Performance analysis of a new energy-efficient variable supply pressure electro-hydraulic motion control system

Electro-hydraulic actuation is used in many motion control applications due to its high power density, excellent dynamic response and good durability. However fluid power actuation has been shown to be very energy inefficient, with an average efficiency for fluid power systems across all industries of 22% in the USA. This is a very significant problem, given that 3% of the energy used by mankind is transmitted in this way.The key challenge for researchers is to reduce energy losses in hydraulic actuation systems without increasing weight, size, and noise, and without reducing speed of response. Conventional high performance electro-hydraulic motion control systems use a fixed supply pressure with valve-controlled actuators (FPVC). This is inherently inefficient due to the need to use a valve to throttle the flow required by each actuator in the system down to match its load pressure. In this paper, a new load-prediction based method is proposed, in which the supply pressure is varied to track the pressure required by any actuator branch. By implementing this model-based approach using a high response servomotor-driven pump, it is shown that the dynamic response remains excellent. The load model not only allows feedforward control for servomotor speed based on the motion demand, but also feedforward for the control valves to supplement conventional proportional-integral feedback control.The new variable supply pressure valve-controlled (VPVC) method is investigated in simulation and experimentally using a two-axis hydraulic robot arm supplied by an axial piston pump. The performance has been rigorously compared with the same robot arm using a fixed supply pressure and proportional-integral joint position control. Experimental results showed that up to 70% hydraulic power saving was achieved, and that the dynamic tracking errors for VPVC were about half that for FPVC as a result of using feedforward control.</p

Evidence for Strong Itinerant Spin Fluctuations in the Normal State of CeFeAsO(0.89)F(0.11) Iron-Oxypnictides

The electronic structure in the normal state of CeFeAsO0.89F0.11 oxypnictide superconductors has been investigated with x-ray absorption and photoemission spectroscopy. All the data exhibit signatures of Fe d-electron itinerancy. Exchange multiplets appearing in the Fe 3s core level indicate the presence of itinerant spin fluctuations. These findings suggest that the underlying physics and the origin of superconductivity in these materials are likely to be quite different from those of the cuprate high-temperature superconductors. These materials provide opportunities for elucidating the role of magnetic fluctuations in high-temperature superconductivity.Comment: Shorter version. Accepted in Phys. Rev. Let

Semiclassical ionization dynamics of the hydrogen molecular ion in an electric field of arbitrary orientation

Quasi-static models of barrier suppression have played a major role in our understanding of the ionization of atoms and molecules in strong laser fields. Despite their success, in the case of diatomic molecules these studies have so far been restricted to fields aligned with the molecular axis. In this paper we investigate the locations and heights of the potential barriers in the hydrogen molecular ion in an electric field of arbitrary orientation. We find that the barriers undergo bifurcations as the external field strength and direction are varied. This phenomenon represents an unexpected level of intricacy even on this most elementary level of the dynamics. We describe the dynamics of tunnelling ionization through the barriers semiclassically and use our results to shed new light on the success of a recent theory of molecular tunnelling ionization as well as earlier theories that restrict the electric field to be aligned with the molecular axis

Roche Lobe Overflow from Dwarf Stellar Systems

We use both analytical analyses and numerical simulations to examine the evolution of residual gas within tidally-limited dwarf galaxies and globular clusters. If the gas sound speed exceeds about 10% of the central velocity dispersion, as is the case for ionized gas within small stellar systems, the gas shall have significant density at the tidal radius, and the gas may be lost on timescales as short as a few times the sound crossing time of the system. In colder systems, the density at the tidal radius is much lower, greatly reducing the mass loss rate, and the system may retain its gas for a Hubble time. The tidally removed gas shall follow an orbit close to that of the original host system, forming an extended stream of ionized, gaseous debris. Tidal mass loss severely limits the ability of dwarf systems to continuously form stars. The ordinary gas content in many dwarf galaxies is fully ionized during high red-shift epochs, possibly preventing star formation in some systems, leading to the formation of starless, dark-matter concentrations. In either the field or in the center of galaxy clusters, ionized gas may be retained by dwarf galaxies, even though its sound speed may be comparable to or even exceed the velocity dispersion. These processes may help to explain some observed differences among dwarf galaxy types, as well as observations of the haloes of massive galaxies.Comment: 28 pages, LaTeX, AASTex macro

CXD101 and nivolumab in patients with metastatic microsatellite-stable colorectal cancer (CAROSELL): a multicentre, open-label, single-arm, phase II trial.

BACKGROUND: Patients with microsatellite stable (MSS) colorectal carcinoma (CRC) do not respond to immune checkpoint inhibitors. Preclinical models suggested synergistic anti-tumour activity combining CXD101 and anti-programmed cell death protein 1 treatment; therefore, we assessed the clinical combination of CXD101 and nivolumab in heavily pre-treated patients with MSS metastatic CRC (mCRC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: This single-arm, open-label study enrolled patients aged 18 years or older with biopsy-confirmed MSS CRC; at least two lines of systemic anticancer therapies (including oxaliplatin and irinotecan); at least one measurable lesion; Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0, 1 or 2; predicted life expectancy above 3 months; and adequate organ and bone marrow function. Nine patients were enrolled in a safety run-in study to define a tolerable combination schedule of CXD101 and nivolumab, followed by 46 patients in the efficacy assessment phase. Patients in the efficacy assessment cohort were treated orally with 20 mg CXD101 twice daily for 5 consecutive days every 3 weeks, and intravenously with 240 mg nivolumab every 2 weeks. The primary endpoint was immune disease control rate (iDCR). RESULTS: Between 2018 and 2020, 55 patients were treated with CXD101 and nivolumab. The combination therapy was well tolerated with the most frequent grade 3 or 4 adverse events being neutropenia (18%) and anaemia (7%). Immune-related adverse reactions commonly ascribed to checkpoint inhibitors were surprisingly rare although we did see single cases of pneumonitis, hypothyroidism and hypopituitarism. There were no treatment-related deaths. Of 46 patients assessable for efficacy, 4 (9%) achieved partial response and 18 (39%) achieved stable disease, translating to an immune disease control rate of 48%. The median overall survival (OS) was 7.0 months (95% confidence interval 5.13-10.22 months). CONCLUSIONS: The primary endpoint was met in this phase II study, which showed that the combination of CXD101 and nivolumab, at full individual doses in the treatment of advanced or metastatic MSS CRC, was both well tolerated and efficacious

Attractiveness of periodic orbits in parametrically forced systemswith time-increasing friction

We consider dissipative one-dimensional systems subject to a periodic force and study numerically how a time-varying friction affects the dynamics. As a model system, particularly suited for numerical analysis, we investigate the driven cubic oscillator in the presence of friction. We find that, if the damping coefficient increases in time up to a final constant value, then the basins of attraction of the leading resonances are larger than they would have been if the coefficient had been fixed at that value since the beginning. From a quantitative point of view, the scenario depends both on the final value and the growth rate of the damping coefficient. The relevance of the results for the spin-orbit model are discussed in some detail.Comment: 30 pages, 6 figure

The need to promote behaviour change at the cultural level: one factor explaining the limited impact of the MEMA kwa Vijana adolescent sexual health intervention in rural Tanzania. A process evaluation

Background - Few of the many behavioral sexual health interventions in Africa have been rigorously evaluated. Where biological outcomes have been measured, improvements have rarely been found. One of the most rigorous trials was of the multi-component MEMA kwa Vijana adolescent sexual health programme, which showed improvements in knowledge and reported attitudes and behaviour, but none in biological outcomes. This paper attempts to explain these outcomes by reviewing the process evaluation findings, particularly in terms of contextual factors. Methods - A large-scale, primarily qualitative process evaluation based mainly on participant observation identified the principal contextual barriers and facilitators of behavioural change. Results - The contextual barriers involved four interrelated socio-structural factors: culture (i.e. shared practices and systems of belief), economic circumstances, social status, and gender. At an individual level they appeared to operate through the constructs of the theories underlying MEMA kwa Vijana - Social Cognitive Theory and the Theory of Reasoned Action – but the intervention was unable to substantially modify these individual-level constructs, apart from knowledge. Conclusion - The process evaluation suggests that one important reason for this failure is that the intervention did not operate sufficiently at a structural level, particularly in regard to culture. Recently most structural interventions have focused on gender or/and economics. Complementing these with a cultural approach could address the belief systems that justify and perpetuate gender and economic inequalities, as well as other barriers to behaviour change

Performance analysis of a new energy-efficient variable supply pressure electro-hydraulic motion control system

Electro-hydraulic actuation is used in many motion control applications due to its high power density, excellent dynamic response and good durability. However fluid power actuation has been shown to be very energy inefficient, with an average efficiency for fluid power systems across all industries of 22% in the USA. This is a very significant problem, given that 3% of the energy used by mankind is transmitted in this way.The key challenge for researchers is to reduce energy losses in hydraulic actuation systems without increasing weight, size, and noise, and without reducing speed of response. Conventional high performance electro-hydraulic motion control systems use a fixed supply pressure with valve-controlled actuators (FPVC). This is inherently inefficient due to the need to use a valve to throttle the flow required by each actuator in the system down to match its load pressure. In this paper, a new load-prediction based method is proposed, in which the supply pressure is varied to track the pressure required by any actuator branch. By implementing this model-based approach using a high response servomotor-driven pump, it is shown that the dynamic response remains excellent. The load model not only allows feedforward control for servomotor speed based on the motion demand, but also feedforward for the control valves to supplement conventional proportional-integral feedback control.The new variable supply pressure valve-controlled (VPVC) method is investigated in simulation and experimentally using a two-axis hydraulic robot arm supplied by an axial piston pump. The performance has been rigorously compared with the same robot arm using a fixed supply pressure and proportional-integral joint position control. Experimental results showed that up to 70% hydraulic power saving was achieved, and that the dynamic tracking errors for VPVC were about half that for FPVC as a result of using feedforward control.</p