A simnet simulation model for estimating system reliability

A general SIMNET simulation model is developed for estimating system reliability. The input data to the model is comprised of the minimal cut sets of the block diagram representing the system. The time-to-failure of the (parallel-series) components may be descriebd by different distributions. The model can be readily extended to include repair and maintenance of the components.     

Design of polymeric nanoparticles and its applications as drug delivery systems for acne treatment

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate a formulation made of poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) nanoparticles containing azelaic acid for potential acne treatment.

Methods: Azelaic acid-loaded PLGA nanoparticles were prepared by spontaneous emulsification processes using poloxamer 188 as stabilizer. Several manufacturing parameters such as stirring rate, concentration of stabilizer and different recovery methods were investigated. Nanoparticles were evaluated in terms of size, zeta potential, encapsulation efficiency, release kinetics and permeation kinetics in vitro. Furthermore, in vitro toxicological studies were performed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae model.

Results: The results showed that by adjusting some formulation conditions it was possible to obtain nanoparticles with high loading and a controlled drug release. Freeze-dried recovery altered the nanoparticles structure by enhancing porous structures and mannitol was required to control the mean particle size. The centrifugation recovery was found to be the best approach to nanoparticles recovery. Similar toxicity profiles were observed for both drug-free and azelaic acid-loaded nanoparticles, with concentration-dependent decreases in cell viability.

Conclusion: These results indicate a potential formulation for controlled release delivery of azelaic acid to the follicular unit.     

Creative discovery in the lexical “validation gap”

Compound terms play a surprisingly key role in the organization of lexical ontologies. However, their inclusion forces one to address the issues of completeness and consistency that naturally arise from this organizational role. In this paper, we show how creative exploration in the space of literal compounds can reveal not only additional compound terms to systematically balance an ontology, but can also discover new and potentially innovative concepts in their own right.     

Contribution and importance of wine spirit to the port wine final quality—initial approach

The commercial wine spirit used for this study revealed that the aldehyde content mainly comprises acetaldehyde but other aldehydes such as propionaldehyde, 2‐methylbutyraldehyde, isovaleraldehyde, methylglyoxal, benzaldehyde and others are also present in significant amounts. A typical grape must was used to assess the influence of wine spirit in the analytical and sensorial characteristics of fortified wines. Decreasing levels of anthocyanins, as well the increase in the red colour and tanning capacity, were observed, and seem to be positively correlated with the increase of the aldehyde content present in the wine spirits used to fortify the must. Using the CIE L*a*b* system, this aldehyde content present in the spirit used seemed to be correlated with the decrease of the wines' lightness (darkening effect), the displacement of the hue angle to higher values (yellowing effect) and the increase of the chromaticity (colour saturation) of the wines. Copyright © 2005 Society of Chemical Industry     

Automatic Synthesis of Motion Estimation Processors Based on a New Class of Hardware Architectures

A new class of fully parameterizable multiple array architectures for motion estimation in video sequences based on the Full-Search Block-Matching algorithm is proposed in this paper. This class is based on a new and efficient AB2 single array architecture with minimum latency, maximum throughput and full utilization of the hardware resources. It provides the ability to configure the target processor within the boundary values imposed for the configuration parameters concerning the algorithm setup, the processing time and the circuit area. With this purpose, a software configuration tool has been implemented to determine the set of possible configurations which fulfill the requisites of a given video coder. Experimental results using both FPGA and ASIC technologies are presented. In particular, the implementation of a single array processor configuration on a single-chip is illustrated, evidencing the ability to estimate motion vectors in real-time.     

A new control strategy for an AC/DC converter based on a piezoelectric transformer

Piezoelectric transformers (PTs) are an attractive solution to reduce size and weight in ac/dc converters. In this paper, a PT-based topology is presented together with a control method. As an application, an 8-W ac/dc adapter (110 V/sub AC/ input, 12 V/sub DC/ output) is presented operating at frequencies around 500 kHz.     

Response of coronary microvascular collaterals to activation of ATP-sensitive K+ channels

The feasibility of intragenerically characterizing bifidobacteria by a comparison of a short region within the recA gene was tested. An approximately 300 bp fragment of the recA gene was PCR-amplified from six species from the genus Bifidobacterium using primers directed to two universally conserved regions of the recA gene. A phylogenetic analysis of the sequenced recA products compared favorably to classification based on the 16S rRNA sequences of the species tested. To apply this rapid methodology to unknown human intestinal bifidobacteria, 46 isolates were randomly chosen from the feces of four subjects and initially characterized by RFLP analysis of a PCR-amplified region of their 16S RNA genes. From a representative of the dominant RFLP family in each of the subjects, the recA segment was PCR-amplified, sequenced and phylogenetically analyzed. All four isolates were found to be related to one another and to B. longum and B. infantis. These results illustrate that the recA gene may be useful for intrageneric phylogenetic analysis as well as for the identification of unknown fecal bifidobacteria.     

Transposition of the EU cogeneration directive: A vision for Portugal

The potential for new, small-scale and micro-cogeneration installations in Portugal is very considerable due to the number of potential host buildings. In this work, we discuss the legal framework of the Portuguese energy market, and some modifications to accommodate the Directive, 2004/8/EC are stressed. A practical case of cogeneration is also presented, showing the application of the Annex III (b) and (c) of the Cogeneration Directive. The practical case presented shows that micro CHP can be considered highly efficient, with parameters calculated with the Directive rules. Two main improvements in Portugal's energy policy are important: improvement on the permission to access grid system and improvement on support mechanisms indexing it to PES. The Cogeneration Directive transposition is an excellent opportunity to induce a less restrictive framework for the installation of new cogeneration systems, reducing the technological barriers, namely allowing medium-voltage connection with the grid, and improving the revenues provided from these small cogeneration systems. These modifications can improve significantly the number of potential hosts for small-scale cogeneration systems.     

A scheme to analyze conducting plates of resonant size using theconjugate-gradient method and the fast Fourier transform

A scheme for analyzing electrodynamic problems involving conducting plates of resonant size using the conjugate-gradient (CG) method and the fast Fourier transform (FFT) is presented in detail. The problems are analyzed by solving their corresponding electric-field integral equation. The procedure is made easy and systematic by using a sampling process with rooftop functions to represent the induced current and pulses to average the fields. These functions have been widely used in moment-method (MM) applications. The scheme is an efficient numerical tool, benefiting from the good convergence and low memory requirements of the CG and the low CPU time consumed in performing convolutions with the FFT. In comparison with the MM, the scheme avoids the storage of large matrices and reduces the computer time by an order of magnitude. Several results are presented and compared with analytical, numerical, or measured values that appear in the literature     

碳纤维增强卷边槽形钢柱的非线性性能和承载力

对碳纤维增强卷边槽形钢柱的试验结果、非线性性能的数值分析以及承载力进行研究。基于GBT的基础研究,涉及柱弹性抗弯性能的研究集中在下列方面:i)布的位置(腹板、翼缘、卷边);ii)碳纤维的方向(纵向、横向或倾斜)以便对加固效果(性能价格比)进行优化。对19个端固定的短、长卷边槽形钢柱的试验过程进行描述。采用碳纤维布对钢柱的不同部位(腹板、翼缘、卷边)进行加固,纤维的方向包括纵向和横向:因为研究的目标是评估碳纤维加固对柱的结构响应的影响,对未加固钢试件也进行了试验。基于壳有限单元模型并采用Abaqus规定,由包含非线性平衡路径(荷载与轴向压缩的比值)和极限强度(大部分与局部/屈曲失稳破坏机理相关)组成的试验结果被用于校准和验证几何及物理非线性数值分析。最后,根据试验和数值结果,对于受到局部/屈曲失稳影响的卷边槽形钢柱,得出碳纤维布加固的有效位置和纤维方向的相关结论。