A W7-X experiment program editor––A usage driven development

The set-up of experiment programs for the complex fusion device Wendelstein 7-X has to define a multitude of parameters which have to obey large number of rules arising from physics and technical constraints. Since this is hard to automate as long as the dependencies are not known sufficiently, the W7-X CoDaC team decided to implement an editor following a constructive approach: starting from an established experiment program the user is able to modify parts of it – thus complying the usual workflow of experimenters.Already the very first implementation has been deployed at the W7-X CoDaC prototype, the WEGA stellarator. Driven by agile programming principles the weighting of the requirements has been influenced by the editor usage in the daily experiment routine, thus ensuring client-oriented development steps and short release cycles. At present, a stable program editor implementation with graphical preview, immediate feedback on user actions and instantaneous warnings about incorrect settings is under continuous operation at the CoDaC prototype. It has potential to improve together with growing knowledge about the physical and technical constraints. The experiences gained give certainty that the editor is suitable for future use during the start-up phase and the first years of W7-X operation.     

Beyond low-level activity: on a "non-radioactive" gas mantle

Gas mantles for camping gas lanterns sometimes contain thorium compounds. During the last years, the use of thorium-free gas mantles has become more and more popular due to the avoidance of a radioactive heavy metal. We investigated a gas mantle type that is declared to be "non-radioactive" and that can be bought in Austria at the moment. Methods used were Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA), gamma-spectroscopy, and Liquid Scintillation Counting (LSC). We found massive thorium contents of up to 259 mg per gas mantle. Leaching experiments showed that only 0.4% of the Th but approximately 90% of the decay products of (232)Th can be leached under conditions simulating sucking and chewing with human saliva. In this paper, the investigation of these gas mantles including the consideration of the environmental hazard caused by disposed mantles and the health hazard for unsuspecting consumers is presented and legal consequences are discussed for this fraud.     

Sanierungsforschung in regional kontaminierten Aquiferen (SAFIRA) – 2. Projektüberblick und Pilotanlage

The joint research project SAFIRA, which is supported by the Federal Ministry of Science and Education (BMBF), deals with the development of innovative technologies for the in situ remediation of heavily contaminated groundwater at the in situ pilot facility in Bitterfeld. In order to evaluate the new promising technological approaches comprehensively, methodological tools are developed to comparatively address economical, ecological as well as a environmental issues of related remediation scenarios. The design period for innovative technologies can hardly be forecasted and/or its success be guaranteed. To prove a long-term stability as well as to reach a sound economical and ecological evaluation for new approaches an on site operation over extended periods of time is needed. Therefore a variety of technologies are tested and optimized simultaneously, in order to achieve a thorough comparison of technologies at the end of the project.     

Diminished cooperativeness of psychopaths in a prisoner's dilemma game yields higher rewards.

Maladaptive social behavior is one of the defining characteristics of psychopathic personality disorder. Nevertheless, maladaptive social behavior has only rarely been observed among psychopaths in experimentally controlled situations. The authors assessed the behavior of criminal psychopaths from high-security psychiatric hospitals in a computer simulation of a social dilemma situation. The psychopaths showed a markedly higher proneness to competitive (i.e., noncooperative) behavior than did healthy adults from the general population. The odds ratio between defection and being a psychopath was estimated at 7.86 in the sample. The probability to choose selfish instead of cooperative behavior was significantly linked to the following subscales of the Psychopathy Personality Inventory-Revised (S. O. Lilienfeld & M. R. Widows, 2005): rebellious nonconformity, Machiavellian egocentricity, and the total score. On average, the psychopathic participants accumulated higher gain and more strongly exploited their counterpart than did the healthy participants. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

水泥回转窑的智能控制

文章介绍了PIT Navigator对水泥熟料生产自动化控制的实现,基于神经网络的自学习、自适应控制元件,将相关的过程数据记录下来,随后借助数据关联性进行分析,在预测和自学习过程模型(模型预测控制)中处理这些数据,并计算过程参数的实时预测,使用这些工具,可以实现更稳定的窑况,同时提高产量和降低能耗.     

Design and analysis of a state observer for the temperature front of a retification column

In order to achieve optimal energy-saving, load-dependent operation of rectification columns, development and implementation of model-based control concepts are necessary. This paper reports on the design and step-by-step testing of a state observer for the estimation of two state variables which cannot be measured directly, namely the vapour rate and the location of mass transfer zone (temperature front) in the stripping section of a production column. The procedure is described, and the relevant simulation and operation results are presented and discussed. Initial experience, gained when the concept was put into practical operation, is reported.