Application of mesoscale ensemble forecast method for prediction of wind speed ramps

Sudden changes in wind speed, so‐called wind speed ramps, are a major concern for wind power system operators. The present study applies the mesoscale ensemble forecast method for the prediction of wind speed ramps at wind farms in Japan and evaluates the ability and utility of this method. The mesoscale ensemble forecast in this study (ENS21) consists of 21 members with a horizontal resolution of 10 km for a 5‐year period. The simulated results show that ENS21 produces better accuracy than the deterministic forecast with a horizontal resolution of 10 km (DET_L). On the other hand, the deterministic forecast with a horizontal resolution of 5 km (DET_H) also produces better accuracy than DET_L. From a practical perspective, however, the ENS21 is computationally expensive. Thus, the eight‐member mesoscale ensemble forecast (ENS8) with as same computational cost as a deterministic forecast with a horizontal resolution of 5 km (DET_H) is also evaluated. The simulated results show that ENS8 has almost same accuracy as ENS21 and DET_H in wind speed ramp forecasts. ENS8 has advantages over ENS21 and DET_H because ENS8 is computationally efficient and is able to benefit wind power operators with flexibility in the selection of probability thresholds for decision processes compared with a single. It can be concluded that the mesoscale ensemble forecast method is more useful for prediction of the wind speed ramp than the single deterministic forecast method with the same computational cost if the ensemble members are successfully selected.     

Zeolite synthesis from paper sludge ash at low temperature (90 degrees C) with addition of diatomite

Paper sludge ash was partially converted into zeolites by reaction with 3M NaOH solution at 90 degrees C for 24 h. The paper sludge ash had a low abundance of Si and significant Ca content, due to the presence of calcite that was used as a paper filler. Diatomite was added to the NaOH solution to increase its Si content in order to synthesize zeolites with high cation exchange capacity. Diatomite residue was filtered from solution before addition of ash. The original ash without addition of diatomite yielded hydroxysodalite with a cation exchange capacity ca. 50 cmol/kg. Addition of Si to the solution yielded Na-P1 (zeolite-P) with a higher cation exchange capacity (ca. 130 cmol/kg). The observed concentrations of Si and Al in the solution during the reaction explain the crystallization of these two phases. The reaction products were tested for their capacity for PO(4)(3-) removal from solution as a function of Ca(2+) content, suggesting the formation of an insoluble Ca-phosphate salt. The product with Na-P1 exhibits the ability to remove NH(4)(+) as well as PO(4)(3-) from solution in concentrations sufficient for application in water purification. Both NH(4)(+) and PO(4)(3-) removal showed little variation with pH between 5 and 9. Alternative processing methods of zeolite synthesis, including the addition of ash to an unfiltered Si-NaOH solution and addition of a dry ash/diatomite mixture to NaOH solution, were tested. The third process yielded materials with lower cation exchange capacity due to formation of hydroxysodalite. The second process results in a product with relatively high cation exchange capacity, and reduces the number of processing steps necessary for zeolite synthesis.     

Influence of dilution by polydimethylsiloxane on electrorheological effect of side-chain liquid crystalline polysiloxane

A liquid crystalline polysiloxane (LCP), having an ether bond in the spacer between its siloxane main chain and its mesogenic-group side chains, exhibited a very small electrorheological (ER) effect or increase in shear stress upon application of an electric field, but mixtures of the LCP and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) exhibited a sharply increasing ER effect with increasing PDMS content throughout the tested range of up to 0.5 of PDMS weight fraction. When phenyl-substituted PDMS (Ph-PDMS) at a weight fraction of 0.3 was used instead of PDMS, however, the ER effect decreased with increasing phenyl content and became nearly undetectable with Ph-PDMS having a phenyl content (ratio of substituted phenyl groups to initial methyl groups) of approximately 15%. DSC analyses showed that the ER effect of the LCP/PDMS mixtures occurred undiminished throughout a temperature range in which LCP itself is an isotropic liquid in the absence of an applied electric field and suggested that the LC structure of the LCP was maintained even when it was diluted with PDMS in weight fractions of 0.5 or higher, but disrupted when diluted by a 0.3 weight fraction of Ph-PDMS having a 15% phenyl content. Optical microscopic observation of the mixtures of the LCP with a 0.3 weight fraction of PDMS or Ph-PDMS (15% phenyl content) showed that both consisted of uniformly dispersed micron-sized droplets which became elongated in the direction of the applied electric field when it was applied alone but became smaller when both the electric field and shear were applied. These results suggest that the phase separation between the LCP and the dilution oil, as well as the existence and orientation of LC domains, is essential for the generation of a large ER effect. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 64: 1319–1328, 1997     

Better governance for integrated management of the Lake Biwa—Yodo River Basin

The present study discusses the efforts of the Union of Kansai Governments to resolve serious issues in the Lake Biwa—Yodo River Basin in Japan. It identifies many of the issues related to the basin on a ‘no man's land’ mindset of today's governmental framework, which has constrained both the will and the approach to remedy the associated problems. It also highlights better governance that not only encourages individual efforts, but also promotes collaboration and cooperation among the major stakeholders in the area, as important to developing acceptable solutions to relevant issues. The present study also recognizes objective scientific evidence as an effective driver for improving governance, being the basis for making informed decisions and highlighting the use of appropriate indicators to evaluate the conditions characterizing a specific location or the basin as a whole. The present study also describes the Union of Kansai Governments as a behind‐the‐scenes coordinator that gathers knowledge and intelligence on the basin, and works to integrate policies by getting basin stakeholders to gradually improve governance by repeating a cycle of: (a) recognizing the current situation; (b) identifying relevant issues to be addressed; (c) establishing a framework and policy for collaboration and corporation; and (d) taking necessary actions. To this end, the present study discusses the studies and efforts of the Union of Kansai Governments to develop and implement integrated management of this important interlinked lake–river water system in Japan.     

A Spectral Analysis of M-ary Direct Sequence Spread-Spectrum Multiple Access Communication Systems

This paper presents the power spectrum of the transmitted signal in a synchronous spread-spectrum communication system in which the users' information symbol sequences are encoded intoM-ary channel symbol sequences. Furthermore, when maximal-length shift register sequences are used as the spreading code sequences of the system, the average power spectrum over all possible sets of the allowable simultaneous users is presented. It is shown that distribution of the spectrum is influenced considerably by the spreading code and the channel symbol sequences.     

A TV Ghost Canceller Using a CCD Transversal Filter

A system study has been conducted on a transversal filter ghost canceller to achieve system optimization, and an LSI CCD transversal filter for use in the ghost canceller was developed. Furthermore, a practical model of the ghost canceller was constructed on a trial basis. The results of field tests made on the test equipment showed that this system could improve TV picture quality by more than one grade in a five grade subjective evaluation and that the ghost canceller would be useful in practical applications.     

In Situ Time Constant and Optical Efficiency Measurements of TRUCE Pixels in the Atacama B-Mode Search

The Atacama B-mode Search (ABS) instrument, which began observation in February of 2012, is a crossed-Dragone telescope located at an elevation of 5,100 m in the Atacama Desert in Chile. The primary scientific goal of ABS is to measure the B-mode polarization spectrum of the Cosmic Microwave Background from multipole moments of about \(\ell \approx \) 50 to \(\ell \approx \) 500 (angular scales from \({\sim }0.4^\circ \) to \({\sim }4^\circ \) ), a range that includes the primordial B-mode peak from inflationary gravitational waves. The ABS focal plane array consists of 240 pixels designed for observation at 145 GHz by the TRUCE collaboration. Each pixel has its own individual, single-moded feedhorn and contains two transition-edge sensor bolometers coupled to orthogonal polarizations that are read out using time domain multiplexing. We will report on the current status of ABS and discuss the time constants and optical efficiencies of the TRUCE detectors in the field.     

Long-lived neutron-induced radioisotopes in OKTAVIAN facility concrete wall after 38 year-operation

An intense 14 MeV neutron source facility named OKTAVIAN was installed in the A15 building,Osaka University in 1981.Along the operation period,new radioisotopes with various half-life have been produced as neutron activation products in its concrete wall shield.In this work,we investigated the concrete wall in the heavy irradiation room of OKTAVIAN using gamma spectrometry method to discover the presence of radioisotope having large half-life value(long-lived radioisotope) as neutron activation ...     

Effect of recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor on efficacy of radiation therapy in tumor-bearing rats

The effect of recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (rhG-CSF) on radiation-induced neutropenia and on growth of transplanted tumors treated by irradiation was investigated using tumor-bearing rats as a model for radiation therapy. In a preliminary study using normal rats, neutropenia induced by upper hemi-body irradiation at 3 Gy/day 5 times a week for 3 weeks was prevented by consecutive subcutaneous injections of rhG-CSF at 100 micrograms/kg/day. Rats bearing Walker-256, a mammary tumor, were scheduled to receive upper hemibody irradiation at 3 Gy/day for 15 times in 3 weeks if white blood cell (WBC) counts were maintained above 3,000/microliters. In control tumor-bearing rats not receiving rhG-CSF, irradiation was often withheld because of the decrease in WBC counts below 3,000/microliters. In contrast, a decrease in WBC counts below 3,000/microliters was rarely found in tumor-bearing rats injected daily with rhG-CSF. The average number of radiation treatments in control rats and rats treated with rhG-CSF was about 8 and 14, respectively, out of the scheduled 15 treatments in 3 weeks. Treatment with rhG-CSF made it possible to complete the radiation therapy regimen and thus inhibit the growth of the transplanted tumor more effectively. These results suggest that rhG-CSF may be useful to ensure radiation therapy on schedule in cancer patients.     

Effect of inclination of weld faying surface on joint strength of friction welded joint and its allowable limit for austenitic stainless steel solid bar similar diameter combination

This paper describes the effect of the inclination of the weld faying surface on joint strength of friction welded joint and its allowable limit for austenitic stainless steel (SUS304) solid bar similar diameter combination. In this case, the specimen was prepared with the inclination of the weld faying surface pursuant to the JIS Z 3607, and the joint was made with that diameter of 12 mm, a friction speed of 27.5 s^?1, and a friction pressure of 30 MPa. The initial peak torque decreased with increasing inclination of the weld faying surface, and then the elapsed time for the initial peak increased with increasing that inclination. However, the steady torque was kept constant in spite of the inclination of the weld faying surface increasing. The joints without the inclination of the weld faying surface, which were made with friction times of 1.5 and 2.0 s with a forge pressure of 270 MPa, had achieved 100% joint efficiency with the base metal fracture. Those joints had 90° bend ductility with no crack at the weld interface. The joints with the inclination of the weld faying surface of 0.3 mm (gap length of 0.6 mm), which were allowable distance, was also obtained the same result with this condition. Furthermore, those joints with a friction time of 2.5 s obtained the same result. On the other hand, the joints with the inclination of the weld faying surface of 0.6 mm (gap length of 1.2 mm), which were twice inclination of the allowable distance, also obtained the same result in a friction time of 2.5 s. However, the joints without the inclination of the weld faying surface at this friction time did not obtain the base metal fracture, although those achieved 100% joint efficiency. In conclusion, to obtain 100% joint efficiency and the base metal fracture with no cracking at the weld interface, the joint must be made with the inclination of the weld faying surface, with allowable distance pursuant to the JIS Z 3607.