Approach to iron corrosion via the numerical simulation of a galvanic cell

A mathematical model of the galvanic iron corrosion is, here, presented. The iron(III)-hydroxide formation is considered together with the redox reaction. The PDE system, assembled on the basis of the fundamental holding electro-chemistry laws, is numerically solved by a locally refined FD method. For verification purpose we have assembled an experimental galvanic cell; in the present work, we report two tests cases, with acidic and neutral electrolitical solution, where the computed electric potential compares well with the measured experimental one

On the mean field limit for Cucker-Smale models

In this note, we consider generalizations of the Cucker-Smale dynamical system and we derive rigorously in Wasserstein's type topologies the mean-field limit (and propagation of chaos) to the Vlasov-type equation introduced in [13]. Unlike previous results on the Cucker-Smale model, our approach is not based on the empirical measures, but, using an Eulerian point of view introduced in [9] in the Hamiltonian setting, we show the limit providing explicit constants.

Motility-induced phase separation and coarsening in active matter

Active systems, or active matter, are self-driven systems that live, or function, far from equilibrium - a paradigmatic example that we focus on here is provided by a suspension of self-motile particles. Active systems are far from equilibrium because their microscopic constituents constantly consume energy from the environment in order to do work, for instance to propel themselves. The non-equilibrium nature of active matter leads to a variety of non-trivial intriguing phenomena.

Build up of yield stress fluids via chaotic emulsification

Stabilised dense emulsions display a rich phenomenology connecting microstructure and rheology. In this work, we study how an emulsion with a finite yield stress can be built via large-scale stirring. By gradually increasing the volume fraction of the dispersed minority phase, under the constant action of a stirring force, we are able to achieve a volume fraction close to 80%. Despite the fact that our system is highly concentrated and not yet turbulent we observe a droplet size distribution consistent with the -10/3 scaling, often associated with inertial range droplets breakup.

Modeling dual drug delivery from eluting stents: the influence of non-linear binding competition and non-uniform drug loading

Objective There is increasing interest in simultaneous endovascular delivery of more than one drug from a drug-loaded stent into a diseased artery. There may be an opportunity to obtain a therapeutically desirable uptake profile of the two drugs over time by appropriate design of the initial drug distribution in the stent.

PROCONSUL: PRObabilistic exploration of CONnectivity Significance patterns for disease modULe discovery

The possibility to computationally prioritize candi- date disease genes capitalizing on existing information has led to a speedup in the discovery of new methods. Many gene discovery techniques exploit network data, like protein-protein interactions (PPIs), in order to extract knowledge from the network structure relying on several network metrics. We here present PROCONSUL, a method that builds on top of the concept of connectivity significance (CS) and exploits the idea of probabilistic exploration of the space of putative disease genes.

Image Scaling by de la Vallée-Poussin Filtered Interpolation

We present a new image scaling method both for downscaling and upscaling, running with any scale factor or desired size. The resized image is achieved by sampling a bivariate polynomial which globally interpolates the data at the new scale. The method's particularities lay in both the sampling model and the interpolation polynomial we use. Rather than classical uniform grids, we consider an unusual sampling system based on Chebyshev zeros of the first kind.

Sulfavant A as the first synthetic TREM2 ligand discloses a homeostatic response of dendritic cells after receptor engagement

Objective The immune response arises from a fne balance of mechanisms that provide for surveillance, tolerance, and elimination of dangers. Sulfavant A (SULF A) is a sulfolipid with a promising adjuvant activity. Here we studied the mechanism of action of SULF A and addressed the identifcation of its molecular target in human dendritic cells (hDCs). Methods Adjuvant efect and immunological response to SULF A were assessed on DCs derived from human donors.

Drag and lift coefficients of ellipsoidal particles under rarefied flow conditions

The capability to simulate a two-way coupled interaction between a rarefied gas and an arbitrary-shaped colloidal particle is important for many practical applications, such as aerospace engineering, lung drug delivery, and semiconductor manufacturing. By means of numerical simulations based on the direct-simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method, we investigate the influence of the orientation of the particle and rarefaction on the drag and lift coefficients, in the case of prolate and oblate ellipsoidal particles immersed in a uniform ambient flow.

Switching hydrodynamics in liquid crystal devices: A simulation perspective

In liquid crystal devices it is important to understand the physics underlying their switching between different states, which is usually achieved by applying or removing an electric field. Flow is known to be a key determinant of the timescales and pathways of the switching kinetics. Incorporating hydrodynamic effects into theories for liquid crystal devices is therefore important; however this is also highly non-trivial, and typically requires the use of accurate numerical methods.