Mechanical and diffusion properties of refractory me--tal and alloy monocrystals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shinyaev, A.Ya.; Kopalejshvili, N.I.

1977-01-01

The temperature dependence of mechanical properties of single crystals Mo, W, Ta, Nb and of alloys Mo-Ta and Nb-Ta has been investigated from the point of view of diffusion processes. The curve of the dependence of the ultimate strength upon the temperature has shown four discontinuities corresponding to various stages of development of intercrystalline and volume diffusions. It is shown that for close-to-ideal solid solutions of Nb-Ta alloys the temperature dependence of the strength properties is the same as for pure metals. In case of appreciable deviations from ideal properties (system Mo-Ta), the drops in strength, due to volume diffusion, shift toward higher temperatures

Exploring the multiple-hit hypothesis of preterm white matter damage using diffusion MRI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Madeleine L. Barnett

2018-01-01

Conclusion: This study suggests multiple perinatal risk factors have an independent association with diffuse white matter injury at term equivalent age and exposure to multiple perinatal risk factors exacerbates dMRI defined, clinically significant white matter injury. Our findings support the multiple hit hypothesis for preterm white matter injury.

Hybrid approaches for multiple-species stochastic reaction–diffusion models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spill, Fabian; Guerrero, Pilar; Alarcon, Tomas; Maini, Philip K.; Byrne, Helen

2015-01-01

Reaction–diffusion models are used to describe systems in fields as diverse as physics, chemistry, ecology and biology. The fundamental quantities in such models are individual entities such as atoms and molecules, bacteria, cells or animals, which move and/or react in a stochastic manner. If the number of entities is large, accounting for each individual is inefficient, and often partial differential equation (PDE) models are used in which the stochastic behaviour of individuals is replaced by a description of the averaged, or mean behaviour of the system. In some situations the number of individuals is large in certain regions and small in others. In such cases, a stochastic model may be inefficient in one region, and a PDE model inaccurate in another. To overcome this problem, we develop a scheme which couples a stochastic reaction–diffusion system in one part of the domain with its mean field analogue, i.e. a discretised PDE model, in the other part of the domain. The interface in between the two domains occupies exactly one lattice site and is chosen such that the mean field description is still accurate there. In this way errors due to the flux between the domains are small. Our scheme can account for multiple dynamic interfaces separating multiple stochastic and deterministic domains, and the coupling between the domains conserves the total number of particles. The method preserves stochastic features such as extinction not observable in the mean field description, and is significantly faster to simulate on a computer than the pure stochastic model. - Highlights: • A novel hybrid stochastic/deterministic reaction–diffusion simulation method is given. • Can massively speed up stochastic simulations while preserving stochastic effects. • Can handle multiple reacting species. • Can handle moving boundaries

Hybrid approaches for multiple-species stochastic reaction–diffusion models

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Spill, Fabian, E-mail: fspill@bu.edu [Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, 44 Cummington Street, Boston, MA 02215 (United States); Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States); Guerrero, Pilar [Department of Mathematics, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT (United Kingdom); Alarcon, Tomas [Centre de Recerca Matematica, Campus de Bellaterra, Edifici C, 08193 Bellaterra (Barcelona) (Spain); Departament de Matemàtiques, Universitat Atonòma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra (Barcelona) (Spain); Maini, Philip K. [Wolfson Centre for Mathematical Biology, Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG (United Kingdom); Byrne, Helen [Wolfson Centre for Mathematical Biology, Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG (United Kingdom); Computational Biology Group, Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QD (United Kingdom)

2015-10-15

Reaction–diffusion models are used to describe systems in fields as diverse as physics, chemistry, ecology and biology. The fundamental quantities in such models are individual entities such as atoms and molecules, bacteria, cells or animals, which move and/or react in a stochastic manner. If the number of entities is large, accounting for each individual is inefficient, and often partial differential equation (PDE) models are used in which the stochastic behaviour of individuals is replaced by a description of the averaged, or mean behaviour of the system. In some situations the number of individuals is large in certain regions and small in others. In such cases, a stochastic model may be inefficient in one region, and a PDE model inaccurate in another. To overcome this problem, we develop a scheme which couples a stochastic reaction–diffusion system in one part of the domain with its mean field analogue, i.e. a discretised PDE model, in the other part of the domain. The interface in between the two domains occupies exactly one lattice site and is chosen such that the mean field description is still accurate there. In this way errors due to the flux between the domains are small. Our scheme can account for multiple dynamic interfaces separating multiple stochastic and deterministic domains, and the coupling between the domains conserves the total number of particles. The method preserves stochastic features such as extinction not observable in the mean field description, and is significantly faster to simulate on a computer than the pure stochastic model. - Highlights: • A novel hybrid stochastic/deterministic reaction–diffusion simulation method is given. • Can massively speed up stochastic simulations while preserving stochastic effects. • Can handle multiple reacting species. • Can handle moving boundaries.

Self-normalizing multiple-echo technique for measuring the in vivo apparent diffusion coefficient

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perman, W.H.; Gado, M.; Sandstrom, J.C.

1989-01-01

This paper presents work to develop a new technique for quantitating the in vivo apparent diffusion/perfusion coefficient (ADC) by obtaining multiple data points from only two images with the capability to normalize the data from consecutive images, thus minimizing the effect of interimage variation. Two multiple-echo (six-to eight-echo) cardiac-gated images are obtained, one without and one with additional diffusion/perfusion encoding gradients placed about the 180 RF pulses of all but the first echo. Since the first echoes of both images have identical pulse sequence parameters, variations in signal intensity-between the first echoes represent image-to-image variation. The signal intensities of the subsequent echoes with additional diffusion/perfusion encoding gradients are then normalized by using the ratio of the first-echo signal intensities

Diffusion properties of NAA in human corpus callosum as studied with diffusion tensor spectroscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Upadhyay, Jaymin; Hallock, Kevin; Erb, Kelley; Kim, Dae-Shik; Ronen, Itamar

2007-11-01

In diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) the anisotropic movement of water is exploited to characterize microstructure. One confounding issue of DTI is the presence of intra- and extracellular components contributing to the measured diffusivity. This causes an ambiguity in determining the underlying cause of diffusion properties, particularly the fractional anisotropy (FA). In this study an intracellular constituent, N-acetyl aspartate (NAA), was used to probe intracellular diffusion, while water molecules were used to probe the combined intra- and extracellular diffusion. NAA and water diffusion measurements were made in anterior and medial corpus callosum (CC) regions, which are referred to as R1 and R2, respectively. FA(NAA) was found to be greater than FA(Water) in both CC regions, thus indicating a higher degree of anisotropy within the intracellular space in comparison to the combined intra- and extracellular spaces. A decreasing trend in the FA of NAA and water was observed between R1 and R2, while the radial diffusivity (RD) for both molecules increased. The increase in RD(NAA) is particularly significant, thus explaining the more significant decrease in FA(NAA) between the two regions. It is suggested that diffusion tensor spectroscopy of NAA can potentially be used to further characterize microscopic anatomic organization in white matter. Copyright 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Diffusion properties of active particles with directional reversal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Großmann, R; Bär, M; Peruani, F

2016-01-01

The diffusion properties of self-propelled particles which move at constant speed and, in addition, reverse their direction of motion repeatedly are investigated. The internal dynamics of particles triggering these reversal processes is modeled by a stochastic clock. The velocity correlation function as well as the mean squared displacement is investigated and, furthermore, a general expression for the diffusion coefficient for self-propelled particles with directional reversal is derived. Our analysis reveals the existence of an optimal, finite rotational noise amplitude which maximizes the diffusion coefficient. We comment on the relevance of these results with regard to biological systems and suggest further experiments in this context. (paper)

Effect of water film trickling down diffuser walls on the diffuser properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hibs, M.

1990-01-01

The effect of the water film flowing along one of the horizontal walls of a 2D diffuser was studied, the system being regarded as a model of the annular diffuser at the outlet of a steam turbine flown through by wet steam. The aerodynamic properties of the channel examined were found dependent on whether the water film continues to adhere to the wall or loses stability and sprays into the channel space. The increase in losses in the channel so flown through is quite substantial - the losses can multiply exceed those on flown-by walls free from a water film. (author). 7 figs., 1 tab., 2 refs

Multiplicative properties of quantum channels

Science.gov (United States)

Rahaman, Mizanur

2017-08-01

In this paper, we study the multiplicative behaviour of quantum channels, mathematically described by trace preserving, completely positive maps on matrix algebras. It turns out that the multiplicative domain of a unital quantum channel has a close connection to its spectral properties. A structure theorem (theorem 2.5), which reveals the automorphic property of an arbitrary unital quantum channel on a subalgebra, is presented. Various classes of quantum channels (irreducible, primitive, etc) are then analysed in terms of this stabilising subalgebra. The notion of the multiplicative index of a unital quantum channel is introduced, which measures the number of times a unital channel needs to be composed with itself for the multiplicative algebra to stabilise. We show that the maps that have trivial multiplicative domains are dense in completely bounded norm topology in the set of all unital completely positive maps. Some applications in quantum information theory are discussed.

Experimental Determination of Impurity and Interdiffusion Coefficients in Seven Ti and Zr Binary Systems Using Diffusion Multiples

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Zhangqi; Liu, Zi-Kui; Zhao, Ji-Cheng

2018-05-01

Diffusion coefficients of seven binary systems (Ti-Mo, Ti-Nb, Ti-Ta, Ti-Zr, Zr-Mo, Zr-Nb, and Zr-Ta) at 1200 °C, 1000 °C, and 800 °C were experimentally determined using three Ti-Mo-Nb-Ta-Zr diffusion multiples. Electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) was performed to collect concentration profiles at the binary diffusion regions. Forward simulation analysis (FSA) was then applied to extract both impurity and interdiffusion coefficients in Ti-rich and Zr-rich part of the bcc phase. Excellent agreements between our results and most of the literature data validate the high-throughput approach combining FSA with diffusion multiples to obtain a large amount of systematic diffusion data, which will help establish the diffusion (mobility) databases for the design and development of biomedical and structural Ti alloys.

Modeling of Particle Acceleration at Multiple Shocks Via Diffusive Shock Acceleration: Preliminary Results

Science.gov (United States)

Parker, L. N.; Zank, G. P.

2013-12-01

Successful forecasting of energetic particle events in space weather models require algorithms for correctly predicting the spectrum of ions accelerated from a background population of charged particles. We present preliminary results from a model that diffusively accelerates particles at multiple shocks. Our basic approach is related to box models (Protheroe and Stanev, 1998; Moraal and Axford, 1983; Ball and Kirk, 1992; Drury et al., 1999) in which a distribution of particles is diffusively accelerated inside the box while simultaneously experiencing decompression through adiabatic expansion and losses from the convection and diffusion of particles outside the box (Melrose and Pope, 1993; Zank et al., 2000). We adiabatically decompress the accelerated particle distribution between each shock by either the method explored in Melrose and Pope (1993) and Pope and Melrose (1994) or by the approach set forth in Zank et al. (2000) where we solve the transport equation by a method analogous to operator splitting. The second method incorporates the additional loss terms of convection and diffusion and allows for the use of a variable time between shocks. We use a maximum injection energy (Emax) appropriate for quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular shocks (Zank et al., 2000, 2006; Dosch and Shalchi, 2010) and provide a preliminary application of the diffusive acceleration of particles by multiple shocks with frequencies appropriate for solar maximum (i.e., a non-Markovian process).

Demonstration of non-Gaussian restricted diffusion in tumor cells using diffusion-time dependent diffusion weighted MR contrast

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tuva Roaldsdatter Hope

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The diffusion weighted imaging (DWI technique enables quantification of water mobility for probing microstructural properties of biological tissue, and has become an effective tool for collecting information about the underlying pathology of cancerous tissue. Measurements using multiple b-values have indicated a bi-exponential signal attenuation, ascribed to fast (high ADC and slow (low ADC diffusion components. In this empirical study, we investigate the properties of the diffusion time (∆ - dependent components of the diffusion-weighted (DW signal in a constant b-value experiment. A Xenograft GBM mouse was imaged using ∆ = 11 ms, 20 ms, 40 ms, 60 ms and b=500-4000 s/mm2 in intervals of 500s/mm2. Data was corrected for EPI distortions and the ∆-dependence on the DW signal was measured within three regions of interest (intermediate- and high-density tumor regions and normal appearing brain tissue regions (NAB. In this empirical study we verify the assumption that the slow decaying component of the DW-signal is non-Gaussian and dependent on ∆, consistent with restricted diffusion of the intracellular space. As the DW-signal as a function of ∆ is specific to restricted diffusion, manipulating ∆ at constant b-value (cb provides a complementary and direct approach for separating the restricted from the hindered diffusion component. Our results show that only tumor tissue signal of our data demonstrate ∆-dependence, based on a bi-exponential model with a restricted diffusion component, we successfully estimated the restricted ADC, signal volume fraction and cell size within each tumor ROI.

Analysis of Product Sampling for New Product Diffusion Incorporating Multiple-Unit Ownership

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhineng Hu

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Multiple-unit ownership of nondurable products is an important component of sales in many product categories. Based on the Bass model, this paper develops a new model considering the multiple-unit adoptions as a diffusion process under the influence of product sampling. Though the analysis aims to determine the optimal dynamic sampling effort for a firm and the results demonstrate that experience sampling can accelerate the diffusion process, the best time to send free samples is just before the product being launched. Multiple-unit purchasing behavior can increase sales to make more profit for a firm, and it needs more samples to make the product known much better. The local sensitivity analysis shows that the increase of both external coefficients and internal coefficients has a negative influence on the sampling level, but the internal influence on the subsequent multiple-unit adoptions has little significant influence on the sampling. Using the logistic regression along with linear regression, the global sensitivity analysis gives a whole analysis of the interaction of all factors, which manifests the external influence and multiunit purchase rate are two most important factors to influence the sampling level and net present value of the new product, and presents a two-stage method to determine the sampling level.

Local multiplicative Schwarz algorithms for convection-diffusion equations

Science.gov (United States)

Cai, Xiao-Chuan; Sarkis, Marcus

1995-01-01

We develop a new class of overlapping Schwarz type algorithms for solving scalar convection-diffusion equations discretized by finite element or finite difference methods. The preconditioners consist of two components, namely, the usual two-level additive Schwarz preconditioner and the sum of some quadratic terms constructed by using products of ordered neighboring subdomain preconditioners. The ordering of the subdomain preconditioners is determined by considering the direction of the flow. We prove that the algorithms are optimal in the sense that the convergence rates are independent of the mesh size, as well as the number of subdomains. We show by numerical examples that the new algorithms are less sensitive to the direction of the flow than either the classical multiplicative Schwarz algorithms, and converge faster than the additive Schwarz algorithms. Thus, the new algorithms are more suitable for fluid flow applications than the classical additive or multiplicative Schwarz algorithms.

Determination of Matrix Diffusion Properties of Granite

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holtta, Pirkko; Siitari-Kauppi, Marja; Huittinen, Nina; Poteri, Antti

2007-01-01

Rock-core column experiments were introduced to estimate the diffusion and sorption properties of Kuru Grey granite used in block-scale experiments. The objective was to examine the processes causing retention in solute transport through rock fractures, especially matrix diffusion. The objective was also to estimate the importance of retention processes during transport in different scales and flow conditions. Rock-core columns were constructed from cores drilled into the fracture and were placed inside tubes to form flow channels in the 0.5 mm gap between the cores and the tube walls. Tracer experiments were performed using uranin, HTO, 36 Cl, 131 I, 22 Na and 85 Sr at flow rates of 1-50 μL.min -1 . Rock matrix was characterized using 14 C-PMMA method, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray micro analysis (EDX) and the B.E.T. method. Solute mass flux through a column was modelled by applying the assumption of a linear velocity profile and molecular diffusion. Coupling of the advection and diffusion processes was based on the model of generalised Taylor dispersion in the linear velocity profile. Experiments could be modelled applying a consistent parameterization and transport processes. The results provide evidence that it is possible to investigate matrix diffusion at the laboratory scale. The effects of matrix diffusion were demonstrated on the slightly-sorbing tracer breakthrough curves. Based on scoping calculations matrix diffusion begins to be clearly observable for non-sorbing tracer when the flow rate is 0.1 μL.min -1 . The experimental results presented here cannot be transferred directly to the spatial and temporal scales that prevail in an underground repository. However, the knowledge and understanding of transport and retention processes gained from this study is transferable to different scales from laboratory to in-situ conditions. (authors)

An Unusual Radiologic Manifestation of Pulmonary Tuberculosis with Bilateral Multiple Lung Nodules and Diffuse Alveolar Hemorrhage: A Case Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeong, Seo In; Seon, Hyun Ju; Kim, Yun Hyeon [Dept. of Radiology, Chunnam National University Hospital, Gwangju (Korea, Republic of); Choi, Sung [Dept. of Radiology, Chunnam National University Hwasun Hospital, Hwasun(Korea, Republic of)

2011-12-15

Pulmonary tuberculosis presenting as bilateral multiple lung nodules or diffuse alveolar hemorrhage is very rare. Here, we report a case of pulmonary tuberculosis presenting as bilateral multiple lung nodules and diffuse alveolar hemorrhage mimicking granulomatous vasculitis, such as Wegener's granulomatosis.

Diffusion Tensor Imaging as a Biomarker to Differentiate Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis From Multiple Sclerosis at First Demyelination.

Science.gov (United States)

Aung, Wint Yan; Massoumzadeh, Parinaz; Najmi, Safa; Salter, Amber; Heaps, Jodi; Benzinger, Tammie L S; Mar, Soe

2018-01-01

There are no clinical features or biomarkers that can reliably differentiate acute disseminated encephalomyelitis from multiple sclerosis at the first demyelination attack. Consequently, a final diagnosis is sometimes delayed by months and years of follow-up. Early treatment for multiple sclerosis is recommended to reduce long-term disability. Therefore, we intend to explore neuroimaging biomarkers that can reliably distinguish between the two diagnoses. We reviewed prospectively collected clinical, standard MRI and diffusion tensor imaging data from 12 pediatric patients who presented with acute demyelination with and without encephalopathy. Patients were followed for an average of 6.5 years to determine the accuracy of final diagnosis. Final diagnosis was determined using 2013 International Pediatric MS Study Group criteria. Control subjects consisted of four age-matched healthy individuals for each patient. The study population consisted of six patients with central nervous system demyelination with encephalopathy with a presumed diagnosis of acute disseminated encephalomyelitis and six without encephalopathy with a presumed diagnosis of multiple sclerosis or clinically isolated syndrome at high risk for multiple sclerosis. During follow-up, two patients with initial diagnosis of acute disseminated encephalomyelitis were later diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Diffusion tensor imaging region of interest analysis of baseline scans showed differences between final diagnosis of multiple sclerosis and acute disseminated encephalomyelitis patients, whereby low fractional anisotropy and high radial diffusivity occurred in multiple sclerosis patients compared with acute disseminated encephalomyelitis patients and the age-matched controls. Fractional anisotropy and radial diffusivity measures may have the potential to serve as biomarkers for distinguishing acute disseminated encephalomyelitis from multiple sclerosis at the onset. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All

Mechanisms of component diffusion in mercury cadmium telluride

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang, M.S.; Stevenson, D.A.

1989-01-01

The component diffusion coefficients for the Hg/sub 0.8/Cd/sub 0.2/Te (MCT) system are measured using radioactive tracers. Multiple branches are observed in the tracer diffusion profiles which are related to fast and slow-diffusing components. Diffusion models for each component are proposed based on the defect chemistry of MCT, a calculation of the thermodynamic factor, and the relationship between component diffusion coefficients and the interdiffusion coefficients for pseudobinary systems. The model provides insight into the thermodynamic properties of the system, the mechanisms for diffusion, and the practical application of tracer diffusion data to interdiffusion and p-to-n conversion by Hg annealing

A method to investigate the diffusion properties of nuclear calcium.

Science.gov (United States)

Queisser, Gillian; Wittum, Gabriel

2011-10-01

Modeling biophysical processes in general requires knowledge about underlying biological parameters. The quality of simulation results is strongly influenced by the accuracy of these parameters, hence the identification of parameter values that the model includes is a major part of simulating biophysical processes. In many cases, secondary data can be gathered by experimental setups, which are exploitable by mathematical inverse modeling techniques. Here we describe a method for parameter identification of diffusion properties of calcium in the nuclei of rat hippocampal neurons. The method is based on a Gauss-Newton method for solving a least-squares minimization problem and was formulated in such a way that it is ideally implementable in the simulation platform uG. Making use of independently published space- and time-dependent calcium imaging data, generated from laser-assisted calcium uncaging experiments, here we could identify the diffusion properties of nuclear calcium and were able to validate a previously published model that describes nuclear calcium dynamics as a diffusion process.

Multiple Scattering in Random Mechanical Systems and Diffusion Approximation

Science.gov (United States)

Feres, Renato; Ng, Jasmine; Zhang, Hong-Kun

2013-10-01

This paper is concerned with stochastic processes that model multiple (or iterated) scattering in classical mechanical systems of billiard type, defined below. From a given (deterministic) system of billiard type, a random process with transition probabilities operator P is introduced by assuming that some of the dynamical variables are random with prescribed probability distributions. Of particular interest are systems with weak scattering, which are associated to parametric families of operators P h , depending on a geometric or mechanical parameter h, that approaches the identity as h goes to 0. It is shown that ( P h - I)/ h converges for small h to a second order elliptic differential operator on compactly supported functions and that the Markov chain process associated to P h converges to a diffusion with infinitesimal generator . Both P h and are self-adjoint (densely) defined on the space of square-integrable functions over the (lower) half-space in , where η is a stationary measure. This measure's density is either (post-collision) Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution or Knudsen cosine law, and the random processes with infinitesimal generator respectively correspond to what we call MB diffusion and (generalized) Legendre diffusion. Concrete examples of simple mechanical systems are given and illustrated by numerically simulating the random processes.

In vivo magnetic resonance diffusion measurement in the brain of patients with multiple sclerosis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsson, H B; Thomsen, C; Frederiksen, J

1992-01-01

Measurement of water self-diffusion in the brain in 25 patients with multiple sclerosis was performed by magnetic resonance imaging. Quantitative diffusion measurements were obtained using single spin-echo pulse sequences with pulsed magnetic field gradients of different magnitude. Twenty......-two of these patients also underwent measurement of the transverse relaxation time (T2). Only one plaque was evaluated in each patient. Based on prior knowledge, 12 plaques were classified as being 3 mo or less in age, and 7 plaques were classified as being more than 3 mo old. In all 25 plaques, water self......-diffusion was found to be higher than in apparently normal white matter. Furthermore, water self-diffusion was found to be higher in acute plaques compared with chronic plaques. Finally, a slight tendency toward a relationship between the diffusion capability and T2 was found. We believe that an increased diffusion...

Universal properties of relaxation and diffusion in condensed matter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ngai K L

2017-01-01

By and large the research communities today are not fully aware of the remarkable universality in the dynamic properties of many-body relaxation/diffusion processes manifested in experiments and simulations on condensed matter with diverse chemical compositions and physical structures. I shall demonstrate the universality first from the dynamic processes in glass-forming systems. This is reinforced by strikingly similar properties of different processes in contrasting interacting systems all having nothing to do with glass transition. The examples given here include glass-forming systems of diverse chemical compositions and physical structures, conductivity relaxation of ionic conductors (liquid, glassy, and crystalline), translation and orientation ordered phase of rigid molecule, and polymer chain dynamics. Universality is also found in the change of dynamics when dimension is reduced to nanometer size in widely different systems. The remarkable universality indicates that many-body relaxation/diffusion is governed by fundamental physics to be unveiled. One candidate is classical chaos on which the coupling model is based, Universal properties predicted by this model are in accord with diverse experiments and simulations. (paper)

Mechanical properties of dynamic diffusion bonded joints in a mild alloy steel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gomez de Salazar, J. M.; Urena, A.; Menendez, M.

2001-01-01

Mechanical properties in Dynamic Diffusion Bonded (DDB) in a A.S.T.M. 1045 steel (=.45%C) joints were studied. The thermomechanical cycle added to the process, favours both the initial deformation stage and probably the diffusion mechanisms which participate in bond formation. (Author) 11 refs

Matrix-type multiple reciprocity boundary element method for solving three-dimensional two-group neutron diffusion equations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Itagaki, Masafumi; Sahashi, Naoki.

1997-01-01

The multiple reciprocity boundary element method has been applied to three-dimensional two-group neutron diffusion problems. A matrix-type boundary integral equation has been derived to solve the first and the second group neutron diffusion equations simultaneously. The matrix-type fundamental solutions used here satisfy the equation which has a point source term and is adjoint to the neutron diffusion equations. A multiple reciprocity method has been employed to transform the matrix-type domain integral related to the fission source into an equivalent boundary one. The higher order fundamental solutions required for this formulation are composed of a series of two types of analytic functions. The eigenvalue itself is also calculated using only boundary integrals. Three-dimensional test calculations indicate that the present method provides stable and accurate solutions for criticality problems. (author)

Changes in diffusion properties of biological tissues associated with mechanical strain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tanaka, Kenichiro; Imae, T.; Mima, Kazuo; Sekino, Masaki; Ohsaki, Hiroyuki; Ueno, Shogo

2007-01-01

Mechanical strain in biological tissues causes a change in the diffusion properties of water molecules. This paper proposes a method of estimating mechanical strain in biological tissues using diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Measurements were carried out on uncompressed and compressed chicken skeletal muscles. A theoretical model of the diffusion of water molecules in muscle fibers was derived based on Tanner's equation. Diameter of the muscle fibers was estimated by fitting the model equation to the measured signals. Changes in the mean diffusivity (MD), the fractional anisotropy (FA), and diameter of the muscle fiber did not have any statistical significance. The intracellular diffusion coefficient (D int ) was changed by mechanical strain (p<.05). This method has potential applications in the quantitative evaluation of strain in biological tissues, a though it poses several technical challenges. (author)

Hybrid approaches for multiple-species stochastic reaction-diffusion models

Science.gov (United States)

Spill, Fabian; Guerrero, Pilar; Alarcon, Tomas; Maini, Philip K.; Byrne, Helen

2015-10-01

Reaction-diffusion models are used to describe systems in fields as diverse as physics, chemistry, ecology and biology. The fundamental quantities in such models are individual entities such as atoms and molecules, bacteria, cells or animals, which move and/or react in a stochastic manner. If the number of entities is large, accounting for each individual is inefficient, and often partial differential equation (PDE) models are used in which the stochastic behaviour of individuals is replaced by a description of the averaged, or mean behaviour of the system. In some situations the number of individuals is large in certain regions and small in others. In such cases, a stochastic model may be inefficient in one region, and a PDE model inaccurate in another. To overcome this problem, we develop a scheme which couples a stochastic reaction-diffusion system in one part of the domain with its mean field analogue, i.e. a discretised PDE model, in the other part of the domain. The interface in between the two domains occupies exactly one lattice site and is chosen such that the mean field description is still accurate there. In this way errors due to the flux between the domains are small. Our scheme can account for multiple dynamic interfaces separating multiple stochastic and deterministic domains, and the coupling between the domains conserves the total number of particles. The method preserves stochastic features such as extinction not observable in the mean field description, and is significantly faster to simulate on a computer than the pure stochastic model.

Hybrid approaches for multiple-species stochastic reaction-diffusion models.

KAUST Repository

Spill, Fabian; Guerrero, Pilar; Alarcon, Tomas; Maini, Philip K; Byrne, Helen

2015-01-01

Reaction-diffusion models are used to describe systems in fields as diverse as physics, chemistry, ecology and biology. The fundamental quantities in such models are individual entities such as atoms and molecules, bacteria, cells or animals, which move and/or react in a stochastic manner. If the number of entities is large, accounting for each individual is inefficient, and often partial differential equation (PDE) models are used in which the stochastic behaviour of individuals is replaced by a description of the averaged, or mean behaviour of the system. In some situations the number of individuals is large in certain regions and small in others. In such cases, a stochastic model may be inefficient in one region, and a PDE model inaccurate in another. To overcome this problem, we develop a scheme which couples a stochastic reaction-diffusion system in one part of the domain with its mean field analogue, i.e. a discretised PDE model, in the other part of the domain. The interface in between the two domains occupies exactly one lattice site and is chosen such that the mean field description is still accurate there. In this way errors due to the flux between the domains are small. Our scheme can account for multiple dynamic interfaces separating multiple stochastic and deterministic domains, and the coupling between the domains conserves the total number of particles. The method preserves stochastic features such as extinction not observable in the mean field description, and is significantly faster to simulate on a computer than the pure stochastic model.

Hybrid approaches for multiple-species stochastic reaction-diffusion models.

KAUST Repository

Spill, Fabian

2015-10-01

Reaction-diffusion models are used to describe systems in fields as diverse as physics, chemistry, ecology and biology. The fundamental quantities in such models are individual entities such as atoms and molecules, bacteria, cells or animals, which move and/or react in a stochastic manner. If the number of entities is large, accounting for each individual is inefficient, and often partial differential equation (PDE) models are used in which the stochastic behaviour of individuals is replaced by a description of the averaged, or mean behaviour of the system. In some situations the number of individuals is large in certain regions and small in others. In such cases, a stochastic model may be inefficient in one region, and a PDE model inaccurate in another. To overcome this problem, we develop a scheme which couples a stochastic reaction-diffusion system in one part of the domain with its mean field analogue, i.e. a discretised PDE model, in the other part of the domain. The interface in between the two domains occupies exactly one lattice site and is chosen such that the mean field description is still accurate there. In this way errors due to the flux between the domains are small. Our scheme can account for multiple dynamic interfaces separating multiple stochastic and deterministic domains, and the coupling between the domains conserves the total number of particles. The method preserves stochastic features such as extinction not observable in the mean field description, and is significantly faster to simulate on a computer than the pure stochastic model.

Short-term evolution of spinal cord damage in multiple sclerosis: a diffusion tensor MRI study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Theaudin, M.; Denier, C.; Adams, D.; Saliou, G.; Ducot, B.; Deiva, K.; Ducreux, D.

2012-01-01

The potential of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to detect spinal cord abnormalities in patients with multiple sclerosis has already been demonstrated. The objective of this study was to apply DTI techniques to multiple sclerosis patients with a recently diagnosed spinal cord lesion, in order to demonstrate a correlation between variations of DTI parameters and clinical outcome, and to try to identify DTI parameters predictive of outcome. A prospective single-centre study of patients with spinal cord relapse treated by intravenous steroid therapy was made. Patients were assessed clinically and by conventional MRI with DTI sequences at baseline and at 3 months. Sixteen patients were recruited. At 3 months, 12 patients were clinically improved. All but one patient had lower fractional anisotropy (FA) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values than normal subjects in either inflammatory lesions or normal-appearing spinal cord. Patients who improved at 3 months presented a significant reduction in the radial diffusivity (p = 0.05) in lesions during the follow-up period. They also had a significant reduction in the mean ADC (p = 0.002), axial diffusivity (p = 0.02), radial diffusivity (p = 0.02) and a significant increase in FA values (p = 0.02) in normal-appearing spinal cord. Patients in whom the American Spinal Injury Association sensory score improved at 3 months showed a significantly higher FA (p = 0.009) and lower radial diffusivity (p = 0.04) in inflammatory lesion at baseline compared to patients with no improvement. DTI MRI detects more extensive abnormalities than conventional T2 MRI. A less marked decrease in FA value and more marked decreased in radial diffusivity inside the inflammatory lesion were associated with better outcome. (orig.)

Short-term evolution of spinal cord damage in multiple sclerosis: a diffusion tensor MRI study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Theaudin, M.; Denier, C.; Adams, D. [AP-HP, CHU Bicetre, Service de Neurologie Adultes, Le Kremlin-Bicetre (France); INSERM, UMR788, Faculte de Medecine Paris Sud, Le Kremlin-Bicetre (France); Saliou, G. [AP-HP, CHU Bicetre, Service de Neuroradiologie, Le Kremlin-Bicetre (France); Ducot, B. [INSERM, U1018, CESP Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health, Faculte de Medecine Paris Sud, Le Kremlin-Bicetre (France); Deiva, K. [Service de Neuropediatrie, Le Kremlin-Bicetre (France); Ducreux, D. [INSERM, UMR788, Faculte de Medecine Paris Sud, Le Kremlin-Bicetre (France); AP-HP, CHU Bicetre, Service de Neuroradiologie, Le Kremlin-Bicetre (France)

2012-10-15

The potential of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to detect spinal cord abnormalities in patients with multiple sclerosis has already been demonstrated. The objective of this study was to apply DTI techniques to multiple sclerosis patients with a recently diagnosed spinal cord lesion, in order to demonstrate a correlation between variations of DTI parameters and clinical outcome, and to try to identify DTI parameters predictive of outcome. A prospective single-centre study of patients with spinal cord relapse treated by intravenous steroid therapy was made. Patients were assessed clinically and by conventional MRI with DTI sequences at baseline and at 3 months. Sixteen patients were recruited. At 3 months, 12 patients were clinically improved. All but one patient had lower fractional anisotropy (FA) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values than normal subjects in either inflammatory lesions or normal-appearing spinal cord. Patients who improved at 3 months presented a significant reduction in the radial diffusivity (p = 0.05) in lesions during the follow-up period. They also had a significant reduction in the mean ADC (p = 0.002), axial diffusivity (p = 0.02), radial diffusivity (p = 0.02) and a significant increase in FA values (p = 0.02) in normal-appearing spinal cord. Patients in whom the American Spinal Injury Association sensory score improved at 3 months showed a significantly higher FA (p = 0.009) and lower radial diffusivity (p = 0.04) in inflammatory lesion at baseline compared to patients with no improvement. DTI MRI detects more extensive abnormalities than conventional T2 MRI. A less marked decrease in FA value and more marked decreased in radial diffusivity inside the inflammatory lesion were associated with better outcome. (orig.)

Effects of electrode properties and fabricated pressure on Li ion diffusion and diffusion-induced stresses in cylindrical Li-ion batteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Tao; Guo, Zhansheng

2014-01-01

The effects of electrode properties and fabricated pressure on Li ion diffusion and diffusion-induced stress in a cylindrical Li-ion battery are studied. It is found that hydrostatic pressure or elastic modulus variation in the active layer have little effect on the distribution of Li ions for a higher diffusivity coefficient, but both can facilitate Li ion diffusion for a lower diffusivity coefficient. The elastic modulus variation has a significant effect on the distribution of stress and hydrostatic pressure can reduce the surface stress for the lower diffusivity coefficient. A higher charging rate causes a more transient response in the stress history, but a linear charging history is observed for slow charging rates. A higher charging rate would not inflict extra damage on the electrode for the higher diffusivity coefficient and the stress history becomes highly transient and charging rate dependent for the lower diffusivity coefficient. The effect of fabricated pressure can be neglected. (paper)

Characterization of thermal, hydraulic, and gas diffusion properties in variably saturated sand grades

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Deepagoda Thuduwe Kankanamge Kelum, Chamindu; Smits, Kathleen; Ramirez, Jamie

2016-01-01

porous media transport properties, key transport parameters such as thermal conductivity and gas diffusivity are particularly important to describe temperature-induced heat transport and diffusion-controlled gas transport processes, respectively. Despite many experimental and numerical studies focusing...... transport models (thermal conductivity, saturated hydraulic conductivity, and gas diffusivity). An existing thermal conductivity model was improved to describe the distinct three-region behavior in observed thermal conductivity–water saturation relations. Applying widely used parametric models for saturated......Detailed characterization of partially saturated porous media is important for understanding and predicting vadose zone transport processes. While basic properties (e.g., particle- and pore-size distributions and soil-water retention) are, in general, essential prerequisites for characterizing most...

Static and dynamic properties of multiple light scattering

Science.gov (United States)

Štěpánek, Petr

1993-11-01

We have examined the onset and evolution of multiple scattering of light on a series of latex dispersions as a function of increasing volume concentration φ of particles. We have shown that using vertically polarized incident light, the static scattered intensity becomes progressively depolarized, with increasing φ. The polarization of scattered light is completely random in the limit of strong multiple scattering. The spectra of decay times of dynamic light scattering display a region of oligo scattering at intermediate φ where both the single and multiple scattering components can be dynamically identified. For φ≳0.03 the limit of diffusive transport of light is attained. The obtained results confirm that our earlier measurements of dynamic light scattering on systems exhibiting critical opalescence are not influenced by multiple light scattering.

Propagator formalism and computer simulation of restricted diffusion behaviors of inter-molecular multiple-quantum coherences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cai Congbo; Chen Zhong; Cai Shuhui; Zhong Jianhui

2005-01-01

In this paper, behaviors of single-quantum coherences and inter-molecular multiple-quantum coherences under restricted diffusion in nuclear magnetic resonance experiments were investigated. The propagator formalism based on the loss of spin phase memory during random motion was applied to describe the diffusion-induced signal attenuation. The exact expression of the signal attenuation under the short gradient pulse approximation for restricted diffusion between two parallel plates was obtained using this propagator method. For long gradient pulses, a modified formalism was proposed. The simulated signal attenuation under the effects of gradient pulses of different width based on the Monte Carlo method agrees with the theoretical predictions. The propagator formalism and computer simulation can provide convenient, intuitive and precise methods for the study of the diffusion behaviors

Multiple Property Cross Direction Control of Paper Machines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Markku Ohenoja

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Cross direction (CD control in sheet-forming process forms a challenging problem with high dimensions. Accounting the interactions between different properties and actuators, the dimensionality increases further and also computational issues arise. We present a multiple property controller feasible to be used especially with imaging measurements that provide high sampling frequency and therefore enable short control interval. The simulation results state the benefits of multiple property CD control over single property control and single property control using full feedforward compensation. The controller presented may also be tuned in automated manner and the results demonstrate the effect of tuning on input saturation.

Nonlinear Cross-Diffusion with Size Exclusion

KAUST Repository

Burger, Martin

2010-01-01

The aim of this paper is to investigate the mathematical properties of a continuum model for diffusion of multiple species incorporating size exclusion effects. The system for two species leads to nonlinear cross-diffusion terms with double degeneracy, which creates significant novel challenges in the analysis of the system. We prove global existence of weak solutions and well-posedness of strong solutions close to equilibrium. We further study some asymptotics of the model, and in particular we characterize the large-time behavior of solutions. 2010 © Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.

Mathematical models for diffusive mass transfer from waste package container with multiple perforations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, J.H.; Andrews, R.W.; Chambre, P.L.

1996-01-01

A robust engineered barrier system (EBS) is employed in the current design concept for the potential high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, US. The primary component of the EBS is a multi-barrier waste package container. Simplifying the geometry of the cylindrical waste package container and the underlying invert into the equivalent spherical configuration, mathematical models are developed for steady-state and transient diffusive releases from the failed waste container with multiple perforations (or pit penetrations) at the boundary of the invert. Using the models the steady-state and transient diffusive release behaviors form the failed waste container are studied. The analyses show that the number of perforations, the size of perforation, the container wall thickness, the geometry of the waste container and invert, and the adsorption of radionuclide in the invert are the important parameters that control the diffusive release rate. It is emphasized that the failed (or perforated) waste package container can still perform as a potentially important barrier (or diffusion barrier) to radionuclide release

Microstructural abnormalities in the trigeminal nerves of patients with trigeminal neuralgia revealed by multiple diffusion metrics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, Yaou [Department of Radiology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100053 (China); Beijing Key laboratory of MRI and Brain Informatics, Beijing (China); Li, Jiping [Department of Functional Neurosurgery, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100053 (China); Butzkueven, Helmut [Department of Medicine, University of Melbourne, Parkville 3010 (Australia); Duan, Yunyun; Zhang, Mo [Department of Radiology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100053 (China); Shu, Ni [State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875 (China); Li, Yongjie [Department of Functional Neurosurgery, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100053 (China); Zhang, Yuqing, E-mail: yuqzhang@sohu.com [Department of Functional Neurosurgery, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100053 (China); Li, Kuncheng, E-mail: kunchengli55@gmail.com [Department of Radiology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100053 (China)

2013-05-15

Objective: To investigate microstructural tissue changes of trigeminal nerve (TGN) in patients with unilateral trigeminal neuralgia (TN) by multiple diffusion metrics, and correlate the diffusion indexes with the clinical variables. Methods: 16 patients with TN and 6 healthy controls (HC) were recruited into our study. All participants were imaged with a 3.0 T system with three-dimension time-of-flight (TOF) magnetic resonance angiography and fluid attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) DTI-sequence. We placed regions of interest over the root entry zone of the TGN and measured fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), axial diffusivity (AD) and radial diffusivity (RD). The mean values of FA, MD, AD and RD were compared between the affected and unaffected sides in the same patient, and to HC values. The correlation between the side-to-side diffusion metric difference and clinical variables (disease duration and visual analogy scale, VAS) was further explored. Results: Compared with the unaffected side and HC, the affected side showed significantly decreased FA and increased RD; however, no significant changes of AD were found. A trend toward significantly increased MD was identified on the affected side comparing with the unaffected side. We also found the significant correlation between the FA reduction and VAS of pain (r = −0.55, p = 0.03). Conclusion: DTI can quantitatively assess the microstructural abnormalities of the affected TGN in patients with TN. Our results suggest demyelination without significant axonal injury is the essential pathological basis of the affected TGN by multiple diffusion metrics. The correlation between FA reduction and VAS suggests FA as a potential objective MRI biomarker to correlate with clinical severity.

Microstructural abnormalities in the trigeminal nerves of patients with trigeminal neuralgia revealed by multiple diffusion metrics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Yaou; Li, Jiping; Butzkueven, Helmut; Duan, Yunyun; Zhang, Mo; Shu, Ni; Li, Yongjie; Zhang, Yuqing; Li, Kuncheng

2013-01-01

Objective: To investigate microstructural tissue changes of trigeminal nerve (TGN) in patients with unilateral trigeminal neuralgia (TN) by multiple diffusion metrics, and correlate the diffusion indexes with the clinical variables. Methods: 16 patients with TN and 6 healthy controls (HC) were recruited into our study. All participants were imaged with a 3.0 T system with three-dimension time-of-flight (TOF) magnetic resonance angiography and fluid attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) DTI-sequence. We placed regions of interest over the root entry zone of the TGN and measured fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), axial diffusivity (AD) and radial diffusivity (RD). The mean values of FA, MD, AD and RD were compared between the affected and unaffected sides in the same patient, and to HC values. The correlation between the side-to-side diffusion metric difference and clinical variables (disease duration and visual analogy scale, VAS) was further explored. Results: Compared with the unaffected side and HC, the affected side showed significantly decreased FA and increased RD; however, no significant changes of AD were found. A trend toward significantly increased MD was identified on the affected side comparing with the unaffected side. We also found the significant correlation between the FA reduction and VAS of pain (r = −0.55, p = 0.03). Conclusion: DTI can quantitatively assess the microstructural abnormalities of the affected TGN in patients with TN. Our results suggest demyelination without significant axonal injury is the essential pathological basis of the affected TGN by multiple diffusion metrics. The correlation between FA reduction and VAS suggests FA as a potential objective MRI biomarker to correlate with clinical severity

Transport and calorimetric properties of AISI 321 by pulse thermal diffusivity and calorimetric techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perovic, N.L.; Maglic, K.D.; Stanimirovic, A.M.; Vukovic, G.S.

1995-01-01

The study of the thermophysical properties of AISI 321 stainless steel was the last part of work within the IAEA-coordinated Research Programme for the Establishment of a Database of Thermophysical Properties of LW and HW Reactor Materials (IAEA CRP) effected at the Institute of Nuclear Sciences Vinca (NIV). The AISI 321 stainless steel belongs to the group of construction materials whose thermophysical and calorimetric properties have significance for the IAEA CRP. Because there have been few investigations of the thermal properties of this material, the CRP foresaw the need for new measurements, which are reported in this paper. Experimental research performed at NIV consisted of the investigation of thermal diffusivity, electric resistivity, and specific heat capacity of this austenitic stainless steel. The thermal diffusivity was measured by the laser pulse technique, and the elastic resistivity and specific heat capacity were determined by use of millisecond-resolution pulse calorimetry. All measurements were performed from ambient temperature to above 1000 o C, within which temperature range the material maintains its structure and stable thermophysical properties. Values for the thermal conductivity were computed from data on the thermal diffusivity, specific heat capacity, and the room-temperature density. (author)

Experimental Study on Properties of Methane Diffusion of Coal Block under Triaxial Compressive Stress

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Hong-Bao

2014-01-01

Taking the standard size coal block samples defined by ISRM as research objects, both properties of methane diffusion of coal block under triaxial compressive stress and characteristic influences caused by methane pressure were systematically studied with thermo-fluid-solid coupling with triaxial servocontrolled seepage equipment of methane-containing coal. The result shows the methane diffusion property of coal block under triaxial compressive stress was shown in four-stage as follow, first is sharply reduce stage, second is hyperbolic reduce stage, third is close to a fixed value stage, fourth stage is 0. There is a special point making the reduced rate of characteristic curve of methane diffusion speed become sharply small; the influences of shape of methane diffusion speed characteristic curve caused by methane pressure are not obvious, which only is shown in numerical size of methane diffusion speed. Test time was extended required by appear of the special point makes the reduce rate of methane diffusion speed become sharply small. The fitting four-phase relation of methane diffusion of coal block under triaxial compressive stress was obtained, and the idea is proposed that influences of the fitting four-phase relation caused by methane pressure were only shown in value of fitting parameters. PMID:25531000

Comparison between cerebral ischemia disease and multiple sclerosis by using MR diffusion tensor imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lou Xin; Cai Youquan; Ma Lin; Cai Jianming

2007-01-01

Objective: To assess the value of MR diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in the differentiation between the patients with cerebral ischemia disease and multiple sclerosis. Methods: MR diffusion tensor imaging was performed in thirty-two patients with internal carotid artery stenosis ≥70% and eighteen patients with clinical diagnosed multiple sclerosis. Fractional anisotropy (FA) value of the germ, splenium, body of the corpus callosum, and the white matter of the frontal and occipital lobe were measured respectively, and independent-sample t-test statistical analysis was performed. Results: The FA value was decreased obviously in the anterior and posterior body and splenium of the corpus callosumin the MS patients compared with the ICA severe stenosis patients (0.67 ± 0.12 vs. 0.75 ± 0.05, t=3.443, P 0.05; 0.34 ± 0.08 vs. 0.34 ± 0.05, t=0.137, P> 0.05; 0.29 ± 0.06 vs. 0.40 ± 0.06, t=5.449, P>0.05). Conclusion: DTI can noninvasive detect the potential disorder of corpus callosum in vivo, thus providing useful information to differentiate the cerebral ischemia disease from multiple sclerosis. (authors)

Spiral multiple-effect diffusion solar still coupled with vacuum-tube collector and heat pipe

KAUST Repository

Huang, Bin-Juine; Chong, Tze-Ling; Wu, Po-Hsien; Dai, Han-Yi; Kao, Yeong-Chuan

2015-01-01

© 2015 Elsevier B.V. A novel solar still with spiral-shape multiple-effect diffusion unit is developed in the present study. The test results of a 14-effect unit coupled with vacuum-tube solar collector (absorber area 1.08m2) show that the highest

Diffuse arachnoid ossification and multiple arachnoid cysts presenting with progressive thoracic myelopathy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sakai, Toshinori; Sairyo, Koichi; Kashima, Masahiro; Kosaka, Hirofumi; Katoh, Shinsuke; Yasui, Natsuo [The University of Tokushima Graduate School, Department of Orthopedics, Institute of Health Biosciences, Tokushima (Japan)

2010-03-15

An ossified arachnoid membrane combined with cystic formation is rarely reported as a cause of spinal cord compression. We report the case of a 60-year-old man who presented with diffuse ossification of the arachnoid membrane (arachnoid ossification) and multiple cystic changes (arachnoid cyst) at the thoracic and lumbar spine. The lesions were surgically removed and progressive deterioration was prevented, although no marked improvement of neurological symptoms was attained. (orig.)

Diffusive and quantum effects of water properties in different states of matter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yeh, Kuan-Yu; Huang, Shao-Nung; Chen, Li-Jen; Lin, Shiang-Tai

2014-01-01

The enthalpy, entropy, and free energy of water are important physical quantities for understanding many interesting phenomena in biological systems. However, conventional approaches require different treatments to incorporate quantum and diffusive effects of water in different states of matter. In this work, we demonstrate the use of the two-phase thermodynamic (2PT) model as a unified approach to obtain the properties of water over the whole phase region of water from short (∼20 ps) classical molecular dynamics trajectories. The 2PT model provides an effective way to separate the diffusive modes (gas-like component) from the harmonic vibrational modes (solid-like component) in the vibrational density of states (DoS). Therefore, both diffusive and quantum effect can be properly accounted for water by applying suitable statistical mechanical weighting functions to the DoS components. We applied the 2PT model to systematically examine the enthalpy, entropy, and their temperature dependence of five commonly used rigid water models. The 2PT results are found to be consistent with those obtained from more sophisticated calculations. While the thermodynamic properties determined from different water models are largely similar, the phase boundary determined from the equality of free energy is very sensitive to the small inaccuracy in the values of enthalpy and absolute entropy. The enthalpy, entropy, and diffusivity of water are strongly interrelated, which challenge further improvement of rigid water model via parameter fitting. Our results show that the 2PT is an efficient method for studying the properties of water under various chemical and biological environments

Assessment of GABARAP self-association by its diffusion properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pacheco, Victor; Ma Peixiang; Thielmann, Yvonne; Hartmann, Rudolf; Weiergraeber, Oliver H.; Mohrlueder, Jeannine; Willbold, Dieter

2010-01-01

Gamma-aminobutyric acid type A receptor-associated protein (GABARAP) belongs to a family of small ubiquitin-like adaptor proteins implicated in intracellular vesicle trafficking and autophagy. We have used diffusion-ordered nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to study the temperature and concentration dependence of the diffusion properties of GABARAP. Our data suggest the presence of distinct conformational states and provide support for self-association of GABARAP molecules. Assuming a monomer-dimer equilibrium, a temperature-dependent dissociation constant could be derived. Based on a temperature series of 1 H 15 N heteronuclear single quantum coherence nuclear magnetic resonance spectra, we propose residues potentially involved in GABARAP self-interaction. The possible biological significance of these observations is discussed with respect to alternative scenarios of oligomerization.

Support Operators Method for the Diffusion Equation in Multiple Materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Winters, Andrew R. [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Shashkov, Mikhail J. [Los Alamos National Laboratory

2012-08-14

A second-order finite difference scheme for the solution of the diffusion equation on non-uniform meshes is implemented. The method allows the heat conductivity to be discontinuous. The algorithm is formulated on a one dimensional mesh and is derived using the support operators method. A key component of the derivation is that the discrete analog of the flux operator is constructed to be the negative adjoint of the discrete divergence, in an inner product that is a discrete analog of the continuum inner product. The resultant discrete operators in the fully discretized diffusion equation are symmetric and positive definite. The algorithm is generalized to operate on meshes with cells which have mixed material properties. A mechanism to recover intermediate temperature values in mixed cells using a limited linear reconstruction is introduced. The implementation of the algorithm is verified and the linear reconstruction mechanism is compared to previous results for obtaining new material temperatures.

Bessel Fourier orientation reconstruction: an analytical EAP reconstruction using multiple shell acquisitions in diffusion MRI.

Science.gov (United States)

Hosseinbor, Ameer Pasha; Chung, Moo K; Wu, Yu-Chien; Alexander, Andrew L

2011-01-01

The estimation of the ensemble average propagator (EAP) directly from q-space DWI signals is an open problem in diffusion MRI. Diffusion spectrum imaging (DSI) is one common technique to compute the EAP directly from the diffusion signal, but it is burdened by the large sampling required. Recently, several analytical EAP reconstruction schemes for multiple q-shell acquisitions have been proposed. One, in particular, is Diffusion Propagator Imaging (DPI) which is based on the Laplace's equation estimation of diffusion signal for each shell acquisition. Viewed intuitively in terms of the heat equation, the DPI solution is obtained when the heat distribution between temperatuere measurements at each shell is at steady state. We propose a generalized extension of DPI, Bessel Fourier Orientation Reconstruction (BFOR), whose solution is based on heat equation estimation of the diffusion signal for each shell acquisition. That is, the heat distribution between shell measurements is no longer at steady state. In addition to being analytical, the BFOR solution also includes an intrinsic exponential smootheing term. We illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method by showing results on both synthetic and real MR datasets.

Diffuse Myocardial Uptake of 99mTc-HDP in Multiple Myeloma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Demirel, Koray; Sadic, Murat; Korkmaz, Meliha; Comak, Aylin; Atilgan, Hasan Ikbal; Koca, Goekhan

2013-01-01

Soft tissue uptake is a rare finding in bone scintigraphy, with an incidence of 2%. Although the mechanism has not yet been fully clarified, several causes have been reported for this unusual uptake pattern. This paper presents a case of diffuse myocardial accumulation of technetium-99m hydroxymethylene diphosphonate ( 99m Tc-HDP) without either solid/visceral organ or soft tissue with multiple myeloma (MM) in skeletal scintigraphy. A 93-year-old man with hypertension and chronic heart failure for 14 years underwent bone scanning due to a 2-month history of back pain within a 1-year period of MM. Three hours later, 99m Tc-HDP late static images showed diffuse myocardial radiotracer accumulation and there were no other sites of abnormal soft tissue or visceral uptake. Myocardial accumulation had disappeared on 24-h delayed static images. This accumulation was thought to be related with AL-type amyloidosis associated with MM

Characterizing Microstructural Tissue Properties in Multiple Sclerosis with Diffusion MRI at 7 T and 3 T: The Impact of the Experimental Design.

Science.gov (United States)

De Santis, Silvia; Bastiani, Matteo; Droby, Amgad; Kolber, Pierre; Zipp, Frauke; Pracht, Eberhard; Stoecker, Tony; Groppa, Sergiu; Roebroeck, Alard

2018-04-07

The recent introduction of advanced magnetic resonance (MR) imaging techniques to characterize focal and global degeneration in multiple sclerosis (MS), like the Composite Hindered and Restricted Model of Diffusion, or CHARMED, diffusional kurtosis imaging (DKI) and Neurite Orientation Dispersion and Density Imaging (NODDI) made available new tools to image axonal pathology non-invasively in vivo. These methods already showed greater sensitivity and specificity compared to conventional diffusion tensor-based metrics (e.g., fractional anisotropy), overcoming some of its limitations. While previous studies uncovered global and focal axonal degeneration in MS patients compared to healthy controls, here our aim is to investigate and compare different diffusion MRI acquisition protocols in their ability to highlight microstructural differences between MS and control tissue over several much used models. For comparison, we contrasted the ability of fractional anisotropy measurements to uncover differences between lesion, normal-appearing white matter (WM), gray matter and healthy tissue under the same imaging protocols. We show that: (1) focal and diffuse differences in several microstructural parameters are observed under clinical settings; (2) advanced models (CHARMED, DKI and NODDI) have increased specificity and sensitivity to neurodegeneration when compared to fractional anisotropy measurements; and (3) both high (3 T) and ultra-high fields (7 T) are viable options for imaging tissue change in MS lesions and normal appearing WM, while higher b-values are less beneficial under the tested short-time (10 min acquisition) conditions. Copyright © 2018 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Structure-property relationships in flavour-barrier membranes with reduced high-temperature diffusivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heitfeld, Kevin A.; Schaefer, Dale W.

2009-01-01

Encapsulation is used to decrease the premature release of volatile flavour ingredients while offering protection against environmental damage such as oxidation, light-induced reactions, etc. Hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) is investigated here as a 'smart,' temperature responsive membrane for flavour encapsulation and delivery. Gel films were synthesized and characterized by diffusion and small-angle neutron and X-ray scattering techniques. Increasing temperature typically increases the diffusion rate across a membrane; HPC, however, can be tailored to give substantially improved elevated temperature properties. Scattering results indicate processing conditions have a significant impact on membrane morphology (micro phase separation). Under certain synthetic conditions, micro phase separation is mitigated and the membranes show temperature-independent diffusivity between 25 C and 60 C.

Electron pumping of the ground state of 21Ne. Transfers and multiple diffusion processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stoeckel, F.; Lombardi, M.

1978-01-01

The electron-pumping process of the ground state of 21 Ne has been studied. It is demonstrated how in a neon cell at a pressure of 10 -4 to 10 -2 torr, a high frequency discharge can create a nuclear spin alignment in the fundamental level (I=3/2) when the excited levels are themselves aligned. The nuclear alignment is observed by monitoring the change of the linear polarization of several optical transitions during the magnetic resonance of the fundamental level. Various transfers of the alignments are investigated and a detailed study of the influence of the multiple diffusion is carried out. The multiple diffusion produces a depolarization and a relaxation of the nuclear spin. A theoretical calculation has been made for a two-level system with a J=1 radiative level and a J=0 ground state. Experimentally a relaxation time of the nuclear alignment varying from 37 ms to 240 ms is observed when the neon pressure decreases from 10 -2 to 10 -4 torr [fr

Effect of Drying Temperature on the Chemical Properties and Diffusivity of belimbi (averrhoa belimbi)

Science.gov (United States)

Shahari, N.; Jamil, N.; Rasmani, K. A.; Nursabrina

2015-09-01

In recent years, many dried fruit products have been developed in response to a strong demand by the customer. This type of fruit has a different composition and hence different moisture diffusivity (D). During drying, Fick's Law of diffusion, which describes the movement of liquid water was used to calculate this diffusivity. However diffusivity has strong effects on the material drying characteristics and these must be determined. In this paper, Fick's Law of diffusion with different kinds of boundary conditions was solve using separation of variable (SOV). In order to get the value of D, results obtained using SOV will be compared with the results from the drying of belimbi at temperature of 40°C, 50°C and 60°C. Although the results show that variation in the values of diffusivity for different temperatures is relatively small, but the variation in the total time required for drying is significantly bigger: between 3-7 hours. Its shown that diffusivity is an important measurement and should be considered in the modeling of the drying process. The chemical properties of belimbi slices in terms of vitamin C, total ash and antioxidant activity with different air temperatures and pretreatment were also investigated. Higher drying temperatures gives less drying time, a lower vitamin C and antioxidant activity but a greater total of ash, whilst pre-treatment can increased vitamin C and antioxidant activity. The results show that pre-treatment and the drying temperature are important variables to improve mass and heat transfer, as well as the belimbi chemical properties.

Anisotropy in "isotropic diffusion" measurements due to nongaussian diffusion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jespersen, Sune Nørhøj; Olesen, Jonas Lynge; Ianuş, Andrada

2017-01-01

Designing novel diffusion-weighted NMR and MRI pulse sequences aiming to probe tissue microstructure with techniques extending beyond the conventional Stejskal-Tanner family is currently of broad interest. One such technique, multidimensional diffusion MRI, has been recently proposed to afford...... model-free decomposition of diffusion signal kurtosis into terms originating from either ensemble variance of isotropic diffusivity or microscopic diffusion anisotropy. This ability rests on the assumption that diffusion can be described as a sum of multiple Gaussian compartments, but this is often...

[A case of severe asthma exacerbation complicated with cerebral edema and diffuse multiple cerebral micro-bleeds].

Science.gov (United States)

Ohkura, Noriyuki; Fujimura, Masaki; Sakai, Asao; Fujita, Kentaro; Katayama, Nobuyuki

2009-08-01

A 36-year-old woman was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit for the treatment of severe asthma exacerbation. Her condition of asthma improved with systemic glucocorticosteroids, inhaled beta2-agonist, intravenous theophylline and inhaled anesthesia (isoflurane) under mechanical ventilation. Her consciousness was disturbed even after terminating isoflurane. Brain CT and MRI scan showed cerebral edema and diffuse multiple cerebral micro-bleeds. Glyceol, a hyperosmotic diuretic solution consisting of 10% glycerol and 5% fructose in saline, was administered to decrease cerebral edema. Her consciousness disturbance gradually recovered. Cerebral edema and hemorrhage improved. On the 69th hospital day, she was discharged from hospital without sequelae. This case is a rare one in which severe asthma exacerbation was complicated with cerebral edema and diffuse multiple cerebral hemorrhage. Inhaled anesthesia for asthma exacerbation should be used carefully to avoid delay of diagnosis of central nervous system complications.

Diffuse Myocardial Uptake of {sup 99m}Tc-HDP in Multiple Myeloma

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Demirel, Koray; Sadic, Murat; Korkmaz, Meliha; Comak, Aylin; Atilgan, Hasan Ikbal; Koca, Goekhan [Ministry of Health Ankara Training and Research Hospital, Ankara (Turkmenistan)

2013-09-15

Soft tissue uptake is a rare finding in bone scintigraphy, with an incidence of 2%. Although the mechanism has not yet been fully clarified, several causes have been reported for this unusual uptake pattern. This paper presents a case of diffuse myocardial accumulation of technetium-99m hydroxymethylene diphosphonate ({sup 99m}Tc-HDP) without either solid/visceral organ or soft tissue with multiple myeloma (MM) in skeletal scintigraphy. A 93-year-old man with hypertension and chronic heart failure for 14 years underwent bone scanning due to a 2-month history of back pain within a 1-year period of MM. Three hours later, {sup 99m}Tc-HDP late static images showed diffuse myocardial radiotracer accumulation and there were no other sites of abnormal soft tissue or visceral uptake. Myocardial accumulation had disappeared on 24-h delayed static images. This accumulation was thought to be related with AL-type amyloidosis associated with MM.

The diffusion properties of ion implanted species in selected target materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alton, G.D.; Dellwo, J.; Carter, H.K.; Kormicki, J.; Bartolo, G. di; Batchelder, J.C.; Breitenbach, J.; Chediak, J.A.; Jentoff-Nilsen, K.; Ichikawa, S.

1995-01-01

Experiments important to the future success of the Holifield Radioactive Ion Beam Facility (HRIBF) are in progress at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory which are designed to select the most appropriate target material for generating a particular radioactive ion beam (RIB). The 25-MV HHIRF tandem accelerator is used to implant stable complements of interesting radioactive elements into refractory targets mounted in a high-temperature FEBIAD ion source which is open-quotes on-lineclose quotes at the UNISOR facility. The intensity versus time of implanted species, which diffuse from the high-temperature target material (∼1700 degrees C) and are ionized in the FEBIAD ion source, is used to determine release times for a particular projectile/target material combination. From such release data, diffusion coefficients can be derived by fitting the theoretical results obtained by computational solution of Fick's second equation to experimental data. The diffusion coefficient can be used subsequently to predict the release properties of the particular element from the same material in other target geometries and at other temperatures, provided that the activation energy is also known. Diffusion coefficients for Cl implanted into and diffused from CeS and Zr 5 Si 3 and As, Br, and Se implanted into and diffused from Zr 5 Ge 3 have been derived from the resulting intensity versus time profiles. Brief descriptions of the experimental apparatus and procedures utilized in the present experiments and plans for future related experiments are presented

FADTTS: functional analysis of diffusion tensor tract statistics.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Hongtu; Kong, Linglong; Li, Runze; Styner, Martin; Gerig, Guido; Lin, Weili; Gilmore, John H

2011-06-01

The aim of this paper is to present a functional analysis of a diffusion tensor tract statistics (FADTTS) pipeline for delineating the association between multiple diffusion properties along major white matter fiber bundles with a set of covariates of interest, such as age, diagnostic status and gender, and the structure of the variability of these white matter tract properties in various diffusion tensor imaging studies. The FADTTS integrates five statistical tools: (i) a multivariate varying coefficient model for allowing the varying coefficient functions in terms of arc length to characterize the varying associations between fiber bundle diffusion properties and a set of covariates, (ii) a weighted least squares estimation of the varying coefficient functions, (iii) a functional principal component analysis to delineate the structure of the variability in fiber bundle diffusion properties, (iv) a global test statistic to test hypotheses of interest, and (v) a simultaneous confidence band to quantify the uncertainty in the estimated coefficient functions. Simulated data are used to evaluate the finite sample performance of FADTTS. We apply FADTTS to investigate the development of white matter diffusivities along the splenium of the corpus callosum tract and the right internal capsule tract in a clinical study of neurodevelopment. FADTTS can be used to facilitate the understanding of normal brain development, the neural bases of neuropsychiatric disorders, and the joint effects of environmental and genetic factors on white matter fiber bundles. The advantages of FADTTS compared with the other existing approaches are that they are capable of modeling the structured inter-subject variability, testing the joint effects, and constructing their simultaneous confidence bands. However, FADTTS is not crucial for estimation and reduces to the functional analysis method for the single measure. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Role of material properties and mechanical constraint on stress-assisted diffusion in plate electrodes of lithium ion batteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song Yicheng; Zhang Junqian; Shao Xianjun; Guo Zhansheng

2013-01-01

This work investigates the stress-assisted diffusion of lithium ions in layered electrodes of Li-ion batteries. Decoupled diffusion governing equations are obtained. Material properties, which are characterized by a single dimensionless parameter, and mechanical constraint between a current collector and an active layer, which is characterized by the elastic modulus ratio and thickness ratio between the layers, are identified as key factors that govern the stress-assisted diffusion. For a symmetric plate electrode, stress is induced by the Li-ion concentration gradient, and stress-assisted diffusion therefore depends only on the material properties. For an asymmetric bilayer electrode, mechanical constraint plays a very important role in the diffusion via generation of bending stress. Diffusion may be facilitated, or inversely impeded, according to the constraint. By summarizing the coupling factors of common active materials and investigating the concentration variation induced by stress-assisted diffusion in various electrodes, this work provides insights on stress-assisted diffusion in a layered electrode, as well as suggestions for relevant modelling works on whether the stress-assisted diffusion should be taken into account according to the selection of material and structure. (paper)

Galerkin method for solving diffusion equations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsapelkin, E.S.

1975-01-01

A programme for the solution of the three-dimensional two-group multizone neutron diffusion problem in (x, y, z)-geometry is described. The programme XYZ-5 gives the currents of both groups, the effective neutron multiplication coefficient and several integral properties of the reactor. The solution was found with the Galerkin method using speciallly constructed and chosen coordinate functions. The programme is written in ALGOL-60 and consists of 5 parts. Its text is given

Study of effective transport properties of fresh and aged gas diffusion layers

Science.gov (United States)

Bosomoiu, Magdalena; Tsotridis, Georgios; Bednarek, Tomasz

2015-07-01

Gas diffusion layers (GDLs) play an important role in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) for the diffusion of reactant and the removal of product water. In the current study fresh and aged GDLs (Sigracet® GDL34BC) were investigated by X-ray computed tomography to obtain a representative 3D image of the real GDL structure. The examined GDL samples are taken from areas located under the flow channel and under the land. Additionally, a brand new Sigracet® GDL34BC was taken as a reference sample in order to find out the impact of fuel cell assembly on GDL. The produced 3D image data were used to calculate effective transport properties such as thermal and electrical conductivity, diffusivity, permeability and capillary pressure curves of the dry and partially saturated GDL. The simulation indicates flooding by product water occurs at contact angles lower than 125° depending on sample porosity. In addition, GDL anisotropy significantly affects the permeability as well as thermal and electrical conductivities. The calculated material bulk properties could be next used as input for CFD modelling of PEM fuel cells where GDL is usually assumed layer-like and homogeneous. Tensor material parameters allow to consider GDL anisotropy and lead to more realistic results.

Analysis of normal-appearing white matter of multiple sclerosis by tensor-based two-compartment model of water diffusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tachibana, Yasuhiko; Obata, Takayuki; Yoshida, Mariko; Hori, Masaaki; Kamagata, Koji; Suzuki, Michimasa; Fukunaga, Issei; Kamiya, Kouhei; Aoki, Shigeki; Yokoyama, Kazumasa; Hattori, Nobutaka; Inoue, Tomio

2015-01-01

To compare the significance of the two-compartment model, considering diffusional anisotropy with conventional diffusion analyzing methods regarding the detection of occult changes in normal-appearing white matter (NAWM) of multiple sclerosis (MS). Diffusion-weighted images (nine b-values with six directions) were acquired from 12 healthy female volunteers (22-52 years old, median 33 years) and 13 female MS patients (24-48 years old, median 37 years). Diffusion parameters based on the two-compartment model of water diffusion considering diffusional anisotropy was calculated by a proposed method. Other parameters including diffusion tensor imaging and conventional apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) were also obtained. They were compared statistically between the control and MS groups. Diffusion of the slow diffusion compartment in the radial direction of neuron fibers was elevated in MS patients (0.121 x 10 -3 mm 2 /s) in comparison to control (0.100 x 10 -3 mm 2 /s), the difference being significant (P = 0.001). The difference between the groups was not significant in other comparisons, including conventional ADC and fractional anisotropy (FA) of diffusion tensor imaging. The proposed method was applicable to clinically acceptable small data. The parameters obtained by this method improved the detectability of occult changes in NAWM compared to the conventional methods. (orig.)

Analysis of normal-appearing white matter of multiple sclerosis by tensor-based two-compartment model of water diffusion

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tachibana, Yasuhiko [National Institute of Radiological Sciences, Research Center for Charged Particle Therapy, Chiba (Japan); Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Yokohama (Japan); Juntendo University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Tokyo (Japan); Obata, Takayuki [National Institute of Radiological Sciences, Research Center for Charged Particle Therapy, Chiba (Japan); Yoshida, Mariko; Hori, Masaaki; Kamagata, Koji; Suzuki, Michimasa; Fukunaga, Issei; Kamiya, Kouhei; Aoki, Shigeki [Juntendo University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Tokyo (Japan); Yokoyama, Kazumasa; Hattori, Nobutaka [Juntendo University School of Medicine, Department of Neurology, Tokyo (Japan); Inoue, Tomio [Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Yokohama (Japan)

2015-06-01

To compare the significance of the two-compartment model, considering diffusional anisotropy with conventional diffusion analyzing methods regarding the detection of occult changes in normal-appearing white matter (NAWM) of multiple sclerosis (MS). Diffusion-weighted images (nine b-values with six directions) were acquired from 12 healthy female volunteers (22-52 years old, median 33 years) and 13 female MS patients (24-48 years old, median 37 years). Diffusion parameters based on the two-compartment model of water diffusion considering diffusional anisotropy was calculated by a proposed method. Other parameters including diffusion tensor imaging and conventional apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) were also obtained. They were compared statistically between the control and MS groups. Diffusion of the slow diffusion compartment in the radial direction of neuron fibers was elevated in MS patients (0.121 x 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s) in comparison to control (0.100 x 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s), the difference being significant (P = 0.001). The difference between the groups was not significant in other comparisons, including conventional ADC and fractional anisotropy (FA) of diffusion tensor imaging. The proposed method was applicable to clinically acceptable small data. The parameters obtained by this method improved the detectability of occult changes in NAWM compared to the conventional methods. (orig.)

Evaluation of malignant and benign renal lesions using diffusion-weighted MRI with multiple b values

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Erbay, Gurcan; Koc, Zafer; Karadeli, Elif; Kuzgunbay, Baris; Goren, M. Resit; Bal, Nebil

2012-01-01

Background: Limited data are available regarding the use of diffusion-weighted (DW) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with multiple b values for characterization of renal lesions. Purpose: To demonstrate and compare the diagnostic performance of DW-MRI with multiple b values for renal lesion characterization. Material and Methods: Sixty-three lesions (36 malignant, 27 benign) in 60 consecutive patients (48 men, 12 women; age 60 ± 12.5 years) with solid/cystic renal lesion diagnosed after MRI were included prospectively. Single-shot echo-planar DW abdominal MRI (1.5T) was obtained using seven b values with eight apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps. Contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs), signal intensities, lesion ADCs, and lesion/normal parenchyma ADC ratios were analyzed. Receiver-operating characteristic analysis was performed. Results: The mean signal intensities of malignant lesions (at b0, 50, and 200 s/mm 2 ) were significantly lower than those of benign lesions (P 2 . ADC with all b values could better distinguish between benign and malignant lesions. A 1.35 x 10 -3 mm 2 /s threshold ADC value permitted this distinction with 85.2% sensitivity and 65.6% specificity. The lesion/normal parenchyma ADC ratio was more effective than the lesion ADC. Conclusion: In addition to the ADC value, the signal intensity curve on DW images using multiple b values could be helpful for differentiation of malignant and benign renal lesions

Prediction of the neutrons subcritical multiplication using the diffusion hybrid equation with external neutron sources

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Costa da Silva, Adilson; Carvalho da Silva, Fernando [COPPE/UFRJ, Programa de Engenharia Nuclear, Caixa Postal 68509, 21941-914, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Senra Martinez, Aquilino, E-mail: aquilino@lmp.ufrj.br [COPPE/UFRJ, Programa de Engenharia Nuclear, Caixa Postal 68509, 21941-914, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

2011-07-15

Highlights: > We proposed a new neutron diffusion hybrid equation with external neutron source. > A coarse mesh finite difference method for the adjoint flux and reactivity calculation was developed. > 1/M curve to predict the criticality condition is used. - Abstract: We used the neutron diffusion hybrid equation, in cartesian geometry with external neutron sources to predict the subcritical multiplication of neutrons in a pressurized water reactor, using a 1/M curve to predict the criticality condition. A Coarse Mesh Finite Difference Method was developed for the adjoint flux calculation and to obtain the reactivity values of the reactor. The results obtained were compared with benchmark values in order to validate the methodology presented in this paper.

Prediction of the neutrons subcritical multiplication using the diffusion hybrid equation with external neutron sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Costa da Silva, Adilson; Carvalho da Silva, Fernando; Senra Martinez, Aquilino

2011-01-01

Highlights: → We proposed a new neutron diffusion hybrid equation with external neutron source. → A coarse mesh finite difference method for the adjoint flux and reactivity calculation was developed. → 1/M curve to predict the criticality condition is used. - Abstract: We used the neutron diffusion hybrid equation, in cartesian geometry with external neutron sources to predict the subcritical multiplication of neutrons in a pressurized water reactor, using a 1/M curve to predict the criticality condition. A Coarse Mesh Finite Difference Method was developed for the adjoint flux calculation and to obtain the reactivity values of the reactor. The results obtained were compared with benchmark values in order to validate the methodology presented in this paper.

Global exponential stability for reaction-diffusion recurrent neural networks with multiple time varying delays

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lou, X.; Cui, B.

2008-01-01

In this paper we consider the problem of exponential stability for recurrent neural networks with multiple time varying delays and reaction-diffusion terms. The activation functions are supposed to be bounded and globally Lipschitz continuous. By means of Lyapunov functional, sufficient conditions are derived, which guarantee global exponential stability of the delayed neural network. Finally, a numerical example is given to show the correctness of our analysis. (author)

Portable, Fiber-Based, Diffuse Reflection Spectroscopy (DRS) Systems for Estimating Tissue Optical Properties.

Science.gov (United States)

Vishwanath, Karthik; Chang, Kevin; Klein, Daniel; Deng, Yu Feng; Chang, Vivide; Phelps, Janelle E; Ramanujam, Nimmi

2011-02-01

Steady-state diffuse reflection spectroscopy is a well-studied optical technique that can provide a noninvasive and quantitative method for characterizing the absorption and scattering properties of biological tissues. Here, we compare three fiber-based diffuse reflection spectroscopy systems that were assembled to create a light-weight, portable, and robust optical spectrometer that could be easily translated for repeated and reliable use in mobile settings. The three systems were built using a broadband light source and a compact, commercially available spectrograph. We tested two different light sources and two spectrographs (manufactured by two different vendors). The assembled systems were characterized by their signal-to-noise ratios, the source-intensity drifts, and detector linearity. We quantified the performance of these instruments in extracting optical properties from diffuse reflectance spectra in tissue-mimicking liquid phantoms with well-controlled optical absorption and scattering coefficients. We show that all assembled systems were able to extract the optical absorption and scattering properties with errors less than 10%, while providing greater than ten-fold decrease in footprint and cost (relative to a previously well-characterized and widely used commercial system). Finally, we demonstrate the use of these small systems to measure optical biomarkers in vivo in a small-animal model cancer therapy study. We show that optical measurements from the simple portable system provide estimates of tumor oxygen saturation similar to those detected using the commercial system in murine tumor models of head and neck cancer.

Algorithm of extraction optics properties from the measurement of spatially resolved diffuse reflectance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cunill Rodriguez, Margarita; Delgado Atencio, Jose Alberto; Castro Ramos, Jorge; Vazquez y Montiel, Sergio

2009-01-01

There are several methods to obtain the optical parameters of biological tissues from the measurement of spatially resolved diffuse reflectance. One of them is well-known as Video Reflectometry in which a camera CCD is used as detection and recording system of the lateral distribution of diffuse reflectance Rd(r) when an infinitely narrow light beam impinges on the tissue. In this paper, we present an algorithm that we have developed for the calibration and application of an experimental set-up of Video Reflectometry destined to extract the optical properties of models of biological tissues with optical properties similar to the human skin. The results of evaluation of the accuracy of the algorithm for optical parameters extraction is shown for a set of proofs reflectance curves with known values of these parameters. In the generation of these curves the simulation of measurement errors was also considered. The results show that it is possible to extract the optical properties with an accuracy error of less than 1% for all the proofs curves. (Author)

Correlation of Diffusion and Metabolic Alterations in Different Clinical Forms of Multiple Sclerosis

Science.gov (United States)

Hannoun, Salem; Bagory, Matthieu; Durand-Dubief, Francoise; Ibarrola, Danielle; Comte, Jean-Christophe; Confavreux, Christian; Cotton, Francois; Sappey-Marinier, Dominique

2012-01-01

Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and MR spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) provide greater sensitivity than conventional MRI to detect diffuse alterations in normal appearing white matter (NAWM) of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients with different clinical forms. Therefore, the goal of this study is to combine DTI and MRSI measurements to analyze the relation between diffusion and metabolic markers, T2-weighted lesion load (T2-LL) and the patients clinical status. The sensitivity and specificity of both methods were then compared in terms of MS clinical forms differentiation. MR examination was performed on 71 MS patients (27 relapsing remitting (RR), 26 secondary progressive (SP) and 18 primary progressive (PP)) and 24 control subjects. DTI and MRSI measurements were obtained from two identical regions of interest selected in left and right centrum semioval (CSO) WM. DTI metrics and metabolic contents were significantly altered in MS patients with the exception of N-acetyl-aspartate (NAA) and NAA/Choline (Cho) ratio in RR patients. Significant correlations were observed between diffusion and metabolic measures to various degrees in every MS patients group. Most DTI metrics were significantly correlated with the T2-LL while only NAA/Cr ratio was correlated in RR patients. A comparison analysis of MR methods efficiency demonstrated a better sensitivity/specificity of DTI over MRSI. Nevertheless, NAA/Cr ratio could distinguish all MS and SP patients groups from controls, while NAA/Cho ratio differentiated PP patients from controls. This study demonstrated that diffusivity changes related to microstructural alterations were correlated with metabolic changes and provided a better sensitivity to detect early changes, particularly in RR patients who are more subject to inflammatory processes. In contrast, the better specificity of metabolic ratios to detect axonal damage and demyelination may provide a better index for identification of PP patients. PMID:22479330

Jigsaw puzzle metasurface for multiple functions: polarization conversion, anomalous reflection and diffusion.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Yi; Cao, Xiangyu; Gao, Jun; Liu, Xiao; Li, Sijia

2016-05-16

We demonstrate a simple reconfigurable metasurface with multiple functions. Anisotropic tiles are investigated and manufactured as fundamental elements. Then, the tiles are combined in a certain sequence to construct a metasurface. Each of the tiles can be adjusted independently which is like a jigsaw puzzle and the whole metasurface can achieve diverse functions by different layouts. For demonstration purposes, we realize polarization conversion, anomalous reflection and diffusion by a jigsaw puzzle metasurface with 6 × 6 pieces of anisotropic tile. Simulated and measured results prove that our method offers a simple and effective strategy for metasurface design.

Diffusion, swelling, cross linkage study and mechanical properties of ZnO doped PVA/NaAlg blend polymer nanocomposite

Science.gov (United States)

Guruswamy, B.; Ravindrachary, V.; Shruthi, C.; Hegde, Shreedatta; Sagar, Rohan N.

2018-04-01

ZnO nano particles were synthesized using a chemical precipitation method. Pure and ZnO nano particle doped PVA-NaAlg blend composite films were prepared using solution casing method. Structural information of these composites was studied using FTIR. Diffusion kinetics of these polymer blend composite were studied using Flory-Huggins theory. Using these diffusion studies, cross-linking density and swelling properties of the films were analyzed. Mechanical properties of these composite are also studied.

Diffusion tensor imaging of occult injury of optic radiation following optic neuritis in multiple sclerosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Jiafeng; Zhu, Lijun; Li, He; Lu, Ziwen; Chen, Xin; Fang, Shaokuan

2016-10-01

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is easily detected by routine magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). However, it is not possible to detect early or occult lesions in MS by routine MRI, and this may explain the inconsistency between the severity of the lesions found by MRI and the degree of clinical disability of patients with MS. The present study included 10 patients with relapsing-remitting MS and 10 healthy volunteers. Each patient underwent routine 3.0 T MRI, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), and diffusion tensor tractography (DTT). Optic nerve and optic radiation were analyzed by DTI and DTT. The fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), λ // , and λ ┴ values were measured. In the 10 patients with MS, 7 optic nerves were affected, and 13 optic nerves were not affected. Cranial MRI showed that optic nerve thickening and hyperintensity occurred in 2 patients with MS. In the directionally encoded color maps, a hypointensive green signal in the optic nerve was observed in 3 patients with MS. The FA values were significantly lower and the MD, λ // , and λ ┴ values were significantly higher in the affected and unaffected optic nerves and optic radiations in patients with MS in comparison with controls (P0.05). Diffusion tensor imaging is sensitive in the detection of occult injury of the optic nerve and optic radiation following optic neuritis. Diffusion tensor imaging may be a useful tool for the early diagnosis, treatment and management of MS.

The contribution of diffusion-weighted MR imaging in multiple sclerosis during acute attack

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yurtsever, Ismail; Hakyemez, Bahattin; Taskapilioglu, Ozlem; Erdogan, Cuneyt; Turan, Omer Faruk; Parlak, Mufit

2008-01-01

Purpose: The aims of the study are firstly, to determine the difference in diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) in normal appearing white matter (NAWM) between patients with acute multiple sclerosis (MS) and controls; secondly, to determine whether there is a correlation between EDSS scores and DWI in acute plaques and also NAWM. Materials and method: Out of 50 patients with acute MS attack, 35 patients had active plaques with diffuse or ring enhancement on postcontrast images. Eighteen healthy volunteers constituted the control group. While 26 of 35 had relapsing-remitting, 9 had secondary progressive MS. Apparent diffusion coefficients (ADC) of the active plaques, NAWM at the level of centrum semiovale and occipital horn of lateral ventricle in the patients and NAWM in control group were measured. ADC values of active plaques were compared with WM of the patients and the control group. The relationship of ADC value of active plaques and WM in MS with expanded disability status scale (EDSS) was investigated by using Mann-Whitney U-test. Results: Of 63 plaques totally, 26 and 37 of the active plaques had diffuse and ring enhancement, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference between ADC value of active plaques and EDSS (p > 0.05). However, there was a statistically significant difference between ADC value of WM occipital horn and EDSS (p 0.05). Conclusion: Apparently normal tissue in MS patients may show early abnormalities when investigated carefully enough, and there is an even though moderate correlation between EDSS and ADC values and early alterations of ADC value are starting in the occipital white matter along the ventricles. This has to be verified in larger series

Influence of diffuse reflectance measurement accuracy on the scattering coefficient in determination of optical properties with integrating sphere optics (a secondary publication).

Science.gov (United States)

Horibe, Takuro; Ishii, Katsunori; Fukutomi, Daichi; Awazu, Kunio

2015-12-30

An estimation error of the scattering coefficient of hemoglobin in the high absorption wavelength range has been observed in optical property calculations of blood-rich tissues. In this study, the relationship between the accuracy of diffuse reflectance measurement in the integrating sphere and calculated scattering coefficient was evaluated with a system to calculate optical properties combined with an integrating sphere setup and the inverse Monte Carlo simulation. Diffuse reflectance was measured with the integrating sphere using a small incident port diameter and optical properties were calculated. As a result, the estimation error of the scattering coefficient was improved by accurate measurement of diffuse reflectance. In the high absorption wavelength range, the accuracy of diffuse reflectance measurement has an effect on the calculated scattering coefficient.

Comparison of spatially and temporally resolved diffuse transillumination measurement systems for extraction of optical properties of scattering media.

Science.gov (United States)

Ortiz-Rascón, E; Bruce, N C; Garduño-Mejía, J; Carrillo-Torres, R; Hernández-Paredes, J; Álvarez-Ramos, M E

2017-11-20

This paper discusses the main differences between two different methods for determining the optical properties of tissue optical phantoms by fitting the spatial and temporal intensity distribution functions to the diffusion approximation theory. The consistency in the values of the optical properties is verified by changing the width of the recipient containing the turbid medium; as the optical properties are an intrinsic value of the scattering medium, independently of the recipient width, the stability in these values for different widths implies a better measurement system for the acquisition of the optical properties. It is shown that the temporal fitting method presents higher stability than the spatial fitting method; this is probably due to the addition of the time of flight parameter into the diffusion theory.

Thermophysical and anion diffusion properties of (U x ,Th1-x )O2.

Science.gov (United States)

Cooper, Michael W D; Murphy, Samuel T; Fossati, Paul C M; Rushton, Michael J D; Grimes, Robin W

2014-11-08

Using molecular dynamics, the thermophysical properties of the (U x ,Th 1- x )O 2 system have been investigated between 300 and 3600 K. The thermal dependence of lattice parameter, linear thermal expansion coefficient, enthalpy and specific heat at constant pressure is explained in terms of defect formation and diffusivity on the oxygen sublattice. Vegard's law is approximately observed for solid solution thermal expansion below 2000 K. Different deviations from Vegard's law above this temperature occur owing to the different temperatures at which the solid solutions undergo the superionic transition (2500-3300 K). Similarly, a spike in the specific heat, associated with the superionic transition, occurs at lower temperatures in solid solutions that have a high U content. Correspondingly, oxygen diffusivity is higher in pure UO 2 than in pure ThO 2 . Furthermore, at temperatures below the superionic transition, oxygen mobility is notably higher in solid solutions than in the end members. Enhanced diffusivity is promoted by lower oxygen-defect enthalpies in (U x ,Th 1- x )O 2 solid solutions. Unlike in UO 2 and ThO 2 , there is considerable variety of oxygen vacancy and oxygen interstitial sites in solid solutions generating a wide range of property values. Trends in the defect enthalpies are discussed in terms of composition and the lattice parameter of (U x ,Th 1- x )O 2 .

Thermophysical and anion diffusion properties of (Ux,Th1−x)O2

Science.gov (United States)

Cooper, Michael W. D.; Murphy, Samuel T.; Fossati, Paul C. M.; Rushton, Michael J. D.; Grimes, Robin W.

2014-01-01

Using molecular dynamics, the thermophysical properties of the (Ux,Th1−x)O2 system have been investigated between 300 and 3600 K. The thermal dependence of lattice parameter, linear thermal expansion coefficient, enthalpy and specific heat at constant pressure is explained in terms of defect formation and diffusivity on the oxygen sublattice. Vegard's law is approximately observed for solid solution thermal expansion below 2000 K. Different deviations from Vegard's law above this temperature occur owing to the different temperatures at which the solid solutions undergo the superionic transition (2500–3300 K). Similarly, a spike in the specific heat, associated with the superionic transition, occurs at lower temperatures in solid solutions that have a high U content. Correspondingly, oxygen diffusivity is higher in pure UO2 than in pure ThO2. Furthermore, at temperatures below the superionic transition, oxygen mobility is notably higher in solid solutions than in the end members. Enhanced diffusivity is promoted by lower oxygen-defect enthalpies in (Ux,Th1−x)O2 solid solutions. Unlike in UO2 and ThO2, there is considerable variety of oxygen vacancy and oxygen interstitial sites in solid solutions generating a wide range of property values. Trends in the defect enthalpies are discussed in terms of composition and the lattice parameter of (Ux,Th1−x)O2. PMID:25383028

Effect of thermal tempering on microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg-AZ31/Al-6061 diffusion bonding

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jafarian, Mojtaba [Young Researchers and Elite Club, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Rizi, Mohsen Saboktakin, E-mail: M.saboktakin@Pa.iut.ac.ir [Department of Materials Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 8415683111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Department of Industrial Engineering, Lenjan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Jafarian, Morteza [Young Researchers and Elite Club, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Honarmand, Mehrdad [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tiran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Javadinejad, Hamid Reza; Ghaheri, Ali [Department of Materials Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 8415683111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Department of Industrial Engineering, Lenjan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Bahramipour, Mohammad Taghi [Materials Engineering Department, Hakim Sabzevari University, Sabzevar, 397 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Ebrahimian, Marzieh [Department of Materials Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 8415683111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Department of Industrial Engineering, Lenjan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2016-06-01

The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of the types thermal tempering of aluminum alloy on microstructure and mechanical properties of AZ31-O Mg and Al 6061-T6 diffusion bonding. Using Optical Microscope (OM) and Scanning Electron Microscopes (SEM) equipped with EDS analysis and line scan the interfaces of joints were evaluated. The XRD analysis was carried out to characterize phase constitution near the interface zone. The mechanical properties of joints were measured using Vickers micro-hardness and shear strength. According to the results in bonding of AZ31-Mg/Al-6061-O, in less plastic deformation in magnesium alloy, diffusion rate of most magnesium atoms occurred to aluminum alloy and formation of diffusion zone with minimum micro-hardness (140 HV) and maximum shear strength (32 MPa) compared to Al 6061-T6/Mg-AZ31 bonding. Evaluation of fracture surfaces indicates an occurrence of failure from the brittle intermetallic phases. - Highlights: • Diffusion bonding AZ31 to Al-6061withoutany interlayer was successful. • Thermal tempered aluminum alloy plays a vital role in the mechanical properties of joint. • Less thickness of reaction layers and micro-hardness in bonding annealed Al- 6061 layers to AZ31 was achieved. • Fracture surfaces indicated that the onset of fracture from intermetallic compounds resulted in fracture of the cleavage.

Effect of thermal tempering on microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg-AZ31/Al-6061 diffusion bonding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jafarian, Mojtaba; Rizi, Mohsen Saboktakin; Jafarian, Morteza; Honarmand, Mehrdad; Javadinejad, Hamid Reza; Ghaheri, Ali; Bahramipour, Mohammad Taghi; Ebrahimian, Marzieh

2016-01-01

The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of the types thermal tempering of aluminum alloy on microstructure and mechanical properties of AZ31-O Mg and Al 6061-T6 diffusion bonding. Using Optical Microscope (OM) and Scanning Electron Microscopes (SEM) equipped with EDS analysis and line scan the interfaces of joints were evaluated. The XRD analysis was carried out to characterize phase constitution near the interface zone. The mechanical properties of joints were measured using Vickers micro-hardness and shear strength. According to the results in bonding of AZ31-Mg/Al-6061-O, in less plastic deformation in magnesium alloy, diffusion rate of most magnesium atoms occurred to aluminum alloy and formation of diffusion zone with minimum micro-hardness (140 HV) and maximum shear strength (32 MPa) compared to Al 6061-T6/Mg-AZ31 bonding. Evaluation of fracture surfaces indicates an occurrence of failure from the brittle intermetallic phases. - Highlights: • Diffusion bonding AZ31 to Al-6061withoutany interlayer was successful. • Thermal tempered aluminum alloy plays a vital role in the mechanical properties of joint. • Less thickness of reaction layers and micro-hardness in bonding annealed Al- 6061 layers to AZ31 was achieved. • Fracture surfaces indicated that the onset of fracture from intermetallic compounds resulted in fracture of the cleavage.

Spiral multiple-effect diffusion solar still coupled with vacuum-tube collector and heat pipe

KAUST Repository

Huang, Bin-Juine

2015-04-01

© 2015 Elsevier B.V. A novel solar still with spiral-shape multiple-effect diffusion unit is developed in the present study. The test results of a 14-effect unit coupled with vacuum-tube solar collector (absorber area 1.08m2) show that the highest daily pure water production is 40.6kgd-1. The measured highest productivity based on the area of glass cover, solar absorber, and evaporating surface is 34.7, 40.6, and 7.96kgm-2d-1, respectively, which are much higher than the published results. The measured solar distillation efficiency is 2.0-3.5. The performance enhancement results mainly from the lateral diffusion process in the spiraled still cell. The vapor flow generated by heat input can flow freely and laterally through the spiral channel down to the end when solar heat input is high. Besides, the larger evaporating and condensing area at the outer cell may increase heat and mass transfer at the outer cell.

Bessel Fourier Orientation Reconstruction (BFOR): An Analytical Diffusion Propagator Reconstruction for Hybrid Diffusion Imaging and Computation of q-Space Indices

Science.gov (United States)

Hosseinbor, A. Pasha; Chung, Moo K.; Wu, Yu-Chien; Alexander, Andrew L.

2012-01-01

The ensemble average propagator (EAP) describes the 3D average diffusion process of water molecules, capturing both its radial and angular contents. The EAP can thus provide richer information about complex tissue microstructure properties than the orientation distribution function (ODF), an angular feature of the EAP. Recently, several analytical EAP reconstruction schemes for multiple q-shell acquisitions have been proposed, such as diffusion propagator imaging (DPI) and spherical polar Fourier imaging (SPFI). In this study, a new analytical EAP reconstruction method is proposed, called Bessel Fourier orientation reconstruction (BFOR), whose solution is based on heat equation estimation of the diffusion signal for each shell acquisition, and is validated on both synthetic and real datasets. A significant portion of the paper is dedicated to comparing BFOR, SPFI, and DPI using hybrid, non-Cartesian sampling for multiple b-value acquisitions. Ways to mitigate the effects of Gibbs ringing on EAP reconstruction are also explored. In addition to analytical EAP reconstruction, the aforementioned modeling bases can be used to obtain rotationally invariant q-space indices of potential clinical value, an avenue which has not yet been thoroughly explored. Three such measures are computed: zero-displacement probability (Po), mean squared displacement (MSD), and generalized fractional anisotropy (GFA). PMID:22963853

Use of the temporal median and trimmed mean mitigates effects of respiratory motion in multiple-acquisition abdominal diffusion imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jerome, N P; Orton, M R; D’Arcy, J A; Leach, M O; Collins, D J; Feiweier, T; Tunariu, N; Koh, D-M

2015-01-01

Respiratory motion commonly confounds abdominal diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging, where averaging of successive samples at different parts of the respiratory cycle, performed in the scanner, manifests the motion as blurring of tissue boundaries and structural features and can introduce bias into calculated diffusion metrics. Storing multiple averages separately allows processing using metrics other than the mean; in this prospective volunteer study, median and trimmed mean values of signal intensity for each voxel over repeated averages and diffusion-weighting directions are shown to give images with sharper tissue boundaries and structural features for moving tissues, while not compromising non-moving structures. Expert visual scoring of derived diffusion maps is significantly higher for the median than for the mean, with modest improvement from the trimmed mean. Diffusion metrics derived from mono- and bi-exponential diffusion models are comparable for non-moving structures, demonstrating a lack of introduced bias from using the median. The use of the median is a simple and computationally inexpensive alternative to complex and expensive registration algorithms, requiring only additional data storage (and no additional scanning time) while returning visually superior images that will facilitate the appropriate placement of regions-of-interest when analysing abdominal diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance images, for assessment of disease characteristics and treatment response. (note)

Milstein Approximation for Advection-Diffusion Equations Driven by Multiplicative Noncontinuous Martingale Noises

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barth, Andrea; Lang, Annika

2012-01-01

In this paper, the strong approximation of a stochastic partial differential equation, whose differential operator is of advection-diffusion type and which is driven by a multiplicative, infinite dimensional, càdlàg, square integrable martingale, is presented. A finite dimensional projection of the infinite dimensional equation, for example a Galerkin projection, with nonequidistant time stepping is used. Error estimates for the discretized equation are derived in L 2 and almost sure senses. Besides space and time discretizations, noise approximations are also provided, where the Milstein double stochastic integral is approximated in such a way that the overall complexity is not increased compared to an Euler–Maruyama approximation. Finally, simulations complete the paper.

Recurrent myelinoclastic diffuse sclerosis: a case report of a child with Schilder's variant of multiple sclerosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fitzgerald, M.J.; Coleman, L.T.

2000-01-01

Myelinoclastic diffuse sclerosis (MDS, Schilder's disease) is a rare CNS demyelinating disorder affecting mainly children and usually presenting as an intracranial mass lesion. We report the first case of recurrent intracranial MDS where the third episode of demyelination involved the cervical spinal cord. This may represent a subset of the disease, which should be considered as Schilder's variant (childhood form) of multiple sclerosis. (orig.)

Multiple-effect diffusion solar still coupled with a vacuum-tube collector and heat pipe

KAUST Repository

Chong, Tze-Ling

2014-08-01

The present study develops a multiple-effect diffusion solar still (MEDS) with a bended-plate design in multiple-effect diffusion unit (MDU) to solve the peel-off problem of wick material. The MDU is coupled with a vacuum-tube solar collector to produce a high temperature gradient for high productivity. A heat pipe is used to transfer the solar heat to the MDU. A prototype MEDS-1L was built and tested outdoors. Four performance indexes are proposed for the performance evaluation of MEDS, including daily pure water production per unit area of glass cover, solar absorber, and evaporating surface (Mcov, Msol, Mevp, respectively), and solar distillation efficiency Rcov. The outdoor test results of MEDS-1L show that the solar collector supply temperature Th reaches 100°C at solar radiation 800Wm-2. The highest Mcov is 23.9kgm-2d-1 which is about 29% higher than the basin-type MEDS [11]. The highest value is 25.9kgm-2d-1 for Msol and 2.79kgm-2d-1 for Mevp. The measured Rcov is 1.5-2.44, higher than the basin-type MEDS (1.45-1.88). The Mcov, Msol, Mevp and Rcov of MEDS-1L are all higher than the theoretical calculation of a MEDS with a flat-plate solar collector coupled with a heat pipe (MEDS-FHP) [17].© 2014 Elsevier B.V.

Diffusion Properties of Carbonated Caprocks from the Paris Basin Propriétés diffusives de roches de couverture carbonatées du Bassin de Paris

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Berne P.

2009-11-01

Full Text Available The efficiency of geological storage of CO2 lies in the confinement properties of the caprock. Among these properties, diffusive characteristics play an important, though sometimes underestimated, role. Although diffusion is a slow process, it can play a significant role in the long run. Besides, the desirable properties for a caprock – mainly high entry pressure and low permeability – are by no means contradictory with relatively high diffusion coefficients; the reason is that all these quantities do not depend on the same geometrical properties of the porous matrix (pore size in one case, tortuosity in the other. Within the framework of the Géocarbone-INTÉGRITÉ project, financed by the National Research Agency ANR from 2006 to 2008, the diffusion coefficients for water and bicarbonate ions have been measured in caprock samples from three levels (Comblanchien and Dalle Nacrée formations. These two species cover the main situations encountered in storage site conditions (neutral/charged species, interacting or not with the solid matrix. The model used for interpretation of the experiments is presented; this enables review of various quantities of interest: effective diffusion coefficient, pore diffusion coefficient, apparent diffusion coefficient, retardation factor. The pore self-diffusion coefficient for water was measured by two different techniques (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and tritiated water 1H3HO tracing on two samples. The results are comparable: porosity about 6%, pore diffusion coefficient 2 × 10−10 m2/s, tortuosity about 10. The radioactive tracer method is then applied with tritiated water and carbon-14-tagged bicarbonate ions, H1CO-3, to samples from three depth levels. Reduction of accessible porosity is evidenced for bicarbonate ions, which is attributed to anionic exclusion. Interaction between bicarbonate ions and the solid matrix is also shown. This suggests that additional CO2storage capacity might be offered by

Hyperspectral diffuse reflectance for determination of the optical properties of milk and fruit and vegetable juices

Science.gov (United States)

Qin, Jianwei; Lu, Renfu

2005-11-01

Absorption and reduced scattering coefficients are two fundamental optical properties for turbid biological materials. This paper presents the technique and method of using hyperspectral diffuse reflectance for fast determination of the optical properties of fruit and vegetable juices and milks. A hyperspectral imaging system was used to acquire spatially resolved steady-state diffuse reflectance over the spectral region between 530 and 900 nm from a variety of fruit and vegetable juices (citrus, grapefruit, orange, and vegetable) and milks with different fat levels (full, skim and mixed). The system collected diffuse reflectance in the source-detector separation range from 1.1 to 10.0 mm. The hyperspectral reflectance data were analyzed by using a diffusion theory model for semi-infinite homogeneous media. The absorption and reduced scattering coefficients of the fruit and vegetable juices and milks were extracted by inverse algorithms from the scattering profiles for wavelengths of 530-900 nm. Values of the absorption and reduced scattering coefficient at 650 nm were highly correlated to the fat content of the milk samples with the correlation coefficient of 0.990 and 0.989, respectively. The hyperspectral imaging technique can be extended to the measurement of other liquid and solid foods in which light scattering is dominant.

Spatial Mapping of Translational Diffusion Coefficients Using Diffusion Tensor Imaging: A Mathematical Description.

Science.gov (United States)

Shetty, Anil N; Chiang, Sharon; Maletic-Savatic, Mirjana; Kasprian, Gregor; Vannucci, Marina; Lee, Wesley

2014-01-01

In this article, we discuss the theoretical background for diffusion weighted imaging and diffusion tensor imaging. Molecular diffusion is a random process involving thermal Brownian motion. In biological tissues, the underlying microstructures restrict the diffusion of water molecules, making diffusion directionally dependent. Water diffusion in tissue is mathematically characterized by the diffusion tensor, the elements of which contain information about the magnitude and direction of diffusion and is a function of the coordinate system. Thus, it is possible to generate contrast in tissue based primarily on diffusion effects. Expressing diffusion in terms of the measured diffusion coefficient (eigenvalue) in any one direction can lead to errors. Nowhere is this more evident than in white matter, due to the preferential orientation of myelin fibers. The directional dependency is removed by diagonalization of the diffusion tensor, which then yields a set of three eigenvalues and eigenvectors, representing the magnitude and direction of the three orthogonal axes of the diffusion ellipsoid, respectively. For example, the eigenvalue corresponding to the eigenvector along the long axis of the fiber corresponds qualitatively to diffusion with least restriction. Determination of the principal values of the diffusion tensor and various anisotropic indices provides structural information. We review the use of diffusion measurements using the modified Stejskal-Tanner diffusion equation. The anisotropy is analyzed by decomposing the diffusion tensor based on symmetrical properties describing the geometry of diffusion tensor. We further describe diffusion tensor properties in visualizing fiber tract organization of the human brain.

Diffuse galactic gamma rays at intermediate and high latitudes. I. Constraints on the ISM properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cholis, Ilias; Tavakoli, Maryam; Evoli, Carmelo; Ullio, Piero; Maccione, Luca

2012-01-01

We study the high latitude (|b| > 10°) diffuse γ-ray emission in the Galaxy in light of the recently published data from the Fermi collaboration at energies between 100 MeV and 100 GeV. The unprecedented accuracy in these measurements allows to probe and constrain the properties of sources and propagation of cosmic rays (CRs) in the Galaxy, as well as confirming conventional assumptions made on the interstellar medium (ISM). Using the publicly available DRAGON code, that has been shown to reproduce local measurements of CRs, we study assumptions made in the literature on atomic (HI) and molecular hydrogen (H2) gas distributions in the ISM, and non spatially uniform models of diffusion in the Galaxy. By performing a combined analysis of CR and γ-ray spectra, we derive constraints on the properties of the ISM gas distribution and the vertical scale height of galactic CR diffusion, which may have implications also on indirect Dark Matter detection. We also discuss some of the possible interpretations of the break at high rigidity in CR protons and helium spectra, recently observed by PAMELA and their impact on γ-rays

Generation of a Kind of Displaced Thermal States in the Diffusion Process and its Statistical Properties

Science.gov (United States)

Xiang-Guo, Meng; Hong-Yi, Fan; Ji-Suo, Wang

2018-04-01

This paper proposes a kind of displaced thermal states (DTS) and explores how this kind of optical field emerges using the entangled state representation. The results show that the DTS can be generated by a coherent state passing through a diffusion channel with the diffusion coefficient ϰ only when there exists κ t = (e^{\\hbar ν /kBT} - 1 )^{-1}. Also, its statistical properties, such as mean photon number, Wigner function and entropy, are investigated.

Semiotic mediation: from multiplication properties to arithmetical expressions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrea Maffia

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Multiplication is introduced early in primary school, but its properties are usually introduced after the rote memorization of multiplicative facts. In this paper we present a teaching experiment aimed to early introducing arithmetical properties of multiplication. It is realized through an artefact built on the rectangle model for multiplication. Children activity is designed and analyzed using Theory of Semiotic Mediation. The development of the relational meaning of arithmetical expressions is shown through the enchaining of representations from signs related to the activity with the artefact to mathematical ones. In particular, the role of the teacher in the process of semiotic mediation results as crucial. Mediazione semiotica: dalle proprietà della moltiplicazione alle espressioni aritmeticheLa moltiplicazione viene presentata presto nella scuola primaria, ma le sue proprietà sono introdotte solo dopo che le cosiddette tabelline sono state memorizzate. Nell’articolo si presenta un teaching experiment volto a introdurre precocemente le proprietà della moltiplicazione per facilitare la memorizzazione di fatti moltiplicativi. L’esperimento è centrato sull’uso di un artefatto costruito sul modello rettangolare della moltiplicazione. L’attività degli studenti è progettata e analizzata nel quadro della Teoria della Mediazione Semiotica (TMS. Lo sviluppo del significato relazionale delle espressioni aritmetiche viene mostrato attraverso la concatenazione di rappresentazioni che vanno da segni strettamente legati all’attività con l’artefatto fino a segni matematici. In particolare, si evidenzia il ruolo dell’insegnante nello sviluppo del processo di mediazione semiotica.

Properties of diffusive systems near a saddle point: application to a quartic double well

CERN Document Server

Battezzati, M

2003-01-01

This paper aims at the analysis of diffusive properties of unidimensional mechanical systems in the environment of maxima and minima of the potential. It begins with a study of the properties of the singular solutions of the Hamilton-Jacobi-Yasue equation in the above-mentioned environment, in both strong or very small frictional forces. For the quartic symmetrical double-well potential, approximate solutions are found for local validity and the diffusion operator is then calculated in the limits of deep wells and small temperature, the regime being supposed to be aperiodic, with high or moderate values of frictional coefficient. This equation is proved to be nonunique. This operator is then reduced to second order by imposing suitable boundary conditions. Thus an appropriate eigenvalue equation is obtained to describe stationary states in the environment of extremal points of the potential energy function. The main interest of this work relies upon the fact that transition times between wells mainly depend u...

Diffuse reflectance relations based on diffusion dipole theory for large absorption and reduced scattering

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bremmer, Rolf H.; van Gemert, Martin J. C.; Faber, Dirk J.; van Leeuwen, Ton G.; Aalders, Maurice C. G.

2013-01-01

Diffuse reflectance spectra are used to determine the optical properties of biological samples. In medicine and forensic science, the turbid objects under study often possess large absorption and/or scattering properties. However, data analysis is frequently based on the diffusion approximation to

Hidden symmetries and equilibrium properties of multiplicative white-noise stochastic processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arenas, Zochil González; Barci, Daniel G

2012-01-01

Multiplicative white-noise stochastic processes continue to attract attention in a wide area of scientific research. The variety of prescriptions available for defining them makes the development of general tools for their characterization difficult. In this work, we study equilibrium properties of Markovian multiplicative white-noise processes. For this, we define the time reversal transformation for such processes, taking into account that the asymptotic stationary probability distribution depends on the prescription. Representing the stochastic process in a functional Grassmann formalism, we avoid the necessity of fixing a particular prescription. In this framework, we analyze equilibrium properties and study hidden symmetries of the process. We show that, using a careful definition of the equilibrium distribution and taking into account the appropriate time reversal transformation, usual equilibrium properties are satisfied for any prescription. Finally, we present a detailed deduction of a covariant supersymmetric formulation of a multiplicative Markovian white-noise process and study some of the constraints that it imposes on correlation functions using Ward–Takahashi identities. (paper)

Hidden symmetries and equilibrium properties of multiplicative white-noise stochastic processes

Science.gov (United States)

González Arenas, Zochil; Barci, Daniel G.

2012-12-01

Multiplicative white-noise stochastic processes continue to attract attention in a wide area of scientific research. The variety of prescriptions available for defining them makes the development of general tools for their characterization difficult. In this work, we study equilibrium properties of Markovian multiplicative white-noise processes. For this, we define the time reversal transformation for such processes, taking into account that the asymptotic stationary probability distribution depends on the prescription. Representing the stochastic process in a functional Grassmann formalism, we avoid the necessity of fixing a particular prescription. In this framework, we analyze equilibrium properties and study hidden symmetries of the process. We show that, using a careful definition of the equilibrium distribution and taking into account the appropriate time reversal transformation, usual equilibrium properties are satisfied for any prescription. Finally, we present a detailed deduction of a covariant supersymmetric formulation of a multiplicative Markovian white-noise process and study some of the constraints that it imposes on correlation functions using Ward-Takahashi identities.

Quantitative diffusion tensor deterministic and probabilistic fiber tractography in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu Bing; Ye Binbin; Yang Yang; Zhu Kangshun; Kang Zhuang; Kuang Sichi; Luo Lin; Shan Hong

2011-01-01

Purpose: Our aim was to study the quantitative fiber tractography variations and patterns in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and to assess the correlation between quantitative fiber tractography and Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS). Material and methods: Twenty-eight patients with RRMS and 28 age-matched healthy volunteers underwent a diffusion tensor MR imaging study. Quantitative deterministic and probabilistic fiber tractography were generated in all subjects. And mean numbers of tracked lines and fiber density were counted. Paired-samples t tests were used to compare tracked lines and fiber density in RRMS patients with those in controls. Bivariate linear regression model was used to determine the relationship between quantitative fiber tractography and EDSS in RRMS. Results: Both deterministic and probabilistic tractography's tracked lines and fiber density in RRMS patients were less than those in controls (P < .001). Both deterministic and probabilistic tractography's tracked lines and fiber density were found negative correlations with EDSS in RRMS (P < .001). The fiber tract disruptions and reductions in RRMS were directly visualized on fiber tractography. Conclusion: Changes of white matter tracts can be detected by quantitative diffusion tensor fiber tractography, and correlate with clinical impairment in RRMS.

Segmentation of High Angular Resolution Diffusion MRI using Sparse Riemannian Manifold Clustering

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Margaret J.; Thompson, Paul M.; Vidal, René

2015-01-01

We address the problem of segmenting high angular resolution diffusion imaging (HARDI) data into multiple regions (or fiber tracts) with distinct diffusion properties. We use the orientation distribution function (ODF) to represent HARDI data and cast the problem as a clustering problem in the space of ODFs. Our approach integrates tools from sparse representation theory and Riemannian geometry into a graph theoretic segmentation framework. By exploiting the Riemannian properties of the space of ODFs, we learn a sparse representation for each ODF and infer the segmentation by applying spectral clustering to a similarity matrix built from these representations. In cases where regions with similar (resp. distinct) diffusion properties belong to different (resp. same) fiber tracts, we obtain the segmentation by incorporating spatial and user-specified pairwise relationships into the formulation. Experiments on synthetic data evaluate the sensitivity of our method to image noise and the presence of complex fiber configurations, and show its superior performance compared to alternative segmentation methods. Experiments on phantom and real data demonstrate the accuracy of the proposed method in segmenting simulated fibers, as well as white matter fiber tracts of clinical importance in the human brain. PMID:24108748

Negative binomial properties and clan structure in multiplicity distributions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Giovannini, A.; Van Hove, L.

1988-01-01

We review the negative binomial properties measured recently for many multiplicity distributions of high energy hadronic, semi-leptonic reactions in selected rapidity intervals. We analyse them in terms of the ''clan'' structure which can be defined for any negative binomial distribution. By comparing reactions we exhibit a number of regularities for the average number N-bar of clans and the average charged multiplicity (n-bar) c per clan. 22 refs., 6 figs. (author)

Analysis of the human brain in primary progressive multiple sclerosis with mapping of the spatial distributions using H-1 MR spectroscopy and diffusion tensor imaging

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sijens, PE; Irwan, R; Potze, JH; Mostert, JP; De Keyser, J; Oudkerk, M

Primary progressive multiple sclerosis (ppMS; n=4) patients and controls (n=4) were examined by 1H magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in order to map choline (Cho), creatine and N-acetylaspartate (NAA), the fractional anisotropy (FA) and the apparent diffusion

Chemical composition and properties of spray-dried sugar beet concentrate obtained after ultrafiltration of diffusion juice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Regiec Piotr

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Ultrafiltration of diffusion juice is a method that can reduce environmental pollution during the production of sugar. A by-product (concentrate of ultrafiltration contains a large amount of sucrose, but due to its properties, it is difficult to manage. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of the temperature used during drying of diffusion juice concentrates on the content of certain components and characteristics of resultant preparations. Diffusion juice obtained from one of the Polish sugar plants was subjected to ultrafiltration and the obtained concentrates were dried in a spray dryer. In the dried samples, the following parameters were analyzed: dry mass, sucrose, total ash, protein, crude fiber and color. It has been declared that the degree of concentration and drying temperature influenced the chemical composition and the properties of the dehydrated diffusion juice concentrates. An increase in drying temperature was accompanied by the increased content of dry mass, protein, ash and fiber content in the preparations. The greater the degree of juice concentration, the greater was the content of dry mass, ash, and fiber. Inversely, the greater the degree of juice concentration, the lower the content of sucrose. The brightest color of the dehydrated product was observed at the drying temperature of 200°C. Spray-drying may be used for waste management after the diffusion juice membrane filtration, and the resultant preparations might be used in the production of feedstuff or food industry in general e.g. as sucrose source, in fermentation processes or in microorganisms propagation.

Diffusion and sorption properties of radionuclides in compacted bentonite

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yu Ji-Wei; Neretnieks, I. [Royal Inst. of Tech., Stockholm (Sweden). Dept. of Chemical Engineering and Technology

1997-07-01

In this report, recent studies on sorption and diffusion of radionuclides in compacted bentonite have been reviewed. The sorption distribution coefficient and diffusion coefficient data obtained from experiments in the literature have been compiled. Based on these experimental data and the report SKB-TR--91-16 (Brandberg and Skagius, 1991), this report proposes a set of sorption distribution coefficient and diffusion coefficient values for modelling purpose for safety analysis of nuclear waste repositories. The variability and uncertainty of the diffusivity data span somewhat more than an order or magnitude up and down. Most of the nuclides have an effective diffusivity in around 10{sup -10} m{sup 2}/s. Ion exclusion effects are observed for C, Cl and for Tc in oxidizing waters. Effective diffusivities are nearly tow orders of magnitude lower for these elements and of the order of 10{sup -12} m{sup 2}/s. Surface diffusion effects are found for Cs, Ni, Pa, Pb, Ra, Sn, Sr and Zr. Effective diffusivities for these elements are of the order of 10{sup -8} m{sup 2}/s. The surface diffusion effect should decrease in saline waters which is seen for Cs and Sr where there are data available. It is also deemed that Ra will have this effect because of its similarity with Sr. The other nuclides should also show this decrease but no data is available. Sorption and diffusion mechanisms in compacted bentonite are discussed in the report. In highly compacted bentonite, sorption and hence its distribution coefficient is not well defined, and a pore diffusion coefficient or a surface diffusion coefficient is not well defined either. Therefore, an apparent diffusion coefficient and a total concentration gradient should be more relevant in describing the diffusion process in compacted bentonite. 99 refs.

Available states and available space: static properties that predict self-diffusivity of confined fluids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goel, Gaurav; Krekelberg, William P; Pond, Mark J; Truskett, Thomas M; Mittal, Jeetain; Shen, Vincent K; Errington, Jeffrey R

2009-01-01

Although classical density functional theory provides reliable predictions for the static properties of simple equilibrium fluids under confinement, a theory of comparative accuracy for the transport coefficients has yet to emerge. Nonetheless, there is evidence that knowledge of how confinement modifies static behavior can aid in forecasting dynamics. Specifically, recent molecular simulation studies have shown that the relationship between excess entropy and self-diffusivity of a bulk equilibrium fluid changes only modestly when the fluid is isothermally confined, indicating that knowledge of the former might allow semi-quantitative predictions of the latter. Do other static measures, such as those that characterize free or available volume, also strongly correlate with single-particle dynamics of confined fluids? Here, we investigate this question for both the single-component hard-sphere fluid and hard-sphere mixtures. Specifically, we use molecular simulations and fundamental measure theory to study these systems at approximately 10 3 equilibrium state points. We examine three different confining geometries (slit pore, square channel, and cylindrical pore) and the effects of particle packing fraction and particle–boundary interactions. Although average density fails to predict some key qualitative trends for the self-diffusivity of confined fluids, we provide strong empirical evidence that a new generalized measure of available volume for inhomogeneous fluids correlates excellently with self-diffusivity across a wide parameter space in these systems, approximately independently of the degree of confinement. An important consequence, which we demonstrate here, is that density functional theory predictions of this static property can be used together with knowledge of bulk fluid behavior to semi-quantitatively estimate the self-diffusion coefficient of confined fluids under equilibrium conditions

Sensor data fusion to predict multiple soil properties

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mahmood, H.S.; Hoogmoed, W.B.; Henten, van E.J.

2012-01-01

The accuracy of a single sensor is often low because all proximal soil sensors respond to more than one soil property of interest. Sensor data fusion can potentially overcome this inability of a single sensor and can best extract useful and complementary information from multiple sensors or sources.

Diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging may show abnormalities in the normal-appearing cervical spinal cord from patients with multiple sclerosis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fernanda Miraldi

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Objective This study aims to evaluate “in vivo” the integrity of the normal-appearing spinal cord (NASC in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS compared to controls, using diffusion tensor MR imaging. Methods We studied 32 patients with MS and 17 without any neurologic disorder. Fractional anisotropy (FA, axial diffusivity (AD, radial diffusivity (RD and mean diffusivity (MD were calculated within regions of interest at C2 and C7 levels in the four columns of the spinal cord. Results At C2, FA value was decreased in MS patients. Besides, RD value was higher in MS than in controls. At C7, MD values were increased in MS. Conclusion The NASC in the right column of the cervical spinal cord showed abnormal FA, RD and MD values, which is possibly related to demyelination, since the FA abnormality was related to the RD and not to the AD.

Use of diffusion tensor imaging to identify similarities and differences between cerebellar and Parkinsonism forms of multiple system atrophy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Po-Shan [National Yang-Ming University, Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Taipei (China); Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Neurological Institute, Taipei (China); Taipei Municipal Gan-Dau Hospital, Neurological Institute, Taipei (China); National Yang-Ming University, Institute of Brain Science, Taipei (China); Wu, Hsiu-Mei [National Yang-Ming University, Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Taipei (China); Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Department of Radiology, Taipei (China); Lin, Ching-Po [National Yang-Ming University, Institute of Brain Science, Taipei (China); Soong, Bing-Wen [National Yang-Ming University, Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Taipei (China); Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Neurological Institute, Taipei (China)

2011-07-15

We performed diffusion tensor imaging to determine if multiple system atrophy (MSA)-cerebellar (C) and MSA-Parkinsonism (P) show similar changes, as shown in pathological studies. Nineteen patients with MSA-C, 12 patients with MSA-P, 20 patients with Parkinson disease, and 20 healthy controls were evaluated with the use of voxel-based morphometry analysis of diffusion tensor imaging. There was an increase in apparent diffusion coefficient values in the middle cerebellar peduncles and cerebellum and a decrease in fractional anisotropy in the pyramidal tract, middle cerebellar peduncles, and white matter of the cerebellum in patients with MSA-C and MSA-P compared to the controls (P<0.001). In addition, isotropic diffusion-weighted image values were reduced in the cerebellar cortex and deep cerebellar nuclei in patients with MSA-C and increased in the basal ganglia in patients with MSA-P. These results indicate that despite their disparate clinical manifestations, patients with MSA-C and MSA-P share similar diffusion tensor imaging features in the infratentorial region. Further, the combination of FA, ADC and iDWI images can be used to distinguish between MSA (either form) and Parkinson disease, which has potential therapeutic implications. (orig.)

Use of diffusion tensor imaging to identify similarities and differences between cerebellar and Parkinsonism forms of multiple system atrophy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Po-Shan; Wu, Hsiu-Mei; Lin, Ching-Po; Soong, Bing-Wen

2011-01-01

We performed diffusion tensor imaging to determine if multiple system atrophy (MSA)-cerebellar (C) and MSA-Parkinsonism (P) show similar changes, as shown in pathological studies. Nineteen patients with MSA-C, 12 patients with MSA-P, 20 patients with Parkinson disease, and 20 healthy controls were evaluated with the use of voxel-based morphometry analysis of diffusion tensor imaging. There was an increase in apparent diffusion coefficient values in the middle cerebellar peduncles and cerebellum and a decrease in fractional anisotropy in the pyramidal tract, middle cerebellar peduncles, and white matter of the cerebellum in patients with MSA-C and MSA-P compared to the controls (P<0.001). In addition, isotropic diffusion-weighted image values were reduced in the cerebellar cortex and deep cerebellar nuclei in patients with MSA-C and increased in the basal ganglia in patients with MSA-P. These results indicate that despite their disparate clinical manifestations, patients with MSA-C and MSA-P share similar diffusion tensor imaging features in the infratentorial region. Further, the combination of FA, ADC and iDWI images can be used to distinguish between MSA (either form) and Parkinson disease, which has potential therapeutic implications. (orig.)

Use of diffusion tensor imaging to identify similarities and differences between cerebellar and Parkinsonism forms of multiple system atrophy.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Po-Shan; Wu, Hsiu-Mei; Lin, Ching-Po; Soong, Bing-Wen

2011-07-01

We performed diffusion tensor imaging to determine if multiple system atrophy (MSA)-cerebellar (C) and MSA-Parkinsonism (P) show similar changes, as shown in pathological studies. Nineteen patients with MSA-C, 12 patients with MSA-P, 20 patients with Parkinson disease, and 20 healthy controls were evaluated with the use of voxel-based morphometry analysis of diffusion tensor imaging. There was an increase in apparent diffusion coefficient values in the middle cerebellar peduncles and cerebellum and a decrease in fractional anisotropy in the pyramidal tract, middle cerebellar peduncles, and white matter of the cerebellum in patients with MSA-C and MSA-P compared to the controls (P < 0.001). In addition, isotropic diffusion-weighted image values were reduced in the cerebellar cortex and deep cerebellar nuclei in patients with MSA-C and increased in the basal ganglia in patients with MSA-P. These results indicate that despite their disparate clinical manifestations, patients with MSA-C and MSA-P share similar diffusion tensor imaging features in the infratentorial region. Further, the combination of FA, ADC and iDWI images can be used to distinguish between MSA (either form) and Parkinson disease, which has potential therapeutic implications.

Modifications of pancreatic diffusion MRI by tissue characteristics: what are we weighting for?

Science.gov (United States)

Nissan, Noam

2017-08-01

Diffusion-weighted imaging holds the potential to improve the diagnosis and biological characterization of pancreatic disease, and in particular pancreatic cancer, which exhibits decreased values of the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC). Yet, variable and overlapping ADC values have been reported for the healthy and the pathological pancreas, including for cancer and other benign conditions. This controversy reflects the complexity of probing the water-diffusion process in the pancreas, which is dependent upon multiple biological factors within this organ's unique physiological environment. In recent years, extensive studies have investigated the correlation between tissue properties including cellularity, vascularity, fibrosis, secretion and microstructure and pancreatic diffusivity. Understanding how the various physiological and pathological features and the underlying functional processes affect the diffusion measurement may serve to optimize the method for improved diagnostic gain. Therefore, the aim of the present review article is to elucidate the relationship between pancreatic tissue characteristics and diffusion MRI measurement. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

ODMBP: Behavior Forwarding for Multiple Property Destinations in Mobile Social Networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jia Xu

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The smartphones are widely available in recent years. Wireless networks and personalized mobile devices are deeply integrated and embedded in our lives. The behavior based forwarding has become a new transmission paradigm for supporting many novel applications. However, the commodities, services, and individuals usually have multiple properties of their interests and behaviors. In this paper, we profile these multiple properties and propose an Opportunistic Dissemination Protocol based on Multiple Behavior Profile, ODMBP, in mobile social networks. We first map the interest space to the behavior space and extract the multiple behavior profiles from the behavior space. Then, we propose the correlation computing model based on the principle of BM25 to calculate the correlation metric of multiple behavior profiles. The correlation metric is used to forward the message to the users who are more similar to the target in our protocol. ODMBP consists of three stages: user initialization, gradient ascent, and group spread. Through extensive simulations, we demonstrate that the proposed multiple behavior profile and correlation computing model are correct and efficient. Compared to other classical routing protocols, ODMBP can significantly improve the performance in the aspect of delivery ratio, delay, and overhead ratio.

Fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity in the corpus callosum of patients with multiple sclerosis: the effect of physiotherapy

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Ibrahim, I.; Tintěra, J.; Škoch, A.; Jírů, F.; Hluštík, P.; Martinková, Patrícia; Zvára, Karel; Řasová, K.

2011-01-01

Roč. 53, č. 11 (2011), s. 917-926 ISSN 0028-3940 Grant - others:GA MŠk(CZ) 1M0517 Program:1M Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10300504 Keywords : multiple sclerosis * rehabilitation * facilitation physiotherapy * diffusion tensor imaging * corpus callosum Subject RIV: BB - Applied Statistics, Operational Research Impact factor: 2.824, year: 2011

Retrieval of optical properties of skin from measurement and modeling the diffuse reflectance

Science.gov (United States)

Douven, Lucien F. A.; Lucassen, Gerald W.

2000-06-01

We present results on the retrieval of skin optical properties obtained by fitting of measurements of the diffuse reflectance of human skin. Reflectance spectra are simulated using an analytical model based on the diffusion approximation. This model is implemented in a simplex fit routine. The skin optical model used consists of five layers representing epidermis, capillary blood plexus, dermis, deep blood plexus and hypodermis. The optical properties of each layer are assumed homogeneously distributed. The main optical absorbers included are melanin in epidermis and blood. The experimental setup consists of a HP photospectrometer equipped with a remote fiber head. Total reflectance spectra were measured in the 400 - 820 nm wavelength range on the volar underarm of 19 volunteers under various conditions influencing the blood content and oxygenation degree. Changes in the reflectance spectra were observed. Using the fit routine changes in blood content in the capillary blood plexus and in the deep blood plexus could be quantified. These showed different influences on the total reflectance. The method can be helpful to quantitatively assess changes in skin color appearance such as occurs in the treatment of port wine stains, blanching, skin irritation and tanning.

Non-marfan idiopathic medionecrosis (cystic medial necrosis) presenting with multiple visceral artery aneurysms and diffuse connective tissue fragility: Two brothers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kubota, Jun; Tsunemura, Mami; Amano, Shigeko; Tokizawa, Shigemi; Oowada, Susumu; Shinkai, Hiroko; Maehara, Yasunobu; Endo, Keigo

1997-01-01

Two brothers with multiple visceral artery aneurysms or dilatations and diffuse connective tissue fragility who did not have clinical features of Marfan syndrome are reported. One presented with retroperitoneal hemorrhage during angiography, and idiopathic medionecrosis was proved by resection of the aneurysms. These cases belong to the heterogeneous group of Marfan syndrome. The angiographical features (multiple dilation of visceral arteries) suggests fragility of connective tissue and is predictive of hazards during and after a catheterization and operation

Non-marfan idiopathic medionecrosis (cystic medial necrosis) presenting with multiple visceral artery aneurysms and diffuse connective tissue fragility: Two brothers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kubota, Jun [Gunma University School of Medicine, Department of Nuclear Medicine (Japan); Tsunemura, Mami [Gunma University School of Medicine, Department of Diagnostic Radiology (Japan); Amano, Shigeko [Gunma University School of Medicine, Department of Nuclear Medicine (Japan); Tokizawa, Shigemi [Gunma University School of Medicine, Department of Hygiene and Virology (Japan); Oowada, Susumu [Gunma University School of Medicine, Department of Second Surgery (Japan); Shinkai, Hiroko [Gunma Health Foundation (Japan); Maehara, Yasunobu [Gunma University School of Medicine, Department of Diagnostic Radiology (Japan); Endo, Keigo [Gunma University School of Medicine, Department of Nuclear Medicine (Japan)

1997-05-15

Two brothers with multiple visceral artery aneurysms or dilatations and diffuse connective tissue fragility who did not have clinical features of Marfan syndrome are reported. One presented with retroperitoneal hemorrhage during angiography, and idiopathic medionecrosis was proved by resection of the aneurysms. These cases belong to the heterogeneous group of Marfan syndrome. The angiographical features (multiple dilation of visceral arteries) suggests fragility of connective tissue and is predictive of hazards during and after a catheterization and operation.

Electronic structure, phase transitions and diffusive properties of elemental plutonium

Science.gov (United States)

Setty, Arun; Cooper, B. R.

2003-03-01

We present a SIC-LDA-LMTO based study of the electronic structure of the delta, alpha and gamma phases of plutonium, and also of the alpha and gamma phases of elemental cerium. We find excellent agreement with the experimental densities and magnetic properties [1]. Furthermore, detailed studies of the computational densities of states for delta plutonium, and comparison with the experimental photoemission spectrum [2], provide evidence for the existence of an unusual fluctuating valence state. Results regarding the vacancy formation and self-diffusion in delta plutonium will be presented. Furthermore, a study of interface diffusion between plutonium and steel (technologically relevant in the storage of spent fuel) or other technologically relevant alloys will be included. Preliminary results regarding gallium stabilization of delta plutonium, and of plutonium alloys will be presented. [1] M. Dormeval et al., private communication (2001). [2] A. J. Arko, J. J. Joyce, L. Morales, J. Wills, and J. Lashley et. al., Phys. Rev. B, 62, 1773 (2000). [3] B. R. Cooper et al, Phil. Mag. B 79, 683 (1999); B.R. Cooper, Los Alamos Science 26, 106 (2000)); B.R. Cooper, A.K. Setty and D.L.Price, to be published.

Role of thalamic diffusion for disease differentiation between multiple sclerosis and ischemic cerebral small vessel disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oeztoprak, Bilge; Oeztoprak, Ibrahim; Salk, Ismail; Topalkara, Kamil; Erkoc, Mustafa F.

2015-01-01

Cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) and multiple sclerosis (MS) both harbor multiple, T2-hyperintense white matter lesions on conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).We aimed to determine the microstructural changes via diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) in normal appearing thalami. We hypothesized that the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values would be different in CSVD and MS, since the extent of arterial involvement is different in these two diseases. DWI was performed for 50 patients with CSVD and 35 patients with MS along with gender- and age-matched controls whose conventional MRI revealed normal findings. DWI was done with 1.5 Tesla MR devices using echo planar imaging (EPI) for b = 0, 1000 s/mm 2 . ADC values were obtained from the thalami which appeared normal on T2-weighted and FLAIR images. Standard oval regions of interest (ROIs) of 0.5 cm 2 which were oriented parallel to the long axis of the thalamus were used for this purpose. The mean ADC value of the thalamus was (0.99 ± 0.16) x 10 -3 mm 2 /s in patients with CSVD, whereas the mean ADC value was (0.78 ± 0.06) x 10 -3 mm 2 /s in the control group. The mean ADC value was significantly higher in patients with CSVD compared to the controls (p < 0.001). The mean ADC values of the thalamus were (0.78 ± 0.08) x 10 -3 mm 2 /s in MS patients, and (0.75 ± 0.08) x 10 -3 mm 2 /s in the control group, which are not significantly different (p > 0.05). Our study revealed a difference in the diffusion of the thalami between CSVD and MS. DWI may aid in the radiological disease differentiation. (orig.)

Role of thalamic diffusion for disease differentiation between multiple sclerosis and ischemic cerebral small vessel disease

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oeztoprak, Bilge; Oeztoprak, Ibrahim; Salk, Ismail [Cumhuriyet University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Sivas (Turkey); Topalkara, Kamil [Bayindir Hospital, Department of Neurology, Ankara (Turkey); Erkoc, Mustafa F. [Bozok University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Yozgat (Turkey)

2015-04-01

Cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) and multiple sclerosis (MS) both harbor multiple, T2-hyperintense white matter lesions on conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).We aimed to determine the microstructural changes via diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) in normal appearing thalami. We hypothesized that the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values would be different in CSVD and MS, since the extent of arterial involvement is different in these two diseases. DWI was performed for 50 patients with CSVD and 35 patients with MS along with gender- and age-matched controls whose conventional MRI revealed normal findings. DWI was done with 1.5 Tesla MR devices using echo planar imaging (EPI) for b = 0, 1000 s/mm{sup 2}. ADC values were obtained from the thalami which appeared normal on T2-weighted and FLAIR images. Standard oval regions of interest (ROIs) of 0.5 cm{sup 2} which were oriented parallel to the long axis of the thalamus were used for this purpose. The mean ADC value of the thalamus was (0.99 ± 0.16) x 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s in patients with CSVD, whereas the mean ADC value was (0.78 ± 0.06) x 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s in the control group. The mean ADC value was significantly higher in patients with CSVD compared to the controls (p < 0.001). The mean ADC values of the thalamus were (0.78 ± 0.08) x 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s in MS patients, and (0.75 ± 0.08) x 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s in the control group, which are not significantly different (p > 0.05). Our study revealed a difference in the diffusion of the thalami between CSVD and MS. DWI may aid in the radiological disease differentiation. (orig.)

Diffuse galactic gamma rays at intermediate and high latitudes. Pt. 1. Constraints on the ISM properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cholis, Ilias; Tavakoli, Maryam; Ullio, Piero; Evoli, Carmelo

2011-06-01

We study the high latitude (vertical stroke b vertical stroke >10 ) diffuse γ-ray emission in the Galaxy in light of the recently published data from the Fermi collaboration at energies between 100 MeV and 100 GeV. The unprecedented accuracy in these measurements allows to probe and constrain the properties of sources and propagation of cosmic rays (CRs) in the Galaxy, as well as confirming conventional assumptions made on the interstellar medium (ISM). Using the publicly available DRAGON code, that has been shown to reproduce local measurements of CRs, we study assumptions made in the literature on HI and H2 gas distributions in the ISM, and non spatially uniform models of diffusion in the Galaxy. By performing a combined analysis of CR and γ-ray spectra, we derive constraints on the properties of the ISM gas distribution and the vertical scale height of galactic CR diffusion, which may have implications also on indirect Dark Matter detection. We also discuss some of the possible interpretations of the break at ∝230 GeV in CR protons and helium spectra, recently observed by PAMELA and their impact on γ-rays. (orig.)

Diffuse galactic gamma rays at intermediate and high latitudes. Pt. 1. Constraints on the ISM properties

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cholis, Ilias; Tavakoli, Maryam; Ullio, Piero [SISSA, Trieste (Italy); INFN, Trieste (Italy); Evoli, Carmelo [SISSA, Trieste (Italy); Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing (China). National Astronomical Observatories; Maccione, Luca [Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY), Hamburg (Germany)

2011-06-15

We study the high latitude (vertical stroke b vertical stroke >10 ) diffuse {gamma}-ray emission in the Galaxy in light of the recently published data from the Fermi collaboration at energies between 100 MeV and 100 GeV. The unprecedented accuracy in these measurements allows to probe and constrain the properties of sources and propagation of cosmic rays (CRs) in the Galaxy, as well as confirming conventional assumptions made on the interstellar medium (ISM). Using the publicly available DRAGON code, that has been shown to reproduce local measurements of CRs, we study assumptions made in the literature on HI and H2 gas distributions in the ISM, and non spatially uniform models of diffusion in the Galaxy. By performing a combined analysis of CR and {gamma}-ray spectra, we derive constraints on the properties of the ISM gas distribution and the vertical scale height of galactic CR diffusion, which may have implications also on indirect Dark Matter detection. We also discuss some of the possible interpretations of the break at {proportional_to}230 GeV in CR protons and helium spectra, recently observed by PAMELA and their impact on {gamma}-rays. (orig.)

Diffusion properties of band 3 in human erythrocytes

Science.gov (United States)

Spector, Jeffrey O.

The plasma membrane of the human erythrocyte (RBC) is a six fold symmetric network held together at various pinning points by several multi-protein complexes. This unique architecture is what gives the RBC its remarkable material properties and any disruptions to the network can have severe consequences for the cell. Band 3 is a major transmembrane protein that plays the role of linking the fluid lipid bilayer to the cytoskeletal network. To interrogate the structural integrity of the RBC membrane we have tracked individual band 3 molecules in RBCs displaying a variety of pathologies that are all a consequence of membrane or network related defects. These diseases are spherocytosis, elliptocytosis, and pyropokilocytosis. We have also investigated the protein related diseases sickle cell, and south east asian ovalocytosis. To assess the impact that the network has on the dynamic organization of the cell we have also studied the mobility of band 3 in RBC progenitor cells. Individual band 3 molecules were imaged at 120 frames/second and their diffusion coefficients and compartment sizes recorded. The distributions of the compartment sizes combined with the information about the short and long time diffusion of band 3 has given us insight into the architecture of the membrane in normal and diseased cells. The observation that different membrane pathologies can be distinguished, even to the point of different molecular origins of the same disease, implies that the mobility of transmembrane proteins may be a useful tool for characterizing the "health" of the membrane.

Strong Maximum Principle for Multi-Term Time-Fractional Diffusion Equations and its Application to an Inverse Source Problem

OpenAIRE

Liu, Yikan

2015-01-01

In this paper, we establish a strong maximum principle for fractional diffusion equations with multiple Caputo derivatives in time, and investigate a related inverse problem of practical importance. Exploiting the solution properties and the involved multinomial Mittag-Leffler functions, we improve the weak maximum principle for the multi-term time-fractional diffusion equation to a stronger one, which is parallel to that for its single-term counterpart as expected. As a direct application, w...

Fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity in the corpus callosum of patients with multiple sclerosis: the effect of physiotherapy

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Ibrahim, I.; Tintěra, J.; Škoch, A.; Jírů, F.; Hluštík, P.; Martinková, Patrícia; Zvára, Karel; Řasová, K.

2011-01-01

Roč. 24, Suppl. 1 (2011), s. 291 ISSN 0968-5243. [ESMRMB 2011 Annual Scientific Meeting /28./. 06.10.2011-08.10.2011, Leipzig] R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) 1M0517 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10300504 Keywords : corpus callosum * diffusion tensor imaging * facilitation physiotherapy * multiple sclerosis * rehabilitation Subject RIV: BB - Applied Statistics, Operational Research

Diffusion and infrared properties of molecules in ice mantles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schmitt, B.; Grim, R.; Greenberg, J.M.

1989-01-01

Within dense molecular clouds the formation of frozen icy mantles on interstellar dust grains is thought to be the result of various growth conditions. The molecules, which make up the ice mantles are probably completely mixed. To study the physical properties of such ice mixtures the experiments were performed on the evaporation processes and on the spectroscopic properties of CO, CO2, and CH4 in water rich ices. The decrease in concentration of volatile molecules in ice samples deposited at 10 K and subsequently heated is found to occur essentially in two steps. The first one, corresponding to an evaporation of part of the volatile molecules, starts at about 25 K for CO, 32 K for CH4, and 70 K for CO2. During the crystallization of H2O ice at temperatures greater than 120 K a second evaporation occurs leading to the complete disappearance of the volatile molecules in the solid phase. The main astrophysical implications of the diffusion and spectroscopic behaviors are presented. The possible effects of a heating source on the fraction of volatile molecules, such as CO trapped in grain mantles, are discussed

Diffusion properties of conventional and calcium-sensitive MRI contrast agents in the rat cerebral cortex.

Science.gov (United States)

Hagberg, Gisela E; Mamedov, Ilgar; Power, Anthony; Beyerlein, Michael; Merkle, Hellmut; Kiselev, Valerij G; Dhingra, Kirti; Kubìček, Vojtĕch; Angelovski, Goran; Logothetis, Nikos K

2014-01-01

Calcium-sensitive MRI contrast agents can only yield quantitative results if the agent concentration in the tissue is known. The agent concentration could be determined by diffusion modeling, if relevant parameters were available. We have established an MRI-based method capable of determining diffusion properties of conventional and calcium-sensitive agents. Simulations and experiments demonstrate that the method is applicable both for conventional contrast agents with a fixed relaxivity value and for calcium-sensitive contrast agents. The full pharmacokinetic time-course of gadolinium concentration estimates was observed by MRI before, during and after intracerebral administration of the agent, and the effective diffusion coefficient D* was determined by voxel-wise fitting of the solution to the diffusion equation. The method yielded whole brain coverage with a high spatial and temporal sampling. The use of two types of MRI sequences for sampling of the diffusion time courses was investigated: Look-Locker-based quantitative T(1) mapping, and T(1) -weighted MRI. The observation times of the proposed MRI method is long (up to 20 h) and consequently the diffusion distances covered are also long (2-4 mm). Despite this difference, the D* values in vivo were in agreement with previous findings using optical measurement techniques, based on observation times of a few minutes. The effective diffusion coefficient determined for the calcium-sensitive contrast agents may be used to determine local tissue concentrations and to design infusion protocols that maintain the agent concentration at a steady state, thereby enabling quantitative sensing of the local calcium concentration. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Whole-body MRI, dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI, and diffusion-weighted imaging for the staging of multiple myeloma

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dutoit, Julie C.; Verstraete, Koenraad L. [Ghent University Hospital, Department of Radiology, Ghent (Belgium)

2017-06-15

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the most sensitive imaging technique for the detection of bone marrow infiltration, and has therefore recently been included in the new diagnostic myeloma criteria, as proposed by the International Myeloma Working Group. Nevertheless, conventional MRI only provides anatomical information and is therefore only of limited use in the response assessment of patients with multiple myeloma. The additional information from functional MRI techniques, such as diffusion-weighted imaging and dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI, can improve the detection rate of bone marrow infiltration and the assessment of response. This can further enhance the sensitivity and specificity of MRI in the staging of multiple myeloma patients. This article provides an overview of the technical aspects of conventional and functional MRI techniques with practical recommendations. It reviews the diagnostic performance, prognostic value, and role in therapy assessment in multiple myeloma and its precursor stages. (orig.)

An entropic barriers diffusion theory of decision-making in multiple alternative tasks.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diego Fernandez Slezak

2018-03-01

Full Text Available We present a theory of decision-making in the presence of multiple choices that departs from traditional approaches by explicitly incorporating entropic barriers in a stochastic search process. We analyze response time data from an on-line repository of 15 million blitz chess games, and show that our model fits not just the mean and variance, but the entire response time distribution (over several response-time orders of magnitude at every stage of the game. We apply the model to show that (a higher cognitive expertise corresponds to the exploration of more complex solution spaces, and (b reaction times of users at an on-line buying website can be similarly explained. Our model can be seen as a synergy between diffusion models used to model simple two-choice decision-making and planning agents in complex problem solving.

Diffusion Properties and 3D Architecture of Human Lower Leg Muscles Assessed with Ultra-High-Field-Strength Diffusion-Tensor MR Imaging and Tractography: Reproducibility and Sensitivity to Sex Difference and Intramuscular Variability.

Science.gov (United States)

Fouré, Alexandre; Ogier, Augustin C; Le Troter, Arnaud; Vilmen, Christophe; Feiweier, Thorsten; Guye, Maxime; Gondin, Julien; Besson, Pierre; Bendahan, David

2018-05-01

Purpose To demonstrate the reproducibility of the diffusion properties and three-dimensional structural organization measurements of the lower leg muscles by using diffusion-tensor imaging (DTI) assessed with ultra-high-field-strength (7.0-T) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and tractography of skeletal muscle fibers. On the basis of robust statistical mapping analyses, this study also aimed at determining the sensitivity of the measurements to sex difference and intramuscular variability. Materials and Methods All examinations were performed with ethical review board approval; written informed consent was obtained from all volunteers. Reproducibility of diffusion tensor indexes assessment including eigenvalues, mean diffusivity, and fractional anisotropy (FA) as well as muscle volume and architecture (ie, fiber length and pennation angle) were characterized in lower leg muscles (n = 8). Intramuscular variability and sex differences were characterized in young healthy men and women (n = 10 in each group). Student t test, statistical parametric mapping, correlation coefficients (Spearman rho and Pearson product-moment) and coefficient of variation (CV) were used for statistical data analysis. Results High reproducibility of measurements (mean CV ± standard deviation, 4.6% ± 3.8) was determined in diffusion properties and architectural parameters. Significant sex differences were detected in FA (4.2% in women for the entire lower leg; P = .001) and muscle volume (21.7% in men for the entire lower leg; P = .008), whereas architecture parameters were almost identical across sex. Additional differences were found independently of sex in diffusion properties and architecture along several muscles of the lower leg. Conclusion The high-spatial-resolution DTI assessed with 7.0-T MR imaging allows a reproducible assessment of structural organization of superficial and deep muscles, giving indirect information on muscle function. © RSNA, 2018 Online supplemental material is

The electrical and diffusive properties of unattached 218Po in air systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leung, H.M.-Y.; Phillips, C.R.

1988-01-01

The electrical and diffusive properties of unattached 218 Po were determined in air environments containing traces of other gases. Of particular interest was the neutralisation of charged, unattached 218 Po. An electrostatic collection apparatus and a pulse width modulated ion mobility analyser were used to determine the fraction of the unattached 218 Po having a positive charge at the end of the recoil path (f); the diffusion coefficient of the neutral, unattached 218 Po Dsub(Α): the mobility of the charged, unattached 218 Po (B); and the neutralisation rate constant of charged, unattached 218 Po (K). Average values found for f, Dsub(Α), B and K were similar to those determined earlier for the argon system. Two mechanisms may be responsible for neutralisation, namely, scavenging of electrons from trace gases (charge transfer), and recombination with negative small ions. Which neutralisation mechanism is dominant depends on the amount and type of trace gas or organic vapour present and the degree of gas ionisation. (author)

Improved algorithm for estimating optical properties of food and biological materials using spatially-resolved diffuse reflectance

Science.gov (United States)

In this research, the inverse algorithm for estimating optical properties of food and biological materials from spatially-resolved diffuse reflectance was optimized in terms of data smoothing, normalization and spatial region of reflectance profile for curve fitting. Monte Carlo simulation was used ...

Optical properties change in Te diffused As{sub 50}Se{sub 50} chalcogenide thin film

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Naik, Ramakanta; Behera, M.; Panda, R.; Mishra, N. C. [Department of Physics, Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, 751004, Odisha (India)

2016-05-23

In the present report, we present the effect of Te diffusion into As{sub 50}Se{sub 50} thin film which changes the optical properties. The Te/As{sub 50}Se{sub 50} film was irradiated by a laser beam of 532 nm to study the diffusion mechanism due to photo induced effect. The As{sub 50}Se{sub 50}, Te/As{sub 50}Se{sub 50} films show a completely amorphous nature from X-ray diffraction study. A non direct transition was found for these films on the basis of optical transmission data carried out by Fourier Transform infrared Spectroscopy. The optical bandgap is found to be decreased with Te deposition and photo darkening phenomena is observed for the diffused film. The change in the optical constants are well supported by the corresponding change in different types of bonds which are being studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.

The cervical spinal cord in neuromyelitis optica patients: A comparative study with multiple sclerosis using diffusion tensor imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pessôa, Fernanda Miraldi Clemente, E-mail: fernandamiraldi@hotmail.com [Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Medical Student, Rua Rodolpho Paulo Rocco, 255, Cidade Universitária, Ilha do Fundão, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Lopes, Fernanda Cristina Rueda, E-mail: frueda81@hotmail.com [Department of Radiology, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Avenida das Américas, 4666 sl 325, Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Costa, João Victor Altamiro, E-mail: victoraltamiro@gmail.com [Department of Radiology, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rua Rodolpho Paulo Rocco, 255, Cidade Universitária, Ilha do Fundão, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Leon, Soniza Vieira Alves, E-mail: sonizavleon@globo.com [Department of Neurology, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rua Rodolpho Paulo Rocco, 255, Cidade Universitária, Ilha do Fundão, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Domingues, Romeu Côrtes, E-mail: romeu@CDPi.com.br [CDPI – Clínica de Diagnóstico Por Imagem, Avenida das Américas, 4666 sl 325, Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Gasparetto, Emerson Leandro, E-mail: egasparetto@gmail.com [Department of Radiology, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Avenida das Américas, 4666 sl 325, Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); CDPI – Clínica de Diagnóstico Por Imagem, Avenida das Américas, 4666 sl 325, Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

2012-10-15

Introduction: This study aims to evaluate “in vivo” the integrity of the normal-appearing spinal cord in patients with neuromyelitis optica (NMO), using diffusion tensor MR imaging, comparing to controls and patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). Materials and methods: We studied 8 patients with NMO and 17 without any neurologic disorder. Also, 32 MS patients were selected. Fractional anisotropy (FA), axial diffusivity (AD), radial diffusivity (RD) and mean diffusivity (MD) were calculated within regions of interest at C2 and C7 levels in the four columns of the spinal cord. Results: At C2, the FA value was decreased in NMO patients compared to MS and controls in the anterior column. Also in this column, RD value showed increase in NMO compared to MS and to controls. The FA value of the posterior column was decreased in NMO in comparison to controls. At C7, AD value was higher in NMO than in MS in the right column. At the same column, MD values were increased in NMO compared to MS and to controls. Conclusions: There is extensive NASC damage in NMO patients, including peripheral areas of the cervical spinal cord, affecting the white matter, mainly caused by demyelination. This suggests a new spinal cord lesion pattern in NMO in comparison to MS.

The cervical spinal cord in neuromyelitis optica patients: A comparative study with multiple sclerosis using diffusion tensor imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pessôa, Fernanda Miraldi Clemente; Lopes, Fernanda Cristina Rueda; Costa, João Victor Altamiro; Leon, Soniza Vieira Alves; Domingues, Romeu Côrtes; Gasparetto, Emerson Leandro

2012-01-01

Introduction: This study aims to evaluate “in vivo” the integrity of the normal-appearing spinal cord in patients with neuromyelitis optica (NMO), using diffusion tensor MR imaging, comparing to controls and patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). Materials and methods: We studied 8 patients with NMO and 17 without any neurologic disorder. Also, 32 MS patients were selected. Fractional anisotropy (FA), axial diffusivity (AD), radial diffusivity (RD) and mean diffusivity (MD) were calculated within regions of interest at C2 and C7 levels in the four columns of the spinal cord. Results: At C2, the FA value was decreased in NMO patients compared to MS and controls in the anterior column. Also in this column, RD value showed increase in NMO compared to MS and to controls. The FA value of the posterior column was decreased in NMO in comparison to controls. At C7, AD value was higher in NMO than in MS in the right column. At the same column, MD values were increased in NMO compared to MS and to controls. Conclusions: There is extensive NASC damage in NMO patients, including peripheral areas of the cervical spinal cord, affecting the white matter, mainly caused by demyelination. This suggests a new spinal cord lesion pattern in NMO in comparison to MS

Determination of optical properties in heterogeneous turbid media using a cylindrical diffusing fiber

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dimofte, Andreea; Finlay, Jarod C; Liang Xing; Zhu, Timothy C

2012-01-01

For interstitial photodynamic therapy (PDT), cylindrical diffusing fibers (CDFs) are often used to deliver light. This study examines the feasibility and accuracy of using CDFs to characterize the absorption (μ a ) and reduced scattering (μ′ s ) coefficients of heterogeneous turbid media. Measurements were performed in tissue-simulating phantoms with μ a between 0.1 and 1 cm −1 and μ′ s between 3 and 10 cm −1 with CDFs 2 to 4 cm in length. Optical properties were determined by fitting the measured light fluence rate profiles at a fixed distance from the CDF axis using a heterogeneous kernel model in which the cylindrical diffusing fiber is treated as a series of point sources. The resulting optical properties were compared with independent measurement using a point source method. In a homogenous medium, we are able to determine the absorption coefficient μ a using a value of μ′ s determined a priori (uniform fit) or μ′ s obtained by fitting (variable fit) with standard (maximum) deviations of 6% (18%) and 18% (44%), respectively. However, the CDF method is found to be insensitive to variations in μ′ s , thus requiring a complementary method such as using a point source for determination of μ′ s . The error for determining μ a decreases in very heterogeneous turbid media because of the local absorption extremes. The data acquisition time for obtaining the one-dimensional optical properties distribution is less than 8 s. This method can result in dramatically improved accuracy of light fluence rate calculation for CDFs for prostate PDT in vivo when the same model and geometry is used for forward calculations using the extrapolated tissue optical properties. (paper)

Safety-relevant hydrogeological properties of the claystone barrier of a Swiss radioactive waste repository: An evaluation using multiple lines of evidence

Science.gov (United States)

Gautschi, Andreas

2017-09-01

In Switzerland, the Opalinus Clay - a Jurassic (Aalenian) claystone formation - has been proposed as the first-priority host rock for a deep geological repository for both low- and intermediate-level and high-level radioactive wastes. An extensive site and host rock investigation programme has been carried out during the past 30 years in Northern Switzerland, comprising extensive 2D and 3D seismic surveys, a series of deep boreholes within and around potential geological siting regions, experiments in the international Mont Terri Rock Laboratory, compilations of data from Opalinus Clay in railway and motorway tunnels and comparisons with similar rocks. The hydrogeological properties of the Opalinus Clay that are relevant from the viewpoint of long-term safety are described and illustrated. The main conclusions are supported by multiple lines of evidence, demonstrating consistency of conclusions based on hydraulic properties, porewater chemistry, distribution of natural tracers across the Opalinus Clay as well as small- and large-scale diffusion models and the derived conceptual understanding of solute transport.

Diffuse hepatic and splenic 99mTc MPD tracer uptake in case of multiple myeloma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sood, Ashwani; Seam, Rajeev Kumar; Sethi, Sandeep; Gupta, Manish

2010-01-01

99m Tc-methylene diphosphonate (MDP) bone scintigraphy has long been used for the evaluation of benign as well as malignant skeletal conditions. However, non-osseous tracer uptake on a bone scan is an unusual finding. There is a need to understand the pathophysiological basis of the non-osseous uptake, which may have a clinical relevance or deteriorating effect on the quality of the bone scan. We describe a case of multiple myeloma, where extraosseous uptake in the form of diffuse hepatic and splenic uptake, with almost normal skeletal tracer distribution, has been seen on the bone scan. (author)

Modification of gas diffusion layers properties to improve water management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin Tomas

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract In this paper we report an approach to improve water management of commercial GDLs by introducing hydrophobicity patterns. Specifically, line and grid patterns have been created in the MPL side by laser radiation. For an in-depth investigation of these modified GDLs the current density distribution was monitored during fuel cell operation. Additionally, the physical properties of these materials were investigated by a number of ex situ methods such as Fourier transform infrared microscopy, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and water vapor sorption. Furthermore, a comparison of the physical properties of the patterned GDLs with chemically modified GDLs (treated in H2SO4 and H2O2 is provided. Our results show a clearly improved homogeneity of current density distribution of the patterned GDLs compared to untreated GDLs. This observation is likely due to a reduced local hydrophobicity which facilitates water diffusion along the flow field of the fuel cell. However, performance of the fuel cell was not affected by the MPL irradiation. Graphical Abstract

Soil profile property estimation with field and laboratory VNIR spectroscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) soil sensors have the potential to provide rapid, high-resolution estimation of multiple soil properties. Although many studies have focused on laboratory-based visible and near-infrared (VNIR) spectroscopy of dried soil samples, previous work has demonstrated ...

Diffusion and scattering in multifractal clouds

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lovejoy, S. [McGill Univ., Montreal, Quebec (Canada); Schertzer, D. [Universite Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris (France); Waston, B. [St. Lawrence Univ., Canton, NY (United States)] [and others

1996-04-01

This paper describes investigations of radiative properties of multifractal clouds using two different approaches. In the first, diffusion is considered by examining the scaling properties of one dimensional random walks on media with multifractal diffusivities. The second approach considers the scattering statistics associated with radiative transport.

The Effect of Interlayer Materials on the Joint Properties of Diffusion-Bonded Aluminium and Magnesium

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stefan Habisch

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Diffusion bonding is a well-known technology for a wide range of advanced joining applications, due to the possibility of bonding different materials within a defined temperature-time-contact pressure regime in solid state. For this study, aluminium alloys AA 6060, AA 6082, AA 7020, AA 7075 and magnesium alloy AZ 31 B are used to produce dissimilar metal joints. Titanium and silver were investigated as interlayer materials. SEM and EDXS-analysis, micro-hardness measurements and tensile testing were carried out to examine the influence of the interlayers on the diffusion zone microstructures and to characterize the joint properties. The results showed that the highest joint strength of 48 N/mm2 was reached using an aluminium alloy of the 6000 series with a titanium interlayer. For both interlayer materials, intermetallic Al-Mg compounds were still formed, but the width and the level of hardness across the diffusion zone was significantly reduced compared to Al-Mg joints without interlayer.

Assessment of sorption properties and kinetic reaction of phosphorus reactive material to limit diffuse pollution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bus Agnieszka

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Assessment of sorption properties and kinetic reaction of phosphorus reactive material to limit diffuse pollution. Polonite® is an effective reactive material (manufactured from opoka rock for removing phosphorus from aqueous solutions. In conducted experiments, Polonite® of grain size of 2–5 mm was used as a potential reactive material which can be used as a filter fulfillment to reduce phosphorus diffuse pollution from agriculture areas. Kinetic and equilibrium studies (performed as a batch experiment were carried out as a function of time to evaluate the sorption properties of the material. The obtained results show that Polonite® effectively removes such contamination. All tested concentrations (0.998, 5.213, 10.965 mg P-PO4·L−1 are characterized by a better fit to pseudo-second kinetic order. The Langmuir isotherm the best reflects the mechanism of adsorption process in case of Polonite® and based on the isotherm, calculated maximum adsorption capacity equals 96.58 mg P-PO4·g−1.

Estimation of biomedical optical properties by simultaneous use of diffuse reflectometry and photothermal radiometry: investigation of light propagation models

Science.gov (United States)

Fonseca, E. S. R.; de Jesus, M. E. P.

2007-07-01

The estimation of optical properties of highly turbid and opaque biological tissue is a difficult task since conventional purely optical methods rapidly loose sensitivity as the mean photon path length decreases. Photothermal methods, such as pulsed or frequency domain photothermal radiometry (FD-PTR), on the other hand, show remarkable sensitivity in experimental conditions that produce very feeble optical signals. Photothermal Radiometry is primarily sensitive to absorption coefficient yielding considerably higher estimation errors on scattering coefficients. Conversely, purely optical methods such as Local Diffuse Reflectance (LDR) depend mainly on the scattering coefficient and yield much better estimates of this parameter. Therefore, at moderate transport albedos, the combination of photothermal and reflectance methods can improve considerably the sensitivity of detection of tissue optical properties. The authors have recently proposed a novel method that combines FD-PTR with LDR, aimed at improving sensitivity on the determination of both optical properties. Signal analysis was performed by global fitting the experimental data to forward models based on Monte-Carlo simulations. Although this approach is accurate, the associated computational burden often limits its use as a forward model. Therefore, the application of analytical models based on the diffusion approximation offers a faster alternative. In this work, we propose the calculation of the diffuse reflectance and the fluence rate profiles under the δ-P I approximation. This approach is known to approximate fluence rate expressions better close to collimated sources and boundaries than the standard diffusion approximation (SDA). We extend this study to the calculation of the diffuse reflectance profiles. The ability of the δ-P I based model to provide good estimates of the absorption, scattering and anisotropy coefficients is tested against Monte-Carlo simulations over a wide range of scattering to

Progress on Fabrication of Planar Diffusion Couples with Representative TRISO PyC/SiC Microstructure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hunn, John D. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Jolly, Brian C. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Gerczak, Tyler J. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Campbell, Anne A. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Schumacher, Austin T. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2017-10-01

Release of fission products from tristructural-isotropic (TRISO) coated particle fuel limits the fuel’s operational lifetime and creates potential safety and maintenance concerns. A need for diffusion analysis in representative TRISO layers exists to provide fuel performance models with high fidelity data to improve fuel performance and efficiency. An effort has been initiated to better understand fission product transport in, and release from, quality TRISO fuel by investigating diffusion couples with representative pyrocarbon (PyC) and silicon carbide (SiC). Here planar PyC/SiC diffusion couples are being developed with representative PyC/SiC layers using a fluidized bed chemical vapor deposition (FBCVD) system identical to those used to produce laboratory-scale TRISO fuel for the Advanced Gas Reactor Fuel Qualification and Development Program’s (AGR) first fuel irradiation. The diffusivity of silver, the silver and palladium system, europium, and strontium in the PyC/SiC will be studied at elevated temperatures and under high temperature neutron irradiation. The study also includes a comparative study of PyC/SiC diffusion couples with varying TRISO layer properties to understand the influence of SiC microstructure (grain size) and the PyC/SiC interface on fission product transport. The first step in accomplishing these goals is the development of the planar diffusion couples. The diffusion couple construction consists of multiple steps which includes fabrication of the primary PyC/SiC structures with targeted layer properties, introduction of fission product species and seal coating to create an isolated system. Coating development has shown planar PyC/SiC diffusion couples with similar properties to AGR TRISO fuel can be produced. A summary of the coating development process, characterization methods, and status are presented.

Characterization of transport properties in uranium dioxide: the case of the oxygen auto-diffusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fraczkiewicz, M.; Baldinozzi, G.

2008-01-01

Point defects in uranium dioxide which control the transport phenomena are still badly known. The aim of this work is to show how in carrying out several experimental techniques, it is possible to demonstrate both the existence and to determine the nature (charge and localization) of predominant defects responsible of the transport phenomena in a fluorite-type structure oxide. The oxygen diffusion in the uranium dioxide illustrates this. In the first part of this work, the accent is put on the electric properties of uranium dioxide and more particularly on the variation laws of the electric conductivity in terms of temperature, of oxygen potential and of the impurities amounts present in the material. These evolutions are connected to point and charged complex defects models and the pertinence of these models is discussed. Besides, it is shown how the electric conductivity measurements can allow to define oxygen potential domains in which the concentrations in electronic carriers are controlled. This characterization being made, it is shown that the determination of the oxygen intrinsic diffusion coefficient and particularly its dependence to the oxygen potential and to the amount of impurity, allows to determine the main defect responsible to the atomic diffusion as well as its nature and its charge. In the second part, the experimental techniques to determine the oxygen diffusion coefficient are presented: there are the isotopic exchange technique for introducing the tracer in the material, and two techniques to characterize the diffusion profiles (SIMS and NRA). Examples of preliminary results are given for mono and polycrystalline samples. At last, from this methodology on uranium dioxide, studies considered to quantify the thermal and physicochemical effects are presented. Experiments considered with the aim to characterize the radiation diffusion in uranium dioxide are presented too. (O.M.)

Interaction and diffusion transport of americium in soils

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ramirez-Guinart, Oriol; Rigol, Anna; Vidal, Miquel [Analytical Chemistry department, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Barcelona, Marti i Franques 1-11, 08028, Barcelona (Spain)

2014-07-01

The final disposal of High Level Radioactive Wastes (HLRW) is based on its long-term storage in underground facilities located in geological stable sites with a multi-barrier system, the so called Deep Geological Repositories (DGR), that will keep HLRW confined for >10.000 years. After this period of time, leachates rich in long-live radioisotopes might escape from DGR and start to transport towards the biosphere. There is still a lack of information concerning the interaction and transport in soils of some radionuclides present in HLRW, especially for radionuclides that present a high sorption, such as americium (Am). Having reliable information about the mobility of radionuclides in soils is crucial in order to develop risk assessment models and to take proper decisions in case of soil contamination. The aim of the present work was, by means of laboratory scale experiments, to study the interaction and, for first time, to evaluate the diffusion transport of {sup 241}Am in soils. The {sup 241}Am interaction in soils was assessed by applying sorption batch assays to 20 soil samples with contrasted edaphic properties which allowed us to quantify the solid-liquid distribution coefficient (K{sub d}) and desorption percentage. K{sub d} (Am) values ranged from 10{sup 3} to 10{sup 5} L kg{sup -1} and desorption percentages were always less than 2% which denoted a high capacity of the soil to incorporate the Am and a low reversibility of the sorption process. The influence of soil properties in {sup 241}Am interaction was studied by means of multiple linear and multivariate regressions. Although a single correlation between K{sub d} (Am) values and a soil property was not found, the main properties affecting {sup 241}Am interaction in soils were soil pH, carbonate and organic matter contents in the soil. Finally, additional batch assays at different controlled pH were done to study Am sorption as a function of the contact solution pH. A variation of the Am sorption

Estimation of soil profile properties using field and laboratory VNIR spectroscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) soil sensors have the potential to provide rapid, high-resolution estimation of multiple soil properties. Although many studies have focused on laboratory-based visible and near-infrared (VNIR) spectroscopy of dried soil samples, previous work has demonstrated ...

Study of the uranium-zirconium diffusion; Etude de la diffusion uranium-zirconium

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Adda, Y; Mairy, C; Bouchet, P [Commissariat a l' Energie Atomique, Saclay (France). Centre d' Etudes Nucleaires

1957-07-01

The intermetallic diffusion of uranium fuel and zirconium used as cladding is studied. Intermetallic diffusion can occur during the cladding of uranium rods and uranium can penetrate the zirconium cladding. Different parameters are involved in this mechanism as structure and mechanical properties of the diffusion area as well as presence of impurities in the metal. The uses of different analysis techniques (micrography, Castaing electronic microprobe, microhardness and autoradiography) have permitted to determine with great accuracy the diffusion coefficient in gamma phase (body centered cubic system) and the results have given important information on the intermetallic diffusion mechanisms. The existence of the Kirkendall effect in the U-Zr diffusion is also an argument in favor of the generality of the diffusion mechanism by vacancies in body centered cubic system. (M.P.)

Molecular exchange of n-hexane in zeolite sieves studied by diffusion-diffusion and T{sub 1}-diffusion nuclear magnetic resonance exchange spectroscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Neudert, Oliver; Stapf, Siegfried; Mattea, Carlos, E-mail: carlos.mattea@tu-ilmenau.de [Fachgebiet Technische Physik II/Polymerphysik, Institute of Physics, Technische Universitaet Ilmenau, PO Box 100 565, 98684 Ilmenau (Germany)

2011-03-15

Molecular exchange properties and diffusion of n-hexane embedded in a bimodal pore structure with characteristic length scales in the order of nano and micrometres, respectively, formed by packing of zeolite particles, are studied. Two-dimensional (2D) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) diffusion correlation experiments together with relaxation-diffusion correlation experiments are performed at low magnetic field using a single-sided NMR scanner. The exchange time covers a range from 10{sup -3} to 10{sup -1} s. The molecular exchange properties are modulated by transport inside the zeolite particles. Different exchange regimes are observed for molecules starting from different positions inside the porous sample. The influence of the spin-lattice relaxation properties of the fluid molecules inside the zeolite particles on the signal intensity is also studied. A Monte Carlo simulation of the exchange process is performed and is used to support the analysis of the experimental data.

Effect of washing process on the magnetic properties of Nd-Fe-B nanoparticles prepared by reduction-diffusion method

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Y.; Ahn, J.; Kim, D.; Ren, W. J.; Liu, W.; Zhang, Z. D.; Choi, C. J.

2017-10-01

Nd-Fe-B nanoparticles with a particle size below 50 nm and excellent magnetic properties were obtained via a novel route which makes use of both spray drying and reduction-diffusion processes. Uniform Nd-Fe-B particles were formed by the optimization of Ca amount as a reducing agent and additional washing by milling in ethanol media. Especially, we implemented a two-step washing process which contributed to the excellent magnetic properties with high remanence and coercivity. After the removal of CaO by novel washing process, the maximum energy product (BH)max of the particles showed 22.1 MGOe. This value is superior to those reported in reduction-diffusion process. We used Henkel plot to assume the mechanism of magnetic interactions of the Nd-Fe-B nanoparticles.

Interactive Volume Rendering of Diffusion Tensor Data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hlawitschka, Mario; Weber, Gunther; Anwander, Alfred; Carmichael, Owen; Hamann, Bernd; Scheuermann, Gerik

2007-03-30

As 3D volumetric images of the human body become an increasingly crucial source of information for the diagnosis and treatment of a broad variety of medical conditions, advanced techniques that allow clinicians to efficiently and clearly visualize volumetric images become increasingly important. Interaction has proven to be a key concept in analysis of medical images because static images of 3D data are prone to artifacts and misunderstanding of depth. Furthermore, fading out clinically irrelevant aspects of the image while preserving contextual anatomical landmarks helps medical doctors to focus on important parts of the images without becoming disoriented. Our goal was to develop a tool that unifies interactive manipulation and context preserving visualization of medical images with a special focus on diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data. At each image voxel, DTI provides a 3 x 3 tensor whose entries represent the 3D statistical properties of water diffusion locally. Water motion that is preferential to specific spatial directions suggests structural organization of the underlying biological tissue; in particular, in the human brain, the naturally occuring diffusion of water in the axon portion of neurons is predominantly anisotropic along the longitudinal direction of the elongated, fiber-like axons [MMM+02]. This property has made DTI an emerging source of information about the structural integrity of axons and axonal connectivity between brain regions, both of which are thought to be disrupted in a broad range of medical disorders including multiple sclerosis, cerebrovascular disease, and autism [Mos02, FCI+01, JLH+99, BGKM+04, BJB+03].

First-principles study of the stability and diffusion properties of hydrogen in zirconium carbide

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yang, Xiao-Yong [Institute of Applied Physics and Computational Mathematics, Beijing 100088 (China); Lu, Yong [Institute of Applied Physics and Computational Mathematics, Beijing 100088 (China); Beijing Computational Science Research Center, Beijing 100084 (China); Zhang, Ping, E-mail: zhang_ping@iapcm.ac.cn [Institute of Applied Physics and Computational Mathematics, Beijing 100088 (China)

2016-10-15

The stability and diffusion properties of interstitial hydrogen atom in bulk ZrC have been investigated by first-principles calculations. In energy, hydrogen atoms prefer to occupy the carbon substitutional site (C-SS) with a negative formation energy, consistent with the experimental observations. In the C-SS, the hydrogen atom obtains 0.702 electrons from its 1 NN Zr atoms, tending to achieve the most stable 1s{sup 2} electronic state. Two hydrogen atoms in the same tetrahedral interstitial site are able to form a pairing cluster along the 〈110〉 direction with the H−H pair equilibrium distance of 1.30 Å, nearly twice the length of H{sub 2} bond, suggesting a relatively weak interaction between the H−H pair. The diffusion energy barriers of hydrogen in pure and vacancy pre-existing ZrC matrix are calculated. It is found that the presence of native vacancies will capture the hydrogen atoms due to the large energy barrier to jump out the vacancy. Furthermore, the temperature-dependent diffusion coefficients of interstitial hydrogen, deuterium, and tritium in ZrC are predicted using the transition state theory.

Autofluorescence and diffuse reflectance patterns in cervical spectroscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Marin, Nena Maribel

Fluorescence and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy are two new optical technologies, which have shown promise to aid in the real time, non-invasive identification of cancers and precancers. Spectral patterns carry a fingerprint of scattering, absorption and fluorescence properties in tissue. Scattering, absorption and fluorescence in tissue are directly affected by biological features that are diagnostically significant, such as nuclear size, micro-vessel density, volume fraction of collagen fibers, tissue oxygenation and cell metabolism. Thus, analysis of spectral patterns can unlock a wealth of information directly related with the onset and progression of disease. Data from a Phase II clinical trial to assess the technical efficacy of fluorescence and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy acquired from 850 women at three clinical locations with two research grade optical devices is calibrated and analyzed. Tools to process and standardize spectra so that data from multiple spectrometers can be combined and analyzed are presented. Methodologies for calibration and quality assurance of optical systems are established to simplify design issues and ensure validity of data for future clinical trials. Empirically based algorithms, using multivariate statistical approaches are applied to spectra and evaluated as a clinical diagnostic tool. Physically based algorithms, using mathematical models of light propagation in tissue are presented. The presented mathematical model combines a diffusion theory in P3 approximation reflectance model and a 2-layer fluorescence model using exponential attenuation and diffusion theory. The resulting adjoint fluorescence and reflectance model extracts twelve optical properties characterizing fluorescence efficiency of cervical epithelium and stroma fluorophores, stromal hemoglobin and collagen absorption, oxygen saturation, and stromal scattering strength and shape. Validations with Monte Carlo simulations show that adjoint model extracted

Phase transformation and diffusion

CERN Document Server

Kale, G B; Dey, G K

2008-01-01

Given that the basic purpose of all research in materials science and technology is to tailor the properties of materials to suit specific applications, phase transformations are the natural key to the fine-tuning of the structural, mechanical and corrosion properties. A basic understanding of the kinetics and mechanisms of phase transformation is therefore of vital importance. Apart from a few cases involving crystallographic martensitic transformations, all phase transformations are mediated by diffusion. Thus, proper control and understanding of the process of diffusion during nucleation, g

Material properties of oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) ferritic steels for core materials of FBR. Tensile properties of sodium exposed and nickel diffused materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kato, Shoichi; Yoshida, Eiichi

2002-12-01

An oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) ferritic steel is candidate for a long-life core materials of future FBR, because of good swelling resistance and high creep strength. In this study, tensile tests were carried out the long-term extrapolation of sodium environmental effects on the mechanical properties of ODS steels. The tested heats of materials are M93, M11 and F95. The specimens were pre-exposed to sodium for 1,000 and 3,000 hours under non-stress conditions. The pre-exposure to sodium was conducted using a sodium test loop constituted by austenitic steels. For the conditions of sodium exposure test, the sodium temperature was 650 and 700degC, the oxygen concentration in sodium was about 1 ppm and sodium flow rate on the surface of specimen was less than 1x10 -4 m/seconds (nearly static). Further the specimen with the nickel diffused was prepared, which is simulate to nickel diffusing through sodium from the surface of structural stainless steels. The main results obtained were as follows; (1) The tensile strength and the fracture elongation after sodium exposure (maximum 3,000 hours) were same as that of as-received materials. If was considered that the sodium environmental effect is negligible under the condition of this study. (2) Tensile properties of nickel diffused specimens were slightly lower than that of the as-received specimens, but it remains equal to that of thermal aging specimens. (3) The change in microstructure such as a degraded layer was observed on the surface of nickel diffused specimen. In the region of the degraded layer, phase transformations from the α-phase to the γ-phase were recognized. But, the microscopic oxide particles were observed same as that of α-phase base metal. (author)

Thermodynamic properties and entropy scaling law for diffusivity in soft spheres.

Science.gov (United States)

Pieprzyk, S; Heyes, D M; Brańka, A C

2014-07-01

The purely repulsive soft-sphere system, where the interaction potential is inversely proportional to the pair separation raised to the power n, is considered. The Laplace transform technique is used to derive its thermodynamic properties in terms of the potential energy and its density derivative obtained from molecular dynamics simulations. The derived expressions provide an analytic framework with which to explore soft-sphere thermodynamics across the whole softness-density fluid domain. The trends in the isochoric and isobaric heat capacity, thermal expansion coefficient, isothermal and adiabatic bulk moduli, Grüneisen parameter, isothermal pressure, and the Joule-Thomson coefficient as a function of fluid density and potential softness are described using these formulas supplemented by the simulation-derived equation of state. At low densities a minimum in the isobaric heat capacity with density is found, which is a new feature for a purely repulsive pair interaction. The hard-sphere and n = 3 limits are obtained, and the low density limit specified analytically for any n is discussed. The softness dependence of calculated quantities indicates freezing criteria based on features of the radial distribution function or derived functions of it are not expected to be universal. A new and accurate formula linking the self-diffusion coefficient to the excess entropy for the entire fluid softness-density domain is proposed, which incorporates the kinetic theory solution for the low density limit and an entropy-dependent function in an exponential form. The thermodynamic properties (or their derivatives), structural quantities, and diffusion coefficient indicate that three regions specified by a convex, concave, and intermediate density dependence can be expected as a function of n, with a narrow transition region within the range 5 < n < 8.

Diffused zircaloy 2/stainless steel junctions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jacques, F.

1964-01-01

The diffusion permits to realize joints between two different materials, in fact of the formation of a liquid phase at the contact face. The study of the tensile properties allowed the determination of the ideal conditions for the diffusion treatment which are, within 2 and 3 minutes for a temperature within 1020 C and 1030 C. The characteristics of the so obtained joints were, studied: mechanical properties, tightness, resistance to thermal cycling. Analysis of the thermal stress, owing to the differential dilatation of the two materials mode the object of a particular study. The investigation on the diffusion zone, includes specially, an analysis of the constituents distribution formed during the diffusion treatment. (author) [fr

Evaluation of diffusion barrier and electrical properties of tantalum oxynitride thin films for silver metallization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Misra, E.; Wang, Y.; Theodore, N.D.; Alford, T.L.

2004-01-01

The thermal stability and the diffusion barrier properties of DC reactively sputtered tantalum oxynitride (Ta-O-N) thin films, between silver (Ag) and silicon (Si) p + n diodes were investigated. Both materials characterization (X-ray diffraction analysis, Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), Auger depth profiling) and electrical measurements (reverse-biased junction leakage current-density) were used to evaluate diffusion barrier properties of the thin films. The leakage current density of p + n diodes with the barrier (Ta-O-N) was approximately four orders of magnitude lower than those without barriers after a 30 min, 400 deg. C back contact anneal. The Ta-O-N barriers were stable up to 500 deg. C, 30 min anneals. However, this was not the case for the 600 deg. C anneal. RBS spectra and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy of as-deposited and vacuum annealed samples of Ag/barrier (Ta-O-N)/Si indicate the absence of any interfacial interaction between the barrier and substrate (silicon). The failure of the Ta-O-N barriers has been attributed to thermally induced stresses, which cause the thin film to crack at elevated temperatures

A novel multiple headspace extraction gas chromatographic method for measuring the diffusion coefficient of methanol in water and in olive oil.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Chun-Yun; Chai, Xin-Sheng

2015-03-13

A novel method for the determination of the diffusion coefficient (D) of methanol in water and olive oil has been developed. Based on multiple headspace extraction gas chromatography (MHE-GC), the methanol released from the liquid sample of interest in a closed sample vial was determined in a stepwise fashion. A theoretical model was derived to establish the relationship between the diffusion coefficient and the GC signals from MHE-GC measurements. The results showed that the present method has an excellent precision (RSDwater and olive oil, when compared with data reported in the literature. The present method is simple and practical and can be a valuable tool for the determination of the diffusion coefficient of volatile analyte(s) into food simulants from food and beverage packaging material, both in research studies and in actual applications. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Consistency in thermophysical properties: enthalpy, heat capacity, thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of solid UO2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fink, J.K.; Chasanov, M.G.; Leibowitz, L.

Equations have been derived for the enthalpy, heat capacity, thermal conductivity, and thermal diffusivity of UO 2 . In selection of these equations, we considered the traditional criterion of lowest relative standard deviation between experimental data and the function chosen to fit these data as well as consistency between the thermophysical properties. In the latter case, we considered consistency in (1) thermodynamic relations among properties, (2) the choice of physical phenomena on which to base the theoretical formulation of the equations, and (3) the existence and temperature of phase transitions

On some applications of diffusion processes for image processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morfu, S.

2009-01-01

We propose a new algorithm inspired by the properties of diffusion processes for image filtering. We show that purely nonlinear diffusion processes ruled by Fisher equation allows contrast enhancement and noise filtering, but involves a blurry image. By contrast, anisotropic diffusion, described by Perona and Malik algorithm, allows noise filtering and preserves the edges. We show that combining the properties of anisotropic diffusion with those of nonlinear diffusion provides a better processing tool which enables noise filtering, contrast enhancement and edge preserving.

Probing white-matter microstructure with higher-order diffusion tensors and susceptibility tensor MRI

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Chunlei; Murphy, Nicole E.; Li, Wei

2012-01-01

Diffusion MRI has become an invaluable tool for studying white matter microstructure and brain connectivity. The emergence of quantitative susceptibility mapping and susceptibility tensor imaging (STI) has provided another unique tool for assessing the structure of white matter. In the highly ordered white matter structure, diffusion MRI measures hindered water mobility induced by various tissue and cell membranes, while susceptibility sensitizes to the molecular composition and axonal arrangement. Integrating these two methods may produce new insights into the complex physiology of white matter. In this study, we investigated the relationship between diffusion and magnetic susceptibility in the white matter. Experiments were conducted on phantoms and human brains in vivo. Diffusion properties were quantified with the diffusion tensor model and also with the higher order tensor model based on the cumulant expansion. Frequency shift and susceptibility tensor were measured with quantitative susceptibility mapping and susceptibility tensor imaging. These diffusion and susceptibility quantities were compared and correlated in regions of single fiber bundles and regions of multiple fiber orientations. Relationships were established with similarities and differences identified. It is believed that diffusion MRI and susceptibility MRI provide complementary information of the microstructure of white matter. Together, they allow a more complete assessment of healthy and diseased brains. PMID:23507987

Discrimination of thermal diffusivity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bergmann Tiest, W.M.; Kappers, A.M.L.

2009-01-01

Materials such as wood or metal which are at equal temperatures are perceived to be of different ‘coldness’ due to differences in thermal properties, such as the thermal diffusivity. The thermal diffusivity of a material is a parameter that controls the rate with which heat is extracted from the

Conceptual Understanding of Multiplicative Properties through Endogenous Digital Game Play

Science.gov (United States)

Denham, Andre

2012-01-01

This study purposed to determine the effect of an endogenously designed instructional game on conceptual understanding of the associative and distributive properties of multiplication. Additional this study sought to investigate if performance on measures of conceptual understanding taken prior to and after game play could serve as predictors of…

Material properties of oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) ferritic steels for core materials of FBR. Mechanical strength properties of sodium exposed and Nickel diffused materials. Interim report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kato, Shoichi; Yoshida, Eiichi

2004-02-01

An oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) ferritic steel have excellent resistance to swelling and superior creep strength, they are expected to be used as a long-life cladding material in future advanced fast reactor. In this study, sodium environmental effects on the ODS steel developed by JNC were clarified through tensile test after sodium exposure for maximum 10,000hrs and creep-rupture test in sodium at elevated temperature. The exposure to sodium was conducted using a sodium test loop constituted by austenitic steels. For the conditions of sodium exposure test, the sodium temperatures were 923 K and 973 K, the oxygen concentration in sodium was below 2ppm and sodium flow rate on the surface of specimen was less than 1x10 -4 m/s. Further the specimen with the nickel diffused was prepared, which is simulate to nickel diffusing through sodium from the surface of structural stainless steels. The main results obtained were as follows; (1) The results showed excellent sodium-resistance up to a high temperature of about 973 K in stagnant sodium conditions, and its considered that the effects of sodium environment of tensile properties were negligible. In case of stagnant sodium condition, creep-rupture strength in sodium was equal to the in argon gas, and no sodium environmental effect was observed. The same is true for the creep-rupture ductility. (2) The tensile properties of nickel diffused test specimens at high temperatures simulating microstructure change were equal to that of the thermal aging process specimens. These tensile tests suggest that sodium environmental effects can be ignored. However, the effect of nickel diffusion on creep strength are not clear at present and experimental investigation are being conducted. (3) The coefficient of nickel diffusion in the ODS steel can be estimated based on the results of nickel concentration measurement. This value is larger than that of the diffusion coefficient for typical α-Fe steel at temperature below 973 K

Li+ ions diffusion into sol-gel V2O5 thin films: electrochromic properties

Science.gov (United States)

Benmoussa, M.; Outzourhit, A.; Bennouna, A.; Ihlal, A.

2009-10-01

V{2}O{5} thin films were prepared by the sol-gel spin coating process. The Li+ ions insertion effect on optical and electrochromic properties of those films was studied. The diffusion coefficient was calculated using both cyclic voltammograms and chronoamperometric curves. The amount x of Li+ ions in LixV{2}O{5} was also calculated. Finally, the electrochromic performance evolution characteristics such as the reversibility, coloration efficiency, coloration memory stability and response time were studied.

Relaxation and Diffusion in Complex Systems

CERN Document Server

Ngai, K L

2011-01-01

Relaxation and Diffusion in Complex Systems comprehensively presents a variety of experimental evidences of universal relaxation and diffusion properties in complex materials and systems. The materials discussed include liquids, glasses, colloids, polymers, rubbers, plastic crystals and aqueous mixtures, as well as carbohydrates, biomolecules, bioprotectants and pharmaceuticals. Due to the abundance of experimental data, emphasis is placed on glass-formers and the glass transition problem, a still unsolved problem in condensed matter physics and chemistry. The evidence for universal properties of relaxation and diffusion dynamics suggests that a fundamental physical law is at work. The origin of the universal properties is traced to the many-body effects of the interaction, rigorous theory of which does not exist at the present time. However, using solutions of simplified models as guides, key quantities have been identified and predictions of the universal properties generated. These predictions from Ngai’...

The electrical and diffusive properties of unattached 218Po in argon gas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leung, H.M.-Y.; Phillips, C.R.

1987-01-01

Electrical and diffusive properties of unattached 218 Po were investigated in argon Parameters determined in electrostatic collection experiments were radon concentration, the fraction of 218 Po having a positive charge at the end of the recoil path, the diffusion coefficient of the neutral 218 Po species, and the ratio of the neutralisation rate constant of charged 218 Po species to the electrical mobility of charged 218 Po species. Independent electrical mobility data were obtained using a pulse width modulated ion mobility analyser. The neutralisation rate constant for charged 218 Po species was then determined from the electrostatic collection data together with the independent mobility data. Relative humidity (RH) and radon concentration were found to affect the neutralisation mechanism. Following recoil of the charged 218 Po species, neutralisation through recombination with small negative ions is important for radon concentrations greater than about 1.0 x 10 5 atoms cm -3 . The neutralisation rate constant is proportional to about the 0.6 power of the radon concentration for all relative humidities. At a radon concentration less than about 1.0 x 10 5 atoms cm -3 , the neutralisation rate constant is independent of radon concentration. (author)

Average properties of cosmic ray diffusion in solar wind streams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morfill, G.; Richter, A.K.; Scholer, M.

1979-01-01

Applying a superposed epoch analysis to the Mariner 5 plasma and magnetic field observations of 13 corotating high speed solar wind streams, we obtain the average azimuthal distribution of all relevant parameters of the background interplanetary medium, as well as those of superimposed Alfven waves. Using these measurements in model calculations allows us to determine the radial and azimuthal variation of the background and fluctuation parameters between 1 and 5 AU, and thus to calculate the cosmic ray diffusion coefficient kappa from the plasma and field properties. The calculation of kappa assumes that quasi-linear wave-particle interaction theory is applicable, and that the Alfven waves responsible for the scattering are propagating in the azimuthally varying solar wind according to geometrical optics. The consequences of these calculations regarding the occurrence of solar wind stream associated Forbush decreases are discussed

Managing multiple diffuse pressures on water quality and ecological habitat: Spatially targeting effective mitigation actions at the landscape scale.

Science.gov (United States)

Joyce, Hannah; Reaney, Sim

2015-04-01

Catchment systems provide multiple benefits for society, including: land for agriculture, climate regulation and recreational space. Yet, these systems also have undesirable externalities, such as flooding, and the benefits they create can be compromised through societal use. For example, agriculture, forestry and urban land use practices can increase the export of fine sediment and faecal indicator organisms (FIO) delivered to river systems. These diffuse landscape pressures are coupled with pressures on the in stream temperature environment from projected climate change. Such pressures can have detrimental impacts on water quality and ecological habitat and consequently the benefits they provide for society. These diffuse and in-stream pressures can be reduced through actions at the landscape scale but are commonly tackled individually. Any intervention may have benefits for other pressures and hence the challenge is to consider all of the different pressures simultaneously to find solutions with high levels of cross-pressure benefits. This research presents (1) a simple but spatially distributed model to predict the pattern of multiple pressures at the landscape scale, and (2) a method for spatially targeting the optimum location for riparian woodland planting as mitigation action against these pressures. The model follows a minimal information requirement approach along the lines of SCIMAP (www.scimap.org.uk). This approach defines the critical source areas of fine sediment diffuse pollution, rapid overland flow and FIOs, based on the analysis of the pattern of the pressure in the landscape and the connectivity from source areas to rivers. River temperature was modeled using a simple energy balance equation; focusing on temperature of inflowing and outflowing water across a catchment. The model has been calibrated using a long term observed temperature record. The modelling outcomes enabled the identification of the severity of each pressure in relative rather

Atomic layer deposition on polymer based flexible packaging materials: Growth characteristics and diffusion barrier properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaeaeriaeinen, Tommi O.; Maydannik, Philipp; Cameron, David C.; Lahtinen, Kimmo; Johansson, Petri; Kuusipalo, Jurkka

2011-01-01

One of the most promising areas for the industrial application of atomic layer deposition (ALD) is for gas barrier layers on polymers. In this work, a packaging material system with improved diffusion barrier properties has been developed and studied by applying ALD on flexible polymer based packaging materials. Nanometer scale metal oxide films have been applied to polymer-coated papers and their diffusion barrier properties have been studied by means of water vapor and oxygen transmission rates. The materials for the study were constructed in two stages: the paper was firstly extrusion coated with polymer film, which was then followed by the ALD deposition of oxide layer. The polymers used as extrusion coatings were polypropylene, low and high density polyethylene, polylactide and polyethylene terephthalate. Water vapor transmission rates (WVTRs) were measured according to method SCAN-P 22:68 and oxygen transmission rates (O 2 TRs) according to a standard ASTM D 3985. According to the results a 10 nm oxide layer already decreased the oxygen transmission by a factor of 10 compared to uncoated material. WVTR with 40 nm ALD layer was better than the level currently required for most common dry flexible packaging applications. When the oxide layer thickness was increased to 100 nm and above, the measured WVTRs were limited by the measurement set up. Using an ALD layer allowed the polymer thickness on flexible packaging materials to be reduced. Once the ALD layer was 40 nm thick, WVTRs and O 2 TRs were no longer dependent on polymer layer thickness. Thus, nanometer scale ALD oxide layers have shown their feasibility as high quality diffusion barriers on flexible packaging materials.

Atomic layer deposition on polymer based flexible packaging materials: Growth characteristics and diffusion barrier properties

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kaeaeriaeinen, Tommi O., E-mail: tommi.kaariainen@lut.f [ASTRaL, Lappeenranta University of Technology, Prikaatinkatu 3 E, 50100 Mikkeli (Finland); Maydannik, Philipp, E-mail: philipp.maydannik@lut.f [ASTRaL, Lappeenranta University of Technology, Prikaatinkatu 3 E, 50100 Mikkeli (Finland); Cameron, David C., E-mail: david.cameron@lut.f [ASTRaL, Lappeenranta University of Technology, Prikaatinkatu 3 E, 50100 Mikkeli (Finland); Lahtinen, Kimmo, E-mail: kimmo.lahtinen@tut.f [Tampere University of Technology, Paper Converting and Packaging Technology, P.O. Box 541, 33101 Tampere (Finland); Johansson, Petri, E-mail: petri.johansson@tut.f [Tampere University of Technology, Paper Converting and Packaging Technology, P.O. Box 541, 33101 Tampere (Finland); Kuusipalo, Jurkka, E-mail: jurkka.kuusipalo@tut.f [Tampere University of Technology, Paper Converting and Packaging Technology, P.O. Box 541, 33101 Tampere (Finland)

2011-03-01

One of the most promising areas for the industrial application of atomic layer deposition (ALD) is for gas barrier layers on polymers. In this work, a packaging material system with improved diffusion barrier properties has been developed and studied by applying ALD on flexible polymer based packaging materials. Nanometer scale metal oxide films have been applied to polymer-coated papers and their diffusion barrier properties have been studied by means of water vapor and oxygen transmission rates. The materials for the study were constructed in two stages: the paper was firstly extrusion coated with polymer film, which was then followed by the ALD deposition of oxide layer. The polymers used as extrusion coatings were polypropylene, low and high density polyethylene, polylactide and polyethylene terephthalate. Water vapor transmission rates (WVTRs) were measured according to method SCAN-P 22:68 and oxygen transmission rates (O{sub 2}TRs) according to a standard ASTM D 3985. According to the results a 10 nm oxide layer already decreased the oxygen transmission by a factor of 10 compared to uncoated material. WVTR with 40 nm ALD layer was better than the level currently required for most common dry flexible packaging applications. When the oxide layer thickness was increased to 100 nm and above, the measured WVTRs were limited by the measurement set up. Using an ALD layer allowed the polymer thickness on flexible packaging materials to be reduced. Once the ALD layer was 40 nm thick, WVTRs and O{sub 2}TRs were no longer dependent on polymer layer thickness. Thus, nanometer scale ALD oxide layers have shown their feasibility as high quality diffusion barriers on flexible packaging materials.

Multiple scattering of electromagnetic waves in disordered magnetic media localization parameter, energy transport velocity and diffusion constant

CERN Document Server

Pinheiro, F A; Martínez, A S

2001-01-01

We review some of our recent results concerning the single and multiple electromagnetic scattering by magnetic spherical particles. For a single electromagnetic scattering we show that the magnetic contribution alters, when compared to nonmagnetic scattering, the behavior of the cross sections and mean cosine of the scattering angle (cos omega). For ferromagnetic particles, resonances may occur even in the small-particle limit when the particle radius is much smaller than the wavelength. The resonances increase the cross sections while (cos omega) is diminished , and even may become negative. Several quantities such the Ioffe-Regel parameter for localization are calculated for the multiple scattering regime. We show that magnetic scattering favors the observation of localization of electromagnetic waves in three dimensions. Further, this is also verified for dynamical experiments, where we show that the diffusion constant can be very small. Since the magnetic permeability of the scatterers can vary significan...

Diffuse reflectance relations based on diffusion dipole theory for large absorption and reduced scattering.

Science.gov (United States)

Bremmer, Rolf H; van Gemert, Martin J C; Faber, Dirk J; van Leeuwen, Ton G; Aalders, Maurice C G

2013-08-01

Diffuse reflectance spectra are used to determine the optical properties of biological samples. In medicine and forensic science, the turbid objects under study often possess large absorption and/or scattering properties. However, data analysis is frequently based on the diffusion approximation to the radiative transfer equation, implying that it is limited to tissues where the reduced scattering coefficient dominates over the absorption coefficient. Nevertheless, up to absorption coefficients of 20  mm-1 at reduced scattering coefficients of 1 and 11.5  mm-1, we observed excellent agreement (r2=0.994) between reflectance measurements of phantoms and the diffuse reflectance equation proposed by Zonios et al. [Appl. Opt.38, 6628-6637 (1999)], derived as an approximation to one of the diffusion dipole equations of Farrell et al. [Med. Phys.19, 879-888 (1992)]. However, two parameters were fitted to all phantom experiments, including strongly absorbing samples, implying that the reflectance equation differs from diffusion theory. Yet, the exact diffusion dipole approximation at high reduced scattering and absorption also showed agreement with the phantom measurements. The mathematical structure of the diffuse reflectance relation used, derived by Zonios et al. [Appl. Opt.38, 6628-6637 (1999)], explains this observation. In conclusion, diffuse reflectance relations derived as an approximation to the diffusion dipole theory of Farrell et al. can analyze reflectance ratios accurately, even for much larger absorption than reduced scattering coefficients. This allows calibration of fiber-probe set-ups so that the object's diffuse reflectance can be related to its absorption even when large. These findings will greatly expand the application of diffuse reflection spectroscopy. In medicine, it may allow the use of blue/green wavelengths and measurements on whole blood, and in forensic science, it may allow inclusion of objects such as blood stains and cloth at crime

Correlated diffusion imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wong, Alexander; Glaister, Jeffrey; Cameron, Andrew; Haider, Masoom

2013-01-01

Prostate cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer death in the male population. Fortunately, the prognosis is excellent if detected at an early stage. Hence, the detection and localization of prostate cancer is crucial for diagnosis, as well as treatment via targeted focal therapy. New imaging techniques can potentially be invaluable tools for improving prostate cancer detection and localization. In this study, we introduce a new form of diffusion magnetic resonance imaging called correlated diffusion imaging, where the tissue being imaged is characterized by the joint correlation of diffusion signal attenuation across multiple gradient pulse strengths and timings. By taking into account signal attenuation at different water diffusion motion sensitivities, correlated diffusion imaging can provide improved delineation between cancerous tissue and healthy tissue when compared to existing diffusion imaging modalities. Quantitative evaluation using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, tissue class separability analysis, and visual assessment by an expert radiologist were performed to study correlated diffusion imaging for the task of prostate cancer diagnosis. These results are compared with that obtained using T2-weighted imaging and standard diffusion imaging (via the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC)). Experimental results suggest that correlated diffusion imaging provide improved delineation between healthy and cancerous tissue and may have potential as a diagnostic tool for cancer detection and localization in the prostate gland. A new form of diffusion magnetic resonance imaging called correlated diffusion imaging (CDI) was developed for the purpose of aiding radiologists in cancer detection and localization in the prostate gland. Preliminary results show CDI shows considerable promise as a diagnostic aid for radiologists in the detection and localization of prostate cancer

Measurements of ultrafast spin-profiles and spin-diffusion properties in the domain wall area at a metal/ferromagnetic film interface.

Science.gov (United States)

Sant, T; Ksenzov, D; Capotondi, F; Pedersoli, E; Manfredda, M; Kiskinova, M; Zabel, H; Kläui, M; Lüning, J; Pietsch, U; Gutt, C

2017-11-08

Exciting a ferromagnetic material with an ultrashort IR laser pulse is known to induce spin dynamics by heating the spin system and by ultrafast spin diffusion processes. Here, we report on measurements of spin-profiles and spin diffusion properties in the vicinity of domain walls in the interface region between a metallic Al layer and a ferromagnetic Co/Pd thin film upon IR excitation. We followed the ultrafast temporal evolution by means of an ultrafast resonant magnetic scattering experiment in surface scattering geometry, which enables us to exploit the evolution of the domain network within a 1/e distance of 3 nm to 5 nm from the Al/FM film interface. We observe a magnetization-reversal close to the domain wall boundaries that becomes more pronounced closer to the Al/FM film interface. This magnetization-reversal is driven by the different transport properties of majority and minority carriers through a magnetically disordered domain network. Its finite lateral extension has allowed us to measure the ultrafast spin-diffusion coefficients and ultrafast spin velocities for majority and minority carriers upon IR excitation.

First-principles investigation of the electronic and Li-ion diffusion properties of LiFePO4 by sulfur surface modification

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, Guigui; Zhong, Kehua; Zhang, Jian-Min; Huang, Zhigao

2014-01-01

We present a first-principles calculation for the electronic and Li-ion diffusion properties of the LiFePO 4 (010) surface modified by sulfur. The calculated formation energy indicates that the sulfur adsorption on the (010) surface of the LiFePO 4 is energetically favored. Sulfur is found to form Fe-S bond with iron. A much narrower band gap (0.67 eV) of the sulfur surface-modified LiFePO 4 [S-LiFePO 4 (010)] is obtained, indicating the better electronic conductive properties. By the nudged elastic band method, our calculations show that the activation energy of Li ions diffusion along the one-dimensional channel on the surface can be effectively reduced by sulfur surface modification. In addition, the surface diffusion coefficient of S-LiFePO 4 (010) is estimated to be about 10 −11 (cm 2 /s) at room temperature, which implies that sulfur modification will give rise to a higher Li ion carrier mobility and enhanced electrochemical performance

Location-dependent coronary artery diffusive and convective mass transport properties of a lipophilic drug surrogate measured using nonlinear microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Keyes, Joseph T; Simon, Bruce R; Vande Geest, Jonathan P

2013-04-01

Arterial wall mass transport properties dictate local distribution of biomolecules or locally delivered dugs. Knowing how these properties vary between coronary artery locations could provide insight into how therapy efficacy is altered between arterial locations. We introduced an indocarbocyanine drug surrogate to the lumens of left anterior descending and right coronary (LADC; RC) arteries from pigs with or without a pressure gradient. Interstitial fluorescent intensity was measured on live samples with multiphoton microscopy. We also measured binding to porcine coronary SMCs in monoculture. Diffusive transport constants peaked in the middle sections of the LADC and RC arteries by 2.09 and 2.04 times, respectively, compared to the proximal and distal segments. There was no statistical difference between the average diffusivity value between LADC and RC arteries. The convection coefficients had an upward trend down each artery, with the RC being higher than the LADC by 3.89 times. This study demonstrates that the convective and diffusive transport of lipophilic molecules changes between the LADC and the RC arteries as well as along their length. These results may have important implications in optimizing drug delivery for the treatment of coronary artery disease.

Diffusion tensor imaging applications in multiple sclerosis patients using 3T magnetic resonance: a preliminary study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Testaverde, Lorenzo; Caporali, Laura [University ' ' Sapienza' ' of Rome, Department of Radiological Sciences, Rome (Italy); Venditti, Eugenio; Grillea, Giovanni [U.O.C. Neuroradiologia, I.R.C.C.S. ' ' Neuromed' ' , Pozzilli (Italy); Colonnese, Claudio [University ' ' Sapienza' ' of Rome, Department of Radiological Sciences, Rome (Italy); U.O.C. Neuroradiologia, I.R.C.C.S. ' ' Neuromed' ' , Pozzilli (Italy)

2012-05-15

This study evaluated patients with multiple sclerosis using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to obtain fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) values. We investigated the possible statistically significant variation of MD and FA in different MS patients, compared simultaneously, putting in comparison their normal appearing white matter (NAWM) and white matter affected by disease (plaques), both during activity and in remission, with normal white matter (NWM) of control subjects. Statistical analysis using Levene's test for comparison of variances revealed significant (P < 0.05) differences between FA values of the NWM of the controls and those of NAWM and active or inactive lesions, of the patients in the study. However, the differences between MD values of the NWM of the controls and those of NAWM and active or inactive lesions of the patients in the study were judged not significant (P > 0.05). Imaging of MS using MRI techniques is constantly searching for reproducible quantitative parameter. This study shows how these parameters can be identified in the MD and FA values, and thus suggests the implementation of MRI routine protocols for diagnosing MS with the DTI analysis, since it can provide valuable information otherwise unobtainable. (orig.)

Symmetry properties of fractional diffusion equations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gazizov, R K; Kasatkin, A A; Lukashchuk, S Yu [Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Karl Marx strausse 12, Ufa (Russian Federation)], E-mail: gazizov@mail.rb.ru, E-mail: alexei_kasatkin@mail.ru, E-mail: lsu@mail.rb.ru

2009-10-15

In this paper, nonlinear anomalous diffusion equations with time fractional derivatives (Riemann-Liouville and Caputo) of the order of 0-2 are considered. Lie point symmetries of these equations are investigated and compared. Examples of using the obtained symmetries for constructing exact solutions of the equations under consideration are presented.

Diffusion in compacted betonite

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muurinen, A.; Rantanen, J.

1985-01-01

The objective of this report is to collect the literature bearing on the diffusion in compacted betonite, which has been suggested as possible buffer material for the disposal of spent fuel. Diffusion in a porous, water-saturated material is usually described as diffusion in the pore-water where sorption on the solid matter can delay the migration in the instationary state. There are also models which take into consideration that the sorbed molecules can also move while being sorbed. Diffusion experiments in compacted bentonite have been reported by many authors. Gases, anions, cations and actinides have been used as diffusing molecules. The report collects the results and the information on the measurement methods. On the basis of the results can be concluded that different particles possibly follow different diffusion mechanisms. The parameters which affect the diffusion seem to be for example the size, the electric charge and the sorption properties of the diffusing molecule. The report also suggest the parameters to be used in the diffusion calculation of the safety analyses of spent fuel disposal. (author)

Enhancement of diffusers BRDF accuracy

Science.gov (United States)

Otter, Gerard; Bazalgette Courrèges-Lacoste, Gregory; van Brug, Hedser; Schaarsberg, Jos Groote; Delwart, Steven; del Bello, Umberto

2017-11-01

This paper reports the result of an ESA study conducted at TNO to investigate properties of various diffusers. Diffusers are widely used in space instruments as part of the on-board absolute calibration. Knowledge of the behaviour of the diffuser is therefore most important. From measurements of launched instruments in-orbit it has been discovered that when a diffuser is used in the vacuum of space the BRDF can change with respect to the one in ambient conditions. This is called the air/vacuum effect and has been simulated in this study by measuring the BRDF in a laboratory in ambient as well as vacuum conditions. Another studied effect is related to the design parameters of the optical system and the scattering properties of the diffuser. The effect is called Spectral Features and is a noise like structure superimposed on the diffuser BRDF. Modern space spectrometers, which have high spectral resolution and/or a small field of view (high spatial resolution) are suffering from this effect. The choice of diffuser can be very critical with respect to the required absolute radiometric calibration of an instrument. Even if the Spectral Features are small it can influence the error budget of the retrieval algorithms for the level 2 products. in this presentation diffuser trade-off results are presented and the Spectral Features model applied to the optical configuration of the MERIS instrument is compared to in-flight measurements of MERIS.

Langevin equation with multiplicative white noise: Transformation of diffusion processes into the Wiener process in different prescriptions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kwok, Sau Fa

2012-01-01

A Langevin equation with multiplicative white noise and its corresponding Fokker–Planck equation are considered in this work. From the Fokker–Planck equation a transformation into the Wiener process is provided for different orders of prescription in discretization rule for the stochastic integrals. A few applications are also discussed. - Highlights: ► Fokker–Planck equation corresponding to the Langevin equation with mul- tiplicative white noise is presented. ► Transformation of diffusion processes into the Wiener process in different prescriptions is provided. ► The prescription parameter is associated with the growth rate for a Gompertz-type model.

Three-dimensional multiple reciprocity boundary element method for one-group neutron diffusion eigenvalue computations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Itagaki, Masafumi; Sahashi, Naoki.

1996-01-01

The multiple reciprocity method (MRM) in conjunction with the boundary element method has been employed to solve one-group eigenvalue problems described by the three-dimensional (3-D) neutron diffusion equation. The domain integral related to the fission source is transformed into a series of boundary-only integrals, with the aid of the higher order fundamental solutions based on the spherical and the modified spherical Bessel functions. Since each degree of the higher order fundamental solutions in the 3-D cases has a singularity of order (1/r), the above series of boundary integrals requires additional terms which do not appear in the 2-D MRM formulation. The critical eigenvalue itself can be also described using only boundary integrals. Test calculations show that Wielandt's spectral shift technique guarantees rapid and stable convergence of 3-D MRM computations. (author)

Histogram analysis of diffusion measures in clinically isolated syndromes and relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yu Chunshui; Lin Fuchun; Liu Yaou; Duan Yunyun; Lei Hao; Li Kuncheng

2008-01-01

Objective: The purposes of our study were to employ diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)-based histogram analysis to determine the presence of occult damage in clinically isolated syndrome (CIS), to compare its severity with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), and to determine correlations between DTI histogram measures and clinical and MRI indices in these two diseases. Materials and methods: DTI scans were performed in 19 CIS and 19 RRMS patients and 19 matched healthy volunteers. Histogram analyses of mean diffusivity and fractional anisotropy were performed in normal-appearing brain tissue (NABT), normal-appearing white matter (NAWM) and gray matter (NAGM). Correlations were analyzed between these measures and expanded disability status scale (EDSS) scores, T 2 WI lesion volumes (LV) and normalized brain tissue volumes (NBTV) in CIS and RRMS patients. Results: Significant differences were found among CIS, RRMS and control groups in the NBTV and most of the DTI histogram measures of the NABT, NAWM and NAGM. In CIS patients, some DTI histogram measures showed significant correlations with LV and NBTV, but none of them with EDSS. In RRMS patients, however, some DTI histogram measures were significantly correlated with LV, NBTV and EDSS. Conclusion: Occult damage occurs in both NAGM and NAWM in CIS, but the severity is milder than that in RRMS. In CIS and RRMS, the occult damage might be related to both T2 lesion load and brain tissue atrophy. Some DTI histogram measures might be useful for assessing the disease progression in RRMS patients

Laboratory Characterization of Chemico-osmotic, Hydraulic and Diffusion Properties of Rocks: Apparatus Development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeda, M.; Hiratsuka, T.; Ito, K.

2009-01-01

Excess fluid pressures induced by chemical osmosis in natural formations may have a significant influence on groundwater systems in a geological time scale. Examinations of the possibility and duration times require characterization of the chemico-osmotic, hydraulic and diffusion properties of representative formation media under field conditions. To develop a laboratory apparatus for chemical osmosis experiments that simulates in-situ conditions, typical litho-static and background pore pressures, a fundamental concept of the chemical osmosis experiment using a closed fluid circuit system (referred to as a closed system hereafter) was revisited. Coupled processes in the experiment were examined numerically. In preliminary experiments at atmospheric pressure a chemical osmosis experiment using the closed system was demonstrated. An approximation method for determining the chemico-osmotic property was attempted. Based on preliminary examinations, an experimental system capable of loading the confining and pore pressures on the sample was thus developed. (authors)

Surface-based reconstruction and diffusion MRI in the assessment of gray and white matter damage in multiple sclerosis

Science.gov (United States)

Caffini, Matteo; Bergsland, Niels; LaganÃ, Marcella; Tavazzi, Eleonora; Tortorella, Paola; Rovaris, Marco; Baselli, Giuseppe

2014-03-01

Despite advances in the application of nonconventional MRI techniques in furthering the understanding of multiple sclerosis pathogenic mechanisms, there are still many unanswered questions, such as the relationship between gray and white matter damage. We applied a combination of advanced surface-based reconstruction and diffusion tensor imaging techniques to address this issue. We found significant relationships between white matter tract integrity indices and corresponding cortical structures. Our results suggest a direct link between damage in white and gray matter and contribute to the notion of gray matter loss relating to clinical disability.

Simulations of the Thermodynamic and Diffusion Properties of Actinide Oxide Fuel Materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Becker, Udo

2013-01-01

Spent nuclear fuel from commercial reactors is comprised of 95-99 percent UO 2 and 1-5 percent fission products and transuranic elements. Certain actinides and fission products are of particular interest in terms of fuel stability, which affects reprocessing and waste materials. The transuranics found in spent nuclear fuels are Np, Pu, Am, and Cm, some of which have long half- lives (e.g., 2.1 million years for 237 Np). These actinides can be separated and recycled into new fuel matrices, thereby reducing the nuclear waste inventory. Oxides of these actinides are isostructural with UO 2 , and are expected to form solid solutions. This project will use computational techniques to conduct a comprehensive study on thermodynamic properties of actinide-oxide solid solutions. The goals of this project are to: Determine the temperature-dependent mixing properties of actinide-oxide fuels; Validate computational methods by comparing results with experimental results; Expand research scope to complex (ternary and quaternary) mixed actinide oxide fuels. After deriving phase diagrams and the stability of solid solutions as a function of temperature and pressure, the project team will determine whether potential phase separations or ordered phases can actually occur by studying diffusion of cations and the kinetics of potential phase separations or ordered phases. In addition, the team will investigate the diffusion of fission product gases that can also have a significant influence on fuel stability. Once the system has been established for binary solid solutions of Th, U, Np, and Pu oxides, the methodology can be quickly applied to new compositions that apply to ternaries and quaternaries, higher actinides (Am, Cm), burnable poisons (B, Gd, Hf), and fission products (Cs, Sr, Tc) to improve reactivity

Synchronized stability in a reaction–diffusion neural network model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Ling; Zhao, Hongyong, E-mail: hongyongz@126.com

2014-11-14

The reaction–diffusion neural network consisting of a pair of identical tri-neuron loops is considered. We present detailed discussions about the synchronized stability and Hopf bifurcation, deducing the non-trivial role that delay plays in different locations. The corresponding numerical simulations are used to illustrate the effectiveness of the obtained results. In addition, the numerical results about the effects of diffusion reveal that diffusion may speed up the tendency to synchronization and induce the synchronized equilibrium point to be stable. Furthermore, if the parameters are located in appropriate regions, multiple unstability and bistability or unstability and bistability may coexist. - Highlights: • Point to non-trivial role that τ plays in different positions. • Diffusion speeds up the tendency to synchronization. • Diffusion induces the synchronized equilibrium point to be stable. • The coexistence of multiple unstability and bistability or unstability and bistability.

Synchronized stability in a reaction–diffusion neural network model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Ling; Zhao, Hongyong

2014-01-01

The reaction–diffusion neural network consisting of a pair of identical tri-neuron loops is considered. We present detailed discussions about the synchronized stability and Hopf bifurcation, deducing the non-trivial role that delay plays in different locations. The corresponding numerical simulations are used to illustrate the effectiveness of the obtained results. In addition, the numerical results about the effects of diffusion reveal that diffusion may speed up the tendency to synchronization and induce the synchronized equilibrium point to be stable. Furthermore, if the parameters are located in appropriate regions, multiple unstability and bistability or unstability and bistability may coexist. - Highlights: • Point to non-trivial role that τ plays in different positions. • Diffusion speeds up the tendency to synchronization. • Diffusion induces the synchronized equilibrium point to be stable. • The coexistence of multiple unstability and bistability or unstability and bistability

Preparation, optical properties and 1 Multiplication-Sign 2 polymeric thermo-optic switch of polyurethane-urea

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Qiu, Fengxian, E-mail: fxqiuchem@163.com [School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Cao, Zhijuan [School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Cao, Guorong; Guan, Yijun; Shen, Qiang [Department of Physics, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Wang, Qing; Yang, Dongya [School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China)

2012-08-15

A polyurethane-urea (PUU) containing azo chromophore, polyether polyol (NJ-220) and isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI) was prepared. The structure, thermal property and mechanical properties of obtained PUU were characterized and measured by the UV-visible spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared, Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The refractive index (n) of PUU was determined at different temperature and wavelength (532 nm, 650 nm and 850 nm) using attenuated total reflection (ATR) technique, and the thermo-optic coefficients (dn/dT) were -5.3643 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -4} Degree-Sign C{sup -1}, -5.2500 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -4} Degree-Sign C{sup -1} and -4.6071 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -4} Degree-Sign C{sup -1}, respectively. Using the Charge Coupled Device (CCD) digital imaging devices, transmission loss of PUU was measured and the value was 0.659 dB cm{sup -1}. A 1 Multiplication-Sign 2 polymeric thermo-optic switch based on the thermo-optic effect of PUU film was proposed. With branching angle of 0.143 Degree-Sign and the finite difference beam propagation method (FD-BPM), the polymeric thermo-optic switch was simulated. The result showed that the power consumption of the thermo-optic switch could be only 0.72 mW, and the response time of the switch was about 3.0 ms. The obtained PUU has a significant improvement in reducing the power consumption and response time compared with those of the normal polymeric thermo-optic switches. -- Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Preparation and structural characterization of a novel azo polyurethane-urea (PUU). Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The mechanical performance and thermal property of PUU film. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The thermo-optic property, transmission loss and dispersion property of PUU. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Proposed a new 1 Multiplication-Sign 2 polymeric thermo-optic switch.

Diffusion of Wilson loops

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brzoska, A.M.; Lenz, F.; Thies, M.; Negele, J.W.

2005-01-01

A phenomenological analysis of the distribution of Wilson loops in SU(2) Yang-Mills theory is presented in which Wilson loop distributions are described as the result of a diffusion process on the group manifold. It is shown that, in the absence of forces, diffusion implies Casimir scaling and, conversely, exact Casimir scaling implies free diffusion. Screening processes occur if diffusion takes place in a potential. The crucial distinction between screening of fundamental and adjoint loops is formulated as a symmetry property related to the center symmetry of the underlying gauge theory. The results are expressed in terms of an effective Wilson loop action and compared with various limits of SU(2) Yang-Mills theory

Weak unique continuation property and a related inverse source problem for time-fractional diffusion-advection equations

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Daijun; Li, Zhiyuan; Liu, Yikan; Yamamoto, Masahiro

2017-05-01

In this paper, we first establish a weak unique continuation property for time-fractional diffusion-advection equations. The proof is mainly based on the Laplace transform and the unique continuation properties for elliptic and parabolic equations. The result is weaker than its parabolic counterpart in the sense that we additionally impose the homogeneous boundary condition. As a direct application, we prove the uniqueness for an inverse problem on determining the spatial component in the source term by interior measurements. Numerically, we reformulate our inverse source problem as an optimization problem, and propose an iterative thresholding algorithm. Finally, several numerical experiments are presented to show the accuracy and efficiency of the algorithm.

First-principles study of the diffusion mechanisms of the self-interstitial in germanium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carvalho, A; Jones, R; Janke, C; Goss, J P; Briddon, P R; Oeberg, S

2008-01-01

The self-interstitial in germanium can assume multiple configurations depending on the temperature and charge state. Here, we employ a first-principles density functional method to investigate the diffusion mechanisms of this defect. The energy barriers associated with the transformation between different structures are determined by the climbing nudged elastic band method, as a function of the charge state. The relation between the thermodynamic properties of the self-interstitial and the temperature evolution of electron radiation damage in germanium are discussed

Diffusion Weighted Imaging in Acute Attacks of Multiple Sclerosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Davoudi, Yasmin; Foroughipour, Mohsen; Torabi, Reza; Layegh, Parvaneh; Matin, Nassim; Shoeibi, Ali

2016-01-01

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is one of the most common autoimmune disorders of the central nervous system. In spite of various imaging modalities, the definitive diagnosis of MS remains challenging. This study was designed to evaluate the usefulness of diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) in the diagnosis of acute MS attack and to compare its results with contrast enhanced MRI (CE-MRI). In this cross sectional study, seventy patients with definite diagnosis of relapsing-remitting MS were included. CE-MRI using 0.1 mmol/kg gadolinium as well as DWI sequences were performed for all patients. The percentage of patients with positive DWI was compared with the results of CE-MRI and the consistency between the two imaging modalities was evaluated. Moreover, the relationship between the time of onset of patient’s symptoms and test results for both methods were investigated. CE-MRI yielded positive results for 61 (87%) patients and DWI yielded positive for 53 (76%) patients. In fifty patients (71.42%), both tests were positive and in six cases (8.57%), both were negative. The test results of three patients turned out to be positive in DWI, while they tested negative in CE-MRI. There was no significant relationship between the results of CE-MRI as well as DWI and the time of imaging from the onset of symptoms. These data indicate that while CE-MRI will depict more positive results, there are cases in which DWI will show a positive result while CE-MRI is negative. We suggest that the combination of these two imaging modalities might yield more positive results in diagnosing acute MS attack giving rise to a more accurate diagnosis

Interstitial diffusion in systems with multiple sorts of traps

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Fischer, F. D.; Svoboda, Jiří; Kozeschnik, E.

2013-01-01

Roč. 21, č. 2 (2013), Art. No. 025008 ISSN 0965-0393 R&D Projects: GA ČR GAP204/10/1784 Institutional support: RVO:68081723 Keywords : trapping energy * diffusion * modelling Subject RIV: BJ - Thermodynamics Impact factor: 1.492, year: 2013

TeV Diffuse Emission From the Inner Galaxy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amid Nayerhoda

2018-04-01

Full Text Available The TeV diffuse emission from the Galactic plane is produced by multi TeV electrons and nuclei interacting with radiation fields and ambient gas, respectively. Measurements of the TeV diffuse emission help constrain CR origin and transport properties. We present a preliminary analysis of HAWC diffuse emission data from the inner Galaxy. The HAWC measurements will be used to constrain particle transport properties close to the Galaxy center correlating the HAWC maps with predictions of the DRAGON code.

The multiple Dirichlet product and the multiple Dirichlet series

OpenAIRE

Onozuka, Tomokazu

2016-01-01

First, we define the multiple Dirichlet product and study the properties of it. From those properties, we obtain a zero-free region of a multiple Dirichlet series and a multiple Dirichlet series expression of the reciprocal of a multiple Dirichlet series.

Microstructure and properties of diffusion bonded Ti-6Al-4V parts using brazing-assisted hot isostatic pressing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, Z.; Mei, J.; Voice, W.; Beech, Steve; Wu, X.

2011-01-01

Highlights: → A low cost method of diffusion bonding has been developed for complex-shaped components of Ti6Al4V. → Vacuum brazing has been used to seal the periphery to allow encapsulation-free HIPping. → The tensile properties of the bonds are comparable with those of the bulk material, but the fatigue life was slightly reduced. - Abstract: Ti-6Al-4V couples have been diffusion bonded by hot isostatic pressing (HIPping) after vacuum brazing was used to seal the periphery of the bonding samples so that no encapsulation was required during HIPping. Analytical scanning electron microscopy was used to assess the microstructure of the HIPped interface and tensile and fatigue properties of bonded samples were compared with those of the bulk starting material. The tensile properties of the bonds were shown to be comparable with those of the bulk material, but the fatigue life was slightly downgraded. The fatigue fractures were initiated by inclusions on the bonding interface, caused by contamination before bonding, but the fatigue cracks did not propagate along the bonding interface indicating a strong bond. It is concluded that this technique of vacuum brazing plus HIPping could be used for encapsulation-free HIPping to produce complex-shaped components.

Prognostic significance of focal lesions and diffuse infiltration on MRI for multiple myeloma: a meta-analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, So-Yeon; Park, Hee-Jin [Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Hyun-Jung [Korea University College of Medicine, Department of Preventive Medicine, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Shin, Yu Ri [The Catholic University of Korea, Department of Radiology, Incheon St. Mary' s Hospital, College of Medicine, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Yun-Gyoo; Oh, Suk Joong [Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2017-06-15

MRI of bone marrow of the axial skeleton is recommended for evaluation of multiple myeloma. The impact of bone marrow involvement pattern on MRI for determining progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) is not yet clear. We performed a meta-analysis of research on the prognostic significance of MRI patterns for OS and PFS using a random effects model. Databases searched without language restriction were MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library (January 1976 to April 2014). Manual searches were also conducted. Of 10,953 citations identified in the original search, 10 cohort studies for a total of 2015 patients met the inclusion criteria. Nine of the 10 included studies are from three research groups. Pooled hazard ratios were 1.80 (95 % confidence interval [CI] 1.32-2.46; P < 0.001) for OS and 2.30 (95 % CI 1.65-3.20; P < 0.001) for PFS for focal lesions on MRI; and 1.70 (95 % CI 1.30-2.21; P < 0.001) for OS and 1.74 (95 % CI 1.07-2.85; P = 0.03) for PFS for diffuse infiltration on MRI. No significant heterogeneity was observed among studies. This meta-analysis demonstrated an association between focal lesions and diffuse infiltration and poor prognosis in this population. (orig.)

An Organizational Diffusion Study on Distance Education

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Lillian Upton; Richter, Donna L.; Miner, Kathleen R.; Watkins, Ken; Usdan, Stuart

2005-01-01

This research explored the diffusion process of distance education in schools of public health to determine best practices in the planning and implementation of future programs. The researcher traced the diffusion process by utilizing a multiple-case study methodology using a semi-structured interview to collect the perceptions of Distance…

Imaging and assessment of diffusion coefficients by magnetic resonance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tintera, J.; Dezortova, M.; Hajek, M.; Fitzek, C.

1999-01-01

The problem of assessment of molecular diffusion by magnetic resonance is highlighted and some typical applications of diffusion imaging in the diagnosis, e.g., of cerebral ischemia, changes in patients with phenylketonuria or multiple sclerosis are discussed. The images were obtained by using diffusion weighted spin echo Echo-Planar Imaging sequence with subsequent correction of the geometrical distortion of the images and calculation of the Apparent Diffusion Coefficient map

The role of red blood cell scintigraphy in the multiple-modality imaging diagnosis of a rare case of diffuse hepatic hemangiomatosis in an adult

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ernesto Cason

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Angiomas are one of the most common primary tumors of the liver. Diffuse hepatic angiomatosis, however, is quite rare and usually observed in pediatric patients. We report a rare case of diffuse hepatic hemangiomatosis in a 33-year-old woman. Case report: The patient presented with abdominal pain and a palpable upper abdominal mass. Abdominal CT and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI findings suggested diffuse hepatic hemangiomatosis, but this finding was not confirmed by subsequent contrast-enhanced abdominal ultrasonography (US. The patient then underwent single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT/CT scintigraphy with Tc-99m-labeling of red blood cells (RBC. This examination revealed increased uptake of labeled erythrocytes in several of the hepatic lesions corresponding to CT and RM findings, thereby confirming the clinical hypothesis of diffuse hepatic hemangiomatosis. Discussion: RBC scintigraphy with SPECT/CT can facilitate the comparison of other crosssectional imaging methods such as CT and MRI. This case highlights the importance of a multiple-modality approach in the imaging diagnosis of this condition.

Enhancement of diffusers BSDF accuracy: spectral features effect

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brug, H. van; Courrèges-Lacoste, G.B.; Otter, G.C.J.; Schaarsberg, J.G.; Delwart, S.; Del Bello, U.

2006-01-01

This paper reports the activities performed in the framework of the ESA contract 18432/04/NL/AR: Enhancement of diffusers BSDF Accuracy. This study was conducted to investigate properties of various diffusers. Diffusers are widely used in space instruments as part of the on-board absolute

Ferroelastic domains: mesoscopic mediators of elastic and diffusion properties of solids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Redfern, S.A.T.

2002-01-01

Full text: Microstructure is well known to play a major role in determining the mechanical properties of a material such as its hardness, slip, ductility, and creep. Another important question is how microstructure affects the chemical reactivity of a material. Dislocations and vacancies greatly enhance transport of reactants, which increases reactivity. Fast diffusion is also believed to occur along grain boundaries, providing means for mass transport over distances of cm to metres. Here, however, I focus on the influence of (intra-grain) domain microstructures associated with structural phase transitions, in particular ferroelastic phase transitions and their associated domain walls. It has been found that these can cause a large increase in chemical reactivity. Examples include those found in measurement and computational simulation of transport and diffusion of Na and Li in perovskite structures and in quartz. It has been demonstrated that ferroelastic microstructure can exert a profound control on transport, providing a possible route to the synthesis and fabrication of novel devices. The bulk elastic properties of crystals are commonly affected by phase transitions occurring within them. For ferroelastic transitions Landau theory provides a good model of the critical behaviour of the elastic constants, with mean field behaviour being followed closely. But the influence of the microstructure that results from these transitions on the apparent elastic behaviour of materials can be even greater. The behaviour of the elastic storage modulus and elastic loss modulus of a strontium-calcium titanate perovskite as a function of temperature through the cubic-tetragonal phase transition. The large elastic loss ('tan delta') arises from the movement of domain walls under applied stress in the three-point bend geometry of the experiment, and their interaction with pinning centres and grain boundaries. The dynamics of domain movement and relaxation behave according to a

Diffusion on Networks and Diffusion Weighted NMR of the Human Lung

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Buhl, Niels

2011-01-01

of the diffusion propagator to general properties of the underlying graph. Diffusion weighted NMR of the human lung with hyperpolarized noble gases, which over the last decade has been demonstrated to be a very promising way of detecting and quantifying lung diseases like emphysema, represent an obvious...... application of the above mentioned theory, given that the human lung consists of a large network of bifurcating tube like airways. 90-95% of the gas in a human lung resides in the ~30000 pulmonary acini, each of these consists of ~500 airways, which are connected as the edges in a binary tree. We model...... diffusion in the pulmonary acini as diffusion on metric graphs with this structure. The metric graph for each individual pulmonary acinus is embedded in three dimensional space via line segments. By considering an isotropic distribution of acini and a symmetric branching geometry for the line segments...

Comparison of non-Gaussian and Gaussian diffusion models of diffusion weighted imaging of rectal cancer at 3.0 T MRI.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Guangwen; Wang, Shuangshuang; Wen, Didi; Zhang, Jing; Wei, Xiaocheng; Ma, Wanling; Zhao, Weiwei; Wang, Mian; Wu, Guosheng; Zhang, Jinsong

2016-12-09

Water molecular diffusion in vivo tissue is much more complicated. We aimed to compare non-Gaussian diffusion models of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) including intra-voxel incoherent motion (IVIM), stretched-exponential model (SEM) and Gaussian diffusion model at 3.0 T MRI in patients with rectal cancer, and to determine the optimal model for investigating the water diffusion properties and characterization of rectal carcinoma. Fifty-nine consecutive patients with pathologically confirmed rectal adenocarcinoma underwent DWI with 16 b-values at a 3.0 T MRI system. DWI signals were fitted to the mono-exponential and non-Gaussian diffusion models (IVIM-mono, IVIM-bi and SEM) on primary tumor and adjacent normal rectal tissue. Parameters of standard apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), slow- and fast-ADC, fraction of fast ADC (f), α value and distributed diffusion coefficient (DDC) were generated and compared between the tumor and normal tissues. The SEM exhibited the best fitting results of actual DWI signal in rectal cancer and the normal rectal wall (R 2  = 0.998, 0.999 respectively). The DDC achieved relatively high area under the curve (AUC = 0.980) in differentiating tumor from normal rectal wall. Non-Gaussian diffusion models could assess tissue properties more accurately than the ADC derived Gaussian diffusion model. SEM may be used as a potential optimal model for characterization of rectal cancer.

CHANDRA DETECTION OF A NEW DIFFUSE X-RAY COMPONENT FROM THE GLOBULAR CLUSTER 47 TUCANAE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wu, E. M. H.; Cheng, K. S. [Department of Physics, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road (Hong Kong); Hui, C. Y. [Department of Astronomy and Space Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Kong, A. K. H.; Tam, P. H. T. [Institute of Astronomy and Department of Physics, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan (China); Dogiel, V. A., E-mail: cyhui@cnu.ac.kr [I. E. Tamm Theoretical Physics Division of P. N. Lebedev Institute of Physics, Leninskii pr. 53, 119991 Moscow (Russian Federation)

2014-06-20

In re-analyzing the archival Chandra data of the globular cluster 47 Tucanae, we have detected a new diffuse X-ray emission feature within the half-mass radius of the cluster. The spectrum of the diffuse emission can be described by a power-law model plus a plasma component with photon index Γ ∼ 1.0 and plasma temperature kT ∼ 0.2 keV. While the thermal component is apparently uniform, the non-thermal contribution falls off exponentially from the core. The observed properties could possibly be explained in the context of multiple shocks resulting from the collisions among the stellar wind in the cluster and the inverse Compton scattering between the pulsar wind and the relic photons.

Full Characterization of CO2-Oil Properties On-Chip: Solubility, Diffusivity, Extraction Pressure, Miscibility, and Contact Angle.

Science.gov (United States)

Sharbatian, Atena; Abedini, Ali; Qi, ZhenBang; Sinton, David

2018-02-20

Carbon capture, storage, and utilization technologies target a reduction in net CO 2 emissions to mitigate greenhouse gas effects. The largest such projects worldwide involve storing CO 2 through enhanced oil recovery-a technologically and economically feasible approach that combines both storage and oil recovery. Successful implementation relies on detailed measurements of CO 2 -oil properties at relevant reservoir conditions (P = 2.0-13.0 MPa and T = 23 and 50 °C). In this paper, we demonstrate a microfluidic method to quantify the comprehensive suite of mutual properties of a CO 2 and crude oil mixture including solubility, diffusivity, extraction pressure, minimum miscibility pressure (MMP), and contact angle. The time-lapse oil swelling/extraction in response to CO 2 exposure under stepwise increasing pressure was quantified via fluorescence microscopy, using the inherent fluorescence property of the oil. The CO 2 solubilities and diffusion coefficients were determined from the swelling process with measurements in strong agreement with previous results. The CO 2 -oil MMP was determined from the subsequent oil extraction process with measurements within 5% of previous values. In addition, the oil-CO 2 -silicon contact angle was measured throughout the process, with contact angle increasing with pressure. In contrast with conventional methods, which require days and ∼500 mL of fluid sample, the approach here provides a comprehensive suite of measurements, 100-fold faster with less than 1 μL of sample, and an opportunity to better inform large-scale CO 2 projects.

Evaluation of downwelling diffuse attenuation coefficient algorithms in the Red Sea

KAUST Repository

Tiwari, Surya Prakash; Yellepeddi, Sarma B.; Jones, Burton

2016-01-01

to comprehend the diffuse attenuation coefficient and its relationship with in situ properties. Two apparent optical properties, spectral remote sensing reflectance (Rrs) and the downwelling diffuse attenuation coefficient (Kd), are calculated from vertical

Quantifying brain microstructure with diffusion MRI

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Novikov, Dmitry S.; Jespersen, Sune N.; Kiselev, Valerij G.

2016-01-01

the potential to quantify the relevant length scales for neuronal tissue, such as the packing correlation length for neuronal fibers, the degree of neuronal beading, and compartment sizes. The second avenue corresponds to the long-time limit, when the observed signal can be approximated as a sum of multiple non......-exchanging anisotropic Gaussian components. Here the challenge lies in parameter estimation and in resolving its hidden degeneracies. The third avenue employs multiple diffusion encoding techniques, able to access information not contained in the conventional diffusion propagator. We conclude with our outlook...... on the future research directions which can open exciting possibilities for developing markers of pathology and development based on methods of studying mesoscopic transport in disordered systems....

Diffuse-Illumination Systems for Growing Plants

Science.gov (United States)

May, George; Ryan, Robert

2010-01-01

Agriculture in both terrestrial and space-controlled environments relies heavily on artificial illumination for efficient photosynthesis. Plant-growth illumination systems require high photon flux in the spectral range corresponding with plant photosynthetic active radiation (PAR) (400 700 nm), high spatial uniformity to promote uniform growth, and high energy efficiency to minimize electricity usage. The proposed plant-growth system takes advantage of the highly diffuse reflective surfaces on the interior of a sphere, hemisphere, or other nearly enclosed structure that is coated with highly reflective materials. This type of surface and structure uniformly mixes discrete light sources to produce highly uniform illumination. Multiple reflections from within the domelike structures are exploited to obtain diffuse illumination, which promotes the efficient reuse of photons that have not yet been absorbed by plants. The highly reflective surfaces encourage only the plant tissue (placed inside the sphere or enclosure) to absorb the light. Discrete light sources, such as light emitting diodes (LEDs), are typically used because of their high efficiency, wavelength selection, and electronically dimmable properties. The light sources are arranged to minimize shadowing and to improve uniformity. Different wavelengths of LEDs (typically blue, green, and red) are used for photosynthesis. Wavelengths outside the PAR range can be added for plant diagnostics or for growth regulation

Diffusion in building wakes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ramsdell, J.V.

1988-03-01

Straight-line Gaussian models adequately describe atmospheric diffusion for many applications. They have been modified for use in estimating diffusion in building wakes by adding terms that include projected building area and by redefining the diffusion coefficients so that the coefficients have minimum values that are related to building dimensions. In a recent study, Ramsdell reviewed the building-wake dispersion models used by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in its control room habitability assessments. The review included comparison of model estimates of centerline concentrations with concentrations observed in experiments at seven nuclear reactors. In general, the models are conservative in that they tend to predict concentrations that are greater than those actually observed. However, the models show little skill in accounting for variations in the observed concentrations. Subsequently, the experimental data and multiples linear regression techniques have been used to develop a new building wake diffusion model. This paper describes the new building wake model and compares it with other models. 8 refs., 2 figs

Relation between physicomechanical properties and diffusion phenomena in composite materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nicaise, E.

1984-06-01

One of the procedures for storing low and medium activity nuclear waste consists of coating the contaminated material in a thermosetting resin. The drums thus constitued are stored in concreted underground trenches, then covered with cement, bitumen or clayey soil. Although the risk of water circulation is low, this element represents on the one hand the major cause of natural deterioration of the polymer, and on the other hand the most likely vehicle for conveying the radioactive ions confined in the drums. It is for this reason that the study of the behaviour of polyester or epoxide-based macromolecular materials with regard to water constitutes the first stage of this work. The second part of the thesis is directed towards the study of compound materials. Indeed, the charges are represented in the first case by the nuclear waste itself; in the second case, they are introduced into the polymer beforehand, on the one hand to reduce costs, and on the other hand to give the mixture suitable mechanical and rheological properties. In this study, three types of mineral charge are added in an epoxide resin: glass balls surface-treated or not, and sand. Various techniques are implemented in order to assess and characterize the interfacial adhesion, in the different systems. The strongest polymer-charge bonds are sought in order to resist natural deterioration. Finally, the object of the confinement process, is to avoid dispersion of low and medium activity substances ( 137 Cs, 90 Sr, 60 Co, 106 Ru..) in the environment. The final stage of this work therefore consists in assessing the barrier qualities of pure or charged polymers with regard to radioactive ion diffusion. We will show in particular that the use of fine resin membranes enables the diffusion coefficient of the 137 Cs to be calculated [fr

Studies of matrix diffusion in gas phase

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hartikainen, K.; Timonen, J.; Vaeaetaeinen, K.; Pietarila, H.

1994-03-01

The diffusion of solutes from fractures into rock matrix is an important factor in the safety analysis of disposal of radioactive waste. Laboratory measurements are needed to complement field investigations for a reliable determination of the necessary transport parameters. Measurements of diffusion coefficients in tight rock samples are usually time consuming because the diffusion processes are slow. On the other hand it is well known that diffusion coefficients in the gas phase are roughly four orders of magnitude larger than those in the liquid phase. Therefore, for samples whose structures do not change much upon drying, it is possible to estimate the diffusion properties of the liquid phase when the properties of the gas phase are known. Advantages of the gas method are quick and easy measurements. In the measurements nitrogen was used as the carrier gas and helium as the tracer gas, and standard techniques have been used for helium detection. Techniques have been developed for both channel flow and through-diffusion measurements. The breakthrough curves have been measured in every experiment and all measurements have been modelled by using appropriate analytical models. As a result matrix porosities and effective diffusion coefficients in the gas phase have been determined. (12 refs., 21 figs., 6 tabs.)

Impact of time-of-day on diffusivity measures of brain tissue derived from diffusion tensor imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Cibu; Sadeghi, Neda; Nayak, Amrita; Trefler, Aaron; Sarlls, Joelle; Baker, Chris I; Pierpaoli, Carlo

2018-06-01

Diurnal fluctuations in MRI measures of structural and functional properties of the brain have been reported recently. These fluctuations may have a physiological origin, since they have been detected using different MRI modalities, and cannot be explained by factors that are typically known to confound MRI measures. While preliminary evidence suggests that measures of structural properties of the brain based on diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) fluctuate as a function of time-of-day (TOD), the underlying mechanism has not been investigated. Here, we used a longitudinal within-subjects design to investigate the impact of time-of-day on DTI measures. In addition to using the conventional monoexponential tensor model to assess TOD-related fluctuations, we used a dual compartment tensor model that allowed us to directly assess if any change in DTI measures is due to an increase in CSF/free-water volume fraction or due to an increase in water diffusivity within the parenchyma. Our results show that Trace or mean diffusivity, as measured using the conventional monoexponential tensor model tends to increase systematically from morning to afternoon scans at the interface of grey matter/CSF, most prominently in the major fissures and the sulci of the brain. Interestingly, in a recent study of the glymphatic system, these same regions were found to show late enhancement after intrathecal injection of a CSF contrast agent. The increase in Trace also impacts DTI measures of diffusivity such as radial and axial diffusivity, but does not affect fractional anisotropy. The dual compartment analysis revealed that the increase in diffusivity measures from PM to AM was driven by an increase in the volume fraction of CSF-like free-water. Taken together, our findings provide important insight into the likely physiological origins of diurnal fluctuations in MRI measurements of structural properties of the brain. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Modeling the oxygen diffusion of nanocomposite-based food packaging films.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhunia, Kanishka; Dhawan, Sumeet; Sablani, Shyam S

2012-07-01

Polymer-layered silicate nanocomposites have been shown to improve the gas barrier properties of food packaging polymers. This study developed a computer simulation model using the commercial software, COMSOL Multiphysics to analyze changes in oxygen barrier properties in terms of relative diffusivity, as influenced by configuration and structural parameters that include volume fraction (φ), aspect ratio (α), intercalation width (W), and orientation angle (θ) of nanoparticles. The simulation was performed at different φ (1%, 3%, 5%, and 7%), α (50, 100, 500, and 1000), and W (1, 3, 5, and 7 nm). The θ value was varied from 0° to 85°. Results show that diffusivity decreases with increasing volume fraction, but beyond φ = 5% and α = 500, diffusivity remained almost constant at W values of 1 and 3 nm. Higher relative diffusivity coincided with increasing W and decreasing α value for the same volume fraction of nanoparticles. Diffusivity increased as the rotational angle increased, gradually diminishing the influence of nanoparticles. Diffusivity increased drastically as θ changed from 15° to 30° (relative increment in relative diffusivity was almost 3.5 times). Nanoparticles with exfoliation configuration exhibited better oxygen barrier properties compared to intercalation. The finite element model developed in this study provides insight into oxygen barrier properties for nanocomposite with a wide range of structural parameters. This model can be used to design and manufacture an ideal nanocomposite-based food packaging film with improved gas barrier properties for industrial applications. The model will assist in designing nanocomposite polymeric structures of desired gas barrier properties for food packaging applications. In addition, this study will be helpful in formulating a combination of nanoparticle structural parameters for designing nanocomposite membranes with selective permeability for the industrial applications including membrane

Atomic diffusion in stars

CERN Document Server

Michaud, Georges; Richer, Jacques

2015-01-01

This book gives an overview of atomic diffusion, a fundamental physical process, as applied to all types of stars, from the main sequence to neutron stars. The superficial abundances of stars as well as their evolution can be significantly affected. The authors show where atomic diffusion plays an essential role and how it can be implemented in modelling.  In Part I, the authors describe the tools that are required to include atomic diffusion in models of stellar interiors and atmospheres. An important role is played by the gradient of partial radiative pressure, or radiative acceleration, which is usually neglected in stellar evolution. In Part II, the authors systematically review the contribution of atomic diffusion to each evolutionary step. The dominant effects of atomic diffusion are accompanied by more subtle effects on a large number of structural properties throughout evolution. One of the goals of this book is to provide the means for the astrophysicist or graduate student to evaluate the importanc...

Diffusion and particle mobility in 1D system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Borman, V.D.; Johansson, B.; Skorodumova, N.V.; Tronin, I.V.; Tronin, V.N.; Troyan, V.I.

2006-01-01

The transport properties of one-dimensional (1D) systems have been studied theoretically. Contradictory experimental results on molecular transport in quasi-1D systems, such as zeolite structures, when both diffusion transport acceleration and the existence of the diffusion mode with lower particle mobility (single-file diffusion ( 2 >∼t 1/2 )) have been reported, are consolidated in a consistent model. Transition from the single-file diffusion mode to an Einstein-like diffusion 2 >∼t with diffusion coefficient increasing with the density has been predicted to occur at large observation times

Signal characteristics of focal bone marrow lesions in patients with multiple myeloma using whole body T1w-TSE, T2w-STIR and diffusion-weighted imaging with background suppression

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sommer, Gregor; Bongartz, Georg; Winter, Leopold [University of Basel Hospital, Department of Radiology, Basel (Switzerland); Klarhoefer, Markus; Lenz, Claudia; Scheffler, Klaus [University of Basel Hospital, Department of Radiology, Division of Radiological Physics, Basel (Switzerland)

2011-04-15

This study analyses the diagnostic potential of Diffusion-Weighted Imaging with Background Suppression (DWIBS) in the detection of focal bone marrow lesions from multiple myeloma. The signal and contrast properties of DWIBS are evaluated in correlation with the serum concentration of M-component (MC) and compared with established T1- and T2-weighted sequences. Data from 103 consecutive studies in 81 patients are analysed retrospectively. Signal intensities and apparent Diffusion Coefficients (ADC) of 79 focal lesions in the lumbar spine or pelvis of 38 patients are determined and contrast-to-noise-ratio (CNR) is calculated. Data from patients with low (<20 g/L) and high (>20 g/dL) MC are evaluated separately. Signal intensities of focal myeloma lesions on T2w-STIR vary significantly depending on the MC, which leads to a loss in CNR in patients with high MC. No signal variation is observed for T1w-TSE and DWIBS. The CNR values provided by DWIBS in patients with high MC are slightly higher than those of T2w-STIR. ADC values in patients with low MC are significantly higher than in patients with high MC. Whole-body DWIBS has the potential to improve the conspicuity of focal myeloma lesions and provides additional biological information by ADC quantification. (orig.)

Analysis of Multiple B-Value Diffusion-Weighted Imaging in Pediatric Acute Encephalopathy

Science.gov (United States)

Tachibana, Yasuhiko; Aida, Noriko; Niwa, Tetsu; Nozawa, Kumiko; Kusagiri, Kouki; Mori, Kana; Endo, Kazuo; Obata, Takayuki; Inoue, Tomio

2013-01-01

Acute encephalopathy is a disease group more commonly seen in children. It is often severe and has neurological sequelae. Imaging is important for early diagnosis and prompt treatment to ameliorate an unfavorable outcome, but insufficient sensitivity/specificity is a problem. To overcome this, a new value (fraction of high b-pair (FH)) that could be processed from clinically acceptable MR diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) with three different b-values was designed on the basis of a two-compartment model of water diffusion signal attenuation. The purpose of this study is to compare FH with the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) regarding the detectability of pediatric acute encephalopathy. We retrospectively compared the clinical DWI of 15 children (1–10 years old, mean 2.34, 8 boys, 7 girls) of acute encephalopathy with another 16 children (1–11 years old, mean 4.89, 9 boys, 7 girls) as control. A comparison was first made visually by mapping FH on the brain images, and then a second comparison was made on the basis of 10 regions of interest (ROIs) set on cortical and subcortical areas of each child. FH map visually revealed diffusely elevated FH in cortical and subcortical areas of the patients with acute encephalopathy; the changes seemed more diffuse in FH compared to DWI. The comparison based on ROI revealed elevated mean FH in the cortical and subcortical areas of the acute encephalopathy patients compared to control with significant difference (Pencephalopathy may be superior in FH compared to ADC. PMID:23755112

Evaluation of ethanol aged PVDF: diffusion, crystallinity and dynamic mechanical thermal properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silva, Agmar J.J.; Costa, Marysilvia F.

2015-01-01

This work discuss firstly the effect of the ethanol fuel absorption by PVDF at 60°C through mass variation tests. A Fickian character was observed for the ethanol absorption kinetics of the aged PVDF at 60°C. In the second step, the dynamic mechanical thermal properties (E’, E’, E” and tan δ) of the PVDF were evaluated through dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA). The chemical structure of the materials was analyzed by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), and significant changes in the degree of crystallinity were verified after the aging. However, DMTA results showed a reduction in the storage modulus (E') of the aged PVDF, which was associated to diffusion of ethanol and swelling of the PVDF, which generated a prevailing plasticizing effect and led to reduction of its structural stiffness. (author)

Active brain changes after initiating fingolimod therapy in multiple sclerosis patients using individual voxel-based analyses for diffusion tensor imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Senda, Joe; Watanabe, Hirohisa; Endo, Kuniyuki; Yasui, Keizo; Hawsegawa, Yasuhiro; Yoneyama, Noritaka; Tsuboi, Takashi; Hara, Kazuhiro; Ito, Mizuki; Atsuta, Naoki; Epifanio, Bagarinao; Katsuno, Masahisa; Naganawa, Shinji; Sobue, Gen

2016-12-01

Voxel-based analysis (VBA) of diffusion tensor images (DTI) and voxel-based morphometry (VBM) in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) can sensitively detect occult tissue damage that underlies pathological changes in the brain. In the present study, both at the start of fingolimod and post-four months clinical remission, we assessed four patients with MS who were evaluated with VBA of DTI, VBM, and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR). DTI images for all four patients showed widespread areas of increased mean diffusivity (MD) and decreased fractional anisotropy (FA) that were beyond the high-intensity signal areas across images. After four months of continuous fingolimod therapy, DTI abnormalities progressed; in particular, MD was significantly increased, while brain volume and high-intensity signals were unchanged. These findings suggest that VBA of DTI (e.g., MD) may help assess MS demyelination as neuroinflammatory conditions, even though clinical manifestations of MS appear to be in complete remission during fingolimod.

Diffusion barrier and adhesion properties of SiO(x)N(y) and SiO(x) layers between Ag/polypyrrole composites and Si substrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Horváth, Barbara; Kawakita, Jin; Chikyow, Toyohiro

2014-06-25

This paper describes the interface reactions and diffusion between silver/polypyrrole (Ag/PPy) composite and silicon substrate. This composite material can be used as a novel technique for 3D-LSI (large-scale integration) by the fast infilling of through-silicon vias (TSV). By immersion of the silicon wafer with via holes into the dispersed solution of Ag/PPy composite, the holes are filled with the composite. It is important to develop a layer between the composite and the Si substrate with good diffusion barrier and adhesion characteristics. In this paper, SiOx and two types of SiOxNy barrier layers with various thicknesses were investigated. The interface structure between the Si substrate, the barrier, and the Ag/PPy composite was characterized by transmission electron microscopy. The adhesion and diffusion properties of the layers were established for Ag/PPy composite. Increasing thickness of SiOx proved to permit less Ag to transport into the Si substrate. SiOxNy barrier layers showed very good diffusion barrier characteristics; however, their adhesion depended strongly on their composition. A barrier layer composition with good adhesion and Ag barrier properties has been identified in this paper. These results are useful for filling conductive metal/polymer composites into TSV.

Extended phase graphs with anisotropic diffusion

Science.gov (United States)

Weigel, M.; Schwenk, S.; Kiselev, V. G.; Scheffler, K.; Hennig, J.

2010-08-01

The extended phase graph (EPG) calculus gives an elegant pictorial description of magnetization response in multi-pulse MR sequences. The use of the EPG calculus enables a high computational efficiency for the quantitation of echo intensities even for complex sequences with multiple refocusing pulses with arbitrary flip angles. In this work, the EPG concept dealing with RF pulses with arbitrary flip angles and phases is extended to account for anisotropic diffusion in the presence of arbitrary varying gradients. The diffusion effect can be expressed by specific diffusion weightings of individual magnetization pathways. This can be represented as an action of a linear operator on the magnetization state. The algorithm allows easy integration of diffusion anisotropy effects. The formalism is validated on known examples from literature and used to calculate the effective diffusion weighting in multi-echo sequences with arbitrary refocusing flip angles.

Statistical spatial properties of speckle patterns generated by multiple laser beams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Le Cain, A.; Sajer, J. M.; Riazuelo, G.

2011-01-01

This paper investigates hot spot characteristics generated by the superposition of multiple laser beams. First, properties of speckle statistics are studied in the context of only one laser beam by computing the autocorrelation function. The case of multiple laser beams is then considered. In certain conditions, it is shown that speckles have an ellipsoidal shape. Analytical expressions of hot spot radii generated by multiple laser beams are derived and compared to numerical estimates made from the autocorrelation function. They are also compared to numerical simulations performed within the paraxial approximation. Excellent agreement is found for the speckle width as well as for the speckle length. Application to the speckle patterns generated in the Laser MegaJoule configuration in the zone where all the beams overlap is presented. Influence of polarization on the size of the speckles as well as on their abundance is studied.

Contribution to the study of transport and diffusion properties inside fluoride glasses based on zirconium tetrafluoride

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bobe, Jean-Marc

1995-01-01

This research thesis addresses the study of electric and diffusion properties of fluoride and fluorine-oxide glasses based on zirconium tetrafluoride, and more specifically in the case either of glasses free of alkaline fluoride, or of glasses containing lithium fluoride or sodium fluoride. Some techniques have been systematically used for this purpose: impedance spectroscopy, and NMR of Fluorine 19, lithium 7 or sodium 23 atoms. The objectives were to determine: 1) the presence or absence of different sites for fluorine ions and, should the occasion occurs, the distribution of these ions among the different sites; 2) the nature and number of mobile ions within these materials; 3) the role played by alkaline ions in these materials. After a presentation of experimental techniques, the author reports the comparative study of electric and diffusion properties of some sets of fluorinated glasses free of alkaline fluoride, and, for comparative purposes, of some crystallized phases having a similar composition. Two chapters respectively address the study of fluorinated glasses containing sodium fluoride and of fluorinated glasses containing sodium fluoride. Then, by applying the Almond-West model to some glasses containing NaF, conductivity parameters (number of carriers, mobility, entropic factor, and so on) have been assessed for a wide range of temperatures and frequencies. Movements of F ions determined by impedance spectroscopy are compared with those obtained by NMR. [fr

Microstructure and Magnetic Properties of NdFeB Sintered Magnets Diffusion-Treated with Cu/Al Mixed Dyco Alloy-Powder

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Lee M.-W.

2017-06-01

Full Text Available We investigated the microstructural and magnetic property changes of DyCo, Cu + DyCo, and Al + DyCo diffusion-treated NdFeB sintered magnets. The coercivity of all diffusion treated magnet was increased at 880ºC of 1st post annealing(PA, by 6.1 kOe in Cu and 7.0 kOe in Al mixed DyCo coated magnets, whereas this increment was found to be relatively low (3.9 kOe in the magnet coated with DyCo only. The diffusivity and diffusion depth of Dy were increased in those magnets which were treated with Cu or Al mixed DyCo, mainly due to comparatively easy diffusion path provided by Cu and Al because of their solubility with Ndrich grain boundary phase. The formation of Cu/Al-rich grain boundary phase might have enhanced the diffusivity of Dy-atoms. Moreover, relatively a large number of Dy atoms reached into the magnet and mostly segregated at the interface of Nd2Fe14B and grain boundary phases covering Nd2Fe14B grains so that the core-shell type structures were developed. The formation of highly anisotropic (Nd, Dy2Fe14B phase layer, which acted as the shell in the core-shell type structure so as to prevent the reverse domain movement, was the cause of enhancing the coercivity of diffusion treated NdFeB magnets. Segregation of cobalt in Nd-rich TJP followed by the formation of Co-rich phase was beneficial for the coercivity enhancement, resulting in the stabilization of the metastable c-Nd2O3 phase.

Utility of Diffusion Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging with Multiple B Values in Evaluation of Pancreatic Malignant and Benign Lesions and Pancreatitis.

Science.gov (United States)

Karadeli, Elif; Erbay, Gurcan; Parlakgumus, Alper; Koc, Zafer

2018-02-01

To determine the feasibility of diffusion-weighted imaging in evaluation of pancreatic lesions and in differentiation of benign from malignant lesions. Descriptive study. Baskent University Adana Teaching and Research Center, Adana, Turkey, between September 2013 and May 2015. Forty-three lesions [pancreas adenocarcinoma (n=25)], pancreatitis (n=10), benign lesion (n=8)] were utilized with diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging with multiple b-values. Different ADC maps of diffusion weighted images by using b-values were acquired. The median ADC at all b values for malignant lesions was significantly different from that for benign lesions (pvalues were compared between benign lesions/normal parenchyma and malignant lesions/normal parenchyma, there was a significant statistical difference in all b values between benign and malignant lesions except at b 50 and b 200 (pvalue (AUC=0.804) was more effective than the lesion ADC for b 600 value (AUC=0.766) in differentiation of benign and malignant lesions. The specificity and sensitivity of the lesion/normal parenchyma ADC ratio were higher than those of ADC values of lesions. When the ADC was compared between benign lesions and pancreatitis, a significant difference was found at all b values (pvalue combinations (p>0.05). Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance images can be helpful in differentiation of pancreatic carcinoma and benign lesions. Lesion ADC / normal parenchyma ADC ratios are more important than lesion ADC values in assessment of pancreatic lesions.

Effect of elevated temperature on the composition, structure, and mechanical properties of diffusion chromized steel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Osintsev, V.D.

1986-01-01

The author studies the effect of operating temperature for equipment in contact sections of sulfuric acid workshops on the structure and mechanical properties of the chromized coatings and core of chromized articles. The ferrite lattice spacing was determined in a DRON-0.5 diffractometer according to the line in copper K /sub alpha/ radiation exposure was carried out after layer-by-layer anodic etching of the coating in an aqueous solution. It was shown that diffusion chromizing may lead to a reduction in strength properties compared with those of unchromized steel. As a base for chromized articles intended for operation at temperatures up to 475 0 C it is desirable to use steels 09G2 or 09G25, or for operation at temperatures up to 540 0 C, steels 12KhM and 12MKh

Theoretical and experimental determination of matrix diffusion and related solute transport properties of fractured tuffs from the Nevada Test Site

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Walter, G.R.

1982-10-01

Theoretical and experimental studies of the chemical and physical factors which affect molecular diffusion of dissolved substances from fractures into a tuffaceous rock matrix have been made on rocks from G-Tunnel and Yucca Mountain at the Nevada Test Site (NTS). A variety of groundwater tracers, which may be useful in field tests at the NTS, have also been developed and tested. Although a number of physical/chemical processes may cause nonconvective transport of dissolved species from fractures into the tuff matrix, molecular diffusion seems to be the most important process. Molecular diffusion in these rocks is controlled by the composition of the groundwater through multicomponent effects and several rock properties. The porosities of the samples studied ranged from about 0.1 to 0.4. The constrictivity-tortuosity parameter ranged from 0.1 and 0.3 and effective matrix-diffusion coefficients were measured to be between 2 to 17. x 10 -7 c, 2 /s for sodium halides and sodium pentafluorobenzoate. Total porosity was found to be the principle factor accounting for the variation in effective diffusion coefficients. The constrictivity-tortuosity factor was found to have a fair correlation (r = 0.75) with the median pore diameters measured by mercury intrusion. Measurements of bulk-rock electrical impedance changes with frequency indicate that the constrictivity factor has a maximum value of 0.8 to 1, but may be smaller. If the larger values are correct, then the diffusion paths in tuff are more tortuous than in granular media. Computation of the full diffusion-coefficient matrix for various tracers in J-13 well water from the NTS indicates coupling of the diffusion fluxes of all ionic species. These effects are being incorporated into a numerical model of multicomponent-matrix diffusion

Structure, electronic properties, and oxygen incorporation/diffusion characteristics of the Σ 5 TiN(310)[001] tilt grain boundary

Science.gov (United States)

McKenna, Keith P.

2018-02-01

First principles calculations are employed to investigate the structure, electronic properties, and oxygen incorporation/diffusion characteristics of the Σ 5 TiN(310) tilt grain boundary with relevance to applications of polycrystalline TiN in microelectronics and protective coatings. We show that the grain boundary does not significantly modify electronic states near the Fermi energy but does induce an upward shift of up to 0.6 eV in a number of deeper occupied bands. We also show that oxygen is preferentially incorporated into the TiN grain boundary (GB) but must overcome relatively high activation energies for further diffusion. These predictions are consistent with the "stuffed barrier model" proposed to explain the good barrier characteristics of TiN. We also show that while the oxidizing power of TiN GBs is not sufficient to reduce HfO2 (a prototypical gate dielectric material), they can act as a scavenger for interstitial oxygen. Altogether, these results provide the much needed atomistic insights into the properties of a model GB in TiN and suggest a number of directions for future investigation.

Solar Distillation System Based on Multiple-Effect Diffusion Type Still

KAUST Repository

Huang, Bin-Juine; Chong, Tze-Ling; Chang, Hsien-Shun; Wu, Po-Hsien; Kao, Yeong-Chuan

2014-01-01

The present study intends to develop a high-performance solar-assisted desalination system (SADS) using multi-effect diffusion type still (MEDS) and the vacuum tube solar collector (VTSC). A MEDS prototype was designed and built. The measured result

Geometric and mechanical properties evaluation of scaffolds for bone tissue applications designing by a reaction-diffusion models and manufactured with a material jetting system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marco A. Velasco

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Scaffolds are essential in bone tissue engineering, as they provide support to cells and growth factors necessary to regenerate tissue. In addition, they meet the mechanical function of the bone while it regenerates. Currently, the multiple methods for designing and manufacturing scaffolds are based on regular structures from a unit cell that repeats in a given domain. However, these methods do not resemble the actual structure of the trabecular bone which may work against osseous tissue regeneration. To explore the design of porous structures with similar mechanical properties to native bone, a geometric generation scheme from a reaction-diffusion model and its manufacturing via a material jetting system is proposed. This article presents the methodology used, the geometric characteristics and the modulus of elasticity of the scaffolds designed and manufactured. The method proposed shows its potential to generate structures that allow to control the basic scaffold properties for bone tissue engineering such as the width of the channels and porosity. The mechanical properties of our scaffolds are similar to trabecular tissue present in vertebrae and tibia bones. Tests on the manufactured scaffolds show that it is necessary to consider the orientation of the object relative to the printing system because the channel geometry, mechanical properties and roughness are heavily influenced by the position of the surface analyzed with respect to the printing axis. A possible line for future work may be the establishment of a set of guidelines to consider the effects of manufacturing processes in designing stages.

Diffusion in random networks: Asymptotic properties, and numerical and engineering approximations

Science.gov (United States)

Padrino, Juan C.; Zhang, Duan Z.

2016-11-01

The ensemble phase averaging technique is applied to model mass transport by diffusion in random networks. The system consists of an ensemble of random networks, where each network is made of a set of pockets connected by tortuous channels. Inside a channel, we assume that fluid transport is governed by the one-dimensional diffusion equation. Mass balance leads to an integro-differential equation for the pores mass density. The so-called dual porosity model is found to be equivalent to the leading order approximation of the integration kernel when the diffusion time scale inside the channels is small compared to the macroscopic time scale. As a test problem, we consider the one-dimensional mass diffusion in a semi-infinite domain, whose solution is sought numerically. Because of the required time to establish the linear concentration profile inside a channel, for early times the similarity variable is xt- 1 / 4 rather than xt- 1 / 2 as in the traditional theory. This early time sub-diffusive similarity can be explained by random walk theory through the network. In addition, by applying concepts of fractional calculus, we show that, for small time, the governing equation reduces to a fractional diffusion equation with known solution. We recast this solution in terms of special functions easier to compute. Comparison of the numerical and exact solutions shows excellent agreement.

Applicability of a geometrical model coupled to computed tomography to characterize the transport properties of porous materials: comparison with through diffusion experiments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chagneau, Aurelie; Claret, Francis; Made, Benoit; Tuckermann, Juergen; Enzmann, Frieder; Schaefer, Thorsten

2012-01-01

Document available in extended abstract form only. The main objective of the present study is to characterize the evolution of diffusion properties of porous materials as influenced by porosity changes. When under geochemical perturbation, the rocks porosity evolves with dissolution/precipitation processes. The impact of changes in porosity on the diffusion phenomena are implemented in most geochemical models using Archie's law: D e /D 0 = ε m where D e and D 0 are the effective diffusivity and the diffusivity of the element in water in m 2 s -1 , respectively, e is the overall porosity and m is the cementation factor. The factor m is a function of pores geometry and compaction. Depending on the rock considered, its value ranges from 1 to 3. Moreover, as the porosity decreases the connectivity of pores changes. At low overall porosity, the effective porosity is the determining parameter affecting effective diffusivity. Therefore, the Archie's law needs to be modified to accurately predict geochemical migration of pollutants such as radio-elements in a dynamic system. Our experimental approach is divided in two complementary parts: (i) diffusion experiments conducted in hot-laboratory using radiotracers and (ii) time-dependant monitoring of porosity evolution in three dimensions using computed tomography (CT). For the two approaches, simplified systems are used to define the co-evolution of porosity and diffusivity using a minimum number of parameters, in order to optimize the understanding of the basics and determining processes. For this purpose, three materials are used in diffusion columns: (i) rods of porous ceramic, (ii) artificial silica beads of different particle sizes (SiLi R ) and (iii) purified sea sand (Merck R ). The precipitation of simple salts, celestite (SrSO 4 ) and strontianite (SrCO 3 ), is forced in the porous material once placed in diffusion columns. Celestite and strontianite were chosen for their fast precipitation kinetics, and because

Diffusion of Botulinum Toxins

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Matthew A. Brodsky

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Background: It is generally agreed that diffusion of botulinum toxin occurs, but the extent of the spread and its clinical importance are disputed. Many factors have been suggested to play a role but which have the most clinical relevance is a subject of much discussion.Methods: This review discusses the variables affecting diffusion, including protein composition and molecular size as well as injection factors (e.g., volume, dose, injection method. It also discusses data on diffusion from comparative studies in animal models and human clinical trials that illustrate differences between the available botulinum toxin products (onabotulinumtoxinA, abobotulinumtoxinA, incobotulinumtoxinA, and rimabotulinumtoxinB.Results: Neither molecular weight nor the presence of complexing proteins appears to affect diffusion; however, injection volume, concentration, and dose all play roles and are modifiable. Both animal and human studies show that botulinum toxin products are not interchangeable, and that some products are associated with greater diffusion and higher rates of diffusion-related adverse events than others.Discussion: Each of the botulinum toxins is a unique pharmacologic entity. A working knowledge of the different serotypes is essential to avoid unwanted diffusion-related adverse events. In addition, clinicians should be aware that the factors influencing diffusion may range from properties intrinsic to the drug to accurate muscle selection as well as dilution, volume, and dose injected.

Diffuse Esophageal leiomyomatosis: a case report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sung, Dong Wook; Chang, Suk Ki; Park, Seoung jin; Yoon, Yup; Kim, Youn hwa [Kyung Hee University Hospital, Suwon (Korea, Republic of)

2000-09-01

Leiomyomas are the most common benign tumors found in the esophagus. They are mostly solitary and multiple diffuse lesions are rare, occurring in only 2.4% of cases (1). We describe the case of a 13-year-old boy with a history of Alport syndrome who complained of progressive dysphagia and postprandial vomiting, and in whom diffuse leiomyomatosis of the esophagus was diagnosed. Chest PA showed mediastinal widening, and a barium study revealed diffuse esophageal wall thickening with dilatation, and obstruction at the level of the distal esophagus. Manometry showed increased pressure in the lower esophagus, and CT demonstrated diffuse thickening of the entire esophageal wall and an intraluminal mass in the distal esophagus, Follow-up CT three years later showed further esophageal wall thickening, as well as luminal narrowing. By means of distal esophagectomy, diffuse leiomyomatosis involving the entire esophageal wall and intraluminal mass was diagnosed. (author)

Purulent meningitis with unusual diffusion-weighted MRI findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abe, M.; Takayama, Y.; Yamashita, H.; Noguchi, M.; Sagoh, T.

2002-01-01

We describe unusual findings obtained by diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in a patient with acute purulent meningitis caused by penicillin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae. Along cerebral convexities and the Sylvian fissure, multiple small intense lesions showed high signal intensity in these sequences. This may be the first report of diffusion-weighted in purulent meningitis

The Trouble with Diffusion

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R.T. DeHoff

2002-09-01

Full Text Available The phenomenological formalism, which yields Fick's Laws for diffusion in single phase multicomponent systems, is widely accepted as the basis for the mathematical description of diffusion. This paper focuses on problems associated with this formalism. This mode of description of the process is cumbersome, defining as it does matrices of interdiffusion coefficients (the central material properties that require a large experimental investment for their evaluation in three component systems, and, indeed cannot be evaluated for systems with more than three components. It is also argued that the physical meaning of the numerical values of these properties with respect to the atom motions in the system remains unknown. The attempt to understand the physical content of the diffusion coefficients in the phenomenological formalism has been the central fundamental problem in the theory of diffusion in crystalline alloys. The observation by Kirkendall that the crystal lattice moves during diffusion led Darken to develop the concept of intrinsic diffusion, i.e., atom motion relative to the crystal lattice. Darken and his successors sought to relate the diffusion coefficients computed for intrinsic fluxes to those obtained from the motion of radioactive tracers in chemically homogeneous samples which directly report the jump frequencies of the atoms as a function of composition and temperature. This theoretical connection between tracer, intrinsic and interdiffusion behavior would provide the basis for understanding the physical content of interdiffusion coefficients. Definitive tests of the resulting theoretical connection have been carried out for a number of binary systems for which all three kinds of observations are available. In a number of systems predictions of intrinsic coefficients from tracer data do not agree with measured values although predictions of interdiffusion coefficients appear to give reasonable agreement. Thus, the complete

Continuous diffusion signal, EAP and ODF estimation via Compressive Sensing in diffusion MRI.

Science.gov (United States)

Merlet, Sylvain L; Deriche, Rachid

2013-07-01

In this paper, we exploit the ability of Compressed Sensing (CS) to recover the whole 3D Diffusion MRI (dMRI) signal from a limited number of samples while efficiently recovering important diffusion features such as the Ensemble Average Propagator (EAP) and the Orientation Distribution Function (ODF). Some attempts to use CS in estimating diffusion signals have been done recently. However, this was mainly an experimental insight of CS capabilities in dMRI and the CS theory has not been fully exploited. In this work, we also propose to study the impact of the sparsity, the incoherence and the RIP property on the reconstruction of diffusion signals. We show that an efficient use of the CS theory enables to drastically reduce the number of measurements commonly used in dMRI acquisitions. Only 20-30 measurements, optimally spread on several b-value shells, are shown to be necessary, which is less than previous attempts to recover the diffusion signal using CS. This opens an attractive perspective to measure the diffusion signals in white matter within a reduced acquisition time and shows that CS holds great promise and opens new and exciting perspectives in diffusion MRI (dMRI). Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

How well do different tracers constrain the firn diffusivity profile?

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C. M. Trudinger

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Firn air transport models are used to interpret measurements of the composition of air in firn and bubbles trapped in ice in order to reconstruct past atmospheric composition. The diffusivity profile in the firn is usually calibrated by comparing modelled and measured concentrations for tracers with known atmospheric history. However, in most cases this is an under-determined inverse problem, often with multiple solutions giving an adequate fit to the data (this is known as equifinality. Here we describe a method to estimate the firn diffusivity profile that allows multiple solutions to be identified, in order to quantify the uncertainty in diffusivity due to equifinality. We then look at how well different combinations of tracers constrain the firn diffusivity profile. Tracers with rapid atmospheric variations like CH₃CCl₃, HFCs and ¹⁴CO₂ are most useful for constraining molecular diffusivity, while &delta:¹⁵N₂ is useful for constraining parameters related to convective mixing near the surface. When errors in the observations are small and Gaussian, three carefully selected tracers are able to constrain the molecular diffusivity profile well with minimal equifinality. However, with realistic data errors or additional processes to constrain, there is benefit to including as many tracers as possible to reduce the uncertainties. We calculate CO₂ age distributions and their spectral widths with uncertainties for five firn sites (NEEM, DE08-2, DSSW20K, South Pole 1995 and South Pole 2001 with quite different characteristics and tracers available for calibration. We recommend moving away from the use of a firn model with one calibrated parameter set to infer atmospheric histories, and instead suggest using multiple parameter sets, preferably with multiple representations of uncertain processes, to assist in quantification of the uncertainties.

Diffusion-weighted imaging helps differentiate multiple sclerosis and neuromyelitis optica-related acute optic neuritis.

Science.gov (United States)

Wan, Hailin; He, Huijin; Zhang, Fang; Sha, Yan; Tian, Guohong

2017-06-01

To evaluate the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values between multiple sclerosis (MS) and neuromyelitis optica (NMO)-related acute optic neuritis (ON) patients and predict their optic nerve atrophy of optic coherence tomography (OCT) parameters. Nineteen MS and 15 NMO-related acute ON patients who underwent a diffusion-weighted imaging sequence in 3.0 Tesla MR scanner and a follow-up OCT examination after 6 months were included. The ADC values, thickness of the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) and the macular ganglion cell complex (GCC) between MS and NMO related ON were assessed. The mean ADC value of the NMO-ON, (0.691 ± 0.195[SD]) × 10 -3 mm 2 /s, was significantly smaller (P = 0.0133) than that of MS-ON. The mean ADC value of MS-ON, (0.879 ± 0.144) × 10 -3 mm 2 /s, was significantly smaller (P < 0.0001) than that of control group, (1.025 ± 0.067) × 10 -3 mm 2 /s. Using an ADC value smaller than 0.830 × 10 -3 mm 2 /s as the threshold value for differentiating MS-ON from NMO-ON patients, the highest accuracy of 76.7%, with 75.0% sensitivity and 78.3% specificity, was obtained. The ADC value measured at the acute stage of ON was correlated with the thickness of the RNFL (r = 0.441; P = 0.006) and the GCC (r = 0.526; P < 0.0001) after 6 months. The ADC value might be helpful for differentiating MS-ON from NMO-ON patients. The decreased ADC value was correlated with optic nerve atrophy on OCT. 3 Technical Efficacy: Stage 2 J. MAGN. RESON. IMAGING 2017;45:1780-1785. © 2016 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

An axisymmetric diffusion experiment for the determination of diffusion and sorption coefficients of rock samples.

Science.gov (United States)

Takeda, M; Hiratsuka, T; Ito, K; Finsterle, S

2011-04-25

Diffusion anisotropy is a critical property in predicting migration of substances in sedimentary formations with very low permeability. The diffusion anisotropy of sedimentary rocks has been evaluated mainly from laboratory diffusion experiments, in which the directional diffusivities are separately estimated by through-diffusion experiments using different rock samples, or concurrently by in-diffusion experiments in which only the tracer profile in a rock block is measured. To estimate the diffusion anisotropy from a single rock sample, this study proposes an axisymmetric diffusion test, in which tracer diffuses between a cylindrical rock sample and a surrounding solution reservoir. The tracer diffusion between the sample and reservoir can be monitored from the reservoir tracer concentrations, and the tracer profile could also be obtained after dismantling the sample. Semi-analytical solutions are derived for tracer concentrations in both the reservoir and sample, accounting for an anisotropic diffusion tensor of rank two as well as the dilution effects from sampling and replacement of reservoir solution. The transient and steady-state analyses were examined experimentally and numerically for different experimental configurations, but without the need for tracer profiling. These experimental configurations are tested for in- and out-diffusion experiments using Koetoi and Wakkanai mudstones and Shirahama sandstone, and are scrutinized by a numerical approach to identify favorable conditions for parameter estimation. The analysis reveals the difficulty in estimating diffusion anisotropy; test configurations are proposed for enhanced identifiability of diffusion anisotropy. Moreover, it is demonstrated that the axisymmetric diffusion test is efficient in obtaining the sorption parameter from both steady-state and transient data, and in determining the effective diffusion coefficient if isotropic diffusion is assumed. Moreover, measuring reservoir concentrations in an

An asixymmetric diffusion experiment for the determination of diffusion and sorption coefficients of rock samples

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takeda, M.; Hiratsuka, T.; Ito, K.; Finsterle, S.

2011-02-01

Diffusion anisotropy is a critical property in predicting migration of substances in sedimentary formations with very low permeability. The diffusion anisotropy of sedimentary rocks has been evaluated mainly from laboratory diffusion experiments, in which the directional diffusivities are separately estimated by through-diffusion experiments using different rock samples, or concurrently by in-diffusion experiments in which only the tracer profile in a rock block is measured. To estimate the diffusion anisotropy from a single rock sample, this study proposes an axisymmetric diffusion test, in which tracer diffuses between a cylindrical rock sample and a surrounding solution reservoir. The tracer diffusion between the sample and reservoir can be monitored from the reservoir tracer concentrations, and the tracer profile could also be obtained after dismantling the sample. Semi-analytical solutions are derived for tracer concentrations in both the reservoir and sample, accounting for an anisotropic diffusion tensor of rank two as well as the dilution effects from sampling and replacement of reservoir solution. The transient and steady-state analyses were examined experimentally and numerically for different experimental configurations, but without the need for tracer profiling. These experimental configurations are tested for in- and out-diffusion experiments using Koetoi and Wakkanai mudstones and Shirahama sandstone, and are scrutinized by a numerical approach to identify favorable conditions for parameter estimation. The analysis reveals the difficulty in estimating diffusion anisotropy; test configurations are proposed for enhanced identifiability of diffusion anisotropy. Moreover, it is demonstrated that the axisymmetric diffusion test is efficient in obtaining the sorption parameter from both steady-state and transient data, and in determining the effective diffusion coefficient if isotropic diffusion is assumed. Moreover, measuring reservoir concentrations in an

Diffusion of Implanted Radioisotopes in Solids

CERN Multimedia

2002-01-01

Implantation of radioisotopes into metal and semiconductor samples is performed. The implanted isotope or its decay-product should have a half-life long enough for radiotracer diffusion experiments. Such radioisotopes are utilized to investigate basic diffusion properties in semiconductors and metals and to improve our understanding of the atomic mechanisms of diffusion. For suitably chosen systems the combination of on-line production and clean implantation of radioisotopes at the ISOLDE facility opens new possibilities for diffusion studies in solids. \\\\ \\\\ The investigations are concentrated on diffusion studies of $^{195}$Au in amorphous materials. The isotope $^{195}$Au was obtained from the mass 195 of the mercury beam. $^{195}$Hg decays into $^{195}$Au which is a very convenient isotope for diffusion experiments. \\\\ \\\\ It was found that $^{195}$Au is a slow diffusor in amorphous Co-Zr alloys, whereas Co is a fast diffusor in the same matrix. The ``asymmetry'' in the diffusion behaviour is of considerab...

Multiple Scale Reaction-Diffusion-Advection Problems with Moving Fronts

Science.gov (United States)

Nefedov, Nikolay

2016-06-01

In this work we discuss the further development of the general scheme of the asymptotic method of differential inequalities to investigate stability and motion of sharp internal layers (fronts) for nonlinear singularly perturbed parabolic equations, which are called in applications reaction-diffusion-advection equations. Our approach is illustrated for some new important cases of initial boundary value problems. We present results on stability and on the motion of the fronts.

Systematic homogenization and self-consistent flux and pin power reconstruction for nodal diffusion methods. 1: Diffusion equation-based theory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, H.; Rizwan-uddin; Dorning, J.J.

1995-01-01

A diffusion equation-based systematic homogenization theory and a self-consistent dehomogenization theory for fuel assemblies have been developed for use with coarse-mesh nodal diffusion calculations of light water reactors. The theoretical development is based on a multiple-scales asymptotic expansion carried out through second order in a small parameter, the ratio of the average diffusion length to the reactor characteristic dimension. By starting from the neutron diffusion equation for a three-dimensional heterogeneous medium and introducing two spatial scales, the development systematically yields an assembly-homogenized global diffusion equation with self-consistent expressions for the assembly-homogenized diffusion tensor elements and cross sections and assembly-surface-flux discontinuity factors. The rector eigenvalue 1/k eff is shown to be obtained to the second order in the small parameter, and the heterogeneous diffusion theory flux is shown to be obtained to leading order in that parameter. The latter of these two results provides a natural procedure for the reconstruction of the local fluxes and the determination of pin powers, even though homogenized assemblies are used in the global nodal diffusion calculation

Modeling on the cathodoluminescence properties of the thin film phosphors for field emission flat panel displays

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Kyu-Gong

2000-12-01

In order to investigate the effects of the film roughness with the fundamental luminance parameters of thin film phosphors, Y2 O3:Eu films with different thickness and roughness values were deposited on various substrate materials using a pulsed laser deposition technique under a controlled experimental procedure. The best luminous efficiency was observed from the Y2O3:Eu films on quartz substrates due to the smaller refractive index and low absorption characteristics of the quartz substrates which produce a larger amount of total internal reflection in the film and low loss of light intensity during the multiple internal reflections. The trapped light inside the film can escape the film more easily due to rougher film surface. The better epitaxial growth capability of the Y2O 3:Eu films with the LaAlO3 substrates resulted in higher luminous efficiency in the small surface roughness region. Higher luminous efficiency was observed in reflection mode than in transmission mode due to the contribution of diffusely scattered light at the air-film interface. A new theoretical model based on the diffraction scattering theory of light, the steady-state diffusion condition of carriers and the Kanaya-Okayama's electron- beam-solid interaction range satisfactorily explains all the experimental results mentioned above. The model also provides solid understandings on the cathodoluminescence properties of the thin film phosphors with the effects of other single or multiple luminance parameters. The parameters encountered for the model are surface roughness, electron-beam-solid interaction, surface recombination rate of carriers, charge carrier diffusion properties, multiple scattering at the interfaces (air- film, film-substrate, and substrate-air), optical properties of the material, film thickness, and substrate type. The model supplies a general solution in both qualitative and quantitative ways to estimate the luminance properties of the thin film phosphors and it can be

Synthesis, characterization, and property studies of (La, Ag) FeO{sub 3} (0.0 {<=} x {<=} 0.3) perovskites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bellakki, Manjunath B.; Kelly, Brandon J. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523 (United States); Manivannan, V., E-mail: mani@engr.colosate.ed [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523 (United States)

2010-01-07

Applying a solution - based combustion process, Ag-doped LaFeO{sub 3} orthoferrites were synthesized. The samples were characterized by multiple techniques to establish structure - property relationships. Specifically, for structural characterization, powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), Fourier transmission infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), and X-ray photoelectron microscopy (XPS) were carried out. For properties, squid magnetometer measurements (for magnetic properties), titrations (for chemical analysis), and diffuse reflectance (for optical band gap properties) measurements were carried out to elucidate structure-property relationship.

Centimetre-scale electron diffusion in photoactive organic heterostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Burlingame, Quinn; Coburn, Caleb; Che, Xiaozhou; Panda, Anurag; Qu, Yue; Forrest, Stephen R.

2018-02-01

The unique properties of organic semiconductors, such as flexibility and lightness, are increasingly important for information displays, lighting and energy generation. But organics suffer from both static and dynamic disorder, and this can lead to variable-range carrier hopping, which results in notoriously poor electrical properties, with low electron and hole mobilities and correspondingly short charge-diffusion lengths of less than a micrometre. Here we demonstrate a photoactive (light-responsive) organic heterostructure comprising a thin fullerene channel sandwiched between an electron-blocking layer and a blended donor:C70 fullerene heterojunction that generates charges by dissociating excitons. Centimetre-scale diffusion of electrons is observed in the fullerene channel, and this can be fitted with a simple electron diffusion model. Our experiments enable the direct measurement of charge diffusivity in organic semiconductors, which is as high as 0.83 ± 0.07 square centimetres per second in a C60 channel at room temperature. The high diffusivity of the fullerene combined with the extraordinarily long charge-recombination time yields diffusion lengths of more than 3.5 centimetres, orders of magnitude larger than expected for an organic system.

On estimating the effective diffusive properties of hardened cement pastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stora, E.; Bary, B.; Stora, E.; He, Qi-Chang

2008-01-01

The effective diffusion coefficients of hardened cement pastes can vary between a few orders of magnitude. The paper aims at building a homogenization model to estimate these macroscopic diffusivities and capture such strong variations. For this purpose, a three-scale description of the paste is proposed, relying mainly on the fact that the initial cement grains hydrate forming a complex microstructure with a multi-scale pore structure. In particular, porosity is found to be well connected at a fine scale. However, only a few homogenization schemes are shown to be adequate to account for such connectivity. Among them, the mixed composite spheres assemblage estimate (Stora, E., He, Q.-C., Bary, B.: J. Appl. Phys. 100(8), 084910, 2006a) seems to be the only one that always complies with rigorous bounds and is consequently employed to predict the effects of this fine porosity on the material effective diffusivities. The model proposed provides predictions in good agreement with experimental results and is consistent with the numerous measurements of critical pore diameters issued from mercury intrusion porosimetry tests. The evolution of the effective diffusivities of cement pastes subjected to leaching is also assessed by adopting a simplified scenario of the decalcification process. (authors)

Plasma diffusion in systems with disrupted magnetic surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morozov, D.K.; Pogutse, O.P.

1982-01-01

Plasma diffusion is analyzed in the case in which the system of magnetic surfaces is disrupted by a stochastic perturbation of the magnetic field. The diffusion coefficient is related to the statistical properties of the field. The statistical characteristics of the field are found when the magnetic surfaces near the separatrix are disrupted by an external perturbation. The diffusion coefficient is evaluated in the region in which the magnetic surfaces are disrupted. In this region the diffusion coefficient is of the Bohm form

On Some New Properties of the Fundamental Solution to the Multi-Dimensional Space- and Time-Fractional Diffusion-Wave Equation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yuri Luchko

2017-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper, some new properties of the fundamental solution to the multi-dimensional space- and time-fractional diffusion-wave equation are deduced. We start with the Mellin-Barnes representation of the fundamental solution that was derived in the previous publications of the author. The Mellin-Barnes integral is used to obtain two new representations of the fundamental solution in the form of the Mellin convolution of the special functions of the Wright type. Moreover, some new closed-form formulas for particular cases of the fundamental solution are derived. In particular, we solve the open problem of the representation of the fundamental solution to the two-dimensional neutral-fractional diffusion-wave equation in terms of the known special functions.

Modeling the influence of the parameters the diffusion of chromium plating on operational and physical and mechanical properties of steels for stamping tool

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Олександр Петрович Чейлях

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The diffusion hardening steel can be produced in any plant having a thermal equipment, besides, it is more economical than obtaining an alloy steel with similar properties. The influence of the parameters of the diffusion of chromium plating (the composition of the steel, powder mixture on the structure and mechanical properties of structural and tool steels was investigated. Results of X-ray analysis showed that the diffusion zone in the samples consists of two layers. First layer is predominantly carbides Cr7C3, Cr23C6, Fe3C. An intermediate layer composed of carbon-free solid solution of chromium in the iron. The maximum total thickness of the diffusion zone is observed in the steel 130Cr12V1 and 130Cr12Mo1 (~80 µm, minimum – in carbon steels 45, U10 (~10-30 µm. The thickness of carbide layer is approximately the same – 1-3 µm. Analyzing of data micro-hardness measurement across the thickness of the diffusion zone it must be noted that the diffusion layers of the samples of the tool steels have a high micro-hardness 6000-10000. The maximum HV=10200 was in steel 30Cr2W8V1. Chromium saturation of steel surface significantly increases its wear resistance. A much greater effect of increase of coefficient of relative wear resistance (3 fold increase was observed in steels 30Cr2W8V1, 130Cr12V1 and 130Cr12Mo1. The mathematical models relating the micro-hardness, wear resistance, the thickness of the diffusion layer were obtained. In view of the analytical relationships ascertained that the wear resistance of hardened steels substantially depend on the thickness of the diffusion coating, the micro-hardness of the layer and the core of steel and alloy steels has increased more than two times. For hardening steel punching tool 30Cr2W8V1 can be recommended composition of the powder mixture: 50% FeCr + 48% Al2O3 + 2% NaF, and for steel 130Cr12V1 preferably used as activator NH4F

Application of polycrystalline diffusion barriers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsymbal, V.A.; Kolupaev, I.N.

2010-01-01

Degradation of contacts of the electronic equipment at the raised temperatures is connected with active diffusion redistribution of components contact - metalized systems (CMS) and phase production on interphase borders. One of systems diffusion barriers (DB) are polycrystalline silicide a film, in particular silicides of the titan. Reception disilicide the titan (TiSi 2 ) which on the parameters is demanded for conditions of microelectronics from known silicides of system Ti-Si, is possible as a result of direct reaction of a film of the titan and a substrate of silicon, and at sedimentation of layer Ti-Si demanded stoichiometric structure. Simultaneously there is specific problem polycrystalline diffusion a barrier (PDB): the polycrystalline provides structural balance and metastability film disilicide, but leaves in it borders of grains - easy local ways of diffusion. In clause the analysis diffusion permeability polycrystalline and polyphase DB is made and recommendations for practical methods of increase of blocking properties PDB are made.

Flux pinning properties of impurity doped MgB2 bulks synthesized by diffusion method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ueda, Shinya; Shimoyama, Jun-ichi; Yamamoto, Akiyasu; Katsura, Yukari; Iwayama, Isao; Horii, Shigeru; Kishio, Kohji

2005-01-01

Doping effects of carbon-containing impurities on the critical current properties and microstructure were systematically studied for highly dense MgB 2 bulks prepared by the diffusion method starting from magnesium and boron which are separately packed in sealed stainless tubes. Obtained samples exhibited improved critical current density, J c , simply by an increase of effective current pass. A non-doped MgB 2 recorded almost double high J c at 20 K compared with those of the conventional porous MgB 2 bulks having ∼50% of the theoretical density, while irreversibility field, H irr , did not largely change. J c under high magnetic fields were enhanced by doping of carbon-containing impurities, such as SiC and B 4 C. Optimal doping levels of SiC and B 4 C for high critical current properties at 20 K are found to be ∼2% and 5%, respectively, as nominal carbon concentration at boron site. Difference in the optimal doping levels is originated from the difference in their reactivity

Use of x-ray absorption imaging to evaluate the effects of heterogeneity on matrix diffusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Altman, S.J.; Tidwell, V.C.; McKenna, S.A.; Meigs, L.C.

1998-01-01

An understanding of matrix diffusion is important in assessing potential nuclear waste repositories in geologic media, as it is a potentially significant process in retarding the transport of contaminant species. Recent work done in evaluating the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in southeastern New Mexico has brought up two issues that complicate the incorporation of diffusion in Performance Assessment calculations. First, interpretations of single-well tracer test data suggest that the tracer was diffusing at multiple rates. Second, the estimated relevant rate(s) of diffusion are dependent on the time and length scales of the problem. To match the observed tracer test data, a model with a distribution of diffusion coefficients was required. This has led to the proposal of applying a model with multiple rates of diffusion, the multirate model, to Performance Assessment calculations for the WIPP. A series of laboratory- scale experiments have been designed for the purpose of evaluating heterogeneity and scaling properties of diffusion rates and to test the multirate model. X-ray absorption imaging was used to visualize and quantify the effects of matrix heterogeneity on the diffusion characteristics for four different centimeter-scale samples of dolomite. The samples were obtained from the Culebra dolomite at the WIPP site. Significant variations in diffusion rates were observed over relatively small length and time (months) scales for the preliminary laboratory experiments. A strong correlation between diffusion rate and porosity was also observed in each of the samples. Two sets of experiments are planned for 1998. The first set of experiments is similar to those described above. For these experiments, fourteen samples exhibiting a broader range of physical characteristics are being tested. The second set of experiments will visualize the combined effect of advection in a fracture and diffusion into adjacent matrix materials. Tracer solution will flow through

Radon diffusion studies in air, gravel, sand, soil and water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Singh, B.; Singh, S.; Virk, H.S.

1993-01-01

Radon isotopes are practically inert and have properties of gases under conditions of geological interest. During their brief lives their atoms are capable of moving from sites of their generation. Radon diffusion studies were carried out in air, gravel, sand, soil and water using silicon diffused junction electronic detector, Alphameter-400. Diffusion constant and diffusion length is calculated for all these materials. (author)

Tracer diffusion study in binary alloys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bocquet, Jean-Louis

1973-01-01

The diffusional properties of dilute alloys are quite well described with 5 vacancy jump frequencies: the diffusion experiments allow as to determine only 3 jump frequency ratios. The first experiment set, found by Howard and Manning, was used in order to determine the 3 frequency ratios in the dilute Cu-Fe alloy. N.V. Doan has shown that the isotope effect measurements may be replaced by easier electromigration experiments: this new method was used with success for the dilute Ag-Zn and Ag-Cd alloys. Two effects which take place in less dilute alloys cannot be explained with the 5 frequency model, these are: the linear enhancement of solute diffusion and the departure from linear enhancement of solvent diffusion versus solute concentration. To explain these effects, we have had to take account of the influence of solute pairs on diffusion via 53 new vacancy jump frequencies. Diffusion in a concentrated alloy can be described with a quasi-chemical approach: we show that a description with 'surrounded atoms' allows the simultaneous explanation of the thermodynamical properties of the binary solid solution, the dependence of atomic jump frequencies with respect to the local concentration of the alloy. In this model, the two atomic species have a jump frequency spectrum at their disposal, which seems to greatly modify Manning's correlation analysis. (author) [fr

Excluded-volume effects in the diffusion of hard spheres

KAUST Repository

Bruna, Maria; Chapman, S. Jonathan

2012-01-01

Excluded-volume effects can play an important role in determining transport properties in diffusion of particles. Here, the diffusion of finite-sized hard-core interacting particles in two or three dimensions is considered systematically using

Diffusion Experiments in Opalinus Clay: Laboratory, Large-Scale Diffusion Experiments and Microscale Analysis by RBS.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garcia-Gutierrez, M.; Alonso de los Rios, U.; Missana, T.; Cormenzana, J.L.; Mingarro, M.; Morejon, J.; Gil, P.

2008-08-06

The Opalinus Clay (OPA) formation in the Zurcher Weiland (Switzerland) is a potential host rock for a repository for high-level radioactive waste. Samples collected in the Mont Terri Underground Rock Laboratory (URL), where the OPA formation is located at a depth between -200 and -300 m below the surface, were used to study the radionuclide diffusion in clay materials. Classical laboratory essays and a novel experimental set-up for large-scale diffusion experiments were performed together to a novel application of the nuclear ion beam technique Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry (RBS), to understand the transport properties of the OPA and to enhance the methodologies used for in situ diffusion experiments. Through-Diffusion and In-Diffusion conventional laboratory diffusion experiments were carried out with HTO, 36{sup C}l-, I-, 22{sup N}a, 75{sup S}e, 85{sup S}r, 233{sup U}, 137{sup C}s, 60{sup C}o and 152{sup E}u. Large-scale diffusion experiments were performed with HTO, 36{sup C}l, and 85{sup S}r, and new experiments with 60{sup C}o, 137{sup C}s and 152{sup E}u are ongoing. Diffusion experiments with RBS technique were done with Sr, Re, U and Eu. (Author) 38 refs.

Imaging brain microstructure with diffusion MRI

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Alexander, Daniel C; Dyrby, Tim B; Nilsson, Markus

2018-01-01

This article gives an overview of microstructure imaging of the brain with diffusion MRI and reviews the state of the art. The microstructure-imaging paradigm aims to estimate and map microscopic properties of tissue using a model that links these properties to the voxel scale MR signal. Imaging ...

Thermodynamic calculations of self- and hetero-diffusion parameters in germanium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saltas, V.; Vallianatos, F.

2015-01-01

In the present work, the diffusion coefficients of n- and p-type dopants (P, As, Sb, Al) and self-diffusion in crystalline germanium are calculated from the bulk elastic properties of the host material based on the cBΩ thermodynamic model. The calculated diffusion coefficients as a function of temperature and the activation enthalpies prove to be in full agreement with the reported experimental results. Additional point defect parameters such as activation entropy, activation volume and activation Gibbs free energy are also calculated for each diffusing element. The pressure dependence of self-diffusion coefficients in germanium is also verified at high temperatures (876 K–1086 K), in agreement with reported results ranging from ambient pressure up to 600 MPa and is further calculated at pressures up to 3 GPa, where the phase transition to Ge II occurs. - Highlights: • Calculation of diffusivities of n- and p-type dopants in Ge from elastic properties. • Calculation of point defect parameters according to the cBΩ thermodynamic model. • Prediction of the pressure dependence of self-diffusion coefficients in Ge

The VLT-FLAMES Tarantula Survey. XXII. Multiplicity properties of the B-type stars

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dunstall, P.R.; Dufton, P.L.; Sana, H.; Evans, C.J.; Howarth, I.D.; Simón-Díaz, S.; de Mink, S.E.; Langer, N.; Maíz Apellániz, J.; Taylor, W.D.

2015-01-01

We investigate the multiplicity properties of 408 B-type stars observed in the 30 Doradus region of the Large Magellanic Cloud with multi-epoch spectroscopy from the VLT-FLAMES Tarantula Survey (VFTS). We use a cross-correlation method to estimate relative radial velocities from the helium and metal

Microstructure-property relationships in a gas diffusion layer (GDL) for Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cells, Part I: effect of compression and anisotropy of dry GDL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holzer, L.; Pecho, O.; Schumacher, J.; Marmet, Ph.; Stenzel, O.; Büchi, F.N.; Lamibrac, A.; Münch, B.

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Methods are developed to predict transport properties of dry GDL in PE Fuel Cells. • Diffusivity and Permeability are reliably predicted based on 3D characteristics. • Predictions based on 3D microstructure match well with numerical simulations. • Anisotropy is due to in- and through-plane variation of tortuosity and hydraulic rad. • The methods can be used to predict relative permeability and diffusivity in wet GDL. - Abstract: New quantitative relationships are established between effective properties (gas diffusivity, permeability and electrical conductivity) for a dry GDL (25 BA) from SGL Carbon with the corresponding microstructure characteristics from 3D analysis. These microstructure characteristics include phase volume fractions, geodesic tortuosity, constrictivity and hydraulic radius. The latter two parameters include information from two different size distribution curves for bulges (continuous PSD) and for bottlenecks (MIP-PSD). X-ray tomographic microscopy is performed for GDL at different compression levels and the micro-macro-relationships are then established for the in-plane and through-plane directions. The predicted properties based on these relationships are compared with numerical transport simulations, which give very similar results and which can be summarized as follows: Gas diffusivity is higher in the in-plane than in the through-plane direction. Its variation with compression is mainly related to changes of porosity and geodesic tortuosity. Permeability is dominated by variations in hydraulic radius. Through-plane permeability is slightly higher than in-plane. Anisotropy of electrical conductivity is controlled by tortuosity, which is higher for the through-plane direction. A table with new quantitative relationships is provided, which are considered to be more accurate and precise than older descriptions (e.g. Carman-Kozeny, Bruggeman), because they are based on detailed topological information from 3D analysis

Insights into cadmium diffusion mechanisms in two-stage diffusion profiles in solar-grade Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Biderman, N. J.; Sundaramoorthy, R.; Haldar, Pradeep; Novak, Steven W.; Lloyd, J. R.

2015-01-01

Cadmium diffusion experiments were performed on polished copper indium gallium diselenide (Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 or CIGS) samples with resulting cadmium diffusion profiles measured by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy. Experiments done in the annealing temperature range between 275 °C and 425 °C reveal two-stage cadmium diffusion profiles which may be indicative of multiple diffusion mechanisms. Each stage can be described by the standard solutions of Fick's second law. The slower cadmium diffusion in the first stage can be described by the Arrhenius equation D 1  = 3 × 10 −4  exp (− 1.53 eV/k B T) cm 2  s −1 , possibly representing vacancy-meditated diffusion. The faster second-stage diffusion coefficients determined in these experiments match the previously reported cadmium diffusion Arrhenius equation of D 2  = 4.8 × 10 −4  exp (−1.04 eV/k B T) cm 2  s −1 , suggesting an interstitial-based mechanism

Dynamical properties of the growing continuum using multiple-scale method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hynčík L.

2008-12-01

Full Text Available The theory of growth and remodeling is applied to the 1D continuum. This can be mentioned e.g. as a model of the muscle fibre or piezo-electric stack. Hyperelastic material described by free energy potential suggested by Fung is used whereas the change of stiffness is taken into account. Corresponding equations define the dynamical system with two degrees of freedom. Its stability and the properties of bifurcations are studied using multiple-scale method. There are shown the conditions under which the degenerated Hopf's bifurcation is occuring.

Voxel-based clustered imaging by multiparameter diffusion tensor images for glioma grading.

Science.gov (United States)

Inano, Rika; Oishi, Naoya; Kunieda, Takeharu; Arakawa, Yoshiki; Yamao, Yukihiro; Shibata, Sumiya; Kikuchi, Takayuki; Fukuyama, Hidenao; Miyamoto, Susumu

2014-01-01

Gliomas are the most common intra-axial primary brain tumour; therefore, predicting glioma grade would influence therapeutic strategies. Although several methods based on single or multiple parameters from diagnostic images exist, a definitive method for pre-operatively determining glioma grade remains unknown. We aimed to develop an unsupervised method using multiple parameters from pre-operative diffusion tensor images for obtaining a clustered image that could enable visual grading of gliomas. Fourteen patients with low-grade gliomas and 19 with high-grade gliomas underwent diffusion tensor imaging and three-dimensional T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging before tumour resection. Seven features including diffusion-weighted imaging, fractional anisotropy, first eigenvalue, second eigenvalue, third eigenvalue, mean diffusivity and raw T2 signal with no diffusion weighting, were extracted as multiple parameters from diffusion tensor imaging. We developed a two-level clustering approach for a self-organizing map followed by the K-means algorithm to enable unsupervised clustering of a large number of input vectors with the seven features for the whole brain. The vectors were grouped by the self-organizing map as protoclusters, which were classified into the smaller number of clusters by K-means to make a voxel-based diffusion tensor-based clustered image. Furthermore, we also determined if the diffusion tensor-based clustered image was really helpful for predicting pre-operative glioma grade in a supervised manner. The ratio of each class in the diffusion tensor-based clustered images was calculated from the regions of interest manually traced on the diffusion tensor imaging space, and the common logarithmic ratio scales were calculated. We then applied support vector machine as a classifier for distinguishing between low- and high-grade gliomas. Consequently, the sensitivity, specificity, accuracy and area under the curve of receiver operating characteristic

Diffusion bonding in compact heat exchangers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Southall, David

2009-01-01

Heatric's diffusion bonding process is a solid-state joining technology that produces strong, compact, all-metal heat exchanger cores. Diffusion bonding allows for a large quantity of joints to be made in geometries that would normally be inaccessible for conventional welding techniques. Since Heatric's diffusion bonding process uses no interlayer or braze alloy, the resulting heat exchanger core has consistent chemistry throughout and, under carefully controlled conditions, a return to parent metal strength can be reached. This paper will provide an overview of the diffusion bonding process and its origins, and also its application to compact heat exchanger construction. The paper will then discuss recent work that has been done to compare mechanical properties of Heatric's diffusion bonded material with material that has been conventionally welded, as well as with material tested in the as-received condition. (author)

Diffuse Solar System Design and Utilization in Agriculture and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Diffuse solar radiation is a component of total solar radiation that is good for low temperature grade heating. Since the portion of the scattered radiation from the sun, which consists of short and long waves, that reaches the earth is diffused, its utilization in Agriculture as this paper suggested, has multiple phase change ...

SC lipid model membranes designed for studying impact of ceramide species on drug diffusion and permeation--part II: diffusion and permeation of model drugs.

Science.gov (United States)

Ochalek, M; Podhaisky, H; Ruettinger, H-H; Wohlrab, J; Neubert, R H H

2012-10-01

The barrier function of two quaternary stratum corneum (SC) lipid model membranes, which were previously characterized with regard to the lipid organization, was investigated based on diffusion studies of model drugs with varying lipophilicities. Diffusion experiments of a hydrophilic drug, urea, and more lipophilic drugs than urea (i.e. caffeine, diclofenac sodium) were conducted using Franz-type diffusion cells. The amount of permeated drug was analyzed using either HPLC or CE technique. The subjects of interest in the present study were the investigation of the influence of physicochemical properties of model drugs on their diffusion and permeation through SC lipid model membranes, as well as the study of the impact of the constituents of these artificial systems (particularly ceramide species) on their barrier properties. The diffusion through both SC lipid model membranes and the human SC of the most hydrophilic model drug, urea, was faster than the permeation of the more lipophilic drugs. The slowest rate of permeation through SC lipid systems occurred in the case of caffeine. The composition of SC lipid model membranes has a significant impact on their barrier function. Model drugs diffused and permeated faster through Membrane II (presence of Cer [EOS]). In terms of the barrier properties, Membrane II is much more similar to the human SC than Membrane I. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Diffusion and adhesion properties of Cu films on polyimide substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liang, T.X.; Liu, Y.Q.; Fu, Z.Q.; Luo, T.Y.; Zhang, K.Y.

2005-01-01

Copper thin films were prepared on polyimide (PI) substrates by physical vapor deposition (PVD) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Titanium nitride (TiN) diffusion barrier layers were deposited between the copper films and the PI substrates by PVD. Auger electron spectroscopy compositional depth profile showed that TiN barrier layer was very effective in preventing copper diffusion into PI substrate even after the Cu/TiN/PI samples were annealed at 300 deg. C for 5 h. For the as-deposited CVD-Cu/PI, CVD-Cu/TiN/PI, and as-deposited PVD-Cu/PI samples, the residual stress in Cu films was very small. Relatively larger residual stress existed in Cu films for PVD-Cu/TiN/PI samples. For PVD-Cu/TiN/PI samples, annealing can increase the peeling strength to the level observed without a diffusion barrier. The adhesion improvement of Cu films by annealing treatment can be attributed to lowering of the residual tensile stress in Cu films

On the asymptotic preserving property of the unified gas kinetic scheme for the diffusion limit of linear kinetic models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mieussens, Luc

2013-01-01

The unified gas kinetic scheme (UGKS) of K. Xu et al. (2010) [37], originally developed for multiscale gas dynamics problems, is applied in this paper to a linear kinetic model of radiative transfer theory. While such problems exhibit purely diffusive behavior in the optically thick (or small Knudsen) regime, we prove that UGKS is still asymptotic preserving (AP) in this regime, but for the free transport regime as well. Moreover, this scheme is modified to include a time implicit discretization of the limit diffusion equation, and to correctly capture the solution in case of boundary layers. Contrary to many AP schemes, this method is based on a standard finite volume approach, it does neither use any decomposition of the solution, nor staggered grids. Several numerical tests demonstrate the properties of the scheme

DASH-FP, Multicomponent Time-Dependent Concentration Diffusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Apperson, C.E. Jr.; Carruthers, L.M.; Shinn, J.F.; Lee, C.E.

1995-01-01

1 - Description of program or function: The program DASH-FP calculates the transient concentration of multiple diffusing species with radioactive decay. 2 - Method of solution: Uses finite difference and exponential operator techniques

Atomic defects and diffusion in metals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Siegel, R.W.

1981-11-01

The tracer self-diffusion data for fcc and refractory bcc metals are briefly reviewed with respect to (i) the available monovacancy formation and migration properties and (ii) the high-temperature diffusion enhancement above that expected for mass transport via atomic exchange with monovacancies. While the atomic-defect mechanism for low-temperature self-diffusion can be reliably attributed to monovacancies, the mechanisms responsible for high-temperature mass transport are not so easily defined at this time; both divacancies and interstitials must be seriously considered. Possibilities for improving our understanding in this area are discussed. 68 references, 7 figures

Multicomponent diffusion in molten salt NaF-ZrF{sub 4}: Dynamical correlations and Maxwell–Stefan diffusivities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baig, Mohammad Saad, E-mail: saad110baig@gmail.com; Chakraborty, Brahmananda; Ramaniah, Lavanya M. [High Pressure & Synchrotron Radiation Physics Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Trombay, Mumbai-85 (India)

2016-05-23

NaF-ZrF{sub 4} is used as a waste incinerator and as a coolant in Generation IV reactors.Structural and dynamical properties of molten NaF-ZrF{sub 4} system were studied along with Onsagercoefficients and Maxwell–Stefan (MS) Diffusivities applying Green–Kubo formalism and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The zirconium ions are found to be 8 fold coordinated with fluoride ions for all temperatures and concentrations. All the diffusive flux correlations show back-scattering. Even though the MS diffusivities are expected to depend very lightly on the composition because of decoupling of thermodynamic factor, the diffusivity Đ{sub Na-F} shows interesting behavior with the increase in concentration of ZrF{sub 4}. This is because of network formation in NaF-ZrF{sub 4}. Positive entropy constraints have been plotted to authenticate negative diffusivities observed.

Diffusion properties of a guiding center plasma in a model electrostatic turbulence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pettini, M.; Vulpiani, A.; Misguich, J.H.; Balescu, R.; De Leener, M.; Orban, J.

1986-01-01

Numerical simulations have been performed to calculate the diffusion coefficient of several hundreds of charged particles across a strong magnetic field B, due to a known spectrum of electrostatic fluctuations. The results have been compared with the turbulent diffusion theory proposed by Misguich et al. The equation of motion is solved with a model electrostatic potential. This potential is also the Hamiltonian of this chaotic non-autonomous system: positive Lyapunov exponents are found in qualitative agreement with theoretical predictions. The absolute diffusion coefficients found in two different models exhibit a transition between two scaling regions: a classical scaling at low amplitudes (D ∼ E 2 /B 2 ), and a Bohm scaling at higher amplitudes (D ∼ E/B), in agreement with the predictions for these models. The value of the diffusion coefficient obtained in the isotropic model shows a satisfactory agreement with the theory. The study of the relative diffusion of initially close particles yields a clear quantitative confirmation of the clump effect and of the validity of the theoretical treatment of such nonlinearities. (26 fig, 20 refs)

Diffusion and surface alloying of gradient nanostructured metals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhenbo Wang

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Gradient nanostructures (GNSs have been optimized in recent years for desired performance. The diffusion behavior in GNS metals is crucial for understanding the diffusion mechanism and relative characteristics of different interfaces that provide fundamental understanding for advancing the traditional surface alloying processes. In this paper, atomic diffusion, reactive diffusion, and surface alloying processes are reviewed for various metals with a preformed GNS surface layer. We emphasize the promoted atomic diffusion and reactive diffusion in the GNS surface layer that are related to a higher interfacial energy state with respect to those in relaxed coarse-grained samples. Accordingly, different surface alloying processes, such as nitriding and chromizing, have been modified significantly, and some diffusion-related properties have been enhanced. Finally, the perspectives on current research in this field are discussed.

Diffusion of Finite-Size Particles in Confined Geometries

KAUST Repository

Bruna, Maria; Chapman, S. Jonathan

2013-01-01

The diffusion of finite-size hard-core interacting particles in two- or three-dimensional confined domains is considered in the limit that the confinement dimensions become comparable to the particle's dimensions. The result is a nonlinear diffusion equation for the one-particle probability density function, with an overall collective diffusion that depends on both the excluded-volume and the narrow confinement. By including both these effects, the equation is able to interpolate between severe confinement (for example, single-file diffusion) and unconfined diffusion. Numerical solutions of both the effective nonlinear diffusion equation and the stochastic particle system are presented and compared. As an application, the case of diffusion under a ratchet potential is considered, and the change in transport properties due to excluded-volume and confinement effects is examined. © 2013 Society for Mathematical Biology.

Modifying glass surfaces via internal diffusion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Smedskjaer, M.M.; Yue, Y.Z.; Deubener, J.

2010-01-01

leads to outward diffusion (OD) of divalent cations (primarily Mg2+), i.e., diffusion from the interior of the glass to the surface, and thereby, to formation of an oxide surface nano-layer. in contrast, when the glasses are heat-treated in H-2/N-2 gas containing 10 vol.% H-2, reduction of Fe3+ to Fe2...... on some properties such as hardness, chemical durability, and surface wettability....

Diffusion through statically compacted clay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ho, C.L.; Shebl, M.A.A.

1994-01-01

This paper presents experimental work on the effect of compaction on contaminant flow through clay liners. The experimental program included evaluation of soil properties, compaction, permeability and solute diffusion. A permeameter was built of non reactive materials to test samples compacted at different water contents and compactive efforts. The flow of a permeating solute, LiCl, was monitored. Effluent samples were collected for solute concentration measurements. The concentrations were measured by performing atomic adsorption tests. The analyzed results showed different diffusion characteristics when compaction conditions changed. At each compactive effort, permeability decreased as molding water content increased. Consequently, transit time (measured at relative concentration 50%) increased and diffusivity decreased. As compactive effort increased for soils compacted dry of optimum, permeability and diffusion decreased. On the other hand, as compactive effort increased for soils compacted wet of optimum, permeability and diffusivity increased. Tortuosity factor was indirectly measured from the diffusion and retardation rate. Tortuosity factor also decreased as placement water content was increased from dry of optimum to wet of optimum. Then decreases were more pronounced for low compactive effort tests. 27 refs., 7 figs., 5 tabs

Private E-Mail Requests and the Diffusion of Responsibility.

Science.gov (United States)

Barron, Greg; Yechiam, Eldad

2002-01-01

Discussion of e-mail technology and requesting information from multiple sources simultaneously focuses on an experiment demonstrating that addressing e-mails simultaneously to multiple recipients may actually reduce the number of helpful responses. Discusses diffusion of responsibility and implications for the application of social cueing theory…

Characteristics of lesional and extra-lesional cortical grey matter in relapsing-remitting and secondary progressive multiple sclerosis: A magnetisation transfer and diffusion tensor imaging study.

Science.gov (United States)

Yaldizli, Özgür; Pardini, Matteo; Sethi, Varun; Muhlert, Nils; Liu, Zheng; Tozer, Daniel J; Samson, Rebecca S; Wheeler-Kingshott, Claudia Am; Yousry, Tarek A; Miller, David H; Chard, Declan T

2016-02-01

In multiple sclerosis (MS), diffusion tensor and magnetisation transfer imaging are both abnormal in lesional and extra-lesional cortical grey matter, but differences between clinical subtypes and associations with clinical outcomes have only been partly assessed. To compare mean diffusivity, fractional anisotropy and magnetisation transfer ratio (MTR) in cortical grey matter lesions (detected using phase-sensitive inversion recovery (PSIR) imaging) and extra-lesional cortical grey matter, and assess associations with disability in relapse-onset MS. Seventy-two people with MS (46 relapsing-remitting (RR), 26 secondary progressive (SP)) and 36 healthy controls were included in this study. MTR, mean diffusivity and fractional anisotropy were measured in lesional and extra-lesional cortical grey matter. Mean fractional anisotropy was higher and MTR lower in lesional compared with extra-lesional cortical grey matter. In extra-lesional cortical grey matter mean fractional anisotropy and MTR were lower, and mean diffusivity was higher in the MS group compared with controls. Mean MTR was lower and mean diffusivity was higher in lesional and extra-lesional cortical grey matter in SPMS when compared with RRMS. These differences were independent of disease duration. In multivariate analyses, MTR in extra-lesional more so than lesional cortical grey matter was associated with disability. Magnetic resonance abnormalities in lesional and extra-lesional cortical grey matter are greater in SPMS than RRMS. Changes in extra-lesional compared with lesional cortical grey matter are more consistently associated with disability. © The Author(s), 2015.

[Triexponential diffusion analysis in invasive ductal carcinoma and fibroadenoma].

Science.gov (United States)

Nakagawa, Masayuki; Miyati, Tosiaki; Hayashi, Tatsuya; Kanao, Syotaro; Taniguchi, Masahiro; Higashimura, Kyoji; Toi, Masakazu; Togashi, Kaori

2014-03-01

To simultaneously obtain information on diffusion and perfusion in breast lesions by diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI), we analyzed three diffusion components using a triexponential function. Eighteen subjects [10 with invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC), 8 with fibroadenoma] were evaluated using DWI with multiple b-values. We derived perfusion-related diffusion, fast free diffusion, and slow restricted diffusion coefficients (Dp, Df, Ds) calculated from the triexponential function using the DWI data. Moreover, the triexponential analysis was compared with biexponential and monoexponential analyses. Each diffusion coefficient with a triexponential function was correlated to a relative enhancement ratio (RER) using dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI. In triexponential analysis, Dp and Ds in IDC were significantly higher than those for fibroadenoma. There was no correlation between each diffusion coefficient from the triexponential analysis in any of the groups (Dp, Df, and Ds), but biexponential analysis revealed a positive correlation between each diffusion coefficient in breast lesions. Strong correlations were found between Dp and RERs. Triexponential analysis thus makes it possible to obtain, in noninvasive fashion, more detailed diffusion and perfusion information in breast lesions.

Diffusion of insoluble carbon in zirconium oxides

CERN Document Server

Vykhodets, V B; Koester, U; Kondrat'ev, V V; Kesarev, A G; Hulsen, C; Kurennykh, T E

2011-01-01

The diffusion coefficient of insoluble carbon in zirconium oxides has been obtained for the temperature range of 900-1000A degrees C. There are no published data on the diffusion of insoluble impurities; these data are of current interest for the diffusion theory and nuclear technologies. Tracer atoms 13C have been introduced into oxides by means of ion implantation and the kinetics of their emission from the samples in the process of annealing in air has been analyzed. The measurements have been performed using the methods of nuclear microanalysis and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The diffusion activation energy is 2.7 eV and the carbon diffusion coefficient is about six orders of magnitude smaller than that for oxygen self-diffusion in the same systems. This result indicates the strong anomaly of the diffusion properties of carbon in oxides. As a result, zirconium oxides cannot be used in some nuclear technologies, in particular, as a material of sources for accelerators of short-lived carbon isotopes.

Self-diffusion in single crystalline silicon nanowires

Science.gov (United States)

Südkamp, T.; Hamdana, G.; Descoins, M.; Mangelinck, D.; Wasisto, H. S.; Peiner, E.; Bracht, H.

2018-04-01

Self-diffusion experiments in single crystalline isotopically controlled silicon nanowires with diameters of 70 and 400 nm at 850 and 1000 °C are reported. The isotope structures were first epitaxially grown on top of silicon substrate wafers. Nanowires were subsequently fabricated using a nanosphere lithography process in combination with inductively coupled plasma dry reactive ion etching. Three-dimensional profiling of the nanosized structure before and after diffusion annealing was performed by means of atom probe tomography (APT). Self-diffusion profiles obtained from APT analyses are accurately described by Fick's law for self-diffusion. Data obtained for silicon self-diffusion in nanowires are equal to the results reported for bulk silicon crystals, i.e., finite size effects and high surface-to-volume ratios do not significantly affect silicon self-diffusion. This shows that the properties of native point defects determined from self-diffusion in bulk crystals also hold for nanosized silicon structures with diameters down to 70 nm.

Benchmarks with diffusion theory and transport theory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cunha Menezes Filho, A. da; Souza, A.L. de.

1984-01-01

The multiplication factor and some spectral indices for five critical assemblies (ZPR-6-7, ZPR-3-11, GODIVA, BIG-TEN and FLATTOP) are calculated by Diffusion and Transport Theory, with group constants generated by MC 2 (for diffusion calculations) and by NJOY (for transport calculations). The discrepancies encountered in the ZPR-6-7 spectra, can be tracked to the large differences in the elastic cross section for Iron, calculated by MC 2 and NJOY. (Author) [pt

Diffusion layer modeling for condensation with multi-component noncondensable gases

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peterson, P.F.

1999-01-01

Many condensation problems involving noncondensable gases have multiple noncondensable species, for example air (with nitrogen, oxygen, and other gases); and other problems where light gases like hydrogen may mix with heavier gases like nitrogen. Particularly when the binary mass diffusion coefficients of the noncondensable species are substantially different, the noncondensable species tend to segregate in the condensation boundary layer. This paper presents a fundamental analysis of the mass transport with multiple noncondensable species, identifying a simple method to calculate an effective mass diffusion coefficient that can be used with the simple diffusion layer model, and discusses in detail the effects of using mass and mole based quantities, and various simplifying approximations, on predicted condensation rates. The results are illustrated with quantitative examples to demonstrate the potential importance of multi-component noncondensable gas effects

The relevance of light diffusion profiles for interstitial PDT using light-diffusing optical fibers

Science.gov (United States)

Stringasci, Mirian D.; Fortunato, Thereza C.; Moriyama, Lilian T.; Vollet Filho, José Dirceu; Bagnato, Vanderlei S.; Kurachi, Cristina

2017-02-01

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a technique used for several tumor types treatment. Light penetration on biological tissue is one limiting factor for PDT applied to large tumors. An alternative is using interstitial PDT, in which optical fibers are inserted into tumors. Cylindrical diffusers have been used in interstitial PDT. Light emission of different diffusers depends on the manufacturing process, size and optical properties of fibers, which make difficult to establish an adequate light dosimetry, since usually light profile is not designed for direct tissue-fiber contact. This study discusses the relevance of light distribution by a cylindrical diffuser into a turbid lipid emulsion solution, and how parts of a single diffuser contribute to illumination. A 2 cm-long cylindrical diffuser optical fiber was connected to a diode laser (630 nm), and the light spatial distribution was measured by scanning the solution with a collection probe. From the light field profile generated by a 1 mm-long intermediary element of a 20 mm-long cylindrical diffuser, recovery of light distribution for the entire diffuser was obtained. PDT was performed in rat healthy liver for a real treatment outcome analysis. By using computational tools, a typical necrosis profile generated by the irradiation with such a diffuser fiber was reconstructed. The results showed that it was possible predicting theoretically the shape of a necrosis profile in a healthy, homogeneous tissue with reasonable accuracy. The ability to predict the necrosis profile obtained from an interstitial illumination by optical diffusers has the potential improve light dosimetry for interstitial PDT.

Phase Stability in the Mo-Ti-Zr-C System via Thermodynamic Modeling and Diffusion Multiple Validation

Science.gov (United States)

Kar, Sujoy Kumar; Dheeradhada, Voramon S.; Lipkin, Don M.

2013-08-01

Alloys in the Mo-rich corner of the Mo-Ti-Zr-C system have found broad applications in non-oxidizing environments requiring structural integrity well beyond 1273 K (1000 °C). Alloys such as TZM (Mo-0.5Ti-0.08Zr-0.03C by weight %) and TZC (Mo-1.2Ti-0.3Zr-0.1C by weight) owe much of their high temperature strength and microstructural stability to MC and M2C carbide phases. In turn, the stability of the respective carbides and the subsequent mechanical behavior of the alloys are strongly dependent on the alloying additions and thermal history. A CALPHAD-based thermodynamic modeling approach is employed to develop a quaternary thermodynamic database for the Mo-Ti-Zr-C system. The thermodynamic database thus developed is validated with diffusion multiple experiments and the validated database is exercised to elucidate the effects of alloying and thermal history on the phase equilibrium in Mo-rich alloys.

Examination of cognitive fatigue in multiple sclerosis using functional magnetic resonance imaging and diffusion tensor imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Genova, Helen M; Rajagopalan, Venkateswaran; Deluca, John; Das, Abhijit; Binder, Allison; Arjunan, Aparna; Chiaravalloti, Nancy; Wylie, Glenn

2013-01-01

The present study investigated the neural correlates of cognitive fatigue in Multiple Sclerosis (MS), looking specifically at the relationship between self-reported fatigue and objective measures of cognitive fatigue. In Experiment 1, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to examine where in the brain BOLD activity covaried with "state" fatigue, assessed during performance of a task designed to induce cognitive fatigue while in the scanner. In Experiment 2, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) was used to examine where in the brain white matter damage correlated with increased "trait" fatigue in individuals with MS, assessed by the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) completed outside the scanning session. During the cognitively fatiguing task, the MS group had increased brain activity associated with fatigue in the caudate as compared with HCs. DTI findings revealed that reduced fractional anisotropy in the anterior internal capsule was associated with increased self-reported fatigue on the FSS. Results are discussed in terms of identifying a "fatigue-network" in MS.

Examination of cognitive fatigue in multiple sclerosis using functional magnetic resonance imaging and diffusion tensor imaging.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Helen M Genova

Full Text Available The present study investigated the neural correlates of cognitive fatigue in Multiple Sclerosis (MS, looking specifically at the relationship between self-reported fatigue and objective measures of cognitive fatigue. In Experiment 1, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI was used to examine where in the brain BOLD activity covaried with "state" fatigue, assessed during performance of a task designed to induce cognitive fatigue while in the scanner. In Experiment 2, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI was used to examine where in the brain white matter damage correlated with increased "trait" fatigue in individuals with MS, assessed by the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS completed outside the scanning session. During the cognitively fatiguing task, the MS group had increased brain activity associated with fatigue in the caudate as compared with HCs. DTI findings revealed that reduced fractional anisotropy in the anterior internal capsule was associated with increased self-reported fatigue on the FSS. Results are discussed in terms of identifying a "fatigue-network" in MS.

Diffusion tensor imaging and three-dimensional brain fiber tracking for the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bing, Hu; Hong, Shan; Mingyue, Luo; Shaoqiong, Chen; Wang, Kang; Bingjun, He; Yan, Zou [Department of Radiology, the 3rd Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen Univ., Guangzhou (China); Binbin, Ye

2007-02-15

Objective: To demonstrate the diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) characteristics of multiple sclerosis (MS) plaques, periplaque white matter regions and normal appearing white matter (NAWM) regions in patients with MS, and to evaluate the clinical values of DTI and three-dimensional brain fiber tracking for the diagnosis of MS. Methods: Conventional MRI and DTI were performed in 32 patients with MS and 32 age-matched control subjects. Fractional anisotropy (FA) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps were generated and coregistered with T{sub 2}-weighted MR images. FA and ADC values were calculated in regions of interest in plaques, periplaque white matter regions, NAWM regions and white matter regions in control subjects. And three-dimensional brain fiber tracking maps were generated by using the DTI. Results: The ADC was (1.233 {+-} 0.119) x 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s in MS plaques, (0.973 {+-} 0.098) x 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s in periplaque white matter regions, (0.748 {+-} 0.089) x 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s in NAWM, and (0.620 {+-} 0.094) x 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s in control subjects. The FA was 0.225 {+-} 0.052 in MS plaques, 0.311 {+-} 0.050 in periplaque white matter regions, 0.421 {+-} 0.070 in NAWM, and 0.476 {+-} 0.069 in control subjects. Significant differences in FA and ADC values were observed among all white matter regions (P<0.01). MS plaques were demonstrated in three-dimensional brain fiber tracking maps. Conclusion: FA and ADC maps are helpful for the evaluation of all white matter changes of MS. The abnormalities of white matter fiber tracts in MS plaques could be demonstrated in three-dimensional brain fiber tracking maps. (authors)

Diffusion tensor imaging and three-dimensional brain fiber tracking for the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu Bing; Shan Hong; Luo Mingyue; Chen Shaoqiong; Kang Wang; He Bingjun; Zou Yan; Ye Binbin

2007-01-01

Objective: To demonstrate the diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) characteristics of multiple sclerosis (MS) plaques, periplaque white matter regions and normal appearing white matter (NAWM) regions in patients with MS, and to evaluate the clinical values of DTI and three-dimensional brain fiber tracking for the diagnosis of MS. Methods: Conventional MRI and DTI were performed in 32 patients with MS and 32 age-matched control subjects. Fractional anisotropy (FA) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps were generated and coregistered with T 2 -weighted MR images. FA and ADC values were calculated in regions of interest in plaques, periplaque white matter regions, NAWM regions and white matter regions in control subjects. And three-dimensional brain fiber tracking maps were generated by using the DTI. Results: The ADC was (1.233 ± 0.119) x 10 -3 mm 2 /s in MS plaques, (0.973 ± 0.098) x 10 -3 mm 2 /s in periplaque white matter regions, (0.748 ± 0.089) x 10 -3 mm 2 /s in NAWM, and (0.620 ± 0.094) x 10 -3 mm 2 /s in control subjects. The FA was 0.225 ± 0.052 in MS plaques, 0.311 ± 0.050 in periplaque white matter regions, 0.421 ± 0.070 in NAWM, and 0.476 ± 0.069 in control subjects. Significant differences in FA and ADC values were observed among all white matter regions (P<0.01). MS plaques were demonstrated in three-dimensional brain fiber tracking maps. Conclusion: FA and ADC maps are helpful for the evaluation of all white matter changes of MS. The abnormalities of white matter fiber tracts in MS plaques could be demonstrated in three-dimensional brain fiber tracking maps. (authors)

Diffusion-weighted imaging in acute demyelinating myelopathy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zecca, Chiara; Cereda, Carlo; Tschuor, Silvia; Staedler, Claudio; Nadarajah, Navarajah; Bassetti, Claudio L.; Gobbi, Claudio; Wetzel, Stephan; Santini, Francesco

2012-01-01

Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) has become a reference MRI technique for the evaluation of neurological disorders. Few publications have investigated the application of DWI for inflammatory demyelinating lesions. The purpose of the study was to describe diffusion-weighted imaging characteristics of acute, spinal demyelinating lesions. Six consecutive patients (two males, four females; aged 28-64 years) with acute spinal cord demyelinating lesions were studied in a prospective case series design from June 2009 to October 2010. We performed magnetic resonance imaging studies from 2 to 14 days from symptom onset on the patients with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (n = 3) or clinically isolated syndrome (n = 3). Main outcome measures were diffusion-weighted imaging and apparent diffusion coefficient pattern (ADC) of acute spinal cord demyelinating lesions. All spinal lesions showed a restricted diffusion pattern (DWI+/ADC-) with a 24% median ADC signal decrease. A good correlation between clinical presentation and lesion site was observed. Acute demyelinating spinal cord lesions show a uniform restricted diffusion pattern. Clinicians and neuro-radiologists should be aware that this pattern is not necessarily confirmatory for an ischaemic aetiology. (orig.)

Diffusion-weighted imaging in acute demyelinating myelopathy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zecca, Chiara; Cereda, Carlo; Tschuor, Silvia; Staedler, Claudio; Nadarajah, Navarajah; Bassetti, Claudio L.; Gobbi, Claudio [Ospedale Regionale di Lugano, Servizio di Neurologia e Neuroradiologia, Neurocenter of Southern Switzerland, Lugano (Switzerland); Wetzel, Stephan [Swiss Neuro Institute (SNI), Abteilung fuer Neuroradiologie, Hirslanden Klinik Zuerich, Zuerich (Switzerland); Santini, Francesco [University of Basel Hospital, Division of Radiological Physics, Basel (Switzerland)

2012-06-15

Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) has become a reference MRI technique for the evaluation of neurological disorders. Few publications have investigated the application of DWI for inflammatory demyelinating lesions. The purpose of the study was to describe diffusion-weighted imaging characteristics of acute, spinal demyelinating lesions. Six consecutive patients (two males, four females; aged 28-64 years) with acute spinal cord demyelinating lesions were studied in a prospective case series design from June 2009 to October 2010. We performed magnetic resonance imaging studies from 2 to 14 days from symptom onset on the patients with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (n = 3) or clinically isolated syndrome (n = 3). Main outcome measures were diffusion-weighted imaging and apparent diffusion coefficient pattern (ADC) of acute spinal cord demyelinating lesions. All spinal lesions showed a restricted diffusion pattern (DWI+/ADC-) with a 24% median ADC signal decrease. A good correlation between clinical presentation and lesion site was observed. Acute demyelinating spinal cord lesions show a uniform restricted diffusion pattern. Clinicians and neuro-radiologists should be aware that this pattern is not necessarily confirmatory for an ischaemic aetiology. (orig.)

Development of neutron diffuse scattering analysis code by thin film and multilayer film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soyama, Kazuhiko

2004-01-01

To research surface structure of thin film and multilayer film by neutron, a neutron diffuse scattering analysis code using DWBA (Distorted-Wave Bron Approximation) principle was developed. Subjects using this code contain the surface and interface properties of solid/solid, solid/liquid, liquid/liquid and gas/liquid, and metal, magnetism and polymer thin film and biomembran. The roughness of surface and interface of substance shows fractal self-similarity and its analytical model is based on DWBA theory by Sinha. The surface and interface properties by diffuse scattering are investigated on the basis of the theoretical model. The calculation values are proved to be agreed with the experimental values. On neutron diffuse scattering by thin film, roughness of surface of thin film, correlation function, neutron propagation by thin film, diffuse scattering by DWBA theory, measurement model, SDIFFF (neutron diffuse scattering analysis program by thin film) and simulation results are explained. On neutron diffuse scattering by multilayer film, roughness of multilayer film, principle of diffuse scattering, measurement method and simulation examples by MDIFF (neutron diffuse scattering analysis program by multilayer film) are explained. (S.Y.)To research surface structure of thin film and multilayer film by neutron, a neutron diffuse scattering analysis code using DWBA (Distorted-Wave Bron Approximation) principle was developed. Subjects using this code contain the surface and interface properties of solid/solid, solid/liquid, liquid/liquid and gas/liquid, and metal, magnetism and polymer thin film and biomembran. The roughness of surface and interface of substance shows fractal self-similarity and its analytical model is based on DWBA theory by Sinha. The surface and interface properties by diffuse scattering are investigated on the basis of the theoretical model. The calculation values are proved to be agreed with the experimental values. On neutron diffuse scattering

Unsteady behavior of leading-edge vortex and diffuser stall in a centrifugal compressor with vaned diffuser

Science.gov (United States)

Fujisawa, Nobumichi; Hara, Shotaro; Ohta, Yutaka

2016-02-01

The characteristics of a rotating stall of an impeller and diffuser and the evolution of a vortex generated at the diffuser leading-edge (i.e., the leading-edge vortex (LEV)) in a centrifugal compressor were investigated by experiments and numerical analysis. The results of the experiments revealed that both the impeller and diffuser rotating stalls occurred at 55 and 25 Hz during off-design flow operation. For both, stall cells existed only on the shroud side of the flow passages, which is very close to the source location of the LEV. According to the CFD results, the LEV is made up of multiple vortices. The LEV is a combination of a separated vortex near the leading- edge and a longitudinal vortex generated by the extended tip-leakage flow from the impeller. Therefore, the LEV is generated by the accumulation of vorticity caused by the velocity gradient of the impeller discharge flow. In partial-flow operation, the spanwise extent and the position of the LEV origin are temporarily transmuted. The LEV develops with a drop in the velocity in the diffuser passage and forms a significant blockage within the diffuser passage. Therefore, the LEV may be regarded as being one of the causes of a diffuser stall in a centrifugal compressor.

Surface diffusion studies by optical diffraction techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiao, X.D.

1992-11-01

The newly developed optical techniques have been combined with either second harmonic (SH) diffraction or linear diffraction off a monolayer adsorbate grating for surface diffusion measurement. Anisotropy of surface diffusion of CO on Ni(l10) was used as a demonstration for the second harmonic dim reaction method. The linear diffraction method, which possesses a much higher sensitivity than the SH diffraction method, was employed to study the effect of adsorbate-adsorbate interaction on CO diffusion on Ni(l10) surface. Results showed that only the short range direct CO-CO orbital overlapping interaction influences CO diffusion but not the long range dipole-dipole and CO-NI-CO interactions. Effects of impurities and defects on surface diffusion were further explored by using linear diffraction method on CO/Ni(110) system. It was found that a few percent S impurity can alter the CO diffusion barrier height to a much higher value through changing the Ni(110) surface. The point defects of Ni(l10) surface seem to speed up CO diffusion significantly. A mechanism with long jumps over multiple lattice distance initiated by CO filled vacancy is proposed to explain the observed defect effect

Integration of experimental and computational methods for identifying geometric, thermal and diffusive properties of biomaterials

Science.gov (United States)

Weres, Jerzy; Kujawa, Sebastian; Olek, Wiesław; Czajkowski, Łukasz

2016-04-01

Knowledge of physical properties of biomaterials is important in understanding and designing agri-food and wood processing industries. In the study presented in this paper computational methods were developed and combined with experiments to enhance identification of agri-food and forest product properties, and to predict heat and water transport in such products. They were based on the finite element model of heat and water transport and supplemented with experimental data. Algorithms were proposed for image processing, geometry meshing, and inverse/direct finite element modelling. The resulting software system was composed of integrated subsystems for 3D geometry data acquisition and mesh generation, for 3D geometry modelling and visualization, and for inverse/direct problem computations for the heat and water transport processes. Auxiliary packages were developed to assess performance, accuracy and unification of data access. The software was validated by identifying selected properties and using the estimated values to predict the examined processes, and then comparing predictions to experimental data. The geometry, thermal conductivity, specific heat, coefficient of water diffusion, equilibrium water content and convective heat and water transfer coefficients in the boundary layer were analysed. The estimated values, used as an input for simulation of the examined processes, enabled reduction in the uncertainty associated with predictions.

Variations between Dust and Gas in the Diffuse Interstellar Medium. III. Changes in Dust Properties

Science.gov (United States)

Reach, William T.; Bernard, Jean-Philippe; Jarrett, Thomas H.; Heiles, Carl

2017-12-01

We study infrared emission of 17 isolated, diffuse clouds with masses of order {10}2 {M}ȯ to test the hypothesis that grain property variations cause the apparently low gas-to-dust ratios that have been measured in those clouds. Maps of the clouds were constructed from Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) data and directly compared with the maps of dust optical depth from Planck. The mid-infrared emission per unit dust optical depth has a significant trend toward lower values at higher optical depths. The trend can be quantitatively explained by the extinction of starlight within the clouds. The relative amounts of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon and very small grains traced by WISE, compared with large grains tracked by Planck, are consistent with being constant. The temperature of the large grains significantly decreases for clouds with larger dust optical depth; this trend is partially due to dust property variations, but is primarily due to extinction of starlight. We updated the prediction for molecular hydrogen column density, taking into account variations in dust properties, and find it can explain the observed dust optical depth per unit gas column density. Thus, the low gas-to-dust ratios in the clouds are most likely due to “dark gas” that is molecular hydrogen.

Wetting and Diffusion of Water on Pristine and Strained Phosphorene

OpenAIRE

Zhang, Wei; Ye, Chao; Bi, Lin; Yang, Zaixing; Zhou, Ruhong

2015-01-01

Phosphorene, a newly fabricated two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterial, have exhibited promising application prospect in biology. Nonetheless, the wetting and diffusive properties of bio-fluids on phosphorene are still elusive. In this study, using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we investigated the structural and dynamic properties of water on pristine and strained phosphorene. The MD simulations illustrated that the diffusion of water molecules on the phosphorene surface is anisotropic, whi...

Excluded-volume effects in the diffusion of hard spheres

KAUST Repository

Bruna, Maria

2012-01-03

Excluded-volume effects can play an important role in determining transport properties in diffusion of particles. Here, the diffusion of finite-sized hard-core interacting particles in two or three dimensions is considered systematically using the method of matched asymptotic expansions. The result is a nonlinear diffusion equation for the one-particle distribution function, with excluded-volume effects enhancing the overall collective diffusion rate. An expression for the effective (collective) diffusion coefficient is obtained. Stochastic simulations of the full particle system are shown to compare well with the solution of this equation for two examples. © 2012 American Physical Society.

Diffusion of Finite-Size Particles in Confined Geometries

KAUST Repository

Bruna, Maria

2013-05-10

The diffusion of finite-size hard-core interacting particles in two- or three-dimensional confined domains is considered in the limit that the confinement dimensions become comparable to the particle\\'s dimensions. The result is a nonlinear diffusion equation for the one-particle probability density function, with an overall collective diffusion that depends on both the excluded-volume and the narrow confinement. By including both these effects, the equation is able to interpolate between severe confinement (for example, single-file diffusion) and unconfined diffusion. Numerical solutions of both the effective nonlinear diffusion equation and the stochastic particle system are presented and compared. As an application, the case of diffusion under a ratchet potential is considered, and the change in transport properties due to excluded-volume and confinement effects is examined. © 2013 Society for Mathematical Biology.

Analytical Solutions of Ionic Diffusion and Heat Conduction in Multilayered Porous Media

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu Bai

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Ionic diffusion and heat conduction in a multiple layered porous medium have many important engineering applications. One of the examples is the chloride ions from deicers penetrating into concrete structures such as bridge decks. Different overlays can be placed on top of concrete surface to slowdown the chloride penetration. In this paper, the chloride ion diffusion equations were established for concrete structures with multiple layers of protective system. By using Laplace transformation, an analytical solution was developed first for chloride concentration profiles in two-layered system and then extended to multiple layered systems with nonconstant boundary conditions, including the constant boundary and linear boundary conditions. Because ionic diffusion in saturated media and heat conduction are governed by the same form of partial differential equations with different materials parameters, the analytical solution was further extended to handle heat conduction in a multiple layered system under nonconstant boundary conditions. The numerical results were compared with available test data. The basic trends of the analytical solution and the test data agreed quite well.

Global Existence Analysis of Cross-Diffusion Population Systems for Multiple Species

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xiuqing; Daus, Esther S.; Jüngel, Ansgar

2018-02-01

The existence of global-in-time weak solutions to reaction-cross-diffusion systems for an arbitrary number of competing population species is proved. The equations can be derived from an on-lattice random-walk model with general transition rates. In the case of linear transition rates, it extends the two-species population model of Shigesada, Kawasaki, and Teramoto. The equations are considered in a bounded domain with homogeneous Neumann boundary conditions. The existence proof is based on a refined entropy method and a new approximation scheme. Global existence follows under a detailed balance or weak cross-diffusion condition. The detailed balance condition is related to the symmetry of the mobility matrix, which mirrors Onsager's principle in thermodynamics. Under detailed balance (and without reaction) the entropy is nonincreasing in time, but counter-examples show that the entropy may increase initially if detailed balance does not hold.

Cationic hetero diffusion and mechanical properties of yttria-stabilized zirconia: influence of irradiation; Heterodiffusion cationique et proprietes mecaniques de la zircone stabilisee a l'oxyde d'yttrium: influence de l'irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Menvie Bekale, V

2007-12-15

Cubic yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) is a promising material as target for the transmutation of radioactive waste. In this context, the present work is dedicated to the study of the atomic transport and the mechanical properties of this ceramic, as well as the influence of irradiation on these properties. The preliminary step concerns the synthesis of YSZ cubic zirconia ceramic undoped and doped with rare earths to form homogeneous Ce-YSZ or Gd-YSZ solid solutions with the highest density. The diffusion experiments of Ce and Gd in YSZ or Ce-YSZ were performed in air from 900 to 1400 C, and the depth profiles were established by SIMS. The bulk diffusion decreases when the ionic radius of diffusing element increases. The comparison with literature data of activation energies for bulk diffusion suggests that the cationic diffusion occurs via a vacancy mechanism. The diffusion results of Ce in YSZ irradiated with 4 or 20 MeV Au ions show a bulk diffusion slowing-down at 1000 and 1100 C when the radiation damage becomes important (30 dpa). The mechanical properties of YSZ ceramics irradiated with 944 MeV Pb ions and non irradiated samples were studied by Vickers micro indentation and Berkovitch nano indentation techniques. The hardness of the material increases when the average grain size decreases. Furthermore, the hardness and the toughness increase with irradiation fluence owing to the occurrence of compressive residual stresses in the irradiated area. (author)

Can slow-diffusing solute atoms reduce vacancy diffusion in advanced high-temperature alloys?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goswami, Kamal Nayan; Mottura, Alessandro

2014-01-01

The high-temperature mechanical properties of precipitate-strengthened advanced alloys can be heavily influenced by adjusting chemical composition. The widely-accepted argument within the community is that, under certain temperature and loading conditions, plasticity occurs only in the matrix, and dislocations have to rely on thermally-activated climb mechanisms to overcome the barriers to glide posed by the hard precipitates. This is the case for γ′-strengthened Ni-based superalloys. The presence of dilute amounts of slow-diffusing solute atoms, such as Re and W, in the softer matrix phase is thought to reduce plasticity by retarding the climb of dislocations at the interface with the hard precipitate phase. One hypothesis is that the presence of these solutes must hinder the flow of vacancies, which are essential to the climb process. In this work, density functional theory calculations are used to inform two analytical models to describe the effect of solute atoms on the diffusion of vacancies. Results suggest that slow-diffusing solute atoms are not effective at reducing the diffusion of vacancies in these systems

Diffusion tensor imaging using multiple coils for mouse brain connectomics.

Science.gov (United States)

Nouls, John C; Badea, Alexandra; Anderson, Robert B J; Cofer, Gary P; Allan Johnson, G

2018-04-19

The correlation between brain connectivity and psychiatric or neurological diseases has intensified efforts to develop brain connectivity mapping techniques on mouse models of human disease. The neural architecture of mouse brain specimens can be shown non-destructively and three-dimensionally by diffusion tensor imaging, which enables tractography, the establishment of a connectivity matrix and connectomics. However, experiments on cohorts of animals can be prohibitively long. To improve throughput in a 7-T preclinical scanner, we present a novel two-coil system in which each coil is shielded, placed off-isocenter along the axis of the magnet and connected to a receiver circuit of the scanner. Preservation of the quality factor of each coil is essential to signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) performance and throughput, because mouse brain specimen imaging at 7 T takes place in the coil-dominated noise regime. In that regime, we show a shielding configuration causing no SNR degradation in the two-coil system. To acquire data from several coils simultaneously, the coils are placed in the magnet bore, around the isocenter, in which gradient field distortions can bias diffusion tensor imaging metrics, affect tractography and contaminate measurements of the connectivity matrix. We quantified the experimental alterations in fractional anisotropy and eigenvector direction occurring in each coil. We showed that, when the coils were placed 12 mm away from the isocenter, measurements of the brain connectivity matrix appeared to be minimally altered by gradient field distortions. Simultaneous measurements on two mouse brain specimens demonstrated a full doubling of the diffusion tensor imaging throughput in practice. Each coil produced images devoid of shading or artifact. To further improve the throughput of mouse brain connectomics, we suggested a future expansion of the system to four coils. To better understand acceptable trade-offs between imaging throughput and connectivity

The importance of correcting for signal drift in diffusion MRI

OpenAIRE

Vos, Sjoerd B; Tax, Chantal M W; Luijten, Peter R; Ourselin, Sebastien; Leemans, Alexander; Froeling, Martijn

2017-01-01

PURPOSE: To investigate previously unreported effects of signal drift as a result of temporal scanner instability on diffusion MRI data analysis and to propose a method to correct this signal drift. METHODS: We investigated the signal magnitude of non-diffusion-weighted EPI volumes in a series of diffusion-weighted imaging experiments to determine whether signal magnitude changes over time. Different scan protocols and scanners from multiple vendors were used to verify this on phantom data, a...

Diffusive Interaction Between Ni-Cr-Al Alloys

Science.gov (United States)

Tkacz-Śmiech, Katarzyna; Danielewski, Marek; Bożek, Bogusław; Berent, Katarzyna; Zientara, Dariusz; Zajusz, Marek

2017-05-01

In high-temperature coatings, welded parts, and a range of other applications, components in the contact zone interdiffuse at elevated temperatures and may react to change the phase composition. The diffusion zone can be complex and can consist of sequential layers of intermediate phases, solid solutions, and in the case of multicomponent systems also of multiphase layers. In this work, the interdiffusion in Ni-Cr-Al alloys is studied experimentally and modeled numerically. The diffusion multiples were prepared by hot isostatic pressing and post-annealing at 1473 K (1200 °C). The concentration profiles were measured with wide-line EDS technique which allowed obtaining high-accuracy diffusion paths. The experimental profiles and diffusion paths were compared with numerical results simulated with application of very recent model of interdiffusion in muticomponent-multiphase systems. The calculated and experimental data show good agreement.

Multiple-tracer tests for contaminant transport process identification in saturated municipal solid waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woodman, N.D.; Rees-White, T.C.; Stringfellow, A.M.; Beaven, R.P.; Hudson, A.P.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Multiple tracers were applied to saturated MSW to test dual-porosity properties. • Lithium demonstrated to be non-conservative as a tracer. • 260 mm diameter column too small to test transport properties of MSW. • The classical advection-dispersion mode was rejected due to high dispersivity. • Characteristic diffusion times did not vary with the tracer. - Abstract: Two column tests were performed in conditions emulating vertical flow beneath the leachate table in a biologically active landfill to determine dominant transport mechanisms occurring in landfills. An improved understanding of contaminant transport process in wastes is required for developing better predictions about potential length of the long term aftercare of landfills, currently measured in timescales of centuries. Three tracers (lithium, bromide and deuterium) were used. Lithium did not behave conservatively. Given that lithium has been used extensively for tracing in landfill wastes, the tracer itself and the findings of previous tests which assume that it has behaved conservatively may need revisiting. The smaller column test could not be fitted with continuum models, probably because the volume of waste was below a representative elemental volume. Modelling compared advection-dispersion (AD), dual porosity (DP) and hybrid AD–DP models. Of these models, the DP model was found to be the most suitable. Although there is good evidence to suggest that diffusion is an important transport mechanism, the breakthrough curves of the different tracers did not differ from each other as would be predicted based on the free-water diffusion coefficients. This suggested that solute diffusion in wastes requires further study

Multiple-tracer tests for contaminant transport process identification in saturated municipal solid waste

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Woodman, N.D., E-mail: n.d.woodman@soton.ac.uk; Rees-White, T.C.; Stringfellow, A.M.; Beaven, R.P.; Hudson, A.P.

2015-04-15

Highlights: • Multiple tracers were applied to saturated MSW to test dual-porosity properties. • Lithium demonstrated to be non-conservative as a tracer. • 260 mm diameter column too small to test transport properties of MSW. • The classical advection-dispersion mode was rejected due to high dispersivity. • Characteristic diffusion times did not vary with the tracer. - Abstract: Two column tests were performed in conditions emulating vertical flow beneath the leachate table in a biologically active landfill to determine dominant transport mechanisms occurring in landfills. An improved understanding of contaminant transport process in wastes is required for developing better predictions about potential length of the long term aftercare of landfills, currently measured in timescales of centuries. Three tracers (lithium, bromide and deuterium) were used. Lithium did not behave conservatively. Given that lithium has been used extensively for tracing in landfill wastes, the tracer itself and the findings of previous tests which assume that it has behaved conservatively may need revisiting. The smaller column test could not be fitted with continuum models, probably because the volume of waste was below a representative elemental volume. Modelling compared advection-dispersion (AD), dual porosity (DP) and hybrid AD–DP models. Of these models, the DP model was found to be the most suitable. Although there is good evidence to suggest that diffusion is an important transport mechanism, the breakthrough curves of the different tracers did not differ from each other as would be predicted based on the free-water diffusion coefficients. This suggested that solute diffusion in wastes requires further study.

Diffusion of Cu+ in β-phase CuI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johansson, J.X.M.Z.; Skoeld, K.; Joergensen, J.E.

1992-01-01

Measurements of ionic diffusion of Cu + in solid CuI in the β-phase is carried out with a non-destructive radioactive tracer technique, utilizing coincidence counting of the annihilation gammas from the positron decay of 64 Cu. The diffusion coefficient and the activation energy for the diffusion are evaluated. The experimental results show distinct diffusion character in the β-phase which differs from those in the γ- and α-phases. The β-phase diffusion properties together with the previous results for γ-and α-phases will provide valuable guidance for MD calculations, in which the diffusion coefficients and activation energies have been overestimated and the γ-β phase transition does not appear. The ionic conductivity of CuI estimated from tracer diffusion results and the Nernst-Einstein relation are compared with values from electro-chemical methods. In all three phases the conductivities obtained from electro-chemical methods are much lower than those calculated from the measured tracer diffusion coefficients. (author). 7 refs.; 4 figs.; 2 tabs

Effective moisture diffusivity, moisture sorption, thermo-physical properties and infrared drying kinetics of germinated paddy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Supawan Tirawanichakul

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Temperature and relative humidity (RH dependence of moisture sorption phenomena for agricultural products provide valuable information related to the thermodynamics of the system. So the equilibrium moisture contents (EMC, effective moisture diffusivity (Deff and thermo-physical properties in terms of void fraction, specific heat capacity, and the apparent density of germinated non-waxy Suphanburi 1 paddy were evaluated. Five commonly cited EMC equations were fitted to the experimental data among temperatures of 40-60°C correlating with RH of 0-90%. The results showed that the modified GAB equation was the best function for describing experimental results while those evaluated thermo-physical properties depended on moisture content. To determine drying kinetics model, the simulated values using Midilli et al. (2002 model and Page’s model was the best fitting to exact drying kinetics values for infrared (IR and hot air (HA drying, respectively. Finally, the Deff value of paddy dried with IR and HA sources were also evaluated and the calculated Deff value of both HA and IR drying was in order of 10-9 m2/s.

Ion-plasma diffusion aluminide coatings for gas turbine blades (structure and properties)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muboyadzhyan, S.A.; Budinovskij, S.A.; Terekhova, V.V.

2003-01-01

A consideration is given to the ion-plasma method of heart resisting alloy diffusion coating with alloyed aluminides offering some advantages over routine techniques. Specific features of ion-plasma diffusion coatings production at the surface of heart resisting alloys using one- and multistage techniques are studied. The process of formation of coatings (Al-Si-Y, Al-Si-Ni-B, Al-Si-Cr-Y) along with coating effects on long-term heat resistance of nickel base alloys (ZhS6U, VZhL12U, ZhS26VNK) is investigated. The advantages of the new method of diffusion aluminide coatings are reported [ru

Oxygen diffusion in cuprate superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Routbort, J.L.; Rothman, S.J.

1995-01-01

Superconducting properties of the cuprate superconductors depend on the oxygen content of the material; the diffusion of oxygen is thus an important process in the fabrication and application of these materials. This article reviews studies of the diffusion of oxygen in La 2-x Sr x CuO 4 , YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7- δ, YBa 2 Cu 4 O 8 , and the Bi 2 Sr 2 Ca n-1 Cu n O 2+4 (n = 1, and 2) superconductors, and attempt to elucidate the atomic mechanisms responsible

Effect of pore structure on chemico-osmotic, diffusion and hydraulic properties of mud-stones

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeda, M.; Manaka, M.; Ito, K.; Miyoshi, S.; Tokunaga, T.

2012-01-01

Document available in extended abstract form only. An in-situ experiment by Neuzil (2000) has obtained the substantial proof of chemical osmosis in natural clayey formation. Chemical osmosis in clayey formations has thus received attention in recent years in the context of geological disposal of radioactive waste. Chemical osmosis is the diffusion of water through a semi-permeable membrane driven by the difference of chemical potentials between solutions to compensate the difference of water potentials, increasing the other potential differences, such as the pressure difference. Accordingly, the chemical osmosis could generate localized, abnormal fluid pressures in geological formations where formation media act as semi-permeable membranes and groundwater salinity is not uniform. Without taking account of the chemical osmosis, groundwater flow modeling may mislead the prediction of the groundwater flow direction. Therefore the possibility of chemical osmosis needs to be identified for potential host formations for radioactive waste repositories. The chemico-osmotic property of formation media is an essential parameter to identify the possibility of chemical osmosis in the formation; however, the diffusion and hydraulic properties are also fundamental parameters to estimate the duration of chemical osmosis since they control the spatial variation of salinity and the dissipation of osmotically induced pressures. In order to obtain the chemico-osmotic, diffusion and hydraulic parameters from a rock sample, this study developed a laboratory experimental system capable of performing chemical osmosis and permeability experiments. A series of experiments were performed on mud-stones. The chemico-osmotic parameter of each rock sample was further interpreted by the osmotic efficiency model proposed by Bresler (1973) to examine the pore structure inherent in rocks. Diatomaceous and siliceous mud-stone samples were obtained from drill cores taken from the Koetoi and Wakkanai

Using Directional Diffusion Coefficients for Nonlinear Diffusion Acceleration of the First Order SN Equations in Near-Void Regions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schunert, Sebastian; Hammer, Hans; Lou, Jijie; Wang, Yaqi; Ortensi, Javier; Gleicher, Frederick; Baker, Benjamin; DeHart, Mark; Martineau, Richard

2016-11-01

The common definition of the diffusion coeffcient as the inverse of three times the transport cross section is not compat- ible with voids. Morel introduced a non-local tensor diffusion coeffcient that remains finite in voids[1]. It can be obtained by solving an auxiliary transport problem without scattering or fission. Larsen and Trahan successfully applied this diffusion coeffcient for enhancing the accuracy of diffusion solutions of very high temperature reactor (VHTR) problems that feature large, optically thin channels in the z-direction [2]. It is demonstrated that a significant reduction of error can be achieved in particular in the optically thin region. Along the same line of thought, non-local diffusion tensors are applied modeling the TREAT reactor confirming the findings of Larsen and Trahan [3]. Previous work of the authors have introduced a flexible Nonlinear-Diffusion Acceleration (NDA) method for the first order S N equations discretized with the discontinuous finite element method (DFEM), [4], [5], [6]. This NDA method uses a scalar diffusion coeffcient in the low-order system that is obtained as the flux weighted average of the inverse transport cross section. Hence, it su?ers from very large and potentially unbounded diffusion coeffcients in the low order problem. However, it was noted that the choice of the diffusion coeffcient does not influence consistency of the method at convergence and hence the di?usion coeffcient is essentially a free parameter. The choice of the di?usion coeffcient does, however, affect the convergence behavior of the nonlinear di?usion iterations. Within this work we use Morel’s non-local di?usion coef- ficient in the aforementioned NDA formulation in lieu of the flux weighted inverse of three times the transport cross section. The goal of this paper is to demonstrate that significant en- hancement of the spectral properties of NDA can be achieved in near void regions. For testing the spectral properties of the NDA

Insights into cadmium diffusion mechanisms in two-stage diffusion profiles in solar-grade Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Biderman, N. J.; Sundaramoorthy, R.; Haldar, Pradeep [Colleges of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, Albany, New York 12203 (United States); U.S. Photovoltaic Manufacturing Consortium, Albany, New York 12203 (United States); Novak, Steven W.; Lloyd, J. R. [Colleges of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, Albany, New York 12203 (United States)

2015-12-07

Cadmium diffusion experiments were performed on polished copper indium gallium diselenide (Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} or CIGS) samples with resulting cadmium diffusion profiles measured by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy. Experiments done in the annealing temperature range between 275 °C and 425 °C reveal two-stage cadmium diffusion profiles which may be indicative of multiple diffusion mechanisms. Each stage can be described by the standard solutions of Fick's second law. The slower cadmium diffusion in the first stage can be described by the Arrhenius equation D{sub 1} = 3 × 10{sup −4} exp (− 1.53 eV/k{sub B}T) cm{sup 2} s{sup −1}, possibly representing vacancy-meditated diffusion. The faster second-stage diffusion coefficients determined in these experiments match the previously reported cadmium diffusion Arrhenius equation of D{sub 2} = 4.8 × 10{sup −4} exp (−1.04 eV/k{sub B}T) cm{sup 2} s{sup −1}, suggesting an interstitial-based mechanism.

Resolution of the time dependent P{sub n} equations by a Godunov type scheme having the diffusion limit; Resolution des equations P{sub n} instationnaires par un schema de type Godunov, ayant la limite diffusion

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cargo, P.; Samba, G

2007-07-01

We consider the P{sub n} model to approximate the transport equation in one dimension of space. In a diffusive regime, the solution of this system is solution of a diffusion equation. We are looking for a numerical scheme having the diffusion limit property: in a diffusive regime, it gives the solution of the limiting diffusion equation on a mesh at the diffusion scale. The numerical scheme proposed is an extension of the Godunov type scheme proposed by L. Gosse to solve the P{sub 1} model without absorption term. Moreover, it has the well-balanced property: it preserves the steady solutions of the system. (authors)

An investigation on microstructure evolution and mechanical properties during liquid state diffusion bonding of Al2024 to Ti–6Al–4V

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Samavatian, Majid, E-mail: m.samavatian@srbiau.ac.ir [Department of Materials Engineering, Tehran Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Halvaee, Ayoub; Amadeh, Ahmad Ali [School of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Tehran, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Khodabandeh, Alireza [Department of Materials Engineering, Tehran Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2014-12-15

Joining mechanism of Ti/Al dissimilar alloys was studied during liquid state diffusion bonding process using Cu/Sn/Cu interlayer at 510 °C under vacuum of 7.5 × 10{sup −5} Torr for various bonding times. The microstructure and compositional changes in the joint zone were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy equipped with energy dispersive spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. Microhardness and shear strength tests were also applied to study the mechanical properties of the joints. It was found that with an increase in bonding time, the elements of interlayer diffused into the parent metals and formed various intermetallic compounds at the interface. Diffusion process led to the isothermal solidification and the bonding evolution in the joint zone. The results from mechanical tests showed that microhardness and shear strength values have a straight relation with bonding time so that the maximum shear strength of joint was obtained for a bond made with 60 min bonding time. - Highlights: • Liquid state diffusion bonding of Al2024 to Ti–6Al–4V was performed successfully. • Diffusion of the elements caused the formation of various intermetallics at the interface. • Microhardness and shear strength values have a straight relation with bonding time. • The maximum shear strength reached to 36 MPa in 60 min bonding time.

An investigation on microstructure evolution and mechanical properties during liquid state diffusion bonding of Al2024 to Ti–6Al–4V

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Samavatian, Majid; Halvaee, Ayoub; Amadeh, Ahmad Ali; Khodabandeh, Alireza

2014-01-01

Joining mechanism of Ti/Al dissimilar alloys was studied during liquid state diffusion bonding process using Cu/Sn/Cu interlayer at 510 °C under vacuum of 7.5 × 10 −5 Torr for various bonding times. The microstructure and compositional changes in the joint zone were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy equipped with energy dispersive spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. Microhardness and shear strength tests were also applied to study the mechanical properties of the joints. It was found that with an increase in bonding time, the elements of interlayer diffused into the parent metals and formed various intermetallic compounds at the interface. Diffusion process led to the isothermal solidification and the bonding evolution in the joint zone. The results from mechanical tests showed that microhardness and shear strength values have a straight relation with bonding time so that the maximum shear strength of joint was obtained for a bond made with 60 min bonding time. - Highlights: • Liquid state diffusion bonding of Al2024 to Ti–6Al–4V was performed successfully. • Diffusion of the elements caused the formation of various intermetallics at the interface. • Microhardness and shear strength values have a straight relation with bonding time. • The maximum shear strength reached to 36 MPa in 60 min bonding time

Tract-based spatial statistics analysis of diffusion-tensor imaging data in pediatric- and adult-onset multiple sclerosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Aliotta, Rachel; Cox, Jennifer L; Donohue, Katelyn; Weinstock-Guttman, Bianca; Yeh, E Ann; Polak, Paul; Dwyer, Michael G; Zivadinov, Robert

2014-01-01

White matter (WM) microstructure may vary significantly in pediatric-onset (PO) and adult-onset (AO) patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), a difference that could be explained by the effects of an inherent plasticity in the affected pediatric brains early in the disease, and a phenomenon that does not occur later in life. This hypothesis would support the observation that disease progression is much slower in POMS compared to AOMS patients. To examine WM microstructure in the brain of adults with POMS and AOMS, using tract based spatial statistics (TBSS) analysis of diffusion-tensor imaging (DTI). Adults with relapsing-remitting (RR) POMS, who were diagnosed before age of 18 years (n = 16), were compared with age-matched (AOA, n = 23) and disease duration-matched (AOD, n = 22) RR patients who developed MS after the age of 18 years. Scans were analyzed using the FSL software package (Oxford, UK) and statistics were performed using TBSS to evaluate WM microstructure between groups based on the mean fractional anisotropy (FA) values obtained from the DTI. Widespread cortical and deep WM area differences characterized by increased FA values were seen in the AOAMS compared with POMS group (P < 0.05, TFCE corrected). Significantly increased FA values of posterior WM areas were detected in the AODMS compared with POMS group (P < 0.05, TFCE corrected). Increased FA values in WM areas of the AOMS compared with the POMS patients suggest that diffuse WM microstructure changes are more attributable to age of onset than a simple function of disease duration and age. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

HI-bearing Ultra Diffuse Galaxies in the ALFALFA Survey

Science.gov (United States)

Leisman, Lukas; Janowiecki, Steven; Jones, Michael G.; ALFALFA Almost Darks Team

2018-01-01

The Arecibo Legacy Fast ALFA (Arecibo L-band Feed Array) extragalactic HI survey, with over 30,000 high significance extragalactic sources, is well positioned to locate gas-bearing, low surface brightness sources missed by optical detection algorithms. We investigate the nature of a population of HI-bearing sources in ALFALFA with properties similar to "ultra-diffuse" galaxies (UDGs): galaxies with stellar masses of dwarf galaxies, but radii of L* galaxies. These "HI-bearing ultra-diffuse" sources (HUDS) constitute a small, but pertinent, fraction of the dwarf-mass galaxies in ALFALFA. They are bluer and have more irregular morphologies than the optically-selected UDGs found in clusters, and they appear to be gas-rich for their stellar mass, indicating low star formation efficiency. To illuminate potential explanations for the extreme properties of these sources we explore their environments and estimate their halo properties. We conclude that environmental mechanism are unlikely the cause of HUDS' properties, as they exist in environments equivalent to that of the other ALFALFA sources of similar HI-masses, however, we do find some suggestion that these HUDS may reside in high spin parameter halos, a potential explanation for their "ultra-diffuse" nature.

Calculation of self-diffusion coefficients in iron

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Baohua Zhang

2014-01-01

Full Text Available On the basis of available P-V-T equation of state of iron, the temperature and pressure dependence of self-diffusion coefficients in iron polymorphs (α, δ, γ and ɛ phases have been successfully reproduced in terms of the bulk elastic and expansivity data by means of a thermodynamical model that interconnects point defects parameters with bulk properties. The calculated diffusion parameters, such as self-diffusion coefficient, activation energy and activation volume over a broad temperature range (500-2500 K and pressure range (0-100 GPa, compare favorably well with experimental or theoretical ones when the uncertainties are considered.

Solar Energy Evolution and Diffusion Studies: 2014-2016 | Solar Research |

Science.gov (United States)

theory, the theory of planned behavior, and diffusion of innovations theory. The project found support new PV market data from multiple regions of the United States to test and refine customer behavior for each theory, suggesting that consumers are seeing solar electricity in multiple ways: as an

Magnetic resonance temporal diffusion tensor spectroscopy of disordered anisotropic tissue

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Jonathan Scharff; Dyrby, Tim B; Lundell, Henrik

2018-01-01

Molecular diffusion measured with diffusion weighted MRI (DWI) offers a probe for tissue microstructure. However, inferring microstructural properties from conventional DWI data is a complex inverse problem and has to account for heterogeneity in sizes, shapes and orientations of the tissue...

Single Crystal Diffuse Neutron Scattering

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Richard Welberry

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Diffuse neutron scattering has become a valuable tool for investigating local structure in materials ranging from organic molecular crystals containing only light atoms to piezo-ceramics that frequently contain heavy elements. Although neutron sources will never be able to compete with X-rays in terms of the available flux the special properties of neutrons, viz. the ability to explore inelastic scattering events, the fact that scattering lengths do not vary systematically with atomic number and their ability to scatter from magnetic moments, provides strong motivation for developing neutron diffuse scattering methods. In this paper, we compare three different instruments that have been used by us to collect neutron diffuse scattering data. Two of these are on a spallation source and one on a reactor source.

Diffusivities, viscosities, and conductivities of solvent-free ionically grafted nanoparticles

KAUST Repository

Hong, Bingbing; Panagiotopoulos, Athanassios Z.

2013-01-01

A new class of conductive composite materials, solvent-free ionically grafted nanoparticles, were modeled by coarse-grained molecular dynamics methods. The grafted oligomeric counterions were observed to migrate between different cores, contributing to the unique properties of the materials. We investigated the dynamics by analyzing the dependence on temperature and structural parameters of the transport properties (self-diffusion coefficients, viscosities and conductivities) and counterion migration kinetics. Temperature dependence of all properties follows the Arrhenius equation, but chain length and grafting density have distinct effects on different properties. In particular, structural effects on the diffusion coefficients are described by the Rouse model and the theory of nanoparticles diffusing in polymer solutions, viscosities are strongly influenced by clustering of cores, and conductivities are dominated by the motions of oligomeric counterions. We analyzed the migration kinetics of oligomeric counterions in a manner analogous to unimer exchange between micellar aggregates. The counterion migrations follow the "double-core" mechanism and are kinetically controlled by neighboring-core collisions. © 2013 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

Micromechanical properties of canine femoral articular cartilage following multiple freeze-thaw cycles.

Science.gov (United States)

Peters, Abby E; Comerford, Eithne J; Macaulay, Sophie; Bates, Karl T; Akhtar, Riaz

2017-07-01

Tissue material properties are crucial to understanding their mechanical function, both in healthy and diseased states. However, in certain circumstances logistical limitations can prevent testing on fresh samples necessitating one or more freeze-thaw cycles. To date, the nature and extent to which the material properties of articular cartilage are altered by repetitive freezing have not been explored. Therefore, the aim of this study is to quantify how articular cartilage mechanical properties, measured by nanoindentation, are affected by multiple freeze-thaw cycles. Canine cartilage plugs (n = 11) from medial and lateral femoral condyles were submerged in phosphate buffered saline, stored at 3-5°C and tested using nanoindentation within 12h. Samples were then frozen at -20°C and later thawed at 3-5°C for 3h before material properties were re-tested and samples re-frozen under the same conditions. This process was repeated for all 11 samples over three freeze-thaw cycles. Overall mean and standard deviation of shear storage modulus decreased from 1.76 ± 0.78 to 1.21 ± 0.77MPa (p = 0.91), shear loss modulus from 0.42 ± 0.19 to 0.39 ± 0.17MPa (p=0.70) and elastic modulus from 5.13 ± 2.28 to 3.52 ± 2.24MPa (p = 0.20) between fresh and three freeze-thaw cycles respectively. The loss factor increased from 0.31 ± 0.38 to 0.71 ± 1.40 (p = 0.18) between fresh and three freeze-thaw cycles. Inter-sample variability spanned as much as 10.47MPa across freezing cycles and this high-level of biological variability across samples likely explains why overall mean "whole-joint" trends do not reach statistical significance across the storage conditions tested. As a result multiple freeze-thaw cycles cannot be explicitly or statistically linked to mechanical changes within the cartilage. However, the changes in material properties observed herein may be sufficient in magnitude to impact on a variety of clinical and scientific studies of cartilage, and should be considered

Stability, accuracy and numerical diffusion analysis of nodal expansion method for steady convection diffusion equation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, Xiafeng; Guo, Jiong; Li, Fu

2015-01-01

Highlights: • NEMs are innovatively applied to solve convection diffusion equation. • Stability, accuracy and numerical diffusion for NEM are analyzed for the first time. • Stability and numerical diffusion depend on the NEM expansion order and its parity. • NEMs have higher accuracy than both second order upwind and QUICK scheme. • NEMs with different expansion orders are integrated into a unified discrete form. - Abstract: The traditional finite difference method or finite volume method (FDM or FVM) is used for HTGR thermal-hydraulic calculation at present. However, both FDM and FVM require the fine mesh sizes to achieve the desired precision and thus result in a limited efficiency. Therefore, a more efficient and accurate numerical method needs to be developed. Nodal expansion method (NEM) can achieve high accuracy even on the coarse meshes in the reactor physics analysis so that the number of spatial meshes and computational cost can be largely decreased. Because of higher efficiency and accuracy, NEM can be innovatively applied to thermal-hydraulic calculation. In the paper, NEMs with different orders of basis functions are successfully developed and applied to multi-dimensional steady convection diffusion equation. Numerical results show that NEMs with three or higher order basis functions can track the reference solutions very well and are superior to second order upwind scheme and QUICK scheme. However, the false diffusion and unphysical oscillation behavior are discovered for NEMs. To explain the reasons for the above-mentioned behaviors, the stability, accuracy and numerical diffusion properties of NEM are analyzed by the Fourier analysis, and by comparing with exact solutions of difference and differential equation. The theoretical analysis results show that the accuracy of NEM increases with the expansion order. However, the stability and numerical diffusion properties depend not only on the order of basis functions but also on the parity of

Stability, accuracy and numerical diffusion analysis of nodal expansion method for steady convection diffusion equation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou, Xiafeng, E-mail: zhou-xf11@mails.tsinghua.edu.cn; Guo, Jiong, E-mail: guojiong12@tsinghua.edu.cn; Li, Fu, E-mail: lifu@tsinghua.edu.cn

2015-12-15

Highlights: • NEMs are innovatively applied to solve convection diffusion equation. • Stability, accuracy and numerical diffusion for NEM are analyzed for the first time. • Stability and numerical diffusion depend on the NEM expansion order and its parity. • NEMs have higher accuracy than both second order upwind and QUICK scheme. • NEMs with different expansion orders are integrated into a unified discrete form. - Abstract: The traditional finite difference method or finite volume method (FDM or FVM) is used for HTGR thermal-hydraulic calculation at present. However, both FDM and FVM require the fine mesh sizes to achieve the desired precision and thus result in a limited efficiency. Therefore, a more efficient and accurate numerical method needs to be developed. Nodal expansion method (NEM) can achieve high accuracy even on the coarse meshes in the reactor physics analysis so that the number of spatial meshes and computational cost can be largely decreased. Because of higher efficiency and accuracy, NEM can be innovatively applied to thermal-hydraulic calculation. In the paper, NEMs with different orders of basis functions are successfully developed and applied to multi-dimensional steady convection diffusion equation. Numerical results show that NEMs with three or higher order basis functions can track the reference solutions very well and are superior to second order upwind scheme and QUICK scheme. However, the false diffusion and unphysical oscillation behavior are discovered for NEMs. To explain the reasons for the above-mentioned behaviors, the stability, accuracy and numerical diffusion properties of NEM are analyzed by the Fourier analysis, and by comparing with exact solutions of difference and differential equation. The theoretical analysis results show that the accuracy of NEM increases with the expansion order. However, the stability and numerical diffusion properties depend not only on the order of basis functions but also on the parity of

Spectral and evolutionary analysis of advection-diffusion equations and the shear flow paradigm

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thyagaraja, A.; Loureiro, N.; Knight, P.J.

2002-01-01

Advection-diffusion equations occur in a wide variety of fields in many contexts of active and passive transport in fluids and plasmas. The effects of sheared advective flows in the presence of irreversible processes such as diffusion and viscosity are of considerable current interest in tokamak and astrophysical contexts, where they are thought to play a key role in both transport and the dynamical structures characteristic of electromagnetic plasma turbulence. In this paper we investigate the spectral and evolutionary properties of relatively simple, linear, advection-diffusion equations. We apply analytical approaches based on standard Green's function methods to obtain insight into the nature of the spectra when the advective and diffusive effects occur separately and in combination. In particular, the physically interesting limit of small (but finite) diffusion is studied in detail. The analytical work is extended and supplemented by numerical techniques involving a direct solution of the eigenvalue problem as well as evolutionary studies of the initial value problem using a parallel code, CADENCE. The three approaches are complementary and entirely consistent with each other when appropriate comparison is made. They reveal different aspects of the properties of the advection-diffusion equation, such as the ability of sheared flows to generate a direct cascade to high wave numbers transverse to the advection and the consequent enhancement of even small amounts of diffusivity. The invariance properties of the spectra in the low diffusivity limit and the ability of highly sheared, jet-like flows to 'confine' transport to low shear regions are demonstrated. The implications of these properties in a wider context are discussed and set in perspective. (author)

Multi-Shell Hybrid Diffusion Imaging (HYDI) at 7 Tesla in TgF344-AD Transgenic Alzheimer Rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Daianu, Madelaine; Jacobs, Russell E; Weitz, Tara M; Town, Terrence C; Thompson, Paul M

2015-01-01

Diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) is widely used to study microstructural characteristics of the brain. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and high-angular resolution imaging (HARDI) are frequently used in radiology and neuroscience research but can be limited in describing the signal behavior in composite nerve fiber structures. Here, we developed and assessed the benefit of a comprehensive diffusion encoding scheme, known as hybrid diffusion imaging (HYDI), composed of 300 DWI volumes acquired at 7-Tesla with diffusion weightings at b = 1000, 3000, 4000, 8000 and 12000 s/mm2 and applied it in transgenic Alzheimer rats (line TgF344-AD) that model the full clinico-pathological spectrum of the human disease. We studied and visualized the effects of the multiple concentric "shells" when computing three distinct anisotropy maps-fractional anisotropy (FA), generalized fractional anisotropy (GFA) and normalized quantitative anisotropy (NQA). We tested the added value of the multi-shell q-space sampling scheme, when reconstructing neural pathways using mathematical frameworks from DTI and q-ball imaging (QBI). We show a range of properties of HYDI, including lower apparent anisotropy when using high b-value shells in DTI-based reconstructions, and increases in apparent anisotropy in QBI-based reconstructions. Regardless of the reconstruction scheme, HYDI improves FA-, GFA- and NQA-aided tractography. HYDI may be valuable in human connectome projects and clinical research, as well as magnetic resonance research in experimental animals.

Impact of one-layer assumption on diffuse reflectance spectroscopy of skin

Science.gov (United States)

Hennessy, Ricky; Markey, Mia K.; Tunnell, James W.

2015-02-01

Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) can be used to noninvasively measure skin properties. To extract skin properties from DRS spectra, you need a model that relates the reflectance to the tissue properties. Most models are based on the assumption that skin is homogenous. In reality, skin is composed of multiple layers, and the homogeneity assumption can lead to errors. In this study, we analyze the errors caused by the homogeneity assumption. This is accomplished by creating realistic skin spectra using a computational model, then extracting properties from those spectra using a one-layer model. The extracted parameters are then compared to the parameters used to create the modeled spectra. We used a wavelength range of 400 to 750 nm and a source detector separation of 250 μm. Our results show that use of a one-layer skin model causes underestimation of hemoglobin concentration [Hb] and melanin concentration [mel]. Additionally, the magnitude of the error is dependent on epidermal thickness. The one-layer assumption also causes [Hb] and [mel] to be correlated. Oxygen saturation is overestimated when it is below 50% and underestimated when it is above 50%. We also found that the vessel radius factor used to account for pigment packaging is correlated with epidermal thickness.

Stability of Randomly Switched Diffusions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schiøler, Henrik; Leth, John-Josef; Gholami, Mehdi

2012-01-01

This paper provides a sufficient criterion for ε-moment stability (boundedness) and ergodicity for a class of systems comprising a finite set of diffusions among which switching is governed by a continuous time Markov chain. Stability/instability properties for each separate subsystem are assumed...

A modified likelihood-method to search for point-sources in the diffuse astrophysical neutrino-flux in IceCube

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Reimann, Rene; Haack, Christian; Leuermann, Martin; Raedel, Leif; Schoenen, Sebastian; Schimp, Michael; Wiebusch, Christopher [III. Physikalisches Institut, RWTH Aachen (Germany); Collaboration: IceCube-Collaboration

2015-07-01

IceCube, a cubic-kilometer sized neutrino detector at the geographical South Pole, has recently measured a flux of high-energy astrophysical neutrinos. Although this flux has now been observed in multiple analyses, no point sources or source classes could be identified yet. Standard point source searches test many points in the sky for a point source of astrophysical neutrinos individually and therefore produce many trials. Our approach is to additionally use the measured diffuse spectrum to constrain the number of possible point sources and their properties. Initial studies of the method performance are shown.

Physical bases for diffusion welding processes optimization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bulygina, S.M.; Berber, N.N.; Mukhambetov, D.G.

1999-01-01

One of wide-spread method of different materials joint is diffusion welding. It has being brought off at the expense of mutual diffusion of atoms of contacting surfaces under long-duration curing at its heating and compression. Welding regime in dependence from properties of welding details is defining of three parameters: temperature, pressure, time. Problem of diffusion welding optimization concludes in determination less values of these parameters, complying with requirements for quality of welded joint. In the work experiments on diffusion welding for calculated temperature and for given surface's roughness were carried out. Tests conduct on samples of iron and iron-nickel alloy with size 1·1·1 cm 3 . Optimal regime of diffusion welding of examined samples in vacuum is defined. It includes compression of welding samples, heating, isothermal holding at temperature 650 deg C during 0.5 h and affords the required homogeneity of joint

Parallel Solver for Diffuse Optical Tomography on Realistic Head Models With Scattering and Clear Regions.

Science.gov (United States)

Placati, Silvio; Guermandi, Marco; Samore, Andrea; Scarselli, Eleonora Franchi; Guerrieri, Roberto

2016-09-01

Diffuse optical tomography is an imaging technique, based on evaluation of how light propagates within the human head to obtain the functional information about the brain. Precision in reconstructing such an optical properties map is highly affected by the accuracy of the light propagation model implemented, which needs to take into account the presence of clear and scattering tissues. We present a numerical solver based on the radiosity-diffusion model, integrating the anatomical information provided by a structural MRI. The solver is designed to run on parallel heterogeneous platforms based on multiple GPUs and CPUs. We demonstrate how the solver provides a 7 times speed-up over an isotropic-scattered parallel Monte Carlo engine based on a radiative transport equation for a domain composed of 2 million voxels, along with a significant improvement in accuracy. The speed-up greatly increases for larger domains, allowing us to compute the light distribution of a full human head ( ≈ 3 million voxels) in 116 s for the platform used.

Overview of phosphorus diffusion and gettering in multicrystalline silicon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bentzen, A.; Holt, A.

2009-01-01

This paper gives an overview of phosphorus emitter diffusion and gettering as experienced in multicrystalline silicon solar cell processing. The paper gives a brief summary of the diffusion properties of phosphorus in silicon, explaining the nature behind the characteristic kink-and-tail profiles often encountered in silicon solar cells. Then, phosphorus diffusion gettering is discussed with particular focus to the inhomogeneous nature of multicrystalline silicon, and it is discussed how the abundant presence of dislocations in the areas of the material having a low recombination lifetime can cause only minor lifetime enhancements in such areas upon phosphorus diffusion. Attributed to dissociation of precipitated impurities in combination with longer effective diffusion lengths of the impurities, it is then seen that even poor areas of multicrystalline can exhibit a noticeable improvement by phosphorus diffusion gettering when applying a lower diffusion temperature for a longer duration.

Nonlinear variational models for reaction and diffusion systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tanyi, G.E.

1983-08-01

There exists a natural metric w.r.t. which the density dependent diffusion operator is harmonic in the sense of Eells and Sampson. A physical corollary of this statement is the property that any two regular points on the orbit of a reaction or diffusion operator can be connected by a path along which the reaction rate is constant. (author)

Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis in ancient clergymen.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verlaan, J.J.; Oner, F.C.; Maat, G.J.

2007-01-01

Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) is a common but often unrecognized systemic disorder observed mainly in the elderly. DISH is diagnosed when the anterior longitudinal ligament of the spine is ossified on at least four contiguous spinal levels or when multiple peripheral enthesopathies

Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis in ancient clergymen

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verlaan, J.J.; Oner, F.C.; Maat, G.R.J.

2007-01-01

Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) is a common but often unrecognized systemic disorder observed mainly in the elderly. DISH is diagnosed when the anterior longitudinal ligament of the spine is ossified on at least four contiguous spinal levels or when multiple peripheral

Evolution of resistance to a multiple-herbivore community: genetic correlations, diffuse coevolution, and constraints on the plant's response to selection.

Science.gov (United States)

Wise, Michael J; Rausher, Mark D

2013-06-01

Although plants are generally attacked by a community of several species of herbivores, relatively little is known about the strength of natural selection for resistance in multiple-herbivore communities-particularly how the strength of selection differs among herbivores that feed on different plant organs or how strongly genetic correlations in resistance affect the evolutionary responses of the plant. Here, we report on a field study measuring natural selection for resistance in a diverse community of herbivores of Solanum carolinense. Using linear phenotypic-selection analyses, we found that directional selection acted to increase resistance to seven species. Selection was strongest to increase resistance to fruit feeders, followed by flower feeders, then leaf feeders. Selection favored a decrease in resistance to a stem borer. Bootstrapping analyses showed that the plant population contained significant genetic variation for each of 14 measured resistance traits and significant covariances in one-third of the pairwise combinations of resistance traits. These genetic covariances reduced the plant's overall predicted evolutionary response for resistance against the herbivore community by about 60%. Diffuse (co)evolution was widespread in this community, and the diffuse interactions had an overwhelmingly constraining (rather than facilitative) effect on the plant's evolution of resistance. © 2013 The Author(s). Evolution © 2013 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

Weak diffusion limits of dynamic conditional correlation models

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hafner, Christian M.; Laurent, Sebastien; Violante, Francesco

The properties of dynamic conditional correlation (DCC) models are still not entirely understood. This paper fills one of the gaps by deriving weak diffusion limits of a modified version of the classical DCC model. The limiting system of stochastic differential equations is characterized...... by a diffusion matrix of reduced rank. The degeneracy is due to perfect collinearity between the innovations of the volatility and correlation dynamics. For the special case of constant conditional correlations, a non-degenerate diffusion limit can be obtained. Alternative sets of conditions are considered...

Anomalous diffusion on 2d randomly oriented diode networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aydiner, E.; Kiymach, K.

2002-01-01

In this work, we have studied the diffusion properties of a randomly oriented two- dimensional diode network, using Monte Carlo Simulation method. The characteristic exponent α of the diffusion is obtained against the reverse transition probability W γ . We have found two critical values of W γ ; 0.003 and 0.4. α has been found to be 0.376 for W γ ≤ 0.003, and ≅ 1 for W γ ≥ 0.4 . For W γ >0.4 normal diffusion, and for 0.003≤W γ ≤0.4 anomalous sub-diffusion are observed. But for W γ ≤0.003 there seems to be no diffusion at all

Direct and inverse neural networks modelling applied to study the influence of the gas diffusion layer properties on PBI-based PEM fuel cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lobato, Justo; Canizares, Pablo; Rodrigo, Manuel A.; Linares, Jose J. [Chemical Engineering Department, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Campus Universitario s/n, 13004 Ciudad Real (Spain); Piuleac, Ciprian-George; Curteanu, Silvia [Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Environmental Protection, Department of Chemical Engineering, ' ' Gh. Asachi' ' Technical University Iasi Bd. D. Mangeron, No. 71A, 700050 IASI (Romania)

2010-08-15

This article shows the application of a very useful mathematical tool, artificial neural networks, to predict the fuel cells results (the value of the tortuosity and the cell voltage, at a given current density, and therefore, the power) on the basis of several properties that define a Gas Diffusion Layer: Teflon content, air permeability, porosity, mean pore size, hydrophobia level. Four neural networks types (multilayer perceptron, generalized feedforward network, modular neural network, and Jordan-Elman neural network) have been applied, with a good fitting between the predicted and the experimental values in the polarization curves. A simple feedforward neural network with one hidden layer proved to be an accurate model with good generalization capability (error about 1% in the validation phase). A procedure based on inverse neural network modelling was able to determine, with small errors, the initial conditions leading to imposed values for characteristics of the fuel cell. In addition, the use of this tool has been proved to be very attractive in order to predict the cell performance, and more interestingly, the influence of the properties of the gas diffusion layer on the cell performance, allowing possible enhancements of this material by changing some of its properties. (author)

Strong Ligand-Protein Interactions Derived from Diffuse Ligand Interactions with Loose Binding Sites.

Science.gov (United States)

Marsh, Lorraine

2015-01-01

Many systems in biology rely on binding of ligands to target proteins in a single high-affinity conformation with a favorable ΔG. Alternatively, interactions of ligands with protein regions that allow diffuse binding, distributed over multiple sites and conformations, can exhibit favorable ΔG because of their higher entropy. Diffuse binding may be biologically important for multidrug transporters and carrier proteins. A fine-grained computational method for numerical integration of total binding ΔG arising from diffuse regional interaction of a ligand in multiple conformations using a Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) approach is presented. This method yields a metric that quantifies the influence on overall ligand affinity of ligand binding to multiple, distinct sites within a protein binding region. This metric is essentially a measure of dispersion in equilibrium ligand binding and depends on both the number of potential sites of interaction and the distribution of their individual predicted affinities. Analysis of test cases indicates that, for some ligand/protein pairs involving transporters and carrier proteins, diffuse binding contributes greatly to total affinity, whereas in other cases the influence is modest. This approach may be useful for studying situations where "nonspecific" interactions contribute to biological function.

Connection between encounter volume and diffusivity in geophysical flows

Science.gov (United States)

Rypina, Irina I.; Smith, Stefan G. Llewellyn; Pratt, Larry J.

2018-04-01

Trajectory encounter volume - the volume of fluid that passes close to a reference fluid parcel over some time interval - has been recently introduced as a measure of mixing potential of a flow. Diffusivity is the most commonly used characteristic of turbulent diffusion. We derive the analytical relationship between the encounter volume and diffusivity under the assumption of an isotropic random walk, i.e., diffusive motion, in one and two dimensions. We apply the derived formulas to produce maps of encounter volume and the corresponding diffusivity in the Gulf Stream region of the North Atlantic based on satellite altimetry, and discuss the mixing properties of Gulf Stream rings. Advantages offered by the derived formula for estimating diffusivity from oceanographic data are discussed, as well as applications to other disciplines.

Diffusion zinc plating of structural steels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kazakovskaya, Tatiana; Goncharov, Ivan; Tukmakov, Victor; Shapovalov, Vyacheslav

2004-01-01

The report deals with the research on diffusion zinc plating of structural steels when replacing their cyanide cadmium plating. The results of the experiments in the open air, in vacuum, in the inert atmosphere, under various temperatures (300 - 500 deg.C) for different steel brands are presented. It is shown that diffusion zinc plating in argon or nitrogen atmosphere ensures obtaining the qualitative anticorrosion coating with insignificant change of mechanical properties of steels. The process is simple, reliable, ecology pure and cost-effective. (authors)

The Swedish version of the Acceptance of Chronic Health Conditions Scale for people with multiple sclerosis: Translation, cultural adaptation and psychometric properties.

Science.gov (United States)

Forslin, Mia; Kottorp, Anders; Kierkegaard, Marie; Johansson, Sverker

2016-11-11

To translate and culturally adapt the Acceptance of Chronic Health Conditions (ACHC) Scale for people with multiple sclerosis into Swedish, and to analyse the psychometric properties of the Swedish version. Ten people with multiple sclerosis participated in translation and cultural adaptation of the ACHC Scale; 148 people with multiple sclerosis were included in evaluation of the psychometric properties of the scale. Translation and cultural adaptation were carried out through translation and back-translation, by expert committee evaluation and pre-test with cognitive interviews in people with multiple sclerosis. The psychometric properties of the Swedish version were evaluated using Rasch analysis. The Swedish version of the ACHC Scale was an acceptable equivalent to the original version. Seven of the original 10 items fitted the Rasch model and demonstrated ability to separate between groups. A 5-item version, including 2 items and 3 super-items, demonstrated better psychometric properties, but lower ability to separate between groups. The Swedish version of the ACHC Scale with the original 10 items did not fit the Rasch model. Two solutions, either with 7 items (ACHC-7) or with 2 items and 3 super-items (ACHC-5), demonstrated acceptable psychometric properties. Use of the ACHC-5 Scale with super-items is recommended, since this solution adjusts for local dependency among items.

Noninvasive particle sizing using camera-based diffuse reflectance spectroscopy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Abildgaard, Otto Højager Attermann; Frisvad, Jeppe Revall; Falster, Viggo

2016-01-01

Diffuse reflectance measurements are useful for noninvasive inspection of optical properties such as reduced scattering and absorption coefficients. Spectroscopic analysis of these optical properties can be used for particle sizing. Systems based on optical fiber probes are commonly employed...

Study on diffusion behavior of nuclide in buffer material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suzuki, Satoru

2002-05-01

Bentonite is a promising candidate of buffer material for geological disposal of high-level radioactive waste (HLW). Mass transport in bentonite is mainly controlled by diffusion process because of extremely low-permeability. Geological environments, e.g. salinity of ground water and temperature can strongly influence on migration behavior in bentonite, and therefore diffusivity and diffusion mechanism have been investigated experimentally and theoretically. In chapter 1, the author summarizes how the diffusivity in the buffer material has been treated in the safety assessment. In chapter 2, results of diffusion experiments as a function of salinity and temperature have been shown. In chapter 3, relationship between diffusivity and pore structure of bentonite has been investigated theoretically. In chapter 4, sorption structure of strontium on smectite has been studied by using molecular dynamics simulation. In chapter 5, vibrational property of pore water has been investigated. Diffusivity in bentonite has been discussed based on rock capacity factor, microstructure and interaction between diffusant and bentonite. (author)

Multiple mode x-ray ptychography using a lens and a fixed diffuser optic

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Peng; Batey, Darren J; Rodenburg, John M; Edo, Tega B; Parsons, Aaron D; Rau, Christoph

2016-01-01

We employ a novel combination of a Fresnel lens and a diffuser for x-ray ptychography. The setup uses increased flux by enlarging the width of the coherence-defining slits upstream of the experimental station. In the reconstruction algorithm, modal decomposition is used to account for the resulting partial coherence in the beam. We show that if the object has sparse feactures and large areas of flat contrast, the diffuser facilitates a better reconstruction and the extra diversity in the data also allows cleaner separation of the constituent modes in the illumination. The setup also allows a quick, real-time measure of the beam coherence. (paper)

Formation of multiple stoichiometric phases in binary systems by combined bulk and grain boundary diffusion: Experiments and model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Svoboda, J.; Fischer, F.D.; Schillinger, W.

2013-01-01

The thermodynamic extremal principle has been used by the authors to treat the evolution of binary and multicomponent systems under the assumption that all phases are nearly stoichiometric. Up to now only bulk diffusion has been taken into account. The concept is now extended to combined bulk and grain boundary diffusion possible in each newly formed phase. The grains are approximated by cylinders allowing interface diffusion along the top and bottom of the grains and grain boundary diffusion along the mantle with different interface/grain boundary diffusion coefficients. A consistent analysis yields an effective diffusion coefficient taking into account the combined interface/grain boundary and bulk diffusion of each individual component. The current concept is applied to the Cu–Sn couple which has been studied by a number of researchers. The results of simulations are compared with experiments at 200 °C on solid systems reported in the literature as well as with our experiments at 250 °C with liquid Sn.

Fractional Diffusion Equations and Anomalous Diffusion

Science.gov (United States)

Evangelista, Luiz Roberto; Kaminski Lenzi, Ervin

2018-01-01

Preface; 1. Mathematical preliminaries; 2. A survey of the fractional calculus; 3. From normal to anomalous diffusion; 4. Fractional diffusion equations: elementary applications; 5. Fractional diffusion equations: surface effects; 6. Fractional nonlinear diffusion equation; 7. Anomalous diffusion: anisotropic case; 8. Fractional Schrödinger equations; 9. Anomalous diffusion and impedance spectroscopy; 10. The Poisson–Nernst–Planck anomalous (PNPA) models; References; Index.

Dynamics and waves near multiple magnetic null points in reconnection diffusion region

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Deng, X. H.; Zhou, M.; Li, S. Y.; Baumjohann, W.; Andre, M.; Cornilleau, N.; Santolík, Ondřej; Pontin, D. I.; Reme, H.; Lucek, E.; Fazakerley, A. N.; Decreau, P.; Daly, P.; Nakamura, R.; Tang, R. X.; Hu, Y. H.; Pang, Y.; Büchner, J.; Zhao, H.; Vaivads, A.; Pickett, J. S.; Ng, C. S.; Lin, X.; Fu, S.; Yuan, Z. G.; Su, Z. W.; Wang, J. F.

2009-01-01

Roč. 114, - (2009), A07216/1-A07216/7 ISSN 0148-0227 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z30420517 Keywords : waves * dynamics * reconnection * diffusion Subject RIV: BL - Plasma and Gas Discharge Physics Impact factor: 3.082, year: 2009

Influence of the Solar Cycle on Turbulence Properties and Cosmic-Ray Diffusion

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, L.-L.; Adhikari, L.; Zank, G. P.; Hu, Q.; Feng, X. S.

2018-04-01

The solar cycle dependence of various turbulence quantities and cosmic-ray (CR) diffusion coefficients is investigated by using OMNI 1 minute resolution data over 22 years. We employ Elsässer variables z ± to calculate the magnetic field turbulence energy and correlation lengths for both the inwardly and outwardly directed interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). We present the temporal evolution of both large-scale solar wind (SW) plasma variables and small-scale magnetic fluctuations. Based on these observed quantities, we study the influence of solar activity on CR parallel and perpendicular diffusion using quasi-linear theory and nonlinear guiding center theory, respectively. We also evaluate the radial evolution of the CR diffusion coefficients by using the boundary conditions for different solar activity levels. We find that in the ecliptic plane at 1 au (1), the large-scale SW temperature T, velocity V sw, Alfvén speed V A , and IMF magnitude B 0 are positively related to solar activity; (2) the fluctuating magnetic energy density , residual energy E D , and corresponding correlation functions all have an obvious solar cycle dependence. The residual energy E D is always negative, which indicates that the energy in magnetic fluctuations is larger than the energy in kinetic fluctuations, especially at solar maximum; (3) the correlation length λ for magnetic fluctuations does not show significant solar cycle variation; (4) the temporally varying shear source of turbulence, which is most important in the inner heliosphere, depends on the solar cycle; (5) small-scale fluctuations may not depend on the direction of the background magnetic field; and (6) high levels of SW fluctuations will increase CR perpendicular diffusion and decrease CR parallel diffusion, but this trend can be masked if the background IMF changes in concert with turbulence in response to solar activity. These results provide quantitative inputs for both turbulence transport models and CR

Atomic transport properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Freyss, M.

2015-01-01

As presented in the first chapter of this book, atomic transport properties govern a large panel of nuclear fuel properties, from its microstructure after fabrication to its behaviour under irradiation: grain growth, oxidation, fission product release, gas bubble nucleation. The modelling of the atomic transport properties is therefore the key to understanding and predicting the material behaviour under irradiation or in storage conditions. In particular, it is noteworthy that many modelling techniques within the so-called multi-scale modelling scheme of materials make use of atomic transport data as input parameters: activation energies of diffusion, diffusion coefficients, diffusion mechanisms, all of which are then required to be known accurately. Modelling approaches that are readily used or which could be used to determine atomic transport properties of nuclear materials are reviewed here. They comprise, on the one hand, static atomistic calculations, in which the migration mechanism is fixed and the corresponding migration energy barrier is calculated, and, on the other hand, molecular dynamics calculations and kinetic Monte-Carlo simulations, for which the time evolution of the system is explicitly calculated. (author)

Negative Correlation between the Diffusion Coefficient and Transcriptional Activity of the Glucocorticoid Receptor.

Science.gov (United States)

Mikuni, Shintaro; Yamamoto, Johtaro; Horio, Takashi; Kinjo, Masataka

2017-08-25

The glucocorticoid receptor (GR) is a transcription factor, which interacts with DNA and other cofactors to regulate gene transcription. Binding to other partners in the cell nucleus alters the diffusion properties of GR. Raster image correlation spectroscopy (RICS) was applied to quantitatively characterize the diffusion properties of EGFP labeled human GR (EGFP-hGR) and its mutants in the cell nucleus. RICS is an image correlation technique that evaluates the spatial distribution of the diffusion coefficient as a diffusion map. Interestingly, we observed that the averaged diffusion coefficient of EGFP-hGR strongly and negatively correlated with its transcriptional activities in comparison to that of EGFP-hGR wild type and mutants with various transcriptional activities. This result suggests that the decreasing of the diffusion coefficient of hGR was reflected in the high-affinity binding to DNA. Moreover, the hyper-phosphorylation of hGR can enhance the transcriptional activity by reduction of the interaction between the hGR and the nuclear corepressors.

Bulk diffusion in a kinetically constrained lattice gas

Science.gov (United States)

Arita, Chikashi; Krapivsky, P. L.; Mallick, Kirone

2018-03-01

In the hydrodynamic regime, the evolution of a stochastic lattice gas with symmetric hopping rules is described by a diffusion equation with density-dependent diffusion coefficient encapsulating all microscopic details of the dynamics. This diffusion coefficient is, in principle, determined by a Green-Kubo formula. In practice, even when the equilibrium properties of a lattice gas are analytically known, the diffusion coefficient cannot be computed except when a lattice gas additionally satisfies the gradient condition. We develop a procedure to systematically obtain analytical approximations for the diffusion coefficient for non-gradient lattice gases with known equilibrium. The method relies on a variational formula found by Varadhan and Spohn which is a version of the Green-Kubo formula particularly suitable for diffusive lattice gases. Restricting the variational formula to finite-dimensional sub-spaces allows one to perform the minimization and gives upper bounds for the diffusion coefficient. We apply this approach to a kinetically constrained non-gradient lattice gas in two dimensions, viz. to the Kob-Andersen model on the square lattice.

Technetium-99m Sestamibi in Multiple Myeloma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saber, R.A.

2002-01-01

Technetium-99m 2-methoxy - isobutyl - isonitrile (99mTc-MIBI) has been reported to be useful in evaluating patients with multiple myeloma. The aim of this study is to evaluate the role of technetium-99m sestamibi (99mTc-MIBI) scintigraphy in the diagnosis. staging and follow-up of patients with multiple myeloma. Methods and Materials: twenty-five consecutive patients with multiple myeloma were studied using 99mTc- MIBI. Of the 25 patients included in this study, 6 were in stage I, II in stage II and 8 in stage III. Anterior and posterior whole-body imaging were obtained 20 min after I.V. injection of 740 MBq of 99mTc-MIBI. Four different MIBI patterns could be described in our patients: physiological (P), diffuse (D), focal (F) and combined diffuse and focal (D+F). All patients in stages II and III as well as 3 patients in stage I were treated with chemotherapy (cyclophosphamide and prednisone) then 99mTc-MlBI scans were repeated after 6 courses. Results: in comparison to conventional X-ray skeletal survey, 99mTc-MIBI scans showed a higher number of myeloma bone disease at diagnosis. All patients with stage II and III multiple myeloma were positive with 99mTc-MlBl scans at diagnosis. The pattern of positive MIBI accumulation was diffuse in 13 (52%) patients, focal in 4 (16%) and combined focal and diffuse in 6 (24%) patients. The intensity of 99mTc-MIBI correlated with disease activity as determined by lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), number of plasma cells in bone marrow and serum electrophoresis. There was a direct correlation between 99mTc-MIBI scan result and clinical outcome of patients following 6 courses of chemotherapy. Sensitivity and specificity of 99mTc-MIBI scintigraphy in detecting myeloma bone lesions were 92% and 90% respectively. Conclusion: 99mTc-MIBI scintigraphy is a reliable method to evaluate bone marrow activity in patients with multiple myeloma and follow-up of myeloma bone lesions

Diffusion tensor MR imaging evaluation of the corpus callosum of patients with multiple sclerosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rueda, Fernanda; Domingues, Romeu Cortes; Papais-Alvarenga, Regina M.; Gasparetto, Emerson L.

2008-01-01

Objective: To evaluate the fractional anisotropy (FA) values of the normal-appearing white matter of the corpus callosum (CC) in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS). Method: Fifty-seven patients with diagnosis of relapsing-remitting MS and 47 age- and gender-matched controls were studied. A conventional MR imaging protocol and a DTI sequence were performed. One neuro radiologist placed the regions of interest (ROIs) in the FA maps in five different portions of the normal-appearing CC (rostrum, genu, anterior and posterior portion of the body and splenium) in all cases. The statistical analysis was performed with the Mann-Whitney U test and p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The FA values were lower in the MS patients compared with the controls (p<0.05) in the following CC regions: rostrum (0.720 vs 0.819), anterior body (0.698 vs 0.752), posterior body (0.711 vs 0.759) and splenium (0.720 vs 0.880). Conclusion: In this series, there was a robust decrease in the FA in all regions of the normal-appearing CC, being significant in the rostrum, body and splenium. This finding suggests that there is a subtle and diffuse abnormality in the CC, which could be probably related to myelin content loss, axonal damage and gliosis. (author)

'LTE-diffusion approximation' for arc calculations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lowke, J J; Tanaka, M

2006-01-01

This paper proposes the use of the 'LTE-diffusion approximation' for predicting the properties of electric arcs. Under this approximation, local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) is assumed, with a particular mesh size near the electrodes chosen to be equal to the 'diffusion length', based on D e /W, where D e is the electron diffusion coefficient and W is the electron drift velocity. This approximation overcomes the problem that the equilibrium electrical conductivity in the arc near the electrodes is almost zero, which makes accurate calculations using LTE impossible in the limit of small mesh size, as then voltages would tend towards infinity. Use of the LTE-diffusion approximation for a 200 A arc with a thermionic cathode gives predictions of total arc voltage, electrode temperatures, arc temperatures and radial profiles of heat flux density and current density at the anode that are in approximate agreement with more accurate calculations which include an account of the diffusion of electric charges to the electrodes, and also with experimental results. Calculations, which include diffusion of charges, agree with experimental results of current and heat flux density as a function of radius if the Milne boundary condition is used at the anode surface rather than imposing zero charge density at the anode

Nonequilibrium free diffusion in seed leachate

Science.gov (United States)

Ortiz G., Luis; Riquelme P., Pablo; Guzmán, R.

2013-11-01

In this work, we use a Schlieren-like Near Field Scattering (SNFS) setup to study nonequilibrium free diffusion behavior of a colloidal solution obtained from seeds leachate. The main objective is to compare the temporal behavior of the diffusion coefficient of seed leachate with an electric conductivity based vigor test. SNFS sizing measurements, based on Mie theory, were carried out to ensure its reliability and sensitivity. Then, we performed a typical nonequilibrium free diffusion experiment of a glycerol-water mixture. In this way, we confirmed that SNFS setup is sensitive to giant concentration fluctuations of nanocolloidal solutions. The results obtained in this stage reproduce properly the data reported elsewhere in literature. Moreover, seed leachate diffuse, in water, in a similar way that glycerol does. In both cases we used the same method (dynamic structure factor) to determine thermo-physical properties. We show that time evolution of diffusion coefficient of Lupinus Albus leachate exhibits three defined regimes as electric conductivity measurements. The results also exhibit a correspondence between the behavior of the diffusion coefficient and electric conductivity values of the two regions in the temporal range studied. Finally, we discuss biological processes involved in germination that could modulate this dependence, and the role played by the electrolytic nature of solutes.

Measurements of cesium and strontium diffusion in biotite gneiss

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Skagius, K.; Neretnieks, I.

1988-01-01

A significant retardation of radionuclides transported by flowing water from an underground repository can be expected if the nuclides are able to diffuse into the water filled micropores in the rock. This diffusion into the pores will also increase the surface available to interactions between the nuclides in the ground water and the rock material, such as sorption. To calculate the retardation, it is necessary to know the sorption properties and the diffusivities in the rock matrix for the radionuclides. Diffusion experiments with cesium and strontium in biotite gneiss samples have been performed. Both the transport of strontium and cesium through rock samples and the concentration profiles of cesium and strontium inside rock samples have been determined. The result shows that diffusion of cesium and strontium occurs in the rock material. A diffusion model has been used to evaluate the diffusivity. Both pore diffusion and surface diffusion had to be included in the model to give good agreement with the experimental data. If surface diffusion is not included in the model, the effective pore diffusivity that gives the best fit to the experimental data is found to be higher than expected from earlier measurement of iodide diffusion in the same type of rock material. This indicates that the diffusion of cesium and strontium (sorbing components) in rock material is caused by both pore diffusion and surface diffusion acting in parallel

Diffusion measurements of cesium and strontium in biotite gneiss

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Skagius, K.; Neretnieks, I.

1985-01-01

A significant retardation of radionuclides transported by flowing water from an underground repository can be expected if the nuclides are able to diffuse into the water filled micropores in the rock. This diffusion into the pores will also increase the surface available to interaction between the nuclides in the groundwater and the rock material, such as sorption. To calculate the retardation it is necessary to know the sorption properties and the diffusivities in the rock matrix for the radionuclides. Diffusion experiments with cesium and strontium in biotite gneiss samples have been performed. Both the transport of strontium and cesium through rock samples and the concentration profiles of cesium and strontium inside rock samples have been determined. The result show that diffusion of cesium and strontium occurs in the rock material. A diffusion model has been used to evaluate the diffusivity. Both pore diffusion and surface diffusion had to be included in the model to give good agreement with the experimental data. If surface diffusion is not included in the model, the effective pore diffusivity that gives the best fit to the experimental data is found to be higher than expected from earlier measurements of iodide diffusion in the same type of rock material. This indicates that the diffusion of cesium and strontium (sorbing components) in rock material is caused by both pore diffusion and surface diffusion acting in parallel. (author)

Orientationally invariant metrics of apparent compartment eccentricity from double pulsed field gradient diffusion experiments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jespersen, Sune Nørhøj; Lundell, Henrik; Sønderby, Casper Kaae

2013-01-01

Pulsed field gradient diffusion sequences (PFG) with multiple diffusion encoding blocks have been indicated to offer new microstructural tissue information, such as the ability to detect nonspherical compartment shapes in macroscopically isotropic samples, i.e. samples with negligible directional...

Cosmic ray diffusion in a violent interstellar medium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bykov, A.M.; Toptygin, I.N.

1985-01-01

A variety of the avaiable observational data on the cosmic ray (CR) spectrum, anisotropy and composition are in good agreement with a suggestion on the diffusion propagation of CR with energy below 10(15) eV in the interstellar medium. The magnitude of the CR diffusion coefficient and its energy dependence are determined by interstellar medium (ISM) magnetic field spectra. Direct observational data on magnetic field spectra are still absent. A theoretical model to the turbulence generation in the multiphase ISM is resented. The model is based on the multiple generation of secondary shocks and concomitant large-scale rarefactions due to supernova shock interactions with interstellar clouds. The distribution function for ISM shocks are derived to include supernova statistics, diffuse cloud distribution, and various shock wave propagation regimes. This permits calculation of the ISM magnetic field fluctuation spectrum and CR diffusion coefficient for the hot phase of ISM

Atmospheric diffusion of large clouds

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Crawford, T. V. [Univ. of California, Lawrence Radiation Lab., Livermore, California (United States)

1967-07-01

Clouds of pollutants travel within a coordinate system that is fixed to the earth's surface, and they diffuse and grow within a coordinate system fixed to the cloud's center. This paper discusses an approach to predicting the cloud's properties, within the latter coordinate system, on space scales of a few hundred meters to a few hundred kilometers and for time periods of a few days. A numerical cloud diffusion model is presented which starts with a cloud placed arbitrarily within the troposphere. Similarity theories of atmospheric turbulence are used to predict the horizontal diffusivity as a function of initial cloud size, turbulent atmospheric dissipation, and time. Vertical diffusivity is input as a function of time and height. Therefore, diurnal variations of turbulent diffusion in the boundary layer and effects of temperature inversions, etc. can be modeled. Nondiffusive cloud depletion mechanisms, such as dry deposition, washout, and radioactive decay, are also a part of this numerical model. An effluent cloud, produced by a reactor run at the Nuclear Rocket Development Station, Nevada, is discussed in this paper. Measurements on this cloud, for a period of two days, are compared to calculations with the above numerical cloud diffusion model. In general, there is agreement. within a factor of two, for airborne concentrations, cloud horizontal area, surface air concentrations, and dry deposition as airborne concentration decreased by seven orders of magnitude during the two-day period. (author)

Preserving Symmetry in Convection-Diffusion Schemes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verstappen, R.W.C.P.; Veldman, A.E.P.; Drikakis, D.; Geurts, B.J.

2002-01-01

We propose to perform turbulent flow simulations in such manner that the difference operators do have the same symmetry properties as the corresponding differential operators. That is, the convective operator is represented by a skew-symmetric difference operator and the diffusive operator is

Acute effects of combined exercise and oscillatory positive expiratory pressure therapy on sputum properties and lung diffusing capacity in cystic fibrosis: a randomized, controlled, crossover trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Radtke, Thomas; Böni, Lukas; Bohnacker, Peter; Maggi-Beba, Marion; Fischer, Peter; Kriemler, Susi; Benden, Christian; Dressel, Holger

2018-06-14

Regular airway clearance by chest physiotherapy and/or exercise is critical to lung health in cystic fibrosis (CF). Combination of cycling exercise and chest physiotherapy using the Flutter® device on sputum properties has not yet been investigated. This prospective, randomized crossover study compared a single bout of continuous cycling exercise at moderate intensity (experiment A, control condition) vs a combination of interval cycling exercise plus Flutter® (experiment B). Sputum properties (viscoelasticity, yield stress, solids content, spinnability, and ease of sputum expectoration), pulmonary diffusing capacity for nitric oxide (DLNO) and carbon monoxide (DLCO) were assessed at rest, directly and 45 min post-exercise (recovery) at 2 consecutive visits. Primary outcome was change in sputum viscoelasticity (G', storage modulus; G", loss modulus) over a broad frequency range (0.1-100 rad.s - 1 ). 15 adults with CF (FEV 1 range 24-94% predicted) completed all experiments. No consistent differences between experiments were observed for G' and G" and other sputum properties, except for ease of sputum expectoration during recovery favoring experiment A. DLNO, DLCO, alveolar volume (V A ) and pulmonary capillary blood volume (V cap ) increased during experiment A, while DLCO and V cap increased during experiment B (all P < 0.05). We found no differences in absolute changes in pulmonary diffusing capacity and its components between experiments, except a higher V A immediately post-exercise favoring experiment A (P = 0.032). The additional use of the Flutter® to moderate intensity interval cycling exercise has no measurable effect on the viscoelastic properties of sputum compared to moderate intensity continuous cycling alone. Elevations in diffusing capacity represent an acute exercise-induced effect not sustained post-exercise. ClinicalTrials.gov; No.: NCT02750722 ; URL: clinical.trials.gov; Registration date: April 25th, 2016.

Oxygen diffusion in soils: Understanding the factors and processes needed for modeling

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Neira

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Oxygen is an important element for plant growth. Reducing its concentration in the soil affects plant physiological processes such as nutrient and water uptake as well as respiration, the redox potential of soil elements and the activity of microorganisms. The main mechanism of oxygen transport in the soil is by diffusion, a dynamic process greatly influenced by soil physical properties such as texture and structure, conditioning, pore size distribution, tortuosity and connectivity. Organic matter is a modifying agent of the soil's chemical and physical properties, affecting its structure and the porous matrix, which are determinants of oxygen transport. This study reviews the theory of soil gas diffusion and the effect of soil organic matter on the soil's physical properties and transport of gases. It also reviews gas diffusion models, particularly those including the effect of soil organic matter.

Multi-Shell Hybrid Diffusion Imaging (HYDI at 7 Tesla in TgF344-AD Transgenic Alzheimer Rats.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Madelaine Daianu

Full Text Available Diffusion weighted imaging (DWI is widely used to study microstructural characteristics of the brain. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI and high-angular resolution imaging (HARDI are frequently used in radiology and neuroscience research but can be limited in describing the signal behavior in composite nerve fiber structures. Here, we developed and assessed the benefit of a comprehensive diffusion encoding scheme, known as hybrid diffusion imaging (HYDI, composed of 300 DWI volumes acquired at 7-Tesla with diffusion weightings at b = 1000, 3000, 4000, 8000 and 12000 s/mm2 and applied it in transgenic Alzheimer rats (line TgF344-AD that model the full clinico-pathological spectrum of the human disease. We studied and visualized the effects of the multiple concentric "shells" when computing three distinct anisotropy maps-fractional anisotropy (FA, generalized fractional anisotropy (GFA and normalized quantitative anisotropy (NQA. We tested the added value of the multi-shell q-space sampling scheme, when reconstructing neural pathways using mathematical frameworks from DTI and q-ball imaging (QBI. We show a range of properties of HYDI, including lower apparent anisotropy when using high b-value shells in DTI-based reconstructions, and increases in apparent anisotropy in QBI-based reconstructions. Regardless of the reconstruction scheme, HYDI improves FA-, GFA- and NQA-aided tractography. HYDI may be valuable in human connectome projects and clinical research, as well as magnetic resonance research in experimental animals.

Blue-Light Therapy following Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: Effects on White Matter Water Diffusion in the Brain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sahil Bajaj

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI is a common and often inconspicuous wound that is frequently associated with chronic low-grade symptoms and cognitive dysfunction. Previous evidence suggests that daily blue wavelength light therapy may be effective at reducing fatigue and improving sleep in patients recovering from mTBI. However, the effects of light therapy on recovering brain structure remain unexplored. In this study, we analyzed white matter diffusion properties, including generalized fractional anisotropy, and the quantity of water diffusion in isotropic (i.e., isotropic diffusion and anisotropic fashion (i.e., quantitative anisotropy, QA for fibers crossing 11 brain areas known to be significantly affected following mTBI. Specifically, we investigated how 6 weeks of daily morning blue light exposure therapy (compared to an amber-light placebo condition impacted changes in white matter diffusion in individuals with mTBI. We observed a significant impact of the blue light treatment (relative to the placebo on the amount of water diffusion (QA for multiple brain areas, including the corpus callosum, anterior corona radiata, and thalamus. Moreover, many of these changes were associated with improvements in sleep latency and delayed memory. These findings suggest that blue wavelength light exposure may serve as one of the potential non-pharmacological treatments for facilitating structural and functional recovery following mTBI; they also support the use of QA as a reliable neuro-biomarker for mTBI therapies.

Diffusion of aqueous solutions of ionic, zwitterionic, and polar solutes

Science.gov (United States)

Teng, Xiaojing; Huang, Qi; Dharmawardhana, Chamila Chathuranga; Ichiye, Toshiko

2018-06-01

The properties of aqueous solutions of ionic, zwitterionic, and polar solutes are of interest to many fields. For instance, one of the many anomalous properties of aqueous solutions is the behavior of water diffusion in different monovalent salt solutions. In addition, solutes can affect the stabilities of macromolecules such as proteins in aqueous solution. Here, the diffusivities of aqueous solutions of sodium chloride, potassium chloride, tri-methylamine oxide (TMAO), urea, and TMAO-urea are examined in molecular dynamics simulations. The decrease in the diffusivity of water with the concentration of simple ions and urea can be described by a simple model in which the water molecules hydrogen bonded to the solutes are considered to diffuse at the same rate as the solutes, while the remainder of the water molecules are considered to be bulk and diffuse at almost the same rate as pure water. On the other hand, the decrease in the diffusivity of water with the concentration of TMAO is apparently affected by a decrease in the diffusion rate of the bulk water molecules in addition to the decrease due to the water molecules hydrogen bonded to TMAO. In other words, TMAO enhances the viscosity of water, while urea barely affects it. Overall, this separation of water molecules into those that are hydrogen bonded to solute and those that are bulk can provide a useful means of understanding the short- and long-range effects of solutes on water.

Association between diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis and multiple myeloma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scutellari, P.N.; Orzincolo, C.D.; Castaldi, G.

1995-01-01

Radiologic studies were performed over a 26-month period in a series of 97 consecutive patients with multiple myeloma (56 male and 41 female, aged 42-91 years). Both myelomatous bone lesions and hyperostosis similar to DISH were found in these patients. The prevalence of DISH in association with multiple myeloma (21 male and 8 females patients) was higher (29.8%) than in our control group (973 patients, 449 male and 524 female) or in the general population (15-20%). The involved segments of the column were thoracic in 11 males and 7 females, cervical in 8 males and 2 females, and lumbar in 5 males and 4 females. Ossifying enthesopathy in the pelvis (''whiskering'') was observed in 7 males and 1 female. (orig./MG)

Association between diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis and multiple myeloma

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scutellari, P.N. [Inst. of Radiology, Ferrara Univ. School of Medicine (Italy); Orzincolo, C.D. [Dept. of Radiology, St. Anna Hospital, Ferrara (Italy); Castaldi, G. [Dept. of Medicine, St. Maria delle Croci Hospital, Ravenna (Italy)

1995-10-01

Radiologic studies were performed over a 26-month period in a series of 97 consecutive patients with multiple myeloma (56 male and 41 female, aged 42-91 years). Both myelomatous bone lesions and hyperostosis similar to DISH were found in these patients. The prevalence of DISH in association with multiple myeloma (21 male and 8 females patients) was higher (29.8%) than in our control group (973 patients, 449 male and 524 female) or in the general population (15-20%). The involved segments of the column were thoracic in 11 males and 7 females, cervical in 8 males and 2 females, and lumbar in 5 males and 4 females. Ossifying enthesopathy in the pelvis (``whiskering``) was observed in 7 males and 1 female. (orig./MG)

Structural, optical and magnetic properties of Mn diffusion-doped CdS thin films prepared by vacuum evaporation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aksu, S. [SoloPower, Inc., 5981 Optical Ct., San Jose, CA 95138 (United States); Bacaksiz, E., E-mail: eminb@ktu.edu.tr [Department of Physics, Karadeniz Technical University, 61080 Trabzon (Turkey); Parlak, M. [Department of Physics, Middle East Technical University, 06531 Ankara (Turkey); Yilmaz, S.; Polat, I.; Altunbas, M. [Department of Physics, Karadeniz Technical University, 61080 Trabzon (Turkey); Tuerksoy, M.; Topkaya, R. [Department of Physics, Gebze Institute of Technology, Gebze, 41400 Kocaeli (Turkey); Ozdogan, K. [Department of Physics, Yildiz Technical University, 34210 Istanbul (Turkey)

2011-10-17

Highlights: {yields} Cadmium sulphide thin films were deposited by vacuum evaporation. {yields} Elemental Mn was deposited onto CdS thin films by using electron beam evaporation and annealed under vacuum at different temperatures. {yields} Structural, optical and magnetic studies of Mn-doped CdS have been investigated. {yields} X-ray diffraction results showed that the undoped CdS film had a zinc-blende structure with a strong preferred orientation along the (1 1 1) direction. {yields} Magnetic measurements show that Mn-doped CdS thin films exhibit a ferromagnetism behavior at room temperature. - Abstract: The effect of Mn-doping on the vacuum deposited CdS thin films has been investigated by studying the changes in the structural, optical and magnetic properties of the films. A thin Mn layer evaporated on the CdS film surface served as the source layer for the diffusion doping. Doping was accomplished by annealing the CdS/Mn stack layers at the temperature range from 300 deg. C to 400 deg. C in step of 50 deg. C for 30 min under vacuum. The X-ray diffraction results showed that the undoped CdS film had a zinc-blende structure with a strong preferred orientation along the (1 1 1) direction. The incorporation of Mn did not cause any change in the texture but reduced the peak intensity and lead to a smaller crystallite size. Investigation of surface morphology using atomic force microscopy confirmed the decrease in the grain size with the Mn diffusion. In addition, a more uniform grain size distribution was observed in the doped films. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis showed that Mn atoms on the surface of the films were bounded to either sulphur or oxygen atoms. Auger electron spectroscopy of the diffusion-doped CdS sample at 350 deg. C indicated that the atomic Mn concentration was higher close to the surface region and Mn was distributed with a steadily decreasing profile through the bulk of the film with an average atomic concentration value around few

Assessment of perceptual diffuseness in the time domain

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Garcia, Julian Martinez-Villalba; Jeong, Cheol-Ho; Brunskog, Jonas

2017-01-01

This study proposes a numerical and experimental framework for evaluating the perceptual aspect of the diffuse field condition with intended final use in music auditoria. Multiple Impulse Responses are simulated based on the time domain Poisson process with increasing reflection density. Different...

A mathematical and numerical analysis of the Maxwell-Stefan diffusion equations

OpenAIRE

Boudin , Laurent; Grec , Bérénice; Salvarani , Francesco

2012-01-01

International audience; We consider the Maxwell-Stefan model of diffusion in a multicomponent gaseous mixture. After focusing on the main differences with the Fickian diffusion model, we study the equations governing a three-component gas mixture. We provide a qualitative and quantitative mathematical analysis of the model. The main properties of the standard explicit numerical scheme are also analyzed. We eventually include some numerical simulations pointing out the uphill diffusion phenome...

Measurement of Solute Diffusion Behavior in Fractured Waste Glass Media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saripalli, Kanaka P.; Lindberg, Michael J.; Meyer, Philip D.

2008-01-01

Determination of aqueous phase diffusion coefficients of solutes through fractured media is essential for understanding and modeling contaminants transport at many hazardous waste disposal sites. No methods for earlier measurements are available for the characterization of diffusion in fractured glass blocks. We report here the use of time-lag diffusion experimental method to assess the diffusion behavior of three different solutes (Cs, Sr and Pentafluoro Benzoic Acid or PFBA) in fractured, immobilized low activity waste (ILAW) glass forms. A fractured media time-lag diffusion experimental apparatus that allows the measurement of diffusion coefficients has been designed and built for this purpose. Use of time-lag diffusion method, a considerably easier experimental method than the other available methods, was not previously demonstrated for measuring diffusion in any fractured media. Hydraulic conductivity, porosity and diffusion coefficients of a solute were experimentally measured in fractured glass blocks using this method for the first time. Results agree with the range of properties reported for similar rock media earlier, indicating that the time-lag experimental method can effectively characterize the diffusion coefficients of fractured ILAW glass media

Self- and zinc diffusion in gallium antimonide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nicols, Samuel Piers

2002-01-01

The technological age has in large part been driven by the applications of semiconductors, and most notably by silicon. Our lives have been thoroughly changed by devices using the broad range of semiconductor technology developed over the past forty years. Much of the technological development has its foundation in research carried out on the different semiconductors whose properties can be exploited to make transistors, lasers, and many other devices. While the technological focus has largely been on silicon, many other semiconductor systems have applications in industry and offer formidable academic challenges. Diffusion studies belong to the most basic studies in semiconductors, important from both an application as well as research standpoint. Diffusion processes govern the junctions formed for device applications. As the device dimensions are decreased and the dopant concentrations increased, keeping pace with Moore's Law, a deeper understanding of diffusion is necessary to establish and maintain the sharp dopant profiles engineered for optimal device performance. From an academic viewpoint, diffusion in semiconductors allows for the study of point defects. Very few techniques exist which allow for the extraction of as much information of their properties. This study focuses on diffusion in the semiconductor gallium antimonide (GaSb). As will become clear, this compound semiconductor proves to be a powerful one for investigating both self- and foreign atom diffusion. While the results have direct applications for work on GaSb devices, the results should also be taken in the broader context of III-V semiconductors. Results here can be compared and contrasted to results in systems such as GaAs and even GaN, indicating trends within this common group of semiconductors. The results also have direct importance for ternary and quaternary semiconductor systems used in devices such as high speed InP/GaAsSb/InP double heterojunction bipolar transistors (DHBT

Diffusion-controlled reaction. V. Effect of concentration-dependent diffusion coefficient on reaction rate in graft polymerization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Imre, K.; Odian, G.

1979-01-01

The effect of diffusion on radiation-initiated graft polymerization has been studied with emphasis on the single- and two-penetrant cases. When the physical properties of the penetrants are similar, the two-penetrant problems can be reduced to the single-penetrant problem by redefining the characteristic parameters of the system. The diffusion-free graft polymerization rate is assumed to be proportional to the upsilon power of the monomer concentration respectively, and, in which the proportionality constant a = k/sub p/R/sub i//sup w//k/sub t//sup z/, where k/sub p/ and k/sub t/ are the propagation and termination rate constants, respectively, and R/sub i/ is the initiation rate. The values of upsilon, w, and z depend on the particular reaction system. The results of earlier work were generalized by allowing a non-Fickian diffusion rate which predicts an essentially exponential dependence on the monomer concentration of the diffusion coefficient, D = D 0 [exp(deltaC/M)], where M is the saturation concentration. A reaction system is characterized by the three dimensionless parameters, upsilon, delta, and A = (L/2)[aM/sup (upsilon--1)//D 0 ]/sup 1/2/, where L is the polymer film thickness. Graft polymerization tends to become diffusion controlled as A increases. Larger values of delta and ν cause a reaction system to behave closer to the diffusion-free regime. Transition from diffusion-free to diffusion-controlled reaction involves changes in the dependence of the reaction rate on film thickness, initiation rate, and monomer concentration. Although the diffusion-free rate is w order in initiation rate, upsilon order in monomer, and independent of film thickness, the diffusion-controlled rate is w/2 order in initiator rate and inverse first-order in film thickness. Dependence of the diffusion-controlled rate on monomer is dependent in a complex manner on the diffusional characteristics of the reaction system. 11 figures, 4 tables

Diffusion abnormality maps in demyelinating disease: Correlations with clinical scores

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Onu, Mihaela; Roceanu, Adina; Sboto-Frankenstein, Uta; Bendic, Robert; Tarta, Eugen; Preoteasa, Florentin; Bajenaru, Ovidiu

2012-01-01

Background and purpose: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been explored as a noninvasive tool to assess pathology in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. However, the correlation between classical MRI measures and physical disability is modest in MS. The diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) MRI technique holds particular promise in this regard. The present study shows brain regions where FA and individual diffusivities abnormalities are present and check their correlations with physical disability clinical scores. Methods: Eight patients and 12 matched healthy controls were recruited. The Multiple Sclerosis Functional Composite was administered. For MR-DTI acquisitions, a Genesis Signa 1.5T MR system, an EP/SE scanning sequence, 25 gradient directions were used. Results: Tract Based Spatial Statistics (TBSS) group comparisons showed reduced FA and increased individual diffusivities in several brain regions in patients. Significant correlations were found between FA and: EDSS, 9-HPT(NON)DOM and 25FW score; between λ 2 and: P100 (r and l), 9-HPT(NON)DOM and 25FW; between λ 3 and: 9-HPT(NON)DOM and 25FW score. Conclusions: Fractional anisotropy and individual radial diffusivities proved to be important markers of motor disabilities in MS patients when the disease duration mean and the disability scores values range are relatively high.

Robust TaNx diffusion barrier for Cu-interconnect technology with subnanometer thickness by metal-organic plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, H.; Detavenier, C.; Straten, O. van der; Rossnagel, S.M.; Kellock, A.J.; Park, D.-G.

2005-01-01

TaN x diffusion barriers with good barrier properties at subnanometer thickness were deposited by plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PE-ALD) from pentakis(dimethylamino)Ta. Hydrogen and/or nitrogen plasma was used as reactants to produce TaN x thin films with a different nitrogen content. The film properties including the carbon and oxygen impurity content were affected by the nitrogen flow during the process. The deposited film has nanocrystalline grains with hydrogen-only plasma, while the amorphous structure was obtained for nitrogen plasma. The diffusion barrier properties of deposited TaN films for Cu interconnects have been studied by thermal stress test based on synchrotron x-ray diffraction. The results indicate that the PE-ALD TaN films are good diffusion barriers even at a small thickness as 0.6 nm. Better diffusion barrier properties were obtained for higher nitrogen content. Based on a diffusion kinetics analysis, the nanocrystalline microstructure of the films was responsible for the better diffusion barrier properties compared to polycrystalline PE-ALD TaN films deposited from TaCl 5

Calculating effective diffusivities in the limit of vanishing molecular diffusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pavliotis, G.A.; Stuart, A.M.; Zygalakis, K.C.

2009-01-01

In this paper we study the problem of the numerical calculation (by Monte Carlo methods) of the effective diffusivity for a particle moving in a periodic divergent-free velocity field, in the limit of vanishing molecular diffusion. In this limit traditional numerical methods typically fail, since they do not represent accurately the geometry of the underlying deterministic dynamics. We propose a stochastic splitting method that takes into account the volume-preserving property of the equations of motion in the absence of noise, and when inertial effects can be neglected. An extension of the method is then proposed for the cases where the noise has a non-trivial time-correlation structure and when inertial effects cannot be neglected. The method of modified equations is used to explain failings of Euler-based methods. The new stochastic geometric integrators are shown to outperform standard Euler-based integrators. Various asymptotic limits of physical interest are investigated by means of numerical experiments, using the new integrators

Diffusion and mixing in gravity-driven dense granular flows.

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Jaehyuk; Kudrolli, Arshad; Rosales, Rodolfo R; Bazant, Martin Z

2004-04-30

We study the transport properties of particles draining from a silo using imaging and direct particle tracking. The particle displacements show a universal transition from superdiffusion to normal diffusion, as a function of the distance fallen, independent of the flow speed. In the superdiffusive (but sub-ballistic) regime, which occurs before a particle falls through its diameter, the displacements have fat-tailed and anisotropic distributions. In the diffusive regime, we observe very slow cage breaking and Péclet numbers of order 100, contrary to the only previous microscopic model (based on diffusing voids). Overall, our experiments show that diffusion and mixing are dominated by geometry, consistent with long-lasting contacts but not thermal collisions, as in normal fluids.

Solar Distillation System Based on Multiple-Effect Diffusion Type Still

KAUST Repository

Huang, Bin-Juine

2014-03-01

The present study intends to develop a high-performance solar-assisted desalination system (SADS) using multi-effect diffusion type still (MEDS) and the vacuum tube solar collector (VTSC). A MEDS prototype was designed and built. The measured result is very close to the estimation. The 10-effect MEDS will produce pure water at about 13.7 L/day/m2 collector area at a solar irradiation of 600 W/m2 and 19.7 L/day/m2 collector area at solar irradiation 800 W/m2. For 20-effect still, the yield rate increase is 32% compared to 10-effect still.

Impact of Vertical Canopy Position on Leaf Spectral Properties and Traits across Multiple Species

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tawanda W. Gara

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Understanding the vertical pattern of leaf traits across plant canopies provide critical information on plant physiology, ecosystem functioning and structure and vegetation response to climate change. However, the impact of vertical canopy position on leaf spectral properties and subsequently leaf traits across the entire spectrum for multiple species is poorly understood. In this study, we examined the ability of leaf optical properties to track variability in leaf traits across the vertical canopy profile using Partial Least Square Discriminatory Analysis (PLS-DA. Leaf spectral measurements together with leaf traits (nitrogen, carbon, chlorophyll, equivalent water thickness and specific leaf area were studied at three vertical canopy positions along the plant stem: lower, middle and upper. We observed that foliar nitrogen (N, chlorophyll (Cab, carbon (C, and equivalent water thickness (EWT were higher in the upper canopy leaves compared with lower shaded leaves, while specific leaf area (SLA increased from upper to lower canopy leaves. We found that leaf spectral reflectance significantly (P ≤ 0.05 shifted to longer wavelengths in the ‘red edge’ spectrum (685–701 nm in the order of lower > middle > upper for the pooled dataset. We report that spectral bands that are influential in the discrimination of leaf samples into the three groups of canopy position, based on the PLS-DA variable importance projection (VIP score, match with wavelength regions of foliar traits observed to vary across the canopy vertical profile. This observation demonstrated that both leaf traits and leaf reflectance co-vary across the vertical canopy profile in multiple species. We conclude that canopy vertical position has a significant impact on leaf spectral properties of an individual plant’s traits, and this finding holds for multiple species. These findings have important implications on field sampling protocols, upscaling leaf traits to canopy level

Diffusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kubaschewski, O.

1983-01-01

The diffusion rate values of titanium, its compounds and alloys are summarized and tabulated. The individual chemical diffusion coefficients and self-diffusion coefficients of certain isotopes are given. Experimental methods are listed which were used for the determination of diffusion coefficients. Some values have been taken over from other studies. Also given are graphs showing the temperature dependences of diffusion and changes in the diffusion coefficient with concentration changes

Plasma nitriding process by direct current glow discharge at low temperature increasing the thermal diffusivity of AISI 304 stainless steel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Prandel, L. V.; Somer, A.; Assmann, A.; Camelotti, F.; Costa, G.; Bonardi, C.; Jurelo, A. R.; Rodrigues, J. B.; Cruz, G. K. [Universidade Estadual de Ponta Grossa, Grupo de Espectroscopia Optica e Fotoacustica de Materiais, Departamento de Fisica, Av. Carlos Cavalcanti, 4748, CEP 84030-900, Ponta Grossa, PR (Brazil)

2013-02-14

This work reports for the first time on the use of the open photoacoustic cell technique operating at very low frequencies and at room temperature to experimentally determine the thermal diffusivity parameter of commercial AISI304 stainless steel and AISI304 stainless steel nitrided samples. Complementary measurements of X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy were also performed. The results show that in standard AISI 304 stainless steel samples the thermal diffusivity is (4.0 {+-} 0.3) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -6} m{sup 2}/s. After the nitriding process, the thermal diffusivity increases to the value (7.1 {+-} 0.5) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -6} m{sup 2}/s. The results are being associated to the diffusion process of nitrogen into the surface of the sample. Carrying out subsequent thermal treatment at 500 Degree-Sign C, the thermal diffusivity increases up to (12.0 {+-} 2) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -6} m{sup 2}/s. Now the observed growing in the thermal diffusivity must be related to the change in the phases contained in the nitrided layer.

Polyphase diffusion of fission products in graphite

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dannert, V.

1989-05-01

The report attempts to give an introduction into the subject of fission product transport in nuclear graphite and results in an extended proposal of a transport-model. Beginning with a rough description of the graphite in question, an idea about the physical transport-phenomena in graphite is developed. Some of the basic experimental methods, especially techniques of porosimetry, determination of sorption-isotherms and of course several transport-experiments, are briefly described and their results are discussed. Some of the most frequent transport models are introduced and assessed with the criteria emphasized in this report. An extended model is proposed including the following main ideas: The transport of the fission-products is regarded as a two-phase-diffusion process through the open pores of the graphite. The two phases are: surface-diffusion and gas-diffusion. A time-dependent coupling of the two diffusion-phases by sorption-isotherms and a concentration-dependence of the surface diffusion coefficient, also related to the physical behaviour of the sorption-isotherms, are the basic properties of the proposed model. (orig./HP) [de

Emissivity of discretized diffusion problems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Densmore, Jeffery D.; Davidson, Gregory; Carrington, David B.

2006-01-01

The numerical modeling of radiative transfer by the diffusion approximation can produce artificially damped radiation propagation if spatial cells are too optically thick. In this paper, we investigate this nonphysical behavior at external problem boundaries by examining the emissivity of the discretized diffusion approximation. We demonstrate that the standard cell-centered discretization produces an emissivity that is too low for optically thick cells, a situation that leads to the lack of radiation propagation. We then present a modified boundary condition that yields an accurate emissivity regardless of cell size. This modified boundary condition can be used with a deterministic calculation or as part of a hybrid transport-diffusion method for increasing the efficiency of Monte Carlo simulations. We also discuss the range of applicability, as a function of cell size and material properties, when this modified boundary condition is employed in a hybrid technique. With a set of numerical calculations, we demonstrate the accuracy and usefulness of this modified boundary condition

Significance of multiple scattering in imaging through turbid media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zardecki, A.; Gerstl, S.A.W.

1986-01-01

The degradation of image quality in a turbid medium is analyzed within the framework of the small-angle approximation, the diffusion approximation, and a rigorous two-dimensional radiative transfer equation. These three approaches allow us to emphasize different aspects of the imaging problem when multiple scattering effects are important. For a medium with a forward-peaked phase function, the separation of multiple scattering into a series of scatterings of various order provides a fruitful technique. The use of the diffusion approximation and transport theory extends the determination of the modulation transfer function to a turbid medium with an arbitrary degree of anisotropy

Study on monostable and bistable reaction-diffusion equations by iteration of travelling wave maps

Science.gov (United States)

Yi, Taishan; Chen, Yuming

2017-12-01

In this paper, based on the iterative properties of travelling wave maps, we develop a new method to obtain spreading speeds and asymptotic propagation for monostable and bistable reaction-diffusion equations. Precisely, for Dirichlet problems of monostable reaction-diffusion equations on the half line, by making links between travelling wave maps and integral operators associated with the Dirichlet diffusion kernel (the latter is NOT invariant under translation), we obtain some iteration properties of the Dirichlet diffusion and some a priori estimates on nontrivial solutions of Dirichlet problems under travelling wave transformation. We then provide the asymptotic behavior of nontrivial solutions in the space-time region for Dirichlet problems. These enable us to develop a unified method to obtain results on heterogeneous steady states, travelling waves, spreading speeds, and asymptotic spreading behavior for Dirichlet problem of monostable reaction-diffusion equations on R+ as well as of monostable/bistable reaction-diffusion equations on R.

FORTRAN program for calculating liquid-phase and gas-phase thermal diffusion column coefficients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rutherford, W.M.

1980-01-01

A computer program (COLCO) was developed for calculating thermal diffusion column coefficients from theory. The program, which is written in FORTRAN IV, can be used for both liquid-phase and gas-phase thermal diffusion columns. Column coefficients for the gas phase can be based on gas properties calculated from kinetic theory using tables of omega integrals or on tables of compiled physical properties as functions of temperature. Column coefficients for the liquid phase can be based on compiled physical property tables. Program listings, test data, sample output, and users manual are supplied for appendices

Post-processing interstitialcy diffusion from molecular dynamics simulations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bhardwaj, U., E-mail: haptork@gmail.com [Computational Analysis Division, BARC, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, 530012 (India); Bukkuru, S. [Nuclear Physics Dept., Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, 530003 (India); Warrier, M. [Computational Analysis Division, BARC, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, 530012 (India)

2016-01-15

An algorithm to rigorously trace the interstitialcy diffusion trajectory in crystals is developed. The algorithm incorporates unsupervised learning and graph optimization which obviate the need to input extra domain specific information depending on crystal or temperature of the simulation. The algorithm is implemented in a flexible framework as a post-processor to molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. We describe in detail the reduction of interstitialcy diffusion into known computational problems of unsupervised clustering and graph optimization. We also discuss the steps, computational efficiency and key components of the algorithm. Using the algorithm, thermal interstitialcy diffusion from low to near-melting point temperatures is studied. We encapsulate the algorithms in a modular framework with functionality to calculate diffusion coefficients, migration energies and other trajectory properties. The study validates the algorithm by establishing the conformity of output parameters with experimental values and provides detailed insights for the interstitialcy diffusion mechanism. The algorithm along with the help of supporting visualizations and analysis gives convincing details and a new approach to quantifying diffusion jumps, jump-lengths, time between jumps and to identify interstitials from lattice atoms. -- Graphical abstract:.

Post-processing interstitialcy diffusion from molecular dynamics simulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhardwaj, U.; Bukkuru, S.; Warrier, M.

2016-01-01

An algorithm to rigorously trace the interstitialcy diffusion trajectory in crystals is developed. The algorithm incorporates unsupervised learning and graph optimization which obviate the need to input extra domain specific information depending on crystal or temperature of the simulation. The algorithm is implemented in a flexible framework as a post-processor to molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. We describe in detail the reduction of interstitialcy diffusion into known computational problems of unsupervised clustering and graph optimization. We also discuss the steps, computational efficiency and key components of the algorithm. Using the algorithm, thermal interstitialcy diffusion from low to near-melting point temperatures is studied. We encapsulate the algorithms in a modular framework with functionality to calculate diffusion coefficients, migration energies and other trajectory properties. The study validates the algorithm by establishing the conformity of output parameters with experimental values and provides detailed insights for the interstitialcy diffusion mechanism. The algorithm along with the help of supporting visualizations and analysis gives convincing details and a new approach to quantifying diffusion jumps, jump-lengths, time between jumps and to identify interstitials from lattice atoms. -- Graphical abstract:

New acrylic resin composite with improved thermal diffusivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Messersmith, P B; Obrez, A; Lindberg, S

1998-03-01

Studies have shown that physical characteristics of denture base materials may affect patient acceptance of denture prostheses by altering sensory experience of food during mastication. Thermal diffusivity is one material property that has been cited as being important in determining gustatory response, with denture base acrylic resins having low thermal diffusivity compared with denture base metal alloys. This study prepared and characterized experimental acrylic resin composite material with increased thermal diffusivity. Sapphire (Al2O3) whiskers were added to conventional denture base acrylic resin during processing to achieve loadings of 9.35% and 15% by volume. Cylindrical test specimens containing an embedded thermocouple were used to determine thermal diffusivity over a physiologic temperature range (0 degree to 70 degrees C). Thermal diffusivities of the sapphire containing composites were found to be significantly higher than the unmodified acrylic resin. Thermal diffusivity was found to increase in proportion to the volume percentage of sapphire filler, which suggested that the high aspect ratio ceramic particles formed a pathway for heat conduction through the insulating polymer matrix. The thermal diffusivity of denture base acrylic resin was increased by the addition of thermally conducting sapphire whiskers.

Thermodynamic modelling of fast dopant diffusion in Si

Science.gov (United States)

Saltas, V.; Chroneos, A.; Vallianatos, F.

2018-04-01

In the present study, nickel and copper fast diffusion in silicon is investigated in the framework of the cBΩ thermodynamic model, which connects point defect parameters with the bulk elastic and expansion properties. All the calculated point defect thermodynamic properties (activation Gibbs free energy, activation enthalpy, activation entropy, and activation volume) exhibit temperature dependence due to the non-linear anharmonic behavior of the isothermal bulk modulus of Si. Calculated activation enthalpies (0.15-0.16 eV for Ni and 0.17-0.19 eV for Cu) are in agreement with the reported experimental results. Small values of calculated activation volumes for both dopants (˜4% of the mean atomic volume) are consistent with the interstitial diffusion of Ni and Cu in Si.

Determination of thermal-diffusive properties of lyophilized food products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaplon, J.; Kramkowski, R.; Berdzik, M.

1998-01-01

Experimental results of vacuum freeze drying were presented. Water solutions of skim milk were dried under various pressures and distribution of temperature and moisture as a function of drying time were determined. Unilateral radiant heating of the material was applied. On the basis of experiment results and URIF model of vacuum freeze drying the thermal conductivity and vapour diffusion coefficients in dry layer were determined

Diffuse mode and diffuse-to-filamentary transition in a high pressure nanosecond scale corona discharge under high voltage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tardiveau, P; Moreau, N; Bentaleb, S; Postel, C; Pasquiers, S

2009-01-01

The dynamics of a point-to-plane corona discharge induced in high pressure air under nanosecond scale high overvoltage is investigated. The electrical and optical properties of the discharge can be described in space and time with fast and precise current measurements coupled to gated and intensified imaging. Under atmospheric pressure, the discharge exhibits a diffuse pattern like a multielectron avalanche propagating through a direct field ionization mechanism. The diffuse regime can exist since the voltage rise time is much shorter than the characteristic time of the field screening effects, and as long as the local field is higher than the critical ionization field in air. As one of these conditions is not fulfilled, the discharge turns into a multi-channel regime and the diffuse-to-filamentary transition strongly depends on the overvoltage, the point-to-plane gap length and the pressure. When pressure is increased above atmospheric pressure, the diffuse stage and its transition to streamers seem to satisfy similarity rules as the key parameter is the reduced critical ionization field only. However, above 3 bar, neither diffuse avalanche nor streamer filaments are observed but a kind of streamer-leader regime, due to the fact that mechanisms such as photoionization and heat diffusion are not similar to pressure.

Dynamics of Nano-Chain Diffusing in Porous Media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Jiang-Xing; Zheng Qiang; Huang Chun-Yun; Xu Jiang-Rong; Ying He-Ping

2015-01-01

A coarse-grained model is proposed to study the dynamics of a nano-chain diffusing in porous media. The simulation utilizes a hybrid method which combines stochastic rotation dynamics with molecular dynamics. Solvent molecules are explicitly taken into account to represent the hydrodynamic interactions and random fluctuations. The conformation, relaxation, and diffusion properties of a polymer chain are investigated by changing the density degree of the obstacle matrix. It is found that the average size of the chain is a nonmonotonic function of the obstacle volume fraction ϕ. A dense environment may contribute to extending a linear chain, which can be characterized by larger exponents in the corresponding power law. The relaxation behavior of a stretched chain to a steady state shows dramatic crossover from exponent to power-law relaxation when the values of φ are increased. The dependence of the diffusion coefficient on the chain size is also studied. Various kinds of scaling properties are presented and discussed. The results can give additional insight into the density effect of porous media on polymer structure and dynamics. (paper)

Oxygen diffusion in cuprate superconductors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Routbort, J.L.; Rothman, S.J.

1995-01-01

Superconducting properties of the cuprate superconductors depend on the oxygen content of the material; the diffusion of oxygen is thus an important process in the fabrication and application of these materials. This article reviews studies of the diffusion of oxygen in La{sub 2}{sub {minus}}{sub {times}}Sr{sub {times}}CuO{sub 4}, YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub 7}{sub {minus}}{delta}, YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 4}O{sub 8}, and the Bi{sub 2}Sr{sub 2}Ca{sub n}{sub {minus}}{sub 1}Cu{sub n}O{sub 2}{sub +}{sub 4} (n = 1, and 2) superconductors, and attempt to elucidate the atomic mechanisms responsible.

DIFFUSE Lyα EMITTING HALOS: A GENERIC PROPERTY OF HIGH-REDSHIFT STAR-FORMING GALAXIES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steidel, Charles C.; Bogosavljevic, Milan; Shapley, Alice E.; Kollmeier, Juna A.; Reddy, Naveen A.; Erb, Dawn K.; Pettini, Max

2011-01-01

Using a sample of 92 UV continuum-selected, spectroscopically identified galaxies with (z) = 2.65, all of which have been imaged in the Lyα line with extremely deep narrow-band imaging, we examine galaxy Lyα emission profiles to very faint surface brightness limits. The galaxy sample is representative of spectroscopic samples of Lyman break galaxies (LBGs) at similar redshifts in terms of apparent magnitude, UV luminosity, inferred extinction, and star formation rate and was assembled without regard to Lyα emission properties. Approximately 45% (55%) of the galaxy spectra have Lyα appearing in net absorption (emission), with ≅ 20% satisfying commonly used criteria for the identification of 'Lyα emitters' (LAEs; W 0 (Lyα) ≥ 20 A). We use extremely deep stacks of rest-UV continuum and continuum-subtracted Lyα images to show that all sub-samples exhibit diffuse Lyα emission to radii of at least 10'' (∼80 physical kpc). The characteristic exponential scale lengths for Lyα line emission exceed that of the λ 0 = 1220 A UV continuum light by factors of ∼5-10. The surface brightness profiles of Lyα emission are strongly suppressed relative to the UV continuum light in the inner few kpc, by amounts that are tightly correlated with the galaxies' observed spectral morphology; however, all galaxy sub-subsamples, including that of galaxies for which Lyα appears in net absorption in the spectra, exhibit qualitatively similar diffuse Lyα emission halos. Accounting for the extended Lyα emission halos, which generally would not be detected in the slit spectra of individual objects or with typical narrow-band Lyα imaging, increases the total Lyα flux (and rest equivalent width W 0 (Lyα)) by an average factor of ∼5, and by a much larger factor for the 80% of LBGs not classified as LAEs. We argue that most, if not all, of the observed Lyα emission in the diffuse halos originates in the galaxy H II regions but is scattered in our direction by H I gas in the

Application of dual-anneal diffusion multiples to the effective study of phase diagrams and phase transformations in the Fe–Cr–Ni system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao, Siwei; Zhao, Ji-Cheng

2015-01-01

A dual-anneal diffusion multiple (DADM) approach is developed for effective determination of intermediate-temperature phase diagrams that are critical to the establishment of reliable thermodynamic databases. A large amount of phase equilibrium data was obtained from DADMs to construct the Fe–Cr–Ni isothermal sections at 1200, 900, 800 and 700 °C. The DADM approach is also a systematic and effective way to study phase precipitation from wide ranges of compositions, thus generating rich atlases of microstructures induced by various transformations. The results from this study indicate that the body-centered cubic to sigma phase transformation in the Fe–Cr–Ni system took place initially through a massive transformation mechanism

Effect of chemical redox on Gd-doped ceria mass diffusion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ni, De Wei; de Florio, D.Z.; Marani, Debora

2015-01-01

The valence and size of cations influence mass diffusion and oxygen defects in ceria. Here we show that reduction of Ce4+ to Ce3+, at high temperatures and low oxygen activity, activates fast diffusion mechanisms which depend on the aliovalent cation concentration. As a result, polycrystalline so...... solid solutions with enhanced electrochemical properties are formed....

Study of optical non-linear properties of a constant total effective length multiple quantum wells system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Solaimani, M.; Morteza, Izadifard; Arabshahi, H.; Reza, Sarkardehi Mohammad

2013-01-01

In this work, we have studied the effect of the number of the wells, in a multiple quantum wells structure with constant total effective length, on the optical properties of multiple quantum wells like the absorption coefficient and the refractive index by means of compact density matrix approach. GaAs/Al x Ga (1−x) As multiple quantum wells systems was selected as an example. Besides, the effect of varying number of wells on the subband energies, wave functions, number of bound states, and the Fermi energy have been also investigated. Our calculation revealed that the number of wells in a multiple quantum well is a criterion with which we can control the amount of nonlinearity. This study showed that for the third order refractive index change there is two regimes of variations and the critical well number was six. In our calculations, we have used the same wells and barrier thicknesses to construct the multiple quantum wells system. - Highlights: ► OptiOptical Non-Linear. ► Total Effective Length. ► Multiple Quantum Wells System - genetic algorithm ► Schrödinger equation solution. ► Nanostructure.

Localized modulated wave solutions in diffusive glucose–insulin systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mvogo, Alain, E-mail: mvogal_2009@yahoo.fr [Laboratory of Biophysics, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Yaounde I, P.O. Box 812, University of Yaounde (Cameroon); Centre d' Excellence Africain en Technologies de l' Information et de la Communication, University of Yaounde I (Cameroon); Tambue, Antoine [The African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) and Stellenbosch University, 6-8 Melrose Road, Muizenberg 7945 (South Africa); Center for Research in Computational and Applied Mechanics (CERECAM), and Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, University of Cape Town, 7701 Rondebosch (South Africa); Ben-Bolie, Germain H. [Centre d' Excellence Africain en Technologies de l' Information et de la Communication, University of Yaounde I (Cameroon); Laboratory of Nuclear Physics, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Yaounde I, P.O. Box 812, University of Yaounde (Cameroon); Kofané, Timoléon C. [Centre d' Excellence Africain en Technologies de l' Information et de la Communication, University of Yaounde I (Cameroon); Laboratory of Mechanics, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Yaounde I, P.O. Box 812, University of Yaounde (Cameroon)

2016-06-03

We investigate intercellular insulin dynamics in an array of diffusively coupled pancreatic islet β-cells. The cells are connected via gap junction coupling, where nearest neighbor interactions are included. Through the multiple scale expansion in the semi-discrete approximation, we show that the insulin dynamics can be governed by the complex Ginzburg–Landau equation. The localized solutions of this equation are reported. The results suggest from the biophysical point of view that the insulin propagates in pancreatic islet β-cells using both temporal and spatial dimensions in the form of localized modulated waves. - Highlights: • The dynamics of an array of diffusively coupled pancreatic islet beta-cells is investigated. • Through the multiple scale expansion, we show that the insulin dynamics can be governed by the complex Ginzburg–Landau equation. • Localized modulated waves are obtained for the insulin dynamics.

Grain boundary and triple junction diffusion in nanocrystalline copper

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wegner, M., E-mail: m.wegner@uni-muenster.de; Leuthold, J.; Peterlechner, M.; Divinski, S. V., E-mail: divin@uni-muenster.de [Institut für Materialphysik, Universität Münster, Wilhelm-Klemm-Straße 10, D-48149, Münster (Germany); Song, X., E-mail: xysong@bjut.edu.cn [College of Materials Science and Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, 100124 Beijing (China); Wilde, G. [Institut für Materialphysik, Universität Münster, Wilhelm-Klemm-Straße 10, D-48149, Münster (Germany); Institute of Nanochemistry and Nanobiology, School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Shanghai University, 200444 Shanghai (China)

2014-09-07

Grain boundary and triple junction diffusion in nanocrystalline Cu samples with grain sizes, 〈d〉, of ∼35 and ∼44 nm produced by spark plasma sintering were investigated by the radiotracer method using the {sup 63}Ni isotope. The measured diffusivities, D{sub eff}, are comparable with those determined previously for Ni grain boundary diffusion in well-annealed, high purity, coarse grained, polycrystalline copper, substantiating the absence of a grain size effect on the kinetic properties of grain boundaries in a nanocrystalline material at grain sizes d ≥ 35 nm. Simultaneously, the analysis predicts that if triple junction diffusion of Ni in Cu is enhanced with respect to the corresponding grain boundary diffusion rate, it is still less than 500⋅D{sub gb} within the temperature interval from 420 K to 470 K.

The effect of saponification on the mucopolysaccharides of the ground substance of the human brain: the relation to focal edema and multiple sclerosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Feigin, I

1981-03-01

The acid mucopolysaccharides of brain tissues are disclosed by their metachromatic staining with toluidine blue following saponification with potassium hydroxide, presumably as a result of the liberation of acid groups previously esterified. Earlier histochemical studies had disclosed the presence of neutral mucopolysaccharides by staining with the periodic acid-Schiff technique, and such staining is intensified by prior saponification. Many biochemical studies have reported the presence of both acid and neutral mucopolysaccharides in brain tissues. Within the white matter following brain edema, the quantity of stained mucopolysaccharides is decreased in the plaques of multiple sclerosis and pontine myelinolysis, and in the lesions of diffuse sclerosis. All of these are characterized by myelin loss with relative preservation of axons. The known physiological effects of the mucopolysaccharides on the water content of normal tissues, and on the properties and diffusability of the increments of fluid that constitute edema, lead to the suggestion that edema may play a major role in the pathogenesis of the demyelinating diseases, including multiple sclerosis.

Friction Stir Welding-assisted Diffusion Bond of Al/Zn/Mg Lap Joint

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

JIN Yu-hua

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Dissimilar materials welding between 2mm-thick AZ31B Mg alloy and 6061 Al alloy plates in overlap form was performed using the friction stir-induced diffusion bond with zinc foil as the interlayer. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the Al/Zn/Mg lap joints were analyzed by means of SEM, EPMA, XRD, tensile experiment and Vickers hardness test. The results show that diffusion layer consists of Al enrichment zone, Al5Mg11Zn4 layer and Mg-Zn eutectic zone at proper rotation speed; however, when rotation speed is low, the residual zinc interlayer remains in the diffusion layer; when rotation speed is high, the Al-Mg intermetallic compounds are present again. Due to the existence of intermetallic compounds in diffusion layer, its microhardness is significantly higher than that of base metal. The addition of zinc foil can improve the mechanical properties of Al/Mg lap joints. According to analysis on the fracture, joint failure occurs in the diffusion layer near to Al side.

Fast linear solver for radiative transport equation with multiple right hand sides in diffuse optical tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jia, Jingfei; Kim, Hyun K.; Hielscher, Andreas H.

2015-01-01

It is well known that radiative transfer equation (RTE) provides more accurate tomographic results than its diffusion approximation (DA). However, RTE-based tomographic reconstruction codes have limited applicability in practice due to their high computational cost. In this article, we propose a new efficient method for solving the RTE forward problem with multiple light sources in an all-at-once manner instead of solving it for each source separately. To this end, we introduce here a novel linear solver called block biconjugate gradient stabilized method (block BiCGStab) that makes full use of the shared information between different right hand sides to accelerate solution convergence. Two parallelized block BiCGStab methods are proposed for additional acceleration under limited threads situation. We evaluate the performance of this algorithm with numerical simulation studies involving the Delta–Eddington approximation to the scattering phase function. The results show that the single threading block RTE solver proposed here reduces computation time by a factor of 1.5–3 as compared to the traditional sequential solution method and the parallel block solver by a factor of 1.5 as compared to the traditional parallel sequential method. This block linear solver is, moreover, independent of discretization schemes and preconditioners used; thus further acceleration and higher accuracy can be expected when combined with other existing discretization schemes or preconditioners. - Highlights: • We solve the multiple-right-hand-side problem in DOT with a block BiCGStab method. • We examine the CPU times of the block solver and the traditional sequential solver. • The block solver is faster than the sequential solver by a factor of 1.5–3.0. • Multi-threading block solvers give additional speedup under limited threads situation.

Diffusion cell investigations into the acidic degradation of organic coatings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Møller, Victor Buhl; Wang, Ting; Dam-Johansen, Kim

2018-01-01

Protective organic coatings work by preventing contact between an aggressive environment and a vulnerable substrate. However, the long required lifetime of a barrier coating provides a challenge when attempting to evaluate coating performance. Diffusion cells can be used as a tool to estimate...... coating barrier properties and lifetime. In this work, a diffusion cell array was designed, constructed, and compared to previous designs, with simplicity being the most important design parameter. Sulfuric acid diffusion through five different coatings was monitored using a battery of cells...

Reference mean temperature for evaluation of performance of thermal diffusion column for isotope separation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamamoto, Ichiro; Kanagawa, Akira

1987-01-01

In order to evaluate separative performance of a thermal diffusion column, a simplification is usually made in which the temperature dependence of the relevant properties such as thermal diffusion constant is ignored and some proper mean values evaluated at a specific ''mean'' temperature are used. Adoption of weighted average of temperature distribution is common for the ''mean'' temperature, but there exists no definite way of determining mean temperature. The present paper proposes a new reference mean temperature determined by the equation governing the free convection. It is based on the fact that the multiplication effect of free convection is essential to separation by thermal diffusion column. The reference mean temperature is related to pressure difference between top and bottom of column and is higher than a mass-averaged temperature (due to gravitational force) by a contribution of viscous force. The reference mean temperature was calculated, as a reference, for an Ar isotope separating column with an inner hot radius of 0.2 mm and an outer cold radius of 5 mm. The results confirmed the validity of an approximate formula expressing effects of temperature difference and ratio of inner and outer radii of column explicitly for the temperature. The reference mean temperature calculated from pressure difference given by axisymmetric solution of equations of change was in good agreement with the analytical solution. (author)