Caractéristiques diphasiques des écoulements sur les coursiers en marches d'escalier

Stepped cascades and spillways have been used for more than 3,500 years. The recent regain of interest for the stepped chute design is associated with the introduction of new construction techniques, the development of new design techniques and newer applications. Stepped chute flows are characterised by significant free-surface aeration that cannot be neglected. Two-phase flow measurements were conducted in a large-size model (h =0.10 m, α = 22o). Experimental observations demonstrate the existence of a transition flow regime for a relatively wide range of flow rates. Detailed air-water flow measurements were conducted for both skimming flows and transition flows. Skimming flows exhibit gradual variations of the air-water flow properties, whereas transition flows are characterised by rapid flow redistributions between adjacent steps.

Drop penetration into porous powder beds

The kinetics of drop penetration were studied by filming single drops of several different fluids (water, PEG200, PEG600, and HPC solutions) as they penetrated into loosely packed beds of glass ballotini, lactose, zinc oxide, and titanium dioxide powders. Measured times ranged from 0.45 to 126 s and depended on the powder particle size,viscosity, surface tensions, and contact angle. The experimental drop penetration times were compared to existing theoretical predictions by M. Denesuk et al. (J. Colloid Interface Sci. 158, 114, 1993) and S. Middleman (Modeling Axisymmetric Flows: Dynamics of Films, Jets, and Drops, Academic Press, San Diego, 1995) but did not agree. Loosely packed powder beds tend to have a heterogeneous bed structure containing large macrovoids which do not participate in liquid flow but are included implicitly in the existing approach to estimating powder pore size. A new two-phase model was proposed where the total volume of the macrovoids was assumed to be the difference between the bed porosity and the tap porosity. A new parameter, the effective porosity (epsilon)eff, was defined as the tap porosity multiplied by the fraction of pores that terminate at a macrovoid and are effectively blocked pores. The improved drop penetration model was much more successful at estimating the drop penetration time on all powders and the predicted times were generally within an order of magnitude of the experimental results. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science (USA).

Competition and resource availability in an annual plant community dominated by an invasive species, Carrichtera annua (L. Aschers.), in South Australia

The last decade has seen spirited debates about how resource availability affect the intensity of competition. This paper examines the effect that a dominant introduced species, Carrichtera annua, has upon the winter annual community in the arid chenopod shrublands of South Australia. Manipulative field experiments were conducted to assess plant community response to changing below-ground resource levels and to the manipulation of the density of C. annua. Changes in the density of C. annua had little effect on the abundance of all other species in the guild. Nutrient addition produced an increase in the biomass of the most abundant native species, Crassula colorata. An analysis of the root distribution of the main species suggested that the areas of soil resource capture of C. annua and C. colorata are largely segregated. Our results suggest that intraspecific competition may be stronger than interspecific competition, controlling the species responses to increased resource availability. The results are consistent with a two-phase resource dynamics systems, with pulses of high resource availability triggering growth, followed by pulses of stress. Smaller plants were nutrient limited under natural field conditions, suggesting that stress experienced during long interpulse phases may override competitive effects after short pulse phases. The observed differences in root system structure will determine when plants of a different species are experiencing a pulse or an interpulse phase. We suggest that the limitations to plant recruitment and growth are the product of a complex interplay between the length and intensity of the pulse of resource availability, the duration and severity of the interpulse periods, and biological characters of the species.

Horizontal rotating cylinder - A compact apparatus for studying the effect of water wetting on carbon dioxide corrosion of mild steel

Water wetting is a crucial issue in carbon dioxide (CO.) corrosion of multiphase flow pipelines made from mild steel. This study demonstrates the use of a novel benchtop apparatus, a horizontal rotating cylinder, to study the effect of water wetting on CO2 corrosion of mild steel in two-phase flow. The setup is similar to a standard rotating cylinder except for its horizontal orientation and the presence of two phases-typically water and oil. The apparatus has been tested by using mass-transfer measurements and CO2 corrosion measurements in single-phase water flow. CO2 corrosion measurements were subsequently performed using a water/hexane mixture with water cuts varying between 5% and 50%. While the metal surface was primarily hydrophilic under stagnant. conditions, a variety of dynamic water wetting situations was encountered as the water cut and fluid velocity were altered. Threshold velocities were identified at various water cuts when the surface became oil-wet and corrosion stopped.

Effect of particle hydrophobicity on particle and water transport across a flotation froth

Froth recovery measurements have been conducted in both the presence (three-phase froth) and absence (two-phase froth) of particles of different contact angles in a specially modified laboratory flotation column. Increasing the particle hydrophobicity increased the flow rate of particles entering the froth, while the recovery of particles across the froth phase itself also increased for particle contact angles to 63 and at all vertical heights of the froth column. However, a further increase in the contact angle to 69 resulted in lower particle recovery across the froth phase. The reduced froth recovery for particles of 69 contact angle was linked to significant bubble coalescence within the froth phase. The reduced froth recovery occurred uniformly across the entire particle size range, and was, presumably, a result of particle detachment from coalescing bubbles. Water flow rates across the froth phase also varied with particle contact angle. The general trend was a decrease in the concentrate flow rate of water with increasing particle contact angle. An inverse relationship between water flow rate and bubble radius was also observed, possibly allowing prediction of water flow rate from bubble size measurements in the froth. Comparison of the froth structure, defined by bubble size, gas hold-up and bubble layer thickness, for two- and three-phase froths, at the same frother concentration, showed there was a relationship between water flow rate and froth structure. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effectiveness of screening for risk of medical emergencies in the elderly

Study objective: UK government policy mandates the introduction of 'intermediate care services' to reduce emergency admissions to hospital from the population aged 75 years or more. We evaluated one of these initiatives-the Keep Well At Home (KWAH) Project-in a West London Primary Care Trust. Design: KWAH involves a two-phase screening process, including a home visit by a community nurse. We employed cohort methods to determine whether KWAH resulted in fewer emergency attendances and admissions to hospital in the target population, from October 1999 to December 2002. Results: estimated levels of coverage in the two phases of screening were 61 and 32%, respectively. The project had not maintained records of which additional health and social care services had been delivered following screening. The rates of emergency admissions to hospital in the 9 months before screening were similar in practices that did and did not join the project (rate ratio (RR) = 1.05; 95% CI 0.95-1.17), suggesting absence of volunteer bias. Over the first 37 months of the project, there was no significant impact on either attendances at Accident & Emergency departments (RR = 1.02; 95% CI 0.97-1.06) or emergency admissions of elderly patients (RR = 0.98; 95% CI 0.93-1.05). Conclusion: the KWAH Project has been ineffective in reducing emergency admissions among the elderly. Significant questions arise in relation to selection of the screening instruments, practicality of achieving higher coverage of the eligible population, and creation of a new postcode lottery.

The stability of lipidic analogues of GnRH in plasma and kidney preparations: the stereoselective release of the parent peptide

The conjugation of a lipoamino acid to the N-terminus of Gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) produces a lipophilic peptide from which the parent GnRH peptide is released into solution on treatment with plasma and kidney enzyme preparation. Our findings show that one stereoisomer of the Laa is cleaved very rapidly, providing a bolus dose of the peptide while the opposite stereoisomer is cleaved much more slowly, providing prolonged elevation of peptide concentration. The Laa-Glu linkage appears to act as a two phase prodrug system. © 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effect of positive end-expiratory pressure level on peak expiratory flow during manual hyperinflation

Including positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) in the manual resuscitation bag (MRB) may render manual hyperinflation (MHI) ineffective as a secretion maneuver technique in mechanically ventilated patients. In this study we aimed to determine the effect of increased PEEP or decreased compliance on peak expiratory flow rate (PEF) during MHI. A blinded, randomized study was performed on a lung simulator by 10 physiotherapists experienced in MHI and intensive care practice. PEEP levels of 0-15 cm H2O, compliance levels of 0.05 and 0.02 L/cm H2O, and MRB type were randomized. The Mapleson-C MRB generated significantly higher PEF (P < 0.01, d = 2.72) when compared with the Laerdal MRB for all levels of PEEP. In normal compliance (0.05 L/cm H2O) there was a significant decrease in PEF (P < 0.01, d = 1.45) for a PEEP more than 10 cm H2O in the Mapleson-C circuit. The Laerdal MRB at PEEP levels of more than 10 cm H2O did not generate a PEF that is theoretically capable of producing two-phase gas-liquid flow and, consequently, mobilizing pulmonary secretions. If MHI is indicated as a result of mucous plugging, the Mapleson-C MRB may be the most effective method of secretion mobilization.

Aeration for plant root respiration in a tidal marsh

This paper investigates the tidal effects on aeration conditions for plant root respiration in a tidal marsh. We extend the work of Ursino et al. ( 2004) by using a two-phase model for air and water flows in the marsh. Simulations have been conducted to examine directly the link between the airflow dynamics and the aeration condition in the marsh soil. The results show that the effects of entrapped air on water movement in the vadose zone are significant in certain circumstances. Single-phase models based on Richards' equation, which neglect such effects, may not be adequate for quantifying the aeration condition in tidal marsh. The optimal aeration condition, represented by the maximum of the integral magnitude of tidally advected air mass ( TAAM) flux, is found to occur near the tidal creek for the four soil textures simulated. This may explain the observation that some salt marsh plant species grow better near tidal creeks than in the inner marsh areas. Our analyses, based on the two-phase model and predicted TAAM flux magnitude, provide further insight into the positive feedback'' mechanism proposed by Ursino et al. ( 2004). That is, pioneer plants may grow successfully near the creek where the root aeration condition is optimal. The roots of the pioneer plants can soften and loosen the rhizosphere soil, which increases the evapotranspiration rate, the soil porosity, and absolute permeability and weakens the capillary effects. These, in turn, improve further the root aeration conditions and may lead to colonization by plants less resistant to anaerobic conditions.

Thermal strain in the mushy zone related to hot tearing

A volume-averaged two-phase model addressing the main transport phenomena associated with hot tearing in an isotropic mushy zone during solidification of metallic alloys has recently been presented elsewhere along with a new hot tearing criterion addressing both inadequate melt feeding and excessive deformation at relatively high solid fractions. The viscoplastic deformation in the mushy zone is addressed by a model in which the coherent mush is considered as a porous medium saturated with liquid. The thermal straining of the mush is accounted for by a recently developed model taking into account that there is no thermal strain in the mushy zone at low solid fractions because the dendrites then are free to move in the liquid, and that the thermal strain in the mushy zone tends toward the thermal strain in the fully solidified material when the solid fraction tends toward one. In the present work, the authors determined how variations in the parameters of the constitutive equation for thermal strain influence the hot tearing susceptibility calculated by the criterion. It turns out that varying the parameters in this equation has a significant effect on both liquid pressure drop and viscoplastic strain, which are key parameters in the hot tearing criterion. However, changing the parameters in this constitutive equation will result in changes in the viscoplastic strain and the liquid pressure drop that have opposite effects on the hot tearing susceptibility. The net effect on the hot tearing susceptibility is thus small.

A review of flow modeling for dense medium cyclones

A critical assessment is presented for the existing fluid flow models used for dense medium cyclones (DMCs) and hydrocyclones. As the present discussion indicates, the understanding of dense medium cyclone flow is still far from the complete. However, its similarity to the hydrocyclone provides a basis for improved understanding of fluid flow in DMCs. The complexity of fluid flow in DMCs is basically due to the existence of medium as well as the dominance of turbulent particle size and density effects on separation. Both the theoretical and experimental analysis is done with respect to two-phase motions and solid phase flow in hydrocyclones or DMCs. A detailed discussion is presented on the empirical, semiempirical, and the numerical models based upon both the vorticity-stream function approach and Navier-Stokes equations in their primitive variables and in cylindrical coordinates available in literature. The existing equations describing turbulence and multiphase flows in cyclone are also critically reviewed.

CFD simulations of hydrocyclones with an air core - Comparison between large eddy simulations and a second moment closure

CFD simulations of the 75 mm, hydrocyclone of Hsieh (1988) have been conducted using Fluent TM. The simulations used 3-dimensional body fitted grids. The simulations were two phase simulations where the air core was resolved using the mixture (Manninen et al., 1996) and VOF (Hirt and Nichols, 1981) models. Velocity predictions from large eddy simulations (LES), using the Smagorinsky-Lilly sub grid scale model (Smagorinsky, 1963; Lilly, 1966) and RANS simulations using the differential Reynolds stress turbulence model (Launder et al., 1975) were compared with Hsieh's experimental velocity data. The LES simulations gave very good agreement with Hsieh's data but required very fine grids to predict the velocities correctly in the bottom of the apex. The DRSM/RANS simulations under predicted tangential velocities, and there was little difference between the velocity predictions using the linear (Launder, 1989) and quadratic (Speziale et al., 1991) pressure strain models. Velocity predictions using the DRSM turbulence model and the linear pressure strain model could be improved by adjusting the pressure strain model constants.

Onset of sheath extension and duration of lamina extension are major determinants of the response of maize lamina length to plant density

Background and Aims Plants regulate their architecture strongly in response to density, and there is evidence that this involves changes in the duration of leaf extension. This questions the approximation, central in crop models, that development follows a fixed thermal time schedule. The aim of this research is to investigate, using maize as a model, how the kinetics of extension of grass leaves change with density, and to propose directions for inclusion of this regulation in plant models. • Methods Periodic dissection of plants allowed the establishment of the kinetics of lamina and sheath extension for two contrasting sowing densities. The temperature of the growing zone was measured with thermocouples. Two-phase (exponential plus linear) models were fitted to the data, allowing analysis of the timing of the phase changes of extension, and the extension rate of sheaths and blades during both phases. • Key Results The duration of lamina extension dictated the variation in lamina length between treatments. The lower phytomers were longer at high density, with delayed onset of sheath extension allowing more time for the lamina to extend. In the upper phytomers—which were shorter at high density—the laminae had a lower relative extension rate (RER) in the exponential phase and delayed onset of linear extension, and less time available for extension since early sheath extension was not delayed. • Conclusions The relative timing of the onset of fast extension of the lamina with that of sheath development is the main determinant of the response of lamina length to density. Evidence is presented that the contrasting behaviour of lower and upper phytomers is related to differing regulation of sheath ontogeny before and after panicle initiation. A conceptual model is proposed to explain how the observed asynchrony between lamina and sheath development is regulated.

Structural change in macroeconomic time series: A complex systems perspective

We demonstrate that the process of generating smooth transitions Call be viewed as a natural result of the filtering operations implied in the generation of discrete-time series observations from the sampling of data from an underlying continuous time process that has undergone a process of structural change. In order to focus discussion, we utilize the problem of estimating the location of abrupt shifts in some simple time series models. This approach will permit its to address salient issues relating to distortions induced by the inherent aggregation associated with discrete-time sampling of continuous time processes experiencing structural change, We also address the issue of how time irreversible structures may be generated within the smooth transition processes. (c) 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hepatic pharmacokinetics of propranolol in rats with adjuvant-induced systemic inflammation

Systemic inflammation is known to affect drug disposition in the liver. This study sought to relate and quantitate changes in hepatic pharmacokinetics of propranolol with changes in hepatic architecture and physiology in adjuvant-treated rats. Transmission electron microscopy was used to assess morphological changes in mitochondria and lysosomes of adjuvant-treated rat livers. The disposition of propranolol was assessed in the perfused rat liver using the multiple indicator dilution technique. Hepatic extraction and mean transit time were determined from outflow-concentration profiles using a nonparametric method. Kinetic parameters were derived from a two-phase physiologically based organ pharmacokinetic model. Possible relationships were then explored between the changes in hepatic drug disposition and cytochrome P-450 activity and iron concentration. Adjuvant treatment induced the appearance of mitochondrial inclusions/tubularization and irregularly shaped lysosomes in rat livers. Livers from adjuvant-treated rats had (relative to normal) significantly higher alpha(1)-acid glycoprotein (orosomucoid) and iron tissue concentrations but lower cytochrome P-450 content. The hepatic extraction, metabolism, and ion trapping of propranolol were significantly impaired in adjuvant-treated rats and could be correlated with altered iron store and cytochrome P-450 activity. It is concluded that adjuvant-induced systemic inflammation alters hepatocellular morphology and biochemistry and consequently influences hepatic disposition of propranolol.