Experimental and Numerical Study of a Submarine and Propeller Behaviors in Submergence and Surface Conditions

In this paper, hull/propeller interaction of a submarine model which has a realistic geometry, in submergence and surface conditions has been studied. For this purpose, the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method has been used to solve the viscous, incompressible, two phase flow field (in surface condition) around a model of the propeller and submarine hull with and without propeller. The rotation of the propeller has been modeled using the sliding mesh technique. For turbulent flow modeling and free surface simulation, the k-ω SST model and the volume of fluid method (VOF) have been used, respectively. Experimental data obtained from test conducted by the authors in M.U.T. towing tank have been used to validate the numerical scheme. Comparing numerical and experimental results shows good agreement. The experimental and numerical results show that operation of the propeller near water surface reduces the thrust coefficient of the propeller comparing to open water condition, so that according to experimental results the maximum relative reduction of the thrust coefficient is 8.95%. In addition, the results indicated the amount of hull resistance coefficient in surface condition is more than submergence condition. According to the thrust reduction and wake factors obtained from the numerical results, it is known that their values in surface condition are less than submergence condition. This research can be used for more realistic investigation of hull/propeller interaction and thus, more accurate powering performance prediction of submarines

European Council of Legal Medicine (ECLM) on-site inspection forms for forensic pathology, anthropology, odontology, genetics, entomology and toxicology for forensic and medico-legal scene and corpse investigation: the Parma form

Further to a previous publication by the European Council of Legal Medicine (ECLM) concerning on-site forensic and medico-legal scene and corpse investigation, this publication provides guidance for forensic medical specialists, pathologists and, where present, coroners’ activity at a scene of death inspection and to harmonize the procedures for a correct search, detection, collection, sampling and storage of all elements which may be useful as evidence, and ensure documentation of all these steps. This ECLM’s inspection form provides a checklist to be used on-site for the investigation of a corpse present at a crime or suspicious death scene. It permits the collection of all relevant data not only for the pathologist, but also for forensic anthropologists, odontologists, geneticists, entomologists and toxicologists, thus supporting a collaborative work approach. Detailed instructions for the completion of forms are provided

The relativistic Sagnac Effect: two derivations

The phase shift due to the Sagnac Effect, for relativistic matter and electromagnetic beams, counter-propagating in a rotating interferometer, is deduced using two different approaches. From one hand, we show that the relativistic law of velocity addition leads to the well known Sagnac time difference, which is the same independently of the physical nature of the interfering beams, evidencing in this way the universality of the effect. Another derivation is based on a formal analogy with the phase shift induced by the magnetic potential for charged particles travelling in a region where a constant vector potential is present: this is the so called Aharonov-Bohm effect. Both derivations are carried out in a fully relativistic context, using a suitable 1+3 splitting that allows us to recognize and define the space where electromagnetic and matter waves propagate: this is an extended 3-space, which we call "relative space". It is recognized as the only space having an actual physical meaning from an operational point of view, and it is identified as the 'physical space of the rotating platform': the geometry of this space turns out to be non Euclidean, according to Einstein's early intuition.Comment: 49 pages, LaTeX, 3 EPS figures. Revised (final) version, minor corrections; to appear in "Relativity in Rotating Frames", ed. G. Rizzi and M.L. Ruggiero, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, (2003). See also http://digilander.libero.it/solciclo

Automatic extraction of recurrent patterns of high dominant frequency mapping during human persistent atrial fibrillation

Purpose: Identifying targets for catheter ablation remains challenging in persistent atrial fibrillation (persAF). The dominant frequency (DF) of atrial electrograms during atrial fibrillation (AF) is believed to primarily reflect local activation. Highest DF (HDF) might be responsible for the initiation and perpetuation of persAF. However, the spatiotemporal behaviour of DF remains not fully understood. Some DFs during persAF were shown to lack spatiotemporal stability, while others exhibit recurrent behaviour. We sought to develop a tool to automatically detect recurrent DF patterns in persAF patients. Methods: Non-contact mapping of the left atrium (LA) was performed in 10 patients undergoing persAF HDF ablation. 2048 virtual electrograms (vEGMs, EnSite Array, Abbott Laboratories, USA) were collected for up to 5 min before and after ablation. Frequency spectrum was estimated using fast Fourier transform and DF was identified as the peak between 4-10 Hz and organization index (OI) was calculated. The HDF maps were identified per 4-second window and an automated pattern recognition algorithm was used to find recurring HDF spatial patterns. Dominant patterns (DPs) were defined as the HDF pattern with the highest recurrence. Results: DPs were found in all patients. Patients in atrial flutter after ablation had a single DP over the recorded time period. The time interval (median [IQR]) of DP recurrence for the patients in AF after ablation (7 patients) decreased from 21.1 s [11.8 49.7s] to 15.7 s [6.5 18.2 s]. The DF inside the DPs presented lower temporal standard deviation (0.18±0.06 Hz vs. 0.29±0.12 Hz, p<0.05) and higher OI (0.35±0.03 vs. 0.31±0.04, p<0.05). The atrial regions with the highest proportion of HDF region were the septum and the left upper pulmonary vein. Conclusion: Multiple recurrent spatiotemporal HDF patterns exist during persAF. The proposed method can identify and quantify the spatiotemporal repetition of the HDFs, where the high recurrences of DP may suggest a more organised rhythm. DPs presented a more consistent DF and higher organisation compared with non-DPs, suggesting that DF with higher OI might be more likely to recur. Recurring patterns offer a more comprehensive dynamic insight of persAF behaviour, and ablation targeting such regions may be beneficial

Processing of cloud condensation nuclei by collision-coalescence in a mesoscale model

This is the publisher's version, also available electronically from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2006JD007183/abstract.The Naval Research Laboratory's Coupled Ocean-Atmosphere Mesoscale Prediction System (COAMPS) is employed to explore the relative importance of source, sink, and transport processes in producing an accurate forecast of the aerosol-cloud-drizzle system. Cloud processing, defined to be the reduction of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) via collision-coalescence, is not uniquely related to total particle concentration, a behavior which stems from the roughly inverse dependence on cloud droplet concentration between autoconversion and accretion depletion terms. Instead, the behavior of cloud processing in COAMPS suggests relationships (scalings) based on cloud base drizzle rate (R) and cloud droplet concentration (Nc). Cloud processing is found to be correlated with drizzle, a relationship that can be represented as a power law for drizzle rates less than 0.6 mm d−1. A scaling for cloud processing based on the product of Nc and R is accurate over a wider range of drizzle rates. Results from large eddy simulation with size-resolved microphysical processes demonstrate reasonable agreement with COAMPS and the two parameter scaling. Entrainment plays an important role in strongly modulating the mean marine boundary layer (MBL) concentration, both increasing and decreasing CCN, depending upon the entrainment velocity we and the difference between MBL and free tropospheric CCN concentrations. The importance of entrainment suggests that transport processes, especially in the vertical, play a fundamental role in the overall MBL CCN balance. In situ sources rates of CCN, taken to represent heterogeneous chemical processes and sea salt flux of submicron size particles from the ocean surface, must be unrealistically large in order to be of the same magnitude as cloud processing. Because of the prevailing importance of cloud processing and entrainment over timescales of a typical mesoscale forecast, we argue that incorporating accurate vertical aerosol profiles into the model update cycles, either from remote sensing or from global chemistry models, is more important than highly constrained local CCN source rates

Thermodynamics of heterogeneous crystal nucleation in contact and immersion modes

One of most intriguing problems of heterogeneous crystal nucleation in droplets is its strong enhancement in the contact mode (when the foreign particle is presumably in some kind of contact with the droplet surface) compared to the immersion mode (particle immersed in the droplet). Many heterogeneous centers have different nucleation thresholds when they act in contact or immersion modes, indicating that the mechanisms may be actually different for the different modes. Underlying physical reasons for this enhancement have remained largely unclear. In this paper we present a model for the thermodynamic enhancement of heterogeneous crystal nucleation in the contact mode compared to the immersion one. To determine if and how the surface of a liquid droplet can thermodynamically stimulate its heterogeneous crystallization, we examine crystal nucleation in the immersion and contact modes by deriving and comparing with each other the reversible works of formation of crystal nuclei in these cases. As a numerical illustration, the proposed model is applied to the heterogeneous nucleation of Ih crystals on generic macroscopic foreign particles in water droplets at T=253 K. Our results show that the droplet surface does thermodynamically favor the contact mode over the immersion one. Surprisingly, our numerical evaluations suggest that the line tension contribution to this enhancement from the contact of three water phases (vapor-liquid-crystal) may be of the same order of magnitude as or even larger than the surface tension contribution