An investigation of open house and plant tours---their planning, value, and effect

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston Universit

In situ tailored nickel nano-catalyst layer for internal reforming hydrocarbon fueled SOFCs

The authors gratefully thank the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) SuperGen Hydrogen Fuel Cells Challenges Flame SOFC Project (Grant No EP/K021036/1) for financial supportConventional Ni cermet anodes suffer from carbon deposition when they are directly used with hydrocarbon fuels due to the negative effects of pyrolysis and Boudouard reactions. In this work, the use of a non-stoichiometric perovskite, La0.8Ce0.1Ni0.4Ti0.6O3, as a reforming layer in reducing atmospheres led to the surface being highly populated with homogeneously exsolved Ni nano particles. This catalyst layer was applied to Ni-GDC anode supported and ScSZ electrolyte supported cells to prevent carbon deposition and to stabilize operation with dry methane. The catalyst layer showed both excellent attachment to the Ni-GDC anode and resistance to carbon deposition. The performance of the Ni-GDC anode-supported cells with the catalyst layer was about 1.1 W/cm2 in hydrogen fuel which is similar to that seen without the use of a catalyst layer. For the ScSZ electrolyte supported cells, the catalyst layer improved the power density and stability when in operation with dry methane.Publisher PD

Connection and resource allocation of IoT sensors to cellular technology- LTE

The number of sensor nodes being used for the applications is increasing dramatically every year. In this paper we consider LTE for sensor networks. There is little published research on resource allocation of sensor networks in LTE. Theoretical calculation carried out for mobile users in LTE was used and recreated for sensor nodes transmitting. Existing literature has carried this out for mobile users on LTE network, transmitting 10 Kb, theoretically without mentioning the total resource blocks allocated for the network based on the bandwidth. In this paper we utilise LTE for sensor networks and investigate how many sensor nodes can transmit and how many bytes will be transmitted per Resource Block (RB). Theoretical calculation was carried out for sensor nodes to find out the data that can be transmitted per RB by sensor nodes transmitting 10 Kb. We find significantly different results when carrying out simulation for a critical sensor network,using realistic real world parameters for the LTE network. We clearly specify the bandwidth and resource blocks used for the simulation in this paper. We carry out simulation in OMNET to create sensor network scenario demonstrating results with 29 sensor nodes transmitting 1 Kb of data

Solar dynamic power systems for space station

The Parabolic Offset Linearly Actuated Reflector (POLAR) solar dynamic module was selected as the baseline design for a solar dynamic power system aboard the space station. The POLAR concept was chosen over other candidate designs after extensive trade studies. The primary advantages of the POLAR concept are the low mass moment of inertia of the module about the transverse boom and the compactness of the stowed module which enables packaging of two complete modules in the Shuttle orbiter payload bay. The fine pointing control system required for the solar dynamic module has been studied and initial results indicate that if disturbances from the station are allowed to back drive the rotary alpha joint, pointing errors caused by transient loads on the space station can be minimized. This would allow pointing controls to operate in bandwidths near system structural frequencies. The incorporation of the fine pointing control system into the solar dynamic module is fairly straightforward for the three strut concentrator support structure. However, results of structural analyses indicate that this three strut support is not optimum. Incorporation of a vernier pointing system into the proposed six strut support structure is being studied

Privacy implications of smartphone-based connected vehicle communications

Considerable work has been carried out into making the vision of connected vehicles a reality, with inter-operable communications to take place between vehicles for the purpose of improving road safety and alerting road users to accidents or sudden braking. The cost of deploying such a solution to large numbers of vehicles is significant, and vehicles have a much longer lifespan than other consumer equipment, leading to other work considering the use of smartphones as possible devices for such connected vehicle networks. In this paper, we consider the security and privacy implications of using smartphone based platforms for connected vehicle applications, both in vehicles, and those carried by pedestrians. We also consider the general risks of relying on consumer smartphones, particularly with regard to the lack of long-term security updates being available. We finally explore the need for privacy to be considered in the design of solutions, in addition to the well-recognised need for security, and explore the trade-off between anonymity and prevention of abuse, in the context of designing future connected vehicle technologies

Image analysis and modeling of the orientation of pores in a constrained film on a rigid substrate

The authors thank EPSRC and ONR for funding.The nature of porosity in functional materials is often a critical parameter in determining their functionality, for example, in structure materials and fuel cell electrodes. Here, we study the development of the anisotropy of porous yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), focusing particularly upon the contribution of pore orientation to this anisotropy. Simulation from when the ink is deposited on the surface of a rigid substrate shows that platelike pores are found tend to align along the transverse direction of the substrate. Cross-sectional image analysis of the pores from the attendant pores of YSZ particles or pore-forming agent (PFA) matches with the simulated modeling when materials transport is insignificant in determining the shape of pores. The anisotropy created in the densification stage is separated from that in the green body by analyzing the image of porous structures formed with spherical glassy carbon which is unable to contribute to anisotropy during green-state processing.PostprintPeer reviewe

Power analysis of local transmission technologies

With the number of Internet of Things (IoT) devices expected to explode to over 20 Billion devices by 2020, it is vital that efficient communication technologies are used. While ideally a single technology would emerge to simplify deployment, in practice the varying power and bandwidth requirements of different devices has led to an industry split over communication technologies, and while a number of new technologies have been designed with IoT in mind, commercial imperatives have meant that existing wireless protocols, in particular Wi-Fi and 433 MHz AM, remain the most prevelent. This article outlines the power usage of these two most common protocols, and considers power aspects of using each protocol in an IoT setting with experiments carried out with real world devices used in current products

Going beyond the user — the challenges of universal connectivity in IoT

The Internet of Things (IoT) approach to interconnected devices has become a significant topic in recent years, and is likely to be a major influence on future networking standards, such as ongoing work on 5G. IoT introduces connectivity to a much wider range of devices than seen previously, which raises a number of challenges, both technical and ethical. This paper explores some of these challenges which IoT faces, as a result of the personal and confidential information which may be transmitted from body-worn sensors, and the inherent challenges of introducing connectivity to standalone devices, rather than to equipment operated by users