659 research outputs found
CIRRUS-HL: Overview of LIM contributions
From June to July 2021, the Leipzig Institute for Meteorology (LIM)
participated in the Cirrus in High Latitudes (CIRRUS-HL) campaign. Utilizing the
German High Altitude Long Range Research Aircraft (HALO), 24 research flights were
conducted out of Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany. The initial goal of the campaign was
to sample high-latitude cirrus clouds with a combination of in-situ and remote sensing
instrumentation. However, due to the global coronavirus pandemic, the flights had to
be carried out from southern Germany instead of northern Sweden. Thus, the flight
time in Arctic latitudes was limited. Therefore, more objectives concerning midlatitude
cirrus were included in the campaign goals. LIM contributed to CIRRUS-HL with
measurements by the Broadband AirCrAft RaDiometer Instrumentation (BACARDI)
and the Spectral Modular Airborne Radiation measurement sysTem (SMART). While
BACARDI measured broadband solar and terrestrial upward and downward irradiance,
SMART measured spectrally resolved solar upward radiance as well as upward and
downward irradiance.Von Juni bis Juli 2021 nahmen einige Mitarbeitende des LIM
an der CIRRUS-HL Kampagne teil. Mit dem deutschen Forschungsflugzeug HALO
(High Altitude Long Range Research Aircraft) wurden 24 Forschungsflüge von Oberpfaffenhofen,
Deutschland, aus durchgeführt. Ursprüngliches Ziel der Kampagne war es,
Zirruswolken in hohen Breitengraden mit einer Kombination aus In-situ- und Fernerkundungsinstrumenten
zu untersuchen. Aufgrund der weltweiten Corona-Pandemie mussten
die Flüge jedoch von Süddeutschland statt von Nordschweden aus durchgeführt werden.
Daher wurden weitere Ziele in Bezug auf Zirruswolken in mittleren Breiten in die Ziele
der Kampagne aufgenommen. Das LIM-Team betrieb die breitbandigen und spektralen
Strahlungssensoren BACARDI (Broadband AirCrAft RaDiometer Instrumentation) und
SMART (Spectral Modular Airborne Radiation measurement sysTem), wobeiBACARDI
die breitbandige solare und terrestrische Auf- und Abwärtsstrahlung und SMART die
spektral aufgelöste solareAuf- undAbwärtsstrahlung sowie dieAufwärtsstrahlungsdichte
maß
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Wireless Sensor Network for Advanced Energy Management Solutions
Eaton has developed an advanced energy management solution that has been deployed to several Industries of the Future (IoF) sites. This demonstrated energy savings and reduced unscheduled downtime through an improved means for performing predictive diagnostics and energy efficiency estimation. Eaton has developed a suite of online, continuous, and inferential algorithms that utilize motor current signature analysis (MCSA) and motor power signature analysis (MPSA) techniques to detect and predict the health condition and energy usage condition of motors and their connect loads. Eaton has also developed a hardware and software platform that provided a means to develop and test these advanced algorithms in the field. Results from lab validation and field trials have demonstrated that the developed advanced algorithms are able to detect motor and load inefficiency and performance degradation. Eaton investigated the performance of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) within various industrial facilities to understand concerns about topology and environmental conditions that have precluded broad adoption by the industry to date. A Wireless Link Assessment System (WLAS), was used to validate wireless performance under a variety of conditions. Results demonstrated that wireless networks can provide adequate performance in most facilities when properly specified and deployed. Customers from various IoF expressed interest in applying wireless more broadly for selected applications, but continue to prefer utilizing existing, wired field bus networks for most sensor based applications that will tie into their existing Computerized Motor Maintenance Systems (CMMS). As a result, wireless technology was de-emphasized within the project, and a greater focus placed on energy efficiency/predictive diagnostics. Commercially available wireless networks were only utilized in field test sites to facilitate collection of motor wellness information, and no wireless sensor network products were developed under this project. As an outgrowth of this program, Eaton developed a patented energy-optimizing drive control technology that is complementary to a traditional variable frequency drives (VFD) to enable significant energy savings for motors with variable torque applications, such as fans, pumps, and compressors. This technology provides an estimated energy saving of 2%-10% depending on the loading condition, in addition to the savings obtained from a traditional VFD. The combination of a VFD with the enhanced energy-optimizing controls will provide significant energy savings (10% to 70% depending on the load and duty cycle) for motors that are presently connected with across the line starters. It will also provide a more favorable return on investment (ROI), thus encouraging industries to adopt VFDs for more motors within their facilities. The patented technology is based on nonintrusive algorithms that estimate the instantaneous operating efficiency and motor speed and provide active energy-optimizing control of a motor, using only existing voltage and current sensors. This technology is currently being commercialized by Eaton’s Industrial Controls Division in their next generation motor control products. Due to the common nonintrusive and inferential nature of various algorithms, this same product can also include motor and equipment condition monitoring features, providing the facility owner additional information to improve process uptime and the associated energy savings. Calculations estimated potential energy savings of 261,397GWh/Yr (7500/hr, with large, critical processes reaching $50-100k/hr. Specific downtime costs are not included in this report because of customer confidentiality, but projected savings across the Industries of the Future (IoF) are still expected to be comparable to the original program estimates. Two generations of customer field deployments and evaluation have been completed during the course of this project. Results from these customer sites have been used for identifying the scope and improving the developed energy and wellness algorithms. The field deployments have confirmed that the hardware for sensing and sampling motor currents and voltages are reliable and able to provide an adequate signal-to-noise ratio from the electrical noise present on the motor signals
Increased Action Potential Firing Rates of Layer 2/3 Pyramidal Cells in the Prefrontal Cortex are Significantly Related to Cognitive Performance in Aged Monkeys
The neurobiological substrates of significant age-related deficits in higher cognitive abilities mediated by the prefrontal cortex (PFC) are unknown. To address this issue, whole-cell current-clamp recordings were used to compare the intrinsic membrane and action potential (AP) firing properties of layer 2/3 pyramidal cells in PFC slices from young and aged behaviorally characterized rhesus monkeys. Most aged subjects demonstrated impaired performance in Delayed Non-Match to Sample (DNMS) task acquisition, DNMS 2 min delay and the Delayed Recognition Span task. Resting membrane potential and membrane time constant did not differ in aged relative to young cells, but input resistance was significantly greater in aged cells. Single APs did not differ in terms of threshold, duration or rise time, but their amplitude and fall time were significantly decreased in aged cells. Repetitive AP firing rates were significantly increased in aged cells. Within the aged group, there was a U-shaped quadratic relationship between firing rate and performance on each behavioral task. Subjects who displayed either low or very high firing rates exhibited poor performance, while those who displayed intermediate firing rates exhibited relatively good performance. These data indicate that an increase in AP firing rate may be responsible, in part, for age-related PFC dysfunction
Perfluorooctanoic Acid–Induced Immunomodulation in Adult C57BL/6J or C57BL/6N Female Mice
BackgroundPerfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), an environmentally persistent compound of regulatory concern, has been reported to reduce antibody responses in mice at a single dose.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to evaluate PFOA effects on humoral and cellular immunity using standard assays for assessing immune function, and to derive dose–response data.MethodsC57BL/6J mice received 0 or 30 mg PFOA/kg/day for 10 days; half of the exposed groups were switched to vehicle and half continued on PFOA for five days. C57BL/6N mice received 0–30 mg/kg/day of PFOA in drinking water for 15 days. Mice were immunized with sheep red blood cells or sensitized to bovine serum albumin in Freund’s complete adjuvant on day 10 of exposure; immune responses were determined 1 day post-exposure.ResultsWe found that 30 mg PFOA/kg/day given for 10 or 15 days reduced IgM synthesis; serum collected 1 day postexposure contained 8.4 × 104 or 2.7 × 105 ng PFOA/mL, respectively. IgM synthesis was suppressed at exposures ≥ 3.75 mg PFOA/kg/day in a dose-dependent manner, and IgG titers were elevated at 3.75 and 7.5 mg PFOA/kg/day. Serum PFOA at 3.75 mg/kg/day was 7.4 × 104 ng/mL 1 day postexposure, or 150-fold greater than the levels reported in individuals living near a PFOA production site. Using a second-degree polynomial model, we calculated a benchmark dose of 3 mg/kg/day, with a lower bound (95% confidence limit) of 1.75 mg/kg/day. Cell-mediated function was not affected.ConclusionsIgM antibodies were suppressed after PFOA exposure. The margin of exposure for reduced IgM antibody synthesis was approximately 150 for highly exposed human populations
Loss of Prestin Does Not Alter the Development of Auditory Cortical Dendritic Spines
Disturbance of sensory input during development can have disastrous effects on the development of sensory cortical areas. To examine how moderate perturbations of hearing can impact the development of primary auditory cortex, we examined markers of excitatory synapses in mice who lacked prestin, a protein responsible for somatic electromotility of cochlear outer hair cells. While auditory brain stem responses of these mice show an approximately 40 dB increase in threshold, we found that loss of prestin produced no changes in spine density or morphological characteristics on apical dendrites of cortical layer 5 pyramidal neurons. PSD-95 immunostaining also showed no changes in overall excitatory synapse density. Surprisingly, behavioral assessments of auditory function using the acoustic startle response showed only modest changes in prestin KO animals. These results suggest that moderate developmental hearing deficits produce minor changes in the excitatory connectivity of layer 5 neurons of primary auditory cortex and surprisingly mild auditory behavioral deficits in the startle response
VELOX - a new thermal infrared imager for airborne remote sensing of cloud and surface properties
The new airborne thermal infrared (TIR) imager VELOX (Video airbornE Longwave Observations within siX channels) is introduced. VELOX is a commercially available TIR camera system that has been adapted extensively for atmospheric applications, which are introduced in this paper. The system covers six spectral bands with centre wavelengths between 7.7 and 12 µm. Currently, VELOX is installed on board the German High Altitude and Long Range Research Aircraft (HALO) to observe cloud and surface properties. It provides observations of two-dimensional (2D) fields of upward terrestrial spectral radiance with a horizontal resolution of approximately 10 m×10 m at a target distance of 10 km. Atmospheric temperature values are rather low compared to the originally intended commercial applications of VELOX and range close to the detection limit of the sensor. This challenge requires additional calibration efforts to enable atmospheric applications of VELOX. Therefore, required sophisticated calibration and correction procedures, including radiometric calibrations, non-uniformity corrections, bad-pixel replacements, and window corrections, are presented. Furthermore, first observations of cloud properties acquired by VELOX during the EUREC4A (ElUcidating the RolE of Cloud-Circulation Coupling in ClimAte) campaign are discussed, including an analysis of the cloud top brightness temperature, cloud mask/fraction, and cloud top altitude data. The data reveal the potential of VELOX to resolve the cloud top temperature with a resolution of better than 0.1 K, which translates into a resolution of approximately 40 m in cloud top altitude
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