Role of Specimen Geometry in the Effect of Fiber Orientation on the Thermal Conductivity of a Uniaxial Carbon-Fiber-Reinforced Aluminoborosilicate Glass-Matrix Composite

A study concerning the effect of fiber orientation on the thermal conductivity of a uniaxial carbon-fiber-reinforced borosilicate glass was conducted. For thin specimens, and thick specimens with specimen sides cut parallel to the fiber direction, the dependence of thermal conductivity on fiber orientation showed excellent agreement with theoretical behavior predicted for a composite infinite in extent. In contrast, the thermal conductivity data for rectangular thick specimens fell well below the data for the thin and angled specimens. For fiber orientation of 45° and higher, at which the heat was directed toward the side of the specimen rather than across, the thermal conductivity values showed excellent agreement with theoretical behavior predicted for a finite composite strip with insulated sides.     

On a bounded solution to a pair of coupled nonlinear ordinary differential equations

We present a bounded, decaying solution to a pair of coupled, nonlinear second-order ordinary differential equations arising in the theory of natural convection. The solution is found by transforming the problem into a non-autonomous system in the phase-plane. A uniqueness proof is given for the bounded solution.     

New intramolecular effect observed for polyesters: An anomeric effect

A series of polyesters was prepared to evaluate hydrolytic stability as a function of cyclohexyl dibasic acid content. The three cyclohexyl dibasic acids: 1,2; 1,3; and 1,4 were formulated into polyesters with two glycols. The proportion of cis and trans isomers was evaluated via ¹H NMR. The hydrolytic stability of short chain polyesters was evaluated in an acetone/water mixture which solubilized the polyesters to mimic oligoester behavior within a thermosetting polyester coating environment. The rate of hydrolysis was monitored by acid titration and corroborated by GPC. Surprisingly, 1,2-cylohexyl diacid-based polyesters were robust, and 1,3-cyclohexyl diacid-based polyesters were the most susceptible to hydrolysis. Evidently, a 1,2-anchimeric effect for cyclohexyl dibasic acid polyesters was not an important consideration, while the 1,3-cyclohexyl ester interaction was. Consequently, an anomeric effect was proposed. Presented at the 81st Annual Meeting of the Federation of Societies for Coatings Technology, November 12–14, 2003, in Philadelphia, PA.     

Targets and methods for the detection of processed animal proteins in animal feedstuffs

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or ‘mad cow disease’, is one of several transmissable spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) known to affect certain mammals and is spread through the ingestion of infected animal tissue. It is believed that the inadvertent contamination of meat and bone meal (MBM) with infected animal tissue and the subsequent use of this material as a feed supplement contributed to the spread of the disease in cattle. As a result, the use of processed animal proteins (PAPs) in animal feeds is regulated in many parts of the world. Although feed testing is the only definitive means to certify compliance, regulatory compliance often relies solely on paper certification. Recently, rapid methods have become available that can be used by regulators to determine compliance during routine inspections. We describe a rapid, immunochromatographic strip test that can detect 0.1% MBM in animal feed. The test takes 15 min to perform and large numbers of samples can be screened for PAPs simultaneously.     

Non-invasive headspace measurement for characterizing oxygen-scavenging in polymers

A non-invasive headspace analysis method to measure rate and amount of oxygen uptake in oxygen-scavenging polymers is presented. Oxygen uptake data for metal-catalyzed poly(1,4-butadiene) at 30 °C are provided to illustrate the method. These data were obtained by measuring oxygen headspace concentration above the scavenging polymer with an OxySense^® 200T non-invasive oxygen sensor, and, for comparison, oxygen uptake was measured with an analytical balance. Excellent agreement was observed between these two independent experiments.     

Synthesis and thermomechanical characterization of polyurethane elastomers extended with α,ω‐alkane diols

A series of polyurethane (PU) elastomers was prepared by the reaction of poly(?‐caprolactone) and 4,4′‐diphenylmethane diisocyanate, which was extended with a series of chain extenders (CEs) having 2–10 methylene units in their structure. The completion of the reaction was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The chemical structures of the synthesized PU samples were characterized with Fourier transform infrared, ¹H‐NMR, and ¹³C‐NMR spectroscopy, and the thermal properties were determined by thermogravimetric analysis, DSC, and dynamic mechanical thermal analysis techniques. The mechanical properties were also studied and are discussed. The thermogravimetric analysis and DSC analysis showed that CE length had a considerable effect on the thermal properties of the prepared samples. The dynamic mechanical thermal analysis and damping peaks were also affected by the number of methylene units in the CE length. The elastomer extended with 1,2‐ethane diol exhibited optimum thermal properties, whereas the elastomer based on 1,10‐decane diol displayed the worst thermal properties. Tensile strength and elongation at break decreased with increasing CE length, whereas hardness showed the opposite trend. The glass‐transition temperature moved toward lower temperatures with increasing CE length. The decrease in the glass‐transition temperature and tensile properties were interpreted in terms of decreasing hard segments and increasing chain flexibility. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

Aspects of social and emotional competence in adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Social and emotional competence were evaluated using self-report and behavioral measures in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and controls. Adults with ADHD viewed themselves as less socially competent but more sensitive toward violations of social norms than controls. Films depicting emotional interactions were used to assess linguistic properties of free recall and perceived emotional intensity. Although adults with ADHD used more words to describe the scenes, they used fewer emotion-related words, despite rating the emotions depicted as more intense than did controls. In contrast, no group differences for words depicting social or cognitive processes were observed. Overall, adults with ADHD appear more aware of their problems in social versus emotional skills. Findings may have implications for improving the psychosocial functioning of these adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hypnosis and clinical pain.

Hypnosis has been demonstrated to reduce analogue pain, and studies on the mechanisms of laboratory pain reduction have provided useful applications to clinical populations. Studies showing central nervous system activity during hypnotic procedures offer preliminary information concerning possible physiological mechanisms of hypnotic analgesia. Randomized controlled studies with clinical populations indicate that hypnosis has a reliable and significant impact on acute procedural pain and chronic pain conditions, Methodological issues of this body of research are discussed, as are methods to better integrate hypnosis into comprehensive pain treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Simple Quasi-2D Numerical Model of a Thermogage Furnace

A simple quasi-2D model for the temperature distribution in a graphite tube furnace is presented. The model is used to estimate the temperature gradients in the furnace at temperatures above which contact sensors can be used, and to assist in the redesign of the furnace heater element to improve the temperature gradients. The Thermogage graphite tube furnace is commonly used in many NMIs as a blackbody source for radiation thermometer calibration and as a spectral irradiance standard. Although the design is robust, easy to operate and can change temperature rapidly, it is limited by its effective emissivity of typically 99.5–99.8%. At NMIA, the temperature gradient along the tube is assessed using thermocouples up to about 1,500°C, and the blackbody emissivity is calculated from this. However, at higher operating temperatures (up to 2,900°C), it is impractical to measure the gradient, and we propose to numerically model the temperature distributions used to calculate emissivity. In another paper at this conference, the model is used to design an optimized heater tube with improved temperature gradients. In the model presented here, the 2-D temperature distribution is simplified to separate the axial and radial temperature distributions within the heater tube and the surrounding insulation. Literature data for the temperature dependence of the electrical and thermal conductivities of the graphite tube were coupled to models for the thermal conductivity of the felt insulation, particularly including the effects of allowing for a gas mixture in the insulation. Experimental measurements of the temperature profile up to 1,500°C and radial heat fluxes up to 2,200°C were compared to the theoretical predictions of the model and good agreement was obtained.     

Enclosing all solutions of two-point boundary value problems for ODEs

The two-point boundary value problem (TPBVP) occurs in a wide variety of problems in engineering and science, including the modeling of chemical reactions, heat transfer, and diffusion, and the solution of optimal control problems. A TPBVP may have no solution, a single solution, or multiple solutions. A new strategy is presented for reliably locating all solutions of a TPBVP. The method determines narrow enclosures of all solutions that occur within a specified search interval. Key features of the method are the use of a new solver for parametric ODEs, which is used to produce guaranteed bounds on the solutions of nonlinear dynamic systems with interval-valued parameters and initial states, and the use of a constraint propagation strategy on the Taylor models used to represent the solutions of the dynamic system. Numerical experiments demonstrate the use and computational efficiency of the method.