All issues

The paper considers the process of flow formation in an outflow of a binary gas mixture through a thin slit into vacuum. An approach to modeling the flows of rarefied gas mixtures in the transient regime is proposed based on the direct solution of the Boltzmann kinetic equation, in which the conservative projection method is used to calculate the collision integrals. Calculation formulas are provided; the calculation procedure is described in detail in relation to the flow of a binary gas mixture. The Lennard–Jones potential is used as an interaction potential of molecules. A software modeling environment has been developed that makes it possible to study the flows of gas mixtures in a transitional regime on systems of cluster architecture. Due to the use of code parallelization technologies, an acceleration of calculations by 50–100 times was obtained. Numerical simulation of a two-dimensional outflow of a binary argon-neon gas mixture from a vessel into vacuum through a thin slit is carried out for various values of the Knudsen number. The graphs of the dependence of gas mixture components output flow on time in the process of establishing the flow are obtained. Non-stationary regions of strong separation of gas mixture components, in which the molecular densities ratio reaches 10 or more, were discovered. The discovered effect can have applications in the problem of gas mixtures separation.

The development of a viral infection in the organism is a complex process which depends on the competition race between virus replication in the host cells and the immune response. To study different regimes of infection progression, we analyze the general mathematical model of immune response to viral infection. The model consists of two ODEs for virus and immune cells non-dimensionalized concentrations. The proliferation rate of immune cells in the model is represented by a bell-shaped function of the virus concentration. This function increases for small virus concentrations describing the antigen-stimulated clonal expansion of immune cells, and decreases for sufficiently high virus concentrations describing down-regulation of immune cells proliferation by the infection. Depending on the virus virulence, strength of the immune response, and the initial viral load, the model predicts several scenarios: (a) infection can be completely eliminated, (b) it can remain at a low level while the concentration of immune cells is high; (c) immune cells can be essentially exhausted, or (d) completely exhausted, which is accompanied (c, d) by high virus concentration. The analysis of the model shows that virus concentration can oscillate as it gradually converges to its equilibrium value. We show that the considered model can be obtained by the reduction of a more general model with an additional equation for the total viral load provided that this equation is fast. In the case of slow kinetics of the total viral load, this more general model should be used.

The second part presents numerical studies of the parameters of the lower ionosphere at altitudes of 40–90 km when heated by powerful high-frequency radio waves of various frequencies and powers. The problem statement is considered in the first part of the article. The main attention is paid to the interrelation between the energy and kinetic parameters of the disturbed $D$-region of the ionosphere in the processes that determine the absorption and transformation of the radio beam energy flux in space and time. The possibility of a significant difference in the behavior of the parameters of the disturbed region in the daytime and at nighttime, both in magnitude and in space-time distribution, is shown. In the absence of sufficiently reliable values of the rate constants for a number of important kinetic processes, numerical studies were carried out in stages with the gradual addition of individual processes and kinetic blocks corresponding at the same time to a certain physical content. It is shown that the energy thresholds for inelastic collisions of electrons with air molecules are the main ones. This approach made it possible to detect the effect of the emergence of a self-oscillating mode of changing parameters if the main channel for energy losses in inelastic processes is the most energy-intensive process — ionization. This effect may play a role in plasma studies using high-frequency inductive and capacitive discharges. The results of calculations of the ionization and optical parameters of the disturbed $D$-region for daytime conditions are presented. The electron temperature, density, emission coefficients in the visible and infrared ranges of the spectrum are obtained for various values of the power of the radio beam and its frequency in the lower ionosphere. The height-time distribution of the absorbed radiation power is calculated, which is necessary in studies of higher layers of the ionosphere. The influence on the electron temperature and on the general behavior of the parameters of energy losses by electrons on the excitation of vibrational and metastable states of molecules has been studied in detail. It is shown that under nighttime conditions, when the electron concentration begins at altitudes of about 80 km, and the concentration of heavy particles decreases by two orders of magnitude compared to the average $D$-region, large-scale gas-dynamic motion can develop with sufficient radio emission power The algorithm was developed based on the McCormack method and two-dimensional gas-dynamic calculations of the behavior of the parameters of the perturbed region were performed with some simplifications of the kinetics.

A possible conformational change, which accompanies electron tranport in Rb. sphaeroides photosynthetic reaction center (RC), was studied using quantum-chemical approach. A kinetic model which takes into account two conformational states of RC is proposed. The model quantitatively describes experimental temperature dependencies of recombination reaction rate P⁺Q_A^- → PQ_A. Quantum-chemical modeling of primary quinone (Q_A) binding site permits one to propose a minor shift of Q_A as a conformational change of interest. The shift is accompanied by break of a hydrogen bond between 4–C=O group of Q_A and histidine M²¹⁹, and formation of a new hydrogen bond between Q_A and hydroxyl group of threonine M²²². Characteristics of this conformational change were obtained from quantum-chemical calculations and match parameters of kinetic model in qualitative fashion.

The biological structure is considered as an open nonequilibrium system which properties can be described on the basis of kinetic equations. New problems with nonequilibrium boundary conditions are introduced. The nonequilibrium distribution tends gradually to an equilibrium state. The region of spatial inhomogeneity has a scale depending on the rate of mass transfer in the open system and the characteristic time of metabolism. In the proposed approximation, the internal energy of the motion of molecules is much less than the energy of translational motion. Or in other terms we can state that the kinetic energy of the average blood velocity is substantially higher than the energy of chaotic motion of the same particles. We state that the relaxation problem models a living system. The flow of entropy to the system decreases in downstream, this corresponds to Shrödinger’s general ideas that the living system “feeds on” negentropy. We introduce a quantity that determines the complexity of the biosystem, more precisely, this is the difference between the nonequilibrium kinetic entropy and the equilibrium entropy at each spatial point integrated over the entire spatial region. Solutions to the problems of spatial relaxation allow us to estimate the size of biosystems as regions of nonequilibrium. The results are compared with empirical data, in particular, for mammals we conclude that the larger the size of animals, the smaller the specific energy of metabolism. This feature is reproduced in our model since the span of the nonequilibrium region is larger in the system where the reaction rate is shorter, or in terms of the kinetic approach, the longer the relaxation time of the interaction between the molecules. The approach is also used for estimation of a part of a living system, namely a green leaf. The problems of aging as degradation of an open nonequilibrium system are considered. The analogy is related to the structure, namely, for a closed system, the equilibrium of the structure is attained for the same molecules while in the open system, a transition occurs to the equilibrium of different particles, which change due to metabolism. Two essentially different time scales are distinguished, the ratio of which is approximately constant for various animal species. Under the assumption of the existence of these two time scales the kinetic equation splits in two equations, describing the metabolic (stationary) and “degradative” (nonstationary) parts of the process.

Corrosion damage to metals and alloys is one of the main problems of strength and durability of metal structures and products operated in contact with chemically aggressive environments. Recently, there has been a growing interest in computer modeling of the evolution of corrosion damage, especially pitting corrosion, for a deeper understanding of the corrosion process, its impact on the morphology, physical and chemical properties of the surface and mechanical strength of the material. This is mainly due to the complexity of analytical and high cost of experimental in situ studies of real corrosion processes. However, the computing power of modern computers allows you to calculate corrosion with high accuracy only on relatively small areas of the surface. Therefore, the development of new mathematical models that allow calculating large areas for predicting the evolution of corrosion damage to metals is currently an urgent problem.

In this paper, the evolution of the corrosion front in the interaction of a polycrystalline metal surface with a liquid aggressive medium was studied using a computer model based on a cellular automat. A distinctive feature of the model is the specification of the solid body structure in the form of Voronoi polygons used for modeling polycrystalline alloys. Corrosion destruction was performed by setting the probability function of the transition between cells of the cellular automaton. It was taken into account that the corrosion strength of the grains varies due to crystallographic anisotropy. It is shown that this leads to the formation of a rough phase boundary during the corrosion process. Reducing the concentration of active particles in a solution of an aggressive medium during a chemical reaction leads to corrosion attenuation in a finite number of calculation iterations. It is established that the final morphology of the phase boundary has a fractal structure with a dimension of 1.323 ± 0.002 close to the dimension of the gradient percolation front, which is in good agreement with the fractal dimension of the etching front of a polycrystalline aluminum-magnesium alloy AlMg6 with a concentrated solution of hydrochloric acid. It is shown that corrosion of a polycrystalline metal in a liquid aggressive medium is a new example of a topochemical process, the kinetics of which is described by the Kolmogorov–Johnson– Meil–Avrami theory.

In Russian medicine two radiopharmaceuticals are currently used for radionuclide therapy of bone metastases: ⁸⁹Sr-chloride and ¹⁵³Sm-oxabifor. The first one has many side effects, so its use is limited. The second one is available only in clinics, its transportation to which does not take much time. Currently, the third radiopharmaceutical ¹⁸⁸Re-solerene is undergoing clinical trials. Due to the generator method of obtaining ¹⁸⁸Re, this radiopharmaceutical should become available for use in many regions of our country. Therefore, there is a need for a comparative analysis of the characteristics of these radiopharmaceuticals, including on the basis of mathematical modeling.

The article discusses the features of mathematical modeling the kinetics of osteotropic radiopharmaceutical drugs in the human body with bone metastases. Based on the four-compartment model, a complex of modeling and calculation of pharmacokinetic and dosimetric characteristics of radiopharmaceuticals for radionuclide therapy of bone metastases was developed and tested. Using clinical data, the transport constants of the model were identified and the individual characteristics of Russian radiopharmaceuticals labeled ⁸⁹Sr, 153Sm and ¹⁸⁸Re were calculated (effective half-lives, maximum activity in the compartments and the times of their achievement, absorbed doses to bone tissue and metastases, endosteal bone layer, red bone marrow, blood, kidneys and bladder). The time activity dependencies for all compartments of the model are obtained and analyzed. A comparative analysis of the pharmacokinetics and dosimetry of three radiopharmaceuticals (⁸⁹Sr-chloride, ¹⁵³Sm-oxabiphore, ¹⁸⁸Re-solerene) was carried out.

From a comparative analysis of the pharmacokinetic and dosimetric characteristics of these radiopharmaceutical drugs, it follows that the best of them for widespread use in many regions of our country should be ¹⁸⁸Re-solerene, taking into account the generator method of obtaining ¹⁸⁸Re in a hospital.

The main aim, formulated in the first part of article, is to carry out detailed numerical studies of the chemical, ionization, optical, and temperature characteristics of the lower ionosphere perturbed by powerful radio emission. The brief review of the main experimental and theoretical researches of physical phenomena occurring in the ionosphere when it is heated by high-power high-frequency radio waves from heating facilities is given. The decisive role of the $D$-region of the ionosphere in the absorption of radio beam energy is shown. A detailed analysis of kinetic processes in the disturbed $D$-region, which is the most complex in kinetic terms, has been performed. It is shown that for a complete description of the ionization-chemical and optical characteristics of the disturbed region, it is necessary to take into account more than 70 components, which, according to their main physical content, can be conveniently divided into five groups. A kinetic model is presented to describe changes in the concentrations of components interacting (the total number of reactions is 259). The system of kinetic equations was solved using a semi-implicit numerical method specially adapted to such problems. Based on the proposed structure, a software package was developed in which the algorithm scheme allowed changing both the content of individual program blocks and their number, which made it possible to conduct detailed numerical studies of individual processes in the behavior of the parameters of the perturbed region. The complete numerical algorithm is based on the two-temperature approximation, in which the main attention was paid to the calculation of the electron temperature, since its behavior is determined by inelastic kinetic processes involving electrons. The formulation of the problem is of a rather general nature and makes it possible to calculate the parameters of the disturbed ionosphere in a wide range of powers and frequencies of radio emission. Based on the developed numerical technique, it is possible to study a wide range of phenomena both in the natural and disturbed ionosphere.

In the last few years, significant progress has been observed in the field of rotating detonation engines for aircrafts. Scientific laboratories around the world conduct both fundamental researches related, for example, to the issues of effective mixing of fuel and oxidizer with the separate supply, and applied development of existing prototypes. The paper provides a brief overview of the main results of the most significant recent computational work on the study of propagation of a onedimensional pulsating gaseous detonation wave in a non-uniform medium. The general trends observed by the authors of these works are noted. In these works, it is shown that the presence of parameter perturbations in front of the wave front can lead to regularization and to resonant amplification of pulsations behind the detonation wave front. Thus, there is an appealing opportunity from a practical point of view to influence the stability of the detonation wave and control it. The aim of the present work is to create an instrument to study the gas-dynamic mechanisms of these effects.

The mathematical model is based on one-dimensional Euler equations supplemented by a one-stage model of the kinetics of chemical reactions. The defining system of equations is written in the shock-attached frame that leads to the need to add a shock-change equations. A method for integrating this equation is proposed, taking into account the change in the density of the medium in front of the wave front. So, the numerical algorithm for the simulation of detonation wave propagation in a non-uniform medium is proposed.

Using the developed algorithm, a numerical study of the propagation of stable detonation in a medium with variable density as carried out. A mode with a relatively small oscillation amplitude is investigated, in which the fluctuations of the parameters behind the detonation wave front occur with the frequency of fluctuations in the density of the medium. It is shown the relationship of the oscillation period with the passage time of the characteristics C₊ and C₀ over the region, which can be conditionally considered an induction zone. The phase shift between the oscillations of the velocity of the detonation wave and the density of the gas before the wave is estimated as the maximum time of passage of the characteristic C₊ through the induction zone.

Kinetics of complex formation between components of the photosynthetic electron transport chain — flavodoxin and membrane complex photosystem I has been studied using computer model based on methods of multiparticle simulation and Brownian dynamics. We simulated Brownian motion of several hundreds of flavodoxin molecules, taking into account electrostatic interactions and complex shape of the molecules. Our model could describe experimental nonmonotonic dependence of the association rate constant for flavodoxin and photosystem I. This lets us conclude that electrostatic interactions are sufficient to form such kind of nonmonotonic dependence.