Evaluation of enhanced conduction-corrected modified effective temperature ETFe as the outdoor thermal environment evaluation index

The purpose of this paper is made to clarify that the relationship between the human physiological and psychological responses and the enhanced conduction-corrected modified effective temperature ETFe as the outdoor thermal environment evaluation index upon the human body. Environmental factors and human physiological and psychological responses were measured. It was made clear that the variables by which summer outdoor environmental factors influence the thermal sensation vote are heat conduction, humidity and short-wave solar radiation. The variables that affect the thermal comfort vote are air velocity, heat conduction and humidity. ETFe, into which the environmental factors that are the variables for human response are incorporated, showed good correspondence with the thermal sensation vote. Similarly, ETFe has a good correspondence with thermal comfort vote. The usage of ETFe as a thermal environment evaluation index for summer outdoor spaces is valid. The threshold for the human body with regards to thermal environment stimuli in an outdoor space is higher than the thermal environment stimuli in a summer indoor space.     

A blowdown cryogenic cavitation tunnel and CFD treatment for flow visualization around a foil

Cavitation is one of the major problems in the development of rocket engines. There have been few experimental studies to visualize cryogenic foil cavitation. Therefore a new cryogenic cavitation tunnel of blowdown type was built. The foil shape is "plano-convex". This profile was chosen because of simplicity, but also of being similar to the one for a rocket inducer impeller. Working fluids were water at room temperature, hot water and liquid nitrogen. In case of Angle of Attack (AOA)=8°, periodical cavity departure was observed in the experiments of both water at 90℃ and nitrogen at -190℃ under the same velocity 10 m/sec and the same cavitation number 0.7. The frequencies were observed to be 110 and 90 Hz, respectively, and almost coincided with those of vortex shedding from the foil. Temperature depression due to the thermodynamic effect was confirmed in both experiment and simulation especially in the cryogenic cavitation.     

Rheology and pressure filtration of aqueous SiC suspensions of nanometer-sized bimodal particles

The consolidation behavior of mixed SiC particles (30 and 800 nm diameters) at pH 7 was examined using a developed pressure filtration apparatus at a constant crosshead speed of a piston. The addition of 30 nm SiC to 800 nm SiC changed the rheological properties of colloidal suspension from Newtonian to pseudoplastic flow through Bingham flow with increasing amount of 30 nm SiC. A phase transition from a well dispersed suspension to a flocculated suspension occurred when the applied pressure exceeded a critical pressure (ΔP_tc). The ΔP_tc value decreased with increasing amount of 30 nm SiC. The packing density of bimodal SiC particles was analyzed based on the partial molar volume of each powder. The larger particles were more densely packed than the smaller particles in the mixed powder compact.     

Small-Molecule Activators of Glucose-6-phosphate Dehydrogenase (G6PD) Bridging the Dimer Interface

We recently identified AG1, a small-molecule activator that functions by promoting oligomerization of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) to the catalytically competent forms. Biochemical experiments indicate that the activation of G6PD by the original hit molecule (AG1) is noncovalent and that one C₂-symmetric region of the G6PD homodimer is important for ligand function. Consequently, the disulfide in AG1 is not required for activation of G6PD, and a number of analogues were prepared without this reactive moiety. Our study supports a mechanism of action whereby AG1 bridges the dimer interface at the structural nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADP⁺) binding sites of two interacting G6PD monomers. Small molecules that promote G6PD oligomerization have the potential to provide a first-in-class treatment for G6PD deficiency. This general strategy could be applied to other enzyme deficiencies in which control of oligomerization can enhance enzymatic activity and/or stability.     

Joining of Silicon Nitride by Local Heating for Fabrication of Long Ceramic Pipes

This study demonstrated that a long silicon nitride pipe of several meters with adequately strong joints can be fabricated by a local‐heating joining technique. Commercially available silicon nitride ceramic pipes sintered with Y₂O₃ and Al₂O₃ additives were used for parent material, and powder slurry of Si₃N₄‐Y₂O₃‐Al₂O₃‐SiO₂ system was brush‐coated on the rough or uneven end faces of the pipes. Joining was carried out by locally heating the joint region at different temperatures from 1500°C to 1650°C for 1 h with a mechanical pressure of 5 MPa in N₂ flow; using a horizontal electrical furnace specially designed for this experiment. The silicon nitride pipe 3‐m long was successfully fabricated without voids or cracks in the joint region, and the microstructure of the joint region was similar to that of the parent one. The joint strength was examined in flexure using specimens cut from the joined pipes, and those joined at 1600°C and 1650°C indicated the highest strength of about 680 MPa, which was almost the same as that of the parent material. This study also indicated that the slurry brush‐coating technique is advantageous to easily joining ceramic pipes with rough or uneven end faces, which is essentially important for practical use.     

Measurement of deuterium and helium by glow-discharge optical emission spectroscopy for plasma–surface interaction studies

To examine the resolution of isotope analysis of hydrogen with glow-discharge optical emission spectroscopy (GDOES), depth profiles of hydrogen and deuterium in a H-containing Ta/D-containing Ti/Ni layered structure were measured. The depth profiles of deuterium could be measured with sufficient resolution in the presence of relatively large amounts of hydrogen and vice versa. In addition, measurements of depth profiles of He implanted in W at room temperature were also performed with Ne plasma. The intensity of the He emissions was sufficiently high at a fluence of 10²⁰ He m^?2 or higher. The depth profiles of He measured in this manner were in good agreement with the results of cross-sectional observations using a transmission electron microscope. Therefore, it was concluded that GDOES with Ne plasma is a promising technique for the depth profile analysis of plasma-facing materials and deposited layers formed on them.     

Characterization of Scale Formed on the Surfaces of Toilet Bowls

Repeated use of a toilet results in the build-up of a deposit derived from urine and hard water on the surface of the toilet bowl. The hardened mineral scale is difficult to clean completely, especially in the case of deposits under the rim. A number of studies have focused on kidney stones, which are also caused by urine in the urinary tract; little attention, however, has been paid to the detailed composition and structure of the toilet scale. To develop powerful products for removing the toilet scale effectively instead of relying on acid-cleaning and scrubbing, the composition and the accumulation mechanism of the scale must be clarified. Scale samples collected from the bowl surface were characterized by IR, XRF, XRD, ICP–AES, SEM–EDS and HPLC techniques and found to consist mainly of calcium phosphates, struvite, calcium carbonate, uric acid and proteins. After acid treatment of the scale, a film-like structure of protein, produced as a result of the metabolism of bacteria and mold, was left behind. The scale had composite structures that were composed of the inorganic minerals and the organic materials listed above. This structure might be critical to making the scale resistant to removal by acid-containing cleaners.     

NMF effect on photosensitized charge separation using partially quaternized poly(1-vinylimidazole)-bound ruthenium(II) complexes

The solvent effects on the photosensitized charge separation using partially quaternized poly(1-vinylimidazole)-bound ruthenium(II) complexes (RuQPIm), in which bis(2,2′-bipyridine)ruthenium(II) complexes are coordinated to the imidazolyl residues on the poly(1-vinylimidazole) partially quaternized by 1-bromohexadecane and the degree of quaternization is 19 (RuQPIm-19) and 44 (RuQPIm-44) molar percentage, have been investigated in methanol and methanol–NMF (NMF: N-methylformamide). These systems consist of RuQPIm-19 and RuQPIm-44 as photosensitizers, 1,1′-dimethyl-4,4′-bipyridinium dication (MV²⁺) and 1,1′-didodecyl-4,4′-bipyridinium dication (C₁₂V²⁺) as electron acceptors, and triethanolamine (TEOA) as a sacrificial donor. The addition of NMF mainly affect the forward and back reactions in the charge separation reactions. In RuQPIm-19 systems, the reaction proceeds through an interactive process, which is through the viologen having π–π interaction for MV²⁺ and van der Waals interaction for C₁₂V²⁺. In contrast, the reaction proceeds through a direct process by MV²⁺ having no interaction and through an interactive process by C₁₂V²⁺ undergoing van der Waals interaction with the polymer for RuQPIm-44 systems. For MV²⁺, the rates of MV^·+ formation increased, although the quenching efficiency decreased with increasing NMF content for RuQPIm-19 and RuQPIm-44. These results are attributed to stabilization of MV^·+ species by π–π interaction for RuQPIm-19 and steric repulsion between MV^·+ species and RuQPIm-44; namely, the restriction of the back reactions by these effects. In contrast, for C₁₂V²⁺, the rates of C₁₂V^·+ formation decreased and the quenching efficiency increased with the addition of NMF. These are attributed to that the addition of NMF increases the van der Waals interaction of the C₁₂V²⁺ with these polymers and the diffusion of the C₁₂V^·+ species into the bulk solution; namely, the back reaction is accelerated. Furthermore, it is suggested that the conformational changes in these polymers contribute to the charge separation reaction.     

Prediction of apparent properties with uncertain material parameters using high‐order fictitious domain methods and PGD model reduction

This contribution presents a numerical strategy to evaluate the effective properties of image‐based microstructures in the case of random material properties. The method relies on three points: (1) a high‐order fictitious domain method; (2) an accurate spectral stochastic model; and (3) an efficient model‐reduction method based on the proper generalized decomposition in order to decrease the computational cost introduced by the stochastic model. A feedback procedure is proposed for an automatic estimation of the random effective properties with a given confidence. Numerical verifications highlight the convergence properties of the method for both deterministic and stochastic models. The method is finally applied to a real 3D bone microstructure where the empirical probability density function of the effective behaviour could be obtained. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Cutting characteristics of twist drill having cutting edges for drilling and reaming

In this study, the cutting characteristics of a drill reamer, which has conventional twist drill cutting edges appended for reaming, were investigated. A drill reamer has three types of cutting edges, whose roles are drilling, semi-finishing, and finishing. The cutting characteristics of a conventional twist drill were compared to those of the drill reamer. The cutting characteristics were evaluated using the thrust force, cutting torque, surface roughness, wear behavior of the cutting edges, and cutting edge temperature. The study used a workpiece made of carbon steel. The temperature of the cutting edge for reaming reached a maximum value of approximately 420°C, even though the depth of the cut was very small. The inner surface roughness with the drill reamer was superior to that with the conventional drill, even under dry and low-speed cutting conditions. The abrasive wear observed on the margin face of the cutting edge used for reaming.