A novel polarizer‐free dye‐doped polymer‐dispersed liquid crystal for reflective TFT displays

Abstract— A novel preparation method for dichroic dye‐doped polymer‐dispersed liquid crystals has been developed. This was achieved by creating a porous polymer matrix first by washing out the liquid crystal from a polymer‐dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC), which is then refilled with dye‐doped liquid crystal. Optimizing the liquid crystal used in the refilling results in decreased turn‐on voltage and faster response time. Poster‐standard reflectivity and newspaper‐standard contrast was demonstrated with a 3.8‐in. QVGA reflective TFT display with a drive voltage of 10 V.     

Incorporation of a Probabilistic Monotonic Strain Energy Analysis to a Lifting Method

The proposed work analyzes the possibility of improving the capabilities of an energy-based fatigue life prediction method. The improvement being addressed is regarding the variation of empirical monotonic strain energy density calculations and the effects on the energy-based fatigue life prediction capability. Since the prediction method was developed from the concept that the strain energy accumulated during both monotonic failure and an entire fatigue process are equal, meaning the strain energy accumulated during monotonic failure is a physical damage quantity, it was important to understand the variation of monotonic strain energy density. The process for incorporating this variation into the prediction method explores a probabilistic, Three-Sigma analysis that is applicable for all deterministic methods of measuring experimental monotonic strain energy density. The accuracy of the probabilistic energy-based lifing method was admirably assessed by comparison with experimental fatigue life results, between 10³ and 10⁵ cycles, conducted on Titanium 6Al–4V specimens at room temperature.     

FREE SURFACE FLOW AND HEAT TRANSFER IN CAVITIES: THE SEA ALGORITHM

This study concerns the mathematical modeling of heat transfer and free surface motion under gravity, in cavities partially filled with a liquid. This two-phase flow problem is solved using a single-phase technique that assumes the air and liquid occupying the volume of the cavity can be treated as a single fluid with a sharp property discontinuity at the interface. A two-valued scalar advection equation is solved to mark the extent of each fluid. This idea is simple in concept, but requires careful application for two reasons: (1) The interface must remain sharp throughout the simulation; and (2) the equations of motion have to be expressed in a way that prevents the numerical “smothering” of the lighter fluid by the heavy one during the iteration process. To satisfy (1), the Van Leer TVD differencing scheme is adopted for the scalar advection equation, with appropriate flux corrections in the momentum and enthalpy equations. To satisfy (2), the continuity equation is expressed in volumetric form.

The technique is incorporated in the scalar equation algorithm (SEA), It is applied to two problems, the first being the collapse of a liquid column in a sealed cavity with wall heat transfer, and the second the filling and simultaneous cooling of a mold with liquid aluminum.     

A Non‐linear Manifold Strategy for SHM Approaches

In the data‐based approach to structural health monitoring (SHM) when novelty detection is utilised as a means of diagnosis, benign operational and environmental variations of the structure can lead to false alarms and mask the presence of damage. The key element of this paper is to demonstrate a series of pattern recognition approaches which investigate complex correlations between the variables and thus potentially shed light on the variations within the data that are of interest for SHM. The non‐linear manifold learning techniques discussed here, like locally linear embedding combined with robust discordance measures like the minimum covariance determinant and regression techniques like Gaussian processes offer a strategy that includes reliable novelty detection analysis but also a method of investigating the space where structural data clusters are lying.     

Sensitivity analysis of shallow planar landslides in residual soils on south Pennine hillslopes,Derbyshire, UK

Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment - Rainfall-induced shallow planar landslides on residual soil slopes are common mass movement processes on the southern Pennine slopes of...     

Developing toughened aromatic polybenzoxazines using thermoplastic oligomers and telechelics,part 1: Preparation and characterization of the functionalized oligomers

The preparation and characterization of three families of thermoplastic oligomers (M_n = 2918–13263 g mol^?1) based on polyarylsulfone (PSU) differing in both molecular weight and terminal functionality and one series of polyarylethersulfone (PES) of different molecular weights is reported. Infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy data support the formation of both the hydroxyl terminated oligomers and conversion (67–89% depending on molecular weight) to the telechelic PSU oligomer bearing reactive benzoxazine groups. Differential scanning calorimetry reveals that the onset of homopolymerization in the telechelic PSU oligomer occurs at around 100°C (peak maximum 125°C at 10 K/min) and rescans show values of the glass transition (for the homopolymers) ranging from 124 to 167°C depending on molecular weight. The influence on the oligomer backbone and terminal functionality is examined using thermal analysis. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 40875.     

Creativity and domain specificity: The effect of task type on multiple indexes of creative problem-solving.

This study addresses the issue of domain specificity within creativity by understanding the characteristics of creative tasks and how participants react to the task. Participants (N = 187) were given 1 of 3 realistic everyday problems to solve. The problems differed in terms of complexity, involvement, and problem-based efficacy. Problem solutions were evaluated on several measures of creativity. Results indicate that creativity was influenced by the type of problem solved and the measure of creativity used to evaluate the solution. Furthermore, these results were obtained after controlling for the effect of ability. Results imply that not all real-world problems are equivalent and that researchers need to investigate how reactions to different problems and the creativity index used may influence conclusions regarding creative problem solving. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A COMPUTATIONAL MODEL OF COUPLED HEAT AND MOISTURE TRANSFER WITH PHASE CHANGEIN GRANULAR SUGAR DURING VARYING ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS

As part of a comprehensive effort to predict the development of caking in granular materials, a mathematical model is introduced to model simultaneous heat and moisture transfer with phase change in porous media when undergoing temperature oscillations/cycling. The resulting model partial differential equations were solved using finite-volume procedures in the context of the PHYSICA framework and then applied to the analysis of sugar in storage. The influence of temperature on absorption/desorption and diffusion coefficients is coupled into the transport equations. The temperature profile, the depth of penetration of the temperature oscillation into the bulk solid, and the solids moisture content distribution were first calculated, and these proved to be in good agreement with experimental data. Then, the influence of temperature oscillation on absolute humidity, moisture concentration, and moisture migration for different parameters and boundary conditions was examined. As expected, the results show that moisture near boundary regions responds faster than farther away from them with surface temperature changes. The moisture absorption and desorption in materials occurs mainly near boundary regions (where interactions with the environment are more pronounced). Small amounts of solids moisture content, driven by both temperature and vapour concentration gradients, migrate between boundary and center with oscillating temperature.