7,180 research outputs found
Morphing Switched-Capacitor Converters with Variable Conversion Ratio
High-voltage-gain and wide-input-range dc-dc converters are widely used in various electronics and industrial products such as portable devices, telecommunication, automotive, and aerospace systems. The two-stage converter is a widely adopted architecture for such applications, and it is proven to have a higher efficiency as compared with that of the single-stage converter. This paper presents a modular-cell-based morphing switched-capacitor (SC) converter for application as a front-end converter of the two-stage converter. The conversion ratio of this converter is flexible and variable and can be freely extended by increasing more SC modules. The varying conversion ratio is achieved through the morphing of the converter's structure corresponding to the amplitude of the input voltage. This converter is light and compact, and is highly efficient over a very wide range of input voltage and load conditions. Experimental work on a 25-W, 6-30-V input, 3.5-8.5-V output prototype, is performed. For a single SC module, the efficiency over the entire input voltage range is higher than 98%. Applied into the two-stage converter, the overall efficiency achievable over the entire operating range is 80% including the driver's loss
Vibration problem of a spherical tank containing jet propellant: numerical simulations
This document is the final report on the joint research project on vibration problem of a spherical tank containing jet propellant between IHI, Japan and SES, University of Southampton, UK. The background of the project is described. The fundamental principles and numerical method used in numerical simulations are presented. The detailed FEA models for each studied cases are given. The calculation results are presented using tables, curves, figures as well as the attached data files. The available experiment results are listed to compare with the numerical calculations. The calculation results show a fundamental agreement with the experiment results. The numerical analysis confirms that:1)Due to water – tank interaction, the natural frequencies of the water – tank system are decreased with the water level increase. For the 25% water level, the natural frequencies, especially heave mode frequency, shows a significant decrease compared with the empty case. However, with continuing increase the filed water more than 25% level, the decrease gradient of the natural frequencies gradually tends to zero. In the 100% water case, the natural frequency of heave mode is about 200 Hz which can not equal zero.2)Considering free surface wave effect produces a lot of sloshing modes of very low frequencies compared with the natural frequencies of the dry tank structure. Therefore, for dynamic response analysis with high frequency excitations, the free surface wave may be neglected. However, to assess loads caused by sloshing modes, the free surface waves have to be considered.3)There exist relative big deformations at the four tank support places in several vibration modes, which may produce a large local stress at support places to cause the product fail in vibration environment. A strengthen local design at the support places is needed.4)The dynamic response results are affected by damping coefficients of all modes used in the dynamic response analysis. The damping coefficients are approximately presented and therefore, the numerical results are good reference for practical designs.The report confirms that the original purpose of this joint research project has well completed by IHI and SES
How volatilities nonlocal in time affect the price dynamics in complex financial systems
What is the dominating mechanism of the price dynamics in financial systems
is of great interest to scientists. The problem whether and how volatilities
affect the price movement draws much attention. Although many efforts have been
made, it remains challenging. Physicists usually apply the concepts and methods
in statistical physics, such as temporal correlation functions, to study
financial dynamics. However, the usual volatility-return correlation function,
which is local in time, typically fluctuates around zero. Here we construct
dynamic observables nonlocal in time to explore the volatility-return
correlation, based on the empirical data of hundreds of individual stocks and
25 stock market indices in different countries. Strikingly, the correlation is
discovered to be non-zero, with an amplitude of a few percent and a duration of
over two weeks. This result provides compelling evidence that past volatilities
nonlocal in time affect future returns. Further, we introduce an agent-based
model with a novel mechanism, that is, the asymmetric trading preference in
volatile and stable markets, to understand the microscopic origin of the
volatility-return correlation nonlocal in time.Comment: 16 pages, 7 figure
Chlorine and Bromine Isotope Fractionation of Halogenated Organic Pollutants on Gas Chromatography Columns
Compound-specific chlorine/bromine isotope analysis (CSIA-Cl/Br) has become a
useful approach for degradation pathway investigation and source appointment of
halogenated organic pollutants (HOPs). CSIA-Cl/Br is usually conducted by gas
chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), which could be negatively impacted by
chlorine and bromine isotope fractionation of HOPs on GC columns. In this
study, 31 organochlorines and 4 organobromines were systematically investigated
in terms of Cl/Br isotope fractionation on GC columns using GC-double focus
magnetic-sector high resolution MS (GC-DFS-HRMS). On-column chlorine/bromine
isotope fractionation behaviors of the HOPs were explored, presenting various
isotope fractionation modes and extents. Twenty-nine HOPs exhibited inverse
isotope fractionation, and only polychlorinated biphenyl-138 (PCB-138) and
PCB-153 presented normal isotope fractionation. And no observable isotope
fractionation was found for the rest four HOPs, i.e., PCB-101,
1,2,3,7,8-pentachlorodibenzofuran, PCB-180 and 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran.
The isotope fractionation extents of different HOPs varied from below the
observable threshold (0.50%) to 7.31% (PCB-18). The mechanisms of the on-column
chlorine/bromine isotope fractionation were tentatively interpreted with the
Craig-Gordon model and a modified two-film model. Inverse isotope effects and
normal isotope effects might contribute to the total isotope effects together
and thus determine the isotope fractionation directions and extents. Proposals
derived from the main results of this study for CSIA-Cl/Br research were
provided for improving the precision and accuracy of CSIA-Cl/Br results. The
findings of this study will shed light on the development of CSIA-Cl/Br methods
using GC-MS techniques, and help to implement the research using CSIA-Cl/Br to
investigate the environmental behaviors and pollution sources of HOPs.Comment: 30 pages, 5 figure
Observation of forbidden phonons and dark excitons by resonance Raman scattering in few-layer WS
The optical properties of the two-dimensional (2D) crystals are dominated by
tightly bound electron-hole pairs (excitons) and lattice vibration modes
(phonons). The exciton-phonon interaction is fundamentally important to
understand the optical properties of 2D materials and thus help develop
emerging 2D crystal based optoelectronic devices. Here, we presented the
excitonic resonant Raman scattering (RRS) spectra of few-layer WS excited
by 11 lasers lines covered all of A, B and C exciton transition energies at
different sample temperatures from 4 to 300 K. As a result, we are not only
able to probe the forbidden phonon modes unobserved in ordinary Raman
scattering, but also can determine the bright and dark state fine structures of
1s A exciton. In particular, we also observed the quantum interference between
low-energy discrete phonon and exciton continuum under resonant excitation. Our
works pave a way to understand the exciton-phonon coupling and many-body
effects in 2D materials.Comment: 14 pages, 11 figure
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