A Rotor Parameter Identification Scheme for Vector-Controlled Induction Motor Drives

A rotor parameter identification technique for the purpose of updating the control gains of an induction motor vector controller is described. The approach utilizes the current source nature of a current-regulated PWM inverter by injecting a prescribed negative sequence current perturbation signal. The corresponding negative sequence voltage is sensed and decomposed into its d and q components. By injecting the signal at two widely separated frequencies (one perhaps dc), it is shown that the rotor resistance can be uniquely derived. Verification of the validity of the technique is obtained by a full-scale simulation of a vector controlled induction motor drive.     

Beta-decay half-lives calculated on the gross theory

Beta-decay half-lives have been calculated by the use of the gross theory which was formulated by Takahashi, Yamada, and Koyama. Both allowed and first-forbidden transitions have been taken into account, and consideration also has been given to the possibility that all the transitions to the levels near the ground states may be highly forbidden. The Q-values used in the calculation have been taken from the mass formula of Myers and Swiatecki. The calculated half-lives are shown in the PLOTS together with the experimental data and the Q-values. The PLOTS cover all the isotopes between the proton-drip and neutron-drip lines with Z = 3 to Z = 100.     

Purification, characterization, and steady-state kinetics of a meta-cleavage compound hydrolase from Pseudomonas fluorescens IPO1

2-Hydroxy-6-oxo-7-methylocta-2,4-dienoate (6-isopropyl-HODA) hydrolase (CumD), an enzyme of the cumene biodegradation pathway encoded by the cumD gene of Pseudomonas fluorescens IP01, was purified to homogeneity from an overexpressing Escherichia coli strain. SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and gel filtration demonstrated that it is a dimeric enzyme with a subunit molecular mass of 32 kDa. The pH optima for activity and stability were 8.0 and 7.0-9.0, respectively. The enzyme exhibited a biphasic Arrhenius plot of catalysis with two characteristic energies of activation with a break point at 20 degrees C. The enzyme has a K(m) of 7.3 microM and a k(cat) of 21 s(-1) for 6-isopropyl-HODA (150 mM phosphate, pH 7.5, 25 degrees C), and its substrate specificity covers larger C6 substituents compared with another monoalkylbenzene hydrolase, TodR Unlike TodF, CumD could slightly hydrolyze 2-hydroxy-6-oxo-6-phenylhexa-2,4-dienoate (6-phenyl-HODA). A mutant enzyme as to a putative active site residue, S103A, had 10(5)-fold lower activity than that of the wild-type enzyme.     

Field instrument for simultaneous large dynamic range measurement of atmospheric hydrogen sulfide, methanethiol, and sulfur dioxide

We describe a membrane-based collection/analysis system that differentially monitors H2S and CH3SH, and to which a conductometric SO2 analyzer using the same collector was coupled. A diffusion scrubber (DS) comprised of a Nafion tube collects H2S selectively while a porous polytetrafluoroethylene (pPTFE) DS collects both H2S and CH3SH. Both gases are measured via their ability to react with fluorescein mercuric acetate (FMA) which results in decreased fluorescence. The limited dynamic range of a negative signal procedure was overcome by using dual DS units comprised of short and long scrubbers, placed serially in the liquid flow line. Different DS designs and membrane materials were investigated. H2S, CH3SH, and SO2 from a biogenic point source were continuously measured, and the H2S/CH3SH data compared well with a standard procedure involving Tedlar bag collection, preconcentration and thermal desorption from a Tenax trap, and measurement by gas chromatography/flame photometric detection. Walkaround portability of the instrument and very large dynamic range measurement of H2S and SO2 were demonstrated around the Mt. Aso volcano.     

Lithium silicon sulfide as an anode material in all-solid-state lithium batteries

The electrochemical properties of Li₂SiS₃ were investigated in a solid electrolyte. Li₂SiS₃ was converted to elemental Si, and the resultant Si was formed into Si-Li alloy in the reduction process; however, the reverse reaction was not completed due to the loss of electronic conduction upon reoxidation. FeS was dispersed as a conductive additive in Li₂SiS₃ films by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The addition allowed successive reactions to proceed at a large capacity with small capacity-fading during the cycling process in spite of the small FeS fraction. This result indicates that Li₂SiS₃ + FeS thin film is a promising anode for solid-state lithium batteries.     

Factors influencing the hydration of layered double hydroxides (LDHs) and the appearance of an intermediate second staging phase

The hydration of layered double hydroxides (LDHs) was investigated by changing the interlayer anion species, the Mg/Al ratio of the LDH hosts and the relative humidity (RH). The anions were CO₃²⁻, Cl⁻, Br⁻, NO₃⁻, I⁻, SO₄²⁻, and ClO₄⁻ (listed in the order of ion size, small to large) and LDHs with Mg/Al = 1.90 (LDH2) and 2.91 (LDH3) were used. Their XRD profiles were measured by an XRD diffractometer while controlling the RH in the range 0–95% at 25 °C. Only I⁻, SO₄²⁻, and ClO₄⁻ LDH2s and SO₄²⁻ LDH3 showed a large step-wise basal-spacing expansion, 0.24–0.28 nm, under high RH conditions (> ca. 60%) probably due to the insertion of one water layer into the interlayer space. Such hydration occurred more favorably for the LDHs with larger anions and those with a higher layer charge (LDH2). Among them, I⁻ and ClO₄⁻ LDH2s exhibited the second staging – alternate stacking of hydrated (H) and non-hydrated (NH) interlayers – in the intermediate RH region.