Theory of porous electrodes—XI. The positive plate of the lead-acid battery

Partial differential equations describing the transport of mass and electricity in the pores of the positive electrode of a lead acid battery were derived. The theory is based on exact transport equations and on the assumption that the solid porous matrix has a metallic conductivity. Volume changes in both phases are taken into account. Numerical solutions obtained on a computer are presented for the case where the influence of electrolyte between the electrodes can be neglected. The solutions depend on the product of electrode thickness times current density, and on the initial porosity.     

Overview of the MPEG Reconfigurable Video Coding Framework

Video coding technology in the last 20 years has evolved producing a variety of different and complex algorithms and coding standards. So far the specification of such standards, and of the algorithms that build them, has been done case by case providing monolithic textual and reference software specifications in different forms and programming languages. However, very little attention has been given to provide a specification formalism that explicitly presents common components between standards, and the incremental modifications of such monolithic standards. The MPEG Reconfigurable Video Coding (RVC) framework is a new ISO standard currently under its final stage of standardization, aiming at providing video codec specifications at the level of library components instead of monolithic algorithms. The new concept is to be able to specify a decoder of an existing standard or a completely new configuration that may better satisfy application-specific constraints by selecting standard components from a library of standard coding algorithms. The possibility of dynamic configuration and reconfiguration of codecs also requires new methodologies and new tools for describing the new bitstream syntaxes and the parsers of such new codecs. The RVC framework is based on the usage of a new actor/ dataflow oriented language called CAL for the specification of the standard library and instantiation of the RVC decoder model. This language has been specifically designed for modeling complex signal processing systems. CAL dataflow models expose the intrinsic concurrency of the algorithms by employing the notions of actor programming and dataflow. The paper gives an overview of the concepts and technologies building the standard RVC framework and the non standard tools supporting the RVC model from the instantiation and simulation of the CAL model to software and/or hardware code synthesis.     

Cover Image,Volume 92, Issue 9

The cover image, by José Antonio Díaz et al., is based on the Research Article Kinetic modelling of the glycerol oxidation in the liquid phase: comparison of Pt, Au and Ag AS active phases, DOI: 10.1002/jctb.5296 . Photo Credit: CNRS Photothèque / Cyril FRESILLON.

     

Digital screening methodology for the directed evolution of transglycosidases

Engineering of glycosidases with efficient transglycosidasesactivity is an alternative to glycosyltransferases or glycosynthasesfor the synthesis of oligosaccharides and glycoconjugates. However,the engineering of transglycosidases by directed evolution methodologiesis hampered by the lack of efficient screening systems for sugar-transferactivity. We report here the development of digital imaging-basedhigh-throughput screening methodology for the directed evolutionof glycosidases into transgalactosidases. Using this methodology,we detected transglycosidase mutants in intact Escherichia colicells by digital imaging monitoring of the activation of non-or low-hydrolytic mutants by an acceptor substrate. We screenedseveral libraries of mutants of β-glycosidase from Thermusthermophilus using this methodology and found variants withup to a 70-fold overall increase in the transglycosidase/hydrolysisactivity ratio. Using natural disaccharide acceptors, thesetransglycosidase mutants were able to synthesise trisaccharides,as a mixture of two regioisomers, with up to 76% yield.     

Lower limb contribution in kayak performance: modelling,simulation and analysis

Lower limb contribution in flatwater kayaking is difficult to quantify experimentally because lower-limbs and pelvis are hidden in the kayak. A computer simulation model was developed to assess the lower limb contribution to kayak performance. Three simulated movements were compared in terms of paddle tip velocity, force impulse, and mechanical work. The pelvis motion increased the paddle tip velocity by 0.15 m s⁻¹ at the stroke beginning and 0.34 m s⁻¹ afterward. The propulsive impulse was also modified by pelvis rotation with a 3.5 N s increase per stroke. For a set performance, the co-ordination involving the lower limbs decreased the mechanical work by 20 J. The above results were obtained by modelling the Ergometer-Athlete-Paddle {EAP} system using 18 bodies and 31 degrees of freedom. The motion capture data were transformed in generalized coordinate time histories by solving an inverse kinematics problem with optimization in order to assess both lower limb and upper limb positions and produce a cyclic motion. Then the {EAP} was simulated based on Lagrangian dynamics with Lagrange multipliers to introduce the paddle forces. Finally, the joint torques were calculated by solving an inverse dynamics problem with optimization in order to ensure a good distribution of lower limbs actuating torques.     

Effect of Adding Transition Metals to Copper on the Dehydrogenation Reaction of Ethanol

The present work aims to investigate the effect adding Ag, Co, Ni, Cd and Pt to copper on ethanol dehydrogenation. The catalysts synthesized by deposition–precipitation method were characterized using various physicochemical methods such as N₂ adsorption–desorption, TPR, SEM–EDX, XRD, XPS and TGA–DSC-MS. Catalytic evaluation results revealed that the predominant product of the reaction was acetaldehyde. Monometallic copper or mixed with Cd, Ag or Co show good catalytic performances. Adding nickel to copper improves the process conversion but reduces acetaldehyde selectivity, giving rise to methane in produced hydrogen. Pt-Cu/SiO₂ catalyst guides the reaction towards diethyl ether. Time on stream tests performed during 12 h at 260 °C, showed that adding Cd to Cu enhances its stability by over 30% of conversion, this is explained by the reduction of copper crystallites sintering, which makes Cd-Cu/SiO₂ a promising catalyst for the production of acetaldehyde by ethanol dehydrogenation.

Graphic Abstract