Afterburner [network-independent card for protocols]

Many current implementations of protocols such as the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) are inefficient because data are often accessed more frequently than necessary. Three techniques that reduce the need for memory bandwidth are proposed. The techniques are copy-on-write, page remapping, and single-copy. Afterburner, a network-independent card that provides the services that are necessary for a single-copy protocol stack, is described. The card has 1 MByte of local buffers and provides a simple interface to a variety of network link adapters, including HIPPI and asynchronous transfer mode (ATM). Afterburner can support transfers to and from the link adapter card at rates up to 1 Gbit/s. An implementation of TCP/IP that uses the features provided by Afterburner to reduce the movement of data to a single copy is discussed. Measurements of the end-to-end performance of Afterburner and the single-copy implementation of TCP/IP are presented     

An improved Gaussian approximation for probability of bit-erroranalysis of asynchronous bandlimited DS-CDMA systems with BPSK spreading

This paper analyzes probability of bit-error (P_e) performance of asynchronous bandlimited direct-sequence code-division multiple-access systems with binary phase-shift keying spreading. The two present methods of P_e analysis under bandwidth-efficient pulse shaping: the often-cited standard Gaussian approximation and the characteristic function (CF) method suffer from either a low accuracy in regions of low P_e (< 10^-3) or a prohibitively large computational complexity. The paper presents an alternate method of P_e analysis with moderate computational complexity and high accuracy based on a key observation. A sequence of chip decision statistics (whose sum yields a bit statistic) forms a stationary, m-dependent sequence when conditioned on the chip delay and phase offset of each interfering signal. This observation permits the generalization of the improved Gaussian approximation previously derived for the rectangular pulse and the derivation of a numerically efficient approximation based on the CF method. Numerical examples of systems using the square-root raised-cosine and IS-95 pulses illustrate THE P _e performance, user capacity and the accuracy of the proposed method     

On the reliability of computer predictions of the geomechanical behaviour of rock-salt

Geomechanical aspects of the storage of radioactive waste in salt formations have been studied extensively using finite element methods over the last 20 years. In consequence a range of computer programs and associated modelling techniques have been assembled. The paper is based on a benchmark exercise to compare the predictive abilities of a number of these programs and highlights the difficulties of making reliable a-priori estimates of long term behaviour.     

Wear in check valves due to flow induced motion

Experiments showing the frequency and amplitude of the flow induced motion of the gate for a 2- and a 4-in. swing check valve have been performed. The gate motion is due to turbulence in approach flow. We have found the dominant turbulent frequency of the approach flow is about half the natural frequency of the valves. The valves appear to be almost critically damped. Because of this, the valves respond almost as they would to a static force of the magnitude characteristic of the turbulent fluctuation in the flow. Both the dimensionless exciting force and the damping ratio have been found to be independent of valve size so the above statements are true for larger valves also. The recommended valve oscillation amplitudes and frequencies are used to calculate the wear at the shaft and at the stop. For an unpegged check valve, such as one of the 10-in. valves which was used at the San Onofre Nuclear Generation Station, it was found that shaft bearing wear would amount to 0.27 in.³/year and stop wear to 0.03 in.³/year.     

Interdisciplinary research: roles for self-organization

No generally accepted principles and guidelines currently exist to help engineers design local interaction mechanisms that result in a desired global behavior. However, several communities have developed ways of approaching this problem in the context of niched application areas. Because the ideas underlying these approaches are often obscured or underemphasized in technical papers, the authors review the role of self-organization in their work. They provide a better picture of the status of the emerging field of self-organizing systems or autonomic computing.     

A systematic techno-economic assessment of a WEC system installation for low-cost electrification of a habitable dwelling

This paper deals with the technical feasibility and economic viability of a grid connected wind-energy conversion system (WECS) used to cover the energy demand of an average habitable dwelling. The various parts of the wind-energy system are described and the useful electrical energy production is determined using a simulation program based on the Monte Carlo method. An economic analysis of the WEC system is performed using a computerized assessment tool. Important financial indices are calculated and financial scenarios investigated.     

Advanced Method for Single Crystal Casting of Turbine Blades for Gas Turbine Engines and Plants

A method for fabricating single crystal blades that combines the techniques of seed crystals and selection is suggested. The method realizes the advantages of both techniques, i.e., the high structural perfection and the possibility of fabricating single crystals with specified spatial orientation. Metallographic and x-ray diffraction analyses are used to study the processes of nucleation of the single crystal structure of blade castings fabricated from high-temperature nickel alloys by the method of selection and seed crystals. A commercial process for fabricating cast single crystal turbine blades by the new method is suggested.     

Molecular correlations in sheared thermotropic copolyesters showing banded textures

Banded textures produced in a thermotropic liquid crystal polymer by shearing between glass slides are examined by using both transmission electron and polarized light microscopy. The periodic variation in director orientation about the shear axis, as measured by light microscopy, is shown to be distinctly different from that indicated by electron diffraction. Measurements of birefringence and observation of Zernicke phase contrast indicate periodic variations in optical properties of the polymer, in step with the bands. Such effects are accounted for in terms of a synchronous rotation of the planar aromatic groups about the molecular chain axes. Evidence for an out-of-plane component of molecular orientation is also presented.