Free Wave Propagation in Plates of General Anisotropic Media

The propagation of Lamb waves in plates has been the subject of numerous investigations since their postulation by Lamb in 1916 [1,2]. Most of the work in existence deals with various aspects of these guided waves in plates of isotropic materials. Comparatively speaking a limited number of results has appeared in which Lamb or horizontaly polarized SH wave propagation in anisotropic plates has been considered in any detail. For Lamb waves, theoretical analyses have been reported in plates of cubic [3,4], transversely isotropic [5,6], and orthotropic [7,9] media

Analysis of Guided Waves in a Bilayered Plate

Inspection of coated material is vital in order to ensure the integrity of the protective barrier. In some cases, the inspection process is complicated by the fact that the surface of the protective coating may not be accessible, thus the inspection must proceed with only access to the surface of the opposite side (this will be referred to as the inner surface). One method which can be applied in such a situation is the excitation of guided waves or Lamb waves in the coated material. Lamb waves excited from the inner surface will sense the variation in the coating conditions as well as flaws in the steel plate. Therefore for a correct and unambiguous interpretation of Lamb wave data for corrosion-related flaws, the effects of the coating and how they differ from the effects of corrosion-related flaws must be understood. To this end this paper will concentrate on the effects of the coating and its influence on dispersive characteristics of a soft layer bonded to a steel plate. By calculating the dispersion relations for a bare and coated steel plate and comparing the calculated results, unique new modes are seen to emerge in the coated plate. In addition, the coated plate is also modeled as a thin layer on a halfspace allowing a comparison between the problem of a coated halfspace and a coated plate. The comparison demonstrates that only limited information can be obtained by treating the problem as a layered halfspace. More detailed information can be obtained by treating the problem as a coated plate of finite thickness.</p

On Nonspecular Reflection of Bounded Beams for Layered Half Spaces Under Water

We study the recently derived reflection coefficient for plane waves in a liquid that are incident on the liquid-solid interface of a solid half space which consists of a single layer of one elastic material bonded to a substrate of a different material. Plots of the magnitude of the reflection coefficient versus the incident angle are presented for several sets of material parameters and values of frequency f and layer thickness d. The use of the results presented for the study of nonspecular reflection of bounded acoustic beams is of primary interest. We therefore seek to identify all the critical incidence angles for nonspecular reflection. We also investigate, in particular, the surface wave propagation for the case of a stiff layer on a soft half space, and we find that the purely propagating mode cuts off with increasing fd (f is the frequency and d the layer thickness) when its speed reaches approximately the shear wave speed of the substrate, as reported in the literature. However, as fd increases further, a leaky mode appears that approaches the Rayleigh wave for the layer. This leaky mode is also associated with nonspecular reflection for large enough fd.</p

Invasive fungal infections in neutropenic enterocolitis: A systematic analysis of pathogens, incidence, treatment and mortality in adult patients

BACKGROUND: Neutropenic enterocolitis is a life-threatening complication most frequently occurring after intensive chemotherapy in acute leukaemias. Gramnegative bacteria constitute the most important group of causative pathogens. Fungi have also been reported, but their practical relevance remains unclear. The guidelines do not address concrete treatment recommendations for fungal neutropenic enterocolitis. METHODS: Here, we conducted a metaanalysis to answer the questions: What are frequency and mortality of fungal neutropenic enterocolitis? Do frequencies and microbiological distribution of causative fungi support empirical antimycotic therapy? Do reported results of antimycotic therapy in documented fungal neutropenic enterocolitis help with the selection of appropriate drugs? Following a systematic search, we extracted and summarised all detail data from the complete literature. RESULTS: Among 186 articles describing patients with neutropenic enterocolitis, we found 29 reports describing 53 patients with causative fungal pathogens. We found no randomised controlled trial, no good quality cohort study and no good quality case control study on the role of antifungal treatment. The pooled frequency of fungal neutropenic enterocolitis was 6.2% calculated from all 860 reported patients and 3.4% calculated from selected representative studies only. In 94% of the patients, Candida spp. were involved. The pooled mortality rate was 81.8%. Most authors did not report or perform antifungal therapy. CONCLUSION: In patients with neutropenic enterocolitis, fungal pathogens play a relevant, but secondary role compared to bacteria. Evidence concerning therapy is very poor, but epidemiological data from this study may provide helpful clues to select empiric antifungal therapy in neutropenic enterocolitis

The problem of sharp notch in microstructured solids governed by dipolar gradient elasticity

In this paper, we deal with the asymptotic problem of a body of infinite extent with a notch (re-entrant corner) under remotely applied plane-strain or anti-plane shear loadings. The problem is formulated within the framework of the Toupin-Mindlin theory of dipolar gradient elasticity. This generalized continuum theory is appropriate to model the response of materials with microstructure. A linear version of the theory results by considering a linear isotropic expression for the strain-energy density that depends on strain-gradient terms, in addition to the standard strain terms appearing in classical elasticity. Through this formulation, a microstructural material constant is introduced, in addition to the standard Lamé constants . The faces of the notch are considered to be traction-free and a boundary-layer approach is followed. The boundary value problem is attacked with the asymptotic Knein-Williams technique. Our analysis leads to an eigenvalue problem, which, along with the restriction of a bounded strain energy, provides the asymptotic fields. The cases of a crack and a half-space are analyzed in detail as limit cases of the general notch (infinite wedge) problem. The results show significant departure from the predictions of the standard fracture mechanics

Satisfaction with child health services in the non-government sector of Hong Kong: Consumer evaluation

There is increasing emphasis on community-based health care. Evaluation of both government and non-government maternal and child care services in Hong Kong is a key objective for future development. The Kwun Tong Community Health Project, one of the Government's subsidy services, aim is to help in the rapid growth of the community so as to recognize needs, and to resolve health care issues. The present paper examines the findings of a consumer evaluation of three community health centers in the Kwun Tong Community Health Project, regarding clients' satisfaction towards the accessibility, information, use, medical consultation, perceptions of health problems of infants and cost of services provided. There was overall satisfaction expressed by the clients regarding health maintenance officers and the services provided. Provision of comprehensive family-focused care, including child and women's health was highly recommended. Parents' participation in decision-making about care and discussion about the child's health care plan were recognized as important issues to consider. Provision of play facilities and more flexible hours of operation were found to be beneficial in improving client's satisfaction. Finally, continuing education of the health maintenance officers was recognized as pertinent for them to update their knowledge while providing health education to the clients.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

A Decomposition Theorem For Maximum Weight Bipartite Matchings with Applications To Evolutionary Trees

Many structures, both man-made and of natural origin, are composed of different elastic materials formed in layers. Often the layers are bonded together along common faces, but it can happen that the bonding is not perfect and flaws occur as cracks or regions of poor bonding in the interface. It is of importance to be able to detect these interface cracks, and one of the most practical methods for accomplishing this, in the cases of engineering interest, utilizes the scattering of elastic waves and the subsequent detection of these scattered waves by appropriate transducers. The goal of this work is to contribute to the theoretical basis for detecting the interface flaw by these means