Theoretical considerations on the modelling of transport in a three-phase electrode and application to a proton conducting solid oxide electrolysis cell

This paper presents a numerical model for fuel cells and electrolysis cells that use cermets as electrodes. The mass and charge continuity equations were demonstrated inside the electrodes and in the divergence term, surface ratios were used instead of more usual volumetric ratios. The Butler–Volmer equation for electrokinetics was used with concentration coefficients in order to predict correctly the concentration effects on the value of the transfer current density in the cermets. In addition, it was considered that the reaction takes place inside all of cermet's volume inste1 ad of a thin layer near the electrolyte. The model was tested for the proton-conducting SOEC technology on a generic cell design and the calculations were performed with COMSOL Multiphysics 4.1™. A parametric analysis was carried out on a proton-conducting SOEC in galvanostatic mode in order to evaluate the influence of parameters on oxygen production across the electrode in the anodic compartment. This analysis showed that the structural parameters of the cermets such as grain radius or volumetric ratios of the conductors play a major role in the distribution of reaction kinetics.     

Strictly periodic scheduling in IMA-based architectures

The avionic industry has recently adopted the Integrated Modular Avionics (IMA). Such architectures allow the execution of avionic functions on a shared computing platform while avoiding any interference between them. This is done through hard memory and temporal segregation constraints. Although IMA reduces the weight and the power consumption and shortens the design-cycle times, it gives rise to a complex multiprocessor scheduling problem. One of the key difficulties of this problem is related to the strict periodicity of tasks, which means that the time separating two successive executions of the same task is strictly equal to the associated period. In order to help the system designer in producing a proper schedule, an exact formulation based on Integer Linear Programming and a heuristic inspired from Game Theory are proposed. To enhance the solution quality of the heuristic, a?multi-start method, which gives some probabilistic guarantees on the optimality of the solutions, is also introduced.     

DETONATION CLASSIFICATION FROM ACOUSTIC SIGNATURE WITH THE RESTRICTED BOLTZMANN MACHINE

We compare the recently proposed Discriminative Restricted Boltzmann Machine (DRBM) to the classical Support Vector Machine (SVM) on a challenging classification task consisting in identifying weapon classes from audio signals. The three weapon classes considered in this work (mortar, rocket, and rocket‐propelled grenade), are difficult to reliably classify with standard techniques because they tend to have similar acoustic signatures. In addition, specificities of the data available in this study make it challenging to rigorously compare classifiers, and we address methodological issues arising from this situation. Experiments show good classification accuracy that could make these techniques suitable for fielding on autonomous devices. DRBMs appear to yield better accuracy than SVMs, and are less sensitive to the choice of signal preprocessing and model hyperparameters. This last property is especially appealing in such a task where the lack of data makes model validation difficult.     

Improvement of corrosion protection offered to galvanized steel by incorporation of lanthanide modified nanoclays in silane layer

Silane sol–gel based films are very promising alternatives to the traditional chromate pre-treatments. However, the protection offered by the silane films strongly decreases when the coating is damaged. Some previous studies showed that the barrier properties of the silane layer can be improved by incorporation of clay nanoparticles. Moreover, inhibitive metallic cations can be incorporated in the nanoclays by ion exchange, providing a way to prepare cheap corrosion inhibitors nanoreservoirs offering self-healing properties. Rare earth (RE) metal salts have been shown to be effective corrosion inhibitors on a wide range of metals, including hot dip galvanized (HDG) steel. For this study, montmorillonite clay is modified to obtain a Ce(III) montmorillonite clay (Ce-MMT). The amount of incorporated Ce(III) is characterized by means of XRF measurements. X-ray diffraction showed that the Ce(III) is located in the interlayer space.     

Model-based temperature control of a diesel oxidation catalyst

The problem studied in this article is the control of a DOC (diesel oxidation catalyst) as used in aftertreatment systems of diesel vehicles. This system is inherently a distributed parameter system due to its elongated geometry where a gas stream is in contact with a spatially distributed catalyst. A first contribution is a model for the DOC system. It is obtained by successive simplifications justified either experimentally (from observations, estimates of orders of magnitude) or by an analysis of governing equations (through asymptotic developments and changes of variables). This model can reproduce the complex temperature response of DOC output to changes in input variables. In particular, the effects of gas velocity variations, inlet temperature and inlet hydrocarbons are well represented. A second contribution is a combination of algorithms (feedback, feedforward, and synchronization) designed to control the thermal phenomena in the DOC. Both contributions have been tested and validated experimentally. In conclusion, the outcomes are evaluated: using the approach presented in this article, it is possible to control, in conditions representative of vehicle driving conditions, the outlet temperature of the DOC within ±15 °C.     

‘Photo‐Inflation’: Image Profusion in German Photography, 1925–1945

This article examines ways in which the question of image profusion occupied photography circles in interwar Germany, analysing in particular decisions to reject, glorify, or tame photography's evident abundance. While art photography around 1900 sought to legitimate its standing through rarity, during the late 1920s the New Objectivity and New Vision movements instead trumpeted quantity as the basis of their aesthetic claims. Their success quickly prompted a wave of criticism summed up by the term ‘photo‐inflation’: a deregulated ‘wastefulness’ in imagery that threatened in the longer run man's very critical and perceptual faculties. In the wake of this articulation of threat, work in series became one possible way to domesticate image profusion, to accept its inevitability while giving it a framework. Pushing further, the creation of archives, especially in collective undertakings, seemed to regulate the problem. Defended first by the left as a means to overcome capitalist structures of competition, this discourse of collective effort was soon co‐opted by the National Socialists. In the process, a rhetoric of common effort became reconciled with an emphasis on elites and hierarchical formations – for example, in juried competitions or expert advice columns – in which ‘great photographers’ were made into ‘guides’ for the limitless mass of amateurs.     

Efficient Photomodulation of Visible Eu(III) and Invisible Yb(III) Luminescences using DTE Photochromic Ligands for Optical Encryption

This work describes a class of complex combining three dithienylethene units and a lanthanide ion used as an optical system displaying a double encryption method: i) a colorful code, drawn and erased under UV and visible irradiations respectively, due to coloration and discoloration of the photochromic entities, and ii) a concomitant gradual disappearance and progressive restoration of the associated lanthanide ion luminescence triggered with the same stimuli. The innovation of the system stems from the emission color tunability, i.e., with either a lanthanide ion emitting only in the visible range (Eu³⁺) or with another lanthanide ion emitting only in the near infrared (NIR) range (Yb³⁺), therefore observable, or not, to the naked eye. This system is the very first one to achieve efficient repeatable modulation of pure NIR luminescence on photochemical command. Furthermore, it is proven to be highly efficient when embedded in a PDMS polymer opening real opportunities for practical applications as anti‐counterfeiting.