Dynamic mechanical study of epoxy,epoxy/glass,and glass/epoxy/wood hybrid composites aged in various media

It was proposed and subsequently established that wrapping of red oak wood crossties with epoxy impregnated glass fiber composites will impart longer service life and better stiffness and strength characteristics to these hybrid ties than conventional ones and will help them better withstand environmental extremes. The objective was to understand the degrading effects of aqueous (distilled water), saline (NaCl), acidic (HCl), and alkaline (NaOH) solutions, as well as accelerated aging and freeze/thaw cycling environments on the dynamic and static mechanical properties of these hybrid materials (i.e., wood, wrapped with fiber reinforced resin) and their components. Also micrographs of composite samples, obtained through scanning electron microscopy (SEM), were studied to determine the failure mechanism of composite specimens aged in different environments. Results showed that immersion in aging media lowered the glass transition temperature (T_g) and enhanced apparent phase separation in the samples because of polymer plasticization. In water immersion, the T_g and the stiffness increased with time owing to continued resin curing. At ambient temperature, sustained load had little effect on the mechanical behavior of the aged samples. The extent of degradation was the least for samples aged in salt solution. Soaking in room‐temperature acid solution was most damaging to pure red oak wood samples. Six‐cycle aging did not damage the neat resin or the hybrid samples, whereas it damaged pure wood specimens. Therefore, the composite wrapping around the wood core of the hybrid sample protected it sufficiently, thereby preventing damage to the hybrid specimen during the aging process. POLYM. COMPOS., 2009. © 2008 Society of Plastics Engineers     

A new method for finding the first‐ and second‐order eigenderivatives of asymmetric non‐conservative systems with application to an FGM plate actively controlled by piezoelectric sensor/actuators

In this paper, a new method for computing eigenvalue and eigenvector derivatives of asymmetric non‐conservative systems with distinct eigenvalues is presented. Several approaches have been proposed for eigenderivative analysis of systems with asymmetric and non‐positive‐definite mass, damping and stiffness matrices. The proposed formulation that is developed by combining the modal and algebraic methods neither have the complications of modal methods in calculating the complex left and right eigenvector derivatives nor suffer from numerical instability problems usually associated with algebraic methods. The method is applied to a functionally graded material (FGM) plate actively controlled by piezoelectric sensor/actuators. In this system, the feedback signal applied to each actuator patch is implemented as a function of the electric potential in its corresponding sensor patch. The use of this closed‐loop controlling system leads to a non‐self‐adjoint system with complex eigenvalues and eigenvectors. A finite element model is developed for static and dynamic analysis of closed‐loop controlled FGM plate. The first‐ and second‐order approximations of Taylor expansion are used to estimate the corresponding changes in the plate modal properties due to change in design parameters (the displacement feedback gains and the piezoelectric layer thickness in each S/A pair). Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A novel ±0.5 V,high current drive,and rail to rail current operational amplifier

A current operational amplifier (COA) with very high current drive capability is presented in this paper. The principle of operation of this unique structure is discussed, its most important formulas are derived and its outstanding performance is verified by HSPICE simulation in TSMC 0.18 μm CMOS, BSIM3, and Level49 technology. Owing to the elaborately arranged components, the proposed circuit demonstrates very high frequency bandwidth, extremely high CMRR, high output impedance, and true rail to rail output voltage swing range while operating at very low power supply of ±0.5 V. The interesting results such as current drive capability of ±1 mA, high output impedance of 5 GΩ, wide gain bandwidth of 220 MHz, extremely high output voltage swing of ±0.45 V, which interestingly provides the highest yet reported output voltage compliance for current mode building blocks implemented by regular CMOS technology, low static power consumption of 159 μW, and very high CMRR of 155 dB is achieved utilizing standard CMOS technology. Full process, voltage, and temperature variation analysis of the circuit is also investigated in order to approve the well robustness of the structure. The transient stepwise and sinusoidal response analysis is also done to verify the proposed COA stability.     

Preparation of voltammetric biosensor for tryptophan using multi-walled carbon nanotubes

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were grown by chemical vapor deposition. The effect of the composition of carbon paste electrode on its voltammograms was evaluated in basic solution with 5.0×10⁻⁵ M tryptophan (Trp). It was found that addition of MWCNTs to the carbon paste would generate the peak current of Trp because of its catalytic effect on the redox process. The pH strongly affects the peak potential of Trp. The best analytical response was obtained at pH 13.0. The anodic peak currents were proportional to Trp concentrations in the range of 1.0×10⁻⁹−1.0×10⁻⁴ M under the optimized experimental conditions. The detection limit was 2.2×10⁻¹⁰ M. The effect of potential scan rate on the peak potential and peak current of tryptophan was investigated. The correlation of the peak currents against v^1/2 (v is the scan rate) is linear, which is very similar to a diffusion-controlled process. The proposed biosensor was applied to the determination of Trp in pharmaceuticals formulations successfully.     

Kinetics of Dehydration of Green Alfalfa

ABSTRACT

Artificial drying is an important step in processing of green crops in order to preserve their freshness and nutrients for longer time at relatively lower costs. Forage crops, tea and tobacco are the major green crops where the commercial drying is a major operation in their processing. Fresh green alfalfa at about 75 to 80% moisture is subjected to drying in different types of dryers.ln the case of alfalfa, the raw material consists of leaves, stems, chops and fine stems, each varying distinctly in their physical and structural characteristics. The moisture content is reduced from initial level to about 10%. The drying air temperatures range from 40 b 800°C; the lower temperatures are used inconveyor dryers whereas high temperatures are used in rotary drum drycn.The results on drying behavior, and changes in physico-chemical propedes during drying for components of green alfalfa over the temperature range of 40 m 800°C are presented in this paper. The optimum temperature for drying from the stand point of color and protein solubility was found to be 175°C.     

New Feedback Architecture for VCO-Based Delta-Sigma ADCs Utilizing Phase Shifter

The voltage controlled oscillator-based （VCO-based） continuous-time delta-sigma （CTDS） analog to digital converter （ADC） suffers from nonlinearity and mismatch in its feedback network. A new feedback network consisting of a phase shifter is proposed. The phase shifter replaces the digital to analog converter （DAC） in the proposed architecture. Feasibility of the proposed idea is discussed and its higher performance is illustrated through a behavioral simulation approach （CppSim）. We have also developed the phase shifter as a variable all-pass filter in the C language. The nonlinearity and mismatch of the system caused by DAC is mitigated, resulting in higher signal to noise ratio （SNR） and signal to noise and distortion ratio （SNDR）, respectively.     

Performance of a solar liquid desiccant air conditioner – An experimental and theoretical approach

In this paper the results of testing a solar liquid desiccant air conditioner (LDAC) in the tropical climate of Queensland, Australia have been presented. The system uses polymer plate heat exchanger (PPHE) for dehumidification/indirect evaporative cooling, and a cooling pad as the direct evaporative cooler for the dry air leaving the PPHE. Lithium chloride, which is an effective desiccant in air dehumidification, was used in the experiments and a scavenger air regenerator concentrates the dilute solution from the dehumidifier using hot water from flat plate solar collectors. The data obtained from performance monitoring of the solar LDAC operating on a commercial site in Brisbane was compared with a previously developed model for the PPHE. The comparison reveals that good agreement exists between the experiments and model predictions. The inaccuracies are well within the measuring errors of the temperature, humidity and the air and solution flow rates. The above tests further indicate a satisfactory performance of the unit by independently controlling the air temperature and humidity inside the conditioned space.

In order to prevent carryover of the solution particles into the environment, eliminators are used at outlet of the absorber unit and the regenerator. An alternative method in preventing the carryover is the use of indirect cooling, in which the supply air does not contact the solution. The method can be used to produce potable water from the atmospheric air in remote areas.

The liquid desiccant system can be used in the HVAC industry, either as a packaged roof-top air conditioner, or as an air handler unit for commercial applications. The system could also be used for space heating in winter due to the property of desiccants to provide heat when wetted.     

Brittle fracture in rounded-tip V-shaped notches

Two failure criteria are proposed in this paper for brittle fracture in rounded-tip V-shaped notches under pure mode I loading. One of these criteria is developed based on the mean stress criterion and the other based on the point stress criterion which both are well known failure criteria for investigating brittle fracture in elements containing a sharp crack or a sharp V-notch. To verify the validity of the proposed criteria, first the experimental data reported by other authors from three-point bend (TPB) and four-point bend (FPB) tests on PMMA at −60 °C and Alumina–7% Zirconia ceramic are used. Additionally, some new fracture tests are also carried out on the rounded-tip V-notched semi-circular bend (RV-SCB) specimens made of PMMA for various notch opening angles and different notch tip radii. A very good agreement is shown to exist between the results of the mean stress criterion and the experimental data.     

The role of T-stress in brittle fracture for linear elastic materials under mixed-mode loading

The purpose of this paper is to revisit the maximum tensile stress (MTS) criterion to predict brittle fracture for mixed mode conditions. Earlier experimental results for brittle fracture of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) using angled cracked plates are also re-examined. The role of the T -stress in brittle fracture for linear elastic materials is emphasized. The generalized MTS criterion is described in terms of mode I and II stress intensity factors, K _I and K _II and the T- stress (the stress parallel to the crack), and a fracture process zone, r _c . The generalized MTS criterion is then compared with the earlier experimental results for PMMA subjected to mixed mode conditions. It is shown that brittle fracture can be controlled by a combination of singular stresses (characterized by K ) or non-singular stress ( T -stress). The T -stress is also shown to have an influence on brittle fracture when the singular stress field is a result of mode II loading.     

Multi-pressure absorption cycles in solar refrigeration:: A technical and economical study

A technical and economical study of regenerative absorption chillers with multi-pressure cycle has been undertaken as solar operated refrigeration systems. Referred to as advanced absorption chillers they represent one of the new technology options that are under development. Advanced absorption cooling technology offers the possibility of chillers with thermal COPs of 1.5 or greater at driving temperatures of 140°C, which reduces the collector area and the heat rejection requirements compared to current absorption cooling technology. Two different absorption systems have been considered. The first is an advanced, double-effect regenerative absorption cooling system, driven at 140°C, whose efficiency is about 55% of the Carnot efficiency. The second is an ideal, single-effect regenerative absorption system that achieves 70% of the Carnot efficiency driven at 140°C or 200°C. To evaluate the solar performance of a thermally driven chiller requires a separate analysis of the solar availability for a given location compared to the required monthly average solar input. In this analysis different systems, including the vapour compression chillers, have been compared in terms of the thermal and electrical energy input. An effective electrical COP may be computed assuming that the ratio of electrical energy cost to thermal energy cost is four, which is typical of today’s fossil fuel costs. The effective electrical COPs of different technical options can then be compared. Those systems with higher electrical COPs will have lower energy costs. If solar is to be competitive, then the cost of delivered solar thermal energy should be less than the cost of delivered fossil thermal energy.