Ramp-Up-Phase Current-Profile Control of Tokamak Plasmas via Nonlinear Programming

The achievement of suitable toroidal-current-density profiles in tokamak plasmas plays an important role in enabling high fusion gain and noninductive sustainment of the plasma current for steady-state operation with improved magnetohydrodynamic stability. The evolution in time of the current profile is related to the evolution of the poloidal magnetic flux, which is modeled in normalized cylindrical coordinates using a partial differential equation (PDE) usually referred to as the magnetic flux diffusion equation. The dynamics of the plasma current density profile can be modified by the total plasma current and the power of the noninductive current drive. These two actuators, which are constrained not only in value and rate but also in their initial and final values, are used to drive the current profile as close as possible to a desired target profile at a specific final time. To solve this constrained finite-time open-loop PDE optimal control problem, model reduction based on proper orthogonal decomposition is combined with sequential quadratic programming in an iterative fashion. The use of a low-dimensional dynamical model dramatically reduces the computational effort and, therefore, the time required to solve the optimization problem, which is critical for a potential implementation of a real-time receding-horizon control strategy.      

Two-photon absorption from single InGaN/GaN quantum dots

We present a study of the time-integrated and time-resolved photoluminescence properties of single-InGaN/GaN quantum dots (QDs) using two-photon spectroscopy. Two samples containing QDs produced by different growth techniques are examined. We find that two-photon excitation results in the suppression of the emission from the underlying quantum well to which the QDs are coupled and yet relatively strong QD emission is observed. This effect is explained in terms of the enhancement of two-photon absorption in QDs due to the full confinement of carriers. Furthermore, evidence of the presence of excited states is revealed from the two-photon photoluminescence excitation spectra presented in the study.     

Quantitative estimation of circulating metabolites without synthetic standards by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography/high resolution accurate mass spectrometry in combination with UV correction

An early assessment of metabolite exposure in preclinical species can provide quantitative estimation on possible active or toxic metabolites. Frequently, synthetic metabolite standards are not available at the preclinical stage, precluding the quantitation of metabolites by means of calibration curves and quality control (QC) samples. We present here an approach to determine the extent of circulating metabolites using 'metabolite standards' generated by in vitro incubations in combination with the correction for mass spectrometry response based on UV response. The study was done by coupling ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) to LTQ-Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry, and the quantitation was based on full scan high-resolution accurate mass analysis in combination with retention time. First, we investigated the separation capacity of a 10.5 min UHPLC method and the quantitative capability of an LTQ-Orbitrap for full scan accurate mass quantitation by spiking chemical standards of buspirone and its six metabolites in blank plasma. Then we demonstrated the use of a UV correction approach to quantitatively estimate buspirone and its metabolites in plasma samples from a rat pharmacokinetics study. We compared the concentration versus time profiles of buspirone and its six metabolites in rat plasma samples obtained using three different approaches, including using UV correction, using individual standard curves for each metabolite prepared from the synthetic standard, and using a calibration curve of the parent compound buspirone. We demonstrated the estimated metabolite exposure of buspirone using this UV correction approach resulted in rank ordering of metabolite exposure within three-fold of the value obtained with metabolite standards, in contrast to eight-fold without UV correction. The approach presented in this paper provides a practical solution to an unmet bioanalytical need for quantitative information on metabolites without standards in preclinical in vivo studies.     

Investigating stacking faults in nonpolar gallium nitride films using X-ray diffraction

Nonpolar (11-20) GaN films with different basal-plane stacking fault (BSF) densities (determined using transmission electron microscopy) were investigated using X-ray diffraction. Diffuse streaking from I₁ and I₂ BSFs was observed in reciprocal space maps of the 10-10 and 20-20 reflections. X-ray calibration curves for BSF density determination can be plotted using the diffusely scattered intensity of open detector 10-10 or 20-20 ω-scans measured at a fixed, large separation from the peak maximum. However, ab initio determination of stacking fault densities is not possible due to additional broadening from other defects. Similarly, ω-scan peak widths are poor indicators of BSF densities.     

Flap-edge aeroacoustic measurements and predictions

An aeroacoustic model test has been conducted to investigate the mechanisms of sound generation on high-lift wing configurations. This paper presents an analysis of flap side-edge noise, which is often the most dominant source. A model of a main element wing section with a half-span flap was tested at low speeds of up to a Mach number of 0.17, corresponding to a wing chord Reynolds number of approximately 1.7 million. Results are presented for flat (or blunt), flanged, and round flap-edge geometries, with and without boundary-layer tripping, deployed at both moderate and high flap angles. The acoustic database is obtained from a small aperture directional array (SADA) of microphones, which was constructed to electronically steer to different regions of the model and to obtain farfield noise spectra and directivity from these regions. The basic flap-edge aerodynamics is established by static surface pressure data, as well as by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) calculations and simplified edge flow analyses. Distributions of unsteady pressure sensors over the flap allow the noise source regions to be defined and quantified via cross-spectral diagnostics using the SADA output. It is found that shear layer instability and related pressure scatter is the primary noise mechanism. For the flat edge flap, two noise prediction methods based on unsteady-surface-pressure measurements are evaluated and compared to measured noise. One is a new causality spectral approach developed here. The other is a new application of an edge-noise scatter prediction method. The good comparisons for both approaches suggest that the prediction models capture much of the physics. Areas of disagreement appear to reveal when the assumed edge noise mechanism does not fully define the noise production. For the different edge conditions, extensive spectra and directivity are presented. The complexity of the directivity results demonstrate the strong role of edge source geometry and frequency in the noise radiation. Significantly, for each edge configuration, the spectra for different flow speeds, flap angles, and surface roughness were successfully scaled by utilizing aerodynamic performance and boundary-layer scaling methods developed herein.     

The synthesis of 6,6-difluoroshikimic acid

The synthesis of 6,6-difluoroshikimic acid (4) has been achieved in nine steps from the enantiopure diol 9, which is derived from microbial dihydroxylation of iodobenzene. The synthetic strategy has also been demonstrated to be applicable to the preparation of other 6-substituted analogues of shikimic acid.     

Experimental and theoretical study of the quantum-confined Stark effect in a single InGaN/GaN quantum dot under applied vertical electric field

We present a study of the effect of externally applied vertical electric field on the optical properties of single InGaN/GaN quantum dots via microphotoluminescence spectroscopy. This is achieved by incorporating the quantum dot layer in the intrinsic region of a p–i–n diode structure. We observe a large blue energy shift of 60 meV, which is explained by the partial compensation of the internal piezoelectric field. The energy shift dependence on the applied field allows the determination of the vertical component of the permanent dipole and the polarizability. We also present theoretical modelling of our results based on atomistic semi-empirical tight-binding simulations. A good quantitative agreement between the experiment and the theory is found.     

Development and validation of an assay method for the determination of trifluoroacetic acid in a cyclosporin-like drug

An improved method for the assay of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) in a cyclosporin-like drug substance is presented, based on ion chromatography with suppressed conductivity detection. Column fouling by the drug molecule is avoided by use of a sample preparation method in which the drug substance is precipitated at alkaline pH whilst the TFA remains in solution. The new method requires a smaller sample mass than a previous method based on headspace-GC-FID whilst achieving an improvement in sensitivity. During validation, the method's performance was found to be consistent with usual acceptance criteria, and the method was found to be robust in routine use.