Stress intensity factor evaluations for a curved crack in orthotropic particulate composites using an interaction integral method

This paper develops a domain-independent interaction integral (DII-integral) for extracting mixed-mode stress intensity factors (SIFs) for orthotropic materials with complex interfaces. The DII-integral does not require material property gradients, and moreover its validity is not affected by material interfaces. Combined with the extended finite element method (XFEM), the DII-integral is employed to investigate a straight crack in an orthotropic functionally graded plate and a curved crack in orthotropic particulate composites.     

Characterization of the Chemical Composition of Chinese Moringa oleifera Seed Oil

This work focused on physicochemical property assaying, fatty acid composition, triacylglycerol (TAG) profiles, and unsaponifiable matter composition of the Chinese Moringa oleifera seed oil. The results indicated that there was no significant difference in approximate nutritional components between M. oleifera seeds from China and India, while variations in the mineral element contents are significant. Both the Soxhlet extraction method and the aqueous enzymatic extraction method were adopted to extract oil from Chinese M. oleifera seeds. Oil yield obtained using the Soxhlet extraction method was higher than that obtained using the aqueous enzymatic extraction method. While both the iodine value and unsaponifiable matter content of the aqueous enzymatic extracted oil were a little higher than that of the Soxhlet extracted oil. Both oils possess a very low acid value and peroxide value, suggesting their good quality as edible oil. Fatty acid composition results indicated that this oil was especially high in oleic acid. Characterization of the TAG composition was achieved by a two-dimensional high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupling of nonaqueous reverse-phase and silver ion HPLC with the atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry method. A total of 22 TAG including 16 regioisomers were determined. Composition results of unsaponifiable matters revealed that this oil possesses a number of phytosterols, in which β-sitosterol and stigmasterol are most predominant.     

Association of size‐fractionated indoor particulate matter and black carbon with heart rate variability in healthy elderly women in Beijing

Associations between size‐fractionated indoor particulate matter (PM) and black carbon (BC) and heart rate variability (HRV) and heart rate (HR) in elderly women remain unclear. Twenty‐nine healthy elderly women were measured for 24‐hour HRV/HR indices. Real‐time size‐fractionated indoor PM and BC were monitored on the same day and on the preceding day. Mixed‐effects models were applied to investigate the associations between pollutants and HRV/HR indices. Increases in size‐fractionated indoor PM were significantly associated with declines in power in the high‐frequency band (HF), power in the low‐frequency band (LF), and standard deviation of all NN intervals (SDNN). The largest decline in HF was 19% at 5‐minute moving average for an interquartile range (IQR) increase (24 μg/m³) in PM_0.5. The results showed that smaller particles could lead to greater reductions in HRV indices. The reported associations were modified by body mass index (BMI): Declines in HF at 5‐minute average for an IQR increase in PM_0.5 were 34.5% and 1.0% for overweight (BMI ≥25 kg/m²) and normal‐weight (BMI <25 kg/m²) participants, respectively. Moreover, negative associations between BC and HRV indices were found to be significant in overweight participants. Increases in size‐fractionated indoor PM and BC were associated with compromised cardiac autonomic function in healthy elderly women, especially overweight ones.     

Fragmentation and film growth in supersonic nanoaggregate aerosol deposition

Aerosol deposition with gas phase-synthesized chain-like nanoaggregates can yield dense coatings from the impaction of particles on a substrate; however, dense coating formation is not well understood. Here, we study coating consolidation at the single nanoaggregate level. Flame spray pyrolysis-made tin oxide nanoaggregates are mobility (size) filtered, accelerated through a de Laval nozzle, and impacted on alumina substrates. TEM images obtained from low velocity collection and supersonic deposition are compared via quantitative image analysis, which reveals that upon supersonic impact nanoaggregates fragment into smaller aggregates. This suggests that fragmentation is a key step in producing coatings denser than the depositing nanoaggregates themselves. We supplement experiments with detailed particle trajectory calculations, which show that the impact energies per atom during nanoaggregate deposition are below 0.2 eV/molecule. These results suggest that fragmentation can only occur at locations where nanoaggregates bonded by van der Waals and capillary interactions.     

Soot deposition effects and microwave regeneration modelling of diesel particulate filtration system

Regeneration of accumulated soot particles in the substrate walls of the diesel particulate filtration system is one of the major challenges faced by the automotive industry. This study investigated the conversion efficiency and filtration behaviour of the after treatment system comprising of diesel oxidation catalysis (DOC) and diesel particulate filtration (DPF) system. The average conversion efficiency of hydrocarbons was close to 54% and filtration efficiency of the particle number emissions was around 92%. Characterization of the DOC and DPF substrate were conducted using microscopic imaging, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and particle size analysis (PSA). The results of FTIR study indicated the presence of carcinogenic agents trapped in the porous walls of the filter substrate. A model for microwave based regeneration system is proposed in this article and CFD analysis were conducted to determine the temperature and electric field distribution in the DPF substrate for a regeneration time of 180 s. Results of simulation showed that the microwave radiations raise the temperature close to soot oxidation temperature (873 K), ensuring effective regeneration.     

Effect of agitation pretreatment on anaerobic digestion of swine manure

This study evaluated the effect of mechanical agitation pretreatment on anaerobic digestion (AD) of swine manure (SM). The results showed a remarkable increase in soluble polysaccharides, soluble proteins, and soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) by 82.42%, 121.17%, and 114.89%, respectively, after the SM being agitated for 22 h. No improvement in the volatile fatty acids (VFAs) yield was observed during the agitation pretreatment. Apparently, agitation significantly accelerated the hydrolysis of SM, while it did not seem to enhance the acidification step. Batch AD experiments showed an improved accumulative methane yield by 77.89% with the pretreated SM compared to raw SM.     

nvPM采样输运系统损失因子计算与改进研究

航空发动机排放的非挥发性颗粒物(nvPM)是大气污染的重要来源之一,对人体健康会造成一定的影响。在采样测量过程中会有一定量的损失,为能够更便捷高效地计算排放损失校正因子,该文结合CFM56-7B26/3型发动机排放数据和美国汽车工程师协会(SAE)排放测量校正因子建议标准改变计算流程,开发出一套计算工具。结果显示,新计算工具计算的数量浓度排放校正因子与发动机推力呈负相关,在推力为100%的额定推力下,数量校正因子最小,在推力为3%(慢车状态)处最大,与原方法结果趋势相同,且最大绝对误差为6.81,最小为0.64;质量校正因子也与发动机推力呈负相关,与原方法结果最大绝对误差为0.14,最小为0.007。新计算工具能够更好地与实际数据和推力相联系,在与原方法差异不大的情况下,能够实现更高效便捷的损失校正因子计算。     

Activity pulses induce spontaneous flow reversals in viscoelastic environments

Complex interactions between cellular systems and their surrounding extracellular matrices are emerging as important mechanical regulators of cell functions, such as proliferation, motility and cell death, and such cellular systems are often characterized by pulsating actomyosin activities. Here, using an active gel model, we numerically explore spontaneous flow generation by activity pulses in the presence of a viscoelastic medium. The results show that cross-talk between the activity-induced deformations of the viscoelastic surroundings and the time-dependent response of the active medium to these deformations can lead to the reversal of spontaneously generated active flows. We explain the mechanism behind this phenomenon based on the interaction between the active flow and the viscoelastic medium. We show the importance of relaxation time scales of both the polymers and the active particles and provide a phase space over which such spontaneous flow reversals can be observed. Our results suggest new experiments investigating the role of controlled pulses of activity in living systems ensnared in complex mircoenvironments.