The paper summarises the results of laboratory testing of three commercially available magnetorheological (MR) fluids operated in the oscillatory squeeze mode. Tested fluids include the Basonetic 204 and Basonetic 4035 (BASF) and MRF-122EG (Lord Corporation). The oscillatory squeeze mode produces large forces at small displacements. This feature may be well utilised in fabrication of new MR dev...

In the coming decades, world agricultural systems will face serious transitions. Population growth, income and lifestyle changes will lead to considerable increases in food demand. Moreover, a rising demand for renewable energy and biodiversity protection may restrict the area available for food production. On the other hand, global climate change will affect production conditions for better or...

Compaction is a mechanical process in which an earthen material is made more dense. The densification occurs as a direct result of the mechanical loading, and is essentially complete at the end of the loading. Volume changes are incurred as a result of a reduction in the quantity of air voids— water content remaining constant. Since it is impractical to squeeze out all the air, the as-compacted...

We study an incentive model of financial intermediation in which firms as well as intermediaries are capital constrained. We analyze how the distribution of wealth across firms, intermediaries, and uninformed investors affects investment, interest rates, and the intensity of monitoring. We show that all forms of capital tightening (a credit crunch, a collateral squeeze, or a savings squeeze) hi...

This paper studies the nonlinear effects of squeeze film stiffening on the performance of a high resolution MEMS nonresonant inertial sensor. It is shown that these effects introduce a surprising dynamic response that extends the operational frequency range of the devices by retarding the resonate response. In addition, this performance advantage will occur without the traditional gain trade-of...

The paper discusses economic theories of harm for anti-competitive margin squeeze by unregulated and regulated vertically integrated firms. We review both predation and foreclosure theories, as well as the mere exploitation of upstream market power. We show that foreclosure provides an appropriate framework in the case of an unregulated firm, whereas a firm under tight wholesale regulation shou...

China is facing a male marriage squeeze, as there are more men in the marriage market than potential female partners. As a consequence, some men may fail to ever marry. However, while some studies have suggested that most unmarried men affected by the marriage squeeze in rural China feel a sense of failure, the quality of life of the men who remain unmarried against their will remains largely u...

An improved theoretical approach is proposed to predict the dynamic behavior of long, slender and flexible microcantilevers affected by squeeze-film damping at low ambient pressures. Our approach extends recent continuum gas damping models (Veijola 2004 J. Micromech. Microeng. 14 1109–18, Gallis and Torczynski 2004 J. Microelectromech. Syst. 13 653–9), which were originally derived for a rigid ...

eepening Nigeria‘s financial markets is a key component of economic diversification and job creation. An efficient and functioning market for credit will stimulate business activity and support Nigeria‘s dynamic entrepreneurs. There is a prevalent feeling that following the banking sector crisis which erupted in August 2009, this process has stalled as commercial banks have curtailed their lend...