594 research outputs found
Comparison of methods for estimating continuous distributions of relaxation times
The nonparametric estimation of the distribution of relaxation times approach
is not as frequently used in the analysis of dispersed response of dielectric
or conductive materials as are other immittance data analysis methods based on
parametric curve fitting techniques. Nevertheless, such distributions can yield
important information about the physical processes present in measured
material. In this letter, we apply two quite different numerical inversion
methods to estimate the distribution of relaxation times for glassy \lila\
dielectric frequency-response data at 225 \kelvin. Both methods yield unique
distributions that agree very closely with the actual exact one accurately
calculated from the corrected bulk-dispersion Kohlrausch model established
independently by means of parametric data fit using the corrected modulus
formalism method. The obtained distributions are also greatly superior to those
estimated using approximate functions equations given in the literature.Comment: 4 pages and 4 figure
Signs of low frequency dispersions in disordered binary dielectric mixtures (50-50)
Dielectric relaxation in disordered dielectric mixtures are presented by
emphasizing the interfacial polarization. The obtained results coincide with
and cause confusion with those of the low frequency dispersion behavior. The
considered systems are composed of two phases on two-dimensional square and
triangular topological networks. We use the finite element method to calculate
the effective dielectric permittivities of randomly generated structures. The
dielectric relaxation phenomena together with the dielectric permittivity
values at constant frequencies are investigated, and significant differences of
the square and triangular topologies are observed. The frequency dependent
properties of some of the generated structures are examined. We conclude that
the topological disorder may lead to the normal or anomalous low frequency
dispersion if the electrical properties of the phases are chosen properly, such
that for ``slightly'' {\em reciprocal mixture}--when , and
--normal, and while for ``extreme'' {\em reciprocal
mixture}--when , and --anomalous
low frequency dispersions are obtained. Finally, comparison with experimental
data indicates that one can obtain valuable information from simulations when
the material properties of the constituents are not available and of
importance.Comment: 13 pages, 7 figure
Extracting spectral density function of a binary composite without a-priori assumption
The spectral representation separates the contributions of geometrical
arrangement (topology) and intrinsic constituent properties in a composite. The
aim of paper is to present a numerical algorithm based on the Monte Carlo
integration and contrainted-least-squares methods to resolve the spectral
density function for a given system. The numerical method is verified by
comparing the results with those of Maxwell-Garnett effective permittivity
expression. Later, it is applied to a well-studied rock-and-brine system to
instruct its utility. The presented method yields significant microstructural
information in improving our understanding how microstructure influences the
macroscopic behaviour of composites without any intricate mathematics.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures and 1 tabl
On micro-structural effects in dielectric mixtures
The paper presents numerical simulations performed on dielectric properties
of two-dimensional binary composites on eleven regular space filling
tessellations. First, significant contributions of different parameters, which
play an important role in the electrical properties of the composite, are
introduced both for designing and analyzing material mixtures. Later, influence
of structural differences and intrinsic electrical properties of constituents
on the composite's over all electrical properties are investigated. The
structural differences are resolved by the spectral density representation
approach. The numerical technique, without any {\em a-priori} assumptions, for
extracting the spectral density function is also presented.Comment: 24 pages, 8 figure and 7 tables. It is submitted to IEEE Transactions
on Dielectrics and Electrical Insulatio
Numerical calculations of effective elastic properties of two cellular structures
Young's moduli of regular two-dimensional truss-like and eye-shape-like
structures are simulated by using the finite element method. The structures are
the idealizations of soft polymeric materials used in the electret
applications. In the simulations size of the representative smallest units are
varied, which changes the dimensions of the cell-walls in the structures. A
power-law expression with a quadratic as the exponential term is proposed for
the effective Young's moduli of the systems as a function of the solid volume
fraction. The data is divided into three regions with respect to the volume
fraction; low, intermediate and high concentrations. The parameters of the
proposed power-law expression in each region are later represented as a
function of the structural parameters, unit-cell dimensions. The presented
expression can be used to predict structure/property relationship in materials
with similar cellular structures. It is observed that the structures with
volume fractions of solid higher than 0.15 exhibit the importance of the
cell-wall thickness contribution in the elastic properties. The cell-wall
thickness is the most significant factor to predict the effective Young's
modulus of regular cellular structures at high volume fractions of solid. At
lower concentrations of solid, eye-like structure yields lower Young's modulus
than the truss-like structure with the similar anisotropy. Comparison of the
numerical results with those of experimental data of poly(propylene) show good
aggreement regarding the influence of cell-wall thickness on elastic properties
of thin cellular films.Comment: 7 figures and 2 table
Managing the Future Internet through Intelligent In-Network Substrates
The current Internet has been founded on the architectural premise of a simple network service used to interconnect relatively intelligent end systems. While this simplicity allowed it to reach an impressive scale, the predictive manner in which ISP networks are currently planned and configured through external management systems and the uniform treatment of all traffic are hampering its use as a unifying multi-service network. The future Internet will need to be more intelligent and adaptive, optimizing continuously the use of its resources and recovering from transient problems, faults and attacks without any impact on the demanding services and applications running over it. This article describes an architecture that allows intelligence to be introduced within the network to support sophisticated self-management functionality in a coordinated and controllable manner. The presented approach, based on intelligent substrates, can potentially make the Internet more adaptable, agile, sustainable, and dependable given the requirements of emerging services with highly demanding traffic and rapidly changing locations. We discuss how the proposed framework can be applied to three representative emerging scenarios: dynamic traffic engineering (load balancing across multiple paths); energy efficiency in ISP network infrastructures; and cache management in content-centric networks
The effects of quercetin on liver regeneration after liver resection in rats
The aim of the present study was to assess the influence of quercetine (QE) on liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy (PH) in rats. A total of 24 male Wistar albino rats were divided into three groups: sham-operated (SH), PH and PH+QE; each group contain 8 animals. The rats in QE-treated groups were given QE (15 mg/kg body weight) once a day i.p., for 7 days starting 3 days prior to hepatectomy operation. At 7 days after resection, liver samples were collected. The malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione (GSH) levels were estimated in liver homogenates. Moreover, histopathological examination, mitotic index (MI), proliferating cell nuclear antigen labelling, proliferation index (PI), transferase-mediated dUTP nick end-labelling assay, apoptotic index (AI) were evaluated at 7 days after hepatectomy. As a result, QE significantly increased MI, PI, and significantly decreased AI in PH rats. Additionally, QE remarkably inhibited the elevation of MDA, restored impaired antioxidant SOD activity and GSH level, and also attenuated hepatic vacuolar degeneration and sinusoidal congestion. These results suggested that QE treatment had a beneficial effect on liver regenerative capacity of the remnant liver tissue after hepatectomy, probably due to its antioxidative, antiapoptotic and proliferative property
Fractional Equations of Curie-von Schweidler and Gauss Laws
The dielectric susceptibility of most materials follows a fractional
power-law frequency dependence that is called the "universal" response. We
prove that in the time domain this dependence gives differential equations with
derivatives and integrals of noninteger order. We obtain equations that
describe "universal" Curie-von Schweidler and Gauss laws for such dielectric
materials. These laws are presented by fractional differential equations such
that the electromagnetic fields in the materials demonstrate "universal"
fractional damping. The suggested fractional equations are common (universal)
to a wide class of materials, regardless of the type of physical structure,
chemical composition or of the nature of the polarization.Comment: 11 pages, LaTe
The effect of early pregnancy following chemotherapy on disease relapse and foetal outcome in women treated for gestational trophoblastic tumours
Little literature exists on the safety of early pregnancy following chemotherapy. Here we assess the rate of relapse and foetal outcome in women who have completed single and multi-agent chemotherapy for gestational trophoblastic tumours. The records of 1532 patients treated for persistent gestational trophoblastic tumours at Charing Cross Hospital between 1969 and 1998 were reviewed. Patients were defined as receiving single agent or multi-agent treatment. Relapse rates and foetal outcome were reviewed in the 230 patients who became pregnant within 12 months of completing chemotherapy. In the single agent group 153 (22%) of 691 patients conceived early. Three subsequently relapsed. In the multi-agent group, 77 (10%) of 779 patients conceived early, two then relapsed. Relapse rates were 2% (3 out of 153) and 2.5% (2 out of 77) for each group compared to 5% and 5.6% in the comparative non-pregnant groups. Outcomes of 230 early pregnancies: 164 (71%) delivered at full term, 35 (15%) terminations, 26 (11%) spontaneous abortions, three (1.3%) new hydatidiform moles and two (1%) stillbirths. Early pregnancies were more common in the single agent group (P<0.001), but spontaneous miscarriages and terminations were more likely to occur in the multi-agent group (P=0.04 and 0.03, respectively). Of the full-term pregnancies, three (1.8%) babies were born with congenital abnormalities. Patients in either group who conceive within 12 months of completing chemotherapy are not at increased risk of relapse. Though, we still advise avoiding pregnancy within 12 months of completing chemotherapy, those that do conceive can be reassured of a likely favourable outcome
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