Bacteria and cancer cell pearl chain under dielectrophoresis

In this work, we aim to observe and study the physics of bacteria and cancer cells pearl chain formation under dielectrophoresis (DEP). Experimentally, we visualized the formation of Bacillus subtilis bacterial pearl chain and human breast cancer cell (MCF-7) chain under positive and negative dielectrophoretic force, respectively. Through a simple simulation with creeping flow, AC/DC electric fields, and particle tracing modules in COMSOL, we examined the mechanism by which bacteria self-organize into a pearl chain across the gap between two electrodes via DEP. Our simulation results reveal that the region of greatest positive DEP force shifts from the electrode edge to the leading edge of the pearl chain, thus guiding the trajectories of free-flowing particles toward the leading edge via positive DEP. Our findings additionally highlight the mechanism why the free-flowing particles are more likely to join the existing pearl chain rather than starting a new pearl chain. This phenomenon is primarily due to the increase in magnitude of electric field gradient, and hence DEP force exerted, with the shortening gap between the pearl chain leading edge and the adjacent electrode. The findings shed light on the observed behavior of preferential pearl chain formation across electrode gaps.     

Numerical simulations of viscoelastic particle migration in a microchannel with triangular cross-section

The migration of a spherical particle immersed in a viscoelastic liquid flowing in a microchannel with a triangular cross-section is investigated by direct numerical simulations under inertialess conditions. The viscoelastic fluid is modeled through two constitutive equations to investigate the effect of the second normal stress difference and the resulting secondary flows on the migration phenomenon. The results are presented in terms of trajectories followed by the particles released at different initial positions over the channel cross-section in a wide range of Weissenberg numbers and confinement ratios. Particles suspended in a fluid with a negligible second normal stress difference migrate toward the channel centerline or the closest wall, depending on their initial position. A much more complex dynamics is found for particles suspended in a fluid with a relevant second normal stress difference due to the appearance of secondary flows that compete with the migration phenomenon. Depending on the Weissenberg number and confinement ratio, additional equilibrium positions (points or closed orbits) may appear. In this case, the channel centerline becomes unstable and the particles are driven to the corners or “entrapped” in recirculation regions within the channel cross-section. The inversion of the centerline stability can be exploited to design efficient size-based separation devices.     

Investigation of viscoelastic focusing of particles and cells in a zigzag microchannel

Microfluidic particle focusing has been a vital prerequisite step in sample preparation for downstream particle separation, counting, detection, or analysis, and has attracted broad applications in biomedical and chemical areas. Besides all the active and passive focusing methods in Newtonian fluids, particle focusing in viscoelastic fluids has been attracting increasing interest because of its advantages induced by intrinsic fluid property. However, to achieve a well-defined focusing position, there is a need to extend channel lengths when focusing micrometer-sized or sub-microsized particles, which would result in the size increase of the microfluidic devices. This work investigated the sheathless viscoelastic focusing of particles and cells in a zigzag microfluidic channel. Benefit from the zigzag structure of the channel, the channel length and the footprint of the device can be reduced without sacrificing the focusing performance. In this work, the viscoelastic focusing, including the focusing of 10 μm polystyrene particles, 5 μm polystyrene particles, 5 μm magnetic particles, white blood cells (WBCs), red blood cells (RBCs), and cancer cells, were all demonstrated. Moreover, magnetophoretic separation of magnetic and nonmagnetic particles after viscoelastic pre-focusing was shown. This focusing technique has the potential to be used in a range of biomedical applications.     

Assessment of nanoparticle loading and dispersion in polymeric materials using optical wavefront correlation

Small concentrations (≤5 wt. %) of nanoparticles in polymeric materials can potentially result in improvements in material properties and functionality. However, poor or non-uniform particle dispersion resulting in clustering (agglomeration) in polymer nanocomposites (PNCs) limits the potential for property enhancement. Achieving good dispersion is considered essential for large-scale production and commercialization of PNCs. New and effective measurement techniques capable of quantitatively characterizing particle loading and dispersion would significantly contribute towards understanding and optimizing the material performance of PNCs and, consequently, play a pivotal role in product development. This paper presents the results of a study using a static light scattering technique, optical wavefront correlation (OWC), for discriminating between different particle loadings and levels of dispersion. The technique has been applied to a range of PNCs, including epoxy resins reinforced with nanoclay platelets or silica microspheres, and zinc oxide and lithium aluminate reinforced polypropylene.     

煤催化气化条件下不同煤种煤灰烧结行为研究

选取9类典型煤种,利用压差法测定烧结温度的实验装置,结合灰渣的XRD分析结果,考察了添加K基碱金属催化剂、不同煤种灰成分对烧结温度的影响。结果表明,碳酸钾催化剂的添加,明显降低高铁钙含量的WJT煤的灰熔点及烧结温度,碱金属K化合物极易同煤中Fe、Ca的矿物质反应生成低温共融物进而加剧煤灰的熔融结渣。不同煤种烧结温度的差异与煤灰中硅、铝、铁、钙含量密切相关。铝、硅含量高的煤灰烧结温度较高,而铁、钙含量高的煤灰烧结温度相对较低。碱金属K催化剂的添加加剧了煤灰的烧结结渣,而钙、铁的存在会加速硅铝酸盐间的反应生成低温共融物进而加速灰熔融。各煤种烧结温度的变化与其灰成分在CaO-SiO₂-Al₂O₃、FeO-SiO₂-Al₂O₃三元相图上的位置相吻合。     

激光烧蚀-多接收电感耦合等离子体质谱测定铀颗粒物中铀全同位素比值

建立了铀颗粒物中铀全同位素比值的分析方法,采用双面胶带装载铀颗粒物样品,优化激光烧蚀-多接收电感耦合等离子体质谱的运行参数,用标准样品交叉法校正质量分馏和探测器检测效率,测定了粒径几十微米的铀标准物质CRM124-1、GBW04234和GBW04238中铀全同位素比值.本方法对铀颗粒物中235U/238U、234 U/235U和236 U/235U测量的相对实验标准不确定度分别小于0.050％,1.7％和1.8％,测量结果与参考值在不确定度范围内符合.研究表明,本方法可快速、准确、高精度地测定铀颗粒物中铀全同位素比值.     

Characterization of Diamond Nanoparticles by High-Speed Micro-Thermal Field-Flow Fractionation

Micro-thermal field-flow fractionation was used to characterize the particle size distribution of nanometer-sized diamond nanoparticles. Although the experimental conditions were chosen to perform high-speed separation, and, consequently, the resolution achieved experimentally was not very high, the application of the original correction method for the zone spreading allowed for obtaining of very good calculated particle size distribution or, explicitly, a true polydispersity index of the diamond nanoparticle sample. The future use of several samples of diamond nanoparticles of different average sizes and different surface chemistries should allow deeper insight into the effect of these particulate characteristics on the retention in micro-thermal field-flow fractionation.     

复合纤维增强混凝土阻尼测试装置开发与试验研究

纤维与聚合物的掺入可以明显改善混凝土材料的阻尼性能。本文首先给出了正弦交变激励下粘弹性材料三点弯曲梁阻尼特性关系,其次首次自主开发了大尺寸材料的阻尼性能测试装置,然后利用开发的装置在频率(0.5~2.0Hz)条件下测定了6种不同配比复合纤维增强阻尼混凝土的损耗因子与储存模量,最后对纤维的阻尼增强机理进行了初步探讨。试验结果表明:复合纤维增强阻尼混凝土与素混凝土相比,提高了混凝土的损耗因子80%~200%。主要原因是聚合物分子在外力作用下的内耗增加了普通混凝土的阻尼能力,而纤维的阻尼增强机理在于纤维的掺入增加了纤维与水泥基材的界面摩擦力。     

跳马项目的三维实时动态测量系统

为跳马项目研究的电测系统中引入数字信号处理的传递函数及频谱分析的方法,采集和处理了因人体冲击三维力对信号的耦合干扰造成的十分复杂的响应信号,具有较高的动态测试精度.可以获得跳马动作的全部运动生物力学参数.现已用于中国国家体操队进行计算机辅助训炼.     

Open channel turbulent flow over hemispherical ribs

This paper reports an experimental investigation of open channel turbulent flow over hemispherical ribs. A row of ribs consists of hemispheres closely placed to one another in the spanwise direction and cover the entire span of the channel. The pitch-to-height ratio is varied to achieve the so-called d-type, intermediate and k-type roughness. The Reynolds numbers based on water depth, h, and momentum thickness, θ, of the approach flow are respectively, Re_h = 28,100 and Re_θ = 1800. A particle image velocimetry is used to obtain detailed velocity measurements in and above the cavity. Streamlines, mean velocity and time-averaged turbulent statistics are used to study the effects of pitch-to-height ratio on the flow characteristics and also to document similarities and differences between the present work and prior studies over two-dimensional transverse rods. It was observed that interaction between the outer flow and the shear layers generated by ribs is strongest for k-type and least for d-type ribs. The results also show that hemispherical ribs are less effective in augmenting flow resistance compared to two-dimensional transverse ribs. The levels of the Reynolds stresses and budget terms increase with increasing pitch-to-height ratio inside the roughness sublayer.