Oxidation of intermetallics – Japanese activity

Oxidation studies on intermetallic compounds carried out in Japan in the last ten years have been summarized and critically reviewed. The major effort was expended to improve the oxidation resistance of TiAl-base materials. The methods tried include alloying additions, surface treatments and combinations of the both. Alloying additions to TiAl were more closely reviewed here. An excellent oxidation resistance was obtained owing to the formation of Al₂O₃ scales by alloying additions of 0.2Zr, 0.2Hf or 500 ppm Cl, and by Nb-ion implantation. Preoxidation under reduced oxygen pressures also resulted in the formation of protective Al₂O₃ scales. Ceramic coatings and MCrAlY type coatings showed some improvement in the oxidation resistance. Studies on other aluminides of current interest arc relatively few. On the other hand, studies on suicides arc becoming more active than before, though still few in comparison with TiAl-base materials. In the concluding remarks directions for future studies are shown.     

Estimation of power system inertia constant and capacity ofspinning-reserve support generators using measured frequency transients

A procedure for estimating the inertia constant M(=2H) of a power system and total on-line capacity of spinning-reserve support generators, using transients of the frequency measured at an event such as a generator load rejection test, is presented. A polynomial approximation with respect to time is applied to the waveform of the transients in estimating the inertia constant, and a simple model based on the idea of average system frequency is assumed in estimating the capacity of the generators. Results of the estimation using the transients at 10 events show that the inertia constant of the 60 Hz power system of Japan is around 14 to 18 seconds in the system load base, and the capacity of the spinning-reserve support generators is 20 to 40% of the system load. The proposed procedure is expected to be tested by Kansai Electric Power Company with increased number of events. This effort will contribute to estimate and evaluate the dynamic behavior of the system frequency in loss of generation or load     

Severe cutaneous and venous damage after DIC therapy

A 79-year-old woman with skin ulcers caused by disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) therapy is reported. The patient had been treated by injection of drugs, including gabexate mesilate, into the right great saphenous vein. The maximum concentration of gabexate mesilate was calculated as 0.893%. Although the drugs did not extravasate, purpura initially appeared around the affected vein, followed by brown pigmentation with infiltration and ulcers with widely necrotic tissue from the middle portion of her thigh to the malleolus along her right great saphenous vein. As the ulcer showed no tendency to heal for more than 3 months, surgical debridement and skin grafts were performed.     

Analysis of pulmonary manifestations in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

We studied chest X rays of 911 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The findings showed interstitial shadow in 28 patients (3.1%), pleuritis in 13 patients (1.4%) and nodular shadow in 3 patients (0.3%). RA patients with interstitial pneumonia were commonly male and older. And they had significantly high levels of rheumatoid factor (RF), RAPA and IgG-RF in serum, but they were not associated with high score of Lansbary index. All patients with more than 1500 IU/ml in RF value had a complication of interstitial pneumonia. These results suggest the importance of chest X-ray in the management of RA patients with high titer in RF.     

Finite volume method on the unstructured grid system

Applying the Voronoi diagram to the cell system for the finite volume method, a new method on the unstructured grid system is devised for the simulation of incompressible steady flow. In this method, the SIMPLE algorithm can be applied with little expansion. The turbulent flow around the two-dimensional vehicle model is simulated with the k-ε turbulence model by this method. Comparing the calculation result with another result obtained using the structured grid system and the experimental data, the new method is shown to be suitable for the simulation of complex flow fields.     

12.5-gb/s direct Modulation up to 115/spl deg/C in 1.3-/spl mu/m InGaAlAs-MQW RWG DFB lasers with notch-free grating structure

Direct modulation at 12.5 Gb/s of 1.3-/spl mu/m InGaAlAs distributed feedback (DFB) ridge waveguide (RWG) lasers with low-resistance notch-free gratings running up to 115/spl deg/C is experimentally demonstrated. It was achieved by the combination of the high differential gain of an InGaAlAs MQW active layer, high characteristic temperature of RWG structure, and low-resistance notch-free grating. Moreover, successful transmission of 10-Gb/s modulated signals over 30-km standard single-mode fiber was achieved with the laser running at up to 115/spl deg/C. These results confirm the suitability of this type of laser for use as the cost-effective light source in 12.5-Gb/s and 10-Gb/s datacom applications.     

EPR study of the electronic states of β′-(BEDT-TTF)(TCNQ)

β′-(BEDT-TTF)(TCNQ) is a compound of BEDT-TTF (=ET) and TCNQ molecules aligned orthogonally with each other, forming two-dimensional sheets and one-dimensional columns of 1/4-filled π band, respectively. It is known that the metal-insulator transition occurs at 330 K at ambient pressure. We have measured the electronic spin susceptibility by means of the EPR-NMR method at 50 MHz, and the angular dependence of g-factor and line width of EPR both at Q (34 GHz) and W (94 GHz) band. We successfully confirmed that the antiferromagnetic transition occurs in ET sheets and TCNQ columns, independently.     

Differential cell- and immuno-biological properties of murine B16-F1 and F10 melanomas: oncogene c-fos expression, sensitivity to LAK cells and/or IL-2, and components of gangliosides

Differential cell- and immuno-biological properties of two murine melanoma B16 variants, B16-F1 and F10, were investigated. Studies focused on the expression of proto-oncogene c-fos, sensitivities to LAK cells and/or IL-2, and modulation of the expression of ganglioside components after treatment with IL-2. Proto-oncogene c-fos was found to be highly expressed in F10 lines by an in situ hybridization technique and also in F10 lung metastatic nests by immunofluorescent staining with anti-c-fos antibody. F1 melanomas were more sensitive to local injection of IL-2. F10 melanomas hardly responded to IL-2 treatment, but successive injections of a combination of LAK cells and IL-2 did cause prolongation of survival rates, even of F10 melanoma-burdened mice. A major component of gangliosides of both F1 and F10 melanomas was GM3. Production of GM3 in F10 melanomas treated with IL-2 for 4 days increased, and, if the treatment was continued for 7 days, minor components of gangliosides, such as GM2, GM1, and GD1a, appeared only in F1 melanomas, while the increase of production of GM3 disappeared in both melanomas. These experimental results may provide clues for additional mechanisms which allow these two murine melanoma variants to show different implantation and metastasis rates.     

Numerical study of radiation‐convection heat transfer

In this study, the authors attempted to introduce a simulation technique for radiation‐convection heat transfer in the high‐temperature fields of industrial furnaces, boilers, and gas turbine combustors. The convection effect was analyzed by a differential equation, but the radiation effect was analyzed by an integral equation. Thus, it was not easy to arrange both effects using the same type of equations. Then, the authors introduced the zone method and Monte Carlo method for the integral equation of the radiation effect and the finite difference method for the differential equation of the convection effect. A three‐dimensional analysis of the high‐temperature furnace was performed by this simulation technique to obtain its temperature distribution. Furthermore, another radiation‐convection heat transfer analysis in the low‐temperature living room was performed by the same technique. Finally, the authors tried to develop a computer software for radiation‐convection heat transfer and described their idea of software construction for the above. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res, 31(5): 391–407, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/htj.10042