Inactivation Kinetics of Lactobacillus plantarum by High Pressure Carbon Dioxide

Inactivation kinetics of Lactobacillus plantarum by high pressure CO₂ was investigated to understand the mechanism of microbial inactivation. The inactivation rates increased with pressure, temperature and exposure time, and with decreasing pH of media. Microbial inactivation was governed essentially by penetration of CO₂ into cells and its effectiveness could be improved by the enhanced transfer rate. Microbial reduction of 8 log cycles was observed within 120 min under CO₂ pressure of 70 kg/cm² at 30°C. We hypothesized that the cell death resulted from the lowered intracellular pH and damage to the cell membrane due to penetration of CO₂. Pressurized CO₂ treatment is a potential nonthermal technology for food preservation.     

A heuristic method of variable selection based on principal component analysis and factor analysis for monitoring in a 300 kW MCFC power plant

In a commercialized 300 kW molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) power plant, a univariate alarm system that has only upper and lower limits is usually employed to identify abnormal conditions in the system. Even though univariate alarms have already been adopted for system monitoring, this simple monitoring system is limited for using in an extended monitoring system for fault diagnosis. Therefore, based on principal component analysis (PCA), a recursive variable grouping method for a multivariate monitoring system in a commercialized MCFC power plant is presented in this paper. In terms of development, since a principal component analysis model that contains all system variables cannot isolate a system fault, heuristic recursive variable selection method using factor analysis is presented here. To verify the performance of the fault detection, real plant operations data are used. Furthermore, comparison between type 1 and type 2 errors for four different variable groups demonstrates that the developed heuristic method works well when system faults occur. These monitoring techniques can reduce the number of false alarms occurring on site at MCFC power plant.     

Fatigue characteristics of SAE52100 steel via ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification technology

Ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification (UNSM) technology is a novel surface modification technology that can improve the mechanical and tribological properties of interacting surfaces in relative motion. UNSM treatment was utilized to improve the wear resistance fatigue strength of slim bearing rings made of SAE52100 bearing steel without damaging the raceway surfaces. In this study, wear and fatigue results that were subjected to different impact loads of the UNSM treatment were investigated and compared with those of the untreated specimen. The microhardness of the UNSM-treated specimens increased by about 20%, higher than that of the untreated specimens. The X-ray diffraction analysis showed that a compressive residual stress of more than 1,000 MPa was induced after the UNSM treatment. Also, electron backscatter diffraction analysis was used to study the surface structure and nanograin refinement. The results showed that the rolling contact fatigue life and the rotary bending fatigue strength of the UNSM-treated specimens increased by about 80% and 31%, respectively, compared to those of the untreated specimen. These results might be attributed to the increased microhardness, the induced compressive residual stress, and the nanocrystal structure modification after the UNSM treatment. In addition, the fracture surface analysis showed that the fish eye crack initiation phenomenon was observed after the UNSM treatment.     

Improvement of kink and beam steering characteristics of 0.98-μmGaInAs-GaInP high-power lasers utilizing channel ion implantation

We demonstrate a kink and beam steering free operation of 0.98-μm GaInAs-GaInP high-power ridge waveguide (RW) lasers utilizing channel ion implantation. The ion-implanted regions along the both sides of the ridge effectively suppressed the excitation of higher order lateral modes, which causes beam steering and kink. The maximum power without beam steering and kink has been achieved over 250 mW for channel ion-implanted RW lasers with 1.8-3.7-μm ridge width, compared to 120-mW maximum power without the channel ion implantation     

Extraction of Passive Device Model Parameters Using Genetic Algorithms

The extraction of model parameters for embedded passive components is crucial for designing and characterizing the performance of multichip module (MCM) substrates. In this paper, a method for optimizing the extraction of these parameters using genetic algorithms is presented. The results of this method are compared with optimization using the Levenberg‐Marquardt (LM) algorithm used in the HSPICE circuit modeling tool. A set of integrated resistor structures are fabricated, and their scattering parameters are measured for a range of frequencies from 45 MHz to 5 GHz. Optimal equivalent circuit models for these structures are derived from the s‐parameter measurements using each algorithm. Predicted s‐parameters for the optimized equivalent circuit are then obtained from HSPICE. The difference between the measured and predicted s‐parameters in the frequency range of interest is used as a measure of the accuracy of the two optimization algorithms. It is determined that the LM method is extremely dependent upon the initial starting point of the parameter search and is thus prone to become trapped in local minima. This drawback is alleviated and the accuracy of the parameter values obtained is improved using genetic algorithms.     

Electrolyte conditioning-enhanced electrokinetic remediation of arsenic-contaminated mine tailing

Feasibility of electrolyte conditioning with strong acidic or alkaline solution on electrokinetic remediation of arsenic-contaminated mine tailing was investigated in the laboratory. The mine tailing contained calcium oxide of more than 50%. At alkaline condition, arsenic was precipitated with calcium, and formed calcium arsenate which is very stable solid. Catholyte conditioning with strong acidic solution and anolyte conditioning with strong alkaline solution showed similar efficiency to remove arsenic. At 4mAcm(-2) of current density, the removal efficiency of arsenic was 62% after 28 days operation with catholyte conditioning with 0.1M nitric acid.     

Insertion of Vertically Aligned Nanowires into Living Cells by Inkjet Printing of Cells

Effective insertion of vertically aligned nanowires (NWs) into cells is critical for bioelectrical and biochemical devices, biological delivery systems, and photosynthetic bioenergy harvesting. However, accurate insertion of NWs into living cells using scalable processes has not yet been achieved. Here, NWs are inserted into living Chlamydomonas reinhardtii cells (Chlamy cells) via inkjet printing of the Chlamy cells, representing a low‐cost and large‐scale method for inserting NWs into living cells. Jetting conditions and printable bioink composed of living Chlamy cells are optimized to achieve stable jetting and precise ink deposition of bioink for indentation of NWs into Chlamy cells. Fluorescence confocal microscopy is used to verify the viability of Chlamy cells after inkjet printing. Simple mechanical considerations of the cell membrane and droplet kinetics are developed to control the jetting force to allow penetration of the NWs into cells. The results suggest that inkjet printing is an effective, controllable tool for stable insertion of NWs into cells with economic and scale‐related advantages.     

Electrically assisted stress relief annealing of automotive springs

Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology - In the present study, Electrically assisted (EA) stress relief annealing for automotive springs is experimentally investigated. A concept of EA stress...     

Reduction in area and appearance of hydrogen-assisted fracture surfaces of cathodically charged differnt Low-alloy sulphur containing steels

The present work is concerned with the role of sulphidic inclusions in hydrogen-assisted cracking of low-alloy steels with different sulphur contents. The steels were previously cathodically charged in sulphuric acid solution. Evaluating the susceptibility to hydrogen-assisted cracking in terms of the reduction in area values, the high sulphur steel is less susceptible than the low sulphur steel. The fracture surface of the low sulphur steel appears rather brittle, with local quasi-cleavage fractures around large intergranular fracture facets. In contrast, the fracture surface of the high sulphur steel is characterized predominantly by the microvoid coalescence mode, with a great number of manganese sulphide inclusions. The difference between the two sulphur steels is based upon the concept that the interfaces between sulphidic inclusions and matrix act as trapping sites for hydrogen and thus hydrogen is uniformly distributed over the sulphidic inclusions.     

Investigation of the kinetics of intergranular corrosion in iron

Corrosion experiments on iron were performed in boiling 55% Ca(NO₃)₂ solution (115°C) to elucidate the kinetics of intergranular corrosion (IGC) of iron. After the time-current curve was recorded for the specimen exposed for 30 h to the IGC test solution at 1000 mV_SHE (passive region), the specimen was examined for IGC by optical microscopy. The current-time curves and optical micrographic observations suggested that the kinetics of IGC of iron is based upon the periodic passivation-grain boundary dissolution process. IGC occurs mainly between the first passivation and the second repassivation periods. Average current density during this period can be regarded as a measure of the susceptibility to IGC. The excess dissolved nitrogen or nitride at the grain boundaries does not lead to a definite IGC.