Search results for: Katie Wall

Authors: Li Hoon Lim, Nur Farhanah Said, Katie Simmons, Eric Pei Ping Pang, Sharon Mei Mei Wong

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Background and Purpose: Research regarding the sexual impact of breast cancer treatment on Asian women is both sensitive and scarce. This study aims to assess and evaluate the sexual health needs and concerns of breast cancer radiotherapy patients. It is hoped that awareness will be increased and an appropriate intervention can be developed to address the needs of future breast cancer patients. Methods: 110 consecutive unselected breast cancer patients were recruited prospectively. Questionnaires were administered once for patient undergoing radiotherapy to the breast. This study employed an anonymous questionnaire; any breast radiotherapy patient who can read English can voluntarily receive and complete the survey. The questionnaire consisted of items addressing demographics, potential informational needs, and educational preferences. Results: Patients’ interest to address sexual concerns decreases with age (p=0.024). Coherently, sexual concerns of patients are reported to decrease with age (p=0.015) where 70% of all respondents below age 50 [age 20-29 (60%); 30-39 (56.3%); 40-49(55.1%)] have started to have sexual concerns regarding their treatment effects on their sexual health. Patients who underwent breast conservation surgery (42.2%) and reconstruction surgery (83.3%) were more likely to have concerns about sexual health versus patients who underwent mastectomy (36.7%) (p=0.032). 74.2% of patients with sexual concern regardless of age would initiate conversation with their healthcare providers (p < 0.001). Conclusions: The results showed a staggering interest of female patients wanting information on this area which would not only boost their confidence and body image but also address concerns of the effect of breast radiotherapy on sexual health during their treatment.

Keywords: breast cancer, breast radiotherapy, sexual health, sexual impact

Procedia PDF Downloads 207

Authors: Esraa A. Khalil, Mohamed N. AbouZeid

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Building materials selection is critical for the sustainability of any project. The choice of building materials has a huge impact on the built environment and cost of projects. Building materials emit huge amount of carbon dioxide (CO₂) due to the use of cement as a basic component in the manufacturing process and as a binder, which harms our environment. Energy consumption from buildings has increased in the last few years; a huge amount of energy is being wasted from using unsustainable building and finishing materials, as well as from the process of heating and cooling of buildings. In addition, the construction sector in Egypt is taking a good portion of the economy; however, there is a lack of awareness of buildings environmental impacts on the built environment. Using advanced building materials and different wall systems can help in reducing heat consumption, the project’s initial and long-term costs, and minimizing the environmental impacts. Red Bricks is one of the materials that are being used widely in Egypt. There are many other types of bricks such as Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (AAC); however, the use of Red Bricks is dominating the construction industry due to its affordability and availability. This research focuses on the New Egyptian Administrative Capital as a case study to investigate the potential of the influence of using different wall systems such as AAC on the project’s cost and the environment. The aim of this research is to conduct a comparative analysis between the traditional and most commonly used bricks in Egypt, which is Red Bricks, and AAC wall systems. Through an economic and environmental study, the difference between the two wall systems will be justified to encourage the utilization of uncommon techniques in the construction industry to build more affordable, energy efficient and sustainable buildings. The significance of this research is to show the potential of using AAC in the construction industry and its positive influences. The study analyzes the factors associated with choosing suitable building materials for different projects according to the need and criteria of each project and its nature without harming the environment and wasting materials that could be saved or recycled. The New Egyptian Administrative Capital is considered as the country’s new heart, where ideas regarding energy savings and environmental benefits are taken into consideration. Meaning that, Egypt is taking good steps to move towards more sustainable construction. According to the analysis and site visits, there is a potential in reducing the initial costs of buildings by 12.1% and saving energy by using different techniques up to 25%. Interviews with the mega structures project engineers and managers reveal that they are more open to introducing sustainable building materials that will help in saving the environment and moving towards green construction as well as to studying more effective techniques for energy conservation.

Keywords: AAC blocks, building material, environmental impact, modern construction, new Egyptian administrative capital

Procedia PDF Downloads 121

Authors: Ahmad Amiri, Hamed Khajeh Arzani, Md. Salim Newaz Kazi, Bee Teng Chew

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Obviously, the behavior of thermophysical properties of covalently functionalized MWNT-based water nanofluids cannot be predicted from the predicted models. We present a study of the specific heat capacity, effective thermal conductivity, density and viscosity of coolants containing functionalized multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWNT-COOH) with carboxyl groups at different temperatures. After synthesizing of MWNT-COOH-based water, measurements on the prepared coolants were made at various concentrations by different experimental methods. While thermal conductivity of nanofluids illustrated a significant increase, the specific heat capacity of the samples showed a downward behavior with increasing temperature. The viscosity was investigated in different shear rates and temperatures. Interestingly, the specific heat capacity of all prepared nanofluids was decreased with increasing concentration. Also, the density of the MWNT-COOH-based water nanofluids increased and decreased smoothly with increasing MWNT-COOH concentration and temperature, respectively.

Keywords: carbon nanotubes, coolant, heat capacity, density, viscosity, thermal conductivity

Procedia PDF Downloads 196

Authors: Prasanjit Das, M. M. K. Khan, M. G. Rasul, Jie Wu, I. Youn

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Mineral scale formation is undoubtedly a more serious problem in the mineral industry than other process industries. To better understand scale growth and suppression, an experimental model is proposed in this study for supersaturated crystallised solutions commonly found in mineral process plants. In this experiment, surface crystallisation of potassium nitrate (KNO3) on the wall of the agitation tank and agitation effects on the scale growth and suppression are studied. The new quantitative scale suppression model predicts that at lower agitation speed, the scale growth rate is enhanced and at higher agitation speed, the scale suppression rate increases due to the increased flow erosion effect. A lab-scale agitation tank with and without baffles were used as a benchmark in this study. The fluid dynamic effects on scale growth and suppression in the agitation tank with three different size impellers (diameter 86, 114, 160 mm and model A310 with flow number 0.56) at various ranges of rotational speed (up to 700 rpm) and solution with different concentration (4.5, 4.75 and 5.25 mol/dm3) were investigated. For more elucidation, the effects of the different size of the impeller on wall surface scale growth and suppression rate as well as bottom settled scale accumulation rate are also discussed. Emphasis was placed on applications in the mineral industry, although results are also relevant to other industrial applications.

Keywords: agitation tank, crystallisation, impeller speed, scale

Procedia PDF Downloads 223

Authors: Abbas Ali Taghipoor Bafghi, Hosein Bakhoda, Fateme Khodaei Chegeni

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An experimental investigation is carried out to establish the performance characteristics of a compression ignition engine while using cerium oxide nano particles as additive in neat diesel and diesel-bio diesel blends. In the first phase of the experiments, stability of neat diesel and diesel-bio diesel fuel blends with the addition of cerium oxide nano particles are analyzed. After series of experiments, it is found that the blends subjected to high speed blending followed by ultrasonic bath stabilization improves the stability.In the second phase, performance characteristics are studied using the stable fuel blends in a single cylinder four stroke engine coupled with an electrical dynamo meter and a data acquisition system. The cerium oxide acts as an oxygen donating catalyst and provides oxygen for combustion. The activation energy of cerium oxide acts to burn off carbon deposits within the engine cylinder at the wall temperature and prevents the deposition of non-polar compounds on the cylinder wall results reduction in HC emissions. The tests revealed that cerium oxide nano particles can be used as additive in diesel and diesel-bio diesel blends to improve complete combustion of the fuel significantly.

Keywords: engine, cerium oxide, biodiesel, deposit

Procedia PDF Downloads 346

Authors: David Maina Muthegethi

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For decades, archaeological work of Swahili Civilization has mainly concentrated on exploration of economic and political dynamics of City states. This paper moves further and explore how gender roles were formed, maintained, negotiated and re-negotiated through time and space in Gede City. Unlike other Swahili city states, Gede was located around two miles away from the shores of Indian Ocean. Nonetheless, the city was characterized by security walls, stone houses, mosques and tombs typical of Swahili City states such as Kilwa. The study employed several methods of data collection namely: archival research, survey, re-examination of collected materials and excavation of Gede archaeological site. Since, the study aimed to examine gender roles across different social class, a total of three houses were excavated based on their social hierarchy. Thus, the houses were roughly categorized as belonging to elites, middle class and lower class. The house were located in the inner wall, second inner wall and the outer wall of Gede City respectively. Key findings shows that gender roles differed considerably along classes in Gede archaeological site. For instance, the women of the elite and middle class were active participants in Gede international trade through production and consumption of imported goods. This participation corresponded with commercialization of Gede households especially in elite’ areas where they hosted international traders. On the other hand, the middle class houses, women concentrated on running of light industries aimed at supplying goods for the urban community. Thus, they were able to afford exotic goods as their elites counterparts. Lastly, the gender roles of lower class entailed subsistence gender roles with little participation in Gede formal commerce. Interestingly, gender roles in Gede were dynamic in nature and response to cultural diffusion, spread of Islam, intensification of trade, diversification of subsistence patterns and urbanization. Therefore, this findings, demonstrate centrality of gender in reconstruction of social lives of Swahili Civilization.

Keywords: gender roles, Islam, Swahili civilization, urbanization

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Authors: Bahareh Khakifirooz, Arian Shojaei, Amirhossein Hajialigol, Bahare Abdolahi

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Laceration of the inner layer of the myometrium can cause massive bleeding during and after childbirth, which can lead to the death of the mother if it is not diagnosed in time. We studied a rare case of massive intrapartum bleeding following myometrial laceration that was diagnosed correctly, and the patient survived with in-time treatments. The patient was a 26 years-old woman who was under observation for term pregnancy and complaint of rupture of membranes (ROM) and vaginal bleeding. Following the spontaneous course of labor and without receiving oxytocin, during the normal course of labor, she had an estimated total blood loss of 750 mL bleeding, which, despite the normal fetal heart rate and with the mother's indication for cesarean section, was transferred to the operating room and underwent cesarean section. During the cesarean section, the amniotic fluid was clear; after the removal of the placenta, severe and clear bleeding was flowing from the posterior wall of the uterus, which was caused by the laceration of the inner layer of the myometrium in the posterior wall of the lower segment of the uterus. The myometrial laceration was repaired with absorbable continuous locked sutures, and hemostasis was established, then, the patient used uterotonic drugs, and after monitoring, the patient was discharged from the hospital in good condition.

Keywords: intrapartum hemorrhage, inner myometrial laceration, labor, Increased intrauterine pressure

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Authors: Öykü Barutçu, Mehmet Özgür Kuzdan

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Aim: Laparoscopy is very risky in patients undergoing, multiple open abdominal surgeries. The aim of this study, to define a safe method for the first trocar placement in children with a history of multiple open abdominal surgeries. Methods: Children who underwent laparoscopic surgery between March 2019 and April 2020 with a history of three or more open abdominal surgeries were included in the retrospective study. Patient information was obtained from the hospital automation system. Ultrasonography was used to determine the location of adhesions preoperatively. The first trocar was placed according to ultrasonography findings, using the Hasson technique to create an air pocket with finger dissection. The patient's preoperative, perioperative, and postoperative findings are reported. Results: A total of 10 patients were included in the study. The median number of operations before laparoscopy was three. The most common site for the first trocar entry was Palmer's point (40%). No mortality or morbidity was observed amongst any patients. The average number of adhesions detected by USG and observed on laparoscopy were significantly positively correlated. Conclusion: In children with a history of multiple abdominal surgeries, abdominal wall ultrasonography for visualization of adhesions and finger dissection for the formation of an air pocket appears to be a safe method for the first trocar insertion.

Keywords: abdominal wall, child, laparoscopy, ultrasonography

Procedia PDF Downloads 111

Authors: Tarek Sedki

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Madari gold mine is delineated by latitudes 22° 30' 29" and 22° 32' 33" N and longitudes 36° 24' 03" and 35°11' 44" E. Geologically, Madari rock units are classified into dismembered ophiolites, arc volcanic assemblage, syntectonic metagabbro-diorites and Mineralized quartz diorite and granodiorite. Deposition of gold in area occurred as a direct result of weathering of nearby gold-bearing veins. Main concentrations of gold are supposed to ensue close to the bed rock. Nevertheless, the several shallow channel-fill features covering lag deposits, arising throughout the alluvial fan sequence would definitely contain a percentage of the finer gold due to the limited washing and sorting capacity of the uncommon flood events. Gold deposits arise as disseminated and separate gold with limited pyrite, arsenopyrite and chalcopyrite everywhere veins in the wall rocks and lode gold deposits in quartz veins. In places, the wall rocks, in near district of the quartz vein, are grieved strong silicification, chloritization and pyritization as a result of a metasomatic alteration due to purification of external hydrothermal fluids. Quartz veins are mostly steeply dipping and display banding features and frequently sheared and brecciated.

Keywords: Madari gold mine, placer deposits, southern eastern desert, gold mineralization, quartz veins

Procedia PDF Downloads 142

Authors: Hsyi-En Cheng, Ying-Yi Liou

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Metal-oxide semiconductor (MOS) gas sensors are widely used in the gas-detection market due to their high sensitivity, fast response, and simple device structures. However, the high working temperature of MOS gas sensors makes them difficult to integrate with the appliance or consumer goods. One-dimensional (1-D) nanostructures are considered to have the potential to lower their working temperature due to their large surface-to-volume ratio, confined electrical conduction channels, and small feature sizes. Unfortunately, the difficulty of fabricating 1-D nanostructure electrodes has hindered the development of low-temperature MOS gas sensors. In this work, we proposed a method to fabricate nanotube-arrays, and the SnO₂ nanotube-array sensors with different wall thickness were successfully prepared and examined. The fabrication of SnO₂ nanotube arrays incorporates the techniques of barrier-free anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template and atomic layer deposition (ALD) of SnO₂. First, 1.0 µm Al film was deposited on ITO glass substrate by electron beam evaporation and then anodically oxidized by five wt% phosphoric acid solution at 5°C under a constant voltage of 100 V to form porous aluminum oxide. As the Al film was fully oxidized, a 15 min over anodization and a 30 min post chemical dissolution were used to remove the barrier oxide at the bottom end of pores to generate a barrier-free AAO template. The ALD using reactants of TiCl4 and H₂O was followed to grow a thin layer of SnO₂ on the template to form SnO₂ nanotube arrays. After removing the surface layer of SnO₂ by H₂ plasma and dissolving the template by 5 wt% phosphoric acid solution at 50°C, upright standing SnO₂ nanotube arrays on ITO glass were produced. Finally, Ag top electrode with line width of 5 μm was printed on the nanotube arrays to form SnO₂ nanotube-array sensor. Two SnO₂ nanotube-arrays with wall thickness of 30 and 60 nm were produced in this experiment for the evaluation of gas sensing ability. The flat SnO₂ films with thickness of 30 and 60 nm were also examined for comparison. The results show that the properties of ALD SnO₂ films were related to the deposition temperature. The films grown at 350°C had a low electrical resistivity of 3.6×10-3 Ω-cm and were, therefore, used for the nanotube-array sensors. The carrier concentration and mobility of the SnO₂ films were characterized by Ecopia HMS-3000 Hall-effect measurement system and were 1.1×1020 cm-3 and 16 cm3/V-s, respectively. The electrical resistance of SnO₂ film and nanotube-array sensors in air and in a 5% H₂-95% N₂ mixture gas was monitored by Pico text M3510A 6 1/2 Digits Multimeter. It was found that, at 200 °C, the 30-nm-wall SnO₂ nanotube-array sensor performs the highest responsivity to 5% H₂, followed by the 30-nm SnO₂ film sensor, the 60-nm SnO₂ film sensor, and the 60-nm-wall SnO₂ nanotube-array sensor. However, at temperatures below 100°C, all the samples were insensitive to the 5% H₂ gas. Further investigation on the sensors with thinner SnO₂ is necessary for improving the sensing ability at temperatures below 100 °C.

Keywords: atomic layer deposition, nanotube arrays, gas sensor, tin dioxide

Procedia PDF Downloads 243

Authors: Pablo Lopez Hurtado, Antroine Rouilly, Virginie Vandenbossche

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Cellulose fibre insulation is an eco-friendly building material made from recycled paper fibres, treated with borates for fungal and fire resistance. It is comparable in terms of thermal and acoustic performance to mineral wool insulation and other insulation materials based on non-renewable resources. The main method of application consists in separating and blowing the fibres in attics or closed wall cavities. Another method, known as the “wet spray method” is gaining interest. With this method the fibres are projected with pulverized water, which stick to the wall cavities. The issue with the wet spray technique is that the water dosage could be difficult to control. A high water dosage implies not only a longer drying time, depending on ambient conditions, but also a change in the performance of the material itself. In our work we studied the thermal and mechanical properties of wet spray-cellulose insulation in order to understand how water dosage could affect these properties. The material was first characterized to study the chemical and physical properties of the fibres. Then representative samples of wet sprayed cellulose with varying applied water dosage were subject to thermal conductivity and compression testing in order to better understand how changes in the fibres induced by drying can affect these properties.

Keywords: cellulose fibre, recycled paper, moisture sorption, thermal insulation

Procedia PDF Downloads 304

Authors: Nina N. Serdar, Jelena R. Pejović

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This paper presents seismic risk assessment of two bridge structure, based on the probabilistic performance-based seismic assessment methodology. Both investigated bridges are tree span continuous RC curved bridges with the difference in column shapes. First bridge (type A) has a wall-type pier and second (type B) has a two-column bent with circular columns. Bridges are designed according to European standards: EN 1991-2, EN1992-1-1 and EN 1998-2. Aim of the performed analysis is to compare seismic behavior of these two structures and to detect the influence of column shapes on the seismic response. Seismic risk assessment is carried out by obtaining demand fragility curves. Non-linear model was constructed and time-history analysis was performed using thirty five pairs of horizontal ground motions selected to match site specific hazard. In performance based analysis, peak column drift ratio (CDR) was selected as engineering demand parameter (EDP). For seismic intensity measure (IM) spectral displacement was selected. Demand fragility curves that give probability of exceedance of certain value for chosen EDP were constructed and based on them conclusions were made.

Keywords: RC curved bridge, demand fragility curve, wall type column, nonlinear time-history analysis, circular column

Procedia PDF Downloads 342

Authors: Farshid Fathinia

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Numerical computation of unsteady laminar three-dimensional natural convection and entropy generation in an inclined cubical trapezoidal air-filled cavity is performed for the first time in this work. The vertical right and left sidewalls of the cavity are maintained at constant cold temperatures. The lower wall is subjected to a constant hot temperature, while the upper one is considered insulated. Computations are performed for Rayleigh numbers varied as 103 ≤ Ra ≤ 105, while the trapezoidal cavity inclination angle is varied as 0° ≤ ϕ ≤ 180°. Prandtl number is considered constant at Pr = 0.71. The second law of thermodynamics is applied to obtain thermodynamic losses inside the cavity due to both heat transfer and fluid friction irreversibilities. The variation of local and average Nusselt numbers are presented and discussed.While, streamlines, isotherms and entropy contours are presented in both two and three-dimensional pattern. The results show that when the Rayleigh number increases, the flow patterns are changed especially in three-dimensional results and the flow circulation increases. Also, the inclination angle effect on the total entropy generation becomes insignificant when the Rayleigh number is low.Moreover, when the Rayleigh number increases the average Nusselt number increases.

Keywords: transient natural convection, trapezoidal cavity, three-dimensional flow, entropy generation, second law

Procedia PDF Downloads 350

Authors: Christine P. Gibson, Ramona Alex, Michael Farney, Johana Vallejo-Elias, Mitra Esfandiarei

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Aortic aneurysm is the leading cause of death in Marfan syndrome (MFS), a connective tissue disorder caused by mutations in fibrillin-1 gene (FBN1). MFS aneurysm is characterized by weakening of the aortic wall due to elastin fibers fragmentation and disorganization. The above-average height and distinct physical features make young adults with MFS desirable candidates for competitive sports; but little is known about the exercise limit at which they will be at risk for aortic rupture. On the other hand, aerobic cardiovascular exercise has been shown to have protective effects on the heart and aorta. We have previously reported that mild aerobic exercise can delay the formation of aortic aneurysm in a mouse model of MFS. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of various levels of exercise intensity on the progression of aortic aneurysm in the mouse model. Starting at 4 weeks of age, we subjected control and MFS mice to different levels of exercise intensity (8m/min, 10m/min, 15m/min, and 20m/min, corresponding to 55%, 65%, 75%, and 85% of VO2 max, respectively) on a treadmill for 30 minutes per day, five days a week for the duration of the study. At 24 weeks of age, aortic tissue were isolated and subjected to structural and functional studies using histology and wire myography in order to evaluate the effects of different exercise routines on elastin fragmentation and organization and aortic wall elasticity/stiffness. Our data shows that exercise training at the intensity levels between 55%-75% significantly reduces elastin fragmentation and disorganization, with less recovery observed in 85% MFS group. The reversibility of elasticity was also significantly restored in MFS mice subjected to 55%-75% intensity; however, the recovery was less pronounced in MFS mice subjected to 85% intensity. Furthermore, our data shows that smooth muscle cells (SMCs) contractilion in response to vasoconstrictor agent phenylephrine (100nM) is significantly reduced in MFS aorta (54.84 ± 1.63 mN/mm2) as compared to control (95.85 ± 3.04 mN/mm2). At 55% of intensity, exercise did not rescue SMCs contraction (63.45 ± 1.70 mN/mm2), while at higher intensity levels, SMCs contraction in response to phenylephrine was restored to levels similar to control aorta [65% (81.88 ± 4.57 mN/mm2), 75% (86.22 ± 3.84 mN/mm2), and 85% (83.91 ± 5.42 mN/mm2)]. This study provides the first time evidence that high intensity exercise (e.g. 85%) may not provide the most beneficial effects on aortic function (vasoconstriction) and structure (elastin fragmentation, aortic wall elasticity) during the progression of aortic aneurysm in MFS mice. On the other hand, based on our observations, medium intensity exercise (e.g. 65%) seems to provide the utmost protective effects on aortic structure and function in MFS mice. These findings provide new insights into the potential capacity, in which MFS patients could participate in various aerobic exercise routines, especially in young adults affected by cardiovascular complications particularly aortic aneurysm. This work was funded by Midwestern University Research Fund.

Keywords: aerobic exercise, aortic aneurysm, aortic wall elasticity, elastin fragmentation, Marfan syndrome

Procedia PDF Downloads 381

Authors: Daniyar Bossinov

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This paper considers a non-isothermal stationary waxy crude oil flow in a two-dimensional axisymmetric pipe with the transition of a Newtonian fluid to a non-Newtonian fluid. The viscosity and yield stress of waxy crude oil are highly dependent on temperature changes. During the hot pumping of waxy crude oil through a buried pipeline, a non-isothermal flow occurs due to heat transfer to the surrounding soil. This leads to a decrease in flow temperature, an increase in viscosity, the appearance of yield stress, the crystallization of wax, and the deposition of solid particles on the pipeline's inner wall. The deposition of oil solid particles reduces a pipeline flow area and leads to the appearance of a stagnant zone with thermal insulation in the near-wall area. Waxy crude oil properties change. A Newtonian fluid at low temperatures transits to a non-Newtonian fluid. The one-dimensional modeling of a non-isothermal waxy crude oil flow in a two-dimensional axisymmetric pipeline by traditional averaging of temperature and velocity over the pipeline cross-section does not allow for explaining a physics phenomenon. Therefore, in this work, a two-dimensional flow model and the heat transfer of waxy oil are constructed. The calculated data show the transition of a Newtonian fluid to a non-Newtonian fluid due to the heat exchange of waxy oil with the environment.

Keywords: non-isothermal laminar flow, waxy crude oil, stagnant zone, yield stress

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Authors: Ramazan Livaoğlu, Tufan Çakır

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The performance of rectangular tanks during earthquakes has been observed to depend significantly on the existence of water in the container and the presence of the backfill acting on tank wall. Therefore, in design of rectangular tanks, the topics of fluid-structure-backfill interactions and determination of modal characteristics of the interaction system have traditionally been one of the great theoretical and practical controversy. Although finite element method has been and will continue to be used to a significant extent in treating the response of the system, experimental verification of numerical models remains prerequisite for their adoption and reliable application in practice. Thus, in this study, the numerical and experimental investigations were performed on the backfill-exterior wall-fluid interaction system. Firstly, three dimensional finite element model (3D-FEM) was developed to acquire modal frequencies and mode shapes of the system by means of ANSYS. Secondly, a series of in-situ tests were fulfilled to define modal characteristics of same system to determine the applicability of the FEM to a real physical situation under field conditions. Finally, comparing the theoretical predictions from the model to results from experimental measurement, a close agreement was found between theory and experiment. Thus, it can be easily stated that experimental verification provides strong support for the use of proposed model in further investigations.

Keywords: fluid-structure interaction, modal analysis, rectangular tank, soil structure interaction

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Authors: Diego F. Camacho, Cristian J. Mejia, Carlos Duque-Daza

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The recent widespread use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) has fueled a renewed interest in efficiency and performance of airfoils, particularly for applications at low and moderate Reynolds numbers, typical of this kind of vehicles. Most of previous efforts in the aeronautical industry, regarding aerodynamic efficiency, had been focused on high Reynolds numbers applications, typical of commercial airliners and large size aircrafts. However, in order to increase the levels of efficiency and to boost the performance of these UAV, it is necessary to explore new alternatives in terms of airfoil design and application of drag reduction techniques. The objective of the present work is to carry out the analysis and comparison of performance levels between a standard NACA0012 profile against another one featuring a wall protuberance or surface perturbation. A computational model, based on the finite volume method, is employed to evaluate the effect of the presence of geometrical distortions on the wall. The performance evaluation is achieved in terms of variations of drag and lift coefficients for the given profile. In particular, the aerodynamic performance of the new design, i.e. the airfoil with a surface perturbation, is examined under conditions of incompressible and subsonic flow in transient state. The perturbation considered is a shaped protrusion prescribed as a small surface deformation on the top wall of the aerodynamic profile. The ultimate goal by including such a controlled smooth artificial roughness was to alter the turbulent boundary layer. It is shown in the present work that such a modification has a dramatic impact on the aerodynamic characteristics of the airfoil, and if properly adjusted, in a positive way. The computational model was implemented using the unstructured, FVM-based open source C++ platform OpenFOAM. A number of numerical experiments were carried out at Reynolds number 5x104, based on the length of the chord and the free-stream velocity, and angles of attack 6° and 12°. A Large Eddy Simulation (LES) approach was used, together with the dynamic Smagorinsky approach as subgrid scale (SGS) model, in order to account for the effect of the small turbulent scales. The impact of the surface perturbation on the performance of the airfoil is judged in terms of changes in the drag and lift coefficients, as well as in terms of alterations of the main characteristics of the turbulent boundary layer on the upper wall. A dramatic change in the whole performance can be appreciated, including an arguably large level of lift-to-drag coefficient ratio increase for all angles and a size reduction of laminar separation bubble (LSB) for a twelve-angle-of-attack.

Keywords: CFD, LES, Lift-to-drag ratio, LSB, NACA 0012 airfoil

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Authors: Mohammed Alenezy

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The function of cardiac motion can be used as an indicator of the heart abnormality by evaluating longitudinal, circumferential, and Radial Strain of the left ventricle. In this paper, the Radial Strain and SR is studied using tagged MRI (tMRI) data during the cardiac cycle on the mid-ventricle level of the left ventricle. Materials and methods: The short-axis view of the left ventricle of five healthy human (three males and two females) and four healthy male rats were imaged using tagged magnetic resonance imaging (tMRI) technique covering the whole cardiac cycle on the mid-ventricle level. Images were processed using Image J software to calculate the left ventricle wall Radial Strain and radial SR. The left ventricle Radial Strain and radial SR were calculated at the mid-ventricular level during the cardiac cycle. The peak Radial Strain for the human and rat heart was 40.7±1.44, and 46.8±0.68 respectively, and it occurs at 40% of the cardiac cycle for both human and rat heart. The peak diastolic and systolic radial SR for human heart was -1.78 s-1 ± 0.02 s-1 and 1.10±0.08 s-1 respectively, while for rat heart it was -5.16± 0.23s-1 and 4.25±0.02 s-1 respectively. Conclusion: This results show the ability of the tMRI data to characterize the cardiac motion during the cardiac cycle including diastolic and systolic phases which can be used as an indicator of the cardiac dysfunction by estimating the left ventricle Radial Strain and radial SR at different locations of the cardiac tissue. This study approves the validity of the tagged MRI data to describe accurately the cardiac radial motion.

Keywords: left ventricle, radial strain, tagged MRI, cardiac cycle

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Authors: Ataollah Rabiee1, Amir Hossein Kamalinia, Alireza Atf

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One of the most important issues in the design of nuclear fusion power plants is the heat removal from the hottest region at the diverter. Various methods could be employed in order to improve the heat transfer efficiency, such as generating turbulent flow and injection of nanoparticles in the host fluid. In the current study, Water/AL₂O₃ nanofluid forced swirl flow boiling has been investigated by using a homogeneous thermophysical model within the Eulerian-Eulerian framework through a twisted tape tube, and the boiling phenomenon was modeled using the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) approach. In addition to comparing the results with the experimental data and their reasonable agreement, it was evidenced that higher flow mixing results in more uniform bulk temperature and lower wall temperature along the twisted tape tube. The presence of AL₂O₃ nanoparticles in the boiling flow field showed that increasing the nanoparticle concentration leads to a reduced vapor volume fraction and wall temperature. The Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) results show that the average heat transfer coefficient in the tube increases both by increasing the nanoparticle concentration and the insertion of twisted tape, which significantly affects the thermal field of the boiling flow.

Keywords: nanoparticle, boiling, CFD, two phase flow, alumina, ITER

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Authors: Alvaro Jose Cordova, Hsuan Teh Hu

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The use of concrete masonry constructions in developing countries has become very frequent, especially for domestic purpose. Most of them with asymmetric wall configurations in plan resulting in significant torsional actions when subjected to seismic loads. The study consisted on the finding of a material model for hollow unreinforced concrete masonry and a validation with experimental data found in literature. Numerical simulations were performed to 20 buildings with variations in wall distributions and heights. Results were analyzed by inspection and with a non-linear static method. The findings revealed that eccentricities as well as structure rigidities have a strong influence on the overall response of concrete masonry buildings. In addition, slab rotations depicted more accurate information about the torsional behavior than maximum versus average displacement ratios. The failure modes in low buildings were characterized by high tensile strains in the first floor. Whereas in tall buildings these strains were lowered significantly by higher compression stresses due to a higher self-weight. These tall buildings developed multiple plastic hinges along the height. Finally, the non-linear static analysis exposed a brittle response for all masonry assemblies. This type of behavior is undesired in any construction and the need for a material model for reinforced masonry is pointed out.

Keywords: concrete damaged plasticity, concrete masonry, macro-modeling, nonlinear static analysis, torsional capacity

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Authors: Gourav Jain, Sameer Dixit, Surjeet Kumar Arya, Praveen C. Verma

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Plant cell wall plays a major role in defence mechanism against biotic and abiotic stress as it constitutes the physical barrier between the microenvironment and internal component of the cell. It is a complex structure composed of mostly carbohydrates among which cellulose and hemicelluloses are most abundant that is embedded in a matrix of pectins and proteins. Multiple enzymes have been reported which plays a vital role in cell wall modification, Pectin Methylesterase (PME) is one of them which catalyses the demethylesterification of homogalacturonans component of pectin which releases acidic pectin and methanol. As emitted methanol is toxic to the insect pest, we use PME gene for the better methanol production. In the current study we showed overexpression of PME gene isolated from Withania somnifera under the insect inducible promoter causes enhancement of methanol production at the time of insect feeds to plants, and that provides better insect resistance property. We found that the 85-90% mortality causes by transgenic tobacco in both chewing (Spodoptera litura larvae and Helicoverpa armigera) and sap-sucking (Aphid, mealybug, and whitefly) pest. The methanol content and emission level were also enhanced by 10-15 folds at different inducible time point interval (15min, 30min, 45min, 60min) which would be analysed by Purpald/Alcohol Oxidase method.

Keywords: methanol, Pectin methylesterase, inducible promoters, Purpald/Alcohol oxidase

Procedia PDF Downloads 244

Authors: Hassan Mohammadi Khujin

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Tissue engineering is the science of tissues and complex organs creation using scaffolds, cells and biologically active components. Most cells require scaffolds to grow and proliferate. These temporary support structures for tissue regeneration are later replaced with extracellular matrix produced inside the body. Recent advances in additive manufacturing methods allow production of highly porous, complex three dimensional scaffolds suitable for cell growth and proliferation. The current paper investigates the mechanical properties, including elastic modulus and compressive strength, as well as fluid flow dynamics, including permeability and flow-induced shear stress of scaffolds with four triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS) configurations, namely the Schwarz primitive, the Schwarz diamond, the gyroid, and the Neovius structures. Higher porosity in all scaffold types resulted in lower mechanical properties. The permeability of the scaffolds was determined using Darcy's law with reference to geometrical parameters and the pressure drop derived from the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis. Higher porosity enhanced permeability and reduced wall shear stress in all scaffold designs.

Keywords: highly porous scaffolds, tissue engineering, finite elements analysis, CFD analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 76

Authors: Masoud Mohammadpour, Nima Yazdian, Radovan Kovacevic

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The Oil and Gas industries are vigorously looking for new ways to increase the efficiency of their pipeline constructions. Besides the other approaches, implementing of new welding methods for joining pipes can be the best candidate on this regard. Hybrid Laser Arc Welding (HLAW) with the capabilities of high welding speed, deep penetration, and excellent gap bridging ability can be a possible alternative method in pipeline girth welding. This paper investigates the feasibility of applying the HLAW to join ASTM A106-B as the mostly used piping material for transporting high-temperature and high-pressure fluids and gases. The experiments were carried out on six-inch diameter pipes with the wall thickness of 10mm. AWS ER 70 S6 filler wire with diameter of 1.2mm was employed. Relating to this welding procedure, characterization of welded samples such as hardness, tensile testing and Charpy V-notch testing were performed and the results will be reported in this paper. In order to have better understanding about the thermal history and the microstructural alterations caused by the welding heat cycle, a comprehensive Finite Element (FE) model was also conducted. The obtained results have shown that the Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW) procedure with the minimum number of 5 passes to complete the wall thickness, was reduced to only single pass by using the HLAW process with the welding time less than 15s.

Keywords: finite element modeling, high-temperature service, hybrid laser/arc welding, welding pipes

Procedia PDF Downloads 209

Authors: A. A. Purohit, A. Basu, K. A. Chavan, M. D. Kudale

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Many estuarine harbours in the world are facing the problem of siltation in docks, channel entrances, etc. The harbours in India are not an exception and require maintenance dredging to achieve navigable depths for keeping them operable. Hence, dredging is inevitable and is a costly affair. The heavy siltation in docks in well mixed tide dominated estuaries is mainly due to settlement of cohesive sediments in suspension. As such there is a need to have a permanent solution for minimising the siltation in such docks to alter the hydrodynamic flow field responsible for siltation by constructing structures outside the dock. One of such docks on the west coast of India, wherein siltation of about 2.5-3 m/annum prevails, was considered to understand the hydrodynamic flow field responsible for siltation. The dock is situated in such a region where macro type of semi-diurnal tide (range of about 5m) prevails. In order to change the flow field responsible for siltation inside the dock, suitability of Current Deflecting Wall (CDW) outside the dock was studied, which will minimise the sediment exchange rate and siltation in the dock. The well calibrated physical tidal model was used to understand the flow field during various phases of tide for the existing dock in Mumbai harbour. At the harbour entrance where the tidal flux exchanges in/out of the dock, measurements on water level and current were made to estimate the sediment transport capacity. The distorted scaled model (1:400 (H) & 1:80 (V)) of Mumbai area was used to study the tidal flow phenomenon, wherein tides are generated by automatic tide generator. Hydraulic model studies carried out under the existing condition (without CDW) reveal that, during initial hours of flood tide, flow hugs the docks breakwater and part of flow which enters the dock forms number of eddies of varying sizes inside the basin, while remaining part of flow bypasses the entrance of dock. During ebb, flow direction reverses, and part of the flow re-enters the dock from outside and creates eddies at its entrance. These eddies do not allow water/sediment-mass to come out and result in settlement of sediments in dock both due to eddies and more retention of sediment. At latter hours, current strength outside the dock entrance reduces and allows the water-mass of dock to come out. In order to improve flow field inside the dockyard, two CDWs of length 300 m and 40 m were proposed outside the dock breakwater and inline to Pier-wall at dock entrance. Model studies reveal that, during flood, major flow gets deflected away from the entrance and no eddies are formed inside the dock, while during ebb flow does not re-enter the dock, and sediment flux immediately starts emptying it during initial hours of ebb. This reduces not only the entry of sediment in dock by about 40% but also the deposition by about 42% due to less retention. Thus, CDW is a promising solution to significantly reduce siltation in dock.

Keywords: current deflecting wall, eddies, hydraulic model, macro tide, siltation

Procedia PDF Downloads 298

Authors: Ashwin Bala, K. Panthalaraja Kumaran, S. Prithviraj, R. Pradeep, J. Udhayakumar, S. Ajith

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In this paper, studies have been carried out for an in-house design of a waste heat recovery system for effectively utilizing the domestic air conditioner heat energy for producing hot water. Theoretical studies have been carried to optimizing the flow rate for getting maximum output with a minimum size of the heater. Critical diameter, wall thickness, and total length of the water pipeline have been estimated from the conventional heat transfer model. Several combinations of pipeline shapes viz., spiral, coil, zigzag wound through the radiator has been attempted and accordingly shape has been optimized using heat transfer analyses. The initial condition is declared based on the water flow rate and temperature. Through the parametric analytical studies we have conjectured that water flow rate, temperature difference between incoming water and radiator skin temperature, pipe material, radiator material, geometry of the water pipe viz., length, diameter, and wall thickness are having bearing on the lucrative design of a waste heat recovery system for air conditioners. Results generated through the numerical studies have been validated using an in-house waste heat recovery system for air conditioners.

Keywords: air conditioner design, energy conversion system, radiator design for energy recovery systems, waste heat recovery system

Procedia PDF Downloads 357

Authors: N. Thawornwisit, P. Pradoo, S. Nuypree, L. Jarukasetrporn, S. Jitpukdeebodintra

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Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the duration of the Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) penetration into the gap between root canal wall and filling material at a 3 to 6 mm distance from the cementoenamel junction (CEJ) in the dislodged temporary filling, in vitro. Material and methods: Thirty-four single root canal mandibular premolars were divided into two experimental groups (N = 15) and one negative control (N = 4). Root canals were prepared and obturated with gutta-percha using lateral condensation technique, X-ray checked, and sterilized. Leakages were set up using the modified bacterial leakage model, and E. faecalis was used as a microbial marker. Leakages were evaluated at 3 and 7 days by culturing gutta-percha and dentine drilled from a 3-6 mm distance from CEJ. Broth turbidity was recorded and compared. Result: All four negative control and the 3-day experimental group showed no broth turbidity. For the 7-day experimental group, there was 33.3% leakage. Conclusion: Penetration of E. faecalis into the gap between root canal wall and filling material at a 3 to 6 mm distance from CEJ in the dislodged temporary filling were not found at three days. However, at seven days of exposure, bacteria could penetrate into the interface of the root canal and filling materials.

Keywords: coronal leakage, bacterial leakage model, enterococcus faecalis

Procedia PDF Downloads 94

Authors: Hongshan Guo

Abstract:

Ground-source heat pumps provide stable and reliable heating and cooling when designed properly. The confounding effect of the borehole depth for a GSHP system, however, is rarely taken into account for any optimization: the determination of the borehole depth usually comes prior to the selection of corresponding system components and thereafter any optimization of the GSHP system. The depth of the borehole is important to any GSHP system because the shallower the borehole, the larger the fluctuation of temperature of the near-borehole soil temperature. This could lead to fluctuations of the coefficient of performance (COP) for the GSHP system in the long term when the heating/cooling demand is large. Yet the deeper the boreholes are drilled, the more the drilling cost and the operational expenses for the circulation. A controller that reads different building load profiles, optimizing for the smallest costs and temperature fluctuation at the borehole wall, eventually providing borehole depth as the output is developed. Due to the nature of the nonlinear dynamic nature of the GSHP system, it was found that between conventional optimal controller problem and model predictive control problem, the latter was found to be more feasible due to a possible history of both the trajectory during the iteration as well as the final output could be computed and compared against. Aside from a few scenarios of different weighting factors, the resulting system costs were verified with literature and reports and were found to be relatively accurate, while the temperature fluctuation at the borehole wall was also found to be within acceptable range. It was therefore determined that the MPC is adequate to optimize for the investment as well as the system performance for various outputs.

Keywords: geothermal borehole, MPC, dynamic modeling, simulation

Procedia PDF Downloads 287

Authors: Robert P. Dufresne, Hamid Arabzadeh

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The current study investigates the effectiveness of a new form of permanent baseboard insulators with an umbrella action, hereinafter referred to as Coronary Insulator, in supporting and protecting the assembly of electrodes immersed in an electrolytic cell and in increasing the lifespan of the lateral sides of the electrolytic cell, in both electro-winning and electro-refinery method. The advantages of using a coronary insulator in addition to the top capping board (equipotential insulator) were studied compared to the conventional assembly of an electrolytic cell. Then, a thermal imaging technique was utilized during high-temperature thermal (heat transfer) tests for sample cell walls with and without coronary insulators in their assembly to show the effectiveness of coronary insulators in protecting the cell wall under extreme conditions. It was shown that, unlike the conventional assembly, which is highly prone to damages to the cell wall under thermal shocks, the presence of coronary insulator can significantly increase the level of protection of the cell due to their ultra-high thermal and chemical resistance, as well as decreasing the replacement frequency of insulators to almost zero. Besides, the results of the study showed that the test assembly with the coronary insulator provides better consistency in positioning and, subsequently, better contact, compared to the conventional method, which reduces the chance of electric short-circuit in the system.

Keywords: capping board, coronary insulator, electrolytic cell, thermal shock.

Procedia PDF Downloads 188

Authors: Md Abdullah Al Faruque, Ram Balachandar

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Sudden change of bed condition is frequent in open channel flow. Change of bed condition affects the turbulence characteristics in both streamwise and wall-normal direction. Understanding the turbulence intensity in open channel flow is of vital importance to the modeling of sediment transport and resuspension, bed formation, entrainment, and the exchange of energy and momentum. A comprehensive study was carried out to understand the extent of the effect of Reynolds number and bed roughness on different turbulence characteristics in an open channel flow. Four different bed conditions (impervious smooth bed, impervious continuous rough bed, pervious rough sand bed, and impervious distributed roughness) and two different Reynolds numbers were adopted for this cause. The effect of bed roughness on different turbulence characteristics is seen to be prevalent for most of the flow depth. Effect of Reynolds number on different turbulence characteristics is also evident for flow over different bed, but the extent varies on bed condition. Although the same sand grain is used to create the different rough bed conditions, the difference in turbulence characteristics is an indication that specific geometry of the roughness has an influence on turbulence characteristics. Roughness increases the contribution of the extreme turbulent events which produces very large instantaneous Reynolds shear stress and can potentially influence the sediment transport, resuspension of pollutant from bed and alter the nutrient composition, which eventually affect the sustainability of benthic organisms.

Keywords: open channel flow, Reynolds Number, roughness, turbulence

Procedia PDF Downloads 400

Authors: Paul Dunst, Ing. Tobias Hemsel, Ing. Habil. Walter Sextro

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The use of fine powders with high cohesive and adhesive properties leads to challenges during transport, mixing and dosing in industrial processes, which have not been satisfactorily solved so far. Due to the increased contact forces at the transporting parts (e. g. pipe-wall and transport screws), conventional transport systems and also vibratory conveyors reach their limits. Often, flowability increasing additives that need to be removed again in later process steps are the only option to achieve wanted transport results. A rather new ultrasound-assisted powder transport system showed to overcome some of the issues by manipulating the effective friction between powder and transport pipe. Within this contribution, the transport mechanism will be introduced shortly, together with preliminary transport results. As the tangential force of the transport pipe and the powder is the main influencing factor within the transport process, a test stand for measuring tangential forces of a powder-wall contact in the presence of an ultrasonic vibration orthogonal to the contact plane was built. Measurements for a sample powder show that the effective tangential force can already be significantly reduced at very low ultrasonic amplitude. As a result of the measurements, an empirical model for the relationship of tangential force, contact parameters and ultrasonic excitation is presented. This model was used to adjust the driving parameters of the powder transport system, resulting in better performance.

Keywords: powder transport, ultrasound, friction, friction manipulation, vibratory conveyor

Procedia PDF Downloads 152