Incandescent Radiation Research Articles

Thermally-activated locomotion of a bilayer polymer actuator

The development of smart actuators based on renewable or biocompatible materials, which are able for delivery of specific cargo is of great importance in robotics, medical and material science engineering, food industry, etc. Here, we report the original design of a bilayer polymer actuator consisting of two polymer materials with an interface adhesive layer between them, able for macroscopic locomotion step by step on a special ratchet substrate through repetitive bending and straightening. This was triggered by heat alternation due to incandescent lamp radiation on/off switching, with a rapid reaction time of the actuator to heat exposure of the order of few seconds. Specifically, a relatively fast locomotion of the actuator was achieved due to the large amplitude of its reversible bending deformation of up to ∼40% measured in terms of the actuator's elevation-to-length ratio. As a result, a typical actuator demonstrated the locomotion velocity of about 3 cm/min, where each cycle of contraction/expansion yielded a walking step of ∼1 cm for about 20 s. It was demonstrated that the actuator, while moving, is able to carry a cargo almost twice heavier than the mass of the carrier itself. Based on optical microscopy and atomic force - infrared spectroscopy data it was concluded that the adhesive interface layer plays an important role in the stable operation of the actuator as it retards linear expansion of the rear polymer layer and thus assists conversion of different linear expansion of the adjacent layers into their effective bending.

Study of the Photocatalytic Activity of Titanium and Tungsten Oxides Obtained by Electric Explosion of Metal Conductors in Air

Oxides as a shape of micro- and nanosized powder, containing agglomerates of particles with a high specific surface, were obtained by means of electric Ti and W wire explosion in the air. An X-ray phase analysis showed that the only product of Ti destruction is TiO2, while the electric explosion of W conductors results in the formation of WO3 + W2O7 mixture, which tungsten anhydride WO3 dominates in, and traces of a residual metallic W come across. The photocatalytic properties of electroexplosive powder were studied using a model oxidation reaction of methylene blue. It was revealed that both TiO2 and the WO3 + W2O7 mixture demonstrate catalytic activity within a wide spectrum of radiation, including the visible one. The catalytic activity of the WO3 + W2O7 mixture under ultraviolet and incandescent lamp radiation was inferior to that of TiO2, however, in the solar radiation, the rate of dye degradation with the participation of tungsten oxides is higher. In this case, the average rate of decreasing concentration of the dye in water containing a mixture of WO3 + W2O7 depends but a little on the type of the radiation source.

Remedies to Thermal Radiation in Fused Silica Optical Fibers

During fire incidents, optical fibers located with-in a fire-resistant cable are usually exposed to temperatures of 800ºC to 1000ºC. Hot fibers generate narrowband thermal (incandescent) radiation and collect broadband thermal radiation originating from the heated surroundings. The power of the second component, initially negligible, increases with time due to the rising number of fiber cracks and other defects acting as couplers for external radiation. Thermal radiation may interfere with fiber attenuation measurements performed during a fire test, but is rather unlikely to prevent data transmission with typical GbE and 10 GbE transceivers during a fire. This problem may be remedied by combining the following methods: using single mode fibers instead of multimode fibers, using bandpass filters to block thermal radiation, and selecting proper transmitter power, wavelength and photodetector.

The Progress of Black Holes: Principles & Physical Detection Technology

Humans have been trying to explain black holes since the 19th century, using theoretical understanding and observations of the universe. Incandescent body thermal radiation has been the focus of extensive theoretical and experimental research for over a century. This paper will discuss the concept of a black hole and use information retrieval to generate a panoramic image of it. The content illustrates black holes from three different perspectives: description of black holes using mathematical methods and data, models, and detection. A black hole is a controversial object, and no one knows for sure what it is. Indeed, multiple numerical simulations have been carried out to investigate the critical behaviors of black holes with various geometrical configurations in arbitrary dimensions. We will sum up the black hole knowledge so far and discuss the recent progress in terms of black hole exploration, i.e., shed light for future black holes model construction and detection.

THE EFFECT OF CORONA INCANDESCENT PLASMA RADIATION AND STORAGE TEMPERATURE ON THE VIABILITY OF GARLIC SEEDS (ALLIUM SATIVUM L. LUMBU KUNING VARIETY)

Garlic (Allium sativum L.) is an agricultural commodity which is widely consumed by the community. The obstacle experienced in cultivation is that a relatively long dormancy period of about 6-7 months. The dormancy of garlic seeds occurs because the embryo has not yet been fully formed, and the growth hormone and inhibitory hormone are not balanced. The methods used to break dormancy and accelerate germination are by using corona incandescent plasma radiation and storage temperature. The research utilized factorial Completely Randomized Design (CRD), consisting of six treatments with five replications. The first factor was the corona incandescent plasma radiation carried out on the garlic seeds ‘Lumbu Kuning’ variety with time duration of 0, 15, and 30 minutes. The second factor was storage temperature comprising of room temperature and cold temperature of 7oC stored for 30 days. Viability parameters observed are germination percentage dan the length of sprouts. The data were analyzed by using ANOVA followed by the DMRT test at the 95% confidence level. The results showed that corona incandescent plasma radiation influenced the germination percentage using plasma radiation for 15- 30 minutes.

Solid state organic photovoltaic devices using spirulina sp thylakoid membrane films as active material

Efficient light-to-energy conversion in Photosynthetis proceeds with quantum efficiency near unity. However, solar cell devices which incorporates chlorophyll such as DSSC generally requires elaborate fabrication process and complex device structure with liquid electrolyte. In this work, a solid state organic solar cell device is presented. The device employs simple structure of ITO/Thylakoid membrane/Al layer in a solid state structure without require liquid electrolyte. As the active materials, Thylakoid membrane layer contains the whole photosynthetic pigment-protein complexes including Photosystem I and Photosystem II. Preliminary characterization of the solid state organic photovoltaic devices exhibits modest ISC of 0.44 μA, VOC of 0.17 V, and Fill Factor of 0.250 when illuminated under the 1 mW/cm2 incandescent radiation power. Plot of (αhv)2 against the (hv) for tyakoid membrane active materials reveals major optical band-gap values of 4.0–4.1 eV which corresponds to the absorbtion from the PS I and PS II light harvesting complexes. This encouraging result implies that incorporating the whole photosynthetic pigment-protein complex can enhance the performance of organic solar cell significantly.

Growth of ‘Seascape’ strawberry (Fragaria X ananassa Duch.) is altered by photoperiod and nitrogen conditioning

ABSTRACT The influences of photoperiod and nitrogen plug conditioning for summer planting of ‘Seascape’ strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) for off-season plasticulture production were evaluated in two separate experiments in New Jersey, USA. In experiment one, plants were conditioned in the greenhouse under ND (natural daylength), LD (ND supplemented with 24 h incandescent radiation (Phillips Duramax Soft White A19 60 watt) or LD7W (ND supplemented with 24 h incandescent radiation (C9, 7 watt bulbs) followed by elevated nitrogen (800 ppm) for 0 to 4 weeks. In experiment two, plants were conditioned in the greenhouse under ND or LD followed by elevated nitrogen (800 ppm) for 4 weeks. In experiment one, flowering was enhanced by LD conditioning. The 24LD7W treatment was more effective than the 24LD treatment in eliciting a long day response at low levels of N (0 and 1 week of elevated N) but not at higher levels of N (2 to 4 weeks of elevated N). No treatment effects were observed for fruit production. In the second experiment, flowering was enhanced by LD or elevated N. Elevated nitrogen during conditioning slightly enhanced yield through 11 September while photoperiod during conditioning did not affect productivity. Runner production was minimal in both experiments.

Responses to nitrogen conditioning in ‘Albion’ strawberry (Fragaria X ananassa Duch.) for off-season plasticulture production are primarily qualitative rather than quantitative

The nature (qualitative vs. quantitative) of growth responses to nitrogen during photoperiod conditioning of ‘Albion’ strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) plants for late summer / early fall off-season field production was evaluated in New Jersey, USA. For two different planting dates (14 June and 6 July), plants were conditioned in the greenhouse under ND (natural daylength), LD (natural daylength supplemented with 24 h incandescent radiation (Phillips Duramax Soft White A19 60 W) or LD7W (natural daylength supplemented with 24 h incandescent radiation (C9, 7 W bulbs) followed by elevated nitrogen (800 ppm) for 0–4 weeks. Plants were then established in field plasticulture. Flowering in July was enhanced by LD conditioning; however, these effects did not persist and have an impact on plant productivity. Qualitative responses to N included crown branching, runner production, fruiting precocity and early season yield. Results confirm the previous observation that conditioning plants prior to off-season plasticulture production in the Northeast US is not necessary if plants are established in the field by early July. The LD7W light treatment was more effective than the LD light treatment in eliciting photoperiod responses especially when nitrogen levels were low. Thus, the lower wattage bulbs may be an effective tool for managing photoperiod responses for off-season production when needed (later planting dates) with this cultivar.

Conditioning is not needed for late summer and early fall production of June-planted ‘Albion’ strawberry (Fragaria X ananassa Duch.) in the plasticulture system

ABSTRACTTwo plant types [direct planted, cold-stored dormant crowns (crowns) or dormant crowns grown in a greenhouse for 3 weeks prior to field planting (plugs)] of ‘Albion’ strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) were evaluated in off-season field production under LD (long day: natural daylength supplemented with 24 h incandescent radiation) or ND (natural daylength) in New Jersey, USA. After 1 week under LD or ND plants received either 100 or 800 ppm N for 4 weeks. Inflorescence, runner, and branch crown production were monitored and fruit harvested from July through September. Field conditioning was ineffective for enhancing total yield of June-planted ‘Albion’ in off-season production. If early summer planting is anticipated, conditioning is not needed. Growing plugs in the greenhouse before transplanting to the production field is not beneficial and reduces productivity with the early summer plantings. Extending the daylength with continuous incandescent lighting to mimic LD during production is not recommended for early summer planting as productivity and fruit size are reduced under continuous low level lighting.

Plug size and density during greenhouse conditioning do not affect late summer and early fall production of June-planted ‘Albion’ strawberry (Fragaria X ananassa Duch.) in the plasticulture system

Abstract The influences of plug size and plant density during conditioning of ‘Albion’ strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) plants were evaluated for off-season field production in New Jersey, USA. Two plug densities (168 and 336 plants m−2, 75 cm3 cell volume) during conditioning in a greenhouse were evaluated. Conditioning consisted of 5 weeks under LD (natural daylength supplemented with 24 h incandescent radiation) with 100 ppm N the first week and 800 ppm N once each week during last 4 weeks. Controls were kept for 5 weeks under ND (natural daylength) with 100 ppm N once each week. Following conditioning, plants were evaluated in off-season plasticulture. Larger (134 cm3) plugs were conditioned at 168 plants m−2 to compare with the smaller cells (75 cm3) conditioned at the same density. Inflorescence, runner and branch crown production were monitored and fruit harvested from July through September. Conditioning accelerated flowering and fruiting. New inflorescence production in July was significantly enhanced with conditioning but treatment effects on flowering did not persist. Cumulative yield through early August was enhanced by conditioning however total yield was not affected by conditioning. Conditioning had no effect on branch crown production and significantly reduced runner production. Plug production at a higher density reduced flowering but the short day response was alleviated with conditioning. Smaller plugs flowered earlier, produced more inflorescences and produced fewer runners than plants from larger plugs. Plug size and density ultimately did not affect total yield regardless of treatment.

Conditioning alleviates reduced yield of smaller plugs of ‘Albion’ strawberry (Fragaria X ananassa Duch.) in off-season plasticulture production

ABSTRACTThe influences of plug size, planting density, and mulch colour on responses to photoperiod and nitrogen conditioning of ‘Albion’ strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) plants were evaluated in off-season field production in New Jersey, USA. Three different sized plug plants (7.6 cm square pots, 24-cell plug trays, or 50-cell plug trays) were conditioned with natural days (ND, natural daylength) or long days (LD, natural daylength supplemented with 24 h incandescent radiation) for one week followed by ND plus 100 ppm nitrogen (N) for 4 weeks or LD plus 800 ppm N for 4 weeks. Plants were then established in plasticulture on black, white, or silver mulch. In a second experiment, plug plants (439 cm3) were conditioned with LD and nitrogen then established in plasticulture on black, white, or silver mulch at 3 planting densities (0.46, 0.23, and 0.16 m2•plant−1 (2, 4, and 6 plants•m−2)). Fruit were harvested from August through October in both experiments. Conditioning enhanced off-season fall production. White plastic enhanced survival, productivity, and fruit size and larger plugs were more productive than smaller ones. If smaller plugs are desired, conditioning prevents the reduction in yield observed with non-conditioned smaller plugs.

Long-day and nitrogen conditioning of ‘Albion’ strawberry (Fragaria X ananassa Duch.) enhances off-season field production

ABSTRACTExperiments conducted over 2 years evaluated photoperiod and nitrogen conditioning of ‘Albion’ strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) plants for off-season field production in New Jersey, USA. Plants were conditioned the first year with natural days (ND, natural daylength) or long days (LD, natural daylength supplemented with 24 h incandescent radiation) for one week followed by 100 or 800 ppm N for 4 weeks under ND or LD. The second year, plants were conditioned with ND or LD for 1 week followed by 1 to 6 weeks of 100 or 800 ppm nitrogen (N) under ND or LD. After conditioning, plants were established in plasticulture. Ripe fruit were harvested from August through October both years. LD conditioning enhanced precocity by approximately 9 days in both studies. Productivity was also enhanced by conditioning with LD or elevated N. Plants grown on silver or white mulch were more productive than those grown on black mulch in the first study, but not the second.

Enhanced flowering of the F1 long-day strawberry cultivars ‘Tarpan’ and ‘Gasana’ with nitrogen and daylength management

Interest in sustainable self-sufficiency, particularly when considering produce has increased. Strawberries, especially particularly the seed propagated, long-day, F1 hybrids such as ‘Tarpan’ and ‘Gasana’, fit self-sufficient, sustainable production models well. They provide aesthetic as well as culinary benefits producing colorful, attractive blossoms and flavorful fruit. To determine if ‘Tarpan’ and ‘Gasana’ flowering would respond to photoperiod and nitrogen, seedlings were fertilized with 100 or 800 ppm nitrogen for 4 weeks in September beginning one week after exposure to either short days, the natural photoperiod, or long days, the natural photoperiod supplemented with 24 hours of incandescent radiation. Plants were then greenhouse forced under both photoperiods and floral phenology evaluated. Photoperiod and N fertility during floral initiation in September affected subsequent flowering of both cultivars. The response was rapid with significant differences observed 4 weeks after the commencement of treatment. Both cultivars responded with increased rate (enhanced precocity) and intensity (enhanced inflorescence/flower number) of flowering with elevated N. In ‘Gasana’ elevated N accelerated flowering by 2–3 weeks. There was a slight acceleration of flowering in lower N plants with long-day forcing, however, elevated N was much more effective in accelerating flowering than long-day forcing. In ‘Tarpan’, long-day forcing and elevated N were equally effective in accelerating flowering. Inflorescence production per plant or crown and the number of flowers per plant were enhanced with elevated N in both cultivars. Long-day forcing stimulated the number of inflorescences produced per crown in both cultivars. The number of flowers per plant in ‘Tarpan’ was also enhanced by long-day initiation or forcing. Elevated N, short-day initiation or long-day forcing enhanced the number of flowers per inflorescence in ‘Gasana’. Elevated N under long-day initiation or under short-day initiation when followed by long-day forcing enhanced the number of flowers per inflorescence in ‘Tarpan’.

Programmed flowering of the F1 long-day strawberry cultivar ‘Elan’ with nitrogen and daylength manipulation

Consumer demand for locally grown, high quality strawberries is increasing even though California, Florida and Mexico provide a year-round source of strawberries for the world market. In most of the US, locally grown strawberries are only available for a short time in late spring from seasonal fruiting short-day cultivars thus off-season strawberry production is an attractive option for growers. Seed propagated hybrids such as ‘Elan’ are becoming more widely available and offer an alternative to often low yielding cultivars used for off-season production. To determine whether or not ‘Elan’ could be programmed to flower with photoperiod or nitrogen, seedlings were fertilized with either 100 or 800 ppm nitrogen for 4 weeks in September beginning one week after exposure to either short days, the natural photoperiod, or long days, the natural photoperiod supplemented with 24 hours of incandescent radiation. Plants were then greenhouse forced under both photoperiods and floral phenology evaluated. Elevated nitrogen during floral initiation in September enhanced and accelerated flowering and plants receiving elevated nitrogen during initiation under long days flowered more than any other treatment. To determine whether or not flowering could be enhanced a second time in the same plants, another 4 week period of elevated nitrogen was provided in December and plant phenology evaluated through mid-January. Elevated nitrogen (800 ppm) in December enhanced December and January flowering. Seedlings were conditioned with elevated nitrogen for a third time in late spring then field planted (early summer) on raised beds with white or black plastic mulch. Elevated nitrogen in late spring enhanced yield in field production. No effects of mulch color, initiation photoperiod or interaction of considered factors were detected. Flowering differences detected in greenhouse studies translated into differences observed in the production field suggesting programmed fruiting with elevated fertilization under field or greenhouse conditions would be feasible.

High efficiency quasi-monochromatic infrared emitter

Incandescent radiation sources are widely used as mid-infrared emitters owing to the lack of alternative for compact and low cost sources. A drawback of miniature hot systems such as membranes is their low efficiency, e.g., for battery powered systems. For targeted narrow-band applications such as gas spectroscopy, the efficiency is even lower. In this paper, we introduce design rules valid for very generic membranes demonstrating that their energy efficiency for use as incandescent infrared sources can be increased by two orders of magnitude.

SHS for Space Exploration

For over past years, interest of leading space agencies (NASA, JAXA, ESA, RSA, etc.) in SHS experiments under microgravity conditions has been increasingly growing. The first SHS experiments during a parabolic flight in Russia and aboard the MIR Space station gave promising results. Similar studies are now<br />being carried out in various countries. The obtained data and assimilated experience have shown that SHS reactions can be used for (a) synthesis of high-porosity materials and regulation of structure formation in combustion products, (b) preparation of skeleton structures by combustion of particles suspended in vacuum, (c) generation of thermal energy, (d) generation of incandescent radiation, and (e) for in-space fabrication and in-situ repair works (welding, joining, cutting, coating, near-net-shape production, etc.). However, the results of the above studies (strongly scattered in the literature) still seem insufficient for elucidating the mechanism of combustion in. Indeed, the experiments were carried out by different researchers for a dozen<br />of systems and for strongly different duration of microgravity (drop towers, parabolic flight of a plane, parabolic flight of a spacecraft, in space stations). No correlation has been made with the available data of SHS studies (oriented largely on practical implementation) in conditions of artificial gravity. In experiments, the combustion wave has enough time to spread over the sample while the structure formation, may not have. This implies that the process of wave propagation should always be identical, <br />irrespective of the type of experimental technique and place of experiment. SHS experiments in space are attractive because (a) of low energy requirements, (b) processing cycle is short, (c) of process simplicity, (d) of versatility (wide range of suitable materials, and (e) the use of in-situ resources possible. To date, SHS experiments has already been performed aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Space technology has been developed for frontier exploration not only around the Earth orbit environment but also to the Moon, Mars, etc.

Measurement of the surface wavelength distribution of narrow-band radiation by a colorimetric method

A method is suggested for determining the wavelength of narrow-band light from a digital photograph of a radiating surface. The digital camera used should be appropriately calibrated. The accuracy of the wavelength measurement is better than 1 nm. The method was tested on the yellow doublet of mercury spectrum and on the adjacent continuum of the incandescent lamp radiation spectrum. By means of the method suggested the homogeneity of holographic sensor swelling was studied in stationary and transient cases.

Development of a sensitive gas sensor by trapping the analytes on nanomaterials and in situ cataluminescence detection

An optical sensor for ethanol has been proposed by trapping the analytes on sensing nanomaterials at room temperature and detecting them in situ by recording the cataluminescence (CTL) signals with fast elevated temperature. Sensing nanomaterials of ZrO2 were directly deposited on heating filament which enables the temperature programming for trapping and detecting the interested analytes. The miniaturized sensing unit has low incandescent radiation so as to provide the high signal-to-noise ratio. Under the optimized conditions, the linear range for the determination of ethanol vapor is 1.0×10−3 to 1.0mgL−1. A detection limit (S/N=3) is 2.0×10−4mgL−1 (0.1ppm), which is improved about 3000-fold for ethanol compared with previous CTL sensors. The relative standard deviation (RSD) is 1.2% (n=7) for ethanol samples at a concentration of 0.08mgL−1. The stability was demonstrated by continuous reaction with ethanol for 120h. This sensor has been applied to monitor the ethanol concentration in human expired gas after drinking, and the results agreed well with the reference values. This miniature ethanol sensor offers higher sensitivity, faster response and lower power consumption, which make it very promising in developing hand-hold sensing device for field detection.

An Experimental and Modelling Study of Particulate Formation in Premixed Flames Burning Methane

In this article we present an experimental and modeling study of Organic Carbon (OC) particles, with a typical size range of 1–10 nm, and soot particles, with sizes in the range 10–100 nm, formed in premixed methane flames at atmospheric pressure. An optical diagnostic method based on the interaction of an ultraviolet source, corresponding to the fifth harmonic of a Nd:YAG laser, with combustion-generated aerosols was used in order to measure the concentration profiles of both OC and soot particles with high spatial resolution. The high energy of the selected harmonic induces fluorescence from aromatic chromophoric groups and also allows soot particles to heat up and emit incandescent radiation. Optical measurements data are compared with numerical modeling simulations. The experimental data, in agreement with the model results, show that methane burned in slightly rich conditions forms prevalently organic particulate with mean size lower than 10 nm, while soot formation is observable only in very rich conditions.

Evaluation of incandescent radiation from tungsten cluster

Evaluation of incandescent radiation from tungsten cluster