Search results for: power limited sources
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 12981

Search results for: power limited sources

9021 Thermal Imaging of Aircraft Piston Engine in Laboratory Conditions

Authors: Lukasz Grabowski, Marcin Szlachetka, Tytus Tulwin

Abstract:

The main task of the engine cooling system is to maintain its average operating temperatures within strictly defined limits. Too high or too low average temperatures result in accelerated wear or even damage to the engine or its individual components. In order to avoid local overheating or significant temperature gradients, leading to high stresses in the component, the aim is to ensure an even flow of air. In the case of analyses related to heat exchange, one of the main problems is the comparison of temperature fields because standard measuring instruments such as thermocouples or thermistors only provide information about the course of temperature at a given point. Thermal imaging tests can be helpful in this case. With appropriate camera settings and taking into account environmental conditions, we are able to obtain accurate temperature fields in the form of thermograms. Emission of heat from the engine to the engine compartment is an important issue when designing a cooling system. Also, in the case of liquid cooling, the main sources of heat in the form of emissions from the engine block, cylinders, etc. should be identified. It is important to redesign the engine compartment ventilation system. Ensuring proper cooling of aircraft reciprocating engine is difficult not only because of variable operating range but mainly because of different cooling conditions related to the change of speed or altitude of flight. Engine temperature also has a direct and significant impact on the properties of engine oil, which under the influence of this parameter changes, in particular, its viscosity. Too low or too high, its value can be a result of fast wear of engine parts. One of the ways to determine the temperatures occurring on individual parts of the engine is the use of thermal imaging measurements. The article presents the results of preliminary thermal imaging tests of aircraft piston diesel engine with a maximum power of about 100 HP. In order to perform the heat emission tests of the tested engine, the ThermaCAM S65 thermovision monitoring system from FLIR (Forward-Looking Infrared) together with the ThermaCAM Researcher Professional software was used. The measurements were carried out after the engine warm up. The engine speed was 5300 rpm The measurements were taken for the following environmental parameters: air temperature: 17 °C, ambient pressure: 1004 hPa, relative humidity: 38%. The temperatures distribution on the engine cylinder and on the exhaust manifold were analysed. Thermal imaging tests made it possible to relate the results of simulation tests to the real object by measuring the rib temperature of the cylinders. The results obtained are necessary to develop a CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) model of heat emission from the engine bay. The project/research was financed in the framework of the project Lublin University of Technology-Regional Excellence Initiative, funded by the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education (contract no. 030/RID/2018/19).

Keywords: aircraft, piston engine, heat, emission

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9020 Depth-Averaged Modelling of Erosion and Sediment Transport in Free-Surface Flows

Authors: Thomas Rowan, Mohammed Seaid

Abstract:

A fast finite volume solver for multi-layered shallow water flows with mass exchange and an erodible bed is developed. This enables the user to solve a number of complex sediment-based problems including (but not limited to), dam-break over an erodible bed, recirculation currents and bed evolution as well as levy and dyke failure. This research develops methodologies crucial to the under-standing of multi-sediment fluvial mechanics and waterway design. In this model mass exchange between the layers is allowed and, in contrast to previous models, sediment and fluid are able to transfer between layers. In the current study we use a two-step finite volume method to avoid the solution of the Riemann problem. Entrainment and deposition rates are calculated for the first time in a model of this nature. In the first step the governing equations are rewritten in a non-conservative form and the intermediate solutions are calculated using the method of characteristics. In the second stage, the numerical fluxes are reconstructed in conservative form and are used to calculate a solution that satisfies the conservation property. This method is found to be considerably faster than other comparative finite volume methods, it also exhibits good shock capturing. For most entrainment and deposition equations a bed level concentration factor is used. This leads to inaccuracies in both near bed level concentration and total scour. To account for diffusion, as no vertical velocities are calculated, a capacity limited diffusion coefficient is used. The additional advantage of this multilayer approach is that there is a variation (from single layer models) in bottom layer fluid velocity: this dramatically reduces erosion, which is often overestimated in simulations of this nature using single layer flows. The model is used to simulate a standard dam break. In the dam break simulation, as expected, the number of fluid layers utilised creates variation in the resultant bed profile, with more layers offering a higher deviation in fluid velocity . These results showed a marked variation in erosion profiles from standard models. The overall the model provides new insight into the problems presented at minimal computational cost.

Keywords: erosion, finite volume method, sediment transport, shallow water equations

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9019 Invitro Study of Anti-Leishmanial Property of Nigella Sativa Methanalic Black Seed Extract

Authors: Tawqeer Ali Syed, Prakash Chandra

Abstract:

This study aims to evaluate the antileishmanial activity of Nigella sativa black seed extract. This well-known plant extract was taken from the botanical garden of Kashmir. Materials and Methods: The methanolic extracts of these plants were screened for their antileishmanial activity against Leishmania major using 3‑(4.5‑dimethylthiazol‑2yl)‑2.5‑diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay or MTT assay. Results: The methanolic extract of Nigella sativa showed potential antileishmanial activity at an inhibition% value of 80.29% ± 0.65%. IC 50 was calculated after 48 hours to be 964.3 µg/ml. Conclusion: Considering these results, these medicinal plants from Kashmir could serve as potential drug sources for antileishmanial compounds.

Keywords: MTT assay, antileishmanial, cell viability, Nigella sativa

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9018 Role of Renewable Energy in Foreign Policy of China

Authors: Alina Gilmanova

Abstract:

China’s dependency on coal for energy is causing pollution in China and abroad. To supply the increasing energy demand and being under the pressure from international society to reduce the emissions, China was pushed to develop renewable energy. The increasing subsidies in Renewable energy sources (RES) led not only to the price-cutting but also affecting the international trade in green technology sector. In order to evaluate the role of RES in foreign policy of China, I am going to give an (i) overview of RES development in China and examine the cooperation between China and (ii) developed, (ii) developing and emerging countries. The conclusive remarks are intended to address the question of how the present Chinese renewable energy development is impacting its foreign policy and international society.

Keywords: renewable energy, China, foreign affairs, brics, cooperation

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9017 Homelessness and Disaster Mitigation: An Exploratory Study into How Casualties Can Be Reduced with the Homeless

Authors: Blythe Maltby

Abstract:

Homeless populations are one of the sections of society most vulnerable to the effects of natural disasters. Channels of communication to these populations are limited as they lack access to mainstream modes of emergency notification, often being the last to know about state emergencies. This study aims to answer if there is a way that cities and policies be designed to help reduce casualty rates to the homeless during state emergencies, such as earthquake and tsunami preparations. The study used a qualitative research approach, namely by speaking to levels of government, homelessness charities and workers and others about preparations and their experiences with the response of state emergencies. The proposed paper may help countries identify the gaps in their preparations to help facilitate better resources to look after these vulnerable populations.

Keywords: accessibility, disaster mitigation, homeless, Vancouver

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9016 Antioxidant Capacity and Total Phenolic Content of Aqueous Acetone and Ethanol Extract of Edible Parts of Moringa oleifera and Sesbania grandiflora

Authors: Perumal Siddhuraju, Arumugam Abirami, Gunasekaran Nagarani, Marimuthu Sangeethapriya

Abstract:

Aqueous ethanol and aqueous acetone extracts of Moringa oleifera (outer pericarp of immature fruit and flower) and Sesbania grandiflora white variety (flower and leaf) were examined for radical scavenging capacities and antioxidant activities. Ethanol extract of S. grandiflora (flower and leaf) and acetone extract of M. oleifera (outer pericarp of immature fruit and flower) contained relatively higher levels of total dietary phenolics than the other extracts. The antioxidant potential of the extracts were assessed by employing different in vitro assays such as reducing power assay, DPPH˙, ABTS˙+ and ˙OH radical scavenging capacities, antihemolytic assay by hydrogen peroxide induced method and metal chelating ability. Though all the extracts exhibited dose dependent reducing power activity, acetone extract of all the samples were found to have more hydrogen donating ability in DPPH˙ (2.3% - 65.03%) and hydroxyl radical scavenging systems (21.6% - 77.4%) than the ethanol extracts. The potential of multiple antioxidant activity was evident as it possessed antihemolytic activity (43.2 % to 68.0 %) and metal ion chelating potency (45.16 - 104.26 mg EDTA/g sample). The result indicate that acetone extract of M. oleifera (OPIF and flower) and S. grandiflora (flower and leaf) endowed with polyphenols, could be utilized as natural antioxidants/nutraceuticals.

Keywords: antioxidant activity, Moringa oleifera, polyphenolics, Sesbania grandiflora, underutilized vegetables

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9015 Task Scheduling and Resource Allocation in Cloud-based on AHP Method

Authors: Zahra Ahmadi, Fazlollah Adibnia

Abstract:

Scheduling of tasks and the optimal allocation of resources in the cloud are based on the dynamic nature of tasks and the heterogeneity of resources. Applications that are based on the scientific workflow are among the most widely used applications in this field, which are characterized by high processing power and storage capacity. In order to increase their efficiency, it is necessary to plan the tasks properly and select the best virtual machine in the cloud. The goals of the system are effective factors in scheduling tasks and resource selection, which depend on various criteria such as time, cost, current workload and processing power. Multi-criteria decision-making methods are a good choice in this field. In this research, a new method of work planning and resource allocation in a heterogeneous environment based on the modified AHP algorithm is proposed. In this method, the scheduling of input tasks is based on two criteria of execution time and size. Resource allocation is also a combination of the AHP algorithm and the first-input method of the first client. Resource prioritization is done with the criteria of main memory size, processor speed and bandwidth. What is considered in this system to modify the AHP algorithm Linear Max-Min and Linear Max normalization methods are the best choice for the mentioned algorithm, which have a great impact on the ranking. The simulation results show a decrease in the average response time, return time and execution time of input tasks in the proposed method compared to similar methods (basic methods).

Keywords: hierarchical analytical process, work prioritization, normalization, heterogeneous resource allocation, scientific workflow

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9014 Changing the Landscape of Fungal Genomics: New Trends

Authors: Igor V. Grigoriev

Abstract:

Understanding of biological processes encoded in fungi is instrumental in addressing future food, feed, and energy demands of the growing human population. Genomics is a powerful and quickly evolving tool to understand these processes. The Fungal Genomics Program of the US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (JGI) partners with researchers around the world to explore fungi in several large scale genomics projects, changing the fungal genomics landscape. The key trends of these changes include: (i) rapidly increasing scale of sequencing and analysis, (ii) developing approaches to go beyond culturable fungi and explore fungal ‘dark matter,’ or unculturables, and (iii) functional genomics and multi-omics data integration. Power of comparative genomics has been recently demonstrated in several JGI projects targeting mycorrhizae, plant pathogens, wood decay fungi, and sugar fermenting yeasts. The largest JGI project ‘1000 Fungal Genomes’ aims at exploring the diversity across the Fungal Tree of Life in order to better understand fungal evolution and to build a catalogue of genes, enzymes, and pathways for biotechnological applications. At this point, at least 65% of over 700 known families have one or more reference genomes sequenced, enabling metagenomics studies of microbial communities and their interactions with plants. For many of the remaining families no representative species are available from culture collections. To sequence genomes of unculturable fungi two approaches have been developed: (a) sequencing DNA from fruiting bodies of ‘macro’ and (b) single cell genomics using fungal spores. The latter has been tested using zoospores from the early diverging fungi and resulted in several near-complete genomes from underexplored branches of the Fungal Tree, including the first genomes of Zoopagomycotina. Genome sequence serves as a reference for transcriptomics studies, the first step towards functional genomics. In the JGI fungal mini-ENCODE project transcriptomes of the model fungus Neurospora crassa grown on a spectrum of carbon sources have been collected to build regulatory gene networks. Epigenomics is another tool to understand gene regulation and recently introduced single molecule sequencing platforms not only provide better genome assemblies but can also detect DNA modifications. For example, 6mC methylome was surveyed across many diverse fungi and the highest among Eukaryota levels of 6mC methylation has been reported. Finally, data production at such scale requires data integration to enable efficient data analysis. Over 700 fungal genomes and other -omes have been integrated in JGI MycoCosm portal and equipped with comparative genomics tools to enable researchers addressing a broad spectrum of biological questions and applications for bioenergy and biotechnology.

Keywords: fungal genomics, single cell genomics, DNA methylation, comparative genomics

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9013 Design and Manufacture of a Hybrid Gearbox Reducer System

Authors: Ahmed Mozamel, Kemal Yildizli

Abstract:

Due to mechanical energy losses and a competitive of minimizing these losses and increases the machine efficiency, the need for contactless gearing system has raised. In this work, one stage of mechanical planetary gear transmission system integrated with one stage of magnetic planetary gear system is designed as a two-stage hybrid gearbox system. The permanent magnets internal energy in the form of the magnetic field is used to create meshing between contactless magnetic rotors in order to provide self-system protection against overloading and decrease the mechanical loss of the transmission system by eliminating the friction losses. Classical methods, such as analytical, tabular method and the theory of elasticity are used to calculate the planetary gear design parameters. The finite element method (ANSYS Maxwell) is used to predict the behaviors of a magnetic gearing system. The concentric magnetic gearing system has been modeled and analyzed by using 2D finite element method (ANSYS Maxwell). In addition to that, design and manufacturing processes of prototype components (a planetary gear, concentric magnetic gear, shafts and the bearings selection) of a gearbox system are investigated. The output force, the output moment, the output power and efficiency of the hybrid gearbox system are experimentally evaluated. The viability of applying a magnetic force to transmit mechanical power through a non-contact gearing system is presented. The experimental test results show that the system is capable to operate continuously within the range of speed from 400 rpm to 3000 rpm with the reduction ratio of 2:1 and maximum efficiency of 91%.

Keywords: hybrid gearbox, mechanical gearboxes, magnetic gears, magnetic torque

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9012 Factors of Scientific Rise and Fall of the Islamic Empire

Authors: Saeed Seyed Agha Banihashemi

Abstract:

The history of mathematics as one of the trends in the field of mathematics has special importance and in most of the important universities of the world, this trend in the field of mathematics is taught and researched. In teaching the history of mathematics and mathematics books, special attention is paid to the scientific works of the four Greek-Indian-Islamic and European civilizations, although the history of mathematics in China and East Asia is a special category due to its ancient civilization. In this article, while examining mathematics in the Islamic empire, the factors of the scientific rise and fall of the Islamic empire, which can include mathematics, have been studied. In this article, according to my own research and other sources mentioned s, It is believed the factors of scientific rise and fall in the Islamic Empire.

Keywords: history of mathematics, alkandi, cryptology, manuscripts

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9011 Effects of the Tomato Pomace Oil Extract on Physical and Antioxidant Properties of Gelatin Films

Authors: N. Jirukkakul, J. Sodtipinta

Abstract:

Tomatoes are widely consumed as fresh and processed products through the manufacturing industry. Therefore, tomato pomace is generated as a by-product accounting for about 5-13% of the whole tomato. Antioxidants still remain in tomato pomace and extraction of tomato oil may useful in edible film production. The edible film solution was prepared by mixing gelatin (2, 4 and 6%) with the distilled water and heating at 40oC for 30 min. Effect of tomato pomace oil was evaluated at 0, 0.5 and 1%. Film solution was poured in plate and dried overnight at 40oC before determining the physical properties, which are tensile strength, moisture content, color, solubility, and swelling power. The results showed that an increase gelatin concentration caused increasing of tensile strength, moisture content, solubility and swelling power. The edible film with tomato pomace oil extract appeared as the rough film with oil droplet dispersion. The addition of tomato pomace oil extract caused an increase in lightness, redness and yellowness, while tensile strength, moisture content, and solubility were decreased. Film with tomato pomace oil extract at 0.5 and 1% exhibited antioxidant properties but those properties were not significantly different (p<0.05) between film incorporated with tomato pomace oil extract 0.5 and 1%. The suitable condition for film production in this study, 4% of gelatin and 0.5% of tomato pomace oil extract, was selected for protecting oxidation of palm oil. At 15 days of the storage period, the palm oil which covered by gelatin film with tomato pomace oil extract had 22.45 milliequivalents/kg of peroxide value (PV), while, the palm oil which covered by polypropylene film and control had 24.79 and 26.67 milliequivalents/kg, respectively. Therefore, incorporation of tomato pomace oil extract in gelatin film was able to protect the oxidation of food products with high fat content.

Keywords: antioxidant, gelatin films, physical properties, tomato oil extract

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9010 Analysing the Stability of Electrical Grid for Increased Renewable Energy Penetration by Focussing on LI-Ion Battery Storage Technology

Authors: Hemendra Singh Rathod

Abstract:

Frequency is, among other factors, one of the governing parameters for maintaining electrical grid stability. The quality of an electrical transmission and supply system is mainly described by the stability of the grid frequency. Over the past few decades, energy generation by intermittent sustainable sources like wind and solar has seen a significant increase globally. Consequently, controlling the associated deviations in grid frequency within safe limits has been gaining momentum so that the balance between demand and supply can be maintained. Lithium-ion battery energy storage system (Li-Ion BESS) has been a promising technology to tackle the challenges associated with grid instability. BESS is, therefore, an effective response to the ongoing debate whether it is feasible to have an electrical grid constantly functioning on a hundred percent renewable power in the near future. In recent years, large-scale manufacturing and capital investment into battery production processes have made the Li-ion battery systems cost-effective and increasingly efficient. The Li-ion systems require very low maintenance and are also independent of geographical constraints while being easily scalable. The paper highlights the use of stationary and moving BESS for balancing electrical energy, thereby maintaining grid frequency at a rapid rate. Moving BESS technology, as implemented in the selected railway network in Germany, is here considered as an exemplary concept for demonstrating the same functionality in the electrical grid system. Further, using certain applications of Li-ion batteries, such as self-consumption of wind and solar parks or their ancillary services, wind and solar energy storage during low demand, black start, island operation, residential home storage, etc. offers a solution to effectively integrate the renewables and support Europe’s future smart grid. EMT software tool DIgSILENT PowerFactory has been utilised to model an electrical transmission system with 100% renewable energy penetration. The stability of such a transmission system has been evaluated together with BESS within a defined frequency band. The transmission system operators (TSO) have the superordinate responsibility for system stability and must also coordinate with the other European transmission system operators. Frequency control is implemented by TSO by maintaining a balance between electricity generation and consumption. Li-ion battery systems are here seen as flexible, controllable loads and flexible, controllable generation for balancing energy pools. Thus using Li-ion battery storage solution, frequency-dependent load shedding, i.e., automatic gradual disconnection of loads from the grid, and frequency-dependent electricity generation, i.e., automatic gradual connection of BESS to the grid, is used as a perfect security measure to maintain grid stability in any case scenario. The paper emphasizes the use of stationary and moving Li-ion battery storage for meeting the demands of maintaining grid frequency and stability for near future operations.

Keywords: frequency control, grid stability, li-ion battery storage, smart grid

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9009 “Self-Torturous Thresholds” in Post-WWII Japan: Three Thresholds to Queer Japanese Futures

Authors: Maari Sugawara

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This arts-based research is about "self-torture": the interplay of seemingly opposing elements of pain, pleasure, submission, and power. It asserts that "self-torture" can be considered a nontrivial mediation between the aesthetic and the sociopolitical. It explores what the author calls queered self-torture; "self-torture" marked by an ambivalence that allows the oppressed to resist, and their counter-valorization occasionally functions as therapeutic solutions to the problems they highlight and condense. The research goal is to deconstruct normative self-torture and propose queered self-torture as a fertile ground for considering the complexities of desire that allow the oppressed to practice freedom. While “self-torture” manifests in many societies, this research focuses on cultural and national identity in post-WWII Japan using this lens of self-torture, as masochism functions as the very basis for Japanese cultural and national identity to ensure self-preservation. This masochism is defined as an impulse to realize a sense of pride and construct an identity through the acceptance of subordination, shame, and humiliation in the face of an all-powerful Other; the dominant Euro-America. It could be argued that this self-torture is a result of Japanese cultural annihilation and the trauma of the nation's defeat to the US. This is the definition of "self-torturous thresholds," the author’s post-WWII Japan psycho-historical diagnosis; when this threshold is crossed, the oppressed begin to torture themselves; the oppressors no longer need to do anything to maintain their power. The oppressed are already oppressing themselves. The term "oppressed" here refers to Japanese individuals and residents of Japan who are subjected to oppressive “white” heteropatriarchal supremacist structures and values that serve colonialist interests. There are three stages in "self-torturous thresholds": (1) the oppressors no longer need to oppress because the oppressed voluntarily commit to self-torture; (2) the oppressed find pleasure in self-torture; and (3) the oppressed achieve queered self-torture, to achieve alternative futures. Using the conceptualization of "self-torture," this research examines and critiques pleasure, desire, capital, and power in postwar Japan, which enables the discussion of the data-colonizing “Moonshot Research and Development program”. If the oppressed want to divest from the habits of normative self-torture, which shape what is possible in both our present and future, we need methods to feel and know that the alternative results of self-torture are possible. Phase three will be enacted using Sarah Ahmed's queer methodology to reorient national and cultural identity away from heteronormativity. Through theoretical analysis, textual analysis, archival research, ethnographic interviews, and digital art projects, including experimental documentary as a method to capture the realities of the individuals who are practicing self-torture, this research seeks to reveal how self-torture may become not just a vehicle of pleasure but also a mode of critiquing power and achieving freedom. It seeks to encourage the imaginings of queer Japanese futures, where the marginalized survive Japan’s natural and man-made disasters and Japan’s Imperialist past and present rather than submitting to the country’s continued violence.

Keywords: arts-based research, Japanese studies, interdisciplinary arts, queer studies, cultural studies, popular culture, BDSM, sadomasochism, sexuality, VR, AR, digital art, visual arts, speculative fiction

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9008 The Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice About Health Information Technology Among First-Generation Muslim Immigrant Women in Atlanta City During the Pandemic

Authors: Awatef Ahmed Ben Ramadan, Aqsa Arshad

Abstract:

Background: There is a huge Muslim migration movement to North America and Europe for several reasons, primarily refuge from war areas and partly to search for better work and educational chances. There are always concerns regarding first-Generation Immigrant women's health and computer literacy, an adequate understanding of the health systems, and the use of the existing healthcare technology and services effectively and efficiently. Language proficiency level, preference for cultural and traditional remedies, socioeconomic factors, fear of stereotyping, limited accessibility to health services, and general unfamiliarity with the existing health services and resources are familiar variables among these women. Aims: The current study aims to assess the health and digital literacy of first-generation Muslim women in Atlanta city. Also, the study aims to examine how the COVID-19 pandemic has encouraged the use of health information technology and increased technology awareness among the targeted women. Methods: The study design is cross-sectional correlational research. The study will be conducted to produce preliminary results that the investigators want to have to supplement an NIH grant application about leveraging information technology to reduce the health inequalities amongst the first-generation immigrant Muslim women in Atlanta City. The investigators will collect the study data in two phases using different tools. Phase one was conducted in June 2022; the investigators used tools to measure health and digital literacy amongst 42 first-generation immigrant Muslim women. Phase two was conducted in November 2022; the investigators measured the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice (KAP) of using health information technology such as telehealth from a sample of 45 first-generation Muslim immigrant women in Atlanta; in addition, the investigators measured how the current pandemic has affected their KAP to use telemedicine and telehealth services. Both phases' study participants were recruited using convenience sampling methodology. The investigators collected around 40 of 18 years old or older first-generation Muslim immigrant women for both study phases. The study excluded Immigrants who hold work visas and second-generation immigrants. Results: At the point of submitting this abstract, the investigators are still analyzing the study data to produce preliminary results to apply for an NIH grant entitled "Leveraging Health Information Technology (Health IT) to Address and Reduce Health Care Disparities (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)". This research will be the first step of a comprehensive research project to assess and measure health and digital literacy amongst a vulnerable community group. The targeted group might have different points of view from the U.S.-born inhabitants on how to: promote their health, gain healthy lifestyles and habits, screen for diseases, adhere to health treatment and follow-up plans, perceive the importance of using available and affordable technology to communicate with their providers and improve their health, and help in making serious decisions for their health. The investigators aim to develop an educational and instructional health mobile application considering the language and cultural factors that affect immigrants' ability to access different health and social support sources, know their health rights and obligations in their communities, and improve their health behavior and behavior lifestyles.

Keywords: first-generation immigrant Muslim women, telehealth, COVID-19 pandemic, health information technology, health and digital literacy

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9007 Design and Modeling of Light Duty Trencher

Authors: Yegetaneh T. Dejenu, Delesa Kejela, Abdulak Alemu

Abstract:

From the earliest time of humankind, the trenches were used for water to flow along and for soldiers to hide in during enemy attacks. Now a day due to civilization, the needs of the human being become endless, and the living condition becomes sophisticated. The unbalance between the needs and resource obligates them to find the way to manage this condition. The attempt to use the scares resource in very efficient and effective way makes the trench an endeavor practice in the world in all countries. A trencher is a construction equipment used to dig trenches, especially for laying pipes or cables, installing drainage, irrigation, installing fencing, and in preparation for trench warfare. It is a machine used to make a ditch by cutting the soil ground and effectively used in agricultural irrigation. The most common types of trencher are wheel trencher, chain trencher, micro trencher, portable trencher. In Ethiopia people have been trenching the ditch for many purposes and the tools they are using are Pickaxe, Shovel and some are using Micro Excavators. The adverse effect of using traditional equipment is, time and energy consuming, less productive, difficult and more man power is required. Hence it is necessary to design and produce low price, and simple machine to narrow this gap. Our objective is to design and model a light duty trencher that is used for trenching the ground or soil for making ditch and used for agricultural, ground cabling, ground piping, and drainage system. The designed machine trenches, maximum of 1-meter depth, 30 cm width, and the required length. The working mechanism is fully hydraulic, and the engine with 12.7 hp will provide suitable power for the pump that delivers 23 l/min at 1500 rpm to drive hydraulic motors and actuators.

Keywords: hydraulics, modelling, trenching, ditch

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9006 Towards Renewable Energy: A Qualitative Study of Biofuel Development Policy in Indonesia

Authors: Arie Yanwar Kapriadi

Abstract:

This research is aiming to develop deeper understanding of the scale of power that shaped the biofuel policy. This research is important for the following reasons. Firstly, this research will enrich the body of literature within the field of political ecology, scale and environmental governance. Secondly, by focussing on energy transition policies, this research offers a critical perspective on how government policy, aimed at delivering low carbon sustainable energy systems, being scaled and implemented through multi variate stakeholders. Finally, the research could help the government of Indonesia as a policy evaluation on delivering low carbon sustainable energy systems at the macro level that (possibility) being unable to be delivered at different scale and instead being perceived differently by different stakeholders. Qualitative method is applied particularly an in depth interview with government officials as well as policy stakeholders outside of government and people in positions of responsibility with regards to policy delivery. There are 4 field study location where interview took place as well as sites visit to some biofuel refining facilities. There are some major companies which involve on the production and distribution of biofuel and its relation with biofuel feedstock industry as the source of data. The research investigates how the government biofuel policies correlated with other policy issues such as land reclassification and carbon emission reduction which also influenced plantations expansion as well as its impact on the local people. The preliminary result shows tension of power between governing authorities caused the Indonesian biofuel policy being unfocused which led to failing to meet its mandatory blending target despite the abundance of its feedstock.

Keywords: biofuel, energy transition, renewable energy, political ecology

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9005 Combating Domestic Violence in Malaysia: Issues and Challenges

Authors: Aspalella A. Rahman

Abstract:

Domestic violence is not an uncommon phenomenon throughout the world. Malaysia is no exception. However, the exact prevalence of domestic violence in Malaysia is difficult to capture due to cultural understanding and sensitivity of the issues existing in the society. This paper aims to examine the issues and problems with the law of domestic violence in Malaysia. As such, it will mainly rely on statutes as its primary sources of information. It will analyse the scope and provisions of the Penal Code as well as the Domestic Violence Act 1994. Any shortcomings and gaps in the laws will be highlighted. It is submitted that domestic violence remains a problem in Malaysia. Although many strategies and plans have been implemented in attempting to combat this social problem, it remains unresolved. This is due to the inefficient implementation of the law. Although much has been done, there is still more to be done by the Malaysian government to combat domestic violence more effectively. For this reason, significant cooperation between the law enforcement authorities, NGOs, and the community must be established.

Keywords: challenges, domestic violence, issues, Malaysia

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9004 Tourism Related Activities and Floating Garden in Inle Lake, Myanmar

Authors: Thel Phyu Phyu Soe

Abstract:

Myanmar started its new political movement in 2011, opening up to trade, encouraging foreign investment, deepening its financial sectors. The tourism is one of the key sectors to make reform process from the perspective of green economy and green growth. The Inle Lake, second largest lake, famous for broad diversity of cultural and natural assets, become one of the country’s main tourism destination. In the study area, local livelihoods are based on a combination of farming (mainly floating garden) wage labor, tourism, and small business. But the Inle lake water body or water surface area decreased by 96.44 km² within 20 years, from 67.98 km² in 1990 to 56.63 km² in 2010. Floating garden cultivation (hydro phonic farm) is a distinguished characteristic of Inle Lake. Two adjacent villages (A and B) were selected to compare the relationship between tourism access and agricultural production. Ground truthing, focus group discussion, and in-depth questionnaires with floating gardeners were carried out. In A village, 57% of the respondents relied tourism as their major income sources, while almost all the households in B village relied floating gardens as major livelihood. Both satellite image interpretation and community studies highlighted that around 80% of the floating garden become fallow after severe drought in 2010 and easy income access to tourism related activities. The villagers can get 20-30 US$ for round trip guiding to major tourist attraction places.Even though tourism is the major livelihood options for the A village, the poorest households (less than 1500 US$ per year) are those who didn’t own transportation property for tourism related activities. In B village, more than 70% of the households relied floating gardens as their major income sources and less participated in tourism related activities because they don’t have motorboat stand connected to the major tourist attraction areas. Access to tourism related activities (having boat stand where they can guide tourists by boat and sell local products and souvenirs) have much impacted on changes in local people livelihood options. However, tourism may have impacts that are beneficial for one group of a society, but which are negative for another. Income inequality and negative impacts can only be managed effectively if they have been identified, measured and evaluated. The severe drought in 2010, instability of lake water level, high expenses for agriculture assisted the local people to participate in easy access tourism related activities.

Keywords: diminishing, floating garden, livelihood, tourism-related income

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9003 Addressing the Oracle Problem: Decentralized Authentication in Blockchain-Based Green Hydrogen Certification

Authors: Volker Wannack

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The aim of this paper is to present a concept for addressing the Oracle Problem in the context of hydrogen production using renewable energy sources. The proposed approach relies on the authentication of the electricity used for hydrogen production by multiple surrounding actors with similar electricity generation facilities, which attest to the authenticity of the electricity production. The concept introduces an Authenticity Score assigned to each certificate, as well as a Trust Score assigned to each witness. Each certificate must be attested by different actors with a sufficient Trust Score to achieve an Authenticity Score above a predefined threshold, thereby demonstrating that the produced hydrogen is indeed "green."

Keywords: hydrogen, blockchain, sustainability, structural change

Procedia PDF Downloads 47
9002 Life Cycle Assessment Applied to Supermarket Refrigeration System: Effects of Location and Choice of Architecture

Authors: Yasmine Salehy, Yann Leroy, Francois Cluzel, Hong-Minh Hoang, Laurence Fournaison, Anthony Delahaye, Bernard Yannou

Abstract:

Taking into consideration all the life cycle of a product is now an important step in the eco-design of a product or a technology. Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a standard tool to evaluate the environmental impacts of a system or a process. Despite the improvement in refrigerant regulation through protocols, the environmental damage of refrigeration systems remains important and needs to be improved. In this paper, the environmental impacts of refrigeration systems in a typical supermarket are compared using the LCA methodology under different conditions. The system is used to provide cold at two levels of temperature: medium and low temperature during a life period of 15 years. The most commonly used architectures of supermarket cold production systems are investigated: centralized direct expansion systems and indirect systems using a secondary loop to transport the cold. The variation of power needed during seasonal changes and during the daily opening/closure periods of the supermarket are considered. R134a as the primary refrigerant fluid and two types of secondary fluids are considered. The composition of each system and the leakage rate of the refrigerant through its life cycle are taken from the literature and industrial data. Twelve scenarios are examined. They are based on the variation of three parameters, 1. location: France (Paris), Spain (Toledo) and Sweden (Stockholm), 2. different sources of electric consumption: photovoltaic panels and low voltage electric network and 3. architecture: direct and indirect refrigeration systems. OpenLCA, SimaPro softwares, and different impact assessment methods were compared; CML method is used to evaluate the midpoint environmental indicators. This study highlights the significant contribution of electric consumption in environmental damages compared to the impacts of refrigerant leakage. The secondary loop allows lowering the refrigerant amount in the primary loop which results in a decrease in the climate change indicators compared to the centralized direct systems. However, an exhaustive cost evaluation (CAPEX and OPEX) of both systems shows more important costs related to the indirect systems. A significant difference between the countries has been noticed, mostly due to the difference in electric production. In Spain, using photovoltaic panels helps to reduce efficiently the environmental impacts and the related costs. This scenario is the best alternative compared to the other scenarios. Sweden is a country with less environmental impacts. For both France and Sweden, the use of photovoltaic panels does not bring a significant difference, due to a less sunlight exposition than in Spain. Alternative solutions exist to reduce the impact of refrigerating systems, and a brief introduction is presented.

Keywords: eco-design, industrial engineering, LCA, refrigeration system

Procedia PDF Downloads 166
9001 Policies to Reduce the Demand and Supply of Illicit Drugs in the Latin America: 2004 to 2016

Authors: Ana Caroline Ibrahim Lino, Denise Bomtempo Birche de Carvalho

Abstract:

The background of this research is the international process of control and monitoring of illicit psychoactive substances that has commenced in the early 20th century. This process was intensified with the UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 and had its culmination in the 1970s with the "War on drugs", a doctrine undertaken by the United States of America. Since then, the phenomenon of drug prohibition has been pushing debates around alternatives of public policies to confront their consequences at a global level and in the specific context of Latin America. Previous research has answered the following key questions: a) With what characteristics and models has the international illicit drug control system consolidated in Latin America with the creation of the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD)? b) What drug policies and programs were determined as guidelines for the member states by the OAS and CICAD? The present paper mainly addresses the analysis of the drug strategies developed by the OAS/CICAD for the Americas from 2004 to 2016. The primary sources have been extracted from the OAS/CICAD documents and reports, listed on the Internet sites of these organizations. Secondary sources refer to bibliographic research on the subject with the following descriptors: illicit drugs, public policies, international organizations, OAS, CICAD, and reducing the demand and supply of illicit drugs. The "content analysis" technique was used to organize the collected material and to choose the axes of analysis. The results show that the policies, strategies, and action plans for Latin America had been focused on anti-drug actions since the creation of the Commission until 2010. The discourses and policies to reduce drug demand and supply were of great importance for solving the problem. However, the real focus was on eliminating the substances by controlling the production, marketing, and distribution of illicit drugs. Little attention was given to the users and their families. The research is of great relevance to the Social Work. The guidelines and parameters of the Social Worker's profession are in line with the need for social, ethical, and political strengthening of any dimension that guarantees the rights of users of psychoactive substances. In addition, it contributed to the understanding of the political, economic, social, and cultural factors that structure the prohibitionism, whose matrix anchors the deprivation of rights and violence.

Keywords: illicit drug policies, international organizations, latin America, prohibitionism, reduce the demand and supply of illicit drugs

Procedia PDF Downloads 142
9000 Popularization of the Communist Manifesto in 19th Century Europe

Authors: Xuanyu Bai

Abstract:

“The Communist Manifesto”, written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, is one of the most significant documents throughout the whole history which covers across different fields including Economic, Politic, Sociology and Philosophy. Instead of discussing the Communist ideas presented in the Communist Manifesto, the essay focuses on exploring the reasons that contributed to the popularization of the document and its influence on political revolutions in 19th century Europe by concentrating on the document itself along with other primary and secondary sources and temporal artwork. Combining the details from the Communist Manifesto and other documents, Marx’s writing style and word choice, his convincible notions about a new society dominated by proletariats, and the revolutionary idea of class destruction has led to the popularization of the Communist Manifesto and influenced the latter political revolutions.

Keywords: communist manifesto, Marx, Engels, capitalism

Procedia PDF Downloads 121
8999 Political Corruption in an Authoritarian Regime: a Story from the Kingdom of Morocco

Authors: Noureddine Radouai

Abstract:

Corruption is an endemic phenomenon in many countries around the globe. Morocco, as an authoritarian regime, relies on corruption for monarchy survival. I analyze the Makhzen structure and methods that it follows to exchange corruption for political loyalty. The abuse of power in Morocco is sponsored by the monarch itself as it is its way to remain its importance in the regime.

Keywords: corruption, Clientelism, authoritarian regime, Morocco

Procedia PDF Downloads 123
8998 Citation Analysis of New Zealand Court Decisions

Authors: Tobias Milz, L. Macpherson, Varvara Vetrova

Abstract:

The law is a fundamental pillar of human societies as it shapes, controls and governs how humans conduct business, behave and interact with each other. Recent advances in computer-assisted technologies such as NLP, data science and AI are creating opportunities to support the practice, research and study of this pervasive domain. It is therefore not surprising that there has been an increase in investments into supporting technologies for the legal industry (also known as “legal tech” or “law tech”) over the last decade. A sub-discipline of particular appeal is concerned with assisted legal research. Supporting law researchers and practitioners to retrieve information from the vast amount of ever-growing legal documentation is of natural interest to the legal research community. One tool that has been in use for this purpose since the early nineteenth century is legal citation indexing. Among other use cases, they provided an effective means to discover new precedent cases. Nowadays, computer-assisted network analysis tools can allow for new and more efficient ways to reveal the “hidden” information that is conveyed through citation behavior. Unfortunately, access to openly available legal data is still lacking in New Zealand and access to such networks is only commercially available via providers such as LexisNexis. Consequently, there is a need to create, analyze and provide a legal citation network with sufficient data to support legal research tasks. This paper describes the development and analysis of a legal citation Network for New Zealand containing over 300.000 decisions from 125 different courts of all areas of law and jurisdiction. Using python, the authors assembled web crawlers, scrapers and an OCR pipeline to collect and convert court decisions from openly available sources such as NZLII into uniform and machine-readable text. This facilitated the use of regular expressions to identify references to other court decisions from within the decision text. The data was then imported into a graph-based database (Neo4j) with the courts and their respective cases represented as nodes and the extracted citations as links. Furthermore, additional links between courts of connected cases were added to indicate an indirect citation between the courts. Neo4j, as a graph-based database, allows efficient querying and use of network algorithms such as PageRank to reveal the most influential/most cited courts and court decisions over time. This paper shows that the in-degree distribution of the New Zealand legal citation network resembles a power-law distribution, which indicates a possible scale-free behavior of the network. This is in line with findings of the respective citation networks of the U.S. Supreme Court, Austria and Germany. The authors of this paper provide the database as an openly available data source to support further legal research. The decision texts can be exported from the database to be used for NLP-related legal research, while the network can be used for in-depth analysis. For example, users of the database can specify the network algorithms and metrics to only include specific courts to filter the results to the area of law of interest.

Keywords: case citation network, citation analysis, network analysis, Neo4j

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8997 An Overview of Adaptive Channel Equalization Techniques and Algorithms

Authors: Navdeep Singh Randhawa

Abstract:

Wireless communication system has been proved as the best for any communication. However, there are some undesirable threats of a wireless communication channel on the information transmitted through it, such as attenuation, distortions, delays and phase shifts of the signals arriving at the receiver end which are caused by its band limited and dispersive nature. One of the threat is ISI (Inter Symbol Interference), which has been found as a great obstacle in high speed communication. Thus, there is a need to provide perfect and accurate technique to remove this effect to have an error free communication. Thus, different equalization techniques have been proposed in literature. This paper presents the equalization techniques followed by the concept of adaptive filter equalizer, its algorithms (LMS and RLS) and applications of adaptive equalization technique.

Keywords: channel equalization, adaptive equalizer, least mean square, recursive least square

Procedia PDF Downloads 433
8996 Operator Splitting Scheme for the Inverse Nagumo Equation

Authors: Sharon-Yasotha Veerayah-Mcgregor, Valipuram Manoranjan

Abstract:

A backward or inverse problem is known to be an ill-posed problem due to its instability that easily emerges with any slight change within the conditions of the problem. Therefore, only a limited number of numerical approaches are available to solve a backward problem. This paper considers the Nagumo equation, an equation that describes impulse propagation in nerve axons, which also models population growth with the Allee effect. A creative operator splitting numerical scheme is constructed to solve the inverse Nagumo equation. Computational simulations are used to verify that this scheme is stable, accurate, and efficient.

Keywords: inverse/backward equation, operator-splitting, Nagumo equation, ill-posed, finite-difference

Procedia PDF Downloads 72
8995 Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activities of Matricaria pubscens Extracts: A Wild Space of North African Pharmacopeia

Authors: Abdelouahab Dehimati, Fatiha Bedjou

Abstract:

This study focused on the antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of four extracts from the plant Matricaria pubscens (Asteraceae) harvest in the region of Ghardaia, the northern Sahara of Algeria. The different extracts were analyzed for their content of phenolic compounds and their biological activities. The ethanol extract expresses a better extraction yield (44.22%). We have first performed the quantitative colorimetric methods for total polyphenols. Wherein the aqueous extract shows the highest total polyphenol content and total flavonoid (216.66±2.58 mg Eq GA/g and 111.04±0.49 mg Eq Q/g E, respectively) and ethanol extract 50% total tannins content (68.88±2.72 mg Eq AT/g E). The evaluation of the antioxidant activity of extracts of Matricaria pubscens by the arbitrary value IC50. The ethanol 50% extract is expressed strong activity with an IC50 14.19±1.25 mg/m against the DPPH radical and 11.66±0.53 mg/ml against the ABTS radical). In addition, the aqueous extract showed strong reducing power with an IC50 (48.61±1.14 mg/ml). However, the results obtained by the reducing power of phosphomolybdat the test are calculated by the iron maximum absorbance where ethanol extract 50% gives an absorbance of about 1.641 ± 0.01nm. Otherwise, methanol 70% and butanol 80% extracts gave a very large chelating effect of iron with an IC50 (38.38±0.01 μg/ml and 38.58±0.04 μg/ml respectively). By the method of disc Diffuson, the results of the antimicrobial activity are achieved butanolic extract 80% shows high activity towards MRSA (MIC: 3.51mg/ml; BMC>100 mg/ml). Their shares, the extracts were the most active for the antifungal test, the butanol 80% extract was the most active against A. niger (MIC: 12.5 mg/ml; FMC>100 mg/ml). These preliminary results could be used to justify the traditional use of this plant and their phenolic compounds could be exploited for therapeutic purposes, such as antioxidants and antimicrobial effects.

Keywords: Matricaria pubscens, phenolic compounds, antioxidant activity, antimicrobial activity, IC50, MIC

Procedia PDF Downloads 260
8994 Performance Based Logistics and Applications in Turkey

Authors: Ferhat Yilmaz

Abstract:

Defense sector is one of the most important areas where logistics is used extensively. Nations give importance to their defense spending in order to survive in their geography. Parallel to the rising crises around the world, governments increase their defense spending; however, resources are limited while the needs are infinite. Therefore, countries try to develop a more effective use of their defense budget. In order to make logistics more effective and efficient, performance- based logistical system was developed. This article tries to explain the Performance-based Logistical System, its employment process, employment areas, and how it will be used along with other main systems in the Turkey.

Keywords: performance, performance based logistics applications, logistical system, Turkey

Procedia PDF Downloads 471
8993 Proactive SoC Balancing of Li-ion Batteries for Automotive Application

Authors: Ali Mashayekh, Mahdiye Khorasani, Thomas weyh

Abstract:

The demand for battery electric vehicles (BEV) is steadily increasing, and it can be assumed that electric mobility will dominate the market for individual transportation in the future. Regarding BEVs, the focus of state-of-the-art research and development is on vehicle batteries since their properties primarily determine vehicles' characteristic parameters, such as price, driving range, charging time, and lifetime. State-of-the-art battery packs consist of invariable configurations of battery cells, connected in series and parallel. A promising alternative is battery systems based on multilevel inverters, which can alter the configuration of the battery cells during operation via semiconductor switches. The main benefit of such topologies is that a three-phase AC voltage can be directly generated from the battery pack, and no separate power inverters are required. Therefore, modular battery systems based on different multilevel inverter topologies and reconfigurable battery systems are currently under investigation. Another advantage of the multilevel concept is that the possibility to reconfigure the battery pack allows battery cells with different states of charge (SoC) to be connected in parallel, and thus low-loss balancing can take place between such cells. In contrast, in conventional battery systems, parallel connected (hard-wired) battery cells are discharged via bleeder resistors to keep the individual SoCs of the parallel battery strands balanced, ultimately reducing the vehicle range. Different multilevel inverter topologies and reconfigurable batteries have been described in the available literature that makes the before-mentioned advantages possible. However, what has not yet been described is how an intelligent operating algorithm needs to look like to keep the SoCs of the individual battery strands of a modular battery system with integrated power electronics balanced. Therefore, this paper suggests an SoC balancing approach for Battery Modular Multilevel Management (BM3) converter systems, which can be similarly used for reconfigurable battery systems or other multilevel inverter topologies with parallel connectivity. The here suggested approach attempts to simultaneously utilize all converter modules (bypassing individual modules should be avoided) because the parallel connection of adjacent modules reduces the phase-strand's battery impedance. Furthermore, the presented approach tries to reduce the number of switching events when changing the switching state combination. Thereby, the ohmic battery losses and switching losses are kept as low as possible. Since no power is dissipated in any designated bleeder resistors and no designated active balancing circuitry is required, the suggested approach can be categorized as a proactive balancing approach. To verify the algorithm's validity, simulations are used.

Keywords: battery management system, BEV, battery modular multilevel management (BM3), SoC balancing

Procedia PDF Downloads 113
8992 A Study on Unix Process Crash Based on Efficient Process Management Method

Authors: Guo Haonan, Chen Peiyu, Zhao Hanyu, Burra Venkata Durga Kumar

Abstract:

Unix and Unix-like operating systems are widely used due to their high stability but are limited by the parent-child process structure, and the child process depends on the parent process, so the crash of a single process may cause the entire process group or even the entire system to fail. Another possibility of unexpected process termination is that the system administrator inadvertently closed the terminal or pseudo-terminal where the application was launched, causing the application process to terminate unexpectedly. This paper mainly analyzes the reasons for the problems and proposes two solutions.

Keywords: process management, daemon, login-bash and non-login bash, process group

Procedia PDF Downloads 117