The Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) is an 870 megapixel prime focus optical imaging camera for the 8.2 m Subaru telescope. The wide-field corrector delivers sharp images of 0${^{\prime\prime}_{.}}$2 (FWHM) in the HSC-i band over the entire 1${^{\circ}_{.}}$5 diameter field of view. The collimation of the camera with respect to the optical axis of the primary mirror is done with hexapod actuators, the mechanical accuracy of which is a few microns. Analysis of the remaining wavefront error in off-focus stellar images reveals that the collimation of the optical components meets design specifications. While there is a flexure of mechanical components, it also is within the design specification. As a result, the camera achieves its seeing-limited imaging on Maunakea during most of the time; the median seeing over several years of observing is 0${^{\prime\prime}_{.}}$67 (FWHM) in the i band. The sensors use p-channel, fully depleted CCDs of 200 μm thickness (2048 × 4176 15 μm square pixels) and we employ 116 of them to pave the 50 cm diameter focal plane. The minimum interval between exposures is 34 s, including the time to read out arrays, to transfer data to the control computer, and to save them to the hard drive. HSC on Subaru uniquely features a combination of a large aperture, a wide field of view, sharp images and a high sensitivity especially at longer wavelengths, which makes the HSC one of the most powerful observing facilities in the world.
Nowadays, solid organic waste is of major environmental concern and is reaching critical levels worldwide. Currently, a form of natural decomposition, known as composting technology, is widely used to deal with organic waste. This method is applied to enhance the performance of solid microbial fuel cells (SMFCs) in this study. Operational composting parameters (carbon/nitrogen ratio, moisture content and pH value) are investigated to explore the optimal power performance of solid microbial fuel cells (SMFCs). Results indicate that the carbon/nitrogen ratio and the moisture content displayed the most significant impact on SMFCs. When the carbon/nitrogen ratio is 31.4 and moisture content is 60%, along with a pH value of 6-8, a better SMFC power performance would be obtained. These findings would provide positive information regarding the application of compost in SMFCs.
Converting renewable biomass into electricity by the use of microbial fuel cells (MFCs) can produce clean and transportable energy. The performance of MFCs has been extensively evaluated on laboratory scales [1]. Thus far, electron suppliers for MFCs have been primarily limited to those soluble and rapidly metabolized organic compounds such as simple carbohydrates [2], [3], small organic acids [3], [4], starch [5], and amino acids [6]. Plant fiber carbohydrates, including waste from agricultural and industrial activity, are the most abundant and renewable biomass on Earth [7]. MFCs offer an opportunity to treat fibrous waste, such as straw, to concurrently generate electricity without the competition of food by humans and animals. In contrast to the non-fiber substrates mentioned above, plant fiber is relatively insoluble and is a large polymer with a diverse and complex structure [8]. Consequently, the biodegradation of fiber, coupled with the electrical output from MFCs, requires the collaborative actions of various microorganisms. In the rumen of ruminants there resides numerous symbiotic microorganisms, consisting of bacteria, protozoa, and fungi. By processing various enzymes, the microorganisms efficiently degrade plant fiber under anaerobic conditions [9], [10] with volatile fatty acids, such as acetate, propionate and butyrate, being produced in the process. During microbial fermentation of organic matter in the rumen a reducing equivalent is produced, which is accompanied by the release and translocation of protons and electrons [11]. These products could theoretically be transformed into
Abstract. A microcapillary pumped loop (MCPL) utilizing a two-phase heat transport has been investigated extensively because of its high heat transmission ability. Although the MCPL has been started up successfully, the initial amount of working liquid required to fill the system is so hard to control that the repeat operation of MCPL is not easy to initiate. In addition, the issue of Newton ring often occurs in the thermal bonding process of the chip and even causes the device to crack. An innovative method of micromatrix posts is proposed and confirmed by experiment for eliminating the initial filling and Newton's ring effectively. This proposed method will be useful in the operation of MCPL and all thermal bonding of microchips.
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