The superflow state of 3He-B at a diffusive wall. Quasiclassical calculations

We report on first computations considering effects of a rough wall on the counterflow state in superfluid ³He-B for high flow velocities. Using the quasiclassical Green's-function formalism supplemented by the boundary conditions for a diffusive wall, we calculate the order-parameter field and the supercurrent near a container wall for various pressures and temperatures. One of our results is that the current density at the wall as a function of the flow has a maximum at the velocity which is about half of the pair breaking velocity.     

Municipal solid waste conversion to energy

In recent years it has been recognised by an increasing number of nations that there is considerable energy potential within MSW. As a result many countries have established R,D& D programmes to examine methods of exploiting this potential. The IEA's MSW Conversion Activity was set up in 1986 to provide an infrastructure for sharing information and co-ordinating work in this area internationally. This Activity was extended in 1989 and currently a total of 9 nations participate in it.

To cope with the wide scope of the area (encompassing both biological and thermal processing of MSW) the Activity was divided into three subgroups or Expert Working Groups (EWGs). Each of these dealt with a distinct area of expertise:

1. •Downstream effects of source separation and screening of MSW

2. •Sampling and analytical protocols

3. •Landfill gas

In addition to these groups a central secretariat based at Harwell (UK) has provided guidance, established and administered databases of contacts and produced a series of national reports.

This paper describes the achievements of the Activity and discusses work proposed for the future.     

Moral reasoning and moral concerns: An alternative to Gilligan's gender based hypothesis.

Studied the differences in moral orientation in terms of gender specific modes of reasoning, in 2 experiments. In Exp 1, 32 Ss (aged 24–55 yrs) were read the "Heinz dilemma," and asked 3 questions regarding it. Deliberative and justificatory strategies were identified on the basis of the presence or absence of the higher level knowledge structures. In Exp 2, 40 undergraduates were presented with "Michael and Kohlberg Heinz dilemma," followed by a set of relevant questions. Male Ss preferred to apply a norm or rule in their solutions, while females rejected the application of a norm and sought alternative solutions. This was replicated in Exp 2, but the pattern was reversed with female Ss preferring to apply a norm. Males were divided in their use of either strategy indicating that although, genders differed in their judgments as to which norms or rules to apply; once adopted, norms and rules were used in similar ways. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of heat treatments on tensile properties and microstructures of wrought Mg−Zn−Zr-RE alloys

The effect of heat treatments on the tensile properties and microstructures of wrought Mg–Zn–Zr-Rare earth alloys MB25 and MB26 have been studied in this paper. It was shown that the homogenization of the cast ingots decreased the strength of the extruded bars because some grain boundary phases were dissolved during the process of this treatment, while the ageing treatment of the extruded bars increased the strength due to the dispersive precipitation of MgZn₂ phase. The quenching + ageing treatments of the extruded bars decreases the strength and plasticity because of the growing up of the grains.Abbreviations ED electron diffraction - GB grain boundary - RE rare earth - TEM transmission electron microscope     

Parallel-decomposition algorithm for discrete computationalproblems and its application in developing an efficient discreteconvolution algorithm

The authors present a parallel-decomposition algorithm for discrete computational problems. An efficient convolution algorithm is developed under the proposed decomposition algorithm. The decomposition operation is based on integer modular arithmetic. Congruent sets are generated from integer modular operation over the index of the problem and constitute a partition. The partition is used to decompose the problem into several small subproblems. The partition under the integer modular operation is unique. Complete reconstruction of the problem is guaranteed by the uniqueness of the partition. Since the algorithm is established on the foundation of all algebraic systems, i.e. number and set theories, it is highly problem-independent, and provides an uniform approach to parallel decomposition of general problems on the discrete domain. Because the subproblems are highly regular, it is suitable for VLSI hardware implementation. The computational complexity of the developed convolution algorithm is reduced by a factor of p², and (p²)ⁿ for n-dimensional problems (p can be any common factor of the input sequences). Compared to the popular FFT methods, where round-off error is introduced, the convolution result from the algorithm is exact. In addition, it does not have restrictions on the length of the input sequences, as in the well known block convolution algorithm. As a result, the algorithm is highly efficient for convolution of large input sequences or correlation operations     

Unsaturated diffusivity functions for concrete derived from NMR images

Deterioration of concrete or reinforcing steel through excessive contaminant concentration is often the result of repeated wetting and drying cycles. At each cycle, the absorption of water carries new contaminants into the unsaturated concrete. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) is used with large concrete samples to observe the shape of the wetting profile during a simple one-dimensional wetting process. The absorption of water by dry concrete is modelled by a nonlinear diffusion equation with the unsaturated hydraulic diffusivity being a strongly nonlinear function of the moisture content. Exponential and power functions are used for the hydraulic diffusivity and corresponding solutions of the diffusion equation adequately predict the shape of the experimental wetting profile. The shape parameters, describing the wetting profile, vary little between different blends and are relatively insensitive to subsequent re-wetting experiments allowing universal parameters to be suggested for these concretes.

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Résumé La détérioration du béton ou du béton armé à travers la concentration excessive de contaminant est souvent le résultat de cycles humides et secs répétés. A chaque cycle, l'absorption de l'eau amène de nouveaux contaminants à l'intérieur du béton non saturé en eau. Pour observer le profil du processus d'humidification, on peut utiliser la Résonance Magnétique Nucléaire (RMN) sur de grands échantillons de béton dans le cadre d'une simple étude unidimensionnelle de ce profil. Il est démontré que l'absorption d'eau par du béton sec peut être précisément modélisée par une équation de diffusion non linéaire où la diffusivité hydraulique non saturée est fonction hautement non linéaire de l'humidité du contenant. Des fonctions exponentielles et puissances peuvent définir la diffusivité hydraulique. Les solutions résultant de l'équation modélisant cette diffusion permettent de prédire avec précision la forme du profil de l'humidification expérimentale. Les paramètres de forme qui décrivent le profil de l'humidification varient peu entre les différents mélanges de béton et sont relativement insensibles à des expériences de réhumidification ultérieures. Cela permet de suggérer que ces bétons suivent des paramètres d'humidification universels.

     

SURFACE ALLOYING OF MILD STEEL BY LASER MELTING OF AN ELECTROLESS NICKEL DEPOSIT CONTAINING CHROMIUM CARBIDES

It is possible to realize surface alloys by laser melting an electroless nickel layer containing chromium carbide particles predeposited on a mild steel substrate. By this way the surface alloy is expected to have not only a high nickel content but also an important chromium content in order to improve the corrosion resistance. The presence of chromium in solid solution results from the dissolution or melting of the carbide particles. Typical laser solidification microstructures are obtained. Dendrites consist of an austenitic Fe-Ni-Cr solid solution and interdendritic regions are constituted by an eutectic mixture containing the same austenitic solid solution and complex Fe, Ni, Cr carbides and phosphides. In comparison with a surface alloy obtained by laser melting of an electroless nickel layer without carbide particles, the corrosion resistance was slightly improved in saline aqueous solutions. The limited effect was due to the fact that the final chromium content in the present experimental conditions was not as high as that initially expected.