Study of interface trap density in a GeSn MOS structure by numerical simulation of the electrical characteristics

Poster (2013, June)

Determination of activation yields for fusion plasma escaping charged particles diagnostics

Conference (2013, June)

Parapet wall effect on Piano Key Weirs efficiency

in Journal of Irrigation & Drainage Engineering (2013), 139(6), 506-511

Piano Key Weir is a cost effective solution for rehabilitation as well as for new dam projects with a high level of constraints (limited space, high specific flood discharge, small reservoir level ... [more ▼]

Piano Key Weir is a cost effective solution for rehabilitation as well as for new dam projects with a high level of constraints (limited space, high specific flood discharge, small reservoir level variation). While the higher efficiency of the Piano Key Weir compared to standard linear weirs has already been demonstrated, its optimal geometry is still poorly defined. In order to improve the design of the complex geometry of this structure, the use of parapet walls has been tested. They consist of vertical extensions placed over the weir crest. Following a former study of the influence of the weir height on its discharge capacity, this paper presents the results of an experimental campaign dedicated to investigating the effect of parapet walls to increase weir height while reducing bottom slopes and keeping the weir height constant. These results indicate the relative influences of the alveoli bottom slopes and of the weir height on the Piano Key Weir release capacity. Comparisons with former experimental results as well as design guidelines are also provided. [less ▲]

Pearls and pitfalls: Electrophysiology for primary headaches

in Cephalalgia : An International Journal of Headache (2013)

Techno-economic survey of Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) systems

in Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews (2013), 22

New heat conversion technologies need to be developed and improved to take advantage of the necessary increase in the supply of renewable energy. The Organic Rankine Cycle is well suited for these ... [more ▼]

New heat conversion technologies need to be developed and improved to take advantage of the necessary increase in the supply of renewable energy. The Organic Rankine Cycle is well suited for these applications, mainly because of its ability to recover low-grade heat and the possibility to be implemented in decentralized lower-capacity power plants. In This paper, an overview of the different ORC applications is presented. A market review is proposed including cost figures for several commercial ORC modules and manufacturers. An in-depth analysis of the technical challenges related to the technology, such as working fluid selection and expansion machine issues is then reported. Technological constraints and optimization methods are extensively described and discussed. Finally, the current trends in research and development for the next generation of Organic Rankine Cycles are presented. [less ▲]

Etude prospective des caractéristiques hématologiques, biochimiques et urinaires du Dogue de Bordeaux: Une race prédisposée à une glomérulopathie familiale

Doctoral thesis (2013)

Dogue de Bordeaux (DDB) dogs are predisposed to a juvenile glomerulonephropathy (JGN), usually leading to an end-stage chronic kidney disease (CKD), mostly before 2 years of age. Since its first ... [more ▼]

Dogue de Bordeaux (DDB) dogs are predisposed to a juvenile glomerulonephropathy (JGN), usually leading to an end-stage chronic kidney disease (CKD), mostly before 2 years of age. Since its first description a few years ago, the number of DDB dogs diagnosed with JGN has drastically increased in Europe. Furthermore, some DDB dogs might develop clinical signs far later than initially thought. As the mode of inheritance of this condition has not yet been elucidated, an early diagnosis of JGN is of central importance for breeders and owners. To ease screening of affected dogs, we first wanted to improve our knowledge of this ancient French breed by describing characteristics of healthy DDB dogs. Given available information, we indeed suspected that some biological specificity existed in this breed, which could affect diagnostic processes and lead to erroneous clinical decisions. We thus determined, in a first study, breed-specific biochemical and hematological reference intervals (RI). For most of the 29 measured biochemical analytes, using the manufacturer’s generic canine RI would not have had a major clinical impact, however breed-specific RI established for 6 of them were relevantly different. Limits of the RI for total proteins, total cholesterol, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase and lipase were higher, while they were markedly lower for total thyroxin. Among the 25 hematological RI that were determined and compared with generic canine RI established in the same laboratory, only those of some red blood cells and platelet indices were sufficiently different to have a significant impact on clinical decision. Most red blood cells indices had higher, whereas most platelet indices had lower RI. As we also hypothesized that some apparently healthy adult DDB could suffer from JGN, we decided to look, in a second study, for the biological abnormalities that were previously described in association with the disease. We thus recruited a large cohort of adult DDB and found that proteinuria (urine protein-to-creatinine ratio (UPC) > 0.5) was present in 33%, and proteinuric CKD in 2% of the dogs. When assessed by UPC, proteinuria increased with age and was associated with changes in several biological variables. Urine specific gravity, plasma albumin and total calcium decreased, whereas cholesterol, fibrinogen and thyroid-stimulating hormone increased with UPC. Furthermore, changes in total renal volume, evaluated by ultrasound, were also described to be affected by magnitude of proteinuria. Having a UPC>0.5 increased the probability of observing urinary granular casts by an odds-ratio of 4. Amplitude of biological variations observed in this study was however generally moderate. Finally, to investigate if proteinuric DDB could be suffering from a glomerular disease related to the JGN, we attempted in a third study to characterize the nature of their proteinuria. For that purpose, we used urinary proteins electrophoresis and specific tubular (retinol binding protein (uRPB) and N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase (uNAG) enzyme) and glomerular (albumin (uAlb) and immunoglobulins G (uIgG)) urinary markers. One hundred and two DDB, including 2 dogs with proteinuric CKD, were retrospectively recruited for this study, irrespective of UPC values, to facilitate comparison. Final interpretations of urine proteins electrophoresis attributed a “normal” pattern to 39 dogs, a tubular pattern to 9 of them, a glomerular pattern to 38, and a mixed pattern to 16. Most of these results were highly correlated to UPC values. However, tubular and mixed patterns were only attributed to entire male dogs because of the presence of an isolated 25kDa band, which might be due to urinary contamination by seminal proteins. When results for urinary markers were compared to values obtained in non proteinuric (UPC≤0.2) DDB dogs, 37% of the borderline proteinuric dogs (0.2≤UPC<0.5) had all four markers within reference limits. On the other hand, all proteinuric DDB dogs had elevated ratios of uAlb and uIgG when their concentrations were related to urinary creatinine (/c). Only 53% of them had an elevated uRBP/c and 35% an elevated uNAG/c, which corresponded to the dogs with highest UPC values. Results of this last study support the hypothesis that proteinuric DDB dogs have a glomerular disease which is likely related to JGN. Additionally, sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative likelihood ratio of electrophoresis to identify dogs with elevated uAlb/c were 94%, 92%, 11.85 and 0.07, in that order. These indices were respectively 90%, 74%, 3.43 and 0.13, to identify DDB dogs with abnormally elevated uIgG/c. [less ▲]

ANALYTICAL STRATEGIES FOR THE DETECTION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF COUNTERFEIT MEDICINES

Conference (2013, June)

Modeling and simulation of the domestic energy use in Belgium following a bottom-up approach

in Proceedings of the CLIMA 2013 11th REHVA World Congress & 8th International Conference on IAQVEC (2013, June)

The present paper presents a “bottom-up” approach dedicated to the modeling and simulation of the domestic energy use. This methodology focuses first on a microanalysis (i.e. modeling and simulation of a ... [more ▼]

The present paper presents a “bottom-up” approach dedicated to the modeling and simulation of the domestic energy use. This methodology focuses first on a microanalysis (i.e. modeling and simulation of a set of representative households). Results from this micro-analysis are then used and extended to allow drawing conclusions at a macro-scale. The methodology can be validated by comparing simulation results to annual national energy consumption indexes or synthetic load profiles (energy consumption profiles generated from values of predefined past periods). Once the method is validated, it can be used to study the impact of different retrofit scenarios on the annual energy use and on the energy demand profiles. This paper describes the methodology developed for Belgium. [less ▲]

Comparison of a fluid and a solid approach for the numerical simulation of Friction Stir Welding with a non-cylindrical pin

in Proceedings of "V International Conference on Computational Methods for Coupled Problems in Science and Engineering" (2013, June)

Friction Stir Welding (FSW) process is a solid-state joining process during which materials to be joined are not melted. As a consequence, the heat-affected zone is smaller and the quality of the weld is ... [more ▼]

Friction Stir Welding (FSW) process is a solid-state joining process during which materials to be joined are not melted. As a consequence, the heat-affected zone is smaller and the quality of the weld is better with respect to more classical welding processes. Because of extremely high strains in the neighbourhood of the tool, classical numerical simulation techniques have to be extended in order to track the correct material deformations. The Arbitrary Lagrangian Eulerian (ALE) formulation is used to preserve a good mesh quality throughout the computation. With this formulation the mesh displacement is independent from the material displacement. Moreover, some advanced numerical techniques such as remeshing or a special computation of transition interface is needed to take into account non-cylindrical tools. During the FSW process, the behaviour of the material in the neighbourhood of the tool is at the interface between solid mechanics and fluid mechanics. Consequently, a numerical model of the FSW process based on a solid formulation is compared to another one based on a fluid formulation. It is shown that these two formulations essentially deliver the same results in terms of pressures and temperatures. [less ▲]

Prediction and measurement of the random incidence scattering coefficient of periodic reflective rectangular diffuser profiles

in Proceedings of the 2013 ICA Congress (2013, June)