Design and experimental validation of a nonlinear controller for underactuated surface vessels

Nonlinear Dynamics - This paper addresses the problem of trajectory tracking control of an underactuated surface vessel moving in a two-dimensional space in the presence of unknown disturbances. In...     

Impact of High-Pressure Homogenization on the Cell Integrity of Tetradesmus obliquus and Seed Germination

Microalgae have almost unlimited applications due to their versatility and robustness to grow in different environmental conditions, their biodiversity and variety of valuable bioactive compounds. Wastewater can be used as a low-cost and readily available medium for microalgae, while the latter removes the pollutants to produce clean water. Nevertheless, since the most valuable metabolites are mainly located inside the microalga cell, their release implies rupturing the cell wall. In this study, Tetradesmus obliquus grown in 5% piggery effluent was disrupted using high-pressure homogenization (HPH). Effects of HPH pressure (100, 300, and 600 bar) and cycles (1, 2 and 3) were tested on the membrane integrity and evaluated using flow cytometry and microscopy. In addition, wheat seed germination trials were carried out using the biomass at different conditions. Increased HPH pressure or number of cycles led to more cell disruption (75% at 600 bar and 3 cycles). However, the highest increase in wheat germination and growth (40–45%) was observed at the lowest pressure (100 bar), where only 46% of the microalga cells were permeabilised, but not disrupted. Non-treated T. obliquus cultures also revealed an enhancing effect on root and shoot length (up to 40%). The filtrate of the initial culture also promoted shoot development compared to water (21%), reinforcing the full use of all the process fractions. Thus, piggery wastewater can be used to produce microalgae biomass, and mild HPH conditions can promote cell permeabilization to release sufficient amounts of bioactive compounds with the ability to enhance plant germination and growth, converting an economic and environmental concern into environmentally sustainable applications.     

Phenolic Compound Profile by UPLC-MS/MS and Encapsulation with Chitosan of Spondias mombin L. Fruit Peel Extract from Cerrado Hotspot—Brazil

Taperebá (Spondias mombin L.) is a native species of the Brazilian Cerrado that has shown important characteristics such as a significant phenolic compound content and biological activities. The present study aimed to characterize the phenolic compound profile and antioxidant activity in taperebá peel extract, as well as microencapsulating the extract with chitosan and evaluating the stability of the microparticles. The evaluation of the profile of phenolic compounds was carried out by UPLC-MS/MS. The in vitro antioxidant activity was evaluated by DPPH and ABTS methods. The microparticles were obtained by spray drying and were submitted to a stability study under different temperatures. In general, the results showed a significant content of polyphenols and antioxidant activity. The results of UPLC-MS/MS demonstrated a significant content of polyphenols in taperebá peel, highlighting the high content of ellagic acid and quercetin compounds. There was significant retention of phenolic compounds when microencapsulated, demonstrating high retention at all evaluated temperatures. This study is the first to microencapsulate the extract of taperebá peel, in addition to identifying and quantifying some compounds in this fruit.     

A multicommuted stop-flow system employing LEDs-based photometer for the sequential determination of anionic and cationic surfactants in water

It has been developed an automatic stop-flow procedure for sequential photometric determination of anionic and cationic surfactants in a same sample of water. The flow system was based on multicommutation process that was designed employing two solenoid micro-pumps and six solenoid pinch valves, which under microcomputer control carry out fluid propelling and reagent solutions handling. A homemade photometer using a photodiode as detector and two light emitting diodes (LEDs) with emission at 470 nm (blue) and 650 nm (red) as radiation sources, which was tailored to allow the determination of anionic and cationic surfactants in waters. The procedure for anionic surfactant determination was based on the substitution reaction of methyl orange (MO) by the anionic surfactant sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate (DBS) to form an ion-pair with the cetyl pyridine chloride (CPC). Features such as a linear response ranging from 0.35 to 10.5 mg L⁻¹ DBS (R = 0.999), a detection limit of 0.06 mg L⁻¹ DBS and a relative standard deviation of 0.6% (n = 11) were achieved. For cationic surfactant determination, the procedure was based on the ternary complex formation between cationic surfactant, Fe(III) and chromazurol S (CAS) using CPC as reference standard solution. A linear response range between 0.34 and 10.2 mg L⁻¹ CPC (R = 0.999), a detection limit of 0.05 mg L⁻¹ CPC and a relative standard deviation of 0.5% (n = 11) were obtained. In both cases, the sampling throughput was 60 determinations per hour. Reagents consumption of 7.8 μg MO, 8.2 μg CPC, 37.2 μg CAS and 21.6 μg Fe(III) per determination were achieved. Analyzing river water samples and applying t-test between the results found and those obtained using reference procedures for both surfactant types provide no significant differences at 95% confidence level.     

Influence of fused deposition modeling parameters on the mechanical properties of ABS parts

This work aims to determine the influence of fused deposition modeling (FDM) printing parameters on the mechanical properties of parts fabricated on an Ultimaker2 printer with acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS). The effect of several parameters such as interlayer cooling time (ILCT), nozzle diameter, infill density, raster angle and layer thickness on the ultimate tensile strength, yield strength, and elastic modulus of produced parts was evaluated. Two independent studies were conducted: a first study dedicated to the ILCT and a second study where the influence of other parameters was evaluated through a design of experiments (DoE) approach. Both studies were carried out through the execution of standard tensile tests. The statistical analysis of tensile tests results was processed with the ANOVA methodology. The obtained results indicate that a reduced ILCT improves the tensile strength of parts. It is shown that nozzle diameter and infill density are the parameters that most influence the mechanical properties of ABS, with the upper range selected values improving the studied mechanical properties. The raster angle configuration of (?45^o/45^o) benefits UTS and yield strength of ABS samples. Interactions of nozzle diameter on layer thickness were detected. It was observed that smaller layer thickness promotes a higher elastic modulus and UTS; however, for thinner layers (0.06‐0.10 mm), no significant differences were found on strength of samples due to potential high distortion levels.     

Granular segregation as a critical phenomenon

We present the results of an experimental study of patterned segregation in a horizontally shaken shallow layer of a binary mixture of dry particles. An order parameter for the segregated domains is defined and the effect of the variation of the combined filling fraction, C, of the mixture on the observed pattern formation is systematically studied. We find that there is a critical event associated with the onset of segregation, at C(c)=0.647+/-0.049, which has the characteristics of a continuous phase transition, including critical slowing down.     

A high statistics measurement of the Lambda(+)(c) lifetime

A high statistics measurement of the Lambda(+)(c) lifetime from the Fermilab fixed-target FOCUS photoproduction experiment is presented. We describe the analysis technique with particular attention to the determination of the systematic uncertainty. The measured value of 204.6 +/- 3.4 (stat) +/- 2.5 (syst) fs from 8034 +/- 122 Lambda(+)(c)-->pK(-)pi(+) decays represents a significant improvement over the present world average.     

Generation and propagation of a picosecond acoustic pulse at a buried interface: time-resolved x-ray diffraction measurements

We report on the propagation of coherent acoustic wave packets in (001) surface oriented Al0.3Ga0.7As/GaAs heterostructure, generated through localized femtosecond photoexcitation of the GaAs. Transient structural changes in both the substrate and film are measured with picosecond time-resolved x-ray diffraction. The data indicate an elastic response consisting of unipolar compression pulses of a few hundred picosecond duration traveling along [001] and [001] directions that are produced by predominately impulsive stress. The transmission and reflection of the strain pulses are in agreement with an acoustic mismatch model of the heterostructure and free-space interfaces.     

Adaptive dispersion compensation for remote fiber delivery of near-infrared femtosecond pulses

We report on remote delivery of 25-pJ broadband near-infrared femtosecond light pulses from a Ti:sapphire laser through 150 m of single-mode optical fiber. Pulse distortion caused by dispersion is overcome with precompensation by adaptive pulse shaping techniques, while nonlinearities are mitigated by use of an SF10 glass rod for the final stage of pulse compression. A near-transform-limited pulse duration of 130 fs was measured after the final compression.