Enterprise education: The frustration of a pure contest

Purpose This paper discusses the development of a strategy game for enterprise education. It is argued that requiring students to initially struggle with the game’s rules and strategies results in a worthwhile test of their persistence and ability to manage ambiguity. Further, that in the absence of uncertainty, students will not benefit from the game’s potential contribution to their overall learning. Approach The paper is constructed around the infusion of student narratives and the author’s self-reflective thoughts. The papers explores the process of developing a game that; - 1) provides the students with access to an enterprise reality, - 2) strengthens their engagement with the theoretical foundations of their studies, and; - 3) provides a process for serious self-reflection. Findings Despite the mixed views presented in this paper, the game’s development thus far has been very successful. Students do enjoy and benefit from enduring the frustration of a pure contest. Having to work through uncertainty is a good practice for students in Higher Education, especially those engaged in enterprise education. Practical Implications Whilst the use of games in experiential education is not uncommon, consideration of how and why they are developed is not always well understood. This paper suggests that enterprise educators have significant opportunities to develop games that genuinely provide student access to the entrepreneur’s way of life. Value of Paper This paper provides evidence of how a game can be constructed to add significant value to an existing curriculum. It also provides evidence of the inner thoughts of students frustrated by a challenge they refuse to give up on. As such, it provides a valuable window through which to contemplate the minds of tomorrow’s nascent entrepreneurs.

Open-circuit potential-time transient of the magnesium anode

On interrupting polarisation, the magnesium anode exhibits a negative overshoot in potential followed by a slow recovery to a steady state value. A model has been proposed to explain the opencircuit potential-time transient in terms of a spontaneous passivation of the metal and the consequent changes in the corrosion potential. Theoretical expressions have been derived for the timedependence of the open-circuit electrode potential. Calculated, potential-time curves thus obtained are in qualitative agreement with experimental data. A possible application of this phenomenon to develop non-destructive quality control tests of Mg, Li and Al-based dry cells has been pointed out.

Study of switching characteristics and thermal noise in ferroelectric crystals both in the pure and radiation damaged state

The phase transition in gamma-irradiated triglycine sulphate (TGS) has been investigated by using a method based on the measurement of thermal noise. The results of a study of the polarization switching characteristics of gamma irradiated TGS and sodium nitrite (NaNO2) have also been presented. The effect of irradiation on the phase transition and the switching processes has been discussed.

Preparation, Characterisation and Thermal Properties of Hydrazinium Magnesium Sulfate

Hydrazinium magnesium sulfate, (N2H5)2Mg(SO4)2, has been prepared by dissolving magnesium powder in a solution of ammonium sulfate in hydrazine hydrate, by the reaction of ammonium magnesium sulfate with hydrazine hydrate, and by the cocrystallisation of dihydrazinium sulfate and magnesium sulfate. The product has been characterized by chemical analysis and infrared spectra. Thermal analysis of (N2H5)2Mg(SO4)2 by TG and DTA show exothermic decomposition at 302°C giving Mg(N2H4)SO4 as an intermediate and an endother-mic decomposition at 504°C producing MgSO4.

The role of lithium and magnesium perchlorate ammines in ammonium perchlorate decomposition

The preparation and thermal decomposition of lithium and magnesium perchlorate ammines have been investigated. The catalytic effect of these ammines on AP decomposition has been studied. The catalytic effect of lithium and magnesium salts on AP decomposition has been attributed to the formation of the metal perchlorate ammine intermediate. In the case of a magnesium salt: AP mixture, the melting of the magnesium perchlorate monoammine intermediate seems to play an important role in catalysing the decomposition.

Specific polyadenylation and purification of total messenger RNA from Escherichia coli

Obtaining pure mRNA preparations from prokaryotes has been difficult, if not impossible, for want of a poly(A) tail on these messages, We have used poly(A) polymerase from yeast to effect specific polyadenylation of Escherichia coli polysomal mRNA in the presence of magnesium and manganese, The polyadenylated total mRNA, which could be subsequently purified by binding to and elution from oligo(dT) beads, had a size range of 0.4-4.0 kb. We have used hybridization to a specific plasmid-encoded gene to further confirm that the polyadenylated species represented mRNA, Withdrawal of Mg2+ from the polyadenylation reaction rRNA despite the presence of Mn2+, indicating the vital role of Mg2+ in maintaining the native structure of polysomes, Complete dissociation of polysomes into ribosomal subunits resulted in quantitative polyadenylation of both 16S and 23S rRNA species, Chromosomal lacZ gene-derived messages were quantitatively recovered in the oligo(dT)-bound fraction, as demonstrated by RT-PCR analysis, Potential advantages that accrue from the availability of pure total mRNA from prokaryotes is discussed.

Thermal performance of magnesium oxide wall board using numerical modelling

Fire resistance of light-gauge steel frame (LSF) walls can be enhanced by lining them with single or multiple layers of wall boards. This research is focused on the thermal per-formance of Magnesium Oxide (MgO) wall boards in comparison to the conventional gypsum plasterboards exposed to standard fire on one side. Thermal properties of MgO board and gypsum plasterboard were measured first and then used in the finite element heat transfer models of the two types of panels. The measured thermal property results show that MgO board will perform better than the gypsum plasterboards due to its higher specific heat values at elevated temperatures. However, MgO board loses 50% of its ini-tial mass at about 500 °C compared to 16% for gypsum plasterboard. The developed finite element models were validated using the fire test results of gypsum plasterboards and then used to study the thermal performance of MgO board panels. Finite element analysis re-sults show that when MgO board panels are exposed to standard fire on one side the rate of temperature rise on the ambient side is significantly reduced compared to gypsum plas-terboard. This has the potential to improve the overall thermal performance of MgO board lined LSF walls and their fire resistance levels (FRL). However, full scale fire tests are needed to confirm this. This paper presents the details of this investigation and the results.

Magnesium ion conducting, room temperature molten electrolytes

Room temperature, magnesium ion conducting binary molten electrolyte consisting of acetamide and magnesium perchlorate has been prepared and characterized. The molten liquid is very stable and shows high ionic conductivity, of the order of several mS cm(-1) at 25 degrees C with other favourable physicochemical properties. Vibrational spectroscopic studies reveal that the free ion concentration is higher than that of ion pairs and aggregates in the melt. The electrochemical reversibility of magnesium deposition and dissolution is demonstrated using voltammetry and impedance studies. Preliminary studies on rechargeable batteries assembled using gamma-MnO2 and Mg metal as the electrodes together with the molten electrolyte show high discharge capacity.

Influence of roughness parameters and surface texture on friction during sliding of pure lead over 080 M40 steel

In the present investigation, tests were conducted on a tribological couple made of cylindrical lead pin with spherical tip against 080 M40 steel plates of different textures with varying roughness under both dry and lubricated conditions using an inclined pin-on-plate sliding tester. Surface roughness parameters of the steel plates were measured using optical profilometer. The morphologies of the worn surfaces of the pins and the formation of transfer layer on the counter surfaces were observed using a scanning electron microscope. It was observed that the coefficient of friction and the formation of transfer layer depend primarily on the surface texture of hard surfaces. A newly formulated non-dimensional hybrid roughness parameter called 'xi' (a product of number of peaks and maximum profile peak height) of the tool surface plays an important role in determining the frictional behaviour of the surfaces studied. The effect of surfaces texture on coefficient of friction was attributed to the variation of plowing component of friction, which in turn depends on the roughness parameter 'xi'.

Development of novel grain morphology during hot extrusion of magnesium AZ21 alloy

Microstructure and microtexture evolution during static annealing of a hot-extruded AZ21 magnesium alloy was studied. Apart from fine recrystallized equiaxed grains and large elongated deformed grains, a new third kind of abnormal grains that are stacked one after the other in a row parallel to the extrusion direction were observed. The crystallographic misorientation inside these grains was similar to that of the fine recrystallized grains. The large elongated grains exhibited significant in-grain misorientation. A self-consistent mechanistic model was developed to describe the formation of these grain morphologies during dynamic recrystallization (DRX). The texture of pre-extruded material, although lost in DRX, leaves a unique signature which manifests itself in the form of these grain morphologies. The origin of abnormal stacked grains was associated with slow nucleation in pre-extruded grains of a certain orientation. Further annealing resulted in large secondary recrystallized grains with occasional extension twins. (c) 2009 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Diffusion of Pure CH4 and Its Binary Mixture with CO2 in Faujasite NaY: A Combination of Neutron Scattering Experiments and Molecular Dynamics Simulations

The self-diffusion properties of pure CH4 and its binary mixture with CO2 within MY zeolite have been investigated by combining an experimental quasi-elastic neutron scattering (QENS) technique and classical Molecular dynamics simulations. The QENS measurements carried out at 200 K led to an unexpected self-diffusivity profile for Pure CH4 with the presence of a maximum for a loading of 32 CH4/unit cell, which was never observed before for the diffusion of apolar species in azeolite system With large windows. Molecular dynamics simulations were performed using two distinct microscopic models for representing the CH4/NaY interactions. Depending on the model, we are able to fairly reproduce either the magnitude or the profile of the self-diffusivity.Further analysis allowed LIS to provide some molecular insight into the diffusion mechanism in play. The QENS measurements report only a slight decrease of the self-diffusivity of CH4 in the presence of CO2 when the CO2 loading increases. Molecular dynamics simulations successfully capture this experimental trend and suggest a plausible microscopic diffusion mechanism in the case of this binary mixture.

Physicochemical, spectroscopic and electrochemical characterization of magnesium ion-conducting, room temperature, ternary molten electrolytes

Room temperature, magnesium ion-conducting molten electrolytes are prepared using a combination of acetamide, urea and magnesium triflate or magnesium perchlorate. The molten liquids show high ionic conductivity, of the order of mS cm(-1) at 298 K. Vibrational spectroscopic studies based on triflate/perchlorate bands reveal that the free ion concentration is higher than that of ion-pairs and aggregates in the melt. Electrochemical reversibility of magnesium deposition and dissolution is demonstrated using cyclic voltammetry and impedance studies. The transport number of Mg2+ ion determined by means of a combination of d.c. and ac. techniques is similar to 0.40. Preliminary studies on the battery characteristics reveal good capacity for the magnesium rechargeable cell and open up the possibility of using this unique class of acetamide-based room temperature molten electrolytes in secondary magnesium batteries. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.