Visualization of load transfer behaviour between geogrid and sand using PFC

Geogrids have been widely used to improve the soil mechanical behaviour in geotechnical engineering. In order to investigate the load transfer behaviour between the geogrid and sand, a numerical compound tensile test (in sand) with one geogrid tensile member has been carried out using PFC^2D. In this study, sand was modelled as unbonded particles using the linear contact stiffness model, while the geogrid was modelled as bonded particles using the piecewise linear model which has been developed based on the parallel bond model. Calibrations have been performed by comparing the numerical simulation results with the experimental data. The load transfer behaviour between the geogrid and sand has been visualized by geogrid force and displacement distributions along the geogrid, contact force changes in the specimen and rotations of the sand particles in the vicinity of the geogrid at different clamp displacements. The DEM simulation results show that PFC^2D can be used as a practical tool to visualize the load transfer behaviour between the geogrid and sand. Furthermore, the visualization results provide researchers more insights into the interface behaviour between the geogrid and sand at a microscopic scale.     

A case study in the mechanical verification of fault tolerance

To date, there is little evidence that modular reasoning about fault-tolerant systems can simplify the verification process in practice. This question is studied using a prominent example from the fault tolerance literature: the problem of reliable broadcast in point-to-point networks subject to crash failures of processes. The experiences from this case study show how modular specification techniques and rigorous proof re-use can indeed help in such undertakings.     

miR-16-5p Is a Stably-Expressed Housekeeping MicroRNA in Breast Cancer Tissues from Primary Tumors and from Metastatic Sites

For quantitative microRNA analyses in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue, expression levels have to be normalized to endogenous controls. To investigate the most stably-expressed microRNAs in breast cancer and its surrounding tissue, we used tumor samples from primary tumors and from metastatic sites. MiRNA profiling using TaqMan^® Array Human MicroRNA Cards, enabling quantification of 754 unique human miRNAs, was performed in FFPE specimens from 58 patients with metastatic breast cancer. Forty-two (72%) samples were collected from primary tumors and 16 (28%) from metastases. In a cross-platform analysis of a validation cohort of 32 FFPE samples from patients with early breast cancer genome-wide microRNA expression analysis using SurePrintG3 miRNA (8 × 60 K)^® microarrays from Agilent^® was performed. Eleven microRNAs could be detected in all samples analyzed. Based on NormFinder and geNorm stability values and the high correlation (rho ≥ 0.8) with the median of all measured microRNAs, miR-16-5p, miR-29a-3p, miR-126-3p, and miR-222-3p are suitable single gene housekeeper candidates. In the cross-platform validation, 29 human microRNAs were strongly expressed (mean log2-intensity > 10) and 21 of these microRNAs including miR-16-5p and miR-29a-3p were also stably expressed (CV < 5%). Thus, miR-16-5p and miR-29a-3p are both strong housekeeper candidates. Their Normfinder stability values calculated across the primary tumor and metastases subgroup indicate that miR-29a-3p can be considered as the strongest housekeeper in a cohort with mainly samples from primary tumors, whereas miR-16-5p might perform better in a metastatic sample enriched cohort.     

Measure-Valued Variational Models with Applications to Diffusion-Weighted Imaging

We develop a general mathematical framework for variational problems where the unknown function takes values in the space of probability measures on some metric space. We study weak and strong topologies and define a total variation seminorm for functions taking values in a Banach space. The seminorm penalizes jumps and is rotationally invariant under certain conditions. We prove existence of a minimizer for a class of variational problems based on this formulation of total variation and provide an example where uniqueness fails to hold. Employing the Kantorovich–Rubinstein transport norm from the theory of optimal transport, we propose a variational approach for the restoration of orientation distribution function-valued images, as commonly used in diffusion MRI. We demonstrate that the approach is numerically feasible on several data sets.     

Observation of Sublattice Disordering of the Catalytic Sites in a Complex Mo–V–Nb–Te–O Oxidation Catalyst Using High Temperature STEM Imaging

A Mo–V–Nb–Te–O oxidation catalyst has been imaged using scanning transmission electron microscopy at 780 K, which is slightly above its operating temperature. We observe a sublattice disordering of the corner-sharing octahedra forming the catalytic sites containing V⁵⁺ while the edge-sharing pentagonal bipyramidal {Nb(Mo₅)} sublattice remains structurally more rigid and thereby maintains the overall structural integrity of the catalyst. Imaging the termination of the edges of the [001] basal zones at room temperature reveal a preference for presence of a closed network of secondary structural {Nb(Mo)₅} units providing further evidence of the stability of this sublattice structure. We propose that sublattice disordering of catalytic sites enables structural flexibility to accommodate different oxidation states during multistep chemical reactions within a more rigid superstructure and presents a new paradigm for compositionally and structurally complex catalysts.