NATURAL CONVECTION HEAT AND MASS TRANSFER FROM A VERTICAL FLAT PLATE WITH VARIABLE WALL TEMPERATURE AND CONCENTRATION TO POWER-LAW FLUIDS WITH YIELD STRESS IN A POROUS MEDIUM

The problem of natural convection coupled heat and mass transfer of non-Newtonian power law fluids with yield stress from a vertical flat plate in a fluid-saturated porous medium is analyzed under boundary layer approximations. Similarity solutions are obtained for the general case of power law variations of the wall temperature and concentration. Velocity, temperature, and concentration profiles as well as local heat and mass transfer rates are presented and discussed for different values of the rheological parameters of a power-law fluid, the Lewis number, and the thermal and concentration buoyancy ratio.     

Selective inhibition of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (HIV-1 RT) RNase H by small RNA hairpins and dumbbells

We present here the design of a novel class of RNA inhibitors of the RNase H domain of HIV-1 RT, a ribonuclease activity that is essential for viral replication in vivo. Specifically, we show that small RNA hairpins and dumbbells can selectively inhibit the RNase H activity of HIV-1 RT without affecting other cellular RNases H (e.g., E. coli and human RNase H). These results suggest that the inhibitors do not interact with the nucleic acid binding site of RT RNase H, as this region should be well conserved among the various enzymes. The most potent inhibitors displayed IC50 values in the 3-8 microM range. Remarkably, the DNA polymerase activity, an intrinsic property of HIV RT, was not inhibited by the hairpin and dumbbell aptamers, a property not previously observed for any nucleic acid aptamer directed against RT RNase H. The results described here suggest a noncompetitive binding mechanism, as outlined in the differential inhibitory characteristics of each of the nucleic acid aptamers against the bacterial, human, and viral RNase H homologues.     

Repair of heat-damaged RC shallow beams using advanced composites

Several repair techniques for restoring the structural capacity of heat-damaged high-strength reinforced concrete shallow beams using advanced composites are proposed. A series of 16 under-reinforced concrete hidden beams were cast, heated at 600°C for 3 h, repaired, and then tested under four point-loading. Tests were conducted to study the effectiveness of externally applied composite materials on increasing the flexural capacity of beams. The composites used include high strength fiber reinforced concrete jackets; ferrocement laminates; and high-strength fiber glass sheets. The beams repaired with steel and high performance polypropylene fiber reinforced concrete jackets regained up to 108 and 99% of the control beams’ ultimate load capacity, with a corresponding increase in stiffness of up to 104 and 98%, respectively. The beams repaired with fiber glass sheets and ferrocement meshes regained up to 126 and 99% of the control beams’ ultimate load capacity, with a corresponding increase in stiffness of up to 160 and 156%, respectively. Most of the beams repaired showed a typical flexural failure with very fine and well-distributed hairline cracks in the constant moment region.     

Nonlinear constitutive models for FRP composites using artificial neural networks

This paper presents a new approach to generate nonlinear and multi-axial constitutive models for fiber reinforced polymeric (FRP) composites using artificial neural networks (ANNs). The new nonlinear ANN constitutive models are complete and have been integrated with displacement-based FE software for the nonlinear analysis of composite structures. The proposed ANN constitutive models are trained with experimental data obtained from off-axis tension/compression and pure shear (Arcan) tests. The proposed ANN constitutive model is generated for plane–stress states with assumed functional response in some parts of the multi-axial stress space with no experimental data. The ability of the trained ANN models to predict material response is examined directly and through FE analysis of a notched composite plate. The experimental part of this study involved coupon testing of thick-section pultruded FRP E-glass/polyester material. Nonlinear response was pronounced including in the fiber direction due to the relatively low overall fiber volume fraction (FVF). Notched composite plates were also tested to verify the FE, with ANN material models, to predict general non-homogeneous responses at the structural level.     

Experimental and numerical analysis of delamination growth in double cantilever laminated beams

Delamination crack growth in laminated composites is investigated using experiments and finite element (FE) models. Tests are performed on cross-ply graphite/epoxy specimens under static conditions. The load-displacement response is monitored in the tested coupons along with crack length. The FE models employ a cohesive layer that is used to simulate the debonding and crack propagation. The cohesive parameters are calibrated from the experimental load-displacement curves. Crack growth and strain measurements are compared with those from the FE models. The predicted results from the FE models are in good agreement with the test results. The same modeling approach is also used to simulate crack propagation in the transverse direction of a notched laminate. The proposed FE analysis with cohesive layers can simplify fracture toughness assessment in multilayered specimens.     

Supporting visually impaired children with software agents in a multimodal learning environment

Visually impaired children have a great disadvantage in the modern society since their ability to use modern computer technology is limited due to inappropriate user interfaces. The aim of the work presented in this paper was to develop a multimodal software architecture and applications to support learning of visually impaired children. The software architecture is based on software agents, and has specific support for visual, auditory and haptic interaction. It has been used successfully with different groups of 7-8 year-old and 12 year-old visually impaired children. In this paper we discuss the enabling software technology and interaction techniques aimed to realize our goal and our experiences in the actual use of the system.     

Minimizing Wavelength Conversions in WDM Path Establishment*

This paper studies algorithms for connection establishment in wavelength division multiplexing networks. Although wavelength conversion capabilities are assumed at each node in the network, the goal of this research is to minimize or impose an upper bound on the number of wavelength conversions on the established path. Two types of schemes are investigated and compared. In the first scheme, the wavelengths are selected adaptively during path establishment on a given route, and in the second scheme, both the route and the wavelength assignment are selected optimally based on global information about path costs and wavelength availability in the network. We present two efficient algorithms for globally selecting routes and wavelengths, one finds the least cost route for a maximum number of wavelength conversions, and the other selects from among the shortest routes, the one with a minimum number of wavelength conversions. The results of comparing the two path establishment schemes show that, for dynamically changing traffic, the adaptive selection of wavelengths on a fixed route during path establishment is more beneficial than the optimal selection of the route and wavelengths prior to path establishment.     

Acoustic investigations on PbO-Al2O3-B2O3 glasses doped with certain rare earth ions

Elastic moduli (Y, η), Poisson’s ratio (σ), microhardness (H) and some thermodynamical parameters such as Debye temperature (θ_D), diffusion constant (D _i),latent heat of melting (ΔH _m) etc of PbO-Al₂O₃-B₂O₃ glasses doped with rare earth ions viz. Pr³⁺, Nd³⁺, Sm³⁺, Eu³⁺, Tb³⁺, Dy³⁺, Ho³⁺, Er³⁺ and Yb³⁺, are studied as functions of temperatures (in the temperature range 30–200°C) by ultrasonic techniques. All these parameters are found to increase with increasing atomic numberZ of the rare earth ions and found to decrease with increasing temperature of measurement. From these results (together with IR spectra of these glasses), an attempt is made to throw some light on the mechanical strength of these glasses.