Voltage sag compensation with minimum energy injection by use of a micro‐SMES

This paper presents a method to compensate voltage sags with minimum energy injection for a series‐connected voltage restorer using a micro‐SMES. A circuit for extracting the fundamental symmetrical components from sag voltages and a minimum energy injection algorithm is described. Simulations of voltage sag compensation have been carried out using PSCAD/EMTDC for various faults. The simulation results confirm the validity of the proposed method and show the possibility of reducing the size of energy storage devices. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 141(3): 70–80, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.10047     

Thermal instability of Bi-Pb-Sr-Ca-Cu-O superconductor around 650δC

Bi_0.85Pb_0.15Sr_0.8CaCu_1.4O _y superconductor was quenched to room temperature after annealing at several temperatures in air. From the initial magnetization curve measurement for the annealed samples, it was found that the volume fraction of superconducting phases of the sample annealed at 650°C greatly decreased. TEM observation revealed that a second phase often appeared in the grain-boundary region for the sample annealed at 700°C. The second phase was identified as Bi₁Pb₂Sr_2.6Ca_1.6O _y by energy dispersive spectroscopy.     

Expectation of LET∞ for a tritium beta particle

The expectation of LET_∞ (unrestricted linear energy transfer) for a tritium beta particle around its parent nucleus in water has been calculated by the use of the energy-range relation of electrons. The amount of energy deposited by a beta particle with a certain initial energy over the interval of one micron at a definite position is obtained from the relation by the calculus of difference, and the probability that the event takes place per decay of tritium is estimated from the energy spectrum of tritium beta particles. The calculated values of expectations of LET_∞ are higher at positions close to the parent nucleus.     

Quantitative evaluation of generator power control effect of FACTS controllers for power system stabilization

The advancement of power electronics technologies has significantly developed the power system stabilizing controllers. Quantitative as well as qualitative evaluation of their effectiveness in power systems is a matter of great importance for the feasibility investigation of these apparatus. In this paper, the possible control region of FACTS controllers with series and/or shunt configuration in a single machine to infinite bus system is formulated in the powerangle curve with a set of algebraic equations. The effectiveness of TCPST (Thyristor‐Controlled Phase Shifting Transformer), SSSC (Static Synchronous Series Compensator), and TCSC (Thyristor‐Controlled Series Compensator) for the improvement of the transient stability is evaluated quantitatively as a numerical example. The correctness of the proposed method has been confirmed by analysis based on the electromagnetic transients simulation with a detailed system model. © 2001 Scripta Technica, Electr Eng Jpn, 138(3): 43–51, 2002     

Benign partial epilepsy with affective symptoms: hyperkinetic behavior during interictal periods

We report a 4-year-old boy with benign partial epilepsy (BPE) with affective symptoms associated with hyperkinetic behavior during interictal periods. He had had hypermobility and restlessness since about age 3. At 4 years, 6 months, he developed episodes consisting of an expression of terror without complete loss of consciousness. Although we first suspected an acute psychic problem, the ictal EEG was abnormal. After carbamazepine (CBZ) therapy, the frequency of the attacks decreased dramatically and the hyperkinetic behavior gradually diminished.     

Enzyme-linked immunosorvent assay using vertical microreactor stack with microbeads

The advantages of vertical microreactor stack with three-dimensional (3D) structure for immunoassay are discussed. The vertical microreactor stack uses vertical fluid flow operation with multifunctional fluid filters. The multi function of fluid filter is very effective for micromixing and passive valve operation. The mechanism of micromixing is discussed by using computational fluid dynamics (CFD), and we know that the mixing mechanism based on Coanda effect. To evaluate the micromixing performance of fluid filter, we demonstrated enzyme reaction with unique repeat mixing operation. As the results, we proved that the fluid filter has very effective mixing performance. The detection limit, which demonstrated by competition enzyme-linked immunosorvent assay (ELISA), is comparable with recommended detection limit, which suggested by Japanese ministry for the environment.     

Microstructure and properties of (Sr, Ca)CuO2/(Sr, Ca)RuO3 multilayers

Epitaxial multilayer thin films of infinite-layer (Sr, Ca)CuO₂ and perovskite (Sr, Ca)RuO₃ have been prepared on (100) SrTiO₃ substrates by multitarget rf magnetron sputtering. X-ray diffraction analyses revealed that the multilayer structure of (Sr, Ca)CuO₃/(Sr, Ca)RuO₃ was successfully fabricated with a minimum layer thickness of 20 Å. Transmission electron microscopy measurements of the multilayers indicated that there was no dislocation which normally exists in single-layer films with an infinite-layer structure. Resistivities of multilayer films at room temperature ranged from 1 to 10 m cm and showed semiconductor-like dependence against the temperature.     

A Novel Method of "Double delta Modulation" on Tracking Control of PWM converters

非线性跟踪控制是SPWM变换器的重要控制策略之一。提出了一种新型双重△调制跟踪控制方法,它由一个无滞环比较器和一个载波周期定时器组成。比较器产生PWM信号的上升沿,使得跟踪控制响应快,精度高;定时器决定PWM信号的下降沿,它保证了开关周期固定不变;文中提出了一个按周期对比较阈值进行预估调节的算法,该算法可使每个周期的平均跟踪误差均为零,同时可以抑制子谐振和跟踪失步。对三相四线电压跌落补偿系统电压跟踪的仿真研究证实了“双重△调制”策略和比较阈值的一步预估算法的有效性。最后对一个单相半桥逆变器的电流跟踪控制给出了实验结果。     

Elevated Expression of CCN3 in Articular Cartilage Induces Osteoarthritis in Hip Joints Irrespective of Age and Weight Bearing

Osteoarthritis (OA) occurs not only in the knee but also in peripheral joints throughout the whole body. Previously, we have shown that the expression of cellular communication network factor 3 (CCN3), a matricellular protein, increases with age in knee articular cartilage, and the misexpression of CCN3 in cartilage induces senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) factors, indicating that CCN3 promotes cartilage senescence. Here, we investigated the correlation between CCN3 expression and OA degenerative changes, principally in human femoral head cartilage. Human femoral heads obtained from patients who received total hip arthroplasty were categorized into OA and femoral neck fracture (normal) groups without significant age differences. Gene expression analysis of RNA obtained from femoral head cartilage revealed that CCN3 and MMP-13 expression in the non-weight-bearing part was significantly higher in the OA group than in the normal group, whereas the weight-bearing OA parts and normal cartilage showed no significant differences in the expression of these genes. The expression of COL10A1, however, was significantly higher in weight-bearing OA parts compared with normal weight-bearing parts, and was also higher in weight-bearing parts compared with non-weight-bearing parts in the OA group. In contrast, OA primary chondrocytes from weight-bearing parts showed higher expression of CCN3, p16, ADAMTS4, and IL-1β than chondrocytes from the corresponding normal group, and higher ADAMTS4 and IL-1β in the non-weight-bearing part compared with the corresponding normal group. Acan expression was significantly lower in the non-weight-bearing group in OA primary chondrocytes than in the corresponding normal chondrocytes. The expression level of CCN3 did not show significant differences between the weight-bearing part and non-weight-bearing part in both OA and normal primary chondrocytes. Immunohistochemical analysis showed accumulated CCN3 and aggrecan neoepitope staining in both the weight-bearing part and non-weight-bearing part in the OA group compared with the normal group. The CCN3 expression level in cartilage had a positive correlation with the Mankin score. X-ray analysis of cartilage-specific CCN3 overexpression mice (Tg) revealed deformation of the femoral and humeral head in the early stage, and immunohistochemical analysis showed accumulated aggrecan neoepitope staining as well as CCN3 staining and the roughening of the joint surface in Tg femoral and humeral heads. Primary chondrocytes from the Tg femoral head showed enhanced expression of Ccn3, Adamts5, p16, Il-6, and Tnfα, and decreased expression of Col2a1 and -an. These findings indicate a correlation between OA degenerative changes and the expression of CCN3, irrespective of age and mechanical loading. Furthermore, the Mankin score indicates that the expression level of Ccn3 correlates with the progression of OA.