Search results for: solution process

Authors: Noraini Idris, Imelda Albert Gisip

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Women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all level of decisionmaking process are essential in order to achieve sustainable development goals by 2030. This paper discusses how women in Malaysia generally still find themselves under-represented in political institutions. Leaders from various political parties in Malaysia were all on the same page in their commitment to achieve the target of fielding 30 percent women candidates in election which in turn will increase female representation in the country’s legislative bodies. However, despite their pledge on making equal opportunities to women in decision making process, the 30 percent target has yet to be achieved be it in the federal election nor respective state elections in thirteen states conducted throughout the country until now. Sabah’s political landscape with regards to women leaders’ representation in politic mirrors that at the federal level. During the 15th Parliamentary General Election which was conducted in November 2022, despite Sabah Women’s significant numbers as voters in the electoral rolls which recorded 49.36 percent (833,847 women voters); only 17.6 percent or 21 women candidates out of 119 candidates in Sabah were fielded by the political parties contesting in the election. Sabah has 25 parliamentary seats. Out of 31 women members of Parliament who won the 15th General Election, only 3 women members of Parliament are from Sabah. Even in the 2020 Sabah State Election only nine (9) percent of the candidates or 43 women out of the 447 total candidates were fielded. The current Sabah State legislative Assembly saw only eight (8) percent or 7 women Assemblymen out of 79 Assemblymen in the legislative body. The number of female leaders in the legislative body in Malaysia has never exceeded 15 percent with the highest being 14.86 percent in the Lower House (Dewan Rakyat), 14.42 percent in the Upper House (Dewan Senat) and merely 8 percent in the Sabah State legislative Assembly. Thus, this paper will further discuss the strategies to tackle women leaders underrepresentation in politics particularly in Sabah, Malaysia and to provide suggestions to overcome this issue.

Keywords: women, leaders, politic, Sabah, Malaysia

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Authors: Heri Hermansyah, Annisa Kurnia, A. Vania Anisya, Adi Surjosatyo, Yopi Sunarya, Rita Arbianti, Tania Surya Utami

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Lipase is one of biocatalyst which is applied commercially for the process in industries, such as bioenergy, food, and pharmaceutical industry. Nowadays, biocatalysts are preferred in industries because they work in mild condition, high specificity, and reduce energy consumption (high pressure and temperature). But, the usage of lipase for industry scale is limited by economic reason due to the high price of lipase and difficulty of the separation system. Immobilization of lipase is one of the solutions to maintain the activity of lipase and reduce separation system in the process. Therefore, we conduct a study about lipase immobilization with the adsorption-cross linking method using glutaraldehyde because this method produces high enzyme loading and stability. Lipase is immobilized on different kind of resin with the various functional group. Highest enzyme loading (76.69%) was achieved by lipase immobilized on anion macroporous which have anion functional group (OH^‑). However, highest activity (24,69 U/g support) through olive oil emulsion method was achieved by lipase immobilized on anion macroporous-chitosan which have amino (NH₂) and anion (OH^-) functional group. In addition, it also success to produce biodiesel until reach yield 50,6% through interesterification reaction and after 4 cycles stable 63.9% relative with initial yield. While for Aspergillus, niger lipase immobilized on anion macroporous-kitosan have unit activity 22,84 U/g resin and yield biodiesel higher than commercial lipase (69,1%) and after 4 cycles stable reach 70.6% relative from initial yield. This shows that optimum functional group on support for immobilization with adsorption-cross linking is the support that contains amino (NH₂) and anion (OH^-) functional group because they can react with glutaraldehyde and binding with enzyme prevent desorption of lipase from support through binding lipase with a functional group on support.

Keywords: adsorption-cross linking, immobilization, lipase, resin

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Authors: Oswaldo Otero, Eduardo A. Orozco, Ana M. Herrera

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In this work, we present results from analytical and numerical studies of the electron acceleration by a TE₀₁₁ cylindrical microwave mode in a static homogeneous magnetic field under electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) condition. The stability of the orbits is analyzed using the particle orbit theory. In order to get a better understanding of the interaction wave-particle, we decompose the azimuthally electric field component as the superposition of right and left-hand circular polarization standing waves. The trajectory, energy and phase-shift of the electron are found through a numerical solution of the relativistic Newton-Lorentz equation in a finite difference method by the Boris method. It is shown that an electron longitudinally injected with an energy of 7 keV in a radial position r=Rc/2, being Rc the cavity radius, is accelerated up to energy of 90 keV by an electric field strength of 14 kV/cm and frequency of 2.45 GHz. This energy can be used to produce X-ray for medical imaging. These results can be used as a starting point for study the acceleration of electrons in a magnetic field changing slowly in time (GYRAC), which has some important applications as the electron cyclotron resonance ion proton accelerator (ECR-IPAC) for cancer therapy and to control plasma bunches with relativistic electrons.

Keywords: Boris method, electron cyclotron resonance, finite difference method, particle orbit theory, X-ray

Procedia PDF Downloads 148

Authors: M. Chafi, S. Akazdam, C. Asrir, L. Sebbahi, B. Gourich, N. Barka, M. Essahli

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Fixed bed adsorption has become a frequently used industrial application in wastewater treatment processes. Various low cost adsorbents have been studied for their applicability in treatment of different types of effluents. In this work, the intention of the study was to explore the efficacy and feasibility for azo dye, Acid Orange 7 (AO7) adsorption onto fixed bed column of NaOH Treated eggshell (TES). The effect of various parameters like flow rate, initial dye concentration, and bed height were exploited in this study. The studies confirmed that the breakthrough curves were dependent on flow rate, initial dye concentration solution of AO7 and bed depth. The Thomas, Yoon–Nelson, and Adams and Bohart models were analysed to evaluate the column adsorption performance. The adsorption capacity, rate constant and correlation coefficient associated to each model for column adsorption was calculated and mentioned. The column experimental data were fitted well with Thomas model with coefficients of correlation R2 ≥0.93 at different conditions but the Yoon–Nelson, BDST and Bohart–Adams model (R2=0.911), predicted poor performance of fixed-bed column. The (TES) was shown to be suitable adsorbent for adsorption of AO7 using fixed-bed adsorption column.

Keywords: adsorption models, acid orange 7, bed depth, breakthrough, dye adsorption, fixed-bed column, treated eggshell

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Authors: Asiful Hossain Seikh, Mohammad Asif Alam, Ubair Abdus Samad, Jabair A. Mohammed, S. M. Al-Zahrani, El-Sayed M. Sherif

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In this current investigation, aliphatic amine-cured diglycidyl ether of bisphenol-A (DGEBA) based epoxy coating was mixed with certain weight % hardener polyaminoamide (1:2) and was coated on carbon steel panels with and without 1% nano crystalline Al powder. The corrosion behavior of the coated samples were investigated by exposing them in the salt spray chamber, for 500 hours. According to ASTM-B-117, the bath was kept at 35 °C and 5% NaCl containing mist was sprayed at 1.3 bars pressure. Composition of coatings was confirmed using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Electrochemical characterization of the coated samples was also performed using potentiodynamic polarization technique and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) technique. All the experiments were done in 3.5% NaCl solution. The nano Al coated sample shows good corrosion resistance property compared to bare Al sample. In fact after salt spray exposure no pitting or local damage was observed for nano coated sample and the coating gloss was negligibly affected. The surface morphology of coated and corroded samples was studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Keywords: epoxy, nano aluminium, potentiodynamic polarization, salt spray, electrochemical impedence spectroscopy

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Authors: Jia-Lien Hsu, Chiung-Wen Chang

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Research articles may follow a simple and succinct structure of organizational patterns, called move. For example, considering extended abstracts, we observe that an extended abstract usually consists of five moves, including Background, Aim, Method, Results, and Conclusion. As another example, when publishing articles in PubMed, authors are encouraged to provide a structured abstract, which is an abstract with distinct and labeled sections (e.g., Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussions) for rapid comprehension. This paper introduces a method for computational analysis of move structures (i.e., Background-Purpose-Method-Result-Conclusion) in abstracts and introductions of research documents, instead of manually time-consuming and labor-intensive analysis process. In our approach, sentences in a given abstract and introduction are automatically analyzed and labeled with a specific move (i.e., B-P-M-R-C in this paper) to reveal various rhetorical status. As a result, it is expected that the automatic analytical tool for move structures will facilitate non-native speakers or novice writers to be aware of appropriate move structures and internalize relevant knowledge to improve their writing. In this paper, we propose a Bayesian approach to determine move tags for research articles. The approach consists of two phases, training phase and testing phase. In the training phase, we build a Bayesian model based on a couple of given initial patterns and the corpus, a subset of CiteSeerX. In the beginning, the priori probability of Bayesian model solely relies on initial patterns. Subsequently, with respect to the corpus, we process each document one by one: extract features, determine tags, and update the Bayesian model iteratively. In the testing phase, we compare our results with tags which are manually assigned by the experts. In our experiments, the promising accuracy of the proposed approach reaches 56%.

Keywords: academic English writing, assisted writing, move tag analysis, Bayesian approach

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Authors: Serdar Yaman, Hanzade Haykiri-Acma

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Biomass is a CO₂-neutral fuel that is renewable and sustainable along with having very huge global potential. Efficient use of biomass in power generation and production of biomass-based biofuels can mitigate the greenhouse gasses (GHG) and reduce dependency on fossil fuels. There are also other beneficial effects of biomass energy use such as employment creation and pollutant reduction. However, most of the biomass materials are not capable of competing with fossil fuels in terms of energy content. High moisture content and high volatile matter yields of biomass make it low calorific fuel, and it is very significant concern over fossil fuels. Besides, the density of biomass is generally low, and it brings difficulty in transportation and storage. These negative aspects of biomass can be overcome by thermal pretreatments that upgrade the fuel property of biomass. That is, torrefaction is such a thermal process in which biomass is heated up to 300ºC under non-oxidizing conditions to avoid burning of the material. The treated biomass is called as biochar that has considerably lower contents of moisture, volatile matter, and oxygen compared to the parent biomass. Accordingly, carbon content and the calorific value of biochar increase to the level which is comparable with that of coal. Moreover, hydrophilic nature of untreated biomass that leads decay in the structure is mostly eliminated, and the surface properties of biochar turn into hydrophobic character upon torrefaction. In order to investigate the effectiveness of torrefaction process on biomass properties, several biomass species such as olive milling residue (OMR), Rhododendron (small shrubby tree with bell-shaped flowers), and ash tree (timber tree) were chosen. The fuel properties of these biomasses were analyzed through proximate and ultimate analyses as well as higher heating value (HHV) determination. For this, samples were first chopped and ground to a particle size lower than 250 µm. Then, samples were subjected to torrefaction in a horizontal tube furnace by heating from ambient up to temperatures of 200, 250, and 300ºC at a heating rate of 10ºC/min. The biochars obtained from this process were also tested by the methods applied to the parent biomass species. Improvement in the fuel properties was interpreted. That is, increasing torrefaction temperature led to regular increases in the HHV in OMR, and the highest HHV (6065 kcal/kg) was gained at 300ºC. Whereas, torrefaction at 250ºC was seen optimum for Rhododendron and ash tree since torrefaction at 300ºC had a detrimental effect on HHV. On the other hand, the increase in carbon contents and reduction in oxygen contents were determined. Burning characteristics of the biochars were also studied using thermal analysis technique. For this purpose, TA Instruments SDT Q600 model thermal analyzer was used and the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), derivative thermogravimetry (DTG), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and differential thermal analysis (DTA) curves were compared and interpreted. It was concluded that torrefaction is an efficient method to upgrade the fuel properties of biomass and the biochars from which have superior characteristics compared to the parent biomasses.

Keywords: biochar, biomass, fuel upgrade, torrefaction

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Authors: Hasmayadi Abdul Majid, Yuzman Yusoff, Noor Shelida Salleh

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This paper presents the development of a single-ended 38.5 kS/s 10-bit programmable reference SAR ADC which is realized in MIMOS’s 0.35 µm CMOS process. The design uses a resistive DAC, a dynamic comparator with pre-amplifier and a SAR digital logic to create 10 effective bits ADC. A programmable reference circuitry allows the ADC to operate with different input range from 0.6 V to 2.1 V. A single ended 38.5 kS/s 10-bit programmable reference SAR ADC was proposed and implemented in a 0.35 µm CMOS technology and consumed less than 7.5 mW power with a 3 V supply.

Keywords: successive approximation register analog-to-digital converter, SAR ADC, resistive DAC, programmable reference

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Authors: Maria Bercea, Bernhard A. Wolf

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The thermodynamic behavior for solutions of poly (methyl methacrylate-ran-t-butyl methacrylate) of variable composition as compared with the corresponding homopolymers was investigated by light scattering measurements carried out for dilute solutions and vapor pressure measurements of concentrated solutions. The complex dependencies of the Flory Huggins interaction parameter on concentration and copolymer composition in solvents of different polarity (toluene and chloroform) can be understood by taking into account the ability of the polymers to rearrange in a response to changes in their molecular surrounding. A recent unified thermodynamic approach was used for modeling the experimental data, being able to describe the behavior of the different solutions by means of two adjustable parameters, one representing the effective number of solvent segments and another one accounting for the interactions between the components. Thus, it was investigated how the solvent quality changes with the composition of the copolymers through the Gibbs energy of mixing as a function of polymer concentration. The largest reduction of the Gibbs energy at a given composition of the system was observed for the best solvent. The present investigation proves that the new unified thermodynamic approach is a general concept applicable to homo- and copolymers, independent of the chain conformation or shape, molecular and chemical architecture of the components and of other dissimilarities, such as electrical charges.

Keywords: random copolymers, Flory Huggins interaction parameter, Gibbs energy of mixing, chemical architecture

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Authors: Carolyn Scott, Rachel Nugent

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The agricultural industry in Ireland and worldwide is one of the most dangerous occupations with respect to occupational health and safety accidents and fatalities. Many accident causation models have been developed in safety research to understand the underlying and contributory factors that lead to the occurrence of an accident. Due to the uniqueness of the agricultural sector, current accident causation theories cannot be applied. This paper presents an accident causation model named the Irish Farm Accident Causation Model (IFACM) which has been specifically tailored to the needs of Irish farms. The IFACM is a theoretical and practical model of accident causation that arranges the causal factors into a graphic representation of originating, shaping, and contributory factors that lead to accidents when unsafe acts and conditions are created that are not rectified by control measures. Causes of farm accidents were assimilated by means of a thorough literature review and were collated to form a graphical representation of the underlying causes of a farm accident. The IFACM was validated retrospectively through case study analysis and peer review. Participants in the case study (n=10) identified causes that led to a farm accident in which they were involved. A root cause analysis was conducted to understand the contributory factors surrounding the farm accident, traced back to the ‘root cause’. Experts relevant to farm safety accident causation in the agricultural industry have peer reviewed the IFACM. The accident causation process is complex. Accident prevention requires a comprehensive understanding of this complex process because to prevent the occurrence of accidents, the causes of accidents must be known. There is little research on the key causes and contributory factors of unsafe behaviours and accidents on Irish farms. The focus of this research is to gain a deep understanding of the causality of accidents on Irish farms. The results suggest that the IFACM framework is helpful for the analysis of the causes of accidents within the agricultural industry in Ireland. The research also suggests that there may be international applicability if further research is carried out. Furthermore, significant learning can be obtained from considering the underlying causes of accidents.

Keywords: farm safety, farm accidents, accident causation, root cause analysis

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Authors: Nelson Andres, Meeko C. Masangcap, John Denver D. Catapang

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Balanga City as, the heart of Bataan, is a growing City and is now at its fast pace of development. The growth of commerce in the city results to an increase in commuters who travel back and forth through the city, leading to congestions. Consequently, queuing of vehicles along national roads and even in the highways of the city have become a regular occurrence. This common scenario of commuters flocking the city, private and public vehicles going bumper to bumper, especially during the rush hours, greatly affect the flow of traffic vehicles and is now a burden not only to the commuters but also to the government who is trying to address this dilemma. Seeing these terrible events, the implementation of an elevated Automated Guide-way transit is seen as a possible solution to help in the decongestion of the affected parts of Balanga City.In response to the problem, the researchers identify if it is feasible to have an elevated guide-way transit in the vicinity of Sapphire Street in Balanga City, Bataan. Specifically, the study aims to determine who will be the riders based on the demographic profile, where the trip can be generated and distributed, the time when volume of people usually peaks and the estimated volume of passengers. Statistical analysis is applied to the data gathered to find out if there is an important relationship between the demographic profile of the respondents and their preference of having an elevated railway transit in the City of Balanga.

Keywords: ridership, AGT, railway, elevated track

Procedia PDF Downloads 65

Authors: Oktira Roka Aji, Maelita R. Moeis, Ihsanawati, Ernawati A. Giri-Rachman

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Globally, tuberculosis (TB) remains a leading cause of death. The emergence of multidrug-resistant strains and extensively drug-resistant strains have become a major public concern. One of the potential candidates for drug target is the cytoplasmic domain of PhoR Histidine Kinase, a part of the Two Component System (TCS) PhoR-PhoP in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). TCS PhoR-PhoP relay extracellular signal to control the expression of 114 virulent associated genes in Mtb. The 3D structure of PhoR cytoplasmic domain is needed to screen novel drugs using structure based drug discovery. The PhoR cytoplasmic domain from Mtb H37Rv was overexpressed in E. coli BL21(DE3), then purified using IMAC Ni-NTA Agarose his-tag affinity column and DEAE-ion exchange column chromatography. The molecular weight of the purified protein was estimated to be 37 kDa after SDS-PAGE analysis. This sample was used for pre-crystallization screening by applying sitting drop vapor diffusion method using Natrix (HR2-116) 48 solutions crystal screen kit at 25ºC. Needle-like crystals were observed after the seventh day of incubation in test solution No.47 (0.1 M KCl, 0.01 M MgCl2.6H2O, 0.05 M Tris-Cl pH 8.5, 30% v/v PEG 4000). Further testing is required for confirming the crystal.

Keywords: tuberculosis, two component system, histidine kinase, needle-like crystals

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Authors: Agnes Siwi Purwaning Tyas, Dewi Cahya Ambarwati

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This paper concerns the language learning that develops as a habit formation and a constructive process while exercising an oppressive power to construct the learners. As a locus of discussion, the investigation problematizes the transfer of English language to Indonesian students of junior high school through the use of English textbooks ‘Real Time: An Interactive English Course for Junior High School Students Year VII-IX’. English language has long performed as a global language and it is a demand upon the non-English native speakers to master the language if they desire to become internationally recognized individuals. Generally, English teachers teach the language in accordance with the nature of language learning in which they are trained and expected to teach the language within the culture of the target language. This provides a potential soft cultural penetration of a foreign ideology through language transmission. In the context of Indonesia, learning English as international language is considered dilemmatic. Most English textbooks in Indonesia incorporate cultural elements of the target language which in some extent may challenge the sensitivity towards local cultural values. On the other hand, local teachers demand more English textbooks for junior high school students which can facilitate cultural dissemination of both local and global values and promote learners’ cultural traits of both cultures to avoid misunderstanding and confusion. It also aims to support language learning as bidirectional process instead of instrument of oppression. However, sensitizing and localizing this foreign language is not sufficient to restrain its soft infiltration. In due course, domination persists making the English language as an authoritative language and positioning the locality as ‘the other’. Such critical premise has led to a discursive analysis referring to how the cultural elements of the target language are presented in the textbooks and whether the local characteristics of Indonesia are able to gradually reduce the degree of the foreign oppressive ideology. The three textbooks researched were written by non-Indonesian author edited by two Indonesia editors published by a local commercial publishing company, PT Erlangga. The analytical elaboration examines the cultural characteristics in the forms of names, terminologies, places, objects and imageries –not the linguistic aspect– of both cultural domains; English and Indonesia. Comparisons as well as categorizations were made to identify the cultural traits of each language and scrutinize the contextual analysis. In the analysis, 128 foreign elements and 27 local elements were found in textbook for grade VII, 132 foreign elements and 23 local elements were found in textbook for grade VIII, while 144 foreign elements and 35 local elements were found in grade IX textbook, demonstrating the unequal distribution of both cultures. Even though the ideal pedagogical approach of English learning moves to a different direction by the means of inserting local elements, the learners are continuously imposed to the culture of the target language and forced to internalize the concept of values under the influence of the target language which tend to marginalize their native culture.

Keywords: bidirectional process, English, local culture, oppression

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Authors: Marcela Karmazínová, Michal Štrba, Miln Pilgr

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The paper deals with the problems of the actual behavior, failure mechanism and load-carrying capacity of the special bolt connection developed and intended for the assembly connections of truss main girders of perspective railway temporary steel bridges. Within the framework of this problem solution, several types of structural details of assembly joints have been considered as the conceptual structural design. Based on the preliminary evaluation of advantages or disadvantages of these ones, in principle two basic structural configurations so-called “tooth” and “splice-plate” connections have been selected for the subsequent detailed investigation. This investigation is mainly based on the experimental verification of the actual behavior, strain and failure mechanism and corresponding strength of the connection, and on its numerical modeling using FEM. This paper is focused only on the cyclic loading (fatigue) tests results of “splice-plate” connections and their evaluation, which have already been finished. Simultaneously with the fatigue tests, the static loading tests have been realized too, but these ones, as well as FEM numerical modeling, are not the subject of this paper.

Keywords: Bolt assembly connection, cyclic loading, failure mechanisms, fatigue strength, steel structure, structural detail category, temporary railway bridge

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Authors: Vasiliki Vlachou, Christos Kontzinos, Ourania Markaki, Panagiotis Kokkinakos, Vagelis Karakolis, John Psarras

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Higher Education is resisting the pull of technology, especially as this concerns the issuance and verification of degrees and certificates. It is widely known that education certificates are largely produced in paper form making them vulnerable to damage while holders of such certificates are dependent on the universities and other issuing organisations. QualiChain is an EU Horizon 2020 (H2020) research project aiming to transform and revolutionise the domain of public education and its ties with the job market by leveraging blockchain, analytics and decision support to develop a platform for the verification and sharing of education certificates. Blockchain plays an integral part in the QualiChain solution in providing a trustworthy environment to store, share and manage such accreditations. Under the context of this paper, three prominent blockchain platforms (Ethereum, Hyperledger Fabric, Hyperledger Iroha) were considered as a means of experimentation for creating a system with the basic functionalities that will be needed for trustworthy degree verification. The methodology and respective system developed and presented in this paper used Hyperledger Iroha and proved that this specific platform can be used to easily develop decentralize applications. Future papers will attempt to further experiment with other blockchain platforms and assess which has the best potential.

Keywords: blockchain, degree verification, higher education certificates, Hyperledger Iroha

Procedia PDF Downloads 120

Authors: A. Flora, A. Di Lascio, D. Cardone, G. Gesualdi, G. Perrone

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This paper considers the seismic assessment and retrofit of a pilotis-type RC frame building, which was designed for gravity loads only, prior to the introduction of seismic design provisions. Pilotis-type RC frame buildings, featuring an uniform infill throughout the height and an open ground floor, were, and still are, quite popular all over the world, as they offer large open areas very suitable for retail space at the ground floor. These architectural advantages, however, are of detriment to the building seismic behavior, as they can determine a soft-storey collapse mechanism. Extensive numerical analyses are carried out to quantify and benchmark the performance of the selected building, both in terms of overall collapse capacity and expected losses. Alternative retrofit strategies are then examined, including: (i) steel jacketing of RC columns and beam-column joints, (ii) steel bracing and (iv) seismic isolation. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) of the selected case-study building, pre- and post-rehabilitation, is evaluated, following a probabilistic approach. The breakeven time of each solution is computed, comparing the initial cost of the retrofit intervention with expected benefit in terms of EAL reduction.

Keywords: expected annual loss, reinforced concrete buildings, seismic loss assessment, seismic retrofit

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Authors: J. Hrabovský, M. Chabičovský, J. Horský

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Water spray cooling is a technique typically used in heat treatment and other metallurgical processes where controlled temperature regimes are required. Water spray cooling is used in static (without movement) or dynamic (with movement of the steel plate) regimes. The static regime is notable for the fixed position of the hot steel plate and fixed spray nozzle. This regime is typical for quenching systems focused on heat treatment of the steel plate. The second application of spray cooling is the dynamic regime. The dynamic regime is notable for its static section cooling system and moving steel plate. This regime is used in rolling and finishing mills. The fixed position of cooling sections with nozzles and the movement of the steel plate produce nonhomogeneous water distribution on the steel plate. The length of cooling sections and placement of water nozzles in combination with the nonhomogeneity of water distribution leads to discontinued or interrupted cooling conditions. The impact of static and dynamic regimes on cooling intensity and the heat transfer coefficient during the cooling process of steel plates is an important issue. Heat treatment of steel is accompanied by oxide scale growth. The oxide scale layers can significantly modify the cooling properties and intensity during the cooling. The combination of the static and dynamic (section) regimes with the variable thickness of the oxide scale layer on the steel surface impact the final cooling intensity. The study of the influence of the oxide scale layers with different cooling regimes was carried out using experimental measurements and numerical analysis. The experimental measurements compared both types of cooling regimes and the cooling of scale-free surfaces and oxidized surfaces. A numerical analysis was prepared to simulate the cooling process with different conditions of the section and samples with different oxide scale layers.

Keywords: heat transfer coefficient, numerical analysis, oxide layer, spray cooling

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Authors: Atef A. Ata, Sohair F. Rezeka, Ahmed El-Shenawy, Mohammed Diab

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Image processing in today’s world grabs massive attentions as it leads to possibilities of broaden application in many fields of high technology. The real challenge is how to improve existing sorting system applications which consists of two integrated stations of processing and handling with a new image processing feature. Existing color sorting techniques use a set of inductive, capacitive, and optical sensors to differentiate object color. This research presents a mechatronics color sorting system solution with the application of image processing. A 5-DOF robot arm is designed and developed with pick and place operation to be main part of the color sorting system. Image processing procedure senses the circular objects in an image captured in real time by a webcam attached at the end-effector then extracts color and position information out of it. This information is passed as a sequence of sorting commands to the manipulator that has pick-and-place mechanism. Performance analysis proves that this color based object sorting system works very accurate under ideal condition in term of adequate illumination, circular objects shape and color. The circular objects tested for sorting are red, green and blue. For non-ideal condition, such as unspecified color the accuracy reduces to 80%.

Keywords: robotics manipulator, 5-DOF manipulator, image processing, color sorting, pick-and-place

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Authors: Z. Abdullah, A. R. Hamdan

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Clustering is a process of grouping objects and data into groups of clusters to ensure that data objects from the same cluster are identical to each other. Clustering algorithms in one of the areas in data mining and it can be classified into partition, hierarchical, density based, and grid-based. Therefore, in this paper, we do a survey and review for four major hierarchical clustering algorithms called CURE, ROCK, CHAMELEON, and BIRCH. The obtained state of the art of these algorithms will help in eliminating the current problems, as well as deriving more robust and scalable algorithms for clustering.

Keywords: clustering, unsupervised learning, algorithms, hierarchical

Procedia PDF Downloads 868

Authors: Ali Ahmed Ali Al-Juboori, H. Zhu, D. Wexler, H. Li, C. Lu, J. McLeod, S. Pannila, J. Barnes

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A number of studies have focused on the formation mechanics of white etching layer and its origin in the railway operation. Until recently, the following hypotheses consider the precise mechanics of WELs formation: (i) WELs are the result of thermal process caused by wheel slip; (ii) WELs are mechanically induced by severe plastic deformation; (iii) WELs are caused by a combination of thermo-mechanical process. The mechanisms discussed above lead to occurrence of white etching layers on the area of wheel and rail contact. This is because the contact patch which is the active point of the wheel on the rail is exposed to highest shear stresses which result in localised severe plastic deformation; and highest rate of heat caused by wheel slipe during excessive traction or braking effort. However, if the WELs are not on the running band area, it would suggest that there is another cause of WELs formation. In railway system, particularly electrified railway, arcing phenomenon has been occurring more often and regularly on the rails. In electrified railway, the current is delivered to the train traction motor via contact wires and then returned to the station via the contact between the wheel and the rail. If the contact between the wheel and the rail is temporarily losing, due to dynamic vibration, entrapped dirt or water, lubricant effect or oxidation occurrences, high current can jump through the gap and results in arcing. The other resources of arcing also include the wheel passage the insulated joint and lightning on a train during bad weather. During the arcing, an extensive heat is generated and speared over a large area of top surface of rail. Thus, arcing is considered another heat source in the rail head (rather than wheel slipe) that results in microstructural changes and white etching layer formation. A head hardened (HH) rail steel, cut from a curved rail truck was used for the investigation. Samples were sectioned from a depth of 10 mm below the rail surface, where the material is considered to be still within the hardened layer but away from any microstructural changes on the top surface layer caused by train passage. These samples were subjected to electrical discharges by using Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW) machine. The arc current was controlled and moved along the samples surface in the direction of travel, as indicated by an arrow. Five different conditions were applied on the surface of the samples. Samples containing pre-existed WELs, taken from ex-service rail surface, were also considered in this study for comparison. Both simulated and ex-serviced WELs were characterised by advanced methods including SEM, TEM, TKD, EDS, XRD. Samples for TEM and TKFD were prepared by Focused Ion Beam (FIB) milling. The results showed that both simulated WELs by electrical arcing and ex-service WEL comprise similar microstructure. Brown etching layer was found with WELs and likely induced by a concurrent tempering process. This study provided a clear understanding of new formation mechanics of WELs which contributes to track maintenance procedure.

Keywords: white etching layer, arcing, brown etching layer, material characterisation

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Authors: Omer Ibrahim Abdallh Omer

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Cancer patients often face complex medication regimens, leading to challenges in treatment adherence and clinical outcomes. Pharmacist-led medication therapy management (MTM) has emerged as a potential solution to optimize medication use and improve patient outcomes in oncology settings. In this prospective intervention study, we aimed to evaluate the impact of pharmacist-led MTM on treatment adherence and clinical outcomes among cancer patients. Participants were randomized to receive either pharmacist-led MTM or standard care, with assessments conducted at baseline and follow-up visits. Pharmacist interventions included medication reconciliation, adherence counseling, and personalized care plans. Our findings reveal that pharmacist-led MTM significantly improved medication adherence rates and clinical outcomes compared to standard care. Patients receiving pharmacist interventions reported higher satisfaction levels and perceived value in pharmacist involvement in their cancer care. These results underscore the critical role of pharmacists in optimizing medication therapy and enhancing patient-centered care in oncology settings. Integration of pharmacist-led MTM into routine cancer care pathways holds promise for improving treatment outcomes and quality of life for cancer patients.

Keywords: cancer, medications adherence, medication therapy management, pharmacist

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Authors: Alif Nur Irvan, M. Varaby Wahyu

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Indonesia is a country that have a lot of natural resources and as one of the most populous people in the world. In the last few years, the world economic is growing rapid, and then Indonesia must be able to develop his economy like the other country. The number of graduates in Indonesia always increase every year and the employment in Indonesia is getting decreased, this situation leads to rise unemployment in Indonesia. Limited employment makes people look for the ways to live decently. From this situation, entrepreneurs become an alternative in Indonesia to develop the economy. Being an entrepreneur means being able to find opportunities to utilize existing resources to take advantage of these opportunities. With the increasing number of entrepreneurs in Indonesia can increase employment, improve the quality of life, income distribution, utilize and mobilize resources to improve national productivity, and improve the welfare of government. The main sources for economic growth are the investments that improve the quality of capital or human resources, which in turn managed to increase the quantity of productive resources and can raise the productivity of all resources through new discoveries, innovations, creativity and technological progress. This paper is talking about the topic, discussions, and it offers the solutions to support entrepreneurs in Indonesia, and also talk about entrepreneurial problems that occurred in Indonesia, and the right solution to solve the problems of entrepreneurship in Indonesia and also discusses the role of government to support entrepreneurship to encourage the economy in Indonesia.

Keywords: entrepreneurship, economy, employment, government

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Authors: Kashi Raj Pandey

Abstract:

Transformative learning is a form of learning rooted in learners' life experiences and their inherent love for learning. It emphasizes the importance of incorporating students' everyday work through the use of learning diaries and reflective journals. It encourages learners to take a proactive role in their own improvement, fostering creativity and promoting informed discussions about the learning process. Reflecting on the personal experience with English language learning in a rural village in Nepal where rote memorization was the prevailing teaching method, this traditional approach hindered a deeper understanding of the language, prompting the author to recognize the need for more effective pedagogy. In this study, the author delved into the cultural contextualization of English language learning, taking into account learners' backgrounds. The study’s findings highlighted the importance of equity, inclusion, mutuality, and social justice in the classroom, emphasizing the significance of integrating students' lived experiences into the pedagogical approach. This, in turn, can encourage students to engage in profound and collaborative learning practices within the realm of English language education. Upon successfully implementing the research findings, including the eight key conditions of transformative learning, in multiple classrooms, the author collaborated with international educationists and government stakeholders in Nepal. The purpose was to disseminate the research findings, conduct teacher training workshops, and systematically enhance Nepali students’ English language learning. These methods have already demonstrated a significant improvement in student engagement within the same school where the author once learned English as a child. This study aims to explore teachers’ decision-making process regarding the transition from traditional teaching methods to interactive ones, which have gained national recognition within the ESL/EFL teaching community in Nepal. By sharing these experiences, it is expected that other teachers will also contemplate adopting transformative learning pedagogy in their own classrooms.

Keywords: reflection, student engagement, pedagogy, transformative learning

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Authors: Tawar Mahmoodzadeh

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Today soil contamination is an unavoidable issue; Irrespective of environmental impact, which happens during the soil contaminating and remediating process, the influence of this phenomenon on soil has not been searched thoroughly. In this study, unconfined compression and compaction tests were done on samples, contaminated and treated soil after 50 days of bio-treatment. The results show that rising in the amount of oil, cause decreased optimum water content and maximum dry density and increased strength. However, almost 65% of this contamination terminated by using a Bioremer as a bioremediation agent.

Keywords: oil contamination soil, shear strength, compaction, bioremediation

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Authors: Suparmi, Israhnanto Isradji, Dina Fatmawati, Iwang Yusuf

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Kepel (Stelechocarpus burahol) is one of the traditional plants originating from Indonesia that can be used to prevent pregnancy, launched urine and kidney inflammation. Kepel pulp has compounds alkaloid, triterpenoid, tannin, saponin, and flavonoid, when used will give the hormonal and cytotoxic effect. This study was aimed at evaluating ethanol extract of kepel in vivo for anti-implantation activities. In this experimental study with post test only control group design, 20 female mice were randomly divided into 4 groups. It was divided into the control, the 0,65 mg dose, 1,3 mg dose, and 3,6 mg dose of kepel pulp extract group. The extract soluted in DMSO’s solution and was given 1 ml per mice. The extract was given 10 days before copulation until 18 days of pregnancy. Then, the number of implantation, presence of fetus, and embrio resorbtion were recorded and used to calculate the percentage anti-implantation effect. The results were tested by One-way ANOVA. The mean number of implantation in group control, 0,65 mg;1,3 mg; and 2,6 mg were 5,60±1,14; 6,20± 1,64; 7,60±1,51; 8,00± 1,58, respectively. One way Annova test showed that there is no significant difference in the number of implantation between the group (p > 0,05). The administration of kepel pulp ethanol extract had no effect on the percentage anti-implantation effect and the number of and embrio resorbtion.

Keywords: antiimplantation, fetus, Stelechocarpus burahol, flavonoid

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Authors: Z. Ezzouine, A. Nakheli

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This paper presents a high position electromagnetic sensor system (HPESS) that is applicable for moving object detection. The authors have developed a high-performance position sensor prototype dedicated to students’ laboratory. The challenge was to obtain a highly accurate and real-time sensor that is able to calculate position, length or displacement. An electromagnetic solution based on a two coil induction principal was adopted. The HPESS converts mechanical motion to electric energy with direct contact. The output signal can then be fed to an electronic circuit. The voltage output change from the sensor is captured by data acquisition system using LabVIEW software. The displacement of the moving object is determined. The measured data are transmitted to a PC in real-time via a DAQ (NI USB -6281). This paper also describes the data acquisition analysis and the conditioning card developed specially for sensor signal monitoring. The data is then recorded and viewed using a user interface written using National Instrument LabVIEW software. On-line displays of time and voltage of the sensor signal provide a user-friendly data acquisition interface. The sensor provides an uncomplicated, accurate, reliable, inexpensive transducer for highly sophisticated control systems.

Keywords: electromagnetic sensor, accurately, data acquisition, position measurement

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Authors: A. Prajapati, K. L. Koo, F. Ghassemi, M. Mulimakwenda

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In the UK, as the volume of non-linear loads connected to transmission grid continues to rise steeply, the harmonic distortion levels on transmission network are becoming a serious concern for the network owners and system operators. This paper outlines the findings of the study conducted to verify the proposal that the harmonic mitigation could be optimized and can be managed economically and effectively at the transmission network level by the Transmission Owner (TO) instead of the individual polluter connected to the grid. Harmonic mitigation studies were conducted on selected regions of the transmission network in England for recently connected offshore wind power plants to strategize and optimize selected harmonic filter options. The results – filter volume and capacity – were then compared against the mitigation measures adopted by the individual connections. Estimation ratios were developed based on the actual installed and optimal proposed filters. These estimation ratios were then used to derive harmonic filter requirements for future contracted connections. The study has concluded that a saving of 37% in the filter volume/capacity could be achieved if the TO is to centrally manage the harmonic mitigation instead of individual polluter installing their own mitigation solution.

Keywords: C-type filter, harmonics, optimization, offshore wind farms, interconnectors, HVDC, renewable energy, transmission owner

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Authors: Matthew Lee Turnbough

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In 2007 Spain began to experience the effects of a deep economic crisis, which would generate a situation characterised by instability and uncertainty. This has been an obstacle, especially acute for the youth of this country seeking to enter the workforce. As a result of the impact of COVID-19, the youth in Spain are now suffering the effects of a new crisis that has deepened an already fragile labour environment. In this paper, we analyse the discourses that have emerged from a precarious labour market, specifically from two companies dedicated to operating job portals and job listings in Spain, Job Today, and CornerJob. These two start-up businesses have developed mobile applications geared towards young adults in search of employment in the service sector, two of the companies with the highest user rates in Spain. Utilizing a discourse analysis approach, we explore the impact of individualization and how the process of psychologization may contribute to an increasing reliance on individual solutions to social problems. As such, we seek to highlight the expectations and demands that are placed upon young workers and the type of subjectivity that this dynamic could foster, all this within an unstable framework seemingly marked by chance, a context which is key for the emergence of individualization. Furthermore, we consider the extent to which young adults incorporate these discourses and the strategies they employ basing our analysis on the VULSOCU (New Forms of Socio-Existential Vulnerability, Supports, and Care in Spain) research project, specifically the results of nineteen in-depth interviews and three discussion groups with young adults in this country. Consequently, we seek to elucidate the argumentative threads rooted in the process of individualization and underline the implications of this dynamic for the young worker and his/her labour insertion while also identifying manifestations of the goddess of fortune as a representation of chance in this context. Finally, we approach this panorama of social change in Spain from the perspective of the individuals or young adults who find themselves immersed in this transition from one crisis to another.

Keywords: chance, crisis, discourses, individualization, work, youth

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Authors: Ezaldin A. M. Mohammed, Youssef K. H. Abdalhafid, Masoud. M. Zatout

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The study aims to clarify the toxic effect of plant hormones, which are widely used in agriculture. One of these is the plant hormones (indole acetic acid); has been ٳata hormone to rats at 100 ppm salt solution of 0.2 per day after day for a period of forty days before conception until the fourteenth day or sixteenth or childbirth. Treatment brought about a marked shortage in the rate of increase in the weight of mice., And a percentage of the weight of the liver there was a distinct increase in the relative weight of the liver. As well as the increase in pathological changes and increase the size of the nuclei and Kupffer cell, as noted widespread and dense clusters of inflammatory cells accompanied by about the erosion of liver tissue and blood ٳrchah. Biochemical analyzes showed a marked decrease of the liver in antioxidant enzymes and an increase in the rate of free radicals. It was also noted an increase in cases of abortion. The owner of so many birth defects. It was also noted the lack of body weight in fetuses and increase the absorption rate of embryos in fetuses of mothers treatment compared to the control group. Showed microscopic examinations of the liver of mice born in the transaction and the decay in the presence of hepatic cells and edema, blood vessels and increase the rate of cell death.

Keywords: indol acetic acid, liver, pathological changes, albino rats

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Authors: Kathleen Frances Haigh, Mieke Nieder-Heitmann, Somayeh Farzad, Mohsen Ali Mandegari, Johann Ferdinand Gorgens

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Lignocellulose can be converted to a range of biochemicals and biofuels. Where this is derived from agricultural waste, issues of competition with food are virtually eliminated. One such source of lignocellulose is the South African sugar industry. Lignocellulose could be accessed by changes to the current farming practices and investments in more efficient boilers. The South African sugar industry is struggling due to falling sugar prices and increasing costs and it is proposed that annexing a biorefinery to a sugar mill will broaden the product range and improve viability. Process simulations of the selected chemicals were generated using Aspen Plus®. It was envisaged that a biorefinery would be annexed to a typical South African sugar mill. Bagasse would be diverted from the existing boilers to the biorefinery and mixed with harvest residues. This biomass would provide the feedstock for the biorefinery and the process energy for the biorefinery and sugar mill. Thus, in all scenarios a portion of the biomass was diverted to a new efficient combined heat and power plant (CHP). The Aspen Plus® simulations provided the mass and energy balance data to carry out an economic assessment of each scenarios. The net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR) and minimum selling price (MSP) was calculated for each scenario. As a starting point scenarios were generated to investigate the production of ethanol, ethanol and lactic acid, ethanol and furfural, butanol, methanol, and Fischer-Tropsch syncrude. The bypass to the CHP plant is a useful indicator of the energy demands of the chemical processes. An iterative approach was used to identify a suitable bypass because increasing this value had the combined effect of increasing the amount of energy available and reducing the capacity of the chemical plant. Bypass values ranged from 30% for syncrude production to 50% for combined ethanol and furfural production. A hurdle rate of 15.7% was selected for the IRR. The butanol, combined ethanol and furfural, or the Fischer-Tropsch syncrude scenarios are unsuitable for investment with IRRs of 4.8%, 7.5% and 11.5% respectively. This provides valuable insights into research opportunities. For example furfural from sugarcane bagasse is an established process although the integration of furfural production with ethanol is less well understood. The IRR for the ethanol scenario was 14.7%, which is below the investment criteria, but given the technological maturity it may still be considered for investment. The scenarios which met the investment criteria were the combined ethanol and lactic acid, and the methanol scenarios with IRRs of 20.5% and 16.7%, respectively. These assessments show that the production of biochemicals from lignocellulose can be commercially viable. In addition, this assessment have provided valuable insights for research to improve the commercial viability of additional chemicals and scenarios. This has led to further assessments of the production of itaconic acid, succinic acid, citric acid, xylitol, polyhydroxybutyrate, polyethylene, glucaric acid and glutamic acid.

Keywords: biorefineries, sugar mill, methanol, ethanol

Procedia PDF Downloads 182