Multivariate economic performance assessment of an MPC controlled electric arc furnace

Economic performance is very important to advanced process control projects investigating whether the investment of control technology is worthwhile. In this paper economic performance assessment of a simulated electric arc furnace is conducted. The dependence of controlled variables and the corresponding economic impact are highlighted.     

Arrow R-CNN for handwritten diagram recognition

We address the problem of offline handwritten diagram recognition. Recently, it has been shown that diagram symbols can be directly recognized with deep learning object detectors. However, object detectors are not able to recognize the diagram structure. We propose Arrow R-CNN, the first deep learning system for joint symbol and structure recognition in handwritten diagrams. Arrow R-CNN extends the Faster R-CNN object detector with an arrow head and tail keypoint predictor and a diagram-aware postprocessing method. We propose a network architecture and data augmentation methods targeted at small diagram datasets. Our diagram-aware postprocessing method addresses the insufficiencies of standard Faster R-CNN postprocessing. It reconstructs a diagram from a set of symbol detections and arrow keypoints. Arrow R-CNN improves state-of-the-art substantially: on a scanned flowchart dataset, we increase the rate of recognized diagrams from 37.7 to 78.6%.

     

Growth strategies in creative industries

In recent years there has been increased emphasis, in both academic and political arenas, on the economic importance of the creative industries (CIs). As a result, policymakers are increasingly looking to the CIs as a source of potential growth. The literature on CIs suggests that these industries are predominantly content based rather than market based, with artistic priorities taking precedence over business concerns. This research examines growth strategies in the CIs using qualitative and quantitative methods. An in‐depth case study of 23 firms in CIs suggests that these firms tend to view growth as a secondary goal compared to the goal of creative output. The case study further yields the proposition that firms in the CIs can benefit from adopting what we refer to as an accordion growth strategy, in which firms grow and shrink to accommodate artistic content as well as in response to external forces. Statistical analysis of survey data confirms that firms in the CIs are less likely to have ambitions to grow and more likely to adopt an accordion growth strategy than firms in technology industries. These findings suggest that the policy emphasis on growth in the CIs might be misguided and should allow for alternating periods of growth and shrinkage.     

Study of multi-walled carbon nanotubes for lithium-ion battery electrodes

The potential use of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) produced by Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) as conductive agent for electrodes in Li-ion batteries has been investigated. LiNi_0.33Co_0.33Mn_0.33O₂ (NCM) has been chosen as the active material for positive electrodes, and a nano-sized TiO₂-rutile for the negative electrodes. Also the MWCNTs ability of reversibly inserting Li has been characterized. The electrochemical performances of the electrodes are studied by galvanostatic techniques and cyclic voltammetry. In particular the influence of the nanotubes on the rate capability is evaluated. The addition of MWCNTs significantly enhances the rate performances of NCM-based cathodes at all investigated C-rates. The 1 wt.% MWCNTs in TiO₂ rutile-based anodes accounts for an increase in the rate capability when the electrodes are cycled in the potential range 1.0-3.0 V. The range extension to more negative potentials (i.e. 0.1-3.0 V), however, causes a capacity fading especially at higher current rates. The obtained results demonstrate that the addition of MWCNTs to the electrode composition, even in low amounts, enables an increase in both energy and power densities of a Li-ion battery.     

Thermal convection and thermal conductivity of nondilute3He-4He mixtures

We present measurements of the critical temperature difference for the onset of thermal convection and the effective thermal conductivity in two³He-superfluid-⁴He mixtures. The mixtures were 6.8% and 9.8% by molar volume of³He in⁴He and the measurements were made from 0.65 K to just above the superfluid transition temperature for each mixture. The measurements were made as part of an effort to visualize convective flow patterns in helium mixtures using optical shadowgraph techniques. We discuss the implications of our results for this effort.     

蜡助剂在水性镶木地板漆和印墨中的应用

重点讨论了通过在水性镶木地板漆和水性印墨中正确地使用蜡助剂,以得到最有效的表面保护,如耐细微划伤性、耐擦洗性和耐磨性的可能性。由于在干燥期间,蜡粒子聚集在涂层表面,对最终涂层的性质而言,选择合适的碱性蜡或其组合物是最重要的依据。除了表面保护外,蜡助剂还会影响其他性质,如表面滑爽性和抗粘连性。     

Carbonation of Municipal Solid Waste Incineration Fly Ash and the Impact on Metal Mobility

Fly ash from municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) is considered as hazardous waste that calls for a robust, reliable, and reasonable treatment technique. This investigation aims to assess the impact of CO2 partial pressure, water addition, time, and temperature on the stabilization of MSWI fly ash with particular emphasis on Pb, Zn, Cd, and Cr. Carbonation and element mobility were studied by applying thermal analysis and leaching assays on fly ash samples treated according to a 24 factorial design. The relationship between the factors and the response variables was evaluated using partial least squares modeling. Chemical equilibrium calculations were performed so as to complement the experimental findings. Decalcification of carbonated fly ash in a typical Swedish landfill was estimated at 0.13?mm?yr?1 Treatment through carbonation reduced the availability of Pb and Zn about 100 times and also the carbonate alkalinity of 7.4?eq?(kg?FS)?1 (FS represents the fixed solids) was remedied successfully. However, shortcomings that need to be resolved are the remobilization of Cr with time and the mobilization of Cd.     

A high-speed system for strain and temperature measurements based on fiber Bragg sensors

This work is devoted to issues related to development of measuring equipment for investigation of thermal and deformation processes with the help of sensors based on fiber Bragg gratings. A high-speed device for processing signals from Bragg sensors, developed by the Institute for Physical High Technology, Jena, with the participation of the Institute of Radio Engineering and Electronics, Russian Academy of Sciences (Ul’yanovsk Branch), is described. It can serve as a basis for development of fiber-optic measuring systems for strain and temperature monitoring. The device uses a broadband optical radiator and a miniature polychromator for a wavelength of ～800 nm as well as a digital signal-processing module based on an ADSP21062 processor. The measuring system allows simultaneous processing of signals from 19 fiber Bragg sensors, scanned with a period of <1 ms.