Inclusion agglomeration in electrified molten metal: thermodynamic consideration

The effect of electric current on inclusion agglomeration in molten metal has been investigated. It is found that the agglomeration is dependent on the electric current density, distance between inclusions and orientation of electric field. Electric current retards the agglomeration unless two inclusions are aligned along or closely to the current flow streamlines and the distance between inclusions is less than a critical value. The mechanism is also validated in the computation of cluster agglomeration. The numerical results provide a comprehensive indication for the current-induced inclusion removal and current-induced inclusion elongation. When the inclusions are in long-thin shape, the calculation predicts the current-induced microstructure alignment and current-induced microstructure refinement phenomena

Critical behaviour of a spin-tube model in a magnetic field

We show that the low-energy physics of the spin-tube model in presence of a critical magnetic field can be described by a broken SU(3) spin chain. Using the Lieb-Schultz-Mattis Theorem we characterize the possible magnetization plateaus and study the critical behavior in the region of transition between the plateaus m=1/2 and m=3/2 by means of renormalization group calculations performed on the bosonized effective continuum field theory. We show that in certain regions of the parameter space of the effective theory the system remains gapless, and we compute the spin-spin correlation functions in these regions. We also discuss the possibility of a plateau at m=1, and show that although there exists in the continuum theory a term that might cause the appearance of a plateau there, such term is unlikely to be relevant. This conjecture is proved by DMRG techniques. The modifications of the three-leg ladder Hamiltonian that might show plateaus at m =1,5/6,7/6 are discussed, and we give the expected form of correlation functions on the m=1 plateau.Comment: RevTeX, 43 pages, 5 EPS figure

The finite-temperature thermodynamics of a trapped unitary Fermi gas within fractional exclusion statistics

We utilize a fractional exclusion statistics of Haldane and Wu hypothesis to study the thermodynamics of a unitary Fermi gas trapped in a harmonic oscillator potential at ultra-low finite temperature. The entropy per particle as a function of the energy per particle and energy per particle versus rescaled temperature are numerically compared with the experimental data. The study shows that, except the chemical potential behavior, there exists a reasonable consistency between the experimental measurement and theoretical attempt for the entropy and energy per particle. In the fractional exclusion statistics formalism, the behavior of the isochore heat capacity for a trapped unitary Fermi gas is also analyzed.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figure

Morphology and Orientation Selection of Non-Metallic Inclusions in Electrified Molten Metal

The effect of electric current on morphology and orientation selection of non-metallic inclusions in molten metal has been investigated using theoretical modelling and numerical calculation. Two geometric factors, namely the circularity (fc) and alignment ratio (fe) were introduced to describe the inclusions shape and configuration. Electric current free energy was calculated and the values were used to determine the thermodynamic preference between different microstructures. Electric current promotes the development of inclusion along the current direction by either expatiating directional growth or enhancing directional agglomeration. Reconfiguration of the inclusions to reduce the system electric resistance drives the phenomena. The morphology and orientation selection follows the routine to reduce electric free energy. The numerical results are in agreement with our experimental observations

Network-analysis-guided synthesis of weisaconitine D and liljestrandinine.

General strategies for the chemical synthesis of organic compounds, especially of architecturally complex natural products, are not easily identified. Here we present a method to establish a strategy for such syntheses, which uses network analysis. This approach has led to the identification of a versatile synthetic intermediate that facilitated syntheses of the diterpenoid alkaloids weisaconitine D and liljestrandinine, and the core of gomandonine. We also developed a web-based graphing program that allows network analysis to be easily performed on molecules with complex frameworks. The diterpenoid alkaloids comprise some of the most architecturally complex and functional-group-dense secondary metabolites isolated. Consequently, they present a substantial challenge for chemical synthesis. The synthesis approach described here is a notable departure from other single-target-focused strategies adopted for the syntheses of related structures. Specifically, it affords not only the targeted natural products, but also intermediates and derivatives in the three families of diterpenoid alkaloids (C-18, C-19 and C-20), and so provides a unified synthetic strategy for these natural products. This work validates the utility of network analysis as a starting point for identifying strategies for the syntheses of architecturally complex secondary metabolites

Finite size spectrum, magnon interactions and magnetization of S=1 Heisenberg spin chains

We report our density matrix renormalization-group and analytical work on S=1 antiferromagnetic Heisenberg spin chains. We study the finite size behavior within the framework of the non-linear sigma model. We study the effect of magnon-magnon interactions on the finite size spectrum and on the magnetization curve close to the critical magnetic field, determine the magnon scattering length and compare it to the prediction from the non-linear $\sigma$ model.Comment: 28 pages, 8 figures, made substantial improvement

Two types of softening detected in X-ray afterglows of Swift bursts: internal and external shock origins?

The softening process observed in the steep decay phase of early X-ray afterglows of Swift bursts has remained a puzzle since its discovery. The softening process can also be observed in the later phase of the bursts and its cause has also been unknown. Recently, it was suggested that, influenced by the curvature effect, emission from high latitudes would shift the Band function spectrum from higher energy band to lower band, and this would give rise to the observed softening process accompanied by a steep decay of the flux density. The curvature effect scenario predicts that the terminating time of the softening process would be correlated with the duration of the process. In this paper, based on the data from the UNLV GRB group web-site, we found an obvious correlation between the two quantities. In addition, we found that the softening process can be divided into two classes: the early type softening ($t_{s,max}\leq "4000"s$) and the late type softening ($t_{s,max} > "4000"s$). The two types of softening show different behaviors in the duration vs. terminating time plot. In the relation between the variation rates of the flux density and spectral index during the softening process, a discrepancy between the two types of softening is also observed. According to their time scales and the discrepancy between them, we propose that the two types are of different origins: the early type is of internal shock origin and the late type is of external shock origin. The early softening is referred to the steep decay just following the prompt emission, whereas the late decay typically conceives the transition from flat decay to late afterglow decay. We suspect that there might be a great difference of the Lorentz factor in two classes which is responsible for the observed discrepancy.Comment: 20 pages, 5 figures, 2 tables, Accepted for Publication to Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics (JCAP

Segregation of copper in an Fe–Cu alloy under pulsed electric current

Effect of electric current on the segregation of copper precipitates in the Fe–13.6Cu alloy is evaluated. Results of this approach present two stages of segregation, namely, grain-boundary segregation during the solidification and interphase-boundary segregation during the decomposition of a solid solution. The segregation becomes apparent not only because the thermodynamic barrier for segregation is decreased, but also because the diffusion is greatly enhanced. Based on the thermodynamic and kinetic aspects, the segregation process under electric current would be of great interest and of physical importance because this kind of electric current-induced segregation was much stronger than the thermal diffusion segregation