A generalized automatic mesh generation scheme for finite element method

This paper presents a generalized method which generates linear, triangular, quadrilateral and pentahedral elements for the finite element method. Depending on geometrical and material variations, the region to be discretized is manually divided into blocks such as lines, triangles, quadrilaterals, pentahedrons and hexahedrons in several appropriate co-ordinate systems. However, no connectivity information of the adjacent blocks is required by the user as input. The continuity of the generated nodal co-ordinates and element configurations at the block interface are automatically maintained to describe the geometry of structures, no matter how these five types of blocks are connected. Furthermore, a mesh grading algorithm which generates reliable mesh grade distributions in the interior of the triangular and quadrilateral blocks is established corresponding to the arbitrarily defined subdivision numbers for each edge line of blocks. This algorithm is extended to the mesh grading in the interior of the hexahedral and pentahedral blocks. Element numbers are also renumbered in this scheme, in addition to node numbers, in order to increase the computational efficiency of the global matrix assembly. Additional facilities, i.e. loading data generation, boundary condition data generation and so on, are also discussed. An illustrative and a practical example are given to demonstrate the capabilities of this scheme.     

Hydrogen production from water on carbon-reduced indium oxide

Decomposition of water by a reduction-oxidation cycle using In₂O₃ has been carried out using active carbon as a reductant for the oxide. Reduction of In₂O₃ by the active carbon powder became noticeable at > 823 K. The CO gas evolved from the active carbon was responsible for the reduction at < 873 K. However, at > 873 K, the reduction proceeded by the direct action of carbon. The optimum temperature for the decomposition of water by the reduced indium oxide lies in the range of 573–673 K. At the higher temperatures, the hydrogen formed was consumed through its reaction with active carbon. The return of reduced indium oxide to its original In₂O₃ form and the accompanying decomposition of water were not complete. This was probably the result of an escape of the reduced species from the reactor because of their vapor transport during reduction. The quantity of hydrogen produced decreased sharply with repetition of the reduction-oxidation cycle. This is explained mainly by a decreasing number of contact points between the carbon and oxide powders.     

Electrical properties of Zn+-doped (AlGa)As prepared by molecular beam epitaxy and its use in shallow junction solar cells

In conventional molecular beam epitaxy the p-type dopant zinc cannot be incorporated into GaAs because of its high vapour pressure. In the present work, zinc atoms were ionized to increase the sticking coefficient and zinc-doped p-type (AlGa)As was prepared by molecular beam epitaxy for the first time. The p-type layer with hole concentrations of $\text{10}{}^{16}\text{?10}{}^{19}\text{cm}{}^{\mathrm{?3}}$ is readily produced by this technique. Measurements of the Hall effect, the impurity distribution profile and the photoluminescence showed that Zn⁺-doped GaAs and (AlGa)As layers have a good quality comparable with that of layers doped with other impurities such as magnesium and beryllium. The epitaxial p-GaAs thin films were used to prepare shallow junction solar cells. The electrical characteristics showed a reduction of the surface recombination effect, and an energy conversion efficiency of up to 12.6% was obtained.     

Site-selective blocking of PCR by a caged nucleotide leading to direct creation of desired sticky ends in the products

In order to terminate the polymerase reaction at a desired position, a caged thymine derivative--4-O-[2-(2-nitrophenyl)propyl]thymine--was incorporated into PCR primers. In the PCR cycles, the elongation of the nascent strand (5'-->3' direction) by polymerase was site-selectively terminated at the 3'-side of T(NPP). Accordingly, predetermined protruding ends were obtained after the removal of the protecting group by short UVA irradiation. Recombinant vectors coding the GFP gene were successfully prepared by direct ligation of these light-assisted cohesive-ending PCR (LACE-PCR) products with scission fragments obtained by use either of restriction enzymes or of artificial restriction DNA cutters and were used for transformation of E. coli.     

A large-area wireless power-transmission sheet using printed organic transistors and plastic MEMS switches

The electronics fields face serious problems associated with electric power; these include the development of ecologically friendly power-generation systems and ultralow-power-consuming circuits. Moreover, there is a demand for developing new power-transmission methods in the imminent era of ambient electronics, in which a multitude of electronic devices such as sensor networks will be used in our daily life to enhance security, safety and convenience. We constructed a sheet-type wireless power-transmission system by using state-of-the-art printing technologies using advanced electronic functional inks. This became possible owing to recent progress in organic semiconductor technologies; the diversity of chemical syntheses and processes on organic materials has led to a new class of organic semiconductors, dielectric layers and metals with excellent electronic functionalities. The new system directly drives electronic devices by transmitting power of the order of tens of watts without connectors, thereby providing an easy-to-use and reliable power source. As all of the components are manufactured on plastic films, it is easy to place the wireless power-transmission sheet over desks, floors, walls and any other location imaginable.     

Finite element simulation of deformation behavior of semi-crystalline polymers with multi-spherulitic mesostructure

Elasto-viscoplastic deformation behavior of semi-crystalline polymer with multi-spherulitic mesostructure was investigated using large deformation finite element homogenization method. Multi-spherulitic mesostructure was modeled in representation volume element (RVE) by Voronoi polygons, and the deformation behavior during tension in different directions was numerically investigated. Mesoscopic stress strain relations were almost similar for different mesoscopic structures except for a quarter spherulite mesoscopic models, and its anisotropy decreased with increase in the number of spherulites in RVE. Although anisotropy in mesoscopic stress strain relation disappeared for enough number of spherulites, highly heterogeneous distribution of local strain and stress was observed in each spherulite. Distribution of lamellar orientation in the spherulite caused the heterogeneity and played an important role in the local deformation field.     

Motion control of industrial robots by considering serial two-link robot arm model with joint nonlinearities

This paper presents a model based motion control approach for industrial robots by considering a serial two-link robot arm model with joint nonlinearities. In order to achieve the desired performance using the model based control approaches, it is important to obtain relevant models of both kinematics and dynamics including nonlinear characteristics. Main nonlinear components that lead to trajectory tracking errors of typical multi-axis industrial robot are joint nonlinearities in each axis and dynamic coupling effects between different axes. In this paper, a parametric modeling approach is introduced to reproduce behaviors of a serial two-link robot arm with joint nonlinearities. Nonlinear stiffness, angular transmission errors, and friction in these two links are directly identified as joint nonlinearities. This approach is applied for the serial two-link arm of a typical multi-axis industrial robot, which has low frequency vibration modes and significantly affects to the trajectory performance. Effectiveness of the modeling is verified by comparative studies with numerical simulations and experiments. Finally, a 2-DOF control scheme with the identified two-link dynamic model and a feedback loop-shaping with a variable notch filter are applied to improve the performance of trajectory tracking and residual vibration suppression.     

The changes of gap junctions between pituitary folliculo‐stellate cells during the postnatal development of zucker fatty and lean rats

We investigated the effect of leptin on the postnatal development of gap junctions between folliculo‐stellate cells by using Zucker fatty (fa/fa) rats that have defects of the functional leptin receptor. Male Zucker fatty rats (fa/fa) and male Zucker lean rats (+/+) were used at each of the following postnatal ages: 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 days, and 1 year. On one of the aforementioned dates, the anterior pituitary glands were prepared for observation by transmission electron microscopy. We quantified the number of follicles and gap junctions, and calculated the rate of occurrence as the ratio of the number of gap junctions existing between folliculo‐stellate cells per intersected follicular profile. In Zucker lean male rats, the number of gap junctions remained relatively constant from days 50 to 90 (0.44 ± 0.02 to 0.49 ± 0.03), and was similar in 1 year old rats (0.47 ± 0.03). These data were statistically higher compared to Zucker fatty male rats. In Zucker fatty male rats, very few gap junctions were observed in 30‐day‐old rats (0.04 ± 0.01: mean ± SE). This disruption of gap junction formation persisted, and the number of gap junctions remained constant and showed a low level from days 40 to 90 (0.11 ± 0.02 to 0.17 ± 0.02); this finding was similar in 1‐year‐old rats (0.17 ± 0.02). These observations indicate that the effect of leptin over the gap junction formation within the anterior pituitary glands was directly mediated by interaction with the functional leptin receptor present on the folliculo‐stellate cells. Microsc. Res. Tech. 77:31–36, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.