Assessment of oxygen levels in convenience‐style muscle‐based sous vide products through optical means and impact on shelf‐life stability

An optical oxygen analyser was used in two small‐scale industrial trials to non‐destructively assess the quality of packaged convenience foods and packaging process. Beef lasagne packed under 70% vacuum and cooked under standard sous vide conditions was monitored for residual oxygen, using disposable sensors incorporated in each pack and a benchtop optical oxygen analyser. High levels of residual oxygen close to ambient were determined in the majority of packs after packaging, as opposed to anticipated levels of 4–5%. Residual oxygen was monitored over product shelf‐life (4 weeks at +4–10°C) along with measurement of microbial growth and lipid oxidation in food by conventional destructive methods. Oxygen levels in packs went down to almost zero between weeks 2 and 3 indicating deterioration of packaged product. Correlation between oxygen profiles and the rate of microbial growth and lipid oxidation was established. The optical oxygen sensor system was shown to provide valuable information about performance of the packaging process, product storage conditions and food quality in a convenient and cost‐efficient fashion and non‐destructively. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Velocity Distribution in the Roughness Layer of Rough-Bed Flows

Several models for the vertical distribution of the double-averaged (in time and in the plane parallel to the mean bed) longitudinal velocity in the flow region between roughness troughs and roughness tops are suggested. We found that the same model for velocity distribution may be applicable to a range of flow conditions and roughness types, which share some common features. The suggested models for velocity distribution in the near-bed region are: (1) Constant velocity; (2) exponential velocity distribution; and (3) linear velocity distribution. The measured velocity distributions may be approximated by a single model or by a combination of models depending on roughness geometry and flow conditions. The validity of these models for velocity distribution is supported by laboratory data.     

Human-Robot Interaction Through Gesture-Free Spoken Dialogue

We present an approach to human-robot interaction through gesture-free spoken dialogue. Our approach is based on passive knowledge rarefication through goal disambiguation, a technique that allows a human operator to collaborate with a mobile robot on various tasks through spoken dialogue without making bodily gestures. A key assumption underlying our approach is that the operator and the robot share a common set of goals. Another key idea is that language, vision, and action share common memory structures.We discuss how our approach achieves four types of human-robot interaction: command, goal disambiguation, introspection, and instruction-based learning. We describe the system we developed to implement our approach and present experimental results.     

Performance evaluation of a new signal processing system design to improve CANDU SDS1 trip response during large break LOCA events

Performance of a recently developed signal processing system for CANDU (Canada Deuterium Uraniu) reactor shutdown system 1 (SDS1) is evaluated in this paper. The evaluation is carried out in MATLAB/Simulink software environment as well as with an existing power measurement and signal processing system. The new signal processing algorithm is obtained based on the synthesis of several first order low pass filters with different delayed time constants. Throughout this paper, a special attention has been paid to compare the new signal processing system with the existing one. The dynamic behavior of the new signal processing system in the practical large loss of coolant accidents (LLOCA) events has also been examined. Simulation results show that during the LLOCA event, the reactor trip time, as well as the peak power, is decreased remarkably. Through the simulation studies, it has convincingly demonstrated that the new signal processing system has significant advantages over the existing system in terms of the improved trip response and accommodation of the spurious trip immunity. This advantage will significantly enhance the safety margin, or will bring economical benefits to nuclear power plants.     

Acid Rock Drainage Remediation and Element Removal Using a Peat-Humic Agent with Subsequent Thermal Treatment of the Metal–Organic Residue

A novel, alternative method for acid rock drainage (ARD) remediation and metal recovery has been developed that uses a peat-humic agent (PHA) created by mechanical, chemical, and thermobaric treatment of peat from the Krugloe deposit (Novosibirsk region, Russia). The PHA effectively neutralised moderately acidic ARD and removed potential pollutants (e.g. Fe, Al, Zn, Cu, Pb, Cd, Ni, Co, and Hg), forming metal–organic residues. The organic matter can be removed completely from the metal–organic residues by heating them at 450–500 °C. After this treatment, the metal concentrate residues generally contained aggregates (20–350 μm in size), mainly composed of metal oxides and sulphates. Thermal decomposition of the organic matter in the PHA and metal–organic residues is an exothermic process with significant calorific value (9–15 kJ/g).     

Discovery of an Allosteric Ligand Binding Site in SMYD3 Lysine Methyltransferase

SMYD3 is a multifunctional epigenetic enzyme with lysine methyltransferase activity and various interaction partners. It is implicated in the pathophysiology of cancers but with an unclear mechanism. To discover tool compounds for clarifying its biochemistry and potential as a therapeutic target, a set of drug-like compounds was screened in a biosensor-based competition assay. Diperodon was identified as an allosteric ligand; its R and S enantiomers were isolated, and their affinities to SMYD3 were determined (K_D=42 and 84 μM, respectively). Co-crystallization revealed that both enantiomers bind to a previously unidentified allosteric site in the C-terminal protein binding domain, consistent with its weak inhibitory effect. No competition between diperodon and HSP90 (a known SMYD3 interaction partner) was observed although SMYD3–HSP90 binding was confirmed (K_D=13 μM). Diperodon clearly represents a novel starting point for the design of tool compounds interacting with a druggable allosteric site, suitable for the exploration of noncatalytic SMYD3 functions and therapeutics with new mechanisms of action.     

Self-assembled silver nanoislands formed on glass surface via out-diffusion for multiple usages in SERS applications

We demonstrate that silver nanoisland film self-assembled on the surface of silver-containing glass in the course of thermal processing in hydrogen is capable to detect 10⁻⁷ M concentration of rhodamine 6G in water using surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) technique. The film can be multiply restored on the same glass substrate via annealing of the glass in hydrogen. We showed that the film can be self-assembled after as much as ten circles of the substrate cleaning followed by annealing. The proposed technique of the silver nanoisland film formation enables multiple usage of the same glass substrate in SERS experiments.     

Assessment of utility energy storage options for increased renewable energy penetration

Renewable energy technologies are expected to take the leading role in the forthcoming energy generation portfolio in order to achieve sustainable energy generation. The major constraints for increasing penetration of renewable energy sources is their availability and intermittency, which can be addressed through energy storage when available and energy use when needed. This work reviews the energy storage technologies and gives an up to date comparative summary of the performance parameters of the major energy storage options. The parameters compared here include efficiency, energy capacity, energy density, run time, capital investment costs, response time, lifetime in years and cycles, self discharge and maturity of each energy storage option. The choice of storage system will depend on individual requirements, and may even incorporate more than one energy storage system to increase the energy storage capacity and improve energy security.