A benchmark on the calculation of kinetic parameters based on reactivity effect experiments in the CROCUS reactor

Measurements in the CROCUS reactor at EPFL, Lausanne, are reported for the critical water level and the inverse reactor period for several different sets of delayed supercritical conditions. The experimental configurations were also calculated by four different calculation methods. For each of the supercritical configurations, the absolute reactivity value has been determined in two different ways, viz.: (i) through direct comparison of the multiplication factor obtained employing a given calculation method with the corresponding value for the critical case (calculated reactivity: ρ_calc); (ii) by application of the inhour equation using the kinetic parameters obtained for the critical configuration and the measured inverse reactor period (measured reactivity: ρ_meas). The calculated multiplication factors for the reference critical configuration, as well as ρ_calc for the supercritical cases, are found to be in good agreement. However, the values of ρ_meas produced by two of the applied calculation methods differ appreciably from the corresponding ρ_calc values, clearly indicating deficiencies in the kinetic parameters obtained from these methods.     

Removal of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) using low pressure reverse osmosis membrane (LPROM).

Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are the focus of current environmental issues, as they can cause adverse health effects to animals and human, subsequent to endocrine function. The objective of this study was to remove a specific compound of EDCs (i.e. pentachlorophenol, C(6)OCL(5)Na, molecular weight of 288 g/mol) using low pressure reverse osmosis membrane (LPROM). A cross flow module of LPROM was used to observe the effects of operating parameters, i.e. pH, operating pressure and temperature. The design of the experiment was based on MINITAB(TM) software, and the analysis of results was conducted by factorial analysis. It was found that the rejection of pentachlorophenol was higher than 80% at a recovery rate of 60 to 70%. The rejection was subjected to increase with the increase of pH. The flux was observed to be increased with the increase of operating pressure and temperature. This study also investigated the interaction effects between operating parameters involved.     

The prediction of solute transport in surcharged manholes using CFD.

Solute transport processes occur within a wide range of water engineering structures, and urban drainage engineers increasingly rely on modelling tools to represent the transport of dissolved materials. The models take as input representative travel time and dispersion characteristics for key system components, and these generally have to be identified via field or laboratory measurements. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) has the potential to reveal the underlying hydraulic processes that control solute transport, and to provide a generic means of identifying relevant parameter values. This paper reports on a study that has been undertaken to evaluate the feasibility of utilising a CFD-based approach to modelling solute transport. Discrete phase modelling has been adopted, as this is computationally efficient and robust when compared with the time-dependent solution of the advection-dispersion equation. Simulation results are compared with published laboratory data characterising the dispersion effects of surcharged manholes, focusing specifically on an 800 mm diameter laboratory manhole for a flowrate of 0.002 m(3)/s and a range of surcharge depths. Preliminary indications are that the CFD results adequately replicate the measured downstream temporal concentration profiles, and that a threshold surcharge depth, corresponding to a change in hydraulic regime within the manhole, can also be identified.     

Qualitätssicherung bei Gemüse am Beispiel von Erzeugergroßmärkten

Zusammenfassung. Durch ein von Erzeugern und Vermarktern getragenes regionales Qualit?tssicherungsprogramm bei Gemüse konnten H?chstmengenüberschreitungen innerhalb von 5 Jahren um vier Fünftel gesenkt und entsprechend die Verkehrsf?higkeit der vermarkteten Partien erh?ht werden. Durch eine optimal organisierte Probenahme bereits vor der Ernte und Analytik innerhalb von zwei Tagen waren nicht vermarktungsf?hige Partien rechtzeitig zu erkennen. Die Nutzung der Analysenergebnisse als Beratungsinstrument durch Markt, Erzeuger und Beratung haben zu diesem Erfolg geführt.     

Measurement of the relative reduction of strip on the 1200-model temper-rolling mills in flat-rolled products shop No. 3

The temper-rolling mills in flat-rolled products shop No. 3 at the MMK has been equipped with the Vytyazhka automated system to measure the elongation of strip (ASEMS) rolled on the mill. The elongation (relative elongation) of the strip is determined through a frequency-based method of measuring the speed of the strip before and after reduction. The system transmits and displays information on the temper-rolling of each coil. The information is shown as a diagram on the monitor of an industrial computer. The reliability of the system allows it to be in continuous use. Introduction of the automated elongation measurement system makes it possible to monitor the reductions being made during temperrolling, which in turn enables the shop to reduce the number of products having properties that do not meet customers’ requirements. __________ Translated from Metallurg, No. 1, pp. 62–63, January, 2007.     

Measurement and modeling of the sidewall threshold voltage ofmesa-isolated SOI MOSFETs

Five-terminal silicon-on-insulator (SOI) MOSFETs have been characterized to determine the threshold voltage at the front, back, and sidewall as a function of the body bias. The threshold voltage shift with the body bias at the front and back interfaces can be explained by the standard bulk body effect equation. However, the threshold voltage shift at the sidewall is smaller than predicted by this equation and saturates at large body biases. This anomalous behavior is explained by two-dimensional charge sharing between the sidewall and the front and back interfaces. An analytical model that accounts for this charge sharing by a simple trapezoidal approximation of the depletion regions and correctly predicts the sidewall threshold voltage shift and its saturation is discussed. The model makes it possible to measure the sidewall threshold even when it is larger than the front threshold voltage     

An assessment of the θ-projection method for the representation and extrapolation of creep data for a 1%Cr, 12%Mo, 14%V steel tested at 565°C

Constant stress creep data for a wrought 1%Cr, $\text{1}\text{2}\text{\%}\text{Mo}$, $\text{1}\text{4}\text{\%}\text{V}$ steel obtained from six tests carried out at 565°C have been fitted and extrapolated using the θ-projection method. Creep curves for high stresses were fitted well, but curves extrapolated to stress levels below those used in the θ-projection did not represent well the available data for primary-secondary creep. To enable a satisfactory extrapolation of results, it was found necessary to redefine the failure condition to be less sensitive to the shape of the latter sections of the tertiary creep curve. This was achieved by defining lifetime as the point on the curve at which the strain rate reached a fixed multiple of the creep rate at half the rupture time. The extrapolated data compare well with the results of tests carried out independently on a cast 1%Cr, $\text{1}\text{2}\text{\%}\text{Mo}$, $\text{1}\text{4}\text{\%}\text{V}$ steel. The extrapolation procedure not only predicts the ‘knee’ in the log stress-log lifetime curve but allows extrapolation of lifetimes by over a factor of thirty. In addition, acceptable predictions have been made of constant load experimental data.     

An efficient heuristic for scheduling batches of parts in a flexible flow system

Flexible manufacturing systems (FMSs) are a class of automated systems that can be used to improve productivity in batch manufacturing. Four stages of decision making have been defined for an FMS—the design, planning, scheduling, and control stages. This research focuses on the planning stage, and specifically in the area of scheduling batches of parts through the system.The literature to date on the FMS planning stage has mostly focused on the machine grouping, tool loading, and parttype selection problems. Our research carries the literature a step further by addressing the problem of scheduling batches of parts. Due to the use of serial-access material-handling systems in many FMSs, the batch-scheduling problem is modeled for a flexible flow system (FFS). This model explicitly accounts for setup times between batches that are dependent on their processing sequence.A heuristic procedure is developed for this batch-scheduling problem—the Maximum Savings (MS) heuristic. The MS heuristic is based upon the savings in time associated with a particular sequence and selecting the one with the maximum savings. It uses a two-phase method, with the savings being calculated in phase I, while a branch-and-bound procedure is employed to seek the best heuristic solution in phase II. Extensive computational results are provided for a wide variety of problems. The results show that the MS heuristic provides good-quality solutions.     

Preliminary model of the Ribeira Grande geothermal field (Azores Islands)

On the basis of a geological - volcanological - geophysical survey, integrated with petrological and geochronological data, a structural model, including a shallow magmatic body, was defined for the Ribeira Grande area, Sao Miguel island (Azores). Two series of production tests were carried out in the Pico Vermelho 1 and Ribeira Grande 1 wells, which led to a preliminary definition of the deep fluid circulation. The data obtained from these studies were used to reconstruct a preliminary model of the Ribeira Grande geothermal field.