Inspection Laboratory Research Articles

Ultrasonic phased array examination of circumferential weld joint in reactor pressure vessel of BWR

The weld joints in the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) of Boiling Water Reactors (BWR) are required to be examined periodically for assurance of structural integrity. Ultrasonic phased array examination technique has been developed in authors’ laboratory for inspection of the top flange to shell circumferential weld joint in RPV of BWRs, which are in operation in India since the late 1960s. The development involved detailed simulation studies for computation of focal laws followed by validation on mock-up. The paper brings out the limitations of the conventional ultrasonic technique and how this can be overcome by the phased array approach for the weld joint under consideration. The phased array technique was successfully employed for field examination of this weld joint in RPV during the re-fuelling outage.

Chlorophycean parasite on a marine fish, Sillago japonica (Japanese sillago)

A green spotted Japanese sillago (Sillago japonica) was caught by a fisherman and brought to the laboratory for pathological inspection. The green spots were abundant on the lateral line and more extensively so within the mouth cavity. In both sites, green spots were embedded within the fish flesh and formed 2–3mm dome-shaped colonies. SEM revealed these colonies to harbor numerous unknown cells with small, surface warts (ornamentations). Molecular analysis showed the cells were Desmodesmus (D. komarekii), a common freshwater coccoid green alga found in ponds and rivers worldwide. It is uncertain how the host fish came to be infected with the alga which was not merely attached externally but embedded within the flesh and inside the mouth cavity. This is the first case of parasitic form of coccoid green algae in marine fish and provides new insights into the variable nature of green algae.

Food Safety Test Information System Design

Informatization of food safety supervision overviews in China and some other countries were studied. With the combination of food safety supervision characteristics in Guizhou and quality system requirements for national food inspection laboratory, information management system for food safety in Guizhou was proposed. A knowledge database for categorizing determination factors of food hazard was established. This system was implemented in the food safety supervision of circulation links in Guizhou for 3 years (2009-2011). It solved problems such as quality control for massive sampling inspections and data analysis. Besides improving work efficiency, it provided scientific basis for decision making of food safety supervision to government as well as data support for food safety forecasting and warning system.

Toxocara cati larva migrans in domestic pigs - detected at slaughterhouse control in Norway

Routine Trichinella meat inspection at the slaughterhouse detected one larva in a pooled batch of 100 pig samples. The larva was sent to the Norwegian Veterinary Institute (NVI) for species identification.Morphological examination revealed that the larva was not Trichinella spp. Molecular analysis was performed. PCR and sequencing of 5S/ITS identified the larva as Toxocara cati. A second round of digests was carried out at the meat inspection laboratory, in smaller batches to try to identify the infected animal. No further larvae were detected and it was not possible to identify which of the 100 animals the larva had come from. This is the first time that Toxocara cati has been reported in slaughterhouse pigs in Norway.Although the infected individual could not be identified, the meat originated from one of six potential farms. A small survey regarding rodent control and cats was sent to each of these farms. Cats had restricted access to food storage areas (two farms reported that cats had access) whilst none of the farms allowed cats into the production housing. Cats were, however, present on all the farms (mostly stray cats of unknown health status). Half of the farms also reported seeing rodents in the pig housing during the previous six months and half reported finding rodents in the feed and straw storage areas. We were unable to narrow down the source of infection – however contamination of food or bedding material, with cat faeces or infected rodents, in addition to the presence of infected rodents in pig housing remain potential routes of infection.

Erratum to the editorial ‘Adventures in Cu‐chalcogenide solar cells. A special issue for the occasion of the 65th birthday of Prof. Dr.‐Ing. Hans‐Werner Schock’ Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications 2012; 20: 505–506

The following error was published in print: On page 506: The analysis of modules by a combination of simulation and physical characterizations is considered in the concluding contribution to this volume, where Mack et al. [13] show how this combination can help find problems in a production line, well before the modules have found their way to the inspection laboratories. There is a small printing erratum in reference [13]; the text was incorrect and should have read as follows: The analysis of modules by a combination of simulation and physical characterizations is considered in the concluding contribution to this volume, where Ott et al. [13] show how this combination can help find problems in a production line, well before the modules have found their way to the inspection laboratories.

The application of thermoelastic stress analysis to full-scale aerospace structures

Non-destructive evaluation (NDE) techniques that can be applied in-situ are particularly relevant to the testing of large scale structures that cannot easily be taken into a laboratory for inspection. The application of established laboratory based techniques to the inspection of such structures therefore brings with it a new set of challenges associated with the change in operating environment between the laboratory and 'the field'. The current work investigates the use of thermoelastic stress analysis (TSA) to inspect carbon fibre composite aerospace components for manufacturing defects and in-service damage. An initial study using single transient loads to obtain a measureable change in temperature that can be related to the change in the sum of the principal stresses showed a good agreement with the traditional methodology. However, for large structures, the energy required to obtain a sufficiently large stress change to obtain a resolvable measurement may require an actuator that is not easily portable. Hence a number of ideas have been proposed to reduce the power requirement and deal with small signal to noise ratios. This paper describes the use of natural frequency vibration modes to enable large stress changes to be generated with minimal power input. Established signal processing in the form of a lock-in amplifier and Fourier signal analysis is applied. Tests on a laboratory scale flat plate and full-scale representative wing skin and stringer specimen are presented.

Regional cooperation in proficiency testing: strategy planning and practical experiences in Western Balkan countries

The article describes the project of regional cooperation in proficiency testing within CARDS 2006 (assistance programme to the Western Balkans), which was coordinated by European Committee for Standardization, European Commission and European Free Trade Association and conducted by the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Laboratory of Metrology and Quality. The later is the holder of the national standard for thermodynamic temperature as well as an accredited proficiency testing provider and also accredited as a calibration, testing and inspection laboratory. It is also responsible for graduate study programme Quality Engineering. Proficiency testing was considered as a core activity of the entire project, but additionally as a very appropriate platform for knowledge transfer of EU technical legislation in selected sectors, metrology, testing and quality assurance in general. The project had a high added value for participating laboratories in countries of Western Balkans, because it required an active role of all participating laboratories, assured participation of staff from national metrology institutions, all national accreditation bodies, and was supported by national quality infrastructures, such as standardization, governmental institutions etc. in the entire Western Balkans region. The activities stimulated progress in the area of conformity assessment, added knowledge to the implementation of technical directives and development of the technical part of national legislation and therefore facilitated the process toward the accession to the European Union. The main objective was therefore to organize proficiency testing in those sectors (construction, consumer protection and environment) that were vital in the pre-accession process of countries seeking full implementation of EU technical legislation.

Development and Use of a Chromogenic Macroarray System for the Detection ofStaphylococcus aureuswith Enterotoxin A, B, C, D, E, and G Genes in Food and Milk Samples

Abstract Staphylococcus aureus is one of the major pathogens that can cause staphylococcal infection and food poisoning. There are five major classical types of staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs): SEA, SEB, SEC, SED, and SEE, as well as new SEs or SE-like superantigens (SAgs), such as SEG to SEU. Since many S. aureus strains harbor more than one SE gene and identification of SEs involved in food poisoning cases is time consuming, we developed a chromogenic macroarray method that allows convenient and simultaneous detection of classical SE genes and a new SE gene (seg), which is phylogenetically highly related to seb and sec. Two sets of degenerated primers labeled with biotin were used to co-amplify all SE genes in S. aureus strains through the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Afterwards, these biotin-labeled PCR products were hybridized with SE gene-specific probes spotted on the nitrocellulose membrane. When this macroarray was used to detect enterotoxingenic S. aureus in milk or beef homogenate containing 10(0)-10(4) target cells per milliliter or gram of the sample, all six enterotoxin genes could be identified after a 12-hour enrichment step. This macroarray offers clinical and food inspection laboratories a rapid and economical visual method to detect common enterotoxigenic S. aureus strains.

Remote Microelectronics Fabrication Laboratory MEFLab

Over the last decade, there has been a move towards using remote laboratories in engineering education. The majority of these laboratories are static, involving limited user-controlled mechanical movements. The University of South Australia has developed such a laboratory, called NetLab that has been successfully utilized for teaching both on-campus and transnational programs in electrical and electronics engineering. Following this success, we are now developing a remote laboratory for microelectronic fabrication, MEFLab. The first stage of the development is a remote laboratory for visual inspection and testing of electronic circuits directly on the silicon wafer under a microscope which is normally conducted in a cleanroom. The major challenge of this project is the accurate positioning of micro-probes remotely over the internet. This paper presents the details of the setup of this new remote laboratory, with a particular emphasis on the development of the hardware, software and graphical user interface.

Multiresidue analysis of four pesticide residues in water dropwort (Oenanthe javanica) via pressurized liquid extraction, supercritical fluid extraction, and liquid–liquid extraction and gas chromatographic determination

Journal of Separation ScienceVolume 30, Issue 12 p. 1989-1989 ErratumFree Access Multiresidue analysis of four pesticide residues in water dropwort (Oenanthe javanica) via pressurized liquid extraction, supercritical fluid extraction, and liquid–liquid extraction and gas chromatographic determination This article corrects the following: Multiresidue analysis of four pesticide residues in water dropwort (Oenanthe javanica) via pressurized liquid extraction, supercritical fluid extraction, and liquid–liquid extraction and gas chromatographic determination Hyang-Rang Jeon, Mostafa Abd El-Aty, Soon-Kil Cho, Jeong-Heui Choi, Kil-Yong Kim, Ro-Dong Park, Jae-Han Shim, Volume 30Issue 12Journal of Separation Science pages: 1953-1963 First Published online: June 19, 2007 Hyang-Rang Jeon, Hyang-Rang Jeon Natural Products Chemistry Laboratory, Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chonnam National University, Buk-Ku, Gwangju, Republic of Korea. Fax: +82-62-530-0219 National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service, Products Safety Inspection Laboratory, Gwangsan-Gu, Gwangju, Republic of KoreaSearch for more papers by this authorAbd El-Aty Mostafa Abd El-Aty, Abd El-Aty Mostafa Abd El-Aty Natural Products Chemistry Laboratory, Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chonnam National University, Buk-Ku, Gwangju, Republic of Korea. Fax: +82-62-530-0219 Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt Department of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Konkuk University, Kwangjin-Gu, Seoul, Republic of KoreaSearch for more papers by this authorSoon-Kil Cho, Soon-Kil Cho National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service, Products Safety Inspection Laboratory, Gwangsan-Gu, Gwangju, Republic of KoreaSearch for more papers by this authorJeong-Heui Choi, Jeong-Heui Choi Natural Products Chemistry Laboratory, Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chonnam National University, Buk-Ku, Gwangju, Republic of Korea. Fax: +82-62-530-0219Search for more papers by this authorKil-Yong Kim, Kil-Yong Kim Glucosamine Saccharide Materials Laboratory (NRL), Division of Applied Bioscience and Biotechnology, Chonnam National University, Buk-Ku, Gwangju, Republic of KoreaSearch for more papers by this authorRo-Dong Park, Ro-Dong Park Glucosamine Saccharide Materials Laboratory (NRL), Division of Applied Bioscience and Biotechnology, Chonnam National University, Buk-Ku, Gwangju, Republic of KoreaSearch for more papers by this authorJae-Han Shim, Jae-Han Shim jhshim@chonnam.ac.kr Search for more papers by this author Hyang-Rang Jeon, Hyang-Rang Jeon Natural Products Chemistry Laboratory, Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chonnam National University, Buk-Ku, Gwangju, Republic of Korea. Fax: +82-62-530-0219 National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service, Products Safety Inspection Laboratory, Gwangsan-Gu, Gwangju, Republic of KoreaSearch for more papers by this authorAbd El-Aty Mostafa Abd El-Aty, Abd El-Aty Mostafa Abd El-Aty Natural Products Chemistry Laboratory, Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chonnam National University, Buk-Ku, Gwangju, Republic of Korea. Fax: +82-62-530-0219 Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt Department of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Konkuk University, Kwangjin-Gu, Seoul, Republic of KoreaSearch for more papers by this authorSoon-Kil Cho, Soon-Kil Cho National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service, Products Safety Inspection Laboratory, Gwangsan-Gu, Gwangju, Republic of KoreaSearch for more papers by this authorJeong-Heui Choi, Jeong-Heui Choi Natural Products Chemistry Laboratory, Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chonnam National University, Buk-Ku, Gwangju, Republic of Korea. Fax: +82-62-530-0219Search for more papers by this authorKil-Yong Kim, Kil-Yong Kim Glucosamine Saccharide Materials Laboratory (NRL), Division of Applied Bioscience and Biotechnology, Chonnam National University, Buk-Ku, Gwangju, Republic of KoreaSearch for more papers by this authorRo-Dong Park, Ro-Dong Park Glucosamine Saccharide Materials Laboratory (NRL), Division of Applied Bioscience and Biotechnology, Chonnam National University, Buk-Ku, Gwangju, Republic of KoreaSearch for more papers by this authorJae-Han Shim, Jae-Han Shim jhshim@chonnam.ac.kr Search for more papers by this author First published: 23 July 2007 https://doi.org/10.1002/jssc.200790047Citations: 1AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article.Citing Literature Volume30, Issue12August 2007Pages 1989-1989 RelatedInformation

Agricultural seed dust as a potential cause of organic dust toxic syndrome

Aims: Episodes of serious work related health problems resembling organic dust toxic syndrome (ODTS) in workers of a grass seed quality inspection laboratory prompted the authors to study personal endotoxin...

A simple and rapid method for colorimetric determination of histamine in fish flesh

Histamine is a significant chemical hazard in fish. It is derived from the bacterial decarboxylation of amino acid histidine, that is present in large amounts in fish of Scombridae family and its presence is considered as a good indicator of temperature abuse and the state of good manufacturing practices adopted in the handling of such fish. A simple and rapid chemical method for determination of histamine in fish flesh is reported for use in seafood quality inspection laboratories. Good recoveries (>91%) were obtained for histamine at spiking levels ranging 1–60 mg/100 g. The overall precision (relative standard deviation, %) in the new assay ranged from 2.61 to 9.63. The interaction between the imidazole ring and p-phenyldiazonium sulfonate was made the basis of a quantitative colorimetric method for estimation of histamine. The results of the new assay showed a high correlation ( R 2=0.999) with the assay of Hardy and Smith [J. Sci. Food Agric. 27 (1976) 595] in the recovery of histamine. The limit of detection was 1 mg/100 g for the new assay and was comparable with the existing methods. A concentration-based reference color scale is provided for the determination of defect and hazard action levels set by the regulatory agencies. Visual comparison of color intensity of test samples with standard concentrations in reference color scale for determining these levels without the aid of a spectrophotometer was an important practical application for rapidly estimating histamine in fresh fish fulfilling one of the HACCP requirements. The assay was simple requiring no laborious treatments, and may be suitable for routine analysis in monitoring of histamine in fish.

DETERMINATION OF POMOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF NIKSAR DISTRICT POMEGRANATES (PUNICA GRANATUM L.) OF THE TOKAT PROVINCE

ISHS International Symposium on Sustainable Use of Plant Biodiversity to Promote New Opportunities for Horticultural Production Development DETERMINATION OF POMOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF NIKSAR DISTRICT POMEGRANATES (PUNICA GRANATUM L.) OF THE TOKAT PROVINCE

MicroVal: a European approach to the certification of new microbiological methods

Reference methods, such as those published by ISO (International Standards Organisation), are often laborious, expensive, and time consuming. More convenient, cheaper and more rapid methods are therefore often preferred for daily use. However, results obtained with such methods should be accepted by official control laboratories and trade partners, MicroVal, a European project for the validation and approval of alternative methods for the microbiological analysis of food and beverages, was set up to achieve this. A description is given of MicroVal. The general rules and certification procedures are described, as well as how the certification is organised. MicroVal aims at certifying alternative methods, i.e. methods which perform as well as internationally standardised methods. Whenever possible, an ISO standard method is used as the reference. Certification of alternative methods should ensure their acceptance by governmental inspection laboratories and laboratories in the food trade, thus facilitating commerce within the European Union.

MicroVal, a challenging Eureka project

A description is given of MicroVal, a Eureka project for the validation and approval of alternative methods for the microbiological analysis of food and beverages. The general rules and certification procedures are described as well as how the certification may be organized in future. MicroVal aims at certifying alternative methods, i.e. methods which perform as well as internationally standardized methods. Whenever possible, an ISO standard method is used as the reference. Certification of alternative methods should ensure its acceptance by governmental inspection laboratories and laboratories in the food trade, thus facilitating commerce within the European Union. Although the realization of the project has not been finalized, a certification protocol has been developed, of which details are given.

Reachability analysis for base placement in mobile manipulators

AbstractThis article addresses the problem of base placement for mobile robots using a reachability analysis. A simple geometric solution is proposed to determine the appropriate base locations from which the robot can reach a stationary or moving target point. This leads to a simple criterion for automated base placement, thus relieving the operator from the tedious and repetitive procedure for continuously positioning the robot base manually during the execution of the end‐effector task. For robots with one degree‐of‐mobility such as tracked robots, the feasible base locations consists of a region on the translational axis, the boundaries of which are derived in this article. The results are used to obtain the base locations so that the robot can reach a vertical line, a square surface, and a cubic volume. Using the proposed method, two experimental studies at the JPL Surface Inspection Laboratory are described: scanning a surface and reaching inside an opening. The results of the article are extended to mobile robots with two and three degrees‐of‐mobility such as rover‐mounted arms and gantry robots, and a simple numerical example is given for illustration. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Preparing the Physician’s Office Laboratory for Inspection

Journal Article Preparing the Physician’s Office Laboratory for Inspection Get access Barbara Rothstein, MS, MT(ASCP), CLS Barbara Rothstein, MS, MT(ASCP), CLS Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic PubMed Google Scholar Laboratory Medicine, Volume 23, Issue 10, 1 October 1992, Pages 697–698, https://doi.org/10.1093/labmed/23.10.697 Published: 01 October 1992

Hessian Fly Control, 1988

Abstract Efficacy of 2 systemic insecticides for control of the Hessian fly in hard red spring wheat was evaluated. The experiment was planted 9 Feb at the Texas A&M University Research and Extension Center at Dallas in a Houston black clay soil. Both Thimet 20 G (1.0 lb [AI]/acre) and Furadan 4 F (0.5 lb [AI]/acre) were applied in furrow at planting in liquid form through a microtubule applicator. Plots were 6 by 35 ft and arranged in a randomized complete block design of 4 replicates. The experiment was sampled for Hessian fly infestation on 27 Apr by removing plants from 2 1-ft sections of row from each plot. These samples were returned to the laboratory for inspection, and the number of infested and uninfested culms in each sample was counted. Infestation data were transformed by the square root transformation prior to analysis; nontransformed data are presented. All plots were harvested 14 Jun.

Peach, Insecticide Tests, 1985

Abstract At the Peach Substation in Nashville, AR, a row of peaches (% or more petal fall) containing 18 trees (5 yr old) spaced 2m apart was used in the TPB test. Prior to spraying, 50 cm long × 15 cm-diameter organdy cloth cages were placed over peach limbs containing several fruit, the cages were compressed into a ball and covered with a piece of aluminum foil in order to keep cloth free of residue. Insecticides were sprayed to the foliage of each 2 adjacent trees to runoff (ca. 1 gal/tree) on 9 Apr with a 5-horsepower hydraulic sprayer set at 250 psi and a handgun with a no. 4 disc nozzle. After spraying, the aluminum foil was removed, the cage was unfolded to cover the limb and 12 to 16 5th stage TPB nymphs or young TPB adults (1 or 2 wk old) were introduced. Cages were closed with ties on each end. Dead TPB were recorded 72 h after spraying by transferring the caged limbs in the field to the laboratory for inspection. At the Clarksville Fruit Substation, a 6-year-old block of Red Haven was sprayed in the same manner and with the same treatments used at Nashville. Five replications of 1-tree plots were utilized in a completely randomized block design. Sprays were applied 24 Apr, 9 May, 7 and 19 Jun, and 2 Jul. OFM damage was assessed by counting total flagged terminal per tree on 24 Apr, 9 and 15 May, 7 and 19 Jun and 18 Jul.

A software laboratory for visual inspection and recognition

We present the design criteria and the basic structure of GYPSY, a software laboratory for visual inspection and recognition in industrial automation tasks. GYPSY analyzes images of objects on the basis of their two-dimensional shape. It is fully portable and easily programmable. The user can write application programs in a Pascal-like language to give the system the ability to take over various tasks. GYPSY has been developed for a multi-microprocessor architecture designed in Italy especially for industrial automation.