No Arabic abstract
Microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) are a promising new technology for producing hydrogen cheaply, efficiently, and sustainably. However, to scale up this technology, we need a better understanding of the processes in the devices. In this effort, we present a differential-algebraic equation (DAE) model of a microbial electrolysis cell with an algebraic constraint on current. We then perform sensitivity and bifurcation analysis for the DAE system. The model can be applied either to batch-cycle MECs or to continuous-flow MECs. We conduct differential-algebraic sensitivity analysis after fitting simulations to current density data for a batch-cycle MEC. The sensitivity analysis suggests which parameters have the greatest influence on the current density at particular times during the experiment. In particular, growth and consumption parameters for exoelectrogenic bacteria have a strong effect prior to the peak current density. An alternative strategy to maximizing peak current density is maintaining a long term stable equilibrium with non-zero current density in a continuous-flow MEC. We characterize the minimum dilution rate required for a stable nonzero current equilibrium and demonstrate transcritical bifurcations in the dilution rate parameter that exchange stability between several curves of equilibria. Specifically, increasing the dilution rate transitions the system through three regimes where the stable equilibrium exhibits (i) competitive exclusion by methanogens, (ii) coexistence, and (iii) competitive exclusion by exolectrogens. Positive long term current production is only feasible in the final two regimes. These results suggest how to modify system parameters to increase peak current density in a batch-cycle MEC or to increase the long term current density equilibrium value in a continuous-flow MEC.
Microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) employ electroactive bacteria to perform extracellular electron transfer, enabling hydrogen generation from biodegradable substrates. In previous work, we developed and analyzed a differential-algebraic equation (DAE) model for MECs. The model resembles a chemostat with ordinary differential equations (ODEs) for concentrations of substrate, microorganisms, and an extracellular mediator involved in electron transfer. There is also an algebraic constraint for electric current and hydrogen production. Our goal is to determine the outcome of competition between methanogenic archaea and electroactive bacteria, because only the latter contribute to electric current and resulting hydrogen production. We investigate asymptotic stability in two industrially releva
We study a mathematical model describing the dynamics of a pluripotent stem cell population involved in the blood production process in the bone marrow. This model is a differential equation with a time delay. The delay describes the cell cycle duration and is uniformly distributed on an interval. We obtain stability conditions independent of the delay. We also show that the distributed delay can destabilize the entire system. In particularly, it is shown that Hopf bifurcations can occur.
We establish the existence of a bifurcation from an attractive random equilibrium to shear-induced chaos for a stochastically driven limit cycle, indicated by a change of sign of the first Lyapunov exponent. This addresses an open problem posed by Kevin Lin and Lai-Sang Young, extending results by Qiudong Wang and Lai-Sang Young on periodically kicked limit cycles to the stochastic context.
We discuss how matrix-free/timestepper algorithms can efficiently be used with dynamic non-Newtonian fluid mechanics simulators in performing systematic stability/bifurcation analysis. The timestepper approach to bifurcation analysis of large scale systems is applied to the plane Poiseuille flow of an Oldroyd-B fluid with non-monotonic slip at the wall, in order to further investigate a mechanism of extrusion instability based on the combination of viscoelasticity and nonmonotonic slip. Due to the nonmonotonicity of the slip equation the resulting steady-state flow curve is nonmonotonic and unstable steady-states appear in the negative-slope regime. It has been known that self-sustained oscillations of the pressure gradient are obtained when an unstable steady-state is perturbed [Fyrillas et al., Polymer Eng. Sci. 39 (1999) 2498-2504]. Treating the simulator of a distributed parameter model describing the dynamics of the above flow as an input-output black-box timestepper of the state variables, stable and unstable branches of both equilibrium and periodic oscillating solutions are computed and their stability is examined. It is shown for the first time how equilibrium solutions lose stability to oscillating ones through a subcritical Hopf bifurcation point which generates a branch of unstable limit cycles and how the stable periodic solutions lose their stability through a critical point which marks the onset of the unstable limit cycles. This implicates the coexistence of stable equilibria with stable and unstable periodic solutions in a narrow range of volumetric flow rates.
Certain migratory birds can sense the earths magnetic field. The nature of this process is not yet properly understood. Here we offer a simple explanation according to which birds literally `see the local magnetic field: Our model relates the well-established radical pair hypothesis to the phenomenon of Haidingers brush, a capacity to see the polarisation of light. This new picture explains recent surprising experimental data indicating long lifetimes for the radical pair. Moreover there is a clear evolutionary path toward this field sensing mechanism: it is an enhancement of a weak effect that may be present in many species.