Fluidized bed combustor modeling

A general mathematical model for the prediction of performance of a fluidized bed coal combustor (FBC) is developed. The basic elements of the model consist of: (1) hydrodynamics of gas and solids in the combustor; (2) description of gas and solids contacting pattern; (3) kinetics of combustion; and (4) absorption of SO2 by limestone in the bed. The model is capable of calculating the combustion efficiency, axial bed temperature profile, carbon hold-up in the bed, oxygen and SO2 concentrations in the bubble and emulsion phases, sulfur retention efficiency and particulate carry over by elutriation. The effects of bed geometry, excess air, location of heat transfer coils in the bed, calcium to sulfur ratio in the feeds, etc. are examined. The calculated results are compared with experimental data. Agreement between the calculated results and the observed data are satisfactory in most cases. Recommendations to enhance the accuracy of prediction of the model are suggested

Non-symmetric trapped surfaces in the Schwarzschild and Vaidya spacetimes

Marginally trapped surfaces (MTSs) are commonly used in numerical relativity to locate black holes. For dynamical black holes, it is not known generally if this procedure is sufficiently reliable. Even for Schwarzschild black holes, Wald and Iyer constructed foliations which come arbitrarily close to the singularity but do not contain any MTSs. In this paper, we review the Wald-Iyer construction, discuss some implications for numerical relativity, and generalize to the well known Vaidya spacetime describing spherically symmetric collapse of null dust. In the Vaidya spacetime, we numerically locate non-spherically symmetric trapped surfaces which extend outside the standard spherically symmetric trapping horizon. This shows that MTSs are common in this spacetime and that the event horizon is the most likely candidate for the boundary of the trapped region.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures; v2: minor modifications; v3: clarified conclusion

Prospecting for scarabid specific Bacillus thuringiensis crystal toxin cry8 gene in sugarcane ecosystem of Tamil Nadu, India

In the present study, we report the occurrence of cry8 positive isolates of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) in selected white grub, Holotrichia serrata F. (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), endemic soils of sugarcane ecosystem and other places in Tamil Nadu. Out of the 66 soil samples collected and screened for white grub specific Bt, 74 isolates of the bacterium, all containing only spherical crystal toxin, were identified. PCR screening of these isolates with cry8 gene universal primer revealed six isolates to be positive. Further, the amplicon of a 370 bp band, amplified with another set of degenerate primer designed based on the conserved sequence of cry8 genes, was sequenced from four isolates. Multiple sequence alignment revealed the gene sequences to be the same for all the isolates. The present report of the availability of cry8 positive Bt isolates opens the avenue for controlling white grubs through transgenic research

Person-to-Person Lending: The Pursuit of (More) Competitive Credit Markets

Person-to-person lending (P2PL) on the Internet is a relatively new credit market. The success of these markets hinges on their ability to provide both borrowers and lenders the chance to improve on the opportunities available in traditional intermediated credit markets. In essence, P2PL must create a more competitive market. Empirical observations provide evidence that frictions exist in these markets, which generally move markets away from competitive outcomes. Currently, auctions are the most popular mechanism for P2PL. This paper develops and analyzes an equilibrium competing auction model of P2PL. Coordination frictions and the presence of non-creditworthy borrowers create an environment where many potentially productive transactions are not made and interest rate dispersion is observed. Additionally, if the market naturally segments into groups of similar borrowers then increased frictions in a segment may lead some portion of lenders to migrate to a different segment

Catalysis study for space shuttle vehicle thermal protection systems

Experimental results on the problem of reducing aerodynamic heating on space shuttle orbiter surfaces are presented. Data include: (1) development of a laboratory flow reactor technique for measuring gamma sub O and gamma sub N on candidate materials at surfaces, T sub w, in the nominal range 1000 to 2000, (2) measurements of gamma sub O and gamma sub N above 1000 K for both the glass coating of a reusable surface insulation material and the siliconized surface of a reinforced pyrolyzed plastic material, (3) measurement of the ablation behavior of the coated RPP material at T sub w is greater than or equal to 2150 K, (4) X-ray photoelectron spectral studies of the chemical constituents on these surfaces before and after dissociated gas exposure, (5) scanning electron micrograph examination of as-received and reacted specimens, and (6) development and exploitation of a method of predicting the aerodynamic heating consquences of these gamma sub O(T sub w) and gamma sub N(T sub w) measurements for critical locations on a radiation cooled orbiter vehicle

Tomograms of Spinning Black Holes

The classical internal structure of spinning black holes is vastly different from that of static black holes. We consider spinning BTZ black holes, and probe their interior from the gauge theory. Utilizing the simplicity of the geometry and reverse engineering from the geodesics, we propose a thermal correlator construction which can be interpreted as arising from two entangled CFTs. By analytic continuation of these correlators, we can probe the Cauchy horizon. Correlators that capture the Cauchy horizon in our work have a structure closely related to those that capture the singularity in a non-rotating BTZ. As expected, the regions beyond the Cauchy horizon are not probed in this picture, protecting cosmic censorship.Comment: 41 pages, 7 figure