An analysis of turbulent diffusion flame in axisymmetric jet

The kinetic theory of turbulent flow was employed to study the mixing limited combustion of hydrogen in axisymmetric jets. The integro-differential equations in two spatial and three velocity coordinates describing the combustion were reduced to a set of hyperbolic partial differential equations in the two spatial coordinates by a binodal approximation. The MacCormick's finite difference method was then employed for solution. The flame length was longer than that predicted by the flame-sheet analysis, and was found to be in general agreement with a recent experimental result. Increase of the turbulence energy and scale resulted in an enhancement of the combustion rate and, hence, in a shorter flame length. Details of the numerical method as well as of the physical findings are discussed

Stress-Induced Delamination Of Through Silicon Via Structures

Continuous scaling of on-chip wiring structures has brought significant challenges for materials and processes beyond the 32 nm technology node in microelectronics. Recently three-dimensional (3-D) integration with through-silicon-vias (TSVs) has emerged as an effective solution to meet the future interconnect requirement. Thermo-mechanical reliability is a key concern for the development of TSV structures used in die stacking as 3-D interconnects. This paper examines the effect of thermal stresses on interfacial reliability of TSV structures. First, the three-dimensional distribution of the thermal stress near the TSV and the wafer surface is analyzed. Using a linear superposition method, a semi-analytic solution is developed for a simplified structure consisting of a single TSV embedded in a silicon (Si) wafer. The solution is verified for relatively thick wafers by comparing to numerical results obtained by finite element analysis (FEA). Results from the stress analysis suggest interfacial delamination as a potential failure mechanism for the TSV structure. Analytical solutions for various TSV designs are then obtained for the steady-state energy release rate as an upper bound for the interfacial fracture driving force, while the effect of crack length is evaluated numerically by FEA. Based on these results, the effects of TSV designs and via material properties on the interfacial reliability are elucidated. Finally, potential failure mechanisms for TSV pop-up due to interfacial fracture are discussed.Aerospace Engineerin

Thermomechanical Reliability Challenges For 3D Interconnects With Through-Silicon Vias

Continual scaling of on-chip wiring structures has brought significant challenges for materials and processes beyond the 32 nm technology node in microelectronics. Recently threedimensional (3-D) integration with through-silicon-vias (TSVs) has emerged as an effective solution to meet the future interconnect requirement. Among others, thermo-mechanical reliability is a key concern for the development of TSV structures used in die stacking as 3-D interconnects. This paper examines the effects of thermally induced stresses on interfacial reliability of TSV structures. First, three-dimensional distribution of the thermal stress near the TSV and the wafer surface is analyzed. Using a linear superposition method, a semi-analytic solution is developed for a simplified structure consisting of a single TSV embedded in a silicon (Si) wafer. The solution is verified for relatively thick wafers by comparing to numerical results From finite element analysis (FEA). The stress analysis suggests interfacial delamination as a potential failure mechanism for the TSV structure. An analytical solution is then obtained for the steady-state energy release rate as the upper bound for the interfacial fracture driving force, while the effect of crack length is evaluated numerically by FEA. With these results, the effects of the TSV dimensions (e.g., via diameter and wafer thickness) on the interfacial reliability are elucidated. Furthermore, the effects of via material properties are discussed.Aerospace Engineerin

Metabolic perturbations in mutants of glucose transporters and their applications in metabolite production in Escherichia coli

Background: Most microorganisms have evolved to maximize growth rate, with rapid consumption of carbon sources from the surroundings. However, fast growing phenotypes usually feature secretion of organic compounds. For example, E. coli mainly produced acetate in fast growing condition such as glucose rich and aerobic condition, which is troublesome for metabolic engineering because acetate causes acidification of surroundings, growth inhibition and decline of production yield. The overflow metabolism can be alleviated by reducing glucose uptake rate. Results: As glucose transporters or their subunits were knocked out in E. coli, the growth and glucose uptake rates decreased and biomass yield was improved. Alteration of intracellular metabolism caused by the mutations was investigated with transcriptome analysis and C-13 metabolic flux analysis (C-13 MFA). Various transcriptional and metabolic perturbations were identified in the sugar transporter mutants. Transcription of genes related to glycolysis, chemotaxis, and flagella synthesis was downregulated, and that of gluconeogenesis, Krebs cycle, alternative transporters, quorum sensing, and stress induced proteins was upregulated in the sugar transporter mutants. The specific production yields of value-added compounds (enhanced green fluorescent protein, gamma-aminobutyrate, lycopene) were improved significantly in the sugar transporter mutants. Conclusions: The elimination of sugar transporter resulted in alteration of global gene expression and redirection of carbon flux distribution, which was purposed to increase energy yield and recycle carbon sources. When the pathways for several valuable compounds were introduced to mutant strains, specific yield of them were highly improved. These results showed that controlling the sugar uptake rate is a good strategy for ameliorating metabolite production.11Ysciescopu

Nanoindentation Of Si Nanostructures: Buckling And Friction At Nanoscales

A nanoindentation system was employed to characterize mechanical properties of silicon nanolines (SiNLs), which were fabricated by an anisotropic wet etching (AWE) process. The SiNLs had the linewidth ranging from 24 nm to 90 nm, having smooth and vertical sidewalls and the aspect ratio (height/linewidth) from 7 to 18. During indentation, a buckling instability was observed at a critical load, followed by a displacement burst without a load increase, then a full recovery of displacement upon unloading. This phenomenon was explained by two bucking modes. It was also found that the difference in friction at the contact between the indenter and SiNLs directly affected buckling response of these nanolines. The friction coefficient was estimated to be in a range of 0.02 to 0.05. For experiments with large indentation displacements, irrecoverable indentation displacements were observed due to fracture of Si nanolines, with the strain to failure estimated to be from 3.8% to 9.7%. These observations indicated that the buckling behavior of SiNLs depended on the combined effects of load, line geometry, and the friction at contact. This study demonstrated a valuable approach to fabrication of well-defined Si nanoline structures and the application of the nanoindentation method for investigation of their mechanical properties at the nanoscale.Microelectronics Research Cente

Improved method for removing metal vapor from gas streams

This invention relates to a process for gas cleanup to remove one or more metallic contaminants present as vapor. More particularly, the invention relates to a gas cleanup process using mass transfer to control the saturation levels such that essentially no particulates are formed, and the vapor condenses on the gas passage surfaces. It addresses the need to cleanup an inert gas contaminated with cadmium which may escape from the electrochemical processing of Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) fuel in a hot cell. The IFR is a complete, self-contained, sodium-cooled, pool-type fast reactor fueled with a metallic alloy of uranium, plutonium and zirconium, and is equipped with a close-coupled fuel cycle. Tests with a model have shown that removal of cadmium from argon gas is in the order of 99.99%. The invention could also apply to the industrial cleanup of air or other gases contaminated with zinc, lead, or mercury. In addition, the invention has application in the cleanup of other gas systems contaminated with metal vapors which may be toxic or unhealthy

Assessment of Nutritional Status in Children from Eastern Sudan

Background: Malnutrition is a very important risk factor leading illness and death in children worldwide.Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the nutritional status and relevant haematological and biochemical parameters in school children.Materials and Methods: Cross sectional study, was conducted in 120 (70 boys and 50 girls) school going children of 6-7 years of age, for the assessment of their nutritional status. The haemogloblin concentration (Hb%) was measured by equation method, packed cell volume (PCV) was estimated by scale of microhameatocrit reader, and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) was calculated. Serum total protein, albumin, iron, total iron binding capacity and transferrin were measured by colorimetric methods. Weight (kg) and height (cm) were measured and body mass index was calculated. Data were analyzed using SPSS version13.0.Results: The mean values for hematological, biochemical and  anthropometrical measurements were much below the normal ranges. The anthropometric percentile measured in the children showed malnutrition cases in 32 (26.7%) and malnutrition and underweight in 73 (60.8%) while the body mass index showed underweight in males in 23 (19.2%) and in females 11 (9.2%).Conclusions: Malnutrition is common in our study population and was seen in 48.3 of children. It was accompanied by anaemia in 60.8 % of children.Key words: Biochemical parameters, Hematological parameters,  Anthropometric measurements, Nutritional status, Anemia

A luminous blue kilonova and an off-axis jet from a compact binary merger at z=0.1341

The recent discovery of a faint gamma-ray burst (GRB) coincident with the gravitational wave (GW) event GW 170817 revealed the existence of a population of low-luminosity short duration gamma-ray transients produced by neutron star mergers in the nearby Universe. These events could be routinely detected by existing gamma-ray monitors, yet previous observations failed to identify them without the aid of GW triggers. Here we show that GRB150101B was an analogue of GRB170817A located at a cosmological distance. GRB 150101B was a faint short duration GRB characterized by a bright optical counterpart and a long-lived X-ray afterglow. These properties are unusual for standard short GRBs and are instead consistent with an explosion viewed off-axis: the optical light is produced by a luminous kilonova component, while the observed X-rays trace the GRB afterglow viewed at an angle of ~13 degrees. Our findings suggest that these properties could be common among future electromagnetic counterparts of GW sources.Comment: 28 pages, 8 figures, 2 tables. Accepted for publicatio