Editorial

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

An outbreak of malignant catarrhal fever in young rusa deer (Cervus timorensis)

On the basis of clinical signs and histological findings eight 9-month-old male rusa deer (Cervus timorensis) were diagnosed with sheep associated-malignant catarrhal fever. Following a variable course involving rectal temperatures around 40.5 degrees C, depression, inappetence, diarrhoea, corneal opacity and hypopyon all animals died or were euthanased over a 5-week period. Severe multifocal vasculitis, mainly periglomerular and in the arcuate vessels were consistent histological findings which in the past have been adequate to confirm clinical diagnosis of sheep associated-malignant catarrhal fever. A nested polymerase chain reaction test has been used to detect a sheep associated-malignant catarrhal fever PRC product, 238 base-pairs in size, in DNA extracted from lymphocyte preparations. The result supported the diagnosis of sheep associated-malignant catarrhal fever in these deer.     

Issues in nonlinear stochastic grey box identification

Grey box identification refers to the practice of identifying dynamical systems in model structures exploiting partial prior information. This contribution reviews a method for stochastic grey box identification and surveys experiences and lessons of applying it to a number of industrial processes. Issues to be addressed include advantages and costs of introducing stochastics into the model, the question of what contribution must be expected from the model designer as opposed to what can be formalized in computer algorithms, and an outlook on future plans to resolve present shortcomings.     

Autothermal two-stage gasification of low-density waste-derived fuels

In order to increase the efficiency of waste utilization in thermal conversion processes, pre-treatment is advantageous. With the Herhof Stabilat^® process, residual domestic waste is upgraded to waste-derived fuel by means of biological drying and mechanical separation of inerts and metals. The dried and homogenized waste-derived Stabilat^® fuel has a relatively high calorific value and contains high volatile matter which makes it suitable for gasification. As a result of extensive mechanical treatment, the Stabilat^® produced is of a fluffy appearance with a low density. A two-stage gasifier, based on a parallel-arranged bubbling fluidized bed and a fixed bed reactor, has been developed to convert Stabilat^® into hydrogen-rich product gas. This paper focuses on the design and construction of the configured laboratory-scale gasifier and experience with its operation. The processing of low-density fluffy waste-derived fuel using small-scale equipment demands special technical solutions for the core components as well as for the peripheral equipment. These are discussed here. The operating results of Stabilat^® gasification are also presented.     

Viscoelasticity of oxidized starch/low methoxy pectin mixtures in the presence of glucose syrup

The structural properties of mixtures of pectin, oxidized starch and glucose syrup were investigated using small deformation dynamic oscillation. In the absence of added calcium, preparations of low methoxy pectin with glucose syrup formed viscous solutions, which remained crystal-free at subzero temperatures. Samples of oxidized starch and glucose syrup, on the other hand, exhibited solid-like behaviour because of the crystalline nature of the amylose-like helices. Mixtures of the two polysaccharides with the co-solute clearly showed phase inversion from liquid to solid-like behaviour with increasing amounts of starch in the formulation. The transformation was reflected in the textural properties of samples, which varied from thick solutions to firm gels. The viscoelasticity of the system was modified further by the introduction of high methoxy pectin. Preparations of high methoxy pectin and glucose syrup formed rubbery gels whose amorphous nature underwent a glass transition during cooling.     

XML-Schema

XML hat sich als Sprache zur Definition von Dokumenten für den universellen Datenaustausch etabliert. XML-Schema erm?glicht ausgefeilte Definitionen für XML-Dokumente und hat beste Chancen, die bisher eingesetzte DTD abzul?sen. Neben einer allgemeinen Einführung geht dieser Beitrag auch auf verfügbare Produkte und neue M?glichkeiten der objektorientierten Softwareentwicklung mit XML-Schema ein. Vorschl?ge an Prof. Dr. Frank Puppe <puppe@informatik.uni-wuerzburg.de> oder Dieter Steinbauer <dieter.steinbauer@schufa.de> Alle „Aktuellen Schlagw?rter” seit 1988 finden Sie unter: www.ai-wuerzburg.de/as