then, it is pointed out that consideration to semi-homogeneous property of the lattice cells for reactor neutrons is essential for high temperature graphite-moderated reactors using dispersion fuel elements of graphite and uranium. (author)

Effects of a work-based critical reflection program for novice nurses.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Yeon Hee; Min, Ja; Kim, Soon Hee; Shin, Sujin

2018-02-27

Critical reflection is effective in improving students' communication abilities and confidence. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a work-based critical reflection program to enhance novice nurses' clinical critical-thinking abilities, communication competency, and job performance. The present study used a quasi-experimental design. From October 2014 to August 2015, we collected data from 44 novice nurses working in an advanced general hospital in S city in Korea. Nurses in the experimental group participated in a critical reflection program for six months. Outcome variables were clinical critical-thinking skills, communication abilities, and job performance. A non-parametric Mann-Whitney U-test and a Wilcoxon rank sum test were selected to evaluate differences in mean ranks and to assess the null hypothesis that the medians were equal across the groups. The results showed that the clinical critical-thinking skills of those in the experimental group improved significantly (p = 0.003). The differences in mean ranks of communication ability between two groups was significantly statistically different (p = 0.028). Job performance improved significantly in both the experimental group and the control group, so there was no statistical difference (p = 0.294). We therefore suggest that a critical reflection program be considered an essential tool for improving critical thinking and communication abilities among novice nurses who need to adapt to the clinical environment as quickly as possible. Further, we suggest conducting research into critical reflection programs among larger and more diverse samples.

Theory of peak coalescence in Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry.

Science.gov (United States)

Boldin, Ivan A; Nikolaev, Eugene N

2009-10-01

Peak coalescence, i.e. the merging of two close peaks in a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FTICR) mass spectrum at a high number of ions, plays an important role in various FTICR experiments. In order to describe the coalescence phenomenon we would like to propose a new theory of motion for ion clouds with close mass-to-charge ratios, driven by a uniform magnetic field and Coulomb interactions between the clouds. We describe the motion of the ion clouds in terms of their averaged drift motion in crossed magnetic and electric fields. The ion clouds are considered to be of constant size and their motion is studied in two dimensions. The theory deals with the first-order approximation of the equations of motion in relation to dm/m, where dm is the mass difference and m is the mass of a single ion. The analysis was done for an arbitrary inter-cloud interaction potential, which makes it possible to analyze finite-size ion clouds of any shape. The final analytical expression for the condition of the onset of coalescence is found for the case of uniformly charged spheres. An algorithm for finding this condition for an arbitrary interaction potential is proposed. The critical number of ions for the peak coalescence to take place is shown to depend quadratically on the magnetic field strength and to be proportional to the cyclotron radius and inversely proportional to the ion masses. Copyright (c) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Upper limit of peak area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Helene, O.A.M.

1982-08-01

The determination of the upper limit of peak area in a multi-channel spectra, with a known significance level is discussed. This problem is specially important when the peak area is masked by the background statistical fluctuations. The problem is exactly solved and, thus, the results are valid in experiments with small number of events. The results are submitted to a Monte Carlo test and applied to the 92 Nb beta decay. (Author) [pt

The International Criticality Safety Benchmark Evaluation Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Briggs, B. J.; Dean, V. F.; Pesic, M. P.

2001-01-01

In order to properly manage the risk of a nuclear criticality accident, it is important to establish the conditions for which such an accident becomes possible for any activity involving fissile material. Only when this information is known is it possible to establish the likelihood of actually achieving such conditions. It is therefore important that criticality safety analysts have confidence in the accuracy of their calculations. Confidence in analytical results can only be gained through comparison of those results with experimental data. The Criticality Safety Benchmark Evaluation Project (CSBEP) was initiated in October of 1992 by the US Department of Energy. The project was managed through the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), but involved nationally known criticality safety experts from Los Alamos National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Savannah River Technology Center, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Y-12 Plant, Hanford, Argonne National Laboratory, and the Rocky Flats Plant. An International Criticality Safety Data Exchange component was added to the project during 1994 and the project became what is currently known as the International Criticality Safety Benchmark Evaluation Project (ICSBEP). Representatives from the United Kingdom, France, Japan, the Russian Federation, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Korea, Slovenia, Yugoslavia, Spain, and Israel are now participating on the project In December of 1994, the ICSBEP became an official activity of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development - Nuclear Energy Agency's (OECD-NEA) Nuclear Science Committee. The United States currently remains the lead country, providing most of the administrative support. The purpose of the ICSBEP is to: (1) identify and evaluate a comprehensive set of critical benchmark data; (2) verify the data, to the extent possible, by reviewing original and subsequently revised documentation, and by talking with the

A Fiber Bragg Grating Interrogation System with Self-Adaption Threshold Peak Detection Algorithm.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Weifang; Li, Yingwu; Jin, Bo; Ren, Feifei; Wang, Hongxun; Dai, Wei

2018-04-08

A Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) interrogation system with a self-adaption threshold peak detection algorithm is proposed and experimentally demonstrated in this study. This system is composed of a field programmable gate array (FPGA) and advanced RISC machine (ARM) platform, tunable Fabry-Perot (F-P) filter and optical switch. To improve system resolution, the F-P filter was employed. As this filter is non-linear, this causes the shifting of central wavelengths with the deviation compensated by the parts of the circuit. Time-division multiplexing (TDM) of FBG sensors is achieved by an optical switch, with the system able to realize the combination of 256 FBG sensors. The wavelength scanning speed of 800 Hz can be achieved by a FPGA+ARM platform. In addition, a peak detection algorithm based on a self-adaption threshold is designed and the peak recognition rate is 100%. Experiments with different temperatures were conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the system. Four FBG sensors were examined in the thermal chamber without stress. When the temperature changed from 0 °C to 100 °C, the degree of linearity between central wavelengths and temperature was about 0.999 with the temperature sensitivity being 10 pm/°C. The static interrogation precision was able to reach 0.5 pm. Through the comparison of different peak detection algorithms and interrogation approaches, the system was verified to have an optimum comprehensive performance in terms of precision, capacity and speed.

A Fiber Bragg Grating Interrogation System with Self-Adaption Threshold Peak Detection Algorithm

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Weifang Zhang

2018-04-01

Full Text Available A Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG interrogation system with a self-adaption threshold peak detection algorithm is proposed and experimentally demonstrated in this study. This system is composed of a field programmable gate array (FPGA and advanced RISC machine (ARM platform, tunable Fabry–Perot (F–P filter and optical switch. To improve system resolution, the F–P filter was employed. As this filter is non-linear, this causes the shifting of central wavelengths with the deviation compensated by the parts of the circuit. Time-division multiplexing (TDM of FBG sensors is achieved by an optical switch, with the system able to realize the combination of 256 FBG sensors. The wavelength scanning speed of 800 Hz can be achieved by a FPGA+ARM platform. In addition, a peak detection algorithm based on a self-adaption threshold is designed and the peak recognition rate is 100%. Experiments with different temperatures were conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the system. Four FBG sensors were examined in the thermal chamber without stress. When the temperature changed from 0 °C to 100 °C, the degree of linearity between central wavelengths and temperature was about 0.999 with the temperature sensitivity being 10 pm/°C. The static interrogation precision was able to reach 0.5 pm. Through the comparison of different peak detection algorithms and interrogation approaches, the system was verified to have an optimum comprehensive performance in terms of precision, capacity and speed.

An experimental study on the flow instabilities and critical heat flux under natural circulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Yun II; Chang, Soon Heung

2004-01-01

This study has been carried out to investigate the hydrodynamic stabilities and Critical Heat Flux (CHF) characteristics for the natural and forced circulation. A low pressure experimental loop was constructed, and experiments under various conditions have been performed. In the experiments of the natural circulation, flow oscillations has been observed and the average mass flux under flow oscillation have been measured. Several parameters such as heat flux, the inlet temperature of test section, friction valve opening and riser length have been varied in order to investigate their effects on the flow stability of the natural circulation system. And the CHF data from low flow experiments, namely the natural and forced circulation, have been compared with each other to identify the effects of the flow instabilities on the CHF for the natural circulation mode. The test conditions for the CHF experiments were a low flow of less than 70 kg/m 2 s of water in a vertical round tube with diameter of 0.008 m at near atmospheric pressure. (author)

A RE-INTRODUCTION TO ANOMALIES OF CRITICALITY

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Puigh, R.J.

2009-01-01

In 1974, a small innocuous document was submitted to the American Nuclear Society's Criticality Safety Division for publication that would have lasting impacts on this nuclear field The author was Duane Clayton, manager of the Battelle Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Critical Mass Lab, the world's preeminent reactor critical experimenter with plutonium solutions. The document was entitled, 'Anomalies of Criticality'. 'Anomalies...' was a compilation of more than thirty separate and distinct examples of departures from what might be commonly expected in the field of nuclear criticality. Mr. Clayton's publication was the derivative of more than ten thousand experiments and countless analytical studies conducted world-wide on every conceivable reactor system imaginable: from fissile bearing solutions to solids, blocks to arrays of fuel rods, low-enriched uranium oxide systems to pure plutonium and highly enriched uranium systems. After publication, the document was commonly used within the nuclear fuel cycle and reactor community to train potential criticality/reactor analysts, experimenters and fuel handlers on important things for consideration when designing systems with critically 'safe' parameters in mind The purpose of this paper is to re-introduce 'Anomalies of Criticality' to the current Criticality Safety community and to add new 'anomalies' to the existing compendium. By so doing, it is the authors' hope that a new generation of nuclear workers and criticality engineers will benefit from its content and might continue to build upon this work in support of the nuclear renaissance that is about to occur

Critical eigenvalue in LMFBRs: a physics assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McKnight, R.D.; Collins, P.J.; Olsen, D.N.

1984-01-01

This paper summarizes recent work to put the analysis of past critical eigenvalue measurements from the US critical experiments program on a consistent basis. The integral data base includes 53 configurations built in 11 ZPPR assemblies which simulate mixed oxide LMFBRs. Both conventional and heterogeneous designs representing 350, 700, and 900 MWe sizes and with and without simulated control rods and/or control rod positions have been studied. The review of the integral data base includes quantitative assessment of experimental uncertainties in the measured excess reactivity. Analyses have been done with design level and higher-order methods using ENDF/B-IV data. Comparisons of these analyses with the experiments are used to generate recommended bias factors for criticality predictions. Recommended methods for analysis of LMFBR fast critical assemblies and LMFBR design calculations are presented. Unresolved issues and areas which require additional experimental or analytical study are identified

Employer Attitudes towards Peak Hour Avoidance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vonk Noordegraaf, D.M.; Annema, J.A.

2012-01-01

Peak Hour Avoidance is a relatively new Dutch mobility management measure. To reduce congestion frequent car drivers are given a financial reward for reducing the proportion of trips that they make during peak hours on a specific motorway section. Although previous studies show that employers are

Employer attitudes towards peak hour avoidance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Noordegraaf, D.M.V.; Annema, J.A.

2012-01-01

Peak Hour Avoidance is a relatively new Dutch mobility management measure. To reduce congestion frequent car drivers are given a financial reward for reducing the proportion of trips that they make during peak hours on a specific motorway section. Although previous studies show that employers are

KiDS-450: cosmological constraints from weak-lensing peak statistics - II: Inference from shear peaks using N-body simulations

Science.gov (United States)

Martinet, Nicolas; Schneider, Peter; Hildebrandt, Hendrik; Shan, HuanYuan; Asgari, Marika; Dietrich, Jörg P.; Harnois-Déraps, Joachim; Erben, Thomas; Grado, Aniello; Heymans, Catherine; Hoekstra, Henk; Klaes, Dominik; Kuijken, Konrad; Merten, Julian; Nakajima, Reiko

2018-02-01

We study the statistics of peaks in a weak-lensing reconstructed mass map of the first 450 deg2 of the Kilo Degree Survey (KiDS-450). The map is computed with aperture masses directly applied to the shear field with an NFW-like compensated filter. We compare the peak statistics in the observations with that of simulations for various cosmologies to constrain the cosmological parameter S_8 = σ _8 √{Ω _m/0.3}, which probes the (Ωm, σ8) plane perpendicularly to its main degeneracy. We estimate S8 = 0.750 ± 0.059, using peaks in the signal-to-noise range 0 ≤ S/N ≤ 4, and accounting for various systematics, such as multiplicative shear bias, mean redshift bias, baryon feedback, intrinsic alignment, and shear-position coupling. These constraints are ˜ 25 per cent tighter than the constraints from the high significance peaks alone (3 ≤ S/N ≤ 4) which typically trace single-massive haloes. This demonstrates the gain of information from low-S/N peaks. However, we find that including S/N KiDS-450. Combining shear peaks with non-tomographic measurements of the shear two-point correlation functions yields a ˜20 per cent improvement in the uncertainty on S8 compared to the shear two-point correlation functions alone, highlighting the great potential of peaks as a cosmological probe.

Bayesian Peak Picking for NMR Spectra

KAUST Repository

Cheng, Yichen

2014-02-01

Protein structure determination is a very important topic in structural genomics, which helps people to understand varieties of biological functions such as protein-protein interactions, protein–DNA interactions and so on. Nowadays, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has often been used to determine the three-dimensional structures of protein in vivo. This study aims to automate the peak picking step, the most important and tricky step in NMR structure determination. We propose to model the NMR spectrum by a mixture of bivariate Gaussian densities and use the stochastic approximation Monte Carlo algorithm as the computational tool to solve the problem. Under the Bayesian framework, the peak picking problem is casted as a variable selection problem. The proposed method can automatically distinguish true peaks from false ones without preprocessing the data. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first effort in the literature that tackles the peak picking problem for NMR spectrum data using Bayesian method.

Practical load management - Peak shaving using photovoltaics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berger, W.

2009-01-01

This article takes a look at how photovoltaic (PV) power generation can be used in a practical way to meet peak demands for electricity. Advice is provided on how photovoltaics can provide peak load 'shaving' through the correlation between its production and the peak loads encountered during the day. The situation regarding feed-in tariffs in Italy is discussed, as are further examples of installations in Germany and Austria. Further, an initiative of the American Southern California Edison utility is discussed which foresees the installation of large PV plant on the roofs of commercial premises to provide local generation of peak energy and thus relieve demands on their power transportation network.

Calculation of the local power peaking near WWER-440 control assemblies with Hf plates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hegyi, Gy.; Hordosy, G.; Kereszturi, A.; Maraszy, Cs.; Temesvari, E.

2003-01-01

The original coupler design of the WWER-440 assemblies had the following well known deficiency: The relatively large amount of water in the coupler between the absorber and fuel port of the control assembly can cause undesirably sharp power peaking in the fuel rods next to the coupler. The power peaking can be especially high after control rod withdrawal when the coupler reached low burnup level region of the adjacent assembly. The modernized coupler design overcomes the original problem by applying a thin Hf plate in the critical region. The very complicated structure of the coupler requires the verification of the core design methods by high precision 3D Monte Carlo calculations. The paper presents an MCNP reference calculation on the control rod coupler benchmark with Hf absorber plates. The benchmark solution with the KARATE-440 code system is also presented. The need for treating the Hf burnout in the reflector region is investigated (Authors)

The Kinematics of Multiple-peaked Lyα Emission in Star-forming Galaxies at z ~ 2-3

Science.gov (United States)

Kulas, Kristin R.; Shapley, Alice E.; Kollmeier, Juna A.; Zheng, Zheng; Steidel, Charles C.; Hainline, Kevin N.

2012-01-01

We present new results on the Lyα emission-line kinematics of 18 z ~ 2-3 star-forming galaxies with multiple-peaked Lyα profiles. With our large spectroscopic database of UV-selected star-forming galaxies at these redshifts, we have determined that ~30% of such objects with detectable Lyα emission display multiple-peaked emission profiles. These profiles provide additional constraints on the escape of Lyα photons due to the rich velocity structure in the emergent line. Despite recent advances in modeling the escape of Lyα from star-forming galaxies at high redshifts, comparisons between models and data are often missing crucial observational information. Using Keck II NIRSPEC spectra of Hα (z ~ 2) and [O III]λ5007 (z ~ 3), we have measured accurate systemic redshifts, rest-frame optical nebular velocity dispersions, and emission-line fluxes for the objects in the sample. In addition, rest-frame UV luminosities and colors provide estimates of star formation rates and the degree of dust extinction. In concert with the profile sub-structure, these measurements provide critical constraints on the geometry and kinematics of interstellar gas in high-redshift galaxies. Accurate systemic redshifts allow us to translate the multiple-peaked Lyα profiles into velocity space, revealing that the majority (11/18) display double-peaked emission straddling the velocity-field zero point with stronger red-side emission. Interstellar absorption-line kinematics suggest the presence of large-scale outflows for the majority of objects in our sample, with an average measured interstellar absorption velocity offset of langΔv absrang = -230 km s-1. A comparison of the interstellar absorption kinematics for objects with multiple- and single-peaked Lyα profiles indicate that the multiple-peaked objects are characterized by significantly narrower absorption line widths. We compare our data with the predictions of simple models for outflowing and infalling gas distributions around

Peak torque and rate of torque development influence on repeated maximal exercise performance: contractile and neural contributions.

Science.gov (United States)

Morel, Baptiste; Rouffet, David M; Saboul, Damien; Rota, Samuel; Clémençon, Michel; Hautier, Christophe A

2015-01-01

Rapid force production is critical to improve performance and prevent injuries. However, changes in rate of force/torque development caused by the repetition of maximal contractions have received little attention. The aim of this study was to determine the relative influence of rate of torque development (RTD) and peak torque (T(peak)) on the overall performance (i.e. mean torque, T(mean)) decrease during repeated maximal contractions and to investigate the contribution of contractile and neural mechanisms to the alteration of the various mechanical variables. Eleven well-trained men performed 20 sets of 6-s isokinetic maximal knee extensions at 240° · s(-1), beginning every 30 seconds. RTD, T(peak) and T(mean) as well as the Rate of EMG Rise (RER), peak EMG (EMG(peak)) and mean EMG (EMG(mean)) of the vastus lateralis were monitored for each contraction. A wavelet transform was also performed on raw EMG signal for instant mean frequency (if(mean)) calculation. A neuromuscular testing procedure was carried out before and immediately after the fatiguing protocol including evoked RTD (eRTD) and maximal evoked torque (eT(peak)) induced by high frequency doublet (100 Hz). T(mean) decrease was correlated to RTD and T(peak) decrease (R(²) = 0.62; p<0.001; respectively β=0.62 and β=0.19). RER, eRTD and initial if(mean) (0-225 ms) decreased after 20 sets (respectively -21.1 ± 14.1, -25 ± 13%, and ~20%). RTD decrease was correlated to RER decrease (R(²) = 0.36; p<0.05). The eT(peak) decreased significantly after 20 sets (24 ± 5%; p<0.05) contrary to EMG(peak) (-3.2 ± 19.5 %; p=0.71). Our results show that reductions of RTD explained part of the alterations of the overall performance during repeated moderate velocity maximal exercise. The reductions of RTD were associated to an impairment of the ability of the central nervous system to maximally activate the muscle in the first milliseconds of the contraction.

Density and elevational distribution of the San Francisco Peaks ragwort, Packera franciscana (Asteraceae), a threatened single-mountain endemic

Science.gov (United States)

James F. Fowler; Carolyn Hull Sieg

2011-01-01

Packera franciscana (Greene) W. A. Weber and A. Love is endemic to treeline and alpine habitats of the San Francisco Peaks, Arizona, USA and was listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act in 1983. Species abundance data are limited in scope, yet are critical for recovery of the species, especially in light of predictions of its future extinction...

Study of the peak shape in alpha spectra measured by liquid scintillation

CERN Document Server

Vera-Tome, F; Martin-Sanchez, A

2002-01-01

Liquid-scintillation counting allows the measurement of alpha and beta activities jointly or only of the alpha-emitting nuclides in a sample. Although the resolution of the alpha spectra is poorer than that attained with semiconductor detectors, it is still an attractive alternative. We describe here attempts to fit a peak shape to experimental liquid-scintillation alpha spectra and discuss the parameters affecting this shape, such as the PSA (pulse-shape analyser) level, vial type, shaking the sample, etc. Spectral analysis has been applied for complex alpha spectra.

Statistics of peaks of Gaussian random fields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bardeen, J.M.; Bond, J.R.; Kaiser, N.; Szalay, A.S.; Stanford Univ., CA; California Univ., Berkeley; Cambridge Univ., England; Fermi National Accelerator Lab., Batavia, IL)

1986-01-01

A set of new mathematical results on the theory of Gaussian random fields is presented, and the application of such calculations in cosmology to treat questions of structure formation from small-amplitude initial density fluctuations is addressed. The point process equation is discussed, giving the general formula for the average number density of peaks. The problem of the proper conditional probability constraints appropriate to maxima are examined using a one-dimensional illustration. The average density of maxima of a general three-dimensional Gaussian field is calculated as a function of heights of the maxima, and the average density of upcrossing points on density contour surfaces is computed. The number density of peaks subject to the constraint that the large-scale density field be fixed is determined and used to discuss the segregation of high peaks from the underlying mass distribution. The machinery to calculate n-point peak-peak correlation functions is determined, as are the shapes of the profiles about maxima. 67 references

Fast Metabolite Identification in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Metabolomic Studies: Statistical Peak Sorting and Peak Overlap Detection for More Reliable Database Queries.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoijemberg, Pablo A; Pelczer, István

2018-01-05

A lot of time is spent by researchers in the identification of metabolites in NMR-based metabolomic studies. The usual metabolite identification starts employing public or commercial databases to match chemical shifts thought to belong to a given compound. Statistical total correlation spectroscopy (STOCSY), in use for more than a decade, speeds the process by finding statistical correlations among peaks, being able to create a better peak list as input for the database query. However, the (normally not automated) analysis becomes challenging due to the intrinsic issue of peak overlap, where correlations of more than one compound appear in the STOCSY trace. Here we present a fully automated methodology that analyzes all STOCSY traces at once (every peak is chosen as driver peak) and overcomes the peak overlap obstacle. Peak overlap detection by clustering analysis and sorting of traces (POD-CAST) first creates an overlap matrix from the STOCSY traces, then clusters the overlap traces based on their similarity and finally calculates a cumulative overlap index (COI) to account for both strong and intermediate correlations. This information is gathered in one plot to help the user identify the groups of peaks that would belong to a single molecule and perform a more reliable database query. The simultaneous examination of all traces reduces the time of analysis, compared to viewing STOCSY traces by pairs or small groups, and condenses the redundant information in the 2D STOCSY matrix into bands containing similar traces. The COI helps in the detection of overlapping peaks, which can be added to the peak list from another cross-correlated band. POD-CAST overcomes the generally overlooked and underestimated presence of overlapping peaks and it detects them to include them in the search of all compounds contributing to the peak overlap, enabling the user to accelerate the metabolite identification process with more successful database queries and searching all tentative

Probabilistic peak detection for first-order chromatographic data.

Science.gov (United States)

Lopatka, M; Vivó-Truyols, G; Sjerps, M J

2014-03-19

We present a novel algorithm for probabilistic peak detection in first-order chromatographic data. Unlike conventional methods that deliver a binary answer pertaining to the expected presence or absence of a chromatographic peak, our method calculates the probability of a point being affected by such a peak. The algorithm makes use of chromatographic information (i.e. the expected width of a single peak and the standard deviation of baseline noise). As prior information of the existence of a peak in a chromatographic run, we make use of the statistical overlap theory. We formulate an exhaustive set of mutually exclusive hypotheses concerning presence or absence of different peak configurations. These models are evaluated by fitting a segment of chromatographic data by least-squares. The evaluation of these competing hypotheses can be performed as a Bayesian inferential task. We outline the potential advantages of adopting this approach for peak detection and provide several examples of both improved performance and increased flexibility afforded by our approach. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sensitivity enhancement by chromatographic peak concentration with ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy for minor impurity analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Tokunaga, Takashi; Akagi, Ken-Ichi; Okamoto, Masahiko

2017-07-28

High performance liquid chromatography can be coupled with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to give a powerful analytical method known as liquid chromatography-nuclear magnetic resonance (LC-NMR) spectroscopy, which can be used to determine the chemical structures of the components of complex mixtures. However, intrinsic limitations in the sensitivity of NMR spectroscopy have restricted the scope of this procedure, and resolving these limitations remains a critical problem for analysis. In this study, we coupled ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) with NMR to give a simple and versatile analytical method with higher sensitivity than conventional LC-NMR. UHPLC separation enabled the concentration of individual peaks to give a volume similar to that of the NMR flow cell, thereby maximizing the sensitivity to the theoretical upper limit. The UHPLC concentration of compound peaks present at typical impurity levels (5.0-13.1 nmol) in a mixture led to at most three-fold increase in the signal-to-noise ratio compared with LC-NMR. Furthermore, we demonstrated the use of UHPLC-NMR for obtaining structural information of a minor impurity in a reaction mixture in actual laboratory-scale development of a synthetic process. Using UHPLC-NMR, the experimental run times for chromatography and NMR were greatly reduced compared with LC-NMR. UHPLC-NMR successfully overcomes the difficulties associated with analyses of minor components in a complex mixture by LC-NMR, which are problematic even when an ultra-high field magnet and cryogenic probe are used. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Critical assessment of precracked specimen configuration and experimental test variables for stress corrosion testing of 7075-T6 aluminum alloy plate

Science.gov (United States)

Domack, M. S.

1985-01-01

A research program was conducted to critically assess the effects of precracked specimen configuration, stress intensity solutions, compliance relationships and other experimental test variables for stress corrosion testing of 7075-T6 aluminum alloy plate. Modified compact and double beam wedge-loaded specimens were tested and analyzed to determine the threshold stress intensity factor and stress corrosion crack growth rate. Stress intensity solutions and experimentally determined compliance relationships were developed and compared with other solutions available in the literature. Crack growth data suggests that more effective crack length measurement techniques are necessary to better characterize stress corrosion crack growth. Final load determined by specimen reloading and by compliance did not correlate well, and was considered a major source of interlaboratory variability. Test duration must be determined systematically, accounting for crack length measurement resolution, time for crack arrest, and experimental interferences. This work was conducted as part of a round robin program sponsored by ASTM committees G1.06 and E24.04 to develop a standard test method for stress corrosion testing using precracked specimens.

Experimental study on the double barrier structure at room temperature

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sheng, H Y; Chua, S J [Centre for Optoelectronics, Dept. of Electrical Engineering, National Univ. of Singapore (Singapore)

1994-06-15

An experimental study of AlAs / GaAs / AlAs double barrier structure is carried out. The double barrier and quantum well structure are grown by MBE. The peak-to-valley ratio 2.6 : 1 with peak current density of 1.6 kA/cm/sup 2 at room temperature have been achieved. (authors)

Nuclear criticality information system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koponen, B.L.; Hampel, V.E.

1981-01-01

The nuclear criticality safety program at LLNL began in the 1950's with a critical measurements program which produced benchmark data until the late 1960's. This same time period saw the rapid development of computer technology useful for both computer modeling of fissile systems and for computer-aided management and display of the computational benchmark data. Database management grew in importance as the amount of information increased and as experimental programs were terminated. Within the criticality safety program at LLNL we began at that time to develop a computer library of benchmark data for validation of computer codes and cross sections. As part of this effort, we prepared a computer-based bibliography of criticality measurements on relatively simple systems. However, it is only now that some of these computer-based resources can be made available to the nuclear criticality safety community at large. This technology transfer is being accomplished by the DOE Technology Information System (TIS), a dedicated, advanced information system. The NCIS database is described

Peak load demand forecasting using two-level discrete wavelet decomposition and neural network algorithm

Science.gov (United States)

Bunnoon, Pituk; Chalermyanont, Kusumal; Limsakul, Chusak

2010-02-01

This paper proposed the discrete transform and neural network algorithms to obtain the monthly peak load demand in mid term load forecasting. The mother wavelet daubechies2 (db2) is employed to decomposed, high pass filter and low pass filter signals from the original signal before using feed forward back propagation neural network to determine the forecasting results. The historical data records in 1997-2007 of Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) is used as reference. In this study, historical information of peak load demand(MW), mean temperature(Tmean), consumer price index (CPI), and industrial index (economic:IDI) are used as feature inputs of the network. The experimental results show that the Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) is approximately 4.32%. This forecasting results can be used for fuel planning and unit commitment of the power system in the future.

Criticality and avalanches in neural networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zare, Marzieh; Grigolini, Paolo

2013-01-01

Highlights: • Temporal criticality is used as criticality indicator. • The Mittag–Leffler function is proposed as a proper form of temporal complexity. • The distribution of avalanche size becomes scale free in the supercritical state. • The scale-free distribution of avalanche sizes is an epileptic manifestation. -- Abstract: Experimental work, both in vitro and in vivo, reveals the occurrence of neural avalanches with an inverse power law distribution in size and time duration. These properties are interpreted as an evident manifestation of criticality, thereby suggesting that the brain is an operating near criticality complex system: an attractive theoretical perspective that according to Gerhard Werner may help to shed light on the origin of consciousness. However, a recent experimental observation shows no clear evidence for power-law scaling in awake and sleeping brain of mammals, casting doubts on the assumption that the brain works at criticality. This article rests on a model proposed by our group in earlier publications to generate neural avalanches with the time duration and size distribution matching the experimental results on neural networks. We now refine the analysis of the time distance between consecutive firing bursts and observe the deviation of the corresponding distribution from the Poisson statistics, as the system moves from the non-cooperative to the cooperative regime. In other words, we make the assumption that the genuine signature of criticality may emerge from temporal complexity rather than from the size and time duration of avalanches. We argue that the Mittag–Leffler (ML) exponential function is a satisfactory indicator of temporal complexity, namely of the occurrence of non-Poisson and renewal events. The assumption that the onset of criticality corresponds to the birth of renewal non-Poisson events establishes a neat distinction between the ML function and the power law avalanches generating regime. We find that

Experimental performance and results of the critical pebble bed facility KAHTER

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Krings, F. J.; Drueke, V.; Kirch, N.; Neef, R. D.

1974-10-15

The paper provides a description and results of critical experiments performed in KAHTER fueled with pebbles containing coated particles of HEU/Th oxide with a ratio of uranium-to-thorium of 1.1:5. Core loadings with varying amounts of fuel and solid graphite pebbles were tested with fuel-to-graphite pebble ratios of 3:1, 1:1, and 1:3. Tests included criticality for various fuel loadings with all control rods removed, control rod worths for reflector-mounted control as single rods and in a bank and control worths for a central control rod, reaction rates by flux wire activations (Dy, Mn, In, Au, and U-235) and detector measurements (BF3 and fission chamber), simulated xenon stability testing using the motions of a Cf-252 source and Cd-absorber observed by an externally-located BF3 detector, and the reactivity worth of a Hf burnable absorber. For calculations of the room-temperature zero-power critical experiment, the values for nitrogen and hydrogen contents of the graphite were taken from previous experiments in CESAR.

Peak load pricing lowers generation costs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lande, R.H.

1980-01-01

Before a utility implements peak load pricing for different classes of consumers, the costs and the benefits should be compared. The methodology described enables a utility to determine whether peak load pricing should be introduced for specific users. Cost-benefit analyses for domestic consumers and commercial/industrial consumers, showing break-even points are presented. (author)

The Zeus Copper/Uranium Critical Experiment at NCERC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sanchez, Rene G.; Hayes, David K.; Bounds, John Alan; Jackman, Kevin R.; Goda, Joetta M.

2012-01-01

A critical experiment was performed to provide nuclear data in a non-thermal neutron spectrum and to reestablish experimental capability relevant to Stockpile Stewardship and Technical Nuclear Forensic programs. Irradiation foils were placed at specific locations in the Zeus all oralloy critical experiment to obtain fission ratios. These ratios were compared with others from other critical assemblies to assess the degree of softness in the neutron spectrum. This critical experiment was performed at the National Criticality Experiments Research Center (NCERC) in Nevada.

Peak Shaving Considering Streamflow Uncertainties | Iwuagwu ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The main thrust of this paper is peak shaving with a Stochastic hydro model. In peak sharing, the amount of hydro energy scheduled may be a minimum but it serves to replace less efficient thermal units. The sample system is die Kainji hydro plant and the thermal units of the National Electric Power Authority. The random ...

Peak Oil, Peak Coal and Climate Change

Science.gov (United States)

Murray, J. W.

2009-05-01

Research on future climate change is driven by the family of scenarios developed for the IPCC assessment reports. These scenarios create projections of future energy demand using different story lines consisting of government policies, population projections, and economic models. None of these scenarios consider resources to be limiting. In many of these scenarios oil production is still increasing to 2100. Resource limitation (in a geological sense) is a real possibility that needs more serious consideration. The concept of 'Peak Oil' has been discussed since M. King Hubbert proposed in 1956 that US oil production would peak in 1970. His prediction was accurate. This concept is about production rate not reserves. For many oil producing countries (and all OPEC countries) reserves are closely guarded state secrets and appear to be overstated. Claims that the reserves are 'proven' cannot be independently verified. Hubbert's Linearization Model can be used to predict when half the ultimate oil will be produced and what the ultimate total cumulative production (Qt) will be. US oil production can be used as an example. This conceptual model shows that 90% of the ultimate US oil production (Qt = 225 billion barrels) will have occurred by 2011. This approach can then be used to suggest that total global production will be about 2200 billion barrels and that the half way point will be reached by about 2010. This amount is about 5 to 7 times less than assumed by the IPCC scenarios. The decline of Non-OPEC oil production appears to have started in 2004. Of the OPEC countries, only Saudi Arabia may have spare capacity, but even that is uncertain, because of lack of data transparency. The concept of 'Peak Coal' is more controversial, but even the US National Academy Report in 2007 concluded only a small fraction of previously estimated reserves in the US are actually minable reserves and that US reserves should be reassessed using modern methods. British coal production can be

Impact of peak/mid luteal estradiol on pregnancy outcome after intracytoplasmic sperm injection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rehman, R.; Hussain, Z.; Zahir, H.

2014-01-01

Objective: To compare peak to mid estradiol ratio with the probability of successful conception after intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection. Method: The quasi-experimental study was conducted in an infertility clinic at Islamabad from June 2010 till August 2011, and comprised couples subjected to intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection. Down-regulation of ovaries was followed by calculated stimulation, ovulation induction, oocytes retrieval, intra cytoplasmic sperm injection, in vitro maturation of embryos and finally blastocysts transfer. Serum estradiol was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay on ovulation induction day and the day of embryo transfer. Failure of procedure was detected by beta human chorionic gonadotropin 5-25mIU/ml (Group I; non-pregnant). Females with beta human chorionic gonadotropin>25mIU/ml and no cardiac activity after 4 weeks of transfer were placed in Group II (pre-clinical abortion), and confirmation of foetal heart in the latter comprised Group III (clinical pregnancy). Data was analysed using SPSS 15. Results: Of the 323 couples initially enrolled, embryo transfer was carried out in 282(87.3%) females. Clinical pregnancy was achieved in 101(36%) of the cases, while 61(21.63%) had pre-clinical abortion, and 120(42%) remained non-pregnant. The peak/mid-luteal estradiolratio was low (2.3) in patients who had high oocyte maturity (p=0.001) and fertilisation rate (p=0.003) compared to non-pregnant patients with high peak/mid-luteal estradiolratio (2.56). Conclusion: High peak estradiol with maintenance of optimal levels in mid-luteal phase is required for implantation of fertilised ovum and accomplishment of clinical pregnancy. (author)

Peak Oil, threat or energy worlds' phantasm?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Favennec, Jean-Pierre

2011-01-01

The concept of Peak Oil is based on the work of King Hubbert, a petroleum geologist who worked for Shell in the USA in the 1960's. Based on the fact that discoveries in America reached a maximum in the 1930's, he announced that American production would reach a maximum in 1969, which did actually occur. Geologists members of the Association for the Study of Peak Oil have extrapolated this result to a worldwide scale and, since oil discoveries reached a peak in the 1960's, argued that production will peak in the very near future. It is clear that hydrocarbon reserves are finite and therefore exhaustible. But little is known regarding the level of ultimate (i.e. total existing) reserves. There are probably very large reserves of non conventional oil in addition to the reserves of conventional oil. An increasing number of specialists put maximum production at less than 100 Mb/d more for geopolitical than physical reasons. Attainable peak production will probably vary from year to year and will depend on how crude oil prices develop

7 CFR 457.163 - Nursery peak inventory endorsement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Nursery peak inventory endorsement. 457.163 Section... CORPORATION, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE COMMON CROP INSURANCE REGULATIONS § 457.163 Nursery peak inventory endorsement. Nursery Crop Insurance Peak Inventory Endorsement This endorsement is not continuous and must be...

Critical scattering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stirling, W.G.; Perry, S.C.

1996-01-01

We outline the theoretical and experimental background to neutron scattering studies of critical phenomena at magnetic and structural phase transitions. The displacive phase transition of SrTiO 3 is discussed, along with examples from recent work on magnetic materials from the rare-earth (Ho, Dy) and actinide (NpAs, NpSb, USb) classes. The impact of synchrotron X-ray scattering is discussed in conclusion. (author) 13 figs., 18 refs

Diffraction peaks in x-ray spectroscopy: Friend or foe?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tissot, R.G.; Goehner, R.P.

1992-01-01

Diffraction peaks can occur as unidentifiable peaks in the energy spectrum of an x-ray spectrometric analysis. Recently, there has been increased interest in oriented polycrystalline films and epitaxial films on single crystal substrates for electronic applications. Since these materials diffract x-rays more efficiently than randomly oriented polycrystalline materials, diffraction peaks are being observed more frequently in x-ray fluorescent spectra. In addition, micro x-ray spectrometric analysis utilizes a small, intense, collimated x-ray beam that can yield well defined diffraction peaks. In some cases these diffraction peaks can occur at the same position as elemental peaks. These diffraction peaks, although a possible problem in qualitative and quantitative elemental analysis, can give very useful information about the crystallographic structure and orientation of the material being analyzed. The observed diffraction peaks are dependent on the geometry of the x-ray spectrometer, the degree of collimation and the distribution of wavelengths (energies) originating from the x-ray tube and striking the sample

Measurement of disintegration rates of small [60Co]Co sources in lead containers by the sum-peak method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kawano, Takao; Ebihara, Hiroshi

1991-01-01

The sum-peak method has been applied to determine the disintegration rates of two small [ 60 Co]Co sources (30 and 350 kBq) in lead containers with several thickness by using a NaI(Tl) detector. The experimental results showed that the sum-peak method was perfectly effective for the determination of the disintegration rates (unrelated to the thicknesses of the containers) of the 350 kBq source. The sum-peak method was also absolutely effective for the 30 kBq source in the case of containers with thicknesses of 15 mm and less, but in the cases of those with thicknesses of 21, 27 and 33 mm, the disintegration rates were under-estimated and the deviations from the true disintegration rate increased rapidly with increasing thicknesses of the containers. We presume that the under-estimation of the disintegration rates was the result of the over-estimation of the areas under the sum peaks, caused by the interference of the γ-ray (2614 keV) emitted from the naturally occurring radionuclide 208 Tl. (author)

Study of two-phase critical flows through small breaches

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chalant, Jean Marc; Willocx, Marc

1981-06-01

The first part of this academic document reports experimental works performed for the design and realisation of an installation (DALIDA) aimed at the study of critical flow rates through a hole. As this experimental study had to be given up for practical reasons, the authors focused on the theoretical study of this phenomenon. Based on a model proposed by Lackme for critical flows in long tubes, the authors developed a model which could be applied to the case of a tube ended by a hole. Numerical results have been obtained which are still to be experimentally confirmed [fr

Automatic Peak Selection by a Benjamini-Hochberg-Based Algorithm

KAUST Repository

Abbas, Ahmed; Kong, Xin-Bing; Liu, Zhi; Jing, Bing-Yi; Gao, Xin

2013-01-01

A common issue in bioinformatics is that computational methods often generate a large number of predictions sorted according to certain confidence scores. A key problem is then determining how many predictions must be selected to include most of the true predictions while maintaining reasonably high precision. In nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based protein structure determination, for instance, computational peak picking methods are becoming more and more common, although expert-knowledge remains the method of choice to determine how many peaks among thousands of candidate peaks should be taken into consideration to capture the true peaks. Here, we propose a Benjamini-Hochberg (B-H)-based approach that automatically selects the number of peaks. We formulate the peak selection problem as a multiple testing problem. Given a candidate peak list sorted by either volumes or intensities, we first convert the peaks into p-values and then apply the B-H-based algorithm to automatically select the number of peaks. The proposed approach is tested on the state-of-the-art peak picking methods, including WaVPeak [1] and PICKY [2]. Compared with the traditional fixed number-based approach, our approach returns significantly more true peaks. For instance, by combining WaVPeak or PICKY with the proposed method, the missing peak rates are on average reduced by 20% and 26%, respectively, in a benchmark set of 32 spectra extracted from eight proteins. The consensus of the B-H-selected peaks from both WaVPeak and PICKY achieves 88% recall and 83% precision, which significantly outperforms each individual method and the consensus method without using the B-H algorithm. The proposed method can be used as a standard procedure for any peak picking method and straightforwardly applied to some other prediction selection problems in bioinformatics. The source code, documentation and example data of the proposed method is available at http://sfb.kaust.edu.sa/pages/software.aspx. © 2013

Automatic Peak Selection by a Benjamini-Hochberg-Based Algorithm

KAUST Repository

Abbas, Ahmed

2013-01-07

A common issue in bioinformatics is that computational methods often generate a large number of predictions sorted according to certain confidence scores. A key problem is then determining how many predictions must be selected to include most of the true predictions while maintaining reasonably high precision. In nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based protein structure determination, for instance, computational peak picking methods are becoming more and more common, although expert-knowledge remains the method of choice to determine how many peaks among thousands of candidate peaks should be taken into consideration to capture the true peaks. Here, we propose a Benjamini-Hochberg (B-H)-based approach that automatically selects the number of peaks. We formulate the peak selection problem as a multiple testing problem. Given a candidate peak list sorted by either volumes or intensities, we first convert the peaks into p-values and then apply the B-H-based algorithm to automatically select the number of peaks. The proposed approach is tested on the state-of-the-art peak picking methods, including WaVPeak [1] and PICKY [2]. Compared with the traditional fixed number-based approach, our approach returns significantly more true peaks. For instance, by combining WaVPeak or PICKY with the proposed method, the missing peak rates are on average reduced by 20% and 26%, respectively, in a benchmark set of 32 spectra extracted from eight proteins. The consensus of the B-H-selected peaks from both WaVPeak and PICKY achieves 88% recall and 83% precision, which significantly outperforms each individual method and the consensus method without using the B-H algorithm. The proposed method can be used as a standard procedure for any peak picking method and straightforwardly applied to some other prediction selection problems in bioinformatics. The source code, documentation and example data of the proposed method is available at http://sfb.kaust.edu.sa/pages/software.aspx. © 2013

The modified relaxation time function: A novel analysis technique for relaxation processes. Application to high-temperature molybdenum internal friction peaks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matteo, C.L.; Lambri, O.A.; Zelada-Lambri, G.I.; Sorichetti, P.A.; Garcia, J.A.

2008-01-01

The modified relaxation time (MRT) function, which is based on a general linear viscoelastic formalism, has several important mathematical properties that greatly simplify the analysis of relaxation processes. In this work, the MRT is applied to the study of the relaxation damping peaks in deformed molybdenum at high temperatures. The dependence of experimental data from these relaxation processes with temperature are adequately described by a Havriliak-Negami (HN) function, and the MRT makes it possible to find a relation between the parameters of the HN function and the activation energy of the process. The analysis reveals that for the relaxation peak appearing at temperatures below 900 K, the physical mechanism is related to a vacancy-diffusion-controlled movement of dislocations. In contrast, when the peak appears at temperatures higher than 900 K, the damping is controlled by a mechanism of diffusion in the low-temperature tail of the peak, and in the high-temperature tail of the peak the creation plus diffusion of vacancies at the dislocation line occurs

What's so critical about Critical Neuroscience? Rethinking experiment, enacting critique.

Science.gov (United States)

Fitzgerald, Des; Matusall, Svenja; Skewes, Joshua; Roepstorff, Andreas

2014-01-01

In the midst of on-going hype about the power and potency of the new brain sciences, scholars within "Critical Neuroscience" have called for a more nuanced and sceptical neuroscientific knowledge-practice. Drawing especially on the Frankfurt School, they urge neuroscientists towards a more critical approach-one that re-inscribes the objects and practices of neuroscientific knowledge within webs of social, cultural, historical and political-economic contingency. This paper is an attempt to open up the black-box of "critique" within Critical Neuroscience itself. Specifically, we argue that limiting enactments of critique to the invocation of context misses the force of what a highly-stylized and tightly-bound neuroscientific experiment can actually do. We show that, within the neuroscientific experiment itself, the world-excluding and context-denying "rules of the game" may also enact critique, in novel and surprising forms, while remaining formally independent of the workings of society, and culture, and history. To demonstrate this possibility, we analyze the Optimally Interacting Minds (OIM) paradigm, a neuroscientific experiment that used classical psychophysical methods to show that, in some situations, people worked better as a collective, and not as individuals-a claim that works precisely against reactionary tendencies that prioritize individual over collective agency, but that was generated and legitimized entirely within the formal, context-denying conventions of neuroscientific experimentation. At the heart of this paper is a claim that it was precisely the rigors and rules of the experimental game that allowed these scientists to enact some surprisingly critical, and even radical, gestures. We conclude by suggesting that, in the midst of large-scale neuroscientific initiatives, it may be "experiment", and not "context", that forms the meeting-ground between neuro-biological and socio-political research practices.

Critical heat flux performance of hypervapotrons proposed for use in the ITER divertor vertical target

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Youchison, D.L.; Marshall, T.D.; McDonald, J.M.; Lutz, T.J.; Watson, R.D.; Driemeyer, D.E.; Kubik, D.L.; Slattery, K.T.; Hellwig, T.H.

1997-09-01

Task T-222 of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) program addresses the manufacturing and testing of permanent components for use in the ITER divertor. Thermalhydraulic and critical heat flux performance of the heat sinks proposed for use in the divertor vertical target are part of subtask T-222.4. As part of this effort, two single channel, medium scale, bare copper alloy, hypervapotron mockups were designed, fabricated, and tested using the EB-1200 electron beam system. The objectives of the effort were to develop the design and manufacturing procedures required for construction of robust high heat flux (HHF) components, verify thermalhydraulic, thermomechanical and critical heat flux (CHF) performance under ITER relevant conditions, and perform analyses of HHF data to identify design guidelines and failure criteria and possibly modify any applicable CHF correlations. The design, fabrication, and finite element modeling of two types of hypervapotrons are described; a common version already in use at the Joint European Torus (JET) and a new attached fin design. HHF test data on the attached fin hypervapotron will be used to compare the CHF performance under uniform heating profiles on long heated lengths with that of localized, highly peaked, off nominal profiles

Critical heat flux performance of hypervapotrons proposed for use in the ITER divertor vertical target

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Youchison, D.L.; Marshall, T.D.; McDonald, J.M.; Lutz, T.J.; Watson, R.D. [Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States); Driemeyer, D.E. Kubik, D.L.; Slattery, K.T.; Hellwig, T.H. [McDonnell Douglas Aerospace, St. Louis, MO (United States)

1997-09-01

Task T-222 of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) program addresses the manufacturing and testing of permanent components for use in the ITER divertor. Thermalhydraulic and critical heat flux performance of the heat sinks proposed for use in the divertor vertical target are part of subtask T-222.4. As part of this effort, two single channel, medium scale, bare copper alloy, hypervapotron mockups were designed, fabricated, and tested using the EB-1200 electron beam system. The objectives of the effort were to develop the design and manufacturing procedures required for construction of robust high heat flux (HHF) components, verify thermalhydraulic, thermomechanical and critical heat flux (CHF) performance under ITER relevant conditions, and perform analyses of HHF data to identify design guidelines and failure criteria and possibly modify any applicable CHF correlations. The design, fabrication, and finite element modeling of two types of hypervapotrons are described; a common version already in use at the Joint European Torus (JET) and a new attached fin design. HHF test data on the attached fin hypervapotron will be used to compare the CHF performance under uniform heating profiles on long heated lengths with that of localized, highly peaked, off nominal profiles.

Analysis of fuel end-temperature peaking

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xu, Z.; Jiang, Q.; Lai, L.; Shams, M. [CANDU Energy Inc., Fuel Engineering Dept., Mississauga, Ontario (Canada)

2013-07-01

During normal operation and refuelling of CANDU® fuel, fuel temperatures near bundle ends will increase due to a phenomenon called end flux peaking. Similar phenomenon would also be expected to occur during a postulated large break LOCA event. The end flux peaking in a CANDU fuel element is due to the fact that neutron flux is higher near a bundle end, in contact with a neighbouring bundle or close to heavy water coolant, than in the bundle mid-plane, because of less absorption of thermal neutrons by Zircaloy or heavy water than by the UO{sub 2} material. This paper describes Candu Energy experience in analysing behaviour of bundle due to end flux peaking using fuel codes FEAT, ELESTRES and ELOCA. (author)

Masseter muscle myofibrillar protein synthesis and degradation in an experimental critical illness myopathy model.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hazem Akkad

Full Text Available Critical illness myopathy (CIM is a debilitating common consequence of modern intensive care, characterized by severe muscle wasting, weakness and a decreased myosin/actin (M/A ratio. Limb/trunk muscles are primarily affected by this myopathy while cranial nerve innervated muscles are spared or less affected, but the mechanisms underlying these muscle-specific differences remain unknown. In this time-resolved study, the cranial nerve innervated masseter muscle was studied in a unique experimental rat intensive care unit (ICU model, where animals were exposed to sedation, neuromuscular blockade (NMB, mechanical ventilation, and immobilization for durations varying between 6 h and 14d. Gel electrophoresis, immunoblotting, RT-PCR and morphological staining techniques were used to analyze M/A ratios, myofiber size, synthesis and degradation of myofibrillar proteins, and levels of heat shock proteins (HSPs. Results obtained in the masseter muscle were compared with previous observations in experimental and clinical studies of limb muscles. Significant muscle-specific differences were observed, i.e., in the masseter, the decline in M/A ratio and muscle fiber size was small and delayed. Furthermore, transcriptional regulation of myosin and actin synthesis was maintained, and Akt phosphorylation was only briefly reduced. In studied degradation pathways, only mRNA, but not protein levels of MuRF1, atrogin-1 and the autophagy marker LC3b were activated by the ICU condition. The matrix metalloproteinase MMP-2 was inhibited and protective HSPs were up-regulated early. These results confirm that the cranial nerve innervated masticatory muscles is less affected by the ICU-stress response than limb muscles, in accordance with clinical observation in ICU patients with CIM, supporting the model' credibility as a valid CIM model.

Quantum Critical Higgs

Science.gov (United States)

Bellazzini, Brando; Csáki, Csaba; Hubisz, Jay; Lee, Seung J.; Serra, Javi; Terning, John

2016-10-01

The appearance of the light Higgs boson at the LHC is difficult to explain, particularly in light of naturalness arguments in quantum field theory. However, light scalars can appear in condensed matter systems when parameters (like the amount of doping) are tuned to a critical point. At zero temperature these quantum critical points are directly analogous to the finely tuned standard model. In this paper, we explore a class of models with a Higgs near a quantum critical point that exhibits non-mean-field behavior. We discuss the parametrization of the effects of a Higgs emerging from such a critical point in terms of form factors, and present two simple realistic scenarios based on either generalized free fields or a 5D dual in anti-de Sitter space. For both of these models, we consider the processes g g →Z Z and g g →h h , which can be used to gain information about the Higgs scaling dimension and IR transition scale from the experimental data.

The critical ionization velocity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raadu, M.A.

1980-06-01

The critical ionization velocity effect was first proposed in the context of space plasmas. This effect occurs for a neutral gas moving through a magnetized plasma and leads to rapid ionization and braking of the relative motion when a marginal velocity, 'the critical velocity', is exceeded. Laboratory experiments have clearly established the significance of the critical velocity and have provided evidence for an underlying mechanism which relies on the combined action of electron impact ionization and a collective plasma interaction heating electrons. There is experimental support for such a mechanism based on the heating of electrons by the modified two-stream instability as part of a feedback process. Several applications to space plasmas have been proposed and the possibility of space experiments has been discussed. (author)

Experimental investigation of the multiple scatter peak of gamma rays in portland cement in the energy range 279-1332 keV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Singh, Tejbir; Singh, Parjit S

2011-01-01

The pulse height spectra for different thicknesses of portland cement in the reflected geometry has been recorded with the help of a NaI(Tl) scintillator detector and 2 K MCA card using different gamma-ray sources such as Hg 203 (279 keV), Cs 137 (662 keV) and Co 60 (1173 and 1332 keV). It has been observed that the multiple scatter peak for portland cement appears at 110 (±7) keV in all the spectra irrespective of different incident photon energies in the range 279-1332 keV from different gamma-ray sources. Further, the variation in the intensity of the multiple scatter peak with the thickness of portland cement in the backward semi-cylinders has been investigated.

Critical Experiments With Aqueous Solutions of 233UO2(NO3)2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomas, J.T.

2001-01-01

This report provides the critical experimenter's interpretations and descriptions of informal critical experiment logbook notes and associated information (e.g., experimental equipment designs/sketches, chemical and isotopic analyses, etc.) for the purpose of formally documenting the results of critical experiments performed in the late 1960s at the Oak Ridge Critical Experiments Facility. The experiments were conducted with aqueous solutions of 97.6 wt % 233 U uranyl nitrate having uranium densities varying between about 346 g U/l and 45 g U/l. Criticality was achieved with single simple units (e.g., cylinders and spheres) and with spaced subcritical simple cylindrical units arranged in unreflected, water-reflected, and polyethylene reflected critical arrays

Bayesian approach for peak detection in two-dimensional chromatography.

Science.gov (United States)

Vivó-Truyols, Gabriel

2012-03-20

A new method for peak detection in two-dimensional chromatography is presented. In a first step, the method starts with a conventional one-dimensional peak detection algorithm to detect modulated peaks. In a second step, a sophisticated algorithm is constructed to decide which of the individual one-dimensional peaks have been originated from the same compound and should then be arranged in a two-dimensional peak. The merging algorithm is based on Bayesian inference. The user sets prior information about certain parameters (e.g., second-dimension retention time variability, first-dimension band broadening, chromatographic noise). On the basis of these priors, the algorithm calculates the probability of myriads of peak arrangements (i.e., ways of merging one-dimensional peaks), finding which of them holds the highest value. Uncertainty in each parameter can be accounted by adapting conveniently its probability distribution function, which in turn may change the final decision of the most probable peak arrangement. It has been demonstrated that the Bayesian approach presented in this paper follows the chromatographers' intuition. The algorithm has been applied and tested with LC × LC and GC × GC data and takes around 1 min to process chromatograms with several thousands of peaks.

Peak broadening in paper chromatography and related techniques : III. Peak broadening in thin-layer chromatography on cellulose powder

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ligny, C.L. de; Remijnse, A.G.

1968-01-01

The mechanism of peak broadening in thin-layer chromatography on cellulose powder was investigated by comparing the peak widths obtained in chromatography with those caused only by diffusion in the cellulose powder, for a set of amino acids of widely differing RF values and six kinds of cellulose

Criticality safety research on nuclear fuel cycle facility

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miyoshi, Yoshinori [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan). Tokai Research Establishment

2004-07-01

This paper present d s current status and future program of the criticality safety research on nuclear fuel cycle made by Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute. Experimental research on solution fuel treated in reprocessing plant has been performed using two critical facilities, STACY and TRACY. Fundamental data of static and transient characteristics are accumulated for validation of criticality safety codes. Subcritical measurements are also made for developing a monitoring system for criticality safety. Criticality safety codes system for solution and power system, and evaluation method related to burnup credit are developed. (author)

OccuPeak: ChIP-Seq peak calling based on internal background modelling

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Boer, Bouke A.; van Duijvenboden, Karel; van den Boogaard, Malou; Christoffels, Vincent M.; Barnett, Phil; Ruijter, Jan M.

2014-01-01

ChIP-seq has become a major tool for the genome-wide identification of transcription factor binding or histone modification sites. Most peak-calling algorithms require input control datasets to model the occurrence of background reads to account for local sequencing and GC bias. However, the

Temperature peaks affect fire-induced soil water repellency, infiltration and erosion risk of Mediterranean shrublands. Implications for water and sediment connectivity

Science.gov (United States)

Jordán, Antonio; Zavala, Lorena M.; Gordillo-Rivero, Ángel J.; Miriam, Miriam; Keesstra, Saskia; Cerdà, Artemi

2017-04-01

We know that the impact of fire on soil water repellency varies largely with the availability of water and physical and chemical soil properties, as well as the intensity of pre-existing hydrophobicity. However, there are few studies that relate the intensity of post-fire soil hydrophobicity and its persistence to the intensity and duration of thermal peaks occurring during fire. Fundamentally, this is due to the difficulty of quantifying these factors in situ, so that experimental fires are an extremely useful tool. The objective of this work was to study the impact of the intensity and duration of the thermal peaks observed during an experimental fire in the hydrophobicity of previously wet or slightly hydrophobic soils and the consequences of these changes on infiltration, runoff and soil loss (through rainfall simulation) in the immediate (30 days) and medium-term (1 year) post-fire period. In general, soil water repellency increased in all cases, although high temperatures and residence times of moderate thermal peaks caused the greatest impact. Although infiltration rates determined by mini-disk infiltrometer with water generally declined, no significant changes were observed in the same measurement with ethanol (which negates the effect of hydrophobicity).

Assessing peak aerobic capacity in Dutch law enforcement officers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Harriet Wittink

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Objectives: To cross-validate the existing peak rate of oxygen consumption (VO2peak prediction equations in Dutch law enforcement officers and to determine whether these prediction equations can be used to predict VO2peak for groups and in a single individual. A further objective was to report normative absolute and relative VO2peak values of a sample of law enforcement officers in the Netherlands. Material and Methods: The peak rate of oxygen consumption (ml×kg–1×min–1 was measured using a maximal incremental bicycle test in 1530 subjects, including 1068 male and 461 female police officers. Validity of the prediction equations for groups was assessed by comparing predicted VO2peak with measured VO2peak using paired t-tests. For individual differences limits of agreement (LoA were calculated. Equations were considered valid for individuals when the difference between measured and predicted VO2peak did not exceed ±1 metabolic equivalent (MET in 95% of individuals. Results: None of the equations met the validity criterion of 95% of individuals having ±1 MET difference or less than the measured value. Limits of agreement (LoAs were large in all predictions. At the individual level, none of the equations were valid predictors of VO2peak (ml×kg–1×min–1. Normative values for Dutch law enforcement officers were presented. Conclusions: Substantial differences between measured and predicted VO2peak (ml×kg–1×min–1 were found. Most tested equations were invalid predictors of VO2peak at group level and all were invalid at individual levels.

Test of the core design methods for the THTR 300 with experimental results from the critical facility KAHTER

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hofmann, K.; Huebner, A.; Brandes, S.; Krings, F.

1974-10-15

At the Kernforschungsanlage Juelich, core physics experiments with core 1 and core 2 of the critical facility for high temperature reactors KAHTER were carried out in 1973. Core 2 corresponds to the THTR initial core in its moderation ratio S = 7500. Selected experimental results on the critical mass, on control rod worths, and reaction rate distributions were used for testing the most important procedures for the THTR core physics design. The zero-dimensional spectrum program MUPO with its cross section library and the and neutron flux calculations in two-dimensional diffusion approximation by CRAM are of central importance. It proved to be important to introduce modifications specific to the KAHTER plant into the standard models. Thus the void effect (void above the pebble bed) was investigated with DOT-2 by transport theory and a correction was introduced for the critical masses calculated by diffusion theory. Another feature already contained in the standard procedure, the increase of the diffusion constants for the hollow spaces between the spheres, results in a correction of 3.8% < delta-k for KAHTER, whereas in the THTR 300 it only amounts to several tenths % delta-k. Critical masses are predicted with accuracies of < 1.5 % or with regard to reactivity < 0.65 % delta-k. The calculated values for the radial neutron flux distributions deviate from the measured values in the core area by approximately lo %. In the case of the axial profiles, deviations are observed at the pebble bed surface which can be explained by the upper void, which cannot be satisfactorily represented by the diffusion theory. Control rod worths are predicted quite well, i.e., to within +/- 5%. An exception is the bank of 4 reflector rods, where the applied model of the "grey curtain" is not accurate because of the large distances between rods. The calculated control rod worths for that case were found to be too low, which does, however, not result in a safety problem.

Amorphous chalcogenides as random octahedrally bonded solids: I. Implications for the first sharp diffraction peak, photodarkening, and Boson peak

Science.gov (United States)

Lukyanov, Alexey; Lubchenko, Vassiliy

2017-09-01

We develop a computationally efficient algorithm for generating high-quality structures for amorphous materials exhibiting distorted octahedral coordination. The computationally costly step of equilibrating the simulated melt is relegated to a much more efficient procedure, viz., generation of a random close-packed structure, which is subsequently used to generate parent structures for octahedrally bonded amorphous solids. The sites of the so-obtained lattice are populated by atoms and vacancies according to the desired stoichiometry while allowing one to control the number of homo-nuclear and hetero-nuclear bonds and, hence, effects of the mixing entropy. The resulting parent structure is geometrically optimized using quantum-chemical force fields; by varying the extent of geometric optimization of the parent structure, one can partially control the degree of octahedrality in local coordination and the strength of secondary bonding. The present methodology is applied to the archetypal chalcogenide alloys AsxSe1-x. We find that local coordination in these alloys interpolates between octahedral and tetrahedral bonding but in a non-obvious way; it exhibits bonding motifs that are not characteristic of either extreme. We consistently recover the first sharp diffraction peak (FSDP) in our structures and argue that the corresponding mid-range order stems from the charge density wave formed by regions housing covalent and weak, secondary interactions. The number of secondary interactions is determined by a delicate interplay between octahedrality and tetrahedrality in the covalent bonding; many of these interactions are homonuclear. The present results are consistent with the experimentally observed dependence of the FSDP on arsenic content, pressure, and temperature and its correlation with photodarkening and the Boson peak. They also suggest that the position of the FSDP can be used to infer the effective particle size relevant for the configurational equilibration in

Dependence of critical current on sample length analyzed by the variation of local critical current bent of BSCCO superconducting composite tape

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matsubayashi, H.; Mukai, Y.; Shin, J.K.; Ochiai, S.; Okuda, H.; Osamura, K.; Otto, A.; Malozemoff, A.

2008-01-01

Using the high critical current type BSCCO composite tape fabricated at American Superconductor Corporation, the relation of overall critical current to the distribution of local critical current and the dependence of overall critical current on sample length of the bent samples were studied experimentally and analytically. The measured overall critical current was described well from the distribution of local critical current and n-value of the constituting short elements, by regarding the overall sample to be composed of local series circuits and applying the voltage summation model. Also the dependence of overall critical current on sample length could be reproduced in computer satisfactorily by the proposed simulation method

Digital peak current mode control with adaptive slope compensation for DC-DC converters

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Karsten Holm; Nymand, Morten

2017-01-01

performance and stability of current mode control. The presented method adapt to DC-DC converter operating conditions by estimating the rising and falling inductor current slopes, to apply a current slope compensation value to obtain a constant quality factor. The experimental results verifies the theoretical......This paper presents an adaptive slope compensation method for peak current mode control of digital controlled DC-DC converters, which controls the quality factor of the complex conjugated poles at half the switching frequency. Using quality factor control enables optimization of the dynamic...

Experimental Evaluation of Simple Thermal Storage Control Strategies in Low-Energy Solar Houses to Reduce Electricity Consumption during Grid On-Peak Periods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kyoung-Ho Lee

2015-08-01

Full Text Available There is growing interest in zero-energy and low-energy buildings, which have a net energy consumption (on an annual basis of almost zero. Because they can generate both electricity and thermal energy through the use of solar photovoltaic (PV and solar thermal collectors, and with the help of reduced building thermal demand, low-energy buildings can not only make a significant contribution to energy conservation on an annual basis, but also reduce energy consumption and peak demand. This study focused on electricity consumption during the on-peak period in a low-energy residential solar building and considers the use of a building’s thermal mass and thermal storage to reduce electricity consumption in summer and winter by modulation of temperature setpoints for heat pump and indoor thermostats in summer and additional use of a solar heating loop in winter. Experiments were performed at a low-energy solar demonstration house that has solar collectors, hot water storage, a ground-coupled heat pump, and a thermal storage tank. It was assumed that the on-peak periods were from 2 pm to 5 pm on hot summer days and from 5 pm to 8 pm on cold winter days. To evaluate the potential for utilizing the building’s thermal storage capacity in space cooling and heating, the use of simple control strategies on three test days in summer and two test days in the early spring were compared in terms of net electricity consumption and peak demand, which also considered the electricity generation from solar PV modules on the roof of the house.

Splitting diffraction peak in different thickness LL-interferometer and determination of thickness of damaged layer induced by electron irradiation of plates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Truni, K.G.; Sedrakyan, A.G.; Papoyan, A.A.; Bezirganyan, P.A.

1988-01-01

Amplitude of twice reflected beam is calculated analytically, oscillatory dependence of peak intensity in the centre of diffraction image on the small variations in thickness is shown. The expression, clearly binding the splitting value of diffraction peak with variation in thickness of the interferometer plates, is received. The effect of variation in thickness on the splitting value of focal line is studied experimentally in case of irradiation of the equal-arm Π-shaped interferometer blocks by fast electron flow, thickness of the originated damaged layers are determined

Experimentation of RT-LOTOS for a critical function of a power plant instrumentation and control system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Andriantsiiferana, L.; Courtiat, J.P.; De Oliveira, R.C.

1996-01-01

This document is the final report of the contract between LAAS-CNRS and the EdF Direction of Researches and Studies about the experimentation of RT-LOTOS formal description technique on a critical function of a nuclear power plant instrumentation and control system. This report comprises 4 parts: part 1 describes the RT-LOTOS (Real Time-Language of Temporal Ordering Specifications) tutorial and its RTL tool environment, the different RT-LOTOS operators and semantics, and the RTL tool main functionalities; part 2 deals with the methodology and the global architecture for the specification and validation of the CCT (Central Calculator for Treatment); part 3 gives more details about the different processes identified in the specification architecture and presents the main results obtained for the validation of the nominal functioning; part 4 describes some exceptional situations and shows how some failures and their associated recovery mechanisms can be modelled. (J.S.). 6 refs., 53 figs., 5 tabs., 2 appends

Peak torque and rate of torque development in elderly with and without fall history.

Science.gov (United States)

Bento, Paulo Cesar Barauce; Pereira, Gleber; Ugrinowitsch, Carlos; Rodacki, André Luiz Felix

2010-06-01

Falls are one of the greatest concerns among the elderly. A number of studies have described peak torque as one of the best fall-related predictor. No studies have comprehensively focused on the rate of torque development of the lower limb muscles among elderly fallers. Then, the aim of this study was to determine the relationship between muscle peak torque and rate of torque development of the lower limb joints in elderly with and without fall history. It was also aimed to determine whether these parameters of muscle performance (i.e., peak torque and rate of torque development) are related to the number of falls. Thirty-one women volunteered to participate in the study and were assigned in one of the groups according to the number of falls over the 12 months that preceded the present. Then, participants with no fall history (GI; n=13; 67.6[7.5] years-old), one fall (GII; n=8; 66.0[4.9] years-old) and two or more falls (GIII; n=10; 67.8[8.8] years-old) performed a number of lower limb maximal isometric voluntary contractions from which peak torque and rate of torque development were quantified. Primary outcomes indicated no peak torque differences between experimental groups in any lower limb joint. The rate of torque development of the knee flexor muscles observed in the non-fallers (GI) was greater than that observed in the fallers (Pfalls (Pelderly to rapidly reorganise the arrangement of the lower limb may play a significant role in allowing the elderly to recover balance after a trip. Thus, training stimulus aimed to improve the rate of torque development may be more beneficial to prevent falls among the elderly than other training stimulus, which are not specifically designed to improve the ability to rapidly produce large amounts of torque. Copyright (c) 2010. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Statistics of peaks in cosmological nonlinear density fields

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suginohara, Tatsushi; Suto, Yasushi.

1990-06-01

Distribution of the high-density peaks in the universe is examined using N-body simulations. Nonlinear evolution of the underlying density field significantly changes the statistical properties of the peaks, compared with the analytic results valid for the random Gaussian field. In particular, the abundances and correlations of the initial density peaks are discussed in the context of biased galaxy formation theory. (author)

Criticality meets learning: Criticality signatures in a self-organizing recurrent neural network.

Science.gov (United States)

Del Papa, Bruno; Priesemann, Viola; Triesch, Jochen

2017-01-01

Many experiments have suggested that the brain operates close to a critical state, based on signatures of criticality such as power-law distributed neuronal avalanches. In neural network models, criticality is a dynamical state that maximizes information processing capacities, e.g. sensitivity to input, dynamical range and storage capacity, which makes it a favorable candidate state for brain function. Although models that self-organize towards a critical state have been proposed, the relation between criticality signatures and learning is still unclear. Here, we investigate signatures of criticality in a self-organizing recurrent neural network (SORN). Investigating criticality in the SORN is of particular interest because it has not been developed to show criticality. Instead, the SORN has been shown to exhibit spatio-temporal pattern learning through a combination of neural plasticity mechanisms and it reproduces a number of biological findings on neural variability and the statistics and fluctuations of synaptic efficacies. We show that, after a transient, the SORN spontaneously self-organizes into a dynamical state that shows criticality signatures comparable to those found in experiments. The plasticity mechanisms are necessary to attain that dynamical state, but not to maintain it. Furthermore, onset of external input transiently changes the slope of the avalanche distributions - matching recent experimental findings. Interestingly, the membrane noise level necessary for the occurrence of the criticality signatures reduces the model's performance in simple learning tasks. Overall, our work shows that the biologically inspired plasticity and homeostasis mechanisms responsible for the SORN's spatio-temporal learning abilities can give rise to criticality signatures in its activity when driven by random input, but these break down under the structured input of short repeating sequences.

Evaluation of peak-fitting software for gamma spectrum analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zahn, Guilherme S.; Genezini, Frederico A.; Moralles, Mauricio

2009-01-01

In all applications of gamma-ray spectroscopy, one of the most important and delicate parts of the data analysis is the fitting of the gamma-ray spectra, where information as the number of counts, the position of the centroid and the width, for instance, are associated with each peak of each spectrum. There's a huge choice of computer programs that perform this type of analysis, and the most commonly used in routine work are the ones that automatically locate and fit the peaks; this fit can be made in several different ways - the most common ways are to fit a Gaussian function to each peak or simply to integrate the area under the peak, but some software go far beyond and include several small corrections to the simple Gaussian peak function, in order to compensate for secondary effects. In this work several gamma-ray spectroscopy software are compared in the task of finding and fitting the gamma-ray peaks in spectra taken with standard sources of 137 Cs, 60 Co, 133 Ba and 152 Eu. The results show that all of the automatic software can be properly used in the task of finding and fitting peaks, with the exception of GammaVision; also, it was possible to verify that the automatic peak-fitting software did perform as well as - and sometimes even better than - a manual peak-fitting software. (author)

Peak discharge, flood frequency, and peak stage of floods on Big Cottonwood Creek at U.S. Highway 50 near Coaldale, Colorado, and Fountain Creek below U.S. Highway 24 in Colorado Springs, Colorado, 2016

Science.gov (United States)

Kohn, Michael S.; Stevens, Michael R.; Mommandi, Amanullah; Khan, Aziz R.

2017-12-14

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Colorado Department of Transportation, determined the peak discharge, annual exceedance probability (flood frequency), and peak stage of two floods that took place on Big Cottonwood Creek at U.S. Highway 50 near Coaldale, Colorado (hereafter referred to as “Big Cottonwood Creek site”), on August 23, 2016, and on Fountain Creek below U.S. Highway 24 in Colorado Springs, Colorado (hereafter referred to as “Fountain Creek site”), on August 29, 2016. A one-dimensional hydraulic model was used to estimate the peak discharge. To define the flood frequency of each flood, peak-streamflow regional-regression equations or statistical analyses of USGS streamgage records were used to estimate annual exceedance probability of the peak discharge. A survey of the high-water mark profile was used to determine the peak stage, and the limitations and accuracy of each component also are presented in this report. Collection and computation of flood data, such as peak discharge, annual exceedance probability, and peak stage at structures critical to Colorado’s infrastructure are an important addition to the flood data collected annually by the USGS.The peak discharge of the August 23, 2016, flood at the Big Cottonwood Creek site was 917 cubic feet per second (ft3/s) with a measurement quality of poor (uncertainty plus or minus 25 percent or greater). The peak discharge of the August 29, 2016, flood at the Fountain Creek site was 5,970 ft3/s with a measurement quality of poor (uncertainty plus or minus 25 percent or greater).The August 23, 2016, flood at the Big Cottonwood Creek site had an annual exceedance probability of less than 0.01 (return period greater than the 100-year flood) and had an annual exceedance probability of greater than 0.005 (return period less than the 200-year flood). The August 23, 2016, flood event was caused by a precipitation event having an annual exceedance probability of 1.0 (return

Results of 16 years' experiments at the critical facility of Valduc

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Houelle, M.; Mangin, D.; Maubert, L.

After briefly recalling the sub-critical approach procedure, the fields of experimental studies on criticality explored at the Valduc Criticality Station since 1963 are listed. This was the year in which the ''appareillage B'' went into service as the first installation of sub-critical experiments of the Section [fr

Three-peak behavior in giant magnetoimpedance effect in Fe73.5-x Cr x Nb3Cu1Si13.5B9 amorphous ribbons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosales-Rivera, A.; Valencia, V.H.; Pineda-Gomez, P.

2007-01-01

A systematic study of the giant magnetoimpedance (GMI) effect in Fe 73.5- x Cr x Nb 3 Cu 1 Si 13.5 B 9 amorphous ribbons with x=0, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 is presented. The complex impedance in these compounds was measured for applied fields from -80 to 80 Oe at room temperature, via the so-called four-probe technique. Depending on the frequency, the experimentally observed GMI curves usually exhibit two types of behavior, namely single-peak (SP), and two-peak (TP). In this work, we emphasize the presence of a 'three-peak behavior' in GMI curves. It occurs between SP and TP behaviors. The mechanisms leading to the three-peak behavior are discussed

APS Quantum Critical Higgs

CERN Document Server

Bellazzini, Brando; Hubisz, Jay; Lee, Seung J.; Serra, Javi; Terning, John

2016-01-01

The appearance of the light Higgs boson at the LHC is difficult to explain, particularly in light of naturalness arguments in quantum field theory. However light scalars can appear in condensed matter systems when parameters (like the amount of doping) are tuned to a critical point. At zero temperature these quantum critical points are directly analogous to the finely tuned standard model. In this paper we explore a class of models with a Higgs near a quantum critical point that exhibits non-mean-field behavior. We discuss the parametrization of the effects of a Higgs emerging from such a critical point in terms of form factors, and present two simple realistic scenarios based on either generalized free fields or a 5D dual in AdS space. For both of these models we consider the processes $gg\\to ZZ$ and $gg\\to hh$, which can be used to gain information about the Higgs scaling dimension and IR transition scale from the experimental data.

What’s so Critical about Critical Neuroscience? -Rethinking Experiment, Enacting Critique

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Des eFitzgerald

2014-05-01

Full Text Available In the midst of on-going hype about the power and potency of the new brain sciences, scholars within ‘Critical Neuroscience’ have called for a more nuanced and sceptical neuroscientific knowledge-practice. Drawing especially on the Frankfurt School, they urge neuroscientists towards a more critical approach – one that re-inscribes the objects and practices of neuroscientific knowledge within webs of social, cultural, historical and political-economic contingency. This paper is an attempt to open up the black-box of ‘critique’ within Critical Neuroscience itself. Specifically, we argue that limiting enactments of critique to the invocation of context misses the force of what a highly-stylized and tightly-bound neuroscientific experiment can actually do. We show that, within the neuroscientific experiment itself, the world-excluding and context-denying ‘rules of the game’ may also enact critique, in novel and surprising forms, while remaining formally independent of the workings of society, and culture, and history. To demonstrate this possibility, we analyze the Optimally Interacting Minds paradigm, a neuroscientific experiment that used classical psychophysical methods to show that, in some situations, people worked better as a collective, and not as individuals – a claim that works precisely against reactionary tendencies that prioritise individual over collective agency, but that was generated and legitimized entirely within the formal, context-denying conventions of neuroscientific experimentation. At the heart of this paper is a claim that it was precisely the rigours and rules of the experimental game that allowed these scientists to enact some surprisingly critical, and even radical, gestures. We conclude by suggesting that, in the midst of large-scale neuroscientific initiatives, it may be 'experiment,' and not 'context,' that forms the meeting-ground between neuro-biological and socio-political research practices.

The QCD Critical Point and Related Observables

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nahrgang, Marlene

2016-12-15

The search for the critical point of QCD in heavy-ion collision experiments has sparked enormous interest with the completion of phase I of the RHIC beam energy scan. Here, I review the basics of the thermodynamics of the QCD phase transition and its implications for experimental multiplicity fluctuations in heavy-ion collisions. Several sources of noncritical fluctuations impact the observables and need to be understood in addition to the critical phenomena. Recent progress has been made in dynamical modeling of critical fluctuations, which ultimately is indispensable to understand potential signals of the QCD critical point in heavy-ion collision.

Nuclear critical opalescence and electromagnetic probes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Delorme, J.

1980-01-01

A description of nuclear critical opalescence is presented with emphasis on the information which can be gained from electromagnetic probes. The connection with standard nuclear physics treatments is given. Experimental possibilities are reviewed. Present information from electron scattering is shown to be unconclusive. The maximum sensitivity to critical phenomena would be attained by measurements of longitudinal spin form factors. Photopion reactions are analyzed in this spirit and found to be promising

Critical dynamics in associative memory networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maximilian eUhlig

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Critical behavior in neural networks is characterized by scale-free avalanche size distributions and can be explained by self-regulatory mechanisms. Theoretical and experimental evidence indicates that information storage capacity reaches its maximum in the critical regime. We study the effect of structural connectivity formed by Hebbian learning on the criticality of network dynamics. The network endowed with Hebbian learning only does not allow for simultaneous information storage and criticality. However, the critical regime is can be stabilized by short-term synaptic dynamics in the form of synaptic depression and facilitation or, alternatively, by homeostatic adaptation of the synaptic weights. We show that a heterogeneous distribution of maximal synaptic strengths does not preclude criticality if the Hebbian learning is alternated with periods of critical dynamics recovery. We discuss the relevance of these findings for the flexibility of memory in aging and with respect to the recent theory of synaptic plasticity.

ICRF power-deposition profiles and heating in monster sawtooth and peaked-density profile discharges in JET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhatnagar, V.P.; Taroni, A.; Ellis, J.J.; Jacquinot, J.; Stuart, D.F.

1989-01-01

In this paper, we compare experimental results of electron and ion-heating in discharges that feature monster sawtooth with those in pellet-produced peaked-density profile discharges which were heated with ICRF. Also we carry out a comprehensive analysis of ICRF-heated peaked-density profile discharges by a transport code to simulate the evolution of JET discharges and to provide an insight into the improved heating and confinement found in these discharges. In this analysis, the ICRF power-deposition profile in the minority-heating scenario is computed by the ray-tracing code BRAYCO that self-consistently takes the finite antenna geometry, its radiation spectrum and the hot-plasma damping into account. The power delivered to ions and electrons is calculated based on Stix model. (author) 10 refs., 5 figs

X-ray Emission Spectrum of Liquid Ethanol: Origin of Split Peaks.

Science.gov (United States)

Takahashi, Osamu; Ljungberg, Mathias P; Pettersson, Lars G M

2017-12-14

The X-ray emission spectrum of liquid ethanol was calculated using density functional theory and a semiclassical approximation to the Kramers-Heisenberg formula including core-hole-induced dynamics. Our spectrum agrees well with the experimental spectrum. We found that the intensity ratio between the two peaks at 526 and 527 eV assigned as 10a' and 3a″ depends not only on the hydrogen bonding network around the target molecule but also on the intramolecular conformation. This effect is absent in liquid methanol and demonstrates the high sensitivity of X-ray emission to molecular structure. The dependence of spectral features on hydrogen-bonding as well as on dynamical effects following core excitation are also discussed.

Quantitative analysis without standards using local peak-to-background ratios with the energy dispersive X-ray microanalyzer EDR-184

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eggert, F.; Heckel, J.

1986-01-01

The method realized in program QMA-184 of the energy dispersive X-Ray-Microanalyzer EDR-184 for quantitative spectra analyzing of bulk materials by using local peak-to-background ratios is described in detail. The authors demonstrate efficiency and limitations of the used method by discussion of experimental results. (author)

MEASURING PRIMORDIAL NON-GAUSSIANITY THROUGH WEAK-LENSING PEAK COUNTS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marian, Laura; Hilbert, Stefan; Smith, Robert E.; Schneider, Peter; Desjacques, Vincent

2011-01-01

We explore the possibility of detecting primordial non-Gaussianity of the local type using weak-lensing peak counts. We measure the peak abundance in sets of simulated weak-lensing maps corresponding to three models f NL = 0, - 100, and 100. Using survey specifications similar to those of EUCLID and without assuming any knowledge of the lens and source redshifts, we find the peak functions of the non-Gaussian models with f NL = ±100 to differ by up to 15% from the Gaussian peak function at the high-mass end. For the assumed survey parameters, the probability of fitting an f NL = 0 peak function to the f NL = ±100 peak functions is less than 0.1%. Assuming the other cosmological parameters are known, f NL can be measured with an error Δf NL ∼ 13. It is therefore possible that future weak-lensing surveys like EUCLID and LSST may detect primordial non-Gaussianity from the abundance of peak counts, and provide information complementary to that obtained from the cosmic microwave background.

Non-Gaussian bias: insights from discrete density peaks

CERN Document Server

Desjacques, Vincent; Riotto, Antonio

2013-01-01

Corrections induced by primordial non-Gaussianity to the linear halo bias can be computed from a peak-background split or the widespread local bias model. However, numerical simulations clearly support the prediction of the former, in which the non-Gaussian amplitude is proportional to the linear halo bias. To understand better the reasons behind the failure of standard Lagrangian local bias, in which the halo overdensity is a function of the local mass overdensity only, we explore the effect of a primordial bispectrum on the 2-point correlation of discrete density peaks. We show that the effective local bias expansion to peak clustering vastly simplifies the calculation. We generalize this approach to excursion set peaks and demonstrate that the resulting non-Gaussian amplitude, which is a weighted sum of quadratic bias factors, precisely agrees with the peak-background split expectation, which is a logarithmic derivative of the halo mass function with respect to the normalisation amplitude. We point out tha...

Experimental Investigation of Mechanical Properties of Black Shales after CO₂-Water-Rock Interaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Lyu, Qiao; Ranjith, Pathegama Gamage; Long, Xinping; Ji, Bin

2016-08-06

The effects of CO₂-water-rock interactions on the mechanical properties of shale are essential for estimating the possibility of sequestrating CO₂ in shale reservoirs. In this study, uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) tests together with an acoustic emission (AE) system and SEM and EDS analysis were performed to investigate the mechanical properties and microstructural changes of black shales with different saturation times (10 days, 20 days and 30 days) in water dissoluted with gaseous/super-critical CO₂. According to the experimental results, the values of UCS, Young's modulus and brittleness index decrease gradually with increasing saturation time in water with gaseous/super-critical CO₂. Compared to samples without saturation, 30-day saturation causes reductions of 56.43% in UCS and 54.21% in Young's modulus for gaseous saturated samples, and 66.05% in UCS and 56.32% in Young's modulus for super-critical saturated samples, respectively. The brittleness index also decreases drastically from 84.3% for samples without saturation to 50.9% for samples saturated in water with gaseous CO₂, to 47.9% for samples saturated in water with super-critical carbon dioxide (SC-CO₂). SC-CO₂ causes a greater reduction of shale's mechanical properties. The crack propagation results obtained from the AE system show that longer saturation time produces higher peak cumulative AE energy. SEM images show that many pores occur when shale samples are saturated in water with gaseous/super-critical CO₂. The EDS results show that CO₂-water-rock interactions increase the percentages of C and Fe and decrease the percentages of Al and K on the surface of saturated samples when compared to samples without saturation.

Dynamics and stabilization of peak current-mode controlled buck converter with constant current load

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leng Min-Rui; Zhou Guo-Hua; Zhang Kai-Tun; Li Zhen-Hua

2015-01-01

The discrete iterative map model of peak current-mode controlled buck converter with constant current load (CCL), containing the output voltage feedback and ramp compensation, is established in this paper. Based on this model the complex dynamics of this converter is investigated by analyzing bifurcation diagrams and the Lyapunov exponent spectrum. The effects of ramp compensation and output voltage feedback on the stability of the converter are investigated. Experimental results verify the simulation and theoretical analysis. The stability boundary and chaos boundary are obtained under the theoretical conditions of period-doubling bifurcation and border collision. It is found that there are four operation regions in the peak current-mode controlled buck converter with CCL due to period-doubling bifurcation and border-collision bifurcation. Research results indicate that ramp compensation can extend the stable operation range and transfer the operating mode, and output voltage feedback can eventually eliminate the coexisting fast-slow scale instability. (paper)

Experimental critical parameters of enriched uranium solution in annular tank geometries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rothe, R.E.

1996-04-01

A total of 61 critical configurations are reported for experiments involving various combinations of annular tanks into which enriched uranium solution was pumped. These experiments were performed at two widely separated times in the 1980s under two programs at the Rocky Flats Plant's Critical Mass Laboratory. The uranyl nitrate solution contained about 370 g of uranium per liter, but this concentration varied a little over the duration of the studies. The uranium was enriched to about 93% [sup 235]U. All tanks were typical of sizes commonly found in nuclear production plants. They were about 2 m tall and ranged in diameter from 0.6 m to 1.5 m. Annular thicknesses and conditions of neutron reflection, moderation, and absorption were such that criticality would be achieved with these dimensions. Only 13 of the entire set of 74 experiments proved to be subcritical when tanks were completely filled with solution. Single tanks of several radial thicknesses were studied as well as small line arrays (1 x 2 and 1 x 3) of annular tanks. Many systems were reflected on four sides and the bottom by concrete, but none were reflected from above. Many experiments also contained materials within and outside the annular regions that contained strong neutron absorbers. One program had such a thick external moderator/absorber combination that no reflector was used at all

Experimental critical parameters of enriched uranium solution in annular tank geometries

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rothe, R.E.

1996-04-01

A total of 61 critical configurations are reported for experiments involving various combinations of annular tanks into which enriched uranium solution was pumped. These experiments were performed at two widely separated times in the 1980s under two programs at the Rocky Flats Plant`s Critical Mass Laboratory. The uranyl nitrate solution contained about 370 g of uranium per liter, but this concentration varied a little over the duration of the studies. The uranium was enriched to about 93% [sup 235]U. All tanks were typical of sizes commonly found in nuclear production plants. They were about 2 m tall and ranged in diameter from 0.6 m to 1.5 m. Annular thicknesses and conditions of neutron reflection, moderation, and absorption were such that criticality would be achieved with these dimensions. Only 13 of the entire set of 74 experiments proved to be subcritical when tanks were completely filled with solution. Single tanks of several radial thicknesses were studied as well as small line arrays (1 x 2 and 1 x 3) of annular tanks. Many systems were reflected on four sides and the bottom by concrete, but none were reflected from above. Many experiments also contained materials within and outside the annular regions that contained strong neutron absorbers. One program had such a thick external moderator/absorber combination that no reflector was used at all.

A method for estimating peak and time of peak streamflow from excess rainfall for 10- to 640-acre watersheds in the Houston, Texas, metropolitan area

Science.gov (United States)

Asquith, William H.; Cleveland, Theodore G.; Roussel, Meghan C.

2011-01-01

Estimates of peak and time of peak streamflow for small watersheds (less than about 640 acres) in a suburban to urban, low-slope setting are needed for drainage design that is cost-effective and risk-mitigated. During 2007-10, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Harris County Flood Control District and the Texas Department of Transportation, developed a method to estimate peak and time of peak streamflow from excess rainfall for 10- to 640-acre watersheds in the Houston, Texas, metropolitan area. To develop the method, 24 watersheds in the study area with drainage areas less than about 3.5 square miles (2,240 acres) and with concomitant rainfall and runoff data were selected. The method is based on conjunctive analysis of rainfall and runoff data in the context of the unit hydrograph method and the rational method. For the unit hydrograph analysis, a gamma distribution model of unit hydrograph shape (a gamma unit hydrograph) was chosen and parameters estimated through matching of modeled peak and time of peak streamflow to observed values on a storm-by-storm basis. Watershed mean or watershed-specific values of peak and time to peak ("time to peak" is a parameter of the gamma unit hydrograph and is distinct from "time of peak") of the gamma unit hydrograph were computed. Two regression equations to estimate peak and time to peak of the gamma unit hydrograph that are based on watershed characteristics of drainage area and basin-development factor (BDF) were developed. For the rational method analysis, a lag time (time-R), volumetric runoff coefficient, and runoff coefficient were computed on a storm-by-storm basis. Watershed-specific values of these three metrics were computed. A regression equation to estimate time-R based on drainage area and BDF was developed. Overall arithmetic means of volumetric runoff coefficient (0.41 dimensionless) and runoff coefficient (0.25 dimensionless) for the 24 watersheds were used to express the rational

The spatial resolution of epidemic peaks.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Harriet L Mills

2014-04-01

Full Text Available The emergence of novel respiratory pathogens can challenge the capacity of key health care resources, such as intensive care units, that are constrained to serve only specific geographical populations. An ability to predict the magnitude and timing of peak incidence at the scale of a single large population would help to accurately assess the value of interventions designed to reduce that peak. However, current disease-dynamic theory does not provide a clear understanding of the relationship between: epidemic trajectories at the scale of interest (e.g. city; population mobility; and higher resolution spatial effects (e.g. transmission within small neighbourhoods. Here, we used a spatially-explicit stochastic meta-population model of arbitrary spatial resolution to determine the effect of resolution on model-derived epidemic trajectories. We simulated an influenza-like pathogen spreading across theoretical and actual population densities and varied our assumptions about mobility using Latin-Hypercube sampling. Even though, by design, cumulative attack rates were the same for all resolutions and mobilities, peak incidences were different. Clear thresholds existed for all tested populations, such that models with resolutions lower than the threshold substantially overestimated population-wide peak incidence. The effect of resolution was most important in populations which were of lower density and lower mobility. With the expectation of accurate spatial incidence datasets in the near future, our objective was to provide a framework for how to use these data correctly in a spatial meta-population model. Our results suggest that there is a fundamental spatial resolution for any pathogen-population pair. If underlying interactions between pathogens and spatially heterogeneous populations are represented at this resolution or higher, accurate predictions of peak incidence for city-scale epidemics are feasible.

Critical wind speed at which trees break

Science.gov (United States)

Virot, E.; Ponomarenko, A.; Dehandschoewercker, É.; Quéré, D.; Clanet, C.

2016-02-01

Data from storms suggest that the critical wind speed at which trees break is constant (≃42 m /s ), regardless of tree characteristics. We question the physical origin of this observation both experimentally and theoretically. By combining Hooke's law, Griffith's criterion, and tree allometry, we show that the critical wind speed indeed hardly depends on the height, diameter, and elastic properties of trees.

Critical wind speed at which trees break.

Science.gov (United States)

Virot, E; Ponomarenko, A; Dehandschoewercker, É; Quéré, D; Clanet, C

2016-02-01

Data from storms suggest that the critical wind speed at which trees break is constant (≃42m/s), regardless of tree characteristics. We question the physical origin of this observation both experimentally and theoretically. By combining Hooke's law, Griffith's criterion, and tree allometry, we show that the critical wind speed indeed hardly depends on the height, diameter, and elastic properties of trees.

Experimental determination of relative light conversion factors of TLD-100 for protons with energies from 2.0 to 9.0 MeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schmidt, P.; Fellinger, J.; Henniger, J.; Huebner, K.

1988-01-01

The efficiency of thermoluminescent (TL) detectors to heavy charged particles is described by the so-called light conversion factor η. Relative light conversion factors for protons, alphas and heavier recoils are needed for the calculation of the neutron sensitivity of TL detectors. Such light conversion factors can be determined experimentally. In this paper a method is presented for the experimental determination of relative light conversion factors. Using the experimental arrangement described, relative light conversion factors for LiF material (TLD-100) for protons were determined. In LiF the relative main peak (peak V) efficiency is always lower than 1. It increases with increasing proton energy whereas the relative efficiency of the high temperature peak (peak VI) shows an opposite dependence on the proton energy. Relative light conversion factors for peak VI clearly exceed 1. (orig.)

From benchmarking HITS-CLIP peak detection programs to a new method for identification of miRNA-binding sites from Ago2-CLIP data.

Science.gov (United States)

Bottini, Silvia; Hamouda-Tekaya, Nedra; Tanasa, Bogdan; Zaragosi, Laure-Emmanuelle; Grandjean, Valerie; Repetto, Emanuela; Trabucchi, Michele

2017-05-19

Experimental evidence indicates that about 60% of miRNA-binding activity does not follow the canonical rule about the seed matching between miRNA and target mRNAs, but rather a non-canonical miRNA targeting activity outside the seed or with a seed-like motifs. Here, we propose a new unbiased method to identify canonical and non-canonical miRNA-binding sites from peaks identified by Ago2 Cross-Linked ImmunoPrecipitation associated to high-throughput sequencing (CLIP-seq). Since the quality of peaks is of pivotal importance for the final output of the proposed method, we provide a comprehensive benchmarking of four peak detection programs, namely CIMS, PIPE-CLIP, Piranha and Pyicoclip, on four publicly available Ago2-HITS-CLIP datasets and one unpublished in-house Ago2-dataset in stem cells. We measured the sensitivity, the specificity and the position accuracy toward miRNA binding sites identification, and the agreement with TargetScan. Secondly, we developed a new pipeline, called miRBShunter, to identify canonical and non-canonical miRNA-binding sites based on de novo motif identification from Ago2 peaks and prediction of miRNA::RNA heteroduplexes. miRBShunter was tested and experimentally validated on the in-house Ago2-dataset and on an Ago2-PAR-CLIP dataset in human stem cells. Overall, we provide guidelines to choose a suitable peak detection program and a new method for miRNA-target identification. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Determination of the upper limit of a peak area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Helene, O.

1990-03-01

This paper reports the procedure to extract an upper limit of a peak area in a multichannel spectrum. This procedure takes into account the finite shape of the peak and the uncertanties in the background and in the expected position of the peak. (author) [pt

Determination of the upper limit of a peak area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Helene, O.

1991-01-01

This article reports the procedure to extract an upper limit of a peak area in a multichannel spectrum. This procedure takes into account the finite shape of the peak and the uncertainties both in the background and in the expected position of the peak. (orig.)

Micro-compression testing: A critical discussion of experimental constraints

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kiener, D.; Motz, C.; Dehm, G.

2009-01-01

Micro-compression testing is a promising technique for determining mechanical properties at small length scales since it has several benefits over nanoindentation. However, as for all new techniques, experimental constraints influencing the results of such a micro-mechanical test must be considered. Here we investigate constraints imposed by the sample geometry, the pile-up of dislocations at the sample top and base, and the lateral stiffness of the testing setup. Using a focused ion beam milling setup, single crystal Cu specimens with different geometries and crystal orientations were fabricated. Tapered samples served to investigate the influence of strain gradients, while stiff sample top coatings and undeformable substrates depict the influence of dislocation pile-ups at these interfaces. The lateral system stiffness was reduced by placing specimens on top of needles. Samples were loaded using an in situ indenter in a scanning electron microscope in load controlled or displacement controlled mode. The observed differences in the mechanical response with respect to the experimental imposed constraints are discussed and lead to the conclusion that controlling the lateral system stiffness is the most important point

Nuclear critical opalescence and electromagnetic probes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Delorme, J.

1981-01-01

A description of nuclear critical opalescence is presented with emphasis on the information which can be gained from electromagnetic probes. The connection with standard nuclear physics treatments is given. Experimental possibilities are reviewed. Present information from electron scattering is shown to be unconclusive. The maximum sensitivity to critical phenomena would be attained by measurements of longitudinal spin form factors. Photopion reactions are analyzed in this spirit and found to be promising. (orig.)

Status and future program of reactor physics experiments in JAERI Critical facilities, FCA and TCA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Okajima, Shigeaki; Osugi, Toshitaka; Nakajima, Ken; Suzaki, Takenori; Miyoshi, Yoshinori

1999-01-01

The critical facilities in JAERI, FCA (Fast Critical Assembly) and TCA (Tank-type Critical Assembly), have been used to provide integral data for evaluation of nuclear data as well as for development of various types of reactor since they went critical in 1960's. In this paper a review is presented on the experimental programs in both facilities. And the experimental programs in next 5 years are also shown. (author)

System dynamics model of Hubbert Peak for China's oil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tao Zaipu; Li Mingyu

2007-01-01

American geophysicist M. King Hubbert in 1956 first introduced a logistic equation to estimate the peak and lifetime production for oil of USA. Since then, a fierce debate ensued on the so-called Hubbert Peak, including also its methodology. This paper proposes to use the generic STELLA model to simulate Hubbert Peak, particularly for the Chinese oil production. This model is demonstrated as being robust. We used three scenarios to estimate the Chinese oil peak: according to scenario 1 of this model, the Hubbert Peak for China's crude oil production appears to be in 2019 with a value of 199.5 million tonnes, which is about 1.1 times the 2005 output. Before the peak comes, Chinese oil output will grow by about 1-2% annually, after the peak, however, the output will fall. By 2040, the annual production of Chinese crude oil would be equivalent to the level of 1990. During the coming 20 years, the crude oil demand of China will probably grow at the rate of 2-3% annually, and the gap between domestic supply and total demand may be more than half of this demand

The critical current of superconductors: an historical review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dew-Hughes, D.

2001-01-01

The most important practical characteristic of a superconductor is its critical current density. This article traces the history, both of the experimental discoveries and of the development of the theoretical ideas that have lead to the understanding of those factors that control critical current densities. These include Silsbee's hypothesis, the Meissner effect, London, Ginsburg-Landau and Abrikosov theories, flux pinning and the critical state, and the control of texture in high temperature superconductors

Verification of homogenization in fast critical assembly analyses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chiba, Go

2006-01-01

In the present paper, homogenization procedures for fast critical assembly analyses are investigated. Errors caused by homogenizations are evaluated by the exact perturbation theory. In order to obtain reference solutions, three-dimensional plate-wise transport calculations are performed. It is found that the angular neutron flux along plate boundaries has a significant peak in the fission source energy range. To treat this angular dependence accurately, the double-Gaussian Chebyshev angular quadrature set with S 24 is applied. It is shown that the difference between the heterogeneous leakage theory and the homogeneous theory is negligible, and that transport cross sections homogenized with neutron flux significantly underestimate neutron leakage. The error in criticality caused by a homogenization is estimated at about 0.1%Δk/kk' in a small fast critical assembly. In addition, the neutron leakage is overestimated by both leakage theories when sodium plates in fuel lattices are voided. (author)

Bayesian approach for peak detection in two-dimensional chromatography

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vivó-Truyols, G.

2012-01-01

A new method for peak detection in two-dimensional chromatography is presented. In a first step, the method starts with a conventional one-dimensional peak detection algorithm to detect modulated peaks. In a second step, a sophisticated algorithm is constructed to decide which of the individual

Liquid behavior at critical and supercritical conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Chiu, Huei-Huang; Gross, Klaus W.

1989-10-01

At a JANNAF workshop, the issue of fluids at and above the critical point was discussed to obtain a better understanding of similar conditions in combustion chambers of rocket engines. Invited experts from academic, industrial, and government institutions presented the most recent physical, numerical, and experimental advances. During the final discussion period, it was agreed that: (1) no analytical capability exists to simulate subject conditions; (2) mechanisms reflected by opalescence, the solubility of gases, other interfacial phenomena listed, and fluorescence diagnostics are new and important; (3) multicomponent mixtures, radiation, critical fluctuation, and other recorded ones pose unknown effects; and (4) various identified analytical and experimental actions must be initiated in a mutually supporting sequence.

HELIOS: Application for criticality limits assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simeonov, T.

2011-01-01

In the early years, after the discovery of fission, the criticality safety assessment and the established safety limits, have been mainly based on direct experiments. Later, following the advances in the theory, computational methods and computer hardware, theoretical methods have been elaborated to the level to become reliable assessment tools. The computer codes started replacing the experiments, while the experimental data became a valuable validation source for their models. An application of the two-dimensional transport theory code HELIOS for assessment of criticality limits is presented in this paper. The effect of the enrichment, the system dimensions, H/U5 ration and different reflectors were studied in heterogeneous and homogenized systems. Comparisons with published experimental data and evaluated safety limits are made here to demonstrate the range of HELIOS applicability and limitations. (Author)

Estimation of the peak factor based on watershed characteristics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gauthier, Jean; Nolin, Simon; Ruest, Benoit [BPR Inc., Quebec, (Canada)

2010-07-01

Hydraulic modeling and dam structure design require the river flood flow as a primary input. For a given flood event, the ratio of peak flow over mean daily flow defines the peak factor. The peak factor value is dependent on the watershed and location along the river. The main goal of this study consisted in finding a relationship between watershed characteristics and this peak factor. Regression analyses were carried out on 53 natural watersheds located in the southern part of the province of Quebec using data from the Centre d'expertise hydrique du Quebec (CEHQ). The watershed characteristics included in the analyses were the watershed area, the maximum flow length, the mean slope, the lake proportion and the mean elevation. The results showed that watershed area and length are the major parameters influencing the peak factor. Nine natural watersheds were also used to test the use of a multivariable model in order to determine the peak factor for ungauged watersheds.

SPANISH PEAKS WILDERNESS STUDY AREA, COLORADO.

Science.gov (United States)

Budding, Karin E.; Kluender, Steven E.

1984-01-01

A geologic and geochemical investigation and a survey of mines and prospects were conducted to evaluate the mineral-resource potential of the Spanish Peaks Wilderness Study Area, Huerfano and Las Animas Counties, in south-central Colorado. Anomalous gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc concentrations in rocks and in stream sediments from drainage basins in the vicinity of the old mines and prospects on West Spanish Peak indicate a substantiated mineral-resource potential for base and precious metals in the area surrounding this peak; however, the mineralized veins are sparse, small in size, and generally low in grade. There is a possibility that coal may underlie the study area, but it would be at great depth and it is unlikely that it would have survived the intense igneous activity in the area. There is little likelihood for the occurrence of oil and gas because of the lack of structural traps and the igneous activity.

Avoiding the False Peaks in Correlation Discrimination

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Awwal, A.S.

2009-01-01

Fiducials imprinted on laser beams are used to perform video image based alignment of the 192 laser beams in the National Ignition Facility (NIF) of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. In many video images, matched filtering is used to detect the location of these fiducials. Generally, the highest correlation peak is used to determine the position of the fiducials. However, when the signal to-be-detected is very weak compared to the noise, this approach totally breaks down. The highest peaks act as traps for false detection. The active target images used for automatic alignment in the National Ignition Facility are examples of such images. In these images, the fiducials of interest exhibit extremely low intensity and contrast, surrounded by high intensity reflection from metallic objects. Consequently, the highest correlation peaks are caused by these bright objects. In this work, we show how the shape of the correlation is exploited to isolate the valid matches from hundreds of invalid correlation peaks, and therefore identify extremely faint fiducials under very challenging imaging conditions

Variable threshold method for ECG R-peak detection.

Science.gov (United States)

Kew, Hsein-Ping; Jeong, Do-Un

2011-10-01

In this paper, a wearable belt-type ECG electrode worn around the chest by measuring the real-time ECG is produced in order to minimize the inconvenient in wearing. ECG signal is detected using a potential instrument system. The measured ECG signal is transmits via an ultra low power consumption wireless data communications unit to personal computer using Zigbee-compatible wireless sensor node. ECG signals carry a lot of clinical information for a cardiologist especially the R-peak detection in ECG. R-peak detection generally uses the threshold value which is fixed. There will be errors in peak detection when the baseline changes due to motion artifacts and signal size changes. Preprocessing process which includes differentiation process and Hilbert transform is used as signal preprocessing algorithm. Thereafter, variable threshold method is used to detect the R-peak which is more accurate and efficient than fixed threshold value method. R-peak detection using MIT-BIH databases and Long Term Real-Time ECG is performed in this research in order to evaluate the performance analysis.

Climate change and peak demand for electricity: Evaluating policies for reducing peak demand under different climate change scenarios

Science.gov (United States)

Anthony, Abigail Walker

This research focuses on the relative advantages and disadvantages of using price-based and quantity-based controls for electricity markets. It also presents a detailed analysis of one specific approach to quantity based controls: the SmartAC program implemented in Stockton, California. Finally, the research forecasts electricity demand under various climate scenarios, and estimates potential cost savings that could result from a direct quantity control program over the next 50 years in each scenario. The traditional approach to dealing with the problem of peak demand for electricity is to invest in a large stock of excess capital that is rarely used, thereby greatly increasing production costs. Because this approach has proved so expensive, there has been a focus on identifying alternative approaches for dealing with peak demand problems. This research focuses on two approaches: price based approaches, such as real time pricing, and quantity based approaches, whereby the utility directly controls at least some elements of electricity used by consumers. This research suggests that well-designed policies for reducing peak demand might include both price and quantity controls. In theory, sufficiently high peak prices occurring during periods of peak demand and/or low supply can cause the quantity of electricity demanded to decline until demand is in balance with system capacity, potentially reducing the total amount of generation capacity needed to meet demand and helping meet electricity demand at the lowest cost. However, consumers need to be well informed about real-time prices for the pricing strategy to work as well as theory suggests. While this might be an appropriate assumption for large industrial and commercial users who have potentially large economic incentives, there is not yet enough research on whether households will fully understand and respond to real-time prices. Thus, while real-time pricing can be an effective tool for addressing the peak load

Assessing peak aerobic capacity in Dutch law enforcement officers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wittink, Harriet; Takken, Tim; de Groot, Janke; Reneman, Michiel; Peters, Roelof; Vanhees, Luc

2015-01-01

Objectives: To cross-validate the existing peak rate of oxygen consumption (VO2peak) prediction equations in Dutch law enforcement officers and to determine whether these prediction equations can be used to predict VO2peak for groups and in a single individual. A further objective was to report

PEAK TRACKING WITH A NEURAL NETWORK FOR SPECTRAL RECOGNITION

NARCIS (Netherlands)

COENEGRACHT, PMJ; METTING, HJ; VANLOO, EM; SNOEIJER, GJ; DOORNBOS, DA

1993-01-01

A peak tracking method based on a simulated feed-forward neural network with back-propagation is presented. The network uses the normalized UV spectra and peak areas measured in one chromatogram for peak recognition. It suffices to train the network with only one set of spectra recorded in one

Assessing peak aerobic capacity in Dutch law enforcement officers.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wittink, H.; Takken, T.; Groot, J.F. de; Reneman, M.; Peters, R.; Vanhees, L.

2015-01-01

Objectives: To cross-validate the existing peak rate of oxygen consumption (VO2peak) prediction equations in Dutch law enforcement officers and to determine whether these prediction equations can be used to predict VO2peak for groups and in a single individual. A further objective was to report

Primordial black hole production in Critical Higgs Inflation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jose María Ezquiaga

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Primordial Black Holes (PBH arise naturally from high peaks in the curvature power spectrum of near-inflection-point single-field inflation, and could constitute today the dominant component of the dark matter in the universe. In this letter we explore the possibility that a broad spectrum of PBH is formed in models of Critical Higgs Inflation (CHI, where the near-inflection point is related to the critical value of the RGE running of both the Higgs self-coupling λ(μ and its non-minimal coupling to gravity ξ(μ. We show that, for a wide range of model parameters, a half-domed-shaped peak in the matter spectrum arises at sufficiently small scales that it passes all the constraints from large scale structure observations. The predicted cosmic microwave background spectrum at large scales is in agreement with Planck 2015 data, and has a relatively large tensor-to-scalar ratio that may soon be detected by B-mode polarization experiments. Moreover, the wide peak in the power spectrum gives an approximately lognormal PBH distribution in the range of masses 0.01–100M⊙, which could explain the LIGO merger events, while passing all present PBH observational constraints. The stochastic background of gravitational waves coming from the unresolved black-hole-binary mergers could also be detected by LISA or PTA. Furthermore, the parameters of the CHI model are consistent, within 2σ, with the measured Higgs parameters at the LHC and their running. Future measurements of the PBH mass spectrum could allow us to obtain complementary information about the Higgs couplings at energies well above the EW scale, and thus constrain new physics beyond the Standard Model.

Primordial black hole production in Critical Higgs Inflation

Science.gov (United States)

Ezquiaga, Jose María; García-Bellido, Juan; Ruiz Morales, Ester

2018-01-01

Primordial Black Holes (PBH) arise naturally from high peaks in the curvature power spectrum of near-inflection-point single-field inflation, and could constitute today the dominant component of the dark matter in the universe. In this letter we explore the possibility that a broad spectrum of PBH is formed in models of Critical Higgs Inflation (CHI), where the near-inflection point is related to the critical value of the RGE running of both the Higgs self-coupling λ (μ) and its non-minimal coupling to gravity ξ (μ). We show that, for a wide range of model parameters, a half-domed-shaped peak in the matter spectrum arises at sufficiently small scales that it passes all the constraints from large scale structure observations. The predicted cosmic microwave background spectrum at large scales is in agreement with Planck 2015 data, and has a relatively large tensor-to-scalar ratio that may soon be detected by B-mode polarization experiments. Moreover, the wide peak in the power spectrum gives an approximately lognormal PBH distribution in the range of masses 0.01- 100M⊙, which could explain the LIGO merger events, while passing all present PBH observational constraints. The stochastic background of gravitational waves coming from the unresolved black-hole-binary mergers could also be detected by LISA or PTA. Furthermore, the parameters of the CHI model are consistent, within 2σ, with the measured Higgs parameters at the LHC and their running. Future measurements of the PBH mass spectrum could allow us to obtain complementary information about the Higgs couplings at energies well above the EW scale, and thus constrain new physics beyond the Standard Model.

Experimental investigation of power peak in vicinity of WWER-440 control rod at end of fuel cycle