6,329 research outputs found
Scaling forces to asteroid surfaces: The role of cohesion
The scaling of physical forces to the extremely low ambient gravitational
acceleration regimes found on the surfaces of small asteroids is performed.
Resulting from this, it is found that van der Waals cohesive forces between
regolith grains on asteroid surfaces should be a dominant force and compete
with particle weights and be greater, in general, than electrostatic and solar
radiation pressure forces. Based on this scaling, we interpret previous
experiments performed on cohesive powders in the terrestrial environment as
being relevant for the understanding of processes on asteroid surfaces. The
implications of these terrestrial experiments for interpreting observations of
asteroid surfaces and macro-porosity are considered, and yield interpretations
that differ from previously assumed processes for these environments. Based on
this understanding, we propose a new model for the end state of small, rapidly
rotating asteroids which allows them to be comprised of relatively fine
regolith grains held together by van der Waals cohesive forces.Comment: 54 pages, 7 figure
High-fidelity simulation of an ultrasonic standing-wave thermoacoustic engine with bulk viscosity effects
We have carried out boundary-layer-resolved, unstructured fully-compressible
Navier--Stokes simulations of an ultrasonic standing-wave thermoacoustic engine
(TAE) model. The model is constructed as a quarter-wavelength engine,
approximately 4 mm by 4 mm in size and operating at 25 kHz, and comprises a
thermoacoustic stack and a coin-shaped cavity, a design inspired by Flitcroft
and Symko (2013). Thermal and viscous boundary layers (order of 10
m) are resolved. Vibrational and rotational molecular relaxation
are modeled with an effective bulk viscosity coefficient modifying the viscous
stress tensor. The effective bulk viscosity coefficient is estimated from the
difference between theoretical and semi-empirical attenuation curves.
Contributions to the effective bulk viscosity coefficient can be identified as
from vibrational and rotational molecular relaxation. The inclusion of the
coefficient captures acoustic absorption from infrasonic (10 Hz) to
ultrasonic (100 kHz) frequencies. The value of bulk viscosity depends on
pressure, temperature, and frequency, as well as the relative humidity of the
working fluid. Simulations of the TAE are carried out to the limit cycle, with
growth rates and limit-cycle amplitudes varying non-monotonically with the
magnitude of bulk viscosity, reaching a maximum for a relative humidity level
of 5%. A corresponding linear model with minor losses was developed; the linear
model overpredicts transient growth rate but gives an accurate estimate of
limit cycle behavior. An improved understanding of thermoacoustic energy
conversion in the ultrasonic regime based on a high-fidelity computational
framework will help to further improve the power density advantages of
small-scale thermoacoustic engines.Comment: 55th AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting, AIAA SciTech, 201
X-ray diffraction from shock-loaded polycrystals
X-ray diffraction was demonstrated from shock-compressed polycrystalline
metal on nanosecond time scales. Laser ablation was used to induce shock waves
in polycrystalline foils of Be, 25 to 125 microns thick. A second laser pulse
was used to generate a plasma x-ray source by irradiation of a Ti foil. The
x-ray source was collimated to produce a beam of controllable diameter, and the
beam was directed at the Be sample. X-rays were diffracted from the sample, and
detected using films and x-ray streak cameras. The diffraction angle was
observed to change with shock pressure. The diffraction angles were consistent
with the uniaxial (elastic) and isotropic (plastic) compressions expected for
the loading conditions used. Polycrystalline diffraction will be used to
measure the response of the crystal lattice to high shock pressures and through
phase changes
The role of law and ethics in developing business management as a profession
Currently, business management is far from being recognised as a profession. This paper suggests that a professional spirit should be developed which could function as a filter of commercial reasoning. Broadly, management will not be organised within the framework of a well-established profession unless formal knowledge, licensing, professional autonomy and professional codes of conduct are developed sufficiently. In developing business management as a profession, law may play a key role. Where the idea is that business management should be more professsionalised, managers must show that they are willing to adopt ethical values, while arriving at business decisions. The paper argues that ethics cannot survive without legal regulation, which, in turn, will not be supported by law unless lawyers can find alternative solutions to the large mechanisms of the official society, secured by the monopolised coercion of the nation state. From a micro perspective of law and business ethics, communities can be developed with their own conventions, rules and standards that are generated and sanctioned within the boundaries of the communities themselves
Friction and wear of human hair fibres
An experimental study of the tribological properties of hair fibres is reported, and the effect of surface treatment on the evolution of friction and wear during sliding. Specifically, orthogonally crossed fibre/fibre contacts under a compressive normal load over a series of 10,000 cycle studies are investigated. Reciprocating sliding at a velocity of 0.4 mm/s−1, over a track length of 0.8 mm, was performed at 18oC and 40-50% relative humidity. Hair fibres retaining their natural sebum were studied, as well as those stripped of their sebum via hexane cleaning, and hair fibres conditioned using a commercially available product. Surface topography modifications resulting from wear were imaged using scanning electron microscopy and quantified using white light interferometry. Hair fibres that presented sebum or conditioned product at the fibre/fibre junction exhibited initial coefficients of friction at least 25% lower than those that were cleaned with hexane. Coefficients of friction were observed to depend on the directionality of sliding for hexane cleaned hair fibres after sufficient wear cycles that cuticle lifting was present, typically on the order 1,000 cycles. Cuticle flattening was observed for fibre/fibre junctions exposed to 10 mN compressive normal loads, whereas loads of 100 mN introduced substantial cuticle wear and fibre damage
Scaling of the Random-Field Ising Model at Zero Temperature
The exact determination of ground states of small systems is used in a
scaling study of the random-field Ising model. While three variants of the
model are found to be in the same universality class in 3 dimensions, the
Gaussian and bimodal models behave distinctly in 4 dimensions with the latter
apparently having a discontinuous jump in the magnetization. A finite-size
scaling analysis is presented for this transition.Comment: 14 pages Latex, 4 figure
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