Search results for: total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N)

Authors: V. I. Chukwuemeka, S. M. Tsadu, R. O. Ojutiku, R. J. Kolo

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The food and feeding habits of Auchenoglanis occidentalis, which is commonly called the “BuBu” cat fish or the giraffe cat fish from Tagwai Lake Minna, was analysed from January to June, 2013. A total of 216 fish specimen were used for the study which were obtained from the local fishermen operating in Tagwai Lake Minna. Fishing gears used include cast nets and gills nets of various sizes. They also use hook and lines. The frequency of occurrence and dominance method were used to analyse the food in the gut. Auchenoglanis occidentalis from Tagwai Lake, Minna had a broad spectrum of food items in the gut, ranging from insects, fish, plant materials to protozoan. The percentage of insects was (31.75%), fish (12.70%), Chyme (20.63%), plant materials (20.63%), protozoa (1.59%) and soil (12.70%). The presence of different food items in the gut of the Auchenoglanis occidentalis which ranged from animal to plant and soil made it to be considered as an omnivore bottom feeder. The food habits of this fish showed no remarkable difference between the dry season months and the rainy season months. The broad food spectrum of the fish makes them a good aquaculture candidate. It also suggests that the specie feed both in surface water and near the substratum (sand).

Keywords: Auchenoglanis occidentalis, ecology, Tagwai Lake, Nigeria

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Authors: Mohamed Ali Alrabib

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This paper introduces a paleoenvironmental and hydrocarbon show in this well was identified in the interval of Dembaba formation to the Hassaona formation was poor to very poor oil show. And from palaeoenvironmental analysis there is neither particularly good reservoir nor source rock have been developed in the area. Recent palaeoenvironment work undertakes that the sedimentary succession in this area comprises the Upper Paleozoic rock of the Carboniferous and Permian and the Mesozoic (Triassic) sedimentary sequences. No early Paleozoic rocks have been found in this area, these rocks were eroding during the Late Carboniferous and Early Permian time. During Latest Permian and earliest Triassic time evidence for major marine transgression has occurred. From depths 5930-5940 feet, to 10800-10810 feet, the TAI of the Al Guidr, the Bir Al Jaja Al Uotia, Hebilia and the top varies between 3+ to 4-(mature-dry gas). This interval corporate the rest part of the Dembaba Formation. From depth 10800- 10810 feet, until total sediment depth (11944 feet Log) which corporate the rest of the Dembaba and underlying equivalents of the Assedjefar and M rar Formations and the underlying Indeterminate unit (Hassouna Formation) the TAI varies between 4 and 5 (dry gas-black& deformed).

Keywords: paleoenveronments, thermail index, carboniferous, Libya

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Authors: I. Badhrees

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This paper is an attempt to describe some of the results that had been found through a journey of study in the field of particle physics. This study consists of two parts, one about the measurement of the cross section of the decay of the Z particle in two electrons, and the other deals with the measurement of the cross section of the multi-photon absorption process using a beam of laser in the Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber. The first part of the paper concerns the results based on the analysis of a data sample containing 8120 ee candidates to reconstruct the mass of the Z particle for each event where each event has an ee pair with PT(e) > 20GeV, and η(e) < 2.5. Monte Carlo templates of the reconstructed Z particle were produced as a function of the Z mass scale. The distribution of the reconstructed Z mass in the data was compared to the Monte Carlo templates, where the total cross section is calculated to be equal to 1432 pb. The second part concerns the Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber, LAr TPC, the results of the interaction of the UV Laser, Nd-YAG with λ= 266mm, with LAr and through the study of the multi-photon ionization process as a part of the R&D at Bern University. The main result of this study was the cross section of the process of the multi-photon ionization process of the LAr, σe = 1.24±0.10stat±0.30sys.10 -56cm4.

Keywords: ATLAS, CERN, KACST, LArTPC, particle physics

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Authors: Prathap S. Raghavendra, Mohamed S. Z. Shamshuddin, Thimmaraju N. Venkatesh

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The transesterification of dimethyl malonate (DMM) with phenol has been studied in vapour phase over cordierite honeycomb coated with solid acid catalysts such as ZrO2,Mo(VI)/ZrO2 and SO42-/ZrO2. The catalytic materials were prepared honeycomb coated and powder forms and characterized for their total surface acidity by NH3-TPD and crystalinity by powder XRD methods. Phenyl methyl malonate (PMM) and diphenyl malonate (DPM) were obtained as the reaction products. A good conversion of DMM (up to 82%) of MPM with 95% selectivity was observed when the reactions were carried out at a catalyst bed temperature of 200 °C and flow-rate of 10 mL/h in presence of Mo(VI)/ZrO2 as catalyst. But over SO42-/ZrO2 catalyst, the yield of DPM was found to be higher. The results have been interpreted based on the variation of acidic properties and powder XRD phases of zirconia on incorporation of Mo(VI) or SO42– ions. Transesterification reactions were also carried out over powder forms of the catalytic materials and the yield of the desired phenyl ester products were compared with that of the HC coated catalytic materials. The solid acids were found to be reusable when used for at least 5 reaction cycles.

Keywords: cordierite honeycomb, methyl phenyl malonate, vapour phase transesterification, zirconia

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Authors: Hassan Hamidi, Fereshteh Zarei

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In this study, we compared amount of compete motivation between young and adult volleyball players. Compete motivation has three sections: success achieves score, defeat avoiding score and ability score. For measuring motivation, we used sports attitude inventory of Willis and Layne. The statistical population was elite's men volleyball players in range of young and adult and the study subjects were randomly selected from participant teams in volleyball professional league. In total, 65 adult and 75 young were selected. For collecting the required information, the research inventories were distributed in practice's locations and then were collected after being completed by players. For analyzing the data, we used descriptive statistics including mean, standard deviation and frequency tables. We also used conceptual statistics such as independent sample t-student and Pierson correlation. The results showed a significant difference between young and adult volleyball players in success achieve score and ability score. However, there was no significant difference between young and adult volleyball players in defeat avoiding score and compete motivation. In addition, there was not significant relationship between the length of activities and motivations' sections in adult and young volleyball player. The application of this study to other sports will be discussed.

Keywords: compete motivation, volleyball player, statistical analysis, sport psychology

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Authors: Chayonnat Thanamun, Kreangkrai Maneeintr

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For petroleum industry, polymer flooding is the one of the main methods in enhanced oil recovery (EOR) that is used water-soluble polymer such as partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (HPAM) to increase oil production. It is added to the flooding water to improve the mobility ratio in the flooding process. During the polymer flooding process, water is produced as a by-product along with oil and gas production. This produced water is a mixture of inorganic and organic compound. Moreover, produced water is more difficult to treat than that from water flooding. In this work, the effect of HPAM residue on the wastewater treatment from polymer flooding is studied. Polyaluminium chloride (PAC) is selected to use as a flocculant. Therefore, the objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of polymer residues in produced water on the wastewater treatment by using PAC. The operating parameters of this study are flocculant dosage ranging from 300,400 and 500 mg/L temperature from 30-50 Celsius degree and HPAM concentrations from 500, 1000 and 2000 mg/L. Furthermore, the turbidity, as well as total suspended solids (TSS), are also studied. The results indicated that with an increase in HPAM concentration, the TSS and turbidity increase gradually with the increasing of coagulant dosage under the same temperature. Also, the coagulation-flocculation performance is improved with the increasing temperature. This can be applied to use in the wastewater treatment from oil production before this water can be injected back to the reservoir.

Keywords: wastewater treatment, petroleum production, polyaluminium chloride, polyacrylamide

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Authors: Faik Derya Ince, Ugur Topgul, Alp Gunay, Can Bayoglu, Dante J. Dorantes-Gonzalez

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Explosive attacks are arguably the most lethal threat that may occur in terrorist attacks. In order to counteract this issue, explosive ordnance disposal operators put their lives on the line to dispose of a possible improvised explosive device. Robots can make the disposal process more accurately and saving human lives. For this purpose, there is a demand for more accurate and dexterous manipulating robotic hands that can be teleoperated from a distance. The aim of this project is to design a robotic hand that contains two active and two passive DOF for each finger, as well as a minimum set of tools for mechanical cutting and screw driving within the same robotic hand. Both hand and toolset, are teleoperated from a distance from a haptic robotic glove in order to manipulate dangerous objects such as improvised explosive devices. SolidWorks® Computer-Aided Design, computerized dynamic simulation, and MATLAB® kinematic and static analysis were used for the robotic hand and toolset design. Novel, dexterous and robust solutions for the fingers were obtained, and six servo motors are used in total to remotely control the multi-tooled robotic hand. This project is still undergoing and presents currents results. Future research steps are also presented.

Keywords: Explosive Manipulation, Robotic Hand, Tele-Operation, Tool Integration

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Authors: S. S. Amoor

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Insecurity is becoming a major tool in the hand of Nigeria’s enemies to increase poverty and hatred among the citizens and split the county into several political segments. It is based on this background that this paper critically examines Vocational and Technical Education as a practical and realistic approach to reducing insecurity in Nigeria so as to save the country from total disintegration. The paper discusses the concept of insecurity, types, causes and effects of insecurity, and how vocational and technical education and its variables are fundamental and practical measures to reducing insecurity in Nigeria. The paper concludes that the large army of unemployed and unskilled youths in Nigeria requires immediate attention in the area of provision of marketable vocational and technical skills, creativity and competences that will prepare them for employment or self-reliance. It is hoped that government jobs or self-employment will keep the teeming youths busy and therefore take their minds away from odd jobs that threaten the security of the country. In line with these, the paper recommends, among others, that since the teeming unemployed and unskilled youths are mostly from the rural areas, the state governments in collaboration with the local governments should take appropriate steps to provide the youths with vocational skills in carpentry, fashion designing, hair-dressing, driving, welding, mechanical works, among others. Once the youths are involved in one skilled trade or the other, insecurity would be reduced.

Keywords: vocational and technical education, insecurity, practical approach to reducing insecurity, unemployment

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Authors: Ajit Kumar Sah, Rajesh Kumar Jha, Phoolgen Sah, Dev Kumar Shah

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Older individuals often suffer from multiple systemic diseases and are particularly more vulnerable to potentially inappropriate medicine prescribing. Inappropriate medication can cause serious medical problem for the elderly. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of potentially inappropriate medicine (PIM) prescribing in older Nepalese patients in a medicine outpatient department. Beers’ criteria are the most widely used tools to assess PIM to elderly patients. Prospective observational analysis of drugs prescribed in medicine out-patient department (OPD) of a hospital of Bharatpur, Chitwan, Nepal during November 2011 to October 2012 to 869 older adults aged 65 years and above. The use of potentially inappropriate medications (PIM) in elderly patients was analyzed using Beers Criteria updated to 2013. In the 869 patients included the average number of drugs prescribed per prescription was 5.56. The most commonly used drugs were atenolol (24.3%), amlodipine (23.16%), paracetamol (17.6%), salbutamol (15.72%) and vitamin B complex (13.26%). The total number of medications prescribed was 4833. At least one instance of PIM was experienced by approximately 26.3% of patients when evaluated using the Beers criteria. Potentially inappropriate medications are highly prevalent among older patients attending medical OPD and are associated with a number of medications prescribed. Further research is warranted to study the impact of PIMs towards health-related outcomes in these elderly.

Keywords: Beers criteria, elderly, polypharmacy, potentially inappropriate medicines

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Authors: Armansyah, I. P. Almanar, M. Saiful Bahari Shaari, M. Shamil Jaffarullah, Nur’amirah Busu, M. Arif Fadzleen Zainal Abidin, M. Amlie A. Kasim

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Temperature distribution in Friction Stir Welding (FSW) of 6061-T6 Aluminum Alloy is modeled using the Finite Element Method (FEM). In order to obtain temperature distribution in the welded aluminum plates during welding operation, transient thermal finite element analyses are performed. Heat input from tool shoulder and tool pin are considered in the model. A moving heat source with a heat distribution simulating the heat generated by frictions between tool shoulder and workpiece is used in the analysis. Three-dimensional model for simulated process is carried out by using Altair HyperWork, a commercially available software. Transient thermal finite element analyses are performed in order to obtain the temperature distribution in the welded Aluminum plates during welding operation. The developed model was then used to show the effect of various input parameters such as total rate of welding speed and rotational speed on temperature distribution in the workpiece.

Keywords: frictions stir welding, temperature distribution, finite element method, altair hyperwork

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Authors: Wisitiporn Suksombat, Tanawat Phonkert, Chayapol Meeprom

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The aim of this experiment was to investigate the effect of calcium salt of palm oil fatty acids (Ca-POFA) supplementation on milk production and milk composition of dairy cows. Twenty-four early lactating crossbred Holstein Friesian 87.5% cows (15.4 ± 3.75 kg of milk/d; 93 ± 27 DIM; 369 ± 6 kg of BW), were assigned into 3 treatments in an RCBD. All dairy cows were fed 15.4% CP total mixed ration (TMR). The first group (control) received a basal diet and no supplement. The second group was fed the basal diet supplemented with 150 g/d calcium salt of palm oil fatty acids (Ca-POFA), and the last group was fed the basal diet supplemented with 300 g/d Ca-POFA. The experiment lasted 40 days with the first 10 days is an adaptation period, and measurements were made during the last 30 days in 6 periods with 5-days in each period for milk sample collection. The results found that supplemented calcium salt of palm oil fatty acid had no effect on milk yield, milk composition, milk composition yield, live weight and live weight change. However, Ca-POFA decreased milk protein percentage (P < 0.05).

Keywords: calcium salt of palm oil fatty acid, dairy cow, milk composition, milk production

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Authors: Jayron Sanchez, Analyn Yumang, Felicito Caluyo

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The visually impaired individual may use a cane, guide dog or ask for assistance from a person. This study implemented the RFID technology which consists of a low-cost RFID reader and passive RFID tag cards. The passive RFID tag cards served as checkpoints for the visually impaired. The visually impaired was guided through audio output from the system while traversing the path. The study implemented an ultrasonic sensor in detecting static obstacles. The system generated an alternate path based on A* algorithm to avoid the obstacles. Alternate paths were also generated in case the visually impaired traversed outside the intended path to the destination. A* algorithm generated the shortest path to the destination by calculating the total cost of movement. The algorithm then selected the smallest movement cost as a successor to the current tag card. Several trials were conducted to determine the effect of obstacles in the time traversal of the visually impaired. A dependent sample t-test was applied for the statistical analysis of the study. Based on the analysis, the obstacles along the path generated delays while requesting for the alternate path because of the delay in transmission from the laptop to the device via ZigBee modules.

Keywords: A* algorithm, RFID technology, ultrasonic sensor, ZigBee module

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Authors: Clara Theresia, Hardianto Iridiastadi

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Drowsiness is one of the main factors that contribute to the occurrence of accidents, particularly in the transportation sector. While the effects of sleep deprivation on cognitive functions have been reported, the exact relationships remain a critical issue. This study aimed at quantifying the effects of extreme sleep deprivation on vigilance, fatigue, and performance during simulated train driving. A total of 12 participants were asked to drive a train simulator continuously for 4 hours, either in a sleep deprived condition (2-hr of sleep) or normal (8-hr of sleep) condition. Dependent variables obtained during the task included Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT) parameters, degree of fatigue (assessed via Visual Analogue Scale/VAS) and sleepiness (reported using Karolinska Sleepiness Scale/KSS), and driving performance (the number of speed limit violations). Findings from this study demonstrated substantial decrements in vigilance in the sleep-deprived condition. This condition also resulted in 75% increase in speed violation and a two-fold increase in the degree of fatigue and sleepiness. Extreme sleep deprivation was clearly associated with substantially poorer response. The exact effects, however, were dependent upon the types of responses.

Keywords: cognitive function, psychomotor vigilance task, sleep deprivation, train simulator

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Authors: Ozioma Beauty Nwaodu, Adebowale E Salako, Omolara Mabel Akinyemi, Nkechi Uche, Isuama Isu, Uchechi Jane Elechi

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Goats form an integral part of livestock production in the tropics. Meat potential is determined subjectively by resource poor livestock keepers, using hand to measure the rump width (RW). Objective evaluation of meat potential in different breads of goats can overcome problems associated with subjective evaluation. Hence, the objectives were to predict meatiness in Red Sokoto (RS), Sahel and the West African Dwarf (WAD) goats, using product of the body length (BL), wither height (WH) and (RW) and to indicate the inherent size of each breed, using WH: BL ratio. These three parameters were used because they are less environmentally sensitive. A total of 2849 goats were sampled purposefully from the Akinyele and Oranyan markets in Ibadan, Oyo State Nigeria. RS showed no significant difference for BL and WH but different from the RW of both sexes (p < 0.01). Similarly WAD showed no significant difference for the BL and WH, but differed (p < 0.01) between sexes for RW. Using the ANOVA, BL:WH ratio showed no significant difference between the breeds. WAD goats have the highest mean for BL:WH ratio. Western meat livestock is primarily identified using BL:WH. The combinations of these body parameters as indicator for meat type in meat animals showed that WAD goat has more potential to lay down meat, than RS and Sahel.

Keywords: quantitative, morphologial traits, descriptive analysis, goats

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Authors: Moses Oghnennyoreme Eyankware, Christian Ogubuchi Ede

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Groundwater is the principal source for various uses in this study area. The quality and availability of groundwater depend on rock formation within the study area. To effectively study the quality of groundwater, 24 groundwater samples were collected. The study was aimed at investigating the hydrogeochemistry of groundwater, and additionally its suitability for drinking and irrigation purposes. The following parameters were analyzed using the American Public Health Association standard method: pH, turbidity, Ec, TDS, Mg2+, SO42-, NO3¯, Cl-, HCO3¯, K+, Na2+ and Ca2+. Results obtained from Water Quality Index revealed that the groundwater sample fell within good water quality that implies that groundwater is considered fit for drinking purposes. Deduced results obtained from irrigation indices revealed that Permeability Index (PI), Soluble Sodium Percentage (SSP), Sodium Percentage (Na %), Sodium Absorption Ratio (SAR), Kelly Ratio (KR), Magnesium Hazard (MH) ranges from 0.00 to 0.01, 4.04 to 412.9, 0.63 to 257.7, 0.15 to 2.34, 0.09 to 2.57 and 6.84 to 84.55 respectively. Findings from Total hardness revealed that groundwater fell within soft, moderately hard and hard categories. Estimated results obtained from CSMR, RI and LSI showed that groundwater showed corrosion tendency, salinization influenced groundwater at certain sampling points and chloride and sulfate unlikely to interfere with natural formation film.

Keywords: water, quality, suitability, anthropogenic, Nigeria

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Authors: M. Lizzy Madiwani, Ignatious Ncube, Evelyn Madoroba

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This study was designed to determine the distribution of pathogenic bacteria in household raised chickens and study their virulence and antibiotic profiles. For this purpose, 40 chickens were purchased from families in the Capricorn district and sacrificed for sampling. Tissues were cultured on different bacteriological media followed by biotyping using Matrix-assisted Laser Desorption Ionization-time of Flight (MALDI-TOF). Disk diffusion test was performed to determine the antibiotic susceptibility profiles of these bacteria. Out of a total of 160 tissue samples evaluated, E. coli and Salmonella were detected in these tissues. Furthermore, determination of the pathogenic E. coli and Salmonella strains at species level using primer sets that target selected genes of interest in the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay was employed. The invA gene, a confirmatory gene of Salmonella was detected in all the Salmonella isolates. The study revealed that there is a high distribution of Salmonella and pathogenic E. coli in these chickens. Therefore, further studies on identification at the species level are highly recommended to provide management and sanitation practices to lower this prevalence. The antimicrobial susceptibly data generated from this study can be a valuable reference to veterinarians for treating bacterial diseases in poultry.

Keywords: antimicrobial, Escherichia coli, pathogens, Salmonella

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Authors: Jacob A. Braun

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This paper uses mathematical modeling to show the spread of Herpes Simplex type-2 with and without the usage of condoms in a college population. The model uses four differential equations to calculate the data for the simulation. The dt increment used is one week. It also runs based on a fixated period. The period chosen was five years to represent time spent in college. The average age of the individual is 21, once again to represent the age of someone in college. In the total population, there are almost two times as many women who have Herpes Simplex Type-2 as men. Additionally, Herpes Simplex Type-2 does not have a known cure. The goal of the model is to show how condom usage affects women’s chances of receiving the virus in the hope of being able to reduce the number of women infected. In the end, the model demonstrates that condoms offer significant protection to women from the virus. Since fewer women are infected with the virus when condoms are used, in turn, fewer males are infected. Since Herpes Simplex Type-2 affects the carrier for their whole life, a small decrease of infections could lead to large ramifications over time. Specifically, a small decrease of infections at a young age, such as college, could have a very big effect on the long-term number of people infected with the virus.

Keywords: college, condom, Herpes, mathematical modelling

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Authors: Mardiati Zain, Ryanto Khasrad, I. Elihasridas, J. Juliantoni

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The research objective was to determine the productivity of cattle fed a complete ration with ammoniated based of oil palm-frond supplemented by Rumen Microbes Growth Factor (RMGF). The research used Randomized Block Design applying 4 rations as treatment and 4 groups cattle. The treatments were: A (60% oil palm frond ammoniated + 40% concentrate + RMGF); B (50% oil palm frond ammoniated + 50% concentrate + RMGF); C (40% oil palm frond ammoniated + 60% concentrate + RMGF); and D (30% oil palm frond ammoniated + 70% concentrate + RMGF). The measured parameters were dry matter (DM) and organic matter (OM) intake, daily weight gain (DWG), feed efficiency, total digestible nutrient (TDN), and digestibility of crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), cellulose, hemicellulose. Statistical analysis showed that the treatment had no significant effect (P > 0.05) on DM intake, OM intake, daily weight gain, feed efficiency, digestibility of DM, OM, CP, TDN, NDF, hemicellulose but had a highly significant effect (P < 0.01) on digestibility of ADF and cellulose. All treatments with different ratio (oil palm frond ammoniated: concentrate : RMGF) had no different effect on cattle productivities.

Keywords: oil palm frond ammoniated, digestibility, rumen microba growth factor, Bali cattle

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Authors: Alcardo Alex Barakabitze, Tan Xiaoheng

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Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) is a special case of Multi-Carrier Modulation (MCM) technique which transmits a stream of data over a number of lower data rate subcarriers. OFDM splits the total transmission bandwidth into a number of orthogonal and non-overlapping subcarriers and transmit the collection of bits called symbols in parallel using these subcarriers. This paper explores the Peak to Average Power Reduction (PAPR) using the Partial Transmit Sequence technique. We provide the distribution analysis and the basics of OFDM signals and then show how the PAPR increases as the number of subcarriers increases. We provide the performance analysis of CCDF and PAPR expressed in decibels through MATLAB simulations. The simulation results show that, in PTS technique, the performance of PAPR reduction in OFDM systems improves significantly as the number of sub-blocks increases. However, by keeping the same number of sub-blocks variation, oversampling factor and the number of OFDM blocks’ iteration for generating the CCDF, the OFDM systems with 128 subcarriers have an improved performance in PAPR reduction compared to OFDM systems with 256, 512 or >512 subcarriers.

Keywords: OFDM, peak to average power reduction (PAPR), bit error rate (BER), subcarriers, wireless communications

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Authors: Mehmet Akköse

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In ground motions recorded in recent major earthquakes such as 1994 Northridge earthquake in US, 1995 Kobe earthquake in Japan, 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake in Taiwan, and 1999 Kocaeli earthquake in Turkey, it is noticed that they have large velocity pulses. The ground motions with the velocity pulses recorded in the vicinity of an earthquake fault are quite different from the usual far-fault earthquake ground motions. The velocity pulse duration in the near-fault ground motions is larger than 1.0 sec. In addition, the ratio of the peak ground velocity (PGV) to the peak ground acceleration (PGA) of the near-fault ground motions is larger than 0.1 sec. The ground motions having these characteristics expose the structure to high input energy in the beginning of the earthquake and cause large structural responses. Therefore, structural response to near-fault ground motions has received much attention in recent years. Interactions between neighboring, inadequately separated buildings have been repeatedly observed during earthquakes. This phenomenon often referred to as earthquake-induced structural pounding, may result in substantial damage or even total destruction of colliding structures during strong ground motions. This study focuses on effects of near-fault ground motions on earthquake-induced pounding response of RC buildings. The program SAP2000 is employed in the response calculations. The results obtained from the pounding analyses for near-fault and far-fault ground motions are compared with each other.

Keywords: near-fault ground motion, pounding analysis, RC buildings, SAP2000

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Authors: Kittichai Thanasupsin, Satis Sukniam

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Pavement marking is an essential task of road construction and maintenance. One of several benefits of pavement markings has been used to provide information about road alignment and road conditions ahead. In some cases, retro-reflectivity of road marking at night may not meet the standard. This degradation may be caused by internal factors such as the size of glass beads and the number of glass beads or external factors such as traffic volume, lane width, vehicle weight, and so on. This research aims to investigate the reflective efficiency of thermoplastic road marking with the glass beads. Ratios of glass beads, ranging from 359 to 553 grams per square meter on an asphaltic concrete, have been tested. The reflective efficiency data was collected at the beginning and at a specific time interval for a total of 8 months. It was found that the difference in glass beads quantity affects the rate of retro-reflectivity but does not affect the diffuse reflectivity. It was also found that other factors affect retro-reflectivity, such as duration, the position of road marking, traffic density, the quantity of glass beads, and dirt coating on top. The dirt coating on top is the most crucial factor that deteriorating retro-reflectivity.

Keywords: thermoplastic pavement marking, retro-reflectivity, diffuse reflectivity, asphalt concrete

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Authors: Sara Mouffouk, Fatma Belaid, Asma Hechani, Chaima Mouffouk

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Cancer of the cervix caused by HPV (human papillomavirus ) is for many years a real public health problem, it is ranked 2nd deadly female cancer kills more than 270 000 women each year worldwide. In Algeria, the mortality of cervical cancer decreases with the impact, but the prognosis of these cancers remains bleak: The 5-year relative survival is 60 %. The mode of transmission is usually sexuel. Our study was undertaken to show the link between HPV and cervical cancer and the importance of Pap smear screening in this type of pathology. On the total sample, 76.11 % showed abnormal cervical smears of which 13% have mild cases and hormonal reaction Change, and 44% represent inflammatory smears and normal cases 35%, while long seven years from 2005 to 2012. Thus, 43% of abnormal smear results between ASCUS, AGUS, low and high grade carcinoma and adenocarcinoma and 57 % of other cases of unknown origin. The average age of women at risk of developing adenocarcinoma is 45-50 with a 67% to 33% of the same risk in women of age group 41-45 years although the percentage of cases of HPV infected patients was 2% in the past seven years. We found that with increasing age, the risk is argued. Due to several factors such as multiparty can reduced the resistance of the uterine epithelium and even as the multi that promotes contamination HPV causes repeated infections with HPV.

Keywords: cervical cancer, human papillomavirus (HPV) screening, prevention, vaccines

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Authors: Nuhu Dalhat Mu’azu, Abdullahi Usman, A. Bukhari, Muhammad Hussain Essa, Salihu Lukman

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Electrokinetic remediation process was employed for the removal of four (4) heavy metals (Cr, Cu, Hg and Pb) from contaminated clay and bentonite soils under pulsed current supply mode. The effects of voltage gradient, pulse duty cycle and bentonite/clay ratio on the simultaneous removal efficiencies of the heavy metals were investigated. A total of thirteen experiments were designed and conducted according to factorial design with each experiment allowed to continuously ran for 3 weeks. Results obtained showed that increase in bentonite ratio decreased the removal efficiency of the heavy metals with no significant effect on the energy consumption. Conversely, increase in both voltage gradient and pulse duty cycle increased the heavy metals removal efficiencies with increased in energy consumption. Additionally, increase in voltage gradient increased the electrical conductivity and the soil pH due to due to continuous refill and replacement of process fluids as they decomposed under the induced voltage gradient. Under different operating conditions, the maximum removal efficiencies obtained for Cr, Cu, Hg, and Pb were 21.87, 83.2, 62.4, 78.06 and 16.65% respectively.

Keywords: clay, bentonite, soil remediation, mixed contaminants, heavy metals, and electrokinetic-adsorption

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Authors: Chen Guo, Heng Tang, Ben Niu

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Clustering splits objects into different groups based on similarity, making the objects have higher similarity in the same group and lower similarity in different groups. Thus, clustering can be treated as an optimization problem to maximize the intra-cluster similarity or inter-cluster dissimilarity. In real-world applications, the datasets often have some complex characteristics: sparse, overlap, high dimensionality, etc. When facing these datasets, simultaneously optimizing two or more objectives can obtain better clustering results than optimizing one objective. However, except for the objectives weighting methods, traditional clustering approaches have difficulty in solving multi-objective data clustering problems. Due to this, evolutionary multi-objective optimization algorithms are investigated by researchers to optimize multiple clustering objectives. In this paper, the Data Clustering algorithm based on Multi-objective Periodic Bacterial Foraging Optimization with two Learning Archives (DC-MPBFOLA) is proposed. Specifically, first, to reduce the high computing complexity of the original BFO, periodic BFO is employed as the basic algorithmic framework. Then transfer the periodic BFO into a multi-objective type. Second, two learning strategies are proposed based on the two learning archives to guide the bacterial swarm to move in a better direction. On the one hand, the global best is selected from the global learning archive according to the convergence index and diversity index. On the other hand, the personal best is selected from the personal learning archive according to the sum of weighted objectives. According to the aforementioned learning strategies, a chemotaxis operation is designed. Third, an elite learning strategy is designed to provide fresh power to the objects in two learning archives. When the objects in these two archives do not change for two consecutive times, randomly initializing one dimension of objects can prevent the proposed algorithm from falling into local optima. Fourth, to validate the performance of the proposed algorithm, DC-MPBFOLA is compared with four state-of-art evolutionary multi-objective optimization algorithms and one classical clustering algorithm on evaluation indexes of datasets. To further verify the effectiveness and feasibility of designed strategies in DC-MPBFOLA, variants of DC-MPBFOLA are also proposed. Experimental results demonstrate that DC-MPBFOLA outperforms its competitors regarding all evaluation indexes and clustering partitions. These results also indicate that the designed strategies positively influence the performance improvement of the original BFO.

Keywords: data clustering, multi-objective optimization, bacterial foraging optimization, learning archives

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Authors: Gupta Amit, Kumar Ramesh, P. C. Tewari

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Globalization is putting enormous pressure on the business organizations specially manufacturing one to rethink the supply chain in innovative manners. Inventory consumes major portion of total sale revenue. Effective and efficient inventory management plays a vital role for the successful functioning of any organization. Selection of inventory policy is one of the important purchasing activities. This paper focuses on selection and ranking of alternative inventory policies. A deterministic quantitative model-based on Distance Based Approach (DBA) method has been developed for evaluation and ranking of inventory policies. We have employed this concept first time for this type of the selection problem. Four inventory policies Economic Order Quantity (EOQ), Just in Time (JIT), Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) and monthly policy are considered. Improper selection could affect a company’s competitiveness in terms of the productivity of its facilities and quality of its products. The ranking of inventory policies is a multi-criteria problem. There is a need to first identify the selection criteria and then processes the information with reference to relative importance of attributes for comparison. Criteria values for each inventory policy can be obtained either analytically or by using a simulation technique or they are linguistic subjective judgments defined by fuzzy sets, like, for example, the values of criteria. A methodology is developed and applied to rank the inventory policies.

Keywords: inventory policy, ranking, DBA, selection criteria

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Authors: Regina Streltsov

Abstract:

The Archipelago of the Azores in the NE Atlantic is a hot spot of marine biodiversity, both pelagic and demersal. Epinephelus marginatus is a solitary species commonly observed in these waters, with distinct territorial/residential behaviors from their post- larva and juvenile stages to the adult phase. Being commercially high valued species, about 13% of all groupers (Family Epinephelidae) face an increasing pressure that has produced known impacts in both the abundance and distribution of this group of fishes. Epinephelus marginatus is currently assessed by the IUCN as a vulnerable species. Dusky gropers inhabit rocky bottoms from shallow waters down to 200 m. Juveniles are usually found in shallow shoreline waters. Population dynamics of juveniles can lead to a better understanding of the competition for resources and predation and further conservation measures that must be taken upon dusky groupers. This study is carried out in rocky reefs from two sheltered bays on the south and north coast of the island in two different spots with four sampling sites in total. Using Transects individuals are counted at the peak of high tide and all abiotic factors are recorded. Our goal is to complete a statistically significant number of observations in order to detail these populations and to better understand their dynamics and dimension.

Keywords: Azores, dusky groupers, Epinephelus marginatus, population dynamics

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Authors: Ali Olfati, Parichehr Nouri

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Objective: In this study, we have investigated for the first time in the literature the efficacy of riboflavin [VB2] in preventing uterus As₂O₃ damage. Methods: Rats received 40 μg LHRHa for estrus synchronization. 48 pregnant Wistar rats were included. Four groups were formed with 7 rats in each group: Sham, 1.5 mg arsenic trioxide (As₂O₃/L) alone or in combination with VB2 [20 and 40 mg/L] in drinking water [for 21 days continuously]. Similar to maternal generation treatment, the F1-female generation was also arranged [for 35 days continuously until puberty]. Results: Data indicated that As₂O₃ reduced body weight and feed intake (p<0.05). Furthermore, the serum malondialdehyde levels in the As₂O₃ group were significantly higher than that of the control group (p<0.05). At the same time, total antioxidative status and the activities of glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, and catalase were reduced (p<0.05). Meanwhile, As₂O₃ remarkably increased the production of inflammatory markers [interleukin 6 and C-reactive protein](p<0.05). As₂O₃ administration induced uterus apoptosis-related genes by upregulating caspase-3, iNOS, and Bax genes and downregulating Bcl-2 gene of pubertal F1-female rats (p<0.05). Conclusion: Our observation indicated that VB2 therapy is potentially an effective strategy to modifying the detrimental effects of As₂O₃ in pubertal F1-female rats via suppresses oxidative damages.

Keywords: As₂O₃, inflammation, puberty, vitamin B2

Procedia PDF Downloads 128

Authors: Khalifa Abdunaser

Abstract:

This study investigated the effects of oil contamination due to pro-duced water leaks that created lakes decades ago, as well as the extent of its im-pact on altering the geotechnical characteristics of the soil, which could act as a barrier to groundwater access The concentration of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH), which is the main component in the contaminated soil, was measured using a variety of analyses. Additionally, some extensive laboratory tests were performed to examine the effects on the soil's geotechnical properties, including particle size distribution, shear strength, consistency limits, specific gravity, and permeability coefficient. A clear decrease in TPH concentration was observed with increasing depth, and it is expected to end within only a few meters. It was found that there is a signifi-cant effect of this pollutant on the size of the soil particles, which led to them be-coming coarser than the uncontaminated soil particles. Moreover, it causes a de-crease in fluid and plastic boundaries, as well as an increase in cohesion between soil particles. However, the angle of internal friction decreases with the increase in the content of petroleum hydrocarbons in the soil samples. It came to light that determining the permeability coefficient as one of the physical characteristics of the most important factors responsible for the passage of pollutants in the groundwater, as it showed an obvious reduction in the permeability, which is the main reason dealt as an obstacle to the arrival of oil pollutants to the groundwater.

Keywords: TPH, specific gravity, oil lake, Libya

Procedia PDF Downloads 66

Authors: Davaanyam Surenjav, Chinzolboo Dandarbaatar, Ganbold Batkhuyag

Abstract:

Primate city induced rapid urbanization has been become one of the main challenges in sustainable development in Mongolia like other developing countries since transition to market economy in 1990. According due to statistical yearbook, population number of Ulaanbaatar city has increased from 0.5 million to 1.5 million for last 30 years and contains now almost half (47%) of total Mongolian population. Rural-Ulaanbaatar and local Cities-Ulaanbaatar city migration leads to social issues like uncontrolled urbanization, income inequality, poverty, overwork of public service, economic over cost for redevelopment and limitation of transport and environmental degradation including air, noise, water and soil pollution. Most thresholds of all of the sustainable urban development main and sub-indicators over exceeded from safety level to unsafety level in Ulaanbaatar. So, there is an urgent need to remove migration pull factors including some administrative and high education functions from Ulaanbaatar city to its satellite cities or secondary cities. Moreover, urban smart transport system and green and renewable energy technologies should be introduced to urban development master plan of Ulaanbaatar city.

Keywords: challenge for sustainable urban development, migration factors, primate city , urban safety thresholds

Procedia PDF Downloads 111

Authors: Suppawan Lertpongpakpoom, Anongnat Boonrat, Kunya BoontummoSuppawan

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This descriptive cost analysis aimed to analyze the unit cost of patients in medical intensive care unit. Purposive sampling was used to select 20 nurses, 6 practical nurses, 5 nurses aid and select samples 30 patients. Data were collected from both primary source (activity and average time of nursing care) and secondary source Z bill of payment and patient record). Instruments were cost recording form, activity observation form, and service recording form. Content validity of all instruments were evaluated by three experts (CVI = 0.87). Descriptive statistics was employed for data analysis. The results of the Activity-Based Costing Analysis showed that total activity cost of 4 service types for the patients was 14,776.92 Bath. The highest cost was nursing record was 5,674.78 Bath, followed direct nursing activity was 5,176.18 Bath, medical treatment was 1,976.6 Bath. The lowest cost was management activity was 1,003.64 Bath per visit. The result suggested that Activity-Base Costing Analysis could be applied to give better understanding of cost structure, enabling better consideration wasted expense and non-value-added activity, and improvement of effective utilization.

Keywords: activity-based costing, medical intensive care, nursing care, cost analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 386