Search results for: linear absorption coefficient

Authors: Meiyan Gao, Zongmin Wang, Haibo Yang, Qiuhua Liang

Abstract:

Under the background of global climate change and rapid development of modern urbanization, the frequency of climate disasters such as extreme precipitation in cities around the world is gradually increasing. In this paper, Hi-PIMS model is used to simulate the "720" flood in Zhengzhou, and the continuous stages of flood resilience are determined with the urban flood stages are divided. The flood resilience curve under the influence of multiple factors were determined and the urban flood toughness was evaluated by combining the results of resilience curves. The flood resilience of urban unit grid was evaluated based on economy, population, road network, hospital distribution and land use type. Firstly, the rainfall data of meteorological stations near Zhengzhou and the remote sensing rainfall data from July 17 to 22, 2021 were collected. The Kriging interpolation method was used to expand the rainfall data of Zhengzhou. According to the rainfall data, the flood process generated by four rainfall events in Zhengzhou was reproduced. Based on the results of the inundation range and inundation depth in different areas, the flood process was divided into four stages: absorption, resistance, overload and recovery based on the once in 50 years rainfall standard. At the same time, based on the levels of slope, GDP, population, hospital affected area, land use type, road network density and other aspects, the resilience curve was applied to evaluate the urban flood resilience of different regional units, and the difference of flood process of different precipitation in "720" rainstorm in Zhengzhou was analyzed. Faced with more than 1,000 years of rainstorm, most areas are quickly entering the stage of overload. The influence levels of factors in different areas are different, some areas with ramps or higher terrain have better resilience, and restore normal social order faster, that is, the recovery stage needs shorter time. Some low-lying areas or special terrain, such as tunnels, will enter the overload stage faster in the case of heavy rainfall. As a result, high levels of flood protection, water level warning systems and faster emergency response are needed in areas with low resilience and high risk. The building density of built-up area, population of densely populated area and road network density all have a certain negative impact on urban flood resistance, and the positive impact of slope on flood resilience is also very obvious. While hospitals can have positive effects on medical treatment, they also have negative effects such as population density and asset density when they encounter floods. The result of a separate comparison of the unit grid of hospitals shows that the resilience of hospitals in the distribution range is low when they encounter floods. Therefore, in addition to improving the flood resistance capacity of cities, through reasonable planning can also increase the flood response capacity of cities. Changes in these influencing factors can further improve urban flood resilience, such as raise design standards and the temporary water storage area when floods occur, train the response speed of emergency personnel and adjust emergency support equipment.

Keywords: urban flood resilience, resilience assessment, hydrodynamic model, resilience curve

Procedia PDF Downloads 37

Authors: Adeline Meriaux, Claire Gaiani, Jennifer Burgain, Frantz Fournier, Lionel Muniglia, Jérémy Petit

Abstract:

Spray-drying process is widely used for the production of dairy powders for food and pharmaceuticals industries. It involves the atomization of a liquid feed into fine droplets, which are subsequently dried through contact with a hot air flow. The resulting powders permit transportation cost reduction and shelf life increase but can also exhibit various interesting functionalities (flowability, solubility, protein modification or acid gelation), depending on operating conditions and milk composition. Indeed, particles porosity, surface composition, lactose crystallization, protein denaturation, protein association or crust formation may change. Links between spray-drying conditions and physicochemical and functional properties of powders were investigated by a design of experiment methodology and analyzed by principal component analysis. Quadratic models were developed, and multicriteria optimization was carried out by the use of genetic algorithm. At the time of abstract submission, verification spray-drying trials are ongoing. To perform experiments, milk from dairy farm was collected, skimmed, froze and spray-dried at different air pressure (between 1 and 3 bars) and outlet temperature (between 75 and 95 °C). Dry matter, minerals content and proteins content were determined by standard method. Solubility index, absorption index and hygroscopicity were determined by method found in literature. Particle size distribution were obtained by laser diffraction granulometry. Location of the powder color in the Cielab color space and water activity were characterized by a colorimeter and an aw-value meter, respectively. Flow properties were characterized with FT4 powder rheometer; in particular compressibility and shearing test were performed. Air pressure and outlet temperature are key factors that directly impact the drying kinetics and powder characteristics during spray-drying process. It was shown that the air pressure affects the particle size distribution by impacting the size of droplet exiting the nozzle. Moreover, small particles lead to more cohesive powder and less saturated color of powders. Higher outlet temperature results in lower moisture level particles which are less sticky and can explain a spray-drying yield increase and the higher cohesiveness; it also leads to particle with low water activity because of the intense evaporation rate. However, it induces a high hygroscopicity, thus, powders tend to get wet rapidly if they are not well stored. On the other hand, high temperature provokes a decrease of native serum proteins which is positively correlated to gelation properties (gel point and firmness). Partial denaturation of serum proteins can improve functional properties of powder. The control of air pressure and outlet temperature during the spray-drying process significantly affects the physicochemical and functional properties of powder. This study permitted to better understand the links between physicochemical and functional properties of powder, to identify correlations between air pressure and outlet temperature. Therefore, mathematical models have been developed and the use of genetic algorithm will allow the optimization of powder functionalities.

Keywords: dairy powders, spray-drying, powders functionalities, design of experiment

Procedia PDF Downloads 85

Authors: Navid Mirzaei Varzeghani, Mahmoud Saffarzadeh, Ali Naderan, Amirhossein Taheri

Abstract:

Countries are progressing, and the world's busiest airports see year-on-year increases in travel demand. Passenger acceptability of an airport depends on the airport's appeals, which may include one of these routes between the city and the airport, as well as the facilities to reach them. One of the critical roles of transportation planners is to predict future transportation demand so that an integrated, multi-purpose system can be provided and diverse modes of transportation (rail, air, and land) can be delivered to a destination like an airport. In this study, 356 questionnaires were filled out in person over six days. First, the attraction of business and non-business trips was studied using data and a linear regression model. Lower travel costs, a range of ages more significant than 55, and other factors are essential for business trips. Non-business travelers, on the other hand, have prioritized using personal vehicles to get to the airport and ensuring convenient access to the airport. Business travelers are also less price-sensitive than non-business travelers regarding airport travel. Furthermore, carrying additional luggage (for example, more than one suitcase per person) undoubtedly decreases the attractiveness of public transit. Afterward, based on the manner and purpose of the trip, the locations with the highest trip generation to the airport were identified. The most famous district in Tehran was District 2, with 23 visits, while the most popular mode of transportation was an online taxi, with 12 trips from that location. Then, significant variables in separation and behavior of travel methods to access the airport were investigated for all systems. In this scenario, the most crucial factor is the time it takes to get to the airport, followed by the method's user-friendliness as a component of passenger preference. It has also been demonstrated that enhancing public transportation trip times reduces private transportation's market share, including taxicabs. Based on the responses of personal and semi-public vehicles, the desire of passengers to approach the airport via public transportation systems was explored to enhance present techniques and develop new strategies for providing the most efficient modes of transportation. Using the binary model, it was clear that business travelers and people who had already driven to the airport were the least likely to change.

Keywords: multimodal transportation, demand modeling, travel behavior, statistical models

Procedia PDF Downloads 170

Authors: Kiran Nawaz, Ahmad Ali Shahid, Sehrish Iftikhar, Waheed Anwar, Muhammad Nasir Subhani

Abstract:

Chili (Solanum annum L.) attacks by many fungal pathogens, including members of Oomycetes which are responsible for root rot in different chili growing areas of the world. Oomycetes pathogens cause economic losses in different regions of the Pakistan. Most of the plant tissues, including roots, crowns, fruit, and leaves, are vulnerable to Phytophthora capsici. It is very difficult to manage the Phytophthora root rot of chili as many commercial varieties are tremendously vulnerable to P. capsici. The causal agent of the disease was isolated on corn meal agar (CMA) and identified on a morphological basis by using available taxonomic keys. The pathogen was also confirmed on the molecular basis through internal transcribed spacer region and with other molecular markers.The Blastn results showed 100% homology with already reported sequences of P. capsici in NCBI database. Most of the farmers have conventionally relied on foliar fungicide applications to control Phytophthora root rot in spite of their incomplete effectiveness. In this study, in vitro plate assay, seed soaking and foliar applications of 6 fungicides were evaluated against root rot of chili. In vitro assay revealed that significant inhibition of linear growth was obtained with Triflumizole at 7.0%, followed by Thiophanate methyl (8.9%), Etridiazole (6.0%), Propamocarb (5.9%) and 7.5% with Mefenoxam and Iprodione for P. capsici. The promising treatments of in vitro plate bioassay were evaluated in pot experiments under controlled conditions in the greenhouse. All fungicides were applied after at 6-day intervals. Results of pot experiment showed that all treatments considerably inhibited the percentage of P. capsici root rot incidence. In addition, application of seed soaking with all six fungicides combined with the foliar spray of the same components showed the significant reduction in root rot incidence. The combine treatments of all fungicides as in vitro bioassay, seed soaking followed by foliar spray is considered non-harmful control methods which have advantages and limitation. Hence, these applications proved effective and harmless for the management of soil-borne plant pathogens.

Keywords: blastn, bioassay, corn meal agar(CMA), oomycetes

Procedia PDF Downloads 238

Authors: A. Chiker, A. Benamor, A. Haddad, Y. Hadji, M. Hadji

Abstract:

Metal matrix composites (MMCs) have been of big interest for a few decades. Their major drawback lies in their enhanced mechanical performance over unreinforced alloys. They found ground in many engineering fields, such as aeronautics, aerospace, automotive, and other structural applications. One of the most used alloys as a matrix is nickel alloys, which meet the need for high-temperature mechanical properties; some attempts have been made to develop nickel base composites reinforced by high melt point and high modulus particulates. Among the carbides used as reinforcing particulates, chromium carbide is interesting for wear applications; it is widely used as a tribological coating material in high-temperature applications requiring high wear resistance and hardness. Moreover, a set of properties make it suitable for use in MMCs, such as toughness, the good corrosion and oxidation resistance of its three polymorphs -the cubic (Cr23C6), the hexagonal (Cr7C3), and the orthorhombic (Cr3C2)-, and it’s coefficient of thermal expansion that is almost equal to that of metals. The in-situ synthesis of CrC-reinforced Ni matrix composites could be achieved by the powder metallurgy route. To ensure the in-situ reactions during the sintering process, the use of phase precursors is necessary. Recently, new precursor materials have been proposed; these materials are called MAX phases. The MAX phases are thermodynamically stable nano-laminated materials displaying unusual and sometimes unique properties. These novel phases possess Mn+1AXn chemistry, where n is 1, 2, or 3, M is an early transition metal element, A is an A-group element, and X is C or N. Herein, the pressureless sintering method is used to elaborate Ni/Cr2AlC composites. Four composites were elaborated from 5, 10, 15 and 20 wt% of Cr2AlC MAX phase precursor which fully reacted with Ni-matrix at 1100 °C sintering temperature for 4 h in argon atmosphere. XRD results showed that Cr2AlC MAX phase was totally decomposed forming chromium carbide Cr7C3, and the released Al and Cr atoms diffused in Ni matrix giving rise to γ-Ni(Al,Cr) solid solution and γ’-Ni3(Al,Cr) intermetallic. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) of the elaborated samples showed the presence of nanosized Cr7C3 reinforcing particles embedded in the Ni metal matrix, which have a direct impact on the tribological properties of the composites and their hardness. All the composites exhibited higher hardness than pure Ni; whereas adding 15 wt% of Cr2AlC gives the highest hardness (1.85 GPa). Using a ball-on-disc tribometer, dry sliding tests for the elaborated composites against 100Cr6 steel ball were studied under different applied loads. The microstructures and worn surface characteristics were then analyzed using SEM and Raman spectroscopy. The results show that all the composites exhibited better wear resistance compared to pure Ni, which could be explained by the formation of a lubricious tribo-layer during sliding and the good bonding between the Ni matrix and the reinforcing phases.

Keywords: composites, microscopy, sintering, wear

Procedia PDF Downloads 68

Authors: Yifeng Shi, Xingping Wang

Abstract:

The Soviet Union-style of urban planning has produced a broad and profound influence on China’s urban planning system. The study on extendibility and development experience of Soviet planning in China helps to change the current embarrassing situation 'one-hand planning practice, second-hand planning theory', and also beneficial to facilitate the establishment of China's domestic urban planning theory from the planning source, especially the overseas cooperation parks rich in 'Chinese characteristics'. In practice, as the world’s major infrastructure country, China is exporting to the world especially countries along 'the Belt and Road' a development model featuring cooperation parks as Chinese characteristics. This is of great significance to evaluate and summarize the experiences of Soviet Union-style of planning for China's development objectively and rationally, from removing ideological factors and extracting positive factors to carry them forward in overseas cooperation parks. This article briefly reviews the Soviet influence on urban planning after the founding of China and divided the influences stages into 'guidance, internalization and absorption, selective learning, decline' four periods. The impact includes production-oriented planning and planning concepts continue to be implemented, the establishment of the regional planning, master planning, detailed planning of the basic framework of urban planning, and homogenized cellular structure of the space, as well as planning techniques, professional training, planning techniques and so on. China and even most socialist countries now still carry such planning genes. At present, in the process of implementing 'the Belt and Road' strategy, the planning and construction of China’s overseas cooperation parks generally encounter many problems as lack of strategic planning and systematic planning, lack of top-level design, uncoordinated planning and layout in parks, and redundant construction in some areas. After sublating the planning genes of the Soviet Union-style of urban planning for the development of the socialist countries, especially the industrial planning system, this paper puts forward some views as follows to realize the overseas output and development of China's planning model and technology. Firstly the future development of overseas cooperation park should be from a rational planning point of view. Secondly the government should not only rigidly and equitably allocate the resources of the parks but also closely integrate the national economic plans or economic development strategies. Lastly management department should frame the threshold of development rationally, give full play to the pragmatic planning style in accordance with the local land system and planning system. It has an important guiding and reference role for the development of China's overseas cooperation park under the 'go global' strategy, after objectively evaluating the impact of the Soviet Union-style urban planning and absorbing the beneficial components on China. However, we should also recognize that the cooperation parks and the urban industrial system behind it are only part of urban development. More attention should be payed on the design of the local and the general rules of urban development to take the lead effect of cooperation parks suitable. Foundation item: Under the auspices of the Specific Plan for Strategic International Cooperation in Scientific and Technological Innovation, the National Key Research and Development Plan 'Research Cooperation and Exemplary Application in Planning of Development of Overseas Industrial Parks' (No 2016YFE0201000).

Keywords: China cooperative parks, history of urban planning, output mode, The Soviet Union

Procedia PDF Downloads 246

Authors: Shiyi He, Yan Xia, Xiaoping Ouyang, Liang Chen, Zhongbing Zhang, Jinlu Ruan

Abstract:

As the key system of the spacecraft, various propelling system have been developing rapidly, including ion thrust, laser thrust, solar sail and other micro-thrusters. However, there still are some shortages in these systems. The ion thruster requires the high-voltage or magnetic field to accelerate, resulting in extra system, heavy quantity and large volume. The laser thrust now is mostly ground-based and providing pulse thrust, restraint by the station distribution and the capacity of laser. The thrust direction of solar sail is limited to its relative position with the Sun, so it is hard to propel toward the Sun or adjust in the shadow.In this paper, a novel nuclear thruster based on alpha decay and spontaneous fission is proposed and the principle of this radiation-thrust with alpha particle has been expounded. Radioactive materials with different released energy, such as 210Po with 5.4MeV and 238Pu with 5.29MeV, attached to a metal film will provides various thrust among 0.02-5uN/cm2. With this repulsive force, radiation is able to be a power source. With the advantages of low system quantity, high accuracy and long active time, the radiation thrust is promising in the field of space debris removal, orbit control of nano-satellite array and deep space exploration. To do further study, a formula lead to the amplitude and direction of thrust by the released energy and decay coefficient is set up. With the initial formula, the alpha radiation elements with the half life period longer than a hundred days are calculated and listed. As the alpha particles emit continuously, the residual charge in metal film grows and affects the emitting energy distribution of alpha particles. With the residual charge or extra electromagnetic field, the emitting of alpha particles performs differently and is analyzed in this paper. Furthermore, three more complex situations are discussed. Radiation element generating alpha particles with several energies in different intensity, mixture of various radiation elements, and cascaded alpha decay are studied respectively. In combined way, it is more efficient and flexible to adjust the thrust amplitude. The propelling model of the spontaneous fission is similar with the one of alpha decay, which has a more complex angular distribution. A new quasi-sphere space propelling system based on the radiation-thrust has been introduced, as well as the collecting and processing system of excess charge and reaction heat. The energy and spatial angular distribution of emitting alpha particles on unit area and certain propelling system have been studied. As the alpha particles are easily losing energy and self-absorb, the distribution is not the simple stacking of each nuclide. With the change of the amplitude and angel of radiation-thrust, orbital variation strategy on space debris removal is shown and optimized.

Keywords: alpha decay, angular distribution, emitting energy, orbital variation, radiation-thruster

Procedia PDF Downloads 202

Authors: Adeline Meriaux, Claire Gaiani, Jennifer Burgain, Frantz Fournier, Lionel Muniglia, Jérémy Petit

Abstract:

Spray-drying process is widely used for the production of dairy powders for food and pharmaceuticals industries. It involves the atomization of a liquid feed into fine droplets, which are subsequently dried through contact with a hot air flow. The resulting powders permit transportation cost reduction and shelf life increase but can also exhibit various interesting functionalities (flowability, solubility, protein modification or acid gelation), depending on operating conditions and milk composition. Indeed, particles porosity, surface composition, lactose crystallization, protein denaturation, protein association or crust formation may change. Links between spray-drying conditions and physicochemical and functional properties of powders were investigated by a design of experiment methodology and analyzed by principal component analysis. Quadratic models were developed, and multicriteria optimization was carried out by the use of genetic algorithm. At the time of abstract submission, verification spray-drying trials are ongoing. To perform experiments, milk from dairy farm was collected, skimmed, froze and spray-dried at different air pressure (between 1 and 3 bars) and outlet temperature (between 75 and 95 °C). Dry matter, minerals content and proteins content were determined by standard method. Solubility index, absorption index and hygroscopicity were determined by method found in literature. Particle size distribution were obtained by laser diffraction granulometry. Location of the powder color in the Cielab color space and water activity were characterized by a colorimeter and an aw-value meter, respectively. Flow properties were characterized with FT4 powder rheometer; in particular, compressibility and shearing test were performed. Air pressure and outlet temperature are key factors that directly impact the drying kinetics and powder characteristics during spray-drying process. It was shown that the air pressure affects the particle size distribution by impacting the size of droplet exiting the nozzle. Moreover, small particles lead to more cohesive powder and less saturated color of powders. Higher outlet temperature results in lower moisture level particles which are less sticky and can explain a spray-drying yield increase and the higher cohesiveness; it also leads to particle with low water activity because of the intense evaporation rate. However, it induces a high hygroscopicity, thus, powders tend to get wet rapidly if they are not well stored. On the other hand, high temperature provokes a decrease of native serum proteins, which is positively correlated to gelation properties (gel point and firmness). Partial denaturation of serum proteins can improve functional properties of powder. The control of air pressure and outlet temperature during the spray-drying process significantly affects the physicochemical and functional properties of powder. This study permitted to better understand the links between physicochemical and functional properties of powder to identify correlations between air pressure and outlet temperature. Therefore, mathematical models have been developed, and the use of genetic algorithm will allow the optimization of powder functionalities.

Keywords: dairy powders, spray-drying, powders functionalities, design of experiment

Procedia PDF Downloads 62

Authors: Chukwuka Justus Iwegbu, Monye Christopher Prayer

Abstract:

Propeller aircraft engines, and more generally engines with a large rotating part (turboprops, high bypass ratio turbojets, etc.) are widely used in the industry and are subject to numerous developments in order to reduce their fuel consumption. In this context, unconventional architectures such as open rotors or distributed propulsion appear, and it is necessary to consider the influence of these systems on the aircraft's stability in flight. Indeed, the tendency to lengthen the blades and wings on which these propulsion devices are fixed increases their flexibility and accentuates the risk of whirl flutter. This phenomenon of aeroelastic instability is due to the precession movement of the axis of rotation of the propeller, which changes the angle of attack of the flow on the blades and creates unsteady aerodynamic forces and moments that can amplify the motion and make it unstable. The whirl flutter instability can ultimately lead to the destruction of the engine. We note the existence of a critical speed of the incident flow. If the flow velocity is lower than this value, the motion is damped and the system is stable, whereas beyond this value, the flow provides energy to the system (negative damping) and the motion becomes unstable. A simple model of whirl flutter is based on the work of Houbolt & Reed who proposed an analytical expression of the aerodynamic load on a rigid blade propeller whose axis orientation suffers small perturbations. Their work considered a propeller subjected to pitch and yaw movements, a flow undisturbed by the blades and a propeller not generating any thrust in the absence of precession. The unsteady aerodynamic forces were then obtained using the thin airfoil theory and the strip theory. In the present study, the unsteady aerodynamic loads are expressed for a general movement of the propeller (not only pitch and yaw). The acceleration and rotation of the flow by the propeller are modeled using a Blade Element Momentum Theory (BEMT) approach, which also enable to take into account the thrust generated by the blades. It appears that the thrust has a stabilizing effect. The aerodynamic model is further developed using Theodorsen theory. A reduced order model of the aerodynamic load is finally constructed in order to perform linear stability analysis.

Keywords: advancing, entrepreneurial, knowledge, industralization

Procedia PDF Downloads 92

Authors: Karina I. Hidas, Csaba Németh, Anna Visy, Judit Csonka, László Friedrich, Ildikó Cs. Nyulas-Zeke

Abstract:

Egg yolk is a popular ingredient in the food industry due to its gelling, emulsifying, colouring, and coagulating properties. Because of the heat sensitivity of proteins, egg yolk can only be heat treated at low temperatures, so its shelf life, even with the addition of a preservative, is only a few weeks. Freezing can increase the shelf life of liquid egg yolk up to 1 year, but it undergoes gelling below -6 ° C, which is an irreversible phenomenon. The degree of gelation depends on the time and temperature of freezing and is influenced by the process of thawing. Therefore, in our experiment, we examined egg yolks thawed in different ways. In this study, unpasteurized, industrially broken, separated, and homogenized liquid egg yolk was used. Freshly produced samples were frozen in plastic containers at -18°C in a laboratory freezer. Frozen storage was performed for 90 days. Samples were analysed at day zero (unfrozen) and after frozen storage for 1, 7, 14, 30, 60 and 90 days. Samples were thawed in two ways (at 5°C for 24 hours and 30°C for 3 hours) before testing. Calorimetric properties were examined by differential scanning calorimetry, where heat flow curves were recorded. Denaturation enthalpy values were calculated by fitting a linear baseline, and denaturation temperature values were evaluated. Besides, dry matter content of samples was measured by the oven method with drying at 105°C to constant weight. For statistical analysis two-way ANOVA (α = 0.05) was employed, where thawing mode and freezing time were the fixed factors. Denaturation enthalpy values decreased from 1.1 to 0.47 at the end of the storage experiment, which represents a reduction of about 60%. The effect of freezing time was significant on these values, already the enthalpy of samples stored frozen for 1 day was significantly reduced. However, the mode of thawing did not significantly affect the denaturation enthalpy of the samples, and no interaction was seen between the two factors. The denaturation temperature and dry matter content did not change significantly either during the freezing period or during the defrosting mode. Results of our study show that slow freezing and frozen storage at -18°C greatly reduces the amount of protein that can be denatured in egg yolk, indicating that the proteins have been subjected to aggregation, denaturation or other protein conversions regardless of how they were thawed.

Keywords: denaturation enthalpy, differential scanning calorimetry, liquid egg yolk, slow freezing

Procedia PDF Downloads 125

Authors: Khiem M. Nguyen, Ming C. Yang

Abstract:

Chloroplast pigments are extremely important during photosynthesis since they play essential roles in light absorption and energy transfer. Therefore, understanding the efficiency of chlorophyll (Chl) biosynthesis could facilitate enhancement in photo-assimilates accumulation, and ultimately, in crop yield. The Chl-deficient mutants have been used extensively to study the Chl biosynthetic pathways and the biogenesis of the photosynthetic apparatus. Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is one of the most leading food crops, serving as staple food for many parts of the world. To author’s best knowledge, Chl b–lacking rice has been found; however the molecular mechanism of Chl biosynthesis still remains unclear compared to wild-type rice. In this study, the ultrastructure analysis, photosynthetic properties, and transcriptome profile of wild-type rice (Norin No.8, N8) and its Chl b-lacking mutant (Chlorina 1, C1) were examined. The finding concluded that total Chl content and Chl b content in the C1 leaves were strongly reduced compared to N8 leaves, suggesting that reduction in the total Chl content contributes to leaf color variation at the physiological level. Plastid ultrastructure of C1 possessed abnormal thylakoid membranes with loss of starch granule, large number of vesicles, and numerous plastoglobuli. The C1 rice also exhibited thinner stacked grana, which was caused by a reduction in the number of thylakoid membranes per granum. Thus, the different Chl a/b ratio of C1 may reflect the abnormal plastid development and function. Transcriptional analysis identified 23 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 671 transcription factors (TFs) that were involved in Chl metabolism, chloroplast development, cell division, and photosynthesis. The transcriptome profile and DEGs revealed that the gene encoding PsbR (PSII core protein) was down-regulated, therefore suggesting that the lower in light-harvesting complex proteins are responsible for the lower photosynthetic capacity in C1. In addition, expression level of cell division protein (FtsZ) genes were significantly reduced in C1, causing chloroplast division defect. A total of 19 DEGs were identified based on KEGG pathway assignment involving Chl biosynthesis pathway. Among these DEGs, the GluTR gene was down-regulated, whereas the UROD, CPOX, and MgCH genes were up-regulated. Observation through qPCR suggested that later stages of Chl biosynthesis were enhanced in C1, whereas the early stages were inhibited. Plastid structure analysis together with transcriptomic analysis suggested that the Chl a/b ratio was amplified both by the reduction in Chl contents accumulation, owning to abnormal chloroplast development, and by the enhanced conversion of Chl b to Chl a. Moreover, the results indicated the same Chl-cycle pattern in the wild-type and C1 rice, indicating another Chl b degradation pathway. Furthermore, the results demonstrated that normal grana stacking, along with the absence of Chl b and greatly reduced levels of Chl a in C1, provide evidence to support the conclusion that other factors along with LHCII proteins are involved in grana stacking. The findings of this study provide insight into the molecular mechanisms that underlie different Chl a/b ratios in rice.

Keywords: Chl-deficient mutant, grana stacked, photosynthesis, RNA-Seq, transcriptomic analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 116

Authors: Zeineb Baatout, Safa Teka, Nejmeddine Jaballah, Nawfel Sakly, Xiaonan Sun, Mustapha Majdoub

Abstract:

Currently, the economic interests linked to the development of bio-based materials make biomass one of the most interesting areas for science development. We are interested in the β-cyclodextrin (β-CD), one of the popular bio-sourced macromolecule, produced from the starch via enzymatic conversion. It is a cyclic oligosaccharide formed by the association of seven glucose units. It presents a rigid conical and amphiphilic structure with hydrophilic exterior, allowing it to be water-soluble. It has also a hydrophobic interior enabling the formation of inclusion complexes, which support its application for the elaboration of electrochemical and optical sensors. Nevertheless, the solubility of β-CD in water makes its use as sensitive layer limit and difficult due to their instability in aqueous media. To overcome this limitation, we chose to precede by modification of the hydroxyl groups to obtain hydrophobic derivatives which lead to water-stable sensing layers. Hence, a series of benzylated β-CDs were synthesized in basic aqueous media in one pot. This work reports the synthesis of a new family of substituted amphiphilic β-CDs using a green methodology. The obtained β-CDs showed different degree of substitution (DS) between 0.85 and 2.03. These organic macromolecular materials were soluble in common organic volatile solvents, and their structures were investigated by NMR, FT-IR and MALDI-TOF spectroscopies. Thermal analysis showed a correlation between the thermal properties of these derivatives and the benzylation degree. The surface properties of the thin films based on the benzylated β-CDs were characterized by contact angle measurements and atomic force microscopy (AFM). These organic materials were investigated as sensitive layers, deposited on quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) gravimetric transducer, for humidity sensor at room temperature. The results showed that the performances of the prepared sensors are greatly influenced by the benzylation degree of β-CD. The partially modified β-CD (DS=1) shows linear response with best sensitivity, good reproducibility, low hysteresis, fast response time (15s) and recovery time (17s) at higher relative humidity levels (RH) between 11% and 98% in room temperature.

Keywords: β-cyclodextrin, green synthesis, humidity sensor, quartz crystal microbalance

Procedia PDF Downloads 268

Authors: Jalil ur Rehman, Ramesh C, Tailor, Isa Khan, Jahanzeeb Ashraf, Muhammad Afzal, Geofferry S. Ibbott

Abstract:

The purpose of this analysis is to estimate secondary cancer risks after VMAT compared to other modalities of head and neck radiotherapy (IMRT, 3DCRT). Computer tomography (CT) scans of Radiological Physics Center (RPC) head and neck phantom were acquired with CT scanner and exported via DICOM to the treatment planning system (TPS). Treatment planning was done using four arc (182-178 and 180-184, clockwise and anticlockwise) for volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) , Nine fields (200, 240, 280, 320,0,40,80,120 and 160), which has been commonly used at MD Anderson Cancer Center Houston for intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and four fields for three dimensional radiation therapy (3DCRT) were used. True beam linear accelerator of 6MV photon energy was used for dose delivery, and dose calculation was done with CC convolution algorithm with prescription dose of 6.6 Gy. Primary Target Volume (PTV) coverage, mean and maximal doses, DVHs and volumes receiving more than 2 Gy and 3.8 Gy of OARs were calculated and compared. Absolute point dose and planar dose were measured with thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs) and GafChromic EBT2 film, respectively. Quality Assurance of VMAT and IMRT were performed by using ArcCHECK method with gamma index criteria of 3%/3mm dose difference to distance to agreement (DD/DTA). PTV coverage was found 90.80 %, 95.80 % and 95.82 % for 3DCRT, IMRT and VMAT respectively. VMAT delivered the lowest maximal doses to esophagus (2.3 Gy), brain (4.0 Gy) and thyroid (2.3 Gy) compared to all other studied techniques. In comparison, maximal doses for 3DCRT were found higher than VMAT for all studied OARs. Whereas, IMRT delivered maximal higher doses 26%, 5% and 26% for esophagus, normal brain and thyroid, respectively, compared to VMAT. It was noted that esophagus volume receiving more than 2 Gy was 3.6 % for VMAT, 23.6 % for IMRT and up to 100 % for 3DCRT. Good agreement was observed between measured doses and those calculated with TPS. The averages relative standard errors (RSE) of three deliveries within eight TLD capsule locations were, 0.9%, 0.8% and 0.6% for 3DCRT, IMRT and VMAT, respectively. The gamma analysis for all plans met the ±5%/3 mm criteria (over 90% passed) and results of QA were greater than 98%. The calculations for maximal doses and volumes of OARs suggest that the estimated risk of secondary cancer induction after VMAT is considerably lower than IMRT and 3DCRT.

Keywords: RPC, 3DCRT, IMRT, VMAT, EBT2 film, TLD

Procedia PDF Downloads 500

Authors: Virginia Vettori, Chiara Lorini, Vieri Lastrucci, Giulia Di Pisa, Alessia De Blasi, Sara Giuggioli, Guglielmo Bonaccorsi

Abstract:

The design of the Nutrition Literacy Assessment Instrument (NLit) responds to the need to provide a tool to adequately assess the construct of nutrition literacy (NL), which is strictly connected to the quality of the diet and nutritional health status. The NLit was originally developed and validated in the US context, and it was recently validated for Italian people too (NLit-IT), involving a sample of N = 74 adults. The results of the cross-cultural adaptation of the tool confirmed its validity since it was established that the level of NL contributed to predicting the level of adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (convergent validity). Additionally, results obtained proved that Internal Consistency and reliability of the NLit-IT were good (Cronbach’s alpha (ρT) = 0.78; 95% CI, 0.69–0.84; Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) = 0.68, 95% CI, 0.46–0.85). However, the Subscale 3 of the NLit-IT “Household Food Measurement” showed lower values of ρT and ICC (ρT = 0.27; 95% CI, 0.1–0.55; ICC = 0.19, 95% CI, 0.01–0.63) than the entire instrument. Subscale 3 includes nine items which are constituted by written questions and the corresponding pictures of the meals. In particular, items 2, 3, and 8 of Subscale 3 had the lowest level of correct answers. The purpose of the present study was to identify the factors that influenced the Internal Consistency and reliability of Subscale 3 of NLit-IT using the methodology of a focus group. A panel of seven experts was formed, involving professionals in the field of public health nutrition, dietetics, and health promotion and all of them were trained on the concepts of nutrition literacy and food appearance. A member of the group drove the discussion, which was oriented in the identification of the reasons for the low levels of reliability and Internal Consistency. The members of the group discussed the level of comprehension of the items and how they could be readapted. From the discussion, it emerges that the written questions were clear and easy to understand, but it was observed that the representations of the meal needed to be improved. Firstly, it has been decided to introduce a fork or a spoon as a reference dimension to better understand the dimension of the food portion (items 1, 4 and 8). Additionally, the flat plate of items 3 and 5 should be substituted with a soup plate because, in the Italian national context, it is common to eat pasta or rice on this kind of plate. Secondly, specific measures should be considered for some kind of foods such as the brick of yogurt instead of a cup of yogurt (items 1 and 4). Lastly, it has been decided to redo the photos of the meals basing on professional photographic techniques. In conclusion, we noted that the graphical representation of the items strictly influenced the level of participants’ comprehension of the questions; moreover, the research group agreed that the level of knowledge about nutrition and food portion size is low in the general population.

Keywords: nutritional literacy, cross cultural adaptation, misinformation, food design

Procedia PDF Downloads 166

Authors: Konstantin Nefedev, Petr Andriushchenko

Abstract:

Usually under the frustrated magnetics, it understands such materials, in which ones the interaction between located magnetic moments or spins has competing character, and can not to be satisfied simultaneously. The most well-known and simplest example of the frustrated system is antiferromagnetic Ising model on the triangle. Physically, the existence of frustrations means, that one cannot select all three pairs of spins anti-parallel in the basic unit of the triangle. In physics of the interacting particle systems, the vector models are used, which are constructed on the base of the pair-interaction law. Each pair interaction energy between one-component vectors can take two opposite in sign values, excluding the case of zero. Mathematically, the existence of frustrations in system means that it is impossible to have all negative energies of pair interactions in the Hamiltonian even in the ground state (lowest energy). In fact, the frustration is the excitation, which leaves in system, when thermodynamics does not work, i.e. at the temperature absolute zero. The origin of the frustration is the presence at least of one ''unsatisfied'' pair of interacted spins (magnetic moments). The minimal relative quantity of these excitations (relative quantity of frustrations in ground state) can be used as parameter of frustration. If the energy of the ground state is Egs, and summary energy of all energy of pair interactions taken with a positive sign is Emax, that proposed frustration parameter pf takes values from the interval [0,1] and it is defined as pf=(Egs+Emax)/2Emax. For antiferromagnetic Ising model on the triangle pf=1/3. We calculated the parameters of frustration in thermodynamic limit for different 2D periodical structures of Ising dipoles, which were on the ribs of the lattice and interact by means of the long-range dipolar interaction. For the honeycomb lattice pf=0.3415, triangular - pf=0.2468, kagome - pf=0.1644. All dependencies of frustration parameter from 1/N obey to the linear law. The given frustration parameter allows to consider the thermodynamics of all magnetic systems from united point of view and to compare the different lattice systems of interacting particle in the frame of vector models. This parameter can be the fundamental characteristic of frustrated systems. It has no dependence from temperature and thermodynamic states, in which ones the system can be found, such as spin ice, spin glass, spin liquid or even spin snow. It shows us the minimal relative quantity of excitations, which ones can exist in system at T=0.

Keywords: frustrations, parameter of order, statistical physics, magnetism

Procedia PDF Downloads 168

Authors: Ginger Egberts, Fred Vermolen, Paul van Zuijlen

Abstract:

One of the common complications in post-burn scars is contractions. Depending on the extent of contraction and the wound dimensions, the contracture can cause a limited range-of-motion of joints. A one-dimensional morphoelastic continuum hypothesis-based model describing post-burn scar contractions is considered. The beauty of the one-dimensional model is the speed; hence it quickly yields new results and, therefore, insight. This model describes the movement of the skin and the development of the strain present. Besides these mechanical components, the model also contains chemical components that play a major role in the wound healing process. These components are fibroblasts, myofibroblasts, the so-called signaling molecules, and collagen. The dermal layer is modeled as an isotropic morphoelastic solid, and pulling forces are generated by myofibroblasts. The solution to the model equations is approximated by the finite-element method using linear basis functions. One of the major challenges in biomechanical modeling is the estimation of parameter values. Therefore, this study provides a comprehensive description of skin mechanical parameter values and a sensitivity analysis. Further, since skin mechanical properties change with aging, it is important that the model is feasible for predicting the development of contraction in burn patients of different ages, and hence this study provides a feasibility study. The variability in the solutions is caused by varying the values for some parameters simultaneously over the domain of computation, for which the results of the sensitivity analysis are used. The sensitivity analysis shows that the most sensitive parameters are the equilibrium concentration of collagen, the apoptosis rate of fibroblasts and myofibroblasts, and the secretion rate of signaling molecules. This suggests that most of the variability in the evolution of contraction in burns in patients of different ages might be caused mostly by the decreasing equilibrium of collagen concentration. As expected, the feasibility study shows this model can be used to show distinct extents of contractions in burns in patients of different ages. Nevertheless, contraction formation in children differs from contraction formation in adults because of the growth. This factor has not been incorporated in the model yet, and therefore the feasibility results for children differ from what is seen in the clinic.

Keywords: biomechanics, burns, feasibility, fibroblasts, morphoelasticity, sensitivity analysis, skin mechanics, wound contraction

Procedia PDF Downloads 152

Authors: Nassima Noufail, Sara Bouhali

Abstract:

In this work, we develop a semi-supervised solution for the purpose of action detection in videos and propose an efficient algorithm for video segmentation. The approach is divided into video segmentation, feature extraction, and classification. In the first part, a video is segmented into clips, and we used the K-means algorithm for this segmentation; our goal is to find groups based on similarity in the video. The application of k-means clustering into all the frames is time-consuming; therefore, we started by the identification of transition frames where the scene in the video changes significantly, and then we applied K-means clustering into these transition frames. We used two image filters, the gaussian filter and the Laplacian of Gaussian. Each filter extracts a set of features from the frames. The Gaussian filter blurs the image and omits the higher frequencies, and the Laplacian of gaussian detects regions of rapid intensity changes; we then used this vector of filter responses as an input to our k-means algorithm. The output is a set of cluster centers. Each video frame pixel is then mapped to the nearest cluster center and painted with a corresponding color to form a visual map. The resulting visual map had similar pixels grouped. We then computed a cluster score indicating how clusters are near each other and plotted a signal representing frame number vs. clustering score. Our hypothesis was that the evolution of the signal would not change if semantically related events were happening in the scene. We marked the breakpoints at which the root mean square level of the signal changes significantly, and each breakpoint is an indication of the beginning of a new video segment. In the second part, for each segment from part 1, we randomly selected a 16-frame clip, then we extracted spatiotemporal features using convolutional 3D network C3D for every 16 frames using a pre-trained model. The C3D final output is a 512-feature vector dimension; hence we used principal component analysis (PCA) for dimensionality reduction. The final part is the classification. The C3D feature vectors are used as input to a multi-class linear support vector machine (SVM) for the training model, and we used a multi-classifier to detect the action. We evaluated our experiment on the UCF101 dataset, which consists of 101 human action categories, and we achieved an accuracy that outperforms the state of art by 1.2%.

Keywords: video segmentation, action detection, classification, Kmeans, C3D

Procedia PDF Downloads 72

Authors: Roshni Raha, Kavya P., Gayathri M.

Abstract:

India, with a humongous population, remains the world's poorest developing nation in terms of nutritional status, with iron deficiency anaemia (IDA) affecting the population. Despite efforts over the past decades, India's anaemia prevalence has not been reduced. Researchers are interested in developing therapies that will minimize the typical side effects of oral iron and optimize iron salts-based treatment through delivery methods based on the physiology of hepcidin regulation. However, they need to come up with iron therapies that will prevent making the infection worse. This article explores using bio-nanotechnology as the alternative, promising substitution of providing iron supplements for the treatment of diarrhoea and gut inflammation in kids and pregnant women. This article is an exploratory study using a literature survey and secondary research from review papers. In the realm of biotechnology, nanoparticles have become extremely famous due to unexpected variations in surface characteristics caused by particle size. Particle size distribution and shape exhibit unusual, enhanced characteristics when reduced to nanoscale. The article attempts to develop a model for a nanotechnology based solution in iron fortification to combat the problems of diarrhoea and gut inflammation. Certain dimensions that have been considered in the model include the size, shape, source, and biosynthesis of the iron nanoparticles. Another area of investigation addressed in the article is the cost-effective biocompatible production of these iron nanoparticles. Studies have demonstrated that a substantial reduction of metal ions to form nanoparticles from the bulk metal occurs in plants because of the presence of a wide diversity of biomolecules. Using this concept, the paper investigates the effectiveness and impact of how similar sources can be used for the biological synthesis of iron nanoparticles. Results showed that iron particles, when prepared in nano-metre size, offer potential advantages. When the particle size of the iron compound decreases and attains nano configuration, its surface area increases, which further improves its solubility in the gastric acid, leading to higher absorption, higher bioavailability, and producing the least organoleptic changes in food. It has no negative effects and possesses a safe, effective profile to reduce IDA. Considering all the parameters, it has been concluded that iron particles in nano configuration serve as alternative iron supplements for the complete treatment of IDA. Nanoparticles of ferric phosphate, ferric pyrophosphate, and iron oxide are the choices of iron supplements. From a sourcing perspective, the paper concludes green sources are the primary sources for the biological synthesis of iron nanoparticles. It will also be a cost-effective strategy since our goal is to treat the target population in rural India. Bio-nanotechnology serves as an alternative and promising substitution for iron supplements due to its low cost, excellent bioavailability, and strong organoleptic properties. One area of future research can be to explore the type of size and shape of iron nanoparticles that would be suitable for the different age groups of pregnant women and children and whether it would be influenced based on the topography in certain areas.

Keywords: anemia, bio-nanotechnology, iron-fortification, nanoparticle

Procedia PDF Downloads 73

Authors: Nicolò Vaiana, Filip C. Filippou, Giorgio Serino

Abstract:

The solution of the nonlinear dynamic equilibrium equations of base-isolated structures adopting a conventional monolithic solution approach, i.e. an implicit single-step time integration method employed with an iteration procedure, and the use of existing nonlinear analytical models, such as differential equation models, to simulate the dynamic behavior of seismic isolators can require a significant computational effort. In order to reduce numerical computations, a partitioned solution method and a one dimensional nonlinear analytical model are presented in this paper. A partitioned solution approach can be easily applied to base-isolated structures in which the base isolation system is much more flexible than the superstructure. Thus, in this work, the explicit conditionally stable central difference method is used to evaluate the base isolation system nonlinear response and the implicit unconditionally stable Newmark’s constant average acceleration method is adopted to predict the superstructure linear response with the benefit in avoiding iterations in each time step of a nonlinear dynamic analysis. The proposed mathematical model is able to simulate the dynamic behavior of seismic isolators without requiring the solution of a nonlinear differential equation, as in the case of widely used differential equation model. The proposed mixed explicit-implicit time integration method and nonlinear exponential model are adopted to analyze a three dimensional seismically isolated structure with a lead rubber bearing system subjected to earthquake excitation. The numerical results show the good accuracy and the significant computational efficiency of the proposed solution approach and analytical model compared to the conventional solution method and mathematical model adopted in this work. Furthermore, the low stiffness value of the base isolation system with lead rubber bearings allows to have a critical time step considerably larger than the imposed ground acceleration time step, thus avoiding stability problems in the proposed mixed method.

Keywords: base-isolated structures, earthquake engineering, mixed time integration, nonlinear exponential model

Procedia PDF Downloads 278

Authors: Ahmad Saadiq, Neeraj Sahu

Abstract:

Sediment, which comprises of solid particles of mineral and organic material are transported by water. In river systems, the amount of sediment transported is controlled by both the transport capacity of the flow and the supply of sediment. The transport of sediment in rivers is important with respect to pollution, channel navigability, reservoir ageing, hydroelectric equipment longevity, fish habitat, river aesthetics and scientific interests. The sediment load transported in a river is a very complex hydrological phenomenon. Hence, sediment transport has attracted the attention of engineers from various aspects, and different methods have been used for its estimation. So, several experimental equations have been submitted by experts. Though the results of these methods have considerable differences with each other and with experimental observations, because the sediment measures have some limits, these equations can be used in estimating sediment load. In this present study, two black box models namely, an SRC (Sediment Rating Curve) and ANN (Artificial Neural Network) are used in the simulation of the suspended sediment load. The study is carried out for Seonath subbasin. Seonath is the biggest tributary of Mahanadi river, and it carries a vast amount of sediment. The data is collected for Jondhra hydrological observation station from India-WRIS (Water Resources Information System) and IMD (Indian Meteorological Department). These data include the discharge, sediment concentration and rainfall for 10 years. In this study, sediment load is estimated from the input parameters (discharge, rainfall, and past sediment) in various combination of simulations. A sediment rating curve used the water discharge to estimate the sediment concentration. This estimated sediment concentration is converted to sediment load. Likewise, for the application of these data in ANN, they are normalised first and then fed in various combinations to yield the sediment load. RMSE (root mean square error) and R² (coefficient of determination) between the observed load and the estimated load are used as evaluating criteria. For an ideal model, RMSE is zero and R² is 1. However, as the models used in this study are black box models, they don’t carry the exact representation of the factors which causes sedimentation. Hence, a model which gives the lowest RMSE and highest R² is the best model in this study. The lowest values of RMSE (based on normalised data) for sediment rating curve, feed forward back propagation, cascade forward back propagation and neural network fitting are 0.043425, 0.00679781, 0.0050089 and 0.0043727 respectively. The corresponding values of R² are 0.8258, 0.9941, 0.9968 and 0.9976. This implies that a neural network fitting model is superior to the other models used in this study. However, a drawback of neural network fitting is that it produces few negative estimates, which is not at all tolerable in the field of estimation of sediment load, and hence this model can’t be crowned as the best model among others, based on this study. A cascade forward back propagation produces results much closer to a neural network model and hence this model is the best model based on the present study.

Keywords: artificial neural network, Root mean squared error, sediment, sediment rating curve

Procedia PDF Downloads 321

Authors: Silvia Di Giacomo, Marcello Locatelli, Simone Carradori, Francesco Cacciagrano, Chiara Toniolo, Gabriela Mazzanti, Luisa Mannina, Stefania Cesa, Antonella Di Sotto

Abstract:

Hyperglycemia represents the main pathogenic factor in the development of diabetes complications and has been found associated with mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress, which in turn increase cell dysfunction. Therefore, counteract oxidative species appears to be a suitable strategy for preventing the hyperglycemia-induce cell damage and support the pharmacotherapy of diabetes and metabolic diseases. Antidiabetic potential of many food sources has been linked to the presence of polyphenolic metabolites, particularly flavonoids such as quercetin and its glycosylated form rutin. In line with this evidence, in the present study, we assayed the potential anti-hyperglycemic activity of an ethyl acetate extract from the peel of Punica granatum L. var. Dente di Cavallo (PGE), a fruit well known to traditional medicine for the beneficial properties of its edible juice. The effect of the extract on the glucidic metabolism has been evaluated by assessing its ability to inhibit α-amylase and α-glucosidase, two digestive enzymes responsible for the hydrolysis of dietary carbohydrates: their inhibition can delay the carbohydrate digestion and reduce glucose absorption, thus representing an important strategy for the management of hyperglycemia. Also, the PGE ability to block the release of advanced glycated end-products (AGEs), whose accumulation is known to be responsible for diabetic vascular complications, was studied. The iron-reducing and chelating activities, which are the primary mechanisms by which AGE inhibitors stop their metal-catalyzed formation, were evaluated as possible antioxidant mechanisms. At last, the phenolic content of PGE was characterized by chromatographic and spectrophotometric methods. Our results displayed the ability of PGE to inhibit α-amylase enzyme with a similar potency to the positive control: the IC₅₀ values were 52.2 (CL 27.7 - 101.2) µg/ml and 35.6 (CL 22.8 - 55.5) µg/ml for acarbose and PGE, respectively. PGE also inhibited the α-glucosidase enzyme with about a 25 higher potency than the positive controls of acarbose and quercetin. Furthermore, the extract exhibited ferrous and ferric ion chelating ability, with a maximum effect of 82.1% and 80.6% at a concentration of 250 µg/ml respectively, and reducing properties, reaching the maximum effect of 80.5% at a concentration of 10 µg/ml. At last, PGE was found able to inhibit the AGE production (maximum inhibition of 82.2% at the concentration of 1000 µg/ml), although with lower potency with respect to the positive control rutin. The phytochemical analysis of PGE displayed the presence of high levels of total polyphenols, tannins, and flavonoids, among which ellagic acid, gallic acid and catechin were identified. Altogether these data highlight the ability of PGE to control the carbohydrate metabolism at different levels, both by inhibiting the metabolic enzymes and by affecting the AGE formation likely by chelating mechanisms. It is also noteworthy that peel from pomegranate, although being a waste of juice production, can be reviewed as a nutraceutical source. In conclusion, present results suggest the possible role of PGE as a remedy for preventing hyperglycemia complications and encourage further in vivo studies.

Keywords: anti-hyperglycemic activity, antioxidant properties, nutraceuticals, polyphenols, pomegranate

Procedia PDF Downloads 179

Authors: Ladda Thiamwong, Renata Komalasari

Abstract:

Falls are the leading cause of disability and hospitalization in low-income older adults. Fear of falling is present in 20% to 85 % of older adults and has been identified as an independent risk factor of fall risk, activity restriction, and loss of independence. About 12% of American older adults have subjective cognitive decline. Cognitive impairment is also an established factor of fall risk. However, it is unclear whether measures of fear of falling and subjective cognitive decline have the greatest association with fall risk in low-income older adults. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between fear of falling, subjective cognitive decline-functional performance (SCD-FP), and fall risk using simple screening tools. In this cross-section study, we collected data from community-dwelling older adults 60 years or older in low-income settings in Central Florida, and 86 participants were included in the data analysis. Fear of falling was assessed by the Short Fall Efficacy Scale- International (Short FES-I) with seven items. Subjective cognitive decline-functional performance (SCD-FP) was assessed by a self-reported experience of worsening or more frequent confusion or memory loss in the past 12 months and its functional implications. Fall risk was evaluated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s Stay Independent checklist with 12 items. The majority of participants were female, and more than half of the participants were African American. More than half of the participants had a higher school degree or higher, and less than 20% had no financial problems. Less than 30% of the participants perceived their general health as very good- excellent. More than half of the participants lived alone, and less than 15% lived with a partner or spouse. About 60% of the participants had hypertension, 40% had diabetes, 16% had cancer, and 50% had arthritis. About 30% of the participants had difficulty walking up ten steps without resting, more than 40% felt unsteady when walking, and 30% had been advised to use a cane or walker to get around safely. Regression analysis showed that fall risk was associated with fear of falling ( = .524, p <.001) and subjective cognitive decline-functional performance ( = .465, p =.027). The structure coefficient showed that fear of falling (rs2 = .922) was a stronger predictor of fall risk than subjective cognitive decline-functional performance (rs2= .200). Fear of falling and subjective cognitive decline-functional performance are growing public health issues, and addressing those issues is a public priority. Proactive screening for fear of falling and subjective cognitive decline-functional performance is critical in fall prevention. A combination of all three self-reported tools (Short FES-I, SCD-FP, and CDC's Stay Independent checklist) takes less than 5 minutes to complete. Primary care providers or public health professionals should consider including these tools to screen fear of falling and subjective cognitive decline-functional performance as part of fall risk assessment, especially in low-income settings. Thus, encouraging older adults and healthcare professionals to discuss fear of falling, subjective cognitive decline, and fall risk during routine medical office visits.

Keywords: falls, fall risk, fear of falling, cognition, subjective cognitive decline, low-income, older adults, community, screening, nursing, primary care

Procedia PDF Downloads 66

Authors: Suehyun Cho, Darrell Harrington, Florent Cros, Olin Palmer, John Caputo, Michael Kardosh, Eran Oren, William Loudon, Alex Kiselyov, Michael Shpigelmacher

Abstract:

The Dandy-Walker malformation (DWM) represents a clinical syndrome manifesting as a combination of posterior fossa cyst, hypoplasia of the cerebellar vermis, and obstructive hydrocephalus. Anatomic hallmarks include hypoplasia of the cerebellar vermis, enlargement of the posterior fossa, and cystic dilatation of the fourth ventricle. Current treatments of DWM, including shunting of the cerebral spinal fluid ventricular system and endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV), are frequently clinically insufficient, require additional surgical interventions, and carry risks of infections and neurological deficits. Bionaut Labs develops an alternative way to treat Dandy-Walker Malformation (DWM) associated with non-communicating hydrocephalus. We utilize our discreet microsurgical Bionaut™ particles that are controlled externally and remotely to perform safe, accurate, effective fenestration of the Dandy-Walker cyst, specifically in the posterior fossa of the brain, to directly normalize intracranial pressure. Bionaut™ allows for complex non-linear trajectories not feasible by any conventional surgical techniques. The microsurgical particle safely reaches targets in the lower occipital section of the brain. Bionaut™ offers a minimally invasive surgical alternative to highly involved posterior craniotomy or shunts via direct fenestration of the fourth ventricular cyst at the locus defined by the individual anatomy. Our approach offers significant advantages over the current standards of care in patients exhibiting anatomical challenge(s) as a manifestation of DWM, and therefore, is intended to replace conventional therapeutic strategies. Current progress, including platform optimization, Bionaut™ control, and real-time imaging and in vivo safety studies of the Bionauts™ in large animals, specifically the spine and the brain of ovine models, will be discussed.

Keywords: Bionaut™, cerebral spinal fluid, CSF, cyst, Dandy-Walker, fenestration, hydrocephalus, micro-robot

Procedia PDF Downloads 217

Authors: Rusudan Chagelishvili, Nino Sulava, Tamar Beridze, Nana Rezesidze, Nikoloz Tatuashvili

Abstract:

The South Caucasus is one of the most important centers of prehistoric metallurgy, known for its Colchian bronze culture. Modern Lechkhumi – historical Mountainous Colchis where the existence of prehistoric metallurgy is confirmed by the discovery of many artifacts is a part of this area. Studies focused on prehistoric smelting sites, related artefacts, and ore deposits have been conducted during last ten years in Lechkhumi. More than 20 prehistoric smelting sites and artefacts associated with metallurgical activities (ore roasting furnaces, slags, crucible, and tuyères fragments) have been identified so far. Within the framework of integrated studies was established that these sites were operating in 13-9 centuries B.C. and used for copper smelting. Palynological studies of slags revealed that chestnut (Castanea sativa) and hornbeam (Carpinus sp.) wood were used as smelting fuel. Geological exploration-analytical studies revealed that copper ore mining, processing, and smelting sites were distributed close to each other. Despite recent complex data, the signs of prehistoric mines (trenches) haven’t been found in this part of the study area so far. Since 2018 the archaeological-geological exploration has been focused on the southern part of Lechkhumi and covered the areas of villages Okureshi and Opitara. Several copper smelting sites (Okureshi 1 and 2, Opitara 1), as well as a Colchian Bronze culture settlement, have been identified here. Three mine workings have been found in the narrow gorge of the river Rtkhmelebisgele in the vicinities of the village Opitara. In order to establish a link between the Opitara-Okureshi archaeometallurgical sites, Late Bronze Age settlements, and mines, various scientific analytical methods -mineralized rock and slags petrography and atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS) analysis have been applied. The careful examination of Opitara mine workings revealed that there is a striking difference between the mine #1 on the right bank of the river and mines #2 and #3 on the left bank. The first one has all characteristic features of the Soviet period mine working (e. g. high portal with angular ribs and roof showing signs of blasting). In contrast, mines #2 and #3, which are located very close to each other, have round-shaped portals/entrances, low roofs, and fairly smooth ribs and are filled with thick layers of river sediments and collapsed weathered rock mass. A thorough review of the publications related to prehistoric mine workings revealed some striking similarities between mines #2 and #3 with their worldwide analogues. Apparently, the ore extraction from these mines was conducted by fire-setting applying primitive tools. It was also established that mines are cut in Jurassic mineralized volcanic rocks. Ore minerals (chalcopyrite, pyrite, galena) are related to calcite and quartz veins. The results obtained through the petrochemical and petrography studies of mineralized rock samples from Opitara mines and prehistoric slags are in complete correlation with each other, establishing the direct link between copper mining and smelting within the study area. Acknowledgment: This work was supported by the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation of Georgia (grant # FR-19-13022).

Keywords: archaeometallurgy, Mountainous Colchis, mining, ore minerals

Procedia PDF Downloads 173

Authors: Ella Tyuryumina, Alexey Neznanov

Abstract:

Finding algorithms to predict the growth of tumors has piqued the interest of researchers ever since the early days of cancer research. A number of studies were carried out as an attempt to obtain reliable data on the natural history of breast cancer growth. Mathematical modeling can play a very important role in the prognosis of tumor process of breast cancer. However, mathematical models describe primary tumor growth and metastases growth separately. Consequently, we propose a mathematical growth model for primary tumor and primary metastases which may help to improve predicting accuracy of breast cancer progression using an original mathematical model referred to CoM-IV and corresponding software. We are interested in: 1) modelling the whole natural history of primary tumor and primary metastases; 2) developing adequate and precise CoM-IV which reflects relations between PT and MTS; 3) analyzing the CoM-IV scope of application; 4) implementing the model as a software tool. The CoM-IV is based on exponential tumor growth model and consists of a system of determinate nonlinear and linear equations; corresponds to TNM classification. It allows to calculate different growth periods of primary tumor and primary metastases: 1) ‘non-visible period’ for primary tumor; 2) ‘non-visible period’ for primary metastases; 3) ‘visible period’ for primary metastases. The new predictive tool: 1) is a solid foundation to develop future studies of breast cancer models; 2) does not require any expensive diagnostic tests; 3) is the first predictor which makes forecast using only current patient data, the others are based on the additional statistical data. Thus, the CoM-IV model and predictive software: a) detect different growth periods of primary tumor and primary metastases; b) make forecast of the period of primary metastases appearance; c) have higher average prediction accuracy than the other tools; d) can improve forecasts on survival of BC and facilitate optimization of diagnostic tests. The following are calculated by CoM-IV: the number of doublings for ‘nonvisible’ and ‘visible’ growth period of primary metastases; tumor volume doubling time (days) for ‘nonvisible’ and ‘visible’ growth period of primary metastases. The CoM-IV enables, for the first time, to predict the whole natural history of primary tumor and primary metastases growth on each stage (pT1, pT2, pT3, pT4) relying only on primary tumor sizes. Summarizing: a) CoM-IV describes correctly primary tumor and primary distant metastases growth of IV (T1-4N0-3M1) stage with (N1-3) or without regional metastases in lymph nodes (N0); b) facilitates the understanding of the appearance period and manifestation of primary metastases.

Keywords: breast cancer, exponential growth model, mathematical modelling, primary metastases, primary tumor, survival

Procedia PDF Downloads 331

Authors: Veronique Troch, Wouter Van der Borght, Véronique De Bleeker, Bram Marynissen, Nathan Van der Eecken, Gijs Du Laing

Abstract:

Among the challenges associated with increased urban food production are health risks from food contamination, due to the higher pollution loads in urban areas, compared to rural sites. Therefore, the risks posed by industrial or traffic pollution of locally grown food, was defined as one of five high-priority issues of urban agriculture requiring further investigation. The impact of air pollution on urban horticulture is the subject of this study. More particular, this study focuses on the atmospheric deposition of trace metals on leaf vegetables cultivated in the city of Ghent, Belgium. Ghent is a particularly interesting study site as it actively promotes urban agriculture. Plants accumulate heavy metals by absorption from contaminated soils and through deposition on parts exposed to polluted air. Accumulation of trace metals in vegetation grown near roads has been shown to be significantly higher than those grown in rural areas due to traffic-related contaminants in the air. Studies of vegetables demonstrated, that the uptake and accumulation of trace metals differed among crop type, species, and among plant parts. Studies on vegetables and fruit trees in Berlin, Germany, revealed significant differences in trace metal concentrations depending on local traffic, crop species, planting style and parameters related to barriers between sampling site and neighboring roads. This study aims to supplement this scarce research on heavy metal accumulation in urban horticulture. Samples from leaf vegetables were collected from different sites, including allotment gardens, in Ghent. Trace metal contents on these leaf vegetables were analyzed by ICP-MS (inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry). In addition, precipitation on each sampling site was collected by NILU-type bulk collectors and similarly analyzed for trace metals. On one sampling site, different parameters which might influence trace metal content in leaf vegetables were analyzed in detail. These parameters are distance of planting site to the nearest road, barriers between planting site and nearest road, and type of leaf vegetable. For comparison, a rural site, located farther from city traffic and industrial pollution, was included in this study. Preliminary results show that there is a high correlation between trace metal content in the atmospheric deposition and trace metal content in leaf vegetables. Moreover, a significant higher Pb, Cu and Fe concentration was found on spinach collected from Ghent, compared to spinach collected from a rural site. The distance of planting site to the nearest road significantly affected the accumulation of Pb, Cu, Mo and Fe on spinach. Concentrations of those elements on spinach increased with decreasing distance between planting site and the nearest road. Preliminary results did not show a significant effect of barriers between planting site and the nearest road on accumulation of trace metals on leaf vegetables. The overall goal of this study is to complete and refine existing guidelines for urban gardening to exclude potential health risks from food contamination. Accordingly, this information can help city governments and civil society in the professionalization and sustainable development of urban agriculture.

Keywords: atmospheric deposition, leaf vegetables, trace metals, traffic pollution, urban agriculture

Procedia PDF Downloads 234

Authors: Ezra Kavana

Abstract:

This article analyses the role those East African countries play in enforcing crude oil pipeline regulations. The paper finds that countries are more likely to have responsibility for enforcing these regulations if they have larger networks of gathering and transmission lines and if their citizens are more liberal and more pro-environment., Pipeline operations, transportation costs, new pipeline construction, and environmental effects are all heavily controlled. All facets of pipeline systems and the facilities connected to them are governed by statutory bodies. In order to support the project manager on such new pipeline projects, companies building and running these pipelines typically include personnel and consultants who specialize in these permitting processes. The primary permissions that can be necessary for pipelines carrying different commodities are mentioned in this paper. National, regional, and local municipalities each have their own permits. Through their right-of-way group, the contractor's project compliance leadership is typically directly responsible for obtaining those permits, which are typically obtained through government agencies. The whole list of local permits needed for a planned pipeline can only be found after a careful field investigation. A country's government regulates pipelines that are entirely within its borders. With a few exceptions, state regulations governing ratemaking and safety have been enacted to be consistent with regulatory requirements. Countries that produce a lot of energy are typically more involved in regulating pipelines than countries that produce little to no energy. To identify the proper regulatory authority, it is important to research the several government agencies that regulate pipeline transportation. Additionally, it's crucial that the scope determination of a planned project engage with a various external professional with experience in linear facilities or the company's pipeline construction and environmental professional to identify and obtain any necessary design clearances, permits, or approvals. These professionals can offer precise estimations of the costs and length of time needed to process necessary permits. Governments with a stronger energy sector, on the other hand, are less likely to take on control. However, the performance of the pipeline or national enforcement activities are unaffected significantly by whether a government has taken on control. Financial fines are the most efficient government enforcement instrument because they greatly reduce occurrences and property damage.

Keywords: crude oil, pipeline, regulatory compliance, and construction permits

Procedia PDF Downloads 87

Authors: Marco Sewald

Abstract:

Comparing present to past the numbers of Americans expatriating U. S. citizenship have risen. Even though these numbers are small compared to the immigrants, U. S. citizens expatriations have historically been much lower, making the uptick worrisome. In addition, the published lists and numbers from the U.S. government seems incomplete, with many not counted. Different branches of the U. S. government report different numbers and no one seems to know exactly how big the real number is, even though the IRS and the FBI both track and/or publish numbers of Americans who renounce. Since there is no single explanation, anecdotal evidence suggests this uptick is caused by global tax law and increased compliance burdens imposed by the U.S. lawmakers on U.S. citizens abroad. Within a research project the question arose about the reasons why a constant growing number of U.S. citizens are expatriating – the answers are believed helping to explain the underlying governmental policy rational, leading to such activities. While it is impossible to locate former U.S. citizens to conduct a survey on the reasons and the U.S. government is not commenting on the reasons given within the process of expatriation, the chosen methodology is Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), in the first step by re-using current surveys conducted by different researchers within the population of U. S. citizens residing abroad during the last years. Surveys questioning the personal situation in the context of tax, compliance, citizenship and likelihood to repatriate to the U. S. In general SEM allows: (1) Representing, estimating and validating a theoretical model with linear (unidirectional or not) relationships. (2) Modeling causal relationships between multiple predictors (exogenous) and multiple dependent variables (endogenous). (3) Including unobservable latent variables. (4) Modeling measurement error: the degree to which observable variables describe latent variables. Moreover SEM seems very appealing since the results can be represented either by matrix equations or graphically. Results: the observed variables (items) of the construct are caused by various latent variables. The given surveys delivered a high correlation and it is therefore impossible to identify the distinct effect of each indicator on the latent variable – which was one desired result. Since every SEM comprises two parts: (1) measurement model (outer model) and (2) structural model (inner model), it seems necessary to extend the given data by conducting additional research and surveys to validate the outer model to gain the desired results.

Keywords: expatriation of U. S. citizens, SEM, structural equation modeling, validating

Procedia PDF Downloads 216

Authors: Joshua Fogel, Rivka Herzog

Abstract:

Although direct-to-consumer prescription medication advertisements (DTCA) are viewed or heard in many venues, there does not appear to be any research for internet social media DTCA. We study the association of traditional media DTCA and digital media DTCA including internet social media of YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter with three different outcomes. There was one intentions outcome and two different behavior outcomes. The intentions outcome was the agreement level for seeking additional information about a prescription medication after seeing a DTCA. One behavior outcome was the agreement level for obtaining additional information about a prescription medication after seeing a DTCA. The other behavior outcome was the frequency level for obtaining additional information about a prescription medication after seeing a DTCA. Surveys were completed by 635 college students. Predictors included demographic variables, theory of planned behavior variables, health variables, and advertisements seen or heard. Also, in the behavior analyses, additional predictors of intentions and sources for seeking additional prescription drug information were included. Multivariate linear regression analyses were conducted. We found that increased age was associated with increased behavior, women were associated with increased intentions, and Hispanic race/ethnicity was associated with decreased behavior. For the theory of planned behavior variables, increased attitudes were associated with increased intentions, increased social norms were associated with increased intentions and behavior, and increased intentions were associated with increased behavior. Very good perceived health was associated with increased intentions. Advertisements seen in spam mail were associated with decreased intentions. Advertisements seen on traditional or cable television were associated with decreased behavior. Advertisements seen on television watched on the internet were associated with increased behavior. The source of seeking additional information of reading internet print content was associated with increased behavior. No internet social media advertisements were associated with either intentions or behavior. In conclusion, pharmaceutical brand managers and marketers should consider these findings when tailoring their DTCA advertising campaigns and directing their DTCA advertising budget towards young adults such as college students. They need to reconsider the current approach for traditional television DTCA and also consider dedicating a larger advertising budget toward internet television DTCA. Although internet social media is a popular place to advertise, the financial expenditures do not appear worthwhile for DTCA when targeting young adults such as college students.

Keywords: brand managers, direct-to-consumer advertising, internet, social media

Procedia PDF Downloads 263

Authors: Liu Si, Wang Chunmei, Liu Huangmei

Abstract:

A prominent component of the semantic versus pragmatic debate, scalar implicature (SI) has been gaining great attention ever since it was proposed by Horn. The constant debate is between the structural and pragmatic approach. The former claims that generation of SI is costless, automatic, and dependent mostly on the structural properties of sentences, whereas the latter advocates both that such generation is largely dependent upon context, and that the process is costly. Many experiments, among which Katsos’s text comprehension experiments are influential, have been designed and conducted in order to verify their views, but the results are not conclusive. Besides, most of the experiments were conducted in English language materials. Katsos conducted one off-line and three on-line text comprehension experiments, in which the previous shortcomings were addressed on a certain extent and the conclusion was in favor of the pragmatic approach. We intend to test the results of Katsos’s experiment in Chinese scalar implicature. Four experiments in both off-line and on-line conditions to examine the generation and response time of SI in Chinese "yixie" (some) and "quanbu (dou)" (all) will be conducted in order to find out whether the structural or the pragmatic approach could be sustained. The study mainly aims to answer the following questions: (1) Can SI be generated in the upper- and lower-bound contexts as Katsos confirmed when Chinese language materials are used in the experiment? (2) Can SI be first generated, then cancelled as default view claimed or can it not be generated in a neutral context when Chinese language materials are used in the experiment? (3) Is SI generation costless or costly in terms of processing resources? (4) In line with the SI generation process, what conclusion can be made about the cognitive processing model of language meaning? Is it a parallel model or a linear model? Or is it a dynamic and hierarchical model? According to previous theoretical debates and experimental conflicts, presumptions could be made that SI, in Chinese language, might be generated in the upper-bound contexts. Besides, the response time might be faster in upper-bound than that found in lower-bound context. SI generation in neutral context might be the slowest. At last, a conclusion would be made that the processing model of SI could not be verified by either absolute structural or pragmatic approaches. It is, rather, a dynamic and complex processing mechanism, in which the interaction of language forms, ad hoc context, mental context, background knowledge, speakers’ interaction, etc. are involved.

Keywords: cognitive linguistics, pragmatics, scalar implicture, experimental study, Chinese language

Procedia PDF Downloads 355