Search results for: urban modelling

Authors: Gholamreza Namavar, Ali Bayati

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Nowadays according to increasing the population all around the world, consuming of fossil fuels increased dramatically. Many believe that most of the atmospheric pollution comes by using fossil fuels. The process of natural sources entering cities show one of the large challenges in consumption sources management. Nowadays, everyone considered about the consumption of fossil fuels and also reduction of consumption civil energy in megacities that play a key role in solving serious problems such as air pollution, producing greenhouse gasses, global warming and damage ozone layer. In construction industry we should use the materials with the lowest need to energy for making and carrying them, and also the materials which need the lowest energy and expenses to recycling. In this way, the kind of usage material, the way of processing, regional materials and the adaption with environment is critical. Otherwise, the isolation should be use and mention in long term. Accordingly, in this article we investigates the new ways in order to reduce environmental pollution and save more energy by using materials that are not harmful to the environment, fully insulated materials in buildings, sustainable and diversified buildings, suitable urban design and using solar energy more efficiently in order to reduce energy consumption.

Keywords: architectural design, insulation, sustainable construction, reducing energy consumption

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Authors: M. F. Chow, M. F. Abu Bakar

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Green roof system is considered a relatively new concept in Malaysia even though it has been implemented widely in the developed countries. Generally, green roofs provide many benefits such as enhancing aesthetical quality of the built environment, reduce urban heat island effect, reduce energy consumption, improve stormwater attenuation, and reduce noise pollution. A better understanding on the implementation of green roof system in Malaysia is crucial, as Malaysia’s climate is different if compared with the climate in temperate countries where most of the green roof studies have been conducted. This study has concentrated on the technical aspect of green roof system which focuses on i) types of plants and method of planting; ii) engineering design for green roof system; iii) its hydrological performance on reducing stormwater runoff; and iv) benefits of green roofs with respect to energy. Literature review has been conducted to identify the development and obstacles associated with green roofs systems in Malaysia. The study had identified the challenges and potentials of green roofs development in Malaysia. This study also provided the recommendations on standard design and strategies on the implementation of green roofs in Malaysia in the near future.

Keywords: engineering design, green roof, sustainable development, tropical countries

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Authors: Niranjan Mukherjee, Burga Braun, Ulrich Szewzyk

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Recalcitrant pharmaceuticals are increasingly found in urban water systems forced by demographic changes. The groundwater-surface water interface, or the hyporheic zone, is known for its impressive self-purification capacity of water bodies. Redox gradients present in this zone provide a wide range of electron acceptors and harbour diverse microbial communities. Biotic transformations of pharmaceuticals in this zone have been demonstrated, but not much information is available on the kind of communities bringing about these transformations. Therefore, bioreactors using sediment from the hyporheic zone of a river in Berlin were set up and fed with iopromide, a recalcitrant iodinated X-ray contrast medium. Iopromide, who’s many oxic and anoxic transformation products have been characterized, was shown to be transformed in such a bioreactor as it passes along the gradient. Many deiodinated transformation products of iopromide could be identified at the outlet of the reactor. In our experiments, it was seen that at the same depths of the column, the transformation of iopromide increased over time. This could be an indication of the microbial communities in the sediment adapting to iopromide. The hyporheic zone, with its varying redox conditions, mainly due to the upwelling and downwelling of surface and groundwater levels, could potentially provide microorganisms with conditions for the complete transformation of recalcitrant pharmaceuticals.

Keywords: iopromide, hyporheic zone, recalcitrant pharmaceutical, redox gradients

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Authors: Shaimaa Alobaidi

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The presentation examines how urbanization opens possibilities for American Indian characters like Zits in Alexie’s Flightto explore new definitionsoftheirtribal self-identification. Zits travels in time and views the world from different bodies, ages, and races; his journeys end with different perspectives on the idea of nationhood as an American Indian. He is an example of Vine Deloria’s statementthat “urban Indians have become the cutting edge of the new Indian nationalism” (248). Flight is chosen because the momentZits leaves the real world for time-traveling adventures is very critical; it is a moment of rage that ends in the mass murder of many Anglo-Americans. The paper focus on the turning point when he returns into his body with new opportunities towards his existence among the majority of anglo-Americans who cannot help but see him American Indian minority in need of help and assistance. Characters, such as Zits, attempt to outlive alienation, and Alexie gives new definitionsof their ethnic nationhood. Futuristicdoes not mean the very far unpredictable future; it is rather a nearpotential future for teenagers of American Indians, like Zits, Arnold, andCoyoteSprings- the band in ReservationBlues; all revolutionary personalitiesin Alexie’s works. They will be analyzed as Gerald Vizenor’s “postindianwarriors” who have the ability to identify Indigenous nationalism in a post-colonial context.

Keywords: alienation, self-identification, nationhood, urbanization, postindian

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Authors: Mohammadreza Azarnoush, Ali Bayati, Jamileh Azarnoush

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Nowadays according to increasing the population all around the world, consuming of fossil fuels increased dramatically. Many believe that most of the atmospheric pollution comes by using fossil fuels. The process of natural sources entering cities shows one of the large challenges in consumption sources management. Nowadays, everyone considers the consumption of fossil fuels and also reduction of consumption civil energy in megacities as playing a key role in solving serious problems such as air pollution, producing greenhouse gasses, global warming, and damage ozone layer. In the construction industry, we should use the materials with the lowest need to energy for making and carrying them, and also the materials which need the lowest energy and expenses to recycling. In this way, the kind of usage material, the way of processing, regional materials, and the adoption to the environment is critical. Otherwise, the isolation should be use and mention in the long term. Accordingly, in this article, we investigate the new ways in order to reduce environmental pollution and save more energy by using materials that are not harmful to the environment, fully insulated materials in buildings, sustainable and diversified buildings, suitable urban design and using solar energy more efficiently in order to reduce energy consumption.

Keywords: building design, construction masonry, insulation, sustainable construction

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Authors: Tanvi P. Medshinge, Prasad Vaidya, Monisha E. Royan

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In India, cooling loads in residential sector is a major contributor to its total energy consumption. Due to the increasing cooling need, the market penetration of air-conditioners is further expected to rise. Natural Ventilation (NV), however, possesses great potential to save significant energy consumption especially for residential buildings in moderate climates. As multifamily residential apartment buildings are designed by repetitive use of prototype designs, deriving individual NV based design prototype solutions for a combination of different wind incidence angles and orientations would provide significant opportunity to address the rise in cooling loads by residential sector. This paper presents the results of NV performance of a selected prototype apartment design with a cluster of four units in Pune, India, and an attempt to improve the NV performance through design modifications. The water table apparatus, a physical modelling tool, is used to study the flow patterns and simulate wind-induced NV performance. Quantification of NV performance is done by post processing images captured from video recordings in terms of percentage of area with good and poor access to ventilation. NV performance of the existing design for eight wind incidence angles showed that of the cluster of four units, the windward units showed good access to ventilation for all rooms, and the leeward units had lower access to ventilation with the bedrooms in the leeward units having the least access. The results showed improved performance in all the units for all wind incidence angles to more than 80% good access to ventilation. Some units showed an additional improvement to more than 90% good access to ventilation. This process of design and performance evaluation improved some individual units from 0% to 100% for good access to ventilation. The results demonstrate the ease of use and the power of the water table apparatus for performance-based design to simulate wind induced NV.  

Keywords: fluid dynamics, prototype design, natural ventilation, simulations, water table apparatus, wind incidence angles

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Authors: Cinthia Campoverde, Mateo Benavidez, Victor Arias, Milton Torres

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This article evaluates and compares three propagation models: the Okumura-Hata model, the Ericsson 9999 model, and the SUI model. The inclusion of vegetation attenuation in the area is also taken into account. These mathematical models aim to predict the power loss between a transmitting antenna (Tx) and a receiving antenna (Rx). The study was conducted in the open areas of the Livestock Department at the Escuela Superior Politécnica de Chimborazo (ESPOCH) University, located in the city of Riobamba, Ecuador. The necessary parameters for each model were calculated, considering LTE technology. The transmitting antenna belongs to the mobile phone company ”TUENTI” in Band 2, operating at a frequency of 1940 MHz. The reception power data in the area were empirically measured using the ”Network Cell Info” application. A total of 170 samples were collected, distributed across 19 radius, forming concentric circles around the transmitting antenna. The results demonstrate that the Okumura Hata urban model provides the best fit to the measured data.

Keywords: propagation models, reception power, LTE, power losses, correction factor

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Authors: N. P. Tsephe, S. D. Eyono Obono

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Rural tourism is usually associated with rural development because it has strong linkages to rural resources; but it remains underdeveloped compared to urban tourism. This underdevelopment of rural tourism serves as a motivation for this study whose aim is to examine the factors affecting the perceived satisfaction of rural tourists. The objectives of this study are: to identify and design theories and models on rural tourism satisfaction, and to empirically validate these models and theories through a survey of tourists from the Malealea Lodge which is located in the Mafeteng District, in the Mountain Kingdom of Lesotho. Data generated by the collection of questionnaires used by this survey was analyzed quantitatively using descriptive statistics and correlations in SPSS after checking the validity and the reliability of the questionnaire. The main hypothesis behind this study is the relationship between the demographics of rural tourists, the motivation, and their satisfaction of tourists, as supported by existing literature; except that motivation is measured in this study according to three dimensions: push factors, pull factors, and perceived usefulness of ICT's in the rural tourism experience. Findings from this study indicate that among the demographics factors, continent of origin and marital status influence the satisfaction of rural tourists; and their occupation affects their perceptions on the use of ICT's in rural tourism. Moreover, only pull factors were found to influence the satisfaction of rural tourists.

Keywords: digital world, motivation, rural tourism, satisfaction

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Authors: Rebekah Granger Ellis, Pat J. Austin, Marc P. Bonis, Richard B. Speaker, Jr.

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Using two psychometric instruments, this study examined social and emotional intelligence and moral judgment levels of more than 300 gifted and talented high school students enrolled in arts-integrated, academic acceleration, and creative arts charter schools in an ethnically diverse large city in the southeastern United States. Gifted and talented individuals possess distinguishable characteristics; these frequently appear as strengths, but often serious problems accompany them. Although many gifted adolescents thrive in their environments, some struggle in their school and community due to emotional intensity, motivation and achievement issues, lack of peers and isolation, identification problems, sensitivity to expectations and feelings, perfectionism, and other difficulties. These gifted students endure and survive in school rather than flourish. Gifted adolescents face special intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental problems. Furthermore, they experience greater levels of stress, disaffection, and isolation than non-gifted individuals due to their advanced cognitive abilities. Therefore, it is important to examine the long-term effects of participation in various gifted and talented programs on the socio-affective development of these adolescents. Numerous studies have researched moral, social, and emotional development in the areas of cognitive-developmental, psychoanalytic, and behavioral learning; however, in almost all cases, these three facets have been studied separately leading to many divergent theories. Additionally, various frameworks and models purporting to encourage the different socio-affective branches of development have been debated in curriculum theory, yet research is inconclusive on the effectiveness of these programs. Most often studied is the socio-affective domain, which includes development and regulation of emotions; empathy development; interpersonal relations and social behaviors; personal and gender identity construction; and moral development, thinking, and judgment. Examining development in these domains can provide insight into why some gifted and talented adolescents are not always successful in adulthood despite advanced IQ scores. Particularly whether emotional, social and moral capabilities of gifted and talented individuals are as advanced as their intellectual abilities and how these are related to each other. This mixed methods longitudinal study examined students in urban gifted and talented charter schools for (1) socio-affective development levels and (2) whether a particular environment encourages developmental growth. Research questions guiding the study: (1) How do academically and artistically gifted 10th and 11th grade students perform on psychological scales of social and emotional intelligence and moral judgment? Do they differ from the normative sample? Do gender differences exist among gifted students? (2) Do adolescents who attend distinctive gifted charter schools differ in developmental profiles? Students’ performances on psychometric instruments were compared over time and by program type. Assessing moral judgment (DIT-2) and socio-emotional intelligence (BarOn EQ-I: YV), participants took pre-, mid-, and post-tests during one academic school year. Quantitative differences in growth on these psychological scales (individuals and school-wide) were examined. If a school showed change, qualitative artifacts (culture, curricula, instructional methodology, stakeholder interviews) provided insight for environmental correlation.

Keywords: gifted and talented programs, moral judgment, social and emotional intelligence, socio-affective education

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Authors: Liu Fangxin, Zhao Jijun

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Nowadays, China and the world are facing the same problems of flooding, city waterlogging and other environment issues. Throughout history, China had many excellent experiences dealing with the flood, and can be used as a significant reference for contemporary urban construction. In view of this, the research used the method of literature analysis to find out the main water storage measures in ancient cities, including reservoir storage and pond water storage. And it used the case study method to introduce the historical evolution, engineering measures and landscape design of 4 typical ancient Chinese cities in details. Then we found the pond and the reservoir were the main infrastructures for the ancient Chinese city to avoid the waterlogging and flood. At last this paper summed up the historical experience of Chinese traditional water storage and made conclusions that the establishment of a reasonable green water storage facilities could be used to solve today's rain and flood problems, and hoped to give some enlightenment of stormwater management to our modern city.

Keywords: ancient Chinese cities, water storage project, Chinese classical gardening, stormwater management, green facilities

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Authors: Hammadi Larbi

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The treatment of wastewater in sewage plants usually results in the formation of a large amount of sludge. These appear at the outlet of the treatment plant as a viscous fluid loaded with a high concentration of dry matter. This sludge production presents environmental, ecological, and economic risks. That is why it is necessary to find many solutions for minimizing these risks. In the present article, the effect of hydrogen peroxide, thermal treatment, and quicklime on the characteristics of the activated sludge produced in urban wastewater plant were evaluated in order to avoid any risk in the plants. The study shows increasing of the dose of H2O2 from 0 to 0.4 g causes an increase in the solubilization rate of COD from 12% to 45% and a reduction in the organic matter content of sludge (VM/SM) from 74% to 36% . The results also show that the optimum efficiency of the heat treatment corresponds to a temperature of 80 ° C for a treatment time of 40 min is 47% and 51.82% for a temperature equal to 100 ° C and 76.30 % for a temperature of 120 ° C, and 79.38% for a temperature of 140 ° C. The treatment of sludge by quicklime gives the optimum efficiency of 70.62 %. It was shown the increasing of the temperature from 80°C to 140°C, the pH of sludge was increased from 7.12 to 9.59. The obtained results showed that with increasing the dose of quicklime from 0 g/l to 1g/l in activated sludge led to an increase of their pH from 7.12 to 12.06. The study shows the increasing the dose of quicklime from 0 g/l to 1g/l causes also an increase in the solubilization of COD from 0% to 70.62 %

Keywords: activated sludge, hydrogen peroxide, thermal treatment, quicklime

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Authors: Mohammad Mokhtari, Mehdi Masoodi, Parvaneh Faridi

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history of tsunami generating earthquakes along the Makran Subduction Zone provides evidence of the potential tsunami hazard for the whole coastal area. In comparison with other subduction zone in the world, the Makran region of southern Pakistan and southeastern Iran remains low seismicity. Also, it is one of the least studied area in the northwest of the Indian Ocean regarding tsunami studies. We present a review of studies dealing with the historical /and ongoing palaeotsunamis supported by IGCP of UNESCO in the Makran Subduction Zone. The historical tsunami presented here includes about nine tsunamis in the Makran Subduction Zone, of which over 7 tsunamis occur in the eastern Makran. Tsunami is not as common in the western Makran as in the eastern Makran, where a database of historical events exists. The historically well-documented event is related to the 1945 earthquake with a magnitude of 8.1moment magnitude and tsunami in the western and eastern Makran. There are no details as to whether a tsunami was generated by a seismic event before 1945 off western Makran. But several potentially large tsunamigenic events in the MSZ before 1945 occurred in 325 B.C., 1008, 1483, 1524, 1765, 1851, 1864, and 1897. Here we will present new findings from a historical point of view, immediately, we would like to emphasize that the area needs to be considered with higher research investigation. As mentioned above, a palaeotsunami (geological evidence) is now being planned, and here we will present the first phase result. From a risk point of view, the study shows as preliminary achievement within 20 minutes the wave reaches to Iranian as well Pakistan and Oman coastal zone with very much destructive tsunami waves capable of inundating destructive effect. It is important to note that all the coastal areas of all states surrounding the MSZ are being developed very rapidly, so any event would have a devastating effect on this region. Although several papers published about modelling, seismology, tsunami deposits in the last decades; as Makran is a forgotten subduction zone, more data such as the main crustal structure, fault location, and its related parameter are required.

Keywords: historical tsunami, Indian ocean, makran subduction zone, palaeotsunami

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Authors: Seyoung Kim, Jeongmin Kim, Kwang Ryel Ryu

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A database that records average traffic speeds measured at five-minute intervals for all the links in the traffic network of a metropolitan city. While learning from this data the models that can predict future traffic speed would be beneficial for the applications such as the car navigation system, building predictive models for every link becomes a nontrivial job if the number of links in a given network is huge. An advantage of adopting k-nearest neighbor (k-NN) as predictive models is that it does not require any explicit model building. Instead, k-NN takes a long time to make a prediction because it needs to search for the k-nearest neighbors in the database at prediction time. In this paper, we investigate how much we can speed up k-NN in making traffic speed predictions by reducing the amount of data to be searched for without a significant sacrifice of prediction accuracy. The rationale behind this is that we had a better look at only the recent data because the traffic patterns not only repeat daily or weekly but also change over time. In our experiments, we build several different k-NN models employing different sets of features which are the current and past traffic speeds of the target link and the neighbor links in its up/down-stream. The performances of these models are compared by measuring the average prediction accuracy and the average time taken to make a prediction using various amounts of data.

Keywords: big data, k-NN, machine learning, traffic speed prediction

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Authors: Aroona Hashmi

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The prime motive for this endeavor was to explore the tenth grade English class students’ preferred learning styles studying in government secondary school so that English subject teachers could tailor their pedagogical strategies in relation to their students learning needs. The further aim of this study was to identify any significance difference among the students on a gender basis, area basis and different categories of school basis. The population of this study consisting of all the secondary level schools working in the government sector and positioned in the province of Punjab. The multi-stage cluster sampling method was employed while selecting the study sample from the population. The scale used for the identification of students’ learning styles in this study was developed by Grasha-Riechmann. The data collected through learning style scale was analyzed by employing descriptive statistics technique. The results from data analysis depict that learning styles of the majority of students found to be Collaborative and Competitive. Overall, no considerable difference was surfaced between male-female, urban-rural, general-other categories of 10th grade English class students learning styles.

Keywords: learning style, learning style scale, grade, government sector

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Authors: Víctor Martínez del Rey, Kourosh Nasr Esfahani, Amir Masoud Samani Majd

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In this experimental study, the behaviors of Mixed Oxidant solution components (MOS) and sodium hypochlorite (HYPO) as the most commonly applied surface disinfectant were compared through the effectiveness of chlorine disinfection as a function of the contact time and residual chlorine. In this regard, the variation of pH, free available chlorine (FAC) concentration, and electric conductivity (EC) of disinfection solutions in different concentrations were monitored over 48 h contact time. In parallel, the plant stress activated by chlorine-based disinfectants was assessed by comparing MOS and HYPO. The elements of pH and EC in the plant-soil and their environmental impacts, spread by disinfection solutions were analyzed through several concentrations of FAC including 500 mg/L, 1000 mg/L, and 5000 mg/L in irrigated water. All the experiments were carried out at the service station of Sant Cugat, Spain. The outcomes indicated lower pH and higher durability of MOS than HYPO at the same concentration of FAC which resulted in promising stability of FAC within MOS. Furthermore, the pH and EC value of plant-soil irrigated by NaOCl solution were higher than that of MOS solution at the same FAC concentration. On-site generation of MOS as a safe chlorination option might be considered an imaginary future of smart cities.

Keywords: disinfection, free available chlorine, on-site generation, sodium hypochlorite

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Authors: Azad Khalid, Ime Akanyeti

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About 68% of the urban solid waste generated in Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus TRNC is household solid waste, at present, its disposal in landfills. In other hand more than 3000 ton per year of sewage sludge produces in Nicosia waste water treatment plant, the produced sludge piled up without any processing. Co-composting of organic fraction of municipal solid waste and sewage sludge is diverting of municipal solid waste from landfills and best disposal of wastewater sewage sludge. Three 10 L insulated bioreactor R1, R2 and R3 obtained with aeration rate 0.05 m3/h.kg for R2 and R3, R1 was without aeration. The mixture was destined with ratio of sewage sludge: food waste: sawdust; 1:5:0.8 (w/w). The effective of aeration monitored during 42 days of process through investigation in key parameter moisture, C/N ratio, temperature and pH. Results show that the high moisture content cause problem and around 60% recommend, C/N ratio decreased about 17% in aerated reactors and 10% in without aeration and mixture volume reduced in volume 40% in final compost with size of 1.00 to 20.0 mm. temperature in reactors with aeration reached thermophilic phase above 50 °C and <40 °C in without aeration. The final pH is 6.1 in R1, 8.23 in R2 and 8.1 in R3.

Keywords: aeration, sewage sludge, food waste, sawdust, composting

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Authors: A. Sezai Sarac

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Acrylonitrile (AN) copolymers with typical comonomers of vinyl acetate (VAc) or methyl acrylate (MA) exhibit better mechanical behaviors than its homopolymer. To increase processability of conjugated polymer, and to obtain a hybrid nano-structure multi-stepped emulsion polymerization was applied. Such products could be used in, i.e., drug-delivery systems, biosensors, gas-sensors, electronic compounds, etc. Incorporation of a number of flexible comonomers weakens the dipolar interactions among CN and thereby decreases melting point or increases decomposition temperatures of the PAN based copolymers. Hence, it is important to consider the effect of comonomer on the properties of PAN-based copolymers. Acrylonitrile vinylacetate (AN–VAc ) copolymers have the significant effect to their thermal behavior and are also of interest as precursors in the production of high strength carbon fibers. AN is copolymerized with one or two comonomers, particularly with vinyl acetate The copolymer of AN and VAc can be used either as a plastic (VAc > 15 wt %) or as microfibers (VAc < 15 wt %). AN provides the copolymer with good processability, electrochemical and thermal stability; VAc provides the mechanical stability. The free radical copolymerization of AN and VAc copolymer and core Shell structure of polyprrole composites,and nanofibers of poly(m-anthranilic acid)/polyacrylonitrile blends were recently studied. Free radical copolymerization of acrylonitrile (AN) – with different comonomers, i.e. acrylates, and styrene was realized using ammonium persulfate (APS) in the presence of a surfactant and in-situ polymerization of conjugated polymers was performed in this reaction medium to obtain core-shell nano particles. Nanofibers of such nanoparticles were obtained by electrospinning. Morphological properties of nanofibers are investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force spectroscopy (AFM). Nanofibers are characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared - Attenuated Total Reflectance spectrometer (FTIR-ATR), Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (1H-NMR), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), and Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy. The electrochemical Impedance results of the nanofibers were fitted to an equivalent curcuit by modelling (ECM).

Keywords: core shell nanoparticles, nanofibers, ascrylonitile copolymers, hybrid nanostructures

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Authors: Mohsen Mohammadi, Toshio Fujimi

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High population and irregular urban development in Kabul city, Afghanistan's capital, are among factors that increase its vulnerability to earthquake disasters (on top of its location in a high seismic region); this can lead to widespread economic loss and casualties. This study aims to evaluate earthquake risks in Kabul's 13th district based on scientific data. The research data, which include hazard curves of Kabul, vulnerability curves, and a questionnaire survey through sampling in district 13, have been incorporated to develop risk curves. To estimate potential casualties, we used a set of M parameters in a model developed by Coburn and Spence. The results indicate that in the worst case scenario, more than 90% of district 13, which comprises mostly residential buildings, is exposed to high risk; this may lead to nearly 1000 million USD economic loss and 120 thousand casualties (equal to 25.88% of the 13th district's population) for a nighttime earthquake. To reduce risks, we present the reconstruction of the most vulnerable buildings, which are primarily adobe and masonry buildings. A comparison of risk reduction between reconstructing adobe and masonry buildings indicates that rebuilding adobe buildings would be more effective.

Keywords: earthquake risk evaluation, Kabul, mitigation, vulnerability

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Authors: Mohammad Rusdi Mohd Nasir, Ismail Hafiz Salleh

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Kota Bharu, as an Islamic City, represents a symbolic icon in the urban development of the Islamic state of Kelantan, Malaysia. This research seeks to provide a basis for new approaches to landscape planning that shows greater respect for the traditional vernacular landscape. In addition, this research also intends to distinguish the prospects for the future Kelantan Malay cultural landscape, building upon the multiple historical influences in the evolution of the cultural landscape using multiple methods including literature review, observation, document analysis and content analysis. The study of the Kelantan Malay cultural landscape is particularly important in view of its distinctive contribution to Malay heritage by identifying the elements, characteristics, history and their influences. As a result, this research recognizes the importance of incorporating the existing heritage alongside contemporary design as well as further research on the Kelantan Malay cultural landscape. Optimistically, there will be better landscape practices in the future to understand the past, the present and the future prospects of the vernacular tradition, in order to ensure that our architecture, landscape and urbanism practices express its values.

Keywords: Malay culture, Malay heritage, cultural landscape, Islamic concept

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Authors: Lei Liu

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Since the famous opening up and reform strategy of China, lots of migrants have flowed from rural areas to urban areas. In this paper, the author investigates the rural elderly left behind, which are defined aged people left alone at home while their adult children have to migrant outside. This phenomenon is a quite general and serious social problem that cannot be ignored, accompanied by the process of urbanization and regional transferring of rural labor. The Chinese internal migration not only exerts great influence to China’s economy and urbanization but also obviously reduces the labor and care to rural aged people. Contrary to assumptions in some migration and aging studies, which show the inevitable negative effects of migration upon the old age care, the author highlights unique features in their daily strategies of house holding to integrate into society with the analysis of the conception of social inclusion. Through life history interviews with elderly left behind in one rural village, this article sheds light on three different factors of social inclusion, namely, economic inclusion, social identity and political inclusion and shows its necessaries to fully understand the status of the social wellbeing of rural elderly left behind.

Keywords: labor migration, elderly left behind, social inclusion, rural China

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Authors: Aidan Battison, Neliswa Mama

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Environmental pollution by ionic species has been identified as one of the biggest challenges to the sustainable development of communities. The widespread use of organic and inorganic chemical products and the release of toxic chemical species from industrial waste have resulted in a need for advanced monitoring technologies for environment protection, remediation and restoration. Some of the disadvantages of conventional sensing methods include expensive instrumentation, well-controlled experimental conditions, time-consuming procedures and sometimes complicated sample preparation. On the contrary, the development of fluorescent chemosensors for biological and environmental detection of metal ions has attracted a great deal of attention due to their simplicity, high selectivity, eidetic recognition, rapid response and real-life monitoring. Coumarin derivatives S1 and S2 (Scheme 1) containing 1,2,3-triazole moieties at position -3- have been designed and synthesized from azide and alkyne derivatives by CuAAC “click” reactions for the detection of metal ions. These compounds displayed a strong preference for Fe3+ ions with complexation resulting in fluorescent quenching through photo-induced electron transfer (PET) by the “sphere of action” static quenching model. The tested metal ions included Cd2+, Pb2+, Ag+, Na+, Ca2+, Cr3+, Fe3+, Al3+, Cd2+, Ba2+, Cu2+, Co2+, Hg2+, Zn2+ and Ni2+. The detection limits of S1 and S2 were determined to be 4.1 and 5.1 uM, respectively. Compound S1 displayed the greatest selectivity towards Fe3+ in the presence of competing for metal cations. S1 could also be used for the detection of Fe3+ in a mixture of CH3CN/H¬2¬O. Binding stoichiometry between S1 and Fe3+ was determined by using both Jobs-plot and Benesi-Hildebrand analysis. The binding was shown to occur in a 1:1 ratio between the sensor and a metal cation. Reversibility studies between S1 and Fe3+ were conducted by using EDTA. The binding site of Fe3+ to S1 was determined by using 13 C NMR and Molecular Modelling studies. Complexation was suggested to occur between the lone-pair of electrons from the coumarin-carbonyl and the triazole-carbon double bond.

Keywords: chemosensor, "click" chemistry, coumarin, fluorescence, static quenching, triazole

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Authors: Surini Duthika Fernandopulle, Kalamba Arachchige Pramodya Wijesinghe

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Macrocapsules containing phase change material (PCM) PEG4000 as core and Calcium Alginate as the shell was synthesized by in-situ polymerization process, and their suitability for textile applications was studied. PCM macro-capsules were sandwiched between two polyurethane foams at regular intervals, and the sandwiched foams were subsequently covered with 100% cotton woven fabrics. According to the mathematical modelling and calculations 46 capsules were required to provide cooling for a period of 2 hours at 56ºC, so a panel of 10 cm x 10 cm area with 25 parts (having 5 capsules in each for 9 parts are 16 parts spaced for air permeability) were effectively merged into one textile material without changing the textile's original properties. First, the available cooling techniques related to textiles were considered and the best cooling techniques suiting the Sri Lankan climatic conditions were selected using a survey conducted for Sri Lankan Public based on ASHRAE-55-2010 standard and it consisted of 19 questions under 3 sections categorized as general information, thermal comfort sensation and requirement of Personal Cooling Garments (PCG). The results indicated that during daytime, majority of respondents feel warm and during nighttime also majority have responded as slightly warm. The survey also revealed that around 85% of the respondents are willing to accept a PCG. The developed panels were characterized using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) tests and the findings from FTIR showed that the macrocapsules consisted of PEG 4000 as the core material and Calcium Alginate as the shell material and findings from TGA showed that the capsules had the average weight percentage for core with 61,9% and shell with 34,7%. After heating both control samples and samples incorporating PCM panels, it was discovered that only the temperature of the control sample increased after 56ºC, whereas the temperature of the sample incorporating PCM panels began to regulate the temperature at 56ºC, preventing a temperature increase beyond 56ºC.

Keywords: phase change materials, thermal regulation, textiles, macrocapsules

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Authors: Safee Chaudhary, Mahnoor Naseer Gondal, Hira Anees Awan, Abdul Rehman, Ammar Arif, Risham Hussain, Huma Khawar, Zainab Arshad, Muhammad Faizyab Ali Chaudhary, Waleed Ahmed, Muhammad Umer Sultan, Bibi Amina, Salaar Khan, Muhammad Moaz Ahmad, Osama Shiraz Shah, Hadia Hameed, Muhammad Farooq Ahmad Butt, Muhammad Ahmad, Sameer Ahmed, Fayyaz Ahmed, Omer Ishaq, Waqar Nabi, Wim Vanderbauwhede, Bilal Wajid, Huma Shehwana, Muhammad Tariq, Amir Faisal

Abstract:

Cancer is a manifestation of multifactorial deregulations in biomolecular pathways. These deregulations arise from the complex multi-scale interplay between cellular and extracellular factors. Such multifactorial aberrations at gene, protein, and extracellular scales need to be investigated systematically towards decoding the underlying mechanisms and orchestrating therapeutic interventions for patient treatment. In this work, we propose ‘TISON’, a next-generation web-based multiscale modeling platform for clinical systems oncology. TISON’s unique modeling abstraction allows a seamless coupling of information from biomolecular networks, cell decision circuits, extra-cellular environments, and tissue geometries. The platform can undertake multiscale sensitivity analysis towards in silico biomarker identification and drug evaluation on cellular phenotypes in user-defined tissue geometries. Furthermore, integration of cancer expression databases such as The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Human Proteome Atlas (HPA) facilitates in the development of personalized therapeutics. TISON is the next-evolution of multiscale cancer modeling and simulation platforms and provides a ‘zero-code’ model development, simulation, and analysis environment for application in clinical settings.

Keywords: systems oncology, cancer systems biology, cancer therapeutics, personalized therapeutics, cancer modelling

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Authors: Samuel Ibbi Ibrahim, Isaiah Ndalassan Ibrahim

Abstract:

Accessibility and availability of good quality water have become a major concern among different users. This paper examines the caustic importance of water security in relation to people’s desire for survival. It observed the democratic ideology of national policy on domestic water supply and demand and its implementation for national and societal development. It used analogy on equilibrium approach to ascertain the household water security. In most communities, it is glaring that several public water management in operation for several years are hardly performing efficiently to reach equilibrium demand. Moreover most settlements being rural or urban lack effective public water system that could ensure regular supplies to the population. The terrain and gradual declining of efficient rainfall northward poses great challenge to the region in managing water supply and demand adequately. This study itemized the need for the government to get clear strategy for a sustainable development on better water efficiency. Partnership in providing workable policy on water security is considered apparently important. It is also suggested that water plant treatment should be established in every medium-sized towns in the country.

Keywords: good quality of water, water accessibility, water availability, water sustainable

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Authors: Percy Galvez, Anatoly Petukhin, Paul Somerville, Ken Miyakoshi, Kojiro Irikura, Daniel Peter

Abstract:

Physics-based dynamic rupture modelling is necessary for estimating parameters such as rupture velocity and slip rate function that are important for ground motion simulation, but poorly resolved by observations, e.g. by seismic source inversion. In order to generate a large number of physically self-consistent rupture models, whose rupture process is consistent with the spatio-temporal heterogeneity of past earthquakes, we use multicycle simulations under the heterogeneous rate-and-state (RS) friction law for a 45deg dip-slip fault. We performed a parametrization study by fully dynamic rupture modeling, and then, a set of spontaneous source models was generated in a large magnitude range (Mw > 7.0). In order to validate rupture models, we compare the source scaling relations vs. seismic moment Mo for the modeled rupture area S, as well as average slip Dave and the slip asperity area Sa, with similar scaling relations from the source inversions. Ground motions were also computed from our models. Their peak ground velocities (PGV) agree well with the GMPE values. We obtained good agreement of the permanent surface offset values with empirical relations. From the heterogeneous rupture models, we analyzed parameters, which are critical for ground motion simulations, i.e. distributions of slip, slip rate, rupture initiation points, rupture velocities, and source time functions. We studied cross-correlations between them and with the friction weakening distance Dc value, the only initial heterogeneity parameter in our modeling. The main findings are: (1) high slip-rate areas coincide with or are located on an outer edge of the large slip areas, (2) ruptures have a tendency to initiate in small Dc areas, and (3) high slip-rate areas correlate with areas of small Dc, large rupture velocity and short rise-time.

Keywords: earthquake dynamics, strong ground motion prediction, seismic engineering, source characterization

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Authors: Hanan M. Taleb

Abstract:

Energy consumption associated with buildings has a significant impact on the environment. To that end, and as a transaction between the inside and outside and between the building and urban space, the building skin plays an especially important role. It provides protection from the elements; demarcates private property and creates privacy. More importantly, it controls the admission of solar radiation. Therefore, designing the building skin sustainably will help to achieve optimal performance in terms of both energy consumption and thermal comfort. Unfortunately, with accelerating construction expansion, many recent buildings do not pay attention to the importance of the envelope design. This piece of research will highlight the importance of this part of the creation of buildings by providing evidence of a significant reduction in energy consumption if the envelopes are redesigned. Consequently, the aim of this paper is to enhance the performance of the hospital envelope in order to achieve sustainable performance. A hospital building sited in Abu Dhabi, in the UAE, has been chosen to act as a case study. A detailed analysis of the annual energy performance of the case study will be performed with the use of a computerised simulation; this is in order to explore their energy performance shortcomings. The energy consumption of the base case will then be compared with that resulting from the new proposed building skin. The results will inform architects and designers of the savings potential from various strategies.

Keywords: ASHREA, building skin, building envelopes, hospitals, Abu Dhabi, UAE, IES software

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Authors: Piyush Pal, Rahul Dev

Abstract:

Water is essential for life and fresh water is a finite resource that is becoming scarce day by day even though it is recycled by hydrological cycle. The fresh water reserves are being polluted due to expanding irrigation, industries, urban population and its development. Contaminated water leads to several health problems. With the increasing demand of fresh water, solar distillation is an alternate solution which uses solar energy to evaporate water and then to condense it, thereby collecting distilled water within or outside the same system to use it as potable water. The structure that houses the process is known as a 'solar still'. In this paper, ‘Modified double slope solar still (MDSSS)’ & 'Modified double slope basin type multiwick solar still (MDSBMSS)' have been designed to convert saline, brackish water into drinking water. In this work two different modified solar stills are fabricated to study the performance of these solar stills. For modification of solar stills, Fibre Reinforced Plastic (FRP) and Acrylic sheets are used. The experiments in MDSBMSS and MDSSS was carried on 10 September 2015 & 5 November 2015 respectively. Performances of the stills were investigated. The amount of distillate has been found 3624 Ml/day in MDSBMSS on 10 September 2015 and 2400 Ml/day in MDSSS on 5 November 2015.

Keywords: contaminated water, conventional solar still, modified solar still, wick

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Authors: Guantao Bai

Abstract:

Public space is an indispensable and important component of the urban built environment. How to more accurately evaluate the usage characteristics of public space can help improve its spatial quality. Compared to traditional survey methods, computer vision technology based on deep learning has advantages such as dynamic observation and low cost. This study takes the public space of Shaping Park as an example and, based on deep learning computer vision technology, processes and analyzes the image data of the public space to obtain the spatial usage characteristics and spatiotemporal characteristics of the public space. Research has found that the spontaneous activity time in public spaces is relatively random with a relatively short average activity time, while social activities have a relatively stable activity time with a longer average activity time. Computer vision technology based on deep learning can effectively describe the spatial usage characteristics of the research area, making up for the shortcomings of traditional research methods and providing relevant support for creating a good public space.

Keywords: computer vision, deep learning, public spaces, using features

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Authors: S. McLean, J. A. Scott

Abstract:

The research topic is focusing on improving sustainable operation through recovery and reuse of waste heat in process water streams, an area in the mining industry that is often overlooked. There are significant advantages to the application of this topic, including economic and environmental benefits. The smelting process in the mining industry presents an opportunity to recover waste heat and apply it to alternative uses, thereby enhancing the overall process. This applied research has been conducted at the Sudbury Integrated Nickel Operations smelter site, in particular on the water cooling towers. The aim was to determine and optimize methods for appropriate recovery and subsequent upgrading of thermally low-grade heat lost from the water cooling towers in a manner that makes it useful for repurposing in applications, such as within an acid plant. This would be valuable to mining companies as it would be an opportunity to reduce the cost of the process, as well as decrease environmental impact and primary fuel usage. The waste heat from the cooling towers needs to be upgraded before it can be beneficially applied, as lower temperatures result in a decrease of the number of potential applications. Temperature and flow rate data were collected from the water cooling towers at an acid plant over two years. The research includes process control strategies and the development of a model capable of determining if the proposed heat recovery technique is economically viable, as well as assessing any environmental impact with the reduction in net energy consumption by the process. Therefore, comprehensive cost and impact analyses are carried out to determine the best area of application for the recovered waste heat. This method will allow engineers to easily identify the value of thermal resources available to them and determine if a full feasibility study should be carried out. The rapid scoping model developed will be applicable to any site that generates large amounts of waste heat. Results show that heat pumps are an economically viable solution for this application, allowing for reduced cost and CO₂ emissions.

Keywords: environment, heat recovery, mining engineering, sustainability

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Authors: S. A. Khan, B. Mishra, O. Sherchan

Abstract:

Background and Aims: Thyroid disorder is the most common endocrine disorder after diabetes mellitus. Females are more vulnerable to this disease, and old age is an important risk factor. This study was undertaken to investigate the burden of thyroid disorder in Nepalese postmenopausal women. Methods: In the present cross-sectional study, we included 271 post-menopausal women. Three ml of blood was collected following standard protocol after taking the written consent. Serum was separated and analyzed for free T3, free T4, and Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) by Chemiluminescence Immunoassay (CLIA) method in Snibe Maglumi 1000 analyzer. Data obtained was analyzed in SPSS Version 21. P < 0.05 was set for statistical significant at 95% Confidence Interval (CI). Results: Majority of the participants belong to Janjati (46.5%) ethnicity, followed by Brahmin/Chhetri (41.7%), residing either in urban or suburban locality. Most of them were non-vegetarian, non-smoker, and non-alcoholic. Subjects were divided into hyperthyroid (TSH < 0.3 uIU/ml), hypothyroid (TSH > 4.5 uIU/ml), and euthyroid (TSH=0.3-4.5 uIU/ml) based on TSH value. We reported 10.3% hyperthyroid and 29.2% hypothyroid cases. TSH was significantly correlated with T3 (r=-0.244; p < 0.001) T4 (r=-0.398; p < 0.001); age (r=-0.138; p=0.023) and BMI (r=0.123; p=0.043). Multiple linear regression model for TSH reveals only T3 and T4 were significantly associated with TSH (p < 0.001; p=0.001). Conclusion: To conclude, nearly 39.5% of the postmenopausal women had thyroid disorder. Postmenopausal women are vulnerable to thyroid disorder; therefore, requires regular thyroid monitoring.

Keywords: thyroid stimulating hormone, TSH, T3, T4, thyroid disorder

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