| 351. |
- Andersson, M., et al.
(författare)
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Coupling of lattice boltzmann and volume of fluid approaches to study the droplet behavior at the gas diffusion layer/gas channel interface
- 2018. - 13
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Ingår i: ECS Transactions. - : The Electrochemical Society. - 1938-6737 .- 1938-5862. - 9781607688600 ; 86, s. 329-336
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- A typical polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) flow field consists of micro/minichannels. The continues removal of liquid water from the cathode channels is a critical topic, as water droplets forming in the channels may block the transport of gaseous oxygen to the active sites, which not only gives an uneven current distribution and substantial loss of performance, but also, increases degradation rates and unstable operation. Water generated by the electrochemical reactions condenses, depending on temperature mainly, into liquid form, potentially flooding various part of the PEFC. The aim of this work is to obtain an increased understanding of the droplet behavior at the gas diffusion layer (GDL) interface with the gas channels in PEFCs by the coupling of Lattice Boltzmann (LB) and Volume of Fluid (VOF) approaches. A multiscale environment is established with input parameters in the VOF model being extracted from in-house LB calculations. It is clear that the contact angle as well as the size of the liquid droplet vary with positions at the GDL surface, depending on the stochastic GDL geometry. A VOF model describing one straight channel with one gas inlet, one liquid inlet (at the GDL surface) and one two-phase outlet is employed.
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| 352. |
- Zhang, Shidong, et al.
(författare)
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Simple and complex polymer electrolyte fuel cell stack models : A comparison
- 2018. - 13
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Ingår i: ECS Transactions. - : The Electrochemical Society. - 1938-6737 .- 1938-5862. - 9781607685395 ; 86, s. 287-300
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this paper, two distinct polymer electrolyte fuel cell stack models are constructed: a detailed numerical model (DNM) employing a fine-scale computational mesh and a coarse-mesh approach based on a distributed resistance analogy (DRA) where diffusion terms in the transport equations are replaced by rate terms. Both methods are applied to a 5-cell, high-temperature polymer electrolyte fuel cell stack with an active area of 200 cm2 per cell. The polarization curve and local current density distributions from both the DRA and DNM are compared with experimental data, finding good agreement. Temperature, pressure, Nernst potential, and species distributions are also exhibited. The DNM displays details of fine-scale local extrema not captured by the DRA; however, the latter requires orders of magnitude less computer processor power and memory for execution. Both methods provide much finer-scale results than present experimental techniques.
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| 353. |
- Beale, S. B., et al.
(författare)
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Combined two-phase co-flow and counter-flow in a gas channel/porous transport layer assembly
- 2020. - 9
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Ingår i: PRiME 2020 : Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cells and Electrolyzers 20 (PEFC and E 20) - Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cells and Electrolyzers 20 (PEFC and E 20). - : The Electrochemical Society. - 1938-5862 .- 1938-6737. - 9781607685395 ; 98:9, s. 305-315
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper considers a detailed numerical analysis of combined liquid-gas co-flow in a gas channel, with liquid-gas counter-flow in a porous transport layer, as is typically found on the cathode side of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell. The geometry is obtained by digital reconstruction of nano-computer tomography images. From this, the domain is tessellated with an unstructured castellated or octree mesh, upon which the equations of mass and momentum are solved by means of a volume of fluid method. Liquid water is produced from an electrode where gaseous oxygen is simultaneously consumed by electrochemical reduction; Liquid-gas counter flow in the porous transport layer results in liquid drops being entrained in co-flow in the gas channels and convected by the gas downstream.
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| 354. |
- Messa, Matteo, et al.
(författare)
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The young star cluster population of M51 with LEGUS - I. A comprehensive study of cluster formation and evolution
- 2018
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Ingår i: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 473:1, s. 996-1018
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recently acquired WFC3 UV (F275W and F336W) imaging mosaics under the Legacy Extragalactic UV Survey (LEGUS), combined with archival ACS data of M51, are used to study the young star cluster (YSC) population of this interacting system. Our newly extracted source catalogue contains 2834 cluster candidates, morphologically classified to be compact and uniform in colour, for which ages, masses and extinction are derived. In this first work we study the main properties of the YSC population of the whole galaxy, considering a mass-limited sample. Both luminosity and mass functions follow a power-law shape with slope -2, but at high luminosities and masses a dearth of sources is observed. The analysis of the mass function suggests that it is best fitted by a Schechter function with slope -2 and a truncation mass at 1.00 +/- 0.12 x 10(5) M-circle dot . Through Monte Carlo simulations, we confirm this result and link the shape of the luminosity function to the presence of a truncation in the mass function. A mass limited age function analysis, between 10 and 200 Myr, suggests that the cluster population is undergoing only moderate disruption. We observe little variation in the shape of the mass function at masses above 1 x 10(4) M-circle dot over this age range. The fraction of star formation happening in the form of bound clusters in M51 is similar to 20 per cent in the age range 10-100 Myr and little variation is observed over the whole range from 1 to 200 Myr.
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| 355. |
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| 356. |
- Probert, James R., et al.
(författare)
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Anthropogenic modifications to fire regimes in the wider Serengeti-Mara ecosystem
- 2019
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Ingår i: Global Change Biology. - : WILEY. - 1354-1013 .- 1365-2486. ; 25:10, s. 3406-3423
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Fire is a key driver in savannah systems and widely used as a land management tool. Intensifying human land uses are leading to rapid changes in the fire regimes, with consequences for ecosystem functioning and composition. We undertake a novel analysis describing spatial patterns in the fire regime of the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem, document multidecadal temporal changes and investigate the factors underlying these patterns. We used MODIS active fire and burned area products from 2001 to 2014 to identify individual fires; summarizing four characteristics for each detected fire: size, ignition date, time since last fire and radiative power. Using satellite imagery, we estimated the rate of change in the density of livestock bomas as a proxy for livestock density. We used these metrics to model drivers of variation in the four fire characteristics, as well as total number of fires and total area burned. Fires in the Serengeti-Mara show high spatial variability-with number of fires and ignition date mirroring mean annual precipitation. The short-term effect of rainfall decreases fire size and intensity but cumulative rainfall over several years leads to increased standing grass biomass and fuel loads, and, therefore, in larger and hotter fires. Our study reveals dramatic changes over time, with a reduction in total number of fires and total area burned, to the point where some areas now experience virtually no fire. We suggest that increasing livestock numbers are driving this decline, presumably by inhibiting fire spread. These temporal patterns are part of a global decline in total area burned, especially in savannahs, and we caution that ecosystem functioning may have been compromised. Land managers and policy formulators need to factor in rapid fire regime modifications to achieve management objectives and maintain the ecological function of savannah ecosystems.
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| 357. |
- Wilkins, S. B., et al.
(författare)
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Resonant soft x-ray scattering investigation of orbital and magnetic ordering in La0.5Sr1.5MnO4
- 2005
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Ingår i: Physical Review B. Condensed Matter and Materials Physics. - 1098-0121 .- 1550-235X. ; 71:24, s. 245102-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report resonant x-ray scattering data of the orbital and magnetic ordering at low temperatures at the Mn L-2,L-3 edges in La0.5Sr1.5MnO4. The orderings display complex energy features close to the Mn absorption edges. Systematic modeling with atomic multiplet crystal field calculations was used to extract meaningful information regarding the interplay of spin, orbital, and Jahn-Teller order. These calculations provide a good general agreement with the observed energy dependence of the scattered intensity for a dominant orbital ordering of the d(x)(2)-z(2)/d(y)(2)-z(2) type. In addition, the origins of various spectral features are identified. The temperature dependence of the orbital and magnetic ordering was measured and suggests a strong interplay between the magnetic and orbital order parameters.
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| 358. |
- Beal, Jacob, et al.
(författare)
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Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density
- 2020
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Ingår i: Communications Biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2399-3642. ; 3:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data.
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| 359. |
- Beale, M. A., et al.
(författare)
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Global phylogeny of Treponema pallidum lineages reveals recent expansion and spread of contemporary syphilis
- 2021
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Ingår i: Nature Microbiology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2058-5276. ; 6:12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Syphilis, which is caused by the sexually transmitted bacterium Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum, has an estimated 6.3 million cases worldwide per annum. In the past ten years, the incidence of syphilis has increased by more than 150% in some high-income countries, but the evolution and epidemiology of the epidemic are poorly understood. To characterize the global population structure of T. pallidum, we assembled a geographically and temporally diverse collection of 726 genomes from 626 clinical and 100 laboratory samples collected in 23 countries. We applied phylogenetic analyses and clustering, and found that the global syphilis population comprises just two deeply branching lineages, Nichols and SS14. Both lineages are currently circulating in 12 of the 23 countries sampled. We subdivided T. p.pallidum into 17 distinct sublineages to provide further phylodynamic resolution. Importantly, two Nichols sublineages have expanded clonally across 9 countries contemporaneously with SS14. Moreover, pairwise genome analyses revealed examples of isolates collected within the last 20 years from 14 different countries that had genetically identical core genomes, which might indicate frequent exchange through international transmission. It is striking that most samples collected before 1983 are phylogenetically distinct from more recently isolated sublineages. Using Bayesian temporal analysis, we detected a population bottleneck occurring during the late 1990s, followed by rapid population expansion in the 2000s that was driven by the dominant T. pallidum sublineages circulating today. This expansion may be linked to changing epidemiology, immune evasion or fitness under antimicrobial selection pressure, since many of the contemporary syphilis lineages we have characterized are resistant to macrolides. Global syphilis prevalence has been increasing. Sequencing and analysis of a global collection of 726 Treponema pallidum samples reveal globally circulating lineages linked to a rapid expansion occurring since the end of the twentieth century.
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| 360. |
- Beale, M., et al.
(författare)
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CONTEMPORARY SYPHILIS IS CHARACTERISED BY RAPID GLOBAL SPREAD OF PANDEMIC TREPONEMA PALLIDUM LINEAGES
- 2021
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Ingår i: Sexually Transmitted Infections. - : BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. - 1368-4973 .- 1472-3263. ; 97:Suppl. 1, s. A17-A17
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Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Background: Syphilis is an important sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The last two decades have seen syphilis incidence rise in many high-income countries, yet the evolutionary and epidemiological relationships that underpin this are poorly understood, as is the global T. pallidum population structure.Methods: We assembled a geographically and temporally diverse collection of clinical and laboratory samples, performing direct sequencing on the majority, and combining these with 133 publicly available sequences to compile a dataset comprising 726 T. pallidum genomes. We analysed the resulting genomes using detailed phylogenetic analysis and clustering.Results: We show that syphilis globally can be described by only two deeply branching lineages, Nichols and SS14. We show that both of these lineages can be found circulatingcon currently in 12 of the 23 countries sampled. To provide further phylodynamic resolution we subdivided Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum into 17 distinct sublineages. Importantly, like SS14, we provide evidence that two Nichols sublineages have expanded clonally across 9 countries contemporaneously with SS14. Moreover, pairwise genome analysis showed that recent isolates circulating in 14 different countries were genetically identical in their core genome to those from other countries, suggesting frequent exchange through international transmission pathways. This contrasts with the majority of samples collected prior to 1983, which are phylogenetically distinct from these more recently isolated sublineages. Bayesian temporal analysis provided evidence of a population bottleneck and decline occurring during the late 1990s, followed by a rapid population expansion a decade later. This was driven by the dominant T. pallidum sublineages circulating today, many of which are resistant to macrolides.Conclusion: Combined we show that the population of contemporary syphilis in high-income countries has undergone a recent and rapid global expansion. This dataset will provide a framework for future characterisation and epidemiological investigation of syphilis populations.
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