Ripples and Grains Segregation on Unpaved Road

Ripples or corrugations are common phenomena observed in unpaved roads in less developed countries or regions. They cause several damages in vehicles leading to increased maintenance and product costs. In this paper, we present a computational study about the so-called washboard roads. Also, we study grain segregation on unpaved roads. Our simulations have been performed by the Discrete Element Method (DEM). In our model, the grains are regarded as soft disks. The grains are subjected to a gravitational field and both translational and rotational movements are allowed. The results show that wheels' of different sizes, weights and moving with different velocities can change corrugations amplitude and wavelength. Our results also show that some wavelength values are related to specific wheels' speed intervals. Segregation has been studied in roads formed by three distinct grain diameters distribution. We observed that the phenomenon is more evident for higher grain size dispersion

Collapse transition in polymer models with multiple monomers per site and multiple bonds per edge

We present results from extensive Monte Carlo simulations of polymer models where each lattice site can be visited by up to $K$ monomers and no restriction is imposed on the number of bonds on each lattice edge. These \textit{multiple monomer per site} (MMS) models are investigated on the square and cubic lattices, for $K=2$ and $K=3$, by associating Boltzmann weights $\omega_0=1$, $\omega_1=e^{\beta_1}$ and $\omega_2=e^{\beta_2}$ to sites visited by 1, 2 and 3 monomers, respectively. Two versions of the MMS models are considered for which immediate reversals of the walks are allowed (RA) or forbidden (RF). In contrast to previous simulations of these models, we find the same thermodynamic behavior for both RA and RF versions. In three-dimensions, the phase diagrams - in space $\beta_2 \times \beta_1$ - are featured by coil and globule phases separated by a line of $\Theta$ points, as thoroughly demonstrated by the metric $\nu_t$, crossover $\phi_t$ and entropic $\gamma_t$ exponents. The existence of the $\Theta$-lines is also confirmed by the second virial coefficient. This shows that no discontinuous collapse transition exists in these models, in contrast to previous claims based on a weak bimodality observed in some distributions, which indeed exists in a narrow region very close to the $\Theta$-line when $\beta_1 < 0$. Interestingly, in two-dimensions, only a crossover is found between the coil and globule phases

Types for X10 Clocks

X10 is a modern language built from the ground up to handle future parallel systems, from multicore machines to cluster configurations. We take a closer look at a pair of synchronisation mechanisms: finish and clocks. The former waits for the termination of parallel computations, the latter allow multiple concurrent activities to wait for each other at certain points in time. In order to better understand these concepts we study a type system for a stripped down version of X10. The main result assures that well typed programs do not run into the errors identified in the X10 language reference, namely the ClockUseException. The study will open, we hope, doors to a more flexible utilisation of clocks in the X10 language.Comment: In Proceedings PLACES 2010, arXiv:1110.385

Doping Nanocrystals And The Role Of Quantum Confinement

Recent progress in developing algorithms for solving the electronic structure problem for nanostructures is illustrated. Key ingredients in this approach include pseudopotentials implemented on a real space grid and the use of density functional theory. This procedure allows one to predict electronic properties for many materials across the nano-regime, i.e., from atoms to nanocrystals of sufficient size to replicate bulk properties. We will illustrate this method for doping silicon nanocrystals with phosphorous.Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences (ICES

Identification of novel Cu, Ag, and Au ternary oxides from global structural prediction

We use ab initio global structural prediction, and specifically the minima hopping method, to explore the periodic table in search of novel oxide phases. In total, we study 183 different compositions of the form MXO2, where M=(Cu, Ag, Au) and X is an element of the periodic table. This set includes the well-known Cu delafossite compounds that are, up to now, the best p-type transparent conductive oxides known to mankind. Our calculations discover 81 stable compositions, out of which only 36 are included in available databases. Some of these new phases are potentially good candidates for transparent electrodes. These results demonstrate, on one hand, how incomplete is still our knowledge of the phase-space of stable ternary materials. On the other hand, we show that structural prediction combined with high-throughput approaches is a powerful tool to extend that knowledge, paving the way for the experimental discovery of new materials on a large scale

Evaluation of the Stiffness Effect of Pipe Supports in Relation to Static and Dynamic Loads in a Flexibility Analysis

Piping flexibility analysis is done to ensure structural integrity in all operating conditions that may occur over the life of a system, whether static or dynamic. In industrial designs generally the rigidity of the support is neglected in the analysis of flexibility. The work presents an evaluation of the loads transmitted the structures in function of the rigidity of the pipe support. The evaluation was done through computer simulation using finite element techniques. The computational simulation made possible the evaluation of the forces transmitted to the support structures of an existing project of an orifice station, when considering the rigidity of the support. The work also shows that it is possible to refine projects when taken into consideration the influence of the rigidity of the supports, making a more adequate sizing the structure, portraying more faithfully the behavior of the system. The work also evaluates the influence, advantages and disadvantages in the use of stiffness in the supports with regard to the load transmitted to the support structures (support, base and tube)

Type Inference for Deadlock Detection in a Multithreaded Polymorphic Typed Assembly Language

We previously developed a polymorphic type system and a type checker for a multithreaded lock-based polymorphic typed assembly language (MIL) that ensures that well-typed programs do not encounter race conditions. This paper extends such work by taking into consideration deadlocks. The extended type system verifies that locks are acquired in the proper order. Towards this end we require a language with annotations that specify the locking order. Rather than asking the programmer (or the compiler's backend) to specifically annotate each newly introduced lock, we present an algorithm to infer the annotations. The result is a type checker whose input language is non-decorated as before, but that further checks that programs are exempt from deadlocks

Volunteerism After the Tsunami: Democratization and Aid

Using three waves of survey data from fishing villages in Aceh, Indonesia for 2005-2009, we examine the determinants of local volunteer labor after the tsunami. Pre-existing social capital and the form of aid delivery (but not trauma) strongly affect village volunteerism initially, but these effects weaken with time. What persists is the effect of essentially a new institution, formal village elections. While recent work suggests democratization increases cooperation, the differentially timed introduction of elections negatively affects volunteerism, suggesting a regime switch effect where traditional leaders chosen by elites want more volunteer labor projects than democratically elected leaders do

Hodge Dual for Soldered Bundles

In order to account for all possible contractions allowed by the presence of the solder form, a generalized Hodge dual is defined for the case of soldered bundles. Although for curvature the generalized dual coincides with the usual one, for torsion it gives a completely new dual definition. Starting from the standard form of a gauge lagrangian for the translation group, the generalized Hodge dual yields precisely the lagrangian of the teleparallel equivalent of general relativity, and consequently also the Einstein-Hilbert lagrangian of general relativity.Comment: 8 pages, no figures. Accepted for publication in Journal of Physics