Texture Development of a Cold-rolled CuZnAl Alloy

lIntroductionTheCu26Zn-5Al-0.7Ti(wt%)allOysareshaPeIneInOryalloys.PolytwstallineshaPempalloysareingeneralusedinengineeringaPPlicatons.TheshapempeffectsarecloselyrelatedwiththetextUresforthesing1ecrystalshavetheshmplyanisotrOPicPfOPetw[l-3].ItwasshownthatextUredshaPempal1oyspossessedthebettershaPememOryeffectsthannontextUrdones[4].Cu-basedallOystendeasilytOgrowintolnyegrainsinhotrolling,andarenosultabletocoldrollingbecausethe0PhasehasalowmalleabilityatroomtemperatUre.FortheCuZnAlal…     

Empirical approach for predicting the cetane number of biodiesel

The cetane number is an indicator of ignition quality and thus of fuel quality in the realm of diesel engines. It is conceptually similar to the octane number used for gasoline. Generally, a compound that has a high octane number tends to have a low cetane number and vice versa. The cetane number of a diesel fuel is related to the ignition delay time. In our work the first approach is a statistical one the accuracy of which depends upon the data obtained from various papers and literature sources, as all equations used were based on this data. During prediction using more than one equation is a good approach, as it provides the accuracy as well as the relative error. The second approach is also a statistical one, but its value depends upon the saponification number and iodine value. Therefore the accuracy of this equation may be higher, since we can collect the data for saponification numbers and iodine values from literature, without needing to calculate them. Using the saponification number and iodine value we can select an optimal biodiesel as generally a good biodiesel is selected using these three values. Thus the second approach allows us the freedom to select a biodiesel.     

Effect of fuel injection strategies on the combustion process in a PFI boosted SI engine

A low-cost solution based on fuel injection strategies was investigated to optimize the combustion process in a boosted port fuel injection spark ignition (PFI SI) engine. The goal was to reduce the fuel consumption and pollutant emissions while maintaining performance. The effect of fuel injection was analyzed for the closed and open valve conditions, and the multiple injection strategies (MIS) based on double and triple fuel injection in the open-valve condition. The tests were performed on an optical accessible single-cylinder PFI SI engine equipped with an external boost device. The engine was operated at full load and with a stoichiometric ratio equivalent to that of commercial gasolines. Optical techniques based on 2D-digital imaging were used to follow the flame propagation from the flame kernel to late combustion phase. In particular, the diffusion-controlled flames near the valves and cylinder walls, due to fuel deposition, were studied. In these conditions, the presence of soot was measured by two-color pyrometry, and correlated with engine parameters and exhaust emissions measured by conventional methods. The open valve fuel injection strategies demonstrated better combustion process efficiency than the closed ones. They provided very low soot levels in the combustion chamber and engine exhaust, and a reduction in specific fuel consumption. The multiple injection strategies proved to be the best solution in terms of performance, soot concentration, and fuel consumption.     

The annual cycle of nanoflagellates in the Central Cantabrian Sea (Bay of Biscay)

The annual cycle of nanoflagellates (NF) including autotrophic (ANF), heterotrophic (HNF) and mixotropic (MNF) flagellates carried out in a temperate sea (Central Cantabrian Sea, southern Bay of Biscay) is presented. Three stations with characteristics ranging from coastal to oceanic conditions were analysed in order to compare NF response to this gradient. Samples were monthly collected at each station at three different depths between February 2002 and December 2002. CTD profiles were also taken at each station. NF were grouped according to their trophic status into ANF, HNF and MNF. Abundance and biomass were determined for each group. The annual cycle showed a general pattern consisting in a maximum in July with secondary maxima in March and October and minimum values in May. ANF were the most important fraction, making a major contribution (nearly 75%) to total NF biomass in all stations. HNF represented over 20% along the cycle, except for a peak in spring found in every station. MNF reached less than 5%, showing low seasonability. Small flagellates (2–5 µm) dominated throughout the cycle. Microplankton community was also analysed in terms of abundance and biomass. A significant positive correlation (r² = 0.49) was obtained between 2–5 µm NF and 10–20 µm HNF–MNF biomasses, suggesting a possible trophic relationship between these groups which should be cautiously taken. No significant relationships were found between microplankton and NF or between nutrients and ANF, indicating that the regulation of NF numbers is complex and probably implicates other groups. In addition to this, the unexpected 2002 Chl a concentration pattern and the misplacing of upwelling events render necessary to perform additional studies to fully understand the precise behaviour of NF in the Cantabrian Sea. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study of a NF cycle in a temperate sea that considers all functional groups.     

Influence of the heavy fuel spill from the Prestige tanker wreckage in the overlying seawater column levels of copper, nickel and vanadium (NE Atlantic ocean)

The water column above the Prestige wreckage was sampled during two consecutive campaigns: Prestinaut (December 2002) two weeks after the tanker sunk and HidroPrestige0303 (March 2003) one month after the sealing of the main fuel leaks. Samples of the original cargo fuel and the emulsified fuel in the surface of the ocean were also collected. Analysis of the fuel indicated the release of 135 kg of Cu, 1700 kg of Ni and 5300 kg of V from the original fuel to the water column, remaining 35 kg of Cu, 3100 kg of Ni and 13,800 kg of V in the emulsified fuel. The metal partitioning between the water column and the emulsioned floating fuel, Cu > Ni ~ V, are in accordance with the stability index for the metal–nitrogen bond in metalloporphyrins. This release had an impact on dissolved trace metal concentrations in the water column. An increase on dissolved copper (2.8–4.7 nM) and nickel (2.2–8.0 nM) with respect to natural values (1–3 nM for Cu and 1.6–5 nM for Ni) was observed. Values for vanadium (28–35 nM) were in the range of pristine North Atlantic waters (30–36 nM). This contamination was especially observed in the upper water column (0–50 m), associated with the mixing of seawater with the fuel moving upwards, and in deep waters, where the residence time of fuel is higher. Future research in this field should focus on the environmental variables and the processes that control the release of contaminants from fuels for a better assessment of the contamination in oil-spill events.     

Graph Trace Analysis and Generic Algorithms for Interdependent Reconfigurable System Design and Control

This paper discusses current research for development of model-based generic algorithms for design and control of reconfigurable interdependent systems. This work is based on extension of Graph Trace Analysis (GTA), which was originally developed in the 1990s for power distribution system design. Because of GTA's ability to combine and restructure analysis methodologies from a variety of problem domains, it is now being used for integrated power distribution and transmission system design, operations, and control. Over the last few years research has begun to formalize GTA into a multidiscipline approach that uses generic algorithms and a common model-based analysis framework. The paper provides an overview of the concepts used in GTA, and then discusses how GTA and generic algorithms can be used together for design and control of multidiscipline systems. This new approach includes decoupling component and system level equations, using iterators to structure iterative analysis that simplifies coordination of discrete events and also eliminates the need for large matrices, using composition to implement polymorphism and simplify data management, using dependency components to structure analysis across different systems types, and implementation of hot-swappable algorithms.     

Alternative financing for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT): The case of Porto Alegre, Brazil

In the 1970s, Brazil was leading the implementation of high-flow bus priority schemes, but now cities are less capable of financing public infrastructures. This paper explores the private sector participation in the provision of transit infrastructure based on Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). The Porto Alegre BRT contemplates interchange terminals planned to accommodate retail and service activities. It is expected that these areas shall generate enough revenues to remunerate private investors, under a PPP scheme, for the construction of terminals and part of the infrastructure required to upgrade some sections of the existing busways to BRT standards.     

Recent sedimentary study of the shelf of the Basque country

The Northern Iberian margin of the Spanish Basque country (provinces of Gipuzkoa and Viscaia) is characterized by a narrow continental platform, which receives inputs of riverine particulate matter from the numerous riverine systems located within the Basque country. This particulate matter is subsequently deposited within the Bay of Biscay, and Gouf de Capbreton [Frouin, R., Fiuza, A.F.G., Ambar, I., Boyd, T.J., 1990. Observations of a poleward surface current off the coasts of Portugal and Spain during winter. Journal of Geophysical Research 95 (C1), 679–691]. The main goal of this study is to establish a map of the surface sediment distribution of the Basque continental shelf and more specifically to map the muddy patch located at the eastern side of that continental shelf.Three oceanographic cruises were conducted in 2003 and 2004. From these campaigns 340 surface samples, 12 short cores and 3 gravity cores have been collected over the mid and outer shelf from depths ranging between 50 m and 150 m deep. 3 seismic profiles were obtained across the shelf mud patch using a Sparker device.Sediment grain-size analyses were performed by the classical physical method of sieving and use of settling columns. The POC (Particular Organic Carbon) amounts in sediment and water samples were determined using the Strickland and Parsons' method [Strickland, J.D.H., Parsons, T.R., 1972. Determination of particulate carbon. In : A practical handbook of seawater analysis. Fisheries ResearchBoard of Canada, Ottawa, pp. 207−211] as adapted by Etcheber [Etcheber, H., 1981. Comparaison des diverses méthodes d'évaluation des teneurs en matières en suspension et en carbone organique particulaire des eaux marines du plateau continental aquitain. Journal de Recherche Océanographique VI (2), 37−42]. Radioisotopic measurements (²¹⁰Pb_exc) were made using a semi-planar germanium detector coupled to a multichannel analyser. Radiographical analysis was performed with an X-ray equipment (SCOPIX®) coupled with a radioscopy instrumentation and processing unit.Firstly, a detailed sedimentological map of this shelf has been produced and secondly, geophysical surveys have precisely mapped the geometry of the main mud patch on the continental shelf. In the mud patch itself the rates of sedimentation are between 0.13 and 0.50 cm yr^− 1. The maximum rate of sedimentation is located in the central mud patch, whereas the minimum rate of deposition occurs close to the rocky outcrops. These results seem to be in agreement with the estimation of the total thickness of the mud patch revealed by seismic profiles. The central part corresponds to the maximum thickness of 7 m.Interpretations of the associated oceanic current forcing factors (current direction, wave fetch and wind directional modes) relating to the identified sediment depositional zones are also undertaken.     

Partition‐based algorithm for estimating transportation network reliability with dependent link failures

Evaluating the reliability of a transportation network often involves an intensive simulation exercise to randomly generate and evaluate different possible network states. This paper proposes an algorithm to approximate the network reliability which minimizes the use of such simulation procedure. The algorithm will dissect and classify the network states into reliable, unreliable, and un‐determined partitions. By postulating the monotone property of the reliability function, each reliable and/or unreliable state can be used to determine a number of other reliable and/or unreliable states without evaluating all of them with an equilibrium assignment procedure. The paper also proposes the cause‐based failure framework for representing dependent link degradation probabilities. The algorithm and framework proposed are tested with a medium size test network to illustrate the performance of the algorithm.     

Computational Vibration Analysis of Vehicle Shimmy by a Power-Work Method

This paper presents the simulation of vehicle shimmy for a mid-size truck with focus on a computational analysis tool that measures the power and corresponding work in dissipating the excitation energy. After a review of shimmy theory the power and work equations and their response classification in vibrating systems are introduced. Next, model validation compares the full vehicle model to an actual test vehicle. Finally, two designs that suppress shimmy in the test vehicle are analyzed in the model by the power-work method, showing components that effectively dissipate the shimmy energy.