this paper may be regarded as a new numerical method for the analysis of triangular thin plates using the natural area coordinates. previous studies on the solution of triangular plates with different boundary conditions are mostly based on the rayleigh-ritz principle which is performed in the cartesian coordinates. consequently, manipulation of the geometry and numerical calculation of the int...

In this paper, a method with the potential to rapidly produce thermoplastic polymer composite bipolar plates with improved formability and hrough-plane conductivity is described. In our earlier work, it was reported that composite bipolar plates made with graphite filled wet-lay materials xhibited excellent mechanical properties and in-plane electrical conductivity. However, the through-plane c...

Bipolar plates perform as current conductors between cells, provide conduits for reactant gases, facilitate water and thermal management through the cells, and constitute the backbone of a fuel cell stack. Currently, commercial bipolar plates are made of graphite composite because of its relatively low interfacial contact resistance (ICR) and high corrosion resistance. However, graphite composi...

The long-term effect of stainless steel and titanium alloy plates on structural remodelling and bone mass of osteotomised canine femora was studied and the effects of early and late removal of plates were compared in 27 adult Beagles. Radiological, histological, histomorphometric and tetracycline fluorescence studies led to three conclusions. First, the continuous (60 weeks) presence of plates,...

The use of biopolymers as a three dimensional (3D) support structure for cell growth is a leading tissue engineering approach in regenerative medicine. Achieving consistent cell seeding and uniform cell distribution throughout 3D scaffold culture in vitro is an ongoing challenge. Traditionally, 3D scaffolds are cultured within tissue culture plates to enable reproducible cell seeding and ease o...

BACKGROUND Anterior cervical plate had developed continuously, and this study aimed to assess the biomechanics of a novel self-locking plate system for anterior cervical fixation designed by ourselves. METHODS Twelve anterior cervical plates (i.e., six novel plates and six DePuy plates) were subjected to a pull-out test and a fatigue test. In addition, 12 C1-T1 cervical spine specimens underw...

To evaluate disinfection methods for environments contaminated with bioterrorism-associated microorganism (Bacillus anthracis), we performed the following experiments. First, the sporicidal effects of sodium hypochlorite on spores of five bacterial species were evaluated. Bacillus atrophaeus was the most resistant to hypochlorite, followed in order by B. anthracis, Clostridium botulinum and Clo...

The spline finite strip method (S.F.S.M.) for buckling analysis of plates and plate assemblies subjected to longitudinal compression and bending, transverse compression as well as shear is described. The method allows for the boundary conditions. Local buckling coefficients of plates with different boundary conditions under compression, bending and shear are calculated. Convergence studies with...

Millipore MultiScreenTM filter plates are used for elution of dried blood spot samples in neonatal screening assays. A significant concern with the use of these plates is their cost. In this study we have evaluated the practice of reusing the filter plates in the Bio-Rad PKU and total galactose neonatal assays. All wells of the test plates used in the recovery study above were washed for a fift...

This paper presents a novel hybrid method for extracting license plates and recognizing characters from low-quality videos using morphological operations and Adaboost algorithm. First of all, the hybrid method uses the Adaboost algorithm for training a detector to detect license plates. This algorithm works well to detect license plates having lower intensities but fails to detect license plate...