Universal reconnection of non-Abelian cosmic strings

We show that local and semilocal strings in Abelian and non-Abelian gauge theories with critical couplings always reconnect classically in collision, by using moduli space approximation. The moduli matrix formalism explicitly identifies a well-defined set of the vortex moduli parameters. Our analysis of generic geodesic motion in terms of those shows right-angle scattering in head-on collision of two vortices, which is known to give the reconnection of the strings.     

A Strategy to Control the Reactivation of Frustrated Lewis Pairs from Shelf‐Stable Carbene Borane Complexes

N‐Phosphine oxide substituted imidazolylidenes (PoxIms) have been synthesized and fully characterized. These species can undergo significant changes to the spatial environment surrounding their carbene center through rotation of the phosphine oxide moiety. Either classical Lewis adducts (CLAs) or frustrated Lewis pairs (FLPs) are thus formed with B(C₆F₅)₃ depending on the orientation of the phosphine oxide group. A strategy to reactivate FLPs from CLAs by exploiting molecular motions that are responsive to external stimuli has therefore been developed. The reactivation conditions were successfully controlled by tuning the strain in the PoxIm–B(C₆F₅)₃ complexes so that reactivation only occurred above ambient temperature.     

Inelastic stress-responses of an aluminium alloy in non-proportional deformations at elevated temperature

Some characteristics of strain-induced anisotropy and effects of strain-rate on them are experimentally investigated under non-proportional loadings at elevated temperature. By applying combined loadings of axial force and internal pressure to thin-walled tubes of an aluminium alloy at 200°C, inelastic stress-responses are observed at several constant strain-rates along bilinear strain trajectories. It is found that a softening of material and a non-coaxiality between stress and inelastic strain-increment deviators occur after the corner of bilinear strain trajectory. These phenomena appear more markedly and then decay more gradually with the increase of corner angle and/or strain-rate. Experimental results are qualitatively discussed in terms of the activation of piled-up dislocations as well as the so-called back stress and drag stress.     

An experimental investigation on isoclinic parameters in viscoelastoplastic materials under cyclic stresses

Photovisco-elastoplasticity has been developed and applied to various problems in nonlinear stress analysis as an extension of photoelasticity into nonlinear photomechanics. In photoelasticity, because stress is simply related to strain, isochromatics are proportional to either the principal stress difference or the principal strain difference and isoclinics indicate the directions of either principal stresses or principal strains separately. However, in photovisco-elastoplasticity, these optical responses are nonlinearly related to both stress and strain state simultaneously. Thus isochromatics are related nonlinearly with both the principal stress and strain differences. Isoclinics depend on the direction of principal strain as well as that of principal stress. Concerning now isoclinic parameter: according to the results of experiments performed by us for the deformation state where the directions of principal stress and strain do not coincide with one another, it has been found that isoclinic parameter moves gradually from the direction of principal stress to that of principal strain with increasing viscous deformation under constant stress. In the present research, extending our previous investigations, the behavior of isoclinic parameter has been examined experimentally under cyclic stressing, where the direction of principal stress changes alternately. In the course of an experiment, the variation of isoclinic parameter in relation to the number of cycles was measured together with the corresponding strain state on the thin-walled tubular specimen of celluloid softened by heating, subjected to combined loading conditions consisting of constant axial tension and cyclic torsion. The results obtained may be summarized as follows.

1. The cyclic-variation phase of isoclinic parameter lags behind the cyclic-variation phase of the direction of principal stress. The phase difference between these cyclic variations remains constant regardless of the number of cycles.
2. Isoclinic parameter has a value close to the direction of the principal stress within a range of a small number of cycles and decreases with an increase in the number of cycles. However, it does not approach the direction of principal strain but a value between the direction of the principal stress and that of the principal strain, with a certain constant ratio to them.

     

Air/water two-phase flow test tunnel for airfoil studies

A test tunnel for the study of airfoil performances under air/water two-phase flow condition has been designed and constructed. This facility will serve for a better understanding of the flow phenomena and characteristics of hydraulic machinery under gas/ liquid two-phase flow operating conditions. At the test section of the tunnel, a two-dimensional isolated airfoil or a cascade of airfoils is installed in a two-phase inlet flow with a uniform velocity (up to 10 m/s) and void fraction (up to 12%) distribution. The details of the tunnel structure and the measuring systems are described and the basic characteristics of the constructed tunnel are also given. As an example of the test results, void fraction distribution around a test airfoil is shown.Dedicated to the 60th Birthday of Professor Klaus Gersten     

Rapid screening swine foot-and-mouth disease virus using micro-ELISA system

In order to tackle both regional and global foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) epdimics, we hereby develop a rapid microfluidic thermal lens microscopic method to screen swine type O FMDV with good efficiency. The scheme has great merits in terms of field portability, sample volume, assay time, analytical sensitivity, and test reproducibility.     

Stability of Pt(II)-based H2-evolving catalysts against H2 in aqueous solution

To answer the question of whether Pt(II)-based H(2)-evolving catalysts are stable upon exposure to H(2), the behaviours of some platinum(II) complexes in the presence of H(2) (5 × 10(-4) - 1 atm) have been followed spectrophotometrically. The results reveal that some catalysts are highly stable upon exposure to H(2).     

Microbial conversion of curcumin into colorless hydroderivatives by the endophytic fungus Diaporthe sp. associated with Curcuma longa

We investigated the microbial conversion of curcumin (1) using endophytic fungi associated with the rhizome of Curcuma longa (Zingiberaceae). We found that Diaporthe sp., an endophytic filamentous fungus, converts curcumin (1) into four colorless derivatives, namely (3R,5R)-tetrahydrocurcumin (2), a novel (3R,5S)-hexahydrocurcumin (3) named neohexahydrocurcumin, (3S,5S)-octahydrocurcumin (4) and meso-octahydrocurcumin (5).     

Interspecies comparison of chemical composition and anxiolytic-like effects of lavender oils upon inhalation

Essential oils have traditionally been used for decades to alleviate the symptoms of various mental problems. In terms of anxiolytic-like properties, lavender oil is probably the most commonly used and best-studied essential oil. Although there is compositional variance among the oils extracted from different origins, there have been few studies performed to date to investigate how these differences affect the expression of anxiolytic-like activity. This paper discusses the interspecies differences and contributions of the main constituents in the expression of anxiolytic-like effects upon inhalation, as assessed in mice by the elevated-plus maze test, by comparing the essential oils from six different species of Lavandula. The results showed qualitative and quantitative variations in the tested oils, which results in significant differences in their anxiolytic-like activities. Our findings also suggest that linalyl acetate (LA) works synergistically with linalool (LO) and that the presence of both LA and LO is essential for the whole oil to work as an inhaled anti-anxiety agent.