Preparation of α-High Strength Gypsum from Flue Gas Desulfurization Gypsum Pretreated by Hydrothermal-aging Method

The synthesis of α-calcium sulfate hemihydrate (α-CSH) from flue gas desulfurization (FGD)gypsum is a good way to realize the comprehensive utilization of FGD gypsum. To obtainα-CSH with the satisfactory performances, a facile hydrothermal-aging pretreatment process for FGD gypsum raw materials was proposed, where FGD gypsum was firstly hydrothermally converted to α-CSH whiskers, and α-CSH whiskers were further hydrated to synthesize CaSO4·2H2O (CSD) by aging under the regulation of N,N'-methylenebisacrylamide (MBA). The effects of aging time, MBA addition, aging temperature, and pH on the morphology of the synthesized CSD were investigated. The synthesized CSD crystals exhibit highly uniform prismatic morphology with the length of ca 100μm and the whiteness of 91.56%. The regulation mechanism of MBA was also illustrated. The synthesized CSD crystals with prismatic morphology were further used as raw materials to synthesize the short columnar α-CSH. The absolute dry compressive strength of paste prepared from the short columnar α-CSH is 40.85 MPa, which reaches α40 strength grade.

Seismic displacement demand prediction in non-linear domain: Optimization of the N2 method

In Europe, computation of displacement demand for seismic assessment of existing buildings is essentially based on a simplified formulation of the N2 method as prescribed by Eurocode 8(EC8). However, a lack of accuracy of the N2 method in certain conditions has been pointed out by several studies. This paper addresses the assessment of effectiveness of the N2 method in seismic displacement demand determination in non-linear domain. The objective of this work is to investigate the accuracy of the N2 method through comparison with displacement demands computed using non-linear timehistory analysis(NLTHA). Results show that the original N2 method may lead to overestimation or underestimation of displacement demand predictions. This may affect results of mechanical model-based assessment of seismic vulnerability at an urban scale. Hence, the second part of this paper addresses an improvement of the N2 method formula by empirical evaluation of NLTHA results based on EC8 ground-classes. This task is formulated as a mathematical programming problem in which coefficients are obtained by minimizing the overall discrepancy between NLTHA and modified formula results. Various settings of the mathematical programming problem have been solved using a global optimization metaheuristic. An extensive comparison between the original N2 method formulation and optimized formulae highlights benefits of the strategy.

The Extended Tanh Method for Compactons and Solitons Solutions for the CH(<i>n</i>,2<i>n</i>– 1,2<i>n</i>,–<i>n</i>) Equations

In this paper, by using the sine-cosine method, the extended tanh-method, and the rational hyperbolic functions method, we study a class of nonlinear equations which derived from a fourth order analogue of generalized Camassa-Holm equation. It is shown that this class gives compactons, solitary wave solutions, solitons, and periodic wave solutions. The change of the physical structure of the solutions is caused by variation of the exponents and the coefficients of the derivatives.

A Rapid Method for Measuring Seed Protein Content in Cowpea (<i>Vigna unguiculata</i>(L.) Walp)

Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp), a legume crop that is grown in the worldwide, provides beneficial proteins for human consumption and animal feeding. In comparison, Rapid N analyzer as traditional method, has been widely used to measure protein content through the percentage of total nitrogen in the seed’s grounded powder. Near-Infrared Reflectance (NIR) has commonly been used to measure protein content in soybean seeds using whole grain without the need of seed grinding, which makes it possible to obtain fast results at a lower cost-per-analysis than the traditional combustion method. The specific objective of this study is to test a rapid method for measuring cowpea seed protein content by the NIR analyzer comparing to the traditional rapid N analyzer. A total of 240 cowpea genotypes were used in this study, including six seed coat colors, black, blackeye, browneye, cream, pinkeye, and red with 40 cowpea genotypes. The results showed that a linear relationship exists between the NIR analyzer and the Rapid N analyzer in the six different color groups. The correlation efficiency (r) between the seed protein contents from NIR and Rapid N was higher for pinkeye seed (r = 0.867), blackeye (0.771), cream (0.729), browneye (0.700), and red (0.623), respectively, but lower for black seeds, indicating that the NIR analyzer can be used to measure protein content for cowpea seeds with the five types of seed coat except black. Overview, the cowpea seed protein content measured from the NIR analyzer showed a little higher seed protein content. A series of regression models with different seed coat color have been built to adjust to protein content of colorful cowpea seeds from the NIR analyzer. But, it is not recommended to use for black color seeds due to a very low correlation efficiency (r) value with 0.184.

Densities and Viscosities of the Ionic Liquid [C4mim][PF6]＋ N,N-dimethylformamide Binary Mixtures at 293.15 K to 318.15 K

Viscosities and densities for 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate （[C4mim][PF6]） and N, N-dimethylformamide （DMF） binary mixtures have been measured at the temperature range from 293.15 K to 318.15 K. It is shown that the viscosities and densities decrease monotonously with temperature and the content of DMF. Various correlation methods including Arrhenius-like equation, Sedclon et al.＇s equation, Redlich-Kister equation with four parameters, and other empirical equations were applied to evaluate these experimental data. A model based on an equation of state Ior estimating the viscosity of mixtures containing ionic liquids were proposed by coupling with the excess Gibbs free energy model of viscosity, which can synchronously calculate the viscosity and the molar volume. The results show that the model gives a deviation of 8.29% for the viscosity, and a deviation of 1.05% for the molar volume when only one temperature-independent adjustable parameter is adopted. The correlation accuracy is further improved when two parameters or one temperature-dependent parameter is used.

Model of Universe as Described by Dynamic Universe Model

In this paper we will see the model of Universe according to Dynamic Universe Model of Cosmology by visualizing various processes that are happening in the Universe as per experimental evidences. For simplifying the matter here, we will see in part 1: about the Galaxy life cycle, where the birth and death of Galaxies discussed. Probably Universe gives guidance for the movement of Galaxies. We call this Part 1: Thinking and Reproducing Universe or Mindless Universe? (Galaxy life cycle). We see every day Sun, Stars, Galaxies etc., dissipating enormous energy in the form of radiation by the way of fusion of Hydrogen to helium. So after sometime all the Hydrogen is spent and Universe will die, is it not? … Dynamic Universe Model says that the energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation passing grazingly near any gravitating mass changes in frequency and finally will convert into neutrinos (mass). Hence Dynamic Universe Model proposes another process where energy will be converted back into matter and the cycle energy to mass to energy continues, sustaining the Universe to maintain this present status for ever in this form something like a Steady state model without any expansion. This we will see in Part 2: Energy - Mass - Energy Cycle. After converting energy into mass “how various elements are formed and where they are formed?” will be next logical question. Dynamic Universe Model says that these various particles change into higher massive particles or may get bombarded into stars or planets and various elements are formed. Here we bifurcate the formation of elements into 6 processes. They are for Elementary particles and elements generated in frequency changing process, By Cosmic rays, By Small stars, By Large Stars, By Super Novae and Manmade elements By Neutron Stars. This we will discuss in Part 3: Nucleosynthesis.

The Effect of Tool Construction and Cutting Parameters on Surface Roughness and Vibration in Turning of AISI 1045 Steel Using Taguchi Method

This paper presents an experimental investigation focused on identifying the effects of cutting conditions and tool construction on the surface roughness and natural frequency in turning of AISI1045 steel. Machining experiments were carried out at the lathe using carbide cutting insert coated with TiC and two forms of cutting tools made of AISI 5140 steel. Three levels for spindle speed, depth of cut, feed rate and tool overhang were chosen as cutting variables. The Taguchi method L9 orthogonal array was applied to design of experiment. By the help of signal-to-noise ratio and analysis of variance, it was concluded that spindle speed has the significant effect on the surface roughness, while tool overhang is the dominant factor affecting natural frequency for both cutting tools. In addition, the optimum cutting conditions for surface roughness and natural frequency were found at different levels. Finally, confirmation experiments were conducted to verify the effectiveness and efficiency of the Taguchi method in optimizing the cutting parameters for surface roughness and natural frequency.

Discrepancies in Growth Measurement Methods of Mosses: An Example from Two Keystone Species Grown under Increased CO₂and N Supply in a Restored Peatland

Bryophytes dominate northern peatlands. Obtaining reliable measurements of moss-growth and how it may be affected by global changes are therefore important. Several methods have been used to measure moss-growth but it is unclear how comparable they are in different conditions and this uncertainty undermines comparisons among studies. In a field experiment we measured the growth and production of Sphagnum fallax (Sphagnum) and Polytrichum strictum (Polytrichum) using two handling methods, using cut and uncut plants, and three growth-variables, height-growth, length-growth, and mass-growth. We aimed “benchmarking” a combination of six methodological options against exactly the same set of factorial experiments: atmospheric CO2 enrichment and N addition. The two handling methods produced partly different results: in half of the cases, one method revealed a significant treatment effect but the other one did not: significant negative effects on growth were only observed on uncut plants for elevated CO2 and on cut plants for N addition. Furthermore, the correspondence between measurements made with various growth-variables depended on the species and, to a lesser extent, treatments. Sphagnum and Polytrichum growth was inhibited under elevated CO2, and correlated to higher ammonium values. Sphagnum was however less affected than Polytrichum and the height difference between the two species decreased. N addition reduced the P/N ratio and probably induced P-limiting conditions. Sphagnum growth was more inhibited than Polytrichum and the height difference between the two species increased. Our data show that such a problem indeed exists between the cut and uncut handling methods. Not only do the results differ in absolute terms by as much as 82% but also do their comparisons and interpretations depend on the handling method—and thus the interpretation would be biased—in half of the cases. These results call for caution when comparing factorial studies based on different handling methods.

The preparation and properties of N-doped carbon materials and their use for sodium storage

Defect engineering by heteroatom doping gives carbon materials some new characteristics such as a different electronic structure and a high electrochemical activity,making them suitable for high-performance applications.N-doping has been widely investigated because of its similar atom radius to carbon,high electronegativity as well as many different configurations.We summarize the preparation methods and properties of N-doped carbon materials,and discuss their possible use in sodium ion storage.The relationships between N content/configuration and crystallinity,electronic conductivity,wettability,chemical reactivity as well as sodium ion storage performance are discussed.

Exploring the effect of aggregation-induced emission on the excited state intramolecular proton transfer for a bis-imine derivative by quantum mechanics and our own n-layered integrated molecular orbital and molecular mechanics calculations

We theoretically investigate the excited state intramolecular proton transfer(ESIPT) behavior of the novel fluorophore bis-imine derivative molecule HNP which was designed based on the intersection of 1-(hydrazonomethyl)-naphthalene-2-ol and 1-pyrenecarboxaldehyde. Especially, the density functional theory(DFT) and time-dependent density functional theory(TDDFT) methods for HNP monomer are introduced. Moreover, the "our own n-layered integrated molecular orbital and molecular mechanics"(ONIOM) method(TDDFT:universal force field(UFF)) is used to reveal the aggregation-induced emission(AIE) effect on the ESIPT process for HNP in crystal. Our results confirm that the ESIPT process happens upon the photoexcitation for the HNP monomer and HNP in crystal, which is distinctly monitored by the optimized geometric structures and the potential energy curves. In addition, the results of potential energy curves reveal that the ESIPT process in HNP will be promoted by the AIE effect. Furthermore, the highest occupied molecular orbital(HOMO) and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital(LUMO) for the HNP monomer and HNP in crystal have been calculated. The calculation demonstrates that the electron density decrease of proton donor caused by excitation promotes the ESIPT process. In addition, we find that the variation of atomic dipole moment corrected Hirshfeld population(ADCH) charge for proton acceptor induced by the AIE effect facilitates the ESIPT process. The results will be expected to deepen the understanding of ESIPT dynamics for luminophore under the AIE effect and provide insight into future design of high-efficient AIE compounds.

Delay-dependent stability analysis of Runge-Kutta methods for neutral delay differential equations

The aim of this paper is to study the asymptotic stability properties of Runge Kutta(R-K) methods for neutral differential equations(NDDEs) when they are applied to the linear test equation of the form: y′(t)=ay(t)+by(t-τ)+cy’(t-τ), t>0, y(t)=g(t), -τ≤t≤0, with a,b,c∈[FK(W+3mm\.3mm][TPP129A,+3mm?3mm,BP], τ>0 and g(t) is a continuous real value function. In this paper we are concerned with the dependence of stability region on a fixed but arbitrary delay τ. In fact, it is one of the N.Guglielmi open problems to investigate the delay dependent stability analysis for NDDEs. The results that the 2,3 stages non natural R-K methods are unstable as Radau IA and Lobatto IIIC are proved. And the s stages Radau IIA methods are unstable, however all Gauss methods are compatible.

Numerical Simulation of Boundary Layer with Spectral Method

It is important to improve the speed of a ship,the friction resistance can be reduced by injection air at the bottom of a ship when the ship is running on the water.As the first part of the studying project,here numerical simulation study method,boundary condition and governing equations are presented.It is easy to study complicated problems from simple conditions,so the program concerning boundary layer condition is compiled to solve the problem.Here the spectral method is introduced,and the results are tested by Dorod’s results.

High-Order Solitons and Hybrid Behavior of (3 + 1)-Dimensional Potential Yu-Toda-Sasa-Fukuyama Equation with Variable Coefficients

In this paper, some exact solutions of the (3 + 1)-dimensional variable-coefficient Yu-Toda-Sasa-Fukuyama equation are investigated. By using Hirota’s direct method and symbolic computation, we obtained N-soliton solution. By using the long wave limit method, the N-order rational solution can be obtained from N-order soliton solution. Then, through the paired complexification of parameters, the lump solution is obtained from N-order rational solution. Meanwhile, we obtained a hybrid solution between 1-lump solution and N-soliton (N=1,2) by using the long wave limit method and parameter complex. Furthermore, four different sets of three-dimensional graphs of solitons, lump solutions and hybrid solutions are drawn by selecting four different sets of coefficient functions which include one set of constant coefficient function and three sets of variable coefficient functions.

High sensitivity detection of baicalein by N,S co⁃doped carbon dots and their application in biofluids

In this work,p⁃phenylenediamine and L⁃cysteine were used as raw materials,and water⁃soluble N,S co⁃doped carbon dots(N,S⁃CDs)with excellent performance were prepared through a one⁃step solvothermal method.The morphology and structure of N,S⁃CDs were characterized by transmission electron microscope,X⁃ray diffrac⁃tion,Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy,and X⁃ray photoelectron spectroscopy,and the basic photophysical properties were investigated via UV⁃Vis absorption spectra and fluorescence spectra.Meanwhile,the N,S⁃CDs have excellent luminescence stability with pH,ionic strength,radiation time,and storage time.Experimental results illus⁃trated the present sensor platform exhibited high sensitivity and selectivity in response to baicalein with a detection limit of 85 nmol·L-1.The quenching mechanism is proved to be the inner filter effect.In addition,this sensor can also detect baicalein in biofluids(serum and urine)with good accuracy and reproducibility.

Adomian decomposition method simulation of von Kármán swrling bioconvection nanofluid flow

The study reveals analytically on the 3-dimensional viscous time-dependent gyrotactic bioconvection in swirling nanofluid flow past from a rotating disk.It is known that the deformation of the disk is along the radial direction.In addition to that Stefan blowing is considered.The Buongiorno nanofluid model is taken care of assuming the fluid to be dilute and we find Brownian motion and thermophoresis have dominant role on nanoscale unit.The primitive mass conservation equation,radial,tangential and axial momentum,heat,nano-particle concentration and micro-organism density function are developed in a cylindrical polar coordinate system with appropriate wall(disk surface)and free stream boundary conditions.This highly nonlinear,strongly coupled system of unsteady partial differential equations is normalized with the classical von Kármán and other transformations to render the boundary value problem into an ordinary differential system.The emerging 11th order system features an extensive range of dimensionless flow parameters,i.e.,disk stretching rate,Brownian motion,thermophoresis,bioconvection Lewis number,unsteadiness parameter,ordinary Lewis number,Prandtl number,mass convective Biot number,Péclet number and Stefan blowing parameter.Solutions of the system are obtained with developed semi-analytical technique,i.e.,Adomian decomposition method.Validation of the said problem is also conducted with earlier literature computed by Runge-Kutta shooting technique.

New mutational trends in the HA protein of 2009 H1N1 pandemic influenza virus from May 2010 to February 2011

As we enter the year of 2011, the 2009 H1N1 pandemic influenza virus is in the news again. At least 20 people have died of this virus in China since the beginning of 2011 and it is now the predominant flu strain in the country. Although this novel virus was quite stable during its run in the flu season of 2009-2010, a genetic variant of this virus was found in Singapore in early 2010, and then in Australia and New Zealand during their 2010 winter influenza season. Several critical mutations in the HA protein of this variant were uncovered in the strains collected from January 2010 to April 2010. Moreover, a structural homology model of HA from the A/Brisbane/10/2010(H1N1) strain was made based on the structure of A/California/04/2009 (H1N1). The purpose of this study was to investigate mutations in the HA protein of 2009 H1N1 from sequence data collected worldwide from May 2010 to February 2011. A fundamental problem in bioinformatics and biology is to find the similar gene sequences for a given gene sequence of interest. Here we proposed the inverse problem, i.e., finding the exemplars from a group of related gene sequences. With a clustering algorithm affinity propagation, six exemplars of the HA sequences were identified to represent six clusters. One of the clusters contained strain A/Brisbane/12/2010(H1N1) that only differed from A/Brisbane/10/2010 in the HA sequence at position 449. Based on the sequence identity of the six exemplars, nine mutations in HA were located that could be used to distinguish these six clusters. Finally, we discovered the change of correlation patterns for the HA and NA of 2009 H1N1 as a result of the HA receptor binding specificity switch, revealing the balanced interplay between these two surface proteins of the virus.

Bound States of the Klein-Gordon for Exponential-Type Potentials in D-Dimensions

The approximate analytic bound state solutions of the Klein-Gordon equation with equal scalar and vector exponential-type potentials including the centrifugal potential term are obtained for any arbitrary orbital quantum number l and dimensional space D. The relativistic/non-relativistic energy spectrum formula and the corresponding un-normalized radial wave functions, expressed in terms of the Jacobi polynomials and or the generalized hypergeometric functions have been obtained. A short-cut of the Nikiforov-Uvarov (NU) method is used in the solution. A unified treatment of the Eckart, Rosen-Morse, Hulthén and Woods-Saxon potential models can be easily derived from our general solution. The present calculations are found to be identical with those ones appearing in the literature. Further, based on the PT-symmetry, the bound state solutions of the trigonometric Rosen-Morse potential can be easily obtained.

Least Square Finite Element Method for Viscous Splitting of Unsteady Incompressible Navier–Stokes Equations

In order to solve unsteady incompressible Navier–Stokes(N–S) equations, a new stabilized finite element method,called the viscous-splitting least square FEM, is proposed. In the model, the N–S equations are split into diffusive and convective parts in each time step. The diffusive part is discretized by the backward difference method in time and discretized by the standard Galerkin method in space. The convective part is a first-order nonlinear equation.After the linearization of the nonlinear part by Newton’s method, the convective part is also discretized by the backward difference method in time and discretized by least square scheme in space. C0-type element can be used for interpolation of the velocity and pressure in the present model. Driven cavity flow and flow past a circular cylinder are conducted to validate the present model. Numerical results agree with previous numerical results, and the model has high accuracy and can be used to simulate problems with complex geometry.

Kohn-Sham Density Matrix and the Kernel Energy Method

The kernel energy method(KEM) has been shown to provide fast and accurate molecular energy calculations for molecules at their equilibrium geometries.KEM breaks a molecule into smaller subsets,called kernels,for the purposes of calculation.The results from the kernels are summed according to an expression characteristic of KEM to obtain the full molecule energy.A generalization of the kernel expansion to density matrices provides the full molecule density matrix and orbitals.In this study,the kernel expansion for the density matrix is examined in the context of density functional theory(DFT) Kohn-Sham(KS) calculations.A kernel expansion for the one-body density matrix analogous to the kernel expansion for energy is defined,and is then converted into a normalizedprojector by using the Clinton algorithm.Such normalized projectors are factorizable into linear combination of atomic orbitals(LCAO) matrices that deliver full-molecule Kohn-Sham molecular orbitals in the atomic orbital basis.Both straightforward KEM energies and energies from a normalized,idempotent density matrix obtained from a density matrix kernel expansion to which the Clinton algorithm has been applied are compared to reference energies obtained from calculations on the full system without any kernel expansion.Calculations were performed both for a simple proof-of-concept system consisting of three atoms in a linear configuration and for a water cluster consisting of twelve water molecules.In the case of the proof-of-concept system,calculations were performed using the STO-3 G and6-31 G(d,p) bases over a range of atomic separations,some very far from equilibrium.The water cluster was calculated in the 6-31 G(d,p) basis at an equilibrium geometry.The normalized projector density energies are more accurate than the straightforward KEM energy results in nearly all cases.In the case of the water cluster,the energy of the normalized projector is approximately four times more accurate than the straightforward KEM energy result.The KS density matrices of this study are applicable to quantum crystallography.

A rate-based method for dynamic analysis and optimal design of reactive extraction: n-Hexyl acetate esterification as an example

The dynamic analysis and optimal design of reactive extraction are challenging due to high nonlinearity of model equations and tough decision of judging criteria. In this work, a dynamic rate-based method is developed on g PROMS platform to get easy access to the solutions of reactive extraction with phase splitting. Based on rigorous criteria, dynamic analysis from initial state to final equilibrium(e.g., evolution of phase composition, mass transfer rate and reaction rate) and optimal design of operating conditions(e.g., extractant dosage and feed molar ratio) are achieved. To illustrate the method, the esterification of n-hexyl acetate is taken as an example. The approach proves to be reliable in the analysis and optimization of the exemplified system, which provides instructive reference for further process design and simulation of reactive extraction.