Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fuel Flexibility in Compressed Air Energy Storage Plants

The pneumatic storage of energy is one of the few economical storage processes which can be considered at present for large quantities of energy. Present Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) plants are designed on the basis of construction and operating experience at Huntorf, the world’s first air-storage plant [1]. That means, that the turbine of the plant is equipped with combustors to increase the power output during turbine operation, and to reduce the volume and cost of the air storage facility as well as the quantity and cost of the required charging energy [2]. In this paper it is explained that the Brown Boveri CAES turbomachinery is able to burn a variety of different fuels. This opens in many cases the possibility to choose a cheaper or better available fuel to reduce furthermore the operating cost of this kind of power plant.Copyright © 1985 by ASME
Probabilistic Interest Rate Setting with a Shadow Board: A Description of the Pilot Project

This study aims to assess the scope for monetary policymakers to aggregate probabilistic interest rate advice. The members of a Shadow Board give probabilistic assessments of the appropriate (target) interest rate for Australia in real time. The pilot project will be running each month from August to December (inclusive) 2011, with the Shadow Board giving advice shortly before each decision by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Board.
Temperature threshold sensor based on optical switch with filled photonic crystal fiber

In this paper we present the technology and experimental results of the intensity based fiber optic threshold temperature sensor. As an optode of the sensor it was used a patch cord with an organic mixture filled photonic crystal fiber. Under temperature changes the used mixture changes its state from solid to liquid one and this effect decides about intensity of a transmitted light. A fabricated patch cord with VCSEL as a light source can be easy to use, flexible, cheap and low power consuming sensor. The used technology gives a possibility to design optodes with different transition temperatures in order to make sensor arrays.
L'éducation du patient aux Pays-Bas et en Belgique - Pratiques et politiques dans l'instruction, l'éducation et l'accompagnement du patient à l'hôpital

Objectifs : Des facteurs historiques, culturels et politiques influencent la facon dont l'education du patient est integree dans les hopitaux. Les objectifs de cette etude consistent a analyser comment deux pays voisins, la Belgique et les Pays-Bas, ont structure l'education du patient au niveau national et dans les hopitaux, quels en sont les acteurs principaux, quels facteurs ont ete favorisants ou defavorables et quelles lecons on peut en tirer. Methodes : Des methodes exploratoires descriptives ont ete utilisees avec une etude de la litterature, des consultations de donnees sur Internet et des interviews approfondies de personnes cles. Resultats : Jusqu'en 2008 en Belgique, le developpement de l'education du patient a l'hopital a connu des hauts et des bas, en raison des changements de responsabilite au niveau gouvernemental. Les acteurs principaux de ce developpement, principalement en Wallonie, ont ete les infirmieres, un centre de reference, une universite et un comite inter-hospitalier. L'implication des associations de patients a ete sans cesse croissante. Aux Pays-Bas, une politique bien definie et un investissement considerable du cote des autorites ont permis une integration rapide de l'education du patient par la mise en place de coordinateurs dans tous les hopitaux. Conclusions : Le soutien des autorites et une politique clairement definie sont essentiels a l'integration et a la structuration de l'education du patient dans les hopitaux. Une approche transversale de l'education du patient comme celle des Pays-Bas, non centree sur les pathologies semble avoir un effet plus global. Le manque d'attention porte, dans les deux pays, a l'education du patient, aux niveaux des formations de base, specialisee et continue des personnels de sante pose probleme.
Design Optimization of Beam-Pumping Unit Based on Improved Particle Swarm Optimization

A novel particle swarm optimization algorithm based on chaos searching has been proposed and introduced to optimize the design of beam pumping unit which takes the minimum peak torque factor on the up stroke as the objective function. The optimization for beam-pumping unit have shown the improved particle swarm optimization based on chaos searching algorithm has both advantage of simplify for implement of original particle swarm optimization and advantage of fast convergence, easy to escape local minima for chaos optimization algorithm. The improved optimization has also provided a new method for the design of complex structure.
Low voltage bandgap reference with closed loop curvature compensation

A new low-voltage CMOS bandgap reference (BGR) that achieves high temperature stability is proposed. It feeds back the output voltage to the curvature compensation circuit that constitutes a closed loop circuit to cancel the logarithmic term of voltage VBE. Meanwhile a low voltage amplifier with the 0.5 μm low threshold technology is designed for the BGR. A high temperature stability BGR circuit is fabricated in the CSMC 0.5 μm CMOS technology. The measured result shows that the BGR can operate down to 1 V, while the temperature coefficient and line regulation are only 9 ppm/°C and 1.2 mV/V, respectively.
Outsourcing maintenance-a question of strategy

As organisations today strive to achieve minimum operating costs and lean operations in terms of manpower, the maintenance activity has become a target for outsourcing. With a growing shortage of skilled and experienced maintenance engineers, facilities management companies provide an attractive alternative to the traditional approach to maintaining assets. However, for many organisations, maintenance is close to the core of their operations and the decision to outsource is a difficult one. How, then, can an assessment be made on whether or not to outsource, and what are the key issues in the decision making process? The author discusses these points.
OPTIMAL ROLLOVER PREVENTION WITH STEER BY WIRE AND DIFFERENTIAL BRAKING

This paper uses Model Predictive Control theory to develop a framework for automobile stability control. The framework is then demonstrated with a roll mode controller which seeks to actively limit the peak roll angle of the vehicle while simultaneously tracking the driver’s yaw rate command. Initially, control law presented assumes knowledge of the complete input trajectory and acts as a benchmark for the best performance any controller could have on this system. This assumption is then relaxed by only assuming that the current driver steering command is available. Numerical simulations on a nonlinear vehicle model show that both control structures effectively track the driver intended yaw rate during extreme maneuvers while also limiting the peak roll angle. During ordinary driving, the controlled vehicle behaves identically to an ordinary vehicle. These preliminary results shows that for double lane change maneuvers, it is possible to limit roll angle while still closely tracking the driver’s intent.Copyright © 2003 by ASME
Fire Resistance Of Load- Bearing Reinforced Concrete Walls

This paper describes a numerical method of calculating the fire resistance of loadbearing reinforced concrete walls. Each wall is divided into a number of segments of height and elements of thickness. The calculated temperature profile through the wall gives the temperature in each element which is used with the constitutive relationships and mechanical properties to predict structural behaviour. The model can consider a range of boundary conditions includingpinned, fixed and partially fixed ends. It is shown that walls with a small amount of end fixity top and bottom have very good structural behaviour under fire exposure.
Islet macrophages drive islet vascular remodeling and compensatory hyperinsulinemia in the early stages of diabetes

β-cells respond to peripheral insulin resistance by increasing circulating insulin in early type-2 diabetes (T2D). Islet remodeling supports this compensation but the drivers of this process remain poorly understood. Infiltrating macrophages have been implicated in late stage T2D but relatively little is known on islet resident macrophages, especially in early T2D. We hypothesize that islet resident macrophages contribute to islet vascular remodeling and hyperinsulinemia, the failure of which results in a rapid progression to T2D. Using genetic and diet-induced models of compensatory hyperinsulinemia we show that its depletion significantly compromises islet remodeling in terms of size, vascular density and insulin secretion capacity. Depletion of islet macrophages reduces VEGF-A secretion from both human and mouse islets ex vivo and the impact of reduced VEGF-A functionally translates to delayed re-vascularization upon transplantation in vivo. Hence, we show a new role of islet resident macrophages in the context of early T2D and suggest that there is considerable utility in harnessing islet macrophages to promote islet remodeling and islet insulin secretion capacity. Highlights The compensatory hyperinsulinemic phase of type-2 diabetes is accompanied with significant pancreatic islet remodeling. Bona fide islet resident macrophages are increased during the diabetic compensation phase by largely in situ proliferation. Ablating macrophages severely compromises the islet remodeling process and exacerbates glycemic control in vivo. Mouse and human islet macrophages contribute VEGF-A to the islet environment. Specific removal of islet macrophages delays islet vascularization in compensatory hyperinsulinemic mice.
CTD of SARS‐CoV‐2 N protein is a cryptic domain for binding ATP and nucleic acid that interplay in modulating phase separation

SARS‐CoV‐2 nucleocapsid (N) protein plays essential roles in many steps of the viral life cycle, thus representing a key drug target. N protein contains the folded N‐/C‐terminal domains (NTD/CTD) and three intrinsically disordered regions, while its functions including liquid–liquid phase separation (LLPS) depend on the capacity in binding various viral/host‐cell RNA/DNA of diverse sequences. Previously NTD was established to bind various RNA/DNA while CTD to dimerize/oligomerize for forming high‐order structures. By NMR, here for the first time we decrypt that CTD is not only capable of binding S2m, a specific probe derived from SARS‐CoV‐2 gRNA but with the affinity even higher than that of NTD. Very unexpectedly, ATP, the universal energy currency for all living cells with high cellular concentrations (2–16 mM), specifically binds CTD with Kd of 1.49 ± 0.28 mM. Strikingly, the ATP‐binding residues of NTD/CTD are identical in the SARS‐CoV‐2 variants while ATP and S2m interplay in binding NTD/CTD, as well as in modulating LLPS critical for the viral life cycle. Results together not only define CTD as a novel binding domain for ATP and nucleic acid, but enforce our previous proposal that ATP has been evolutionarily exploited by SARS‐CoV‐2 to complete its life cycle in the host cell. Most importantly, the unique ATP‐binding pockets on NTD/CTD may offer promising targets for design of specific anti‐SARS‐CoV‐2 molecules to fight the pandemic. Fundamentally, ATP emerges to act at mM as a cellular factor to control the interface between the host cell and virus lacking the ability to generate ATP.
Antimicrobial Evaluation of Natural Spices (Tumeric, Garlic, Onion, Celery and Cinnamon) Versus Synthetic Antibiotics (Tetracycline, Clindamycin and Ceftriazone) at Three Different Concentrations (10%, 50% and 100%)

Most Synthetic drugs have several side effects when administered and the cost of synthesizing them is an expensive endeavour. One alternative is to use herbal medicines. Guyana has an abundance of diverse flora which has been receiving attention in this area. However, much more research needs to be done. The antibacterial activity of natural spices (Tumeric, garlic, onion, celery and cinnamon) was investigated against E. coli, S. aureus, K. pneumoniae and P. aeruginosa and was compared with synthetic antibiotics (Tetracycline, Clindamycin and Ceftriazone) at three different concentrations of 10%, 50% and 100%. The Disc Diffusion Assay was used to investigate the antimicrobial potency of the synthetic drugs and herbal medicines under aseptic conditions. The synthetic drugs were prepared at different concentrations of 10%, 50% and 100%, whereas the extract was investigated at 100% concentration. Experiments were done in triplicates and the diameter of zone of microbial inhibition (DZOI) was measured and expressed as the mean with standard deviation (SD). The precision of comparisons (e.g. 95% confidence intervals) and Area of Zone of Inhibition, AZOI was also computed. Selected microorganisms were also tested against a reference standard antibiotic, Ampicillin and Nystatin. For the synthetic drugs, the highest Area of Zone of Inhibition, AZOI of 1566.4 mm2 was induced by Clindamycin against S. aureus at 50% concentration whereas the lowest AZOI of 245.09 mm2 was induced by P. auriginosa at 10% concentration. For the herbal extracts, the highest AZOI of 1256.6 mm2 was induced by the onion extract versus K. pneumonia whereas the lowest AZOI of 50.3 mm2 was induced by the Tumeric extract against E. coli. Antimicrobial selectivity was also observed for both synthetic and herbal medicines. For example, for tetracycline against S. aureus, AZOI of 1093.92 mm2 was obtained whereas against P. auriginosa, AZOI of 530.67 mm2 was observed. Garlic exhibited AZOI of 139.49 mm2 against E. coli whereas a value of 78.5 mm2 was obtained against P. aeruginosa. Research Article *Correspondence: RC Jagessar, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Guyana, Turkeyen Campus, Georgetown, Guyana, South America, E-mail: raymondjagessar@yahoo.com ISSN:
Conceptual and Parametric Representation of Soil Hydraulic Properties: A Review

The water retention curve (WRC) and the hydraulic conductivity function (HCF) are key ingredients in most analytical and numerical models for flow and transport in unsaturated porous media. Despite their formal derivation for a representative elementary volume (REV) of soil complex pore spaces, these two hydraulic functions are rooted in pore‐scale capillarity and viscous flows that, in turn, are invoked to provide interpretation of measurements and processes, such as linking WRC with the more difficult to measure HCF. Numerous conceptual and parametric models were proposed for the representation of processes within soil pore spaces and inferences concerning the two hydraulic functions (WRC and HCF) from surrogate variables. We review some of the primary models and highlight their physical basis, assumptions, advantages, and limitations. The first part focuses on the representation and modeling of WRC, including recent advances such as capillarity in angular pores and film adsorption and present empirical models based on easy to measure surrogate properties (pedotransfer functions). In the second part, we review the HCF and focus on widely used models that use WRC information to predict the saturated and unsaturated hydraulic conductivity. In the third part, we briefly review issues related to parameter equivalence between models, hysteresis in WRC, and effects of structural changes on hydraulic functions. Recent technological advances and monitoring networks offer opportunities for extensive hydrological information of high quality. The increase in measurement capabilities highlights the urgent need for building a hierarchy of parameters and model structures suitable for different modeling objectives and predictions across spatial scales. Additionally, the commonly assumed links between WRC and HCF must be reevaluated and involve more direct measurements of HCF. The modeling of flow and transport through structured and special porous media may require special functions and reflecting modifications in the governing equations. Finally, the impact of dynamics and transient processes at fluid interfaces on flow regimes and hydraulic properties necessitate different modeling and representation strategies beyond the present REV‐based framework.
Genetic Based Reinforcement Learning Load Control for Smart Grids

As the improvement of smart grids, the customer participation has reinvigorated interest in demand-side features such as load control for domestic users. A genetic based reinforcement learning (RL) load controller is proposed. The genetic is used to adjust the parameters of the controller. The RL algorithm, which is independent of the mathematic model, shows the particular superiority in load control. By means of learning procedures, the proposed controller can learn to take the best actions to regulate the energy usage for equipments with the features of high comfortable for energy usage and low electric charge meanwhile. Simulation results show that the proposed load controller can promote the performance energy usage in smart grids.
Process latitude extension in low k1 DRAM lithography using specific layer-oriented illumination design

Improvement of process latitude is tested in typical DRAM patterns by using the optimized illumination for each layer pattern. The optimized illumination for a specific layer is generated by modifying the Fourier transformed image of the layer and by using in-house illumination optimization program, which can simulate the maximum process latitude. These illumination shapes are compared with each other, and it is confirmed that both illuminations are similar in shape. The typical DRAM patterns are exposed using the optimized illuminations, and the process latitude is compared with typical annular illumination cases. It is certain that the process latitude using the optimized illumination is greater than the high sigma annular illumination. By using the optimized illumination, the enlarged process latitude makes it possible to use lower grade tools for a critical layer. It is expected that the lifetime of low-grade exposure tools can be extended by this illumination optimization technique.
Blood pressure wave propagation—a multisensor setup for cerebral autoregulation studies

Objective. Cerebral autoregulation is critically important to maintain proper brain perfusion and supply the brain with oxygenated blood. Non-invasive measures of blood pressure (BP) are critical in assessing cerebral autoregulation. Wave propagation velocity may be a useful technique to estimate BP but the effect of the location of the sensors on the readings has not been thoroughly examined. In this paper, we were interested in studying whether the propagation velocity of a pressure wave in the direction from the heart to the brain may differ compared with propagation from the heart to the periphery, as well as across different physiological tasks and/or health conditions. Using non-invasive sensors simultaneously placed at different locations of the human body allows for the study of how the propagation velocity of the pressure wave, based on pulse transit time (PTT), varies across different directions. Approach. We present a multi-sensor BP wave propagation measurement setup intended for cerebral autoregulation studies. The presented sensor setup consists of three sensors, one placed on each of the neck, chest and finger, allowing simultaneous measurement of changes in BP propagation velocity towards the brain and to the periphery. We show how commonly tested physiological tasks affect the relative changes of PTT and correlations with BP. Main results. We observed that during maximal blow, valsalva and breath hold breathing tasks, the relative changes of PTT were higher when PTT was measured in the direction from the heart to the brain than from the heart to the peripherals. In contrast, during a deep breathing task, the relative change in PTT from the heart to the brain was lower. In addition, we present a short literature review of the PTT methods used in brain research. Significance. These preliminary data suggest that the physiological task and direction of PTT measurement may affect relative PTT changes. The presented three-sensor setup provides an easy and neuroimaging compatible method for cerebral autoregulation studies by allowing measurement of BP wave propagation velocity towards the brain versus towards the periphery.
Silicone Implant Arthroplasty for Severe Bony Ankylosis of the Proximal Interphalangeal Joints in Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Arthrodesis and prosthetic arthroplasty have been used to treat severe proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joint arthritis. Silicone implant arthroplasty is an established treatment for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) of the fingers. However, few studies have reported the application of silicone implant arthroplasty for the treatment of severe ankylosis of the PIP joint in RA patients. The authors report, for the first time, the case of a 46-year-old woman who presented with severe bony ankylosis of the right fourth and fifth PIP joints at greater than 90° of flexion. Proximal interphalangeal silicone arthroplasty in combination with reconstruction of the extensor mechanism was successfully performed in the affected joints. Four years after surgery, active flexion of the fourth and fifth PIP joints was 55° and 75°, respectively, with an extensor lag of only 5° without pain and joint instability. Proper repair of the extensor mechanism with shortening of the central slips and mobilization of the lateral bands dorsally was most important in maintaining the extended position of the PIP joints. Proximal interphalangeal silicone arthroplasty with intensive reconstruction of the extensor mechanism could become a potential treatment option to maintain joint mobility even in severe ankylosis of the PIP joints in RA patients. [Orthopedics. 202x;4x(x):xx-xx. ].
Calorimetric Analysis of a Heavy Water Electrolysis Experiment Using a Pd-B Alloy Cathode

Abstract : This study involves the palladium-boron alloy materials prepared at the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). This new material was developed as part of a collaborative progmm with NRL and the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD), China Lake, that was funded by the Ofice of Naval Research (ONR). Studies at NAWCWD showed that the best reproducibility for excess power was obtained using the palladium-boron matenals. The experimental studies described in this report were conducted by Dr. Melvin H. Miles at the New Hydrogen Energy (NHE) laboratory in Sapporo, Japan. Dr. Miles received a six month appointment as a Guest Researcher sponsored by the New Energy Development Organization (NEDO) ofiapan This experiment was conducted in a special Dewar-type colorimetric cell silvered at the top that was developed by Dns. Fleischmann and Puns. The detailed analysis of the expenmental data presented in this report was conducted by Dr Martin Fleisebmaun. An independent method of data analysis developed by Dr. Miles while he was in Japan was presented in his NEDO Final Report and shows similar trends for the excess heat effect.