Fire safe,sustainable loose furnishing

The aim of this exploratory study has been to investigate the fire properties and environmental aspects of different upholstery material combinations, mainly for domestic applications. An analysis of the sustainability and circularity of selected textiles, along with lifecycle assessment, is used to qualitatively evaluate materials from an environmental perspective. The cone calorimeter was the primary tool used to screen 20 different material combinations from a fire performance perspective. It was found that textile covers of conventional fibres such as wool, cotton and polyester, can be improved by blending them with fire resistant speciality fibres. A new three‐dimensional web structure has been examined as an alternative padding material, showing preliminary promising fire properties with regard to ignition time, heat release rates and smoke production.     

Validity of the Parabolic Effective Mass Approximation in Silicon and Germanium n-MOSFETs With Different Crystal Orientations

This paper investigates the validity of the parabolic effective mass approximation (EMA), which is almost universally used to describe the size and bias-induced quantization in n-MOSFETs. In particular, we compare the EMA results with a full-band quantization approach based on the linear combination of bulk bands (LCBB) and study the most relevant quantities for the modeling of the mobility and of the on-current of the devices, namely, the minima of the 2-D subbands, the transport masses, and the electron density of states. Our study deals with both silicon and germanium n-MOSFETs with different crystal orientations and shows that, in most cases, the validity of the EMA is quite satisfactory. The LCBB approach is then used to calculate the values of the effective masses that help improve the EMA accuracy. There are crystal orientations, however, where the 2-D energy dispersion obtained by the LCBB method exhibits features that are difficult to reproduce with the EMA model.     

Planar-flow spin-casting of molten metals: process behaviour

An experimental study of the planar-flow melt-spinning process was performed in order to gain a better understanding of the steady-state production of microcrystalline and amorphous ribbons. The dependence of the thickness of the ribbon product,T, on process parameters (wheel speed,U, nozzle/wheel gap,G, overpressure, ΔP, nozzle-slot breadth,R, and nozzle-slot width,W) was determined using an apparatus designed to deliver reproducible results. Thicknesses were reproducible to within 5%–8%. Guided by dimensional analysis, the non-dimensional thickness (T/G) was found to depend, within the experimental error, only on a non-dimensional pressure drop (ΔP/ρU ²) and slot breadth (R/G) for fixed thermal conditions. Data from the literature and our data, which considerably extend the range, correlate consistently on this basis. In contrast to the steady behaviour, the limits within which a uniform ribbon can be formed depend on a larger set of parameters; this dependence is sketched with the available data. Finally, a variety of observed ribbon surface textures (free meniscus side) is catalogued.     

Failure of greenstone, jasper and cataclasite aggregate in bituminous concrete due to studded tyres: Similarities and differences

In wintertime, the use of studded tyres is common in the Nordic countries, steeply in creasing road wear. Apart from reducing surface quality and durability, the airborne dust presents a potential health hazard. To reduce road wear and dust release, there is a tendency to use harder and more wear-resistant aggregate materials.On the roads in and around Trondheim, mid-Norway, three types of aggregate material are common: greenstone, jasper and ‘mylonite’, in fact a cataclasite. Extensive laboratory testing suggests that cataclasite aggregate has better wear resistance than greenstone, but less than jasper [Erichsen E, Schiellerup H, Gautneb, H, Ottesen RT, Broekmans M. Road dust in Trondheim — analysis of the mineral content of airborne dust. (In Norwegian.) Geological Survey of Norway, NGU-report 2004. 037; 2004. p. 73]. However , observations on fluorescence-impregnated plane and thin sections demonstrate that in practice, cataclasite wears faster than greenstone, which may be attributed to its oriented fabric, as opposed to the random fabric in greenstone and jasper. The original article by Rosiwal from 1896 [Rosiwal A. Neue Untersuchungser gebnisse über die Härte von Mineralien und Gesteine. Verhandlungen der kaiserlich-königlichen geologischen Reichsanstalt, vol. 17/18; 1896. p. 475–491] on abrasion hardness and anisotropy provides an elegant explanation for the field observations.     

Photonic Demodulator With Sensitivity Control

A current assisted photonic demodulator for use as a pixel in a 3-D time-of-flight imager shows nearly 100% static demodulator contrast and is operable beyond 30 MHz. An integrated tunable sensitivity control is also presented for increasing the distance measurement range and avoiding unwanted saturation during integration periods. This is achieved by application of a voltage on a dedicated drain tap showing a quenching of sensor sensitivity to below 1%     

Statistical analysis of bend strength data according to different evaluation methods

The strength values obtained in four series of bend tests on two monolithic ceramic materials have been statistically evaluated. Statistical mapping procedures were used to check whether a Weibull distribution fits the strength data. Where this has been found to be the case, the value of the Weibull parameters determined according to different evaluation methods fall within each other's confidence interval. The values of the modulus m and of the characteristic strength σ₀ of the two-parameter distribution can differ significantly from the corresponding values in the three-parameter distribution.     

Prediction of fire classification for wood based products. A multivariate statistical approach based on the cone calorimeter

Wood has long traditions as a building material, and is often used in construction elements, and as interior and exterior surfaces in the Nordic countries. In most applications, there are reaction to fire requirements to products used as surfaces, e.g. in escape routes and larger public spaces. Most wood products will therefore have to be treated with fire retardant (FR) agents to fulfil the strict requirements to properties connected to heat release and flame spread. Unfortunately, FR agents usually also increase the smoke production, as they cause a more incomplete combustion of the wood. The wood product manufacturers seek to find the optimal amount of FR additives where both heat release and smoke production in the classifying test are within the requirements given in the building regulations. This paper describes models for prediction of the European reaction to fire classes of wood products. The models are based on multivariate statistical analysis, and use test results from the cone calorimeter test as input. The presented models are, with very good precision, able to predict which Euroclass and additional smoke class a wood based product would obtain if it were to be tested in the single burning item test. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis of Caching and Replication Strategies for Web Applications

Developers often use replication and caching mechanisms to enhance Web application performance. The authors present a qualitative and quantitative analysis of state-of-the art replication and caching techniques used to host Web applications. Their analysis shows that selecting the best mechanism depends heavily on data workload and requires a careful review of the application's characteristics. They also propose a technique for Web practitioners to compare different mechanisms' performance on their own     

Design of noise and period-time robust high-order repetitive control, with application to optical storage

Repetitive control is useful if periodic disturbances or setpoints act on a control system. Perfect (asymptotic) disturbance rejection is achieved if the period time is exactly known. The improved disturbance rejection at the periodic frequency and its harmonics is achieved at the expense of a degraded system sensitivity at intermediate frequencies. A convex optimization problem is defined for the design of high-order repetitive controllers, where a trade-off can be made between robustness for changes in the period time and for reduction of the error spectrum in-between the harmonic frequencies. The high-order repetitive control algorithms are successfully applied in experiments with the tracking control of a CD-player system.