Search results for: interior wall area

Authors: Pratibha, Jyoti Kori

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Particles in industry, harvesting, coal mines, etc. may not necessarily be spherical in shape. In general, it is difficult to find perfectly spherical particle. The prediction of movement and deposition of non spherical particle in distinct airway generation is much more difficult as compared to spherical particles. Moreover, there is extensive inflexibility in deposition between ducts of a particular generation and inside every alveolar duct since particle concentrations can be much bigger than the mean acinar concentration. Consequently, a large number of particles fail to be exhaled during expiration. This study presents a mathematical model for the movement and deposition of those non-spherical particles by using particle aspect ratio and shape factor. We analyse the pulsatile behavior underneath sinusoidal wall oscillation due to periodic breathing condition through a non-Darcian porous medium or inside pulmonary region. Since the fluid is viscous and Newtonian, the generalized Navier-Stokes equation in two-dimensional coordinate system (r, z) is used with boundary-layer theory. Results are obtained for various values of Reynolds number, Womersley number, Forchsheimer number, particle aspect ratio and shape factor. Numerical computation is done by using finite difference scheme for very fine mesh in MATLAB. It is found that the overall air velocity is significantly increased by changes in aerodynamic diameter, aspect ratio, alveoli size, Reynolds number and the pulse rate; while velocity is decreased by increasing Forchheimer number.

Keywords: deposition, interstitial lung diseases, non-Darcian medium, numerical simulation, shape factor

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Authors: Huong Nguyen Thi Thanh, Van Mai Thi Khanh

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For around the world, payments for environmental services have been implemented since the late 1970s in Europe and North America; then, it was spread to Latin America, Asia, Africa, and finally Oceania in 2008. In Vietnam, payments for environmental services are an interesting issue recently with the forest as the main focus and therefore known as the program on payment for forest environmental services (PFES). PFES was piloted in Lam Dong and Son La in 2008 and has been widely applied in many provinces after 2010. PFES is in the orientation for the socialization of national forest protection in Vietnam and has made great strides in the last decade. By using the primary data and secondary data simultaneously, the paper clarifies two cases of implementing PFES in the Vietnam North Central area with the different mechanisms of payment. In the first case at Phu Loc district (Thua Thien Hue province), PFES is an indirect method by a water supply company via the Forest Protection and Development Fund. In the second one at Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park (Quang Binh Province), tourism companies are the direct payers to forest owners. The paper describes the PFES implementation process at each site, clarifies the payment mechanism, and models the relationship between stakeholders in PFES implementation. Based on the current status of PFES sites, the paper compares and analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of the two payment methods. Finally, the paper proposes recommendations to improve the existing shortcomings in each payment mechanism.

Keywords: advantages and disadvantages, forest environmental services, forest protection, payment mechanism

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Authors: Christian H. Girsang, M. Razi B. Mansoor, Noorizal N. Huang

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An offshore platform was installed in 1977 at about 260km offshore West Malaysia at the water depth of 73.6m. Twelve (12) piles were installed with four (4) are skirt piles. The piles have 1.219m outside diameter and wall thickness of 31mm and were driven to 109m below seabed. Deterministic analyses of the pile capacity under axial loading were conducted using the current API (American Petroleum Institute) method and the four (4) CPT-based methods: the ICP (Imperial College Pile)-method, the NGI (Norwegian Geotechnical Institute)-Method, the UWA (University of Western Australia)-method and the Fugro-method. A statistical analysis of the model uncertainty associated with each pile capacity method was performed. There were two (2) piles analysed: Pile 1 and piles other than Pile 1, where Pile 1 is the pile that was most affected by shallow gas problems. Using the mean estimate of soil properties, the five (5) methods used for deterministic estimation of axial pile capacity in compression predict an axial capacity from 28 to 42MN for Pile 1 and 32 to 49MN for piles other than Pile 1. These values refer to the static capacity shortly after pile installation. They do not include the effects of cyclic loading during the design storm or time after installation on the axial pile capacity. On average, the axial pile capacity is expected to have increased by about 40% because of ageing since the installation of the platform in 1977. On the other hand, the cyclic loading effects during the design storm may reduce the axial capacity of the piles by around 25%. The study concluded that all piles have sufficient safety factor when the pile aging and cyclic loading effect are considered, as all safety factors are above 2.0 for maximum operating and storm loads.

Keywords: axial capacity, cyclic loading, pile ageing, shallow gas

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Authors: Diane M. Bender

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In architecture and design education, students learn and understand their discipline through lecture courses and within studios. A studio is where the instructor works closely with students to help them understand design by doing design work. The final jury is the culmination of the studio learning experience. It’s value and significance are rarely questioned. Students present their work before their peers, instructors, and invited reviewers, known as jurors. These jurors are recognized experts who add a breadth of feedback to students mostly in the form of a verbal critique of the work. Since the design review or jury has been a common element of studio education for centuries, jurors themselves have been instructed in this format. Therefore, they understand its value from both a student and a juror perspective. To better understand how these reviewers see the value of a studio review, a survey was distributed to reviewers at a multi-disciplinary design school within the United States. Five design disciplines were involved in this case study: architecture, graphic design, industrial design, interior design, and landscape architecture. Respondents (n=108) provided written comments about their perceived value of the studio review system. The average respondent was male (64%), between 40-49 years of age, and has attained a master’s degree. Qualitative analysis with thematic coding revealed several themes. Reviewers view the final jury as important because it provides a variety of perspectives from unbiased external practitioners and prepares students for similar presentation challenges they will experience in professional practice. They also see it as a way to validate the assessment and evaluation of students by faculty. In addition, they see a personal benefit for themselves and their firm – the ability to network with fellow jurors, professors, and students (i.e., future colleagues). Respondents also provided additional feedback about the jury system and studio education in general. Typical responses included a desire for earlier engagement with students; a better explanation from the instructor about the project parameters, rubrics/grading, and guidelines for juror involvement; a way to balance giving encouraging feedback versus overly critical comments; and providing training for jurors prior to reviews. While this study focused on the studio review, the findings are equally applicable to other disciplines. Suggestions will be provided on how to improve the preparation of guests in the learning process and how their interaction can positively influence student engagement.

Keywords: assessment, design, jury, studio

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Authors: Maurice Mbah

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Entomological survey of mosquitoes responsible for the transmission of lymphatic filariasis in Biase Local Government area of Cross River State, Nigeria within March and June 2017. Lymphatic filariasis is a mosquito-borne parasitic disease that is caused by three species of tissue dwelling filaroids (Wuchereria bancrofti; Brugia malayi; Brugia timori): Wuchereria bancrofti is responsible for 90% of cases and is found throughout the tropics and in some sub-tropical areas worldwide. The mosquitoes were caught using human landing catches, and pyrethrum spray catches method. The entomological analysis of mosquitoes which include speciating into genus and dissecting them to unveil any microfilaria in the thoracic region, abdomen, and mouth parts of the mosquitoes. Entomological analysis shows that, from the 1296 mosquitoes caught 795 (61.3%) were Culex species, 342 (26.4%) Anopheles species, 102 (7.9%) Aedes species, and 57 (4.4%) of other Genera. There was a statistically significant difference in the number of mosquitoes caught in the dry and rainy season (X²=0.62, P < 0.05). Out of 1213 mosquitoes dissected, 24(0.02%) contained developed stages (L₁ – L₃) of W. bancrofti larvae. 13 (0.01%) of the infected mosquitoes were of Culex species, and Anopheles species accounted for the other 11 (0.009%). There was a statistically significant difference in the infection rate between the two seasons (X²=0.87, P < 0.05). The correlation analysis showed a positive correlation between the infection rate among mosquitoes in the dry and rainy season (r=0.85, P < 0.05). The entomological studies showed that Anopheles species and the Culex species are the vectors of lymphatic filariasis in the study area.

Keywords: entomological survey, mosquitoes, lymphatic filariasis, biase

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Authors: Rodolfo Alfonso, David Alonso, Albin Garcia, Jose Luis Alonso

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Recently a new kilovoltage radiotherapy unit model Xstrahl 200 - donated to the INOR´s Department of Radiotherapy (DR-INOR) in the framework of a IAEA's technical cooperation project- has been commissioned. This unit is able to treat shallow and low deep laying lesions, as it provides 8 discrete beam qualities, from 40 to 200 kV. As part of the patient-specific quality assurance program established at DR-INOR for external beam radiotherapy, it has been recommended to implement in vivo dose measurements (IVD), as they allow effectively discovering eventual errors or failures in the radiotherapy process. For that purpose a radio-photoluminescence (RPL) dosimetry system, model XXX, -also donated to DR-INOR by the same IAEA project- has been studied and commissioned. Main dosimetric parameters of the RPL system, such as reproducibility, linearity, and filed size influence were assessed. In a similar way, the response of radiochromic EBT3 type film was investigated for purposes of IVD. Both systems were calibrated in terms of entrance surface dose. Results of the dosimetric commissioning of RPL and EBT3 for IVD, and their pre-clinical implementation through end-to-end test cases are presented. The RPL dosimetry seems more recommendable for hyper-fractionated schemes with larger fields and curved patient contours, as those in chest wall irradiations, where the use of more than one dosimeter could be required. The radiochromic system involves smaller corrections with field size, but it sensibility is lower; hence it is more adequate for hypo-fractionated treatments with smaller fields.

Keywords: glass dosimetry, in vivo dosimetry, kilovotage radiotherapy, radiochromic dosimetry

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Authors: Ali Akber Khan

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In the 21st century, freshwater resources, especially ice cover, would have grave significance as ice carries most of the total freshwater resources in the world. The Himalayas in Pakistan is one of the biggest sources of fresh water for Pakistan. These regions of the Himalayas and neighboring mountains include Swat, Chitral, Upper Dir, Lower Dir, Mardan, Swabi, Haripur, Abbottabad, Muzaffarabad, Neelum, and Mansehra in Pakistan. The study examines ice resources in the years 1990 to 2020 and shows a decrease in snow-shrouded regions, reducing from 72,187.54 sq. km in 1990 to 66,061.17 sq. km in 2020. This indicates a total ice cover loss of 6,126.37 sq. km area in 40 years due to environmental variabilities and climatic changes. From 2010 to 2020 loss of ice-covered area was 3479.24 sq. km. The mean maximum temperature from 2000 to 2010 in December, January and February is 7.4 °C, 4.2 °Cand 7.8 °C respectively, while from 2011 to 2022 mean maximum temperature registered in December, January and February is 6.9°C, 4.1°C and 6.6 °C respectively. Investigation of anthropogenic elements in the region shows population rise. From investigation, 22 cities and towns of the Himalayas region and neighboring mountains showed the highest rise in population, 329.46%, and a minimum rise of 14.39%, while 12 towns have risen in population by more than 100% from 1990 to 2023. This examination adds to a point-by-point comprehension of the connections among normal variables, population dynamics, snow cover variation, evidence strategies, and multipurpose measures for maintained and strong improvement in the districts.

Keywords: snow, ice, Himalayas, Pakistan, climate change, population

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Authors: Min Jee Lee, Young Sun Park, Shin Ahn, Chang Hwan Sohn, Dong Woo Seo, Jae Ho Lee, Yoon Seon Lee, Kyung Soo Lim, Won Young Kim

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Background: Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) concomitant with acute aortic syndrome (AAS) is rare but prompt recognition of concomitant AAS is crucial, especially in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) because misdiagnosis with early thrombolytic or anticoagulant treatment may result in catastrophic consequences. Objectives: This study investigated the clinical features of patients of STEMI concomitant with AAS that may lead to the diagnostic clue. Method: Between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2014, 22 patients who were the initial diagnosis of acute coronary syndrome (AMI and unstable angina) and AAS (aortic dissection, intramural hematoma and ruptured thoracic aneurysm) in our emergency department were reviewed. Among these, we excluded 10 patients who were transferred from other hospital and 4 patients with non-STEMI, leaving a total of 8 patients of STEMI concomitant with AAS for analysis. Result: The mean age of study patients was 57.5±16.31 years and five patients were Standford type A and three patients were type B aortic dissection. Six patients had ST-segment elevation in anterior leads and two patients had in inferior leads. Most of the patients had acute onset, severe chest pain but no patients had dissecting nature chest pain. Serum troponin I was elevated in three patients but all patients had D-dimer elevation. Aortic regurgitation or regional wall motion abnormality was founded in four patients. However, widened mediastinum was seen in all study patients. Conclusion: When patients with STEMI have elevated D-dimer and widened mediastinum, concomitant AAS may have to be suspected.

Keywords: aortic dissection, myocardial infarction, ST-segment, d-dimer

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Authors: Hamil Uribe, Cristian Arancibia

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In Chile, the water for irrigation and hydropower generation is delivery essentially through unlined channels on earth, which have high seepage losses. Traditional seepage-abatement technologies are very expensive. The goals of this work were to quantify water loss in unlined channels and select reaches to evaluate the use of linear anionic polyacrylamide (LA-PAM) to reduce seepage losses. The study was carried out in Maule Region, central area of Chile. Water users indicated reaches with potential seepage losses, 45 km of channels in total, whose flow varied between 1.07 and 23.6 m³ s⁻¹. According to seepage measurements, 4 reaches of channels, 4.5 km in total, were selected for LA-PAM application. One to 4 LA-PAM applications were performed at rates of 11 kg ha⁻¹, considering wet perimeter area as basis of calculation. Large channels were used to allow motorboat moving against the current to carry-out LA-PAM application. For applications, a seeder machine was used to evenly distribute granulated polymer on water surface. Water flow was measured (StreamPro ADCP) upstream and downstream in selected reaches, to estimate seepage losses before and after LA-PAM application. Weekly measurements were made to quantify treatment effect and duration. In each case, water turbidity and temperature were measured. Channels showed variable losses up to 13.5%. Channels showing water gains were not treated with PAM. In all cases, LA-PAM effect was positive, achieving average loss reductions of 8% to 3.1%. Water loss was confirmed and it was possible to reduce seepage through LA-PAM applications provided that losses were known and correctly determined when applying the polymer. This could allow increasing irrigation security in critical periods, especially under drought conditions.

Keywords: canal seepage, irrigation, polyacrylamide, water management

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Authors: B. Mombayeva

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In the deserts area of south east of Kazakhstan, 16 species of Coleoptera from 6 families and 12 genus of insects damaging Saxaul have been revealed. The vast number of species belong to the Cerambycidae familyCapricorn Beetle (4 species) and Hemlock Borer of Melanophila genus and 3 species of weevils and flea-beetles, and 1 species of coctsinelids and carrion beetle. Some of them cause appreciable harm, and sometimes very heavy damageto saxaul. According to food specialization they are divided into polyphages and - oligophages. According to the confinement to saxaul parts, registered beetles insects mainly feed on generative parts (11 species) and leaves (5 species). 9 species from them feed on roots, leaves and generative organs. They are scarablike beetle’s larvae (Apatophysismongolica Semenov., Tursmenigenavarentzovi Melg., Phytoecia (Opsilla) coerulescens Scopoli., Apatophysismongolica Semenov.), Jewel beetles (Julodis (s. Str.) Variolaris (Pallas), Sphenoptera (s. Str.) cuprina Motschulsky, S. (s. str.) exarata (Fischer), SphenopterapotaniniJak.) and some weevil (Barisartemisiae Hbst.). The larvae eat the roots and the imago - generative organs. Their feeding noticeably has its effect on the condition of saxaul. Beetles also slightlygnaw vegetative organs of plants. Among the harmful species the desert Capricorn Beetle Julodisvariolaris (Pallas) deserved attention. Its larvae live in the soil and cause harm to the roots of Saxaul and other pasture plants. In addition, the larvae of Sphenopterapotanini, S.punctatissima colonize the roots, trunk and branches of Haloxylon. In the spring Saxaul flowers are much damaged by Ladybeetle Bulaealichatchovi.

Keywords: saxaul, coleoptera, insecta, haloxylon

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Authors: Raman Kumar Singh

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Urbanization and economic growth are considered to be the most striking features of the past century. There is currently a radical demographic shift in progress worldwide, wherein people are moving from rural to urban areas at an increasing rate. The UN-Habitat report 2005 indicates that in 2025, 61 per cent of the 5 billion world population will reside in the urban areas with about 85 per cent of the development process taking place in the urban hinterlands widely referred to as ‘peri-urban’, ‘suburbs’, ‘urban fringe’, ‘city edge’, ‘metropolitan shadow’, or ‘urban sprawl’. In this context the study is broadly concerned with understanding the development of the industrial hub in the Gurgaon and its impact on the immediate neighbourhood. However studies have revealed that with the increase of industrial development the growth pattern changes rapidly, not only the growth of the urban area but the overall economy shifts from more agrarian to non-agrarian, with the change in the occupational pattern of the people. The process is mainly known as tertiarization, where a number of tertiary activities increase in comparison to primary or secondary. The change in the occupational pattern creates a pull factor on its immediate neighbourhood, which triggers the in- migrations from the rural areas as people come in the core urban area in search of the better job opportunities and increased standards of living. But this gives way to the unplanned growth of the urban fringe and the villages which tend to accommodate the migrants and in turn the pressure on the socio-economic infrastructure increases. Therefore, it becomes increasing necessary for the government institution and policy level intervention to provide an overall socio-economic growth along with rapid industrial growth.

Keywords: policy intervention, urban morphology, urban industrial hub, livelihood transformation

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Authors: Shuruq Ghazi Nahhas

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Islamic art is a decorative art that depends on repeating motifs in various shapes to cover different surfaces. Each motif has its own characteristics and style that may reflect different Islamic periods, such as Umayyad, Abbasid, Fatimid, Seljuk, Nasrid, Ottoman, and Safavid. These periods were the most powerful periods which played an important role in developing the Islamic motifs. Most of these motifs of the Islamic heritage were not used in new applications. This research focused on reviving the vegetal Islamic motifs found on Islamic heritage and redesign them in a new format to decorate various products, including scarfs, cushions, coasters, wallpaper, wall art, and boxes. The scarf is chosen as one element of these decorative products because it is used as accessories to add aesthetic value to fashion. A descriptive-analytical method is used for this research. The process started with extracting and analyzing the original motifs. Then, creating the new motifs by simplifying, deleting, or adding elements based on the original structure. Then, creating repeated patterns and applying them to decorative products. The findings of this research indicated: repeating patterns based on different structures creates unlimited patterns. Also, changing the elements of the motifs of a pattern adds new characteristics to the pattern. Also, creating frames using elements from the repeated motifs adds aesthetic and contemporary value to decorative products. Finally, using various methods of combining colors creates unlimited variations of each pattern. At the end, reviving the Islamic motifs in contemporary vision enriches decorative products with aesthetic, artistic, and historical values of different Islamic periods. This makes the decorative products valuable that adds uniqueness to their surroundings.

Keywords: Islamic motifs, contemporary patterns, scarfs, decorative products

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Authors: Micheale Yifter Weldemichael

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Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) is among the most important oilseed crops for its high edible oil quality and quantity. Sesame is grown for food, medicinal, pharmaceutical, and industrial uses. Sesame is also cultivated as a main cash crop in Asia and Africa by smallholder farmers. Despite the global exponential increase in sesame cultivation area, its production and productivity remain low, mainly due to biotic and abiotic constraints. Notwithstanding the efforts to solve these problems, a low level of genetic variation and inadequate genomic resources hinder the progress of sesame improvement. The objective of this paper is, therefore, to review recent advances in the area of molecular breeding and transformation to overcome major production constraints and could result in enhanced and sustained sesame production. This paper reviews various researches conducted to date on molecular breeding and genetic transformation in sesame focusing on molecular markers used in assessing the available online database resources, genes responsible for key agronomic traits as well as transgenic technology and genome editing. The review concentrates on quantitative and semi-quantitative studies on molecular breeding for key agronomic traits such as improvement of yield components, oil and oil-related traits, disease and insect/pest resistance, and drought, waterlogging and salt tolerance, as well as sesame genetic transformation and genome editing techniques. Pitfalls and limitations of existing studies and methodologies used so far are identified and some priorities for future research directions in sesame genetic improvement are identified in this review.

Keywords: abiotic stress, biotic stress, improvement, molecular breeding, oil, sesame, shattering

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Authors: Shramana Mondal

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As a city is growing in population, sprawl, and complexity, use of public spaces increases variably and thus ensuring safety for the people becomes an utmost priority. While active monitoring measures may be necessary in some places, urban design can play a major role in devising self-policing and encourage active public life. This paper aims to explore the various spatial and psychological reasons for the occurrence of crime and the role of ‘urban design’ to address this issue. In this research, the principles of urban design are examined, as well as projected on actual site by addressing the issue with urban design principles. In this review the sociological, psychological, typological and morphological factors are addressed which affect the safety of a space and the possible framing guidelines, controls and urban design strategies are explored to address a safe neighborhood. On the basis of statistical survey, the residential and street network of Malviya Nagar in Delhi is chosen as the area of demonstration. The programs inhibit a safe neighborhood and a movement network that are addressed based on the four principles of natural surveillance, territoriality, community building, and connectivity. The paper concludes with a discussion of the urban design as an effective tool by creating an intense active zone with mixed use feature to ensure throughout activity and also ensuring safe pedestrian zone by introducing sense of community feeling and territoriality thus achieving active, useful and public friendly space.

Keywords: crime, public life, safety, urban design

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Authors: E. Kalcheva, A. Taki, Y. Hadi

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High-rises and placemaking is an understudied combination which receives more and more interest with the proliferation of this typology in many British cities. The reason for studying three major cities in England: London, Birmingham and Manchester, is to learn from the latest advances in urban design in well-developed and prominent urban environment. The analysis of several high-rise sites reveals the weaknesses in urban design of contemporary British cities and presents an opportunity to study from the implemented examples. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to analyze design approaches towards creating a sustainable and varied urban environment when high-rises are involved. The research questions raised by the study are: what is the quality of high-rises and their surroundings; what facilities and features are deployed in the research area; what is the role of the high-rise buildings in the placemaking process; what urban design principles are applicable in this context. The methodology utilizes observation of the researched area by structured questions, developed by the author to evaluate the outdoor qualities of the high-rise surroundings. In this context, the paper argues that the quality of the public realm around the high-rises is quite low, missing basic but vital elements such as plazas, public art, and seating, along with landscaping and pocket parks. There is lack of coherence, the rhythm of the streets is often disrupted, and even though the high-rises are very aesthetically appealing, they fail to create a sense of place on their own. The implications of the study are that future planning can take into consideration the critique in this article and provide more opportunities for urban design interventions around high-rise buildings in the British cities.

Keywords: high-rises, placemaking, urban design, townscape

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Authors: Pedro A. Medina-Rios, Marly Yolie Quintana-Daza

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Having the opportunity to communicate in a social, academic and work context is very relevant for any individual and more for a deaf person when oral language is not their natural language, and written language is their second language. Currently, in Colombia, there is not a specialized dictionary for our best knowledge in sign language archiving. Archival is one of the areas that the deaf community has a greater chance of performing. Nourishing new signs in dictionaries for deaf people extends the possibility that they have the appropriate signs to communicate and improve their performance. The aim of this work was to illustrate the importance of designing pedagogical and technological strategies of knowledge management, for the academic inclusion of deaf people through proposals of lexicon in Colombian sign language (LSC) in the area of archival. As a method, the analytical study was used to identify relevant words in the technical area of the archival and its counterpart with the LSC, 30 deaf people, apprentices - students of the Servicio Nacional de Aprendizaje (SENA) in Documentary or Archival Management programs, were evaluated through direct interviews in LSC. For the analysis tools were maintained to evaluate correlation patterns and linguistic methods of visual, gestural analysis and corpus; besides, methods of linear regression were used. Among the results, significant data were found among the variables socioeconomic stratum, academic level, labor location. The need to generate new signals on the subject of the file to improve communication between the deaf person, listener and the sign language interpreter. It is concluded that the generation of new signs to nourish the LSC dictionary in archival subjects is necessary to improve the labor inclusion of deaf people in Colombia.

Keywords: archival, inclusion, deaf, thesaurus

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Authors: N. Prabavathy, R. Balasundaraprabhu, S. Shalini, Dhayalan Velauthapillai, S. Prasanna, N. Muthukumarasamy

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Dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC) has become a significant research area due to their fundamental and scientific importance in the area of energy conversion. Synthetic dyes as sensitizer in DSSC are efficient and durable but they are costlier, toxic and have the tendency to degrade. Natural sensitizers contain plant pigments such as anthocyanin, carotenoid, flavonoid, and chlorophyll which promote light absorption as well as injection of charges to the conduction band of TiO2 through the sensitizer. But, the efficiency of natural dyes is not up to the mark mainly due to instability of the pigment such as anthocyanin. The stability issues in vitro are mainly due to the effect of solvents on extraction of anthocyanins and their respective pH. Taking this factor into consideration, in the present work, the anthocyanins were extracted from the flower Caesalpinia pulcherrima (C. pulcherrimma) with various solvents and their respective stability and pH values are discussed. The usage of citric acid as solvent to extract anthocyanin has shown good stability than other solvents. It also helps in enhancing the sensitization properties of anthocyanins with Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanorods. The IPCE spectra show higher photovoltaic performance for dye sensitized TiO2nanorods using citric acid as solvent. The natural DSSC using citric acid as solvent shows a higher efficiency compared to other solvents. Hence citric acid performs to be a safe solvent for natural DSSC in boosting the photovoltaic performance and maintaining the stability of anthocyanins.

Keywords: Caesalpinia pulcherrima, citric acid, dye sensitized solar cells, TiO₂ nanorods

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Authors: P. Serpytis, K. Azukaitis, U. Gargalskaite, R. Navickas, J. Badariene, V. Dzenkeviciute

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Purpose: Total longitudinal displacement (tLoD) of the common carotid artery (CCA) wall is a novel ultrasound marker of vascular function that can be evaluated using modified speckle tracking techniques. Decreased CCA tLoD has already been shown to be associated with diabetes and was shown to predict one year cardiovascular outcome in patients with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD) . The aim of our study was to evaluate if CCA tLoD differ between patients with moderate or high cardiovascular (CV) risk and patients after recent acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Methods: 49 patients (54±6 years) with moderate or high CV risk and 42 patients (58±7 years) after recent AMI were included. All patients were non-diabetic. CCA tLoD was evaluated using GE EchoPAC speckle tracking software and expressed as mean of both sides. Data on systolic blood pressure, total and high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels, high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) level, smoking status and family history of early CV events was evaluated and assessed for association with CCA tLoD. Results: tLoD of CCA did not differ between patients with moderate or high CV risk and patients with very high CV risk after MI (0.265±0.128 mm vs. 0.237±0.103 mm, p>0.05). Lower tLoD was associated with lower HDL cholesterol levels (r=0.211, p=0.04) and male sex (0.228±0.1 vs. 0.297±0.134, p=0.01). Conclusions: tLoD of CCA did not differ between patients with moderate or high CV risk and patients with very high CV risk after AMI. However, lower CCA tLoD was significantly associated with low HDL cholesterol levels and male sex.

Keywords: total longitudinal displacement, carotid artery, cardiovascular risk, acute myocardial infarction

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Authors: Bohuslava Juhasova, Igor Halenar, Martin Juhas

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The wireless communication is one of the widely used methods of data transfer at the present days. The benefit of this communication method is the partial independence of the infrastructure and the possibility of mobility. In some special applications it is the only way how to connect. This paper presents some problems in the implementation of a sensor network connection for measuring environmental parameters in the area of manufacturing plants.

Keywords: network, communication, reliability, sensors

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Authors: Edgar Mauricio Ruiz Osuna, Claudia Yaneth Herrera Bolivar, Sandra Liliana Gomez Vasquez

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The increasing needs of professionals with skills in software development in industry are incremental, therefore, the relevance of an educational process in line with the strengthening of these competencies, are part of the responsibilities of universities with careers related to the area of Informatics and Systems. In this sense, it is important to consider that in the National Science, Technology and Innovation Plan for the development of the Electronics, Information Technologies and Communications (2013) sectors, it is established as a weakness in the SWOT Analysis of the Software sector and Services, Deficiencies in training and professional training. Accordingly, UNIMINUTO's Computer Technology Program has addressed the analysis of students' performance in software development, identifying various problems such as dropout in programming subjects, academic averages, as well as deficiencies in strategies and competencies developed in the area of programming. As a result of this analysis, it was determined to design a collaborative learning platform in basic programming using heat maps as a tool to support didactic feedback. The pilot phase allows to evaluate in a programming course the ALGORINFO platform as a didactic resource, through an interactive and collaborative environment where students can develop basic programming practices and in turn, are fed back through the analysis of time patterns and difficulties frequent in certain segments or program cycles, by means of heat maps. The result allows the teacher to have tools to reinforce and advise critical points generated on the map, so that students and graduates improve their skills as software developers.

Keywords: collaborative platform, learning, feedback, programming, heat maps

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Authors: Seyedomid Fatemi

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The walls of the building, as the main intermediary between the outside and the inside of the building, play an important role in controlling the environmental conditions and ensuring the comfort of the residents, thus reducing the heating and cooling loads. Therefore, the use of suitable materials is considered one of the simplest and most effective ways to reduce the heating and cooling loads of the building, which will also save energy. Therefore, in order to achieve the goal of the research "Ranking of optimal materials for building walls," optimal materials for building walls in a temperate and humid climate (case example: Sari city) from the perspective of embodied energy, waste of electricity and gas energy, cost and reuse been investigated to achieve sustainable architecture. In this regard, using information obtained from Sari Municipality, design components have been presented by experts using the Delphi method. Considering the criteria of experts' opinions (cost and reuse), the amount of embodied energy of the materials, as well as the amount of waste of electricity and gas of different materials of the walls, with the help of the AHP weighting technique and finally with the TOPSIS technique, the best type of materials in the order of 1- 3-D Panel 2-ICF-, 3-Cement block with pumice, 4-Wallcrete block, 5-Clay block, 6-Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (AAC), 7-Foam cement block, 8-Aquapanel and 9-Reinforced concrete wall for use in The walls of the buildings were proposed in Sari city.

Keywords: optimum materials, building walls, moderate and humid climate, sustainable architecture, AHP-TOPSIS technique

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Authors: Christine M. Corrales, Gloria G. Delan, Rachel Luz V. Rica, Alfonso S. Piquero

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Marine protected areas (MPAs) in the study sites were established 8-13 years ago and are presently operational. This study was conducted to gather baseline information on the diversity, density and biomass of coral reef fishes inside and outside the four marine protected areas (MPAs) of Cawayan, Dalaguete; Daan-Lungsod Guiwang, Alcoy; North Granada, Boljoon and Sta. Cruz, Ronda. Coral reef fishes in the MPAs were identified using Fish Visual Census Method. Results of the t-test showed that the mean diversity (fish species/250m2) of target and non-target reef fish species found inside and outside the MPAs were significantly different. Density (ind./1,000m2) of target species inside and outside the MPAs showed no significant difference. Similarly, density of non-target species inside and outside the MPAs also showed no significant difference. This is an indication that fish density inside and outside the MPAs were more or less of the same condition. The mean biomass (kg/1,000m2) of target species inside and outside the MPAs showed a significant difference in contrast with non-target species inside and outside the MPAs which showed a no significant difference. Higher biomass of target fish species belonging to family Caesonidae (fusiliers) and Scaridae (parrotfishes) were commonly observed inside the MPAs. Results showed that fish species were more diverse with higher density and biomass inside the MPAs than the outside area. However, fish diversity and density were mostly contributed by non-target species. Hence, long term protection and management of MPAs is needed to effectively increase fish diversity, density and biomass specifically on target fish species.

Keywords: biomass, density, diversity, marine protected area, target fish species

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Authors: Sarkawt M. Hama, Paul S. Monks, Rebecca L. Cordell

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Within the Joaquin project, ultrafine particles (UFP) are continuously measured at one urban background site in Leicester. The main aims are to examine the temporal and seasonal variations in UFP number concentration and size distribution in an urban environment, and to try to assess the added value of continuous UFP measurements. In addition, relations of UFP with more commonly monitored pollutants such as black carbon (BC), nitrogen oxides (NOX), particulate matter (PM2.5), and the lung deposited surface area(LDSA) were evaluated. The effects of meteorological conditions, particularly wind speed and direction, and also temperature on the observed distribution of ultrafine particles will be detailed. The study presents the results from an experimental investigation into the particle number concentration size distribution of UFP, BC, and NOX with measurements taken at the Automatic Urban and Rural Network (AURN) monitoring site in Leicester. The monitoring was performed as part of the EU project JOAQUIN (Joint Air Quality Initiative) supported by the INTERREG IVB NWE program. The total number concentrations (TNC) were measured by a water-based condensation particle counter (W-CPC) (TSI model 3783), the particle number concentrations (PNC) and size distributions were measured by an ultrafine particle monitor (UFP TSI model 3031), the BC by MAAP (Thermo-5012), the NOX by NO-NO2-NOx monitor (Thermos Scientific 42i), and a Nanoparticle Surface Area Monitor (NSAM, TSI 3550) was used to measure the LDSA (reported as μm2 cm−3) corresponding to the alveolar region of the lung between November 2013 and November 2015. The average concentrations of particle number concentrations were observed in summer with lower absolute values of PNC than in winter might be related mainly to particles directly emitted by traffic and to the more favorable conditions of atmospheric dispersion. Results showed a traffic-related diurnal variation of UFP, BC, NOX and LDSA with clear morning and evening rush hour peaks on weekdays, only an evening peak at the weekends. Correlation coefficients were calculated between UFP and other pollutants (BC and NOX). The highest correlation between them was found in winter months. Overall, the results support the notion that local traffic emissions were a major contributor of the atmospheric particles pollution and a clear seasonal pattern was found, with higher values during the cold season.

Keywords: size distribution, traffic emissions, UFP, urban area

Procedia PDF Downloads 319

Authors: Paballo M. Moshupya, Tamiru A. Abiye, Ian Korir

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Mining and processing of naturally occurring radioactive materials could result in elevated levels of natural radionuclides in the environment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the radioactivity levels on a large scale in the West Rand District in South Africa, which is dominated by abandoned gold mine tailings and the consequential radiological exposures to members of the public. The activity concentrations of ²³⁸U, ²³²Th and 40K in mine tailings, soil and rocks were assessed using the BGO Super-Spec (RS-230) gamma spectrometer. The measured activity concentrations for ²³⁸U, ²³²Th and 40K in the studied mine tailings were found to range from 209.95 to 2578.68 Bq/kg, 19.49 to 108.00 Bq/kg and 31.30 to 626.00 Bq/kg, respectively. In surface soils, the overall average activity concentrations were found to be 59.15 Bq/kg, 34.91 and 245.64 Bq/kg for 238U, ²³²Th and 40K, respectively. For the rock samples analyzed, the mean activity concentrations were 32.97 Bq/kg, 32.26 Bq/kg and 351.52 Bg/kg for ²³⁸U, ²³²Th and 40K, respectively. High radioactivity levels were found in mine tailings, with ²³⁸U contributing significantly to the overall activity concentration. The external gamma radiation received from surface soil in the area is generally low, with an average of 0.07 mSv/y. The highest annual effective doses were estimated from the tailings dams and the levels varied between 0.14 mSv/y and 1.09 mSv/y, with an average of 0.51 mSv/y. In certain locations, the recommended dose constraint of 0.25 mSv/y from a single source to the average member of the public within the exposed population was exceeded, indicating the need for further monitoring and regulatory control measures specific to these areas to ensure the protection of resident members of the public.

Keywords: activity concentration, gold mine tailings, in-situ gamma spectrometry, radiological exposures

Procedia PDF Downloads 111

Authors: Dawid Jakimiuk, Krzysztof Mitura, Leszek Szpakowski, Sławomir Pilip, Daniel Celiński

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The Emergency Medical Teams (EMS) of the Ambulance Service in Siedlce serve the population living in the Mazowieckie Voivodeship (the area of eastern Poland with approximately 550,000 inhabitants). They provide health services at the pre-hospital stage to all life-threatening patients. The analysis covered the interventions of emergency medical teams in cases of suicide attempts that occurred in the years 2015-2018. The study was retrospective. The data was obtained on the basis of digital medical records of completed call-outs. When defining the disease entity, the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Health Problems ICD-10 prepared by WHO was used. The relationship between selected disease entities and the area of EMT intervention, the patient's sex and age, and the time of occurrence of the event were investigated. Non-urban area was defined as the area inhabited by a population below 10,000 residents. Statistical analysis was performed using Pearson's Chi ^ 2 test and presenting the percentage of cases in the study group. Of all the suicide attempts, drug abuse cases were the most frequent, including: X60 (Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to nonopioid analgesics, antipyretics and antirheumatics); X61 (Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to antiepileptic, sedative-hypnotic, antiparkinsonian and psychotropic drugs, not elsewhere classified); X62 (Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to narcotics and psycholeptics [hallucinogens], not elsewhere classified); X63 (Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to other drugs acting on the autonomic nervous system); X64 (Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to other and unspecified drugs, medicaments and biological substance) oraz X70 (Intentional self-harm by hanging, strangulation and suffocation). In total, they accounted for 69.4% of all interventions to suicide attempts in the studied period. Statistical analysis shows significant differences (χ2 = 39.30239, p <0.0001, n = 561) between the area of EMT intervention and the type of suicide attempt. In non-urban areas, a higher percentage of X70 diagnoses was recorded (55.67%), while in urban areas, X60-X64 (72.53%). In non-urban areas, a higher proportion of patients attempting suicide was observed compared to patients living in urban areas. For X70 and X60 - X64 in total, the incidence rates in non-urban areas were 80.8% and 56%, respectively. Significant differences were found (χ2 = 119.3304, p <0.0001, n = 561) depending on the method of attempting suicide in relation to the patient's sex. The percentage of women diagnosed with X60-X64 versus X70 was 87.50%, which was the largest number of patients (n = 154) as compared to men. In the case of X70 in relation to X60-X64, the percentage of men was 62.08%, which was the largest number of patients (n = 239) as compared to women (n = 22). In the case of X70, the percentage of men compared to women was as high as 92%. Significant differences were observed (χ2 = 14.94848, p <0.01058) between the hour of EMT intervention and the type of suicide attempt. The highest percentage of X70 occurred between 04:01 - 08:00 (64.44%), while X60-X64 between 00:01 - 04:00 (70.45%). The largest number of cases of all tested suicide attempts was recorded between 16:01 - 20:00 for X70 (n = 62), X60 - X64 (n = 82), respectively. The highest percentage of patients undertaking all suicide attempts studied at work was observed in the age range of 18-30 (31.5%), while the lowest was in the age group over 60 years of age. (11%). There was no significant correlation between the day of the week or individual months of the year and the type of suicide attempt - respectively (χ2 = 6.281729, p <0.39238, n = 561) and (χ2 = 3.348913, p <0.9857, n = 561). There were also no significant differences in the incidence of suicide attempts for each year in the study period (χ2 = 3.348913, p <0.9857 n = 561). The obtained results suggest the necessity to undertake preventive measures in order to minimize the number of suicide attempts. Such activities should be directed especially at young patients living in non-urban areas.

Keywords: emergency med, emergency medical team, attempted suicide, pre-hospital

Procedia PDF Downloads 81

Authors: Katie E. Jennings

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The interactions between family dynamics and environmental factors with mental health vulnerability in individuals are well known and are a theme for on-going research and debate. The impact upon mental health issues and forensic issues on family dynamics, experience, and emotional wellbeing cannot be over-Emphasised. For forensic patients with diagnosed mental disorders, these relationships and environments may have also been functionally linked to the development and maintenance of those disorders; with significant adverse childhood experiences being a common feature of many Patient’s histories. Mental health hospitals remove the patient from their home environments and provide treatment outside of these relationships and often outside of the home area. There is, therefore, a major focus on Services ensuring that patients are able to build and maintain relationships with family and friends, requiring services to involve families in Patients' care and treatment wherever possible. There are standards set by Government and clinical bodies that require absolute demonstration of the inclusion of family and friends in all aspects of the care and treatment of forensic patients. For some patients and family members, this push to take on a “role” in care can be unhelpful, extremely stressful, and has constant implications for the potential delicate reparation of relationships. Based on work undertaken for over 20 years in forensic mental health settings, this paper explores the positive psychology approach to a dimensional model to family inclusion in mental health care that learns from family court work and allows for the maintenance of relationships to be at both proximal and Distil levels; to prevent the replication of abuse, decrease the need for falsehoods and assist the recovery of all. The model is based on allowing families to choose to not be involved or be involved in different ways if this is seen to be more helpful. It also allows patients to choose the level of potential involvement that they would find helpful, and for this to be reviewed at a timeframe agreed by all parties, rather than when the next survey is due or the patient has a significant care meeting. This paper is significant as there is a lack of research to support services to use a positive psychology approach to work in this area, the assumption that being asked to be involved must be positive for all seems naïve at best for this patient group. Work relating to the psychology of family can significantly contribute to the development of knowledge in this area. The development of a dimensional model will support choice within families and assist in the development of more honest and open relationships.

Keywords: family dynamics, forensic, mental disorder, positive psychology

Procedia PDF Downloads 134

Authors: F. A. Gdhaidh, K. Hussain, H. S. Qi

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A numerical study of natural convection heat transfer in water filled cavity has been examined in 3D for single phase liquid cooling system by using an array of parallel plate fins mounted to one wall of a cavity. The heat generated by a heat source represents a computer CPU with dimensions of 37.5×37.5 mm mounted on substrate. A cold plate is used as a heat sink installed on the opposite vertical end of the enclosure. The air flow inside the computer case is created by an exhaust fan. A turbulent air flow is assumed and k-ε model is applied. The fins are installed on the substrate to enhance the heat transfer. The applied power energy range used is between 15- 40W. In order to determine the thermal behaviour of the cooling system, the effect of the heat input and the number of the parallel plate fins are investigated. The results illustrate that as the fin number increases the maximum heat source temperature decreases. However, when the fin number increases to critical value the temperature start to increase due to the fins are too closely spaced and that cause the obstruction of water flow. The introduction of parallel plate fins reduces the maximum heat source temperature by 10% compared to the case without fins. The cooling system maintains the maximum chip temperature at 64.68℃ when the heat input was at 40 W which is much lower than the recommended computer chips limit temperature of no more than 85℃ and hence the performance of the CPU is enhanced.

Keywords: chips limit temperature, closed enclosure, natural convection, parallel plate, single phase liquid

Procedia PDF Downloads 254

Authors: Pawitchaya Srijaiwong, Surin Khomfoi

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There are several solutions to supply electricity to an island in Thailand such as diesel generation, submarine power cable, and renewable energy power generation. However, each alternative has its own limitation like fuel and pollution of diesel generation, submarine power cable length resulting in loss of cable and cost of investment, and potential of renewable energy in the local area. This paper shows microgrid system which is a new alternative for power supply to an island. It integrates local power plant from renewable energy, energy storage system, and microgrid controller. The suitable renewable energy power generation on an island is selected from geographic location and potential evaluation. Thus, photovoltaic system and hydro power plant are taken into account. The capacity of energy storage system is also estimated by transient stability study in order to supply electricity demand sufficiently under normal condition. Microgrid controller plays an important role in conducting, communicating and operating for both sources and loads on an island so that its functions are discussed in this study. The conceptual design of microgrid operation is investigated in order to analyze the reliability and power quality. The result of this study shows that microgrid is able to operate in parallel with the main grid and in case of islanding. It is applicable for electricity supply to an island and a remote area. The advantages of operating microgrid on an island include the technical aspect like improving reliability and quality of power system and social aspects like outage cost saving and CO₂ reduction.

Keywords: energy storage, islanding, microgrid, renewable energy

Procedia PDF Downloads 315

Authors: Fumiko Kojima, Shuji Fujimoto

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Anisakiasis is a disease caused by infection with an anisakid larvae, mostly Anisakis simplex. The larvae commonly infect in marine fish and the disease is frequently reported in areas of the world where fish is consumed raw, lightly pickled or salted. In Japan, people have the habit of eating raw fish such as ‘sushi’ or ‘sashimi’, so they have more chance of infection with larvae of anisakid nematodes. There are three sibling species in A. simplex larvae, namely, A. simplex sensu stricto (Asss), A. pegreffii (Ap) and A. simplex C. It was revealed that Ap is dominant among the larvae from fish (Scomber japonics) in the Japan Sea side and Asss is dominant among those of the Pacific Ocean side conversely. Although anisakiasis has happened in Japan among both the Japan Sea side area and the Pacific Ocean side area. The aim of this study was to investigate genetic variations between the siblings (Asss and Ap) and within the same sibling species by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) technique. In order to investigate the genetic difference among the each A. simplex larvae, we used RAPD technique to differentiate individuals of A. simplex obtained from Scomber japonics fish those were caught in the Japan sea (Goto Islands in Nagasaki Prefecture) and the cost of Pacific Ocean (Kanagawa Prefecture). The RAPD patterns of the control DNA (Genus Raphidascaris) were markedly different from those of the A. simplex. There were differences in amplification patterns between Asss and Ap. The RAPD patterns for larvae obtained from fish of the same sea were somewhat different and variations were detected even among larvae from the same fish. These results suggest the considerable high genetic variability between Asss and Ap and the possible existence of genetic variation within the sibling species.

Keywords: Anisakiasis in Japan, Anisakis simplex, genomic identification, PCR-RAPD

Procedia PDF Downloads 168

Authors: Beatriz dos Anjos Furtado, Marina Barreiros Lamim, Camila Avozani Zago, Julianne Alvim Milward-de-Azevedo, Luís Cláudio Meirelles de Medeiros

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The intense process of economic acceleration, expansion of industrial activities and capitalism, combined with population growth, while promoting the development, bring environmental consequences and dynamics of locations. It can be seen that society is seeking to break with old paradigms of capitalist society, seeking to reconcile growth with sustainable development, with a change of mentality of the stakeholders of the production process (shareholders, employees, suppliers, customers, governments, and neighbors, groups citizens and the public in general). In this context, this research aims to map the stakeholders interested in environmental management in industries located in the city of Três Rios/RJ. The city of Três Rios is located in South-Central region of the state of Rio de Janeiro - Brazil. Methodological resources used refer to descriptive and field research, whose nature is qualitative and quantitative. It is also of multicases studies in the study area, and the data collection occurred by means of semi-structured questionnaires and interviews with employees related to the environmental area of the industries located in Três Rios and registered at the Federation of Industries the State of Rio de Janeiro - FIRJAN in the version of 2013 and active in federal revenue. Through this research it observed, among other things, the stakeholders involved in the environmental management process of “Três Rios” industry respondents, and those responding to the demands of environmental management.

Keywords: stakeholders, environmental management, industry, state, customer

Procedia PDF Downloads 472