Factors associated with colostral specific gravity in dairy cows

The objectives of this study were to identify factors associated with colostral specific gravity in dairy cows, as measured by a commercially available hydrometer (Colostrometer). Colostral specific gravity was measured in 1085 first-milking colostrum samples from 608 dairy cows of four breeds on a single farm during a 5-yr period. Effects of breed, lactation number, and month and year of calving on colostral specific gravity were determined, as were correlations between colostral specific gravity, nonlactating period length, and 305-d yields of milk, protein, and fat. For 75 multiparous Holstein cows, relationships between colostral specific gravity, colostral IgG1, protein, and fat concentrations, and season of calving were determined. Colostral specific gravity values were lower for Brown Swiss and Ayrshire cows than for Jersey and Holstein cows, and lower for cows entering first or second lactation than third or later lactations. Month of calving markedly affected colostral specific gravity values, with highest values occurring in autumn and lowest values in summer. In multiparous Holstein cows, colostral specific gravity was more strongly correlated with colostral protein concentration (r = 0.76) than IgG1 concentration (r = 0.53), and colostral protein concentration varied seasonally (higher in autumn than summer). Our results demonstrate that colostral specific gravity more closely reflects colostral protein concentration than IgG1 concentration and is markedly influenced by month of calving. These results highlight potential limitations of using colostral specific gravity as an indicator of IgG1 concentration.     

A novel packaging approach for RF MEMS switching functions on alumina substrate

This paper reports the design of a hermetic-compatible wafer-scale package for RF MEMS based components. The presented packaging concept consists in encapsulating the whole RF device or subsystem instead of encapsulating each MEMS component separately, which will reduce the device size and cost. This approach is based on the MEMS fabrication technology on ceramic substrate and the use of laser drilled vias hole techniques to realize full metallized vias in alumina substrates. These vias holes will allow a low loss RF signal transmission inside the package without breaking its hermeticity. Hence, several packaged switching networks prototypes, based on ohmic contact MEMS switches, have been designed following this approach and the packaging electromagnetic impact on these components has been especially studied to result on good performance devices.     

A hybrid method for detecting the onset of local necking by monitoring the bulge forming load

Strain-based Forming Limit Diagrams (FLD), which are typically obtained under linear or quasi-linear loading conditions, describe the limiting strains in terms of the major and minor in-plane strains before the onset of necking or the final failure (FFD). These strains can be detected by analysing the strain field in the vicinity of necking or cracking defects. It has generally been agreed that the loading versus time signal is not suitable for detecting necking processes. A novel hybrid method of detecting the onset of necking based on the experimental and simulated bulging load is presented in this paper. This method consists mainly in comparing the experimental forming load, i.e., a load showing plastic instability, with the numerical predictions obtained by performing finite element simulation. The simulation of the bulging process does not include any damage or failure criteria. A homogeneous forming load can therefore be simulated without requiring any information about the localization. This method was applied to detecting the onset of local necking in circular and elliptic quasistatic bulge tests on sheet material, with a diameter of 200 mm. Two materials were tested, a 0.8 mm thick DP450 Dual Phase steel sheet and a 1 mm thick AA6016-T4 aluminium sheet. The onset of necking observed with our method was compared with the results obtained by performing Hogström’s analysis based on the measured strain field over time and similar necking strains were obtained. Beside, the Bressian Williams Hill (BWH) shear criterion was identified for each test from experimental results. A slight scattering of the shear stress values was observed.     

DAILY AVERAGED 2D WATER TEMPERATURE MODEL FOR THE ST. LAWRENCE RIVER

A daily averaged two‐dimensional water temperature model has been developed for the freshwater part of the St. Lawrence River, between Lake St. Louis and Trois‐Rivières (Québec, Canada). The model was first calibrated and validated for the area of Lake St. Pierre, a natural enlargement of the river subject to strong lateral and longitudinal thermal variations. Forecasts from the Global Environmental Multiscale model were used in preference to observations from meteorological stations for model inputs, both to increase the spatial resolution and ultimately to allow the water temperature model to be used in predictive mode. The resulting model provided daily water temperature estimates with an overall root mean square error (RMSE) of 1.18 °C and a Nash–Sutcliffe coefficient of 0.44. Comparisons between Landsat images and simulations demonstrated that the model not only simulated accurate water temperature values but also showed the adequacy of the model in general. It not only simulated local water temperature relatively accurately but also provided a good representation of the spatial water temperature patterns within the study area. The error varied between deep and shallow water areas. In deeper water, the overall RMSE is 0.41 °C, and the modified Nash coefficient rises up to 0.92. Because shallow water areas are subject to greater variations, longer, more spatially dense data sets will be needed to refine the hydrodynamic and thermal budget models for those specific areas. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

New potential for preparation of performing h-BN coatings via polymer pyrolysis in RTA furnace

An innovative IR irradiation annealing process is used to increase the crystallization ratio of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) coatings on pure titanium pellets. Since the polymer pyrolysis route requires heating the green polymer at high temperature to convert it into a ceramic, the use of IR radiation furnace (compared to a resistive furnace) allows achievement of better crystallized h-BN while the substrate remains at relatively low temperature (<1000 °C). Annealing treatments have been performed under argon or nitrogen using either a halogen lamp or a Rapid Thermal Annealing (RTA) furnace. Advanced structural and chemical characterizations have shown a good chemical stability of the coatings. In addition, it has been revealed that samples annealed under Ar present a micro-composite structure at the interphase composed of a μ-layer of TiB₂/TiB/Ti(N)_x between the coating and the substrate, whereas samples annealed under nitrogen display a simpler structure at the interphase, with only TiN.     

Desorption of large molecules with light-element clusters: Effects of cluster size and substrate nature

This contribution focuses on the conditions required to desorb a large hydrocarbon molecule using light-element clusters. The test molecule is a 7.5 kDa coil of polystyrene (PS61). Several projectiles are compared, from C₆₀ to 110 kDa organic droplets and two substrates are used, amorphous polyethylene and mono-crystalline gold. Different aiming points and incidence angles are examined. Under specific conditions, 10 keV nanodrops can desorb PS61 intact from a gold substrate and from a soft polyethylene substrate. The prevalent mechanism for the desorption of intact and ‘cold’ molecules is one in which the molecules are washed away by the projectile constituents and entrained in their flux, with an emission angle close to ∼70°. The effects of the different parameters on the dynamics and the underlying physics are discussed in detail and the predictions of the model are compared with other published studies.     

On the relationship between snow grain morphology and in-situ near infrared calibrated reflectance photographs

Seasonal and permanent snow cover a significant portion of our planet, and its impact on climate is significant. Through specific thermophysical properties, snow controls radiative and turbulent fluxes between the ground and the atmosphere, but many aspects of the energy balance are poorly understood due to lingering uncertainties regarding snow properties, such as grain size in particular. Rapid and accurate measurement method has yet to be developed given the reality of field and laboratory logistical constraints, and the sensitivity of snow to any sort of manipulation.In this paper, we investigate the relationship between snow grain morphology parameters measured from visible (traditional) snow grain photography and optical diameter estimated from Near-InfraRed (NIR) reflectance photographs of snow walls. A total of 51 snowpits were analyzed during our International Polar Year field campaign across a 1000 km South-to-North transect over Eastern Canada. We compared the NIR measurements with the theoretical snow albedo model of Kokhanovsky and Zege (2004). Results show the large difference between the snow specific surface area (SSA) of snow grains derived from snow albedo model and the geometrical (visual) diameter. From three different snow grain classes which can be distinguished from traditional photography, linkages can be made with shape factors required in the optical model in order to retrieve optical grain size from NIR photography.     

Accuracy of Fabry-Perot method of semiconductor laser gain measurement

The Fabry?Perot (FP) method of semiconductor laser gain measurement, first proposed by Hakki and Paoli (1975), is widely used. It is based on the measurement of the FP resonances excited by spontaneous emission. Its validity rests on the assumption that a single mode is significant. We show, using a simplified laser model, that this assumption is valid only when the power mirror reflectivity is very small, or near the laser oscillating frequency. For example, the error is in the order of 20% when the power facet reflectivities are equal to 37% and the modal gain is unity. These results apply to both index-guided and gain-guided lasers.