Modeling radio frequency heating of food moving on a conveyor belt

Chaos on the conveyor belt.

The dynamics of a spring-block train placed on a moving conveyor belt is investigated both by simple experiments and computer simulations. The first block is connected by a spring to an external static point and, due to the dragging effect of the belt, the blocks undergo complex stick-slip dynamics. A qualitative agreement with the experimental results can be achieved only by taking into accoun...

Exponential Decay to Equilibrium for a Fiber Lay-Down Process on a Moving Conveyor Belt

We show existence and uniqueness of a stationary state for a kinetic Fokker-Planck equation modeling the fibre lay-down process in the production of non-woven textiles. Following a micromacro decomposition, we use hypocoercivity techniques to show exponential convergence to equilibrium with an explicit rate assuming the conveyor belt moves slow enough. This work is an extention of [2], where th...

Synaptic Ribbon Conveyor Belt or Safety Belt?

The synaptic ribbon in neurons that release transmitter via graded potentials has been considered as a conveyor belt that actively moves vesicles toward their release sites. But evidence has accumulated to the contrary, and it now seems plausible that the ribbon serves instead as a safety belt to tether vesicles stably in mutual contact and thus facilitate multivesicular release by compound exo...

The Viability of Oil Extraction from Trinidad Tar Sands by Radio Frequency Heating: A Simulation Approach

Trinidad has tar sand resources of about 2 billion barrels of oil on land in the Parrylands/Guapo and Brighton areas. With an oil price of over USD 25 per barrel, the commercial extraction of oil from Trinidad tar sands is viable, but it requires a careful study. The relatively small extent of this tar sand (about 10,000 acres and with depths varying from surface to less than 500 feet) and with...

Microwave and Radio Frequency Heating