Effect of salt concentration and temperature of storage water on the physicochemical properties of fish proteins

Biochemical and physical properties of fish proteins from damaged (filleted and skinned) and undamaged (free of trauma or broken skin) Pacific whiting were investigated during chilling in various salt concentrations at 0.7 to ?1.1 °C. The increase of pH and moisture content were suppressed when chilling water contained higher concentration of NaCl. Conductivities of damaged fish were maximal after 24 h storage, but those of undamaged fish continuously increased throughout 72 h. K-values increased, but rapidly increased at lower salt concentrations. Puncture force and deformation were very low when chilled water contained higher concentration of salt (2–3 g/100 ml). Gel colors were also negatively affected as the concentration of salt increased for chilling water. Our study suggest Pacific whiting may be stored at 0–2 °C, but at 0–1 g/100 ml salt concentration.     

Development of method to model surface of reflowed square microlens for image sensor

A numerical method to model the surface of a reflowed square micro- lens is proposed to improve the simulation accuracy of photosensitivity for an image sensor. To verify the proposed method, a reflowed square microlens with base size of 4.8 x 4.8 mum and sag height of 1.55 mum was fabricated and the modelling accuracy was compared and analysed.     

Development and analysis of LOCA sequences for severe accident risk database

Although a Level 2 PSA has been performed for the Korean Standard Power Plants (KSNPs), and that it considered the necessary sequences for an assessment of the containment integrity and source term analysis. In terms of an accident management, however, more cases causing severe core damage need to be analyzed and arranged systematically for an easy access of the results. At present, KAERI is intensively calculating the severe accident sequences for various initiating events and generating a database for the accident progression including thermal hydraulic and source term behaviors. The developed database (DB) system includes a graphical display for a plant and equipment status, previous research results by a knowledge-based technique, and the expected plant behavior. The plant model used in this paper is oriented to the cases of LOCAs related to severe accident phenomena and thus can simulate the plant behaviors of a severe accident. Therefore, the developed system may play a central role as an information's source during the decision-making for a severe accident management, and be used as a training simulator for a severe accident management.     

Effect of Hydration Time and Salt Addition on Gelation Properties of Major Protein Additives

Gelation properties of 4 major protein additives were measured with and without salt during various hydration times. As hydration time increased, stress and strain of beef plasma and egg white gradually decreased regardless of salt. Unsalted whey proteins did not form a gel until the hydration time reached 48 h. Stress values of salted beef plasma with no hydration were significantly high. Soy protein isolate did not form a measurable gel at 9% concentration regardless of the presence of salt under rheological instruments, however its denaturation temperature was detected under DSC. Effect of salt on gel color was more pronounced with whey protein concentrate.     

Effect of surface structure on biomechanical properties and osseointegration

The purpose of this study is to improve the bone-bonding ability between titanium implants and living bone through the control of geometric design and chemical compositions of an implant surface. We compared the tissue healing response and resulting implant stability for three surface designs by characterizing the histological and mechanical properties of the healing tissue around smooth-surfaced Ti–6Al–4V (SS), CP-Ti plasma-spray-coated (PSC), alkali- and heat-treated (AHT) implants. The implants were transversely inserted into a dog thighbone and evaluated at 4, 8, and 12 weeks. Histological examination indicated that initial matrix mineralization leading to osseointegration occurred more rapidly with the AHT implant. During the 4, 8, and 12 week healing periods, new bone on the surface of AHT implant showed denser growth than that on the SS and PSC implants. The more extensive tissue integration and more rapid matrix mineralization with the AHT implant were reflected in the mechanical test data, which demonstrated superior attachment strength and interfacial stiffness for the AHT implant after healing for 4, 8 and 12 weeks of healing because of the mechanical interlocking in the micrometer sized rough surface and the large bonding area between bone and implant caused by the nanosized porous surface structure. Histological and mechanical data demonstrate that with the appropriate surface design selection, bone bone-bonding ability can be improved and can induce acceleration of the healing response, thereby improving the potential for implant osseointegration.     

Synthesis and structural properties of lithium titanium oxide powder as-synthesized by two step calcination process

A two-step calcination synthesis, considering the potential for mass production, of lithium titanium oxide powder was carried out to fabricate a single Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ phase, which is useful for anode electrode material of Li-based rechargeable battery as well as an electrode for supercapacitor. The final composition is controlled by adding more TiO₂ powder into powder gained at one calcination process during the two calcination process. We investigated the influence of excess TiO₂ on the structural characteristics of lithium titanium oxide synthesized by the two-step calcination method. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) measurements showed that the as-synthesized powder had a spinel crystal structure as well as A composition of 4: 5: 12. In addition, a high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) analysis revealed that the fabricated powder exhibited a single crystalline phase formation. These results indicated that the powder synthesized in the one-step calcination process showed coexistence crystalline phases, which are the Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ and Li_2.39Ti_3.4O₈ phase. However, in the two-step calcination process, the powder synthesized showed the single crystalline Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ phase. A very uniform grain size of the as-synthesized powder was shown in a field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). These results suggested that the two-step calcination process can be used for synthesis of single crystalline Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ powder with uniform grain shape and provide motivation to pursue mass production of lithium titanium based oxide powder for bulk type batteries.     

Distributed diagnosis for homogeneous systems

This article presents a distributed fault-diagnosis algorithm for identifying faulty and fault-free units (processors, PEs, cells) in homogeneous systems. It is based on local comparison among units in a system and dissemination of the test results. Each unit performs comparison with its neighbors by using its own comparator. Unlike other approaches, the algorithm does not assume that diagnostic circuits are fault free. The algorithm is simple enough to be realized with small circuit overhead. The results are especially useful in locating faulty units in processor arrays implemented on a single chip or wafer. Computer simulation has shown that even for low unit yields, extremely high performance (fault coverage) can be obtained by adjusting algorithm parameters.