Chalcogenide Thermoelectrics Empowered by an Unconventional Bonding Mechanism

Thermoelectric materials have attracted significant research interest in recent decades due to their promising application potential in interconverting heat and electricity. Unfortunately, the strong coupling between the material parameters that determine thermoelectric efficiency, i.e., the Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity, and thermal conductivity, complicates the optimization of thermoelectric energy converters. Main‐group chalcogenides provide a rich playground to alleviate the interdependence of these parameters. Interestingly, only a subgroup of octahedrally coordinated chalcogenides possesses good thermoelectric properties. This subgroup is also characterized by other outstanding characteristics suggestive of an exceptional bonding mechanism, which has been coined metavalent bonding. This conclusion is further supported by a map that separates different bonding mechanisms. In this map, all octahedrally coordinated chalcogenides with good performance as thermoelectrics are located in a well‐defined region, implying that the map can be utilized to identify novel thermoelectrics. To unravel the correlation between chemical bonding mechanism and good thermoelectric properties, the consequences of this unusual bonding mechanism on the band structure are analyzed. It is shown that features such as band degeneracy and band anisotropy are typical for this bonding mechanism, as is the low lattice thermal conductivity. This fundamental understanding, in turn, guides the rational materials design for improved thermoelectric performance by tailoring the chemical bonding mechanism.     

Weissella cibaria short-fermented liquid sourdoughs based on quinoa or amaranth flours as fat replacer in focaccia bread formulation

Production of the traditional Italian Focaccia bread (FcBread) requires reformulation to meet the new rules for healthier foods. We tested the applicability of a short-fermented (15 h) liquid sourdough (LS) (dough yield, DY, 250), obtained using quinoa (Q) or amaranth (Am) flour fermented with a Weissella cibaria strain (C43-11) producing exopolysaccharides (EPS) as fat replacer in yeast-leavened FcBread. The LSs were applied during the FcBread-making process at industrial pilot plant, reducing the added fat amount by 20% (FcBread-QLS and FcBread-AmLS) and products were compared with reference samples not containing EPS. All the products were analysed for physico-chemical properties (pH, TTA, organic acids, protein content and profile, instrumental colour), textural properties, sensory quality and glycemic index. The application of both pseudo-cereal-based W. cibaria LSs in FcBread allowed obtaining products with a reduced amount of fat, increased protein amount, mainly due to the albumin and glutenin/glutelin fractions, reduced glycemic index, improved texture and preserved in the traditional sensory profile of ‘focaccia’.     

Design and manufacturing of anti-intrusion bars made of aluminium foam filled tubes

The role of an anti-intrusion bar for automotive use is to absorb the kinetic energy of the colliding vehicles that is partially converted into internal work of the members involved in the crash. The aim of this paper is to investigate the performances of anti-intrusion bars, made by tubes filled with aluminium foams. The reason for using a cellular material as a filler deals with its capacity to absorb energy during plastic deformation, while being lightweight. The study is mainly conducted by evaluating some key technical issues of the manufacturing problem and by running experimental and numerical analyses. The evaluation of materials and shapes of the closed sections to be filled is made in the perspective of a car manufacturer (production costs, weight reduction, space availability in a car door, etc.). Experimentally, foams are produced starting from an industrial aluminium precursor with a TiH₂ blowing agent. Empty and foam filled tubes are tested in three point bending, in order to evaluate their performances in terms of several performance parameters. Different manufacturing conditions, geometries and tube materials are investigated. The option of using hydroformed tubes, with non constant cross section, for the production of foam filled side structures id also discussed.     

Near-infrared spectroscopy to assist authentication and labeling of Asiago d’allevo cheese

This study investigated the possibility of using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) for the authentication of Asiago d’allevo, a protected designation of origin cheese from northern Italy. Latent variable models applied on spectral data were developed and used to estimate several chemical properties and to classify the available dataset according to the location and management of the cheesemaking factory (lowland and alpine), the ripening age (6, 12, 18 and 36 months), the altitude of milk production (low, medium, medium–high and high), and the period of the year of the cheese production (May, July and September). The variable importance in projection index was used to identify the most informative spectral regions for discrimination. Results showed that NIR spectra can be used both to accurately estimate several chemical properties and to classify the samples according to the different experimental conditions under investigation with the same discrimination capacity provided by traditional chemical analysis.     

3D geometry reconstruction from orthographic views: A method based on 3D image processing and data fitting

Industrial esthetic designers typically produce hand-drawn sketches in the form of orthographic projections. A subsequent translation from 2D-drawings to 3D-models is usually necessary. This involves a considerably time consuming process, so that some automation is advisable.     

Modeling and control of an airbrake electro‐hydraulic smart actuator

In this paper, an accurate model of an airbrake electro‐hydraulic smart actuator is obtained by physical considerations, and then different control strategies (variable‐gain proportional control, PT₁ control with switching integrator, and second order sub‐optimal sliding mode control) are proposed and analyzed. This application is innovative in the avionic field, and is one of the first attempts to realize a fly‐by‐wire system for airbrakes, oriented to its immediate employment and installation on current aircraft. The project was carried on with the participation of the Italian Ministry of Defense, and was commissioned to MAG, a leading provider of integrated systems and aviation services for aerospace. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley and Sons Asia Pte Ltd and Chinese Automatic Control Society     

Anisotropic deformation for local shape control

Computational Visual Media - We present a novel approach to mesh deformation that enables simple context sensitive manipulation of 3D geometry. The method is based on locally anisotropic...