Laser Imaging Nephelometer for aircraft deployment

Validation of remote sensing retrievals of aerosol microphysical and optical properties requires in situ measurements of the same properties. We present here an improved imaging nephelometer for measuring the directionality and polarization of light (i.e. polarimetry) scattered at two wavelengths (405 nm and 660 nm) with high temporal resolution. The instrument was designed for airborne deployment and is capable of ground-based measurements as well. The Laser Imaging Nephelometer (LiNeph) uses two orthogonal detectors with wide-angle lenses and linearly polarized light sources to measure both the phase function, P11(θ), and degree of linear polarization, -P12/P11(θ). In this work, we will describe the instrument function and calibration, as well as data acquisition and reduction. The instrument was first deployed aboard the NASA DC-8 during the 2019 FIREX-AQ campaign. Here, we present field measurements of smoke plumes that show that the LiNeph has sufficient resolution for 0.24 Hz polarimetric measurements at two wavelengths, 405 and 660 nm, at integrated scattering coefficients ranging from 50–80,000 Mm−1.

A Low-Cost NDIR-Based N2O Gas Detection Device for Agricultural Soils: Assembly, Calibration Model Validation, and Laboratory Testing

This research presents a low-cost, easy-to-assemble nondispersive infrared (NDIR) device for monitoring N2O gas concentration in agricultural soils during field and laboratory experiments. The study aimed to develop a cost-effective instrument with a simple optic structure suitable for detecting a wide range of soil N2O gas concentrations with a submerged silicone diffusion cell. A commercially available, 59 cm path-length gas cell, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)-based infrared emitter, pyroelectric detector, two anti-reflective (AR) coated optical windows, and one convex lens were assembled into a simple instrument with secure preciseness and responsivity. Control of the IR emitter and data recording processes was achieved through a microcontroller unit (MCU). Tests on humidity tolerance and the saturation rate of the diffusion cell were carried out to test the instrument function with the soil atmosphere. The developed calibration model was validated by repeatability tests and accuracy tests. The soil N2O gas concentration was monitored at the laboratory level by a specific experimental setup. The coefficient of determination (R2) of the repeatability tests was more than 0.9995 with a 1–2000 ppm measurability range and no impact of air humidity on the device output. The new device achieved continuous measuring of soil N2O gas through a submerged diffusion cell.

Bottom-Illuminated Orbital Shaker for Microalgae Cultivation

A bottom-illuminated orbital shaker designed for the cultivation of microalgae suspensions is described in this open-source hardware report. The instrument agitates and illuminates microalgae suspensions grown inside flasks. It was optimized for low production cost, simplicity, low power consumption, design flexibility, consistent, and controllable growth light intensity.The illuminated orbital shaker is especially well suited for low-resource research laboratories and education. It is an alternative to commercial instruments for microalgae cultivation. It improves on typical do-it-yourself microalgae growth systems by offering consistent and well characterized illumination light intensity. The illuminated growth area is 20 cm × 15 cm, which is suitable for three T75 tissue culture flasks or six 100 ml Erlenmeyer flasks. The photosynthetic photon flux density, is variable in eight steps (26 – 800 μmol · m−2 · s−1) and programmable in a 24-hour light/dark cycle. The agitation speed is variable (0 – 210 RPM). The overall material cost is around £300, including an entry-level orbital shaker. The build takes two days, requiring electronics and mechanical assembly capabilities. The instrument build is documented in a set of open-source protocols, design files, and source code. The design can be readily modified, scaled, and adapted for other orbital shakers and specific experimental requirements.The instrument function was validated by growing fresh-water microalgae Desmodesmus quadricauda and Chlorella vulgaris. The cultivation protocols, microalgae growth curves, and doubling times are included in this report.Specifications table

Consolidation of Aeolus FMA and FMB datasets in the DSI X-PReSS Consortium: Methodology used to generate Master Datasets and the results that have been achieved

<p>We present the methodology and results of the Aeolus VC01 and L0 FM-A and FM-B datasets consolidation performed by the X-PReSS team as part of the ESA (European Space Agency) Data Service Initiative (DSI) managed by ESA’s Ground Segment Operations Division. The goal of this activity is to generate master datasets and gap lists as well as assess data completeness for both future ESA reprocessing campaigns and data preservation activities. The consolidation was carried out first by removing fully overlapping products, products completely covered by other products (inside) and black-listed products. Secondly, remaining products HDR and DBL files were scanned to detect filename misalignments with specifications, intra-products and inter-products gaps and corrupted products. Ancillary data from several Aeolus facilities (KSAT, DISC, FOS, PDGS) were used for gaps justification and blacklisted products identification. For FM-A VC01, 4219 products were analysed. Out of these, 3927 were classified as Master, 142 as inside, 3 as Duplicates and 147 as Blacklisted. 57 gaps were found. No data corruption was found. No duplicated source packet data was found. Consolidation results are available at ESA and includes: list of gaps with metadata and known justification,  list of duplicated events with metadata, list of Instrument Function IDs with metadata, master dataset list and a list of discarded products including known justification.</p>

Functional Safety as An Integral Part of Engineering Tasks

In this paper have been considered the basic terms of functional safety for industrial processes according to GOST R IEC61511–1–2011 «Functional Safety. Safety Instrument Systems for Industrial Processes»: safe and dangerous failures, safety instrumented system, safety instrument function, safety integrity level. The qualitative analysis method — the study of hazard and operability HAZOP using the control words — has been considered. The algorithm for HAZOP carrying out has been presented. Safety integrity levels for low and high intensity of requests have been considered. An example for safety integrity level determination has been depicted.

Deconvolution of instrument andKα2contributions from X-ray powder diffraction patterns using nonlinear least squares with penalties

A new deconvolution method, tolerant of noise and independent of knowing the number of Bragg peaks present, has been developed to deconvolute instrument and emission profile distortions from laboratory X-ray powder diffraction patterns. Removing these distortions produces higher-resolution patterns from which the existence of peaks and their shapes can be better determined. Deconvolution typically comprises the use of the convolution theorem to generate a single aberration from instrument and emission profile aberrations and then the Stokes method to deconvolute the resulting aberration from the measured data. These Fourier techniques become difficult when the instrument function changes with diffraction angle and when the signal-to-noise ratio is low. Instead of Fourier techniques, the present approach uses nonlinear least squares incorporating penalty functions, as implemented in the computer programTOPAS-Academic. Specifically, diffraction peaks are laid down at each data point with peak shapes corresponding to either expected peak shapes or peak shapes narrower than expected; a background function is included. Peak intensities and background parameters are then adjusted to obtain the best fit to the diffraction pattern. Rietveld refinement of the deconvoluted pattern results in background parameters that are near identical to those obtained from Rietveld refinement of the original pattern. Critical to the success of the deconvolution procedure are two penalty functions, one a function of the background parameters and the other a function of the peak intensities. Also of importance is the use of a conjugate gradient solution method for solving the matrix equationAx=b.