941 research outputs found
Multi-Objective Design Optimization of the Leg Mechanism for a Piping Inspection Robot
This paper addresses the dimensional synthesis of an adaptive mechanism of
contact points ie a leg mechanism of a piping inspection robot operating in an
irradiated area as a nuclear power plant. This studied mechanism is the leading
part of the robot sub-system responsible of the locomotion. Firstly, three
architectures are chosen from the literature and their properties are
described. Then, a method using a multi-objective optimization is proposed to
determine the best architecture and the optimal geometric parameters of a leg
taking into account environmental and design constraints. In this context, the
objective functions are the minimization of the mechanism size and the
maximization of the transmission force factor. Representations of the Pareto
front versus the objective functions and the design parameters are given.
Finally, the CAD model of several solutions located on the Pareto front are
presented and discussed.Comment: Proceedings of the ASME 2014 International Design Engineering
Technical Conferences \& Computers and Information in Engineering Conference,
Buffalo : United States (2014
Spike-Timing Dependent Plasticity and Regime Transitions in Random Recurrent Neural Networks
ISBN : 978-2-9532965-0-1In this paper, we investigate how Spike-Timing Dependent Plasticity, when applied to a random recurrent neural network of leaky integrate-and-fire neurons, can affect its dynamical regime. We show that in an autonomous network with self-sustained activity, STDP has a regularization effect and simplifies the dynamics. We then look at two different ways to present stimuli to the network: potential-based input and current-based input. We show that in the first case STDP can lead to either synchronous or asynchronous periodical activity, depending on the network's internal parameters. However, in the latter case, synchronization can only appear when the input is presented to a fraction of the neurons instead of the whole
Phase-change materials to improve solar panel's performance
International audienceHigh operating temperatures induce a loss of efficiency in solar photovoltaic and thermal panels. This paper investigates the use of phase-change materials (PCM) to maintain the temperature of the panels close to ambient. The main focus of the study is the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling of heat and mass transfers in a system composed of an impure phase change material situated in the back of a solar panel (SP). A variation of the enthalpy method allows simulating the thermo-physical change of the material properties. The buoyancy term in Navier-Stokes' momentum conservation equation is modified through an additional term which forces the velocity field to be non-existent when the PCM is solid. For validation purposes, isotherms and velocity fields are calculated and compared to those from an experimental set-up. Results show that adding a PCM on the back of a solar panel can maintain the panel's operating temperature under 40 °C for 80 minutes under a constant solar radiation of 1000 W/m2
Revisiting the reduction of indoles by hydroboranes: A combined experimental and computational study
A combined experimental and density functional computational study was used to probe the mechanism for the reduction of indoles using simple borane BH3·DMS (DMS = dimethyl sulfide). Experimental and computational studies all steer to the formation of the reduced species 1-BH2-indolines as the resting state for this reaction, as opposed to the historically presumed formation of the unreduced 1-BH2-indoles, before the addition of a proton source to form the final product indolines. Furthermore, it was observed that molecular H2 was generated and consumed in the reaction. Computations put forward hydroboration followed by protodeborylation as the very reasonable mechanistic route for the formation of experimentally observed major intermediate 1-BH2 indolines. For the H2 consumption in the reaction, computations suggest the frustrated Lewis pair-type heterolytic splitting of H2 by a bis(3-indolinyl)borane intermediate
Spin-wave analysis of the transverse-field Ising model on the checkerboard lattice
The ground state properties of the S=1/2 transverse-field Ising model on the
checkerboard lattice are studied using linear spin wave theory. We consider the
general case of different couplings between nearest neighbors (J1) and
next-to-nearest neighbors (J2). In zero field the system displays a large
degeneracy of the ground state, which is exponential in the system size (for
J1=J2) or in the system's linear dimensions (for J2>J1). Quantum fluctuations
induced by a transverse field are found to be unable to lift this degeneracy in
favor of a classically ordered state at the harmonic level. This remarkable
fact suggests that a quantum-disordered ground state can be instead promoted
when non-linear fluctuations are accounted for, in agreement with existing
results for the isotropic case J1=J2. Moreover spin-wave theory shows sizable
regions of instability which are further candidates for quantum-disordered
behavior.Comment: 12 pages, 13 figure
Water adsorption by a sensitive calibrated gold plasmonic nanosensor
International audienceWe demonstrate in this work that using nanoplasmonic sensing it is possible to follow the adsorption/desorption of water molecules on gold nanodisks nanofabricated by electron beam lithography. This quantitative method is highly sensitive allowing the detection of a few hundredths of adsorbed monolayer. Disk parameters (height, diameter, inter-disk distance) have been optimized after finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations in order to obtain the best localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) signal-to-noise ratio. Finally, we have precisely measured the adsorption kinetics of water on gold as a function of the relative humidity of the surrounding medium
Seismicity triggered by fluid injection–induced aseismic slip
Anthropogenic fluid injections are known to induce earthquakes. The mechanisms involved are
poorly understood, and our ability to assess the seismic hazard associated with geothermal
energy or unconventional hydrocarbon production remains limited. We directly measure fault
slip and seismicity induced by fluid injection into a natural fault. We observe highly dilatant
and slow [~4 micrometers per second (µm/s)] aseismic slip associated with a 20-fold increase
of permeability, which transitions to faster slip (~10 µm/s) associated with reduced dilatancy
and micro-earthquakes. Most aseismic slip occurs within the fluid-pressurized zone and obeys
a rate-strengthening friction law µ = 0.67 + 0.045ln (v/v_0) with v_0 = 0.1 µm/s. Fluid injection
primarily triggers aseismic slip in this experiment, with micro-earthquakes being an indirect
effect mediated by aseismic creep
Formation of synchronous activity through STDP in recurrent neural networks with heterogenous delays
Exhumation, crustal deformation, and thermal structure of the Nepal Himalaya derived from the inversion of thermochronological and thermobarometric data and modeling of the topography
Two end‐member kinematic models of crustal shortening across the Himalaya are
currently debated: one assumes localized thrusting along a single major thrust fault, the
Main Himalayan Thrust (MHT) with nonuniform underplating due to duplexing, and the
other advocates for out‐of‐sequence (OOS) thrusting in addition to thrusting along the
MHT and underplating. We assess these two models based on the modeling of
thermochronological, thermometric, and thermobarometric data from the central Nepal
Himalaya. We complement a data set compiled from the literature with 114 ^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar,
10 apatite fission track, and 5 zircon (U‐Th)/He thermochronological data. The data are
predicted using a thermokinematic model (PECUBE), and the model parameters are
constrained using an inverse approach based on the Neighborhood Algorithm. The model
parameters include geometric characteristics as well as overthrusting rates, radiogenic heat
production in the High Himalayan Crystalline (HHC) sequence, the age of initiation of
the duplex or of out-of-sequence thrusting. Both models can provide a satisfactory fit to the
inverted data. However, the model with out-of-sequence thrusting implies an unrealistic
convergence rate ≥30 mm yr^(−1). The out-of-sequence thrust model can be adjusted to fit the
convergence rate and the thermochronological data if the Main Central Thrust zone is
assigned a constant geometry and a dip angle of about 30° and a slip rate of <1 mm yr^(−1). In
the duplex model, the 20 mm yr^(−1) convergence rate is partitioned between an overthrusting
rate of 5.8 ± 1.4 mm yr^(−1) and an underthrusting rate of 14.2 ± 1.8 mm yr^(−1). Modern rock
uplift rates are estimated to increase from about 0.9 ± 0.31 mm yr^(−1) in the Lesser Himalaya to
3.0 ± 0.9 mm yr^(−1) at the front of the high range, 86 ± 13 km from the Main Frontal Thrust.
The effective friction coefficient is estimated to be 0.07 or smaller, and the radiogenic
heat production of HHC units is estimated to be 2.2 ± 0.1 µWm^(−3). The midcrustal
duplex initiated at 9.8 ± 1.7 Ma, leading to an increase of uplift rate at front of the High
Himalaya from 0.9 ± 0.31 to 3.05 ± 0.9 mm yr^(−1). We also run 3-D models by coupling
PECUBE with a landscape evolution model (CASCADE). This modeling shows that the
effect of the evolving topography can explain a fraction of the scatter observed in the data but
not all of it, suggesting that lateral variations of the kinematics of crustal deformation and
exhumation are likely. It has been argued that the steep physiographic transition at the foot of
the Greater Himalayan Sequence indicates OOS thrusting, but our results demonstrate
that the best fit duplex model derived from the thermochronological and thermobarometric
data reproduces the present morphology of the Nepal Himalaya equally well
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