Plan for first phase of safety demonstration tests of the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR)

Safety demonstration tests using the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR) will be conducted for the purpose of demonstrating inherent safety features of High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactors (HTGRs) as well as providing the core and plant transient data for validation of HTGR safety analysis codes. The first phase safety demonstration test items include the reactivity insertion test and the coolant flow reduction test. In the reactivity insertion test, which is the control rod withdrawal test, one pair out of 16 pairs of control rods is withdrawn, simulating a reactivity insertion event. The coolant flow reduction test consists of the partial loss of coolant flow test and the gas circulators trip test. In the partial loss of coolant flow test, primary coolant flow rate is slightly reduced by control system. In the gas circulators trip test one and two out of three gas circulators are run down, simulating coolant flow reduction events. The gas circulators trip tests, in which position of control rods are kept unchanged, are simulation tests of anticipated transients without scram (ATWS).     

Magnetic Behavior of Some Rare-Earth Transition-Metal Perovskite Oxide Systems

Magnetic properties were investigated for the rare-earth 3d-transition metal oxides with the perovskite structure. Intriguing magnetic phenomena were reviewed for a few systems:magnetization peak effect in the titanates, magnetization reversal in the chromites and metallic ferromagnetism in the cobahites. The results suggest an important role of the rare-earth ions for the magnetic properties of such complex oxides.     

A novel polarizer‐free dye‐doped polymer‐dispersed liquid crystal for reflective TFT displays

Abstract— A novel preparation method for dichroic dye‐doped polymer‐dispersed liquid crystals has been developed. This was achieved by creating a porous polymer matrix first by washing out the liquid crystal from a polymer‐dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC), which is then refilled with dye‐doped liquid crystal. Optimizing the liquid crystal used in the refilling results in decreased turn‐on voltage and faster response time. Poster‐standard reflectivity and newspaper‐standard contrast was demonstrated with a 3.8‐in. QVGA reflective TFT display with a drive voltage of 10 V.     

In-plane contributions to phase contrast in intermittent contact atomic force microscopy

Contrast in the phase response of intermittent-contact atomic force microscopy (IC-AFM) reveals in-plane structural and mechanical properties of polymer monolayers. This result is unexpected, as IC-AFM has previously only been considered as a probe of out-of-plane properties. Until now, AFM measurements of nanoscale in-plane properties have employed contact mode techniques. In-plane property measurements are possible with intermittent contact AFM because there is a small but significant component of tip motion parallel to the sample surface. This in-plane component of tip displacement is virtually universal in AFM, implying that oscillating-tip techniques generally are sensitive to in-plane material properties. We present a simple Hertzian model of intermittent-contact AFM that includes such an in-plane displacement.     

Metallurgical and tribological investigations of aluminium bronze bushes made by a novel centrifugal casting technique

Aluminium bronzes have been used as high strength, corrosion and wear resistance alloys for many decades. However, the alloy has a narrow solidification range and a complex nature which has confined its use to a limited field of applications. Published data on the wear characteristics and the metallurgical nature of the alloy system is limited, leaving wide possibilities for research. In the work described in this paper a study has been made of the metallurgical and tribological characteristics of aluminium bronzes conforming to BS 1400 AB2 specification. A novel centrifugal casting technique using a bonded sand lining integrated into a standard rotating die was adapted to cast a series of test bushes. Mechanical and microscopic aspects are studied and an attempt is made to correlate the physical properties with the tribological behaviour of the bushes. The results show that the test behaviour of the test bush was in some respects better than that of commercially produced bushes made by forging techniques. Detrimental embrittlement, due to ‘self annealing’ is significantly reduced by the adoption of the novel centrifugal casting technique referred to above.     

HDPE膜预辐照接枝VBTAC制备阴离子交换膜

在氮气保护下,利用预辐照接枝技术在高密度聚乙烯(HDPE)膜上接枝苯乙烯三甲基氯化铵(VBTAC)单体,以甲基丙烯酸二甲氨基乙酯(DMAEMA)单体作为接枝辅助单体来提高VBTAC的接枝率,制备出阴离子交换膜,解决了在HDPE上难以直接接枝聚合VBTAC的问题.本文研究了接枝条件及接枝液的组分对接枝的影响,并用X射线显微分析方法研究了VBTAC的接枝进程和接枝分布.     

Electrospun Azithromycin-Laden Gelatin Methacryloyl Fibers for Endodontic Infection Control

This study was aimed at engineering photocrosslinkable azithromycin (AZ)-laden gelatin methacryloyl fibers via electrospinning to serve as a localized and biodegradable drug delivery system for endodontic infection control. AZ at three distinct amounts was mixed with solubilized gelatin methacryloyl and the photoinitiator to obtain the following fibers: GelMA+5%AZ, GelMA+10%AZ, and GelMA+15%AZ. Fiber morphology, diameter, AZ incorporation, mechanical properties, degradation profile, and antimicrobial action against Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans and Actinomyces naeslundii were also studied. In vitro compatibility with human-derived dental pulp stem cells and inflammatory response in vivo using a subcutaneous rat model were also determined. A bead-free fibrous microstructure with interconnected pores was observed for all groups. GelMA and GelMA+10%AZ had the highest fiber diameter means. The tensile strength of the GelMA-based fibers was reduced upon AZ addition. A similar pattern was observed for the degradation profile in vitro. GelMA+15%AZ fibers led to the highest bacterial inhibition. The presence of AZ, regardless of the concentration, did not pose significant toxicity. In vivo findings indicated higher blood vessel formation, mild inflammation, and mature and thick well-oriented collagen fibers interweaving with the engineered fibers. Altogether, AZ-laden photocrosslinkable GelMA fibers had adequate mechanical and degradation properties, with 15%AZ displaying significant antimicrobial activity without compromising biocompatibility.     

Visualizing Intramolecular Dynamics of Membrane Proteins

Membrane proteins play important roles in biological functions, with accompanying allosteric structure changes. Understanding intramolecular dynamics helps elucidate catalytic mechanisms and develop new drugs. In contrast to the various technologies for structural analysis, methods for analyzing intramolecular dynamics are limited. Single-molecule measurements using optical microscopy have been widely used for kinetic analysis. Recently, improvements in detectors and image analysis technology have made it possible to use single-molecule determination methods using X-rays and electron beams, such as diffracted X-ray tracking (DXT), X-ray free electron laser (XFEL) imaging, and cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM). High-speed atomic force microscopy (HS-AFM) is a scanning probe microscope that can capture the structural dynamics of biomolecules in real time at the single-molecule level. Time-resolved techniques also facilitate an understanding of real-time intramolecular processes during chemical reactions. In this review, recent advances in membrane protein dynamics visualization techniques were presented.     

Blind source extraction of long-term physiological signals from facial thermal images

The amount of mental work using information equipment has been increasing because of a rapid growth of an information society. Accumulation of short-term mental work can cause various stresses and a disturbance of circadian rhythm and lead to fatigue, anxiety, and distraction. Estimation and understanding the physiopsychological states is desired for decreasing or controlling stresses to maintain health. There have been several investigations on the assessment of short-term physiopsychological states using infrared thermography. However, the method has been used rarely for assessing long-term physiopsychological states. In the present study, extraction of independent components related to long-term physiological signals is attempted by applying independent component analysis to facial thermal images obtained over 6 months (July–December). Furthermore, multiple regression analysis is attempted to create psychological model by facial thermal images. As the result, extracted independent components are shown to represent the strong features in nasal, mouth, cheek, eyebrow, and forehead regions. Attempting multiple regression analysis, features in nasal and mouth regions contributed to depression or dejection mood, features in cheek, eyebrow and forehead regions contributed to fatigue and features in tip of nasal, eyebrow and mouth regions contributed to state anxiety.     

Perfluorinated surfactants in surface, subsurface water and microlayer from Dalian Coastal waters in China

Two predominant perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), in surface water (SW, 0-20 cm), subsurface water (SSW, > 30 cm depth), and sea surface microlayer (SML, 50 microm thickness) were measured from Dalian Coastal waters in China. The SML samples were collected using glass-plate dipping method. Analysis of the PFCs was conducted through solid-phase extraction, followed by LC/MS-SIM. The PFC's concentrations in SW samples were consistent with previously reported data in this region. Significantly higher concentrations of PFCs were found in SML samples than corresponding SSW samples. The enrichment factors (EF = C(SML)/C(SSW)) for PFOS were as high as 24-109 atthree near-shore sites. The concentration in SW was also generally higher than corresponding SSW samples, giving C(SW)/C(SSW) mean ratios of 1.5 and 1.4 for PFOS and PFOA, respectively. This apparent enrichment of PFCs in surface water, especially in the microlayer, has implications for designing measurement techniques, understanding their distributions, and sea spray-mediated transport in the environment.