866 research outputs found
Cost-effective condition monitoring for wind turbines
Cost-effective wind turbine (WT) condition monitoring assumes more importance as turbine sizes increase and they are placed in more remote locations, for example, offshore. Conventional condition monitoring techniques, such as vibration, lubrication oil, and generator current signal analysis, require the deployment of a variety of sensors and computationally intensive analysis techniques. This paper describes a WT condition monitoring technique that uses the generator output power and rotational speed to derive a fault detection signal. The detection algorithm uses a continuous-wavelet-transform-based adaptive filter to track the energy in the prescribed time-varying fault-related frequency bands in the power signal. The central frequency of the filter is controlled by the generator speed, and the filter bandwidth is adapted to the speed fluctuation. Using this technique, fault features can be extracted, with low calculation times, from direct- or indirect-drive fixed- or variable-speed WTs. The proposed technique has been validated experimentally on a WT drive train test rig. A synchronous or induction generator was successively installed on the test rig, and both mechanical and electrical fault like perturbations were successfully detected when applied to the test rig
The robustness and general applicability of Optimal Resistivity Surveys designed by maximising model resolution
Most optimal survey design algorithms for resistivity imaging have not incorporated prior knowledge of
the resistivity of the subsurface. The resulting surveys are optimal for a homogeneous earth, but little
investigation has yet been carried out to test whether they are robust, i.e. that they remain optimal when
applied to imaging heterogeneous subsurface resistivity distributions. This paper compares a generic
survey, which is designed to maximise the estimated model resolution evenly across a homogeneous earth,
with specific surveys similarly designed for a number of heterogeneous resistivity distributions. In terms
of both the average estimated model resolution and the correlations between the inverted and true
resistivity models, the generic and heterogeneous survey designs give near-identical results. This suggests
that surveys designed using homogeneous earth approximations are robust in the presence of resistivity
heterogeneities and are therefore generally applicable. Traditional dipole-dipole surveys with the same
number of measurements do not give such good inverted images, and their degree of optimality (measured
either by average resolution or image correlation) is less robust in the presence of heterogeneity
Glycosylation of Volatile Phenols in Grapes following Pre-Harvest (On-Vine) vs. Post-Harvest (Off-Vine) Exposure to Smoke
Taint in grapes and wine following vineyard exposure to bushfire smoke continues to challenge the financial viability of grape and wine producers worldwide. In response, researchers are studying the chemical, sensory and physiological consequences of grapevine smoke exposure. However, studies involving winemaking trials are often limited by the availability of suitable quantities of smoke-affected grapes, either from vineyards exposed to smoke or from field trials involving the application of smoke to grapevines. This study compared the accumulation of volatile phenol glycosides (as compositional markers of smoke taint) in Viognier and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes exposed to smoke pre- vs. post-harvest, and found post-harvest smoke exposure of fruit gave similar levels of volatile phenol glycosides to fruit exposed to smoke pre-harvest. Furthermore, wines made from smoke-affected fruit contained similar levels of smoke-derived volatile phenols and their glycosides, irrespective of whether smoke exposure occurred pre- vs. post-harvest. Post-harvest smoke exposure therefore provides a valid approach to generating smoke-affected grapes in the quantities needed for winemaking trials and/or trials that employ both chemical and sensory analysis of wine.Julie A. Culbert, WenWen Jiang, Renata Ristic, Carolyn J. Puglisi, Elizabeth C. Nixon, Hongmei Shi, and Kerry L. Wilkinso
The risk of cardiac failure following metal-on-metal hip arthroplasty
Aims
The aim of this study was to determine whether patients with metal-on-metal (MoM)
arthroplasties of the hip have an increased risk of cardiac failure compared with those with
alternative types of arthroplasties (non-MoM).
Patients and Methods
A linkage study between the National Joint Registry, Hospital Episodes Statistics and records
of the Office for National Statistics on deaths was undertaken. Patients who underwent
elective total hip arthroplasty between January 2003 and December 2014 with no past history
of cardiac failure were included and stratified as having either a MoM (n = 53 529) or a nonMoM
(n = 482 247) arthroplasty. The primary outcome measure was the time to an
admission to hospital for cardiac failure or death. Analysis was carried out using data from
all patients and from those matched by propensity score.
Results
The risk of cardiac failure was lower in the MoM cohort compared with the non-MoM cohort
(adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) 0.901; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.853 to 0.953). The risk of
cardiac failure was similar following matching (aHR 0.909; 95% CI 0.838 to 0.987) and the
findings were consistent in subgroup analysis.
Conclusion
The risk of cardiac failure following total hip arthroplasty was not increased in those in
whom MoM implants were used, compared with those in whom other types of prostheses
were used, in the first seven years after surgery.
Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2018;100-B:20–
Programmable models of growth and mutation of cancer-cell populations
In this paper we propose a systematic approach to construct mathematical
models describing populations of cancer-cells at different stages of disease
development. The methodology we propose is based on stochastic Concurrent
Constraint Programming, a flexible stochastic modelling language. The
methodology is tested on (and partially motivated by) the study of prostate
cancer. In particular, we prove how our method is suitable to systematically
reconstruct different mathematical models of prostate cancer growth - together
with interactions with different kinds of hormone therapy - at different levels
of refinement.Comment: In Proceedings CompMod 2011, arXiv:1109.104
Plant Development and Leaf Area Production in Contrasting Cultivars of Maize Grown in a Cool Temperate Environment in the Field
Crop models need accurate simulation of the interdependent processes of crop development and leaf area production. Crop development proceeds according to genotype characteristics and environmental influences, specifically temperature and photoperiod. It can be partly described by thermal requirements for development intervals and coefficients that describe genotype adaptation. The objectives of this study were to (a) quantify (i) time of tassel initiation, tasselling and silking; (ii) thermal intervals for initiation, appearance and expansion of successive leaves (iii) thermal duration from initiation to tip appearance and from tip appearance to collar appearance, and (iv) leaf area and canopy cover as measured by leaf area index (LAI) in contrasting cultivars of maize grown in the field in a cool environment; and (b) relate these to plant characteristics and environmental variables, particularly temperature. For these purposes, three cultivars of maize were grown in three and four cultivars in two serial plantings from 18 April to 24 June in field experiments at Wageningen, The Netherlands, in 1997, and detailed data on crop development, leaf production and environmental variables were collected. The base temperature (Tb) for maize was confirmed as 8 degrees C, but thermal time calculation needs to be re-examined to explore a recovery period after chilling injury. Equations that relate foliar properties to total leaf number and ordinal leaf position were derived. Individual leaf area can be described by the modified bell curve, and differences in temporal increase in LAI were related to parameters of leaf initiation, appearance and expansion
Momentum Distribution in Nuclear Matter and Finite Nuclei
A simple method is presented to evaluate the effects of short-range
correlations on the momentum distribution of nucleons in nuclear matter within
the framework of the Green's function approach. The method provides a very
efficient representation of the single-particle Green's function for a
correlated system. The reliability of this method is established by comparing
its results to those obtained in more elaborate calculations. The sensitivity
of the momentum distribution on the nucleon-nucleon interaction and the nuclear
density is studied. The momentum distributions of nucleons in finite nuclei are
derived from those in nuclear matter using a local-density approximation. These
results are compared to those obtained directly for light nuclei like .Comment: 17 pages REVTeX, 10 figures ps files adde
Longitudinal multi-modal muscle-based biomarker assessment in motor neuron disease
Background
Clinical phenotypic heterogeneity represents a major barrier to trials in motor neuron disease (MND) and objective surrogate outcome measures are required, especially for slowly progressive patients. We assessed responsiveness of clinical, electrophysiological and radiological muscle-based assessments to detect MND-related progression.
Materials and methods
A prospective, longitudinal cohort study of 29 MND patients and 22 healthy controls was performed. Clinical measures, electrophysiological motor unit number index/size (MUNIX/MUSIX) and relative T2- and diffusion-weighted whole-body muscle magnetic resonance (MR) were assessed three times over 12 months. Multi-variable regression models assessed between-group differences, clinico-electrophysiological associations, and longitudinal changes. Standardized response means (SRMs) assessed sensitivity to change over 12 months.
Results
MND patients exhibited 18% higher whole-body mean muscle relative T2-signal than controls (95% CI 7–29%, p < 0.01), maximal in leg muscles (left tibialis anterior 71% (95% CI 33–122%, p < 0.01). Clinical and electrophysiological associations were evident. By 12 months, 16 patients had died or could not continue. In the remainder, relative T2-signal increased over 12 months by 14–29% in right tibialis anterior, right quadriceps, bilateral hamstrings and gastrocnemius/soleus (p < 0.01), independent of onset-site, and paralleled progressive weakness and electrophysiological loss of motor units. Highest clinical, electrophysiological and radiological SRMs were found for revised ALS-functional rating scale scores (1.22), tibialis anterior MUNIX (1.59), and relative T2-weighted leg muscle MR (right hamstrings: 0.98), respectively. Diffusion MR detected minimal changes.
Conclusion
MUNIX and relative T2-weighted MR represent objective surrogate markers of progressive denervation in MND. Radiological changes were maximal in leg muscles, irrespective of clinical onset-site
Asymmetric Hapln1a drives regionalized cardiac ECM expansion and promotes heart morphogenesis in zebrafish development
Aims
Vertebrate heart development requires the complex morphogenesis of a linear tube to form the mature organ, a process essential for correct cardiac form and function, requiring coordination of embryonic laterality, cardiac growth, and regionalized cellular changes. While previous studies have demonstrated broad requirements for extracellular matrix (ECM) components in cardiac morphogenesis, we hypothesized that ECM regionalization may fine tune cardiac shape during heart development.
Methods and results
Using live in vivo light sheet imaging of zebrafish embryos, we describe a left-sided expansion of the ECM between the myocardium and endocardium prior to the onset of heart looping and chamber ballooning. Analysis using an ECM sensor revealed the cardiac ECM is further regionalized along the atrioventricular axis. Spatial transcriptomic analysis of gene expression in the heart tube identified candidate genes that may drive ECM expansion. This approach identified regionalized expression of hapln1a, encoding an ECM cross-linking protein. Validation of transcriptomic data by in situ hybridization confirmed regionalized hapln1a expression in the heart, with highest levels of expression in the future atrium and on the left side of the tube, overlapping with the observed ECM expansion. Analysis of CRISPR-Cas9-generated hapln1a mutants revealed a reduction in atrial size and reduced chamber ballooning. Loss-of-function analysis demonstrated that ECM expansion is dependent upon Hapln1a, together supporting a role for Hapln1a in regionalized ECM modulation and cardiac morphogenesis. Analysis of hapln1a expression in zebrafish mutants with randomized or absent embryonic left–right asymmetry revealed that laterality cues position hapln1a-expressing cells asymmetrically in the left side of the heart tube.
Conclusion
We identify a regionalized ECM expansion in the heart tube which promotes correct heart development, and propose a novel model whereby embryonic laterality cues orient the axis of ECM asymmetry in the heart, suggesting these two pathways interact to promote robust cardiac morphogenesis
Reply letter to: Intubation in neonatal resuscitation - compelling necessity or incalculable risk?
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