Effect of orienting fields on agglomeration in dilute dispersions of magnetic fine particles

Static light scattering was used to investigate dilute dispersions of fine gamma -Fe/sub 2/O/sub 3/ magnetic particles. The particles were acicular and on average 0.39 mu m long and 0.056 mu m in diameter. They were dispersed in organic solvents at concentrations of approximately 10/sup -4/ vol%, corresponding to an average interparticle separation of 9 mu m. Computer programs using a coupled dipole algorithm to predict the scattering from the particles were written. Experimental results do not agree with computer calculations of the light scattering from single particles, but are consistent with scattering from thick ropelike agglomerates of particles. The size of these agglomerates was estimated after 10 s to be less than 100 particles, while the thickness of the ropes is at least 5 particles.<>     

A One-Dimensional Nonlocal Damage-Plasticity Model for Ductile Materials

This paper presents a new 1-D non-local damage-plasticity deformation model for ductile materials. It uses the thermodynamic framework described in Houlsby and Puzrin (2000) and holds, nevertheless, some similarities with Lemaitre’s (1971) approach. A 1D finite element (FE) model of a bar fixed at one end and loaded in tension at the other end is introduced. This simple model demonstrates how the approach can be implemented within the finite element framework, and that it is capable of capturing both the pre-peak hardening and post-peak softening (generally responsible for models instability) due to damage-induced stiffness and strength reduction characteristic of ductile materials. It is also shown that the approach has further advantages of achieving some degree of mesh independence, and of being able to capture deformation size effects. Finally, it is illustrated how the model permits the calculation of essential work of rupture (EWR), i.e. the specific energy per unit cross-sectional area that is needed to cause tensile failure of a specimen.     

Hydrogen adsorption studies in micro-size cobalt dots

Hydrogen desorption curves were obtained from a sample composed of a square arrangement of Co dots with average diameter of 4.4 μm, separated by a distance of 11.6 μm. A macroscopic sample of Co dots grown on a 2.5 × 2.5 cm Si substrate was made by standard lithographic techniques and used in these experiments. Thermal programmed desorption (TPD) was performed under ultra-high vacuum conditions. Hydrogen TPD curves were obtained from a 1 × 1 cm Co dots samples displaying a maximum of intensity at 425 K. Hydrogen TPD curve was also obtained from 1 cm× 1 cm samples of Co films and Co foils for comparison. The hydrogen TPD curves have decreasing intensity from the Co foils to the Co dots and finally to the Co films. This indicates that there are more sites for hydrogen adsorption on the Co dots than in the Co films. This is a surprising result because there is approximately 8.7 times less Co atoms exposed in the Co dots that in the Co film sample. A desorption energy of 27 kcal/mol was obtained for the Co dots suggesting that hydrogen is adsorbed on an hcp hollow site of the Co dot crystalline structure.     

The hypersonic environment: Required operating conditions and design challenges

Hypersonic flight powered by airbreathing engines offers the potential for faster response time at long ranges, and reduced cost for access-to-space. In the present paper the operating environment of typical hypersonic vehicles are discussed, including results for the radiation equilibrium wall temperature of external vehicle surfaces and the flow properties through three sample engines spanning the range of hydrocarbon-fueled Mach 4-8 flight and hydrogen-fueled flight at speeds up to Mach 17. Flow conditions at several locations through the sample engines were calculated to provide indications of the required operating flow environment. Additional system consideration such a seals, joints, vehicle integration and in-service engineering are addressed.     

From biological inspiration toward next-generation manipulators: manipulator control focused on human tasks

This paper presents our approach to extend the niche of behavior-based robotics toward manipulation. We use results from neuroscience to derive some qualitative design rules for the mechanics of the manipulator, resulting in a next-generation manipulator, the "soft arm". By defining the basic behaviors of the manipulator as trajectory-producing behaviors (which is also biologically plausible), we have designed a first test case: writing on a board with a mobile manipulator. The soft arm has not yet been developed; therefore, we have emulated such a soft robot arm on an industrial robot.     

Influence of the preparation conditions on the size and morphology of nanocrystalline lanthanum orthoferrite

Nanocrystalline LaFeO₃ is prepared by the dehydration of coprecipitated lanthanum and iron(III) hydroxides. It is shown that the behavior of the samples during heating and the size distribution of LaFeO₃ nanocrystals can be considerably different depending on the scheme used for coprecipitation of lanthanum and iron hydroxides; independently of the method employed for coprecipitation of the initial compounds, sintering of the samples at 950°C leads to the formation of lanthanum orthoferrite crystals up to 100 nm in size.     

Tunable laser-based design and analysis for fractional lambda switches

Fractional lambda switching (FlambdaS) is a novel approach for traffic management over all-optical networks with sub-wavelength provisioning capability. The unique characteristic of FlambdaS is the utilization of UTC (coordinated universal time) for switching with minimum or no buffers. Several central research issues are still open in FlambdaS and need to be formally defined and analyzed. In this paper, we introduce three novel switch designs that are based on the use of tunable lasers (which can be replaced in the future with wavelength converters). First, the paper presents analytical results of scheduling feasibility, which measures the total number of possible different schedules for each switch design. Then it is shown that the architecture with the highest scheduling feasibility is strictly non blocking in the space domain. Next, the paper provides a closed form analysis of the blocking probability in the time domain, which is applicable for any strictly non-space blocking switch, using combinatorics. In addition, the paper provides measures of the switching hardware complexity, which, for the strictly non-blocking architecture, has the same switching complexity as Clos interconnection network, i.e., O(N'radic(N')) where N' is the number of optical channels.     

Modelling the FEBEX THM experiment using a state surface approach

Buffer materials being considered as engineered barriers in nuclear fuel waste (NFW) disposal systems possess a pronounced nonlinear behaviour in the unsaturated state. In order to simulate such non-linear responses,the authors adopted an incrementally nonlinear poro-elastic approach where the coefficients of the governing equations are assumed to be functions of suction and the void ratio. These functions are in turn developed from a state-surface equation obtained from suction-controlled oedometric tests. In this paper we show the derivation of the governing equations of the poro-elastic model. A finite element computer code, FRACON, was developed by the authors to numerically solve the above equations. We first use the code to simulate laboratory tests to characterize the swelling properties of a typical bentonite. That same bentonite was used in the FEBEX in-situ heater experiment, conducted at the Grimsel site, Switzerland. The FRACON code was also used to perform blind predictions of the FEBEX heater experiment. It is shown that the model correctly predicts drying of the bentonite near the heaters and re-saturation near the rock interface. The evolution of temperature and the heater thermal output were also reasonably well predicted by the model. The trends in the total stresses developed in the bentonite were correctly predicted; the absolute values however were underestimated probably due to the omission of pore pressure build-up in the rock mass.     

Stability studies on methyl and ethyl fatty acid esters of sunflowerseed oil

Fatty acid esters, high in linoleic acid, were prepared and stored for long-term engine tests. Storage tests with these esters were undertaken to obtain more information on optimal storage requirements and general stability characteristics. Samples were kept at three temperature levels (20 C, 30 C and fluctuating around 50 C) for a 90-day period and were removed at regular intervals for chemical and physical analysis. The influence of air, temperature, light, TBHQ and contact with mild steel was evaluated by comparing the free fatty acid, peroxide, anisidine, ultraviolet absorption, viscosity and induction periods. A statistical model was used to evaluate the data and to reduce the large number of data points to comparable curves. Storage of esters in contact with air, especially at a temperature above 30 C, resulted in significant increases in peroxide, ultraviolet absorption, free fatty acid, viscosity and anisidine values. Exclusion of air retarded oxidation at all temperature levels. A direct relationship between viscosity increases and oxidation parameters was evident. Exposure to light caused a small increase in the oxidation parameters of esters stored at the highest temperature level. Addition of TBHQ prevented oxidation of samples stored under moderate conditions. Under unfavorable storage conditions the anti-oxidant was no longer effective. Mild steel had very little effect on the oxidation parameters. Only the anisidine values of samples stored at the highest temperature level were slightly increased. Methyl esters performed slightly better than ethyl esters during the storage test. The following practical guidelines for storage of fatty acid ester fuels are: (i) airtight containers should be used; (ii) the storage temperature should be <30 C; (iii) mild steel (rust free) containers may be used, and (iv) TBHQ has a beneficial effect on oxidation stability.