The σ<Emphasis Type="Italic">g</Emphasis>-Drazin Inverse and the Generalized Mbekhta Decomposition

In this paper we define and study an extension of the g-Drazin for elements of a Banach algebra and for bounded linear operators based on an isolated spectral set rather than on an isolated spectral point. We investigate salient properties of the new inverse and its continuity, and illustrate its usefulness with an application to differential equations. Generalized Mbekhta subspaces are introduced and the corresponding extended Mbekhta decomposition gives a characterization of circularly isolated spectral sets.     

The harmonic consistency index for the analytic hierarchy process

A new consistency measure, the harmonic consistency index, is obtained for any positive reciprocal matrix in the analytic hierarchy process. We show how this index varies with changes in any matrix element. A tight upper bound is provided for this new consistency measure when the entries of matrix are at most 9, as is often recommended. Using simulation, the harmonic consistency index is shown to give numerical values similar to the standard consistency index but it is easier to compute and interpret. In addition, new properties of the column sums of reciprocal matrices are obtained.     

Photothermal techniques applied to the determination of the water vapor diffusion coefficient and thermal diffusivity of edible films.

Water vapor diffusion coefficient (WVDC) and thermal diffusivity (alpha) were determined in gelatin-starch films through photothermal techniques. The effect of different variables in the elaboration of these films, such as starch and glycerol concentrations and pH, were evaluated through the response surface methodology. The results indicated that an increase in the glycerol concentration and pH favored the WVDC of the films. On the other hand, alpha was influenced principally by the starch content and pH of the film-forming solution. The minimum alpha value was 4.5 x 10(-4) cm2/s, which is compared with alpha values reported for commercial synthetic polymers.     

High-Throughput Screening of Ten Microcystins and Nodularins, Cyanobacterial Peptide Hepatotoxins, by Reversed-Phase Liquid Chromatography-Electrospray Ionisation Mass Spectrometry

Liquid chromatography-electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry was evaluated in the high-throughput analysis of microcystins and nodularins, cyanobacterial peptide hepatotoxins. Extracts originating from cyanobacterial strains and field material were separated on a 30 mm × 4 mm I.D. Merck Purospher STAR RP-18e column using a rapid gradient of aqueous formic acid and acetonitrile, ionised by electrospray technique and analysed on a Micromass Quattro II triple-quadrupole mass spectrometer operated in the selected ion recording (SIR) mode. The total analysis time per sample was 2.8 min corresponding to 514 samples a day. The system showed good robustness during a series of 320 repetitive injections of a field sample containing three major microcystins.     

Solution of the hyperbolic mild‐slope equation using the finite volume method

A finite volume solver for the 2D depth‐integrated harmonic hyperbolic formulation of the mild‐slope equation for wave propagation is presented and discussed. The solver is implemented on unstructured triangular meshes and the solution methodology is based upon a Godunov‐type second‐order finite volume scheme, whereby the numerical fluxes are computed using Roe's flux function. The eigensystem of the mild‐slope equations is derived and used for the construction of Roe's matrix. A formulation that updates the unknown variables in time implicitly is presented, which produces a more accurate and reliable scheme than hitherto available. Boundary conditions for different types of boundaries are also derived. The agreement of the computed results with analytical results for a range of wave propagation/transformation problems is very good, and the model is found to be virtually paraxiality‐free. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Energy dissipation prediction in a line of colliding oscillators

In this paper the impact of a line of adjacent structures, or oscillators, is studied using an energy formulation. The energy exchange and dissipation from a collision of a pair of oscillators is studied by creating an equivalent oscillator pair, one has the energy of the in-phase motion and the other has the out-of-phase energy. It is found that the energy exchange between colliding oscillators is proportional to the initial kinetic energy difference of the oscillators and that work in the collision is proportional to the out-of-phase energy or difference energy. The kinetic energy at contact is then related to the mean oscillator energy, permitting a power balance equation to be written for each oscillator in line. The power balance equations have three independent variables for each pair of oscillators: the oscillator time averaged energies and the phase difference. This equation is run in a time-stepping procedure, with steps at the mean collision rate. The work in the collisions and internal oscillator dissipation is output as a function of time. A parameter study is conducted to see how the work changes with oscillator: separation, contact stiffness and contact damping.     

The magnetism of rare earth intermetallics RFe4Al8

Hyperfine Interactions - The YFe4Al8 and ErFe4Al8 intermetallics were studied by57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy between 2 K and room temperature. The spectra are consistent with iron occupying 8f...     

Some properties of the bilevel programming problem

The purpose of this paper is to elaborate on the difficulties accompanying the development of efficient algorithms for solving the bilevel programming problem (BLPP). We begin with a pair of examples showing that, even under the best of circumstances, solutions may not exist. This is followed by a proof that the BLPP is NP-hard.This work was partially supported by a grant from the Advanced Research Program of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.