Leakage, deformations, power loss, heat generation in the support seal system and other issues are typical when support seals are developed. The design of the support seal system has progressively evolved over recent decades as part of an ongoing effort to provide effective cooling for the aero engine secondary air system. In particular, oil heat management in the oil chamber has strict requirements, which limit the heat generation of the support seal system. The potential of supporting seal research with an oil system is investigated in this work. The combination of the CFD/FEA method and quantifying the heat generation entering the oil chamber allows for improvements not just to the individual buffer air seal unit, but the oil seal together. The analysis relies on the combination of quantifying heat generation entering the oil chamber to provide a mutual influence of neighbouring labyrinth seals. The mutual influence requires further analysis, considering the thermal deformation of the rotor/stator to provide further accurate geometry parameters in preliminary seal designs. The experimental test was conducted to verify the preliminary CFD-FEA loosely coupled analysis result, which reveals that in a turbine support seal system, the radius of the buffer air seal has a significant influence on the leakage flow rate and power loss of the oil seal, which should take into account the integral influence of the pressure difference of the oil seal caused by the radius change of the buffer air seal and the running clearance of the oil seal.

This paper presents a geometrical alternative to estimate the accuracy of a deployable mechanism equipped on the Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) space satellite. The deployable mechanism is simplified into a planar mechanism, and the error space of the outer panel in its deployed state is modeled concerning multiple revolute joint clearances and link length tolerances. Compared with the existing methods, the advance of the proposed geometrical approach lies in that it gives expressions of the complete error mobility that the outer panel may have. After deducing the expressions, the final error space is visualized and evaluated numerically with discrete sampling points. Finally, based on the error space and the computed maximum errors, effects of tolerances on accuracy are studied and the optimal accuracy design of tolerances is obtained. The result reveals that, for the deployable mechanism discussed in this paper, effects of tolerances on the final accuracy can be eliminated without increasing the manufacturing cost.

This paper describes palynological evidence for what appears to be comparatively large-scale human impact in the catchment of the Sungai Niah in the wet tropical lowland swamp forests of Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo close to the Great Cave of Niah. Pollen associated with cleared landscapes and rice cultivation is evident in the sedimentary record from before 6000 cal yr B.P. Human activity seems to have been associated with changes in sedimentary regime, with peat-dominated environments being replaced diachronously by clay-dominated deposition. This may reflect anthropogenic soil erosion in the catchment of the Sungai Niah.

To determine the time to appearance of antibody against hepatitis B surface antigen (anti-HBs) after clearance of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) in chronically infected individuals, we followed up 3963 cases with positive antibody against hepatitis B e antigen (anti-HBe) from 1991 to 2014. Of these, 101 (67 males, 34 females) lost HBsAg. These serocleared cases were checked every 6-month interval regarding HBsAg, anti-HBs, liver function tests, and liver sonography. Hepatitis B virus DNA was assessed at the time of seroclearance or the appearance of anti-HBs. The mean age of these patients at entry to this study was 34·4 ± 13 years. The mean follow-up duration until seroclearance of HBsAg was 6·6 ± 4·3 years. After the mean follow-up of 43·7 ± 45 months, anti-HBs appeared in 64 (63·4%) cases. The cumulative probabilities of anti-HBs appearance for 2, 5 and 10 years were 24·3%, 58% and 78·2%, respectively. The appearance of anti-HBs was associated with age ⩾35 years and seroclearance of HBsAg (hazard ratio 1·96, 95% confidence interval 1·32–3·38, P = 0·016) but not with sex. The results show that anti-HBs may develop in 78·2% of cases within 10 years of HBsAg clearance. Age ⩾35 years at HBsAg loss was associated with earlier development of anti-HBs.

β-Hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB), a leucine metabolite, has long been supplemented as a Ca salt (Ca-HMB) to increase strength and performance gains with exercise and to reduce recovery time. Recently, the free acid form of HMB (HMB-FA) has become commercially available in capsule form (gelcap). The current study was conducted to compare the bioavailability of HMB using the two commercially available capsule forms of HMB-FA and Ca-HMB. We also compared the pharmacokinetics of each form when administered mixed in water. Ten human subjects (five male and five female) were studied in a randomised crossover design. There was no significant sex by treatment interaction for any of the pharmacokinetic parameters measured. HMB-FA administered in capsules was more efficient than Ca-HMB capsule at HMB delivery with a 37 % increase in plasma clearance rate (74·8 (sem 4·0) v. 54·5 (sem 3·2) ml/min, P<0·0001) and a 76 % increase in peak plasma HMB concentration (270·2 (sem 17·8) v. 153·9 (sem 17·9) μmol/l, P<0·006), which was reached in one-third the time (P<0·009). When HMB-FA and Ca-HMB were administered in water, the differences still favoured HMB-FA, albeit to a lesser degree. Plasma HMB with HMB-FA administered in water was greater during the early phase of absorption (up to 45 min postadministration, P<0·05); this resulted in increased AUC during the first 60 min after administration, when compared with Ca-HMB mixed in water (P<0·03). In conclusion, HMB-FA in capsule form improves clearance rate and availability of HMB compared with Ca-HMB in capsule form.

In this paper, the pick and place trajectory planning of a planar 3-RRR parallel manipulator is studied in the presence of joint clearance, which is one of the main sources of error in the positioning accuracy. Joint clearance can be modeled as a massless virtual link, with its direction determined from dynamic analysis. A 3–4–5 interpolating polynomial is used to plan the trajectories for the manipulator in the vertical and horizontal planes, in the presence of clearances. We compare the trajectories with those in the ideal cases, i.e., without clearances at the joints, and demonstrate that one can easily compensate for the errors in the trajectories by appropriate changes of the inputs. A similar method works for the compensation of the errors due to clearances at the joints, in trajectory planning of any parallel manipulator with any running speeds and payloads.

Clearances in the joints of mechanism cause vibrations and noise in mechanical systems. The contact force model is the important factor in dynamic analysis of mechanical systems with clearance. This paper presents a nonlinear contact force model for revolute joint with clearance, which is a hybrid model of the Lankarani-Nikravesh model and the improved elastic foundation model. The framework of the Lankarani-Nikravesh model is used with the nonlinear stiffness coefficient derived using the improved elastic foundation model and the damping applied in introducing the ratio of the nonlinear stiffness coefficient of the improved elastic foundation model and contact stiffness of Lankarani-Nikravesh model. Finally, the nonlinear hybrid contact force model is analyzed and discussed. The hybrid contact force model presented in this paper is a nonlinear continuous contact force model, which extends contact modeling of joints with clearance and has a greater applicable scope.

The sheet metal forming by shearing is one of the most used processes in industries. The reliability of the obtained parts depends on geometrical parameters (shape of the tools, punch radius, clearances, velocity...) and materials properties (metal behavior, friction...). In this paper, two experimental parameters are investigated: the punch – die clearance and the punch velocity. A 0.65 mm thickness sheet of a non-oriented full-process Fe-(wt.3%)Si is used. The analyses are done through the load-stroke curve and the height repartition of different defects on the part edge. A numerical approach is proposed to simulate the shearing process and to handle the ductile fracture (which is performed using Abaqus/Explicit software). This work is based on a non-iterative explicit algorithm combined with a mesh adaptivity method (Arbitrary Lagrangian Eulerian formulation). The Gurson–Tvergaard–Needleman model is then used to describe the cut edge profile occurring during the process.

We report estimates of the area and rate of loss and fragmentation of Liberian forests from 1986 to 2000. These estimates are based on comprehensive mapping using Landsat satellite imagery, which has a resolution of 28.5 m. We estimate a total forest cover of 4.65 million ha in 1986 and 4.33 million ha in 2000. Most of Liberia's remaining forest is in two large regions. These forests are very important biologically because they are the largest remaining forest areas in West Africa. The average deforestation rate was low at 0.2% per year during 1986–2000. Although the fragmentation of Liberia's forests is also relatively low, most of the remaining forest is readily accessible as it is within a few km of existing roads. This ease of accessibility suggests that the present low deforestation rate could increase if conservation planning is not effectively implemented.

The rapid onset and offset of rapacuronium can be explained from its pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic characteristics. A unique property of rapacuronium is its high value for ke0, indicating a rapid access to the receptor site. The reason for this high ke0 may be related to the low intrinsic potency of rapacuronium, but this is not yet fully clarified.

The Amazon rain-forest we know today is quite a recent phenomenon. New research on climate and vegetation changes from a series of cores in Ecuador provide a chronology for early agriculture and forest clearance from early Holocene times.

Dans le cadre de ses activités de déclassement d'installations nucléaires, Belgoprocess met en oeuvre la libération pour optimiser les volumes des déchets radioactifs. La méthodologie delibération retenue est discutée ici ; on porte une attention spéciale aux différents types de matériaux et aux mesures associées. Trois exemples concrets sont abordés : ils traitent le déclassementet la décontamination de deux petits bâtiments, et ce jusqu'au stade du "green field" ; la fusion et la libération d'acier inoxydable constituant des dispositifs de stockage de combustible ("rack") ;l'aluminium issu d'échangeurs de chaleur. Une attention particulière est portée aux problèmes pratiques associés, aux stratégies d'échantillonnages et de mesures, ce en relation avec les limitesbasses proposées pour la libération inconditionnelle.