Search results for: water droplets size

Authors: Mejbri Sami, Zhani Khalifa, Zarzoum Kamel, Ben Bacha Habib, Koschikowski Joachim, Pfeifle Daniel

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Many places worldwide, especially arid and semi-arid remote regions, are suffering from the lack of drinkable water and the situation will be aggravated in the near future. Furthermore, remote areas are characterised by lack of conventional energy sources, skilled personnel and maintenance facilities. Therefore, the development of small to medium size, stand-alone and robust solar desalination systems is needed to provide independent fresh water supply in remote areas. This paper is focused on experimental studies on compact membrane distillation (MD) solar desalination prototype located at the Mechanical Engineering Department site, Kairouan University, Kairouan, Tunisia. The pilot system is designed and manufactured as a part of a research and development project funded by the MESRS/BMBF. The pilot system is totally autonomous. The electrical energy required to operate the unit is generated through a field of 4 m² of photovoltaic panels, and the heating of feed water is provided by a field of 6 m² of solar collectors. The Kairouan plant performance of the first few months of operation is presented. The highest freshwater production of 150 L/d is obtained on a sunny day in July of 633 W/m²d.

Keywords: experimental, membrane distillation, solar desalination, Permeat gap

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Authors: N. Singh, G. K. Darbha

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Since the last decade, a wave of research has begun to study the prevalence and impact of ever-increasing plastic pollution in the environment. The wide application and ubiquitous distribution of plastic have become a global concern due to its persistent nature. The disposal of plastics has emerged as one of the major challenges for waste management landfills. Microplastics (MPs) have found its existence in almost every environment, from the high altitude mountain lake to the deep sea sediments, polar icebergs, coral reefs, estuaries, beaches, and river, etc. Microplastics are fragments of plastics with size less than 5 mm. Microplastics can be classified as primary microplastics and secondary microplastics. Primary microplastics includes purposefully introduced microplastics into the end products for consumers (microbeads used in facial cleansers, personal care product, etc.), pellets (used in manufacturing industries) or fibres (from textile industries) which finally enters into the environment. Secondary microplastics are formed by disintegration of larger fragments under the exposure of sunlight, mechanical abrasive forces by rain, waves, wind and/or water. A number of factors affect the quantity of microplastic present in freshwater environments. In addition to physical forces, human population density proximal to the water body, proximity to urban centres, water residence time, and size of the water body also affects plastic properties. With time, other complex processes in nature such as physical, chemical and biological break down plastics by interfering with its structural integrity. Several studies demonstrate that microplastics found in wastewater sludge being used as manure for agricultural fields, thus having the tendency to alter the soil environment condition influencing the microbial population as well. Inadequate data are available on the fate and transport of microplastics under varying environmental conditions that are required to supplement important information for further research. In addition, microplastics have the tendency to absorb heavy metals and hydrophobic organic contaminants such as PAHs and PCBs from its surroundings and thus acting as carriers for these contaminants in the environment system. In this study, three kinds of microplastics (polyethylene, polypropylene and expanded polystyrene) of different densities were chosen. Plastic samples were placed in sand with different aqueous media (distilled water, surface water, groundwater and marine water). It was incubated at varying temperatures (25, 35 and 40 °C) and agitation levels (rpm). The results show that the number of plastic fragments enhanced with increase in temperature and agitation speed. Moreover, the rate of disintegration of expanded polystyrene is high compared to other plastics. These results demonstrate that temperature, salinity, and mechanical abrasion plays a major role in degradation of plastics. Since weathered microplastics are more harmful as compared to the virgin microplastics, long-term studies involving other environmental factors are needed to have a better understanding of degradation of plastics.

Keywords: environmental contamination, fragmentation, microplastics, temperature, weathering

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Authors: Hang Meng, Wen-Bin Liu, Bi Xiao, Kai-Jun Ma, Jian-Hui Xie, Geng Fei, Tian-Ye Zhang, Lu-Yi Xu, Dong-Chuan Zhang

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The victims in water are often found in the coastal region, along river region or the region with lakes. In China, the examination for the bodies of victims in the water is conducted by forensic doctors working in the public security bureau. Because the enter water time for most of the victims are not clear, and often lack of monitor images and other information, so to find out the corpse enter water time for victims is very difficult. After the corpse of the victim enters the water, it sinks first, then corruption gas produces, which can make the density of the corpse to be less than water, and thus rise again. So the factor that determines the corpse floating time is temperature. On the basis of the temperature data obtained in Shanghai region of China (Shanghai is a north subtropical marine monsoon climate, with an average annual temperature of about 17.1℃. The hottest month is July, the average monthly temperature is 28.6℃, and the coldest month is January, the average monthly temperature is 4.8℃). This study selected about 100 cases with definite corpse enter water time and corpse floating time, analyzed the cases and obtained the empirical law of the corpse floating time. For example, in the Shanghai region, on June 15th and October 15th, the corpse floating time is about 1.5 days. In early December, the bodies who entered the water will go up around January 1st of the following year, and the bodies who enter water in late December will float in March of next year. The results of this study can be used to roughly estimate the water enter time of the victims in Shanghai. Forensic doctors around the world can also draw on the results of this study to infer the time when the corpses of the victims in the water go up.

Keywords: corpse enter water time, corpse floating time, drowning, forensic pathology, victims in the water

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Authors: Feng-Ming Fan, Xiu-Hui Wen, Po-Feng Chen, Yi-Ching Tu

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Because of inborn natural conditions and man-made sabotage, the water resources insufficient phenomenon in Taiwan is a very important issue needed to face immediately. The regulations and law of water resources protection and recycling are gradually completed now but still lack of specific water recycling effectiveness checking method. The research focused on the industrial parks that already had been certificated with EIA to establish a professional checking system, carry through and forge ahead to contribute one’s bit in water resources sustainable usage. Taiwan Government Policies of Environmental Impact Assessment established in 1994, some development projects were requested to set certain water recycling ratio for water resources effective usage. The water covers and contains everything because all-inclusive companies enter and be stationed. For control the execution status of industrial park water and waste water recycling ratio about EIA commitment effectively, we invited experts and scholars in this filed to discuss with related organs to formulate the policy and audit plan. Besides, call a meeting to set public version water equilibrium diagrams and recycles parameter. We selected nine industrial parks that were requested set certain water recycling ratio in EIA examination stage and then according to the water usage quantity, we audited 340 factories in these industrial parks with spot and documents examination and got fruitful results – the average water usage of unit area per year of all these examined industrial parks is 31,000 tons/hectare/year, the value is just half of Taiwan industries average. It is obvious that the industrial parks with EIA commitment can decrease the water resources consumption effectively. Taiwan government policies of Environmental Impact Assessment took follow though tracking function into consideration at the beginning. The results of this research verify the importance of the implementing with water recycling to save water resources in EIA commitment. Inducing development units to follow EIA commitment to get the balance between environmental protection and economic development is one of the important EIA value.

Keywords: Taiwan government policies of environmental impact assessment, water recycling ratio of EIA commitment, water resources sustainable usage, water recycling

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Authors: Carlos H. Ferreira, Joana R. Pereira

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In recent decades, calls for sustainable architecture based on environmental policies have been frequent. Despite a vast number of documents, technical procedures, and publications involving these themes, conceptions, and even architectural practice are often distanced from critical and methodological reflection on the relationship between environment and architecture. Among the various issues that we could consider in this relationship, we highlight in this article the relevance of water in the environment and in the architectural design. From documentary references and works carried out, we seek contributions to a better systematization and framing of water in architectural thinking. We distinguish, on the one hand, more conceptual issues that involve the environmental relationship of water, involving its cycle, relevance in the landscape, and infrastructural commitments. On the other hand, we highlight a more operative component, focusing on the place of water in the design process, from its perception in space-shape dimensions to more specific technical requirements that involve the interdisciplinary boundaries of architecture. In both approaches to water in architectural design, we seek to contribute to greater sensitivity and efficiency in the art of designing a more sustainable future.

Keywords: sustainability, environment, water, resilience design

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Authors: Budihardjo Sarwo Sastrosudiro, Arnas Lubis, Muhammad Idrus Alhamid, Nasruddin Jusuf

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Solar thermal cooling system was installed on Mechanical Research Center (MRC) Building that is located in Universitas Indonesia, Depok, Indonesia. It is the first cooling system in Indonesia that utilizes solar energy as energy input combined with natural gas; therefore, the control system must be appropriated with the climates. In order to stabilize the cooling capacity and also to maximize the use of solar energy, the system applies some controllers. Constant flow rate and on/off controller are applied for the hot water, chilled water and cooling water pumps. The hot water circulated by pump when the solar radiation is over than 400W/m², and the chilled water is continually circulated by pump and its temperature is kept constant 7 °C by absorption chiller. The cooling water is also continually circulated until the outlet temperature of cooling tower below than 27 ^oC. Furthermore, the three-way valve is used to control the hot water for generate vapor on absorption chiller. The system performance using that control system is shown in this study results.

Keywords: absorption chiller, control system, solar cooling, solar energy

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Authors: Jeeban Amgain

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This paper investigates the impact of the size and composition of government expenditure and tax on GDP per capita growth in 36 Asian economies over the period of 1991-2012. The research employs the technique of panel regression; Fixed Effects and Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) as well as other statistical and descriptive approaches. The finding concludes that the size of government expenditure and tax revenue are generally low in this region. GDP per capita growth is strongly negative in response to Government expenditure, however, no significant relationship can be measured in case of size of taxation although it is positively correlated with economic growth. Panel regression of decomposed fiscal components also shows that the pattern of allocation of expenditure and taxation really matters on growth. Taxes on international trade and property have a significant positive impact on growth. In contrast, a major portion of expenditure, i.e. expenditure on general public services, health and education are found to have significant negative impact on growth, implying that government expenditures are not being productive in the Asian region for some reasons. Comparatively smaller and efficient government size would enhance the growth.

Keywords: government expenditure, tax, GDP per capita growth, composition

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Authors: Kazuhisa Koda, Tsutomu Kobayashi

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Laura Island, which is located about 50 km away from downtown, is a source of water supply in Majuro atoll, which is the capital of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Low and flat Majuro atoll has neither river nor lake. It is very important for Majuro atoll to ensure the conservation of its water resources. However, up-coning, which is the process of partial rising of the freshwater-saltwater boundary near the water-supply well, was caused by the excess pumping from it during the severe drought in 1998. Up-coning will make the water usage of the freshwater lens difficult. Thus, appropriate water usage is required to prevent up-coning in the freshwater lens because there is no other water source during drought. Numerical simulation of water usage applying SEAWAT model was conducted at the central part of Laura Island, including the water-supply well, which was affected by up-coning. The freshwater lens was created as a result of infiltration of consistent average rainfall. The lens shape was almost the same as the one in 1985. 0 of monthly rainfall and variable daily pump discharge were used to calculate the sustainable pump discharge from the water-supply well. Consequently, the total amount of pump discharge was increased as the daily pump discharge was increased, indicating that it needs more time to recover from up-coning. Thus, a pump standard to reduce the pump intensity is being proposed, which is based on numerical simulation concerning the occurrence of the up-coning phenomenon in Laura Island during the drought.

Keywords: freshwater lens, islands, numerical simulation, sustainable water use

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Authors: Maulik Parmar, Sumeet Sandhu

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The online fashion industry experiences high product return rates. Many returns are because of size/fit mismatches -the size scale on labels can vary across brands, the size parameters may not capture all fit measurements, or the product may have manufacturing defects. Warehouse quality check of garment sizes can be semi-automated to improve speed and accuracy. This paper presents an approach for automatically measuring garment sizes from a single image of the garment -using Deep Learning to learn garment keypoints. The paper focuses on the waist size measurement of jeans and can be easily extended to other garment types and measurements. Experimental results show that this approach can greatly improve the speed and accuracy of today’s manual measurement process.

Keywords: convolutional neural networks, deep learning, distortion, garment measurements, image warping, keypoints

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Authors: Ana Gavardashvili

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The field-and-scientific studies to evaluate the modern ecological state in the water area of the estuaries of the major water-abundant rivers in the coastal line of the Black Sea (Chorokhi, Kintrishi, Natanebi, Supsa, Khobistskali, Rioni and Enguri) and sea ports (Batumi, Poti) and sea terminals of the oil pipeline (Baku-Tbilisi-Supsa, Kulevi) were accomplished in the months of June and July of 2015. GPS coordinates and GIS programs were used to fix the areas of the estuaries of the above-listed rivers on a digital map, with their values varying within the limits of 0,861 and 20,390 km2. Water samples from the Black Sea were taken from the river estuaries and sea ports during the field works, with their statistical series of 125 points. The temperatures of air (t2) and water in the Black Sea (t1) were measured locally, and their relative value is (t1 /t2 ) = 0,69 – 0,92. 125 water samples taken from the study object in the Black Sea coastal line were subject to laboratory analysis, and it was established that the Black Sea acidity (pH) changes within the limits of 7,71 – 8,22 in the river estuaries and within 8,42 - 8,65 in the port water areas and at oil terminals. As for the Sea water salinity index (TDS), it changes within the limits of 6,15 – 12,67 in the river estuaries, and (TDS) = 11,80 – 13,67 in the port water areas and at oil terminals. By taking the gained data and climatic changes into account, by using the theories of reliability and risk at the following stage, the nature of the changes of the function of the Black Sea ecological parameters will be established.

Keywords: acidity, estuary, salinity, sea

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Authors: Adil Mustafa, Ahmet Erten, Alper Kiraz, Melikhan Tanyeri

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Work presented here is based on a novel experimental technique used to hydrodynamically trap oil microdroplets inside a microfluidic chip at the junction of microchannels known as stagnation point. Hydrodynamic trapping has been recently used to trap and manipulate a number of particles starting from microbeads to DNA and single cells. Benzyl Benzoate (BB) is used as droplet material. The microdroplets are trapped individually at stagnation point and their dissolution was observed. Experiments are performed for two concentrations (10mM or 10µM) of AOT surfactant (Docusate Sodium Salt) and two flow rates for each case. Moreover, experimental data is compared with Zhang-Yang-Mao (ZYM) model which studies dissolution of liquid microdroplets in the presence of a host fluid experiencing extensional creeping flow. Industrial processes like polymer blending systems in which heat or mass transport occurs experience extensional flow and an insight into these phenomena is of significant importance to many industrial processes. The experimental technique exploited here gives an insight into the dissolution of liquid microdroplets under extensional flow regime. The comparison of our experimental results with ZYM model reveals that dissolution of microdroplets at lower surfactant concentration (10µM) fits the ZYM model at saturation concentration (Cs) value reported in literature (Cs = 15×10⁻³Kg\m³) while for higher surfactant concentration (10mM) which is also above the critical micelle concentration (CMC) of surfactant (5mM) the data fits ZYM model at (Cs = 45×10⁻³Kg\m³) which is 3X times the value reported in literature. The difference in Cs value from the literature shows enhancement in dissolution rate of sparingly soluble BB microdroplets at surfactant concentrations higher than CMC. Enhancement in the dissolution of sparingly soluble materials is of great importance in pharmaceutical industry. Enhancement in the dissolution of sparingly soluble drugs is a key research area for drug design industry. The experimental method is also advantageous because it is robust and has no mechanical contact with droplets under study are freely suspended in the fluid as compared existing methods used for testing dissolution of drugs. The experiments also give an insight into CMC measurement for surfactants.

Keywords: extensional flow, hydrodynamic trapping, Zhang-Yang-Mao, CMC

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Authors: Sunday Olufemi Adesogan

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The supply of potable water at least is a very important index in national development. Water tariffs depend on the treatment cost which carries the highest percentage of the total operation cost in any water supply scheme. In order to keep water tariffs as low as possible, treatment costs have to be minimized. The University of Ibadan, Nigeria, water supply scheme consists of a treatment plant with three distribution stations (Amina way, Kurumi and Lander) and two raw water supply sources (Awba dam and Eleyele dam). An operational study of the scheme was carried out to ascertain the efficiency of the supply of potable water on the campus to justify the need for water supply schemes in tertiary institutions. The study involved regular collection, processing and analysis of periodic operational data. Data collected include supply reading (water production on daily basis) and consumers metered reading for a period of 22 months (October 2013 - July 2015), and also collected, were the operating hours of both plants and human beings. Applying the required mathematical equations, total loss was determined for the distribution system, which was translated into monetary terms. Adequacies of the operational functions were also determined. The study revealed that water supply scheme is justified in tertiary institutions. It was also found that approximately 10.7 million Nigerian naira (N) is lost to leakages during the 22-month study period; the system’s storage capacity is no longer adequate, especially for peak water production. The capacity of the system as a whole is insufficient for the present university population and that the existing water supply system is not being operated in an optimal manner especially due to personnel, power and system ageing constraints.

Keywords: development, panacea, supply, water

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Authors: Yi F. Wu, Ai Q. Li, Hao Wang

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Taking a novel type of bridge bearings with the diameter being 100mm as an example, the theoretical analysis, the experimental research as well as the numerical simulation of the bearing were conducted. Since the normal compression-shear machines cannot be applied to the small-size bearing, an improved device to test the properties of the bearing was proposed and fabricated. Besides, the simulation of the bearing was conducted on the basis of the explicit finite element software ANSYS/LS-DYNA, and some parameters of the bearing are modified in the finite element model to effectively reduce the computation cost. Results show that all the research methods are capable of revealing the fundamental properties of the small-size bearings, and a combined use of these methods can better catch both the integral properties and the inner detailed mechanical behaviors of the bearing.

Keywords: ANSYS/LS-DYNA, compression shear, contact analysis, explicit algorithm, small-size

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Authors: Vipul Shiralkar, Rohit Khadilkar, Shekhar Kulkarni, Ismail Mullani, Omkar Malvankar

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The use of water cooler has increased and become an important appliance in the world of global warming. Most of the coolers are electrically operated. In this study an experimental setup of evaporative water cooler using solar energy is designed and developed. It works on the principle of heat transfer using evaporation of water. Water is made to flow through copper tubes arranged in a specific array manner. Cotton plug is wrapped on copper tubes and rubber pipes are arranged in the same way as copper tubes above it. Water percolated from rubber pipes is absorbed by cotton plug. The setup has 40L water carrying capacity with forced cooling arrangement and variable speed fan which uses solar energy stored in 20Ah capacity battery. Fan speed greatly affects the temperature drop. Tests were performed at different fan speed. Maximum temperature drop achieved was 90C at 1440 rpm of fan speed. This temperature drop is very attractive. This water cooler uses solar energy hence it is cost efficient and it is affordable to rural community as well. The cooler is free from any harmful emissions like other refrigerants and hence environmental friendly. Very less maintenance is required as compared to the conventional electrical water cooler.

Keywords: evaporation, cooler, energy, copper, solar, cost

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Authors: Abdelkader T. Ahmed

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Phosphate Rocks (PR) are natural sediment rocks. These rocks contain several chemical compositions of heavy metals and radioactive elements. Mining and transportation these rocks beside or through the natural water streams may lead to water contamination. When PR is in contact with water in the field, as a consequence of precipitation events, changes in water table or sinking in water streams, elements such as salts and heavy metals, may be released to the water. In this work, the leaching properties of PR in Nile River water was investigated by experimental lab work. The study focused on evaluating potential environmental impacts of some constituents, including phosphors, cadmium, curium and lead of PR on the water quality of Nile by applying tank leaching tests. In these tests the potential impact of changing conditions, such as phosphate content in PR, liquid to solid ratio (L/S) and pH value, was studied on the long-term release of heavy metals and salts. Experimental results showed that cadmium and lead were released in very low concentrations but curium and phosphors were in high concentrations. Results showed also that the release rate from PR for all constituents was low even in long periods.

Keywords: leaching tests, Nile river, phosphate rocks, water quality

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Authors: Murtala Gada Abubakar, Aliyu T. Umar

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A substantial part of Nigeria is part of semi-arid areas of the world, underlain by basement complex (hard) rocks which are very poor in both transmission and storage of appreciable quantity of water. Recently, a growing attention is being paid on the need to develop water resources in these areas largely due to concerns about increasing droughts and the need to maintain water security challenges. While there is ample body of knowledge that captures the hydrological behaviours of the sedimentary part, reported research which unambiguously illustrates water distribution in the basement complex of the Sokoto basin remains sparse. Considering the growing need to meet the water requirements of those living in this region necessitated the call for accurate water balance estimations that can inform a sustainable planning and development to address water security challenges for the area. To meet this task, a one-dimensional soil water balance model was developed and utilised to assess the state of water distribution within the Sokoto basin basement complex using measured meteorological variables and information about different landscapes within the complex. The model simulated the soil water storage and rates of input and output of water in response to climate and irrigation where applicable using data from 2001 to 2010 inclusive. The results revealed areas within the Sokoto basin basement complex that are rich and deficient in groundwater resource. The high potential areas identified includes the fadama, the fractured rocks and the cultivated lands, while the low potential areas are the sealed surfaces and non-fractured rocks. This study concludes that the modelling approach is a useful tool for assessing the hydrological behaviour and for better understanding the water resource availability within a basement complex.

Keywords: basement complex, hydrological processes, Sokoto Basin, water security

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Authors: Mohamed Elshobaki, Alessandro Valiani, Valerio Caleffi

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In this paper, we solve 1-D shallow water equation for sub-critical and super-critical water flow at junction. The water flow at junction has been studied for the last 50 years from the physical-hydraulic point of views and for numerical computations need more attention. For numerical simulation, we need to establish an inner boundary condition at the junction to avoid an oscillation which rise from the waves interactions at the junction. Indeed, we introduce a new boundary condition at the junction based on the mass conservation, total head, and the admissible wave relations between the flow parameters in the three branches to predict the water depths and discharges at the junction. These boundary conditions are valid for sub-critical flow and super-critical flow.

Keywords: numerical simulation, junction flow, sub-critical flow, super-critical flow

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Authors: Himanshu Singh, Rishi Kant, Shantanu Bhattacharya

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This paper adopts a top-down approach for mathematical modeling to predict the size reduction from micro to nano-scale through persistent etching. The process is simulated using a finite difference approach. Previously, various researchers have simulated the etching process for 1-D and 2-D substrates. It consists of two processes: 1) Convection-Diffusion in the etchant domain; 2) Chemical reaction at the surface of the particle. Since the process requires analysis along moving boundary, partial differential equations involved cannot be solved using conventional methods. In 1-D, this problem is very similar to Stefan's problem of moving ice-water boundary. A fixed grid method using finite volume method is very popular for modelling of etching on a one and two dimensional substrate. Other popular approaches include moving grid method and level set method. In this method, finite difference method was used to discretize the spherical diffusion equation. Due to symmetrical distribution of etchant, the angular terms in the equation can be neglected. Concentration is assumed to be constant at the outer boundary. At the particle boundary, the concentration of the etchant is assumed to be zero since the rate of reaction is much faster than rate of diffusion. The rate of reaction is proportional to the velocity of the moving boundary of the particle. Modelling of the above reaction was carried out using Matlab. The initial particle size was taken to be 50 microns. The density, molecular weight and diffusion coefficient of the substrate were taken as 2.1 gm/cm3, 60 and 10-5 cm2/s respectively. The etch-rate was found to decline initially and it gradually became constant at 0.02µ/s (1.2µ/min). The concentration profile was plotted along with space at different time intervals. Initially, a sudden drop is observed at the particle boundary due to high-etch rate. This change becomes more gradual with time due to declination of etch rate.

Keywords: particle size reduction, micromixer, FDM modelling, wet etching

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Authors: Stuti Modi, Aditi Kambli

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This paper addresses the need for intelligent water management and distribution system in smart cities to ensure optimal consumption and distribution of water for drinking and sanitation purposes. Water being a limited resource in cities require an effective system for collection, storage and distribution. In this paper, applications of two mostly widely used particular types of data-driven models, namely artificial neural networks (ANN) and fuzzy logic-based models, to modelling in the water resources management field are considered. The objective of this paper is to review the principles of various types and architectures of neural network and fuzzy adaptive systems and their applications to integrated water resources management. Final goal of the review is to expose and formulate progressive direction of their applicability and further research of the AI-related and data-driven techniques application and to demonstrate applicability of the neural networks, fuzzy systems and other machine learning techniques in the practical issues of the regional water management. Apart from this the paper will deal with water storage, using ANN to find optimum reservoir level and predicting peak daily demands.

Keywords: artificial neural networks, fuzzy systems, peak daily demand prediction, water management and distribution

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Authors: Rafael Zhindon Almeida

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Surface water quality is an important concern for the evaluation and prediction of water quality conditions. The objective of this study is to develop a statistical model that can accurately predict the water quality of the El Macho estuary in the city of Machala, El Oro province. The methodology employed in this study is of a basic type that involves a thorough search for theoretical foundations to improve the understanding of statistical modeling for water quality analysis. The research design is correlational, using a multivariate statistical model involving multiple linear regression and principal component analysis. The results indicate that water quality parameters such as fecal coliforms, biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, iron and dissolved oxygen exceed the allowable limits. The water of the El Macho estuary is determined to be below the required water quality criteria. The multiple linear regression model, based on chemical oxygen demand and total dissolved solids, explains 99.9% of the variance of the dependent variable. In addition, principal component analysis shows that the model has an explanatory power of 86.242%. The study successfully developed a statistical model to evaluate the water quality of the El Macho estuary. The estuary did not meet the water quality criteria, with several parameters exceeding the allowable limits. The multiple linear regression model and principal component analysis provide valuable information on the relationship between the various water quality parameters. The findings of the study emphasize the need for immediate action to improve the water quality of the El Macho estuary to ensure the preservation and protection of this valuable natural resource.

Keywords: statistical modeling, water quality, multiple linear regression, principal components, statistical models

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Authors: Valentina V. Goftman, Vladislav A. Pankratov, Alexey V. Markin, Tangi Aubert, Zeger Hens, Sarah De Saeger, Irina Yu. Goryacheva

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The most important requirements for biochemical applicability of quantum dots (QDs) are: 1) the surface cap should render intact or improved optical properties; 2) mono-dispersion and good stability in aqueous phase in a wide range of pH and ionic strength values; 3) presence of functional groups, available for bioconjugation; 4) minimal impact from the environment on the QDs’ properties and, vice versa, minimal influence of the QDs’ components on the environment; and 5) stability against chemical/biochemical/physical influence. The latter is especially important for in vitro and in vivo applications. For example, some physical intracellular delivery strategies (e.g., electroporation) imply a rapid high-voltage electric field impulse in order to temporarily generate hydrophilic pores in the cell plasma membrane, necessary for the passive transportation of QDs into the cell. In this regard, it is interesting to investigate how different capping layers, which can provide high stability and sufficient fluorescent properties of QDs in a water solution, behave under these abnormal conditions. In this contribution, hydrophobic core-shell CdSe/CdS/CdZnS/ZnS QDs (λem=600 nm), produced by means of the Successive Ion Layer Adsorption and Reaction (SILAR) technique, were transferred to a water solution using two of the most commonly used methods: (i) encapsulation in an amphiphilic brush polymer based on poly(maleic anhydride-alt-1-octadecene) (PMAO) modified with polyethylene glycol (PEG) chains and (ii) silica covering. Polymer encapsulation preserves the initial ligands on the QDs’ surface owing to the hydrophobic attraction between the hydrophobic groups of the amphiphilic molecules and the surface hydrophobic groups of the QDs. This covering process allows maintaining the initial fluorescent properties, but it leads to a considerable increase of the QDs’ size. However, covering with a silica shell, by means of the reverse microemulsion method, allows maintaining both size and fluorescent properties of the initial QDs. The obtained water solutions of polymer covered and silica-coated QDs in three different concentrations were exposed to a low-voltage electric field for a short time and the fluorescent properties were investigated. It is shown that the PMAO-PEG polymer acquires some additional charges in the presence of the electric field, which causes repulsion between the polymer and the QDs’ surface. This process destroys the homogeneity of the whole amphiphilic shell and it dramatically decreases the fluorescent properties (dropping to 10% from its initial value) because of the direct contact of the QDs with the strongly oxidative environment (water). In contrast, a silica shell possesses dielectric properties which allow retaining 90% of its initial fluorescence intensity, even after a longer electric impact. Thus, silica shells are clearly a preferable covering for bio-application of QDs, because – besides the high uniform morphology, controlled size and biocompatibility – it allows protecting QDs from oxidation, even under the influence of an electric field.

Keywords: electric field, polymer coating, quantum dots, silica covering, stability

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Authors: Bireswar Paul, Amitava Datta

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Indoor air environment is a big concern in the last few decades in the developing countries, with increased focus on monitoring the air quality. In this work, an experimental study has been conducted to establish the existence of carbon nanoparticles below the size range of 10 nm in the non-sooting zone of a LPG/air partially premixed flame. Mainly, four optical techniques, UV absorption spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering and TEM have been used to characterize and measure the size of carbon nanoparticles in the sampled materials collected from the inner surface of the flame front. The existence of the carbon nanoparticles in the sampled material has been confirmed with the typical nature of the absorption and fluorescence spectra already reported in the literature. The band gap energy shows that the particles are made up of three to six aromatic rings. The size measurement by DLS technique also shows that the particles below the size range of 10 nm. The results of DLS are also corroborated by the TEM image of the same material. 

Keywords: indoor air, carbon nanoparticle, lpg, partially premixed flame, optical techniques

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Authors: Jaime Pizarro, Ximena Castillo

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The intensive use of water in agriculture, industry, human consumption and increasing pollution are factors that reduce the availability of water for future generations; the challenge is to advance in sustainable and low-cost solutions to reuse water and to facilitate the availability of the resource in quality and quantity. The use of new low-cost materials with sorbent capacity for pollutants is a solution that contributes to the improvement and expansion of water treatment and reuse systems. Fly ash, a residue from the combustion of coal in power plants that is produced in large quantities in newly industrialized countries, contains a high amount of silicon oxides and aluminum oxides, whose properties can be used for the synthesis of mesoporous materials. Properly functionalized, this material allows obtaining matrixes with high sorption capacity. The mesoporous materials have a large surface area, thermal and mechanical stability, uniform porous structure, and high sorption and functionalization capacities. The goal of this study was to develop hexagonal mesoporous siliceous material (HMS) for the adsorption of sulphate from industrial and mining waters. The silica was extracted from fly ash after calcination at 850 ° C, followed by the addition of water. The mesoporous structure has a surface area of 282 m2 g-1 and a size of 5.7 nm and was functionalized with ethylene diamine through of a self-assembly method. The material was characterized by Diffuse Reflectance Infrared Fourier Transform Spectroscopy (DRIFTS). The capacity of sulphate sorption was evaluated according to pH, maximum load capacity and contact time. The sulphate maximum adsorption capacity was 146.1 mg g-1, which is three times higher than commercial sorbents. The kinetic data were fitted according to a pseudo-second order model with a high coefficient of linear regression at different initial concentrations. The adsorption isotherm that best fitted the experimental data was the Freundlich model.

Keywords: fly ash, mesoporous siliceous, sorption, sulphate

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Authors: Adesoji Sodeinde

Abstract:

Analytical derivatives has recently undergone an explosive growth in areas of separation techniques, likewise in detectability of certain compound/concentrated ions. The gloomy and depressing scenario which charaterized the application of analytical derivatives in areas of water analysis, water cycle and the environment should not be allowed to continue unabated. Due to technological advancement in various chemical/biochemical analysis separation techniques is widely used in areas of medical, forensic and to measure and assesses environment and social-economic impact of alternative control strategies. This technological improvement was dully established in the area of comparison between certain separation/detection techniques to bring about vital result in forensic[as Gas liquid chromatography reveals the evidence given in court of law during prosecution of drunk drivers]. The water quality analysis,pH and water temperature analysis can be performed in the field, the concentration of dissolved free amino-acid [DFAA] can also be detected through separation techniques. Some important derivatives/ions used in separation technique. Water analysis : Total water hardness [EDTA to determine ca and mg ions]. Gas liquid chromatography : innovative gas such as helium [He] or nitrogen [N] Water cycle : Animal bone charcoal,activated carbon and ultraviolet light [U.V light].

Keywords: analytical derivative, environment, water analysis, chemical/biochemical analysis

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Authors: Jalil Salimi, Mandana Asadi, Naser Fathi

Abstract:

Urmia Lake (UL) has undergone a significant decline in water levels, resulting in severe environmental, socioeconomic, and health-related challenges. This paper examines the restoration process of UL from a water governance perspective. By applying a water governance model, the study evaluates the process based on six selected principles: stakeholder engagement, transparency and accountability, effectiveness, equitable water use, adaptation capacity, and water usage efficiency. The dominance of structural and physicalist approaches to water governance has led to a weak understanding of social and environmental issues, contributing to social crises. Urgent efforts are required to address the water crisis and reform water governance in the country, making water-related issues a top national priority. The UL restoration process has achieved significant milestones, including stakeholder consensus, scientific and participatory planning, environmental vision, intergenerational justice considerations, improved institutional environment for NGOs, investments in water infrastructure, transparency promotion, environmental effectiveness, and local issue resolutions. However, challenges remain, such as power distribution imbalances, bureaucratic administration, weak conflict resolution mechanisms, financial constraints, accountability issues, limited attention to social concerns, overreliance on structural solutions, legislative shortcomings, program inflexibility, and uncertainty management weaknesses. Addressing these weaknesses and challenges is crucial for the successful restoration and sustainable governance of UL.

Keywords: evaluation, restoration process, Urmia Lake, water governance, water resource management

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Authors: Bruno Diniz Fecchio

Abstract:

Operations have been demanding increasingly challenging operational targets for the dewatering process, requiring lower humidity for concentrates. Chemical dewatering agents are able to improve solid/liquid separation processes, allowing operations to deal with increased complexity caused by either mineralogical changes or seasonal events that present operations with challenging moisture requirements for transportation and downstream steps. These chemicals reduce water retention by reducing the capillary pressure of the mineral and contributing to improved water drainage. This current study addresses the reagent effects on pile dewatering for Bauxite. Such chemicals were able to decrease the moisture of granulated Bauxite (particle size of 5 – 50 mm). The results of the laboratory scale tests and industrial trials presented the obtention of up to 11% relative moisture reduction, which reinforced the strong interaction between dewatering agents and the particle surface of granulated Bauxite. The evaluated dewatering agents, however, did not present any negative impact on these operations.

Keywords: bauxite, dewatering agents, pile dewatering, moisture reduction

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Authors: Jun Li, Wenze Wang, Zhanggui Hu, Yongwei Zhu, Dunwen Zuo

Abstract:

Non-water based fixed abrasive polishing was adopted to manufacture LBO crystal for nano precision surface quality because of its deliquescent. Ethyl alcohol was selected as the non-water based slurry solvent and ethanediamine, lactic acid, hydrogen peroxide were add in the slurry as a chemical additive, respectively. Effect of different additives with non-water based slurry on material removal rate, surface topography, microscopic appearances and surface roughness were investigated in fixed abrasive polishing of LBO crystal. The results show the best surface quality of LBO crystal with surface roughness Sa 8.2 nm and small damages was obtained by non-water based slurry with lactic acid. Non-water based fixed abrasive polishing can achieve nano precision surface quality of LBO crystal with high material removal.

Keywords: non-water based slurry, LBO crystal, fixed abrasive polishing, surface roughness

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Authors: Vinicius Marzall, Jussanã Milograna

Abstract:

The urban drainwatering remains a major challenge for most of the Brazilian cities. Not so different of the most part, Goiania, a state capital located in Midwest of the country has few legislations about the subject matter and only one registered solution of compensative techniques for drainwater. This paper clam to show some solutions which are adopted in other Brazilian cities with consolidated legislation, suggesting technics about detention tanks in a building sit. This study analyzed and compared the legislation of Curitiba, Porto Alegre e Sao Paulo, with the actual legislation and politics of Goiania. After this, were created models with adopted data for dimensioning the size of detention tanks using the envelope curve method considering synthetic series for intense precipitations and building sits between 250 m² and 600 m², with an impermeabilization tax of 50%. The results showed great differences between the legislation of Goiania and the documentation of the others cities analyzed, like the number of techniques for drainwatering applied to the reality of the cities, educational actions to awareness the population about care the water courses and political management by having a specified funds for drainwater subjects, for example. Besides, the use of detention tank showed itself practicable, have seen that the occupation of the tank is minor than 3% of the building sit, whatever the size of the terrain, granting the exit flow to pre-occupational taxes in extreme rainfall events. Also, was developed a linear equation to measure the detention tank based in the size of the building sit in Goiania, making simpler the calculation and implementation for non-specialized people.

Keywords: clean technology, legislation, rainwater management, urban drainwater

Procedia PDF Downloads 159

Authors: Nabiyeva Jamala

Abstract:

We divide water into drinking, mineral, industrial, technical and thermal-energetic types according to its use and purpose. Drinking water must comply with sanitary requirements and norms according to organoleptic devices and physical and chemical properties. Mineral water - must comply with the norms due to some components having therapeutic properties. Industrial water must fulfill its normative requirements by being used in the industrial field. Technical water should be suitable for use in the field of agriculture, household, and irrigation, and the normative requirements should be met. Heat-energy water is used in the national economy, and it consists of thermal and energy water. Water is a filter-accumulator of all types of pollutants entering the environment. This is explained by the fact that it has the property of dissolving compounds of mineral and gaseous water and regular water circulation. Environmentally clean, pure, non-toxic water is vital for the normal life activity of humans, animals and other living beings. Chemical pollutants enter water basins mainly with wastewater from non-ferrous and ferrous metallurgy, oil, gas, chemical, stone, coal, pulp and paper and forest materials processing industries and make them unusable. Wastewater from the chemical, electric power, woodworking and machine-building industries plays a huge role in the pollution of water sources. Chlorine compounds, phenols, and chloride-containing substances have a strong lethal-toxic effect on organisms when mixed with water. Heavy metals - lead, cadmium, mercury, nickel, copper, selenium, chromium, tin, etc. water mixed with ingredients cause poisoning in humans, animals and other living beings. Thus, the mixing of selenium with water causes liver diseases in people, the mixing of mercury with the nervous system, and the mixing of cadmium with kidney diseases. Pollution of the World's ocean waters and other water basins with oil and oil products is one of the most dangerous environmental problems facing humanity today. So, mixing even the smallest amount of oil and its products in drinking water gives it a bad, unpleasant smell. Mixing one ton of oil with water creates a special layer that covers the water surface in an area of 2.6 km2. As a result, the flood of light, photosynthesis and oxygen supply of water is getting weak and there is a great danger to the lives of living beings.

Keywords: chemical pollutants, wastewater, SSAM, polyacrylamide

Procedia PDF Downloads 73

Authors: Abdullah Salameh, Jamil Renno, Khaled Ali

Abstract:

This paper investigates how fatigue life is influenced by increasing the number and size of bolts under several wind speed averages. The study determined that increasing the size or number of bolts can notably improve the fatigue life of bolted flange connections. Additionally, the curves derived from the assessment data demonstrated a steeper slope for a greater number of bolts, indicating that the percentage increase of adding bolts is not consistent for each additional bolt. Instead, the percentage increment rises exponentially when increasing the number of bolts. However, selecting the most suitable design improvement strategy depends on the specific circumstances. In the majority of cases, the study observed that increasing the number of bolts resulted in significant improvements in fatigue life, regardless of the size of the bolts used.

Keywords: wind turbine tower, flanged connection, number of bolts, size of bolts, fatigue life

Procedia PDF Downloads 80