The analysis and redesign of the spraycam sprayer to incorporate fibre composite pultrusions

The University of Southern Queensland along with other centre’s around the world are at the leading edge of fibre composite research. Many studies have been conducted into the properties and applications of fibre composite and it is the purpose of the research project to apply these findings to a real world design problem. This project aims to analyse and redesign the current SprayCam rig. SprayCam is a selective weed spot spraying system used within the agricultural industry. This technology uses a series of cameras operating in the visual spectrum to identify the weeds within fallowed paddocks. These cameras operate solenoids which subsequently spray only the weeds and not the entire field which occurs during conventional spraying techniques. The SprayCam rig is the mechanism that supports the cameras and the other technology and allows them to operate safely and efficiently. The current design is large and heavy for both its size and also its intended use as a selective weed spot sprayer. It is the belief that the current design overuses materials leading to an over engineered product which also increases manufacturing cost. This project contains two essential facets, the first being the analysis of the current rig design to determine the structural integrity while the second is to investigate the use of fibre composite pultrusions as a means of redesigning the spray rig wing. In order to complete the analysis of the current SprayCam rig it was first necessary to re-produce solid models of the current wing design to create an accurate basis for finite element analysis (FEA). Considerable research was directed into the appropriate loading constraints which have been identified and discussed in full within the report to ensure the validity of the results. A thorough finite element analysis was conducted on current spray rig design which found that the original wing was indeed over engineered for its use as an agricultural sprayer. The loads which the rig could withstand were much greater than those which it will be subjected to within the field. This result shows an inefficiency of the use of materials within the wing design leading to increased manufacturing cost. Therefore a more appropriate design needs to be developed if the product is going to be competitive in the current market. In redesigning the spray rig, investigation of all possible avenues would have required significant time and effort. With the University of Southern Queensland at the leading edge of fibre composite research, it was agreed that fibre composite pultrusions would be investigated as a means of both significantly reducing the weight of the spray rig and overcoming existing design flaws. There is currently a great deal of research conducted into the properties of fibre composite pultrusions and it is the purpose of this project to apply this research to a design situation. Many issues including costing and joining techniques needed to be overcome so that a possible design could be completed. Through use of finite element analysis it has been shown that fibre composite pultrusions are a feasible alternative to the original steel design. Significant weight savings have been shown to be a possibility with only a minimal increase in cost

Bubble Rise Phenomena Through Newtonian & Non-Newtonian Fluids

The characteristics of bubble rise phenomenon in three liquids were investigated and are reported here. The experimental rig consists of two transparent cylindrical columns – one a polycarbonate tube of 125 mm diameter and the other an acrylic tube of 400 mm diameter. The rig also consists of a lifting device designed to hold a video camera for taking bubble images. Water and two non-Newtonian fluids (0.025% and 0.045% by weight of polyacrylamide solutions) were used in this study. The smaller polycarbonate tube was used to study the velocity and the drag coefficient under vacuum. The bigger acrylic tube was used to study the influence of the size of bubbles

An Experimental Study of Bubble Rise Characteristics in non – Newtonian (Power-Law) Fluids

Air bubbles are used in chemical, biochemical, environmental, food process such as sugar industries for improving the heat and mass transfer. In particular, the bubble rise characteristics in massecuite - a fluid made from sugar crystals and sugar syrup have a great influence on vacuum pan operation which is an important process for the production of raw sugar in sugar industries. An experimental study of the bubble rise characteristics in xanthan gum solutions, a non-Newtonian (Power-Law) massecuite equivalent fluid are presented in this paper. The main characteristics, i.e. the bubble velocity, the bubble trajectory, and the drag relationship were investigated as a function of volume of air bubbles. The bubble rise velocity and trajectory were measured using a combination of non-intrusive (high speed photographic) method and digital image processing. The parameters that significantly affect the rise of air bubble are identified. The effect of different bubble volumes and liquid heights on the bubble rise velocity and bubble trajectory are analysed and discussed. A relationship between the Reynolds number and the drag coefficient is presented and discussed

Sportunterricht in Sprachlernklassen - Der Stellenwert von Bewegung für geflüchtete Kinder und ihren Spracherwerb

Sprachförderung für Flüchtlinge im Sportunterricht anzubahnen, ist ein notwendiger und lohnender Bestandteil von adressatengerechtem Sportunterricht. Über eine Einordnung der Lebenssituation geflüchteter Kinder in Deutschland erfolgt eine Herleitung der Legitimationsebenen von Sport und Bewegung. Neben diesem Aspekt ist vor allem der Spracherwerb (Deutsch als Zweitsprache) ein bedeutungsvoller Faktor zur Steigerung des Wohlbefindens und der Handlungsfähigkeit in der Aufnahmegesellschaft. Die Verbindung beider Ebenen ist erklärtes Ziel eines sich anpassenden und weiterentwicklenden Sportunterrichts für diese Zielgruppe. Im und durch Sportunterricht sind Verbesserungen der sprachlichen Kompetenzen erreichbar. Eine Zusammenstellung von Qualitätsmerkmalen einer Spracherwerbsunterstützung im Sportunterricht stellt die wichtige Basis für den angeschlossenen Vergleich zweier Beschulungssysteme dar: 1. Sportunterricht im Rahmen der Sprachlernklasse und 2. Sportunterricht in den Zielklassen

Glycerol carbonate as green solvent for pretreatment of sugarcane bagasse

Background\ud Pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass is a prerequisite for effective saccharification to produce fermentable sugars. We have previously reported an effective low temperature (90 °C) process at atmospheric pressure for pretreatment of sugarcane bagasse with acidified mixtures of ethylene carbonate (EC) and ethylene glycol (EG). In this study, “greener” solvent systems based on acidified mixtures of glycerol carbonate (GC) and glycerol were used to treat sugarcane bagasse and the roles of each solvent in deconstructing biomass were determined. \ud \ud Results\ud Pretreatment of sugarcane bagasse at 90 °C for only 30 min with acidified GC produced a solid residue having a glucan digestibility of 90% and a glucose yield of 80%, which were significantly higher than a glucan digestibility of 16% and a glucose yield of 15% obtained for bagasse pretreated with acidified EC. Biomass compositional analyses showed that GC pretreatment removed more lignin than EC pretreatment (84% vs 54%). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that fluffy and size-reduced fibres were produced from GC pretreatment whereas EC pretreatment produced compact particles of reduced size. The maximal glucan digestibility and glucose yield of GC/glycerol systems were about 7% lower than those of EC/ethylene glycol (EG) systems. Replacing up to 50 wt% of GC with glycerol did not negatively affect glucan digestibility and glucose yield. The results from pretreatment of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) showed that (1) pretreatment with acidified alkylene glycol (AG) alone increased enzymatic digestibility compared to pretreatments with acidified alkylene carbonate (AC) alone and acidified mixtures of AC and AG, (2) pretreatment with acidified GC alone slightly increased, but with acidified EC alone significantly decreased, enzymatic digestibility compared to untreated MCC, and (3) there was a good positive linear correlation of enzymatic digestibility of treated and untreated MCC samples with congo red (CR) adsorption capacity.\ud \ud Conclusions\ud Acidified GC alone was a more effective solvent for pretreatment of sugarcane bagasse than acidified EC alone. The higher glucose yield obtained with GC-pretreated bagasse is possibly due to the presence of one hydroxyl group in the GC molecular structure, resulting in more significant biomass delignification and defibrillation, though both solvent pretreatments reduced bagasse particles to a similar extent. The maximum glucan digestibility of GC/glycerol systems was less than that of EC/EG systems, which is likely attributed to glycerol being less effective than EG in biomass delignification and defibrillation. Acidified AC/AG solvent systems were more effective for pretreatment of lignin-containing biomass than MCC

Airway and peripheral urokinase plasminogen activator receptor is elevated in asthma, and identifies a severe, nonatopic subset of patients

Rationale: Genetic polymorphisms in the asthma susceptibility gene, urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR/PLAUR) have been associated with lung function decline and uPAR blood levels in asthma subjects. Preliminary studieshave identified uPAR elevation in asthma; however, a definitive study regarding which clinical features of asthma uPAR may be driving is currently lacking. Objectives: We aimed to comprehensively determine the uPAR expression profilein asthma and control subjects utilizing bronchial biopsies and serum, and to relate uPAR expression to asthma clinical features. Methods: uPAR levels were determined in control (n = 9) and asthmatic (n = 27)bronchial biopsies using immunohistochemistry, with a semi-quantitative score defining intensity in multiple cell types. Soluble-cleaved (sc) uPAR levels weredetermined in serum through ELISA in UK (cases n = 129; controls n = 39) and Dutch (cases n = 514; controls n = 96) cohorts.Measurements and main results: In bronchial tissue, uPAR was elevated ininflammatory cells in the lamina propria (P = 0.0019), bronchial epithelial(P = 0.0002) and airway smooth muscle cells (P = 0.0352) of patients with asthma, with uPAR levels correlated between the cell types. No correlation with disease severity or asthma clinical features was identified. scuPAR serum levels were elevated in patients with asthma (1.5-f old; P = 0.0008), and we identified an association between high uPAR serum levels and severe, nonatopic disease. Conclusions: This study provides novel data that elevated airway and blood uPAR is a feature of asthma and that blood uPAR is particularly related to severe, nonatopic asthma. The findings warrant further investigation and may provide a therapeutic opportunity for this refractory population

Hydrolysis of oligosaccharides over solid acid catalysts: a review

Mild fractionation/pretreatment processes are becoming the most preferred choices for biomass processing within the biorefinery framework. To further explore their advantages, new developments are needed, especially to increase the extent of the hydrolysis of poly- and oligosaccharides. A possible way forward is the use of solid acid catalysts that may overcome many current drawbacks of other common methods. In this Review, the advantages and limitations of the use of heterogeneous catalysis for the main groups of solid acid catalysts (zeolites, resins, carbon materials, clays, silicas, and other oxides) and their relation to the hydrolysis of model soluble disaccharides and soluble poly- and oligosaccharides are presented and discussed. Special attention is given to the hydrolysis of hemicelluloses and hemicellulose-derived saccharides into monosaccharides, the impact on process performance of potential catalyst poisons originating from biomass and biomass hydrolysates (e.g., proteins, mineral ions, etc.). The data clearly point out the need for studying hemicelluloses in natura rather than in model compound solutions that do not retain the relevant factors influencing process performance. Furthermore, the desirable traits that solid acid catalysts must possess for the efficient hemicellulose hydrolysis are also presented and discussed with regard to the design of new catalysts

Clinical patterns in asthma based on proximal and distal airway nitric oxide categories

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The exhaled nitric oxide (eNO) signal is a marker of inflammation, and can be partitioned into proximal [J'aw_NO(nl/s), maximum airway flux] and distal contributions [CA_NO(ppb), distal airway/alveolar NO concentration]. We hypothesized that J'aw_NOand CA_NOare selectively elevated in asthmatics, permitting identification of four inflammatory categories with distinct clinical features.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In 200 consecutive children with asthma, and 21 non-asthmatic, non-atopic controls, we measured baseline spirometry, bronchodilator response, asthma control and morbidity, atopic status, use of inhaled corticosteroids, and eNO at multiple flows (50, 100, and 200 ml/s) in a cross-sectional study design. A trumpet-shaped axial diffusion model of NO exchange was used to characterize J'aw_NOand CA_NO.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>J'aw_NOwas not correlated with CA_NO, and thus asthmatic subjects were grouped into four eNO categories based on upper limit thresholds of non-asthmatics for J'aw_NO(≥ 1.5 nl/s) and CA_NO(≥ 2.3 ppb): Type I (normal J'aw_NOand CA_NO), Type II (elevated J'aw_NOand normal CA_NO), Type III (elevated J'aw_NOand CA_NO) and Type IV (normal J'aw_NOand elevated CA_NO). The rate of inhaled corticosteroid use (lowest in Type III) and atopy (highest in Type II) varied significantly amongst the categories influencing J'aw_NO, but was not related to CA_NO, asthma control or morbidity. All categories demonstrated normal to near-normal baseline spirometry; however, only eNO categories with increased CA_NO(III and IV) had significantly worse asthma control and morbidity when compared to categories I and II.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>J'aw_NOand CA_NOreveal inflammatory categories in children with asthma that have distinct clinical features including sensitivity to inhaled corticosteroids and atopy. Only categories with increase CA_NOwere related to poor asthma control and morbidity independent of baseline spirometry, bronchodilator response, atopic status, or use of inhaled corticosteroids.</p