Measuring Propagation Speed of Coulomb Fields

The problem of gravity propagation has been subject of discussion for quite a long time: Newton, Laplace and, in relatively more modern times, Eddington pointed out that, if gravity propagated with finite velocity, planets motion around the sun would become unstable due to a torque originating from time lag of the gravitational interactions. Such an odd behavior can be found also in electromagnetism, when one computes the propagation of the electric fields generated by a set of uniformly moving charges. As a matter of fact the Li\'enard-Weichert retarded potential leads to a formula indistinguishable from the one obtained assuming that the electric field propagates with infinite velocity. Feyman explanation for this apparent paradox was based on the fact that uniform motions last indefinitely. To verify such an explanation, we performed an experiment to measure the time/space evolution of the electric field generated by an uniformely moving electron beam. The results we obtain on such a finite lifetime kinematical state seem compatible with an electric field rigidly carried by the beam itself.Comment: 23 pages, 15 figure

Symmetry Restoration By Acceleration

The restoration of spontaneous symmetry breaking for a scalar field theory for an accelerated observer is discussed by the one-loop effective potential calculation and by considering the effective potential for composite operators. Above a critical acceleration, corresponding to the critical restoration temperature,T_c, for a Minkowski observer by Unruh relation, i.e. a_c/2\pi=T_c, the symmetry is restored. This result confirms other recent calculations in effective field theories that symmetry restoration can occur for an observer with an acceleration larger than some critical value. From the physical point of view, a constant acceleration is locally equivalent to a gravitational field and the critical acceleration to restore the spontaneous symmetry breaking corresponds to a huge gravitational effect which, therefore, prevents boson condensation

Numerical evaluation on performances of AHU equipped with a cross flow heat exchanger in wet and dry operation

In this paper the comparison between the performance of a cross flow heat exchanger in wet and dry operation for air handling process has been investigated. In addition, a case study of application of the component to perform indirect evaporative cooling in a AHU was studied with the software TRNSYS. Using experimental data and an appropriate analytical method, energy saving performances of the system has been evaluated through the entire cooling season for a typical Mediterranean site. Results show that high energy saving potential can be obtained if the component is operated in wet operation in term of reduction of electricity consumption

New distinguished classes of spectral spaces: a survey

In the present survey paper, we present several new classes of Hochster's spectral spaces "occurring in nature", actually in multiplicative ideal theory, and not linked to or realized in an explicit way by prime spectra of rings. The general setting is the space of the semistar operations (of finite type), endowed with a Zariski-like topology, which turns out to be a natural topological extension of the space of the overrings of an integral domain, endowed with a topology introduced by Zariski. One of the key tool is a recent characterization of spectral spaces, based on the ultrafilter topology, given in a paper by C. Finocchiaro in Comm. Algebra 2014. Several applications are also discussed

Method for size optimisation of large wind\u2013hydrogen systems with high penetration on power grids

Wind power generation is growing rapidly in many locations around the world. Power systems are able to absorb large amounts of wind capacity, but operational problems arise when the wind power penetration becomes high. Such factors as voltage dips, frequency variations, low power system stability, low reactive power and power flow imbalances reduce the economic value and represent a barrier to the unlimited development of wind energy. Hydrogen production from wind power that is not matched with hourly electricity demand appears to be an attractive storage option capable of providing a balancing service to the electricity generators and suppliers for mitigation of the negative impacts due to the random nature of wind. Because of its multi-functionality, hydrogen can be used directly as a fuel, mixed with methane, or transmitted through pipelines to the users. The aim of this paper is to produce useful suggestions for the planning, development and sizing of wind\u2013hydrogen systems by taking into account the local and regional resources, demands, constraints and opportunities. This study considers both the economic and technological variables and describes an optimisation method (OM) for analysing power systems in which part of the electricity generated by a grid-connected wind plant is used to produce hydrogen by electrolysis. An example application of this OM has been developed for a specific geographical area located in central Sicily. Our results identify the potential and the limitations connected to cases that use excess wind power to produce hydrogen for civil applications