The Rossiter-McLaughlin effect in Exoplanet Research

The Rossiter-McLaughlin effect occurs during a planet's transit. It provides the main means of measuring the sky-projected spin-orbit angle between a planet's orbital plane, and its host star's equatorial plane. Observing the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect is now a near routine procedure. It is an important element in the orbital characterisation of transiting exoplanets. Measurements of the spin-orbit angle have revealed a surprising diversity, far from the placid, Kantian and Laplacian ideals, whereby planets form, and remain, on orbital planes coincident with their star's equator. This chapter will review a short history of the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect, how it is modelled, and will summarise the current state of the field before describing other uses for a spectroscopic transit, and alternative methods of measuring the spin-orbit angle.Comment: Review to appear as a chapter in the "Handbook of Exoplanets", ed. H. Deeg & J.A. Belmont

Three-Point Functions of Twist-Two Operators in N=4 SYM at One Loop

We calculate three-point functions of two protected operators and one twist-two operator with arbitrary even spin j in N=4 SYM theory to one-loop order. In order to carry out the calculations we project the indices of the spin j operator to the light-cone and evaluate the correlator in a soft-limit where the momentum coming in at the spin j operator becomes zero. This limit largely simplifies the perturbative calculation, since all three-point diagrams effectively reduce to two-point diagrams and the dependence on the one-loop mixing matrix drops out completely. The results of our direct calculation are in agreement with the structure constants obtained by F.A. Dolan and H. Osborn from the operator product expansion of four-point functions of half-BPS operators.Comment: references update

Populations of planets in multiple star systems

Astronomers have discovered that both planets and binaries are abundant throughout the Galaxy. In combination, we know of over 100 planets in binary and higher-order multi-star systems, in both circumbinary and circumstellar configurations. In this chapter we review these findings and some of their implications for the formation of both stars and planets. Most of the planets found have been circumstellar, where there is seemingly a ruinous influence of the second star if sufficiently close (<50 AU). Hosts of hot Jupiters have been a particularly popular target for binary star studies, showing an enhanced rate of stellar multiplicity for moderately wide binaries (>100 AU). This was thought to be a sign of Kozai-Lidov migration, however recent studies have shown this mechanism to be too inefficient to account for the majority of hot Jupiters. A couple of dozen circumbinary planets have been proposed around both main sequence and evolved binaries. Around main sequence binaries there are preliminary indications that the frequency of gas giants is as high as those around single stars. There is however a conspicuous absence of circumbinary planets around the tightest main sequence binaries with periods of just a few days, suggesting a unique, more disruptive formation history of such close stellar pairs.Comment: Invited review chapter, accepted for publication in "Handbook of Exoplanets", ed. H. Deeg & J. A. Belmont

Determination of Technical and Economic Indicators of Thermal Power Stations Directly From the Turbine Regime Characteristics

The distribution of costs for electricity and heat production is accomplished by a number of fairly conditional methods. Cost analysis and allocation must be carried out on the basis of objective technical and economic criteria. The application of a method is determined by the introduced regulatory frameworks, energy markets and the prices of energy products. There are two fundamental methods – "physical" and "exergy". The physical method is based on the distribution of costs, and the exergy on the second law of thermodynamics. The article reviews and analyzes the tariff policy of the Thermal power plant. Objective criteria have been identified to serve as a means of forecasting and controlling fuel consumption. The thermal efficiency of a Thermal power plant has been evaluated. A comparison was made with similar Thermal power plants. A fundamentally new approach is proposed to determine the main technical and economic criteria of the plant. The proposed method allows determining indicators that uniquely characterize the thermal and economic efficiency of the plant without the need for diversification of fuel cost

Development and Analysis of A New Approach for Simplified Determination of the Heating and the Cooling Loads of Livestock Buildings

Pig farming is a sector of animal husbandry, the development of which is great attention. The pork market occupies a large share in the trade in animal products. In the conditions of they do competition more efforts are made to improve the quality and reduce the cost of production. To achieve this goal, work is being done in several areas – development and expansion of the gene pool, improvement of the living environment in the premises for animal husbandry, reduction of energy costs. Along with the development of feeding technologies, it is necessary to create a suitable microclimate in the premises, in which the animals to realize their productive potential, which in turn is directly related to the use of heating and cooling systems. The design of these systems for both existing and new buildings is carried out according to generally accepted methodologies, which in turn require time for calculation and use of specialized software. The methodologies for determining the loads for heating and cooling of livestock buildings, in accordance with the current legislation in the Republic of Bulgaria, are compared with a new method proposed in this publication. The possibility to consider a livestock building from the point of view of the theory of heat exchange allows the use of the basic differential equations describing the dynamic interaction of the building with the environment. This description would be complete and complex to implement. Therefore, the method of dimensional analysis is used, which is based on generalized indicators, when fulfilling certain criteria of similarity. The aim of the new methodology is to shorten the design time and allow the rapid sizing of heating and cooling systems in livestock buildings. In developing the new methodology, the task was the proposed new approach to summarize the interaction of all physical parameters affecting the heat exchange between the building and the surrounding air, allowing to take into account changes in external (air temperature, wind speed, solar radiation intensity) and internal factors (heat given off by farm animals, lighting, process equipment and processes) affecting the heat exchange between the building and the ambient ai

Analysis of the Air Exchange in Livestock Building Through the Computational Fluid Dynamics

Increasing consumption of meat and meat products worldwide is closely linked to improving the living environment for livestock. According to zoo experts, the appropriate microclimate in buildings leads to improved metabolic processes in their cultivation and contributes to their rapid weight gain. The issue of raising new-borns and young animals is especially relevant. Achieving optimal parameters of the microclimate in the premises, together with the necessary veterinary care for new-borns reduces stress and mortality in them. The above requires the implementation of new and modern engineering solutions in the design and construction of livestock buildings. The use of numerical simulations, through CFD programs for modelling and solving engineering problems, as well as the creation of adequate mathematical models, is a prerequisite for reducing the time and resources to solve a problem. Based on the accumulated experience of the authors on the microclimate in livestock farms in this publication, a numerical simulation of air exchange in a livestock building for breeding sows with young piglets is presented. The physical model, research and analysis are realized in the middle of Ansys Fluent. Two models of air exchange organization in the livestock building are proposed. The obtained data on the temperature and speed fields in the building will lead to an improvement of the microclimate in the considered site. In addition, they could serve as a basis for conducting the next series of computer simulations. The built models can be adapted for other building constructions for breeding other types of animals. The analysis of the data and a more in-depth examination of the factors related to animal husbandry could help to increase pork yields on livestock farm