Effects of phase inhomogeneity and boundary conditions on the dynamic response of SMA wire actuators

This paper reports the simulation results from the dynamic analysis of a Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) actuator. The emphasis is on understanding the dynamic behavior under various loading rates and boundary conditions, resulting in complex scenarios such as thermal and stress gradients. Also, due to the polycrystalline nature of SMA wires, presence of microstructural inhomogeneity is inevitable. Probing the effect of inhomogeneity on the dynamic behavior can facilitate the prediction of life and characteristics of SMA wire actuator under varieties of boundary and loading conditions. To study the effect of these factors, an initial boundary value problem of SMA wire is formulated. This is subsequently solved using finite element method. The dynamic response of the SMA wire actuator is analyzed under mechanical loading and results are reported. Effect of loading rate, micro-structural inhomogeneity and thermal boundary conditions on the dynamic response of SMA wire actuator is investigated and the simulation results are reported.

A near-singular, flexure jointed, moment sensitive Stewart platform based fore-torque sensor

A force-torque sensor capable of accurate measurement of the three components of externally applied forces and moments is required for force control in robotic applications involving assembly operations. The goal in this paper is to design a Stewart platform based force torque sensor at a near-singular configuration sensitive to externally applied moments. In such a configuration, we show an enhanced mechanical amplification of leg forces and thereby higher sensitivity for the applied external moments. In other directions, the sensitivity will be that of a normal load sensor determined by the sensitivity of the sensing element and the associated electronic amplification, and all the six components of the force and torque can be sensed. In a sensor application, the friction, backlash and other non-linearities at the passive spherical joints of the Stewart platform will affect the measurements in unpredictable ways. In this sensor, we use flexural hinges at the leg interfaces of the base and platform of the sensor. The design dimensions of the flexure joints in the sensor have been arrived at using FEA. The sensor has been fabricated, assembled and instrumented. It has been calibrated for low level loads and is found to show linearity and marked sensitivity to moments about the three orthogonal X, Y and Z axes. This sensor is compatible for usage as a wrist sensor for a robot under development at ISRO Satellite Centre.

Iodine-Catalyzed Amination of Benzoxazoles: A Metal-Free Route to 2-Aminobenzoxazoles under Mild Conditions

A facile metal-free route of oxidative amination of benzoxazole by activation of C-H bonds with secondary or primary amines in the presence of catalytic iodine in aqueous tert-butyl hydroperoxide proceeds smoothly at ambient temperature under neat reaction condition to furnish the high yield of the aminated product. This user-friendly method to form C-N bonds produces tertiary butanol and water as the byproduct, which are environmentally benign. The application of the methodology is demonsrated by synthesizing therapeutically active benzoxazoles.

Highly efficient dialkylphosphate-mediated syntheses of hydantoins and a bicyclohydantoin under solvent-free conditions

Diversely substituted hydantoins have been synthesized by new strategy from cyanamide based precursor, that is, methyl N-cyano-N-alkyl/arylaminoacetate. Dialkylphosphates were employed as the mild reagent to hydrolyze and cyclize the substrate in one step to give quantitative yields of the desired products. Syntheses of multivalent hydantoins viz bis-hydantoin, bicyclohydantoin have potentially widened the scope and applicability of the present method. Solvent-free conditions and very easy work-up procedure make the reaction convenient and eco-friendly. Single crystal structures of some of the representative compounds are also reported. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

High sensitivity detection of radio-frequency modulated magnetic moment in semiconductors

An experimental setup has been realized to measure weak magnetic moments which can be modulated at radio frequencies (similar to 1-5 MHz). Using an optimized radio-frequency (RF) pickup coil and lock-in amplifier, an experimental sensitivity of 10(-15) Am(2) corresponding to 10(-18) emu has been demonstrated with a 1 s time constant. The detection limit at room temperature is 9.3 x 10(-16) Am(2)/root Hz limited by Johnson noise of the coil. The setup has been used to directly measure the magnetic moment due to a small number (similar to 7 x 10(8)) of spin polarized electrons generated by polarization modulated optical radiation in GaAs and Ge. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi: 10.1063/1.3654229]

Lipid composition in microalgal community under laboratory and outdoor conditions

Microalgae are the most sought after sources for biofuel production due to their capacity to utilize carbon and synthesize it into high density liquid. Current energy crisis have put microalgae under scanner for economical production of biodiesel. Modifications like physiological stress and genetic variation is done to increase the lipid yield of the microalgae. A study was conducted using a microalgal consortium for a period of 15 days to evaluate the feasibility of algal biomass from laboratory as well as outdoor culture conditions. Native algal strains were isolated from a tropical freshwater lake. Preliminary growth studies indicated the relationship between the nitrates and phosphates to the community structure through the days. The lipid profile done using Gas chromatography – Mass spectrometry, revealed the profile of the algal community. Resource competition led to isolation of algae, aided in the lipid profile of a single alga. However, further studies on the application of the mixed population are required to make this consortium approach economically viable for producing algae biofuels.

Tribology of ethylene-air diffusion flame soot under dry and lubricated contact conditions

Soot particles are generated in a flame caused by burning ethylene gas. The particles are collected thermophoretically at different locations of the flame. The particles are used to lubricate a steel/steel ball on flat reciprocating sliding contact, as a dry solid lubricant and also as suspended in hexadecane. Reciprocating contact is shown to establish a protective and low friction tribo-film. The friction correlates with the level of graphitic order of the soot, which is highest in the soot extracted from the mid-flame region and is low in the soot extracted from the flame root and flame tip regions. Micro-Raman spectroscopy of the tribo-film shows that the a priori graphitic order, the molecular carbon content of the soot and the graphitization of the film as brought about by tribology distinguish between the frictions of soot extracted from different regions of the flame, and differentiate the friction associated with dry tribology from that recorded under lubricated tribology.

Influence of Switching Conditions on the VETO Magnitudes in a GIS

Estimation of very fast transient overvoltage (VFTO) has been carried out using EMTP for various switching conditions in a 420 kV gas-insulated substation (GIS). The variation of the VFTO peak along the GIS bus nodes for disconnector and circuit breaker switching operations, as well as the variation of VFTO peak with different magnitudes of trapped charges, have been studied. The results indicate a distinct pattern of variation of VFTO peak along the nodes of the GIS bus in the case of disconnector switch operation as compared to that of circuit-breaker operation. It has also been noticed that the variation of VFTO peak levels are not in direct proportion to the trapped charge present on the HV bus.

Influence of Phase Connection and Terminal Conditions on Natural Frequencies of Three-Phase Transformer Windings

With the increasing use of extra high-voltage transmission in power system expansion, the manufacturers of power apparatus and the electric utilities are studying the nature of overvoltages in power systems due to lightning and, in particular, switching operations. For such analyses, knowledge of the natural frequencies of the windings of transformers under a wide variety of conditions is important. The work reported by the author in a previous paper is extended and equivalent circuits have been developed to represent several sets of terminal conditions. These equivalent circuits can be used to determine the natural frequencies and transient voltages in the windings. Comparison of the measured and the computed results obtained with a model transformer indicates that they are in good agreement. Hence, this method of analysis provides a satisfactory procedure for the estimation of natural frequencies and transient voltages in transformer windings.

Catabolite repression of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase by a zinc finger protein under biotin- and pyruvate carboxylase-deficient conditions in Pichia pastoris

We have identified a methanol- and biotin-starvation-inducible zinc finger protein named ROP [repressor of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK)] in the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris. When P. pastoris strain GS115 (wild-type, WT) is cultured in biotin-deficient, glucose-ammonium (Bio(-)) medium, growth is suppressed due to the inhibition of anaplerotic synthesis of oxaloacetate, catalysed by the biotin-dependent enzyme pyruvate carboxylase (PC). Deletion of ROP results in a strain (Delta ROP) that can grow under biotin-deficient conditions due to derepression of a biotin- and PC-independent pathway of anaplerotic synthesis of oxaloacetate. Northern analysis as well as microarray expression profiling of RNA isolated from WT and Delta ROP strains cultured in Bio(-) medium indicate that expression of the phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase gene (PEPCK) is induced in Delta ROP during biotin- or PC-deficiency even under glucose-abundant conditions. There is an excellent correlation between PEPCK expression and growth of Delta ROP in Bio(-) medium, suggesting that ROP-mediated regulation of PEPCK may have a crucial role in the biotin- and PC-independent growth of the Delta ROP strain. To our knowledge, ROP is the first example of a zinc finger transcription factor involved in the catabolite repression of PEPCK in yeast cells cultured under biotin- or PC-deficient and glucose-abundant conditions.

Null Dereference Verification via Over-approximated Weakest Pre-conditions Analysis

Null dereferences are a bane of programming in languages such as Java. In this paper we propose a sound, demand-driven, inter-procedurally context-sensitive dataflow analysis technique to verify a given dereference as safe or potentially unsafe. Our analysis uses an abstract lattice of formulas to find a pre-condition at the entry of the program such that a null-dereference can occur only if the initial state of the program satisfies this pre-condition. We use a simplified domain of formulas, abstracting out integer arithmetic, as well as unbounded access paths due to recursive data structures. For the sake of precision we model aliasing relationships explicitly in our abstract lattice, enable strong updates, and use a limited notion of path sensitivity. For the sake of scalability we prune formulas continually as they get propagated, reducing to true conjuncts that are less likely to be useful in validating or invalidating the formula. We have implemented our approach, and present an evaluation of it on a set of ten real Java programs. Our results show that the set of design features we have incorporated enable the analysis to (a) explore long, inter-procedural paths to verify each dereference, with (b) reasonable accuracy, and (c) very quick response time per dereference, making it suitable for use in desktop development environments.