Human Thermal Comfort and Heat Stress in an Outdoor Urban Arid Environment: A Case Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. M. Abdel-Ghany

2013-01-01

Full Text Available To protect humans from heat stress risks, thermal comfort and heat stress potential were evaluated under arid environment, which had never been made for such climate. The thermal indices THI, WBGT, PET, and UTCI were used to evaluate thermal comfort and heat stress. RayMan software model was used to estimate the PET, and the UTCI calculator was used for UTCI. Dry and wet bulb temperatures (Td, Tw, natural wet bulb temperature (Tnw, and globe temperature (Tg were measured in a summer day to be used in the calculation. The results showed the following. (i The thermal sensation and heat stress levels can be evaluated by either the PET or UTCI scales, and both are valid for extremely high temperature in the arid environment. (ii In the comfort zone, around 75% of individuals would be satisfied with the surrounding environment and feel comfortable during the whole day. (iii Persons are exposed to strong heat stress and would feel uncomfortable most of the daytime in summer. (iv Heat fatigue is expected with prolonged exposure to sun light and activity. (v During the daytime, humans should schedule their activities according to the highest permissible values of the WBGT to avoid thermal shock.

The Thermal Plume above a Standing Human Body Exposed to Different Air Distribution Strategies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Liu, Li; Nielsen, Peter V.; Li, Yuguo

2009-01-01

This study compares the impact of air distribution on the thermal plume above a human body in indoor environment. Three sets of measurements are conducted in a full-scale test room with different ventilation conditions. One breathing thermal manikin standing in the room is used to simulate...... the human body. Long-time average air velocity profiles at locations closely above the manikin are taken to identify the wandering thermal plume....

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy attenuates central sensitization induced by a thermal injury in humans

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, V M; Borgen, A E; Jansen, E C

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND: Hyperbaric oxygen (HBO2 ) treatment has in animal experiments demonstrated antinociceptive effects. It was hypothesized that these effects would attenuate secondary hyperalgesia areas (SHAs), an expression of central sensitization, after a first-degree thermal injury in humans. METHODS...... was demonstrated. However, in the nine volunteers starting with the control session, a statistical significant attenuation of SHAs was demonstrated in the HBO2 session (P = 0.004). CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that HBO2 therapy in humans attenuates central sensitization induced by a thermal skin injury......, compared with control. These new and original findings in humans corroborate animal experimental data. The thermal injury model may give impetus to future human neurophysiological studies exploring the central effects of hyperbaric oxygen treatment....

Effect of the environmental stimuli upon the human body in winter outdoor thermal environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sakoi, Tomonori; Kondo, Emi; Ishii, Jin

2013-01-01

the psychological thermal responses of the human body and winter outdoor thermal environment variables. Subjective experiments were conducted in the winter outdoor environment. Environmental factors and human psychological responses were measured. The relationship between the psychological thermal responses...... of the human body and the outdoor thermal environment index ETFe (enhanced conduction-corrected modified effective temperature) in winter was shown. The variables which influence the thermal sensation vote of the human body are air temperature, long-wave thermal radiation and short-wave solar radiation....... The variables that influence the thermal comfort vote of the human body are air temperature, humidity, short-wave solar radiation, long-wave thermal radiation, and heat conduction. Short-wave solar radiation, and heat conduction are among the winter outdoor thermal environment variables that affect...

A relation between calculated human body exergy consumption rate and subjectively assessed thermal sensation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simone, Angela; Kolarik, Jakub; Olesen, Bjarne W. [ICIEE/BYG, Technical University of Denmark (Denmark); Iwamatsu, Toshiya [Faculty of Urban Environmental Science, Tokyo Metropolitan University (Japan); Asada, Hideo [Architech Consulting Co., Tokyo (Japan); Dovjak, Mateja [Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering, University of Ljubljana (Slovenia); Schellen, Lisje [Eindhoven University of Technology, Faculty of Architecture Building and Planning (Netherlands); Shukuya, Masanori [Laboratory of Building Environment, Tokyo City University, Yokohama (Japan)

2011-01-15

Application of the exergy concept to research on the built environment is a relatively new approach. It helps to optimize climate conditioning systems so that they meet the requirements of sustainable building design. As the building should provide a healthy and comfortable environment for its occupants, it is reasonable to consider both the exergy flows in building and those within the human body. Until now, no data have been available on the relation between human-body exergy consumption rates and subjectively assessed thermal sensation. The objective of the present work was to relate thermal sensation data, from earlier thermal comfort studies, to calculated human-body exergy consumption rates. The results show that the minimum human body exergy consumption rate is associated with thermal sensation votes close to thermal neutrality, tending to the slightly cool side of thermal sensation. Generally, the relationship between air temperature and the exergy consumption rate, as a first approximation, shows an increasing trend. Taking account of both convective and radiative heat exchange between the human body and the surrounding environment by using the calculated operative temperature, exergy consumption rates increase as the operative temperature increases above 24 C or decreases below 22 C. With the data available so far, a second-order polynomial relationship between thermal sensation and the exergy consumption rate was established. (author)

Effects of thermal energy harvesting on the human - clothing - environment microsystem

Science.gov (United States)

Myers, A. C.; Jur, J. S.

2017-10-01

The objective of this work is to perform an in depth investigation of garment-based thermal energy harvesting. The effect of human and environmental factors on the working efficiency of a thermal energy harvesting devices, or a thermoelectric generator (TEG), placed on the body is explored.. Variables that strongly effect the response of the TEG are as follows: skin temperature, human motion or speed, body location, environmental conditions, and the textile properties surrounding the TEG. In this study, the use of textiles for managing thermal comfort of wearable technology and energy harvesting are defined. By varying the stitch length and/or knit structure, one can manipulate the thermal conductivity of the garment in a specific location. Another method of improving TEG efficiency is through the use of a heat spreader, which increases the effective collection area of heat on the TEG hot side. Here we show the effect of a TEG on the thermal properties of a garment with regard to two knit stitches, jersey and 1 × 1 rib.

[The physiological classification of human thermal states under high environmental temperatures].

Science.gov (United States)

Bobrov, A F; Kuznets, E I

1995-01-01

The paper deals with the physiological classification of human thermal states in a hot environment. A review of the basic systems of classifications of thermal states is given, their main drawbacks are discussed. On the basis of human functional state research in a broad range of environmental temperatures the system of evaluation and classification of human thermal states is proposed. New integral one-dimensional multi-parametric criteria for evaluation are used. For the development of these criteria methods of factor, cluster and canonical correlation analyses are applied. Stochastic nomograms capable of identification of human thermal state for different intensity of influence are given. In this case evaluation of intensity is estimated according to one-dimensional criteria taking into account environmental temperature, physical load and time of man's staying in overheating conditions.

Coupling of the Models of Human Physiology and Thermal Comfort

Science.gov (United States)

Pokorny, J.; Jicha, M.

2013-04-01

A coupled model of human physiology and thermal comfort was developed in Dymola/Modelica. A coupling combines a modified Tanabe model of human physiology and thermal comfort model developed by Zhang. The Coupled model allows predicting the thermal sensation and comfort of both local and overall from local boundary conditions representing ambient and personal factors. The aim of this study was to compare prediction of the Coupled model with the Fiala model prediction and experimental data. Validation data were taken from the literature, mainly from the validation manual of software Theseus-FE [1]. In the paper validation of the model for very light physical activities (1 met) indoor environment with temperatures from 12 °C up to 48 °C is presented. The Coupled model predicts mean skin temperature for cold, neutral and warm environment well. However prediction of core temperature in cold environment is inaccurate and very affected by ambient temperature. Evaluation of thermal comfort in warm environment is supplemented by skin wettedness prediction. The Coupled model is designed for non-uniform and transient environmental conditions; it is also suitable simulation of thermal comfort in vehicles cabins. The usage of the model is limited for very light physical activities up to 1.2 met only.

Coupling of the Models of Human Physiology and Thermal Comfort

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jicha M.

2013-04-01

Full Text Available A coupled model of human physiology and thermal comfort was developed in Dymola/Modelica. A coupling combines a modified Tanabe model of human physiology and thermal comfort model developed by Zhang. The Coupled model allows predicting the thermal sensation and comfort of both local and overall from local boundary conditions representing ambient and personal factors. The aim of this study was to compare prediction of the Coupled model with the Fiala model prediction and experimental data. Validation data were taken from the literature, mainly from the validation manual of software Theseus–FE [1]. In the paper validation of the model for very light physical activities (1 met indoor environment with temperatures from 12 °C up to 48 °C is presented. The Coupled model predicts mean skin temperature for cold, neutral and warm environment well. However prediction of core temperature in cold environment is inaccurate and very affected by ambient temperature. Evaluation of thermal comfort in warm environment is supplemented by skin wettedness prediction. The Coupled model is designed for non-uniform and transient environmental conditions; it is also suitable simulation of thermal comfort in vehicles cabins. The usage of the model is limited for very light physical activities up to 1.2 met only.

Human transient response under local thermal stimulation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wang Lijuan

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Human body can operate physiological thermoregulation system when it is exposed to cold or hot environment. Whether it can do the same work when a local part of body is stimulated by different temperatures? The objective of this paper is to prove it. Twelve subjects are recruited to participate in this experiment. After stabilizing in a comfort environment, their palms are stimulated by a pouch of 39, 36, 33, 30, and 27°C. Subject’s skin temperature, heart rate, heat flux of skin, and thermal sensation are recorded. The results indicate that when local part is suffering from harsh temperature, the whole body is doing physiological thermoregulation. Besides, when the local part is stimulated by high temperature and its thermal sensation is warm, the thermal sensation of whole body can be neutral. What is more, human body is more sensitive to cool stimulation than to warm one. The conclusions are significant to reveal and make full use of physiological thermoregulation.

Subjective thermal sensation and human body exergy consumption rate: analysis and correlation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Simone, Angela; Dovjak, M.; Kolarik, Jakub

2011-01-01

, it is reasonable to consider both the exergy flows in building and those within the human body. There is a need to verify the human-body exergy model with the Thermal-Sensation (TS) response of subjects exposed to different combinations of indoor climate parameters (temperature, humidity, etc.). First results...... available on the relation between human-body exergy consumption rates and subjectively assessed thermal sensation showed that the minimum human body exergy consumption rate is associated with thermal sensation votes close to thermal neutrality, tending to slightly cool side of thermal sensation. By applying...... the exergy concept to the built indoor environment, additional results are going to be explored. By using the data available so far of operative temperature (to), the human body exergy consumption rates increase as to increases above 24°C or decreases below 22°C at relative humidity (RH) lower than 50...

Effect of the Environmental Stimuli upon the Human Body in Winter Outdoor Thermal Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yoshihito Kurazumi

2013-01-01

Full Text Available In order to manage the outdoor thermal environment with regard to human health and the environmental impact of waste heat, quantitative evaluations are indispensable. It is necessary to use a thermal environment evaluation index. The purpose of this paper is to clarify the relationship between the psychological thermal responses of the human body and winter outdoor thermal environment variables. Subjective experiments were conducted in the winter outdoor environment. Environmental factors and human psychological responses were measured. The relationship between the psychological thermal responses of the human body and the outdoor thermal environment index ETFe (enhanced conduction-corrected modified effective temperature in winter was shown. The variables which influence the thermal sensation vote of the human body are air temperature, long-wave thermal radiation and short-wave solar radiation. The variables that influence the thermal comfort vote of the human body are air temperature, humidity, short-wave solar radiation, long-wave thermal radiation, and heat conduction. Short-wave solar radiation, and heat conduction are among the winter outdoor thermal environment variables that affect psychological responses to heat. The use of thermal environment evaluation indices that comprise short-wave solar radiation and heat conduction in winter outdoor spaces is a valid approach.

Effect of the Environmental Stimuli upon the Human Body in Winter Outdoor Thermal Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Kurazumi, Yoshihito; Kondo, Emi; Ishii, Jin; Sakoi, Tomonori; Fukagawa, Kenta; Bolashikov, Zhecho Dimitrov; Tsuchikawa, Tadahiro; Matsubara, Naoki; Horikoshi, Tetsumi

2013-01-01

In order to manage the outdoor thermal environment with regard to human health and the environmental impact of waste heat, quantitative evaluations are indispensable. It is necessary to use a thermal environment evaluation index. The purpose of this paper is to clarify the relationship between the psychological thermal responses of the human body and winter outdoor thermal environment variables. Subjective experiments were conducted in the winter outdoor environment. Environmental factors and human psychological responses were measured. The relationship between the psychological thermal responses of the human body and the outdoor thermal environment index ETFe (enhanced conduction-corrected modified effective temperature) in winter was shown. The variables which influence the thermal sensation vote of the human body are air temperature, long-wave thermal radiation and short-wave solar radiation. The variables that influence the thermal comfort vote of the human body are air temperature, humidity, short-wave solar radiation, long-wave thermal radiation, and heat conduction. Short-wave solar radiation, and heat conduction are among the winter outdoor thermal environment variables that affect psychological responses to heat. The use of thermal environment evaluation indices that comprise short-wave solar radiation and heat conduction in winter outdoor spaces is a valid approach. PMID:23861691

Regional differences in temperature sensation and thermal comfort in humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Nakamura, Mayumi; Yoda, Tamae; Crawshaw, Larry I; Yasuhara, Saki; Saito, Yasuyo; Kasuga, Momoko; Nagashima, Kei; Kanosue, Kazuyuki

2008-12-01

Sensations evoked by thermal stimulation (temperature-related sensations) can be divided into two categories, "temperature sensation" and "thermal comfort." Although several studies have investigated regional differences in temperature sensation, less is known about the sensitivity differences in thermal comfort for the various body regions. In the present study, we examined regional differences in temperature-related sensations with special attention to thermal comfort. Healthy male subjects sitting in an environment of mild heat or cold were locally cooled or warmed with water-perfused stimulators. Areas stimulated were the face, chest, abdomen, and thigh. Temperature sensation and thermal comfort of the stimulated areas were reported by the subjects, as was whole body thermal comfort. During mild heat exposure, facial cooling was most comfortable and facial warming was most uncomfortable. On the other hand, during mild cold exposure, neither warming nor cooling of the face had a major effect. The chest and abdomen had characteristics opposite to those of the face. Local warming of the chest and abdomen did produce a strong comfort sensation during whole body cold exposure. The thermal comfort seen in this study suggests that if given the chance, humans would preferentially cool the head in the heat, and they would maintain the warmth of the trunk areas in the cold. The qualitative differences seen in thermal comfort for the various areas cannot be explained solely by the density or properties of the peripheral thermal receptors and thus must reflect processing mechanisms in the central nervous system.

The thermal environment of the human being on the global scale

OpenAIRE

Jendritzky, Gerd; Tinz, Birger

2009-01-01

Background: The close relationship between human health, performance, well-being and the thermal environment is obvious. Nevertheless, most studies of climate and climate change impacts show amazing shortcomings in the assessment of the environment. Populations living in different climates have different susceptibilities, due to socio-economic reasons, and different customary behavioural adaptations. The global distribution of risks of hazardous thermal exposure has not been analysed before. ...

Experimental investigation of radiation effect on human thermal comfort by Taguchi method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arslanoglu, Nurullah; Yigit, Abdulvahap

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Radiation heat flux from lighting lamps on human thermal comfort is studied. • The effect of posture position on thermal comfort is investigated. • The effect of clothing color on thermal comfort is examined. • Radiation heat flux from halogen reflector lamp increase skin temperature more. • Posture position effect on thermal comfort is less than the other parameters. - Abstract: In this study, the effect of radiation heat flux of lighting lamps on human thermal comfort was investigated by using Taguchi method. In addition, at indoor conditions, clothing color and posture position under the radiation effect on thermal comfort were also investigated. For this purpose, experiments were performed in an air conditioned laboratory room in summer and autumn seasons. The amount of temperature rise on the back was considered as performance parameter. An L8 orthogonal array was selected as an experimental plan for the third parameters mentioned above for summer and autumn seasons. The results were analyzed for the optimum conditions using signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio and ANOVA method. The optimum results were found to be clear halogen lamp as lighting lamp, white as t-shirt color, standing as posture position, in summer season. The optimum levels of the lighting lamp, t-shirt color and posture position were found to be clear halogen lamp, white, sitting in autumn season, respectively.

Wearable Sweat Rate Sensors for Human Thermal Comfort Monitoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Sim, Jai Kyoung; Yoon, Sunghyun; Cho, Young-Ho

2018-01-19

We propose watch-type sweat rate sensors capable of automatic natural ventilation by integrating miniaturized thermo-pneumatic actuators, and experimentally verify their performances and applicability. Previous sensors using natural ventilation require manual ventilation process or high-power bulky thermo-pneumatic actuators to lift sweat rate detection chambers above skin for continuous measurement. The proposed watch-type sweat rate sensors reduce operation power by minimizing expansion fluid volume to 0.4 ml through heat circuit modeling. The proposed sensors reduce operation power to 12.8% and weight to 47.6% compared to previous portable sensors, operating for 4 hours at 6 V batteries. Human experiment for thermal comfort monitoring is performed by using the proposed sensors having sensitivity of 0.039 (pF/s)/(g/m 2 h) and linearity of 97.9% in human sweat rate range. Average sweat rate difference for each thermal status measured in three subjects shows (32.06 ± 27.19) g/m 2 h in thermal statuses including 'comfortable', 'slightly warm', 'warm', and 'hot'. The proposed sensors thereby can discriminate and compare four stages of thermal status. Sweat rate measurement error of the proposed sensors is less than 10% under air velocity of 1.5 m/s corresponding to human walking speed. The proposed sensors are applicable for wearable and portable use, having potentials for daily thermal comfort monitoring applications.

Experimental study of the influence of anticipated control on human thermal sensation and thermal comfort.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, X; Ouyang, Q; Zhu, Y; Feng, C; Zhang, X

2014-04-01

To investigate whether occupants' anticipated control of their thermal environment can influence their thermal comfort and to explain why the acceptable temperature range in naturally ventilated environments is greater than that in air-conditioned environments, a series of experiments were conducted in a climate chamber in which the thermal environment remained the same but the psychological environment varied. The results of the experiments show that the ability to control the environment can improve occupants' thermal sensation and thermal comfort. Specifically, occupants' anticipated control decreased their thermal sensation vote (TSV) by 0.4-0.5 and improved their thermal comfort vote (TCV) by 0.3-0.4 in neutral-warm environment. This improvement was due exclusively to psychological factors. In addition, having to pay the cost of cooling had no significant influence on the occupants' thermal sensation and thermal comfort in this experiment. Thus, having the ability to control the thermal environment can improve occupants' comfort even if there is a monetary cost involved. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Understanding and Evaluating Human Thermal Comfort at Tertiary Level Using a Computer-Based Laboratory Teaching Tool

Science.gov (United States)

Pellegrini, Marco

2014-01-01

Phase changes in water are experienced in everyday life but students often struggle to understand mechanisms that regulate them. Human thermal comfort is closely related to humidity, evaporative heat loss and heat transfer. The purpose of the present study is to assist students in the evaluation of human thermal comfort. Such a goal is achievable…

A thermal manikin with human thermoregulatory control: implementation and validation.

Science.gov (United States)

Foda, Ehab; Sirén, Kai

2012-09-01

Tens of different sorts of thermal manikins are employed worldwide, mainly in the evaluation of clothing thermal insulation and thermal environments. They are regulated thermally using simplified control modes. This paper reports on the implementation and validation of a new thermoregulatory control mode for thermal manikins. The new control mode is based on a multi-segmental Pierce (MSP) model. In this study, the MSP control mode was implemented, using the LabVIEW platform, onto the control system of the thermal manikin 'Therminator'. The MSP mode was then used to estimate the segmental equivalent temperature (t(eq)) along with constant surface temperature (CST) mode under two asymmetric thermal conditions. Furthermore, subjective tests under the same two conditions were carried out using 17 human subjects. The estimated segmental t(eq) from the experiments with the two modes and from the subjective assessment were compared in order to validate the use of the MSP mode for the estimation of t(eq). The results showed that the t(eq) values estimated by the MSP mode were closer to the subjective mean votes under the two test conditions for most body segments and compared favourably with values estimated by the CST mode.

Feasibility of using interstitial ultrasound for intradiscal thermal therapy: a study in human cadaver lumbar discs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nau, William H; Diederich, Chris J; Shu, Richard

2005-01-01

Application of heat in the spine using resistive wire heating devices is currently being used clinically for minimally invasive treatment of discogenic low back pain. In this study, interstitial ultrasound was evaluated for the potential to heat intradiscal tissue more precisely by directing energy towards the posterior annular wall while avoiding vertebral bodies. Two single-element directional applicator design configurations were tested: a 1.5 mm OD direct-coupled (DC) applicator which can be implanted directly within the disc, and a catheter-cooled (CC) applicator which is inserted in a 2.4 mm OD catheter with integrated water cooling and implanted within the disc. The transducers were sectored to produce 90 deg. spatial heating patterns for directional control. Both applicator configurations were evaluated in four human cadaver lumbar disc motion segments. Two heating protocols were employed in this study in which the temperature measured 5 mm away from the applicator was controlled to either T = 52 deg. C, or T > 70 deg. C for the treatment period. These temperatures (thermal doses) are representative of those required for thermal necrosis of in-growing nociceptor nerve fibres and disc cellularity alone, or with coagulation and restructuring of annular collagen in the high-temperature case. Steady-state temperature maps, and thermal doses (t 43 ) were used to assess the thermal treatments. Results from these studies demonstrated the capability of controlling temperature distributions within selected regions of the disc and annular wall using interstitial ultrasound, with minimal vertebral end-plate heating. While directional heating was demonstrated with both applicator designs, the CC configuration had greater directional heating capabilities and offered better temperature control than the DC configuration, particularly during the high-temperature protocol. Further, ultrasound energy was capable of penetrating within the highly attenuating disc tissue to

An investigation on the assessed thermal sensation and human body exergy consumption rate

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Simone, Angela; Kolarik, Jakub; Iwamatsu, Toshiya

2010-01-01

perception of the indoor environment is rare. As the building should provide healthy and comfortable environment for its occupants, it is reasonable to consider both the exergy flows in the building and within the human body. A relatively new approach of the relation between the exergy concept and the built......-environment research has been explored in the present work. The relationship of subjectively assessed thermal sensation data, from earlier thermal comfort studies, to the calculated human-body exergy consumption has been analysed. The results show that the minimum human body exergy consumption rate was related......The exergy concept helps to optimize indoor climate conditioning systems to meet the requirements of sustainable building design. While the exergy approach to design and operation of indoor climate conditioning systems is relatively well established, its exploitation in connection to human...

Multi-modal RGB–Depth–Thermal Human Body Segmentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Palmero, Cristina; Clapés, Albert; Bahnsen, Chris

2016-01-01

This work addresses the problem of human body segmentation from multi-modal visual cues as a first stage of automatic human behavior analysis. We propose a novel RGB-Depth-Thermal dataset along with a multi-modal seg- mentation baseline. The several modalities are registered us- ing a calibration...... to other state-of-the-art meth- ods, obtaining an overlap above 75% on the novel dataset when compared to the manually annotated ground-truth of human segmentations....

Thermal behavior of human eye in relation with change in blood perfusion, porosity, evaporation and ambient temperature.

Science.gov (United States)

Rafiq, Aasma; Khanday, M A

2016-12-01

Extreme environmental and physiological conditions present challenges for thermal processes in body tissues including multi-layered human eye. A mathematical model has been formulated in this direction to study the thermal behavior of the human eye in relation with the change in blood perfusion, porosity, evaporation and environmental temperatures. In this study, a comprehensive thermal analysis has been performed on the multi-layered eye using Pennes' bio-heat equation with appropriate boundary and interface conditions. The variational finite element method and MATLAB software were used for the solution purpose and simulation of the results. The thermoregulatory effect due to blood perfusion rate, porosity, ambient temperature and evaporation at various regions of human eye was illustrated mathematically and graphically. The main applications of this model are associated with the medical sciences while performing laser therapy and other thermoregulatory investigation on human eye. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of breathing on the thermal plume above a human body

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zukowska, Daria; Melikov, Arsen Krikor; Popiolek, Zbigniew

2011-01-01

The characteristics of the thermal plume above a human body should be well-defined in order to properly design the indoor environment and allow correct simulation of the indoor conditions by CFD or experimentally. The objective of the presented study was to investigate the influence of breathing....... A thermal manikin with female body shape equipped with an artificial lung was used to simulate the dry heat loss and breathing process of a sitting occupant. Three cases were examined: non-breathing, exhalation through nose, and exhalation through mouth. Measurements of the air temperature and speed...

The thermal environment of the human being on the global scale.

Science.gov (United States)

Jendritzky, Gerd; Tinz, Birger

2009-11-11

The close relationship between human health, performance, well-being and the thermal environment is obvious. Nevertheless, most studies of climate and climate change impacts show amazing shortcomings in the assessment of the environment. Populations living in different climates have different susceptibilities, due to socio-economic reasons, and different customary behavioural adaptations. The global distribution of risks of hazardous thermal exposure has not been analysed before. To produce maps of the baseline and future bioclimate that allows a direct comparison of the differences in the vulnerability of populations to thermal stress across the world. The required climatological data fields are obtained from climate simulations with the global General Circulation Model ECHAM4 in T106-resolution. For the thermo-physiologically relevant assessment of these climate data a complete heat budget model of the human being, the 'Perceived Temperature' procedure has been applied which already comprises adaptation by clothing to a certain degree. Short-term physiological acclimatisation is considered via Health Related Assessment of the Thermal Environment. The global maps 1971-1980 (control run, assumed as baseline climate) show a pattern of thermal stress intensities as frequencies of heat. The heat load for people living in warm-humid climates is the highest. Climate change will lead to clear differences in health-related thermal stress between baseline climate and the future bioclimate 2041-2050 based on the 'business-as-usual' greenhouse gas scenario IS92a. The majority of the world's population will be faced with more frequent and more intense heat strain in spite of an assumed level of acclimatisation. Further adaptation measures are crucial in order to reduce the vulnerability of the populations. This bioclimatology analysis provides a tool for various questions in climate and climate change impact research. Considerations of regional or local scale require climate

Numerical simulation of thermal behaviors of a clothed human body with evaluation of indoor solar radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mao, Aihua; Luo, Jie; Li, Yi

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Solar radiation evaluation is integrated with the thermal transfer in clothed humans. • Thermal models are developed for clothed humans exposed in indoor solar radiation. • The effect of indoor solar radiation on humans can be predicted in different situations in living. • The green solar energy can be efficiently utilized in the building development. - Abstract: Solar radiation is a valuable green energy, which is important in achieving a successful building design for thermal comfort in indoor environment. This paper considers solar radiation indoors into the transient thermal transfer models of a clothed human body and offers a new numerical method to analyze the dynamic thermal status of a clothed human body under different solar radiation incidences. The evaluation model of solar radiation indoors and a group of coupled thermal models of the clothed human body are developed and integrated. The simulation capacities of these integrated models are validated through a comparison between the predicted results and the experimental data in reference. After that, simulation cases are also conducted to show the influence of solar radiation on the thermal status of individual clothed body segments when the human body is staying indoors in different seasons. This numerical simulation method provides a useful tool to analyze the thermal status of clothed human body under different solar radiation incidences indoors and thus enables the architect to efficiently utilize the green solar energy in building development.

Relative importance of different surface regions for thermal comfort in humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Nakamura, Mayumi; Yoda, Tamae; Crawshaw, Larry I; Kasuga, Momoko; Uchida, Yuki; Tokizawa, Ken; Nagashima, Kei; Kanosue, Kazuyuki

2013-01-01

In a previous study, we investigated the contribution of the surface of the face, chest, abdomen, and thigh to thermal comfort by applying local temperature stimulation during whole-body exposure to mild heat or cold. In hot conditions, humans prefer a cool face, and in cold they prefer a warm abdomen. In this study, we extended investigation of regional differences in thermal comfort to the neck, hand, soles, abdomen (Experiment 1), the upper and lower back, upper arm, and abdomen (Experiment 2). The methodology was similar to that used in the previous study. To compare the results of each experiment, we utilized the abdomen as the reference area in these experiments. Thermal comfort feelings were not particularly strong for the limbs and extremities, in spite of the fact that changes in skin temperature induced by local temperature stimulation of the limbs and extremities were always larger than changes that were induced in the more proximal body parts. For the trunk areas, a significant difference in thermal comfort was not observed among the abdomen, and upper and lower back. An exception involved local cooling during whole-body mild cold exposure, wherein the most dominant preference was for a warmer temperature of the abdomen. As for the neck and abdomen, clear differences were observed during local cooling, while no significant difference was observed during local warming. We combined the results for the current and the previous study, and characterized regional differences in thermal comfort and thermal preference for the whole-body surface.

Exploring the use of thermal infrared imaging in human stress research.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Veronika Engert

Full Text Available High resolution thermal infrared imaging is a pioneering method giving indices of sympathetic activity via the contact-free recording of facial tissues (thermal imprints. Compared to established stress markers, the great advantage of this method is its non-invasiveness. The goal of our study was to pilot the use of thermal infrared imaging in the classical setting of human stress research. Thermal imprints were compared to established stress markers (heart rate, heart rate variability, finger temperature, alpha-amylase and cortisol in 15 participants undergoing anticipation, stress and recovery phases of two laboratory stress tests, the Cold Pressor Test and the Trier Social Stress Test. The majority of the thermal imprints proved to be change-sensitive in both tests. While correlations between the thermal imprints and established stress markers were mostly non-significant, the thermal imprints (but not the established stress makers did correlate with stress-induced mood changes. Multivariate pattern analysis revealed that in contrast to the established stress markers the thermal imprints could not disambiguate anticipation, stress and recovery phases of both tests. Overall, these results suggest that thermal infrared imaging is a valuable method for the estimation of sympathetic activity in the stress laboratory setting. The use of this non-invasive method may be particularly beneficial for covert recordings, in the study of special populations showing difficulties in complying with the standard instruments of data collection and in the domain of psychophysiological covariance research. Meanwhile, the established stress markers seem to be superior when it comes to the characterization of complex physiological states during the different phases of the stress cycle.

Thermal Conductivity of Human Bone in Cryoprobe Freezing as Related to Density.

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Kyle E; Baldini, Todd; Lindeque, Bennie G

2017-03-01

Cryoprobes create localized cell destruction through freezing. Bone is resistant to temperature flow but is susceptible to freezing necrosis at warmer temperatures than tumor cells. Few studies have determined the thermal conductivity of human bone. No studies have examined conductivity as related to density. The study goal was to examine thermal conductivity in human bone while comparing differences between cancellous and cortical bone. An additional goal was to establish a relationship between bone density and thermal conductivity. Six knee joints from 5 cadavers were obtained. The epiphyseal region was sliced in half coronally prior to inserting an argon-circulating cryoprobe directed away from the joint line. Thermistor thermometers were placed perpendicularly at measured increments, and the freezing cycle was recorded until steady-state conditions were achieved. For 2 cortical samples, the probe was placed intramedullary in metaphyseal samples and measurements were performed radially from the central axis of each sample. Conductivity was calculated using Fournier's Law and then plotted against measured density of each sample. Across samples, density of cancellous bone ranged from 0.86 to 1.38 g/mL and average thermal conductivity ranged between 0.404 and 0.55 W/mK. Comparatively, cortical bone had a density of 1.70 to 1.86 g/mL and thermal conductivity of 0.0742 to 0.109 W/mK. A strong 2-degree polynomial correlation was seen (R 2 =0.8226, P<.001). Bone is highly resistant to temperature flow. This resistance varies and inversely correlates strongly with density. This information is clinically relevant to maximize tumor ablation while minimizing morbidity through unnecessary bone loss and damage to surrounding structures. [Orthopedics. 2017; 40(2):90-94.]. Copyright 2016, SLACK Incorporated.

The response of human thermal sensation and its prediction to temperature step-change (cool-neutral-cool.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiuyuan Du

Full Text Available This paper reports on studies of the effect of temperature step-change (between a cool and a neutral environment on human thermal sensation and skin temperature. Experiments with three temperature conditions were carried out in a climate chamber during the period in winter. Twelve subjects participated in the experiments simulating moving inside and outside of rooms or cabins with air conditioning. Skin temperatures and thermal sensation were recorded. Results showed overshoot and asymmetry of TSV due to the step-change. Skin temperature changed immediately when subjects entered a new environment. When moving into a neutral environment from cool, dynamic thermal sensation was in the thermal comfort zone and overshoot was not obvious. Air-conditioning in a transitional area should be considered to limit temperature difference to not more than 5°C to decrease the unacceptability of temperature step-change. The linear relationship between thermal sensation and skin temperature or gradient of skin temperature does not apply in a step-change environment. There is a significant linear correlation between TSV and Qloss in the transient environment. Heat loss from the human skin surface can be used to predict dynamic thermal sensation instead of the heat transfer of the whole human body.

The Response of Human Thermal Sensation and Its Prediction to Temperature Step-Change (Cool-Neutral-Cool)

Science.gov (United States)

Du, Xiuyuan; Li, Baizhan; Liu, Hong; Yang, Dong; Yu, Wei; Liao, Jianke; Huang, Zhichao; Xia, Kechao

2014-01-01

This paper reports on studies of the effect of temperature step-change (between a cool and a neutral environment) on human thermal sensation and skin temperature. Experiments with three temperature conditions were carried out in a climate chamber during the period in winter. Twelve subjects participated in the experiments simulating moving inside and outside of rooms or cabins with air conditioning. Skin temperatures and thermal sensation were recorded. Results showed overshoot and asymmetry of TSV due to the step-change. Skin temperature changed immediately when subjects entered a new environment. When moving into a neutral environment from cool, dynamic thermal sensation was in the thermal comfort zone and overshoot was not obvious. Air-conditioning in a transitional area should be considered to limit temperature difference to not more than 5°C to decrease the unacceptability of temperature step-change. The linear relationship between thermal sensation and skin temperature or gradient of skin temperature does not apply in a step-change environment. There is a significant linear correlation between TSV and Qloss in the transient environment. Heat loss from the human skin surface can be used to predict dynamic thermal sensation instead of the heat transfer of the whole human body. PMID:25136808

Preliminary study on the time-related changes of the infrared thermal images of the human body

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Ziru; Zhang, Xusheng; Lin, Gang; Chen, Zhigang

2009-08-01

It is of great importance to study the manifestations and the influencing factors of the time-related changes of infrared thermal images (ITI) of human body since the variable body surface temperature distribution seriously affected the application of ITI in medicine. In this paper, manifestations of time-related changes of the ITI of human body from three double-blind randomized trials and their correlation with meteorological factors (e.g. temperature, pressure, humidity, cold front passage and tropical cyclone landing) were studied. The trials were placebo or drug controlled studying the influences of Chinese medicine health food (including Shengsheng capsule with immunity adjustment function, Shengan capsule with sleep improvement function and Shengyi capsule with the function of helping to decrease serum lipid) on the ITI of human body. In the first thirty-six days of the trials images were scanned every six days and image data in the seven observation time spots (including the 0, 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36 day of the trial) were used for the time-related study. For every subject the scanned time was fixed in the day within two hours. The ITI features which could reflect the functions of the health foods were studied. The indexes of the features were relative magnitude (temperature difference between the viewing area and the reference area). Results showed that the variation tendencies of the trial group and control group were basically the same in placebo controlled trials and some of the long-term effects of Chinese medicine health food could be reflected significantly in certain time spots in the first thirty-six days. Time-related changes of the ITI of human body were closely related with meteorological factors but there were other influencing factors still need to be studied. As the ITI of human body could reflect the influences of Chinese medicine health foods and are closely related with meteorology, there are bright prospects for the application of ITI in

Human thermal comfort conditions and urban planning in hot-humid climates-The case of Cuba.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodríguez Algeciras, José Abel; Coch, Helena; De la Paz Pérez, Guillermo; Chaos Yeras, Mabel; Matzarakis, Andreas

2016-08-01

Climate regional characteristics, urban environmental conditions, and outdoors thermal comfort requirements of residents are important for urban planning. Basic studies of urban microclimate can provide information and useful resources to predict and improve thermal conditions in hot-humid climatic regions. The paper analyzes the thermal bioclimate and its influence as urban design factor in Cuba, using Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (PET). Simulations of wind speed variations and shade conditions were performed to quantify changes in thermal bioclimate due to possible modifications in urban morphology. Climate data from Havana, Camagüey, and Santiago of Cuba for the period 2001 to 2012 were used to calculate PET with the RayMan model. The results show that changes in meteorological parameters influence the urban microclimate, and consequently modify the thermal conditions in outdoors spaces. Shade is the predominant strategy to improve urban microclimate with more significant benefits in terms of PET higher than 30 °C. For climatic regions such as the analyzed ones, human thermal comfort can be improved by a wind speed modification for thresholds of PET above 30 °C, and by a wind speed decreases in conditions below 26 °C. The improvement of human thermal conditions is crucial for urban sustainability. On this regards, our study is a contribution for urban designers, due to the possibility of taking advantage of results for improving microclimatic conditions based on urban forms. The results may enable urban planners to create spaces that people prefer to visit, and also are usable in the reconfiguration of cities.

Effects of Thermal Resistance on One-Dimensional Thermal Analysis of the Epidermal Flexible Electronic Devices Integrated with Human Skin

Science.gov (United States)

Li, He; Cui, Yun

2017-12-01

Nowadays, flexible electronic devices are increasingly used in direct contact with human skin to monitor the real-time health of human body. Based on the Fourier heat conduction equation and Pennes bio-heat transfer equation, this paper deduces the analytical solutions of one - dimensional heat transfer for flexible electronic devices integrated with human skin under the condition of a constant power. The influence of contact thermal resistance between devices and skin is considered as well. The corresponding finite element model is established to verify the correctness of analytical solutions. The results show that the finite element analysis agrees well with the analytical solution. With bigger thermal resistance, temperature increase of skin surface will decrease. This result can provide guidance for the design of flexible electronic devices to reduce the negative impact that exceeding temperature leave on human skin.

Reminiscences of a journeyman scientist: studies of thermoregulation in non-human primates and humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Adair, Eleanor Reed

2008-12-01

After graduating from Mount Holyoke College in 1948 where I majored in experimental psychology I worked at the College for 2 years with the Johns Hopkins Thermophysiological Unit. My graduate work later at the University of Wisconsin, centering on sensory psychology, culminated in my 1955 PhD thesis on human dark adaptation. I continued work in sensory psychology later with Neal Miller at Yale and then moved to the John B. Pierce Foundation--a Yale affiliate--where I began the studies of thermoregulation that constitute the center of my scientific career. Those studies were largely--later wholly--conducted using microwave energy as a thermal load and were thus published in Bioelectromagnetics even as I played an active role in the Bioelectromagnetics Society. In the beginning this work was centered on the responses of Squirrel Monkeys to thermal loads. Later, serving as Senior Scientist at the Air Force Research Laboratory at San Antonio, I completed an extensive analysis of thermal regulation in humans. I consider this work of special note inasmuch as the extraordinary human thermoregulatory ability was surely among the attributes that were paramount in initially separating humans from the other anthropoid primates.

Human and environmental analysis of wearable thermal energy harvesting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Myers, Amanda; Hodges, Ryan; Jur, Jesse S.

2017-01-01

Highlights: • A series of TEGs are integrated into a wearable, flexible form factor. • Human trials are performed to study environmental and human effects on the TEGs. • Correlations are drawn between human induced movement and environmental conditions. • User movement is the most significant factor in wearable TE harvesting. - Abstract: In considering wearable energy harvesting, one must recognize the wide array of factors that lead to variations of energy harvesting. The objective of this work is to define analytical methods to study the effect of environmental and human factors on thermal energy generator (TEG) performance in a variety of use case scenarios. A test method for evaluating the performance of a TEG in a wearable form is developed and demonstrated using both in-lab and out-of-lab procedures. The fabrication procedure of an energy harvesting wearable device demonstrates a method of integrating rigid devices into a flexible substrate. The wearable device is used in a human trial which covered a series of activities in different environmental conditions. The results of these trials demonstrate the significant effect of movement, or convection, on thermal energy harvesting. Humidity levels do not have a significant correlation to power; however, wet bulb temperature must be taken into consideration due to the additional cooling effect of evaporation on temperature. The data collected indicates that while dry-bulb temperature does not have the greatest effect on TEG power generation, wet-bulb temperature is indicative of TEG performance. Additionally, user generated movement is the main consideration when designing a wearable device with TEGs as it had the largest effects on power generation. The results of this work quantify how a wearable device will perform throughout daily activities, allowing the definition of an operational scenario of a self-powered wearable device while choosing the most appropriate design for a particular application

Electroperturbation of human stratum corneum fine structure by high voltage pulses: a freeze-fracture electron microscopy and differential thermal analysis study.

Science.gov (United States)

Jadoul, A; Tanojo, H; Préat, V; Bouwstra, J A; Spies, F; Boddé, H E

1998-08-01

Application of high voltage pulses (HVP) to the skin has been shown to promote the transdermal drug delivery by a mechanism involving skin electroporation. The aim of this study was to detect potential changes in lipid phase and ultrastructure induced in human stratum corneum by various HVP protocols, using differential thermal analysis and freeze-fracture electron microscopy. Due to the time involved between the moment the electric field is switched off and the analysis, only "secondary" phenomena rather than primary events could be observed. A decrease in enthalpies for the phase transitions observed at 70 degrees C and 85 degrees C was detected by differential thermal analysis after HVP treatment. No changes in transition temperature could be seen. The freeze-fracture electron microscopy study revealed a dramatic perturbation of the lamellar ordering of the intercellular lipid after application of HVP. Most of the planes displayed rough surfaces. The lipid lamellae exhibited rounded off steps or a vanished stepwise order. There was no evidence for perturbation of the corneocytes content. In conclusion, the freeze-fracture electron microscopy and differential thermal analysis studies suggest that HVP application induces a general perturbation of the stratum corneum lipid ultrastructure.

Human Wearable Attribute Recognition Using Probability-Map-Based Decomposition of Thermal Infrared Images

OpenAIRE

KRESNARAMAN, Brahmastro; KAWANISHI, Yasutomo; DEGUCHI, Daisuke; TAKAHASHI, Tomokazu; MEKADA, Yoshito; IDE, Ichiro; MURASE, Hiroshi

2017-01-01

This paper addresses the attribute recognition problem, a field of research that is dominated by studies in the visible spectrum. Only a few works are available in the thermal spectrum, which is fundamentally different from the visible one. This research performs recognition specifically on wearable attributes, such as glasses and masks. Usually these attributes are relatively small in size when compared with the human body, on top of a large intra-class variation of the human body itself, th...

Studying the urban thermal environment under a human-biometeorological point of view: The case of a large coastal metropolitan city, Athens

Science.gov (United States)

Katavoutas, George; Georgiou, Giorgos K.; Asimakopoulos, Dimosthenis N.

2015-01-01

The thermal environment in modern cities has become potentially unfavorable and harmful for its residents, as a result of urbanization and industrialization. Exposure to these extreme thermal conditions increases the heat stress of people in cities considerably. In this context, the present study aims to investigate the urban thermal environment of the large coastal metropolitan city of Athens, in a human-biometeorologically significant way, utilizing the thermo-physiological assessment index PET. The analysis was based on three hour measurements derived from three-year datasets (2006-2009), at 12 monitoring sites located in the urban complex of Athens, on its boundaries and beyond them. The differences of PET values have been investigated in order to attribute urban and exurban thermal characteristics to the considered sites. The frequency and spatial distribution of PET as well as the urban/rural differences of PET have also been analyzed. Finally, a trend analysis has been applied in order to detect possible PET trends by employing long-term recording data (1985-2008). In terms of thermal human-biometeorological conditions, the analysis reveals that among the considered stations, those located inside the urban complex and the industrialized area present urban thermal characteristics, regardless the fact that they are installed either in a park and on a hill or at an open field. The spatial distribution of PET, at 0200 LST, shows a difference of about 3 to 4 °C, on the main axis of the city (SSW-NNE) in the summer period, while the difference exceeds 2.5 °C in the winter period. In general, cooler (less warm) thermal perception is observed at the north/northeast sites of the city as well as at the areas beyond the eastern boundaries of it. The PET differences between urban and rural sites hold a positive sign, except of those at 0500 LST and at 0800 LST. The highest differences are noted at 1400 LST and the most intense of them is noticed in the summer period

Simulation study of the thermal and the thermoelastic effects induced by pulsed laser absorption in human skin

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Jae-Young; Jang, Kyungmin; Yang, Seung-Jin; Baek, Jun-Hyeok; Park, Jong-Rak; Yeom, Dong-Il; Kim, Ji-Sun; Kim, Hyung-Sik; Jun, Jae-Hoon; Chung, Soon-Cheol

2016-04-01

We studied the thermal and the mechanical effects induced by pulsed laser absorption in human skin by numerically solving the heat-transfer and the thermoelastic wave equations. The simulation of the heat-transfer equation yielded the spatiotemporal distribution of the temperature increase in the skin, which was then used in the driving term of the thermoelastic wave equation. We compared our simulation results for the temperature increase and the skin displacements with the measured and numerical results, respectively. For the comparison, we used a recent report by Jun et al. [Sci. Rep. 5, 11016 (2015)], who measured in vivo skin temperature and performed numerical simulation of the thermoelastic wave equation using a simple assumption about the temporal evolution of the temperature distribution, and found their results to be in good agreement with our results. In addition, we obtained solutions for the stresses in the human skin and analyzed their dynamic behaviors in detail.

Regulation of human heme oxygenase-1 gene expression under thermal stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Okinaga, S; Takahashi, K; Takeda, K; Yoshizawa, M; Fujita, H; Sasaki, H; Shibahara, S

1996-06-15

Heme oxygenase-1 is an essential enzyme in heme catabolism, and its human gene promoter contains a putative heat shock element (HHO-HSE). This study was designed to analyze the regulation of human heme oxygenase-1 gene expression under thermal stress. The amounts of heme oxygenase-1 protein were not increased by heat shock (incubation at 42 degrees C) in human alveolar macrophages and in a human erythroblastic cell line, YN-1-0-A, whereas heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) was noticeably induced. However, heat shock factor does bind in vitro to HHO-HSE and the synthetic HHO-HSE by itself is sufficient to confer the increase in the transient expression of a reporter gene upon heat shock. The deletion of the sequence, located downstream from HHO-HSE, resulted in the activation of a reporter gene by heat shock. These results suggest that HHO-HSE is potentially functional but is repressed in vivo. Interestingly, heat shock abolished the remarkable increase in the levels of heme oxygenase-1 mRNA in YN-1-0-A cells treated with hemin or cadmium, in which HSP70 mRNA was noticeably induced. Furthermore, transient expression assays showed that heat shock inhibits the cadmium-mediated activation of the heme oxygenase-1 promoter, whereas the HSP70 gene promoter was activated upon heat shock. Such regulation of heme oxygenase-1 under thermal stress may be of physiologic significance in erythroid cells.

In vitro assessment of the efficacy of thermal therapy in human benign prostatic hyperplasia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bhowmick, P.; Coad, J. E.; Bhowmick, S.; Pryor, J. L.; Larson, T.; de la Rosette, J.; Bischof, J. C.

2004-01-01

The successful management of BPH with minimally invasive thermal therapies requires a firm understanding of the temperature-time relationship for tissue destruction. In order to accomplish this objective, the present in vitro study assesses the cellular viability of human BPH tissue subjected to an

Human power output during repeated sprint cycle exercise: the influence of thermal stress

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ball, D.; Burrows, C.; Sargeant, A.J.

1999-01-01

Thermal stress is known to impair endurance capacity during moderate prolonged exercise. However, there is relatively little available information concerning the effects of thermal stress on the performance of high-intensity short-duration exercise. The present experiment examined human power output

Human-biometeorological conditions and thermal perception in a Mediterranean coastal park

Science.gov (United States)

Saaroni, Hadas; Pearlmutter, David; Hatuka, Tali

2015-10-01

This study looks at the interrelation of human-biometeorological conditions, physiological thermal stress and subjective thermal perception in the design and use of a new waterfront park in Tel-Aviv, Israel. Our initial assumption was that the park's design would embody a comprehensive response to the area's ever-increasing heat stress and water shortage. However, almost half of it is covered by grass lawns, irrigated with fresh water, while the remaining area is mainly covered with concrete paving, with minimal shading and sparse trees. We hypothesized that stressful thermal conditions would prevail in the park in the summer season and would be expressed in a high discomfort perception of its users. Thermo-physiological stress conditions in a typical summer month were compared with the subjective comfort perceptions of pedestrians surveyed in the park. It was found that even during mid-day hours, the level of thermal stress tends to be relatively mild, owing largely to the strong sea breeze and despite the high intensity of solar radiation. Moreover, it appears that the largely favorable perception of comfort among individuals may also result from socio-cultural aspects related to their satisfaction with the park's aesthetic attractiveness and in fact its very existence. Adaptive planning is proposed for such vulnerable regions, which are expected to experience further aggravation in thermal comfort due to global as well as localized warming trends.

Ultrathin conformal devices for precise and continuous thermal characterization of human skin

Science.gov (United States)

Webb, R. Chad; Bonifas, Andrew P.; Behnaz, Alex; Zhang, Yihui; Yu, Ki Jun; Cheng, Huanyu; Shi, Mingxing; Bian, Zuguang; Liu, Zhuangjian; Kim, Yun-Soung; Yeo, Woon-Hong; Park, Jae Suk; Song, Jizhou; Li, Yuhang; Huang, Yonggang; Gorbach, Alexander M.; Rogers, John A.

2013-10-01

Precision thermometry of the skin can, together with other measurements, provide clinically relevant information about cardiovascular health, cognitive state, malignancy and many other important aspects of human physiology. Here, we introduce an ultrathin, compliant skin-like sensor/actuator technology that can pliably laminate onto the epidermis to provide continuous, accurate thermal characterizations that are unavailable with other methods. Examples include non-invasive spatial mapping of skin temperature with millikelvin precision, and simultaneous quantitative assessment of tissue thermal conductivity. Such devices can also be implemented in ways that reveal the time-dynamic influence of blood flow and perfusion on these properties. Experimental and theoretical studies establish the underlying principles of operation, and define engineering guidelines for device design. Evaluation of subtle variations in skin temperature associated with mental activity, physical stimulation and vasoconstriction/dilation along with accurate determination of skin hydration through measurements of thermal conductivity represent some important operational examples.

A review of human thermal comfort experiments in controlled and semi-controlled environments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Craenendonck, Van Stijn; Lauriks, Leen; Vuye, Cedric; Kampen, Jarl

2018-01-01

There are three main methods to improve thermal comfort in existing buildings: modeling, experiments and measurements. Regarding experiments, no standardized procedure exists. This article provides an answer to the question: “What is the most common practice for human thermal comfort experiments in

Human body heat for powering wearable devices: From thermal energy to application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thielen, Moritz; Sigrist, Lukas; Magno, Michele; Hierold, Christofer; Benini, Luca

2017-01-01

Highlights: • A complete system optimization for wearable thermal harvesting from body heat to the application is proposed. • State-of-the-art thermal harvesters and DC-DC converters are compared and classified. • Extensive simulation and experiments are carried out to characterize the harvesting performance. • A case study demonstrates the feasibility to supply a multi-sensor wearables only from body heat. - Abstract: Energy harvesting is the key technology to enable self-sustained wearable devices for the Internet of Things and medical applications. Among various types of harvesting sources such as light, vibration and radio frequency, thermoelectric generators (TEG) are a promising option due to their independence of light conditions or the activity of the wearer. This work investigates scavenging of human body heat and the optimization of the power conversion efficiency from body core to the application. We focus on the critical interaction between thermal harvester and power conditioning circuitry and compare two approaches: (1) a high output voltage, low thermal resistance μTEG combined with a high efficiency actively controlled single inductor DC-DC converter, and (2) a high thermal resistance, low electric resistance mTEG in combination with a low-input voltage coupled inductors based DC-DC converter. The mTEG approach delivers up to 65% higher output power per area in a lab setup and 1–15% in a real-world experiment on the human body depending on physical activity and environmental conditions. Using off-the-shelf and low-cost components, we achieve an average power of 260 μW (μTEG) to 280 μW (mTEG) and power densities of 13 μW cm"−"2 (μTEG) to 14 μW cm"−"2 (mTEG) for systems worn on the human wrist. With the small and lightweight harvesters optimized for wearability, 16% (mTEG) to 24% (μTEG) of the theoretical maximum efficiency is achieved in a worst-case scenario. This efficiency highly depends on the application specific conditions

Dynamic modeling of human thermal comfort after the transition from an indoor to an outdoor hot environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Katavoutas, George; Flocas, Helena A; Matzarakis, Andreas

2015-02-01

Thermal comfort under non-steady-state conditions primarily deals with rapid environmental transients and significant alterations of the meteorological conditions, activity, or clothing pattern within the time scale of some minutes. In such cases, thermal history plays an important role in respect to time, and thus, a dynamic approach is appropriate. The present study aims to investigate the dynamic thermal adaptation process of a human individual, after his transition from a typical indoor climate to an outdoor hot environment. Three scenarios of thermal transients have been considered for a range of hot outdoor environmental conditions, employing the dynamic two-node IMEM model. The differences among them concern the radiation field, the activity level, and the body position. The temporal pattern of body temperatures as well as the range of skin wettedness and of water loss have been investigated and compared among the scenarios and the environmental conditions considered. The structure and the temporal course of human energy fluxes as well as the identification of the contribution of body temperatures to energy fluxes have also been studied and compared. In general, the simulation results indicate that the response of a person, coming from the same neutral indoor climate, varies depending on the scenario followed by the individual while being outdoors. The combination of radiation field (shade or not) with the kind of activity (sitting or walking) and the outdoor conditions differentiates significantly the thermal state of the human body. Therefore, 75% of the skin wettedness values do not exceed the thermal comfort limit at rest for a sitting individual under the shade. This percentage decreases dramatically, less than 25%, under direct solar radiation and exceeds 75% for a walking person under direct solar radiation.

Evaluation of human thermal comfort ranges in urban climate of winter cities on the example of Erzurum city.

Science.gov (United States)

Toy, Süleyman; Kántor, Noémi

2017-01-01

Human thermal comfort conditions can be evaluated using various indices based on simple empirical approaches or more complex and reliable human-biometeorological approaches. The latter is based on the energy balance model of the human body, and their calculation is supplemented with computer software. Facilitating the interpretation of results, the generally applied indices express the effects of thermal environment in the well-known temperature unit, just like in the case of the widely used index, the physiologically equivalent temperature (PET). Several studies adopting PET index for characterizing thermal components of climate preferred to organize the resulted PET values into thermal sensation categories in order to demonstrate the spatial and/or temporal characteristics of human thermal comfort conditions. The most general applied PET ranges were derived by Central European researchers, and they are valid for assumed values of internal heat production of light activity and thermal resistance of clothing representing a light business suit. Based on the example of Erzurum city, the present work demonstrates that in a city with harsh winter, the original PET ranges show almost purely discomfort and they seem to be less applicable regarding cold climate conditions. Taking into account 34-year climate data of Erzurum, the annual distribution of PET is presented together with the impact of application of different PET categorization systems, including 8°- and 7°-wide PET intervals. The demonstrated prior analyses lack any questionnaire filed surveys in Erzurum. Thus, as a next step, detailed field investigations would be required with the aim of definition of new PET categorization systems which are relevant for local residents who are adapted to this climatic background, and for tourists who may perform various kinds of winter activities in Erzurum and therefore may perceive the thermal environment more comfortable.

Human thermal sensation and comfort in a non-uniform environment with personalized heating.

Science.gov (United States)

Deng, Qihong; Wang, Runhuai; Li, Yuguo; Miao, Yufeng; Zhao, Jinping

2017-02-01

Thermal comfort in traditionally uniform environment is apparent and can be improved by increasing energy expenses. To save energy, non-uniform environment implemented by personalized conditioning system attracts considerable attention, but human response in such environment is unclear. To investigate regional- and whole-body thermal sensation and comfort in a cool environment with personalized heating. In total 36 subjects (17 males and 19 females) including children, adults and the elderly, were involved in our experiment. Each subject was first asked to sit on a seat in an 18°C chamber (uniform environment) for 40min and then sit on a heating seat in a 16°C chamber (non-uniform environment) for another 40min after 10min break. Subjects' regional- and whole-body thermal sensation and comfort were surveyed by questionnaire and their skin temperatures were measured by wireless sensors. We statistically analyzed subjects' thermal sensation and comfort and their skin temperatures in different age and gender groups and compared them between the uniform and non-uniform environments. Overall thermal sensation and comfort votes were respectively neutral and just comfortable in 16°C chamber with personalized heating, which were significantly higher than those in 18°C chamber without heating (pthermal sensation and comfort was consistent in subjects of different age and gender. However, adults and the females were more sensitive to the effect of personalized heating and felt cooler and less comfort than children/elderly and the males respectively. Variations of the regional thermal sensation/comfort across human body were consistent with those of skin temperature. Personalized heating significantly improved human thermal sensation and comfort in non-uniform cooler environment, probably due to the fact that it increased skin temperature. However, the link between thermal sensation/comfort and variations of skin temperature is rather complex and warrant further

Heart rate variation and electroencephalograph--the potential physiological factors for thermal comfort study.

Science.gov (United States)

Yao, Y; Lian, Z; Liu, W; Jiang, C; Liu, Y; Lu, H

2009-04-01

Human thermal comfort researches mainly focus on the relation between the environmental factors (e.g. ambient temperature, air humidity, and air velocity, etc.) and the thermal comfort sensation based on a large amount of subjective field investigations. Although some physiological factors, such as skin temperature and metabolism were used in many thermal comfort models,they are not enough to establish a perfect thermal comfort model. In this paper,another two physiological factors, i.e. heart rate variation (HRV) and electroencephalograph (EEG), are explored for the thermal comfort study. Experiments were performed to investigate how these physiological factors respond to the environmental temperatures, and what is the relationship between HRV and EEG and thermal comfort. The experimental results indicate that HRV and EEG may be related to thermal comfort, and they may be useful to understand the mechanism of thermal comfort.

Comparative analysis of modified PMV models and SET models to predict human thermal sensation in naturally ventilated buildings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gao, Jie; Wang, Yi; Wargocki, Pawel

2015-01-01

In this paper, a comparative analysis was performed on the human thermal sensation estimated by modified predicted mean vote (PMV) models and modified standard effective temperature (SET) models in naturally ventilated buildings; the data were collected in field study. These prediction models were....../s, the expectancy factors for the extended PMV model and the extended SET model were from 0.770 to 0.974 and from 1.330 to 1.363, and the adaptive coefficients for the adaptive PMV model and the adaptive SET model were from 0.029 to 0.167 and from-0.213 to-0.195. In addition, the difference in thermal sensation...... between the measured and predicted values using the modified PMV models exceeded 25%, while the difference between the measured thermal sensation and the predicted thermal sensation using modified SET models was approximately less than 25%. It is concluded that the modified SET models can predict human...

Study on indoor thermal environment in winter for rural residences in Yulin region

Science.gov (United States)

Yanjun, Li; Weixiao, Han

2018-02-01

Yulin region is located in the northern part of Shaanxi Province, China. The winter here is very cold and it has a long duration. In this paper, a rural residence which was located in Yulin region was taken as a study object. Indoor thermal environment of the rural residence were tested, including indoor air temperature and air relative humidity. Then, test data were analyzed. It was summarized that indoor thermal environment of test room can not fully meet human thermal comfort needs, and some tactics of regulation building thermal environment were proposed. This research contributes to improvement of indoor thermal environment for local rural residences and it provides reference for rural residences in other cold regions.

Thermal expression of intersubjectivity offers new possibilities to human-machine and technologically mediated interactions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Arcangelo eMerla

2014-07-01

Full Text Available The evaluation of the psychophysiological state of the interlocutor is an important element of interpersonal relationships and communication. Thermal infrared imaging has proved to be a reliable tool for non-invasive and contact-less evaluation of vital signs, psychophysiological responses and emotional states. This technique is quickly spreading in many fields, from psychometrics to social and developmental psychology; and from the touch-less monitoring of vital signs and stress, up to the human-machine interaction. In particular, thermal IR imaging promises to be of use for gathering information about affective states in social situations. This paper presents the state of the art of thermal infrared imaging in psychophysiology and in the assessment of affective states. The goal is to provide insights about its potentialities and limits for its use in human-artificial agent interaction in order to contribute to a major issue in the field: the perception by an artificial agent of human psychophysiological and affective states.

A heterogeneous human tissue mimicking phantom for RF heating and MRI thermal monitoring verification.

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Yu; Wyatt, Cory; Maccarini, Paolo; Stauffer, Paul; Craciunescu, Oana; Macfall, James; Dewhirst, Mark; Das, Shiva K

2012-04-07

This paper describes a heterogeneous phantom that mimics a human thigh with a deep-seated tumor, for the purpose of studying the performance of radiofrequency (RF) heating equipment and non-invasive temperature monitoring with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The heterogeneous cylindrical phantom was constructed with an outer fat layer surrounding an inner core of phantom material mimicking muscle, tumor and marrow-filled bone. The component materials were formulated to have dielectric and thermal properties similar to human tissues. The dielectric properties of the tissue mimicking phantom materials were measured with a microwave vector network analyzer and impedance probe over the frequency range of 80-500 MHz and at temperatures of 24, 37 and 45 °C. The specific heat values of the component materials were measured using a differential scanning calorimeter over the temperature range of 15-55 °C. The thermal conductivity value was obtained from fitting the curves obtained from one-dimensional heat transfer measurement. The phantom was used to verify the operation of a cylindrical four-antenna annular phased array extremity applicator (140 MHz) by examining the proton resonance frequency shift (PRFS) thermal imaging patterns for various magnitude/phase settings (including settings to focus heating in tumors). For muscle and tumor materials, MRI was also used to measure T1/T2* values (1.5 T) and to obtain the slope of the PRFS phase change versus temperature change curve. The dielectric and thermal properties of the phantom materials were in close agreement to well-accepted published results for human tissues. The phantom was able to successfully demonstrate satisfactory operation of the tested heating equipment. The MRI-measured thermal distributions matched the expected patterns for various magnitude/phase settings of the applicator, allowing the phantom to be used as a quality assurance tool. Importantly, the material formulations for the various tissue types

Human thermal physiological and psychological responses under different heating environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Zhaojun; Ning, Haoran; Ji, Yuchen; Hou, Juan; He, Yanan

2015-08-01

Anecdotal evidence suggests that many residents of severely cold areas of China who use floor heating (FH) systems feel warmer but drier compared to those using radiant heating (RH) systems. However, this phenomenon has not been verified experimentally. In order to validate the empirical hypothesis, and research the differences of human physiological and psychological responses in these two asymmetrical heating environments, an experiment was designed to mimic FH and RH systems. The subjects participating in the experiment were volunteer college-students. During the experiment, the indoor air temperature, air speed, relative humidity, globe temperature, and inner surface temperatures were measured, and subjects' heart rate, blood pressure and skin temperatures were recorded. The subjects were required to fill in questionnaires about their thermal responses during testing. The results showed that the subjects' skin temperatures, heart rate and blood pressure were significantly affected by the type of heating environment. Ankle temperature had greatest impact on overall thermal comfort relative to other body parts, and a slightly cool FH condition was the most pleasurable environment for sedentary subjects. The overall thermal sensation, comfort and acceptability of FH were higher than that of RH. However, the subjects of FH felt drier than that of RH, although the relative humidity in FH environments was higher than that of the RH environment. In future environmental design, the thermal comfort of the ankles should be scrutinized, and a FH cool condition is recommended as the most comfortable thermal environment for office workers. Consequently, large amounts of heating energy could be saved in this area in the winter. The results of this study may lead to more efficient energy use for office or home heating systems. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fate of deoxynivalenol and deoxynivalenol-3-glucoside during cereal-based thermal food processing: a review study.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Qinghua; Kuča, Kamil; Humpf, Hans-Ulrich; Klímová, Blanka; Cramer, Benedikt

2017-02-01

Deoxynivalenol (DON), the most commonly occurring trichothecene in nature, may affect animal and human health through causing diarrhea, vomiting, gastrointestinal inflammation, and immunomodulation. DON-3-glucoside (DON-3G) as a major plant metabolite of the mycotoxin is another "emerging" food safety issue in recent years. Humans may experience potential health risks by consuming DON-contaminated food products. Thus, it is crucial for human and animal health to study also the degradation of DON and DON-3G during thermal food processing. Baking, boiling, steaming, frying, and extrusion cooking are commonly used during thermal food processing and have promising effects on the reduction of mycotoxins in food. For DON, however, the observed effects of these methods, as reported in numerous studies, are ambiguous and do not present a clear picture with regard to reduction or transformation. This review summarized the influence of thermal processing on the stability of DON and the formation of degradation/conversion products. Besides this, also a release of DON and DON-3G from food matrix as well as the release of DON from DON-3G during processing is discussed. In addition, some conflicting findings as reported from the studies on thermal processing as well as cause-effect relationships of the different thermal procedures are explored. Finally, the potential toxic profiles of DON degradation products are discussed as well when data are available.

EXAMINATION OF THE SIMULATED THERMAL CONDITIONS IN A POPULAR PLAYGROUND RELATED TO THE HUMAN REACTIONS AND THE JUDGMENT OF THE AREA DESIGN

OpenAIRE

L.A. ÉGERHÁZI; A. KOVÁCS; N. KÁNTOR; J. UNGER

2013-01-01

In the field of urban bioclimatology an important and timely research direction today is to examine the thermal conditions of public places. In our study, human thermal comfort analysis was performed in a modern and well-attended children playground located in Szeged (Hungary). The aim of the paper is to reveal the changes in the thermal comfort conditions between two seasons and also the resulting subjective thermal reactions of visitors in this relatively small area. Thermal comfort conditi...

Morphological changes in human melanoma cells following irradiation with thermal neutrons.

Science.gov (United States)

Barkla, D H; Allen, B J; Brown, J K; Mountford, M; Mishima, Y; Ichihashi, M

1989-01-01

Morphological changes in two human melanoma cell lines, MM96 and MM418, following irradiation with thermal neutrons, were studied using light and electron microscopy. The results show that the response of human malignant melanoma cells to neutron irradiation is both cell line dependent and dose dependent, and that in any given cell line, some cells are more resistant to irradiation than others, thus demonstrating heterogeneity in respect to radiosensitivity. Cells repopulating MM96 flasks after irradiation were morphologically similar to the cells of origin whereas in MM418 flasks cells differentiated into five morphologically distinct subgroups and showed increased melanization. The results also show that radiation causes distinctive morphological patterns of damage although ultrastructural changes unique to the high LET particles released from boron 10 neutron capture are yet to be identified.

Morphological changes in human melanoma cells following irradiation with thermal neutrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barkla, D.H.; Allen, B.J.; Brown, J.K.; Mountford, M.; Mishima, Y.; Ichihashi, M.

1989-01-01

Morphological changes in two human melanoma cell lines, MM96 and MM418, following irradiation with thermal neutrons, were studied using light and electron microscopy. The results show that the response of human malignant melanoma cells to neutron irradiation is both cell line dependent and dose dependent, and that in any given cell line, some cells are more resistant to irradiation than others, thus demonstrating heterogeneity in respect to radiosensitivity. Cells repopulating MM96 flasks after irradiation were morphologically similar to the cells of origin whereas in MM418 flasks cells differentiated into five morphologically distinct subgroups and showed increased melanization. The results also show that radiation causes distinctive morphological patterns of damage although ultrastructural changes unique to the high LET particles released from boron 10 neutron capture are yet to be identified

FEASIBILITY STUDY OF INEXPENSIVE THERMAL SENSORS AND SMALL UAS DEPLOYMENT FOR LIVING HUMAN DETECTION IN RESCUE MISSIONS APPLICATION SCENARIOS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. Levin

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Significant efforts are invested by rescue agencies worldwide to save human lives during natural and man-made emergency situations including those that happen in wilderness locations. These emergency situations include but not limited to: accidents with alpinists, mountainous skiers, people hiking and lost in remote areas. Sometimes in a rescue operation hundreds of first responders are involved to save a single human life. There are two critical issues where geospatial imaging can be a very useful asset in rescue operations support: 1 human detection and 2 confirming a fact that detected a human being is alive. International group of researchers from the Unites States and Poland collaborated on a pilot research project devoted to identify a feasibility of use for the human detection and alive-human state confirmation small unmanned aerial vehicles (SUAVs and inexpensive forward looking infrared (FLIR sensors. Equipment price for both research teams was below $8,000 including 3DR quadrotor UAV and Lepton longwave infrared (LWIR imager which costs around $250 (for the US team; DJI Inspire 1 UAS with commercial Tamarisc-320 thermal camera (for the Polish team. Specifically both collaborating groups performed independent experiments in the USA and Poland and shared imaging data of on the ground and airborne electro-optical and FLIR sensor imaging collected. In these experiments dead bodies were emulated by use of medical training dummies. Real humans were placed nearby as live human subjects. Electro-optical imagery was used for the research in optimal human detection algorithms. Furthermore, given the fact that a dead human body after several hours has a temperature of the surrounding environment our experiments were challenged by the SUAS data optimization, i.e., distance from SUAV to object so that the FLIR sensor is still capable to distinguish temperature differences between a dummy and a real human. Our experiments indicated feasibility of

Entropy generation method to quantify thermal comfort

Science.gov (United States)

Boregowda, S. C.; Tiwari, S. N.; Chaturvedi, S. K.

2001-01-01

The present paper presents a thermodynamic approach to assess the quality of human-thermal environment interaction and quantify thermal comfort. The approach involves development of entropy generation term by applying second law of thermodynamics to the combined human-environment system. The entropy generation term combines both human thermal physiological responses and thermal environmental variables to provide an objective measure of thermal comfort. The original concepts and definitions form the basis for establishing the mathematical relationship between thermal comfort and entropy generation term. As a result of logic and deterministic approach, an Objective Thermal Comfort Index (OTCI) is defined and established as a function of entropy generation. In order to verify the entropy-based thermal comfort model, human thermal physiological responses due to changes in ambient conditions are simulated using a well established and validated human thermal model developed at the Institute of Environmental Research of Kansas State University (KSU). The finite element based KSU human thermal computer model is being utilized as a "Computational Environmental Chamber" to conduct series of simulations to examine the human thermal responses to different environmental conditions. The output from the simulation, which include human thermal responses and input data consisting of environmental conditions are fed into the thermal comfort model. Continuous monitoring of thermal comfort in comfortable and extreme environmental conditions is demonstrated. The Objective Thermal Comfort values obtained from the entropy-based model are validated against regression based Predicted Mean Vote (PMV) values. Using the corresponding air temperatures and vapor pressures that were used in the computer simulation in the regression equation generates the PMV values. The preliminary results indicate that the OTCI and PMV values correlate well under ideal conditions. However, an experimental study

Assessment of human thermal comfort and mitigation measures in different urban climatotopes

Science.gov (United States)

Müller, N.; Kuttler, W.

2012-04-01

This study analyses thermal comfort in the model city of Oberhausen as an example for the densely populated metropolitan region Ruhr, Germany. As thermal loads increase due to climate change negative impacts especially for city dwellers will arise. Therefore mitigation strategies should be developed and considered in urban planning today to prevent future thermal stress. The method consists of the combination of in-situ measurements and numerical model simulations. So in a first step the actual thermal situation is determined and then possible mitigation strategies are derived. A measuring network was installed in eight climatotopes for a one year period recording air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and wind direction. Based on these parameters the human thermal comfort in terms of physiological equivalent temperature (PET) was calculated by RayMan Pro software. Thus the human comfort of different climatotopes was determined. Heat stress in different land uses varies, so excess thermal loads in urban areas could be detected. Based on the measuring results mitigation strategies were developed, such as increasing areas with high evaporation capacity (green areas and water bodies). These strategies were implemented as different plan scenarios in the microscale urban climate model ENVI-met. The best measure should be identified by comparing the range and effect of these scenarios. Simulations were run in three of the eight climatotopes (city center, suburban and open land site) to analyse the effectiveness of the mitigation strategies in several land use structures. These cover the range of values of all eight climatotopes and therefore provide representative results. In the model area of 21 ha total, the modified section in the different plan scenarios was 1 ha. Thus the effect of small-scale changes could be analysed. Such areas can arise due to population decline and structural changes and hold conversion potential. Emphasis was also laid on analysing the

Thermal comfort of people in the hot and humid area of China-impacts of season, climate, and thermal history.

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Zhang, Y; Chen, H; Wang, J; Meng, Q

2016-10-01

We conducted a climate chamber study on the thermal comfort of people in the hot and humid area of China. Sixty subjects from naturally ventilated buildings and buildings with split air conditioners participated in the study, and identical experiments were conducted in a climate chamber in both summer and winter. Psychological and physiological responses were observed over a wide range of conditions, and the impacts of season, climate, and thermal history on human thermal comfort were analyzed. Seasonal and climatic heat acclimatization was confirmed, but they were found to have no significant impacts on human thermal sensation and comfort. The outdoor thermal history was much less important than the indoor thermal history in regard to human thermal sensation, and the indoor thermal history in all seasons of a year played a key role in shaping the subjects' sensations in a wide range of thermal conditions. A warmer indoor thermal history in warm seasons produced a higher neutral temperature, a lower thermal sensitivity, and lower thermal sensations in warm conditions. The comfort and acceptable conditions were identified for people in the hot and humid area of China. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Thermal response of rat fibroblasts stably transfected with the human 70-kDa heat shock protein-encoding gene

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, G.C.; Li, Ligeng; Liu, Yunkang; Mak, J.Y.; Chen, Lili; Lee, W.M.F.

1991-01-01

The major heat shock protein hsp70 is synthesized by cells of a wide variety of organisms in response to heat shock or other environmental stresses and is assumed to play an important role in protecting cells from thermal stress. The authors have tested this hypothesis directly by transfecting a constitutively expressed recombinant human hsp70-encoding gene into rat fibroblasts and examining the relationship between the levels of human hsp70 expressed and thermal resistance of the stably transfected rat cells. Successful transfection and expression of the gene for human hsp70 were characterized by RNA hybridization analysis, low-dimensional gel electrophoresis, and immunoblot analysis. When individual cloned cell lines were exposed to 45C and their thermal survivals were determined by colony-formation assay, they found that the expression of human hsp70 conferred heat resistance to the rat cells. These results reinforce the hypothesis that hsp70 has a protective function against thermal stress

Interaction between thermal/hydraulics, human factors and system analysis for assessing feed and bleed risk benefits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lanore, J.M.; Caron, J.L.

1987-11-01

For probabilistic analysis of accident sequences, thermal/hydraulics, human factors and systems operation problems are frequently closely interrelated. This presentation will discuss a typical example which illustrates this interrelation: total loss of feedwater flow. It will present thermal/hydraulic analysises performed, how the T/H analysises are related to human factors and systems operation, and how, based on this, the failure probability of the feed and bleed cooling mode was evaluated

The impact of human-biometeorological factors on perceived thermal comfort in urban public places

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Isabell Maras

2016-09-01

Full Text Available For the understanding of the impact of meteorological stressors on human perceptions of thermal comfort, it is essential to examine in detail the joint variability of atmospheric conditions and human perception. We designed an interdisciplinary experimental setup to generate data of both human-biometeorological and individual human perception at two different urban public places in the city of Aachen, Germany. Meteorological measurements at the human-biometeorological standard height of 1.1 m a.g.l. were taken during typical winter weather situations as well as extreme summer weather situations to analyze potentially seasonal effects. Pedestrians and tourists at the study site were selected as participants for face-to-face questionnaire-based interviews. We took measurements and held interviews between 10:00 h and 17:00 h (CEST/CET to record the daytime agreement/deviations at different inner urban measurement locations. Based on an overall physical approach of thermal load, UTCI (Universal Thermal Climate Index values are calculated. A maximum of +34.1 °C for summertime and a minimum of +2.6 °C for wintertime could be found. The meteorological parameters of air temperature (Ta$T_{a}$, mean radiant temperature (Tmrt$T_{\\text{mrt}}$ and vapor pressure (VP are compared with data perceived by the persons interviewed. In winter, Ta$T_{a }$ shows a significant relation to the overall weather perception (r=0.28$r = 0.28$; p<0.05$p<0.05$ while the overall comfort of the participants is significantly related to perceived solar heat (r=0.27$r = 0.27$; p<0.5$p<0.5$ as well as to perceived Ta$T_{a}$ (r=0.4$r = 0.4$; p<0.002$p<0.002$. Quite different resulting patterns occurred for the summer campaign. None of the physical variables significantly affected the weather perception. Only the perceived Ta$T_{a}$ revealed a significant relation to the overall weather perception (r=0.27$r=0.27$; p<0.002$p<0.002$.

Evaluation of outdoor human thermal sensation of local climate zones based on long-term database

Science.gov (United States)

Unger, János; Skarbit, Nóra; Gál, Tamás

2018-02-01

This study gives a comprehensive picture on the diurnal and seasonal general outdoor human thermal sensation levels in different urban quarters based on long-term (almost 3 years) data series from urban and rural areas of Szeged, Hungary. It is supplemented with a case study dealing with an extreme heat wave period which is more and more frequent in the last decades in the study area. The intra-urban comparison is based on a thermal aspect classification of the surface, namely, the local climate zone (LCZ) system, on an urban meteorological station network and on the utilization of the physiologically equivalent temperature (PET) comfort index with categories calibrated to the local population. The selected stations represent sunlit areas well inside the LCZ areas. The results show that the seasonal and annual average magnitudes of the thermal load exerted by LCZs in the afternoon and evening follow their LCZ numbers. It is perfectly in line with the LCZ concept originally concentrating only on air temperature ( T air) differences between the zones. Our results justified the subdivision of urban areas into LCZs and give significant support to the application possibilities of the LCZ concept as a broader term covering different thermal phenomena.

Humans, but not animals, perceive the thermal grill illusion as painful.

Science.gov (United States)

Boettger, Michael K; Ditze, Günter; Bär, Karl-Juergen; Krüdewagen, Eva Maria; Schaible, Hans-Georg

2016-10-15

Simultaneous presentation of alternating innocuous warm and cold stimuli induces in most humans a painful sensation called thermal grill illusion (TGI). Here, pain is elicited although nociceptors are not activated. Upon back-translation of behavioural correlates from humans to animals, we found that neither cats nor rodents show adverse reactions when exposed to TGI stimulation. These results question that a TGI observed as a pain-related change in behaviour can be elicited in animals. While distinct neuronal patterns as previously reported may be measurable in animals upon TGI stimulation, their translational meaning towards the sensation elicited in humans is unclear. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Outdoor thermal physiology along human pathways: a study using a wearable measurement system

Science.gov (United States)

Nakayoshi, Makoto; Kanda, Manabu; Shi, Rui; de Dear, Richard

2015-05-01

An outdoor summer study on thermal physiology along subjects' pathways was conducted in a Japanese city using a unique wearable measurement system that measures all the relevant thermal variables: ambient temperature, humidity, wind speed ( U) and short/long-wave radiation ( S and L), along with some physio-psychological parameters: skin temperature ( T skin), pulse rate, subjective thermal sensation and state of body motion. U, S and L were measured using a globe anemo-radiometer adapted use with pedestrian subjects. The subjects were 26 healthy Japanese adults (14 males, 12 females) ranging from 23 to 74 years in age. Each subject wore a set of instruments that recorded individual microclimate and physiological responses along a designated pedestrian route that traversed various urban textures. The subjects experienced varying thermal environments that could not be represented by fixed-point routine observational data. S fluctuated significantly reflecting the mixture of sunlit/shade distributions within complex urban morphology. U was generally low within urban canyons due to drag by urban obstacles such as buildings but the subjects' movements enhanced convective heat exchanges with the atmosphere, leading to a drop in T skin. The amount of sweating increased as standard effective temperature (SET*) increased. A clear dependence of sweating on gender and body size was found; males sweated more than females; overweight subjects sweated more than standard/underweight subjects. T skin had a linear relationship with SET* and a similarly clear dependence on gender and body size differences. T skin of the higher-sweating groups was lower than that of the lower-sweating groups, reflecting differences in evaporative cooling by perspiration.

Sequential Events in the Irreversible Thermal Denaturation of Human Brain-Type Creatine Kinase by Spectroscopic Methods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yan-Song Gao

2010-06-01

Full Text Available The non-cooperative or sequential events which occur during protein thermal denaturation are closely correlated with protein folding, stability, and physiological functions. In this research, the sequential events of human brain-type creatine kinase (hBBCK thermal denaturation were studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC, CD, and intrinsic fluorescence spectroscopy. DSC experiments revealed that the thermal denaturation of hBBCK was calorimetrically irreversible. The existence of several endothermic peaks suggested that the denaturation involved stepwise conformational changes, which were further verified by the discrepancy in the transition curves obtained from various spectroscopic probes. During heating, the disruption of the active site structure occurred prior to the secondary and tertiary structural changes. The thermal unfolding and aggregation of hBBCK was found to occur through sequential events. This is quite different from that of muscle-type CK (MMCK. The results herein suggest that BBCK and MMCK undergo quite dissimilar thermal unfolding pathways, although they are highly conserved in the primary and tertiary structures. A minor difference in structure might endow the isoenzymes dissimilar local stabilities in structure, which further contribute to isoenzyme-specific thermal stabilities.

Thermal loading study for FY 1995

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-01-01

This report provides the results of sensitivity analyses designed to assist the test planners in focusing their in-situ measurements on parameters that appear to be important to waste isolation. Additionally, the study provides a preliminary assessment of the feasibility of certain thermal management options. A decision on thermal loading is a critical part of the scientific and engineering basis for evaluating regulatory compliance of the potential repository for waste isolation. To show, with reasonable assurance, that the natural and engineered barriers will perform adequately under expected repository conditions (thermally perturbed) will require an integrated approach based on thermal testing (laboratory, and in-situ), natural analog observations, and analytic modeling. The Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management needed input to assist in the planning of the thermal testing program. Additionally, designers required information on the viability of various thermal management concepts. An approximately 18-month Thermal Loading Study was conducted from March, 1994 until September 30, 1995 to address these issues. This report documents the findings of that study. 89 refs., 71 figs., 33 tabs

Human thermal comfort antithesis in the context of the Mediterranean tourism potential

Science.gov (United States)

Nastos, Panagiotis T.; Zerefos, Christos S.; Kapsomenakis, Ioannis N.; Eleftheratos, Kostas; Polychroni, Iliana

2016-04-01

Weather and climate information are determinative factors in the decision of a touristic destination. The evaluation of the thermal, aesthetical and physical components of the climate is considered an issue of high importance in order to assess the climatic tourism potential. Mediterranean is an endowed region with respect to its temperate climate and impressive landscapes over the coastal environment and numerous islands. However, the harmony of the natural beauty is interrupted by extreme weather phenomena, such as heat and cold waves, heavy rains and stormy conditions. Thus, it is very important to know the seasonal behavior of the climate for touristic activities and recreation. Towards this objective we evaluated the antithesis in the human thermal perception as well as the sultriness, stormy, foggy, sunny and rainy days recorded in specific Greek touristic destinations against respective competitive Mediterranean resorts. Daily meteorological parameters, such as air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, cloudiness and precipitation, were acquired from the most well-known touristic sites over the Mediterranean for the period 1970 to present. These variables were used on one hand to estimate the human thermal burden, by means of the thermal index of Physiologically Equivalent temperature (PET) and on the other hand to interpret the physical and aesthetic components of the tourism potential, by utilizing specific thresholds of the initial and derived variables in order to quantify in a simple and friendly way the environmental footprint on desired touristic destinations. The findings of this research shed light on the climate information for tourism in Greece against Mediterranean destinations. Greek resorts, especially in the Aegean Islands appear to be more ideal with respect to thermal comfort against resorts at the western and central Mediterranean, where the heat stress within the summer season seems to be an intolerable pressure on humans. This could

Effects of Urban Configuration on Human Thermal Conditions in a Typical Tropical African Coastal City

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Emmanuel Lubango Ndetto

2013-01-01

Full Text Available A long-term simulation of urban climate was done using the easily available long-term meteorological data from a nearby synoptic station in a tropical coastal city of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The study aimed at determining the effects of buildings’ height and street orientations on human thermal conditions at pedestrian level. The urban configuration was represented by a typical urban street and a small urban park near the seaside. The simulations were conducted in the microscale applied climate model of RayMan, and results were interpreted in terms of the thermal comfort parameters of mean radiant (Tmrt and physiologically equivalent (PET temperatures. PET values, high as 34°C, are observed to prevail during the afternoons especially in the east-west oriented streets, and buildings’ height of 5 m has less effect on the thermal comfort. The optimal reduction of Tmrt and PET values for pedestrians was observed on the nearly north-south reoriented streets and with increased buildings’ height especially close to 100 m. Likewise, buildings close to the park enhance comfort conditions in the park through additional shadow. The study provides design implications and management of open spaces like urban parks in cities for the sake of improving thermal comfort conditions for pedestrians.

Elemental analysis of human serum and serum protein fractions by thermal neutron activation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woittiez, J.R.W.

1984-01-01

Some applications of thermal neutron activation for the determination of elemental contents in human serum and human serum protein fractions are presented. Firstly total serum is dealt with, secondly serum protein fractions obtained by gel filtration are described. A brief review on the role of (trace) elements in human health and disease and a compilation of literature data for elemental contents in human serum, as obtained by neutron activation techniques, are given. The most important sources of statistical and systematic errors are evaluated. Results for the contents of sodium, potassium, magnesium, bromine, iron, copper, zinc, selenium, rubidium, cesium and antimony in serum are given, with emphasis on control of accuracy and precision. The possible relation between selenium in blood and cancer occurrence in humans is discussed. The results of elemental analyses from cancer patients and from a patient receiving a cytostatic treatment are presented. A survey of literature results for the determination of protein-bound elemental contents in serum is presented. Subsequently, results from a study on the behaviour of elements during gel filtration are discussed. Gel-element and protein-element interactions are studied. Finally the protein-bound occurrence of trace elements in human serum is determined by gel filtration and neutron activation analysis. Results for both desalting and fractionation are given, for the elements bromine, copper, manganese, vanadium, selenium, zinc, rubidium, iron and iodine. (Auth.)

Comparative study on radon effects and thermal effects on humans in radon hot spring therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamaoka, K.; Mitsunobu, F.; Hanamoto, K.; Tanizaki, Y.; Sugita, K.; Kohima, S.

2003-01-01

Full text: The radon therapy is used radon ( 222 Rn) gas, which mainly emits alpha-rays, and induces a small amount of active oxygen in the body. Because most of the diseases to which the radon therapy as well as the thermal therapy is applied are related to activated oxygen, in this study the effects of the radioactivity of radon and thermal effects were compared under the room or the hot spring condition with the similar chemical component, using as the parameters which are closely involved in the clinical for radon therapy. In the results, the radon and thermal therapy enhanced the antioxidation function, such as the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase, which inhibit lipid peroxidation and total cholesterol produce in the body. Moreover the therapy enhanced concanavalin A (ConA)-induced mitogen response, and increased the level of CD4, which is the marker of helper T cell, and decreased the level of CD8, which is the common marker of killer T cell and supresser T cell, in the white cell differentiation antigen (CD4/CD8) assay. Furthermore, the therapy increased the levels of alpha atrial natriuretic polypeptide (alpha ANP), beta endorphin, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), insulin and glucose-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-PDH), and decreased the vasopression level. The results were on the whole larger in the radon group than in the thermal group. The findings suggest that the radon therapy more contributes to the prevention of life style-related diseases related to peroxidation reactions and immune depression than thermal therapy. Moreover these indicate what may be a part of the mechanism for the alleviation of hypertension, osteoarthritis (pain) and diabetes mellitus brought about more radon therapy than thermal therapy

Effect of a patent foramen ovale in humans on thermal responses to passive cooling and heating.

Science.gov (United States)

Davis, James T; Hay, Madeline W; Hardin, Alyssa M; White, Matthew D; Lovering, Andrew T

2017-12-01

Humans with a patent foramen ovale (PFO) have a higher esophageal temperature (T esoph ) than humans without a PFO (PFO-). Thus the presence of a PFO might also be associated with differences in thermal responsiveness to passive cooling and heating such as shivering and hyperpnea, respectively. The purpose of this study was to determine whether thermal responses to passive cooling and heating are different between PFO- subjects and subjects with a PFO (PFO+). We hypothesized that compared with PFO- subjects PFO+ subjects would cool down more rapidly and heat up slower and that PFO+ subjects who experienced thermal hyperpnea would have a blunted increase in ventilation. Twenty-seven men (13 PFO+) completed two trials separated by >48 h: 1 ) 60 min of cold water immersion (19.5 ± 0.9°C) and 2 ) 30 min of hot water immersion (40.5 ± 0.2°C). PFO+ subjects had a higher T esoph before and during cold water and hot water immersion ( P heating. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Patent foramen ovale (PFO) is found in ~25-40% of the population. The presence of a PFO appears to be associated with a greater core body temperature and blunted ventilatory responses during passive heating. The reason for this blunted ventilatory response to passive heating is unknown but may suggest differences in thermal sensitivity in PFO+ subjects compared with PFO- subjects. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Harmonic scalpel versus flexible CO2 laser for tongue resection: A histopathological analysis of thermal damage in human cadavers

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Wolf Tamir

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Monopolar cautery is the most commonly used surgical cutting and hemostatic tool for head and neck surgery. There are newer technologies that are being utilized with the goal of precise cutting, decreasing blood loss, reducing thermal damage, and allowing faster wound healing. Our study compares thermal damage caused by Harmonic scalpel and CO2 laser to cadaveric tongue. Methods Two fresh human cadaver heads were enrolled for the study. Oral tongue was exposed and incisions were made in the tongue akin to a tongue tumor resection using the harmonic scalpel and flexible C02 laser fiber at various settings recommended for surgery. The margins of resection were sampled, labeled, and sent for pathological analysis to assess depth of thermal damage calculated in millimeters. The pathologist was blinded to the surgical tool used. Control tongue tissue was also sent for comparison as a baseline for comparison. Results Three tongue samples were studied to assess depth of thermal damage by harmonic scalpel. The mean depth of thermal damage was 0.69 (range, 0.51 - 0.82. Five tongue samples were studied to assess depth of thermal damage by CO2 laser. The mean depth of thermal damage was 0.3 (range, 0.22 to 0.43. As expected, control samples showed 0 mm of thermal damage. There was a statistically significant difference between the depth of thermal injury to tongue resection margins by harmonic scalpel as compared to CO2 laser, (p = 0.003. Conclusion In a cadaveric model, flexible CO2 laser fiber causes less depth of thermal damage when compared with harmonic scalpel at settings utilized in our study. However, the relevance of this information in terms of wound healing, hemostasis, safety, cost-effectiveness, and surgical outcomes needs to be further studied in clinical settings.

Simple thermal to thermal face verification method based on local texture descriptors

Science.gov (United States)

Grudzien, A.; Palka, Norbert; Kowalski, M.

2017-08-01

Biometrics is a science that studies and analyzes physical structure of a human body and behaviour of people. Biometrics found many applications ranging from border control systems, forensics systems for criminal investigations to systems for access control. Unique identifiers, also referred to as modalities are used to distinguish individuals. One of the most common and natural human identifiers is a face. As a result of decades of investigations, face recognition achieved high level of maturity, however recognition in visible spectrum is still challenging due to illumination aspects or new ways of spoofing. One of the alternatives is recognition of face in different parts of light spectrum, e.g. in infrared spectrum. Thermal infrared offer new possibilities for human recognition due to its specific properties as well as mature equipment. In this paper we present the scheme of subject's verification methodology by using facial images in thermal range. The study is focused on the local feature extraction methods and on the similarity metrics. We present comparison of two local texture-based descriptors for thermal 1-to-1 face recognition.

Dynamic thermal environment and thermal comfort.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Y; Ouyang, Q; Cao, B; Zhou, X; Yu, J

2016-02-01

Research has shown that a stable thermal environment with tight temperature control cannot bring occupants more thermal comfort. Instead, such an environment will incur higher energy costs and produce greater CO2 emissions. Furthermore, this may lead to the degeneration of occupants' inherent ability to combat thermal stress, thereby weakening thermal adaptability. Measured data from many field investigations have shown that the human body has a higher acceptance to the thermal environment in free-running buildings than to that in air-conditioned buildings with similar average parameters. In naturally ventilated environments, occupants have reported superior thermal comfort votes and much greater thermal comfort temperature ranges compared to air-conditioned environments. This phenomenon is an integral part of the adaptive thermal comfort model. In addition, climate chamber experiments have proven that people prefer natural wind to mechanical wind in warm conditions; in other words, dynamic airflow can provide a superior cooling effect. However, these findings also indicate that significant questions related to thermal comfort remain unanswered. For example, what is the cause of these phenomena? How we can build a comfortable and healthy indoor environment for human beings? This article summarizes a series of research achievements in recent decades, tries to address some of these unanswered questions, and attempts to summarize certain problems for future research. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Parametric study for design of thermal sleeves

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mukherjee, A.B.; Mehra, V.K.

1985-01-01

Thermal sleeves are used inside nozzle in many reactor components. Basic aim in design of thermal sleeve is to arrive at a set of dimensions for gap and annulus length, which will give rise to minimum thermal gradient in the base metal of the associated nozzle. Study includes the minimisation of the thermal gradient in the crotch zone by suitable choice of gap and annulus length. Three different geometries of nozzle radii 50.00 mm., 100 mm. and 200.0 mm. are studied for single and two concentric thermal sleeves model. The paper also presents effect of parameters like velocity of flow, temperature of fluid, materials etc. on the design of thermal sleeves. (orig.)

The impact of thermal wave characteristics on thermal dose distribution during thermal therapy: A numerical study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shih, T.-C.; Kou, H.-S.; Liauh, C.-T.; Lin, W.-L.

2005-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the propagation speed of a thermal wave in terms of the thermal relaxation time on the temperature/thermal dose distributions in living tissue during thermal therapies. The temperature field in tissue was solved by the finite difference method, and the thermal dose was calculated from the formulation proposed by Sapareto and Dewey [Int. J. Radiat. Oncol. Biol. Phys. 10, 787-800 (1984)]. Under the same total deposited energy, for a rapid heating process the time lagging behavior of the peak temperature became pronounced and the level of the peak temperature was decreased with increasing the thermal relaxation time. When the heating duration was longer than the thermal relaxation time of tissues, there was no significant difference between the thermal dose distributions with/without considering the effect of the thermal relaxation time. In other words, when the heating duration is comparable to or shorter than the thermal relaxation time of tissue, the results of the wave bioheat transfer equation (WBHTE) are fully different from that of the Pennes' bioheat transfer equation (PBHTE). Besides, for a rapid heating process the dimension of thermal lesion was still significantly affected by perfusion, because this is what is predicted by the WBHTE but not by the PBHTE, i.e., the wave feature of the temperature field cannot fully be predicted by the PBHTE

Finite element approach to study the behavior of fluid distribution in the dermal regions of human body due to thermal stress

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M.A. Khanday

2015-10-01

Full Text Available The human body is a complex structure where the balance of mass and heat transport in all tissues is necessary for its normal functioning. The stabilities of intracellular and extracellular fluids are important physiological factors responsible for homoeostasis. To estimate the effects of thermal stress on the behavior of extracellular fluid concentration in human dermal regions, a mathematical model based on diffusion equation along with appropriate boundary conditions has been formulated. Atmospheric temperature, evaporation rate, moisture concentration and other factors affecting the fluid concentration were taken into account. The variational finite element approach has been employed to solve the model and the results were interpreted graphically.

Evaluating local and overall thermal comfort in buildings using thermal manikins

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Foda, E.

2012-07-01

Evaluation methods of human thermal comfort that are based on whole-body heat balance with its surroundings may not be adequate for evaluations in non-uniform thermal conditions. Under these conditions, the human body's segments may experience a wide range of room physical parameters and the evaluation of the local (segmental) thermal comfort becomes necessary. In this work, subjective measurements of skin temperature were carried out to investigate the human body's local responses due to a step change in the room temperature; and the variability in the body's local temperatures under different indoor conditions and exposures as well as the physiological steady state local temperatures. Then, a multi-segmental model of human thermoregulation was developed based on these findings to predict the local skin temperatures of individuals' body segments with a good accuracy. The model predictability of skin temperature was verified for steady state and dynamic conditions using measured data at uniform neutral, cold and warm as well as different asymmetric thermal conditions. The model showed very good predictability with average absolute deviation ranged from 0.3-0.8 K. The model was then implemented onto the control system of the thermal manikin 'THERMINATOR' to adjust the segmental skin temperature set-points based on the indoor conditions. This new control for the manikin was experimentally validated for the prediction of local and overall thermal comfort using the equivalent temperature measure. THERMINATOR with the new control mode was then employed in the evaluation of localized floor-heating system variants towards maximum energy efficiency. This aimed at illustrating a design strategy using the thermal manikin to find the optimum geometry and surface area of a floor-heater for a single seated person. Furthermore, a psychological comfort model that is based on local skin temperature was adapted for the use with the model of human

Conceptual Thermal Treatment Technologies Feasibility Study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suer, A.

1996-01-01

This report presents a conceptual Thermal Treatment Technologies Feasibility Study (FS) for the Savannah River Site (SRS) focusing exclusively on thermal treatment technologies for contaminated soil, sediment, or sludge remediation projects

Human tracking in thermal images using adaptive particle filters with online random forest learning

Science.gov (United States)

Ko, Byoung Chul; Kwak, Joon-Young; Nam, Jae-Yeal

2013-11-01

This paper presents a fast and robust human tracking method to use in a moving long-wave infrared thermal camera under poor illumination with the existence of shadows and cluttered backgrounds. To improve the human tracking performance while minimizing the computation time, this study proposes an online learning of classifiers based on particle filters and combination of a local intensity distribution (LID) with oriented center-symmetric local binary patterns (OCS-LBP). Specifically, we design a real-time random forest (RF), which is the ensemble of decision trees for confidence estimation, and confidences of the RF are converted into a likelihood function of the target state. First, the target model is selected by the user and particles are sampled. Then, RFs are generated using the positive and negative examples with LID and OCS-LBP features by online learning. The learned RF classifiers are used to detect the most likely target position in the subsequent frame in the next stage. Then, the RFs are learned again by means of fast retraining with the tracked object and background appearance in the new frame. The proposed algorithm is successfully applied to various thermal videos as tests and its tracking performance is better than those of other methods.

The occurrence of unfavorable thermal conditions on human health in central europe and potential climate change impacts: an example from Cracow, Poland.

Science.gov (United States)

Piotrowicz, Katarzyna

2009-10-01

Progressive global warming exerts strong influence on the lives and on the health of urban residents, many of who are weather sensitive people (meteoropaths). In the temperate zone, air temperature changes largely determine the seasonal oscillation of morbidity and mortality frequency. The present study analyzes the influence of air temperature on living conditions in central European urban areas, particularly Cracow (Poland), and examines this influence against the background of climate change. During the warmer months, there is a noticeable increase in the unfavorable occurrence of especially strong thermal stimuli (e.g., hot days) which can lead to overheating of the human organism. On the other hand, the increasing frequency of mild winters contributes to the appearance of weak and moderate thermal stimuli, which in the case of the former, is a negative phenomenon. Weak thermal stimuli are liable to make the human body oversensitive and, thus lose the ability to adapt if stronger thermal stimuli were to occur. Residents of large urban areas should be prepared for the possibility of dynamic weather changes and should take thermal variability into consideration with regards to spatial urban planning and socioeconomic activities.

Thermal Response of In Vivo Human Skin to Fractional Radiofrequency Microneedle Device

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Woraphong Manuskiatti

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Background. Fractional radiofrequency microneedle system (FRMS is a novel fractional skin resurfacing system. Data on thermal response to this fractional resurfacing technique is limited. Objectives. To investigate histologic response of in vivo human skin to varying energy settings and pulse stacking of a FRMS in dark-skinned subjects. Methods. Two female volunteers who were scheduled for abdominoplasty received treatment with a FRMS with varying energy settings at 6 time periods including 3 months, 1 month, 1 week, 3 days, 1 day, and the time immediately before abdominoplasty. Biopsy specimens were analyzed using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E, Verhoeff-Van Gieson (VVG, colloidal iron, and Fontana-Masson stain. Immunohistochemical study was performed by using Heat Shock Protein 70 (HSP70 antibody and collagen III monoclonal antibody. Results. The average depth of radiofrequency thermal zone (RFTZ ranged from 100 to 300 μm, correlating with energy levels. Columns of cell necrosis and collagen denaturation followed by inflammatory response were initially demonstrated, with subsequent increasing of mucin at 1 and 3 months after treatment. Immunohistochemical study showed positive stain with HSP70. Conclusion. A single treatment with a FRMS using appropriate energy setting induces neocollagenesis. This wound healing response may serve as a mean to improve the appearance of photodamaged skin and atrophic scars.

Green-Roof Effects on Neighborhood Microclimate and Human Thermal Sensation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. Y. Jim

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Green roofs have been recognized as an effective sustainable design tool to mitigate urban heat island (UHI effects. Previous studies have identified green-roof benefits in cooling and energy-conservation at the building scale, with limited exploration of the wider influence on neighborhood microclimate and human thermal comfort (HTC. This paper investigated the impacts of community-scale green-roof installation on air temperature and HTC in five typical residential neighborhoods of subtropical Hong Kong. The microclimate models ENVI-met and RayMan permitted studies of two main green-roof scenarios, namely extensive (EGR and intensive (IGR. Microclimatic monitoring data from a local experimental green-roof site validated the modeling methods. The results verified that green-roof cooling effects were not restricted to rooftops, but extended to the ground to improve neighborhood microclimate. EGR reduced pedestrian-level air temperature by 0.4–0.7 °C, and IGR by 0.5–1.7 °C, with maximum effect in open-set low rise sites. Coverage by building footprints and building height dampened lateral and vertical advection of cool air generated by green roofs. Roof greening also improved notably the rooftop-podium level HTC. Diurnal duration of high heat stress was reduced by 6–9 h for EGR scenarios, and 9–11 h for IGR. The findings indicated that large-scale green-roof installation could bring neighborhood-wide cooling, mitigate urban heat island effect, and furnish more comfortable thermal environment for urban residents.

MODELING OF THERMOELECTRIC SYSTEM FOR LOCAL THERMAL EFFECTS ON HUMAN FOREARM ZONE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. A. Ismailov

2013-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper we consider a model of the thermoelectric system for the thermal effect on the human forearm. The model is implemented on the basis of numerical solution of differentialequations of heat conduction for bodies of complex configuration. Two-dimensional and onedimensional graphs of the temperature change in different zones of the object of exposure aregiven.

Thermal conductivity and thermal rectification in graphene nanoribbons: a molecular dynamics study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Jiuning; Ruan, Xiulin; Chen, Yong P

2009-07-01

We have used molecular dynamics to calculate the thermal conductivity of symmetric and asymmetric graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) of several nanometers in size (up to approximately 4 nm wide and approximately 10 nm long). For symmetric nanoribbons, the calculated thermal conductivity (e.g., approximately 2000 W/m-K at 400 K for a 1.5 nm x 5.7 nm zigzag GNR) is on the similar order of magnitude of the experimentally measured value for graphene. We have investigated the effects of edge chirality and found that nanoribbons with zigzag edges have appreciably larger thermal conductivity than nanoribbons with armchair edges. For asymmetric nanoribbons, we have found significant thermal rectification. Among various triangularly shaped GNRs we investigated, the GNR with armchair bottom edge and a vertex angle of 30 degrees gives the maximal thermal rectification. We also studied the effect of defects and found that vacancies and edge roughness in the nanoribbons can significantly decrease the thermal conductivity. However, substantial thermal rectification is observed even in the presence of edge roughness.

Human Thermal Comfort and Heat Removal Efficiency for Ventilation Variants in Passenger Cars

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Saboora Khatoon

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The realization of a comfortable thermal environment with low energy consumption and improved ventilation in a car has become the aim of manufacturers in recent decades. Novel ventilation concepts with more flexible cabin usage and layouts are appealing owing to their potential for improving passenger comfort and driving power. In this study, three variant ventilation concepts are investigated and their performance is compared with respect to energy efficiency and human comfort of the driver and passenger in front and a child in the rear compartment. FLUENT 16.0, a commercial three-dimensional (3D software, are used for the simulation. A surface-to-surface radiation model is applied under transient conditions for a car parked in summer conditions with its engine in the running condition. The results for the standard Fanger’s model and modified Fanger’s model are analyzed, discussed, and compared for the driver, passenger, and child. The modified Fanger’s model determines the thermal sensation on the basis of mean arterial pressure.

Implementation of human thermal comfort information in Köppen-Geiger climate classification—the example of China

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Shi-Qi; Matzarakis, Andreas

2016-11-01

Köppen-Geiger climate classification (KGC) is accepted and applied worldwide. The climatic parameters utilised in KGC, however, cannot indicate human thermal comfort (HTC) conditions or air humidity (AH) conditions directly, because they are originally based on climatic effects on vegetation, instead of that on human body directly. In addition, HTC is driven by meteorological parameters together. Thus, the objective of this study is to preliminarily implement the HTC information and the AH information in KGC. Physiologically equivalent temperature (PET) has been chosen as the HTC index, and vapour pressure (VP) is for the quantification of AH conditions. In this preliminary study, 12 Chinese cities in total have been taken into account as the assumed representatives of 11 climate types. Basic meteorological data of each city with 3-h resolution in 2000-2012 has been analysed. RayMan model has been applied to calculate PET within the same time period. Each climate type has been described by frequencies of PET and frequencies of VP. For example, the Aw (Sanya) has the most frequent occurrence of thermally stressful conditions compared to other climate types: PET in 22 % points in time of the year was above 35 °C. The driest AH conditions existed in Dwc (Lhasa) and Dfb (Urumqi) with VP rarely above 18 hPa in the wettest month. Implementation of the HTC information and the additional AH information in each climate type of KGC can be helpful for the topics of human health, energy consumption, tourism, as well as urban planning.

Implementation of human thermal comfort information in Köppen-Geiger climate classification-the example of China.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Shi-Qi; Matzarakis, Andreas

2016-11-01

Köppen-Geiger climate classification (KGC) is accepted and applied worldwide. The climatic parameters utilised in KGC, however, cannot indicate human thermal comfort (HTC) conditions or air humidity (AH) conditions directly, because they are originally based on climatic effects on vegetation, instead of that on human body directly. In addition, HTC is driven by meteorological parameters together. Thus, the objective of this study is to preliminarily implement the HTC information and the AH information in KGC. Physiologically equivalent temperature (PET) has been chosen as the HTC index, and vapour pressure (VP) is for the quantification of AH conditions. In this preliminary study, 12 Chinese cities in total have been taken into account as the assumed representatives of 11 climate types. Basic meteorological data of each city with 3-h resolution in 2000-2012 has been analysed. RayMan model has been applied to calculate PET within the same time period. Each climate type has been described by frequencies of PET and frequencies of VP. For example, the Aw (Sanya) has the most frequent occurrence of thermally stressful conditions compared to other climate types: PET in 22 % points in time of the year was above 35 °C. The driest AH conditions existed in Dwc (Lhasa) and Dfb (Urumqi) with VP rarely above 18 hPa in the wettest month. Implementation of the HTC information and the additional AH information in each climate type of KGC can be helpful for the topics of human health, energy consumption, tourism, as well as urban planning.

Potential effects of urbanization on urban thermal comfort, a case study of Nairobi city, Kenya: A review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ongoma Victor

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This study reviews the effect of urbanization on human thermal comfort over Nairobi city in Kenya. Urbanization alters urban center's land use and land cover, modifying the climate of the urban setting. The modification in climate affects human comfort and the environment at large. This study focuses on the recent studies conducted in Nairobi city and many other cities globally to examine modification of wind, temperature and humidity over Nairobi. There was observed reduction in wind speed and relative humidity over the city, posing threat to human and animal comfort and the environment at large. The city of Nairobi, just like other cities globally is observed to experience urban heat island (UHI. The observed increase in minimum temperature as compared to maximum temperature signifies overall warming. A combination of all these changes reduces human comfort. Borrowing lessons from developed cities, increasing the urban forest cover is thus suggested as one of the practical and effective measures that can help prevent further modification of weather and urban climates. The study recommends further research involving multi-sectoral urban stake holders, on forcing driving urban thermal comfort. In the short term, design and construction of appropriate structures can help minimize energy consumption and emissions, thus enhancing comfort.

Shuttle APS propellant thermal conditioner study

Science.gov (United States)

Pearson, W. E.

1971-01-01

A study program was performed to allow selection of thermal conditioner assemblies for superheating O2 and H2 at supercritical pressures. The application was the auxiliary propulsion system (APS) for the space shuttle vehicle. The O2/H2 APS propellant feed system included propellant conditioners, of which the thermal conditioner assemblies were a part. Cryogens, pumped to pressures above critical, were directed to the thermal conditioner assembly included: (1) a gas generator assembly with ignition system and bipropellant valves, which burned superheated O2 and H2 at rich conditions; (2) a heat exchanger assembly for thermal conditioning of the cryogenic propellant; and (3) a dump nozzle for heat exchanger exhaust.

Face recognition in the thermal infrared domain

Science.gov (United States)

Kowalski, M.; Grudzień, A.; Palka, N.; Szustakowski, M.

2017-10-01

Biometrics refers to unique human characteristics. Each unique characteristic may be used to label and describe individuals and for automatic recognition of a person based on physiological or behavioural properties. One of the most natural and the most popular biometric trait is a face. The most common research methods on face recognition are based on visible light. State-of-the-art face recognition systems operating in the visible light spectrum achieve very high level of recognition accuracy under controlled environmental conditions. Thermal infrared imagery seems to be a promising alternative or complement to visible range imaging due to its relatively high resistance to illumination changes. A thermal infrared image of the human face presents its unique heat-signature and can be used for recognition. The characteristics of thermal images maintain advantages over visible light images, and can be used to improve algorithms of human face recognition in several aspects. Mid-wavelength or far-wavelength infrared also referred to as thermal infrared seems to be promising alternatives. We present the study on 1:1 recognition in thermal infrared domain. The two approaches we are considering are stand-off face verification of non-moving person as well as stop-less face verification on-the-move. The paper presents methodology of our studies and challenges for face recognition systems in the thermal infrared domain.

Thermal Comfort and Strategies for Energy Conservation.

Science.gov (United States)

Rohles, Frederick H., Jr.

1981-01-01

Discusses studies in thermal comfort which served as the basis for the comfort standard. Examines seven variables in the human response to the thermal environment in terms of the ways in which they can be modified to conserve energy. (Author/MK)

An overview of recent projects to study thermal protection in life rafts, lifeboats and immersion suits

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mak, L.; DuCharme, M. B.; Farnworth, B.; Wissler, E. H.; Brown, R.; Kuczora, A. [Maritime and Arctic Survival Scientific and Engineering Ressearch Team (Canada)

2011-07-01

Survival during a marine evacuation in cold regions is very challenging. However international regulations do not require specific thermal protection or ventilation performance criteria for lifeboats. In the same way, the testing methods for approval testing of immersion suits are not standardised. This paper investigated recent projects completed or on-going to study thermal protection in life rafts, lifeboats and immersion suits. An overview of several projects from the Maritime and Arctic Survival Scientific and Engineering Research Team (MASSERT) was conducted. This review provided the necessary knowledge to advance international standards and develop the thermal protection requirements for survival in the Arctic. The results showed the MASSERT correlated thermal insulation values between human subjects and thermal manikins in life rafts and in immersion suits. It was found that the manikins are a valuable evaluation tool, as well as the computerised models used as prediction tools.

Thermal loading study for FY 1996. Volume 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-01-01

The primary objective of this study was to provide recommendations for Mined Geologic Disposal System requirements affected by thermal loading that will provide sufficient definition to facilitate development of design concepts and support life cycle cost determinations. The study reevaluated and/or redefined selected thermal goals used for design and are currently contained in the requirements documents or the Controlled Design Assumption Document. The study provided recommendations as to what, if any, actions (such as edge loading and limiting of the heat variability between waste packages) are needed and must be accommodated in the design. Additionally, the study provided recommendations as to what alternative thermal loads should be maintained for continued flexibility. This report contains seven appendices: Technical basis for evaluation of thermal goals below the potential nuclear was repository at Yucca Mountain; Thermal-mechanical evaluation of the 200 C drift-wall temperature goal; Evaluation of ground stability and support; Coupled ventilation and hydrothermal evaluations; Heat flow and temperature calculations for continuously ventilated emplacement drifts; Thermal management using aging and/or waste package selection; and Waste stream evaluations

Study on thermal wave based on the thermal mass theory

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

无

2009-01-01

The conservation equations for heat conduction are established based on the concept of thermal mass.We obtain a general heat conduction law which takes into account the spatial and temporal inertia of thermal mass.The general law introduces a damped thermal wave equation.It reduces to the well-known CV model when the spatial inertia of heat flux and temperature and the temporal inertia of temperature are neglected,which indicates that the CV model only considers the temporal inertia of heat flux.Numerical simulations on the propagation and superposition of thermal waves show that for small thermal perturbation the CV model agrees with the thermal wave equation based on the thermal mass theory.For larger thermal perturbation,however,the physically impossible phenomenon pre-dicted by CV model,i.e.the negative temperature induced by the thermal wave superposition,is eliminated by the general heat conduction law,which demonstrates that the present heat conduction law based on the thermal mass theory is more reasonable.

Study on thermal wave based on the thermal mass theory

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

HU RuiFeng; CAO BingYang

2009-01-01

The conservation equations for heat conduction are established based on the concept of thermal mass. We obtain a general heat conduction law which takes into account the spatial and temporal inertia of thermal mass. The general law introduces a damped thermal wave equation. It reduces to the well-known CV model when the spatial inertia of heat flux and temperature and the temporal inertia of temperature are neglected, which indicates that the CV model only considers the temporal inertia of heat flux. Numerical simulations on the propagation and superposition of thermal waves show that for small thermal perturbation the CV model agrees with the thermal wave equation based on the thermal mass theory. For larger thermal perturbation, however, the physically impossible phenomenon pre-dicted by CV model, i.e. the negative temperature induced by the thermal wave superposition, is eliminated by the general heat conduction law, which demonstrates that the present heat conduction law based on the thermal mass theory is more reasonable.

Effect of human behavior on economizer efficacy and thermal comfort in southern California

Science.gov (United States)

Lanning, TIghe Glennon

California has set a zero net-energy conservation goal for the residential sector that is to be achieved by 2020 (California Energy Commission 2011). To reduce energy consumption in the building sector, modern buildings should fundamentally incorporate sustainable performance standards, involving renewable systems, climate-specific strategies, and consideration of a variety of users. Building occupants must operate in concert with the buildings they inhabit in order to maximize the potential of the building, its systems, and their own comfort. In climates with significant diurnal temperature swings, environmental controls designed to capitalize on this should be considered to reduce cooling-related loads. One specific strategy is the air-side economizer, which uses daily outdoor temperature swings to reduce indoor temperature swings. Traditionally a similar effect could be achieved by using thermal mass to buffer indoor temperature swings through thermal lag. Economizers reduce the amount of thermal mass typically required by naturally ventilated buildings. Fans are used to force cool nighttime air deep into the building, allowing lower mass buildings to take advantage of nighttime cooling. Economizers connect to a thermostat, and when the outdoor temperature dips below a programmed set-point the economizer draws cool air from outside, flushing out the warmed interior air. This type of system can be simulated with reasonable accuracy by energy modeling programs; however, because the system is occupant-driven (as opposed to a truly passive mass-driven system) any unpredictable occupant behavior can reduce its effectiveness and create misleading simulation results. This unpredictably has helped prevent the spread of economizers in the residential market. This study investigated to what extent human behavior affected the performance of economizer-based HVAC systems, based on physical observations, environmental data collections, and energy simulations of a residential

The perceived temperature - a versatile index for the assessment of the human thermal environment. Part A: scientific basics

Science.gov (United States)

Staiger, Henning; Laschewski, Gudrun; Grätz, Angelika

2012-01-01

The Perceived Temperature (PT) is an equivalent temperature based on a complete heat budget model of the human body. It has proved its suitability for numerous applications across a wide variety of scales from micro to global and is successfully used both in daily forecasts and climatological studies. PT is designed for staying outdoors and is defined as the air temperature of a reference environment in which the thermal perception would be the same as in the actual environment. The calculation is performed for a reference subject with an internal heat production of 135 W m-2 (who is walking at 4 km h-1 on flat ground). In the reference environment, the mean radiant temperature equals the air temperature and wind velocity is reduced to a slight draught. The water vapour pressure remains unchanged. Under warm/humid conditions, however, it is implicitly related to a relative humidity of 50%. Clothing is adapted in order to achieve thermal comfort. If this is impossible, cold or heat stress will occur, respectively. The assessment of thermal perception by means of PT is based on Fanger's Predicted Mean Vote (PMV) together with additional model extensions taking account of stronger deviations from thermal neutrality. This is performed using a parameterisation based on a two-node model. In the cold, it allows the mean skin temperature to drop below the comfort value. In the heat, it assesses additionally the enthalpy of sweat-moistened skin and of wet clothes. PT has the advantages of being self-explanatory due to its deviation from air temperature and being—via PMV—directly linked to a thermo-physiologically-based scale of thermal perception that is widely used and has stood the test of time. This paper explains in detail the basic equations of the human heat budget and the coefficients of the parameterisations.

Thermal sensation models: a systematic comparison.

Science.gov (United States)

Koelblen, B; Psikuta, A; Bogdan, A; Annaheim, S; Rossi, R M

2017-05-01

Thermal sensation models, capable of predicting human's perception of thermal surroundings, are commonly used to assess given indoor conditions. These models differ in many aspects, such as the number and type of input conditions, the range of conditions in which the models can be applied, and the complexity of equations. Moreover, the models are associated with various thermal sensation scales. In this study, a systematic comparison of seven existing thermal sensation models has been performed with regard to exposures including various air temperatures, clothing thermal insulation, and metabolic rate values after a careful investigation of the models' range of applicability. Thermo-physiological data needed as input for some of the models were obtained from a mathematical model for human physiological responses. The comparison showed differences between models' predictions for the analyzed conditions, mostly higher than typical intersubject differences in votes. Therefore, it can be concluded that the choice of model strongly influences the assessment of indoor spaces. The issue of comparing different thermal sensation scales has also been discussed. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

An experimental study of thermal comfort at different combinations of air and mean radiant temperature

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Simone, Angela; Olesen, Bjarne W.

2009-01-01

It is often discussed if a person prefers a low air temperature (ta) and a high mean radiant temperature (tr), vice-versa or it does not matter as long as the operative temperature is acceptable. One of the hypotheses is that it does not matter for thermal comfort but for perceived air quality......, a lower air temperature is preferred. This paper presents an experimental study with 30 human subjects exposed to three different combinations of air- and mean radiant temperature with an operative temperature around 23 °C. The subjects gave subjective evaluations of thermal comfort and perceived air...... quality during the experiments. The PMV-index gave a good estimation of thermal sensation vote (TSV) when the air and mean radiant temperature were the same. In the environment with different air- and mean radiant temperatures, a thermal comfort evaluation shows an error up to 1 scale unit on the 7-point...

Thermal comfort, physiological responses and performance during exposure to a moderate temperature drift

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schellen, Lisje; van Marken Lichtenbelt, Wouter; de Wit, Martin

2008-01-01

The objective of this research was to study the effects of a moderate temperature drift on human thermal comfort, physiological responses, productivity and performance. A dynamic thermophysiological model was used to examine the possibility of simulating human thermal responses and thermal comfort...... temperature corresponding with a neutral thermal sensation (control situation). During the experiments both physiological responses and thermal sensation were measured. Productivity and performance were assessed with a ‘Remote Performance Measurement’ (RPM) method. Physiological and thermal sensation data...

Modelling the regulation of thermal adaptation in Candida albicans, a major fungal pathogen of humans.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michelle D Leach

Full Text Available Eukaryotic cells have evolved mechanisms to sense and adapt to dynamic environmental changes. Adaptation to thermal insults, in particular, is essential for their survival. The major fungal pathogen of humans, Candida albicans, is obligately associated with warm-blooded animals and hence occupies thermally buffered niches. Yet during its evolution in the host it has retained a bona fide heat shock response whilst other stress responses have diverged significantly. Furthermore the heat shock response is essential for the virulence of C. albicans. With a view to understanding the relevance of this response to infection we have explored the dynamic regulation of thermal adaptation using an integrative systems biology approach. Our mathematical model of thermal regulation, which has been validated experimentally in C. albicans, describes the dynamic autoregulation of the heat shock transcription factor Hsf1 and the essential chaperone protein Hsp90. We have used this model to show that the thermal adaptation system displays perfect adaptation, that it retains a transient molecular memory, and that Hsf1 is activated during thermal transitions that mimic fever. In addition to providing explanations for the evolutionary conservation of the heat shock response in this pathogen and the relevant of this response to infection, our model provides a platform for the analysis of thermal adaptation in other eukaryotic cells.

EXAMINATION OF THE SIMULATED THERMAL CONDITIONS IN A POPULAR PLAYGROUND RELATED TO THE HUMAN REACTIONS AND THE JUDGMENT OF THE AREA DESIGN

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L.A. ÉGERHÁZI

2013-03-01

Full Text Available In the field of urban bioclimatology an important and timely research direction today is to examine the thermal conditions of public places. In our study, human thermal comfort analysis was performed in a modern and well-attended children playground located in Szeged (Hungary. The aim of the paper is to reveal the changes in the thermal comfort conditions between two seasons and also the resulting subjective thermal reactions of visitors in this relatively small area. Thermal comfort conditions were quantified by the Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (PET. For typical summer and autumn days of 2011 numerical simulations of thermal comfort conditions in the playground were carried out by means of the urban microclimate model ENVI-met. Spatial distribution of the simulated PET, i.e. thermal stress maps were created in two different times of the selected days in order to characterize the distinct microclimatological conditions appearing in the area. The relationship between the momentary spatial patterns of visitors and the thermal conditions was also under investigation. Additionally, onsite questionnaire survey was implemented which highlights the people’s subjective evaluation related to the design of the playground.

Urban area thermal monitoring: Liepaja case study using satellite and aerial thermal data

Science.gov (United States)

Gulbe, Linda; Caune, Vairis; Korats, Gundars

2017-12-01

The aim of this study is to explore large (60 m/pixel) and small scale (individual building level) temperature distribution patterns from thermal remote sensing data and to conclude what kind of information could be extracted from thermal remote sensing on regular basis. Landsat program provides frequent large scale thermal images useful for analysis of city temperature patterns. During the study correlation between temperature patterns and vegetation content based on NDVI and building coverage based on OpenStreetMap data was studied. Landsat based temperature patterns were independent from the season, negatively correlated with vegetation content and positively correlated with building coverage. Small scale analysis included spatial and raster descriptor analysis for polygons corresponding to roofs of individual buildings for evaluating insulation of roofs. Remote sensing and spatial descriptors are poorly related to heat consumption data, however, thermal aerial data median and entropy can help to identify poorly insulated roofs. Automated quantitative roof analysis has high potential for acquiring city wide information about roof insulation, but quality is limited by reference data quality and information on building types, and roof materials would be crucial for further studies.

Studies on thermal properties and thermal control effectiveness of a new shape-stabilized phase change material with high thermal conductivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheng Wenlong; Liu Na; Wu Wanfan

2012-01-01

In order to overcome the difficulty of conventional phase change materials (PCMs) in packaging, the shape-stabilized PCMs are proposed to be used in the electronic device thermal control. However, the conventional shape-stabilized PCMs have the drawback of lower thermal conductivity, so a new shape-stabilized PCM with high thermal conductivity, which is suitable for thermal control of electronic devices, is prepared. The thermal properties of n-octadecane-based shape-stabilized PCM are tested and analyzed. The heat storage/release performance is studied by numerical simulation. Its thermal control effect for electronic devices is also discussed. The results show that the expanded graphite (EG) can greatly improve the thermal conductivity of the material with little effect on latent heat and phase change temperature. When the mass fraction of EG is 5%, thermal conductivity has reached 1.76 W/(m K), which is over 4 times than that of the original one. Moreover, the material has larger latent heat and good thermal stability. The simulation results show that the material can have good heat storage/release performance. The analysis of the effect of thermal parameters on thermal control effect for electronic devices provides references to the design of phase change thermal control unit. - Highlights: ► A new shape-stabilized PCM with higher thermal conductivity is prepared. ► The material overcomes the packaging difficulty of traditional PCMs used in thermal control unit. ► The EG greatly improves thermal conductivity with little effect on latent heat. ► The material has high thermal stability and good heat storage/release performance. ► The effectiveness of the material for electronic device thermal control is proved.

Experimental investigation into the interaction between the human body and room airflow and its effect on thermal comfort under stratum ventilation.

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Y; Lin, Z

2016-04-01

Room occupants' comfort and health are affected by the airflow. Nevertheless, they themselves also play an important role in indoor air distribution. This study investigated the interaction between the human body and room airflow under stratum ventilation. Simplified thermal manikin was employed to effectively resemble the human body as a flow obstacle and/or free convective heat source. Unheated and heated manikins were designed to fully evaluate the impact of the manikin at various airflow rates. Additionally, subjective human tests were conducted to evaluate thermal comfort for the occupants in two rows. The findings show that the manikin formed a local blockage effect, but the supply airflow could flow over it. With the body heat from the manikin, the air jet penetrated farther compared with that for the unheated manikin. The temperature downstream of the manikin was also higher because of the convective effect. Elevating the supply airflow rate from 7 to 15 air changes per hour varied the downstream airflow pattern dramatically, from an uprising flow induced by body heat to a jet-dominated flow. Subjective assessments indicated that stratum ventilation provided thermal comfort for the occupants in both rows. Therefore, stratum ventilation could be applied in rooms with occupants in multiple rows. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Synthesis, microstructure and thermal expansion studies

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Abstract. We report on the synthesis, microstructure and thermal expansion studies on Ca0.5+/2Sr0.5+/2Zr4P6−2Si2O24 ( = 0.00 to 1.00) system which belongs to NZP family of low thermal expansion ceramics. The ceramics synthesized by co-precipitation method at lower calcination and the sintering temperatures ...

Sensiprobe—a miniature thermal device incorporating Peltier technology as a diagnostic tool for studying human oesophageal sensitivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reeves, J W; Birch, M J; Al-Zinaty, M; Woodland, P; Sifrim, D; Aziz, Q

2014-01-01

Heightened perception of gastrointestinal sensation is termed visceral hypersensitivity (VH) and is commonly observed in patients with gastrointestinal disorders. VH is thought to be a major contributory factor in oesophageal disease, particularly gastro-oesophageal reflux disease that does not respond to standard (proton pump inhibitor) treatment, and in functional heartburn. Clinical tools that can help phenotype according to the mechanism of chronic pain and thus allow targeted drug treatment (e.g. with pain modulator therapy) would be very desirable. A technique that produces repeatable and controllable thermal stimuli within the oesophagus could meet this need. The aims of this study were to develop a method for linear control of the heat stimulation in the oesophagus, to assess the reproducibility of this method, and obtain normal thermal sensitivity values in the distal and proximal oesophagus. The 7 mm diameter Peltier-based thermal device was investigated on 27 healthy subjects using a heating ramp of 0.2 °C s −1 . The pain detection threshold (PDT) temperature was recorded. To assess the reproducibility of the device, each subject underwent the procedure twice, with a minimum of two weeks between each procedure. The mean PDT temperature measured in the distal oesophagus, was 53.8 ± 2.9 °C and 53.6 ± 2.6 °C, for visits 1 and 2 respectively. The mean PDT temperature measured in the proximal oesophagus was 54.1 ± 2.4 °C and 54.0 ± 2.8 °C, for visits 1 and 2 respectively. The reproducibility of the PDT temperature in the distal and proximal oesophagus, was good (intra-class correlation >0.6). Future studies should be aimed to determine whether oesophageal thermal sensitivity can act as a biomarker of transient receptor potential vallanoid 1 upregulation. (paper)

Association between human and animal thermal comfort indices and physiological heat stress indicators in dairy calves.

Science.gov (United States)

Kovács, L; Kézér, F L; Ruff, F; Szenci, O; Jurkovich, V

2018-06-06

Warm summer episodes have a significant effect on the overall health and well-being of young cattle; however, it is not known which temperature measure should be used for estimating heat stress in dairy calves. In this study, generalized linear mixed-effects models were used to estimate the relationships between thermal comfort indices and animal-based heat stress indicators in sixteen Holstein bull calves that were housed in individual calf hutches. Data were collected under continental weather characteristics over a 5-day period: day 1 (lower-temperature day), days 2 and 3 (heat stress days), and a 2-day post-stress period. Relative humidity, ambient temperature, the heat index, the humidex and five different temperature-humidity indices (THI) were used as thermal indices. Physiological variables monitored included respiratory rate, rectal temperature, ear skin temperature and heart rate. The heat index and the humidex measuring human thermal comfort were more closely associated with physiological measures than were the ambient temperature or the THIs (in case of heat index: R 2 = 0.87 for respiratory rate, R 2 = 0.63 for rectal temperature, R 2 = 0.70 for ear skin temperature, and R 2 = 0.78 for heart rate, respectively; in case of humidex: R 2 = 0.85 for respiratory rate, R 2 = 0.60 for rectal temperature, R 2 = 0.68 for ear skin temperature, and R 2 = 0.75 for heart rate, respectively). Based on our results, parameters of human outdoor comfort seem better to estimate heat stress in dairy calves in a continental region than those of THIs or ambient temperature. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Study on thermal conductive BN/novolac resin composites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Shasha; Qi, Shuhua; Liu, Nailiang; Cao, Peng

2011-01-01

Highlights: → Boron nitride (BN) particles were used to modify novolac resin. → BN particles were pretreated by γ-aminopropyltriethoxysilane. → The thermal conductivity trend of composite almost agrees with the predicted data from the Maxwell-Eucken model. → At BN concentration of 80 wt.%, thermal conductivity value of composite is 4.5 times that of pure novolac resin. → Combined use of the larger and smaller particles with a mass ratio of 1:2 provides the composites with the maximum thermal conductivity among the testing systems. → The composite thermal property also increases with an increase in the BN concentration. - Abstract: In this study, γ-aminopropyltriethoxysilane-treated boron nitride (BN) particles were used to modify novolac resin. The effect of varying the BN concentration, particle size, and hybrid BN fillers with the binary particle size distribution on the thermal conductivity of the composites was investigated. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging showed homogeneously dispersed treated BN particles in the matrix. Furthermore, the thermal conductivity increased as the BN concentration was increased. This behavior was also observed when the filler size was increased. Experimentally obtained thermal conductivity values agree with the predicted data from the Maxwell-Eucken model well at less than 70 wt.% BN loading. A larger particle size BN-filled novolac resin exhibits a higher thermal conductivity than a smaller particle size BN-filled one. The combined use of 0.5 and 15 μm particles with a mass ratio of 2:1 achieved the maximum thermal conductivity among the testing systems. The thermal resistance properties of the composites were also studied.

Influence of some DNA-alkylating drugs on thermal stability, acid and osmotic resistance of the membrane of whole human erythrocytes and their ghosts.

Science.gov (United States)

Ivanov, I T; Gadjeva, V

2000-09-01

Human erythrocytes and their resealed ghosts were alkylated under identical conditions using three groups of alkylating antitumor agents: mustards, triazenes and chloroethyl nitrosoureas. Osmotic fragility, acid resistance and thermal stability of membranes were changed only in alkylated ghosts in proportion to the concentration of the alkylating agent. All the alkylating agents decreased acid resistance in ghosts. The clinically used drugs sarcolysine, dacarbazine and lomustine all decreased osmotic fragility and thermal stability of ghost membranes depending on their lipophilicity. DM-COOH did not decrease osmotic fragility and thermal stability of ghost membranes, while NEM increased thermal stability of membranes. The preliminary but not subsequent treatment of ghosts with DM-COOH fully abolished the alkylation-induced thermal labilization of ghost membrane proteins while NEM had a partial effect only. The present study gives direct evidence that alkylating agents, having a high therapeutic activity against malignant growth, bind covalently to proteins of cellular membranes.

Target acquisition: Human observer performance studies and TARGAC model validation (Final Report)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Valeton, J.M.; Bijl, P.; Gillespie, P.

1995-01-01

Human target acquisition performance was studied using the thermal imagery that was collected during Battlefield Emissives Sources Trials under the European Theater Weather and Obscurants, (BEST TWO), organized by NATO AC243/Panel4/RSG.l5 in 1990. Recognition and identification probabilities were

Further development of thermal neutron capture therapy for metastatic and deeply-invasive human malignant melanoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mishima, Yutaka

1995-03-01

This issue is the collection of the papers presented thermal neutron capture therapy for metastatic and deeply-invasive human malignant melanoma. Separate abstracts were prepared for 2 of the papers in this report. The remaining 32 papers were considered outside the subject scope of INIS. (J.P.N.)

Structural and thermal behaviour of carious and sound powders of human tooth enamel and dentine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tiznado-Orozco, Gaby E; Garcia-Garcia, R; Reyes-Gasga, J

2009-01-01

Powder from carious human tooth enamel and dentine were structurally, chemically and thermally analysed and compared against those from sound (healthy) teeth. Structural and chemical analyses were performed using x-ray diffraction, energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. Thermal analysis was carried out by thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction. Results demonstrate partially dissolved crystals of hydroxyapatite (HAP) with substitutions of Na, Mg, Cl and C, and a greater weight loss in carious dentine as compared with carious enamel. A greater amount of thermal decomposition is observed in carious dentine as compared with sound dentine, with major variations in the a-axis of the HAP unit cell than in the c-axis. Variations in shape and intensity of the OH - , CO 3 2- and PO 4 3- FTIR bands were also found.

Testing the Use of Pigs as Human Proxies in Decomposition Studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Connor, Melissa; Baigent, Christiane; Hansen, Eriek S

2017-12-28

Pigs are a common human analogue in taphonomic study, yet data comparing the trajectory of decomposition between the two groups are lacking. This study compared decomposition rate and gross tissue change in 17 pigs and 22 human remains placed in the Forensic Investigation Research Station in western Colorado between 2012 and 2015. Accumulated degree days (ADD) were used to assess the number of thermal units required to reach a given total body score (TBS) (1) which was used as the measure of decomposition. A comparison of slopes in linear mixed effects model indicated that decomposition rates significantly differed between human donors and pig remains χ 2 (1) = 5.662, p = 0.017. Neither the pig nor the human trajectory compared well to the TBS model. Thus, (i) pigs are not an adequate proxy for human decomposition studies, and (ii) in the semiarid environment of western Colorado, there is a need to develop a regional decomposition model. © 2017 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Spectroscopic, thermal and biological studies of coordination

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Spectroscopic, thermal and biological studies of coordination compounds of sulfasalazine drug: Mn(II), Hg(II), Cr(III), ZrO(II), VO(II) and Y(III) transition metal ... The thermal decomposition of the complexes as well as thermodynamic parameters ( *}, *, * and *) were estimated using Coats–Redfern and ...

Field study of thermal comfort in non-air-conditioned buildings in a tropical island climate.

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Shilei; Pang, Bo; Qi, Yunfang; Fang, Kun

2018-01-01

The unique geographical location of Hainan makes its climate characteristics different from inland areas in China. The thermal comfort of Hainan also owes its uniqueness to its tropical island climate. In the past decades, there have been very few studies on thermal comfort of the residents in tropical island areas in China. A thermal environment test for different types of buildings in Hainan and a thermal comfort field investigation of 1944 subjects were conducted over a period of about two months. The results of the survey data show that a high humidity environment did not have a significant impact on human comfort. The neutral temperature for the residents in tropical island areas was 26.1 °C, and the acceptable temperature range of thermal comfort was from 23.1 °C to 29.1 °C. Residents living in tropical island areas showed higher heat resistance capacity, but lower cold tolerance than predicted. The neutral temperature for females (26.3 °C) was higher than for males (25.8 °C). Additionally, females were more sensitive to air temperature than males. The research conclusions can play a guiding role in the thermal environment design of green buildings in Hainan Province. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Radon in thermal waters and radon risk in chosen thermal water spas in V4 countries - preliminary results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holy, K.; Blahusiak, P.; Muellerova, M.; Grzadziel, D.; Kozak, K.; Mazur, J.; Kovacs, T.; Nagy, E.; Shahrokhi, A.; Neznal, M.; Neznal, M.

2014-01-01

The territory of V4 countries is rich in thermal springs. Some boreholes reach a depth of 2000 m and temperatures up to 70 grad C. 222 Rn concentrations in some thermal waters can exceed 1000 Bq/l, however this concentration is not constant. In V4 countries, there is a long tradition in using thermal waters in spa care. In thermal spas, radon is released from the water, and is transported along with its decay products into human respiratory tract, which is potentially harmful to human health. Thus, controlling the levels of radon concentration in thermal waters, homes and workplaces of spas is justified. The aim of this project is the study of radon 222 Rn concentration in thermal waters and in thermal spas in V4 countries. The measurements are carried out a few times during at least one year in order to observe seasonal variability. The obtained results will serve to determine annual effective doses for employees who spend ca. 8 hours a day inside spa buildings. It will be also possible to assess the effective doses for patients (users) of the pools with the highest registered radon concentrations. We carry out measurements in 3 existing thermal water spas in each of the countries: Slovakia, Poland and Hungary, and in 1 thermal water spas in the Czech Republic,according to choice of partners. (authors)

Study of thermal conductivity of multilayer insulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dutta, D.; Sundaram, S.; Nath, G.K.; Sethuram, N.P.; Chandrasekharan, T.; Varadarajan, T.G.

1994-01-01

This paper presents experimental determination of the apparent thermal conductivity of multilayer insulation for a cryogenic system. The variation of thermal conductivity with residual gas pressure is studied and the optimum vacuum for good insulating performance is determined. Evaporation loss technique for heat-inleak determination is employed. (author)

Spacecraft Thermal Management

Science.gov (United States)

Hurlbert, Kathryn Miller

2009-01-01

In the 21st century, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Russian Federal Space Agency, the National Space Agency of Ukraine, the China National Space Administration, and many other organizations representing spacefaring nations shall continue or newly implement robust space programs. Additionally, business corporations are pursuing commercialization of space for enabling space tourism and capital business ventures. Future space missions are likely to include orbiting satellites, orbiting platforms, space stations, interplanetary vehicles, planetary surface missions, and planetary research probes. Many of these missions will include humans to conduct research for scientific and terrestrial benefits and for space tourism, and this century will therefore establish a permanent human presence beyond Earth s confines. Other missions will not include humans, but will be autonomous (e.g., satellites, robotic exploration), and will also serve to support the goals of exploring space and providing benefits to Earth s populace. This section focuses on thermal management systems for human space exploration, although the guiding principles can be applied to unmanned space vehicles as well. All spacecraft require a thermal management system to maintain a tolerable thermal environment for the spacecraft crew and/or equipment. The requirements for human rating and the specified controlled temperature range (approximately 275 K - 310 K) for crewed spacecraft are unique, and key design criteria stem from overall vehicle and operational/programatic considerations. These criteria include high reliability, low mass, minimal power requirements, low development and operational costs, and high confidence for mission success and safety. This section describes the four major subsystems for crewed spacecraft thermal management systems, and design considerations for each. Additionally, some examples of specialized or advanced thermal system technologies are presented

Thermal preference, thermal tolerance and the thermal de-pendence of digestive performance in two Phrynocephalus lizards (Agamidae), with a review of species studied

OpenAIRE

Yanfu QU, Hong LI, Jianfang GAO, Xuefeng XU, Xiang JI

2011-01-01

We reported data on thermal preference, thermal tolerance and the thermal dependence of digestive performance for two Phrynocephalus lizards (P. frontalis and P. versicolor), and compared data among lizards so far studied worldwide. Mean values for selected body temperature (Tsel) and critical thermal maximum (CTMax) were greater in P. versicolor, whereas mean values for critical thermal minimum (CTMin) did not differ between the two species. The two lizards differed in food intake, but not i...

Thermal treatment of petroleum contaminated soils - A case study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bubier, T.W.; Bilello. C.M.

1993-01-01

Thermal treatment is a cost-effective treatment method for removing chemicals from contaminated soils. However, detailed applicability studies are lacking. The goals of this paper are to (1) present the results of a thermal treatment study and (2) discuss the specific elements which must be evaluated prior to determining whether thermal treatment is a feasible option for a remediation project. Results of data collected during a pilot study involving thermal treatment of petroleum contaminated soils at a Marine Terminal are presented. The pilot study consisted of thermally treating the C8 through C40 + (gasoline, kerosene, diesel, motor oil, bunker fuel, etc.) hydrocarbon contaminated soils at treatment temperatures ranging from 250 degrees Fahrenheit (degree F) up to 550 degrees F. The low-temperature thermal treatment unit consisted of a rotary kiln with a temperature capacity of approximately 600 degrees F, a baghouse, and a catalytic oxidizer. The soil was monitored for concentrations of petroleum hydrocarbons and volatile organic compounds before and after treatment. The results of the pilot study were used to determine if thermal treatment technology is a cost-efficient and effective option of remediating the estimated 300,000 tons of petroleum contaminated soil to acceptable cleanup levels. The low-temperature thermal treatment pilot study was effective in desorbing the short chain hydrocarbons (gasoline and diesel) but was not effective in desorbing the long-chain petroleum hydrocarbons, such as motor oils and bunker fuels, from the soil. This was primarily due to the boiling points of motor oil and bunker fuels which were higher than the temperature capacity of the pilot study treatment equipment. Additional factors that influenced the effectiveness of the desorption process included configuration of the treatment equipment, soil moisture content, soil particle size, and type and concentration of petroleum hydrocarbons

Thermal effects on human performance in office environment measured by integrating task speed and accuracy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lan, Li; Wargocki, Pawel; Lian, Zhiwei

2014-01-01

We have proposed a method in which the speed and accuracy can be integrated into one metric of human performance. This was achieved by designing a performance task in which the subjects receive feedback on their performance by informing them whether they have committed errors, and if did, they can......, 12 subjects performed tasks under two thermal conditions (neutral & warm) repeatedly. The tasks were presented with and without feedback on errors committed, as outlined above. The results indicate that there was a greater decrease in task performance due to thermal discomfort when feedback was given......, compared to the performance of tasks presented without feedback....

French studies on the thermal effluents of electric power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dezes-Cadiere, H.

1976-01-01

This report presents a synthesis of studies made in France in the thermal effluent field: thermal power plant cooling systems, transfer and dispersion of thermal effluents in the receptive media, effects of thermal effluents on water physicochemistry and biochemistry, effects of thermal effluents on aquatic ecosystems, and, possibilities of waste heat recovery with the view of utilization in agriculture, aquaculture and district heating. A catalogue of French organizations working or having data on thermal effluents is presented, as also an alphabetical list of the contacted persons. A bibliography of French documents concerning the previously mentioned studies is finally given (193 refs.) [fr

Rotational Kinematics Model Based Adaptive Particle Filter for Robust Human Tracking in Thermal Omnidirectional Vision

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yazhe Tang

2015-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a novel surveillance system named thermal omnidirectional vision (TOV system which can work in total darkness with a wild field of view. Different to the conventional thermal vision sensor, the proposed vision system exhibits serious nonlinear distortion due to the effect of the quadratic mirror. To effectively model the inherent distortion of omnidirectional vision, an equivalent sphere projection is employed to adaptively calculate parameterized distorted neighborhood of an object in the image plane. With the equivalent projection based adaptive neighborhood calculation, a distortion-invariant gradient coding feature is proposed for thermal catadioptric vision. For robust tracking purpose, a rotational kinematic modeled adaptive particle filter is proposed based on the characteristic of omnidirectional vision, which can handle multiple movements effectively, including the rapid motions. Finally, the experiments are given to verify the performance of the proposed algorithm for human tracking in TOV system.

Study of thermal conductivity of multilayer insulation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dutta, D; Sundaram, S; Nath, G K; Sethuram, N P; Chandrasekharan, T; Varadarajan, T G [Heavy Water Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai (India)

1994-06-01

This paper presents experimental determination of the apparent thermal conductivity of multilayer insulation for a cryogenic system. The variation of thermal conductivity with residual gas pressure is studied and the optimum vacuum for good insulating performance is determined. Evaporation loss technique for heat-inleak determination is employed. (author). 3 refs., 3 figs.

Experiment study on the thermal properties of paraffin/kaolin thermal energy storage form-stable phase change materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lv, Peizhao; Liu, Chenzhen; Rao, Zhonghao

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Different particle sizes of kaolin were employed to load paraffin. • The effects and reasons of particle size on thermal conductivity were studied. • Thermal property and thermal stability of the composites were investigated. • The leakage and thermal storage and release rate of the composites were studied. • The effect of vacuum impregnation method on thermal conductivity was investigated. - Abstract: In this paper, different particle sizes of kaolin were employed to incorporate paraffin via vacuum impregnation method. The paraffin/kaolin composites were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Differential Scanning Calorimeter (DSC) and Thermogravimetry (TG). The results showed that the paraffin/kaolin composite with the largest particle size of kaolin (K4) has the highest thermal conductivity (0.413 W/(m K) at 20 °C) among the diverse composites. The latent heat capacity of paraffin/K4 is 119.49 J/g and the phase change temperature is 62.4 °C. In addition, the thermal properties and thermal conductivities of paraffin/K4 with different mass fraction of K4 (0–60%) were investigated. The thermal conductivities of the composites were explained in microcosmic field. The phonon mean free path determines the thermal conductivity, and it can be significantly affected by temperature and the contact surface area. The leaks, thermal storage and release properties of pure paraffin and paraffin/kaolin composites were investigated and the composites presented good thermal stabilities.

Thermal comfort assessment of buildings

CERN Document Server

Carlucci, Salvatore

2013-01-01

A number of metrics for assessing human thermal response to climatic conditions have been proposed in scientific literature over the last decades. They aim at describing human thermal perception of the thermal environment to which an individual or a group of people is exposed. More recently, a new type of “discomfort index” has been proposed for describing, in a synthetic way, long-term phenomena. Starting from a systematic review of a number of long-term global discomfort indices, they are then contrasted and compared on a reference case study in order to identify their similarities and differences and strengths and weaknesses. Based on this analysis, a new short-term local discomfort index is proposed for the American Adaptive comfort model. Finally, a new and reliable long-term general discomfort index is presented. It is delivered in three versions and each of them is suitable to be respectively coupled with the Fanger, the European Adaptive and the American Adaptive comfort models.

Thermal expansion studies on zircaloy-2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sivabharathy, M.; Senthilkumar, A.; Palanichamy, P.; Ramachandran, K.

2016-01-01

Zircaloy-2 and Zr-2.5% Nb alloys are widely used in the pressurized heavy water reactors (PHWR) as the material for the pressure tubes. The pressure tube operates at 573 K, 11 MPa internal pressures and is subjected to neutron flux of the order of 1013 n/cm 2 /s. These conditions lead to degradations in the pressure tube with respect to dimensional changes, deterioration in mechanical properties due to irradiation embrittlement, thereby reducing its flaw tolerance, the growth of existing flaws, which were too small or 'insignificant' at the time of installation. Physical and chemical properties of materials are also very essential in nuclear industry and the relations among them is of interest in the selection of materials when they are used in the design and manufacturing of devices particularly for atomic reactors.Studies on the relations between mechanical and thermal properties are of interest to the steel and metal industries as these would give useful information on the relation between hardness and thermal diffusivity (α) of steel. Jayakumar et al have already carried out the ultrasonic and metallographic investigations to see that all the heat-treated specimens retained essentially the martensite structure. In this present work, thermal expansion measurements on useful reactor material, Zircaloy-2 with different sample. Given a β-quenching treatment by heating to 1223 K and holding for 2 h, followed by water quenching. These specimens were then thermally aged for 1 h in the temperature range 473 to 973 K and air-cooled. For all samples, the thermal expansion was carried out and the results are correlated with ultrasonic measurements, metallographic and photoacoustic studies. (author)

Thermal loading study for FY 1996. Volume 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-01-01

The primary objective of this study was to provide recommendations for Mined Geologic Disposal System requirements affected by thermal loading that will provide sufficient definition to facilitate development of design concepts and support life cycle cost determinations. The study reevaluated and/or redefined selected thermal goals used for design and are currently contained in the requirements documents or the Controlled Design Assumption Document. The study provided recommendations as to what, if any, actions (such as edge loading and limiting of the heat variability between waste packages) are needed and must be accommodated in the design. Additionally, the study provided recommendations as to what alternative thermal loads should be maintained for continued flexibility. Section 1 provides the study objective, background, scope, and organization of the report. Section 2 documents the requirements and standards to include quality assurance (QA) requirements, any requirements used or evaluated, and the inputs and assumptions considered. Section 3 provides the analysis and recommendations for the thermal goals reevaluation. Section 4 discusses the evaluation of edge loading and provides conclusions. Section 5 provides the analyses done to establish recommendations as to what requirements need to be implemented to either limit or manage the amount of heat output variability that may occur. Section 6 discusses alternate thermal loadings; Section 7 provides the study conclusions and recommendations; Section 8 provides the references, standards, and regulations; and Section 9 contains the acronym list

Effects of target-controlled infusion of high-dose naloxone on pain and hyperalgesia in a human thermal injury model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Springborg, Anders D; Jensen, Elisabeth K; Taylor, Bradley K

2016-01-01

/kg, 4 mg/mL) or placebo (normal saline) intravenous. The primary outcome was SHA assessed by weighted-pin instrument (128 mN) 0, 1, 2, and 165 to 169 hours after the thermal injury (day 1-4). The secondary outcomes were pin-prick pain thresholds assessed by weighted-pin instrument (8-512 mN) at primary......Mu-opioid-receptor antagonists have been extensively studied in experimental research as pharmacological tools uncovering mechanisms of pain modulation by the endogenous opioid system. In rodents, administration of high doses of mu-opioid-receptor antagonists after the resolution of an inflammatory...... injury has demonstrated reinstatement of nociceptive hypersensitivity indicating unmasking of latent sensitization. In a recent human study, pain hypersensitivity assessed as secondary hyperalgesia area (SHA), was reinstated 7 days after a mild thermal injury, in 4 out of 12 subjects after a naloxone...

Thermal stress, human performance, and physical employment standards.

Science.gov (United States)

Cheung, Stephen S; Lee, Jason K W; Oksa, Juha

2016-06-01

Many physically demanding occupations in both developed and developing economies involve exposure to extreme thermal environments that can affect work capacity and ultimately health. Thermal extremes may be present in either an outdoor or an indoor work environment, and can be due to a combination of the natural or artificial ambient environment, the rate of metabolic heat generation from physical work, processes specific to the workplace (e.g., steel manufacturing), or through the requirement for protective clothing impairing heat dissipation. Together, thermal exposure can elicit acute impairment of work capacity and also chronic effects on health, greatly contributing to worker health risk and reduced productivity. Surprisingly, in most occupations even in developed economies, there are rarely any standards regarding enforced heat or cold safety for workers. Furthermore, specific physical employment standards or accommodations for thermal stressors are rare, with workers commonly tested under near-perfect conditions. This review surveys the major occupational impact of thermal extremes and existing employment standards, proposing guidelines for improvement and areas for future research.

RBE of thermal neutrons for induction of chromosome aberrations in human lymphocytes.

Science.gov (United States)

Schmid, E; Wagner, F M; Canella, L; Romm, H; Schmid, T E

2013-03-01

The induction of chromosome aberrations in human lymphocytes irradiated in vitro with slow neutrons was examined to assess the maximum low-dose RBE (RBE(M)) relative to (60)Co γ-rays. For the blood irradiations, cold neutron beam available at the prompt gamma activation analysis facility at the Munich research reactor FRM II was used. The given flux of cold neutrons can be converted into a thermally equivalent one. Since blood was taken from the same donor whose blood had been used for previous irradiation experiments using widely varying neutron energies, the greatest possible accuracy was available for such an estimation of the RBE(M) avoiding the inter-individual variations or differences in methodology usually associated with inter-laboratory comparisons. The magnitude of the coefficient α of the linear dose-response relationship (α = 0.400 ± 0.018 Gy(-1)) and the derived RBE(M) of 36.4 ± 13.3 obtained for the production of dicentrics by thermal neutrons confirm our earlier observations of a strong decrease in α and RBE(M) with decreasing neutron energy lower than 0.385 MeV (RBE(M) = 94.4 ± 38.9). The magnitude of the presently estimated RBE(M) of thermal neutrons is-with some restrictions-not significantly different to previously reported RBE(M) values of two laboratories.

A thermal study of an encapsulated electrical transformer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garcia, A. [Unidad Geotermia, Temixco (Mexico). Instituto de Investigaciones Electricas; Espinosa-Paredes, G. [Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana, Vicentina (Mexico). Dpto. de Ingenieria de Procesos e Hidraulica; Hernandez, I. [Centro de Sistemas de Manufactura, Nuevo Leon (Mexico). Instituto Tecnologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey

2002-11-01

A thermal study of a 45 KVA-prototype encapsulated transformer is described. Casting resin systems were used as insulating systems for encapsulated electric transformers. Normal transformer operation is at full load and, thus the conductor and insulating system becomes hot owing to current circulation through the winding. To determine the various temperature distributions throughout the transformer, the thermal properties of the insulating system and boundary conditions must be known, so that hot spots are located via numerical modelling and maximum permissible temperatures are not attained. Results presented herein include thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity, and specific heat capacity. Thermal conductivity was obtained experimentally by means of the line-source technique at various temperatures, between room temperature and 155{sup o}C which is the thermal limit of class F insulators. The thermal diffusivity was obtained by parameter estimation by fitting an approximate analytical model to the temperature-time data of the thermal conductivity experiment. Specific heat capacity was obtained from the definition of thermal diffusivity and the insulating-system density. In order to improve the electrical performance of the transformer criteria, a numerical simulation of the different dielectric structures was made using computer program. The boundary conditions for the thermal simulation stage were also determined experimentally from temperature test runs. Finally, in order to obtain data for thermal design, a numerical simulation of the high tension winding was carried out. The thermal simulation stage was performed at different current densities in the conductor with and without electrostatic shields to determine the temperature field and maximum attainable temperatures. Maximum transformer temperature were found to be 15-20{sup o}C below its thermal limit and a correlation of maximum temperature as function of circulating current was developed for design

Thermal transpiration: A molecular dynamics study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

T, Joe Francis [Computational Nanotechnology Laboratory, School of Nano Science and Technology, National Institute of Technology Calicut, Kozhikode (India); Sathian, Sarith P. [Department of Applied Mechanics, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai (India)

2014-12-09

Thermal transpiration is a phenomenon where fluid molecules move from the cold end towards the hot end of a channel under the influence of longitudinal temperature gradient alone. Although the phenomenon of thermal transpiration is observed at rarefied gas conditions in macro systems, the phenomenon can occur at atmospheric pressure if the characteristic dimensions of the channel is less than 100 nm. The flow through these nanosized channels is characterized by the free molecular flow regimes and continuum theory is inadequate to describe the flow. Thus a non-continuum method like molecular dynamics (MD) is necessary to study such phenomenon. In the present work, MD simulations were carried out to investigate the occurance of thermal transpiration in copper and platinum nanochannels at atmospheric pressure conditions. The mean pressure of argon gas confined inside the nano channels was maintained around 1 bar. The channel height is maintained at 2nm. The argon atoms interact with each other and with the wall atoms through the Lennard-Jones potential. The wall atoms are modelled using an EAM potential. Further, separate simulations were carried out where a Harmonic potential is used for the atom-atom interaction in the platinum channel. A thermally insulating wall was introduced between the low and high temperature regions and those wall atoms interact with fluid atoms through a repulsive potential. A reduced cut off radius were used to achieve this. Thermal creep is induced by applying a temperature gradient along the channel wall. It was found that flow developed in the direction of the increasing temperature gradient of the wall. An increase in the volumetric flux was observed as the length of the cold and the hot regions of the wall were increased. The effect of temperature gradient and the wall-fluid interaction strength on the flow parameters have been studied to understand the phenomenon better.

Synthesis and thermal decomposition study of dysprosium trifluoroacetate

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Opata, Y. A.; Grivel, J.-C.

2018-01-01

A study of the thermal decomposition process of dysprosium trifluoroacetate hydrate under flowing argon is presented. Thermogravimetry, differential thermal analysis, evolved gas analysis and ex-situ x-ray diffraction techniques have been employed in the investigation. Three main stages were...

Thermal expansion studies on Hafnium titanate (HfTiO4)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Panneerselvam, G.; Subramanian, G.G.S.; Antony, M.P.

2006-01-01

The lattice thermal expansion characteristics of hafnium titanate (HfTiO 4 ) have been studied by measuring the lattice parameter as a function of temperature by high temperature X-ray diffraction technique (HT-XRD) in the temperature range 298-1973K. Percentage linear thermal expansion and mean linear thermal expansion coefficients were computed from the lattice parameter data. The thermal expansion of HfTiO 4 is highly anisotropic. The expansivity along 'a' axis is large; as compared to the expansivity along 'b' axis which is negative below 1073 K. The percentage linear thermal expansion in the temperature range 298-1973 K along a, b and c axis are 2.74, 0.901 and 1.49 respectively. Thermal expansion values obtained in the present study are in reasonable agreement with the existing thermal expansion data. (author)

Thermal comfort study of hospital workers in Malaysia.

Science.gov (United States)

Yau, Y H; Chew, B T

2009-12-01

This article presents findings of the thermal comfort study in hospitals. A field survey was conducted to investigate the temperature range for thermal comfort in hospitals in the tropics. Thermal acceptability assessment was conducted to examine whether the hospitals in the tropics met the ASHRAE Standard-55 80% acceptability criteria. A total of 114 occupants in four hospitals were involved in the study. The results of the field study revealed that only 44% of the examined locations met the comfort criteria specified in ASHRAE Standard 55. The survey also examined the predicted percentage of dissatisfied in the hospitals. The results showed that 49% of the occupants were satisfied with the thermal environments in the hospitals. The field survey analysis revealed that the neutral temperature for Malaysian hospitals was 26.4 degrees C. The comfort temperature range that satisfied 90% of the occupants in the space was in the range of 25.3-28.2 degrees C. The results from the field study suggested that a higher comfort temperature was required for Malaysians in hospital environments compared with the temperature criteria specified in ASHRAE Standard (2003). In addition, the significant deviation between actual mean vote and predicted mean vote (PMV) strongly implied that PMV could not be applied without errors in hospitals in the tropics. The new findings on thermal comfort temperature range in hospitals in the tropics could be used as an important guide for building services engineers and researchers who are intending to minimize energy usage in heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems in hospitals operating in the tropics with acceptable thermal comfort level and to improve the performance and well-being of its workers.

Parametric study of closed wet cooling tower thermal performance

Science.gov (United States)

Qasim, S. M.; Hayder, M. J.

2017-08-01

The present study involves experimental and theoretical analysis to evaluate the thermal performance of modified Closed Wet Cooling Tower (CWCT). The experimental study includes: design, manufacture and testing prototype of a modified counter flow forced draft CWCT. The modification based on addition packing to the conventional CWCT. A series of experiments was carried out at different operational parameters. In view of energy analysis, the thermal performance parameters of the tower are: cooling range, tower approach, cooling capacity, thermal efficiency, heat and mass transfer coefficients. The theoretical study included develops Artificial Neural Network (ANN) models to predicting various thermal performance parameters of the tower. Utilizing experimental data for training and testing, the models simulated by multi-layer back propagation algorithm for varying all operational parameters stated in experimental test.

Study of thermal conductivity and thermal rectification in exponential mass graded lattices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shah, Tejal N. [Bhavan' s Sheth R.A. College of Science, Khanpur, Ahmedabad 380 001, Gujarat (India); Gajjar, P.N., E-mail: pngajjar@rediffmail.com [Department of Physics, University School of Sciences, Gujarat University, Ahmedabad 380 009, Gujarat (India)

2012-01-09

Concept of exponential mass variation of oscillators along the chain length of N oscillators is proposed in the present Letter. The temperature profile and thermal conductivity of one-dimensional (1D) exponential mass graded harmonic and anharmonic lattices are studied on the basis of Fermi–Pasta–Ulam (FPU) β model. Present findings conclude that the exponential mass graded chain provide higher conductivity than that of linear mass graded chain. The exponential mass graded anharmonic chain generates the thermal rectification of 70–75% which is better than linear mass graded materials, so far. Thus instead of using linear mass graded material, the use of exponential mass graded material will be a better and genuine choice for controlling the heat flow at nano-scale. -- Highlights: ► In PRE 82 (2010) 040101, use of mass graded material as a thermal devices is explored. ► Concept of exponential mass graded material is proposed. ► The rectification obtained is about 70–75% which is better than linear mass graded materials. ► The exponential mass graded material will be a better choice for the thermal devices at nano-scale.

Envisioning, quantifying, and managing thermal regimes on river networks

Science.gov (United States)

Steel, E. Ashley; Beechie, Timothy J.; Torgersen, Christian E.; Fullerton, Aimee H.

2017-01-01

Water temperatures fluctuate in time and space, creating diverse thermal regimes on river networks. Temporal variability in these thermal landscapes has important biological and ecological consequences because of nonlinearities in physiological reactions; spatial diversity in thermal landscapes provides aquatic organisms with options to maximize growth and survival. However, human activities and climate change threaten to alter the dynamics of riverine thermal regimes. New data and tools can identify particular facets of the thermal landscape that describe ecological and management concerns and that are linked to human actions. The emerging complexity of thermal landscapes demands innovations in communication, opens the door to exciting research opportunities on the human impacts to and biological consequences of thermal variability, suggests improvements in monitoring programs to better capture empirical patterns, provides a framework for suites of actions to restore and protect the natural processes that drive thermal complexity, and indicates opportunities for better managing thermal landscapes.

Thermal studies on some new inorganic exchange materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murthy, G.S.; Satyanarayana, J.; Reddy, V.N.

1998-01-01

The new inorganic exchangers developed in this laboratory zirconium phosphate-ammonium molybdophosphate (ZrP-AMP), titanium phosphate-ammonium molybdophosphate (TiP-AMP) and alumina-ammonium molybdophosphate (alumina-AMP) have been investigated extensively to study the removal of Cs from high level nuclear waste. As a part of these studies thermal studies on these substances have been carried out to elucidate the information on thermal stability of these exchangers. Results obtained are presented here and discussed. (author)

Study of Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage

Science.gov (United States)

Okuyama, Masaaki; Umemiya, Hiromichi; Shibuya, Ikuko; Haga, Eiji

Yamagata University 'Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage (ATES)' is the experimental system which has been running since 1982. From the results for along terms of experiments, we obtain many important knowledge. This paper presents the accomplishments for 16 years and the characteristics of thermal energy storage in thermal energy storage well. The conclusions show as follows. 1)In recent years, the thermal recovery factor of warm energy storage well becomes almost constant at about 60%. 2) The thermal recovery factor of cool energy storage well increases gradually and becomes at about 15%. 3) Since the ferric colloidal dam is formed in aquifer, thermal recovery factor increase year after year. 4) Back wash can remove clogging for ferric colloidal dam. 5) The apparent thermal diffusivity decrease gradually due to ferric colloidal dam.

Assessing Thermal Comfort Due to a Ventilated Double Window

Science.gov (United States)

Carlos, Jorge S.; Corvacho, Helena

2017-10-01

Building design and its components are the result of a complex process, which should provide pleasant conditions to its inhabitants. Therefore, indoor acceptable comfort is influenced by the architectural design. ISO and ASHRAE standards define thermal comfort as the condition of mind that expresses satisfaction with the thermal environment. The energy demand for heating, beside the building’s physical properties, also depend on human behaviour, like opening or closing windows. Generally, windows are the weakest façade element concerning to thermal performance. A lower thermal resistance allows higher thermal conduction through it. When a window is very hot or cold, and the occupant is very close to it, it may result in thermal discomfort. The functionality of a ventilated double window introduces new physical considerations to a traditional window. In consequence, it is necessary to study the local effect on human comfort in function of the boundary conditions. Wind, solar availability, air temperature and therefore heating and indoor air quality conditions will affect the relationship between this passive system and the indoor environment. In the present paper, the influence of thermal performance and ventilation on human comfort resulting from the construction and geometry solutions is shown, helping to choose the best solution. The presented approach shows that in order to save energy it is possible to reduce the air changes of a room to the minimum, without compromising air quality, enhancing simultaneously local thermal performance and comfort. The results of the study on the effect of two parallel windows with a ventilated channel in the same fenestration on comfort conditions for several different room dimensions, are also presented. As the room dimensions’ rate changes so does the window to floor rate; therefore, under the same climatic conditions and same construction solution, different results are obtained.

Human biometeorological analysis of the thermal conditions of the hot Turkish city of Şanliurfa

Science.gov (United States)

Toy, Süleyman; Aytaç, Ahmet Serdar; Kántor, Noémi

2018-01-01

This paper offers a throughout human biometeorological assessment about the thermal conditions of Şanliurfa in one of the hottest parts of Turkey, in the hottest period of the year (from April to October), and a comparative analysis of three built-up types (urban, suburban and rural). Therefore, the values of physiologically equivalent temperature (PET), one of the most extensively used indices, were calculated from basic climate data with the help of the RayMan model. It was found by regarding the resulted mean PET values and the occurrence frequency of extreme heat stress periods (PET values above 41 °C) that the urban area exhibited the most unfavourable properties, followed by the suburban and rural areas. We also found very severe heat stress conditions in the summer, which may be explained by the torrid and arid climate, calm air conditions and the lack of abundant vegetation. Aiming to optimise human thermal conditions, thereby improving local life quality and facilitating international tourism, increment of vegetated areas and water surfaces would be required and, of course, highlighting the traditional methods taking into account the important aspects of sustainability.

Integrated thermal treatment system study -- Phase 2 results. Revision 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Feizollahi, F.; Quapp, W.J.

1996-02-01

This report presents the second phase of a study on thermal treatment technologies. The study consists of a systematic assessment of nineteen thermal treatment alternatives for the contact-handled mixed low-level waste (MLLW) currently stored in the US Department of Energy complex. The treatment alternatives consist of widely varying technologies for safely destroying the hazardous organic components, reducing the volume, and preparing for final disposal of the MLLW. The alternatives considered in Phase 2 were innovative thermal treatments with nine types of primary processing units. Other variations in the study examined the effect of combustion gas, air pollution control system design, and stabilization technology for the treatment residues. The Phase 1 study examined ten initial thermal treatment alternatives. The Phase 2 systems were evaluated in essentially the same manner as the Phase 1 systems. The alternatives evaluated were: rotary kiln, slagging kiln, plasma furnace, plasma gasification, molten salt oxidation, molten metal waste destruction, steam gasification, Joule-heated vitrification, thermal desorption and mediated electrochemical oxidation, and thermal desorption and supercritical water oxidation. The quantities, and physical and chemical compositions, of the input waste used in the Phase 2 systems differ from those in the Phase 1 systems, which were based on a preliminary waste input database developed at the onset of the Integrated Thermal Treatment System study. The inventory database used in the Phase 2 study incorporates the latest US Department of Energy information. All systems, both primary treatment systems and subsystem inputs, have now been evaluated using the same waste input (2,927 lb/hr). 28 refs., 88 figs., 41 tabs.

Integrated thermal treatment system study -- Phase 2 results. Revision 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feizollahi, F.; Quapp, W.J.

1996-02-01

This report presents the second phase of a study on thermal treatment technologies. The study consists of a systematic assessment of nineteen thermal treatment alternatives for the contact-handled mixed low-level waste (MLLW) currently stored in the US Department of Energy complex. The treatment alternatives consist of widely varying technologies for safely destroying the hazardous organic components, reducing the volume, and preparing for final disposal of the MLLW. The alternatives considered in Phase 2 were innovative thermal treatments with nine types of primary processing units. Other variations in the study examined the effect of combustion gas, air pollution control system design, and stabilization technology for the treatment residues. The Phase 1 study examined ten initial thermal treatment alternatives. The Phase 2 systems were evaluated in essentially the same manner as the Phase 1 systems. The alternatives evaluated were: rotary kiln, slagging kiln, plasma furnace, plasma gasification, molten salt oxidation, molten metal waste destruction, steam gasification, Joule-heated vitrification, thermal desorption and mediated electrochemical oxidation, and thermal desorption and supercritical water oxidation. The quantities, and physical and chemical compositions, of the input waste used in the Phase 2 systems differ from those in the Phase 1 systems, which were based on a preliminary waste input database developed at the onset of the Integrated Thermal Treatment System study. The inventory database used in the Phase 2 study incorporates the latest US Department of Energy information. All systems, both primary treatment systems and subsystem inputs, have now been evaluated using the same waste input (2,927 lb/hr). 28 refs., 88 figs., 41 tabs

Thermal plume above a simulated sitting person with different complexity of body geometry

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zukowska, Daria; Melikov, Arsen Krikor; Popiolek, Zbigniew J.

2007-01-01

Occupants are one of the main heat sources in rooms. They generate thermal plumes with characteristics, which depend on geometry, surface temperature and area of the human body in contact with the surrounding air as well as temperature, velocity and turbulence intensity distribution in the room....... The characteristics of the thermal plume generated by a sitting person were studied using four human body simulators with different complexity of geometry but equal surface area: a vertical cylinder, a rectangular box, a dummy, and a thermal manikin. The results show that the dummy and the thermal manikin generate...

A correlation linking the predicted mean vote and the mean thermal vote based on an investigation on the human thermal comfort in short-haul domestic flights.

Science.gov (United States)

Giaconia, Carlo; Orioli, Aldo; Di Gangi, Alessandra

2015-05-01

The results of an experimental investigation on the human thermal comfort inside the cabin of some Airbus A319 aircrafts during 14 short-haul domestic flights, linking various Italian cities, are presented and used to define a correlation among the predicted mean vote (PMV), a procedure which is commonly used to assess the thermal comfort in inhabited environments, and the equivalent temperature and mean thermal vote (MTV), which are the parameters suggested by the European Standard EN ISO 14505-2 for the evaluation of the thermal environment in vehicles. The measurements of the radiant temperature, air temperature and relative humidity during flights were performed. The air temperature varied between 22.2 °C and 26.0 °C; the relative humidity ranged from 8.7% to 59.2%. The calculated values of the PMV varied from -0.16 to 0.90 and were confirmed by the answers of the passengers. The equivalent temperature was evaluated using the equations of Fanger or on the basis of the values of the skin temperature measured on some volunteers. The correlation linking the thermal sensation scales and zones used by the PMV and the MTV resulted quite accurate because the minimum value of the absolute difference between such environmental indexes equalled 0.0073 and the maximum difference did not exceed the value of 0.0589. Even though the equivalent temperature and the MTV were specifically proposed to evaluate the thermal sensation in vehicles, their use may be effectively extended to the assessment of the thermal comfort in airplanes or other occupied places. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

Human and natural influences on the changing thermal structure of the atmosphere.

Science.gov (United States)

Santer, Benjamin D; Painter, Jeffrey F; Bonfils, Céline; Mears, Carl A; Solomon, Susan; Wigley, Tom M L; Gleckler, Peter J; Schmidt, Gavin A; Doutriaux, Charles; Gillett, Nathan P; Taylor, Karl E; Thorne, Peter W; Wentz, Frank J

2013-10-22

Since the late 1970s, satellite-based instruments have monitored global changes in atmospheric temperature. These measurements reveal multidecadal tropospheric warming and stratospheric cooling, punctuated by short-term volcanic signals of reverse sign. Similar long- and short-term temperature signals occur in model simulations driven by human-caused changes in atmospheric composition and natural variations in volcanic aerosols. Most previous comparisons of modeled and observed atmospheric temperature changes have used results from individual models and individual observational records. In contrast, we rely on a large multimodel archive and multiple observational datasets. We show that a human-caused latitude/altitude pattern of atmospheric temperature change can be identified with high statistical confidence in satellite data. Results are robust to current uncertainties in models and observations. Virtually all previous research in this area has attempted to discriminate an anthropogenic signal from internal variability. Here, we present evidence that a human-caused signal can also be identified relative to the larger "total" natural variability arising from sources internal to the climate system, solar irradiance changes, and volcanic forcing. Consistent signal identification occurs because both internal and total natural variability (as simulated by state-of-the-art models) cannot produce sustained global-scale tropospheric warming and stratospheric cooling. Our results provide clear evidence for a discernible human influence on the thermal structure of the atmosphere.

The relationship between bioclimatic thermal stress and subjective thermal sensation in pedestrian spaces

Science.gov (United States)

Pearlmutter, David; Jiao, Dixin; Garb, Yaakov

2014-12-01

Outdoor thermal comfort has important implications for urban planning and energy consumption in the built environment. To better understand the relation of subjective thermal experience to bioclimatic thermal stress in such contexts, this study compares micrometeorological and perceptual data from urban spaces in the hot-arid Negev region of Israel. Pedestrians reported on their thermal sensation in these spaces, whereas radiation and convection-related data were used to compute the Index of Thermal Stress (ITS) and physiologically equivalent temperature (PET). The former is a straightforward characterization of energy exchanges between the human body and its surroundings, without any conversion to an "equivalent temperature." Although the relation of ITS to subjective thermal sensation has been analyzed in the past under controlled indoor conditions, this paper offers the first analysis of this relation in an outdoor setting. ITS alone can account for nearly 60 % of the variance in pedestrians' thermal sensation under outdoor conditions, somewhat more than PET. A series of regressions with individual contextual variables and ITS identified those factors which accounted for additional variance in thermal sensation, whereas multivariate analyses indicated the considerable predictive power ( R-square = 0.74) of models including multiple contextual variables in addition to ITS. Our findings indicate that pedestrians experiencing variable outdoor conditions have a greater tolerance for incremental changes in thermal stress than has been shown previously under controlled indoor conditions, with a tapering of responses at high values of ITS. However, the thresholds of ITS corresponding to thermal "neutrality" and thermal "acceptability" are quite consistent regardless of context.

Experimental and numerical studies of various thermal sleeves subjected to severe cyclic thermal shocks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Masson, J.C.; Moinereau, D.

1990-01-01

During the first operating years of nuclear power plants of different countries, damage was encountered on thermal sleeves used as nozzle protection. Following this discovery studies were initiated to determine the causes and to find solutions. At first a problem of vibration was found and easily solved by reducing gaps and reinforcing the welding of the sleeves. But preliminary tests with cyclic thermal shocks showed a risk of fatigue crack initiation and propagation both in the sleeve fixation and in the nozzle. Therefore a large research and development program was led principally by EDF laboratories of Les Renardieres, to demonstrate the absence of nocivity of thermal shocks during the plants life time [fr

Thermal Management Tools for Propulsion System Trade Studies and Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

McCarthy, Kevin; Hodge, Ernie

2011-01-01

Energy-related subsystems in modern aircraft are more tightly coupled with less design margin. These subsystems include thermal management subsystems, vehicle electric power generation and distribution, aircraft engines, and flight control. Tighter coupling, lower design margins, and higher system complexity all make preliminary trade studies difficult. A suite of thermal management analysis tools has been developed to facilitate trade studies during preliminary design of air-vehicle propulsion systems. Simulink blocksets (from MathWorks) for developing quasi-steady-state and transient system models of aircraft thermal management systems and related energy systems have been developed. These blocksets extend the Simulink modeling environment in the thermal sciences and aircraft systems disciplines. The blocksets include blocks for modeling aircraft system heat loads, heat exchangers, pumps, reservoirs, fuel tanks, and other components at varying levels of model fidelity. The blocksets have been applied in a first-principles, physics-based modeling and simulation architecture for rapid prototyping of aircraft thermal management and related systems. They have been applied in representative modern aircraft thermal management system studies. The modeling and simulation architecture has also been used to conduct trade studies in a vehicle level model that incorporates coupling effects among the aircraft mission, engine cycle, fuel, and multi-phase heat-transfer materials.

Kapitza thermal resistance studied by high-frequency photothermal radiometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horny, Nicolas; Chirtoc, Mihai; Hamaoui, Georges; Fleming, Austin; Ban, Heng

2016-01-01

Kapitza thermal resistance is determined using high-frequency photothermal radiometry (PTR) extended for modulation up to 10 MHz. Interfaces between 50 nm thick titanium coatings and silicon or stainless steel substrates are studied. In the used configuration, the PTR signal is not sensitive to the thermal conductivity of the film nor to its optical absorption coefficient, thus the Kapitza resistance is directly determined from single thermal parameter fits. Results of thermal resistances show the significant influence of the nature of the substrate, as well as of the presence of free electrons at the interface.

Synthesis and Thermal Characterization of Hydroxyapatite Powders Obtained by Sol-Gel Technique

Science.gov (United States)

Jiménez-Flores, Y.; Camacho, N.; Rojas-Trigos, J. B.; Suárez, M.

The development of bioactive materials presents an interesting and an extremely relevant problem to solve, in the development of customized cranial and maxillofacial prosthesis, bioactive coating, and cements, for example. In such areas, one of the more employed materials is the synthetic hydroxyapatite, due to its proved biocompatibility with the human body; however, there are few studies about the thermal affinity with the biological surroundings, and most of them are centered in the thermal stability of the hydroxyapatite instead of its transient thermal response. In the present paper, the synthesis and physical-chemical characterization of hydroxyapatite samples, obtained by the sol-gel technique employing ultrasonic mixing, are reported. Employing X-ray diffraction patterns, XEDS and FTIR spectra, the crystal symmetry, chemical elements, and the present functional groups of the studied samples were determined and found to correspond to those reported in the literature, with a stoichiometry close to the ideal for biological applications. Additionally, by means of the photoacoustic detection and infrared photothermal radiometry (IPTR) techniques, the thermal response of the samples was obtained. Analyzing the photoacoustic data, the synthetized samples show photoacoustic opaqueness, responding in the thermally thick regime in the measurement range, and their thermal effusivity was also determined, having values of 1.47 folds the thermal effusivity of the mandibular human bone. Finally, from the IPTR measurements, the thermal diffusivity and thermal conductivity of the samples were also determined, having good agreement with the reported values for synthetic hydroxyapatite. The structural and thermophysical properties of the here reported samples show that the synthesized samples have good thermal affinity with the mandibular human bone tissue, and are suitable for biomedical applications.

Experimental study on the thermal performance of a mechanical cooling tower with different drift eliminators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lucas, M.; Martinez, P.J.; Viedma, A.

2009-01-01

Cooling towers are equipment devices commonly used to dissipate heat from power generation units, water-cooled refrigeration, air conditioning and industrial processes. Water drift emitted from cooling towers is objectionable for several reasons, mainly due to human health hazards. It is common practice to fit drift eliminators to cooling towers in order to minimize water loss from the system. It is foreseeable that the characteristics of the installed drift eliminators, like their pressure drop, affect the thermal performance of the cooling tower. However, no references regarding this fact have been found in the reviewed bibliography. This paper studies the thermal performance of a forced draft counter-flow wet cooling tower fitted with different drift eliminators for a wide range of air and water mass flow rates. The data registered in the experimental set-up were employed to obtain correlations of the tower characteristic, which defines the cooling tower's thermal performance. The outlet water temperature predicted by these correlations was compared with the experimentally registered values obtaining a maximum difference of ±3%

Effects of thermal discomfort in an office on perceived air quality, SBS symptoms, physiological responses and human performance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lan, Li; Wargocki, Pawel; Wyon, David Peter

2011-01-01

The effects of thermal discomfort on health and human performance were investigated in an office, in an attempt to elucidate the physiological mechanisms involved. Twelve subjects (six men and six women) performed neurobehavioral tests and tasks typical of office work while thermally neutral (at 22......, and were less willing to exert effort. Task performance decreased when the subjects felt warm. Their heart rate, respiratory ventilation, and end-tidal partial pressure of carbon dioxide increased significantly, and their arterial oxygen saturation decreased. Tear film quality was found to be significantly...... reduced at the higher temperature when they felt warm. No effects were observed on salivary biomarkers (alpha-amylase and cortisol). The present results imply that the negative effects on health and performance that occur when people feel thermally warm at raised temperatures are caused by physiological...

Thermal Effect of Pulsed Laser on Human Skin

OpenAIRE

N. C. Majumdar; V. K. Kochhar

1985-01-01

An attempt has been made to derive from theoretical considerations, some idea about safety limits of exposure with regard to radiant energy skin burns. This may be regarded as a preliminary enquiry in respect of thermal tissue damage by pulsed laser radiation, since the effects of isolated single pulses from ruby laser only have been considered. The study needs to be extended to other wavelengths as well as to trains of pulses.

Thermal mapping studies at Kadra reservoir near Kaiga generating station site

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ravi, P.M.; Nayak, P.D.; Sudhakar, J.; Mishra, D.G.; Hegde, A.G.

2007-01-01

An inherent problem in nuclear and thermal power plants are the release of heat energy into the environment through cooling system to water bodies such as lakes, rivers, estuaries and oceans. Two NPPs of Kaiga Generating Station, discharge the thermal effluent to the nearby Kadra reservoir. This paper presents the results of three year long comprehensive thermal mapping studies conducted by ESL, KGS as part of the Thermal Ecological Studies sponsored by Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences (BRNS), Department of Atomic Energy. Present studies clearly demonstrate that the thermally influenced zone in the reservoir is limited to a small volume of the reservoir and is not likely to lead any irreversible adverse impact on the ecosystem of the reservoir. (author)

THERMAL COMFORT IN VERNACULAR COURTYARD HOUSES: CASE STUDY -CHHATTISGARH

OpenAIRE

Swasti Sthapak*1, Dr. Abir Bandyopadhyay2

2017-01-01

The paper firstly introduces vernacular architecture and defines thermal comfort. The second section of this paper gives an account of the way vernacular houses respond to climate and achieve thermal comfort. Vernacular houses of Chhattisgarh, a central state of India are selected for this study to find the evidence that vernacular architecture is likely to be passively comfortable. Courtyards play a vital role in creating thermal comfort along with other social and cultural roles. Vernacular...

Associations between Thermal and Physiological Responses of Human Body during Exercise

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suleyman Zora

2017-12-01

Full Text Available In this study, thermal behaviours of the athletes were investigated with respect to thermal comfort and exercise intensity. The relationship between an index for analysing thermal comfort (Predicted Mean Vote: PMV and Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE which shows exercise intensity and exhaustion level was evaluated. Eleven moderately trained male athletes ( V ˙ O2max 54 ± 9.9 mL∙min−1∙kg−1 had volunteered for the study (age: 22.2 ± 3.7 years; body mass: 73.8 ± 6.9 kg; height: 181 ± 6.3 cm; Body surface area (BSA: 1.93 ± 0.1 m2; body fat: 12.6% ± 4.2%; V ˙ O2max: 54 ± 9.9 mL∙min−1∙kg−1. Experiments were carried out by using a cycle ergometer in an air-conditioned test chamber which provided fresh air and had the ability to control the temperature and relative humidity. The study cohort was divided into two groups according to maximal oxygen consumption levels of the participants. Statistical analyses were conducted with the whole study cohort as well as the two separated groups. There was a moderate correlation between PMV and RPE for whole cohort (r: −0.51. When the whole cohort divided as low and high aerobic power groups, an average correlation coefficient at high oxygen consumption cohort decreased to r: −0.21, while the average correlation coefficient at low oxygen consumption cohort increased to r: −0.77. In conclusion, PMV and RPE have a high correlation in less trained participants, but not in the more trained ones. The case may bring to mind that thermal distribution may be better in high aerobic power group in spite of high RPE and thus the relation between PMV and RPE is affected by exercise performance status.

Review of the integrated thermal and nonthermal treatment system studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1996-08-01

This report contains a review and evaluation of three systems analysis studies performed by LITCO on integrated thermal treatment systems and integrated nonthermal treatment systems for the remediation of mixed low-level waste stored throughout the US Department of Energy weapons complex. The review was performed by an independent team of nine researchers from the Energy and Environmental Research Center, Science Applications International Corporation, the Waste Policy Institute, and Virginia Tech. The three studies reviewed were as follows: Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 1--issued July 1994; Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 2--issued February 1996; and Integrated Nonthermal Treatment System Study--drafted March 1996. The purpose of this review was to (1) determine whether the assumptions of the studies were adequate to produce an unbiased review of both thermal and nonthermal systems, (2) to identify the critical areas of the studies that would benefit from further investigation, and (3) to develop a standard template that could be used in future studies to assure a sound application of systems engineering.

Review of the integrated thermal and nonthermal treatment system studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Durrani, H.A.; Schmidt, L.J.; Erickson, T.A.; Sondreal, E.A.; Erjavec, J.; Steadman, E.N.; Fabrycky, W.J.; Wilson, J.S.; Musich, M.A.

1996-07-01

This report analyzes three systems engineering (SE) studies performed on integrated thermal treatment systems (ITTSs) and integrated nonthermal treatment systems (INTSs) for the remediation of mixed low-level waste (MLLW) stored throughout the US Department of Energy (DOE) weapons complex. The review was performed by an independent team of nine researchers from the Energy and Environmental Research Center (EERC), Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), the Waste Policy Institute (WPI), and Virginia Tech (VT). The three studies reviewed were as follows: Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 1--issued July 1994; Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 2--issued February 1996; and Integrated Nonthermal Treatment System Study--drafted March 1996. The purpose of this review was to (1) determine whether the assumptions taken in the studies might bias the resulting economic evaluations of both thermal and nonthermal systems, (2) identify the critical areas of the studies that would benefit from further investigation, and (3) develop a standard template that could be used in future studies to produce sound SE applications.

Review of the integrated thermal and nonthermal treatment system studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-08-01

This report contains a review and evaluation of three systems analysis studies performed by LITCO on integrated thermal treatment systems and integrated nonthermal treatment systems for the remediation of mixed low-level waste stored throughout the US Department of Energy weapons complex. The review was performed by an independent team of nine researchers from the Energy and Environmental Research Center, Science Applications International Corporation, the Waste Policy Institute, and Virginia Tech. The three studies reviewed were as follows: Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 1--issued July 1994; Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 2--issued February 1996; and Integrated Nonthermal Treatment System Study--drafted March 1996. The purpose of this review was to (1) determine whether the assumptions of the studies were adequate to produce an unbiased review of both thermal and nonthermal systems, (2) to identify the critical areas of the studies that would benefit from further investigation, and (3) to develop a standard template that could be used in future studies to assure a sound application of systems engineering

Methods of evaluating protective clothing relative to heat and cold stress: thermal manikin, biomedical modeling, and human testing.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Brien, Catherine; Blanchard, Laurie A; Cadarette, Bruce S; Endrusick, Thomas L; Xu, Xiaojiang; Berglund, Larry G; Sawka, Michael N; Hoyt, Reed W

2011-10-01

Personal protective equipment (PPE) refers to clothing and equipment designed to protect individuals from chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive hazards. The materials used to provide this protection may exacerbate thermal strain by limiting heat and water vapor transfer. Any new PPE must therefore be evaluated to ensure that it poses no greater thermal strain than the current standard for the same level of hazard protection. This review describes how such evaluations are typically conducted. Comprehensive evaluation of PPE begins with a biophysical assessment of materials using a guarded hot plate to determine the thermal characteristics (thermal resistance and water vapor permeability). These characteristics are then evaluated on a thermal manikin wearing the PPE, since thermal properties may change once the materials have been constructed into a garment. These data may be used in biomedical models to predict thermal strain under a variety of environmental and work conditions. When the biophysical data indicate that the evaporative resistance (ratio of permeability to insulation) is significantly better than the current standard, the PPE is evaluated through human testing in controlled laboratory conditions appropriate for the conditions under which the PPE would be used if fielded. Data from each phase of PPE evaluation are used in predictive models to determine user guidelines, such as maximal work time, work/rest cycles, and fluid intake requirements. By considering thermal stress early in the development process, health hazards related to temperature extremes can be mitigated while maintaining or improving the effectiveness of the PPE for protection from external hazards.

Interface thermal characteristics of flip chip packages - A numerical study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kandasamy, Ravi; Mujumdar, A.S.

2009-01-01

Flip chip ball grid array (FC-BGA) packages are commonly used for high inputs/outputs (I/O) ICs; they have been proven to provide good solutions for a variety of applications to maximize thermal and electrical performance. A fundamental limitation to such devices is the thermal resistance at the top of the package, which is characterized θ JC parameter. The die-to-lid interface thermal resistance is identified as a critical issue for the thermal management of electronic packages. This paper focuses on the effect of the interface material property changes on the interface thermal resistance. The effect of package's junction to case (Theta-JC or θ JC ) thermal performance is investigated for bare die, flat lid and cup lid packages using a validated thermal model. Thermal performance of a cup or flat lid attached and bare die packages were investigated for different interface materials. Improved Theta-JC performance was observed for the large die as compared to the smaller die. Several parametric studies were carried out to understand the effects of interface bond line thickness (BLT), different die sizes, the average void size during assembly and thermal conductivity of interface materials on package thermal resistance

A Thermal Test System for Helmet Cooling Studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shaun Fitzgerald

2018-02-01

Full Text Available One of the primary causes of discomfort to both irregular and elite cyclists is heat entrapment by a helmet resulting in overheating and excessive sweating of the head. To accurately assess the cooling effectiveness of bicycle helmets, a heated plastic thermal headform has been developed. The construction consists of a 3D-printed headform of low thermal conductivity with an internal layer of high thermal mass that is heated to a constant uniform temperature by an electrical heating element. Testing is conducted in a wind tunnel where the heater power remains constant and the resulting surface temperature distribution is directly measured by 36 K-type thermocouples embedded within the surface of the head in conjunction with a thermal imaging camera. Using this new test system, four bicycle helmets were studied in order to measure their cooling abilities and to identify ‘hot spots’ where cooling performance is poor.

Thermal Management and Thermal Protection Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Hasnain, Aqib

2016-01-01

During my internship in the Thermal Design Branch (ES3), I contributed to two main projects: i) novel passive thermal management system for future human exploration, ii) AVCOAT undercut thermal analysis. i) As NASA prepares to further expand human and robotic presence in space, it is well known that spacecraft architectures will be challenged with unprecedented thermal environments. Future exploration activities will have the need of thermal management systems that can provide higher reliability, mass and power reduction and increased performance. In an effort to start addressing the current technical gaps the NASA Johnson Space Center Passive Thermal Discipline has engaged in technology development activities. One of these activities was done through an in-house Passive Thermal Management System (PTMS) design for a lunar lander. The proposed PTMS, functional in both microgravity and gravity environments, consists of three main components: a heat spreader, a novel hybrid wick Variable Conductance Heat Pipe (VCHP), and a radiator. The aim of this PTMS is to keep electronics on a vehicle within their temperature limits (0 and 50 C for the current design) during all mission phases including multiple lunar day/night cycles. The VCHP was tested to verify its thermal performance. I created a thermal math model using Thermal Desktop (TD) and analyzed it to predict the PTMS performance. After testing, the test data provided a means to correlate the thermal math model. This correlation took into account conduction and convection heat transfer, representing the actual benchtop test. Since this PTMS is proposed for space missions, a vacuum test will be taking place to provide confidence that the system is functional in space environments. Therefore, the model was modified to include a vacuum chamber with a liquid nitrogen shroud while taking into account conduction and radiation heat transfer. Infrared Lamps were modelled and introduced into the model to simulate the sun

Thermal welding versus cold knife tonsillectomy: A prospective randomized study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Metin Yilmaz

2012-05-01

Full Text Available This is a prospective randomized study conducted in a group of children who underwent two methods of tonsillectomy: thermal welding or cold knife tonsillectomy. Parameters, such as postoperative pain scores, intraoperative blood loss, operation time, and postoperative bleeding rates, were analyzed to find out which technique is better. Ninety-one children (aged between 2 years and 13 years with recurrent tonsillitis, obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, or both were included in the study. According to the type of tonsillectomy procedure, the patients were divided into two groups: cold knife and thermal welding procedure. The two groups were compared on the basis of postoperative pain scores, intraoperative blood loss, operation time, and postoperative bleeding. Fifty-seven patients underwent thermal welding tonsillectomy and 34 had cold knife tonsillectomy. The mean pain score in thermal welding group was significantly lower (p<0.001. There was no remarkable blood loss intraoperatively in the thermal welding procedure. The operation time was not significantly different between two groups. No postoperative bleeding was encountered in the thermal welding group. Compared with the cold knife technique, thermal welding was found to be a relatively new and safe technique for tonsillectomy as it results in significantly less postoperative pain and no remarkable blood loss.

Thermal diffusivity effect in opto-thermal skin measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiao, P; Imhof, R E; Cui, Y; Ciortea, L I; Berg, E P

2010-01-01

We present our latest study on the thermal diffusivity effect in opto-thermal skin measurements. We discuss how thermal diffusivity affects the shape of opto-thermal signal, and how to measure thermal diffusivity in opto-thermal measurements of arbitrary sample surfaces. We also present a mathematical model for a thermally gradient material, and its corresponding opto-thermal signal. Finally, we show some of our latest experimental results of this thermal diffusivity effect study.

Analyzing Thermal Characteristics of Urban Streets Using a Thermal Imaging Camera: A Case Study on Commercial Streets in Seoul, Korea

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sugie Lee

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Due to continuing city growth and global warming over the past decades, urban heat island (UHI effects, referring to the phenomena wherein the ambient air temperatures in cities are higher than those in rural areas, have become a serious threat to urban populations. Impervious surfaces, buildings with low-albedo materials, and a lack of vegetated areas are the major causes of poor urban thermal environments, particularly during the summer. Previous research has focused primarily on the thermal characteristics of individual building units. Few studies consider the impact of the street-scale thermal environments on the surface temperature, which affects pedestrian thermal comfort. The purpose of this study is to analyze the thermal characteristics of various physical elements on urban streets using thermal imaging cameras, and present policy implications for improving pedestrian thermal comfort. This study examines street-scale thermal environments of three major commercial streets: Garosu road, Serosu road, and Narosu road, in Seoul, Korea. This study conducted field measurements both during the day and the night in June 2017 in order to investigate changes in the urban surface temperatures across time. The results show that street trees are the most effective mitigation element for reducing surface temperatures. With regard to building use types, the highest surface temperatures are typically measured near restaurant buildings. Building façades that are dark-colored or partially covered with a metal contribute to high surface temperatures. Similarly, the temperatures of artificial turf or wooden decks on urban streets are also significantly high during the daytime. The thermal characteristics of various urban street elements should be considered to reduce the surface temperature and mitigate the urban heat island effect.

Effects of vegetation, structural and human factors on the thermal performance of residences in a semi-arid environment

Science.gov (United States)

Kliman, Susan Schaefer

The objectives of the study were to examine and quantify the relationship between vegetation and the thermal performance of residences in a hot arid environment. Also explored were structural and human influences on residential energy consumption. A primary goal was to determine how much energy savings could be realized through strategic planting of vegetation. This study sought to validate previous simulation and modeling studies that documented annual savings of 2--11% on residential cooling loads. Also examined was whether shrubs and grass could provide a benefit similar to that of trees, assessing the importance of evapotranspiration versus shading. An empirical study was conducted using 105 existing homes in the metropolitan area of Tucson, Arizona. Data included construction type, amenities, living habits of occupants, and energy consumption for heating and cooling over a two-year period. These data were analyzed with a combination of bivariate and multivariate analyses to examine direct correlations between specific variables and energy consumption and the relative importance of each variable. These analyses were unable to document any measurable savings in summer cooling loads as a result of vegetation adjacent to the house, and the presence of trees actually increased the winter heating load by 2%. While trees provide important shading benefits, and can reduce the direct solar gain through the windows of a house, analysis demonstrated that structural and human factors were the most important aspects in residential energy consumption. The size of the house is of primary importance. Houses with evaporative cooling consumed significantly less energy than those with air conditioning. Thermostat settings and habits regarding thermostat operation were the most critical human factors. Occupants who adjusted their thermostats a few degrees cooler in winter and warmer in summer realized measurable savings. Occupants who turned their heating and cooling equipment

Spectroscopic study of local thermal effect in transparent glass ceramics containing nanoparticles

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

2007-01-01

Local thermal effect influencing the fluorescence of triply ionized rare earth ions doped in nanocrystals is studied with laser spectroscopy and theory of thermal transportation for transparent oxyfluoride glass ceramics containing nanocrystals. The result shows that the local temperature of the nanocrystals embedded in glass matrices is much higher than the environmental temperature of the sample. It is suggested that the temperature-dependent thermal energy induced by the light absorption must be considered when the theory of thermal transportation is applied to the study of local thermal effect.

Heat exchange studies on coconut oil cells as thermal energy storage for room thermal conditioning

Science.gov (United States)

Sutjahja, I. M.; Putri, Widya A.; Fahmi, Z.; Wonorahardjo, S.; Kurnia, D.

2017-07-01

As reported by many thermal environment experts, room air conditioning might be controlled by thermal mass system. In this paper we discuss the performance of coconut oil cells as room thermal energy storage. The heat exchange mechanism of coconut oil (CO) which is one of potential organic Phase Change Material (PCM) is studied based on the results of temperature measurements in the perimeter and core parts of cells. We found that the heat exchange performance, i.e. heat absorption and heat release processes of CO cells are dominated by heat conduction in the sensible solid from the higher temperature perimeter part to the lower temperature core part and heat convection during the solid-liquid phase transition and sensible liquid phase. The capability of heat absorption as measured by the reduction of air temperature is not influenced by CO cell size. Besides that, the application of CO as the thermal mass has to be accompanied by air circulation to get the cool sensation of the room’s occupants.

Study on durability for thermal cycle of planar SOFC

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ando, Motoo; Nakata, Kei-ichi; Wakayama, Sin-ichi [Tonen Corp., Saitama (Japan)] [and others

1996-12-31

TONEN CORPORATION has developed planar type SOFC since 1986. We demonstrated the output of 1.3 kW in 1991 and 5.1 kW in 1995. Simultaneously we have studied how to raise electric efficiency and reliability utilizing hydrogen and propane as fuel. Durability for thermal cycle is one of the most important problems of planar SOFC to make it more practical. The planar type SOFC is made up of separator, zirconia electrolyte and glass sealant. The thermal expansion of these components are expected to be the same value, however, they still possess small differences. In this situation, a thermal cycle causes a thermal stress due to the difference of the cell components and is often followed by a rupture in cell components, therefore, the analysis of the thermal stress should give us much useful information. The thermal cycle process consists of a heating up and cooling down procedure. Zirconia electrolyte is not bonded to the separator under the condition of the initial heating up procedure, and glass sealant becomes soft or melts and glass seals spaces between the zirconia and separator. The glass sealant becomes harder with the cooling down procedure. Moreover, zirconia is tightly bonded with separator below a temperature which is defined as a constraint temperature and thermal stress also occurs. This indicates that the heating up process relaxes the thermal stress and the cooling down increases it. In this paper, we simulated dependence of the stress on the sealing configuration, thermal expansion of sealant and constraint temperature of sealant glass. Furthermore, we presented SOFC electrical properties after a thermal cycle.

Study of the thermal degradation of citrus seeds

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hernandez-Montoya, V. [Centro de Quimica, Instituto de Ciencias, Universidad Autonoma de Puebla, Apdo. Postal J-55, Puebla 72570, Pue (Mexico); Instituto Nacional del Carbon, CSIC, Apartado 73, E-33080 Oviedo (Spain); Montes-Moran, M.A. [Instituto Nacional del Carbon, CSIC, Apartado 73, E-33080 Oviedo (Spain); Elizalde-Gonzalez, M.P. [Centro de Quimica, Instituto de Ciencias, Universidad Autonoma de Puebla, Apdo. Postal J-55, Puebla 72570, Pue (Mexico)

2009-09-15

The citrus seeds are one of the principal residues in the juice industry and their utilization can decrease significantly the problems of their final disposal. In this work the thermal degradation of three Mexican citrus seeds: orange (Citrus sinensis), lemon (Citrus Limon) and grapefruit (Citrus paradisi) was studied in nitrogen atmosphere. The two components (embryo and husk) of the seeds were characterized separately. The results showed that the thermal effects are very similar between the three embryos and the three husks. The embryos show higher degradability, superior content of nitrogen and higher heating value than the husks. The thermal degradation of the components of the three seeds is completed at 600 C and it is considered to be a global process derived from the decomposition of their principal components (cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin). The results suggest that mixing the three entire seeds will not lead to a severe deviation from their individual thermal behavior and that the industry could apply them for carbonization purposes. (author)

Thermal Infrared Imaging-Based Computational Psychophysiology for Psychometrics.

Science.gov (United States)

Cardone, Daniela; Pinti, Paola; Merla, Arcangelo

2015-01-01

Thermal infrared imaging has been proposed as a potential system for the computational assessment of human autonomic nervous activity and psychophysiological states in a contactless and noninvasive way. Through bioheat modeling of facial thermal imagery, several vital signs can be extracted, including localized blood perfusion, cardiac pulse, breath rate, and sudomotor response, since all these parameters impact the cutaneous temperature. The obtained physiological information could then be used to draw inferences about a variety of psychophysiological or affective states, as proved by the increasing number of psychophysiological studies using thermal infrared imaging. This paper presents therefore a review of the principal achievements of thermal infrared imaging in computational physiology with regard to its capability of monitoring psychophysiological activity.

Vergence increases the gain of the human angular vestibulo-ocular reflex during peripheral hyposensitivity elicited by cold thermal irrigation.

Science.gov (United States)

Tamás, László T; Lundberg, Yunxia W; Büki, Béla

2018-01-01

When viewing a far target, the gain of the horizontal vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) is around 1.0, but when viewing a near target there is an increased response. It has been shown that while this convergence-mediated modulation is unaffected by canal plugging and clinically practical transmastoid galvanic stimulation, it is eliminated by a partial peripheral gentamicin lesion. The aim of this study was to determine if convergence increases the gain during peripheral hyposensitivity elicited by cold thermal irrigation. The high frequency VOR gain was measured using video head impulse testing immediately after the cold caloric stimulus in 9 healthy human subjects with the lateral semicircular canals oriented approximately earth-vertical. Before caloric irrigation, near viewing (15 cm) increased the average VOR gain by 28% (from 1 to 1.28). Cold (24°C) water irrigation of the right ear decreased the gain to 0.66 (far viewing) and 0.82 (near viewing) (22% difference). Although vergence also increased the gain for impulses to the left to the same degree before caloric stimulus, the caloric irrigation itself (applied to the right ear) did not influence the gain for contralateral impulses. In our experiments vergence increased the gain of the human angular VOR during peripheral hyposensitivity elicited by cold thermal irrigation. These results suggest that cold irrigation does not abolish the function of the nonlinear/phasic vestibular afferent pathway.

Thermal Stimulation Alters Cervical Spinal Cord Functional Connectivity in Humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Weber, Kenneth A; Sentis, Amy I; Bernadel-Huey, Olivia N; Chen, Yufen; Wang, Xue; Parrish, Todd B; Mackey, Sean

2018-01-15

The spinal cord has an active role in the modulation and transmission of the neural signals traveling between the body and the brain. Recent advancements in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) have made the in vivo examination of spinal cord function in humans now possible. This technology has been recently extended to the investigation of resting state functional networks in the spinal cord, leading to the identification of distinct patterns of spinal cord functional connectivity. In this study, we expand on the previous work and further investigate resting state cervical spinal cord functional connectivity in healthy participants (n = 15) using high resolution imaging coupled with both seed-based functional connectivity analyses and graph theory-based metrics. Within spinal cord segment functional connectivity was present between the left and right ventral horns (bilateral motor network), left and right dorsal horns (bilateral sensory network), and the ipsilateral ventral and dorsal horns (unilateral sensory-motor network). Functional connectivity between the spinal cord segments was less apparent with the connectivity centered at the region of interest and spanning spinal cord functional network was demonstrated to be state-dependent as thermal stimulation of the right ventrolateral forearm resulted in significant disruption of the bilateral sensory network, increased network global efficiency, and decreased network modularity. Copyright © 2017 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

THERMAL COMFORT STUDY OF TEACHERS' ROOM AT SEKOLAH BINA MULIA PONTIANAK

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Albert Suryajaya

2014-01-01

tersebut dalam tiga hari pengamatan adalah 0,130 dan merupakan kondisi netral. Ini artinya ruangan tersebut nyaman bagi penggunanya, yang pada dasarnya dikarenakan sistem jendela, pelindung matahari, dan material bangunan dapat mendukung ventilasi udara alami pada bangunan   REFERENCES Alucci, Marcia Peinando; Leonardo Marques Monteiro. 2009. Thermal Comfort Index for The Assessment of Outdoor Urban Spaces in Subtropical Climates. University of Sao Paulo. Sao Paulo Brager, G.S. and R. de Dear. 2001. Climate, Comfort, & Natural Ventilation: A new adaptive comfort standard for ASHRAE Standard 55. University of California. Berkeley. Charles, Kate E. 2003. Fanger’s Thermal Comfort and Draught Models. Institute for Research in Construction. Ottawa Darby, Sarah and Rebecca White. 2005. Thermal Comfort. University of Oxford. London Hensen, J.L.M. 1990. Literature Review on Thermal Comfort in Tranisent Conditions. Eindhoven University of Technology. Eindhoven Mangunwijaya, Yusuf Bilyarta. 1929. Pengantar Fisika Bangunan. Djambatan. Jakarta Mors, Sanderter, Jan L. M. Hensen, Marcel Loomans, Atze Boerstra. 2011. Adaptive thermal comfort in primary school classrooms: Creating and validating PMV-based comfort charts. Eindhoven University of Technology. Eindhoven Orosa, Jose A. 2009. Research on the Origins of Thermal Comfort. University of A Coruña. A Coruña Parsons, Ken. 2003. Human Thermal Environments: The effect of Hot, Modern, and Cold Environments on Human Health, Comfort, and Performance. Tj International Ltd. Cornwall Pau, J.S., William K.S. Pao, Shaharin A. Sulaiman, and E. Halawa. 2013. Adaptive Thermal’s Model for Optimum Thermal Comfort Setting fo Lecture Halls in Malaysia. CREAM - Current Research in Malaysia Vol.2, No. 2 Satwiko, Prasasto. 2005. Fisika Bangunan 1 Edisi 2. Andi. Yogyakarta

imide, crystal structure, thermal and dielectric studies

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

methyl imidazolium methylidene bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide, crystal structure, thermal and dielectric studies. BOUMEDIENE HADDAD1,2,3,∗, TAQIYEDDINE MOUMENE2, DIDIER VILLEMIN1,. JEAN-FRANÇOIS LOHIER1 and EL-HABIB ...

Measurement and prediction of indoor air quality using a breathing thermal manikin.

Science.gov (United States)

Melikov, A; Kaczmarczyk, J

2007-02-01

The analyses performed in this paper reveal that a breathing thermal manikin with realistic simulation of respiration including breathing cycle, pulmonary ventilation rate, frequency and breathing mode, gas concentration, humidity and temperature of exhaled air and human body shape and surface temperature is sensitive enough to perform reliable measurement of characteristics of air as inhaled by occupants. The temperature, humidity, and pollution concentration in the inhaled air can be measured accurately with a thermal manikin without breathing simulation if they are measured at the upper lip at a distance of measured inhaled air parameters. Proper simulation of breathing, especially of exhalation, is needed for studying the transport of exhaled air between occupants. A method for predicting air acceptability based on inhaled air parameters and known exposure-response relationships established in experiments with human subjects is suggested. Recommendations for optimal simulation of human breathing by means of a breathing thermal manikin when studying pollution concentration, temperature and humidity of the inhaled air as well as the transport of exhaled air (which may carry infectious agents) between occupants are outlined. In order to compare results obtained with breathing thermal manikins, their nose and mouth geometry should be standardized.

Thermal fluctuation based study of aqueous deficient dry eyes by non-invasive thermal imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Azharuddin, Mohammad; Bera, Sumanta Kr; Datta, Himadri; Dasgupta, Anjan Kr

2014-03-01

In this paper we have studied the thermal fluctuation patterns occurring at the ocular surface of the left and right eyes for aqueous deficient dry eye (ADDE) patients and control subjects by thermal imaging. We conducted our experiment on 42 patients (84 eyes) with aqueous deficient dry eyes and compared with 36 healthy volunteers (72 eyes) without any history of ocular surface disorder. Schirmer's test, Tear Break-up Time, tear Meniscus height and fluorescein staining tests were conducted. Ocular surface temperature measurement was done, using an FL-IR thermal camera and thermal fluctuation in left and right eyes was calculated and analyzed using MATLAB. The time series containing the sum of squares of the temperature fluctuation on the ocular surface were compared for aqueous deficient dry eye and control subjects. Significant statistical difference between the fluctuation patterns for control and ADDE was observed (p eyes are significantly correlated in controls but not in ADDE subjects. The possible origin of such correlation in control and lack of correlation in the ADDE subjects is discussed in the text. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mathematical modeling of laser linear thermal effects on the anterior layer of the human eye

Science.gov (United States)

Rahbar, Sahar; Shokooh-Saremi, Mehrdad

2018-02-01

In this paper, mathematical analysis of thermal effects of excimer lasers on the anterior side of the human eye is presented, where linear effect of absorption by the human eye is considered. To this end, Argon Fluoride (ArF) and Holmium:Yttrium-Aluminum-Garent (Ho:YAG) lasers are utilized in this investigation. A three-dimensional model of the human eye with actual dimensions is employed and finite element method (FEM) is utilized to numerically solve the governing (Penne) heat transfer equation. The simulation results suggest the corneal temperature of 263 °C and 83.4 °C for ArF and Ho:YAG laser radiations, respectively, and show less heat penetration depth in comparison to the previous reports. Moreover, the heat transfer equation is solved semi-analytically in one-dimension. It is shown that the exploited simulation results are also consistent with those derived from the semi-analytical solution of the Penne heat transfer equation for both types of laser radiations.

Quantitative assessment of pain-related thermal dysfunction through clinical digital infrared thermal imaging

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frize Monique

2004-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The skin temperature distribution of a healthy human body exhibits a contralateral symmetry. Some nociceptive and most neuropathic pain pathologies are associated with an alteration of the thermal distribution of the human body. Since the dissipation of heat through the skin occurs for the most part in the form of infrared radiation, infrared thermography is the method of choice to study the physiology of thermoregulation and the thermal dysfunction associated with pain. Assessing thermograms is a complex and subjective task that can be greatly facilitated by computerised techniques. Methods This paper presents techniques for automated computerised assessment of thermal images of pain, in order to facilitate the physician's decision making. First, the thermal images are pre-processed to reduce the noise introduced during the initial acquisition and to extract the irrelevant background. Then, potential regions of interest are identified using fixed dermatomal subdivisions of the body, isothermal analysis and segmentation techniques. Finally, we assess the degree of asymmetry between contralateral regions of interest using statistical computations and distance measures between comparable regions. Results The wavelet domain-based Poisson noise removal techniques compared favourably against Wiener and other wavelet-based denoising methods, when qualitative criteria were used. It was shown to improve slightly the subsequent analysis. The automated background removal technique based on thresholding and morphological operations was successful for both noisy and denoised images with a correct removal rate of 85% of the images in the database. The automation of the regions of interest (ROIs delimitation process was achieved successfully for images with a good contralateral symmetry. Isothermal division complemented well the fixed ROIs division based on dermatomes, giving a more accurate map of potentially abnormal regions. The measure

Integrated thermal treatment systems study. Internal review panel report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cudahy, J.; Escarda, T.; Gimpel, R.

1995-04-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Technology Development (OTD) commissioned two studies to evaluate nineteen thermal treatment technologies for treatment of DOE mixed low-level waste. These studies were called the Integrated Thermal Treatment System (ITTS) Phase I and Phase II. With the help of the DOE Office of Environmental Management (EM) Mixed Waste Focus Group, OTD formed an ITTS Internal Review Panel to review and comment on the ITTS studies. This Panel was composed of scientists and engineers from throughout the DOE complex, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the California EPA, and private experts. The Panel met from November 15-18, 1994 to review the ITTS studies and to make recommendations on the most promising thermal treatment systems for DOE mixed low-level wastes and on research and development necessary to prove the performance of the technologies. This report describes the findings and presents the recommendations of the Panel

Environmental/Thermal Barrier Coatings for Ceramic Matrix Composites: Thermal Tradeoff Studies

Science.gov (United States)

Murthy, Pappu L. M.; Brewer, David; Shah, Ashwin R.

2007-01-01

Recent interest in environmental/thermal barrier coatings (EBC/TBCs) has prompted research to develop life-prediction methodologies for the coating systems of advanced high-temperature ceramic matrix composites (CMCs). Heat-transfer analysis of EBC/TBCs for CMCs is an essential part of the effort. It helps establish the resulting thermal profile through the thickness of the CMC that is protected by the EBC/TBC system. This report documents the results of a one-dimensional analysis of an advanced high-temperature CMC system protected with an EBC/TBC system. The one-dimensional analysis was used for tradeoff studies involving parametric variation of the conductivity; the thickness of the EBC/TBCs, bond coat, and CMC substrate; and the cooling requirements. The insight gained from the results will be used to configure a viable EBC/TBC system for CMC liners that meet the desired hot surface, cold surface, and substrate temperature requirements.

Study and development of new dosemeters for thermal neutrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Urena N, F.

1998-01-01

An alanine-boron compound, alanine hydroborate, was synthesized and chemically characterized to be used for thermal neutrons fluence measurements. The synthesis of the compound was made by reacting the amino acid alanine with boric acid in three different media: acidic, neutral and alkaline. Physicochemical analysis showed that the alkaline medium is favorable for the synthesis of the alanine hydroborate. The compound was evaluated as a thermal neutron fluence detector by the detection of the free radical yield upon neutron thermal irradiation by Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR). The present work also studies the EPR-signal response of the three preparations to thermal neutron irradiation (φ = 5 x 10 7 n/cm 2 -s). The following EPR signal parameters of the samples were investigated: peak-to-peak signal intensity vs. thermal neutron fluence Φ = φ Δt ; where Δt = 1, 5, 10, 20, 40, 60, 80, 90, 100, 110 and 120 h. , peak-to-peak signal intensity vs. microwave power, signal fading; repeatability, batch homogeneity, stability and zero dose response. It is concluded that these new products could be used in thermal neutron fluence estimations. (Author)

Thermal Decompositon Studies Of Pre-Irradiated Nickel (II) Azides ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The effect of pre-irradiation on the thermal decomposition of three samples of nickel (II) azide was studied. It was found that the rates of thermal decomposition of Ni(OH)N3 increased substantially with increase in pre-irradiation dosage. The initial reaction rates change from time-dependant nucleation law for the unirradiated ...

Thermal imaging in medicine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaka Ogorevc

2015-12-01

Full Text Available AbstractIntroduction: Body temperature monitoring is one of the oldest and still one of the most basic diagnostic methods in medicine. In recent years thermal imaging has been increasingly used in measurements of body temperature for diagnostic purposes. Thermal imaging is non-invasive, non-contact method for measuring surface body temperature. Method is quick, painless and patient is not exposed to ionizing radiation or any other body burden.Application of thermal imaging in medicine: Pathological conditions can be indicated as hyper- or hypothermic patterns in many cases. Thermal imaging is presented as a diagnostic method, which can detect such thermal anomalies. This article provides an overview of the thermal imaging applications in various fields of medicine. Thermal imaging has proven to be a suitable method for human febrile temperature screening, for the detection of sites of fractures and infections, a reliable diagnostic tool in the detection of breast cancer and determining the type of skin cancer tumour. It is useful in monitoring the course of a therapy after spinal cord injury, in the detection of food allergies and detecting complications at hemodialysis and is also very effective at the course of treatment of breast reconstruction after mastectomy. With thermal imaging is possible to determine the degrees of burns and early detection of osteomyelitis in diabetic foot phenomenon. The most common and the oldest application of thermal imaging in medicine is the field of rheumatology.Recommendations for use and standards: Essential performance of a thermal imaging camera, measurement method, preparation of a patient and environmental conditions are very important for proper interpretation of measurement results in medical applications of thermal imaging. Standard for screening thermographs was formed for the human febrile temperature screening application.Conclusion: Based on presented examples it is shown that thermal imaging can

Thermalization of positronium in helium: A numerical study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Marjanovic, S.; Suvakov, M. [Institute of Physics, University of Belgrade, Pregrevica 118, 11080 Belgrade (Serbia); Engbrecht, J.J. [Saint Olaf College, Northfield, MN 55057 (United States); Petrovic, Z.Lj., E-mail: zoran@ipb.ac.rs [Institute of Physics, University of Belgrade, Pregrevica 118, 11080 Belgrade (Serbia)

2012-05-15

In this paper we present a numerical study of positronium (Ps) thermalization in pure helium (He). Recent measurements of Ps thermalization yielded data that were analyzed to produce the scattering cross-sections in helium by using energy balance equations with an assumption of a Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution (MBD) function for Ps. We have applied a Monte Carlo code to test the cross-sections. As our code was developed without any approximations for the energy distribution function we have effectively also tested the assumptions and the validity of the simple theory based on Maxwellian distributions. We present the simulation results using the simulation technique that is limited only by the accuracy of the available cross-sections. We calculate thermalization profiles for several theoretical and measured cross-sections. Also, the temporal evolution of energy distributions has been shown along with diffusion coefficients and spatial ranges of penetration. Thermalization of the initial distribution is rapid and the data follow relatively closely, those calculated in recent experiment, which supports the choice of MBD and the obtained cross-section. However the distribution function most of the time deviates from the MBD due to strong scattering. Finally, we applied the same procedure to analyze Ps thermalization in water vapor.

Topical glucocorticoid has no antinociceptive or anti-inflammatory effect in thermal injury

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, J L; Møiniche, S; Kehlet, H

1994-01-01

We have studied the antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory effects of topical glucocorticoids in human thermal injury. The right and left legs of 12 healthy volunteers were allocated randomly to be treated with either 0.05% clobetasol propionate cream or placebo in a double-blind trial. Thermal...

Network structure and thermal stability study of high temperature seal glass

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, K.; Mahapatra, M. K.

2008-10-01

High temperature seal glass has stringent requirement on glass thermal stability, which is dictated by glass network structures. In this study, a SrO-La2O3-Al2O3-B2O3-SiO2 based glass system was studied using nuclear magnetic resonance, Raman spectroscopy, and x-ray diffraction for solid oxide cell application purpose. Glass structural unit neighboring environment and local ordering were evaluated. Glass network connectivity as well as silicon and boron glass former coordination were calculated for different B2O3:SiO2 ratios. Thermal stability of the borosilicate glasses was studied after thermal treatment at 850 °C. The study shows that high B2O3 content induces BO4 and SiO4 structural unit ordering, increases glass localized inhomogeneity, decreases glass network connectivity, and causes devitrification. Glass modifiers interact with either silicon- or boron-containing structural units and form different devitrified phases at different B2O3:SiO2 ratios. B2O3-free glass shows the best thermal stability among the studied compositions, remaining stable after thermal treatment for 200 h at 850 °C.

Energy efficiency and indoor thermal perception. A comparative study between radiant panel and portable convective heaters

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ali, Ahmed Hamza H.; Morsy, Mahmoud Gaber [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Assiut University, Assiut, 71516 (Egypt)

2010-11-15

This study investigates experimentally the thermal perception of indoor environment for evaluating the ability of radiant panel heaters to produce thermal comfort for space occupants as well as the energy consumption in comparison with conventional portable natural convective heaters. The thermal perception results show that, compared with conventional convection heater, a radiantly heated office room maintains a lower ambient air temperature while providing equal levels of thermal perception on the thermal dummy head as the convective heater and saves up to 39.1% of the energy consumption per day. However, for human subjects' vote experiments, the results show that for an environmentally controlled test room at outdoor environment temperatures of 0C and 5C, using two radiant panel heaters with a total capacity of 580 W leads to a better comfort sensation than the conventional portable natural convective heater with a 670 W capacity, with an energy saving of about 13.4%. In addition, for an outdoor environment temperature of 10C, using one radiant panel heater with a capacity of 290 W leads to a better comfort sensation than the conventional convection heater with a 670 W capacity, with an energy saving of about 56.7%. From the analytical results, it is found that distributing the radiant panel heater inside the office room, one on the wall facing the window and the other on the wall close to the window, provides the best operative temperature distribution within the room.

Is heat pain detection threshold associated with the area of secondary hyperalgesia following brief thermal sensitization? A study of healthy volunteers - design and detailed plan of analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Hansen, Morten Sejer; Wetterslev, Jørn; Pipper, Christian Bressen; Asghar, Mohammad Sohail; Dahl, Jørgen Berg

2016-05-31

Several factors are believed to influence the development and experience of pain. Human clinical pain models are central tools, in the investigation of basic physiologic pain responses, and can be applied in patients as well as in healthy volunteers. Each clinical pain model investigates different aspects of the human pain response. Brief thermal sensitization induces a mild burn injury, resulting in development of primary hyperalgesia at the site of stimulation, and secondary hyperalgesia surrounding the site of stimulation. Central sensitization is believed to play an important role in the development of secondary hyperalgesia; however, a possible association of secondary hyperalgesia following brief thermal sensitization and other heat pain models remains unknown. Our aim with this study is to investigate how close the heat pain detection threshold is associated with the size of the area of secondary hyperalgesia induced by the clinical heat pain model: Brief thermal sensitization. We aim to include 120 healthy participants. The participants will be tested on two separate study days with the following procedures: i) Brief thermal sensitization, ii) heat pain detection threshold and iii) pain during thermal stimulation. Additionally, the participants will be tested with the Pain Catastrophizing Scale and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale questionnaires. We conducted statistical simulations based on data from our previous study, to estimate an empirical power of 99.9 % with α of 0.05. We define that an R(2) heat stimulation, and thus may be a biomarker of an individual's pain sensitivity. The number of studies investigating secondary hyperalgesia is growing; however basic knowledge of the physiologic aspects of secondary hyperalgesia in humans is still incomplete. We therefore find it interesting to investigate if HPDT, a known quantitative sensory test, is associated with areas of secondary hyperalgesia following brief thermal sensitization Clinicaltrials

Short-term changes in thermal perception associated with heatwave conditions in Melbourne, Australia

Science.gov (United States)

Lam, Cho Kwong Charlie; Gallant, Ailie J. E.; Tapper, Nigel J.

2018-05-01

Variations in human thermal perception have been described on timescales from minutes to seasons. However, the effect of weather-related thermal extremes on inter-daily changes to outdoor thermal perception has not been well characterised. This study used human thermal comfort data from an outdoor botanic garden in sub-urban Melbourne, Australia as a case study. We examined inter-daily variations in local visitors' thermal perception before (11-12 January 2014) and after (18-19 January 2014) a severe heatwave from 14 to 17 January 2014, when daily maximum temperature exceeded 41 °C for 4 consecutive days. We compared thermal comfort survey results (pre-heatwave: n = 342, post-heatwave: n = 294) with air temperature and the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) measurements. Even though the days preceding and following the heatwave had a similar range in temperature (19-25 °C) and UTCI (26-32 °C), the visitors felt cooler in the days following the heatwave (i.e. lower thermal sensation votes). In the 2 days following the heatwave, visitors also wore less clothing compared with before the heatwave. Our results show that the thermal perception of visitors changed significantly following their exposure to the heatwave, even after controlling for changes in clothing choices and the ages of survey participants. Psychological adaptation to heat (such as thermal history and expectation) might be one of the possible explanations for this inter-daily variability of local visitors' thermal perception.

A candidate multimodal functional genetic network for thermal adaptation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katharina C. Wollenberg Valero

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Vertebrate ectotherms such as reptiles provide ideal organisms for the study of adaptation to environmental thermal change. Comparative genomic and exomic studies can recover markers that diverge between warm and cold adapted lineages, but the genes that are functionally related to thermal adaptation may be difficult to identify. We here used a bioinformatics genome-mining approach to predict and identify functions for suitable candidate markers for thermal adaptation in the chicken. We first established a framework of candidate functions for such markers, and then compiled the literature on genes known to adapt to the thermal environment in different lineages of vertebrates. We then identified them in the genomes of human, chicken, and the lizard Anolis carolinensis, and established a functional genetic interaction network in the chicken. Surprisingly, markers initially identified from diverse lineages of vertebrates such as human and fish were all in close functional relationship with each other and more associated than expected by chance. This indicates that the general genetic functional network for thermoregulation and/or thermal adaptation to the environment might be regulated via similar evolutionarily conserved pathways in different vertebrate lineages. We were able to identify seven functions that were statistically overrepresented in this network, corresponding to four of our originally predicted functions plus three unpredicted functions. We describe this network as multimodal: central regulator genes with the function of relaying thermal signal (1, affect genes with different cellular functions, namely (2 lipoprotein metabolism, (3 membrane channels, (4 stress response, (5 response to oxidative stress, (6 muscle contraction and relaxation, and (7 vasodilation, vasoconstriction and regulation of blood pressure. This network constitutes a novel resource for the study of thermal adaptation in the closely related nonavian reptiles and

CFD studies on thermal hydraulics of spallation targets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tak, N.I.; Batta, A.; Cheng, X.

2005-01-01

Full text of publication follows: Due to the fast advances in computer hardware as well as software in recent years, more and more interests have been aroused to use computational fluid dynamics (CFD) technology in nuclear engineering and designs. During recent many years, Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe (FZK) has been actively involved in the thermal hydraulic analysis and design of spallation targets. To understand the thermal hydraulic behaviors of spallation targets very detailed simulations are necessary because of their complex geometries, complicated boundary conditions such as spallation heat distributions, and very strict design limits. A CFD simulation is believed to be the best for this purpose even though the validation of CFD codes are not perfectly completed yet in specific topics like liquid metal heat transfer. The research activities on three spallation targets (i.e., MEGAPIE, TRADE, and XADS targets) are currently very active in Europe in order to consolidate the European ADS road-map. In the thermal hydraulics point of view, two kinds of the research activities, i.e., (1) numerical design and (2) experimental work, are required to achieve the objectives of these targets. It should be noted that CFD studies play important role on both kinds of two activities. A preliminary design of a target can be achieved by sophisticated CFD analysis and pre-and-post analyses of an experimental work using a CFD code help the design of the test section of the experiment as well as the analysis of the experimental results. The present paper gives an overview about the recent CFD studies relating to thermal hydraulics of the spallation targets recently involved in FZK. It covers numerical design studies as well as CFD studies to support experimental works. The CFX code has been adopted for the studies. Main recent results for the selected examples performed by FZK are presented and discussed with their specific lessons learned. (authors)

Analysis of human factors on urban heat island and simulation of urban thermal environment in Lanzhou city, China

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Jinghu

2015-01-01

Urban heat island (UHI) effect is a global phenomenon caused by urbanization. Because of the number and complexity of factors contributing to the urban thermal environment, traditional statistical methods are insufficient for acquiring data and analyzing the impact of human activities on the thermal environment, especially for identifying which factors are dominant. The UHI elements were extracted using thermal infrared remote sensing data to retrieve the land surface temperatures of Lanzhou city, and then adopting an object-oriented fractal net evolution approach to create an image segmentation of the land surface temperature (LST). The effects of urban expansion on the urban thermal environment were quantitatively analyzed. A comprehensive evaluation system of the urban thermal environment was constructed, the spatial pattern of the urban thermal environment in Lanzhou was assessed, and principal influencing factors were identified using spatial principal component analysis (SPCA) and multisource spatial data. We found that in the last 20 years, the UHI effect in Lanzhou city has been strengthened, as the UHI ratio index has increased from 0.385 in 1993 to 0.579 in 2001 and to 0.653 in 2011. The UHI expansion had a spatiotemporal consistency with the urban expansion. The four major factors that affect the spatial pattern of the urban thermal environment in Lanzhou can be ranked in the following order: landscape configuration, anthropogenic heat release, urban construction, and gradient from man-made to natural land cover. These four together accounted for 91.27% of the variance. A linear model was thus successfully constructed, implying that SPCA is helpful in identifying major contributors to UHI. Regression analysis indicated that the instantaneous LST and the simulated thermal environment have a good linear relationship, the correlation coefficient between the two reached 0.8011, highly significant at a confidence level of 0.001.

Reactivity study on thermal cracking of vacuum residues

Science.gov (United States)

León, A. Y.; Díaz, S. D.; Rodríguez, R. C.; Laverde, D.

2016-02-01

This study focused on the process reactivity of thermal cracking of vacuum residues from crude oils mixtures. The thermal cracking experiments were carried out under a nitrogen atmosphere at 120psi between 430 to 500°C for 20 minutes. Temperature conditions were established considering the maximum fractional conversion reported in tests of thermogravimetry performed in the temperature range of 25 to 600°C, with a constant heating rate of 5°C/min and a nitrogen flow rate of 50ml/min. The obtained products were separated in to gases, distillates and coke. The results indicate that the behaviour of thermal reactivity over the chemical composition is most prominent for the vacuum residues with higher content of asphaltenes, aromatics, and resins. Finally some correlations were obtained in order to predict the weight percentage of products from its physical and chemical properties such as CCR, SARA (saturates, aromatics, resins, asphaltenes) and density. The results provide new knowledge of the effect of temperature and the properties of vacuum residues in thermal conversion processes.

Solar thermal electric power information user study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Belew, W.W.; Wood, B.L.; Marle, T.L.; Reinhardt, C.L.

1981-02-01

The results of a series of telephone interviews with groups of users of information on solar thermal electric power are described. These results, part of a larger study on many different solar technologies, identify types of information each group needed and the best ways to get information to each group. The report is 1 of 10 discussing study results. The overall study provides baseline data about information needs in the solar community. An earlier study identified the information user groups in the solar community and the priority (to accelerate solar energy commercialization) of getting information to each group. In the current study only high-priority groups were examined. Results from five solar thermal electric power groups of respondents are analyzed: DOE-Funded Researchers, Non-DOE-Funded Researchers, Representatives of Utilities, Electric Power Engineers, and Educators. The data will be used as input to the determination of information products and services the Solar Energy Research Institute, the Solar Energy Information Data Bank Network, and the entire information outreach community should be preparing and disseminating.

Experimental study of thermal comfort on stab resistant body armor.

Science.gov (United States)

Ji, Tingchao; Qian, Xinming; Yuan, Mengqi; Jiang, Jinhui

2016-01-01

This research aims to investigate the impacts of exercise intensity and sequence on human physiology parameters and subjective thermal sensation when wearing stab resistant body armor under daily working conditions in China [26 and 31 °C, 45-50 % relative humidity (RH)], and to investigate on the relationship between subjective judgments and objective parameters. Eight male volunteers were recruited to complete 3 terms of exercises with different velocity set on treadmill for 90 min at 26 °C and 31 °C, 45-50 % RH. In Exercise 1 volunteers were seated during the test. In Exercise 2, volunteers walked with the velocity of 3 km/h in the first 45 min and 6 km/h in the left 45 min. In Exercise 3, volunteers walked with the velocity of 6 km/h in the first 45 min and 3 km/h in the left 45 min. The body core temperature, skin temperature and subjective judgments were recorded during the whole process. Analysis of variance was performed among all the tests. Individual discrepancy of Exercise 1 is larger than that of Exercise 2 and 3. On the premise of the same walking distance and environmental conditions, core temperature in Exercise 3 is about 0.2 °C lower than that in Exercise 2 in the end; and with the velocity decrease from 6 km/h to 3 km/h in the end, thermal tolerance of Exercise 3 is about 1 degree lower than that in Exercise 2. Skin temperatures of human trunk were at least 1 °C higher than that of limbs. Activity narrows the individual discrepancy on core temperature. Within experimental conditions, decreasing of intensity at last stage makes the core temperature lower and the whole process much tolerable. The core temperature is more sensitive to the external disturbance on the balance of the whole body, and it can reflect the subjective thermal sensation and physical exertion.

The effect of human-mattress interface's temperature on perceived thermal comfort.

Science.gov (United States)

Califano, R; Naddeo, A; Vink, P

2017-01-01

In recent years, methods that allow for an objective evaluation of perceived comfort, in terms of postural, physiological, cognitive and environmental comfort, have received a great deal of attention from researchers. This paper focuses on one of the factors that influences physiological comfort perception: the temperature difference between users and the objects with which they interact. The first aim is to create a measuring system that does not affect the perceived comfort during the temperatures' acquisition. The main aim is to evaluate how the temperature at the human-mattress interface can affect the level of perceived comfort. A foam mattress has been used for testing in order to take into account the entire back part of the human body. The temperature at the interface was registered by fourteen 100 Ohm Platinum RTDs (Resistance Temperature Detectors) placed on the mattress under the trunk, the shoulders, the buttocks, the legs, the thighs, the arms and the forearms of the test subject. 29 subjects participated in a comfort test in a humidity controlled environment. The test protocol involved: dress-code, anthropometric-based positioning on mattress, environment temperature measuring and an acclimatization time before the test. At the end of each test, each of the test subject's thermal sensations and the level of comfort perception were evaluated using the ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers) scale. The data analyses concerned, in the first instance, correlations between the temperature at the interface and comfort levels of the different parts of the body. Then the same analyses were performed independently of the body parts being considered. The results demonstrated that there was no strong correlation among the studied variables and that the total increase of temperature at interface is associated with a reduction in comfort. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Response of Primary Human Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stromal Cells and Dermal Keratinocytes to Thermal Printer Materials In Vitro.

Science.gov (United States)

Schmelzer, Eva; Over, Patrick; Gridelli, Bruno; Gerlach, Jörg C

Advancement in thermal three-dimensional printing techniques has greatly increased the possible applications of various materials in medical applications and tissue engineering. Yet, potential toxic effects on primary human cells have been rarely investigated. Therefore, we compared four materials commonly used in thermal printing for bioengineering, namely thermally printed acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, MED610, polycarbonate, and polylactic acid, and investigated their effects on primary human adult skin epidermal keratinocytes and bone marrow mesenchymal stromal cells (BM-MSCs) in vitro. We investigated indirect effects on both cell types caused by potential liberation of soluble substances from the materials, and also analyzed BM-MSCs in direct contact with the materials. We found that even in culture without direct contact with the materials, the culture with MED610 (and to a lesser extent acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) significantly affected keratinocytes, reducing cell numbers and proliferation marker Ki67 expression, and increasing glucose consumption, lactate secretion, and expression of differentiation-associated genes. BM-MSCs had decreased metabolic activity, and exhibited increased cell death in direct culture on the materials. MED610 and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene induced the strongest expression of genes associated to differentiation and estrogen receptor activation. In conclusion, we found strong cell-type-specific effects of the materials, suggesting that materials for applications in regenerative medicine should be carefully selected not only based on their mechanical properties but also based on their cell-type-specific biological effects.

Research and development studies for predicting the thermal fatigue

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moulin, D.; Garnier, J.; Fissolo, A.; Lejeail, Y.; Stephan, J.M.; Moinereau, D.; Masson, J.

2001-01-01

This paper presents some studies in development or realized in the EDF and CEA laboratories, concerning the thermal fatigue damage in nuclear reactor components. The first part presents the basic principles and the methods of lifetime prediction. The second part gives some examples on sodium loop, water loop, welded junctions resistance to thermal fatigue and tests on fatigue specimen. (A.L.B.)

Neural computing thermal comfort index for HVAC systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Atthajariyakul, S.; Leephakpreeda, T.

2005-01-01

The primary purpose of a heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) system within a building is to make occupants comfortable. Without real time determination of human thermal comfort, it is not feasible for the HVAC system to yield controlled conditions of the air for human comfort all the time. This paper presents a practical approach to determine human thermal comfort quantitatively via neural computing. The neural network model allows real time determination of the thermal comfort index, where it is not practical to compute the conventional predicted mean vote (PMV) index itself in real time. The feed forward neural network model is proposed as an explicit function of the relation of the PMV index to accessible variables, i.e. the air temperature, wet bulb temperature, globe temperature, air velocity, clothing insulation and human activity. An experiment in an air conditioned office room was done to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. The results show good agreement between the thermal comfort index calculated from the neural network model in real time and those calculated from the conventional PMV model

Thermal Cameras and Applications

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gade, Rikke; Moeslund, Thomas B.

2014-01-01

Thermal cameras are passive sensors that capture the infrared radiation emitted by all objects with a temperature above absolute zero. This type of camera was originally developed as a surveillance and night vision tool for the military, but recently the price has dropped, significantly opening up...... a broader field of applications. Deploying this type of sensor in vision systems eliminates the illumination problems of normal greyscale and RGB cameras. This survey provides an overview of the current applications of thermal cameras. Applications include animals, agriculture, buildings, gas detection......, industrial, and military applications, as well as detection, tracking, and recognition of humans. Moreover, this survey describes the nature of thermal radiation and the technology of thermal cameras....

Thermal expansion studies on europium titanate (Eu2TiO5)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Panneerselvam, G.; Subramanian, G.G.S.; Antony, M.P.

2008-01-01

The lattice thermal expansion characteristics of europium titanate (Eu 2 TiO 5 ) have been studied by measuring the lattice parameter by high temperature X-ray diffraction technique (HT-XRD) in the temperature range 298-1573K. Percentage linear thermal expansion and mean linear thermal expansion coefficients were computed from the lattice parameter data. The percentage linear thermal expansion in the temperature range 298-1573 K along a, b and c axes are 1.05, 1.15 and 0.95 respectively. (author)

Progress of thermal hydraulic evaluation methods and experimental studies on a sodium-cooled fast reactor and its safety in Japan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kamide, Hideki, E-mail: kamide.hideki@jaea.go.jp; Ohshima, Hiroyuki, E-mail: ohshima.hiroyuki@jaea.go.jp; Sakai, Takaaki, E-mail: sakai.takaaki@jaea.go.jp; Tanaka, Masaaki, E-mail: tanaka.masaaki@jaea.go.jp

2017-02-15

Highlights: • Thermal hydraulic issues for safety design criteria of sodium cooled fast reactors. • Measurement of velocity data in a subchannel surrounded by wire wrapped fuel-pins. • Statistical evaluation of core hot spot temperature during natural circulation. • Simulation of dynamics of molten fuel pool in a core disruptive accident. • V&V procedure of a multi-dimensional thermal hydraulic code on thermal striping. - Abstract: In the framework of the Generation-IV International Forum, the safety design criteria (SDC) incorporating safety-related R&D results on innovative technologies and lessons learned from Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plants accident has been established to provide the set of general criteria for the safety designs of structures, systems and components of Generation-IV Sodium-cooled Fast Reactors (Gen-IV SFRs). A number of thermal-hydraulic evaluations are necessary to meet the concept of the criteria in the design studies of Gen-IV SFRs. This paper focuses on four kinds of thermal-hydraulic issues associated with the SDC, i.e., fuel subassembly thermal-hydraulics, natural circulation decay heat removal, core disruptive accidents, and thermal striping. Progress of evaluation methods on these issues is shown with activities on verification and validation (V&V) and experimental studies towards commercialization of SFR in Japan. These evaluation methods are planned to be eventually integrated into a comprehensive numerical simulation system that can be applied to all possible phenomena in SFR systems and that can be expected to become an effective tool for the development of human resource and the handing our knowledge and technologies down.

Comparison of UTCI to selected thermal indices.

Science.gov (United States)

Blazejczyk, Krzysztof; Epstein, Yoram; Jendritzky, Gerd; Staiger, Henning; Tinz, Birger

2012-05-01

Over the past century more than 100 indices have been developed and used to assess bioclimatic conditions for human beings. The majority of these indices are used sporadically or for specific purposes. Some are based on generalized results of measurements (wind chill, cooling power, wet bulb temperature) and some on the empirically observed reactions of the human body to thermal stress (physiological strain, effective temperature). Those indices that are based on human heat balance considerations are referred to as "rational indices". Several simple human heat balance models are known and are used in research and practice. This paper presents a comparative analysis of the newly developed Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI), and some of the more prevalent thermal indices. The analysis is based on three groups of data: global data-set, synoptic datasets from Europe, and local scale data from special measurement campaigns of COST Action 730. We found the present indices to express bioclimatic conditions reasonably only under specific meteorological situations, while the UTCI represents specific climates, weather, and locations much better. Furthermore, similar to the human body, the UTCI is very sensitive to changes in ambient stimuli: temperature, solar radiation, wind and humidity. UTCI depicts temporal variability of thermal conditions better than other indices. The UTCI scale is able to express even slight differences in the intensity of meteorological stimuli.

ESR Study Applied To Thermal Stability Of Radiation-Induced Species Of Solid Ketoprofen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maltar-Strmecki, N.; Katusin-Razem, B.; Razem, D.

2015-01-01

Ketoprofen [2-(3-benzoylphenyl) propionic acid] is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. It has been widely used in human and veterinary medicine. Radiation processing of drugs and its ingredients is recognized as a safe and effective method among the existing technologies for sterilization and protocols that can be found in ISO 11137-1. Radiosterilization of drugs or other medical products by a suitable dose of ionizing radiation conducted in an appropriate environment ensures sterile conditions by destroying or removing vegetative and sporulating microbes from the ingredients or environment. In earlier studies the effects of gamma radiation was evaluated by selected physico-chemical methods and the observations showed that solid ketoprofen is relatively stable toward ionizing irradiation and that radiosterilization might be a suitable method for the sterilization of solid ketoprofen. The studies reported in this work were undertaken to analyse thermal stability of free radicals by accelerated aging method with a view to the determination of shelf-life. The expiration date (shelf-life) of a product is based on evaluation of both, thermal stability of free radicals, as well as on the time evolution of stable radiolysis products. Namely, storage time is determined by the time required by any degradation product in the dosage form to achieve a sufficient level to represent a risk to the patient. This work shows that ESR spectroscopy provides means for determination of thermal stability of radicals induced by gamma-irradiation in solid drugs. Therefore, despite the complex mixture of individual free radicals induced by gamma-irradiation in solid ketoprofen, the overall lifetime of free radicals could be determined by using isothermal and isochronal annealing. This study shows that radicals induced by gamma-irradiation in solid ketoprofen are stable for at least about 6 months. (author).

Human Body Exergy Balance: Numerical Analysis of an Indoor Thermal Environment of a Passive Wooden Room in Summer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Koichi Isawa

2015-09-01

Full Text Available To obtain a basic understanding of the resultant changes in the human body exergy balance (input, consumption, storage, and output accompanying outdoor air temperature fluctuations, a “human body system and a built environmental system” coupled with numerical analysis was conducted. The built environmental system assumed a wooden room equipped with passive cooling strategies, such as thermal insulation and solar shading devices. It was found that in the daytime, the cool radiation exergy emitted by surrounding surfaces, such as walls increased the rate of human body exergy consumption, whereas the warm radiant exergy emitted by the surrounding surfaces at night decreased the rate of human body exergy consumption. The results suggested that the rates and proportions of the different components in the exergy balance equation (exergy input, consumption, storage, and output vary according to the outdoor temperature and humidity conditions.

Study of the thermal conductivity of ZnO nanowires/PMMA composites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Igamberdiev, Kh. T.; Yuldashev, Sh. U.; Cho, H. D.; Kang, T. W.; Rakhimova, Sh. M.; Akhmedov, T. Kh.

2012-01-01

From thermal conductivity measurements on ZnO nanowires (NWs)/poly(methyl methacrylate) PMMA composites, the thermal conductivities of the ZnO nanowires were determined. The thermal conductivity of a ZnO NW decreases considerably with decreasing nanowire diameter, and for a ZnO nanowire with a diameter of 250 nm, the thermal conductivity at room temperature is approximately two times lower than that of bulk ZnO at the same temperature. The results of this study show that the thermal conductivity of a ZnO NW is mainly determined by increased phonon-surface boundary scattering. These results could be useful for the design of ZnO-nanowire-based devices.

Study of ATES thermal behavior using a steady flow model

Science.gov (United States)

Doughty, C.; Hellstroem, G.; Tsang, C. F.; Claesson, J.

1981-01-01

The thermal behavior of a single well aquifer thermal energy storage system in which buoyancy flow is neglected is studied. A dimensionless formulation of the energy transport equations for the aquifer system is presented, and the key dimensionless parameters are discussed. A simple numerical model is used to generate graphs showing the thermal behavior of the system as a function of these parameters. Some comparisons with field experiments are given to illustrate the use of the dimensionless groups and graphs.

New Thermal Taste Actuation Technology for Future Multisensory Virtual Reality and Internet.

Science.gov (United States)

Karunanayaka, Kasun; Johari, Nurafiqah; Hariri, Surina; Camelia, Hanis; Bielawski, Kevin Stanley; Cheok, Adrian David

2018-04-01

Today's virtual reality (VR) applications such as gaming, multisensory entertainment, remote dining, and online shopping are mainly based on audio, visual, and touch interactions between humans and virtual worlds. Integrating the sense of taste into VR is difficult since humans are dependent on chemical-based taste delivery systems. This paper presents the 'Thermal Taste Machine', a new digital taste actuation technology that can effectively produce and modify thermal taste sensations on the tongue. It modifies the temperature of the surface of the tongue within a short period of time (from 25°C to 40 °C while heating, and from 25°C to 10 °C while cooling). We tested this device on human subjects and described the experience of thermal taste using 20 known (taste and non-taste) sensations. Our results suggested that rapidly heating the tongue produces sweetness, fatty/oiliness, electric taste, warmness, and reduces the sensibility for metallic taste. Similarly, cooling the tongue produced mint taste, pleasantness, and coldness. By conducting another user study on the perceived sweetness of sucrose solutions after the thermal stimulation, we found that heating the tongue significantly enhances the intensity of sweetness for both thermal tasters and non-thermal tasters. Also, we found that faster temperature rises on the tongue produce more intense sweet sensations for thermal tasters. This technology will be useful in two ways: First, it can produce taste sensations without using chemicals for the individuals who are sensitive to thermal taste. Second, the temperature rise of the device can be used as a way to enhance the intensity of sweetness. We believe that this technology can be used to digitally produce and enhance taste sensations in future virtual reality applications. The key novelties of this paper are as follows: 1. Development of a thermal taste actuation technology for stimulating the human taste receptors, 2. Characterization of the thermal taste

The thermal impact of aquifer thermal energy storage (ATES) systems: a case study in the Netherlands, combining monitoring and modeling

Science.gov (United States)

Visser, Philip W.; Kooi, Henk; Stuyfzand, Pieter J.

2015-05-01

Results are presented of a comprehensive thermal impact study on an aquifer thermal energy storage (ATES) system in Bilthoven, the Netherlands. The study involved monitoring of the thermal impact and modeling of the three-dimensional temperature evolution of the storage aquifer and over- and underlying units. Special attention was paid to non-uniformity of the background temperature, which varies laterally and vertically in the aquifer. Two models were applied with different levels of detail regarding initial conditions and heterogeneity of hydraulic and thermal properties: a fine-scale heterogeneity model which construed the lateral and vertical temperature distribution more realistically, and a simplified model which represented the aquifer system with only a limited number of homogeneous layers. Fine-scale heterogeneity was shown to be important to accurately model the ATES-impacted vertical temperature distribution and the maximum and minimum temperatures in the storage aquifer, and the spatial extent of the thermal plumes. The fine-scale heterogeneity model resulted in larger thermally impacted areas and larger temperature anomalies than the simplified model. The models showed that scattered and scarce monitoring data of ATES-induced temperatures can be interpreted in a useful way by groundwater and heat transport modeling, resulting in a realistic assessment of the thermal impact.

Study of the valorisation of thermal storage and of power-to-heat. Study report + Study synthesis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Canal, Patrick; Gerbaud, Manon; Mouret, Sylvain; Chammas, Maxime; Attard, Pierre; Bucy, Jacques de; Lochmann, Hugo; Le Gars, Loic; Payen, Luc; Lesueur, Herve

2016-11-01

This study aimed at assessing the potential of thermal storage and of power-to-heat in France, and at identifying relevant technological sectors by 2030. In order to do so, the study aimed at quantifying the value of these sectors for applications considered as relevant, this value lying in the valorisation of heat or electric power excesses, in the power arbitration, and in investment savings. Analyses have have been performed on case studies through an assessment of storage value and of P2H (Power-to-Heat) for the collectivity, a joint optimisation of fleet sizing and management, a modelling of power system fundamentals, an analysis of the profitability of storage and P2H projects, and an assessment of the technical source and of the impact on jobs. Thus, after an overview of thermal storage and power-to-heat technologies, and a presentation of the adopted methodology (definition of case studies, case study methodology, modelling hypotheses related to production and consumption, and modelling of the power system), the authors report the study of the sizing of biomass boilers in an urban heat network (determination of the storage value for the community), the study of development of an urban heat network (storage value for the community and for the operator, technological perspective by 2030), the study of the use of power-to-heat and storage for an urban heat network (value for the community, profitability and business model, perspective by 2030), the study of unavoidable heat recovery on an industrial site (value, profitability and business model, perspective by 2030), the study of co-generation and thermal storage on an industrial site (value, impact on income), the study of domestic thermal storage and of the flexibility of the French electric power system (impact of thermal water heaters on the flexibility), and the study of the impact on employment (jobs related to the domestic market and to the development of an exporting sector). Appendices propose sheets

Silicon isotope study of thermal springs in Jiaodong Region,Shandong Province

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

徐跃通; 李红梅; 冯海霞; 周晨; 吴元芳; 张邦花

2001-01-01

Based on δ30Si and δ32Si isotope geochemistry, the origin and evolutionary mechanism of thermal springs in Jiaodong region are studied. The mean value of δ30Si of dissolved silica of thermal spring water in Jiaodong is 0.1‰. Thermal spring water ages using δ32Si dating method range from 387a to 965a.

Thermal Stress Awareness, Self-Study #18649

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chochoms, Michael [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

2016-11-15

Thermal stresses can expose individuals to a variety of health hazards at work, home, and play. Every year thermal stresses cause severe injuries and death to a large range of people, from elderly people in cities during summer heat waves to young people engaged in winter mountaineering. Awareness is the key to preventing the health hazards associated with thermal stresses. This course is designed for personnel at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). It addresses both heat and cold stresses and discusses their factors, signs and symptoms, treatments, and controls.

Space shuttle aps propellant thermal conditioner study

Science.gov (United States)

Fulton, D. L.

1973-01-01

An analytical and experimental effort was completed to evaluate a baffle type thermal conditioner for superheating O2 and H2 at supercritical pressures. The thermal conditioner consisted of a heat exchanger and an integral reactor (gas generator) operating on O2/H2 propellants. Primary emphasis was placed on the hydrogen conditioner with some effort on the oxygen conditioner and a study completed of alternate concepts for use in conditioning oxygen. A hydrogen conditioner was hot fire tested under a range of conditions to establish ignition, heat exchange and response parameters. A parallel technology task was completed to further evaluate the integral reactor and heat exchanger with the side mounted electrical spark igniter.

Refuge behaviour from outdoor thermal environmental stress and seasonal differences of thermal sense in tropical urban climate

Science.gov (United States)

Kurazumi, Y.; Ishii, J.; Fukagawa, K.; Kondo, E.; Aruninta, A.

2017-12-01

Thermal sensation affects body temperature regulation. As a starting point for behavioral body temperature regulation taken to improve from a poor thermal environment to a more pleasant environment, thermal sense of thermal environment stimulus is important. The poupose of this sutudy is to use the outdoor thermal environment evaluation index ETFe to quantify effects on thermal sensations of the human body of a tropical region climate with small annual temperature differences, and to examine seasonal differences in thermal sensation. It was found temperature preferences were lower in the winter season than in the dry season, and that a tolerance for higher temperatures in the dry season than in the winter season. It was found effects of seasonal differences of the thermal environment appear in quantitative changes in thermal sensations. It was found that effects of seasonal differences of the thermal environment do not greatly affect quantitative changes in thermal comfort.

Single-sector thermophysiological human simulator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Psikuta, Agnieszka; Richards, Mark; Fiala, Dusan

2008-01-01

Thermal sweating manikins are used to analyse the heat and mass transfer phenomena in the skin–clothing–environment system. However, the limiting factor of present thermal manikins is their inability to simulate adequately the human thermal behaviour, which has a significant effect on the clothing microenvironment. A mathematical model of the human physiology was, therefore, incorporated into the system control to simulate human thermoregulatory responses and the perception of thermal comfort over a wide range of environmental and personal conditions. Thereby, the computer model provides the physiological intelligence, while the hardware is used to measure the required calorimetric states relevant to the human heat exchange with the environment. This paper describes the development of a single-sector thermophysiological human simulator, which consists of a sweating heated cylinder 'Torso' coupled with the iesd-Fiala multi-node model of human physiology and thermal comfort. Validation tests conducted for steady-state and, to some extent, transient conditions ranging from cold to hot revealed good agreement with the corresponding experimental results obtained for semi-nude subjects. The new coupled system enables overall physiological and comfort responses, health risk and survival conditions to be predicted for adult humans for various scenarios

Study of Physical Properties of SiCw/Al Composites During Unloaded Thermal Cycling

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

ZHAO Xin-ming; TIAN zhi-gang; CHENG hua; ZHU Xiao-gang; CHEN Wen-li

2004-01-01

The thermal expansion coefficient of SiCw/Al composites squeeze cast during unloaded thermal cycling was determined and analyzed. The study had shown that the thermal expansion coefficient of SiCw/Al composites reduced greatly with temperature raising. The thermal expansion coefficient of artificial ageing treatment SiCw/Al composites during unloaded thermal cycling reduced gradually, while the thermal expansion coefficient of squeezing SiCw/Al composites increased gradually. In addition, the thermal expansion coefficient of SiCw/Al composites reduced drastically with fiber fraction increasing.

Thermal stability study of crystalline and novel spray-dried amorphous nilotinib hydrochloride.

Science.gov (United States)

Herbrink, Maikel; Vromans, Herman; Schellens, Jan; Beijnen, Jos; Nuijen, Bastiaan

2018-01-30

The thermal characteristics and the thermal degradation of crystalline and amorphous nilotinib hydrochloride (NH) were studied. The spray drying technique was successfully utilized for the amorphization of NH and was evaluated by spectroscopic techniques and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The ethanolic spray drying process yielded amorphous NH with a glass transition temperature (T g ) of 147°C. Thermal characterization of the amorphous phase was performed by heat capacity measurements using modulated DSC (mDSC). Thermal degradation was studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The derived thermodynamic properties of the amorphous NH indicate fragile behaviour and a low crystallization tendency. NH was found to be molecularly stable up to 193°C. After which, the thermal degradation displayed two phases. The values of the thermal degradation parameters were estimated using the Ozawa-Flynn-Wall and Friedman non-isothermal, model-free, isoconversional methods The results indicate the two phases to be single-step reactions. The examination of the physical stability of amorphous NH during storage and at elevated temperatures showed stability at 180°C for at least 5h and at 20-25°C/60% RH for at least 6 months. During these periods, no crystallization was observed. This study is the first to report the thermal characteristics of NH. Additionally, it is also the first to describe the full thermal analysis of a spray-dried amorphous drug. The thermal data may be used in the projection of future production processes and storage conditions of amorphous NH. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Uranyl soaps - thermal, electronic and infrared spectral study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Solanki, A.K.; Bhandari, A.M.

1981-01-01

The electronic and infrared spectra and TGA thermogram of uranyl soaps (laurate, mystrate, palmitate and stearate) have been studied. The environment about the UO 2+ 2 ion would comprise two 'short bite' bidentate carboxylate groups and oxygen atoms bridging from adjacent carboxylic molecules. The uranyl soaps have UO 2+ 2 vibronic absorption (approx. equal to 22730 cm -1 ) in the range found for eight coordinate uranyl complexes. The greater resistance to thermal degradation (approx. equal to 300 0 C) of these soaps and their stepwise thermal degradation infer strong metal-ligand interaction. (orig.) [de

Indoor temperatures for optimum thermal comfort and human performance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

de Dear, R.; Arens, E. A.; Candido, C.

2014-01-01

A response by R. J. de Dear et al to a letter to the editor in response to their article "Progress in thermal comfort research over the last 20 years," published in a 2013 issue.......A response by R. J. de Dear et al to a letter to the editor in response to their article "Progress in thermal comfort research over the last 20 years," published in a 2013 issue....

Thermal and spectroscopic studies on solid ibuprofen complexes of lighter trivalent lanthanides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gálico, D.A.; Holanda, B.B.C.; Guerra, R.B.; Legendre, A.O.; Rinaldo, D. [UNESP – Univ Estadual Paulista, Faculdade de Ciências, Departamento de Química, São Paulo CEP 17033-260 (Brazil); Treu-Filho, O. [UNESP – Univ Estadual Paulista, Instituto de Química, São Paulo CEP 14800-900 (Brazil); Bannach, G., E-mail: gilbert@fc.unesp.br [UNESP – Univ Estadual Paulista, Faculdade de Ciências, Departamento de Química, São Paulo CEP 17033-260 (Brazil)

2014-01-10

Highlights: • Lighter trivalent lanthanide complexes of ibuprofen have been synthesized. • The TG-FTIR allowed the identification of propane as the gas evolved during the thermal decomposition of the neodymium compound. • The thermal analysis provided information about the composition, dehydration, thermal behavior and thermal decomposition of the samples. • The theoretical and experimental spectroscopic studies suggest that the carboxylate group of ibuprofen is coordinated to the metals by a bidentate bond. - Abstract: Solid-state compounds of general formula Ln(L){sub 3}, in which L is ibuprofen and Ln stands for trivalent La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm and Eu, have been synthesized. Simultaneous thermogravimetry and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA), X-ray powder diffractometry (DRX), complexometry, Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetry coupled to Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy (TG-FTIR) were used to characterize these compounds. The results provided information concerning the chemical composition, dehydration, coordination modes of the ligands, crystallinity of the samples, thermal behavior and thermal decomposition of the compounds. The theoretical and experimental spectroscopic studies suggest that ibuprofen coordinates through the carboxylate group as a chelating ligand.

Thermal and spectroscopic studies on solid ibuprofen complexes of lighter trivalent lanthanides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gálico, D.A.; Holanda, B.B.C.; Guerra, R.B.; Legendre, A.O.; Rinaldo, D.; Treu-Filho, O.; Bannach, G.

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Lighter trivalent lanthanide complexes of ibuprofen have been synthesized. • The TG-FTIR allowed the identification of propane as the gas evolved during the thermal decomposition of the neodymium compound. • The thermal analysis provided information about the composition, dehydration, thermal behavior and thermal decomposition of the samples. • The theoretical and experimental spectroscopic studies suggest that the carboxylate group of ibuprofen is coordinated to the metals by a bidentate bond. - Abstract: Solid-state compounds of general formula Ln(L) 3 , in which L is ibuprofen and Ln stands for trivalent La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm and Eu, have been synthesized. Simultaneous thermogravimetry and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA), X-ray powder diffractometry (DRX), complexometry, Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetry coupled to Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy (TG-FTIR) were used to characterize these compounds. The results provided information concerning the chemical composition, dehydration, coordination modes of the ligands, crystallinity of the samples, thermal behavior and thermal decomposition of the compounds. The theoretical and experimental spectroscopic studies suggest that ibuprofen coordinates through the carboxylate group as a chelating ligand

Spectroscopic study of jet-cooled indole-3-carbinol by thermal evaporation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moon, Cheol Joo; Kim, Eun Bin; Min, Ahreum; Ahn, Ahreum; Seong, Yeon Guk; Choi, Myong Yong

2016-01-01

Cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, kale, broccoli, and cauliflower have relatively high levels of indole-3-carbinol (I3C), which can be used as a possible cancer preventative agent particularly for breast, cervical, colorectal, and other hormone-related cancers. Thus, this naturally occurring substance, I3C, is now being used in dietary supplements. In conclusion, we have succeeded in obtaining the R2PI spectrum of a thermally unstable sample, I3C, by using a thermal buffer (herein, uracil) for the first time. Use of thermal evaporation method for thermally unstable biomolecules using thermal buffers will allow us to explore more gas phase spectroscopic studies for their intrinsic physiological properties in the near future

Spectroscopic study of jet-cooled indole-3-carbinol by thermal evaporation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moon, Cheol Joo; Kim, Eun Bin; Min, Ahreum; Ahn, Ahreum; Seong, Yeon Guk; Choi, Myong Yong [Gyeongsang National University, Jinju (Korea, Republic of)

2016-10-15

Cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, kale, broccoli, and cauliflower have relatively high levels of indole-3-carbinol (I3C), which can be used as a possible cancer preventative agent particularly for breast, cervical, colorectal, and other hormone-related cancers. Thus, this naturally occurring substance, I3C, is now being used in dietary supplements. In conclusion, we have succeeded in obtaining the R2PI spectrum of a thermally unstable sample, I3C, by using a thermal buffer (herein, uracil) for the first time. Use of thermal evaporation method for thermally unstable biomolecules using thermal buffers will allow us to explore more gas phase spectroscopic studies for their intrinsic physiological properties in the near future.

Experimentally Studied Thermal Piston-head State of the Internal-Combustion Engine with a Thermal Layer Formed by Micro-Arc Oxidation Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Yu. Dudareva

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The paper presents results of experimental study to show the efficiency of reducing thermal tension of internal combustion engine (ICE pistons through forming a thermal barrier coating on the piston-head. During the engine operation the piston is under the most thermal stress. High temperatures in the combustion chamber may lead to the piston-head burnout and destruction and engine failure.Micro-arc oxidation (MAO method was selected as the technology to create a thermal barrier coating. MAO technology allows us to form the ceramic coating with a thickness of 400μm on the surface of aluminum alloy, which have high heat resistance, and have good adhesion to the substrate even under thermal cycling stresses.Deliverables of MAO method used to protect pistons described in the scientific literature are insufficient, as they are either calculated or experimentally obtained at the special plants (units, which do not reproduce piston operation in a real engine. This work aims to fill this gap. The aim of the work is an experimental study of the thermal protective ability of MAO-layer formed on the piston-head with simulation of thermal processes of the real engine.The tests were performed on a specially designed and manufactured stand free of motor, which reproduces operation conditions maximum close to those of the real engine. The piston is heated by a fire source - gas burner with isobutene balloon, cooling is carried out by the water circulation system through the water-cooling jacket.Tests have been conducted to compare the thermal state of the regular engine piston without thermal protection and the piston with a heat layer formed on the piston-head by MAO method. The study findings show that the thermal protective MAO-layer with thickness of 100μm allows us to reduce thermal tension of piston on average by 8,5 %. Thus at high temperatures there is the most pronounced effect that is important for the uprated engines.The obtained findings can

Studies of thermal stratification in water pool

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Verma, P.K.; Chandraker, D.K.; Nayak, A.K.; Vijayan, P.K.

2015-01-01

Large water pools are used as a heat sink for various cooling systems used in industry. In context of advance nuclear reactors like AHWR, it is used as ultimate heat sink for passive systems for decay heat removal and containment cooling. This system incorporates heat exchangers submerged in the large water pool. However, heat transfer by natural convection in pool poses a problem of thermal stratification. Due to thermal stratification hot layers of water accumulate over the relatively cold one. The heat transfer performance of heat exchanger gets deteriorated as a hot fluid envelops it. In the nuclear reactors, the walls of the pool are made of concrete and it may subject to high temperature due to thermal stratification which is not desirable. In this paper, a concept of employing shrouds around the heat source is studied. These shrouds provide a bulk flow in the water pool, thereby facilitating mixing of hot and cold fluid, which eliminate stratification. The concept has been applied to the a scaled model of Gravity Driven Water Pool (GDWP) of AHWR in which Isolation Condensers (IC) tubes are submerged for decay heat removal of AHWR using ICS and thermal stratification phenomenon was predicted with and without shrouds. To demonstrate the adequacy of the effectiveness of shroud arrangement and to validate the simulation methodology of RELAP5/Mod3.2, experiments has been conducted on a scaled model of the pool with and without shroud. (author)

Study of organic ablative thermal-protection coating for solid rocket motor

Science.gov (United States)

Hua, Zenggong

1992-06-01

A study is conducted to find a new interior thermal-protection material that possesses good thermal-protection performance and simple manufacturing possibilities. Quartz powder and Cr2O3 are investigated using epoxy resin as a binder and Al2O3 as the burning inhibitor. Results indicate that the developed thermal-protection coating is suitable as ablative insulation material for solid rocket motors.

Experimental study of effective thermal conductivity of stainless steel fiber felt

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, W.Q.; Qu, Z.G.

2015-01-01

An experimental apparatus was designed to measure the effective thermal conductivity of porous stainless steel fiber felt under different operating pressures. The total effective thermal conductivity was studied by analyzing matrix heat conduction, air natural convection, and matrix thermal radiation at ambient pressure. The contribution of air natural convection was experimentally obtained by changing the ambient pressure to vacuum condition and the solid matrix heat conduction was evaluated using a theoretical model. The ratios of the three mechanisms to the total effective thermal conductivity were approximately 40%, 37.9%, and 22.1%, respectively. In addition, the effects of fiber diameter and porosity on the three mechanisms and on the total effective thermal conductivity were studied. The air natural convection was found to gradually intensify when the operating pressure increases from vacuum condition (15 Pa) to ambient pressure (1.0 × 10 5  Pa). With an increase in fiber diameter under fixed porosity, the solid matrix heat conduction remained unchanged, and air natural convection and thermal radiation decreased, thereby resulting in reduced effective thermal conductivity. With an increase in porosity under fixed fiber diameter, the air natural convection was almost unchanged, and solid matrix heat conduction and thermal radiation were reduced, thereby resulting in reduced effective thermal conductivity. - Highlights: • Matrix conduction, radiation and air convection were in the same order of magnitude. • Air natural convection was suppressed by reducing operating pressure. • Intensity of air convection was more sensitive to fiber diameter than porosity. • Surface area and permeability was comparable in air convection as fiber diameter fixed. • Interfacial area exerted dominant role in radiation and air convection as porosity fixed

FY 93 thermal loading systems study final report: Volume 1. Revision 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saterlie, S.F.; Thomson, B.H.

1994-01-01

The ability to meet the overall performance requirements for the proposed Mined Geology Disposal System at Yucca Mountain, Nevada requires the two major subsystem (natural barriers and engineered barriers) to positively contribute to containment and radionuclide isolation. In addition to the postclosure performance the proposed repository must meet preclosure requirements of safety, retrievability, and operability. Cost and schedule were also considered. The thermal loading strategy chosen may significantly affect both the postclosure and preclosure performance of the proposed repository. Although the current Site Characterization Plan reference case is 57 kilowatts (kW)/acre, other thermal loading strategies (different areal mass loadings) have been proposed which possess both advantages and disadvantages. The objectives of the FY 1993 Thermal Loading Study were to (1) place bounds on the thermal loading which would establish the loading regime that is ''too hot'' and the loading regime that is ''too cold'', to (2) ''grade'' or evaluate the performance, as a function of thermal loading, of the repository to contain high level wastes against performance criteria and to (3) evaluate the performance of the various options with respect to cost, safety, and operability. Additionally, the effort was to (4) identify important uncertainties that need to be resolved by tests and/or analyses in order to complete a performance assessment on the effects of thermal loading. The FY 1993 Thermal Loading Study was conducted from December 1, 1992 to December 30, 1993 and this final report provides the findings of the study. Volume 1 contains the Introduction; Performance requirements; Input and assumptions; Near-field thermal analysis; Far-field thermal analysis; Cost analysis; Other considerations; System analysis; Additional thermal analysis; and Conclusions and recommendations. 71 refs., 54 figs

Fatty acid profiling of raw human plasma and whole blood using direct thermal desorption combined with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Akoto, L.; Vreuls, R.J.J.; Irth, H.; Pel, R.; Stellaard, F.

2008-01-01

Gas chromatography (GC) has in recent times become an important tool for the fatty acid profiling of human blood and plasma. An at-line procedure used in the fatty acid profiling of whole/intact aquatic micro-organisms without any sample preparation was adapted for this work. A direct thermal

Fatty acid profiling of raw human plasma and whole blood using direct thermal desorption combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Akoto, L.; Vreuls, J.J.; Irth, H.; Pel, R.; Stellaard, F.

2008-01-01

Gas chromatography (GC) has in recent times become an important tool for the fatty acid profiling of human blood and plasma. An at-line procedure used in the fatty acid profiling of whole/intact aquatic micro-organisms without any sample preparation was adapted for this work. A direct thermal

Fatty acid profiling of raw human plasma and whole blood using direct thermal desorption combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Akoto, Lawrence; Vreuls, Rene J. J.; Irth, Hubertus; Pel, Roel; Stellaard, Frans

2008-01-01

Gas chromatography (GC) has in recent times become an important tool for the fatty acid profiling of human blood and plasma. An at-line procedure used in the fatty acid profiling of whole/intact aquatic micro-organisms without any sample preparation was adapted for this work. A direct thermal

Thermal conductivity of sedimentary rocks - selected methodological, mineralogical and textural studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Midttoemme, Kirsti

1997-12-31

The thermal conductivity of sedimentary rocks is an important parameter in basin modelling as the main parameter controlling the temperature within a sedimentary basin. This thesis presents measured thermal conductivities, mainly on clay- and mudstone. The measured values are compared with values obtained by using thermal conductivity models. Some new thermal conductivity models are developed based on the measured values. The values obtained are less than most previously published values. In a study of unconsolidated sediments a constant deviation was found between thermal conductivities measured with a needle probe and a divided bas apparatus. Accepted thermal conductivity models based on the geometric mean model fail to predict the thermal conductivity of clay- and mudstone. Despite this, models based on the geometric mean model, where the effect of porosity is taken account of by the geometric mean equation, seem to be the best. Existing models underestimate the textural influence on the thermal conductivity of clay- and mudstone. The grain size was found to influence the thermal conductivity of artificial quartz samples. The clay mineral content seems to be a point of uncertainty in both measuring and modelling thermal conductivity. A good universal thermal conductivity model must include many mineralogical and textural factors. Since this is difficult, different models restricted to specific sediment types and textures are suggested to be the best solution to obtain realistic estimates applicable in basin modelling. 243 refs., 64 figs., 31 tabs.

An analytical study on the thermal stress of mass concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoshida, H.; Sawada, T.; Yamazaki, M.; Miyashita, T.; Morikawa, H.; Hayami, Y.; Shibata, K.

1983-01-01

The thermal stress in mass concrete occurs as a result of the effect associated with the heat of hydration of the cement. Sometimes, the excessive stresses cause the cracking or other tensile failure in concrete. Therefore it is becoming necessary in the design and construction of mass concrete to predict the thermal stress. The thermal stress analysis of mass concrete requires to take account of the dependence of the elastic modulus on the age of concrete as well as the stress relaxation by creep effect. The studies of those phenomena and the analytical methods have been reported so far. The paper presents the analytical method and discusses its reliability through the application of the method to the actual structure, measuring the temperatures and the thermal stresses. The method is the time dependent thermal stress analysis based on the finite element method, which takes account of creep effect, the aging of concrete and the effect of temperature variation in time. (orig./HP)

Study of Selected Composites Copper Concentrate-Plastic Waste Using Thermal Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Szyszka, Danuta

2017-12-01

The paper presents thermal analysis of selected composites (copper concentrate, plastic waste) in two stages. The first stage consisted in thermogravimetric analysis and differential thermal analysis on the applied plastic waste and copper concentrate, and subsequently, a comparative study has been carried out on products obtained, constituting composites of those materials. As a result of analyses, it was found that up to ca. 400 °C composites show high thermal stability, whereas above that temperature, a thermal decomposition of the composite occurs, resulting in emissions of organic compounds, i.e. hydrocarbon compounds and organic oxygenate derivatives.

Thermal Transport in Soft PAAm Hydrogels

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ni Tang

2017-12-01

Full Text Available As the interface between human and machine becomes blurred, hydrogel incorporated electronics and devices have emerged to be a new class of flexible/stretchable electronic and ionic devices due to their extraordinary properties, such as softness, mechanically robustness, and biocompatibility. However, heat dissipation in these devices could be a critical issue and remains unexplored. Here, we report the experimental measurements and equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations of thermal conduction in polyacrylamide (PAAm hydrogels. The thermal conductivity of PAAm hydrogels can be modulated by both the effective crosslinking density and water content in hydrogels. The effective crosslinking density dependent thermal conductivity in hydrogels varies from 0.33 to 0.51 Wm−1K−1, giving a 54% enhancement. We attribute the crosslinking effect to the competition between the increased conduction pathways and the enhanced phonon scattering effect. Moreover, water content can act as filler in polymers which leads to nearly 40% enhancement in thermal conductivity in PAAm hydrogels with water content vary from 23 to 88 wt %. Furthermore, we find the thermal conductivity of PAAm hydrogel is insensitive to temperature in the range of 25–40 °C. Our study offers fundamental understanding of thermal transport in soft materials and provides design guidance for hydrogel-based devices.

Integrated fiber optical and thermal sensor for noninvasive monitoring of blood and human tissue

Science.gov (United States)

Saetchnikov, Vladimir A.; Tcherniavskaia, Elina A.; Schiffner, Gerhard

2007-05-01

A novel concept of noninvasive monitoring of human tissue and blood based on optical diffuse reflective spectroscopy combined with metabolic heat measurements has been under development. A compact integrated fiber optical and thermal sensor has been developed. The idea of the method was to evaluate by optical spectroscopy haemoglobin and derivative concentrations and supplement with data associated with the oxidative metabolism of glucose. Body heat generated by glucose oxidation is based on the balance of capillary glucose and oxygen supply to the cells. The variation in glucose concentration is followed also by a difference from a distance (or depth) of scattered through the body radiation. So, blood glucose can be estimated by measuring the body heat and the oxygen supply. The sensor pickup contains of halogen lamp and LEDs combined with fiber optical bundle to deliver optical radiation inside and through the patient body, optical and thermal detectors. Fiber optical probe allows diffuse scattering measurement down to a depth of 2.5 mm in the skin including vascular system, which contributes to the control of the body temperature. The sensor pickup measures thermal generation, heat balance, blood flow rate, haemoglobin and derivative concentrations, environmental conditions. Multivariate statistical analysis was applied to convert various signals from the sensor pickup into physicochemical variables. By comparing the values from the noninvasive measurement with the venous plasma result, analytical functions for patient were obtained. Cluster analysis of patient groups was used to simplify a calibration procedure. Clinical testing of developed sensor is being performed.

Experimental study of unsteady thermally stratified flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Sang Jun; Chung, Myung Kyoon

1985-01-01

Unsteady thermally stratified flow caused by two-dimensional surface discharge of warm water into a oblong channel was investigated. Experimental study was focused on the rapidly developing thermal diffusion at small Richardson number. The basic objectives were to study the interfacial mixing between a flowing layer of warm water and an underlying body of cold water and to accumulate experimental data to test computational turbulence models. Mean velocity field measurements were carried out by using NMR-CT(Nuclear Magnetic Resonance-Computerized Tomography). It detects quantitative flow image of any desired section in any direction of flow in short time. Results show that at small Richardson number warm layer rapidly penetrates into the cold layer because of strong turbulent mixing and instability between the two layers. It is found that the transfer of heat across the interface is more vigorous than that of momentum. It is also proved that the NMR-CT technique is a very valuable tool to measure unsteady three dimensional flow field. (Author)

Thermal stability study for candidate stainless steels of GEN IV reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simeg Veternikova, J.; Degmova, J.; Pekarcikova, M.; Simko, F.; Petriska, M.; Skarba, M.; Mikula, P.; Pupala, M.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Thermal resistance of advanced stainless steels were observed at 1000 °C. • GEN IV candidate steels were confronted to classic AISI steels. • ODS AISI 316 has weaker thermal resistance than classic AISI steel. • Ferritic ODS steels and NF 709 has better thermal resistance than AISI steels. - Abstract: Candidate stainless steels for GEN IV reactors were investigated in term of thermal and corrosion stability at high temperatures. New austenitic steel (NF 709), austenitic ODS steel (ODS 316) and two ferritic ODS steels (MA 956 and MA 957) were exposed to around 1000 °C in inert argon atmosphere at pressure of ∼8 MPa. The steels were further studied in a light of vacancy defects presence by positron annihilation spectroscopy and their thermal resistance was confronted to classic AISI steels. The thermal strain supported a creation of oxide layers observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Thermal stability study for candidate stainless steels of GEN IV reactors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simeg Veternikova, J., E-mail: jana.veternikova@stuba.sk [Institute of Nuclear and Physical Engineering, Faculty of Electrical and Information Technology, Slovak University of Technology, Ilkovicova 3, 812 19 Bratislava (Slovakia); Degmova, J. [Institute of Nuclear and Physical Engineering, Faculty of Electrical and Information Technology, Slovak University of Technology, Ilkovicova 3, 812 19 Bratislava (Slovakia); Pekarcikova, M. [Institute of Materials Science, Faculty of Materials Science and Technology, Slovak University of Technology, Paulinska 16, 917 24 Trnava (Slovakia); Simko, F. [Department of Molten Salts, Institute of Inorganic Chemistry, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska cesta 9, 845 36 Bratislava (Slovakia); Petriska, M. [Institute of Nuclear and Physical Engineering, Faculty of Electrical and Information Technology, Slovak University of Technology, Ilkovicova 3, 812 19 Bratislava (Slovakia); Skarba, M. [Slovak University of Technology, Vazovova 5, 812 43 Bratislava (Slovakia); Mikula, P. [Institute of Nuclear and Physical Engineering, Faculty of Electrical and Information Technology, Slovak University of Technology, Ilkovicova 3, 812 19 Bratislava (Slovakia); Pupala, M. [Department of Molten Salts, Institute of Inorganic Chemistry, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska cesta 9, 845 36 Bratislava (Slovakia)

2016-11-30

Highlights: • Thermal resistance of advanced stainless steels were observed at 1000 °C. • GEN IV candidate steels were confronted to classic AISI steels. • ODS AISI 316 has weaker thermal resistance than classic AISI steel. • Ferritic ODS steels and NF 709 has better thermal resistance than AISI steels. - Abstract: Candidate stainless steels for GEN IV reactors were investigated in term of thermal and corrosion stability at high temperatures. New austenitic steel (NF 709), austenitic ODS steel (ODS 316) and two ferritic ODS steels (MA 956 and MA 957) were exposed to around 1000 °C in inert argon atmosphere at pressure of ∼8 MPa. The steels were further studied in a light of vacancy defects presence by positron annihilation spectroscopy and their thermal resistance was confronted to classic AISI steels. The thermal strain supported a creation of oxide layers observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Effect of the position of the visible sky in determining the sky view factor on micrometeorological and human thermal comfort conditions in urban street canyons

Science.gov (United States)

Qaid, Adeb; Lamit, Hasanuddin Bin; Ossen, Dilshan Remaz; Rasidi, Mohd Hisyam

2018-02-01

Poor daytime and night-time micrometeorological conditions are issues that influence the quality of environmental conditions and can undermine a comfortable human lifestyle. The sky view factor (SVF) is one of the essential physical parameters used to assess the micrometeorological conditions and thermal comfort levels within city streets. The position of the visible sky relative to the path of the sun, in the cardinal and ordinal directions, has not been widely discerned as a parameter that could have an impact on the micrometeorological conditions of urban streets. To investigate this parameter, different urban streets that have a similar SVF value but diverse positions of visible sky were proposed in different street directions intersecting with the path of the sun, namely N-S, NE-SW and NW-SE. The effects of daytime and night-time micrometeorological variables and human thermal comfort variables on the street were investigated by applying ENVI-met V3.1 Beta software. The results show that the position of the visible sky has a greater influence on the street's meteorological and human thermal comfort conditions than the SVF value. It has the ability to maximise or minimise the mean radiation temperature (Tmrt, °C) and the physiological equivalent temperature (PET, °C) at street level. However, the visible sky positioned to the zenith in a NE-SW or N-S street direction and to the SW of a NW-SE street direction achieves the best daytime micrometeorological and thermal comfort conditions. Alternatively, the visible sky positioned to the NE for a NW-SE street direction, to the NW and the zenith for a NE-SW street direction and to the zenith for a N-S street direction reduces the night-time air temperature (Ta, °C). Therefore, SVF and the position of the visible sky relative to the sun's trajectory, in the cardinal and ordinal directions, must be considered during urban street planning to better understand the resultant micrometeorological and human thermal

Comparative performance study of smart structure for thermal microactuators

Science.gov (United States)

Yahya, Zulkarnain; Johar, Muhammad Akmal

2017-04-01

Thermal microactuator is one of earliest types of microactuators. Typical thermal actuators are in the form of Bimorph and Chevron structures. A bimorph thermal actuator has a complex movement direction, in arc motion and thus it is not feasible in the most MEMS designs. While Chevron actuator has a tendency to produce an off-plane movement which lead to low precision in lateral movement. A new thermal actuator design in the form of serpentine structures shows promising feature to have better performances in terms of more predictive lateral movement with smaller off-plane displacement. In MEMS chip design, areas play a critical role as it will impact with the cost of the final product. In this study, four different structures of thermal actuator were simulated using ANSYS v15. Three different set of area sizes which are 240 µm x 1000 µm, 240 µm x 1500 µm and 240 µm x 2000 µm have been analyzed. All four structures were named as Serpentine01, Serpentine02, Bimorph and Chevron. The data with regards to temperature produced by the structure and z-axis directional deformation were collected and analyzed. This paper reported the investigation result of comparison between these three types of thermal actuator structures design with a given area. From all of the result obtained, it is shown that the area 240 µm x 1500 µm showed a well balance performance in term of huge deformations and low power consumption. The Serpentine01 structure produced 16.7 µm deformation at 4mA of current. The results shows the potential of Serpentine01 structure as a new candidate for thermal microactuator for MEMS applications.

Infrared thermography based studies on the effect of age on localized cold stress induced thermoregulation in human

Science.gov (United States)

Lahiri, B. B.; Bagavathiappan, S.; Nishanthi, K.; Mohanalakshmi, K.; Veni, L.; Saumya; Yacin, S. M.; Philip, John

2016-05-01

Thermoregulatory control of blood flow plays an important role in maintaining the human body temperature and it provides physiological resistance against extreme environmental thermal stresses. To understand the role of age on thermal signals from veins and the thermoregulatory mechanism, the dynamic variation of the vein temperature on the hands of 17 human subjects, under a localized cold stress, was studied using infrared thermography. It was observed that the vein temperature of the stimulated hand initially decreased with time up to a time interval (called 'inversion time'), which was attributed to the localized cutaneous vasoconstriction. Beyond inversion time, a rise in the vein temperature of the stimulated hand was observed. A shift in the inversion time to higher values was observed for the older subjects, which was attributed to the reduced efficiency and responsiveness of the cutaneous vasoconstriction mechanism in these subjects. Our studies indicated that the inversion time increased linearly with subject age with strong positive Pearson's correlation coefficient of 0.94. It was also observed that the contralateral symmetry in vasoconstriction was much lower in older subjects than the younger subjects. The absolute difference between the left and right inversion time varied between 11-118 s and 5-28 s for the older and younger subjects, respectively. Our study clearly demonstrated that infrared thermography is one of the most effective experimental tool for studying dynamic variation in vein pixel temperature under localized thermal stresses.

Equilibrium Molecular Dynamics (MD Simulation Study of Thermal Conductivity of Graphene Nanoribbon: A Comparative Study on MD Potentials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Asir Intisar Khan

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The thermal conductivity of graphene nanoribbons (GNRs has been investigated using equilibrium molecular dynamics (EMD simulation based on Green-Kubo (GK method to compare two interatomic potentials namely optimized Tersoff and 2nd generation Reactive Empirical Bond Order (REBO. Our comparative study includes the estimation of thermal conductivity as a function of temperature, length and width of GNR for both the potentials. The thermal conductivity of graphene nanoribbon decreases with the increase of temperature. Quantum correction has been introduced for thermal conductivity as a function of temperature to include quantum effect below Debye temperature. Our results show that for temperatures up to Debye temperature, thermal conductivity increases, attains its peak and then falls off monotonically. Thermal conductivity is found to decrease with the increasing length for optimized Tersoff potential. However, thermal conductivity has been reported to increase with length using 2nd generation REBO potential for the GNRs of same size. Thermal conductivity, for the specified range of width, demonstrates an increasing trend with the increase of width for both the concerned potentials. In comparison with 2nd generation REBO potential, optimized Tersoff potential demonstrates a better modeling of thermal conductivity as well as provides a more appropriate description of phonon thermal transport in graphene nanoribbon. Such comparative study would provide a good insight for the optimization of the thermal conductivity of graphene nanoribbons under diverse conditions.

Review of the integrated thermal and nonthermal treatment system studies. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1996-10-01

This report contains a review and evaluation of three systems analysis studies performed by LITCO on integrated thermal treatment systems and integrated nonthermal treatment systems for the remediation of mixed low-level waste stored throughout the US Department of Energy weapons complex. The review was performed by an independent team of nine researchers from the Energy and Environmental Research Center, Science Applications International Corporation, the Waste Policy Institute, and Virginia Tech. The three studies reviewed were as follows: Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 1 -- issued July 1994; Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 2 -- issued February 1996; and Integrated Nonthermal Treatment System Study -- drafted March 1996. The purpose of this review was to (1) determine whether the assumptions of the studies were adequate to produce an unbiased review of both thermal and nonthermal systems, (2) to identify the critical areas of the studies that would benefit from further investigation, and (3) to develop a standard template that could be used in future studies to assure a sound application of systems engineering.

Review of the integrated thermal and nonthermal treatment system studies. Topical Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Durrani, H.A.; Schmidt, L.J.; Erickson, T.A.; Sondreal, E.A.; Erjavec, J.; Steadman, E.N.; Fabrycky, W.J.; Wilson, J.S.; Musich, M.A.

1996-07-01

This report analyzes three systems engineering (SE) studies performed on integrated thermal treatment systems (ITTSs) and integrated nonthermal treatment systems (INTSs) for the remediation of mixed low-level waste (MLLW) stored throughout the US Department of Energy (DOE) weapons complex. The review was performed by an independent team of nine researchers from the Energy and Environmental Research Center (EERC), Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), the Waste Policy Institute (WPI), and Virginia Tech (VT). The three studies reviewed were as follows: Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 1--issued July 1994; Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 2--issued February 1996; and Integrated Nonthermal Treatment System Study--drafted March 1996. The purpose of this review was to (1) determine whether the assumptions taken in the studies might bias the resulting economic evaluations of both thermal and nonthermal systems, (2) identify the critical areas of the studies that would benefit from further investigation, and (3) develop a standard template that could be used in future studies to produce sound SE applications

Review of the integrated thermal and nonthermal treatment system studies. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-10-01

This report contains a review and evaluation of three systems analysis studies performed by LITCO on integrated thermal treatment systems and integrated nonthermal treatment systems for the remediation of mixed low-level waste stored throughout the US Department of Energy weapons complex. The review was performed by an independent team of nine researchers from the Energy and Environmental Research Center, Science Applications International Corporation, the Waste Policy Institute, and Virginia Tech. The three studies reviewed were as follows: Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 1 -- issued July 1994; Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study, Phase 2 -- issued February 1996; and Integrated Nonthermal Treatment System Study -- drafted March 1996. The purpose of this review was to (1) determine whether the assumptions of the studies were adequate to produce an unbiased review of both thermal and nonthermal systems, (2) to identify the critical areas of the studies that would benefit from further investigation, and (3) to develop a standard template that could be used in future studies to assure a sound application of systems engineering

Is fat perception a thermal effect?

Science.gov (United States)

Prinz, J F; de Wijk, R A; Huntjens, L A H; Engelen, L; Polet, I A

2007-04-01

It has been generally assumed that fat is detected by its flavour and by its lubrication of the oral mucosa. A recent study reported a correlation of -.99 between perceived temperature of a product and its fat content. This was significantly higher than correlations of sensory scores for fat flavour, mouthfeel, and afterfeel. This suggested a third detection mechanism; fat may be detected via its effect on the thermal conductivity of the food. In 3 studies, thermal sensitivity in humans was investigated to verify whether oral thermal receptors are sufficiently rapid and accurate to play a role in the perception of fats. The thermal sensitivity of the lips and oral mucosa of the anterior and middle one-third of the tongue were assessed using a Peltier device. Subjects detected 0.5 Hz fluctuations in temperature of 0.08'C on the lower lip, 0.26 degrees C and 1.36 degrees C at the tip and dorsum of the tongue, demonstrating that the lips are sufficiently sensitive to detect small differences in temperature. In two further experiments subjects ingested custards and mayonnaises and then spat out samples after 5, 10, or 20 sec. The temperature of the food and oral mucosa was measured before and after spitting and the rates of heating were calculated. Results suggest assessment of thermal conductivity of food may be used to assess fat content.

Challenging the assumptions for thermal sensation scales

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schweiker, Marcel; Fuchs, Xaver; Becker, Susanne

2016-01-01

Scales are widely used to assess the personal experience of thermal conditions in built environments. Most commonly, thermal sensation is assessed, mainly to determine whether a particular thermal condition is comfortable for individuals. A seven-point thermal sensation scale has been used...... extensively, which is suitable for describing a one-dimensional relationship between physical parameters of indoor environments and subjective thermal sensation. However, human thermal comfort is not merely a physiological but also a psychological phenomenon. Thus, it should be investigated how scales for its...... assessment could benefit from a multidimensional conceptualization. The common assumptions related to the usage of thermal sensation scales are challenged, empirically supported by two analyses. These analyses show that the relationship between temperature and subjective thermal sensation is non...

Inverse thermal analysis method to study solidification in cast iron

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dioszegi, Atilla; Hattel, Jesper

2004-01-01

Solidification modelling of cast metals is widely used to predict final properties in cast components. Accurate models necessitate good knowledge of the solidification behaviour. The present study includes a re-examination of the Fourier thermal analysis method. This involves an inverse numerical...... solution of a 1-dimensional heat transfer problem connected to solidification of cast alloys. In the analysis, the relation between the thermal state and the fraction solid of the metal is evaluated by a numerical method. This method contains an iteration algorithm controlled by an under relaxation term...... inverse thermal analysis was tested on both experimental and simulated data....

Experimental study on physiological responses and thermal comfort under various ambient temperatures.

Science.gov (United States)

Yao, Ye; Lian, Zhiwei; Liu, Weiwei; Shen, Qi

2008-01-28

This study mainly explored the thermal comfort from the perspective of physiology. Three physiological parameters, including skin temperature (local and mean), electrocardiograph (ECG) and electroencephalogram (EEG), were investigated to see how they responded to the ambient temperature and how they were related to the thermal comfort sensation. A total of four ambient temperatures (21 degrees C, 24 degrees C, 26 degrees C and 29 degrees C) were created, while the other thermal conditions including the air velocity (about 0.05+/-0.01 m/s) and the air humidity (about 60+/-5 m/s) were kept as stable as possible throughout the experiments. Twenty healthy students were tested with questionnaire investigation under those thermal environments. The statistical analysis shows that the skin temperature (local and mean), the ratio of LF(norm) to HF(norm) of ECG and the global relative power of the different EEG frequency bands will be sensitive to the ambient temperatures and the thermal sensations of the subjects. It is suggested that the three physiological parameters should be considered all together in the future study of thermal comfort.

Thermal (dis)comfort experienced from physiological movements across indoor, transitional and outdoor spaces in Singapore: A pilot study

Science.gov (United States)

Li Heng, Su; Chow, Winston

2017-04-01

Human thermal comfort research is important as climate discomfort can adversely affect both health and work productivity in cities; however, such biometeorological work in low-latitude urban areas is still relatively unstudied hitherto. In the tropical metropolis of Singapore, a suite of policies have been implemented aimed at improving environmental sustainability via increasing car-free commutes and pedestrian movement during work/school journeys, with the consequence that individuals will likely have increased personal exposure through a variety of spaces (and climates) during typical daily activities. As such, research into exploring the thermal (dis)comfort experienced during pedestrian movements across these indoor, outdoor and transitional (semi-outdoor) spaces would yield interesting applied biometerological insights. This pilot study thus investigates how pedestrian thermal comfort varies spatially across a university campus, and how the physical intensity of pedestrian travel affects thermal comfort across these spaces. Over a 10-week period, we profiled six students for both their objective and subjective pedestrian thermal comfort during traverses across different spaces. Data were obtained through use of (a.) of a heat stress sensor, (b.) a fitness tracker, and (b.) a questionnaire survey to record traverse measurements of the microclimate, their physiological data, and their perceived microclimate comfort respectively. Measured climate and physiological data were used to derive commonly-used thermal comfort indices like wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and physiological equivalent temperature (PET). Further, interviews were conducted with all six subjects at the end of the fieldwork period to ascertain details on individual acclimatization behavior and adaptation strategies. The results indicate that (a.) more than 50% of the microclimatic conditions within each indoor, semi-outdoor, and outdoor space exceeded heat stress thresholds of both PET and

Thermal Mud Molecular Overview

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ersin Odabasi

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Thermal mud (peloids, which are frequently used for thermal therapy purposes consist of organic and inorganic (minerals compounds in general. Organic structure is formed after a variety of chemical processes occurring in decades and comprise of a very complex structure. Stagnant water environment, herbal diversity, microorganism multiplicity and time are crucial players to form the structure. Data regarding description of organic compounds are very limited. Nowadays, it was clearly understood that a variety of compounds those are neglected in daily practice are found in thermal mud after GC-MS and similar methods are being frequently used. Those compounds which are biologically active are humic compounds, carboxylic acids, terpenoids, steroids and fatty acids. By comprising the thermal mud, these different compound groups which are related to divers areas from cosmetology to inflammation, make the thermal mud very meaningful in the treatment of human disease. In this review, it was tried to put forward the effects of several molecule groups those consisting of the thermal mud structure. [TAF Prev Med Bull 2014; 13(3.000: 257-264

Thermal studies on a mechanical prototype of A BIS MDT chamber

CERN Document Server

Petridou, C; Wotschack, J; Zisis, A

1998-01-01

The deformations of a BIS MDT chamber owing to temperature gradients between the two multilayers and between the two Faraday cages were studied on a mechanical prototype. The influence of thermal insulation on the thermal behaviour of the chamber is also reported.

Experimental and modeling study of forest fire effect on soil thermal conductivity

Science.gov (United States)

Kathleen M. Smits; Elizabeth Kirby; William J. Massman; Scott Baggett

2016-01-01

An understanding of soil thermal conductivity after a wildfire or controlled burn is important to land management and post-fire recovery efforts. Although soil thermal conductivity has been well studied for non-fire heated soils, comprehensive data that evaluate the long-term effect of extreme heating from a fire on the soil thermal conductivity are limited....

Thermal Analysis--Human Comfort--Indoor Environments. NBS Special Publication 491.

Science.gov (United States)

Mangum, Billy W., Ed.; Hill, James E., Ed.

Included in these proceedings are 11 formal papers presented by leading researchers in the field of thermal comfort and heat stress at a symposium held for the purpose of exploring new aspects of indoor thermal environments, caused primarily by the impact of energy conservation in new and existing buildings. The contributed papers were from…

Study on the dose distribution of the mixed field with thermal and epi-thermal neutrons for neutron capture therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kobayashi, Tooru; Sakurai, Yoshinori; Kanda, Keiji

1994-01-01

Simulation calculations using DOT 3.5 were carried out in order to confirm the characteristics of depth-dependent dose distribution in water phantom dependent on incident neutron energy. The epithermal neutrons mixed to thermal neutron field is effective improving the thermal neutron depth-dose distribution for neutron capture therapy. A feasibility study on the neutron energy spectrum shifter was performed using ANISN-JR for the KUR Heavy Water Facility. The design of the neutron spectrum shifter is feasible, without reducing the performance as a thermal neutron irradiation field. (author)

Studies of the thermal properties of horn keratin by dielectric spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and differential thermal analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marzec, E.; Piskunowicz, P.; Jaroszyk, F.

2002-01-01

The dielectric and thermal properties of horn keratin have been studied bu dielectric spectroscopy in the frequency range 10 1 -10 5 Hz, thermogravimetric analysis (TG) and different thermal analysis (DTA). Measurement of non-irradiated and g amma - irradiated keratin with doses 5, 50 kGy were performed at temperature from 22 to 260 o C. The results revealed the occurrence of phase transitions related to release of loosely bound water and bound water up to 200 o Cand the denaturation of the crystalline structure above this temperature. The influence of γ-irradiation on the thermal behaviour of keratin is significant only in the temperature range of denaturation. The decrease in the temperature of denaturation would suggest that γ-irradiation initiates main-chain degradation. (authors)

Non-destructive thermal wave method applied to study thermal properties of fast setting time endodontic cement

Science.gov (United States)

Picolloto, A. M.; Mariucci, V. V. G.; Szpak, W.; Medina, A. N.; Baesso, M. L.; Astrath, N. G. C.; Astrath, F. B. G.; Santos, A. D.; Moraes, J. C. S.; Bento, A. C.

2013-11-01

The thermal wave method is applied for thermal properties measurement in fast endodontic cement (CER). This new formula is developed upon using Portland cement in gel and it was successfully tested in mice with good biocompatibility and stimulated mineralization. Recently, thermal expansion and setting time were measured, conferring to this material twice faster hardening than the well known Angelus Mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) the feature of fast hardening (˜7 min) and with similar thermal expansion (˜12 μstrain/ °C). Therefore, it is important the knowledge of thermal properties like thermal diffusivity, conductivity, effusivity in order to match thermally the tissue environment upon its application in filling cavities of teeth. Photothermal radiometry technique based on Xe illumination was applied in CER disks 600 μm thick for heating, with prepared in four particle sizes (25, 38, 45, and 53) μm, which were added microemulsion gel with variation volumes (140, 150, 160, and 170) μl. The behavior of the thermal diffusivity CER disks shows linear decay for increase emulsion volume, and in contrast, thermal diffusivity increases with particles sizes. Aiming to compare to MTA, thermal properties of CER were averaged to get the figure of merit for thermal diffusivity as (44.2 ± 3.6) × 10-3 cm2/s, for thermal conductivity (228 ± 32) mW/cm K, the thermal effusivity (1.09 ± 0.06) W s0.5/cm2 K and volume heat capacity (5.2 ± 0.7) J/cm3 K, which are in excellent agreement with results of a disk prepared from commercial MTA-Angelus (grain size < 10 μm using 57 μl of distilled water).

Nuclear thermal propulsion engine cost trade studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paschall, R.K.

1993-01-01

The NASA transportation strategy for the Mars Exploration architecture includes the use of nuclear thermal propulsion as the primary propulsion system for Mars transits. It is anticipated that the outgrowth of the NERVA/ROVER programs will be a nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) system capable of providing the propulsion for missions to Mars. The specific impulse (Isp) for such a system is expected to be in the 870 s range. Trade studies were conducted to investigate whether or not it may be cost effective to invest in a higher performance (Isp>870 s) engine for nuclear thermal propulsion for missions to Mars. The basic cost trades revolved around the amount of mass that must be transported to low-earth orbit prior to each Mars flight and the cost to launch that mass. The mass required depended on the assumptions made for Mars missions scenarios including piloted/cargo flights, number of Mars missions, and transit time to Mars. Cost parameters included launch cost, program schedule for development and operations, and net discount rate. The results were very dependent on the assumptions that were made. Under some assumptions, higher performance engines showed cost savings in the billions of dollars; under other assumptions, the additional cost to develop higher performance engines was not justified

Guide to Setting Thermal Comfort Criteria and Minimizing Energy Use in Delivering Thermal Comfort

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Regnier, Cindy [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

2012-08-01

Historically thermal comfort in buildings has been controlled by simple dry bulb temperature settings. As we move into more sophisticated low energy building systems that make use of alternate systems such as natural ventilation, mixed mode system and radiant thermal conditioning strategies, a more complete understanding of human comfort is needed for both design and control. This guide will support building designers, owners, operators and other stakeholders in defining quantifiable thermal comfort parameters?these can be used to support design, energy analysis and the evaluation of the thermal comfort benefits of design strategies. This guide also contains information that building owners and operators will find helpful for understanding the core concepts of thermal comfort. Whether for one building, or for a portfolio of buildings, this guide will also assist owners and designers in how to identify the mechanisms of thermal comfort and space conditioning strategies most important for their building and climate, and provide guidance towards low energy design options and operations that can successfully address thermal comfort. An example of low energy design options for thermal comfort is presented in some detail for cooling, while the fundamentals to follow a similar approach for heating are presented.

Non-destructive thermal wave method applied to study thermal properties of fast setting time endodontic cement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Picolloto, A. M.; Mariucci, V. V. G.; Szpak, W.; Medina, A. N.; Baesso, M. L.; Astrath, N. G. C.; Astrath, F. B. G.; Bento, A. C., E-mail: acbento@uem.br [Departamento de Física, Grupo de Espectroscopia Fotoacústica e Fototérmica, Universidade Estadual de Maringá – UEM, Av. Colombo 5790, 87020-900 Maringá, Paraná (Brazil); Santos, A. D.; Moraes, J. C. S. [Departamento de Física e Química, Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho – UNESP, Av. Brasil 56, 15385-000 Ilha Solteira, SP (Brazil)

2013-11-21

The thermal wave method is applied for thermal properties measurement in fast endodontic cement (CER). This new formula is developed upon using Portland cement in gel and it was successfully tested in mice with good biocompatibility and stimulated mineralization. Recently, thermal expansion and setting time were measured, conferring to this material twice faster hardening than the well known Angelus Mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) the feature of fast hardening (∼7 min) and with similar thermal expansion (∼12 μstrain/ °C). Therefore, it is important the knowledge of thermal properties like thermal diffusivity, conductivity, effusivity in order to match thermally the tissue environment upon its application in filling cavities of teeth. Photothermal radiometry technique based on Xe illumination was applied in CER disks 600 μm thick for heating, with prepared in four particle sizes (25, 38, 45, and 53) μm, which were added microemulsion gel with variation volumes (140, 150, 160, and 170) μl. The behavior of the thermal diffusivity CER disks shows linear decay for increase emulsion volume, and in contrast, thermal diffusivity increases with particles sizes. Aiming to compare to MTA, thermal properties of CER were averaged to get the figure of merit for thermal diffusivity as (44.2 ± 3.6) × 10{sup −3} cm{sup 2}/s, for thermal conductivity (228 ± 32) mW/cm K, the thermal effusivity (1.09 ± 0.06) W s{sup 0.5}/cm{sup 2} K and volume heat capacity (5.2 ± 0.7) J/cm{sup 3} K, which are in excellent agreement with results of a disk prepared from commercial MTA-Angelus (grain size < 10 μm using 57 μl of distilled water)

Non-destructive thermal wave method applied to study thermal properties of fast setting time endodontic cement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Picolloto, A. M.; Mariucci, V. V. G.; Szpak, W.; Medina, A. N.; Baesso, M. L.; Astrath, N. G. C.; Astrath, F. B. G.; Bento, A. C.; Santos, A. D.; Moraes, J. C. S.

2013-01-01

The thermal wave method is applied for thermal properties measurement in fast endodontic cement (CER). This new formula is developed upon using Portland cement in gel and it was successfully tested in mice with good biocompatibility and stimulated mineralization. Recently, thermal expansion and setting time were measured, conferring to this material twice faster hardening than the well known Angelus Mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) the feature of fast hardening (∼7 min) and with similar thermal expansion (∼12 μstrain/ °C). Therefore, it is important the knowledge of thermal properties like thermal diffusivity, conductivity, effusivity in order to match thermally the tissue environment upon its application in filling cavities of teeth. Photothermal radiometry technique based on Xe illumination was applied in CER disks 600 μm thick for heating, with prepared in four particle sizes (25, 38, 45, and 53) μm, which were added microemulsion gel with variation volumes (140, 150, 160, and 170) μl. The behavior of the thermal diffusivity CER disks shows linear decay for increase emulsion volume, and in contrast, thermal diffusivity increases with particles sizes. Aiming to compare to MTA, thermal properties of CER were averaged to get the figure of merit for thermal diffusivity as (44.2 ± 3.6) × 10 −3 cm 2 /s, for thermal conductivity (228 ± 32) mW/cm K, the thermal effusivity (1.09 ± 0.06) W s 0.5 /cm 2 K and volume heat capacity (5.2 ± 0.7) J/cm 3 K, which are in excellent agreement with results of a disk prepared from commercial MTA-Angelus (grain size < 10 μm using 57 μl of distilled water)

A Study of Thermal Performance of Contemporary Technology-Rich Educational Spaces

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sarah Elmasry

2013-08-01

Full Text Available One of the most dominant features of a classroom space is its high occupancy, which results in high internal heat gain (approximately 5 KW. Furthermore, installation of educational technologies, such as smart boards, projectors and computers in the spaces increases potential internal heat gain. Previous studies on office buildings indicate that with the introduction of IT equipment in spaces during the last decade, cooling load demands are increasing with an associated increase in summer electrical demand. Due to the fact that educational technologies in specific correspond to pedagogical practices within the space, a lot of variations due to occupancy patterns occur. Also, thermal loads caused by educational technologies are expected to be dependent on spatial configuration, for example, position with respect to the external walls, lighting equipment, mobility of devices. This study explores the thermal impact of educational technologies in 2 typical educational spaces in a facility of higher education; the classroom and the computer lab. The results indicate that a heat gain ranging between 0.06 and 0.095 KWh/m2 is generated in the rooms when educational technologies are in use. The second phase of this study is ongoing, and investigates thermal zones within the rooms due to distribution of educational technologies. Through simulation of thermal performance of the rooms, alternative room configurations are thus recommended in response to the observed thermal zones.

Study of thermal threshold and counter-measures for human body in oceanic working environment. 1st Report. Heat balance model and heat storage index; Shonetsu kankyoka no kaiyo sagyo ni okeru netsuteki genkai to onnetsu taisaku ni kansuru kenkyu. 1. Netsu shushi model to onnetsu shisu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fukuchi, N. [Kyushu University, Fukuoka (Japan). Faculty of Engineering; Nakamura, M. [Tokyo Gakugei University, Tokyo (Japan); Murayama, M.

1996-12-31

Identification was intended on effects of such thermal factors as metabolic amount, environmental temperature and humidity, and clothing resistance on human body temperatures during works under hot environments. Therefore, measurements were carried out on human skin temperatures, rectum temperatures and humidity inside clothing, while amount of motion, environmental temperature, and clothing are changed in a constant temperature room and under a sun irradiation environment. Furthermore, a heat balance model was prepared, which divides the objects into an outer shell layer whose temperature changes depending on the result of this experiment and into a core having constant temperature characteristics. An equation to derive skin temperatures was introduced from the model. The equation formulated a calculation formula for heat accumulation in human body, which can be used as a hot heat index. Relationship between thermal factors and heat storage amount was investigated to consider a thermal limit for a physical work. An equation to derive skin temperatures was confirmed capable of expressing general change in skin temperatures, being proved by comparison with experiments. Calculation formulas for amount of heat stored in human body were shown capable of expressing influence of different thermal factors, the expression being useful as a hot heat index. Calculating the human body heat storage is very largely affected by effect of sweat to dissipate heat, hence it is necessary to improve the accuracy including that for body temperature adjusting reactions. 17 refs., 17 figs., 5 tabs.

Study of thermal threshold and counter-measures for human body in oceanic working environment. 1st Report. Heat balance model and heat storage index; Shonetsu kankyoka no kaiyo sagyo ni okeru netsuteki genkai to onnetsu taisaku ni kansuru kenkyu. 1. Netsu shushi model to onnetsu shisu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fukuchi, N [Kyushu University, Fukuoka (Japan). Faculty of Engineering; Nakamura, M [Tokyo Gakugei University, Tokyo (Japan); Murayama, M

1997-12-31

Identification was intended on effects of such thermal factors as metabolic amount, environmental temperature and humidity, and clothing resistance on human body temperatures during works under hot environments. Therefore, measurements were carried out on human skin temperatures, rectum temperatures and humidity inside clothing, while amount of motion, environmental temperature, and clothing are changed in a constant temperature room and under a sun irradiation environment. Furthermore, a heat balance model was prepared, which divides the objects into an outer shell layer whose temperature changes depending on the result of this experiment and into a core having constant temperature characteristics. An equation to derive skin temperatures was introduced from the model. The equation formulated a calculation formula for heat accumulation in human body, which can be used as a hot heat index. Relationship between thermal factors and heat storage amount was investigated to consider a thermal limit for a physical work. An equation to derive skin temperatures was confirmed capable of expressing general change in skin temperatures, being proved by comparison with experiments. Calculation formulas for amount of heat stored in human body were shown capable of expressing influence of different thermal factors, the expression being useful as a hot heat index. Calculating the human body heat storage is very largely affected by effect of sweat to dissipate heat, hence it is necessary to improve the accuracy including that for body temperature adjusting reactions. 17 refs., 17 figs., 5 tabs.

Thermal expansion and magnetostriction studies on iron pnictides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Liran

2010-09-19

In this work, a 3-terminal capacitance dilatometer was set up and used for measurements of the thermal expansion and magnetostriction of novel superconducting iron pinictides and related materials. In particular, RFeAsO with R = La, Ce, Pr, Sm, Gd, LaFeASO{sub 1-x}F{sub x} and Ca(F{sub 1-c}Co{sub x}){sub 2}As{sub 2} have been investigated. The data on polycrystalline LaFeAsO{sub 1-x} are the first published thermal expansion data on this material. The lattice effects at the structural and the magnetic phase transition have been investigated and the phase diagram upon F-doping has been studied. A main result is the observation of a previously unknown fluctuation regime for the doping level x ≤ 0.04 over a large T range above the structural transition temperature T{sub S}. The absence of any structural anomalies in the normal state of the superconducting LaFeAlO{sub 1-x}F{sub x} samples with x ≥ 0.05 corroborates the discontinuous character of the phase boundary not only for the magnetism but also for the structural degrees of freedom. Similarly, the presence of high-temperature fluctuations is found for all RFeAsO undoped materials under study. The discussion of the probable origin of the fluctuations as well as the definition of the structural transition temperature T{sub S} are done. The low temperature features shown by the thermal expansion data for RFeAsO are caused by the onset of long range magnetic order of the 4f-moments and their different configurations. In particular, PrFeAsO, which has a very pronounced anomaly associated with Pr-ordering exhibits a large magnetostriction at low temperatures. By discussing this effect along with the magnetization, resistivity and other measurements, it is found that this large magneto-elastic effect may originate from the correlations between the momentum from Fe{sup 3+} and Pr{sup 3+}. Last, the thermal expansion of Ca(Fe{sub 1-x}Co{sub x}){sub 2}As{sub 2} 122 single crystals is investigated. Ca(Fe{sub 1-x}Co{sub x

Cell death following thermal neutron exposure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Paterson, L.C. [Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, Chalk River, Ontario (Canada); Atanackovic, J. [Ontario Power Generation, Toronto, Ontario (Canada); Boyer, C. [Canadian Neutron Beam Centre, Chalk River, Ontario (Canada); El-Jaby, S.; Priest, N.D. [Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, Chalk River, Ontario (Canada); Seymour, C.B.; Boreham, D.R. [McMaster Univ., Hamilton, Ontario (Canada); Richardson, R.B. [Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, Chalk River, Ontario (Canada)

2014-07-01

When individuals are exposed to unknown external ionizing radiation, it is desirable to have the means to assess both the absorbed dose received (Gy) and the radiation quality. Yet, conventional biodosimetry techniques, specifically the dicentric chromosome assay, cannot differentiate between the damage caused by high- and low-linear energy transfer (LET) exposures. Frequencies of apoptosis and necrosis, may provide an alternative method that assesses both the absorbed dose and radiation quality after unknown exposures. For this preliminary study, human lymphocytes were irradiated with {sup 60}Co gamma rays and thermal neutrons. Both apoptosis and necrosis increased with increasing gamma dose. In contrast, no dose-response was observed following thermal neutron exposure at doses up to 2.61 Gy. (author)

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

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Aizaz

2010-09-01

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

Numerical study on lithium titanate battery thermal response under adiabatic condition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun, Qiujuan; Wang, Qingsong; Zhao, Xuejuan; Sun, Jinhua; Lin, Zijing

2015-01-01

Highlights: • The thermal behavior of lithium titanate battery during cycling was investigated. • The temperature rate in charging was less than that of discharging in the cycling. • The temperature difference was less than 0.02 °C at 0.5 C in adiabatic condition. • The temperature distribution and thermal runaway of the battery were predicted. - Abstract: To analyze the thermal behavior of 945 mA h lithium titanate battery during charging and discharging processes, the experimental and numerical studies are performed in this work. The cathode and anode of the 945 mA h lithium titanate soft package battery are the lithium nickel–cobalt–manganese-oxide and lithium titanate, respectively. In the experiment, an Accelerating Rate Calorimeter combined with battery cycler is employed to investigate the electrochemical–thermal behavior during charge–discharge cycling under the adiabatic condition. In numerical simulation, one electrochemical-thermal model is adopted to predict the thermal response and validated with the experimental results. From both experimental and simulated results, the profile of potential and current, the heat generation, the temperature, the temperature changing rate and the temperature distribution in the cell are obtained and thermal runaway is predicted. The analysis of the electrochemical and thermal behavior is beneficial for the commercial application of lithium titanate battery in the fields of electric vehicles and hybrid electric vehicles

Study of heat and hydraulic diffusions in clays under thermal loading

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Djeran, I.

1993-01-01

This study is a cost-sharing research programme on radioactive waste disposal and radioactive waste management. The thermal conductivity of clays is the fundamental parameter which governs the thermal diffusion and the pore pressure of the rock mass under thermal loading. Experiments have been undertaken in a reduced model, respecting representative boundary conditions. They show that the thermal conductivity depends on temperature in an unfavourable sense to the decrease of heat. On the other hand, the outflow of pore water, from the source to the exterior, has a low amplitude. A single model of porous medium allows the observations and illustrates the effects of the variation of conductivity on the behaviour of rock mass. Finally, thanks to the numerical formulations specially developed, we examine the incident of the particularities of proposed models on the thermohydromechanical behaviour of geometrically simple structures subjected to a given thermal loading

Thermal decomposition study of manganese sulfide (MnS) nanoparticles

Science.gov (United States)

Tailor, Jiten P.; Khimani, Ankurkumar J.; Chaki, Sunil H.; Deshpande, M. P.

2018-05-01

The as-synthesized manganese sulfide (MnS) nanoparticles were used for the thermal study. The nanoparticles were synthesized by simple wet chemical route at ambient temperature. The photoelectron binding energy and chemical composition of MnS nanoparticles was analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The thermogravimetric (TG), differential thermogravimetric (DTG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) were carried out on the as-synthesized MnS nanoparticles. The thermocurves were recorded in inert N2 atmosphere in the temperature range of ambient to 1173 K. The heating rates employed were 5, 10, 15 and 20 K/min. The thermodynamic parameters like activation energy (Ea), enthalpy change (ΔH), entropy change (ΔS) and change in Gibbs free energy (ΔG) of as-synthesized MnS nanoparticles were determined using Kissinger method. The obtained XPS and thermal results are discussed.

Application of thermal comfort theory in probabilistic safety assessment of a nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou Tao; Sun Canhui; Li Zhenyang; Wang Zenghui

2011-01-01

Human factor errors in probabilistic safety assessment (PSA) of a nuclear power plant (NPP) can be prevented using thermal comfort analysis. In this paper, the THERP + HCR model is modified by using PMV (Predicted Mean Vote) and PPD (Predicted Percentage Dissatisfied) index system, so as to obtain the operator cognitive reliability,and to reflect and analyze human perception, thermal comfort status,and cognitive ability in a specific NPP environment. The mechanism of human factors in the PSA is analyzed by operators of skill, rule and knowledge types. The THERP + HCR model modified by thermal comfort theory can reflect the conditions in actual environment, and optimize reliability analysis of human factors. Improving human thermal comfort for different types of operators reduces adverse factors due to human errors, and provides a safe and optimum decision-making for NPPs. (authors)

Experimental and numerical study of the thermal performance of a new type of phase change material room

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meng, Erlin; Yu, Hang; Zhan, Guangyi; He, Yang

2013-01-01

Highlights: • A new type of PCM room is proposed, two kinds of PCM were used in the room. • The new room can decrease the indoor air temperature fluctuation by 4.3 °C in summer. • Indoor air temperature fluctuation was decreased by 14.2 °C in winter for the new room. • Important factors that affect the thermal performance of the new room were studied. - Abstract: A new type of phase change material (PCM) room was proposed in this paper to control the indoor air temperature for a better thermal comfort for human beings. That is to place two different kinds of PCM into room envelopes of different orientations. Both experimental and numerical studies were carried out for rooms with/without PCM. Indoor air temperature and interior surface heat flux of the two rooms were studied in typical summer and winter climate of Shanghai (31.2N, 121.5E). Important factors that affect the thermal performance of the PCM were studied, such as phase change temperature, thickness of the PCM and the arrangement of the two kinds of PCM in the room. Results showed that this new type of PCM room can decrease the indoor air temperature fluctuation by 4.3 °C in summer and 14.2 °C in winter. Different arrangements of the two kinds of PCM in the room can cause an indoor air temperature difference to be 6.9 °C in summer and 2.7 °C in winter

Photovoltaic Thermal panels in collective thermal solar systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elswijk, M.J.; Strootman, K.J.; Jong, M.J.M.; De Lange, E.T.N.; Smit, W.F.

2003-12-01

A feasibility study has been carried out to assess the options to apply photovoltaic/thermal panels (PVT-panels) in collective solar thermal systems in urban areas in the Netherlands. The study was focused on the technical (architecture and installations) and the economical feasibility of collective PVT-systems in comparison with conventional solar thermal systems and combinations of photovoltaic (PV) panels and solar collectors. The results of the study also give insight into cost and the market for PVT-panels. Three case studies in which collective solar collector systems were applied are analyzed again by simulating the installation of a PVT-panels system and a separate solar thermal PV system [nl

Parametric study on thermal-hydraulic characteristics of high conversion light water reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mori, Takamasa; Nakagawa, Masayuki; Fujii, Sadao.

1988-11-01

To assess the feasibility of high conversion light water reactors (HCLWRs) from the thermal-hydraulic viewpoint, parametric study on thermal-hydraulic characteristics of HCLWR has been carried out by using a unit cell model. It is assumed that a HCLWR core is contained in a current 1000 MWe PWR plant. At the present study, reactor core parameters such as fuel pin diameter, pitch, core height and linear heat rate are widely and parametrically changed to survey the relation between these parameters and the basic thermal-hydraulic characteristics, i.e. maximum fuel temperature, minimum DNBR, reduction of reactor thermal output and so on. The validity of the unit cell model used has been ensured by comparison with the result of a subchannel analysis carried out for a whole core. (author)

Hydrokinesitherapy in thermal mineral water

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rendulić-Slivar Senka

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The treatment of clients in health spa resorts entails various forms of hydrotherapy. Due to specific properties of water, especially thermal mineral waters, hydrokinesitherapy has a positive effect on the locomotor system, aerobic capabilities of organism and overall quality of human life. The effects of use of water in movement therapy are related to the physical and chemical properties of water. The application of hydrotherapy entails precautionary measures, with an individual approach in assessment and prescription. The benefits of treatment in thermal mineral water should be emphasized and protected, as all thermal mineral waters differ in composition. All physical properties of water are more pronounced in thermal mineral waters due to its mineralisation, hence its therapeutical efficiency is greater, as well.

Experimental Studies of Thermal Interactions at AEE Winfrith

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Briggs, A.J.

1976-01-01

Assessment of the consequences of very severe reactor accidents in which fuel is melted involves evaluation of the nature of any thermal interaction between molten fuel or cladding and the reactor coolant. Work on these problems has been pursued in many countries, both experimentally and theoretically, but although much progress has been made there is as yet no well established theoretical description of large scale efficient thermal interactions. The need for further experimental data in this area was one of the main reasons for establishing a new range of experimental facilities at Winfrith which provide the ability to carry out experiments involving explosions under safe conditions. Experiments are set up inside a strong test cell situated in the centre of a 200 m exclusion area. Instrumentation is provided for transient measurements of pressure and strain, and for high speed cine photography. The first part of this programme started early in 1975, and is concerned with the propagation of thermal interaction through a metal/water system. This programme is not yet complete but some results of interest have been obtained. The first part of this paper will describe these experiments and discuss the significance of the results currently available. Such studies of large scale metal/water interactions should help to provide an improved understanding of the way in which propagation might occur in the reactor case, but must be complemented by experiments using reactor materials. The second stage of the Winfrith programme will study the UO 2 /Na system directly. Facilities for the production of pure uranium burning thermite charges will be commissioned early in 1976. This chemical technique for producing molten UO 2 will be used in two main types of experiment. Firstly the interaction of a two phase bubble of UO 2 with a surrounding pool of Na will be studied, extending the investigations of this kind started at AWRE Foulness. Secondly, the heat transfer rate from UO 2

Thermal-performance study of liquid metal fast breeder reactor insulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shiu, K.K.

1980-09-01

Three types of metallic thermal insulation were investigated analytically and experimentally: multilayer reflective plates, multilayer honeycomb composite, and multilayer screens. Each type was subjected to evacuated and nonevacuated conditions, where thermal measurements were made to determine thermal-physical characteristics. A variation of the separation distance between adjacent reflective plates of multilayer reflective plates and multilayer screen insulation was also experimentally studied to reveal its significance. One configuration of the multilayer screen insulation was further selected to be examined in sodium and sodium oxide environments. The emissivity of Type 304 stainless steel used in comprising the insulation was measured by employing infrared technology. A comprehensive model was developed to describe the different proposed types of thermal insulation. Various modes of heat transfer inherent in each type of insulation were addressed and their relative importance compared. Provision was also made in the model to allow accurate simulation of possible sodium and sodium oxide contamination of the insulation. The thermal-radiation contribution to heat transfer in the temperature range of interest for LMFBR's was found to be moderate, and the suppression of natural convection within the insulation was vital in preserving its insulating properties. Experimental data were compared with the model and other published results. Moreover, the three proposed test samples were assessed and compared under various conditions as viable LMFBR thermal insulations

Experimental Study of Thermal Runaway Process of 18650 Lithium-Ion Battery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jingjing Liu

2017-02-01

Full Text Available This study addresses the effects of the SOC (State of Charge and the charging–discharging process on the thermal runaway of 18650 lithium-ion batteries. A series of experiments were conducted on an electric heating and testing apparatus. The experimental results indicate that 6 W is the critical heating power for 40% SOC. With a 20 W constant heating rate, the thermal runaway initial temperature of the lithium-ion battery decreases with the increasing SOC. The final thermal runaway temperature increases with the SOC when the SOC is lower than 80%. However, a contrary conclusion was obtained when the SOC was higher than 80%. Significant mass loss, accompanied by an intense exothermic reaction, took place under a higher SOC. The critical charging current, beyond which the thermal runaway occurs, was found to be 2.6 A. The thermal runaway initial temperature decreases with the increasing charging current, while the intensity of the exothermic reaction varies inversely. Mass ejection of gas and electrolytes exists during thermal runaway when the charging current is higher than 10.4 A, below which only a large amount of gas is released. The thermal runaway initial temperature of discharging is higher than that of non-discharging.

Experimental Study of Thermal Runaway Process of 18650 Lithium-Ion Battery.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jingjing; Wang, Zhirong; Gong, Junhui; Liu, Kai; Wang, Hao; Guo, Linsheng

2017-02-25

This study addresses the effects of the SOC (State of Charge) and the charging-discharging process on the thermal runaway of 18650 lithium-ion batteries. A series of experiments were conducted on an electric heating and testing apparatus. The experimental results indicate that 6 W is the critical heating power for 40% SOC. With a 20 W constant heating rate, the thermal runaway initial temperature of the lithium-ion battery decreases with the increasing SOC. The final thermal runaway temperature increases with the SOC when the SOC is lower than 80%. However, a contrary conclusion was obtained when the SOC was higher than 80%. Significant mass loss, accompanied by an intense exothermic reaction, took place under a higher SOC. The critical charging current, beyond which the thermal runaway occurs, was found to be 2.6 A. The thermal runaway initial temperature decreases with the increasing charging current, while the intensity of the exothermic reaction varies inversely. Mass ejection of gas and electrolytes exists during thermal runaway when the charging current is higher than 10.4 A, below which only a large amount of gas is released. The thermal runaway initial temperature of discharging is higher than that of non-discharging.

Summary of comparative results integrated nonthermal treatment and integrated thermal treatment systems studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-12-01

In July 1994, the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL), under a contract from U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Environment Management Office of Science and Technology (OST, EM-50) published a report entitled open-quotes Integrated Thermal Treatment System Study - Phase 1 Resultsclose quotes (EGG-MS-11211). This report was the culmination of over a year of analysis involving scientists and engineers within the DOE complex and from private industry. The purpose of that study was open-quotes to conduct a systematic engineering evaluation of a variety of mixed low level waste (MLLW) treatment system alternatives.close quotes The study also open-quotes identified the research and development, demonstrations, and testing and evaluation needed to assure unit operability in the most promising alternative system.close quotes This study evaluated ten primary thermal treatment technologies, organized into complete open-quotes cradle-to-graveclose quotes systems (including complete engineering flow sheets), to treat DOE MLLW and calculated mass balances and 20-year total life cycle costs (TLCC) for all systems. The waste input used was a representative heterogenous mixture of typical DOE MLLW. An additional study was conducted, and then, based on response to these studies, additional work was started to investigate and evaluate non-thermal treatment options on a footing comparable to the effort devoted to thermal options. This report attempts to present a summary overview of the thermal and non-thermal treatment technologies which were examined in detail in the process of the above mentioned reviews

A comparative study on three types of solar utilization technologies for buildings: Photovoltaic, solar thermal and hybrid photovoltaic/thermal systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huide, Fu; Xuxin, Zhao; Lei, Ma; Tao, Zhang; Qixing, Wu; Hongyuan, Sun

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Models of Solar thermal, Photovoltaic and Photovoltaic/thermal systems are developed. • Experiments are performed to validate the simulation results. • Annual performances of the three solar systems used in china are predicted. • Energy comparison between the three solar systems is analyzed. - Abstract: Buildings need energy including heat and electricity, and both of them can be provided by the solar systems. Solar thermal and photovoltaic systems absorb the solar energy and can supply the heat and electricity for buildings, respectively. However, for the urban residential buildings, the limited available area makes installation of the solar thermal collectors and photovoltaic modules together impossible. A hybrid photovoltaic/thermal system can simultaneously generate heat and electricity, which is deemed to be quite suitable for the urban residential buildings application. And yet, for a rural house of China, the available area for installation of the solar collectors is large but daily domestic hot water demand of a rural family is generally not exceeded 300 L. If only the hybrid photovoltaic/thermal collectors are installed on the whole available area, this will lead to an overproduction of the thermal energy, especially in summer. Moreover, buildings requiring for the heat and electricity are different in different regions and different seasons. In this paper, simulation models of the solar thermal, photovoltaic and hybrid photovoltaic/thermal systems are presented, and experiments are also performed to validate the simulation results. Using the validated models, performances of the three solar systems for residential applications were predicted. And energy comparison between the three solar systems used in Hongkong, Lhasa, Shanghai and Beijing of China, respectively, were also studied. Results show that, for the urban residential building with limited available installation space, a hybrid photovoltaic/thermal system may have the

Segmentation techniques for extracting humans from thermal images

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Dickens, JS

2011-11-01

Full Text Available A pedestrian detection system for underground mine vehicles is being developed that requires the segmentation of people from thermal images in underground mine tunnels. A number of thresholding techniques are outlined and their performance on a...

The thermal and mechanical deformation study of up-stream pumping mechanical seal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, H L; Xu, C; Zuo, M Z; Wu, Q B

2015-01-01

Taking the viscosity-temperature relationship of the fluid film into consideration, a 3-D numerical model was established by ANSYS software which can simulate the heat transfer between the upstream pumping mechanical seal stationary and rotational rings and the fluid film between them as well as simulate the thermal deformation, structure deformation and the coupling deformation of them. According to the calculation result, thermal deformation causes the seal face expansion and the maximum thermal deformation appears at the inside of the seal ring. Pressure results in a mechanical deformation, the maximum deformation occurs at the top of the spiral groove and the overall trend is inward the mating face, opposite to the thermal deformation. The coupling deformation indicate that the thermal deformation can be partly counteracted by pressure deformation. Using this model, the relationship between deformation and shaft speed and the sealing liquid pressure was studied. It's found that the shaft speed will both enhance the thermal and structure deformation and the fluid pressure will enhance the structure deformation but has little to do with the thermal deformation. By changing the sealing material, it's found that material with low thermal expansion coefficient and low elastic modulus will suffer less thermal-pressure deformation

The thermal and mechanical deformation study of up-stream pumping mechanical seal

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, H. L.; Xu, C.; Zuo, M. Z.; Wu, Q. B.

2015-01-01

Taking the viscosity-temperature relationship of the fluid film into consideration, a 3-D numerical model was established by ANSYS software which can simulate the heat transfer between the upstream pumping mechanical seal stationary and rotational rings and the fluid film between them as well as simulate the thermal deformation, structure deformation and the coupling deformation of them. According to the calculation result, thermal deformation causes the seal face expansion and the maximum thermal deformation appears at the inside of the seal ring. Pressure results in a mechanical deformation, the maximum deformation occurs at the top of the spiral groove and the overall trend is inward the mating face, opposite to the thermal deformation. The coupling deformation indicate that the thermal deformation can be partly counteracted by pressure deformation. Using this model, the relationship between deformation and shaft speed and the sealing liquid pressure was studied. It's found that the shaft speed will both enhance the thermal and structure deformation and the fluid pressure will enhance the structure deformation but has little to do with the thermal deformation. By changing the sealing material, it's found that material with low thermal expansion coefficient and low elastic modulus will suffer less thermal-pressure deformation.

Experimental study on the thermal performance of a new type of thermal energy storage based on flat micro-heat pipe array

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Feng-fei; Diao, Yan-hua; Zhao, Yao-hua; Zhu, Ting-ting; Liu, Jing

2016-01-01

Highlights: • A novel thermal energy storage based on flat micro-heat pipe array is proposed. • The thermal storage shows excellent thermal performance in the working process. • The novel thermal storage has the advantage of low flow resistance. - Abstract: The thermal performance of an air-based phase change storage unit is analyzed and discussed in this study. The thermal energy storage uses flat micro-heat pipe array (FMHPA) as the core heat transfer component and lauric acid as phase change material (PCM). An experimental system is devised to test the heat storage–release property of the storage unit under different inlet temperatures and flow rates of the heat transfer medium. The performance of the storage unit and the melting/solidification curves of the phase change material are obtained based on extensive experimental data. Experimental results indicate that the flat micro-heat pipe array exhibits excellent temperature uniformity in the heat storage–release process, and the performance of the storage unit is efficient and steady.

Transient thermal sensation and comfort resulting from adjustment of clothing insulation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Goto, Tomonobu; Toftum, Jørn; Fanger, Povl Ole

2003-01-01

This study investigated the transient effects on human thermal responses of clothing adjustments. Two different levels of activity were tested, and the temperature was set to result in a warm or cool thermal sensation at each activity level. The subjects (12 females and 12 males) wore identical...... uniforms and were asked to take off or don a part of the uniform after they had adapted to the experimental conditions for more than 20 minutes. The results showed that the thermal sensation votes responded immediately to the adjustment of clothing insulation and reached a new steady-state level within 5...

A Study on thermal-hydraulic characteristics of the coolant materials for the transmutation reactor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chung, Chang Hyun; You, Young Woo; Cho, Jae Seon; Kim, Ju Youl; Kim, Do Hyoung; Kim, Yoon Ik; Yang, Hui Chang [Seoul National University, Taejon (Korea)

1998-03-01

The objective of this study is to provide the direction of transmutation reactor design in terms of thermal hydraulics especially through the analysis of thermal hydraulic characteristics of various candidate materials for the transmutation reactor coolant. In this study, the characteristics of coolant materials used in current nuclear power plants and candidate materials for transmutation reactor are analyzed and compared. To evaluate the thermal hydraulic characteristics, the preliminary thermal-hydraulic calculation is performed for the candidate coolant materials of transmutation reactor. An analysis of thermal-hydraulic characteristics of transmutation reactor. An analysis of thermal-hydraulic characteristics of Sodium, Lead, Lead-Bismuth, and Lead-Lithium among the liquid metals considered as the coolant of transmutation reactor is performed by using computational fluid dynamics code FLUENT, and SIMPLER algorithm. (author). 50 refs., 40 figs., 30 tabs.

Thermal conductivity model for powdered materials under vacuum based on experimental studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Sakatani

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The thermal conductivity of powdered media is characteristically very low in vacuum, and is effectively dependent on many parameters of their constituent particles and packing structure. Understanding of the heat transfer mechanism within powder layers in vacuum and theoretical modeling of their thermal conductivity are of great importance for several scientific and engineering problems. In this paper, we report the results of systematic thermal conductivity measurements of powdered media of varied particle size, porosity, and temperature under vacuum using glass beads as a model material. Based on the obtained experimental data, we investigated the heat transfer mechanism in powdered media in detail, and constructed a new theoretical thermal conductivity model for the vacuum condition. This model enables an absolute thermal conductivity to be calculated for a powder with the input of a set of powder parameters including particle size, porosity, temperature, and compressional stress or gravity, and vice versa. Our model is expected to be a competent tool for several scientific and engineering fields of study related to powders, such as the thermal infrared observation of air-less planetary bodies, thermal evolution of planetesimals, and performance of thermal insulators and heat storage powders.

Performance analysis of a lunar based solar thermal power system with regolith thermal storage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu, Xiaochen; Ma, Rong; Wang, Chao; Yao, Wei

2016-01-01

The manned deep-space exploration is a hot topic of the current space activities. The continuous supply of thermal and electrical energy for the scientific equipment and human beings is a crucial issue for the lunar outposts. Since the night lasts for periods of about 350 h at most locations on the lunar surface, massive energy storage is required for continuous energy supply during the lengthy lunar night and the in-situ resource utilization is demanded. A lunar based solar thermal power system with regolith thermal storage is presented in this paper. The performance analysis is carried out by the finite-time thermodynamics to take into account major irreversible losses. The influences of some key design parameters are analyzed for system optimization. The analytical results shows that the lunar based solar thermal power system with regolith thermal storage can meet the requirement of the continuous energy supply for lunar outposts. - Highlights: • A lunar based solar thermal power system with regolith thermal storage is presented. • The performance analysis is carried out by the finite-time thermodynamics. • The influences of some key design parameters are analyzed.

Review of the physiology of human thermal comfort while exercising in urban landscapes and implications for bioclimatic design

Science.gov (United States)

Vanos, Jennifer K.; Warland, Jon S.; Gillespie, Terry J.; Kenny, Natasha A.

2010-07-01

This review comprehensively examines scientific literature pertaining to human physiology during exercise, including mechanisms of heat formation and dissipation, heat stress on the body, the importance of skin temperature monitoring, the effects of clothing, and microclimatic measurements. This provides a critical foundation for microclimatologists and biometeorologists in the understanding of experiments involving human physiology. The importance of the psychological aspects of how an individual perceives an outdoor environment are also reviewed, emphasizing many factors that can indirectly affect thermal comfort (TC). Past and current efforts to develop accurate human comfort models are described, as well as how these models can be used to develop resilient and comfortable outdoor spaces for physical activity. Lack of suitable spaces plays a large role in the deterioration of human health due to physical inactivity, leading to higher rates of illness, heart disease, obesity and heat-related casualties. This trend will continue if urban designers do not make use of current knowledge of bioclimatic urban design, which must be synthesized with physiology, psychology and microclimatology. Increased research is required for furthering our knowledge on the outdoor human energy balance concept and bioclimatic design for health and well-being in urban areas.

Does seeing ice really feel cold? Visual-thermal interaction under an illusory body-ownership.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shoko Kanaya

Full Text Available Although visual information seems to affect thermal perception (e.g. red color is associated with heat, previous studies have failed to demonstrate the interaction between visual and thermal senses. However, it has been reported that humans feel an illusory thermal sensation in conjunction with an apparently-thermal visual stimulus placed on a prosthetic hand in the rubber hand illusion (RHI wherein an individual feels that a prosthetic (rubber hand belongs to him/her. This study tests the possibility that the ownership of the body surface on which a visual stimulus is placed enhances the likelihood of a visual-thermal interaction. We orthogonally manipulated three variables: induced hand-ownership, visually-presented thermal information, and tactically-presented physical thermal information. Results indicated that the sight of an apparently-thermal object on a rubber hand that is illusorily perceived as one's own hand affects thermal judgments about the object physically touching this hand. This effect was not observed without the RHI. The importance of ownership of a body part that is touched by the visual object on the visual-thermal interaction is discussed.

Thermal degradation of ligno-cellulosic fuels. DSC and TGA studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Leroy, V.; Cancellieri, D.; Leoni, E. [SPE-CNRS UMR 6134, University of Corsica, Campus Grossetti, BP 52, 20250 Corti (France)

2006-12-01

The scope of this work was to show the utility of thermal analysis and calorimetric experiments to study the thermal oxidative degradation of Mediterranean scrubs. We investigated the thermal degradation of four species; DSC and TGA were used under air sweeping to record oxidative reactions in dynamic conditions. Heat released and mass loss are important data to be measured for wildland fires modelling purpose and fire hazard studies on ligno-cellulosic fuels. Around 638 and 778K, two dominating and overlapped exothermic peaks were recorded in DSC and individualized using a experimental and numerical separation. This stage allowed obtaining the enthalpy variation of each exothermic phenomenon. As an application, we propose to classify the fuels according to the heat released and the rate constant of each reaction. TGA experiments showed under air two successive mass loss around 638 and 778K. Both techniques are useful in order to measure ignitability, combustibility and sustainability of forest fuels. (author)

Effect of thermal environment on the temporal, spatial and seasonal occurrence of measles in Ondo state, Nigeria

Science.gov (United States)

Omonijo, Akinyemi Gabriel; Matzarakis, Andreas; Oguntoke, Olusegun; Adeofun, Clement Olabinjo

2012-09-01

We investigated the temporal and spatial dynamics, as well as the seasonal occurrence of measles in Ondo state, Nigeria, to better understand the role of the thermal environment in the occurrence of the childhood killer disease measles, which ranks among the top ten leading causes of child deaths worldwide. The linkages between measles and atmospheric environmental factors were examined by correlating human-biometeorological parameters in the study area with reported clinical cases of measles for the period 1998-2008. We also applied stepwise regression analysis in order to determine the human-biometeorological parameters that lead to statistical changes in reported clinical cases of measles. We found that high reported cases of measles are associated with the least populated areas, where rearing and cohabitation of livestock/domestic animals within human communities are common. There was a significant correlation ( P measles and human-biometeorological parameters except wind speed and vapour pressure. High transmission of measles occurred in the months of January to May during the dry season when human thermal comfort indices are very high. This highlights the importance of the thermal environment in disease demographics since it accounted for more than 40% variation in measles transmission within the study period.

Study of thermal-hydraulic characteristics in an LMFBR intermediate plenum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Uotani, M.; Naohara, N.; Kinoshita, I.

1985-01-01

Experimental studies using water and liquid metal were conducted in order to investigate the thermal-hydraulic characteristics of an LMFBR intermediate plenum. The present study is an attempt to evaluate the effect of natural convection on the temperature field and to validate the prediction method of temperature profile in a thermally stratified cavity. The experimental results indicated that the effect of the natural convection on flow velocity and heat transfer in the cavity is reduced with increasing the modified stratification parameter. The calculation by FEM code and a simple 1-D model are effective to predict the temperature profile in the cavity

Thermal stability study of crystalline and novel spray-dried amorphous nilotinib hydrochloride

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Herbrink, Maikel; Vromans, Herman; Schellens, Jan Hm; Beijnen, Jos H; Nuijen, Bastiaan

2018-01-01

The thermal characteristics and the thermal degradation of crystalline and amorphous nilotinib hydrochloride (NH) were studied. The spray drying technique was successfully utilized for the amorphization of NH and was evaluated by spectroscopic techniques and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC).

Importance of thermal comfort for library building in Kuching, Sarawak

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ibrahim, S.H.; Baharun, A.; Abdul Mannan, M.D.; Abang Adenan, D.A. [Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS), 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak (Malaysia)

2013-07-01

Malaysian Government takes an initiative to provide library in housing areas to improve the quality of human capital. However, the government has to evaluate every aspect of their provision to ensure the services provided meet the demands of the users, including the aspect of thermal comfort in the building. For this study, a library constructed using Industrialised Building System (IBS) are selected for thermal comfort evaluation. The data were analyzed using Corrected Effective Temperature (CET) index. From the data analysis, it shows that thermal comfort in the library could not be achieved most of the time unless when the mechanical cooling is used. A series of technical design improvements are then recommended to improve the thermal comfort inside the library by incorporating construction details without increasing the cost.

A study on the utilization of hyper-thermal neutrons for neutron capture therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sakurai, Yoshinori; Kobayashi, Tooru; Kanda, Keiji

1993-01-01

The utilization of hyper-thermal neutrons, which have an energy spectrum of a Maxwellian distribution of a higher temperature than the room temperature of 300 K, was studied in order to improve the thermal neutron flux distribution at the deeper part in a living body for neutron capture therapy. Simulation calculations were carried out using MCNP-V3 in order to confirm the characteristics of hyper-thermal neutrons, i.e., (1) depth dependence of neutron energy spectrum, and (2) depth distribution of the reaction rate in a water phantom for materials with 1/v neutron absorption. It is confirmed that the hyper-thermal neutron irradiation can improve the thermal neutron flux distribution in the deeper and wider area in a living body compared with the thermal neutron irradiation. Practically, by the incidence of the hyper-thermal neutrons with a 3000 K Maxwellian distribution, the thermal neutron flux at 5 cm depth can be given about four times larger than by the incidence of the thermal neutrons of 300 K. (author)

THERMAL COMFORT STUDY OF AN AIR-CONDITIONED DESIGN STUDIO IN TROPICAL SURABAYA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agus Dwi Hariyanto

2005-01-01

Full Text Available This paper evaluates the current thermal comfort condition in an air-conditioned design studio using objective measurement and subjective assessment. Objective measurement is mainly to quantify the air temperature, MRT, relative humidity, and air velocity. Subjective assessment is conducted using a questionnaire to determine the occupants thermal comfort sensations and investigate their perception of the thermal comfort level. A design studio in an academic institution in Surabaya was chosen for the study. Results show that more than 80% of the occupants accepted the indoor thermal conditions even though both the environmental and comfort indices exceeded the limit of the standard (ASHRAE Standard 55 and ISO 7730. In addition, non-uniformity of spatial temperature was present in this studio. Some practical recommendations were made to improve the thermal comfort in the design studio.

Thermal expansion studies on Inconel-600[reg] by high temperature X-ray diffraction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raju, S.; Sivasubramanian, K.; Divakar, R.; Panneerselvam, G.; Banerjee, A.; Mohandas, E.; Antony, M.P.

2004-01-01

The lattice thermal expansion characteristics of Inconel-600[reg] have been studied by high temperature X-ray diffraction (HT-XRD) technique in the temperature range 298-1200 K. Altogether four experimental runs were conducted on thin foils of about 75-100 μm thickness. The diffraction profiles have been accurately calibrated to offset the shift in 2θ values introduced by sample buckling at elevated temperatures. The corrected lattice parameter data have been used to estimate the instantaneous and mean linear thermal expansion coefficients as a function of temperature. The thermal expansion values estimated in the present study show a fair degree of agreement with other existing dilatometer based bulk thermal expansion estimates. The lattice parameter for this alloy at 300 K is found to be 0.3549(1) nm. The mean linear thermal expansivity is found to be 11.4 x 10 -6 K -1

Study of thermal sensitivity and thermal explosion violence of energetic materials in the LLNL ODTX system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hsu, P C; Hust, G; Zhang, M X; Lorenz, T K; Reynolds, J G; Fried, L; Springer, H K; Maienschein, J L

2014-01-01

Incidents caused by fire and combat operations can heat energetic materials that may lead to thermal explosion and result in structural damage and casualty. Some explosives may thermally explode at fairly low temperatures (< 100 °C) and the violence from thermal explosion may cause significant damage. Thus it is important to understand the response of energetic materials to thermal insults. The One Dimensional Time to Explosion (ODTX) system at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has been used for decades to measure times to explosion, threshold thermal explosion temperature, and determine kinetic parameters of energetic materials. Samples of different configurations (pressed part, powder, paste, and liquid) can be tested in the system. The ODTX testing can also provide useful data for assessing the thermal explosion violence of energetic materials. Recent ODTX experimental data are reported in the paper.

Study of thermal, radiation and environmental effects on serpentine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raje, Naina; Kalekar, Bhupesh B.; Dubey, K.A.

2016-01-01

Physical and chemical properties of a material, such as particle size surface area, magnetic properties, water content, radiation and thermal stability, viscosity, porosity, are responsible for their specific applications. Serpentine is a greenish, layer structured phyllosilicate, known as magnesium hydroxy silicate. The availability of large number of hydroxyl group makes serpentine a potential candidate for nuclear shielding material. Hence present studies have been carried out to understand the stability of serpentine with the variation in thermal, radiation and environmental parameters. Serpentine samples were received from Reactor Projects Division, BARC. An accurately weighed sample was subjected to simultaneous TG - DTA - EGA measurements in air as well as inert atmosphere at the heating rate of 10 °C/min. The sample was heated from room temperature to 1000 °C with a gas flow rate of 100 mL/min in Netzsch thermal analyzer (Model STA409 PC LUXX) connected to Bruker FTIR system (Model - Tensor27) via a 1m long capillary. The sample was subjected to gamma radiation in the range of 10 - 100 kGy using 60 Co gamma source in gamma chamber and was subjected to TG measurements to understand the effect of radiation on the thermal stability of serpentine and the results are being discussed here

Study of the electrical and thermal performances of photovoltaic thermal collector-compound parabolic concentrated

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahed Hameed Jaaz

2018-06-01

Full Text Available The importance of utilizing the solar energy as a very suitable source among multi-source approaches to replace the conventional energy is on the rise in the last four decades. The invention of the photovoltaic module (PV could be the corner stone in this process. However, the limited amount of energy obtained from PV was and still the main challenge of full utilization of the solar energy. In this paper, the use of the compound parabolic concentrator (CPC along with the thermal photovoltaic module (PVT where the cooling process of the CPC is conducted using a novel technique of water jet impingement has applied experimentally and physically tested. The test includes the effect of water jet impingement on the total power, electrical efficiency, thermal efficiency, and total efficiency on CPC-PVT system. The cooling process at the maximum irradiation by water jet impingement resulted in improving the electrical efficiency by 7%, total output power by 31% and the thermal efficiency by 81%. These results outperform the recent highest results recorded by the most recent work. Keywords: Photovoltaic thermal collectors, Electrical performance, Thermal performance, Compound parabolic concentrator, Jet impingement

Quantitative study of bundle size effect on thermal conductivity of single-walled carbon nanotubes

Science.gov (United States)

Feng, Ya; Inoue, Taiki; An, Hua; Xiang, Rong; Chiashi, Shohei; Maruyama, Shigeo

2018-05-01

Compared with isolated single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs), thermal conductivity is greatly impeded in SWNT bundles; however, the measurement of the bundle size effect is difficult. In this study, the number of SWNTs in a bundle was determined based on the transferred horizontally aligned SWNTs on a suspended micro-thermometer to quantitatively study the effect of the bundle size on thermal conductivity. Increasing the bundle size significantly degraded the thermal conductivity. For isolated SWNTs, thermal conductivity was approximately 5000 ± 1000 W m-1 K-1 at room temperature, three times larger than that of the four-SWNT bundle. The logarithmical deterioration of thermal conductivity resulting from the increased bundle size can be attributed to the increased scattering rate with neighboring SWNTs based on the kinetic theory.

A comparative study of thermal calcination and an alkaline hydrolysis method in the isolation of hydroxyapatite from Thunnus obesus bone

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Venkatesan, Jayachandran; Ryu, BoMi; Thomas, Noel Vinay; Kim, Se Kwon; Qian Zhongji

2011-01-01

In the present study, hydroxyapatite (HAp) was isolated from Thunnus obesus bone using alkaline hydrolysis and thermal calcination methods. The obtained ceramic has been characterized by thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), powder x-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive x-ray analysis, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area diffraction analysis, cytotoxic analysis and cell proliferation analysis. The results indicate that there are significant differences between the ceramics and T. obesus bone. FT-IR and TGA results affirmed that the collagen and organic moieties have been eliminated by both the proposed methods. XRD results were in agreement with JCPDS data. TEM and selective area diffraction images have signified that the thermal calcination method produces good crystallinity with dimensions 0.3-1.0 μm, whereas the alkaline hydrolysis method produces nanostructured HAp crystals with 17-71 nm length and 5-10 nm width. Biocompatibility of HAp crystals was evaluated by cytotoxicity and cell proliferation with human osteoblast-like cell MG-63.

A comparative study of thermal calcination and an alkaline hydrolysis method in the isolation of hydroxyapatite from Thunnus obesus bone

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Venkatesan, Jayachandran; Ryu, BoMi; Thomas, Noel Vinay; Kim, Se Kwon [Department of Chemistry, Pukyong National University, Busan 608-737 (Korea, Republic of); Qian Zhongji, E-mail: sknkim@pknu.ac.kr [Marine Bioprocess Research Center, Pukyong National University, Busan 608-737 (Korea, Republic of)

2011-06-15

In the present study, hydroxyapatite (HAp) was isolated from Thunnus obesus bone using alkaline hydrolysis and thermal calcination methods. The obtained ceramic has been characterized by thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), powder x-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive x-ray analysis, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area diffraction analysis, cytotoxic analysis and cell proliferation analysis. The results indicate that there are significant differences between the ceramics and T. obesus bone. FT-IR and TGA results affirmed that the collagen and organic moieties have been eliminated by both the proposed methods. XRD results were in agreement with JCPDS data. TEM and selective area diffraction images have signified that the thermal calcination method produces good crystallinity with dimensions 0.3-1.0 {mu}m, whereas the alkaline hydrolysis method produces nanostructured HAp crystals with 17-71 nm length and 5-10 nm width. Biocompatibility of HAp crystals was evaluated by cytotoxicity and cell proliferation with human osteoblast-like cell MG-63.

Human emotions detection based on a smart-thermal system of thermographic images

Science.gov (United States)

Cruz-Albarran, Irving A.; Benitez-Rangel, Juan P.; Osornio-Rios, Roque A.; Morales-Hernandez, Luis A.

2017-03-01

This work presents a noninvasive methodology to obtain biomedical thermal imaging which provide relevant information that may assist in the diagnosis of emotions. Biomedical thermal images of the facial expressions of 44 subjects were captured experiencing joy, disgust, anger, fear and sadness. The analysis of these thermograms was carried out through its thermal value not with its intensity value. Regions of interest were obtained through image processing techniques that allow to differentiate between the subject and the background, having only the subject, the centers of each region of interest were obtained in order to get the same region of the face for each subject. Through the thermal analysis a biomarker for each region of interest was obtained, these biomarkers can diagnose when an emotion takes place. Because each subject tends to react differently to the same stimuli, a self-calibration phase is proposed, its function is to have the same thermal trend for each subject in order to make a decision so that the five emotions can be correctly diagnosed through a top-down hierarchical classifier. As a final result, a smart-thermal system that diagnose emotions was obtained and it was tested on twenty-five subjects (625 thermograms). The results of this test were 89.9% successful.

Molecular dynamics study on the thermal conductivity and thermal rectification in graphene with geometric variations of doped boron

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liang, Qi, E-mail: alfred_02030210@163.com; Wei, Yuan

2014-03-15

Thermal conductivity and thermal rectification of graphene with geometric variations have been investigated by using classical non-equilibrium molecular dynamics simulation, and analyzed theoretically the cause of the changes of thermal conductivity and thermal rectification. Two different structural models, triangular single-boron-doped graphene (SBDG) and parallel various-boron-doped graphene (VBDG), were considered. The results indicated that the thermal conductivities of two different models are about 54–63% lower than pristine graphene. And it was also found that the structure of parallel various-boron-doped graphene is inhibited more strongly on the heat transfer than that of triangular single-boron-doped graphene. The reduction in the thermal conductivities of two different models gradually decreases as the temperature rises. The thermal conductivities of triangular boron-doped graphene have a large difference in both directions, and the thermal rectification of this structure shows the downward trend with increasing temperature. However, the thermal conductivities of parallel various-boron-doped graphene are similar in both directions, and the thermal rectification effect is not obvious in this structure. The phenomenon of thermal rectification exits in SBDG. It implies that the SBDG might be a potential promising structure for thermal rectifier by controlling the boron-doped model.

Molecular dynamics study on the thermal conductivity and thermal rectification in graphene with geometric variations of doped boron

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liang, Qi; Wei, Yuan

2014-01-01

Thermal conductivity and thermal rectification of graphene with geometric variations have been investigated by using classical non-equilibrium molecular dynamics simulation, and analyzed theoretically the cause of the changes of thermal conductivity and thermal rectification. Two different structural models, triangular single-boron-doped graphene (SBDG) and parallel various-boron-doped graphene (VBDG), were considered. The results indicated that the thermal conductivities of two different models are about 54–63% lower than pristine graphene. And it was also found that the structure of parallel various-boron-doped graphene is inhibited more strongly on the heat transfer than that of triangular single-boron-doped graphene. The reduction in the thermal conductivities of two different models gradually decreases as the temperature rises. The thermal conductivities of triangular boron-doped graphene have a large difference in both directions, and the thermal rectification of this structure shows the downward trend with increasing temperature. However, the thermal conductivities of parallel various-boron-doped graphene are similar in both directions, and the thermal rectification effect is not obvious in this structure. The phenomenon of thermal rectification exits in SBDG. It implies that the SBDG might be a potential promising structure for thermal rectifier by controlling the boron-doped model

Comparison of thermal comfort and sensation scales : a case study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vesely, Michal; Zeiler, Wim; Li, Rongling; Loomans, M.G.L.C.; te Kulve, M.

2015-01-01

Thermal sensation is a conscious feeling that grades the thermal environment, while thermal comfort expresses satisfaction with this feeling. Multiple scales to quantify thermal sensation and comfort have been developed throughout the history of research on thermal comfort. In this paper, the most

A study on the thermal hydraulics in rod bundles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chung, Moon Ki; Yang, Sun Kyu

1989-03-01

In order to improve the thermal hydraulic characteristics of the nuclear reactor core, it is necessary to obtain better understanding of the coolant flow and the enthalpy distribution in complex rod bundle geometries. The purpose of this report is to obtain a comprehensive survey on the thermal hydraulic in rod bundles from both experimental and numerical point of view. From references on experimental study, measurement methods and results of the flow velocity and the pressure drop in the subchannels of rod bundles are expressed. The microscopic flow characteristics of the subchannels and spacer grid effect on the flow structure are described. Physical phenomena and measurement methods of the secondary flow are also described. From references on the numerical study, general numerical methods are expressed. Numerical studies on the laminar flow and turbulent flow such as 1-equation and 2-equation model are reviewed.(Author)

Quasiparticles in leptogenesis. A hard-thermal-loop study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kiessig, Clemens Paul

2011-06-29

We analyse the effects of thermal quasiparticles in leptogenesis using hard-thermal-loop-resummed propagators in the imaginary time formalism of thermal field theory. We perform our analysis in a leptogenesis toy model with three right-handed heavy neutrinos N{sub 1}, N{sub 2} and N{sub 3}. We consider decays and inverse decays and work in the hierarchical limit where the mass of N{sub 2} is assumed to be much larger than the mass of N{sub 1}, that is M{sub 2} >> M{sub 1}. We neglect flavour effects and assume that the temperatures are much smaller than M{sub 2} and M{sub 3}. We pay special attention to the influence of fermionic quasiparticles. We allow for the leptons to be either decoupled from each other, except for the interactions with neutrinos, or to be in chemical equilibrium by some strong interaction, for example via gauge bosons. In two additional cases, we approximate the full hard-thermal-loop lepton propagators with zero-temperature propagators, where we replace the zero-temperature mass by the thermal mass of the leptons m{sub l}(T) in one case and the asymptotic mass of the positive-helicity mode {radical}(2)m{sub l}(T) in the other case. We calculate all relevant decay rates and CP-asymmetries and solve the corresponding Boltzmann equations we derived. We compare the final lepton asymmetry of the four thermal cases and the vacuum case for three different initial neutrino abundances; zero, thermal and dominant abundance. The final asymmetries of the thermal cases differ considerably from the vacuum case and from each other in the weak washout regime for zero abundance and in the intermediate regime for dominant abundance. In the strong washout regime, where no influences from thermal corrections are commonly expected, the final lepton asymmetry can be enhanced by a factor of two by hiding part of the lepton asymmetry in the quasi-sterile minus-mode in the case of strongly interacting lepton modes. (orig.)

Thermal analysis studies of ammonium uranyl carbonate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao Xinsheng; Ma Xuezhong; Wang Fapin; Liu Naixin; Ji Changhong

1988-01-01

The simultaneous thermogravimetry and differential thermal analysis of the ammonium uranyl carbonate powder were performed with heat balance in the following atmosphers: Air, Ar and Ar-8%H 2 . The thermogravimetry and differential thermal analysis curves of the ammonium uranyl carbonate powder obtained from different source were reported and discussed

An experimental study on thermal properties of composite insulation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choi, Gyoung-Seok [Building and Urban Research Department, Korea Institute of Construction Technology, 2311 Daehwa-Dong, Ilsanseo-Gu, Goyang-Si, Gyeonggi-Do 411-712 (Korea); College of Architecture, Hanyang University, 17, Hangdang-Dong, Sungdong-Gu, Seoul 133-791 (Korea); Kang, Jae-Sik; Jeong, Young-Sun; Lee, Seung-Eon [Building and Urban Research Department, Korea Institute of Construction Technology, 2311 Daehwa-Dong, Ilsanseo-Gu, Goyang-Si, Gyeonggi-Do 411-712 (Korea); Sohn, Jang-Yeul [College of Architecture, Hanyang University, 17, Hangdang-Dong, Sungdong-Gu, Seoul 133-791 (Korea)

2007-04-01

In accordance with the insulation standards reinforced since 2001 and the compulsory standards on floor impact sound insulation that have been enforced since 2004, insulation materials for actual buildings have been converted to composite materials and new insulation materials have been released in the market. However, Korea is lagging behind the world in fundamental experimental studies and resources. In case of some composite insulation materials, there also have been problems of distorted performance occurring as a result of tests being conducted without having verification and evaluation on the accuracy and inaccuracy of such tests. Therefore, this study grasped the thermal properties of composite insulation materials using thermal conductivity test equipment by heat flux method, and performed quantitative evaluation on the measurement precision and uncertainty of composite materials. (author)

Physiological responses to short-term thermal stress in mayfly (Neocloeon triangulifer) larvae in relation to upper thermal limits.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Kyoung Sun; Chou, Hsuan; Funk, David H; Jackson, John K; Sweeney, Bernard W; Buchwalter, David B

2017-07-15

Understanding species' thermal limits and their physiological determinants is critical in light of climate change and other human activities that warm freshwater ecosystems. Here, we ask whether oxygen limitation determines the chronic upper thermal limits in larvae of the mayfly Neocloeon triangulifer , an emerging model for ecological and physiological studies. Our experiments are based on a robust understanding of the upper acute (∼40°C) and chronic thermal limits of this species (>28°C, ≤30°C) derived from full life cycle rearing experiments across temperatures. We tested two related predictions derived from the hypothesis that oxygen limitation sets the chronic upper thermal limits: (1) aerobic scope declines in mayfly larvae as they approach and exceed temperatures that are chronically lethal to larvae; and (2) genes indicative of hypoxia challenge are also responsive in larvae exposed to ecologically relevant thermal limits. Neither prediction held true. We estimated aerobic scope by subtracting measurements of standard oxygen consumption rates from measurements of maximum oxygen consumption rates, the latter of which was obtained by treating with the metabolic uncoupling agent carbonyl cyanide-4-(trifluoromethoxy) pheylhydrazone (FCCP). Aerobic scope was similar in larvae held below and above chronic thermal limits. Genes indicative of oxygen limitation (LDH, EGL-9) were only upregulated under hypoxia or during exposure to temperatures beyond the chronic (and more ecologically relevant) thermal limits of this species (LDH). Our results suggest that the chronic thermal limits of this species are likely not driven by oxygen limitation, but rather are determined by other factors, e.g. bioenergetics costs. We caution against the use of short-term thermal ramping approaches to estimate critical thermal limits (CT max ) in aquatic insects because those temperatures are typically higher than those that occur in nature. © 2017. Published by The Company of

EPR STUDIES OF THERMALLY STERILIZED VASELINUM ALBUM.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramos, Paweł; Pilawa, Barbara

2015-01-01

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy was used for examination of free radicals in thermally treated vaselinum album (VA). Thermal treatment in hot air as sterilization process was tested. Conditions of thermal sterilization were chosen according to the pharmaceutical norms. Vaselinum album was heated at the following conditions (T--temperature, t--time): T = 160°C and t = 120 min, T = 170°C and t = 60 min and T = 180°C and t = 30 min. The aim of this work was to determine concentration and free radical properties of thermally sterilized VA. EPR analysis for VA was done 15 min after sterilization. EPR measurements were done at room temperature. EPR spectra were recorded in the range of microwave power of 2.2-70 mW. g-Factor, amplitudes (A) and line width (ΔBpp) of the spectra were determined. The shape of the EPR spectra was analyzed. Free radical concentration (N) in the heated samples was determined. EPR spectra were not obtained for the non heated VA. EPR spectra were detected for all thermally sterilized samples. The spectra revealed complex character, their asymmetry depends on microwave power. The lowest free radicals concentration was found for the VA sterilized at 180°C during 30 min. EPR spectroscopy is proposed as the method useful for optimization of sterilization process of drugs.

An investigation into thermal comfort and residential thermal environment in an intertropical sub-Saharan Africa region: Field study report during the Harmattan season in Cameroon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Djongyang, Noel; Tchinda, Rene

2010-01-01

Investigations on thermal comfort have attracted authors for years throughout the world and the most important findings are now the basis of international thermal comfort standards. There is little information available concerning occupant comfort and residential thermal environment in the intertropical sub-Saharan Africa. Thus the purpose for this study is to conduct a field study on comfort and residential thermal environments in a typical intertropical climatic region. A field survey has been conducted during the Harmattan season in two cities from the two climatic regions of Cameroon concerned by that wind. Specific study objectives were to evaluate and characterize some thermal perceptions of occupants in their residence, compare observed and predicted percent of dissatisfied, and discern differences between the study area and other climate zones where similar studies have been performed. It was found that the thermoneutral temperatures in both climatic regions range from 24.69 deg. C to 27.32 deg. C and, in traditional living room, it differs from that of modern living room with approximately 1 deg. C.

Positron annihilation studies on reactor irradiated and thermal annealed ferrocene

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marques Netto, A.; Carvalho, R.S.; Magalhaes, W.F.; Sinisterra, R.D.

1996-01-01

Retention and thermal annealing following (n, γ) reaction in solid ferrocene, Fe(C 5 H 5 ) 2 , were studied by positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PAL). Positronium (Ps) formation was observed in the non-irradiated compound with a probability or intensity (I 3 ) of 30%. Upon irradiation of the compound with thermal neutrons in a nuclear reactor, I 3 decreases with increasing irradiation time. Thermal treatment again increases I 3 values from 16% to 25%, revealing an important proportion of molecular reformation without variation of the ortho-positronium lifetime (τ 3 ). These results point out the major influence of the electronic structure as determining the Ps yields in the pure complex. In the irradiated and non irradiated complexes the results are satisfactorily explained on the basis of the spur model. (orig.)

Thermal safety of ultrasound-enhanced ocular drug delivery: A modeling study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nabili, Marjan, E-mail: mnabili@gwmail.gwu.edu [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The George Washington University, 800 22nd Street NW, Room 5000, Washington, DC 20052 (United States); Geist, Craig, E-mail: cgeist@mfa.gwu.edu, E-mail: zderic@gwu.edu [Department of Ophthalmology, The George Washington University, 2150 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Floor 2A, Washington, DC 20037 (United States); Zderic, Vesna, E-mail: cgeist@mfa.gwu.edu, E-mail: zderic@gwu.edu [Department of Biomedical Engineering, The George Washington University, 800 22nd Street NW, Room 6670, Washington, DC 20052 (United States)

2015-10-15

Purpose: Delivery of sufficient amounts of therapeutic drugs into the eye for treatment of various ocular diseases is often a challenging task. Ultrasound was shown to be effective in enhancing ocular drug delivery in the authors’ previous in vitro and in vivo studies. Methods: The study reported here was designed to investigate the safety of ultrasound application and its potential thermal effects in the eye using PZFlex modeling software. The safety limit in this study was set as a temperature increase of no more than 1.5 °C based on regulatory recommendations and previous experimental safety studies. Acoustic and thermal specifications of different human eye tissues were obtained from the published literature. The tissues of particular interest in this modeling safety study were cornea, lens, and the location of optic nerve in the posterior eye. Ultrasound application was modeled at frequencies of 400 kHz–1 MHz, intensities of 0.3–1 W/cm{sup 2}, and exposure duration of 5 min, which were the parameters used in the authors’ previous drug delivery experiments. The baseline eye temperature was 37 °C. Results: The authors’ results showed that the maximal tissue temperatures after 5 min of ultrasound application were 38, 39, 39.5, and 40 °C in the cornea, 39.5, 40, 42, and 43 °C in the center of the lens, and 37.5, 38.5, and 39 °C in the back of the eye (at the optic nerve location) at frequencies of 400, 600, 800 kHz, and 1 MHz, respectively. Conclusions: The ocular temperatures reached at higher frequencies were considered unsafe based on current recommendations. At a frequency of 400 kHz and intensity of 0.8 W/cm{sup 2} (parameters shown in the authors’ previous in vivo studies to be optimal for ocular drug delivery), the temperature increase was small enough to be considered safe inside different ocular tissues. However, the impact of orbital bone and tissue perfusion should be included in future modeling efforts to determine the safety

Thermal safety of ultrasound-enhanced ocular drug delivery: A modeling study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nabili, Marjan; Geist, Craig; Zderic, Vesna

2015-01-01

Purpose: Delivery of sufficient amounts of therapeutic drugs into the eye for treatment of various ocular diseases is often a challenging task. Ultrasound was shown to be effective in enhancing ocular drug delivery in the authors’ previous in vitro and in vivo studies. Methods: The study reported here was designed to investigate the safety of ultrasound application and its potential thermal effects in the eye using PZFlex modeling software. The safety limit in this study was set as a temperature increase of no more than 1.5 °C based on regulatory recommendations and previous experimental safety studies. Acoustic and thermal specifications of different human eye tissues were obtained from the published literature. The tissues of particular interest in this modeling safety study were cornea, lens, and the location of optic nerve in the posterior eye. Ultrasound application was modeled at frequencies of 400 kHz–1 MHz, intensities of 0.3–1 W/cm 2 , and exposure duration of 5 min, which were the parameters used in the authors’ previous drug delivery experiments. The baseline eye temperature was 37 °C. Results: The authors’ results showed that the maximal tissue temperatures after 5 min of ultrasound application were 38, 39, 39.5, and 40 °C in the cornea, 39.5, 40, 42, and 43 °C in the center of the lens, and 37.5, 38.5, and 39 °C in the back of the eye (at the optic nerve location) at frequencies of 400, 600, 800 kHz, and 1 MHz, respectively. Conclusions: The ocular temperatures reached at higher frequencies were considered unsafe based on current recommendations. At a frequency of 400 kHz and intensity of 0.8 W/cm 2 (parameters shown in the authors’ previous in vivo studies to be optimal for ocular drug delivery), the temperature increase was small enough to be considered safe inside different ocular tissues. However, the impact of orbital bone and tissue perfusion should be included in future modeling efforts to determine the safety of this

A Thermal Imaging Instrument with Uncooled Detectors

Science.gov (United States)

Joseph, A. T.; Barrentine, E. M.; Brown, A. D.

2017-12-01

In this work, we perform an instrument concept study for sustainable thermal imaging over land with uncooled detectors. The National Research Council's Committee on Implementation of a Sustained Land Imaging Program has identified the inclusion of a thermal imager as critical for both current and future land imaging missions. Such an imaging instrument operating in two bands located at approximately 11 and 12 microns (for example, in Landsat 8, and also Landsat 9 when launched) will provide essential information for furthering our hydrologic understanding at scales of human influence, and produce field-scale moisture information through accurate retrievals of evapotranspiration (ET). Landsat 9 is slated to recycle the TIRS-2 instrument launched with Landsat 8 that uses cooled quantum well infrared photodetectors (QWIPs), hence requiring expensive and massive cryocooler technology to achieve its required spectral and spatial accuracies. Our goal is to conceptualize and develop a thermal imaging instrument which leverages recent and imminent technology advances in uncooled detectors. Such detector technology will offer the benefit of greatly reduced instrument cost, mass, and power at the expense of some acceptable loss in detector sensitivity. It would also allow a thermal imaging instrument to be fielded on board a low-cost platform, e.g., a CubeSat. Sustained and enhanced land imaging is crucial for providing high-quality science data on change in land use, forest health, crop status, environment, and climate. Accurate satellite mapping of ET at the agricultural field scale (the finest spatial scale of the environmental processes of interest) requires high-quality thermal data to produce the corresponding accurate land surface temperature (LST) retrievals used to drive an ET model. Such an imaging instrument would provide important information on the following: 1) the relationship between land-use and land/water management practices and water use dynamics; 2) the

Study of skin model and geometry effects on thermal performance of thermal protective fabrics

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Fanglong; Ma, Suqin; Zhang, Weiyuan

2008-05-01

Thermal protective clothing has steadily improved over the years as new materials and improved designs have reached the market. A significant method that has brought these improvements to the fire service is the NFPA 1971 standard on structural fire fighters’ protective clothing. However, this testing often neglects the effects of cylindrical geometry on heat transmission in flame resistant fabrics. This paper deals with methods to develop cylindrical geometry testing apparatus incorporating novel skin bioheat transfer model to test flame resistant fabrics used in firefighting. Results show that fabrics which shrink during the test can have reduced thermal protective performance compared with the qualities measured with a planar geometry tester. Results of temperature differences between skin simulant sensors of planar and cylindrical tester are also compared. This test method provides a new technique to accurately and precisely characterize the thermal performance of thermal protective fabrics.

Synthesis, spectroscopy, thermal studies and supramolecular ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

TECS

Synthesis, spectroscopy, thermal studies and supramolecular structures of two .... J = 9 Hz), 8∙13 (d, 2H, J = 9 Hz), 7∙69 (s, 1H), 7∙04. (s, 2H). ... 1H NMR (D2O): δ (in ppm); 8∙05 (d, 2H, ..... 86∙33 (2). 86∙92(1). 87∙08(2). V (Ε3). 553∙1(6). 573∙71(5). 561∙56(14). 557∙5(3) .... Mn, Co and Ni complexes.28–30 The observed inter-.

Study of weather and thermal comfort influence on sport performance: prognostic analysis applied to Rio de Janeiro's city marathon

Science.gov (United States)

Pallotta, M.; Herdies, D. L.; Gonçalves, L. G.

2013-05-01

There is nowadays a growing interest in the influence and impacts of weather and climate in human life. The weather conditions analysis shows the utility of this type of tool when applied in sports. These conditions act as a differential in strategy and training, especially for outdoor sports. This study had as aim objective develop weather forecast and thermal comfort evaluation targeted to sports, and hoped that the results can be used to the development of products and weather service in the Olympic Games 2016 in Rio de Janeiro City. The use of weather forecast applied to the sport showed to be efficient for the case of Rio de Janeiro City Marathon, especially due to the high spatial resolution. The WRF simulations for the three marathons studied showed good results for temperature, atmospheric pressure, and relative humidity. On the other hand, the forecast of the wind showed a pattern of overestimation of the real situation in all cases. It was concluded that the WRF model provides, in general, more representative simulations from 36 hours in advance, and with 18 hours of integration they were even better, describing efficiently the synoptic situation that would be found. A review of weather conditions and thermal comfort at specific points of the marathon route showed that there are significant differences between the stages of the marathon, which makes possible to plan the competition strategy under the thermal comfort. It was concluded that a relationship between a situation more thermally comfortable (uncomfortable) and the best (worst) time in Rio de Janeiro City Marathon

Human skin wetness perception: psychophysical and neurophysiological bases

Science.gov (United States)

Filingeri, Davide; Havenith, George

2015-01-01

The ability to perceive thermal changes in the surrounding environment is critical for survival. However, sensing temperature is not the only factor among the cutaneous sensations to contribute to thermoregulatory responses in humans. Sensing skin wetness (i.e. hygrosensation) is also critical both for behavioral and autonomic adaptations. Although much has been done to define the biophysical role of skin wetness in contributing to thermal homeostasis, little is known on the neurophysiological mechanisms underpinning the ability to sense skin wetness. Humans are not provided with skin humidity receptors (i.e., hygroreceptors) and psychophysical studies have identified potential sensory cues (i.e. thermal and mechanosensory) which could contribute to sensing wetness. Recently, a neurophysiological model of human wetness sensitivity has been developed. In helping clarifying the peripheral and central neural mechanisms involved in sensing skin wetness, this model has provided evidence for the existence of a specific human hygrosensation strategy, which is underpinned by perceptual learning via sensory experience. Remarkably, this strategy seems to be shared by other hygroreceptor-lacking animals. However, questions remain on whether these sensory mechanisms are underpinned by specific neuromolecular pathways in humans. Although the first study on human wetness perception dates back to more than 100 years, it is surprising that the neurophysiological bases of such an important sensory feature have only recently started to be unveiled. Hence, to provide an overview of the current knowledge on human hygrosensation, along with potential directions for future research, this review will examine the psychophysical and neurophysiological bases of human skin wetness perception. PMID:27227008

Study of temperature increase and optic depth penetration in photo irradiated human tissues

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stolik, Suren; Delgado, Jose A.; Perez, Arllene M.; Anasagasti, Lorenzo

2009-01-01

Optical radiation is widely applied in the treatment and diagnosis of different pathologies. If the power density of the incident light is sufficiently high to induce a significant temperature rise in the irradiated tissue, then it is also needed the knowledge of the thermal properties of the tissue for a complete understanding of the therapeutic effects. The thermal penetration depth of several human tissues has been measured applying the diffusion approximation of the radiative transfer equation for the distribution of optical radiation. The method, the experimental setup and the results are presented and discussed. (Author)

A possible connection between thermal comfort and health

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stoops, John L.

2004-05-20

It is a well-established fact that cardiovascular health requires periodic exercise during which the human body often experiences significant physical discomfort. It is not obvious to the exerciser that the short-term pain and discomfort has a long-term positive health impact. Many cultures have well-established practices that involve exposing the body to periodic thermal discomfort. Scandinavian saunas and American Indian sweat lodges are two examples. Both are believed to promote health and well-being. Vacations often intentionally include significant thermal discomfort as part of the experience (e.g., sunbathing, and downhill skiing). So people often intentionally make themselves thermally uncomfortable yet the entire foundation of providing the thermal environment in our buildings is done to minimize the percentage of people thermally dissatisfied. We must provide an environment that does not negatively impact short-term health and we need to consider productivity but are our current thermal comfort standards too narrowly defined and do these standards actually contribute to longer-term negative health impacts? This paper examines the possibility that the human body thermoregulatory system has a corollary relationship to the cardiovascular system. It explores the possibility that we have an inherent need to exercise our thermoregulatory system. Potential, physiological, sociological and energy ramifications of these possibilities are discussed.

Experimental study on occupant's thermal responses under the non-uniform conditions in vehicle cabin during the heating period

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Wencan; Chen, Jiqing; Lan, Fengchong

2014-03-01

The existing investigations on thermal comfort mostly focus on the thermal environment conditions, especially of the air-flow field and the temperature distributions in vehicle cabin. Less attention appears to direct to the thermal comfort or thermal sensation of occupants, even to the relationship between thermal conditions and thermal sensation. In this paper, a series of experiments were designed and conducted for understanding the non-uniform conditions and the occupant's thermal responses in vehicle cabin during the heating period. To accurately assess the transient temperature distribution in cabin in common daily condition, the air temperature at a number of positions is measured in a full size vehicle cabin under natural winter environment in South China by using a discrete thermocouples network. The occupant body is divided into nine segments, the skin temperature at each segment and the occupant's local thermal sensation at the head, body, upper limb and lower limb are monitored continuously. The skin temperature is observed by using a discrete thermocouples network, and the local thermal sensation is evaluated by using a seven-point thermal comfort survey questionnaire proposed by American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc(ASHRAE) Standard. The relationship between the skin temperature and the thermal sensation is discussed and regressed by statistics method. The results show that the interior air temperature is highly non-uniform over the vehicle cabin. The locations where the occupants sit have a significant effect on the occupant's thermal responses, including the skin temperature and the thermal sensation. The skin temperature and thermal sensation are quite different between body segments due to the effect of non-uniform conditions, clothing resistance, and the human thermal regulating system. A quantitative relationship between the thermal sensation and the skin temperature at each body segment of occupant in

The Nuclear Thermal Propulsion Stage (NTPS): A Key Space Asset for Human Exploration and Commercial Missions to the Moon

Science.gov (United States)

Borowski, Stanley K.; McCurdy, David R.; Burke, Laura M.

2014-01-01

The nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) has frequently been discussed as a key space asset that can bridge the gap between a sustained human presence on the Moon and the eventual human exploration of Mars. Recently, a human mission to a near Earth asteroid (NEA) has also been included as a "deep space precursor" to an orbital mission of Mars before a landing is attempted. In his "post-Apollo" Integrated Space Program Plan (1970 to 1990), Wernher von Braun, proposed a reusable Nuclear Thermal Propulsion Stage (NTPS) to deliver cargo and crew to the Moon to establish a lunar base initially before sending human missions to Mars. The NTR was selected because it was a proven technology capable of generating both high thrust and high specific impulse (Isp approx. 900 s)-twice that of today's best chemical rockets. During the Rover and NERVA programs, 20 rocket reactors were designed, built and successfully ground tested. These tests demonstrated the (1) thrust levels; (2) high fuel temperatures; (3) sustained operation; (4) accumulated lifetime; and (5) restart capability needed for an affordable in-space transportation system. In NASA's Mars Design Reference Architecture (DRA) 5.0 study, the "Copernicus" crewed NTR Mars transfer vehicle used three 25 klbf "Pewee" engines-the smallest and highest performing engine tested in the Rover program. Smaller lunar transfer vehicles-consisting of a NTPS with three approx. 16.7 klbf "SNRE-class" engines, an in-line propellant tank, plus the payload-can be delivered to LEO using a 70 t to LEO upgraded SLS, and can support reusable cargo delivery and crewed lunar landing missions. The NTPS can play an important role in returning humans to the Moon to stay by providing an affordable in-space transportation system that can allow initial lunar outposts to evolve into settlements capable of supporting commercial activities. Over the next decade collaborative efforts between NASA and private industry could open up new exploration and commercial

Nanobioceramic Composites: A Study of Mechanical, Morphological, and Thermal Properties

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sivabalan Sasthiryar

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to explore the incorporation of biomass carbon nanofillers (CNF into advanced ceramic. Biomass from bamboo, bagasse (remains of sugarcane after pressing, and oil palm ash was used as the predecessor for producing carbon black nanofillers. Furnace pyrolysis was carried out at 1000 °C and was followed by ball-mill processing to obtain carbon nanofillers in the range of 50 nm to 100 nm. CNFs were added to alumina in varying weight fractions and the resulting mixture was subjected to vacuum sintering at 1400 °C to produce nanobioceramic composites. The ceramic composites were characterized for mechanical, thermal, and morphological properties. A high-resolution Charge-coupled device (CCD camera was used to study the fracture impact and the failure mechanism. An increase in the loading percentage of CNFs in the alumna decreased the specific gravity, vickers hardness (HV, and fracture toughness values of the composite materials. Furthermore, the thermal conductivity and the thermal stability of the ceramic composite increased as compared to the pristine alumina.

SU-F-J-215: Non-Thermal Pulsed High Intensity Focused Ultrasound Therapy Combined with 5-Aminolevulinic Acid: An in Vivo Pilot Study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, B; He, W; Cvetkovic, D; Chen, L; Ma, C [Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: It has recently been shown that non-thermal pulsed high intensity focused ultrasound (pHIFU) has a cell-killing effect. The purpose of the study is to investigate the sonosensitizing effect of 5-Aminolevulinic Acid (5-ALA) in non-thermal pHIFU cancer therapy. Methods: FaDu human head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cells were injected subcutaneously in the flanks of nude mice. After one to two weeks, the tumors reached the volume of 112 ± 8 mm3 and were assigned randomly into a non-thermal pHIFU group (n=9) and a non-thermal sonodynamic therapy (pHIFU after 5-ALA administration) group (n=7). The pHIFU treatments (parameters: 1 MHz frequency; 25 W acoustic power; 0.1 duty cycle; 60 seconds duration) were delivered using an InSightec ExAblate 2000 system with a GE Signa 1.5T MR scanner. The mice in the non-thermal sonodynamic group received 5-ALA tail-vein injection 4 hours prior to the pHIFU treatment. The tumor growth was monitored using the CT scanner on a Sofie-Biosciences G8 PET/CT system. Results: The tumors in this study grew very aggressively and about 60% of the tumors in this study developed ulcerations at various stages. Tumor growth delay after treatments was observed by comparing the treated (n=9 in pHIFU group; n=7 in sonodynamic group) and untreated tumors (n=17). However, no statistically significant differences were found between the non-thermal pHIFU and non-thermal sonodynamic group. The mean normalized tumor volume of the untreated tumors on Day 7 after their first CT scans was 7.05 ± 0.54, while the normalized volume of the treated tumors on Day 7 after treatment was 5.89 ± 0.79 and 6.27 ± 0.47 for the sonodynamic group and pHIFU group, respectively. Conclusion: In this study, no significant sonosensitizing effects of 5-ALA were obtained on aggressive FaDu tumors despite apparent tumor growth delay in some mice treated with non-thermal sonodynamic therapy.

Simulating Physiological Response with a Passive Sensor Manikin and an Adaptive Thermal Manikin to Predict Thermal Sensation and Comfort

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rugh, John P [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Chaney, Larry [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Hepokoski, Mark [ThermoAnalytics Inc.; Curran, Allen [ThermoAnalytics Inc.; Burke, Richard [Measurement Technology NW; Maranville, Clay [Ford Motor Company

2015-04-14

Reliable assessment of occupant thermal comfort can be difficult to obtain within automotive environments, especially under transient and asymmetric heating and cooling scenarios. Evaluation of HVAC system performance in terms of comfort commonly requires human subject testing, which may involve multiple repetitions, as well as multiple test subjects. Instrumentation (typically comprised of an array of temperature sensors) is usually only sparsely applied across the human body, significantly reducing the spatial resolution of available test data. Further, since comfort is highly subjective in nature, a single test protocol can yield a wide variation in results which can only be overcome by increasing the number of test replications and subjects. In light of these difficulties, various types of manikins are finding use in automotive testing scenarios. These manikins can act as human surrogates from which local skin and core temperatures can be obtained, which are necessary for accurately predicting local and whole body thermal sensation and comfort using a physiology-based comfort model (e.g., the Berkeley Comfort Model). This paper evaluates two different types of manikins, i) an adaptive sweating thermal manikin, which is coupled with a human thermoregulation model, running in real-time, to obtain realistic skin temperatures; and, ii) a passive sensor manikin, which is used to measure boundary conditions as they would act on a human, from which skin and core temperatures can be predicted using a thermophysiological model. The simulated physiological responses and comfort obtained from both of these manikin-model coupling schemes are compared to those of a human subject within a vehicle cabin compartment transient heat-up scenario.

Indoor Thermal Environment in Tropical Climate Residential Building

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jamaludin Nazhatulzalkis

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Indoor thermal environment is one of the criteria in sustainable building. This criterion is important in ensuring a healthy indoor environment for the occupants. The consideration of environmental concerns at the early design stage would effectively integrate the sustainability of the building environment. Global climate changes such as global warming do affect human comfort since people spend most of their time and activities in the building. The increasing of urban population required additional housing for households, as well as places to shop, office and other facilities. Occupants are now more conscious the importance of sustainability for a better quality of life. Good thermal environment is essential for human wellness and comfort. A residential environment will influence residents’ health and safety. The global warming increase the earth’s temperature and greenhouse emission to the atmosphere cause adverse effects to the outdoor environment. Residential developments modify the materials, structure and energy balance in urban climate effects of human economic activities. As an indoor environment is influenced by the outdoor condition, the factors affecting indoor thermal environment are crucial in improving a comfortable and healthy environment in residential building. The microclimatic of a site such as temperature and relative humidity, and wind movement led to the variation of indoor thermal environment in the building.

Thermal energy accumulators. A bibliographical study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Charlety, Paul

1971-01-01

Energy storage is a challenge, notably for spacecraft, submarines and non-polluting automotive vehicles. After a comparison of mass energies of different principles of energy accumulation (magnetic, electrostatic, solid elasticity, kinetic energy, gaseous elasticity, electro-chemistry, sensitive heat, freezing heat, fuels, radioactivity, nuclear fission or fusion, mass energy), the author discusses the choice of thermal storage, presents the main bodies used for thermal energy accumulation (molten salts such as lithium hydride or lithium salt eutectics, or other compounds such as alumina, paraffins), and gives an overview of the main theoretical problems [fr

Human response to combined indoor environment exposures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Toftum, Jørn

2002-01-01

Most thermal comfort standards and guidelines presume sedentary, light activity and a neutral overall thermal sensation when predicting local thermal discomfort. In addition, current standards specify criteria for separate aspects of the indoor environment, e.g. thermal climate, air quality...... or noise, with only little consideration of possible interactions between the different types of exposure. The studies summarized in this article found a clear impact of activity and overall thermal sensation on human sensitivity to air movement, whereas no interaction effects of exposure to several local...... thermal discomfort factors were observed. Limited evidence was found of significant interactions between different aspects of the indoor environment. Only for the effect of air temperature and air humidity on sensory air quality were well-estabished relationships available....

Thermal remediation alters soil properties - a review.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Brien, Peter L; DeSutter, Thomas M; Casey, Francis X M; Khan, Eakalak; Wick, Abbey F

2018-01-15

Contaminated soils pose a risk to human and ecological health, and thermal remediation is an efficient and reliable way to reduce soil contaminant concentration in a range of situations. A primary benefit of thermal treatment is the speed at which remediation can occur, allowing the return of treated soils to a desired land use as quickly as possible. However, this treatment also alters many soil properties that affect the capacity of the soil to function. While extensive research addresses contaminant reduction, the range and magnitude of effects to soil properties have not been explored. Understanding the effects of thermal remediation on soil properties is vital to successful reclamation, as drastic effects may preclude certain post-treatment land uses. This review highlights thermal remediation studies that have quantified alterations to soil properties, and it supplements that information with laboratory heating studies to further elucidate the effects of thermal treatment of soil. Notably, both heating temperature and heating time affect i) soil organic matter; ii) soil texture and mineralogy; iii) soil pH; iv) plant available nutrients and heavy metals; v) soil biological communities; and iv) the ability of the soil to sustain vegetation. Broadly, increasing either temperature or time results in greater contaminant reduction efficiency, but it also causes more severe impacts to soil characteristics. Thus, project managers must balance the need for contaminant reduction with the deterioration of soil function for each specific remediation project. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Thermal expansion in 3d-metal Prussian Blue Analogs-A survey study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adak, Sourav; Daemen, Luke L.; Hartl, Monika; Williams, Darrick; Summerhill, Jennifer; Nakotte, Heinz

2011-01-01

We present a comprehensive study of the structural properties and the thermal expansion behavior of 17 different Prussian Blue Analogs (PBAs) with compositions M II 3 [(M') III (CN) 6 ] 2 .nH 2 O and M II 2 [Fe II (CN) 6 ].nH 2 O, where M II =Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu and Zn, (M') III =Co, Fe and n is the number of water molecules, which range from 5 to 18 for these compounds. The PBAs were synthesized via standard chemical precipitation methods, and temperature-dependent X-ray diffraction studies were performed in the temperature range between -150 deg. C (123 K) and room-temperature. The vast majority of the studied PBAs were found to crystallize in cubic structures of space groups Fm3-bar m, F4-bar 3m and Pm3-bar m. The temperature dependence of the lattice parameters was taken to compute an average coefficient of linear thermal expansion in the studied temperature range. Of the 17 compounds, 9 display negative values for the average coefficient of linear thermal expansion, which can be as large as 39.7x 1 0 -6 K -1 for Co 3 [Co(CN) 6 ] 2 .12H 2 O. All of the M II 3 [Co III (CN) 6 ] 2 .nH 2 O compounds show negative thermal expansion behavior, which correlates with the Irving-Williams series for metal complex stability. The thermal expansion behavior for the PBAs of the M II 3 [Fe III (CN) 6 ] 2 .nH 2 O family are found to switch between positive (for M=Mn, Co, Ni) and negative (M=Cu, Zn) behavior, depending on the choice of the metal cation (M). On the other hand, all of the M II 2 [Fe II (CN) 6 ].nH 2 O compounds show positive thermal expansion behavior. - Graphical Abstract: The structure of Prussian Blue analogs (PBAs) consists of two types of metal centered octahedral units connected by cyanide ligand. Lattice and interstitial water molecules are present in these framework structures. All the PBAs of the M 3 [Co(CN) 6 ] 2 .nH 2 O family show negative thermal expansion (NTE) behavior. The lattice parameters and magnitude of NTE correlates inversely with the Irving

Studies of planetary boundary layer by infrared thermal imagery

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Albina, Bogdan; Dimitriu, Dan Gheorghe, E-mail: dimitriu@uaic.ro; Gurlui, Silviu Octavian, E-mail: dimitriu@uaic.ro [Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi, Faculty of Physics, Atmosphere Optics, Spectroscopy and Lasers Laboratory, 11 Carol I Blvd., 700506 Iasi (Romania); Cazacu, Marius Mihai [Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi, Faculty of Physics, Atmosphere Optics, Spectroscopy and Lasers Laboratory, 11 Carol I Blvd., 700506 Iasi, Romania and Department of Physics, Gheorghe Asachi Technical University of Iasi, 59A Mangeron Blvd., 700 (Romania); Timofte, Adrian [Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi, Faculty of Physics, Atmosphere Optics, Spectroscopy and Lasers Laboratory, 11 Carol I Blvd., 700506 Iasi, Romania and National Meteorological Administration, Regional Forecast Center Bacau, 1 Cuza Voda Str., 60 (Romania)

2014-11-24

The IR camera is a relatively novel device for remote sensing of atmospheric thermal processes from the Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) based on measurements of the infrared radiation. Infrared radiation is energy radiated by the motion of atoms and molecules on the surface of aerosols, when their temperature is more than absolute zero. The IR camera measures directly the intensity of radiation emitted by aerosols which is converted by an imaging sensor into an electric signal, resulting a thermal image. Every image pixel that corresponds to a specific radiance is pre-processed to identify the brightness temperature. The thermal infrared imaging radiometer used in this study, NicAir, is a precision radiometer developed by Prata et al. The device was calibrated for the temperature range of 270–320 K and using a calibration table along with image processing software, important information about variations in temperature can be extracted from acquired IR images. The PBL is the lowest layer of the troposphere where the atmosphere interacts with the ground surfaces. The importance of PBL lies in the fact that it provides a finite but varying volume in which pollutants can disperse. The aim of this paper is to analyze the PBL altitude and thickness variations over Iasi region using the IR imaging camera as well as its behavior from day to night and thermal processes occurring in PBL.

Moessbauer thermal scan study of a spin crossover system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zelis, P Mendoza; Pasquevich, G A; Sanchez, F H; Veiga, A; Cabrera, A F [Departamento de Fisica, FCE-UNLP, La Plata (Argentina); Ceolin, M [Instituto de Investigaciones FIsico-Quimicas Teoricas y Aplicadas (UNLP-CONICET), La Plata (Argentina); Coronado-Miralles, E; Monrabal-Capilla, M; Galan-Mascaros, J R, E-mail: pmendoza@fisica.unlp.edu.a [Instituto de Ciencias Moleculares, Universidad de Valencia, Valencia (Spain)

2010-03-01

Programmable Velocity equipment was used to perform a Moessbauer Thermal Scans to allow a quasi-continuous temperature study of the magnetic transition between the low-spin and a high-spin configurations in [Fe(Htrz){sub 2}(trz)](BF4) system. The material was studied both in bulk as in nanoparticles sample forms.

Enhanced Gender Recognition System Using an Improved Histogram of Oriented Gradient (HOG Feature from Quality Assessment of Visible Light and Thermal Images of the Human Body

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dat Tien Nguyen

2016-07-01

Full Text Available With higher demand from users, surveillance systems are currently being designed to provide more information about the observed scene, such as the appearance of objects, types of objects, and other information extracted from detected objects. Although the recognition of gender of an observed human can be easily performed using human perception, it remains a difficult task when using computer vision system images. In this paper, we propose a new human gender recognition method that can be applied to surveillance systems based on quality assessment of human areas in visible light and thermal camera images. Our research is novel in the following two ways: First, we utilize the combination of visible light and thermal images of the human body for a recognition task based on quality assessment. We propose a quality measurement method to assess the quality of image regions so as to remove the effects of background regions in the recognition system. Second, by combining the features extracted using the histogram of oriented gradient (HOG method and the measured qualities of image regions, we form a new image features, called the weighted HOG (wHOG, which is used for efficient gender recognition. Experimental results show that our method produces more accurate estimation results than the state-of-the-art recognition method that uses human body images.

Enhanced Gender Recognition System Using an Improved Histogram of Oriented Gradient (HOG) Feature from Quality Assessment of Visible Light and Thermal Images of the Human Body.

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Dat Tien; Park, Kang Ryoung

2016-07-21

With higher demand from users, surveillance systems are currently being designed to provide more information about the observed scene, such as the appearance of objects, types of objects, and other information extracted from detected objects. Although the recognition of gender of an observed human can be easily performed using human perception, it remains a difficult task when using computer vision system images. In this paper, we propose a new human gender recognition method that can be applied to surveillance systems based on quality assessment of human areas in visible light and thermal camera images. Our research is novel in the following two ways: First, we utilize the combination of visible light and thermal images of the human body for a recognition task based on quality assessment. We propose a quality measurement method to assess the quality of image regions so as to remove the effects of background regions in the recognition system. Second, by combining the features extracted using the histogram of oriented gradient (HOG) method and the measured qualities of image regions, we form a new image features, called the weighted HOG (wHOG), which is used for efficient gender recognition. Experimental results show that our method produces more accurate estimation results than the state-of-the-art recognition method that uses human body images.

Review of the integrated thermal and nonthermal treatment system studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1996-10-01

This report contains a review and evaluation of three systems analysis studies performed by LITCO on integrated thermal treatment systems and integrated nonthermal treatment systems for the remediation of mixed low-level waste stored throughout the US Department of Energy weapons complex. The review was performed by an independent team of nine researchers from the Energy and Environmental Research Center, Science Applications International Corporation, the Waste Policy Institute, and Virginia Tech. The purpose of this review was to (1) determine whether the assumptions of the studies were adequate to produce an unbiased review of both thermal and nonthermal systems, (2) to identify the critical areas of the studies that would benefit from further investigation, and (3) to develop a standard template that could be used in future studies to assure a sound application of systems engineering.

Review of the integrated thermal and nonthermal treatment system studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-01-01

This report contains a review and evaluation of three systems analysis studies performed by LITCO on integrated thermal treatment systems and integrated nonthermal treatment systems for the remediation of mixed low-level waste stored throughout the US Department of Energy weapons complex. The review was performed by an independent team of nine researchers from the Energy and Environmental Research Center, Science Applications International Corporation, the Waste Policy Institute, and Virginia Tech. The purpose of this review was to (1) determine whether the assumptions of the studies were adequate to produce an unbiased review of both thermal and nonthermal systems, (2) to identify the critical areas of the studies that would benefit from further investigation, and (3) to develop a standard template that could be used in future studies to assure a sound application of systems engineering

Human preference for air movement

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Toftum, Jørn; Melikov, Arsen Krikor; Tynel, A.

2002-01-01

Human preference for air movement was studied at slightly cool, neutral, and slightly warm overall thermal sensations and at temperatures ranging from 18 deg.C to 28 deg.C. Air movement preference depended on both thermal sensation and temperature, but large inter-individual differences existed...... between subjects. Preference for less air movement was linearly correlated with draught discomfort, but the percentage of subjects who felt draught was lower than the percentage who preferred less air movement....

Tracking and Classification of In-Air Hand Gesture Based on Thermal Guided Joint Filter.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Seongwan; Ban, Yuseok; Lee, Sangyoun

2017-01-17

The research on hand gestures has attracted many image processing-related studies, as it intuitively conveys the intention of a human as it pertains to motional meaning. Various sensors have been used to exploit the advantages of different modalities for the extraction of important information conveyed by the hand gesture of a user. Although many works have focused on learning the benefits of thermal information from thermal cameras, most have focused on face recognition or human body detection, rather than hand gesture recognition. Additionally, the majority of the works that take advantage of multiple modalities (e.g., the combination of a thermal sensor and a visual sensor), usually adopting simple fusion approaches between the two modalities. As both thermal sensors and visual sensors have their own shortcomings and strengths, we propose a novel joint filter-based hand gesture recognition method to simultaneously exploit the strengths and compensate the shortcomings of each. Our study is motivated by the investigation of the mutual supplementation between thermal and visual information in low feature level for the consistent representation of a hand in the presence of varying lighting conditions. Accordingly, our proposed method leverages the thermal sensor's stability against luminance and the visual sensors textural detail, while complementing the low resolution and halo effect of thermal sensors and the weakness against illumination of visual sensors. A conventional region tracking method and a deep convolutional neural network have been leveraged to track the trajectory of a hand gesture and to recognize the hand gesture, respectively. Our experimental results show stability in recognizing a hand gesture against varying lighting conditions based on the contribution of the joint kernels of spatial adjacency and thermal range similarity.

An investigation of thermal comfort inside a bus during heating period within a climatic chamber.

Science.gov (United States)

Pala, Uzeyir; Oz, H Ridvan

2015-05-01

By this study, it was aimed to define a testing and calculation model for thermal comfort assessment of a bus HVAC design and to compare effects of changing parameters on passenger's thermal comfort. For this purpose, a combined theoretical and experimental work during heating period inside a coach was carried out. The bus was left under 20 °C for more than 7 h within a climatic chamber and all heat sources were started at the beginning of a standard test. To investigate effects of fast transient conditions on passengers' physiology and thermal comfort, temperatures, air humidity and air velocities were measured. Human body was considered as one complete piece composed of core and skin compartments and the Transient Energy Balance Model developed by Gagge et al. in 1971 was used to calculate changes in thermal parameters between passenger bodies and bus interior environment. Depending on the given initial and environmental conditions, the graphs of passengers Thermal Sensation and Thermal Discomfort Level were found. At the end, a general mathematical model supported with a related experimental procedure was developed for the use of automotive HVAC engineers and scientists working on thermal comfort as a human dimension. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

Breeding snow: an instrumented sample holder for simultaneous tomographic and thermal studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pinzer, B; Schneebeli, M

2009-01-01

To study the recrystallization processes during temperature gradient metamorphism of snow, we developed a sample holder that allows applying well-defined and stable thermal gradients to a snow sample while it is scanned in an x-ray micro-tomograph. To this end, both the thermal insulation of the sample as well as image contrast and resolution of the tomography had to be optimized. We solved this conflict by using thin aluminum cylinders in combination with highly insulating foam. This design is light, does not corrupt image quality and provides very good thermal decoupling from the environment. The sample holder was instrumented to measure the effective conductivity of the snow sample and calibrated using five materials of known conductivity. Finite element simulations were consistent with the calibration measurements and gave insight into the internal temperature and heat flux fields. With this setup, geometric and thermal evolution of snow under realistic thermal boundary conditions like alternating temperature gradients can be measured

Elastic-plastic fracture mechanics study of thermal shock cracking