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Sample records for reinforced capping systems

  1. Modeling of geosynthetic reinforced capping systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Viswanadham, B.V.S.; Koenig, D.; Jessberger, H.L.

    1997-01-01

    The investigation deals with the influence of a geosynthetic reinforcement on the deformation behavior and sealing efficiency of the reinforced mineral sealing layer at the onset of non-uniform settlements. The research program is mainly concentrated in studying the influence of reinforcement inclusion in restraining cracks and crack propagation due to soil-geosynthetic bond efficiency. Centrifuge model tests are conducted in the 500 gt capacity balanced beam Bochum geotechnical Centrifuge (Z1) simulating a differential deformation of a mineral sealing layer of a landfill with the help of trap-door arrangement. By comparing the performance of the deformed mineral sealing layer with and without geogrid, the reinforcement ability of the geogrid in controlling the crack propagation and permeability of the mineral swing layer is evaluated

  2. Collapse mechanisms and strength prediction of reinforced concrete pile caps

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Uffe G.; Hoang, Linh Cao

    2012-01-01

    . Calculations have been compared with nearly 200 test results found in the literature. Satisfactory agreement has been found. The analyses are conducted on concentrically loaded caps supported by four piles. The paper briefly outlines how the approach may be extended to more complicated loadings and geometries......This paper describes an upper bound plasticity approach for strength prediction of reinforced concrete pile caps. A number of collapse mechanisms are identified and analysed. The procedure leads to an estimate of the load-carrying capacity and an identification of the critical collapse mechanism...

  3. DRIVEN POLYSTRONG REINFORCED CONCRETE PILES AND NEW DESIGN OF PILE CAPS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    I. I. Bekbasarov

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper presents constructional and technological features for manufacturing driven piles with variable strength of pile shaft. Economical efficiency of their production has been shown in the paper. The paper provides a pile cap design that ensures perception of hammer impacts with the help of lateral edges of the pile cap. Driven reinforced concrete piles which are manufactured from three shaft sections having various strength have been proposed in the paper. Material strength (concrete grade and diameter of bars and length of shaft sections are given on a case by case basis in accordance with nature and rate of stresses in piles during their driving process. Manufacturing of polystrong piles provides an opportunity to select them for a particular construction site with due account of their preservation during driving process.A pile cap has been developed that as opposed to existing analogous designs makes it possible to transmit impact efforts from a hammer to the pile through lateral surface of its head part. The pile cap provides the possibility to increase an area for perception of hammer impact efforts by the pile and in doing so it is possible significantly to reduce a damage risk and destruction of pile concrete during its driving. Application of polystrong piles and their driving with the help of new pile cap are considered as a basis for defect-free and resource-saving technology for pile foundations in the construction.

  4. Experimental study of reinforced concrete pile caps with external, embedded and partially embedded socket with smooth interface

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. Barros

    Full Text Available On Precast concrete structures the column foundation connections can occur through the socket foundation, which can be embedded, partially embedded or external, with socket walls over the pile caps. This paper presents an experimental study about two pile caps reinforced concrete with external, partially embedded and embedded socket submitted to central load, using 1:2 scaled models. In the analyzed models, the smooth interface between the socket walls and column was considered. The results are compared to a reference model that presents monolithic connections between the column and pile cap. It is observed that the ultimate load of pile cap with external sockets has the same magnitude as the reference pile cap, but the ultimate load of models with partially embedded and embedded socket present less magnitude than the reference model.

  5. Analysis of Dynamic Stiffness of Bridge Cap-Pile System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jinhui Chu

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available In order to investigate the applicability of dynamic stiffness for bridge cap-pile system, a laboratory test was performed. A numerical model was also built for this type of system. The impact load was applied on the cap top and the dynamic stiffness was analysed. Then, the effect of the effective friction area between pile and soil was also considered. Finally, the dynamic stiffness relationship between the single pile and the cap-pile system was also compared. The results show that the dynamic stiffness is a sensitive index and can well reflect the static characteristics of the pile at the elastic stage. There is a significant positive correlation between the vertical dynamic stiffness index and bearing capacity of the cap-pile system in the similar formation environment. For the cap-pile system with four piles, the dynamic stiffness is about four times as large as the single pile between 10 and 20 Hz.

  6. The pharmaceutical vial capping process: Container closure systems, capping equipment, regulatory framework, and seal quality tests.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mathaes, Roman; Mahler, Hanns-Christian; Buettiker, Jean-Pierre; Roehl, Holger; Lam, Philippe; Brown, Helen; Luemkemann, Joerg; Adler, Michael; Huwyler, Joerg; Streubel, Alexander; Mohl, Silke

    2016-02-01

    Parenteral drug products are protected by appropriate primary packaging to protect against environmental factors, including potential microbial contamination during shelf life duration. The most commonly used CCS configuration for parenteral drug products is the glass vial, sealed with a rubber stopper and an aluminum crimp cap. In combination with an adequately designed and controlled aseptic fill/finish processes, a well-designed and characterized capping process is indispensable to ensure product quality and integrity and to minimize rejections during the manufacturing process. In this review, the health authority requirements and expectations related to container closure system quality and container closure integrity are summarized. The pharmaceutical vial, the rubber stopper, and the crimp cap are described. Different capping techniques are critically compared: The most common capping equipment with a rotating capping plate produces the lowest amount of particle. The strength and challenges of methods to control the capping process are discussed. The residual seal force method can characterize the capping process independent of the used capping equipment or CCS. We analyze the root causes of several cosmetic defects associated with the vial capping process. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. Circumpolar Active-Layer Permafrost System (CAPS)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Circumpolar Active-Layer Permafrost System (CAPS) contains over 100 data sets pertaining to permafrost and frozen ground topics. It also contains detailed...

  8. Simple MoCap System for Home Usage

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martin Magdin

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Nowadays many MoCap systems exist. Generating 3D facial animation of characters is currently realized by using the motion capture data (MoCap data, which is obtained by tracking the facial markers from an actor/actress. In general it is a professional solution that is sophisticated and costly. This paper presents a solution with a system that is inexpensive. We propose a new easy-to-use system for home usage, through which we are making character animation. In its implementation we paid attention to the elimination of errors from the previous solutions. In this paper the authors describe the method how motion capture characters on a treadmill and as well as an own Java application that processes the video for its further use in Cinema 4D. This paper describes the implementation of this technology of sensing in a way so that the animated character authentically imitated human movement on a treadmill.

  9. The design and performance of a low-cost, soil cement cap for LLNW disposal trenches

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nowatzki, E.A.

    1986-01-01

    Over the past three years, the University of Arizona has conducted research for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) to assess various trench cap designs from the viewpoint of structural stability, water infiltration, and economy. As part of that project, four experimental trenches were built and monitored at each of two semi-arid sites in the vicinity of Tucson, Arizona. In this paper, the design and construction of one of those trenches are described in detail. That trench included a cap-crown system that incorporates compacted soil backfill and a steel-reinforced, soil-cement cap with an overlying 'wick' drain. The results of structural monitoring over a period of approximately 2 years are presented and compared to those of a more conventionally designed trench. The results are evaluated with respect to surface subsidence and movements of the cap-crown components as they affect moisture infiltration. Recommendations are made regarding standard design criteria for LLNW disposal trenches based on the results of this research

  10. Design document for landfill capping Prototype Decision Support System

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stone, J.J.; Paige, G.; Hakonson, T.E.; Lane, L.J.

    1994-01-01

    The overall objective of the Prototype Decision Support System for shallow land burial project is to ''Develop a Decision Support System tool which incorporates simulation modeling and multi-objective decision theory for the purpose of designing and evaluating alternative trench cap designs for mixed waste landfill covers. The goal is to improve the quality of technical information used by the risk manager to select landfill cover designs while taking into account technological, economical, and regulatory factors.'' The complexity of the technical and non-technical information, and how the information varies in importance across sites, points to the need for decision analysis tools that provide a common basis for integrating, synthesizing, and valuing the decision input. Because the cost of remediating thousands of contaminated DOE sites is projected to be in the 10's--100's of billions of dollars, methods will be needed to establish cleanup priorities and to help in the selection and evaluation of cost effective remediation alternatives. Even at this early stage in DOE's cleanup program, it is certain that capping technologies will be heavily relied upon to remediate the 3000+ landfills on DOE property. Capping is favored in remediating most DOE landfills because, based on preliminary baseline risk assessments, human and ecological risks are considered to be low at most of these sites and the regulatory requirements for final closure of old landfills can be met using a well designed cap to isolate the buried waste. This report describes a program plan to design, develop, and test a decision support system (DSS) for assisting the DOE risk manager in evaluating capping alternatives for radioactive and hazardous waste landfills. The DOE DSS will incorporate methods for calculating, integrating and valuing technical, regulatory, and economic criteria

  11. Mapping Quantitatively Regional Drug Absorption in Canines with IntelliCap System

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Becker, D.; Schütz, H.; Beyerbach, A.; Zou, H.; Shimizu, J.; Iordanov, V.P.

    2011-01-01

    Quantitative regional absorption of a drug under development was studied by using the novel IntelliCap system. IntelliCap is an orally swallowable programmable drug delivery capsule and capable of real-time monitoring of physiological conditions (pH, temperature), consequently allowing localization

  12. Geo synthetic-reinforced Pavement systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zornberg, J. G.

    2014-01-01

    Geo synthetics have been used as reinforcement inclusions to improve pavement performance. while there are clear field evidence of the benefit of using geo synthetic reinforcements, the specific conditions or mechanisms that govern the reinforcement of pavements are, at best, unclear and have remained largely unmeasured. Significant research has been recently conducted with the objectives of: (i) determining the relevant properties of geo synthetics that contribute to the enhanced performance of pavement systems, (ii) developing appropriate analytical, laboratory and field methods capable of quantifying the pavement performance, and (iii) enabling the prediction of pavement performance as a function of the properties of the various types of geo synthetics. (Author)

  13. Site-specific multipoint fluorescence measurement system with end-capped optical fibers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Woosub; Moon, Sucbei; Lee, Byoung-Cheol; Park, Chul-Seung; Kim, Dug Young; Kwon, Hyuk Sang

    2011-07-10

    We present the development and implementation of a spatially and spectrally resolved multipoint fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) system utilizing multiple end-capped optical fibers and an inexpensive laser source. Specially prepared end-capped optical fibers placed in an image plane were used to both collect fluorescence signals from the sample and to deliver signals to the detectors. The placement of independently selected optical fibers on the image plane was done by monitoring the end-capped fiber tips at the focus using a CCD, and fluorescence from specific positions of a sample were collected by an end-capped fiber, which could accurately represent light intensities or spectral data without incurring any disturbance. A fast multipoint spectroscopy system with a time resolution of ∼1.5 ms was then implemented using a prism and an electron multiplying charge coupled device with a pixel binning for the region of interest. The accuracy of our proposed system was subsequently confirmed by experimental results, based on an FCS analysis of microspheres in distilled water. We expect that the proposed multipoint site-specific fluorescence measurement system can be used as an inexpensive fluorescence measurement tool to study many intracellular and molecular dynamics in cell biology. © 2011 Optical Society of America

  14. Quantifying Third-Party Impacts and Environmental Externalities from a Cap-And-Trade System for Groundwater Management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khan, H. F.; Yang, Y. C. E.; Brown, C.

    2016-12-01

    Economic decision models, such as the cap-and-trade system, have been shown to be useful in the context of groundwater management. A uniformly applied cap-and-trade system can however result in significant spatially and temporally varying hydrogeologic impacts that reduce public welfare. Hydrological challenges associated with the cap-and-trade system for groundwater management include establishing appropriate system boundaries, setting system-wide sustainable yield and limiting third party impacts from extractions. Given these challenges, these economic models need to be supplemented with physically based hydrogeologic models that are able to represent the spatial and temporal heterogeneity in conditions across a region. This investigation assesses third-party impacts and environmental externalities resulting from a cap-and-trade system in a sub-basin of the Republican River Basin, overlying the Ogallala aquifer in the High Plains of the United States. The economic model is coupled with a calibrated physically based groundwater model. The cap-and-trade system is developed using a multi-agent system model where individual benefits of each self-interested agent are maximized subject to bounds on irrigation requirements and water use permits. We then compare the performance of the cap-and-trade system with a smart groundwater market which, in addition to a cap on total groundwater extraction, also incorporates streamflow constraints. The results quantify third-party impacts and environmental externalities resulting from uncontrolled trading. This analysis demonstrates the value added by a well-designed cap-and-trade system able to account for basin-wide heterogeneity in hydrogeologic and ecological conditions by establishing trading limits, managing inter-area transfers and setting exchange rates for permit trading.

  15. CAPS Simulation Environment Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murphy, Douglas G.; Hoffman, James A.

    2005-01-01

    The final design for an effective Comet/Asteroid Protection System (CAPS) will likely come after a number of competing designs have been simulated and evaluated. Because of the large number of design parameters involved in a system capable of detecting an object, accurately determining its orbit, and diverting the impact threat, a comprehensive simulation environment will be an extremely valuable tool for the CAPS designers. A successful simulation/design tool will aid the user in identifying the critical parameters in the system and eventually allow for automatic optimization of the design once the relationships of the key parameters are understood. A CAPS configuration will consist of space-based detectors whose purpose is to scan the celestial sphere in search of objects likely to make a close approach to Earth and to determine with the greatest possible accuracy the orbits of those objects. Other components of a CAPS configuration may include systems for modifying the orbits of approaching objects, either for the purpose of preventing a collision or for positioning the object into an orbit where it can be studied or used as a mineral resource. The Synergistic Engineering Environment (SEE) is a space-systems design, evaluation, and visualization software tool being leveraged to simulate these aspects of the CAPS study. The long-term goal of the SEE is to provide capabilities to allow the user to build and compare various CAPS designs by running end-to-end simulations that encompass the scanning phase, the orbit determination phase, and the orbit modification phase of a given scenario. Herein, a brief description of the expected simulation phases is provided, the current status and available features of the SEE software system is reported, and examples are shown of how the system is used to build and evaluate a CAPS detection design. Conclusions and the roadmap for future development of the SEE are also presented.

  16. Design aid for shear strengthening of reinforced concrete T-joints using carbon fiber reinforced plastic composites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gergely, Ioan

    The research presented in the present work focuses on the shear strengthening of beam column joints using carbon fiber composites, a material considered in seismic retrofit in recent years more than any other new material. These composites, or fiber reinforced polymers, offer huge advantages over structural steel reinforced concrete or timber. A few of these advantages are the superior resistance to corrosion, high stiffness to weight and strength to weight ratios, and the ability to control the material's behavior by selecting the orientation of the fibers. The design and field application research on reinforced concrete cap beam-column joints includes analytical investigations using pushover analysis; design of carbon fiber layout, experimental tests and field applications. Several beam column joints have been tested recently with design variables as the type of composite system, fiber orientation and the width of carbon fiber sheets. The surface preparation has been found to be critical for the bond between concrete and composite material, which is the most important factor in joint shear strengthening. The final goal of this thesis is to develop design aids for retrofitting reinforced concrete beam column joints. Two bridge bents were tested on the Interstate-15 corridor. One bent was tested in the as-is condition. Carbon fiber reinforced plastic composite sheets were used to externally reinforce the second bridge bent. By applying the composite, the displacement ductility has been doubled, and the bent overall lateral load capacity has been increased as well. The finite element model (using DRAIN-2DX) was calibrated to model the actual stiffness of the supports. The results were similar to the experimental findings.

  17. Emission-dependent supply chain and environment-policy-making in the ‘cap-and-trade’ system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Du, Shaofu; Zhu, Lili; Liang, Liang; Ma, Fang

    2013-01-01

    The paper focuses on a so-called emission-dependent supply chain consisting of one single emission-dependent manufacturer and one single emission permit supplier in the ‘cap-and-trade’ system, where emission permit becomes requisite for production. We consider the emission cap of emission-dependent manufacturer allocated by the government as a kind of environmental policy and formally investigate its influence on decision-makings within the concerned emission-dependent supply chain as well as distribution fairness in social welfare. It is proved that the system-wide and the manufacturer's profits increase with the emission cap while the permit supplier's decreases. There is room for manufacturer and permit supplier to coordinate the supply chain to get more profit in a certain condition. - Highlights: ► We model an emission-dependent supply chain with a permit supplier and a firm. ► We game-theoretically analyze their optimal decisions in a ‘cap-and-trade' system. ► It is possible to coordinate the supply chain in a certain condition. ► The effect of emission cap as an environment policy is considered. ► Bernoulli–Nash Social Welfare Function is employed to analyze the optimal cap

  18. Development of structural health monitoring and early warning system for reinforced concrete system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Iranata, Data; Wahyuni, Endah; Murtiadi, Suryawan; Widodo, Amien; Riksakomara, Edwin; Sani, Nisfu Asrul

    2015-01-01

    Many buildings have been damaged due to earthquakes that occurred recently in Indonesia. The main cause of the damage is the large deformation of the building structural component cannot accommodate properly. Therefore, it is necessary to develop the Structural Health Monitoring System (SHMS) to measure precisely the deformation of the building structural component in the real time conditions. This paper presents the development of SHMS for reinforced concrete structural system. This monitoring system is based on deformation component such as strain of reinforcement bar, concrete strain, and displacement of reinforced concrete component. Since the deformation component has exceeded the limit value, the warning message can be sent to the building occupies. This warning message has also can be performed as early warning system of the reinforced concrete structural system. The warning message can also be sent via Short Message Service (SMS) through the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) network. Hence, the SHMS should be integrated with internet modem to connect with GSM network. Additionally, the SHMS program is verified with experimental study of simply supported reinforced concrete beam. Verification results show that the SHMS has good agreement with experimental results

  19. Decomposition recovery extension to the Computer Aided Prototyping System (CAPS) change-merge tool.

    OpenAIRE

    Keesling, William Ronald

    1997-01-01

    Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited A promising use of Computer Aided Prototyping System (CAPS) is to support concurrent design. Key to success in this context is the ability to automatically and reliably combine and integrate the prototypes produced in concurrent efforts. Thus, to be of practical use in this as well as most prototyping contexts, a CAPS tool must have a fast, automated, reliable prototype integration capability. The current CAPS Change Merge Tool is fast...

  20. The Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) adaption in National Early Warning Alerting Systems of China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Chao

    2017-04-01

    The Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) [1] is an XML-based data format for exchanging public warnings and emergencies between alerting technologies. In China, from local communities to entire nations, there was a patchwork of specialized hazard public alerting systems. And each system was often designed just for certain emergency situations and for certain communications media. Application took place in the NEWAS (National Early Warning Alerting Systems) [2]project where CAP serves as central message to integrate all kind of hazard situations, including the natural calamity, accident disaster, public health emergency , social safety etc. Officially operated on May 2015, NEWAS now has completed docking work with 14 departments including civil administration, safety supervision, forestry, land, water conservancy, earthquake, traffic, meteorology, agriculture, tourism, food and drug supervision, public security and oceanic administration. Thus, several items in CAP has been modified, redefined and extended according to the various grading standards and publishing strategies, as well as the characteristics of Chinese Geocoding. NEWAS successfully delivers information to end users through 4 levels (i.e. State, province, prefecture and county) structure and by various means. [1] CAP, http://www.oasis-emergency.org/cap [2] http://www.12379.cn/

  1. The North Zealand CAP Monitor

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Minna; Ravn, Pernille; Notander Clausen, Lise

    with CAP. We started with 34 audit variables. Through repeated cycles of testing, feedback and discussions, we reduced the number of indicators to 22 and time per audit from 20 to 10 minutes. Strategy for change To link the monitoring system with our patient pathway for CAP we established an improvement...... Designing a database Designing and testing a dashboard to present indicators in a balanced way Messages for others Auditing patients with a common disease as CAP is useful to identify areas for improvement for a large group of patients. The baseline audit can serve as a basis for a monitoring system......Contect We describe how we developed a monitoring system for community acquired pneumonia (CAP) at North Zealand Regional hospital. We serve 310.000 inhabitants and annually around 3200 patients with CAP are admitted. As part of a program of clinical pathways for common conditions, a pathway...

  2. Glass FRP reinforcement in rehabilitation of concrete marine infrastructure

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Newhook, John P.

    2006-01-01

    Fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) reinforcements for concrete structures are gaining wide acceptance as a suitable alternative to steel reinforcements. The primary advantage is that they do not suffer corrosion and hence they promise to be more durable in environments where steel reinforced concrete has a limited life span. Concrete wharves and jetties are examples of structures subjected to such harsh environments and represent the general class of marine infrastructure in which glass FRP (GFRP) reinforcement should be used for improved durability and service life. General design considerations which make glass FRP suitable for use in marine concrete rehabilitation projects are discussed. A case study of recent wharf rehabilitation project in Canada is used to reinforce these considerations. The structure consisted of a GFRP reinforced concrete deck panel and steel - GFRP hybrid reinforced concrete pile cap. A design methodology is developed for the hybrid reinforcement design and verified through testing. The results of a field monitoring program are used to establish the satisfactory field performance of the GFRP reinforcement. The design concepts presented in the paper are applicable to many concrete marine components and other structures where steel reinforcement corrosion is a problem. (author)

  3. Bank Interest Margin and Default Risk under Basel III Capped Capital Adequacy Accord and Regulatory Deposit Insurance Fund Protection

    OpenAIRE

    Chuen-Ping Chang; Shi Chen

    2015-01-01

    We study the optimal bank interest margin and default risk under the capped ratio schedule of government capital instruments in the Basel III Capital Adequacy Accord and the Deposit Insurance Fund arrangement program. We show that an increase in the capped ratio (a decrease in the capped government capital injection) increases the default risk in the bank¡¯s equity return at a reduced interest margin. Regulatory deposit insurance fund protection reinforces the reduced bank interest margin and...

  4. Nonlinear analysis of reinforced concrete structures using software package abaqus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marković Nemanja

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Reinforced concrete (AB is characterized by huge inhomogeneity resulting from the material characteristics of the concrete, then, quasi-brittle behavior during failure. These and other phenomena require the introduction of material nonlinearity in the modeling of reinforced concrete structures. This paper presents the modeling reinforced concrete in the software package ABAQUS. A brief theoretical overview is presented of methods such as: Concrete Damage Plasticity (CDP, Smeared Concrete Cracking (CSC, Cap Plasticity (CP and Drucker-Prager model (DPM. We performed a nonlinear analysis of two-storey reinforced concrete frame by applying CDP method for modeling material nonlinearity of concrete. We have analyzed damage zones, crack propagation and loading-deflection ratio.

  5. Full Scale Reinforced Concrete Beam-Column Joints Strengthened with Steel Reinforced Polymer Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alessandro De Vita

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents the results of an experimental campaign performed at the Laboratory of Materials and Structural Testing of the University of Salerno (Italy in order to investigate the seismic performance of reinforced concrete (RC beam-column joints strengthened with steel reinforced polymer (SRP systems. With the aim to represent typical façade frames’ beam-column subassemblies found in existing RC buildings, specimens were provided with two short beam stubs orthogonal to the main beam and were designed with inadequate seismic details. Five members were strengthened by using two different SRP layouts while the remaining ones were used as benchmarks. Once damaged, two specimens were also repaired, retrofitted with SRP, and subjected to cyclic test again. The results of cyclic tests performed on SRP strengthened joints are examined through a comparison with the outcomes of the previous experimental program including companion specimens not provided with transverse beam stubs and strengthened by carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP systems. In particular, both qualitative and quantitative considerations about the influence of the confining effect provided by the secondary beams on the joint response, the suitability of all the adopted strengthening solutions (SRP/CFRP systems, the performances and the failure modes experienced in the several cases studied are provided.

  6. Development of Mission Enabling Infrastructure — Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System (CAPS)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cheetham, B. W.

    2017-10-01

    Advanced Space, LLC is developing the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System (CAPS) which would provide a scalable and evolvable architecture for navigation to reduce ground congestion and improve operations for missions throughout cislunar space.

  7. Electrochemical deposition mechanism of calcium phosphate coating in dilute Ca-P electrolyte system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hu Ren [State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces and Department of Chemistry, CNRS Laboratoire International Associe XiamENS, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian 361005 (China); Department of Biology, College of Life Science, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian 361005 (China); Lin Changjian, E-mail: cjlin@xmu.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces and Department of Chemistry, CNRS Laboratoire International Associe XiamENS, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian 361005 (China); Shi Haiyan; Wang Hui [State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces and Department of Chemistry, CNRS Laboratoire International Associe XiamENS, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian 361005 (China)

    2009-06-15

    In this work, the electrochemical deposition behavior of calcium phosphate coating from an aqueous electrolyte containing very dilute calcium and phosphorus species (Ca-P) was studied. The effects of three process parameters, i.e. temperature, current density and duration, were systematically investigated and the underlying mechanism was thoroughly analyzed. It was observed that the coating is mainly composed of hydroxyapatite (HA) in a wide range of temperature and current densities. The temperature had a significant effect on the deposition velocity. An apparent activation energy of 174.9 kJ mol{sup -1} was subsequently derived, indicating the mass-transfer control mechanism for the coating formation. The current density was identified to be an important parameter for structure controllability. The results of DR-FTIR/Raman spectroscopic studies of the initial deposition phase strongly suggested that the HA coating was instantaneously and directly precipitated on the substrate; neither induction period nor precursor was detected in this dilute Ca-P electrolyte system. Finally, a phase diagram of the Ca-P electrolyte system was constructed, which offered a thermodynamic reason for the direct single-phase HA precipitation observed only in this system, but not in conventional concentrated systems.

  8. Electrochemical deposition mechanism of calcium phosphate coating in dilute Ca-P electrolyte system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hu Ren; Lin Changjian; Shi Haiyan; Wang Hui

    2009-01-01

    In this work, the electrochemical deposition behavior of calcium phosphate coating from an aqueous electrolyte containing very dilute calcium and phosphorus species (Ca-P) was studied. The effects of three process parameters, i.e. temperature, current density and duration, were systematically investigated and the underlying mechanism was thoroughly analyzed. It was observed that the coating is mainly composed of hydroxyapatite (HA) in a wide range of temperature and current densities. The temperature had a significant effect on the deposition velocity. An apparent activation energy of 174.9 kJ mol -1 was subsequently derived, indicating the mass-transfer control mechanism for the coating formation. The current density was identified to be an important parameter for structure controllability. The results of DR-FTIR/Raman spectroscopic studies of the initial deposition phase strongly suggested that the HA coating was instantaneously and directly precipitated on the substrate; neither induction period nor precursor was detected in this dilute Ca-P electrolyte system. Finally, a phase diagram of the Ca-P electrolyte system was constructed, which offered a thermodynamic reason for the direct single-phase HA precipitation observed only in this system, but not in conventional concentrated systems.

  9. 75 FR 70654 - Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Texas; System Cap Trading Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-11-18

    ..., 2001, and August 16, 2007, that create and amend the System Cap Trading (SCT) Program at Title 30 of... of the SCT program because the program lacks several necessary components for emissions trading... submitted by the State of Texas on May 1, 2001, and August 16, 2007, specific to the System Cap Trading (SCT...

  10. GA-based fuzzy reinforcement learning for control of a magnetic bearing system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, C T; Jou, C P

    2000-01-01

    This paper proposes a TD (temporal difference) and GA (genetic algorithm)-based reinforcement (TDGAR) learning method and applies it to the control of a real magnetic bearing system. The TDGAR learning scheme is a new hybrid GA, which integrates the TD prediction method and the GA to perform the reinforcement learning task. The TDGAR learning system is composed of two integrated feedforward networks. One neural network acts as a critic network to guide the learning of the other network (the action network) which determines the outputs (actions) of the TDGAR learning system. The action network can be a normal neural network or a neural fuzzy network. Using the TD prediction method, the critic network can predict the external reinforcement signal and provide a more informative internal reinforcement signal to the action network. The action network uses the GA to adapt itself according to the internal reinforcement signal. The key concept of the TDGAR learning scheme is to formulate the internal reinforcement signal as the fitness function for the GA such that the GA can evaluate the candidate solutions (chromosomes) regularly, even during periods without external feedback from the environment. This enables the GA to proceed to new generations regularly without waiting for the arrival of the external reinforcement signal. This can usually accelerate the GA learning since a reinforcement signal may only be available at a time long after a sequence of actions has occurred in the reinforcement learning problem. The proposed TDGAR learning system has been used to control an active magnetic bearing (AMB) system in practice. A systematic design procedure is developed to achieve successful integration of all the subsystems including magnetic suspension, mechanical structure, and controller training. The results show that the TDGAR learning scheme can successfully find a neural controller or a neural fuzzy controller for a self-designed magnetic bearing system.

  11. A monitor system for end cap shower counter of Beijing spectrometer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Man; Xia Xiaomi; Lai Yuanfen; Cheng Baosen; Li Jin

    1993-01-01

    To keep a large-scale detector system running in a correct condition and to obtain some correct parameters, it is necessary to have a monitor system monitoring the detector system operation in real time. In the paper, the structure of End Cap Shower Counter monitor system of Beijing Spectrometer is described. Some properties of this monitor system and the real-time monitoring results during operation of Beijing Spectrometer are given

  12. Online reinforcement learning control for aerospace systems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Zhou, Y.

    2018-01-01

    Reinforcement Learning (RL) methods are relatively new in the field of aerospace guidance, navigation, and control. This dissertation aims to exploit RL methods to improve the autonomy and online learning of aerospace systems with respect to the a priori unknown system and environment, dynamical

  13. Comet/Asteroid Protection System (CAPS): A Space-Based System Concept for Revolutionizing Earth Protection and Utilization of Near-Earth Objects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mazanek, Daniel D.; Roithmayr, Carlos M.; Antol, Jeffrey; Kay-Bunnell, Linda; Werner, Martin R.; Park, Sang-Young; Kumar, Renjith R.

    2002-01-01

    There exists an infrequent, but significant hazard to life and property due to impacting asteroids and comets. There is currently no specific search for long-period comets, smaller near-Earth asteroids, or smaller short-period comets. These objects represent a threat with potentially little or no warning time using conventional ground-based telescopes. These planetary bodies also represent a significant resource for commercial exploitation, long-term sustained space exploration, and scientific research. The Comet/Asteroid Protection System (CAPS) would expand the current detection effort to include long-period comets, as well as small asteroids and short-period comets capable of regional destruction. A space-based detection system, despite being more costly and complex than Earth-based initiatives, is the most promising way of expanding the range of detectable objects, and surveying the entire celestial sky on a regular basis. CAPS is a future spacebased system concept that provides permanent, continuous asteroid and comet monitoring, and rapid, controlled modification of the orbital trajectories of selected bodies. CAPS would provide an orbit modification system capable of diverting kilometer class objects, and modifying the orbits of smaller asteroids for impact defense and resource utilization. This paper provides a summary of CAPS and discusses several key areas and technologies that are being investigated.

  14. Thin fiber and textile reinforced cementitious systems

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Aldea, Corina-Maria

    2007-01-01

    This Special Publication (SP) contains ten papers which provide insight on the topics of state of the art of thin fiber and textile-reinforced cementitious systems both in academia and the industry...

  15. Effect of reinforcement learning on coordination of multiangent systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bukkapatnam, Satish T. S.; Gao, Greg

    2000-12-01

    For effective coordination of distributed environments involving multiagent systems, learning ability of each agent in the environment plays a crucial role. In this paper, we develop a simple group learning method based on reinforcement, and study its effect on coordination through application to a supply chain procurement scenario involving a computer manufacturer. Here, all parties are represented by self-interested, autonomous agents, each capable of performing specific simple tasks. They negotiate with each other to perform complex tasks and thus coordinate supply chain procurement. Reinforcement learning is intended to enable each agent to reach a best negotiable price within a shortest possible time. Our simulations of the application scenario under different learning strategies reveals the positive effects of reinforcement learning on an agent's as well as the system's performance.

  16. Cervical Cap

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Videos for Educators Search English Español The Cervical Cap KidsHealth / For Teens / The Cervical Cap What's in ... Call the Doctor? Print What Is a Cervical Cap? A cervical cap is a small cup made ...

  17. North Polar Cap

    Science.gov (United States)

    2004-01-01

    [figure removed for brevity, see original site] This week we will be looking at five examples of laminar wind flow on the north polar cap. On Earth, gravity-driven south polar cap winds are termed 'catabatic' winds. Catabatic winds begin over the smooth expanse of the cap interior due to temperature differences between the atmosphere and the surface. Once begun, the winds sweep outward along the surface of the polar cap toward the sea. As the polar surface slopes down toward sealevel, the wind speeds increase. Catabatic wind speeds in the Antartic can reach several hundreds of miles per hour. In the images of the Martian north polar cap we can see these same type of winds. Notice the streamers of dust moving downslope over the darker trough sides, these streamers show the laminar flow regime coming off the cap. Within the trough we see turbulent clouds of dust, kicked up at the trough base as the winds slow down and enter a chaotic flow regime. The horizontal lines in these images are due to framelet overlap and lighting conditions over the bright polar cap. Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 86.5, Longitude 64.5 East (295.5 West). 40 meter/pixel resolution. Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen

  18. Evaluation of a prototype decision support system for selecting trench cap designs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Paige, G.B.; Stone, J.J.; Lane, L.J.

    1996-01-01

    A computer-based prototype decision support system (PDSS) to assist the risk manager in selecting an appropriate trench cap design for waste disposal sites is evaluated. The selection of the open-quotes bestclose quotes design among feasible alternatives requires consideration of multiple and often conflicting objectives. The methodology used in the selection process consists of. selecting and parameterizing decision variables, using data, simulation models, or expert opinion; selecting feasible trench cap design alternatives; ordering the decision variables and ranking the design alternatives. The simulation models incorporated in the PDSS are the Hydrologic Evaluation of Landfill Performance (HELP) model which is used to simulate the trench cap water balance and the Chemicals, Runoff, and Erosion from Agricultural Management Systems (CREAMS) erosion component that is used to simulate trench cap erosion. The decision model is based on multi-objective decision theory and uses a unique approach to order the decision variables and rank the design alternatives. The PDSS is evaluated using the Hill Air Force Base landfill cover demonstration project. The water balance and surface erosion of four alternative landfill cover designs were monitored for a 4-yr period. Two of the cover designs were used to calibrate and test the simulation models. The results of the PDSS, using both data from all four designs and long-term simulations from two of the designs, illustrate the relative advantages of each of the cover designs and which cover is the open-quotes bestclose quotes alternative for a given set of criteria and a particular importance order of those decision criteria. 22 refs., 6 figs., 4 tabs

  19. A nanobody targeting the F-actin capping protein CapG restrains breast cancer metastasis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Impe, Katrien; Bethuyne, Jonas; Cool, Steven; Impens, Francis; Ruano-Gallego, David; De Wever, Olivier; Vanloo, Berlinda; Van Troys, Marleen; Lambein, Kathleen; Boucherie, Ciska; Martens, Evelien; Zwaenepoel, Olivier; Hassanzadeh-Ghassabeh, Gholamreza; Vandekerckhove, Joël; Gevaert, Kris; Fernández, Luis Ángel; Sanders, Niek N; Gettemans, Jan

    2013-12-13

    Aberrant turnover of the actin cytoskeleton is intimately associated with cancer cell migration and invasion. Frequently however, evidence is circumstantial, and a reliable assessment of the therapeutic significance of a gene product is offset by lack of inhibitors that target biologic properties of a protein, as most conventional drugs do, instead of the corresponding gene. Proteomic studies have demonstrated overexpression of CapG, a constituent of the actin cytoskeleton, in breast cancer. Indirect evidence suggests that CapG is involved in tumor cell dissemination and metastasis. In this study, we used llama-derived CapG single-domain antibodies or nanobodies in a breast cancer metastasis model to address whether inhibition of CapG activity holds therapeutic merit. We raised single-domain antibodies (nanobodies) against human CapG and used these as intrabodies (immunomodulation) after lentiviral transduction of breast cancer cells. Functional characterization of nanobodies was performed to identify which biochemical properties of CapG are perturbed. Orthotopic and tail vein in vivo models of metastasis in nude mice were used to assess cancer cell spreading. With G-actin and F-actin binding assays, we identified a CapG nanobody that binds with nanomolar affinity to the first CapG domain. Consequently, CapG interaction with actin monomers or actin filaments is blocked. Intracellular delocalization experiments demonstrated that the nanobody interacts with CapG in the cytoplasmic environment. Expression of the nanobody in breast cancer cells restrained cell migration and Matrigel invasion. Notably, the nanobody prevented formation of lung metastatic lesions in orthotopic xenograft and tail-vein models of metastasis in immunodeficient mice. We showed that CapG nanobodies can be delivered into cancer cells by using bacteria harboring a type III protein secretion system (T3SS). CapG inhibition strongly reduces breast cancer metastasis. A nanobody-based approach offers

  20. Influence of Different Container Closure Systems and Capping Process Parameters on Product Quality and Container Closure Integrity (CCI) in GMP Drug Product Manufacturing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mathaes, Roman; Mahler, Hanns-Christian; Roggo, Yves; Huwyler, Joerg; Eder, Juergen; Fritsch, Kamila; Posset, Tobias; Mohl, Silke; Streubel, Alexander

    2016-01-01

    Capping equipment used in good manufacturing practice manufacturing features different designs and a variety of adjustable process parameters. The overall capping result is a complex interplay of the different capping process parameters and is insufficiently described in literature. It remains poorly studied how the different capping equipment designs and capping equipment process parameters (e.g., pre-compression force, capping plate height, turntable rotating speed) contribute to the final residual seal force of a sealed container closure system and its relation to container closure integrity and other drug product quality parameters. Stopper compression measured by computer tomography correlated to residual seal force measurements.In our studies, we used different container closure system configurations from different good manufacturing practice drug product fill & finish facilities to investigate the influence of differences in primary packaging, that is, vial size and rubber stopper design on the capping process and the capped drug product. In addition, we compared two large-scale good manufacturing practice manufacturing capping equipment and different capping equipment settings and their impact on product quality and integrity, as determined by residual seal force.The capping plate to plunger distance had a major influence on the obtained residual seal force values of a sealed vial, whereas the capping pre-compression force and the turntable rotation speed showed only a minor influence on the residual seal force of a sealed vial. Capping process parameters could not easily be transferred from capping equipment of different manufacturers. However, the residual seal force tester did provide a valuable tool to compare capping performance of different capping equipment. No vial showed any leakage greater than 10(-8)mbar L/s as measured by a helium mass spectrometry system, suggesting that container closure integrity was warranted in the residual seal force range

  1. CAP--a combined codes, alarms and paging system--effective in nuclear and fossil-fueled power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Foster, W.M.; Anderson, M.E.

    1981-01-01

    The CAP system now employed in two TVA power generating facilities has proven to be effective in both operational and emergency alerting and voice communications. Alternatives to emergency signalling point to advantages of a distributed amplifier/speaker system providing multi-signal and voice capabilities. Inclusion of a CAP-type system in all nuclear and fossil-fueled power plants is recommended, particularly in view of new NCR emergency alerting guidelines recently published. Outdoor-area warning is also included. Paper No. 80 JPGC 803-7

  2. A Duopoly Manufacturers’ Game Model Considering Green Technology Investment under a Cap-and-Trade System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yi Zheng

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available This research studied the duopoly manufacturers’ decision-making considering green technology investment and under a cap-and-trade system. It was assumed there were two manufacturers producing products which were substitutable for one another. On the basis of this assumption, the optimal production capacity, price, and green technology investment of the duopoly manufacturers under a cap-and-trade system were obtained. The increase or decrease of the optimal production quantity of the duopoly manufacturers under a cap-and-trade system was decided by their green technology level. The increase of the optimal price as well as the increase or decrease of the maximum expected profits were decided by the initial carbon emission quota granted by the government. Our research indicates that the carbon emission of unit product is inversely proportional to the market share of an enterprise and becomes an important index to measure the core competitiveness of an enterprise.

  3. Reinforced Ultra-Tightly Coupled GPS/INS System for Challenging Environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xueyun Wang

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Among all integration levels currently available for Global Positioning System (GPS and Inertial Navigation System (INS Integrated System, ultra-tightly coupled (UTC GPS/INS system is the best choice for accurate and reliable navigation. Nevertheless the performance of UTC GPS/INS system degrades in challenging environments, such as jamming, changing noise of GPS signals, and high dynamic maneuvers. When low-end Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs based on MEMS sensors are employed, the performance degradation will be more severe. To solve this problem, a reinforced UTC GPS/INS system is proposed. Two techniques are adopted to deal with jamming and high dynamics. Firstly, adaptive integration Kalman filter (IKF based on fuzzy logics is developed to reinforce the antijamming ability. The parameters of membership functions (MFs are adjusted and optimized through self-developed neutral network. Secondly, a Doppler frequency error estimator based on Kalman filter is designed to improve the navigation performance under high dynamics. A complete simulation platform is established to evaluate the reinforced system. Results demonstrate that the proposed system architecture significantly improves navigation performance in challenging environments and it is a more advanced solution to accurate and reliable navigation than traditional UTC GPS/INS system.

  4. A corrosion monitoring system for existing reinforced concrete structures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-05-01

    This study evaluated a multi-parameter corrosion monitoring system for existing reinforced concrete structures in chloride-laden service environments. The system was fabricated based on a prototype concrete corrosion measurement system that : had bee...

  5. Catastrophic antiphospholipid syndrome (CAPS): Descriptive analysis of 500 patients from the International CAPS Registry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodríguez-Pintó, Ignasi; Moitinho, Marta; Santacreu, Irene; Shoenfeld, Yehuda; Erkan, Doruk; Espinosa, Gerard; Cervera, Ricard

    2016-12-01

    To analyze the clinical and immunologic manifestations of patients with catastrophic antiphospholipid syndrome (CAPS) from the "CAPS Registry". The demographic, clinical and serological features of 500 patients included in the website-based "CAPS Registry" were analyzed. Frequency distribution and measures of central tendency were used to describe the cohort. Comparison between groups regarding qualitative variables was undertaken by chi-square or Fisher exact test while T-test for independent variables was used to compare groups regarding continuous variables. 500 patients (female: 343 [69%]; mean age 38±17) accounting for 522 episodes of CAPS were included in the analysis. Forty percent of patients had an associated autoimmune disease, mainly systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) (75%). The majority of CAPS episodes were triggered by a precipitating factor (65%), mostly infections (49%). Clinically, CAPS was characterized by several organ involvement affecting kidneys (73%), lungs (60%), brain (56%), heart (50%), and skin (47%). Lupus anticoagulant, IgG anticardiolipin and IgG anti-β2-glycprotein antibodies were the most often implicated antiphospholipid antibodies (83%, 81% and 78% respectively). Mortality accounted for 37% of episodes of CAPS. Several clinical differences could be observed based on the age of presentation and its association to SLE. Those cases triggered by a malignancy tended to occur in older patients, while CAPS episodes in young patients were associated with an infectious trigger and peripheral vessels involvement. Additionally, CAPS associated with SLE were more likely to have severe cardiac and brain involvement leading to a higher mortality (48%). Although the presentation of CAPS is characterized by multiorgan thrombosis and failure, clinical differences among patients exist based on age and underlying chronic diseases, e.g. malignancy and SLE. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Experimental demonstration of 24-Gb/s CAP-64QAM radio-over-fiber system over 40-GHz mm-wave fiber-wireless transmission.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Junwen; Yu, Jianjun; Chi, Nan; Li, Fan; Li, Xinying

    2013-11-04

    We propose and demonstrate a novel CAP-ROF system based on multi-level carrier-less amplitude and phase modulation (CAP) 64QAM with high spectrum efficiency for mm-wave fiber-wireless transmission. The performance of novel CAP modulation with high order QAM, for the first time, is investigated in the mm-wave fiber-wireless transmission system. One I/Q modulator is used for mm-wave generation and base-band signal modulation based on optical carrier suppression (OCS) and intensity modulation. Finally, we demonstrated a 24-Gb/s CAP-64QAM radio-over-fiber (ROF) system over 40-km stand single-mode-fiber (SMMF) and 1.5-m 38-GHz wireless transmission. The system operation factors are also experimentally investigated.

  7. Systems control with generalized probabilistic fuzzy-reinforcement learning

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hinojosa, J.; Nefti, S.; Kaymak, U.

    2011-01-01

    Reinforcement learning (RL) is a valuable learning method when the systems require a selection of control actions whose consequences emerge over long periods for which input-output data are not available. In most combinations of fuzzy systems and RL, the environment is considered to be

  8. [CAP quality management system in clinical laboratory and its issue].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tazawa, Hiromitsu

    2004-03-01

    The CAP (College of American Pathologists) was established in 1962 and, at present, CAP-accredited laboratories include about 6000 institutions all over the world, mainly in the U.S. The essential purpose of CAP accreditation is high quality reservation and improvement of clinical laboratory services for patient care, and is based on seven points, listed below. (1) Establishment of a laboratory management program and laboratory techniques to assure accuracy and improve overall quality of laboratory services. (2) Maintenance and improvement of accuracy objectively by centering on a CAP survey. (3) Thoroughness in safety and health administration. (4) Reservation of the performance of laboratory services by personnel and proficiency management. (5) Provision of appropriate information to physicians, and contribution to improved quality of patient care by close communication with physicians (improvement in patient care). (6) Reduction of running costs and personnel costs based on evidence by employing the above-mentioned criteria. (7) Reduction of laboratory error. In the future, accreditation and/or certification by organizations such as CAP, ISO, etc., may become a requirement for providing any clinical laboratory services in Japan. Taking the essence of the CAP and the characteristics of the new international standard, ISO151589, into consideration, it is important to choose the best suited accreditation and/or certification depending of the purpose of clinical laboratory.

  9. Cervical Cap

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... giving birth vaginally, which means the cervical cap may not fit as well. Inconsistent or incorrect use of the cervical cap increases your risk of pregnancy. For example, you may get pregnant when using the cervical cap if: ...

  10. Neural systems underlying aversive conditioning in humans with primary and secondary reinforcers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mauricio R Delgado

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Money is a secondary reinforcer commonly used across a range of disciplines in experimental paradigms investigating reward learning and decision-making. The effectiveness of monetary reinforcers during aversive learning and its neural basis, however, remains a topic of debate. Specifically, it is unclear if the initial acquisition of aversive representations of monetary losses depends on similar neural systems as more traditional aversive conditioning that involves primary reinforcers. This study contrasts the efficacy of a biologically defined primary reinforcer (shock and a socially defined secondary reinforcer (money during aversive learning and its associated neural circuitry. During a two-part experiment, participants first played a gambling game where wins and losses were based on performance to gain an experimental bank. Participants were then exposed to two separate aversive conditioning sessions. In one session, a primary reinforcer (mild shock served as an unconditioned stimulus (US and was paired with one of two colored squares, the conditioned stimuli (CS+ and CS-, respectively. In another session, a secondary reinforcer (loss of money served as the US and was paired with one of two different CS. Skin conductance responses were greater for CS+ compared to CS- trials irrespective of type of reinforcer. Neuroimaging results revealed that the striatum, a region typically linked with reward-related processing, was found to be involved in the acquisition of aversive conditioned response irrespective of reinforcer type. In contrast, the amygdala was involved during aversive conditioning with primary reinforcers, as suggested by both an exploratory fMRI analysis and a follow-up case study with a patient with bilateral amygdala damage. Taken together, these results suggest that learning about potential monetary losses may depend on reinforcement learning related systems, rather than on typical structures involved in more biologically based

  11. Numerical analysis of two pile caps with sockets embedded, subject the eccentric compression load

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. G. Delalibera

    Full Text Available The structural behavior of pile caps with sockets embedded is influenced by interface of column-socket, which can be smooth or rough. With intent to analyze the behavior of two pile caps with embedded socket, considering the friction between the column and the socket, with eccentric normal load, the numerical simulations were carried out, using a program based on the Finite Element Methods (FEM. In the numerical analysis the non-linear behavior of materials was considered, also the friction between the column and the socket. It was considered perfect bond between the reinforcement and the concrete around. It was observed that the embedded length is preponderant factor in the structural behavior of the analyzed element.

  12. Prices regulation in price-cap: the lessons of the british gas industry; Reglementations tarifaires en price-cap: les lecons de l'industrie gaziere anglaise

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    David, L.

    2003-07-01

    This article examines the problem of the price-cap regulation applied to the british gas transport. The RPI-X cap is a particular form of the price cap. This cap seems to be more remunerative for the regulatory firm than a cap calculated on the Laspeyres index because it authorizes a greater freedom of prices choice, to the prejudice of the consumers. Facing these perverse effects, Cowan proposed in 1997 a new system, not more satisfying. Another equation is analyzed in this article, proposed by Ofgem. Meanwhile this system presents no improvement of the consumers surplus facing the RPI-X cap. (A.L.B.)

  13. Survey of Enabling Technologies for CAPS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Antol, Jeffrey; Mazanek, Daniel D.; Koons, Robert H.

    2005-01-01

    The enabling technologies required for the development of a viable Comet/Asteroid Protection System (CAPS) can be divided into two principal areas: detection and deflection/orbit modification. With the proper funding levels, many of the technologies needed to support a CAPS architecture could be achievable within the next 15 to 20 years. In fact, many advanced detection technologies are currently in development for future in-space telescope systems such as the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), formerly known as the Next Generation Space Telescope. It is anticipated that many of the JWST technologies would be available for application for CAPS detection concepts. Deflection/orbit modification technologies are also currently being studied as part of advanced power and propulsion research. However, many of these technologies, such as extremely high-output power systems, advanced propulsion, heat rejection, and directed energy systems, would likely be farther term in availability than many of the detection technologies. Discussed subsequently is a preliminary examination of the main technologies that have been identified as being essential to providing the element functionality defined during the CAPS conceptual study. The detailed requirements for many of the technology areas are still unknown, and many additional technologies will be identified as future in-depth studies are conducted in this area.

  14. Standard and alternative landfill capping design in Germany

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Simon, Franz-Georg; Mueller, Werner W.

    2004-01-01

    Engineered capping systems are in most cases an indispensable and often the only efficient component required by the long-term safety concept for landfills, mine tailings tips and contaminated land. In Germany the composite liner is the main component of standard landfill cappings for municipal and hazardous waste landfills and the compacted clay liner (CCL) for landfills for inert or low-contamination waste. The composite liner is a technically highly effective but very expensive system. Research and experience has given rise to concern about the proper long-term performance of a conventional single CCL as a landfill capping. Therefore, alternative capping systems are discussed and applied for landfills and for the containment of contaminated sites. This paper gives an overview on various alternative engineered cappings and suitable systems for capping reflecting the state of the art and the expert view in Germany. According to the European Council Directive on the landfill of waste an impermeable mineral layer is recommended for the surface sealing of non-hazardous landfills and a composition of artificial sealing liner and impermeable mineral layer for hazardous landfills. In both cases a drainage layer thickness of at least 0.5 m is suggested. These recommendations should be interpreted flexibly and to some extent modified in the light of the experience and results presented in this paper

  15. Anti-pp,. cap alpha cap alpha. and p. cap alpha. elastic scattering at high energies and Chou-Yang conjecture

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Saleem, M.; Fazal-e-Aleem; Rifique, M.

    1987-03-01

    The recent experimental measurements for anti-pp and ..cap alpha cap alpha.. elastic scattering at high energies have shown that the Chou-Yang conjecture regarding the relationship between the electromagnetic and the hadronic form factor of a particle is only an approximation. A new ansatz has been proposed to obtain hadronic form factors of proton and the ..cap alpha..-particle. These form factors have been used to explain the various characteristics of anti-pp, ..cap alpha cap alpha.. and p..cap alpha.. elastic scattering at high energies.

  16. Performance Enhancement of the RatCAP Awake Rate Brain PET System

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Vaska, P.; Vaska, P.; Woody, C.; Schlyer, D.; Radeka, V.; O' Connor, P.; Park, S.-J.; Pratte, J.-F.; Junnarkar, M.; Purschke, S.; Southekal, S.; Stoll, S.; Schiffer, W.; Neill, J.; Wharton, D.; Myers, N.; Wiley, S.; Kandasamy, A.; Fried, J.; Krishnamoorthy, S. Kriplani, A.; Maramraju, S.; Lecomte, R.; Fontaine, R.

    2011-03-01

    The first full prototype of the RatCAP PET system, designed to image the brain of a rat while conscious, has been completed. Initial results demonstrated excellent spatial resolution, 1.8 mm FWHM with filtered backprojection and <1.5 mm FWHM with a Monte Carlo based MLEM method. However, noise equivalent countrate studies indicated the need for better timing to mitigate the effect of randoms. Thus, the front-end ASIC has been redesigned to minimize time walk, an accurate coincidence time alignment method has been implemented, and a variance reduction technique for the randoms is being developed. To maximize the quantitative capabilities required for neuroscience, corrections are being implemented and validated for positron range and photon noncollinearity, scatter (including outside the field of view), attenuation, randoms, and detector efficiency (deadtime is negligible). In addition, a more robust and compact PCI-based optical data acquisition system has been built to replace the original VME-based system while retaining the linux-based data processing and image reconstruction codes. Finally, a number of new animal imaging experiments have been carried out to demonstrate the performance of the RatCAP in real imaging situations, including an F-18 fluoride bone scan, a C-11 raclopride scan, and a dynamic C-11 methamphetamine scan.

  17. Performance Enhancement of the RatCAP Awake Rat Brain PET System

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vaska, P.; Woody, C.; Schlyer, D.; Radeka, V.; O'Connor, P.; Park, S.-J.; Pratte, J.-F.; Junnarkar, S.; Purschke, M.; Southekal, S.; Stoll, S.; Schiffer, W.; Lee, D.; Neill, J.; Wharton, D.; Myers, N.; Wiley, S.; Kandasamy, A.; Fried, J.; Krishnamoorthy, S.; Kriplani, A.; Maramraju, S.; Lecomte, R.; Fontaine, R.

    2011-01-01

    The first full prototype of the RatCAP PET system, designed to image the brain of a rat while conscious, has been completed. Initial results demonstrated excellent spatial resolution, 1.8 mm FWHM with filtered backprojection and <1.5 mm FWHM with a Monte Carlo based MLEM method. However, noise equivalent countrate studies indicated the need for better timing to mitigate the effect of randoms. Thus, the front-end ASIC has been redesigned to minimize time walk, an accurate coincidence time alignment method has been implemented, and a variance reduction technique for the randoms is being developed. To maximize the quantitative capabilities required for neuroscience, corrections are being implemented and validated for positron range and photon noncollinearity, scatter (including outside the field of view), attenuation, randoms, and detector efficiency (deadtime is negligible). In addition, a more robust and compact PCI-based optical data acquisition system has been built to replace the original VME-based system while retaining the linux-based data processing and image reconstruction codes. Finally, a number of new animal imaging experiments have been carried out to demonstrate the performance of the RatCAP in real imaging situations, including an F-18 fluoride bone scan, a C-11 raclopride scan, and a dynamic C-11 methamphetamine scan.

  18. Contact and friction in systems with fibre reinforced elastomers

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rodriguez Pareja, Natalia Valentina

    2012-01-01

    The tribological behaviour (contact and friction) of systems that include fibre reinforced elastomers is studied in this thesis. The elastomer composite is considered to behave as a viscoelastic anisotropic continuum material. In the defined tribo-system, the most influential friction mechanism is

  19. Cradle Cap (For Parents)

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Safe Videos for Educators Search English Español Cradle Cap (Infantile Seborrheic Dermatitis) KidsHealth / For Parents / Cradle Cap ( ... many babies develop called cradle cap. About Cradle Cap Cradle cap is the common term for seborrheic ...

  20. Growth, structure, and optical properties of carbon-reinforced silica fibers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang, Z. J.; Ajayan, P. M.; Ramanath, G.; Vacik, J.; Xu, Y. H.

    2001-01-01

    We report the synthesis of carbon-reinforced silica fibers by methane exposure of metallocene-treated oxidized-Si(001) substrates at 1100 degree C. The SiO 2 cap layer transforms into silica fibers reinforced by glassy carbon in the core during methane exposure. High-resolution electron microscopy and spatially resolved spectroscopy measurements of the fibers reveal an amorphous structure without a hollow, and domains of glassy carbon embedded at the fiber core. The carbon-reinforced fibers are optically transparent and have an optical band gap of ≅3.1 eV. These fibers are organized in radial patterns that vary for different metallocene species. On nickelocene-treated substrates, the fibers originate from the circumference of the circular templates and grow outwards, forming radial patterns. On ferrocene-treated substrates, randomly oriented fibers grow within as well as slightly outside the perimeter of the templates, forming wreath-like patterns. Aligned growth of such fibers could be useful for fabricating optoelectronics devices and reinforced composites. [copyright] 2001 American Institute of Physics

  1. Effects of local anesthetics on cholinergic agonist binding affinity of central nervous system. cap alpha. -bungarotoxin receptors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lukas, R.L.; Bennett, E.L.

    1979-12-01

    In general, pharmacological effects of local anesthetics may be attributed to their ability to reversibly block the propagation of nerve and muscle action potentials. At physiologically potent concentrations, local anesthetics (LA) also act as noncompetitive antagonists of the physiological response of post-synaptic nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR) to cholinergic agonists, and increase agonist binding affinities of nAChR from electric organ. It is postulated that the primary site of LA action on nAChR function is at the receptor-coupled ionophore. Furthermore, LA-nAChR ionophore interactions are thought to accelerate physiological desensitization of nAChR, manifest biochemically as increased affinity of nAChR for agonist. Specific receptors for ..cap alpha..-bungarotoxin (..cap alpha..-Bgt), a potent competitive antagonist at nAChR sites in the periphery, have been detected in rat central nervous system membrane preparations. The affinity of these central ..cap alpha..-Bgt receptors (..cap alpha..-BgtR) for cholinergic agonists is found to increase on exposure to agonist. Nevertheless, on the basis of inconsistent pharmacological and physiological results, uncertainty remains regarding the relationship between ..cap alpha..-BgtR and authentic nAChR in the CNS, despite a wide body of biochemical and histological evidence consistent with their identity. Reasoning that if CNS ..cap alpha..-BgtR are true in nAChR, coupled to functional ion channels, LA might be expected to cause biochemically measurable increases in ..cap alpha..-BgtR affinity for cholinergic agonists, we have undertaken a study of the effects of LA on the ability of acetylcholine (ACh) to inhibit interaction of ..cap alpha..-BgtR with /sup 3/H-labeled ..cap alpha..-Bgt.

  2. Structural Behaviors of Reinforced Concrete Piers Rehabilitated with FRP Wraps

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Junsuk Kang

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The use of fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP wraps to retrofit and strengthen existing structures such as reinforced concrete piers is becoming popular due to the higher tensile strength, durability, and flexibility gained and the method’s ease of handling and low installation and maintenance costs. As yet, however, few guidelines have been developed for determining the optimum thicknesses of the FRP wraps applied to external surfaces of concrete or masonry structures. In this study, nonlinear pushover finite element analyses were utilized to analyze the complex structural behaviors of FRP-wrapped reinforced rectangular piers. Design parameters such as pier section sizes, pier heights, pier cap lengths, compressive strengths of concrete, and the thicknesses of the FRP wraps used were thoroughly tested under incremental lateral and vertical loads. The results provide useful guidelines for analyzing and designing appropriate FRP wraps for existing concrete piers.

  3. Performance verification and comparison of TianLong automatic hypersensitive hepatitis B virus DNA quantification system with Roche CAP/CTM system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Ming; Chen, Lin; Liu, Li-Ming; Li, Yong-Li; Li, Bo-An; Li, Bo; Mao, Yuan-Li; Xia, Li-Fang; Wang, Tong; Liu, Ya-Nan; Li, Zheng; Guo, Tong-Sheng

    2017-10-07

    To investigate and compare the analytical and clinical performance of TianLong automatic hypersensitive hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA quantification system and Roche CAP/CTM system. Two hundred blood samples for HBV DNA testing, HBV-DNA negative samples and high-titer HBV-DNA mixture samples were collected and prepared. National standard materials for serum HBV and a worldwide HBV DNA panel were employed for performance verification. The analytical performance, such as limit of detection, limit of quantification, accuracy, precision, reproducibility, linearity, genotype coverage and cross-contamination, was determined using the TianLong automatic hypersensitive HBV DNA quantification system (TL system). Correlation and Bland-Altman plot analyses were carried out to compare the clinical performance of the TL system assay and the CAP/CTM system. The detection limit of the TL system was 10 IU/mL, and its limit of quantification was 30 IU/mL. The differences between the expected and tested concentrations of the national standards were less than ± 0.4 Log 10 IU/mL, which showed high accuracy of the system. Results of the precision, reproducibility and linearity tests showed that the multiple test coefficient of variation (CV) of the same sample was less than 5% for 10 2 -10 6 IU/mL; and for 30-10 8 IU/mL, the linear correlation coefficient r 2 = 0.99. The TL system detected HBV DNA (A-H) genotypes and there was no cross-contamination during the "checkerboard" test. When compared with the CAP/CTM assay, the two assays showed 100% consistency in both negative and positive sample results (15 negative samples and 185 positive samples). No statistical differences between the two assays in the HBV DNA quantification values were observed ( P > 0.05). Correlation analysis indicated a significant correlation between the two assays, r 2 = 0.9774. The Bland-Altman plot analysis showed that 98.9% of the positive data were within the 95% acceptable range, and the maximum difference

  4. Effects of rooting and tree growth of selected woodland species on cap integrity in a mineral capped landfill site.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hutchings, T R; Moffat, A J; Kemp, R A

    2001-06-01

    The above and below ground growth of three tree species (Alnus glutinosa, Pinus nigra var. maritima and Acer pseudoplatanus) was studied on a containment landfill site at Waterford, Hertfordshire, UK. Tree root architecture was studied using soil inspection pits excavated next to 12 trees of each species and mapped in detail. Tree height was related to soil thickness over the compacted mineral cap. No roots entered the cap where soil thickness was 1.3 m, but a few roots, especially of alder, were observed within it when the soil cover was 1.0 m or less. Micromorphological analysis of undisturbed samples of the mineral cap suggested that roots exploited weaknesses in the cap rather than actively causing penetration into it. Alder roots were more tolerant of anaerobic conditions within the cap than the other species examined. The results confirm that mineral caps should be covered by 1.5 m of soil or soil-forming material if tree establishment is intended over a restored landfill site, unless protected by other parts of a composite capping system.

  5. Long‐Term Monitoring of a Geosynthetic Reinforced Soil Integrated Bridge System (GRS‐IBS)

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-11-01

    The geosynthetic reinforced soil integrated bridge system (GRS-IBS) is an innovative alternative to conventional bridge technology that utilizes closely spaced layers of geosynthetic reinforcement and compacted granular fill material to provide direc...

  6. CAPS--pathogenesis, presentation and treatment of an autoinflammatory disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kuemmerle-Deschner, Jasmin B

    2015-07-01

    The cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS) is a severity spectrum of rare diseases. CAPS comprises the three conditions previously described as familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome (FCAS), Muckle-Wells syndrome (MWS), and neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disorder (NOMID), also known as chronic infantile neurologic, cutaneous, and articular (CINCA) syndrome. The clinical phenotype of CAPS is characterized by systemic inflammation. General symptoms are fatigue and fever. Local manifestations affect multiple tissues such as skin, joints, muscles, eyes, and the central nervous system. Distinct clinical features are characteristic for each subphenotype. In FCAS, these are cold-induced urticaria and fever, in MWS systemic amyloidosis and hearing loss and in NOMID/CINCA central nervous system inflammation and bone deformities. CAPS is caused by single heterozygous germline or somatic gain of function mutations in the NLRP3 gene encoding the protein cryopyrin. Cryopyrin nucleates an NLRP3 inflammasome, which regulates the activation and cleavage of caspase-1 that cleaves the pro-inflammatory cytokines, IL-1β and IL-18. IL-1β plays the key role in the induction of inflammation in CAPS. This has been confirmed by the application of IL-1 blocking agents, which lead not only to a rapid and sustained reversal of daily symptoms but also to some extent of long-term disease sequelae. To prevent CAPS-induced organ damage, early diagnosis and swift initiation of effective treatment are mandatory.

  7. Application of expert systems in damage assessment of reinforced concrete structures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fazel Zarandi, M. H.; Sobhani, J.

    2003-01-01

    Expert systems are receiving great attentions in construction industry to support decision making processes in diagnostics, design, repair and rehabilitation of the structures. Although several expert systems have been examined in engineering since the 1970's, their applications in construction industry are rate. This was largely due to the lack of expert system tools available to represent the domain knowledge. Lack of flexibility, applicability, and robustness of the classical models, have forced the scientists to discover the ability of the expert systems in problem solving of civil engineering. This paper present an expert system for diagnosis the deterioration of concrete structures. This expert system emphasizes on cracking distress in reinforced concrete elements. A case study has been presented to examine and evaluate the proposed expert system. The system demonstrates a straightforward method for diagnosing the cause of reinforced concrete elements cracking

  8. Cradle Cap: Treatment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cradle cap Treatment Cradle cap usually doesn't require medical treatment. It clears up on its own within a few months. In the meantime, wash ... tips can help you control and manage cradle cap. Gently rub your baby's scalp with your fingers ...

  9. The alignment system of the ATLAS muon end-cap spectrometer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schricker, A.

    2002-08-01

    The Large Hadron Collider at CERN will offer an unparalleled opportunity to probe fundamental physics at an energy scale well beyond that reached by current experiments. The ATLAS detector is being designed to fully exploit the potential of the LHC for revealing new aspects of the fundamental structure of nature. The muon spectrometer itself must measure with a momentum resolution of s10 % for muons with a transverse momentum of p T =1TeV, to fully exploit the advantages offered by the open superconducting air core muon toroid magnet system. At this level of momentum resolution the muon spectrometer relies heavily on the ability to master the alignment of the large muon chambers spaced far apart. The overall contribution of the alignment to the total sagitta error must be less than 30 μm r.m.s. In order to meet the stringent alignment requirements the positions of the muon chambers are constantly monitored with optical alignment technologies. The end-caps of this spectrometer are therefore embedded in an alignment grid that must allow for an absolute position measurement of the chambers. This alignment grid employs up to 9.6m long precision rulers (alignment bars) which have to provide the position and orientation of all alignment sensors permeating the end-caps. Simulation studies have shown that the shape of these bars must be known to 30 μm r.m.s. and the length must be known to 20 μm r.m.s. The principles of alignment and survey techniques used to do this are introduced and the current activities concerning the alignment strategy for the ATLAS muon end-cap spectrometer are presented. After consideration of the motivation and requirements, the measurement strategy and the design of the alignment bars is given. An optical and thermal in-bar instrumentation is used to provide shape information of discrete points on the bar. The strategy to calibrate the in-bar instrumentation and to measure an initial bar shape with a large coordinate measuring machine, leads

  10. Geo synthetic-reinforced Pavement systems; Sistemas de pavimentos reforzados con geosinteticos

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zornberg, J. G.

    2014-02-01

    Geo synthetics have been used as reinforcement inclusions to improve pavement performance. while there are clear field evidence of the benefit of using geo synthetic reinforcements, the specific conditions or mechanisms that govern the reinforcement of pavements are, at best, unclear and have remained largely unmeasured. Significant research has been recently conducted with the objectives of: (i) determining the relevant properties of geo synthetics that contribute to the enhanced performance of pavement systems, (ii) developing appropriate analytical, laboratory and field methods capable of quantifying the pavement performance, and (iii) enabling the prediction of pavement performance as a function of the properties of the various types of geo synthetics. (Author)

  11. Unsteady-Flow Modeling for Emergency Shutdown of the CAP Canal

    OpenAIRE

    Clemmens, Bert; Wahlin, Brian; Shapiro, Marcus; Dent, Patrick

    2016-01-01

    The Central Arizona Project (CAP) is designed to bring about 1.9 ML of Colorado River water per year to Maricopa, Pima, and Pinal counties in Arizona. CAP carries water from the Colorado River at Lake Havasu toTucson. The CAP canal system is a 540 km long system of conveyance system aqueducts, tunnels, pumping plants,pipelines and a large reservoir (just north of Phoenix, AZ). Water is pumped uphill from the Colorado River. This study was conducted for the Hayden-Rhodes Aqueduct of the Centra...

  12. Numerical simulation of impact tests on reinforced concrete beams

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jiang, Hua; Wang, Xiaowo; He, Shuanhai

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► Predictions using advanced concrete model compare well with the impact test results. ► Several important behavior of concrete is discussed. ► Two mesh ways incorporating rebar into concrete mesh is also discussed. ► Gives a example of using EPDC model and references to develop new constitutive models. -- Abstract: This paper focuses on numerical simulation of impact tests of reinforced concrete (RC) beams by the LS-DYNA finite element (FE) code. In the FE model, the elasto-plastic damage cap (EPDC) model, which is based on continuum damage mechanics in combination with plasticity theory, is used for concrete, and the reinforcement is assumed to be elasto-plastic. The numerical results compares well with the experimental values reported in the literature, in terms of impact force history, mid-span deflection history and crack patterns of RC beams. By comparing the numerical and experimental results, several important behavior of concrete material is investigated, which includes: damage variable to describe the strain softening section of stress–strain curve; the cap surface to describe the plastic volume change; the shape of the meridian and deviatoric plane to describe the yield surface as well as two methods of incorporating rebar into concrete mesh. This study gives a good example of using EPDC model and can be utilized for the development new constitutive models for concrete in future.

  13. Computer-Aided Prototyping Systems (CAPS) within the software acquisition process: a case study

    OpenAIRE

    Ellis, Mary Kay

    1993-01-01

    Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited This thesis provides a case study which examines the benefits derived from the practice of computer-aided prototyping within the software acquisition process. An experimental prototyping systems currently in research is the Computer Aided Prototyping System (CAPS) managed under the Computer Science department of the Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California. This thesis determines the qualitative value which may be realized by ...

  14. Comparison of Detector Technologies for CAPS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stockum, Jana L.

    2005-01-01

    In this paper, several different detectors are examined for use in a Comet/Asteroid Protection System (CAPS), a conceptual study for a possible future space-based system. Each detector will be examined for its future (25 years or more in the future) ability to find and track near-Earth Objects (NEOs) from a space-based detection platform. Within the CAPS study are several teams of people who each focus on different aspects of the system concept. This study s focus is on detection devices. In particular, evaluations on the following devices have been made: charge-coupled devices (CCDs), charge-injected devices (CIDs), superconducting tunneling junctions (STJs), and transition edge sensors (TESs). These devices can be separated into two main categories; the first category includes detectors that are currently being widely utilized, such as CCDs and CIDs. The second category includes experimental detectors, such as STJs and TESs. After the discussion of the detectors themselves, there will be a section devoted to the explicit use of these detectors with CAPS.

  15. Development of CAP code for nuclear power plant containment: Lumped model

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hong, Soon Joon, E-mail: sjhong90@fnctech.com [FNC Tech. Co. Ltd., Heungdeok 1 ro 13, Giheung-gu, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do 446-908 (Korea, Republic of); Choo, Yeon Joon; Hwang, Su Hyun; Lee, Byung Chul [FNC Tech. Co. Ltd., Heungdeok 1 ro 13, Giheung-gu, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do 446-908 (Korea, Republic of); Ha, Sang Jun [Central Research Institute, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Company, Ltd., 70, 1312-gil, Yuseong-daero, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-343 (Korea, Republic of)

    2015-09-15

    Highlights: • State-of-art containment analysis code, CAP, has been developed. • CAP uses 3-field equations, water level oriented upwind scheme, local head model. • CAP has a function of linked calculation with reactor coolant system code. • CAP code assessments showed appropriate prediction capabilities. - Abstract: CAP (nuclear Containment Analysis Package) code has been developed in Korean nuclear society for the analysis of nuclear containment thermal hydraulic behaviors including pressure and temperature trends and hydrogen concentration. Lumped model of CAP code uses 2-phase, 3-field equations for fluid behaviors, and has appropriate constitutive equations, 1-dimensional heat conductor model, component models, trip and control models, and special process models. CAP can run in a standalone mode or a linked mode with a reactor coolant system analysis code. The linked mode enables the more realistic calculation of a containment response and is expected to be applicable to a more complicated advanced plant design calculation. CAP code assessments were carried out by gradual approaches: conceptual problems, fundamental phenomena, component and principal phenomena, experimental validation, and finally comparison with other code calculations on the base of important phenomena identifications. The assessments showed appropriate prediction capabilities of CAP.

  16. Development of CAP code for nuclear power plant containment: Lumped model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hong, Soon Joon; Choo, Yeon Joon; Hwang, Su Hyun; Lee, Byung Chul; Ha, Sang Jun

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • State-of-art containment analysis code, CAP, has been developed. • CAP uses 3-field equations, water level oriented upwind scheme, local head model. • CAP has a function of linked calculation with reactor coolant system code. • CAP code assessments showed appropriate prediction capabilities. - Abstract: CAP (nuclear Containment Analysis Package) code has been developed in Korean nuclear society for the analysis of nuclear containment thermal hydraulic behaviors including pressure and temperature trends and hydrogen concentration. Lumped model of CAP code uses 2-phase, 3-field equations for fluid behaviors, and has appropriate constitutive equations, 1-dimensional heat conductor model, component models, trip and control models, and special process models. CAP can run in a standalone mode or a linked mode with a reactor coolant system analysis code. The linked mode enables the more realistic calculation of a containment response and is expected to be applicable to a more complicated advanced plant design calculation. CAP code assessments were carried out by gradual approaches: conceptual problems, fundamental phenomena, component and principal phenomena, experimental validation, and finally comparison with other code calculations on the base of important phenomena identifications. The assessments showed appropriate prediction capabilities of CAP

  17. Integration of the End Cap TEC+ of the CMS Silicon Strip Tracker

    CERN Document Server

    Adler, Volker; Ageron, Michel; Agram, Jean-Laurent; Atz, Bernd; Barvich, Tobias; Baulieu, Guillaume; Beaumont, Willem; Beissel, Franz; Bergauer, Thomas; Berst, Jean-Daniel; Blüm, Peter; Bock, E; Bogelsbacher, F; de Boer, Wim; Bonnet, Jean-Luc; Bonnevaux, Alain; Boudoul, Gaelle; Bouhali, Othmane; Braunschweig, Wolfgang; Bremer, R; Brom, Jean-Marie; Butz, Erik; Chabanat, Eric; Chabert, Eric Christian; Clerbaux, Barbara; Contardo, Didier; De Callatay, Bernard; Dehm, Philip; Delaere, Christophe; Della Negra, Rodolphe; Dewulf, Jean-Paul; D'Hondt, Jorgen; Didierjean, Francois; Dierlamm, Alexander; Dirkes, Guido; Dragicevic, Marko; Drouhin, Frédéric; Ernenwein, Jean-Pierre; Esser, Hans; Estre, Nicolas; Fahrer, Manuel; Feld, Lutz; Fernández, J; Florins, Benoit; Flossdorf, Alexander; Flucke, Gero; Flügge, Günter; Fontaine, Jean-Charles; Freudenreich, Klaus; Frey, Martin; Friedl, Markus; Furgeri, Alexander; Giraud, Noël; Goerlach, Ulrich; Goorens, Robert; Graehling, Philippe; Grégoire, Ghislain; Gregoriev, E; Gross, Laurent; Hansel, S; Haroutunian, Roger; Hartmann, Frank; Heier, Stefan; Hermanns, Thomas; Heydhausen, Dirk; Heyninck, Jan; Hosselet, J; Hrubec, Josef; Jahn, Dieter; Juillot, Pierre; Kaminski, Jochen; Karpinski, Waclaw; Kaussen, Gordon; Keutgen, Thomas; Klanner, Robert; Klein, Katja; König, Stefan; Kosbow, M; Krammer, Manfred; Ledermann, Bernhard; Lemaître, Vincent; De Lentdecker, Gilles; Linn, Alexander; Lounis, Abdenour; Lübelsmeyer, Klaus; Lumb, Nicholas; Maazouzi, Chaker; Mahmoud, Tariq; Michotte, Daniel; Militaru, Otilia; Mirabito, Laurent; Müller, Thomas; Neukermans, Lionel; Ollivetto, C; Olzem, Jan; Ostapchuk, Andrey; Pandoulas, Demetrios; Pein, Uwe; Pernicka, Manfred; Perriès, Stephane; Piaseki, C; Pierschel, Gerhard; Piotrzkowski, Krzysztof; Poettgens, Michael; Pooth, Oliver; Rouby, Xavier; Sabellek, Andreas; Schael, Stefan; Schirm, Norbert; Schleper, Peter; Schmitz, Stefan Antonius; Schultz von Dratzig, Arndt; Siedling, Rolf; Simonis, Hans-Jürgen; Stahl, Achim; Steck, Pia; Steinbruck, G; Stoye, Markus; Strub, Roger; Tavernier, Stefaan; Teyssier, Daniel; Theel, Andreas; Trocmé, Benjamin; Udo, Fred; Van der Donckt, M; Van der Velde, C; Van Hove, Pierre; Vanlaer, Pascal; Van Lancker, Luc; Van Staa, Rolf; Vanzetto, Sylvain; Weber, Markus; Weiler, Thomas; Weseler, Siegfried; Wickens, John; Wittmer, Bruno; Wlochal, Michael; De Wolf, Eddi A; Zhukov, Valery; Zoeller, Marc Henning

    2009-01-01

    The silicon strip tracker of the CMS experiment has been completed and inserted into the CMS detector in late 2007. The largest sub-system of the tracker is its end cap system, comprising two large end caps (TEC) each containing 3200 silicon strip modules. To ease construction, the end caps feature a modular design: groups of about 20 silicon modules are placed on sub-assemblies called petals and these self-contained elements are then mounted into the TEC support structures. Each end cap consists of 144 petals, and the insertion of these petals into the end cap structure is referred to as TEC integration. The two end caps were integrated independently in Aachen (TEC+) and at CERN (TEC--). This note deals with the integration of TEC+, describing procedures for end cap integration and for quality control during testing of integrated sections of the end cap and presenting results from the testing.

  18. Movement imagery classification in EMOTIV cap based system by Naïve Bayes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stock, Vinicius N; Balbinot, Alexandre

    2016-08-01

    Brain-computer interfaces (BCI) provide means of communications and control, in assistive technology, which do not require motor activity from the user. The goal of this study is to promote classification of two types of imaginary movements, left and right hands, in an EMOTIV cap based system, using the Naïve Bayes classifier. A preliminary analysis with respect to results obtained by other experiments in this field is also conducted. Processing of the electroencephalography (EEG) signals is done applying Common Spatial Pattern filters. The EPOC electrodes cap is used for EEG acquisition, in two test subjects, for two distinct trial formats. The channels picked are FC5, FC6, P7 and P8 of the 10-20 system, and a discussion about the differences of using C3, C4, P3 and P4 positions is proposed. Dataset 3 of the BCI Competition II is also analyzed using the implemented algorithms. The maximum classification results for the proposed experiment and for the BCI Competition dataset were, respectively, 79% and 85% The conclusion of this study is that the picked positions for electrodes may be applied for BCI systems with satisfactory classification rates.

  19. The Reinforcing Event (RE) Menu

    Science.gov (United States)

    Addison, Roger M.; Homme, Lloyd E.

    1973-01-01

    A motivational system, the Contingency Management System, uses contracts in which some amount of defined task behavior is demanded for some interval of reinforcing event. The Reinforcing Event Menu, a list of high probability reinforcing behaviors, is used in the system as a prompting device for the learner and as an aid for the administrator in…

  20. A study of the improvement of the district heat price cap system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yoo, S.J. [Korea Energy Economics Institute, Euiwang (Korea)

    2001-11-01

    This study proposes revision of the price cap mechanism applied to the district heating company, which was introduced in 1999. The revision aims at the provision of the incentives to lower the production cost to the heat producers and preventing the monopoly price from being charged to the consumer. It is proposed to extend the application period of the price cap to 3 or 5 years. 3 year application period is recommended because of lack of the experiences of the price cap mechanism and information of its performance in the public utility industries in Korea. The calculation of the price cap is better to be set based upon the minimum of the full cost of heat production in the last year of the previous application periods or the prices actually charged to the consumer during the previous application period. As the opportunity cost of the equity capital, the interest rate of the 5 year government bond or the actual interest cost of the debt financed capital is recommended to increase the share of the equity capital and to reflect the investment risk of the district heating industry. Production efficiency index applicable to the district heating company is estimated with 3 different methods. Among three different results, 3% is the first choice from a conservative perspective. It is also recommended to adjust production efficiency index as the data are accumulated and to be implemented with a profit sharing mechanism between the consumer and the monopoly supplier. In application of the price index, producer price index is applicable if the price cap is calculated from the full production cost. consumer price index is applicable if the price cap is set from the previous year's actual district heat prices (tariffs). Transfer of the ownership either by transferring stocks or by asset selling could affect the price cap determined by the full cost of the district heat production. In order to keep the consumer's welfare from being decreased, it is necessary to set

  1. Economic evaluation of closure cap barrier materials study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Serrato, M.G.; Bhutani, J.S.; Mead, S.M.

    1993-09-01

    Volume II of the Economic Evaluation of the Closure Cap Barrier Materials, Revision I contains detailed cost estimates for closure cap barrier materials. The cost estimates incorporate the life cycle costs for a generic hazardous waste seepage basin closure cap under the RCRA Post Closure Period of thirty years. The economic evaluation assessed six barrier material categories. Each of these categories consists of several composite cover system configurations, which were used to develop individual cost estimates. The information contained in this report is not intended to be used as a cost estimating manual. This information provides the decision makers with the ability to screen barrier materials, cover system configurations, and identify cost-effective materials for further consideration.

  2. Economic evaluation of closure cap barrier materials study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Serrato, M.G.; Bhutani, J.S.; Mead, S.M.

    1993-09-01

    Volume II of the Economic Evaluation of the Closure Cap Barrier Materials, Revision I contains detailed cost estimates for closure cap barrier materials. The cost estimates incorporate the life cycle costs for a generic hazardous waste seepage basin closure cap under the RCRA Post Closure Period of thirty years. The economic evaluation assessed six barrier material categories. Each of these categories consists of several composite cover system configurations, which were used to develop individual cost estimates. The information contained in this report is not intended to be used as a cost estimating manual. This information provides the decision makers with the ability to screen barrier materials, cover system configurations, and identify cost-effective materials for further consideration

  3. Impact of Vial Capping on Residual Seal Force and Container Closure Integrity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mathaes, Roman; Mahler, Hanns-Christian; Roggo, Yves; Ovadia, Robert; Lam, Philippe; Stauch, Oliver; Vogt, Martin; Roehl, Holger; Huwyler, Joerg; Mohl, Silke; Streubel, Alexander

    2016-01-01

    The vial capping process is a critical unit operation during drug product manufacturing, as it could possibly generate cosmetic defects or even affect container closure integrity. Yet there is significant variability in capping equipment and processes, and their relation to potential defects or container closure integrity has not been thoroughly studied. In this study we applied several methods-residual seal force tester, a self-developed system of a piezo force sensor measurement, and computed tomography-to characterize different container closure system combinations that had been sealed using different capping process parameter settings. Additionally, container closure integrity of these samples was measured using helium leakage (physical container closure integrity) and compared to characterization data. The different capping equipment settings lead to residual seal force values from 7 to 115 N. High residual seal force values were achieved with high capping pre-compression force and a short distance between the capping plate and plunge. The choice of container closure system influenced the obtained residual seal force values. The residual seal force tester and piezoelectric measurements showed similar trends. All vials passed physical container closure integrity testing, and no stopper rupture was seen with any of the settings applied, suggesting that container closure integrity was warranted for the studied container closure system with the chosen capping setting ranges. The vial capping process is a critical unit operation during drug product manufacturing, as it could possibly generate cosmetic defects or even affect container closure integrity. Yet there is significant variability in capping equipment and processes, and their relation to potential defects or container closure integrity has not been thoroughly studied. In this study we applied several methods-residual seal force tester, a self-developed system of a piezo force sensor measurement, and

  4. Enhancement of device performance by using quaternary capping over ternary capping in strain-coupled InAs/GaAs quantum dot infrared photodetectors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tongbram, B.; Shetty, S.; Ghadi, H.; Adhikary, S.; Chakrabarti, S.

    2015-01-01

    We investigate and compare the performance of 30 layers strain-coupled quantum dot (SCQD) infrared photodetectors capped with one of two different layers: a quaternary (In 0.21 Al 0.21 Ga 0.58 As) or ternary (In 0.15 Ga 0.85 As) alloy of 30 Aa and a GaAs layer with a thickness of 120-150 Aa. Measurements of optical properties, spectral responsivity, and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy were conducted. Results showed that quaternary capping yielded more superior multilayer QD infrared photodetectors than ternary capping. Quaternary capping resulted in enhanced dot size, order, and uniformity of the QD array. The presence of Al in the capped layer helped in the reduction in dark current density and spectral linewidth as well as led to higher electron confinement of the QDs and enhanced device detectivity. The vertically ordered SCQD system with quaternary capping exhibited higher peak detectivity (∝10 10 cm Hz 1/2 /W) than that with ternary capping (∝10 7 cm Hz 1/2 /W). In addition, a very low noise current density of ∝10 -16 A/cm 2 Hz 1/2 at 77 K was achieved with quaternary-capped QDs. (orig.)

  5. Barometric altimetry system as virtual constellation applied in CAPS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ai, Guoxiang; Sheng, Peixuan; Du, Jinlin; Zheng, Yongguang; Cai, Xiande; Wu, Haitao; Hu, Yonghui; Hua, Yu; Li, Xiaohui

    2009-03-01

    This work describes the barometric altimetry as virtual constellation applied to the Chinese Area Positioning System (CAPS), which uses the transponders of communication satellites to transfer navigation messages to users. Barometric altimetry depends on the relationship of air pressure varying with altitude in the Earth’s atmosphere. Once the air pressure at a location is measured the site altitude can be found. This method is able to enhance and improve the availability of three-dimensional positioning. The difficulty is that the relation between barometric pressure and altitude is variable in different areas and under various weather conditions. Hence, in order to obtain higher accuracy, we need to acquire the real-time air pressure corresponding to an altimetric region’s reference height. On the other hand, the altimetry method will be applied to satellite navigation system, but the greatest difficulty lies in how to get the real-time air pressure value at the reference height in the broad areas overlaid by satellite navigation. We propose an innovational method to solve this problem. It is to collect the real-time air pressures and temperatures of the 1860 known-altitude weather observatories over China and around via satellite communication and to carry out time extrapolation forecast uniformly. To reduce data quantity, we first partition the data and encode them and then broadcast these information via navigation message to CAPS users’ receivers. Upon the interpolations being done in receivers, the reference air pressure and temperature at the receiver’s nearby place is derived. Lastly, combing with the receiver-observed real air pressure and temperature, the site’s altitude can be determined. The work is presented in the following aspects: the calculation principle, formulae, data collection, encoding, prediction, interpolation method, navigation message transmission together with errors causes and analyses. The advantages and shortcomings of the

  6. DEVELOPMENT OF NON-DESTRUCTIVE MONITORING SYSTEM FOR CHLORIDE PENETRATION INTO REINFORCED CONCRETE STRUCTURES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Antoni Antoni

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available Reinforced concrete structures in marine environment are subjected to chloride penetration, which significantly degrades the structural performance due to the occurrence of corrosion in the steel reinforcement. The performance degradation of the structures would reduce the intended service life and caused higher maintenance and repair cost. Therefore, system to monitor chloride penetration into reinforced concrete before the starting corrosion of reinforcement is indispensable. An embedded probe system to detect chloride penetration into concrete was developed in Japan. This probe consists of a cementitious material body and some number of wires as sensors, which are set in the shallow ditches around the probe body. The system detect the chloride penetration by monitoring the initiation time of wire corrosion, it also has the advantages of continuous monitoring and early warning on the onset of corrosion in the reinforcement. However, the probe had not yet had high sensitivity for detecting critical chloride content in concrete. Therefore to increase its sensitivity, four types of improvements, namely partial coating of the wires, waterproofing on the probe body, filling the ditches with porous material and supplying small current on the wires were evaluated in this study. From the experimental result, it was observed that supplying small current and partial coating of the wires could improve the sensitivity of the probe significantly, while waterproofing treatment on the probe body and filling the ditches did not have significant contribution.

  7. 76 FR 19739 - Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; Texas; System Cap Trading Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-04-08

    ... the System Cap Trading (SCT) Program at Title 30 Texas Administrative Code, Chapter 101--General Air... 101.385. We proposed disapproval because the SCT Program lacks several necessary components for... Quality (TCEQ) stating that the May 1, 2001, and August 16, 2007, SCT Program SIP submissions have been...

  8. State-of-the-art synthetic membrane for capping landfills

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kriofske, K.P.; Gagle, D.W.

    1991-01-01

    Very Low Density Polyethylene (VLDPE) has emerged as a superior capping material for landfill closures. Landfills must be capped by a material which will undergo substantial deformation in areas of localized settlement prior to rupture. Methane and hydrogen sulfide gases must be contained and directed to collection points without permeating the landfill cap. Vegetative growth in the cover sods will be protected by the gas impermeability of the geosynthetic membrane. VLDPE compounded with carbon black is minimally affected by radiation and is inert to ultraviolet rays. This property sustains VLDPE's ability to retard gas permeation at levels superior to other geosynthetics. Cover soil stability on long cap slopes in all weather conditions is crucial. It has been demonstrated in the laboratory and in full-scale, on-site test conditions that VLDPE exhibits friction characteristics equaling or exceeding other synthetics used for this purpose without diminishing physical and chemical properties. Large-scale, multiaxial stress tests have demonstrated the ability of VLDPE to deflect substantially in all directions of a potential settlement area. Only PVC can equal the elastic deformation properties of VLDPE, but PVC is more gas-permeable susceptible to degradation due to natural soil radiation or ultraviolet light and heat. Test results are presented to illustrate these points. The geosynthetic cap membrane must prevent water percolation into the landfill to prevent the formation of hazardous leachates. The use of a VLDPE cap reduces the depth of cap soils, thus increasing landfill volume. The economics and reduction in long-term liabilities of closure costs are enhanced by the use of VLDPE in the cap system. Since the expected half-life of polyethylene exceeds hundreds of years, the inclusion of VLDPE in the cap system will provide pollution security for many generations

  9. Corrective action program (CAP) in United States

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Okamoto, Koji; Kobayashi, Masahide

    2008-01-01

    The Corrective Action Process (CAP) is one of the most important key issues on the Nuclear Reactor Safety. The experiences on the nuclear power plant operations, including safety culture, maintenance, and so on, should be continuously evaluated and influenced to the KAIZEN (improvement) of the NPP operations. The review of the CAP system in US will be useful for the NPP safety in Japan. (author)

  10. An Analysis and Allocation System for Library Collections Budgets: The Comprehensive Allocation Process (CAP)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lyons, Lucy Eleonore; Blosser, John

    2012-01-01

    The "Comprehensive Allocation Process" (CAP) is a reproducible decision-making structure for the allocation of new collections funds, for the reallocation of funds within stagnant budgets, and for budget cuts in the face of reduced funding levels. This system was designed to overcome common shortcomings of current methods. Its philosophical…

  11. Reinforcement and Systemic Machine Learning for Decision Making

    CERN Document Server

    Kulkarni, Parag

    2012-01-01

    Reinforcement and Systemic Machine Learning for Decision Making There are always difficulties in making machines that learn from experience. Complete information is not always available-or it becomes available in bits and pieces over a period of time. With respect to systemic learning, there is a need to understand the impact of decisions and actions on a system over that period of time. This book takes a holistic approach to addressing that need and presents a new paradigm-creating new learning applications and, ultimately, more intelligent machines. The first book of its kind in this new an

  12. Critical Points of Prefabricated Reinforced Concrete Wall Systems of Multi-storey Buildings

    OpenAIRE

    J. Witzany; T. Čejka; R. Zigler

    2011-01-01

    With respect to the dissipation of energy through plastic deformation of joints of prefabricated wall units, the paper points out the principal importance of efficient reinforcement of the prefabricated system at its joints. The method, quality and amount of reinforcement are essential for reaching the necessary degree of joint ductility. The paper presents partial results of experimental research of vertical joints of prefabricated units exposed to monotonously rising lo...

  13. Effects of x-ray irradiation on the induction of. cap alpha. -amylase synthesis by gibberelic acid in the aleurone system of barley

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zellner, H

    1974-01-01

    The influence of ionizing radiation on a system without DNA replication and cell division was investigated with the aid of GA/sub 3/-induced ..cap alpha..-amylase synthesis in aleurone cells of barley. The reaction of the system was determined by dose effect curves (after irradiation of one half of the endosperms in rest) for the synthesis and secretion of ..cap alpha..-amylase, protein, and reducing sugars. The system proves to be highly radiation-resistant. The course of the synthesis of ..cap alpha..-amylase after X-ray irradiation with varying doses during enzyme synthesis suggests that transcription occurs in the middle of the lag-phase and is the most sensitive stage in enzyme synthesis, while translation alone is less sensitive to radiation.

  14. USING PERFLUOROCARBON TRACERS FOR VERIFICATION OF CAP AND COVER SYSTEMS PERFORMANCE

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    HEISER, J.; SULLIVAN, T.

    2001-01-01

    The Department of Energy (DOE) Environmental Management (EM) office has committed itself to an accelerated cleanup of its national facilities. The goal is to have much of the DOE legacy waste sites remediated by 2006. This includes closure of several sites (e.g., Rocky Flats and Fernald). With the increased focus on accelerated cleanup, there has been considerable concern about long-term stewardship issues in general, and verification and long-term monitoring (LTM) of caps and covers, in particular. Cap and cover systems (covers) are vital remedial options that will be extensively used in meeting these 2006 cleanup goals. Every buried waste site within the DOE complex will require some form of cover system. These covers are expected to last from 100 to 1000 years or more. The stakeholders can be expected to focus on system durability and sustained performance. DOE EM has set up a national committee of experts to develop a long-term capping (LTC) guidance document. Covers are subject to subsidence, erosion, desiccation, animal intrusion, plant root infiltration, etc., all of which will affect the overall performance of the cover. Very little is available in terms of long-term monitoring other than downstream groundwater or surface water monitoring. By its very nature, this can only indicate that failure of the cover system has already occurred and contaminants have been transported away from the site. This is unacceptable. Methods that indicate early cover failure (prior to contaminant release) or predict approaching cover failure are needed. The LTC committee has identified predictive monitoring technologies as a high priority need for DOE, both for new covers as well as existing covers. The same committee identified a Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) technology as one approach that may be capable of meeting the requirements for LTM. The Environmental Research and Technology Division (ERTD) at BNL developed a novel methodology for verifying and monitoring

  15. Integrated Modeling and Decision-Support System for Water Management in the Puget Sound Basin: Snow Caps to White Caps

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Copping, Andrea E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Yang, Zhaoqing [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Voisin, Nathalie [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Richey, Jeff [Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA (United States); Wang, Taiping [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Taira, Randal Y. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Constans, Michael [Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA (United States); Wigmosta, Mark S. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Van Cleve, Frances B. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Tesfa, Teklu K. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

    2013-12-01

    Final Report for the EPA-sponsored project Snow Caps to White Caps that provides data products and insight for water resource managers to support their predictions and management actions to address future changes in water resources (fresh and marine) in the Puget Sound basin. This report details the efforts of a team of scientists and engineers from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and the University of Washington (UW) to examine the movement of water in the Snohomish Basin, within the watershed and the estuary, under present and future conditions, using a set of linked numerical models.

  16. Impact of SO2 emissions cap on Phase I compliance decisions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bissell, P.E.; Fink, C.E.; Koch, B.J.; Chomka, P.A.

    1990-01-01

    The SO 2 emissions cap provisions of impending clean air legislation will dramatically affect Phase I and Phase II compliance decisions by electric utilities. Technology-based SO 2 reduction alternatives could become the keystone of most compliance strategies as utilities attempt to achieve lower and lower SO 2 emission rates. Compliance with the Phase II emissions cap will require technological solutions for many utilities which must meet system-wide SO 2 emission rates well below those achievable with low-sulfur eastern coals and, in many instances, western coals. The emissions cap provision, however, will also induce more scrubbing during the Phase I compliance period. The power generation dispatch capability of a hypothetical utility system was simulated to study the impacts of an SO 2 emission cap on compliance strategies in Phase I. The effects of the cap were quantified for generation costs, total SO 2 emissions, and effective emission rates. The results show that achieving compliance by installing state-of-the-art high SO 2 removal scrubbers becomes increasingly attractive as utilities become constrained under the SO 2 cap, even in Phase I

  17. Experimental analysis of reinforced concrete beams strengthened in bending with carbon fiber reinforced polymer

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. M. VIEIRA

    Full Text Available The use of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP has been widely used for the reinforcement of concrete structures due to its practicality and versatility in application, low weight, high tensile strength and corrosion resistance. Some construction companies use CFRP in flexural strengthening of reinforced concrete beams, but without anchor systems. Therefore, the aim of this study is analyze, through an experimental program, the structural behavior of reinforced concrete beams flexural strengthened by CFRP without anchor fibers, varying steel reinforcement and the amount of carbon fibers reinforcement layers. Thus, two groups of reinforced concrete beams were produced with the same geometric feature but with different steel reinforcement. Each group had five beams: one that is not reinforced with CFRP (reference and other reinforced with two, three, four and five layers of carbon fibers. Beams were designed using a computational routine developed in MAPLE software and subsequently tested in 4-point points flexural test up to collapse. Experimental tests have confirmed the effectiveness of the reinforcement, ratifying that beams collapse at higher loads and lower deformation as the amount of fibers in the reinforcing layers increased. However, the increase in the number of layers did not provide a significant increase in the performance of strengthened beams, indicating that it was not possible to take full advantage of strengthening applied due to the occurrence of premature failure mode in the strengthened beams for pullout of the cover that could have been avoided through the use of a suitable anchoring system for CFRP.

  18. CAPS OpenACC Compilers: Performance and Portability

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN. Geneva

    2013-01-01

    The announcement late 2011 of the new OpenACC directive-based programming standard supported by CAPS, CRAY and PGI compilers has open up the door to more scientific applications that can be ported on many-core systems. Following a porting methodology, this talk will first review the principles of programming with OpenACC and then the advanced features available in the CAPS compilers to further optimize OpenACC applications: library integration, tuning directives with auto-tune mechanisms to build applications adaptive to different GPUs. CAPS compilers use hardware vendors' backends such as NVIDIA CUDA and OpenCL making them the only OpenACC compilers supporting various many-core architectures. About the speaker Stéphane Bihan is co-funder and currently Director of Sales and Marketing at CAPS enterprise. He has held several R&D positions in companies such as ARC international plc in London, Canon Research Center France, ACE compiler experts in Amsterdam and the INRIA r...

  19. FibreBags vs. FibreCaps for acid and neutral detergent fibre analysis

    OpenAIRE

    Koivisto , Jason

    2003-01-01

    International audience; A new procedure for determining acid detergent fibre and neutral detergent fibre (ADF and NDF) was developed to reduce the need for filtration and to allow for batch processing of forage samples. The FibreBag system is an economically necessary evolution of the earlier FibreCap system. The purpose of this enquiry was to determine if the FibreBag is a suitable replacement for the FibreCap. The FibreBag method produced very similar results to the FibreCap system of analy...

  20. /sup 58,60,62/Ni (. cap alpha. ,p) three--nucleon transfer reactions and. cap alpha. optical potential ambiguities

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yuanda, Wang; Xiuming, Bao; Zhiqiang, Mao; Rongfang, Yuan; Keling, Wen; Binyin, Huang; Zhifu, Wang; Shuming, Li; Jianan, Wang; Zuxun, Sun; others, and

    1985-11-01

    The differential cross sections are measured using 26.0 MeV ..cap alpha.. particle for /sup 58,62/Ni(..cap alpha.., ..cap alpha..) /sup 58,62/Ni and /sup 58,62/Ni(..cap alpha..,p) /sup 61,65/Cu reactions as well as 25.4 MeV ..cap alpha.. particle for /sup 60/Ni(..cap alpha.., ..cap alpha..)/sup 69/Ni and /sup 60/Ni(..cap alpha.., p)/sup 63/Cu reactions. Consistent calculations with optical model and ZR DWBA are made for (..cap alpha.., ..cap alpha..) and (..cap alpha.., p) reactions by using of single, two, three and four nucleon optical potential parameters. For elastic scattering due to the ..cap alpha.. optical potential ambiguities, all the above optical potential can reproduce the experimental angular distributions. However, the single, two and three nucleon potential, including the Baird's mass systematics and the Chang's energy systematics of ..cap alpha.. potentials, obviously can not provide a reasonable fitting with the (..cap alpha..,p) reaction experimental data. Only the results from the four nucleon potential is in good agreement with the (..cap alpha..,p) reaction experimental data. This reveals that in the ..cap alpha..-particle induced transfer reactions, the real depth of the ..cap alpha..-nucleus optical potential should be rather deep.

  1. How does the antagonism between capping and anti-capping proteins affect actin network dynamics?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hu Longhua; Papoian, Garegin A

    2011-01-01

    Actin-based cell motility is essential to many biological processes. We built a simplified, three-dimensional computational model and subsequently performed stochastic simulations to study the growth dynamics of lamellipodia-like branched networks. In this work, we shed light on the antagonism between capping and anti-capping proteins in regulating actin dynamics in the filamentous network. We discuss detailed mechanisms by which capping and anti-capping proteins affect the protrusion speed of the actin network and the rate of nucleation of filaments. We computed a phase diagram showing the regimes of motility enhancement and inhibition by these proteins. Our work shows that the effects of capping and anti-capping proteins are mainly transmitted by modulation of the filamentous network density and local availability of monomeric actin. We discovered that the combination of the capping/anti-capping regulatory network with nucleation-promoting proteins introduces robustness and redundancy in cell motility machinery, allowing the cell to easily achieve maximal protrusion speeds under a broader set of conditions. Finally, we discuss distributions of filament lengths under various conditions and speculate on their potential implication for the emergence of filopodia from the lamellipodial network.

  2. 47 CFR 54.623 - Cap.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Cap. 54.623 Section 54.623 Telecommunication... Universal Service Support for Health Care Providers § 54.623 Cap. (a) Amount of the annual cap. The annual cap on federal universal service support for health care providers shall be $400 million per funding...

  3. 47 CFR 54.507 - Cap.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Cap. 54.507 Section 54.507 Telecommunication... Universal Service Support for Schools and Libraries § 54.507 Cap. (a) Amount of the annual cap. The annual funding cap on federal universal service support for schools and libraries shall be $2.25 billion per...

  4. Macroevolutionary data suggest a role for reinforcement in pollination system shifts

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Niet, van der T.; Johnson, S.D.; Linder, H.P.

    2006-01-01

    Reproductive isolation can evolve either as a by-product of divergent selection or through reinforcement. We used the Cape flora of South Africa, known for its high level of pollination specialization, as a model system to test the potential role of shifts in pollination system in the speciation

  5. Algorithms for Reinforcement Learning

    CERN Document Server

    Szepesvari, Csaba

    2010-01-01

    Reinforcement learning is a learning paradigm concerned with learning to control a system so as to maximize a numerical performance measure that expresses a long-term objective. What distinguishes reinforcement learning from supervised learning is that only partial feedback is given to the learner about the learner's predictions. Further, the predictions may have long term effects through influencing the future state of the controlled system. Thus, time plays a special role. The goal in reinforcement learning is to develop efficient learning algorithms, as well as to understand the algorithms'

  6. The Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) and Emergency Data Exchange Language (EDXL) - Application in Early Warning Systems for Natural Hazard

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lendholt, Matthias; Hammitzsch, Martin; Wächter, Joachim

    2010-05-01

    The Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) [1] is an XML-based data format for exchanging public warnings and emergencies between alerting technologies. In conjunction with the Emergency Data Exchange Language (EDXL) Distribution Element (-DE) [2] these data formats can be used for warning message dissemination in early warning systems for natural hazards. Application took place in the DEWS (Distance Early Warning System) [3] project where CAP serves as central message format containing both human readable warnings and structured data for automatic processing by message receivers. In particular the spatial reference capabilities are of paramount importance both in CAP and EDXL. Affected areas are addressable via geo codes like HASC (Hierarchical Administrative Subdivision Codes) [4] or UN/LOCODE [5] but also with arbitrary polygons that can be directly generated out of GML [6]. For each affected area standardized criticality values (urgency, severity and certainty) have to be set but also application specific key-value-pairs like estimated time of arrival or maximum inundation height can be specified. This enables - together with multilingualism, message aggregation and message conversion for different dissemination channels - the generation of user-specific tailored warning messages. [1] CAP, http://www.oasis-emergency.org/cap [2] EDXL-DE, http://docs.oasis-open.org/emergency/edxl-de/v1.0/EDXL-DE_Spec_v1.0.pdf [3] DEWS, http://www.dews-online.org [4] HASC, "Administrative Subdivisions of Countries: A Comprehensive World Reference, 1900 Through 1998" ISBN 0-7864-0729-8 [5] UN/LOCODE, http://www.unece.org/cefact/codesfortrade/codes_index.htm [6] GML, http://www.opengeospatial.org/standards/gml

  7. Early Experiences with Node-Level Power Capping on the Cray XC40 Platform

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pedretti, Kevin; Olivier, Stephen Lecler; Ferreira, Kurt Brian; Shipman, Galen; Shu, Wei

    2015-10-01

    Power consumption of extreme-scale supercomputers has become a key performance bottleneck. Yet current practices do not leverage power management opportunities, instead running at ''maximum power''. This is not sustainable. Future systems will need to manage power as a critical resource, directing where it has greatest benefit. Power capping is one mechanism for managing power budgets, however its behavior is not well understood. This paper presents an empirical evaluation of several key HPC workloads running under a power cap on a Cray XC40 system, and provides a comparison of this technique with p-state control, demonstrating the performance differences of each. These results show: 1. Maximum performance requires ensuring the cap is not reached; 2. Performance slowdown under a cap can be attributed to cascading delays which result in unsynchronized performance variability across nodes; and, 3. Due to lag in reaction time, considerable time is spent operating above the set cap. This work provides a timely and much needed comparison of HPC application performance under a power cap and attempts to enable users and system administrators to understand how to best optimize application performance on power-constrained HPC systems.

  8. Numerical modelling of the reinforced concrete influence on a combined system of tunnel support

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Grujić Bojana

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The paper presents the experimental, laboratory determined rheological-dynamic analysis of the properties of fiber reinforced concrete, which was then utilized to show nonlinear analysis of combined system of tunnel support structure. According to the performed experiments and calculations, different processes of destructive behavior of tunnel lining were simulated in combination with elastic and elastic-plastic behavior of materials taking into account the tunnel loading, the interaction between the fiber reinforced concrete and soil, as well as the interaction between the fiber reinforced concrete and the inner lining of the tunnel.

  9. Numerical modelling of the reinforced concrete influence on a combined system of tunnel support

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grujić, Bojana; Jokanović, Igor; Grujić, Žarko; Zeljić, Dragana

    2017-12-01

    The paper presents the experimental, laboratory determined rheological-dynamic analysis of the properties of fiber reinforced concrete, which was then utilized to show nonlinear analysis of combined system of tunnel support structure. According to the performed experiments and calculations, different processes of destructive behavior of tunnel lining were simulated in combination with elastic and elastic-plastic behavior of materials taking into account the tunnel loading, the interaction between the fiber reinforced concrete and soil, as well as the interaction between the fiber reinforced concrete and the inner lining of the tunnel.

  10. A thermoelectric cap for seafloor hydrothermal vents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xie, Yu; Wu, Shi-jun; Yang, Can-jun

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • We developed a thermoelectric cap (TC) to harvest hydrothermal energy. • The TC was deployed at a hydrothermal vent site near Kueishantao islet, Taiwan. • The TC monitored the temperature of the hydrothermal fluids during the field test. • The TC could make the thermal energy of hydrothermal fluids a viable power source. - Abstract: Long-term in situ monitoring is crucial to seafloor scientific investigations. One of the challenges of operating sensors in seabed is the lifespan of the sensors. Such sensors are commonly powered by batteries when other alternatives, such as tidal or solar energy, are unavailable. However, the batteries have a limited lifespan and must be recharged or replaced periodically, which is costly and impractical. A thermoelectric cap, which harvests the thermal energy of hydrothermal fluids through a conduction pipe and converts the heat to electrical energy by using thermoelectric generators, was developed to avoid these inconveniences. The thermoelectric cap was combined with a power and temperature measurement system that enables the thermoelectric cap to power a light-emitting diode lamp, an electronic load (60 Ω), and 16 thermocouples continuously. The thermoelectric cap was field tested at a shallow hydrothermal vent site near Kueishantao islet, which is located offshore of northeastern Taiwan. By using the thermal gradient between hydrothermal fluids and seawater, the thermoelectric cap obtained a sustained power of 0.2–0.5 W during the field test. The thermoelectric cap successfully powered the 16 thermocouples and recorded the temperature of the hydrothermal fluids during the entire field test. Our results show that the thermal energy of hydrothermal fluids can be an alternative renewable power source for oceanographic research.

  11. A decision tool for selecting trench cap designs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Paige, G.B.; Stone, J.J.; Lane, L.J. [USDA-ARS, Tucson, AZ (United States)] [and others

    1995-12-31

    A computer based prototype decision support system (PDSS) is being developed to assist the risk manager in selecting an appropriate trench cap design for waste disposal sites. The selection of the {open_quote}best{close_quote} design among feasible alternatives requires consideration of multiple and often conflicting objectives. The methodology used in the selection process consists of: selecting and parameterizing decision variables using data, simulation models, or expert opinion; selecting feasible trench cap design alternatives; ordering the decision variables and ranking the design alternatives. The decision model is based on multi-objective decision theory and uses a unique approach to order the decision variables and rank the design alternatives. Trench cap designs are evaluated based on federal regulations, hydrologic performance, cover stability and cost. Four trench cap designs, which were monitored for a four year period at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, are used to demonstrate the application of the PDSS and evaluate the results of the decision model. The results of the PDSS, using both data and simulations, illustrate the relative advantages of each of the cap designs and which cap is the {open_quotes}best{close_quotes} alternative for a given set of criteria and a particular importance order of those decision criteria.

  12. Modelling of horn-type loudspeakers for outdoor sound reinforcement systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schuhmacher, Andreas; Rasmussen, Karsten Bo

    1999-01-01

    -type loudspeakers is made. The agreement between measured and calculated results is very good provided that a sufficient number of modes is included in the simulation. Simulation models of this kind represent one of the first steps towards a CAD tool for outdoor sound reinforcement systems....

  13. The Development of a Token Reinforcement System for a Specific Lesson. Technical Report #11.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Au, Kathryn

    This paper presents a brief description of a token reinforcement system developed for a kindergarten language class in the Kamehameha Early Education Program (KEEP). Visual reinforcers (colored plastic tabs) were placed next to the names of individual children (each time they made a correct response) on a large chart in the front of the room. Five…

  14. Agonist-induced affinity alterations of a central nervous system. cap alpha. -bungarotoxin receptor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lukas, R.J.; Bennett, E.L.

    1979-01-01

    The ability of cholinergic agonists to block the specific interaction of ..cap alpha..-bungarotoxin (..cap alpha..-Bgt) with membrane-bound sites derived from rat brain is enhanced when membranes are preincubated with agonist. Thus, pretreatment of ..cap alpha..-Bgt receptors with agonist (but not antagonist) causes transformation of sites to a high-affinity form toward agonist. This change in receptor state occurs with a half-time on the order of minutes, and is fully reversible on dilution of agonist. The results are consistent with the identity of ..cap alpha..-Bgt binding sites as true central nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. Furthermore, this agonist-induced alteration in receptor state may represent an in vitro correlate of physiological desensitization. As determined from the effects of agonist on toxin binding isotherms, and on the rate of toxin binding to specific sites, agonist inhibition of toxin binding to the high-affinity state is non-competitive. This result suggests that there may exist discrete toxin-binding and agonist-binding sites on central toxin receptors.

  15. Commissioning Test of ATLAS End-Cap Toroidal Magnets

    CERN Document Server

    Dudarev, A; Foussat, A; Benoit, P; Jeckel, M; Olyunin, A; Kopeykin, N; Stepanov, V; Deront, L; Olesen, G; Ponts, X; Ravat, S; Sbrissa, K; Barth, J; Bremer, J; Delruelle, J; Metselaar, J; Pengo, R; Pirotte, O; Buskop, J; Baynham, D E; Carr, F S; Holtom, E

    2009-01-01

    The system of superconducting toroids in the ATLAS experiment at CERN consists of three magnets. The Barrel Toroid was assembled and successfully tested in 2006. Next, two End-Cap Toroids have been tested on surface at 77 K and installed in the cavern, 100-m underground. The End Cap Toroids are based on Al stabilized Nb-Ti/Cu Rutherford cables, arranged in double pancake coils and conduction cooled at 4.6 K. The nominal current is 20.5 kA at 4.1 T peak field in the windings and the stored energy is 250 MJ per toroid. Prior to final testing of the entire ATLAS Toroidal system, each End Cap Toroid passed a commissioning test up to 21 kA to guarantee a reliable performance in the final assembly. In this paper the test results are described. It includes the stages of test preparation, isolation vacuum pumping and leak testing, cooling down, step-by-step charging to full current, training quenches and quench recovery. By fast discharges the quench detection and protection system was checked to demonstrate a safe e...

  16. The rebirth of the cervical cap.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cappiello, J D; Grainger-Harrison, M

    1981-01-01

    In an effort to dispel myths surrounding the cervical cap, the historical and political factors affecting the cap's use in the U.S. are described. Clinical aspects of cap fitting are also included. The cervical cap has found only limited acceptance in the U.S. Skepticisms on the part of physicians may be the result of 2 factors: confusion of the cervical cap with intracervical devices used for artificial insemination and confusion with stem pessaries; and the lack of clinical research and statistical evaluation of efficacy rates. The latter factor prompted Tietze et al. to conduct the only U.S. statistical study of the cap in 1953. Of the 143 women studied, the pregnancy rate was 7.6/100 years of use. Of the 28 unplanned pregnancies, 6 were related to faulty technique or omission of a spermicide and 10 were instances of admittedly irregular use. When these failures are omitted, the theoretical effectiveness rate is about 98%. Some practitioners are concerned about an increased incidence of cervical erosion with cap use. Possibly currently conducted studies will show that cap and spermicide users have a lower incidence of cervical erosion than women using no contraceptive method. Study findings suggest that the cervical cap may afford protection without any spermicidal supplement, but the use of spermicides continues to be recommended to clients. Advantages of the cervical cap include the following: it can be left in place longer than a diaphragm without additional applications of spermicide in the vagina; and the insertion of the cap is unrelated to the time of intercourse. Despite research on toleration of the cap for 3 weeks at a time, it is recommended that the cap be worn for only a few days at a time. At this time there are no manufacturers of cervical caps for contraceptive use in the U.S. The cap is now being imported from England and it costs $6.00. A factor that has made the cap unpopular with many physicians is the lengthy time required for fitting. An

  17. Characteristics of the polar cap at ionospheric levels and present understanding of the physical processes that give rise to these characteristics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brekke, A.

    1983-01-01

    This chapter discusses the relationship between the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) and various polar cap current systems, such as the DP2-system and the S /SUB q/ P-system. The disagreements concerning these systems are examined. Topics considered include the polar cap (a result of an open magnetosphere); studies of the polar cap magnetic field variations; the DP2-current system and its relation to the IMF; the polar cap current system during a northward IMF; the azimuthal component of IMF and its influence on the polar cap magnetic field variations; the electric potential distribution on the polar cap; rocket observations of the polar cap electric field; the auroral arcs as a visible trace of the ionospheric convection; neutral wind measurements in the polar cap F-region; and further studies of polar cap dynamics. The focus is on the polar region inside the auroral oval. It is suggested that more research is needed of the polar cap current system in order to understand the magnetosphereionosphere coupling, with the polar cap ionospheric conductivity distribution being the most crucial parameter

  18. Matrix vesicles in the fibrous cap of atherosclerotic plaque: possible contribution to plaque rupture.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bobryshev, Y V; Killingsworth, M C; Lord, R S A; Grabs, A J

    2008-10-01

    /microcalcifications was significantly higher in fibrous caps in vulnerable plaques compared with that in stable plaques (6.705+/-0.436 versus 5.322+/-0494; P= 0.0474). The findings reinforce a view that the texture of the extracellular matrix in the thinning fibrous cap of atherosclerotic plaque is altered and this might contribute to plaque destabilization.

  19. Microtubule's conformational cap

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Flyvbjerg, H.

    1999-01-01

    The molecular mechanisms that allow elongation of the unstable microtubule lattice remain unclear. It is usually thought that the GDP-liganded tubulin lattice is capped by a small layer of GTP- or GDP-P(i)-liganded molecules, the so called "GTP-cap". Here, we point-out that the elastic properties...

  20. 75 FR 49527 - Caps Visual Communications, LLC; Black Dot Group; Formerly Known as Caps Group Acquisition, LLC...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-08-13

    ... DEPARTMENT OF LABOR Employment and Training Administration [TA-W-74,195] Caps Visual Communications, LLC; Black Dot Group; Formerly Known as Caps Group Acquisition, LLC Chicago, IL; Amended... of Caps Visual Communications, LLC, Black Dot Group, formerly known as Caps Group Acquisition, LLC...

  1. Macrophage Capping Protein CapG Is a Putative Oncogene Involved in Migration and Invasiveness in Ovarian Carcinoma

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. Glaser

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The actin binding protein CapG modulates cell motility by interacting with the cytoskeleton. CapG is associated with tumor progression in different nongynecologic tumor entities and overexpression in breast cancer cell lines correlates with a more invasive phenotype in vitro. Here, we report a significant CapG overexpression in 18/47 (38% of ovarian carcinomas (OC analyzed by qRealTime-PCR analyses. Functional analyses in OC cell lines through siRNA mediated CapG knockdown and CapG overexpression showed CapG-dependent cell migration and invasiveness. A single nucleotide polymorphism rs6886 inside the CapG gene was identified, affecting a CapG phosphorylation site and thus potentially modifying CapG function. The minor allele frequency (MAF of SNP rs6886 (c.1004A/G was higher and the homozygous (A/A, His335 genotype was significantly more prevalent in patients with fallopian tube carcinomas (50% as in controls (10%. With OC being one of the most lethal cancer diseases, the detection of novel biomarkers such as CapG could reveal new diagnostic and therapeutic targets. Moreover, in-depth analyses of SNP rs6886 related to FTC and OC will contribute to a better understanding of carcinogenesis and progression of OC.

  2. Eddy intrusion of hot plasma into the polar cap and formation of polar-cap arcs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chiu, Y.T.; Gorney, D.J.

    1983-01-01

    We present plasma and electric field data obtained by the S3-3 satellite over the polar caps. We demonstrate that: (1) plasma signatures in the polar cap arc formation region near 5000 km altitude show clear intrusions of plasma sheet (approx.keV) and magneto sheath (approx.100 eV) plasma into a background of low-energy polar cap plasma; (2) the combined plasma and electric field signatures (electron inverted-V, ion beam and delxE<0) are exactly the same as in the evening discrete arc. We interpret this equivalence of polar cap and evening discrete arc signatures as indication that their formation processes are identical. The spatial structures of polar cap electric fields and the associated plasma signatures are consistent with the hypothesis that plasma intrusion into the polar cap takes the form of multiple cellular eddies. This hypothesis provides a unifying view of arc formation and arc configurations

  3. Reinforced dynamics for enhanced sampling in large atomic and molecular systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Linfeng; Wang, Han; E, Weinan

    2018-03-01

    A new approach for efficiently exploring the configuration space and computing the free energy of large atomic and molecular systems is proposed, motivated by an analogy with reinforcement learning. There are two major components in this new approach. Like metadynamics, it allows for an efficient exploration of the configuration space by adding an adaptively computed biasing potential to the original dynamics. Like deep reinforcement learning, this biasing potential is trained on the fly using deep neural networks, with data collected judiciously from the exploration and an uncertainty indicator from the neural network model playing the role of the reward function. Parameterization using neural networks makes it feasible to handle cases with a large set of collective variables. This has the potential advantage that selecting precisely the right set of collective variables has now become less critical for capturing the structural transformations of the system. The method is illustrated by studying the full-atom explicit solvent models of alanine dipeptide and tripeptide, as well as the system of a polyalanine-10 molecule with 20 collective variables.

  4. Structural performance of new thin-walled concrete sandwich panel system reinforced with bfrp shear connectors

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hodicky, Kamil; Hulin, Thomas; Schmidt, Jacob Wittrup

    2013-01-01

    This paper presents a new thin-walled concrete sandwich panel system reinforced with basalt fiber-reinforced plastic (BFRP) with optimum structural performances and a high thermal resistance developed by Connovate and Technical University of Denmark. The shear connecting system made of a BFRP grid...... is described and provides information on the structural design with its advantages. Experimental and numerical investigations of the BFRP connecting systems were performed. The experimental program included testing of small scale specimens by applying shear (push-off) loading and semi-full scale specimens...... on finite element modelling showed that the developed panel system meets the objectives of the research and is expected to have promising future....

  5. The First Result of Relative Positioning and Velocity Estimation Based on CAPS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Jiaojiao; Ge, Jian; Wang, Liang; Wang, Ningbo; Zhou, Kai; Yuan, Hong

    2018-01-01

    The Chinese Area Positioning System (CAPS) is a new positioning system developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences based on the communication satellites in geosynchronous orbit. The CAPS has been regarded as a pilot system to test the new technology for the design, construction and update of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS). The system structure of CAPS, including the space, ground control station and user segments, is almost like the traditional Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSSs), but with the clock on the ground, the navigation signal in C waveband, and different principles of operation. The major difference is that the CAPS navigation signal is first generated at the ground control station, before being transmitted to the satellite in orbit and finally forwarded by the communication satellite transponder to the user. This design moves the clock from the satellite in orbit to the ground. The clock error can therefore be easily controlled and mitigated to improve the positioning accuracy. This paper will present the performance of CAPS-based relative positioning and velocity estimation as assessed in Beijing, China. The numerical results show that, (1) the accuracies of relative positioning, using only code measurements, are 1.25 and 1.8 m in the horizontal and vertical components, respectively; (2) meanwhile, they are about 2.83 and 3.15 cm in static mode and 6.31 and 10.78 cm in kinematic mode, respectively, when using the carrier-phase measurements with ambiguities fixed; and (3) the accuracy of the velocity estimation is about 0.04 and 0.11 m/s in static and kinematic modes, respectively. These results indicate the potential application of CAPS for high-precision positioning and velocity estimation and the availability of a new navigation mode based on communication satellites. PMID:29757204

  6. Designing Smart Charter School Caps

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dillon, Erin

    2010-01-01

    In 2007, Andrew J. Rotherham proposed a new approach to the contentious issue of charter school caps, the statutory limits on charter school growth in place in several states. Rotherham's proposal, termed "smart charter school caps," called for quality sensitive caps that allow the expansion of high-performing charter schools while also…

  7. Learning to trade via direct reinforcement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moody, J; Saffell, M

    2001-01-01

    We present methods for optimizing portfolios, asset allocations, and trading systems based on direct reinforcement (DR). In this approach, investment decision-making is viewed as a stochastic control problem, and strategies are discovered directly. We present an adaptive algorithm called recurrent reinforcement learning (RRL) for discovering investment policies. The need to build forecasting models is eliminated, and better trading performance is obtained. The direct reinforcement approach differs from dynamic programming and reinforcement algorithms such as TD-learning and Q-learning, which attempt to estimate a value function for the control problem. We find that the RRL direct reinforcement framework enables a simpler problem representation, avoids Bellman's curse of dimensionality and offers compelling advantages in efficiency. We demonstrate how direct reinforcement can be used to optimize risk-adjusted investment returns (including the differential Sharpe ratio), while accounting for the effects of transaction costs. In extensive simulation work using real financial data, we find that our approach based on RRL produces better trading strategies than systems utilizing Q-learning (a value function method). Real-world applications include an intra-daily currency trader and a monthly asset allocation system for the S&P 500 Stock Index and T-Bills.

  8. NATURE MANAGEMENT, LANDSCAPE AND THE CAP

    OpenAIRE

    Brouwer, Floor M.; Godeschalk, Frans E.

    2004-01-01

    The integration of nature management, landscape and environmental concerns into the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has gained momentum with the CAP reforms adopted in June 2003. The report explores instruments and approaches that contribute to the inte-gration of nature conservation and landscape concerns into the CAP. A broader use of the CAP instruments might help to achieve nature types in the Netherlands.

  9. The cervical cap (image)

    Science.gov (United States)

    The cervical cap is a flexible rubber cup-like device that is filled with spermicide and self-inserted over the cervix ... left in place several hours after intercourse. The cap is a prescribed device fitted by a health ...

  10. Does uncertainty justify intensity emission caps?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Quirion, Philippe

    2005-01-01

    Environmental policies often set 'relative' or 'intensity' emission caps, i.e. emission limits proportional to the polluting firm's output. One of the arguments put forth in favour of relative caps is based on the uncertainty on business-as-usual output: if the firm's production level is higher than expected, so will be business-as-usual emissions, hence reaching a given level of emissions will be more costly than expected. As a consequence, it is argued, a higher emission level should be allowed if the production level is more important than expected. We assess this argument with a stochastic analytical model featuring two random variables: the business-as-usual emission level, proportional to output, and the slope of the marginal abatement cost curve. We compare the relative cap to an absolute cap and to a price instrument, in terms of welfare impact. It turns out that in most plausible cases, either a price instrument or an absolute cap yields a higher expected welfare than a relative cap. Quantitatively, the difference in expected welfare is typically very small between the absolute and the relative cap but may be significant between the relative cap and the price instrument. (author)

  11. Seismic Performance of CAP1400 Nuclear Power Station considering Foundation Uplift

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ling-Yun Peng

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Under earthquake action, the reinforced concrete structure at the edge of the CAP1400 nuclear power plant foundation slab will be uplifted. In order to determine the seismic performance of this structure, a 1 : 12 scale shaking table test model was fabricated using gypsum as simulated concrete in order to meet scaled design requirements. By testing this model, the seismic response of the structure with consideration of the foundation uplift was obtained. Numerical analyses of the test model and the prototype structure were conducted to gain a better understanding of the structural seismic performance. When subjected to earthquakes, the foundation slab of the nuclear power plant experiences a slight degree of uplift but remains in the elastic stage due to the weight of the structure above, which provides an antioverturning moment. The numerical simulation is in general agreement with the test results, suggesting numerical simulations could be accurately employed in place of physical tests. The superstructure displacement response was found not to affect the safety of adjacent structures, and the seismic performance of the structure was shown to meet the relevant design requirements, demonstrating that this approach to modelling can serve as a design basis for the CAP1400 nuclear power demonstration project.

  12. Cryopyrin-Associated Autoinflammatory Syndromes (CAPS) - Juvenile

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... all ethnic groups can be affected. What are CAPS? Cryopyrin-associated autoinflammatory syndromes (CAPS) consist of three ... ears by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). How is CAPS treated? Medications that target interleukin-1 are very ...

  13. Qualification Approach for the CMC Nose Cap of X-38

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weihs, H.; Gülhan, A.

    2002-01-01

    In October 2001 the flight hardware of the TPS nose assembly of X-38 has been installed at the main structure of the X-38 V201 vehicle at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston Texas. X-38 is a test vehicle for the planned Crew Return Vehicle CRV for the International Space Station ISS. Currently the flight of the X-38 is scheduled for 2005. Besides the Body flaps (MAN-T) and the nose skirt system (ASTRIUM, MAN-T) the nose cap system is one of the essential hot structure components that were developed within Germany's national TETRA (Technologies for future space transportation systems) programme. The integration of the hardware was an important milestone for the nose cap development which started approx. 5 years ago. DLR-Stuttgart is responsible for the design and manufacturing of the CMC based nose cap system, which has to withstand the extreme thermal loads during re-entry which will induce a maximum temperature up to 1750 °C on the surface of the cap. Thus, the shell of the cap system is designed and manufactured using DLR's C/C-SiC material which is a special kind of carbon based ceramic matrix composite (CMC) material produced via the in house liquid silicon infiltration process of DLR. This material has demonstrated its good temperature resistance during FOTON and EXPRESS re-entry capsule missions. Besides the design and manufacturing of the nose cap system, the qualification approach was an important effort of the development work. Missing a test facility which is able to simulate all loading conditions from lift off to re-entry and landing, is was necessary to separate the loads and to use different test facilities. Considering the limitations of the facilities, the budget and time constraints, an optimized test philosophy has been established. The goal was to use a full scale qualification unit including all TPS components of the nose area for most of the tests. These were the simulation of ascent loads given by the shuttle requirements and descent loads

  14. Smart CFRP systems for the controlled retrofitting of reinforced concrete members

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schaller, M.-B.; Käseberg, S.; Kuhne, M.

    2010-09-01

    During the last ten years an increasing amount of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) applications to rehabilitate damaged concrete elements was observed. Thereby some important disadvantages of the brittle materials must be considered, for example the low ductility of the bond between CFRP and concrete and brittle failure of FRP. With embedded sensor systems it is possible to measure crack propagation and strains. In this paper a sensor based CFRP system will be presented, that can be used for strengthening and measuring. The used optical fibers with Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBG) have a large number of advantages in opposite to electrical measuring methods. Examples are small dimensions, low weight as well as high static and dynamic resolution of measured values. The main problem during the investigations was the fixing of the glass fiber and the small FBG at the designated position. In this paper the possibility of setting the glass fiber with embroidery at the reinforcing fiber material will be presented. On the basis of four point bending tests on beams (dimensions of 700 x 150 x 150 mm) and tests on wrapped columns the potential of the Smart CFRP system is introduced.

  15. Adenovirus DNA binding protein inhibits SrCap-activated CBP and CREB-mediated transcription

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xu Xiequn; Tarakanova, Vera; Chrivia, John; Yaciuk, Peter

    2003-01-01

    The SNF2-related CBP activator protein (SrCap) is a potent activator of transcription mediated by CBP and CREB. We have previously demonstrated that the Adenovirus 2 DNA Binding Protein (DBP) binds to SrCap and inhibits the transcription mediated by the carboxyl-terminal region of SrCap (amino acids 1275-2971). We report here that DBP inhibits the ability of full-length SrCap (1-2971) to activate transcription mediated by Gal-CREB and Gal-CBP. In addition, DBP also inhibits the ability of SrCap to enhance Protein Kinase A (PKA) activated transcription of the enkaphalin promoter. DBP was found to dramatically inhibit transcription of a mammalian two-hybrid system that was dependent on the interaction of SrCap and CBP binding domains. We also found that DBP has no effect on transcription mediated by a transcriptional activator that is not related to SrCap, indicating that our reported transcriptional inhibition is specific for SrCap and not due to nonspecific effects of DBP's DNA binding activity on the CAT reporter plasmid. Taken together, these results suggest a model in which DBP inhibits cellular transcription mediated by the interaction between SrCap and CBP

  16. Estimated release from the saltstone landfill effect of landfill caps and landfill-cap/monolith-liner combinations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wilhite, E.L.

    1985-01-01

    The effect of capping the entire saltstone landfill is dependent on the effectiveness of the clay cap in preventing infiltration. A cap that is 99% effective will reduce releases from the saltstone landfill by a factor of 7.7. Several combinations of landfill design alterations will result in meeting ground water standards

  17. Protein capped nanosilver free radical oxidation: role of biomolecule capping on nanoparticle colloidal stability and protein oxidation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahumada, Manuel; Bohne, Cornelia; Oake, Jessy; Alarcon, Emilio I

    2018-05-03

    We studied the effect of human serum albumin protein capped spherical nanosilver on the nanoparticle stability upon peroxyl radical oxidation. The nanoparticle-protein composite is less prone to oxidation compared to the individual components. However, higher concentrations of hydrogen peroxide were formed in the nanoparticle-protein system.

  18. Bi-directional Multi Dimension CAP Transmission for Smart Grid Communication Services

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zhang, Xu; Binti Othman, Maisara; Pang, Xiaodan

    2012-01-01

    We experimentally demonstrate bi-directional multi dimension carrierless amplitude and phase (CAP) transmission for smart grid communication services based on optical fiber networks. The proposed system is able to support multi-Gb/s transmission with high spectral efficiency.......We experimentally demonstrate bi-directional multi dimension carrierless amplitude and phase (CAP) transmission for smart grid communication services based on optical fiber networks. The proposed system is able to support multi-Gb/s transmission with high spectral efficiency....

  19. Global low-frequency motions in protein allostery: CAP as a model system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Townsend, Philip D; Rodgers, Thomas L; Pohl, Ehmke; Wilson, Mark R; McLeish, Tom C B; Cann, Martin J

    2015-06-01

    Allostery is a fundamental process by which ligand binding to a protein alters its activity at a distant site. There is considerable evidence that allosteric cooperativity can be communicated by the modulation of protein dynamics without conformational change. The Catabolite Activator Protein (CAP) of Escherichia coli is an important experimental exemplar for entropically driven allostery. Here we discuss recent experimentally supported theoretical analysis that highlights the role of global low-frequency dynamics in allostery in CAP and identify how allostery arises as a natural consequence of changes in global low-frequency protein fluctuations on ligand binding.

  20. MycoCAP - Mycobacterium Comparative Analysis Platform.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Choo, Siew Woh; Ang, Mia Yang; Dutta, Avirup; Tan, Shi Yang; Siow, Cheuk Chuen; Heydari, Hamed; Mutha, Naresh V R; Wee, Wei Yee; Wong, Guat Jah

    2015-12-15

    Mycobacterium spp. are renowned for being the causative agent of diseases like leprosy, Buruli ulcer and tuberculosis in human beings. With more and more mycobacterial genomes being sequenced, any knowledge generated from comparative genomic analysis would provide better insights into the biology, evolution, phylogeny and pathogenicity of this genus, thus helping in better management of diseases caused by Mycobacterium spp.With this motivation, we constructed MycoCAP, a new comparative analysis platform dedicated to the important genus Mycobacterium. This platform currently provides information of 2108 genome sequences of at least 55 Mycobacterium spp. A number of intuitive web-based tools have been integrated in MycoCAP particularly for comparative analysis including the PGC tool for comparison between two genomes, PathoProT for comparing the virulence genes among the Mycobacterium strains and the SuperClassification tool for the phylogenic classification of the Mycobacterium strains and a specialized classification system for strains of Mycobacterium abscessus. We hope the broad range of functions and easy-to-use tools provided in MycoCAP makes it an invaluable analysis platform to speed up the research discovery on mycobacteria for researchers. Database URL: http://mycobacterium.um.edu.my.

  1. Polymer reinforcement of cement systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Swamy, R.N.

    1979-01-01

    In the last couple of decades several cement- and concrete-based composites have come into prominence. Of these, cement-polymer composites, like cement-fibre composites, have been recognised as very promising, and considerable research and development on their properties, fabrication methods and application are in progress. Of the three types of concrete materials which incorporate polymers to form composites, polymer impregnated concrete forms a major development in which hardened concrete is impregnated with a liquid monomer which is subsequently polymerized to form a rigid polymer network in the pores of the parent material. In this first part of the extensive review of the polymer reinforcement of cement systems, the process technology of the various monomer impregnation techniques and the properties of the impregnated composite are assessed critically. It is shown that the high durability and superior performance of polymer impregnated concrete can provide an economic and competitive alternative in in situ strengthening, and in other areas where conventional concrete can only at best provide adequate performance. The review includes a section on radiation-induced polymerization. (author)

  2. The Pharmaceutical Capping Process-Correlation between Residual Seal Force, Torque Moment, and Flip-off Removal Force.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mathaes, Roman; Mahler, Hanns-Christian; Vorgrimler, Lothar; Steinberg, Henrik; Dreher, Sascha; Roggo, Yves; Nieto, Alejandra; Brown, Helen; Roehl, Holger; Adler, Michael; Luemkemann, Joerg; Huwyler, Joerg; Lam, Philippe; Stauch, Oliver; Mohl, Silke; Streubel, Alexander

    2016-01-01

    The majority of parenteral drug products are manufactured in glass vials with an elastomeric rubber stopper and a crimp cap. The vial sealing process is a critical process step during fill-and-finish operations, as it defines the seal quality of the final product. Different critical capping process parameters can affect rubber stopper defects, rubber stopper compression, container closure integrity, and also crimp cap quality. A sufficiently high force to remove the flip-off button prior to usage is required to ensure quality of the drug product unit by the flip-off button during storage, transportation, and until opening and use. Therefore, the final product is 100% visually inspected for lose or defective crimp caps, which is subjective as well as time- and labor-intensive. In this study, we sealed several container closure system configurations with different capping equipment settings (with corresponding residual seal force values) to investigate the torque moment required to turn the crimp cap. A correlation between torque moment and residual seal force has been established. The torque moment was found to be influenced by several parameters, including diameter of the vial head, type of rubber stopper (serum or lyophilized) and type of crimp cap (West(®) or Datwyler(®)). In addition, we measured the force required to remove the flip-off button of a sealed container closure system. The capping process had no influence on measured forces; however, it was possible to detect partially crimped vials. In conclusion, a controlled capping process with a defined target residual seal force range leads to a tight crimp cap on a sealed container closure system and can ensure product quality. The majority of parenteral drug products are manufactured in a glass vials with an elastomeric rubber stopper and a crimp cap. The vial sealing process is a critical process step during fill-and-finish operations, as it defines the seal quality of the final product. An adequate force

  3. Behavior of reinforced concrete beams reinforced with GFRP bars

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. H. Tavares

    Full Text Available The use of fiber reinforced polymer (FRP bars is one of the alternatives presented in recent studies to prevent the drawbacks related to the steel reinforcement in specific reinforced concrete members. In this work, six reinforced concrete beams were submitted to four point bending tests. One beam was reinforced with CA-50 steel bars and five with glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP bars. The tests were carried out in the Department of Structural Engineering in São Carlos Engineering School, São Paulo University. The objective of the test program was to compare strength, reinforcement deformation, displacement, and some anchorage aspects between the GFRP-reinforced concrete beams and the steel-reinforced concrete beam. The results show that, even though four GFRP-reinforced concrete beams were designed with the same internal tension force as that with steel reinforcement, their capacity was lower than that of the steel-reinforced beam. The results also show that similar flexural capacity can be achieved for the steel- and for the GFRP-reinforced concrete beams by controlling the stiffness (reinforcement modulus of elasticity multiplied by the bar cross-sectional area - EA and the tension force of the GFRP bars.

  4. ATLAS electromagnetic end-cap detector

    CERN Multimedia

    Maximilien Brice

    2003-01-01

    After the insertion of the first end-cap into this cryostat, the team proceed to the wiring operations. Millions of wires are connected to the electromagnetic calorimeter on this end-cap, whch must be carefully fed out from the detector so that data can be read out. The energy of photons, electrons and positrons will be measured as they pass through the end-cap having been created along the line of the beams in the proton-proton collisions.

  5. ATLAS end-cap detector

    CERN Multimedia

    Maximilien Brice

    2003-01-01

    Three scientists from the Institute of Nuclear Phyiscs at Novossibirsk with one of the end-caps of the ATLAS detector. The end-caps will be used to detect particles produced in the proton-proton collisions at the heart of the ATLAS experiment that are travelling close to the axis of the two beams.

  6. 21 CFR 884.5250 - Cervical cap.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Cervical cap. 884.5250 Section 884.5250 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) MEDICAL DEVICES... cap. (a) Identification. A cervical cap is a flexible cuplike receptacle that fits over the cervix to...

  7. 21 CFR 888.3000 - Bone cap.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Bone cap. 888.3000 Section 888.3000 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) MEDICAL DEVICES ORTHOPEDIC DEVICES Prosthetic Devices § 888.3000 Bone cap. (a) Identification. A bone cap is a mushroom...

  8. Genetic ablation of root cap cells in Arabidopsis

    OpenAIRE

    Tsugeki, Ryuji; Fedoroff, Nina V.

    1999-01-01

    The root cap is increasingly appreciated as a complex and dynamic plant organ. Root caps sense and transmit environmental signals, synthesize and secrete small molecules and macromolecules, and in some species shed metabolically active cells. However, it is not known whether root caps are essential for normal shoot and root development. We report the identification of a root cap-specific promoter and describe its use to genetically ablate root caps by directing root cap-specific expression of...

  9. CENTRIFUGE END CAP

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beams, J.W.; Snoddy, L.B.

    1960-08-01

    An end cap for ultra-gas centrifuges is designed to impart or remove angular momentum to or from the gas and to bring the entering gas to the temperature of the gas inside the centrifuge. The end cap is provided with slots or fins for adjusting the temperature and the angular momentum of the entering gas to the temperature and momentum of the gas in the centrifuge and is constructed to introduce both the inner and the peripheral stream into the centrifuge.

  10. THE TURN OF THE MONTH EFFECT CONTINUED: A COMPARISON OF SMALL CAP STOCKS AND LARGE CAP STOCKS

    OpenAIRE

    Ramsundhar, Shamman

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the turn of the month effect occurs in small cap and large cap stocks and if it occurs in both categories, to determine whether there is a difference in the magnitude. My research, for the period of 1963-2008, based on the CRSP value weighted index, shows that there is a significant turn of the month effect in small and large cap stocks, however the effect is larger in small cap stocks. Furthermore, this effect is not limited to a short time...

  11. JAWS: Just Add Water System - A device for detection of nucleic acids in Martian ice caps

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Anders J.; Willerslev, Eske; Mørk, Søren

    2002-01-01

    with a regulation of pH and salt concentrations e.g. the MOD systems and could be installed on a planetary probe melting its way down the Martian ice caps e.g. the NASA Cryobot. JAWS can be used for detection of remains of ancient life preserved in the Martian ice as well as for detection of contamination brought...... to the planet from Earth....

  12. Rilonacept in the management of cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes (CAPS).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gillespie, Justin; Mathews, Rebeccah; McDermott, Michael F

    2010-01-01

    Cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes (CAPS) are a subgroup of the hereditary periodic fever syndromes, which are rare autoinflammatory and inherited disorders, characterized by recurrent inflammation and varying degrees of severity. CAPS are thought to be driven by excessive production of interleukin-1β (IL-1β), through over-activation of the inflammasome by gain of function mutations in the gene encoding cryopyrin (NLRP3). This conclusion is supported by the remarkable efficacy of IL-1β blockade in these conditions. Rilonacept (Arcalyst(TM); Regeneron) is the first us Food and Drug Administration-approved treatment for familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome and Muckle-Wells syndrome and the first in a new line of drugs designed for longer-acting IL-1 blockade. Rilonacept has been associated with a decrease in disease activity, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and serum amyloid A (SAA) in the treatment of CAPS. The clinical safety and efficacy of rilonacept in CAPS and non-CAPS populations will be summarized in this review. Rilonacept is also beneficial for patients who tolerate injections poorly, due to an extended half-life over the unapproved CAPS treatment, anakinra, requiring weekly rather than daily self-administration. Other autoinflammatory disorders may also benefit from rilonacept treatment, with clinical trials in progress for systemic onset juvenile idiopathic arthritis, gout and familial mediterranean fever.

  13. Effect of Ramping Requirement and Price Cap on Energy Price in a System with High Wind Penetration

    OpenAIRE

    Martin, Sebastián; Smeers, Yves; Aguado-Sanchez, Jose Antonio

    2015-01-01

    The European power market is currently retiring or mothballing large capacities of conventional plants, and at the same time incorporating a significant amount of non-dispatchable renewable generation, in particular wind. We analyse the mothballing process (and the resulting system) and study how they are affected by a price cap implemented in the energy only market, and by a possible implementation of ramping products in the system. Sebastian Martin, Yves Smeers, and Jose Aguado. Effect o...

  14. Infiltration experiment for closure cap evaluation at the Savannah River Site

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Roddy, N.S.; Cook, J.R.

    1990-01-01

    This document discusses several large waste disposal facilities at the Savannah River Site which are being closed. These facilities include two seepage basins and the low-level waste disposal facility. The key element of the closures is the construction of a cap system to limit the infiltration of water which might reach the disposed waste. Cap designs have been modeled using the Hydrologic Evaluation of Landfill Performance (HELP) computer code. This code was developed by the US Army Corps of Engineers for the Environmental Protection Agency to model the effects of various cap and liner designs on the water balance at landfills. A field experiment has been set up which will allow the results of the HELP Code to be verified at the Savannah River Site (SRS) by measuring the actual water balance created by closure cap configurations which will be used in waste site closures at SRS. Two of the caps will be similar to those used for the planned closure activities. Each one has a specific closure arrangement. Once operational, the experiment will be evaluated for a five-year period

  15. Dynamics of the quiet polar cap

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carlson, H.C. Jr.

    1990-01-01

    Work in the past has established that a few percent of the time, under northward interplanetary magnetic field and thus magnetically quiet conditions, sun aligned arcs are found in the polar cap with intensities greater than the order of a kilo Rayleigh in the visible. Here we extend this view. We first note that imaging systems with sensitivity down to tens of Rayleighs in the visible find sun aligned arcs in the polar cap far more often, closer to half the time than a few percent. Furthermore, these sun aligned arcs have simple electrodynamics. They mark boundaries between rapid antisunward flow of ionospheric plasma on their dawn side and significantly slower flow, or even sunward flow, on their dusk side. Since the sun aligned arcs are typically the order of 1000 km to transpolar in the sun-earth direction, and the order of 100 km or less in the dawn-dusk direction, they demarcate lines of strongly anisotropic ionospheric flow shears or convection cells. The very quiet polar cap (strongly northward IMF) is in fact characterized by the presence of sun aligned arcs and multiple highly anisotropic ionospheric flow shears. Sensitive optical images are a valuable diagnostic with which to study polar ionospheric convection under these poorly understood conditions. (author)

  16. Braided reinforced composite rods for the internal reinforcement of concrete

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gonilho Pereira, C.; Fangueiro, R.; Jalali, S.; Araujo, M.; Marques, P.

    2008-05-01

    This paper reports on the development of braided reinforced composite rods as a substitute for the steel reinforcement in concrete. The research work aims at understanding the mechanical behaviour of core-reinforced braided fabrics and braided reinforced composite rods, namely concerning the influence of the braiding angle, the type of core reinforcement fibre, and preloading and postloading conditions. The core-reinforced braided fabrics were made from polyester fibres for producing braided structures, and E-glass, carbon, HT polyethylene, and sisal fibres were used for the core reinforcement. The braided reinforced composite rods were obtained by impregnating the core-reinforced braided fabric with a vinyl ester resin. The preloading of the core-reinforced braided fabrics and the postloading of the braided reinforced composite rods were performed in three and two stages, respectively. The results of tensile tests carried out on different samples of core-reinforced braided fabrics are presented and discussed. The tensile and bending properties of the braided reinforced composite rods have been evaluated, and the results obtained are presented, discussed, and compared with those of conventional materials, such as steel.

  17. Effect of hybrid fiber reinforcement on the cracking process in fiber reinforced cementitious composites

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pereira, Eduardo B.; Fischer, Gregor; Barros, Joaquim A.O.

    2012-01-01

    The simultaneous use of different types of fibers as reinforcement in cementitious matrix composites is typically motivated by the underlying principle of a multi-scale nature of the cracking processes in fiber reinforced cementitious composites. It has been hypothesized that while undergoing...... tensile deformations in the composite, the fibers with different geometrical and mechanical properties restrain the propagation and further development of cracking at different scales from the micro- to the macro-scale. The optimized design of the fiber reinforcing systems requires the objective...... materials is carried out by assessing directly their tensile stress-crack opening behavior. The efficiency of hybrid fiber reinforcements and the multi-scale nature of cracking processes are discussed based on the experimental results obtained, as well as the micro-mechanisms underlying the contribution...

  18. Flexural reinforced concrete member with FRP reinforcement

    OpenAIRE

    Putzolu, Mariana

    2017-01-01

    One of the most problematic point in construction is the durability of the concrete especially related to corrosion of the steel reinforcement. Due to this problem the construction sector, introduced the use of Fiber Reinforced Polymer, the main fibers used in construction are Glass, Carbon and Aramid. In this study, the author aim to analyse the flexural behaviour of concrete beams reinforced with FRP. This aim is achieved by the analysis of specimens reinforced with GFRP bars, with theoreti...

  19. Bulk fill restoratives: to cap or not to cap--that is the question?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tomaszewska, Iwona M; Kearns, Jennifer O; Ilie, Nicoleta; Fleming, Garry J P

    2015-03-01

    To assess the cuspal deflection and cervical microleakage scores of standardised large mesio-occlusal-distal (MOD) cavities filled with different restoration protocols: (1) conventional resin restoratives, (2) bulk fill flowable base materials 'capped' with a conventional dimethacrylate resin-based composite (RBC) or (3) bulk fill resin restorative materials. Standardised MOD cavities were prepared in sixty-four sound maxillary premolar teeth and randomly allocated to eight groups. Restorations were placed in conjunction with a universal bonding system and resin restorative materials were irradiated with a quartz-tungsten-halogen light-curing-unit. Restoration protocol (eight oblique increments of conventional resin restorative, bulk fill flowable base and two occlusal 'capping' RBC increments (three increments in total) or bulk fill resin restorative (two increments)) was the dependent variable. A twin channel deflection measuring gauge measured the buccal and palatal cuspal deflections. Teeth were thermally fatigued, immersed in a 0.2% basic fuchsin dye for 24h, sectioned and examined for cervical microleakage score. Post hoc Tukey's tests highlighted significant differences in the mean total cuspal deflection values between resin restoratives (p fill flowable base materials with occlusal 'capping' RBC increments (restoration protocol 2) compared with bulk fill resin restoratives (restoration protocol 3). Not all bulk fill flowable materials or bulk fill resin restoratives behave in a similar fashion when used to restore standardised MOD cavities in maxillary premolar teeth and material selection is vital in the absence of clinical data. Poorly performing bulk fill flowable materials or bulk fill restoratives can be identified using the cuspal deflection and cervical microleakage protocol which could save the complications encountered clinically when restoring Class II restorations. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. In-Space Repair of Reinforced Carbon-Carbon Thermal Protection System Structures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Mrityunjay

    2006-01-01

    Advanced repair and refurbishment technologies are critically needed for the thermal protection system of current space transportation system as well as for future Crew Exploration Vehicles (CEV). The damage to these components could be caused by impact during ground handling or due to falling of ice or other objects during launch. In addition, in-orbit damage includes micrometeoroid and orbital debris impact as well as different factors (weather, launch acoustics, shearing, etc.) during launch and re-entry. The GRC developed GRABER (Glenn Refractory Adhesive for Bonding and Exterior Repair) material has shown multiuse capability for repair of small cracks and damage in reinforced carbon-carbon (RCC) material. The concept consists of preparing an adhesive paste of desired ceramic with appropriate additives and then applying the paste to the damaged/cracked area of the RCC composites with adhesive delivery system. The adhesive paste cures at 100-120 C and transforms into a high temperature ceramic during simulated entry conditions. A number of plasma torch and ArcJet tests were carried out to evaluate the crack repair capability of GRABER materials for Reinforced Carbon-Carbon (RCC) composites. For the large area repair applications, integrated system for tile and leading edge repair (InSTALER) have been developed. In this presentation, critical in-space repair needs and technical challenges as well as various issues and complexities will be discussed along with the plasma performance and post test characterization of repaired RCC materials.

  1. A Newsboy Model with Quick Response under Sustainable Carbon Cap-N-Trade

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jinpyo Lee

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available In this study, we consider a carbon emission cap-and-trade system in which the policymaker decides the cap for carbon emissions for each company and also has the power to regulate the carbon price in the carbon trading market for the purpose of minimizing total carbon emissions. We assume that there are n companies regulated in terms of carbon emissions by the policymaker, each of which emits carbon when producing its own product. After learning the carbon cap and carbon price regulated by the policymaker, each company makes simultaneous pricing and production decisions using the quick response strategy, and can trade some of its carbon emissions in the carbon market at the carbon price set by the policymaker, if the carbon emissions are below the cap. We model this non-cooperative game between the policymaker and companies as a Stackelberg game in which the policymaker is the leader and the companies are the followers. We show that there exists an equilibrium for the policymaker’s carbon pricing decisions and each company’s production and pricing decisions. From this equilibrium, we derive a carbon cap for the company at which the amount of traded carbon emissions is zero. This implies that some company’s production and pricing decisions, even under carbon emission restrictions, will be equal to those without the carbon emission restrictions. Also, we find that companies participating in the carbon cap-and-trade system would reduce their carbon emissions through reduced production, but can have a chance to improve profit through control of the product’s selling price.

  2. Analyses of hydraulic performance of velocity caps

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christensen, Erik Damgaard; Degn Eskesen, Mark Chr.; Buhrkall, Jeppe

    2014-01-01

    The hydraulic performance of a velocity cap has been investigated. Velocity caps are often used in connection with offshore intakes. CFD (computational fluid dynamics) examined the flow through the cap openings and further down into the intake pipes. This was combined with dimension analyses...

  3. Integration of the end cap TEC+ of the CMS silicon strip tracker

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bremer, Richard

    2008-04-28

    CMS is the first large experiment of high-energy particle physics whose inner tracking system is exclusively instrumented with silicon detector modules. This tracker comprises 15 148 silicon strip modules enclosing the interaction point in 10-12 layers. The 1. Physikalisches Institut B of RWTH Aachen was deeply involved in the completion of the end caps of the tracking system. The institute played a leading role in the end cap design, produced virtually all support structures and several important electrical components, designed and built the laser alignment system of the tracker, performed system tests and finally integrated one of the two end caps in Aachen. This integration constitutes the central part of the present thesis work. The main focus was on the development of methods to recognise defects early in the integration process and to assert the detector's functionality. Characteristic quantities such as the detector noise or the optical gain of the readout chain were determined during integration as well as during a series of tests performed after transport of the end cap from Aachen to CERN. The procedures followed during the mechanical integration of the detector and during the commissioning of integrated sectors are explained, and the software packages developed for quality assurance are described. In addition, results of the detector readout are presented. During the integration phase, sub-structures of the end cap - named petals - were subjected to a reception test which has also been designed and operated as part of this thesis work. The test setup and software developed for the test are introduced and an account of the analysis of the recorded data is given. Before the end cap project entered the production phase, a final test beam experiment was performed in which the suitability of a system of two fully equipped petals for operation at the LHC was checked. The measured ratio of the signal induced in the silicon sensors by minimal ionising

  4. Integration of the end cap TEC+ of the CMS silicon strip tracker

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bremer, Richard

    2008-01-01

    CMS is the first large experiment of high-energy particle physics whose inner tracking system is exclusively instrumented with silicon detector modules. This tracker comprises 15 148 silicon strip modules enclosing the interaction point in 10-12 layers. The 1. Physikalisches Institut B of RWTH Aachen was deeply involved in the completion of the end caps of the tracking system. The institute played a leading role in the end cap design, produced virtually all support structures and several important electrical components, designed and built the laser alignment system of the tracker, performed system tests and finally integrated one of the two end caps in Aachen. This integration constitutes the central part of the present thesis work. The main focus was on the development of methods to recognise defects early in the integration process and to assert the detector's functionality. Characteristic quantities such as the detector noise or the optical gain of the readout chain were determined during integration as well as during a series of tests performed after transport of the end cap from Aachen to CERN. The procedures followed during the mechanical integration of the detector and during the commissioning of integrated sectors are explained, and the software packages developed for quality assurance are described. In addition, results of the detector readout are presented. During the integration phase, sub-structures of the end cap - named petals - were subjected to a reception test which has also been designed and operated as part of this thesis work. The test setup and software developed for the test are introduced and an account of the analysis of the recorded data is given. Before the end cap project entered the production phase, a final test beam experiment was performed in which the suitability of a system of two fully equipped petals for operation at the LHC was checked. The measured ratio of the signal induced in the silicon sensors by minimal ionising particles

  5. 49 CFR 230.41 - Flexible staybolts with caps.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Flexible staybolts with caps. 230.41 Section 230... Appurtenances Staybolts § 230.41 Flexible staybolts with caps. (a) General. Flexible staybolts with caps shall have their caps removed during every 5th annual inspection for the purpose of inspecting the bolts for...

  6. Hip resurfacing in a district general hospital: 6-year clinical results using the ReCap hip resurfacing system

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    van der Weegen Walter

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The purpose of our study was to prospectively report the clinical results of 280 consecutive hips (240 patients who received a ReCap Hip Resurfacing System implant (Biomet Inc., Warsaw, USA in a single district general hospital. Literature reports a large variation in clinical results between different resurfacing designs and published results using this particular design are scarce. Methods Mean follow up was 3.3 years (1.0 to 6.3 and four patients were lost to follow-up. All patients were diagnosed with end-stage hip osteoarthritis, their mean age was 54 years and 76.4% of all patients were male. Results There were 16 revisions and four patients reported a Harris Hip Score Conclusions This independent series confirms that hip resurfacing is a demanding procedure, and that implant survival of the ReCap hip resurfacing system is on a critical level in our series. In non-revised patients, reported outcomes are generally excellent. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00603395

  7. Characterization of cap binding proteins associated with the nucleus

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Patzelt, E.

    1986-04-01

    Eucaryotic mRNAs a carry 7-methylguanosine triphosphate residue (called cap structure) at their 5' terminus. The cap plays an important role in RNA recognition. Cap binding proteins (CBP) of HeLa cells were identified by photoaffinity labelling using the cap analogue γ-( 32 P)-(4-(benzoyl-phenyl)methylamido)-7-methylguanosine-5'-triphosphate (BP-m 7 GTP). Photoreaction of this cap analogue with HeLa cell initiation factors resulted in specific labelling of two polypeptides of Msub(r) 37000 and 26000. The latter was also labelled in crude initiation factors prepared from reticulocytes and is identical to the cap binding protein CBP I previously identified. These cap binding proteins were also affinity labelled in poliovirus infected cell extracts. Photoaffinity reaction with BP-m 7 GTP of whole HeLa cell homogenate showed three additional polypeptides with Msub(r) 120000, 89000 and 80000. These cap binding proteins were found to be associated with the nucleus and are therefore referred to as nuclear cap binding proteins, i.e. NCBP 1, NCBP 2 and NCBP 3. They were also present in splicing extracts. Photoaffinity labelling in these nuclear extracts was differentially inhibited by various cap analogues and capped mRNAs. Affinity chromatography on immobilized globin mRNA led to a partial separation of the three nuclear cap binding proteins. Chromatography on m 7 GTP-Sepharose resulted in a specific binding of NCBP 3. The different behaviour of the cap binding proteins suggests that they are functionally distinct and that they might be involved in different processes requiring cap recognition. (Author)

  8. Confirmation of linear system theory prediction: Changes in Herrnstein's k as a function of changes in reinforcer magnitude.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McDowell, J J; Wood, H M

    1984-03-01

    Eight human subjects pressed a lever on a range of variable-interval schedules for 0.25 cent to 35.0 cent per reinforcement. Herrnstein's hyperbola described seven of the eight subjects' response-rate data well. For all subjects, the y-asymptote of the hyperbola increased with increasing reinforcer magnitude and its reciprocal was a linear function of the reciprocal of reinforcer magnitude. These results confirm predictions made by linear system theory; they contradict formal properties of Herrnstein's account and of six other mathematical accounts of single-alternative responding.

  9. Theoretical model of polar cap auroral arcs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kan, J.R.; Burke, W.J.; USAF, Bedford, MA)

    1985-01-01

    A theory of the polar cap auroral arcs is proposed under the assumption that the magnetic field reconnection occurs in the cusp region on tail field lines during northward interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions. Requirements of a convection model during northward IMF are enumerated based on observations and fundamental theoretical considerations. The theta aurora can be expected to occur on the closed field lines convecting sunward in the central polar cap, while the less intense regular polar cap arcs can occur either on closed or open field lines. The dynamo region for the polar cap arcs is required to be on closed field lines convecting tailward in the plasma sheet which is magnetically connected to the sunward convection in the central polar cap. 43 references

  10. Diagnostic criteria for cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kuemmerle-Deschner, Jasmin B; Ozen, Seza; Tyrrell, Pascal N; Kone-Paut, Isabelle; Goldbach-Mansky, Raphaela; Lachmann, Helen; Blank, Norbert; Hoffman, Hal M; Weissbarth-Riedel, Elisabeth; Hugle, Boris; Kallinich, Tilmann; Gattorno, Marco; Gul, Ahmet; Ter Haar, Nienke; Oswald, Marlen; Dedeoglu, Fatma; Cantarini, Luca; Benseler, Susanne M

    2017-06-01

    Cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS) is a rare, heterogeneous disease entity associated with NLRP3 gene mutations and increased interleukin-1 (IL-1) secretion. Early diagnosis and rapid initiation of IL-1 inhibition prevent organ damage. The aim of the study was to develop and validate diagnostic criteria for CAPS. An innovative process was followed including interdisciplinary team building, item generation: review of CAPS registries, systematic literature review, expert surveys, consensus conferences for item refinement, item reduction and weighting using 1000Minds decision software. Resulting CAPS criteria were tested in large cohorts of CAPS cases and controls using correspondence analysis. Diagnostic models were explored using sensitivity analyses. The international team included 16 experts. Systematic literature and registry review identified 33 CAPS-typical items; the consensus conferences reduced these to 14. 1000Minds exercises ranked variables based on importance for the diagnosis. Correspondence analysis determined variables consistently associated with the diagnosis of CAPS using 284 cases and 837 controls. Seven variables were significantly associated with CAPS (pCAPS-typical symptoms: urticaria-like rash, cold-triggered episodes, sensorineural hearing loss, musculoskeletal symptoms, chronic aseptic meningitis and skeletal abnormalities. Sensitivity was 81%, specificity 94%. It performed well for all CAPS subtypes and regardless of NLRP3 mutation. The novel approach integrated traditional methods of evidence synthesis with expert consensus, web-based decision tools and innovative statistical methods and may serve as model for other rare diseases. These criteria will enable a rapid diagnosis for children and adults with CAPS. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

  11. First results obtained from the Cello liquid argon end cap calorimeters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Le Diberder, F.

    1981-05-01

    The Cello liquid argon calorimeter is presented in the first part of this thesis. The cryogenic system has to supply three cryostats filled with liquid argon: one cylindrical cryostat of 25 m 3 volume contains 2x8 separate modules; each of the two symmetric end cap cryostats contains two half cylindrical modules. Each module in the end cap part consists of 42 layers of lead strips interleaved with 43 full plates. The strips are alternatively vertical, horizontal and circular. In front of the lead calorimeter are 4 planes of copper foils glued on epoxy for dE/dx measurement. The electronics, signal processing and data acquisition system are described. In the second part, the performance and analysis of data measured by the end cap calorimeters are reported: study of Bhabha scattering e + e - → e + e - ; preliminary results obtained in two photon physics e + e - → e + e - γγ → e + e - X [fr

  12. Enzymatic synthesis of RNAs capped with nucleotide analogues reveals the molecular basis for substrate selectivity of RNA capping enzyme: impacts on RNA metabolism.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Moheshwarnath Issur

    Full Text Available RNA cap binding proteins have evolved to specifically bind to the N7-methyl guanosine cap structure found at the 5' ends of eukaryotic mRNAs. The specificity of RNA capping enzymes towards GTP for the synthesis of this structure is therefore crucial for mRNA metabolism. The fact that ribavirin triphosphate was described as a substrate of a viral RNA capping enzyme, raised the possibility that RNAs capped with nucleotide analogues could be generated in cellulo. Owing to the fact that this prospect potentially has wide pharmacological implications, we decided to investigate whether the active site of the model Paramecium bursaria Chlorella virus-1 RNA capping enzyme was flexible enough to accommodate various purine analogues. Using this approach, we identified several key structural determinants at each step of the RNA capping reaction and generated RNAs harboring various different cap analogues. Moreover, we monitored the binding affinity of these novel capped RNAs to the eIF4E protein and evaluated their translational properties in cellulo. Overall, this study establishes a molecular rationale for the specific selection of GTP over other NTPs by RNA capping enzyme It also demonstrates that RNAs can be enzymatically capped with certain purine nucleotide analogs, and it also describes the impacts of modified RNA caps on specific steps involved in mRNA metabolism. For instance, our results indicate that the N7-methyl group of the classical N7-methyl guanosine cap is not always indispensable for binding to eIF4E and subsequently for translation when compensatory modifications are present on the capped residue. Overall, these findings have important implications for our understanding of the molecular determinants involved in both RNA capping and RNA metabolism.

  13. Study on reinforced concrete beams with helical transverse reinforcement

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaarthik Krishna, N.; Sandeep, S.; Mini, K. M.

    2018-02-01

    In a Reinforced Concrete (R.C) structure, major reinforcement is used for taking up tensile stresses acting on the structure due to applied loading. The present paper reports the behavior of reinforced concrete beams with helical reinforcement (transverse reinforcement) subjected to monotonous loading by 3-point flexure test. The results were compared with identically similar reinforced concrete beams with rectangular stirrups. During the test crack evolution, load carrying capacity and deflection of the beams were monitored, analyzed and compared. Test results indicate that the use of helical reinforcement provides enhanced load carrying capacity and a lower deflection proving to be more ductile, clearly indicating the advantage in carrying horizontal loads. An analysis was also carried out using ANSYS software in order to compare the test results of both the beams.

  14. Synthesis of tritium or deuterium labelled 19-nor-3. cap alpha. -hydroxy-5. cap alpha. -androstan-17-one from nortestosterone

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Protiva, J; Klinotova, E [Karlova Univ., Prague (Czechoslovakia). Prirodovedecka Fakulta; Filip, J [Ustav pro Vyzkum, Vyrobu a Vyuziti Radioisotopu, Prague (Czechoslovakia); Hampl, R [Research Inst. of Endocrinology, Praha (Czechoslovakia)

    1982-10-20

    Tritium and/or deuterium (5-H) labelled 19-nor-3..cap alpha..-hydroxy-5..cap alpha..-androstan-17-one (norandrosterone) was prepared from nortestosterone in view to use it as a radioligand for radioimmunoassay of the main nortestosterone metabolites. Based upon model experiments using testosterone and deuterium labelling, the following four step procedure was established: nortestosterone was oxidized with pyridine chlorochromate and the resulting 19-nor-4-androsten-3,17-dione was tritiated with tritium gas under catalysis with tris(triphenylphosphine)rhodium chloride to give (4,5..cap alpha..-/sup 3/H)19-nor-5..cap alpha..-androstan-3,17-dione. A selective reduction of the latter compound yielded (5-/sup 3/H)19-nor-3..cap alpha..-hydroxy-5..cap alpha..-androstan-17-one of the molar radioactivity 0.3 TBq (8.15 Ci)/mmol.

  15. Price cap regulation: the case of natural gas transport in the UK; La reglementation par price cap: le cas du transport de gaz naturel au Royaume Uni

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    David, L. [ATER, Paris-1 Univ., 75 (France)

    1999-09-01

    The transport and storage activities of British Gas company are controlled by a distinct organization named Transco. The access charges paid by the suppliers for the use of Transco's network are regulated by a price cap since October 1, 1994. However, Ofgas, the office of gas supply which is the regulation authority in charge of the control of competition and of British Gas activities, considers this control system as inefficient and has chosen a RPI (retail price index)-X (expected productivity factor)-type price cap for the control of gas transport tariffs. This has led to a disagreement between Transco and Ofgas which has delayed the implementation of the new system up to February 1998. This article compares the choices made by Ofgas for the control of gas transport tariffs with the economical theory. It recalls first, the reasons why the price cap appears as more efficient than the service cost regulation, the alternate method used by regulation authorities to control the tariffs of natural monopolies. Then, the difficulties linked with the implementation of the price cap for the transport of natural gas in the UK are analyzed in order to explain the reasons that led Ofgas to change its formula. Finally, the bases of an optimum hybrid formula are proposed. (J.S.)

  16. Impaired cytokine responses in patients with cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haverkamp, M H; van de Vosse, E; Goldbach-Mansky, R; Holland, S M

    2014-09-01

    Cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS) is characterized by dysregulated inflammation with excessive interleukin (IL)-1β activation and secretion. Neonatal-onset multi-system inflammatory disease (NOMID) is the most severe form. We explored cytokine responses in 32 CAPS patients before and after IL-1β blocking therapy. We measured cytokines produced by activated peripheral blood monuclear cells (PBMCs) from treated and untreated CAPS patients after stimulation for 48 h with phytohaemagglutinin (PHA), PHA plus IL-12, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or LPS plus interferon (IFN)-γ. We measured IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, tumour necrosis factor (TNF), IL-12p70 and IFN-γ in the supernatants. PBMCs from three untreated CAPS patients were cultured in the presence of the IL-1β blocker Anakinra. Fifty healthy individuals served as controls. CAPS patients had high spontaneous production of IL-1β, IL-6, TNF and IFN-γ by unstimulated cells. However, stimulation indexes (SIs, ratio of stimulated to unstimulated production) of these cytokines to PHA and LPS were low in NOMID patients compared to controls. Unstimulated IL-10 and IL-12p70 production was normal, but up-regulation after PHA and LPS was also low. LPS plus IFN-γ inadequately up-regulated the production of IL-1β, IL-6, TNF and IL-10 in CAPS patients. In-vitro but not in-vivo treatment with Anakinra improved SIs by lowering spontaneous cytokine production. However, in-vitro treatment did not improve the low stimulated cytokine levels. Activating mutations in NLRP3 in CAPS are correlated with poor SIs to PHA, LPS and IFN-γ. The impairment in stimulated cytokine responses in spite of IL-1β blocking therapy suggests a broader intrinsic defect in CAPS patients, which is not corrected by targeting IL-1β. © 2014 British Society for Immunology.

  17. Full Scale RC Beam-Column Joints Strengthened with Steel Reinforced Polymer Systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Vita, Alessandro; Napoli, Annalisa; Realfonzo, Roberto

    2017-07-01

    This paper presents the results of an experimental campaign performed at the Laboratory of Materials and Structural Testing of the University of Salerno (Italy) in order to investigate the seismic performance of RC beam-column joints strengthened with Steel Reinforced Polymer (SRP) systems. With the aim to represent typical façade frames’ beam-column subassemblies found in existing RC buildings, specimens were provided with two short beam stubs orthogonal to the main beam and were designed with inadequate seismic details. Five members were strengthened by using two different SRP layouts while the remaining ones were used as benchmarks. Once damaged, two specimens were also repaired, retrofitted with SRP and subjected to cyclic test again. The results of cyclic tests performed on SRP strengthened joints are examined through a comparison with the outcomes of the previous experimental program including companion specimens not provided with transverse beam stubs and strengthened by Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) systems. In particular, both qualitative and quantitative considerations about the influence of the confining effect provided by the secondary beams on the joint response, the suitability of all the adopted strengthening solutions (SRP/CFRP systems), the performances and the failure modes experienced in the several cases studied are provided.

  18. 7 CFR 1714.7 - Interest rate cap.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 11 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Interest rate cap. 1714.7 Section 1714.7 Agriculture... PRE-LOAN POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR INSURED ELECTRIC LOANS General § 1714.7 Interest rate cap. Except... section, or both the rate disparity test for the interest rate cap and the consumer income test set forth...

  19. 20 CFR 606.22 - Application for cap.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Application for cap. 606.22 Section 606.22... Reduction § 606.22 Application for cap. (a) Application. (1) The Governor of the State shall make... a State requests a cap on tax credit reduction. The Governor is required to notify the Department on...

  20. Design and analysis of a novel latch system implementing fiber-reinforced composite materials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guevara Arreola, Francisco Javier

    The use of fiber-reinforced composite materials have increased in the last four decades in high technology applications due to their exceptional mechanical properties and low weight. In the automotive industry carbon fiber have become popular exclusively in luxury cars because of its high cost. However, Carbon-glass hybrid composites offer an effective alternative to designers to implement fiber-reinforced composites into several conventional applications without a considerable price increase maintaining most of their mechanical properties. A door latch system is a complex mechanism that is under high loading conditions during car accidents such as side impacts and rollovers. Therefore, the Department of Transportation in The United States developed a series of tests that every door latch system comply in order to be installed in a vehicle. The implementation of fiber-reinforced composite materials in a door latch system was studied by analyzing the material behavior during the FMVSS No. 206 transverse test using computational efforts and experimental testing. Firstly, a computational model of the current forkbolt and detent structure was developed. Several efforts were conducted in order to create an effective and time efficient model. Two simplified models were implemented with two different contact interaction approaches. 9 composite materials were studied in forkbolt and 5 in detent including woven carbon fiber, unidirectional carbon fiber, woven carbon-glass fiber hybrid composites and unidirectional carbon-glass fiber hybrid composites. The computational model results showed that woven fiber-reinforced composite materials were stiffer than the unidirectional fiber-reinforced composite materials. For instance, a forkbolt made of woven carbon fibers was 20% stiffer than a forkbolt made of unidirectional fibers symmetrically stacked in 0° and 90° alternating directions. Furthermore, Hybrid composite materials behaved as expected in forkbolt noticing a decline

  1. IAA transport in corn roots includes the root cap

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hasenstein, K.H.

    1989-01-01

    In earlier reports we concluded that auxin is the growth regulator that controls gravicurvature in roots and that the redistribution of auxin occurs within the root cap. Since other reports did not detect auxin in the root cap, we attempted to confirm the IAA does move through the cap. Agar blocks containing 3 H-IAA were applied to the cut surface of 5 mm long apical segments of primary roots of corn (mo17xB73). After 30 to 120 min radioactivity (RA) of the cap and root tissue was determined. While segments suspended in water-saturated air accumulated very little RA in the cap, application of 0.5 μ1 of dist. water to the cap (=controls) increased RA of the cap dramatically. Application to the cap of 0.5 μ1 of sorbitol or the Ca 2+ chelator EGTA reduced cap RA to 46% and 70% respectively compared to water, without affecting uptake. Control root segments gravireacted faster than non-treated or osmoticum or EGTA treated segments. The data indicate that both the degree of hydration and calcium control the amount of auxin moving through the cap

  2. Reception Test of Petals for the End Cap TEC+ of the CMS Silicon Strip Tracker

    CERN Document Server

    Bremer, R; Klein, Katja; Schmitz, Stefan Antonius; Adler, Volker; Adolphi, Roman; Ageron, Michel; Agram, Jean-Laurent; Atz, Bernd; Barvich, Tobias; Baulieu, Guillaume; Beaumont, Willem; Beissel, Franz; Bergauer, Thomas; Berst, Jean-Daniel; Blüm, Peter; Bock, E; Bogelsbacher, F; de Boer, Wim; Bonnet, Jean-Luc; Bonnevaux, Alain; Boudoul, Gaelle; Bouhali, Othmane; Braunschweig, Wolfgang; Brom, Jean-Marie; Butz, Erik; Chabanat, Eric; Chabert, Eric Christian; Clerbaux, Barbara; Contardo, Didier; De Callatay, Bernard; Dehm, Philip; Delaere, Christophe; Della Negra, Rodolphe; Dewulf, Jean-Paul; D'Hondt, Jorgen; Didierjean, Francois; Dierlamm, Alexander; Dirkes, Guido; Dragicevic, Marko; Drouhin, Frédéric; Ernenwein, Jean-Pierre; Esser, Hans; Estre, Nicolas; Fahrer, Manuel; Fernández, J; Florins, Benoit; Flossdorf, Alexander; Flucke, Gero; Flügge, Günter; Fontaine, Jean-Charles; Freudenreich, Klaus; Frey, Martin; Friedl, Markus; Furgeri, Alexander; Giraud, Noël; Goerlach, Ulrich; Goorens, Robert; Graehling, Philippe; Grégoire, Ghislain; Gregoriev, E; Gross, Laurent; Hansel, S; Haroutunian, Roger; Hartmann, Frank; Heier, Stefan; Hermanns, Thomas; Heydhausen, Dirk; Heyninck, Jan; Hosselet, J; Hrubec, Josef; Jahn, Dieter; Juillot, Pierre; Kaminski, Jochen; Karpinski, Waclaw; Kaussen, Gordon; Keutgen, Thomas; Klanner, Robert; König, Stefan; Kosbow, M; Krammer, Manfred; Ledermann, Bernhard; Lemaître, Vincent; De Lentdecker, Gilles; Linn, Alexander; Lounis, Abdenour; Lübelsmeyer, Klaus; Lumb, Nicholas; Maazouzi, Chaker; Mahmoud, Tariq; Michotte, Daniel; Militaru, Otilia; Mirabito, Laurent; Müller, Thomas; Neukermans, Lionel; Ollivetto, C; Olzem, Jan; Ostapchuk, Andrey; Pandoulas, Demetrios; Pein, Uwe; Pernicka, Manfred; Perriès, Stephane; Piaseki, C; Pierschel, Gerhard; Piotrzkowski, Krzysztof; Poettgens, Michael; Pooth, Oliver; Rouby, Xavier; Sabellek, Andreas; Schael, Stefan; Schirm, Norbert; Schleper, Peter; Schultz von Dratzig, Arndt; Siedling, Rolf; Simonis, Hans-Jürgen; Stahl, Achim; Steck, Pia; Steinbruck, G; Stoye, Markus; Strub, Roger; Tavernier, Stefaan; Teyssier, Daniel; Theel, Andreas; Trocmé, Benjamin; Udo, Fred; Van der Donckt, M; Van der Velde, C; Van Hove, Pierre; Vanlaer, Pascal; Van Lancker, Luc; Van Staa, Rolf; Vanzetto, Sylvain; Weber, Markus; Weiler, Thomas; Weseler, Siegfried; Wickens, John; Wittmer, Bruno; Wlochal, Michael; De Wolf, Eddi A; Zhukov, Valery; Zoeller, Marc Henning

    2009-01-01

    The silicon strip tracker of the CMS experiment has been completed and was inserted into the CMS detector in late 2007. The largest sub system of the tracker are its end caps, comprising two large end caps (TEC) each containing 3200 silicon strip modules. To ease construction, the end caps feature a modular design: groups of about 20 silicon modules are placed on sub-assemblies called petals and these self-contained elements are then mounted onto the TEC support structures. Each end cap consists of 144 such petals, which were built and fully qualified by several institutes across Europe. From

  3. REINFORCED COMPOSITE PANEL

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    2003-01-01

    A composite panel having front and back faces, the panel comprising facing reinforcement, backing reinforcement and matrix material binding to the facing and backing reinforcements, the facing and backing reinforcements each independently comprising one or more reinforcing sheets, the facing rein...... by matrix material, the facing and backing reinforcements being interconnected to resist out-of-plane relative movement. The reinforced composite panel is useful as a barrier element for shielding structures, equipment and personnel from blast and/or ballistic impact damage....

  4. Acoustic Monitoring of the Arctic Ice Cap

    Science.gov (United States)

    Porter, D. L.; Goemmer, S. A.; Chayes, D. N.

    2012-12-01

    Introduction The monitoring of the Arctic Ice Cap is important economically, tactically, and strategically. In the scenario of ice cap retreat, new paths of commerce open, e.g. waterways from Northern Europe to the Far East. Where ship-going commerce is conducted, the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard have always stood guard and been prepared to assist from acts of nature and of man. It is imperative that in addition to measuring the ice from satellites, e.g. Icesat, that we have an ability to measure the ice extent, its thickness, and roughness. These parameters play an important part in the modeling of the ice and the processes that control its growth or shrinking and its thickness. The proposed system consists of three subsystems. The first subsystem is an acoustic source, the second is an array of geophones and the third is a system to supply energy and transmit the results back to the analysis laboratory. The subsystems are described below. We conclude with a plan on how to tackle this project and the payoff to the ice cap modeler and hence the users, i.e. commerce and defense. System Two historically tested methods to generate a large amplitude multi-frequency sound source include explosives and air guns. A new method developed and tested by the University of Texas, ARL is a combustive Sound Source [Wilson, et al., 1995]. The combustive sound source is a submerged combustion chamber that is filled with the byproducts of the electrolysis of sea water, i.e. Hydrogen and Oxygen, an explosive mixture which is ignited via a spark. Thus, no additional compressors, gases, or explosives need to be transported to the Arctic to generate an acoustic pulse capable of the sediment and the ice. The second subsystem would be geophones capable of listening in the O(10 Hz) range and transmitting that data back to the laboratory. Thus two single arrays of geophones arranged orthogonal to each other with a range of 1000's of kilometers and a combustive sound source where the two

  5. Cadmium plated steel caps seal anodized aluminum fittings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Padden, J.

    1971-01-01

    Cadmium prevents fracturing of hard anodic coating under torquing to system specification requirements, prevents galvanic coupling, and eliminates need for crush washers, which, though commonly used in industry, do not correct leakage problem experienced when anodized aluminum fittings and anodized aluminum cap assemblies are joined.

  6. Fraser Valley System Reinforcement Project: Environmental planning and assessment report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1991-06-01

    Transmission facilities in the south central Fraser Valley, British Columbia, need reinforcement in order to meet anticipated growth in power demand. This objective could be met by reinforcing substation facilities (adding 500-kV equipment and connection to transmission line 5L41) at the McLellan Substation in Surrey, at the Clayburn Substation in Matsqui, or at the Atchelitz Substation in Chilliwack. An assessment is provided of the environmental evaluation criteria applied to these potential sites for substation reinforcement and the rationale for selection of the Clayburn site as the environmentally most effective alternative. The Clayburn site is already cleared and managed for a 230-kV substation; environmental, land use, and socioeconomic impacts are considered manageable. The existing right-of-way for the 500-kV loop in to the substation can be utilized. In addition, the results of an environmental assessment and mitigation plan for the Clayburn substation reinforcement are described. The most significant factors that will require possible mitigative measures include fisheries, water quality, floodplain management, visual and recreational aspects, and heritage resources. 16 figs., 5 tabs

  7. Increased 5. cap alpha. -reductase activity in idiopathic hirsutism

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Serafini, P.; Lobo, R.A.

    1985-01-01

    In vitro, genital skin 5..cap alpha..-reductase activity (5..cap alpha..-RA) was measured in ten hirsute women with normal androgen levels (idiopathic hirsutism (IH)) and in ten hirsute women with elevated androgen levels (polycystic ovary syndrome (PCO)) in order to determine the influence of secreted androgens on 5..cap alpha..-RA. In vitro 5..cap alpha..-RA was assessed by incubations of skin with /sup 14/C-testosterone (T) for 2 hours, after which steroids were separated and the radioactivity of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and 5..cap alpha..-androstane 3..cap alpha..-17..beta..-estradiol (3..cap alpha..-diol) in specific eluates were determined. All androgens were normal in IH with the exception of higher levels of 3..cap alpha..-diol glucuronide which were similar to the levels of PCO. The conversion ratio (CR) of T to DHT in IH and PCO were similar, yet significantly greater than the CR of control subjects. The CR of T to 3..cap alpha..-diol in IH and PCO were similar, yet higher than in control subjects. Serum androgens showed no correlation with 5..cap alpha..-RA, while the CR of T to DHT showed a significant positive correlation with the Ferriman and Gallwey score. The increased 5..cap alpha..-RA in IH appears to be independent of serum androgen levels and is, therefore, an inherent abnormality. The term idiopathic is a misnomer, because hirsutism in these patients may be explained on the basis of increased skin 5..cap alpha..-RA.

  8. In-situ Subaqueous Capping of Mercury-Contaminated Sediments in a Fresh-Water Aquatic System, Part II-Evaluation of Sorption Materials

    Science.gov (United States)

    The function and longevity of traditional, passive, isolation caps can be augmented through the use of more chemically active capping materials which have higher sorptive capacities, ideally rendering metals non-bioavailable. In the case of Hg, active caps also mitigate the rate...

  9. Transmission Reinforcements in the Central American Regional Power System

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Elizondo, Marcelo A.; Vallem, Mallikarjuna R.; Samaan, Nader A.; Makarov, Yuri V.; Vyakaranam, Bharat; Nguyen, Tony B.; Munoz, Christian; Herrera, Ricardo; Midence, Diego; Shpitsberg, Anna

    2016-07-25

    The Central American regional interconnected power system (SER) connects the countries members of the Central American regional electricity market (MER): Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. The SER was a result of a long term regional effort, and was initially conceived to transfer 300 MW between countries. However, the current transfer limits between countries range from 70 MW to 300 MW. Regional entities, like CRIE (Regional Commission of Electrical Interconnection), EOR (Central American Regional System Operator), and CDMER (Board of Directors of the Central American Market) are working on coordinating the national transmission expansion plans with regional transmission planning efforts. This paper presents experience in Central America region to recommend transmission reinforcements to achieve 300 MW transfer capacity between any pair of member countries of the Central American regional electricity market (MER). This paper also provides a methodology for technical analysis and for coordination among the regional and national entities. This methodology is unique for transmission systems of these characteristics.

  10. The Alignment System of the ATLAS Muon End-Cap Spectrometer

    CERN Document Server

    Schricker, Alexander

    2002-01-01

    The Large Hadron Collider at CERN will offer an unparalleled opportunity to probe fundamental physics at an energy scale well beyond that reached by current experiments. The ATLAS detector is being designed to fully exploit the potential of the LHC for revealing new aspects of the fundamental structure of nature. The muon spectrometer itself must measure with a momentum resolution of s10% for muons with a transverse momentum of pT =1TeV, to fully exploit the advantages offered by the open superconducting air core muon toroid magnet system. At this level of momentum resolution the muon spectrometer relies heavily on the ability to master the alignment of the large muon chambers spaced far apart. The overall contribution of the alignment to the total sagitta error must be less than 30 μm r.m.s. In order to meet the stringent alignment requirements the positions of the muon chambers are constantly monitored with optical alignment technologies. The end-caps of this spectrometer are therefore embedded in an align...

  11. STRATEGIES TO INCREASE THE ACOUSTICAL QUALITY OF THE MOSQUES WITHOUT REINFORCEMENT SYSTEM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ernaning Setiyowati

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available One of the criteria of a good mosque is a good quality of building acoustic for some ibadah purposes, such as prayer and Friday speech. Mosques with medium size actually need no reinforcement system yet. Unfortunately, most of Indonesian mosques’ typological form were given very little attention about their acoustical problem. Such problems have found in almost every mosques. Therefore, some strategies are needed to fix the problem. Those strategies can be practiced on mosque’s interior surfaces such as ceiling, walls, and floor. One of the strategy is using the absorption material on the wall and the floor, beside using the reflection material on the ceiling. The placement of those materials depends on the path of the sound. The strategy can be used in every form of mosque with only  little different treatment in each mosque’s form. With this strategy, it is expected that mosques with medium size will no longer use the reinforcement system, yet the voice still can reach all of the jamaah. Thus this strategy can be used to reduce the use of energy in these buildings.

  12. In-situ subaqueous capping of mercury-contaminated sediments in a fresh-water aquatic system, Part II-evaluation of sorption materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Randall, Paul M.; Yates, Brian J.; Lal, Vivek; Darlington, Ramona; Fimmen, Ryan

    2013-01-01

    The function and longevity of traditional, passive, isolation caps can be augmented through the use of more chemically active capping materials which have higher sorptive capacities, ideally rendering metals non-bioavailable. In the case of Hg, active caps also mitigate the rate and extent of methylation. This research examined low cost, readily available, capping materials for their ability to sequester Hg and MeHg. Furthermore, selected capping materials were evaluated to inhibit the methylation of Hg in an incubation study as well as the capacity of a selected capping material to inhibit translocation of Hg and MeHg with respect to ebullition-facilitated contaminant transport in a column study. Results indicated that bauxite had a better capacity for mercury sorption than the other test materials. However, bauxite as well as soil capping materials did not decrease methylation to a significant extent. Materials with larger surface areas, higher organic matter and acid volatile sulfide (AVS) content displayed a larger partitioning coefficient. In the incubation experiments, the presence of a carbon source (lactate), electron acceptor (sulfate) and the appropriate strains of SRB provided the necessary conditions for Hg methylation to occur. The column study showed effectiveness in sequestering Hg and MeHg and retarding transport to the overlying water column; however, disturbances to the soil capping material resulting from gas ebullition negated its effectiveness

  13. In-situ subaqueous capping of mercury-contaminated sediments in a fresh-water aquatic system, Part II-evaluation of sorption materials

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Randall, Paul M., E-mail: randall.paul@epa.gov [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, National Risk Management Research Laboratory, 26 W. Martin Luther King Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45268 (United States); Yates, Brian J.; Lal, Vivek; Darlington, Ramona [Battelle, 505 King Avenue, Columbus, OH 43201 (United States); Fimmen, Ryan [Geosyntec Consultants, 150 E. Wilson Bridge Road, Suite 232, Worthington, OH 43085 (United States)

    2013-08-15

    The function and longevity of traditional, passive, isolation caps can be augmented through the use of more chemically active capping materials which have higher sorptive capacities, ideally rendering metals non-bioavailable. In the case of Hg, active caps also mitigate the rate and extent of methylation. This research examined low cost, readily available, capping materials for their ability to sequester Hg and MeHg. Furthermore, selected capping materials were evaluated to inhibit the methylation of Hg in an incubation study as well as the capacity of a selected capping material to inhibit translocation of Hg and MeHg with respect to ebullition-facilitated contaminant transport in a column study. Results indicated that bauxite had a better capacity for mercury sorption than the other test materials. However, bauxite as well as soil capping materials did not decrease methylation to a significant extent. Materials with larger surface areas, higher organic matter and acid volatile sulfide (AVS) content displayed a larger partitioning coefficient. In the incubation experiments, the presence of a carbon source (lactate), electron acceptor (sulfate) and the appropriate strains of SRB provided the necessary conditions for Hg methylation to occur. The column study showed effectiveness in sequestering Hg and MeHg and retarding transport to the overlying water column; however, disturbances to the soil capping material resulting from gas ebullition negated its effectiveness.

  14. The comparison of CAP88-PC version 2.0 versus CAP88-PC version 1.0

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yakubovich, B.A.; Klee, K.O.; Palmer, C.R.; Spotts, P.B.

    1997-12-01

    40 CFR Part 61 (Subpart H of the NESHAP) requires DOE facilities to use approved sampling procedures, computer models, or other approved procedures when calculating Effective Dose Equivalent (EDE) values to members of the public. Currently version 1.0 of the approved computer model CAP88-PC is used to calculate EDE values. The DOE has upgraded the CAP88-PC software to version 2.0. This version provides simplified data entry, better printing characteristics, the use of a mouse, and other features. The DOE has developed and released version 2.0 for testing and comment. This new software is a WINDOWS based application that offers a new graphical user interface with new utilities for preparing and managing population and weather data, and several new decay chains. The program also allows the user to view results before printing. This document describes a test that confirmed CAP88-PC version 2.0 generates results comparable to the original version of the CAP88-PC program

  15. Controlling the Filling and Capping Operation of a Bottling Plant using PLC and SCADA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kunal Chakraborty

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents basic stages of operation of a bottling plant, i.e. the filling and capping process. The main aim of our paper is to control the filling and capping section of a bottling plant simultaneously. At first a set of empty bottle is run by using a conveyer towards filling section, after the operation, the filled bottles are sent towards the capping section. After successful capping operation, the sealed bottles terminate towards exit and a new set of empty bottle arrive, in this way the process continues. This paper includes the method using which, a bunch of bottles can be filled and capped at one instant of time. This method has made the operation more flexible and time saving. The filling and capping operations are controlled using Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC, as the PLC’s are very much user-efficient, cost-effective and easy to control. By using PLC automation the whole process is kept under control. SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition is used to monitor the process by means of a display system.

  16. Cap-independent translation of plant viral RNAs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kneller, Elizabeth L Pettit; Rakotondrafara, Aurélie M; Miller, W Allen

    2006-07-01

    The RNAs of many plant viruses lack a 5' cap and must be translated by a cap-independent mechanism. Here, we discuss the remarkably diverse cap-independent translation elements that have been identified in members of the Potyviridae, Luteoviridae, and Tombusviridae families, and genus Tobamovirus. Many other plant viruses have uncapped RNAs but their translation control elements are uncharacterized. Cap-independent translation elements of plant viruses differ strikingly from those of animal viruses: they are smaller (translation factors, and speculate on their mechanism of action and their roles in the virus replication cycle. Much remains to be learned about how these elements enable plant viruses to usurp the host translational machinery.

  17. Automatic Quality Inspection of Percussion Cap Mass Production by Means of 3D Machine Vision and Machine Learning Techniques

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tellaeche, A.; Arana, R.; Ibarguren, A.; Martínez-Otzeta, J. M.

    The exhaustive quality control is becoming very important in the world's globalized market. One of these examples where quality control becomes critical is the percussion cap mass production. These elements must achieve a minimum tolerance deviation in their fabrication. This paper outlines a machine vision development using a 3D camera for the inspection of the whole production of percussion caps. This system presents multiple problems, such as metallic reflections in the percussion caps, high speed movement of the system and mechanical errors and irregularities in percussion cap placement. Due to these problems, it is impossible to solve the problem by traditional image processing methods, and hence, machine learning algorithms have been tested to provide a feasible classification of the possible errors present in the percussion caps.

  18. Characterization of a mimivirus RNA cap guanine-N2 methyltransferase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benarroch, Delphine; Qiu, Zhicheng R; Schwer, Beate; Shuman, Stewart

    2009-04-01

    A 2,2,7-trimethylguanosine (TMG) cap is a signature feature of eukaryal snRNAs, telomerase RNAs, and trans-spliced nematode mRNAs. TMG and 2,7-dimethylguanosine (DMG) caps are also present on mRNAs of two species of alphaviruses (positive strand RNA viruses of the Togaviridae family). It is presently not known how viral mRNAs might acquire a hypermethylated cap. Mimivirus, a giant DNA virus that infects amoeba, encodes many putative enzymes and proteins implicated in RNA transactions, including the synthesis and capping of viral mRNAs and the promotion of cap-dependent translation. Here we report the identification, purification, and characterization of a mimivirus cap-specific guanine-N2 methyltransferase (MimiTgs), a monomeric enzyme that catalyzes a single round of methyl transfer from AdoMet to an m(7)G cap substrate to form a DMG cap product. MimiTgs, is apparently unable to convert a DMG cap to a TMG cap, and is thereby distinguished from the structurally homologous yeast and human Tgs1 enzymes. Nonetheless, we show genetically that MimiTgs is a true ortholog of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Tgs1. Our results hint that DMG caps can satisfy many of the functions of TMG caps in vivo. We speculate that DMG capping of mimivirus mRNAs might favor viral protein synthesis in the infected host.

  19. Behaviour of fibre reinforced polymer confined reinforced concrete columns under fire condition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chowdhury, Ershad Ullah

    In recent years, fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) materials have demonstrated enormous potential as materials for repairing and retrofitting concrete bridges that have deteriorated from factors such as electro-chemical corrosion and increased load requirements. However, concerns associated with fire remain an obstacle to applications of FRP materials in buildings and parking garages due to FRP's sensitivity to high temperatures as compared with other structural materials and to limited knowledge on their thermal and mechanical behaviour in fire. This thesis presents results from an ongoing study on the fire performance of FRP materials, fire insulation materials and systems, and FRP wrapped reinforced concrete columns. The overall goal of the study is to understand the fire behaviour of FRP materials and FRP strengthened concrete columns and ultimately, provide rational fire safety design recommendations and guidelines for FRP strengthened concrete columns. A combined experimental and numerical investigation was conducted to achieve the goals of this research study. The experimental work consisted of both small-scale FRP material testing at elevated temperatures and full-scale fire tests on FRP strengthened columns. A numerical model was developed to simulate the behaviour of unwrapped reinforced concrete and FRP strengthened reinforced concrete square or rectangular columns in fire. After validating the numerical model against test data available in literature, it was determined that the numerical model can be used to analyze the behaviour of concrete axial compressive members in fire. Results from this study also demonstrated that although FRP materials experience considerable loss of their mechanical and bond properties at temperatures somewhat below the glass transition temperature of the resin matrix, externally-bonded FRP can be used in strengthening concrete structural members in buildings, if appropriate supplemental fire protection system is provided over

  20. Death cap

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rudbæk, Torsten R; Kofoed, Pernille Bouteloup; Bove, Jeppe

    2014-01-01

    Death cap (Amanita phalloides) is commonly found and is one of the five most toxic fungi in Denmark. Toxicity is due to amatoxin, and poisoning is a serious medical condition, causing organ failure with potential fatal outcome. Acknowledgement and clarification of exposure, symptomatic and focused...

  1. Rapid replacement of Tangier Island bridges including lightweight and durable fiber-reinforced polymer deck systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2009-01-01

    Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composite cellular deck systems were used as new bridge decks on two replacement bridges on Tangier Island, Virginia. The most important characteristics of this application were reduced self-weight and increased durabil...

  2. Analytical design method for a truss-bolt system for reinforcement of fractured coal mine roofs - illustrated with a case study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liu, B.; Yue, Z.Q.; Tham, L.G. [University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong (China). Dept. of Civil Engineering

    2005-02-01

    This paper presents an analytical design method for the truss-bolt system in reinforcing underground fractured rock roofs in coal mines. The analytical design method is based on the mechanical analysis of the fractured rock roof with reinforcement by inclined roof bolts and a horizontal tie-rod. The mechanical analysis for the system includes a non-linear bending model for the laterally inclined roof bolts and three upper and lower bounds. The lateral resistance of the inclined roof bolts in a truss-bolt-supported roadway is examined using classical theory of a non-linear beam in bending. The paper analyses the arching action by lateral behavior of the inclined roof bolts in reinforcing the fractured roof. Based on mechanical models, the design formula concerning the lateral bolt forces, tensions in the tie-rod in the truss system, as well as the reinforcement behavior have been derived. In order to ensure that the roof truss-bolt system reinforces the coal roof effectively, a lower bound of pre-tightening forces must be applied on the tie-rod for stabilizing the fractured roof by arching action. The pre-tightening forces exerted via the tie-rod also cannot be greater than its upper bound, since the excessive tightening force will cause localized failure in the rock near the bolt tail at the abutment of the fractured roof beam. The analytical formulas for both lower and upper bounds for truss pre-tightening forces are put forward in this paper. Furthermore, the paper also presents analytical equations for designing the axial forces and dimensions for bolts in this kind of system.

  3. Reinforcement Magnitude: An Evaluation of Preference and Reinforcer Efficacy

    OpenAIRE

    Trosclair-Lasserre, Nicole M; Lerman, Dorothea C; Call, Nathan A; Addison, Laura R; Kodak, Tiffany

    2008-01-01

    Consideration of reinforcer magnitude may be important for maximizing the efficacy of treatment for problem behavior. Nonetheless, relatively little is known about children's preferences for different magnitudes of social reinforcement or the extent to which preference is related to differences in reinforcer efficacy. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the relations among reinforcer magnitude, preference, and efficacy by drawing on the procedures and results of basic experimenta...

  4. Apical cap

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McLoud, T.C.; Isler, R.J.; Novelline, R.A.; Putman, C.E.; Simeone, J.; Stark, P.

    1981-01-01

    Apical caps, either unilateral or bilateral, are a common feature of advancing age and are usually the result of subpleural scarring unassociated with other diseases. Pancoast (superior sulcus) tumors are a well recognized cause of unilateral asymmetric apical density. Other lesions arising in the lung, pleura, or extrapleural space may produce unilateral or bilateral apical caps. These include: (1) inflammatory: tuberculosis and extrapleural abscesses extending from the neck; (2) post radiation fibrosis after mantle therapy for Hodgkin disease or supraclavicular radiation in the treatment of breast carcinoma; (3) neoplasm: lymphoma extending from the neck or mediastinum, superior sulcus bronchogenic carcinoma, and metastases; (4) traumatic: extrapleural dissection of blood from a ruptured aorta, fractures of the ribs or spine, or hemorrhage due to subclavian line placement; (5) vascular: coarctation of the aorta with dilated collaterals over the apex, fistula between the subclavian artery and vein; and (6) miscellaneous: mediastinal lipomatosis with subcostal fat extending over the apices

  5. Self-assembly of colloids with magnetic caps

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Novak, E.V., E-mail: ekaterina.novak@urfu.ru [Ural Federal University, Lenin Av. 51, Ekaterinburg (Russian Federation); Kantorovich, S.S. [Ural Federal University, Lenin Av. 51, Ekaterinburg (Russian Federation); University of Vienna, Sensengasse 8, Vienna (Austria)

    2017-06-01

    In our earlier work (Steinbach et al., 2016 ) we investigated a homogeneous system of magnetically capped colloidal particles that self-assembled via two structural patterns of different symmetry. The particles could form a compact, equilateral triangle with a three-fold rotational symmetry and zero dipole moment and a staggered chain with mirror symmetry with a net magnetisation perpendicular to the chain. The system exhibited a bistability already in clusters of three particles. Based on observations of a real magnetic particles system, analytical calculations and molecular dynamics simulations, it has been shown that the bistability is a result of an anisotropic magnetisation distribution with rotational symmetry inside the particles. The present study is a logical extension of the above research and forms a preparatory stage for the study of a self-assembly of such magnetic particles under the influence of an external magnetic field. Since the magnetic field is only an additive contribution to the total ground state energy, we can study the interparticle interaction energies of candidate ground state structures based on the field-free terms. - Highlights: • Analytical calculations of the energies of ground state candidates for colloids with magnetic caps. • Computer simulations confirmed the theoretical model. • The structural transition between ground states was found.

  6. Hypocretin / orexin involvement in reward and reinforcement

    Science.gov (United States)

    España, Rodrigo A.

    2015-01-01

    Since the discovery of the hypocretins/orexins, a series of observations have indicated that these peptides influence a variety of physiological processes including feeding, sleep/wake function, memory, and stress. More recently, the hypocretins have been implicated in reinforcement and reward-related processes via actions on the mesolimbic dopamine system. Although investigation into the relationship between the hypocretins and reinforcement/reward remains in relatively early stages, accumulating evidence suggests that continued research into this area may offer new insights into the addiction process and provide the foundation to generate novel pharmacotherapies for drug abuse. The current chapter will focus on contemporary perspectives of hypocretin regulation of cocaine reward and reinforcement via actions on the mesolimbic dopamine system. PMID:22640614

  7. A nucleation theory of cell surface capping

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Coutsias, E.A.; Wester, M.J.; Perelson, A.S.

    1997-01-01

    We propose a new theory of cell surface capping based on the principles of nucleation. When antibody interacts with cell surface molecules, the molecules initially form small aggregates called patches that later coalesce into a large aggregate called a cap. While a cap can form by patches being pulled together by action of the cell''s cytoskeleton, in the case of some molecules, disruption of the cytoskeleton does not prevent cap formation. Diffusion of large aggregates on a cell surface is slow, and thus we propose that a cap can form solely through the diffusion of small aggregates containing just one or a few cell surface molecules. Here we consider the extreme case in which single molecules are mobile, but aggregates of all larger sizes are immobile. We show that a set of patches in equilibrium with a open-quotes seaclose quotes of free cell surface molecules can undergo a nucleation-type phase transition in which the largest patch will bind free cell surface molecules, deplete the concentration of such molecules in the open-quotes seaclose quotes and thus cause the other patches to shrink in size. We therefore show that a cap can form without patches having to move, collide with each other, and aggregate

  8. 47 CFR 61.41 - Price cap requirements generally.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Price cap requirements generally. 61.41 Section... (CONTINUED) TARIFFS General Rules for Dominant Carriers § 61.41 Price cap requirements generally. (a... companies shall not bar a carrier from electing price cap regulation provided the carrier is otherwise...

  9. Reinforced sulphur concrete

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    2014-01-01

    Reinforced sulphur concrete wherein one or more metal reinforcing members are in contact with sulphur concrete is disclosed. The reinforced sulphur concrete comprises an adhesion promoter that enhances the interaction between the sulphur and the one or more metal reinforcing members.

  10. 30 CFR 250.1157 - How do I receive approval to produce gas-cap gas from an oil reservoir with an associated gas cap?

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 30 Mineral Resources 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false How do I receive approval to produce gas-cap gas from an oil reservoir with an associated gas cap? 250.1157 Section 250.1157 Mineral Resources... do I receive approval to produce gas-cap gas from an oil reservoir with an associated gas cap? (a...

  11. Devon island ice cap: core stratigraphy and paleoclimate.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koerner, R M

    1977-04-01

    Valuable paleoclimatic information can be gained by studying the distribution of melt layers in deep ice cores. A profile representing the percentage of ice in melt layers in a core drilled from the Devon Island ice cap plotted against both time and depth shows that the ice cap has experienced a period of very warm summers since 1925, following a period of colder summers between about 1600 and 1925. The earlier period was coldest between 1680 and 1730. There is a high correlation between the melt-layer ice percentage and the mass balance of the ice cap. The relation between them suggests that the ice cap mass balance was zero (accumulation equaled ablation) during the colder period but is negative in the present warmer one. There is no firm evidence of a present cooling trend in the summer conditions on the ice cap. A comparison with the melt-layer ice percentage in cores from the other major Canadian Arctic ice caps shows that the variation of summer conditions found for the Devon Island ice cap is representative for all the large ice caps for about 90 percent of the time. There is also a good correlation between melt-layer percentage and summer sea-ice conditions in the archipelago. This suggests that the search for the northwest passage was influenced by changing climate, with the 19th-century peak of the often tragic exploration coinciding with a period of very cold summers.

  12. Elastic Composite, Reinforced Lightweight Concrete as a Type of Resilient Composite Systems

    OpenAIRE

    Esmaeili, Kamyar

    2015-01-01

    . A kind of "Elastic Composite, Reinforced Lightweight Concrete (ECRLC)" with the mentioned specifics is a type of "Resilient Composite Systems (RCS)" in which, contrary to the basic geometrical assumption of flexure theory in Solid Mechanics, "the strain changes in the beam height during bending" is typically "Non-linear". . Through employing this integrated structure, with significant high strain capability and modulus of resilience in bending, we could constructively achieve high bearing c...

  13. Central reinforcing effects of ethanol are blocked by catalase inhibition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nizhnikov, Michael E; Molina, Juan C; Spear, Norman E

    2007-11-01

    Recent studies have systematically indicated that newborn rats are highly sensitive to ethanol's positive reinforcing effects. Central administrations of ethanol (25-200mg %) associated with an olfactory conditioned stimulus (CS) promote subsequent conditioned approach to the CS as evaluated through the newborn's response to a surrogate nipple scented with the CS. It has been shown that ethanol's first metabolite, acetaldehyde, exerts significant reinforcing effects in the central nervous system. A significant amount of acetaldehyde is derived from ethanol metabolism via the catalase system. In newborn rats, catalase levels are particularly high in several brain structures. The present study tested the effect of catalase inhibition on central ethanol reinforcement. In the first experiment, pups experienced lemon odor either paired or unpaired with intracisternal (IC) administrations of 100mg% ethanol. Half of the animals corresponding to each learning condition were pretreated with IC administrations of either physiological saline or a catalase inhibitor (sodium-azide). Catalase inhibition completely suppressed ethanol reinforcement in paired groups without affecting responsiveness to the CS during conditioning or responding by unpaired control groups. A second experiment tested whether these effects were specific to ethanol reinforcement or due instead to general impairment in learning and expression capabilities. Central administration of an endogenous kappa opioid receptor agonist (dynorphin A-13) was used as an alternative source of reinforcement. Inhibition of the catalase system had no effect on the reinforcing properties of dynorphin. The present results support the hypothesis that ethanol metabolism regulated by the catalase system plays a critical role in determination of ethanol reinforcement in newborn rats.

  14. Failure to detect seasonal changes in the song system nuclei of the black-capped chickadee (Poecile atricapillus).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smulders, T V; Lisi, M D; Tricomi, E; Otter, K A; Chruszcz, B; Ratcliffe, L M; DeVoogd, T J

    2006-08-01

    Most temperate songbird species sing seasonally, and the brain areas involved in producing song (the song system) vary in size alongside the changes in behavior. Black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) also sing seasonally, and we find that there are changes in the stereotypy and the length of the fee-bee song from the nonbreeding to the breeding season. Yet despite these changes, we fail to find any evidence of seasonal changes in the song system. The song system of males is larger than that of females, as is typical in songbirds, but the ratio between the sexes is small compared to other species. We suggest three hypotheses to explain our failure to find seasonal variation in the chickadee song system.

  15. Design of a 3-D Magnetic Mapping System to Locate Reinforcing Steel in Concrete Pavements

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-12-01

    This report outlines the design, fabrication, and testing of a 3-D magnetic mapping system used to locate reinforcing steel in concrete pavements developed at Kansas State University (KSU) in 2006. The magnetic sensing functionality is based on the p...

  16. Photoactivable caps for reactive metal nanoparticles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Patel, Ashish

    The synthesis and stabilization of reactive metal nanoparticles is often challenging under normal atmospheric conditions. This problem can be alleviated by capping and passivation. Our lab has focused on forming polymer coatings on the surface of reactive metal nanoparticles. We discovered a convenient and effective route for stabilization of aluminum nanoparticles (Al NPs), which uses the nascent metal core as a polymerization initiator for various organic monomers. In our previous work, we used this method to passivate the Al NPs using variety of epoxides and copolymers of epoxides and alkenes. These products have demonstrated air stability for weeks to months with little to no degradation in the active Al content. Since our previously synthesized Al NP's were not beneficial for rapid and efficient thermodynamic access to the active Al core, our goal was find polymers that could easily be photochemically activated to enhance such access. Since poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) has photodegrading properties, we used PMMA as a capping agent to passivate Al NPs. In this work, we present capping and stabilization of Al NPs with PMMA, and also with 1,2-epoxyhexane/ PMMA. In our previous work, we increased the stability of Al NP capped with 1,2-epoxy-9-decene by adding 1,13-tetradecadiene as a cross-linker. Here, we used the methyl methacrylate (MMA) monomer as cross-linker for Al NP capped with 1,2-epoxy-9-decene. We have also used the MMA as capping agent. We use powder x-ray diffractametry (PXRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and thermogravity analysis (TGA) to confirm the presence of elemental Al and ATR-FTIR to confirm the presence of polymers.

  17. Testing, Modeling, and Monitoring to Enable Simpler, Cheaper, Longer-lived Surface Caps

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Piet, S. J.; Breckenridge, R. P.; Burns, D. E.

    2003-01-01

    Society has and will continue to generate hazardous wastes whose risks must be managed. For exceptionally toxic, long-lived, and feared waste, the solution is deep burial, e.g., deep geological disposal at Yucca Mtn. For some waste, recycle or destruction/treatment is possible. The alternative for other wastes is storage at or near the ground level (in someone's back yard); most of these storage sites include a surface barrier (cap) to prevent downward water migration. Some of the hazards will persist indefinitely. As society and regulators have demanded additional proof that caps are robust against more threats and for longer time periods, the caps have become increasingly complex and expensive. As in other industries, increased complexity will eventually increase the difficulty in estimating performance, in monitoring system/component performance, and in repairing or upgrading barriers as risks are managed. An approach leading to simpler, less expensive, longer-lived, more manageable caps is needed. Our project, which started in April 2002, aims to catalyze a Barrier Improvement Cycle (iterative learning and application) and thus enable Remediation System Performance Management (doing the right maintenance neither too early nor too late). The knowledge gained and the capabilities built will help verify the adequacy of past remedial decisions, improve barrier management, and enable improved solutions for future decisions. We believe it will be possible to develop simpler, longer-lived, less expensive caps that are easier to monitor, manage, and repair. The project is planned to: (a) improve the knowledge of degradation mechanisms in times shorter than service life; (b) improve modeling of barrier degradation dynamics; (c) develop sensor systems to identify early degradation; and (d) provide a better basis for developing and testing of new barrier systems. This project combines selected exploratory studies (benchtop and field scale), coupled effects accelerated

  18. Comparison Results on the Basic Phenomena between CAP and CONTEMPT-LT

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Choo, Yeon Joon; Hong, Soon Joon; Hwang, Su Hyun; Kim, Min Ki; Lee, Byung Chul [FNC Tech., SNU, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Ha, Sang Jun; Choi, Hoon [KHNP Central Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2011-10-15

    A development project for the domestic design code was launched to be used for the safety and performance analysis of pressurized light water reactors. As a part of this project, CAP (Containment Analysis Package) code has been developing for the containment safety and performance analysis side by side with SPACE. CAP Beta version has been released lately and validation processes are under way currently. Code by code comparison activity is scheduled in the validation processes and the first comparable code is CONTEMPT-LT. CONTEMPT-LT was developed to predict the longterm behavior of water-cooled nuclear reactor containment systems subjected to postulated loss-ofcoolant accident (LOCA) conditions. CONTEMPT-LT calculates the time variation of compartment pressures, temperatures, mass and energy inventories, heat structure temperature distributions, and energy exchange with adjacent compartments, leakage on containment response. Models are provided for fan cooler and cooling spray as engineered safety systems. Any compartment may have both a liquid pool region and an air-vapor atmosphere region above the pool. Each region is assumed to have a uniform temperature, but the temperatures of the two regions may be different. As mentioned above, CONTEMP-LT has the similar code features and it, therefore, is expected to show the similar analysis performance with CAP. In this study, the code performances were compared for the same phenomena between CAP and CONTEMPT-LT. Code comparison is carried out through two stages; separate and integral effect comparison

  19. Comparison Results on the Basic Phenomena between CAP and CONTEMPT-LT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Choo, Yeon Joon; Hong, Soon Joon; Hwang, Su Hyun; Kim, Min Ki; Lee, Byung Chul; Ha, Sang Jun; Choi, Hoon

    2011-01-01

    A development project for the domestic design code was launched to be used for the safety and performance analysis of pressurized light water reactors. As a part of this project, CAP (Containment Analysis Package) code has been developing for the containment safety and performance analysis side by side with SPACE. CAP Beta version has been released lately and validation processes are under way currently. Code by code comparison activity is scheduled in the validation processes and the first comparable code is CONTEMPT-LT. CONTEMPT-LT was developed to predict the longterm behavior of water-cooled nuclear reactor containment systems subjected to postulated loss-ofcoolant accident (LOCA) conditions. CONTEMPT-LT calculates the time variation of compartment pressures, temperatures, mass and energy inventories, heat structure temperature distributions, and energy exchange with adjacent compartments, leakage on containment response. Models are provided for fan cooler and cooling spray as engineered safety systems. Any compartment may have both a liquid pool region and an air-vapor atmosphere region above the pool. Each region is assumed to have a uniform temperature, but the temperatures of the two regions may be different. As mentioned above, CONTEMP-LT has the similar code features and it, therefore, is expected to show the similar analysis performance with CAP. In this study, the code performances were compared for the same phenomena between CAP and CONTEMPT-LT. Code comparison is carried out through two stages; separate and integral effect comparison

  20. CAP FUTURE: WHAT DO STAKEHOLDERS WANT?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Petr BLIZKOVSKY

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP is at the crossroads of several policy interests. It is scrutinised by farming and environmental communities as well as by the food industry, regional authorities, research and public sector. The paper analyses the recent consultation process undertaken by the European Commission. The paper concludes that among the key reform issues are: the level of the financial support to the CAP; the continued environmental and other public goods orientation of the CAP and generational renewal. In addition, the focus on result orientation and reduction of the administrative burden can be expected. The relevant European Commission proposals are foreseen around summer 2018.

  1. Empiric penicillin monotherapy of CAP is not associated with increased mortality; experiences from the retrospective CAP-North cohort

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Baunbæk-Knudsen, Getrud; Vestergaard Jensen, Andreas; Andersen, Stine

    2016-01-01

    Background: Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a severe infection, with high morbidity and mortality. The antibiotic strategies for CAP differ across Europe. Objective: To assess the usage of Penicillin monotherapy in a real-life cohort and to evaluate predictors of treatment duration and the ......Background: Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a severe infection, with high morbidity and mortality. The antibiotic strategies for CAP differ across Europe. Objective: To assess the usage of Penicillin monotherapy in a real-life cohort and to evaluate predictors of treatment duration......, and evaluated predictors of treatment duration by linear regression. Mortality of patients receiving empiric penicillin-G/V was compared to others by logistic regression analysis. The CAPNETZ database technology was used for data-capture. Results: We included 1320 patients. The incidence of hospitalized CAP...... was 3.1 per 1000 inhabitants. The median age was 71 years (IQR; 58.81). In-hospital mortality was 8%. Patients treated with penicillin-G/V as empiric monotherapy (45%) did not have a higher mortality than those treated with broader spectrum antibiotics (OR 1.30, CI 95% 0.84-2-02). The median duration...

  2. MARK II end cap calorimeter electronics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jared, R.C.; Haggerty, J.S.; Herrup, D.A.; Kirsten, F.A.; Lee, K.L.; Olson, S.R.; Wood, D.R.

    1985-10-01

    An end cap calorimeter system has been added to the MARK II detector in preparation for its use at the SLAC Linear Collider. The calorimeter uses 8744 rectangular proportional counter tubes. This paper describes the design features of the data acquisition electronics that has been installed on the calorimeter. The design and use of computer-based test stands for the amplification and signal-shaping components is also covered. A portion of the complete system has been tested in a beam at SLAC. In these initial tests, using only the calibration provided by the test stands, a resolution of 18%/√E was achieved

  3. Progress in LAr EndCap Calorimetry: News from the Hadronic EndCap Group.

    CERN Multimedia

    Oram, C.J.

    With module production and testing completed for the Hadronic EndCap calorimeter, the attention of the HEC group is heavily directed towards wheel assembly in building 180. Three of the four HEC wheels are now assembled and rotated, and work is progressing on assembling the final wheel. This year has been a busy year for the installation of components in the EndCap C cryostat: the signal feedthrough installation was completed April 22nd, the pre-sampler shortly thereafter and the Electro-Magnetic EndCap August 13th. This allowed the HEC group to start transferring the HEC wheels from the T6A storage cradle into the cryostat. The operation started in mid-September and has progressed, on or ahead of schedule, since then with the major milestones being: Insertion of 67 ton front HEC wheel October 3rd Insertion of 90 ton rear HEC wheel October 22nd. The wheel alignment has proved to be excellent, with the position of the centre of the front(rear) wheel with respect to the nominal position being displaced b...

  4. Reinforcement Magnitude: An Evaluation of Preference and Reinforcer Efficacy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trosclair-Lasserre, Nicole M.; Lerman, Dorothea C.; Call, Nathan A.; Addison, Laura R.; Kodak, Tiffany

    2008-01-01

    Consideration of reinforcer magnitude may be important for maximizing the efficacy of treatment for problem behavior. Nonetheless, relatively little is known about children's preferences for different magnitudes of social reinforcement or the extent to which preference is related to differences in reinforcer efficacy. The purpose of the current…

  5. Autoshaping Chicks with Heat Reinforcement: The Role of Stimulus-Reinforcer and Response-Reinforcer Relations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wasserman, Edward A.; And Others

    1975-01-01

    The present series of experiments attempted to analyze more fully the contributions of stimulus-reinforcer and response-reinforcer relations to autoshaping within a single conditioning situation. (Author)

  6. Density functional study of condensation in capped capillaries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yatsyshin, P; Savva, N; Kalliadasis, S

    2015-07-15

    We study liquid adsorption in narrow rectangular capped capillaries formed by capping two parallel planar walls (a slit pore) with a third wall orthogonal to the two planar walls. The most important transition in confined fluids is arguably condensation, where the pore becomes filled with the liquid phase which is metastable in the bulk. Depending on the temperature T, the condensation in capped capillaries can be first-order (at T≤Tcw) or continuous (at T>Tcw), where Tcw is the capillary wetting temperature. At T>Tcw, the capping wall can adsorb mesoscopic amounts of metastable under-condensed liquid. The onset of condensation is then manifested by the continuous unbinding of the interface between the liquid adsorbed on the capping wall and the gas filling the rest of the capillary volume. In wide capped capillaries there may be a remnant of wedge filling transition, which is manifested by the adsorption of liquid drops in the corners. Our classical statistical mechanical treatment predicts a possibility of three-phase coexistence between gas, corner drops and liquid slabs adsorbed on the capping wall. In sufficiently wide capillaries we find that thick prewetting films of finite length may be nucleated at the capping wall below the boundary of the prewetting transition. Prewetting then proceeds in a continuous manner manifested by the unbinding interface between the thick and thin films adsorbed on the side walls. Our analysis is based on a detailed numerical investigation of the density functional theory for the fluid equilibria for a number of illustrative case studies.

  7. Turbomachine blade reinforcement

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcia Crespo, Andres Jose

    2016-09-06

    Embodiments of the present disclosure include a system having a turbomachine blade segment including a blade and a mounting segment coupled to the blade, wherein the mounting segment has a plurality of reinforcement pins laterally extending at least partially through a neck of the mounting segment.

  8. Principles of design and construction for the top caps of prestressed concrete reactor pressure vessels

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hughes, A.N.; Bellwood, G.N.; Paton, A.A.

    1976-01-01

    The building of the top cap poses problems because of the number of penetrations to be cast therein. The fuel and control system routes need to be tightly specified and controlled so that during station life misalignments do not occur which interfere with the fuelling and control operations. The paper outlines the route requirements and illustrates how these affect the tolerances and movements which can be allowed at various stages of construction. Development work is discussed to show the necessity of resolving the different priorities of design, programme and overall pressure vessel construction requirements, so that the reactor build is not inhibited by the special demands of the top cap, and the integration of the monitoring and survey systems during the top cap build are explained. (author)

  9. Magnetospheric convection and current system in the dayside polar cap

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nishida, A.; Mukai, T.; Tsuruda, K.; Hayakawa, H.

    1992-01-01

    Field and particle observations on EXOS-D (Akebono) have yielded new information on convection and current system in the dayside polar cap. Convection patterns are distinctly different depending upon whether IMF B z is northward or southward. The number of convection cells is two when B z is southward but four when B z is northward. Lobe cells in which plasma flows sunward in the region of open field lines are observed as a pair (of which one is in the dawn and the other in the dusk sector) for any polarity of IMF B y and B z . Ions in the keV range precipitate not only in the dayside cusp region but also along the sunward directed streamlines of the dawn and dusk lobe cells. These observations require reconsideration on the position and the extent of the reconnection region on the magnetopause. They also suggest that the magnetotail plays a vital role in some phenomena which have been ascribed to dayside magnetopause processes. We have not been able to find evidence to prove the presence of the viscous cell under southward IMF

  10. Design Principles and Concepts for Enhancing Long-Term Cap Performance and Confidence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Steven J. Piet; Robert P. Breckenridge; Gregory J. White; Jacob J. Jacobson; Hilary I. Inyang

    2005-01-01

    The siting of new landfills is becoming increasing difficult as the public and stakeholders want more confidence of performance for longer times and landfill owners want to store more waste in the least area while knowing and limiting their long-term liabilities. These changes motivate re-examination of long-term performance mechanisms and their implications for cap and barrier designs. Accordingly, in this paper we first consider design principles from the standpoint of long-term performance and management, including the ability to monitor and repair barriers. We then consider some design concepts that may implement these principles, especially evapo-transpiration (ET) caps. We suggest five design principles based on experience in the cap and barrier field as well as other engineering disciplines. These principles are as follows: (1) Establish a clear and defendable design basis. (2) Design for ease of monitoring and repair. (3) Analyze the barrier as a dynamic system, not static. (4) Work with nature, not against. (5) Recognize that increased complexity can reduce, not enhance, net performance. ET caps are an excellent embodiment of these design principles. We apply the design principles to ET caps, as well as variants such as erosion armor, capillary breaks, bio-intrusion layers, and low permeability material layers

  11. Durability of Capped Wood Plastic Composites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mark Mankowski; Mark J. Manning; Damien P. Slowik

    2015-01-01

    Manufacturers of wood plastic composites (WPCs) have recently introduced capped decking to their product lines. These new materials have begun to take market share from the previous generation of uncapped products that possessed a homogenous composition throughout the thickness of their cross-section. These capped offerings have been introduced with claims that the...

  12. ImmunoCAP assays: Pros and cons in allergology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Hage, Marianne; Hamsten, Carl; Valenta, Rudolf

    2017-10-01

    Allergen-specific IgE measurements and the clinical history are the cornerstones of allergy diagnosis. During the past decades, both characterization and standardization of allergen extracts and assay technology have improved. Here we discuss the uses, advantages, misinterpretations, and limitations of ImmunoCAP IgE assays (Thermo Fisher Scientific/Phadia, Uppsala, Sweden) in the field of allergology. They can be performed as singleplex (ImmunoCAP) and, for the last decade, as multiplex (Immuno Solid-phase Allergen Chip [ISAC]). The major benefit of ImmunoCAP is the obtained quantified allergen-specific IgE antibody level and the lack of interference from allergen-specific IgG antibodies. However, ImmunoCAP allergen extracts are limited to the composition of the extract. The introduction of allergen molecules has had a major effect on analytic specificity and allergy diagnosis. They are used in both singleplex ImmunoCAP and multiplex ImmunoCAP ISAC assays. The major advantage of ISAC is the comprehensive IgE pattern obtained with a minute amount of serum. The shortcomings are its semiquantitative measurements, lower linear range, and cost per assay. With respect to assay performance, ImmunoCAP allergen extracts are good screening tools, but allergen molecules dissect the IgE response on a molecular level and put allergy research on the map of precision medicine. Copyright © 2017 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Interleukine-1-remming in cryopyrinegeassocieerd periodiek syndroom (CAPS) en schnitzlersyndroom

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    de Koning, H.D.; Schalkwijk, J.; van der Meer, J.W.; Simon, A.

    2012-01-01

    Cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS) is a hereditary autoinflammatory disorder. Patients suffer from chronic systemic inflammation involving the skin (urticaria), joints arthritis) and in some cases also peritoneum (peritonitis) and meninges (meningitis). Recently, a causative mutation was

  14. The Influence of Company Size on Accounting Information: Evidence in Large Caps and Small Caps Companies Listed on BM&FBovespa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Karen Yukari Yokoyama

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available In this study, the relation between accounting information aspects and the capitalization level o companies listed on the São Paulo Stock Exchange was investigated, classified as Large Caps or Small Caps, companies with larger and smaller capitalization, respectively, between 2010 and 2012. Three accounting information measures were addressed: informativeness, conservatism and relevance, through the application of Easton and Harris’ (1991 models of earnings informativeness, Basu’s (1997 model of conditional conservatism and the value relevance model, based on Ohlson (1995. The results appointed that, although the Large Caps present a higher level of conservatism, their accounting figures were less informative and more relevant when compared to the Large Caps companies. Due to the greater production of private information (predisclosure surrounding larger companies, the market would tend to respond less strongly or surprised to the publication of these companies’ accounting information, while the lack of anticipated information would make the effect of disclosing these figures more preponderant for the Small Caps companies.

  15. Learning User Preferences in Ubiquitous Systems: A User Study and a Reinforcement Learning Approach

    OpenAIRE

    Zaidenberg , Sofia; Reignier , Patrick; Mandran , Nadine

    2010-01-01

    International audience; Our study concerns a virtual assistant, proposing services to the user based on its current perceived activity and situation (ambient intelligence). Instead of asking the user to define his preferences, we acquire them automatically using a reinforcement learning approach. Experiments showed that our system succeeded the learning of user preferences. In order to validate the relevance and usability of such a system, we have first conducted a user study. 26 non-expert s...

  16. Contabilidad de Costos II. - Capítulo 4. Respuestas

    OpenAIRE

    Morillo Moreno, Marysela C.

    2008-01-01

    ÍNDICE Presentación Orientaciones para el usuario Capítulo 1: Contabilidad de costos por procesos Sistemas de Contabilidad de Costos por Proceso Costos de Producción Conjunta. Productos Principales y Secundarios Capítulo 2: Contabilidad de costos predeterminados Presupuesto Estático y Presupuesto Flexible Sistema de Costos Estándar Capítulo 3: Sistema de costos variables Capítulo 4: Respuestas Bibliografía recomendada Pr...

  17. Adjusting the CO2 cap to subsidised RES generation: Can CO2 prices be decoupled from renewable policy?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Richstein, Jörn C.; Chappin, Émile J.L.; Vries, Laurens J. de

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Strong renewable policy can cause price drops in an emission trading system (ETS). • Cap reduction based on exceedance of original policy goals could prevent price drops. • Dynamic cap reduction makes renewable policy climate effective in an ETS. • Dynamic cap reduction is not useful for reaching carbon price or volatility goals. • Dynamic cap reduction could undo the “green promotes the dirtiest” effect. - Abstract: The low prices in the European Emission Trading System (EU ETS) have triggered discussions of various possible reforms. One option is to decouple the CO 2 prices from renewable energy policy by adjusting the emission cap to renewable energy investment overshoots. We introduce two ways of reducing the CO 2 cap in response to overshoots of renewable policy investment over previously announced targets. We investigate these options with the agent-based model EMLab-generation. We find that both policy implementations are successful in restoring prices. They also ensure that making public investments that exceed policy targets contribute to carbon emission reduction, and that renewable policy does not benefit the most emission-intensive power plants. However, neither policy is suitable for achieving specifc levels of prices or price volatility

  18. Geosynthetic Reinforced Soil Integrated Bridge System, Synthesis Report

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-01-01

    This report is the second in a two-part series to provide engineers with the necessary background knowledge of Geosynthetic Reinforced Soil (GRS) technology and its fundamental characteristics as an alternative to other construction methods. It suppl...

  19. On a randomly imperfect spherical cap pressurized by a random ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    On a randomly imperfect spherical cap pressurized by a random dynamic load. ... In this paper, we investigate a dynamical system in a random setting of dual ... characterization of the random process for determining the dynamic buckling load ...

  20. 22 CFR 121.11 - Military demolition blocks and blasting caps.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Military demolition blocks and blasting caps... blasting caps. Military demolition blocks and blasting caps referred to in Category IV(a) do not include the following articles: (a) Electric squibs. (b) No. 6 and No. 8 blasting caps, including electric...

  1. Influence of Reinforcement Anisotropy on the Stress Distribution in Tension and Shear of a Fusion Magnet Insulation System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Humer, K.; Raff, S.; Prokopec, R.; Weber, H. W.

    2008-03-01

    A glass fiber reinforced plastic laminate, which consists of half-overlapped wrapped Kapton/R-glass-fiber reinforcing tapes vacuum-pressure impregnated in a cyanate ester/epoxy blend, is proposed as the insulation system for the ITER Toroidal Field coils. In order to assess its mechanical performance under the actual operating conditions, cryogenic (77 K) tensile and interlaminar shear tests were done after irradiation to the ITER design fluence of 1×1022 m-2 (E>0.1 MeV). The data were then used for a Finite Element Method (FEM) stress analysis. We find that the mechanical strength and the fracture behavior as well as the stress distribution and the failure criteria are strongly influenced by the winding direction and the wrapping technique of the reinforcing tapes.

  2. Genomic Signatures of Reinforcement

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Austin G. Garner

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Reinforcement is the process by which selection against hybridization increases reproductive isolation between taxa. Much research has focused on demonstrating the existence of reinforcement, yet relatively little is known about the genetic basis of reinforcement or the evolutionary conditions under which reinforcement can occur. Inspired by reinforcement’s characteristic phenotypic pattern of reproductive trait divergence in sympatry but not in allopatry, we discuss whether reinforcement also leaves a distinct genomic pattern. First, we describe three patterns of genetic variation we expect as a consequence of reinforcement. Then, we discuss a set of alternative processes and complicating factors that may make the identification of reinforcement at the genomic level difficult. Finally, we consider how genomic analyses can be leveraged to inform if and to what extent reinforcement evolved in the face of gene flow between sympatric lineages and between allopatric and sympatric populations of the same lineage. Our major goals are to understand if genome scans for particular patterns of genetic variation could identify reinforcement, isolate the genetic basis of reinforcement, or infer the conditions under which reinforcement evolved.

  3. Genomic Signatures of Reinforcement

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goulet, Benjamin E.

    2018-01-01

    Reinforcement is the process by which selection against hybridization increases reproductive isolation between taxa. Much research has focused on demonstrating the existence of reinforcement, yet relatively little is known about the genetic basis of reinforcement or the evolutionary conditions under which reinforcement can occur. Inspired by reinforcement’s characteristic phenotypic pattern of reproductive trait divergence in sympatry but not in allopatry, we discuss whether reinforcement also leaves a distinct genomic pattern. First, we describe three patterns of genetic variation we expect as a consequence of reinforcement. Then, we discuss a set of alternative processes and complicating factors that may make the identification of reinforcement at the genomic level difficult. Finally, we consider how genomic analyses can be leveraged to inform if and to what extent reinforcement evolved in the face of gene flow between sympatric lineages and between allopatric and sympatric populations of the same lineage. Our major goals are to understand if genome scans for particular patterns of genetic variation could identify reinforcement, isolate the genetic basis of reinforcement, or infer the conditions under which reinforcement evolved. PMID:29614048

  4. [Carbon fiber-reinforced plastics as implant materials].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bader, R; Steinhauser, E; Rechl, H; Siebels, W; Mittelmeier, W; Gradinger, R

    2003-01-01

    Carbon fiber-reinforced plastics have been used clinically as an implant material for different applications for over 20 years.A review of technical basics of the composite materials (carbon fibers and matrix systems), fields of application,advantages (e.g., postoperative visualization without distortion in computed and magnetic resonance tomography), and disadvantages with use as an implant material is given. The question of the biocompatibility of carbon fiber-reinforced plastics is discussed on the basis of experimental and clinical studies. Selected implant systems made of carbon composite materials for treatments in orthopedic surgery such as joint replacement, tumor surgery, and spinal operations are presented and assessed. Present applications for carbon fiber reinforced plastics are seen in the field of spinal surgery, both as cages for interbody fusion and vertebral body replacement.

  5. IN SITU REMEDIATION OF CONTAMINATED SEDIMENTS - ACTIVE CAPPING TECHNOLOGY

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Knox, A.; Roberts, J.; Paller, M.; Reible, D.

    2010-09-02

    Active capping is a relatively new approach for treating contaminated sediments. It involves applying chemically reactive amendments to the sediment surface. The main role of active caps is to stabilize contaminants in contaminated sediments, lower the bioavailable pool of contaminants, and reduce the release of contaminants to the water column. Metals are common contaminants in many marine and fresh water environments as a result of industrial and military activities. The mobile, soluble forms of metals are generally considered toxic. Induced chemical precipitation of these metals can shift toxic metals from the aqueous phase to a solid, precipitated phase which is often less bioavailable. This approach can be achieved through application of sequestering agents such as rock phosphates, organoclays, zeolites, clay minerals, and biopolymers (e.g., chitosan) in active capping technology. Active capping holds great potential for a more permanent solution that avoids residual risks resulting from contaminant migration through the cap or breaching of the cap. In addition to identifying superior active capping agents, research is needed to optimize application techniques, application rates, and amendment combinations that maximize sequestration of contaminants. A selected set of active capping treatment technologies has been demonstrated at a few sites, including a field demonstration at the Savannah River Site, Aiken, SC. This demonstration has provided useful information on the effects of sequestering agents on metal immobilization, bioavailability, toxicity, and resistance to mechanical disturbance.

  6. In Situ Remediation Of Contaminated Sediments - Active Capping Technology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knox, A.; Roberts, J.; Paller, M.; Reible, D.

    2010-01-01

    Active capping is a relatively new approach for treating contaminated sediments. It involves applying chemically reactive amendments to the sediment surface. The main role of active caps is to stabilize contaminants in contaminated sediments, lower the bioavailable pool of contaminants, and reduce the release of contaminants to the water column. Metals are common contaminants in many marine and fresh water environments as a result of industrial and military activities. The mobile, soluble forms of metals are generally considered toxic. Induced chemical precipitation of these metals can shift toxic metals from the aqueous phase to a solid, precipitated phase which is often less bioavailable. This approach can be achieved through application of sequestering agents such as rock phosphates, organoclays, zeolites, clay minerals, and biopolymers (e.g., chitosan) in active capping technology. Active capping holds great potential for a more permanent solution that avoids residual risks resulting from contaminant migration through the cap or breaching of the cap. In addition to identifying superior active capping agents, research is needed to optimize application techniques, application rates, and amendment combinations that maximize sequestration of contaminants. A selected set of active capping treatment technologies has been demonstrated at a few sites, including a field demonstration at the Savannah River Site, Aiken, SC. This demonstration has provided useful information on the effects of sequestering agents on metal immobilization, bioavailability, toxicity, and resistance to mechanical disturbance.

  7. Habituation of reinforcer effectiveness

    OpenAIRE

    David R Lloyd; David R Lloyd; Douglas J Medina; Larry W Hawk; Whitney D Fosco; Jerry B Richards

    2014-01-01

    In this paper we propose an integrative model of habituation of reinforcer effectiveness (HRE) that links behavioral and neural based explanations of reinforcement. We argue that habituation of reinforcer effectiveness (HRE) is a fundamental property of reinforcing stimuli. Most reinforcement models implicitly suggest that the effectiveness of a reinforcer is stable across repeated presentations. In contrast, an HRE approach predicts decreased effectiveness due to repeated presentation. We ar...

  8. Structural Behavior of Concrete Beams Reinforced with Basalt Fiber Reinforced Polymer (BFRP) Bars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ovitigala, Thilan

    The main challenge for civil engineers is to provide sustainable, environmentally friendly and financially feasible structures to the society. Finding new materials such as fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) material that can fulfill the above requirements is a must. FRP material was expensive and it was limited to niche markets such as space shuttles and air industry in the 1960s. Over the time, it became cheaper and spread to other industries such as sporting goods in the 1980-1990, and then towards the infrastructure industry. Design and construction guidelines are available for carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP), aramid fiber reinforced polymer (AFRP) and glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) and they are currently used in structural applications. Since FRP is linear elastic brittle material, design guidelines for the steel reinforcement are not valid for FRP materials. Corrosion of steel reinforcement affects the durability of the concrete structures. FRP reinforcement is identified as an alternative to steel reinforcement in corrosive environments. Although basalt fiber reinforced polymer (BFRP) has many advantages over other FRP materials, but limited studies have been done. These studies didn't include larger BFRP bar diameters that are mostly used in practice. Therefore, larger beam sizes with larger BFRP reinforcement bar diameters are needed to investigate the flexural and shear behavior of BFRP reinforced concrete beams. Also, shear behavior of BFRP reinforced concrete beams was not yet studied. Experimental testing of mechanical properties and bond strength of BFRP bars and flexural and shear behavior of BFRP reinforced concrete beams are needed to include BFRP reinforcement bars in the design codes. This study mainly focuses on the use of BFRP bars as internal reinforcement. The test results of the mechanical properties of BFRP reinforcement bars, the bond strength of BFRP reinforcement bars, and the flexural and shear behavior of concrete beams

  9. Strain rate effects on reinforcing steels in tension

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cadoni, Ezio; Forni, Daniele

    2015-09-01

    It is unquestionable the fact that a structural system should be able to fulfil the function for which it was created, without being damaged to an extent disproportionate to the cause of damage. In addition, it is an undeniable fact that in reinforced concrete structures under severe dynamic loadings, both concrete and reinforcing bars are subjected to high strain-rates. Although the behavior of the reinforcing steel under high strain rates is of capital importance in the structural assessment under the abovementioned conditions, only the behaviour of concrete has been widely studied. Due to this lack of data on the reinforcing steel under high strain rates, an experimental program on rebar reinforcing steels under high strain rates in tension is running at the DynaMat Laboratory. In this paper a comparison of the behaviour in a wide range of strain-rates of several types of reinforcing steel in tension is presented. Three reinforcing steels, commonly proposed by the European Standards, are compared: B500A, B500B and B500C. Lastly, an evaluation of the most common constitutive laws is performed.

  10. Traffic light control by multiagent reinforcement learning systems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bakker, B.; Whiteson, S.; Kester, L.; Groen, F.C.A.; Babuška, R.; Groen, F.C.A.

    2010-01-01

    Traffic light control is one of the main means of controlling road traffic. Improving traffic control is important because it can lead to higher traffic throughput and reduced traffic congestion. This chapter describes multiagent reinforcement learning techniques for automatic optimization of

  11. Traffic Light Control by Multiagent Reinforcement Learning Systems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bakker, B.; Whiteson, S.; Kester, L.J.H.M.; Groen, F.C.A.

    2010-01-01

    Traffic light control is one of the main means of controlling road traffic. Improving traffic control is important because it can lead to higher traffic throughput and reduced traffic congestion. This chapter describes multiagent reinforcement learning techniques for automatic optimization of

  12. Reinforced soil structures. Volume I, Design and construction guidelines

    Science.gov (United States)

    1990-11-01

    This report presents comprehensive guidelines for evaluating and using soil reinforcement techniques in the construction of retaining walls, embankment slopes, and natural or cut slopes. A variety of available systems for reinforced soil including in...

  13. Adapting without reinforcement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kheifets, Aaron; Gallistel, C Randy

    2012-11-01

    Our data rule out a broad class of behavioral models in which behavioral change is guided by differential reinforcement. To demonstrate this, we showed that the number of reinforcers missed before the subject shifted its behavior was not sufficient to drive behavioral change. What's more, many subjects shifted their behavior to a more optimal strategy even when they had not yet missed a single reinforcer. Naturally, differential reinforcement cannot be said to drive a process that shifts to accommodate to new conditions so adeptly that it doesn't miss a single reinforcer: it would have no input on which to base this shift.

  14. Lowering the YE+1 end-cap for CMS

    CERN Multimedia

    Maximilien Brice

    2007-01-01

    On 9 January 2007, the massive YE+1 end-cap was lowered into the CMS cavern. This is a very precise process as the crane must lower the end-cap through minimal clearance without tilt or sway. Once in the cavern, the end-cap is then positioned over the end of the barrel to detect particles produced in collisions that travel close to the axis of the beams.

  15. Microtubule dynamics: Caps, catastrophes, and coupled hydrolysis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Flyvbjerg, H.; Holy, T.E.; Leibler, S.

    1996-01-01

    An effective theory is formulated for the dynamics of the guanosine triphosphate (GTP) cap believed to stabilize growing microtubules. The theory provides a ''coarse-grained'' description of the cap's dynamics. ''Microscopic'' details, such as the microtubule lattice structure and the fate of its...

  16. Who's (Still) Above the Social Security Payroll Tax Cap?

    OpenAIRE

    Nicole Woo; Janelle Jones; John Schmitt

    2012-01-01

    The Social Security payroll tax cap is the earnings level above which no further Social Security taxes are collected. The cap is currently at $110,100, though legislation has been introduced in Congress to apply the Social Security payroll tax to earnings above $250,000 (but not between the current cap and this level). This issue brief updates earlier work, finding that 5.8 percent of workers would be affected if the Social Security cap were eliminated entirely and 1.4 percent would be affect...

  17. Substorms and polar cap convection: the 10 January 2004 interplanetary CME case

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y. Andalsvik

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available The expansion-contraction model of Dungey cell plasma convection has two different convection sources, i.e. reconnections at the magnetopause and in the magnetotail. The spatial-temporal structure of the nightside source is not yet well understood. In this study we shall identify temporal variations in the winter polar cap convection structure during substorm activity under steady interplanetary conditions. Substorm activity (electrojets and particle precipitations is monitored by excellent ground-satellite DMSP F15 conjunctions in the dusk-premidnight sector. We take advantage of the wide latitudinal coverage of the IMAGE chain of ground magnetometers in Svalbard – Scandinavia – Russia for the purpose of monitoring magnetic deflections associated with polar cap convection and substorm electrojets. These are augmented by direct observations of polar cap convection derived from SuperDARN radars and cross-track ion drift observations during traversals of polar cap along the dusk-dawn meridian by spacecraft DMSP F13. The interval we study is characterized by moderate, stable forcing of the magnetosphere-ionosphere system (EKL = 4.0–4.5 mV m−1; cross polar cap potential (CPCP, Φ (Boyle = 115 kV during Earth passage of an interplanetary CME (ICME, choosing an 4-h interval where the magnetic field pointed continuously south-west (Bz By By polarity of the ICME magnetic field, a clear indication of a nightside source.

  18. /sup 56/Fe (. gamma. ,. cap alpha. /sub 0/) reaction

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tamae, T; Sugawara, M [Tohoku Univ., Sendai (Japan). Lab. of Nuclear Science; Tsubota, H

    1974-12-01

    The reaction cross section of /sup 56/Fe (..gamma.., ..cap alpha../sub 0/) was measured from the electron energy of 15 to 25 MeV. The measured data were compared with the calculated ones based on statistic theory. Both agreed with each other. Therefore, the affirmative result was obtained for the presumption that the reaction of (..gamma.., ..cap alpha../sub 0/) of the nuclei around these energy levels can be explained by the statistical theory. The angular distribution of /sup 56/Fe (..gamma.., ..cap alpha../sub 0/) with 17 MeV electron energy was also measured, and the E2/E1 ratio was obtained. In the measurement of the /sup 56/Fe ( Gamma , ..cap alpha../sub 0/) reaction cross section, a natural target of 2.69 mg/cm/sup 2/ was irradiated with an electron beam with energy from 15 MeV to 25 MeV at intervals of 0.5 MeV, and the emitted ..cap alpha.. particles were detected by a broad band magnetic distribution meter. The measured cross section of the (..gamma.., ..cap alpha../sub 0/) reaction agreed with the calculated one based on statistical theory. If this fact is recognized in many nuclei, the cross section of the (..gamma.., ..cap alpha../sub 0/) reaction on those nuclei has the following characteristics. When the increasing rate of the product of a complex nucleus formation cross section and ..cap alpha../sub 0/ penetration factor is larger than that of the sum of all penetration factors of possible channels, the cross section of the (..gamma.., ..cap alpha../sub 0/) reaction increases, and takes a peak value when the above two increasing rates agree with each other.

  19. Investigations of timing during the schedule and reinforcement intervals with wheel-running reinforcement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Belke, Terry W; Christie-Fougere, Melissa M

    2006-11-01

    Across two experiments, a peak procedure was used to assess the timing of the onset and offset of an opportunity to run as a reinforcer. The first experiment investigated the effect of reinforcer duration on temporal discrimination of the onset of the reinforcement interval. Three male Wistar rats were exposed to fixed-interval (FI) 30-s schedules of wheel-running reinforcement and the duration of the opportunity to run was varied across values of 15, 30, and 60s. Each session consisted of 50 reinforcers and 10 probe trials. Results showed that as reinforcer duration increased, the percentage of postreinforcement pauses longer than the 30-s schedule interval increased. On probe trials, peak response rates occurred near the time of reinforcer delivery and peak times varied with reinforcer duration. In a second experiment, seven female Long-Evans rats were exposed to FI 30-s schedules leading to 30-s opportunities to run. Timing of the onset and offset of the reinforcement period was assessed by probe trials during the schedule interval and during the reinforcement interval in separate conditions. The results provided evidence of timing of the onset, but not the offset of the wheel-running reinforcement period. Further research is required to assess if timing occurs during a wheel-running reinforcement period.

  20. Immunoprecipitation of Tri-methylated Capped RNA.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hayes, Karen E; Barr, Jamie A; Xie, Mingyi; Steitz, Joan A; Martinez, Ivan

    2018-02-05

    Cellular quiescence (also known as G 0 arrest) is characterized by reduced DNA replication, increased autophagy, and increased expression of cyclin-dependent kinase p27 Kip1 . Quiescence is essential for wound healing, organ regeneration, and preventing neoplasia. Previous findings indicate that microRNAs (miRNAs) play an important role in regulating cellular quiescence. Our recent publication demonstrated the existence of an alternative miRNA biogenesis pathway in primary human foreskin fibroblast (HFF) cells during quiescence. Indeed, we have identified a group of pri-miRNAs (whose mature miRNAs were found induced during quiescence) modified with a 2,2,7-trimethylguanosine (TMG)-cap by the trimethylguanosine synthase 1 (TGS1) protein and transported to the cytoplasm by the Exportin-1 (XPO1) protein. We used an antibody against (TMG)-caps (which does not cross-react with the (m 7 G)-caps that most pri-miRNAs or mRNAs contain [Luhrmann et al ., 1982]) to perform RNA immunoprecipitations from total RNA extracts of proliferating or quiescent HFFs. The novelty of this assay is the specific isolation of pri-miRNAs as well as other non-coding RNAs containing a TMG-cap modification.

  1. Mapping of p140Cap phosphorylation sites

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Repetto, Daniele; Aramu, Simona; Boeri Erba, Elisabetta

    2013-01-01

    phosphorylation and tunes its interactions with other regulatory molecules via post-translation modification. In this work, using mass spectrometry, we found that p140Cap is in vivo phosphorylated on tyrosine (Y) within the peptide GEGLpYADPYGLLHEGR (from now on referred to as EGLYA) as well as on three serine...... residues. Consistently, EGLYA has the highest score of in silico prediction of p140Cap phosphorylation. To further investigate the p140Cap function, we performed site specific mutagenesis on tyrosines inserted in EGLYA and EPLYA, a second sequence with the same highest score of phosphorylation. The mutant...

  2. Habituation of reinforcer effectiveness

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David R Lloyd

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we propose an integrative model of habituation of reinforcer effectiveness (HRE that links behavioral and neural based explanations of reinforcement. We argue that habituation of reinforcer effectiveness (HRE is a fundamental property of reinforcing stimuli. Most reinforcement models implicitly suggest that the effectiveness of a reinforcer is stable across repeated presentations. In contrast, an HRE approach predicts decreased effectiveness due to repeated presentation. We argue that repeated presentation of reinforcing stimuli decreases their effectiveness and that these decreases are described by the behavioral characteristics of habituation (McSweeney and Murphy, 2009;Rankin et al., 2009. We describe a neural model that postulates a positive association between dopamine neurotransmission and HRE. We present evidence that stimulant drugs, which artificially increase dopamine neurotransmission, disrupt (slow normally occurring HRE and also provide evidence that stimulant drugs have differential effects on operant responding maintained by reinforcers with rapid vs. slow HRE rates. We hypothesize that abnormal HRE due to genetic and/or environmental factors may underlie some behavioral disorders. For example, recent research indicates that slow-HRE is predictive of obesity. In contrast ADHD may reflect ‘accelerated-HRE’. Consideration of HRE is important for the development of effective reinforcement based treatments. Finally, we point out that most of the reinforcing stimuli that regulate daily behavior are non-consumable environmental/social reinforcers which have rapid-HRE. The almost exclusive use of consumable reinforcers with slow-HRE in pre-clinical studies with animals may have caused the importance of HRE to be overlooked. Further study of reinforcing stimuli with rapid-HRE is needed in order to understand how habituation and reinforcement interact and regulate behavior.

  3. Enhancing corrosion resistance of reinforced concrete structures with hybrid fiber reinforced concrete

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Blunt, J.; Jen, G.; Ostertag, C.P.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Reinforced concrete beams were subjected to cyclic flexural loading. • Hybrid fiber reinforced composites were effective in reducing corrosion rates. • Crack resistance due to fibers increased corrosion resistance of steel rebar. • Galvanic corrosion measurements underestimated corrosion rates. • Polarization resistance measurements predicted mass loss more accurately. - Abstract: Service loads well below the yield strength of steel reinforcing bars lead to cracking of reinforced concrete. This paper investigates whether the crack resistance of Hybrid Fiber Reinforced Concrete (HyFRC) reduces the corrosion rate of steel reinforcing bars in concrete after cyclic flexural loading. The reinforcing bars were extracted to examine their surface for corrosion and compare microcell and macrocell corrosion mass loss estimates against direct gravimetric measurements. A delay in corrosion initiation and lower active corrosion rates were observed in the HyFRC beam specimens when compared to reinforced specimens containing plain concrete matrices cycled at the same flexural load

  4. Model for capping of membrane receptors based on boundary surface effects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gershon, N. D.

    1978-01-01

    Crosslinking of membrane surface receptors may lead to their segregation into patches and then into a single large aggregate at one pole of the cell. This process is called capping. Here, a novel explanation of such a process is presented in which the membrane is viewed as a supersaturated solution of receptors in the lipid bilayer and the adjacent two aqueous layers. Without a crosslinking agent, a patch of receptors that is less than a certain size cannot stay in equilibrium with the solution and thus should dissolve. Patches greater than a certain size are stable and can, in principle, grow by the precipitation of the remaining dissolved receptors from the supersaturated solution. The task of the crosslinking molecules is to form such stable patches. These considerations are based on a qualitative thermodynamic calculation that takes into account the existence of a boundary tension in a patch (in analogy to the surface tension of a droplet). Thermodynamically, these systems should cap spontaneously after the patches have reached a certain size. But, in practice, such a process can be very slow. A suspension of patches may stay practically stable. The ways in which a cell may abolish this metastable equilibrium and thus achieve capping are considered and possible effects of capping inhibitors are discussed. PMID:274724

  5. Carbon mitigation in the electric power sector under cap-and-trade and renewables policies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Delarue, Erik; Van den Bergh, Kenneth

    2016-01-01

    In Europe, CO_2 emissions from the electric power sector and energy intensive industries are capped under a cap-and-trade system (i.e., the EU ETS). When other indirect measures are taken to impact emissions in a specific sector under the cap (such as a push for renewables in the electric power sector), this has implications on the overall allowance price, and on CO_2 emissions both from this specific sector and the other sectors under the cap. The central contribution of this paper is the derivation of impact curves, which describe these interactions, i.e., the impact on allowance price and the shift of emissions across sectors. From a set of detailed simulations of the electric power system operation, a so-called “emission plane” is obtained, from which impact curves can be derived. Focus is on interactions between CO_2 abatement through fuel switching and measures affecting the residual electricity demand (such as deployment of renewables) in the electric power sector, as well as on interactions with other sectors, both in a short-term framework. A case study for Central-Western Europe is presented. The analysis reveals a substantial impact of renewables on CO_2 emissions, and hence on emissions shifts across sectors and/or on the CO_2 price. - Highlights: •CO_2 cap-and-trade interacts with policies targeting one specific sector under cap. •Interaction creates emission displacement and/or impacts CO_2 price. •The central contribution is the derivation of impact curves from the emission plane. •The method is applied to a case study of Central-Western Europe. •The analysis reveals a large impact of renewables on CO_2 displacement and/or price.

  6. Future restrictions for sinks in the CDM. How about a cap on supply?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Forner, C.; Jotzo, F.

    2002-01-01

    The first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol is expected to result in only a small role for the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), including afforestation and reforestation projects. Wide ranging concerns regarding sinks in the CDM have been reflected in the Marrakech Accords capping the total amount of emission offsets from sinks projects to be used by Annex I countries. Decisions about the second commitment period and beyond are likely to be of far greater importance for these projects. This paper contributes to the discussion on how caps on sinks under the CDM could be used to obtain overall improved outcomes for developing countries. We examine two distinctive ways in which quantitative caps on sinks in the CDM can be implemented: one, restricting the use of sinks CERs to meet targets, as under the Marrakech Accords (a cap on demand); and two, restricting supply of sink CERs using a quota system. We argue in favour of a supply side cap, if Parties are to preserve the idea of limiting sinks in the CDM. Limiting the supply of credits could lead to better financial outcomes for developing countries as a whole, make higher-cost projects viable which may have better sustainability impacts, and provide an alternative to deal with equity concerns between developing countries

  7. ATLAS end-caps 
on the move

    CERN Multimedia

    2007-01-01

    Two delicate and spectacular transport operations have been performed for ATLAS in recent weeks: the first end-cap tracker was installed in its final position, and one of the huge end-caps of the toroid magnet was moved to the top of the experiment’s shaft.

  8. Wind blade spar cap and method of making

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mohamed, Mansour H [Raleigh, NC

    2008-05-27

    A wind blade spar cap for strengthening a wind blade including an integral, unitary three-dimensional woven material having a first end and a second end, corresponding to a root end of the blade and a tip end of the blade, wherein the material tapers in width from the first to the second end while maintaining a constant thickness and decreasing weight therebetween, the cap being capable of being affixed to the blade for providing increased strength with controlled variation in weight from the root end to the tip end based upon the tapered width of the material thereof. The present inventions also include the method of making the wind blade spar cap and a wind blade including the wind blade spar cap.

  9. Theoretical and numerical analysis of reinforced concrete beams with confinement reinforcement

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. G. Delalibera

    Full Text Available This paper discusses the use of confinement in over-reinforced concrete beams. This reinforcement consists of square stirrups, placed in the compression zone of the beam cross-section, in order to improve its ductility. A parametric numerical study is initially performed, using a finite element computational program that considers the material nonlinearities and the confinement effect. To investigate the influence of the transverse reinforcing ratio on the beam ductility, an experimental program was also conducted. Four over-reinforced beams were tested; three beam specimens with additional transverse reinforcement to confine the beams, and one without it. All specimens were fabricated with a concrete designed for a compressive strength of 25 MPa. The experimental results show that the post-peak ductility factor is proportional to the confining reinforcement ratio, however the same is not observed for the pre-peak ductility factor, which varied randomly with changes in the confining reinforcement ratio. It was also observed from the experiments that the confinement effect tends to be smaller close to the beam neutral axis.

  10. Targeting interleukin-1β in CAPS (cryopyrin-associated periodic) syndromes: what did we learn?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koné-Paut, Isabelle; Piram, Maryam

    2012-11-01

    CAPS is the prototype of an IL-1β driven auto inflammatory disorder. Features of recurrent systemic inflammation compromises patient's quality of life, and may reduce life expectancy by inducing definite organ damage. Recent treatment targeting IL-1 have shown dramatic effect on patient's clinical symptoms and quality of life. Anakinra was first used successfully in treating small series of patients with all CAPS phenotypes. Two pivotal randomized placebo-controlled studies allowed licensing of rilonacept and canakinumab as orphan drugs for CAPS patients. The use of anti-IL-1 drugs in CAPS is still relatively new, and their effect on a long term is not well known. As we can suppress the clinical symptoms of patients with CAPS, important questions remain regarding the full effect of anti-IL-1 treatment on organ involvement and their potential ability to prevent them. As important variations of treatment doses and schedules appear in reaching effectiveness, pharmacologic studies are still warranted to determine a potential diffusion of anti-IL-1 drugs in the fluids and tissues. More studies evaluating the efficacy and safety of anti-IL-1 drugs given in patients before 2 years of age are warranted, since it is believed that the earliest treatment could avoid secondary CAPS complications to develop. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Habituation of reinforcer effectiveness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lloyd, David R; Medina, Douglas J; Hawk, Larry W; Fosco, Whitney D; Richards, Jerry B

    2014-01-09

    In this paper we propose an integrative model of habituation of reinforcer effectiveness (HRE) that links behavioral- and neural-based explanations of reinforcement. We argue that HRE is a fundamental property of reinforcing stimuli. Most reinforcement models implicitly suggest that the effectiveness of a reinforcer is stable across repeated presentations. In contrast, an HRE approach predicts decreased effectiveness due to repeated presentation. We argue that repeated presentation of reinforcing stimuli decreases their effectiveness and that these decreases are described by the behavioral characteristics of habituation (McSweeney and Murphy, 2009; Rankin etal., 2009). We describe a neural model that postulates a positive association between dopamine neurotransmission and HRE. We present evidence that stimulant drugs, which artificially increase dopamine neurotransmission, disrupt (slow) normally occurring HRE and also provide evidence that stimulant drugs have differential effects on operant responding maintained by reinforcers with rapid vs. slow HRE rates. We hypothesize that abnormal HRE due to genetic and/or environmental factors may underlie some behavioral disorders. For example, recent research indicates that slow-HRE is predictive of obesity. In contrast ADHD may reflect "accelerated-HRE." Consideration of HRE is important for the development of effective reinforcement-based treatments. Finally, we point out that most of the reinforcing stimuli that regulate daily behavior are non-consumable environmental/social reinforcers which have rapid-HRE. The almost exclusive use of consumable reinforcers with slow-HRE in pre-clinical studies with animals may have caused the importance of HRE to be overlooked. Further study of reinforcing stimuli with rapid-HRE is needed in order to understand how habituation and reinforcement interact and regulate behavior.

  12. Fluorosurfactant-capped gold nanoparticles-enhanced chemiluminescence from hydrogen peroxide-hydroxide and hydrogen peroxide-bicarbonate in presence of cobalt(II)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Jinge; Li, Qianqian; Lu, Chao; Zhao, Lixia; Lin, Jin-Ming

    2011-02-01

    Nonionic fluorosurfactant (FSN)-capped gold nanoparticles (GNPs) remain excellently stable at a wider pH range and high ionic strength, which is useful to investigate some CL systems involved in high salt and a strict pH range. In this study, we utilized FSN-capped GNPs of different sizes to distinguish the emitting species from H 2O 2-Co 2+-NaOH and H 2O 2-Co 2+-NaHCO 3 systems. When the pH of FSN-capped gold colloidal solution was adjusted to 10.2 by dropwise addition of 0.05 M NaOH, the CL intensity of H 2O 2-Co 2+-NaHCO 3 system was enhanced 6-fold or 60-fold respectively in the presence of FSN-capped 14 nm or 69 nm GNPs with comparison to H 2O 2-Co 2+-NaOH. The variation of CL spectra and UV-vis spectra, as well as the quenching effect of reactive oxygen species scavengers were studied in detail to understand the CL enhancement mechanisms of FSN-capped GNPs on the two systems. For H 2O 2-Co 2+-NaOH system, the gold(I) complexes intermediate and singlet oxygen dimol species were proposed as the emitting species. The excited states of the carbon dioxide dimers and singlet oxygen dimol species were considered responsible for the light emission of H 2O 2-Co 2+-NaHCO 3 system. To our knowledge, this work is the first time to study the two CL systems simultaneously using nanoparticles.

  13. Truncated Dual-Cap Nucleation Site Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matson, Douglas M.; Sander, Paul J.

    2012-01-01

    During heterogeneous nucleation within a metastable mushy-zone, several geometries for nucleation site development must be considered. Traditional spherical dual cap and crevice models are compared to a truncated dual cap to determine the activation energy and critical cluster growth kinetics in ternary Fe-Cr-Ni steel alloys. Results of activation energy results indicate that nucleation is more probable at grain boundaries within the solid than at the solid-liquid interface.

  14. Cost-Efficient Wafer-Level Capping for MEMS and Imaging Sensors by Adhesive Wafer Bonding

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Simon J. Bleiker

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Device encapsulation and packaging often constitutes a substantial part of the fabrication cost of micro electro-mechanical systems (MEMS transducers and imaging sensor devices. In this paper, we propose a simple and cost-effective wafer-level capping method that utilizes a limited number of highly standardized process steps as well as low-cost materials. The proposed capping process is based on low-temperature adhesive wafer bonding, which ensures full complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS compatibility. All necessary fabrication steps for the wafer bonding, such as cavity formation and deposition of the adhesive, are performed on the capping substrate. The polymer adhesive is deposited by spray-coating on the capping wafer containing the cavities. Thus, no lithographic patterning of the polymer adhesive is needed, and material waste is minimized. Furthermore, this process does not require any additional fabrication steps on the device wafer, which lowers the process complexity and fabrication costs. We demonstrate the proposed capping method by packaging two different MEMS devices. The two MEMS devices include a vibration sensor and an acceleration switch, which employ two different electrical interconnection schemes. The experimental results show wafer-level capping with excellent bond quality due to the re-flow behavior of the polymer adhesive. No impediment to the functionality of the MEMS devices was observed, which indicates that the encapsulation does not introduce significant tensile nor compressive stresses. Thus, we present a highly versatile, robust, and cost-efficient capping method for components such as MEMS and imaging sensors.

  15. cap alpha. -bungarotoxin binding properties of a central nervous system nicotinic acetylcholine receptor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lukasiewicz, R J; Bennett, E L

    1978-01-01

    High-affinity, specific binding of radiolabeled ..cap alpha..-bungarotoxin to particulate fractions derived from rat brain shows saturability (B/sub max/ approx. = 37fmol/mg, K/sub D//sup app/ = 1.7 nM) and insensitivity to ionic strength, and is essentially irreversible (K/sub on/ = 5 x 10/sup 6/ min/sup -1/ x mol/sup -1/; K(displacement) = 1.9 x 10/sup -4/ min/sup -1/, tau/sub 1/2/ = 62 h). Subcellular distribution of specific sites is consistent with their location on synaptic junctional complex and post-synaptic membranes. These membrane-bound binding sites exhibit unique sensitivity to cholinergic ligands; pretreatment of membranes with cholinergic agonists (but not antagonists) induces transformation of ..cap alpha..-bungarotoxin binding sites to a high affinity form toward agonist. The effect is most marked for the natural agonist, acetylcholine. These results strongly support the notion that the entity under study is an authentic nicotinic acetylcholine receptor.

  16. Temperature Distribution within a Cold Cap during Nuclear Waste Vitrification.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dixon, Derek R; Schweiger, Michael J; Riley, Brian J; Pokorny, Richard; Hrma, Pavel

    2015-07-21

    The kinetics of the feed-to-glass conversion affects the waste vitrification rate in an electric glass melter. The primary area of interest in this conversion process is the cold cap, a layer of reacting feed on top of the molten glass. The work presented here provides an experimental determination of the temperature distribution within the cold cap. Because direct measurement of the temperature field within the cold cap is impracticable, an indirect method was developed in which the textural features in a laboratory-made cold cap with a simulated high-level waste feed were mapped as a function of position using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. The temperature distribution within the cold cap was established by correlating microstructures of cold-cap regions with heat-treated feed samples of nearly identical structures at known temperatures. This temperature profile was compared with a mathematically simulated profile generated by a cold-cap model that has been developed to assess the rate of glass production in a melter.

  17. 20 CFR 606.21 - Criteria for cap.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Criteria for cap. 606.21 Section 606.21 Employees' Benefits EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR TAX CREDITS UNDER THE... Reduction § 606.21 Criteria for cap. (a) Reduction in unemployment tax effort. (1) For purposes of paragraph...

  18. Stay-in-Place Formwork of TRC Designed as Shear Reinforcement for Concrete Beams

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. Verbruggen

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available In order to reduce on-site building time, the construction industry shows an increasing interest in stay-in-place formwork with a reinforcement function after concrete hardening, such as CFRP formwork confinement for columns. The current combined systems however do not answer the demand of the building industry for a material system that is both lightweight and fire safe. High performance textile reinforced cement (TRC composites can address this need. They can be particularly interesting for the shear reinforcement of concrete beams. This paper describes a preliminary analysis and feasibility study on structural stay-in-place formwork made of TRC. Comparative bending experiments demonstrate that a fully steel reinforced beam and an equivalent beam with shear reinforcement in TRC formwork show similar yielding behaviour, indicating that the TRC shear reinforcement system actually works. Moreover, the cracking moment of the concrete was more or less doubled, resulting in a much lower deflection in serviceability limit state than calculated. Digital image correlation measurements show that the latter is due to the crack bridging capacity of the external TRC shear reinforcement.

  19. Brain network response underlying decisions about abstract reinforcers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mills-Finnerty, Colleen; Hanson, Catherine; Hanson, Stephen Jose

    2014-12-01

    Decision making studies typically use tasks that involve concrete action-outcome contingencies, in which subjects do something and get something. No studies have addressed decision making involving abstract reinforcers, where there are no action-outcome contingencies and choices are entirely hypothetical. The present study examines these kinds of choices, as well as whether the same biases that exist for concrete reinforcer decisions, specifically framing effects, also apply during abstract reinforcer decisions. We use both General Linear Model as well as Bayes network connectivity analysis using the Independent Multi-sample Greedy Equivalence Search (IMaGES) algorithm to examine network response underlying choices for abstract reinforcers under positive and negative framing. We find for the first time that abstract reinforcer decisions activate the same network of brain regions as concrete reinforcer decisions, including the striatum, insula, anterior cingulate, and VMPFC, results that are further supported via comparison to a meta-analysis of decision making studies. Positive and negative framing activated different parts of this network, with stronger activation in VMPFC during negative framing and in DLPFC during positive, suggesting different decision making pathways depending on frame. These results were further clarified using connectivity analysis, which revealed stronger connections between anterior cingulate, insula, and accumbens during negative framing compared to positive. Taken together, these results suggest that not only do abstract reinforcer decisions rely on the same brain substrates as concrete reinforcers, but that the response underlying framing effects on abstract reinforcers also resemble those for concrete reinforcers, specifically increased limbic system connectivity during negative frames. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Engineering status of the superconducting end cap toroid magnets for the ATLAS experiment at LHC

    CERN Document Server

    Baynham, D Elwyn; Carr, F S; Courthold, M J D; Cragg, D A; Densham, C J; Evans, D; Holtom, E; Rochford, J; Sole, D; Towndrow, Edwin F; Warner, G P

    2000-01-01

    The ATLAS experiment at LHC, CERN will utilise a large, superconducting, air-cored toroid magnet system for precision muon measurements. The magnet system will consist of a long barrel and two end-cap toroids. Each end-cap toroid will contain eight racetrack coils mounted as a single cold mass in cryostat vessel of ~10 m diameter. The project has now moved from the design/specification stage into the fabrication phase. This paper presents the engineering status of the cold masses and vacuum vessels that are under fabrication in industry. Final designs of cold mass supports, cryogenic systems and control/protection systems are presented. Planning for toroid integration, test and installation is described. (3 refs).

  1. Development of a novel multi-functional active membrane capping barrier for the remediation of nitrobenzene-contaminated sediment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Qing; Li, Yi; Wang, Chao; Wu, Yue; Wang, Peifang

    2014-07-15

    A novel bio-reactive capping barrier composed of polysulfone/granular activated carbon (PS/GAC) hybrid membranes immobilized with microorganism was developed for the remediation of nitrobenzene in sediments. The SEM observation demonstrated that all the membranes had a dense top layer and a porous sublayer, this structure can block the transfer of nitrobenzene from sediment to the water and enhance nitrobenzene degradation. Adsorption behaviors of nitrobenzene on membranes showed that the membrane impregnated with GAC had better performance than the pure PS membrane. The values of Kads increased from 4.64 (without GAC) to 6.19 (1:2 GAC). 20mg/L nitrobenzene can be completely degraded by Pseudomonas putida immobilized on membranes. The biodegradation rate of activated carbon-filled membrane system was little higher than that of pure PS membrane system. For remediation experiments, only about 21.7, 28.3 and 43.9% of nitrobenzene in the sediment was removed by the end of the experiments for PS/GAC membrane, sand-alone and sand amended with activated carbon capping systems, respectively. While for PS/GAC+microorganisms capping system, more than 70% of nitrobenzene loss was observed. This demonstrated that nitrobenzene can be effectively removed from contaminated sediments by microbial degradation in the bio-reactive capping system. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Axial Compression Tests on Corroded Reinforced Concrete Columns Consolidated with Fibre Reinforced Polymers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bin Ding

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Reinforced concrete structure featured by strong bearing capacity, high rigidity, good integrity, good fire resistance, and extensive applicability occupies a mainstream position in contemporary architecture. However, with the development of social economy, people need higher requirements on architectural structure; durability, especially, has been extensively researched. Because of the higher requirement on building material, ordinary reinforced concrete structure has not been able to satisfy the demand. As a result, some new materials and structures have emerged, for example, fibre reinforced polymers. Compared to steel reinforcement, fibre reinforced polymers have many advantages, such as high tensile strength, good durability, good shock absorption, low weight, and simple construction. The application of fibre reinforced polymers in architectural structure can effectively improve the durability of the concrete structure and lower the maintenance, reinforcement, and construction costs in severe environments. Based on the concepts of steel tube concrete, fibre reinforced composite material confined concrete, and fibre reinforced composite material tubed concrete, this study proposes a novel composite structure, i.e., fibre reinforced composite material and steel tube concrete composite structure. The structure was developed by pasting fibre around steel tube concrete and restraining core concrete using fibre reinforced composite material and steel tubes. The bearing capacity and ultimate deformation capacity of the structure was tested using column axial compression test.

  3. CMS end-cap yoke at the detector's assembly site.

    CERN Multimedia

    Patrice Loïez

    2002-01-01

    The magnetic flux generated by the superconducting coil in the CMS detector is returned via an iron yoke comprising three end-cap discs at each end (end-cap yoke) and five concentric cylinders (barrel yoke). This picture shows the first of three end-cap discs (red) seen through the outer cylinder of the vacuum tank which will house the superconducting coil.

  4. A Reinforcement Learning Approach to Call Admission Control in HAPS Communication System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ni Shu Yan

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The large changing of link capacity and number of users caused by the movement of both platform and users in communication system based on high altitude platform station (HAPS will resulting in high dropping rate of handover and reduce resource utilization. In order to solve these problems, this paper proposes an adaptive call admission control strategy based on reinforcement learning approach. The goal of this strategy is to maximize long-term gains of system, with the introduction of cross-layer interaction and the service downgraded. In order to access different traffics adaptively, the access utility of handover traffics and new call traffics is designed in different state of communication system. Numerical simulation result shows that the proposed call admission control strategy can enhance bandwidth resource utilization and the performances of handover traffics.

  5. Impact Response Study on Covering Cap of Aircraft Big-Size Integral Fuel Tank

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Fusheng; Jia, Senqing; Wang, Yi; Yue, Zhufeng

    2016-10-01

    In order to assess various design concepts and choose a kind of covering cap design scheme which can meet the requirements of airworthiness standard and ensure the safety of fuel tank. Using finite element software ANSYS/LS- DYNA, the impact process of covering cap of aircraft fuel tank by projectile were simulated, in which dynamical characteristics of simple single covering cap and gland double-layer covering cap impacted by titanium alloy projectile and rubber projectile were studied, as well as factor effects on simple single covering cap and gland double-layer covering cap under impact region, impact angle and impact energy were also studied. Though the comparison of critical damage velocity and element deleted number of the covering caps, it shows that the external covering cap has a good protection effect on internal covering cap. The regions close to boundary are vulnerable to appear impact damage with titanium alloy projectile while the regions close to center is vulnerable to occur damage with rubber projectile. Equivalent strain in covering cap is very little when impact angle is less than 15°. Element deleted number in covering cap reaches the maximum when impact angle is between 60°and 65°by titanium alloy projectile. While the bigger the impact angle and the more serious damage of the covering cap will be when rubber projectile impact composite covering cap. The energy needed for occurring damage on external covering cap and internal covering cap is less than and higher than that when single covering cap occur damage, respectively. The energy needed for complete breakdown of double-layer covering cap is much higher than that of single covering cap.

  6. Off-policy integral reinforcement learning optimal tracking control for continuous-time chaotic systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wei Qing-Lai; Song Rui-Zhuo; Xiao Wen-Dong; Sun Qiu-Ye

    2015-01-01

    This paper estimates an off-policy integral reinforcement learning (IRL) algorithm to obtain the optimal tracking control of unknown chaotic systems. Off-policy IRL can learn the solution of the HJB equation from the system data generated by an arbitrary control. Moreover, off-policy IRL can be regarded as a direct learning method, which avoids the identification of system dynamics. In this paper, the performance index function is first given based on the system tracking error and control error. For solving the Hamilton–Jacobi–Bellman (HJB) equation, an off-policy IRL algorithm is proposed. It is proven that the iterative control makes the tracking error system asymptotically stable, and the iterative performance index function is convergent. Simulation study demonstrates the effectiveness of the developed tracking control method. (paper)

  7. Facially amphiphilic thiol capped gold and silver nanoparticles

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Abstract. A series of bile acid-derived facially amphiphilic thiols have been used to cap sliver and gold nanoparticles. The self-assembling properties of these steroid-capped nanoparticles have been investigated and reported in this article.

  8. Are CAP Decoupling Policies Really Production Neutral?

    OpenAIRE

    Katranidis, Stelios D.; Kotakou, Christina A.

    2008-01-01

    This paper examines the effects of decoupling policies on Greek cotton production. We estimate a system of cotton supply and input derived demand functions under the hypothesis that producers face uncertainty about prices. Using our estimation results we simulate the effects on cotton production under four alternative policy scenarios: the ‘Old’ CAP regime (i.e. the policy practiced until 2005), the Mid Term Review regime, a fully decoupled policy regime and a free trade-no policy scenario. O...

  9. CAPS Activity in Priming Vesicle Exocytosis Requires CK2 Phosphorylation*

    OpenAIRE

    Nojiri, Mari; Loyet, Kelly M.; Klenchin, Vadim A.; Kabachinski, Gregory; Martin, Thomas F. J.

    2009-01-01

    CAPS (Ca2+-dependent activator protein for secretion) functions in priming Ca2+-dependent vesicle exocytosis, but the regulation of CAPS activity has not been characterized. Here we show that phosphorylation by protein kinase CK2 is required for CAPS activity. Dephosphorylation eliminated CAPS activity in reconstituting Ca2+-dependent vesicle exocytosis in permeable and intact PC12 cells. Ser-5, -6, and -7 and Ser-1281 were identified by mass spectrometry as the major phosphorylation sites in...

  10. Sediment Capping and Natural Recovery, Contaminant Transport Fundamentals With Applications to Sediment Caps

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Petrovski, David M; Corcoran, Maureen K; May, James H; Patrick, David M

    2005-01-01

    Engineered sediment caps and natural recovery are in situ remedial alternatives for contaminated sediments, which consist of the artificial or natural placement of a layer of material over a sediment...

  11. Landscape Evolution and the Reincarnation of the Southern Residual Ice Cap

    Science.gov (United States)

    Byrne, S.; Zuber, M. T.

    2006-10-01

    Given the present rate of erosion on the southern residual ice cap, it is unlikely that any part of the cap is older than a few centuries. Unless we're lucky, why is there a residual cap present today for us to observe? We propose a solution involving constant destruction and renewal of the cap.

  12. An Improved Reinforcement Learning System Using Affective Factors

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Takashi Kuremoto

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available As a powerful and intelligent machine learning method, reinforcement learning (RL has been widely used in many fields such as game theory, adaptive control, multi-agent system, nonlinear forecasting, and so on. The main contribution of this technique is its exploration and exploitation approaches to find the optimal solution or semi-optimal solution of goal-directed problems. However, when RL is applied to multi-agent systems (MASs, problems such as “curse of dimension”, “perceptual aliasing problem”, and uncertainty of the environment constitute high hurdles to RL. Meanwhile, although RL is inspired by behavioral psychology and reward/punishment from the environment is used, higher mental factors such as affects, emotions, and motivations are rarely adopted in the learning procedure of RL. In this paper, to challenge agents learning in MASs, we propose a computational motivation function, which adopts two principle affective factors “Arousal” and “Pleasure” of Russell’s circumplex model of affects, to improve the learning performance of a conventional RL algorithm named Q-learning (QL. Compared with the conventional QL, computer simulations of pursuit problems with static and dynamic preys were carried out, and the results showed that the proposed method results in agents having a faster and more stable learning performance.

  13. Analyses of Current And Wave Forces on Velocity Caps

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christensen, Erik Damgaard; Buhrkall, Jeppe; Eskesen, Mark C. D.

    2015-01-01

    Velocity caps are often used in connection with for instance offshore intake sea water for the use of for cooling water for power plants or as a source for desalinization plants. The intakes can also be used for river intakes. The velocity cap is placed on top of a vertical pipe. The vertical pipe......) this paper investigates the current and wave forces on the velocity cap and the vertical cylinder. The Morison’s force model was used in the analyses of the extracted force time series in from the CFD model. Further the distribution of the inlet velocities around the velocity cap was also analyzed in detail...

  14. Development, genetic mapping and QTL association of cotton PHYA, PHYB, and HY5-specific CAPS and dCAPS markers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Among SNP markers that become increasingly valuable in molecular breeding of crop plants are the CAP and dCAP markers derived from the genes of interest. To date, the number of such gene-based markers is small in polyploid crop plants such as tetraploid cotton that has A and D subgenomes. The obje...

  15. Preventing Thin Film Dewetting via Graphene Capping.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, Peigen; Bai, Peter; Omrani, Arash A; Xiao, Yihan; Meaker, Kacey L; Tsai, Hsin-Zon; Yan, Aiming; Jung, Han Sae; Khajeh, Ramin; Rodgers, Griffin F; Kim, Youngkyou; Aikawa, Andrew S; Kolaczkowski, Mattew A; Liu, Yi; Zettl, Alex; Xu, Ke; Crommie, Michael F; Xu, Ting

    2017-09-01

    A monolayer 2D capping layer with high Young's modulus is shown to be able to effectively suppress the dewetting of underlying thin films of small organic semiconductor molecule, polymer, and polycrystalline metal, respectively. To verify the universality of this capping layer approach, the dewetting experiments are performed for single-layer graphene transferred onto polystyrene (PS), semiconducting thienoazacoronene (EH-TAC), gold, and also MoS 2 on PS. Thermodynamic modeling indicates that the exceptionally high Young's modulus and surface conformity of 2D capping layers such as graphene and MoS 2 substantially suppress surface fluctuations and thus dewetting. As long as the uncovered area is smaller than the fluctuation wavelength of the thin film in a dewetting process via spinodal decomposition, the dewetting should be suppressed. The 2D monolayer-capping approach opens up exciting new possibilities to enhance the thermal stability and expands the processing parameters for thin film materials without significantly altering their physical properties. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  16. Systematic identification of non-coding RNA 2,2,7-trimethylguanosine cap structures in Caenorhabditis elegans

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Skogerbø Geir

    2007-09-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The 2,2,7-trimethylguanosine (TMG cap structure is an important functional characteristic of ncRNAs with critical cellular roles, such as some snRNAs. Here we used immunoprecipitation with both K121 and R1131 anti-TMG antibodies to systematically identify the TMG cap structures for all presently characterized ncRNAs in C. elegans. Results The two anti-TMG antibodies precipitated a similar group of the C. elegans ncRNAs. All snRNAs known to have a TMG cap structure were found in the precipitate, indicating that our identification system was efficient. Other ncRNA families related to splicing, such as SL RNAs and Sm Y RNAs, were also found in the precipitate, as were 7 C/D box snoRNAs. Further analysis showed that the SL RNAs and the Sm Y RNAs shared a very similar Sm binding site element (AAU4–5GGA, which sequence composition differed somewhat from those of other U snRNAs. There were also 16 ncRNAs without an Sm binding site element in the precipitate, suggesting that for these ncRNAs, TMG formation may occur independently of Sm proteins. Conclusion Our results showed that most ncRNAs predicted to be transcribed by RNA polymerase II had a TMG cap, while those predicted to be transcribed by RNA plymerase III or located in introns did not have a TMG cap structure. Compared to ncRNAs without a TMG cap, TMG-capped ncRNAs tended to have higher expression levels. Five functionally non-annotated ncRNAs also have a TMG cap structure, which might be helpful for identifying the cellular roles of these ncRNAs.

  17. Preform spar cap for a wind turbine rotor blade

    Science.gov (United States)

    Livingston, Jamie T [Simpsonville, SC; Driver, Howard D [Greer, SC; van Breugel, Sjef [Enschede, NL; Jenkins, Thomas B [Cantonment, FL; Bakhuis, Jan Willem [Nijverdal, NL; Billen, Andrew J [Daarlerveen, NL; Riahi, Amir [Pensacola, FL

    2011-07-12

    A spar cap for a wind turbine rotor blade. The spar cap may include multiple preform components. The multiple preform components may be planar sheets having a swept shape with a first end and a second end. The multiple preform components may be joined by mating the first end of a first preform component to the second end of a next preform component, forming the spar cap.

  18. Flexural strength using Steel Plate, Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) and Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) on reinforced concrete beam in building technology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tarigan, Johannes; Patra, Fadel Muhammad; Sitorus, Torang

    2018-03-01

    Reinforced concrete structures are very commonly used in buildings because they are cheaper than the steel structures. But in reality, many concrete structures are damaged, so there are several ways to overcome this problem, by providing reinforcement with Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) and reinforcement with steel plates. Each type of reinforcements has its advantages and disadvantages. In this study, researchers discuss the comparison between flexural strength of reinforced concrete beam using steel plates and Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP). In this case, the researchers use Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) and Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) as external reinforcements. The dimension of the beams is 15 x 25 cm with the length of 320 cm. Based on the analytical results, the strength of the beam with CFRP is 1.991 times its initial, GFRP is 1.877 times while with the steel plate is 1.646 times. Based on test results, the strength of the beam with CFRP is 1.444 times its initial, GFRP is 1.333 times while the steel plate is 1.167 times. Based on these test results, the authors conclude that beam with CFRP is the best choice for external reinforcement in building technology than the others.

  19. INTERACTION OF A LONG PILE OF FINITE STIFFNESS WITH SURROUNDING SOIL AND FOUNDATION CAP

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ter-Martirosyan Zaven Grigor’evich

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available The article presents the formulation and analytical solution to a quantification of stress strain state of a two-layer soil cylinder enclosing a long pile, interacting with the cap. The solution of the problem is considered for two cases: with and without account for the settlement of the heel and the underlying soil. In the first case, the article is offering equations for determining the stresses of pile’s body and the surrounding soil according to their hardness and the ratio of radiuses of the pile and the surrounding soil cylinder, as well as formulating for determining equivalent deformation modulus of the systemcap-pile-surrounding soil” (the system. Assessing the carrying capacity of the soil under pile’s heel is of great necessity. In the second case, the article is solving a second-order differential equation. We gave the formulas for determining the stresses of the pile at its top and heel, as well as the variation of stresses along the pile’s body. The article is also formulating for determining the settlement of the foundation cap and equivalent deformation modulus of the system. It is shown that, pushing the pile into underlying layer results in the reducing of equivalent modulus of the system.

  20. Risk of infection due to medical interventions via central venous catheters or implantable venous access port systems at the middle port of a three-way cock: luer lock cap vs. luer access split septum system (Q-Syte).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pohl, Fabian; Hartmann, Werner; Holzmann, Thomas; Gensicke, Sandra; Kölbl, Oliver; Hautmann, Matthias G

    2014-01-25

    Many cancer patients receive a central venous catheter or port system prior to therapy to assure correct drug administration. Even appropriate hygienic intervention maintenance carries the risk of contaminating the middle port (C-port) of a three-way cock (TWC), a risk that increases with the number of medical interventions. Because of the complexity of the cleaning procedure with disconnection and reconnection of the standard luer lock cap (referred as "intervention"), we compared luer lock caps with a "closed access system" consisting of a luer access split septum system with regard to process optimization (work simplification, process time), efficiency (costs) and hygiene (patient safety). For determination of process optimization the workflow of an intervention according to the usual practice and risks was depicted in a process diagram. For determining the actual process costs, we analyzed use of material and time parameters per intervention and used the process parameters for programming the process into a simulation run (n = 1000) to determine the process costs as well as their differences (ACTUAL vs. NOMINAL) within the framework of a discrete event simulation.Additionally cultures were carried out at the TWC C-ports to evaluate possible contamination. With the closed access system, the mean working time of 5.5 minutes could be reduced to 2.97 minutes. The results for average process costs (labour and material costs per use) were 3.92 € for luer lock caps and 2.55 € for the closed access system. The hypothesis test (2-sample t-test, CI 0.95, p-valuerisks (related to material, surroundings, staff handling) could be reduced by 65.38%. In the present research, the closed access system with a divided split septum was superior to conventional luer lock caps. The advantage of the closed access system lies in the simplified handling for staff, which results in a reduced risk of patient infection due to improved clinical hygiene.

  1. Design of a 3-D Magnetic Mapping System to Locate Reinforcing Steel in Concrete Pavements : Technical Summary

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-12-01

    This report outlines the design, fabrication, and testing of a 3-D magnetic mapping system used to locate reinforcing steel in concrete pavements developed at Kansas State University (KSU) in 2006. The magnetic sensing functionality is based on the p...

  2. Development of the Continuous Acquisition Pixel (CAP) sensor for high luminosity lepton colliders

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Varner, G.; Aihara, H.; Barbero, M.; Bozek, A.; Browder, T.; Hazumi, M.; Kennedy, J.; Martin, E.; Mueller, J.; Olsen, S.; Palka, H.; Rosen, M.; Ruckman, L.; Stanic, S.; Trabelsi, K.; Tsuboyama, T.; Uchida, K.; Yang, Q.; Yarema, R.

    2006-01-01

    A future higher luminosity B-factory detector and concept study detectors for the proposed International Linear Collider require precision vertex reconstruction while coping with high track densities and radiation exposures. Compared with current silicon strip and hybrid pixels, a significant reduction in the overall detector material thickness is needed to achieve the desired vertex resolution. Considerable progress in the development of thin CMOS-based Monolithic Active Pixel Sensors (MAPS) in recent years makes them a viable technology option and feasibility studies are being actively pursued. The most serious concerns are their radiation hardness and their readout speed. To address these, several prototypes denoted as the Continuous Acquisition Pixel (CAP) sensors have been developed and tested. The latest of the CAP sensor prototypes is CAP3, designed in the TSMC 0.25μm process with a 5-deep Correlated Double Sample (CDS) pair pipeline in each pixel. A setup with several CAP3 sensors is under evaluation to assess the performance of a full-scale pixel readout system running at realistic readout speed. Given the similarity in the occupancy numbers and hit throughput requirements, per unit area, between a Belle vertex detector upgradation and the requirements for a future ILC pixel detector, this effort can be considered a small-scale functioning prototype for such a future system. The results and plans for the next stages of R and D towards a full Belle Pixel Vertex Detector (PVD) are presented

  3. Chemical synthesis of highly size-confined triethylamine-capped ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    2018-03-23

    Mar 23, 2018 ... TiO2 nanoparticles and its dye-sensitized solar cell performance .... Figure 5. Formation mechanism of TEA-capped and uncapped TiO2 nanoparticles. ... this research work, synthesized TEA-capped TiO2 nanopar- ticles were ...

  4. Optical properties of P3HT:tributylphosphine oxide-capped CdSe nanocomposites

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Benchaabane, A. [Faculte des Sciences d' Amiens, Laboratoire de Physique de la Matiere Condensee, Amiens (France); Universite Tunis El-Manar, Laboratoire de Materiaux avances et phenomenes quantiques, Faculte des Sciences de Tunis El Manar, Tunis (Tunisia); Universite Arabe des Sciences, Ecole Superieure d' Ingenieurs et des Etudes Technologiques, Tunis (Tunisia); Ben Hamed, Z.; Kouki, F.; Bouchriha, H. [Universite Tunis El-Manar, Laboratoire de Materiaux avances et phenomenes quantiques, Faculte des Sciences de Tunis El Manar, Tunis (Tunisia); Lahmar, A.; Zellama, K.; Zeinert, A. [Faculte des Sciences d' Amiens, Laboratoire de Physique de la Matiere Condensee, Amiens (France); Sanhoury, M.A. [Laboratoire de Chimie Organique Structurale, Synthese et Etudes Physicochimiques, Tunis (Tunisia)

    2016-08-15

    The optical properties of nanocomposite layers prepared by incorporation of tributylphosphine oxide (TBPO)-capped CdSe nanocrystals (NCs) in a P3HT polymer matrix are studied using different nanocrystal concentrations. Reflection spectra analyzed through Kim oscillator model lead to the determination of optical constants such as refractive index n, extinction coefficient k, dielectric permittivity ε and absorption coefficient α. Using the common Cauchy, Drude-Lorentz, Tauc and single-effective-oscillator theoretical models, we have determined the values of static refractive index n{sub s} and permittivity ε{sub s}, plasma frequency ω{sub p}, carrier density N, optical band gap E{sub g} and oscillator and dispersion energies E{sub 0} and E{sub d}, respectively. It is found that TBPO-capped CdSe NCs concentration affects the optoelectronic parameters of the nanocomposite thin films. Moreover, the disorder of this hybrid system is also studied by the determination of Urbach energy, which increases with TBPO-capped CdSe concentration. (orig.)

  5. Introducing an In Situ Capping Strategy in Systems Biocatalysis To Access 6-Aminohexanoic acid

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sattler, Johann H.; Fuchs, Michael; Mutti, Francesco G.

    2014-01-01

    The combination of two cofactor self-sufficient biocatalytic cascade modules allowed the successful transformation of cyclohexanol into the nylon-6 monomer 6- aminohexanoic acid at the expense of only oxygen and ammonia. A hitherto unprecedented carboxylic acid capping strategy was introduced to ...

  6. Finite element analysis of Polymer reinforced CRC columns under close-in detonation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Riisgaard, Benjamin

    2007-01-01

    Polymer reinforced Compact Reinforced Composite, PCRC, is a Fiber reinforced Densified Small Particle system, FDSP, combined with a high strength longitudinal flexural rebar arrangement laced together with polymer lacing to avoid shock initiated disintegration of the structural element under blast...... load. Experimental and numerical results of two PCRC columns subjected to close-in detonation are presented in this paper. Additionally, a LS-DYNA material model suitable for predicting the response of Polymer reinforced Compact Reinforced Concrete improved for close-in detonation and a description...

  7. Performance Comparison of Containment PT analysis between CAP and CONTEMPT Code

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Choo, Yeon Jun; Hong, Soon Joon; Hwang, Su Hyun; Kim, Min Ki; Lee, Byung Chul [FNC Tech., Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Ha, Sang Jun; Choi, Hoon [KHNP-CENTERAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2013-10-15

    CAP, in the form that is linked with SPACE, computed the containment back-pressure during LOCA accident. In previous SAR (safety analysis report) report of Shin-Kori Units 3 and 4, the CONTEMPT series of codes(hereby referred to as just 'CONTEMPT') is used to evaluate the containment safety during the postulated loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA). In more detail, CONTEMPT-LT/028 was used to calculate the containment maximum PT, while CONTEMPT4/MOD5 to calculate the minimum PT. Actually, in minimum PT analysis, CONTEMPT4/MOD5, which provide back pressure condition of containment, was linked with RELAP5/MOD3.3 which calculate the amount of blowdown into containment. In this analysis, CONTEMPT4/MOD5 was modified based on KREM. CONTEMPT code was developed to predict the long term behavior of water-cooled nuclear reactor containment systems subjected to LOCA conditions. It calculates the time variation of compartment pressures, temperatures, mass and energy inventories, heat structure temperature distributions, and energy exchange with adjacent compartments, leakage on containment response. Models are provided for fan cooler and cooling spray as engineered safety systems. Any compartment may have both a liquid pool region and an air-vapor atmosphere region above the pool. Each region is assumed to have a uniform temperature, but the temperatures of the two regions may be different. As mentioned above, CONTEMP has the similar code features and it therefore is expected to show the similar analysis performance with CAP. In this study, the differences between CAP and two CONTEMPT code versions (CONTEMPT-LT/028 for maximum PT and CONTEMPT4/MOD5 for minimum PT) are, in detail, identified and the code performances were compared for the same problem. Code by code comparison was carried out to identify the difference of LOCA analysis between a series of COMTEMPT and CAP code. With regard to important factors that affect the transient behavior of compartment thermodynamic

  8. Performance Comparison of Containment PT analysis between CAP and CONTEMPT Code

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Choo, Yeon Jun; Hong, Soon Joon; Hwang, Su Hyun; Kim, Min Ki; Lee, Byung Chul; Ha, Sang Jun; Choi, Hoon

    2013-01-01

    CAP, in the form that is linked with SPACE, computed the containment back-pressure during LOCA accident. In previous SAR (safety analysis report) report of Shin-Kori Units 3 and 4, the CONTEMPT series of codes(hereby referred to as just 'CONTEMPT') is used to evaluate the containment safety during the postulated loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA). In more detail, CONTEMPT-LT/028 was used to calculate the containment maximum PT, while CONTEMPT4/MOD5 to calculate the minimum PT. Actually, in minimum PT analysis, CONTEMPT4/MOD5, which provide back pressure condition of containment, was linked with RELAP5/MOD3.3 which calculate the amount of blowdown into containment. In this analysis, CONTEMPT4/MOD5 was modified based on KREM. CONTEMPT code was developed to predict the long term behavior of water-cooled nuclear reactor containment systems subjected to LOCA conditions. It calculates the time variation of compartment pressures, temperatures, mass and energy inventories, heat structure temperature distributions, and energy exchange with adjacent compartments, leakage on containment response. Models are provided for fan cooler and cooling spray as engineered safety systems. Any compartment may have both a liquid pool region and an air-vapor atmosphere region above the pool. Each region is assumed to have a uniform temperature, but the temperatures of the two regions may be different. As mentioned above, CONTEMP has the similar code features and it therefore is expected to show the similar analysis performance with CAP. In this study, the differences between CAP and two CONTEMPT code versions (CONTEMPT-LT/028 for maximum PT and CONTEMPT4/MOD5 for minimum PT) are, in detail, identified and the code performances were compared for the same problem. Code by code comparison was carried out to identify the difference of LOCA analysis between a series of COMTEMPT and CAP code. With regard to important factors that affect the transient behavior of compartment thermodynamic state in

  9. Neutron transition multipole moment for /sup 88/Sr(. cap alpha. ,. cap alpha. ')/sup 88/Sr (2/sup +/, 1. 84 MeV)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Datta, S.K.; Ray, S.; Majumdar, H.; Ghosh, S.K.; Samanta, C.; Dasgupta, P.; Chintalapudi, S.N.; Banerjee, S.R.

    1989-04-01

    The neutron transition multipole moment, M/sub n/, for (0/sup +/..-->..2/sup +/, 1.84 MeV) transition is inferred by measuring the (..cap alpha..,..cap alpha..') angular distribution at E/sub ..cap alpha../ = 50 MeV and comparing it with a microscopic distorted-wave Born approximation calculation. Proton transition densities are taken from electron scattering data. M/sub n//M/sub p/ is found to be substantially less than N/Z in agreement with the (p,p') result.

  10. Effects of reinforcement-blocking doses of pimozide on neural systems driven by rewarding stimulation of the MFB: a /sup 14/C-2-deoxyglucose analysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gomita, Y.; Gallistel, C.R.

    1982-10-01

    An analysis by means of /sup 14/C-2-deoxyglucose autoradiography of the neural systems unilaterally activated by the reinforcing stimulation used in the two accompanying papers revealed strong and reliable effects in the nucleus of the diagonal band of Broca, in the medial forebrain bundle (MFB) and/or the fornix throughout the diencephalon, and in the part of the anterior ventral tegmentum where the dopaminergic projection to the lateral habenula originates. The terminal fields of the dopaminergic forebrain projections were not affected, but there was bilateral suppression of lateral habenular activity. A second experiment found that the same systems are still activated by (automatically administered) reinforcing stimulation in rats treated with reinforcement blocking doses of pimozide. The only clear effect of pimozide was to reverse the bilateral suppressive effect of the stimulation on lateral habenular activity. Animals treated with pimozide show greatly elevated activity in the lateral habenula, whether or not they receive reinforcing stimulation. The results suggest that pimozide's effect on reinforcement is mediated by the circuitry interconnecting the lateral habenula with the nucleus of the diagonal band of Broca and/or the anterior ventral tegmentum.

  11. Cap Bubble Drift Velocity in a Confined Test Section

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xiaodong Sun; Seungjin Kim; Mamoru Ishii; Lincoln, Frank W.; Beus, Stephen G.

    2002-01-01

    In the two-group interfacial area transport equation, bubbles are categorized into two groups, i.e., spherical/distorted bubbles as group 1 and cap/slug/churn-turbulent bubbles as group 2. The bubble rise velocities for both groups of bubbles may be estimated by the drift flux model by applying different distribution parameters and drift velocities for both groups. However, the drift velocity for group 2 bubbles is not always applicable (when the wall effect becomes important) as in the current test loop of interest where the flow channel is confined by two parallel flat walls, with a dimension of 200-mm in width and 10-mm in gap. The previous experiments indicated that no stable slug flow existed in this test section, which was designed to permit visualization of the flow patterns and bubble characteristics without the distortion associated with curved surfaces. In fact, distorted cap bubbly and churn-turbulent flow was observed. Therefore, it is essential to developed a correlation for cap bubble drift velocity in this confined flow channel. Since the rise velocity of a cap bubble depends on its size, a high-speed movie camera is used to capture images of cap bubbles to obtain the bubble size information. Meanwhile, the rise velocity of cap and elongated bubbles (called cap bubbles hereafter) is investigated by examining the captured images frame by frame. As a result, the conventional correlation of drift velocity for slug bubbles is modified and acceptable agreements between the measurements and correlation estimation are achieved

  12. Back to basics: the untreated rabbit reticulocyte lysate as a competitive system to recapitulate cap/poly(A) synergy and the selective advantage of IRES-driven translation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soto Rifo, Ricardo; Ricci, Emiliano P; Décimo, Didier; Moncorgé, Olivier; Ohlmann, Théophile

    2007-01-01

    Translation of most eukaryotic mRNAs involves the synergistic action between the 5' cap structure and the 3' poly(A) tail at the initiation step. The poly(A) tail has also been shown to stimulate translation of picornavirus internal ribosome entry sites (IRES)-directed translation. These effects have been attributed principally to interactions between eIF4G and poly(A)-binding protein (PABP) but also to the participation of PABP in other steps during translation initiation. As the rabbit reticulocyte lysate (RRL) does not recapitulate this cap/poly(A) synergy, several systems based on cellular cell-free extracts have been developed to study the effects of poly(A) tail in vitro but they generally exhibit low translational efficiency. Here, we describe that the non-nuclease-treated RRL (untreated RRL) is able to recapitulate the effects of poly(A) tail on translation in vitro. In this system, translation of a capped/polyadenylated RNA was specifically inhibited by either Paip2 or poly(rA), whereas translation directed by HCV IRES remained unaffected. Moreover, cleavage of eIF4G by FMDV L protease strongly stimulated translation directed by the EMCV IRES, thus recapitulating the competitive advantage that the proteolytic processing of eIF4G confers to IRES-driven RNAs.

  13. Fabrication of fiber-reinforced composites by chemical vapor infiltration

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Besmann, T.M.; McLaughlin, J.C. [Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States). Metals and Ceramics Div.; Probst, K.J.; Anderson, T.J. [Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States). Dept. of Chemical Engineering; Starr, T.L. [Georgia Inst. of Tech., Atlanta, GA (United States). Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering

    1997-12-01

    Silicon carbide-based heat exchanger tubes are of interest to energy production and conversion systems due to their excellent high temperature properties. Fiber-reinforced SiC is of particular importance for these applications since it is substantially tougher than monolithic SiC, and therefore more damage and thermal shock tolerant. This paper reviews a program to develop a scaled-up system for the chemical vapor infiltration of tubular shapes of fiber-reinforced SiC. The efforts include producing a unique furnace design, extensive process and system modeling, and experimental efforts to demonstrate tube fabrication.

  14. Reinforcement Schedules in a Verbal Reinforcement Combination and Renection-Impulsivity

    OpenAIRE

    TAMASE, Koji; UEDA, Masako

    1986-01-01

    It was predicted that higher proportion of the negative reinforcement "Wrong" than that of the positive reinforcement "Right" in a reinforcement combination will produce higher proportion of the correct response and this trend will be greater in reflective children than in impulsive children. From 140 kindergarten children 30 reflective and 30 impulsive children were selected and they were given a two-hole marble-dropping task. The best performance in the ratio of correct responses was obtain...

  15. Influence of thiol capping on the photoluminescence properties of L-cysteine-, mercaptoethanol- and mercaptopropionic acid-capped ZnS nanoparticles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tiwari, A; Dhoble, S J; Kher, R S

    2015-11-01

    Mercaptoethanol (ME), mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) and L-cysteine (L-Cys) having -SH functional groups were used as surface passivating agents for the wet chemical synthesis of ZnS nanoparticles. The effect of the thiol group on the optical and photoluminescence (PL) properties of ZnS nanoparticles was studied. L-Cysteine-capped ZnS nanoparticles showed the highest PL intensity among the studied capping agents, with a PL emission peak at 455 nm. The PL intensity was found to be dependent on the concentration of Zn(2+) and S(2-) precursors. The effect of buffer on the PL intensity of L-Cys-capped ZnS nanoparticles was also studied. UV/Vis spectra showed blue shifting of the absorption edge. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  16. ASM LabCap's contributions to disease surveillance and the International Health Regulations (2005).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Specter, Steven; Schuermann, Lily; Hakiruwizera, Celestin; Sow, Mah-Séré Keita

    2010-12-03

    The revised International Health Regulations [IHR(2005)], which requires the Member States of the World Health Organization (WHO) to develop core capacities to detect, assess, report, and respond to public health threats, is bringing new challenges for national and international surveillance systems. As more countries move toward implementation and/or strengthening of their infectious disease surveillance programs, the strengthening of clinical microbiology laboratories becomes increasingly important because they serve as the first line responders to detect new and emerging microbial threats, re-emerging infectious diseases, the spread of antibiotic resistance, and the possibility of bioterrorism. In fact, IHR(2005) Core Capacity #8, "Laboratory", requires that laboratory services be a part of every phase of alert and response.Public health laboratories in many resource-constrained countries require financial and technical assistance to build their capacity. In recognition of this, in 2006, the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) established an International Laboratory Capacity Building Program, LabCap, housed under the ASM International Board. ASM LabCap utilizes ASM's vast resources and its membership's expertise-40,000 microbiologists worldwide-to strengthen clinical and public health laboratory systems in low and low-middle income countries. ASM LabCap's program activities align with HR(2005) by building the capability of resource-constrained countries to develop quality-assured, laboratory-based information which is critical to disease surveillance and the rapid detection of disease outbreaks, whether they stem from natural, deliberate or accidental causes.ASM LabCap helps build laboratory capacity under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and under a sub-contract with the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH) funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID

  17. ACTIVE CAPPING TECHNOLOGY - NEW APPROACHES FOR IN SITU REMEDIATION OF CONTAMINATED SEDIMENTS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Knox, A.; Paller, M.; Roberts, J.

    2012-02-13

    This study evaluated pilot-scale active caps composed of apatite, organoclay, biopolymers, and sand for the remediation of metal-contaminated sediments. The active caps were constructed in Steel Creek, at the Savannah River Site near Aiken, South Carolina. Monitoring was conducted for 12 months. Effectiveness of the caps was based on an evaluation of contaminant bioavailability, resistance to erosion, and impacts on benthic organisms. Active caps lowered metal bioavailability in the sediment during the one-year test period. Biopolymers reduced sediment suspension during cap construction, increased the pool of carbon, and lowered the release of metals. This field validation showed that active caps can effectively treat contaminants by changing their speciation, and that caps can be constructed to include more than one type of amendment to achieve multiple goals.

  18. Reinforcement Learning Based Artificial Immune Classifier

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mehmet Karakose

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available One of the widely used methods for classification that is a decision-making process is artificial immune systems. Artificial immune systems based on natural immunity system can be successfully applied for classification, optimization, recognition, and learning in real-world problems. In this study, a reinforcement learning based artificial immune classifier is proposed as a new approach. This approach uses reinforcement learning to find better antibody with immune operators. The proposed new approach has many contributions according to other methods in the literature such as effectiveness, less memory cell, high accuracy, speed, and data adaptability. The performance of the proposed approach is demonstrated by simulation and experimental results using real data in Matlab and FPGA. Some benchmark data and remote image data are used for experimental results. The comparative results with supervised/unsupervised based artificial immune system, negative selection classifier, and resource limited artificial immune classifier are given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed new method.

  19. Mo/Si multilayers with enhanced TiO II- and RuO II-capping layers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yulin, Sergiy; Benoit, Nicolas; Feigl, Torsten; Kaiser, Norbert; Fang, Ming; Chandhok, Manish

    2008-03-01

    The lifetime of Mo/Si multilayer-coated projection optics is one of the outstanding issues on the road of commercialization of extreme-ultraviolet lithography (EUVL). The application of Mo/Si multilayer optics in EUVL requires both sufficient radiation stability and also the highest possible normal-incidence reflectivity. A serious problem of conventional high-reflective Mo/Si multilayers capped by silicon is the considerable degradation of reflective properties due to carbonization and oxidation of the silicon surface layer under exposure by EUV radiation. In this study, we focus on titanium dioxide (TiO II) and ruthenium dioxide (RuO II) as promising capping layer materials for EUVL multilayer coatings. The multilayer designs as well as the deposition parameters of the Mo/Si systems with different capping layers were optimized in terms of maximum peak reflectivity at the wavelength of 13.5 nm and longterm stability under high-intensive irradiation. Optimized TiO II-capped Mo/Si multilayer mirrors with an initial reflectivity of 67.0% presented a reflectivity drop of 0.6% after an irradiation dose of 760 J/mm2. The reflectivity drop was explained by the partial oxidation of the silicon sub-layer. No reflectivity loss after similar irradiation dose was found for RuO II-capped Mo/Si multilayer mirrors having initial peak reflectivity of 66%. In this paper we present data on improved reflectivity of interface-engineered TiO II- and RuO II-capped Mo/Si multilayer mirrors due to the minimization of both interdiffusion processes inside the multilayer stack and absorption loss in the oxide layer. Reflectivities of 68.5% at the wavelength of 13.4 nm were achieved for both TiO II- and RuO II-capped Mo/Si multilayer mirrors.

  20. Polar Ice Caps: a Canary for the Greenland Ice Sheet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Honsaker, W.; Lowell, T. V.; Sagredo, E.; Kelly, M. A.; Hall, B. L.

    2010-12-01

    Ice caps are glacier masses that are highly sensitive to climate change. Because of their hypsometry they can have a binary state. When relatively slight changes in the equilibrium line altitude (ELA) either intersect or rise above the land the ice can become established or disappear. Thus these upland ice masses have a fast response time. Here we consider a way to extract the ELA signal from independent ice caps adjacent to the Greenland Ice Sheet margin. It may be that these ice caps are sensitive trackers of climate change that also impact the ice sheet margin. One example is the Istorvet Ice Cap located in Liverpool Land, East Greenland (70.881°N, 22.156°W). The ice cap topography and the underlying bedrock surface dips to the north, with peak elevation of the current ice ranging in elevation from 1050 to 745 m.a.s.l. On the eastern side of the ice mass the outlet glaciers extending down to sea level. The western margin has several small lobes in topographic depressions, with the margin reaching down to 300 m.a.s.l. Topographic highs separate the ice cap into at least 5 main catchments, each having a pair of outlet lobes toward either side of the ice cap. Because of the regional bedrock slope each catchment has its own elevation range. Therefore, as the ELA changes it is possible for some catchments of the ice cap to experience positive mass balance while others have a negative balance. Based on weather observations we estimate the present day ELA to be ~1000 m.a.s.l, meaning mass balance is negative for the majority of the ice cap. By tracking glacier presence/absence in these different catchments, we can reconstruct small changes in the ELA. Another example is the High Ice Cap (informal name) in Milne Land (70.903°N, 25.626°W, 1080 m), East Greenland. Here at least 4 unconformities in ice layers found near the southern margin of the ice cap record changing intervals of accumulation and ablation. Therefore, this location may also be sensitive to slight

  1. Shape Effect of Electrochemical Chloride Extraction in Structural Reinforced Concrete Elements Using a New Cement-Based Anodic System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jesús Carmona

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available This article shows the research carried out by the authors focused on how the shape of structural reinforced concrete elements treated with electrochemical chloride extraction can affect the efficiency of this process. Assuming the current use of different anode systems, the present study considers the comparison of results between conventional anodes based on Ti-RuO2 wire mesh and a cement-based anodic system such as a paste of graphite-cement. Reinforced concrete elements of a meter length were molded to serve as laboratory specimens, to closely represent authentic structural supports, with circular and rectangular sections. Results confirm almost equal performances for both types of anode systems when electrochemical chloride extraction is applied to isotropic structural elements. In the case of anisotropic ones, such as rectangular sections with no uniformly distributed rebar, differences in electrical flow density were detected during the treatment. Those differences were more extreme for Ti-RuO2 mesh anode system. This particular shape effect is evidenced by obtaining the efficiencies of electrochemical chloride extraction in different points of specimens.

  2. Shape Effect of Electrochemical Chloride Extraction in Structural Reinforced Concrete Elements Using a New Cement-Based Anodic System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carmona, Jesús; Climent, Miguel-Ángel; Antón, Carlos; de Vera, Guillem; Garcés, Pedro

    2015-01-01

    This article shows the research carried out by the authors focused on how the shape of structural reinforced concrete elements treated with electrochemical chloride extraction can affect the efficiency of this process. Assuming the current use of different anode systems, the present study considers the comparison of results between conventional anodes based on Ti-RuO2 wire mesh and a cement-based anodic system such as a paste of graphite-cement. Reinforced concrete elements of a meter length were molded to serve as laboratory specimens, to closely represent authentic structural supports, with circular and rectangular sections. Results confirm almost equal performances for both types of anode systems when electrochemical chloride extraction is applied to isotropic structural elements. In the case of anisotropic ones, such as rectangular sections with no uniformly distributed rebar, differences in electrical flow density were detected during the treatment. Those differences were more extreme for Ti-RuO2 mesh anode system. This particular shape effect is evidenced by obtaining the efficiencies of electrochemical chloride extraction in different points of specimens.

  3. Radioimmunological determination of. cap alpha. -MSH and ACTH in the rat

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Usategui Echeverria, R; Oliver, C; Vaudry, H; Lombardi, G; Rozenberg, I; Vague, J [Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de la Timone, 13 - Marseille (France)

    1975-09-01

    Specific and sensitive radioimmunoassay methods for ..cap alpha..-MSH and ACTH are reported. They make possible specific measurements of each hormone in rat plasma or pituitary extracts. Endogenous ..cap alpha..-MSH and ACTH extracted from plasma or pituitary show the same immunoreactivity than synthetic ..cap alpha..-MSH and ACTH. ..cap alpha..-MSH and ACTH levels vary independently from each other in the following conditions: circadian rythm, corticoid treatment, adrenalectomy, ether stress, haloperidol injection.

  4. Plasma drifts associated with a system of sun-aligned arcs in the polar cap

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mende, S.B.; Doolittle, J.H.; Robinson, R.M.; Vondrak, R.R.; Rich, F.J.

    1988-01-01

    A series of four sun-aligned arcs passed over Sondre Stromfjord, Greenland, on the night of the 17th and 18th of February, 1985. Observations of these arcs were made using the Sondrestrom incoherent scatter radar and an intensified all-sky imaging TV system that was operated at the radar site. The first of the four arcs crossed the Sondre Stromfjord meridian just before local midnight moving westward, and the other three arcs followed at approximately half-hour intervals. When we account for the earth's rotation, the arc drift in an inertial frame was eastward, or dusk to dawn. The half-hour interval between meridian crossings of the arcs implies that the mean spacing between the arcs was 180 km. A Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) F6 satellite pass at 0110 UT revealed the presence of highly structured electron and ion precipitation throughout the polar cap. The DMSP visible imager detected a single, sun-aligned arc associated with the largest peak in precipitating electron flux. This arc was also observed at Thule, Greenland, with an intensified film camera. These observations suggest that at least one of the arcs that were observed at Sondre Stromfjord extended across a large part of the polar cap. The radar at Sondre Stromfjord measured electron density and ion drift velocities associated with the four arcs. The radar drift measurements were superimposed on the all-sky video images to determine the location of the measurements relative to the arcs. Plasma drifts outside the arcs were found to be both sunward and antisunward, while within the arcs the drifts were predominantly antisunward. The variability of the drifts in the direction parallel to the arcs indicates that the electric fields were highly structured even though the configuration and motion of the arcs were well behaved

  5. Interfacial and Wall Transport Models for SPACE-CAP Code

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hong, Soon Joon; Choo, Yeon Joon; Han, Tae Young; Hwang, Su Hyun; Lee, Byung Chul; Choi, Hoon; Ha, Sang Jun

    2009-01-01

    The development project for the domestic design code was launched to be used for the safety and performance analysis of pressurized light water reactors. And CAP (Containment Analysis Package) code has been also developed for the containment safety and performance analysis side by side with SPACE. The CAP code treats three fields (gas, continuous liquid, and dispersed drop) for the assessment of containment specific phenomena, and is featured by its multidimensional assessment capabilities. Thermal hydraulics solver was already developed and now under testing of its stability and soundness. As a next step, interfacial and wall transport models was setup. In order to develop the best model and correlation package for the CAP code, various models currently used in major containment analysis codes, which are GOTHIC, CONTAIN2.0, and CONTEMPT-LT, have been reviewed. The origins of the selected models used in these codes have also been examined to find out if the models have not conflict with a proprietary right. In addition, a literature survey of the recent studies has been performed in order to incorporate the better models for the CAP code. The models and correlations of SPACE were also reviewed. CAP models and correlations are composed of interfacial heat/mass, and momentum transport models, and wall heat/mass, and momentum transport models. This paper discusses on those transport models in the CAP code

  6. Interfacial and Wall Transport Models for SPACE-CAP Code

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hong, Soon Joon; Choo, Yeon Joon; Han, Tae Young; Hwang, Su Hyun; Lee, Byung Chul [FNC Tech., Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Choi, Hoon; Ha, Sang Jun [Korea Electric Power Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2009-10-15

    The development project for the domestic design code was launched to be used for the safety and performance analysis of pressurized light water reactors. And CAP (Containment Analysis Package) code has been also developed for the containment safety and performance analysis side by side with SPACE. The CAP code treats three fields (gas, continuous liquid, and dispersed drop) for the assessment of containment specific phenomena, and is featured by its multidimensional assessment capabilities. Thermal hydraulics solver was already developed and now under testing of its stability and soundness. As a next step, interfacial and wall transport models was setup. In order to develop the best model and correlation package for the CAP code, various models currently used in major containment analysis codes, which are GOTHIC, CONTAIN2.0, and CONTEMPT-LT, have been reviewed. The origins of the selected models used in these codes have also been examined to find out if the models have not conflict with a proprietary right. In addition, a literature survey of the recent studies has been performed in order to incorporate the better models for the CAP code. The models and correlations of SPACE were also reviewed. CAP models and correlations are composed of interfacial heat/mass, and momentum transport models, and wall heat/mass, and momentum transport models. This paper discusses on those transport models in the CAP code.

  7. Wrinkles in reinforced membranes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Takei, Atsushi; Brau, Fabian; Roman, Benoît; Bico, José.

    2012-02-01

    We study, through model experiments, the buckling under tension of an elastic membrane reinforced with a more rigid strip or a fiber. In these systems, the compression of the rigid layer is induced through Poisson contraction as the membrane is stretched perpendicularly to the strip. Although strips always lead to out-of-plane wrinkles, we observe a transition from out-of-plane to in plane wrinkles beyond a critical strain in the case of fibers embedded into the elastic membranes. The same transition is also found when the membrane is reinforced with a wall of the same material depending on the aspect ratio of the wall. We describe through scaling laws the evolution of the morphology of the wrinkles and the different transitions as a function of material properties and stretching strain.

  8. Structure of a two-CAP-domain protein from the human hookworm parasite Necator americanus

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Asojo, Oluwatoyin A., E-mail: oasojo@unmc.edu [Pathology and Microbiology Department, 986495 Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-6495 (United States)

    2011-05-01

    The first structure of a two-CAP-domain protein, Na-ASP-1, from the major human hookworm parasite N. americanus refined to a resolution limit of 2.2 Å is presented. Major proteins secreted by the infective larval stage hookworms upon host entry include Ancylostoma secreted proteins (ASPs), which are characterized by one or two CAP (cysteine-rich secretory protein/antigen 5/pathogenesis related-1) domains. The CAP domain has been reported in diverse phylogenetically unrelated proteins, but has no confirmed function. The first structure of a two-CAP-domain protein, Na-ASP-1, from the major human hookworm parasite Necator americanus was refined to a resolution limit of 2.2 Å. The structure was solved by molecular replacement (MR) using Na-ASP-2, a one-CAP-domain ASP, as the search model. The correct MR solution could only be obtained by truncating the polyalanine model of Na-ASP-2 and removing several loops. The structure reveals two CAP domains linked by an extended loop. Overall, the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain is more similar to Na-ASP-2 than to the amino-terminal CAP domain. A large central cavity extends from the amino-terminal CAP domain to the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain, encompassing the putative CAP-binding cavity. The putative CAP-binding cavity is a characteristic cavity in the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain that contains a His and Glu pair. These residues are conserved in all single-CAP-domain proteins, but are absent in the amino-terminal CAP domain. The conserved His residues are oriented such that they appear to be capable of directly coordinating a zinc ion as observed for CAP proteins from reptile venoms. This first structure of a two-CAP-domain ASP can serve as a template for homology modeling of other two-CAP-domain proteins.

  9. Structure of a two-CAP-domain protein from the human hookworm parasite Necator americanus

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Asojo, Oluwatoyin A.

    2011-01-01

    The first structure of a two-CAP-domain protein, Na-ASP-1, from the major human hookworm parasite N. americanus refined to a resolution limit of 2.2 Å is presented. Major proteins secreted by the infective larval stage hookworms upon host entry include Ancylostoma secreted proteins (ASPs), which are characterized by one or two CAP (cysteine-rich secretory protein/antigen 5/pathogenesis related-1) domains. The CAP domain has been reported in diverse phylogenetically unrelated proteins, but has no confirmed function. The first structure of a two-CAP-domain protein, Na-ASP-1, from the major human hookworm parasite Necator americanus was refined to a resolution limit of 2.2 Å. The structure was solved by molecular replacement (MR) using Na-ASP-2, a one-CAP-domain ASP, as the search model. The correct MR solution could only be obtained by truncating the polyalanine model of Na-ASP-2 and removing several loops. The structure reveals two CAP domains linked by an extended loop. Overall, the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain is more similar to Na-ASP-2 than to the amino-terminal CAP domain. A large central cavity extends from the amino-terminal CAP domain to the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain, encompassing the putative CAP-binding cavity. The putative CAP-binding cavity is a characteristic cavity in the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain that contains a His and Glu pair. These residues are conserved in all single-CAP-domain proteins, but are absent in the amino-terminal CAP domain. The conserved His residues are oriented such that they appear to be capable of directly coordinating a zinc ion as observed for CAP proteins from reptile venoms. This first structure of a two-CAP-domain ASP can serve as a template for homology modeling of other two-CAP-domain proteins

  10. Management of Reinforcement Corrosion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Küter, André; Geiker, Mette Rica; Møller, Per

    Reinforcement corrosion is the most important cause for deterioration of reinforced concrete structures, both with regard to costs and consequences. Thermodynamically consistent descriptions of corrosion mechanisms are expected to allow the development of innovative concepts for the management...... of reinforcement corrosion....

  11. Cost Effectiveness of Precast Reinforced Concrete Roof Slabs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parskiy, N. D.; Molodtsov, M. V.; Molodtsova, V. E.

    2017-11-01

    Engineers always seek to free interior space from intermediate supporting elements. Nowadays plants, being at the forefront of technology, produce a new generation of exclusive patented prefabricated reinforced concrete elements with a high load-bearing capacity, excellent heat resistance characteristics combined with the aesthetics and beauty. It is a system of Seagull Gabbiano prestressed roof slabs for the spans of 12m - 40m. The article shows the advantages of the Seagull slabs over conventional precast reinforced concrete and metal roof trusses. It also gives the analysis of the technical and economic indices of design and construction of a building with the Seagull slabs depending on the size of spans to cover. The use of structural systems with increased spans allows for the modern buildings and structures of prefabricated reinforced concrete with enhanced functionality and aesthetics alongside with a wide range of planning solutions.

  12. Assembling the CMS yoke end-caps

    CERN Multimedia

    Laurent Guiraud

    2001-01-01

    A crane is used to piece together one of the end-caps that will provide the path for magnetic flux return on the CMS experiment. A total of six end-cap discs will be assembled before being positioned on the barrel yoke to complete the huge 12 500 tonne cylinder yoke. The magnetic field produced will be greater than any other solenoid created to date at 4 T, 100 000 times greater than the Earth's natural magnetic field, and will store enough energy to melt 18 tonnes of gold.

  13. 77 FR 57197 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request for Form 1099-CAP

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-09-17

    ... 1099-CAP AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury. ACTION: Notice and request for comments... Form 1099-CAP, Changes in Corporate Control and Capital Structure. DATES: Written comments should be... Structure. OMB Number: 1545-1814. Form Number: 1099-CAP. Abstract: Any corporation that undergoes...

  14. Characterization of the PB2 Cap Binding Domain Accelerates Inhibitor Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amanda E. Constantinides

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available X-ray crystallographic structural determinations of the PB2 cap binding domain (PB2cap have improved the conformational characterization of the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase machinery (PA, PB2, and PB1 of the influenza virus. Geometrically, the catalytic PB1 subunit resembles the palm of a human hand. PA lies near the thumb region, and PB2 lies near the finger region. PB2 binds the cap moiety in the pre-mRNA of the host cell, while the endonuclease of PA cleaves the pre-mRNA 10–13 nucleotides downstream. The truncated RNA piece performs as a primer for PB1 to synthesize the viral mRNA. Precisely targeting PB2cap with a small molecule inhibitor will halt viral proliferation via interference of the cap-snatching activity. Wild-type and mutant PB2cap from A/California/07/2009 H1N1 were expressed in Escherichia coli, purified by nickel affinity and size exclusion chromatography, crystallized, and subjected to X-ray diffraction experiments. The crystal of mutant PB2cap liganded with m7GTP was prepared by co-crystallization. Structures were solved by the molecular replacement method, refined, and deposited in the Protein Data Bank (PDB. Structural determination and comparative analyses of these structures revealed the functions of Glu361, Lys376, His357, Phe404, Phe323, Lys339, His432, Asn429, Gln406, and Met401 in PB2cap, and the dissociation of the influenza A PB2cap C-terminal subdomain (residues 446–479 upon ligand binding. Understanding the role of these residues will aid in the ultimate development of a small-molecule inhibitor that binds both Influenza A and B virus PB2cap.

  15. Natural Ventilation Effectiveness of Round Wall-Mounted Vent Caps in Residential Kitchens

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yi-Pin Lin

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available This study explores the effect of different numbers of wall-mounted vent caps and their installation locations on the indoor air environment in residential kitchens, for which limited information is available. Wind tunnel tests were performed to study the induced ventilation rates of a vent cap, and the impact of vent caps on the natural ventilation efficiency in residential kitchens was examined using computational fluid dynamics (CFD numerical simulations. The results were then applied to determine the appropriate quantity of vent caps and their proper installation location. The wind tunnel test results indicated that outdoor winds with speeds of 0–6 m/s that flow parallel to the wall with a vent cap induce indoor air to exit through the cap with ventilation rates of 0–20 m3/h; when the wind blows perpendicular to the wall, outdoor air with 0–31.9 m3/h flows indoors. CFD numerical simulations showed that the installation of kitchen vent caps can reduce the average carbon monoxide concentration in the cook’s breathing zone. A sufficient quantity of vent caps and the proper installation location are required to ensure the natural ventilation effectiveness of wall-mounted vent caps.

  16. Simple model for polar cap convection patterns and generation of theta auroras

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lyons, L.R.

    1985-01-01

    The simple addition of a uniform interplanetary magnetic field and the Earth's dipole magnetic field is used to evaluate electric field convection patterns over the polar caps that result from solar wind flow across open geomagnetic field lines. This model is found to account for observed polar-cap convection patterns as a function of the interplanetary magnetic field components B/sub y/ and B/sub z/. In particular, the model offers an explanation for sunward and antisunward convection over the polar caps for B/sub z/>0. Observed field-aligned current patterns within the polar cap and observed auroral arcs across the polar cap are also explained by the model. In addition, the model gives several predictions concerning the polar cap that should be testable. Effects of solar wind pressure and magnetospheric currents on magnetospheric electric and magnetic fields are neglected. That observed polar cap features are reproduced suggests that the neglected effects do not modify the large-scale topology of magnetospheric electric and magnetic fields along open polar cap field lines. Of course, the neglected effects significantly modify the magnetic geometry, so that the results of this paper are not quantitatively realistic and many details may be incorrect. Nevertheless, the model provides a simple explanation for many qualitative features of polar cap convection

  17. Investigation of field corrosion performance and bond/development length of galvanized reinforcing steel.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-12-01

    In reinforced concrete systems, ensuring that a good bond between the concrete and the embedded reinforcing steel is critical to : long-term structural performance. Without good bond between the two, the system simply cannot behave as intended. The b...

  18. Tracking global carbon revenues: A survey of carbon taxes versus cap-and-trade in the real world

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carl, Jeremy; Fedor, David

    2016-01-01

    We investigate the current use of public revenues which are generated through both carbon taxes and cap-and-trade systems. More than $28.3 billion in government “carbon revenues” are currently collected each year in 40 countries and another 16 states or provinces around the world. Of those revenues, 27% ($7.8 billion) are used to subsidize “green” spending in energy efficiency or renewable energy; 26% ($7.4 billion) go toward state general funds; and 36% ($10.1 billion) are returned to corporate or individual taxpayers through paired tax cuts or direct rebates. Cap-and-trade systems ($6.57 billion in total public revenue) earmark a larger share of revenues for “green” spending (70%), while carbon tax systems ($21.7 billion) more commonly refund revenues or otherwise direct them towards government general funds (72% of revenues). Drawing from an empirical dataset, we also identify various trends in systems’ use of “carbon revenues” in terms of the total revenues collected annually per capita in each jurisdiction and offer commensurate qualitative observations on carbon policy design choices. - Highlights: •We analyze public revenue generated from global carbon tax and cap-and-trade systems. •70% of cap-and-trade revenues ($4.60 billion) are earmarked for “green spending”. •72% of carbon tax revenues ($15.6 billion) are refunded or used in general funds. •Revenues per capita vary widely and are a useful qualitative explanatory variable.

  19. Rilonacept for the treatment of cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes (CAPS).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoffman, Hal M

    2009-04-01

    Cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes (CAPS) encompass a group of rare inherited, autoinflammatory disorders that represent a spectrum of one disease with varying degrees of severity. Until recently, there was no effective treatment for CAPS, but identification of the genetic basis of CAPS highlighted the pathogenic role of IL-1beta. Rilonacept is a recently FDA approved biologic therapy for CAPS with high affinity for IL-1beta. Limited pharmacological data has been reported to date. A review of the phamacokinetics and pharmacodynamics data as well as the results of a pilot study and Phase III placebo-controlled trials of rilonacept in CAPS. Unpublished data on an open-label extension study in adult and pediatric subjects is also reviewed. Rilonacept produced rapid and profound improvements in symptoms and also reduced high-sesitivity C-reactive protein levels and normalized elevated serum amyloid A concentrations, an important risk factor for amyloidosis. The primary adverse events were injection- site reactions and upper respiratory tract infections. Rilonacept, the only IL-1 Trap, is the first of many novel IL-1-targeted therapies being developed. In a very short time it has changed the lives of CAPS patients.

  20. Using an online quiz-based reinforcement system to teach healthcare quality and patient safety and care transitions at the University of California.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shaikh, Ulfat; Afsar-Manesh, Nasim; Amin, Alpesh N; Clay, Brian; Ranji, Sumant R

    2017-10-01

    Implementing quality improvement (QI) education during clinical training is challenging due to time constraints and inadequate faculty development in these areas. Quiz-based reinforcement systems show promise in fostering active engagement, collaboration, healthy competition and real-time formative feedback, although further research on their effectiveness is required. An online quiz-based reinforcement system to increase resident and faculty knowledge in QI, patient safety and care transitions. Experts in QI and educational assessment at the 5 University of California medical campuses developed a course comprised of 3 quizzes on Introduction to QI, Patient Safety and Care Transitions. Each quiz contained 20 questions and utilized an online educational quiz-based reinforcement system that leveraged spaced learning. Approximately 500 learners completed the course (completion rate 66-86%). Knowledge acquisition scores for all quizzes increased after completion: Introduction to QI (35-73%), Patient Safety (58-95%), and Care Transitions (66-90%). Learners reported that the quiz-based system was an effective teaching modality and preferred this type of education to classroom-based lectures. Suggestions for improvement included reducing frequency of presentation of questions and utilizing more questions that test learners on application of knowledge instead of knowledge acquisition. A multi-campus online quiz-based reinforcement system to train residents in QI, patient safety and care transitions was feasible, acceptable, and increased knowledge. The course may be best utilized to supplement classroom-based and experiential curricula, along with increased attention to optimizing frequency of presentation of questions and enhancing application skills. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press in association with the International Society for Quality in Health Care. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com

  1. Estimation on separation efficiency of aluminum from base-cap of spent fluorescent lamp in hammer crusher unit.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rhee, Seung-Whee

    2017-09-01

    In order to separate aluminum from the base-cap of spent fluorescent lamp (SFL), the separation efficiency of hammer crusher unit is estimated by introducing a binary separation theory. The base-cap of SFL is composed by glass fragment, binder, ferrous metal, copper and aluminum. The hammer crusher unit to recover aluminum from the base-cap consists of 3stages of hammer crusher, magnetic separator and vibrating screen. The optimal conditions of rotating speed and operating time in the hammer crusher unit are decided at each stage. At the optimal conditions, the aluminum yield and the separation efficiency of hammer crusher unit are estimated by applying a sequential binary separation theory at each stage. And the separation efficiency between hammer crusher unit and roll crush system is compared to show the performance of aluminum recovery from the base-cap of SFL. Since the separation efficiency can be increased to 99% at stage 3, from the experimental results, it is found that aluminum from the base-cap can be sufficiently recovered by the hammer crusher unit. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  2. A simplified model of polar cap electric fields

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    D'Angelo, N.

    1977-01-01

    A simple-minded 'model' is used in order to visualize the gross features of polar cap electric fields, in particular the 'diode' effect which had emerged already from earlier observations and the asymmetry between the electric fields observed on the dawn and dusk sides of the polar cap, which depends on Bsub(y)

  3. Mars seasonal polar caps as a test of the equivalence principle

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rubincam, David Parry

    2011-01-01

    The seasonal polar caps of Mars can be used to test the equivalence principle in general relativity. The north and south caps, which are composed of carbon dioxide, wax and wane with the seasons. If the ratio of the inertial (passive) to gravitational (active) masses of the caps differs from the same ratio for the rest of Mars, then the equivalence principle fails, Newton's third law fails, and the caps will pull Mars one way and then the other with a force aligned with the planet's spin axis. This leads to a secular change in Mars's along-track position in its orbit about the Sun, and to a secular change in the orbit's semimajor axis. The caps are a poor Eoetvoes test of the equivalence principle, being 4 orders-of-magnitude weaker than laboratory tests and 7 orders-of-magnitude weaker than that found by lunar laser ranging; the reason is the small mass of the caps compared to Mars as a whole. The principal virtue of using Mars is that the caps contain carbon, an element not normally considered in such experiments. The Earth with its seasonal snow cover can also be used for a similar test.

  4. Shaking Table Tests of Reinforced Concrete Frames

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Skjærbæk, P. S.; Kirkegaard, Poul Henning; Nielsen, Søren R.K.

    -varying systems and to verify various methods for damage assessment of reinforced concrete structures from soft motion measurements. In this study the maximum softening concept will be evaluated. In the paper the assessment obtained by this method is compared to visual damage assessment. The structures considered...... vector ARMA model is suitable for modal identification of degrading reinforced concrete structures and the maximum softening damage index calculated from the obtained identification provides a valuable tool for assessment of the damage state of the structure....

  5. Reinforcement learning in computer vision

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bernstein, A. V.; Burnaev, E. V.

    2018-04-01

    Nowadays, machine learning has become one of the basic technologies used in solving various computer vision tasks such as feature detection, image segmentation, object recognition and tracking. In many applications, various complex systems such as robots are equipped with visual sensors from which they learn state of surrounding environment by solving corresponding computer vision tasks. Solutions of these tasks are used for making decisions about possible future actions. It is not surprising that when solving computer vision tasks we should take into account special aspects of their subsequent application in model-based predictive control. Reinforcement learning is one of modern machine learning technologies in which learning is carried out through interaction with the environment. In recent years, Reinforcement learning has been used both for solving such applied tasks as processing and analysis of visual information, and for solving specific computer vision problems such as filtering, extracting image features, localizing objects in scenes, and many others. The paper describes shortly the Reinforcement learning technology and its use for solving computer vision problems.

  6. Preliminary Test for Constitutive Models of CAP

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Choo, Yeon Joon; Hong, Soon Joon; Hwang, Su Hyun; Lee, Keo Hyung; Kim, Min Ki; Lee, Byung Chul [FNC Tech., Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Ha, Sang Jun; Choi, Hoon [Korea Electric Power Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2010-05-15

    The development project for the domestic design code was launched to be used for the safety and performance analysis of pressurized light water reactors. As a part of this project, CAP (Containment Analysis Package) code has been developing for the containment safety and performance analysis side by side with SPACE. The CAP code treats three fields (vapor, continuous liquid and dispersed drop) for the assessment of containment specific phenomena, and is featured by assessment capabilities in multi-dimensional and lumped parameter thermal hydraulic cell. Thermal hydraulics solver was developed and has a significant progress now. Implementation of the well proven constitutive models and correlations are essential in other for a containment code to be used with the generalized or optimized purposes. Generally, constitutive equations are composed of interfacial and wall transport models and correlations. These equations are included in the source terms of the governing field equations. In order to develop the best model and correlation package of the CAP code, various models currently used in major containment analysis codes, such as GOTHIC, CONTAIN2.0 and CONTEMPT-LT are reviewed. Several models and correlations were incorporated for the preliminary test of CAP's performance and test results and future plans to improve the level of execution besides will be discussed in this paper

  7. Preliminary Test for Constitutive Models of CAP

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Choo, Yeon Joon; Hong, Soon Joon; Hwang, Su Hyun; Lee, Keo Hyung; Kim, Min Ki; Lee, Byung Chul; Ha, Sang Jun; Choi, Hoon

    2010-01-01

    The development project for the domestic design code was launched to be used for the safety and performance analysis of pressurized light water reactors. As a part of this project, CAP (Containment Analysis Package) code has been developing for the containment safety and performance analysis side by side with SPACE. The CAP code treats three fields (vapor, continuous liquid and dispersed drop) for the assessment of containment specific phenomena, and is featured by assessment capabilities in multi-dimensional and lumped parameter thermal hydraulic cell. Thermal hydraulics solver was developed and has a significant progress now. Implementation of the well proven constitutive models and correlations are essential in other for a containment code to be used with the generalized or optimized purposes. Generally, constitutive equations are composed of interfacial and wall transport models and correlations. These equations are included in the source terms of the governing field equations. In order to develop the best model and correlation package of the CAP code, various models currently used in major containment analysis codes, such as GOTHIC, CONTAIN2.0 and CONTEMPT-LT are reviewed. Several models and correlations were incorporated for the preliminary test of CAP's performance and test results and future plans to improve the level of execution besides will be discussed in this paper

  8. Effects of partial reinforcement and time between reinforced trials on terminal response rate in pigeon autoshaping.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gottlieb, Daniel A

    2006-03-01

    Partial reinforcement often leads to asymptotically higher rates of responding and number of trials with a response than does continuous reinforcement in pigeon autoshaping. However, comparisons typically involve a partial reinforcement schedule that differs from the continuous reinforcement schedule in both time between reinforced trials and probability of reinforcement. Two experiments examined the relative contributions of these two manipulations to asymptotic response rate. Results suggest that the greater responding previously seen with partial reinforcement is primarily due to differential probability of reinforcement and not differential time between reinforced trials. Further, once established, differences in responding are resistant to a change in stimulus and contingency. Secondary response theories of autoshaped responding (theories that posit additional response-augmenting or response-attenuating mechanisms specific to partial or continuous reinforcement) cannot fully accommodate the current body of data. It is suggested that researchers who study pigeon autoshaping train animals on a common task prior to training them under different conditions.

  9. Administración del agua. - Capítulo VII: Aprovechamiento de las aguas

    OpenAIRE

    Fernández Morales, Juan Carlos

    2008-01-01

    ÍNDICE Créditos Dedicatoria Agradecimiento Notas del autor Introducción Capítulo I: Marco jurídico conceptual de la gestión del agua. Capítulo II: Organización administrativa del agua. Capítulo III: Las confederaciones hidrográficas en la legislación española. Capítulo IV: Los usuarios y la gestión del agua. Capítulo V: Administración del agua y competencias sectoriales en las comunidades autonómas españolas. Capítulo VI: Abastecimien...

  10. Influence of transverse reinforcement on perforation resistance of reinforced concrete slabs under hard missile impact

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Orbovic, Nebojsa; Sagals, Genadijs; Blahoianu, Andrei

    2015-01-01

    This paper describes the work conducted by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) related to the influence of transverse reinforcement on perforation capacity of reinforced concrete (RC) slabs under “hard” missile impact (impact with negligible missile deformations). The paper presents the results of three tests on reinforced concrete slabs conducted at VTT Technical Research Centre (Finland), along with the numerical simulations as well as a discussion of the current code provisions related to impactive loading. Transverse reinforcement is widely used for improving the shear and punching strength of concrete structures. However, the effect of this reinforcement on the perforation resistance under localized missile impact is still unclear. The goal of this paper is to fill the gap in the current literature related to this topic. Based on similar tests designed by the authors with missile velocity below perforation velocity, it was expected that transverse reinforcement would improve the perforation resistance. Three slabs were tested under almost identical conditions with the only difference being the transverse reinforcement. One slab was designed without transverse reinforcement, the second one with the transverse reinforcement in form of conventional stirrups with hooks and the third one with the transverse reinforcement in form of T-headed bars. Although the transverse reinforcement reduced the overall damage of the slabs (the rear face scabbing), the conclusion from the tests is that the transverse reinforcement does not have important influence on perforation capacity of concrete slabs under rigid missile impact. The slab with T-headed bars presented a slight improvement compared to the baseline specimen without transverse reinforcement. The slab with conventional stirrups presented slightly lower perforation capacity (higher residual missile velocity) than the slab without transverse reinforcement. In conclusion, the performed tests show slightly

  11. Parametric study of propeller boss cap fins for container ships

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lim, Sang-Seop; Kim, Tae-Won; Lee, Dong-Myung; Kang, Chung-Gil; Kim, Soo-Young

    2014-06-01

    The global price of oil, which is both finite and limited in quantity, has been rising steadily because of the increasing requirements for energy in both developing and developed countries. Furthermore, regulations have been strengthened across all industries to address global warming. Many studies of hull resistance, propulsion and operation of ships have been performed to reduce fuel consumption and emissions. This study examined the design parameters of the propeller boss cap fin (PBCF) and hub cap for 6,000TEU container ships to improve the propulsion efficiency. The design parameters of PBCF have been selected based on the geometrical shape. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis with a propeller open water (POW) test was performed to check the validity of CFD analysis. The design of experiment (DOE) case was selected as a full factorial design, and the experiment was analyzed by POW and CFD analysis. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to determine the correlation among design parameters. Four design alternatives of PBCF were selected from the DOE. The shape of a propeller hub cap was selected as a divergent shape, and the divergent angle was determined by the DOE. Four design alternatives of PBCF were attached to the divergent hub cap, and the POW was estimated by CFD. As a result, the divergent hub cap with PBCF has a negative effect on the POW, which is induced by an increase in torque coefficient. A POW test and cavitation test were performed with a divergent hub cap with PBCF to verify the CFD result. The POW test result showed that the open water efficiency was increased approximately 2% with a divergent hub cap compared to a normal cap. The POW test result was similar to the CFD result, and the divergent hub cap with the PBCF models showed lower open water efficiency. This was attributed to an increase in the torque coefficient just like the CFD results. A cavitation test was performed using the 2 models selected. The test result showed

  12. Protein synthesis in geostimulated root caps

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feldman, L. J.

    1982-01-01

    A study is presented of the processes occurring in the root cap of corn which are requisite for the formation of root cap inhibitor and which can be triggered or modulated by both light and gravity. The results of this study indicate the importance of protein synthesis for light-induced gravitropic bending in roots. Root caps in which protein synthesis is prevented are unable to induce downward bending. This suggests that light acts by stimulating proteins which are necessary for the translation of the gravitropic stimulus into a growth response (downward bending). The turnover of protein with time was also examined in order to determine whether light acts by stimulating the synthesis of unique proteins required for downward growth. It is found that auxin in combination with light allows for the translation of the gravitropic stimulus into a growth response at least in part through the modification of protein synthesis. It is concluded that unique proteins are stimulated by light and are involved in promoting the downward growth in roots which are responding to gravity.

  13. Pulp-Capping with Mineral Trioxide Aggregate

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peycheva Kalina

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available There are two considerations for direct pulp capping - accidental mechanical pulp exposure and exposure caused by caries. Mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA was used as pulp-capping material to preserve the vitality of the pulpal tissues. Follow-up examinations revealed that treatment was successful in preserving pulpal vitality and continued development of the tooth. On the basis of available information, it appears that MTA is the material of choice for some clinical applications. Material and methods: Cases 18 - 8 teeth with grey MTA, 10 teeth with white MTA; diagnose: Pulpitis chronica ulcerosa, Electro pulpal test (EOD - 30-35 μA, pre-clinical X-ray - without changes in the structures, follow ups for 4 years. Successful treatments: without clinical symptoms and changes in the X-rays: 5 teeth with grey MTA, 8 teeth with white MTA for period of 4 years. Unsuccessful treatments: Clinical symptoms and sometimes changes in the X-ray: 3 with grey MTA, 2 with white MTA. MTA is an appropriate material for pulp-capping and follow-up examinations revealed that the treatment was successful in preserving pulpal vitality.

  14. Comparison of the EZ-Cap recapper with the Mayo recapper for the prevention of needlesticks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dewhirst, Chad A; Hung, Joseph C

    2008-09-01

    The purpose of this project was the development of a device that improves the design of our current capping block, the Mayo recapper. The major challenges for design and improvement included creating a device that is simple to use and can be applied throughout our department. We wanted a recapper device that increased safety and minimized the potential for needlesticks. Simplicity was another important factor, along with versatility and low cost. A new recapper, called EZ-Cap, was developed, and a comparison study was conducted to evaluate the pros and cons of the EZ-Cap recapper and the Mayo recapper. Nuclear medicine technologists (n = 10) in our department used each device when administering patient injections. At the conclusion of their patient injection rotation, they recorded on a survey sheet the pros and cons of each device. The results of this survey were used to evaluate the effectiveness, comfort level during use, and safety of each recapping device. We used a 2-level scoring system to help determine which device was more favorable. The first level focused on comfort and convenience and was given a score of +1 or -1. The second level focused on safety and was given a score of +2 or -2. Because we believed that safety was a high priority for our capping blocks, this level received a higher score than the first level. The Mayo recapper was the device preferred by 9 of 10 technologists surveyed. The EZ-Cap recapper had several technical issues that made it difficult to use and that could potentially lead to safety concerns. According to our scoring system, the Mayo recapper received a score of +9 for its pros and -4 for its cons. By comparison, the EZ-Cap recapper received a score of +7 for its pros and -16 for its cons. Our results show that the Mayo recapper was the device of choice because its pros outweighed its cons. However, we will continually improve the effectiveness of the Mayo recapper to prevent needlesticks.

  15. How to take absorptive surfaces into account when designing outdoor sound reinforcement systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Karsten bo

    1996-01-01

    When sound reinforcement systems are used outdoors, absorptive surfaces are usually present along the propagation path of the sound. This may lead to a very significant colouration of the spectrum received by the audience. The colouration depends on the location and directivity of the loudspeaker......, the nature of the absorptive surface (eg grass) and the location of the audience. It is discussed how this effect may be calculated and numerical examples are shown. The results show a significant colouration and attenuation of the sound due to grass-covered surfaces....

  16. Finite element modelling of concrete beams reinforced with hybrid fiber reinforced bars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smring, Santa binti; Salleh, Norhafizah; Hamid, NoorAzlina Abdul; Majid, Masni A.

    2017-11-01

    Concrete is a heterogeneous composite material made up of cement, sand, coarse aggregate and water mixed in a desired proportion to obtain the required strength. Plain concrete does not with stand tension as compared to compression. In order to compensate this drawback steel reinforcement are provided in concrete. Now a day, for improving the properties of concrete and also to take up tension combination of steel and glass fibre-reinforced polymer (GFRP) bars promises favourable strength, serviceability, and durability. To verify its promise and support design concrete structures with hybrid type of reinforcement, this study have investigated the load-deflection behaviour of concrete beams reinforced with hybrid GFRP and steel bars by using ATENA software. Fourteen beams, including six control beams reinforced with only steel or only GFRP bars, were analysed. The ratio and the ordinate of GFRP to steel were the main parameters investigated. The behaviour of these beams was investigated via the load-deflection characteristics, cracking behaviour and mode of failure. Hybrid GFRP-Steel reinforced concrete beam showed the improvement in both ultimate capacity and deflection concomitant to the steel reinforced concrete beam. On the other hand, finite element (FE) modelling which is ATENA were validated with previous experiment and promising the good result to be used for further analyses and development in the field of present study.

  17. Use of wet concrete spraying in building technology of reinforced-concrete fiber slabs according to «Monofant» system

    OpenAIRE

    BUGAYEVSKIY S.

    2016-01-01

    Technology of cementation of reinforced-concrete slabs with non-extractable-liners for the «Monofant» system, using wet concrete spraying is implemented. A compression test for obtained columns made of fiber concrete is carried out.

  18. Nuclear Waste Vitrification Efficiency: Cold Cap Reactions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kruger, A.A.; Hrma, P.R.; Pokorny, R.

    2011-01-01

    The cost and schedule of nuclear waste treatment and immobilization are greatly affected by the rate of glass production. Various factors influence the performance of a waste-glass melter. One of the most significant, and also one of the least understood, is the process of batch melting. Studies are being conducted to gain fundamental understanding of the batch reactions, particularly those that influence the rate of melting, and models are being developed to link batch makeup and melter operation to the melting rate. Batch melting takes place within the cold cap, i.e., a batch layer floating on the surface of molten glass. The conversion of batch to glass consists of various chemical reactions, phase transitions, and diffusion-controlled processes. These include water evaporation (slurry feed contains as high as 60% water), gas evolution, the melting of salts, the formation of borate melt, reactions of borate melt with molten salts and with amorphous oxides (Fe 2 O 3 and Al 2 O 3 ), the formation of intermediate crystalline phases, the formation of a continuous glass-forming melt, the growth and collapse of primary foam, and the dissolution of residual solids. To this list we also need to add the formation of secondary foam that originates from molten glass but accumulates on the bottom of the cold cap. This study presents relevant data obtained for a high-level-waste melter feed and introduces a one-dimensional (1D) mathematical model of the cold cap as a step toward an advanced three-dimensional (3D) version for a complete model of the waste glass melter. The 1D model describes the batch-to-glass conversion within the cold cap as it progresses in a vertical direction. With constitutive equations and key parameters based on measured data, and simplified boundary conditions on the cold-cap interfaces with the glass melt and the plenum space of the melter, the model provides sensitivity analysis of the response of the cold cap to the batch makeup and melter

  19. Electrostatic assembly of CTAB-capped silver nanoparticles along predefined λ-DNA template

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wei Gang; Wang Li; Zhou Hualan; Liu Zhiguo; Song Yonghai; Li Zhuang

    2005-01-01

    Cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB)-capped positively-charged silver nanoparticles synthesized in water-ethanol system was electrostatic assembled on predefined aligned λ-DNA template. Silver nanowire can be obtained by changing the reaction time and the particles concentration. In our work, the length of the silver nanowire obtained is about 10 μm, and the dimension of the wires is about 20 nm. AFM data reveal that the assembly of CTAB-capped silver nanoparticles on DNA is ordered, but there is space between two particles absorbed on the DNA template. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was applied to characterize the linear silver clusters, which provides an additional proof that the silver particles were assembled onto DNA template with fine order

  20. Numerical Study on Self-Cleaning Canister Filter With Add-On Filter Cap

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammed Akmal Nizam

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Filtration in a turbo machinery system such as a gas turbine will ensure that the air entering the inlet is free from contaminants that could bring damage to the main system. Self-cleaning filter systems for gas turbines are designed for continuously efficient flow filtration. A good filter would be able to maintain its effectiveness over a longer time period, prolonging the duration between filter replacements and providing lower pressure drop over its operating lifetime. With this goal in mind, the current study is focused on the difference in pressure loss of the benchmark Salutary Avenue Self-cleaning filter in comparison to a new design with an add-on filter cap. Geometry for the add-on filter cap will be based from Salutary Avenue Manufacturing Sdn.Bhd. SOLIDWORKS software was used to model the geometry of the filter, while simulation analysis on the flow through the filter was done using Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD software. The simulations are based on a low velocity condition, in which the parameter for the inlet velocity are set at 0.032 m/s, 0.063 m/s, 0.094 m/s and 0.126 m/s respectively. From the simulation data obtained for the inlet velocities considered, the pressure drop reduction of the modified filter compared to the benchmark was found to be between 7.59% and 30.18%. All in all, the modification of the filter cap produced a lower pressure drop in comparison with the benchmark filter; an improvement of 27.02% for the total pressure drop was obtained.

  1. RC beams shear-strengthened with fabric-reinforced-cementitious-matrix (FRCM) composite

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loreto, Giovanni; Babaeidarabad, Saman; Leardini, Lorenzo; Nanni, Antonio

    2015-12-01

    The interest in retrofit/rehabilitation of existing concrete structures has increased due to degradation and/or introduction of more stringent design requirements. Among the externally-bonded strengthening systems fiber-reinforced polymers is the most widely known technology. Despite its effectiveness as a material system, the presence of an organic binder has some drawbacks that could be addressed by using in its place a cementitious binder as in fabric-reinforced cementitious matrix (FRCM) systems. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the behavior of reinforced concrete (RC) beams strengthened in shear with U-wraps made of FRCM. An extensive experimental program was undertaken in order to understand and characterize this composite when used as a strengthening system. The laboratory results demonstrate the technical viability of FRCM for shear strengthening of RC beams. Based on the experimental and analytical results, FRCM increases shear strength but not proportionally to the number of fabric plies installed. On the other hand, FRCM failure modes are related with a high consistency to the amount of external reinforcement applied. Design considerations based on the algorithms proposed by ACI guidelines are also provided.

  2. Mars Seasonal Polar Caps as a Test of the Equivalence Principle

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rubincam, Daivd Parry

    2011-01-01

    The seasonal polar caps of Mars can be used to test the equivalence principle in general relativity. The north and south caps, which are composed of carbon dioxide, wax and wane with the seasons. If the ratio of the inertial to gravitational masses of the caps differs from the same ratio for the rest of Mars, then the equivalence principle fails, Newton's third law fails, and the caps will pull Mars one way and then the other with a force aligned with the planet's spin axis. This leads to a secular change in Mars's along-track position in its orbit about the Sun, and to a secular change in the orbit's semimajor axis. The caps are a poor E6tv6s test of the equivalence principle, being 4 orders-of-magnitude weaker than laboratory tests and 7 orders-of-magnitude weaker than that found by lunar laser ranging; the reason is the small mass of the caps compared to Mars as a whole. The principal virtue of using Mars is that the caps contain carbon, an element not normally considered in such experiments. The Earth with its seasonal snow cover can also be used for a similar test.

  3. An ATLAS inner detector end-cap is placed in its cryostat

    CERN Multimedia

    2007-01-01

    The instrumentation housed inside the inner end-cap must be kept cool to avoid thermal noise. This cooling is achieved on ATLAS by placing the end-cap inside a liquid argon cryostat. The end-cap measures particles that are produced close to the direction of the beam pipe and would otherwise be missed.

  4. The Martian polar caps: Stability and water transport at low obliquities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henderson, B. G.; Jakosky, B. M.

    1992-01-01

    The seasonal cycle of water on Mars is regulated by the two polar caps. In the winter hemisphere, the seasonal CO2 deposits at a temperature near 150 K acts as a cold trap to remove water vapor from the atmosphere. When summer returns, water is pumped back into the atmosphere by a number of mechanisms, including release from the receding CO2 frost, diffusion from the polar regolith, and sublimation from a water-ice residual cap. These processes drive an exchange of water vapor between the polar caps that helps shape the Martian climate. Thus, understanding the behavior of the polar caps is important for interpreting the Martian climate both now and at other epochs. Mars' obliquity undergoes large variations over large time scales. As the obliquity decreases, the poles receive less solar energy so that more CO2 condenses from the atmosphere onto the poles. It has been suggested that permanent CO2 condenses from the atmosphere onto the poles. It has been suggested that permanent CO2 caps might form at the poles in response to a feedback mechanism existing between the polar cap albedo, the CO2 pressure, and the dust storm frequency. The year-round presence of the CO2 deposits would effectively dry out the atmosphere, while diffusion of water from the regolith would be the only source of water vapor to the atmosphere. We have reviewed the CO2 balance at low obliquity taking into account the asymmetries which make the north and south hemispheres different. Our analysis linked with a numerical model of the polar caps leads us to believe that one summertime cap will always lose its CO2 cover during a Martian year, although we cannot predict which cap this will be. We conclude that significant amounts of water vapor will sublime from the exposed cap during summer, and the Martian atmosphere will support an active water cycle even at low obliquity.

  5. Preparing an ATLAS toroid magnet end-cap for lowering

    CERN Multimedia

    Claudia Marcelloni

    2007-01-01

    One of the two 13-m high toroid magnet end-caps for the ATLAS experiment being transported from the construction hall to the experimental area. The end-cap will be lowered into the ATLAS cavern and attached to an end of the detector.

  6. Connections in Precast Buildings using Ultra High-Strength Fibre Reinforced Concrete

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Lars Pilegaard

    1995-01-01

    Ultra high-strength concrete adds new dimensions to the design of concrete structures. It is a brittle material but introducing fibres into the matrix changes the material into a highly ductile material. Furthermore, the fibre reinforcement increases the anchorage of traditional reinforcement bar...... and the fire resistance. Such a fibre reinforced ultra high-strength material has been used to develop a simple joint solution between slab elements in a column - slab building system....

  7. Characterization of Contaminant Migration Potential Through In-Place Sediment Caps

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-06-01

    grab. Extraction and analysis of sediment/cap material used pesticide -grade organic solvents obtained from Fisher Scientific (Pittsburgh, PA). The 16...34Controlled Field Release of a Bioluminescent Genetically Engineered  Microorganism  for  Bioremediation  Process Monitoring and Control." Environmental Science...role of sorbent amendments in enhancing cap performance. Laboratory column experiments were performed using contaminated sediments and capping

  8. Methods for producing reinforced carbon nanotubes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ren, Zhifen [Newton, MA; Wen, Jian Guo [Newton, MA; Lao, Jing Y [Chestnut Hill, MA; Li, Wenzhi [Brookline, MA

    2008-10-28

    Methods for producing reinforced carbon nanotubes having a plurality of microparticulate carbide or oxide materials formed substantially on the surface of such reinforced carbon nanotubes composite materials are disclosed. In particular, the present invention provides reinforced carbon nanotubes (CNTs) having a plurality of boron carbide nanolumps formed substantially on a surface of the reinforced CNTs that provide a reinforcing effect on CNTs, enabling their use as effective reinforcing fillers for matrix materials to give high-strength composites. The present invention also provides methods for producing such carbide reinforced CNTs.

  9. Design notes for the next generation persistent object manager for CAP

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Isely, M.; Fischler, M.; Galli, M.

    1995-05-01

    The CAP query system software at Fermilab has several major components, including SQS (for managing the query), the retrieval system (for fetching auxiliary data), and the query software itself. The central query software in particular is essentially a modified version of the 'ptool' product created at UIC (University of Illinois at Chicago) as part of the PASS project under Bob Grossman. The original UIC version was designed for use in a single-user non-distributed Unix environment. The Fermi modifications were an attempt to permit multi-user access to a data set distributed over a set of storage nodes. (The hardware is an IBM SP-x system - a cluster of AIX POWER2 nodes with an IBM-proprietary high speed switch interconnect). Since the implementation work of the Fermi-ized ptool, the CAP members have learned quite a bit about the nature of queries and where the current performance bottlenecks exist. This has lead them to design a persistent object manager that will overcome these problems. For backwards compatibility with ptool, the ptool persistent object API will largely be retained, but the implementation will be entirely different

  10. 34 CFR 370.1 - What is the Client Assistance Program (CAP)?

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 34 Education 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What is the Client Assistance Program (CAP)? 370.1... § 370.1 What is the Client Assistance Program (CAP)? The purpose of this program is to establish and carry out CAPs that— (a) Advise and inform clients and client applicants of all services and benefits...

  11. 50 CFR 679.82 - Rockfish Program use caps and sideboard limits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 9 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Rockfish Program use caps and sideboard... ECONOMIC ZONE OFF ALASKA Rockfish Program § 679.82 Rockfish Program use caps and sideboard limits. (a) Use caps—(1) General. Use caps limit the amount of rockfish QS and CQ of primary rockfish species that may...

  12. Studies of red soils as capping the uranium mill tailing impoundments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wen Zhijian; Chen Zhangru; Liu Zhengyi; Chen Guoliang

    2001-01-01

    Capping is one of the important technical engineering measures to assure the long term stabilization and isolation of uranium mill tailings. This paper reports in situ surveys of radon emanations before and after tailings slurries were capped with local red soils at the uranium mill tailings. The data obtained by soil-gas surveys reveal that radon emanation decreased with an increase in capping thickness. The dry density of the capping materials also plays an important role in preventing radon emanation. The measurement results show that utilizing high densities of red soils as capping materials can significantly decrease the required thickness of the capping. The analytical results from borehole red soil samples show that uranium, thorium, and radium contents are consistent with the regional environmental radioactivity level. The studies of the mineralogical composition indicate that the local red soils are rich in clay minerals, e.g. kaolinite, illite and mica vermiculite mixed-layer minerals, which would play an active role in preventing radionuclide release to the surrounding environment. A conceptual model for remediation of south China's uranium mill tailing has been developed

  13. Solid scintillator 'Ready Cap' for measurement with a liquid scintillation counter

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ijiri, Kenichi; Endo, Masashi; Nogawa, Norio; Tsuda, Shoko; Nakamura, Aiko; Morikawa, Naotake; Osaki, Susumu.

    1990-01-01

    'Ready Cap', a small plastic container coated with solid scintillator has recently been introduced (Beckman Instruments, Inc.). Pulse height spectra and counting efficiencies obtained with a liquid scintillator and Ready Cap using a liquid scintillation counter were compared for 15 different radionuclides. For radionuclides emitting low-energy β-rays or characteristic X-rays, the spectra for Ready Cap shifted toward the higher energy side compared with the spectra for the liquid scintillator. This tendency was reversed for the nuclides emitting higher-energy β-radiations ( 36 Cl and 32 P). Generally, counting efficiencies both in Ready Cap and in liquid scintillator increased with increase in the energy of β- or X-rays. For some nuclides, Ready Cap gave higher counting efficiencies and for others it gave lower values than in the liquid scintillator. However, the differences were not large within each nuclide. The use of Ready Cap is recommended for measurements of radionuclides when liquid scintillation cocktails have no means of waste disposal under the present Japanese radioisotope regulation. (author)

  14. Articularities of Analysis and Behaviour of Concrete Beams Reinforced with Fibrous Polymer Composite Bars

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. Ţăranu

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available Traditional steel based reinforcement systems for concrete elements are facing with serious problems mainly caused by corrosion due to chemically aggressive environments and salts used in deicing procedures, especially in case of bridge steel reinforced concrete girders. Also in some cases special applications require structural members with magnetic transparency. An alternative to this major problem has recently become the use of fiber reinforced polymer (FPR composite bars as internal reinforcement for concrete beams. The particularities of their mechanical properties are making the design process a difficult task for engineers, numerous research centers being involved in correcting this situation. The general aspects concerning the conceiving of FR.P reinforced concrete beams are firstly analyzed, compared to those reinforced with steel bars. Some results of a Finite Element Analysis, as part of a complex program which also implies full scale testing of FRP reinforced beams subjected to bending, are given and discussed in the paper. The low elasticity modulus presented by glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP bars does not justify its use from structural point of view when deflection is the limiting condition but for corrosive resistance reasons and special electromagnetic properties this system can be promoted.

  15. The CAP Theorem Versus Databases with Relaxed ACID properties

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Frank, Lars; Pedersen, Rasmus Ulslev; Havnø Frank, Christian

    2014-01-01

    data from different locations can have at most two of the three desirable CAP properties [5]. The NoSQL movement has applied the CAP theorem as an argument against tradi- tional ACID (atomicity, consistency, isolation, and durabil- ity) databases, which prioritize consistency and partition- tolerance...

  16. Assessing the value of price caps and floors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2009-07-01

    This publication assesses the long-term economic and climatic effects of introducing price caps and price floors in hypothetical global climate change mitigation policy. Based on emission trends, abatement costs and equilibrium climate sensitivity from IPCC and IEA reports, this quantitative analysis confirms that price caps could significantly reduce economic uncertainty. This uncertainty stems primarily from unpredictable economic growth and energy prices, and ultimately unabated emission trends. In addition, the development of abatement technologies is uncertain. Furthermore,this analysis shows that rigid targets may entail greater economic risks with little or no comparative advantage for the climate. More ambitious emission objectives, combined with price caps and price floors, could still entail significantly lower expected costs while driving similar, or even slightly better, climatic outcomes in probabilistic terms.

  17. Instructional control of reinforcement learning: a behavioral and neurocomputational investigation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doll, Bradley B; Jacobs, W Jake; Sanfey, Alan G; Frank, Michael J

    2009-11-24

    Humans learn how to behave directly through environmental experience and indirectly through rules and instructions. Behavior analytic research has shown that instructions can control behavior, even when such behavior leads to sub-optimal outcomes (Hayes, S. (Ed.). 1989. Rule-governed behavior: cognition, contingencies, and instructional control. Plenum Press.). Here we examine the control of behavior through instructions in a reinforcement learning task known to depend on striatal dopaminergic function. Participants selected between probabilistically reinforced stimuli, and were (incorrectly) told that a specific stimulus had the highest (or lowest) reinforcement probability. Despite experience to the contrary, instructions drove choice behavior. We present neural network simulations that capture the interactions between instruction-driven and reinforcement-driven behavior via two potential neural circuits: one in which the striatum is inaccurately trained by instruction representations coming from prefrontal cortex/hippocampus (PFC/HC), and another in which the striatum learns the environmentally based reinforcement contingencies, but is "overridden" at decision output. Both models capture the core behavioral phenomena but, because they differ fundamentally on what is learned, make distinct predictions for subsequent behavioral and neuroimaging experiments. Finally, we attempt to distinguish between the proposed computational mechanisms governing instructed behavior by fitting a series of abstract "Q-learning" and Bayesian models to subject data. The best-fitting model supports one of the neural models, suggesting the existence of a "confirmation bias" in which the PFC/HC system trains the reinforcement system by amplifying outcomes that are consistent with instructions while diminishing inconsistent outcomes.

  18. Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer Grids for Shear and End Zone Reinforcement in Bridge Beams

    Science.gov (United States)

    2018-01-01

    Corrosion of reinforcing steel reduces life spans of bridges throughout the United States; therefore, using non-corroding carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) reinforcement is seen as a way to increase service life. The use of CFRP as the flexural ...

  19. The Influence of Company Size on Accounting Information: Evidence in Large Caps and Small Caps Companies Listed on BM&FBovespa

    OpenAIRE

    Karen Yukari Yokoyama; Vitor Gomes Baioco; William Brasil Rodrigues Sobrinho; Alfredo Sarlo Neto

    2015-01-01

    In this study, the relation between accounting information aspects and the capitalization level o companies listed on the São Paulo Stock Exchange was investigated, classified as Large Caps or Small Caps, companies with larger and smaller capitalization, respectively, between 2010 and 2012. Three accounting information measures were addressed: informativeness, conservatism and relevance, through the application of Easton and Harris’ (1991) models of earnings informativeness, Basu’s (1997) mod...

  20. A Robust Cooperated Control Method with Reinforcement Learning and Adaptive H∞ Control

    Science.gov (United States)

    Obayashi, Masanao; Uchiyama, Shogo; Kuremoto, Takashi; Kobayashi, Kunikazu

    This study proposes a robust cooperated control method combining reinforcement learning with robust control to control the system. A remarkable characteristic of the reinforcement learning is that it doesn't require model formula, however, it doesn't guarantee the stability of the system. On the other hand, robust control system guarantees stability and robustness, however, it requires model formula. We employ both the actor-critic method which is a kind of reinforcement learning with minimal amount of computation to control continuous valued actions and the traditional robust control, that is, H∞ control. The proposed system was compared method with the conventional control method, that is, the actor-critic only used, through the computer simulation of controlling the angle and the position of a crane system, and the simulation result showed the effectiveness of the proposed method.

  1. Retention Strength of Conical Welding Caps for Fixed Implant-Supported Prostheses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nardi, Diego; Degidi, Marco; Sighinolfi, Gianluca; Tebbel, Florian; Marchetti, Claudio

    This study evaluated the retention strength of welding caps for Ankylos standard abutments using a pull-out test. Each sample consisted of an implant abutment and its welding cap. The tests were performed with a Zwick Roell testing machine with a 1-kN load cell. The retention strength of the welding caps increased with higher abutment diameters and higher head heights and was comparable or superior to the values reported in the literature for the temporary cements used in implant dentistry. Welding caps provide a reliable connection between an abutment and a fixed prosthesis without the use of cement.

  2. DNA-PKcs is critical for telomere capping

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gilley, David; Tanaka, Hiromi; Hande, M. Prakash; Kurimasa,Akihiro; Li, Gloria C.; Chen, David J.

    2001-04-10

    The DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit (DNA-PKcs) is critical for DNA repair via the non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) pathway. Previously, it was reported that bone marrow cells and spontaneously transformed fibroblasts from SCID (severe combined immunodeficiency) mice have defects in telomere maintenance. The genetically defective SCID mouse arose spontaneously from its parental strain CB17. One known genomic alteration in SCID mice is a truncation of the extreme carboxyl-terminus of DNA-PKcs, but other as yet unidentified alterations may also exist. We have used a defined system, the DNA-PKcs knockout mouse, to investigate specifically the role DNA-PKcs specifically plays in telomere maintenance. We report that primary mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) and primary cultured kidney cells from 6-8 month old DNA-PKcs deficient mice accumulate a large number of telomere fusions, yet still retain wildtype telomere length. Thus, the phenotype of this defect separates the two-telomere related phenotypes, capping and length maintenance. DNA-PKcs deficient MEFs also exhibit elevated levels of chromosome fragments and breaks, which correlate with increased telomere fusions. Based on the high levels of telomere fusions observed in DNA-PKcs deficient cells, we conclude that DNA-PKcs plays an important capping role at the mammalian telomere.

  3. Hybrid fiber reinforcement and crack formation in Cementitious Composite Materials

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pereira, E.B.; Fischer, Gregor; Barros, J.A.O.

    2011-01-01

    reinforcement systems. The research described in this paper shows that the multi-scale conception of cracking and the use of hybrid fiber reinforcements do not necessarily result in an improved tensile behavior of the composite. Particular material design requirements may nevertheless justify the use of hybrid......- to the macroscale. In this study, the performance of different fiber reinforced cementitious composites is assessed in terms of their tensile stress-crack opening behavior. The results obtained from this investigation allow a direct quantitative comparison of the behavior obtained from the different fiber...

  4. Production of putrescine-capped stable silver nanoparticle: its characterization and antibacterial activity against multidrug-resistant bacterial strains

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saha, Saswati; Gupta, Bhaskar; Gupta, Kamala; Chaudhuri, Mahua Ghosh

    2016-11-01

    Integration of biology with nanotechnology is now becoming attention-grabbing area of research. The antimicrobial potency of silver has been eminent from antiquity. Due to the recent desire for the enhancement of antibacterial efficacy of silver, various synthesis methods of silver in their nano dimensions are being practiced using a range of capping material. The present work highlights a facile biomimetic approach for production of silver nanoparticle being capped and stabilized by putrescine, possessing a diameter of 10-25 ± 1.5 nm. The synthesized nanoparticles have been analyzed spectrally and analytically. Morphological studies are carried out by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and crystallinity by selected area electron diffraction patterns. Moreover, the elemental composition of the capped nanoparticles was confirmed by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analysis. A comparative study (zone of inhibition and minimum inhibitory concentration) regarding the interactions and antibacterial potentiality of the capped silver nanoparticles with respect to the bare ones reveal the efficiency of the capped one over the bare one. The bacterial kinetic study was executed to monitor the interference of nanoparticles with bacterial growth rate. The results also highlight the efficacy of putrescine-capped silver nanoparticles as effective growth inhibitors against multi-drug resistant human pathogenic bacterial strains, which may, thus, potentially be applicable as an effective antibacterial control system to fight diseases.

  5. Capping layer growth rate and the optical and structural properties of GaAsSbN-capped InAs/GaAs quantum dots

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ulloa, J. M., E-mail: jmulloa@isom.upm.es; Utrilla, A. D.; Guzman, A.; Hierro, A. [Institute for Systems based on Optoelectronics and Microtechnology (ISOM) and Dpto. Ingeniería Electrónica, Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, Ciudad Universitaria s/n, 28040 Madrid (Spain); Reyes, D. F.; Ben, T.; González, D. [Departamento de Ciencia de los Materiales e IM y QI, Universidad de Cádiz, 11510 Puerto Real (Cádiz) (Spain)

    2014-10-07

    Changing the growth rate during the heteroepitaxial capping of InAs/GaAs quantum dots (QDs) with a 5 nm-thick GaAsSbN capping layer (CL) strongly modifies the QD structural and optical properties. A size and shape transition from taller pyramids to flatter lens-shaped QDs is observed when the CL growth rate is decreased from 1.5 to 0.5 ML/s. This indicates that the QD dissolution processes taking place during capping can be controlled to some extent by the GaAsSbN CL growth rate, with high growth rates allowing a complete preservation of the QDs. However, the dissolution processes are shown to have a leveling effect on the QD height, giving rise to a narrower size distribution for lower growth rates. Contrary to what could be expected, these effects are opposite to the strong blue-shift and improvement of the photoluminescence (PL) observed for higher growth rates. Nevertheless, the PL results can be understood in terms of the strong impact of the growth rate on the Sb and N incorporation into the CL, which results in lower Sb and N contents at higher growth rates. Besides the QD-CL band offsets and QD strain, the different CL composition alters the band alignment of the system, which can be transformed to type-II at low growth rates. These results show the key role of the alloyed CL growth parameters on the resulting QD properties and demonstrate an intricate correlation between the PL spectra and the sample morphology in complex QD-CL structures.

  6. Traditional M e n Caps o f Kyrgyzstan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Serap TANRISEVER

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Kyrgyzstan has an extraordinarily rich mosaic of folk culture. There is a great importance of wear clothing, crafts and decorative arts in this mosaic. Traditional caps and clothes of Kyrgyzstan are the best elements that reflect the presence of culture, t raditions, geography inhabited, climatic conditions that they already live in. Kyrgyzstan has been trying to keep alive the traditions, styles of lives by using the required crafts and handmade products although the global fashion, time and technological development. According to research, it has still been seen that the caps and clothes of Kyrgyzstan are being used less in daily life. Caps, Kalpak , Tebetey, Malakay, are some of the best known extant that come to this age related with the traditions of ca p s of Kyrgyzstan’s men . In this research, it has been worked of decorations of Kirghiz men caps , specialties of color and design, techniques of sewing, characteristics of mold and fabrics, Moreover the place and the meaning of the titles has been trying to determine in the cultural life. The scan method has been used by doing regional research.

  7. Pengelolaan Fraktur Dentoalveolar pada Anak-Anak dengan Cap Splint Akrilik

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dedy Sigit Nur Cahyo

    2015-12-01

    Management of Dentoalveolar Fractures in Children Using Acrylic Cap Splint. The purpose of fracture treatment in children is basically the same as that in adults with different management, while the choice of treatment method mainly relies on the development of jaws and teeth. It reports two cases of dentoalveolar fractures in children under 5 years old who were treated using acrylic cap splint with circum-mandibular wiring under general anesthetic. Two children, aged 1 year and 3 years old were referred to the emergency department of Dr. Sardjito Hospital with the diagnosis of dentoalveolar fractures. Both cases were treated using cap splint with circum-mandibular wiring-based fixation under general anesthetic. After 3 weeks, the acrylic cap splint and the circum-mandibular wiring were released under sedation. No loose teeth were found in the fracture area. In the following 6 weeks, the teeth were stable with normal occlusion and no infection found. Acrylic cap splint with circum-mandibular wiring is a simple, effective and minimally invasive method for dentoalveolar treatment in children.

  8. A market power model with price caps and compact DC power flow constraints

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zuwei Yu [Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN (United States). School of Industrial Engineering

    2003-05-01

    This paper presents a spatial gaming model with price caps for deregulated electricity markets. There has been heated debate on price caps that have been enforced in deregulated electricity markets. Opponents argue that price caps may send wrong economic signals while advocates argue that price caps are good for damping market power. This paper does not intend to take a stand in the argument. Given the fact that price caps are enforced in several deregulated regional electricity markets in the US, a logical step is to reflect this reality in gaining modeling. However, current gaining models have not included any price cap formulation. This paper is the first one to address the issue. DC power flow equations are used for representing the spatial nature of an electrical network. An algorithm is proposed to find a generalized Nash equilibrium under the enforcement of price caps based on the Kuhn-Tucker Vector Optimization Theorem. Case studies show the successful application of the model. The conclusion is that market power impact can be reduced under appropriate price caps. (author)

  9. Completion of the first TRT End-cap

    CERN Multimedia

    Catinaccio, A; Rohne, O

    On July 1, the first end-cap of the ATLAS Transition Radiation Tracker (TRT) was successfully completed in terms of the integration of the wheels assembled in Russia with their front-end electronics. The two groups of the detector, fully assembled and equipped with front-end electronics, were rotated from their horizontal position during stacking to their nominal vertical position, in which they will be integrated with the corresponding end-cap silicon-strip (SCT) detector towards the end of 2005, before installation into ATLAS in spring 2006. After starting the assembly in the SR building one year ago, the TRT team reached this important milestone, which marks the final realization and validation of the engineering concept developed by the CERN DT1 (ex-TA1) and ATT teams. A TRT end-cap consists of two sets of identical and independent wheels. The first type of wheels (type A, 12 wheels, positioned closest to the primary interaction point) contains 6144 radial straws positioned in eight successive layers s...

  10. In situ synthesis of TiB2-TiC particulates locally reinforced medium carbon steel-matrix composites via the SHS reaction of Ni-Ti-B4C system during casting

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, H.Y.; Huang, L.; Jiang, Q.C.

    2005-01-01

    The fabrication of medium carbon steel-matrix composites locally reinforced with in situ TiB 2 -TiC particulates using self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS) reaction of Ni-Ti-B 4 C system during casting was investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results reveal that the exotherm of 1042 deg. C initiated by heat release of the solid state reaction in the differential thermal analysis (DTA) curve is an incomplete reaction in Ni-Ti-B 4 C system. As-cast microstructures of the in situ processed composites reveal a relatively uniform distribution of TiB 2 -TiC particulates in the locally reinforced regions. Furthermore, the particulate size and micro-porosity in the locally reinforced regions are significantly decreased with the increasing of the Ni content in the preforms. For a Ni content of 30 and 40 wt.%, near fully dense composites locally reinforced with in situ TiB 2 and TiC particulates can be fabricated. Although most of fine TiB 2 and TiC particulates which form by the reaction-precipitation mechanism during SHS reaction are present in the locally reinforced region, some large particulates which form by the nucleation-growth mechanism during solidification are entrapped inside the Fe-rich region located in the reinforcing region or inside the matrix region nearby the interface between matrix and reinforcing region. The hardness of the reinforcing region in the composite is significantly higher than that of the unreinforced medium carbon steel. Furthermore, the hardness values of the composites synthesized from 30 to 40 wt.% Ni-Ti-B 4 C systems are higher than those of the composites synthesized from 10 to 20 wt.% Ni-Ti-B 4 C systems

  11. Modeling active capping efficacy. 1. Metal and organometal contaminated sediment remediation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Viana, Priscilla Z; Yin, Ke; Rockne, Karl J

    2008-12-01

    Cd, Cr, Pb, Ag, As, Ba, Hg, CH3Hg, and CN transport through sand, granular activated carbon (GAC), organoclay, shredded tires, and apatite caps was modeled by deterministic and Monte Carlo methods. Time to 10% breakthrough, 30 and 100 yr cumulative release were metrics of effectiveness. Effective caps prevented above-cap concentrations from exceeding USEPA acute criteria at 100 yr assuming below-cap concentrations at solubility. Sand caps performed best under diffusion due to the greater diffusive path length. Apatite had the best advective performance for Cd, Cr, and Pb. Organoclay performed best for Ag, As, Ba, CH3Hg, and CN. Organoclay and apatite were equally effective for Hg. Monte Carlo analysis was used to determine output sensitivity. Sand was effective under diffusion for Cr within the 50% confidence interval (CI), for Cd and Pb (75% CI), and for As, Hg, and CH3Hg (95% CI). Under diffusion and advection, apatite was effective for Cd, Pb, and Hg (75% CI) and organoclay was effective for Hg and CH3Hg (50% CI). GAC and shredded tires performed relatively poorly. Although no single cap is a panacea, apatite and organoclay have the broadest range of effectiveness. Cap performance is most sensitive to the partitioning coefficient and hydraulic conductivity, indicating the importance of accurate site-specific measurement for these parameters.

  12. Heat Transfer Model of a Small-Scale Waste Glass Melter with Cold Cap Layer

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abboud, Alexander; Guillen, Donna Post; Pokorny, Richard

    2016-09-01

    At the Hanford site in the state of Washington, more than 56 million gallons of radioactive waste is stored in underground tanks. The cleanup plan for this waste is vitrification at the Waste Treatment Plant (WTP), currently under construction. At the WTP, the waste will be blended with glass-forming materials and heated to 1423K, then poured into stainless steel canisters to cool and solidify. A fundamental understanding of the glass batch melting process is needed to optimize the process to reduce cost and decrease the life cycle of the cleanup effort. The cold cap layer that floats on the surface of the glass melt is the primary reaction zone for the feed-to-glass conversion. The conversion reactions include water release, melting of salts, evolution of batch gases, dissolution of quartz and the formation of molten glass. Obtaining efficient heat transfer to this region is crucial to achieving high rates of glass conversion. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling is being used to understand the heat transfer dynamics of the system and provide insight to optimize the process. A CFD model was developed to simulate the DM1200, a pilot-scale melter that has been extensively tested by the Vitreous State Laboratory (VSL). Electrodes are built into the melter to provide Joule heating to the molten glass. To promote heat transfer from the molten glass into the reactive cold cap layer, bubbling of the molten glass is used to stimulate forced convection within the melt pool. A three-phase volume of fluid approach is utilized to model the system, wherein the molten glass and cold cap regions are modeled as separate liquid phases, and the bubbling gas and plenum regions are modeled as one lumped gas phase. The modeling of the entire system with a volume of fluid model allows for the prescription of physical properties on a per-phase basis. The molten glass phase and the gas phase physical properties are obtained from previous experimental work. Finding representative

  13. Convection and field-aligned currents, related to polar cap arcs, during strongly northward IMF (11 January 1983)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Israelevich, P.L.; Podgorny, I.M.; Kuzmin, A.K.; Nikolaeva, N.S.; Dubinin, E.M.

    1988-01-01

    Electric and magnetic fields and auroral emissions have been measured by the Intercosmos-Bulgaria-1300 satellite on 10-11 January 1983. The measured distributions of the plasma drift velocity show that viscous convection is diminished in the evening sector under IMF B y y > 0. A number of sun-aligned polar cap arcs were observed at the beginning of the period of strongly northward IMF and after a few hours a θ-aurora appeared. The intensity of ionized oxygen emission increased significantly reaching up to several kilo-Rayleighs in the polar cap arc. A complicated pattern of convection and field-aligned currents existed in the nightside polar cap which differed from the four-cell model of convection and NBZ field-aligned current system. This pattern was observed during 12 h and could be interpreted as six large scale field-aligned current sheets and three convective vortices inside the polar cap. Sun-aligned polar cap arcs may be located in regions both of sunward and anti-sunward convection. Structures of smaller spatial scale-correspond to the boundaries of hot plasma regions related to polar cap arcs. Obviously these structures are due to S-shaped distributions of electric potential. Parallel electric fields in these S-structures provide electron acceleration up to 1 keV at the boundaries of polar cap arcs. The pairs of field-aligned currents correspond to those S-structures: a downward current at the external side of the boundary and an upward current at the internal side of it. (author)

  14. Coccolithophores put a CAP on calcification and carbon

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rickaby, R. E. M.; Lee, R. B. Y.; Mavridou, D. A. I.; Papadakos, G.; McClelland, H. L. O.; Anderson, C. J.

    2014-12-01

    Unlike the majority of biomineralization, mediated via proteins, the coccolithophores employ acidic polysaccharides (CAPs) as the template for the multitude of intricate calcium carbonate liths which are precipitated inside their cells and expelled to form an external spherical armour. Massive accumulations of these calcium carbonate coccoliths (we estimate a flux of ~ 6x1025 liths/year) form sediments on the deep seafloor, a dominant sink of carbon from the atmosphere over geological timescales, and a buffer for seawater chemistry. This acidic, coccolith-associated polysaccharide (CAP) plays a dual role, likely determined by the calcifying vesicle chemistry, promoting and limiting precipitation. We have developed and demonstrated novel techniques for the extraction and characterisation of these biomineral-mediating molecules, encapsulated and preserved within liths from sediments as old as the Mesozoic. Modern cultures of extant coccolithophores show that the composition of CAP is distinctive for different species, and even strains of e.g. Emiliania huxleyi, suggestive that interactions with galacturonic acid residues are key to dictating the architecture of the liths. Furthermore, it appears that the galacturonic acid content reflects an adaptive response of the CAP to the chemistry within the coccolith vesicle where calcification is induced; in particular the size of the internal carbon pool and inferred saturation state. Extraction of CAPs from the Coccolithale fraction of sediments suggests that the galacturonic acid content of these relatively large and inefficient carbon concentrators evolves in response to declining CO2 availability and thus may provide a novel means for reconstructing paleo pCO2.

  15. A study of auroral activity in the nightside polar cap

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wu, Q.

    1989-01-01

    Using various ground observations at South Pole, Antarctica (invariant magnetic latitude -74 degree) and its conjugate point, Frobisher Bay, Canada, the author has studied the following aspects of nightside polar cap auroral activity: the appearance and disappearance of polar cap auroras (diffuse and discrete) associated with substorms and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) variations; auroral optical emission line intensities; and the seasonal variation of auroral conjugacy. The observations show that the polar cap auroras usually fade away before the expansive phase of a substorm and bright auroral arcs reach high latitude (-74 degree) near the recovery phase. Just before the auroras fade away the discrete polar cap auroral arcs, which are usually on the poleward boundary of the diffuse aurora, intensify for 1 to 2 minutes. The observations also indicate the IMF may have stronger control over polar cap auroral activity than do substorms. A search for energy spectral variation of precipitating electrons using the intensities of 630.0 nm (0) and 427 nm (N 2 + ) auroral emission lines reveals no dramatic changes in the energy spectrum; instead, the data show possible atmospheric scattering and geometric effects on the photometric measurements while the bright auroral arc is moving into the polar cap. The conjugate observations show that the stormtime auroral electrojet current, which is associated with the bright auroral arc, in most cases reaches higher (lower) latitudes in the winter (summer) hemisphere. An asymmetric plasma sheet (with respect to the neutral sheet) is proposed, which expands deeper into the winter lobe, under a tilted geomagnetic dipole. Accordingly, the winter polar cap would have smaller area and the auroral electrojet would be at higher latitude

  16. Combining noncontingent reinforcement and differential reinforcement schedules as treatment for aberrant behavior.

    OpenAIRE

    Marcus, B A; Vollmer, T R

    1996-01-01

    Research has shown that noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) can be an effective behavior-reduction procedure when based on a functional analysis. The effects of NCR may be a result of elimination of the contingency between aberrant behavior and reinforcing consequences (extinction) or frequent and free access to reinforcers that may reduce the participant's motivation to engage in aberrant behaviors or mands. If motivation is momentarily reduced, behavior such as mands may not be sensitive to p...

  17. 20 CFR 606.20 - Cap on tax credit reduction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Cap on tax credit reduction. 606.20 Section 606.20 Employees' Benefits EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR TAX CREDITS... Tax Credit Reduction § 606.20 Cap on tax credit reduction. (a) Applicability. Subsection (f) of...

  18. T-Cap Pull-Off and Bending Behavior for Stitched Structure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lovejoy, Andrew E.; Leone, Frank A., Jr.

    2016-01-01

    The Pultruded Rod Stitched Efficient Unitized Structure (PRSEUS) is a structural concept that was developed by The Boeing Company to address the complex structural design aspects associated with a pressurized hybrid wing body aircraft configuration. An important design feature required for assembly is the integrally stitched T-cap, which provides connectivity of the corner (orthogonal) joint between adjacent panels. A series of tests were conducted on T-cap test articles, with and without a rod stiffener penetrating the T-cap web, under tension (pull-off) and bending loads. Three designs were tested, including the baseline design used in largescale test articles. The baseline had only the manufacturing stitch row adjacent to the fillet at the base of the T-cap web. Two new designs added stitching rows to the T-cap web at either 0.5- or 1.0-inch spacing along the height of the web. Testing was conducted at NASA Langley Research Center to determine the behavior of the T-cap region resulting from the applied loading. Results show that stitching arrests the initial delamination failures so that the maximum strength capability exceeds the load at which the initial delaminations develop. However, it was seen that the added web stitching had very little effect on the initial delamination failure load, but actually decreased the initial delamination failure load for tension loading of test articles without a stiffener passing through the web. Additionally, the added web stitching only increased the maximum load capability by between 1% and 12.5%. The presence of the stiffener, however, did increase the initial and maximum loads for both tension and bending loading as compared to the stringerless baseline design. Based on the results of the few samples tested, the additional stitching in the T-cap web showed little advantage over the baseline design in terms of structural failure at the T-cap web/skin junction for the current test articles.

  19. Reconstruction of spin-tensor of 4. 43 MeV state density matrix of the /sup 12/C nucleus in the /sup 12/C(. cap alpha. ,. cap alpha. sub(1). gamma. sub(4,43))/sup 12/C reaction at Esub(. cap alpha. )=25 MeV

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gurevich, G.S.; Lebedev, V.M.; Orlova, N.V.; Spasskij, A.V.; Teplov, I.B.; Shakhvorostova, G.V.; Belkina, M.R. (Moskovskij Gosudarstvennyj Univ. (USSR). Nauchno-Issledovatel' skij Inst. Yadernoj Fiziki)

    1984-01-01

    The results of measuring double differential cross sections of the reaction of inelastic scattering 24.8 MeV ..cap alpha..-particles sup(12)C(..cap alpha.., ..cap alpha..sub(1)..gamma..sub(4.43))sup(12)C in different planes of ..gamma..-quantum escape relatively to the plane of the reaction phisub(..gamma..)=30, 60 and 90 deg are presented. Non-monochromaticity of the beam made up 1%. Functions of angular correlation of the reaction are measured for four angles THETAsub(..cap alpha..)=21, 39, 59 and 135 deg corresponding to maxima of differential cross section in angular distribution of inelastically scattered ..cap alpha..-particles and for THETAsub(..cap alpha..)=89 deg corresponding to the minimum of angular distribution. The results of measurements permit to reconstruct all the components of irreducible spin-tensors of the matrix of state density 4.43 MeV (2/sup +/) formed in this reaction. The values of populations of substates by the projection of the spin of this state are obtained. The analysis of the obtained results testify to the fact that mechanism of inelastic scattering is not reduced to impulse approximation and mechanisms associated with delay in interaction do not make noticeable contribution for the given angles of ..cap alpha..-particle escape.

  20. Positive correlation between circulating cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide (hCAP18/LL-37) and 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in healthy adults

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dixon, Brian M; Barker, Tyler; McKinnon, Toni

    2012-01-01

    ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Transcription of the cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide (CAMP) gene is induced by binding of the bioactive form of vitamin D, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, to the vitamin D receptor. Significant levels of the protein hCAP18/LL-37 are found in the blood and may protect against...... = 0.63). CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that plasma hCAP18 levels correlate with serum 25(OH)D levels in subjects with concentrations of 25(OH)D 32 ng/ml and that vitamin D status may regulate systemic levels of hCAP18/LL-37....

  1. Performance evaluation of corrosion-affected reinforced concrete ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    M B Anoop

    Abstract. A methodology for performance evaluation of reinforced concrete bridge girders in corrosive ... concrete (RC) members of infrastructural systems, espe- ... bility will be useful for making engineering decisions for ...... Water-cement ratio.

  2. PROPERTIES OF CHITIN REINFORCES COMPOSITES: A REVIEW

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    user

    mechanical and thermal properties of chitin reinforced composites. ..... with crabyon fiber and normal viscose filaments. Also. Zhang et al.,[65] successfully blended chitin/cellulose using two different coagulating systems (immersed in 5.

  3. Capped CuInS2 quantum dots for H2 evolution from water under visible light illumination

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li, Tzung-Luen; Cai, Cheng-Da; Yeh, Te-Fu; Teng, Hsisheng

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: ► Dispersed CuInS 2 quantum dots showed remarkable photosynthetic activity using visible light. ► Photogenerated electrons in CuInS 2 were effective in H 2 production from aqueous solution. ► The bifunctional capping reagent effectively transported photogenerated electrons for reaction. ► Ru-loaded CuInS 2 quantum dots showed a quantum efficiency of 4.7% in H 2 evolution. ► Attaching CuInS 2 to TiO 2 with CdS passivation achieved a quantum efficiency of 41%. - Abstract: This study demonstrates H 2 evolution from water decomposition catalyzed by capped CuInS 2 quantum dots (QDs) that are highly dispersed in a polysulfide aqueous solution. The CuInS 2 QDs, which are obtained from solvothermal synthesis, have a size of 4.3 nm and a band gap of 1.97 eV. For photosynthetic H 2 evolution in the aqueous solution, the QDs are capped with a multidentate ligand (3-mercaptopropionic acid), which has a thiol end for attaching the QDs and a hydrophilic carboxylic end for dispersion in water. The capped QDs exhibit low activity in catalyzing H 2 evolution under visible illumination. After photodepositing 0.5 wt.% Ru, the capped QDs are active in producing H 2 with illumination. This demonstrates that the photogenerated electrons travel through the capping reagent to generate deposited Ru, which subsequently serves as an electron trap for H 2 evolution. A heterostructure formed by attaching the capped QDs on TiO 2 nanoparticles, followed by coating CdS with photodeposition, exhibits a high quantum efficiency of 41% for H 2 evolution from the polysulfide solution. These results demonstrate the potential for photosynthesis and phototherapy in biologic in vivo or microfluidic systems based on this capped QD material.

  4. Degradation of Waterfront Reinforced Concrete Structures

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Key words: Degradation, reinforced concrete, Dar es Salaam port. Abstract—One of the ... especially corrosion of the reinforcement. ... Corrosion of steel reinforcement contributes .... cracks along the line of reinforcement bars and most of the ...

  5. The case for indexed price caps for U.S. electric utilities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lowry, M.N.

    1991-01-01

    Indexed price caps are a promising alternative to traditional, cost-of-service utility rate regulation. In just a decade, they have sprung from the drawing boards of economists to use by major utilities in a number of industries. Several authors have discussed the merits of indexed price caps for U.S. electric utilities. Despite their efforts, many parties to electric utility policy making are unfamiliar with the subject. This is unsurprising given the policy controversies that already embroil the industry. It is also unfortunate, since indexed price caps may help solve some of the problems that prompt these controversies. Indexed price caps can improve electric utility rate regulation in two ways. Utilities would have strong incentives to improve performance without the micromanagement that increasingly characterizes state-level regulation. Utilities could also be granted more extensive marketing freedoms, since indexes can protect customers from cross-subsidization. Two areas of concern about indexed price cap plans have emerged in recent discussions that the author has held with officials of electric utilities, intervenor groups, and regulatory agencies. Officials are often unclear on plan details, and therefore may not appreciate the degree of flexibility that is possible in plan design. Confusion over the available options in price cap adjustment indexes and the logic behind them is especially widespread. Officials also desire a clearer expression of how indexed price caps can coexist with current regulatory initiatives. This article details the major attributes of index plans, provides a brief history of indexing, discusses index design options in depth, and concludes with a vision of how indexed price caps can be made operational in today's electric utility industry

  6. Confinement of Reinforced-Concrete Columns with Non-Code Compliant Confining Reinforcement plus Supplemental Pen-Binder

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anang Kristianto

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available One of the important requirements for earthquake resistant building related to confinement is the use of seismic hooks in the hoop or confining reinforcement of reinforced-concrete column elements. However, installation of a confining reinforcement with a 135-degree hook is not easy. Therefore, in practice, many construction workers apply a confining reinforcement with a 90-degreehook (non-code compliant. Based on research and records of recent earthquakes in Indonesia, the use of a non-code compliant confining reinforcement for concrete columns produces structures with poor seismic performance. This paper presents a study that introduces an additional element that is expected to improve the effectiveness of concrete columns confined with a non-code compliant confining reinforcement. The additional element, named a pen-binder, is used to keep the non-code compliant confining reinforcement in place. The effectiveness of this element under pure axial concentric loading was investigatedcomprehensively.The specimens tested in this study were 18 concrete columns,with a cross-section of 170 mm x 170 mm and a height of 480 mm. The main test variables were the material type of the pen-binder, the angle of the hook, and the confining reinforcement configuration.The test results indicate that adding pen-binders can effectively improve the strength and ductility of the column specimens confined with a non-code compliant confining reinforcement

  7. Shape and Reinforcement Optimization of Underground Tunnels

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghabraie, Kazem; Xie, Yi Min; Huang, Xiaodong; Ren, Gang

    Design of support system and selecting an optimum shape for the opening are two important steps in designing excavations in rock masses. Currently selecting the shape and support design are mainly based on designer's judgment and experience. Both of these problems can be viewed as material distribution problems where one needs to find the optimum distribution of a material in a domain. Topology optimization techniques have proved to be useful in solving these kinds of problems in structural design. Recently the application of topology optimization techniques in reinforcement design around underground excavations has been studied by some researchers. In this paper a three-phase material model will be introduced changing between normal rock, reinforced rock, and void. Using such a material model both problems of shape and reinforcement design can be solved together. A well-known topology optimization technique used in structural design is bi-directional evolutionary structural optimization (BESO). In this paper the BESO technique has been extended to simultaneously optimize the shape of the opening and the distribution of reinforcements. Validity and capability of the proposed approach have been investigated through some examples.

  8. Polar cap electric field structures with a northward interplanetary magnetic field

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Burke, W.J.; Kelley, M.C.; Sagalyn, R.C.; Smiddy, M.; Lai, S.T.

    1979-01-01

    Polar cap electric fields patterns are presented from times when the S3-2 Satellite was near the dawn-dusk meridian and IMF data were available. With B/sub z/> or =0.7γ, two characteristic types of electric field patterns were measured in the polar cap. In the sunlit polar cap the convection pattern usually consisted of four cells. Two of the cells were confined to the polar cap with sunward convection in the central portion of the cap. The other pair of cells were marked by anti-sunward flow along the flanks of the polar cap and by sunward flow in the auroral oval. These observations are interpreted in terms of a model for magnetic merging at the poleward wall of the dayside polar cusp. The sunward flow in the auroral zone is not predicted by the magnetic model and may be due to a viscous interaction between the solar wind and and magnetosphere. The second type, which was observed in some of the summer hemisphere passes and all of the winter ones, was characterized by an electric field pattern which was very turbulent, and may be related to inhomogeneous merging

  9. Mechanical behaviour of textile-reinforced thermoplastics with integrated sensor network components

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hufenbach, W.; Adam, F.; Fischer, W.-J.; Kunadt, A.; Weck, D.

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: → Consideration of two types of integrated bus systems for textile-reinforced thermoplastics with embedded sensor networks. → Specimens with bus systems made of flexible printed circuit boards show good mechanical performance compared to the reference. → Inhomogeneous interface and reduced stiffnesses and strengths for specimens with bus systems basing on single copper wires. -- Abstract: The embedding of sensor networks into textile-reinforced thermoplastics enables the design of function-integrative lightweight components suitable for high volume production. In order to investigate the mechanical behaviour of such functionalised composites, two types of bus systems are selected as exemplary components of sensor networks. These elements are embedded into glass fibre-reinforced polypropylene (GF/PP) during the layup process of unconsolidated weft-knitted GF/PP-preforms. Two fibre orientations are considered and orthotropic composite plates are manufactured by hot pressing technology. Micrograph investigations and computer tomography analyses show different interface qualities between the thermoplastic composite and the two types of bus systems. Mechanical tests under tensile and flexural loading indicate a significant influence of the embedded bus system elements on the structural stiffness and strength.

  10. Influence of reinforcement's corrosion into hyperstatic reinforced concrete beams: a probabilistic failure scenarios analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    G. P. PELLIZZER

    Full Text Available AbstractThis work aims to study the mechanical effects of reinforcement's corrosion in hyperstatic reinforced concrete beams. The focus is the probabilistic determination of individual failure scenarios change as well as global failure change along time. The limit state functions assumed describe analytically bending and shear resistance of reinforced concrete rectangular cross sections as a function of steel and concrete resistance and section dimensions. It was incorporated empirical laws that penalize the steel yield stress and the reinforcement's area along time in addition to Fick's law, which models the chloride penetration into concrete pores. The reliability theory was applied based on Monte Carlo simulation method, which assesses each individual probability of failure. The probability of global structural failure was determined based in the concept of failure tree. The results of a hyperstatic reinforced concrete beam showed that reinforcements corrosion make change into the failure scenarios modes. Therefore, unimportant failure modes in design phase become important after corrosion start.

  11. The first Inner Detector End-Cap is lowered into the cavern

    CERN Multimedia

    Heinz Pernegger

    The first Inner Detector End-Cap, containing both the SCT and TRT detectors, arriving down the access shaft on the A-side. . The Inner Detector End-Cap A approaching the installation platform. During the difficult phase of inserting the Inner Detector into the cryostat. On Thursday, May 24, the first Inner Detector end-cap, with both the TRT and SCT end-caps, was taken down to the pit. More pictures can be found on the transfer from SR1 to SX1 as well as the lowering into the cavern and reception on the platform which can also be seen as a slide show

  12. The influence of a Si cap on self-organized SiGe islands and the underlying wetting layer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brehm, M.; Grydlik, M.; Groiss, H.; Hackl, F.; Schaeffler, F.; Fromherz, T.; Bauer, G.

    2011-01-01

    For the prototypical SiGe/Si(001) Stranski-Krastanow (SK) growth system, the influence of intermixing caused by the deposition of a Si cap layer at temperatures T cap between 300 deg. C and 700 deg. C is studied both for the SiGe wetting layer (WL) and the SiGe islands. Systematic growth experiments were carried out with an ultrahigh resolution of down to 0.005 monolayers (ML) of deposited Ge. The properties of the samples were investigated via photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and transmission electron microscopy. We studied in detail the influence of T cap in the three main coverage regions of SiGe SK growth, which are (i) the WL build-up regime, (ii) the island nucleation regime, where most of the Ge is supplied via material transfer from the WL, and (iii) the saturation regime, where the WL thickness remains initially stable. At T cap = 300 deg. C, we found that both the WL and the island are essentially preserved in composition and shape, whereas at 500 deg. C the WL becomes heavily alloyed during capping, and at 700 deg. C the islands also become alloyed. At T cap = 500 deg. C we found enhanced WL intermixing in the presence of dome-shaped islands, whereas at T cap 700 deg. C the WL properties become dominated by the dissolution of pyramid-shaped islands upon capping. At Ge coverages above ≅6 ML, we found an unexpected thickening of the WL, almost independently of T cap . This finding suggests that the density and the volume of the dome-shaped islands have an upper limit, beyond which excess Ge from the external source again becomes incorporated into the WL. Finally, we compared PL spectra with AFM-based evaluations of the integral island volumes in order to determine in a straightforward manner the average composition of the SiGe islands.

  13. Manufacturing of composite parts reinforced through-thickness by tufting

    OpenAIRE

    Dell'Anno, G.; Treiber, J. W G; Partridge, Ivana K

    2016-01-01

    The paper aims at providing practical guidelines for the manufacture of composite parts reinforced by tufting. The need for through-thickness reinforcement of high performance carbon fibre composite structures is reviewed and various options are presented. The tufting process is described in detail and relevant aspects of the technology are analysed such as: equipment configuration and setup, latest advances in tooling, thread selection, preform supporting systems and choice of ancillary mate...

  14. Advance study of fiber-reinforced self-compacting concrete

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mironova, M.; Ivanova, M.; Naidenov, V.; Georgiev, I.; Stary, J.

    2015-01-01

    Incorporation in concrete composition of steel macro- and micro – fiber reinforcement with structural function increases the degree of ductility of typically brittle cement-containing composites, which in some cases can replace completely or partially conventional steel reinforcement in the form of rods and meshes. Thus, that can reduce manufacturing, detailing and placement of conventional reinforcement, which enhances productivity and economic efficiency of the building process. In this paper, six fiber-reinforced with different amounts of steel fiber cement-containing self-compacting compositions are investigated. The results of some of their main strength-deformation characteristics are presented. Advance approach for the study of structural and material properties of these type composites is proposed by using the methods of industrial computed tomography. The obtained original tomography results about the microstructure and characteristics of individual structural components make it possible to analyze the effective macro-characteristics of the studied composites. The resulting analytical data are relevant for the purposes of multi-dimensional modeling of these systems. Multifactor structure-mechanical analysis of the obtained with different methods original scientific results is proposed. It is presented a conclusion of the capabilities and effectiveness of complex analysis in the studies to characterize the properties of self-compacting fiber-reinforced concrete

  15. Advance study of fiber-reinforced self-compacting concrete

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mironova, M.; Ivanova, M.; Naidenov, V.; Georgiev, I.; Stary, J.

    2015-10-01

    Incorporation in concrete composition of steel macro- and micro - fiber reinforcement with structural function increases the degree of ductility of typically brittle cement-containing composites, which in some cases can replace completely or partially conventional steel reinforcement in the form of rods and meshes. Thus, that can reduce manufacturing, detailing and placement of conventional reinforcement, which enhances productivity and economic efficiency of the building process. In this paper, six fiber-reinforced with different amounts of steel fiber cement-containing self-compacting compositions are investigated. The results of some of their main strength-deformation characteristics are presented. Advance approach for the study of structural and material properties of these type composites is proposed by using the methods of industrial computed tomography. The obtained original tomography results about the microstructure and characteristics of individual structural components make it possible to analyze the effective macro-characteristics of the studied composites. The resulting analytical data are relevant for the purposes of multi-dimensional modeling of these systems. Multifactor structure-mechanical analysis of the obtained with different methods original scientific results is proposed. It is presented a conclusion of the capabilities and effectiveness of complex analysis in the studies to characterize the properties of self-compacting fiber-reinforced concrete.

  16. Advance study of fiber-reinforced self-compacting concrete

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mironova, M., E-mail: mirona@imbm.bas.bg; Ivanova, M., E-mail: magdalena.ivanova@imbm.bas.bg; Naidenov, V., E-mail: valna53@mail.bg [Institute of Mechanics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev str., bl. 4, Sofia 1113 (Bulgaria); Georgiev, I., E-mail: ivan.georgiev@parallel.bas.bg [Institute of Information and Communication Technologies & Institute of Mathematics and Informatics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev str., Sofia 1113 (Bulgaria); Stary, J., E-mail: stary@ugn.cas.cz [Institute of Geonics Czech Academy of Sciences, Studentska str., Ostrava 1768 (Czech Republic)

    2015-10-28

    Incorporation in concrete composition of steel macro- and micro – fiber reinforcement with structural function increases the degree of ductility of typically brittle cement-containing composites, which in some cases can replace completely or partially conventional steel reinforcement in the form of rods and meshes. Thus, that can reduce manufacturing, detailing and placement of conventional reinforcement, which enhances productivity and economic efficiency of the building process. In this paper, six fiber-reinforced with different amounts of steel fiber cement-containing self-compacting compositions are investigated. The results of some of their main strength-deformation characteristics are presented. Advance approach for the study of structural and material properties of these type composites is proposed by using the methods of industrial computed tomography. The obtained original tomography results about the microstructure and characteristics of individual structural components make it possible to analyze the effective macro-characteristics of the studied composites. The resulting analytical data are relevant for the purposes of multi-dimensional modeling of these systems. Multifactor structure-mechanical analysis of the obtained with different methods original scientific results is proposed. It is presented a conclusion of the capabilities and effectiveness of complex analysis in the studies to characterize the properties of self-compacting fiber-reinforced concrete.

  17. Reinforcement Learning Based on the Bayesian Theorem for Electricity Markets Decision Support

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sousa, Tiago; Pinto, Tiago; Praca, Isabel

    2014-01-01

    This paper presents the applicability of a reinforcement learning algorithm based on the application of the Bayesian theorem of probability. The proposed reinforcement learning algorithm is an advantageous and indispensable tool for ALBidS (Adaptive Learning strategic Bidding System), a multi...

  18. Evaluation of in situ capping with clean soils to control phosphate release from sediments

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Xu, Di [State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008 (China); Ding, Shiming, E-mail: smding@niglas.ac.cn [State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008 (China); Sun, Qin [College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Hohai University, Nanjing (China); Zhong, Jicheng [State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008 (China); Wu, Wei; Jia, Fei [College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Hohai University, Nanjing (China)

    2012-11-01

    Evaluation of in situ capping with clean soils to control phosphate release from the sediments of a eutrophic bay in Lake Taihu was performed after 18 months of capping. The concentrations of dissolved reactive phosphate (DRP) in pore waters and DRP resupply from native sediments and capped sediments were determined using high-resolution dialysis (HR-Peeper) and a Zr-oxide diffusive gradients in thin films (Zr-oxide DGT) technique. The adsorption isotherm of these sediments was further investigated using a modified Langmuir model. The results showed low concentrations of DRP in pore waters with a low resupply from the sediments for sustaining pore water DRP concentration after capping. The calculated flux to the overlying water following the capping treatment was approximately half of that for the native sediments, implying that the capping reduced the release of phosphate from the sediments. The low resupply of the sediments after capping was further demonstrated by larger partitioning coefficient (K{sub p}) values and greater adsorption capacity (Q{sub max}) values, while zero equilibrium concentrations (EPC{sub 0}s) were similar to those in native sediments. The larger K{sub p} and Q{sub max} were attributed to higher active Fe and Al introduced by the capping, indicating that the binding of phosphate onto the active Fe and Al played a critical role in reducing the internal loading of phosphorous. Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Evaluation of capping with soils was performed through high-resolution sampling. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Capping decreased the concentrations of DRP in pore waters and its release to waters. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Capping decreased the resupply of pore water DRP from the sediments. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Capped sediments had stronger abilities to adsorb and retain P. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Active Fe and Al introduced by capping played a critical role.

  19. Evaluation of in situ capping with clean soils to control phosphate release from sediments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xu, Di; Ding, Shiming; Sun, Qin; Zhong, Jicheng; Wu, Wei; Jia, Fei

    2012-01-01

    Evaluation of in situ capping with clean soils to control phosphate release from the sediments of a eutrophic bay in Lake Taihu was performed after 18 months of capping. The concentrations of dissolved reactive phosphate (DRP) in pore waters and DRP resupply from native sediments and capped sediments were determined using high-resolution dialysis (HR-Peeper) and a Zr-oxide diffusive gradients in thin films (Zr-oxide DGT) technique. The adsorption isotherm of these sediments was further investigated using a modified Langmuir model. The results showed low concentrations of DRP in pore waters with a low resupply from the sediments for sustaining pore water DRP concentration after capping. The calculated flux to the overlying water following the capping treatment was approximately half of that for the native sediments, implying that the capping reduced the release of phosphate from the sediments. The low resupply of the sediments after capping was further demonstrated by larger partitioning coefficient (K p ) values and greater adsorption capacity (Q max ) values, while zero equilibrium concentrations (EPC 0 s) were similar to those in native sediments. The larger K p and Q max were attributed to higher active Fe and Al introduced by the capping, indicating that the binding of phosphate onto the active Fe and Al played a critical role in reducing the internal loading of phosphorous. Highlights: ► Evaluation of capping with soils was performed through high-resolution sampling. ► Capping decreased the concentrations of DRP in pore waters and its release to waters. ► Capping decreased the resupply of pore water DRP from the sediments. ► Capped sediments had stronger abilities to adsorb and retain P. ► Active Fe and Al introduced by capping played a critical role.

  20. Effectiveness evaluation of three RCRA caps at the Y-12 Plant, Oak Ridge, Tennessee

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shevenell, L.A. [Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, Reno, NV (United States); Goldstrand, P.M. [Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States). Dept. of Geological Sciences

    1994-01-01

    Because installation of Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)- engineered caps is costly, it is prudent to evaluate the effectiveness of this procedure for hydrologically isolating contaminants. The objective for installation of five-part engineered caps at the Y-12 Plant was to (1) satisfy the regulatory compliance issues, (2) minimize the risk of direct contact with the wastes, and (3) reduce rainfall infiltration. Although the original objectives of installing the caps were not to alter groundwater flow, a potential effect of reducing infiltration is to minimize leaching, thus retarding groundwater contaminant migration from the site. Hence, cap effectiveness with respect to reduced groundwater contaminant migration is evaluated using groundwater data in this report. Based on the available data at the Y-12 capped areas, evaluation of cap effectiveness includes studying water level and chemical variability in nearby monitoring wells. Three caps installed during 1989 are selected for evaluation in this report. These caps are located in three significantly different hydrogeologic settings: overlying a karst aquifer (Chestnut Ridge Security Pits [CRSP]), overlying shales located on a hill slope (Oil Landfarm Waste Management Area [OLWMA]), and overlying shales in a valley floor which is a site of convergent groundwater flow (New Hope Pond [NHP]). Presumably, the caps have been effective in minimizing risk of direct contact with the wastes and halting direct rainfall infiltration into the sites over the extent of the capped areas, but no evidence is presented in this report to directly demonstrate this. The caps installed over the three sites appear to have had a minimal effect on groundwater contaminant migration from the respective sites. Following cap construction, no changes in the configuration of the water table were observed. Migration of contaminant plumes occurred at all three sites, apparently without regard to the timing of cap installation.

  1. Fast Conflict Resolution Based on Reinforcement Learning in Multi-agent System

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    PIAOSonghao; HONGBingrong; CHUHaitao

    2004-01-01

    In multi-agent system where each agen thas a different goal (even the team of agents has the same goal), agents must be able to resolve conflicts arising in the process of achieving their goal. Many researchers presented methods for conflict resolution, e.g., Reinforcement learning (RL), but the conventional RL requires a large computation cost because every agent must learn, at the same time the overlap of actions selected by each agent results in local conflict. Therefore in this paper, we propose a novel method to solve these problems. In order to deal with the conflict within the multi-agent system, the concept of potential field function based Action selection priority level (ASPL) is brought forward. In this method, all kinds of environment factor that may have influence on the priority are effectively computed with the potential field function. So the priority to access the local resource can be decided rapidly. By avoiding the complex coordination mechanism used in general multi-agent system, the conflict in multi-agent system is settled more efficiently. Our system consists of RL with ASPL module and generalized rules module. Using ASPL, RL module chooses a proper cooperative behavior, and generalized rule module can accelerate the learning process. By applying the proposed method to Robot Soccer, the learning process can be accelerated. The results of simulation and real experiments indicate the effectiveness of the method.

  2. Self-monitoring fiber reinforced polymer strengthening system for civil engineering infrastructures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Guoliang; Dawood, Mina; Peters, Kara; Rizkalla, Sami

    2008-03-01

    Fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) materials are currently used for strengthening civil engineering infrastructures. The strengthening system is dependant on the bond characteristics of the FRP to the external surface of the structure to be effective in resisting the applied loads. This paper presents an innovative self-monitoring FRP strengthening system. The system consists of two components which can be embedded in FRP materials to monitor the global and local behavior of the strengthened structure respectively. The first component of the system is designed to evaluate the applied load acting on a structure based on elongation of the FRP layer along the entire span of the structure. Success of the global system has been demonstrated using a full-scale prestressed concrete bridge girder which was loaded up to failure. The test results indicate that this type of sensor can be used to accurately determine the load prior to failure within 15 percent of the measured value. The second sensor component consists of fiber Bragg grating sensors. The sensors were used to monitor the behavior of steel double-lap shear splices tested under tensile loading up to failure. The measurements were used to identify abnormal structural behavior such as epoxy cracking and FRP debonding. Test results were also compared to numerical values obtained from a three dimensional shear-lag model which was developed to predict the sensor response.

  3. Finite element modeling of reinforced concrete beams with a hybrid combination of steel and aramid reinforcement

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hawileh, R.A.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Modeling of concrete beams reinforced steel and FRP bars. • Developed finite element models achieved good results. • The models are validated via comparison with experimental results. • Parametric studies are performed. - Abstract: Corrosion of steel bars has an adverse effect on the life-span of reinforced concrete (RC) members and is usually associated with crack development in RC beams. Fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) bars have been recently used to reinforce concrete members in flexure due to their high tensile strength and superior corrosion resistance properties. However, FRP materials are brittle in nature, thus RC beams reinforced with such materials would exhibit a less ductile behavior when compared to similar members reinforced with conventional steel reinforcement. Recently, researchers investigated the performance of concrete beams reinforced with a hybrid combination of steel and Aramid Fiber Reinforced Polymer (AFRP) reinforcement to maintain a reasonable level of ductility in such members. The function of the AFRP bars is to increase the load-carrying capacity, while the function of the steel bars is to ensure ductility of the flexural member upon yielding in tension. This paper presents a three-dimensional (3D) finite element (FE) model that predicted the load versus mid-span deflection response of tested RC beams conducted by other researchers with a hybrid combination of steel and AFRP bars. The developed FE models account for the constituent material nonlinearities and bond–slip behavior between the reinforcing bars and adjacent concrete surfaces. It was concluded that the developed models can accurately capture the behavior and predicts the load-carrying capacity of such RC members. In addition, a parametric study is conducted using the validated models to investigate the effect of AFRP bar size, FRP material type, bond–slip action, and concrete compressive strength on the performance of concrete beams when reinforced

  4. Late-glacial and Holocene history of changes in Quelccaya Ice Cap, Peru

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kelly, M. A.; Lowell, T. V.; Schaefer, J. M.; Finkel, R. C.

    2008-12-01

    Quelccaya Ice Cap in the southeastern Peruvian Andes (~13-14° S latitude) is an icon for climate change. Its rapidly receding outlet, Qori Kalis Glacier, has been monitored since the 1970's. Cores from Quelccaya Ice Cap provide high-resolution information about temperature and precipitation during the past 1,500 years. We extend the understanding of past changes in Quelccaya Ice Cap based on mapping and dating of glacial moraines and associated deposits. Our results include fifty 10Be ages of moraines and bedrock as well as twenty-nine 14C ages of organic material associated with moraines. These results form the basis of a chronology of changes in Quelccaya Ice Cap from ~16,000 yr BP to late Holocene time. Results from 10Be and 14C dating indicate that Quelccaya Ice Cap experienced a significant advance at 12,700-11,400 yr BP. Subsequent to this advance, the ice margin deposited at least three recessional moraine sets. Quelccaya Ice Cap receded to near its present-day margin by ~10,000 yr BP. Neoglacial advances began by ~3,000 yr BP and culminated with a maximum advance during the Little Ice Age. This chronology fits well with prior work which indicates a restricted Quelccaya Ice Cap during middle Holocene time. Moreover, the overlap between moraine and ice core data for the last 1,500 years provides a unique opportunity to assess the influences of temperature and precipitation on past ice cap extents.

  5. Impact of universal disinfectant cap implementation on central line-associated bloodstream infections.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merrill, Katreena Collette; Sumner, Sharon; Linford, Lorraine; Taylor, Carrie; Macintosh, Christopher

    2014-12-01

    Central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) result in increased length of stay, cost, and patient morbidity and mortality. One CLABSI prevention method is disinfection of intravenous access points. The literature suggests that placing disinfectant caps over needleless connectors decreases CLABSI risk. A quasi-experimental intervention study was conducted in a >430-bed trauma I center. In addition to an existing standard central line bundle, a new intervention consisting of a luer-lock disinfectant cap with 70% alcohol was implemented in all intravenous (IV) needleless connectors on patients with peripheral and central lines. Compliance to the disinfectant cap was monitored weekly. A generalized linear model using a Poisson distribution was fit to determine if there were significant relationships between CLABSIs and disinfectant cap use. Impacts on costs were also examined. The rate of CLABSI decreased following implementation of the disinfectant cap. The incidence rate ratios (.577, P = .004) for implementing the disinfectant caps was statistically significant, indicating that the rate of patient infections decreased by >40%. Increased compliance rates were associated with lower infection rates. Disinfectant cap use was associated with an estimated savings of almost $300,000 per year in the hospital studied. Use of a disinfectant cap on IV needleless connectors in addition to an existing standard central line bundle was associated with decreased CLABSI and costs. Copyright © 2014 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Redox Control and Hydrogen Production in Sediment Caps Using Carbon Cloth Electrodes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Mei; Yan, Fei; Zhang, Ruiling; Reible, Danny D.; Lowry, Gregory V.; Gregory, Kelvin B.

    2010-01-01

    Sediment caps that degrade contaminants can improve their ability to contain contaminants relative to sand and sorbent-amended caps, but few methods to enhance contaminant degradation in sediment caps are available. The objective of this study was to determine if, carbon electrodes emplaced within a sediment cap at poised potential could create a redox gradient and provide electron donor for the potential degradation of contaminants. In a simulated sediment cap overlying sediment from the Anacostia River (Washington, DC), electrochemically induced redox gradients were developed within 3 days and maintained over the period of the test (~100 days). Hydrogen and oxygen were produced by water electrolysis at the electrode surfaces and may serve as electron donor and acceptor for contaminant degradation. Electrochemical and geochemical factors that may influence hydrogen production were studied. Hydrogen production displayed zero order kinetics with ~75% coulombic efficiency and rates were proportional to the applied potential between 2.5V to 5V and not greatly affected by pH. Hydrogen production was promoted by increasing ionic strength and in the presence of natural organic matter. Graphite electrode-stimulated degradation of tetrachlorobenzene in a batch reactor was dependent on applied voltage and production of hydrogen to a concentration above the threshold for biological dechlorination. These findings suggest that electrochemical reactive capping can potentially be used to create “reactive” sediments caps capable of promoting chemical or biological transformations of contaminants within the cap. PMID:20879761

  7. Health monitoring of precast bridge deck panels reinforced with glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) bars.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-03-01

    The present research project investigates monitoring concrete precast panels for bridge decks that are reinforced with Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) bars. Due to the lack of long term research on concrete members reinforced with GFRP bars, lo...

  8. Organic-Inorganic Nanostructure Architecture via Directly Capping Fullerenes onto Quantum Dots.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Jae Kwan; Kim, Jonggi; Yang, Changduk

    2011-12-01

    A new form of fullerene-capped CdSe nanoparticles (PCBA-capped CdSe NPs), using carboxylate ligands with [60]fullerene capping groups that provides an effective synthetic methodology to attach fullerenes noncovalently to CdSe, is presented for usage in nanotechnology and photoelectric fields. Interestingly, either the internal charge transfer or the energy transfer in the hybrid material contributes to photoluminescence (PL) quenching of the CdSe moieties.

  9. Reinforcement learning improves behaviour from evaluative feedback

    Science.gov (United States)

    Littman, Michael L.

    2015-05-01

    Reinforcement learning is a branch of machine learning concerned with using experience gained through interacting with the world and evaluative feedback to improve a system's ability to make behavioural decisions. It has been called the artificial intelligence problem in a microcosm because learning algorithms must act autonomously to perform well and achieve their goals. Partly driven by the increasing availability of rich data, recent years have seen exciting advances in the theory and practice of reinforcement learning, including developments in fundamental technical areas such as generalization, planning, exploration and empirical methodology, leading to increasing applicability to real-life problems.

  10. Buy badges and help finance Cap Loisirs activities!

    CERN Multimedia

    2008-01-01

    Please give a warm welcome to Cap Loisirs’ volunteers who will be manning a stand at the main entrance on Friday 8 February! In honour of St. Valentine’s Day, they will be selling a selection of 5 badges designed by artist Anna Sommer, depicting declarations of love by our friends from the animal kingdom. Price : Frs. 3.- per badge The aim of Fondation Cap Loisirs is to provide leisure activities for mentally handicapped children, adolescents and adults. The Foundation offers a wide range of activities which allow the mentally handicapped to enjoy quality leisure in areas as varied as culture, sport, tourism, travel and artistic expression. Fondation Cap Loisirs Rue de Monthoux 66 – 1201 Geneva – Tel: 022 731 86 00 – CCP Genève 12-5587-5 – caploisirs@caploisirs.ch – http://www.Caploisirs.ch

  11. Can model-free reinforcement learning explain deontological moral judgments?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ayars, Alisabeth

    2016-05-01

    Dual-systems frameworks propose that moral judgments are derived from both an immediate emotional response, and controlled/rational cognition. Recently Cushman (2013) proposed a new dual-system theory based on model-free and model-based reinforcement learning. Model-free learning attaches values to actions based on their history of reward and punishment, and explains some deontological, non-utilitarian judgments. Model-based learning involves the construction of a causal model of the world and allows for far-sighted planning; this form of learning fits well with utilitarian considerations that seek to maximize certain kinds of outcomes. I present three concerns regarding the use of model-free reinforcement learning to explain deontological moral judgment. First, many actions that humans find aversive from model-free learning are not judged to be morally wrong. Moral judgment must require something in addition to model-free learning. Second, there is a dearth of evidence for central predictions of the reinforcement account-e.g., that people with different reinforcement histories will, all else equal, make different moral judgments. Finally, to account for the effect of intention within the framework requires certain assumptions which lack support. These challenges are reasonable foci for future empirical/theoretical work on the model-free/model-based framework. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Translation initiation mediated by nuclear cap-binding protein complex.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ryu, Incheol; Kim, Yoon Ki

    2017-04-01

    In mammals, cap-dependent translation of mRNAs is initiated by two distinct mechanisms: cap-binding complex (CBC; a heterodimer of CBP80 and 20)-dependent translation (CT) and eIF4E-dependent translation (ET). Both translation initiation mechanisms share common features in driving cap- dependent translation; nevertheless, they can be distinguished from each other based on their molecular features and biological roles. CT is largely associated with mRNA surveillance such as nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD), whereas ET is predominantly involved in the bulk of protein synthesis. However, several recent studies have demonstrated that CT and ET have similar roles in protein synthesis and mRNA surveillance. In a subset of mRNAs, CT preferentially drives the cap-dependent translation, as ET does, and ET is responsible for mRNA surveillance, as CT does. In this review, we summarize and compare the molecular features of CT and ET with a focus on the emerging roles of CT in translation. [BMB Reports 2017; 50(4): 186-193].

  13. 'Green' synthesis of starch capped CdSe nanoparticles at room temperature

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li Jinhua; Ren Cuiling; Liu Xiaoyan; Hu Zhide; Xue Desheng

    2007-01-01

    The nearly monodisperse starch capped CdSe nanoparticles were successfully synthesized by a simple and 'green' route at room temperature. The as-prepared nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscope (TEM), UV-vis absorption and photoluminescence (PL) spectra. The XRD analysis showed that the starch capped CdSe nanoparticles were of the cubic structure, the average particle size was calculated to be about 3 nm according to the Debye-Scherrer equation. TEM micrographs exhibited that the starch capped CdSe nanoparticles were well dispersed than the uncapped CdSe nanoparticles, the mean particles size of the capped CdSe was about 3 nm in the TEM image, which was in good agreement with the XRD

  14. Structure identification in fuzzy inference using reinforcement learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berenji, Hamid R.; Khedkar, Pratap

    1993-01-01

    In our previous work on the GARIC architecture, we have shown that the system can start with surface structure of the knowledge base (i.e., the linguistic expression of the rules) and learn the deep structure (i.e., the fuzzy membership functions of the labels used in the rules) by using reinforcement learning. Assuming the surface structure, GARIC refines the fuzzy membership functions used in the consequents of the rules using a gradient descent procedure. This hybrid fuzzy logic and reinforcement learning approach can learn to balance a cart-pole system and to backup a truck to its docking location after a few trials. In this paper, we discuss how to do structure identification using reinforcement learning in fuzzy inference systems. This involves identifying both surface as well as deep structure of the knowledge base. The term set of fuzzy linguistic labels used in describing the values of each control variable must be derived. In this process, splitting a label refers to creating new labels which are more granular than the original label and merging two labels creates a more general label. Splitting and merging of labels directly transform the structure of the action selection network used in GARIC by increasing or decreasing the number of hidden layer nodes.

  15. Anakinra use during pregnancy in patients with cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes (CAPS).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Zenas; Spong, Catherine Y; Jesus, Adriana A; Davis, Michael A; Plass, Nicole; Stone, Deborah L; Chapelle, Dawn; Hoffmann, Patrycja; Kastner, Daniel L; Barron, Karyl; Goldbach-Mansky, Raphaela T; Stratton, Pamela

    2014-11-01

    Objective: To describe the pregnancy course and outcome, and use of anakinra, a recombinant selective IL-1 receptor blocker, during pregnancy in patients with cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes (CAPS), including familial cold auto-inflammatory syndrome (FCAS), Muckle-Wells syndrome (MWS) and neonatal onset multi-system inflammatory disease (NOMID). Methods: Women currently enrolled in natural history protocols (NCT00059748, and/or NCT00069329 under IND) who have been pregnant were included. Subjects underwent a structured, standardized interview with regards to maternal health, pregnancy and fetal outcomes. Medical records were reviewed. Results: Nine women (four with FCAS, one with MWS and four with NOMID) reported one to four pregnancies, each resulting in a total of fifteen FCAS, three MWS, and six NOMID pregnancies. Six births from FCAS mothers and three births from NOMID mothers occurred while patients were receiving anakinra. If a woman became pregnant while taking anakinra, the pre-pregnancy anakinra dose was continued. Anakinra dose was increased during one twin pregnancy. No preterm births or serious complications of pregnancy were observed. One fetus of the twin pregnancy had renal agenesis and suffered fetal demise. Genetic testing showed the deceased twin carried the same NLRP3 c.785T>C, p.V262A mutation as the mother. The other twin is healthy and mutation negative. Conclusions: Anakinra was continued during pregnancy in women with CAPS and provided significant, persistent CAPS symptom relief while continuing to prevent the long-term sequelae of CAPS. Anakinra was well tolerated. Although a causal relation between anakinra and renal agenesis seems unlikely, further safety data are needed.

  16. Impact of out-of-pocket spending caps on financial burden of those with group health insurance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riggs, Kevin R; Buttorff, Christine; Alexander, G Caleb

    2015-05-01

    The Affordable Care Act (ACA) mandates that all private health insurance include out-of-pocket spending caps. Insurance purchased through the ACA's Health Insurance Marketplace may qualify for income-based caps, whereas group insurance will not have income-based caps. Little is known about how out-of-pocket caps impact individuals' health care financial burden. We aimed to estimate what proportion of non-elderly individuals with group insurance will benefit from out-of-pocket caps, and the effect that various cap levels would have on their financial burden. We applied the expected uniform spending caps, hypothetical reduced uniform spending caps (reduced by one-third), and hypothetical income-based spending caps (similar to the caps on Health Insurance Marketplace plans) to nationally representative data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). Participants were non-elderly individuals (aged health insurance in the 2011 and 2012 MEPS surveys (n =26,666). (1) The percentage of individuals with reduced family out-of-pocket spending as a result of the various caps; and (2) the percentage of individuals experiencing health care services financial burden (family out-of-pocket spending on health care, not including premiums, greater than 10% of total family income) under each scenario. With the uniform caps, 1.2% of individuals had lower out-of-pocket spending, compared with 3.8% with reduced uniform caps and 2.1% with income-based caps. Uniform caps led to a small reduction in percentage of individuals experiencing financial burden (from 3.3% to 3.1%), with a modestly larger reduction as a result of reduced uniform caps (2.9%) and income-based caps (2.8%). Mandated uniform out-of-pocket caps for those with group insurance will benefit very few individuals, and will not result in substantial reductions in financial burden.

  17. Caregiver preference for reinforcement-based interventions for problem behavior maintained by positive reinforcement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gabor, Anne M; Fritz, Jennifer N; Roath, Christopher T; Rothe, Brittany R; Gourley, Denise A

    2016-06-01

    Social validity of behavioral interventions typically is assessed with indirect methods or by determining preferences of the individuals who receive treatment, and direct observation of caregiver preference rarely is described. In this study, preferences of 5 caregivers were determined via a concurrent-chains procedure. Caregivers were neurotypical, and children had been diagnosed with developmental disabilities and engaged in problem behavior maintained by positive reinforcement. Caregivers were taught to implement noncontingent reinforcement (NCR), differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA), and differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO), and the caregivers selected interventions to implement during sessions with the child after they had demonstrated proficiency in implementing the interventions. Three caregivers preferred DRA, 1 caregiver preferred differential reinforcement procedures, and 1 caregiver did not exhibit a preference. Direct observation of implementation in concurrent-chains procedures may allow the identification of interventions that are implemented with sufficient integrity and preferred by caregivers. © 2016 Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

  18. Exact Lagrangian caps and non-uniruled Lagrangian submanifolds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dimitroglou Rizell, Georgios

    2015-04-01

    We make the elementary observation that the Lagrangian submanifolds of C n , n≥3, constructed by Ekholm, Eliashberg, Murphy and Smith are non-uniruled and, moreover, have infinite relative Gromov width. The construction of these submanifolds involve exact Lagrangian caps, which obviously are non-uniruled in themselves. This property is also used to show that if a Legendrian submanifold inside a contactisation admits an exact Lagrangian cap, then its Chekanov-Eliashberg algebra is acyclic.

  19. Load carrying capacity of RCC beams by replacing steel reinforcement bars with shape memory alloy bars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bajoria, Kamal M.; Kaduskar, Shreya S.

    2016-04-01

    In this paper the structural behavior of reinforced concrete (RC) beams with smart rebars under two point loading system has been numerically studied, using Finite Element Method. The material used in this study is Super-elastic Shape Memory Alloys (SE SMAs) which contains nickel and titanium. In this study, different quantities of steel and SMA rebars have been used for reinforcement and the behavior of these models under two point bending loading system is studied. A comparison of load carrying capacity for the model between steel reinforced concrete beam and the beam reinforced with S.M.A and steel are performed. The results show that RC beams reinforced with combination of shape memory alloy and steel show better performance.

  20. Angular correlation between short-range. cap alpha. particles and. gamma. quanta

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kul' chitskii, L A; Latyshev, G D; Bulyginskii, D G

    1949-01-01

    Chang (Phys. Rev. 69, 60(1946); 70, 632(1946)) has found that the intensities of short-range ..cap alpha.. rays of Po and Ra are considerably higher than the values given by the Geiger-Nuttall law. This can be explained by assuming surface vibrations of ..cap alpha..-radioactive nuclei, which produce deformations and corresponding lowerings of the potential barrier in certain directions. In this case an angular correlation should exist between the short-range ..cap alpha.. ray and the accompanying ..gamma.. quantum. The authors checked this conclusion by applying the coincidence method to the ..cap alpha.. and ..gamma.. radiations of a mixture of RdTh (/sup 228/Th) and ThC (/sup 212/Bi). Maxima of coincidence numbers occur at angles 45 and 135 deg., with lesser maxima at 0 and 180 deg. Theoretical considerations show that in cases (like the one investigated) where the nuclear spin before and after the ..cap alpha.. and ..gamma.. emissions is zero, the angular correlations are uniquely determined whatever the deformation caused by the vibration; in other cases, the correlation depends on the kind of deformation. Therefore, it would be interesting to investigate the case of Pa, whose nuclear spin is not zero and the decay exhibits intensive groups of short-range ..cap alpha.. particles.

  1. Effects of reinforcer magnitude on responding under differential-reinforcement-of-low-rate schedules of rats and pigeons.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doughty, Adam H; Richards, Jerry B

    2002-07-01

    Experiment I investigated the effects of reinforcer magnitude on differential-reinforcement-of-low-rate (DRL) schedule performance in three phases. In Phase 1, two groups of rats (n = 6 and 5) responded under a DRI. 72-s schedule with reinforcer magnitudes of either 30 or 300 microl of water. After acquisition, the water amounts were reversed for each rat. In Phase 2, the effects of the same reinforcer magnitudes on DRL 18-s schedule performance were examined across conditions. In Phase 3, each rat responded unider a DR1. 18-s schedule in which the water amotnts alternated between 30 and 300 microl daily. Throughout each phase of Experiment 1, the larger reinforcer magnitude resulted in higher response rates and lower reinforcement rates. The peak of the interresponse-time distributions was at a lower value tinder the larger reinforcer magnitude. In Experiment 2, 3 pigeons responded under a DRL 20-s schedule in which reinforcer magnitude (1-s or 6-s access to grain) varied iron session to session. Higher response rates and lower reinforcement rates occurred tinder the longer hopper duration. These results demonstrate that larger reinforcer magnitudes engender less efficient DRL schedule performance in both rats and pigeons, and when reinforcer magnitude was held constant between sessions or was varied daily. The present results are consistent with previous research demonstrating a decrease in efficiency as a function of increased reinforcer magnituide tinder procedures that require a period of time without a specified response. These findings also support the claim that DRI. schedule performance is not governed solely by a timing process.

  2. Capping Layer (CL) Induced Antidamping in CL/Py/β-W System (CL: Al, β-Ta, Cu, β-W).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Behera, Nilamani; Guha, Puspendu; Pandya, Dinesh K; Chaudhary, Sujeet

    2017-09-13

    For achieving ultrafast switching speed and minimizing dissipation losses, the spin-based data storage device requires a control on effective damping (α eff ) of nanomagnetic bits. Incorporation of interfacial antidamping spin orbit torque (SOT) in spintronic devices therefore has high prospects for enhancing their performance efficiency. Clear evidence of such an interfacial antidamping is found in Al capped Py(15 nm)/β-W(t W )/Si (Py = Ni 81 Fe 19 and t W = thickness of β-W), which is in contrast to the increase of α eff (i.e., damping) usually associated with spin pumping as seen in Py(15 nm)/β-W(t W )/Si system. Because of spin pumping, the interfacial spin mixing conductance (g ↑↓ ) at Py/β-W interface and spin diffusion length (λ SD ) of β-W are found to be 1.63(±0.02) × 10 18 m -2 (1.44(±0.02) × 10 18 m -2 ) and 1.42(±0.19) nm (1.00(±0.10) nm) for Py(15 nm)/β-W(t W )/Si (β-W(t W )/Py(15 nm)/Si) bilayer systems. Other different nonmagnetic capping layers (CL), namely, β-W(2 nm), Cu(2 nm), and β-Ta(2,3,4 nm) were also grown over the same Py(15 nm)/β-W(t W ). However, antidamping is seen only in β-Ta(2,3 nm)/Py(15 nm)/β-W(t W )/Si. This decrease in α eff is attributed to the interfacial Rashba like SOT generated by nonequilibrium spin accumulation subsequent to the spin pumping. Contrary to this, when interlayer positions of Py(15 nm) and β-W(t W ) is interchanged irrespective of the fixed top nonmagnetic layer, an increase of α eff is observed, which is ascribed to spin pumping from Py to β-W layer.

  3. Polyethylene versus cotton cap as an adjunct to body wrap in preterm infants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shafie, Hashim; Syed Zakaria, Syed Zulkifli; Adli, Ali; Shareena, Ishak; Rohana, Jaafar

    2017-07-01

    Occlusive body wrap using polyethylene plastic applied immediately after birth had been shown to reduce hypothermia among preterm infants. Various adjunct methods have been studied in an attempt to further reduce the incidence of hypothermia. This study was conducted to determine whether polyethylene cap is more effective than cotton cap as an adjunct to polyethylene occlusive body wrap in reducing hypothermia in preterm infants. The subjects consisted of preterm infants 24-34 weeks' gestation born at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre. Infants were randomly assigned to NeoCap or control groups. Infants in both groups were wrapped in polyethylene sheets from the neck downwards immediately after birth without prior drying. Infants in the control group had their heads dried and subsequently covered with cotton caps while infants in the NeoCap group had polyethylene caps put on without drying. Axillary temperature was measured on admission to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), and after having been stabilized in the incubator. Among the 80 infants recruited, admission hypothermia (axillary temperature <36.5°C) was present in 37 (92.5%) and in 40 (100%) in the NeoCap and control groups, respectively. There was no significant difference in mean temperature on NICU admission between the two groups (35.3 vs 35.1°C, P = 0.36). Mean post-stabilization temperature, however, was significantly higher in the NeoCap group (36.0 vs 35.5°C, P = 0.01). Combined use of polyethylene body wrap and polyethylene cap was associated with a significantly higher mean post-stabilization temperature compared with polyethylene body wrap and cotton cap. © 2017 Japan Pediatric Society.

  4. 50 CFR 679.92 - Amendment 80 Program use caps and sideboard limits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 9 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Amendment 80 Program use caps and... ECONOMIC ZONE OFF ALASKA Amendment 80 Program § 679.92 Amendment 80 Program use caps and sideboard limits. (a) Use caps—(1) General. Use caps limit the amount of Amendment 80 QS units and Amendment 80 species...

  5. The antimicrobial propeptide hCAP-18 plasma levels in neutropenia of various aetiologies

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ye, Ying; Carlsson, Göran; Karlsson-Sjöberg, Jenny M T

    2015-01-01

    The underlying cause of neutropenia may be difficult to determine due to similar clinical presentation in many neutropenic conditions. The neutrophil protein hCAP-18 (pro-LL-37) is a major component of neutrophil secondary granules and in this prospective study we assessed the use of hCAP-18 levels...... in blood plasma for differential diagnosis of neutropenic patients (n = 133) of various aetiologies. Plasma levels of hCAP-18 were determined using immunoblot and ELISA. Patients with severe congenital neutropenia (n = 23) presented with the lowest levels of plasma hCAP-18 and differential diagnostic...... diagnostic value in differential diagnosis of chronic neutropenia. Neutropenic patients with Shwachman-Diamond syndrome, Barth syndrome, Cohen syndrome, acute myeloid leukaemia and specific granule deficiency presented with reduced plasma hCAP-18 levels as well. The blood plasma level of hCAP-18 was thus low...

  6. Organic–Inorganic Nanostructure Architecture via Directly Capping Fullerenes onto Quantum Dots

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kim Jonggi

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract A new form of fullerene-capped CdSe nanoparticles (PCBA-capped CdSe NPs, using carboxylate ligands with [60]fullerene capping groups that provides an effective synthetic methodology to attach fullerenes noncovalently to CdSe, is presented for usage in nanotechnology and photoelectric fields. Interestingly, either the internal charge transfer or the energy transfer in the hybrid material contributes to photoluminescence (PL quenching of the CdSe moieties.

  7. Analysis of the Staphylococcus aureus capsule biosynthesis pathway in vitro: characterization of the UDP-GlcNAc C6 dehydratases CapD and CapE and identification of enzyme inhibitors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Wenjin; Ulm, Hannah; Rausch, Marvin; Li, Xue; O'Riordan, Katie; Lee, Jean C; Schneider, Tanja; Müller, Christa E

    2014-11-01

    Polysaccharide capsules significantly contribute to virulence of invasive pathogens, and inhibition of capsule biosynthesis may offer a valuable strategy for novel anti-infective treatment. We purified and characterized the enzymes CapD and CapE of the Staphylococcus aureus serotype 5 biosynthesis cluster, which catalyze the first steps in the synthesis of the soluble capsule precursors UDP-D-FucNAc and UDP-L-FucNAc, respectively. CapD is an integral membrane protein and was obtained for the first time in a purified, active form. A capillary electrophoresis (CE)-based method applying micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) coupled with UV detection at 260 nm was developed for functional characterization of the enzymes using a fused-silica capillary, electrokinetic injection, and dynamic coating with polybrene at pH 12.4. The limits of detection for the CapD and CapE products UDP-2-acetamido-2,6-dideoxy-α-D-xylo-hex-4-ulose and UDP-2-acetamido-2,6-dideoxy-β-L-arabino-hex-4-ulose, respectively, were below 1 μM. Using this new, robust and sensitive method we performed kinetic studies for CapD and CapE and screened a compound library in search for enzyme inhibitors. Several active compounds were identified and characterized, including suramin (IC50 at CapE 1.82 μM) and ampicillin (IC50 at CapD 40.1 μM). Furthermore, the cell wall precursors UDP-D-MurNAc-pentapeptide and lipid II appear to function as inhibitors of CapD enzymatic activity, suggesting an integrated mechanism of regulation for cell envelope biosynthesis pathways in S. aureus. Corroborating the in vitro findings, staphylococcal cells grown in the presence of subinhibitory concentrations of ampicillin displayed drastically reduced CP production. Our studies contribute to a profound understanding of the capsule biosynthesis in pathogenic bacteria. This approach may lead to the identification of novel anti-virulence and antibiotic drugs. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

  8. Evidence that polar cap arcs occur on open field lines

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gussenhoven, M.S.; Hardy, D.A.; Rich, F.J.; Mullen, E.G.; Redus, R.H.

    1990-01-01

    The characteristics of polar cap arc occurrence are reviewed to show that the assumption of a closed magnetospheric magnetic field topology at very high latitudes when the IMF B z is strongly northward is difficult to reconcile with a wide variety of observational and theoretical considerations. In particular, we consider the implications of observations of particle entry for high and low energy electrons, magnetic flux conservation between the near and far tail, the time sequencing in polar cap arcs events, and the hemispherical differences in polar cap arc observations. These points can be explained either by excluding the need for a major topological magnetic field change from explanations of polar cap arc dynamics, or by assuming a long-tailed magnetosphere for all IMF orientations in which magnetic field lines eventually merge with solar wind field lines in either a smooth or a patchy fashion. (author)

  9. Solution to reinforcement learning problems with artificial potential field

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    XIE Li-juan; XIE Guang-rong; CHEN Huan-wen; LI Xiao-li

    2008-01-01

    A novel method was designed to solve reinforcement learning problems with artificial potential field. Firstly a reinforcement learning problem was transferred to a path planning problem by using artificial potential field(APF), which was a very appropriate method to model a reinforcement learning problem. Secondly, a new APF algorithm was proposed to overcome the local minimum problem in the potential field methods with a virtual water-flow concept. The performance of this new method was tested by a gridworld problem named as key and door maze. The experimental results show that within 45 trials, good and deterministic policies are found in almost all simulations. In comparison with WIERING's HQ-learning system which needs 20 000 trials for stable solution, the proposed new method can obtain optimal and stable policy far more quickly than HQ-learning. Therefore, the new method is simple and effective to give an optimal solution to the reinforcement learning problem.

  10. Two functional serotonin polymorphisms moderate the effect of food reinforcement on BMI.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carr, Katelyn A; Lin, Henry; Fletcher, Kelly D; Sucheston, Lara; Singh, Prashant K; Salis, Robbert J; Erbe, Richard W; Faith, Myles S; Allison, David B; Stice, Eric; Epstein, Leonard H

    2013-06-01

    Food reinforcement, or the motivation to eat, has been associated with increased energy intake, greater body weight, and prospective weight gain. Much of the previous research on the reinforcing value of food has focused on the role of dopamine, but it may be worthwhile to examine genetic polymorphisms in the serotonin and opioid systems as these neurotransmitters have been shown to be related to reinforcement processes and to influence energy intake. We examined the relationship among 44 candidate genetic polymorphisms in the dopamine, serotonin, and opioid systems, as well as food reinforcement and body mass index (BMI) in a sample of 245 individuals. Polymorphisms in the monoamine oxidase A (MAOA-LPR) and serotonin receptor 2A genes (rs6314) moderated the effect of food reinforcement on BMI, accounting for an additional 5-10% variance and revealed a potential role of the single nucleotide polymorphism, rs6314, in the serotonin 2A receptor as a differential susceptibility factor for obesity. Differential susceptibility describes a factor that can confer either risk or protection depending on a second variable, such that rs6314 is predictive of both high and low BMI based on the level of food reinforcement, while the diathesis stress or dual-gain model only influences one end of the outcome measure. The interaction with MAOA-LPR better fits the diathesis stress model, with the 3.5R/4R allele conferring protection for individuals low in food reinforcement. These results provide new insight into genes theoretically involved in obesity, and support the hypothesis that genetics moderate the association between food reinforcement and BMI. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved.

  11. The usage of carbon fiber reinforcement polymer and glass fiber reinforcement polymer for retrofit technology building

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tarigan, Johannes; Meka, Randi; Nursyamsi

    2018-03-01

    Fiber Reinforcement Polymer has been used as a material technology since the 1970s in Europe. Fiber Reinforcement Polymer can reinforce the structure externally, and used in many types of buildings like beams, columns, and slabs. It has high tensile strength. Fiber Reinforcement Polymer also has high rigidity and strength. The profile of Fiber Reinforcement Polymer is thin and light, installation is simple to conduct. One of Fiber Reinforcement Polymer material is Carbon Fiber Reinforcement Polymer and Glass Fiber Reinforcement Polymer. These materials is tested when it is installed on concrete cylinders, to obtain the comparison of compressive strength CFRP and GFRP. The dimension of concrete is diameter of 15 cm and height of 30 cm. It is amounted to 15 and divided into three groups. The test is performed until it collapsed to obtain maximum load. The results of research using CFRP and GFRP have shown the significant enhancement in compressive strength. CFRP can increase the compressive strength of 26.89%, and GFRP of 14.89%. For the comparison of two materials, CFRP is more strengthening than GFRP regarding increasing compressive strength. The usage of CFRP and GFRP can increase the loading capacity.

  12. Place preference and vocal learning rely on distinct reinforcers in songbirds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murdoch, Don; Chen, Ruidong; Goldberg, Jesse H

    2018-04-30

    In reinforcement learning (RL) agents are typically tasked with maximizing a single objective function such as reward. But it remains poorly understood how agents might pursue distinct objectives at once. In machines, multiobjective RL can be achieved by dividing a single agent into multiple sub-agents, each of which is shaped by agent-specific reinforcement, but it remains unknown if animals adopt this strategy. Here we use songbirds to test if navigation and singing, two behaviors with distinct objectives, can be differentially reinforced. We demonstrate that strobe flashes aversively condition place preference but not song syllables. Brief noise bursts aversively condition song syllables but positively reinforce place preference. Thus distinct behavior-generating systems, or agencies, within a single animal can be shaped by correspondingly distinct reinforcement signals. Our findings suggest that spatially segregated vocal circuits can solve a credit assignment problem associated with multiobjective learning.

  13. Human-level control through deep reinforcement learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mnih, Volodymyr; Kavukcuoglu, Koray; Silver, David; Rusu, Andrei A.; Veness, Joel; Bellemare, Marc G.; Graves, Alex; Riedmiller, Martin; Fidjeland, Andreas K.; Ostrovski, Georg; Petersen, Stig; Beattie, Charles; Sadik, Amir; Antonoglou, Ioannis; King, Helen; Kumaran, Dharshan; Wierstra, Daan; Legg, Shane; Hassabis, Demis

    2015-02-01

    The theory of reinforcement learning provides a normative account, deeply rooted in psychological and neuroscientific perspectives on animal behaviour, of how agents may optimize their control of an environment. To use reinforcement learning successfully in situations approaching real-world complexity, however, agents are confronted with a difficult task: they must derive efficient representations of the environment from high-dimensional sensory inputs, and use these to generalize past experience to new situations. Remarkably, humans and other animals seem to solve this problem through a harmonious combination of reinforcement learning and hierarchical sensory processing systems, the former evidenced by a wealth of neural data revealing notable parallels between the phasic signals emitted by dopaminergic neurons and temporal difference reinforcement learning algorithms. While reinforcement learning agents have achieved some successes in a variety of domains, their applicability has previously been limited to domains in which useful features can be handcrafted, or to domains with fully observed, low-dimensional state spaces. Here we use recent advances in training deep neural networks to develop a novel artificial agent, termed a deep Q-network, that can learn successful policies directly from high-dimensional sensory inputs using end-to-end reinforcement learning. We tested this agent on the challenging domain of classic Atari 2600 games. We demonstrate that the deep Q-network agent, receiving only the pixels and the game score as inputs, was able to surpass the performance of all previous algorithms and achieve a level comparable to that of a professional human games tester across a set of 49 games, using the same algorithm, network architecture and hyperparameters. This work bridges the divide between high-dimensional sensory inputs and actions, resulting in the first artificial agent that is capable of learning to excel at a diverse array of challenging tasks.

  14. Human-level control through deep reinforcement learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mnih, Volodymyr; Kavukcuoglu, Koray; Silver, David; Rusu, Andrei A; Veness, Joel; Bellemare, Marc G; Graves, Alex; Riedmiller, Martin; Fidjeland, Andreas K; Ostrovski, Georg; Petersen, Stig; Beattie, Charles; Sadik, Amir; Antonoglou, Ioannis; King, Helen; Kumaran, Dharshan; Wierstra, Daan; Legg, Shane; Hassabis, Demis

    2015-02-26

    The theory of reinforcement learning provides a normative account, deeply rooted in psychological and neuroscientific perspectives on animal behaviour, of how agents may optimize their control of an environment. To use reinforcement learning successfully in situations approaching real-world complexity, however, agents are confronted with a difficult task: they must derive efficient representations of the environment from high-dimensional sensory inputs, and use these to generalize past experience to new situations. Remarkably, humans and other animals seem to solve this problem through a harmonious combination of reinforcement learning and hierarchical sensory processing systems, the former evidenced by a wealth of neural data revealing notable parallels between the phasic signals emitted by dopaminergic neurons and temporal difference reinforcement learning algorithms. While reinforcement learning agents have achieved some successes in a variety of domains, their applicability has previously been limited to domains in which useful features can be handcrafted, or to domains with fully observed, low-dimensional state spaces. Here we use recent advances in training deep neural networks to develop a novel artificial agent, termed a deep Q-network, that can learn successful policies directly from high-dimensional sensory inputs using end-to-end reinforcement learning. We tested this agent on the challenging domain of classic Atari 2600 games. We demonstrate that the deep Q-network agent, receiving only the pixels and the game score as inputs, was able to surpass the performance of all previous algorithms and achieve a level comparable to that of a professional human games tester across a set of 49 games, using the same algorithm, network architecture and hyperparameters. This work bridges the divide between high-dimensional sensory inputs and actions, resulting in the first artificial agent that is capable of learning to excel at a diverse array of challenging tasks.

  15. Seismic explosion sources on an ice cap

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Shulgin, Alexey; Thybo, Hans

    2015-01-01

    crustal model can be modelled. A crucial challenge for applying the technique is to control the sources. Here, we present data that describe the efficiency of explosive sources in the ice cover. Analysis of the data shows, that the ice cap traps a significant amount of energy, which is observed......Controlled source seismic investigation of crustal structure below ice covers is an emerging technique. We have recently conducted an explosive refraction/wide-angle reflection seismic experiment on the ice cap in east-central Greenland. The data-quality is high for all shot points and a full...

  16. A study on physical properties of concrete and reinforcement at elevated temperatures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kanazu, Tsutomu

    2002-01-01

    Reinforced concrete structures such as a containment vessel, a support of the reactor, piping systems and facilities for storing high level radioactive waste in a nuclear power plant are exposed to a high temperature condition. Changes of physical properties of concrete and reinforcement caused by high temperature influence on mechanical behavior of these structures and internal stresses are induced by difference of thermal coefficients between concrete and reinforcement that was reported in the previous paper by the author. These are the special features in high temperature conditions. Temperature dependence of physical properties of concrete and reinforcement are summarized in the paper based on the experimental results. (author)

  17. Convection flow structure in the central polar cap

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bristow, W. A.

    2017-12-01

    A previous study of spatially averaged flow velocity in the central polar cap [Bristow et al., 2015] observed under steady IMF conditions found that it was extremely rare for the average to exceed 850 m/s (less than 0.2 % of the time). Anecdotally, however it is not uncommon to observe line-of-sight velocities in excess of 100 m/s in the McMurdo radar field of view directly over the magnetic pole. This discrepancy motivated this study, which examines the conditions under which high-velocity flows are observed at latitudes greater than 80° magnetic latitude. It was found that highly structured flows are common in the central polar cap, which leads to the flow within regions to have significant deviation from the average. In addition, the high-speed flow regions are usually directed away from the earth-sun line. No specific set of driving conditions was identified to be associated with high-speed flows. The study did conclude that 1)Polar cap velocities are generally highly structured. 2)Flow patterns typically illustrate narrow channels, vortical flow regions, and propagating features. 3) Persistent waves are a regular occurrence. 3)Features are observed to propagate from day side to night side, and from night side to day side.. 4)Convection often exhibits significant difference between the two hemispheres. And 5)About 10% of the time the velocity somewhere in the cap exceeds 1 Km/s The presentation will conclude with a discussion of the physical reasons for the flow structure. Bristow, W. A., E. Amata, J. Spaleta, and M. F. Marcucci (2015), Observations of the relationship between ionospheric central polar cap and dayside throat convection velocities, and solar wind/IMF driving, J. Geophys. Res. Space Physics, 120, doi:10.1002/2015JA021199.

  18. Nano-sized calcium phosphate (CaP) carriers for non-viral gene deilvery

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Donghyun, E-mail: dhlee@cau.ac.kr [Department of Biomedical Engineering, Division of Integrative Engineering, Chung-Ang University, 221 Heukseok-Dong, Dongjak-Gu, Seoul 156-756 (Korea, Republic of); Upadhye, Kalpesh [Department of Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260 (United States); Kumta, Prashant N., E-mail: pkumta@pitt.edu [Department of Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260 (United States); Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Sceince, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260 (United States); Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260 (United States); Center for Complex Engineered Multifunctional Materials, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15261 (United States)

    2012-02-25

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Nanostructured calcium phosphates (NanoCaPs): comprehensive review. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Non viral gene delivery mechanisms: detailed mechanisms are outlined. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Barriers to non-viral gene delivery: detailed barriers are discussed. - Abstract: Gene therapy has garnered much interest due to the potential for curing multiple inherited and/or increases in the acquired diseases. As a result, there has been intense activity from multiple research groups for developing effective delivery methods and carriers, which is a critical step in advancing gene delivery technologies. In order for the carriers to effectively deliver the genetic payloads, multiple extracellular and intracellular barriers need to be overcome. Although overcoming these challenges to improve the effectiveness is critical, the development of safe gene delivery agents is even more vital to assure its use in clinical applications. The development of safe and effective strategies has therefore been a major challenge impeding gene therapy progress. In this regard, calcium phosphate (CaP) based nano-particles has been considered as one of the candidate non-viral gene delivery vehicles, but has been plagued by inconsistent and low transfection efficiencies limiting its progress. There has been major research effort to improve the consistency and effectiveness of CaP based vectors. Currently, it is therefore thought that by controlling the various synthesis factors such as Ca/P ratio, mode of mixing, and type of calcium phosphate phase, such variability and inefficiency could be modulated. This review attempts to provide a comprehensive analysis of the current research activity in the development of CaP based ceramic and polymer-ceramic hybrid systems for non-viral gene delivery. Preliminary transfection results of hydroxyapatite (HA or NanoCaPs), amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP) and brushite phases are also compared to assess the

  19. Reinforced concrete tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mariscotti, M.A.J.; Morixe, M.; Tarela, P.A.; Thieberger, P.

    1997-01-01

    In this paper we describe the technique of reinforced concrete tomography, its historical background, recent technological developments and main applications. Gamma radiation sensitive plates are imprinted with radiation going through the concrete sample under study, and then processed to reveal the presence of reinforcement and defects in the material density. The three dimensional reconstruction, or tomography, of the reinforcement out of a single gammagraphy is an original development alternative to conventional methods. Re-bar diameters and positions may be determined with an accuracy of ± 1 mm 0.5-1 cm, respectively. The non-destructive character of this technique makes it particularly attractive in cases of inhabited buildings and diagnoses of balconies. (author) [es

  20. Polar cap index as a proxy for hemispheric Joule heating

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Chun, F.K.; Knipp, D.J.; McHarg, M.G.

    1999-01-01

    The polar cap (PC) index measures the level of geomagnetic activity in the polar cap based on magnetic perturbations from overhead ionospheric currents and distant field-aligned currents on the poleward edge of the nightside auroral oval. Because PC essentially measures the main sources of energy...... input into the polar cap, we propose to use PC as a proxy for the hemispheric Joule heat production rate (JH). In this study, JH is estimated from the Assimilative Mapping of Ionospheric Electrodynamics (AMIE) procedure. We fit hourly PC values to hourly averages of JH. Using a data base approximately...

  1. Administración del agua. - Capítulo II: Organización administrativa del agua.

    OpenAIRE

    Fernández Morales, Juan Carlos

    2008-01-01

    ÍNDICE Créditos Dedicatoria Agradecimiento Notas del autor Introducción Capítulo I: Marco jurídico conceptual de la gestión del agua. Capítulo II: Organización administrativa del agua. Capítulo III: Las confederaciones hidrográficas en la legislación española. Capítulo IV: Los usuarios y la gestión del agua. Capítulo V: Administración del agua y competencias sectoriales en las comunidades autonómas españolas. Capítulo VI: Abastecimien...

  2. Woodflour as Reinforcement of Polypropylene

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José Cláudio Caraschi

    2002-10-01

    Full Text Available The effect of the filler content and size, as well as accelerated aging on the mechanical properties of polypropylene composites reinforced with woodflour (WF/PP were evaluated. The composites were prepared by the extrusion of polypropylene with woodflour (Pinus elliotti based on following ratios: 15, 25 and 40 wt% with two different granulometries. The specimens were injection molded according to ASTM standards. The composite properties did not show significant differences as a function of the filler granulometry. We also observed that by increasing the filler content, both the mechanical properties and the melt flow index (MFI decreased, and the elasticity modulus, hardness and density increased. Concerning the accelerated aging, the composite presented a reduction in tensile properties. The results showed that the composite properties are extremely favorable when compared to other commercial systems reinforced by inorganic fillers.

  3. Pathology Residents Comprise Inspection Team for a CAP Self-Inspection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stacy G. Beal MD

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available We report our experience at the University of Florida in which residents and fellows served as the inspection team for a College of American Pathologists (CAP self-inspection. We aimed to determine whether the CAP self-inspection could serve as a learning opportunity for pathology residents and fellows. To prepare for the inspection, we provided a series of 4 lunchtime seminars covering numerous laboratory management topics relating to inspections and laboratory quality. Preparation for the inspection began approximately 4 months prior to the date of the inspection. The intent was to simulate a CAP peer inspection, with the exception that the date was announced. The associate residency program director served as the team leader. All residents and fellows completed inspector training provided by CAP, and the team leader completed the team leader training. A 20 question pre- and posttest was administered; additionally, an anonymous survey was given after the inspection. The residents’ and fellows’ posttest scores were an average of 15% higher than on the pretest ( P < .01. The surveys as well as subjective comments were overwhelmingly positive. In conclusion, the resident’s and fellow’s experience as an inspector during a CAP self-inspection was a useful tool to learn accreditation and laboratory management.

  4. X. cap alpha. method with pseudopotentials

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Szasz, L. (Fordham Univ., New York (USA). Dept. of Physics)

    1980-06-01

    The X..cap alpha.. method for an atom or molecule is transformed into an all-electron pseudopotential formalism. The equations of the X..cap alpha.. method are exactly transformed into pseudo-orbital equations and the resulting pseudopotentials are replaced by simple density-dependent potentials derived from Thomas-Fermi model. It is shown that the new formalism satisfies the virial theorem. As the first application, it is shown that the model explains the shell-structure of atoms by the property that the pseudo-orbitals for the (ns), (np), (nd), etc. electrons are, in a very good approximation, the solutions of the same equation and have their maxima at the same point thereby creating the peaks in the radial density characterizing the shell structure.

  5. Strength and deformational characteristics of three-way reinforced concrete containment models subjected to lateral forces

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aoyagi, Y.; Yamada, K.; Takahashi, T.

    1981-01-01

    With a view to investigating the earthquake resistance characteristics of reinforced concrete containments two cylindrical models with three-way system of bars were made and loaded laterally up to failure combined with or without internal pressures, simulating the conditions in which containments were subjected to earthquake forces at a simultaneous LOCA or at normal operation. The main conclusions obtained withing the limit of the experiments are as follows. (1) Stresses in reinforcements in three-way reinforced concrete plate elements can reasonably be estimated by the equations proposed by Baumann. It is, however, necessary to take into consideration the contributions of concrete between cracks to the deformation in order to accurately estimate the average strains in the plate elements, applying such a formula as CEB as reformed by the authors. (2) The strength capacity of three-way reinforced concrete containments against lateral forces combined with internal pressure is somewhat inferior to that of orthogonally reinforced one if compared on the condition that the volumetric reinforcement ratios are the same for the two cases of reinforcement arrangements. However, three-way reinforcement improves initial shear rigidity as well as ultimate horizontal deformability for lateral forces. (3) The ability for three-way reinforced concrete containment to absorb strain energy in the range of large deformations is superior to that of orthogonally reinforced one. The equivalent viscous damping coefficient for the former is markedly larger than that for the latter, especially at the increased deformational stages. These experimental evidences suggent that three-way system of reinforcement may constitute one of the prospective measures to improve the earthquake resistance of reinforced concrete containments. (orig./HP)

  6. Characteristics of helmet or knit cap use in head injury of snowboarders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fukuda, Osamu; Hirashima, Yutaka; Origasa, Hideki; Endo, Shunro

    2007-11-01

    The rate of head injury is 1.86-6 times higher for snowboarding than for skiing. Detailed data about the usefulness of a helmet or knit cap for protecting against serious head injuries have not been reported. The present study evaluated the use of a helmet or knit cap for preventing head injuries. Questionnaire data were collected from 1,190 consecutive patients in a hospital during the 1999/2000-2002/2003 winter seasons at Uonuma ski resort, Niigata, Japan. Patients were divided into the helmet, knit cap, and no cap groups. Upper technical level was highest and jumping as the cause of injury was most frequent in the helmet group. After adjustment for other confounders, there was a significant negative association between the occurrence of serious head injury during snowboarding and female sex (adjusted odds ratio 0.55, 95% confidence interval 0.421-0.718, p jumping (adjusted odds ratio 2.25, 95% confidence interval 1.48-3.43, p = 0.0001). Among snowboarding maneuvers, only jumping showed a significant negative association between wearing of a helmet or knit cap and the occurrence of serious head injury (p = 0.036). Snowboarders who wear helmets might attempt dangerous maneuvers causing injuries. Wearing of a helmet or knit cap protected against serious head injuries on jumping. Every snowboarder should wear a helmet or knit cap on jumping to prevent head injury.

  7. Wooden beverage cases cause little damage to bottle caps

    Science.gov (United States)

    R. Bruce Anderson; William C. Miller

    1973-01-01

    Wooden beverage cases cause little damage to aluminum resealable caps during distribution. A study at bottling plants and distribution warehouses showed that an average of 1 bottle out of 4,000 has cap damage. Most of the damage was attributed to handling at the warehouse and in transit. Some recommendations are given for improvement of wooden beverage cases to prevent...

  8. Combining rate-based and cap-and-trade emissions policies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fischer, Carolyn

    2003-12-01

    Rate-based emissions policies (like tradable performance standards, TPS) fix average emissions intensity, while cap-and-trade (CAT) policies fix total emissions. This paper shows that unfettered trade between rate-based and cap-and-trade programs always raises combined emissions, except when product markets are related in particular ways. Gains from trade are fully passed on to consumers in the rate-based sector, resulting in more output and greater emissions allocations. We consider several policy options to offset the expansion, including a tax, an 'exchange rate' to adjust for relative permit values, output-based allocation (OBA) for the rate-based sector, and tightening the cap. A range of combinations of tighter allocations could improve situations in both sectors with trade while holding emissions constant

  9. Capping layer-tailored interface magnetic anisotropy in ultrathin Co2FeAl films

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Belmeguenai, M.; Zighem, F.; Chérif, S. M.; Gabor, M. S.; Petrisor, T.; Tiusan, C.

    2015-01-01

    Co 2 FeAl (CFA) thin films of various thicknesses (2 nm ≤ d ≤ 50 nm) have been grown on (001) MgO single crystal substrates and then capped with Cr, V, and Ta. Their magnetic and structural properties have been studied by x-ray diffraction (XRD), vibrating sample magnetometry, and broadband microstrip ferromagnetic resonance (MS-FMR). The XRD revealed that the films are epitaxial with the cubic [001] CFA axis normal to the substrate plane and that the chemical order varies from the B2 phase to the A2 phase when decreasing the thickness. The deduced lattice parameters showed that the Cr-capped films exhibit a larger tetragonal distortion, as compared with the films capped with V or Ta. The presence of magnetic dead layers has been observed in CFA samples capped with V and Ta but not in the case of the Cr-capped ones. The effective magnetization, deduced from the fit of MS-FMR measurements, increases (decreases) linearly with the CFA inverse thickness (1/d) for the Cr-capped (Ta-capped) films while it is constant for the V-capped ones. This allows quantifying the perpendicular surface anisotropy coefficients of −0.46 erg/cm 2 and 0.74 erg/cm 2 for Cr and Ta-capped films, respectively. Moreover, the fourfold and the uniaxial anisotropy fields, measured in these films, showed different trends with a respect to the CFA inverse thickness. This allows inferring that a non-negligible part of the fourfold magnetocrystalline term is of interfacial origin

  10. Estimation of Polar Cap Potential and the Role of PC Index

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ga-Hee Moon

    2012-09-01

    Full Text Available Polar cap potential has long been considered as an indicator for the amount of energy flowing in the magnetosphere-ionosphere system. Thus, the estimation of polar cap potential is important to understand the physical process of the magnetosphere. To estimate the polar cap potential in the Northern Hemisphere, merging electric field by Kan & Lee (1979 is adopted. Relationships between the PC index and calculated merging electric field (E* are examined during full-time and storm-time periods separately. For this purpose Dst, AL, and PC indices and solar wind data are utilized during the period from 1996-2003. From this linear relationship, polar cap potential (Φ* is estimated using the formula by Doyle & Burke (1983. The values are represented as 58.1 ± 26.9 kV for the full-time period and 123.7 ± 84.1 kV for a storm-time period separately. Considering that the average value of polar cap potential of Doyle & Burke (1983 is about 47 kV during moderately quiet intervals with the S3-2 measurements, these results are similar to such. The monthly averaged variation of Dst, AL, and PC indices are then compared. The Dst and AL indices show distinct characteristics with peaks during equinoctial season whereas the average PC index according to the month shows higher values in autumn than in spring. The monthly variations of the linear correlation coefficients between solar wind parameters and geomagnetic indices are also examined. The PC-AL linear correlation coefficient is highest, being 0.82 with peaks during the equinoctial season. As with the AL index, the PC index may also prove useful for predicting the intensity of an auroral substorm. Generally, the linear correlation coefficients are shown low in summer due to conductance differences and other factors. To assess the role of the PC index during the recovery phase of a storm, the relation between the cumulative PC index and the duration is examined. Although the correlation coefficient lowers

  11. Subaqueous Cap Design: Selection of Bioturbation Profiles, Depths, and Process Rates

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Clarke, Douglas

    2001-01-01

    .... For either practice to satisfy the requirement of isolation of the contaminated sediments, design of caps of clean material must account for multiple factors affecting the long-term stability of the cap...

  12. Prediction of reinforcement corrosion using corrosion induced cracks width in corroded reinforced concrete beams

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Khan, Inamullah; François, Raoul; Castel, Arnaud

    2014-01-01

    This paper studies the evolution of reinforcement corrosion in comparison to corrosion crack width in a highly corroded reinforced concrete beam. Cracking and corrosion maps of the beam were drawn and steel reinforcement was recovered from the beam to observe the corrosion pattern and to measure the loss of mass of steel reinforcement. Maximum steel cross-section loss of the main reinforcement and average steel cross-section loss between stirrups were plotted against the crack width. The experimental results were compared with existing models proposed by Rodriguez et al., Vidal et al. and Zhang et al. Time prediction models for a given opening threshold are also compared to experimental results. Steel cross-section loss for stirrups was also measured and was plotted against the crack width. It was observed that steel cross-section loss in the stirrups had no relationship with the crack width of longitudinal corrosion cracks. -- Highlights: •Relationship between crack and corrosion of reinforcement was investigated. •Corrosion results of natural process and then corresponds to in-situ conditions. •Comparison with time predicting model is provided. •Prediction of load-bearing capacity from crack pattern was studied

  13. Study of the internal confinement of concrete reinforced (in civil engineering) with woven reinforcement

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dalal, M.; Goumairi, O.; El Malik, A.

    2017-10-01

    Concrete is generally the most used material in the field of construction. Despite its extensive use in structures, it represents some drawbacks related to its properties including its low tensile strength and low ductility. To solve this problem, the use of steel reinforcement in concrete structures is possible. Another possibility is the introduction of different types of continuous fibre / staple in the concrete, such as steel fibres or synthetic fibres, to obtain ″Concretes bundles″. Many types of fibre concrete, which have been developed and for many of them, the gain provided by the fibre was rather low and no significant improvement in tensile strength was really reaching. By cons, the ductility was higher than that of ordinary concrete. The objective of this study is to examine concrete reinforcement by inserting reinforcements woven polyester. These are either woven bidirectional (2D) or three-dimensional woven (3D). So we will report the properties of each type of reinforcement and the influence of the method of weaving on the strength reinforcements and on the strength of concrete in which they are incorporated. Such influence should contribute to improving the sustainability and enhancement of reinforcement

  14. Reward versus Reinforcement Possibilities of the Merit Pay System.

    Science.gov (United States)

    1981-01-14

    highly idiosyncratic manner, so that a given figure may represent a sufficient wage or bonus for person A and an insufficient wage or bonus for...properties of reinforcers may be stable over certain employee characteristics or job variables. What are these defining charateristics ? Past research...has shown that if members of a group of workers differ on social class or race (Quinn, Staines & McCullough, 1974), educational level (Campbell

  15. Green wet chemical route to synthesize capped CdSe quantum dots

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    In the present work, we report green synthesis of tartaric acid (TA) and triethanolamine (TEA) capped ... CdSe quantum dots; chemical bath deposition; capping; green chemistry; nanomaterials. 1. .... at high concentration of nanoparticles.

  16. Investigation of field corrosion performance and bond/development length of galvanized reinforcing steel : [tech transfer summary].

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-12-01

    In reinforced concrete systems, ensuring that a good bond between the : concrete and the embedded reinforcing steel is critical to long-term structural : performance. Without good bond between the two, the system simply cannot : behave as intended. :...

  17. Melanoma-Targeted Chemothermotherapy and In Situ Peptide Immunotherapy through HSP Production by Using Melanogenesis Substrate, NPrCAP, and Magnetite Nanoparticles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kowichi Jimbow

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Exploitation of biological properties unique to cancer cells may provide a novel approach to overcome difficult challenges to the treatment of advanced melanoma. In order to develop melanoma-targeted chemothermoimmunotherapy, a melanogenesis substrate, N-propionyl-4-S-cysteaminylphenol (NPrCAP, sulfur-amine analogue of tyrosine, was conjugated with magnetite nanoparticles. NPrCAP was exploited from melanogenesis substrates, which are expected to be selectively incorporated into melanoma cells and produce highly reactive free radicals through reacting with tyrosinase, resulting in chemotherapeutic and immunotherapeutic effects by oxidative stress and apoptotic cell death. Magnetite nanoparticles were conjugated with NPrCAP to introduce thermotherapeutic and immunotherapeutic effects through nonapoptotic cell death and generation of heat shock protein (HSP upon exposure to alternating magnetic field (AMF. During these therapeutic processes, NPrCAP was also expected to provide melanoma-targeted drug delivery system.

  18. Indirect pulp capping in primary molar using glass ionomer cements

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Murtia Metalita

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Background: Indirect pulp capping in primary teeth, however, is more rarely conducted than permanent teeth, since it thought to have low impact and most suggestion is for taking caries lesion aggressively on primary teeth. Purpose: The study was aimed to evaluate the subjective complaint, clinical symptom, and radiographic appearance of indirect pulp capping treatment using glass ionomers cements in primary molar. Methods: Sixteen children in range of age 6 to 8 years old, who visited Clinic of Pediatric Dentistry Universitas Airlangga Dental Hospital, Surabaya Indonesia, were the subject of study. They had one occlusal dental caries on one side of maxillary or mandibular primary molar with the diagnose of pulpitis reversible. The experimental group, had indirect pulp capping treatment with glass ionomer cements (GC Fuji VII®, while the control group, had indirect pulp capping treatment with calcium hydroxide (Metapaste. Each group was filled with GC Fuji IX® as permanent restoration. After one week, one month, and three months later, the observations were made on subjective complaint, clinical symptom, and radiographic appearance. Results: The results showed no subjective complaint such as pain or problem on mastication; no negative clinical symptoms such as pain on palpation, gingivitis or periodontitis, and abnormal tooth mobility; no negative radiographic appearance such as pathological apical radioluscency, internal or external resorbtion, and change of ligament periodontal widthafter the treatment. Conclusion: The study suggested that indirect pulp capping treatment using glass ionomer cement materials on primary teeth might be considered to be the treatment choice.Latar belakang: Indirect pulp capping pada gigi sulung lebih jarang dilakukan dibandingkan gigi permanen, karena dianggap memiliki dampak yang rendah dan sebagian besar menyarankan untuk mengambil lesi karies secara agresif pada gigi sulung. Tujuan: Penelitian ini bertujuan

  19. Optical Properties of ZnO Nanoparticles Capped with Polymers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Atsushi Noguchi

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available Optical properties of ZnO nanoparticles capped with polymers were investigated. Polyethylene glycol (PEG and polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP were used as capping reagents. ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by the sol-gel method. Fluorescence and absorption spectra were measured. When we varied the timing of the addition of the polymer to the ZnO nanoparticle solution, the optical properties were drastically changed. When PEG was added to the solution before the synthesis of ZnO nanoparticles, the fluorescence intensity increased. At the same time, the total particle size increased, which indicated that PEG molecules had capped the ZnO nanoparticles. The capping led to surface passivation, which increased fluorescence intensity. However, when PEG was added to the solution after the synthesis of ZnO nanoparticles, the fluorescence and particle size did not change. When PVP was added to the solution before the synthesis of ZnO nanoparticles, aggregation of nanoparticles occurred. When PVP was added to the solution after the synthesis of ZnO nanoparticles, fluorescence and particle size increased. This improvement of optical properties is advantageous to the practical usage of ZnO nanoparticles, such as bioimaging

  20. Experimental and numerical investigation of the cap-shock structure in over expanded thrust-optimized nozzles

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Reijasse, P.; Bouvier, F.; Servel, P.

    2002-07-01

    This paper deals with the aerodynamics of an over-expanded nozzle, when the internal parabolic contour of the nozzle extension is highly thrust-optimized in terms of specific impulse-to-weight ratio. This optimization leads to an internal focusing shock issuing from a little downstream from the throat, even when the nozzle is running at nearly vacuum conditions. When such a nozzle is over-expanded, the focusing shock thus interferes with the over-expansion shock, and it forms from this shock interference a particular shock system, named 'cap-shock' because of the cap-like luminous shape seen in the over-expanded plumes of some real engines. Navier-Stokes calcinations performed in Europe had permitted to numerically analyze such a flow pattern, and they have revealed notably a recirculation bubble on the centerline downstream of the Mach disk, which had never been measured yet. A test campaign characterizing the flow separation in over-expanded sub-scale nozzles has been performed in the R2Ch blowdown wind tunnel of the Onera Chalais-Meudon center. Schlieren photographs of the exhaust jet have authorized a detailed description of the cap-shock pattern. Two-components Laser Doppler Velocimetry measurements have confirmed the existence of a recirculation bubble surrounded by an annular supersonic jet and has given its size. In addition to the calculations and the Schlieren interpretative sketches, these first quantitative experimental characterization of the cap-shock structure permit to state a physical description of the cap-shock induced flow field in the thrust-optimized nozzles. (authors)

  1. Thermographic inspection of bond defects in Fiber Reinforced Polymer applied to masonry structures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masini, N.; Aiello, M. A.; Capozzoli, L.; Vasanelli, E.

    2012-04-01

    Nowadays, externally bonded Fiber Reinforced Polymers (FRP) are extensively used for strengthening and repairing masonry and reinforced concrete existing structures; they have had a rapid spread in the area of rehabilitation for their many advantages over other conventional repair systems, such as lightweight, excellent corrosion and fatigue resistance, high strength, etc. FRP systems applied to masonry or concrete structures are typically installed using a wet-layup technique.The method is susceptible to cause flaws or defects in the bond between the FRP system and the substrate, which may reduce the effectiveness of the reinforcing systems and the correct transfer of load from the structure to the composite. Thus it is of primary importance to detect the presence of defects and to quantify their extension in order to eventually provide correct repair measurements. The IR thermography has been cited by the several guidelines as a good mean to qualitatively evaluate the presence of installation defects and to monitor the reinforcing system with time.The method is non-destructive and does not require contact with the composite or other means except air to detect the reinforcement. Some works in the literature have been published on this topic. Most of the researches aim at using the IR thermography technique to characterize quantitatively the defects in terms of depth, extension and type in order to have an experimental database on defect typology to evaluate the long term performances of the reinforcing system. Nevertheless, most of the works in the literature concerns with FRP applied to concrete structures without considering the case of masonry structures. In the present research artificial bond defects between FRP and the masonry substrate have been reproduced in laboratory and the IR multi temporal thermography technique has been used to detect them. Thermographic analysis has been carried out on two wall samples having limited dimensions (100 x 70 cm) both

  2. CAP payments and agricultural GHG emissions in Italy. A farm-level assessment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coderoni, Silvia; Esposti, Roberto

    2018-06-15

    The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is an important external driver of European agricultural production. Nowadays and in its envisioned future structure post-2020, the CAP has among its major objectives tackling climate change, for what concerns both adaptation and mitigation strategies. However, little is known about the link between past CAP reforms and agricultural greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions. This paper investigates the possible role played by the Fischler Reform (FR) on the agricultural GHG emissions at the farm level. The FR represents a major CAP reform for which data availability allows an ex-post analysis about its actual impacts. The empirical analysis concerns a balanced panel of 6542 Italian Farm Accountancy Data Network observed over years the 2003-2007. Multinomial Logit models are estimated in sequence to express how the farm-level production choices, and the respective emissions, vary over time also in response to CAP expenditure. Results suggest that CAP expenditure had a role in the evolution of the farm-level emissions, though the direction of this effect may differ across farms and deserves further investigation. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Structural and luminescent properties of Fe3+ doped PVA capped CdTe nanoparticles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ravindranadh K.

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available During recent decades, magnetic and semiconductor nanoparticles have attracted significant attention of scientists in various fields of engineering, physics, chemistry, biology and medicine. Fe3+ doped PVA capped CdTe nanoparticles were prepared by co-precipitation method and characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, SEM, TEM, FT-IR, optical, EPR and PL techniques to collect the information about the crystal structure, coordination/local site symmetry of doped Fe3+ ions in the host lattice and the luminescent properties of prepared sample. Powder XRD data revealed that the crystal structure belongs to a cubic system and its lattice cell parameters were evaluated. The average crystallite size was estimated to be 8 nm. The morphology of prepared samples was analyzed by using SEM and TEM investigations. Functional groups of the prepared sample were observed in FT-IR spectra. Optical absorption and EPR studies have shown that on doping, Fe3+ ions enter the host lattice in octahedral site symmetry. PL studies of Fe3+ doped PVA capped CdTe nanoparticles revealed UV and blue emission bands. CIE chromaticity coordinates were also calculated from the emission spectrum of Fe3+ doped PVA capped CdTe nanoparticles.

  4. Chitosan Capped Silver Nanoparticles as Colorimetric Sensor for the Determination of Iron(III

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Javad Tashkhourian

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available A selective, simple and low-cost method for the colorimetric determination of Fe3+ ions based on chitosan capped silver nanoparticles (Chit-AgNPs was presented. Chitosan is a cationic polyelectrolyte and possesses amino and hydroxy groups which make it widely used as a capping agent for Ag NPs. The synthesized chitosan capped silver nanoparticles with excellent colloidal stability were characterized by UV–Visible spectrometry, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared, X-ray diffraction. Chit-AgNPs exhibit a strong surface plasmon resonance band which disappears in the presence of increasing concentrations of Fe3+ ions. This system showed a visually detectable color change from brownish-yellow to colorless for the selective determination of Fe3+. The method can be applied for the determination of Fe3+ ions in the concentration range of 1.0×10-6 to 5.0×10-4 M. The detection limit was determined from three times the standard deviation of the blank signal (3σ/slope as 5.3 × 10−7 M. The developed method was successfully applied for the determination of Fe3+in real samples

  5. Incorporating Cold Cap Behavior in a Joule-heated Waste Glass Melter Model

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Varija Agarwal; Donna Post Guillen

    2013-08-01

    In this paper, an overview of Joule-heated waste glass melters used in the vitrification of high level waste (HLW) is presented, with a focus on the cold cap region. This region, in which feed-to-glass conversion reactions occur, is critical in determining the melting properties of any given glass melter. An existing 1D computer model of the cold cap, implemented in MATLAB, is described in detail. This model is a standalone model that calculates cold cap properties based on boundary conditions at the top and bottom of the cold cap. Efforts to couple this cold cap model with a 3D STAR-CCM+ model of a Joule-heated melter are then described. The coupling is being implemented in ModelCenter, a software integration tool. The ultimate goal of this model is to guide the specification of melter parameters that optimize glass quality and production rate.

  6. A smart cap for olive oil rancidity detection using optochemical sensors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mignani, A. G.; Ciaccheri, L.; Mencaglia, A. A.; Paolesse, R.; Mastroianni, M.; Monti, D.; Buonocore, G.; Del Nobile, A.; Mentana, A.; Grimaldi, M. F.

    2007-09-01

    The design and experimental setup of a smart cap are presented. It is capable of sniffing the vapors of extra virgin olive oil, thus alerting the consumer or the retailer of any rancid flavor. The cap is made of an array of metalloporphyrin-based optochemical sensors, the colors of which are modulated by the concentration of aldehydes, the main responsible for rancid off-flavors. A micro-optic device, implemented to simulate a cap prototype, is presented. The spectral response of the chromophore-array is processed by means of multivariate data analysis so as to achieve an artificial olfactory perception of oil aroma and, consequently, an indication of oil ageing and rancidity. In practice, the cap prototype proved to be a device for non-destructive testing of bottled oil quality.

  7. 30 CFR 75.1719-4 - Mining machines, cap lamps; requirements.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Mining machines, cap lamps; requirements. 75... Mining machines, cap lamps; requirements. (a) Paint used on exterior surfaces of mining machines shall... frames or reflecting tape shall be installed on each end of mining machines, except that continuous...

  8. Design of a Remote Monitoring System for Evaluation of Corrosión in Reinforced Concrete Structures under Chloride Ion Attack

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Roa-Rodríguez Guillermo

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available In this paper it was designed and built a remote monitoring equipment that allows to obtain the corrosion potential in reinforcing steels embedded in reinforced concrete, which were previously subjected to chloride attack in a hostile environment. The monitoring system, based on ASTM standard C876-91, determines from 0% to 100% the probability of corrosion on the samples tested. The system provides ease of perform field installation, if there is cellular network coverage, and may be operated remotely using text messages to start and stop measurements, whose results are stored in a local data logger on microSD cards and then are sent via the general packet radio service (GPRS to a web server which allows to access to the data via a web page, where the test results can be seen graphically. The concrete samples used as reference for monitoring degradation were immersed in chloride ion (3.5% NaCl for 12 months. Data for corrosion potential were generated through the exposureconcrete interface, corresponding to a system with a 90% probability of corrosion.

  9. Electrical and Mechanical Performance of Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Used as the Impressed Current Anode Material.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Ji-Hua; Zhu, Miaochang; Han, Ningxu; Liu, Wei; Xing, Feng

    2014-07-24

    An investigation was performed by using carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) as the anode material in the impressed current cathodic protection (ICCP) system of steel reinforced concrete structures. The service life and performance of CFRP were investigated in simulated ICCP systems with various configurations. Constant current densities were maintained during the tests. No significant degradation in electrical and mechanical properties was found for CFRP subjected to anodic polarization with the selected applied current densities. The service life of the CFRP-based ICCP system was discussed based on the practical reinforced concrete structure layout.

  10. Images of gel electrophoresis - RGP caps | LSDB Archive [Life Science Database Archive metadata

    Lifescience Database Archive (English)

    Full Text Available List Contact us RGP caps Images of gel electrophoresis Data detail Data name Images of gel electrophoresis D...OI 10.18908/lsdba.nbdc00318-05-002 Description of data contents Detailed information and images of gel electrophoresis... of each marker. Data file File name: rgp_caps_electrophoresis_image.zip File URL: ftp://ftp.biosc...iencedbc.jp/archive/rgp-caps/LATEST/rgp_caps_electrophoresis_image.zip File size:... 28.7 MB Simple search URL - Data acquisition method Gel electrophoresis Data analysis method STS markers :

  11. Experimental demonstration of optical data links using a hybrid CAP/QAM modulation scheme.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wei, J L; Ingham, J D; Cheng, Q; Cunningham, D G; Penty, R V; White, I H

    2014-03-15

    The first known experimental demonstrations of a 10  Gb/s hybrid CAP-2/QAM-2 and a 20  Gb/s hybrid CAP-4/QAM-4 transmitter/receiver-based optical data link are performed. Successful transmission over 4.3 km of standard single-mode fiber (SMF) is achieved, with a link power penalty ∼0.4  dBo for CAP-2/QAM-2 and ∼1.5  dBo for CAP-4/QAM-4 at BER=10(-9).

  12. Reinforcement learning controller design for affine nonlinear discrete-time systems using online approximators.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Qinmin; Jagannathan, Sarangapani

    2012-04-01

    In this paper, reinforcement learning state- and output-feedback-based adaptive critic controller designs are proposed by using the online approximators (OLAs) for a general multi-input and multioutput affine unknown nonlinear discretetime systems in the presence of bounded disturbances. The proposed controller design has two entities, an action network that is designed to produce optimal signal and a critic network that evaluates the performance of the action network. The critic estimates the cost-to-go function which is tuned online using recursive equations derived from heuristic dynamic programming. Here, neural networks (NNs) are used both for the action and critic whereas any OLAs, such as radial basis functions, splines, fuzzy logic, etc., can be utilized. For the output-feedback counterpart, an additional NN is designated as the observer to estimate the unavailable system states, and thus, separation principle is not required. The NN weight tuning laws for the controller schemes are also derived while ensuring uniform ultimate boundedness of the closed-loop system using Lyapunov theory. Finally, the effectiveness of the two controllers is tested in simulation on a pendulum balancing system and a two-link robotic arm system.

  13. Analysis of RNA binding by the dengue virus NS5 RNA capping enzyme.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Brittney R Henderson

    Full Text Available Flaviviruses are small, capped positive sense RNA viruses that replicate in the cytoplasm of infected cells. Dengue virus and other related flaviviruses have evolved RNA capping enzymes to form the viral RNA cap structure that protects the viral genome and directs efficient viral polyprotein translation. The N-terminal domain of NS5 possesses the methyltransferase and guanylyltransferase activities necessary for forming mature RNA cap structures. The mechanism for flavivirus guanylyltransferase activity is currently unknown, and how the capping enzyme binds its diphosphorylated RNA substrate is important for deciphering how the flavivirus guanylyltransferase functions. In this report we examine how flavivirus NS5 N-terminal capping enzymes bind to the 5' end of the viral RNA using a fluorescence polarization-based RNA binding assay. We observed that the K(D for RNA binding is approximately 200 nM Dengue, Yellow Fever, and West Nile virus capping enzymes. Removal of one or both of the 5' phosphates reduces binding affinity, indicating that the terminal phosphates contribute significantly to binding. RNA binding affinity is negatively affected by the presence of GTP or ATP and positively affected by S-adensyl methoninine (SAM. Structural superpositioning of the dengue virus capping enzyme with the Vaccinia virus VP39 protein bound to RNA suggests how the flavivirus capping enzyme may bind RNA, and mutagenesis analysis of residues in the putative RNA binding site demonstrate that several basic residues are critical for RNA binding. Several mutants show differential binding to 5' di-, mono-, and un-phosphorylated RNAs. The mode of RNA binding appears similar to that found with other methyltransferase enzymes, and a discussion of diphosphorylated RNA binding is presented.

  14. Steel fiber reinforced concrete

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baloch, S.U.

    2005-01-01

    Steel-Fiber Reinforced Concrete is constructed by adding short fibers of small cross-sectional size .to the fresh concrete. These fibers reinforce the concrete in all directions, as they are randomly oriented. The improved mechanical properties of concrete include ductility, impact-resistance, compressive, tensile and flexural strength and abrasion-resistance. These uniqlte properties of the fiber- reinforcement can be exploited to great advantage in concrete structural members containing both conventional bar-reinforcement and steel fibers. The improvements in mechanical properties of cementitious materials resulting from steel-fiber reinforcement depend on the type, geometry, volume fraction and material-properties of fibers, the matrix mix proportions and the fiber-matrix interfacial bond characteristics. Effects of steel fibers on the mechanical properties of concrete have been investigated in this paper through a comprehensive testing-programme, by varying the fiber volume fraction and the aspect-ratio (Lid) of fibers. Significant improvements are observed in compressive, tensile, flexural strength and impact-resistance of concrete, accompanied by marked improvement in ductility. optimum fiber-volume fraction and aspect-ratio of steel fibers is identified. Test results are analyzed in details and relevant conclusions drawn. The research is finally concluded with future research needs. (author)

  15. Corrosion of reinforcement bars in steel ibre reinforced concrete structures

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Solgaard, Anders Ole Stubbe

    and the influence of steel fibres on initiation and propagation of cracks in concrete. Moreover, the impact of fibres on corrosion-induced cover cracking was covered. The impact of steel fibres on propagation of reinforcement corrosion was investigated through studies of their impact on the electrical resistivity...... of concrete, which is known to affect the corrosion process of embedded reinforcement. The work concerning the impact of steel fibres on initiation and propagation of cracks was linked to corrosion initiation and propagation of embedded reinforcement bars via additional studies. Cracks in the concrete cover...... are known to alter the ingress rate of depassivating substances and thereby influence the corrosion process. The Ph.D. study covered numerical as well as experimental studies. Electrochemically passive steel fibres are electrically isolating thus not changing the electrical resistivity of concrete, whereas...

  16. The evolution of polar caps in magnetic cataclysmic variables

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Frank, J.; Chanmugam, G.

    1986-01-01

    A simple analysis of the evolution of the size of the magnetic polar cap in accreting white dwarfs is made on the basis of current theories of the secular evolution of magnetic cataclysmic variables. For white dwarfs with dipolar fields it is shown that the size of the polar cap in DQ Her binaries is larger than in AM Her binaries. The size of the former is, however, smaller than deduced from interpretation of their X-ray light curves, while that of the latter is in rough agreement. If the dwarf contains an aligned magnetic quadrupole the size of the polar caps of the DQ Her binaries is significantly increased. Magnetic field decay of the quadrupole moment in the older AM Her binaries implies that their fields are predominantly dipolar. (author)

  17. Metal-silicon reaction rates - The effects of capping

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weizer, Victor G.; Fatemi, Navid S.

    1989-01-01

    Evidence is presented showing that the presence of the commonly used anti-reflection coating material Ta2O5 on the free surface of contact metallization can either suppress or enhance, depending on the system, the interaction that takes place at elevated temperatures between the metallization and the underlying Si. The cap layer is shown to suppress both the generation and annihilation of vacancies at the free surface of the metal which are necessary to support metal-Si interactons. Evidence is also presented indicating that the mechanical condition of the free metal surface has a significant effect on the metal-silicon reaction rate.

  18. Fiber-reinforced Composite for Chairside Replacement of Anterior ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Fiber-reinforced Composite for Chairside Replacement of Anterior Teeth: A Case Report. ... investigation will be required to provide additional information on the survival of directly-bonded anterior fixed prosthesis made with FRC systems.

  19. Central Air-Conditioning Plant (CAP) extension

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shetty, P.S.; Kaul, S.K.; Mishra, H.

    2017-01-01

    Central Air-Conditioning Plant (CAP) and its associated chilled water network of BARC is one among the largest central plants in India for such application. The plant was planned in 1960s to cater to the air-conditioning and process water requirements of laboratories, workshops and buildings spread over a distance of 1.5 Km in three directions from CAP through underground network of chilled water pipelines. The plant was designed for a total capacity of 6600 TR. The present installed capacity of the plant is 7250 TR. The connected load at present is 9800 TR. After the XII plan capacity will be augmented to 7650 TR. The connected load is expected to cross 11,000 TR after the commissioning of new Engg. Halls 9, 10 and 11

  20. Dynamic Response of Reinforced Soil Systems. Volume 1. Report

    Science.gov (United States)

    1993-03-01

    Elements Failure Modes Ai,’Ilast Exposed walls, roof, arch Bruachiig Airbuast/fragment impulse Floor Flexure Fragment penetration Sur;ed walIs, flour , roof...completed panels used in all centrifuge tests are presented in Figures 64 and 65. Connection: For all steel reinforced panels, glue was applied to both the...High Stress Experiments on Soil," Geotechnical Testing Journal , Vol. 10, No. 4, pp. 192-202, Dec 1987. 11. Seaman, L., One-Dimensional Stress Wave