Ammonia gas sensing and magnetic permeability of enhanced surface area and high porosity lanthanum substituted Co–Zn nano ferrites

This work reports magnetic permeability and ammonia gas sensing characteristics of La³⁺ substituted Co–Zn nano ferrites possessing chemical formula Co_0.7Zn_0.3La_xFe_2-2xO₄ (x = 0–0.1) synthesized by a sol-gel route. Refinement of X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of the ferrite powders by the Rietveld technique has revealed the creation of single-phase spinel structure. The tenancy of constituent cations at tetrahedral/octahedral sites was obtained from the refinement of XRD. The crystallite sizes calculated from the W–H method vary from 20 to 24 nm. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) profiles of the ferrite samples were analyzed for the morphological details. The energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX) patterns of the samples were obtained to test the elemental purity of the ferrites within their stoichiometry. The transmission electron microscope (TEM) image of the ferrite (x = 0.1) exhibits the spherical and oval shaped particles with a mean size of 20 nm. Fourier transform infra-red (FTIR) spectra were analyzed to confirm the superseding of La³⁺ cations at octahedral sites. The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis of nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms of the ferrites was performed to investigate the porous structure and to determine the surface area of the nanocrystalline ferrites. The oxidation states of the constituent ions were confirmed by means of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The complex permeability as a function of frequency was studied to explore the effects of structural parameters on the magnetic behaviour of the ferrites. Analysis of gas sensing properties of the ferrites have proved that the Co–Zn–La ferrite with controlled La composition can be utilized as an effective ammonia gas sensing material in commercial gas sensors.     

基于K-means和SOM的水下传感器数据采集方法

随着海洋资源勘探和海洋污染物监控工作的开展，水文数据的监测和采集等已经成为重要的研究方向。其中，水下无线传感器网络在水文数据采集过程中起着举足轻重的作用。本文研究的是水下无线传感器二维监测网络模型中，传感器节点数据采集的问题，其设计方法是通过自组织映射（Self-organizing mapping，SOM）对传感器节点进行路径最优化处理，结合优化的路径图形和K-means算法找到路径内部聚合点，利用聚合点和传感器的节点得到传感器通信半径内的数据采集点，最后通过SOM得到水下机器人（Autonomous underwater vehicle，AUV）到各个数据采集点采集数据的最优路径。经过实验验证，在水下1 200 m×1 750 m范围内布置52个传感器节点的情景下，数据采集点相比于传感器节点路径规划采用相同的采集顺序得到的路径优化了6.7%；对数据采集点重新进行自组织路径规划得到的路径比传感器结点路径的最优解提高了12.2%。增加传感器节点的数量，其结果也大致相同，因此采用该方法可以提高水下机器人采集数据的效率。     

Low area field-programmable gate array implementation of PRESENT image encryption with key rotation and substitution

Lightweight ciphers are increasingly employed in cryptography because of the high demand for secure data transmission in wireless sensor network, embedded devices, and Internet of Things. The PRESENT algorithm as an ultra-lightweight block cipher provides better solution for secure hardware cryptography with low power consumption and minimum resource. This study generates the key using key rotation and substitution method, which contains key rotation, key switching, and binary-coded decimal-based key generation used in image encryption. The key rotation and substitution-based PRESENT architecture is proposed to increase security level for data stream and randomness in cipher through providing high resistance to attacks. Lookup table is used to design the key scheduling module, thus reducing the area of architecture. Field-programmable gate array (FPGA) performances are evaluated for the proposed and conventional methods. In Virtex 6 device, the proposed key rotation and substitution PRESENT architecture occupied 72 lookup tables, 65 flip flops, and 35 slices which are comparably less to the existing architecture.     

Poly(4-styrenesulfonic acid) doped polypyrrole/tungsten oxide/reduced graphene oxide nanocomposite films based surface acoustic wave sensors for NO sensing behavior

Poly(4-styrenesulfonic acid) (PSSA) doped polypyrrole (PPy)/tungsten oxide (WO₃)/reduced graphene oxide (rGO) hybrid nanocomposite have been successfully synthesized using appropriate amounts of PSSA, pyrrole monomer, WO₃, and rGO dispersed in aqueous solution through in situ chemical oxidation polymerization. Here, a simple spin coating method was used to fabricate a nitric oxide (NO) gas sensor composed of the aforementioned nanocomposite on a surface acoustic wave (SAW) resonator. This sensor can detect NO gas at concentrations of 1–110 parts per billion (ppb) at room temperature in dry air, with a sensitivity of 12 Hz/ppb and response and recovery times of <2 min. Moreover, its limit of detection (LOD) is 0.31 ppb for a signal to noise ratio of 3. It demonstrates repeatability, fast response, and recovery at room temperature. Moreover, its sensory performance remains highly stable over 30 days with only a 6.3% decrease in sensitivity. In addition, the sensor is highly selective for NO, even when nitrogen dioxide, ammonia, and carbon dioxide are applied as interfering gases. The inclusion of rGO (with large specific surface area) and the synergic effect of n-type WO₃ nanoparticles in the p-type PPy matrix (leading to p-n heterojunction region formation) possibly underlie the efficient sensing performance of our sensor.     

Research and development of liquid hydrogen (LH2) temperature monitoring system for marine applications

Monitoring the temperature in liquid hydrogen (LH₂) storage tanks on ships is important for the safety of maritime navigation. In addition, accurate temperature measurement is also required for commercial transactions. Temperature and pressure define the density of liquid hydrogen, which is directly linked to trading interests. In this study, we developed and tested a liquid hydrogen temperature monitoring system that uses platinum resistance sensors with a nominal electrical resistance of approximately 1000 Ω at room temperature, PT-1000, for marine applications. The temperature measurements were carried out using a newly developed temperature monitoring system under different pressure conditions. The measured values are compared with a calibrated reference PT-1000 resistance thermometer. We confirm a measurement accuracy of ±50 mK in a pressure range of 0.1 MPa–0.5 MPa.     

Distributed two‐stage state estimation with event‐triggered strategy for multirate sensor networks

This paper investigates the state estimation issue for a class of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) with the consideration of limited energy resources. First, a multirate estimation model is established, and then, a new event‐triggered two‐stage information fusion algorithm is developed based on the optimal fusion criterion weighted by matrices. Compared with the existing methods, the presented fusion algorithm can significantly reduce the communication cost in WSNs and save energy resources of sensors efficiently. Furthermore, by presetting a desired containment probability over the interval [0,1] with the developed event‐triggered mechanism, one can obtain a suitable compromise between the communication cost and the estimation accuracy. Finally, a numerical simulation for the WSN tracking system is given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.     

Correlation among hydrogenation,magnetoelastic coupling,magnetic anisotropy,and magnetoresistance in magnetostrictive,hydrogen-absorbing palladium-cobalt alloy films for hydrogen sensing

Hydrogen-absorbing magnetic alloy films, such as palladium-cobalt (PdCo) alloy films, are expected to play a significant role in the next generation of hydrogen sensors. However, effects of hydrogenation on such films are very complex, since these alloys show strong spin-orbit interaction, i.e., strong magnetoelastic coupling. Accordingly, we conducted integrated research on the hydrogenation, magnetoelastic coupling, magnetism, and galvanomagnetic effect of PdCo alloy films having different magnetic anisotropies of longitudinal and perpendicular magnetic anisotropies. As a result, it was revealed that the stress in the film determines its magnetic anisotropy. The magnetoresistance curves of films, consisting of ordinal and anisotropic magnetoresistance effects, correspond well to the magnetization-magnetic field curves. Hydrogenation results in the compressive stress and decreased magnetostriction, which both have a negative influence on the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy energy of the films. Moreover, the influence is observed also in ordinal and anisotropic magnetoresistances. In addition, the increases in coercivity and electronic resistivity due to the incorporated hydrogen atoms (and related defects) are detected. The results are summarized in a correlation diagram, which shows that hydrogen-absorbing magnetic alloy films are very suitable for use in hydrogen sensors—the films can detect hydrogen via various methods such as magnetic anisotropy, galvanomagnetic effect, coercivity, and resistivity.     

Multifunctional cementitious composites with integrated self-sensing and self-healing capacities using carbon black and slaked lime

This study aims to develop multifunctionality of cementitious composites with the integrated self-sensing and self-healing capacities by incorporating conductive carbon black (CB) with CB-encapsulated slaked lime (SL). The microsized SL particles were premixed with a half of designed content of nanosized CB particles. When CB agglomerations coat around the SL surfaces, SL does not hydrate until the CB coating is removed. Another half of designed weight of CB is uniformly dispersed using ultrasonication with superplasticizer and added to obtain piezoresistivity. The results show that the stress sensing capacity of CB-SL-cementitious composite performs well with the compressive stress. Autogenous healing performances presented significantly can improve the self-healing capacity with the increase of SL. Furthermore, the healing efficiency is affected by the crack width and dispersion of SL, and the smaller cracks with SL are more easily healed. The size of CB agglomerations decreases with the added SL, and the main product of self-healing is calcium carbonate.     

A precise sensor fault detection technique using statistical techniques for wireless body area networks

One of the major challenges in wireless body area networks (WBANs) is sensor fault detection. This paper reports a method for the precise identification of faulty sensors, which should help users identify true medical conditions and reduce the rate of false alarms, thereby improving the quality of services offered by WBANs. The proposed sensor fault detection (SFD) algorithm is based on Pearson correlation coefficients and simple statistical methods. The proposed method identifies strongly correlated parameters using Pearson correlation coefficients, and the proposed SFD algorithm detects faulty sensors. We validated the proposed SFD algorithm using two datasets from the Multiparameter Intelligent Monitoring in Intensive Care database and compared the results to those of existing methods. The time complexity of the proposed algorithm was also compared to that of existing methods. The proposed algorithm achieved high detection rates and low false alarm rates with accuracies of 97.23% and 93.99% for Dataset 1 and Dataset 2, respectively.     

Touch sensor and photovoltaic characteristics of CuSbS2 thin films

Spin-coated chalcostibite CuSbS₂ thin films (≈500 nm thick) were fabricated and the influence of the drying temperature on the structural, morphological, optical and thermoelectric properties of the films was investigated. Crystalline phase-pure chalcostibite has been obtained for the films dried at 180 °C and 210 °C, while below 180 °C these films are partially amorphous. Surprisingly, at drying temperature of 240 °C, a Cu_xS secondary phase appeared. The increase of the drying temperature leads to the increase of the particle size and the decrease of the optical band gap, which is interesting for optoelectronic applications. The highest power factor value was achieved for the film dried at 210 °C, due to the inexistence of secondary phases, which allowed realizing a stable thermoelectric touch sensor with a V_signal/_noise of 5. In addition, this film was tested as a photovoltaic (PV) device and a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 0.030% with an open-circuit voltage (V_OC) of 0.36 V, a short-circuit current density (J_SC) of 0.278 mAcm^?2 and a fill factor (FF) of 0.27 were obtained. Therefore, this work evidences a pathway toward developing bi-functional devices with simultaneously thermoelectric touch sensor and photovoltaic functions.