Comment on "Theory of tailoring sonic devices: Diffraction dominates over refraction"

Recently N. Garcia et al. (Phys. Rev. E 67, 046606 (2003)) theoretically studied several acoustic devices with dimensions on de order of several wavelenghts. The authors discussed on experimental results previously reported by several of us (F. Cervera et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 88, 023902 (2002)). They concluded that diffraction and not refraction is the ominating mechanism that explain the focusing effects observed in those experiments. In this Comment we reexamined their calculations and discussed why some of their interpretations of our results are misleading.Comment: 2 pages, 2 figures, a comment on an articl

Advanced Rotor Fault Diagnosis for Medium-Voltage Induction Motors Via Continuous Transforms

[EN] Anumber of field case studies for rotor fault diagnosis on medium-voltage induction motors operating in a petrochemical plant are presented in this paper. The methodology employed is based on analyzing the induction motor startup current with advanced signal processing tools (continuous transforms) that enable a capture of a complete picture of the rotor condition. Indeed, unlike the classical tools that often rely on the detection of few fault frequencies, these new tools allow extraction of the evolution of a wide range of fault components during the startup transient and steady-state evolutions, which enables improved reliability. This is crucial in medium-high-voltage motors, where a false diagnosis may result in significant expense due to inspection, repair, or forced outage. An additional contribution of the study is its immunity to external voltage supply disturbances, which introduce components that are not related to the failure and which are difficult to detect with classical tools. The results of this study prove how the advanced continuous tools enable an improved visualization of the fault components, distinguishing them from the other components that are not linked to the failure.This work was supported by the Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology under Grant NRF-2013R1A1A2010370, and in part by the Human Resources Development Program of the Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (KETEP) funded by the Korea Government Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy under Grant 20134030200340Antonino-Daviu, J.; Pons Llinares, J.; Lee, SB. (2016). Advanced Rotor Fault Diagnosis for Medium-Voltage Induction Motors Via Continuous Transforms. IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications. 52(5):4503-4509. https://doi.org/10.1109/TIA.2016.2582720S4503450952

Polychromy of late gothic civil architecture: a world heritage monument case in Spain

[EN] The Silk Exchange of Valencia, Spain, is one of the best examples of late Gothic civil architecture in Europe, and was declared a World Heritage Monument by UNESCO in 1996. Prior to cleaning and conservation, technical examination identified the original pigments used to paint the walls, keys, vaults, arches and columns in the main hall, the Contract Hall. Cross sections of remnants of original colour (blue, green, red, gold, etc.) were investigated with optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray analysis, X-ray diffraction techniques and UV light. The study has revealed that the original paint today remains only in very limited areas. Evidence for a later maintenance operation of repainting was also found in the inscription that runs around the Contract Hall. The information has been very useful for deciding on the cleaning and conservation process.This work has been supported by Universidad Politécnica de Valencia’s Forum Unesco -University and Heritage and by Valencia City Council under the project: “Study and Diagnosis of Pathological Manifestations of the Stone and Project and Construction Management of Cleaning and Conservation of the Silk Exchange of Valencia "Ramirez, MJ.; Saiz Mauleón, MB.; Curiel-Esparza, J.; Llinares, J.; Soriano, M. (2013). Polychromy of late gothic civil architecture: a world heritage monument case in Spain. Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry. 13(2):121-126. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/99866S12112613

The Variable Scale Evacuation Model (VSEM): a new tool for simulating massive evacuation processes during volcanic crises

Volcanic eruptions are among the most awesome and powerful displays of nature's force, constituting a major natural hazard for society (a single eruption can claim thousands of lives in an instant). Consequently, assessment and management of volcanic risk have become critically important goals of modern volcanology. Over recent years, numerous tools have been developed to evaluate volcanic risk and support volcanic crisis management: probabilistic analysis of future eruptions, hazard and risk maps, event trees, etc. However, there has been little improvement in the tools that may help Civil Defense officials to prepare Emergency Plans. Here we present a new tool for simulating massive evacuation processes during volcanic crisis: the Variable Scale Evacuation Model (VSEM). The main objective of the VSEM software is to optimize the evacuation process of Emergency Plans during volcanic crisis. For this, the VSEM allows the simulation of an evacuation considering different strategies depending on diverse impact scenarios. VSEM is able to calculate the required time for the complete evacuation taking into account diverse evacuation scenarios (number and type of population, infrastructure, road network, etc.) and to detect high-risk or "blackspots" of the road network. The program is versatile and can work at different scales, thus being capable of simulating the evacuation of small villages as well as huge cities

Soil parameters and bioclimatic characteristics affecting essential oil composition of leaves of Pistacia lentiscus L. from València (Spain)

[EN] The variability of the soils found in an area together with the diversity of the bioclimatic parameters will affect the chemical profile of plant species, in our case Pistacia lentiscus L. The aim of this work is to analyse the bioclimatic characteristics and soil parameters affecting the essential oil (EO) composition of the leaves of the Pistacia lentiscus L. growing in València (Spain). The EO compositions of dried leaves of Pistacia lentiscus L. from five sampling sites with noticeable differences in soil and climate features were analysed by GC(MS) and GD(FID). The main bioclimatic and soil parameters were also determined in order to relate them to oil composition. ¿-pinene (2.8-39.2%), myrcene (0.6-59.3%), ß-phellandrene (0.0-42.8%), germacrene-D (3.9-20.4%) and terpinen-4-ol (0.2-19.0%) were found to be the major compounds showing a high variability. The five sampling sites presented well-defined bioclimatic and edaphic characteristics that could be related to specific EO profiles. The results suggested that the EO composition of P. lentiscus L. depends more on the edaphic factors interacting with bioclimate conditions than on the geographical origin itself. Some general trends could be established based on the results: the Calcaric Arenosol (Saler) with a high evapotranspiration index was associated with a high sesquiterpenic fraction, (germacrene-D and ß-caryophyllene, mainly). The Luvisol (Borrell and L¿Ull), with high amounts of ¿ + ß-pinene, were found to be related to sub-humid bioclimatic conditions and clayey and fertile soils (high CEC and OM levels). This last requirement was also observed to be related to the myrcene content, but with drier climatic conditions and calcareous soils (Haplic Calcisol) with high level of carbonates and active lime (Lliria). The rest of hydrocarbon monoterpene and oxygenated monoterpene (terpinen-4-ol, mainly) fractions could be related to a dry climate and non-calcareous and low fertility soils (Eutric Regosol, Segart). Given the most suitable composition related to specific and useful biological activities, new research of controlled environmental factors (soil features and bioclimatic conditions) should be conducted in order to define the best conditions to manage industrial crops of P. lentiscus L.Llinares Palacios, JV.; Llorens Molina, JA.; Mulet, J.; Vacas, S. (2021). Soil parameters and bioclimatic characteristics affecting essential oil composition of leaves of Pistacia lentiscus L. from València (Spain). Spanish Journal of Soil Science. 11(1):72-87. https://doi.org/10.3232/SJSS.2021.V11.N1.06S728711

Effects on nodular extracts of Alnus glutinosa (l.) Gaertn. on ammonification, nitrification and CO2 production in different soils

The effect of root nodule extracts from European alder (Alnus glutinosa [L.] Gaertn.) on the rates of amrnonification, nitrification and C02 production was evaluated in three soils of different physico-chemical characteristics. The extracts decreased net ammonification rate (up to a 43% respect to water control), probably because of an increase of immobilization rather than an effect of a speciffc inhibitor. The rate of nitrification was increased by the extracts (up to 40% from water control) because of the ammonium present in the extracts. An increase in C02 production showed that the nodule extracts stimulate microbial activity. This depended not only on the amount of organic matter introduced by the extracts but also to some activator of microflora.Se evalúa el efecto de extractos nodulares del aliso europeo (Alnus glutinosa [L.] Gaertn.) sobre las tasas de amonificación, nitrificación y producción de C02 en tres suelos de características físico-químicas diferentes. Los extractos reducen la tasa de amonificación (un 43% menor que en el control con agua), probablemente debida a un aumento de la inmovilización más que a un inhibidor especifico. La tasa de nitrificación crece por efecto de los extractos (un 40% respecto al control con agua) a consecuencia del amonio presente en éstos. El incremento de la producción de C02 muestra que los extractos estimulan la actividad microbiana. Esto no parece depender sólo del aporte extra de materia orgánica por los extractos, sino por algún activador especifico

Rayleigh-wave attenuation by a semi-infinite two-dimensional elastic-band-gap crystal

In this paper, we report experiments on the scattering of surface-elastic waves by a periodic array of cylindrical holes. The experiments were performed in a marble quarry by drilling cylindrical holes in two different configurations: honeycomb and triangular lattices. The attenuation spectra of the surface waves show the existence of absolute band gaps for elastic waves in these semi-infinite two-dimensional crystals. Results are compared with theoretical calculations based on a scalar-wave approach. The scaling property of the underlying theory has led us to explore the possible application of the results obtained to the attenuation of surface waves in seismic movements.This work was partially supported by the Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología of Spain, Contract No. MAT97-0698-C04. We also thank the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas for the special funding to perform this experiment.Peer reviewe

Correlation between objective and subjective assessment of noise barriers

There are several international standards that define the way to evaluate the attenuation capacity of noise reducing devices, by single-number quantities representing airborne sound insulation and insertion loss. These two single-value ratings define the quality and performance of acoustic barriers, the former being related to intrinsic and the latter to both intrinsic and extrinsic acoustic characteristics of the devices. However, not many studies can be found on whether these objective parameters correlate to the perception of annoyance reduction. The aim of the present work is to analyze the adequacy of these objective ratings to indicate the performance of noise barriers, by comparing their values with the perception of annoyance reduction. For this purpose, ninety individuals of two different nationalities (Spanish and Portuguese) were asked to rate the perceived annoyance reduction in a listening experimental test, in which they were exposed, under controlled conditions, to several environmental noises and acoustic screened stimuli simulated by audio filters. The obtained results show a high correlation between objective ratings and subjective annoyance perception, with a better correlation being observed for insertion loss single-number parameter than for the airborne sound insulation single-number rating. Furthermore, significant differences were found depending on the gender and nationality of the respondents. The results, from this ongoing research work, may be of great interest for future acoustic barriers design

Transient-Based Rotor Cage Assessment in Induction Motors Operating With Soft Starters

[EN] The reliable assessment of the rotor condition in induction motors is a matter of increasing concern in the industry. Although rotor damages are more likely in line-started motors operating under high inertias, some cases of broken rotor bars in motors supplied via soft starters have been also reported in the industry. Motor current signature analysis (MCSA) is the most widely spread approach to diagnose such failures. However, its serious drawbacks in many real industrial applications have encouraged investigation on alternative methods enhancing the reliability of the diagnosis. This paper extends a recently introduced diagnosis methodology relying on the startup current analysis to the case of soft-starter-operated motors. The approach has proven to provide very satisfactory results, even in cases where the classical MCSA does not lead to correct diagnosis conclusions. However, its extension to operation under soft starters was still a pending issue. The experimental results shown in this paper ratify the validity of the proposed diagnosis approach in soft-starteroperated induction motors.This work was supported by the Spanish “Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad” (MINECO) in the framework of the “Proyectos I+D del Subprograma de Generación de Conocimiento, Programa Estatal de Fomento de la Investigación Científica y Técnica de Excelencia” under Grant DPI2014-52842-PCorral Hernández, JÁ.; Antonino-Daviu, J.; Pons Llinares, J.; Climente Alarcón, V.; Francés-Galiana, V. (2015). Transient-Based Rotor Cage Assessment in Induction Motors Operating With Soft Starters. IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications. 51(5):3734-3742. https://doi.org/10.1109/TIA.2015.2427271S3734374251

Identificación de Leishmania infantum en Puerto Iguazú, Misiones, Argentina

The emergence of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis (ZVL) in Latin America is a growing public health problem. The urbanization of ZVL has been observed in different countries around the world, and there are a growing number of reports drawing attention to the emergence of this infection in new locations, as well as its increase in previously established areas of endemicity. In the city of Posadas, Misiones province, Northeastern Argentina, the transmission of ZVL associated with canines and Lutzomyia longipalpis was first reported in 2006. In the city of Puerto Iguazú, also in Misiones province, the first human case of ZVL was reported in February 2014. From 209 surveyed dogs, 15 (7.17%) were identified as positive by serological and/or parasitological methods. Amplification was observed in 14 samples and in all cases the species implicated was Leishmania infantum. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first molecular characterization of L. infantum from dogs in this area.La emergencia de leishmaniosis visceral zoonótica (LVZ) en América Latina es problema de salud pública en aumento. La urbanización de la LVZ es un fenómeno observado en diferentes países alrededor del mundo y hay un número creciente tanto de denuncias respecto a la aparición de esta infección en nuevas ubicaciones, como su aumento en zonas endémicas previamente establecidas. En la ciudad de Posadas, provincia de Misiones, nordeste de Argentina, la transmisión de LVZ asociada a canes y Lutzomyia longipalpis fue descrita por primera vez en 2006. En la ciudad de Puerto Iguazú, provincia de Misiones, el primer caso humano de LVZ tuvo lugar en febrero de 2014. De 209 perros muestreados, 15 (7.17%) resultaron positivos mediante métodos serológicos y/o parasitológicos. Se observó amplificación en 14 muestras y en todos los casos la especie implicada fue Leishmania infantum. Según nuestro conocimiento, esta es la primera caracterización molecular de L. infantum en perros procedentes de este área