A novel method of shrimp blanching by CO2 heat pump: Quality,energy, and economy analysis

To reduce the energy consumption of the shrimp blanching process and improve the economic value of the blanched product, a transcritical CO₂ heat pump blanching system (THPB system) was designed in this paper. The trends of astaxanthin were investigated at atmospheric pressure near boiling temperature, combined with the color and structural properties of shrimp samples, and the optimal blanching times of 270 s and 240 s were obtained at 90°C and 95°C, respectively. In contrast to the fuel blanching system (FB system) at 100°C, the annual standard coal consumption of the THPB system with 90°C blanching is decreased by 79%, and the annual operating cost can be saved by CNY 63,800, with a payback period of about 3.13 years.Industrial relevanceBlanching is one of the effective ways to prolong the shelf life of shrimp. However, the research on the blanching time and temperature of shrimp is not comprehensive. In addition, the traditional fuel blanching process has high energy consumption and pollution, and can no longer meet the quality requirements of the modern food processing industry. Heat pump has been shown to have better performance in food drying, but it is less used in blanching. The information presented in this study may provide other insights into food processing.     

Hierarchical electromagnetic absorption in micro-waveguide stuffed with magnetic media for resin-based composites of graphene nanosheets and manganese oxides

Waveguide configurations of hierarchical system are proposed as new microstructures for composites in absorbing enhancement. Supercritical fluid (SCF) one-pot exfoliation of layered graphite and manganese oxide mixing materials is developed to obtain a hierarchical system, containing graphene nanosheets (GNS) and exfoliated manganese oxides (EMO) in different sizes. Composites with GNS–EMO embedded in epoxy resin matrix are produced for a design of dielectric and magnetic loss integrated absorber. Volume fraction of GNS–EMO in composites is given for an optimal quantity of resin epoxy in fixation and formation. The effect of mixing ratios between electric and magnetic components is provided for the design of dielectric and magnetic loss integrated absorbers. Frequency shifting phenomena are revealed in the component adjusting course. Excluding the offsetting sizes, reflection loss of composites is enhanced as thickness increases. Synergistic effect of electric and magnetic coordinated materials demonstrates the superiority of micro-waveguide structures in GNS–EMO composite absorber.     

Effects of apparent image velocity and complexity on the dynamic visual field using a high-speed train driving simulator

Train driving is a highly visual task. The visual capabilities of the train driver affects driving safety and driving performance. Understanding the effects of train speed and background image complexity on the visual behavior of the high-speed train driver is essential for optimizing performance and safety. This study investigated the role of the apparent image velocity and complexity on the dynamic visual field of drivers. Participants in a repeated-measures experiment drove a train at nine different speeds in a state-of-the-art high-speed train simulator. Eye movement analysis indicated that the effect of image velocity on the dynamic visual field of high-speed train driver was significant while image complexity had no effect on it. The fixation range was increasingly concentrated on the middle of the track as the speed increased, meanwhile there was a logarithmic decline in fixation range for areas surrounding the track. The extent of the visual search field decreased gradually, both vertically and horizontally, as the speed of train increased, and the rate of decrease was more rapid in the vertical direction. A model is proposed that predicts the extent of this tunnel vision phenomenon as a function of the train speed.Relevance to industryThis finding can be used as a basis for the design of high-speed railway system and as a foundation for improving the operational procedures of high-speed train driver for safety.     

Enhanced transduction coefficient in piezoelectric PZT ceramics by mixing powders calcined at different temperatures

Large transduction coefficient ($d_{33}\times g_{33}$) is difficult to obtain in piezoelectric ceramics because these two parameters show opposite trends with compositional modifications. Herein, the Pb(Zr_0.53Ti_0.47)O₃ ceramic powders were calcinated under different temperatures (A:830 °C, B:860 °C, and C:890 °C), and then mixed together according to different weight ratios (1A:1B:1C, 1A:2B:1C, 1A:2B:3C and 3A:2B:1C) for ceramics preparation. Both d₃₃ and g₃₃ are improved successfully, and the transduction coefficient with the weight ratio of 1A:2B:3C reaches up to 17,500 × 10⁻¹⁵ m²/N, which is 60 % higher than that with the powders calcinated under 830 °C, and at least twice those of commercial PZT-4, PZT-5A and PZT-8 ceramics. The improved transduction coefficient is owing to the enhanced piezoelectric constant and spontaneous polarization resulted from the increased grain size, relative density and the fraction of tetragonal phase. These results indicate that this is a simple but effective way to tailor the transduction coefficient in piezoelectric ceramics.     

Efficient use of route requests for loop-free on-demand routing in ad hoc networks

On-demand routing protocols flood a route request (RREQ) identified by a unique source-sequenced label (SSL) to build directed acyclic graphs (DAG) consisting of possible paths to destinations, and use reverse paths along such DAGs to send route replies from the destinations. We present the first framework that uses only the SSL of the RREQ to establish loop-free paths without requiring additional mechanisms or information, e.g., per destination-sequence numbers or source routing. We present the Labeled Successor Routing (LSR) protocol, which stores the SSL of the RREQ as a route request label (RRL) at the nodes that participated in the creation of the RREQ DAG. The RRLs allow the source of the RREQ to identify neighbors as loop-free successors to the destination, which reduces network-wide RREQ flooding. Simulations results for scenarios consisting of networks of 50 and 100 mobile nodes show that LSR performs comparably or better than the Dynamic Source Routing (DSR) protocol, the Ad hoc On-demand Distance Vector (AODV) routing protocol, and the Optimized Link State Routing (OLSR) protocol.     

具有初曲率板弯曲的边界元分析

由于具有初曲率板弯曲问题的控制微分方程较复杂，直接求解原问题基本解推导边界积分方程较为困难。本文通过引入等效荷载，将此问题的控制微分方程化成与普通板弯曲基本方程形式相同的微分方程，利用一般求解板弯曲问题的边界元法迭代求解，建立了分析具有初曲率板弯曲问题的边界元法。算例表明本方法理论准确、精度良好。     

Natural convection heat transfer of water on a horizontal downward facing stainless steel disk in a gap under atmospheric pressure conditions

An experimental study on natural convection heat transfer on a horizontal downward facing heated surface in a water gap has been carried out under atmospheric pressure conditions. A total of 7204 experimental data points are correlated using Rayleigh versus Nusselt number correlations in various forms, based on different independent variables. The effects of different characteristic lengths and film temperatures are discussed. The buoyancy force acts as a resistance force for natural convection heat transfer on a downward facing horizontal heated surface in a confined space. For the estimation of the natural convection heat transfer under the present conditions, empirical correlations in which Nusselt number is expressed as a function of Rayleigh number, or Rayleigh and Prandtl numbers both, may be used. However, the best accuracy is provided by an empirical correlation which expresses the Nusselt number as a function of the Rayleigh and Prandtl numbers, as well as the gap width-to-heated surface diameter ratio; and uses the temperature difference between the heated surface and the ambient fluid in the definition of Rayleigh number. The characteristic length is the gap size and the film temperature is the average fluid temperature.     

Acquiring logistics process intelligence: Methodology and an application for a Chinese bulk port

The processes of logistics service providers are considered as highly human-centric, flexible and complex. Deviations from the standard operating procedures as described in the designed process models, are not uncommon and may result in significant uncertainties. Acquiring insight in the dynamics of the actual logistics processes can effectively assist in mitigating the uncovered risks and creating strategic advantages, which are the result of uncertainties with respectively a negative and a positive impact on the organizational objectives.In this paper a comprehensive methodology for applying process mining in logistics is presented, covering the event log extraction and preprocessing as well as the execution of exploratory, performance and conformance analyses. The applicability of the presented methodology and roadmap is demonstrated with a case study at an important Chinese port that specializes in bulk cargo.     

Performance of supply chain collaboration – A simulation study

In the past few decades several supply chain management initiatives such as Vendor Managed Inventory, Continuous Replenishment and Collaborative Planning Forecasting and Replenishment (CPFR) have been proposed in literature to improve the performance of supply chains. But, identifying the benefits of collaboration is still a big challenge for many supply chains. Confusion around the optimum number of partners, investment in collaboration and duration of partnership are some of the barriers of healthy collaborative arrangements. To evolve competitive supply chain collaboration (SCC), all SC processes need to be assessed from time to time for evaluating the performance. In a growing field, performance measurement is highly indispensable in order to make continuous improvement; in a new field, it is equally important to check the performance to test conduciveness of SCC. In this research, collaborative performance measurement will act as a testing tool to identify conducive environment to collaborate, by the way of pinpointing areas requiring improvements before initializing collaboration. We use actual industrial data and simulation to help managerial decision-making on the number of collaborating partners, the level of investments and the involvement in supply chain processes. This approach will help the supply chains to obtain maximum benefit of collaborative relationships. The use of simulation for understanding the performance of SCC is relatively a new approach and this can be used by companies that are interested in collaboration without having to invest a huge sum of money in establishing the actual collaboration.     

Reprint of “Virtual cut-through: A new computer communication switching technique”

In this paper a new switching technique called virtual cut-through is proposed and its performance is analyzed. This switching system is very similar to message switching, with the difference that when a message arrives in an intermediate node and its selected outgoing channel is free (just after the reception of the header), then, in contrast to message switching, the message is sent out to the adjacent node towards its destination before it is received completely at the node; only if the message is blocked due to a busy output channel is a message buffered in an intermediate node. Therefore, the delay due to unnecessary buffering in front of an idle channel is avoided. We analyze and compare the performance of this new switching technique with that of message switching with respect to three measures: network delay, traffic gain and buffer storage requirement. Our analysis shows that cut-through switching is superior (and at worst identical) to message switching with respect to the above three performance measures.

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