This work is aimed to understand the mechanisms for evolution and reversed evolution of dislocation structure under variable strain amplitudes, using automotive-grade interstitial-free steels (IF steel) under strain ratio (R) = 0 condition. The microstructures were mainly examined by the SEM under BEI/ECCI mode and TEM were used for this study. Near the endurance limit, the dislocation cells smaller than 2£gm develop preferably along grain boundaries and triple junctions among the grains. Within grain interiors, it is hardly observed these small dislocation cells and cyclic hardening even at £`max =0.2%. When strain amplitudes were controlled at a range from £`max = 0.25% to 0.6%, a secondary cyclic hardening occurs prior to fatigue failure and less than 2um dislocation cells rapidly developed thoroughly. The secondary hardening rates were found to be directly proportional to the strain amplitudes. For high-low strain fatigue tests, while the maximum strain was decreased from 1.2% to 0.2% or 0.15%, dislocation cells were collapsed first and re-grouped into loop-patch structures due to the gliding behavior of dislocations changing from multiple-slips to single-slip. However, once the strain range is further reduced to 0.1%, dislocation cells would persist, showing no signs of collapse. Moreover, the reversal development of dislocation structures is independent of strain ratio. Furthermore newly developed loop patches are usually confined within dislocation domains with very condensed dislocation cell walls with high boundary misorientation.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 151-164). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

Zugl.: Duisburg, Essen, Universiẗat, Diss.

RNA interference, or RNAi, is a cellular mechanism that describes the sequence-specific post transcriptional gene silencing observed in plants, fungi, and metazoans, facilitated by short double-stranded RNAs and microRNAs (miRNAs) with sequence complementarity to target mRNAs. Many of the regulatory mechanisms of the RNAi pathway by which these small miRNAs are first processed, from primary transcripts to precursor miRNA stemloops and then to mature miRNAs, by the multiprotein complexes Drosha and Dicer, respectively, still remain unknown. Within the miRNA biogenesis pathway, there is strong evidence pointing to the terminal loop region as an important regulatory determinant of miRNA maturation. To further elucidate the terminal loop's exerted control over miRNA processing, we propose a combined in vitro / in vivo selection experiment of a randomized pri-miRNA terminal loop library in search of an optimally processed pre-miRNA substrate. Here, we report the isolation of a premiRNA terminal loop sequence that is favorably processed by Drosha in vivo but also functions as an effective cis-inhibitor of further pre-miRNA processing by downstream Dicer. This terminal loop also demonstrated modular properties of Dicer inhibition in two different miRNAs, and should prove useful in further elucidating the mechanisms of miRNA processing in context of a newly proposed Dicer cleavage model (Gu et al. 2012). In combination, these findings may have important implications in both Drosha and Dicer's direct role in gene expression and miRNA biogenesis, the regulatory proteins that modulate their respective functions, as well as the potential development of new design rules for the more efficient processing and targeting of miRNA-based technology and RNAi therapeutics. / text

Modeling loops is an often necessary step in protein structure and function determination, even with experimental X-ray and NMR data. It is well known to be difficult. Database techniques have the advantage of producing a higher proportion of predictions with sub-angstrom accuracy when compared with ab initio techniques, but the disadvantage of often being able to produce usable results as they depend entirely on the loop already being represented within the database. My contribution is the LoopWeaver protocol, a database method that uses multidimensional scaling to rapidly achieve better clash-free, low energy placement of loops obtained from a database of protein structures. This maintains the above- mentioned advantage while avoiding the disadvantage by permitting the use of lower quality matches that would not otherwise fit. Test results show that this method achieves significantly better results than all other methods, including Modeler, Loopy, SuperLooper, and Rapper before refinement. With refinement, the results (LoopWeaver and Loopy combined) are better than ROSETTA's, with 0.53Å RMSD on average for 206 loops of length 6, 0.75Å local RMSD for 168 loops of length 7, 0.93Å RMSD for 117 loops of length 8, and 1.13Å RMSD loops of length 9, while ROSETTA scores 0.66Å , 0.93Å , 1.23Å , 1.56Å , respectively, at the same average time limit (3 hours on a 2.2 GHz Opteron). When ROSETTA is allowed to run for over a week against LoopWeaver's and Loopy's combined 3 hours, it approaches, but does not surpass, this accuracy.

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Power Hardware In Loop (PHIL) simulation is a test method where equipment intended for field application can be debugged and tested in the factory by connecting to a virtual power system model simulated on a real-time simulator. Hence the PHIL simulation may be very effective in developing, debugging and commissioning power equipment. However, due to imperfections (e.g., time delay, noise injection, phase lag, limited bandwidth) in the power interface, simulations in this method show errors or even instable results. This thesis presents means to improve the simulation accuracy of the PHIL simulation. In order to achieve this, a simulation model is constructed for the PHIL simulation process itself. Using simulation, the sensitivity of the simulation to parameters in the interface equipment as well as interface software is thoroughly investigated. One interesting result is that the simulation is significantly affected by phase delay. Based on the analysis, an improved algorithm that uses additional interface filters (implemented in hardware and/or software) is proposed. The thesis shows that more stable and accurate results can be obtained by using the new algorithm. The validity of the proposed methods is verified through a simulation based study and hardware based studies.

Power Hardware In Loop (PHIL) simulation is a test method where equipment intended for field application can be debugged and tested in the factory by connecting to a virtual power system model simulated on a real-time simulator. Hence the PHIL simulation may be very effective in developing, debugging and commissioning power equipment. However, due to imperfections (e.g., time delay, noise injection, phase lag, limited bandwidth) in the power interface, simulations in this method show errors or even instable results. This thesis presents means to improve the simulation accuracy of the PHIL simulation. In order to achieve this, a simulation model is constructed for the PHIL simulation process itself. Using simulation, the sensitivity of the simulation to parameters in the interface equipment as well as interface software is thoroughly investigated. One interesting result is that the simulation is significantly affected by phase delay. Based on the analysis, an improved algorithm that uses additional interface filters (implemented in hardware and/or software) is proposed. The thesis shows that more stable and accurate results can be obtained by using the new algorithm. The validity of the proposed methods is verified through a simulation based study and hardware based studies.

No description available.