Versatile Alternative Research Articles

Zoned exponential, vertical and horizontal ultra-clean laminar airflows. No differences in bacteriological efficiency.

We compared the novel zoned exponential ultra-clean operating room ventilation, needing no extra side-walls with the traditionally used ultra-clean air systems having vertical or horizontal laminar airflow, but requiring extra side-walls. The three units were evaluated with regard to elimination of particles with focus on airborne and sedimenting bacteria-carrying particles (colony forming units, cfu) during rigidly standardized sham operations. Although minor differences were recorded inside the ultra-clean airflows, the three systems were comparable with regard to bacteriological efficiency and ensured a low air and surface contamination (0.05-4 cfu/m3 and 7-72 cfu/m2/h, depending on the site of sampling). We conclude that all three systems fulfilled well the criteria for ultra-clean air (< 10 cfu/m3), but that exponential airflow is the most versatile alternative, as additional side-walls around the operating area can be omitted.

Analytical and computational improvements in performance-index ranking algorithms for networks

Performance-index ranking algorithms, relatively recent innovations in network analysis, are distinguished by the fact that they can rank a large set of network parameter and injection change cases very rapidly. To date, their major application has been for automatic contingency selection in power systems. Here, various enhancements to the approach are given and it is shown how general ranking formulas, valid for multiple branch contingencies, can be derived easily. A ranking formula for generator contingencies, hitherto unavailable, is presented. A sparse matrix technique that permits the rapid exact evaluation of the ranking formulas is given. The speed of the performance-index ranking algorithm is estimated for several large network problems, and found to be orders of magnitude higher than that of its direct though more versatile alternative, explicit linearized contingency evaluation.

Removal of oxygen from samples used in nuclear magnetic resonance studies of spin–lattice relaxation times

It is demonstrated that conventional degassing procedures for the removal of oxygen from samples used in n.m.r. studies are unsatisfactory, and a versatile chemical alternative is described.