A spectral deferred correction strategy for low Mach number reacting flows subject to electric fields

We propose an algorithm for low Mach number reacting flows subjected to electric field that includes the chemical production and transport of charged species. This work is an extension of a multi-implicit spectral deferred correction (MISDC) algorithm designed to advance the conservation equations in time at scales associated with advective transport. The fast and nontrivial interactions of electrons with the electric field are treated implicitly using a Jacobian-Free Newton Krylov approach for which a preconditioning strategy is developed. Within the MISDC framework, this enables a close and stable coupling of diffusion, reactions and dielectric relaxation terms with advective transport and is shown to exhibit second-order convergence in space and time. The algorithm is then applied to a series of steady and unsteady problems to demonstrate its capability and stability. Although developed in a one-dimensional case, the algorithmic ingredients are carefully designed to be amenable to multidimensional applications

Direct numerical simulation of a high-pressure hydrogen micromix combustor: flame structure and stabilisation mechanism

A high-pressure hydrogen micromix combustor has been investigated using direct numerical simulation with detailed chemistry to examine the flame structure and stabilisation mechanism. The configuration of the combustor was based on the design by Schefer [1], using numerical periodicity to mimic a large square array. A precursor simulation of an opposed jet-in-crossflow was first conducted to generate appropriate partially-premixed inflow boundary conditions for the subsequent reacting simulation. The resulting flame can be described as a predominantly-lean inhomogeneously-premixed lifted jet flame. Five main zones were identified: a jet mixing region, a core flame, a peripheral flame, a recirculation zone, and combustion products. The core flame, situated over the jet mixing region, was found to burn as a thin reaction front, responsible for over 85% of the total fuel consumption. The peripheral flame shrouded the core flame, had low mean flow with high turbulence, and burned at very lean conditions (in the distributed burning regime). It was shown that turbulent premixed flame propagation was an order-of-magnitude too slow to stabilise the flame at these conditions. Stabilisation was identified to be due to ignition events resulting from turbulent mixing of fuel from the jet into mean recirculation of very lean hot products. Ignition events were found to correlate with shear-driven Kelvin-Helmholtz vortices, and increased in likelihood with streamwise distance. At the flame base, isolated events were observed, which developed into rapidly burning flame kernels that were blown downstream. Further downstream, near-simultaneous spatially-distributed ignition events were observed, which appeared more like ignition sheets. The paper concludes with a broader discussion that considers generalising from the conditions considered here

Possible Association of APOE Genotype with Working Memory in Young Adults

Possession of the ε4 allele of the Apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene is associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease. Early adult life effects of ε4 are less well understood. Working memory has been relatively little studied (compared to episodic memory) in relation to APOE genotype despite its importance in cognitive functioning. Our hypothesis was that ε4 would lead to an impairment in working memory in young adults.We studied working memory using a computerised n-back task in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) at age 18. Data was available for 1049-1927 participants and for the 2- and 3-back versions of the task. Using multiple and multi-level regression controlling for important confounders we examined the association between APOE genotype on accuracy and reaction times.There was no evidence of a genotype effect on accuracy when the two difficulty levels were examined separately. There was some evidence to support a deleterious effect of the ε4 allele on n-back accuracy in the multi-level regression. There was weak evidence that the ε22 group were less accurate but the numbers were very low in this group. The ε34 group had faster reaction times than the reference ε33 group in all adjusted analyses but the ε44 group were only faster in the 3-back condition in multi-level analyses.There was no evidence of benefit in ε4 carriers, but there was some evidence of a detrimental effect on working memory in this large study

The Soret Effect in Naturally Propagating, Premixed, Lean, Hydrogen-Air Flames

Comparatively little attention has been given to multicomponent diffusion effects in lean hydrogen-air flames, in spite of the importance of these flames in safety and their potential importance to future energy technologies. Prior direct numerical simulations either have considered only the mixture-averaged transport model, or have been limited to stabilized flames that do not exhibit the thermo-diffusive instability. The so-called full, multicomponent transport model with cross-diffusion is found to predict hotter, significantly faster flames with much faster extinction and division of cellular structures

Simulation of lean premixed turbulent combustion

There is considerable technological interest in developingnew fuel-flexible combustion systems that can burn fuels such ashydrogenor syngas. Lean premixed systems have the potential to burn thesetypes of fuels with high efficiency and low NOx emissions due to reducedburnt gas temperatures. Although traditional scientific approaches basedon theory and laboratory experiment have played essential roles indeveloping our current understanding of premixed combustion, they areunable to meet the challenges of designing fuel-flexible lean premixedcombustion devices. Computation, with itsability to deal with complexityand its unlimited access to data, hasthe potential for addressing thesechallenges. Realizing this potential requires the ability to perform highfidelity simulations of turbulent lean premixed flames under realisticconditions. In this paper, we examine the specialized mathematicalstructure of these combustion problems and discuss simulation approachesthat exploit this structure. Using these ideas we can dramatically reducecomputational cost, making it possible to perform high-fidelitysimulations of realistic flames. We illustrate this methodology byconsidering ultra-lean hydrogen flames and discuss how this type ofsimulation is changing the way researchers study combustion

Numerical Simulation of a Laboratory-Scale Turbulent SlotFlame

We present three-dimensional, time-dependent simulations ofthe flowfield of a laboratory-scale slot burner. The simulations areperformed using an adaptive time-dependent low Mach number combustionalgorithm based on a second-order projection formulation that conservesboth species mass and total enthalpy. The methodology incorporatesdetailed chemical kinetics and a mixture model for differential speciesdiffusion. Methane chemistry and transport are modeled using the DRM-19mechanism along with its associated thermodynamics and transportdatabases. Adaptive mesh refinementdynamically resolves the flame andturbulent structures. Detailedcomparisons with experimental measurementsshow that the computational results provide a good prediction of theflame height, the shape of the time-averaged parabolic flame surfacearea, and the global consumption speed (the volume per second ofreactants consumed divided by the area of the time-averaged flame). Thethickness of the computed flamebrush increases in the streamwisedirection, and the flamesurface density profiles display the same generalshapes as the experiment. The structure of the simulated flame alsomatches the experiment; reaction layers are thin (typically thinner than1 mm) and the wavelengths of large wrinkles are 5--10 mm. Wrinklesamplify to become long fingers of reactants which burn through at a neckregion, forming isolated pockets of reactants. Thus both the simulatedflame and the experiment are in the "corrugated flameletregime.

Researching AI Legibility Through Design

Everyday interactions with computers are increasingly likely to involve elements of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Encompassing a broad spectrum of technologies and applications, AI poses many challenges for HCI and design. One such challenge is the need to make AI’s role in a given system legible to the user in a meaningful way. In this paper we employ a Research through Design (RtD) approach to explore how this might be achieved. Building on contemporary concerns and a thorough exploration of related research, our RtD process reflects on designing imagery intended to help increase AI legibility for users. The paper makes three contributions. First, we thoroughly explore prior research in order to critically unpack the AI legibility problem space. Second, we respond with design proposals whose aim is to enhance the legibility, to users, of systems using AI. Third, we explore the role of design-led enquiry as a tool for critically exploring the intersection between HCI and AI research

Zirconium tetraazamacrocycle complexes display extraordinary stability and provide a new strategy for zirconium-89-based radiopharmaceutical development

89 Zr–Tetraazamacrocycle complexes display extraordinary stability