Active vibration control of piezolaminated stiffened plates

The aim of this work is to present active vibration control of stiffened plates. A stiffened plate finite element with piezoelectric effects is formulated. The characteristic feature of the stiffener is that it can have any shape in plan and need not pass through the nodal lines of the finite element mesh. The coupling between the direct and the converse piezoelectric effects is neglected for simplicity. A velocity feedback algorithm is employed in the active control. Numerical examples for vibration control of isotropic and orthotropic stiffened plates have been presented.     

A data mining approach for machine fault diagnosis based on associated frequency patterns

Bearings play a crucial role in rotational machines and their failure is one of the foremost causes of breakdowns in rotary machinery. Their functionality is directly relevant to the operational performance, service life and efficiency of these machines. Therefore, bearing fault identification is very significant. The accuracy of fault or anomaly detection by the current techniques is not adequate. We propose a data mining-based framework for fault identification and anomaly detection from machine vibration data. In this framework, to capture the useful knowledge from the vibration data stream (VDS), we first pre-process the data using Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to extract the frequency signature and then build a compact tree called SAFP-tree (sliding window associated frequency pattern tree), and propose a mining algorithm called SAFP. Our SAFP algorithm can mine associated frequency patterns (i.e., fault frequency signatures) in the current window of VDS and use them to identify faults in the bearing data. Finally, SAFP is further enhanced to SAFP-AD for anomaly detection by determining the normal behavior measure (NBM) from the extracted frequency patterns. The results show that our technique is very efficient in identifying faults and detecting anomalies over VDS and can be used for remote machine health diagnosis.     

Frequency domain modelling of random wound motor windings for insulation stress analysis

The use of conventional low voltage induction motors fed by pulse width modulated (PWM) inverters has begun to present important problems. These waveforms consist of steep-fronted pulses having very short rise times (about 100 ns in modern IGBT bridges) and high frequency repetition rates (up to 20 kHz) whose immediate consequences are additional electrical stresses in an induction motors insulation system. In this paper a frequency domain model for the analysis and characterization of the internal voltage distribution in random wound coils is presented. The model allows voltage prediction in time domain when an inverse fast Fourier transform (FFT) transformation is performed, and requires only a few frequency domain impedance measurements. This methodology will be useful for accurately predicting the voltage distribution in motor windings during the design stage, and reducing the risk of premature failure in motor insulation. Experimental and theoretical results are presented and compared and model effectiveness using different approximations is studied.     

Enhanced photoluminescence from free-standing microstructures fabricated on MBE grown PbSe–PbSrSe MQW structure

Fabrication of microrods from multi-quantum well (MQW) PbSe–PbSrSe structure grown in molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) followed by its morphological as well as optical characterizations are described. Pulsed PL intensity is increased by 64 times per unit surface area from a free-standing MQW microrod mounted on copper heat sink compared with the bulk sample. Enhancement in side emission power due to the higher optical confinement effect during pulsed photoluminescence (PL) from MQW semiconductor microtube inserted in hollow quartz optical fiber signifies that these microstructures are robust in nature and crucial contenders for portable mid-infrared optoelectronic devices to be used in the field of industrial trace-gas sensing.     

Some principles for designing a wide-area WDM optical network

We explore design principles for next-generation optical wide-area networks, employing wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) and targeted to nationwide coverage. This optical network exploits wavelength multiplexers and optical switches in routing nodes, so that an arbitrary virtual topology may be embedded on a given physical fiber network. The virtual topology, which is used as a packet-switched network and which consists of a set of all-optical “lightpaths”, is set up to exploit the relative strengths of both optics and electronics-viz. packets of information are carried by the virtual topology “as far as possible” in the optical domain, but packet forwarding from lightpath to lightpath is performed via electronic switching, whenever required. We formulate the virtual topology design problem as an optimization problem with one of two possible objective functions: (1) for a given traffic matrix, minimize the network-wide average packet delay (corresponding to a solution for present traffic demands), or (2) maximize the scale factor by which the traffic matrix can be scaled up (to provide the maximum capacity upgrade for future traffic demands). Since simpler versions of this problem have been shown to be NP-hard, we resort to heuristic approaches. Specifically, we employ an iterative approach which combines “simulated annealing” (to search for a good virtual topology) and “flow deviation” (to optimally route the traffic-and possibly bifurcate its components-on the virtual topology). We do not consider the number of available wavelengths to be a constraint, i.e., we ignore the routing of lightpaths and wavelength assignment for these lightpaths. We illustrate our approaches by employing experimental traffic statistics collected from NSFNET     

Si/SiC-based DD hetero-structure IMPATTs as MM-wave power-source: a generalized large-signal analysis

A full-scale, self-consistent, non-linear, large-signal model of double-drift hetero-structure IMPATT diode with general doping profile is derived. This newly developed model, for the first time, has been used to analyze the large-signal characteristics of hexagonal SiC-based double-drift IMPATT diode. Considering the fabrication feasibility, the authors have studied the large-signal characteristics of Si/SiC-based hetero-structure devices. Under small-voltage modulation (～ 2%, i.e. small-signal conditions) results are in good agreement with calculations done using a linearised small-signal model. The large-signal values of the diode's negative conductance (5 × 10⁶S/m²), susceptance (10.4 × 10⁷ S/m^2}), average breakdown voltage (207.6 V), and power generating efficiency (15%, RF power: 25.0 W at 94 GHz) are obtained as a function of oscillation amplitude (50% of DC breakdown voltage) for a fixed average current density. The large-signal calculations exhibit power and efficiency saturation for large-signal (> 50%) voltage modulation and thereafter decrease gradually with further increasing voltage-modulation. This generalized large-signal formulation is applicable for all types of IMPATT structures with distributed and narrow avalanche zones. The simulator is made more realistic by incorporating the space-charge effects, realistic field and temperature dependent material parameters in Si and SiC. The electric field snap-shots and the large-signal impedance and admittance of the diode with current excitation are expressed in closed loop form. This study will act as a guide for researchers to fabricate a high-power Si/SiC-based IMPATT for possible application in high-power MM-wave communication systems.     

Pinch Roller Failure Analysis and Resulting Enhancement of Rebar Mechanical Properties

Reinforcing bars, popularly termed “rebars,” are used to impart tensile strength to concrete structures. Concrete has high resistance to weathering and fire and high compressive strength but almost no tensile strength, hence rebars are used to provide the latter to concrete. Property consistency along the length of rebars is an important prerequisite. When the finished product is subjected to thermomechanical treatment (TMT), proper control of rolling and water box parameters and efficient pinch rolling are needed to achieve acceptable properties. Variation of yield strength (YS) along TMT bars from the front to back end has been observed within the same heat treatment. In the presented investigation, it was observed that pinch rolling ineffectiveness is the main reason for the poor mechanical properties at the back end. The pinch roller was unable to support the back end of the TMT bars properly to maintain the speed and tension of the bars, resulting in nonuniform cooling of the back end through the water box and subsequent mechanical property failure. Due to the substandard material of the pinch roller, it was unable to hold the back end of the bar properly. Based on analysis of the roller it was concluded that it failed due to improper microstructure, resulting in inadequate hardness and toughness for the stringent operating conditions. AISI H13 is a better material to use in such high-service-temperature conditions. Moreover, proper heat treatment is needed to achieve adequate hardness and microstructure properties. After proper heat treatment of pinch rollers, their service life was increased twofold, minimizing the YS variation along the rebars.     

Cytochrome P450 inhibitory potential of selected Indian spices — possible food drug interaction

Spices constitute an important group of food which is virtually indispensable in the culinary art. In a view, these spices feared to pose a probability to affect the disposition of conventional pharmaceuticals through inhibition of human cytochrome P450 (CYPs) enzymes. In the present study an approach has been made to evaluate the possible CYP inhibition potential with some Indian spices (Capsicum annuum, Murraya koenigii, Zingiber officinale) and their major bioactive compounds, in combination with pooled microsome; as well as commercially available recombinant human CYP3A4, CYP2D6, CYP2C9 and CYP1A2. Quantification of the bioactive compound was determined through RP-HPLC, in order to standardize the plant material. CYP–carbon monoxide (CYP–CO) complex assay result indicated that all the plants and their bioactive compounds have an interaction potential with CYPs. Fluoregenic assay results indicated that the spice extracts have higher inhibition potential comparing to their single bioactive molecule. The higher enzyme inhibition potential by the extracts may be related to the synergistic effects due to the presence of other constituents in the extract. Capsaicin and C. annuum showed the lowest IC₅₀ value and 6-gingerol and Z. officinale extract showed the highest IC₅₀ value among the entire sample tested. The entire sample showed significantly less (P < 0.001, P < 0.01) interaction potential than known inhibitors. These findings indicate that selected spices are unlikely to cause clinically relevant drug interactions involving the inhibition of major CYP isozymes.     

An adaptive penalty function-based maximin desirability index for close tolerance multiple-response optimization problems

Simultaneous optimization of multiple-quality characteristics and determining the process settings is a critical and difficult task for practitioners. Such types of problems are generally referred to as “multiple-response optimization” problems. To handle high-dimensional multiple-response problems, a popular strategy, using desirability functions, is recommended by various researchers. Various types of desirability index functions are recommended to convert multiple scale-free desirability measures to a single composite desirability (or single objective) value. Thus, the objective is then to maximize the single composite desirability for a specific problem. In this paper, a new adaptive penalty function-based “maximin” desirability index is proposed, which provide superior solution as compared to existing maximin approach, for close (or tight) engineering tolerances of response characteristics. The superiority was proved based on statistical comparison using varied case situations and different swarm intelligent search strategies.