LaO_x(OH)_y supported platinum catalysts for CO oxidation:Deactivation by formation of lanthanum carbonate

Platinum catalyst for CO oxidation has been studied for decades,due to its high activity and good stability.In this work,we prepared three different lantha num oxide or hydroxide supports(LaO_x(OH)_y),and deposited platinum(Pt) with 0.5 at% via an impregnation approach to synthesize Pt/LaO_x(OH)_y catalysts.However,we find that these catalysts perform a poor stability for the CO oxidation reaction.The fresh and used samples were comprehensively characterized by multiple techniques including power X-ray diffraction(XRD),X-ray absorption fine structure(XAFS),transmission electron microscopy(TEM),temperature-programmed reduction by carbon monoxide(CO-TPR) and thermogravimetric analysis(TGA),to demonstrate that the oxidized platinum atoms or clusters,without any component of Pt-Pt metallic bond,are highly dispersed on the surface of LaO_x(OH)_y.Furthermore,the as-formed lanthanum carbonate(La₂O₂CO₃) during the exposure to ambient circumstances or in the reaction atmosphere of CO+O₂,severely impair the reactivity of Pt/LaO_x(OH)_y.On the basis of the obtained experimental results,we have drawn a conclusion that the oxidized P_tO_x atoms or PtxOy clusters are the active species for CO oxidation,while the formation of lanthanum carbonate is the origin of deactivation on reactivity.     

Sensitivity analysis of nonlinear fractional order control systems with state delay

In this paper, we consider a class of nonlinear fractional order control system with delay in state variable. Existence and uniqueness of solution are shown by using method of steps. The sensitivity of the state and control with respect to the parameters of the system is shown. Finally, analytical results are substantiated by numerical examples.     

Recursive identification for Hammerstein–Wiener systems with dead-zone input nonlinearity

A new recursive algorithm is proposed for the identification of a special form of Hammerstein–Wiener system with dead-zone nonlinearity input block. The direct motivation of this work is to implement on-line control strategies on this kind of system to produce adaptive control algorithms. With the parameterization model of the Hammerstein–Wiener system, a special form of model estimation error is defined; and then its approximate formula is given for the following derivation. Based on these, a recursive identification algorithm is established that aims at minimizing the sum of the squared parameter estimation errors. The conditions of uniform convergence are obtained from the property analysis of the proposed algorithm and an adaptive setting method for a weighted factor in the algorithm is given, which enhances the convergence of the proposed algorithm. This algorithm can also be used for the identification of the Hammerstein systems with dead-zone nonlinearity input block. Three simulation examples show the validity of this algorithm.     

L2–L∞ fuzzy control for Markov jump systems with neutral time-delays

The L₂–L_∞ fuzzy control problem is considered for nonlinear stochastic Markov jump systems with neutral time-delays. By means of Takagi–Sugeno fuzzy models, the fuzzy controller systems and the overall closed-loop fuzzy dynamics are constructed. A sufficient condition is firstly established on the stochastic stability using stochastic Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional. Then in terms of linear matrix inequalities techniques, the sufficient conditions on the existence of mode-dependent state feedback L₂–L_∞ fuzzy controller are presented and proved respectively for constant and time varying case. Finally, the design problems are formulated as optimization algorithms. Simulation results are exploited to illustrate the effectiveness of the developed techniques.     

Regulation of memory accuracy with multiple answers: The plurality option.

We report two experiments that investigated the regulation of memory accuracy with a new regulatory mechanism: the plurality option. This mechanism is closely related to the grain-size option but involves control over the number of alternatives contained in an answer rather than the quantitative boundaries of a single answer. Participants were presented with a slideshow depicting a robbery (Experiment 1) or a murder (Experiment 2), and their memory was tested with five-alternative multiple-choice questions. For each question, participants were asked to generate two answers: a single answer consisting of one alternative and a plural answer consisting of the single answer and two other alternatives. Each answer was rated for confidence (Experiment 1) or for the likelihood of being correct (Experiment 2), and one of the answers was selected for reporting. Results showed that participants used the plurality option to regulate accuracy, selecting single answers when their accuracy and confidence were high, but opting for plural answers when they were low. Although accuracy was higher for selected plural than for selected single answers, the opposite pattern was evident for confidence or likelihood ratings. This dissociation between confidence and accuracy for selected answers was the result of marked overconfidence in single answers coupled with underconfidence in plural answers. We hypothesize that these results can be attributed to overly dichotomous metacognitive beliefs about personal knowledge states that cause subjective confidence to be extreme. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Deficits in emotion-regulation skills predict alcohol use during and after cognitive–behavioral therapy for alcohol dependence.

Objective: As emotion regulation is widely considered to be a primary motive in the misuse of alcohol, our aim in the study was to investigate whether deficits in adaptive emotion-regulation skills maintain alcohol dependence (AD). Method: A prospective study investigated whether emotion-regulation skills were associated with AD and whether these skills predicted alcohol use during and after treatment for AD. Participants were 116 individuals treated for AD with cognitive–behavioral therapy. Emotion regulation and severity of AD symptoms were assessed by self-report. Alcohol use during treatment was assessed by Breathalyzer and urine analysis for ethyl glucuronide; alcohol use during the 3-month follow-up interval was assessed by self-report. Results: Pretreatment emotion-regulation skills predicted alcohol use during treatment, and posttreatment emotion-regulation skills predicted alcohol use at follow-up, even when controlling for other predictors potentially related to emotion regulation. Among a broad range of specific emotion-regulation skills, the ability to tolerate negative emotions was the only skill that negatively predicted subsequent alcohol consumption when controlling for the other skills. Individuals in the AD sample reported significantly larger deficits in emotion-regulation skills than did those in a nonclinical control sample but significantly less than did those in a sample of individuals exclusively meeting criteria for major depressive disorder. Conclusions: Enhancement of general emotion-regulation skills, especially the ability to tolerate negative emotions, appears to be an important target in the treatment of AD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effects of pause software on the temporal characteristics of computer use

The study investigated the natural work–pause pattern of computer users and the possible effects of imposing pause regimes on this pattern. Hereto, the precise timing of computer events was recorded across a large number of days. It was found that the distribution of the pause durations was extremely skewed and that pauses with twice the duration are twice less likely to occur. The effects of imposing pause regimes were studied by performing a simulation of commercially available pause software. It was found that depending on the duration of the introduced pause, the software added 25–57% of the pauses taken naturally. Analysis of the timing of the introduced pauses revealed that a large number of spontaneous pauses were taken close to the inserted pause. Considering the disappointing results of studies investigating the effects of introducing (active) pauses during computer work, this study has cast doubt on the usefulness of introducing short duration pauses.     

Effects of Moisture on Furfural Partitioning in Oil-Paper Insulation System and Aging Assessment of Power Transformers

The furfural concentration in oil is a well-accepted chemical marker indicating the aging condition of power transformers. However, recent researches suggest that the furfural concentration in oil is affected by moisture, because moisture influences the furfural partitioning ratio in oil-paper insulation system. In this study, the correlation of moisture and furfural partitioning ratio was investigated. The accelerated thermal aging test and moisture absorption test were conducted to prepare oil-paper samples with different furfural and moisture concentrations. For samples with different moisture concentrations, the furfural partitioning ratios between oil and paper were compared. Results showed that samples with high humidity exhibited a high furfural mass fraction in oil. This finding implied that high humidity promoted the furfural diffusion from paper to oil. Further, the interference of moisture on aging assessment of insulation paper was analyzed. Results showed that the increase of moisture concentration in oil-paper system would significantly affect the accuracy of insulation paper aging assessment. A corrected equation for aging assessment of insulation paper with different moisture concentrations was established. Verification result showed that the equation could effectively correct the interference of moisture and enhance the accuracy of the aging assessment of insulation paper.     

Shared human–robot path following control of an unmanned ground vehicle

This paper considers the shared path following control of an unmanned ground vehicle by a single person. A passive measure of human intent is used to blend the human and machine inputs in a mixed initiative approach. The blending law is combined with saturated super-twisting sliding mode speed and heading controllers, so that exogenous disturbances can be counteracted via equivalent control. It is proven that when the proposed blending law is used, the combined control signals from both the human and automatic controller respect the actuator magnitude constraints of the machine. To demonstrate the approach, shared control experiments are performed using an unmanned ground vehicle, which follows a lawn mower pattern shaped path.     

Performance of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing based M-ary quadrature amplitude modulation in asymmetrical dual-hop mixed RF-FSO transmission system

This paper investigates the performance of a dual-hop mixed relay system with radio frequency (RF) and free-space optics (FSO) communication under the effect of pointing error (PE) and atmospheric turbulence (AT). This paper considers a system where RF and FSO links are cascaded. The RF link is modeled by Nakagami-m fading, and the FSO link is modeled as gamma–gamma (G-G) fading channel. Both the channel models use orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) with M-ary quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM). The expressions for probability density function, cumulative distribution function, signal-to-noise ratio, and ergodic capacity are derived. The moment generating function (MGF) of fading and the bit error rate (BER) of the OFDM-based M-ary QAM scheme is derived in terms of Meijer's G-function. It has been observed that, in fixed gain relay systems, the modulation scheme's BER is dominated by the SNR of the RF link. While in a variable gain relay system, the turbulence conditions of the FSO system affect the SNR and the BER of the modulation method. The feasibility of heterodyne detection and intensity modulation direct detection (IM/DD) is analyzed in terms of outage probability and ergodic capacity. The results can be used to choose the optimal modulation order and relay system for QAM-OFDM-based optical wireless systems.