A preconditioned domain decomposition algorithm for the solution of the elliptic Neumann problem

A new preconditioned conjugate gradient (PCG)-based domain decomposition method is given for the solution of linear equations arising in the finite element method applied to the elliptic Neumann problem. The novelty of the proposed method is in the recommended preconditioner which is constructed by using cyclic matrix. The resulting preconditioned algorithms are well suited to parallel computation.     

GENETIC VARIATIONS AND LINOLENIC ACID INDUCED CHANGES IN THE ORIENTATION PATTERN OF CHLOROPHYLL a IN THYLAKOID MEMBRANES

Abstract Orientation pattern of the Q_y absorption and emission dipoles of chlorophyll a were studied in wild type Scenedesmus obliquus and in mutants deficient in chlorophyll b and carotenoids. Fluorescence polarization ratio at –140°C and linear dichroism at 25°C were measured in whole cells and thylakoids aligned in polyacrylamide gel. Unlike normal thylakoids, mutants displayed fluorescence polarization ratios significantly lower than 1.0 and showed a negative LD signal around 672 nm, indicating the tendency of the Q_y dipoles to tilt out from the membrane plane. Such an orientation pattern can also be artificially induced by treating normal thylakoids with linolenic acid.     

A generalized approach to beam wave interaction with a dielectric interface

New phenomena have been reported recently in connection with Gaussian beam interaction with a plane dielectric interface, namely, the deterioration of the reflected and refracted beams from shapes predicted by geometric optics, and the generation of higherorder components that cause angular beam deflection. Any bounded, symmetric beam, which is not necessarily Gaussian, can be comprised in terms of an angular spectrum of plane waves. Utilizing such a modal expansion, a model of the interaction process that seems to point out the generality of the phenomena involved for bounded symmetrical beams with any cross-section is presented. The procedure is applied to a Cauchy profile, and analytical results are given. Comparison with previous results obtained for the Gaussian beam and careful examination of the respective spectral functions demonstrate close correspondence between the results. This adds credence to the general approach presented here which can be applied to bounded symmetrical beams of general shape.     

Internal transport barrier with ion-cyclotron-resonance minority heating on tore supra

Recently, reversed magnetic shear operation was performed using only ion-cyclotron-resonance frequency minority heating (ICRH) during current ramp-up. A wide region of reversed magnetic shear has been obtained. For the first time, an electron internal transport barrier sustained by ICRH is observed, with a dramatical drop of density fluctuations. This barrier was maintained, on the current flat top, for about 2 s.     

Weakly Nonhydrostatic Effects in Compositionally-Driven Gravity Flows

In the study of compositionally-driven gravity currents it is customary to adopt the hydrostatic assumption for the pressure field which, in turn, leads to a depth-independent horizontal velocity field and significant simpilifications to the governing equations. The hydrostatic assumption is reasonable in, say, the case of a two-layer flow when the depth variations of the lower layer are small when considered as a function of space and time. However, for larger deflections of the interface (such as those caused by bottom topography) the flow will deviate in its behavior from the low aspect ratio, slowly varying purely hydrostatic flow because of the presence of vertical accelerations. In this paper we present an approach to capture the contribution of interface curvature to nonhydrostatic effects in fully time-dependent flows in two-fluid systems. Our approach involves expanding the relevant dependent variables in the form of an asymptotic expansion   f = f ⁽⁰⁾+δ² f ⁽¹⁾+ o (δ²)  , where  0 < δ≪ 1  is the aspect ratio of the flow, and obtaining the first-order correction to hydrostatic theory. Numerical results and comparisions with the purely hydrostatic theory are included.     

Flow field and thermal characteristics in a model of a tangentially fired furnace under different conditions of burner tripping

Tangentially fired furnaces are vortex-combustion units and are widely used in steam generators of industrial plants. The present study provides a numerical investigation of the problem of turbulent reacting flows in a model furnace of a tangentially fired boiler. The importance of this problem is mainly due to its relation to large boiler furnaces used in thermal power plants. In the present work, calculation of the flow field, temperature and species concentration-contour maps in a tangentially-fired model furnace are provided. The safety of these furnaces requires that the burner be tripped (its fuel is cut off) if the flame is extinguished. Therefore, the present work provides an investigation of the influence of number of tripped burners on the characteristics of the flow and thermal fields. The details of the flow, thermal and combustion fields are obtained from the solution of the conservation equations of mass, momentum and energy and transport equations for scalar variables in addition to the equations of the turbulence model. Available experimental measurements were used for validating the calculation procedure. The results show that the vortex created due to pressure gradient at the furnace center only influenced by tripping at least two burners. However, the temperature distributions are significantly distorted by tripping any of the burners. Regions of very high temperature close to the furnace walls appear as a result of tripping the fuel in one or two of the burners. Calculated heat flux along the furnace walls are presented.     

Kinetics and thermodynamics of the attack of fluorapatite by a mixture of sulfuric and phosphoric acids at 55 °C

A calorimetric study of kinetics and thermodynamics of the attack of a synthetic fluorapatite by a mixture of sulfuric and phosphoric acids is undertaken at 55 °C. The global enthalpy of the attack equals −409.3 kJ/mol. The recorded thermograms show two peaks leading to calcium sulfate hemihydrate and dihydrate, respectively. The deconvoluted curves were analysed iteratively. A kinetic mechanism based on simultaneous reactions has been proposed for the first peak and confirmed thermochemically by comparing the enthalpies deduced from iteration and that determined from experimental and calculated routes. The second peak of the thermogram was attributed to transformation of calcium sulfate hemihydrate into gypsum according to a dissolution/precipitation scheme. These phenomena are of order one and two, respectively.