1,835 research outputs found
Variational methods for finding periodic orbits in the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations
Unstable periodic orbits are believed to underpin the dynamics of turbulence, but by their nature are hard to find computationally. We present a family of methods to converge such unstable periodic orbits for the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations, based on variations of an integral objective functional, and using traditional gradient-based optimisation strategies. Different approaches for handling the incompressibility condition are considered. The variational methods are applied to the specific case of periodic, two-dimensional Kolmogorov flow and compared against existing Newton iteration-based shooting methods. While computationally slow, our methods converge from very inaccurate initial guesses.<br/
Variational methods for finding periodic orbits in the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations
Unstable periodic orbits are believed to underpin the dynamics of turbulence, but by their nature are hard to find computationally. We present a family of methods to converge such unstable periodic orbits for the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations, based on variations of an integral objective functional, and using traditional gradient-based optimisation strategies. Different approaches for handling the incompressibility condition are considered. The variational methods are applied to the specific case of periodic, two-dimensional Kolmogorov flow and compared against existing Newton iteration-based shooting methods. While computationally slow, our methods converge from very inaccurate initial guesses.<br/
Superconducting Diamagnetic Fluctuations in MgB2
The fluctuating diamagnetic magnetization Mfl at constant field H as a
function of temperature and the isothermal magnetization Mfl vs H are measured
in MgB2, above the superconducting transition temperature. The expressions for
Mfl in randomly oriented powders are derived in the Gaussian approximation of
local Ginzburg-Landau theory and used for the analysis of the data. The scaled
magnetization Mfl/H^{1/2}*T is found to be field dependent. In the limit of
evanescent field the behaviour for Gaussian fluctuations is obeyed while for
H>~ 100 Oe the field tends to suppress the fluctuating pairs, with a field
dependence of Mfl close to the one expected when short wavelength fluctuations
and non-local electrodynamic effects are taken into account. Our data, besides
providing the isothermal magnetization curves for T>Tc(0) in a BCS-type
superconductor such as MgB2, evidence an enhancement of the fluctuating
diamagnetism which is related to the occurrence in this new superconductor of
an anisotropic spectrum of the superconducting fluctuations.Comment: Tex file, 4 pages, 3 ps figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
The Benefish consortium reports on the influence of system water refreshment rates on realized feed load, weight development, fish physiology and behaviour in turbot
Farmers with recirculation aquaculture systems (RAS) have a greater necessity and capacity to control the culture conditions of their farms than farmers with other aquaculture systems. Water quality is one of the factors that is closely monitored and managed in order to maintain the optimal levels of oxygen, ammonia, temperature, pH, and CO2. Effects of these parameters on growth and health are well studied and almost immediately noticeable. In RAS it often occurs that, although water quality conditions seem to be optimal, the feed intake of the fish might suddenly diminishes, thus reflecting a situation of sub optimal welfare of the animals. This phenomenon is particular relevant in marine RAS where these situations of reduced feed intake occur even though the normally monitored water quality parameters and husbandry conditions appear to be optimal. Similar phenomena also occur in other aquaculture culture systems, such as flow through systems, where feed intake fluctuates whilst the reasons are not always known, although there is typically less control and monitoring compared with RAS. It is therefore necessary to actively monitor deviation of expected feed intake, in combination with the monitoring of culture conditions and farm management on pilot-scale level. Only through this intermediate level experimental work and farm observations for the assumed relationship between deviation of expected feed intake and fish welfare can be validated. It is furthermore necessary to provide refinements to causative relationships expected to be found on commercial farms, where it is often claimed that e.g. lower system water refreshment rates or more closed RAS are leading to growth retardation and lower feed intake in fish and thus lower production. The present study is, therefore, intending to prove the hypothesis that changes in feed intake can be associated with changed fish welfare status, using turbot as model species. It is furthermore hypothesized that this changed fish welfare status is caused by different system water refreshment rates and fish and system management. As a final result, feed intake should relate by same efficiency to lower fish growth in closed RAS compared to flow through systems. The objectives are therefore to validate the relationships between deviation from expected feed intake and fish welfare, and their causative factors on the commercial farms interpreting data on feed intake, behavior, endocrinology and immune patterns as welfare indicators
Compressibility and Electronic Structure of MgB2 up to 8 GPa
The lattice parameters of MgB2 up to pressures of 8 GPa were determined using
high-resolution x-ray powder diffraction in a diamond anvil cell. The bulk
modulus, B0, was determined to be 151 +-5 GPa. Both experimental and
first-principles calculations indicate nearly isotropic mechanical behavior
under pressure. This small anisotropy is in contrast to the 2 dimensional
nature of the boron pi states. The pressure dependence of the density of states
at the Fermi level and a reasonable value for the average phonon frequency
account within the context of BCS theory for the reduction of Tc under
pressure.Comment: REVTeX file. 4 pages, 4 figure
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Production and purification of L-lactic acid in lab and pilot scales using sweet sorghum juice
Sweet sorghum juice (SSJ) was evaluated as fermentation substrate for the production of l-lactic acid. A thermophilic Bacillus coagulans isolate was selected for batch fermentations without the use of additional nutrients. The first batch of SSJ (Batch A) resulted on higher lactic acid concentration, yield and productivity with values of 78.75 g·L−1, 0.78 g·g−1 and 1.77 g·L−1 h−1, respectively. Similar results were obtained when the process was transferred into the pilot scale (50 L), with corresponding values of 73 g·L−1, 0.70 g·g−1 and 1.47 g·L−1 h−1. A complete downstream process scheme was developed in order to separate lactic acid from the fermentation components. Coarse and ultra-filtration were employed as preliminary separation steps. Mono- and bipolar electrodialysis, followed by chromatography and vacuum evaporation were subsequently carried out leading to a solution containing 905.8 g·L−1 lactic acid, with an optical purity of 98.9%. The results of this study highlight the importance of the downstream process with respect to using SSJ for lactic acid production. The proposed downstream process constitutes a more environmentally benign approach to conventional precipitation methods
Hard gluon damping in hot QCD
The gluon collisional width in hot QCD plasmas is discussed with emphasis on
temperatures near , where the coupling is large. Considering its effect on
the entropy, which is known from lattice calculations, it is argued that the
width, which in the perturbative limit is given by , should be sizeable at intermediate temperatures but has to be small close
to . Implications of these results for several phenomenologically relevant
quantities, such as the energy loss of hard jets, are pointed out.Comment: uses RevTex and graphic
Genetic characterization of Guinea-Bissau using a 12 X-chromosomal STR system: inferences from a multiethnic population
A male West African sample from Guinea-Bissau (West-African coast) was genetically analyzed using 12 X
chromosomal short tandem repeats that are grouped into four haplotype groups. Linkage disequilibrium was
tested (p ≤ 0.0008) and association was detected for the majority of markers in three out of the four studied
haplotype clusters. The sample of 332 unrelated individuals analyzed in this study belonged to several recognized ethnic groups (n = 18) which were used to evaluate the genetic variation of Guinea-Bissau’s population. Pairwise genetic distances (FST) did not reveal significant differences among the majority of groups. An
additional 110 samples from other countries also belonging to West Africa were as well compared with the
sample of Guinea-Bissau. No significant differences were found between these two groups of West African individuals, supporting the genetic homogeneity of this region on the X chromosome level. The generation of over
100 DNA West African sequences provided new insights into the repeat sequence structure of some of the present
X-STRs. Parameters for forensic evaluation were also calculated for each X-STR, supporting the potential application of these markers in typical kinship scenarios. Also, the high power of discrimination values for samples
of female and male origin observed in this study, confirms the usefulness of the present X-STRs in identification
analysis.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Ferromagnetism in Mn doped GaAs due to substitutional-interstitial complexes
While most calculations on the properties of the ferromagnetic semiconductor
GaAs:Mn have focussed on isolated Mn substituting the Ga site (Mn), we
investigate here whether alternate lattice sites are favored and what the
magnetic consequences of this might be. Under As-rich (Ga-poor) conditions
prevalent at growth, we find that the formation energies are lower for
Mn over interstitial Mn (Mn).As the Fermi energy is shifted towards
the valence band maximum via external -doping, the formation energy of
Mn is reduced relative to Mn. Furthermore, under epitaxial growth
conditions, the solubility of both substitutional and interstitial Mn are
strongly enhanced over what is possible under bulk growth conditions. The high
concentration of Mn attained under epitaxial growth of p-type material opens
the possibility of Mn atoms forming small clusters. We consider various types
of clusters, including the Coulomb-stabilized clusters involving two Mn
and one Mn. While isolated Mn are hole killers (donors), and therefore
destroy ferromagnetism,complexes such as Mn-Mn-Mn) are found
to be more stable than complexes involving Mn-Mn-Mn. The
former complexes exhibit partial or total quenching of holes, yet Mn in
these complexes provide a channel for a ferromagnetic arrangement of the spins
on the two Mn within the complex. This suggests that ferromagnetism in
Mn doped GaAs arises both from holes due to isolated Mn as well as from
strongly Coulomb stabilized Mn-Mn-Mn clusters.Comment: 7 figure
Quasi-Particle Description of Strongly Interacting Matter: Towards a Foundation
We confront our quasi-particle model for the equation of state of strongly
interacting matter with recent first-principle QCD calculations. In particular,
we test its applicability at finite baryon densities by comparing with Taylor
expansion coefficients of the pressure for two quark flavours. We outline a
chain of approximations starting from the Phi-functional approach to QCD which
motivates the quasi-particle picture.Comment: Aug 2006. 6 pp. Invited Talk given at Hot Quarks 2006, Villasimius,
Sardinia, Italy, 15-20 May 200
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