Globally Convergent Inexact Quasi-Newton Methods for Solving Nonlinear Systems

Large scale nonlinear systems of equations can be solved by means of inexact quasi-Newton methods. A global convergence theory is introduced that guarantees that, under reasonable assumptions, the algorithmic sequence converges to a solution of the problem. Under additional standard assumptions, superlinear convergence is preserved.     

Validation of an Augmented Lagrangian Algorithm with a Gauss-Newton Hessian Approximation Using a Set of Hard-Spheres Problems

An Augmented Lagrangian algorithm that uses Gauss-Newton approximations of the Hessian at each inner iteration is introduced and tested using a family of Hard-Spheres problems. The Gauss-Newton model convexifies the quadratic approximations of the Augmented Lagrangian function thus increasing the efficiency of the iterative quadratic solver. The resulting method is considerably more efficient than the corresponding algorithm that uses true Hessians. A comparative study using the well-known package LANCELOT is presented.     

90Sr/90Y determination in milk by Cherenkov radiation after microwave digestion

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry - A separation procedure was developed and implemented for the isolation of gold (Au) and platinum (Pt) radionuclides from deuteron irradiated Pt...     

Assessment of radiation risk and radon exhalation rate for granite used in the construction industry

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry - The results of the gamma spectrometry analysis of the 40 samples of highly radioactive granites used in the construction industry in Serbia are...     

Triazole, benzotriazole, and naphthotriazole as copper corrosion inhibitors: I. Molecular electronic and adsorption properties

The gas-phase adsorption of 1,2,3-triazole, benzotriazole, and naphthotriazole-considered as corrosion inhibitors-on copper surfaces was studied and characterized using density functional theory (DFT) calculations. We find that the molecule-surface bond strength increases with increasing molecular size, thus following the sequence: triazole相似文献   

Electrochemical decolorization of C.I. Acid Orange 3 in the presence of sodium chloride at iridium oxide electrode

The electrocatalytic degradation of C.I. Acid Orange 3 from simulated wastewater by indirect electrochemical oxidation using an IrO_x electrode was investigated. The effects of different operating parameters on the rate of dye decolorization were studied. The influences of mixing, electrolyte concentration, applied current, and initial dye concentration were examined. The change in dye concentration was followed by ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy, while the formation of reaction intermediates was established using high-performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis. Ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy showed a decrease of the absorption peak at 374 nm during the electrolysis and the appearance of a new absorption maximum at 460 nm. The decolorization reaction can be followed only at 460 nm. Four intermediate products (two mono- and two dichlorinated) were detected. At the end of the study, a phytotoxicity assay was performed to determine the effectiveness of the applied method. The results showed that the applied electrochemical treatment of C.I. Acid Orange 3 leads to a decrease in phytotoxicity from 53 to 28%.     

Comparison of multianalyte proficiency test results by sum of ranking differences, principal component analysis, and hierarchical cluster analysis

Sum of ranking differences (SRD) was applied for comparing multianalyte results obtained by several analytical methods used in one or in different laboratories, i.e., for ranking the overall performances of the methods (or laboratories) in simultaneous determination of the same set of analytes. The data sets for testing of the SRD applicability contained the results reported during one of the proficiency tests (PTs) organized by EU Reference Laboratory for Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (EU-RL-PAH). In this way, the SRD was also tested as a discriminant method alternative to existing average performance scores used to compare mutlianalyte PT results. SRD should be used along with the z scores—the most commonly used PT performance statistics. SRD was further developed to handle the same rankings (ties) among laboratories. Two benchmark concentration series were selected as reference: (a) the assigned PAH concentrations (determined precisely beforehand by the EU-RL-PAH) and (b) the averages of all individual PAH concentrations determined by each laboratory. Ranking relative to the assigned values and also to the average (or median) values pointed to the laboratories with the most extreme results, as well as revealed groups of laboratories with similar overall performances. SRD reveals differences between methods or laboratories even if classical test(s) cannot. The ranking was validated using comparison of ranks by random numbers (a randomization test) and using seven folds cross-validation, which highlighted the similarities among the (methods used in) laboratories. Principal component analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis justified the findings based on SRD ranking/grouping. If the PAH-concentrations are row-scaled, (i.e., z scores are analyzed as input for ranking) SRD can still be used for checking the normality of errors. Moreover, cross-validation of SRD on z scores groups the laboratories similarly. The SRD technique is general in nature, i.e., it can be applied to any experimental problem in which multianalyte results obtained either by several analytical procedures, analysts, instruments, or laboratories need to be compared.