Some experimental findings in compression-after-impact (CAI) tests of CF/PEEK (APC-2) and conventional CF/epoxy flat plates

Compression-after-impact (CAI) tests have been conducted for quasi-isotropic thick plates with 48 plies by using the NASA method and on plates with 32 plies by using the SACMA method. Specimens are made of CF/PEEK (APC-2) and conventional CF/epoxy for the NASA plates and CF/epoxy for the SACMA plates. In the NASA CAI tests, the sequence of delamination buckling and its propagation is clearly revealed through various experimental techniques. One major technique is moiré topography, and the other is thermo-mechanical stress analysis with a high-accuracy infrared sensor. The arrest of delamination propagation just before catastrophic failure due to high fracture toughness is clearly captured by the moiré camera. This behavior provides good CAI values of CF/PEEK. The initial buckling properties of the delaminated region by the impact are then extensively discussed. Numerical predictions of initial buckling stress have been obtained by modelled geometry of the delaminated region simplified from its precise structure clarified by ultrasonic C-scanning. They agree fairly well with the experimental results. The in-plane stress distribution in the delaminated region before initial buckling is measured by an infrared stress graphic system. This compared favorably with finite element predictions. Two types of symmetric buckling modes with respect to the central plate surface, twin and single peak ones, are experimentally captured.     

Kinetics and mechanism of carbothermic reduction of magnesia

The reaction between MgO and graphite powders under flowing argon atmosphere was studied using a dynamic thermogravimetric method. In the temperature range 293 to 1973 K, the effects of compacting pressure, magnesia/carbon ratio, heating rate, Ar carrier-gas flow rate, and CO-partial pressure were investigated. An experimentally determined reaction mechanism was proposed and discussed. The reduction process could be divided into two stages. The first stage includes the direct reaction between MgO and graphite particles and partial gas-solid reaction at relatively low temperature (below 1750 K). The overall reaction rate depends on the solid phase-boundary reaction between magnesia and carbon particles. The second stage is the gas-solid reaction between CO and MgO, which determines the overall reaction rate. The apparent activation energies of the two stages were estimated to be 208.29 and 374.13 kJ/mol, respectively.     

Preparation of zinc ferrite in the presence of carbon material and its application to hot-gas cleaning

In order to develop an efficient absorbent of H₂S in coal gasification, zinc ferrite (ZnFe₂O₄) was prepared in the presence of carbon materials such as activated carbon (AC), activated carbon fiber (ACF), and Yallourn coal (YL). The absorption behavior of absorbents for H₂S was examined using a fixed-bed flow type reactor equipped with a quadrupole mass spectrometer.Carbon material-supported ZnFe₂O₄ exhibited larger desulfurization capacity for H₂S than unsupported ferrites. They could efficiently remove H₂S from 4000 ppm levels in a simulated coal gasification gas to less than 1 ppm at 500 °C. The absorption capacity of H₂S with ZnFe₂O₄/AC, ZnFe₂O₄/ACF, and ZnFe₂O₄/YL exhibited nearly 100% of stoichiometric amount of loaded metal species. They could be regenerated by an air oxidation in O₂-Ar (50 vol%) at 450 °C for 30 min. The regenerated ferrite can be used for repeated absorption of H₂S with a very slight decrease in the absorption capacity.     

Two‐way multi‐view 2‐D/3‐D display combining LC lens and HVxDP panel using novel pixel arrangement

We have developed a two‐way multi‐view 2‐D/3‐D display combining a liquid crystal lens and horizontally and vertically x times‐density pixels (HVxDP) arrangement. The two‐way multi‐view display features the same display resolution in 2‐D and 3‐D modes and a quite small color moiré for landscape and portrait, respectively, when using the HVxDP arrangement. In this paper, we realized suitable 3‐D properties for achieving a good balance between 3‐D moiré and 3‐D crosstalk for landscape and portrait by a two‐way liquid crystal lens with two kinds of focal lengths for the edge part and the center part of the lens.     

Transflective IPS‐LCD with improved reflective contrast ratio

Abstract— In order to improve the reflective contrast ratio of transflective IPS‐LCDs, a novel pixel design for a normally white reflective IPS has been proposed. In this design, the large‐inter‐electrode‐spacing layout using a novel driving method and a double‐layered electrode have effectively reduced the light leakage. By applying these two technologies, a transflective IPS‐LCD has been successfully demonstrated with a high contrast ratio (15:1) in the reflective mode and a wide‐viewing‐angle characteristic in the transmissive mode.     

Contributions of distinct prefrontal neuron classes in reward processing

The prefrontal cortex(PFC)is thought to be involved in higher order cognitive functions,such as in working memory,abstract categorization,and reward processing.It has been reported that two distinct neuron classes(putative pyramidal cells and interneurons)in the PFC played different functional roles in neural circuits involved in forming working memory and abstract categories.However,it remains elusive how the two types of neurons process reward information in the PFC.To investigate this issue,the activity of single neurons was extracellularly recorded in the PFC of the monkey performing a reward predicting task.PFC neurons were classified into putative pyramidal cells and interneurons,respectively,based on the waveforms of action potentials.Both the two types of neurons encoded reward information and discriminated two reward conditions(the preferred reward condition vs.the nonpreferred reward condition).However,the putative pyramidal neurons had better and more reliable discriminability than the putative interneurons.Also,the pyramidal cells represented reward information in the preferred reward condition,but not in the nonpreferred reward condition by raising their firing rates relative to the baseline rates.In contrast,the interneurons encoded reward information in the nonpreferred reward condition,but not in the preferred reward condition by inhibiting their discharge rates relative to the baseline rates.These results suggested that the putative pyramidal cells and interneurons had complementary functions in reward processing.These findings may help to clarify individual functions of each type of neurons in PFC neuronal circuits involved in reward processing.     

Texture,sensory and swallowing characteristics of high-pressure-heat-treated pork meat gel as a dysphagia diet

To develop a soft meat product for a dysphagia diet, high-pressure technology was applied. Pressure-heat-treated ground pork meat (PH) was prepared from ground pork mixed with water (ground meat: water, 1:0.5 or 1:1) and salt (1.5%). PH-gels were made from these meat homogenates by treatment at 400 MPa for 20 min, followed by heat treatment. Heat-treated pork meat homogenates (H) were also prepared. The hardness and adhesiveness of the 1:1PH-gel was lower than those of the 1:1H-gel. The PH-gel scored higher in sensory evaluations of elasticity, smoothness and ease of swallowing. Scanning electron micrographs indicated that the superior textural property of the 1:1PH-gel was caused by a network of myosin filaments. Videofluoroscopic examination of swallowing revealed that the 1:1PH-gel was easy to swallow and left little residue in the oropharynx. These results proved the utility of pressurization in creating a dysphagia meat diet.     

Experimental study of impingement cooling by heat sinks with thin longitudinal fins for LSI packages

This paper reports on the impingement cooling characteristics of a heat sink with thin longitudinal fins of 0.2 mm thickness, which are spaced with a fin-pitch in the range 0.5 mm to 2.0 mm. The air cooling of the heat sink comes from a slot-shaped orifice positioned above the heat-sink center. The breadth of the gap between the fin tops and the inlet orifice is in the range 0 mm to 10 mm. The thermal resistance of the thin longitudinal fins used is about 50% to 57% that of the thick longitudinal fins now in commercial use. The cooling performance of the thin-plate fins is almost the same as that of optimally arranged pin-fins with the same total surface area. A maximum value of six times the heat transfer rate of a single flat plate having the same base area was observed for the thin-plate fins. A comparison of cooling performance between impingement and channel flow systems was conducted. The performance of impingement cooling systems is almost unaffected by the breadth of the gap between the fin tops and the inlet orifice (or, for channel cooling, the upper wall). On the other hand, the performance of channel-cooling systems decreases significantly as the gap widens. © 1997 Scripta Technica, Inc. Heat Trans Jpn Res, 25(7): 449–459, 1996     

Thermal diffusivity and porosity of solid materials by the electromagnetic ultrasonic technique. Part 3—simultaneous measurement of ultrasonic velocity and thermal diffusivity

The objective of this study is to evaluate simultaneously the time dependence of the thermal diffusivity of carbon-carbon composites (C/C composites) and their porosity during heat treatment using the electromagnetic ultrasonic technique. This paper describes two kinds of experiments conducted to confirm the principle for simultaneous measurement of both the ultrasonic velocity (used to evaluate the porosity) and the thermal diffusivity at room temperature. For each material, the samples used in both experiments were identical. The ultrasonic velocity of type 304 stainless steel and its thermal diffusivity were 5.85 km/s and 3.8 mm²/s with precisions of ±1.6 and ±8 percent, respectively. The ultrasonic velocity of a two-dimensional woven C/C composite and its thermal diffusivity were 2.86 km/s and 4.8 mm²/s with precisions of ±5.0 and ±8 percent, respectively. The results appear to indicate that the electromagnetic ultrasonic technique can measure the ultrasonic velocity and the thermal diffusivity simultaneously and that it is also applicable to C/C composites. © 1997 Scripta Technica, Inc. Heat Trans Jpn Res, 25(5): 308–322, 1996