Combination effect of phospholipids and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on rat cholesterol metabolism

This study evaluated phospholipids (PLs) containing n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs) for their specific inherent effects and effects due to a combination of the presence of glycerophosphate structure and n-3 PUFAs on cholesterol metabolism in rats. Rats were fed a diet of AIN-93G containing soybean oil (SO, 7%), SO (5.8%)+fish oil (1.2%), SO (5.2%)+soybean PLs (1.8%), SO (5.2%)+PLs containing n-3 PUFAs (1.8%), and SO (4.0%)+fish oil (1.2%)+soybean PLs (1.8%). Diets with PLs containing n-3 PUFAs, and soybean PLs in combination with fish oil, resulted in decreased serum and liver cholesterol levels through enhancement of fecal cholesterol excretion and suppression of liver sterol regulatory element binding protein-2 mRNA expression compared with the diet containing soybean oil alone. This study shows that soybean PLs with added triacylglycerol that included n-3 PUFAs have the same effects on cholesterol metabolism as PLs containing n-3 PUFAs, and that these could be of benefit to people.     

Light scattering studies on crystallization in polyethylene terephthalate

The light scattering from the spherulites of polyethylene terephthalate grown near the glass transition temperature has been investigated. The Hv scattering profiles can be reproduced by the sum of the ideal spherulite scattering with the distribution of spherulite radius and the isotropic scattering from randomly oriented crystallites. The ratio of optical anisotropies in the isotropic scattering to the ideal spherulite scattering is obtained by the method established to eliminate the effects of the number density of spherulites and the coefficient depending on the experimental conditions. It is found that the anisotropy ratio is almost independent of the crystallization time and of temperature above 106 °C, while it is larger at a crystallization temperature of 103 °C. The spherulitic structure is discussed in terms of the anisotropy ratio.     

An improved control method of buried-type IPM bearingless motors considering magnetic saturation and magnetic pull variation

An improved control method of the buried-type interior permanent magnet (IPM) bearingless motors has been presented. It is shown that the conventional method is not applicable to this type of IPM bearingless motor for loaded conditions. In IPM bearingless motors, the armature reaction flux is present due to high magnetic permeance with thin permanent magnets and small airgap length. An increase in d-axis flux linkage is caused by armature reaction as a torque-component flux is increased. Thus, it is likely that magnetic saturation occurs in the stator teeth. In addition, a magnetic attractive force caused by the displacement force factor is dependent on the armature reaction flux. A new decoupling controller for the IPM bearingless motor considering magnetic saturation is proposed in this paper. It also considers the influence of magnetic attractive force variations. In addition, a new parameter identification method for the decoupling controller is also proposed. The new controller is found quite suitable to realize successful stable operation of the experimental IPM bearingless motor.     

Radiation of X-Rays Using Polarized LiNbO3 Single Crystal in Low-Pressure Ambient Gas

The dependence of X-ray intensity on the pressure and type of ambient gas was investigated for LiNbO₃ single crystals polarized in the c-axis direction at pressures of approximately 1 to 30 Pa. Ionization of surrounding gas molecules by the electric field generated by the crystal led to the production of both positive ions and free electrons. The electrons were accelerated toward a Cu target, radiating both white X-rays and X-rays specific to the crystal or target material by bremsstrahlung. The integrated X-ray intensity per cycle in the energy range 1 to 20 keV showed a local maximum value at a pressure P_max. The logarithm of P_max was proportional to the Boltzmann factor using the first ionization energy of each ambient gas molecule. The value of P_max was found to be independent of the electrical surface area of the crystal. The integrated X-ray intensity was approximated qualitatively by a quadratic function with pressure, which was upwardly convex. It was found that one of the causes of the reduction in X-ray intensity at pressures P > P_max is the adsorption of positive ions generated by the ionization of gas molecules on the negative electric surface. It was also discovered that the lifetime of the X-ray radiation device could be improved when the X-ray radiation case was covered with another hermetically sealed decompression case. The gas with the smallest first ionization energy, with a partial pressure of P_max, was enclosed inside the X-ray radiation case (inner case) and the gas with the largest first ionization energy was enclosed at a suitable pressure between the inner and outer cases.     

Space charge behavior in low density polyethylene at pre-breakdown

It has been known that the electrical breakdown of insulating materials is strongly affected by the formation of space charge in the bulk of the materials. Many researchers have attempted to study the relationship between the space charge and the breakdown; however, it has not been clarified yet. Although the pulsed electroacoustic (PEA) method has been widely used to observe space charge profiles, previous works have not shown clear evidence of the influence of the space charge on the breakdown. Therefore, we have developed a new PEA system with an interval of 0.5 ms to observe the space charge distribution continuously under the ultra-high electric field. Using this system, we observed the space charge dynamics in the low-density polyethylene (LDPE) at and around the breakdown. We also investigated the dependence of the applied electric field on space charge behavior. From the results, it is found that the injected charge packet moved faster and deeper under a relatively lower electric field rather than that under a higher electric field. Furthermore, we found that the maximum electric field in each specimen was almost the same when the breakdown happened in a specimen.     

Inherently decoupled magnetic suspension in homopolar-typebearingless motors

The authors have proposed bearingless motors, that is, magnetic bearings combined with motors in the same stator. It is possible to reduce their shaft length compared with a conventional motor with magnetic bearings, and to achieve higher rotational speed. Bearingless motors generate radial force by adding n ± 2-pole flux on n-pole motor flux to make the flux distribution unbalanced. Several types of bearingless motors have already been proposed, and most of them require variations of motor flux to be taken into account to maintain stable radial position control. In this paper, homopolar-type bearingless motors are proposed and their radial force is analyzed. The rotor of a homopolar motor has two cores with salient poles, and each core is magnetized in a single pole. The important characteristics that the radial force does not vary in accordance with the rotor angle or the motor torque current are derived from analysis. It is confirmed by experiments that the radial position can be controlled nearly independently from the rotational angle and torque     

A method of determining the advanced angle of square-wave currentsin a bearingless switched reluctance motor

Bearingless switched reluctance motors, which can control rotor radial positions with magnetic force, have been proposed. These motors have combined the characteristics of switched reluctance motors and magnetic bearings. This paper proposes a method of determining the advanced angle of square-wave currents in a bearingless switched reluctance motor. Under any torque condition, from no load to full load, stable operation is realized by controlling the advanced angle of square-wave currents with the proposed method. It is shown experimentally that the proposed method is effective in realizing stable operation     

Robust speed identification for speed-sensorless vector control ofinduction motors

This paper describes a new approach to estimating induction motor speed from measured terminal voltages and currents for speed-sensorless vector control. The proposed approach is based on observing the instantaneous reactive power of the motor. The estimated speed is used as feedback in an indirect vector control system. The described technique is very simple and robust to variations of motor parameters. The new approach is not dependent upon the knowledge of the value of the stator resistance, nor is it affected by stator resistance thermal variations. Furthermore, pure integration of sensed variables, in principle, is not required at all. Therefore, this new method can achieve much wider bandwidth speed control than previous tacholess drives. The effectiveness is verified by simulation and experiment     

Principles and Output Characteristics of Super High-Speed Reluctance Generator System

In order to obtain a compact lightweight electric power source for ground vehicles, ships, and airplanes which cannot be fed from external power sources, a super high-speed reluctance generator system is proposed. The system consists of a reluctance machine, a voltage source inverter, and control circuits. The output characteristics are calculated using an equivalent circuit of the reluctance generator. The experimental results obtained at 24 000 r/min show that an efficiency of more than 85 percent and an output of more than 1.5 kW were achieved. The excellent agreement of the measured and calculated values verified the correctness of the analysis method and parameter measurements.