A Note on the Radiative and Collisional Branching Ratios in Polarized Radiation Transport with Coherent Scattering

We discuss the implementation of physically meaningful branching ratios between the CRD and PRD contributions to the emissivity of a polarized multi-term atom in the presence of both inelastic and elastic collisions. Our derivation is based on a recent theoretical formulation of partially coherent scattering, and it relies on a heuristic diagrammatic analysis of the various radiative and collisional processes to determine the proper form of the branching ratios. The expression we obtain for the emissivity is $\varepsilon=\left[\varepsilon^{\tiny (1)}-\varepsilon^{\tiny (2)}_{\rm f.s.} \right]+\varepsilon^{\tiny (2)}$, where $\varepsilon^{\tiny (1)}$ and $\varepsilon^{\tiny (2)}$ are the emissivity terms for the redistributed and partially coherent radiation, respectively, and where "f.s." implies that the corresponding term must be evaluated assuming a flat-spectrum average of the incident radiation

Analytical strategies for the conservation assessment of operating Industrial Heritage machinery

Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Author(s)The condition assessment of Industrial Heritage machinery in operation is an open research subject of utmost importance for defining conservation and maintenance plans. The present work approaches this issue by proposing the study of Industrial Heritage machinery that includes the assessment of substrates, coatings, lubricants and operating mechanisms by applying analytical techniques currently used for heritage studies together with techniques employed in condition monitoring of modern machinery. An early 20th century steam engine from the Vale de Milhaços Gunpowder Factory (Portugal), in operation for demonstration purposes, was selected as a case study. The engine metallic alloys and coatings were studied by XRF and Raman spectroscopies, and the main properties of lubricants studied according to EN ISO and ASTM standard tests. Metallic particles present in the oil due to wear were assessed by XRF. The mechanisms were examined by gamma radiography, magnetoscopy, thermography and vibrational analysis. Data showed the use of distinct alloys according to the engine components' function similar to those reported for the same period. Green copper phthalocyanine and toluidine red identified as coatings’ pigments are typical from the late 20th century and thus ascribed to a previous repair. The properties of the fresh and used lubricants are slightly different but without evidence of a significant alteration that could endanger the machine's functioning. However, the presence of metallic particles in the oil suggested the existence of wear phenomena. The engine's operating speed (51 rpm) and the vapour temperature (≈154 °C) attained inside the cylinder were indirectly determined. The presence of cracks on the engine structure was assessed, and possible faults that can imperil the engine functioning were analysed. The vibrational analysis of equipment in operation revealed a lack of lubrication and wear on the feed pump journal bearings.publishersversionpublishe

Efficacy of Corncob and Rice Husk Biochar as Liming Agent and Phosphorus Source for Growth of Soybean in Two Acid Soils

Soil acidity, unavailability and high cost of conventional liming materials are major constraints to soybean production in the Western Region of Ghana. Research has shown that biochar produced from agricultural waste has high concentration of basic cations and available P that could be exploited for use as liming material and/or P source. However, the biochar type that will provide an ideal soil pH and P availability for soybean production in acid soils has received little attention. Therefore, for this study, two acid soils namely; Ankasa Series (Typic Hapludox) and Tikobo Series (Typic Hapludult) were amended with corncob and rice husk biochar types charred at 500 and 700 oC at a rate of 80 tons/ha in a pot experiment in a screen house to ascertain the efficacy of the biochar types as agricultural lime and P sources for soybean growth. The Ca equivalent of the biochar types from CaCO3 was amended to the soils to serve as realistic control. The soils were arranged in a completely randomized design in a screen house to allow for pH equilibration. After pH equilibration, inoculated soybean seeds were sown at stake. Nitrogen was applied at rates of 0 kg/ha and 10 kg/ha. Phosphorus from TSP was applied at 0 and biochar P equivalent to the non-biochar-amended soils. Extra 30 kg P/ha from TSP was applied to some of the biochar amended soils to ascertain if any, the combined effect of synthetic and biochar P on soybean growth. At flower initiation, the crops were harvested, root volume and P uptake determined. Amended with rice husk biochar charred at 700 oC, the shoot P uptake was 1.3 times more in both the Typic Hapludox and the Typic Hapludult than the same soils amended with conventional lime with equivalent biochar P from the synthetic source

On the Magnetic Field Strength of Active Region Filaments

We study the vector magnetic field of a filament observed over a compact Active Region Neutral Line. Spectropolarimetric data acquired with TIP-II (VTT, Tenerife, Spain) of the 10830 \AA spectral region provide full Stokes vectors which were analyzed using three different methods: magnetograph analysis, Milne-Eddington inversions and PCA-based atomic polarization inversions. The inferred magnetic field strengths in the filament are of the order of 600 - 700 G by all these three methods. Longitudinal fields are found in the range of 100 - 200 G whereas the transverse components become dominant, with fields as large as 500 - 600 G. We find strong transverse fields near the Neutral Line also at photospheric levels. Our analysis indicates that strong (higher than 500 G, but below kG) transverse magnetic fields are present in Active Region filaments. This corresponds to the highest field strengths reliably measured in these structures. The profiles of the Helium 10830 \AA lines observed in this Active Region filament are dominated by the Zeeman effect.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics, 9 pages, 4 figure

Expression and localization of aquaporin water channels in adult pig urinary bladder

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A Statistical Inference Method for Interpreting the CLASP Observations

On 3rd September 2015, the Chromospheric Lyman-Alpha SpectroPolarimeter (CLASP) successfully measured the linear polarization produced by scattering processes in the hydrogen Lyman-$\alpha$ line of the solar disk radiation, revealing conspicuous spatial variations in the $Q/I$ and $U/I$ signals. Via the Hanle effect the line-center $Q/I$ and $U/I$ amplitudes encode information on the magnetic field of the chromosphere-corona transition region (TR), but they are also sensitive to the three-dimensional structure of this corrugated interface region. With the help of a simple line formation model, here we propose a statistical inference method for interpreting the Lyman-$\alpha$ line-center polarization observed by CLASP.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa