Forced-air precooling of spherical foods in bulk: A parametric study

In this paper, a mathematical model for forced-air precooling of spherical food products in bulk is developed. The foods are arranged in horizontal layers stacked one above the other to form a rectangular parallelepiped with a vertical gap in between the product layers. The foods are cooled by chilled air blown along the height of the package. The governing equations for the conduction heat transfer in the foods, simultaneous heat and mass transfer at the food-air interface and in the air stream are solved numerically using finite-difference methods. A comprehensive numerical study is performed by varying the process parameters over a wide range. Typical results showing the variation of moist air properties along the height of the package and the effect of each parameter on the process time are presented. The ranges of parameters for advantageous operation of the precooling system are identified. Correlations are obtained for the process time based on the product center and mass-averaged temperatures in terms of process parameters.     

The multiple-scale wave equation

An analytic and numerical study of the behavior of the linear nonhomogeneous wave equation of the form ε²u_tt = Δu + tf with high wave speed (ε 1) is carried out. This study was initially motivated by meteorological observations which have indicated the presence of large spatial scale gravity waves in the neighborhood of a number of summer and winter storms, mainly from visible images of ripples in clouds in satellite photos. There is a question as to whether the presence of these waves is caused by the nearby storms. Since the linear wave equation is an approximation to the full system describing pressure waves in the atmosphere, yet is considerably more tractable, we have chosen to analyze the behavior of the linear nonhomogeneous wave equation with high wave speed. The analysis is shown to be valid in one, two, and three space dimensions. Partly because of the high wave speed, the solution is known to consist of behavior which changes on two different time scales, one rapid and one slow. Additionally, because of the presence of the nonhomogeneous forcing term tf, we show that there is a component of the solution which will vary only on a very large spatial scale. Since even the linearized wave equation can give rise to persistent large spatial scale waves under the right conditions, the implication is that certain storms could be responsible for the generation of large-scale waves. Numerical simulations in one and two dimensions confirm analytic results.     

On Producing Multiple Solutions Using Repeated Trials

The number of trials that is required by an algorithm to produce a given fraction of the problem solutions with a specified level of confidence is analyzed. The analysis indicates that the number of trials required to find a large fraction of the solutions rapidly decreases as the number of solutions obtained on each trial by an algorithm increases. In applications where multiple solutions are sought, this decrease in the number of trials could potentially offset the additional computational cost of algorithms that produce multiple solutions on a single trial. The analysis framework presented is used to compare the efficiency of a homotopy algorithm to that of a Newton method by measuring both the number of trials and the number of calculations required to obtain a specified fraction of the solutions.     

Left versus right canonical Wiener-Hopf factorization and realization

For an arbitrary rational matrix function, not necessarily analytic at infinity, the existence of a right canonical Wiener-Hopf factorization is characterized in terms of a left canonical Wiener-Hopf factorization. Formulas for the factors in a right factorization are given in terms of the formulas for the factors in a given left factorization. All formulas are based on a special representation of a rational matrix function involving a quintet of matrices.     

Lie-algebraic structure of integrable nonlinear dynamical systems on extended functional manifolds

We consider the general Lie-algebraic scheme of construction of integrable nonlinear dynamical systems on extended functional manifolds. We obtain an explicit expression for consistent Poisson structures and write explicitly nonlinear equations generated by the spectrum of a periodic problem for an operator of Lax-type representation.     

Investigation of invariant sets with random perturbations with the use of the Lyapunov function

We consider invariant sets of the form V(t, x) = 0, where V(t, x) is the Lyapunov function of the corresponding deterministic system. Translated from Ukrainskii Matematicheskii Zhurnal, Vol. 50, No. 2, pp. 309–312, February, 1998. This work was partially financially supported by the Ministry of Ukraine for Science and Technology.     

Poincaré’s inequalities and Talagrand’s concentration phenomenon for the exponential distribution

Summary. We present a simple proof, based on modified logarithmic Sobolev inequalities, of Talagrand’s concentration inequality for the exponential distribution. We actually observe that every measure satisfying a Poincaré inequality shares the same concentration phenomenon. We also discuss exponential integrability under Poincaré inequalities and its consequence to sharp diameter upper bounds on spectral gaps. Received: 10 June 1996 / In revised form: 9 August 1996     

Nonequilibrium Vibrational Kinetics during Hypersonic Flow of a Solid Body in Nitrogen and Its Influence on the Surface Heat Flux

Plasma Chemistry and Plasma Processing - Nonequilibrium nitrogen dissociation-recombination kinetics in the boundary layer and on the surface of a solid body during hypersonic flow. the subsequent...