Search results for: academic field sociology

Authors: Jamal Ahmed Hama Kareem, Noraini Abu Talib

Abstract:

The purpose of this paper is to explore the literature on 5S and Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) and the benefits that are to be derived from their implementation. It also seeks to highlight the main phases for implementing both the 5S and the TPM successfully, along with highlighting aspects that are needed for successful implementation of these two techniques simultaneously in the contemporary manufacturing scenario. The literature on classification of 5S and TPM has so far been very limited. The paper reviews a large number of papers in this field and presents the overview of several of implementation practices of 5S and TPM, and the benefits that can be achieved by the implementation of 5S and TPM as a one system by industrial organizations globally. The paper systematically categorizes the published literature and reveals important issues that influence the successful implementation of 5S and TPM in organizations to improve production effectiveness for competitiveness. Further, the paper also highlights various phases suggested by researchers and practitioners, which ensure smooth and effective implementation of the 5S and TPM in industrial organizations. In the end, study puts forth propositions based on the model of the study after extensive review of literature. The paper will be useful to researchers, maintenance professionals and other concerned officials with improving the performance of production processes effectiveness in industrial organizations.

Keywords: 5S, Total Productive Maintenance (TPM), phases of implementation of 5S and TPM, industrial organizations

Procedia PDF Downloads 614

Authors: Tirimisiyu Olaide Gbadamosi

Abstract:

Individuals go into business for the sake of obtaining regular income, becoming self-employed. Although, there different kinds of business enterprises that female and male can go into, often times, some businesses are regarded more suitable for a particular sex and not the other. This means that there is some gender discrimination in the choice of business one goes into and by extension in entrepreneurship development. Apparently, gender attitudes and behaviors will have positive or negative effects on entrepreneurship development in a society or economy. This research work therefore intends to take a critical look at gender discrimination as they affect entrepreneurship development with particular reference to northern Nigeria in general, using Exceptional Production Services Limited Kaduna, Kaduna North Local Government area as a case study, and also to suggest the possible solution to unidentified problems and give recommendation where necessary. Statement of research problem: Entrepreneurship has generally been recognised as a good medium or strategy for economic development of an individual, a community and a nation. It is also a known a known fact that some gender discrimination are often used in the choice of business or even the decision to go into business. For example, some businesses are regarded as more suitable to men than women. The question here is, is this the right approach to economic development through entrepreneurship? Of what effect is this approach to entrepreneurship development? These and the other questions are what this research intends to find answers to and if possible make recommendations. Significance of the study: The findings of this study will provide a guide for anyone for the establishment of a business in Nigeria. The study will help any prospective entrepreneur to make the right decision of which business to go into and how to contend with gender related issues that might influence its success in business. Furthermore, it is hoped that the study will assist the government and her agencies in the process in developing entrepreneurship development programs. Conclusion: There has been growing recognition that various types of discrimination do not always affect women and men in the same way. Moreover, gender discrimination may be intensified and facilitated by all other forms of discrimination. It has been increasingly recognized that without gender analysis of all forms of discrimination in business, including multiple forms of discrimination, and, in particular, in this context, related intolerance, violations of the human rights of women might escape detection and remedies to address racism may also fail to meet the needs of women and girls. It is also important that efforts to address gender discrimination incorporate approaches to the elimination of all forms of discrimination. Recommendation: Campaigning and raising awareness among young men and women, parents, teachers and employers about gender stereotypical attitudes towards academic performances and the likely consequences of overall educational choices for employment and entrepreneurship opportunities, career progression and earnings.

Keywords: entrepreneurship, economic development, small medium enterprises, gender discrimination

Procedia PDF Downloads 384

Authors: John Saaka

Abstract:

The increasing world population poses a threat to food security. To meet current and future food demands, sweetpotato stand a good chance because of its recent food security roles. Concerted efforts are needed for both regional and local level varietal development. Heterosis exploiting breeding scheme (HEBS) is one of the options used to improve yield in some crop species and could be a good approach for sweetpotato improvement in Ghana by establishing heterotic gene pools within a population. To achieve this, 22 parental lines were collected from different sources and put in a full diallel arrangement. A total of 149 families, 20 individual cuttings per family, were taken to the field, including ‘checks’ and parental lines for experimentation in a 1m X 0.3m planting order according to the Westcott design. Results from this study led to the characterization of the selected parents into three main heterotic gene pools based on their suitability for use as male, female or both, respectively. This study serves as a baseline for further characterization of the rest of the germplasm in the Ghanaian sweetpotato breeding program.

Keywords: sweetpotato, heterosis, germplasm, food security

Procedia PDF Downloads 73

Authors: Kumar N., Verma S., Park J., Srivastava V. C.

Abstract:

Organic carbonates have the potential to be used as fuels and because of this, their production through non-phosgene routes is a thrust area of research. Di-ethyl carbonate (DEC) synthesis from propylene carbonate (PC) in the presence of alcohol is a green route. In this study, the use of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) based metal oxide catalysts [rGO-MO, where M = Ce] with different amounts of graphene oxide (0.2%, 0.5%, 1%, and 2%) has been investigated for the synthesis of DEC by using PC and ethanol as reactants. The GO sheets were synthesized by an electrochemical process and the catalysts were synthesized using an in-situ method. A theoretical study of the thermodynamics of the reaction was done, which revealed that the reaction is mildly endothermic. The theoretical value of optimum temperature was found to be 420 K. The synthesized catalysts were characterized for their morphological, structural and textural properties using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), N2 adsorption/desorption, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and Raman spectroscopy. Optimization studies were carried out to study the effect of different reaction conditions like temperature (140 °C to 180 °C) and catalyst dosage (0.102 g to 0.255 g) on the yield of DEC. Amongst the various synthesized catalysts, 1% rGO-CeO2 gave the maximum yield of DEC.

Keywords: GO, DEC, propylene carbonate, transesterification, thermodynamics

Procedia PDF Downloads 79

Authors: Georgeta Voicu, Cristina Daniela Ghitulica, Andreia Cucuruz, Cristina Busuioc

Abstract:

In the field of tissue engineering, the compositional and microstructural features of the employed materials play an important role, with implications on the mechanical and biological behaviour of the medical devices. In this context, the development of apatite - natural biopolymer composites represents a choice of many scientific groups. Thus, hydroxyapatite powders were synthesized by a wet method, namely co-precipitation, starting from high purity reagents (CaO, MgO, and H3PO4). Moreover, the substitution of calcium with magnesium have been approached, in the 5 - 10 wt.% range. Afterward, the phosphate powders were integrated in two types of composites with chitosan, different from morphological point of view. First, 3D porous scaffolds were obtained by a freeze-drying procedure. Second, uniform, compact films were achieved by film casting. The influence of chitosan molecular weight (low, medium and high), as well as apatite powder to polymer ratio (1:1 and 1:2) on the morphological properties, were analysed in detail. In conclusion, the reported biocomposites, prepared by a straightforward route are suitable for bone substitution or repairing applications.

Keywords: bone reconstruction, chitosan, composite scaffolds, hydroxyapatite

Procedia PDF Downloads 321

Authors: Xuran Zhang, Huiru Chen

Abstract:

In recent years, China has made great efforts to cultivate and develop the housing rental market, especially the rental-type public housing, which has been paid attention to by all sectors of the society. This paper takes Hangzhou rental-type public housing as the research object, and divides it into three development stages according to the different supply modes of rental-type public housing. Through data collection and field research, the paper summarizes the spatial characteristics of rental-type public housing from the five perspectives of spatial planning, spatial layout, spatial integration, spatial organization and spatial configuration. On this basis, the paper proposes the optimization of the spatial layout. The study concludes that the spatial layout of rental-type public housing should be coordinated with the development of urban planning. When planning and constructing, it is necessary to select more mixed construction modes, to be properly centralized, and to improve the surrounding transportation service facilities.  It is hoped that the recommendations in this paper will provide a reference for the further development of rental-type public housing in Hangzhou.

Keywords: Hangzhou, rental-type public housing, spatial distribution, spatial optimization

Procedia PDF Downloads 322

Authors: Damandeep Kaur, O.P. Pandey, M.S. Reddy

Abstract:

In the present research, bio-synthesisation of silica particles has been carried out successfully. For this purpose, agriculture waste rice husk (RH) has been utilized. Among several types of agriculture waste, RH is considered to be cost-effective and easily accessible. In the present investigation, a chemical approach has been followed to extract silica nanoparticles. X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) patterns indicated the amorphous nature of silica at lower temperature range. Silica and other mineral contents have been found using energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). Morphological and structural studies have been carried out with the use of Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM) and Fourier Transform Infrared Transmission (FTIR) spectroscopy. Further, extracted silica from RH has been used for preparation of the glasses. The appearance of broad humps in XRD patterns confirmed the amorphous nature of prepared glasses. These glasses exhibited enhanced antibacterial effect against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The as-synthesized glass samples can be further used for physical and structural studies for drug loading applications.

Keywords: rice husk, biosynthesized silica, bioactive glasses, antibacterial studies

Procedia PDF Downloads 113

Authors: Liu Ying-jie, Lu Wen-bo, Peng Cheng-jian

Abstract:

With the development of the automotive technology and electric vehicle, the contribution of the wind noise on the interior noise becomes the main source of noise. The main transfer path which the exterior excitation is transmitted through is the greenhouse panels and side windows. Simulating the wind noise transmitted into the vehicle accurately in the early development stage can be very challenging. The basic methodologies of this study were based on the Lighthill analogy; the exterior flow field around a passenger car was computed using unsteady Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) firstly and then a Finite Element Method (FEM) was used to compute the interior acoustic response. The major findings of this study include: 1) The Sound Pressure Level (SPL) response at driver’s ear locations is mainly induced by the turbulence pressure fluctuation; 2) Peaks were found over the full frequency range. It is found that the methodology used in this study could predict the interior wind noise induced by the exterior aerodynamic excitation in industry.

Keywords: wind noise, computational fluid dynamics, finite element method, passenger car

Procedia PDF Downloads 170

Authors: Sul-Ah Ahn, Youngim Jung

Abstract:

The research activities of the computational scientists using high-performance computing are analyzed using bibliometric approaches. This study aims at providing computational scientists using high-performance computing and relevant policy planners with useful bibliometric results for an assessment of research activities. In order to achieve this purpose, we carried out a co-authorship network analysis of journal articles to assess the research activities of computational scientists using high-performance computing as a case study. For this study, we used journal articles of the Scopus database from Elsevier covering the time period of 2006-2015. We extracted the author rank in the computational science field using high-performance computing by the number of papers published during ten years from 2006. Finally, we drew the co-authorship network for 50 top-authors and their coauthors and described some features of the co-authorship network in relation to the author rank. Suggestions for further studies are discussed.

Keywords: co-authorship network analysis, computational science, high performance computing, research activity

Procedia PDF Downloads 320

Authors: Lihyo Sung

Abstract:

Background: Children and teens in Korea experience extreme levels of academic stress. To perform better on the college entrance exam and gain admission to Korea’s most prestigious universities, they devote a significant portion of their early lives to studying. Because of their excessive preparation for entrance exams, students have become accustomed to passive and involuntary engagement. Any student starting university, however, faces new challenges that require more active involvement and self-regulated practice. As a way to tackle this issue, the study focuses on investigating the mediating effects of positive psychological capital on the relationship between self-leadership and career maturity among Korean university students. Objectives and Hypotheses: The long term goal of this study is to offer insights that promote the use of positive psychological interventions in the development and adaptation of career maturity. The current objective is to assess the role of positive psychological capital as a mediator between self-leadership and career maturity among Korean university students. Based on previous research, the hypotheses are: (a) self-leadership will be positively associated with indices of career maturity, and (b) positive psychological capital will partially or fully mediate the relationship between self-leadership and career maturity. Sample Characteristics and Sample Size: Participants in the current study consisted of undergraduate students enrolled in various courses at 5 large universities in Korea. A total of 181 students participated in the study. Methodology: A quantitative research design was adopted to test the hypotheses proposed in the current study. By using a cross-sectional approach to research, a self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data on indices of positive psychological capital, self-leadership, and career maturity. The data were analyzed by means of Cronbach's alpha, Pierson correlation test, multiple regression, path analysis, and SPSS for Windows version 22.0 using descriptive statistics. Results: Findings showed that positive psychological capital fully mediated the relationship between self-leadership and career maturity. Self-leadership significantly impacted positive psychological capital and career maturity, respectively. Scientific Contribution: The results of the current study provided useful insights into the role of psychological strengths such as positive psychological capital in improving self-leadership and career maturity. Institutions can assist in increasing positive psychological capital through the creation of positive experiences for undergraduate students, such as opportunities for coaching and mentoring.

Keywords: career maturity, mediating role, positive psychological capital, self-leadership

Procedia PDF Downloads 124

Authors: M. M. Hlakola, E. Golovins, D. V. Nicolae

Abstract:

The field of instrumentation electronics is undergoing an explosive growth, due to its wide range of applications. The proliferation of electrical devices in a close working proximity can negatively influence each other’s performance. The degradation in the performance is due to electromagnetic interference (EMI). This paper investigates the negative effects of electromagnetic interference originating in the General Purpose Interface Bus (GPIB) control-network of the ac-dc transfer measurement system. Remedial measures of reducing measurement errors and failure of range of industrial devices due to EMI have been explored. The ac-dc transfer measurement system was analyzed for the common-mode (CM) EMI effects. Further investigation of coupling path as well as more accurate identification of noise propagation mechanism has been outlined. To prevent the occurrence of common-mode (ground loops) which was identified between the GPIB system control circuit and the measurement circuit, a microcontroller-driven GPIB switching isolator device was designed, prototyped, programmed and validated. This mitigation technique has been explored to reduce EMI effectively.

Keywords: CM, EMI, GPIB, ground loops

Procedia PDF Downloads 287

Authors: D. Bjelica, T. Slavinski, V. Vukimrovic, D. Pavlovic, D. Bodroza, V. Dabetic

Abstract:

Traditional methods and techniques used in higher education may be significantly persuasive on the university students' perception about quality of the teaching process. Students’ satisfaction with the university experience may be affected by chosen educational approaches. Contemporary project management trends recognize agile approaches' beneficial, so modern practice highlights their usage, especially in the IT industry. A key research question concerns the possibility of applying agile methods in youth education. As agile methodology pinpoint iteratively-incremental delivery of results, its employment could be remarkably fruitful in education. This paper demonstrates the agile concept's application in the university students’ education through the continuous delivery of student solutions. Therefore, based on the fundamental values and principles of the agile manifest, paper will analyze students' performance and learned lessons in their encounter with the agile environment. The research is based on qualitative and quantitative analysis that includes sprints, as preparation and realization of student tasks in shorter iterations. Consequently, the performance of student teams will be monitored through iterations, as well as the process of adaptive planning and realization. Grounded theory methodology has been used in this research, as so as descriptive statistics and Man Whitney and Kruskal Wallis test for group comparison. Developed constructs of the model will be showcase through qualitative research, then validated through a pilot survey, and eventually tested as a concept in the final survey. The paper highlights the variability of educational curricula based on university students' feedbacks, which will be collected at the end of every sprint and indicates to university students' satisfaction inconsistency according to approaches applied in education. Values delivered by the lecturers will also be continuously monitored; thus, it will be prioritizing in order to students' requests. Minimal viable product, as the early delivery of results, will be particularly emphasized in the implementation process. The paper offers both theoretical and practical implications. This research contains exceptional lessons that may be applicable by educational institutions in curriculum creation processes, or by lecturers in curriculum design and teaching. On the other hand, they can be beneficial regarding university students' satisfaction increscent in respect of teaching styles, gained knowledge, or even educational content.

Keywords: academic performances, agile, high education, university students' satisfaction

Procedia PDF Downloads 128

Authors: X. Simon, D. Copena, M. Montero

Abstract:

The last decades have witnessed a significant increase in renewable energy, especially wind energy, to achieve sustainable development. Specialized literature in this field has carried out interesting case studies to extensively analyze both the environmental benefits of this energy and its social acceptance. However, to the best of our knowledge, work to date makes no analysis of the role of private owners of lands with wind potential within a broader territory of strong wind implantation, nor does it estimate their economic incomes relating them to social acceptance. This work fills this gap by focusing on Galicia, territory housing over 4,000 wind turbines and almost 3,400 MW of power. The main difficulty in getting this financial information is that it is classified, not public. We develop methodological techniques (semi- structured interviews and work groups), inserted within the Participatory Research, to overcome this important obstacle. In this manner, the work directly compiles qualitative and quantitative information on the processes as well as the economic results derived from implementing wind energy in Galicia. During the field work, we held 106 semi-structured interviews and 32 workshops with owners of lands occupied by wind farms. The compiled information made it possible to create the socioeconomic database on wind energy in Galicia (SDWEG). This database collects a diversity of quantitative and qualitative information and contains economic information on the income received by the owners of lands occupied by wind farms. In the Galician case, regulatory framework prevented local participation under the community wind farm formula. The possibility of local participation in the new energy model narrowed down to companies wanting to install a wind farm and demanding land occupation. The economic mechanism of local participation begins here, thus explaining the level of acceptance of wind farms. Land owners can receive significant income given that these payments constitute an important source of economic resources, favor local economic activity, allow rural areas to develop productive dynamism projects and improve the standard of living of rural inhabitants. This work estimates that land owners in Galicia perceive about 10 million euros per year in total wind revenues. This represents between 1% and 2% of total wind farm invoicing. On the other hand, relative revenues (Euros per MW), far from the amounts reached in other spaces, show enormous payment variability. This signals the absence of a regulated market, the predominance of partial agreements, and the existence of asymmetric positions between owners and developers. Sustainable development requires the replacement of conventional technologies by low environmental impact technologies, especially those that emit less CO₂. However, this new paradigm also requires rural owners to participate in the income derived from the structural transformation processes linked to sustainable development. This paper demonstrates that regulatory framework may contribute to increasing sustainable technologies with high social acceptance without relevant local economic participation.

Keywords: regulatory framework, social acceptance, sustainable development, wind energy, wind income for landowners

Procedia PDF Downloads 142

Authors: Amir Reza Radmanesh, Sina Farajzadeh Khosroshahi, Hani Sadr

Abstract:

The transient catalytic converter performance is governed by complex interactions between exhaust gas flow and the monolithic structure of the catalytic converter. Stringent emission regulations around the world necessitate the use of highly-efficient catalytic converters in vehicle exhaust systems. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is a powerful tool for calculating the flow field inside the catalytic converter. Radial velocity profiles, obtained by a commercial CFD code, present very good agreement with respective experimental results published in the literature. However the applicability of CFD for transient simulations is limited by the high CPU demands. In the present work, Geometric modeling ceramic monolith substrate is done with square shaped channel type of Catalytic converter and it is coated platinum and palladium. This example illustrates the effect of flow distribution on thermal response of a catalytic converter and different gas flow velocities, during the critical phase of catalytic converter warm up.

Keywords: catalytic converter, computational fluid dynamic, porous media, velocity distribution

Procedia PDF Downloads 856

Authors: Priya Arora, Jaspreet K. Rajput

Abstract:

Superparamagnetism has accelerated the research and use of more economical and ecological magnetically separable catalysts due to their more efficient isolation by response to an applied magnetic field. Magnetite nanomaterials coated by SiO2 shell have received a great deal of focus in the last decades as it provides high stability and also easy further surface functionalization depending upon the application. In this protocol, Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles have been synthesized by co-precipitation combined with sonication method. Further, Fe3O4 superparamagnetic nanoparticles have been functionalized by various moieties to serve as efficient catalysts for multicomponent reactions. The functionalized nanoparticles were characterized by techniques like Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis. The as prepared nanocatalysts can be reused for several times without any significant loss in its activity. The utilization of magnetic nanoparticles as catalysts for this reaction is one approach i.e. green, inexpensive, facile and widely applicable.

Keywords: functionalized, magnetite, multicomponent reactions, superparamagnetic

Procedia PDF Downloads 339

Authors: Olusegun Raphael Adeyemi, Samuel Oluwaseun Osunleti, Abiddin Adekunle Bashiruddin

Abstract:

Field trials were conducted in 2020 and 2021 at the Teaching and Research Farm of the Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria to evaluate the effect of biochar application under different weeding regimes on growth and yield of okra. Treatments were laid out in split- plot in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Main plot treatments were three levels of biochar namely 0t/ha, 10t/ha and 20t/ha while sub-plots treatments consisted of four weeding regimes (weeding at 3, 6 and 9 WAS, weeding at 3 and 6 WAS, weeding at 3 WAS and weedy check as control). Data collected on growth and yield of okra, and weed parameters were subjected to analysis of variance and treatment means were separated using least significant difference at p < 0.05. Results showed that biochar applied at 20 t/ha increased okra yield by 47.5% compared to the control. Weeding at 3, 6 and 9 WAS gave the highest okra yield. Uncontrolled weed infestation throughout crop growth resulted in 87.3% yield reduction in okra. It is concluded that weed suppression , growth and yield of okra can be enhanced by the application of biochar at 20t/ha and weeding at 3, 6 and 9 WAS hence recommended.

Keywords: biochar, okra, weeding, weed competition

Procedia PDF Downloads 57

Authors: S. Murr, S. Phillips

Abstract:

One of the biggest challenges entering a market with a carsharing or any other shared mobility (SM) service is sound investment decision-making. To support this process, the authors think that a city index evaluating different criteria is necessary. The goal of such an index is to benchmark cities along a set of external measures to answer the main two challenges: financially viability and the understanding of its specific requirements. The authors have consulted several shared mobility projects and industry experts to create such a Shared Mobility City Index (SMCI). The current proposal of the SMCI consists of 11 individual index measures: general data (demographics, geography, climate and city culture), shared mobility landscape (current SM providers, public transit options, commuting patterns and driving culture) and political vision and goals (vision of the Mayor, sustainability plan, bylaws/tenders supporting SM). To evaluate the suitability of the index, 16 cities on the East Coast of North America were selected and secondary research was conducted. The main sources of this study were census data, organisational records, independent press releases and informational websites. Only non-academic sources where used because the relevant data for the chosen cities is not published in academia. Applying the index measures to the selected cities resulted in three major findings. Firstly, density (city area divided by number of inhabitants) is not an indicator for the number of SM services offered: the city with the lowest density has five bike and carsharing options. Secondly, there is a direct correlation between commuting patterns and how many shared mobility services are offered. New York, Toronto and Washington DC have the highest public transit ridership and the most shared mobility providers. Lastly, except one, all surveyed cities support shared mobility with their sustainability plan. The current version of the shared mobility index is proving a practical tool to evaluate cities, and to understand functional, political, social and environmental considerations. More cities will have to be evaluated to refine the criteria further. However, the current version of the index can be used to assess cities on their suitability for shared mobility services and will assist investors deciding which city is a financially viable market.

Keywords: carsharing, transportation, urban planning, shared mobility city index

Procedia PDF Downloads 303

Authors: S. Kaira, S. Mohamed, A. Rahman

Abstract:

Traditionally, highway infrastructure projects are initiated based on their economic benefits, thereafter environmental, social and governance impacts are addressed discretely for the selected project from a set of pre-determined alternatives. When opting for cost-benefit analysis (CBA), multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) has been used as the default assessment tool. But this tool has been critiqued as it does not mimic the real-world dynamic environment. Indeed, it is because of the fact that public sector projects like highways have to experience intense exposure to dynamic environments. Therefore, it is essential to appreciate the impacts of various dynamic factors (factors that change or progress with the system) on project performance. Thus, this paper presents various sustainability assessment tools that have been globally developed to determine sustainability performance of infrastructure projects during the design, procurement and commissioning phase. Indeed, identification of the current gaps in the available assessment methods provides a potential to add prominent part of knowledge in the field of ‘road project development systems and procedures’ that are generally used by road agencies.

Keywords: dynamic impact factors, micro and macro factors, sustainability assessment framework, sustainability performance

Procedia PDF Downloads 139

Authors: Khaled A. Madi, Rema A. Mousbahi, Mostafa B. Abuitbel, Abdualhakim O. Nagi

Abstract:

Antenna perhaps is the most important part of any communication system, it determines the overall efficiency and the direction of radiation of the system. Antennas vary in shape and size on a very wide range. For fast moving vehicles, the antenna should offer as litter aerodynamic resistance as possible. Slot antenna is best suited for this purpose. It offers very little aerodynamic resistance, compact, easy to feed and fabricate. This work presented in this paper deals with the investigation of a half wave slot antenna. The antenna has been studied, analyzed, designed, simulated, fabrication, and tested at the X-band. The field of antenna study is an extremely vast one, and to grasp the fundamentals, two pronged approaches have been used, and the focus was on the fabrication and testing of a slot waveguide directional antenna. Focuses on the design and simulation of slot antennas with an emphasis on optimization of a 9.1 GHz a rectangular waveguide have been used to feed slot antenna. A microwave fed slot antenna used in the communication lab was also simulated. The results have been presented and compared with the expected values, where a good agreement was achieved between the simulation and experimental results.

Keywords: microwave, slot antenna, simulation, fabrication

Procedia PDF Downloads 135

Authors: Perumalsamy Muthiah, Murugesan Thanapalan

Abstract:

The remains of cheese production contain nutritional value added proteins viz., α-Lactalbumin, β-Lactoglobulin representing 80- 90% of the total volume of milk entering the process. Although several possibilities for cheese-whey exploitation have been assayed, approximately half of world cheese-whey production is not treated but is discarded as effluent. It is necessary to develop an effective and environmentally benign extraction process for the recovery of value added cheese whey proteins. Recently aqueous two phase system (ATPS) have emerged as potential separation process, particularly in the field of biotechnology due to the mild conditions of the process, short processing time, and ease of scale-up. In order to design an ATPS process for the recovery of cheese whey proteins, development of phase diagram and the effect of system parameters such as pH, types and the concentrations of the phase forming components, temperature, etc., on the partitioning of proteins were addressed in order to maximize the recovery of proteins. Some of the practical problems encountered in the application of aqueous two-phase systems for the recovery of Cheese whey proteins were also discussed.

Keywords: aqueous two-phase system, phase diagram, extraction, cheese whey

Procedia PDF Downloads 408

Authors: Siddharudha B. Patil

Abstract:

Cotton is a premier commercial fibre crop of India subjected to ravages of insect pests. Sucking pests viz thrips, Thrips tabaci,(lind) leaf hopper Amrsca devastance,(dist) miridbug, Poppiocapsidea beseratense (Dist) and bollworms continue to inflict damage Bt Cotton right from seeding stage. Their infestation impact cotton yield to an extent of 30-40 percent. Chemical control is still adoptable as one of the techniques for combating these pests. Presently, growers have many challenges in selecting effective chemicals which fit in with an integrated pest management. Spinetoram has broad spectrum with excellent insecticidal activity against both sucking pests and bollworms. Hence, it is expected to make a great contribution to stable production and quality improvement of agricultural products. Spinetoram is a derivative of biologically active substances (Spinosyns) produced by soil actinomycetes, Saccharopolypara spinosa which is semi synthetic active ingredient representing Spinosyn chemical class of insecticide and has demonstrated higher level of efficacy with reduced risk on beneficial arthropods. The efforts were made in the present study to test the efficacy of Spinetoram against sucking pests and bollworms in comparison with other insecticides in Bt Cotton under field condition. Field experiment was laid out during 2013-14 and 2014-15 at Agricultural Research station Dharwad (Karnataka-India) in a randomized block design comprising eight treatments and three replications. Bt cotton genotype, Bunny BG-II was sown in a plot size of 5.4 m x5.4 m. Recommend agronomical practices were followed. The Spinetoram 12% SC alone and incombination with sulfaxaflore with varied dosages against pest complex was tested. Performance was compared with Spinosad 45% SC and thiamethoxam 25% WG. The results of consecutive seasons revealed that nonsignificant difference in thrips and leafhopper population and varied significantly after 3 days of imposition. Among the treatments, combiproduct, Spinetoram 10%WG + Sulfoxaflor 30% WG@ 140 gai/ha registered lowest population of thrips (3.91/3 leaves) and leaf hoppers (1.08/3 leaves) followed by its lower dosages viz 120 gai/ha (4.86/3 leaves and 1.14/3 leaves of thrips and leaf hoppers, respectively) and 100 gai/ha (6.02 and 1.23./3 leaves of thrips and leaf hoppers respectively) being at par, significantly superior to rest of the treatments. On the contrary, the population of thrips, leaf hopper and miridbugs in untreated control was on higher side. Similarly the higher dosage of Spinetoram 10% WG+ Sulfoxaflor 30% WG (140 gai/ha) proved its bioefficacy by registering lowest miridbug incidence of 1.70/25 squares, followed by its lower dosage (1.78 and 1.83/25 squares respectively) Further observation made on bollworms incidence revealed that the higher dosage of Spinetoram 10% WG+Sulfoxaflor 30% WG (140 gai/ha) registered lowest percentage of boll damage (7.22%), more number of good opened bolls (36.89/plant) and higher seed cotton yield (19.45q/ha) followed by rest of its lower dosages, Spinetoram 12% SC alone and Spinosad 45% SC being at par significantly superior to rest of the treatments. However, significantly higher boll damage (15.13%) and lower seed cotton yield (14.45 q/ha) was registered in untreated control. Thus Spinetoram10% WG+Sulfoxaflor 30% WG can be a promising option for pest management in Bt Cotton.

Keywords: Spinetoram10% WG+Sulfoxaflor 30% WG, sucking pests, bollworms, Bt cotton, management

Procedia PDF Downloads 250

Authors: Aswathaman Vijayan, Manish Jha, Ullas Theertha

Abstract:

Climate change and Global warming have become an issue for both developed and developing countries and perhaps the biggest threat to the environment. We at ITC Limited believe that a company’s performance must be measured by its Triple Bottom Line contribution to building economic, social and environmental capital. This Triple Bottom Line strategy focuses on - Embedding sustainability in business practices, Investing in social development and Adopting a low carbon growth path with a cleaner environment approach. The Agri Business Division - ILTD operates in the tobacco crop growing regions of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka province of India. The Agri value chain of the company comprises of two distinct phases: First phase is Agricultural operations undertaken by ITC trained farmers and the second phase is Industrial operations which include marketing and processing of the agricultural produce. This research work covers the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) management strategy of ITC in the Agricultural operations undertaken by the farmers. The agriculture sector adds considerably to global GHG emissions through the use of carbon-based energies, use of fertilizers and other farming operations such as ploughing. In order to minimize the impact of farming operations on the environment, ITC has a taken a big leap in implementing system and process in reducing the GHG impact in farm value chain by partnering with the farming community. The company has undertaken a unique three-pronged approach for GHG management at the farm value chain: 1) GHG inventory at farm value chain: Different sources of GHG emission in the farm value chain were identified and quantified for the baseline year, as per the IPCC guidelines for greenhouse gas inventories. The major sources of emission identified are - emission due to nitrogenous fertilizer application during seedling production and main-field; emission due to diesel usage for farm machinery; emission due to fuel consumption and due to burning of crop residues. 2) Identification and implementation of technologies to reduce GHG emission: Various methodologies and technologies were identified for each GHG emission source and implemented at farm level. The identified methodologies are – reducing the consumption of chemical fertilizer usage at the farm through site-specific nutrient recommendation; Usage of sharp shovel for land preparation to reduce diesel consumption; implementation of energy conservation technologies to reduce fuel requirement and avoiding burning of crop residue by incorporation in the main field. These identified methodologies were implemented at farm level, and the GHG emission was quantified to understand the reduction in GHG emission. 3) Social and farm forestry for CO2 sequestration: In addition, the company encouraged social and farm forestry in the waste lands to convert it into green cover. The plantations are carried out with fast growing trees viz., Eucalyptus, Casuarina, and Subabul at the rate of 10,000 Ha of land per year. The above approach minimized considerable amount of GHG emission at the farm value chain benefiting farmers, community, and environment at a whole. In addition, the CO₂ stock created by social and farm forestry program has made the farm value chain to become environment-friendly.

Keywords: CO₂ sequestration, farm value chain, greenhouse gas, ITC limited

Procedia PDF Downloads 294

Authors: Seung Hwan Park, Cheng-Sool Park, Jun Seok Kim, Youngji Yoo, Daewoong An, Jun-Geol Baek

Abstract:

Depending on the big data analysis becomes important, yield prediction using data from the semiconductor process is essential. In general, yield prediction and analysis of the causes of the failure are closely related. The purpose of this study is to analyze pattern affects the final test results using a die map based clustering. Many researches have been conducted using die data from the semiconductor test process. However, analysis has limitation as the test data is less directly related to the final test results. Therefore, this study proposes a framework for analysis through clustering using more detailed data than existing die data. This study consists of three phases. In the first phase, die map is created through fail bit data in each sub-area of die. In the second phase, clustering using map data is performed. And the third stage is to find patterns that affect final test result. Finally, the proposed three steps are applied to actual industrial data and experimental results showed the potential field application.

Keywords: die-map clustering, feature extraction, pattern recognition, semiconductor manufacturing process

Procedia PDF Downloads 401

Authors: Javier Fernandez, Mayte Medina, Rafael Fernandez de Canete, Nuria Alcain, Juan Carlos Ramos-Diaz

Abstract:

At present, the experimentation of anesthetic drugs on patients requires a regulation protocol, and the response of each patient to several doses of entry drug must be well known. Therefore, the development of pharmacological dose control systems is a promising field of research in anesthesiology. In this paper, it has been developed a non-linear compartmental the pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamical model which describes the anesthesia depth effect in a sufficiently reliable way over a set of patients with the depth effect quantified by the Bi-Spectral Index. Afterwards, an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) predictive controller has been designed based on the depth of anesthesia model so as to keep the patient in the optimum condition while he undergoes surgical treatment. For the purpose of quantifying the efficiency of the neural predictive controller, a classical proportional-integral-derivative controller has also been developed to compare both strategies. Results show the superior performance of predictive neural controller during BiSpectral Index reference tracking.

Keywords: anesthesia, bi-spectral index, neural network control, pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamical model

Procedia PDF Downloads 334

Authors: Shahbaz Pervez, Aljawharah Almuhana, Zahida Parveen, Samina Naz, Hira Tariq, Seyed Hosseini, Muhammad Awais Azam

Abstract:

With the latest development in the field of cutting-edge technologies, there is a rapid increase in the use of technology-oriented gadgets. In a recent scenario of the tech era, there is increasing demand to fulfill our day-to-day routine tasks with the help of technological gadgets. We are living in an era of technology where trends have been changing, and a race to introduce a new technology gadget has already begun. Smart cities are getting more popular with every passing day; city councils and governments are under enormous pressure to provide the latest services for their citizens and equip them with all the latest facilities. Thus, ultimately, they are going more into smart cities infrastructure building, providing services to their inhabitants with a single click from their smart devices. This trend is very exciting, but on the other hand, if some incident of security breach happens due to any weaker link, the results would be catastrophic. This paper addresses potential security and privacy breaches with a possible solution by using Blockchain technology in IoT enabled environment.

Keywords: blockchain, cybersecurity, DDOS, intrusion detection, IoT, RFID, smart devices security, smart services

Procedia PDF Downloads 117

Authors: Samira Karimi-Mansoub, Rahem Abri

Abstract:

Currently, users expect high quality and personalized information from search results. To satisfy user’s needs, personalized approaches to web search have been proposed. These approaches can provide the most appropriate answer for user’s needs by using user context and incorporating information about query provided by combining search technologies. To carry out personalized web search, there is a need to make different techniques on whole of user search process. There are the number of possible deployment of personalized approaches such as personalized web search, personalized recommendation, personalized summarization and filtering systems and etc. but the common feature of all approaches in various domains is that user modeling is utilized to provide personalized information from the Web. So the most important work in personalized approaches is user model mining. User modeling applications and technologies can be used in various domains depending on how the user collected information may be extracted. In addition to, the used techniques to create user model is also different in each of these applications. Since in the previous studies, there was not a complete survey in this field, our purpose is to present a survey on applications and techniques of user modeling from the viewpoint of improvement in search results by considering the existing literature and researches.

Keywords: filtering systems, personalized web search, user modeling, user search behavior

Procedia PDF Downloads 277

Authors: K. M. G. T. R. Waidyarathna, S. M. Vidanagamachchi

Abstract:

Public Health System exists in Sri Lanka has a satisfactory complete information flow when compared to other systems in developing countries. The availability of a good health information system contributed immensely to achieve health indices that are in line with the developed countries like US and UK. The health information flow at the moment is completely paper based. In Sri Lanka, the fields like banking, accounting and engineering have incorporated information and communication technology to the same extent that can be observed in any other country. The field of medicine has behind those fields throughout the world mainly due to its complexity, issues like privacy, confidentially and lack of people with knowledge in both fields of Information Technology (IT) and Medicine. Sri Lanka’s situation is much worse and the gap is rapidly increasing with huge IT initiatives by private-public partnerships in all other countries. The major goal of the framework is to support minimizing the spreading diseases. To achieve that a web based framework should be implemented for this application domain with web mapping. The aim of this GIS based public health system is a secure, flexible, easy to maintain environment for creating and maintaining public health records and easy to interact with relevant parties.

Keywords: DHIS2, GIS, public health, Sri Lanka

Procedia PDF Downloads 562

Authors: Bander Mohayya Alotaibi

Abstract:

The valuable partnerships between parents and teachers may develop positive and effective interactions between home and school. This will help these stakeholders share information and resources regarding student academics during ongoing interactions. Thus, partnerships will build a solid foundation for both families and schools to help children succeed in school. Parental involvement can be seen as an effective tool that can change homes and communities and not just schools’ systems. Seeking parents and stakeholders’ attitudes toward learning and learners can help schools design a curriculum. Subsequently, this information can be used to find ways to help improve the academic performance of students, especially in low performing schools. There may be some conflicts when designing curriculum. In addition, designing curriculum might bring more educational expectations to all the sides. There is a lack of research that targets the specific attitude of parents toward specific concepts on curriculum contents. More research is needed to study the perspective that parents of children with learning disabilities (LD) have regarding early reading curriculum. Parents and stakeholders’ perspectives on early reading intervention implemented as a curriculum for children with LD was studied through an advanced quantitative research. The purpose of this study seeks to understand stakeholders and parents’ perspectives of key concepts and essential early reading skills that impact the design of curriculum that will serve as an intervention for early struggler readers who have LD. Those concepts or stages include phonics, phonological awareness, and reading fluency as well as strategies used in house by parents. A survey instrument was used to gather the data. Participants were recruited through 29 schools and districts of the metropolitan area of the northern part of Saudi Arabia. Participants were stakeholders including parents of children with learning disability. Data were collected using distribution of paper and pen survey to schools. Psychometric properties of the instrument were evaluated for the validity and reliability of the survey; face validity, content validity, and construct validity including an Exploratory Factor Analysis were used to shape and reevaluate the structure of the instrument. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) used to find differences between the variables. The study reported the results of the perspectives of stakeholders toward reading strategies, phonics, phonological awareness, and reading fluency. Also, suggestions and limitations are discussed.

Keywords: stakeholders, learning disability, early reading, perspectives, parents, intervention, curriculum

Procedia PDF Downloads 154

Authors: A. Hassannia, S. Ramezani

Abstract:

The technology of superconductivity has developed in many power system devices such as transmission cable, transformer, current limiter, motor and generator. Superconducting wires can carry high density current without loss, which is the capability that is used to design the compact, lightweight and more efficient electrical machines. Superconducting motors have found applications in marine and air propulsion systems as well as superconducting generators are considered in low power hydraulic and wind generators. This paper presents a rim-driven superconducting synchronous generator for hydraulic power plant. The rim-driven concept improves the performance of hydro turbine. Furthermore, high magnetic field that is produced by superconducting windings allows replacing the rotor core. As a consequent, the volume and weight of the machine is decreased significantly. In this paper, a 1 MW coreless rim-driven superconducting synchronous generator is designed. Main performance characteristics of the proposed machine are then evaluated using finite elements method and compared to an ordinary similar size synchronous generator.

Keywords: coreless machine, electrical machine design, hydraulic generator, rim-driven machine, superconducting generator

Procedia PDF Downloads 172

Authors: Mohamed Laamim, Aboubakr Benazzouz, Abdelilah Rochd, Abdellatif Ghennioui, Abderrahim El Fadili

Abstract:

Smart grids have recently sparked a lot of interest in the energy sector as they allow for the modernization and digitization of the existing power infrastructure. Smart grids have several advantages in terms of reducing the environmental impact of generating power from fossil fuels due to their capacity to integrate large amounts of distributed energy resources. On the other hand, smart grid technologies necessitate many field investigations and requirements. This paper focuses on the major difficulties that governments face around the world and compares them to the situation in Morocco. Also presented in this study are the current works and projects being developed to improve the penetration of smart grid technologies into the electrical system. Furthermore, the findings of this study will be useful to promote the smart grid revolution in Morocco, as well as to construct a strong foundation and develop future needs for better penetration of technologies that aid in the integration of smart grid features.

Keywords: smart grids, microgrids, virtual power plants, digital twin, distributed energy resources, vehicle-to-grid, advanced metering infrastructure

Procedia PDF Downloads 152