A nonlinear bilevel model for analysis of electric utility demand-side planning issues

An application of bilevel programming in the electric utility industry is presented. The model is nonlinear and is used to analyze various economic issues that affect electric utility planning. The electric utility at the upper level of the model seeks to minimize costs or maximize benefits while controlling electric rates and subsidizing energy conservation programs. Customers at the lower level attempt to maximize their net benefit by consuming electricity and investing in conservation. This model considers factors such as free riders and the rebound effect which affect the net benefits of utility resource plans but are ignored by most planning models. The model's solutions shed light on utility issues including whether there can be a practical difference between various objectives, including minimizing cost (least cost planning) and maximizing net social welfare (value based planning).     

Spectroscopy in separated flames-IV: application of the nitrogen-separated air-acetylene flame in flame-emission and atomic-fluorescence spectroscopy

The primary and secondary combination zones of an air-acetylene flame have been separated by a stream of nitrogen flowing parallel to the flame to prevent access of atmospheric oxygen to its base. The flame is very stable over a wide range of fuel-air mixture strengths, and organic solvents may be aspirated without difficulty. The low flame background enables thermal-emission and atomic-fluorescence measurements to be made with high sensitivity. Bismuth, for example, has been determined in the range 5-200 ppm by its thermal emission at 306.8 nm, with a detection limit of 2 ppm in aqueous solution, and in the range 1-10 ppm with a detection limit of 0.3 ppm in 50% ethanolic solution. Zinc and cadmium have been determined at 213.9 nm and 228.8 nm by atomic-fluorescence spectroscopy in this flame with detection limits of 2 x 10(-4) ppm and 5 x 10(-4) ppm respectively, vapour-discharge lamps being used as sources of excitation. The results obtained represent a considerable improvement over those available by the same methods in a conventional air-acetylene flame.     

Finite element modeling of syntactic foam

A decomposition model has been developed to predict the response of removable syntactic foam (RSF) exposed to fire-like heat fluxes. RSF consists of glass micro-balloons (GMB) in a cured epoxy polymer matrix. A chemistry model is presented based on the chemical structure of the epoxy polymer, mass transport of polymer fragments to the bulk gas, and vapor-liquid equilibrium. Thermophysical properties were estimated from measurements. A bubble nucleation, growth, and coalescence model was used to describe changes in properties with the extent of reaction. Decomposition of a strand of syntactic foam exposed to high temperatures was simulated.     

半导体材料从10nm向5nm发展

随着晶体管向10nm、7nm甚至更小尺寸的发展,半导体行业面临着真正的材料选择困扰。基板、沟道、栅和接触材料都迫切需要评估。对于10nm和7nm来说,高K值金属栅将占主导地位,但真正的挑战将是沟道本身。在10nm节点,锗(Ge)很可能成为沟道材料之一。     

Theory and numerical evaluation of oddoids and evenoids: Oscillatory cuspoid integrals with odd and even polynomial phase functions

The properties of oscillating cuspoid integrals whose phase functions are odd and even polynomials are investigated. These integrals are called oddoids and evenoids, respectively (and collectively, oddenoids). We have studied in detail oddenoids whose phase functions contain up to three real parameters. For each oddenoid, we have obtained its Maclaurin series representation and investigated its relation to Airy–Hardy integrals and Bessel functions of fractional orders. We have used techniques from singularity theory to characterise the caustic (or bifurcation set) associated with each oddenoid, including the occurrence of complex whiskers. Plots and short tables of numerical values for the oddenoids are presented. The numerical calculations used the software package CUSPINT [N.P. Kirk, J.N.L. Connor, C.A. Hobbs, An adaptive contour code for the numerical evaluation of the oscillatory cuspoid canonical integrals and their derivatives, Comput. Phys. Commun. 132 (2000) 142–165].     

Evaluation of tertiary pyridine resin for the separation of lanthanides by simulated moving‐bed chromatography

Lanthanide separation by simulated moving‐bed chromatography was studied as a model system for separating lanthanide fission products and minor actinides from used nuclear fuels. The simulated moving‐bed system was modeled for a tertiary pyridine anion‐exchange resin supported on silica particles as the stationary phase and a mixture of methanol and 1M nitric acid as the mobile phase. Pulse injection tests using a single packed column were used to obtain chromatographic parameters for mathematical modeling of the simulated moving‐bed system. Higher concentrations of methanol improved the separation, but the chromatograms showed evidence of nonlinearity of the isotherms. The mathematical model of the simulated moving‐bed process predicted a production rate of purified samarium and neodymium at 118 g solute/L resin/day and a purity of 99.5%. The optimal methanol ratio for the production rate for various product purities was determined from the model. The excellent separation of Nd and Sm suggests that the simulated moving‐bed system could be applied to the separation of minor actinides such as americium and curium.     

Liquid chromatographic determination of N-methyl carbamate pesticide residues at low parts-per-billion levels in eggs

A reversed-phase liquid chromatographic (LC) method is presented for the analysis of N-methyl carbamate pesticide residues and piperonyl butoxide in eggs at levels as low as 2 microg/kg (ppb). The study was undertaken to provide data for dietary exposure estimates used in risk analysis. The method uses an acetonitrile extraction followed by liquid-liquid partitioning and normal-phase aminopropyl solid-phase extraction column cleanup. Determination of residues is by reversed-phase LC with an inline postcolumn reaction followed by fluorescence detection. The average recoveries of 21 fortified (most at 2.0 and 20.0 ppb) N-methyl carbamate pesticide residues and the carbamate metabolite 1-naphthol from eggs ranged from 70 to 107%. Recoveries of the pesticide synergist piperonyl butoxide ranged from 63 to 106%. Single-comb White Leghorn hens were treated with the carbamate carbaryl, and the eggs subsequently produced were analyzed for carbaryl and 1-naphthol residues.