Impact of curing condition on pH and alkalinity/acidity of structural wood adhesives

Nine formulations were selected for evaluating the effect of different curing methods on pH and alkalinity or acidity of various structural wood adhesives. These included four phenol–formaldehyde (PF) resins with high pH, one phenol–resorcinol–formaldehyde (PRF) resin with intermediate pH, two melamine–urea–formaldehyde (MUF) resins, and two melamine–formaldehyde (MF) resins with low pH. The four curing methods used in the study were: (1) curing at 102–105°C for 1 h (based on CSA O112.6‐1977), (2) four‐hour curing at 66°C followed by 1‐hour curing at 150°C (based on ASTM D1583‐01), (3) curing at room temperature overnight (based on ASTM D 1583‐01), and (4) cured adhesive squeezed out from glue lines of bonded shear block samples. The effect of the different methods on pH and alkalinity/acidity of the cured adhesive depended strongly on the individual adhesives. For the PF, the alkalinity was different for the different formulations in the liquid form, while in the cured form, the difference in the alkalinity depended on the curing method used. The MF and the MUF were the adhesives most affected by the method used. In particular, the MUF showed much higher cured film pH values when cured by method 2 compared to the other three methods, while both the cured MF and MUF exhibited quite variable acidity values when cured with the different methods. The PRF showed reasonably uniform cured film pH but varying acidity values when cured with the different methods. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010     

Technological development of Brazilian telecommunications in past decades

Brazilian telecommunications sector has undergone important modifications in the last 40 years. From a badly structured system of municipal level operators in 1960, with barely one million fixed lines to a large, nation-wide system with about 50 million fixed plus another 75 million mobile lines in 2005. This work paper reviews the institutional framework of telecommunications industrial and technological policy in Brazil in the last four decades, its results and present situation. Infrastructure and services modernisation and expansion process that happened in early 1970s were carried out at the expense of massive import of products and technology. A government strategy was, then, devised to stimulate local industrial and technological development in telecommunications, under the general guidelines of import substitution policy. Essential to this strategy was the creation of an innovation system around TELEBRÁS Research and Development Centre. This technological development model was successful while a protectionist economic policy existed. When economic and political circumstances could not anymore sustain an import substitution approach, in the 1990-decade, the model fell apart and has not been replaced by any other sectorial policy. A critical assessment is carried out, analysing the adopted actions in face of the digital technology maturing process that occurred in meantime.     

A time Petri net-based method for embedded hard real-time software synthesis

Over the last few years, embedded software synthesis has drawn much attention. However, few works deal with software synthesis for hard real-time systems considering arbitrary inter-tasks precedence and exclusion relations. Code generation for meeting all timing and resource constraints is not a trivial task. Thus, this research area has several open issues, mainly related to generation of predictable-guaranteed scheduled code. The method proposed in this paper starts from a high-level specification, and automatically translates such specification into a time Petri net model; this model is adopted for finding a feasible static schedule meeting all constraints. If found, the approach generates a scheduled code, based on the found feasible schedule. Therefore, the user just enter the specification and receives, as result, the scheduled code. Thus, all intermediary phases are hidden from the users.     

A model for Bayesian software reliability analysis

Two problems which are of great interest in relation to software reliability are the prediction of future times to failure and the calculation of the optimal release time. An important assumption in software reliability analysis is that the reliability grows whenever bugs are found and removed. In this paper we present a model for software reliability analysis using the Bayesian statistical approach in order to incorporate in the analysis prior assumptions such as the (decreasing) ordering in the assumed constant failure rates of prescribed intervals. We use as prior model the product of gamma functions for each pair of subsequent interval constant failure rates, considering as the location parameter of the first interval the failure rate of the following interval. In this way we include the failure rate ordering information. Using this approach sequentially, we predict the time to failure for the next failure using the previous information obtained. Using also the relevant predictive distributions obtained, we calculate the optimal release time for two different requirements of interest: (a) the probability of an in‐service failure in a prescribed time t; (b) the cost associated with a single or more failures in a prescribed time t. Finally a numerical example is presented. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Highly‐efficient Cd‐free CuInS2 thin‐film solar cells and mini‐modules with Zn(S,O) buffer layers prepared by an alternative chemical bath process

Recent progress in fabricating Cd‐ and Se‐free wide‐gap chalcopyrite thin‐film solar devices with Zn(S,O) buffer layers prepared by an alternative chemical bath process (CBD) using thiourea as complexing agent is discussed. Zn(S,O) has a larger band gap (E_g = 3·6–3·8 eV) than the conventional buffer material CdS (E_g = 2·4 eV) currently used in chalcopyrite‐based thin films solar cells. Thus, Zn(S,O) is a potential alternative buffer material, which already results in Cd‐free solar cell devices with increased spectral response in the blue wavelength region if low‐gap chalcopyrites are used. Suitable conditions for reproducible deposition of good‐quality Zn(S,O) thin films on wide‐gap CuInS₂ (‘CIS’) absorbers have been identified for an alternative, low‐temperature chemical route. The thickness of the different Zn(S,O) buffers and the coverage of the CIS absorber by those layers as well as their surface composition were controlled by scanning electron microscopy, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and X‐ray excited Auger electron spectroscopy. The minimum thickness required for a complete coverage of the rough CIS absorber by a Zn(S,O) layer deposited by this CBD process was estimated to ∼15 nm. The high transparency of this Zn(S,O) buffer layer in the short‐wavelength region leads to an increase of ∼1 mA/cm² in the short‐circuit current density of corresponding CIS‐based solar cells. Active area efficiencies exceeding 11·0% (total area: 10·4%) have been achieved for the first time, with an open circuit voltage of 700·4 mV, a fill factor of 65·8% and a short‐circuit current density of 24·5 mA/cm² (total area: 22·5 mA/cm²). These results are comparable to the performance of CdS buffered reference cells. First integrated series interconnected mini‐modules on 5 × 5 cm² substrates have been prepared and already reach an efficiency (active area: 17·2 cm²) of above 8%. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Using an adversary simulator to evaluate global EDF scheduling of sporadic task sets on multiprocessors

Schedulability analysis of real-time multiprocessor systems is usually based on sufficient but not necessary tests that produce pessimistic results. One difficulty in evaluating the effectiveness of sufficient schedulability tests has been distinguishing the cause of a task set failing the test, i.e., finding out whether the task set is in fact not schedulable or it is actually schedulable but the test itself is too pessimistic. Necessary schedulability tests help to distinguish between these two situations, since if a task set fails in the test then it is guaranteed to be unschedulable. An adversary simulator is a scheduling simulator that uses the non-determinism of the task model to generate scenarios that will stress a specific scheduling algorithm, improving the odds of a deadline miss. In this paper we describe a new adversary simulator algorithm for sporadic task sets executed on multiprocessors scheduled by Global Earliest Deadline First (G-EDF). It is shown that this new adversary simulator is more effective as a necessary test than existing approaches. We also estimate the uncertainty regarding G-EDF by applying to the same task sets a well-known sufficient schedulability test from the literature and the necessary schedulability test based on the adversary simulator.     

Lymphocytes of Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease Display Different DNA Damage Repair Kinetics and Expression Profiles of DNA Repair and Stress Response Genes

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder, characterized by loss of memory and cognitive capacity. Given the limitations to analyze brain cells, it is important to study whether peripheral lymphocytes can provide biological markers for AD, an interesting approach, once they represent the overall condition of the organism. To that extent, we sought to find whether lymphocytes of AD patients present DNA damage and repair kinetics different from those found in elderly matched controls (EC group) under in vitro treatment with hydrogen peroxide. We found that AD patient cells indeed showed an altered DNA repair kinetics (comet assay). Real-time quantitative analysis of genes associated with DNA stress response also showed that FANCG and CDKN1A are upregulated in AD, while MTH1 is downregulated, compared with the control group. In contrast, the expression of ATM, ATR and FEN1 genes does not seem to differ between these groups. Interestingly, TP53 protein expression was increased in AD patients. Therefore, we found that kinetics of the stress response in the DNA were significantly different in AD patients, supporting the hypothesis that repair pathways may be compromised in AD and that peripheral lymphocytes can reveal this condition.     

Feasibility of Wind Power Generation for the Reduction of Power Costs in Residential Buildings

The installation of wind power generators on buildings located in areas with regular winds may be a suitable investment in a renewable power source. Brazil has a high eolic potential, where the annual mean wind speed may reach over eight meters per second. This case study is aimed to assess the economic feasibility of the installation of small wind power plants in urban areas. This work evaluates a project for the installation of a vertical axis wind turbine in three buildings （15-, 22-, and 26-story） including the following stages： （1） installation of a real-time power meter in the 15-store unit; （2） demand analysis of the 26-store building＇s power consumption; （3） winds survey along the coast of the State of Ceara; （4） analysis of the wind turbines available in the market; （5） simulation aimed to choose the system. Vertical wind power generators offer better conditions of use in urban areas. The turnover time was established to be between four and six years in the three studied units. The installation of a wind power generator on buildings in regions with an adequate eolic regimen reaches a financial return of the investment before the end of the equipment＇s lifespan.