Nonlinear integral resonant controller for vibration reduction in nonlinear systems

A new nonlinear integral resonant controller (NIRC) is introduced in this paper to suppress vibration in nonlinear oscillatory smart structures. The NIRC consists of a first-order resonant integrator that provides additional damping in a closed-loop system response to reduce high-amplitude nonlinear vibration around the fundamental reso-nance frequency. The method of multiple scales is used to obtain an approximate solution for the closed-loop system. Then closed-loop system stability is investigated using the resulting modulation equation. Finally, the effects of different control system parameters are illustrated and an approximate solution response is verified via numerical simulation results. The advantages and disadvantages of the proposed controller are presented and extensively discussed in the results. The controlled system via the NIRC shows no high-amplitude peaks in the neighboring frequencies of the resonant mode, unlike conventional second-order compensation methods. This makes the NIRC controlled system robust to excitation frequency variations.     

Effect of Al<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> phases on the enhancement of thermal conductivity and viscosity of nanofluids in engine oil

Thermal conductivity of α-Al₂O₃ was measured using hot wire method. α-Al₂O₃ (20 nm in size) was synthesized by microwave method for which, the results were compared with commercially available γ-Al₂O₃. Thermal conductivity of nanofluids was investigated considering, it is dependency on Al₂O₃ phase. It was observed that by adding 3 wt% of nano γ-Al₂O₃ and α-Al₂O₃ to the engine oil, thermal conductivity increases by 37 and 31%, respectively. The corresponding viscosity increase for the same amount of nano γ-Al₂O₃ and α-Al₂O₃ were 36 and 38%, respectively. It was concluded that the differences in thermal conductivity originate from higher specific surface area of γ-Al₂O₃ compared to the α-Al₂O₃ which is the result of porosity difference, obtained during the synthesis process.     

A novel numerical scheme for the investigation of surface tension effects on growth and collapse stages of cavitation bubbles

In the present study the effects of surface tension on the growth and collapse stages of cavitation bubbles are studied individually for both spherical and nonspherical bubbles. The Gilmore equation is used to simulate the spherical bubble dynamics by considering mass diffusion and heat transfer. For the collapse stage near a rigid boundary, the Navier–Stokes and energy equations are used to simulate the flow domain, and the VOF method is adopted to track the interface between the gas and the liquid phases. Simulations are divided into two cases. In the first case, the collapse stage alone is considered in both spherical and nonspherical situations with different conditions of bubble radius and surface tension. According to the results, surface tension has no significant effects on the flow pattern and collapse rate. In the second case, both the growth and collapse stages of bubbles with different initial radii and surface tensions are considered. In this case surface tension affects the growth stage considerably and, as a result, the jet velocity and collapse time decrease with increasing surface tension coefficient. This effect is more significant for bubbles with smaller radii.     

Investigation the effects of shear rate on stationary droplets coalescence by lattice Boltzmann

Coalescence is the process by which two or more droplets merge to form a single droplet. It can take place in many processes, ranging from meteorology to astrophysics. When two stationary droplets are suspended in a bulk vapor, if the gap between the droplets has been smaller than a critical value, the two droplets will coalesce. In this paper, single component, two phase flow is modeled under shear flow using a free energy lattice Boltzmann approach and the coalescence of stationary droplets are investigated for different cases of radius and shear rate. The results show that there is a critical gap between droplets and for the values larger than that they will not coalesce. Also in the case of constant thermophysical properties, this critical gap is a function of droplet radius and shear rate.     

Highly tunable elastic dielectric metasurface lenses

Dielectric metasurfaces are two‐dimensional structures composed of nano‐scatterers that manipulate the phase and polarization of optical waves with subwavelength spatial resolution, thus enabling ultra‐thin components for free‐space optics. While high performance devices with various functionalities, including some that are difficult to achieve using conventional optical setups have been shown, most demonstrated components have fixed parameters. Here, we demonstrate highly tunable dielectric metasurface devices based on subwavelength thick silicon nano‐posts encapsulated in a thin transparent elastic polymer. As proof of concept, we demonstrate a metasurface microlens operating at 915 nm, with focal distance tuning from 600 μm to 1400 μm (over 952 diopters change in optical power) through radial strain, while maintaining a diffraction limited focus and a focusing efficiency above 50%. The demonstrated tunable metasurface concept is highly versatile for developing ultra‐slim, multi‐functional and tunable optical devices with widespread applications ranging from consumer electronics to medical devices and optical communications.

     

Phytochemical analysis and antimicrobial activities of methanolic extracts of leaf, stem and root from different varieties of Labisa pumila Benth

A local herb, Kacip Fatimah, is famous amongst Malay women for its uses in parturition; however, its phytochemical contents have not been fully documented. Therefore, a study was performed to evaluate the phenolics, flavonoids, and total saponin contents, and antibacterial and antifungal properties of the leaf, stem and root of three varieties of Labisia pumila Benth. Total saponins were found to be higher in the leaves of all three varieties, compared to the roots and stems. Leaves of var. pumila exhibited significantly higher total saponin content than var. alata and lanceolata, with values of 56.4, 43.6 and 42.3 mg diosgenin equivalent/g dry weight, respectively. HPLC analyses of phenolics and flavonoids in all three varieties revealed the presence of gallic acid, caffeic acid, rutin, and myricetin in all plant parts. Higher levels of flavonoids (rutin, quercitin, kaempferol) were observed in var. pumila compared with alata and lanceolata, whereas higher accumulation of phenolics (gallic acid, pyrogallol) was recorded in var. alata, followed by pumila and lanceolata. Antibacterial activities of leaf, stem and root extracts of all varieties determined against both Gram positive (Micrococcus luteus, Bacillus subtilis B145, Bacillus cereus B43, Staphylococcus aureus S1431) and Gram negative (Enterobacter aerogenes, Klebsiella pneumonia K36, Escherichia coli E256, Pseudomonas aeruginosa PI96) pathogens showed that crude methanolic extracts are active against these bacteria at low concentrations, albeit with lower antibacterial activity compared to kanamycin used as the control. Antifungal activity of methanolic extracts of all plant parts against Fusarium sp., Candida sp. and Mucor using the agar diffusion disc exhibited moderate to appreciable antifungal activities compared to streptomycin used as positive control.     

Transmission dynamics of novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 among healthcare workers,a case study in Iran

One of the main concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic was the protection of healthcare workers against the novel coronavirus. The critical role and vulnerability of healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic leads us to derive a mathematical model to express the spread of coronavirus between the healthcare workers. In the first step, the SECIRH model is introduced, and then the mathematical equations are written. The proposed model includes eight state variables, i.e., Susceptible, Exposed, Carrier, Infected, Hospitalized, ICU admitted, Dead, and finally Recovered. In this model, the vaccination, protective equipment, and recruitment policy are considered as preventive actions. The formal confirmed data provided by the Iranian ministry of health is used to simulate the proposed model. The simulation results revealed that the proposed model has a high degree of consistency with the actual COVID-19 daily statistics. In addition, the roles of vaccination, protective equipment, and recruitment policy for the elimination of coronavirus among the healthcare workers are investigated. The results of this research help the policymakers to adopt the best decisions against the spread of coronavirus among healthcare workers.

     

Rock Porous Structure Characterization: A Critical Assessment of Various State-of-the-Art Techniques

Transport in Porous Media - The porous structure of geomaterials is of utmost importance for various industrial and natural processes. In this study, various conventional porous structure...     

A Capillary Water-Retention Framework for the Effective Stress Parameter Considering Hydraulic Hysteresis

Transport in Porous Media - The establishment of the representative elementary volume (REV) in studies of porous media is crucial for linking microscopic structure and pore-scale fluid...