132 research outputs found
Ten Year Operating Test Results and Post-Test Analysis of a 1/10 Segment Stirling Sodium Heat Pipe, Phase III
High-temperature heat pipes are being evaluated for use in energy conversion applications such as fuel cells, gas turbine re-combustors, Stirling cycle heat sources; and with the resurgence of space nuclear power both as reactor heat removal elements and as radiator elements. Long operating life and reliable performance are critical requirements for these applications. Accordingly, long-term materials compatibility is being evaluated through the use of high-temperature life test heat pipes. Thermacore, Inc., has carried out a sodium heat pipe 10-year life test to establish long-term operating reliability. Sodium heat pipes have demonstrated favorable materials compatibility and heat transport characteristics at high operating temperatures in air over long time periods. A representative one-tenth segment Stirling Space Power Converter heat pipe with an Inconel 718 envelope and a stainless steel screen wick has operated for over 87,000 hr (10 yr) at nearly 700 C. These life test results have demonstrated the potential for high-temperature heat pipes to serve as reliable energy conversion system components for power applications that require long operating lifetime with high reliability. Detailed design specifications, operating history, and post-test analysis of the heat pipe and sodium working fluid are described
Videomicroscopy as a tool for investigation of the microcirculation in the newborn
The perinatal period remains a time of significant risk of death or disability. Increasing evidence suggests that this depends on microcirculatory behavior. Sidestream dark-field orthogonal polarized light videomicroscopy (OPS) has emerged as a useful assessment of adult microcirculation but the values derived are not delineated for the newborn. We aimed to define these parameters in well term newborn infants. Demographic details were collected prospectively on 42 healthy term neonates (n = 20 females, n = 22 males). OPS videomicroscopy (Microscan) was used to view ear conch skin microcirculation at 6, 24, and 72 h of age. Stored video was analyzed by a masked observer using proprietary software. There were no significant differences between the sexes for any structural parameters at any time point. There was a significant increase over time in small vessel perfusion in female infants only (P = 0.009). A number of 6- and 72-h measurements were significantly correlated, but differed from the 24-h values. These observations confirm the utility of the ear conch for neonatal microvascular videomicroscopy. They provide a baseline for studies into the use of OPS videomicroscopy in infants. The changes observed are comparable with previous studies of term infants using these and other microvascular techniques. It is recommended that studies for examining the mature neonatal microvascular structure be delayed until 72 h of life, but studies of the physiology of cardiovascular transition should include the 24-h time point after delivery
A generalized plasma and interpolation between classical random matrix ensembles
The eigenvalue probability density functions of the classical random matrix
ensembles have a well known analogy with the one component log-gas at the
special couplings \beta = 1,2 and 4. It has been known for some time that there
is an exactly solvable two-component log-potential plasma which interpolates
between the \beta =1 and 4 circular ensemble, and an exactly solvable
two-component generalized plasma which interpolates between \beta = 2 and 4
circular ensemble. We extend known exact results relating to the latter --- for
the free energy and one and two-point correlations --- by giving the general
(k_1+k_2)-point correlation function in a Pfaffian form. Crucial to our working
is an identity which expresses the Vandermonde determinant in terms of a
Pfaffian. The exact evaluation of the general correlation is used to exhibit a
perfect screening sum rule.Comment: 21 page
The random magnetic flux problem in a quantum wire
The random magnetic flux problem on a lattice and in a quasi one-dimensional
(wire) geometry is studied both analytically and numerically. The first two
moments of the conductance are obtained analytically. Numerical simulations for
the average and variance of the conductance agree with the theory. We find that
the center of the band plays a special role. Away from
, transport properties are those of a disordered quantum wire in
the standard unitary symmetry class. At the band center , the
dependence on the wire length of the conductance departs from the standard
unitary symmetry class and is governed by a new universality class, the chiral
unitary symmetry class. The most remarkable property of this new universality
class is the existence of an even-odd effect in the localized regime:
Exponential decay of the average conductance for an even number of channels is
replaced by algebraic decay for an odd number of channels.Comment: 16 pages, RevTeX; 9 figures included; to appear in Physical Review
On the Role of Massive Stars in the Support and Destruction of Giant Molecular Clouds
We argue that massive stars are the dominant sources of energy for the
turbulent motions within giant molecular clouds, and that the primary agent of
feedback is the expansion of H II regions within the cloud volume. This
conclusion is suggested by the low efficiency of star formation and
corroborated by dynamical models of H II regions. We evaluate the turbulent
energy input rate in clouds more massive than one third of a million solar
masses, for which gravity does not significantly affect the expansion of H II
regions. Such clouds achieve a balance between the decay of turbulent energy
and its regeneration in H II regions; summed over clouds, the implied ionizing
luminosity and star formation rate are roughly consistent with the Galactic
total. H II regions also photoevaporate their clouds: we derive cloud
destruction times somewhat shorter than those estimated by Williams and McKee.
The upper mass limit for molecular clouds in the Milky Way may derive from the
fact that larger clouds would destroy themselves in less than one crossing
time. The conditions within starburst galaxies do not permit giant molecular
clouds to be supported or destroyed by H II regions. This should lead to rapid
cloud collapse and the efficient formation of massive star clusters, explaining
some aspects of the starburst phenomenon.Comment: 21 pages, 5 figures; ApJ, in press. Minor comment added on prior wor
Correlation Functions for \beta=1 Ensembles of Matrices of Odd Size
Using the method of Tracy and Widom we rederive the correlation functions for
\beta=1 Hermitian and real asymmetric ensembles of N x N matrices with N odd.Comment: 15 page
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Implementation of U.K. Earth system models for CMIP6
We describe the scientific and technical implementation of two models for a core set of
experiments contributing to the sixth phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6).
The models used are the physical atmosphere-land-ocean-sea ice model HadGEM3-GC3.1 and the
Earth system model UKESM1 which adds a carbon-nitrogen cycle and atmospheric chemistry to
HadGEM3-GC3.1. The model results are constrained by the external boundary conditions (forcing data)
and initial conditions.We outline the scientific rationale and assumptions made in specifying these.
Notable details of the implementation include an ozone redistribution scheme for prescribed ozone
simulations (HadGEM3-GC3.1) to avoid inconsistencies with the model's thermal tropopause, and land use
change in dynamic vegetation simulations (UKESM1) whose influence will be subject to potential biases in
the simulation of background natural vegetation.We discuss the implications of these decisions for
interpretation of the simulation results. These simulations are expensive in terms of human and CPU
resources and will underpin many further experiments; we describe some of the technical steps taken to
ensure their scientific robustness and reproducibility
Crossover from the chiral to the standard universality classes in the conductance of a quantum wire with random hopping only
The conductance of a quantum wire with off-diagonal disorder that preserves a
sublattice symmetry (the random hopping problem with chiral symmetry) is
considered. Transport at the band center is anomalous relative to the standard
problem of Anderson localization both in the diffusive and localized regimes.
In the diffusive regime, there is no weak-localization correction to the
conductance and universal conductance fluctuations are twice as large as in the
standard cases. Exponential localization occurs only for an even number of
transmission channels in which case the localization length does not depend on
whether time-reversal and spin rotation symmetry are present or not. For an odd
number of channels the conductance decays algebraically. Upon moving away from
the band center transport characteristics undergo a crossover to those of the
standard universality classes of Anderson localization. This crossover is
calculated in the diffusive regime.Comment: 22 pages, 9 figure
Local Cooperativity in an Amyloidogenic State of Human Lysozyme Observed at Atomic Resolution
The partial unfolding of human lysozyme underlies its conversion from the soluble state into amyloid fibrils observed in a fatal hereditary form of systemic amyloidosis. To understand the molecular origins of the disease, it is critical to characterize the structural and physicochemical properties of the amyloidogenic states of the protein. Here we provide a high-resolution view of the unfolding process at low pH for three different lysozyme variants, the wild-type protein and the mutants I56T and I59T, which show variable stabilities and propensities to aggregate in vitro. Using a range of biophysical techniques that includes differential scanning calorimetry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, we demonstrate that thermal unfolding under amyloidogenic solution conditions involves a cooperative loss of native tertiary structure, followed by progressive unfolding of a compact, molten globule-like denatured state ensemble as the temperature is increased. The width of the temperature window over which the denatured ensemble progressively unfolds correlates with the relative amyloidogenicity and stability of these variants, and the region of lysozyme that unfolds first maps to that which forms the core of the amyloid fibrils formed under similar conditions. Together, these results present a coherent picture at atomic resolution of the initial events underlying amyloid formation by a globular protein
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