Benchmark results on the linearized equations of motion of an uncontrolled bicycle

In this paper we present the linearized equations of motion for a bicycle as, a benchmark The results obtained by pencil-and-paper and two programs are compaied The bicycle model we consider here consists of four rigid bodies, viz a rear frame, a front frame being the front fork and handlebar assembly, a rear wheel and a fiont wheel, which are connected by revolute joints The contact between the knife-edge wheels and the flat level surface is modelled by holonomic constiaints in the normal direction and by non-holonomic constraints in the longitudinal and lateral direction The rider is rigidly attached to the rear frame with hands free from the handlebar This system has three degrees of freedom, the roll, the steer, and the forward speed For the benchmark we consider the linearized equations for small perturbations of the upright steady forward motion The entries of the matrices of these equations form the basis for comparison Three diffrent kinds of methods to obtain the results are compared pencil-and-paper, the numeric multibody dynamics program SPACAR, and the symbolic software system AutoSim Because the results of the three methods are the same within the machine round-off error, we assume that the results are correct and can be used as a bicycle dynamics benchmark     

Structure–properties investigations in hydrophilic nanocomposites based on polyurethane/poly(2–hydroxyethyl methacrylate) semi‐interpenetrating polymer networks and nanofiller densil for biomedical application

Nanocomposites based on sequential semi–interpenetrating polymer networks (semi–IPNs) of crosslinked polyurethane and linear poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) filled with 1–15 wt % of nanofiller densil were prepared and investigated. Nanofiller densil used in an attempt to control the microphase separation of the polymer matrix by polymer–filler interactions. The morphology (SAXS, AFM), mechanical properties (stress–strain), thermal transitions (DSC) and polymer dynamics (DRS, TSDC) of the nanocomposites were investigated. Special attention has been paid to the raising of the hydration properties and the dynamics of water molecules in the nanocomposites in the perspective of biomedical applications. Nanoparticles were found to aggregate partially for higher than 3 and 5 wt % filler loading in semi–IPNs with 17 and 37 wt % PHEMA, respectively. The results show that the good hydration properties of the semi–IPN matrix are preserved in the nanocomposites, which in combination with results of thermal and dielectric techniques revealed also the existence of polymer–polymer and polymer–filler interactions. These interactions results also in the improvement of physical and mechanical properties of the nanocomposites in compare with the neat matrix. The improvement of mechanical properties in combination with hydrophilicity and biocompatibility of nanocomposites are promising for use these materials for biomedical application namely as surgical films for wound treatment and as material for producing the medical devises. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016 , 133, 43122.     

The effect of low‐filler volume fraction on the elastic modulus and thermal expansion coefficient of particulate composites simulated by a multiphase model

The aim of this investigation is to determine the effect of low‐filler volume fraction on the elastic modulus and the thermal expansion coefficient of particulate composites. In the theoretical part, theoretical model valid for low‐filler volume fractions is used to evaluate these two magnitudes. In the experimental part, low‐percentage filler contents of 3, 5, 7, and 10% are used. The density for these epoxy resin‐iron particle composites is also determined. At the same time, an attempt to explain some of the disagreements observed between theoretical values and experimental data on a qualitative basis is also made. This attempt is in part assisted by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations concerning structural inhomogeneities and fractographical data. The comparison of the theoretical values derived from the present model with experimental results and with theoretical values derived from other workers appears satisfactory in many cases, but in some others the discrepancies among them are considerable. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

Hydrogen production from allothermal biomass gasification by means of palladium membranes

One of the most promising technologies for the production of hydrogen is the use of a Palladium Membrane in order to separate hydrogen from a gas mixture coming from the allothermal biomass gasification process. At the TU München, an innovative allothermal gasifier called Biomass Heat Pipe Reformer (BioHPR) has been developed. This gasifier produces a hydrogen rich gas which can be further used for energy production. A Palladium Membrane can be installed in the gasifier in order to gain pure hydrogen from this gas mixture. This gas can be then used in applications which demand high purified hydrogen like for example Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFC). The present paper describes the aforementioned gasification technology combined with a palladium filter and investigates the results from the simulation of these systems.     

Yield response and nitrogen utilization efficiency by drip-irrigated potato

Two field experiments were conducted in the Jordan Valley to evaluate potato response to N fertigation. Nitrogen as ammonium sulphate was supplied through irrigation water (fertigation) at rates of 0, 35, 70 and 105 mg N l^-1. Soil N application treatment equivalent to the fertigation treatment of 70 mg N l^-1 was included. ¹⁵N labelled ammonium sulphate was used to evaluate the N recovery and utilization efficiency. Yield increased by the N rate. The soil N application gave higher yield than the zero N and lower than the fertigated treatments. The increase in yield was due to the increase in the size of the tubers. The specific gravity was the highest with the zero N. The index ratios of potato tubers were similar with all treatments. The N derived from fertilizers by both tubers and shoots, increased with the N rate regardless of the method of application. The soil application treatments had fertilizer utilization as high as the fertigation treatments and produced total tuber yield not significantly different from that obtained by the fertigation treatment with similar rate. This might be attributed to the poor fertilizer distribution in the root zone in the fine textured soil. The low value of the fertilizer utilization of the plant receiving the ¹⁵N in the preceding season suggested possibilities of rapid transformation and immobilization by the soil microorganisms.     

Evaluation of an attached sunspace without sun protection: How feasible is this approach in mediterranean summer conditions?

The use of attached sunspaces has become popular throughout Europe both for energy and for architectural reasons. This applies particularly in Southern Europe and in the Mediterranean, where sunspaces are habitable over long periods of the year. The danger of overheating during summer is, however, not to be underestimated, as the results of a long-term measurement of such a sunspace shows. The indoor climate conditions monitored seem to confirm that, without a sun-protection scheme, satisfactory comfort conditions are difficult to establish. Still, with appropriate ventilation the resulting cooling loads can be reduced to acceptable levels, which, when considering the heating period, can lead to an overall positive result.     

Optimization methodology of dynamic data structures based on genetic algorithms for multimedia embedded systems

Modern multimedia application exhibit high resource utilization. In order to efficiently run this kind of applications in embedded systems, the dynamic memory subsystem needs to be optimized. A key role in this optimization is played by the dynamic data structures that reside in every real-life application. This paper presents a novel and automated way to optimize dynamic data structures. The search space is pruned using genetic algorithms that converge to the best multilayered data structure implementation for the targeted applications.     

Low-frequency scattering from perfectly conducting spheroidal bodies in a conductive medium with magnetic dipole excitation

Inductive electromagnetic means that are currently employed in the exploration of the Earth’s subsurface and embedded voluminous bodies often call for an intensive use, primary at the modeling stage and later on at the inversion stage, of analytically demanding tools of field calculation. Under the aim of modeling implementation, this contribution is concerned with some interesting aspects of the low-frequency interaction of arbitrarily orientated (i.e. three-dimensional) time-harmonic magnetic dipoles, with 3-D perfectly conducting spheroidal bodies embedded in an otherwise homogeneous conductive medium. For many practical applications involving buried obstacles such as Earth’s subsurface electromagnetic probing at low-frequency or any other physical cases (e.g. geoelectromagnetics), non-axisymmetric spheroidal geometry approximates sufficiently such kind of metallic shapes. On the other hand, our analytical approach deals with prolate spheroids, since the corresponding results for the oblate spheroidal geometry can be readily obtained through a simple transformation. The particular physical model concerns a solid impenetrable (metallic) body under a magnetic dipole excitation, where the scattering boundary value problem is attacked via rigorous low-frequency expansions for the incident, scattered and total electric and magnetic fields in terms of positive integral powers of (ik), that is (ik)ⁿ for n ? 0, where k stands for the complex wavenumber of the exterior medium. The purpose of the modeling is to contribute to a simple yet versatile tool to infer information on an unknown body from measurements of the three-component electric and magnetic fields nearby. Our goal is to obtain the most important terms of the low-frequency expansions of the electromagnetic fields, that is the static (for n = 0) and the dynamic (n = 1, 2, 3) terms. In particular, for n = 1 there are no incident fields and thus no scattered ones, while for n = 0 the Rayleigh electromagnetic expression is easily obtained in terms of infinite series. Emphasis is given on the calculation of the next two non-trivial terms (at n = 2 and at n = 3) of the aforementioned fields. Consequently, those are found in closed form from exact solutions of coupled (at n = 2, to the one at n = 0) or uncoupled (at n = 3) Laplace equations and they are given in compact fashion, as infinite series expansions for n = 2 or finite forms for n = 3. Nevertheless, the difficulty of the Poisson’s equation that has to be solved for n = 2 is presented, whereas our analytical approach demands the use of the well-known cut-off method in order to obtain an analytical closed solution. Finally, this research adds useful reference results to the already ample library of scattering by simple shapes using analytical methods.     

Cost and Land Functions for Wastewater Treatment Projects: Typical Simple Linear Regression versus Fuzzy Linear Regression

This paper analyzes cost data pertinent to the municipal wastewater treatment plants (MWTP) in Greece. First, data have been collected with onsite visits and contain the land size necessary for a MWTP, the construction cost, and the operation and maintenance cost of existing wastewater treatment facilities. Second, they come from analytical budgeting of natural wastewater treatment system units. Twelve equations of the form ln?Yi = A0i+A1i?ln?Xi are estimated both with ordinary least squares (OLS) and fuzzy linear regression (FLR). The root mean square error and the mean absolute error are used as fitting measures for the comparison of the OLS with the fuzzy estimations. It is shown that the FLR did produce very similar estimates but slightly inferior to those of OLS in most of the cases for these particular datasets.