Search results for: rate of bio gas production

Authors: Palaniyandi Karuppaiya, Hsin Sheng Tsay, Fang Chen

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Medicinal herbs do represent a huge and noteworthy reservoir for novel anticancer drugs discovery. Dysosma pleiantha (Hance) Woodson (Berberidaceae), one of the oldest traditional Chinese medicinal herb, highly prized by the mountain tribes of Taiwan and China for its medicinal properties contained pharmaceutically important antitumor compounds podophyllotoxin, quercetin and kaempferol. Among lignans, podophyllotoxin is an active antitumor compound and has now been modified to produce clinically useful drugs etoposide and teniposide. In recent years, natural populations of D. peliantha have declined considerably due to anthropogenic activities such as habitat destruction and commercial exploitation for medicinal applications. As to its overall conservation status, D. pleiantha has been ranked as threatened on the China Species Red List. In the present study, an efficient in vitro callus culture system of D. pleiantha was established on Gamborg’s medium with various combinations and concentrations of different auxins and cytokinins under dark condition. Best callus induction was recorded in 2 mg/L 2, 4 - Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) along with 0.2 mg/L kinetin and the maximum callus proliferation was achieved at 1 mg/L 2,4-D. Among the explants tested, maximum callus induction (86 %) was achieved from tender leaves. Hence, in subsequent experiments, leaf callus was further investigated for suitable callus biomass and production level of anticancer compounds under the influence of different additives. A maximum fresh callus biomass (8.765 g) was recorded in callus proliferation medium contained 500 mg/L casein hydrolysate. High performance liquid chromatography results revealed that the addition of different concentrations of peptone (1, 2 and 4 g/L) in callus proliferation medium enhanced podophyllotoxin (16 fold), quercetin (12 fold) and kaempferol (5 fold) accumulation than control. Thus, the established in vitro callus culture under the influence of different additives may offer an alternative source of enhanced production of podophyllotoxin, kaempferol and quecertin without harming natural plant population.

Keywords: dysosma pleiantha, kaempferol, podophyllotoxin, quercetin

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Authors: Sylvain Fauveaux, T. Nowicki

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Lightning protection is nowadays applied worldwide since the advent of international standards. Lightning protection is widely justified by the casualties and damages involved. As a matter of fact, the lightning business is constantly growing as more and more sensible areas need to be protected. However, the worldwide demand of copper materiel is increasing as well, its price too. Furthermore, the most frequently used method of protection is consuming a lot of copper. The copper production is also consuming a large amount of natural and power resources, not to mention the ecologic balance.

Keywords: ESEAT, Lightning protection , natural resources management, NF C 17-102, sustainable development

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Authors: Zhaoqi He

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Research Context: Endurance performance in hot environments is influenced by the interplay of hydration status and physiological responses. This study aims to investigate how dehydration, up to 2.11% body weight loss, affects the 3 km running performance of trained male athletes under conditions mimicking high temperatures. Methodology: In a randomized crossover design, five male athletes participated in two trials – euhydrated (EU) and dehydrated (HYPO). Both trials included a 70-minute preload run at 55-60% VO2max in 32°C and 50% humidity, followed by a 3-kilometer time trial. Fluid intake was restricted in HYPO to induce a 2.11% body weight loss. Physiological metrics, including heart rate, core temperature, and oxygen uptake, were measured, along with perceptual metrics like perceived exertion and thirst sensation. Findings: The 3-kilometer run completion times showed no significant differences between EU and HYPO trials (p=0.944). Physiological indicators, including heart rate, core temperature, and oxygen uptake, did not significantly vary (p>0.05). Thirst sensation was markedly higher in HYPO (p=0.013), confirming successful induction of dehydration. Other perceptual metrics and gastrointestinal comfort remained consistent. Conclusion: Contrary to the hypothesis, the study reveals that dehydration, inducing up to 2.11% body weight loss, does not significantly impair 3 km running performance in trained male athletes under hot conditions. Thirst sensation was notably higher in the dehydrated state, emphasizing the importance of considering perceptual factors in hydration strategies. The findings suggest that trained runners can maintain performance despite moderate dehydration, highlighting the need for nuanced hydration guidelines in hot-weather running.

Keywords: hypohydration, euhydration, hot environment, 3km running time trial, endurance performance, trained athletes, perceptual metrics, dehydration impact, physiological responses, hydration strategies

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Authors: Anna Rinaldi, Pierfrancesco Dellino

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COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy can be observed at different rates in different countries. In June 2021, 1,068 people were surveyed in France and Italy to inquire about individual potential acceptance, focusing on time preferences in a risk-return framework: having the vaccination today, in a month, and in 3 months; perceived risks of vaccination and COVID-19; and expected benefit of the vaccine. A randomized controlled trial was conducted to understand how everyday stimuli like fact-based news about vaccines impact an audience's acceptance of vaccination. The main experiment involved two groups of participants and two different articles about vaccine-related thrombosis taken from two Italian newspapers. One article used a more abstract description and language, and the other used a more anecdotal description and concrete language; each group read only one of these articles. Two other groups were assigned categorization tasks; one was asked to complete a concrete categorization task, and the other an abstract categorization task. Individual preferences for vaccination were found to be variable and unstable over time, and individual choices of accepting, refusing, or delaying could be affected by the way news is written. In order to understand these dynamic preferences, the present work proposes a new model based on seven categories of human behaviors that were validated by a neural network. A treatment effect was observed: participants who read the articles shifted to vaccine hesitancy categories more than participants assigned to other treatments and control. Furthermore, there was a significant gender effect, showing that the type of language leading to a lower hesitancy rate for men is correlated with a higher hesitancy rate for women and vice versa. This outcome should be taken into consideration for an appropriate gender-based communication campaign aimed at achieving herd immunity. The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05582564 (17/10/2022).

Keywords: vaccine hesitancy, risk elicitation, neural network, covid19

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Authors: Carlos Oliveira

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This paper is a criticism of the traditional model of teaching and presents alternative teaching methods, different from the traditional lecture. These methods are accompanied by reports of experience of their application in a class. It was concluded that in the lecture, the student has a low learning rate and that other methods should be used to make the most engaging learning environment for the student, contributing (or facilitating) his learning process. However, the teacher should not use a single method, but rather a range of different methods to ensure the learning experience does not become repetitive and fatiguing for the student.

Keywords: educational practices, experience report, IT in education, teaching methods

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Authors: Bruna Lima Gomes, Vanessa Caroline De Barros Bonato, Luciano Freschi, Eduardo Purgatto

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Plant hormones are long known to be tightly associated with fruit development and are involved in controlling various aspects of fruit ripening. For fleshy fruits, ripening is characterized for changes in texture, color, aroma and other parameters that markedly contribute to its quality. Ethylene is one of the major players regulating the ripening-related processes, but emerging evidences suggest that auxin is also part of this dynamic control. Thus, the aim of this study was providing new insights into the auxin role during ripening and the hormonal interplay between auxin and ethylene. For that, tomato fruits (Micro-Tom) were collected at mature green stage and separated in four groups: one for indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) treatment, one for ethylene, one for a combination of IAA and ethylene, and one for control. Hormone solution was injected through the stylar apex, while mock samples were injected with buffer only. For ethylene treatments, fruits were exposed to gaseous hormone. Then, fruits were left to ripen under standard conditions and to assess ripening development, hue angle was reported as color indicator and ethylene production was measured by gas chromatography. The transcript levels of three ripening-related ethylene receptors (LeETR3, LeETR4 and LeETR6) were evaluated by RT-qPCR. Results showed that ethylene treatment induced ripening, stimulated ethylene production, accelerated color changes and induced receptor expression, as expected. Nonetheless, auxin treatment showed the opposite effect once fruits remained green for longer time than control group and ethylene perception has changed, taking account the reduced levels of receptor transcripts. Further, treatment with both hormones revealed that auxin effect in delaying ripening was predominant, even with higher levels of ethylene. Altogether, the data suggest that auxin modulates several aspects of the tomato fruit ripening modifying the ethylene perception. The knowledge about hormonal control of fruit development will help design new strategies for effective manipulation of ripening regarding fruit quality and brings a new level of complexity on fruit ripening regulation.

Keywords: ethylene, auxin, fruit ripening, hormonal crosstalk

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Authors: Hemendra Singh Rathod

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

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

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Authors: Beatriz Cortés, Andrés Boza, David Pérez, Llanos Cuenca

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The Internet of Things (IoT) field is been applied in industries with different purposes. Sensing Enterprise (SE) is an attribute of an enterprise or a network that allows it to react to business stimuli originating on the internet. These fields have come into focus recently on the enterprises and there is some evidence of the use and implications in supply chain management while finding it as an interesting aspect to work on. This paper presents a revision and proposals of IoT applications in supply chain management.

Keywords: industrial, internet of things, production systems, sensing enterprises, sensor, supply chain management

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Authors: Mohammed Mainoma, Abubakar Tijanni, Mohammed Aliyu

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Globalization has brought a structural change in industry. It is the breaking of artificial boundaries and given way to new product, new service, new market, and new technology among others. It leads to the realization that men entrepreneurs’ alone cannot meet the demand of the teeming population. Therefore there is a need for the participation, involvement, and engagement of females in the production and distribution of goods and services. This will enhance growth and development of a nation. It is in line with the above that this paper attempt to discuss meaning of women entrepreneurs, roles, types, problems, and prospects. Also, on the basis of conclusion the paper recommended that entrepreneurship education should be introduced in all Tertiary Institutions in Nigeria.

Keywords: women, entrepreneurs, issues, challenges

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Authors: Arun Joshi

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The present study deals with the report of Gangamopteriscyclopteroides from the Barakar Formation of Simlong Open Cast Mine, Rajmahal Area, Rajmahal Basin, Jharkhand, India. The genus Gangamopteriscomprises leaves which are simple, entire, symmetrical or asymmetrical, linear, lanceolate, elliptical, obovate in shape, apex broadly rounded, obtuse, acute, acuminate or mucronate, base petiolate or contracted, midrib absent. Median region occupied by subparallel veins with anastomoses of elongate or hexagonal outline. Secondary veins arise from median veins by repeated dichotomy, arched, bifurcating and anasotomosing network. The present work is significant as it represents the presence of Glossopteris flora (250- 290 ma) which is mainly responsible for the formation of coal. Coal is one of the major fuels for power production through thermal power plants. The Glossopteris flora is one of the major floras that occupied the southern continent during Carboniferous- Permian time. This southern continent is also known as Gondwana comprising Australia, South Africa, Antarctica, Madagascar and India. There is a vast geological reserve of coal with favorable stripping ratio available at the Simlong Block but the area comes under the most naxalite prone area and thus the mine has been running in an unplanned manner. It has got the potential of becoming a big project with higher capacity and is well suited for enhancing production which can be helpful in the economic growth of the country. Though, the present record is scanty, it shows the presence of Glossopteris flora responsible for the formation of coal in the Coalmine. However, there are fears of fossils disappearing from this area as the state government of Jharkhand has given out a mining lease in the area to private companies. Therefore, it is very necessary to study such coal forming vegetation and their systematic study from the area to generate a new palaeobotanical database, palaeoenvironmental interpretation, basinal correlation and for the understanding of evolutionary perspectives.

Keywords: Barakar formation, coal, Glossopteris flora, Gondwana, India, Naxalite, Rajmahal Basin

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Authors: Yori Gidron, Laura Caton, Irit Ben-Aharon

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Background: Many patients and even certain clinicians attribute cancer development to psychosocial factors. Yet, empirical data supports more the prognostic role, rather than the etiological role, of psychosocial factors in cancer. Part of the inconsistency may result from not considering possible moderating factors in the etiological role of psychosocial factors. One important candidate moderating factor is the vagal nerve, whose activity is indexed by heart-rate variability (HRV). The vagal nerve may prevent cancer since it reduces inflammation on the one hand, and since it increases anti-tumor immunity on the other hand. This study examined the moderating role of the vagus in the relation between life threatening events (LTE) and cancer development. Method: We re-analyzed data from the Lifelines Dutch longitudinal cohort study of over 150,000 people. The present study included 82,751 adults, who initially were cancer-free. We extracted information on background factors (e.g., age, gender, fat consumption), whether they ever experienced LTE, HRV and cancer diagnosis as reported by patients in annual clinic visits. HRV was derived from brief ECGs. Results: Of the full sample, 1011 people developed cancer during a follow-up. In the full sample, LTE significantly predicted cancer development (R.R = 1.063 p < .01) and HRV significantly predicted a reduced risk of cancer development (R.R = .506 p <.001). Importantly, LTE significantly predicted cancer only when HRV was low (R.R = 1.056, 95% CI: 1.007 - 1.108, p < .05) but not when HRV was high (R.R = 1.014; 95% CI: 0.916 - 1.122, p > 0.05), independent of confounders. Conclusions: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study showing in a large sample that LTE predict cancer development, and that this occurs only when vagal nerve activity (HRV) is relatively low. These results could result from lack of vagal modulation of inflammation and also from lack of vagal modulation of stress responses. Results are in line with the cancer-protective role of the vagus. HRV needs to be routinely monitored in the population and future intervention trials need to examine whether vagal nerve activation can prevent cancer in people with LTE and with other cancer risk factors.

Keywords: cancer development, life-events, moderation, vagal nerve

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Authors: Laura Vitola, Diana Bajare, Genadijs Sahmenko, Girts Bumanis

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About 8 % of CO2 emission in the world is produced by concrete industry therefore replacement of cement in concrete composition by additives with pozzolanic activity would give a significant impact on the environment. Material which contains silica SiO2 or amorphous silica SiO2 together with aluminum dioxide Al2O3 is called pozzolana type additives in the concrete industry. Pozzolana additives are possible to obtain from recycling industry and different production by-products such as processed bulb boric silicate (DRL type) and lead (LB type) glass, coal combustion bottom ash, utilized brick pieces and biomass ash, thus solving utilization problem which is so important in the world, as well as practically using materials which previously were considered as unusable. In the literature, there is no summarized method which could be used for quick waste-product pozzolana activity evaluation without the performance of wide researches related to the production of innumerable concrete contents and samples in the literature. Besides it is important to understand which parameters should be predicted to characterize the efficiency of waste-products. Simple methods of pozzolana activity increase for different types of waste-products are also determined. The aim of this study is to evaluate effectiveness of the different types of waste materials and industrial by-products (coal combustion bottom ash, biomass ash, waste glass, waste kaolin and calcined illite clays), and determine which parameters have the greatest impact on pozzolanic activity. By using materials, which previously were considered as unusable and landfilled, in concrete industry basic utilization problems will be partially solved. The optimal methods for treatment of waste materials and industrial by–products were detected with the purpose to increase their pozzolanic activity and produce substitutes for cement in the concrete industry. Usage of mentioned pozzolanic allows us to replace of necessary cement amount till 20% without reducing the compressive strength of concrete.

Keywords: cement substitutes, micro and nano fillers, pozzolanic properties, specific surface area, particle size, waste products

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Authors: Awais Ahmad, Mostafa Muhammad Selim, Ali Abdullah Alderfasi

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Water limitation is undoubtedly a critical environmental constraint limiting the crop production under arid and semiarid areas. Mung bean is susceptible to both drought and water logging stresses. Therefore, present study was conducted to assess the water deficit stress consequences of yield components and water use efficiency in Mung bean. A field experiment was conducted at Educational Farm, Crop Production Department, College of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Kind Saud University, Saudi Arabia. Trail comprised of four irrigation levels — total amount of irrigation divided into irrigation intervals — (3, 5, 7 and 9 days interval) and three Mung bean genotypes; Kawmay-1, VC-2010 and King from Egypt, Thailand and China respectively. Experiment was arranged under split plot design having irrigation as main while genotype as subplot treatment, and replicated thrice. Plant height, 100 seed weight, biological yield, seed yield, harvest index and water use efficiency were recorded at harvesting. Results revealed that decrease in irrigation have significantly hampered all the studied parameters. Mung bean genotypes have also shown significant differences for all parameters, whereas irrigation genotype interaction was highly significant for seed yield, harvest index and water use efficiency (WUE) while it was significant for biological yield. Plant height and 100 seed weight were recorded non-significant for irrigation genotype interaction. A statistically highly significant correlation among recorded parameters was observed. Minimum irrigation interval (3 days) significantly produced maximum values while VC-2010 comparatively performed better under low irrigation levels. It was concluded that Mung bean may be successfully adopted under Saudi Arabian climate but it needs high water or frequent irrigation, however, genotypic differences are a hope to develop some improved varieties with high water use efficiency.

Keywords: mung bean, irrigation intervals, water use efficiency, genotypes, yield

Procedia PDF Downloads 269

Authors: A. Bortkiewcz, A. Dudarewicz, P. Małecki, M. Kłaczyński, T. Wszołek, Małgorzata Pawlaczyk-Łuszczyńska

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Low-frequency noise (LFN) has been recognized as a special environmental pollutant. It is usually considered a broadband noise with the dominant content of low frequencies from 10 Hz to 250 Hz. A growing body of data shows that LFN differs in nature from other environmental noises, which are at comparable levels but not dominated by low-frequency components. The primary and most frequent adverse effect of LFN exposure is annoyance. Moreover, some recent investigations showed that LFN at relatively low A-weighted sound pressure levels (40−45 dB) occurring in office-like areas could adversely affect the mental performance, especially of high-sensitive subjects. It is well documented that high-frequency noise disturbs various types of human functions; however, there is very little data on the impact of LFN on well-being and health, including the cardiovascular system. Heart rate variability (HRV) is a sensitive marker of autonomic regulation of the circulatory system. Walker and co-workers found that LFN has a significantly more negative impact on cardiovascular response than exposure to high-frequency noise and that changes in HRV parameters resulting from LFN exposure tend to persist over time. The negative reactions of the cardiovascular system in response to LFN generated by wind turbines (20-200 Hz) were confirmed by Chiu. The scientific aim of the study is to assess the relationship between the spectral-temporal characteristics of LFN and the activity of the autonomic nervous system, considering the subjective assessment of annoyance, sensitivity to this type of noise, and cognitive and general health status. The study will be conducted in 20 male students in a special, acoustically prepared, constantly supervised room. Each person will be tested 4 times (4 sessions), under conditions of non-exposure (sham) and exposure to noise of wind turbines recorded at a distance of 250 meters from the turbine with different frequencies and frequency ranges: acoustic band 20 Hz-20 kHz, infrasound band 5-20 Hz, acoustic band + infrasound band. The order of sessions of the experiment will be randomly selected. Each session will last 1 h. There will be a 2-3 days break between sessions to exclude the possibility of the earlier session influencing the results of the next one. Before the first exposure, a questionnaire will be conducted on noise sensitivity, general health status using the GHQ questionnaire, hearing organ status and sociodemographic data. Before each of the 4 exposures, subjects will complete a brief questionnaire on their mood and sleep quality the night before the test. After the test, the subjects will be asked about any discomfort and subjective symptoms during the exposure. Before the test begins, Holter ECG monitoring equipment will be installed. HRV will be analyzed from the ECG recordings, including time and frequency domain parameters. The tests will always be performed in the morning (9-12) to avoid the influence of diurnal rhythm on HRV results. Students will perform psychological tests 15 minutes before the end of the test (Vienna Test System).

Keywords: neurovegetative control, heart rate variability (HRV), cognitive processes, low frequency noise

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Authors: Maria A. Castillo H., Andrés R. Leandro C.

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During the last decades, agricultural productivity in Latin America has increased with precision agriculture and more efficient agricultural technologies. The use of automated systems, satellite images, geographic information systems, and tools for data analysis, and artificial intelligence have contributed to making more effective strategic decisions. Twenty years ago, the state of Mérida, located in the Venezuelan Andes, reported the largest area covered by greenhouses in the country, where certified seeds of potatoes, vegetables, ornamentals, and flowers were produced for export and consumption in the central region of the country. In recent years, it is estimated that production under greenhouses has changed, and the area covered has decreased due to different factors, but there are few historical statistical data in sufficient quantity and quality to support this estimate or to be used for analysis and decision making. The objective of this study is to compare data collected about geoposition, use, and covered areas of the greenhouses in 2007 to data available in 2021, as support for the analysis of the current situation of horticultural production in the main municipalities of the state of Mérida. The document presents the development of the work in the diagnosis and integration of geographic coordinates in GIS and data analysis phases. As a result, an evaluation of the process is made, a dashboard is presented with the most relevant data along with the geographical coordinates integrated into GIS, and an analysis of the obtained information is made. Finally, some recommendations for actions are added, and works that expand the information obtained and its geographical traceability over time are proposed. This study contributes to granting greater certainty in the supporting data for the evaluation of social, environmental, and economic sustainability indicators and to make better decisions according to the sustainable development goals in the area under review. At the same time, the methodology provides improvements to the agricultural data collection process that can be extended to other study areas and crops.

Keywords: greenhouses, geographic information system, protected agriculture, data analysis, Venezuela

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Authors: Muhammad Shahzad Hussain

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Two major problems are facing generally by conventional poultry farming that is disease outbreaks and poor performance, which results due to improper management. To enhance the growth performance and efficiency of feed and reduce disease outbreaks, antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) which are antibiotics at sub-therapeutic levels, are extensively used in the poultry industry. European Union has banned the use of antibiotics due to their presence in poultry products, development of antibiotic-resistant pathogens, and disturbance of normal gut microbial ecology. These residues cause serious health concerns and produce antibiotic resistance in pathogenic microbes in human beings. These issues strengthen the need for the withdrawal of AGPs from poultry feed. Nowadays, global warming is a major issue, and it is more critical in tropical areas like Pakistan, where heat stress is already a major problem. Heat stress leads to poor production performance, high mortality, immuno-suppression, and concomitant diseases outbreak. The poultry feed industry in Pakistan, like other countries of the world, has been facing shortages and high prices of local as well as imported feed ingredients. Prebiotics are potential replacer for AGP as prebiotics has properties to enhance the production potential and reduce the growth of harmful bacteria as well as stimulate the growth/activity of beneficial bacteria. The most commonly used prebiotics in poultry includes mannan oligosaccharide (MOS). MOS is an essential component of the yeast cell wall (YCW) (Saccharomyces cerevisiae); therefore, the YCW wall possesses prebiotic properties. The use of distillery yeast wall (YCW) has the potential to replace conventional AGPs and to reduce mortality due to heat stress as well as to bind toxins in the feed. The dietary addition of YCW has not only positive effects on production performance in poultry during normal conditions but during stressful conditions. A total of 168-day-old broilers were divided into 6 groups, each of which has 28 birds with 4 replicates (n=7).Yeast cell wall (YCW) supplementation @ 0%, 1%, 1.5%, 2%, 2.5%, 3% from day 0 to 35. Heat stress was exposed from day 21 to 35 at 30±1.1ᵒC with relative humidity 65±5%. Zootechnical parameters like body weight, FCR, Organ development, and histomorphometric parameters were studied. A significant weight gain was observed at group C supplemented @ 1.5% YCW during the fifth week. Significant organ weight gain of Gizzard, spleen, small intestine, and cecum was observed at group C supplemented @ 1.5% YCW. According to morphometric indices Duodenum, Jejunum, and Ileum has significant villus height, while Jejunum and Ileum have also significant villus surface area in the group supplemented with 1.5% YCW. IEL count was only decreased in 1.5% YCW-fed group in jejunum and ileum, not in duodenum, that was less in 2% YCW-supplemented group. Dietary yeast cell wall of saccharomyces cerevisiae partially reduced the effects of high ambient temperature in terms of better growth and modified gut histology and components of mucosal immune response to better withstand heat stress in broilers.

Keywords: antibiotics, AGPs, broilers, MOS, prebiotics, YCW

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Authors: Nadia Belu, Laurenţiu Mihai Ionescu, Agnieszka Misztal

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The automotive industry is one of the most important industries in the world that concerns not only the economy, but also the world culture. In the present financial and economic context, this field faces new challenges posed by the current crisis, companies must maintain product quality, deliver on time and at a competitive price in order to achieve customer satisfaction. Two of the most recommended techniques of quality management by specific standards of the automotive industry, in the product development, are Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) and Control Plan. FMEA is a methodology for risk management and quality improvement aimed at identifying potential causes of failure of products and processes, their quantification by risk assessment, ranking of the problems identified according to their importance, to the determination and implementation of corrective actions related. The companies use Control Plans realized using the results from FMEA to evaluate a process or product for strengths and weaknesses and to prevent problems before they occur. The Control Plans represent written descriptions of the systems used to control and minimize product and process variation. In addition Control Plans specify the process monitoring and control methods (for example Special Controls) used to control Special Characteristics. In this paper we propose a computer-aided solution with Genetic Algorithms in order to reduce the drafting of reports: FMEA analysis and Control Plan required in the manufacture of the product launch and improved knowledge development teams for future projects. The solution allows to the design team to introduce data entry required to FMEA. The actual analysis is performed using Genetic Algorithms to find optimum between RPN risk factor and cost of production. A feature of Genetic Algorithms is that they are used as a means of finding solutions for multi criteria optimization problems. In our case, along with three specific FMEA risk factors is considered and reduce production cost. Analysis tool will generate final reports for all FMEA processes. The data obtained in FMEA reports are automatically integrated with other entered parameters in Control Plan. Implementation of the solution is in the form of an application running in an intranet on two servers: one containing analysis and plan generation engine and the other containing the database where the initial parameters and results are stored. The results can then be used as starting solutions in the synthesis of other projects. The solution was applied to welding processes, laser cutting and bending to manufacture chassis for buses. Advantages of the solution are efficient elaboration of documents in the current project by automatically generating reports FMEA and Control Plan using multiple criteria optimization of production and build a solid knowledge base for future projects. The solution which we propose is a cheap alternative to other solutions on the market using Open Source tools in implementation.

Keywords: automotive industry, FMEA, control plan, automotive technology

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Authors: C. E. Laburu, M. A. Barros, A. F. Zompero, O. H. M. Silva

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The work presents a teaching strategy that employs syntagmatic and paradigmatic linguistic relations in order to monitor the understanding of physics students’ concepts. Syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations are theoretical elements of semiotics studies and our research circumstances and justified them within the research program of multi-modal representations. Among the multi-modal representations to learning scientific knowledge, the scope of action of syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations belongs to the discursive writing form. The use of such relations has the purpose to seek innovate didactic work with discourse representation in the write form before translate to another different representational form. The research was conducted with a sample of first year high school students. The students were asked to produce syntagmatic and paradigmatic of Newton’ first law statement. This statement was delivered in paper for each student that should individually write the relations. The student’s records were collected for analysis. It was possible observed in one student used here as example that their monemes replaced and rearrangements produced by, respectively, syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations, kept the original meaning of the law. In paradigmatic production he specified relevant significant units of the linguistic signs, the monemas, which constitute the first articulation and each word substituted kept equivalence to the original meaning of original monema. Also, it was noted a number of diverse and many monemas were chosen, with balanced combination of grammatical (grammatical monema is what changes the meaning of a word, in certain positions of the syntagma, along with a relatively small number of other monemes. It is the smallest linguistic unit that has grammatical meaning) and lexical (lexical monema is what belongs to unlimited inventories; is the monema endowed with lexical meaning) monemas. In syntagmatic production, monemas ordinations were syntactically coherent, being linked with semantic conservation and preserved number. In general, the results showed that the written representation mode based on linguistic relations paradigmatic and syntagmatic qualifies itself to be used in the classroom as a potential identifier and accompanist of meanings acquired from students in the process of scientific inquiry.

Keywords: semiotics, language, high school, physics teaching

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Authors: Suzana Leitão Russo, Mayara Laysa de Oliveira Silva, José Augusto Andrade Filho, Vitor Hugo Simon

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Currently, seismic methods and prospecting methods are commonly applied in the oil industry and, according to the information reported every day; oil is a source of non-renewable energy. It is easier to understand why the ownership of areas of oil extraction is coveted by many nations. It is necessary to think about ways that will enable the maximization of oil production. The technique of spectral analysis can be used to analyze the behavior of the variables already defined in oil well the profile. The main objective is to verify the series dependence of variables, and to model the variables using the frequency domain to observe the model residuals.

Keywords: oil, well, spectral analysis, oil extraction

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Authors: H. Kiani, S. Moradi, B. Soltani Soulgani, S. Mousavian

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Desalting/dehydration plants (DDP) are often installed in crude oil production units in order to remove water-soluble salts from an oil stream. In order to optimize this process, desalting unit should be modeled. In this research, artificial neural network is used to model efficiency of desalting unit as a function of input parameter. The result of this research shows that the mentioned model has good agreement with experimental data.

Keywords: desalting unit, crude oil, neural networks, simulation, recovery, separation

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Authors: Vera Lucia Teixeira da Silva, Sandra Regina Buttros Gattolin de Paula

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The present study focuses on academic literacy and addresses the impact of semantic-discursive resources on the constitution of genres that are produced in such context. The research considers the development of writing in the academic context in Portuguese. Researches that address academic literacy and the characteristics of the texts produced in this context are rare, mainly with focus on the development of writing, considering three variables: the constitution of the writer, the perception of the reader/interlocutor and the organization of the informational text flow. The research aims to map the semantic-discursive resources of the written register in texts of several genres and produced by students in the first semester of the undergraduate course in Letters. The hypothesis raised is that writing in the academic environment is not a recurrent literacy practice for these learners and can be explained by the ontogenetic and phylogenetic nature of language development. Qualitative in nature, the present research has as empirical data texts produced in a half-yearly course of Reading and Textual Production; these data result from the proposition of four different writing proposals, in a total of 600 texts. The corpus is analyzed based on semantic-discursive resources, seeking to contemplate relevant aspects of language (grammar, discourse and social context) that reveal the choices made in the reader/writer interrelationship and the organizational flow of the Text. Among the semantic-discursive resources, the analysis includes three resources, including (a) appraisal and negotiation to understand the attitudes negotiated (roles of the participants of the discourse and their relationship with the other); (b) ideation to explain the construction of the experience (activities performed and participants); and (c) periodicity to outline the flow of information in the organization of the text according to the genre it instantiates. The results indicate the organizational difficulties of the flow of the text information. Cartography contributes to the understanding of the way writers use language in an effort to present themselves, evaluate someone else’s work, and communicate with readers.

Keywords: academic writing, Portuguese mother tongue, semantic-discursive resources, academic context

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Authors: S. M. Ali, S. I. Mohamed

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Reduction of feed cost for broiler production is at most importance in decreasing the cost of production. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the use of synthetic amino acids (L-lysine – DL-methionine) instead of super concentrate and groundnut cake versus meat powder as protein sources. A total of 180 male broiler chicks (Cobb – strain) at 15 day of age (DOA) were selected according to their average body weight (380 g) from a broiler chicks flock at Elbashair Farm. The chicks were randomly divided into six groups of 30 chicks. Each group was further sub divided into three replicates with 10 birds. Six experimental diets were formulated. The first diet contained groundnut cake and super concentrate as the control (GNC + C); in the second diet, meat powder and super concentrate (MP + C) were used. The third diet contained groundnut cake and amino acids (GNC + AA); the forth diet contained meat powder and amino acids (MP + AA). The fifth diet contained groundnut cake, meat powder and super concentrate (GNC + MP + C) and the sixth diet contained groundnut cake, meat powder and amino acids (GNC + MP + AA). The formulated rations were randomly assigned for the different sub groups in a completely randomized design of six treatments and three replicates. Weekly feed intake, body weight and mortality were recorded and body weight gain and feed conversion ratio were calculated. At the end of the experiment (49 DOA), nine birds from each treatment were slaughtered. Live body weight, carcass weight, head, shank, and some internal organs (gizzard, heart, liver, small intestine, and abdominal fat pad) weights were taken. For the overall experimental period the (GNC + C +MP) consumed significantly (P≤0.01) the highest cumulative feed while the (MP + AA) group consumed the lowest amount of feed. The (GNC + C) and the (GNC + AA) groups had the heaviest live body weight while (MP + AA) had the lowest live body weight. The overall FCR was significantly (P≤0.01) the best for (GNC + AA) group while the (MP + AA) reported the worst FCR. However, the (GNC + AA) had significantly (P≤0.01) the lowest AFP. The (GNC + MP + Con) group had the highest dressing % while the (MP + AA) group had the lowest dressing %. It is concluded that amino acids can be used instead of super concentrate in broiler feeding with perfect performance and less cost and that meat powder is not advisable to be used with amino acids.

Keywords: broiler chickens, DL-lysine, methionine, performance

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Authors: Takaharu Hirai, Yuta Mitobe, Hiromi Hirai

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Introduction: Eating disorders (ED) are serious psychiatric disorders that affect individuals, especially adolescents. It has been suggested that nonclinical ED-like characteristics are related to sleep problems. However, studies exploring the association between potential ED and sleep disorders have primarily been conducted in Europe and the United States. We conducted a survey of Japanese adolescents to investigate this claim. Method: In this cross-sectional study, 398 school-aged adolescents, aged 12–18 years old, matched for gender ratio, responded to a self-administered questionnaire survey. We used the Eating Attitudes Test-26 (EAT-26) and the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS) to measure potential ED and sleep problems, respectively. In this study, participants with an EAT-26 total score of 0–19 points were classified as non-ED, while those with scores of 20 points or higher were classified as potential ED. Result: Of the 398 participants, 17 (4.3%) had an EAT-26 total score of 20 or higher. Among boys, the rate was 6 of 199 participants (3%), and among girls, the rate was 11 of 182 participants (6%). There were 89 participants (22.4%) with an AIS score of 6 points or higher, of which 36 (17.6%) were boys, and 53 (27.5%) were girls. Adolescents with potential ED had significantly higher rates of daytime sleep problems than those without ED. Further, while examining the types of sleep problems, adolescents with potential ED had greater problems with a sense of well-being and physical and mental functioning during the day. In contrast, no significant associations were found between potential ED and sleep initiation, awakenings during the night, early morning awakening, total sleep duration, or overall quality of sleep. Finally, nocturnal and daytime sleep scores were significantly associated with dieting, bulimia, and oral control EAT-26 sub-scores. Discussion: While Japanese adolescents with possible ED do not experience nighttime sleep problems, they do experience problems related to well-being and mental and physical functioning, which are indicators of daytime sleep problems. This may assist with early detection of disordered eating in adolescents. The study suggested that professionals working towards adolescent mental health issues need an approach that comprehensively integrates both sleep problems and potential ED.

Keywords: adolescents, potential eating disorders, sleep problems, eating attitudes test-26

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Authors: Jane N. O'Sullivan

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In most studies relating change in fertility to potentially causal factors (such as girls’ educational attainment, infant mortality or urbanization), the presence or nature of family planning efforts are not examined, potentially misattributing their contributions. Modest impacts of voluntary family planning programs on fertility change have been claimed, citing the near-term effects of historical quasi-experimental projects – notably in Bangladesh and in Ghana – where recipients and non-recipients could be contrasted. By their nature, such experiments lacked the wider cultural impacts of national programs. Concurrently, analyses relating population growth with economic advancement have been equivocal, discrediting previous widespread concern which prevailed before the 1980s. This neutral view has been revised more recently with demographic dividend theory crediting higher working-age proportion with some economic stimulus if supported by sufficient institutional and human capacity. In this study of country-level data, cross-country comparisons spanning six decades relate fertility decline with family planning effort, GDP per capita and female education, finding that the timing of rapid fertility decline aligns with commencement of voluntary family planning programs, while economic betterment came after substantial fertility fall. The relationship between fertility and primary education completion was inconsistent, with potential channels of causation operating in both directions. GDP per capita was unrelated to rate of fertility decline, but total fertility rates above three children per woman strongly impeded enrichment. By synchronizing countries with respect to their fertility transition, strong relationships are revealed which suggest lower fertility enables economic betterment, rather than the other way around. These results argue in favour of elevating voluntary family planning as a development priority.

Keywords: economic advance, family planning effort, fertility decline, population growth rate

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Authors: Mei Sze Wong, Huanyu Mou, Wai-Tong Chien

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Background: Breastmilk is the most nutritious food for infants to support their growth and protect them from infection. Therefore, breastfeeding promotion is an important topic for infant health; whereas, different educational and supportive approaches to interventions have been prompted and targeted at antenatal, postnatal, or both periods to promote and sustain exclusive breastfeeding. This systematic review aimed to identify the effective approaches of educational and supportive interventions to improve breastfeeding. Outcome measures were exclusive breastfeeding, partial breastfeeding, and breastfeeding self-efficacy, being analyzed in terms of ≤ 2 months, 3-5 months, and ≥ 6 months postpartum. Method: Eleven electronic databases and the reference lists of eligible articles were searched. English or Chinese articles of randomized controlled trials on educational and supportive intervention with the above breastfeeding outcomes over recent 20 years were searched. Quality appraisal and risk of bias of the studies were checked by Effective Public Health Practice Project tool and Revised Cochrane risk-of-bias tool, respectively. Results: 13 articles that met the inclusion criteria were included; and they had acceptable quality and risk of bias. The optimal structure, format, and delivery of the interventions significantly increased exclusive breastfeeding rate at ≤ 2 months and ≥ 6 months and breastfeeding self-efficacy at ≤ 2 months included: (a) delivering from antenatal to postnatal period, (b) multicomponent involving antenatal group education, postnatal individual breastfeeding coaching and telephone follow-ups, (c) both individual and group basis, (d) being guided by self-efficacy theory, and (e) having ≥ 3 sessions. Conclusion: The findings showed multicomponent theory-based interventions with ≥ 3 sessions that delivered across antenatal and postnatal period; using both face-to-face teaching and telephone follow-ups can be useful to enhance exclusive breastfeeding rate for more than 6 months and breastfeeding self-efficacy over the first two months of postpartum.

Keywords: breastfeeding self-efficacy, education, exclusive breastfeeding, primiparous, support

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Authors: Visa I. Tyakaray, M. Abdulaziz, O. Badmus, N. Karaye, M. Dalhat, A. Shehu, I. Bello, T. Hussaini, S. Akar, G. Effah, P. Nguku

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Introduction: Nigeria has recorded outbreaks of meningitis in the past, being in the meningitis belt. A multi-state outbreak of Cerebrospinal Meningitis (CSM) from Neisseria meningitides occurred in 2017 involving 24 states, and Kano State reported its first two confirmed CSM cases on 22nd March, 2017. We conducted the outbreak investigation to characterize the outbreak, determine its associated risk factors and institute appropriate control measures. Method: We conducted an unmatched Case-control study with ratio 1:2. A case was defined as any person with sudden onset of fever (>38.5˚C rectal or 38.0˚C axillary) and one of the following: neck stiffness, altered consciousness or bulging fontanelle in toddlers while a control was defined as any person who resides around the case such as family members, caregivers, neighbors, and healthcare personnel. We reviewed and validated line list and conducted active case search in health facilities and neighboring communities. Descriptive, bivariate, stratified and multivariate analysis were performed. Laboratory confirmation was by Latex agglutination and/or Culture. Results: We recruited 48 cases with median age of 11 years (1 month – 65 years), attack rate was 2.4/100,000 population with case fatality rate of 8%; 34 of 44 local government areas were affected.On stratification, age was found to be a confounder. Independent factors associated with the outbreak were age (Adjusted Odds Ratio, AOR =6.58; 95% Confidence Interval (CI) =2.85-15.180, history of Vaccination (AOR=0.37; 95% CI=0.13-0.99) and history of travel (AOR=10.16; (1.99-51.85). Laboratory results showed 22 positive cases for Neisseria meningitides types C and A/Y. Conclusion: Major risk factors associated with this outbreak were age (>14years), not being vaccinated and history of travel. We sensitized communities and strengthened case management. We recommended immediate reactive vaccination and enhanced surveillance in bordering communities.

Keywords: cerebrospinal, factors, Kano-Nigeria, meningitis, risk

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Authors: Basant Kumar Singh, S. Subhachandhar, Vineet Ranjan Tripathi, Amit Kumar Singh, Uttam Singh, Santosh Kumar Lal

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Productivity of Blast Furnace is largely impacted by fuel efficiency and controlling heat loss is one of the enabling parameters for achieving lower fuel rate. 'I' Blast Furnace is the latest and largest Blast Furnace of Tata Steel Jamshedpur with working volume of 3230 m³ and with rated capacity of 3.055 million tons per annum. Optimizing heat losses in Belly and Bosh zone remained major challenge for blast furnace operators after its commissioning. 'I' Blast has installed Cast Iron & Copper Staves cooling members where copper staves are installed in Belly, Bosh & Lower Stack whereas cast iron staves are installed in upper stack area. Stave cooled Blast Furnaces are prone to higher heat losses in Belly and Bosh region with an increase in coal injection rate as Bosh gas volume increases. Under these conditions, managing gas flow pattern through proper burden distribution, casting techniques & by maintaining desired raw material qualities are of utmost importance for sustaining high injection rates. This study details, the burden distribution control by Ore & Coke ratio adjustment at wall and center of Blast Furnace as the coal injection rates increased from 140 kg/thm to 210 kg/thm. Control of blowing parameters, casting philosophy, specification for raw materials & devising operational practice for controlling heat losses is also elaborated with the model that is used to visualize heat loss pattern in different zones of Blast Furnace.

Keywords: blast furnace, staves, gas flow pattern, belly/bosh heat losses, ore/coke ratio, blowing parameters, casting, operation practice

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Authors: Mujahid Manzoor, Muhammad Shafique, Jam Nazeer Ahmad, Farman Ahmad, Muhammad Ali, Muhammad Rizwan Tariq, Shahbaz Ahmad, Muhammad Saleem Haider

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Date palms (P. dactylifera L.) are prominent in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Iran, UAE, and Iraq, as well as Algeria, Egypt, and Pakistan. Insect pests' attacks on different palm cultivars adversely affected their production in the last few decades. Pakistan ranked sixth for date production around the world. The most commercially grown cultivars are Aseel, Dhaki, Falsi, Karbalai, Mozawati, Jan Swore, Kohra, Hillawi, Kohra, and Begum Jhangi. Red palm weevils are considered as hazardous insect pests responsible for economic loss in palm orchards. This research work depicts the infestation of red palm weevils in eleven different palm cultivars (Hillawi, Mozawati, Kechanr, Aseel, Shamrani, Khudravi, Dhaki, Zeri, Kobra, Zaidi, Denda), which frequently grow in different regions of Pakistan through Y-shaped olfactometer analysis. In addition, the level of both antixenosis and antibiosis was spotted by examining the various parameters such as %age lure of weevils of mature females, general count of laid eggs in addition to their activeness. Furthermore, obtained results depicted that a positive contact was established with minimum antixenotic consequence revealed by a cultivar, “Hillawi” among most hold of RPW adults (22.32%), number of eggs laid (16.66%) and egg hatching (84.66%), while other cultivars, including Mozawati, Aseel, Kechanr, Shamrani, Khudravi, Dhaki, Zeri, and Zaidi, exhibited a greater level of antixenosis. Moreover, “Hillawi” documented the maximum number of eggs, while Kechanr, Mozawati, Aseel Kobra, and Denda showed minimum attraction by red palm weevils. Maximum red palm weevils were attracted in an olfactometer assay of sugarcane varieties.

Keywords: P. dactylifera, R. ferrugineus, olfactometer, antixenosis

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Authors: Rajesh Kumar Gautam, Debabrata Seth

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Thioflavin-T (ThT) play a key role of an important biologically active fluorescent sensor for amyloid fibrils. ThT molecule has been developed a method to detect the analysis of different type of diseases such as neurodegenerative disorders, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and type II diabetes. ThT was used as a fluorescent marker to detect the formation of amyloid fibril. In the presence of amyloid fibril, ThT becomes highly fluorescent. ThT undergoes twisting motion around C-C bonds of the two adjacent benzothiazole and dimethylaniline aromatic rings, which is predominantly affected by the micro-viscosity of the local environment. The present study articulates photophysics and torsional dynamics of biologically active molecule ThT in the presence of deep-eutectic solvents (DESs). DESs are environment-friendly, low cost and biodegradable alternatives to the ionic liquids. DES resembles ionic liquids, but the constituents of a DES include a hydrogen bond donor and acceptor species, in addition to ions. Due to the presence of the H-bonding network within a DES, it exhibits structural heterogeneity. Herein, we have prepared two different DESs by mixing urea with choline chloride and N, N-diethyl ethanol ammonium chloride at ~ 340 K. It was reported that deep eutectic mixture of choline chloride with urea gave a liquid with a freezing point of 12°C. We have experimented by taking two different concentrations of ThT. It was observed that at higher concentration of ThT (50 µM) it forms aggregates in DES. The photophysics of ThT as a function of temperature have been explored by using steady-state, and picoseconds time-resolved fluorescence emission spectroscopic techniques. From the spectroscopic analysis, we have observed that with rising temperature the fluorescence quantum yields and lifetime values of ThT molecule gradually decreases; this is the cumulative effect of thermal quenching and increase in the rate of the torsional rate constant. The fluorescence quantum yield and fluorescence lifetime decay values were always higher for DES-II (urea & N, N-diethyl ethanol ammonium chloride) than those for DES-I (urea & choline chloride). This was mainly due to the presence of structural heterogeneity of the medium. This was further confirmed by comparison with the activation energy of viscous flow with the activation energy of non-radiative decay. ThT molecule in less viscous media undergoes a very fast twisting process and leads to deactivation from the photoexcited state. In this system, the torsional motion increases with increasing temperature. We have concluded that beside bulk viscosity of the media, structural heterogeneity of the medium play crucial role to guide the photophysics of ThT in DESs. The analysis of the experimental data was carried out in the temperature range 288 ≤ T = 333K. The present articulate is to obtain an insight into the DESs as media for studying various photophysical processes of amyloid fibrils sensing molecule of ThT.

Keywords: deep eutectic solvent, photophysics, Thioflavin T, the torsional rate constant

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Authors: Tamseela Habib, Muhammad Amjad, Muhammad Edokali, Masome Moeni, Olivia Pickup, Ali Hassanpour

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Nanofluid-assisted steam generation is rapidly attracting attention amongst the scientific community since it can be applied in a wide range of industrial processes. Because of its high absorption rate of solar energy, nanoparticle-based solar steam generation could be a major contributor to many applications, including water desalination, sterilization and power generation. Lithium bromide-based iron oxide nanofluids have been previously studied in steam generation, which showed promising results. However, the efficiency of the system could be improved if a more heat-conductive nanofluid system could be utilised. In the current paper, we report on an experimental investigation of the photothermal conversion properties of functionalised Copper oxide (CuO) nanoparticles used in Lithium Bromide salt solutions. CuO binary nanofluid was prepared by chemical functionalization with polyethyleneimine (PEI). Long-term stability evaluation of prepared binary nanofluid was done by a high-speed centrifuge analyser which showed a 0.06 Instability index suggesting low agglomeration and sedimentation tendencies. This stability is also supported by the measurements from dynamic light scattering (DLS), transmission electron microscope (TEM), and ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectrophotometer. The fluid rheology is also characterised, which suggests the system exhibits a Newtonian fluid behavior. The photothermal conversion efficiency of different concentrations of CuO was experimentally investigated under a solar simulator. Experimental results reveal that the binary nanofluid in this study can remarkably increase the solar energy trapping efficiency and evaporation rate as compared to conventional fluids due to localized solar energy harvesting by the surface of the nanofluid. It was found that 0.1wt% CuO NP is the optimum nanofluid concentration for enhanced sensible and latent heat efficiencies.

Keywords: nanofluids, vapor absorption refrigeration system, steam generation, high salinity

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