486 research outputs found
Efficient Simulation of Chromatographic Processes Using the Conservation Element/Solution Element Method
Chromatographic separation processes need efficient simulation methods, especially for nonlinear adsorption isotherms such as the Langmuir isotherms which imply the formation of concentration shocks. The focus of this paper is on the space–time conservation element/solution element (CE/SE) method. This is an explicit method for the solution of systems of partial differential equations. Numerical stability of this method is guaranteed when the Courant–Friedrichs–Lewy condition is satisfied. To investigate the accuracy and efficiency of this method, it is compared with the classical cell model, which corresponds to a first-order finite volume discretization using a method of lines approach (MOL). The evaluation is done for different models, including the ideal equilibrium model and a mass transfer model for different adsorption isotherms—including linear and nonlinear Langmuir isotherms—and for different chromatographic processes from single-column operation to more sophisticated simulated moving bed (SMB) processes for the separation of binary and ternary mixtures. The results clearly show that CE/SE outperforms MOL in terms of computational times for all considered cases, ranging from 11-fold for the case with linear isotherm to 350-fold for the most complicated case with ternary center-cut eight-zone SMB with Langmuir isotherms, and it could be successfully applied for the optimization and control studies of such processes
First-principles modelling of molecular single-electron transistors
We present a first-principles method for calculating the charging energy of a
molecular single-electron transistor operating in the Coulomb blockade regime.
The properties of the molecule are modeled using density-functional theory, the
environment is described by a continuum model, and the interaction between the
molecule and the environment are included through the Poisson equation. The
model is used to calculate the charge stability diagrams of a benzene and
C molecular single-electron transistor
Preparation and magnetoresistance of Ag 2+x Se thin films deposited via Pulsed Laser Deposition
The preparation of Ag 2+x Se thin films with thicknesses between 4 nm and
3000 nm by pulsed laser deposition on single crystalline NaCl and MgO
substrates is reported. The films are perfectly dense and show a good lateral
uniformity with a small number of defects. The microstructure of the films
corresponds to a nanoparquet, being composed of two different phases of silver
selenide. One phase is identified as the Naumannite low temperature phase of
silver selenide, the structure of the other phase has not been reported in
detail before and probably represents a metastable phase. Silver-rich films
contain silver precipitates with typical sizes on the nanoscale. Their presence
and their size appears to be responsible for the large and linear
magnetoresistance effect of silver-rich silver selenide
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A systematic approach for the accurate non-invasive estimation of blood glucose utilizing a novel light-tissue interaction adaptive modelling scheme
Diabetes is one of the biggest health challenges of the 21st century. The obesity epidemic, sedentary lifestyles and an ageing population mean prevalence of the condition is currently doubling every generation. Diabetes is associated with serious chronic ill health, disability and premature mortality. Long-term complications including heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney disease and amputations, make the greatest contribution to the costs of diabetes care. Many of these long-term effects could be avoided with earlier, more effective monitoring and treatment. Currently, blood glucose can only be monitored through the use of invasive techniques. To date there is no widely accepted and readily available non-invasive monitoring technique to measure blood glucose despite the many attempts. This paper challenges one of the most difficult non-invasive monitoring techniques, that of blood glucose, and proposes a new novel approach that will enable the accurate, and calibration free estimation of glucose concentration in blood. This approach is based on spectroscopic techniques and a new adaptive modelling scheme. The theoretical implementation and the effectiveness of the adaptive modelling scheme for this application has been described and a detailed mathematical evaluation has been employed to prove that such a scheme has the capability of extracting accurately the concentration of glucose from a complex biological media
DISTO data on Kpp
The data from the DISTO Collaboration on the exclusive pp -> p K+ Lambda
production acquired at T_p = 2.85 GeV have been re-analysed in order to search
for a deeply bound K- pp (= X) state, to be formed in the binary process pp ->
K+ X. The preliminary spectra of the DeltaM_{K+} missing-mass and of the M_{p
Lambda} invariant-mass show, for large transverse-momenta of protons and kaons,
a distinct broad peak with a mass M_X = 2265 +- 2 MeV/c^2 and a width Gamma_X =
118 +- 8 MeV/c^2.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures. Talk presented at the "10th International
Conference on Hypernuclear and Strange Particle Physics" (HYP-X), Tokai,
Ibaraki, Japan, September 14th-18th, 2009. To appear in the proceeding
Universal homodyne tomography with a single local oscillator
We propose a general method for measuring an arbitrary observable of a
multimode electromagnetic field using homodyne detection with a single local
oscillator. In this method the local oscillator scans over all possible linear
combinations of the modes. The case of two modes is analyzed in detail and the
feasibility of the measurement is studied on the basis of Monte-Carlo
simulations. We also provide an application of this method in tomographic
testing of the GHZ state.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures (8 eps files
Tuning ZnO Sensors Reactivity toward Volatile Organic Compounds via Ag Doping and Nanoparticle Functionalization
Nanomaterials for highly selective and sensitive sensors toward specific gas molecules of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are most important in developing new-generation of detector devices, for example, for biomarkers of diseases as well as for continuous air quality monitoring. Here, we present an innovative preparation approach for engineering sensors, which allow for full control of the dopant concentrations and the nanoparticles functionalization of columnar material surfaces. The main outcome of this powerful design concept lies in fine-tuning the reactivity of the sensor surfaces toward the VOCs of interest. First, nanocolumnar and well-distributed Ag-doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Ag) thin films are synthesized from chemical solution, and, at a second stage, noble nanoparticles of the required size are deposited using a gas aggregation source, ensuring that no percolating paths are formed between them. Typical samples that were investigated are Ag-doped and Ag nanoparticle-functionalized ZnO:Ag nanocolumnar films. The highest responses to VOCs, in particular to (CH3)2CHOH, were obtained at a low operating temperature (250 °C) for the samples synergistically enhanced with dopants and nanoparticles simultaneously. In addition, the response times, particularly the recovery times, are greatly reduced for the fully modified nanocolumnar thin films for a wide range of operating temperatures. The adsorption of propanol, acetone, methane, and hydrogen at various surface sites of the Ag-doped Ag8/ZnO(0001) surface has been examined with the density functional theory (DFT) calculations to understand the preference for organic compounds and to confirm experimental results. The response of the synergistically enhanced sensors to gas molecules containing certain functional groups is in excellent agreement with density functional theory calculations performed in this work too. This new fabrication strategy can underpin the next generation of advanced materials for gas sensing applications and prevent VOC levels that are hazardous to human health and can cause environmental damages
Indication of a deeply bound compact K-pp state formed in the pp -> p Lambda K+ reaction at 2.85 GeV
We have analyzed data of the DISTO experiment on the exclusive pp -> p Lambda
K+ reaction at 2.85 GeV to search for a strongly bound compact K-pp (= X) state
to be formed in the pp -> K+ + X reaction. The observed spectra of the K+
missing-mass and the p Lambda invariant-mass with high transverse momenta of p
and K+ revealed a broad distinct peak with a mass M_X = 2265 +- 2 (stat) +- 5
(syst) MeV/c2 and a width Gamma_X = 118 +- 8 (stat) +- 10 (syst) MeV.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Preliminary study of kaonic deuterium X-rays by the SIDDHARTA experiment at DAFNE
The study of the KbarN system at very low energies plays a key role for the
understanding of the strong interaction between hadrons in the strangeness
sector. At the DAFNE electron-positron collider of Laboratori Nazionali di
Frascati we studied kaonic atoms with Z=1 and Z=2, taking advantage of the
low-energy charged kaons from Phi-mesons decaying nearly at rest. The SIDDHARTA
experiment used X-ray spectroscopy of the kaonic atoms to determine the
transition yields and the strong interaction induced shift and width of the
lowest experimentally accessible level (1s for H and D and 2p for He). Shift
and width are connected to the real and imaginary part of the scattering
length. To disentangle the isospin dependent scattering lengths of the
antikaon-nucleon interaction, measurements of Kp and of Kd are needed. We
report here on an exploratory deuterium measurement, from which a limit for the
yield of the K-series transitions was derived: Y(K_tot)<0.0143 and
Y(K_alpha)<0.0039 (CL 90%). Also, the upcoming SIDDHARTA-2 kaonic deuterium
experiment is introduced.Comment: Accepted by Nuclear Physics
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