Dimer diffusion in a washboard potential

The transport of a dimer, consisting of two Brownian particles bounded by a harmonic potential, moving on a periodic substrate is investigated both numerically and analytically. The mobility and diffusion of the dimer center of mass present distinct properties when compared with those of a monomer under the same transport conditions. Both the average current and the diffusion coefficient are found to be complicated non-monotonic functions of the driving force. The influence of dimer equilibrium length, coupling strength and damping constant on the dimer transport properties are also examined in detail.Comment: Final revised version. 7 pages, 6 figure

Discussion of models for LCF small crack growth

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Twin nucleation in Fe-based bcc alloys - Modeling and experiments

We develop an analytical expression for twin nucleation stress in bcc metal and alloys considering generalized planar fault energy and the dislocations bounding the twin nucleus. We minimize the total energy to predict the twinning stress relying only on parameters that are obtained through atomistic calculations, thus excluding the need for any empirical constants. We validate the present approach by means of precise measurements of the onset of twinning in bcc Fe-50at% Cr single crystals showing excellent agreement. The experimental observations of the three activated slip systems of symmetric configuration in relation to the twinning mechanism are demonstrated via transmission electron microscopy techniques along with digital image correlation. We then confirm the validity of the model for Fe, Fe-25at% Ni and Fe-3at% V alloys compared with experiments from the literature to show general applicability

Twin migration in Fe-based bcc crystals: Theory and experiments

We establish an overall energy expression to determine the twin migration stress in bcc metals. Twin migration succeeds twin nucleation often after a load drop, and a model to establish twin migration stress is of paramount importance. We compute the planar fault energy barriers and determine the elastic energies of twinning dislocations including the role of residual dislocations (br) and twin intersection types such as 1 1 0, 1 1 3 and 2 1 0. The energy expression derived provides the twin migration stress in relation to the twin nucleation stress with a ratio of 0.5-0.8 depending on the resultant residual burgers vector and the intersection types. Utilizing digital image correlation, it was possible to differentiate the twin nucleation and twin advancement events experimentally, and transmission electron microscopy observations provided further support to the modelling efforts. Overall, the methodology developed provides an enhanced understanding of twin progression in bcc metals, and most importantly the proposed model does not rely on empirical constants. We utilize Fe-50at.%Cr in our experiments, and subsequently predict the twin migration stress for pure Fe, and Fe-3at.%V from the literature showing excellent agreement with experiments. © 2014 Taylor & Francis

Defect tolerance of a gamma titanium aluminide alloy

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A probabilistic framework to define the design stress and acceptable defects under combined-cycle fatigue conditions

Abstract Probabilistic routines are necessary to determine the permissible design stress when the operational conditions of traditional gas turbines are further challenged to reach higher performances in terms of flexibility. This paper focuses on the definition of a probabilistic tool aimed to simulate the damage development under combined high and low cycle fatigue conditions considering the stochastic nature of some of the variables introduced in the model. The variables considered in the present study are the long crack threshold Δ K th , LC and the slope of the crack growth law C in the so-called Paris region, the endurance limit Δ σ w 0 and the variability of the applied stress as it cannot be considered a fixed variable in the complex loading scenario of gas turbines. A broad experimental campaign was performed to characterize the material properties in terms of short and long crack resistance under constant and combined cyclic conditions. The data were used to define the average and variance of the materials parameters to feed Montecarlo simulations and, at a target probability of failure, establish the design stress. This work points to determine safety margins which strictly depend on the natural variability of the variables that govern the damage accumulation in the mechanical component

Safety and Efficacy of Lenalidomide in Relapsed or Refractory Multiple Myeloma

Lenalidomide is an oral immunomodulatory drug that has helped improve outcomes in multiple myeloma (MM) patients. Combination lenalidomide and dexamethasone (Len+Dex) has been shown to increase response rates and prolong survival compared with dexamethasone alone in patients with relapsed or refractory MM (RRMM). Clinical benefit may be greatest when Len+Dex is given at first relapse, and continued treatment appears to provide greater depth of response and improved survival outcomes. The most common adverse events associated with Len+Dex are cytopenias, which are predictable and manageable. Len+Dex is associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism, which necessitates adequate prophylaxis. The risk of second primary malignancies does not appear to be increased in patients with RRMM treated with lenalidomide-based therapy. Here we review the safety and efficacy of Len+Dex in RRMM, and provide an overview of data from Spain on the use of Len+Dex in RRMM

Generating Up-to-Date and Detailed Land Use and Land Cover Maps Using OpenStreetMap and GlobeLand30

With the opening up of the Landsat archive, global high resolution land cover maps have begun to appear. However, they often have only a small number of high level land cover classes and they are static products, corresponding to a particular period of time, e.g., the GlobeLand30 (GL30) map for 2010. The OpenStreetMap (OSM), in contrast, consists of a very detailed, dynamically updated, spatial database of mapped features from around the world, but it suffers from incomplete coverage, and layers of overlapping features that are tagged in a variety of ways. However, it clearly has potential for land use and land cover (LULC) mapping. Thus the aim of this paper is to demonstrate how the OSM can be converted into a LULC map and how this OSM-derived LULC map can then be used to first update the GL30 with more recent information and secondly, enhance the information content of the classes. The technique is demonstrated on two study areas where there is availability of OSM data but in locations where authoritative data are lacking, i.e., Kathmandu, Nepal and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The GL30 and its updated and enhanced versions are independently validated using a stratified random sample so that the three maps can be compared. The results show that the updated version of GL30 improves in terms of overall accuracy since certain classes were not captured well in the original GL30 (e.g., water in Kathmandu and water/wetlands in Dar es Salaam). In contrast, the enhanced GL30, which contains more detailed urban classes, results in a drop in the overall accuracy, possibly due to the increased number of classes, but the advantages include the appearance of more detailed features, such as the road network, that becomes clearly visible

Basic kinetic wealth-exchange models: common features and open problems

We review the basic kinetic wealth-exchange models of Angle [J. Angle, Social Forces 65 (1986) 293; J. Math. Sociol. 26 (2002) 217], Bennati [E. Bennati, Rivista Internazionale di Scienze Economiche e Commerciali 35 (1988) 735], Chakraborti and Chakrabarti [A. Chakraborti, B. K. Chakrabarti, Eur. Phys. J. B 17 (2000) 167], and of Dragulescu and Yakovenko [A. Dragulescu, V. M. Yakovenko, Eur. Phys. J. B 17 (2000) 723]. Analytical fitting forms for the equilibrium wealth distributions are proposed. The influence of heterogeneity is investigated, the appearance of the fat tail in the wealth distribution and the relaxation to equilibrium are discussed. A unified reformulation of the models considered is suggested.Comment: Updated version; 9 pages, 5 figures, 2 table