Design, fabrication, and bench testing of a solar chemical receiver

Solar thermal energy can be effectively collected, transported, stored, and utilized by means of a chemical storage and transport system employing the reversible SO2 oxidation reaction. A solar chemical receiver for SO3 thermal decomposition to SO2 and oxygen was analyzed. Bench tests of a ten foot section of a receiver module were conducted with dissociated sulfuric acid (SO3 and H2O) in an electrical furnace. Measured percent conversion of SO3 was 85% of the equilibrium value. Methods were developed to fabricate and assemble a complete receiver module. These methods included applying an aluminide coating to certain exposed surfaces, assembling concentric tubes with a wire spacer, applying a platinum catalyst to the tubing wall, and coiling the entire assembly into the desired configuration

Effects of Creep Supplementation While Grazing Improved Irrigated Pastures

This publication describes results of a study of creep supplementation versus grazing among calves

Understanding low energy reaction with exotic nuclei

Recent developments on the understanding of low energy reactions are highlighted. Emphasis is given to the CDCC framework where the breakup channels of the projectile are included explicitly. Properties of the breakup couplings are presented. Comments are given with regard to the separation between the nuclear and the Coulomb contributions to breakup cross sections as well as the dependence on the optical potentials. A discussion on the sensitivity of the CDCC basis is discussed, by comparing pure breakup results with transfer to the continuum calculations. Finally, some remaining controversies show the need to go beyond the single particle picture for the projectile.Comment: Proceedings from 'Nuclei at the limits', ANL 26-30 July 2004, 6 pages and 8 figure

Detecting the intermediate-mass Higgs boson through the associate production channel pp --> t + anti-t + H + X

We examine the detection of the intermediate-mass Higgs boson (IMH) at LHC through the associate production channel pp-->t+(anti-t)+H+X-->l+photon+ photon+X'. It is shown that by applying kinematic cuts or b-tagging on the final state jets, the main backgrounds of W(-->l+nu)+photon+photon+(n-jet) can be reduced substantially without significant loss of signals. It is possible to detect the Higgs boson at LHC through the pp-->t+(anti-t)+H+X channel using a modest photon detector with mass resolution of about 3% of the photon pair invariant mass.Comment: 10 pages, standard LaTex fil

Ocular expression of avian thymic hormone: changes during the recovery from induced myopia

Purpose: Several studies suggest that postnatal ocular growth is under the control of factors within the eye that regulate the rate of scleral extracellular matrix remodeling and the rate of ocular elongation. A microarray analysis was employed to identify some of the factors involved in the regulation of visually guided ocular growth. Gene expression was compared in the retina-retinal pigmented epithelium (RPE)-choroid of chick eyes that were decelerating in the rate of ocular growth (“recovering ” from myopia) as compared with contralateral control eyes. Methods: Form-deprivation myopia was induced in the right eyes of two-day-old chicks by the application of translucent occluders. Following 10 days of deprivation, occluders were removed and chicks were provided unrestricted vision for an additional 1–7 days (recovery). After one and four days of recovery, chicks were sacrificed, retina, RPE, and choroid were isolated, and mRNA was subjected to microarray analysis using a chicken immune system 4000 gene microarray. In addition, whole eyes and isolated ocular tissues (retina and RPE, choroid, sclera, and extraocular muscle) of treated and control eyes were subjected to real-time PCR, immunohistochemistry, and western blot analyses to verify gene expression results. Results: Following one day of recovery, only one gene, avian thymic hormone (ATH) was highly upregulated (+12.3 fold). ATH gene and protein expression were confirmed in the retina and choroid as well as in the sclera and extraocular muscle. A significant increase in ATH protein was detected in choroids from treated eyes following four days of recover

Dual-acting stapled peptides target both HIV-1 entry and assembly

Background: Previously, we reported the conversion of the 12-mer linear and cell-impermeable peptide CAI to a cell-penetrating peptide NYAD-1 by using an i,i + 4 hydrocarbon stapling technique and confirmed its binding to the C-terminal domain (CTD) of the HIV-1 capsid (CA) protein with an improved affinity (Kd ~ 1 μM) compared to CAI (Kd ~ 15 μM). NYAD-1 disrupts the formation of both immature- and mature-like virus particles in in vitro and cell-based assembly assays. In addition, it displays potent anti-HIV-1 activity in cell culture against a range of laboratory-adapted and primary HIV-1 isolates.<p></p> Results: In this report, we expanded the study to i,i + 7 hydrocarbon-stapled peptides to delineate their mechanism of action and antiviral activity. We identified three potent inhibitors, NYAD-36, -66 and -67, which showed strong binding to CA in NMR and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) studies and disrupted the formation of mature-like particles. They showed typical α-helical structures and penetrated cells; however, the cell penetration was not as efficient as observed with the i,i + 4 peptides. Unlike NYAD-1, the i,i + 7 peptides did not have any effect on virus release; however, they impaired Gag precursor processing. HIV-1 particles produced in the presence of these peptides displayed impaired infectivity. Consistent with an effect on virus entry, selection for viral resistance led to the emergence of two mutations in the gp120 subunit of the viral envelope (Env) glycoprotein, V120Q and A327P, located in the conserved region 1 (C1) and the base of the V3 loop, respectively.<p></p> Conclusion: The i,i + 7 stapled peptides derived from CAI unexpectedly target both CA and the V3 loop of gp120. This dual-targeted activity is dependent on their ability to penetrate cells as well as their net charge. This mechanistic revelation will be useful in further modifying these peptides as potent anti-HIV-1 agents.<p></p&gt

Charge dependence of neoclassical and turbulent transport of light impurities on MAST

Carbon and nitrogen impurity transport coefficients are determined from gas puff experiments carried out during repeat L-mode discharges on the Mega-Amp Spherical Tokamak (MAST) and compared against a previous analysis of helium impurity transport on MAST. The impurity density profiles are measured on the low-field side of the plasma, therefore this paper focuses on light impurities where the impact of poloidal asymmetries on impurity transport is predicted to be negligible. A weak screening of carbon and nitrogen is found in the plasma core, whereas the helium density profile is peaked over the entire plasma radius.Comment: 17 pages, 7 figure