Integrity Based on MT28 for EGNOS: New Algorithm Formulation & Results

The purpose of a Satellite Based Augmentation System, such as EGNOS or WAAS, is to decompose all range error sources and to distribute them to the civil aviation user community with reliable navigation services for different flight phases. Integrity refers to the notion of trust that the user may have in the positioning. Integrity includes the ability of the system to provide confidence thresholds as well as Alarms in case of anomalies. Considering satellite integrity, two ways are possible for an SBAS. The first is to broadcast per satellite the same UDRE value applicable for every user located inside the service area defined by the message type 27 content. As these UDREs are dimensioned to protect the worst user location – generally at the border zone – it penalizes automatically the users having lower residual errors. The second is to broadcast per satellite a covariance matrix of residual errors through the message type 28. This matrix contains all the structure of the orbitography and synchronization residual errors. It can be seen as a protective ellipsoid around the computed satellite position and clock containing the true – but unknown – satellite position and clock at a certain level of confidence. Using the MT28 message each user is able to reconstruct the integrity value by projecting this protective ellipsoid along its line of sight. EGNOS operational system is implementing the MT27 solution whilst the WAAS is based on the MT28 one. The MT28 approach is the current baseline for EGNOS V3. Starting from recent R&D activities, Thales Alenia Space together with CNES (French Space Agency) has developed a dedicated module providing the message type 28 based on orbitography and fast synchronization variance-covariance matrices combined with satellites residual measurement errors. The MT28 formulation has been designed in collaboration with Statistics and Probabilities laboratories (Paris Descartes and Toulouse Paul Sabatier) in France. The algorithm contains also a mechanism that reacts immediately to orbit or clock satellite feared events such as a clock jump. This new concept for EGNOS provides a drastic improvement with respect to the first studies provided during EGNOS V3 phase A & B and HISTB V2 by the Thales consortium. The new MT28 module is integrated into a SPEED platform, the SBAS Operational Test-bed that fully represents EGNOS performances in terms of accuracy, continuity, availability and integrity for Safety Of Life services. The performance evaluation shows a very good level of EGNOS LPV200 availability with respect to the MT27 current approach. The integrity is constantly maintained on the Geostationary Broadcast Area with a good level of integrity margin. This paper provides a high level architecture description of this new EGNOS algorithm as well as a set of performance figures showing the achieved improvements

Solid state NMR characterization of phenylphosphonic acid encapsulated in SBA-15 and aminopropyl-modified SBA-15

5th International Conference of theă Federation-of-European-Zeolite-Associations (FEZA), Valencia, SPAIN, JULă 03-07, 2011International audienceWe present in this communication that phenyl phosphonic acid can be efficiently loaded in mesoporous SBA-15 and aminopropyl-modified SBA powdered samples through the incipient wetness impregnation method. High amount of phosphonic acid can be reach up to 380 mg/g of sample. We use multinuclear solid state NMR as a method of choice for the indeep characterization of the samples. Thus we demonstrate that phosphonic acid molecules do not crystallize inside the pores. The molecules are highly mobile in SBA-15 because they are submitted to a confinement effect due to the mesoscopic size of the pores and consequently they exhibit a weak interaction with the silica walls. In the case of aminopropyl-modified SBA material, we show that the molecules are rigid and that they are in strong interaction with the aminopropyl groups. Moreover, a 2D double quantum 1H NMR experiment recorded at high field and high spinning speed permit to propose a model of the phosphonate-aminopropyl interaction. The increase in spectral resolution due to the combination of high magnetic field and fast MAS rate allows also the assignment of 1H resonances in aminopropyl-modified SBA matrix and notably allows the assignment of the protons resonance of the amino group

Biphasic NMR of Hyperpolarized Suspensions─Real-Time Monitoring of Solute-to-Solid Conversion to Watch Materials Grow

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is a key method for the determination of molecular structures. Due to its intrinsically high (i.e., atomistic) resolution and versatility, it has found numerous applications for investigating gases, liquids, and solids. However, liquid-state NMR has found little application for suspensions of solid particles as the resonances of such systems are excessively broadened, typically beyond the detection threshold. Herein, we propose a route to overcoming this critical limitation by enhancing the signals of particle suspensions by >3.000-fold using dissolution dynamic nuclear polarization (d-DNP) coupled with rapid solid precipitation. For the proof-of-concept series of experiments, we employed calcium phosphate (CaP) as a model system. By d-DNP, we boosted the signals of phosphate $^{31}$P spins before rapid CaP precipitation inside the NMR spectrometer, leading to the inclusion of the hyperpolarized phosphate into CaP-nucleated solid particles within milliseconds. With our approach, within only 1 s of acquisition time, we obtained spectra of biphasic systems, i.e., micrometer-sized dilute solid CaP particles coexisting with their solution-state precursors. Thus, this work is a step toward real-time characterization of the solid–solution equilibrium. Finally, integrating the hyperpolarized data with molecular dynamics simulations and electron microscopy enabled us to shed light on the CaP formation mechanism in atomistic detail

Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance: A valuable tool to explore organic-inorganic interfaces in silica-based hybrid materials

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Identification of a new mineralized tissue in the notochord of reared Siberian sturgeon (<i>Acipenser baerii</i>)

International audienceIn a study aiming to improve knowledge on the mineralization of the axial skeleton in reared Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser baerii Brandt, 1869), we discovered a new mineralized tissue within the notochord. To our knowledge, such a structure has never been reported in any vertebrate species with the exception of the pathological mineralization of the notochord remains in degenerative intervertebral disks of mammals. Here, we describe this enigmatic tissue using X-ray microtomography, histological analyses and solid state NMR-spectroscopy. We also performed a 1-year monitoring of the mineral content (MC) of the notochord in relation with seasonal variations of temperature. In all specimens studied from 2-year-old juveniles onwards, this mineralized structure was found within a particular region of the notochord called funiculus. This feature first appears in the abdominal region then extends posteriorly with ageing, while the notochord MC also increases. The mineral phase is mainly composed of amorphous calcium phosphate, a small amount of which changes into hydroxyapatite with ageing. The putative role of this structure is discussed as either a store of minerals available for the phosphocalcic metabolism, or a mechanical support in a species with a poorly mineralized axial skeleton. A pathological feature putatively related to rearing conditions is also discussed

NMR Characterisation of the Organic/SiO 2 Interfaces in Templated Porous Silica

International audienceThis paper illustrates the use of a 1 H- 29 Si- 1 H double CP sequence to investigate different organic/SiO 2 interfaces in templated porous silica. The advantage of this sequence is to selectively edit, in a one-dimensional experiment, the protons that are in close proximity with the Si surface sites. In order to maximize the polarization transfer efficiency, some experiments have been recorded at lower temperature (238 K). Examples will concern surfactant/silica interactions in mesostructured silicas and the behavior of benzoic acid and 4-methoxychlorophenol, a common pesticide, encapsulated in mesoporous silica

Detection of biogenic amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) formed by bacteria using FTIR spectroscopy

International audienceWhile the formation of intracellular amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) by living organisms is widespread, its detection in prokaryotes remains difficult owing to its susceptibility to transform or dissolve upon sample preparation. Because of these challenges, a large number of ACC-forming prokaryotes may have been undetected and their abundance in the natural environment is possibly underestimated. This study identifies diagnostic spectral markers of ACC-forming prokaryotes that facilitate their detection in the environment. Accordingly, ACC formed by cyanobacteria was characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy in near-IR, mid-IR, and far-IR spectral regions. Two characteristic FTIR vibrations of ACC, at ∼ 860 cm−1 and ∼ 306 cm−1, were identified as reliable spectral probes to rapidly detect prokaryotic ACC. Using these spectral probes, several Microcystis strains whose ACC-forming capability was unknown, were tested. Four out of eight Microcystis strains were identified as possessing ACC-forming capability and these findings were confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations. Overall, our findings provide a systematic characterization of prokaryotic ACC that facilitate rapid detection of ACC forming prokaryotes in the environment, a prerequisite to shed light on the role of ACC-forming prokaryotes in the geochemical cycle of Ca in the environment

Detection of biogenic amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) formed by bacteria using FTIR spectroscopy

International audienceWhile the formation of intracellular amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) by living organisms is widespread, its detection in prokaryotes remains difficult owing to its susceptibility to transform or dissolve upon sample preparation. Because of these challenges, a large number of ACC-forming prokaryotes may have been undetected and their abundance in the natural environment is possibly underestimated. This study identifies diagnostic spectral markers of ACC-forming prokaryotes that facilitate their detection in the environment. Accordingly, ACC formed by cyanobacteria was characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy in near-IR, mid-IR, and far-IR spectral regions. Two characteristic FTIR vibrations of ACC, at ∼ 860 cm−1 and ∼ 306 cm−1, were identified as reliable spectral probes to rapidly detect prokaryotic ACC. Using these spectral probes, several Microcystis strains whose ACC-forming capability was unknown, were tested. Four out of eight Microcystis strains were identified as possessing ACC-forming capability and these findings were confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations. Overall, our findings provide a systematic characterization of prokaryotic ACC that facilitate rapid detection of ACC forming prokaryotes in the environment, a prerequisite to shed light on the role of ACC-forming prokaryotes in the geochemical cycle of Ca in the environment