Abstract: Presented is a method of operating a capacitive microfabricated ultrasonic transducer (cMUT) array with multiple firings of varying bias voltage polarity patterns to improve its performance in imaging non-linear media, such as in contrast agent imaging or tissue harmonic imaging. Additionally, transducers incorporating the method are provided. The method of cMUT operation and the corresponding cMUT does not require pre-distortion or phase inversion of the transmit signal and can achieve an improvement in the elevation focus of the cMUT, as compared to the elevation focus that a single firing can achieve. Further, the method of operating the cMUT minimizes the deleterious effects that result from insulators being subjected to high electric fields.

Abstract: The invention relates to a process for the distillative separation of mixtures of substances, according to the invention the medium boiler and/or high boiler fraction, as the desired product, being freed from low boilers and being obtained directly with the desired composition. In a further aspect, the invention relates to a process for the distillative separation of mixtures of substances, by means of which both a low boiler fraction and a medium boiler and/or high boiler fraction are obtained directly with the desired composition.

Abstract: Holes are removed from nested product patterns by conveying products on a conveyance mechanism (12) through an infeed section (14) in nested pattern streams (a1, a2, b1, b2), into a narrowing section (24) of a width less than one and one half the product diameter. After the narrowing section (24), the product streams (a11, a21, b11, b21) enter into an expansion section (44) where products move into a side-by-side product stream (a12, a22, b12, b22). Thereafter, nested product streams (a13, a23, b13, b23) are formed, which can be combined to form nested product streams (A, B) which can be further processed as desired.

Abstract: A cutting apparatus for cutting shrink wrap film residing in a roll. The apparatus includes a first roller pair receiving the film from the roll and carrying the film away from the roll; without the need for a second roller pair to receive the cut sheet of film. Film snap-back is prevented by cutting the film between a shear deck with teeth and a rotating blade with teeth intermeshing with the teeth of the shear deck. A method for cutting a sheet of shrink wrap film, including: feeding the film into a first roller pair; and cutting the film between the first roller pair and the second roller pair using a rotating knife with a number of teeth intermeshing with a shear bar with teeth.

Abstract: A cutting apparatus for cutting shrink wrap film residing in a roll. The apparatus includes a first roller pair receiving the film from the roll and carrying the film away from the roll; a second roller pair receiving the sheet of film from the first roller pair and carrying the film away from the first roller pair; a mechanism for providing an air stream to direct the leading edge of the film into the second roller pair; a mechanism for regulating the pressure exerted by the second roller pair against the sheet of film to maintain tension on the film between the first roller pair and the second roller pair; and a rotating blade to cut the film as the film exits the first roller pair, thereby producing a cut sheet of film. The apparatus may also include intermediate supports to prevent roller deflection, thus allowing the use of light-weight rollers to minimize inertia.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a process for the preparation of storage-stable iminodisuccinate solutions, by subjecting an aqueous solution of iminodisuccinate having an ammonia content of less than 20 ppm to thermal treatment at 40 to 120° C. for 5 hours up to 300 days and subsequent distillation at <120° C.

Abstract: Product is conveyed as a continuous stream by a meter conveyor (12) unto a transfer plate (32) and a transfer device (42). The transfer device (42) is movable between a retracted position and an extended position extending over a sweep conveyor (22). In a preferred form, the transfer device (42) is in the form of a thin piece of flexible material and is moved in the conveying direction from the retracted position to the extended position by engaging with the sweep conveyor (22) and is moved to the retracted position by being wrapped around a rotated roller (46). Product is transferred from the transfer device (42) to the sweep conveyor (22) as the transfer device (42) moves from the extended position to the retracted position and is engaged by a metering bar (52ba) which controls the product acceleration on the sweep conveyor (22) to match the meter conveyor (12) until the product group leaves the transfer device (42).

Abstract: Rotary sequencing valve comprising a rotor having a rotor face rotatable about an axis perpendicular to the rotor face, wherein the rotor face has a plurality of openings, one or more of which are disposed at a selected radial distance from the axis, and wherein the rotor includes at least one passage connecting at least one pair of the plurality of openings. The valve includes a flexible port plate having a first side and a second side, wherein the first side faces the rotor and engages the rotor such that the flexible port plate can be rotated coaxially by the rotor and can move axially with respect to the rotor, wherein the flexible port plate has a plurality of ports between the first and second sides, which ports are aligned with the openings in the rotor face.

Abstract: The present invention provides a microfabricated acoustic transducer with suppressed substrate modes. The modes are suppressed by either thinning the substrate such that a longitudinal ringing mode occurs outside of the frequency band of interest or by applying a judiciously designed damping material on the backside of the transducer substrate.

Abstract: An electrostatic transducer circuit and method of tuning the same, in which a balancing circuit is inserted into the electrostatic transducer circuit, is described. The electrostatic transducer circuit generally includes transmit circuitry, receive circuitry, a capacitive electrostatic transducer and the balancing circuit. The balancing circuit can include, either singly or in combination, an inductance and a negative capacitance. The balancing inductance is tuned to counteract the negative reactance of the capacitive electrostatic transducer at a desired operating frequency and can be inserted into the transmit circuitry and/or the receive circuitry. The balancing negative capacitance is tuned to counteract the capacitance of the capacitive electrostatic transducer and can be inserted into the receive circuitry and/or the transmit circuitry. The transmit circuitry can be isolated from the receive circuitry, and vice versa, once the balancing circuit has been inserted.

Abstract: A capacitive microfabricated ultrasonic transducer with control of elevation phase through alternating bias polarity is disclosed. Such control of elevation phase results in simple ultrasonic probes with excellent slice thickness attributes. Furthermore, tight spatial variation of phase results in an effective way to achieve transmit aperture and apodization control. Further still, such capacitive microfabricated ultrasonic transducers can achieve elevation focus without the need of a lossy mechanical lens.

Abstract: Rotary sequencing valve comprising a rotor having a rotor face rotatable about an axis perpendicular to the rotor face, wherein the rotor face has a plurality of openings, one or more of which are disposed at a selected radial distance from the axis, and wherein the rotor includes at least one passage connecting at least one pair of the plurality of openings. The valve includes a flexible port plate having a first side and a second side, wherein the first side faces the rotor and engages the rotor such that the flexible port plate can be rotated coaxially by the rotor and can move axially with respect to the rotor, wherein the flexible port plate has a plurality of ports between the first and second sides, which ports are aligned with the openings in the rotor face.

Abstract: A microfabricated acoustic transducer with suppressed substrate modes includes a diaphragm containing an upper electrode suspended above a substrate containing a lower electrode; the substrate may or may not contain electronic circuits. The substrate modes are suppressed by either thinning the substrate such that a longitudinal ringing mode occurs outside of the frequency band of interest or applying a judiciously designed damping material that absorbs acoustic energy from the substrate on the backside of the transducer substrate, or by both thinning the substrate and applying the damping material. The damping material has an acoustic impedance that matches the acoustic impedance of the substrate and is lossy.

Abstract: The invention relates to a process for preparing 4-chlorobiphenyl by (a) reacting biphenyl and chlorine in the presence of one or more ring-chlorination catalysts, and (b) subjecting the reaction mixture obtained in step (a) to fractional distillation to obtain 4-chlorobiphenyl.

Abstract: The invention relates to a semibatchwise process for the mild distillative separation of mixtures, in a first stage a column being supplied continuously with a feed and the feed being separated at least into different fractions, one of the fractions being removed continuously into a container, and, in a second step, the fraction removed into the container being recycled to the column and being separated again batchwise into different fractions.

Abstract: A method allows point-in-time viewing of session data for multiple sessions being stored on a disk. Session bits are set for the session data in memory which points to the data at any particular point in time, and this can be done for multiple sessions. In order to make the session data persistent, separate session bits are stored in a portion of a disk reserved for such session bits. Thus, in the event of failure where session bits which are stored in volatile memory such as RAM, are lost, the duplicate copy set in the non-volatile memory can be used to recreate the session once the failure is corrected.

Abstract: Apparatus for collating products into arrays, comprising: (a) an upper conveyor receiving the products at random intervals, the upper conveyor moving in a first direction, the upper conveyor establishing a first gap thereon between each product and a second gap thereon to create groups of products, the upper conveyor having a nose; (b) a lower conveyor positioned below the upper conveyor and receiving the products from the upper conveyor, the lower conveyor moving in a second direction substantially opposed to the first direction; and (c) a reverse shingling plate associated with the upper conveyor at the nose thereof and blocking product movement beyond the nose, whereby product encountering the reverse shingling plate drops onto the lower conveyor.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a process for preparing trimethylolpropane having a low APHA color number.

Abstract: The present invention provides a microfabricated acoustic transducer with suppressed substrate modes. The modes are suppressed by either thinning the substrate such that a longitudinal ringing mode occurs outside of the frequency band of interest or by applying a judiciously designed damping material on the backside of the transducer substrate.

Abstract: The invention relates to an optimized tubular reactor for adiabatically mononitrating aromatics, halogenated aromatics and halogenated hydrocarbons, which tubular reactor is divided into from 4 to 12 chambers by plates which have openings and effect a pressure drop of from 0.5 to 4 bar per plate.