Banks tighten terms on business loans

Bank loans

Harvard College OSO-IV pointed experiment - An analysis of the malfunction during orbit 637

Telemetered malfunction data analysis from orbiting OSO- 4 implicating transforme

Temperature-dependent Raman scattering of DyScO3 and GdScO3 single crystals

We report a temperature-dependent Raman scattering investigation of DyScO3 and GdScO3 single crystals from room temperature up to 1200 {\deg}C. With increasing temperature, all modes decrease monotonously in wavenumber without anomaly, which attests the absence of a structural phase transition. The high temperature spectral signature and extrapolation of band positions to higher temperatures suggest a decreasing orthorhombic distortion towards the ideal cubic structure. Our study indicates that this orthorhombic-to-cubic phase transition is close to or higher than the melting point of both rare-earth scandates (\approx 2100 {\deg}C), which might exclude the possibility of the experimental observation of such a phase transition before melting. The temperature-dependent shift of Raman phonons is also discussed in the context of thermal expansion

Post-spinel transformations and equation of state in ZnGa2O4: Determination at high-pressure by in situ x-ray diffraction

Room temperature angle-dispersive x-ray diffraction measurements on spinel ZnGa2O4 up to 56 GPa show evidence of two structural phase transformations. At 31.2 GPa, ZnGa2O4 undergoes a transition from the cubic spinel structure to a tetragonal spinel structure similar to that of ZnMn2O4. At 55 GPa, a second transition to the orthorhombic marokite structure (CaMn2O4-type) takes place. The equation of state of cubic spinel ZnGa2O4 is determined: V0 = 580.1(9) A3, B0 = 233(8) GPa, B0'= 8.3(4), and B0''= -0.1145 GPa-1 (implied value); showing that ZnGa2O4 is one of the less compressible spinels studied to date. For the tetragonal structure an equation of state is also determined: V0 = 257.8(9) A3, B0 = 257(11) GPa, B0'= 7.5(6), and B0''= -0.0764 GPa-1 (implied value). The reported structural sequence coincides with that found in NiMn2O4 and MgMn2O4.Comment: 20 pages, 4 figures, 2 Table

Decision Support Variables for Reverse Logistics

The purpose of this study is to discover variables that should be considered in the creation of a strategic knowledge and decision support system for reverse logistics. This paper addresses a gap in the Lambert model of supply chain management through refining the link between the returns management process and the overall strategy of a supply chain firm by addressing the decision as to which reverse logistics activity to pursue. Current literature is sparse in this area and existing DSS do not specifically address this problem. In order to determine what variables should be considered in such a system, recent reverse logistics frameworks which address returned-products disposition were reviewed. Using an inductive literature review process and subsequent content analysis, the authors found seven factors that are relevant to reverse logistics disposition. Propositions are offered for further research in this area. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not reflect the official policy or position of the United States Air Force, Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government

High-pressure structural investigation of several zircon-type orthovanadates

Room temperature angle-dispersive x-ray diffraction measurements on zircon-type EuVO4, LuVO4, and ScVO4 were performed up to 27 GPa. In the three compounds we found evidence of a pressure-induced structural phase transformation from zircon to a scheelite-type structure. The onset of the transition is near 8 GPa, but the transition is sluggish and the low- and high-pressure phases coexist in a pressure range of about 10 GPa. In EuVO4 and LuVO4 a second transition to a M-fergusonite-type phase was found near 21 GPa. The equations of state for the zircon and scheelite phases are also determined. Among the three studied compounds, we found that ScVO4 is less compressible than EuVO4 and LuVO4, being the most incompressible orthovanadate studied to date. The sequence of structural transitions and compressibilities are discussed in comparison with other zircon-type oxides.Comment: 34 pages, 2 Tables, 11 Figure

Stratigraphic Architecture and Sediment Facies of the Western Oak Ridges Moraine, Humber River Watershed, Southern Ontario

The Oak Ridges Moraine in southern Ontario is a ca. 160 km long east-west trending ridge of sand and gravel situated north of Lake Ontario. Study of the Oak Ridges Moraine in the Humber River watershed was undertaken to assess its role in the groundwater system of the buried Laurentian Valley. The Oak Ridges Moraine is interpreted to have been deposited in three stages. Stage I records rapid deposition from hyperconcentrated flows where tunnel channels discharged into a subglacial lake in the Lake Ontario basin. Low-energy basin sedimentation of Stage II was in a subglacial and ice-contact setting of a highly crevassed ice sheet. Stage III sedimentation is characterized by rapid facies changes associated with esker, subaqueous fan, and basinal sedimentation. Detailed sediment analysis challenges the concept that the Oak Ridges Moraine was deposited principally from seasonal meltwater discharges, climatic modulated ice-marginal fluctuations, or in an interlobate position. Instead it is interpreted to have formed in response to late-glacial ice sheet events associated with subglacial meltwater ponding, episodic and catastrophic subglacial meltwater discharge, and subsequent seasonal meltwater discharge. The moraine probably formed as the glacial-hydraulic system re-equilibrated to the presence of a thinned, grounded ice shelf and a subglacial lake in the Lake Ontario basin.La moraine de Oak Ridges, sud de l’Ontario, est une crête de sable et de gravier orientée est-ouest d’une longueur de 160 km au nord du lac Ontario. L’étude de la moraine de Oak Ridges dans le bassin de la rivière Humber permet de comprendre son rôle dans le système de drainage de la vallée Laurentienne. La moraine de Oak Ridges a été édifiée en trois phases. La phase I consiste en une sédimentation rapide par hyperconcentration des écoulements, où les chenaux en tunnel se déversent dans un lac sous-glaciaire du lac Ontario. Le bassin de sédimentation de faible énergie de la phase II est sous-glaciaire et touche à un inlandsis ayant d’importantes crevasses. La phase III se caractérise par un changement de faciès très rapide, par la présence d’eskers, de cônes aquatiques et de bassins sédimentaires. Les analyses sédimentaires détaillées ébranlent l’hypothèse que la moraine de Oak Ridges ait été formée par la fonte des glaces saisonnière, les fluctuations climatiques près des marges glaciaires, ou dans une position interlobaire. Notre interprétation indique plutôt qu’elle a été mise en place en réponse à des événements de fonte sous-glaciaire de nature épisodique et catastrophique, et par des apports subséquents d’eau de fonte saisonnière. La moraine s’est probablement formée lors de la ré-équilibration du système glacio-hydraulique en présence d’un inlandsis mince, en contact avec le substrat et alimentant un lac sous-glaciaire dans le bassin du lac Ontario