Numerical and experimental investigation on lap shear fracture of Al/CFRP laminates

This paper presents a new approach to numerically investigate the lap shear fracture of a hybrid laminate made of Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) and metal foil plies (e.g. aluminium), validated by corresponding experiments. The numerical Finite Element (FE) model of the hybrid laminate, subjected to lap shear fracture, is composed of five laminas with alternating metal/CFRP layers with cohesive elements lying within Al/CFRP interface. In the FE model, individual CFRP laminas are assumed as an orthotropic homogenized continuum under plane stress, and aluminium facesheets are modelled as an elastic–plastic continuum. The Al/CFRP interface is represented via quadratic cohesive elements, the constitutive law of which is an exponentially decaying law representing the degrading behaviour of the interface (implemented as user element in ABAQUS). The numerical model captures the experimentally obtained results with minimal error, and predicts the failure modes successfully. The influence of specimen geometry (e.g. overlap length, total length, and total width) on lap shear fracture response is analyzed in detail in this study, too, in order to confirm the specimen design for the test, as there is still no corresponding test standard for hybrid laminates.     

Durability test and degradation behavior of a 2.5 kW SOFC stack with internal reforming of LNG

Forschungszentrum Jülich has demonstrated SOFC stacks and systems ranging from 50 W to 20 kW. Previous studies have shown the reproducible stable long-term performance of the F10-design short stacks developed in Forschungszentrum Jülich. Within this work, a 2.5 kW F20-stack consisting of eighteen cells was assembled, and tested at a furnace temperature of 700 °C mainly with the simulated reformate gas, which corresponds to 10% pre-reforming of liquefied natural gas (LNG). The current density and fuel utilization were mostly kept at 0.5 A cm⁻² and 70%, respectively. The purpose was to investigate the behavior of the stack in the kW-range for at least 5000 h with internal reforming of LNG or methane at a fuel utilization of at least 60%. A voltage degradation rate of around 0.3%/1000 h was obtained during the operation with pre-reformed LNG. The stack performance under normal working conditions and an unplanned redox cycle, as well as the results from post mortem analysis are discussed.     

Bitter off‐taste in stored cold‐pressed linseed oil obtained from different varieties

Freshly pressed linseed oil shows a delicate nutty flavor. However, after only 1 day of storage, a bitter off‐taste develops. It is caused mainly by the formation of a cyclic octa‐peptide named cyclolinopeptide E (CLE) containing the oxidized amino acid methionine. A simple and fast determination by solid‐phase extraction and high‐performance liquid chromatography with UV detection has been developed in order to measure the formation of this cyclic peptide during storage in correlation with the increasing bitter off‐taste of the oil, which was determined by a sensory panel. The development of this bitter off‐taste was analyzed in several oils prepared from linseed of a single variety from seeds obtained during a growing test. Highest bitterness was perceived in oil from the variety Eurodor, corresponding to CLE contents of 925 mg/kg, and lowest bitterness was perceived in oil from the variety Baladin, corresponding to a CLE content of 485 mg/kg. In some varieties, additional bitter compounds might be present in significant amounts.     

Cyclohexa‐3,5‐diene‐1,2‐trans‐diols – Synthesis and Application in Target‐Oriented Syntheses

An exhaustive overview of the field of cyclohexa‐3,5‐diene‐1,2‐trans‐diols is given. Early and recent methods for the formation of the compounds are reviewed and the various syntheses in which the title compounds have been applied are presented. Special emphasis is given to naturally occurring epoxides, which have been the dominant target molecules since the 1970s. Finally, recent advances in biotechnology are highlighted; with the increased availability of the enantiomerically pure cyclohexa‐3,5‐diene‐1,2‐trans‐diols, new synthetic endeavours were initiated.     

Impact of breakfast on daily energy intake - an analysis of absolute versus relative breakfast calories

Objective  

The role of breakfast energy in total daily energy intake is a matter of debate. Acute feeding experiments demonstrated that high breakfast energy leads to greater overall intake supported by cross-sectional data of a free-living population. On the other hand, a large intraindividual analysis has indicated that a high proportion of breakfast to overall intake is associated with lower daily energy intake. To evaluate these apparently contradictory results in greater detail both ways of analysis were applied to the same data set of dietary records.     

Operational behavior and reforming kinetics over Ni/YSZ of a planar type pre-reformer for SOFC systems

At Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, a multi-component SOFC design based on planar stacks has been developed, in which all hot system components are scaled to a nominal SOFC stack power of 5 kW. To optimize the SOFC system it is necessary to investigate the effects of design and operating parameters on the system components like pre-reformer and afterburner. A special designed 5-layer planar type steam pre-reformer on basis of Ni/YSZ has been built and tested for operational behavior and kinetics of steam reforming with methane. This paper summarizes and discusses the experimental results on the global reaction kinetics of a Jülich planar pre-reformer in the temperature range between 350 °C and 620 °C at ambient pressure (1 bar). The species compositions of product gas at different feed compositions, flow rates and temperatures are determined by using gas-chromatographic methods and dew-point measurements. The reproducibility of experiments in the low temperature range (especially less than 430 °C) was only assured, when the catalyst has been reduced before every kinetic experiment. The proposed kinetic expression of Arrhenius type (second order with respect to mole fraction of methane and first order with respect to mole fraction of water) gives a good agreement with the experimental results of the methane steam reforming. It is general effective for different steam to carbon ratios. The temperature distribution in the pre-reformer and the loss of heat are also discussed.     

Comparison of different methods for the determination of the oil content in oilseeds

The investigation and assessment of the oil content of oilseeds are important criteria, especially for the oil milling trade. Standard methods for the determination of the oil content of oilseeds are very time consuming, with extraction periods of 4 to 8 h. Three different oilseeds—rapeseed, sunflower, and soybean—are extracted by supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), accelerated solvent extraction, microwave-assisted extraction, solid fluid vortex extraction, and Soxtherm, and the results are compared with the result of the German Fat Science Society (DGF) standard method B-I 5 (87). Besides, the extracts are analyzed regarding the content of tocopherols as a parameter for mild extraction conditions and the content of diglycerides and free fatty acids as parameters for the content of more polar lipids. The results of the determination of the oil content under optimal conditions are comparable with the results of the DGF standard method B-I 5 (87). There are no significant differences between the different methods. The content of tocopherols is dependent upon the extraction method and the type of oilseed. The highest content is obtained by SFE. The content of diglycerides and free fatty acids varied according to the oilseed.     

Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 3 Is Linked to VDAC1 Deubiquitination

Dysfunctional mitochondria are linked to several neurodegenerative diseases. Metabolic defects, a symptom which can result from dysfunctional mitochondria, are also present in spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3), also known as Machado–Joseph disease, the most frequent, dominantly inherited neurodegenerative ataxia worldwide. Mitochondrial dysfunction has been reported for several neurodegenerative disorders and ataxin-3 is known to deubiquitinylate parkin, a key protein required for canonical mitophagy. In this study, we analyzed mitochondrial function and mitophagy in a patient-derived SCA3 cell model. Human fibroblast lines isolated from SCA3 patients were immortalized and characterized. SCA3 patient fibroblasts revealed circular, ring-shaped mitochondria and featured reduced OXPHOS complexes, ATP production and cell viability. We show that wildtype ataxin-3 deubiquitinates VDAC1 (voltage-dependent anion channel 1), a member of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore and a parkin substrate. In SCA3 patients, VDAC1 deubiquitination and parkin recruitment to the depolarized mitochondria is inhibited. Increased p62-linked mitophagy, autophagosome formation and autophagy is observed under disease conditions, which is in line with mitochondrial fission. SCA3 fibroblast lines demonstrated a mitochondrial phenotype and dysregulation of parkin-VDAC1-mediated mitophagy, thereby promoting mitochondrial quality control via alternative pathways.