Small cell cloud proof of concept implementation and monitoring schemes analysis

Cloud Computing has grown exponentially in popularity in the last few years, becoming a key technology for both personal and enterprise applications due to the numerous benefits it offers. On the other hand, Small Cell technology is considered by many to be the solution to the challenges that are expected to arise caused by the continuously increasing number of interconnected mobile devices. This project presents a basic design and a proof of concept implementation of a Small Cell Cloud, a current research field on mobile communications that aims to leverage the capabilities offered by the parallel and distributed computation of Cloud Computing to enhance Small Cells functionality. The purpose of the described Small Cell Cloud is to allow application offloading of mobile devices to Small Cells, allowing the execution of more resource demanding applications at the same time energy consumption is reduced in those devices. Furthermore, a detailed analysis on different Small Cell monitoring schemes is carried out, comparing the achieved performance with each of them in terms of data reliability and generated network traffic. Finally, based on the proof of concept implementation and a series of stress performance test, conclusions on the viability of the proposed Small Cell Cloud design and the most appropriate monitoring scheme are presented. Guidelines for future research work are also provided, considering the work developed in this project as a first step towards a new mobile technology.Ingeniería de Telecomunicació

Influences of the solid load on the microstructure and compressive behavior of Fe2O3 scaffolds manufactured by freeze-casting using stearic acid as dispersant agent

Porous materials manufactured by freeze-casting are demonstrating potential application as oxygen carriers for the production and purification of hydrogen, or anode material for lithium-ion batteries. However, to obtain the required pore morphology and sufficient mechanical strength, the suspension processing parameters must be controlled. Fe2O3 nanoparticles/camphene suspensions were fabricated using stearic acid as the dispersant agent showing a low-viscosity (130 mPa⋅s) with a high solid volume fraction (0.3). Suspensions show a shear-thinning behavior according to the Sisko model and a maximum packing fraction of 0.569 estimated from a zero porosity sample. A modified Krieger and Dougherty model was introduced to incorporate the influence of the particleaspect ratio. The Fe2O3 scaffolds manufactured by freeze-casting shown a gradient pore size along the freezing direction, which was diminished with the solid volume fraction, the compression strength was improved with the pore size reduction and fitted according to the minimum solid area model.Universidad de Sevilla PIF II.2AAgencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) MAT2016-76713-

Effect of milling parameters on the development of a nanostructured FCC–TiNb15Mn alloy via high-energy ball milling

Article number 1225In this work, a blend of Ti, Nb, and Mn powders, with a nominal composition of 15 wt.% of Mn, and balanced Ti and Nb wt.%, was selected to be mechanically alloyed by the following two alternative high-energy milling devices: a vibratory 8000D mixer/mill® and a PM400 Retsch® planetary ball mill. Two ball-to-powder ratio (BPR) conditions (10:1 and 20:1) were applied, to study the evolution of the synthesized phases under each of the two mechanical alloying conditions. The main findings observed include the following: (1) the sequence conversion evolved from raw elements to a transitory bcc-TiNbMn alloy, and subsequently to an fcc-TiNb15Mn alloy, independent of the milling conditions; (2) the total full conversion to the fcc-TiNb15Mn alloy was only reached by the planetary mill at a minimum of 12 h of milling time, for either of the BPR employed; (3) the planetary mill produced a non-negligible Fe contamination from the milling media, when the highest BPR and milling time were applied; and (4) the final fcc-TiNb15Mn alloy synthesized presents a nano-crystalline nature and a partial degree of amorphization.Universidad de Sevilla PIF II.2AFONDECYT (Chile) 3150060Universidad de Sevilla 2021/0000069

A Modern Architectural View Based upon Enhancements of the SESAME Innovative Approach

The SESAME 5G-PPP project targets innovations in three fundamental 5G areas such as the “placement” of network intelligence and applications in the network edge through NFV and cloud computing, the substantial evolution of the Small Cell concept and the consolidation of multitenancy in modern communications infrastructure. A dedicated architecture has been proposed for that purpose. In the present work and taking onto account recent challenges, we discuss latest innovations and/or potential updates of the corresponding architecture, in specific areas covering the SC-Common VNF as fun-in/fun-out module, the progress in SESAME Small Cell functional splits, the placement of “Self-x” features and wireless backhauling. Moreover, we proceed further and analyse the functional description of the related architectural components, in order to promote future improvements. Keywords—5G; Cloud-enabled Small Cell (CESC); Network Functions Virtualization (NFV); Multitenacy; “Self-x” properties; Small Cell (SC); VNF (Virtual Network Function