Thermal stability of chloroform in the steam-condensate cycle of CANDU-PHW nuclear power plant

Analysis of samples taken at the Gentilly 2 (Québec) CANDU-PHW (CANadian Deuterium Uranium - Pressurized Heavy Water) plant after chlorination and demineralization revealed the presence of all four trihalomethanes (THMs) (CHCl₃, CHBrCl₂, CHBr₂Cl and CHBr₃) and other unidentified halogenated volatile compounds. Among the THMs, chloroform was the major contaminant. A study of its thermal stability in water at different temperatures confirmed the degradation of the CHCl₃ molecule according to the equation CHCl₃ + H₂O → CO + 3 HCl. The reaction follow a first order kinetics and has an activation energy of 100 kJ/mol. The estimated half-life is six seconds at 260°C, the maximum temperature of the steam-condensate cycle.     

Homology Model Adjustment and Ligand Screening with a Pseudoreceptor of the Human Histamine H4 Receptor

A new pseudoreceptor modeling method (PRPS) was applied to the refinement of a homology model of the human histamine H₄ receptor (H₄R), the prediction of a ligand binding site, and virtual screening. Retrieval of two new H₄R ligands demonstrates the biological relevance of the pseudoreceptor model and provides a means for finding new hits and leads in the early phases of drug discovery.

     

Grauwasserreinigung mit einer Sumpfpflanzenmatte unter Praxisbedingungen

There is increasing interest worldwide in the decentralized treatment of gray water. Since ground‐level areas are generally costly, gray‐water treatment can also be carried out using helophyte mats on the roofs of buildings as an alternative. Alongside the water treatment itself, this process also has a positive effect on the indoor climate in the building. In a test carried out under realistic conditions, it was shown that a helophyte mat with a root‐layer depth of 0.1 m and with hydraulic loads per unit up to 15 L m^?2d^?1 is suitable for treating typical gray water from a residential building.     

Assessment of alimentary histamine exposure of consumers in Austria and development of tolerable levels in typical foods

Although alimentary intake of histamine can cause intoxication, legal limits for histamine content in the EU, exist for certain seafish species only. The present study suggests tolerable levels for fermented sausage, fish and cheese which are based on relating the amount of histamine not expected to cause any health effects after ingestion to typically consumed amounts of food. Limits of 500 and 400 mg/kg would seem to be justifiable for fermented sausage and cheese, respectively. For fish species other than those already regulated in EU, the “m”/”M” limits of 100 and 200 mg/kg can be adopted. These limits can be met by current food technology.     

Thermodynamic models for vapor-liquid equilibria of nitrogen + oxygen + carbon dioxide at low temperatures

For the design and optimization of CO₂ recovery from alcoholic fermentation processes by distillation, models for vapor-liquid equilibria (VLE) are needed. Two such thermodynamic models, the Peng-Robinson equation of state (EOS) and a model based on Henry’s law constants, are proposed for the ternary mixture N₂ + O₂ + CO₂. Pure substance parameters of the Peng-Robinson EOS are taken from the literature, whereas the binary parameters of the Van der Waals one-fluid mixing rule are adjusted to experimental binary VLE data. The Peng-Robinson EOS describes both binary and ternary experimental data well, except at high pressures approaching the critical region. A molecular model is validated by simulation using binary and ternary experimental VLE data. On the basis of this model, the Henry’s law constants of N₂ and O₂ in CO₂ are predicted by molecular simulation. An easy-to-use thermodynamic model, based on those Henry’s law constants, is developed to reliably describe the VLE in the CO₂-rich region.     

Six-Phase Voltage Source Inverter Driven Induction Motor

A six-phase six-step voltage-fed induction motor is presented. The inverter is a transistorized six-step voltage source inverter, while the motor is a modified standard three-phase squirrel-cage motor. The stator is rewound with two three-phase winding sets displaced from each other by 30 electrical degrees. A model for the system is developed to simulate the drive and predict its performance. The simulation results for steady-state conditions and experimental measurements show very good correlation. It is shown that this winding configuration results in the elimination of all air-gap flux time harmonics of the order (6v ±1, v = 1,3,5,...). Consequently, all rotor copper losses produced by these harmonics as well as all torque harmonics of the order (6v, v = 1,3,5,...) are eliminated. A comparison between-the measured instantaneous torque of both three-phase and six-phase six-step voltage-fed induction machines shows the advantage of the six-phase system over the three-phase system in eliminating the sixth harmonic dominant torque ripple.     

A self-adaptive universal receiver

In this paper we describe a new Self-Adaptive Re-Configurable Terminal, based on blind recognition of the system in use. This new terminal is operates thanks to a new radio interface receiver concept comprising two functional phases. These two phases are mapped on a specific architecture previously presented in [1]. The first one is devoted to a Wide Band Analysis (Wba) of the received signal in order to find which standard is being used. The second one being the demodulation itself. In this paper we focus on thisWba. It includes an iterative process in order to find the right bandwidth which has to be compatible with the Signal Processing techniques we use. During the last step of the process, blind standard recognition is performed by means of Radial Basis Function Neural Networks, which allow making full use of the analogy between our problem and conventional pattern recognition problems. Extensive simulation with true data of signals received in our lab has been performed and confirms the interest and efficiency of this type of recognition.