Mini-Environments In Lithium-Ion Battery Cell Production: A Survey On Current State, Challenges And Trends

The demand for lithium-ion batteries increases rapidly. Possible improvements of the production technology are seen as key lever to improve sustainability and cost. The production of lithium-ion battery cells is complex and highly influenced by the production environment. Large parts of the production processes must take place in so-called clean and dry rooms to strictly control particles, temperature, and humidity. Especially the dehumidification of air for dry room conditions requires significant amounts of energy. Moreover, contaminants are emitted in certain processes that must not interfere with operational safety. A possible improvement is given with so-called mini-environments. This concept, roughly described as encapsulation of the individual process step, offer numerous theoretical benefits such as improved process control, enhanced product quality, increased worker safety and reduced energy consumption. The concept of mini-environments in battery cell production is not yet established. This paper presents the findings of an industry and institute survey with key stakeholders from the battery machinery, clean- and dry room, and encapsulation industries. The results show that while the potentials of mini-environments in battery cell production are recognised, many hurdles must be overcome before a successful implementation. For example, adapted holistic production systems and new logistic measures must be developed

Das Stichprobendesign des registergestützten Zensus 2011

"Im Rahmen der europaweiten Zensus-Erhebungsrunde im Jahr 2011 wird zum ersten Mal seit 1987 auch im vereinigten Deutschland wieder eine Volkszählung stattfinden, diesmal allerdings nicht in Form einer Vollerhebung, sondern in Form einer kosten- und ressourcenschonenden registergestützten Erhebung. Diese wird flankiert durch eine Haushaltsstichprobe, aus der erstens in den Registern nicht erfasste Informationen gewonnen werden sollen und zweitens eine Abschätzung der Zahl der Karteileichen (KAL) und Fehlbestände (FEB) in den Melderegistern erfolgen soll. Aus den Register- und Stichprobendaten sollen möglichst verlässliche und genaue Schätzungen der Totalwerte vorgenommen werden. Ziel des von DESTATIS eingesetzten Stichprobenforschungsprojektes ist es, Antworten auf die Frage zu geben, welches Stichprobendesign unter den gegebenen Restriktionen empfohlen werden kann. Darüber hinaus sollen Schätzstrategien entwickelt werden, die zur Verwendung im Zensus 2011 vorgeschlagen werden können. Der vorliegende Aufsatz stellt einige wichtige Erkenntnisse aus dem Forschungsprojekt dar, wobei ein Schwerpunkt auf der Darstellung eines optimalen Stichprobendesigns liegt." (Autorenreferat)"Within the context of the Europe-wide census elicitation in 2011 there will be the first population census in reunified Germany. In contrast to the last German census in 1987, where all households were interviewed, the new census will be conducted by means of a cost- and resource-effective register-assisted census. In addition to the register information, a household sample will be drawn. On the one hand this sample will provide information that is not included in the register, on the other hand it will allow for the estimation of over- and undercounts in the register. Reliable estimates for total values of interest are to be derived from the register and sample data. The aim of the research project, which was initiated by DESTATIS, is to elaborate an efficient sample design as well as to develop estimation strategies which allow accurate estimates for the census 2011. This article presents some important findings from the research project. However, one focus is on the description of an optimal sample design." (author's abstract

A Smart Robotic System for Industrial Plant Supervision

In today's chemical plants, human field operators perform frequent integrity checks to guarantee high safety standards, and thus are possibly the first to encounter dangerous operating conditions. To alleviate their task, we present a system consisting of an autonomously navigating robot integrated with various sensors and intelligent data processing. It is able to detect methane leaks and estimate its flow rate, detect more general gas anomalies, recognize oil films, localize sound sources and detect failure cases, map the environment in 3D, and navigate autonomously, employing recognition and avoidance of dynamic obstacles. We evaluate our system at a wastewater facility in full working conditions. Our results demonstrate that the system is able to robustly navigate the plant and provide useful information about critical operating conditions.Comment: Final submission for IEEE Sensors 202

Design, manufacture and test for reliable 3D printed electronics packaging

The development of a surrogate modelling approach to aid design of 3D printed electronics packaging structures is presented, alongside a detailed overview of manufacture and reliability of a representative test structure. An overview of the current status in 3D printing in the electronics packaging sector is provided. Subsequently, a surrogate modelling approach for correlating thermomechanical stresses within a package to a number of design parameters is presented. This approach enables the design of a package to be considered in a more insightful manner and can additionally be integrated into condition based monitoring tools capable of enhancing product robustness. An overview of an advanced electronics packaging system capable of 3D printing electronics packages is presented. The system combines inkjet printing and curing of multiple materials, including conductive silver inks, with precision component placement, multi-material dispensing and 3D inspection systems to provide a highly flexible solution for rapid manufacture of electronics packages. Test structures manufactured using the system were subjected to a vigorous set of reliability tests. Details of the test regime and related results are presented. All tests were passed, indicating the robustness of the described manufacturing process. The key originality of the work is that it provides a comprehensive overview of the journey from design assessment an optimisation, through the manufacturing process and on to reliability testing. Areas of novelty in this work are associated with the development of fast, accurate surrogate models able to predict key reliability factors in response to a range of design parameters and insight into the development of a 3D manufacturing system for electronics packaging

Recommendations for diagnosing and managing individuals with glutaric aciduria type 1: Third revision

Glutaric aciduria type 1 is a rare inherited neurometabolic disorder of lysine metabolism caused by pathogenic gene variations in GCDH (cytogenic location: 19p13.13), resulting in deficiency of mitochondrial glutaryl-CoA dehydrogenase (GCDH) and, consequently, accumulation of glutaric acid, 3-hydroxyglutaric acid, glutaconic acid and glutarylcarnitine detectable by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (organic acids) and tandem mass spectrometry (acylcarnitines). Depending on residual GCDH activity, biochemical high and low excreting phenotypes have been defined. Most untreated individuals present with acute onset of striatal damage before age 3 (to 6) years, precipitated by infectious diseases, fever or surgery, resulting in irreversible, mostly dystonic movement disorder with limited life expectancy. In some patients, striatal damage develops insidiously. In recent years, the clinical phenotype has been extended by the finding of extrastriatal abnormalities and cognitive dysfunction, preferably in the high excreter group, as well as chronic kidney failure. Newborn screening is the prerequisite for pre-symptomatic start of metabolic treatment with low lysine diet, carnitine supplementation and intensified emergency treatment during catabolic episodes, which, in combination, have substantially improved neurologic outcome. In contrast, start of treatment after onset of symptoms cannot reverse existing motor dysfunction caused by striatal damage. Dietary treatment can be relaxed after the vulnerable period for striatal damage, that is, age 6 years. However, impact of dietary relaxation on long-term outcomes is still unclear. This third revision of evidence-based recommendations aims to re-evaluate previous recommendations (Boy et al., J Inherit Metab Dis, 2017;40(1):75-101; Kolker et al., J Inherit Metab Dis 2011;34(3):677-694; Kolker et al., J Inherit Metab Dis, 2007;30(1):5-22) and to implement new research findings on the evolving phenotypic diversity as well as the impact of non-interventional variables and treatment quality on clinical outcomes

Measurement of the Michel Parameters in Leptonic Tau Decays

The Michel parameters of the leptonic tau decays are measured using the OPAL detector at LEP. The Michel parameters are extracted from the energy spectra of the charged decay leptons and from their energy-energy correlations. A new method involving a global likelihood fit of Monte Carlo generated events with complete detector simulation and background treatment has been applied to the data recorded at center-of-mass energies close to sqrt(s) = M(Z) corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 155 pb-1 during the years 1990 to 1995. If e-mu universality is assumed and inferring the tau polarization from neutral current data, the measured Michel parameters are extracted. Limits on non-standard coupling constants and on the masses of new gauge bosons are obtained. The results are in agreement with the V-A prediction of the Standard Model.Comment: 32 pages, LaTeX, 9 eps figures included, submitted to the European Physical Journal

Cross-sectional observational study of 208 patients with non-classical urea cycle disorders

Urea cycle disorders (UCDs) are inherited disorders of ammonia detoxification often regarded as mainly of relevance to pediatricians. Based on an increasing number of case studies it has become obvious that a significant number of UCD patients are affected by their disease in a non-classical way: presenting outside the newborn period, following a mild course, presenting with unusual clinical features, or asymptomatic patients with only biochemical signs of a UCD. These patients are surviving into adolescence and adulthood, rendering this group of diseases clinically relevant to adult physicians as well as pediatricians. In preparation for an international workshop we collected data on all patients with non-classical UCDs treated by the participants in 20 European metabolic centres. Information was collected on a cohort of 208 patients 50% of which were ≥ 16 years old. The largest subgroup (121 patients) had X-linked ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency (OTCD) of whom 83 were female and 29% of these were asymptomatic. In index patients, there was a mean delay from first symptoms to diagnosis of 1.6 years. Cognitive impairment was present in 36% of all patients including female OTCD patients (in 31%) and those 41 patients identified presymptomatically following positive newborn screening (in 12%). In conclusion, UCD patients with non-classical clinical presentations require the interest and care of adult physicians and have a high risk of neurological complications. To improve the outcome of UCDs, a greater awareness by health professionals of the importance of hyperammonemia and UCDs, and ultimately avoidance of the still long delay to correctly diagnose the patients, is crucial