Fabrication of BSCF-based mixed ionic-electronic conducting membrane by electrophoretic deposition for oxygen separation application

Ba_0.5Sr_0.5Co_0.8Fe_0.2O_3-δ (BSCF), which exhibits a high mixed oxide ionic-electronic conduction, was used for the fabrication of an oxygen separation membrane. An asymmetric structure, which was a thin and dense BSCF membrane layer supported on a porous BSCF substrate, was fabricated by the electrophoretic deposition method (EPD). Porous BSCF supports were prepared by the uniaxial pressing method using a powder mixture with BSCF and starch as the pore-forming agent (0–50 wt.%). The sintering behaviors of the porous support and the thin layer were separately characterized by dilatometry to determine the co-fired temperature at which cracking did not occur. A crack-free and thin dense membrane layer, which had about a 15 μm thickness and >95% relative density, was obtained after optimizing the processes of EPD and sintering. The dense/porous interface was well-bonded and the oxygen permeation flux was 2.5 ml (STP) min⁻¹ cm^-2 at 850 °C.     

某矿快速掘进最优炮孔间距的选择

山西某矿5308底抽巷在掘进过程中速度慢、效率低，直接影响工作面的瓦斯抽采，为了改善上述情形，对炮孔间距进行研究。通过使用ANSYS软件对不同炮孔间距下快速掘进效果的模拟分析，并经现场验证，得出了适应该矿的最佳炮孔间距。结果表明：炮孔间距为500 mm时，爆破产生裂隙发育范围和岩石损伤区域都最大，快速掘进的效果最好。     

ACCUGRAM: A novel approach based on classification to frequency band selection for rotating machinery fault diagnosis

Frequency band selection (FBS) in rotating machinery fault diagnosis aims to recognize frequency band location including a fault transient out of a full band spectrum, and thus fault diagnosis can suppress noise influence from other frequency components. Impulsiveness and cyclostationarity have been recently recognized as two distinctive signatures of a transient. Thus, many studies have focused on developing quantification metrics of the two signatures and using them as indicators to guide FBS. However, most previous studies almost ignore another aspect of FBS, i.e. health reference, which significantly affect FBS performance. To address this issue, this paper investigates importance of a health reference and recognize it as the third critical aspect in FBS. With help of the health reference, the frequency band where the fault transient exists could be located. A novel approach based on classification is proposed to integrate all three aspects (impulsiveness, cyclostationarity, and health reference) for FBS. Classification accuracy is developed as a novel indicator to select the most sensitive frequency band for rotating machinery fault diagnosis. The proposed method (coined by accugram) has been validated on benchmark and experiment datasets. Comparison results show its effectiveness and robustness over conventional envelope analysis, the kurtogram, and the infogram.     

Association of solid fuel use with risk of stunting in children living in China

Stunting adversely affects physical and mental outcomes of children. It has not been examined whether household air pollution from solid fuel combustion is a risk factor for stunting in children. In a total of 41,439 children aged 6-17 across China, height was measured using a unified protocol. Multivariable linear regression models and logistic regression models were used to assess the associations of solid fuel use for cooking/heating with stunting in children. Adjusted for covariates, cooking/heating with solid fuel was significantly associated with a lower z-score for height for age and sex (β = −0.21 [−0.32 to −0.09] and −0.17 [−0.31 to −0.03], respectively) and an increased risk of stunting with an estimated ORs of 1.34 [1.07~1.68] and 1.37 [1.02~1.83], respectively. The risk of stunting associated with solid fuel use was statistically significant in high-age children. And the effect was greater on girls than on boys, though the difference was not statistically significant. Our study suggested that Chinese children living in households using solid fuel had a significantly higher risk of stunting than those living in households using cleaner fuel.     

Separation of hematite from banded hematite jasper (BHJ) by magnetic coating

The separation of iron oxide from banded hematite jasper(BHJ) assaying 47.8% Fe, 25.6% Si O2 and 2.30%Al2O3 using selective magnetic coating was studied. Characterization studies of the low grade ore indicate that besides hematite and goethite,jasper, a microcrystalline form of quartzite, is the major impurity associated with this ore. Beneficiation by conventional magnetic separation technique could yield a magnetic concentrate containing 60.8% Fe with 51% Fe recovery. In order to enhance the recovery of the iron oxide minerals, fine magnetite, colloidal magnetite and oleate colloidal magnetite were used as the coating material. When subjected to magnetic separation, the coated ore produces an iron concentrate containing 60.2% Fe with an enhanced recovery of56%. The AFM studies indicate that the coagulation of hematite particles with the oleate colloidal magnetite facilitates the higher recovery of iron particles from the low grade BHJ iron ore under appropriate conditions.     

Polarity Effect and Electromagnetic Radiation of Partial Discharge Accompanying Growth of Electrical Tree

We have investigated the characteristics of radiated electromagnetic (EM) waves from positive and negative partial discharges (PD) in epoxy resin and cross‐linked polyethylene. We found that there is a correlation among the EM level from PD, the positive PD current, and electrical trees. Therefore, the growth of an electrical tree produces a lot of positive PD. We have also investigated the characteristics of the frequency region of EM waves from PD in air, insulating oil, and liquid epoxy in addition to the above insulators. EM waves were detected in the frequency region of 40 MHz to 300 MHz from positive and negative PD in epoxy resin and cross‐linked polyethylene. EM waves were also detected in the frequency region of 40 MHz to 150 MHz from positive and negative PD in air. In the case of insulating oil and liquid epoxy, EM waves were detected in the frequency regions of 40 MHz to 150 MHz from positive PD, and 40 MHz to 250 MHz from negative PD. The frequency region differed depending on the material and the discharge polarity. Our investigation indicates that the cause is differences in electric field strength at the time of PD occurrence.     

Reducing the complexity of distance measurement methods for circular turbo codes that use structured interleavers

The knowledge of turbo code's minimum Hamming distance (d_min) and its corresponding codeword multiplicity (A_min) is of a great importance because the error correction capability of a code is strongly tied to the values of d_min and A_min. Unfortunately, the computational complexity associated with the search for d_min and A_min can be very high, especially for a turbo code that has high d_min value. This paper introduces some useful properties of turbo codes that use structured interleavers together with circular encoding. These properties allow for a significant reduction of search space and thus reduce significantly the computational complexity associated with the determination of d_min and A_min values. © 2014 The Authors. International Journal of Communication Systems published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A web-based software tool for participatory optimization of conservation practices in watersheds

WRESTORE (Watershed Restoration Using Spatio-Temporal Optimization of Resources) is a web-based, participatory planning tool that can be used to engage with watershed stakeholder communities, and involve them in using science-based, human-guided, interactive simulation–optimization methods for designing potential conservation practices on their landscape. The underlying optimization algorithms, process simulation models, and interfaces allow users to not only spatially optimize the locations and types of new conservation practices based on quantifiable goals estimated by the dynamic simulation models, but also to include their personal subjective and/or unquantifiable criteria in the location and design of these practices. In this paper, we describe the software, interfaces, and architecture of WRESTORE, provide scenarios for implementing the WRESTORE tool in a watershed community's planning process, and discuss considerations for future developments.     

Symptoms and risks for musculoskeletal disorders among male and female footwear industry workers

BackgroundConsidering the growing participation of woman in the labor market and the high prevalence of the musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) in the footwear industry workers, the aim of this study was to evaluate and compare female and male footwear industry workers in relation to their demographics, occupational characteristics, stress levels, MSD symptoms prevalence, physical activity levels, alcohol and tobacco use.MethodsThe study included 175 female and 182 male footwear industry workers. Data was collected using the Perceived Stress Scale – 10, the Standardized Nordic Questionnaire, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, and the Fagerstrom test for Nicotine Dependence.ResultsThe female workers were younger, had less time in the company and in the current job. They reported more stress (p = 0.001), had less time for physical activity (p = 0.004), higher prevalence of MSD symptoms in the last 12 months (p = 0.003), and consumed less alcohol (p = 0.006) than the male workers.ConclusionsFemale and male footwear industry workers presented significant differences in their demographics, occupational characteristics, stress levels, MSD prevalence, physical activity levels, alcohol and tobacco use. These differences should be taken into consideration in the implementation of intervention programs for optimum outcomes.Relevance to industryFemale footwear industry workers were more stressed, presented higher prevalence of MSD symptoms, and reported less time for physical activity than male footwear industry workers. The differences between male and female workers should be taken into consideration in the implementation of MSD prevention programs.