Overview of LIMEX'87 ice observations

Ice observations, results, and conclusions are summarized for the March 1987 Labrador Ice Margin Experiment (LIMEX'87), an international oceanographic study conducted in the pack ice of the Grand Banks area off the coast of Newfoundland. Included are the ice extent, flow size and thickness, ice kinematics and rheology, ice microwave properties, oceanic properties under the ice, and penetration of swell into the ice     

The effect of charge relaxation on the electromagnetic radiation of an oscillating charged viscous drop

A dispersion equation for the capillary oscillations of a charged drop of incompressible liquid possessing a finite electric conductivity is derived with an allowance for the energy lost as a result of the electromagnetic wave emission. The magnitude of the electromagnetic radiation losses of the oscillating drop linearly increases with the electric conductivity and the surface mobility of charge carriers.     

Analysis of the Safety of the Burial Grounds of Decontamination Waste of Chernobyl Origin in the Territory of Belarus

Unsatisfactory conditions of storage of decontamination waste (DW) in the storages formed in the territory of Belarus after the Chernobyl accident require the evaluation of the level of protection of the environment and population. The potential hazard of the decontamination waste burial grounds (DWBGs) has been evaluated based on the use of a generalized multichamber model that was verified by comparing the calculation results and the results obtained by the American (GW SCREEN) model. The characteristics of the 24 largest and most hazardous DWBGs are given and the evaluations of their safety are presented. The zones of influence of these storages, whose size varies from 100 to 330 m, have been determined. The reliability of the prediction evaluation of a possible hazardous radioactive contamination of water near the storages has been verified using the Dudichi DWBG as an example.     

New approach to modelling a flat plate collector: the Fourier transform technique

The efficiency of a flat plate collector is estimated. The transfer of heat energy through its absorber plate considered as its main part of structure is studied by solving the heat diffusion equation using the Fourier transform technique. The temperature of the working fluid is also obtained considering the heat balance equation and a simple suggested model for the considered collector. An expression useful for practical purposes to predict the hourly global solar irradiance on horizontal surface is given. It shows good fitting with corresponding experimental data recorded in Makkah, Jeddah and Hong Kong. The obtained formula is used in the theoretical analysis of the present heating problem. The trial is promising and shows that the dependence of the efficiency on the revealed factors is nonlinear.     

Ultrasonic Evaluation of Solution Infiltration Depth in a Porous Material

The paper presents investigations of the solution infiltration depth in porous materials measured using changes in the velocity of the longitudinal ultrasonic wave versus penetration depth.     

Inductive switching of 4H-SiC gate turn-off thyristors

The high-temperature operation of a silicon carbide gate turn-off thyristor is evaluated for use in inductively loaded switching circuits. Compared to purely resistive load elements, inductive loads subject the switching device to higher internal power dissipation. The ability of silicon carbide components to operate at elevated temperatures and high power dissipations are important factors for their use in future power conversion/control systems. In this work, a maximum current density of 540 A/cm² at 600 V was switched at a frequency of 2 kHz and at several case temperatures up to 150°C. The turn-off and turn-on characteristics of the thyristor are discussed     

The ponding problem on elastic membranes: an analog equation solution

 In this paper, the nonlinear response of elastic membranes with arbitrary shape under partial and full ponding loads has been analyzed. Large deflections are considered, which result from nonlinear kinematic relations. The problem is formulated in terms of the displacements components and the three coupled nonlinear governing equations are solved using the analog equation method (AEM). The membrane may be prestressed either by prescribed boundary displacements or tractions. Using the concept of the analog equation the three coupled nonlinear equations are replaced by three uncoupled Poisson's equations with fictitious sources under the same boundary conditions. Subsequently, the fictitious sources are established using a procedure based on the BEM and the displacement components as well as the stress resultants at any point of the membrane are evaluated from their integral representations. In addition to the geometrical nonlinearity, the ponding problem is itself nonlinear, because the ponding load depends on the deflection surface that it produces. Iterative schemes are developed which converge to the equilibrium state of the membrane under the ponding loads. Several membranes are analyzed which illustrate the method and demonstrate its efficiency and accuracy. The method has all the advantages of the pure BEM, since the discretization and integration is limited only to the boundary. Received 28 July 2001     

Literature reviews in student project reports

Writing project reports is an important part of the engineering curriculum at Singapore universities. One important section of the formal report is the literature review. Most universities around the world provide guidelines on writing reviews, emphasizing that plagiarism is unethical. However, these guidelines do not offer explicit training on how to avoid plagiarism. In order to write academically acceptable reviews while avoiding copying from source materials, students face a major challenge and resort to employing various strategies to cope with the task. In this study, we examined the literature review sections of final year project reports to find out how engineering undergraduates in a Singapore university cope with writing reviews and to suggest ways in which they can extend their skills to improve their literature reviews.     

Electroplating of nickel-cadmium alloys from alkaline solutions

The electroplating of Ni-Cd alloy coatings was carried out from alkaline baths (pH 10). For comparison, electroplating of the parent metals, Ni and Cd, was performed individually under the same conditions. The cathodic current efficiency for codeposition was high and decreased with increasing current density. The codeposition process is an anomalous type of plating with Cd being the preferentially deposited metal. The Ni content in the deposits increased with increasing current density. This increase in Ni content improves the corrosion resistance and microhardness of the deposits. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the deposits consist of a mixture of Ni, β, γ, γ¹ phases.