State of the art and prospects for developing calculation methods and experimental investigations of radiative heat transfer and for practical application of their results

This article gives an overview of domestic theoretical and experimental investigations of radiative and combined heat transfer performed in recent years and formulates prospective lines of their development.I. I. Polzunov Central Boiler and Turbine Institute, St. Petersburg; Krasnoyarsk Institute of Non-Ferrous Metals; the Academic Scientific Complex A. V. Luikov Institute of Heat and Mass Transfer of the Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Minsk; Moscow Technological Institute of the Food Industry; G. M. Krzhizhanovskii Moscow Institute of Power Engineering. Translated from Inzhenerno-Fizicheskii Zhurnal, Vol. 64, No. 6, pp. 698–717, June, 1993.     

Models of Ceramic Tritium Breeding Zones in the Blanket of a Thermonuclear Reactor

The development, performed in the 1980s–1990s, of models of tritium breeding zones for blankets of thermonuclear reactors, based on the use of ceramic lithium-containing materials, is described. 5 figures, 1 table.     

The study on the critical temperature, composition, and microstresses in a Nb3Sn layer

Monofilamentary Nb₃Sn wires of large diameter with niobium tube, which were obtained by the method of solid-phase diffusion, are well suited for the study of the distribution of the critical temperature T_c in Nb₃Sn layers. Three regions with different gradients of Sn and Nb concentration and different Cu content can be distinguished in Nb₃Sn layer. In the central part of the layer, the Sn content comprises 24.5 at.% and the gradient of Sn concentration is negligibly small. Measurements on specimens of 1.2 mm in diameter with a slit cut along the cylinder generatrix showed that the critical temperature of the Nb₃Sn region adjacent to Cu(Sn) bronze is lower than the critical temperature of the central part of the layer. Fluctuations of T_c in the central part of the layer exceed the change of T_c related to the gradient of the Sn concentration, which is very small. These fluctuations spread both the R(T) curve and the high-temperature part of the temperature transition registered by the inductive method.     

Research and development activities on technical superconductors in Russia

The overview of main current practical application of superconducting materials is given with emphasis on their technical parameters.……     

Mechanisms of plastic deformation of zirconium-based alloys upon uniaxial compression under different temperature-rate conditions

Based on the results of X-ray diffraction analysis of texture of the Zr-1% Nb and Zr-2.5% Nb model alloys compressed uniaxially at temperature corresponding to the β and α + β fields of the phase diagram, the mechanisms responsible for plastic deformation have been determined. These are the crystallographic slip in the β-Zr and α-Zr grains and also the diffusional mechanism of mutual displacement of crystallites along interphase boundaries, which is activated upon the α ? β phase transformations and is the basis of superplasticity. The contribution of each mechanism to the formation of specimen texture depends on the temperature-rate regime of compression.     

Temporal Control of Seed Development in Dicots: Molecular Bases,Ecological Impact and Possible Evolutionary Ramifications

In flowering plants, seeds serve as organs of both propagation and dispersal. The developing seed passes through several consecutive stages, following a conserved general outline. The overall time needed for a seed to develop, however, may vary both within and between plant species, and these temporal developmental properties remain poorly understood. In the present paper, we summarize the existing data for seed development alterations in dicot plants. For genetic mutations, the reported cases were grouped in respect of the key processes distorted in the mutant specimens. Similar phenotypes arising from the environmental influence, either biotic or abiotic, were also considered. Based on these data, we suggest several general trends of timing alterations and how respective mechanisms might add to the ecological plasticity of the families considered. We also propose that the developmental timing alterations may be perceived as an evolutionary substrate for heterochronic events. Given the current lack of plausible models describing timing control in plant seeds, the presented suggestions might provide certain insights for future studies in this field.     

Research and development activities on technical superconductors in Russia

The overview of main current practical application of superconducting materials is given with emphasis on their technical parameters.     

Problems and Prospects for the Development of Textile,Light and Chemical Industries for the Production of Textile Fibres

Fibre Chemistry - The objective of the study is to substantiate the problems and prospects for the development of the textile, light and chemical industries of the Russian Federation for the...     

Method and Model for Enchancing Efficiency of Chemical Fiber Use in Textile Industry

Fibre Chemistry - A unique method for enhancing efficiency of chemical fiber use in textile industry based on a model of optimum selection of composition of blended fabrics is presented. The...     

The Distribution of Several Genomic Virulence Determinants Does Not Corroborate the Established Serotyping Classification of Bacillus thuringiensis

Bacillus thuringiensis, commonly referred to as Bt, is an object of the lasting interest of microbiologists due to its highly effective insecticidal properties, which make Bt a prominent source of biologicals. To categorize the exuberance of Bt strains discovered, serotyping assays are utilized in which flagellin serves as a primary seroreactive molecule. Despite its convenience, this approach is not indicative of Bt strains’ phenotypes, neither it reflects actual phylogenetic relationships within the species. In this respect, comparative genomic and proteomic techniques appear more informative, but their use in Bt strain classification remains limited. In the present work, we used a bottom-up proteomic approach based on fluorescent two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE) coupled with liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry(LC-MS/MS) protein identification to assess which stage of Bt culture, vegetative or spore, would be more informative for strain characterization. To this end, the proteomic differences for the israelensis-attributed strains were assessed to compare sporulating cultures of the virulent derivative to the avirulent one as well as to the vegetative stage virulent bacteria. Using the same approach, virulent spores of the israelensis strain were also compared to the spores of strains belonging to two other major Bt serovars, namely darmstadiensis and thuringiensis. The identified proteins were analyzed regarding the presence of the respective genes in the 104 Bt genome assemblies available at open access with serovar attributions specified. Of 21 proteins identified, 15 were found to be encoded in all the present assemblies at 67% identity threshold, including several virulence factors. Notable, individual phylogenies of these core genes conferred neither the serotyping nor the flagellin-based phylogeny but corroborated the reconstruction based on phylogenomics approaches in terms of tree topology similarity. In its turn, the distribution of accessory protein genes was not confined to the existing serovars. The obtained results indicate that neither gene presence nor the core gene sequence may serve as distinctive bases for the serovar attribution, undermining the notion that the serotyping system reflects strains’ phenotypic or genetic similarity. We also provide a set of loci, which fit in with the phylogenomics data plausibly and thus may serve for draft phylogeny estimation of the novel strains.