Edward Hensel

Electronic Cigarette Topography in the Natural Environment.

This paper presents the results of a clinical, observational, descriptive study to quantify the use patterns of electronic cigarette users in their natural environment. Previously published work regarding puff topography has been widely indirect in nature, and qualitative rather than quantitative, with the exception of three studies conducted in a laboratory environment for limited amounts of time. The current study quantifies the variation in puffing behaviors among users as well as the variation for a given user throughout the course of a day. Puff topography characteristics computed for each puffing session by each subject include the number of subject puffs per puffing session, the mean puff duration per session, the mean puff flow rate per session, the mean puff volume per session, and the cumulative puff volume per session. The same puff topography characteristics are computed across all puffing sessions by each single subject and across all subjects in the study cohort. Results indicate significant inter-subject variability with regard to puffing topography, suggesting that a range of representative puffing topography patterns should be used to drive machine-puffed electronic cigarette aerosol evaluation systems.

ONE-DIMENSIONAL NONLINEAR INVERSE HEAT CONDUCTION TECHNIQUE

The one-dimensional nonlinear problem of heat conduction is considered. A noniterative space-marching finite-difference algorithm is developed to estimate the surface temperature and heat flux from temperature measurements at subsurface locations. The trade-off between resolution and variance of the estimates of the surface conditions is discussed quantitatively. The inverse algorithm is stabilized through the use of digital filters applied recursively. The effect of the filters on the resolution and variance of the surface estimates is quantified. Results are presented which indicate that the technique is capable of handling noisy measurement data.

STEADY-STATE TWO-DIMENSIONAL INVERSE HEAT CONDUCTION

A method for analysis of multidimensional steady-state inverse heat conduction problems is presented. The method employs an adjoint formulation to approximate a set of sensitivity coefficients that relate temperature and heat flux observations to unknown surface conditions. The resulting nonsquare system of equations is regularized and subsequently solved in a least-squares sense. A technique is presented for evaluating the accuracy of the estimated surface conditions in terms of resolution and variance. The method is applied to example problems in two dimensions for cases in which limited information about the surface condition is available.

Week Long Topography Study of Young Adults Using Electronic Cigarettes in Their Natural Environment

Results of an observational, descriptive study quantifying topography characteristics of twenty first generation electronic nicotine delivery system users in their natural environment for a one week observation period are presented. The study quantifies inter-participant variation in puffing topography between users and the intra-participant variation for each user observed during one week of use in their natural environment. Puff topography characteristics presented for each user include mean puff duration, flow rate and volume for each participant, along with descriptive statistics of each quantity. Exposure characteristics including the number of vaping sessions, total number of puffs and cumulative volume of aerosol generated from ENDS use (e-liquid aerosol) are reported for each participant for a one week exposure period and an effective daily average exposure. Significant inter-participant and intra-participant variation in puff topography was observed. The observed range of natural use environment characteristics is used to propose a set of topography protocols for use as command inputs to drive machine-puffed electronic nicotine delivery systems in a controlled laboratory environment.

SURFACE VARIANCE ESTIMATES USING AN ADJOINT FORMULATION FOR A ONE-DIMENSIONAL NONLINEAR INVERSE HEAT CONDUCTION TECHNIQUE

The one-dimensional nonlinear inverse heat conduction problem is considered. A new technique for estimating the surface variances of the predicted surface fluxes and temperatures based on an adjoint formulation is presented. The surface variances are related to the measurement variances and to an estimate of the initial condition variances. The only assumption necessary to apply the technique is that of additive measurement errors. Two test cases with three sets of boundary conditions are studied. The surface variance estimates given by the adjoint formulation and direct estimation are shown to be in good agreement.

Inverse Problems for Multi-Dimensional Parabolic Partial Differential Equations

The parabolic inverse boundary value problem is defined, and the major characteristics common to multi-dimensional parabolic inverse problems are discussed. These include sensitivity to measurement error and noise, the value of future time information, the nonuniqueness of estimates, and the effects of temperature dependent thermal properties. The importance of quantifying resolution degradation and estimate variances is discussed.

A Combinatorial Optimization Approach As A Pre-processor For Impedance Tomography

A drawback of conventional gradient-type algorithms for impedance tomography is their dependence on good initial guesses to assure co nve rge nce. A com bi nato rial o pti m izat io n approach (searching a finite parameter set) as a pre-processor to conventional algorithms is proposed as a solution to this problem. A simulated annealing algorithm is used with good results in cases where an exhaustive search is too computationally intensive. The method also shows promise as a way to extract general geometry information.

Qualitative Analysis of E-Liquid Emissions as a Function of Flavor Additives Using Two Aerosol Capture Methods

This work investigates emissions sampling methods employed for qualitative identification of compounds in e-liquids and their resultant aerosols to assess what capture methods may be sufficient to identify harmful and potentially harmful constituents present. Three popular e-liquid flavors (cinnamon, mango, vanilla) were analyzed using qualitative gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) in the un-puffed state. Each liquid was also machine-puffed under realistic-use flow rate conditions and emissions were captured using two techniques: filter pads and methanol impingers. GC-MS analysis was conducted on the emissions captured using both techniques from all three e-liquids. The e-liquid GC-MS analysis resulted in positive identification of 13 compounds from the cinnamon flavor e-liquid, 31 from mango, and 19 from vanilla, including a number of compounds observed in all e-liquid experiments. Nineteen compounds were observed in emissions which were not present in the un-puffed e-liquid. Qualitative GC-MS analysis of the emissions samples identify compounds observed in all three samples: e-liquid, impinge, and filter pads, and each subset thereof. A limited number of compounds were observed in emissions captured with impingers, but were not observed in emissions captured using filter pads; a larger number of compounds were observed on emissions collected from the filter pads, but not those captured with impingers. It is demonstrated that sampling methods have different sampling efficiencies and some compounds might be missed using only one method. It is recommended to investigate filter pads, impingers, thermal desorption tubes, and solvent extraction resins to establish robust sampling methods for emissions testing of e-cigarette emissions.

Statistical Phonon Transport Model of Thermal Transport in Silicon

Thermal transport in crystalline materials at various length scales can be modeled by the Boltzmann transport equation (BTE). A statistical phonon transport (SPT) model is presented that solves the BTE in a statistical framework that incorporates a unique state-based phonon transport methodology. Anisotropy of the first Brillouin zone (BZ) is captured by utilizing directionally-dependent dispersion curves obtained from lattice dynamics calculations. A rigorous implementation of phonon energy and pseudo-momentum conservation is implemented in the ballistic thermal transport regime for a homogeneous silicon nanowire with adiabatic specular boundary conditions.

A Process for Assessment of ABET Student Outcomes in a Mechanical Engineering Department

This research took place in an olive and olive derivatives manufacturing company, which distributes its products to the main retail and local stores with a total of 95 clients in the city of Lima Metropolitana. The research approaches one of the variations of vehicle routing also known as Time frames and Loading Capacities Vehicle Routing Problem, which applies a heuristic model in order to obtain a route that is capable of fulfilling the requirements of the clients. The research started with client mapping and necessary data collecting such as distance, kilograms and load volume, delivery schedule and service time. After that, two improvement proposals were developed related to the creation of an optimal route: the first one, using a heuristic and the second one, a self-made algorithm based on system restrictions. Once the proposals are obtained and with the help of LINGO and MATLAB software’s, were compared with the current route and determined the best route allowing a decrease in traveled kilometers, used resources and fulfillment of service hours. Both proposals obtained savings when related to the actual distribution of S/. 240.74 and S/. 674.79 respectively. However, the highest savings were obtained with proposal 2, obtaining S/. 16,124.87 in monthly savings for a 24 days month. Keywords--. vehicle routing, time frames and loading, schedule distribution system. Resumen – Esta investigacion se desarrollo en una empresa manufacturera de aceituna y derivados, que distribuye sus productos a los principales supermercados y tiendas locales, con un total de 95 clientes en la ciudad de Lima Metropolitana. La investigacion aborda una de las variaciones del ruteo de vehiculos mas conocido con el problema de ruteo de vehiculos con ventanas de tiempo y capacidad de carga, para lo cual se aplico un modelo heuristico, esto con el objetivo de obtener una ruta capaz de satisfacer los requerimientos de los clientes. La investigacion se inicio con el mapeo de los clientes y la recoleccion de data necesaria en distancia, kilogramos y volumen de carga, los horarios de entrega y tiempo de servicio. Posteriormente se desarrollo dos propuestas de mejora referidas a la creacion de una ruta optima: la primera, usando una heuristica; y la segunda, un algoritmo propio formulado en base a los restricciones del sistema. Una vez obtenidas estas propuestas con la ayuda de los softwares LINGO y MATLAB, se las comparo con la ruta actual empleada y determino la mejor ruta permitiendo reducir los kilometros recorridos, los recursos empleados y el cumplimiento de los horarios de atencion. En ambas propuestas, se obtuvo ahorros con referencia a la distribucion actual de S/. 240.74 y S/. 674.79, respectivamente. Sin embargo, el mayor ahorro se consiguio con la propuesta 2, siendo el ahorro mensual obtenido de S/. 16,124.87 para un mes de 24 dias. Palabras clave: ruteo de vehiculos, ventanas de tiempo y capacidad, sistemas de distribucion con horarios. I. INTRODUCCION Las exportaciones en el Peru en los ultimos anos se han vuelto un tema importante en la agenda nacional. Segun datos obtenidos de la Asociacion de Exportadores (ADEX), los dos ultimos anos han sido ligeramente negativos para las exportaciones peruanas al cerrar en -0.3% en el 2012 y -9.9% en el 2013 [1]. No obstante, Gaston Pacheco, primer vicepresidente de ADEX, sostiene que el 2014 fue un ano de oportunidades para las exportaciones peruanas siendo relevante apoyar a las exportaciones no tradicionales al generar mayor valor agregado [2]. En este contexto, la oliva y sus derivados son parte importante de los productos agroindustriales y manufacturados no tradicionales y que se encuentra en crecimiento (en el 2012 se registro un crecimiento de 34% de la produccion de oliva). El Peru se encuentra en el puesto 17 en cuanto a toneladas de produccion de oliva pero es el tercero en el ranking con respecto al rendimiento. Asimismo, se exporta mas del 30% de la produccion nacional reflejando la gran preferencia de la aceituna peruana en el extranjero. Esto reforzado por las tendencias saludables actuales (habitos de consumo y gastronomia fina) como por el dinamismo del sector retail que influyen en el mercado tanto interno como internacional, hacen de la presencia de este producto un gran potencial [3]. Este es el caso del principal exportador de aceituna y sus derivados del Peru, empresa con mas de 15 anos en el mercado que busca mantener su competitividad a traves de la mejora continua en sus procesos. Las lineas de produccion de la empresa son semiautomaticas y manuales, siendo las principales las lineas de sellado (27%) y rellenado (25%). Sin embargo, la distribucion a nivel local (cuyas ventas representan el 49% de los kilogramos de producto vendidos y 42.3% de margen sobre la venta) es parte importante al contribuir en la gestion de ventas. Por otro lado, si bien la gestion de la empresa ha mejorado segun muestran los indicadores de productividad promedio del ano 2013 de sellado (bolsa tipo 1 = 34.2, bolsa tipo 2 = 30.56 y bolsa tipo 3 = 49.63) y rellenado (5.84) que estan por encima del estandar, durante todos los meses no se presenta de esta manera puesto que sus valores tienden a ser muy variables. Lo mismo se presenta en el indicador de costo de distribucion, el cual se mantiene igual al del 2012 (0.46 S/./kg). Segun lo mencionado, se ve una oportunidad de mejora en esta empresa, pues entre los problemas se identifican sobrecostos de transporte o mano de obra, mermas de produccion, ventas perdidas por falta de stock o capacidad, devolucion de productos, productividades y rendimiento variables. Siendo la distribucion local un problema Digital Object Identifier (DOI): http://dx.doi.org/10.18687/LACCEI2016.1.1.262 ISBN: 978-0-9822896-9-3 ISSN: 2414-6390