Search results for: lethal range

Authors: Olufunmilola A. Abiodun, Adegbola O. Dauda, Ayobami Ojo, Samson A. Oyeyinka

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Blighia sapida (Ackee) seed is a neglected and under-utilised crop. The fruit is cultivated for the aril which is used as meat substitute in soup while the seed is discarded. The seed is toxic due to the presence of hypoglycin which causes vomiting and death. The seed is shining black and bigger than the legume seeds. The seed contains high starch content which could serve as a cheap source of starch hereby reducing wastage of the crop during its season. Native starch had limitation in their use; therefore, modification of starch had been reported to improve the functional properties of starches. Therefore, this work determined the effect of modification on the properties of Blighia sapida seed starch. Blighia sapida seed was dehulled manually, milled and the starch extracted using standard method. The starch was subjected to modification using four methods (acid, alkaline, oxidized and acetylated methods). The morphological structure, form factor, granule size, amylose, swelling power, hypoglycin and pasting properties of the starches were determined. The structure of Blighia sapida using light microscope showed that the seed starch demonstrated an oval, round, elliptical, dome-shaped and also irregular shape. The form factors of the starch ranged from 0.32-0.64. Blighia sapida seed starches were smaller in granule sizes ranging from 2-6 µm. Acid modified starch had the highest amylose content (24.83%) and was significantly different ( < 0.05) from other starches. Blighia sapida seed starches showed a progressive increase in swelling power as temperature increased in native, acidified, alkalized, oxidized and acetylated starches but reduced with increasing temperature in pregelatinized starch. Hypoglycin A ranged from 3.89 to 5.74 mg/100 g with pregelatinized starch having the lowest value and alkalized starch having the highest value. Hypoglycin B ranged from 7.17 to 8.47 mg/100 g. Alkali-treated starch had higher peak viscosity (3973 cP) which was not significantly different (p > 0.05) from the native starch. Alkali-treated starch also was significantly different (p > 0.05) from other starches in holding strength value while acetylated starch had higher breakdown viscosity (1161.50 cP). Native starch was significantly different (p > 0.05) from other starches in final and setback viscosities. Properties of Blighia sapida modified starches showed that it could be used as a source of starch in food and other non-food industries and the toxic compound found in the starch was very low when compared to lethal dosage.

Keywords: Blighia sapida seed, modification, starch, hypoglycin

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Authors: Medalson Ronghang, Pranjal Barman, Heemantajeet Medhi

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Bank filtration (BF) being a natural method of abstracting surface water from the river or lake via sub-surface. It can be intensively used and operated under various operating conditions for sustainability. Field investigations were carried out at various location of Kokrajhar (Assam) and Srinagar (Uttarakhand) to assess the ground water and their bank filtration wells to compare and characterized the quality. Results obtained from the analysis of the data suggest that major water quality parameter were much below the drinking water standard of BIS 10500 (2012). However, the iron concentration was found to be more than permissible limit in more than 50% of the sampled hand pump; the concentration ranged between 0.33-3.50 mg/L with acidic in nature (5.4 to 7.4) in Kokrajhar and high nitrate in Srinagar. But the abstracted water from the RBF wells has attenuated water quality with no iron concentration in Kokrajhar. The aquifers and riverbed material collected along the bank of Rivers Gaurang and Alaknanda were sieved and classified as coarse silt to medium gravel. The hydraulic conductivity was estimated in the range 5×10⁻³ to 1.4×10⁻²- 3.09×10⁻⁴-1.29 ×10⁻³ for Kokrajhar and Srinagar respectively suggesting a good permeability of the aquifer. The maximum safe yield of the well was estimated to be in the range of 4000 to 7500 L/min. This paper aims at demonstrating bank filtration method as an alternative to mineralized groundwater for drinking water.

Keywords: Riverbank filtration, mineralization, water quality, groundwater

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Authors: Reina Kawase

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Japan set the goal of 80% reduction in GHG emissions by 2050. To consider countermeasures for reducing GHG emission, the production estimation of energy intensive materials, such as steel, is essential. About 50% of steel production is exported in Japan, so it is necessary to consider steel production including export. Steel productions from 2005-2050 in Japan were estimated under various global assumptions based on combination of scenarios such as goods trade scenarios and steel making process selection scenarios. Process selection scenarios decide volume of steel production by process (basic oxygen furnace and electric arc furnace) with considering steel consumption projection, supply-demand balance of steel, and scrap surplus. The range of steel production by process was analyzed. Maximum steel production was estimated under the scenario which consumes scrap in domestic steel production at maximum level. In 2035, steel production reaches 149 million ton because of increase in electric arc furnace steel. However, it decreases towards 2050 and amounts to 120 million ton, which is almost same as a current level. Minimum steel production is under the scenario which assumes technology progress in steel making and supply-demand balance consideration in each region. Steel production decreases from base year and is 44 million ton in 2050.

Keywords: goods trade scenario, steel making process selection scenario, steel production, global warming

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Authors: Prajna Paramita Mohapatra, Pamu Dobbidi

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Lithium ferrite (LiFe5O8) has potential applications as a component of microwave magnetic devices such as circulators and monolithic integrated circuits. For efficient device applications, spinel ferrites in the form of thin films are highly required. It is necessary to improve their magnetic and dielectric behavior by optimizing the processing parameters during deposition. The lithium ferrite thin films are deposited on Pt/Si substrate using the pulsed laser deposition technique (PLD). As controlling the film thickness is the easiest parameter to tailor the strain, we deposited the thin films having different film thicknesses (160 nm, 200 nm, 240 nm) at oxygen partial pressure of 0.001 mbar. The formation of single phase with spinel structure (space group - P4132) is confirmed by the XRD pattern and the Rietveld analysis. The optical bandgap is decreased with the increase in thickness. FESEM confirmed the formation of uniform grains having well separated grain boundaries. Further, the film growth and the roughness are analyzed by AFM. The root-mean-square (RMS) surface roughness is decreased from 13.52 nm (160 nm) to 9.34 nm (240 nm). The room temperature magnetization is measured with a maximum field of 10 kOe. The saturation magnetization is enhanced monotonically with an increase in thickness. The magnetic resonance linewidth is obtained in the range of 450 – 780 Oe. The dielectric response is measured in the frequency range of 104 – 106 Hz and in the temperature range of 303 – 473 K. With an increase in frequency, the dielectric constant and the loss tangent of all the samples decreased continuously, which is a typical behavior of conventional dielectric material. The real part of the dielectric constant and the dielectric loss is increased with an increase in thickness. The contribution of grain and grain boundaries is also analyzed by employing the equivalent circuit model. The highest dielectric constant is obtained for the film having a thickness of 240 nm at 104 Hz. The obtained results demonstrate that desired response can be obtained by tailoring the film thickness for the microwave magnetic devices.

Keywords: PLD, optical response, thin films, magnetic response, dielectric response

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Authors: Halison da Silva Pereira, Ciro Sobrinho Campolina Martins, Vitor Mainenti Leal Lopes

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Long range performance is a goal for aircraft configuration optimization. Blended Wing Body (BWB) is presented in many works of literature as the most aerodynamically efficient design for a fixed-wing aircraft. Because of its high weight to thrust ratio, BWB is the ideal configuration for many Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) missions on geomatics applications. In this work, a BWB aerodynamic design for typical light geomatics payload is presented. Aerodynamic non-dimensional coefficients are predicted using low Reynolds number computational techniques (3D Panel Method) and wing parameters like aspect ratio, taper ratio, wing twist and sweep are optimized for high cruise performance and flight quality. The methodology of this work is a summary of tailless aircraft wing design and its application, with appropriate computational schemes, to light UAV subjected to low Reynolds number flows leads to conclusions like the higher performance and flight quality of thicker airfoils in the airframe body and the benefits of using aerodynamic twist rather than just geometric.

Keywords: blended wing body, low Reynolds number, panel method, UAV

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Authors: Andres M. Tuates Jr., Ofero A. Caparino

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Plastics have achieved a dominant position in agriculture because of their transparency, lightness in weight, impermeability to water and their resistance to microbial attack. However, this generates a higher quantity of wastes that are difficult to dispose of by farmers. To address these problems, the project aim to develop and evaluate the biodegradable film for mango fruit bag during development. The PBS and starch were melt-blended in a twin-screw extruder and then blown into film extrusion machine. The physic-chemical-mechanical properties of biodegradable fruit bag were done following standard methods of test. Field testing of fruit bag was also conducted to evaluate its durability and efficiency field condition. The PHilMech-FiC fruit bag is made of biodegradable material measuring 6 x 8 inches with a thickness of 150 microns. The tensile strength is within the range of LDPE while the elongation is within the range of HDPE. It is projected that after thirty-six (36) weeks, the film will be totally degraded. Results of field testing show that the quality of harvested fruits using PHilMech-FiC biodegradable fruit bag in terms of percent marketable, non-marketable and export, peel color at the ripe stage, flesh color, TSS, oBrix, percent edible portion is comparable with the existing bagging materials such as Chinese brown paper bag and old newspaper.

Keywords: cassava starch, PBS, biodegradable, chemical, mechanical properties

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Authors: Miladi Yasmine, Bouhlel Salah, David Banks

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The Hammam Zriba (F-Ba-Sr-Pb-Zn) ore deposits of the Zaghouan district are located in northeast Tunisia, 60 Km south of Tunis. The host rocks belong to the Ressas Formation (Tithonian age) and lower Cretaceous layers. Mineralization occurs as stratiform replacement heaps and lenses. The mineral assemblage is composed of fluorite, barite, sphalerite, and galena. Primary fluid inclusions in sphalerite have homogenization temperatures ranging from 83 to 140°C, final melting temperature range from −18 to −7.0, corresponding to salinities of 5 to 21 wt % NaCl equivalent. Fluid inclusions in fluorite homogenize to the liquid phase between 132 and 178°C. Final ice melting temperatures range from −25 to −6.8 °C, corresponding to salinities between 17 and 24 wt% NaCl Equivalent. The LA-ICP-MS analyses of the fluid inclusions in fluorite show that these fluids are dominated by Na>Ca>K>Mg, with the concentration of Fe being equivalent to that of Mg. Microthermometric analyses of the fluid inclusions observed in fluorite and sphalerite show that two distinct fluids were involved in the mineralization deposition: a warmer saline fluid (132-178°C, 17-24 wt % NaCl equivalent) and cooler saline fluid (83°C-140, 5-21 wt %NaCl equivalent). The ore fluid result from highly saline and Na-Ca dominated with lower Mg concentrations come from the leaching of the dolomitic host rocks by the fluids.

Keywords: Hammam Zriba , fluid inclusions, LA-ICP-MS, Zaghouan district

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Authors: Lingxiao Yang, Xin Wang, Bo Xu, Zhenqian Chen

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Due to its outstanding environmental performance, higher heating temperature and excellent low-temperature performance, transcritical carbon dioxide (CO₂) heat pumps are receiving more and more attention. However, improperly set operating parameters have a serious negative impact on the performance of the transcritical CO₂ heat pump due to the properties of CO₂. In this study, the heat transfer characteristics of the gas cooler are studied based on the modified “three-stage” gas cooler, then the effect of three operating parameters, compressor speed, gas cooler water-inlet flowrate and gas cooler water-inlet temperature, on the heating process of the system are investigated from the perspective of thermal quality and heat capacity. The results shows that: In the heat transfer process of gas cooler, the temperature distribution of CO₂ and water shows a typical “two region” and “three zone” pattern; The rise in the cooling pressure of CO₂ serves to increase the thermal quality on the CO₂ side of the gas cooler, which in turn improves the heating temperature of the system; Nevertheless, the elevated thermal quality on the CO₂ side can exacerbate the mismatch of heat capacity on both sides of the gas cooler, thereby adversely affecting the system coefficient of performance (COP); Furthermore, increasing compressor speed mitigates the mismatch in heat capacity caused by elevated thermal quality, which is exacerbated by decreasing gas cooler water-inlet flowrate and rising gas cooler water-inlet temperature; As a delegate, the varying compressor speed results in a 7.1°C increase in heating temperature within the experimental range, accompanied by a 10.01% decrease in COP and an 11.36% increase in heating capacity. This study can not only provide an important reference for the theoretical analysis and control strategy of the transcritical CO₂ heat pump, but also guide the related simulation and the design of the gas cooler. However, the range of experimental parameters in the current study is small and the conclusions drawn are not further analysed quantitatively. Therefore, expanding the range of parameters studied and proposing corresponding quantitative conclusions and indicators with universal applicability could greatly increase the practical applicability of this study. This is also the goal of our next research.

Keywords: transcritical CO₂ heat pump, gas cooler, heat capacity, thermal quality

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Authors: D. S. Naumann, B. J. Evans, O. Hassan

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This paper outlines the development of an automated aerodynamic optimisation algorithm using a novel method of parameterising a computational mesh by employing user–defined control nodes. The shape boundary movement is coupled to the movement of the novel concept of the control nodes via a quasi-1D-linear deformation. Additionally, a second order smoothing step has been integrated to act on the boundary during the mesh movement based on the change in its second derivative. This allows for both linear and non-linear shape transformations dependent on the preference of the user. The domain mesh movement is then coupled to the shape boundary movement via a Delaunay graph mapping. A Modified Cuckoo Search (MCS) algorithm is used for optimisation within the prescribed design space defined by the allowed range of control node displacement. A finite volume compressible NavierStokes solver is used for aerodynamic modelling to predict aerodynamic design fitness. The resulting coupled algorithm is applied to a range of test cases in two dimensions including the design of a subsonic, transonic and supersonic intake and the optimisation approach is compared with more conventional optimisation strategies. Ultimately, the algorithm is tested on a three dimensional wing optimisation case.

Keywords: mesh movement, aerodynamic shape optimization, cuckoo search, shape parameterisation

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Authors: Sasan Ghafaribijar, Javad Hakimi, Mohsen Arvin, Peyman Tahernezhad

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The Lar Igneous Suite (LIS), east of Iran, is part of post collisional alkaline magmatism related to Late Cretaceous- mid Eocene Sistan suture zone. The suite consists of a wide variety of igneous rocks, from volcanic to intrusive and hypabissal rocks such as tuffs, trachyte, monzonite, syenites and lamprophyres. Syenitic rocks which mainly occur in a giant ring dike and stocks, are shoshonitic to potassic-ultrapotassic (K₂O/Na₂O > 2 wt.%; MgO > 3 wt.%; K₂O > 3 wt.%) in composition and are also associated with Cu-Mo mineralization. In this study, chemical composition of biotites within the Lar syenites (LS) is determined by electron microprobe analysis. The results show that LS biotites are Ti-Mg-biotites (phlogopite) which contain relatively high Ti and Mg, and low Fe concentrations. The Mg/(Fe²⁺+ Mg) ratio in these biotites range between 0.56 and 0.73 that represent their transitionally chemical evolution. TiO₂ content in these biotites is high and in the range of 3.0-5.4 wt.%. These chemical characteristics indicate that the LS biotites are primary and have been crystallized directly from magma. The investigations also demonstrate that the LS biotites have crystallized from a magma of orogenic nature. Temperature and pressure are the most significant factors controlling Mg and Ti content in the LS biotites, respectively. The results show that the LS biotites crystallized at temperatures (T) between 800 to 842 °C and pressures (P) between 0.99 to 1.44 kbar. These conditions are indicative of a crystallization depth of 3.26-4.74 km.

Keywords: sistan suture zone, Lar Igneous Suite, zahedan, syenite, biotite

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Authors: Adele Broodryk, Cindy Pienaar, Martinique Sparks, Ben Coetzee

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Background: Cold water immersion (CWI) is a popular recovery modality utilised. However, discrepancies exist regarding the results over a 48 hour recovery period. Aim: To evaluate the effects of CWI and passive recovery (PAR) on a range of haematological and physical parameters over a 48-hour using a cross-sectional, pre-post-test design. Subjects and Methods: Both the and physical parameters were evaluated at baseline, after a 15-min fitness session, and at 0, 24 and 48 hours post-recovery in 23 male university rugby players. The CWI group sat in a cold water pool (8°C) for 20 min whereas the PAR group remained seated. Results: At 0 hours post-CWI, three (blood lactate (BLa-), Sodium (Na+) and haemoglobin) returned to baseline values, however Vertical Jump Test (VJT) height results decreased whereas after PAR it improved. From 0 to 24 and/or 48 h, four (Partial Oxygen (PO2) VJT-height, plasma glucose, and Na+) significantly increased (p ≤ 0.05) in either and/or both groups. Significant intergroup differences (p ≤ 0.05) were noticed in the physical tests. Conclusions: PAR is superior as an acute modality (0 hours) due to CWI cooling the body down. However, CWI demonstrates advantageous over a 24-hour period in a wide range of haematological variables.

Keywords: cryotherapy, recuperation, haematological, rugby

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Authors: Auxeeliya Jesudoss, Ashraph Sulaiman, Ratnakar Kotnana

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V2V communication brings up several questions of scalability issues although message sharing in vehicular ad-hoc networks comprises of both Vehicle-to-Vehicle communications (V2V) and Vehicle to Infrastructure communication (V2I). It is not an easy task for a vehicle to verify all signatures of the messages sent by its neighboring vehicles in a timely manner, without resulting in message loss. Moreover, the communication overhead of a vehicle to authenticate another vehicle would increase together with the security of the system. Another issue to be addressed is the continuous mobility of vehicles which requires at least some information on the node’s own position to be revealed to the neighboring vehicles. This may facilitate the attacker to congregate information on a node’s position or its mobility patterns. In order to tackle these issues, this paper introduces a RSU aggregated message deliverance scheme called RAMeD. With RAMeD, roadside units (RSUs) are responsible for verifying the identity of the vehicles entering in its range, collect messages from genuine vehicles and to aggregate similar messages into groups before sending them to all the vehicles in its communication range. This aggregation will tremendously improve the rate of message delivery and reduce the message lose ratio by avoiding similar messages being sent to the vehicles redundantly. The proposed protocol is analyzed extensively to evaluate its merits and efficiency for vehicular communication.

Keywords: vehicular ad-hoc networks, V2V, V2I, VANET communication, scalability, message aggregation

Procedia PDF Downloads 408

Authors: Rajeshwar S. Matche, Subhash V. Pawde, Suraj P, Sachin R. Chaudhari

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Time Temperature Indicator’s (TTI) are trending approach in a food packaging that will be insightful to have safe and hygienic food products. Currently, available TTI in the market are mostly a product specific and sometime even difficult to handle especially in supply chain as these are pre-activated and require specific storage conditions. In the present study, research focus is on the development of a cost-effective lactic acid based TTI that can work over a wide range of temperature and can be activated at time of packaging or on demand. The correlation between activation energies of colour change of the developed indicator and packed pasteurized milk spoilage with respect to time and temperature was established. Developed lactic acid based TTI strips have range of activation energy from 10.13 to 24.20 KJ/mol. We found that the developed TTI strip’s with activation energy 12.42, and 14.41KJ/mol can be correlated with spoilage activation energy of packed pasteurized milk which was 25.71 KJ/mol with factor of 2 at storage temperature 4°C. The implementation of these TTI on packed pasteurized milk allow us see visual colour change during the storage and can be fruitful to monitoring quality of the milk and understand its freshness especially in a cold supply chain, viz distributor and road vendor etc.

Keywords: pasteurised packed milk, time temperature indicator, spoilage, freshness

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Authors: Sourav Ghosh, Antony Gomes

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Since 1894 anti-snake venom serum (ASVS) is the only available treatment against snake envenomation, although there are many side effects and limitations. The need for a supportive treatment was felt for a long time to overcome the side effects and limitations of ASVS. Andrographolide conjugated with gold nanoparticle (A-GNP) has been found to antagonize viper venom-induced local damages. The present study was aimed to study the protective efficacy of A-GNP against Viper venom-induced inflammatory response and organ toxicity in animal model. Ethical clearance was obtained from animal experiments. Physico-chemical characterization of A-GNP was done by DLS (diameter and zeta potential), FE-SEM and XRD. Swiss albino male mice were divided into 4 groups: Gr.1-Sham control, Gr.2- Russell’s Viper venom (RVV) control, Gr.3- andrographolide treated and Gr.4- A-GNP treated. The 1/5th minimum lethal dose of RVV (500µg/kg, s.c.) was induced in animals of group 2, 3 & 4 animals, followed by treatment with andrographolide (100mg/kg, i.p.) and A-GNP (100mg/kg, i.v.) in group 3 & 4 animals, respectively. Blood was collected after 18 h, serum was prepared, and inflammatory markers (IL 1β, 6, 17a, 10, TNF α) and biochemical markers (AST, ACP, LDH, urea, creatinine) were assessed. Values were expressed as mean±SEM (n=4), one way ANOVA was done, P<0.05 was considered as statistically significant. DLS size showed the hydrodynamic diameter of A-GNP to be 230-260nm with polydispersity index of 0.103 and zeta potential was -18.32mV. XRD data confirmed the presence of crystalline gold in A-GNP, and FESEM indicated the presence of nearly spherical particle with size18-24nm.Treatment with A-GNP significantly decreased viper venom-induced proinflammatory markers (IL 1β, 6, 17, TNF α) increased anti-inflammatory markers (IL 10) and decreased organ toxicity markers (AST, ACP, LDH, urea, creatinine) in animal model. Venom neutralization efficacy of A-GNP was > andrographolide, which confirmed the increased efficacy of andrographolide after gold nanoparticle conjugation. Venom neutralization by A-GNP was due to anti-oxidant/anti-inflammatory activity of andrographolide, which showed increased efficacy after gold nanoparticle tagging. Thus, A-GNP may serve as a supportive therapy in snake-bite (against inflammatory response and organ toxicity) subject to further detail studies.

Keywords: andrographolide, gold nanoparticle, inflammatory response, organ toxicity, snake venom, snake venom neutralization, viper venom

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Authors: Hagen Stosnach

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The analytical demands on modern instruments for element analysis in food samples include the analysis of major, trace and ultra-trace essential elements as well as potentially toxic trace elements. In this study total reflection, X-ray fluorescence analysis (TXRF) is presented as an analytical technique, which meets the requirements, defined by the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists (AOAC) regarding the limit of quantification, repeatability, reproducibility and recovery for most of the target elements. The advantages of TXRF are the small sample mass required, the broad linear range from µg/kg up to wt.-% values, no consumption of gases or cooling water, and the flexible and easy sample preparation. Liquid samples like alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages can be analyzed without any preparation. For solid food samples, the most common sample pre-treatment methods are mineralization, direct deposition of the sample onto the reflector without/with minimal treatment, mainly as solid suspensions or after extraction. The main disadvantages are due to the possible peaks overlapping, which may lower the accuracy of quantitative analysis and the limit in the element identification. This analytical technique will be presented by several application examples, covering a broad range of liquid and solid food types.

Keywords: essential elements, toxic metals, XRF, spectroscopy

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Authors: Xiaosheng Chen, Jingjing Chen, Phil Reed, Dan Zhang

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Conscious intention can be a promising point cut to grasp consciousness and orient voluntary action. The current study adopted a random ratio (RR), yoked random interval (RI) reinforcement learning schedule instead of the previous highly repeatable and single decision point paradigms, aimed to induce voluntary action with the conscious intention that evolves from the interaction between short-range-intention and long-range-intention. Readiness potential (RP) -like-EEG amplitude and inter-trial-EEG variability decreased significantly prior to voluntary action compared to cued action for inter-trial-EEG variability, mainly featured during the earlier stage of neural activities. Notably, (RP) -like-EEG amplitudes decreased significantly prior to higher RI-reward rates responses in which participants formed a higher plane of conscious intention. The present study suggests the possible contribution of conscious intention-based processes to the neural activities from the earlier stage prior to voluntary action on reinforcement leanring schedule.

Keywords: Reinforcement leaning schedule, voluntary action, EEG, conscious intention, readiness potential

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Authors: Laima Zakaraite, Vaidas Morkevicius

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The COVID-19 pandemic brought important and pressing challenges for politicians around the world. Governments, parliaments, and political leaders had to make quick decisions about containment of the pandemic, usually without clear knowledge about the factual spread of the virus, the possible expected speed of spread, and levels of mortality. Opinions of experts were also divided, as some advocated for ‘herd immunity’ without closing down the economy and public life, and others supported the idea of strict lockdown. The debates about measures of pandemic containment were heated and involved strong moral tensions with regard to the possible outcomes. This paper proposes to study the manifestations of moral imagination in the political debates regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. Importantly, moral imagination is associated with twofold abilities of a decision-making actor: the ability to discern the moral aspects embedded within a situation and the ability to envision a range of possibilities alternative solutions to the situation from a moral perspective. The concept was most thoroughly investigated in business management studies. However, its relevance for the study of political decision-making is also rather clear. The results of the study show to what extent politicians are able to discern the wide range of moral issues related to a situation (in this case, consequences of COVID-19 pandemic in a country) and how broad (especially, from a moral perspective) are discussions of the possible solutions proposed for solving the problem (situation). Arguably, political discussions and considerations are broader and affected by a wider and more varied range of actors and ideas compared to decision making in the business management sector. However, the debates and ensuing solutions may also be restricted by ideological maxims and advocacy of special interests. Therefore, empirical study of policy proposals and their debates might reveal the actual breadth of moral imagination in political discussions. For this purpose, we carried out the qualitative study of the parliamentary debates related to the COVID-19 pandemic in Lithuania during the first wave (containment of which was considered very successful) and at the beginning and consequent acceleration of the second wave (when the spread of the virus became uncontrollable).

Keywords: decision making, moral imagination, political debates, political decision

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Authors: Fazilet Alachaher (Benzerdjeb)

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From the chalkboard to the abacus and beyond, technology has always played an important role in education. Educational technology refers to any teaching tool that helps supports learning, and given the rapid advancements in Information Technology and multimedia applications, the potential to support the teaching of foreign languages in our universities is ever greater. In language teaching and learning, we have a lot of to choose from the world of technology: TV, CDs, DVDs, Computers, the Internet, Email, and Blogs. The use of modern technologies can enrich the experience of learning a foreign language because they provide features that are not present in traditional technology. They can offer a wide range of multimedia resources, opportunities for intensive one-to-one learning in language labs and resources for authentic materials, which can be motivating to both students and teachers. The advent of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and online interaction can also open up new range of self-access and distance learning opportunities The two last decades have witnessed a revolution due to the onset of technology, and has changed the dynamics of various industries, and has also influenced the way people live and work in society. That is why using the multimedia to create a certain context to teach English has its unique advantages. This paper tries then to analyse the necessity of multimedia technology to language teaching and brings out the problems faced by using these technologies. It also aims at making English teachers aware of the strategies to use it in an effective manner.

Keywords: strategies English teaching, multimedia technology, advantages, disadvantages, English learning

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Authors: Meghdad Payan, Kostas Senetakis, Arman Khoshghalb, Nasser Khalili

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Dynamic properties of soils, especially at the range of very small strains, are of particular interest in geotechnical engineering practice for characterization of the behavior of geo-structures subjected to a variety of stress states. This study reports on the small-strain dynamic properties of sand-silt mixtures with particular emphasis on the effect of non-plastic fines content on the small strain shear modulus (Gmax), Young’s Modulus (Emax), material damping (Ds,min) and Poisson’s Ratio (v). Several clean sands with a wide range of grain size characteristics and particle shape are mixed with variable percentages of a silica non-plastic silt as fines content. Prepared specimens of sand-silt mixtures at different initial void ratios are subjected to sequential torsional and flexural resonant column tests with elastic dynamic properties measured along an isotropic stress path up to 800 kPa. It is shown that while at low percentages of fines content, there is a significant difference between the dynamic properties of the various samples due to the different characteristics of the sand portion of the mixtures, this variance diminishes as the fines content increases and the soil behavior becomes mainly silt-dominant, rendering no significant influence of sand properties on the elastic dynamic parameters. Indeed, beyond a specific portion of fines content, around 20% to 30% typically denoted as threshold fines content, silt is controlling the behavior of the mixture. Using the experimental results, new expressions for the prediction of small-strain dynamic properties of sand-silt mixtures are developed accounting for the percentage of silt and the characteristics of the sand portion. These expressions are general in nature and are capable of evaluating the elastic dynamic properties of sand-silt mixtures with any types of parent sand in the whole range of silt percentage. The inefficiency of skeleton void ratio concept in the estimation of small-strain stiffness of sand-silt mixtures is also illustrated.

Keywords: damping ratio, Poisson’s ratio, resonant column, sand-silt mixture, shear modulus, Young’s modulus

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Authors: Kanika Sharma, Shaila Bahl, Birendra Singh, Pratik Kumar, S. P. Lochab, A. Pandey

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In the present investigation, initially nano-particles of CaF2 were prepared by the chemical co-precipitation method and later the prepared salt was activated by thulium (0.1 mol%) using the combustion technique. The final product was characterized and confirmed by X-Ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Further, the thermoluminescence (TL) properties of the nanophosphor were studied by irradiating it with 1.25 MeV of gamma radiation and 65 MeV of carbon (C6+) ion beam. For gamma rays, two prominent TL peaks were observed with a low temperature peak at around 1070C and a high temperature peak at around 1570C. Furthermore, the nanophosphor maintained a linear TL response for the entire range of studied doses i.e. 10 Gy to 2000 Gy for both the temperature peaks. Moreover, when the nanophosphor was irradiated with 65 MeV of C6+ ion beam the shape and structure of the glow curves remained spectacularly similar and the nanophosphor displayed a linear TL response for the full range of studied fluences i.e. 5*1010 ions/cm2 to 1 *1012 ions/ cm2. Finally, various tests like reproducibility test and batch homogeneity were also carried out to define the final product. Thus, co-precipitation method followed by combustion technique was successful in effectively producing dosimetric grade CaF2:Tm for dosimetry of gamma as well as carbon (C6+) beam.

Keywords: gamma radiation, ion beam, nanocrystalline, radiation dosimetry

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Authors: Shoumodip Roy, Ankit Singhania, Santanu Mallick, Abhiram Jha, M. K. Agarwal, R. V. Ramna, Uttam Singh

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The quality of hot metal at any blast furnace is judged by the silicon content in it. Lower hot metal silicon not only enhances process efficiency at steel melting shops but also reduces hot metal costs. The Hot metal produced at G-Blast furnace Tata Steel Jamshedpur has a significantly higher Si content than Benchmark Blast furnaces. The higher content of hot metal Si is mainly due to inferior raw material quality than those used in benchmark blast furnaces. With minimum control over raw material quality, the only option left to control hot metal Si is via optimizing the furnace parameters. Therefore, in order to identify the levers to reduce hot metal Si, Data mining was carried out, and multiple regression models were developed. The statistical analysis revealed that Slag B3{(CaO+MgO)/SiO2}, Slag Alumina and Hot metal temperature are key controllable parameters affecting hot metal silicon. Contour Plots were used to determine the optimum range of levels identified through statistical analysis. A trial plan was formulated to operate relevant parameters, at G blast furnace, in the identified range to reduce hot metal silicon. This paper details out the process followed and subsequent reduction in hot metal silicon by 15% at G blast furnace.

Keywords: blast furnace, optimization, silicon, statistical tools

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Authors: M. R. Noor El-Din, Marwa R. Mishrif, R. E. Morsi, E. A. El-Sharaky, M. E. Haseeb, Rania T. M. Ghanem

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This paper studies the physical and rheological behaviours of water/in/diesel fuel nanoemulsions prepared by modified low energy method. Twenty of water/in/diesel fuel nanoemulsions were prepared using mixed nonionic surfactants of sorbitan monooleate and polyoxyethylene sorbitan trioleate (MTS) at Hydrophilic-Lipophilic Balance (HLB) value of 10 and a working temperature of 20°C. The influence of the prepared nanoemulsions on the physical properties such as kinematic viscosity, density, and calorific value was studied. Also, nanoemulsion systems were subjected to rheological evaluation. The effect of water loading percentage (5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 wt.%) on rheology was assessed at temperatures range from 20 to 60°C with temperature interval of 10 for time lapse 0, 1, 2 and 3 months, respectively. Results show that all of the sets nanoemulsions exhibited a Newtonian flow character of low-shear viscosity in the range of 132 up to 191 1/s, and followed by a shear-thinning region with yield value (Non-Newtonian behaviour) at high shear rate for all water ratios (5 to 10 wt.%) and at all test temperatures (20 to 60°C) for time ageing up to 3 months. Also, the viscosity/temperature relationship of all nanoemulsions fitted well Arrhenius equation with high correlation coefficients that ascertain their Newtonian behavior.

Keywords: alternative fuel, nanoemulsion, surfactant, diesel fuel

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Authors: Robert J. Thomas, Colton Bedke, Andrew Sorensen

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The exemplary mechanical performance and durability of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) has led to its rapid emergence as an advanced cementitious material. The uncharacteristically high mechanical strength and ductility of UHPC makes it a promising potential material for defense structures which may be subject to highly dynamic loads like impact or blast. However, the mechanical response of UHPC under dynamic loading has not been fully characterized. In particular, there is a need to characterize the energy absorption of UHPC under high-frequency shear loading. This paper presents preliminary results from a parametric study of the dynamic shear energy absorption of UHPC using the Charpy impact test. UHPC mixtures with compressive strengths in the range of 100-150 MPa exhibited dynamic shear energy absorption in the range of 0.9-1.5 kJ/m. Energy absorption is shown to be sensitive to the water/cement ratio, silica fume content, and aggregate gradation. Energy absorption was weakly correlated to compressive strength. Results are highly sensitive to specimen preparation methods, and there is a demonstrated need for a standardized test method for high frequency shear in cementitious composites.

Keywords: Charpy impact test, dynamic shear, impact loading, ultra-high performance concrete

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Authors: Mohammad Farooq Wani

Abstract:

Tribological studies on nano-sized ß-silicon nitride+5% BN were carried out in dry air at high temperatures to clarify the lack of consensus in the bibliographic data concerning the Tribological behavior of Si3N4 ceramics and effect of doped hexagonal boron nitride on coefficient of friction and wear coefficient at different loads and elevated temperatures. The composites were prepared via high energy mechanical milling and subsequent spark plasma sintering using Y2O3 and Al2O3 as sintering additives. After sintering, the average crystalline size of Si3N4 was observed to be 50 nm. Tribological tests were performed with temperature and Friction coefficients 0.16 to 1.183 and 0.54 to 0.71 were observed for Nano-sized ß-silicon nitride+5% BN composite under normal load of 10N-70 N and over high temperature range of 350 ºC-550 ºC respectively. Specific wear coefficients from 1.33x 10-4 mm3N-1m-1 to 4.42x 10-4 mm3N-1m-1 were observed for Nano-sized Si3N4 + 5% BN composite against Si3N4 ball as tribo-pair counterpart over high temperature range of 350 ºC-550 ºC while as under normal load of 10N to70N Specific wear coefficients of 6.91x 10-4 mm3N-1m-1 to 1.70x 10-4 were observed. The addition of BN to the Si3N4 composite resulted in a slight reduction of the friction coefficient and lower values of wear coefficient.

Keywords: ceramics, tribology, friction and wear, solid lubrication

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Authors: Ivanova B. Natalia, Djambova Т. Svetlana, Hristev S. Ivailo

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The acoustic properties of recycled felt panels have been investigated using various methods. Experimentally, the sound insulation of the panels has been evaluated for frequencies in the range of 600 Hz to 4000 Hz, utilizing a small-sized acoustic chamber. Additionally, the sound absorption coefficient for the frequency range of 63 Hz to 4000 Hz was measured according to the EN ISO 354 standard in a laboratory reverberation room. This research was deemed necessary after conducting reverberation time measurements of a university classroom following the EN ISO 3382-2 standard. The measurements indicated values of 2.86 s at 500 Hz, 3.23 s at 1000 Hz, and 2.53 s at 2000 Hz, which significantly exceeded the requirements set by the national regulatory framework (0.6s) for such premises. For this reason, recycled felt panels have been investigated in the laboratory, showing very good acoustic properties at high frequencies. To enhance performance in the low frequencies, the influence of the distance of the panel spacing was examined. Furthermore, the sound insulation of the panels was studied to expand the possibilities of their application, both for the acoustic treatment of educational and multifunctional halls and for sound insulation purposes (e.g., a suspended ceiling with an air gap passing from room to room). As a conclusion, a theoretical acoustic design of the classroom has been carried out with suggestions for improvements to achieve the necessary acoustic and aesthetic parameters for such rooms.

Keywords: acoustic panels, recycled felt, sound absorption, sound insulation, classroom acoustics

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Authors: Geum Yeon Sim, Tyler Pigott, Julio Vasquez

Abstract:

A 38-year-old obese female with no apparent past medical history presented with left knee pain. Six months ago, she sustained a left knee dislocation in a motor vehicle accident that was managed with a skin graft over the left lower extremity without any reconstructive surgery. She developed persistent pain and stiffness in her left knee that worsened with walking and stair climbing. Examination revealed healed extensive skin graft over the left lower extremity, including the left knee. Palpation showed moderate tenderness along the superior border of the patella, exquisite tenderness over MCL, and mild tenderness on the tibial tuberosity. There was normal sensation, reflexes, and strength in her lower extremities. There was limited active and passive range of motion of her left knee during flexion. There was instability noted upon the valgus stress test of the left knee. Left knee magnetic resonance imaging showed high-grade (grade 2-3) injury of the proximal superficial fibers of the MCL and diffuse thickening and signal abnormality of the cruciate ligaments, as well as edema-like subchondral marrow signal change in the anterolateral aspect of the lateral femoral condyle weight-bearing surface. There was also notable extensive scarring and edema of the skin, subcutaneous soft tissues, and musculature surrounding the knee. The patient was managed with left knee immobilization for five months, which was complicated by limited knee flexion. Physical therapy consisting of quadriceps, hamstrings, gastrocnemius stretching and strengthening, range of motion exercises, scar/soft tissue mobilization, and gait training was given with marked improvement in pain and range of motion. The patient experienced a further reduction in pain as well as an improvement in function with home exercises consisting of continued strengthening and stretching.

Keywords: ligamentous injury, trauma, rehabilitation, knee pain

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Authors: Paulo Sergio Altman Ferreira

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Relationship development plays an essential role in every logistics company. Logistics companies are service-based businesses essentially performing the flow of materials, housing, and inventory management for a wide range of customers. The service encounter between the logistics provider’s personnel and the customers may form a connection that will demonstrate a strong impact, not only to the customers' overall satisfaction but may also provide the perception of individualized services. Logistics services must drive value. It also shows a close influence on the quality and costs of client-centered services. If we describe logistics value creation as the function of quality perception of the client divided by service costs, there is a requirement to better outline and explain the measures and analytics for logistics costs and relationship performance. This critical shift to understand logistics services is a relevant contribution to capture how relationship value can be quantified. This might involve changing our current perspective on logistics providers beyond uniquely measuring the services in terms of activities, personnel levels, and financial/costs ratios. This paper argues that measuring value creation accomplishments of logistics services needs to consider the relational improvements for the wider range of logistics companies. Accurate logistics value requires a description of the financial impact of the relational perspective of the service.

Keywords: logistics services providers, financial metrics, relationship management, value creation

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Authors: Hong-Yi Lin, Feng-Tyan Lin

Abstract:

In a Bike-sharing system (BSS), users can easily rent bikes from any station in the city for mid-range or short-range trips. BSS can also be integrated with other types of transport system, especially Green Transportation system, such as rail transport, bus etc. Since BSS records time and place of each pickup and return, the operational data can reflect more authentic and dynamic state of user behaviors. Furthermore, land uses around docking stations are highly associated with origins and destinations for the BSS users. As urban researchers, what concerns us more is to take BSS into consideration during the urban planning process and enhance the quality of urban life. This research focuses on the simulation of travel behavior of BSS users in Kaohsiung. First, rules of users’ behavior were derived by analyzing operational data and land use patterns nearby docking stations. Then, integrating with Monte Carlo method, these rules were embedded into a travel behavior simulation model, which was implemented by NetLogo, an agent-based modeling tool. The simulation model allows us to foresee the rent-return behaviour of BSS in order to choose potential locations of the docking stations. Also, it can provide insights and recommendations about planning and policies for the future BSS.

Keywords: agent-based model, bike-sharing system, BSS operational data, simulation

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Authors: Taha Bensiradj, Samira Moussaoui

Abstract:

Hybrid Sensors and Vehicular Networks (HSVN), represent a hybrid network, which uses several generations of Ad-Hoc networks. It is used especially in Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS). The HSVN allows making collaboration between the Wireless Sensors Network (WSN) deployed on the border of the road and the Vehicular Network (VANET). This collaboration is defined by messages exchanged between the two networks for the purpose to inform the drivers about the state of the road, provide road safety information and more information about traffic on the road. Moreover, this collaboration created by HSVN, also allows the use of a network and the advantage of improving another network. For example, the dissemination of information between the sensors quickly decreases its energy, and therefore, we can use vehicles that do not have energy constraint to disseminate the information between sensors. On the other hand, to solve the disconnection problem in VANET, the sensors can be used as gateways that allow sending the messages received by one vehicle to another. However, because of the short communication range of the sensor and its low capacity of storage and processing of data, it is difficult to ensure the exchange of road messages between it and the vehicle, which can be moving at high speed at the time of exchange. This represents the time where the vehicle is in communication range with the sensor. This work is the proposition of a communication protocol between the sensors and the vehicle used in HSVN. The latter has as the purpose to ensure the exchange of road messages in the available time of exchange.

Keywords: HSVN, ITS, VANET, WSN

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Authors: Ezzati Givi M., Hoveizi E., Nezhad Marani N.

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Platinum-based anticancer therapeutics are the most widely used drugs in clinical chemotherapy but have major limitations and various side effects in clinical applications. Gonadotoxicity and sterility is one of the most common complications for cancer survivors, which seem to be drug-specific and dose-related. Therefore, many efforts have been dedicated to discovering a new structure of platinum-based anticancer agents with improved therapeutic index, fewer side effects. In this regard, new Pt(II)-phosphane complexes containing heterocyclic thionate ligands (PCTL) have been synthesized, which show more potent antitumor activities in comparison to cisplatin. Cisplatin, the best leading metal-based antitumor drug in the field, induces testicular toxicity on Leydig and Sertoli cells leading to serious side effects such as azoospermia and infertility. Therefore in the present study, we aimed to investigate the cytotoxicity effect of PCTL on mice TM4 Sertoli cells with particular emphasis on the role of autophagy in comparison to cisplatin. In this study, an MTT assay was performed to evaluate the IC50 of PCTL and to analyze the TM3 Leydig cell's viability. Cells morphology was evaluated via invert microscope and Changing in morphology for nuclei swelling or autophagic vacuoles formation were assessed by DAPI and MDC staining. Testosterone production in the culture medium was measured using an ELISA kit. Finally, the expression of Autophagy-related genes, Atg5, Beclin1 and p62, were analyzed by qPCR. Based on the obtained results by MTT, the IC50 value of PCTL was 50 μM in TM3 cells and cytotoxic effects was in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Cells morphological changes investigated by inverted microscopy, DAPI, and MDC staining which showed the cytotoxic concentrations of PCTL was significantly higher than cisplatin in the treated TM3 Leydig cells. The results of PCR showed a lack of expression of the p62, Atg5 and Beclin1 gene in TM3 cells treated with PCTL in comparison to cisplatin and control groups. It should be noted that the effects of 25 μM PCTL concentration on TM3 cells have been associated with increased testosterone production and secretion, which requires further study to explain the possible causes and involved molecular mechanisms. The results of the study showed that the PCTL had less-lethal effects on TM3 cells in comparison to cisplatin and probably did not induce autophagy in TM3 cells.

Keywords: platinum-based anticancer agents, cisplatin, Leydig TM3 cells, autophagy

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