7,010 research outputs found
Radiant heat source, vacuum bag, provide portable bonding oven
Portable bonding oven is formed to any desired size or configuration to attach doublers and brackets to the surfaces of large structures. A radiant heat source is used in combination with a heat resistant transport vacuum bag and a black heat absorbing cloth
A method for observing gas evolution during plastic laminate cure
Polyimide, phenolic, and other resins which develop volatiles during laminating or molding cure are studied using optimum cure cycles. The specimen is placed on a platen and sealed in a plastic bag, then heated and observed for gas evolution using a binocular microscope. A cover plate is added to sumulate an autoclave
Two phase detonation studies
An experimental study of the passage of a shock wave over a burning fuel drop is described. This includes high speed framing photographs of the interaction taken at 500,000 frames per second. A theoretical prediction of the ignition of a fuel drop by a shock wave is presented and the results compared with earlier experimental work. Experimental attempts to generate a detonation in a liquid fuel drop (kerosene)-liquid oxidizer drop (hydrogen peroxide)-inert gas-environment are described. An appendix is included which gives the analytical prediction of power requirements for the drop generator to produce certain size drops at a certain mass rate. A bibliography is also included which lists all of the publications resulting from this research grant
Machine learning -- based diffractive imaging with subwavelength resolution
Far-field characterization of small objects is severely constrained by the
diffraction limit. Existing tools achieving sub-diffraction resolution often
utilize point-by-point image reconstruction via scanning or labelling. Here, we
present a new imaging technique capable of fast and accurate characterization
of two-dimensional structures with at least wavelength/25 resolution, based on
a single far-field intensity measurement. Experimentally, we realized this
technique resolving the smallest-available to us 180-nm-scale features with
532-nm laser light. A comprehensive analysis of machine learning algorithms was
performed to gain insight into the learning process and to understand the flow
of subwavelength information through the system. Image parameterization,
suitable for diffractive configurations and highly tolerant to random noise was
developed. The proposed technique can be applied to new characterization tools
with high spatial resolution, fast data acquisition, and artificial
intelligence, such as high-speed nanoscale metrology and quality control, and
can be further developed to high-resolution spectroscop
Ejaculate allocation by male sand martins, Riparia riparia
Males of many species allocate sperm to ejaculates strategically in response to variation in the risk and intensity of sperm competition. The notable exception is passerine birds, in which evidence for strategic allocation is absent. Here we report the results of a study testing for strategic ejaculate allocation in a passerine bird, the sand martin (Riparia riparia). Natural ejaculates were collected from males copulating with a model female. Ejaculates transferred in the presence of a rival male contained significantly more sperm than ejaculates transferred in the absence of a rival male. There was no evidence that this difference was due to the confounding effects of the year of ejaculate collection, the identity of the model female, the colony, the stage of season or the period of the day in which ejaculates were collected. A more detailed examination of the ejaculate patterns of individual males, achieved by the DNA profiling of ejaculates, provided additional evidence for strategic allocation of sperm
The role of dieting, happiness with appearance, self-esteem, and bullying in the relationship between mental health and body-mass index among UK adolescents: a longitudinal analysis of the Millennium Cohort Study.
BACKGROUND: Mental illness and obesity are among the biggest challenges to population health, they are linked, and may be modifiable during adolescence. We aimed to determine intervening pathways between mental health and BMI z-score symptoms across adolescence. METHODS: In this longitudinal cohort study, we used path models to examine self-reported dieting, happiness with appearance, self-esteem and bullying at 14 years as potential mediators of the cross-lagged relationship between mental health (via the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire) and Body Mass Index (BMI) z-score at 11 and 17 years by sex in the UK Millennium Cohort Study, a prospective cohort study of 18,818 children born in the UK between September 1st, 2000, and January 31st, 2002. Full, incomplete data on all singleton children still participating in the study by age 11 years were analysed in GSEM via maximum likelihood estimation (NÂ =Â 12,450). FINDINGS: We found happiness with appearance and self-esteem, but not dieting or bullying, mediated the relationship between BMI age 11 and mental health age 17. Each increase in BMI z-score at 11 years was associated with 0.12 increase for boys and a 0.19 increase for girls in scores of unhappiness with appearance (boys: b 0.12, 95% C.I.; girls b 0.19, C.I. 0.14 to 0.23) and a 16% increase for boys and a 22% increase for girls in odds of low self-esteem (boys OR 1.16, 95% C.I. 1.07 to 1.26; girls: OR 1.22, 95% C.I. 1.15 to 1.30) at 14 years. In turn, for both boys and girls, being unhappy with appearance and low self-esteem at 14 years were associated with a greater likelihood of emotional and externalizing symptoms at 17 years. INTERPRETATION: Early prevention strategies to encourage healthy physical and mental development of children need to focus on the promotion of positive body-mage and self-esteem. FUNDING: The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) School for Public Health Research (SPHR)
Analysis of Granular Flow in a Pebble-Bed Nuclear Reactor
Pebble-bed nuclear reactor technology, which is currently being revived
around the world, raises fundamental questions about dense granular flow in
silos. A typical reactor core is composed of graphite fuel pebbles, which drain
very slowly in a continuous refueling process. Pebble flow is poorly understood
and not easily accessible to experiments, and yet it has a major impact on
reactor physics. To address this problem, we perform full-scale,
discrete-element simulations in realistic geometries, with up to 440,000
frictional, viscoelastic 6cm-diameter spheres draining in a cylindrical vessel
of diameter 3.5m and height 10m with bottom funnels angled at 30 degrees or 60
degrees. We also simulate a bidisperse core with a dynamic central column of
smaller graphite moderator pebbles and show that little mixing occurs down to a
1:2 diameter ratio. We analyze the mean velocity, diffusion and mixing, local
ordering and porosity (from Voronoi volumes), the residence-time distribution,
and the effects of wall friction and discuss implications for reactor design
and the basic physics of granular flow.Comment: 18 pages, 21 figure
Structural properties of epitaxial {\alpha}-U thin films on Ti, Zr, W and Nb
Thin layers of orthorhombic uranium ({\alpha}-U) have been grown onto
buffered sapphire substrates by d.c. magnetron sputtering, resulting in the
discovery of new epitaxial matches to Ti(00.1) and Zr(00.1) surfaces. These
systems have been characterised by X-ray diffraction and reflectivity and the
optimal deposition temperatures have been determined. More advanced structural
characterisation of the known Nb(110) and W(110) buffered {\alpha}-U systems
has also been carried out, showing that past reports of the domain structures
of the U layers are incomplete. The ability of this low symmetry structure to
form crystalline matches across a range of crystallographic templates
highlights the complexity of U metal epitaxy and points naturally toward
studies of the low temperature electronic properties of {\alpha}-U as a
function of epitaxial strain
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