1,368 research outputs found
Continuity and differentiability of regression M functionals
This paper deals with the Fisher-consistency, weak continuity and
differentiability of estimating functionals corresponding to a class of both
linear and nonlinear regression high breakdown M estimates, which includes S
and MM estimates. A restricted type of differentiability, called weak
differentiability, is defined, which suffices to prove the asymptotic normality
of estimates based on the functionals. This approach allows to prove the
consistency, asymptotic normality and qualitative robustness of M estimates
under more general conditions than those required in standard approaches. In
particular, we prove that regression MM-estimates are asymptotically normal
when the observations are -mixing.Comment: Published in at http://dx.doi.org/10.3150/11-BEJ368 the Bernoulli
(http://isi.cbs.nl/bernoulli/) by the International Statistical
Institute/Bernoulli Society (http://isi.cbs.nl/BS/bshome.htm
Order and Creep in Flux Lattices and CDWs Pinned by Planar Defects
The influence of randomly distributed point impurities \emph{and} planar
defects on the order and transport in type-II superconductors and related
systems is considered theoretically. For planar defects of identical
orientation the flux line lattice exhibits a new glassy phase dominated by the
planar defects with a finite compressibility, a transverse Meissner effect,
large sample to sample fuctuations of the susceptibility and an exponential
decay of translational long range order. The flux creep resistivity for
currents parallel to the defects is .
Strong disorder enforces an array of dislocations to relax shear strain
Latent-heat and non-linear vortex liquid at the vicinity of the first-order phase transition in layered high-Tc superconductors
In this work we revisit the vortex matter phase diagram in layered
superconductors solving still open questions by means of AC and DC local
magnetic measurements in the paradigmatic BiSrCaCuO
compound. We show that measuring with AC magnetic techniques is mandatory in
order to probe the bulk response of vortex matter, particularly at
high-temperatures where surface barriers for vortex entrance dominate. From the
-evolution of the enthalpy and latent-heat at the transition we
find that, contrary to previous reports, the nature of the dominant interlayer
coupling is electromagnetic in the whole temperature range. By studying the
dynamic properties of the phase located at , we reveal
the spanning in a considerable fraction of the phase diagram of a non-linear
vortex phase suggesting bulk pinning might play a role even in the liquid
vortex phase.Comment: arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1212.456
Characterisation and modelling of water wicking and evaporation in capillary porous media for passive and energy-efficient applications
Passive devices based on water wicking and evaporation offer a robust, cheap, off-grid, energy-efficient and sustainable alternative to a wide variety of applications, ranging from personal thermal management to water treatment, from filtration to sustainable cooling technologies. Among the available, highly-engineered materials currently employed for these purposes, polyethylene-based fabrics offer a promising alternative thanks to the precise control of their fabrication parameters, their light-weight, thermal and mechanical properties, chemical stability and sustainability. As such, both woven and non-woven fabrics are commonly used in capillary-fed devices, and their wicking properties have been extensively modelled relying on analytical equations. However, a comprehensive and flexible modelling framework able to investigate and couple all the heat and mass transfer phenomena regulating the water dynamics in complex 2-D and 3-D porous components is currently missing. This work presents a comprehensive theoretical model aimed to investigate the wetting and drying performance of hydrophilic porous materials depending on their structural properties and on the external environmental conditions. The model is first validated against experiments (R2=0.99 for the wicking model; errors lower than 14% and 1% for the evaporation and radiative models, respectively), then employed in three application cases: the characterisation of the capillary properties of a novel textile; the assessment of the thermal performance of a known material for personal thermal management when used in different conditions; the model-assisted design of a porous hydrophilic component of passive devices for water desalination. The obtained results showed a deep interconnection between the different heat and mass transfer mechanisms, the porous structure and external working conditions. Thus, modelling their non-linear behaviour plays a crucial role in determining the optimal material characteristics to maximise the performance of porous materials for passive devices for the energy and water sector
Characterisation and modelling of water wicking and evaporation in capillary porous media for passive and energy-efficient applications
Passive devices based on water wicking and evaporation offer a robust, cheap, off-grid, energy-efficient and sustainable alternative to a wide variety of applications, ranging from personal thermal management to water treatment, from filtration to sustainable cooling technologies. Among the available, highly-engineered materials currently employed for these purposes, polyethylene-based fabrics offer a promising alternative thanks to the precise control of their fabrication parameters, their light-weight, thermal and mechanical properties, chemical stability and sustainability. As such, both woven and non-woven fabrics are commonly used in capillary-fed devices, and their wicking properties have been extensively modelled relying on analytical equations. However, a comprehensive and flexible modelling framework able to investigate and couple all the heat and mass transfer phenomena regulating the water dynamics in complex 2-D and 3-D porous components is currently missing. This work presents a comprehensive theoretical model aimed to investigate the wetting and drying performance of hydrophilic porous materials depending on their structural properties and on the external environmental conditions. The model is first validated against experiments (R-2=0.99 for the wicking model; errors lower than 14% and 1% for the evaporation and radiative models, respectively), then employed in three application cases: the characterisation of the capillary properties of a novel textile; the assessment of the thermal performance of a known material for personal thermal management when used in different conditions; the model-assisted design of a porous hydrophilic component of passive devices for water desalination. The obtained results showed a deep interconnection between the different heat and mass transfer mechanisms, the porous structure and external working conditions. Thus, modelling their non-linear behaviour plays a crucial role in determining the optimal material characteristics to maximise the performance of porous materials for passive devices for the energy and water sector
Nearly Zero-Energy Buildings of the Lombardy Region (Italy), a Case Study of High-Energy Performance Buildings
The topic of nearly zero-energy buildings (n-ZEB), introduced by the Directive 2010/31/EU will direct the building market toward ever greater energy efficiency of new buildings. In some contexts, however, the building market for high-efficiency buildings has evolved, in recent years, on the basis of national and regional laws that have contributed to the acceleration of the process. This paper analyses the case study of the Lombardy Region (Italy), which transposed and assimilated the Directive 91/2002 (Energy Performance Building Directive), as of 2006, with regional legislation for energy efficiency of buildings.
Within a few years the market for high energy-performance of buildings in the Lombardy Region had grown substantially: to date nearly 7500 energy performance certificates for buildings of Class A and Class A+ have been issued. The paper therefore analyses a success story in what is a field of great current interest, namely n-ZEB buildings. In the first part of the work, the evolution in terms of energy efficiency of the housing market in the Lombardy Region has been analyzed, with particular reference to the high energy-performance of buildings. The second part focuses on a sample of 20 n-ZEB buildings in order to highlight the design choices applied to them
- …