New technique to improve quality control of lithium-ion batteries

May 9, 2013 ? Researchers have created a new tool to detect flaws in lithium-ion batteries as they are being manufactured, a step toward reducing defects and inconsistencies in the thickness of electrodes that affect battery life and reliability.

The electrodes, called anodes and cathodes, are the building blocks of powerful battery arrays like those used in electric and hybrid vehicles. They are copper on one side and coated with a black compound to store lithium on the other. Lithium ions travel from the anode to the cathode while the battery is being charged and in the reverse direction when discharging energy.

The material expands as lithium ions travel into it, and this expansion and contraction causes mechanical stresses that can eventually damage a battery and reduce its lifetime, said Douglas Adams, Kenninger Professor of Mechanical Engineering and director of the Purdue Center for Systems Integrity.

The coating is a complex mixture of carbon, particulates that store lithium, chemical binders and carbon black. The quality of the electrodes depends on this "battery paint" being applied with uniform composition and thickness.

"A key challenge is to be able to rapidly and accurately sense the quality of the battery paint," said James Caruthers, Reilly Professor of Chemical Engineering and co-inventor of the new sensing technology.

The Purdue researchers have developed a system that uses a flashbulb-like heat source and a thermal camera to read how heat travels through the electrodes. The "flash thermography measurement" takes less than a second and reveals differences in thickness and composition.

"This technique represents a practical quality-control method for lithium-ion batteries," Adams said. "The ultimate aim is to improve the reliability of these batteries."

Findings are detailed in a research paper being presented during the 2013 annual meeting of the Society for Experimental Mechanics, which is June 3-5 in Lombard, Ill. The paper was written by doctoral students Nathan Sharp, Peter O'Regan, Anand David and Mark Suchomel, and Adams and Caruthers.

The method uses a flashing xenon bulb to heat the copper side of the electrode, and an infrared camera reads the heat signature on the black side, producing a thermal image.

The researchers found that the viscous compound is sometimes spread unevenly, producing a wavelike pattern of streaks that could impact performance. Findings show the technology also is able to detect subtle differences in the ratio of carbon black to the polymer binder, which could be useful in quality control.

The technique also has revealed various flaws, such as scratches and air bubbles, as well as contaminants and differences in thickness, factors that could affect battery performance and reliability.

"We showed that we can sense these differences in thickness by looking at the differences in temperature," Adams said. "When there is a thickness difference of 4 percent, we saw a 4.8 percent rise in temperature from one part of the electrode to another. For 10 percent, the temperature was 9.2 percent higher, and for 17 percent it was 19.2 percent higher."

The thermal imaging process is ideal for a manufacturing line because it is fast and accurate and can detect flaws prior to the assembly of the anode and cathodes into a working battery.

"For example, if I see a difference in temperature of more than 1 degree, I can flag that electrode right on the manufacturing floor," Adams said. "The real benefit, we think, is not just finding flaws but also being able to fix them on the spot."

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/~3/QZYbVay2heY/130509154552.htm

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Nerve stimulation for severe depression changes brain function

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

For nearly a decade, doctors have used an implanted electronic stimulator to treat severe depression in people who don't respond to standard antidepressant therapy.

Now, preliminary brain scan studies conducted by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are beginning to reveal the processes occurring in the brain during stimulation and may provide some clues about how the device improves depression. They found that vagus nerve stimulation brings about changes in brain metabolism weeks or even months before patients begin to feel better.

The findings will appear in an upcoming issue of the journal Brain Stimulation and are now available online.

"Previous studies involving large numbers of people have demonstrated that many with treatment-resistant depression improve with vagus nerve stimulation," says first author Charles R. Conway, MD, associate professor of psychiatry. "But little is known about how this stimulation works to relieve depression. We focused on specific brain regions known to be connected to depression."

Conway's team followed 13 people with treatment-resistant depression. Their symptoms had not improved after many months of treatment with as many as five different antidepressant medications. Most had been depressed for at least two years, but some patients had been clinically depressed for more than 20 years.

All of the participants had surgery to insert a device to electronically stimulate the left vagus nerve, which runs down the side of the body from the brainstem to the abdomen. Once activated, the device delivers a 30-second electronic stimulus to the vagus nerve every five minutes.

To establish the nature of the treatment's effects on brain activity, the researchers performed positron emission tomography (PET) brain imaging prior to the initiation of stimulation, and again three and 12 months after stimulation had begun.

Eventually, nine of the 13 subjects experienced improvements in depression with the treatment. However, in most cases it took several months for improvement to occur.

Remarkably, in those who responded, the scans showed significant changes in brain metabolism following three months of stimulation, which typically preceded improvements in symptoms of depression by several months.

"We saw very large changes in brain metabolism occurring far in advance of any improvement in mood," Conway says. "It's almost as if there's an adaptive process that occurs. First, the brain begins to function differently. Then, the patient's mood begins to improve."

Although the patients remained on antidepressants for several months after their stimulators were implanted, Conway says many of those who responded to the device eventually were able to stop taking medication.

"Sometimes the antidepressant drugs work in concert with the stimulator, but it appears to us that when people get better, it is the vagus nerve stimulator that is doing the heavy lifting," Conway explains. "Stimulation seems to be responsible for most of the improvement we see."

Additionally, the PET scans demonstrated that structures deeper in the brain also begin to change several months after nerve stimulation begins. Many of those structures have high concentrations of brain cells that release dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps control the brain's reward and pleasure centers and also helps regulate emotional responses.

There is a consensus forming among depression researchers that problems in dopamine pathways may be particularly important in treatment-resistant depression, according to Conway. And he says the finding that vagus nerve stimulators influence those pathways may explain why the therapy can help and why, when it does work, its effects are not transient. Patients who respond to vagus nerve stimulation tend to get better and to stay better.

"We hypothesized that something significant had to be occurring in the brain, and our research seems to back that up," he says.

###

Washington University School of Medicine: http://www.medicine.wustl.edu

Thanks to Washington University School of Medicine for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/128180/Nerve_stimulation_for_severe_depression_changes_brain_function

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China's April inflation rises to 2.4 percent

BEIJING (AP) ? China's inflation rose slightly in April amid concern about the strength of its economic recovery.

Consumer prices rose 2.4 percent over a year earlier, up from March's 2.1 percent gain, data showed Thursday. That still is well below the government's target of 3.5 percent for the year.

Inflation is forecast to rise gradually as a shaky economic recovery boosts consumer demand. But mixed signals about factory activity, which slowed in April, and doubts about the strength of trade have raised questions about whether the recovery is gaining traction.

The world's second-largest economy is limping out of its deepest slump since the 2008 global crisis. Growth unexpectedly declined to 7.7 percent in the first three months of this year from 7.9 percent the previous quarter. Analysts say the economy is being shored up by state-led investment and bank lending and could be vulnerable if trade or investment weakens.

Government data showed April trade growth accelerating but analysts said export figures might be inflated and the recovery might be weaker than it looks.

The government's growth target for the year is 7.5 percent, above Western levels but well below China's double-digit rates of the past decade.

The weak first-quarter figures prompted the World Bank and private sector forecasters to cut full-year growth outlooks, though to still-robust levels of about 8 percent.

April's price rise was driven by a 4 percent gain in food costs, up from March's 2.7 percent rate. Food prices are especially sensitive in a society where families spend one-third to half their incomes to eat.

Wholesale prices fell 2.6 percent from a year earlier, accelerating from March's 1.9 percent decline.

Some analysts say inflation might be restrained due to the impact of orders by President Xi Jinping to Communist Party officials to cut spending on banquets and other frills to mollify public anger about corruption.

___

National Bureau of Statistics: www.stats.gov.cn

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/chinas-april-inflation-rises-2-4-percent-024356152.html

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From the forums: How are you getting on with the Galaxy S4?

Top threads for first impressions of Samsung's new handset

Depending on where you live, you'll have been able to pick up Samsung's latest handset, the Galaxy S4, for up to two weeks now. As such, the Android Central forums are buzzing with discussion about what's sure to be one of the biggest-selling phones of the year. Whether you're just getting started with your S4, or you're looking to pick one up in the future, here's a selection of the top forum threads to check out --

• The Galaxy S4 screenshot thread - If you've got a cool wallpaper or widget setup, be sure to show it off in this thread. (Remember 
• The Galaxy S4 bug thread - It's impossible to ship completely bug-free software, and so if you've noticed any software glitches on your S4, this is the place to discuss them.
• Galaxy S4 photography thread - The S4's 13-megapixel camera is among the best we've seen on a smartphone. Check out some awesome photos from forum members, and post your own!
• Galaxy S4 cases and covers thread - The place to discuss current and upcoming cases for the Galaxy S4 (also be sure to check out GS4 cases on ShopAndroid.com.)
• Galaxy S4 better than the HTC One? - This question isn't going to be resolved anytime soon, but the GS4 forum denizens are offering their thoughts in this thread.
• Verizon Galaxy S4 pre-order/waiting thread - The GS4 isn't available on Big Red just yet, but there's a thread full of Verizon pre-order discussion here to see you through to launch.

More: Galaxy S4 forums

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/ahMTiCR07Ow/story01.htm

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Solar Impulse sets off on its journey across the US (video)

Early this morning at Moffet Air Field in Mountain View, California, Solar Impulse finally took off on the first leg of its barnstorming tour across the US. Of course, this isn't the first time the sun-powered plane and its pilots, Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg, have flown long distance, but it is the first time it's taken wing through American airspace. Why has it come across the pond? To raise pubilc and political awareness about the benefits of going green and increasing energy efficiency -- and perhaps pick up an additional sponsor or two for its second-gen aircraft (currently in development) meant to fly around the world in 2015. "With the technologies we have onboard, we can divide by two the energy consumption of our world, and produce half of the rest [energy we need] with renewable sources" according to Piccard.

Gallery: Solar Impulse Across America

This first portion of the journey will end in Phoenix, and it'll take around twenty hours to get there, as the plane's meager output limits its average speed to around 40MPH. Should any of you want to join along with Piccard and Borschberg as they fly across the country, you can hit the Solar Impulse Across America website to see a livestream from the cockpit, along with real-time altitude, air speed and battery status of the aircraft. And, you can watch a video of Solar Impulse taking off on its North American journey and hear Borschberg talk about learning to fly it after the break.

Filed under: Transportation, Alt

Comments

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/PK3XWNg8h60/

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Good Grades In School - Article Submitter

All the adages are dependent upon hundreds of years of experience and they can't be denied whatsoever; rather they are lessons to be emulated. One of such sayings is "survival of the fittest" which connotes the capacity to battle the fight of survival and survive the extreme situations. Mere mortals have better elucidation for this and that is "to get by on benefit."

Learner's life is truly a touchy time of life; his manufacturing of future which in view of age, he is unconscious of the essentialness of his exercises now. He ought to be made conscious by his folks and instructors that the most paramount thing for him in the universe are the good grades.

Each action, each great chateau or a common house, or anything we do in our life has an establishment which must be extremely solid and on strong balance; at exactly that point it will bear the test of time and will stand against all tests immovably like a rock. The understudy may as well know establishment of his life is on good grades.

What do we mean by good grades? Evaluation is impression of nature of the studies and level of appreciation realized. Fitting study with great comprehension will without a doubt carry great result and elevated imprints. That is what we call good grades. The evaluating framework begins right from begin of our instruction and goes straight up till close; along these lines consistency greatly improves the situation profile and lights up the shots of getting into an exceptional work.

Great grades in school are not just the accomplishment of learner separated from everyone else; it is the instructor additionally who matters. Scholar is ignorant of time to come and the educating that is to be bestowed to him however the educator realizes what is to be instructed and how to be educated. Subsequently the onus falsehoods much on the instructor likewise for the exceptional evaluations in school of a person.

A person is in the making of his life and his each action and each moment numbers towards his destiny. One can foresee time of an understudy if his exercises are screened. As in voyage we tally the points of reference, we tally the evaluations one attains and the exceptional evaluations in school are really the beginning imperative turning points of life which not just tell if the end of the line is close or far from the right course. One needs to relinquish a mess to accomplish victory however gave us a chance to take it onetime short like sowing a seed. Seed ought to be solid, soil ought to be fruitful and the fertilizer must be included proportionately and at exactly that point from an extremely sensitive plant an in number tree will develop. Getting the great evaluations in school needs one an opportunity endeavor and the foods grown from the ground ought be procured the entire life.

The notion of the great grades and marks in school ought to be intensively put in the psyche of each tyke who begins the training, a school kid who is halfway and the school or school learner who is going to finish his training.

The grades in school are really the base on which future depends and improves, along these lines, the vitality of school life can't be overemphasized.

The concept of the good grades should be thoroughly put in the mind of every child who starts the education, a school boy who is midway and the college or university student who is about to complete his education.

Source: http://articles.submityourarticle.com/good-grades-in-school-327870

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Guy Kawasaki: Hard Work, Education -- Rinse, Repeat

This post is part of the Global Mom Relay. Every time you share this blog, $5 will go to women and girls around the world. Scroll to the bottom to find out more.

Guy Kawasaki is a renowned author, speaker, technology advisor, entrepreneur, publisher and venture investor -- and a father of four. We caught up for a father-to-father conversation on parenting in a changing world. With his trademark frankness, Kawasaki shares a few key insights.

Caleb Tiller: What is the best advice your mother ever gave you?

Guy Kawasaki: My mother taught me not to take any crap from anyone and to stand up for my rights. You might not believe this lesson came from a tiny Japanese woman, but it's true.

What kind of world do you want your kids to inherit?

I would like my kids to inherit a world where people succeed because of merit and hard work, not entitlement, and where people accept others for what they are and not try to change them.

In what ways do you hope your kids' lives will be different from yours?

A simple summary of my life is that my parents worked very hard so that I could have a great education, and I took that education and worked very hard to get where I am. I would like my kids' lives to be exactly the same.

What kind of encouragement/support/advice did you receive as a boy that prepared you for your life?

As I said, my mother taught me not to take any crap. My father taught me the concept of noblesse oblige -- the idea that with opportunity comes obligation and responsibility. Both of them emphasized education and hard work. This was great preparation for life. There is nothing more I wish my parents would have provided me than what they did.

What have you learned from your kids?

What I learned from my kids is that the greatest joy in life is not from material trappings, power, or visibility. The greatest joy comes from your kids. Nothing is even close to my kids in terms of bringing me joy.

What would you like every child to have a shot at?

I hope that every child has a shot at having or adopting children, starting a business, and writing a book. I am so fortunate as to have done all three.

How has the tech advances over the last 20 years changed about how we think about the world?

Tech advances have democratized information. You no longer need to be a pope, king, or pharaoh to obtain information. Knowledge wants to be set free, and technology has fostered this change -- from Gutenberg to desktop publishing to the Internet. I adore this trend.

Share Guy's post forward to unlock a shot at life, and education and hard work, for another child.

Each time you share this Global Mom Relay piece on Facebook, Twitter, or Email, or donate $5 or more through clicking on the above graphic, a $5 donation (up to $500,000) will be donated by Johnson & Johnson and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to Shot@Life. $5 protects a child from polio and measles for his/her lifetime. Funds go to WHO, UNICEF and the GAVI Alliance who distribute them to the programs and countries with the greatest need at the time. Join us by sharing it forward and unlock the potential for women and children around the globe. For more information, visitwww.unfoundation.org/globalmomrelay. The United Nations Foundation, Johnson & Johnson, BabyCenter, The Huffington Post, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation created the Global Mom Relay, a first-of-its-kind virtual relay with a goal of improving the lives of women and children around the globe.

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/guy-kawasaki/guy-kawasaki_b_3202240.html

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