Search results for: trend of production

Authors: Ming-Yeh Lu, Shiao-Shing Chen, Saikat Sinha Ray, Hung-Te Hsu

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The submerged anaerobic osmotic membrane bioreactor (AnOMBR) integrated with periodic microfiltration (MF) extraction for simultaneous phosphorus and clean water recovery from wastewater was evaluated. A laboratory-scale AnOMBR used cellulose triacetate (CTA) membranes with effective membrane area of 130 cm² was fully submerged into a 5 L bioreactor at 30-35 ℃. Active layer was orientated to feed stream for minimizing membrane fouling and scaling. Additionally, a peristaltic pump was used to circulate magnesium sulphate (MgSO₄) solution applied as draw solution (DS). Microfiltration membrane periodically extracted about 1 L solution when the TDS reaches to 5 g/L to recover phosphorus and simultaneously control the salt accumulation in the bioreactor. During experiment progress, the average water flux was around 1.6 LMH. The AnOMBR process showed greater than 95% removal of soluble chemical oxygen demand (sCOD), nearly 100% of total phosphorous whereas only partial of ammonia was removed. On the other hand, the average methane production of 0.22 L/g sCOD was obtained. Subsequently, the overall performance demonstrates that a novel submerged AnOMBR system is potential for simultaneous wastewater treatment and resource recovery from wastewater. Therefore, the new concept of this system can be used to replace for the conventional AnMBR in the future.

Keywords: anaerobic treatment, forward osmosis, phosphorus recovery, membrane bioreactor

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Authors: Abdullah Alhajoj, Bassam Alowaiesh

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This work aims to reduce the risks of discharging olive mill waste directly to the environment without treatment in Sakaka City, KSA. The organic loads expressed by chemical oxygen demand (COD) and biological oxygen demand (BOD) of the produced wastewater (OMWW) as well as the solid waste (OMW) were evaluated. The wastes emitted from the three-phase centrifuge decanters was found to be higher than that emitted from the two-phase centrifuge decanters. The olive mill wastewater (OMWW) was treated using advanced oxidation combined with filtration treatment. The results indicated that the concentration of COD, BOD, TSS, oil and grease and phenol was reduced by using complex sand filtration from 72150, 21660 10256, 36430, and 1470 mg/l to 980, 421, 58, 68, and 0.35 mg/l for three-phase OMWW and from 150562, 17955, 15325, 19658 and 2153 mg/l to 1050, 501, 29, 0.75, and 0.29 mg/l, respectively. While, by using modified trickling filter (packed with the neck of waste plastic bottles the concentration of the previously mentioned parameters was reduced to 1190, 570, 55, 0.85, and 0.3 mg/l, respectively. This work supports the application of such treatment technique for reducing the environmental threats of olive mill waste effluents in Saudi Arabia.

Keywords: two-phase, three-phase, olive mill, olive oil, waste treatment, filtration, advanced oxidation, waste plastic bottles

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Authors: Tanzeel Ur Rehman Khan, Franz Josef Behr, Phillip Davis

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Open source geospatial certifications are needed in geospatial technology education and industry sector. In parallel with proprietary software, free and open source software solutions become important in geospatial technology research and play an important role for the growth of the geospatial industry. ESRI, GISCI (GIS Certification Institute), ASPRS (American Society of Photogrammetry and remote sensing), and Meta spatial are offering certifications on proprietary and open source software. These are portfolio and competency based certifications depending on GIS Body of Knowledge (Bok). The analysis of these certification approaches might lead to the discovery of some gaps in them and will open a new way to develop certifications related to the geospatial open source (OS). This new certification will investigate the different geospatial competencies according to open source tools that help to identify geospatial professionals and strengthen the geospatial academic content. The goal of this research is to introduce a geospatial certification model based on geospatial technology competency model (GTCM).The developed certification will not only incorporate the importance of geospatial education and production of the geospatial competency-based workforce in universities and companies (private or public) as well as describe open source solutions with tools and technology. Job analysis, market analysis, survey analysis of this certification opens a new horizon for business as well.

Keywords: geospatial certification, open source, geospatial technology competency model, geoscience

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Authors: Kaustuvmani Patowary, Suresh Deka

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Oil pollution accidents, nowadays, have become a common phenomenon and have caused ecological and social disasters. Microorganisms with high oil-degrading performance are essential for bioremediation of petroleum hydrocarbon. In this investigation, an effective biosurfactant producer and hydrocarbon degrading bacterial strain, Pseudomonas sp.PG1 (identified by 16s rDNA sequencing) was isolated from hydrocarbon contaminated garage soil of Pathsala, Assam, India, using crude oil enrichment technique. The growth parameters such as pH and temperature were optimized for the strain and upto 81.8% degradation of total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) has been achieved after 5 weeks when grown in mineral salt media (MSM) containing 2% (w/v) crude oil as the carbon source. The biosurfactant production during the course of hydrocarbon degradation was monitored by surface tension measurement and emulsification activity. The produced biosurfactant had the ability to decrease the surface tension of MSM from 72 mN/m to 29.6 mN/m, with the critical micelle concentration (CMC)of 56 mg/L. The biosurfactant exhibited 100% emulsification activity on crude oil. FTIR spectroscopy and LCMS-MS analysis of the purified biosurfactant revealed that the biosurfactant is Rhamnolipidic in nature with several rhamnolipid congeners. Gas Chromatography-Mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis clearly demonstrated that the strain PG1 efficiently degrade different hydrocarbon fractions of the crude oil. The study suggeststhat application of the biosurfactant producing strain PG1 as an appropriate candidate for bioremediation of crude oil contaminants.

Keywords: petroleum hydrocarbon, hydrocarbon contamination, bioremediation, biosurfactant, rhamnolipid

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Authors: Mohammad Reza Farzami Pour

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Determination of genetic variation is useful for plant breeding and hence production of more efficient plant species under different conditions, like drought stress. In this study, a sample of 28 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) of wheat developed from the cross of Norstar and Zagross varieties, together with their parents, were evaluated for two years (2010-2012) under normal and water stress conditions using split plot design with three replications. Main plots included two irrigation treatments of 70 and 140 mm evaporation from Class A pan and sub-plots consisted of 30 genotypes. The effect of genotypes and interaction of genotypes with years and water regimes were significant for all characters. Significant genotypic effect implies the existence of genetic variation among the lines under study. Heritability estimates were high for 1000 grain weight (0.87). Biomass and grain yield showed the lowest heritability values (0.42 and 0.50, respectively). Highest genotypic and phenotypic coefficients of variation (GCV and PCV) belonged to harvest index. Moderate genetic advance for most of the traits suggested the feasibility of selection among the RILs under investigation. Some RILs were higher yielding than either parent at both environments.

Keywords: wheat, genetic gain, heritability, recombinant inbred lines

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Authors: Ipsita Pujari, Abitha Thomas, Vidhu S. Babu, K. Satyamoorthy

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Orchids are esteemed as celebrities in cut flower industry globally, due to their long-lasting fragrance and freshness. Apart from splendor, the unique metabolites endowed with pharmaceutical potency have made them one of the most hunted in plant kingdom. This had led to their trafficking, resulting in habitat loss, subsequently making them occupiers of IUCN red list as RET species. Many of the orchids especially wild varieties still remain undiscovered. In view to protect and conserve the wild germplasm, researchers have been inventing novel micropropagation protocols; thereby conserving Orchids. India is overflowing with exclusive wild cultivars of Orchids, whose pharmaceutical properties remain untapped and are not marketed owing to relatively small flowers. However, their germplasm is quite pertinent to be preserved for making unusual hybrids. Dendrobium genus is the second largest among Orchids exists in India and has highest demand attributable to enduring cut flowers and significant therapeutic uses in traditional medicinal system. Though the genus is quite endemic in Western Ghat regions of the country, many species are still anonymous with their unknown curative properties. A standard breeding cycle in Orchids usually takes five to seven years (Dendrobium hybrids taking a long juvenile phase of two to five years reaching maturity and flowering stage) and this extensive life cycle has always hindered the development of Dendrobium breeding. Dendrobium is reported with essential therapeutic plant bio-chemicals and ‘Moscatilin’ is one, found exclusive to this famous Dendrobium genus. Moscatilin is reported to have anti-mutagenic and anti-cancer properties, whose positive action has very recently been demonstrated against a range of cancers. Our preliminary study here established a simple and economic small-scale propagation protocol of Dendrobium ovatum describing in vitro production of Moscatilin. Subsequently for enhancing the content of Moscatilin, an efficient experimental related to the organization of transgenic (hairy) D. ovatum root cultures through infection of Agrobacterium rhizogenes 2364 strain on MS basal medium is being reported in the present study. Hairy roots generated on almost half of the explants used (spherules, in vitro plantlets and calli) maintained through suspension cultures, after 8 weeks of co-cultivation with Agrobacterium rhizogenes. GFP assay performed with isolated hairy roots has confirmed the integrative transformation which was further positively confirmed by PCR using rolB gene specific primers. Reverse phase-high performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry techniques were used for quantification and accurate identification of Moscatilin respectively from transgenic systems. A noticeable ~3 fold increase in contents were observed in transformed D. ovatum root cultures as compared to the simple in vitro culture, callus culture and callus regeneration plantlets. Role of elicitors e.g., Methyl jasmonate, Salicylic acid, Yeast extract and Chitosan were tested for elevating the Moscatilin content to obtain a comprehensive optimized protocol facilitating the in vitro production of valuable Moscatilin with larger yield. This study would provide evidence towards the in vitro assembly of Moscatilin within a short time-period through not a so-expensive technology for the first time. It also serves as an appropriate basis for bioreactor scale-up resulting in commercial bioproduction of Moscatilin.

Keywords: bioproduction, Dendrobium ovatum, hairy root culture, moscatilin

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Authors: Patricia Helena Dos Santos Martins, Mateus Atique, Lucas Oliveira Gomes Ferreira

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There is a growing body of literature that recognizes the importance of bibliometric analysis through the evolutionary nuances of a specific field while shedding light on the emerging areas in that field. Surprisingly, its application in the manufacturing research of vitiviniculture is relatively new and, in many instances, underdeveloped. The aim of this study is to present an overview of the bibliometric methodology, with a particular focus on the Meta-Analytical Approach Theory model – TEMAC, while offering step-by-step results on the available techniques and procedures for carrying out studies about the elements associated with vitiviniculture. Where TEMAC is a method that uses metadata to generate heat maps, graphs of keyword relationships and others, with the aim of revealing relationships between authors, articles and mainly to understand how the topic has evolved over the period study and thus reveal which subthemes were worked on, main techniques and applications, helping to understand that topic under study and guide researchers in generating new research. From the studies carried out using TEMAC, it is possible to raise which are the techniques within the statistical control of processes that are most used within the wine industry and thus assist professionals in the area in the application of the best techniques. It is expected that this paper will be a useful resource for gaining insights into the available techniques and procedures for carrying out studies about vitiviniculture, the cultivation of vineyards, the production of wine, and all the ethnography connected with it.

Keywords: TEMAC, vitiviniculture, statical control of process, quality

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Authors: Supriya Mahida, Sangita, Yogesh U. Shah, Shanta Kumar

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The global production of thermocol increasing day by day, due to vast applications of the use of thermocole in many sectors. Thermocol being non-biodegradable and more toxic than plastic leads towards a number of problems like its management into value-added products, environmental damage and landfill problems due to weight to volume ratio. Utilization of waste thermocol for modification of bitumen binders resulted in waste thermocol modified bitumen (WTMB) used in road construction and maintenance technology. Modification of bituminous mixes through incorporating thermocol into bituminous mixes through a dry process is one of the new options besides recycling process which consumes lots of waste thermocol. This process leads towards waste management and remedies against thermocol waste disposal. The present challenge is to dispose the thermocol waste under different forms in road infrastructure, either through the dry process or wet process to be developed in future. This paper focuses on the use of thermocol wastes which is mixed with VG 10 bitumen in proportions of 0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, and 2% by weight of bitumen. The physical properties of neat bitumen are evaluated and compared with modified VG 10 bitumen having thermocol. Empirical characterization like penetration, softening, and viscosity of bitumen has been carried out. Thermocol and waste thermocol modified bitumen (WTMB) were further analyzed by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and Dynamic Shear Rheometer (DSR).

Keywords: DSR, FESEM, FT-IR, thermocol wastes

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Authors: Amir Farouk Ahmed Ali Hussin

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Social media, such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Ex-Twitter have experienced exponential growth and a remarkable adoption rate in recent years. They give fantastic means of online social interactions and communications with family, friends, and colleagues from around the corner or across the globe, and they have become an important part of daily digital interactions for more than one and a half billion users around the world. The personal information sharing practices that social network providers encourage have led to their success as innovative social interaction platforms. Moreover, these practices have outcome in concerns with respect to privacy and security from different stakeholders. Guiding these privacy and security concerns in social networks is a must for these networks to be sustainable. Real security and privacy tools may not be enough to address existing concerns. Some points should be followed to protect users from the existing risks. In this research, we have checked the various privacy and security issues and concerns pertaining to social media. However, we have classified these privacy and security issues and presented a thorough discussion of the effects of these issues and concerns on the future of the social networks. In addition, we have presented a set of points as precaution measures that users can consider to address these issues.

Keywords: international legal, consultation mix, legal research, small and medium-sized enterprises, strategic International law, strategy alignment, house of laws, deployment, production strategy, legal strategy, business strategy

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Authors: Hafid Smaili, Wilfred Rouwhorst, Paul Frost

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The trend of recent accident and incident cases worldwide show that the state-of-the-art automation and operations, for current and future demanding operational environments, does not provide the desired level of operational safety under crew peak workload conditions, specifically in complex situations such as loss-of-control in-flight (LOC-I). Today, the short term focus is on preparing crews to recognise and handle LOC-I situations through upset recovery training. This paper describes the cockpit integration aspects and piloted assessment of both a manually assisted and automatic upset detection and recovery system that has been developed and demonstrated within the European Advanced Cockpit for Reduction Of StreSs and workload (ACROSS) programme. The proposed system is a function that continuously monitors and intervenes when the aircraft enters an upset and provides either manually pilot-assisted guidance or takes over full control of the aircraft to recover from an upset. In order to mitigate the highly physical and psychological impact during aircraft upset events, the system provides new cockpit functionalities to support the pilot in recovering from any upset both manually assisted and automatically. A piloted simulator assessment was made in Oct-Nov 2015 using ten pilots in a representative civil large transport fly-by-wire aircraft in terms of the preference of the tested upset detection and recovery system configurations to reduce pilot workload, increase situational awareness and safe interaction with the manually assisted or automated modes. The piloted simulator evaluation of the upset detection and recovery system showed that the functionalities of the system are able to support pilots during an upset. The experiment showed that pilots are willing to rely on the guidance provided by the system during an upset. Thereby, it is important for pilots to see and understand what the aircraft is doing and trying to do especially in automatic modes. Comparing the manually assisted and the automatic recovery modes, the pilot’s opinion was that an automatic recovery reduces the workload so that they could perform a proper screening of the primary flight display. The results further show that the manually assisted recoveries, with recovery guidance cues on the cockpit primary flight display, reduced workload for severe upsets compared to today’s situation. The level of situation awareness was improved for automatic upset recoveries where the pilot could monitor what the system was trying to accomplish compared to automatic recovery modes without any guidance. An improvement in situation awareness was also noticeable with the manually assisted upset recovery functionalities as compared to the current non-assisted recovery procedures. This study shows that automatic upset detection and recovery functionalities are likely to positively impact the operational safety by means of reduced workload, improved situation awareness and crew stress reduction. It is thus believed that future developments for upset recovery guidance and loss-of-control prevention should focus on automatic recovery solutions.

Keywords: aircraft accidents, automatic flight control, loss-of-control, upset recovery

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Authors: Chengwei Wang, Shuqing Xu, Philipp M. Schlüter

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The genus Ophrys is remarkable for its mimicry, flower-lip closely resembling pollinator females in a species-specific manner. Therefore, floral traits associated with pollinator attraction, especially scent, are suitable models for investigating the molecular basis of adaption, speciation, and evolution. Within the two Ophrys species groups: O. sphegodes (S) and O. fusca (F), pollinator shifts among the same insect species have taken place. Preliminary data suggest that they involve a comparable hydrocarbon profile in their scent, which is mainly composed of alkanes and alkenes. Genes encoding stearoyl-acyl carrier protein desaturases (SAD) involved in alkene biosynthesis have been identified in the S group. This study aims to investigate the control and parallel evolution of ecologically significant alkene production in Ophrys. Owing to the central role those SAD genes play in determining positioning of the alkene double-bonds, a detailed understanding of their functional mechanism and of regulatory aspects is of utmost importance. We have identified 5 transcription factors potentially related to SAD expression in O. sphegodes which belong to the MYB, GTE, WRKY, and MADS families. Ultimately, our results will contribute to understanding genes important in the regulatory control of floral scent synthesis.

Keywords: floral traits, transcription factors, biosynthesis, parallel evolution

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Authors: James M. Wakiru, Liliane Pintelon, Peter Muchiri, Peter Chemweno

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The fast-changing business and operational environment are forcing organizations to adopt asset performance management strategies, not only to reduce costs but also maintain operational and production policies while addressing demand. To attain optimal asset performance management, a framework that ensures a continuous and systematic approach to analyzing an organization’s current maturity level and expected improvement regarding asset maintenance processes, strategies, technologies, capabilities, and systems is essential. Moreover, this framework while addressing maintenance-intensive organizations should consider the diverse business, operational and technical context (often dynamic) an organization is in and realistically prescribe or relate to the appropriate tools and systems the organization can potentially employ in the respective level, to improve and attain their maturity goals. This paper proposes an asset maintenance maturity model to assess the current capabilities, strength and weaknesses of maintenance processes an organization is using and analyze gaps for improvement via structuring set levels of achievement. At the epicentre of the proposed framework is the utilization of maintenance objective selected by an organization for various maintenance optimization programs. The framework adapts the Capability Maturity Model of assessing the maintenance process maturity levels in the organization.

Keywords: asset maintenance, maturity models, maintenance objectives, optimization

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Authors: Kaye Angelica Lacurom, Keziah Macahilo

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One of the most important and in demand products in the Philippines is Scylla serrata. Despite the increasing demand in the market today, the cost of feeds corresponds to a fraction of 40%-50% of the entire operational of crab production. Raisers and suppliers are seeking alternative ways to lessen their expense with more effective enhancers than the usual feeds. This study aimed to enhance the growth and immune system of the mud crabs using natural antioxidants from plant powders that are available in the locality. There were four treatments: Diet 1: commercially available feeds for the positive control, Diet 2: 1,200 mg/kg Euphorbia hirta , Diet 3: 1,600 mg/kg of Citrus microcarpa, Diet 4: Mixed 1,400 of Euphorbia hirta and Citrus microcarpa. Air-drying was done first-hand followed by the grinding of plants. After which the plants were stored in a container and was added to the feed formulation given. Mud crabs were fed twice a day for 30 days for better results. For inferential analysis, weight gain and survivability were measured, hemolymph was extracted and the Total Hemocycte Count (THC) was determined analyzed. Results showed that the highest THC mean (9.0 x 105 ± 7.1 x 104) and weight gain mean (2.9 x 10± 1.9 x 10) was achieved by Diet 3 with the same survivability rates among other treatments and positive control. While Diet 2 presented the lowest THC mean (7.2 x 105 ±3.5 x 104) and weight gain mean (1.0 x 10± 7.0 x 10-1).

Keywords: fed additives, Scylla serrata, enhanced growth, innate immune response

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Authors: Sandra C. L. Dorea, Joann K. Whalen, Yixin Shao, Oumarou Savadogo

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The major challenge for industries that rely on fossil fuels in manufacturing processes or to provide goods and services is to lower their CO2 emissions, as the case for the manufacture of Portland cement. Feasible materials for this purpose can include agro-industrial or agricultural wastes, which are termed 'biosilica' since the silica was contained in a biological matrix (biomass). Corn cob (CC) has some characteristics that make it a good candidate as biosilica source: 1) it is an abundant grain crop produced around the world; 2) more production means more available residues is left in the field to be used. This work aims to evaluate the CC collected from different farms in Canada during the corn harvest in order to see if they can be used together as a biosilica source. The characterization of the raw CC was made in the physical, chemical, and thermal way. The moisture content, the granulometry, and the morphology were also analyzed. The ash content measured was 2,1%. The Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) and its Derivative (DTG) evaluated of CC as a function of weight loss with temperature variation ranging between 30°C and 800°C in an atmosphere of N2. The chemical composition and the presence of silica revealed that the different sources of the CC do not interfere in its basic chemical composition, which means that this kind of waste can be used together as a source of biosilica no matter where they come from. Then, this biosilica can partially replace the cement Portland making sustainable cementitious mixtures and contributing to reduce the CO2 emissions.

Keywords: biosilica, characterization, corn cob, sustainable cementitious materials

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Authors: J. Hash, J. Converse, L. Gibson

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Plant medicines are of growing interest for addressing mental health concerns. Ayahuasca, a traditional plant-based medicine, has established itself as a powerful way of processing trauma and precipitating healing and mood stabilization. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is another treatment modality that aids in the rapid processing and resolution of trauma. We investigated group EMDR therapy, G-TEP, as a preparatory practice before Ayahuasca ceremonies to determine if the combination of these modalities supports participants in their journeys of letting go of past experiences negatively impacting mental health, thereby accentuating the healing of the plant medicine. We surveyed 96 participants (51 experimental G-TEP, 45 control grounding prior to their ceremony; age M=38.6, SD=9.1; F=57, M=34; white=39, Hispanic/Latinx=23, multiracial=11, Asian/Pacific Islander=10, other=7) in a pre-post, mixed methods design. Participants were surveyed for demographic characteristics, symptoms of PTSD and cPTSD (International Trauma Questionnaire (ITQ), depression (Beck Depression Inventory, BDI), and stress (Perceived Stress Scale, PSS) before the ceremony and at the end of the ceremony weekend. Open-ended questions also inquired about their expectations of the ceremony and results at the end. No baseline differences existed between the control and experimental participants. Overall, participants reported a decrease in meeting the threshold for PTSD symptoms (p<0.01); surprisingly, the control group reported significantly fewer thresholds met for symptoms of affective dysregulation, 2(1)=6.776, p<.01, negative self-concept, 2 (1)=7.122, p<.01, and disturbance in relationships, 2 (1)=9.804, p<.01, on subscales of the ITQ as compared to the experimental group. All participants also experienced a significant decrease in scores on the BDI, t(94)=8.995, p<.001, and PSS, t(91)=6.892, p<.001. Similar to patterns of PTSD symptoms, the control group reported significantly lower scores on the BDI, t(65.115)=-2.587, p<.01, and a trend toward lower PSS, t(90)=-1.775, p=.079 (this was significant with a one-sided test at p<.05), compared to the experimental group following the ceremony. Qualitative interviews among participants revealed a potential explanation for these relatively higher levels of depression and stress in the experimental group following the ceremony. Many participants reported needing more time to process their experience to gain an understanding of the effects of the Ayahuasca medicine. Others reported a sense of hopefulness and understanding of the sources of their trauma and the necessary steps to heal moving forward. This suggests increased introspection and openness to processing trauma, therefore making them more receptive to their emotions. The integration process of an Ayahuasca ceremony is a week- to months-long process that was not accessible in this stage of research, yet it is an integral process to understanding the full effects of the Ayahuasca medicine following the closure of a ceremony. Our future research aims to assess participants weeks into their integration process to determine the effectiveness of EMDR, and if the higher levels of depression and stress indicate the initial reaction to greater awareness of trauma and receptivity to healing.

Keywords: ayahuasca, EMDR, PTSD, mental health

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Authors: Hieu Van Dong, Giang Thi Huong Tran, Giap Van Nguyen, Tung Duy Dao, Vuong Nghia Bui, Le Thi My Huynh, Yohei Takeda, Haruko Ogawa, Kunitoshi Imai

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Chicken anemia virus (CAV) has a ubiquitous and worldwide distribution in chicken production. Our group previously reported high seroprevalence of CAV in chickens in northern Vietnam. In the present study, 330 tissue samples collected from commercial and breeder chicken farms in eleven provinces in northern Vietnam were tested for the CAV infection. We found that 157 out of 330 (47.58%) chickens were positive with CAV genes by real-time PCR method. Nine CAV strains obtained from the different location and time were forwarded to the full-length sequence of CAV VP1 gene. Phylogenetic analysis of the Vietnamese CAV vp1 gene indicated that the CAVs circulating in northern Vietnam were divided into three distinct genotypes, II, III, and V, but not clustered with the vaccine strains. Among the three genotypes, genotype III was the major one widely spread in Vietnam, and that included three sub-genotypes, IIIa, IIIb, and IIIc. The Vietnamese CAV strains were closely related to the Chinese, Taiwanese, and USA strains. All the CAV isolates had glutamine at amino acid position 394 in the VP1 gene, suggesting that they might be highly pathogenic strains. One strain was defined to be genotype V, which had not been reported for Vietnamese CAVs. Additional studies are required to further evaluate the pathogenicity of CAV strains circulating in Vietnam.

Keywords: chicken anemia virus, genotype, genetic characteristics, Vietnam

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Authors: Hilary P. Stevenson, Alexander J. Hayek, Amie Dereczyk

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In this case report, we provide an example of an asymptomatic COVID-19 positive patient who presented with new-onset psychosis with severe paranoid delusions. He was seen in our ED after ingesting isopropyl alcohol which he reported was an attempt to escape presumed attackers, which at the time was logical to the patient. The patient’s family had COVID-19 symptoms that corresponded to those typically observed from the Omicron variant. The patient was treated successfully, within ten days, with Risperdal twice-daily dosing resulting in the resolution of the patient’s delusions and improved insight regarding the events that led to his hospitalization. In this work, we examine possible contributing factors to new-onset psychosis in the context of COVID-19, a phenomenon that is becoming increasingly notable in the literature. One area of importance is the already established inflammatory hypothesis of psychosis in which defects in the innate immune system, which result in its overactivation, may play a role in a typical first-episode psychosis, in addition to subsequent episodes. Given that COVID-19 is known to cause derangements in the innate immune system, such as cytokine storm reactions, this link may be critical in further understanding the etiologies of new-onset COVID-19 psychosis and its risk factors. Also included in this work is a brief review of antipsychotic interventions that have been described in the literature to date for the first episode of COVID-19-related psychosis. This will explore the potential of some antipsychotics to innately diminish the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, further enhancing their usefulness in COVID-19 first-episode psychosis patients.

Keywords: COVID-19, first break psychosis, inflammatory hypothesis of psychosis, Risperdal

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Authors: Soumya Awasthi

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The spread of radical ideology is possible not merely through public meetings, protests, and mosques but even in schools, seminaries, and madrasas. The rhetoric created around the relationship between religion and conflict has been the primary factor for instigating global conflicts – when religion is used to achieve broader objectives. There have been numerous cases of religion-driven conflict around the world be it the Jewish revolt between 66 AD and 628 AD or the 1119 AD the Crusades revolt or during the Cold War period or the rise of right-wing politics in India. Some of the major developments which reiterate the significance of religion in the contemporary times include: (1) The emergence of theocracy in Iran in 1979 (2) Resurgence of world-wide religious beliefs in post-Soviet space. (3) Emergence of transnational terrorism shaped by twisted depiction of Islam by the self proclaimed protectors of the religion. Therefore this paper is premised in the argument that religion has always found itself on the periphery of the discipline of International Relations (IR), and has received less attention than it deserves. The focus of the topic is on the discourses of ‘Deobandi’ and its impact both on the geopolitics of the region- particularly in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan- and also at the global level. Discourse is a mechanism in use since time immemorial and has been a key tool to mobilise masses against the ruling authority. With the help of field surveys, qualitative and analytical method of research in religion and international relations, it has been found that they are numerous madrassas that are running illegally and are unregistered. These seminaries are operating in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA). During the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, relation between religion and geopolitics was highlighted when there was a sudden spread of radical ideas, finding support from countries like Saudi Arabia (who funded the campaign) and Pakistan (which organised the Saudi funds and set up training camps, both educational and military). During this period there was a huge influence of Wahabi theology on the madrasas which started with Deoband philosophy and later became a mix of Wahabi (influenced by Ahmad Ibn Hannabal and Ibn Taimmiya) and Deobandi philosophy, tending towards fundamentalism. Later the impact of regional geopolitics had influence on the global geopolitics when the incidents like attack on the US in 2001, bomb blasts in U.K, Indonesia, Turkey, and Israel in 2000s. In the midst of all this, there were several scholars who pointed towards Deobandi Philosophy as one of the drivers in the creation of armed Islamic groups in Pakistan, Afghanistan. Hence this paper will make an attempt to understand the trend as to how Deobandi religious discourses originating from India have changed over the decades, and who the agents of such changes are. It will throw light on Deoband from pre-independence till date to create a narrative around the religious discourses and Deobandi philosophy and its spill over impact on the map of global and regional security.

Keywords: Deobandi School of Thought, radicalization, regional and global geopolitics, religious discourses, Whabi movement

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Authors: Nura Bello

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Sokoto caliphate is the product of a hectic revolutionary movement that took place in the first decade of the nineteenth century under the leadership of Seikh Usmanu Danfodio. The movement led to the overthrow of the Sarauta system in Hausa Land, leading to the emergence of the Sokoto caliphate and Sokoto city as its headquarters. This development led to the collapse of Alkalawa (headquarters of the Gobir Kingdom) in 1808. A year later, in 1809, Sokoto city emerged as the headquarter of the Sokoto Caliphate. Due to the open door policy adopted by the leaders, the city came to experience an influx of people especially craft manufacturers from all over Hausa Land and beyond, who occupied many areas of the city and engaged in different craft production. This paper aims to highlight the development of crafts manufacturing in the 19th century Sokoto city and its contribution to transforming the city into a major economic base of the caliphate. In dealing with the above issue, qualitative research methods that mainly involve the use of oral and archival data will be adopted. Finally, the paper identified that the expansion of craft manufacturing in the 19th century Sokoto city could have resulted from the role played by the leadership of the caliphate, which favoured such development. The paper argues that if those industries were revived in Nigeria today, they would ultimately create various jobs among the younger generations, which would result in economic prosperity.

Keywords: craft manufacturing, diversification, economy, migration

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Authors: John Toussaint

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Objective: Our society is suffering from an epidemic of body image dissatisfaction, and related disorders appear to be increasing globally for children. There is much to indicate that children's body image and eating attitudes are being affected negatively by socio-cultural factors such as parents, peers and media. Most studies and theories, however, have focused extensively on the daughter-mother relationship. Very few studies have investigated the role of attachment to the father as an important factor in the development of girls’ and women’s attitudes towards themselves and their bodies. Recently, data have shown that the father’s parenting style, as well as the quality of the relationship with him is crucial for the understanding of the development and persistence of body image disorders. This presentation is based on samples of participants with self-defined body image dissatisfaction, and the self-reported measures of their fathers’ parental behaviours, emotional warmth, support, or protection. Attachment theory does offer support in exploring these relationships and it is used in this presentation to assist in understanding the relationship between the father and his daughter in relation to body image and mental health. Clinical implications are also offered in respect to work with body image, eating disorders and relational therapy. Methods: As awareness of the increasing frequency of body image concerns in children grows, so too does the need for a simple, valid and reliable measure of body image. The Children's Body Image Scale (CBIS) designed in Australia, depicts seven male and females figures from which children are to choose their perceived body type and ideal body type. This was compared with a range of international body mass index (BMI) reference standards. These measures together with individual one-on-one interviews were completed by 158 children aged 7-12 years. Results: A high frequency of body image dissatisfaction was indicated in the children's responses. 55% of girls and 41% of boys said they would like to be thinner, and wished for an ideal BMI figure below the 10th percentile. This is an unhealthy and unattainable level of body fatness for the majority of children when considered in relation to the reported secular trend of their increasing average body size. Thin children were generally ranked as best and perceived as kind, happy, academically skilled, and socially successful. Fat children were perceived as unintelligent, lazy, greedy, unpopular, and unable to play physical games. Conclusions: Body image ideals and fat stereotypes are well entrenched among children. There is much to indicate that children's body image and eating attitudes are being affected negatively by sociocultural factors such as parents, peers and media. Teachers and health professionals could promote intervention programs for children involving knowledge and acceptance of genetic influences on body type; the dangerous effects of weight loss dieting; the importance of physical activity and eating healthy; and scepticism and critical analysis of mass media messages.

Keywords: body image, father attachment, mental health, eating disorders

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Authors: Manjunatha Bangeppagari, Lee Sang Joon

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Recently, graphene-related nanomaterials are receiving fast-increasing attention with augmented applications in various fields. Especially, graphene-related materials have been widely applied to the biomedical field in the past years. In the present study, we evaluated the adverse effects of pristine graphene (pG) in zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos in various aspects, such as mortality rate, heart rate, hatching rate, cardiotoxicity, cardiovascular defect, cardiac looping, apoptosis, and globin expression. For various trace concentrations of pG (1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, and 50 μg/L), early life-stage parameters were observed at 24, 48, 72, and 96 hpf. As a result, pG induces significant developmental defects including yolk sac edema, pericardial edema, embryonic mortality, delayed hatching, heartbeat, several morphological defects, pericardial toxicity, and bradycardia. Moreover, the exposure to pG was found to be a potential risk factor to the cardiovascular system of zebrafish embryos. However, further study on their properties which vary according to production methods and surface functionalization is essentially required. In addition, the possible risks of pG flakes to aquatic animals, and public health should be evaluated before releasing them to the surrounding environment.

Keywords: apoptosis, cardiovascular toxicity, globin expression, pristine graphene, zebrafish embryos

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Authors: Chang Liu, Hanwen Zhang, Vikash Sharma, Don Eliseo Lucerno-Prisno III, Emmanuel Yujuico, Maulik Chokshi, Prashanthi Krishnakumar, Bach Xuan Tran, Giang Thu Vu, Kamilla Anna Pinter, Shenglan Tang

Abstract:

Background and Aims: Globally, many health systems focus on hospital-based healthcare models targeting acute care and disease treatment, which are not effective in addressing the challenges of ageing populations, chronic conditions, multi-morbidities, and increasingly unhealthy lifestyles. Recently, integrated care programs on chronic diseases have been developed, piloted, and implemented to meet such challenges. However, integrated care programs in the Asia-Pacific region vary in the levels of integration from linkage to coordination to full integration. This study aims to identify and analyze existing cases of integrated care in the Asia-Pacific region and identify the facilitators and barriers in order to improve existing cases and inform future cases. Methods: The study is a comparative study, with a combination approach of desk-based research and key informant interviews. The selected countries included in this study represent a good mix of lower-middle income countries (the Philippines, India, Vietnam, and Fiji), upper-middle income country (China), and high-income country (Singapore) in the Asia-Pacific region. Existing integrated care programs were identified through the scoping review approach. Trigger, history, general design, beneficiaries, and objectors were summarized with barriers and facilitators of integrated care based on key informant interviews. Representative case(s) in each country were selected and comprehensively analyzed through deep-dive case studies. Results: A total of 87 existing integrated care programs on chronic diseases were found in all countries, with 44 in China, 21 in Singapore, 12 in India, 5 in Vietnam, 4 in the Philippines, and 1 in Fiji. 9 representative cases of integrated care were selected for in-depth description and analysis, with 2 in China, the Philippines, and Vietnam, and 1 in Singapore, India, and Fiji. Population aging and the rising chronic disease burden have been identified as key drivers for almost all the six countries. Among the six countries, Singapore has the longest history of integrated care, followed by Fiji, the Philippines, and China, while India and Vietnam have a shorter history of integrated care. Incentives, technologies, education, and performance evaluation would be crucial for developing strategies for implementing future programs and improve already existing programs. Conclusion: Integrated care is important for addressing challenges surrounding the delivery of long-term care. To date, there is an increasing trend of integrated care programs on chronic diseases in the Asia-Pacific region, and all six countries in our study set integrated care as a direction for their health systems transformation.

Keywords: integrated healthcare, integrated care delivery, chronic diseases, Asia-Pacific region

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Authors: Ashish Sinha, Pushpend Agrawal

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Background: Patients with undiagnosed pulmonary TB predominantly act as reservoirs for its transmission through 10-15 secondary infections in the next 1-5 Yrs. Delays in the diagnosis and treatment may worsen the disease with increase the risk of death. Factors responsible for such delays by tracking patient pathways to treatment may help in planning better interventions. The provision of ‘free diagnosis and treatment’ forms the cornerstone of the National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP). OOPE is defined as the money spent by the patient during TB care other than public health facilities. Free TB care at all health facilities could reduce out-of-pocket expenses to the minimum possible levels. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among randomly selected 252 TB patients from Nov – Oct 2022 by taking in-depth interviews following informed verbal consent. We documented their journey from initial symptoms until they reached the public health facility, along with their ‘out-of-pocket expenditure’ (OOPE) pertaining to TB care. Results: Total treatment delay was 91±72 days on average (median: 77days, IQR: 45-104 days), while the isolated patient delay was 31±45 days (median: 15 days, IQR: 0 days to 43 days); diagnostic delay; 57±60 days (median: 42days, IQR 14-78 days), treatment delay 19 ± 18 days (median: 15days, IQR: 11-19 days). A patient delay (> 30 days) was significantly associated with ignorance about classic symptoms of pulmonary TB, adoption of self-medication, illiteracy, and middle and lower social class. Diagnostic delay was significantly higher among those who contacted private health facilities, were unaware of signs and symptoms, had >2 consultations, and not getting an appropriate referral for TB care. Most (97%) of the study participants interviewed claimed to have incurred some expenditure.Median total expenses were 6155(IQR: 2625-15175) rupees. More than half 141 (56%) of the study participants had expenses >5000 rupees. Median transport expenses were 525(IQR: 200-1012) rupees; Median consultation expenses were 700(IQR: 200-1600) rupees; Median investigation expenses were 1000(IQR: 0-3025) rupees and the Median medicine expenses were 3350(IQR: 1300-7525).OOPE for consultation, investigation, and medicine was observed to be significantly higher among patients who ignored classical signs& symptoms of TB, repeated visits to private health facilities, and due to self-medication practices. Transport expenses and delays in seeking care at facilities were observed to have an upward trend with OOP Expenses (r =1). Conclusion: Delay in TB care due to low awareness about signs and symptoms of TB and poor seeking care, lack of proper consultation, and appropriate referrals reported by the study subjects indicate the areas which need proper attention by the program managers. Despite a centrally sponsored programme, the financial burden on TB patients is still in the unacceptable range. OOPE could be reduced as low as possible by addressing the responsible factors linked to it.

Keywords: patient pathway, delay, pulmonary tuberculosis, out of pocket expenses

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Authors: Mateusz Paszko, Miroslaw Wendeker, Adam Majczak

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High temperature waste energy offers a number of management options. The most common energy recuperation systems, that are actually used to utilize energy from the high temperature sources are steam turbines working in a high pressure and temperature closed cycles. Due to the high costs of production of energy recuperation systems, especially rotary turbine discs equipped with blades, currently used solutions are limited in use with waste energy sources of temperature below 100 °C. This study presents the results of simulating the flow of the water vapor in various configurations of flow ducts in a reaction steam turbine based on Hero’s steam turbine. The simulation was performed using a numerical model and the ANSYS Fluent software. Simulation computations were conducted with use of the water vapor as an internal agent powering the turbine, which is fully safe for an environment in case of a device failure. The conclusions resulting from the conducted numerical computations should allow for optimization of the flow ducts geometries, in order to achieve the greatest possible efficiency of the turbine. It is expected that the obtained results should be useful for further works related to the development of the final version of a low drag steam turbine dedicated for low cost energy recuperation systems.

Keywords: energy recuperation, CFD analysis, waste energy, steam turbine

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Authors: Kivilcim Ersoy, Cansu Yazganarikan

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In recent years, composite materials are more frequently utilized not only in aviation but also in automotive industry due to its high strength to weight ratio, fatigue and corrosion resistances as well as better performances in specific environments. The market demand also favors lightweight design for wheeled and tracked armored vehicles due to the increased demand for land and amphibious mobility features. This study represents the current application areas and trends in automotive, bus and armored land vehicles industries. In addition, potential utilization areas of fiber composite and hybrid material concepts are being addressed. This work starts with a survey of current applications and patent trends of composite materials in automotive and land vehicle industries. An intensive investigation is conducted to determine the potential of these materials for application in land vehicle industry, where small series production dominates and challenging requirements are concerned. In the end, potential utilization areas for combat land vehicle systems are offered. By implementing these light weight solutions with alternative materials and design concepts, it is possible to achieve drastic weight reduction, which will enable both land and amphibious mobility without unyielding stiffness and survivability capabilities.

Keywords: land vehicle, composite, light-weight design, armored vehicle

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Authors: Zohreh Hajiha

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Culture affects the ability of the organization in expressing and achieving the goals. Organizational culture influences the selection of instruments applied in the management of organizations. All the instruments applied in organizations to control, promote and create innovations are influenced by organizational culture. This research studies organizational culture based on the cultural model of Muijen and its relationship with applying management accounting innovations in Iranian listed firms. Management accounting innovations of this study include activity-based costing, activity-based management, balanced scorecard, target costing, standard costing, quality costing, Kaizen costing and dimensions of organizational culture include support orientation, innovation orientation, rules orientation and goal orientation. 105 questionnaires were sent to financial executives of production companies and 73 questionnaires were returned. The findings show that there is a significant difference between organizational culture of firms that have applied management accounting innovations and those which have used these innovations less. Also, dimensions of support orientation and culture goal orientation are the highest in groups that apply management accounting innovations. The findings suggest that proper organization culture could promote the use od management accounting tools in Iranian firms.

Keywords: organizational culture, innovation, management accounting, muijen model

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Authors: Naci Büyükkaraciğan, Yildirim Akyol

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Large plants that covering the back and accumulate water of a river valley for energy production, drinking, irrigation water supply, economic benefits that serve many purposes, such as regulation of flood protection, are called dams. Place, in which unites in order to achieve an optimum balance between manpower for Lowest cost and economic as belonging to that structure to create machines, materials and construction of the project, is called as the site. Dam construction sites are combined sites in together in many businesses. Therefore, there can be found in the many workers and machines are many accidents in this type of construction sites. The necessity of systematic and scientific studies due to various reasons arises in order to be protected from conditions that could damage the health, During the execution of the work on construction sites. Occupational health and safety of the study, called the case, also in the European Union has begun to be addressed by weight since the 1980s. In particular, issued in 1989 89/391/EEC on occupational health and safety directive, occupational health and adopted the Directive within the framework of the security field, and then exposed to a large number of individual directive within this framework on the basis of the directive. Turkey's Law No. 6331 entered into force in June 2012 on the subject. In this study, measures related to the construction site of the dam should be taken with occupational safety and health have been examined and tried to put forward recommendations on the subject.

Keywords: civil engineering, dam, occupational safety and health, site organizations

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Authors: Muhammad Atif Randhawa, Muhammad Nadeem

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Kinnow (Citrus reticulate Blanco) is nutritious and perishable fruit with high juice content, and also rich source of vitamin-C. In Pakistan, kinnow export is limited due to inadequate post-harvest handling and lack of satisfactory storage practices. Considering these issues, the present study was designed to evaluate the effect of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) coating in combination with CaCl2 and MgSO4 on shelf life extension of kinnow. Fruits were treated with different levels of CaCl2 and MgSO4 followed by HPMC coating (3 and 5%) and stored at 10°C with 80% relative humidity for 6 weeks. Fruits were analyzed for various physico-chemical parameters on weekly basis. During this study lower fruit firmness (0.24Nm-2), loss in weight (0.64%) and ethylene production (0.039 µL•kg-1•hr-1) was observed in fruits treated with 1% CaCl2 + 1% MgSO4 + 5% HPMC (T6) during storage of 42 days. Minimum chilling injury indexes 0.22% and 0.61% were recorded in treatments T4 and T6, respectively. T6 showed higher values of titerable acidity (0.29%) and ascorbic acid contents (39.82mg/100g). Minimum TSS (9.62°Brix) was found in fruits of T6. Overall T6 showed significantly better results for various parameters, as compared to all other treated and control fruits.

Keywords: firmness, kinnow coating, physicochemical, storage

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Authors: Zahra Zamanian, Alireza Zamanian, Jafar Hasanzadeh

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Background: Unwanted sound, as one of the most important physical factors in the majority of production units, imposes a great number of problems on the industrial workers. Sound is one of the environmental factors which can cause physical as well as psychological damages and also affects the individuals’ performance and productivity. Therefore, the present study aimed to determine the effect of noise exposure on human performance. Methods: The present study assessed the effect of noise on the performance of 50 students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (25 males and 25 females) at the sound pressures of 70, 90, and 110 dB by using two factors of physical features and the creation of different conditions of sound pressure source as well as applying Two-Arm coordination Test. Results: The results of the present study revealed no significant difference between male and female subjects as well as different conditions of creating sound pressure regarding the length of performance (p> 0.05). In addition, as the sound pressure increased, the length of performance increased, as well. According to the results, no significant difference was found between the performance at 70 and 90 dB. On the other hand, the performance at 110 dB was significantly different from the performance at 70 and 90 dB (p<0.05 and p<0.001). Conclusion: In general, as the sound pressure increases, the performance decreases which results in a considerable increase in the individuals’ rate of error.

Keywords: physical factors, two-arm coordination test, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, noise

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Authors: Y. Ates, A. R. Boynuegri, M. Uzunoglu, A. Karakas

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The recent interest in alternative and renewable energy systems results in increased installed capacity ratio of such systems in total energy production of the world. Specifically, wind energy conversion systems (WECS) draw significant attention among possible alternative energy options, recently. On the contrary of the positive points of penetrating WECS in all over the world in terms of environment protection, energy independence of the countries, etc., there are significant problems to be solved for the grid connection of large scale WECS. The reactive power regulation, voltage variation suppression, etc. can be presented as major issues to be considered in this regard. Thus, this paper evaluates the application of a Static VAr Compensator (SVC) unit for the reactive power regulation and operation continuity of WECS during a fault condition. The system is modeled employing the IEEE 13 node test system. Thus, it is possible to evaluate the system performance with an overall grid simulation model close to real grid systems. The overall simulation model is developed in MATLAB/Simulink/SimPowerSystems® environments and the obtained results effectively match the target of the provided study.

Keywords: IEEE 13 bus distribution system, reactive power regulation, static VAr compensator, wind energy conversion system

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