On the contact stiffness and nonlinear vibration of an elastic body with a rough surface in contact with a rigid flat surface

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Endothelial AT(1) and AT(2) pathways in aortic responses to angiotensin II after stress and ethanol consumption in rats

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

L-Carnitine supplementation impairs endothelium-dependent relaxation in mesenteric arteries from rats

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Complex modal analysis of a slender vertical rotor by finite elements method

In this paper, natural frequencies were analyzed (axial, torsional and flexural) and frequency response of a vertical rotor with a hard disk at the edge through the classical modal and complex analysis. The equation that rules the movement was obtained through the Lagrangian formulation. The model considered the effects of bending, torsion and axial deformation of the shaft, besides the gravitational and gyroscopic effects. The finite element method was used to discretize the structure into hollow cylindrical elements with 12 degrees of freedom. Mass, stiffness and gyroscopic matrices were explained consistently. The classical modal analysis, usually applied to stationary structures, does not consider an important characteristic of rotating machinery which are the methods of forward and backward whirl. Initially, through the traditional modal analysis, axial and torsional natural frequencies were obtained in a static shaft, since they do not suffer the influence of gyroscopic effects. Later research was performed by complex modal analysis. This type of tool, based on the use of complex coordinates to describe the dynamic behavior of rotating shaft, allows the decomposition of the system in two submodes, backward and forward. Thus, it is possible to clearly visualize that the orbit and direction of the precessional motion around the line of the rotating shaft is not deformed. A finite element program was developed using MATLAB (TM) and numerical simulations were performed to validate this model. Natural frequencies and directional frequency forced response (dFRF) were obtained using the complex modal analysis for a simple vertical rotor and also for a typical drill string used in the construction of oil wells.

Amplificador de potência para baixa frequência

In this work we report the development of a tube amplifier built to be used in magnetic probe diagnostic of plasma. The probe is used to measure the magnetic field in the theta-pinch system presently running in our university. We present the calculations and procedures to determine the configuration of circuits and specify the components of the power supply, the preamp stage and the power stage. The circuit configuration and the characteristics of the components was obtained. A representative model of the system behavior gave the transfer function of the amplifier. Theoretical predictions of frequency response and the feedback effects were compared to the experimental values and showed very good agreement. The amplifier works between a frequency bandwidth of 20 an 30 kHz and supply a maximum power of 12 W

Avaliação das doses de cães submetidos a exames radiográficos de pulmão

This study aims to determine surface skin doses in dogs (with suspected pulmonary metastasis) submitted to chest X-rays using the technique of thermoluminescence dosimetry. Twenty seven exams from different dogs were performed at the Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia da Universidade Estadual Paulista (FMVZ-UNESP/Botucatu). The doses were evaluated using thermoluminescent dosimeters of calcium sulphate doped with dysprosium (CaSO4:Dy) produced by the Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (IPEN-CNEN). The pulmonary metastasis exams are carried out in three projections, one dorsal-ventral and two lateral-lateral. During the procedures the projection thicknesses and source-skin surface distances were registered. To simulate the dog phantom the dosimeters were positioned in a cubic simulator (30x30x30 cm) of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) filled with water and irradiated according to the parameters of projections with the X-ray energies ranging from 45 to 70 kV. To estimate the surface skin dose the dose-response curves were obtained for X-ray energies of 50 and 70 kV using the diagnostic X-ray beam machine of the Instruments Calibration Laboratory of IPEN for doses of 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.5 and 4.0 mGy. The main difficulty of this work was the dog immobilization that is reflected in poor-quality diagnostic imaging and, consequently, demands the repetition of the exams, which contributes to the increase of the doses received by the animals being studied and the clinical staff. The doses evaluated in this type of procedure are between 0.43 and 4.22 mGy. This research has shown to be extremely important for the assessment of doses involved in veterinary diagnostic radiology procedures, and as a parameter in the individual monitoring of pet’s owners who assist the animal positioning and occupationally exposed workers of the Department of Veterinary Radiology

Novos peptídeos sintéticos e estudo da interação com membranas modelo: efeito de modificações no N-terminal na atividade lítica e antimicrobiana

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Effects of exercise training on stress-induced vascular reactivity alterations: role of nitric oxide and prostanoids

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Perivascular adipose tissue and vascular responses in healthy trained rats

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Advanced LIGO

The Advanced LIGO gravitational wave detectors are second-generation instruments designed and built for the two LIGO observatories in Hanford, WA and Livingston, LA, USA. The two instruments are identical in design, and are specialized versions of a Michelson interferometer with 4 km long arms. As in Initial LIGO, Fabry-Perot cavities are used in the arms to increase the interaction time with a gravitational wave, and power recycling is used to increase the effective laser power. Signal recycling has been added in Advanced LIGO to improve the frequency response. In the most sensitive frequency region around 100 Hz, the design strain sensitivity is a factor of 10 better than Initial LIGO. In addition, the low frequency end of the sensitivity band is moved from 40 Hz down to 10 Hz. All interferometer components have been replaced with improved technologies to achieve this sensitivity gain. Much better seismic isolation and test mass suspensions are responsible for the gains at lower frequencies. Higher laser power, larger test masses and improved mirror coatings lead to the improved sensitivity at mid and high frequencies. Data collecting runs with these new instruments are planned to begin in mid-2015.

Nanodisplacement measurements of piezoelectric flextensional actuators using a new interferometry homodyne method

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Michelson interferometer vibrometer using self-correcting synthetic-heterodyne demodulation

Synthetic-heterodyne demodulation is a useful technique for dynamic displacement and velocity detection in interferometric sensors, as it can provide an output signal that is immune to interferometric drift. With the advent of cost-effective, high-speed real-time signal-processing systems and software, processing of the complex signals encountered in interferometry has become more feasible. In synthetic heterodyne, to obtain the actual dynamic displacement or vibration of the object under test requires knowledge of the interferometer visibility and also the argument of two Bessel functions. In this paper, a method is described for determining the former and setting the Bessel function argument to a set value, which ensures maximum sensitivity. Conventional synthetic-heterodyne demodulation requires the use of two in-phase local oscillators; however, the relative phase of these oscillators relative to the interferometric signal is unknown. It is shown that, by using two additional quadrature local oscillators, a demodulated signal can be obtained that is independent of this phase difference. The experimental interferometer is aMichelson configuration using a visible single-mode laser, whose current is sinusoidally modulated at a frequency of 20 kHz. The detected interferometer output is acquired using a 250 kHz analog-to-digital converter and processed in real time. The system is used to measure the displacement sensitivity frequency response and linearity of a piezoelectric mirror shifter over a range of 500 Hz to 10 kHz. The experimental results show good agreement with two data-obtained independent techniques: the signal coincidence and denominated n-commuted Pernick method.

Nano-displacement measurements of a new piezoelectric flextensional actuator by using a high dynamic range interferometry homodyne method

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Output only based modal analysis of a reduced scale building using digital camera images

The article discusses a proposal of displacement measurement using a unique digital camera aiming at to exploit its feasibility for Modal Analysis applications. The proposal discusses a non-contact measuring approach able to measure multiple points simultaneously by using a unique digital camera. A modal analysis of a reduced scale lab building structure based only at the responses of the structure measured with the camera is presented. It focuses at the feasibility of using a simple ordinary camera for performing the output only modal analysis of structures and its advantage. The modal parameters of the structure are estimated from the camera data and also by using ordinary experimental modal analysis based on the Frequency Response Function (FRF) obtained by using the usual sensors like accelerometer and force cell. The comparison of the both analysis showed that the technique is promising noncontact measuring tool relatively simple and effective to be used in structural modal analysis

Interação entre as vias de sinalização de receptores serotoninérgicos e Β-adrenérgicos em artéria femoral de ratos

Fundamento: A doença coronária tem sido amplamente estudada em pesquisas cardiovasculares. No entanto, pacientes com doença arterial periférica (DAP) têm piores resultados em comparação àqueles com doença arterial coronariana. Portanto, os estudos farmacológicos com artéria femoral são altamente relevantes para a melhor compreensão das respostas clínicas e fisiopatológicas da DAP. Objetivo: Avaliar as propriedades farmacológicas dos agentes contráteis e relaxantes na artéria femoral de ratos. Métodos: As curvas de resposta de concentração à fenilefrina contrátil (FC) e à serotonina (5-HT) e os agentes relaxantes isoproterenol (ISO) e forskolina foram obtidos na artéria femoral de ratos isolada. Para as respostas ao relaxamento, os tecidos foram contraídos com FC ou 5-HT. Resultados: A potência de classificação na artéria femoral foi de 5-HT > FC para as respostas contráteis. Em tecidos contraídos com 5-HT, as respostas de relaxamento ao isoproterenol foram praticamente abolidas em comparação aos tecidos contraídos com FC. A forskolina, um estimulante da adenilil ciclase, restaurou parcialmente a resposta de relaxamento ao ISO em tecidos contraídos com 5-HT. Conclusão: Ocorre uma interação entre as vias de sinalização dos receptores β-adrenérgicos e serotoninérgicos na artéria femoral. Além disso, esta pesquisa fornece um novo modelo para estudar as vias de sinalização serotoninérgicas em condições normais e patológicas que podem ajudar a compreender os resultados clínicos na DAP.