An advanced energy management and control system in an existing building in the Construction and Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL) for Army at Urbana-Champaign (IL) was demonstrated. The medium-size office building underwent a retrofit of the HVAC system and controls employing a technology called optimal Model Predictive Control (MPC) which offers significant potential for saving energy by providing a means to dynamically optimize various sub-systems to take advantage of building utilization and weather patterns, and utility rate structures. A multi-variable optimization problem to minimize energy consumption and cost while guaranteeing zonal comfort over a 3 hour predictive horizon was formulated and solved periodically on line. The algorithms were integrated with the building automation system and evaluated experimentally at the demonstration site. A 45-50reduction in HVAC system energy use was demonstrated while improving occupant comfort. A 10-15installation cost reduction was accomplished due to the use of a robust wireless sensor network versus a fully wired network.

关键词：建筑节能；算法；控制系统；节能建筑；通信网络

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Brain-controlled prostheses have the potential to improve the quality of life of a large number of paralyzed persons by allowing them to control prosthetic limbs simply by thought.An essential requirement for natural use of such neural prostheses is that the user should be provided with somatosensory feedback from the artificial limb. This can be achieved by electrically stimulating small populations of neurons in the cortex; a process known as cortical microstimulation. This dissertation describes the development of novel technologies for experimental neuroscience and their use to explore the neural and perceptual effects of cortical microstimulation in rodents.

关键词：假肢；人脑控制；神经假体

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At present, voltage source converters are mostly used in electrical drives. These converters utilize capacitors in the DC-link to store temporarily electrical energy. Switching the power electronic devices allows the DC voltage to be modulated which can result in a variable voltage and frequency waveform. The purpose of the modulator is to generate the required switching signals for these switching devices on the basis of user defined inputs.

关键词：电力电子技术；转换器；电压源转换器

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Changes that carbon-supported platinum electrocatalysts undergo in a proton exchange membrane fuel cell environment were simulated by ex situ heat treatment of catalyst powder samples at 150 C and 100relative humidity. In order to study modifications that are introduced to chemistry, morphology, and performance of electrocatalysts, XPS, HREELS and three-electrode rotating disk electrode experiments were performed. Before heat treatment, graphitic content varied by 20among samples with different types of carbon supports, with distinct differences between bulk and surface compositions within each sample. Following the aging protocol, the bulk and surface chemistry of the samples were similar, with graphite content increasing or remaining constant and Pt-carbide decreasing for all samples. From the correlation of changes in chemical composition and losses in performance of the electrocatalysts, we conclude that relative distribution of Pt particles on graphitic and amorphous carbon is as important for electrocatalytic activity as the absolute amount of graphitic carbon present.

关键词：燃料电池；质子交换膜；催化剂

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The proposed research will examine the suitability of ERG as a target for prostate cancer therapy by using novel modular inducible transgenic mice. Prostate cancer is a large health problem in the United States. Recent efforts to classify distinct molecular subtypes of prostate cancer have shown that >50of prostate cancers possess a chromosomal translocation involving the ERG oncogene. I hypothesized that ERG can serve as an effective molecular therapeutic target for prostate tumors. I planned to show this with novel autochthonous prostate tumor mouse models. During this second year of support we have not been able to been able to adhere to the timeline of our Statement of Work - Task No. 2 - Determine if ERG cooperates with AKT1 for prostate tumorigenesis (months 14-34). We were previously successful at completing the tasks for Task No. 1 - Generate and characterize an inducible ERG prostate specific mouse model (months 1-17), but our characterization of ERG expression from our prostate inducible mouse model did not demonstrate any detectable prostate specific ERG expression at the protein level. Data from another project using the ARR2PB-tTA line has lead us to believe that the level of expression from the ARR2PB-tTA line is low and perhaps insufficient for the in vivo experiments described in our proposal. We are now planning to pursue the Hoxb13-rtTA mouse line allows for much more robust expression of tetO target genes in the mouse 

关键词：治疗；列腺癌肿瘤

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This work was undertaken to create an efficient process for electrolyzing ammonia, by clarifying the electrolytic decomposition path-ways of ammonia and urea. This project demonstrated the feasibility of using ammonia and urea electrolysis technologies to produce hydrogen as a potential fuel source for the fuel Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell back up power for training facilities and soldier camps, under the 'Silent Camp' initiative. This was achieved with scaling of bench scale electrolyzer to a 50 W electrolyzer system known as the 'GreenBox.' The construction of the 50 W GreenBox depended on the development of the catalyst and fundamental understanding of the reaction mechanisms for ammonia and urea electrolysis. Significant progress in catalyst development was achieved by using chemical and electrochemical preparation techniques, and using the various state-of-the-art analytical methods funded through this project. A new synthesized material-nickel hydroxide nanosheets-has shown potential to be catalyst for urea electrolysis and catalyst support for ammonia electrolysis. The energy consumption for the ammonia electrolysis using the nickel based nanostructured electrodes is anticipated to be lower than 8.6 Wh per gram of hydrogen gas produced. The low energy consumption will provide a significant advantage when the GreenBox is combined with fuel cells.

关键词：燃料电池；氢；氨；氨分解；电解；氢气

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The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) is one of the principal federal agencies supporting applied research, training, and development to improve the lives of individuals with disabilities. NIDRR's mission is to generate new knowledge and promote its effective use in improving the ability of persons with disabilities to perform activities of their choice in the community, as well as to expand society's capacity to provide full opportunities and accommodations for its citizens with disabilities. NIDRR aims to reach all disability types and age groups, and its mission is tied to long-term outcomes such as independence, community participation, and employment. Assessing the outcomes of research is a complex undertaking that can variably take into account the stated goals of the research, the contribution to the relevant field of research, the impact on the well-being of a particular population, or other related issues. The Government Performance and Results Act has led to a particular emphasis on establishing specific performance measures assessing the outputs of research programs. NIDRR takes pride in proactively establishing program performance measures focused on the quality of its grantee outputs, developing account ability data systems to track the results of those measures, and developing internal management systems to facilitate quality research. In 2009, NIDRR requested that the National Research Council form a committee to conduct a 'process evaluation' of aspects of its grant making and a 'summative evaluation' of the quality of grantee outputs. In addition, the committee was charged with assessing the methods it developed for conducting the summative evaluation and making recommendations for the conduct of future evaluations. The requested study was the most recent effort in a series of NIDRR-funded activities aimed at assessing and improving the agency's performance.

关键词：康复计划 进化 残疾

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The rationale for using neurofeedback to affect changes in children on the autism spectrum is rooted in several assumptions. First, regions comprising the human mirror neuron system or MNS exhibit abnormal connections in ASD children. Second, the 8- 13 Hz mu rhythm oscillations over sensorimotor cortex are functionally linked to the MNS network. Third, modifying these oscillation dynamics via neurofeedback training induces neural plasticity. Finally, normalization of abnormal connectivity is reflected in positive behavioral, cognitive, and electrophysiological changes. Our results show behavioral improvements following training in all the subcategories of the ATEC, a validated measure of the efficacy of an intervention. Similarly, we report improvement in the three subscales in adaptive measures, as measured by the Vineland Adaptive Behavioral Scale. Finally, social interactions during daily living were assessed with the Social Responsiveness Scale and improvements noted with training. BOLD activation results indicate that both TD and ASD groups have activity in IFG, IPL, and STS areas during imitation and in the observation of hand movement, but these activations are significantly greater for the TD group. Furthermore, our results are consistent with anatomical findings that show regions in the ASD brain exhibiting overconnectivity and underconnectivity compared to the TD brain. Finally, we show that NFT produces increases in MNS activity and reductions in abnormal functional connectivities between MNS areas compared to the TD brain.

关键词：自闭症谱系障碍(ASD)；康复训练

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This report summarizes the experience and early results from a fuel cell bus demonstration funded by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) under the National Fuel Cell Bus Program (NFCBP). A team led by the Northeast Advanced Vehicle Consortium and UTC Power developed a next-generation fuel cell electric bus for demonstration. A total of four buses are being operated in service by Connecticut Transit in Hartford. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has been tasked by FTA to evaluate the buses in service. This report documents the early development and implementation of the buses and summarizes the performance results through May 2012.

关键词：燃料电池；公共汽车；康涅狄格州

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Because most sedimentary basins have been explored for oil and gas, well logs, temperatures at depth, and reservoir properties such as depth to basement and formation thickness are well known. The availability of this data reduces exploration risk and allows development of geologic exploration models for each basin. This study estimates the magnitude of recoverable geothermal energy from 15 major known U.S. sedimentary basins and ranks these basins relative to their potential. The total available thermal resource for each basin was estimated using the volumetric heat-in-place method originally proposed by (Muffler, 1979). A qualitative recovery factor was determined for each basin based on data on flow volume, hydrothermal recharge, and vertical and horizontal permeability. Total sedimentary thickness maps, stratigraphic columns, cross sections, and temperature gradient information was gathered for each basin from published articles, USGS reports, and state geological survey reports. When published data were insufficient, thermal gradients and reservoir properties were derived from oil and gas well logs obtained on oil and gas commission databases. Basin stratigraphy, structural history, and groundwater circulation patterns were studied in order to develop a model that estimates resource size, temperature distribution, and a probable quantitative recovery factor.

关键词：地热能；层积盆地；横截面

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