Local process-dependent structural and mechanical properties of extrusion blow molded high-density polyethylene hollow parts

Although applied for several decades, production of hollow plastic parts by extrusion blow molding (EBM) is still over-dimensioned. To overcome this issue, a thorough investigation of the process-structure-property relationship is required. In this study, the local process-structure-property relationship for high-density polyethylene EBM containers is analyzed with differential scanning calorimetry and dynamic mechanic analysis microindentation. Local process-dependent crystallinity and complex modulus data at various processing conditions are supplemented with wide-angle X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The crystallinities and the complex moduli clearly show lower values close to the mold side than at the inner side and the middle of the cross-section, which reflects the temperature gradient during processing. Additionally, the orientation of the polymer chain (c-axis) reveals a low level of biaxiality with a slight tendency towards transverse direction. The biaxiality increases for low mold temperature and high draw ratio. Finally, biaxiality is confirmed with TEM, which reveals no preferred lamellar orientation.     

Storage effects on the quality quartet of orange juice submitted to moderate thermosonication: Predictive modeling and odor fingerprinting approach

The effects of moderate thermosonication (MTS) on the quality quartet: physico-chemical, microbial, nutritional and sensory qualities of orange juice (OJ) inoculated with Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris (AAT) were studied during 24 days of storage at ambient and refrigerated temperatures. The bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity of OJ decreased with storage, while the pectin methyl esterase (PME) increased. Nonetheless, noticeable changes were observed from the 12th day of storage. There was no obvious (p > 0.05) variation in pH and total soluble solids. To determine the nutritional and microbial quality characteristics of OJ during storage, non-linear kinetic curves were successfully fitted with least square fitting polynomial and four-parameter log-logistic distribution models. The E-nose sensors succeeded in discriminating between the aroma of non-treated and treated OJ based on linear discriminant analysis (LDA). Furthermore, terpenes, alcohol and partially aromatic compounds were the main spoilage indicators of OJ during storage based on E-nose analysis and confirmed by HS-SPME-GC/MS analysis. Thus, MTS significantly extended the shelf life of the quality quartet of natural OJ at 4 °C. E-nose-GC/MS fusion offered odor fingerprints to AAT microorganisms that can be used as spoilage index without using traditional food analysis techniques. The proposed approach can be used as an alternative tool for rapid detection of spoilage microorganisms in OJ.     

Investigation of the local structure and the effects of the orbit reduction factor on the EPR g-factors for octahedral (CrO6) cluster in TiO2:Cr and MgO:Cr systems

A theoretical method for studying the inter-relation between electronic and molecular structure has been proposed based on the complete energy matrices for a d³ configuration ion in a tetragonal ligand-field. By means of this method, the local structure for Cr³⁺ ion doped in oxides TiO₂ (anatase) and MgO has been determined. The calculated results indicate that the local structure of the (CrO₆)⁹⁻ cluster in TiO₂:Cr³⁺ and MgO:Cr³⁺ systems exists as a compressed distortion relative to the regular octahedron. Meanwhile, the dependence of the EPR zero-field splitting parameter D on the local structure parameter ΔR (ΔR=R₁−R₂) has been revealed. In addition, the relation between the EPR g-factors (g,g,Δg) and the orbit reduction factor k has been discussed for the two systems, suggesting that the orbit reduction factor k is very important to understand the EPR g-factors.     

Fitting Height and Character Degree Graphs

Given a group G, Γ(G) is the graph whose vertices are the primes that divide the degree of some irreducible character and two vertices p and q are joined by an edge if pq divides the degree of some irreducible character of G. By a definition of Lewis, a graph Γ has bounded Fitting height if the Fitting height of any solvable group G with Γ(G)=Γ is bounded (in terms of Γ). In this note, we prove that there exists a universal constant C such that if Γ has bounded Fitting height and Γ(G)=Γ then h(G)≤C. This solves a problem raised by Lewis. Research supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia, MTM2004-06067-C02-01 and MTM2004-04665, the FEDER and Programa Ramón y Cajal.     

Modelling the dynamics of stochastic local search on <Emphasis Type="Italic">k</Emphasis>-<Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">sat</Emphasis>

A new analytical tool is presented to provide a better understanding of the search space of k-sat. This tool, termed the local value distribution , describes the probability of finding assignments of any value q′ in the neighbourhood of assignments of value q. The local value distribution is then used to define a Markov model to model the dynamics of a corresponding stochastic local search algorithm for k-sat. The model is evaluated by comparing the predicted algorithm dynamics to experimental results. In most cases the fit of the model to the experimental results is very good, but limitations are also recognised.     

极限环的表达式和计算

本文提出一种解析法和数值法相结合的方法，用来计算多项式微分系统的极限环，极限环表示为x=∑k≥0(ak cos kφ bk sin kφ),y=∑k≥0(ck cos kφ dk sin kφ)，先用解析法求出小参数时极限环的初始表达式，然后用增量法和迭代法求出任意参数时极限环满足给定精度的表达式，半稳定极限环和分叉值也可以计算。     

Riemann引理的若干证法和推广

本文首先给出了Ｒｉｅｍａｎｎ引理及其三种证法；然后通过直接方法、变量替换方法和多项式逼近的方法分别进行了证明．最后给出了Ｒｉｅｍａｎｎ引理的推广及其证明。     

Asymptotics of zeros of polynomials arising from rational integrals

We prove that the zeros of the polynomials Pm(a) of degree m, defined by Boros and Moll via

     

A generalization of local divergence measures

In this paper we propose a generalization of the concept of the local property for divergence measures. These new measures will be called g-local divergence measures, and we study some of their properties. Once this family is defined, a characterization based on Ling’s theorem is given. From this result, we obtain the general form of g-local divergence measures as a function of the divergence in each element of the reference set; this study is divided in three parts according to the cardinality of the reference set: finite, infinite countable or non-countable. Finally, we study the problem of componible divergence measures as a dual concept of g-local divergence measures.     

Improved Estimation and Uncertainty Quantification Using Monte Carlo-Based Optimization Algorithms

In this article, we present a novel method to obtain both improved estimates and reliable stopping rules for stochastic optimization algorithms such as the Monte Carlo EM (MCEM) algorithm. By characterizing a stationary point, θ*, of the algorithm as the solution to a fixed point equation, we provide a parameter estimation procedure by solving for the fixed point of the update mapping. We investigate various ways to model the update mapping, including the use of a local linear (regression) smoother. This simple approach allows increased stability in estimating the value of θ* as well as providing a natural quantification of the estimation uncertainty. These uncertainty measures can then also be used to construct convergence criteria that reflect the inherent randomness in the algorithm. We establish convergence properties of our modified estimator. In contrast to existing literature, our convergence results do not require the Monte Carlo sample size to go to infinity. Simulation studies are provided to illustrate the improved stability and reliability of our estimator.