Arrangement Of Spots Research Articles

Recurrent excision of a hAT-like transposable element in CmAPRR2 leads to the "shooting star" melon phenotype.

The external appearance of fruit commodities is an essential trait that has profound effects on consumer preferences. A natural melon variety, characterized by an uneven and patchy arrangement of dark green streaks and spots on the white-skinned rind, resembles shooting stars streaking across the sky; thus, this variety is called "Shooting Star" (SS). To investigate the mechanism underlying the SS melon rind pattern, we initially discovered that the variegated dark green color results from chlorophyll accumulation on the white skin. We then constructed a segregation population by crossing a SS inbred line with a white rind (WR) inbred line and used bulk segregant analysis (BSA) revealed that the SS phenotype is controlled by a single dominant gene, CmAPRR2, which has been previously confirmed to determine dark green coloration. Further genomic analysis revealed a hAT-like transposable element (TE) inserted in CmAPRR2. This TE in CmAPRR2 is recurrently excised from rind tissues, activating the expression of CmAPRR2. This activation promotes the accumulation of chlorophyll, leading to the variegated dark green color on the rind, and ultimately resulting in the SS rind phenotype. Therefore, we propose that the SS phenotype results from the recurrent excision of the hAT-like TE in CmAPRR2.

Online Adaptive Proton Therapy Facilitated by Artificial Intelligence–Based Autosegmentation in Pencil Beam Scanning Proton Therapy

PurposeOnline adaptive proton therapy (oAPT) is essential to address interfractional anatomical changes in patients receiving pencil beam scanning proton therapy (PBSPT). Artificial intelligence (AI)-based auto-segmentation can increase the efficiency and accuracy. Linear energy transfer (LET)-based biological effect evaluation can potentially mitigate possible adverse events caused by high LET. New spot arrangement based on the verification CT (vCT) can further improve the re-plan quality. We propose an oAPT workflow that incorporates all these functionalities and validate its clinical implementation feasibility with prostate patients. Methods and MaterialsAI-based auto-segmentation tool AccuContourTM (Manteia, Xiamen, China) was seamlessly integrated into oAPT. Initial spot arrangement tool on the vCT for re-optimization was implemented using raytracing. An LET-based biological effect evaluation tool was developed to assess the overlap region of high dose and high LET in selected OARs. Eleven prostate cancer patients were retrospectively selected to verify the efficacy and efficiency of the proposed oAPT workflow. The time cost of each component in the workflow was recorded for analysis. ResultsThe verification plan showed significant degradation of the CTV coverage and rectum and bladder sparing due to the interfractional anatomical changes. Re-optimization on the vCT resulted in great improvement of the plan quality. No overlap regions of high dose and high LET distributions were observed in bladder or rectum in re-plans. 3D Gamma analyses in PSQA confirmed the accuracy of the re-plan doses before delivery (Gamma passing rate = 99.57 ± 0.46%), and after delivery (98.59 ± 1.29%). The robustness of the re-plans passed all clinical requirements. The average time for the complete execution of the workflow was 9.12 ± 0.85 minutes, excluding manual intervention time. ConclusionThe AI-facilitated oAPT workflow was demonstrated to be both efficient and effective by generating a re-plan that significantly improved the plan quality in prostate cancer treated with PBSPT.

Simulating multiple variability in spatially resolved transcriptomics with scCube

A pressing challenge in spatially resolved transcriptomics (SRT) is to benchmark the computational methods. A widely-used approach involves utilizing simulated data. However, biases exist in terms of the currently available simulated SRT data, which seriously affects the accuracy of method evaluation and validation. Herein, we present scCube (https://github.com/ZJUFanLab/scCube), a Python package for independent, reproducible, and technology-diverse simulation of SRT data. scCube not only enables the preservation of spatial expression patterns of genes in reference-based simulations, but also generates simulated data with different spatial variability (covering the spatial pattern type, the resolution, the spot arrangement, the targeted gene type, and the tissue slice dimension, etc.) in reference-free simulations. We comprehensively benchmark scCube with existing single-cell or SRT simulators, and demonstrate the utility of scCube in benchmarking spot deconvolution, gene imputation, and resolution enhancement methods in detail through three applications.

The Optimization of Welding Spots’ Arrangement in A-Pillar Patchwork Blank Hot Stamping

With increasingly severe environmental problems, energy saving and environmental protection have become two important issues to be solved in the automobile industry. Patchwork blank hot-stamping technology can be used to obtain light-weight and high-strength parts and is thus increasingly used in the manufacture of autobody parts. Because the main blank and the patched blank need to be connected through spot welding before forming, the welding spots’ arrangement has a great influence on the formability of the part. In this study, a thermal–mechanical coupling finite element analysis model of A-pillar patchwork blanks was established. With the thickness of the patched blank, the distance between the welding spot and the external contour of the patched blank, and the number of welding spots as optimization variables, together with the maximum thinning rate and the maximum welding spot force as objectives, the influence of welding spot arrangement on forming quality was analyzed, and the welding spots’ arrangement was optimized using a central composite design (CCD), the response surface method (RSM), and the genetic algorithm (GA). The results showed that when the initial welding spot was located close to the contour of the patched blank, the bending moment was greater when the weld spot passed through the die corner, leading to the rupture of the welding spot or its surrounding base material due to the greater thinning rate. When the patched blank was thicker than the main blank, the main blank cracked during the forming process due to a greater increase in the thinning rate. The optimal solution of the weld spot arrangement on the A-pillar patchwork blanks was a 1.2 mm thick main blank, 0.8 mm thick patched blank, a distance of 29 mm between the weld spot and the contour line of the patched blank, and 16 weld spots. Hot-stamping experiments were conducted using the optimized weld spots’ arrangement, and high-quality parts were obtained.

Effect of the Size of the Superhydrophobic Regions of Biphilic Surfaces on the Bubble Dynamics

The current work aims to experimentally evaluate the effect of the size of circular superhydrophobic regions of biphilic surfaces on the bubble dynamics under pool boiling conditions. Biphilic surfaces are structured surfaces with tunable wettability, presenting an array of hydrophobic small spots in a hydrophilic surface or vice versa. The factors that affect the bubble dynamics are of geometric nature such as the diameters of the bubbles, their volume, and the height of the centroid, and of more complex nature such as the departure frequency of the bubbles and the rate of evaporation mass transfer. In this study, the bubble dynamics and boiling performance were evaluated by adjusting the diameter of the single circular superhydrophobic regions. A stainless steel AISI 304 foil was used as the base hydrophilic region, and the superhydrophobic regions were made by spray coating the NeverWet® superhydrophobic solution over well-defined masks. The main conclusion was that the bubble dynamics are clearly affected by the diameter of the superhydrophobic spots. The smaller spots favored the generation of more uniform and stable bubbles, mainly due to the border surface tension forces’ dominance. With the increase in the diameter of the bubbles, the surface tension acting at the border with the much larger hydrophilic region impacts the process less. Thus, the smaller superhydrophobic regions had higher evaporation mass transfer rates. The region with the best pool boiling performance along with improved bubble dynamics was the superhydrophobic region with an 0.8 mm diameter, corresponding to a superhydrophobic area to total area ratio of 0.11%. Moreover, this experimental work confirmed that the bubble dynamics’ impacting factors such as the diameter at the various stages of development of the bubbles can be modulated according to the final objectives of the design and fabrication of the biphilic surfaces. The research significance and novelty of this work come from the comprehensive study of the geometrical pattern of the heat transfer surface in pool boiling conditions and its impact on the bubble dynamics and heat transfer capability. We also suggest further studies considering nanoscale superhydrophobic spot arrangements and the future usage of different working fluids such as nanofluids.

Evaluation of Planning Techniques Involving Inverse Optimization in SBPT to Assess for Organs at Risk in Anal Cancer

<h3>Purpose/Objective(s)</h3> Proton beam therapy may be considered for anal cancer when desiring to reduce dose to surrounding organs at risk. This study was designed to evaluate and compare treatment planning techniques in pencil beam scanning proton therapy (PBS) to spare 5 organs-at-risk (OARs) for patients with anal cancer. <h3>Materials/Methods</h3> Seventeen patients (11 female and 6 male) previously treated for Stage I-III anal cancer were included in this study. A treatment planning system was utilized for contouring and treatment planning. Target volumes encompassed primary anal cancer tumors and the inguinal lymph nodes. Multi-Field optimization was utilized in creating two separate plans for each patient: a) Single Target sharing all three beams across the anal target and the involved lymph nodes that were optimized simultaneously, also referred to in here as IMPT, and b) Splitting of the target such that the anal target, and the lymph nodes were covered by their own individual beams but optimized simultaneously, also referred to as (IFSO). Both plans were designed with the same beam angles, two anterior oblique and one posterior-anterior beams. The optimization target volume (OTV) was defined with a 5mm isotropic margin around clinical target volume (CTV) to account for set-up uncertainties. A scanning target volume (STV) was defined as the OTV with a 5-mm isotropic expansion to guide the initial spot arrangement and account for lateral penumbrae. Five OARs (bladder, small bowel, large bowel, bilateral femoral heads, and genitalia) were evaluated using the dose-volume-histogram indices. The Sign test was used for statistical comparison between the two plans. <h3>Results</h3> There were no differences in target coverage between the two planning techniques. Dosimetric comparisons for select OARs between IMPT and IFSO demonstrated a 50% increase in small bowel V30 (<i>p</i><0.02), 66% increase in small bowel V15 (<i>p</i><0.002), and 82% increase in genitalia V20 (p <0.049). Additionally, adjacent organs at risk received significantly higher mean doses with IMPT compared to IFSO. Mean bladder dose was increased by 16% (<i>p</i><0.049) and mean dose to the left and right femoral heads were increased 158% and 149%(<i>p</i><0.049), respectively. There was no significant difference in maximum dose to the large bowel, small bowel, and femoral heads. There was no significant difference in V45 for small bowel and bladder and V20 for bone marrow V20. <h3>Conclusion</h3> IFSO based plans led to significantly better sparing of OARs in anal cancer treated with PBS. With the advent of LET-based optimization in PBS, IFSO could further improve the dosimetric outcomes for the treatment of anal cancer.

STM/STS study of the local density of states in Cu doped Fe(Se,Te) superconductors

The scanning tunnel microscopy/scanning tunnel spectroscopy (STM/STS) measurements of the local quasiparticle density of states (LDOS) in Cu x -Fe1.01-x Se0.4Te0.6 (x = 0.01-0.03) superconductors were carried out. Critical temperatures Tc decrease with increasing Cu-impurity doping level x. STM images show clear regular square arrangements of spots with the lattice spacing ~ 0.38 nm as well as the randomly distributed large spots, which are most possibly due to excess Fe atoms. While the STM image resembles that of non-doped Fe(Se,Te), the LDOS map shows various extra spot structures with bright (with higher magnitudes of dI/dV) and dark (with lower magnitudes of dI/dV) regions. With increasing x, the number of such spots grows proportionally, indicating that these spots most probably correspond to the dopant Cu atoms.

A Design of the Ecotourism Individualized Route Planning System Based on the Ecological Footprint Model.

In this study, aiming at the huge amount of information in the tourism field, the pressure of ecological environment, and tedious personalized route planning, an ecotourism personalized route planning system based on the ecological footprint model is designed. In order to recommend routes that meet the time limit and the starting and ending points of the user's choice, the tourist route recommendation problem is studied as a directional problem on the basis of comprehensively considering the popularity of scenic spots and the user's interest preferences as the scenic spots score. The scenic spot scoring strategy is scenic spot scoring, and the iterative local search strategy is used to plan tourist routes according to the optimization goal with the largest route score, and improve the real tourist routes, food, and accommodation strategies. On the basis of launched tourist routes, they recommend tourists' favorite food and accommodation. The model finally completes the fine arrangement of scenic spots, food, and accommodation in the whole tourist route. The system test results show that the system has obvious advantages in personalized path planning effect, excellent user feedback effect, and certain application value.

A sandwich structure realizing the connection of CFRP and Al sheets using magnetic pulse welding

A sandwich structure applied to joining carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) and AA5052 aluminum alloy sheets through magnetic pulse welding (MPW) was proposed. Mechanical properties, interfacial characteristics, joining and failure mechanisms of the CFRP/AA5052 MPW joints were explored. Results showed that the effective weld of a single spot was a closed annular region. Range of suitable collision angle and velocity to form an effective weld was 6° to 21° and 395 m/s to 330 m/s, respectively. Width of the effective weld was negatively correlated with the change rate of the collision angle; the faster the change rate of the collision angle, the narrower was the effective weld width. Difference of weld width, average collision velocity, and interfacial morphology resulted in uneven strength distribution of the annular weld. The two straight regions with greater weld strength were the main bearing regions. The number and distribution of welding spot had a great influence on mechanical properties of Al/CFRP joints. The more the number of welding spot, the stronger was the bearing capacity and the better was the energy absorption effect of the joints. In practical applications, the welding spot arrangement perpendicular to the load direction should be preferred because its energy absorption effect was better than the spot arrangement parallel to the load direction. Difference in failure mechanism between horizontal and vertical double-hole joints was mainly owing to the difference of the main stress states when the corresponding solder joints failed.

Multi-Spot Ultrasonic Welding of Aluminum to Steel Sheets: Process and Fracture Analysis

Ultrasonic metal welding is an energy-efficient, fast and clean joining technology without the need of additional filler materials. Single spot ultrasonic metal welding of aluminum to steel sheets using automotive materials has already been investigated. Up to now, further studies to close the gap to application-relevant multi-metal structures with multiple weld spots generated are still missed. In this work, two different spot arrangements are presented, each consisting of two weld spots, joined 0.9 mm thick sheets of wrought aluminum alloy AA6005A-T4 with 1 mm sheets of galvannealed (galvanized and annealed) dual-phase steel HCT980X. An anvil equipped with variable additional clamping punches was used for the first time. The tensile shear forces reached 4076 ± 277 N for parallel connection and 3888 ± 308 N for series connection. Temperature measurements by thermocouples at the interface and through thermal imaging presented peak temperatures above 400 °C at the multi-metal interface. Microscopic investigations of fractured surfaces identified the Zn layer of the steel sheets as the strength-limiting factor. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) indicated intermetallic phases of Fe and Zn in the border areas of the weld spots as well as the separation of the zinc layer from the steel within these areas.

Non-Invasive Monitoring of the Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Vocalizations among Songbirds in a Semi Free-Flight Environment Using Robot Audition Techniques

To understand the social interactions among songbirds, extracting the timing, position, and acoustic properties of their vocalizations is essential. We propose a framework for automatic and fine-scale extraction of spatial-spectral-temporal patterns of bird vocalizations in a densely populated environment. For this purpose, we used robot audition techniques to integrate information (i.e., the timing, direction of arrival, and separated sound of localized sources) from multiple microphone arrays (array of arrays) deployed in an environment, which is non-invasive. As a proof of concept of this framework, we examined the ability of the method to extract active vocalizations of multiple Zebra Finches in an outdoor mesh tent as a realistic situation in which they could fly and vocalize freely. We found that localization results of vocalizations reflected the arrangements of landmark spots in the environment such as nests or perches and some vocalizations were localized at non-landmark positions. We also classified their vocalizations as either songs or calls by using a simple method based on the tempo and length of the separated sounds, as an example of the use of the information obtained from the framework. Our proposed approach has great potential to understand their social interactions and the semantics or functions of their vocalizations considering the spatial relationships, although detailed understanding of the interaction would require analysis of more long-term recordings.

Optical Characterization of the Beams Generated by 3-D LiDARs: Proposed Procedure and Preliminary Results on MRS1000

In last years, automotive is pushing to the continuous development of more performing and less expensive measuring systems for supporting advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS). In that scenario, light detection and rangings (LiDARs) are one of the key enabling technologies. This has led and will lead to the availability of more and more LiDAR systems and manufacturers. Given the relevance of the topic, in recent years, many studies and some national and international standards have been proposed or updated. However, such methods and standards are more focused on the analysis of the overall system performance and do not allow to investigate specific aspects of LiDAR systems. As an example, despite the relevance that spot size and divergence have on the evaluation of the performance of the LiDAR system, such parameters are not always, if ever, fully provided by LiDARs manufacturers and, to the best of our knowledge, no standard nor measurement method has been previously proposed for their analysis. In this article, we propose novel methods for the characterization and comparison of LiDAR systems with particular focus on the analysis of the spatiotemporal arrangement of beams spots, and beams divergences and profiles. The proposed method has been exploited for the analysis of the MRS1000 LiDAR system by Sick. The obtained results indicated that the MRS1000 simultaneously emits three spots triangularly arranged. As an example, at 6 m distance, such a triangle has a height of about ≈ 4 cm and a base that varies from ≈ 6 to ≈ 11 cm depending on the LiDAR settings.

Dielectric metalenses with off-axis and multi-focal spots based on converging Airy beams with different initial velocities or accelerations

In the context of light focusing, converging Airy beams play an essential role. The two Airy beams that are commonly used in the literature for autofocusing of the Airy beams are mirror-symmetric. In this paper, we consider the two converging Airy beams to have different values of accelerations or initial velocities, the subject that up to our knowledge has not been studied before. To explore the effect of applying Airy beams with different initial velocities or accelerations, we apply the required phase and amplitude of the two launched Airy beams to a one-dimensional arrangement of dielectric c-shaped metaatoms. Silicon c-shaped metaatoms give us the opportunity of having full control of the phase and amplitude of the incident 700 nm light. Simulation results demonstrate that convergence of the two Airy beams with various values of initial velocities or accelerations causes the focal spot to deviate from the optical axis. The extent to which the focal spot deviates from the main axis depends strongly on the initial parameters of the included Airy beams. The focal spot coordinates that are achieved from the simulation results are well agreed with the analytical calculations that we also provided. Using the inutile space between the two launched Airy beams as an independent hyperbolic metalens, gives us the opportunity of designing a multi-focal metadevice with different off-axis and on-axis focal spot arrangements.

Inducing lasing in organic materials with low optical gain by three-dimensional plasmonic nanocavity arrays.

Lasing in organic media with very low gain has been pursued for a long time in optoelectronics. Here, we experimentally demonstrate that plasmonic lasing in the visible regime at room temperature can be achieved by hybridizing active media of very low optical gain such as ionic liquid and polymethylmethacrylate with three-dimensional (3D) plasmonic metamaterials. The 3D nanostructure consists of a double-layer N-shaped silver wire-hole array with strongly coupled multiple hot spots densely packed in each unit cell. These hot spots overlap perfectly with the gain media, allowing efficient gain-plasmon coupling in subwavelength volumes. The periodic arrangement of hot spots, as the metal and dielectric are distributed in an alternate manner along both transverse and vertical directions, results in ultrastrong suppression of scattering losses. In addition, the lasing characteristics, including threshold, intensity and polarization can be controlled by the lattice constant and geometry of metamaterials. Such a plasmonic nanolaser proves to be of low threshold and low gain requirement, providing an essential step towards easy-processing organic based optoelectronics.

First report of the family Zelinkaderidae (Kinorhyncha: Cyclorhagida) for the Caribbean Sea, with the description of a new species of Triodontoderes Sørensen & Rho, 2009 and an identification key for the family

A new species of Kinorhyncha, Triodontoderes lagahoo sp. nov., is described from Tobago Island, Caribbean Sea (western Atlantic Ocean) from a coastal, sandy habitat using both light and scanning electron microscopy. The species is characterized by the presence of middorsal acicular spines on segments 1–11 (that on segment 10 crenulated in males), laterodorsal crenulated spines on segment 10 only in males, lateroventral acicular spines on segments 3–4 and 6–8 (lateroventral spines also on segment 10 in females), lateroventral cuspidate spines on segments 5 and 9, lateral accessory acicular spines on segments 5 and 9, lateral accessory cuspidate spines on segment 8, ventrolateral acicular spines on segment 2 and ventrolateral cuspidate spines on segment 2. Females furthermore possess short papillae in ventrolateral position on segment 8 and ventromedial position on segment 9. The absence of cuspidate spines in lateral accessory position on segment 6 easily distinguishes T. lagahoo sp. nov. from the single known congener, Triodontoderes anulap. Moreover, also the arrangement of female papillae and sensory spots differ between the species. The finding of a new species of Triodontoderes in the Caribbean Sea is the first report of the genus for American waters and the Atlantic Ocean since its original description. Additionally, a dichotomous key for identification of the family Zelinkaderidae to species level, as well as systematic remarks on some morphological characters of the new species are included herein.

Morphological survey as powerful detection tool of pure and local phenotypes inSalmo truttacomplex

The native Mediterranean trout populations in central Italy are at risk of extinction. Hybridization with the alien Atlantic trout represents one of the major threats to the species. The main aim of the research was to test the efficiency of morphological characterization in revealing alien trout introduction, pure lineages and local adaptations, in five watersheds of central Apennines (Italy). Data analysis was carried out for a total of 258 specimens already genetically identified. The results of the multivariate analysis, performed using 10 qualitative and 47 quantitative variables, revealed two distinct phenotypic groups and confirmed, at a morphological level, the genetic separation between Atlantic and Mediterranean trout. The morphological variables that play a key role in the discrimination of the Mediterranean trout were: (i) number of parr marks with striped pattern, (ii) adipose fin mainly with white color and without black spots, and (iii) number of black opercular spots, compared to the Atlantic trout. The geometric analysis revealed the importance of the spatial arrangements of spots on the fish flank and the shape of caudal peduncle in discriminating different Mediterranean populations. The information collected confirmed the powerful of morphological surveys in the screening of conservation status of wild trout populations.

Transition of Spatial Patterns in an Interacting Turing System

We consider a Turing-type reaction-diffusion system involving quadratic and cubic nonlinearities and numerically investigate the role of nonlinear terms in producing spots, stripes, labyrinths, hexagonal arrangement of spots, blotches and transitions among them. From our numerical experiments performed on a square domain with zero-flux boundary conditions, we observe that the system displays a form of multistability for which different stable spatial distribution of concentrations appear for a same set of control parameters depending upon the initial conditions. For varying values of model parameters both in the first- and the second-stage of simulations, we obtain a number of transition states that are found to be sensitive on the relative strength of the quadratic and cubic coupling terms. We obtain a graphical relationship among such model parameters at which the transitions take place.

Body pigmentation and meristic characteristics of Balkan golden loach (Sabanejewia balcanica) from the water catchment area of the river Sava

Abstract The taxonomic research of eight populations of Sabanejewia balcanica from the water catchment area of the river Sava included the analysis of the meristic characteristics and pigmentation of their bodies. The analyzed sample contained 98 specimens collected in the areas of the rivers Turija, Gostelja, Brka, Suturlija, Suha, Tinja and Trebačka. The aim of this paper was to specify the meristic and pigment characteristics of this species at the location of the water catchment area of the river Sava, which are frequently used in describing new taxa. The meristic traits investigation included the analysis of the number of rays in dorsal, ventral, pectoral, anal and caudal fins. In the analysis of body pigmentation, the number and arrangement of suborbital spines, blotches or spots were determined. The results of this research indicated that there were no intrapopulation differences in Sabanejewia balcanica from the water catchment area of the river Sava in terms of meristic characteristic and body pigmentation.

Traveling Route Generation Algorithm Based On LDA and Collaborative Filtering

Abstract With the rapid development of China’s economy and the increase in tourism consumption, the number of people in traveling in domestic tourism has increased rapidly each year, and more travelers choose privately customized travel routes, so reasonable travel route is generated based on the actual users’ needs has become a hot research spot in the current industry and academia. However, as far as practical application is concerned, the planning of travel routes is a comprehensive and complex task. Reasonable travel routes include comprehensive features such as reasonable travel cities, travel time, transportation methods, and itinerary arrangements. At present, the traditional method is basically that the customer manager can manually plan the suitable travel route for the user through collecting the user’s needs, and then modify and adjust by communicating with the customer. The problem that this brings is that the customer manager needs to compare information such as users’ needs, travel price, travel time, travel transportation, and scenic spot arrangements when planning numerous travel routes. Obviously, the traditional methods have significant disadvantages such as low efficiency and long time-consuming. Bring a great burden to the staff and it is incompatible with the development of the current industry. In order to solve the above problems, we put the historical travel routes collected as data sets in the paper, and a travel route recommendation and generation algorithm based on LDA and collaborative filtering is designed. Reasonable city recommendation list and playing time are the basis and focus of route planning. The paper is based on the many shortcomings in the traditional travel route planning method, and takes the city’s recommendation and time planning as the main focuses on work. In this work, different recommendation algorithms were designed, including a recommendation algorithm based on Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) and collaborative filtering. By analyzing the performance of the recommendation algorithm on the data sets, the recommendation algorithm is improved and optimized. The LDA algorithm based on KDE (Kernel Density Estimation) and classification, the collaborative filtering algorithm based on KDE and classification. The final experimental results show that the optimal city list and travel time generated by the recommended algorithm are more reasonable and satisfy the actual use of the user.

New design equations for turbulent forced convection heat transfer and pressure loss in pillow-plate channels

Pillow-plate heat exchangers (PPHE) represent a stack of pillow plates characterized by a wavy surface and fully welded construction. The benefits of PPHE over conventional heat exchangers have made them increasingly attractive for numerous applications in the process industry. However, the lack of verified design methods and reference applications for PPHE hinders their widespread application. This work aims at overcoming this “bottleneck” by providing new equations for the thermo-hydraulic design of pillow plates.In particular, design methods for pressure loss and heat transfer are proposed for turbulent forced convection in pillow-plate channels over a wide range of Reynolds numbers (1000≤Re≤8000), Prandtl numbers (1≤Pr≤150) and characteristic geometry parameters (e.g., welding spot arrangement, inflation height). For the determination of heat transfer coefficients, two different approaches are presented. The first approach is based on the method typically suggested in literature, whereby the well-known Dittus-Boelter type power law function (cf. [1]) for the Nusselt number is applied and fitted to numerical data largely obtained in Ref. [2]. The second approach is based on the characteristic flow pattern in pillow plates suggested in Ref. [2]. In this pattern, the initial complex flow is broken down into two simpler flows, which can then be modeled separately. For both methods, the relative deviations between the numerical data obtained in Ref. [2] and in this study are less than 15%.