The effect of natural clay-mineral properties on the rheological behavior of dispersion is very important in new geotechnical and industrial applications. The colloidal behavior of natural clay minerals with various octahedral structures was investigated using macro- and microrheological measurements and compared with the behavior of synthetic hectorite. In the present study montmorillonite (dioctahedral smectite of Volclay), natural hectorite (trioctahedral smectite of SHCa-1 Source Clay), and the synthetic trioctahedral smectite Laponite®, with lateral layer dimensions of 277, 100, and 30 nm, respectively, were used. The structure formation, kinetics of aging, and broad bandwidth viscoelastic response (10-2 — 106 rad/s) of their dispersions were obtained using mechanical shear and squeeze flow rheometry combined with diffusing wave spectroscopy (DWS) and multiple particle tracking (MPT) microrheology. State diagrams were determined at inherent pH considering the clay-mineral and NaCl concentrations as well as the kinetics of structure formation and sample aging. Due to the larger mean layer diameter and greater layer-charge density of natural clay-minerals, their sol—gel transitions occurred at higher solid and NaCl concentrations than those of Laponite®. Structure formation was faster at pH < pHPZC,edge than at pH > pHPZC,edge (point of zero charge at the edge). The long-term aging of natural clay-mineral samples was less pronounced in the glass state than in the gel state, in contrast to the findings for Laponite®. The storage modulus, G’, of clay-mineral dispersions in arrested states remained essentially constant in a wide frequency range (up to 100 rad/s), as expected. The corresponding plateau value of G’ depends on the number of particle contacts per volume and, hence, increased with decreasing particle size at a given concentration. The dissipation mechanisms determining the high-frequency loss modulus, G", however, are independent of particle size and, accordingly, the high-frequency crossover of G’ and G" shifted to higher values when the particle size decreased. The MPT data revealed structural refinement on the submicrometer length scale during the aging of weak hectorite gels, which was similar to the results for Laponite®. No refinement, however, occurred for montmorillonite in the glass or strong gel state.

Fat deposition and lipid metabolism are closely related to the morphology, structure and function of mitochondria. The morphology of mitochondria between fusion and fission processes is mainly regulated by protein posttranslational modification. Intermittent fasting (IF) promotes high expression of Sirtuin 3 (Sirt3) and induces mitochondrial fusion in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice. However, the mechanism by which Sirt3 participates in mitochondrial protein acetylation during IF to regulate mitochondrial fusion and fission dynamics remains unclear. This article demonstrates that IF promotes mitochondrial fusion and improves mitochondrial function in HFD mouse inguinal white adipose tissue. Proteomic sequencing revealed that IF increased protein deacetylation levels in HFD mice and significantly increased Sirt3 mRNA and protein expression. After transfecting with Sirt3 overexpression or interference vectors into adipocytes, we found that Sirt3 promoted adipocyte mitochondrial fusion and improved mitochondrial function. Furthermore, Sirt3 regulates the JNK-FIS1 pathway by deacetylating malate dehydrogenase 2 (MDH2) to promote mitochondrial fusion. In summary, our study indicates that IF promotes mitochondrial fusion and improves mitochondrial function by upregulating the high expression of Sirt3 in HFD mice, promoting deacetylation of MDH2 and inhibiting the JNK-FIS1 pathway. This research provides theoretical support for studies related to energy limitation and animal lipid metabolism.

This paper dwells upon investigating the effect of aspect ratio (AR) variation on the aerodynamic performance of unconventional control surfaces called grid fins by virtue of a series of subsonic experiments on a simplified grid fin variant called the cascade fin. Wind tunnel tests were performed for different AR (variable span) grid fins. The same had been investigated for different gap-to-chord ratio (g/c) variants. Results demonstrated a tangible increase in the aerodynamic efficiency as well as stall angle reduction for higher AR. Moreover, higher AR leads to increased pitching moment, which emphasizes elevated hinge moment requirements. The study ensued the presence of higher deviation between the low AR fins, that is $AR<2$ compared to the pertinent deviations between the high AR fins, that is $AR\geq2$ . The effect associated with these variations was termed as span effect in this paper. It was established that, the deviations arising due to this phenomena were lesser for higher g/c and higher AR. The analysis of AR variation for different g/c presented a limiting value of AR reduction for stall performance enhancement. Thus, optimised selection of the g/c and AR values can lead to enhanced aerodynamic efficiency alongside an improved stalling characteristic.

The migration and accumulation of immiscible silicate liquids may play a significant role in the differentiation of crustal magma bodies and the formation of some economic mineral deposits. However, our understanding of the processes that control the segregation of these liquids is currently limited by the short timescales of petrological experiments. Detailed microstructural investigations of Palaeogene basaltic dykes from Northeast England, coupled with simple 1D thermal models, constrain the effects of cooling rate on the microstructure of unmixed immiscible silicate liquids under natural conditions. The size of unmixed Fe-rich droplets within a continuous silicic phase is related to the cooling rate by a power law, with droplet diameter increasing with decreasing cooling rate, accompanied by an increase in the number of droplets. Fe-rich droplet coarsening is a result of diffusion-controlled growth. The average apparent aspect ratio and grain size of matrix plagioclase crystals indicate that nucleation and growth of these grains probably occurred in a static (or only weakly convecting) fluid dynamical regime.

In the current study, for the first time, a semi-analytical technique is used for solving eigenvalue problem arising from linear hydrodynamics stability of fluid flow through the curved rectangular ducts at different curvature ratios and aspect ratios. To this accomplishment, symmetric disturbances are assumed and the Homotopy perturbation method (HPM) is applied to solve our eigenvalue problem for curvature ratios ranging from 0.01 to 0.8 and aspect ratios ranging from 0.05 to 20. Our semi-analytical results are validated through the existing numerical and experimental data, showing good agreement. The semi-analytical results indicate that, as the curvature ratio increases the critical Dean number (Dnc) is increased and the flow becomes more stable, especially for aspect ratios lower than 1.Moreover, for all intended curvature ratios, irregular behavior in variation of Dnc is detected by an increase in the aspect ratio. So that, the Dnc is decreased when the aspect ratio increases from 0.05 up to 1 and the fluid flow becomes unstable. When the aspect ratio is increased from 1 to 5, it causes to increase the Dnc and fluid flow becomes stable. Furthermore, when the aspect ratio increases from 5 to 20, the Dnc is decreased again. In addition, Dnc and eigenvalues of critical complex wave number corresponding to Dnc for the onset of Dean flow instability is reported under different curvature ratios and aspect ratios.

Infrared signal measurements from a micro-turbojet engine are conducted to understand the characteristics of the engine performance and the infrared signal by varying the exhaust nozzle configuration. A cone type nozzle and five rectangle type nozzles whose aspect ratios vary from one to five are used for this experimental work. As a result, it is confirmed that the thrust and the fuel consumption rate of the engine do not change greatly by varying the exhaust nozzle shape. In the case of the aspect ratio of 5, the specific fuel consumption of the engine is increased by about 3% compared to the reference cone nozzle, but the infrared signal can be reduced by up to 14%. As a result of measuring the temperature distribution of the plume gas, the correlation of infrared signal with plume gas temperature distribution can be understood. In the case of a cone shape, the distribution of plume gas formed to circular shape, and the high-temperature core region of plume gas continued to develop farther to the downstream. However, the temperature distribution was maintained in the rectangular shape as the aspect ratio increased, and the average temperature decreased sharply. As the aspect ratio increases, the plume spreads more widely.

Two types of mineral fillers, talc and mica, were compounded into polypropylene (PP) via a twin-screw extruder. The morphologies and mechanical properties of the resultant composites were investigated. The dispersion of minerals in PP was observed using Focused Ion Beam (FIB) techniques. The particle size distribution (PSD) and aspect ratio (AR) of particles in the polymer phase were obtained from FIB image analysis. It was found that FIB imaging displays directly the micron to mesoscale level dispersion of particles in polymeric composites. The technique has significant potential for characterizing such materials, having some advantages over ‘traditional’ scanning and transmission electron microscopy in terms of generating representative data in a realistic timescale. The PSD and AR distribution and degree of dispersion in the composites give insights into the modification of mechanical properties of the composites studied.

The aspect ratios of common clay minerals have been determined from conductometric titrations. The sample set comprises 11 Na-saturated bentonites, 16 smectites with different interlayer cations, three illites/muscovites and two talc dominated specimens. It is shown that the aspect ratios of smectites saturated with divalent cations are lower than those of the same smectite saturated with a monovalent cation. This observation is discussed in terms of the number of smectite layers making up a particle.

It has been established that disagreements between different methods of particle size determination of clay minerals can be ascribed to the non-spherical shape of the clay particles. However, by having aspect ratios available, particle sizes can be harmonized. One frequently used approach to obtain aspect ratios is to compare particle sizes originating from at least two devices operating on the basis of different physical principles. In this contribution aspect ratios of nine kaolinite-dominated and one dickite-dominated sample were determined by conductometric titrations. The aspect ratios obtained were then successfully used to correlate particle size distributions from dynamic laser scattering and acoustic spectroscopy.

The thermal shock resistance (TSR) of ZnS wave-transparent ceramic depends on not only the mechanical and thermal properties of materials, but also the aerodynamic heating, pneumatic pressure, external constraint, size, aspect ratio and other factors in its actual service process. The theoretical model was established by introducing the analytical solution of transient heat conduction problem of ZnS plate under aerodynamic heating into its thermal stress field model and the pneumatic pressure was introduced. The present work mainly focused on the influences of constraint, size and aspect ratio on the critical rupture temperature difference of ZnS plate subjected to aerodynamic heating and pneumatic pressure. The numerical simulation was also conducted to verify the theoretical model. The results show that the large heat transfer condition corresponds to the poor TSR unless the constraint is too strong; the square plate provides the better TSR in case of different pneumatic pressures; a reasonable side length according to the range of pneumatic pressure would lead to the better TSR.

A continuation method, accompanied with a linear stability analysis, is employed to investigate the bifurcation diagram of the flow solutions, as well as the multiple flow states in a cavity with different aspect ratios for parallel motion of two facing lids. The Reynolds number proportional to the wall velocity is used as the continuation parameter, and the evolution of the bifurcation diagrams in cases with different aspect ratios is illustrated. The induced flow patterns are highly dependent upon both the aspect ratios and the moving velocity of the walls. Three different types of bifurcation diagrams and their corresponding flow states are classified according to the aspect ratios. One stable symmetric flow state and one stable asymmetric flow state are identified. The stable asymmetric flow state is obtained at a high aspect ratio and a low Reynolds number. Meanwhile, the regions of stable and unstable flows are distinguished according to the different aspect ratios.

The trophic structure of organisms is an important aspect of the ecosystem as it describes how energy is transferred between different trophic levels. Here, we studied the diet and foraging ecology of 144 individuals belonging to five abundant fish species of subtidal habitats at Isla Robinson Crusoe. Sampling was conducted during the austral spring and summer of 2007 and 2008, respectively. The shallow subtidal habitat is mainly characterized by the abundance of two types of habitat: foliose algae and encrusting invertebrates. Diet and trophic characteristic of fishes were obtained by volumetric contribution and frequency of occurrence of each prey item. Of the five species studied, one is herbivorous (juvenile Scorpis chilensis), four are omnivores (Nemadactylus gayi, Malapterus reticulatus, Pseudocaranx chilensis and Scorpis chilensis adult), and one carnivore (Hypoplectrodes semicinctum). The dietary diversity index was relatively low compared to other temperate reef systems, which could indicate a low availability of prey items for coastal fishes. The morphological parameters indicated that cranial structures and pairs of pectoral fins influence the foraging behaviour. Differences in fin aspect ratio among species provided insight about fish depth distribution and feeding behaviour. These results suggest important adaptive changes in the depth gradient of fishes in the subtidal environments of this island. According to our records, this is the first attempt to characterize the trophic ecology of the subtidal fish assemblages at Juan Fernandez Archipelago, revealing the need for testing hypotheses related to selective traits that may enhance species coexistence in oceanic islands.