Corrosion Behavior of Ψ and β Quasicrystalline Al-Cu-Fe Alloy

Two nanostructured Al-Cu-Fe alloys, Al₆₄Cu₂₄Fe₁₂ and Al_62.5Cu_25.2Fe_12.3, have been studied. Icosahedral quasicrystalline (ψ) Al₆₄Cu₂₄Fe₁₂ and crystalline cubic (β) Al_62.5Cu_25.2Fe_12.3 cylindrical ingots were first produced using normal casting techniques. High-energy mechanical milling was then conducted to obtain ψ icosahedral and β intermetallic nanostructured powders. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, linear polarization resistance, and potentiodynamic polarization were used to investigate the electrochemical corrosion characteristics of the powders in solutions with different pH values. Current density (i _corr), polarization resistance (R _p), and impedance modulus (|Z|) were determined. The results showed that regardless of pH value, increasing the solution temperature enhanced the corrosion resistance of the both phases. However, the electrochemical behavior of the ψ phase indicated that its stability depends on the submerged exposure time in neutral and alkaline environments. This behavior was related to the type of corrosion products present on the surfaces of the particles along with the diffusion and charge-transfer mechanisms of the corrosion process.     

A Comparative Study of the Effectiveness of Adaptive Filter Algorithms,Spectral Kurtosis and Linear Prediction in Detection of a Naturally Degraded Bearing in a Gearbox

Diagnosing bearing faults at the earliest stages is critical in avoiding future catastrophic failures. Many techniques have been developed and applied in diagnosing bearings faults; however, these traditional diagnostic techniques are not always successful when the bearing fault occurs in gearboxes where the vibration response is complex; under such circumstances, it may be necessary to separate the bearing signal from the complex signal. In this paper, an adaptive filter has been applied for the purpose of bearing signal separation. Four algorithms were compared to assess their effectiveness in diagnosing a bearing defect in a gearbox, least mean square (LMS), linear prediction, spectral kurtosis and fast block LMS. These algorithms were applied to decompose the measured vibration signal into deterministic and random parts with the latter containing the bearing signal. These techniques were applied to identify a bearing fault in a gearbox employed for an aircraft control system for which endurance tests were performed. The results show that the LMS algorithm is capable of detecting the bearing fault earlier in comparison with the other algorithms.     

Sensitivity analysis on ram speed of a direct extrusion process model using a porthole die through CEL method

Prediction of machine tool chatter requires the characterization of dynamic of the machine-tool-workpiece system by means of frequency response functions (FRFs). Uncertainties of the measured FRFs result in uncertainties of the calculated stability diagrams, therefore robustness of stability prediction against parameter perturbations is of high importance. Although there exist methods to determine robust stability in terms of stability radii, these methods either give a conservative estimate of the real uncertainties or are limited to perturbations of a few modal parameters, only. In this paper, a frequency-domain approach is presented to determine robust stability boundaries using the measured FRFs directly without any modal parameter identification. The method is based on an envelope fitting around the measured FRFs combined with some considerations of the single-frequency method. The application of the method is demonstrated in case of a turning operation, where the machine tool structure is characterized by a series of FRF measurements.     

Current Status of Biomarkers for Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer (PCa) is a leading cause of cancer-related death of men globally. Since its introduction, there has been intense debate as to the effectiveness of the prostate specific antigen (PSA) test as a screening tool for PCa. It is now evident that the PSA test produces unacceptably high rates of false positive results and is not prognostic. Here we review the current status of molecular biomarkers that promise to be prognostic and that might inform individual patient management. It highlights current efforts to identify biomarkers obtained by minimally invasive methods and discusses current knowledge with regard to gene fusions, mRNA and microRNAs, immunology, and cancer-associated microparticles.     

Prediction of the air wave due to blasting inside tunnels: Approximation to a ‘phonometric curve’

A review of the results of a previous research, has pointed out that only the magnitude of the blasting air wave at the tunnel portal depends on the tunnel and blasting design parameters (section, length, distance to the portal, maximum charge per delay…). For a given sound level at the tunnel portal, the magnitude of the air wave outside the tunnel depends on the attenuation due to natural or artificial barriers, similar to how a lamp focuses the light more along a given direction than along others. In this work, the air wave propagation outside the tunnel is briefly explained and a phonometric and iso-attenuation curves are proposed in order to represent the phenomenon and to synthesize the solution for a given case. Finally, a charge–distance curve is proposed in order to solve the problem in an easy way.     

Stable and unstable angina: Identifying novel markers on circulating leukocytes

There is currently no blood-based test that can rapidly and objectively distinguish between chest pain which is initiated by increased myocardial oxygen demand (stable angina pectoris (SAP)) and chest pain initiated due to decreased coronary blood flow (unstable angina pectoris (UAP)). Since leukocytes play an active role in the progression of coronary artery disease (CAD), we hypothesize these can provide novel markers of SAP and UAP. Here we use a microarray of 82 cluster of differentiation (CD) antibodies (plus controls) to selectively immobilize peripheral blood mononuclear cells. We find that the pattern of leukocyte immobilization from patients with CAD significantly differs from healthy donors. Within the CAD group, 15 SAP patients exhibited significant (p<0.05) changes in 8 of 82 CD antibody spots compared to 19 age-matched healthy blood donors. An additional ten CD antigens differed between healthy donors and patients with UAP (p<0.05). Furthermore, seven CD antibody spots are significantly different between SAP and UAP patients. These preliminary data suggest it is now appropriate to undertake a larger clinical trial to test the hypothesis that these antibody microarrays can monitor the progression from SAP to UAP.     

Fast recursive algorithms for short-time discrete cosine transform

Local adaptive signal processing can be carried out using the short-time discrete cosine transform (DCT). Two fast recursive algorithms for computing the short-time DCT are presented. The algorithms are based on a recursive relationship between three subsequent local DCT spectra. The computational complexity of the algorithms is compared with that of fast DCT algorithms