Search results for: micro sliding

Authors: Hatem I. Mokhtar, Randa A. Abd-El-Salam, Ghada M. Hadad

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An improved nano-composite of self-doped polyaniline nanofibers and silica-coated magnetite nanoparticles were prepared and evaluated for suitability to magnetic dispersive micro solid-phase extraction. The work focused on optimization of the composite capacity to extract four fluoroquinolones (FQs) antibiotics, ciprofloxacin, enrofloxacin, danofloxacin, and difloxacin from water and improvement of composite stability towards acid and atmospheric degradation. Self-doped polyaniline nanofibers were prepared by oxidative co-polymerization of aniline with anthranilic acid. Magnetite nanopariticles were prepared by alkaline co-precipitation and coated with silica by silicate hydrolysis on magnetite nanoparticles surface at pH 6.5. The composite was formed by self-assembly by mixing self-doped polyaniline nanofibers with silica-coated magnetite nanoparticles dispersions in ethanol. The composite structure was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Self-doped polyaniline nanofibers and magnetite chemical structures were confirmed by FT-IR while silica coating of the magnetite was confirmed by Energy Dispersion X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS). Improved stability of the composite magnetic component was evidenced by resistance to degrade in 2N HCl solution. The adsorption capacity of self-doped polyaniline nanofibers based composite was higher than previously reported corresponding composite prepared from polyaniline nanofibers instead of self-doped polyaniline nanofibers. Adsorption-pH profile for the studied FQs on the prepared composite revealed that the best pH for adsorption was in range of 6.5 to 7. Best extraction recovery values were obtained at pH 7 using phosphate buffer. The best solvent for FQs desorption was found to be 0.1N HCl in methanol:water (8:2; v/v) mixture. 20 mL of Spiked water sample with studied FQs were preconcentrated using 4.8 mg of composite and resulting extracts were analysed by HPLC-UV method. The prepared composite represented a suitable adsorbent phase for magnetic dispersive micro-solid phase application.

Keywords: fluoroquinolones, magnetic dispersive micro extraction, nano-composite, self-doped polyaniline nanofibers

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Authors: Narayanappa Devakumar, Chengalappa Seenappa

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The field experiments were conducted during Rabi 2013 and summer 2014 at College of Sericulture, Chintamani, Chickaballapur district, Karnataka, India to find out the response of mulberry to different methods, levels of irrigation and mulching. The results showed that leaf yield and water productivity of mulberry were significantly influenced by different methods, levels of irrigation and mulching. Subsurface drip with lower level of irrigation at 0.8 CPE (Cumulative Pan Evaporation) recorded higher leaf yield and water productivity (42857 kg ha-1 yr-1and 364.41 kg hacm-1) than surface drip with higher level of irrigation at 1.0 CPE (38809 kg ha-1 yr-1 and 264.10 kg hacm-1) and micro spray jet (39931 kg ha-1 yr-1 and 271.83 kg hacm-1). Further, subsurface drip recorded minimum water used to produce one kg of leaf and to earn one rupee of profit (283 L and 113 L) compared to surface drip (390 L and 156 L) and micro spray jet (379 L and 152 L) irrigation methods. Mulberry leaf yield increased and water productivity decreased with increased levels of irrigation. However, these results indicated that irrigation of mulberry with subsurface drip increased leaf yield and water productivity by saving 20% of irrigation water than surface drip and micro spray jet irrigation methods in Eastern Dry Zone (EDZ) of Karnataka.

Keywords: cumulative pan evaporation, mulaberry, subsurface drip irrigation, water productivity

Procedia PDF Downloads 281

Authors: Widari

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This study aims to determine the relationship of fast food consumption preferences with macro and micro nutrient adequacy students of SMP Negeri 5 Padang. This study used a cross sectional study conducted on 100 students of SMP Negeri 5 Padang. The variables studied were fast food preferences, nutrition adequacy macronutrients (carbohydrate, protein, fat, fiber) and micro nutrients (sodium, calcium, iron). Confounding factor in this study was the physical activity level because it was considered quite affecting food consumption of students. Data collected by using a questionnaire food recall as many as 2 x 24 hours to see the history of the respondents eat at school day and on holidays. Then, data processed using software Nutrisurvey and Microsoft Excel 2010. The analysis was performed on samples that have low and medium category on physical activity. The physical activity was not analyzed with another variable to see the strength of the relationship between independent and dependent variables. So that, do restrictions on physical activity variables in an attempt to get rid of confounding in design. Univariate and bivariate analyzes performed using SPSS 16.0 for Windows with Kolmogrov-Smirnov statistical tests, confidence level = 95% (α = 0,05). Results of univariate analysis showed that more than 70% of respondents liked fast food. On average, respondents were malnourished macro; malnourished fiber (100%), carbohydrates (72%), and protein (56%), whereas for fat, excess intake of the respondents (41%). Furthermor, many respondents who have micronutrient deficiencies; 98% for sodium, 96% for iron, and 91% for calcium. The results of the bivariate analysis showed no significant association between fast food consumption preferences with macro and micro nutrient adequacy (p > 0,05). This happens because in the fact not all students who have a preference for fast food actually eat them. To study better in the future, it is expected sampling really like and eat fast food in order to obtain better analysis results.

Keywords: fast food, nutritional adequacy, preferences, students

Procedia PDF Downloads 374

Authors: Musaab Salman Sultan

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The surface and bulk magnetization behavior of template released isolated ferromagnetic Ni₆₀Fe₄₀ nanowires of relatively thick diameters (~200 nm), deposited from a dilute suspension onto pre-patterned insulating chips have been investigated experimentally, using a highly sensitive Magneto-Optical Ker Effect (MOKE) magnetometry and Magneto-Resistance (MR) measurements, respectively. The MR data were consistent with the theoretical predictions of the anisotropic magneto-resistance (AMR) effect. The MR measurements, in all the angles of investigations, showed large features and a series of nonmonotonic "continuous small features" in the resistance profiles. The extracted switching fields from these features and from MOKE loops were compared with each other and with the switching fields reported in the literature that adopted the same analytical techniques on the similar compositions and dimensions of nanowires. A large difference between MOKE and MR measurments was noticed. The disparate between MOKE and MR results is attributed to the variance in the micro-magnetic structure of the surface and the bulk of such ferromagnetic nanowires. This result was ascertained using micro-magnetic simulations on an individual: cylindrical and rectangular cross sections NiFe nanowires, with the same diameter/thickness of the experimental wires, using the Object Oriented Micro-magnetic Framework (OOMMF) package where the simulated loops showed different switching events, indicating that such wires have different magnetic states in the reversal process and the micro-magnetic spin structures during switching behavior was complicated. These results further supported the difference between surface and bulk magnetization behavior in these nanowires. This work suggests that a combination of MOKE and MR measurements is required to fully understand the magnetization behavior of such relatively thick isolated cylindrical ferromagnetic nanowires.

Keywords: MOKE magnetometry, MR measurements, OOMMF package, micromagnetic simulations, ferromagnetic nanowires, surface magnetic properties

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Authors: Davoud Beheshtizadeh, Davood Jafari

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Concrete, with its special properties and advantages, has caused it to be widely and increasingly used in construction industry, especially in infrastructures of the country. On the other hand, some defects of concrete and, most importantly, micro-cracks in the concrete after setting have caused the cost of repair and maintenance of infrastructure; therefore, self-healing concretes have been of attention in other countries in the recent years. These concretes have been repaired with general mechanisms such as physical, chemical, biological and combined mechanisms, each of which has different subsets and methods of execution and operation. Also, some of these types of mechanisms are of high importance, which has led to a special production method, and as this subject is new in Iran, this knowledge is almost unknown or at least some part of it has not been considered at all. The present article completely introduces various self-healing mechanisms as a review and tries to present the disadvantages and advantages of each method along with its scope of application.

Keywords: micro-cracks, self-healing concrete, microcapsules, concrete, cement, self-sensitive

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Authors: Abdullah Kaymakci, Daniel M. Madyira, Hilda Moseme

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Repairing railway wheels by weld build-up is one of the technological solutions that have been applied in the past. However, the effects of this process on the material properties are not well established. The effects of the weld build-up on the mechanical properties of the wheel material in comparison to the required mechanical properties for proper service performance were investigated in this study. A turning process was used to remove the worn surface from the railway wheel. During this process 5mm thickness was removed to ensure that, if there was any weld build-up done in the previous years, it was removed. This was followed by welding a round bar on the sides of the wheel to provide build-up guide. There were two welding processes performed, namely submerged arc welding (SAW) and gas metal arc welding (GMAW). Submerged arc welding (SAW) was used to build up weld on one rim while the other rim was just left with metal arc welding of the round bar at the edges. Both processes produced hardness values that were lower than that of the parent material of 195 HV as the GMAW welds had an average of 184 HV and SAW had an average of 194 HV. Whilst a number of defects were noted on the GMAW welds at both macro and micro levels, SAW welds had less defects and they were all micro defects. All the microstructures were ferritic but with differences in grain sizes. Furthermore, in the SAW weld build up, the grains of the weld build-up appeared to be elongated which was a result of the cooling rate. Using GMAW instead of SAW would result in improved wear and fatigue performance.

Keywords: submerged arc welding, gas metal arc welding, railway wheel, microstructure, micro hardness

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Authors: Kang-Gyu Park, Sun-Jong Park, Hong Jae Yim, Hyo-Gyung Kwak

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This paper attempts to evaluate the effect of fire damage on concrete by using nonlinear resonance vibration method, one of the nonlinear nondestructive method. Concrete exhibits not only nonlinear stress-strain relation but also hysteresis and discrete memory effect which are contained in consolidated materials. Hysteretic materials typically show the linear resonance frequency shift. Also, the shift of resonance frequency is changed according to the degree of micro damage. The degree of the shift can be obtained through nonlinear resonance vibration method. Five exposure scenarios were considered in order to make different internal micro damage. Also, the effect of post-fire-curing on fire-damaged concrete was taken into account to conform the change in internal damage. Hysteretic non linearity parameter was obtained by amplitude-dependent resonance frequency shift after specific curing periods. In addition, splitting tensile strength was measured on each sample to characterize the variation of residual strength. Then, a correlation between the hysteretic non linearity parameter and residual strength was proposed from each test result.

Keywords: nonlinear resonance vibration method, non linearity parameter, splitting tensile strength, micro damage, post-fire-curing, fire damaged concrete

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Authors: Minho Kwak, Suhwan Yun, Choonsoo Park

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Nose shape optimizations of high-speed train are performed for the improvement of aerodynamic characteristics. Based on the commercial train, KTX-Sancheon, multi-objective optimizations are conducted for the improvement of the side wind stability and the micro-pressure wave following the optimization for the reduction of aerodynamic drag. 3D nose shapes are modelled by the Vehicle Modeling Function. Aerodynamic drag and side wind stability are calculated by three-dimensional compressible Navier-Stokes solver, and micro pressure wave is done by axi-symmetric compressible Navier-Stokes solver. The Maxi-min Latin Hypercube Sampling method is used to extract sampling points to construct the approximation model. The kriging model is constructed for the approximation model and the NSGA-II algorithm was used as the multi-objective optimization algorithm. Nose length, nose tip height, and lower surface curvature are design variables. Because nose length is a dominant variable for aerodynamic characteristics of train nose, two optimization processes are progressed respectively with and without the design variable, nose length. Each pareto set was obtained and each optimized nose shape is selected respectively considering Honam high-speed rail line infrastructure in South Korea. Through the optimization process with the nose length, when compared to KTX Sancheon, aerodynamic drag was reduced by 9.0%, side wind stability was improved by 4.5%, micro-pressure wave was reduced by 5.4% whereas aerodynamic drag by 7.3%, side wind stability by 3.9%, micro-pressure wave by 3.9%, without the nose length. As a result of comparison between two optimized shapes, similar shapes are extracted other than the effect of nose length.

Keywords: aerodynamic characteristics, design variable, multi-objective optimization, train nose shape

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Authors: A. Umar, A. Tamimi

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Development of new types of concrete with improved performance is a very important issue for the whole building industry. The development is based on the optimization of the concrete mix design, with an emphasis not only on the workability and mechanical properties but also to the durability and the reliability of the concrete structure in general. Self-compacting concrete (SCC) is a high-performance material designed to flow into formwork under its own weight and without the aid of mechanical vibration. At the same time it is cohesive enough to fill spaces of almost any size and shape without segregation or bleeding. Construction time is shorter and production of SCC is environmentally friendly (no noise, no vibration). Furthermore, SCC produces a good surface finish. Despite these advantages, SCC has not gained much local acceptance though it has been promoted in the Middle East for the last ten to twelve years. The reluctance in utilizing the advantages of SCC, in Bahrain, may be due to lack of research or published data pertaining to locally produced SCC. Therefore, there is a need to conduct studies on SCC using locally available material supplies. From the literature, it has been observed that the use of viscosity modifying admixtures (VMA), micro silica and glass fibers have proved to be very effective in stabilizing the rheological properties and the strength of fresh and hardened properties of self-compacting concrete (SCC). Therefore, in the present study, it is proposed to carry out investigations of SCC with combinations of various dosages of VMAs with and without micro silica and glass fibers and to study their influence on the properties of fresh and hardened concrete.

Keywords: self-compacting concrete, viscosity modifying admixture, micro silica, glass fibers

Procedia PDF Downloads 649

Authors: M. S. Jouini, A. Al-Sumaiti, M. Tembely, K. Rahimov

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Characterizing rock properties of carbonate reservoirs is highly challenging because of rock heterogeneities revealed at several length scales. In the last two decades, the Digital Rock Physics (DRP) approach was implemented successfully in sandstone rocks reservoirs in order to understand rock properties behaviour at the pore scale. This approach uses 3D X-ray Microtomography images to characterize pore network and also simulate rock properties from these images. Even though, DRP is able to predict realistic rock properties results in sandstone reservoirs it is still suffering from a lack of clear workflow in carbonate rocks. The main challenge is the integration of properties simulated at different scales in order to obtain the effective rock property of core plugs. In this paper, we propose several approaches to characterize absolute permeability in some carbonate core plugs samples using multi-scale numerical simulation workflow. In this study, we propose a procedure to simulate porosity and absolute permeability of a carbonate rock sample using textures of Micro-Computed Tomography images. First, we discretize X-Ray Micro-CT image into a regular grid. Then, we use a textural parametric model to classify each cell of the grid using supervised classification. The main parameters are first and second order statistics such as mean, variance, range and autocorrelations computed from sub-bands obtained after wavelet decomposition. Furthermore, we fill permeability property in each cell using two strategies based on numerical simulation values obtained locally on subsets. Finally, we simulate numerically the effective permeability using Darcy’s law simulator. Results obtained for studied carbonate sample shows good agreement with the experimental property.

Keywords: multiscale modeling, permeability, texture, micro-tomography images

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Authors: B. Yaman, G. Acikbas, N. Calis Acikbas

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Epoxy based materials have advantages in tribological applications due to their unique properties such as light weight, self-lubrication capacity and wear resistance. On the other hand, their usage is often limited by their low load bearing capacity and low thermal conductivity values. In this study, it is aimed to improve tribological and also mechanical properties of epoxy by reinforcing with ceramic based porcelain waste. It is well-known that the reuse or recycling of waste materials leads to reduction in production costs, ease of manufacturing, saving energy, etc. From this perspective, epoxy and epoxy matrix composites containing 60wt% porcelain waste with different particle size in the range of below 90µm and 150-250µm were fabricated, and the effect of filler particle size on the mechanical and tribological properties was investigated. The microstructural characterization was carried out by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and phase analysis was determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The Archimedes principle was used to measure the density and porosity of the samples. The hardness values were measured using Shore-D hardness, and bending tests were performed. Microstructural investigations indicated that porcelain particles were homogeneously distributed and no agglomerations were encountered in the epoxy resin. Mechanical test results showed that the hardness and bending strength were increased with increasing particle size related to low porosity content and well embedding to the matrix. Tribological behavior of these composites was evaluated in terms of friction, wear rates and wear mechanisms by ball-on-disk contact with dry and rotational sliding at room temperature against WC ball with a diameter of 3mm. Wear tests were carried out at room temperature (23–25°C) with a humidity of 40 ± 5% under dry-sliding conditions. The contact radius of cycles was set to 5 mm at linear speed of 30 cm/s for the geometry used in this study. In all the experiments, 3N of constant test load was applied at a frequency of 8 Hz and prolonged to 400m wear distance. The friction coefficient of samples was recorded online by the variation in the tangential force. The steady-state CoFs were changed in between 0,29-0,32. The dimensions of the wear tracks (depth and width) were measured as two-dimensional profiles by a stylus profilometer. The wear volumes were calculated by integrating these 2D surface areas over the diameter. Specific wear rates were computed by dividing the wear volume by the applied load and sliding distance. According to the experimental results, the use of porcelain waste in the fabrication of epoxy resin composites can be suggested to be potential materials due to allowing improved mechanical and tribological properties and also providing reduction in production cost.

Keywords: epoxy composites, mechanical properties, porcelain waste, tribological properties

Procedia PDF Downloads 195

Authors: Pijush Roy, Vinay Kumar Rai

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The present study highlights the estimation of soil loss and identification of critical area for implementation of best management practice is central to the success of soil conservation programme. The quantification of morphometric and Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) factors using remote sensing and GIS for prioritization of micro-watersheds in Asan River catchment, western Doon valley at foothills of Siwalik ranges in the Dehradun districts of Uttarakhand, India. The watershed has classified as a dendritic pattern with sixth order stream. The area is classified into very high, high, moderately high, medium and low susceptibility zones. High to very high erosion zone exists in the urban area and agricultural land. Average annual soil loss of 64 tons/ha/year has been estimated for the watershed. The optimum management practices proposed for micro-watersheds of Asan River basin are; afforestation, contour bunding suitable sites for water harvesting structure as check dam and soil conservation, agronomical measure and bench terrace.

Keywords: erosion susceptibility zones, morphometric characteristics, prioritization, remote sensing and GIS, universal soil loss equation

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Authors: Shah Krupa Rajendra, Amit Kumar

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Increasing use of traditional vehicles driven by internal combustion engine is responsible for the environmental pollution. Further, it leads to depletion of limited energy resources. Therefore, it is required to explore alternative energy sources for the transportation. The promising solution is to use electric vehicle. However, it suffers from limited driving range. Regenerative braking increases the range of the electric vehicle to a certain extent. In this paper, a novel methodology utilizing regenerative braking is described. The model comprising of DC machine, feedback based boost converter and micro-controller is proposed. The suggested method is very simple and reliable. The proposed model successfully shows the energy being saved into during regenerative braking process.

Keywords: boost converter, DC machine, electric vehicle, micro-controller, regenerative braking

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Authors: A. Boveiri Monji, H. Yousefnia, S. Zolghadri, B. Salimi

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The main goal of this paper was to make use of green reagents as a substitute of perilous synthetic reagents and organic solvents for spectrophotometric determination of hafnium(IV). The extracts taken from six different kinds of tree leaves including Acer negundo, Ficus carica, Cerasus avium, Chimonanthus, Salix babylonica and Pinus brutia, were applied as green reagents for the experiments. In 6-M hydrochloric acid, hafnium reacted with the reagent to form a yellow product and showed maximum absorbance at 421 nm. Among tree leaves, Chimonanthus showed satisfactory results with a molar absorptivity value of 0.61 × 10⁴ l mol^-1 cm^-1 and the method was linear in the 0.3-9 µg mL ^-1 concentration range. The detection limit value was 0.064 µg mL^-1. The proposed method was simple, low cost, clean, and selective.

Keywords: hafnium, spectrophotometric determination, synthetic reagents, tree leaves

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Authors: Nabil Mezhoud

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The economic operation of electric energy generating systems is one of the predominant problems in energy systems. Due to the need for better reliability, high energy quality, lower losses, lower cost and a clean environment, the application of renewable and sustainable energy sources, such as wind energy, solar energy, etc., in recent years has become more widespread. In this work, one of a bio-inspired meta-heuristic algorithm inspired by the flashing behavior of fireflies at night called the Firefly Algorithm (FFA) is applied to solve the Optimal Energy Management (OEM) and the environmental index (EI) problems of a micro-grid (MG) operating by Renewable and Sustainable Generation Systems (RSGS). Our main goal is to minimize the nonlinear objective function of an electrical microgrid, taking into account equality and inequality constraints. The FFA approach was examined and tested on a standard MG system composed of different types of RSGS, such as wind turbines (WT), photovoltaic systems (PV), and non-renewable energy, such as fuel cells (FC), micro turbine (MT), diesel generator (DEG) and loads with energy storage systems (ESS). The results are promising and show the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed approach to solve the OEM and the EI problems. The results of the proposed method have been compared and validated with those known references published recently.

Keywords: renewable energy sources, energy management, distributed generator, micro-grids, firefly algorithm

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Authors: Lemuel David

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The importance of the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises sector is well recognized for its legitimate contribution to the Macroeconomic objectives of the Republic of Liberia, like generation of employment, input t, exports, and enhancing entrepreneurship. Right now, Medium and Small enterprises accounts for about 99 percent of the industrial units in the country, contributing 60 percent of the manufacturing sector output and approximately one-third of the nation’s exports. The role of various financial institutions like ECO bank and Non-financial Institutions like Bearch Limited support promoting the growth of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises is unique. A small enterprise or entrepreneur gets many types of assistance from different institutions for varied purposes in the course of his entrepreneurial journey. This paper focuses on the factors related to financial institutional support and non-financial institutional support entrepreneurs to the growth of Medium and Small enterprises in the Republic of Liberia. The significance of this paper is to support Policy and Institutional Support for Medium and Small enterprises to know the views of entrepreneurs about financial and non-financial support systems in the Republic of Liberia. This study was carried out through a survey method, with the use of questionnaires. The population for this study consisted of all registered Medium and Small enterprises which have been registered during the years 2004-2014 in the republic of Liberia. The sampling method employed for this study was a simple random technique and determined a sample size of 400. Data for the study was collected using a standard questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of two parts: the first part consisted of questions on the profile of the respondents. The second part covers (1) financial, promotional factors and (2) non-financial promotional factors. The results of the study are based on financial and non-financial supporting activities provided by institutions to Medium and Small enterprises. After investigation, it has been found that there is no difference in the support given by Financial Institutions and non-financial Institutions. Entrepreneurs perceived “collateral-free schemes and physical infrastructure support factors are highest contributing to entry and growth of Medium and Small enterprises.

Keywords: micro, small, and medium enterprises financial institutions, entrepreneurship

Procedia PDF Downloads 102

Authors: Yasser R. Tawfic, Mohamed A. Eid

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Foundation differential settlement and supported structure tilting is an occasionally occurred engineering problem. This may be caused by overloading, changes in ground soil properties or unsupported nearby excavations. Engineering thinking points directly toward the logic solution for such problem by uplifting the settled side. This can be achieved with deep foundation elements such as micro-piles and macro-piles™, jacked piers and helical piers, jet grouted soil-crete columns, compaction grout columns, cement grouting or with chemical grouting, or traditional pit underpinning with concrete and mortar. Although, some of these techniques offer economic, fast and low noise solutions, many of them are quite the contrary. For tilted structures, with limited inclination, it may be much easier to cause a balancing settlement on the less-settlement side which shall be done carefully in a proper rate. This principal has been applied in Leaning Tower of Pisa stabilization with soil extraction from the ground surface. In this research, the authors attempt to introduce a new solution with a different point of view. So, micro-tunneling technique is presented in here as an intended ground deformation cause. In general, micro-tunneling is expected to induce limited ground deformations. Thus, the researchers propose to apply the technique to form small size ground unsupported holes to produce the target deformations. This shall be done in four phases: •Application of one or more micro-tunnels, regarding the existing differential settlement value, under the raised side of the tilted structure. •For each individual tunnel, the lining shall be pulled out from both sides (from jacking and receiving shafts) in slow rate. •If required, according to calculations and site records, an additional surface load can be applied on the raised foundation side. •Finally, a strengthening soil grouting shall be applied for stabilization after adjustment. A finite element based numerical model is presented to simulate the proposed construction phases for different tunneling positions and tunnels group. For each case, the surface settlements are calculated and induced plasticity points are checked. These results show the impact of the suggested procedure on the tilted structure and its feasibility. Comparing results also show the importance of the position selection and tunnels group gradual effect. Thus, a new engineering solution is presented to one of the structural and geotechnical engineering challenges.

Keywords: differential settlement, micro-tunneling, soil-structure interaction, tilted structures

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Authors: Ghada Hasabo, Mahmoud Saber Elbasiouny, Mervat Abdelsalam, Sherin Ghaleb, Niveen Eldessouky

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In the near future, nanotechnology is envisaged for large scale use. Hence health and safety issues of nanoparticles should be promptly addressed. In the present study the acute hepatoxicity assessment due to high single oral dose of nano iron and micro iron particles were studied. The normal daily activities, biochemical alterations, blood coagulation, histopathological changes in Wister rats were the aspect of the toxicological assessment.This work found that significant alterations in biochemical enzymes (serum iron level, liver enzymes, albumin, and bilirubin levels), blood coagulation (PT, PC, INR), and histopathological changes occurred more prominently in the nano iron particle treated group.

Keywords: nanobiotechnology, nanosystems, nanomaterials, nanotechnology

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Authors: Gyu-Jin Kim, Hyo-Gyoung Kwak

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In this research, the effect of prestressing force on the nonlinearity of concrete was investigated by an experimental study. For the measurement of ultrasonic nonlinearity, a prestressed concrete beam was prepared and a nonlinear resonant ultrasound method was adopted. When the prestressing force changes, the stress state of the concrete inside the beam is affected, which leads to the occurrence of micro-cracks and changes in mechanical properties. Therefore, it is necessary to introduce nonlinear ultrasonic technology which sensitively reflects microstructural changes. Repetitive prestressing load history, including maximum levels of 45%, 60% and 75%, depending on the compressive strength, is designed to evaluate the impact of loading levels on the nonlinearity. With the experimental results, the possibility of ultrasonic nonlinearity as a trial indicator of stress was evaluated.

Keywords: micro crack, nonlinear ultrasonic resonant spectroscopy, prestressed concrete beam, prestressing force, ultrasonic nonlinearity

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Authors: Piotr Prewysz-Kwinto, Grazyna Voss

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In June 2013, the European Parliament and the Council adopted a directive on financial reporting (Directive 2013/34/EU). The main objective was to simplify the principles of the preparation of financial statements, including the principles of the presentation and disclosures of financial information by adapting reporting burdens to the type and size of an undertaking. Therefore, the Directive introduced a classification of all undertakings into five groups, i.e. micro, small, medium-sized, large and public-interest entities, and defined in detail the classification criteria. The principles of the preparation of financial statements and the presentation of financial information as well as applicable simplifications were defined for each group. The EU Member States had to implement the provisions of Directive 34 relating to accounting and financial reporting into domestic norms until January 1, 2016. In Poland, the provisions of Directive 34 were implemented into domestic accounting norms specified in the Polish Accounting Act on a gradual basis. On July 11, 2014, the Polish Parliament adopted an amendment to the Act, introducing the Directive's solutions for micro-undertakings and on July 23, 2015, for the remaining undertakings. The aim of this paper is to present Polish solutions relating to financial reporting after the implementation of Directive 34 and the results of the survey conducted among accountants regarding the evaluation of the implemented simplifications for micro and small undertakings.

Keywords: accounting standards, financial reporting, financial statement, simplification

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Authors: Sh. Foroughi, V. Karamzadeh, M. Packirisamy

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This paper presents design and analysis of an electrothermally symmetrical actuated microgripper applicable for performing micro assembly or biological cell manipulation. Integration of micro-optics with microdevice leads to achieve extremely precise control over the operation of the device. Geometry, material, actuation, control, accuracy in measurement and temperature distribution are important factors which have to be taken into account for designing the efficient microgripper device. In this work, analyses of four different geometries are performed by means of COMSOL Multiphysics 5.2 with implementing Finite Element Methods. Then, temperature distribution along the fingertip, displacement of gripper site as well as optical efficiency vs. displacement and electrical potential are illustrated. Results show in addition to the industrial application of this device, the usage of that as a cell manipulator is possible.

Keywords: electro thermal actuator, MEMS, microgripper, MOEMS

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Authors: Caixia Gao, Chuanrong Li, Lingli Tang, Lingling Ma, Yaokai Liu, Xinhong Wang, Yongsheng Zhou

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Performances analysis of remote sensing sensor is required to pursue a range of scientific research and application objectives. Laboratory analysis of any remote sensing instrument is essential, but not sufficient to establish a valid inflight one. In this study, with the aid of the in situ measurements and corresponding image of three-gray scale permanent artificial target, the in-flight radiometric performances analyses (in-flight radiometric calibration, dynamic range and response linearity, signal-noise-ratio (SNR), radiometric resolution) of self-developed short-wave infrared (SWIR) camera are performed. To acquire the inflight calibration coefficients of the SWIR camera, the at-sensor radiances (L_i) for the artificial targets are firstly simulated with in situ measurements (atmosphere parameter and spectral reflectance of the target) and viewing geometries using MODTRAN model. With these radiances and the corresponding digital numbers (DN) in the image, a straight line with a formulation of L = G × DN + B is fitted by a minimization regression method, and the fitted coefficients, G and B, are inflight calibration coefficients. And then the high point (L_H) and the low point (L_L) of dynamic range can be described as L_H= (G × DN_H + B) and L_L= B, respectively, where DN_H is equal to 2ⁿ − 1 (n is the quantization number of the payload). Meanwhile, the sensor’s response linearity (δ) is described as the correlation coefficient of the regressed line. The results show that the calibration coefficients (G and B) are 0.0083 W·sr⁻¹m⁻²µm⁻¹ and −3.5 W·sr⁻¹m⁻²µm⁻¹; the low point of dynamic range is −3.5 W·sr⁻¹m⁻²µm⁻¹ and the high point is 30.5 W·sr⁻¹m⁻²µm⁻¹; the response linearity is approximately 99%. Furthermore, a SNR normalization method is used to assess the sensor’s SNR, and the normalized SNR is about 59.6 when the mean value of radiance is equal to 11.0 W·sr⁻¹m⁻²µm⁻¹; subsequently, the radiometric resolution is calculated about 0.1845 W•sr^-1m^-2μm^-1. Moreover, in order to validate the result, a comparison of the measured radiance with a radiative-transfer-code-predicted over four portable artificial targets with reflectance of 20%, 30%, 40%, 50% respectively, is performed. It is noted that relative error for the calibration is within 6.6%.

Keywords: calibration and validation site, SWIR camera, in-flight radiometric calibration, dynamic range, response linearity

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Authors: Sarra Haouala, Issam Doghri

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In this work, a multiscale computational strategy is proposed for the analysis of structures, which are described at a refined level both in space and in time. The proposal is applied to two-phase viscoelastic-viscoplastic (VE-VP) reinforced thermoplastics subjected to large numbers of cycles. The main aim is to predict the effective long time response while reducing the computational cost considerably. The proposed computational framework is a combination of the mean-field space homogenization based on the generalized incrementally affine formulation for VE-VP composites, and the asymptotic time homogenization approach for coupled isotropic VE-VP homogeneous solids under large numbers of cycles. The time homogenization method is based on the definition of micro and macro-chronological time scales, and on asymptotic expansions of the unknown variables. First, the original anisotropic VE-VP initial-boundary value problem of the composite material is decomposed into coupled micro-chronological (fast time scale) and macro-chronological (slow time-scale) problems. The former is purely VE, and solved once for each macro time step, whereas the latter problem is nonlinear and solved iteratively using fully implicit time integration. Second, mean-field space homogenization is used for both micro and macro-chronological problems to determine the micro and macro-chronological effective behavior of the composite material. The response of the matrix material is VE-VP with J2 flow theory assuming small strains. The formulation exploits the return-mapping algorithm for the J2 model, with its two steps: viscoelastic predictor and plastic corrections. The proposal is implemented for an extended Mori-Tanaka scheme, and verified against finite element simulations of representative volume elements, for a number of polymer composite materials subjected to large numbers of cycles.

Keywords: asymptotic expansions, cyclic loadings, inclusion-reinforced thermoplastics, mean-field homogenization, time homogenization

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Authors: Maha Mohamed Hady Ali, M. A. El-Sayed

Abstract:

Camel (Camelus dromedarius) is very important animal in many arid and semi-arid zones of tropical and subtropical regions as it serves as dual purpose providing meat and milk for human and as draft animal. Camel, like other animal must receive all essential nutrients despite the hostile environment. A study was conducted to evaluate the nutritional status of some micro-minerals of camel under Egyptian environmental condition. Forty five blood samples were collected from apparently healthy male camels with an average age between 2-6 years at the slaughter house in Cairo province, Egypt. The animals were fed mainly on berseem (Trifolium alexandrinum) or concentrate with straw before slaughtering. The collected serum and feedstuff samples were subjected to copper, iron, selenium and zinc analysis using Atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The data showed variation in the level of copper, iron, selenium and zinc in the serum of the dromedary camel as well as in the feedstuffs. Furthermore, the results indicated that the micro- minerals status of feeds may not always reflected as such in camel blood suggesting some role of bioavailability. The main reason for the lack of such reflection seems to be the wide diversity exists in the surrounding environment (forages and plants) as well as the bioavailability of such minerals. Since the requirement of micro-minerals have not been established for camel, more researches must be focused on this topic.

Keywords: camel, copper, egypt, feed stuff, iron, selenium, zinc

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Authors: Eleni Ioannou, Pascal Nucara, Keith Pullen

Abstract:

The subject of this paper is the investigation of the best efficiency design of a compressor diffuser applied in new lightweight, ultra efficient micro-gas turbine engines for vehicles. The Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) results are obtained utilizing steady state simulations for a wedge and an ”oval” type pipe diffuser in an effort to identify the beneficial effects of the pipe diffuser design. The basic flow features are presented with particular focus on the optimization of the pipe diffuser leading to higher efficiencies for the compressor stage. The optimised pipe diffuser is designed to exploit the 3D freedom enabled by Selective Laser Melting, hence purposely involves an investigation of geometric characteristics that do not follow the traditional diffuser concept.

Keywords: CFD, centrifugal compressor, micro-gas turbine, pipe diffuser, SLM, wedge diffuser

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Authors: A. Boveiri Monji, H. Yousefnia, M. Haji Hosseini, S. Zolghadri

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A clean spectrophotometric method for the determination of hafnium by using a green reagent, acidic extract of Ficus carica tree leaves is developed. In 6-M hydrochloric acid, hafnium reacts with this reagent to form a yellow product. The formed product shows maximum absorbance at 421 nm with a molar absorptivity value of 0.28 × 104 l mol⁻¹ cm⁻¹, and the method was linear in the 2-11 µg ml⁻¹ concentration range. The detection limit value was found to be 0.312 µg ml⁻¹. Except zirconium and iron, the selectivity was good, and most of the ions did not show any significant spectral interference at concentrations up to several hundred times. The proposed method was green, simple, low cost, and selective.

Keywords: spectrophotometric determination, Ficus caricatree leaves, synthetic reagents, hafnium

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Authors: Sangkhao M., Butcher B. A.

Abstract:

Diazepam (known as valium) is a medication for calming effect. Many reports on committed suicide cases shown that diazepam is frequently used for this purpose. This research aims to study effect of diazepam on the development of forensically important blowflies, Chrysomya megacephala (Diptera: Calliphoridae) using micro-computed tomography (micro CT). In this study, four rabbits were treated with three different lethal doses of diazepam and one control (LD₀, LD₅₀, LD₁₀₀ and LC). The rabbit’s livers were removed for rearing the blowflies. Pupae were sampled for two series (ages; S1: 24h and S2: 120h) of development. After preparing the specimens, all samples were performed Micro CT using Skyscan 1172. The results shown the effect of diazepam on internal organs and tissues such as brain, cavity of the body, gas bubble, meconium and especially fat body. In the control group, in series 1 (LCS1), fat body was equally dispersed in the head, thorax, and abdomen, development of internal organs were not completed, however, brain, thoracic muscle, wings, legs and rectum were able to observe at 24h after developing into the pupal stage. Development of each organ in the control group in the series two was completed. In the treatment groups, LD₀, LD₅₀, LD₁₀₀ (Series 1 and Series 2), tissues are different, such as gas bubble in LD₀S1, was observed due to rapidity morphological changes during the metamorphosis of blowfly’s pupa in this treatment. Meconium was observed in LD₅₀S2 group because excretion of metabolic waste was not completed. All of the samples in the treatment groups had differentiation of fat bodies because metabolic activities were not completed and these changes affected on functions of every internal system. Discovering of differentiated fat bodies are important results because fat bodies of insect functions as liver in human, therefore it is shown that toxin eliminates from blowfly’s body and homeostatic maintenance of the hemolymph proteins, lipid and carbohydrates in each treatment group are abnormal.

Keywords: forensic toxicology, forensic entomology, diptera, diazepam

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Authors: Mirvat Shamseddine, Issam Lakkis

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We present an efficient, three-dimensional parallel multi-scale Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) algorithm for the simulation of unsteady rarefied gas flows in micro/nanosystems. The algorithm employs a novel spatiotemporal adaptivity scheme. The scheme performs a fully dynamic multi-level grid adaption based on the gradients of flow macro-parameters and an automatic temporal adaptation. The computational domain consists of a hierarchical octree-based Cartesian grid representation of the flow domain and a triangular mesh for the solid object surfaces. The hybrid mesh, combined with the spatiotemporal adaptivity scheme, allows for increased flexibility and efficient data management, rendering the framework suitable for efficient particle-tracing and dynamic grid refinement and coarsening. The parallel algorithm is optimized to run DSMC simulations of strongly unsteady, non-equilibrium flows over multiple cores. The presented method is validated by comparing with benchmark studies and then employed to improve the design of micro-scale hotwire thermal sensors in rarefied gas flows.

Keywords: DSMC, oct-tree hierarchical grid, ray tracing, spatial-temporal adaptivity scheme, unsteady rarefied gas flows

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Authors: Ibrahim M. Mehedi, Uzair Ansari, Ubaid M. Al-Saggaf, Abdulrahman H. Bajodah

Abstract:

This paper presents a methodology for balancing a rotary inverted pendulum system using Robust Generalized Dynamic Inversion (RGDI) under influence of parametric variations and external disturbances. In GDI control, dynamic constraints are formulated in the form of asymptotically stable differential equation which encapsulates the control objectives. The constraint differential equations are based on the deviation function of the angular position and its rates from their reference values. The constraint dynamics are inverted using Moore-Penrose Generalized Inverse (MPGI) to realize the control expression. The GDI singularity problem is addressed by augmenting a dynamic scale factor in the interpretation of MPGI which guarantee asymptotically stable position tracking. An additional term based on Sliding Mode Control is appended within GDI control to make it robust against parametric variations, disturbances and tracking performance deterioration due to generalized inversion scaling. The stability of the closed loop system is ensured by using positive definite Lyapunov energy function that guarantees semi-global practically stable position tracking. Numerical simulations are conducted on the dynamic model of rotary inverted pendulum system to analyze the efficiency of proposed RGDI control law. The comparative study is also presented, in which the performance of RGDI control is compared with Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR) and is verified through experiments. Numerical simulations and real-time experiments demonstrate better tracking performance abilities and robustness features of RGDI control in the presence of parametric uncertainties and disturbances.

Keywords: generalized dynamic inversion, lyapunov stability, rotary inverted pendulum system, sliding mode control

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Authors: Ramin Khamedi, Isa Ahmadi

Abstract:

In this study acoustic emission (AE) signals obtained during deformation and fracture of two types of ferrite-martensite dual phase steels (DPS) specimens have been analyzed in frequency domain. For this reason two low carbon steels with various amounts of carbon were chosen, and intercritically heat treated. In the introduced method, identifying the mechanisms of failure in the various phases of DPS is done. For this aim, AE monitoring has been used during tensile test of several DPS with various volume fraction of the martensite (VM) and attempted to relate the AE signals and failure mechanisms in these steels. Different signals, which referred to 2-3 micro-mechanisms of failure due to amount of carbon and also VM have been seen. By Fast Fourier Transformation (FFT) of signals in distinct locations, an excellent relationship between peak frequencies in these areas and micro-mechanisms of failure were seen. The results were verified by microscopic observations (SEM).

Keywords: acoustic emission, dual phase steels, deformation, failure, fracture

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