Abstract: Combustion of hydrocarbon fuel is achieved with less formation of NOx by feeding the fuel into a slightly oxygen-enriched atmosphere, and separating air into oxygen-rich and nitrogen-rich streams which are fed separately into the combustion device.

Abstract: One end of a metallic wire having a rectangular cross-section is widened by upsetting the end of the wire in its axial direction. At the same time, a swollen portion is formed at a position where the widened end portion is to be bent from a straight portion of the wire. Then, the widened end portion is bent at the bending position having the swollen portion. Thus, a metallic wire segment having the widened end portion bent at the bending position is manufactured without wasting any part of wire material, while avoiding formation of cracks on the outer surface of the bending position. Plural wire segments thus manufactured are combined to form a rotor winding of a rotational electric machine, forming a commutator surface by the widened end portions at the same time.

Abstract: A method and system acquire a received impulse radio signal by first searching, with respect to time, a region of the impulse radio signal using a first template signal to locate a block including a signal cell, and second searching, with respect to time, the block using a second template signal to locate the signal cell to acquire the received impulse radio signal.

Abstract: A method and system acquire a received impulse radio signal by correlating a region, including a plurality of cells, of the received impulse radio signal using multiple time-shifted template signals, each template signal having a different delay to obtain a correlation value for each template signal. The correlation values are averages, and a particular delay associated with a particular template signal having a substantial increase in successive averages to locate a signal cell in the region.

Abstract: A method for producing hydrogen in an energy efficient manner wherein steam and methane are reacted to produce synthesis gas from which hydrogen is recovered, and heat employed in the process is recovered using a defined regenerative bed system.

Abstract: A dielectric ceramic composition comprising a main component composed of barium titanate, a first subcomponent including an oxide of AE (note that AE is at least one element selected from Mg, Ca, Ba and Sr), and a second subcomponent including an oxide of R (note that R is at least one element selected from Y, Dy, Ho and Er), wherein ratios of the subcomponents to 100 moles of the main component are, the first subcomponent: 0 mole<the first subcomponent<0.1 mole, and the second subcomponent: 1 mole<the second subcomponent<7 moles. According to the composition, a high specific permittivity can be attained, an insulation resistance lifetime can be maintained, the capacity-temperature characteristic can satisfy the X8R characteristic of the EIA standard, and firing in a reducing atmosphere can be realized.

Abstract: Combustion of hydrocarbon liquids and solids is achieved with less formation of NOx by feeding a small amount of oxygen into the fuel stream.

Abstract: Combustion of coal in which oxygen is injected into the coal as it emerges from burner produces ash having reduced amounts of carbon.

Abstract: NOx emissions from combustion are reduced, NOx reduction efficiency by SNCR is improved, and other efficiencies are realized, by injecting oxygen into a fuel-rich combustion zone under controlled conditions.

Abstract: A method of firing a heat consuming device such as a boiler or furnace in which an oxygen transport membrane is integrated with the device such that part of the permeated oxygen supports an initial combustion to heat the incoming air to the oxygen transport membrane system. A remaining portion of the oxygen after having been diluted with flue gases from the boiler supports a secondary combustion of fuel within the heat consuming device.

Abstract: A furnace that combusts fuel, such as coal, of a given minimum energy content to obtain a stated minimum amount of energy per unit of time is enabled to combust fuel having a lower energy content, while still obtaining at least the stated minimum energy generation rate, by replacing a small amount of the combustion air fed to the furnace by oxygen. The replacement of oxygen for combustion air also provides reduction in the generation of NOx.

Abstract: Improved operational characteristics such as improved fuel efficiency, reduction of NOx formation, reduction of the amount of unburned carbon in the ash, and lessened tendency to corrosion at the tube wall, in a multi-burner furnace are obtained by reducing the flow rate of combustion air to the burners and selectively individually feeding oxidant to only some of the burners.

Abstract: NOx formation in the combustion of solid hydrocarbonaceous fuel such as coal is reduced by obtaining, from the incoming feed stream of fuel solids and air, a stream having a ratio of fuel solids to air that is higher than that of the feed steam, and injecting the thus obtained stream and a small amount of oxygen to a burner where the fuel solids are combusted.

Abstract: A method of firing a heat consuming device such as a boiler or furnace in which an oxygen transport membrane is integrated with the device such that part of the permeated oxygen supports an initial combustion to heat the incoming air to the oxygen transport membrane system. A remaining portion of the oxygen after having been diluted with flue gases from the boiler supports a secondary combustion of fuel within the heat consuming device.

Abstract: This invention is directed to a method for carrying out combustion in a furnace having porous walls with a large surface area in a combustion zone in which a low velocity oxidant stream is injected through at least one oxidant injection side of the porous walls into the combustion zone, a fuel stream through at least fuel injection side directed toward the oxidant injection side and mixing the low velocity oxidant and fuel stream to create a flame with reduced flame temperature.

Abstract: A matrix transform method and circuit provides for MAP decoding of turbo codes. The method begins by initializing a forward recursion probability function vector &agr;0, and a backward recursion probability function vector &bgr;N. Then, transition probability matrices &Ggr;(Rk) and &Ggr;i(Rk) are determined according to each received symbol of the sequence R1N. And then, values of &agr;k, corresponding to the received Rk are determined according to &Ggr;(Rk). At the same time of determining &agr;k, a plurality of multiplacation on &Ggr;(Rk) and &Ggr;i(Rk) are accomplished in parallel. By making use of the results of the matrix multiplications, after receiving the complete symbol sequence R1N, values of all of the backward recursion probability vector &bgr;k, where k=1, 2, . . . , N−1, are determined in parallel, and the log likelihood ratio for every decoded bit dk, k=1, 2, . . . , N, are also determined in parallel.

Abstract: A receiver for receiving digital signals exposed to intersymbol interference as well as multiple access interference the method including linearly detecting said signals by combating said intersymbol interference by equalizing said received digital signals as well as mitigating said multiple access interference by detecting said digital signals by means of sliding window detection.

Abstract: A system and method detect symbols of a modulated signal received via a plurality of channels of a wireless communications system. A symbol transmitted via the channels is initially estimated based on the channel estimate from either pilot symbol or previously estimated symbol, and then channel estimate is updated. The next estimate of the symbol is computed by using updated channel information and maximizing the expectation of the log likelihood function. The next estimate is then quantized according to the signal constellation. The quantized estimate of the symbol is compared with the previous estimate of the symbol to determine if the previous estimate of the symbol and the quantized next estimate of the symbol have converged. Otherwise, the quantized next estimate of the symbol is made as the input for the next iteration, and the updating, optimizing, quantizing, and comparing are repeated until the estimate converges.

Abstract: A dielectric ceramic composition comprising a main component composed of barium titanate, a first subcomponent including an oxide of AE (note that AE is at least one element selected from Mg, Ca, Ba and Sr), and a second subcomponent including an oxide of R (note that R is at least one element selected from Y, Dy, Ho and Er), wherein ratios of the subcomponents to 100 moles of the main component are, the first subcomponent: 0 mole<the first subcomponent<0.1 mole, and the second subcomponent: 1 mole<the second subcomponent<7 moles. According to the composition, a high specific permittivity can be attained, an insulation resistance lifetime can be maintained, the capacity-temperature characteristic can satisfy the X8R characteristic of the EIA standard, and firing in a reducing atmosphere can be realized.

Abstract: This invention is directed to a process for increasing production of product that is formed in a reactor having a combustion section in which fuel is burned to produce heat to drive an endothermic reaction occurring within a reaction section. Production is increased by adding supplemental oxygen to air or other oxygen containing gas used to support combustion in the combustion section, thereby to generate more heat to support an increase in the endothermic reaction. Additionally, supplemental oxygen can be introduced into the reaction section to partially oxidize a reactant to generate heat and to allow an increase in the production of the product. Supplemental oxygen may be added directly to the steam-methane mixture, or to the combustion air.