Associations between evaporative cooling and dust‐mite allergens,endotoxins, and β‐(1 → 3)‐d‐glucans in house dust: A study of low‐income homes

Recent work suggests that evaporative coolers increase the level and diversity of bioaerosols, but this association remains understudied in low‐income homes. We conducted a cross‐sectional study of metropolitan, low‐income homes in Utah with evaporative coolers (n = 20) and central air conditioners (n = 28). Dust samples (N = 147) were collected from four locations in each home and analyzed for dust‐mite allergens Der p1 and Der f1, endotoxins, and β‐(1 → 3)‐d ‐glucans. In all sample locations combined, Der p1 or Der f1 was significantly higher in evaporative cooler versus central air conditioning homes (OR = 2.29, 95% CI = 1.05‐4.98). Endotoxin concentration was significantly higher in evaporative cooler versus central air conditioning homes in furniture (geometric mean (GM) = 8.05 vs 2.85 EU/mg, P < .01) and all samples combined (GM = 3.60 vs 1.29 EU/mg, P = .03). β‐(1 → 3)‐d ‐glucan concentration and surface loads were significantly higher in evaporative cooler versus central air conditioning homes in all four sample locations and all samples combined (P < .01). Our study suggests that low‐income, evaporative cooled homes have higher levels of immunologically important bioaerosols than central air‐conditioned homes in dry climates, warranting studies on health implications and other exposed populations.     

Markov-jump-system-based secure chaotic communication

In this paper, a new Markov-jump-system (MJS)-based secure chaotic communication technique is proposed. An MJS evolves by switching from one state evolution model to another according to a finite state Markov chain. The transmitter in the proposed communication system is an MJS consisting of multiple transmission maps, that is, the transmitter switches from one chaotic map to another during the transmission of data. This switching feature makes it difficult to identify and follow the transmission without knowing the transmitter parameters, i.e., to eavesdrop, thereby increasing the security offered by the inherently secure chaotic communication system. If the chaotic maps used at the transmitter, and the corresponding Markov transition probability matrix of the MJS are known to the (authorized) receiver, then a multiple model estimator can be used to track the MJS transmitter. In this paper, the use of the interacting multiple model (IMM) estimator is proposed as part of the receiver to follow the switching transmitter. The effectiveness of the IMM-estimator-based receiver to follow the switching transmitter is evaluated by means of simulations. A new modulation technique that uses the MJS transmitter is also introduced. Further, it is shown that the same receiver framework, when used as a receiver for chaotic parameter modulation, provides significant performance improvement in terms of bit-error rate compared to a receiver that uses extended Kalman filter. In addition, the seemingly more complex IMM-estimator-based receiver is shown to significantly reduce the computational complexity per transmitted bit, thus resulting in increased data rate.     

Development of a Centrifugal Oil Lubricator for Long-Term Lubrication of Spacecraft Attitude Control Systems—Experimental Evaluation

The success of a spacecraft mission depends to a great extent on the performance of the moving mechanical systems. The most common mode of failure in these systems is tribological. Tribological failures occur mainly due to nonavailability of lubricant at the working zone of the bearings as a result of degradation, evaporation, and creep. The life of these moving mechanical systems could be extended if lubricant is replenished by some means. Therefore, to ensure long-term uninterrupted performance of these systems, an efficient lubricant replenishment system is essential. This article describes the development of a novel lubricant supply system that can supply lubricant for more than 30 years at a controlled rate of a few micrograms/hour. Experimental evaluation of the lubricator was carried out under different operating conditions experienced in a spacecraft. The results of the experiments are compared with the theoretical results obtained from the mathematical model and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation. The lowest flow rate obtained was 3.5 μg/h from a lubricator with a flow control orifice diameter of 2.3 μm. The results of the study show that the lubricator can provide a long-term uninterrupted supply of lubricant to the moving mechanical systems for a period of more than 30 years. An outstanding and most promising feature of this lubricator is that the flow rate at various stages of the life can be theoretically predicted using the developed mathematical model and the prediction can be experimentally verified before the system is put into service.     

Suppression of Red Luminescence in Wire Explosion Derived Eu:ZnO

Europium oxide (Eu₂O₃) is coated on zinc (Zn) wire using the electrophoretic deposition process. The coated Zn wire is subjected to the wire explosion process (WEP) which is rapid (< 15 min), and chimie douce (soft chemical, low temperature), in nature; this results in the formation of Eu doped ZnO. The explosion chamber contains oxygen (99.9%) at atmospheric pressure. Electron micrographs indicate that the particle sizes are ～ 80 nm. Diffractogram-based analysis suggests that the crystallite size is ~ 18–20 nm in the as-prepared doped ZnO nanoparticles. Electron paramagnetic resonance shows the presence of Zn vacancies and the cryo-photoluminescence spectrum indicates that Eu exists in the + 3 state. A combined Williamson–Hall plot and Kisielowski’s model based analysis indicates that Eu is a substitutional dopant in WEP derived Eu:ZnO particles. It is estimated that this material has ～ 0.24 at.% doping. This analysis also shows that, unlike another popular material GaN, in the case of ZnO, Eu³⁺ strictly substitutes for Zn²⁺ (i.e., dopant replacing a cation–anion pair does not seem possible). It may be noted that Eu³⁺ in a suitable host is oftentimes reported to be an efficient luminophore. The IR spectra show a band shift from 486 cm^?1 to 493 cm^?1; with peak shifts from 436 cm^?1 to 430 cm^?1 in Raman spectra. These too indicate the presence of Eu in the samples. However, at room temperature, only green luminescence (centered at 534 nm) is observed from the sample indicating (1) high concentrations of O_Zn anti-site defects and Zn vacancies, and (2) concomitant quenching of the luminescence at room temperature. Our results suggest that WEP is viable for synthesizing rare earth doped ceramic materials. However, obtaining efficient phosphors using this approach will likely require, (1) reduction of defect densities, and (2) appropriate passivation using post-processing.     

A manifold flattening approach for anchorless localization

We present a new method for anchorless localization of mobile nodes in wireless networks using only measured distances between pairs of nodes. Our method relies on the completion of the Euclidean distance matrix, followed by multidimensional scaling in order to compute the relative locations of the nodes. The key element of novelty of our algorithm is the method of completing the Euclidean distance matrix, which consists of gradually inferring the unknown distances, such as to align all nodes on a k-hyperplane, where typically k is 2 or 3. Our method leads to perfect anchorless localization for noise-free range measurements, if the network is sufficiently connected. We introduce refinements to the algorithm to make it robust to noisy and outlier range measurements. We present results from several localization tests, using both simulated data and experimental results measured using a large indoor network deployment of our WASP platform. Our results show improvements in localization using our algorithm over previously published techniques.     

Time‐dependent flow due to noncoaxial rotation of an infinite vertical surface subjected to an exponential space‐dependent heat source: An exact analysis

The effect of an exponential space‐dependent heat source on heat and mass transfer flow of a viscous fluid past an infinite vertical plate is examined. The flow is generated due to noncoaxial rotation of the infinite plate. The noncoaxial rotation creates sine or cosine oscillation in its plane and the fluid at infinity. The flow is assumed to be laminar and time‐dependent. The mathematical formulation is developed by considering certain physical initial and boundary conditions. The Laplace transform method is utilized to obtain the exact solutions of the concentration, temperature as well as velocity fields. The Sherwood number, Nusselt number, and skin‐friction coefficient are also calculated and presented in tabular form for various embedded parameters. The velocity distributions are obtained for three different cases. The obtained analytical expressions are found to be identical with published results in the limiting sense.     

Fentanyl delivery from an electrotransport system: delivery is a function of total current, not duration of current

BACKGROUND: VS and V are common red cell antigens in persons of African origin. The molecular background of these Rh system antigens is poorly understood. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Red cells from 100 black South Africans and 43 black persons from Amsterdam, the Netherlands, were typed serologically for various Rh system antigens. Allele-specific polymerase chain reaction and sequencing of polymerase chain reaction products were used to analyze C733G (Leu245Val) and G1006T (Gly336Cys) polymorphisms in exons 5 and 7 of RHCE and the presence of a D-CE hybrid exon 3. RESULTS: The respective frequencies of all VS+ and of VS+ V-(r's) phenotypes were 43 percent and 9 percent in the South Africans and 49 percent and 12 percent in the Dutch donors. All VS+ donors had G733 (Val245), but six with G733 were VS- (4 V+w, 2 V-). The four VS- V+w donors with G733 appeared to have a CE-D hybrid exon 5. T1006 (Cys336) was present in 12 percent and 16 percent of donors from the two populations. With only a few exceptions, T1006, a D-CE hybrid exon 3, and a C410T (Ala137Val) substitution were associated with a VS+ V-phenotype ((C)ces or r's haplotype). Two VS+ V-individuals, with the probable genotype, (C)ces/(C)ces), were homozygous for G733 and for T1006. CONCLUSIONS: It is likely that anti-VS and anti-V recognize the conformational changes created by Val245, but that anti-V is sensitive to additional conformational changes created by Cys336.     

Investigation of cement mortar incorporating Bacillus sphaericus

Ureolytic-type bacteria has been used to improve the strength of cement mortar by the precipitation of calcium carbonate. In the present study Bacillus sphaericus has been used to improve the properties of cement mortar such as setting time, compressive strength and sorptivity. The setting time is found to be unaffected by the presence of bacteria. It is found that compressive strength at both 7-days and 28-days of mortar cube increases with the increase of bacteria concentration. At the optimum bacteria dosage of 10⁷ cells/ml, the average compressive strength increases by 58% (at 7 day) and 23% (at 28 day) over the control specimen. The sorpitivity coefficient decreases as the concentration of bacterial cells increases. The mineralogy and morphology of the calcium carbonate precipitation have been tested by XRD and FESEM.     

Long-term lubrication of momentum wheels used in spacecrafts—An overview

Momentum wheels are spacecraft actuators of large angular momentum used for the attitude control and stabilization of spacecrafts. The on-orbit performance of spacecrafts depends largely on the performance of the momentum wheels which in turn depends on its bearings and its lubrication. Currently, the life cycle of spacecrafts are aimed to be around 20–30 years. However, the increases in size, complexity and life expectancy of spacecrafts demand advanced technologies especially in tribology and in turn the development of more innovative lubrication systems for long-term operation. This article reviews the tribological requirements of momentum wheels and the various lubrication systems used in the past and raises a necessity to develop a new system to cope with the new requirements.