Two pad axially grooved hydrostatic bearing

A hydrostatic bearing having two axial grooves on opposite sides of the bearing for breaking the rotational symmetry in the dynamic force coefficients thus reducing the whirl frequency ratio and increasing the damping and stiffness of the hydrostatic bearing

Computational Modeling for the Ag Nanoparticle Coalescence Process: A Case of Surface Plasmon Resonance

Motivated by recent transmission electron microscopy (TEM) experiments on α-Ag2WO4, the coalescence process of Ag nanoparticles (NPs) is investigated using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. These Ag NPs are formed by irradiation of α-Ag2WO4 crystals by electrons from a TEM gun. This behavior can be considered as a clear example of surface plasmon resonance (SPR), in which Ag NP coalescence processes are controlled by dipole–dipole interaction forming larger clusters. The interactions between Ag NPs along the coalescence processes are studied using MD simulations with embedded atom method (EAM) effective potentials for Ag. With these choices of methods, coalescence is studied by addressing different scenarios for the interacting NPs, which all could possibly occur in experiments

Aplicación Práctica de Métodos para Evaluar In-Situ el Rendimiento Instantáneo de Máquinas Frigoríficas de Compresión Mecánica

Libro de actas completo disponible en :http://repositorio.bib.upct.es:8080/dspace/handle/10317/4709Los equipos de aire acondicionado, bombas de calor y refrigeración suponen un elevado consumo de energía eléctrica en los países industrializados. Es frecuente que, en la práctica, estos equipos no estén operando con la eficiencia que debieran. De ahí la importancia de realizar inspecciones periódicas, que incluyan mediciones de los diferentes parámetros de operación de los equipos, destacando por su importancia la medición de su rendimiento (EER/COP). La medición precisa in-situ del EER/COP sobre una instalación frigorífica de compresión mecánica, fuera de un banco de ensayo de laboratorio, ha sido desde siempre una cuestión muy complicada, con muchas dificultades prácticas. Un punto crítico es la medición del caudal de fluido refrigerante. Si no se dispone de un caudalímetro instalado, que es la situación más habitual, hay que recurrir a mediciones indirectas. Hay varios métodos indirectos para estimar el caudal de refrigerante, que se pueden clasificar en los que se basan en: a) el rendimiento volumétrico del compresor, b) el rendimiento global del compresor, c) un balance de energía sobre el condensador y d) un balance de energía sobre el compresor. En este trabajo se ponen en práctica y analizan estos cuatro métodos sobre instalaciones frigoríficas existentes en el laboratorio docente del Departamento de Máquinas y Motores Térmicos de la Universidad de Málaga [1]. Para ello se utiliza un sistema de medición de bajo coste, basado en sensores ONSET [2]. El procesado y análisis de los datos se hace mediante el software Engineering Equation Solver [3]. Se discuten los resultados y dificultades encontradas en la aplicación de los diferentes métodos y se ofrecen recomendaciones a tener en cuenta para abordar instalaciones más complejas.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

In situ growth of Ag nanoparticles on alpha-Ag2WO4 under electron irradiation: probing the physical principles

Exploiting the plasmonic behavior of Ag nanoparticles grown on α-Ag2WO4 is a widely employed strategy to produce efficient photocatalysts, ozone sensors, and bactericides. However, a description of the atomic and electronic structure of the semiconductor sites irradiated by electrons is still not available. Such a description is of great importance to understand the mechanisms underlying these physical processes and to improve the design of silver nanoparticles to enhance their activities. Motivated by this, we studied the growth of silver nanoparticles to investigate this novel class of phenomena using both transmission electron microscopy and field emission scanning electron microscopy. A theoretical framework based on density functional theory calculations (DFT), together with experimental analysis and measurements, were developed to examine the changes in the local geometrical and electronic structure of the materials. The physical principles for the formation of Ag nanoparticles on α-Ag2WO4 by electron beam irradiation are described. Quantum mechanical calculations based on DFT show that the (001) of α-Ag2WO4 displays Ag atoms with different coordination numbers. Some of them are able to diffuse out of the surface with a very low energy barrier (less than 0.1 eV), thus, initiating the growth of metallic Ag nanostructures and leaving Ag vacancies in the bulk material. These processes increase the structural disorder of α-Ag2WO4 as well as its electrical resistance as observed in the experimental measurements.The authors are grateful to Generalitat Valenciana (Spain) for PrometeoII/2014/022 and ACOMP/2014/270 projects, Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (Spain), CTQ2012-36253-C03-02, and to the Spanish Brazilian Program (PHB2009-0065-PC), CAPES (203038 009607/2013- 56 088/2013), INCTMN (2008/57872-1), FAPESP (2013/ 07296-2; 2012/14468-1; 2010/16970-0) and CNPq (147001/2013-7; 573636/2008-7) for financially supporting this research. Most of the calculations were performed using IFGW-UNICAMP computer facilities and the National Center for High Performance Computing in São Paulo (CENAPAD- SP)

Selective Synthesis of α-, β-, and γ-Ag2WO4 Polymorphs: Promising Platforms for Photocatalytic and Antibacterial Materials

Silver tungstate (Ag2WO4) shows structural polymorphism with different crystalline phases, namely, orthorhombic, hexagonal, and cubic structures that are commonly known as α, β, and γ, respectively. In this work, these Ag2WO4 polymorphs were selectively and successfully synthesized through a simple precipitation route at ambient temperature. The polymorph-controlled synthesis was conducted by means of the volumetric ratios of the silver nitrate/tungstate sodium dehydrate precursors in solution. The structural and electronic properties of the as-synthesized Ag2WO4 polymorphs were investigated by using a combination of X-ray diffraction and Rietveld refinements, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, X-ray absorption near-edge structure spectroscopy, field-emission scanning electron microscopy images, and photoluminescence. To complement and rationalize the experimental results, first-principles calculations, at the density functional theory level, were carried out, leading to an unprecedented glimpse into the atomic-level properties of the morphology and the exposed surfaces of Ag2WO4 polymorphs. Following the analysis of the local coordination of Ag and W cations (clusters) at each exposed surface of the three polymorphs, the structure–property relationship between the morphology and the photocatalytic and antibacterial activities against amiloride degradation under ultraviolet light irradiation and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, respectively, was investigated. A possible mechanism of the photocatalytic and antibacterial activity as well the formation process and growth of the polymorphs is also explored and proposed

Evidence for the formation of metallic In after laser irradiation of InP

Structural and electronic changes induced by laser irradiation are currently of interest owing to the possibility to tune the mechanical, optical, and transport properties of the irradiated materials. In this work, we investigate the effects of laser irradiation on indium phosphide, InP, by modifying the electronic temperature, Te, of the system within the density functional theory framework and performing molecular dynamics simulations to prove that the laser irradiation also provokes a local thermalization effect. We found that the process can be described by a two-stage mechanism. First, at low Te values (0–1.0 eV), the laser energy induces electronic transitions, while the InP lattice remains undisturbed and cool. In the second stage (with Te in the range of 1.0–4.0 eV), both electron-electron scattering and electron-phonon coupling processes are triggered, increasing the energy of the lattice so as to provoke a Coulomb explosion, which changes some physical chemical properties of InP. The close agreement between the simulations helps explain the formation of metallic In as it is observed in the transmission electron microscopy images

Miscarriage and stillbirth following maternal Zika virus infection in nonhuman primates.

Zika virus (ZIKV) infection is associated with congenital defects and pregnancy loss. Here, we found that 26% of nonhuman primates infected with Asian/American ZIKV in early gestation experienced fetal demise later in pregnancy despite showing few clinical signs of infection. Pregnancy loss due to asymptomatic ZIKV infection may therefore be a common but under-recognized adverse outcome related to maternal ZIKV infection

Phenoloxidase activity acts as a mosquito innate immune response against infection with semliki forest virus

Several components of the mosquito immune system including the RNA interference (RNAi), JAK/STAT, Toll and IMD pathways have previously been implicated in controlling arbovirus infections. In contrast, the role of the phenoloxidase (PO) cascade in mosquito antiviral immunity is unknown. Here we show that conditioned medium from the Aedes albopictus-derived U4.4 cell line contains a functional PO cascade, which is activated by the bacterium Escherichia coli and the arbovirus Semliki Forest virus (SFV) (Togaviridae; Alphavirus). Production of recombinant SFV expressing the PO cascade inhibitor Egf1.0 blocked PO activity in U4.4 cell- conditioned medium, which resulted in enhanced spread of SFV. Infection of adult female Aedes aegypti by feeding mosquitoes a bloodmeal containing Egf1.0-expressing SFV increased virus replication and mosquito mortality. Collectively, these results suggest the PO cascade of mosquitoes plays an important role in immune defence against arboviruses

Mass measurements of As, Se and Br nuclei and their implication on the proton-neutron interaction strength towards the N=Z line

Mass measurements of the nuclides 69As, 70,71Se, and 71Br, produced via fragmentation of a 124Xe primary beam at the Fragment Separator (FRS) at GSI, have been performed with the multiple-reflection time-of-flight mass spectrometer (MR-TOF-MS) of the FRS Ion Catcher with an unprecedented mass resolving power of almost 1000000. Such high resolving power is the only way to achieve accurate results and resolve overlapping peaks of short-lived exotic nuclei, whose total number of accumulated events is always limited. For the nuclide 69As, this is the first direct mass measurement. A mass uncertainty of 22 keV was achieved with only ten events. For the nuclide 70Se, a mass uncertainty of 2.6 keV was obtained, corresponding to a relative accuracy of δm/m=4.0×10−8, with less than 500 events. The masses of the nuclides 71Se and 71Br have been measured with an uncertainty of 23 and 16 keV, respectively. Our results for the nuclides 70,71Se and 71Br are in good agreement with the 2016 Atomic Mass Evaluation, and our result for the nuclide 69As resolves the discrepancy between the previous indirect measurements. We measured also the mass of the molecule 14N15N40Ar (A=69) with a relative accuracy of δm/m=1.7×10−8, the highest yet achieved with an MR-TOF-MS. Our results show that the measured restrengthening of the proton-neutron interaction (δVpn) for odd-odd nuclei along the N=Z line above Z=29 (recently extended to Z=37) is hardly evident at the N−Z=2 line, and not evident at the N−Z=4 line. Nevertheless, detailed structure of δVpn along the N−Z=2 and N−Z=4 lines, confirmed by our mass measurements, may provide a hint regarding the ongoing ≈500 keV discrepancy in the mass value of the nuclide 70Br, which prevents including it in the world average of Ft value for superallowed 0+→0+β decays. The reported work sets the stage for mass measurements with the FRS Ion Catcher of nuclei at and beyond the N=Z line in the same region of the nuclear chart, including the nuclide 70Br.peerReviewe