Sharif Digital Repository

In this study, a near equiatomic NiTi shape memory alloy was hot rolled at 800°C using thethickness reductions of 30 and 50%. Optical and transmission electron microscopy, together withX-ray diffraction were used to demonstrate the microstructural changes associated with the hotrolling at different thickness reductions. Repeated transformation cycling was employed toinvestigate the evolution of R phase during cycling. Microstructural observations revealed thepresence of deformation twins embedded in an elongated grain matrix in the hot rolled material.Moreover, it was found that with increasing degree of thickness reduction, the size and number ofdeformation twins increased throughout the... 

In this study, the effect of surface modified nano-zirconia (nano-ZrO2) on the corrosion protection of epoxy coating on mild steel was investigated. An organosilane (trimethoxy methyl silane) was used as a surface modifier to improve the dispersability of the inorganic nanoparticles in the organic coating matrix. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were used to characterize the sol-gel surface modified nanoparticles. The dispersability of the modified and unmodified nano-zirconia in an epoxy coating was examined by field emission-scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and salt spray were employed to... 

A linear time-invariant (LTI) robust servomechanism controller for islanded (autonomous) operation of a distributed generation (DG) unit and its local load is proposed. The DG unit utilizes a voltage-sourced converter (VSC) as the interface medium. The controller design is obtained by introducing a new optimal controller design procedure, in conjunction with a proposed non-conservative robustness constraint. The proposed controller utilizes 1) an internal oscillator for frequency control and 2) a robust servomechanism controller (RSC) to regulate the island voltage. Despite uncertainty of the load parameters, the proposed controller guarantees robust stability and pre-specified performance... 

The first example of a heterogeneous catalytically active system for Buchwald–Hartwig and Ullmann homocoupling of unactivated aryl halides (fluorobenzene) is presented. The novel magnetic heterogeneous palladium catalyst was synthesized by immobilization of palladium ions onto an aminopyridine-functionalized Fe3O4. The catalyst was fully characterized by FTIR spectroscopy, temperature-programmed reduction, thermogravimetric analysis, CHN elemental analysis, transmission electron microscopy, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and atomic absorption spectroscopy. By using this catalyst system, various types of primary and... 

High speed planing hulls have complex hydrodynamic behaviors. The trim angle and drafts are very sensitive to speed and location of the center of gravity. Therefore, motion simulation for such vessels needs a strong coupling between rigid body motions and hydrodynamic analysis. In addition, free surface should be predicted with good accuracy for each time step. In this paper, velocity and pressure fields are coupled by use of the fractional step method. On the basis of integration of the two-phase viscous flow induced stresses over the hull, acting loads (forces and moments) are calculated. With the strategy of boundary-fitted body-attached mesh and calculation of 6-DoF motions in each time... 

The most applicable configuration of the equal channel angular extrusion (ECAE) dies is the axi-symmetric one. However, most of the previous analytical solutions are focused on the plane strain conditions. In this research, an upper bound model is used to investigate the deformation of the material during axi-symmetric ECAE. The analysis considers the effect of die angle, friction between the sample and the die walls, and the angle of the outer curved corner of the die, on the extrusion pressure. It is found that increasing the die angle and outer curved corner angle and decreasing the friction coefficient results in decreasing extrusion pressure. The proposed model is verified using two... 

The transportation sector is one of the sustainable development wheels that requires a lot of energy to operate, therefore it is concerned as one of the main factors in greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. In Iran, like rest of the world, the light-duty vehicles are the effective factors in the pollution of the metropolitan cities. Although the management of their fuel consumption is a vital action in decreasing the cost and air pollution, that's inextricable link with the public welfare and the economy of the car manufacturers creates barriers. An accurate analysis concerning the barriers to reducing the fuel consumption can be obtained by using the game theory method in the... 

A study was performed to investigate how different trunk and knee positions while holding static loads affect the lumbar curvature and internal loads on the lumbar spine at L4-L5. Ten healthy male subjects participated in this study. Two inclinometers were used to evaluate the curvature of lumbar spine, lordosis, while a 3D static biomechanical model was used to predict the spinal compression and shear forces at L4-L 5. Eighteen static tasks while holding three level of load (0, 10 and 20 kg), two levels of knee position (45 and 180° of flexion) and three levels of trunk position (neutral, 15 and 30 degree of flexion) were simulated for 10 healthy male subjects. The results of this study... 

Graphene oxide (GO) sheets functionalized by aminopropylsilyl groups (8.0 wt.%) were labeled by 198,199Au nanoparticle radioisotopes (obtained through reduction of HAuCl4 in sodium citrate solution followed by thermal neutron irradiation) for fast in vivo targeting and SPECT imaging (high purity germanium-spectrometry) of tumors. Using instant thin layer chromatography method, the physicochemical properties of the amino-functionalized GO sheets labeled by 198,199Au NPs (198,199Au@AF-GO) were found to be highly stable enough in organic phases, e.g. a human serum, to be reliably used in bioapplications. In vivo biodistribution of the 198,199Au@AF-GO composite was investigated in rats bearing... 

This paper presents a decentralized adaptive control design for a class of large-scale nonlinear systems with unknown subsystems. When the subsystems are modeled by affine equations, a direct adaptive controller is devised based on the Lyapunov theory, so that the stability of the closed-loop system is guaranteed by introducing a suitably driven adaptive rule. A neuro-based structure is proposed when the subsystems are nonaffine, and the stability analysis is also performed based on the Lyapunov theory. Moreover, the unknown interactions among the subsystems are considered as having a nonlinear function against the simple form considered for the affine case. The proposed controllers are... 

Rapid and selective detection of biomarkers at trace levels is a highly coveted objective in the early diagnosis of cancer. Herein, we disclose the design and synthesis of a polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) substituted perylene diimide. This compound is fully characterized in solution by multi nuclear NMR, as well as in gas state by ESI-MS. Surprisingly, solid-state characterization revealed an unusual cubic morphology with particle dimensions of 80–160 nm. Fluorescence studies indicate that the bulky POSS units effectively prevent perylene's aggregation caused quenching, yielding quantum yields as high as 92%. Exposing the sensor droplet-cast on quartz to anline and o-toluidine,... 

Distributed generation (DG) units are often interfaced to the main grid using power electronic converters including voltage-source converters (VSCs). A VSC offers dc/ac power conversion, high controllability, and fast dynamic response. Because of nonlinearities, uncertainties, and system parameters’ changes involved in the nature of a grid-connected renewable DG system, conventional linear control methods cannot completely and efficiently address all control objectives. In this paper, a nonlinear adaptive control scheme based on adaptive backstepping strategy is presented to control the operation of a grid-connected renewable DG unit. As compared to the popular vector control technique, the... 

Distributed generation (DG) units are often interfaced to the main grid using power electronic converters including voltage-source converters (VSCs). A VSC offers dc/ac power conversion, high controllability, and fast dynamic response. Because of nonlinearities, uncertainties, and system parameters’ changes involved in the nature of a grid-connected renewable DG system, conventional linear control methods cannot completely and efficiently address all control objectives. In this paper, a nonlinear adaptive control scheme based on adaptive backstepping strategy is presented to control the operation of a grid-connected renewable DG unit. As compared to the popular vector control technique, the... 

The ideas of creatio ex nihilo of the universe and creatio continua of new matter out of nothing entered the arena of natural science with the advent of the Big Bang and the steady-state theories in the mid-twentieth century. Adolf Grünbaum has tried to interpret the steady-state theory in such a way, to show that the continuous formation of new matter out of nothing in this theory can be explained purely physically. In this paper, however, it will be shown that Grünbaum's interpretation encounters at least three problems: not distinguishing between material and efficient causes, inconsistency, and misconceiving the law of density conservation  

This paper presents a single-phase phase-locked loop (PLL) system which is primarily free from the double-frequency ripples from which the conventional PLL system suffers. The proposed PLL is then extended to reject the harmonic components from the input signal and to estimate the phase-angle and frequency of the distorted input signal with no error. Three units of the proposed PLL can be used in three-phase power systems, such as FACTS and HVDC converters, to estimate the phase-angles of the individual phases with no double-frequency ripples and without sensitivity to the presence of harmonics and inter-harmonics. This makes the proposed PLL unique and desirable for applications which... 

A novel three-phase magnitude-phase-locked-loop system (3MPLL) for use in the general area of three-phase (power, energy and power electronic) systems is introduced. The proposed 3MPLL suppresses the noise and distortion from the input signal, mitigates the unbalance, and synthesizes the instantaneous positive-sequence component of the input signal; thus it operates as a nonlinear adaptive notch (or band-pass) filter. The 3MPLL also adaptively tracks and estimates the magnitude, phase angle, and frequency of the input signal; thus, its operation as a nonlinear state estimator. Characteristics of the 3MPLL including its mathematical equations as well as steady-state and dynamic responses are... 

Background: Remote cardiac monitoring and screening have already become an integral telemedicine component. The wide usage of several different wireless electrocardiography (ECG) devices warrants a validation study on their accuracy and reliability. Methods: Totally, 300 inpatients with the Nabz Hooshmand-1 handheld ECG device and the GE MAC 1200 ECG system (as the reference) were studied to check the accuracy of the devices in 1 and 6-limb lead performance. Simultaneous 10-second resting ECGs were assessed for the most common ECG parameters in lead I. Afterward, 6-lead ECGs (limb leads), were performed immediately and studied for their morphologies. Results: Of the 300 patients, 297 had...