Direct Application of Rep‐PCR on Type I Sourdough Matrix to Monitor the Dominance and Persistence of a Lactobacillus plantarum Starter Throughout Back‐Slopping

This study describes the optimization and application of repetitive element‐PCR (rep‐PCR) technique directly on microbial DNA extracted from type I sourdoughs for fast monitoring of a Lb. plantarum starter strain (P1FMC) throughout daily back‐slopping. The challenge was to follow and study the performance of a starter culture directly in sourdoughs without cultivation on selective media. The extraction of good quality microbial DNA suitable for amplification from a complex matrix such as dough was the first target. In addition, the objective to obtain a clear rep‐PCR profile referable to a specific starter strain among a microbial community was pursued. Co‐inoculum trials, in flour matrix, with Lb. plantarum P1FMC and L. lactis LC71 strains and, subsequently, type I sourdough back‐slopping trials were performed. The rep‐PCR amplification profiles obtained were clearly referable to that of Lb. plantarum P1FMC starter in both co‐inoculum trials (also when it was present with one order of magnitude less with respect to L. lactis LC71) and back‐slopping trials where it dominated the fermentation process with loads of 10⁸ cfu g^?1 and prevailed on the autochthonous microbiota. Thus, the approach proposed in this paper could be considered a methodological advancement, based on a culture‐independent one‐step rep‐PCR, suitable for fast monitoring of starter performance.     

Visualized measurement of extremely high-speed droplets in Venturi scrubber

Venturi scrubbers for filtered venting have been installed in nuclear power plants worldwide. Venturi scrubbers can eliminate fission products from a polluted gas by interaction through gas–liquid interfaces. Therefore, droplet diameter is important from the viewpoint of decontamination. When Venturi scrubbers are used in severe accidents, the gas flow velocity might be extremely high. In these studies, the authors did not measure droplet diameter under extremely high gas velocity conditions. In the scenarios, experimental data pertaining to droplet diameter, under the extremely high gas flow velocity, are required. Therefore, this objective is to evaluate the diameter of extremely high-speed droplets. A visualization experiment was conducted using a Venturi scrubber. The droplet diameter distribution and the Sauter mean diameter (SMD) were determined. By comparing between the experimental value of SMDs and the one evaluated using Nukiyama–Tanasawa equation, it was confirmed that the Nukiyama–Tanasawa equation can be used to evaluate SMD with good accuracy in the gas velocity range of 82–250 m/s, except the highest gas velocity conditions. Furthermore, the droplet generation mechanism in the Venturi scrubber was considered to clarify the main reason why the Nukiyama–Tanasawa equation can be used to evaluate SMD droplet diameter.     

Using lag-sequential analysis for understanding interaction sequences in visualizations

The investigation of how users make sense of the data provided by information systems is very important for human computer interaction. In this context, understanding the interaction processes of users plays an important role. The analysis of interaction sequences, for example, can provide a deeper understanding about how users solve problems. In this paper we present an analysis of sequences of interactions within a visualization system and compare the results to previous research. We used log file analysis and thinking aloud as methods. There is some indication based on log file analysis that there are interaction patterns which can be generalized. Thinking aloud indicates that some cognitive processes occur together with a higher probability than others.     

Fest‐Flüssig‐Trennung von feindispersen Suspensionen durch Pressfiltration bei pulsierendem Überdruck

The productivity of filtration systems for dewatering of finely dispersed suspensions can be increased by pulsating overpressure. For suspensions of marine organic‐mineral sediments, press filtration processes were investigated under static and pulsating overpressure. The influence of the static pressure component, the pressure amplitude characteristic, the pressure vibration frequency, and the filtration time on the volume of filtrate were determined. Based on Darcy's law, a model of the filtration process under static overpressure was developed. For pulsating overpressure, the mathematical theory of experiment planning and the statistical data analysis method were used.     

Cu-assisted induced atomic-level bivalent Fe confined on N-doped carbon concave dodecahedrons for acid oxygen reduction electrocatalysis

Atomically dispersed transition metals anchored on N-doped carbon have been successfully developed as promising electrocatalysts for acidic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Nonetheless, how to introduce and construct single-atomic active sites is still a big challenge. Herein, a novel concave dodecahedron catalyst of N-doped carbon (FeCuNC) with well confined atomically dispersed bivalent Fe sites was facilely developed via a Cu-assisted induced strategy. The obtained catalyst delivered outstanding ORR performance in 0.5 M H₂SO₄ media with a half-wave potential (E_1/2) of 0.82 V (vs reversible hydrogen electrode, RHE), stemming from the highly active bivalent Fe-N_x sites with sufficient exposure and accessibility guaranteed by the high specific surface area and curved surface. This work provides a simple but efficient metal-assisted induced strategy to tune the configurations of atomically dispersed active sites as well as microscopy structures of carbon matrix to develop promising PGM-free catalysts for proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) applications.     

On the prediction of gas hold-up in two-phase flow systems using an Euler–Euler model

We quantify the ability of the two-fluid Euler–Euler model to predict the overall gas hold-up during two-phase flow in vertical columns using a combination of experiments and simulations. Gas hold-up in a bubble column and gas hold-up in the less-frequently studied co-current flow are investigated. For homogeneous flow characterized by nearly uniform bubble size, Euler–Euler model predictions are within 10% of the experimental values for both modes of operation, if the bubble diameter supplied as input to the model is the average bubble diameter in the physical system. This also holds true for heterogeneous flow in bubble columns despite the presence of a broad distribution of bubble sizes, if turbulence and bubble swarm effects on momentum exchange between phases are properly accounted for. Swarm corrections adequate for bubble columns, are less successful for co-current heterogeneous flow, for which gas hold-up predictions are least accurate (average error of 22%).     

Effects of layup sequences on stresses of thick composite cantilever tubes

In this study, a new simple-input displacement-based method is used to study effects of layup sequences on stresses, strains, and deformations of thick laminated orthotropic cantilever straight tubes under transverse loading. Three-dimensional stress distributions are obtained based on the most general displacement field of elasticity. A layer-wise theory which includes the full three-dimensional constitutive relations is used. A non-dimensional simple coefficient is introduced to compare interlaminar radial stresses of different layup sequences. Finally, some design guidelines are proposed to consider effects of layup sequences of laminated thick composite tubes subjected to shearing load.     

Robust guaranteed cost ILC with dynamic feedforward and disturbance compensation for accurate PMSM position control

This contribution presents a robust ILC control design based on guaranteed costs. By combining this ILC design with dynamic feedforward control and an observer-based disturbance compensation, the initial tracking errors in an early learning stage can be reduced. The benefits of the proposed design approach are pointed out at the example of a robust position control of a Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (PMSM), which is subject to uncertain model parameters. The paper is concluded with convincing experimental results from a dedicated test rig. Moreover, a comparison with a classical observer-based tracking control is provided.     

分散控制系统的配置策略

随着分散控制系统 (DCS)的可操作性、可靠性和易维护性的提高 ,DCS的应用越来越广。但在具体到DCS配置时 ,由于不同的观念形成了两种不同的配置策略。即按DCS常规功能分类的配置策略 (简称常规策略 )和按工艺系统管理原则的配置策略 (简称一体化策略 )。该文仅就此两种配置策略进行初步的探讨。图 2     

Pattern matching of alarm flood sequences by a modified Smith–Waterman algorithm

Alarm flooding is one of the main problems in alarm management. Alarm flood pattern analysis is helpful for root cause analysis of historical floods and for incoming flood prediction. This paper deals with a data driven method for alarm flood pattern matching. An alarm flood is represented by a time-stamped alarm sequence. A modified Smith–Waterman algorithm considering the time stamp information is proposed to calculate a similarity index of alarm floods. The effectiveness of the algorithm is validated by a case study on actual chemical process alarm data.