Abstract: An interactive thermal insulating system of the present invention includes at least three layers. The first layer is a high density layer comprising a substrate is coated with a polymer binder in which a plurality of microspheres containing a phase change material are dispersed. The second layer is a low density fibrous mesh in which individual fibers contain a plurality of microspheres containing a phase change material dispersed therein. A third layer is a flexible substrate. The fibrous mesh is sandwiched between the coated layer and the third layer. The layers are bonded together by stitching at regular intervals, lamination, or other methods of connection. Most preferably, the phase change materials contained in the microspheres include paraffinic hydrocarbons.

Abstract: A composition for saturation of preformed, previously cured foam substrates having an at least partially open cell configuration, includes a polymer binder in which microspheres containing a phase change material are dispersed. Preferred phase change materials include paraffinic hydrocarbons. The microspheres may be microencapsulated. A preferred cured foam substrate is a skived polyurethane or polyether foam of from 20 to 1000 mils in thickness, preferably 20 to 200 mils in thickness, having up to 6 ounces per square yard or more of encapsulated phase change material embedded in a polymer binder. One method of applying the binder with dispersed encapsulated phase change materials is by applying a binder/microsphere dispersion to the upper surface of a previously cured foam sheet with, then drawing a vacuum from the underside of the cured foam sheet to permeate from 20% to 100% of the cured foam sheet with the binder/microsphere dispersion. The resulting product is then cured.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a water soluble composition adapted for subsequent solubilizing and application to agricultural crops is disclosed in which a divalent metal salt, citric acid and sodium citrate are mixed to form a mixture having a moisture content of from approximately 10% to 1.25% percent by weight. The mixture is then processed in a drying environment to produce a product which is partially chelated and has a moisture content which is less than the moisture content of the mixture prior to processing. The preferred drying environment is from 120.degree. F., to 150.degree. F. Most preferably, the processing step is performed in a continuous flow, fluidized bed dryer at from approximately 120.degree. F. to 150.degree. F. for from approximately 50 seconds to approximately 70 seconds. Preferred divalent metals are iron, copper, zinc and manganese.

Abstract: A weather resistant, rodenticidal bait comprises sweet corn flour, an effective amount of a rodenticide, and water. Additional preferred ingredients include a glutinous flour, flavoring and salt. Preferred rodenticides include diphacinone, brodifacoum, warfarin, bromadialone, bromethalin and their functional equivalents. A preferred method of manufacturing the weather resistant rodenticidal bait of the present invention utilizes cold extrusion techniques. The most preferred method of manufacturing includes the steps of mixing a sweet corn flour, an effective amount of a rodenticide, and water to produce a rodenticidal mixture. In the preferred method, a glutinous flour is also mixed with the sweet corn flour, with wheat flour the most preferred glutinous flour. The rodenticidal mixture is forced through an extrusion chamber and out a nozzle opening, to produce extruded chunks.

Abstract: A computer system with a hybrid main memory which includes both EDRAM and DRAM, with a DRAM cache provided within a designated portion of the EDRAM portion of the main memory. Read requests are handled by copying data being read from DRAM into a cache portion of EDRAM under the direction of a pseudo cache controller and decoder which converts the DRAM address to a EDRAM address corresponding to the cache location of EDRAM. Read "hit" requests are responded to by reading data directly from the cache portion of EDRAM. Write requests to DRAM are, for purposes of cache coherency when a copy of the address being written to is present in the EDRAM cache portion, accomplished by writing data both to DRAM and overwriting the stale data existing in the cache portion of EDRAM.

Abstract: A composition for saturation of preformed, previously cured foam substrates having an at least partially open cell configuration, includes a polymer binder in which microspheres containing a phase change material are dispersed. Preferred phase change materials include paraffinic hydrocarbons. The microspheres may be microencapsulated. A preferred cured foam substrate is a skived polyurethane or polyether foam of from 20 to 1000 mils in thickness, preferably 20 to 200 mils in thickness, having up to 6 ounces per square yard or more of encapsulated phase change material embedded in a polymer binder. One method of applying the binder with dispersed encapsulated phase change materials is by applying a binder/microsphere dispersion to the upper surface of a previously cured foam sheet with, then drawing a vacuum from the underside of the cured foam sheet to permeate from 20% to 100% of the cured foam sheet with the binder/microsphere dispersion. The resulting product is then cured.

Abstract: A process for the conversion of organic sludges, the process comprising the steps of:(a) feeding dried sludge through a first reactor (16);(b) heating the dried sludge in the first reactor (16) in the absence of oxygen for the volatilisation of oil producing organic materials therein, resulting in gaseous products and sludge residue (char);(c) condensing oil from the gaseous products of the first reactor (16) in a condenser system (20);(d) reinjecting water free oil and/or non-condensable products, if any, into a second reactor (24);(e) transferring the sludge residue (char) from the first reactor (16) to the second reactor (24);(f) contacting the heated sludge residue from step (b) in the second reactor (24) with the oil and/or any non-condensable products of steps (c) and (d) in the absence of oxygen to allow the generation of clean products and a high quality oil product; and(g) removing the gaseous products from the second reactor (24).

Abstract: An address protection circuit (APC) for cross-checking the integrity of requests to read or write an addressable system memory in a fault-tolerant computer system. In a check mode, the APC checks each address and a source identification code of each memory access request from an address source. The source identification code and current bus address are compared to a range of addresses stored in the APC. If the current bus address is within an "authorized" range, access to that range of locations in the memory is allowed to the address source. If a current memory access request is not authorized, the APC asserts an error signal which may be used to transfer control to a redundant subsystem. The APC contains a content-addressable memory element that can be initialized by a subsystem processor with address ranges and type of access (e.g., read or write) allowed for each source. To enter the setup mode, the APC must first be addressed to switch the APC from its check mode.

Abstract: A method of controlling sprout formation in tubers includes application of CIPC and carvone or application of CIPC and benzothiazole and then storing the treated tubers. In a preferred embodiment of the method, tubers to be placed in storage are treated with a composition of CIPC and carvone or CIP and benzothiazole utilizing thermal fogging techniques, with the average effective residue of CIPC on the tubers of approximately 16.6 ppm. When the tubers are to be used to growth tuber-producing plants, for example, when the tubers are to be used as seed potatoes, after removal from storage, the seed potatoes are treated with ethylene at planting, thereby stimulating sprout growth.

Abstract: Blood from a patient is treated extracorporeally by any selected one of a plurality of predetermined treatments. Each of the treatments involves the flow of blood from the patient into a primary chamber of a filtration unit, past a semipermeable membrane located in the filtration unit which separates the primary chamber from a secondary chamber of the filtration unit, out the filtration unit and back to the patient. A replacement fluid is selectively and controllably added to the blood, as required for the selected treatment. A secondary fluid is controllably and selectively introduced into the secondary chamber of the filtration unit for controllably collecting material passing across the semipermeable membrane from the blood or for supplying material to pass across the semipermeable membrane into the blood as required for the selected treatment. Materials are removed from the secondary chamber and collected in accordance with the selected treatment.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a water soluble composition adapted for subsequent solubilizing and application to agricultural crops is disclosed in which a divalent metal salt, citric acid and sodium citrate are mixed to form a mixture having a moisture content of from approximately 10% to 1.25% percent by weight. The mixture is then processed in a drying environment to produce a product which is partially chelated and has a moisture content which is less than the moisture content of the mixture prior to processing. The preferred drying environment is from 120.degree. F. to 150.degree. F. Most preferably, the processing step is performed in a continuous flow, fluidized bed dryer at from approximately 120.degree. F. to 150.degree. F. for from approximately 50 seconds to approximately 70 seconds. Preferred divalent metals are iron, copper, zinc and manganese.

Abstract: Blood from a patient is treated extracorporeally by any selected one of a plurality of predetermined treatments. Each of the treatments involves the flow of blood from the patient into a primary chamber of a filtration unit, past a semipermeable membrane located in the filtration unit which separates the primary chamber from a secondary chamber of the filtration unit, out the filtration unit and back to the patient. A replacement fluid is selectively and controllably added to the blood, as required for the selected treatment. A secondary fluid is controllably and selectively introduced into the secondary chamber of the filtration unit for controllably collecting material passing across the semipermeable membrane from the blood or for supplying material to pass across the semipermeable membrane into the blood as required for the selected treatment. Materials are removed from the secondary chamber and collected in accordance with the selected treatment.

Abstract: A system and method for mitigating undesired imprint effects in a ferroelectric memory array through the addition of a complementary data path which allows user data to be written to the array in an inverted state and then subsequently read out from the array in a re-inverted state in response to the state of at least one indicator bit corresponding to each row of the array.

Abstract: An extracorporeal fluid treatment apparatus which is selectively operable in a disinfecting mode or a treatment mode includes an inlet line, a pre-treatment portion, an input pump, a heater, an input shunt, a filtration device, a post-treatment portion, a drain line and an output shunt. The apparatus also includes a combination of valves which are selectively positionable in disinfecting mode to create an input fluid circuit which includes the pre-treatment portion and the input shunt, and which is in fluid isolation from the post-treatment portion and from the filtration device. In disinfecting mode, the valves are also selectively positionable to create an output fluid circuit which includes the post-treatment portion and the output shunt, and which is in fluid isolation from the pre-treatment portion and from the filtration device.

Abstract: A substantially neutral metal alkanoate solution suitable for application of the constituent micronutrient metal to agricultural crops or acreage where such crops are to be grown, is disclosed. Alkanoates having from 2 to 6 carbon atoms are preferred, with acetates most preferred. Metals selected from the group consisting of boron, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, potassium, sodium and zinc are preferred, with zinc particularly preferred. The compositions of the present invention remain soluble at and below freezing temperatures for extending periods, and exhibits a high degree of miscibility in fertilizers. A method of manufacturing the compositions of the present invention is disclosed, in which a metal oxide is dispersed in water, ammonia is added to the dispersion, and acid is added to the basic dispersion to solubilize and substantially neutralize the dispersion and create an aqueous micronutrient solution.

Abstract: A coating composition for skived foam substrates includes a polymer binder in which microspheres containing a phase change material are dispersed. Preferred phase change materials include paraffinic hydrocarbons. The microspheres may be microencapsulated. The preferred substrate is a skived polyurethane foam of from 20 to 90 mils in thickness, having up to 6 ounces per square yard or more of encapsulated phase change material embedded in a polymer binder. Polyether and polyester urethanes are preferred. A preferred method of applying the binder with embedded encapsulated phase change materials using knife over roll technique to an exposed surface of the skived foam is disclosed in which the most preferred viscosity of the uncured polymer binder is from 7,000 to 9,000 centipoise.

Abstract: A composition containing an effective amount of a herbicide and an aqueous ammoniacal ionic solution of metal alkanoates is disclosed. Alkanoates having from 2 to 6 carbon atoms are preferred, with acetates most preferred. Metals selected from the group consisting of boron, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, potassium, sodium and zinc are preferred, with zinc particularly preferred. Both broadleaf and grass herbicides are preferred, with herbicides having an active ingredient selected from the group consisting of quizalofop, sodium salt of bentazon, sodium salt of acifluorfen, chlorimuron ethyl, lactofen, fluazifop-p-butyl, fenoxaprop-ethyl, methyl 3-[[[[4-methoxy-6-methyl-1,3,5-triazin-2-yl]amino]carbonyl]amino]sulfonyl] 2-thiophenecarboxylate, 2-[1-ethoxyimon]butyl]-5-[2-[ethylthio]propyl]-3-hydroxy-2-cyclohexene-1-o ne, and ammonium salt of imazethapyre. The composition of the present invention is applied postemergence to crops using conventional broadcast spray techniques.