Design of versatile academic infrastructure for multilayer network services

This paper describes the network design and configurations of the new Japanese academic infrastructure, called SINET3, which provides a rich variety of network services to more than 700 universities and research institutions. Since the start of full-scale operations in June 2007, the network has expanded its services to include multi-layer transfer services (IP, Ethernet, and layer-1), enriched virtual private network services (L3VPN, L2VPN, VPLS, and L1VPN), enhanced QoS services (packet-based and circuit-based), and brand-new layer-1 bandwidth-on-demand (BoD) services. This paper explains how the network provides these various network services on a single network platform by effectively configuring leading-edge networking components, such as high-performance IP routers, layer- 1 switches, and a BoD server. Evaluations of the network design and configurations confirmed that the networking functions were effectively coordinated. The procedures and techniques related to the configuration validation that covered all phases of the network design and construction are also presented.     

Atomic origins of the high catalytic activity of nanoporous gold

Distinct from inert bulk gold, nanoparticulate gold has been found to possess remarkable catalytic activity towards oxidation reactions. The catalytic performance of nanoparticulate gold strongly depends on size and support, and catalytic activity usually cannot be observed at characteristic sizes larger than 5 nm. Interestingly, significant catalytic activity can be retained in dealloyed nanoporous gold (NPG) even when its feature lengths are larger than 30 nm. Here we report atomic insights of the NPG catalysis, characterized by spherical-aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and environmental TEM. A high density of atomic steps and kinks is observed on the curved surfaces of NPG, comparable to 3-5 nm nanoparticles, which are stabilized by hyperboloid-like gold ligaments. In situ TEM observations provide compelling evidence that the surface defects are active sites for the catalytic oxidation of CO and residual Ag stabilizes the atomic steps by suppressing {111} faceting kinetics.     

Diameter controlled chemical vapor deposition synthesis of single-walled carbon nanotubes

In this study, we systematically investigated the influence of catalyst preparation procedures on the mean diameter of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) synthesized by the alcohol catalytic chemical vapor deposition (ACCVD) process. It was found that the SWNT diameter is dependent upon both reduction temperature and time, with lower reduction temperature and/or shorter reduction time resulting in smaller diameter SWNTs. The morphology of the SWNTs also changed from vertically aligned to randomly oriented when the reduction temperature was below 500 degrees C. We also found that introducing a small amount of water during the catalyst reduction stage significantly decreased the mean diameter of the SWNTs. Lastly, we report on the use of a new binary catalyst system in which rhodium was combined with cobalt. This new Co/Rh combination produced SWNTs of smaller diameter than the conventional Co/Mo catalyst.     

Experimental analysis for reducing refrigerant-induced noise of 4-way cassette type air conditioner

Various refrigerant flow patterns can produce a range of noise types according to their cycle conditions. Consequently, the identification of flow patterns in a tube is crucial to reducing refrigerant-induced noise. Because of the obstacles involved in identifying them accurately by experiment, in this paper, these flow patterns are estimated from the flow pattern map. Working from the assumption that the refrigerant-induced noise for an air conditioner in the heating mode comes from slug flow in the condenser-outlet pipe, the reduction of refrigerant-induced noise by avoiding slug flow in a tube is examined. To fully understand the conditions under which the refrigerant-induced noise occurs, cycle simulator equipment for an outdoor unit is developed. With this cycle simulator, noise tests of 4-way cassette type indoor units are performed under the conditions that the refrigerant-induced noise occurs. Increasing the mass flux in a tube by reducing the diameter of the condenser-outlet pipe can avoid slug flow, and the refrigerant-induced noise can therefore be reduced. The results of the cycle simulator can be verified with an outdoor unit 5HP system multi air conditioner and the results are well in line with simulator results. This paper was recommended for publication in revised form by Associate Editor Yeon June Kang Hyung-Suk Han received a B.S. degree in Production and Mechanical Engineering from Pusan National University in 1996. He then went on to receive his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Pusan National University in 1998 and 2007, respectively. Dr. Han is currently a Senior Researcher at Defense Agency of Technology and Quality, Pusan, Korea. He is currently serving as a Co-Researcher of Noise and Vibration Analysis Laboratory in Pusan National University. Dr. Han’s research interests are in the area of the mechanical applications of noise and vibration including refrigerant-induced noise. Wei-Bong Jeong received a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Seoul National University in 1978. He then went on to receive his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from KAIST in 1980 and from Tokyo Institute of Technology in 1990, respectively. Dr. Jeong is currently a Professor at the Mechanical Engineering at Pusan National University in Busan, Korea. He is currently serving as an Academic Director of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering. Dr. Jeong’s research interests are in the area of the measurement and signal processing of noise and vibration, finite/boundary element programming of noise and vibration, fluid-structure interactions and acoustic-structure interactions.     

Single tag scheme for segment routing in software-defined network

This paper proposes a scheme to reduce a size of a packet header for a segment routing (SR) scheme in a software-defined network (SDN). The SR scheme inserts a segment identification (SID) list into the packet header to indicate a path for the source–destination pair of the packet. The path can be split into different segments to suit the service requirement and the segments are carried by the SID-list whose length increases with the number of segments. This also increases the packet overhead, and an additional packet is needed if the packet length exceeds the maximum transmission unit (MTU). Moreover, it may not be possible to implement SR in SDN due to the limited number of stacked labels provided by the switch vendor. In the proposed scheme, the SID-list is replaced by a single tag to indicate a node edge, called a swapping node. The tag is replaced by a new tag at the swapping node. With this scheme, the size of SID-list is fixed and does not vary with the number of segments, and no additional packets are required. A mathematic model to balance the number of flow entries in each swapping node is introduced by minimizing the maximum number of flow entries in each swapping node over the network. We implement the proposed scheme on the transmission-Japan science information network (SINET5) and demonstrate confirms its functionality.

     

Stress Corrosion Cracking Behavior at Inconel and Low Alloy Steel Weld Interfaces

Three-dimensional microstructure observations, macro- to micro-scopic residual stress measurements by three methods and creviced bent beam SCC tests were performed for Inconel/low alloy steel (LAS) weld samples. The possible reasons for the suppression of SCC crack propagation near the weld interface found at a nuclear power plant were estimated to include the crack branching at the grain boundary (GB) parallel to the interface, i.e., Type II GB, compressive residual stresses in the LAS region and crack tip oxidation in the LAS at the interface. The formation mechanism of Type II GB and stress gradient in individual grains in the Inconel are also discussed.     

Sliding wear behavior of stainless steel parts made by metal injection molding (MIM)

The wear resistance of stainless steel parts, which were fabricated by a metal injection molding (MIM) process, was studied under self-mating, dry sliding conditions, using a pin-on-disk type wear configuration. The materials used were an austenitic stainless steel 316L (of MIM and wrought steel), a precipitated stainless steel 17-4PH (of MIM and wrought steel) and a widely used ball-bearing steel (DIN 100Cr6). Two surface conditions, i.e. as sintered and as polished, were considered in the wear tests of the MIM samples. In summary, the wear resistance of 316L was lower than 17-4PH, and the latter was almost the same as 100Cr6. Further, the wrought materials showed a better wear resistance than the MIM materials. The mechanisms responsible for these tendencies were discussed by means of microscopical observations and chemical inspections of the worn surfaces and the microstructures of the samples.     

Real‐time Indirect Illumination of Emissive Inhomogeneous Volumes using Layered Polygonal Area Lights

Indirect illumination involving with visually rich participating media such as turbulent smoke and loud explosions contributes significantly to the appearances of other objects in a rendering scene. However, previous real‐time techniques have focused only on the appearances of the media directly visible from the viewer. Specifically, appearances that can be indirectly seen over reflective surfaces have not attracted much attention. In this paper, we present a real‐time rendering technique for such indirect views that involves the participating media. To achieve real‐time performance for computing indirect views, we leverage layered polygonal area lights (LPALs) that can be obtained by slicing the media into multiple flat layers. Using this representation, radiance entering each surface point from each slice of the volume is analytically evaluated to achieve instant calculation. The analytic solution can be derived for standard bidirectional reflectance distribution functions (BRDFs) based on the microfacet theory. Accordingly, our method is sufficiently robust to work on surfaces with arbitrary shapes and roughness values. In addition, we propose a quadrature method for more accurate rendering of scenes with dense volumes, and a transformation of the domain of volumes to simplify the calculation and implementation of the proposed method. By taking advantage of these computation techniques, the proposed method achieves real‐time rendering of indirect illumination for emissive volumes.     

Linolenic Acid as the Main Source of Acrolein Formed During Heating of Vegetable Oils

Acrolein, which is an irritating and off-flavor compound formed during heating of vegetable oils, was estimated by the gas–liquid chromatography (GLC). Several vegetable oils such as high-oleic sunflower, perilla, rapeseed, rice bran, and soybean oils were heated at 180 °C for 480 min and then the concentration of acrolein in the head space gas was determined by GLC. The formation of acrolein was greatest in perilla oil among the tested oils, while it was much lower in rice bran oil and high-oleic sunflower oil. There was a good correlation between the level of acrolein and linolenate (18:3n-3) in the vegetable oils. To investigate the formation of acrolein from linolenate, methyl oleate, methyl linoleate, and methyl linolenate were also heated at 180 °C, and the amounts of acrolein formed from them were determined by GLC. The level of acrolein was the greatest in methyl linolenate. Acrolein was also formed from methyl linoleate, but not from methyl oleate. Acrolein in vegetable oils may be formed from polyunsaturated fatty acids, especially linolenic acid but not from glycerol backbone in triacylglycerols.     

Monitoring of Ball Bearing Operation under Grease Lubrication Using a New Compound Diagnostic System Detecting Vibration and Acoustic Emission

Our new compound diagnostic system comprised of a compound sensor, a signal processor, and a personal computer installed signal processing software. The compound sensor made by an advanced sensor fusion technique was able to detect simultaneously the vibration acceleration and the acoustic emission by itself. The signal processor received a signal from the sensor and separated it into the vibration acceleration signal and the acoustic emission signal. The signal processor and the personal computer processed the acceleration signal and acoustic emission signal for diagnostic information. The rolling contact fatigue process of a ball bearing under grease lubrication was monitored using the compound system. The system outputs diagnostic information, for example, the means, the variance, the skewness, and the kurtosis of the vibration acceleration signal and the acoustic emission signal. In diagnosing the rolling contact fatigue failure, the root mean square (rms) value of the vibration acceleration was most effective, and the mean of the demodulated acoustic emission was second to the rms value of the acceleration in effectiveness. From the result of the evaluation, it became clear that the system was useful for diagnosing rolling contact bearings under grease lubrication.