External Facility Research Articles

Feasibility of UHPC shields in spent fuel vertical concrete cask to resist accidental drop impact

Ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) has been widely utilized in military and civil protective structures to resist intensive loadings attributed to its excellent properties, e.g., high tensile/compressive strength, high dynamic toughness and impact resistance. At present, aiming to improve the defects of the traditional vertical concrete cask (VCC), i.e., the external storage facility of spent fuel, with normal strength concrete (NSC) shield, e.g., heavy weight and difficult to fabricate/transform, the feasibility of UHPC applied in the shield of VCC is numerically examined considering its high radiation and corrosion resistance. Firstly, the finite element (FE) analyses approach and material model parameters of NSC and UHPC are verified based on the 1/3 scaled VCC tip-over test and drop hammer test on UHPC members, respectively. Then, the refined FE model of prototypical VCC is established and utilized to examine its dynamic behaviors and damage distribution in accidental tip-over and end-drop events, in which the various influential factors, e.g., UHPC shield thickness, concrete ground thickness, and sealing methods of steel container are considered. In conclusion, by quantitatively evaluating the safety of VCC in terms of the shield damage and vibrations, it is found that adopting the 300 mm-thick UHPC shield instead of the conventional 650 mm-thick NSC shield can reduce about 1/3 of the total weight of VCC, i.e., about 50 t, and 37% floor space, as well as guarantee the structural integrity of VCC during the accidental drop simultaneously. Besides, based on the parametric analyses, the thickness of concrete ground in the VCC storage site is recommended as less than 500 mm, and the welded connection is recommended for the sealing method of steel containers.

The Role of PIXE and XRF in Heritage Science: The INFN-CHNet LABEC Experience

Analytical techniques play a fundamental role in heritage science. Among them, Particle Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE) and X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) techniques are widely used in many laboratories for elemental composition analysis. Although they are well-established, a strong effort is put on their upgrade, making them suitable for more and more applications. Over the years, at the INFN-LABEC (the laboratory of nuclear techniques for the environment and cultural heritage of the Italian National Institute of Nuclear Physics), the INFN-CHNet group, the network devoted to cultural heritage, has carried out many technological improvements to the PIXE and XRF set-ups for the analysis of works of art and archaeological finds. Among the many, we recall here the scanning external microbeam facility at the TANDEM accelerator and the MA-XRF scanner. The two instruments have shown complementary features: the former permits quantitative analysis of elements heavier than sodium, which is not possible with the latter in most of the case studies. On the contrary, the scanner has the undeniable advantage of portability, allowing it to work in situ. In this framework of technological developments in heritage science, INFN, CERN, and OPD are jointly carrying on the MACHINA (Movable Accelerator for Cultural Heritage In-situ Non-destructive Analysis) project for on-site Ion Beam Analysis (IBA) studies on cultural heritage.

Evaluating delays in patients treated with post-operative radiation therapy for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

IntroductionDelays in commencing post‐operative radiation therapy (PORT) and prolongation of overall treatment times (OTT) are associated with reduced overall survival and higher recurrence rates in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The objective of this study was to evaluate treatment delays, factors contributing to those delays and to explore strategies to mitigate them.MethodsThis retrospective study included patients with mucosal HNSCC at Townsville University Hospital treated with curative intent surgery and PORT between June 2011 and June 2019. The proportion of patients who experienced delays in commencing PORT (>6 weeks) and OTT were evaluated and reasons for these delays were explored.ResultsThe study included 94 patients of which 70% experienced PORT delay. Surgery at an external facility (81% vs 56%, P = 0.006) and longer post‐operative length of stay (P = 0.011) were significantly associated with a higher incidence of PORT delay. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients had a higher rate of PORT delay (89% vs 68.2%, P = 0.198). Significant delays were noted from time of surgery to radiation oncology (RO) consult and from RO consult to commencement of radiation treatment.ConclusionThis study demonstrates that the prevalence of PORT delay for patients with HNSCC remains high with room for improvement. Potential strategies to improve delays include developing effective care coordination, addressing specific needs of Indigenous patients, implementing reliable automated tracking and communication systems between teams and harnessing existing electronic referral systems.

Applying a Generalized FMEA Framework to an Oil Sands Tailings Dam Closure Plan in Alberta, Canada

Historically, tailings facilities have been designed primarily with consideration of the mine’s active life. This is problematic, as the lifespan of a tailings dam may far exceed the life of the mine. Over time, it is expected that these structures will transform into a mine waste structure and then eventually a landform. In Alberta, Canada, dam owners can submit a decommissioning, closure, and abandonment (DCA) plan and completion reports to apply for the facility to be de-registered as a dam. If successful, the structure would be considered a solid waste structure and may be reclassified and regulated as a mine waste dump. The Alberta Energy Regulator expects DCAs to be accompanied and supported by risk assessments that consider long-term physical failure modes, including failure modes that may not be applicable during operations, in accordance with Manual 019. To help support the process of de-registering a tailings dam, a risk management tool, referred to as a Generalized Failure Modes Effects (G-FMEA) framework, was developed and presented in the Journal of Minerals in the Special Issue Tailings Dams: Design, Characterization, Monitoring, and Risk Assessment. The G-FMEA was designed to be used for assessing risks of an external tailings facility in closure, with the goal of assessing the long-term risk of geotechnical failure to support the process of de-registration. In Alberta, a number of tailings dams are undergoing closure and reclamation activities. This paper applies the developed G-FMEA framework to an oil sands tailings dam in Alberta to demonstrate the application of the framework. The paper assesses two specific failure modes of two different elements, including clogging of the drains and surface erosion of the berm. The failure modes are assessed over different timescales to demonstrate how the consequence, likelihood, and risk rating may change over time. The results of this process are discussed in the context of the potential for the facility to be de-registered as a dam.

Pump-free microfluidic magnetic levitation approach for density-based cell characterization

Magnetic levitation (MagLev) provides a simple but promising method for density-based analysis and detection down to the individual cell level. However, each existing MagLev configuration for the single-cell density measurement, mainly consisting of a capillary (∼50 mm) placed between two magnets, yields a fairly low sample utilization because of no knowledge about the sample cells in the regions other than the limited microscope vision. Moreover, the quantitative analysis may be affected due to the unclearly defined measurement area, which is specifically associated with the uneven magnetization of magnets, cell size, degree of aggregation. In this work, we explore a pump-free microfluidic magnetic levitation approach for density-based cell characterization, enabling sensitive and effective cellular density measurement on small sample volumes. The microfluidic MagLev comprises a pump-free microfluidic chip placed between two ring magnets with like poles facing. With no external pumps, connectors or control facility, much smaller amounts of fluids (∼4 μL) could be driven automatically in the entire microchannel in 16 s. Based on the pump-free mechanism, unique density signatures of cells from different lineages (ARPE-19, HCT116, HeLa, HT1080, Huh7) are characterized by monitoring the levitation profiles. Furthermore, variation in density of A549 lung cancer cells subjected to a drug treatment are observed in our platform, allowing evaluation of the efficacy of the drug treatment at the individual cell level. Thereby, the proposed pump-free microfluidic MagLev platform, a low-cost, fully automatic and portable design for label-free density-based cell characterization, provides a universal detection tool that operates efficiently within small-volume environments.

Comparison of Support Contents of External Support Facility for Nuclear Power Plant among Countries

There are several external support facilities that support personnel, materials, and equipment for any nuclear power plant in the world. In Japan, using the lessons of the Fukushima Daiichi accident, the Mihama Nuclear Emergency Assistance Center was established in 2016 to support a nuclear power plant by supplying materials and equipment such as remote-control robots. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the support contents of external support facilities worldwide and compare the contents used at the Mihama Nuclear Emergency Assistance Center, National SAFER Response Center in the USA, Force d’Action Rapide du Nucleaire in France, and Kemtechnische Hilfsdienst GmbH in Germany. There are roughly two types of external support facility. One type of facility supports remote control materials and equipment. The other type of facility supports alternative power supplies and cooling equipment for severe accidents. In addition to these materials and equipment, some external support facilities support radiation control and protection materials. Moreover, this paper summarizes and compares the ways of transporting materials and equipment among external support facilities since the variety of transportation is important to the effectiveness of the support.

Experimental characterization of the internal ion source for the AMIT compact cyclotron

The ion source is one of the most relevant elements in a cyclotron, since it determines the injection into the accelerator. An internal cold-cathode Penning ion source has been chosen for the AMIT compact cyclotron. This kind of source is extensively used in cyclotrons to produce negative hydrogen ions. The compactness of the accelerator constrain the beam diagnostic in the cyclotron, motivating the development of an external experimental facility for the commissioning of the ion source. In this paper, the validation of the ion source design and the characterization of the H− beam production are presented. Different chimney geometries modifying the distance between the plasma column and the extraction wall have been tested to obtain the best relation between ion production and plasma conditions. In addition, experimental measurements of the beam profile have been carried out. Current experimental results provide relevant information for the operation in the final cyclotron assembly and the final beam current optimization.

Single-neutron removal from C14,15,16 near 240 MeV/nucleon

A consistent measurement of the inclusive single-neutron removal cross sections of $^{14,15,16}\mathrm{C}$ on a carbon target at around 240 MeV/nucleon has been performed at the External Target Facility, HIRFL-CSR, and compared with Glauber model predictions using shell-model spectroscopic strengths between the initial projectile ground state and configurations of bound core state $+$ valence neutron state as input. For the dependence of the spectroscopic factor reduction characterized by the ratio ${R}_{s}$ of the experimental over theoretical single-nucleon removal cross section on the bounding depth $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}S$ of the removed nucleon established in single-nucleon removals with beam energies mainly over 80--120 MeV/nucleon, our measurement gives ${R}_{s}$ values that conform to the earlier ${R}_{s}\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}S$ systematics, where the relatively higher incident beam energy facilitates the applicability of the eikonal and sudden approximation used in the Glauber model.

ROLE OF PHYSICAL THERAPY IN THE TREATMENT OF POSTERIOR ANKLE IMPINGEMENT IN PEDIATRIC ATHLETES - A PROSPECTIVE STUDY

Background:Posterior ankle impingement (PAI) is a known cause of posterior ankle pain in athletes performing repetitive plantarflexion motion. Even though empirically recommended in adult PAI, there is minimal literature related to the role of conservative physical therapy (PT) in pediatric patients.Purpose:To identify patient characteristics and determine if there is a difference in pediatric patients with PAI who were successful with conservative PT and those who were unsuccessful, requiring surgical intervention.Methods:Prospective study at a tertiary children’s hospital included patients <18 years diagnosed with PAI and underwent PT. Patients who received PT at an external facility were excluded. Collected data included demographics, initial presentation at PT evaluation, treatment throughout PT, patient presentation at PT discharge, time to return to sport (RTS) from initial PT evaluation (if successful), time to surgery from initial PT evaluation (if unsuccessful). Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) ankle-hindfoot scores were collected. Group comparisons were conducted using independent t-tests or chi-square analyses (alpha level set at .05).Results:31 (12 males, 19 females) patients diagnosed with PAI were enrolled with a mean age 12.61 years (range: 8-17). Gymnastics, football, and basketball were the most commonly implicated sports (42% patients). All patients underwent initial conservative PT for an average of 16.24 weeks (9.23 visits ±7.73). 20/31(64.5%) patients failed conservative management and underwent arthroscopic debridement. PAI pathology was predominantly bony in 61.3% and soft tissue 38.7%. Between the successful PT group and unsuccessful PT group, there was no difference in the proportion of athletes/non-athletes (p=.643). Average RTS time for successful group was 11.47 weeks and average time to surgery for unsuccessful group was 17.82 weeks. There were no significant differences in sex (p=.332), age (p=.674), number of PT visits (p=.945), initial weight-bearing status (p=.367), use of manual therapy (p=.074) including manipulation (p=.172) and mobilization (p=.507), sport (p=.272), initial evaluation ankle ROM (p>.05). Initial AOFAS scores for pain, function, alignment, or total were not significantly different (p=.551, .998, .555, .964 respectively).Conclusion:The first prospective study in pediatric patients with PAI demonstrates that even though success of PT is not dependent on age, sex, sport or PAI pathology, a notable proportion of patients who undergo PT do not need surgery. Conservative management including PT should be the initial line of management for PAI. PT treatment and surgery (if unsuccessful with PT) allowed patients to return to prior level of activity/sports.Tables/Figures:

Thermal performance of double-layer porous copper strips mounted as hollow cylinders

The thermal performance of thin double-layer porous copper strips was experimentally examined. To fabricate double-layer porous copper strips the lost carbonate sintering procedure was employed. The suitability of these materials for applications of heat sink was systematically investigated. Then, the thermal properties of an external heat transfer facility, which operates under a forced heat convection process using air as a coolant, were assessed. In this case, a cylindrical heating system was chosen to be used with the air passing across the samples at mass rates of 0.1- 0.5 kg/s. The temperatures of the air at the inlet and outlet in addition to the surface temperature of the system were monitored and used to determine the heat transfer performance. The results showed that both the porosity and roughness in a surface of a material could play an essential role in such type of material in enhancing heat transfer at a surface of the system. With high porosity and surface roughness of up to 82% and Ra ≤ 1.21 mm, respectively, the sample achieved a thermal transmittance 57% higher than that of a reference smooth copper sheet under the same Reynolds number. Finally, the heat transmittance of the examined porous sheets in the current research increased with the bulk porosity and surface roughness.

Thermal performance of double-layer porous copper strips mounted as hollow cylinders

The thermal performance of thin double-layer porous copper strips was experimentally examined. To fabricate double-layer porous copper strips the lost carbonate sintering procedure was employed. The suitability of these materials for applications of heat sink was systematically investigated. Then, the thermal properties of an external heat transfer facility, which operates under a forced heat convection process using air as a coolant, were assessed. In this case, a cylindrical heating system was chosen to be used with the air passing across the samples at mass rates of 0.1- 0.5 kg/s. The temperatures of the air at the inlet and outlet in addition to the surface temperature of the system were monitored and used to determine the heat transfer performance. The results showed that both the porosity and roughness in a surface of a material could play an essential role in such type of material in enhancing heat transfer at a surface of the system. With high porosity and surface roughness of up to 82% and Ra ≤ 1.21 mm, respectively, the sample achieved a thermal transmittance 57% higher than that of a reference smooth copper sheet under the same Reynolds number. Finally, the heat transmittance of the examined porous sheets in the current research increased with the bulk porosity and surface roughness.

Abstract PD11-09: Vadis trial: Phase II trial of nelipepimut-s peptide vaccine in women with DCIS of the breast

Abstract Background: Peptide cancer vaccines may be most effective when used in earlier stage cancers or pre-cancers where systemic and tumor microenvironmental immune suppression are less profound. Nelipepimut-S (NPS) plus granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is a vaccine comprised of a human leukocyte antigen (HLA) restricted peptide from the extracellular domain of the HER2 protein (E75) combined with GM-CSF. We have completed a randomized phase II trial of preoperative vaccination with NPS+GM-CSF vs. GM-CSF alone with the primary outcome being NPS-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) responses. Methods: HLA-A2 positive, DCIS patients were enrolled and randomized to either NPS+GM-CSF vs GM-CSF alone. The patients received two vaccinations prior to surgery at 2-week intervals. The number of NPS-specific CTL was measured at specified intervals (pre-vaccination, time of surgery, 1 month (+/- 7 days) post-op, and 3 months (+/- 7 days) post-op) using a flow cytometry-based dextramer assay. Differences in NPS-specific CTL responses between the two groups and between baseline pre-vaccination and 1-month post-op were analyzed using either a two-sample t-test or Wilcoxon rank sum test, when appropriate. The incidence and severity of adverse events, graded according to Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) version (v) 4.03, were recorded and compared between treatment groups. Results: 45 patients were registered; 7 withdrew consent, 1 opted for surgery at an external facility, 20 were ineligible due to negative HLA-A2, and 4 failed screening for other reasons, leaving 13 patients enrolled. The 13 patients were randomized (2:1) into treatment groups, with nine patients receiving NPS+GM-CSF and four patients receiving GM-CSF alone. The two groups were well-matched for age; however, the GM-CSF alone group had higher percentages of African American (50% vs. 22%) and Hispanic (25% vs. 11%) patients as compared to the NPS+GM-CSF group. In general, vaccination was well-tolerated with similar treatment-related toxicity profiles in the NPS+GM-CSF vs GM-GSF groups (Grade 1 - 93.3% vs. 89.3%, Grade 2 - 6.7% vs. 10.7%, respectively). The mean NPS-specific CTL% in the NPS+GM-CSF group at 1-month post-op was double that of the GM-CSF alone group (0.10 +/- 0.12% vs. 0.05 +/- 0.08, p=0.70). In addition, between baseline pre-vaccination and 1-month post-op, the NPS+GM-CSF group experienced an 11-fold increase in percentage of NPS-specific CTL (0.01 +/- 0.02% vs. 0.11 +/- 0.12%) as compared to only a 2.25-fold increase of NPS-specific CTL in the GM-CSF alone group (0.04 +/- 0.07% vs. 0.09 +/- 0.15%). Conclusions: NPS+GM-CSF is safe and well-tolerated when given preoperatively to patients with DCIS. In HLA-A2 positive patients with DCIS, a single inoculation with NPS+GM-CSF can induce in vivo immunity and a continued antigen-specific T-cell response one month post-surgery. This data provides support for further testing of NPS+GM-CSF in the neoadjuvant and adjuvant settings in an attempt to prevent invasive recurrence in DCIS. Citation Format: Anne E O'Shea, Guy T Clifton, Na Qiao, Brandy Heckman-Stoddard, Malgorzata Wojtowicz, Eileen Dimond, Isabelle Bedrosian, Diane Weber, Alex Husband, Ricardo Pastorello, Lana Vornik, George Peoples, Elizabeth A Mittendorf. Vadis trial: Phase II trial of nelipepimut-s peptide vaccine in women with DCIS of the breast [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2020 San Antonio Breast Cancer Virtual Symposium; 2020 Dec 8-11; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(4 Suppl):Abstract nr PD11-09.

Laparoscopic Transabdominal Preperitoneal Repair of Spigelian Hernia: Case Report

Spigelian Hernia (SH) is an uncommon anterior abdominal wall defect, it represents 0.1% - 2% of all abdominal wall hernias. SHs have been traditionally repaired by open technique, but laparoscopic approaches are becoming more common and widely described in the literature. Here we present a case report of a 69-year-old woman who presented with abdominal pain, nausea, abdominal distention and absence of bowel movements for 2 days. A computed tomography performed in an external facility revealed a right-sided and incarcerated SH containing bowel and mesentery. The patient was treated surgically and the abdominal wall defect was repaired by a laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) approach. The patient was discharged 24 hours after surgery in excellent conditions. We hold that the TAPP approach is anatomically the soundest repair, with all the added benefits of minimally invasive surgery.

A CASE OF OSA IN A PATIENT WITH A VENTRICULO-PERITONEAL SHUNT: A REAL HEADACHE

SESSION TITLE: Medical Student/Resident Sleep Disorders Posters SESSION TYPE: Med Student/Res Case Rep Postr PRESENTED ON: October 18-21, 2020 INTRODUCTION: The patient is a 65 year old female who presented to the pulmonology clinic for management of her Obstuctive Sleep Apnea Syndrome (OSAS). She had been diagnosed with OSAS in early 2017 after a sleep study at an external facility and had been prescribed a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) Machine fitted with an oro-nasal mask. She had not been able to use the CPAP due to recurrent headaches and nasal congestion associated with use. CASE PRESENTATION: The patient was diagnosed with pseudotumo- cerebri after a motor vehicle accident in 2004. A right-sided ventricular shunt catheter (VP shunt) was placed in 2005. Her nausea, dizziness and frequent headaches subsequently resolved. In the interim she had been following up with her neurosurgeon and primary care physician on a regular basis and remained symptom free. She had a past medical history of mild intermittent asthma, pulmonary artery hypertension and hypertension which were well controlled with medical management. Five months after starting to use the CPAP machine she presented to her neurosurgeon with symptoms of dizziness, headaches and gait instability. Visit records were obtained with the patients consent and it was noted the neurological exam at the time was unremarkable and opthalmoscopic inspection did not show any evidence of papilledema. The Ventriculo-Peritoneal (VP) shunt was interrogated at the time and found to be functioning optimally. She was referred for a Computed Tomography (CT) scan of the head and a shunt study. CT head after showed the right frontal shunt catheter in position with a decrease in volume of the right lateral ventricle, there was no evidence of hemorrhage, hydrocephalus or extra-axial fluid. The shunt study showed no evidence of kinking or obstruction in the catheter along its course from the right lateral aspect of the cranium, over the right neck and right hemithorax up to the left abdomen overlying the left sacroiliac joint. The concurrent initiation of her symptoms with starting CPAP machine use warranted enquiry. The patient visited the pulmonology clinic 4 months later. In the interim she had stopped using the CPAP machine and her headaches, dizziness and gait instability had resolved, albeit her OSAS was uncontrolled. DISCUSSION: In view of the unremarkable CT of the head and normal shunt study the patients symptoms were attributed to external compression of the VP shunt by the securing straps of the oro-nasal attachment for the CPAP machine. This periodic occlusion could lead to an intermittent intracranial hypertension, which manifests as dizziness and gait instability with headaches. The intermittent nature of the obstruction resulted in the absence of ventriculomegaly on CT and the normal shunt study. CONCLUSIONS: The patient was fitted with a Dental appliance(Mandibular advancement device/ tongue retaining mouthpiece) for management of her OSAS and her symptoms resolved. Reference #1: Chee, B. N. H., Jalil, M. F. A., & Bulluss, K. J. (2016). Spontaneous pneumocephalus from nasal continuous positive airway pressure in a patient with ventriculo-peritoneal shunt. Journal of Clinical Neuroscience, 34, 215–217. doi: 10.1016/j.jocn.2016.05.040 Reference #2: Salem-Memou, S., Vallee, B., Jacquesson, T., Jouanneau, E., & Berhouma, M. (2016). Pathogenesis of Delayed Tension Intraventricular Pneumocephalus in Shunted Patient: Possible Role of Nocturnal Positive Pressure Ventilation. World Neurosurgery, 85. doi: 10.1016/j.wneu.2015.09.001 Reference #3: Jones, R., Davis, E. M., & Coleman, J. (2016). Pneumocephalus Secondary to CPAP in Setting of Remote Craniofacial Trauma. Chest, 150(4). doi: 10.1016/j.chest.2016.08.276 DISCLOSURES: No relevant relationships by Matthew Castillo, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Abhishek Chakraborti, source=Web Response No relevant relationships by Erum Zahid, source=Web Response

An improved tracking method for large-acceptance spectrometers in intermediate-energy RIB experiments

An improved tracking method was devised for tracking in large-acceptance spectrometers in intermediate-energy RIB experiments, where drift chamber arrays are deployed both upstream and downstream of a dipole magnet for particle tracking outside the magnetic field. By incorporating into the tracking χ2 the inconsistencies between the tracks entering and exiting the reaction target, and that between the tracks entering and exiting the dipole magnet, the improved tracking method has proved to be effective in eliminating spurious tracks in data analysis of RIB experiments. With the tracking method, enhanced particle identification and reaction cross sections are achieved for neutron-removal products of secondary carbon-isotope beams at around 240MeV/u in the External Target Facility in HIRFL-CSR.

Assessment of a container terminal expansion using simulation

The paper presents a methodology to construct a Discrete Event Simulation model to assess the expansion of a container terminal. The methodology was applied to the Ensenada International Terminal located in Mexico. The simulation integrates all the operations of the container terminal including the arrival of vessels, trucks, and storage of containers. The expansion plan included the addition of anew berth, and additional storage yard space. The expansion model was evaluated under different demand increments. Recommendations were provided on the level of demand that the expansion may be able to serve. As a result, the additional berth will increase the capacity, but the projected storage space will support up to a 140% increase in demand with a 20% in reserve. The terminal must consider additional storage space either in the terminal or at an external facility for additional demand greater than 140%, or for having a larger storage reserve.

Numerical Study on the Effect of a Novel Swirling Flow Generator for Submerged Entry Nozzle in Tundish

The swirling flow in the submerged entry nozzle (SEN) is found to significantly improve the flow pattern in the mold, as well as the quality of the steel products. However, the devices generating swirling flow designed so far are mostly limited to be applied in the industries due to the cost, lifetime, external facility, and so on. Herein, a novel swirling flow generator (SFG) is intended to be installed in the conventional tundish to generate a swirling flow in the SEN driven by the gravitational potential energy of the molten steel. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are performed to investigate the effects of the SFG by comparing the flow pattern in the conventional tundish. The result shows that a swirling flow is produced in the SEN without bringing a serious disturbance to the flow distribution in the tundish. The flow in the SEN becomes much even by adopting the SFG and the swirling velocity is found to decrease with the increasing distance from the bottom of the tundish. A parameter called swirling intensity is proposed to quantitatively evaluate the intensity of the swirling in the SEN.

Treating Vulnerable Consumers ‘Fairly’ When They Make a Complaint About Banking or Finance in Australia

The Australian Financial Services Reform Act 2001 (Cth) requires that licenced banking and financial services providers establish internal dispute resolution (‘IDR’) systems complying with requirements promulgated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (‘ASIC’). In addition, licence holders are required to be members of an ASIC approved External Dispute Resolution (‘EDR’) scheme so that if a complaint is not resolved following the use of internal mechanisms, an external dispute resolution facility is available for most banking consumers. In late 2018, a new EDR body was established, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (‘AFCA’), to deal with external complaints. The 2018 Royal Commission into the banking and finance sector uncovered significant issues in terms of the banking and financial sector and raised a number of serious concerns that were largely linked to how consumers contracted with banks and other organisations however information about existing complaint handling arrangements was limited. In particular, there was little demographic information about consumers who use IDR and EDR arrangements or what factors may be relevant in terms of the settlement of complaints and disputes. In this regard, currently sections 912A(1)(g), (2) of the Corporations Act direct the form of AFSL holders’ IDR and EDR systems, but they do not impose any obligations on AFSL holders in terms of conduct when providing the systems. In terms of consumers more generally, it is unclear how many consumers could be classified as ‘vulnerable’ and may settle a dispute on less favourable terms because the impact of proceeding may place them in an even more disadvantageous position. It is suggested that better reporting in relation to IDR and EDR activity together with targeted independent advocacy services and training of relevant staff in respect of the Australian Consumer Law could assist consumers and enable more effective reporting of misconduct issues.

Autonomous Pedestrian Altitude Estimation Inside a Multi-Story Building Assisted by Motion Recognition

Owing to autonomy and continuity, a pedestrian navigation system (PNS) has been widely deployed, which is based on the micro electro-mechanical system inertial measurement unit (MEMS-IMU) and the strapdown inertial navigation system (SINS). However, altitude information cannot be effectively obtained in this system by the double integral of vertical acceleration because of the altitude channel divergent of SINS. The study is aimed at improving the accuracy and robustness of altitude estimation through a novel method based on foot-mounted MEMS-IMU. More specifically, the proposed method exploits the adaptive network-based fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) to recognize vertical motion modes including horizontal, downstairs, and upstairs movements. Then, the pseudo height model based on both motion modes and the stair height is constructed for stair walking with different height. Finally, the pseudo measurements from the pseudo height model are integrated with the data from motion prediction through the extended Kalman filter (EKF). Experimental results show that the overall classification accuracy of ANFIS can reach up to 99.1%. Since ANFIS is utilized to assist height estimation, the cumulative height error accounts for about 1.2% over a total height of 44 m when a pedestrian walks up and down six floors without external facility and barometric pressure support. It is concluded that the ANFIS-based height estimation method can achieve better vertical positioning performance for PNS than the existing approaches in terms of accuracy and robustness.

Eu:CROPIS AIV Program: Challenges and Solutions for a Spin-Stabilized Satellite Containing Biology

Eu:CROPIS is DLR’s first mission of the Compact Satellite Program. Its primary payload focuses on the research of closed-loop biological, regenerative life support systems, in a simulated gravitational environment of the Moon and Mars over months at a time. This is achieved by rotation of the satellite around its central body axis, using only magnetic torquers as actuators. A secondary payload (“PowerCells”) by the NASA Ames Research Center also utilizes the artificial gravity to conduct growth experiments on genetically modified organisms (GMOs). These payloads and the system design imposed constraints which affected the Assembly Integration and Verification (AIV) program in various ways and created challenges for the relatively small team to find solutions for. The paper to be presented will address the different aspects of the AIV program. This includes the verification of different critical components like the newly developed CFRP pressure vessel containing the primary payload and the Micrometeoroid and Debris Protection Shield, which protects it. Both items went through rigorous testing, including high-velocity impact tests, to ensure their reliability in orbit. Various other aspects concerning the biology had to be taken into account during AIV campaigns: due to the presence of degradable components within the primary payload, a late access capability had to be implemented in order to exchange biology as well as chemistry in cases of launch delays. To allow these operations as close as six months prior to launch, a highly flexible and streamlined acceptance test campaign was developed. A major impact on test planning and logistics was the fact that the secondary payload “PowerCells” contains GMOs, which European and German regulations restrict to be handled exclusively in especially certified laboratories (biosafety level 1 (BSL-1)). Thus, the use of external test facilities for the flight model campaign was not feasible as no European test center is certified to BSL-1. In consequence, the clean room facilities of the DLR Institute of Space Systems had to be certified to BSL-1 and new test infrastructure had to be procured in a short time frame to cover for acceptance testing. The design of the satellite and nature of the attitude control subsystem required limits on the magnetic momentum of the system and every unit it contains. A test flow incorporating the magnetic property measurement of each unit and a final system-level test in an external facility had to be devised, which enabled budgeting and projection of expected measurement results on the system level. Furthermore, the moments of inertia had to be measured precisely in order to have a stable spinning axis enabling a stable gravity simulation. Finally, the functionality had to be verified for each unit and for the system which required that several small test campaigns had to be conducted, like a solar panel deployment test and extensive software testing. A tight link to the operations teams of the German Space Operations and Control Center during such tests and beyond finally ensures the operability of the overall system in the operational phase.