Search results for: applied behavior therapy

Authors: Mohd Anees Siddiqui, S. A. H. Jafri, Shahnawaz Alam

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Through this paper an attempt is made to review a special welding technology of friction stir welding (FSW) which is a solid-state joining. Friction stir welding is used for joining of two plates which are applied compressive force by using fixtures over the work table. This is a non consumable type welding technique in which a rotating tool of cylindrical shape is used. Process parameters such as tool geometry, joint design and process speed are discussed in the paper. Comparative study of Friction stir welding with other welding techniques such as MIG, TIG & GMAW is also done. Some light is put on several major applications of friction stir welding in different industries. Quality and environmental aspects of friction stir welding is also discussed.

Keywords: friction stir welding (FSW), process parameters, tool, solid state joining processes

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Authors: Edgar Santoyo, Daniel Perez-Zarate, Agustin Acevedo, Lorena Diaz-Gonzalez, Mirna Guevara

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Four new gas geothermometers have been derived from a multivariate geo chemometric analysis of a geothermal fluid chemistry database, two of which use the natural logarithm of CO₂ and H2S concentrations (mmol/mol), respectively, and the other two use the natural logarithm of the H₂S/H₂ and CO₂/H₂ ratios. As a strict compilation criterion, the database was created with gas-phase composition of fluids and bottomhole temperatures (BHTM) measured in producing wells. The calibration of the geothermometers was based on the geochemical relationship existing between the gas-phase composition of well discharges and the equilibrium temperatures measured at bottomhole conditions. Multivariate statistical analysis together with the use of artificial neural networks (ANN) was successfully applied for correlating the gas-phase compositions and the BHTM. The predicted or simulated bottomhole temperatures (BHTANN), defined as output neurons or simulation targets, were statistically compared with measured temperatures (BHTM). The coefficients of the new geothermometers were obtained from an optimized self-adjusting training algorithm applied to approximately 2,080 ANN architectures with 15,000 simulation iterations each one. The self-adjusting training algorithm used the well-known Levenberg-Marquardt model, which was used to calculate: (i) the number of neurons of the hidden layer; (ii) the training factor and the training patterns of the ANN; (iii) the linear correlation coefficient, R; (iv) the synaptic weighting coefficients; and (v) the statistical parameter, Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) to evaluate the prediction performance between the BHTM and the simulated BHTANN. The prediction performance of the new gas geothermometers together with those predictions inferred from sixteen well-known gas geothermometers (previously developed) was statistically evaluated by using an external database for avoiding a bias problem. Statistical evaluation was performed through the analysis of the lowest RMSE values computed among the predictions of all the gas geothermometers. The new gas geothermometers developed in this work have been successfully used for predicting subsurface temperatures in high-temperature geothermal systems of Mexico (e.g., Los Azufres, Mich., Los Humeros, Pue., and Cerro Prieto, B.C.) as well as in a blind geothermal system (known as Acoculco, Puebla). The last results of the gas geothermometers (inferred from gas-phase compositions of soil-gas bubble emissions) compare well with the temperature measured in two wells of the blind geothermal system of Acoculco, Puebla (México). Details of this new development are outlined in the present research work. Acknowledgements: The authors acknowledge the funding received from CeMIE-Geo P09 project (SENER-CONACyT).

Keywords: artificial intelligence, gas geochemistry, geochemometrics, geothermal energy

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Authors: Andrea Gatti, Federica Coppotelli, Ma Primavera, Laura Palmieri, Umberto Tarantino

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Aim of study: Scientific literature is scarce of studies and reviews valuing the pros and cons of the paratricipital approach for the treatment of humeral shaft fractures; the lateral paratricipital approach is a valid alternative to the classical posterior approach to the humeral shaft as it preserves both the triceps muscle and the elbow extensor mechanisms; based on our experience, this retrospective analysis aims at analyzing outcome, risks and benefits of the lateral paratricipital approach for humeral shaft fractures. Methods: Our study includes 14 patients treated between 2018 and 2019 for unilateral humeral shaft fractures: 13 with a B1 or B2 and a patient with a C fracture type (according to the AO/ATO Classification); 6 of our patients identified as male while 8 as female; age average was 57.8 years old (range 21-73 years old). A lateral paratricipital approach was performed on all 14 patients, sparing the triceps muscle by avoiding the olecranon osteotomy and by assessing the integrity and the preservation of the radial nerve; the humeral shaft fracture osteosynthesis was performed by means of plates and screws. After surgery all patients have started elbow functional rehabilitation with acceptable pain management. Post-operative follow-up has been carried out by assessing radiographs, MEPS (Mayo Elbow Performance Score) and DASH (Disability of Arm Shoulder and Hand) functional assessment and ROM of the affected joint. Results: All 14 patients had an optimal post-operative follow-up with an adequate osteosynthesis and functional rehabilitations by entirely preserving the operated elbow joint; the mean elbow ROM was 0-118.6 degree (range of 0-130) while the average MEPS score was 86 (range75-100) and 79.9 for the DASH (range 21.7-86.1). Just 2 patients suffered of temporary radial nerve apraxia, healed in the subsequent follow-ups. CONCLUSION: The lateral paratricipital approach preserve both the integrity of the triceps muscle and the elbow biomechanism but we do strongly recommend additional studies to be carried out to highlight differences between it and the classical posterior approach in treating humeral shaft fractures.

Keywords: paratricepital approach, humerus shaft fracture, posterior approach humeral shaft, paratricipital postero-lateral approach

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Authors: Jinsiang Shaw, Jeng-Jie Huang

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Active vibration control is good for low frequency excitation, with advantages of light weight and adaptability. This paper employs a macro-fiber composite (MFC) actuator for vibration suppression in a cantilevered beam due to its higher output force to reject the disturbance. A notch filter with an adaptive tuning algorithm, the leaky filtered-X least mean square algorithm (leaky FXLMS algorithm), is developed and applied to the system. Experimental results show that the controller and MFC actuator was very effective in attenuating the structural vibration. Furthermore, this notch filter controller was compared with the traditional skyhook controller. It was found that its performance was better, with over 88% vibration suppression near the first resonant frequency of the structure.

Keywords: macro-fiber composite, notch filter, skyhook controller, vibration suppression

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Authors: Nevine Henry Wasef

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The research discusses how Egyptian citizens perceive the performance of public sector officials, particularly the ethical values manifested in their behavior. It aims at answering the question of how Egyptian citizens’ perception of public officials affects citizens' trust in the government at large and the process of public service delivery specifically. The hypothesis is that public opinion about civil servants’ ethical values would be proportional to citizens’ trust in the government, which means that the more citizens regard administrators with high ethical standards, the higher trust in the government they would have and vice versa. The research would focus on the independent variable of trust in the government and the dependent variable of public perception of administrators’ ethical performance. The data would be collected through surveys designed to measure the public evaluation of public officials they are interacting with and the quality of services delivered to them. The study concludes that implementing ethical values in public administration has a crucial role in improving citizens’ trust in the government based on various case studies of governments that successfully adopted ethical training programs for their civil servants.

Keywords: trust, distrust, ethics, performance, integrity, values, public service

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Authors: Firas M. Tuaimah, Huda M. Abdul Abbas

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Accurate Short Term Load Forecasting (STLF) is essential for a variety of decision making processes. However, forecasting accuracy can drop due to the presence of uncertainty in the operation of energy systems or unexpected behavior of exogenous variables. Interval Type 2 Fuzzy Logic System (IT2 FLS), with additional degrees of freedom, gives an excellent tool for handling uncertainties and it improved the prediction accuracy. The training data used in this study covers the period from January 1, 2012 to February 1, 2012 for winter season and the period from July 1, 2012 to August 1, 2012 for summer season. The actual load forecasting period starts from January 22, till 28, 2012 for winter model and from July 22 till 28, 2012 for summer model. The real data for Iraqi power system which belongs to the Ministry of Electricity.

Keywords: short term load forecasting, prediction interval, type 2 fuzzy logic systems, electric, computer systems engineering

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Authors: Cristina Rodriguez, Abed Alaswad, Zaki El-Hassan, Abdul G. Olabi

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This study investigates the effect on methane production from the waste paper when co-digested with macroalgal biomass as a source of nitrogen. Both feedstocks were previously mechanically pretreated in order to reduce their particle size. Methane potential assays were carried out at laboratory scale in batch mode for 28 days. The study was planned according to two factors: the feedstock to inoculum (F/I) ratio and the waste paper to macroalgae (WP/MA) ratio. The F/I ratios checked were 0.2, 0.3 and 0.4 and the WP/MA ratios were 0:100, 25:75, 50:50, 75:25 and 100:0. The highest methane yield (608 ml/g of volatile solids (VS)) was achieved at an F/I ratio of 0.2 and a WP/MA ratio of 50:50. The methane yield at a ratio WP/MA of 50:50 is higher than for single compound, while for ratios WP/MA of 25:75 and 75:25 the methane yield decreases compared to biomass mono-digestion. This behavior is observed for the three levels of F/I ratio being more noticeable at F/I ratio of 0.3. A synergistic effect was found for the WP/MA ratio of 50:50 and all F/I ratios and for WP/MA=50:50 and F/I=0.2. A maximum increase of methane yield of 49.58% was found for a co-digestion ratio of 50:50 and an F/I ratio of 0.4. It was concluded that methane production from waste paper improves significantly when co-digested with macroalgae biomass. The methane yields from co-digestion were also found higher that from macroalgae mono-digestion.

Keywords: anaerobic co-digestion, biogas, macroalgae, waste paper

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Authors: Jaber Masoud Alyami, Abdelsalam H. Alsrkhi

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Characterizing and modeling multi-phase flow is a complicated scientific and technical phenomenon represented by a variety of interrelated elements. Yet, the introduction of dimensionless numbers used to grasp gas-liquid flow is a significant step in controlling and improving the multi-phase flow area. SL (Slippage number), for instance is a strong dimensionless number defined as a the ratio of the difference in gravitational forces between slip and no-slip conditions to the inertial force of the gas. The fact that plotting SL versus Frm provides a single acceptable curve for all of the data provided proves that SL may be used to realize the behavior of gas-liquid flow. This paper creates a numerical link between SL and Froud mixing number using vertical gas-liquid flow and then utilizes that relationship to validate its reliability in practice. An improved correlation in drift flux model generated from the experimental data and its rationality has been verified. The method in this paper is to approach for predicting the void fraction in bubbly flow through SL/Frm relation and the limitations of this method, as well as areas for development, are stated.

Keywords: multiphase flow, gas-liquid flow, slippage, void farction

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Authors: Tomas Kos

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An increasing body of research has explored patterns of interaction and peer support among young learners. Although some studies suggest that young learners can collaborate and support each other, other studies indicate that young learners may lack the ability to work together and support one another when interacting on classroom tasks. Moreover, despite the claims that peer collaboration is conducive to learning, studies have not paid enough attention to the “how” to enhance peer collaboration on classroom tasks. To fill this gap, this “how-to” article proposes that teaching young learners how to work together is a powerful pedagogical tool that can greatly improve collaborative behavior and a sense of mutuality among young learners. This article will pay particular attention to primary schools and the context of English as a foreign language. It will first review literature related to patterns of interaction and peer support conducted in the cognitive and sociocultural framework. It will then address what it actually means to collaborate. At the heart of the article, it will discuss some practical pedagogical ideas for language teachers, which entail teaching collaborative principles and strategies that will help their students to support each other and engage in communication with each other.

Keywords: young learners, peer collaboration, peer interaction, peer support, patterns of interaction

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Authors: Sakshi Kaul, Sundeep Verma

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The focus of the current paper is to evaluate the therapeutic power of words. This will be done by critically evaluating the impact reading, writing and storytelling have on individuals. When we read, tell or listen to a story we are exercising our imagination. Imagination becomes the source of activation of thoughts and actions. This enables and helps the reader, writer or the listener to express the suppressed emotions or desires. The stories told, untold may bring various human emotions and attributes to forth such as hope, optimism, fear, happiness. Each story narrated evokes different emotions, at times they help us unravel ourselves in the world of the teller thereby bringing solace. Stories heard or told add to individual’s life by creating a community around, giving wings of thoughts that enable individual to be more imaginative and creative thereby fostering positively and happiness. Reading if looked at from the reader’s point of view can broaden the horizon of information and ideas about facts and life laws giving more meaning to life. From ‘once upon a time’ to ‘to happily ever after’, all that stories talk about is life’s learning. The power of words sometimes may be negated, this paper would reiterate the power of words by critically evaluating how words can become powerful and therapeutic in various structures and forms in the society. There is a story behind every situation, action and reaction. Hence it is of prime importance to understand each story, to enable a person to deal with whatever he or she may be going through. For example, if a client is going through some trauma in his or her life, the counsellor needs to know exactly what is the turmoil that is being faced so that the client can be assisted accordingly. Counselling is considered a process of healing through words or as Talk therapy, where merely through words we try to heal the client. In a counselling session, the counsellor focuses on working with the clients to bring a positive change. The counsellor allows the client to express themselves which is referred to as catharsis. The words spoken, written or heard transcend to heal and can be therapeutic. The therapeutic power of words has been seen in various cultural practices and belief systems. The underlining belief that words have the power to heal, save and bring change has existed from ages. Many religious and spiritual practices also acclaim the power of the words. Through this empirical paper, we have tried to bring to light how reading, writing, and storytelling have been used as mediums of healing and have been therapeutic in nature.

Keywords: reading, storytelling, therapeutic, words

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Authors: Leila Vafajoo, Feria Ghanaat, Alireza Mohmadi Kartalaei, Amin Ghalebi

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Petrochemical industries are playing an important role in producing wastewaters. Nowadays different methods are employed to treat these materials. The goal of the present research was to reduce the COD of a petrochemical wastewater via adsorption technique using a commercial granular activated carbon (GAC) as adsorbent. In the current study, parameters of kinetic models as well as; adsorption isotherms were determined through utilizing the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms. The key parameters of KL= 0.0009 and qm= 33.33 for the former and nf=0.5 and Kf= 0.000004 for the latter isotherms resulted. Moreover, a correlation coefficient of above 90% for both cases proved logical use of such isotherms. On the other hand, pseudo-first and -second order kinetics equations were implemented. These resulted in coefficients of k1=0.005 and qe=2018 as well as; K2=0.009 and qe=1250; respectively. In addition, obtaining the correlation coefficients of 0.94 and 0.68 for these 1st and 2nd order kinetics; respectively indicated advantageous use of the former model. Furthermore, a significant experimental reduction of the petrochemical wastewater COD revealed that, using GAC for the process undertaken was an efficient mean of treatment. Ultimately, the current investigation paved down the road for predicting the system’s behavior on industrial scale.

Keywords: petrochemical wastewater, adsorption, granular activated carbon, equilibrium isotherm, kinetic model

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Authors: Wedad Albalawi

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The mathematical inequalities have been the core of mathematical study and used in almost all branches of mathematics as well in various areas of science and engineering. The inequalities by Hardy, Littlewood and Polya were the first significant composition of several science. This work presents fundamental ideas, results and techniques, and it has had much influence on research in various branches of analysis. Since 1934, various inequalities have been produced and studied in the literature. Furthermore, some inequalities have been formulated by some operators; in 1989, weighted Hardy inequalities have been obtained for integration operators. Then, they obtained weighted estimates for Steklov operators that were used in the solution of the Cauchy problem for the wave equation. They were improved upon in 2011 to include the boundedness of integral operators from the weighted Sobolev space to the weighted Lebesgue space. Some inequalities have been demonstrated and improved using the Hardy–Steklov operator. Recently, a lot of integral inequalities have been improved by differential operators. Hardy inequality has been one of the tools that is used to consider integrity solutions of differential equations. Then, dynamic inequalities of Hardy and Coposon have been extended and improved by various integral operators. These inequalities would be interesting to apply in different fields of mathematics (functional spaces, partial differential equations, mathematical modeling). Some inequalities have been appeared involving Copson and Hardy inequalities on time scales to obtain new special version of them. A time scale is an arbitrary nonempty closed subset of the real numbers. Then, the dynamic inequalities on time scales have received a lot of attention in the literature and has become a major field in pure and applied mathematics. There are many applications of dynamic equations on time scales to quantum mechanics, electrical engineering, neural networks, heat transfer, combinatorics, and population dynamics. This study focuses on Hardy and Coposon inequalities, using Steklov operator on time scale in double integrals to obtain special cases of time-scale inequalities of Hardy and Copson on high dimensions. The advantage of this study is that it uses the one-dimensional classical Hardy inequality to obtain higher dimensional on time scale versions that will be applied in the solution of the Cauchy problem for the wave equation. In addition, the obtained inequalities have various applications involving discontinuous domains such as bug populations, phytoremediation of metals, wound healing, maximization problems. The proof can be done by introducing restriction on the operator in several cases. The concepts in time scale version such as time scales calculus will be used that allows to unify and extend many problems from the theories of differential and of difference equations. In addition, using chain rule, and some properties of multiple integrals on time scales, some theorems of Fubini and the inequality of H¨older.

Keywords: time scales, inequality of hardy, inequality of coposon, steklov operator

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Authors: Insiya Kapasi, Roshni Udyavar Yehuda

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Cluster Redevelopment is a new concept in the city of Mumbai. Its regulations were laid down by the government in 2009. The concept of cluster redevelopment encompasses a group of buildings defined by a boundary as specified by the municipal authority (in this case, Mumbai), which may be dilapidated or approved for redevelopment. The study analyses the effect of cluster redevelopment in the form of renewal of old group of buildings as compared to refurbishment or restoration - on energy consumption. The methodology includes methods of assessment to determine increase or decrease in energy consumption in cluster redevelopment based on different criteria such as carpet area of the units, building envelope and its architectural elements. Results show that as the area and number of units increase the Energy consumption increases and the EPI (energy performance index) decreases as compared to the base case. The energy consumption per unit area declines by 29% in the proposed cluster redevelopment as compared to the original settlement. It is recommended that although the development is spacious and provides more light and ventilation, aspects such as glass type, traditional architectural features and consumer behavior are critical in the reduction of energy consumption.

Keywords: Cluster Redevelopment, Energy Consumption, Energy Efficiency, Typologies

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Authors: Mauricio Becerra Fernández, Olga Rosana Romero Quiroga, Elsa Cristina González La Rotta

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The logistics facilities design and construction is one of the strategic decisions that critically affects the performance of the company, from the economic perspective and relationship with customers. The case study company is the Colombian logistic sector leader, with over 60 years of experience, with sales of about one hundred twenty million dollars at the end of 2014. The preliminary design for the warehouse layout and operation includes a customer that provides approximately 17% of the profits of the company, considering the possibility of moving two forklifts in the warehouse halls. Some changes were not consider in previous stages of design, operations required forklift with different characteristics, whose size, do not allow the circulation of more than a forklift at a time. Therefore, it is necessary to assess the impact of this restriction on the warehouse operation, so decision makers implement actions to achieve efficient operation. The problem is addressed by recognizing logistics processes, which develop in a warehouse, collection of processes information behavior, the simulation of the current situation using ProModel software, model validation, making adjustments required, experiments design, conclusions and recommendations for the company.

Keywords: design, discrete events simulation, forklift allocation, logistics facilities, warehouse

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Authors: Amr Mansour Mohsen, Hesham Ahmed Hassan, Amira M. Idrees

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Document Analysis is an important research field that aims to gather the information by analyzing the data in documents. As one of the important targets for many fields is to understand what people actually want, sentimental analysis field has been one of the vital fields that are tightly related to the document analysis. This research focuses on analyzing text documents to classify each document according to its opinion. The aim of this research is to detect the emotions from text documents based on enriching the lexicon with adapting their content based on semantic patterns extraction. The proposed approach has been presented, and different experiments are applied by different perspectives to reveal the positive impact of the proposed approach on the classification results.

Keywords: document analysis, sentimental analysis, emotion detection, WEKA tool, NRC lexicon

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Authors: Badawia Ibrahim, Iman Hussein, Samar El Sheikh, Fatma Abou Elkasem, Hazem Abo Ismael

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Background: Response of breast carcinoma to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) varies regarding many factors including hormonal receptor status. Breast cancer is a heterogenous disease with different outcomes, hence a need arises for new markers predicting the outcome of NAC especially for the triple negative group when estrogen, progesterone receptors and Her2/neu are negative. FOXP3 is a promising target with unclear role. Aim: To examine the value of FOXP3 expression in locally advanced triple negative breast cancer tumoral cells as well as tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and to elucidate its relation to the extent of NAC response. Material and Methods: Forty five cases of immunohistochemically confirmed to be triple negative breast carcinoma were evaluated for NAC (Doxorubicin, Cyclophosphamide AC x 4 cycles + Paclitaxel x 12 weeks, patients with ejection fraction less than 60% received Taxotere or Cyclophosphamide, Methotrexate, Fluorouracil CMF) response in both tumour and lymph nodes status according to Miller & Payne's and Sataloff's systems. FOXP3 expression in tumor as well as TILs evaluated in the pretherapy biopsies was correlated with NAC response in breast tumor and lymph nodes as well as other clinicopathological factors. Results: Breast tumour cells showed FOXP3 positive cytoplasmic expression in (42%) of cases. High FOXP3 expression percentage was detected in (47%) of cases. High infiltration by FOXP3+TILs was detected in (49%) of cases. Positive FOXP3 expression was associated with negative lymph node metastasis. High FOXP3 expression percentage and high infiltration by FOXP3+TILs were significantly associated with complete therapy response in axillary lymph nodes. High FOXP3 expression in tumour cells was associated with high infiltration by FOXP3+TILs. Conclusion: This result may provide evidence that FOXP3 marker is a good prognostic and predictive marker for triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) indicated for neoadjuvant chemotherapy and can be used for stratifications of TNBC cases indicated for NAC. As well, this study confirmed the fact that the tumour cells and the surrounding microenvironment interact with each other and the tumour microenvironment can influence the treatment outcomes of TNBC.

Keywords: breast cancer, FOXP3 expression, prediction of neoadjuvant chemotherapy effect, triple negative

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Authors: Anita Kéri

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With the outbreak of the global pandemic of COVID-19, online education characterizes today’s higher education. For some higher education institutions (HEIs), the shift from classroom education to online solutions was swift and smooth, and students are continuously asked about their experience regarding online education. Therefore, there is a growing emphasis on student satisfaction with online education, a field that had emerged previously, but has become the center of higher education and research interest today. The aim of the current paper is to give a brief overview of the tools used in the online education of marketing-related classes at the examined university and to investigate student satisfaction with the applied teaching methodologies with the tool of a questionnaire. Results show that students are most satisfied with their teachers’ competences and preparedness, while they are least satisfied with online class quality, where it seems that further steps are needed to be taken.

Keywords: netnography, online teaching, pandemic, satisfaction

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Authors: Chansiri Singhtaun

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This paper proposes a mathematical model and examines the performance of an exact algorithm for a location–transportation problems in humanitarian relief. The model determines the number and location of distribution centers in a relief network, the amount of relief supplies to be stocked at each distribution center and the vehicles to take the supplies to meet the needs of disaster victims under capacity restriction, transportation and budgetary constraints. The computational experiments are conducted on the various sizes of problems that are generated. Branch and bound algorithm is applied for these problems. The results show that this algorithm can solve problem sizes of up to three candidate locations with five demand points and one candidate location with up to twenty demand points without premature termination.

Keywords: disaster response, facility location, humanitarian relief, transportation

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Authors: P. Klinkesorn, S. Yordchim, T. Gibbs, J. Achariyopas

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Vocabulary and reading skill were examined in terms of teaching and learning via teacher-created website. The aims of this study are 1) to survey students’ opinions on the teacher-created website for learning vocabulary and reading skill 2) to survey the students’ motivation for learning vocabulary and reading skill through the teacher-created website. Motivation was applied to the results of the questionnaires and interview forms. Finding suggests that Teacher-Created Website can increase students’ motivation to read more, build up a large stock of vocabulary and improve their understanding of the vocabulary. Implications for developing both social engagement and emotional satisfaction are discussed.

Keywords: motivation, teacher-created website, Thai students, vocabulary and reading skill

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Authors: P. B. Sob, T. B. Tengen, A. A. Alugongo

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Mechanical behavior of 6082T6 aluminum is investigated at different temperatures. The strain rate sensitivity is investigated at different temperatures on the grain size variants. The sensitivity of the measured grain size variants on 3-D grain is discussed. It is shown that the strain rate sensitivities are negative for the grain size variants during the deformation of nanostructured materials. It is also observed that the strain rate sensitivities vary in different ways with the equivalent radius, semi minor axis radius, semi major axis radius and major axis radius. From the obtained results, it is shown that the variation of strain rate sensitivity with temperature suggests that the strain rate sensitivity at the low and the high temperature ends of the 6082T6 aluminum range is different. The obtained results revealed transition at different temperature from negative strain rate sensitivity as temperature increased on the grain size variants.

Keywords: nanostructured materials, grain size variants, temperature, yield stress, strain rate sensitivity

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Authors: Simon B. N. Thompson

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Early indicator of neurological disease has been proposed by the expanded Thompson Cortisol Hypothesis which suggests that yawning is linked to rises in cortisol levels. Cortisol is essential to the regulation of the immune system and pathological yawning is a symptom of multiple sclerosis (MS). Electromyography activity (EMG) in the jaw muscles typically rises when the muscles are moved – extended or flexed; and yawning has been shown to be highly correlated with cortisol levels in healthy people. It is likely that these elevated cortisol levels are also seen in people with MS. The possible link between EMG in the jaw muscles and rises in saliva cortisol levels during yawning were investigated in a randomized controlled trial of 60 volunteers aged 18-69 years who were exposed to conditions that were designed to elicit the yawning response. Saliva samples were collected at the start and after yawning, or at the end of the presentation of yawning-provoking stimuli, in the absence of a yawn, and EMG data was additionally collected during rest and yawning phases. Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Yawning Susceptibility Scale, General Health Questionnaire, demographic, and health details were collected and the following exclusion criteria were adopted: chronic fatigue, diabetes, fibromyalgia, heart condition, high blood pressure, hormone replacement therapy, multiple sclerosis, and stroke. Significant differences were found between the saliva cortisol samples for the yawners, t (23) = -4.263, p = 0.000, as compared with the non-yawners between rest and post-stimuli, which was non-significant. There were also significant differences between yawners and non-yawners for the EMG potentials with the yawners having higher rest and post-yawning potentials. Significant evidence was found to support the Thompson Cortisol Hypothesis suggesting that rises in cortisol levels are associated with the yawning response. Further research is underway to explore the use of cortisol as a potential diagnostic tool as an assist to the early diagnosis of symptoms related to neurological disorders. Bournemouth University Research & Ethics approval granted: JC28/1/13-KA6/9/13. Professional code of conduct, confidentiality, and safety issues have been addressed and approved in the Ethics submission. Trials identification number: ISRCTN61942768. http://www.controlled-trials.com/isrctn/

Keywords: cortisol, electromyography, neurology, yawning

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Authors: Milad Nooshadi, Alessandro Manzardo

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CO₂ emissions in the atmosphere continue to rise, mostly as a result of the combustion of fossil fuels. CO₂ injection into the oceans and geological formation as a process of physical carbon capture are two of the most promising emerging strategies for mitigating climate change and global warming. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the two mentioned methods of CO₂ sequestration and to assess information on previous and current advancements, limitations, and uncertainties associated with carbon sequestration in order to identify possible prospects for ensuring the timely implementation of the technology, such as determining how governments and companies can gain a better understanding of CO₂ storage in terms of which media have the most applicable capacity, which type of injection has the fewer environmental impact, and how much carbon sequestration and storage will cost. The behavior of several forms is characterized as a near field, a far field, and a see-floor in ocean storage, and three medias in geological formations as an oil and gas reservoir, a saline aquifer, and a coal bed. To determine the capacity of various forms of media, an analysis of some models and practical experiments are necessary. Additionally, as a major component of sequestration, the various injection methods into diverse media and their monitoring are associated with a variety of environmental impacts and financial consequences.

Keywords: carbon sequestration, ocean storage, geologic storage, carbon transportation

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Authors: David Lall, Vikram Vishal, P. G. Ranjith

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Numerical modeling of gas production from hydrate-bearing reservoirs requires the solution of various thermal, hydrological, chemical, and mechanical phenomena in a coupled manner. Among the various reservoir properties that influence gas production estimates, the distribution of permeability across the domain is one of the most crucial parameters since it determines both heat transfer and mass transfer. The aspect of permeability in hydrate-bearing reservoirs is particularly complex compared to conventional reservoirs since it depends on the saturation of gas hydrates and hence, is dynamic during production. The dependence of permeability on hydrate saturation is mathematically represented using permeability-reduction models, which are specific to the expected morphology of hydrate accumulations (such as grain-coating or pore-filling hydrates). In this study, we demonstrate the impact of various permeability-reduction models, and consequently, different morphologies of hydrate deposits on the estimates of gas production using depressurization at the reservoir scale. We observe significant differences in produced water volumes and cumulative mass of produced gas between the models, thereby highlighting the uncertainty in production behavior arising from the ambiguity in the prevalent gas hydrate morphology.

Keywords: gas hydrate morphology, multi-scale modeling, THMC, fluid flow in porous media

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Authors: S. Pathak, R. Lazarus

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A 25-year-old male HIV patient (CD4 cells 20/µL and HIV viral load 14200000 copies/ml) with a past medical history of duodenal ulcer, pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, oesophageal candidiasis presented with fever and a seizure to hospital. The only recent travel had been a religious pilgrimage from Singapore to Malaysia 5 days prior; during the trip he sustained skin abrasions. The patient had recently started highly active antiretroviral therapy 2 months prior. Clinical examination was unremarkable other than a temperature of 38.8°C and perianal warts. Laboratory tests showed a leukocyte count 12.5x109 cells/L, haemoglobin 9.4 g/dL, normal biochemistry and a C-reactive protein 121 mg/L. CT head and MRI head were unremarkable and cerebrospinal fluid analysis performed after a delay (due to technical difficulties) of 11 days was unremarkable. Blood cultures (three sets) taken on admission showed Gram-negative rods in the anaerobic bottles only at the end of incubation with culture result confirmed by molecular sequencing showing Helicobacter cinaedi. The patient was treated empirically with ceftriaxone for seven days and this was converted to oral co-amoxiclav for a further seven days after the blood cultures became positive. A Transthoracic echocardiogram was unremarkable. The patient made a full recovery. Helicobacter cinaedi is a gram-negative anaerobic fastidious organism affecting patients with comorbidity. Infection may manifest as cellulitius, colitis or as in this case as bloodstream infection – the latter is often attributed to faeco-oral infection. Laboratory identification requires prolonged culture. Therapeutic options may be limited by resistance to macrolides and fluoroquinolones. The likely pathogen inoculation routes in the case described include gastrointestinal translocation due to proctitis at the site of perianal warts, or breach of the skin via abrasions occurring during the pilgrimage. Such organisms are increasing in prevalence as our patient population ages and patients have multiple comorbidities including HIV. It may be necessary in patients with unexplained fever to prolong incubation of sterile sites including blood in order to identify this unusual fastidious organism.

Keywords: fastidious, Helicobacter cinaedi, HIV, immunocompromised

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Authors: Emel Sonmezer, Hayri Baran Yosmaoglu

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The negative impact of chronic pain syndromes on sexual function has been reported in several studies; however, the influences of treatment strategies on sexual dysfunction have not been evaluated widely. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of pelvic floor exercise on sexual dysfunction in female patients with chronic low back pain. Forty-two patient with chronic low back pain were enrolled this study. Subjects were divided into two groups. Group 1 received conventional physiotherapy consist of heat therapy, ergonomic education, William flexion exercise during 6 weeks. Group 2 received pelvic floor exercises in addition to conventional physiotherapy. Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) was used for the assessment of sexual function. Pain intensity was assessed with Visual Analogue Scale. Quality of life was assessed with World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale. All measurements were taken before and after treatment. In conventional physiotherapy group; there were significant improvement in pain intensity (p= 0,003), physical health (p=0,011), psychological health (p=0,042) subscales of quality of life scale, arousal (p=0,042), lubrication (p=0,028) and pain (p= 0,034) subscales of FSFI. In additional pelvic floor exercise group; there were significant improvement in pain intensity (p= 0,005), physical health (p=0,012) psychological health (p=0,039) subscales of quality of life scale, arousal (p=0,024), lubrication (p=0,011), orgasm (p=0,035) and pain (p= 0,015) subscales and total score (p=0,016) of FSFI. Total FSFI score (p=0,025) and orgasm (p=0,017) subscale of FSFI were significantly higher for the additional pelvic floor exercise group than the conventional physiotherapy group.The outcome of this study suggested that conventional physiotherapy may contribute to improve pain, quality of life and some parameters of the sexual function in patients with low back pain. Although additional pelvic floor exercise did not reveal more treatment effect in terms of quality of life and pain intensity, it caused significant improvement in sexual function. It is recommended that pelvic floor exercise should be added to treatment programs in order to manage sexual dysfunction more effectively in patients with chronic low back pain.

Keywords: physiotherapy, chronic pain, sexual dysfunction, pelvic floor

Procedia PDF Downloads 267

Authors: R. S. Rajpurohit, N. C. Santhi Srinivas, Vakil Singh

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Asymmetric stress cycling leads to accumulation of plastic strain which is called as ratcheting strain. The problem is generally associated with nuclear fuel cladding materials used in nuclear power plants and pressurized pipelines. In the present investigation, asymmetric stress controlled fatigue tests were conducted with three different parameters namely, mean stress, stress amplitude and stress rate (keeping two parameters constant and varying third parameter) to see the plastic strain accumulation and its effect on fatigue life and deformation behavior of Zircaloy-2 at 400°C. The tests were conducted with variable mean stress (45-70 MPa), stress amplitude (95-120 MPa) and stress rate (30-750 MPa/s) and tested specimens were characterized using transmission and scanning electron microscopy. The experimental results show that with the increase in mean stress and stress amplitude, the ratcheting strain accumulation increases with reduction in fatigue life. However, increase in stress rate leads to improvement in fatigue life of the material due to small ratcheting strain accumulation. Fractographs showed a decrease in area fraction of fatigue failed region.

Keywords: asymmetric cyclic loading, ratcheting fatigue, mean stress, stress amplitude, stress rate, plastic strain

Procedia PDF Downloads 275

Authors: Dimitrios Kafetzopoulos

Abstract:

Nowadays, companies are more concerned with adopting their own strategies for increased efficiency and sustainability. Dynamic environments are fertile fields for developing operational changes. For this purpose, organizations need to implement an advanced management philosophy that boosts changes to companies’ operation. Changes refer to new applications of knowledge, ideas, methods, and skills that can generate unique capabilities and leverage an organization’s competitiveness. So, in order to survive and compete in the global and niche markets, companies should incorporate the adoption of operational changes into their strategy with regard to their products and their processes. Creating the appropriate culture for changes in terms of products and processes helps companies to gain a sustainable competitive advantage in the market. Thus, the purpose of this study is to investigate the role of both incremental and radical changes into operations of a company, taking into consideration not only product changes but also process changes, and continues by measuring the impact of these two types of changes on business efficiency and sustainability of Greek manufacturing companies. The above discussion leads to the following hypotheses: H1: Radical operational changes have a positive impact on firm efficiency. H2: Incremental operational changes have a positive impact on firm efficiency. H3: Radical operational changes have a positive impact on firm sustainability. H4: Incremental operational changes have a positive impact on firm sustainability. In order to achieve the objectives of the present study, a research study was carried out in Greek manufacturing firms. A total of 380 valid questionnaires were received while a seven-point Likert scale was used to measure all the questionnaire items of the constructs (radical changes, incremental changes, efficiency and sustainability). The constructs of radical and incremental operational changes, each one as one variable, has been subdivided into product and process changes. Non-response bias, common method variance, multicollinearity, multivariate normal distribution and outliers have been checked. Moreover, the unidimensionality, reliability and validity of the latent factors were assessed. Exploratory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis were applied to check the factorial structure of the constructs and the factor loadings of the items. In order to test the research hypotheses, the SEM technique was applied (maximum likelihood method). The goodness of fit of the basic structural model indicates an acceptable fit of the proposed model. According to the present study findings, radical operational changes and incremental operational changes significantly influence both efficiency and sustainability of Greek manufacturing firms. However, it is in the dimension of radical operational changes, meaning those in process and product, that the most significant contributors to firm efficiency are to be found, while its influence on sustainability is low albeit statistically significant. On the contrary, incremental operational changes influence sustainability more than firms’ efficiency. From the above, it is apparent that the embodiment of the concept of the changes into the products and processes operational practices of a firm has direct and positive consequences for what it achieves from efficiency and sustainability perspective.

Keywords: incremental operational changes, radical operational changes, efficiency, sustainability

Procedia PDF Downloads 136

Authors: Sevil Kaynar Turkoglu, Jinde Zhang, Jo Ann Ratto, Hanna Dodiuk, Samuel Kenig, Joey Mead

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Superhydrophilic, crack-free thin film coatings based on silica nanoparticles were fabricated by dip-coating method. Both thermodynamic and dynamic effects on the wetting properties of the thin films were investigated by modifying the coating formulation via changing the particle-to-binder ratio and weight % of silica in solution. The formulated coatings were characterized by a number of analyses. Water contact angle (WCA) measurements were conducted for all coatings to characterize the surface wetting properties. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images were taken to examine the morphology of the coating surface. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) analysis was done to study surface topography. The presence of hydrophilic functional groups and nano-scale roughness were found to be responsible for the superhydrophilic behavior of the films. In addition, surface chemistry, compared to surface roughness, was found to be a primary factor affecting the wetting properties of the thin film coatings.

Keywords: poly (acrylic acid), silica nanoparticles, superhydrophilic coatings, surface wetting

Procedia PDF Downloads 134

Authors: M. Saidi, F. Ait Medjber, B. Safi, M. Samar

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This work is focused on the study of valuation of recycled concrete aggregates, by measuring certain properties of concrete in the fresh and hardened state. In this study, rheological tests and physic-mechanical characterization on concretes and mortars were conducted with recycled concrete whose geometric properties were identified aggregates. Mortars were elaborated with recycled fine aggregate (0/5mm) and concretes were manufactured using recycled coarse aggregates (5/12.5 mm and 12.5/20 mm). First, a study of the mortars was conducted to determine the effectiveness of adjuvant polycarboxylate superplasticizer on the workability of these and their action deflocculating of the fine recycled sand. The rheological behavior of mortars based on fine aggregate recycled was characterized. The results confirm that the mortars composed of different fractions of recycled sand (0/5) have a better mechanical properties (compressive and flexural strength) compared to normal mortar. Also, the mechanical strengths of concretes made with recycled aggregates (5/12.5 mm and 12.5/20 mm), are comparable to those of conventional concrete with conventional aggregates, provided that the implementation can be improved by the addition of a superplasticizer.

Keywords: demolition wastes, recycled coarse aggregate, concrete, workability, mechanical strength, porosity/water absorption

Procedia PDF Downloads 339

Authors: A. U. Haque, W. Asrar, A. A. Omar, E. Sulaeman, J. S Mohamed Ali

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Open jet testing is a valuable testing technique which provides the desired results with reasonable accuracy. It has been used in past for the airships and now has recently been applied for the hybrid ones, having more non-buoyant force coming from the wings, empennage and the fuselage. In the present review work, an effort has been done to review the challenges involved in open jet testing. In order to shed light on the application of this technique, the experimental results of two different configurations are presented. Although, the aerodynamic results of such vehicles are unique to its own design; however, it will provide a starting point for planning any future testing. Few important testing areas which need more attention are also highlighted. Most of the hybrid buoyant aerial vehicles are unconventional in shape and there experimental data is generated, which is unique to its own design.

Keywords: open jet testing, aerodynamics, hybrid buoyant aerial vehicles, airships

Procedia PDF Downloads 573