Standard Flaws for Eddy Current Probe Characterization

Calibration procedures for eddy current inspections often involve the use of artifact standards containing manufactured flaws. The manufactured flaw is assumed to be a good approximation of the type of flaw being sought during the inspection. These manufactured flaws are most often produced by electrical discharge machining (EDM), milling, or the controlled growth of fatigue cracks. With simple amplitude display inspection equipment this type of artifact is usually sufficient, but as more sophisticated inspection equipment is developed some drawbacks to the commonly accepted practice are becoming evident. Instruments that are sensitive to eddy current signal phase as well as amplitude can show considerable differences in phase between a relatively wide EDM notch or milled slot and a real fatigue crack [1]. The use of controlled growth fatigue cracks can also cause problems when forces at the crack’s tip drive the crack faces together, making electrical contact [2], In addition, estimates of crack depth will always be estimates until the crack is broken apart. We describe here a technique for consistently producing well characterized discontinuities in aluminum which are not subject to these problems

The regulation of fat metabolism during aerobic exercise

Since the lipid profile is altered by physical activity, the study of lipid metabolism is a remarkable element in understanding if and how physical activity affects the health of both professional athletes and sedentary subjects. Although not fully defined, it has become clear that resistance exercise uses fat as an energy source. The fatty acid oxidation rate is the result of the following processes: (a) triglycerides lipolysis, most abundant in fat adipocytes and intramuscular triacylglycerol (IMTG) stores, (b) fatty acid transport from blood plasma to muscle sarcoplasm, (c) availability and hydrolysis rate of intramuscular triglycerides, and (d) transport of fatty acids through the mitochondrial membrane. In this review, we report some studies concerning the relationship between exercise and the aforementioned processes also in light of hormonal controls and molecular regulations within fat and skeletal muscle cells

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The main aim of this work was to assess the potential of in situ carbonation as a treatment to modify the properties of alkaline materials such as industrial soil in terms of leaching behaviour and mineralogy and to store the CO2 generated by specific treatments applied in the context of Brownfield regeneration. The process was investigated through lab-scale column carbonation experiments, in which 100% CO2 was fed through humidified stainless steel slag under ambient temperature and pressure for set reaction times. The reaction kinetics and the maximum CO2 uptake attained (5.5%), corresponding to a Ca conversion yield of 15.6%, after 4 h treatment proved slightly lower than those resulting from batch tests carried out on the same particle size fraction at enhanced operating conditions. The mineralogy of the material showed to be affected by column carbonation, exhibiting a higher calcite content and the decrease of Ca hydroxide and silicate phases. As a result of carbonation, the material showed a decrease in pH and Ca release as well as an increase in Si mobility. Furthermore, a reduction of Cr and Ba leaching, up to 63% and 96% respectively, was achieved after 2 h of reaction. However, carbonation was observed to lead to an increased leaching of V and Mo. The effects of carbonation on the leaching behaviour of the material were also investigated performing pH-dependence leaching tests and the results indicated that in situ carbonation appears to be a promising treatment to improve the properties of alkaline materials in view of their reuse on-site

Radial Velocity Studies of Close Binary Stars.VIII

Radial-velocity measurements and sine-curve fits to the orbital velocity variations are presented for the seventh set of ten close binary systems: V410 Aur, V523 Cas, QW Gem, V921 Her, V2357 Oph, V1130 Tau, HN UMa, HX UMa, HD 93917, NSV 223. All systems, but three (V523 Cas, HD 93917, NSV 223), were discovered photometrically by the Hipparcos mission. All systems are double-lined (SB2) binaries and all, but the detached, very close system V1130 Tau, are contact binaries. The broadening-function permitted improvement of the orbital elements for V523 Cas, which was the only system observed before for radial velocity variations. Spectroscopic/visual companions were detected for V410 Aur and HX UMa.Comment: AASTeX5, 4 figures, 3 tables, to appear AJ, June 200

Eight-Element Compact UWB-MIMO/Diversity Antenna with WLAN Band Rejection for 3G/4G/5G Communications

An eight element, compact Ultra Wideband-Multiple Input Multiple Output (UWB-MIMO) antenna capable of providing high data rates for future Fifth Generation (5G) terminal equipments along with the provision of necessary bandwidth for Third Generation (3G) and Fourth Generation (4G) communications that accomplishes band rejection from 4.85 to 6.35 GHz by deploying a Inductor Capacitor (LC) stub on the ground plane is presented. The incorporated stub also provides flexibility to reject any selected band as well as bandwidth control. The orthogonal placement of the printed monopoles permits polarization diversity and provides high isolation. In the proposed eight element UWB-MIMO/diversity antenna, monopole pair 3-4 are 180o mirrored transform of monopole pair 1-2 which lie on the opposite corners of a planar 50 x 50 mm2 substrate. Four additional monopoles are then placed perpendicularly to the same board leading to a total size of 50 x 50 x 25 mm3 only. The simulated results are validated by comparing the measurements of a fabricated prototype. It was concluded that the design meets the target specifications over the entire bandwidth of 2 to 12 GHz with a reflection coefficient better than -10 dB (except the rejected band), isolation more than 17 dB, low envelope correlation, low gain variation, stable radiation pattern, and strong rejection of the signals in the Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) band. Overall, compact and reduced complexity of the proposed eight element architecture, strengthens its practical viability for the diversity applications in future 5G terminal equipments amongst other MIMO antennas designs present in the literature.Comment: 25 page

Ultra-compact dual-polarised UWB MIMO antenna with meandered feeding lines

An ultra-compact dual-polarised ultra-wideband multi-input multi-output antenna made with a single-shared-radiating element and two meandered feeding lines are proposed. Miniaturisation is achieved by using a combination of techniques, including a resonant stub connected to the ground through which shorts the excessive coupled energy before it reaches the other port and minimises coupling, slots etched in the radiator that also help minimise mutual coupling, while the meandered lines allow to bring the antenna closer to the greatly reduce the overall size of the antenna. Slots etched in the radiator and the use of a stub connected to the ground through, help to minimise the mutual coupling. The formation of orthogonal surface currents provides the necessary dual polarisation. Simulated and measured results demonstrate the wideband impedance matching, low mutual coupling and low envelope correlation coefficient. This antenna has an extremely compact size (22 7 24.3 mm2, including the ground plane) that makes it an excellent candidate for portable and handheld devices. \ua9 The Institution of Engineering and Technology

Desarrollo de gestores de noticias incorporando técnicas basadas en la noción de confiabilidad

La búsqueda y lectura de noticias en los distintos medios de información se ha convertido en una de las actividades más importantes dentro de la web. Como existen numerosas opciones de fuentes de noticias disponibles, es de suma importancia proveer mecanismos inteligentes para seleccionarlas y presentarlas de manera conveniente al usuario. Un factor importante que puede considerarse al momento de seleccionar noticias es la confiabilidad. El objetivo de esta investigación consiste en seguir avanzando en el diseño e implementación de gestores de noticias, mediante el desarrollo de nuevas técnicas inteligentes de procesamiento de noticias capaces de combinar nociones de relevancia, preferencia y confiabilidad. Dichas nociones serán abordadas utilizando tanto métodos cuantitativos como cualitativos, siendo estos últimos los que permitirán realizar un seguimiento sistemático y fundamentado de las noticias que interesan a los distintos usuarios. Para esto, se combinarían técnicas clásicas de administración de noticias con mecanismos de razonamiento lógicos tales como la argumentación rebatible.Eje: Agentes y Sistemas InteligentesRed de Universidades con Carreras en Informática (RedUNCI

Influence of the area per player in non-professional soccer players: A pilot study focused on positional roles

This study analyses the influence of different area per player (AP; 75, 98 and 131 m2 ) on the average metabolic power (MP) and other soccer-related performance variables in relation to the positional roles. We recruited 19 non-professional male soccer players (25.2 ± 6.3 y; 23.7 ± 2.3 kg/m2; 16.4 ± 6.3 y soccer experience) to play three different small-sided games (SSGs): SSG1 (5 vs. 5; 30 × 30 m; 5 min), SSG2 (5 vs. 5; 35 × 45 m; 5 min) and SSG3 (7 vs. 7; 35 × 45 m; 8 min). Specific playing rules were applied. GPS-assessed soccer-related variables were: average MP (AMP), distance covered in 1 min (DIS); % time spent at high speed (v > 16 km/h; % hst) or MP (>20 W/kg; % hmpt); % distance covered at high positive/negative speed (2 < v < 4 m/s2, % ACC; −6 < v < −2 m/s2, % DEC); and number of actions at high MP (hmpa). All recorded variables differed when each SSG was compared to the others (p < 0.05), but for hmpa for attackers. Most performance variables were positively associated with increasing AP (p < 0.05), but for % ACC and % DEC, and differed among positional roles within the same SSG (p < 0.05). Here the general applicability of SSGs, regardless the physical/technical skills of the group of players, to enhance performance is confirmed; furthermore, quantitative advices on AMP and other performance variables are provided to achieve significant improvements in all soccer players of the team