Search results for: São Paulo metropolitan area

Authors: Bello Yusuf Idi

Abstract:

The Gongola arm of the Upper Banue Trough, Northeastern Nigeria is predominantly covered by the outcrops of Limestone-bearing rocks in form of Sandstone with intercalation of carbonate clay, shale, basaltic, felsphatic and migmatide rocks at subpixel dimension. In this work, subpixel classification algorithm was used to classify the data acquired from landsat 7 Enhance Thematic Mapper (ETM+) satellite system with the aim of producing fractional distribution image for three most economically important solid minerals of the area: Limestone, Basalt and Migmatide. Linear Spectral Unmixing (LSU) algorithm was used to produce fractional distribution image of abundance of the three mineral resources within a 100Km2 portion of the area. The results show that the minerals occur at different proportion all over the area. The fractional map could therefore serve as a guide to the ongoing reconnaissance for the economic potentiality of the formation.

Keywords: linear spectral un-mixing, upper benue trough, gongola arm, geological engineering

Procedia PDF Downloads 376

Authors: Sanjeeb Kumar Mishra, Aartee Jha, Madhu Thapa, Pragati Gautam

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Introduction: High myopia has become a matter of global concern as it is a major risk factor for glaucoma. Various optic nerve head changes occur in high myopia over time. This might lead to difficulty in detecting pathologies associated with high myopia through conventional funduscopy examinations only. Bruch’s Membrane Opening (Area and Minimum Rim Width) is considered an anatomically more accurate and reliable landmark than the conventional clinical disc margin. Study Design: It was a hospital based cross-sectional and non-interventional type of study. Purpose: The purpose of our study was to measure Bruch’s Membrane Opening (area and Minimum Rim Width) in high myopic eyes and correlate it with axial length. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at B.P Koirala Lions Center for Ophthalmic Studies, a tertiary-level eye center in Nepal. 80 eyes of 40 subjects (40% male and 60% female) aged 18-35 years with high myopia (Spherical Equivalent (SE) ≥ -6D) were taken as cases. Among them, RE of 39 and LE of 34 myopic subjects were included in the study. Spectral Domain-Optical Coherence Tomography of both the eyes of myopic patients was performed using Glaucoma Module Premiere Edition (GMPE) with Anatomic Positioning System (APS) to measure Bruch’s Membrane Opening (Area and Minimum Rim Width). Axial length in myopic patients was measured using Partial Coherence Interferometry (IOL Master). Results: Among 40 myopic subjects, 16 (40%) were males, whereas 24 (60%) were females. The mean age of myopic subjects was 24.64 ± 5.10 years, with minimum and maximum ages of 18 years and 35 years, respectively. The mean BMO area was 2.28 0.48 mm² in right eye and 2.15 0.59 mm² in left eye. BMO area in high myopic patient was significantly correlated with axial length. The correlation analysis of BMO area with axial length in RE and LE was found to be statistically significant at (r=0.465, p<0.003) and (r=0.374, p< 0.029), respectively. Likewise, the mean BMO-MRW was 325.69 ± 96µm in right eye and 339.20 ± 79.50µm in left eye. There was a significant correlation of BMO-MRW with axial length in both the eyes of myopic subjects. Moreover, a significant negative correlation of Inferior temporal, Nasal, and Inferior nasal quadrants (p<0.05) of BMO-MRW of right eye was found with axial length of right eye, whereas all the BMO-MRW quadrants of left eye were negatively correlated (p<0.05) with axial length in left eye. No significant differences were found between right eye and left eye on comparing means of refractive error, axial length, BMO area, and BMO-MRW. Conclusion: From this study, it can be concluded that BMO area enlarges in high myopia with an increase in axial length. Additionally, BMO-MRW thinning occurs along with the BMO enlargement and increases with axial length. There were no significant differences in refractive error, axial length, BMO area, and BMO-MRW between right eye and left eye.

Keywords: high myopia, Bruch’s membrane opening, Bruch’s membrane opening minimum rim width, spectral domain optical coherence tomography

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Authors: Hi̇lal Surat

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People who want to get rid of stress and intensive working tempo for a while head for recreation operations in order to get rest and have fun. Therefore, planning recreation operation makes contributions to social, physiological, economic and psychological development of an individual and the community in a way that the needs of people meet regularly and constantly. The rapid increase of world population rate makes necessary of benefit from natural or man-made resources in a multiple way. Dams and reservoirs which are built near urban area with the aim of electrical energy conversion and agricultural irrigation are considered as natural area providing various opportunities such as recreation operations. Dams have a great importance regarding to protection and improvement of water resources and coming into service of community. There should be a priority to protect these water resources, which are essential for nature and living organisms. It should be taken into consideration that these water resources are the most important input in the area and have high nature value to make sustainability of recreation effectiveness. The Deriner reservoir that has been built yet near the province of Artvin with natural and cultural properties is considered as an alternative option for meeting the needs of people for sportive and recreation activities and as a potential for planning of water-based recreation activities. Hence, in this study, activities that meet the expectations of people who get benefit from the area considering to natural, cultural and sportive recreation opportunities will be developed. In the first place, planning criteria for some sportive and water-based recreation operations will be defined in order to use the area for recreation and sportive activities and these criteria will be a base for a macro planning work within the holistic perspective of natural, cultural, and economical structure of the area. After this time, necessities of local people and evaluation of reservoir recreational potential will be determined, end then different socio-economic groups according to their in-come, age groups will be chosen and the questionnaire which has already prepared will be done these groups, as a result of these questionnaire recreational activities in water necessities will determine and we are going to develop different suggestion for this reservoir.

Keywords: dam, dam lakes, Deriner, recreation, water based activities

Procedia PDF Downloads 346

Authors: Youb Said, Fourar Ali

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To describe the influence of bottom roughness on the free surface flows by numerical modeling, a two-dimensional model was developed. The equations of continuity and momentum (Naviers Stokes equations) are solved by the finite volume method. We considered a turbulent flow in an open channel with a bottom roughness. For our simulations, the K-ε model was used. After setting the initial and boundary conditions and solve the equations set, we were able to achieve the following results: vortex forming in the hollow causing substantial energy dissipation in the obstacle areas that form the bottom roughness. The comparison of our results with experimental ones shows a good agreement in terms of the results in the rough area. However, in other areas, differences were more or less important. These differences are in areas far from the bottom, especially the free surface area just after the bottom. These disagreements are probably due to experimental constants used by the k-ε model.

Keywords: modeling, free surface flow, turbulence, bottom roughness, finite volume, K-ε model, energy dissipation

Procedia PDF Downloads 382

Authors: Motwkel M. Alhaj, Bashir M. Elhassan

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The East Nile area is located in Khartoum state. The main source of drinking water in the East Nile Area (Sudan) is groundwater. However, fluoride concentration in the water is more than the maximum allowable dose, which is 1.5 mg/l. This study aims to demonstrate and innovative, affordable, and efficient filter to remove fluoride from drinking water. Many researchers have found that aluminum oxide-coated adsorbent is the most affordable technology for fluoride removal. However, adsorption is pH-dependent, and the water pH in the East Nile area is relatively high (around 8), which is hindering the adsorption process. Locally available charcoal was crushed, sieved, and coated with aluminum oxide. Then, different coating configurations were tested in order to produce an adsorbent with a high pH point of zero charge pH PZC in order to overcome the effect of high pH of water. Moreover, different methods were used to characterize the adsorbent, including: Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDX), Brunauer - Emmett - Teller (BET) method, and pH point of zero charge pH PZC. The produced adsorbent has pH PZC of 8.5, which is essential in enhancing the fluoride adsorption process. A pilot household fluoride filter was also designed and installed in a house that has water with 4.34 mg/l F- and pH of 8.4. The filter was operated at a flow rate 250 cm³/min. The total cost of treating one cubic meter was about 0.63$, while the cost for the same water before adsorbent coating modification was 2.33$⁄cm³.

Keywords: water treatment, fluoride, adsorption, charcoal, Sudan

Procedia PDF Downloads 116

Authors: Olorunsanya E. O., Adedeji S. O., Anyanwu A. A.

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Food insecurity is a challenge to many nations Nigeria inclusive. It is increasingly becoming a major problem among farm households due to many factors chief of which is low labour productivity. This study therefore profiles the food security status of a representative randomly selected 90 farming households in Chanchaga area of Nigeria’s Guinea Savana using structured interview schedule Descriptive and inferential statistics were used as analytical tools for the study. The results of the descriptive statistics show that majority (35.56%) of the surveyed household heads fall within the age range of 40 – 49 years and (88.89%) are male while (78.89) are married. More than half of the respondents have formal education. About 43.3% of the household heads have farm experience of 11- 20 years and a modal household size class range of 7 – 12. The results further reveal that majority (68.8%) earned more than N12, 500 (22.73 US Dollar) per month. The result of households’ food expenditure pattern reveals that an average household spends about N3, 644.44 (6.63 US Dollar) on food and food items on a weekly basis. The result of the analysis of food diversity intake in the study area shows that 63.33% of the sampled households fell under the low household food diversity intake, while 33 households, representing 36.67% ranks high in term of household food diversity intake. The result for the food security status shows that the sampled population was food secure (58.89%) while 41.11% falls below the recommended threshold. The result for the logistics regression model shows that age, engagement in off farm employment and household size are significant in determining the food security status of farm household in the study area. The three variables were significant at 10%, 5% and 1% respectively. The study therefore recommends among others, that measures be put in place by stakeholders to make agriculture attractive for youth since age is a significant determinant of food security in the study area. Awareness should also be created by stakeholders on the needs for effective family planning methods to be adopted by farm household in the study area.

Keywords: Niger State, Guinea Savana, food diversity, logit regression model and food security

Procedia PDF Downloads 108

Authors: Joao Paulo De Oliveira Paschoal, Andre Victor Rodrigues Dantas, Fernando Almeida Da Silva Fernandes, Eugenio Jose Zoqui

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With the adoption of High Pressure Die Casting technologies for the production of automotive bodies by the famous Giga Castings, the technology of processing metal alloys in the semi-solid state (SSM) becomes interesting because it allows for higher product quality, such as lower porosity and shrinkage voids. However, the alloys currently processed are derived from the foundry industry and are based on the Al-Si-(Cu-Mg) system. High-strength alloys, such as those of the Al-Zn-Mg-Cu system, are not usually processed, but the benefits of using this system, which is susceptible to heat treatments, can be associated with the advantages obtained by processing in the semi-solid state, promoting new possibilities for production routes and improving product performance. The current work proposes a new range of alloys to be processed in the semi-solid state through the modification of aluminum alloys of the Al-Zn-Mg-Cu system by the in-situ formation of Al3Ti intermetallic. Such alloys presented the thermodynamic stability required for semi-solid processing, with a sensitivity below 0.03(Celsius degrees * -1), in a wide temperature range. Furthermore, these alloys presented high hardness after aging heat treatment, reaching 190HV. Therefore, they are excellent candidates for the manufacture of parts that require low levels of defects and high mechanical strength.

Keywords: aluminum alloys, semisolid metals processing, intermetallics, heat treatment, titanium aluminide

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Authors: Irfan Ahmad Afip

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This main research objective is to accurately identify the possibility for a Leptospirosis outbreak severity of a certain area based on its input features into a multivariate regression model. The research question is the possibility of an outbreak in a specific area being influenced by this feature, such as social demographics and hydrometeorological extremes. If the occurrence of an outbreak is being subjected to these features, then the epidemic severity for an area will be different depending on its environmental setting because the features will influence the possibility and severity of an outbreak. Specifically, this research objective was three-fold, namely: (a) to identify the relevant multivariate features and visualize the patterns data, (b) to develop a multivariate regression model based from the selected features and determine the possibility for Leptospirosis outbreak in an area, and (c) to compare the predictive ability of multivariate regression model and machine learning algorithms. Several secondary data features were collected locations in the state of Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia, based on the possibility it would be relevant to determine the outbreak severity in the area. The relevant features then will become an input in a multivariate regression model; a linear regression model is a simple and quick solution for creating prognostic capabilities. A multivariate regression model has proven more precise prognostic capabilities than univariate models. The expected outcome from this research is to establish a correlation between the features of social demographic and hydrometeorological with Leptospirosis bacteria; it will also become a contributor for understanding the underlying relationship between the pathogen and the ecosystem. The relationship established can be beneficial for the health department or urban planner to inspect and prepare for future outcomes in event detection and system health monitoring.

Keywords: geographical information system, hydrometeorological, leptospirosis, multivariate regression

Procedia PDF Downloads 117

Authors: B. Gepts, E. Meex, E. Nuyts, E. Knaepen, G. Verbeeck

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The importance of resource efficiency and environmental impact assessment has raised the interest in knowing the amount of materials used in buildings. If no BIM model or energy performance certificate is available, material quantities can be obtained through an estimation or time-consuming calculation. For the interior wall area, no validated estimation method exists. However, in the case of environmental impact assessment or evaluating the existing building stock as future material banks, knowledge of the material quantities used in interior walls is indispensable. This paper presents a validated method for the estimation of the interior wall area for dwellings based on easy-to-collect building characteristics. A database of 4963 residential buildings spread all over Belgium is used. The data are collected through onsite measurements of the buildings during the construction phase (between mid-2010 and mid-2017). The interior wall area refers to the area of all interior walls in the building, including the inner leaf of exterior (party) walls, minus the area of windows and doors, unless mentioned otherwise. The two predictive modelling techniques used are 1) a (stepwise) linear regression and 2) a decision tree. The best estimation method is selected based on the best R² k-fold (5) fit. The research shows that the building volume is by far the most important variable to estimate the interior wall area. A stepwise regression based on building volume per building, building typology, and type of house provides the best fit, with R² k-fold (5) = 0.88. Although the best R² k-fold value is obtained when the other parameters ‘building typology’ and ‘type of house’ are included, the contribution of these variables can be seen as statistically significant but practically irrelevant. Thus, if these parameters are not available, a simplified estimation method based on only the volume of the building can also be applied (R² k-fold = 0.87). The robustness and precision of the method (output) are validated three times. Firstly, the prediction of the interior wall area is checked by means of alternative calculations of the building volume and of the interior wall area; thus, other definitions are applied to the same data. Secondly, the output is tested on an extension of the database, so it has the same definitions but on other data. Thirdly, the output is checked on an unrelated database with other definitions and other data. The validation of the estimation methods demonstrates that the methods remain accurate when underlying data are changed. The method can support environmental as well as economic dimensions of impact assessment, as it can be used in early design. As it allows the prediction of the amount of interior wall materials to be produced in the future or that might become available after demolition, the presented estimation method can be part of material flow analyses on input and on output.

Keywords: buildings as material banks, building stock, estimation method, interior wall area

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Authors: W. Thongwat, B. Terakulsatit

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The study area is Kham Sakaesaeng District in Nakhon Ratchasima Province, the south section of Northeastern Thailand, located in the Lower Khorat-Ubol Basin. This region is the one of saline soil area, located in a dry plateau and regularly experience standing with periods of floods and alternating with periods of drought. Especially, the drought in the summer season causes the major saline soil and saline water problems of this region. The general cause of dry land salting resulted from salting on irrigated land, and an excess of water leading to the rising water table in the aquifer. The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship of physical and chemical properties between the soil and groundwater. The soil and groundwater samples were collected in both rainy and summer seasons. The content of pH, electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), chloride and salinity were investigated. The experimental result of soil and groundwater samples show the slightly pH less than 7, EC (186 to 8,156 us/cm and 960 to 10,712 us/cm), TDS (93 to 3,940 ppm and 480 to 5,356 ppm), chloride content (45.58 to 4,177,015 mg/l and 227.90 to 9,216,736 mg/l), and salinity (0.07 to 4.82 ppt and 0.24 to 14.46 ppt) in the rainy and summer seasons, respectively. The distribution of chloride content and salinity content were interpolated and displayed as a map by using ArcMap 10.3 program, according to the season. The result of saline soil and brined groundwater in the study area were related to the low-lying topography, drought area, and salt-source exposure. Especially, the Rock Salt Member of Maha Sarakham Formation was exposed or lies near the ground surface in this study area. During the rainy season, salt was eroded or weathered from the salt-source rock formation and transported by surface flow or leached into the groundwater. In the dry season, the ground surface is dry enough resulting salt precipitates from the brined surface water or rises from the brined groundwater influencing the increasing content of chloride and salinity in the ground surface and groundwater.

Keywords: environmental geology, soil salinity, geochemistry, groundwater hydrology

Procedia PDF Downloads 120

Authors: Seyed Mohammad Ali Zahedi

Abstract:

This field experiment was conducted in Isfahan in 2011 in order to study the effect of plant density and planting pattern on growth, yield and quality of silage corn (SC 704) using a randomized complete block design with split plot layout and four replications. The main plot consisted of three planting patterns (60 and 75 cm single planting row and 75 cm double planting row referred to as 60S, 75S and 75T, respectively). The subplots consisted of four levels of plant densities (65000, 80000, 95000 and 110000 plants per hectare). Each subplot consisted of 7 rows, each with 10m length. Vegetative and reproductive characteristics of plants at silking and hard dough stages (when the plants were harvested for silage) were evaluated. Results of variance analysis showed that the effects of planting pattern and plant density were significant on leaf area per plant, leaf area index (at silking), plant height, stem diameter, dry weights of leaf, stem and ear in silking and harvest stages and on fresh and dry yield, dry matter percentage and crude protein percentage at harvest. There was no planting pattern × plant density interaction for these parameters. As row space increased from 60 cm with single planting to 75 cm with single planting, leaf area index and plant height increased, but leaf area per plant, stem diameter, dry weight of leaf, stem and ear, dry matter percentage, dry matter yield and crude protein percentage decreased. Dry matter yield reduced from 24.9 to 18.5 t/ha and crude protein percentage decreased from 6.11 to 5.60 percent. When the plant density increased from 65000 to 110000 plant per hectare, leaf area index, plant height, dry weight of leaf, stem and ear and dry matter yield increased from 19.2 to 23.3 t/ha, whereas leaf area per plant, stem diameter, dry matter percentage and crude protein percentage decreased from 6.30 to 5.25. The best results were obtained with 60 cm row distance with single planting and 110000 plants per hectare.

Keywords: silage corn, plant density, planting pattern, yield

Procedia PDF Downloads 338

Authors: M. Fry, L. Fitzpatrick, Julie Considine, R. Z. Shaban, Kate Curtis

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Introduction: The vast majority of older Australians lives independently and are self-managing at home, despite a growing number living with a chronic illness that requires health intervention. Evidence shows that between 50% and 80% of people presenting to the emergency department (ED) are in pain. Australian EDs manage 7.2 million attendances every year and 1.4 million of these are people aged 65 years or more. Research shows that 28% of ED patients aged 65 years or more have Cognitive impairment (CI) associated with dementia, delirium and neurological conditions. Background: Traditional ED service delivery may not be suitable for older people who present with multiple, complex and ongoing illnesses. Likewise, ED clinical staff often perceive that their role should be focused more on immediate and potential lifethreatening illness and conditions which are episodic in nature. Therefore, the needs of older people and their family/carers may not be adequately addressed in the context of an ED presentation. Aim: We aimed to explore the utilisation and characteristics of older people presenting to four metropolitan EDs. Method: The findings being presented are part of a program of research exploring pain management practices for older persons with long bone fractures. The study was conducted across four metropolitan emergency departments of older patients (65years and over) and involved a 12-month randomised medical record audit (n=255). Results: ED presentations across four ED sites in 2012 numbered 168021, with 44778 (26.6%) patients aged 65 and over. Of the 44778 patients, the average age was 79.1 years (SD 8.54). There were more females 23932 (53.5%). The majority (26925: 85.0%) of older persons self-referred to the ED and lived independently. The majority arrived by ambulance (n=18553: 41.4%) and were allocated triage category was 3 (n=19,507:43.65%) or Triage category 4 at (n=15,389: 34.43%). The top five triage symptom presentations involved pain (n=8088; 18.25%), dyspnoea (n=4735; 10.7%), falls (n=4032; 9.1%), other (n=3984; 9.0%), cardiac (n=2987; 6.7%). The top five system based diagnostic presentations involved musculoskeletal (n=8902; 20.1%), cardiac (n=6704:15.0%), respiratory (n=4933; 11.0%), neurological (n=4909; 11.0%), gastroenterology (n=4321; 9.7%). On review of one tertiary hospital database the vital signs on average at time triage: Systolic Blood Pressure 143.6mmHg. Heart Rate 83.4 beats/minute; Respiratory Rate 18.5 breaths/ minute; Oxygen saturation 97.0% and Tympanic temperature 36.7 and Blood Glucose Level 7.4mmols/litre. The majority presented with a Glasgow Coma Score of 14 or higher. On average the older person stayed in the ED 4:56 (SD 3:28minutes).The average time to be seen was 39 minutes (SD 48 minutes). The majority of older persons were admitted (n=27562: 61.5%), did not wait for treatment (n= 8879: 0.02%) discharged home (n=16256: 36.0%). Conclusion: The vast majority of older persons are living independently, although many require admission on arrival to the ED. Many arrived in pain and with musculoskeletal injuries and or conditions. New models of care need to be considered, which may better support self-management and independent living of the older person and the National Emergency Access Targets.

Keywords: chronic, older person, aged care, emergency department

Procedia PDF Downloads 239

Authors: Hamed Hosseinkazemi, Esmaeil Biazar

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For tissue engineering of bone, anatomical and operational reconstructions of damaged tissue seem to be vital. This is done via reconstruction of bone and appropriate biological joint with bone tissues of damaged areas. In this study the condition of biodegradable bed Nanofibrous PHBV and USSC cells were used to accelerate bone repair of damaged area. Hollow nanofabrication scaffold of damageable life was designed as PHBV by electrospinning and via determining the best factors such as the kind and amount of solvent, specific volume and rate. The separation of osseous tissue infiltration and evaluating its nature by flow cytometrocical analysis was done. Animal test including USSC as well as PHBV condition in the damaged bone was done in the rat. After 8 weeks the implanted area was analyzed using CT scan and was sent to histopathology ward. Finally, the rate and quality of reconstruction were determined after H and E coloring. Histomorphic analysis indicated a statistically significant difference between the experimental group of PHBV, USSC+PHBV and control group. Besides, the histopathologic analysis showed that bone reconstruction rate was high in the area containing USSC and PHBV, compared with area having PHBV and control group and consequently the reconstruction quality of bones and the relationship between the new bone tissues and surrounding bone tissues were high too. Using PHBR scaffold and USSC together could be useful in the amending of wide range of bone lesion.

Keywords: bone lesion, nanofibrous PHBV, stem cells, umbilical cord blood

Procedia PDF Downloads 318

Authors: Anu Shrestha, Krassi Rumchev, Ben Mullins, Yun Zhao, Linda Selvey

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Cycling is often promoted as a means of reducing vehicular congestion, noise and greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions in urban areas. It is also indorsed as a healthy means of transportation in terms of reducing the risk of developing a range of physical and psychological conditions. However, people who cycle regularly may not be aware that they can become exposed to high levels of Vehicular Air Pollutants (VAP) emitted by nearby traffics and therefore experience adverse health effects as a result. The study will highlight the present scenario of ambient air pollution level in different cycling routes in Perth and also highlight significant contribution to the understanding of health risks that cyclist may face from exposure to particulate air pollution. Methodology: This research was conducted in Perth, Western Austral and consisted of two groups of cyclists cycling near high (2 routes) and low (two routes) vehicular traffic roads, at high and low levels of exertion, during the cold and warm seasons. A sample size of 123 regular cyclists who cycled at least 80 km/week, aged 20-55, and non-smoker were selected for this study. There were altogether 100 male and 23 female who were asked to choose one or more routes among four different routes, and each participant cycled the route for warm or cold or both seasons. Cyclist who reported cardiovascular and other chronic health conditions (excluding asthma) were not invited into the study. Exposures to selected air pollutants were assessed by undertaking background and personal measurements alone with the measurement of heart and breathe rate of each participant. Finding: According to the preliminary study findings, the cyclists who used cycling route close to high traffic route were exposed to higher levels of measured air pollutants Nitrogen Oxide (NO₂) =0.12 ppm, sulfur dioxide (SO₂)=0.06 ppm and carbon monoxide (CO)=0.25 PPM compared to those who cycled away from busy roads. However, we measured high concentrations of particulate air pollution near one of the low traffic route which we associate with the close proximity to ferry station. Concluding Statement: As a conclusion, we recommend that cycling routes should be selected away from high traffic routes. If possible, we should also consider that if the cycling route is surrounded by the dense populated infrastructures, it can trap the pollutants and always facilitate in increasing inhalation of particle count among the cyclists.

Keywords: air pollution, carbon monoxide, cyclists' health, nitrogen dioxide, nitrogen oxide, respirable particulate matters

Procedia PDF Downloads 263

Authors: Rômulo Eustáquio Martins de Souza, Paulo Alexandre Rodrigues de Vasconcelos Figueiredo

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In recent years, there has been a surge in interest in applying artificial intelligence techniques, particularly machine learning algorithms. Machine learning is a data-analysis technique that automates the creation of analytical models, making it especially useful for designing complex situations. As a result, this technology aids in reducing human intervention while producing accurate results. This methodology is also extensively used in aerospace engineering since this is a field that encompasses several high-complexity operations, such as rocket propulsion. Rocket propulsion is a high-risk operation in which engine failure could result in the loss of life. As a result, it is critical to use computational methods capable of precisely representing the spacecraft's analytical model to guarantee its security and operation. Thus, this paper describes the use of machine learning algorithms for rocket propulsion to aid the realization that this technique is an efficient way to deal with challenging and restrictive aerospace engineering activities. The paper focuses on three machine-learning-aided rocket propulsion applications: set-point control of an expander-bleed rocket engine, supersonic retro-propulsion of a small-scale rocket, and leak detection and isolation on rocket engine data. This paper describes the data-driven methods used for each implementation in depth and presents the obtained results.

Keywords: data analysis, modeling, machine learning, aerospace, rocket propulsion

Procedia PDF Downloads 116

Authors: D. Mokhtari

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Any variation in environmental characteristics of geomorphosites would lead to destabilisation of their geotouristic values all around the planet. The Urmia lake, with an area of approximately 5,500 km2 and a catchment area of 51,876 km2, and to which various reasons over time, especially in the last fifty years have seen a sharp decline and have decreased by about 93 % in two recent decades. These variations are not only driving significant changes in the morphology and ecology of the present lake landscape, but at the same time are shaping newly formed morphologies, which vanished some valuable geomorphosites or develop into smaller geomorphosites with significant value from a scientific and cultural point of view. This paper analyses and discusses features and evolution in several representative coastal and island geomorphosites. For this purpose, a total of 23 geomorphosites were studied in two data series (1963 and 2015) and the respective data were compared and analysed. The results showed, The total loss in geomorphosites area in a half century amounted to a loss of more than 90% of the valuable geomorphosites. Moreover, the comparison between the mean yearly value of coastal area lost over the entire period and the yearly average calculated for the shorter period (1998-2014) clearly indicates a pattern of acceleration. This acceleration in the rate of reduction in lake area was seen in most of the southern half of the lake. In the region as well, the general water-level falling is not only causing the loss of a significant water resource, which is followed by major impact on regional ecosystems, but is also driving the most marked recent (last century) changes in the geotouristic landscapes. In fact, the disappearance of geomorphosites means the loss of tourism phenomenon. In this context attention must be paid to the question of conservation. The action needed to safeguard geomorphosites includes: 1) Preventive action, 2) Corrective action, and 3) Sharing knowledge.

Keywords: geomorphosite, environmental changes, changing lake, Urmia lake, northwest of Iran

Procedia PDF Downloads 378

Authors: Naser Ahmadi Sani, Karim Solaimani, Lida Razaghnia, Jalal Zandi

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In recent decades, rapid and incorrect changes in land-use have been associated with consequences such as natural resources degradation and environmental pollution. Detecting changes in land-use is one of the tools for natural resource management and assessment of changes in ecosystems. The target of this research is studying the land-use changes in Haraz basin with an area of 677000 hectares in a 15 years period (1996 to 2011) using LANDSAT data. Therefore, the quality of the images was first evaluated. Various enhancement methods for creating synthetic bonds were used in the analysis. Separate training sites were selected for each image. Then the images of each period were classified in 9 classes using supervised classification method and the maximum likelihood algorithm. Finally, the changes were extracted in GIS environment. The results showed that these changes are an alarm for the HARAZ basin status in future. The reason is that 27% of the area has been changed, which is related to changing the range lands to bare land and dry farming and also changing the dense forest to sparse forest, horticulture, farming land and residential area.

Keywords: Haraz basin, change detection, land-use, satellite data

Procedia PDF Downloads 415

Authors: S. R. Nikhashemi, Laily Haj Paim, Ali Khatibi

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Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to test a hypothesized model explaining Malaysian hypermarket customers’ perceptions of brand trust (BT), customer perceived value (CPV) and perceived service quality (PSQ) on building their brand loyalty (CBL) and generating positive word-of-mouth communication (WOM). Self-administered questionnaires were used to collect data from 374 Malaysian hypermarket customers from Mydin, Tesco, Aeon Big and Giant in Kuala Lumpur, a metropolitan city of Malaysia. The data strongly supported the model exhibiting that BT, CPV and PSQ are prerequisite factors in building customer brand loyalty, while PSQ has the strongest effect on prediction of customer brand loyalty compared to other factors. Besides, the present study suggests the effect of the aforementioned factors via customer brand loyalty strongly contributes to generate positive word of mouth communication.

Keywords: brand trust, perceived value, Perceived Service Quality, Brand loyalty, positive word of mouth communication

Procedia PDF Downloads 483

Authors: Pedro Paulo Galindo Francisco, Eli Dhadad Junior

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This study addresses the Meese-Rogoff Puzzle by introducing the latest machine learning techniques as alternatives for predicting the exchange rates. Using RMSE as a comparison metric, Meese and Rogoff discovered that economic models are unable to outperform the random walk model as short-term exchange rate predictors. Decades after this study, no statistical prediction technique has proven effective in overcoming this obstacle; although there were positive results, they did not apply to all currencies and defined periods. Recent advancements in artificial intelligence technologies have paved the way for a new approach to exchange rate prediction. Leveraging this technology, we applied five machine learning techniques to attempt to overcome the Meese-Rogoff puzzle. We considered daily data for the real, yen, British pound, euro, and Chinese yuan against the US dollar over a time horizon from 2010 to 2023. Our results showed that none of the presented techniques were able to produce an RMSE lower than the Random Walk model. However, the performance of some models, particularly LSTM and N-BEATS were able to outperform the ARIMA model. The results also suggest that machine learning models have untapped potential and could represent an effective long-term possibility for overcoming the Meese-Rogoff puzzle.

Keywords: exchage rate, prediction, machine learning, deep learning

Procedia PDF Downloads 33

Authors: Valentin P. Velikov

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Automatic program generation saves time, human resources, and allows receiving syntactically clear and logically correct modules. The 4-th generation programming languages are related to drawing the data and the processes of the subject area, as well as, to obtain a frame of the respective information system. The application can be separated in interface and business logic. That means, for an interactive generation of the needed system to be used an already existing toolkit or to be created a new one.

Keywords: computer science, graphical user interface, user dialog interface, dialog frames, data modeling, subject area modeling

Procedia PDF Downloads 306

Authors: Itsuo Yokoyama, Rika Kikuti, Naoko Watabe

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Introduction: It has been known that chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients can benefit from physical exercise during dialysis therapy improving aerobic capacity, muscle function, cardiovascular function, and overall health-related quality of life. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of dialysis rehabilitation. Materials and Methods: A total of 55 patients underwent two-hour resistance exercise training during each hemodialysis session for three consecutive months. Various routine clinical data were collected, including the calculation of the planar dimension of the muscle area in both upper legs at the level of the ischial bone. This area calculation was possible in 26 patients who had yearly plain abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans. DICOM files from the CT scans were used with 3D Slicer software for area calculation. An age and sex-matched group of 26 patients without dialysis rehabilitation also had yearly CT scans during the study period for comparison. Clinical data were compared between the two groups: Group A (rehabilitation) and Group B (non-rehabilitation). Results: There were no differences in basic laboratory data between the two groups. The average muscle area before and after rehabilitation in Group A was 212 cm² and 216 cm², respectively. In Group B, the average areas were 230.0 cm² and 225.8 cm². While there was no significant difference in absolute values, the average percentage increase in muscle area was +1.2% (ranging from -7.6% to 6.54%) for Group A and -2.0% (ranging from -12.1% to 4.9%) for Group B, which was statistically significant. In Group A, 9 of 26 were diabetic (DM), and 13 of 26 in Group B were non-DM. The increase in muscle area for DM patients was 4.9% compared to -0.7% for non-DM patients, which was significantly different. There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of nutritional assessment, Kt/V, or incidence of clinical complications such as cardiovascular events. Considerations: Dialysis rehabilitation has been reported to prevent muscle atrophy by increasing muscle fibers and capillaries. This study demonstrated that muscle volume increased after dialysis exercise, as evidenced by the increased muscle area in the thighs. Notably, diabetic patients seemed to benefit more from dialysis exercise than non-diabetics. Although this study is preliminary due to its relatively small sample size, it suggests that intradialytic physical training may improve insulin utilization in muscle fiber cells, particularly in type II diabetic patients where insulin receptor function and signaling are altered. Further studies are needed to investigate the detailed mechanisms underlying the muscle hypertrophic effects of dialysis exercise.

Keywords: dialysis, excercise, muscle, hypertrophy, diabetes, insulin

Procedia PDF Downloads 26

Authors: Alok Saini, Rajkumar Ghosh

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Water is nature's important resource for survival of all living things, but freshwater scarcity exists in some parts of world. This study has predicted that Gomti Nagar area (49.2 sq. km.) will harvest about 91110 ML of rainwater till 2051 (assuming constant and present annual rainfall). But 17.71 ML of rainwater was harvested from only 53 buildings in Gomti Nagar area in the year 2021. Water level will be increased (rise) by 13 cm in Gomti Nagar from such groundwater recharge. The total annual groundwater abstraction from Gomti Nagar area was 35332 ML (in 2021). Due to hydrogeological constraints and lower annual rainfall, groundwater recharge is less than groundwater abstraction. The recent scenario is only 0.07% of rainwater recharges by RTRWHs in Gomti Nagar. But if RTRWHs would be installed in all buildings then 12.39% of rainwater could recharge groundwater table in Gomti Nagar area. But if RTRWHs would be installed in all buildings then 12.39% of rainwater could recharge groundwater table in Gomti Nagar area. Gomti Nagar is situated in 'Zone–A' (water distribution area) and groundwater is the primary source of freshwater supply. Current scenario indicates only 0.07% of rainwater recharges by RTRWHs in Gomti Nagar. In Gomti Nagar, the difference between groundwater abstraction and recharge will be 735570 ML in 30 yrs. Statistically, all buildings at Gomti Nagar (new and renovated) could harvest 3037 ML of rainwater through RTRWHs annually. The most recent monsoonal recharge in Gomti Nagar was 10813 ML/yr. Harvested rainwater collected from RTRWHs can be used for rooftop irrigation, and residential kitchen and gardens (home grown fruit and vegetables). According to bylaws, RTRWH installations are required in both newly constructed and existing buildings plot areas of 300 sq. m or above. Harvested rainwater is of higher quality than contaminated groundwater. Harvested rainwater from RTRWHs can be considered water self-sufficient. Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting Systems (RTRWHs) are least expensive, eco-friendly, most sustainable, and alternative water resource for artificial recharge. This study also predicts about 3.9 m of water level rise in Gomti Nagar area till 2051, only when all buildings will install RTRWHs and harvest for groundwater recharging. As a result, this current study responds to an impact assessment study of RTRWHs implementation for the water scarcity problem in the Gomti Nagar area (1.36 sq.km.). This study suggests that common storage tanks (recharge wells) should be built for a group of at least ten (10) households and optimal amount of harvested rainwater will be stored annually. Artificial recharge from alternative water sources will be required to improve the declining water level trend and balance the groundwater table in this area. This over-exploitation of groundwater may lead to land subsidence, and development of vertical cracks.

Keywords: aquifer, aquitard, artificial recharge, bylaws, groundwater, monsoon, rainfall, rooftop rainwater harvesting system, RTRWHs water table, water level

Procedia PDF Downloads 100

Authors: Gayus Pratama Polunggu, Pamela Felita Adibrata, Hafidh Fathur Riza

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Opak Fault is a large fault that extends from the northeast to the southwest of Yogyakarta Special Region. Opak Fault allegedly re-active after the 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake, about eleven years ago. Opak Fault is a big fault, therefore the activation will bring up the microstructure around the Opak River. This microstructure will reveal a different direction of force from the Opak Fault because the trigger for the emergence of the microstructure is the reactivation of the Opak Fault. In other words, this microstructure is a potentially severe weak area during a tectonic disaster. This research was conducted to find out the impact from the reactivation of Opak Fault that triggered the emergence of microstructure around Opak River which is very useful for disaster mitigation information around research area. This research used the approach from literature study in the form of the journal of structural geology and field study. The method used is a laboratory analysis in the form of stereographic analysis.

Keywords: Opak fault, reactivation, microstructure, stereographic

Procedia PDF Downloads 185

Authors: Mahdi Shokrollahi

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Over the past years, much research has been conducted on the vulnerability of structures to earthquakes, which only horizontal components of the earthquake were considered in their seismic analysis and vertical earthquake acceleration especially in near-fault area was less considered. The investigation of the mappings shows that vertical earthquake acceleration can be significantly closer to the maximum horizontal earthquake acceleration, and even exceeds it in some cases. This study has compared the behavior of different members of three steel moment frame with a buckling-restrained brace (BRB), one time only by considering the horizontal component and again by considering simultaneously the horizontal and vertical components under the three mappings of the near-fault area and the effect of vertical acceleration on structural responses is investigated. Finally, according to the results, the vertical component of the earthquake has a greater effect on the axial force of the columns and the vertical displacement of the middle of the beams of the different classes and less on the lateral displacement of the classes.

Keywords: vertical earthquake acceleration, near-fault area, steel frame, horizontal and vertical component of earthquake, buckling-restrained brace

Procedia PDF Downloads 179

Authors: Barbosa M. L. S., von Ancken A. C. B., Coelho C. P.

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In order to improve the treatment of epileptic dogs, this case report aims toobjective todescribe the use of the homeopathic medicine Cicuta virosa for the treatmentof seizuresin dogs that already use allopathy to control them. Howeach patient presents symptoms individually, the choice of medicationhomeopathic treatment must also be individualized. He was treated in the municipality of RibeirãoPires, São Paulo - Brazil, an animal of the canine species, female, 7 years old, SRD, with a history of seizuregeneralized tonic-clonic for two years, with a variable frequency of 1-2 seizures perday. With no identifiable etiology, the patient used phenobarbital daily, and the dose ofmedication was increased according to the frequency of seizures. The serum concentration of phenobarbital within 12 hours of itsadministration via blood sample was within the range ofreference. The patient experienced weight gain and intermittent sedation. the choice ofhomeopathic medicine Cicuta virosa 6 cH, prepared according to the PharmacopoeiaBrazilian Homeopathic Medicine, occurred due to its characteristic action on the nervous system, especially in epileptic animals that present with seizures, spasmodic contractions of the muscles of the whole body starting from the head, mouth, extremely violent, with rigidity and opisthotonos, extreme agitation, contortionsmultiple. The animal was submitted to treatment with 2 globules orally twicea day for 30 days. The treatment resulted in a clinical cure as there was no moreseizures, being effective to control this symptom.

Keywords: homeopathy, cicuta virosa, epilepsy, veterinary medicine

Procedia PDF Downloads 107

Authors: Abraham Castro-Alvarez, Luisaldo Sandate-Flores, Roberto Parra-Saldivar

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The losing of crops during the whole production process is a problem that is affecting farmers in the whole world, as climate change affects the weather behavior. Stenocereus spp. is a tropical, exotic and endemic columnar cacti, it produces a colored and expensive fruit known how “pitaya”. The quality and value of the fruit, these species represent an attractive option for economical development in arid and semi-arid regions. This fruits are produced in Mexico, mainly in 4 regions, Mixteca Oaxaca-Puebla, Michoacan, Sinaloa-Sonora, Jalisco-Zacatecas. Pitaya can be an option to try mixed crop in this states due to the resistance to hard weather conditions. And also because of the marginalization problems that exist in these townships. As defined by the Population National Council it consists in the absence of development opportunities and the lack of capacity to get them. According to an analysis done in EsriPress ArcGis 10.1 the potential area in the country is almost the half of the territory being the total area of Mexico 1,965,249 km2 and the area with potential to produce pitaya 960,527 km2. This area covers part of the most affected townships that also have a few options of maize varieties making even harder the production of maize and exposing farmers to crop losing if conditions are good enough. Making pitaya a good option for these farmers to have an economic backup in their productions.

Keywords: maize, pitaya, rain fed, Stenocereus

Procedia PDF Downloads 318

Authors: Soheir El-Shazly, Gouda Abdelgawad, Yasser Salama, Dina Sayed

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Abstract- The Late Eocene rocks (Qasr El-Sagha ) Formation, north east of Birket Qarun in Fayum area of Egypt reveals 6 Ichnogenera Thalassinoides Ehrenberg, 1944, Ophiomorpha Lundgren (1891), Skolithos Haldemann (1840), Diplocraterion Torell, 1870, Arenicolites Salter, 1857 and Planolites Nicholson, 1873. These Ichnogenera are related to Skolithos ichnofacies of typical sandy shoreline environment, only the ichnogenus Planolites is related to Cruziana ichnofacies, which occurs in somewhat deeper water than the Skolithos ichnofacies. Four microfacies types have been distinguished from the study sections, Mudstone, Sandy micrite (wackstone), Sandy dolomitic ferruginous biomicrite (Packstone), Sandy glauconitic biomicrite (packstone). The ichnofacies and the microfacies study indicates that the study area was deposited in shelf lagoon with open circulation environment

Keywords: Egypt, Fayum, icnofacies, late eocene, microfacies

Procedia PDF Downloads 216

Authors: Gustavo J. Costa, Felipe J. Costa, Bruno L. Coelho, Ronaldo L. Cardoso, Rafael O. Santos, Israel S. Rêgo, Marco A. S. Minucci, Antonio C. Oliveira, Paulo G. P. Toro

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The Prof. Henry T. Nagamatsu Aerothermodynamics and Hipersonics Laboratory, of the Institute for Advanced Studies (IEAv) conducts research and development (R&D) of the Technological Demonstrator scramjet 14-X S, aiming atmospheric flight at 30 km altitude with the speed correspondent to Mach number 7, using scramjet technology providing hypersonic propulsion system based on supersonic combustion. Hypersonic aerospace vehicles with air-breathing supersonic propulsion system face extremal environments for super/hypersonic flights in terms of thermal and aerodynamic loads. Thus, it is necessary to use aerodynamic protection at the scramjet engine inlet to face the thermal and aerodynamic loads without compromising the efficiency of scramjet engine, taking into account: i) inlet design (boundary layer, oblique shockwave and reflected oblique shockwave); ii) wall temperature of the cowl and of the compression ramp; iii) supersonic flow into the combustion chamber. The aerodynamic protection of the scramjet engine inlet will act to prevent the engine unstart and match the predictions made by theoretical-analytical, numerical analysis and experimental research, during the atmospheric flight of the Technological Demonstrator scramjet 14-X S.

Keywords: 14-X, hypersonic, scramjet, supersonic combustion

Procedia PDF Downloads 426

Authors: Tammam A. Benmusa, Mohamed A. Shlibek, Rawad M. Swesi

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The investigation of Buildings Penetration Loss (BPL) of radio signal is getting more and more important. It plays an important role in calculating the indoor coverage for wireless communication networks. In this paper, the theory behind BPL and its mechanisms have been reviewed. The operating frequency, coverage area type, climate condition, time of measurement, and other factors affecting the values of BPL have been discussed. The practical part of this work was conducting 4000 measurements of BPL in different areas in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, to get empirical model for this loss. The measurements were taken for 2 different types of wireless communication networks; mobile telephone network (for Almadar company), which operates at 900 MHz and WiMAX network (LTT company) which operates at 2500 MHz. The results for each network were summarized and presented in several graphs. The graphs are showing how the BPL affected by: time of measurement, morphology (type of area), and climatic environment.

Keywords: building penetration loss, wireless network, mobile network, link budget, indoor network performance

Procedia PDF Downloads 386

Authors: Siti Hajar Ya’acob, Nor Sayzwani Sukri, Farah Khaliz Kedri, Rozidaini Mohd Ghazi, Nik Raihan Nik Yusoff, Aweng A/L Eh Rak

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Flood event that occurred in mid-December 2014 in East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia has driven attention from the public nationwide. Apart from loss and damage of properties and belongings, the massive flood event has introduced environmental disturbances on surface water resources in such flood affected area. A study has been conducted to measure the physical and chemical composition of Galas River and Pergau River prior to identification the flood impact towards environmental deterioration in surrounding area. Samples that have been collected were analyzed in-situ using YSI portable instrument and also in the laboratory for acid digestion and heavy metals analysis using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS). Results showed that range of temperature (0C), DO (mg/L), Ec (µs/cm), TDS (mg/L), turbidity (NTU), pH, and salinity were 25.05-26.65, 1.51-5.85, 0.032-0.054, 0.022-0.035, 23.2-76.4, 3.46-7.31, and 0.01-0.02 respectively. The results from this study could be used as a primary database to evaluate the status of water quality of the respective river after the massive flood.

Keywords: flood, river, heavy metals, AAS

Procedia PDF Downloads 382