Improved Self-Feedback Gain in the Context Layer of a Modified Elman Neural Network

The use of a range of values for the self-feedback gains in the context layer of a modified Elman neural network is shown to reduce RMS error when modelling a non-linear dynamic system.     

Synthesis and nonlinear optical properties of novel Y‐type polyester containing tricyanovinylthiazolylazoresorcinoxy group with enhanced thermal stability of dipole alignment

Novel Y‐type polyester 4 containing 5‐methyl‐4‐{5‐(1,2,2‐tricyanovinyl)‐2‐thiazolylazo}resorcinoxy groups as nonlinear optical (NLO) chromophores, which are parts of the polymer backbone, was prepared, and its NLO properties were investigated. Polyester 4 is soluble in common organic solvents such as N,N‐dimethylformamide and dimethylsulfoxide. Polymer 4 shows a thermal stability up to 250 °C from thermogravimetric analysis with glass‐transition temperature obtained from differential scanning calorimetry of approximately 94 °C. The second harmonic generation (SHG) coefficient (d₃₃) of poled polymer film at 1560‐nm fundamental wavelength is 8.12 × 10^?9 esu. The dipole alignment exhibits a thermal stability even at 6 °C higher than glass‐transition temperature (T_g), and no significant SHG decay is observed below 100 °C due to the partial main‐chain character of polymer structure, which is acceptable for NLO device applications. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011     

Confined crystallization of PVDF and a PVDF‐TFE copolymer in nanolayered films

Layer‐multiplying coextrusion was used in conjunction with isothermal recrystallization to study the confined crystallization of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and polyvinylidene fluoride‐tetrafluoroethylene (PVDF‐TFE) using polycarbonate (PC) and polysulfone (PSF) as confining materials. Three layered systems were produced (PC/PVDF, PSF/PVDF, and PC/PVDF‐TFE) with layer thicknesses ranging from 525 to 28 nm. The crystal morphology was affected by both layer thickness and recrystallization temperature. Specifically, increased recrystallization temperature and decreased layer thickness facilitated the formation of high aspect ratio in‐plane crystals in both PVDF based polymers. On the other side of the spectrum, thicker layers and lower recrystallization temperatures produced on‐edge PVDF crystals and isotropic PVDF‐TFE crystals. The morphology was correlated with oxygen permeability, which decreased by almost two orders of magnitude compared with the bulk. A variety of crystal structures were obtained and explained with nucleation and diffusion theory. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys, 2011     

Samarium diiodide mediated intramolecular cyclisation of mixed enone-enoate systems: a simple preparation of spirocyclic ethers

Samarium(II) diiodide mediated intramolecular cyclisation of mixed enone-enoate substrates in THF/MeOH is described. Spirocyclic ethers are obtained, and the stereodefined preparation of 1-oxaspiro[4.4]nonan-7-one products is included.     

ForceFit: A code to fit classical force fields to quantum mechanical potential energy surfaces

The ForceFit program package has been developed for fitting classical force field parameters based upon a force matching algorithm to quantum mechanical gradients of configurations that span the potential energy surface of the system. The program, which runs under UNIX and is written in C++, is an easy‐to‐use, nonproprietary platform that enables gradient fitting of a wide variety of functional force field forms to quantum mechanical information obtained from an array of common electronic structure codes. All aspects of the fitting process are run from a graphical user interface, from the parsing of quantum mechanical data, assembling of a potential energy surface database, setting the force field, and variables to be optimized, choosing a molecular mechanics code for comparison to the reference data, and finally, the initiation of a least squares minimization algorithm. Furthermore, the code is based on a modular templated code design that enables the facile addition of new functionality to the program. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2010     

套管外压挤毁强度分析与计算

在对大量的套管全尺寸挤毁试验结果分析的基础上，提出套管外压失稳机理：实际工程中的套管截面不是理想圆，在外压作用下的非圆套管圆周方向上环向应力分布不均匀，有附加弯矩效应；随外压增加，在最大压缩环向应力处达到屈服；当屈服逸到一定程度时，材料由于强度承载力不足而失效，导致套管发生失稳挤毁。基于上述套管强度挤毁准则，分析了理想弹塑性套管在轴向载荷作用下的抗挤强度计算方法，得到较保守的套管挤毁压力计算公式。与试验结果对比表明：导出的计算公式偏差较小，计算精度满足工程要求，失稳强度准则是适用的。     

NorTRACK product tracking system—development and implementation

This paper presents the experience gained by developers and users with implementation and operation of NorTRACK^TM, a real-time computerized product tracking system. A Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) collects and transfers data in real time to NorTRACK’s Oracle^TM database on a Windows NT^TM server network. After extensive development and Beta testing at MDS Nordion’s Canadian Irradiation Centre in Montreal, Canada, NorTRACK was installed in January 1997 with a new irradiation facility in Ethicon Endo-Surgery Inc.’s Albuquerque plant in the United States. NorTRACK communicates with the irradiator control and safety system, the plant's central manufacturing database, an innovative pallet staging and tote loading robot, and an automated dosimetry reading system. This integrated system allows the sterilization facility to monitor the irradiator operation and the flow of many products, through varied processing modes, continuously and reliably. As a result of operating with NorTRACK, both MDS Nordion’s CIC facility and the Endo-Surgery manufacturing site, are beginning to realize unique benefits in their respective operations. MDS Nordion is also initiating several future product enhancements and additional productivity modules. This paper describes the NorTRACK system, the various stages of the development project and Beta tests, and the experience of the users to date in their operations.     

Initial guess by improved population-based intelligent algorithms for large inter-frame deformation measurement using digital image correlation

Digital image correlation (DIC) has received a widespread research and application in experimental mechanics. In DIC, the performance of subpixel registration algorithm (e.g., Newton-Raphson method, quasi-Newton method) relies heavily on the initial guess of deformation. In the case of small inter-frame deformation, the initial guess could be found by simple search scheme, the coarse-fine search for instance. While for large inter-frame deformation, it is difficult for simple search scheme to robustly estimate displacement parameters and deformation parameters simultaneously with low computational cost. In this paper, we proposed three improving strategies, i.e. Q-stage evolutionary strategy (T), parameter control strategy (C) and space expanding strategy (E), and then combined them into three population-based intelligent algorithms (PIAs), i.e. genetic algorithm (GA), differential evolution (DE) and particle swarm optimization (PSO), and finally derived eighteen different algorithms to calculate the initial guess for qN. The eighteen algorithms were compared in three sets of experiments including large rigid body translation, finite uniaxial strain and large rigid body rotation, and the results showed the effectiveness of proposed improving strategies. Among all compared algorithms, DE-TCE is the best which is robust, convenient and efficient for large inter-frame deformation measurement.     

Periodic solution of a chemostat model with variable yield and impulsive state feedback control

In this paper, a chemostat model with variable yield and impulsive state feedback control is considered. We obtain sufficient conditions of the globally asymptotical stability of the system without impulsive state feedback control. We also obtain that the system with impulsive state feedback control has periodic solution of order one. Sufficient conditions for existence and stability of periodic solution of order one are given. In some cases, it is possible that the system exists periodic solution of order two. Our results show that the control measure is effective and reliable.     

On intensities of perturbed random measures on Hausdorff spaces

Abstract

This article studies classes of random measures on topological spaces perturbed by stochastic processes (a.k.a. modulated random measures). We render a rigorous construction of the stochastic integral of functions of two variables and showed that such an integral is a random measure. We establish a new Campbell-type formula that, along with a rigorous construction of modulation, leads to the intensity of a modulated random measure. Mathematical formalism of integral-driven random measures and their stochastic intensities find numerous applications in stochastic models, physics, astrophysics, and finance that we discuss throughout the article.