Development, Validation and Preliminary Experiments of a Measuring Technique for Eggs Aging Estimation Based on Pulse Phase Thermography

Assessment of the freshness of hen eggs destinated to human consumption is an extremely important goal for the modern food industry and sale chains, as eggs show a rapid natural aging which also depends on the storage conditions. Traditional techniques, such as candling and visual observation, have some practical limitations related to the subjective and qualitative nature of the analysis. The main objective of this paper is to propose a robust and automated approach, based on the use of pulsed phase thermography (PPT) and image processing, that can be used as an effective quality control tool to evaluate the freshness of eggs. As many studies show that the air chamber size is proportional to the egg freshness, the technique relies on the monitoring of the air chamber parameters to infer egg aging over time. The raw and phase infrared images are acquired and then post-processed by a dedicated algorithm which has been designed to automatically measure the size of the air chamber, in terms of normalized area and volume. The robustness of the method is firstly assessed through repeatability and reproducibility tests, which demonstrate that the uncertainty in the measure of the air chamber size never exceeds 5%. Then, an experimental campaign on a larger sample of 30 eggs, equally divided into three size categories (M, L, XL), is conducted. For each egg, the main sizes of the air chamber are measured with the proposed method and their evolution over time is investigated. Results have revealed, for all the egg categories, the existence of an analytic relationship and a high degree of correlation (R-2 > 0.95) between the geometric data of the air chamber and the weight loss, which is a well-known marker of egg aging

A sensor fusion strategy based on a distributed optical sensing of airframe deformation applied to actuator load estimation

Real-time health monitoring of mechatronic onboard systems often involves model-based approaches comparing measured (physical) signals with numerical models or statistical data. This approach often requires the accurate measurement of specific physical quantities characterizing the state of the real system, the command inputs, and the various boundary conditions that can act as sources of disturbance. In this regard, the authors study sensor fusion techniques capable of integrating the information provided by a network of optical sensors based on Bragg gratings to reconstruct the signals acquired by one or more virtual sensors (separately or simultaneously). With an appropriate Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBGs) network, it is possible to measure directly (locally) several physical quantities (e.g. temperature, vibration, deformation, humidity, etc.), and, at the same time, use these data to estimate other effects that significantly influence the system behavior but which, for various reasons, are not directly measurable. In this case, such signals could be "virtually measured" by suitably designed and trained artificial neural networks (ANNs). The authors propose a specific sensing technology based on FBGs, combining suitable accuracy levels with minimal invasiveness, low complexity, and robustness to EM disturbances and harsh environmental conditions. The test case considered to illustrate the proposed methodology refers to a servomechanical application designed to monitor the health status in real-time of the flight control actuators using a model-based approach. Since the external aerodynamic loads acting on the system influence the operation of most of the actuators, their measurement would be helpful to accurately simulate the monitoring model's dynamic response. Therefore, the authors evaluate the proposed sensor fusion strategy effectiveness by using a distributed sensing of the airframe strain to infer the aerodynamic loads acting on the flight control actuator. Operationally speaking, a structural and an aerodynamic model are combined to generate a database used to train data-based surrogates correlating strain measurements to the corresponding actuator load

Densely populated settings: the challenge of siting geological facilities for deep geothermics, CO2 and natural gas storage, and radioactive waste disposal Underground Coexistence and Synergies for a Sound Energy Mix in the Post-Kyoto Era

The abstracts herein – collected for the 34th Course of the International School of Geophysics, held in Erice, Italy (“Ettore Majorana” Foundation and Centre for Scientific Culture, 25-30 September, 2010) – focus on geophysical, geological and geochemical methods applied to the planning of the soundest energy mix in densely populated countries, where the coexistence of different technologies requires unique underground facilities and resources. In the framework of IEA and EU programmes, where the concepts of “smart grids” and “smart cities” are prevailing, we rather propose the concept of “smart region” planning the use of both underground and surface areas in a new social-energetic paradigm of “zero kilometer” life. The coexistence of geological storage of CO2 and natural gas, geothermics and, possibly, nuclear waste temporary storage (near surface or geological) is today necessary owing to the progressive decrease of space and resources. In this context, the following technologies turn out to be very important: renewables (geothermal energy), nuclear power, clean coal technologies via CO2 Capture and Storage (CCS), Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), Enhanced Coal Bed Methane (ECBM), non-conventional gas exploitation, and seasonal storage of natural gas (also for strategic reserves). These technologies have been recently emphasized in Italy by the Ministry of Economic Development and by the Ministry of the Environment and Territory, as well as by research institutions such as INGV and CNR. Key topics addressed during the Course were: • Geological storage and disposal: assessment of available volume and structures. • Subsurface geological resources: management of potential conflicts among various technologies. • Geological site characterization and risk assessment for policy makers and regulators: the role of the energy industry. • New high tech frontiers for geothermal power production. • New concepts in nuclear waste disposal. • Numerical simulation software for geothermal exploration, geological storage and nuclear waste disposal. • Sharing subsurface data coming from oil & gas and geothermal exploration. • High resolution characterization of shallow aquifers and reservoirs: multi-strata exploitation by different energy technologies. • Case histories and natural analogues: “learning by doing” and “acceptable risk” concepts. The 34th Course of the International School of Geophysics is dedicated to students and young contract researchers starting their carreers in a period of energetic-environmental global crisis. Although their scientific contribution is of high quality, they are usually underpaid in public research institutions with respect to volatile staff of some international organizations who, making use of the results of governmentfunded research, make final decisions on low-carbon energy technologies

Multiple interannual records of young-of-the-year identify an important area for the protection of the shortfin mako, Isurus oxyrinchus

The shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus) is the second most fishery-exploited pelagic shark in the Mediterranean Sea, thus its conservation status is a cause for concern. Despite the species has been listed in fishery and trade regulations to hinder its population decline, the lack of knowledge on its distribution patterns and habitats essential for its persistence still hampers the implementation of sound conservation actions. Combining data from local expert knowledge, opportunistic catch records, and Baited Remote Underwater Videos, we show evidence of the interannual presence of young-of-the-year (YOY) I. oxyrinchus in the Pelagie Archipelago (Central Mediterranean Sea). A total of twenty-one individuals ranging 71–92.5 cm FL were incidentally caught (on average 2.3 YOY/1000 hooks) or documented on BRUVS in July and August over three consecutive years. These data coupled with questionnaires administered to longline fishers identify one specific area used by YOY in the summer months. Our study presents the most abundant record of YOY shortfin makos in the Mediterranean Sea within such a restricted time and limited area providing important information for improving the protection of this critically endangered species

Spark Plasma Sintering of LiFePO4: AC Field Suppressing Lithium Migration

Our work proposes a comparison between Spark Plasma Sintering of LiFePO(4) carried out using an Alternating Current (AC) and Direct Current (DC). It quantifies the Li-ion migration using DC, and it validates such hypothesis using impedance spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy. The use of an AC field seems effective to inhibit undesired Li-ion migration and achieve high ionic conductivity as high as 4.5 × 10(−3) S/cm, which exceeds by one order of magnitude samples processed under a DC field. These results anticipate the possibility of fabricating a high-performance all-solid-state Li-ion battery by preventing undesired Li loss during SPS processing

Dipolar degrees of freedom and Isospin equilibration processes in Heavy Ion collisions

Background: In heavy ion collision at the Fermi energies Isospin equilibration processes occur- ring when nuclei with different charge/mass asymmetries interacts have been investigated to get information on the nucleon-nucleon Iso-vectorial effective interaction. Purpose: In this paper, for the system 48Ca +27 Al at 40 MeV/nucleon, we investigate on this process by means of an observable tightly linked to isospin equilibration processes and sensitive in exclusive way to the dynamical stage of the collision. From the comparison with dynamical model calculations we want also to obtain information on the Iso-vectorial effective microscopic interaction. Method: The average time derivative of the total dipole associated to the relative motion of all emitted charged particles and fragments has been determined from the measured charges and velocities by using the 4? multi-detector CHIMERA. The average has been determined for semi- peripheral collisions and for different charges Zb of the biggest produced fragment. Experimental evidences collected for the systems 27Al+48Ca and 27Al+40Ca at 40 MeV/nucleon used to support this novel method of investigation are also discussed.Comment: Submitted for publication on Phys. Rev. C. 0n 24-oct-201

Geochemical modeling of CO2 storage in deep reservoirs: The Weyburn Project (Canada) case study

Geological storage is presently one of the most promising options for reducing anthropogenic emissions of CO2. Among the several projects investigating the fate of CO2 stored at depth, the EnCana's CO2 injection EOR (Enhancing Oil Recovery) project at Weyburn (Saskatchewan, Canada) is the most important oil production development that hosts an international monitoring project. In the Weyburn EOR Project CO2 is used to increase recovery of heavy oil from the Midale Beds, a Mississippian reservoir consisting of shallow marine carbonate, where about 3 billions standard m3 of supercritical CO2 have been injected since 2000 with an injection rate of 5000 ton/day. In this work the available dataset (bulk mineralogy of the reservoir, gas-cap composition and selected preand post-CO2 injection water samples) provided by the International Energy Agency Weyburn CO2 Monitoring & Storage Project has been used in order to: i) reconstruct the pre-injection reservoir chemical composition (including pH and the boundary conditions at 62 °C and 15 MPa); ii) assess the evolution of the reservoir subjected to CO2 injection and predict dissolution/precipitation processes of the Weyburn brines over 100 years after injection; iii) validate the short-term (September 2000–2003) evolution of the in situ reservoir fluids due to the CO2 injection, by comparing the surface analytical data with the composition of the computed depressurized brines. To achieve these goals the PRHEEQC (V2.14) Software Package was used with both modified thermodynamic database and correction for supercritical CO2 fugacity. The oil–gas–water interaction and the non-ideality of the gas phase (with exception of CO2) were not considered in the numerical simulations. Despite intrinsic limitations and uncertainties of geochemical modeling, the main results can be summarized, as follows: 1) the calculated pre-injection chemical composition of the Midale Beds brine is consistent with the analytical data of the waters collected in 2000 (baseline survey), 2) the main reservoir reactions (CO2 and carbonate dissolution) take place within the first year of simulation, 3) the temporal evolution of the chemical features of the fluids in the Weyburn reservoir suggests that CO2 can safely be stored by solubility (as CO2(aq)) and mineral trapping (via dawsonite precipitation). The short-term validation performed by calculating chemical composition of the reservoir fluids (corrected for surface conditions) after the simulation of 3 years of CO2 injection is consistent (error ≤5%) with the analytical data of the wellhead water samples collected in 2003, with the exception of Ca and Mg (error N90%), likely due to complexation effect of carboxilic acid

Multicentre investigation of neutron contamination at cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) location due to high-energy photon beams using passive detectors and Monte Carlo simulations

Radiotherapy treatments involving LINACs operating at accelerating potentials >10 MV generate (photo)neutrons which deliver dose to patients also outside the target volume. This effect is particularly relevant for patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs), which can be damaged by the therapeutic irradiation. In the last few years, there has been a rising interest in this issue, and it seems that damage to CIEDs is primarily associated with the thermal component of the photoneutron field. In particular, a recent study led by Politecnico di Milano considered CIEDs from various manufacturers and showed that some of these devices can be damaged after an irradiation with a thermal neutron fluence of about 10^9 cm^-2. The present work results from a collaboration among Politecnico di Milano, the University of Pisa, the University of Trieste and three Italian hospitals located in Lucca, Trieste and Varese, respectively, and it is primarily aimed at evaluating the thermal neutron fluence in CIED region for some high-energy treatments delivered at 15 and 18 MV and to determine whether it is comparable to the critical value given above, which has been experimentally determined to be potentially harmful for CIEDs. Thermal neutron fluence was measured through CR-39 detectors and TLDs, which were housed inside a BOMAB-like phantom mimicking the patient’s trunk. The experimental sessions involved two models of LINAC, Varian Clinac DHX (Varese hospital) and Elekta Synergy (Lucca and Trieste hospitals). The experimental results show that the treatments considered in this study can lead to a thermal neutron fluence in the cardiac region comparable to the critical value. Furthermore, detailed Monte Carlo geometries for the facilities involved in this project were developed with the MCNP code (v. 6.2), and they were tested by comparing simulation results to measurements considering some benchmark irradiation plans. Bubble detectors were also employed for fast neutron fluence measurements to be compared to simulation outputs. These computational models stand out as promising tools for the investigations required in this work, and they can be used for further studies also extending their use to analogous facilities hosting the same models of LINACs