Effects of Pressure and Equivalence Ratio on Minimum Ignition Energies of Methane-Air Mixtures and Effect of Pressure on Breakdown Threshold Energies of Methane and Air

An experimental investigation is conducted to determine the effect of pressure on breakdown threshold energies of methane and air. In addition the effect of pressure and equivalence ratios on minimum ignition energies of methane-air mixtures are also investigated. The pressures for the breakdown threshold energy experiments are varied from 0.02 to 1.17 MPa, and pressures and equivalence ratios for minimum ignition energy experiments are varied from 0.1 to 1.04 MPa and 0.6 to 1.2, respectively. The gas breakdown and the ignition of the methane-air mixture is achieved using a laser-induced spark from a 5.5 ns pulse Q-switched Nd:YAG laser at a wavelength of 1.064 μm. Since ignition is preceded by generation of a spark, thus determining the breakdown threshold energies can provide the insight on the generation of spark required for ignition. It is suggested that the gas that has lower breakdown threshold energy would provide the spark for ignition, and the minimum ignition energy would be close to the breakdown threshold energy of that gas. The breakdown threshold energies measured for methane at 0.02 MPa and 1.17 MPa are 23.23 and 1.9 mJ and for air 0.02 MPa and 1.17 MPa are 28.84 and 2.74 mJ, respectively. The breakdown threshold energies of methane and air are found to be of the same order with breakdown threshold energies of air being a few millijoules higher than those of methane. It is observes that breakdown threshold energies of methane and air is always much larger than the minimum ignition energies of methane-air mixtures, and hence there is no correlation between breakdown threshold energy and minimum ignition energy. The mixture during the minimum ignition energy experiments ignited before the spark was generated. The temperature and pressure in the focused region were extremely high, which ignited the mixture directly or created a rapidly expanding shockwave strong enough to ignite the mixture. The results indicate that at a given equivalence ratio the minimum ignition energy decreases with increasing pressure. Furthermore at a given pressure minimum ignition energy is found to be lowest at stoichiometric and increases as the mixture deviates from stoichiometric. Similar to the breakdown threshold energy, the minimum ignition energy of methane-air mixture is found to be dependent on pressure

Automated Nuclei Segmentation of Breast Cancer Histopathology

Automated detection and segmentation of cell nuclei is an essential step in breast cancer histopathology, so that there is improved accuracy, speed, level of automation and adaptability to new application. The goal of this paper is to develop efficient and accurate algorithms for detecting and segmenting cell nuclei in 2-D histological images. In this paper we will implement the utility of our nuclear segmentation algorithm in accurate extraction of nuclear features for automated grading of (a) breast cancer, and (b) distinguishing between cancerous and benign breast histology specimens. In order to address the issue the scheme integrates image information across three different scales: (1) low level information based on pixel values, (2) high-level information based on relationships between pixels for object detection, and(3)domain-specific information based on relationships between histological structures. Low-level information is utilized by a Bayesian Classifier to generate likelihood that each pixel belongs to an object of interest. High-level information is extracted in two ways: (i) by a level-set algorithm, where a contour is evolved in the likelihood scenes generated by the Bayesian classifier to identify object boundaries, and (ii) by a template matching algorithm, where shape models are used to identify glands and nuclei from the low-level likelihood scenes. Structural constraints are imposed via domain specific knowledge in order to verify whether the detected objects do indeed belong to structures of interest. The efficiency of our segmentation algorithm is evaluated by comparing breast cancer grading and benign vs. cancer discrimination accuracies with corresponding accuracies obtained via manual detection and segmentation of glands and nuclei

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PURE AND APPLIED RESEARCH IN ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY A PATH FOR HORIZING YOUR INNOVATIVE WORK INTENSITY BASED NUCLEI SEGMENTATION OF CANCER CELL

Abstract Automated detection and segmentation of cell nuclei is an essential step in breast cancer cell for improved accuracy, speed, level of automation and adaptability to new application. The goal of this paper is to develop efficient and accurate algorithms for detecting and segmenting cell nuclei in 2-D pathological images. In this paper we will implement the utility of our nuclear segmentation algorithm in accurate extraction of nuclear features for automated grading of (a) breast cancer, and (b) distinguishing between cancerous and benign breast histology specimens. In order to address the issue the scheme integrates image information across three different scales: (1) low level information based on pixel values, (2) highlevel information based on relationships between pixels for object detection, and (3)Intensity-specific information based on relationships between pathological sample. Low-level information is utilized to generate likelihood that each pixel belongs to an object of interest. Highlevel information is extracted by a level-set algorithm, where a contour is evolved in the likelihood scenes generated by the Low-level information to identify object boundaries, and to identify nuclei from the low-level likelihood scenes. Structural limitations are imposed via intensity based specific knowledge in order to verify whether the detected objects do indeed belong to structures of interest. The efficiency of our segmentation algorithm is evaluated by comparing breast cancer grading and automated benign cancer detection of nuclei with corresponding accuracies obtained via manual detection and segmentation of nuclei

Petromobility and energy coloniality in Puerto Rico : reading Luis Rafael Sánchez’s 'La Guaracha Del Macho Camacho'

Since the mid nineteenth century, oil has powered a new phase of global capitalist relations in a world-system that might be appropriately called petro-capitalist. This paper focuses on Puerto Rico, an island which imports all of its oil and occupies a specific position in the petro-capitalist world-system, given its entanglement in several interconnected, inextricable dynamics. I examine the relationship between what Catalina M. de Onís calls ‘energy coloniality’, U.S. imperialism and petro-capitalism in 1970s-80s Puerto Rico. The primary lens through which I analyse these issues is Luis Rafael Sánchez’s novel La Guaracha del Macho Camacho, which critiques and resists the orthodoxy of energy coloniality and socio-economic imperialism

Children's participation in the railway planning process

Introduced as a right by the United Nations in The Convention of the Rights of the Child, the child participation is still, after three decades, an increasingly popular topic. As the Convention will be adopted as a Swedish law by 2020, several organizations and governmental agencies are committed to different participation strategies for children. However, the participation process is not always as effective as expected and it is usually affected by various factors such as the nature of the project or the scale. With intensive impact, large scale projects are developing more frequently than ever all around the country, affecting the environment for an indeterminate period of time. Children are one of the most sensitive groups to these kinds of developments and therefore the objectives of this thesis are to investigate and assess the extent of children’s participation in regional planning. The evaluation is made on three railway projects, coordinated by the Swedish Transport Administration and it is based on the data provided by them. The participation process is first studied through the existing models of children’s participation and an evaluation tool is developed. According to the findings, the participation process has several flaws which need to be improved. The results show which are the weakness and the strengths of the current participation process and some improvements are suggested as outcomes of this research

IoT and Fingerprint Based Door Looking System

This project presents a door locking system which suggests two ways for unlocking a door using Internet of Things (IoT) and Fingerprint. Most of the major door lock security systems have several loopholes which could be broken down to gain access to the desired places, and it creates a concern for a secure lifestyle and proper working environment. People can access Internet services by using their cell phone, laptop and various gadgets. Fingerprint is a reliable biometric feature having a wide range of applications that require authentication. Biometric systems such as fingerprint provide tools to enforce reliable logs of system transactions and protect an individual’s right to privacy. In the proposed system, fingerprints of the authorized users are enrolled and verified to provide access to a facility that is used by multiple users. A user can also be removed and a new user can be enrolled in the system. We have implemented a centralized control system from where we can control who can enter in which rooms and who cannot. This is an Arduino Mega device based. Fingerprints are stored dynamically in a database for computing the different statistics

Anatomic Demarcation by Positional Variation in Fibroblast Gene Expression Programs

Fibroblasts are ubiquitous mesenchymal cells with many vital functions during development, tissue repair, and disease. Fibroblasts from different anatomic sites have distinct and characteristic gene expression patterns, but the principles that govern their molecular specialization are poorly understood. Spatial organization of cellular differentiation may be achieved by unique specification of each cell type; alternatively, organization may arise by cells interpreting their position along a coordinate system. Here we test these models by analyzing the genome-wide gene expression profiles of primary fibroblast populations from 43 unique anatomical sites spanning the human body. Large-scale differences in the gene expression programs were related to three anatomic divisions: anterior-posterior (rostral-caudal), proximal-distal, and dermal versus nondermal. A set of 337 genes that varied according to these positional divisions was able to group all 47 samples by their anatomic sites of origin. Genes involved in pattern formation, cell-cell signaling, and matrix remodeling were enriched among this minimal set of positional identifier genes. Many important features of the embryonic pattern of HOX gene expression were retained in fibroblasts and were confirmed both in vitro and in vivo. Together, these findings suggest that site-specific variations in fibroblast gene expression programs are not idiosyncratic but rather are systematically related to their positional identities relative to major anatomic axes

Integrated System for Retrieval, Transportation and Consolidated Storage of Used Nuclear Fuel in the US -13312

ABSTRACT The current inventory of used nuclear fuel assemblies (UNFAs) from commercial reactor operations in the United States totals approximately 65,000 metric tons or approximately 232,000 UNFAs primarily stored at the 104 operational reactors in the US and a small number of decommissioned reactors. This inventory is growing at a rate of roughly 2,000 to 2,400 metric tons each year, (Approx. 7,000 UNFAs) as a result of ongoing commercial reactor operations. Assuming an average of 10 metric tons per storage/transportation casks, this inventory of commercial UNFAs represents about 6,500 casks with an additional of about 220 casks every year. In January 2010, the Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC) [1] was directed to conduct a comprehensive review of policies for managing the back end of the nuclear fuel cycle and recommend a new plan. The BRC issued their final recommendations in January 2012. One of the main recommendations is for the United States to proceed promptly to develop one or more consolidated storage facilities (CSF) as part of an integrated, comprehensive plan for safely managing the back end of the nuclear fuel cycle. Based on its extensive experience in storage and transportation cask design, analysis, licensing, fabrication, and operations including transportation logistics, Transnuclear, Inc. (TN), an AREVA Subsidiary within the Logistics Business Unit, is engineering an integrated system that will address the complete process of commercial UNFA management. The system will deal with UNFAs in their current storage mode in various configurations, the preparation including handling and additional packaging where required and transportation of UNFAs to a CSF site, and subsequent storage, operation and maintenance at the CSF with eventual transportation to a future repository or recycling site. It is essential to proceed by steps to ensure that the system will be the most efficient and serve at best its purpose by defining: the problem to be resolved, the criteria to evaluate the solutions, and the alternative solutions. The complexity of the project is increasing with time (more fuel assemblies, new storage systems, deteriorating logistics infrastructure at some sites, etc.) but with the uncertainty on the final disposal path, flexibility and simplicity will be critical

Replication potential and different modes of transmission of West Nile virus in an Indian strain of Culex gelidus Theobald (Diptera: Culicidae) mosquitoes

Background & objectives: Culex gelidus mosquito, an important vector of Japanese encephalitis virus, has shown to transmit West Nile virus (WNV), Kunjin and Murray Valley encephalitis viruses experimentally. An attempt was, therefore, made to study the replication kinetics and vector competence of an Indian strain of Cx. gelidus to WNV. Methods: Mosquitoes were infected by both intrathoracic inoculation and oral feeding and studied the growth kinetics by determining the virus titre on different days post-infection (PI). Vector competence was studied by determining the presence of WNV in saliva on subsequent days PI. Horizontal transmission was determined by demonstrating infection in infant mice by bite of mosquitoes that were fed on viraemic mice previously. Vertical transmission was studied by screening progeny derived from infected mosquitoes. Trans-stadial transmission was determined by screening adult mosquitoes emerged from parenterally inoculated IV instar larvae. Results: The mosquito replicated WNV to 7log10 TCID50/ml on Day 8 PI and maintained the titre for 14 days. Virus dissemination to legs and salivary glands could be detected, but not to ovaries up to Day 10 PI. The mosquitoes picked up infection from viraemic blood and transmitted successfully to infant mice on subsequent feeding. Trans-stadial transmission also could be demonstrated. However, vertical transmission could not be demonstrated. Interpretation & conclusion: The replication potential, maintenance of WNV for prolonged periods and ability to transmit WNV experimentally makes the mosquito a serious threat to public health especially in the wake of active WNV activity in certain parts of India