N-particle dynamics of the Euler equations for planar diffeomorphisms

The Euler equations associated with diffeomorphism groups have received much recent study because of their links with fluid dynamics, computer vision, and mechanics. In this article, we consider the dynamics of N point particles or “blobs” moving under the action of the Euler equations associated with the group of diffeomorphisms of the plane in a variety of different metrics. This dynamical system is already in widespread use in the field of image registration, where the point particles correspond to image landmarks, but its dynamical behavior has not previously been studied. The 2-body problem is always integrable, and we analyze its phase portrait under different metrics. In particular, we show that 2-body capturing orbits (in which the distances between the particles tend to 0 as t  → ∞) can occur when the kernel is sufficiently smooth and the relative initial velocity of the particles is sufficiently large. We compute the dynamics of these “dipoles” with respect to other test particles, and supplement the calculations with simulations for larger N that illustrate the different regimes.     

An Inductively Coupled Lamb Wave Transducer

Wafer-type piezoelectric transducers are effective transducers for the excitation and detection of ultrasonic Lamb waves in plate-like structures. Such transducers are, however, vulnerable to corrosion and physical damage when mounted in exposed locations. In this paper we describe an inductively coupled Lamb wave transducer that eliminates the need for direct electrical connections. Signals are coupled into and out of the transducer using two probe coils. In this paper we explore the operation of inductively coupled transducers both analytically and experimentally. Finite-element analysis is used to determine inductances and the coupling constant, and electrical circuit analysis to determine the transfer function and its dependence on the gap between the probe coils and the transducer. Experiments show that return signals of millivolt amplitude are obtained when the transducer is excited with 10-V amplitude pulses. These transducers are suitable for permanent mounting on structures to be monitored for cracks or flaws     

Thermoelectric Converters of Human Warmth for Self-Powered Wireless Sensor Nodes

Solar cells are the most commonly used devices in customer products to achieve power autonomy. This paper discusses a complementary approach to provide power autonomy to devices on a human body, i.e., thermoelectric conversion of human heat. In indoor applications, thermoelectric converters on the skin can provide more power per square centimeter than solar cells, particularly in adverse illumination conditions. Moreover, they work day and night. The first sensor nodes powered by human heat have been demonstrated and tested on people in 2004-2005. They used the state-of-the-art 100-muW watch-size thermoelectric wrist generators fabricated at IMEC and based on custom-design small-size BiTe thermopiles. The sensor node is completed with a power conditioning module, a microcontroller, and a wireless transceiver mounted on a watchstrap     

Vehicle Localization Using Sensors Data Fusion Via Integration of Covariance Intersection and Interval Analysis

Achieving an innovative integrated sensor fusion architecture with a robust vehicle navigation and localization using an extended Kalman filter, interval analysis and covariance intersection that can overcome the uncertainty in the system model and sensor noise statistics. There are various approaches to the problem, but here the focus is on an approach which can guaranteed performance of sensor-based navigation. The guaranteed performance is quantified by explicit bounds of position estimate of a ground vehicle. Ground vehicles generally carry dead reckoning sensors such as wheel encoders and inertial sensors, to measure acceleration and angle rate, while obstacle detection and mapmaking is done with time-of-flight ultrasonic sensors. Most of these sensors give overlapping or complementary information and sometimes are redundant as well, which offers scope for exploiting data fusion. The purpose here is to achieve data fusion for ground vehicles with low-cost sensors by forming an intelligent sensor system. This is accomplished by combining the sensors' measurements and processing these measurements with data fusion algorithms. The algorithms are complementary in the sense that they compensate for each other's limitations, so that the resulting performance of the sensor system is better than its individual components.     

A Validated Model for the Zero Drift Due to Eddy Currents in Electromagnetic Flowmeters Operating With Electrolytic Conductors

In this paper, the author investigates theoretically the magnitudes of the zero offsets and the zero drifts originating from eddy currents in electromagnetic flowmeters operating with electrolytic conductors. The dependence of such zero offsets on the liquid properties, frequency of operation, etc., is explained. This dependence is used to predict the zero offsets expected in metering electrolytic conductors using phase sensitive detection with the flowmeter tube described in this paper. Precautions needed in flowmeter design to minimize instrument offsets and zero drifts are explained. At the end, the proposed model was validated against experimental data.     

Sorption Recovery of 137Cs and 90Sr with Carbonate-Containing Natural Mineral Tripolite

The sorption characteristics of a carbonate-containing mineral (tripolite) were studied on model aqueous solutions and real wastewaters in a wide range of pH in the presence of isotopic and nonisotopic carriers and organic impurities. The sorption of ¹³⁷Cs and ⁹⁰Sr is adequately described by a power function. Analysis of ¹³⁷Cs sorption isotherms suggests that radiocesium is adsorbed by the ion-exchange mechanism, during which Cs⁺ ions from the solution exchange mainly with bivalent ions of the sorbent, whereas in ⁹⁰Sr sorption trivalent ions of the sorbent also participate in the process. The saturation capacities of tripolite with respect to cesium and strontium were evaluated to be 0.3 and 1.0 mg-equiv g^{- 1}, respectively.     

Interlaboratory ring test of time-resolved fluoroimmunoassays for zeranol and alpha-zearalenol and comparison with zeranol test kits.

Many zeranol immunoassay test kits cross-react with toxins formed by naturally occurring Fusarium spp. fungi, leading to false-positive screening results. This paper describes the evaluation and application of recently published, dry reagent time-resolved fluoroimmunoassays (TR-FIA) for zeranol and the toxin alpha-zearalenol. A ring test of bovine urine fortified with zeranol and/or alpha-zearalenol in four European Union National Reference Laboratories demonstrated that the TR-FIA tests were accurate and robust. The alpha-zearalenol TR-FIA satisfactorily quantified alpha-zearalenol in urine fortified at 10-30 ng ml(-1). The specificity-enhanced zeranol TR-FIA accurately quantified zeranol in the range 2-5 ng ml(-1) and gave no false-positive results in blank urine, even in the presence of 30 ng ml(-1) alpha-zearalenol. Zeranol TR-FIA specificity was demonstrated further by analysing incurred zeranol-free urine samples containing natural Fusarium spp. toxins. The TR-FIA yielded no false-positive results in the presence of up to 22 ng ml(-1) toxins. The performance of four commercially available zeranol immunoassay test kits was more variable. Three kits produced many false-positive results. One kit produced only one potential false-positive using a protocol that was longer than that of the TR-FIA. These TR-FIAs will be valuable tools to develop inspection criteria to distinguish illegal zeranol abuse from contamination arising from in vivo metabolism of Fusarium spp. toxins.     

Reconstruction of radiation situation at Chernobyl NPP service area on the basis of γ-ray spectrometric analysis of soil samples and published data

Reconstruction of the radiation situation in areas subjected to nuclear accidents was done with an example of the Chernobyl accident (1986) on the basis of the radionuclidic composition of soil samples. The radionuclidic composition of γ-emitters was determined 19 years after the accident in a pulverescent sandstone sample collected in July 1986 at a distance of 1.5 km from the 4th block. Using reference data and data from original papers, reconstruction of the radionuclidic composition of the sample is done on the first ten days after the accident, and possible variations of the γ-radiation dose rate were determined within the framework of the thin film model. Based on the results obtained, variations of the absorbed dose of γ-radiation in 10 days are estimated, which is necessary for making urgent decisions in the initial period after the accident. The results are well consistent with the published data on the dose rates, validating the decision on evacuation of the people from Pripyat town and from the 30-km exclusion zone.