Evaluation of center pivot sprinkler wind drift and evaporation measurement technique

Wind drift and evaporation losses (WDELs) are an often discussed topic in regards to center pivot sprinkler irrigation efficiency. Opinions on the magnitude of WDELs vary widely, in part due to the wide variation in WDEL values published in the literature. The magnitude of WDELs reported in the literature range from 2 to 45%. The common technique employed to measure WDEL is to use catch cans and compare the measured volume of catch with the volume of water applied based on sprinkler nozzle size, operating pressure and spacing with the difference being WDEL. The inaccuracies of catch cans resulting from wind effects on catch efficiency and evaporation of water from the catch can prior to measurement have led to the wide range in WDEL reported in the literature. The objective of this project was to develop and evaluate a methodology for measurement of WDEL from center pivot sprinklers using a combination of applied water collectors, bromide tracer and air samplers. The evaluation criteria were the magnitude of water volume balance error. A methodology for measuring wind drift and evaporation loss from center pivot sprinklers was developed and field tested under limited wind speed conditions. Volume balance errors ranged from 0.1 to 7.1%. The cause for the large errors on two occasions has not yet been determined. The percent of applied water aerosolized and measured as drift was found to be linearly correlated with wind speed. Overall, the limited tests show the methodology to be feasible for measuring WDEL from center pivot sprinklers. Tests in higher wind speeds are needed to validate the methodology as is determination and elimination of the cause for the high volume balance errors

Synchronous shock wave emergence from intersecting ducts

Various studies have been conducted on the dynamics of the flow field resulting from the emergence of a shock wave from a duct. These studies have included differences in duct crosssection and even the interaction of shock waves from several tubes simultaneously. However, the simple case of two shock waves of similar strength emerging from orthogonal ducts, such as might be the case in the event of a blast in HVAC ducting, has not been well considered. In this study a shock tube was bifurcated to produce two waves of equal strength and close synchronisation which could then interact in an open test section. It was found that a complex reflected shock wave system forms where the two shock waves interact. This interaction was visualised using high-speed shadowgraph at a speed of 75 000 frames per second for incident shock wave Mach numbers of 1.15, 1.3, and 1.4. Related to these shock waves are the vortex lines shed at the diffraction edges, which are strongly influenced by the close proximity near the shared corner and show significant narrowing as a result. When the two shock waves are not perfectly synchronised, there is also a slipstream which develops from the shared corner and, for strong shock waves, a vortex structure bound by the shear layer. The exact shape of this vortex structure is still being interrogated. A complementary numerical study using the commercial code, ANSYS Fluent, to understand the topology of the shock waves and vortices produced better was undertaken though this also requires further refinement. Another interesting feature noted in the case of unsynchronised shock wave interaction is jetting from between the shear layers produced by the irregular reflection of the two shock waves from each other and also the possibility of a Kelvin-Helmholtz instability of the shear layer, which is not nominally plane unlike in previous observations thereof.Papers presented to the 12th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Costa de Sol, Spain on 11-13 July 2016

Flavour Universal Dynamical Electroweak Symmetry Breaking

The top condensate see-saw mechanism of Dobrescu and Hill allows electroweak symmetry to be broken while deferring the problem of flavour to an electroweak singlet, massive sector. We provide an extended version of the singlet sector that naturally accommodates realistic masses for all the standard model fermions, which play an equal role in breaking electroweak symmetry. The models result in a relatively light composite Higgs sector with masses typically in the range of (400-700)~GeV. In more complete models the dynamics will presumably be driven by a broken gauged family or flavour symmetry group. As an example of the higher scale dynamics a fully dynamical model of the quark sector with a GIM mechanism is presented, based on an earlier top condensation model of King using broken family gauge symmetry interactions (that model was itself based on a technicolour model of Georgi). The crucial extra ingredient is a reinterpretation of the condensates that form when several gauge groups become strong close to the same scale. A related technicolour model of Randall which naturally includes the leptons too may also be adapted to this scenario. We discuss the low energy constraints on the massive gauge bosons and scalars of these models as well as their phenomenology at the TeV scale.Comment: 22 pages, 3 fig

Oscillator model for the relativistic fermion-boson system

The solvable quantum mechanical model for the relativistic two-body system composed of spin-1/2 and spin-0 particles is constructed. The model includes the oscillator-type interaction through a combination of Lorentz-vector and -tensor potentials. The analytical expressions for the wave functions and the order of the energy levels are discussed.Comment: published version, 8 pages, 2 figure

Effects of Enamel Fluorosis and Dental Caries on Quality of Life

The objectives of this study were to determine the impact of enamel fluorosis and dental caries on oral health–related quality of life (OHRQoL) in North Carolina schoolchildren and their families. Students (n = 7,686) enrolled in 398 classrooms in grades K-12 were recruited for a onetime survey. Parents of students in grades K-3 and 4-12 completed the Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale (ECOHIS) and Family Impact Scale (FIS), respectively. Students in grades 4-12 completed the Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ8-10 in grades 4-5; CPQ11-14 in grades 6-12). All students were examined for fluorosis (Dean’s index) and caries experience (d2-3fs or D2-3MFS indices). OHRQoL scores (sum response codes) were analyzed for their association with fluorosis categories and sum of d2-3fs and D2-3MFS according to ordinary least squares regression with SAS procedures for multiple imputation and analysis of complex survey data. Differences in OHRQoL scores were evaluated against statistical and minimal important difference (MID) thresholds. Of 5,484 examined students, 71.8% had no fluorosis; 24.4%, questionable to very mild fluorosis; and 3.7%, mild, moderate, or severe fluorosis. Caries categories were as follows: none (43.1%), low (28.6%), and moderate to high (28.2%). No associations between fluorosis and any OHRQoL scales met statistical or MID thresholds. The difference (5.8 points) in unadjusted mean ECOHIS scores for the no-caries and moderate-to-high caries groups exceeded the MID estimate (2.7 points) for that scale. The difference in mean FIS scores (1.5 points) for the no-caries and moderate-to-high groups exceeded the MID value (1.2 points). The sum of d2-3fs and D2-3MFS scores was positively associated with CPQ11-14 (B = 0.240, p < .001), ECOHIS (B = 0.252, p ≤ .001), and FIS (B = 0.096, p ≤ .01) scores in ordinary least squares regression models. A child’s caries experience negatively affects OHRQoL, while fluorosis has little impact

An Extended Technicolor Model With QCD-like Symmetry Breaking

We present a one-doublet extended technicolor model, with all fermions in fundamental representations. The bare lagrangian has no explicit mass terms but generates masses through gauge symmetry breaking by purely QCD-like dynamics. The model generates three families of quarks and leptons and can accommodate the observed third family mass spectrum (including a large top mass and light neutrinos). In addition, we show how the model may be extended to incorporate a top color driven top mass without the need for a strong U(1) interaction. We discuss the compatiblity of the model with experimental constraints and its possible predicitive power with respect to first and second family masses.Comment: 25 pages, latex, 7 figure

The measurement of liner - piston skirt oil film thickness by an ultrasonic means

The paper presents a novel method for the measurement of lubricant film thickness in the piston-liner contact. Direct measurement of the film in this conjunction has always posed a problem, particularly under fired conditions. The principle is based on capturing and analysing the reflection of an ultrasonic pulse at the oil film. The proportion of the wave amplitude reflected can be related to the thickness of the oil film. A single cylinder 4-stroke engine on a dyno test platform was used for evaluation of the method. A piezo-electric transducer was bonded to the outside of the cylinder liner and used to emit high frequency short duration ultrasonic pulses. These pulses were used to determine the oil film thickness as the piston skirt passed over the sensor location. Oil films in the range 2 to 21 μm were recorded varying with engine speeds. The results have been shown to be in agreement with detailed numerical predictions

An Extended Technicolor Model

An extended technicolor model is constructed. Quark and lepton masses, spontaneous CP violation, and precision electroweak measurements are discussed. Dynamical symmetry breaking is analyzed using the concept of the BIG MAC.Comment: 35 pages, Latex, YCTP-P21-93, BUHEP-93-2

Osteosclerosis in the extinct Cayaoa Bruneti (Aves, anseriformes) : insights on behavior and fligftlessness

Fil: Mendoza, Ricardo de. División Paleontología Vertebrados. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Universidad Nacional de La PlataFil: Tambussi, Claudia Patricia. Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Tierra (CICTERRA). Universidad Nacional de Córdoba; Argentin

A mathematical model for the onset of avascular tumor growth in response to the loss of p53 function

We present a mathematical model for the formation of an avascular tumor based on the loss by gene mutation of the tumor suppressor function of p53. The wild type p53 protein regulates apoptosis, cell expression of growth factor and matrix metalloproteinase, which are regulatory functions that many mutant p53 proteins do not possess. The focus is on a description of cell movement as the transport of cell population density rather than as the movement of individual cells. In contrast to earlier works on solid tumor growth, a model is proposed for the initiation of tumor growth. The central idea, taken from the mathematical theory of dynamical systems, is to view the loss of p53 function in a few cells as a small instability in a rest state for an appropriate system of differential equations describing cell movement. This instability is shown (numerically) to lead to a second, spatially inhomogeneous, solution that can be thought of as a solid tumor whose growth is nutrient diffusion limited. In this formulation, one is led to a system of nine partial differential equations. We show computationally that there can be tumor states that coexist with benign states and that are highly unstable in the sense that a slight increase in tumor size results in the tumor occupying the sample region while a slight decrease in tumor size results in its ultimate disappearance