Sound insulation of the finite double-panel structure (DPS) inserted with a cylindrical shell array is investigated by varying the sound incidence direction to improve its applicability. The effects of the vibro-acoustic characteristics of its constituents on the sound transmission loss (STL) are estimated in one-third octave bands from 20 Hz to 5 kHz for different incidence conditions. It shows that the first acoustic mode in the direction parallel to two panels (longitudinal modes) produces both the sudden variation of sound insulation with frequency and a large dependency on the incidence angle. Mineral wools are placed on two boundaries perpendicular to the panels, and the sound insulation is explored for different thicknesses of the porous materials. An absorbent layer with a certain thickness (more than 30 mm in our work) sufficiently eliminates the longitudinal mode, resulting in the improvement in the sound insulation by more than 15 dB and the decrease of its large variation with incidence direction. STLs with varying shell thicknesses are also assessed. It shows that the natural vibrations of the thin shells can give an enhancement in sound insulation by more than 10 dB in the frequency range of 1600–3700 Hz, corresponding to constructive interference.
In order to simplify the motor structure, to reduce the difficulty of rotor pre-pressure application and to obtain better output performance, a new internal cone type rotating traveling wave ultrasonic motor is proposed. The parametric model of the internal cone type ultrasonic motor was established by the ANSYS finite element software. The ultrasonic motor consists of an internal cone type vibrator and a tapered rotor. The dynamic analysis of the motor vibrator is carried out, and two in-plane third-order bending modes with the same frequency and orthogonality are selected as the working modes. The other advantages of this motor are that pre-pressure can be imposed by the weight of the rotor. The prototype was trial-manufactured and experimentally tested for its vibration characteristics and output performance. When the excitation frequency is 22260.0 Hz, the pre-pressure is 0.1 N and the peak-to-peak excitation voltage is 300 V, the maximum output torque of the prototype is 1.06 N·mm, and the maximum no-load speed can reach 441.2 rpm. The optimal pre-pressure force under different loads is studied, and the influence of the pre-pressure force on the mechanical properties of the ultrasonic motor is analyzed. It is instructive in the practical application of this ultrasonic motor.
Featured with a higher velocity, increased power handling capability, and better aging behavior, surface transverse wave (STW) shows more promising prospects than Rayleigh wave nowadays in various sensing applications. The need to design, optimize, and fabricate the related devices motivates the development of modeling and simulation. For this reason, a three-dimensional (3D) finite element (FE) simulation of STW on quartz, considering the crystal cut angle and the electrode effects, is presented in this study. Firstly, we investigated the effects of quartz’s cut angle on the generated waves. Here, the polarized displacements were analyzed to distinguish the wave modes. Secondly, the investigations of the electrode effects on the polarized displacement, phase velocity, and electromechanical coupling factor ( K2) were carried out, for which different material and thickness configurations for the electrodes were considered. Thirdly, to examine the excitation conditions of the generated waves, the admittance responses were inspected. The results showed that not only the crystal cut angle but also the density and the acoustic impedance of the interdigital transducer (IDT) material have a strong influence on the excited waves. This article is the first to analyze STWs considering quartz’s cut angle and electrode effect through a 3D FE model. It could provide a helpful and easy way to design, optimize, and fabricate the related surface acoustic wave devices.
Infrasound signal classification is vital in geological hazard monitoring systems. The traditional classification approach extracts the features and classifies the infrasound events. However, due to the manual feature extraction, its classification performance is not satisfactory. To deal with this problem, this paper presents a classification model based on variational mode decomposition (VMD) and convolutional neural network (CNN). Firstly, the infrasound signal is processed by VMD to eliminate the noise. Then fast Fourier transform (FFT) is applied to convert the reconstructed signal into a frequency domain image. Finally, a CNN model is established to automatically extract the features and classify the infrasound signals. The experimental results show that the classification accuracy of the proposed classification model is higher than the other model by nearly 5%. Therefore, the proposed approach has excellent robustness under noisy environments and huge potential in geophysical monitoring.
The article presents the new 2D asymmetrical PZT (a-PZT) and its effectiveness in the active reduction of triangular plate vibrations. The isosceles right triangular plate with simply supported edges was chosen as the research object. To determine the a-PZT asymmetry and its distribution on the plate, a maximum bending moment criterion for the beam was used. First of all, this criterion points out exact center location of the a-PZT. It was at the point, at which the plate bending moment has reached its maximum value. Next, at this point, it was assumed that the piezoelectric consists of active fibers located radially from the center. Each fiber acted on the plate as a separate actuator. Next, at each direction, the actuator asymmetry was found mathematically by minimizing the amplitude of the vibrations. By connecting the outer edges of individual fibers, the 2D a-PZT was obtained. It was quantitatively confirmed that the effectiveness of the new a-PZT was the best compared with the effectiveness of the standard square and the circular PZTs, adding the same exciting energy to the PZTs.
The empirical mode decomposition (EMD) algorithm is widely used as an adaptive time-frequency analysis method to decompose nonlinear and non-stationary signals into sets of intrinsic mode functions (IMFs). In the traditional EMD, the lower and upper envelopes should interpolate the minimum and maximum points of the signal, respectively. In this paper, an improved EMD method is proposed based on the new interpolation points, which are special inflection points (SIP n) of the signal. These points are identified in the signal and its first ( n − 1) derivatives and are considered as auxiliary interpolation points in addition to the extrema. Therefore, the upper and lower envelopes should not only pass through the extrema but also these SIP n sets of points. By adding each set of SIP i(i = 1, 2, ..., n) to the interpolation points, the frequency resolution of EMD is improved to a certain extent. The effectiveness of the proposed SIP n-EMD is validated by the decomposition of synthetic and experimental bearing vibration signals.
In this research project, the measurements of the ultrasonic P- and S-waves and seismic cone penetration testing (CPT) were applied to identify subsurface conditions and properties of clayey soil stabilized with lime/cement columns in the Stockholm Norvik Port, Sweden. Applied geophysical methods enabled to identify a connection between the resistance of soil and strength in the stabilized columns. The records of the seismic tests were obtained in the laboratory of Swedish Geotechnical Institute (SGI) through estimated P- and S-wave velocities using techniques of resonance frequency measurement of the stabilized specimens. The CPT profiles were used to evaluate the quality of the lime/cement columns of the reinforced soil by the interpretation of signals. The relationship between the P- and S-waves demonstrated a gain in strength during soil hardening. The quality of soil was evaluated by seismic measurements with aim to achieve sufficient strength of foundations prior to the construction of the infrastructure objects and industrial works. Seismic CPT is an effective method essential to evaluate the correct placement of the CPT inside the column. This work demonstrated the alternative seismic methods supporting the up-hole technology of drilling techniques for practical purpose in civil engineering and geotechnical works.
Simulation of wave propagation in the three-dimensional (3D) modeling of the vocal tract has shown significant promise for enhancing the accuracy of speech production. Recent 3D waveguide models of the vocal tract have been designed for better accuracy but require a lot of computational tasks. A high computational cost in these models leads to novel work in reducing the computational cost while retaining accuracy and performance. In the current work, we divide the geometry of the vocal tract into four equal symmetric parts with the introduction of two axial perpendicular planes, and the simulation is performed on only one part. A novel strategy is defined to implement symmetric conditions in the mesh. The complete standard 3D digital waveguide model is assumed as a benchmark model. The proposed model is compared with the benchmark model in terms of formant frequencies and efficiency. For the demonstration, the vowels /O/, /i/, /E/, /A/, and /u/ have been selected for the simulations. According to the results, the benchmark and current models are nearly identical in terms of frequency profiles and formant frequencies. Still the current model is three times more effective than the benchmark model.
Small boats, possessing outboard engines, are widely used in tourism and mammal watching within marine protected areas. Noise generated by this type of vessels has the capacity to negatively affect marine fauna, especially marine mammals, which use sound throughout all the phases of their lives. These tourism boats used in mammal watching may use different propulsion systems, such as gas, diesel or electric engines. To characterize underwater noise emitted by this type of vessels becomes relevant not only when assessing the acoustic impact produced by these different propulsion systems over the marine fauna living inside these protected marine areas, but also when determining which one produces the least impact. A comparative study of underwater noise emissions coming from small touristic boats was made in this study. Boats were similar in capacity and functions, although possessing different propulsion systems. Measurements were made on two boats with a 50 Hp internal combustion engine and one 5 Hp electric boat. These boats were selected to be studied because they have practically the same size, possess the same passenger-capacity and are used to make similar jobs and routes inside the protected area where they are operated. The electric boat showed a considerable decrease in underwater noise emissions, especially in low frequencies. This boat will produce a lower accumulated exposition of the fauna to the noise or will allow a closer approach to the observed species. Measurements were made between September 2018 and January 2020.
In this study, the modified Sauer cavitation model and Kirchhoff-Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings (K-FWH) acoustic model were adopted to numerically simulate the unsteady cavitation flow field and the noise of a threedimensional NACA66 hydrofoil at a constant cavitation number. The aim of the study is to conduct and analyze the noise performance of a hydrofoil and also determine the characteristics of the sound pressure spectrum, sound power spectrum, and noise changes at different monitoring points. The noise change, sound pressure spectrum, and power spectrum characteristics were estimated at different monitoring points, such as the suction side, pressure side, and tail of the hydrofoil. The noise characteristics and change law of the NACA66 hydrofoil under a constant cavitation number are presented. The results show that hydrofoil cavitation takes on a certain degree of pulsation and periodicity. Under the condition of a constant cavitation number, as the attack angle increases, the cavitation area of the hydrofoil becomes longer and thicker, and the initial position of cavitation moves forward. When the inflow velocity increases, the cavitation noise and the cavitation area change more drastically and have a superposition tendency toward the downstream. The novelty is that the study presents important calculations and analyses regarding the noise performance of a hydrofoil, characteristics of the sound pressure spectrum, and sound power spectrum and noise changes at different monitoring points. The article may be useful for specialists in the field of engineering and physics.
The goal of this article is to present and compare recent approaches which use speech and voice analysis as biomarkers for screening tests and monitoring of some diseases. The article takes into account metabolic, respiratory, cardiovascular, endocrine, and nervous system disorders. A selection of articles was performed to identify studies that assess voice features quantitatively in selected disorders by acoustic and linguistic voice analysis. Information was extracted from each paper in order to compare various aspects of datasets, speech parameters, methods of applied analysis and obtained results. 110 research papers were reviewed and 47 databases were summarized. Speech analysis is a promising method for early diagnosis of certain disorders. Advanced computer voice analysis with machine learning algorithms combined with the widespread availability of smartphones allows diagnostic analysis to be conducted during the patient’s visit to the doctor or at the patient’s home during a telephone conversation. Speech analysis is a simple, low-cost, non-invasive and easy-toprovide method of medical diagnosis. These are remarkable advantages, but there are also disadvantages. The effectiveness of disease diagnoses varies from 65% up to 99%. For that reason it should be treated as a medical screening test and should be an indication of the need for classic medical tests.
In response to stresses, plants are capable of communicating their physiological status to other individuals in the community using several chemical cues. Nearby receivers then adjust their own homeostasis to increase resilience. The majority of studies to date have concentrated on the communication of abiotic stressors (e.g., salinity or drought) or herbivory. Less attention has been paid to the role of communication during microbial infections and almost nothing has focused on viruses. Here we investigated the effect that the prevalence of a turnip mosaic virus in a community of Arabidopsis thaliana has on the severity of symptoms developed in a group of receivers. First, we looked at the influence of two factors on the kinetics of symptom progression in the receivers, namely the prevalence of infection among emitters and the growth stage of the receiver plants at inoculation. We found that young receiver plants developed milder symptoms than older ones, and that high infection prevalence resulted in slower disease progression in receivers. Second, we tested the possibility that jasmonates could act as chemical signaling cues. To do this, we examined the kinetics of symptom progression in jasmonate-insensitive and wild-type plants. The results showed that the protective effect vanished in the mutant plants. Third, we investigated the possibility that root communication could also be relevant. We found that the kinetics of symptom progression across receivers was further slowed down in an age-dependent manner when plants were planted in the same pot. Together, these preliminary findings point to a potential function for disease prevalence in plant communities in regulating the severity of symptoms, this effect being mediated by some volatile organic compounds.
Instituto de Biología Integrativa de Sistemas (I2SysBio), CSIC-Universitat de València, CL.Catedrático Agustín Escardino Belloch 9, Paterna, 46980 València, Spain
Santa Fe Institute, 1399 Hyde Park Road, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA
Tubercle disease or a bacterial pocket disease of sugar beets are names used to describe one of the gall-malformed diseases of sugar beet roots. Xanthomonas beticola is the historical name of the pathogen supposedly causing bacterial pocket disease. There were no isolates deposited in any collection corresponding to the originally isolated bacteria, except two strains from the NCPPB (National Collection of Plant Pathogenic Bacteria, UK). However, both isolates were identified as related to Bacillus pumilus, which raised doubts about their pathogenicity. In our laboratory, greenhouse, and preliminary field experiments, we demonstrated that such strains are not pathogenic to sugar beets. Furthermore, both strains promoted their growth, improved their yield quality, and partly protected them against Rhizoctonia solani in a field experiment.
As alternatives to chemical insecticides, entomopathogenic fungi or wild plants and their secondary metabolites are being used. These biocontrol agents are significant because of their biodegradability, specificity, eco-friendliness, and utility as agents to reduce insecticide resistance. In this study five ethyl acetate extracts of locally isolated fungal strains ( Talaromyces atroroseus, Fusarium chlamydosporum, Talaromyces stipitatus, Trichoderma lixii, Beauveria bassiana) as well as alkaloid extract of Haloxylon salicornicum were extracted and investigated as biocontrol agents against cotton mealybug Phenacoccus solenopsis. The results indicated that all extracts had toxic effects against P. solenopsis except the extract of T. stipitatus. The LC50 values and toxicity index indicated that the alkaloid extract of H. salicornicum was the most toxic one (26 ppm) after 72 hours of treatment followed by the extracts of F. chlamydosporum (77 ppm), then B. bassiana (84 ppm) and T. lixii (118 ppm). On the other hand, there were significant changes in tested insect enzyme activities (amylase, lipase, glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (GOT), glutamic pyruvic transaminase (GPT), and acetyl choline esterase (AchE) as well as total proteins and lipids in the insects treated with the alkaloid extract of H. salicornicum, and ethyl acetate extracts of F. chlamydosporum and B. bassiana after 24 hours of treatment compared to the control. GC/MS analyses of fungal extracts indicated that there were some bioactive compounds like hexadecanoic acid, octadecanoic acid, and tetradecanoic acid. In addition, the anabasine compound was found as a major constituent of the alkaloid extract of H. salicornicum and identified by 1H NMR and GC/MS analysis. In conclusion, according to this study, it was recommended that the alkaloid extract of H. salicornicum and the ethyl acetate extracts of F. chlamydosporum, B. bassiana, and T. lixii be used as alternatives to chemical insecticides for controlling the cotton mealybug P. solenopsis.
In order to use entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) as biological control agents, it is necessary to mass produce the EPF in an economical and cost-effective manner. Currently, the mass production of EPF is carried out mainly in two ways: solid-state fermentation in which the aerial conidia are produced, and liquid fermentation in which the blastospores and submerged conidia are produced. This research compares the survival of Beauveria bassiana A1-1spores from solid and liquid culture media, after 0, 3, 6 and 9 months of storage at room temperature (25 ± 5°C) and in the refrigerator (4°C). Furthermore, it compares the pathogenicity of spores immediately after production and after 9 months of storage on third nymphs of greenhouse whitefly, Trialeurodes vaporariorum. The aerial conidia and blastospores were slightly more virulent than the submerged conidia on whitefly nymphs. In laboratory bioassays, blastospores indicated more pathogenicity on nymphs than submerged conidia, even though there was no significant difference in the pathogenicity of the spores produced in liquid culture media in greenhouse bioassays. Moreover, survival of the aerial conidia at a low temperature (4°C) was higher than that kept at room temperature (25 ± 5°C). This storage temperature comparison revealed a positive effect on the stability and survival of blastospores and submerged conidia as well. Meanwhile, the survival of spores drastically decreased after 3 months of storage at room temperature.
Plant Protection Research Department, Golestan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Gorgan, Iran
Biological Control Research Department, Iranian Research Institute of Plant Protection, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Gorgan, Iran
Traffic noise in big cities impacts the people who live and work in high-rise buildings alongside arterial roads. To determine this impact magnitude, this paper proposes and validates a microscopic level method that locally predicts the total noise level and the spectral characteristics of traffic flow in the near-road region. In the proposed method, the vehicles on the road are considered as multiple queues of moving point sound sources with ground reflection considered. To account for the flow of vehicles on the road, traffic field data, and individual vehicle noise source models are also employed. A field measurement is conducted to validate the proposed method. Results comparison shows that the predicted and the measured overall A-weighted sound pressure level and A-weighted noise spectra are within 3 dBA and 5 dBA, respectively. Based on the validated method, the spatial distribution of traffic noise near the arterial road is investigated for different traffic scenarios.
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