Search results for: complex correlation measure

Authors: Malini Nandi Majumdar, Avijan Dutta

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The West Police (WBP) is restructured under provisions of the Police Act 1861 during the period of British domination. It is one of the two police forces of the Indian state of west Bengal and is headed by an officer designated as Director General of Police (DG) who directly reports to the State Government. It covers a jurisdiction with eighteen revenue districts of the state and a District Superintendent of Police (SP) controls each district. The purpose of this empirical study is to explore the causes and factors of occupational stress in West Bengal Police officers so that the incumbents can perform their assigned tasks more diligently and the society could be free from evils and devils at a large. Using a self-developed close ended questionnaire that covers 20 critical job-related stressors, the study captures 310 respondents across the organizational hierarchy ranging from Sub Inspectors to the Superintendant of police and covers 5 districts and one commision rate under the jurisdiction of West Bengal Police. The present research has successfully indicated four major occupational stressors such as Organizational Stressors, Hierarchical Stressors, Situational Stressors and Environmental Stressors with 64% of the variance. Further we have employed CFA to determine the goodness of fit indices in terms of i) Absolute Fit Measures like CMIN, FMIN, RMSEA, ECVI ii) Incremental Fit Measures like TLI, NFI, AGFI, CFI(Byne, 2010) demonstrate that value of the measure has passed the requirement criteria and thus fit the model. The major stressors of West Bengal Police have been explored and the ways to deal with these inevitable stressors have been suggested.

Keywords: organizational stressors, hierarchical stressors, situational stressors, environmental stressors

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Authors: A. Jamsheera, F. Arjmand, D. K. Mohapatra

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Small molecules binding to specific sites along DNA molecule are considered as potential chemotherapeutic agents. Their role as mediators of key biological functions and their unique intrinsic properties make them particularly attractive therapeutic agents. Keeping in view, novel dipeptide complexes Cu(II)-Val-Pro (1), Zn(II)-Val-Pro (2), Cu(II)-Ala-Pro (3) and Zn(II)-Ala-Pro (4) were synthesized and thoroughly characterized using different spectroscopic techniques including elemental analyses, IR, NMR, ESI–MS and molar conductance measurements. The solution stability study carried out by UV–vis absorption titration over a broad range of pH proved the stability of the complexes in solution. In vitro DNA binding studies of complexes 1–4 carried out employing absorption, fluorescence, circular dichroism and viscometric studies revealed the binding of complexes to DNA via groove binding. UV–vis titrations of 1–4 with mononucleotides of interest viz., 5´-GMP and 5´-TMP were also carried out. The DNA cleavage activity of the complexes 1 and 2 were ascertained by gel electrophoresis assay which revealed that the complexes are good DNA cleavage agents and the cleavage mechanism involved a hydrolytic pathway. Furthermore, in vitro antitumor activity of complex 1 was screened against human cancer cell lines of different histological origin.

Keywords: dipeptide Cu(II) and Zn(II) complexes, DNA binding profile, pBR322 DNA cleavage, in vitro anticancer activity

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Authors: Wedad Azhar

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Vitamin D is an essential fat-soluble vitamin that is required for the maintenance of good health. It is obtained either through exposure to sunlight (ultraviolet B radiation) or through dietary sources. The role of vitamin D is beyond bone health. Indeed, it plays a critical role in the immune system and a broad range of organ functions such as the cardiovascular system. Moreover, vitamin D plays a critical role in the endothelial function, which is one of the main indicators of atherosclerosis. This study is investigating the correlation between vitamin D status and endothelial function in preventing and treating atherosclerosis especially in country that has ample of sunshine but yet, Saudis from suffering from this issue vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency. Ninety participants from both genders and aged 40 to 60will be involved. The participants will be categorised into three groups: the control group will be healthy persons, patients at risk of developing atherosclerosis, patients formally diagnosed atherosclerosis. Half of the participants in each group should already have been taking vitamin D supplementations. Fasting blood samples will be taken from the participants for biochemical assays. Endothelial function will be assist by flow-mediated dilation of the brachial artery. Participants will be asked to complete a questionnaire on their social and economic status, education level, daily exposure to sunlight, smoking status, consumption of supplements and medication, and a food frequency of vitamin D intake. The data will be analysed using SPSS.

Keywords: atherosclerosis, endothelial function, nutrition, vitamin D

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Authors: Saowaluck Ukrisdawithid

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The thermal conductivity of thermal insulation materials are measured by Heat Flow Meter (HFM) apparatus. The components of uncertainty are complex and difficult on routine measurement by modelling approach. In this study, uncertainty of thermal conductivity measurement was estimated by single laboratory validation approach. The within-laboratory reproducibility was 1.1%. The standard uncertainty of method and laboratory bias by using SRM1453 expanded polystyrene board was dominant at 1.4%. However, it was assessed that there was no significant bias. For sample measurement, the sources of uncertainty were repeatability, density of sample and thermal conductivity resolution of HFM. From this approach to sample measurements, the combined uncertainty was calculated. In summary, the thermal conductivity of sample, polystyrene foam, was reported as 0.03367 W/m·K ± 3.5% (k = 2) at mean temperature 23.5 °C. The single laboratory validation approach is simple key of routine testing laboratory for estimation uncertainty of thermal conductivity measurement by using HFM, according to ISO/IEC 17025-2017 requirements. These are meaningful for laboratory competent improvement, quality control on products, and conformity assessment.

Keywords: single laboratory validation approach, within-laboratory reproducibility, method and laboratory bias, certified reference material

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Authors: Yasmin Umar Assegaf, Falikhatun, Salamah Wahyuni

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This study aims to provide empirical evidence about the influence of Islamic Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosures of the financial performance of Islamic banking with the characteristics of the company, as a control variable in Islamic banking in Indonesia. ICSR disclosures are an independent variable, while the Financial Performance is the dependent variable (proxied by Return on Assets (ROA), Return on Equity (ROE), Income Expense Ratio (IER), and Non-net Interest Margin (NIM). The control variables used are firm size, firm age and the type of audit. The population of the study was all Islamic Banks (BUS) operate in Indonesia. The research sample is Islamic Commercial Bank which has existed in Indonesia since 2002 and publishes financial statements between the years of 2007-2011. The sample of the study were include 31 Annual Report published. The results of this study concluded that there are significant influences between the ICSR Disclosures and financial performance. The disclosure is partially effect on ROA, IER and NIM, whereas there is no influence on ROE. Further result shows that all control variables (Firm Size, Age, and Type of Audit Companies) does not have any influence on ICSR Disclosures in Indonesia. This research gives a suggestion for further research to compare these ICSR disclosures in Indonesia with ICSR disclosures in other countries that have Islamic banking, by using other measure variables of financial performance, to get more comprehensive model and real picture.

Keywords: ROA, ROE, IER, NIM, company size, age of the company, audit type, Islamic banking

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Authors: Ujjval J. Solanki, Prof.(Dr.) P.J. Gundaliya, Prof.M.D. Barasara

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The application of Falling Weight Deflectometer is to evaluate structural performance of the flexible pavement. The exercise of back calculation is required to know the modulus of elasticity of existing in-service pavement. The process of back calculation needs in-depth field experience for the input of range of modulus of elasticity of bituminous, granular and subgrade layer, and its required number of trial to find such matching moduli with the observed FWD deflection on the field. The study carried out at Barnala-Mansa State Highway Punjab-India using FWD before and after overlay; the deflections obtained at 0 on the load cell, 300, 600, 900,1200, 1500 and 1800 mm interval from the load cell these seven deflection results used to calculate Surface Curvature Index (SCI), Base damage Index (BDI), Base curvature index (BCI). This SCI, BCI and BDI indices are useful to predict the structural performance of in-service pavement and also useful to identify homogeneous section for condition assessment. The SCI, BCI and BDI range are determined for before and after overlay the range of SCI 520 to 51 BDI 294 to 63 BCI 83 to 0.27 for old pavement and SCI 272 to 23 BDI 228 to 28, BCI 25.85 to 4.60 for new pavement. It also shows good correlation with back calculated modulus of elasticity of all the three layer.

Keywords: back calculation, base damage index, base curvature index, FWD (Falling Weight Deflectometer), surface curvature index

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Authors: Vesna Karapetkovska Hristova, M. Ayaz Ahmad, Julijana Tomovska, Biljana Bogdanova Popov, Blagojce Najdovski

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The average total concentrations of heavy metals; (cadmium [Cd], copper [Cu], nickel [Ni], lead [Pb], and zinc [Zn]) were analyzed in soil and vegetables samples collected from the different region of Macedonia during the years 2010-2012. Basic soil properties such as pH, organic matter and clay content were also included in the study. The average concentrations of Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn in the A horizon (0-30 cm) of agricultural soils were as follows, respectively: 0.25, 5.3, 6.9, 15.2, 26.3 mg kg-1 of soil. We have found that neural networking model can be considered as a tool for prediction and spatial analysis of the processes controlling the metal transfer within the soil-and vegetables. The predictive ability of such models is well over 80% as compared to 20% for typical regression models. A radial basic function network reflects good predicting accuracy and correlation coefficients between soil properties and metal content in vegetables much better than the back-propagation method. Neural Networking / soft computing can support the decision-making processes at different levels, including agro ecology, to improve crop management based on monitoring data and risk assessment of metal transfer from soils to vegetables.

Keywords: soft computing approach, total concentrations, heavy metals, agricultural soils

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Authors: Benyan Jiang, Dawei Xia, Yong Li

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Compact city construction is considered as an effective measure to reduce carbon emission in city lives. Toyama City started its compact city strategy in 2000 and was selected as a Japanese Environmental Model City in 2008 for its achievement. This paper takes Toyama as a study case, aiming to find how city polices affected people’s life styles and reduced carbon emission. The main materials used in this study are first-hand documents, like urban planning materials, government annual report and statistic data from transportation association. It is found that the main measures taken by Toyama City include the construction of light rail transit, increasing the frequency of buses, building park and ride parking lots. In addition to hardware facilities, it also offers flexible policies like passengers' coupons for the senior citizens and free use of parking lots by buying shopping vouchers. Besides, Toyama City encourages citizens to live within 500 meters of public transportation. People who buy an apartment near public transportation will receive 500,000 Japanese Yen. These measures have proven to their effects. Compared with 2005, in 2014, the transportation sector reduced emissions of 2.35 million tons of CO₂, 13.6%. This aspect is related to the increase in the number of cars in public transport and also related to fuel improvement.

Keywords: Toyama, compact city, public transportation, CO₂ reduction

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Authors: Imeobong Joseph Inyang, Aniekan-Augusta Okon Eyo, Abel William Essien

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Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is one of the known human carcinogens. The presence of HBsAg in liver tissues indicates active viral replication. More than 85% of Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) cases occur in countries with increased rates of chronic HBV infection. An evaluation study to determine the relationship between positivity for HBsAg and development of HCC and its distribution between age and gender of subjects was done. Shikata Orcein and Haematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) staining techniques were performed on liver sections. A total of 50 liver tissue specimens comprising 38 biopsy and 12 post-mortem specimens were processed. Thirty-five of the 50 specimens were positive for HBsAg with Orcein stain whereas only 16 were positive with H&E stain, and these were also positive with Orcein stain, giving an HBsAg prevalence of 70.0% (35/50). The prevalence of HCC in the study was 56.0% (28/50), of which 21 (75.0%) cases were positive for HBsAg, 18 (64.3%) were males while 10 (35.7%) were females distributed within the age range of 20-70 years. The highest number of HBsAg positive HCC cases, 7/21 (33.3%) occurred in the age group 40-49 years. There was no relationship in the pattern of distribution of HCC between age and gender using the Pearson correlation coefficient (r = 0.0474; P < 0.05). HBV infection predisposed to HCC. Orcein technique was more specific and is therefore recommended for screening of liver tissues where facilities for immunohistochemistry are inaccessible.

Keywords: Hepatitis B. surface antigen, hepatocellular carcinoma, orcein, pathology

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Authors: Inas S. Khayal, Weiping Zhou, Jonathan Skinner

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Healthcare delivery systems around the world are in crisis. The need to improve health outcomes while decreasing healthcare costs have led to an imminent call to action to transform the healthcare delivery system. While Bioinformatics and Biomedical Engineering have primarily focused on biological level data and biomedical technology, there is clear evidence of the importance of the delivery of care on patient outcomes. Classic singular decomposition approaches from reductionist science are not capable of explaining complex systems. Approaches and methods from systems science and systems engineering are utilized to structure healthcare delivery system data. Specifically, systems architecture is used to develop a multi-scale and multi-dimensional characterization of the healthcare delivery system, defined here as the Healthcare Delivery System Knowledge Base. This paper is the first to contribute a new method of structuring and visualizing a multi-dimensional and multi-scale healthcare delivery system using systems architecture in order to better understand healthcare delivery.

Keywords: health informatics, systems thinking, systems architecture, healthcare delivery system, data analytics

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Authors: Abdullah Pandang, Mantasiah Rivai, Nur Fadhilah Umar, Azam Arifyadi

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This study aims to measure the validity of the politeness behaviour scale and obtain a model that fits the scale. The researcher developed the Politeness Behavior on Communicating (PBC) scale. The research method uses descriptive quantitative by developing the PBC scale. The population in this study were students in three provinces, namely South Sulawesi, West Sulawesi, and Central Sulawesi, recorded in the 2022/2023 academic year. The sampling technique used stratified random sampling by determining the number of samples using the Slovin formula. The sample of this research is 1200 students. This research instrument uses the PBC scale, which consists of 5 (five) indicators: self-regulation of compensation behaviour, self-efficacy of compensation behaviour, fulfilment of social expectations, positive feedback, and no strings attached. The PBC scale consists of 34 statement items. The data analysis technique is divided into two types: the validity test on the correlated item values and the item reliability test referring to Cronbach's and McDonald's alpha standards using the JASP application. Furthermore, the data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). The results showed that the adaptation of the Politeness Behavior on Communicating (PBC) scale was on the Fit Index with a chi-square value (711,800/375), RMSEA (0.53), GFI (0.990), CFI (0.987), GFI (0.985).

Keywords: polite behavior in communicating, positive communication, exploration factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis

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Authors: Hyunchul Oh

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One of the challenges in modern separation science and technology is the separation of hydrogen isotopes mixtures since D2 and H2 consist of almost identical size, shape and thermodynamic properties. Recently, quantum sieving of isotopes by confinement in narrow space has been proposed as an alternative technique. Despite many theoretical suggestions, however, it has been difficult to discover a feasible microporous material up to now. Among various porous materials, the novel class of microporous framework materials (COFs, ZIFs and MOFs) is considered as a promising material class for isotope sieving due to ultra-high porosity and uniform pore size which can be tailored. Hence, we investigate experimentally the fundamental correlation between D2/H2 molar ratio and pore size at optimized operating conditions by using different ultramicroporous frameworks. The D2/H2 molar ratio is strongly depending on pore size, pressure and temperature. An experimentally determined optimum pore diameter for quantum sieving lies between 3.0 and 3.4 Å which can be an important guideline for designing and developing feasible microporous frameworks for isotope separation. Afterwards, we report a novel strategy for efficient hydrogen isotope separation at technologically relevant operating pressure through the development of quantum sieving exploited by the pore aperture engineering. The strategy involves installation of flexible components in the pores of the framework to tune the pore surface.

Keywords: gas adsorption, hydrogen isotope, metal organic frameworks(MOFs), quantum sieving

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Authors: Mohammadreza Akbari, Pooya Soleimani Besheli, Reza Khalili, Sara Akbari

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In this study, we investigate building structures nonlinear behavior also solving analytic of nonlinear differential at vibrations. As we know most of engineering systems behavior in practical are non- linear process (especial at structural) and analytical solving (no numerical) these problems are complex, difficult and sometimes impossible (of course at form of analytical solving). In this symposium, we are going to exposure one method in engineering, that can solve sets of nonlinear differential equations with high accuracy and simple solution and so this issue will emerge after comparing the achieved solutions by Numerical Method (Runge-Kutte 4th) and exact solutions. Finally, we can proof AGM method could be created huge evolution for researcher and student (engineering and basic science) in whole over the world, because of AGM coding system, so by using this software, we can analytical solve all complicated linear and nonlinear differential equations, with help of that there is no difficulty for solving nonlinear differential equations.

Keywords: new method AGM, vibrations, beam-column, angular frequency, energy dissipated, critical load

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Authors: Shan-Ying Wu, Sheng-Hui Lan, Xi-Zhang Lin, Ih-Jen Su, Ting-Fen Tsai, Chia-Jui Yen, Tsung-Hsueh Lu, Fu-Wen Liang, Huey-Jen Su, Chun-Li Su, Hsiao-Sheng Liu

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In hepatocelluar carcinoma (HCC), dysregulated expression of cyclin D1 and impaired autophagy has been reported separately. However, the relationship between them has not been explored. In this study, we demonstrated that autophagy was inversely correlated with cyclin D1 expression in 147 paired HCC patient specimens. HCC specimen with highly expression of cyclin D1 shows correlation with poor overall survival rate. Furthermore, induction of autophagy by amiodarone (antiarrhythmic drug) in Hep 3B cells, cyclin D1 was recruited into autophagosomes demonstrated by immune-gold labeling of cyclin D1 after extraction of autophagosomes. We further demonstrated that autophagy suppresses Hep 3B cell proliferation, and further analysis revealed that cell cycle was arrested at G1 phase. The interaction between LC3 (maker of autophagy) and cyclin D1 was increased after autophagy induction. In addition, ubiquitinated-cyclin D1 was also increased after autophagy induction, which is selectively degraded by autophagosome through binding with SQSTM1/p62 (an adaptor protein). In vivo study showed that amiodarone induced autophagy suppresses liver tumor formation in xenograft mouse and orthotopic rat model through decreasing cyclin D1 expression and inhibition of cell proliferation. Altogether, we reveal a novel mechanism that ubiquitinated cyclin D1 degraded by autophagic pathway by p62 and amiodarone is a promising drug for targeting cyclin D1 in liver cancer therapy.

Keywords: autophagy, cyclin D1, hepatocellular carcinoma, amiodarone

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Authors: Farzaneh Khorram

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This paper endeavors to construct a block model to assess grinding energy consumption (CCE) and pinpoint blocks with the highest potential for energy usage during the grinding process within a specified region. Leveraging geostatistical techniques, particularly joint estimation, or simulation, based on geometallurgical data from various mineral processing stages, our objective is to forecast CCE across the study area. The dataset encompasses variables obtained from 2754 drill samples and a block model comprising 4680 blocks. The initial analysis encompassed exploratory data examination, variography, multivariate analysis, and the delineation of geological and structural units. Subsequent analysis involved the assessment of contacts between these units and the estimation of CCE via cokriging, considering its correlation with SPI. The selection of blocks exhibiting maximum CCE holds paramount importance for cost estimation, production planning, and risk mitigation. The study conducted exploratory data analysis on lithology, rock type, and failure variables, revealing seamless boundaries between geometallurgical units. Simulation methods, such as Plurigaussian and Turning band, demonstrated more realistic outcomes compared to cokriging, owing to the inherent characteristics of geometallurgical data and the limitations of kriging methods.

Keywords: geometallurgy, multivariate analysis, plurigaussian, turning band method, cokriging

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Authors: Sonia Ben Hamza, Sabra Habli, Nejla Mahjoub Saïd, Hervé Bournot, Georges Le Palec

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Free surface flows caused by dam breaks in channels or rivers is an attention-getting subject to the engineering practice, however, the studies are few to be reported. In this paper, a numerical investigation of unsteady free surface flows resulting from a dam-breaking in a rectangular channel is studied. Numerical computations were carried out using ANSYS Fluent which is based on the finite volume approach. The air/water interface was modeled with the volume of fluid method (VOF). Verification for a typical dam-break problem is analyzed by comparing the present results with others and very good agreement is obtained. The present approach is then used to predict the characteristics of free surface flow due to the dam breaking in channel. The characteristics of complex unsteady free surface flow in these examples are clearly explained. The numerical results show that the flow became more disturbed after impacting the vertical wall, then a recirculation zone, as well as turbulence phenomena, were created. At this instant, a cavity of air was included on the flow. The results agree well with the experimental data found in the literature.

Keywords: CFD, dam-break, free surface, turbulent flows, VOF

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Authors: Ava Zarif Sanayei, Mustafa Farjad-Fard, Mohammad-Reza Mohammadian-Behbahani, Leyli Ebrahimi, Sedigheh Sina

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The fabrication and testing of a low-cost air-filled ion chamber for X-ray dosimetry is studied. The chamber is made of a metal cylinder, a central wire, a BC517 Darlington transistor, a 9V DC battery, and a voltmeter in order to have a cost-effective means to measure the dose. The output current of the dosimeter is amplified by the transistor and then fed to the large internal resistance of the voltmeter, producing a readable voltage signal. The dose-response linearity of the ion chamber is evaluated for different exposure scenarios by the X-ray tube. kVp values 70, 90, and 120, and mAs up to 20 are considered. In all experiments, a solid-state dosimeter (Solidose 400, Elimpex Medizintechnik) is used as a reference device for chamber calibration. Each case of exposure is repeated three times, the voltmeter and Solidose readings are recorded, and the mean and standard deviation values are calculated. Then, the calibration curve, derived by plotting voltmeter readings against Solidose readings, provided a linear fit result for all tube kVps of 70, 90, and 120. A 99, 98, and 100% linear relationship, respectively, for kVp values 70, 90, and 120 are demonstrated. The study shows the feasibility of achieving acceptable dose measurements with a simplified setup. Further enhancements to the proposed setup include solutions for limiting the leakage current, optimizing chamber dimensions, utilizing electronic microcontrollers for dedicated data readout, and minimizing the impact of stray electromagnetic fields on the system.

Keywords: dosimetry, ion chamber, radiation detection, X-ray

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Authors: Tatyana Alexandrova, Alexandr Alexandrov, Nadezhda Nikolaeva

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A problem of complex mineral resources development is urgent and priority, it is aimed at realization of the processes of their ecologically safe development, one of its components is revealing the influence of the forms of element compounds in raw materials and in the processing products. In view of depletion of the precious metal reserves at the traditional deposits in the XXI century the large-size open cast deposits, localized in black shale strata begin to play the leading role. Carbonaceous (black) shales carry a heightened metallogenic potential. Black shales with high content of carbon are widely distributed within the scope of Bureinsky massif. According to academician Hanchuk`s data black shales of Sutirskaya series contain generally PGEs native form. The presence of high absorptive towards carbonaceous matter gold and PGEs compounds in crude ore results in decrease of valuable components extraction because of their sorption into dissipated carbonaceous matter.

Keywords: сarbonaceous rocks, bitumens, precious metals, concentration, extraction

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Authors: Bakr Gomaa

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Cross ventilation is an important and practical mean to achieve thermal comfort and conserve energy. This is especially true in the breezy waterfront settings. However, due to a number of factors, cross ventilation in buildings is usually studied by using oversimplified scenarios. It is then reasonable to study the impact of complex set of factors on the accuracy of predicting air flow rate because of wind driven cross ventilation. The objective of this paper is to provide architects with the tools necessary to achieve natural ventilation for cooling purposes in a waterfront urban canyon context. Also, urban canyons have not received much attention in terms of their impact on cross ventilation, and while we know how the wind flows between buildings in different urban canyon settings, the effect of the parallel-to-the-wind urban canyon on cross ventilation in buildings remains unclear. For this, we use detailed weather data, boundary layer correction factor, and CFD simulations to study the pressure patterns that form on the canyons surfaces in the case study of Alexandria. We found that the simplified numerical methods of calculating the cross ventilation in buildings can lead to inaccurate design decisions.

Keywords: cross ventilation, Alexandria, CFD, urban canyon

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Authors: Dinesh Kumar Maurya, Sapan Mohan Saini

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A theoretical formalism to calculate the structural, electronic and optical properties of orthorhombic crystals from first principle calculations is described. This is applied first time to new YNi4Si-type DyNi4Si compound. Calculations are performed using full-potential augmented plane wave (FPLAPW) method in the framework of density functional theory (DFT). The Coulomb corrected local-spin density approximation (LSDA+U) in the self-interaction correction (SIC) has been used for exchange-correlation potential. Our optimized results of lattice parameters show good agreement to the previously reported experimental study. Analysis of the calculated band structure of DyNi4Si compound demonstrates their metallic character. We found Ni-3d states mainly contribute to density of states from -5.0 eV to the Fermi level while the Dy-f states peak stands tall in comparison to the small contributions made by the Ni-d and R-d states above Fermi level, which is consistent with experiment, in DNi4Si compound. Our calculated optical conductivity compares well with the experimental data and the results are analyzed in the light of band-to-band transitions. We also report the frequency-dependent refractive index n(ω) and the extinction coefficient k(ω) of the compound.

Keywords: band structure, density of states, optical properties, LSDA+U approximation, YNi4Si- type DyNi4Si compound

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Authors: Ji Hun Choi, Seung Un Chae, Kyeong Suk Cho

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Synthetic resins are widely used in various fields including electricity, engineering, construction and agriculture. Many of interior and exterior finishing materials for buildings are synthetic resin products. In this study, full-scale fire tests were conducted on polyvinyl chloride, polypropylene and urethane in accordance with the “ISO 9705: Fire test - Full-scale room test for surface products” to measure heat release rate, toxic gas emission and smoke production rate. Based on the tests, fire growth pattern and fire risk were analyzed. Findings from the tests conducted on polyvinyl chloride and urethane are as follows. The total heat release rate and total smoke production rate of polyvinyl chloride were 98.89MW and 5284.41m2, respectively and its highest CO2 concentration was 0.149%. The values obtained from the test with urethane were 469.94 MW, 3396.28 m2 and 1.549%. While heat release rate and CO2 concentration were higher in urethane implying its high combustibility, smoke production rate was 1.5 times higher in polyvinyl chloride. Follow-up tests are planned to be conducted to accumulate data for the evaluation of heat emission and fire risk associated with synthetic resins.

Keywords: synthetic resins, fire test, full-scale test, heat release rate, smoke production rate, polyvinyl chloride, polypropylene, urethane

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Authors: Adeolu O. Dairo

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Getting the consumer marketing strategy right is a crucial and complex task for firms with a large customer base such as mobile operators in a competitive mobile market. While empirical studies have made efforts to identify key constructs, no geospatial model has been developed to comprehensively assess the viability and interdependency of ground realities regarding the customer, competition, channel and the network quality of mobile operators. With this research, a geo-analytic framework is proposed for strategy formulation and allocation for mobile operators. Firstly, a fuzzy analytic network using a self-organizing feature map clustering technique based on inputs from managers and literature, which depicts the interrelationships amongst ground realities is developed. The model is tested with a mobile operator in the Nigeria mobile market. As a result, a customer-centric geospatial and visualization solution is developed. This provides a consolidated and integrated insight that serves as a transparent, logical and practical guide for strategic, tactical and operational decision making.

Keywords: geospatial, geo-analytics, self-organizing map, customer-centric

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Authors: A. Hamidi, S. Khelladi, L. Illoul, A. Tcharkhtchi

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Reactive rotational molding (RRM) is a process to manufacture hollow plastic parts with reactive material has several advantages compared to conventional roto molding of thermoplastic powders: process cycle time is shorter; raw material is less expensive because polymerization occurs during processing and high-performance polymers may be used such as thermosets, thermoplastics or blends. However, several phenomena occur during this process which makes the optimization of the process quite complex. In this study, we have used a mixture of isocyanate and polyol as a reactive system. The chemical transformation of this system to polyurethane has been studied by thermal analysis and rheology tests. Thanks to these results of the curing process and rheological measurements, the kinetic and rheokinetik of polyurethane was identified. Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics, a Lagrangian meshless method, was chosen to simulate reactive fluid flow in 2 and 3D configurations of the polyurethane during the process taking into account the chemical, and chemiorehological results obtained experimentally in this study.

Keywords: reactive rotational molding, simulation, smoothed particle hydrodynamics, surface tension, rheology, free surface flows, viscoelastic, interpolation

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Authors: Devinder Sharma, Sanjay Sharma, Ajay Goyal, Ashish Kapoor

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The present research paper discussed the durability properties of high strength concrete (HSC) using Foundry Slag(FD) as partial substitute for fine aggregates (FA) and Alccofine (AF) in addition to portland pozzolana (PPC) cement. Specimens of Concrete M100 grade with water/binder ratio 0.239, with Foundry Slag (FD) varying from 0 to 50% and with optimum quantity of AF(15%) were casted and tested for durability properties such as Water absorption, water permeability, resistance to sulphate attack, alkali attack and nitrate attack of HSC at the age of 7, 14, 28, 56 and 90 days. Substitution of fine aggregates (FA) with up to 45% of foundry slag(FD) content and cement with 15% substitution and addition of alccofine showed an excellent resistance against durability properties at all ages but showed a decrease in these properties with 50% of FD contents. Loss of weight in concrete samples due to sulphate attack, alkali attack and nitrate attack of HSC at the age of 365 days was compared with loss in compressive strength. Correlation between loss in weight and loss in compressive strength in all the tests was found to be excellent.

Keywords: alccofine, alkali attack, foundry slag, high strength concrete, nitrate attack, water absorption, water permeability

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Authors: Seid Yimer Abate, Ding-Chi Huang, Yu-Tai Tao

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In this study, charge extraction characteristics at the perovskite/TiO2 interface in the conventional perovskite solar cell is studied by interface engineering. Self-assembled monolayers of phosphonic acids with different chain length and terminal functional group were used to modify mesoporous TiO2 surface to modulate the surface property and interfacial energy barrier to investigate their effect on charge extraction and transport from the perovskite to the mp-TiO2 and then the electrode. The chain length introduces a tunnelling distance and the end group modulate the energy level alignment at the mp-TiO2 and perovskite interface. The work function of these SAM-modified mp-TiO2 varied from −3.89 eV to −4.61 eV, with that of the pristine mp-TiO2 at −4.19 eV. A correlation of charge extraction and transport with respect to the modification was attempted. The study serves as a guide to engineer ETL interfaces with simple SAMs to improve the charge extraction, carrier balance and device long term stability. In this study, a maximum PCE of ~16.09% with insignificant hysteresis was obtained, which is 17% higher than the standard device.

Keywords: Energy level alignment, Interface engineering, Perovskite solar cells, Phosphonic acid monolayer, Tunnelling distance

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Authors: Seonaid Hume, Gordon Dobie, Graeme West

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Detecting and localizing radioactive sources is a necessity for safe and secure decommissioning of nuclear facilities. An important aspect for the management of the sort-and-segregation process is establishing the spatial distributions and quantities of the waste radionuclides, their type, corresponding activity, and ultimately classification for disposal. The data received from surveys directly informs decommissioning plans, on-site incident management strategies, the approach needed for a new cell, as well as protecting the workforce and the public. Manual classification of nuclear waste from a nuclear cell is time-consuming, expensive, and requires significant expertise to make the classification judgment call. Also, in-cell decommissioning is still in its relative infancy, and few techniques are well-developed. As with any repetitive and routine tasks, there is the opportunity to improve the task of classifying nuclear waste using autonomous systems. Hence, this paper proposes a new framework for the automatic classification of nuclear waste. This framework consists of five main stages; 3D spatial mapping and object detection, object classification, radiological mapping, source localisation based on gathered evidence and finally, waste classification. The first stage of the framework, 3D visual mapping, involves object detection from point cloud data. A review of related applications in other industries is provided, and recommendations for approaches for waste classification are made. Object detection focusses initially on cylindrical objects since pipework is significant in nuclear cells and indeed any industrial site. The approach can be extended to other commonly occurring primitives such as spheres and cubes. This is in preparation of stage two, characterizing the point cloud data and estimating the dimensions, material, degradation, and mass of the objects detected in order to feature match them to an inventory of possible items found in that nuclear cell. Many items in nuclear cells are one-offs, have limited or poor drawings available, or have been modified since installation, and have complex interiors, which often and inadvertently pose difficulties when accessing certain zones and identifying waste remotely. Hence, this may require expert input to feature match objects. The third stage, radiological mapping, is similar in order to facilitate the characterization of the nuclear cell in terms of radiation fields, including the type of radiation, activity, and location within the nuclear cell. The fourth stage of the framework takes the visual map for stage 1, the object characterization from stage 2, and radiation map from stage 3 and fuses them together, providing a more detailed scene of the nuclear cell by identifying the location of radioactive materials in three dimensions. The last stage involves combining the evidence from the fused data sets to reveal the classification of the waste in Bq/kg, thus enabling better decision making and monitoring for in-cell decommissioning. The presentation of the framework is supported by representative case study data drawn from an application in decommissioning from a UK nuclear facility. This framework utilises recent advancements of the detection and mapping capabilities of complex radiation fields in three dimensions to make the process of classifying nuclear waste faster, more reliable, cost-effective and safer.

Keywords: nuclear decommissioning, radiation detection, object detection, waste classification

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Authors: Maya S. Rathod, Bahadur Singh Hathan

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Mustard leaves are rich in folates, vitamin A, K and B-complex. Mustard greens are low in calories and fats and rich in dietary fiber. They are rich in potassium, manganese, iron, copper, calcium, magnesium and low in sodium. It is very rich in antioxidants and Phytonutrients. For the optimization of process variables (moisture content and mustard leave powder), the experiments were conducted according to central composite Face Centered Composite design of RSM. The mustard leaves powder was replaced with composite flour (a combination of rice, chickpea and corn in the ratio of 70:15:15). The extrudate was extruded in a twin screw extruder at a barrel temperature of 120°C. The independent variables were mustard leaves powder (2-10 %) and moisture content (12-20 %). Responses analyzed were bulk density, water solubility index, water absorption index, lateral expansion, hardness, antioxidant activity, total phenolic content and overall acceptability. The optimum conditions obtained were 7.19 g mustard leaves powder in 100 g premix having 16.8 % moisture content (w.b).

Keywords: extrusion, mustard leaves powder, optimization, response surface methodology

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Authors: Waleed A. Basuliman, Khalid S. AlSaleh, Mohamed Z. Ramadan

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Applying the anthropometric dimensions is considered one of the important factors when designing any human-machine system. In this study, the estimation of anthropometric dimensions has been improved by developing artificial neural network that aims to predict the anthropometric measurements of the male in Saudi Arabia. A total of 1427 Saudi males from age 6 to 60 participated in measuring twenty anthropometric dimensions. These anthropometric measurements are important for designing the majority of work and life applications in Saudi Arabia. The data were collected during 8 months from different locations in Riyadh City. Five of these dimensions were used as predictors variables (inputs) of the model, and the remaining fifteen dimensions were set to be the measured variables (outcomes). The hidden layers have been varied during the structuring stage, and the best performance was achieved with the network structure 6-25-15. The results showed that the developed Neural Network model was significantly able to predict the body dimensions for the population of Saudi Arabia. The network mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) and the root mean squared error (RMSE) were found 0.0348 and 3.225 respectively. The accuracy of the developed neural network was evaluated by compare the predicted outcomes with a multiple regression model. The ANN model performed better and resulted excellent correlation coefficients between the predicted and actual dimensions.

Keywords: artificial neural network, anthropometric measurements, backpropagation, real anthropometric database

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Authors: Pui Shan Wong, Kosuke Tashiro, Satoru Kuhara, Sachiyo Aburatani

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Functional genomics and gene regulation inference has readily expanded our knowledge and understanding of gene interactions with regards to expression regulation. With the advancement of transcriptome sequencing in time-series comes the ability to study the sequential changes of the transcriptome. This method presented here works to augment existing regulation networks accumulated in literature with transcriptome data gathered from time-series experiments to construct a sequential representation of transcription factor activity. This method is applied on a time-series RNA-Seq data set from Escherichia coli as it transitions from growth to stationary phase over five hours. Investigations are conducted on the various metabolic activities in gene regulation processes by taking advantage of the correlation between regulatory gene pairs to examine their activity on a dynamic network. Especially, the changes in metabolic activity during phase transition are analyzed with focus on the pagP gene as well as other associated transcription factors. The visualization of the sequential transcriptional activity is used to describe the change in metabolic pathway activity originating from the pagP transcription factor, phoP. The results show a shift from amino acid and nucleic acid metabolism, to energy metabolism during the transition to stationary phase in E. coli.

Keywords: Escherichia coli, gene regulation, network, time-series

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Authors: Hamid Reza Zeraatpisheh, Shamsoddin Hashemi, Farshad Negintaji

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This study has examined the effects of the architectural anatomy of opera hall on improving the quality of place identity. By measuring the effects of place identity on the inner aspects of human which are influenced by the physical and social environments it has investigated the results of a balance between internal and external environment. To assess the anatomical effects of urban landscape, two components of subjective landscape including perception and diversity and the component of objective landscape including form and order have been measured. The current survey is descriptive and the statistical population has been Shiraz which is a city in Iran. To analyze the data the SPSS software has been used. The results have been investigated in two levels of descriptive and inferential statistics. In the inferential statistics, Pearson correlation coefficient has been used to evaluate the research hypotheses. The results of this study indicate that between the dimensions of landscape, the component of the subjective landscape has the highest impact on the place identity and in the second place, an objective landscape has the impact on the place identity. Anatomical effects have an important role on improving the quality of place identity of Shiraz citizens and in order to enhance the place identity in the urban landscape it is also required that they will be inspired and operated.

Keywords: architectural anatomy, identity, place identity, urban landscape, perception

Procedia PDF Downloads 528